USS ''Scandinavia'' (SP-3363) was a

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 in 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 ...

from 1918 to 1919, seeing service in

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 ...

. After her U.S. Navy service, she was in commission in the

United States Coast and Geodetic Survey The United States Coast and Geodetic Survey (abbreviated USC&GS), known from 1807 to 1836 as the Survey of the Coast and from 1836 until 1878 as the United States Coast Survey, was the first scientific agency of the United States Government. It ...

as the

survey Survey may refer to: Statistics and human research * Statistical survey, a method for collecting quantitative information about items in a population * Survey (human research), including opinion polls Spatial measurement * Surveying, the techniq ...

launch USC&GS ''Scandinavia'' from 1919.

Construction

''Scandinavia'' was built as a civilian

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 the G. T. Taylor Marine Railway at

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

, in 1916.Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships: Scandinavia
/ref>
/ref>

United States Navy service

The U.S. Navy acquired ''Scandinavia'' from Bie and Schiott of

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

, on either 3 or 5 October 1918 (sources disagree) for

service in the

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 ...

. The Navy commissioned her on 5 October 1918 as USS ''Scandinavia'' (SP-3363). The Navy assigned ''Scandinavia'' to duty with the

Naval Overseas Transportation Service Military Sealift Command (MSC) is an organization that controls the replenishment and military transport ships of the United States Navy. Military Sealift Command has the responsibility for providing sealift and ocean transportation for all US m ...

district supervisor at Baltimore for service as a

dispatch boat Dispatch boats were small boats, and sometimes large ships, tasked to carry military dispatches from ship to ship or from ship to shore or, in some cases from shore to shore. Dispatch boats were employed when other means of transmitting a message w ...

and

pilot boat A pilot boat is a type of boat used to transport maritime pilots between land and the inbound or outbound ships that they are piloting. Pilot boats were once sailing boats that had to be fast because the first pilot to reach the incoming ship ...

. She carried out these duties during the final five-and-a-half weeks of and for a few months in its immediate aftermath. On 21 May 1919, she was decommissioned, stricken from the

Navy list 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 ...

, and transferred to the

United States Coast and Geodetic Survey service

The U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey commissioned the vessel as USC&GS ''Scandinavia'' and placed her in service as a

launch.NOAA Photo Library: Coast and Geodetic Survey Launch SCANDINAVIA conducting wiredrag operations in Alaskan waters.
/ref>NOAA Photo Library: The launch SCANDINAVIA. Described as a fine launch but with quarters for only 3 men.
/ref> Photographs of ''Scandinavia'' during her Coast and Geodetic Survey career show her performing wire-drag operations in support of

hydrographic survey Hydrographic survey is the science of measurement and description of features which affect maritime navigation, marine construction, dredging, offshore oil exploration/offshore oil drilling and related activities. Strong emphasis is placed ...

work in the

Territory of Alaska The Territory of Alaska or Alaska Territory was an organized incorporated territory of the United States from August 24, 1912, until Alaska was granted statehood on January 3, 1959. The territory was previously Russian America, 1784–1867; the ...

in 1920 and operating in

Southeast Alaska Southeast Alaska, colloquially referred to as the Alaska(n) Panhandle, is the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of Alaska, bordered to the east and north by the northern half of the Canadian province of British Columbia (and a small part ...

in 1927.

References

External links

Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships: Scandinavia
*[https://photolib.noaa.gov/Collections/Sailing-For-Science/Boats/Boats-with-Names/emodule/575/eitem/12397 NOAA Photo Library: Coast and Geodetic Survey Launch SCANDINAVIA conducting wiredrag operations in Alaskan waters.]
NOAA Photo Library: The launch SCANDINAVIA. Described as a fine launch but with quarters for only 3 men.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Scandinavia (SP-3363) Patrol vessels of the United States Navy World War I patrol vessels of the United States Ships of the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey Ships transferred from the United States Navy to the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey Survey ships of the United States Ships built in Norfolk, Virginia 1916 ships