USS Clytie (AS-26), named for a nymph in Greek mythology, enamored of Apollo, was christened by Mrs. C. H. Leavitt and launched on 26 November 1943 by the Ingalls Shipbuilding Company at Pascagoula, Mississippi, under a United States Maritime Commission contract (for Hull 861). Congress authorized the United States Navy to acquire the C3-S-A2 type Maritime Commission hull...and that action was taken on 26 February 1944. Subsequently, the merchant ship was converted into a submarine tender of the Aegir class by the Bethlehem Steel Corporation at Hoboken, New Jersey. The vessel was commissioned into the United States Navy on 18 January 1945 with Commander C. H. Walker in command.

When commissioned, the submarine tender was 465 feet in length at the waterline, 492 feet in length overall, and had an extreme beam of 69 feet 6 inches. Standard displacement was 7,150 tons, Navy light displacement was 7,581 tons, Maritime Commission deadweight tonnage was 12,515 tons, and, at that displacement, the mean draft was 23 feet. The full load displacement was 17,615 tons. At that weight the ship had a maximum draft of 27 feet 3 inches. Ship's compliment was

82 officers and 1,378 enlisted men. Foster Wheeler Corporation boilers (built by the Boiler Division of Babcock and Wilcox Company of Barberton, Ohio) supplied steam to geared turbines built by the Westinghouse Electric Company of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania...which could develop 8,500 horsepower on one propeller shaft...which could propel the ship at 16.5 knots at speed. Armament included one 5-inch/ 38 caliber, four 3-inch/50 caliber, and four 40-mm antiaircraft guns.

USS Clytie (AS-26) departed the United States Naval Submarine Base New London, Groton, Connecticut, on 21 February 1945, for Brisbane and Fremantle, Australia. Upon arrival, the submarine tender tended submarines of the United States 7th Fleet...commencing on 4 April 1945.

On 2 September 1945, the Second World War officially ended when representatives of the Empire of Japan signed the instruments of surrender on board battleship USS Missouri (BB-63)...which was anchored in Tokyo Bay, Japan, for that occasion.

On 13 September 1945, USS Clytie concluded her submarine tender duties in Australia.

Returning to the Connecticut submarine base on 17 October 1945, USS Clytie remained there, except for a brief overhaul at the Philadelphia Navy Yard at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, until placed out of commission, in reserve, on 5 October 1946.

The submarine tender remained in the Atlantic Reserve Fleet until 1961...when she was stricken from the Navy List and transferred to the Atlantic division of United States Maritime Administration for disposal.

Four years later, the ship was still in the custody of the Maritime Administration. Eventually, the former submarine tender was sold to a shipbreaker and, subsequently, scrapped.