USS ''Cleo'' (SP-232) was a

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

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 service from 1917 to 1918. ''Cleo'' was built as a

civilian A civilian is a person who is not a member of an armed force. It is war crime, illegal under the law of armed conflict to target civilians with military attacks, along with numerous other considerations for civilians during times of war. If a civi ...

motorboat A motorboat or powerboat is a boat that is exclusively powered by an engine; faster examples may be called "speedboats". Some motorboats are fitted with inboard engines, others have an outboard motor installed on the rear, containing the inter ...

of the same name in 1908 by Johnson at

Marine City, Michigan Marine City is a city in St. Clair County in the U.S. state of Michigan. Located on the west bank of the St. Clair River, it is one of the cities in the River District north of Detroit and south of Lake Huron. In the late 19th century, it was a m ...

. She was in the service of the Michigan State Game, Fish and Forestry Department when the U.S. Navy acquired her from the

State of Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

and placed her in service as USS ''Cleo'' (SP-232) in April 1917 for

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

service as a patrol vessel. Sources differ on whether she was commissioned or served in a non-commissioned status.As claimed by the ''Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships'' (at http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/c10/cleo.htm); NavSource Online (at http://www.navsource.org/archives/12/170232.htm) says merely that she was "placed in service," although this implies non-commissioned service. ''Cleo'' served on 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 ...

on the

Detroit River The Detroit River is an List of international river borders, international river in North America. The river, which forms part of the border between the U.S. state of Michigan and the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ont ...

and

St. Clair River The St. Clair River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed November 7, 2011 river in central North America which flows from Lake Huron into Lake St. Clair, forming part ...

in the vicinity of

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

. Michigan, for the remainder of World War I. The Navy returned ''Cleo'' to the Michigan State Game, Fish and Forestry Department in late November 1918.

Notes

References

*
Department of the Navy: Navy History and Heritage Command: Online Library of Selected Images: Civilian Ships: ''Cleo'' (American Motor Boat, 1908) Served as USS ''Cleo'' (SP-232) in 1917–1918
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cleo (SP-232) Patrol vessels of the United States Navy World War I patrol vessels of the United States Great Lakes ships Ships built in Marine City, Michigan 1908 ships