USS Constitution

Type

Frigate

Period

18th Century

Nation

United States

Overview: USS Constitution is a wooden-hulled, three-masted heavy frigate of the United States Navy, one of the original six frigates authorized by the Naval Act of 1794 and designed by Joshua Humphreys. Launched in Boston on 21 October 1797, she is the world's oldest commissioned warship still afloat, with only Britain's HMS Victory (in dry dock) being older. Specifications: As built, Constitution measured 175 feet at the waterline (207 feet billethead to taffrail, 304-305 feet overall bowsprit to spanker boom), with a 43-foot 6-inch beam and a depth of hold of 14 feet 3 inches. She displaced roughly 2,200 tons loaded, carried three masts spreading over 42,000-44,000 square feet of sail, and was armed with 30 24-pounder long guns, 22 (later commonly cited as 20) 32-pounder carronades, and bow chasers, giving her the classification of a 44-gun heavy frigate. Her armament included 30 24-pounders, 16 18-pounder carronades, and 10 12-pounders at various points, with a complement of 450. Service History: She was built at Hartt's Shipyard, Boston, under the supervision of George Claghorn with Capt. Samuel Nicholson as inspector, launched on 21 October 1797 and christened by Capt. James Sever, with timbers from States ranging from Maine to Georgia and copper bolts and spikes supplied by Paul Revere. She went on to fight in the Quasi-War with France, the First Barbary War, and most famously the War of 1812, in which she won a string of single-ship victories against Royal Navy frigates, earning a reputation of having won every engagement she ever fought. Notable Facts: The nickname "Old Ironsides" reportedly originated when sailors saw enemy cannonballs appear to bounce off her thick oak hull during battle. A major 1993-1997 restoration rebuilt deck strakes and the diagonal riders that stiffen the hull against the weight of her guns, and re-fitted her fore, main, and mizzen topsails, jib, flying jib, and spanker; on 21 July 1997 she sailed briefly under her own power near Marblehead, the first time in over a century. Today she serves as a living museum ship berthed at Charlestown Navy Yard in Boston while remaining an active-duty commissioned US Navy vessel with a small crew, occasionally getting underway for commemorative sails.