USS Speedway
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| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | USS Speedway |
| Namesake | Previous name retained |
| Builder | Gas Engine & Power Company and Charles L. Seabury Company, Morris Heights, the Bronx, New York |
| Acquired | May 2, 1917 |
| Commissioned | May 3, 1917 |
| Fate | Returned to owner February 14, 1919 |
| Notes | Operated as private motorboat Speedway until 1917 and from 1919 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Patrol vessel |
| Tonnage | 15 gross register tons |
| Length | 52 ft (16 m) |
| Beam | 11 ft 3 in (3.43 m) |
| Draft | 3 ft (0.91 m) aft |
| Speed | 16 miles per hour[1] |
| Armament |
|
USS Speedway (SP-407) was a United States Navy patrol vessel in commission from 1917 to 1919.
Speedway was built as a private motorboat of the same name by the Gas Engine & Power Company and the Charles L. Seabury Company at Morris Heights in the Bronx, New York. On May 2, 1917, the U.S. Navy acquired her under a free lease from her owner, W. Blair of New York City, for use as a section patrol boat during World War I. She was commissioned as USS Speedway (SP-407) on May 3.
Speedway served on patrol duties along the Mid-Atlantic coast of the United States through the end of World War I. The Navy returned her to her owner on February 14, 1919.
Notes[edit]
- ^ The Dictionary of American Naval Fightings Ships at http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/s16/speedway.htm and NavSource Online at http://www.navsource.org/archives/12/170407.htm both give Speedway's speed in miles per hour, an unusual way to measure the speed of a watercraft. It may be that the boat's speed actually was 16 knots. If 16 miles per hours is correct, the equivalent in knots is 13.9.
References[edit]
- This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
- NavSource Online: Section Patrol Craft Photo Archive: Speedway (SP 407)