Nezinscot was constructed by Neafie & Levy in 1897 as the 85-foot (26-meter) iron-hulled steam tug SS DeWitt C. Ivans for Moran and Company.

She operated from Key West, Florida, serving as part of the North Atlantic Fleet during the Spanish–American War.

For the next eight-and-a-half years, she operated from the navy yard, towing vessels ranging in size from small auxiliary barges to the battleship USS Missouri.

While steaming from the Portsmouth Navy Yard to Boston carrying a cargo of chains, anchors, and searchlight equipment for the battleship Missouri, Nezinscot capsized and sank when her deck load shifted in heavy seas off Cape Ann, Massachusetts, on 11 August 1909.

[1] The wreck of Nezinscot lies in 300 feet (91 m) of water off Rockport, Massachusetts, 8 nautical miles (15 km) from Straitsmouth Island Light.