The USS Blakely (Torpedo Boat No. 27/TB-27/Coast Torpedo Boat No. 13) was an early 20th-century United States Navy torpedo boat constructed by George Lawley & Son in South Boston, Massachusetts. Laid down on January 12, 1899, and launched on November 22, 1900, she was commissioned into service on December 27, 1904. Named after Johnston Blakeley, a commander of the USS Wasp, the vessel was designed to serve as a fast, agile craft capable of torpedo attacks. Following her commissioning, Blakely completed dock trials at the Boston Navy Yard and was subsequently fitted out at Newport, Rhode Island, where she received ordnance and electrical equipment at the torpedo station. She participated in routine drills, exercises, and port visits along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts as part of the 3rd Torpedo Flotilla of the Atlantic Fleet. Her early service was characterized by periods of active duty interspersed with short terms in reserve, with her first decommissioning occurring around February 1907. She was recommissioned in January 1908 and again in May 1909, alternating between active service and reserve status at various locations including Norfolk, New York, and Charleston. Throughout her career, Blakely spent extensive time in reserve, often serving in support roles such as station craft at Narragansett Bay and the Newport Torpedo Station. On April 6, 1917, coinciding with the entry of the United States into World War I, she was recommissioned and assigned to the Patrol Force, operating out of New London, Connecticut, to patrol the U.S. Atlantic coast waters. Her name was later canceled in August 1918 and reassigned to a new destroyer under construction, after which she was referred to as Coast Torpedo Boat No. 13. In early 1919, she was ordered to the Philadelphia Navy Yard for inactivation, decommissioned on March 8, 1919, and struck from the Navy list on October 7, 1919. The vessel was sold to the U.S. Rail & Salvage Corp. in Newburgh, New York, on March 10, 1920. The USS Blakely’s service exemplifies the early development and operational challenges of the U.S. Navy’s torpedo boat force during the pre-World War I era.

This description has been generated using GPT-4.1-NANO based on the Vessel's wikidata information and then modified by ShipIndex.org staff.