USS Raleigh, a 3183-ton Cincinnati class protected cruiser, was built at the Norfolk Navy Yard, Virginia, and commissioned in April 1894. She initially served along the U.S. east coast, then made a European tour in 1897 before transferring to the Asiatic Staion. During the Spanish-American War, she participated in the Battle of Manila Bay.

After the war, Raleigh returned to the U.S. east coast, and briefly served off Central America before again transiting to Asiatic waters where she spent the years 1903-1907. She subsequently operated off the Pacific coasts of the United States and Central America. In World War I, the cruiser was active in the Atlantic off both North and South America, and in the Caribbean area. Raleigh decommissioned in April 1919 and was sold in August 1921.