The United States Coast Guard wooden-hulled 75-foot patrol boats (also called "Six-Bitters") were built during Prohibition to help interdict alcohol smugglers ("rum runners").

During Prohibition, the U.S. Coast Guard had a need for picket boats to help intercept smugglers ferrying alcohol from offshore freighters to the mainland.

[3] A basic design for these ships was developed by naval architect Alfred Hansen of the Coast Guard Office of Construction and Repair and then the final design was completed in April 1924 by naval architect John Trumpy of the Mathis Yacht Building Company in Camden, New Jersey.

Sequoia II was completed soon after the Mathis Yacht Building Company finished construction of thirty Six-Bitters for the Coast Guard.

[5] The patrol vessels were designed to be operated by a crew of eight and were able to carry enough provisions and fuel for up to a week at sea.

[4] Another twenty-five patrol boats were built in Michigan[5] and intended for deployment on the Great Lakes.