USS ''Chingachgook'' (SP-35) was a

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 ...

acquired by the

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 ...

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 outfitted as an armed

patrol craft 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 ...

for the

3d 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 Comman ...

and assigned to patrol

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 ...

waterways. After several months of operation by the Navy, an on-board gasoline explosion destroyed the craft.

A fast motorboat for the era

''Chingachgook'' – a fast () motorboat – was built in 1916 by the

Greenport Basin and Construction Company The Greenport Basin and Construction Company, known by various names throughout its history, but most recently named the Greenport Yacht & Shipbuilding Company, is a shipbuilder in Greenport, Suffolk County, New York. It was established in the 19th ...

of Greenport, Long Island, New York.

World War I service

Her owner – T. W. Brigham of Greenport – had her armed as a patrol craft as part of the preparedness movement then active in the United States. She was acquired by the Navy for World War I service in May 1917, and on 6 June 1917 she was placed in commission as USS ''Chingachgook'' (SP-35), named after James Fenimore Cooper's ''Last of the Mohicans'' character, and assigned to the

for patrol duty. The boat briefly performed patrol service in the

area, but on 31 July 1917 her gasoline tank exploded, injuring members of the crew and igniting the ship. A survey of 13 October found her hull worthless and beyond repair.

Decommissioning and disposal

Decommissioned at the beginning of October, her remains were disposed of by burning on 19 February 1918.

References

*
Chingachgook (American Motor Boat, 1916). Served as USS Chingachgook (SP-35) in 1917
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chingachgook World War I patrol vessels of the United States Motorboats of the United States Navy Ships built in Greenport, New York 1916 ships Maritime incidents in 1917 Ship fires