She was originally laid down as an SC-497 class submarine chaser on 7 September 1942 by the Peterson Boat Works in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin and launched on 12 April 1943.

Upon arrival at Espiritu Santo, the engine was hoisted aboard the repair ship USS Mindanao (ARG-3) and was installed back in the PGM-3 on 4 April.

4 August, the ships arrived at MTB Advanced Base, Homestead Lagoon, Emirau Island and took on water and fuel the next day at Hamburg Bay.

27 August, PGM-3 departed MTB Base 9 in company with PGM's 5 and 8 to patrol area "uncle" on the southwest coast of New Ireland.

The ships departed the patrol area early in the morning of 22 September and headed for MTB Base 7, Green Islands.

While at the Green Islands, the PGMs received emergency orders to intercept the hospital ship USS Samaritan, which had been damaged by a mine.

The day following its arrival back at base, PGM-3 headed out again for another patrol of area "uncle" on southwest coast of New Ireland in the company of PGM's 6 and 8.

During the latter two weeks of October, PGM-3 was assigned escort duty, making two round trips to Finschhafen, New Guinea, returning alone each time to MTB Base 9.

PGM-3 departed the base at Treasury Islands for its last patrol along the west coast of New Ireland at 2159 hours on 25 December in the company of PGM-2.

Early in the morning, the PGMs departed their patrol and set a course to the naval base on Green Island, arriving there at 1520 hours.

A layover there ended 1 January 1945, when the ships returned to the patrol area, arriving 5 miles off Huru Point at 2145 hours.

At 0615 hours on 4 January, the PGMs departed their patrol at Huru Point, making their way back to base at the Treasury Islands.

The next morning at 0625 hours, four F4U Corsairs arrived overhead to participate in bombardment activities at Kuku Point, followed by gunfire into the same area by the PGMs.

USS PGM-7, the remaining ship of Division One, was severely damaged in a collision in July of the previous year and never returned to active service.

On 13 March the log of PGM-3 indicates that at 1833 hours, the ship was moored next to PGM-4 at Motor Torpedo Boat Base 5 in the San Juanico Strait, Leyte.

The ship moored in Ormoc Bay shortly before noon the same day and military police escorted the prisoners ashore.

The next day two officers and eleven men of the Philippine Army reported aboard and the ship departed at 0807 hours for patrol off the east coast of Luzon in company with PC-1123.

In the early morning hours of 11 May the ships put a guerilla landing party ashore 3 miles south of Calabgan.

The two ships departed for another patrol the next morning, arriving back at Binangonan Point at 0725 hours for a northerly sweep of the coast.

With the scouting party aboard PGM-3, the ships departed en route to a reported enemy encampment south of Dilalongan.

5 September at 0740 hours, the ships of PGM Division One departed their base in the Philippine Islands en route to Buckner Bay, Okinawa.

In the next entry of the ship’s log for the day, under the heading 1600 to 2000 hours, it is noted that the barometer was falling rapidly and a typhoon was approaching.

The next day the ship moved to an anchorage midstream on the Yangtze off Blockhouse Island and was also moored at times to SS Claus Spreckles and USS Robinson.

On 3 October, PGM-3 made its way to Nippon Yusen Kaisha, Pootung Wharf, Huangpu River, Shanghai, where it moored port side to PGM-5.

On 5 November the PGM-3 departed the Nippon Yusen Kaisha wharf at Shanghai and made its way to the Yangtze River, where it moored to USS Robinson briefly, then proceeded to an anchorage 3 miles west of Chung Poasha.

At this location the ship observed Japanese mine sweeping operations and returned at the end of the day to moor overnight at the USS Robinson.

On 7 November, PGM-3 was underway at 0630 hours following minesweepers on various courses, stationed 1000 yards astern, returning to USS Robinson at the end of the day.

On 12 November the ship concluded its duties as safety vessel and arrived back at Shanghai at 1642 hours, mooring next to PGM-1 at the Old NingPo wharf.

On 27 November at 0642 hours, PGM-3 departed Shanghai in company with PGM’s 1, 4, 5, and 6, en route to Subic Bay, Philippine Islands.

The next day PGM-3 anchored at the Alva Docks, Naval Base, Olongapo, Subic Bay, Luzon, Philippine Islands.