 Fish Hawk ca. 1900
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 U.S. Fish Commission | |
| Name | USFC Fish Hawk |
| Namesake | Fish hawk, an alternative name for the osprey, a diurnal, piscivorous bird of prey |
| Builder | Pusey and Jones Company, Wilmington, Delaware |
| Cost | US$45,000 (appropriated) |
| Launched | 13 December 1879[1] |
| Completed | 23 February 1880[1] |
| Commissioned | Spring 1880 |
| Homeport | Woods Hole, Massachusetts |
| Identification |
|
| Fate | Transferred to U.S. Navy 4 May 1898 |
| Acquired | Transferred from U.S. Navy 15 September 1898 |
| Fate | To U.S. Bureau of Fisheries 1903 |
  United States | |
| Name | USFS Fish Hawk |
| Namesake | Previous name retained |
| Acquired | From U.S. Fish Commission 1903 |
| Homeport | Woods Hole, Massachusetts |
| Fate | Transferred to U.S. Navy July 1898 |
| Acquired | From U.S. Navy 1 July 1919 |
| Decommissioned | January 1926 |
| United States Navy | |
| Name | USS Fish Hawk |
| Namesake | Previous name retained |
| Acquired | From U.S. Fish Commission 4 May 1898 |
| Commissioned | 4 May 1898 |
| Decommissioned | 15 September 1898 |
| Fate | Transferred to U.S. Fish Commission 15 September 1898 |
| Acquired | From U.S. Bureau of Fisheries July 1918 |
| Fate | Transferred to U.S. Bureau of Fisheries 1 July 1919 |
| General characteristics (as built) | |
| Type | Floating fish hatchery and fisheries research ship |
| Tonnage | |
| Displacement | 484 tons |
| Length |
|
| Beam | 27 ft (8.2 m)[4] |
| Depth of hold | 10 ft 9 in (3.3 m) (amidships)[4] |
| Propulsion | Steam, coal-fired, two screws |
| Sail plan | Fore-and-aft two-masted schooner rig |
| Crew | 84, plus up to 25 additional personnel on temporary assignment |
| General characteristics (as U.S. Navy vessel) | |
| Type | Armed steamer |
| Length | 156 ft 7 in (47.7 m) |
| Beam | 27 ft (8.2 m)[4] |
| Propulsion | Steam, coal-fired, two screws |
| Sail plan | Fore-and-aft two-masted schooner rig |
| Speed | 9 knots (17 km/h; 10 mph) |
| Crew | 45 |
| Armament | 6 x 1-pounder guns |
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USFC Fish Hawk was a fisheries science research ship operated by the United States Commission of Fish and Fisheries, commonly called the United States Fish Commission, from 1880 to 1903 and as USFS Fish Hawk by its successor, the United States Bureau of Fisheries, from 1903 1918 and from 1919 to 1926. She was the first large ship purpose-built by any country for the promotion of fisheries,[5] and spent her 46-year career operating along the United States East Coast, in the Gulf of Mexico, and off Puerto Rico.[5]
In addition to her fisheries service, Fish Hawk served in the United States Navy as USS Fish Hawk in 1898 during the Spanish–American War and from 1918 to 1919 during and in the immediate aftermath of World War I.
- ^ a b Report of the Commissioner, 1881, Appendix I, p. 3
- ^ Department of Commerce and Labor Bureau of Navigation, Forty-Third Annual List of Merchant Vessels of the United States With Official Numbers and Signal Letters and List of Vessels Belonging to the United States Government With Distinguishing Signals For the Year Ended June 30, 1911, Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1911, p. 101.
- ^ a b Report of the Commissioner, 1883, p. xxxiii.
- ^ a b c d e Report of the Commissioner, 1881, Appendix I, p. 4
- ^ a b NOAA History: R/V Fish Hawk 1880-1926