USS Adams was a screw

Propeller

A propeller is a type of fan that transmits power by converting rotational motion into thrust. A pressure difference is produced between the forward and rear surfaces of the airfoil-shaped blade, and a fluid is accelerated behind the blade. Propeller dynamics can be modeled by both Bernoulli's...

 gunboat

Gunboat

A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies.-History:...

 and the lead ship of the Adams class.

Adams was built as a single screw, wooden-hull, bark-rigged steamer. The ship was laid down in February 1874 at Boston

Boston

Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...

, Massachusetts

Massachusetts

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...

, by Donald MacKay; and was launched on 24 October 1874. The new ship was commissioned on 21 July 1876 at the Boston Navy Yard

Boston Navy Yard

The Boston Navy Yard, originally called the Charlestown Navy Yard and later Boston Naval Shipyard, was one of the oldest shipbuilding facilities in the United States Navy. Established in 1801, it was officially closed as an active naval installation on July 1, 1974, and the property was...

, Comdr. John W. Philip in command.

North and South Atlantic, 1876–1878

Though initially assigned to the North Atlantic Station, Adams appears to have had no real mission on that station. She spent most of her time in a succession of ports getting ready for permanent assignment. She departed Boston on 6 August, visited Philadelphia between 9 August and 3 September, and then returned to sea, bound for the Norfolk

Norfolk, Virginia

Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....

-Hampton Roads

Hampton Roads

Hampton Roads is the name for both a body of water and the Norfolk–Virginia Beach metropolitan area which surrounds it in southeastern Virginia, United States...

 area. The warship tarried there from 6 September to 17 November at which time she got underway for Port Royal, South Carolina

Port Royal, South Carolina

Port Royal is a town in Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States. Largely because of annexation of surrounding areas , the population of Port Royal rose from 3,950 in 2000 to 10,678 in 2010, a 170% increase. As defined by the U.S...

. She arrived in Port Royal on 20 November and spent the winter of 1876 and 1877 there. On 9 March 1877, Adams headed back to Norfolk. She arrived there on the 12th and remained about five weeks.

On 21 April, the warship put to sea for duty on the South Atlantic Station

South Atlantic Station

The South Atlantic Station was one of the geographical divisions into which the British Royal Navy divided its worldwide responsibilities. It was formed from the former Cape of Good Hope Station.-History:...

. If her mission on the North Atlantic Station could be regarded as preparatory, her South Atlantic Station assignment might be called transitory. She arrived at Rio de Janeiro

Rio de Janeiro

Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...

, Brazil, on 2 June. Over the next three months, Adams operated along the Brazilian coast, performing one search mission in June and a survey operation in July. On 8 September, she stood out of Rio de Janeiro and headed south toward the Strait of Magellan

Strait of Magellan

The Strait of Magellan comprises a navigable sea route immediately south of mainland South America and north of Tierra del Fuego...

. Along the way, the warship called at Montevideo

Montevideo

Montevideo is the largest city, the capital, and the chief port of Uruguay. The settlement was established in 1726 by Bruno Mauricio de Zabala, as a strategic move amidst a Spanish-Portuguese dispute over the platine region, and as a counter to the Portuguese colony at Colonia del Sacramento...

 and Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...

. She arrived at the Strait of Magellan on 12 November and remained in the vicinity almost a month to be available to provide assistance to Chilean government officials at Sandy Point during a mutinous situation there. Adams resumed her voyage on 8 December and entered port at Valparaíso

Valparaíso

Valparaíso is a city and commune of Chile, center of its third largest conurbation and one of the country's most important seaports and an increasing cultural center in the Southwest Pacific hemisphere. The city is the capital of the Valparaíso Province and the Valparaíso Region...

, Chile, on the 14th.

Pacific Squadron, 1878–1882

On the first day of 1878, the warship stood out of Valparaíso bound for Callao

Callao

Callao is the largest and most important port in Peru. The city is coterminous with the Constitutional Province of Callao, the only province of the Callao Region. Callao is located west of Lima, the country's capital, and is part of the Lima Metropolitan Area, a large metropolis that holds almost...

 and to begin cruising on the Pacific Station

Pacific Squadron

The Pacific Squadron was part of the United States Navy squadron stationed in the Pacific Ocean in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Initially with no United States ports in the Pacific, they operated out of storeships which provided naval supplies and purchased food and obtained water from local...

. She stopped at Callao from 11 January to 5 February and reached Panama City

Panama City

Panama is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Panama. It has a population of 880,691, with a total metro population of 1,272,672, and it is located at the Pacific entrance of the Panama Canal, in the province of the same name. The city is the political and administrative center of the...

 on 21 February. Adams remained at Panama for three months. On 10 May, the ship embarked the Samoan plenipotentiary

Plenipotentiary

The word plenipotentiary has two meanings. As a noun, it refers to a person who has "full powers." In particular, the term commonly refers to a diplomat fully authorized to represent his government as a prerogative...

, la Mamea , who had just completed negotiations in Washington on a treaty of amity and commerce between the United States and his island kingdom, and she set sail to return him and his delegation to Samoa

Samoa

Samoa , officially the Independent State of Samoa, formerly known as Western Samoa is a country encompassing the western part of the Samoan Islands in the South Pacific Ocean. It became independent from New Zealand in 1962. The two main islands of Samoa are Upolu and one of the biggest islands in...

. Adams arrived in Apia harbor on 28 June and stayed for a month to participate in the requisite ceremonies and celebrations. Between 29 and 30 July, she made the transit from Apia to Pago Pago, the harbor the rights to which the United States had acquired as a result of the recent treaty. Adams returned to Apia for two weeks from 7 to 20 August and then got underway to return to the west coast of South America.

The warship arrived at Valparaíso, Chile, on 15 October and remained there until late November. On 21 November, Adams stood out of Valparaíso bound for Callao, Peru, where she arrived on 2 December for a two-month sojourn. She returned to sea on 5 February 1879 to voyage to Panama, reaching her destination on 14 February. After nearly three months at Panama, Adams headed back to Callao on 11 May and entered that port on the 20th. A week later, on the 27th, she stood out to sea and laid in a course to Panama on the first leg of a leisurely voyage up the coast via Punta Arenas in Costa Rica

Costa Rica

Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....

, La Unión, El Salvador

La Unión, El Salvador

La Unión is a municipality in the La Unión department of El Salvador.It is the capital city of the Department of its same name. It is the largest city in the department also with a population of almost 26,739 inhabitants. On January 16, 2005 the government of El Salvador started building a new...

, and Acapulco

Acapulco

Acapulco is a city, municipality and major sea port in the state of Guerrero on the Pacific coast of Mexico, southwest from Mexico City. Acapulco is located on a deep, semi-circular bay and has been a port since the early colonial period of Mexico’s history...

 and Mazatlán

Mazatlán

Mazatlán is a city in the Mexican state of Sinaloa; the surrounding municipio for which the city serves as the municipal seat is Mazatlán Municipality. It is located at on the Pacific coast, across from the southernmost tip of the Baja California peninsula.Mazatlán is a Nahuatl word meaning...

 in Mexico

Mexico

The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

. On 19 July, the warship arrived in San Francisco and, two days later, began a lengthy period of repairs at the Mare Island Navy Yard.

Adams concluded her long stay at Mare Island on 3 February 1880. She made the short trip back to San Francisco that same day and began preparations to return to duty on the Pacific Station. The warship put to sea again on 21 February and headed south. Voyaging by way of Pichilinque Bay and Mazatlan in Mexico, Adams arrived at the Gulf of Dulce

Gulf of Dulce

Gulf of Dulce is an inlet in Costa Rica, located at . The inlet starts on the Pacific Ocean side of Costa Rica and extends slightly northward before turning west. The most westward part is at the city of Rincon. The [bay separates the Osa Peninsula from the mainland Costa Rica....

 in Costa Rica on 29 February and set about establishing a coaling point for ships serving on the Pacific Station. After completing that mission, the warship cruised on station between Costa Rica and Peru until the summer of 1881. On 11 June 1881, she departed Punta Arenas, Costa Rica, to return to San Francisco. She reached her destination on 12 July and entered the Mare Island Navy Yard on the 28th.

Adams left the yard on 23 August and returned to San Francisco for two days before heading back to the west coast of Latin America on the 25th. She arrived at Panama (then a part of the United States of Colombia

United States of Colombia

The United States of Colombia was the name adopted in 1861 through the Rionegro Constitution for the nation which had been known as the Republic of New Granada since the dissolution of the federation of Gran Colombia in 1830-1831....

) on 15 September to begin another seven months cruising along the Central American coast. On 11 April 1882, she concluded her assignment on the coasts of South and Central America by departing Panama and setting a course for California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

. The warship made stops in Mexico at Acapulco and Pichilinque Bay before reentering San Francisco Bay

San Francisco Bay

San Francisco Bay is a shallow, productive estuary through which water draining from approximately forty percent of California, flowing in the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers from the Sierra Nevada mountains, enters the Pacific Ocean...

 on 11 May. Two days later, she made the short trip to the Mare Island Navy Yard for a month of repairs.

Alaska, 1882–1884

Back at San Francisco on 11 September, Adams stood out to sea the following day. Instead of heading south to the coasts of Latin America, however, she pointed her bow north and made for Alaska

Alaska

Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...

n waters. The warship reached Sitka on 1 October and began a tour of duty in the northern Pacific of almost 23 months in duration. Her two main functions in Alaska seem to have been monitoring the seal fur industry

Seal hunting

Seal hunting, or sealing, is the personal or commercial hunting of seals. The hunt is currently practiced in five countries: Canada, where most of the world's seal hunting takes place, Namibia, the Danish region of Greenland, Norway and Russia...

 and regulating the relations between the native Indian and Eskimo

Eskimo

Eskimos or Inuit–Yupik peoples are indigenous peoples who have traditionally inhabited the circumpolar region from eastern Siberia , across Alaska , Canada, and Greenland....

 population and the multitude of white traders, trappers, prospectors, sealers, and whalers

Whaling

Whaling is the hunting of whales mainly for meat and oil. Its earliest forms date to at least 3000 BC. Various coastal communities have long histories of sustenance whaling and harvesting beached whales...

 that had established themselves in the area since the United States purchased the territory

Alaska purchase

The Alaska Purchase was the acquisition of the Alaska territory by the United States from Russia in 1867 by a treaty ratified by the Senate. The purchase, made at the initiative of United States Secretary of State William H. Seward, gained of new United States territory...

 from Russia in 1867.

Adams had not been on station a month before her commanding officer had to intervene in two incidents involving representatives of the Northwest Trading Company

North West Company

The North West Company was a fur trading business headquartered in Montreal from 1779 to 1821. It competed with increasing success against the Hudson's Bay Company in what was to become Western Canada...

 and the native population. Both cases involved the accidental death of an Indian while performing work for the company. In the first instance Comdr. Merriman, backed by Adams and her guns, simply informed the Indians that their custom of levying reparations in the event of an accidental death did not apply in relations with white men and warned them that attempts to do so would bring swift reprisal. That tribe submitted with ill-concealed malevolence.

The second instance, however, required a more emphatic response. When an Indian shaman died as the result of an accidental explosion during a whaling operation on 22 October, the natives of the village of Angoon

Angoon, Alaska

Angoon is a city on Admiralty Island in Hoonah-Angoon Census Area, Alaska, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 572, by the 2010 census the population had declined to 459...

 seized two white men and two of the three company vessels involved and demanded a payment of 200 blankets. The superintendent quickly put to sea in the company's steam tug Favorite and made the voyage to Sitka. There, Comdr. Merriman armed Favorite with a howitzer and a Gatling gun

Gatling gun

The Gatling gun is one of the best known early rapid-fire weapons and a forerunner of the modern machine gun. It is well known for its use by the Union forces during the American Civil War in the 1860s, which was the first time it was employed in combat...

 and mounted an expedition comprising Favorite and Adams launch reinforced with 50 sailors and 20 marines from Adams and soon augmented by the revenue cutter , commanded by Michael Healy.

Upon arrival at Angoon, the force collected as many of the Indians' canoes as possible, and Comdr. Merriman held a meeting with some of the Indians during which he made counter demands for the release of the hostages and a levy of 400 blankets in return for which the expedition would spare their canoes and village. To buy time, the Indians accepted the demands at first and released the hostages; however, after they had an opportunity to hide their canoes and gather their forces, the Indians refused to honor the agreement. Thereupon, Corwin and Favorite took the village under fire, destroying a number of houses. When the ships ceased fire, a landing party went ashore and set fire to some of the remaining houses. At that point the Indians submitted. Comdr. Merriman left a party of sailors at Angoon to insure continued good faith, and he and the remainder returned to Sitka in Corwin to reembark in Adams.

Adams patrolled Alaskan waters from her base at Sitka until late in the summer of 1884. On 19 August 1884, the warship departed Sitka and headed south along the coast of North America. She arrived in San Francisco on the 27th and moved to the Mare Island Navy Yard the following day. On 20 September 1884, Adams was placed out of commission at Mare Island.

South America, Hawaii & Samoa, 1885–1890

She remained inactive for a little more than a year. On 2 November 1885, she was recommissioned at Mare Island, Comdr. Louis Kempff

Louis Kempff

-Early life:Louis Kempff was born in 1841 in Belville, Illinois, United States. After passing the entrance exams, he received an appointment to the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland on September 21, 1857.-Civil War:...

 in command. Adams spent the ensuing month preparing for an extended tour of duty on the coasts of Central and South America.

She stood out of San Francisco on 2 December and, after several stops at Mexican ports along the way, arrived at San José de Guatemala

Puerto San José

Puerto San José is a city on Guatemala's Pacific Ocean coast, in the department of Escuintla. It contains about 20,000 people, making it the largest place along the Pacific coast of Guatemala. It was the Pacific port for Guatemala, but this was superseded in the 20th century by Puerto Quetzal, a...

 on 4 January 1886. For 16 months, Adams "showed the flag" along the western coast of Latin America between Guaymas

Guaymas

Guaymas is a city and municipality located in the southwest part of the state of Sonora in northwestern Mexico. The city is located 117 km south of the state capital of Hermosillo, and 242 miles from the U.S. border, and is the principal port for the state. The municipality is located in the...

, Mexico, in the north and Coquimbo

Coquimbo

Coquimbo is a port city, commune and capital of the Elqui Province, located on the Pan-American Highway, in the Coquimbo Region of Chile. Coquimbo lies in a valley south of La Serena, with which it forms Greater La Serena with more than 400,000 inhabitants. The commune spans an area around the...

, Chile, in the south. On 15 May 1887, the warship left Acapulco, Mexico, and set a course for the Hawaiian Islands. She arrived in Honolulu on 14 June.

As tantalizing as it might be to speculate on the relationship between her arrival in Honolulu and the "Bloodless Revolution of 1887

1887 Constitution of the Kingdom of Hawaii

The 1887 Constitution of the Kingdom of Hawaii was a legal document by anti-monarchists to strip the Hawaiian monarchy of much of its authority, initiating a transfer of power to American, European and native Hawaiian elites...

" carried out during her extended stay in Honolulu, neither she nor her sailors participated in the events ashore. Her presence, however, probably fostered an air of sanguinity in the minds of those Americans who carried out reforms in the government of the native monarch. The political situation ashore did prompt the extension of her visit until almost three weeks after the elections held on 12 September. Adams steamed out of Honolulu on 2 October.

Leaving one Polynesian paradise in her wake, the warship set course for another — Samoa. She entered the harbor at Apia on the island of Upolu

Upolu

Upolu is an island in Samoa, formed by a massive basaltic shield volcano which rises from the seafloor of the western Pacific Ocean. The island is long, in area, and is the second largest in geographic area as well as the most populated of the Samoan Islands. Upolu is situated to the east of...

 on 19 October. Her sojourn in the Samoan Islands

Samoan Islands

The Samoan Islands or Samoa Islands is an archipelago covering in the central South Pacific, forming part of Polynesia and the wider region of Oceania...

 came as a result of increased German influence in the islands and lasted almost without interruption — she made a round-trip voyage to Tonga in November 1887 — until the beginning of 1888. During her stay, Adams also visited Tutuila

Tutuila

Tutuila is the largest and the main island of American Samoa in the archipelago of Samoan Islands. It is the third largest island in the Samoan Islands chain of the Central Pacific located roughly northeast of Brisbane, Australia and over northeast of Fiji. It contains a large, natural harbor,...

 and Pago Pago, but returned periodically to Apia. On 1 February 1888, the warship departed Pago Pago and set sail for Hawaii. She arrived in Honolulu on 27 February and remained there until mid-May. On 14 May, Adams put to sea to return to Samoa where she arrived at the end of the month. The warship spent the summer months of 1888 cruising among the major islands that make up the Samoan group, leaving the vicinity only once, in late July, for another visit to Tonga. On 15 September, Adams entered port at Apia and remained there until near the end of the first week in December.

On 6 December, she set sail for the United States. The warship made a stop of nearly two weeks duration at Honolulu early in January 1889 before resuming her voyage to the California coast. Adams reached San Francisco on 30 January. On 1 February, she moved to the Mare Island Navy Yard where she was placed out of commission briefly for repairs between 25 March and 22 April 1889. Recommissioned on the latter date, Comdr. Edwin T. Woodward in command, Adams took on stores and supplies before departing San Francisco on 18 June. She arrived at Honolulu on Independence Day 1889 and remained there for a month.

The duration of her stay in Hawaii resulted from the maturation of a plot to dethrone King Kalākaua

Kalakaua

Kalākaua, born David Laamea Kamanakapuu Mahinulani Nalaiaehuokalani Lumialani Kalākaua and sometimes called The Merrie Monarch , was the last reigning king of the Kingdom of Hawaii...

 and dissolve the reform government installed by American business and missionary interests as a result of the "Bloodless Revolution of 1887" that had been carried out in the course of Adams previous extended sojourn in the islands. During the night of 29 and 30 July, insurgents occupied the palace grounds and a local militia unit, styled the Honolulu Rifles

Honolulu Rifles

The Honolulu Rifle Company was a paramilitary force loyal to the Missionary Party and the later Reform Party. It was created in 1854 as a militia to deal with internal conflict, 24 Rifles were deployed during the [[ʻIolani Barracks#1873 Barracks Revolt|1873 Barracks Revolt]]...

, took up positions in support of the government. By the evening of the 30th, the Honolulu Rifles had subdued the insurrection. At that point, a landing party from Adams went ashore and established itself in the vicinity of the American legation. The Hawaiian government restored order quickly without the necessity of American intervention, so the landing party reembarked in the warship the following morning.

On 4 August 1889, Adams departed Honolulu and shaped a course south to Samoa. The warship arrived at Apia, Samoa, on 20 August. For the next nine months, she remained in those islands serving as American station ship there making periodic visits to various of the islands. On 2 May 1890, Adams set sail from Pago Pago bound via Hawaii for the west coast of the United States. She entered San Francisco Bay on 24 June and moored at the Mare Island Navy Yard on the 25th. There, she was placed out of commission, in ordinary, on 31 July 1890.

Alaska & Hawaii, 1892–1894

After almost 20 months of inactivity at Mare Island, Adams was recommissioned on 23 March 1892, Comdr. Thomas Nelson in command. Upon resuming active service, the steam frigate rejoined the forces assigned to the Pacific Station and returned to one of her old haunts — Alaskan waters. She stood out of San Francisco on 12 April 1892 and, after stops in Washington state, arrived at Sitka, Alaska, on 17 May. For more than six months, Adams patrolled the sealing grounds of the northeastern Pacific enforcing regulations on the seal fur industry. On 1 December, the warship departed Unalaska

Unalaska, Alaska

Unalaska is a city in the Aleutians West Census Area of the Unorganized Borough of the U.S. state of Alaska. Unalaska is located on Unalaska Island and neighboring Amaknak Island in the Aleutian Islands off of mainland Alaska....

 to return to San Francisco for repairs. Arriving at her destination on 17 December, she moved to the Mare Island Navy Yard that same day and then entered drydock on the 20th.

Refloated on 11 January 1893, Adams remained in the San Francisco Bay area until 12 April when she put to sea on her way to the Hawaiian Islands. Her mission, as in the past, was to observe conditions and protect American interests during a period of domestic political unrest. That situation had been brought about by the revolution of January 1893 in which the faction that favored annexation by the United States overthrew the native Hawaiian monarchy once and forever, replacing the government of Queen Liliuokalani with a republic. Adams arrived in Honolulu on 26 April 1893 and remained there for almost a year.

On 15 April 1894, the warship stood out of Honolulu and shaped a course for the northwestern coast of the United States. She arrived in Port Townsend, Washington

Port Townsend, Washington

Port Townsend is a city in Jefferson County, Washington, United States, approximately north-northwest of Seattle . The population was 9,113 at the 2010 census an increase of 9.3% over the 2000 census. It is the county seat and only incorporated city of Jefferson County...

, on 1 May. On the 4th, she entered drydock at Quartermaster Harbor

Quartermaster Harbor

Quartermaster Harbor is a small harbor located in southern Puget Sound, in Vashon Island, Washington State.-Geographic description:Quartermaster Harbor is formed by Vashon Island on the west and Maury Island on the east...

, Washington. On the 10th, Adams took departure from Port Townsend and headed back to Alaska. She reached Sitka on 26 May and resumed duty patrolling the sealing grounds on the 29th. That duty lasted until 27 August when she left Sitka, Alaska, to return to California. Adams arrived in San Francisco on 12 September and entered the yard at Mare Island that same day. The warship completed work in the drydock on 8 November only to be placed out of commission eight days later on 16 November 1894.

Hawaii & West Coast, 1895–1898

After more than 13 months of inactivity at the Mare Island Navy Yard, Adams was placed back in commission there on Christmas Eve 1895, Comdr. Eugene W. Watson in command. Following almost two months of preparations, the warship exited San Francisco Bay on 18 February 1896 on her way to the Hawaiian Islands. She stood into Honolulu on 1 March and began nine months of duty there. Adams left Honolulu on 12 December and arrived at San Francisco on the 28th. After repairs, she returned to sea early in February 1897 to begin duty training recruit apprentices and cruised the waters along the California coast until the latter part of April. On 19 April, she cleared Magdalena Bay

Magdalena Bay

Bahía Magdalena is a 50 km long bay in Comondú Municipality along the western coast of the Mexican state of Baja California Sur. It is protected from the Pacific Ocean by the sandy barrier islands of Isla Magdalena and Isla Santa Margarita....

, in Lower California (Mexico)

Baja California Sur

Baja California Sur , is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. Before becoming a state on October 8, 1974, the area was known as the South Territory of Baja California. It has an area of , or 3.57% of the land mass of Mexico and comprises...

, and shaped a course for Hawaii. During May, Adams visited Hilo and Honolulu before heading back to the west coast of the United States on 29 May. She arrived at Port Angeles, Washington

Port Angeles, Washington

Port Angeles is a city in and the county seat of Clallam County, Washington, United States. The population was 19,038 at the 2010 census. The area's harbor was dubbed Puerto de Nuestra Señora de los Ángeles by Spanish explorer Francisco de Eliza in 1791, but by the mid-19th century the name had...

, on 18 June and spent the summer and fall of 1897 visiting ports on the west coasts of Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 and the United States. On 21 November, Adams stood put of Magdalena Bay on her way to Hawaii again. The warship arrived at Hilo on 14 December. After stops there and at Honolulu, she put to sea to return to California on 6 January 1898. On 30 April 1898, Adams was decommissioned once more. She remained inactive for just over five months.

Hawaii & Samoa, 1898–1907

On 7 October 1898, the warship was recommissioned, Comdr. George M. Book in command. Adams returned to sea on 24 March 1899 with a full complement of recruits embarked for training. She arrived at Magdalena Bay for the usual month of drills at that location. On 4 May, she stood out of the bay for the portion of the training cruise that took her to Hawaii. Her visit to the islands lasted from 26 May to 19 June and included stops at Hilo, Lahaina, and Honolulu. Adams returned to the west coast of North America on 13 July at Port Angeles, Washington. A week later, she embarked on the Canadian leg of the voyage. Adams entered San Francisco on 26 July.

Apprentice training cruises along the west coast, punctuated by periodic voyages to Hawaii, occupied her time until the beginning of 1904. She returned to San Francisco from her last training cruise on 14 March 1904 and disembarked the apprentices for distribution throughout the fleet. At that point, Adams began fitting out for an extended tour of duty as station ship at Samoa. She stood out of San Francisco Bay on 24 April 1904 and, after sailing by way of Honolulu, entered port at Pago Pago at the beginning of June. Adams remained on station at Samoa for three years. On 17 June 1907, she set sail to return to the United States by way of the Indian Ocean

Indian Ocean

The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...

, the Suez Canal

Suez Canal

The Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...

, the Mediterranean Sea

Mediterranean Sea

The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...

, and the Atlantic Ocean

Atlantic Ocean

The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...

. On 21 November 1907, while Adams was completing the last leg of her voyage home, the Navy Department decided to loan her to the State of Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

 as a school ship

School ship

A training ship is a ship used to train students as sailors. The term is especially used for ships employed by navies to train future officers. Essentially there are two types: those used for training at sea and old hulks used to house classrooms....

. She arrived at League Island

League Island

League Island was an island in the Delaware River, part of the city of Philadelphia, just upstream from the mouth of the Schuylkill River, which was the site of the Philadelphia shipyard, which eventually became the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard, now known as the Philadelphia Naval Business...

, on 19 December 1907; and she was placed out of commission there on 31 December 1907.

Training & Station ship, 1908–1919

Turned over to Pennsylvania on 20 August 1908, Adams served as school ship for the Public Marine School at Philadelphia until returned to Navy custody on 6 February 1914. On 1 May 1914, she was loaned to the State of New Jersey to be used in training that state's naval militia

Naval militia

A naval militia in the United States is a reserve military organization administered under the authority of a state government. It is often composed of Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard reservists, retirees and volunteers. They are distinguishable from the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary, which is a...

. The warship continued to train New Jersey naval militiamen until after the United States entered World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

 in April 1917. Recommissioned on 27 August 1917, Adams served as station ship in the Delaware River

Delaware River

The Delaware River is a major river on the Atlantic coast of the United States.A Dutch expedition led by Henry Hudson in 1609 first mapped the river. The river was christened the South River in the New Netherland colony that followed, in contrast to the North River, as the Hudson River was then...

 through the end of the war until decommissioned on 5 August 1919.

Fate

Adams was sold to Mr. Joseph N. Tobin, 25 Church Street, New York City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

, in August 1920. The former warship operated briefly in mercantile service with a Polish company as Stefan Batory before being broken up in 1921 or 1922.