The first Justin to be named as such by the U.S. Navy, she was completed in 1891 by R. Dixon & Co., Middlesbrough, England; purchased from Bowring & Archibald; and commissioned on 27 April 1898.

Recommissioned at Mare Island, California on 19 September 1900, Justin sailed on 1 October for duty in the Far East.

Two days later she rescued the crew of USS Yosemite that had been damaged in port after by the storm after breaking her moorings and blown 60 miles from Guam.

[1] For the next seven years, she provided fuel and supplies to the Asiatic Fleet during a period of intense and growing American activity in the Orient.

[2] This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.