Following trials off the east coast, Terry joined the Atlantic Fleet Torpedo Flotilla in winter operations in Cuban waters.

In 1911 Terry made the first airplane rescue at sea, saving the life of James McCurdy 10 miles from Havana, Cuba.

The routine of winter maneuvers in the Caribbean alternated with spring and summer operations along the New England coast continued until November 1913, when she arrived at Charleston, South Carolina for overhaul.

On 10 June, while maneuvering in the inner harbor at Puerto Plata, she struck a reef and settled until the greater part of the main deck was submerged.

While she never sighted a German U-boat nor engaged in combat operations, on one voyage she escorted a convoy which lost one ship to a submarine.

In December 1918, Terry returned to the United States, and after 11 months of extremely limited service, she was decommissioned at Philadelphia Navy Yard on 13 November 1919.