The first USS ''Barney'' (Torpedo Boat No. 25/TB-25/Coast Torpedo Boat No. 11) was laid down on 3 January 1900 at
Bath, Maine, by the
Bath Iron Works; launched on 28 July 1900 and sponsored by Miss Esther Nicholson Barney, great-granddaughter of
Commodore Joshua Barney
Joshua Barney (6 July 1759 – 1 December 1818) was an American Navy officer who served in the Continental Navy during the Revolutionary War and as a captain in the French Navy during the French Revolutionary Wars. He later achieved the rank o ...
; and placed in commission at the Naval Torpedo Station,
Newport, Rhode Island, on 21 October 1901.
On 6 November 1901, the
torpedo boat put to sea for a voyage to
Port Royal, South Carolina but upon her arrival there, went into reserve. The following year, she returned to active service on the North Atlantic station and participated in maneuvers and exercises along the eastern seaboard and in the
West Indies. On 19 February 1903, ''Barney'' was placed in reserve at
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk ( ) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in Virginia after neighboring Virginia Be ...
. As a unit of the Reserve Torpedo Flotilla between 1903 and 1908, she remained inactive there but for brief periods underway to check out her machinery and
torpedo equipment.
On 1 July 1908, the torpedo boat returned to full commission and cruised off the east coast as a unit of the 3d Torpedo Flotilla. On 18 October 1908 she had a minor collision in dense fog with in the area of Norfolk, Virginia resulting in slight damage to both vessels.
The following December, she rejoined the Reserve Torpedo Flotilla at Norfolk. In August 1909, the warship moved to
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...
, but remained in reserve. From 1911 to 1914, she was based at
Annapolis, Maryland
Annapolis ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Maryland and the county seat of, and only incorporated city in, Anne Arundel County. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east o ...
, as a training ship for
US Naval Academy midshipmen
A midshipman is an officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Canada (Naval Cadet), Australia, Bangladesh, Namibia, New Zealand, South Afr ...
. She also cruised in the
Potomac River on occasion to train members of the
District of Columbia Naval Militia. At the end of February 1916, ''Barney'' moved to the
Philadelphia Navy Yard. On 9 March 1916, she was placed in ordinary at
Philadelphia; and, on 21 November, she was decommissioned.
Towed to Charleston, South Carolina, in May 1917, the torpedo boat was recommissioned there on 1 September 1917. Soon thereafter, ''Barney'' moved to Norfolk where she served as a patrol vessel in the lower reaches of
Chesapeake Bay. On 1 August 1918, her name was changed to ''Coast Torpedo Boat No. 11'' so that the name ''Barney'' could be assigned to . Ordered to the
Philadelphia Navy Yard early in 1919, she arrived there on 27 January 1919. On 11 March 1919, the small warship was placed out of commission for the last time. Her name was struck from the
Navy list on 28 October 1919 and she was sold to the
U.S. Rail and Salvage Company,
Newburgh, New York, on 19 July 1920.
References
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*''Additional technical data from''
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Barney (TB-25)
Torpedo boats of the United States Navy
Ships built in Bath, Maine
1900 ships