Vivace (S.P. 583)
1917-1918
The Navy retained the name carried by this vessel at the time of her acquisition.
(S.P. 583: tonnage 66 (net); length118'0"; beam 12'0"; depth of hold 7'6"; draft 4'3" (aft); speed 22.0 knots; complement 12; armament 1 3-pounder, 1 1-pounder, 2 .30-caliber machine guns)
Vixen, a composite-construction, screw-steam yacht designed by the noted naval architect Charles L. Seabury, was built in 1904 at Morris Heights, N.Y., as a joint project of the firms of Charles L. Seabury Co. and the Gas Engine & Power Co.
Later renamed Vivace and owned by the firms that built her, the yacht was inspected by the Navy for possible use as a section patrol craft and was given the identification number S.P. 583.
"Enrolled and ordered delivered" on 18 June 1917, Vivace was commissioned on 20 September 1917 and was assigned to the Third Naval District. No deck logs for this vessel are extant; but it is reasonable to surmise that she conducted local patrol operations in that district. One must assume that such operations were interspersed with the usual maintenance, upkeep, and training evolutions common to ships of her type.
Listed as "out of commission" on 28 September 1918, Vivace was simultaneously stricken from the Navy List. She was ultimately sold to Marvin Briggs, Inc., of Brooklyn, N.Y., on 16 April 1919, for junk.
Updated, Robert J. Cressman
24 March 2023
