The second USS Kanawha was a screw-powered steamer that served in the United States Navy in 1898 during the Spanish–American War. Kanawha was built in 1896 by , , New York. The U.S. Navy purchased her from John P. Duncan on 7 June 1898 for use in the Spanish–American War and armed her. She commissioned as USS Kanawha at the New York Navy Yard, New York, New York, on 26 July 1898, Lieutenant Frank F. Fletcher in command.