USS Aurora, a 234 gross ton harbor tug, was built at Camden, New Jersey, in 1906 for civilian employment. Chartered by the Navy in August 1917, she was placed in commission in September of that year and initially used as a minesweeper in the New York Harbor area. In December 1918 Aurora was transferred to the Naval Overseas Transportation Service and began working as a tug at Tompkinsville, New York. She was decommissioned and returned to her owner in March 1919.