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USS Decatur (1839)
Encyclopedia
USS Decatur (1839) was a sloop-of-war
Sloop-of-war
In the 18th and most of the 19th centuries, a sloop-of-war was a warship with a single gun deck that carried up to eighteen guns. As the rating system covered all vessels with 20 guns and above, this meant that the term sloop-of-war actually encompassed all the unrated combat vessels including the...
in the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
during the mid-19th century. She was commissioned to protect American interests in the South Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
, including the interception of ships involved in the African slave trade
African slave trade
Systems of servitude and slavery were common in many parts of Africa, as they were in much of the ancient world. In some African societies, the enslaved people were also indentured servants and fully integrated; in others, they were treated much worse...
. Decatur served in both the Mexican-American War and the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
.
The sloop-of-war was named in honor of Commodore Stephen Decatur
Stephen Decatur
Stephen Decatur, Jr. , was an American naval officer notable for his many naval victories in the early 19th century. He was born on the eastern shore of Maryland, Worcester county, the son of a U.S. Naval Officer who served during the American Revolution. Shortly after attending college Decatur...
(1779–1820), one of the United States Navy's greatest heroes and leaders of the first two decades of the 19th Century.
Launched in 1839 at the New York Navy Yard
Decatur, a large sloop of 566 tons, was built in 1838 and 1839 at New York Navy Yard. She was outfitted with heavy guns and manned by a crew of 150 officers and enlisted men.South Atlantic Ocean operations
Commanded by Commander H. W. Ogden, she sailed from New York 16 March 1840 for duty with the Brazil SquadronBrazil Squadron
The Brazil Squadron, the Brazil Station, or the South Atlantic Squadron was an overseas military station established by the United States in 1826 to protect American commerce in the South Atlantic during a war between Brazil and Argentina...
, returning to Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....
28 February 1843. Her second cruise, from 5 August 1843 to 3 January 1845 was with the African Squadron for the suppression of the slave trade. She was placed in ordinary during 1845 and 1846.
Mexican-American War operations
Decatur sailed from Hampton Roads, Virginia 1 March 1847, and after a brief stay at the Pensacola Navy Yard, arrived off Castle Juan de Uloa, MexicoMexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, 14 April, for duty in the Mexican-American War.
Although she was too large to ascend the Tuxpan River
Tuxpan River
The Tuxpan River in Mexico flows into the Gulf of Mexico near the city and port of Tuxpan de Rodríguez Cano in the state of Veracruz. Its principal sources are the Vinazco, which rises in Hidalgo, and the Pantepec, which rises in Puebla, both of which enter the territory of Veracruz before the city...
, 14 of her officers and 118 men accompanied Commodore Matthew C. Perry's expedition to attack Tuxpan
Tuxpan
Tuxpan is both a municipality and city located in the Mexican state of Veracruz. The population of the city was 78,523 and of the municipality was 134,394 inhabitants, according to the INEGI census of 2005, residing in a total area of 1,051.89 km²...
. She also furnished 8 officers and 104 men for the capture of Tabasco
Tabasco
Tabasco officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Tabasco is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 17 municipalities and its capital city is Villahermosa....
from 14 to 16 June. She, continued to cruise in Mexican waters until 2 September when she sailed for Boston, Massachusetts, arriving 12 November.
Atlantic Ocean operations
Rejoining the African Squadron, Decatur cruised on the northwest coast of AfricaAfrica
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
on the lookout for slave ship
Slave ship
Slave ships were large cargo ships specially converted for the purpose of transporting slaves, especially newly purchased African slaves to Americas....
s and protecting U.S. interests from 2 February 1848 to 15 November 1849. After a period in ordinary she sailed from Portsmouth, New Hampshire
Portsmouth, New Hampshire
Portsmouth is a city in Rockingham County, New Hampshire in the United States. It is the largest city but only the fourth-largest community in the county, with a population of 21,233 at the 2010 census...
, for duty with the Home Squadron
Home Squadron
The Home Squadron was part of the United States Navy in the mid-19th century. Organized as early as 1838, ships were assigned to protect coastal commerce, aid ships in distress, suppress piracy and the slave trade, make coastal surveys, and train ships to relieve others on distant stations...
, cruising off the Atlantic Coast and in the Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
until arriving at Boston 21 August 1852 where she was decommissioned for repairs.
Recommissioned 12 July 1853 Decatur joined a Special Squadron to guard the fishing interests of American citizens in North Atlantic Ocean waters, returning to Boston in September to prepare for distant service. After searching for the missing merchantship San Francisco in the Caribbean in January and February 1854, she sailed from Norfolk 16 June to join the Pacific Squadron
Pacific Squadron
The Pacific Squadron was part of the United States Navy squadron stationed in the Pacific Ocean in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Initially with no United States ports in the Pacific, they operated out of storeships which provided naval supplies and purchased food and obtained water from local...
.
Pacific Ocean operations
After a stormy transit of the Straits of Magellan, she called at ValparaísoValparaíso
Valparaíso is a city and commune of Chile, center of its third largest conurbation and one of the country's most important seaports and an increasing cultural center in the Southwest Pacific hemisphere. The city is the capital of the Valparaíso Province and the Valparaíso Region...
, Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
, arriving 15 January 1855, then visited Honolulu from 28 March to 23 June. Sailing on to Washington Territory
Washington Territory
The Territory of Washington was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from February 8, 1853, until November 11, 1889, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Washington....
, Decatur entered the Strait of Juan de Fuca
Strait of Juan de Fuca
The Strait of Juan de Fuca is a large body of water about long that is the Salish Sea outlet to the Pacific Ocean...
19 July.
Decatur remained in the Pacific Northwest to deter Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
outbreaks, providing support to the settlers in the Battle of Seattle
Battle of Seattle (1856)
The Battle of Seattle was a January 26, 1856 attack by native Americans upon Seattle, Washington. At the time, Seattle was a settlement in the Washington Territory that had recently named itself after Chief Seattle , a leader of the Suquamish and Duwamish peoples of central Puget Sound.Backed by...
(January 26, 1856). She cruised to San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
between 2 August and 27 September 1855 for supplies.
On 13 June 1856, she arrived at Mare Island Navy Yard for repairs, and on 8 January 1857, sailed for Panama
Panama
Panama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...
, touching at Central American ports for the protection of U.S. interests. She sailed 3 June to Nicaragua
Nicaragua
Nicaragua is the largest country in the Central American American isthmus, bordered by Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south. The country is situated between 11 and 14 degrees north of the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere, which places it entirely within the tropics. The Pacific Ocean...
to evacuate U.S. citizens connected with the filibustering
Filibuster (military)
A filibuster, or freebooter, is someone who engages in an unauthorized military expedition into a foreign country to foment or support a revolution...
expedition of William Walker to Panama, where she arrived 5 August. She cruised off Panama, Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
, and Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
until 23 March 1859 when she was ordered to return to Mare Island.
Civil War service
She was decommissioned at Mare Island 20 June 1859 and remained in ordinary until March 1863 when she was fitted as a defensive floating battery and stationed off San Francisco.Named in her honor
Decatur High School in Federal Way, Washington, was named after the Decatur in tribute to its services in the Seattle, WashingtonSeattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
, area.
See also
- Union NavyUnion NavyThe 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...
- American Civil WarAmerican Civil WarThe American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
- Confederate States NavyConfederate States NavyThe 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...
- Mexican-American War
- African slave tradeAfrican slave tradeSystems of servitude and slavery were common in many parts of Africa, as they were in much of the ancient world. In some African societies, the enslaved people were also indentured servants and fully integrated; in others, they were treated much worse...