The third USS Franklin of 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...

 was a 74-gun ship of the line

Ship of the line

A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed from the 17th through the mid-19th century to take part in the naval tactic known as the line of battle, in which two columns of opposing warships would manoeuvre to bring the greatest weight of broadside guns to bear...

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History

Built in 1815 under the supervision of Samuel Humphreys

Samuel Humphreys

Samuel Humphreys was a noted U.S. naval architect in the early 19th century.- Naval architect :Samuel Humphreys constructed ships at the Philadelphia Navy Yard. He built the USS Franklin in 1815...

 and Charles Penrose, she was the first vessel to be laid down at the Philadelphia Navy Yard.

Franklin sailed on her first cruise on 14 October 1817, when under the command of Master Commandant

Master Commandant

Master commandant was a rank within the early United States Navy. The rank of master commandant was slightly higher than lieutenant, and a master commandant would often command warships too small to justify the command of a full captain. In the United States Navy, the rank was shortened to...

 H. E. Ballard she proceeded from Philadelphia to the Mediterranean. She carried the Hon. Richard Rush

Richard Rush

Richard Rush was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was the second son of Benjamin Rush, one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence and Julia Rush. He entered the College of New Jersey at the age of 14, and graduated in 1797 as the youngest member of his class...

, U.S. Minister to England, to his post. Subsequently she was designated flagship

Flagship

A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, reflecting the custom of its commander, characteristically a flag officer, flying a distinguishing flag...

 of the Mediterranean Squadron, cruising on that station until March 1820. She returned to New York City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

 on 24 April 1820.

From 11 October 1821 until 29 August 1824 she served as flagship on 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...

. Franklin was laid up in ordinary

In ordinary

In ordinary as a phrase has two technical meanings recorded by the Oxford English Dictionary:# In relation particularly to the staff of the British royal household, and more generally to those employed by the Crown, it is used as a suffix showing that the appointment is to the regular staff, for...

 until the summer of 1843 when she was ordered to Boston

Boston

Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...

 as a receiving ship. She continued in this capacity until 1852 at which time she was taken to 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...

, razed and broken up.