USS Congress (1841) – the fourth U.S. Navy ship to carry that name—was a sailing
frigateA frigate is a warship. The term has been used for warships of many sizes and roles over the past few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and manoeuvrability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...
, like her predecessor, .
Congress served with distinction in the Mediterranean, South
Atlantic OceanThe Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about 106.4 million square kilometres , it covers approximately one-fifth of the Earth's surface and about one-quarter of its water surface area. The first part of its name refers to the Atlas of Greek...
, and in the
Pacific OceanThe Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. Its name is derived from the Latin name Tepre Pacificum, "peaceful sea", bestowed upon it by the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan. It extends from the Arctic in the north to Antarctica in the south, bounded by Asia and...
. She continued to operate as an American
warshipA warship is a ship that is built and primarily intended for combat. Warships are usually built in a completely different way than merchant ships. As well as being armed, warships are designed to withstand damage and are usually faster and more maneuverable than merchant ships...
until the
American Civil WarThe American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several other names, was a civil war in the United States of America. Eleven Southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America...
, where she was destroyed by the ironclad
CSS VirginiaCSS Virginia was a steam-powered battery design ironclad warship of the Confederate States Navy during the American Civil War, built using the remains of the scuttled USS Merrimack in 1862....
in battle off
Newport News, VirginiaNewport News is an independent city in the Hampton Roads region of Virginia. It is at the south-western end of the Virginia Peninsula, on the north shore of the James River extending southeast from Skiffe's Creek along many miles of waterfront to the river's mouth at Newport News Point on the...
.
The frigate was launched at the Portsmouth Navy Yard, 16 August 1841, and placed in commission under Captain Philip Voorhees on 7 May 1842.
Her first cruise, starting 15 July, took her to the Mediterranean for service with the Squadron of Commodores
Charles W. MorganCommodore Charles W. Morgan was an officer in the United States Navy during the War of 1812.-Biography:Born in Virginia, Morgan served on the Franklin, commanded North Carolina and served as the Commodore of the Mediterranean Squadron.Morgan died in Washington, D.C. He was survived by his wife,...
and
Charles MorrisCommodore Charles Morris, USN was a United States naval officer and administrator whose service extended through the first half of the 19th century.-Biography:...
.
USS Congress (1841) – the fourth U.S. Navy ship to carry that name—was a sailing
frigateA frigate is a warship. The term has been used for warships of many sizes and roles over the past few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and manoeuvrability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...
, like her predecessor, .
Congress served with distinction in the Mediterranean, South
Atlantic OceanThe Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about 106.4 million square kilometres , it covers approximately one-fifth of the Earth's surface and about one-quarter of its water surface area. The first part of its name refers to the Atlas of Greek...
, and in the
Pacific OceanThe Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. Its name is derived from the Latin name Tepre Pacificum, "peaceful sea", bestowed upon it by the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan. It extends from the Arctic in the north to Antarctica in the south, bounded by Asia and...
. She continued to operate as an American
warshipA warship is a ship that is built and primarily intended for combat. Warships are usually built in a completely different way than merchant ships. As well as being armed, warships are designed to withstand damage and are usually faster and more maneuverable than merchant ships...
until the
American Civil WarThe American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several other names, was a civil war in the United States of America. Eleven Southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America...
, where she was destroyed by the ironclad
CSS VirginiaCSS Virginia was a steam-powered battery design ironclad warship of the Confederate States Navy during the American Civil War, built using the remains of the scuttled USS Merrimack in 1862....
in battle off
Newport News, VirginiaNewport News is an independent city in the Hampton Roads region of Virginia. It is at the south-western end of the Virginia Peninsula, on the north shore of the James River extending southeast from Skiffe's Creek along many miles of waterfront to the river's mouth at Newport News Point on the...
.
Built in New Hampshire in 1841
The frigate was launched at the Portsmouth Navy Yard, 16 August 1841, and placed in commission under Captain Philip Voorhees on 7 May 1842.
Mediterranean and South Atlantic Ocean operations
Her first cruise, starting 15 July, took her to the Mediterranean for service with the Squadron of Commodores
Charles W. MorganCommodore Charles W. Morgan was an officer in the United States Navy during the War of 1812.-Biography:Born in Virginia, Morgan served on the Franklin, commanded North Carolina and served as the Commodore of the Mediterranean Squadron.Morgan died in Washington, D.C. He was survived by his wife,...
and
Charles MorrisCommodore Charles Morris, USN was a United States naval officer and administrator whose service extended through the first half of the 19th century.-Biography:...
. In December 1843, she proceeded to the east coast of
South AmericaSouth America is the southern continent of the Americas, situated entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere...
, seizing the
Buenos AiresBuenos Aires is the capital, and largest city, of Argentina, currently the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the eastern shore of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
naval squadron blockading
MontevideoMontevideo is the largest city, the capital and chief port of Uruguay. Montevideo is the only city in the country with a population over 1,000,000...
on 29 September 1844, where she was active until January 1845 in safeguarding U.S. trade.
She was placed in ordinary at
Norfolk, VirginiaNorfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 234,403 as of the 2000 census, it is Virginia's second-largest incorporated city behind its eastern neighbor, Virginia Beach....
in March.
Mexican-American War operations
Congress was recommissioned, on 15 September 1845, as
flagshipA flagship is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, a designation given on account of being either the largest, fastest, newest, most heavily armed or, for publicity purposes, the best known. In military terms, it is a ship used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships...
of Commodore
Robert F. StocktonRobert Field Stockton was a United States naval commodore, notable in the capture of California during the Mexican-American War. Stockton was from a notable political family and also served as a U.S...
and sailed for the
Pacific OceanThe Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. Its name is derived from the Latin name Tepre Pacificum, "peaceful sea", bestowed upon it by the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan. It extends from the Arctic in the north to Antarctica in the south, bounded by Asia and...
in late October. After landing the United States Commissioner to the
Sandwich IslandsThe Hawaiian Islands are an archipelago of 19 islands and atolls, numerous smaller islets, and undersea seamounts in the North Pacific Ocean, extending some 1,500 miles from the island of Hawaii in the south to northernmost Kure Atoll. Excluding Midway, which is an unincorporated territory of the...
at
Honolulu, HawaiiHonolulu is the capital of and the most populous census-designated place in the U.S. state of Hawaii. Although Honolulu refers to the urban area on the southeastern shore of the island of Oahu, the city and the county are consolidated, known as the City and County of Honolulu, and the city and...
, on 10 June, she proceeded to
Monterey BayMonterey Bay is a bay of the Pacific Ocean, along the central coast of California. The bay is south of San Francisco, between the cities of Santa Cruz and Monterey....
where she joined the
Pacific SquadronThe Pacific Squadron, also known as the Pacific Station, was part of the United States Navy squadron stationed in the Pacific Ocean in the 1800s and early 1900s. Initially with no U.S. ports in the Pacific they operated out of storeships which provided naval supplies and purchased food and...
. Captain
Elie A. F. La ValletteElie Augustus Frederick La Vallette was one of the first rear admirals appointed in the United States Navy when President Abraham Lincoln created the rank in July 1862.-Biography:...
assumed command on 20 July employing her along the west coast during the Mexican-American War.
Large detachments of her crew participated in
battles on Rio San GabrielThe Battle of Rio San Gabriel was a decisive action of the California campaign of the Mexican-American War and occurred at the sites of present-day Montebello and Pico Rivera on January 8, 1847.-Background:...
and the
plains of La MesaThe Battle of La Mesa of the Mexican-American War occurred on January 9, 1847, in present-day Vernon, California, the day after the Battle of Rio San Gabriel.-Background:...
, and in the occupation of
Los AngelesLos Angeles is the largest city in the state of California and the second largest in the United States. Often abbreviated as L.A. and nicknamed The City of Angels, Los Angeles has an estimated population of 3.8 million and spans over in Southern California...
. She assisted in the bombardment and capture of
GuaymasGuaymas is a port city and a municipality in the Mexican state of Sonora.It stands on a small bay on the Gulf of California, near the mouth of the Río Yaqui, south of state capital Hermosillo and north of Ciudad Obregón...
in October 1847, and in November furnished a detachment which aided in the occupation of
MazatlánMazatlán is a city in the Mexican state of Sinaloa; the surrounding municipio for which the city serves as the municipal seat is also called Mazatlán. It is located at on the Pacific coast, just across from the southernmost tip of the Baja California peninsula.Mazatlán is a Nahuatl word meaning...
. On 23 August 1848, she departed
La Paz, Baja California SurBaja California is both the northernmost and westernmost state of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1953, the area was known as the North Territory of Baja California. It has an area of , or 3.57% of the land mass of Mexico and comprises the northern half of the Baja California peninsula, north...
for
Norfolk, VirginiaNorfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 234,403 as of the 2000 census, it is Virginia's second-largest incorporated city behind its eastern neighbor, Virginia Beach....
, arriving the following January to be placed in ordinary.
Suppressing the slave trade
In May 1850, she was assigned a threefold mission, protection of United States interests between the mouth of the
AmazonThe Amazon River of South America is the largest river in the world by volume, with a total river flow greater than the next eight largest rivers combined. The Amazon, which has the largest drainage basin in the world, accounts for approximately one-fifth of the world's total river flow. During...
and
Cape HornCape Horn island is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile....
, prevention of the use of the American flag to cover the
African slave tradeThe slave trade in Africa existed for thousands of years. The first main route passed through the Sahara, tying in to the Arab slave trade. After the European Age of Exploration, African slaves became part of the Atlantic slave trade, from which comes the modern, Western conception of slavery as...
, and maintenance of neutral rights during hostilities among the South American countries.
Departing Hampton Roads, Virginia on 12 June, she arrived at
Rio de JaneiroRio de Janeiro is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America. The city was the capital of Brazil for nearly two centuries, from 1763 to 1822 during the Portuguese colonial era, and...
,
BrazilBrazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is a country in South America. It is the fifth largest country by geographical area, occupying nearly half of South America, the fifth most populous country, and the fourth most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Atlantic Ocean...
on 1 September and assumed duty as
flagshipA flagship is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, a designation given on account of being either the largest, fastest, newest, most heavily armed or, for publicity purposes, the best known. In military terms, it is a ship used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships...
of the
Brazil SquadronThe Brazil Squadron was an overseas station established by the United States in 1826 to protect American commerce in the South Atlantic during a war between Brazil and Argentina....
under Commodore Issac McKeever until June 1853. She returned to
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States, and the center of the New York metropolitan area, which is among the most populous urban areas in the world. A leading global city, New York exerts a powerful influence over worldwide commerce, finance, culture, fashion and entertainment...
on 20 July for decommissioning.
Mediterranean operations
On 19 June 1855,
Congress sailed for the Mediterranean and there followed two years as flagship of Commodore Samuel L. Breese. Sailing from Spezia,
ItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia. Italy shares its northern, Alpine boundary with France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia...
, on 26 November 1857, she arrived at
Philadelphia, PennsylvaniaPhiladelphia is the largest city in Pennsylvania and the sixth-most-populous city in the United States.In 2008, the population of the city proper was estimated to be over 1.4 million, while the metropolitan area's population of 5.8 million made it the country's fifth-largest...
, on 13 January 1858, and was placed out of commission.
In 1859,
Congress was reassigned as flagship of Commodore
Joshua R. SandsJoshua Ratoon Sands was an officer in the United States Navy who rose to the rank of Rear Admiral. He served in the War of 1812, the Mexican–American War, and the Civil War.-Biography:...
and the
Brazil SquadronThe Brazil Squadron was an overseas station established by the United States in 1826 to protect American commerce in the South Atlantic during a war between Brazil and Argentina....
, remaining in that area until the Civil War precipitated her return to Boston, Massachusetts, on 22 August 1861.
American Civil War service
On 9 September 1861, she was ordered to duty under command of Captain
Louis M. GoldsboroughLouis Malesherbes Goldsborough was an admiral in the United States Navy during the Civil War. He held several sea commands during the Civil War, including the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron...
in the
Atlantic Blockading SquadronThe Atlantic Blockading Squadron was a unit of the United States Navy created in the early days of the American Civil War to enforce a blockade of the ports of the Confederate States.-History:...
, later to serve under
commanding officerThe commanding officer is the officer in command of a military unit. Typically, the commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitude to run the unit as he sees fit, within the bounds of military law...
W. Smith, and
executive officerAn executive officer is generally a person responsible for running an organization, although the exact nature of the role varies depending on the organization.-Administrative Law:...
Lieutenant
Joseph B. SmithJoseph B. Smith was an officer in the United States Navy who was killed in action during the American Civil War.-Biography:...
.
Congress was anchored off
Newport News, VirginiaNewport News is an independent city in the Hampton Roads region of Virginia. It is at the south-western end of the Virginia Peninsula, on the north shore of the James River extending southeast from Skiffe's Creek along many miles of waterfront to the river's mouth at Newport News Point on the...
, as part of the
blockadeA blockade is an effort to cut off the communications of a particular area by force. It is distinct from a siege in that a blockade is usually directed at an entire country or region, rather than a fortress or city. Also, a blockade historically took place at sea, with the blockading power seeking...
of that port on 8 March 1862, when she fell under attack by the Confederate ironclad,
CSS VirginiaCSS Virginia was a steam-powered battery design ironclad warship of the Confederate States Navy during the American Civil War, built using the remains of the scuttled USS Merrimack in 1862....
(ex-USS
Merrimack) and five other small ships. After exchanging broadsides with
Virginia,
Congress slipped her moorings and ran aground in shallow water.
The ironclad and her consorts attacked from a distance and inflicted great damage on the ship, killing 120, including the commanding officer, W. Smith. Ablaze in several places and unable to bring guns to bear on the enemy,
Congress was forced to strike her colors. Heavy shore batteries prevented
Virginia from taking possession. Instead she fired several rounds of hot shot (red-hot cannon balls) and
incendiaryIncendiary means "capable of causing fire". It may also refer to:* Incendiary device, a device designed to cause fires* Incendiary , a novel by Chris Cleave* Incendiary , a 2008 film directed by Sharon Maguire...
causing
Congress to burn to the water's edge, and her
magazineMagazine is the name for an item or place within which ammunition is stored. It is taken from the Arabic word "makahazin" meaning "warehouse"....
to explode. Lt. Smith, having been in command at the time, died in the action.
Hulk raised and sold
In September 1865,
Congress was raised and taken to the Norfolk Navy Yard where she was later sold. She later was stripped for the valuable wood and metal near her mast. The sails later were used to make a
flagA flag is a piece of fabric, often flown from a pole or mast, generally used symbolically for signaling or identification. It is most commonly used to symbolize a country...
in memory of the ship.
See also
- Mexican-American War
- American Civil War
The American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several other names, was a civil war in the United States of America. Eleven Southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America...
- Union Navy
The Union Navy is the label applied to the United States Navy during the American Civil War, to contrast it from its direct opponent, the Confederate States Navy...
- Confederate States Navy
The Confederate States Navy was the naval branch of the Confederate States armed forces established by an act of the Confederate Congress on February 21, 1861. It was responsible for Confederate naval operations during the American Civil War...