USS Sussex (SP-685) with her crew posed on deck, c. 1917-1919.
History
United States
Name	Sussex
Namesake	Counties in Delaware, New Jersey, and Virginia
Builder	R. T, Potter, Milton, Delaware
Laid down	date unknown
Completed	in 1913
Acquired	by the U.S. Navy, 5 May 1917
Commissioned	31 July 1917
Decommissioned	c. 11 March 1919
Stricken	11 March 1919
Fate	Sold 16 January 1920; fate unknown
General characteristics
Type	commercial freighter
Displacement	67 tons
Length	74' 2"
Beam	17' 6"
Draft	6' 9"
Propulsion	steam-powered
Speed	8 knots
Complement	22 personnel
Armament	two 1-pounder guns

USS Sussex (SP-685) was a commercial fishing freighter acquired by the U.S. Navy during World War I. She served as a minesweeper on the U.S. East Coast through the war and was sold after the World War I Armistice.

A steamer built in Delaware

The first ship to be so named by the Navy, Sussex (SP-685) -- a fishing steamer built in 1913 by R. T. Potter at Milton, Delaware—was acquired by the Navy on 5 May 1917 from the Delaware Fish Oil Co., Lewes, Delaware; and was commissioned on 31 May 1917.

First World War service

Sussex operated as a minesweeper in the Third Naval District for the remainder of the conflict and for a few months following the November 1918 Armistice.

Post-war inactivation

She was struck from the Navy list on 11 March 1919 and sold on 16 January 1920.

References

• This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
• NavSource Online: Section Patrol Craft Photo Archive - Sussex (SP 685)
• USS Sussex (SP-685), 1917-1920