 Dawn as a private pleasure craft sometime between 1914 and 1917, prior to her U.S. Navy service | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | USS Dawn |
| Namesake | Previous name retained |
| Builder | Hehre and Aker, Clason Point, The Bronx, New York |
| Completed | 1914 |
| Acquired | 19 June 1917 |
| Commissioned | 19 June 1917 |
| Fate | Returned to owner 4 April 1918 |
| Notes | Operated as private motorboat Dawn 1914-1917 and from 1918 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Repair boat |
| Length | 51 ft (16 m) |
| Installed power | 60-horsepower (0.045-megawatt) gasoline engine; 20-horsepower (0.015-megawatt) electric motor |
| Propulsion | Electric drive, with gasoline engine driving generator to power electric motor; one shaft |
| Speed | 9 knots |
Note: This ship should not be confused with USS Dawn (SP-37), a yawl ordered delivered to the United States Navy in 1917 but never commissioned into service.
The second USS Dawn (SP-26) was a motorboat that served in the United States Navy as a repair boat from 1917 to 1918.
Dawn was built in 1914 by Hehre and Aker at Clason Point in The Bronx, New York, as a private motorboat of the same name. The U.S. Navy acquired her from her owner, W. T. Donnelley of Brooklyn, New York, on 19 June 1917 for World War I service as a repair boat, deeming her electric-drive propulsion plant suitable for furnishing electric power for lighting, machine shop work, or repairs. She was commissioned as USS Dawn (SP-26) on 19 June 1917, the day of her acquisition from Donnelley.
Dawn was assigned to the 2nd Naval District. Apparently she did not prove satisfactory in service, for a January 1918 U.S. Navy note commented that the Navy had decided to return her to her owner.
The Navy returned Dawn to Donnelley on 4 April 1918.
