| President Theodore Roosevelt's desire that a hospital ship accompany
the Great White Fleet on its round-the-world voyage led to his endorsement
of the Bureau of Medicine and Surgery viewpoint. Accordingly, Relief was
commissioned at Mare Island Navy Yard 6 February 1908, Surgeon Charles
F. Stokes, USN, in command.
Departing San Francisco Bay 22 March 1908, Relief met the fleet in
Magdalena Bay, Mexico, embarking patients for return to San Francisco. Relief
rejoined the fleet at San Diego and remained with it while crossing the Pacific
on its important mission representing U.S. interests and testing the Navy's
capabilities. Relief's staff provided expert medical care, treatment, and
consultations for the more than 14,000 officers and men of the Great White
Fleet until detached in November 1908 at Olongapo, Philippine Islands.
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USS Relief, Hospital Ship