The keel for Monitor No. 9 (BM-9) was laid down in January 1899 at the Crescent Shipyard in Elizabethport, New Jersey by the Lewis Nixon ship works company. She was launched on 30 November 1901 and commissioned the USS Florida on 18 June 1903. The FLORIDA was renamed TALLAHASSEE on 1 July 1908 to free the State name for assignment to a new battleship. The model for the FLORIDA battleship is on display at the Museum of Florida History.
At various times between 1906 and 1917, TALLAHASSEE served as the Naval Academy's midshipman training ship, trained Naval Reservists, and conducted ordnance experimentation. She was the ship chosen to prove that stacked turrets would be safe and effective. In 1915 she was converted to a submarine tender. During World War I, TALLAHASSEE served in the Canal Zone, the Virgin Islands, and the Bermuda areas, earning the World War I Victory Medal for the period 6 April 1917 to 11 November 1918. She was decommissioned on 24 March 1922.
Length: 252 ft. · Beam: 50 ft. · Draft: 12 ft. 6 in. · Displacement: 3,225 tons · Crew: 220
Armament: Two 12"/40 cal., Three 4"/50 cal., One 3"/50 cal., Two 6 pound guns
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