USS George F. Pierce

History
United States
Name	USS George F. Pierce
Namesake	Previous name retained
Builder	William G. Abbott
Completed	1914
Acquired	1 February 1918
Commissioned	1918
Decommissioned	17 March 1922
Fate	Sold 5 June 1922
Notes	Served as commercial cargo ship SS George F. Pierce 1914-1918
General characteristics
Type	Cargo ship
Tonnage	252 gross register tons
Length	121 ft 3 in (36.96 m)
Beam	24 ft (7.3 m)
Draft	8 ft 9 in (2.67 m)
Propulsion	Steam engine
Speed	12 knots

USS George F. Pierce (ID-648), sometimes reported as SP-648, ^[1] was a cargo ship that served in the United States Navy from 1918 to 1922.

George F. Pierce was built as the commercial wooden-hulled steam cargo and passenger ship SS George F. Pierce by William G. Abbott in 1914. In 1918, the U.S. Navy purchased her from the Milford and Philadelphia Freight Line Company of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, for use during World War I and assigned her the naval registry identification number (Id. No.) 648. ^[2] The Navy took delivery of her on 1 February 1918 at the Philadelphia Navy Yard, and she was commissioned as USS George F. Pierce (ID-648).

Assigned to the 4th Naval District, George F. Pierce served as a passenger ship and supply boat in the Philadelphia area for the next four years.

George F. Pierce was decommissioned on 17 March 1922. She was sold to L. N. Hearn of Milford, Delaware, on 5 June 1922.

Notes

1. The Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships at http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/g4/george_f_pierce.htm reports her naval registry number as the section patrol number 648, and NavSource repeats this at http://www.navsource.org/archives/12/170648.htm. However, the Naval History and Heritage Command Online Library of Selected Images at http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/shusn-no/spid0600.htm lists as having the naval registry identification number ID-648. Many non-patrol-type vessels were initially given "SP" numbers which later were changed to "ID" numbers, and George F. Pierce likely is one of these.
2. See note 1.

References

• This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships .The entry can be found here.
• Department of the Navy Naval History and Heritage Command Online Library of Selected Images: U.S. Navy Ships -- Listed by Hull Number: ID # 648George F. Pierce at "SP" #s and "ID" #s -- World War I Era Patrol Vessels and other Acquired Ships and Craft numbered from SP-600 through SP-699
• NavSource Online: Section Patrol Craft Photo Archive Kiowa (SP 648)