Albacore I (S.P. 751)
1917-1919
The first Albacore retained the name she carried prior to her acquisition.
I
(S.P. 751: tonnage (gross register) 14; 1ength 50'8" (overall); beam 9'6"; draft 4'10" (mean); speed 7.0 knots (maximum), 6.0 knots (cruising); complement 7; armament 1 1-pounder, 1 machine gun)
The first Albacore—a single-screw, wooden hull, cabin motor boat built in 1900 at San Diego, Calif., by Howard Bros.—was acquired by the Navy under a free lease from her owner, Bryant H. Howard of San Diego, and, given the identification number S.P. 751, was commissioned on 17 May 1917.
Assigned to the Twelfth Naval District, Albacore operated as a section patrol boat during the Great War [World War I] and alternated between patrol and guard duty at San Diego throughout the summer, rotating with Nomad (S.P. 1046). Beginning in December 1917, Albacore alternated between guard and patrol duty, rotating with Nomad, Normannia (S.P. 756), Rosa (S.P. 757), and occasionally Natalie Mae (S.P. 1005).
Ultimately, Albacore was returned to her owner on 6 January 1919.
Robert J. Cressman
14 February 2023
