USCGC Duane

A 100 m Treasury-class US Coast Guard cutter scuttled 1 mile south of Molasses Reef off Key Largo on 27 November 1987 as an artificial reef. Commissioned in 1936, she escorted North Atlantic convoys in WWII, helped sink U-boat U-77, then served in Vietnam and on drug interdiction before retirement in 1985. The wreck sits perfectly upright on a sandy bottom at 37 m — the mast and crow's nest reach up to 18 m, the bridge sits at 23 m, and the main deck runs 27-30 m. Gulf Stream current along the outer reef line draws schooling barracuda, jacks, and resident goliath grouper sheltering under the stern; eagle rays and the occasional bull shark cruise the deeper sand. Added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2002. The visible flag at the masthead is the canonical photo subject.