USS Boy Scout (SP-53)

USS Boy Scout (SP-53), a wooden-hulled motorboat that served as a section patrol craft,[1] was the only ship of the United States Navy to be named for the Boy Scouts of America and by extension for Scouting throughout the world. Her keel was laid down in 1916 at Lynn, Massachusetts, by Britt Brothers.[2] She was acquired by the United States Navy from Albert Geiger, Jr., of Brookline, Massachusetts, and classified as a section patrol (SP) craft. Initially assigned to First Naval District New England, Boy Scout was given the hull classification symbol SP-53 and was shipped overseas for "aviation service" perhaps, in view of her speed, for use as a crash boat at a naval air station. However, records of her operations and ultimate fate have not survived. The edition of Ship's Data, U.S. Naval Vessels of 1 July 1920 described Boy Scout as "overseas" but did not state where, only adding the curious notation that she was "not definitely accounted for, and in the absence of further reports will not be listed hereafter."[3]

Boy Scout underway, circa 1916-1917.
History
United States
Laid down:	1916
Fate:	not definitely accounted for
General characteristics
Displacement:	9 tons
Length:	45 ft (14 m)
Beam:	9.25 ft (2.82 m)
Draught:	10.167 ft (3.099 m)
Propulsion:	none
Speed:	26 knots
Complement:	four officers and men
Armament:	one one-pounder cannon

References

1. ""SP" #s and "ID" #s -- World War I Era Patrol Vessels and other Acquired Ships and Craft". Naval Historical Center, U. S. Navy. 15 December 2006. Retrieved 11 May 2008.
2. "Boy Scout (American Motor Boat, 1916). Became USS Boy Scout (SP-53) in 1917". Naval Historical Center, U. S. Navy. 19 August 2004. Retrieved 11 May 2008.
3. Cressman, Robert J. (14 December 2005). "Boy Scout". Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. Naval Historical Center, U. S. Navy. Retrieved 11 May 2008.

This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.