Defoe Shipbuilding Company as a Presidential Yacht. It was called the "Barbara Anne" by President Eisenhower after his granddaughter, the "Honey Fitz" by President Kennedy in honor of his maternal grandfather John Francis Fitzgerald, and the "Tricia" by President Nixon after his daughter. In 1941, the name of the company was changed to Defoe Shipbuilding Company. During World War II, all production went to the war effort. From 1939 to 1945, the company built 154 ships, including four s, 13 destroyer escorts, 11 destroyer transports (converted destroyer escorts), patrol craft, and numerous landing craft of various types. The brand-new Defoe family yacht even
A (motor yacht) can precede her in the list of the world’s greatest vessels". Once delivered, "A"'s maiden voyage took her to Kristiansand in southern Norway, where the new owners collected three Claude Monet paintings they had recently purchased. When completed, "A" was the sixth-largest privately owned motor yacht in the world, although by 2011 the construction of newer and larger vessels had relegated her from the top ten. "A" is powered by two MAN RK280 diesel engines providing approximately , sufficient to give the yacht a maximum speed of . At her cruising speed of she can cover in under sixteen days