USCGC Cape Cross was a 95-foot (29 m) type "C" Cape-class cutter constructed at the Coast Guard Yard at Curtis Bay, Maryland in 1958 for use as a law enforcement and search and rescue patrol boat.

[3] The Cape-class cutter was designed originally for use as a shallow-draft anti-submarine warfare (ASW) craft and was needed because of the increased tension brought about by the Cold War.

In June 1965, she assisted in the unsuccessful search of a ditched U.S. Air Force C-121 aircraft east of Nantucket, Massachusetts.

On 2 May 1968, she responded to a distress call with USCGC Cape Horn from the fishing vessel Stella Maris 110 nmi (200 km) east of Nantucket and both cutters escorted her to Newport.

[1] In 1982, Cape Cross underwent a major renovation which included removing the four Cummins main drive engines and replacing them with two Detroit Diesel units.