Albatross was laid down at Wilmington, Delaware, by Pusey and Jones in March 1882; launched on 19 August 1882, and commissioned on 11 November 1882, with Lt. Zera L. Tanner in command. Tanner, who had superintended the ship's design and construction, would command Albatross, a Navy-manned vessel assigned to the United States Fish Commission, a civilian government agency, for nearly 12 years.