USS ''Celeritas'' (SP-665) was a

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

patrol vessel A patrol boat (also referred to as a patrol craft, patrol ship, or patrol vessel) is a relatively small naval vessel generally designed for coastal defence, border security, or law enforcement. There are many designs for patrol boats, and they ...

in commission from 1917 to 1919. Designed by the firm of Swasey, Raymond, & Page, ''Celeritas'' was built as a private

motorboat A motorboat, speedboat or powerboat is a boat that is exclusively powered by an engine. Some motorboats are fitted with inboard engines, others have an outboard motor installed on the rear, containing the internal combustion engine, the gea ...

of the same name by Robert Jacobs at City Island in the

Bronx, New York The Bronx () is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state, state of New York (state), New York. It is south of Westchester County, New York, Westchester County; north and east of the ...

, in 1916 for David Goodrich for his use in commuting. Goodrich later sold her to R. B. Myer of

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. On 28 May 1917, the U.S. Navy purchased ''Celeritas'' from Myer for use as a

section patrol A Section Patrol Craft was a civilian vessel registered by the United States Navy for potential wartime service before, during, and shortly after World War I. Historical overview The SP/ID registration system In 1916, with World War I raging a ...

boat during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. She was commissioned on 29 May 1917 as USS ''Celeritas'' (SP-665). Assigned to the

2nd Naval District The naval district was a U.S. Navy military and administrative command ashore. Apart from Naval District Washington, the Districts were disestablished and renamed Navy Regions about 1999, and are now under Commander, Naval Installations Command ...

in southern

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...

, ''Celeritas'' carried out patrol duties for the rest of World War I. ''Celeritas'' was stricken from the

Navy Directory A Navy Directory, formerly the Navy List or Naval Register is an official list of naval officers, their ranks and seniority, the ships which they command or to which they are appointed, etc., that is published by the government or naval author ...

on 17 May 1919 and sold on 25 June 1919.

Notes

References

*
Department of the Navy Naval History and Heritage Command Online Library of Selected Images: Civilian Ships: ''Celeritas'' (American Motor Boat, 1916). Served as USS ''Celeritas'' (SP-665) in 1917–1919

{{DEFAULTSORT:Celeritas (SP-665) Patrol vessels of the United States Navy World War I patrol vessels of the United States Ships built in City Island, Bronx 1916 ships