 USS Josephine during World War I. | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Name: |
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| Namesake: |
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| Builder: | New York Yacht, Launch, and Engine Company, Morris Heights, the Bronx, New York |
| Completed: | 1916 |
| Acquired: | 9 August 1917 |
| Commissioned: | 20 September 1917 |
| Renamed: | USS SP-913 11 April 1918 |
| Fate: | Returned to owner 20 December 1918 |
| Notes: | Operated as civilian motorboat Josephine 1916-1917 and from December 1918 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type: | Patrol vessel |
| Length: | 60 ft (18 m) |
| Beam: | 13 ft 6 in (4.11 m) |
| Draft: | 3 ft 3 in (0.99 m) |
| Propulsion: | Gasoline engine |
| Armament: |
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The first USS Josephine (SP-913), later USS SP-913, was a United States Navy patrol vessel in commission from 1917 to 1918.
The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most capable navy in the world and it has been estimated that in terms of tonnage of its active battle fleet alone, it is larger than the next 13 navies combined, which includes 11 U.S. allies or partner nations. with the highest combined battle fleet tonnage and the world's largest aircraft carrier fleet, with eleven in service, and two new carriers under construction. With 319,421 personnel on active duty and 99,616 in the Ready Reserve, the Navy is the third largest of the service branches. It has 282 deployable combat vessels and more than 3,700 operational aircraft as of March 2018, making it the second-largest air force in the world, after the United States Air Force.
Josephine was built as a civilian motorboat of the same name in 1916 by the New York Yacht, Launch, and Engine Company at Morris Heights in the Bronx, New York. The U.S. Navy acquired her from her owner, L. A. Lehmaier, on 9 August 1917 for World War I service as a patrol vessel. She was commissioned as USS Josephine (SP-913) at the New York Navy Yard at Brooklyn, New York, on 20 September 1917 with Boatswain J. D. Cremin, USNRF, in command.
In general, a civilian is "a person who is not a member of the military or of a police or firefighting force". The definition distinguishes from persons whose duties involves risking their lives to protect the public at large from hazardous situations such as terrorism, riots, conflagrations, or wars. It also does not include "criminals" in the category, as authorities and the media wants to distinguish between those who are law-abiding and those who are not.
A motorboat, speedboat, or powerboat is a boat which is powered by an engine. Some motorboats are fitted with inboard engines, others have an outboard motor installed on the rear, containing the internal combustion engine, the gearbox and the propeller in one portable unit.
Morris Heights is a residential neighborhood located in the West Bronx. Its boundaries, starting from the north and moving clockwise are: West Burnside Avenue to the north, Jerome Avenue to the east, the Cross-Bronx Expressway to the south, and the Harlem River to the west. University Avenue is the primary thoroughfare through Morris Heights.
Attached to the 3rd Naval District, Josephine performed section patrol duty in the New York City area, including Long Island Sound. She was renamed USS SP-913 on 11 April 1918.
A Section Patrol craft was a civilian vessel registered by the United States Navy for potential wartime service before, during, and shortly after World War I.
The City of New York, usually called either New York City (NYC) or simply New York (NY), is the most populous city in the United States and in the U.S. state of New York. With an estimated 2017 population of 8,622,698 distributed over a land area of about 302.6 square miles (784 km2), New York is also the most densely populated major city in the United States. Located at the southern tip of the state of New York, the city is the center of the New York metropolitan area, the largest metropolitan area in the world by urban landmass and one of the world's most populous megacities, with an estimated 20,320,876 people in its 2017 Metropolitan Statistical Area and 23,876,155 residents in its Combined Statistical Area. A global power city, New York City has been described as the cultural, financial, and media capital of the world, and exerts a significant impact upon commerce, entertainment, research, technology, education, politics, tourism, art, fashion, and sports. The city's fast pace has inspired the term New York minute. Home to the headquarters of the United Nations, New York is an important center for international diplomacy.
Long Island Sound is a tidal estuary of the Atlantic Ocean, lying between the eastern shores of The Bronx, New York City, southern Westchester County, and Connecticut to the north, and the North Shore of Long Island, to the south. From west to east, the sound stretches 110 miles (177 km) from the East River in New York City, along the North Shore of Long Island, to Block Island Sound. A mix of freshwater from tributaries and saltwater from the ocean, Long Island Sound is 21 miles (34 km) at its widest point and varies in depth from 65 to 230 feet.
"Having proved unsuit(able)" [1] for naval service, on 6 July 1918 the Navy directed that SP-913 be returned to her owner. She was returned to Lehmaier on 20 December 1918.
Josephine (SP-913) should not be confused with two other patrol vessels, USS Josephine (SP-1243) and USS Josephine (SP-3295), which also were in commission in the U.S. Navy during World War I.
The second USS Josephine (SP-1243) was a United States Navy patrol vessel in commission from 1917 to 1918.
The third USS Josephine (SP-3295) was a United States Navy patrol vessel in commission from 1918 to 1919.
