City of Lewes docks in First Town

A vessel by the name of the City of Lewes was built as a commercial fishing boat in 1912 by W.G. Abbott in Milford. In May 1917, the U.S. Navy purchased her for use as a minesweeper and patrol vessel during World War I. She was commissioned as U.S.S. City of Lewes May 12, 1917. This image was likely made prior to the U.S. Navy’s purchase. 

After fitting out as a minesweeper, Lewes departed Philadelphia in August 1917 bound for Brest, France, which she reached in September. Following voyage repairs, she took up patrol and convoy escort duties, which she pursued for the remainder of World War I. She also engaged in minesweeping to keep shipping channels free of German naval mines, and she continued minesweeping work after the end of the war and into 1919. The City of Lewes was decommissioned in September 1919 and sold.

According to Naval History and Heritage Command (history.navy.mil), the City of Lewes was shortened to the U.S.S. Lewes by a Navy Department general order in July 1917. The website also describes the Lewes and similar boats as “menhaden fisherman type of converted minesweepers.”

Limited information about the City of Lewes can also be found at the NavSource Naval History website at www.navsource.org.