Winona Kirk once served on the vessel and she brought a blanket from the ship that she used to wrap her son, James. Later, Kirk would take the blanket onto the USS Enterprise for sentimental purposes. (TOS novel: Devil's Bargain) This is one of a number of ships to be so named, followed by the Archer-class prototype USS Archer by the middle of the century. (VAN novel: Reap the Whirlwind)