The second USS Elfin (SP-965) was a United States Navy patrol vessel in commission from 1917 to 1918.

USS Elfin (SP-965) operating ca. 1918.
History
United States
NameUSS Elfin
NamesakePrevious name retained
BuilderBritt Brothers, Lynn, Massachusetts
Completed1911
AcquiredJuly 1917
Commissioned26 July 1917
FateReturned to owner 22 November 1918
NotesOperated as private motorboat Elfin 1911-1917 and from 1918
General characteristics
TypePatrol vessel
Length50 ft 8 in (15.44 m)
USS Elfin (SP-965) in port during World War I.

Background edit

Elfin was built in 1911 as a private motorboat of the same name by Britt Brothers [Wikidata] at Lynn, Massachusetts. In July 1917, the U.S. Navy leased her from her owner, Alfred W. Gibbs of Wayne, Pennsylvania, for use as a section patrol boat during World War I. She was commissioned[1] as USS Elfin (SP-965) on 26 July 1917.

Assigned to the 4th Naval District, Elfin served on patrol duties through the end of World War I.

Elfin was returned to Gibbs on 22 November 1918.

Notes edit

  1. ^ The Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships' assertion that Elfin served in a non-commissioned status – repeated at NavSource Online: Section Patrol Craft Photo Archive Elfin (SP 965) – appears to have been in error, and Department of the Navy Naval History and Heritage Command Online Library of Selected Images: U.S. Navy Ships: USS Elfin (SP-965), 1917-1918 corrects the record with a specific commissioning date.

References edit