Hampton I (S.P. 3049)
1918–1919
The first Hampton retained the name she carried at the time of her acquisition.
I
(S.P. 3049: tonnage 48; length 63'0"; beam 19'4"; depth 8'2"; draft 6'3"; speed 9.0 knots; complement 12)
Mary Lee, a single-screw wooden tug built in 1905 at Turkey Point, Va., by H. Turman, was renamed Hampton at some point prior to her being chartered by the U.S. Navy’s Bureau of Supplies and Accounts in 1918.
Hampton, circa 1905, her name in an ornate setting at her bow. Note the figure of an eagle mounted above the pilot house, a common decorative feature on board vessels of this type in this era. (Naval History and Heritage Command Photograph NH 100254)
Hampton was commissioned on 21 April 1918 and served on general harbor duty in Hampton Roads under the jurisdiction of the Fifth Naval District until being returned to her owner on 13 August 1919.
Updated, Robert J. Cressman
29 September 2020
