The USS Elcano (PG-38) was a gunboat built in 1885 by the Carraca Arsenal at Cadiz, Spain. Originally serving in the Spanish Navy, she was stationed at the Port of Manila from September 1886. The vessel’s dimensions and specific physical features are not detailed in the provided source, but as a gunboat of her era, she would have been relatively small, designed for patrol and patrol duties in coastal and riverine environments. During the Spanish–American War, Elcano played an active role, notably capturing the American bark Saranac on February 26, 1898, which was carrying coal from Newcastle to Iloilo. She was also involved in the Battle of Manila Bay, where she was seized by American forces on May 1, 1898. The United States officially took ownership of the vessel on November 9, 1898, and subsequently refitted her at the Cavite Naval Yard in the Philippines for naval service. Commissioned into the U.S. Navy on November 20, 1902, as USS Elcano (Gunboat No. 38), she was commanded initially by Lieutenant Commander A.G. Winterhalter. Her primary duty was with the Yangtze Patrol, where she departed Manila in December 1902, joining other ex-Spanish vessels and a collier to form a flotilla tasked with protecting American interests in China. Although ill-suited for river patrol due to her ocean-going draft and limited power, Elcano operated from Shanghai until 1907, after which she returned to the Philippines and was decommissioned in November 1907. Reactivated in December 1910, she resumed patrol duties in China, serving at Amoy until World War I. During the war, she patrolled off Mariveles, Bataan, and Corregidor Island. Reassigned to Shanghai in 1920, Elcano participated in numerous skirmishes with Chinese warlords and pirates, and in 1927, she shelled Nanjing during the Nanking incident to protect American civilians. She also supported Marine landings and rescued refugees during the Northern Expedition. Elcano was reclassified as PG-38 in 1920 and continued her patrol duties until she was decommissioned on June 30, 1928. She ended her service as a receiving ship in Shanghai and was sunk on October 4, 1928, after being used for target practice, marking the end of her maritime career.

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