In the mid-1930's, the U.S. War Department became convinced that a war with Japan was inevitable. The need for accurate charting of the coast of Alaska once again became important. H.C. Hanson, a noted naval architect in Bellingham, WA. furnished the plans and the government funded the building of two ships. One, the E. Lester Jones, was built in Astoria, OR, while our ship, the Patton (named for Raymond Stanton Patton, the recently deceased Superindent of the C&GS) was built by Sagstad Marine of Ballard. The winning bid was $149,995. After WWII, until their decommissioning in 1967, both vessels, E. Lester Jones and Patton, continued to survey for the C&GS in the Aleutians, Southeast Alaska, and along the BC coast (in conjunction with Canadian surveys).