USS Erie (PG-50) was the lead ship of the s of the United States Navy. Erie was the second US Navy ship to bear the name. The first, , was named after Lake Erie, while this Erie followed the US Navy naming practices of gunboats, like cruisers, being named after US cities. Erie protected US interests during the Spanish Civil War, operated as a training ship for the United States Naval Academy, and was a convoy escort ship during World War II. She operated in the Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, and Caribbean Sea until torpedoed and fatally damaged by , off Curaçao, in 1942. Construction and commissioning Erie was ordered in June 1933, and laid down at the New York Naval Shipyard on 17 December 1934. Erie was the first ship to be built in the Yard's No. 1 dry dock, instead of on a slip. For the first time at a New York Navy Yard keel-laying ceremony, the first rivets for Eries keel were driven in by civilian employees rather than ranking Navy officers. Within six months, by June 1935, most of the work for the hull, main deck, second deck, and platform structure had been completed. After Commander (later Vice Admiral) Edward Hanson graduated, in May 1935, from the Naval War College, he was ordered to see the fitting-out of Erie and to captain her upon commissioning. The next seven months, June 1935 to mid-January 1936, saw significant progress in the assembly of the main deck components, the navigational bridge, the pilothouse, and the chart house. By January 1936, 80% of the hull work was complete with about 50% of the equipment and machinery installed. Erie was launched on 29 February 1936. The Erie Club of New York planned and conducted the launching ceremony with a delegation of notables from Erie, attending, along with Eries sponsor, Mrs. Edmund (Ida) Knoll. With Erie only 98% complete, and her six-inch guns not yet installed, the commissioning ceremony was on 1 July 1936. Commander Hanson signed the formal receipt for the gunboat and read the orders that assigned him command of the ship. The Yard managers reported on 1 August 1936, that the hull was 98.8% complete and the machinery spaces were 95.1% complete with an expected end of construction date set for 15 August. Erie left on 17 August, and sailed into the Atlantic for the first day at sea.