A Cold War-era naval vessel is slowly sinking in the Ohio River, and no one seems to know what to do with it. The YP-675’s journey to Owensboro is as murky as the waters it’s disappearing into, with its owner — a nonprofit mired in controversy and legal troubles — seemingly nowhere to be found. Abandoned and adrift, the ship’s fate has been left in limbo, leaving government agencies and concerned citizens scrambling for answers.
The ship is owned by the Louisville Naval Museum, also sometimes referred to as the Veterans Heritage Foundation. That nonprofit is led by Lewis Palmer, who could not be reached for comment prior to publication.
The YP-675’s troubled journey to Owensboro began in July 2024 when Victor Scoggin transferred ownership of the vessel to Palmer. According to Scoggin, the vessel – later named the R/V Eastern Surveyor once it became privately owned – was handed over to Palmer at Kentucky Dam Marina. A U.S. Coast Guard bill of sale dated August 12, 2024, confirms this transaction. Scoggin reported that Palmer’s team navigated the vessel downriver through the Kentucky Dam and towards the Ohio River.
By August 2024, the ship docked at English Park in Owensboro. However, City of Owensboro officials informed the owners that overnight docking was not permitted at English Park, especially with the Owensboro Air Show approaching. The Coast Guard subsequently moved upriver — it’s unclear who relocated the ship — and it ended up stationary in the Ohio River channel. The Indiana Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) later removed it from the navigational channel, pumped out water, and extracted hazardous materials.
“The vessel is now out of the navigational channel, and all pollutants have been pumped off,” said Lt. Steve Leightly, Sector Ohio Valley Chief of the U.S. Coast Guard’s Investigations Division. “It’s partially submerged, and we’ve tried contacting the owner to mark it with a light for safety, but there’s been no response. If they don’t comply, we’ll send a cutter to mark it and bill the owner for the cost.”
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has also been monitoring the situation.
“Our Regulatory Division has been coordinating with the Indiana Department of Natural Resources-Law Enforcement Division, which has taken the lead on resolving the situation,” said Katelyn C. Newton, Chief of Public Affairs for the Louisville District.
The YP-675’s sinking is the latest chapter in a series of controversies surrounding the Louisville Naval Museum and Palmer. The nonprofit has faced legal troubles in multiple states, including Maryland, where it was barred from conducting business by the Maryland Attorney General.
Ted Yadlowsky, who once worked with Palmer in Maryland, described the group’s operations as deceptive.
“They played everybody in Maryland with a different vessel,” Yadlowsky said. “The Attorney General in Maryland barred them from ever doing business up there. They robbed people of money and time, left vessels abandoned, and moved on to the next.”
Court documents support Yadlowsky’s claims. In August 2022, John P. Thomsen was awarded $468,584 in a civil judgment against the Louisville Naval Museum after being injured while volunteering aboard another vessel, the USS Ling, in New Jersey.
The P-520’s saga mirrors that of the YP-675. According to Donna Cole of Annapolis Creative, the P-520 was seized by U.S. Marshals in 2023 due to unpaid debts and mismanagement. Palmer’s group had acquired the vessel under the pretense of turning it into a museum ship, only for it to fall into disrepair and legal trouble, reports show.
Scoggin owned the YP-675 for more than a decade. He said the ship was once a naval training vessel before it was repurposed as a research vessel by the University of Rhode Island. He purchased the 80-foot, 90-ton vessel in 2011 and set sail for Nashville with the goal of making it available as a research vessel to university students, environmental activists, Boy Scout troops, and other interested parties.
“The boat was worth a half-million dollars and was in excellent shape when I donated it. It was Coast Guard-inspected every 2 years, fully documented, and seaworthy.”
Scoggin’s decision to donate the vessel came after repeated evictions from marinas on the Cumberland and Tennessee Rivers.
“I looked at their paperwork, and everything seemed legitimate,” Scoggin said of Palmer’s group. “But once the law enforcement started calling me about the boat in Owensboro, I realized I’d been duped.”
For now, the vessel remains partially submerged, with its future uncertain. The Coast Guard has no plans to salvage it, leaving that responsibility to state or local authorities.
“Until someone moves it out of the way, it will stay there,” Lt. Leightly said. “If it becomes a hazard to navigation, it will have to be coordinated through the state or the Army Corps of Engineers.”
Efforts by concerned individuals, including Yadlowsky, to salvage the vessel for educational purposes have so far been unsuccessful.
“We’re trying to get it pumped out one more time and moved to a legitimate museum in Illinois,” Yadlowsky said. “But without state intervention, it’s an uphill battle.”
For now, the partially submerged YP-675 floats across from the Owensboro shoreline, its stern dipping into the murky Ohio River, and its future uncertain.
