 "Tampa" was a steel-hulled, single-screw cutter laid down on 27 September 1920 at Oakland, California, by the Union Construction Company.She was launched on 19 April 1921, sponsored by Mrs. Joseph P. Conners.The cutter was the lead of a series of electric propulsion ships built for the Coast Guard with a contract speed of that was exceeded on trials with an average speed over a measured mile of .