 MV Brown Bear as a University of Washington research vessel in 1963.
| |
 United States | |
|---|---|
| Name | MV Brown Bear |
| Namesake | Brown bear |
| Operator | U.S. Bureau of Biological Survey and Alaska Game Commission |
| Builder | Winslow Marine Railway & Shipbuilding Company, Bainbridge Island, Washington |
| Cost | US$125,000 |
| Launched | 7 November 1934 |
| Fate | Transferred to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 30 June 1934 |
 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | |
| Name | MV Brown Bear |
| Namesake | Previous name retained |
| Acquired | From U.S. Bureau of Biological Survey 30 June 1940 |
| Fate | Transferred to United States Navy 5 January 1942 |
| Acquired | Transferred from U.S. Navy 28 March 1946 |
| Fate | Transferred to United States Navy May 1951 |
| Acquired | Transferred from U.S. Navy 28 March 1946 |
| Fate | Transferred to United States Navy May 1951 |
| Acquired | From University of Washington 1965 |
| Fate | Transferred to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 3 October 1970 |
| United States Navy | |
| Name | USS YP-197 |
| Acquired | From U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 5 January 1942 |
| Decommissioned | 27 November 1945 |
| Fate | Transferred to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 28 March 1946 |
| Notes | Manned by United States Coast Guard personnel 5 January 1942–27 November 1945 |
| Acquired | Transferred from U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service May 1951 |
| Fate | Transferred to University of Washington by summer 1952 |
| United States | |
| Name | MV Brown Bear |
| Namesake | Previous name retained |
| Operator | University of Washington |
| Acquired | From U.S. Navy by summer 1952 |
| Fate | Transferred to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 1965 |
 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration | |
| Name | MV Brown Bear |
| Namesake | Previous name retained |
| Acquired | From U.S.Fish and Wildlife Service 3 October 1970 |
| Decommissioned | 1972 |
| Fate |
|
| General characteristics as Fish and Wildlife Service vessel | |
| Type | Research vessel |
| Tonnage | 300 gross tons |
| Length | 114 ft (35 m) |
| Beam | 27 ft (8.2 m) |
| Draft | 13 ft (4.0 m) |
| Propulsion | Two 200-hp (169-kw) Washington Iron Works diesel engines |
| Speed | 8.5 knots (16 km/h) |
| Range | 4,000 nautical miles (7,400 km) to 5,400 nautical miles (10,000 km) |
| Boats & landing craft carried | One tender with 10-horsepower (8.5-kilowatt) Kermath Marine Engines engine |
| Crew | Accommodation for 16 crew and scientists |
MV Brown Bear was an American research vessel in commission in the fleet of the United States Department of Agriculture′s Bureau of Biological Survey and Alaska Game Commission from 1934 to 1940 and in the fleet of the United States Department of the Interior′s Fish and Wildlife Service from 1940 to 1942 and from 1946 to 1951, under the control of the University of Washington from 1952 to 1965, and in commission in the fleet of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service from 1965 to 1970 and of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration′s National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) from 1970 to 1972.
Early in World War II, the ship was transferred from the FWS to the United States Navy for war service and renamed USS YP-197. Immediately transferred to the United States Coast Guard, she operated as a Coast Guard vessel from 1942 to 1945.
After her NMFS service, the ship operated commercially as the dive tender MV Baja Explorador before returning to her original name. She fell into disrepair and was scuttled in late 1997 or in January 1998.