USS Chinook (SP-644)

History
United States
Name	USS Chinook
Namesake	Previous name retained
Acquired	1917
Commissioned	1917
Fate	Returned to owner February 1918
Notes	Operated as private motorboat Chinook until 1917 and from 1918
General characteristics
Type	Patrol vessel

The first USS Chinook (SP-644) was a United States Navy patrol vessel in commission from 1917 to 1918.

Chinook was built as a private motorboat of the same name. In 1917, the U.S. Navy acquired her from her owner for use as a section patrol boat during World War I. She was enrolled in the Naval Coast Defense Reserve on 19 October 1917 and commissioned as USS Chinook (SP-644) in 1917.

Chinook performed patrol duty on the Detroit River for four months and was returned to her owner in February 1918.

•  This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
• Department of the Navy Naval History and Heritage Command Online Library of Selected Images: U.S. Navy Ships -- Listed by Hull Number: SP-644 Chinook at "SP" #s and "ID" #s -- World War I Era Patrol Vessels and other Acquired Ships and Craft numbered from SP-600 through SP-699
• NavSource Online: Section Patrol Craft Photo Archive Chinook (SP 644)