 Absegami (U.S. Motor Boat, 1916) photographed circa 1916–1917. | |
| Career (USA) |  |
|---|---|
| Name: | USS Absegami |
| Namesake: | Name retained by the Navy |
| Owner: | Allen K. White, Atlantic City, New Jersey |
| Builder: | New York Yacht, Launch & Engine Company, New York City |
| Laid down: | date unknown |
| Launched: | date unknown |
| Christened: | as civilian motor boat Absegami |
| Completed: | 1916 at New York City |
| Acquired: | officially leased (free lease) by the Navy 2 May 1917 |
| Commissioned: | 30 April 1917 as USS Absegami (SP-371) at the Philadelphia Navy Yard |
| Decommissioned: | 2 December 1918 |
| Struck: | December 1918 (est.) |
| Homeport: |
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Cape May, New Jersey |
| Fate: | returned to her owner, 6 December 1918 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type: | Motorboat |
| Displacement: | not known |
| Length: | 75’ |
| Propulsion: | Gasoline engine |
| Speed: | 13 knots |
| Complement: | not known |
| Armament: |
One 1-pounder gun One AA machine gun |
USS Absegami (SP-371) was a motorboat acquired on a free lease by the United States Navy during World War I. She was outfitted as an armed patrol craft and assigned to patrol the Delaware River from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Cape May, New Jersey on the Delaware Bay. When the Navy found her excess to their needs, she was returned to her former owner.
Built in New York
Absegami (SP-371) was a motor boat built in 1916 at New York City by the New York Yacht, Launch & Engine Co.; acquired by the Navy on free lease from her owner, Allen K. White, Atlantic City, New Jersey, on 2 May 1917; and commissioned at the Philadelphia Navy Yard on 30 April 1917, Ensign W. G. Morse in command.
World War I service
Following her commissioning, Absegami was assigned to section patrol duty in the 4th Naval District. Throughout World War I, the boat patrolled the Delaware Bay and Atlantic Ocean waters off Cape May, New Jersey.
Decommissioning
Absegami was decommissioned at Philadelphia on 2 December 1918 and returned to her owner four days later.
See also
References
- This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
- USS Absegami (SP-371), 1917–1918. Originally the Civilian Motor Boat Absegami
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USS Absegami (SP-371) is at left center in this photograph of United States Navy patrol vessels at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on 15 January 1919. Astern of Absegami is a section patrol boat identified only as SP-1595 (left background). Across the pier are the submarine chaser USS SC-23 (right background), and an unidentified submarine chaser (right foreground).