USS Germantown 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...

.

Germantown was launched at the Philadelphia Navy Yard on 22 August 1846; sponsored by Miss Lavinia Fanning Watson; because of damaging ice, transferred 18 December to Norfolk Navy Yard for fitting out; and commissioned 9 March 1847, Commander Franklin Buchanan

Franklin Buchanan

Franklin Buchanan was an officer in the United States Navy who became an admiral in the Confederate Navy during the American Civil War, and commanded the ironclad CSS Virginia.-Early life:...

 in command.

Mexican-American War, 1847–1848

Germantown departed 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....

 on 15 March for service during the Mexican-American War with Commodore Matthew C. Perry's 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...

. Reaching Sacrificios Island

Isla de Sacrificios

Isla de Sacrificios is an island in Gulf of Mexico waters, situated off the Gulf coastline near the port of Veracruz, in Mexico. The waters surrounding the island are part of the Sistema Arrecifal Veracruzano National Marine Park...

 1 April, she stood off Alvarado

Alvarado, Veracruz

Alvarado is a city in the Mexican state of Veracruz. The city also serves as the municipal seat for the surrounding municipality of the same name. It is located 64 km from the city of Veracruz, Veracruz, on Federal Highways 180 and 125...

 the following day when that town surrendered "without firing a gun." She then sailed with the squadron to 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...

, which Perry described as the "only fortified place of importance situated on the gulf coast not in our possession." With the landing force of seamen and marines

United States Marine Corps

The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...

 her detachment crossed the bar 18 April and successfully stormed the Mexican fortifications. As "a point of honor as well as duty," they reclaimed guns and ordnance stores, seized by the enemy from the wrecked brig

Brig

A brig is a sailing vessel with two square-rigged masts. During the Age of Sail, brigs were seen as fast and manoeuvrable and were used as both naval warships and merchant vessels. They were especially popular in the 18th and early 19th centuries...

 .

After cruising the coast of Lobos Island

Lobos Island

Lobos Island is a small island of the Canary Islands located just 2 km north of the island of Fuerteventura. Politically it belongs to the municipality of La Oliva, on the island of Fuerteventura. It has an area of 4.6 km². It has been a nature reserve without permanent human population...

, Germantown furnished 130 men to assist in the second expedition against 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....

. Between 13 and 16 June the force under Commodore Perry razed the defenses and occupied the town. During the next six months she cruised the Mexican coast from Vera Cruz to Tuxpan, blockading Mexican ports on the Gulf Coast; and between 9 August and 10 November she served as Commodore Perry's 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...

. Returning to Sacrificios Island 8 January 1848, she took on board the remains of gallant American dead and departed for the United States 15 January. Steaming via Havana, Cuba she arrived Norfolk 16 February and decommissioned for repairs 25 February.

Germantown recommissioned on 8 April, Comdr. Charles Lowndes in command. Departing Norfolk 25 April, she returned to Vera Cruz 19 May to again serve with Commodore Perry's Home Squadron. While off Laguna de Terminos

Laguna de Términos

Laguna de Términos is made up of a series of rich, sediment-laden lagoons and tidal estuaries connected by two channels to the Bay of Campeche in the southern part of Gulf of Mexico, in Carmen Municipality in the southwestern part of the Mexican state of Campeche. Its shores are swampy and support...

 3 June, she received news of the ratification of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo

Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo

The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo is the peace treaty, largely dictated by the United States to the interim government of a militarily occupied Mexico City, that ended the Mexican-American War on February 2, 1848...

. She returned to Vera Cruz 9 July; and, after receiving government dispatches, she departed Punta de Anton Lizardo 29 August and sailed to Pensacola, Florida

Pensacola, Florida

Pensacola is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle and the county seat of Escambia County, Florida, United States of America. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 56,255 and as of 2009, the estimated population was 53,752...

, where she arrived 12 September.

Caribbean, 1848–1850

Departing 1 October, Germantown sailed to the West Indies and arrived on station at St. Thomas, Virgin Islands

Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands

Saint Thomas is an island in the Caribbean Sea and with the islands of Saint John, Saint Croix, and Water Island a county and constituent district of the United States Virgin Islands , an unincorporated territory of the United States. Located on the island is the territorial capital and port of...

, 28 October. She actively cruised off the Virgin Islands until 30 June 1849 when she sailed for the United States. After touching at Key West, Florida

Key West, Florida

Key West is a city in Monroe County, Florida, United States. The city encompasses the island of Key West, the part of Stock Island north of U.S. 1 , Sigsbee Park , Fleming Key , and Sunset Key...

 and Norfolk, she resumed her station off St. Thomas 10 February 1850 and protected American commerce until again ordered to the United States 8 August. She reached New York 11 September and decommissioned 21 September.

African Squadron, 1851–1853

Recommissioned 23 December, Comdr. J. D. Knight in command, Germantown was assigned as flagship of Commodore Elie A. F. La Vallette

Elie A. F. La Vallette

Elie 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:...

's African Squadron 10 January 1851. She departed 12 April; sailed via the Madeira Islands to the Cape Verde Islands; and arrived Porto Praya 14 May to relieve sloop-of-war . Operating out of Porto Praya with sloops and and brigs and , she spent almost the next two years cruising the South Atlantic to St. Helena Island

Saint Helena

Saint Helena , named after St Helena of Constantinople, is an island of volcanic origin in the South Atlantic Ocean. It is part of the British overseas territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha which also includes Ascension Island and the islands of Tristan da Cunha...

 and along the African coast from Cape Mesurado

Cape Mesurado

Cape Mesurado is a headland on the coast of Liberia near the capital Monrovia and the mouth of the Saint Paul River. It was named Cape Mesurado by Portuguese sailors in the 1560s...

 to Loando

Luanda

Luanda, formerly named São Paulo da Assunção de Loanda, is the capital and largest city of Angola. Located on Angola's coast with the Atlantic Ocean, Luanda is both Angola's chief seaport and its administrative center. It has a population of at least 5 million...

, Portuguese West Africa. During this time the squadron "rendered aid to our countrymen, gave protection to our commerce, and security to the emigrants and missionaries located on the coast, and as far as practicable," reported Commodore Lavallette, "checked the slave traders in their abominable traffic." On 8 February 1853 she seized the American schooner Rachel P. Brown and sent the suspected 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....

 to Norfolk. Relieved on station by famed frigate , she departed Porto Praya 4 March; during her homeward voyage, she collected data for Lt. Matthew F. Maury

Matthew Fontaine Maury

Matthew Fontaine Maury , United States Navy was an American astronomer, historian, oceanographer, meteorologist, cartographer, author, geologist, and educator....

's world-wide wind and current survey. She reached Boston, Massachusetts 30 March and decommissioned 9 April.

Brazil Squadron, 1853–1857

Germantown recommissioned 23 November, Comdr. W. F. Lynch in command, and sailed 3 December for service in Commodore W. D. Salter's Brazil Squadron

Brazil 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...

. Arriving Rio de Janeiro

Rio de Janeiro

Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, 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, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...

, Brazil

Brazil

Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...

, 16 January 1854, she joined frigate

Frigate

A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...

 , brig

Brig

A brig is a sailing vessel with two square-rigged masts. During the Age of Sail, brigs were seen as fast and manoeuvrable and were used as both naval warships and merchant vessels. They were especially popular in the 18th and early 19th centuries...

 , and storeship and cruised the South Atlantic from Bahia, Brazil, to Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...

, Argentina

Argentina

Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

. During much of 1855 she maintained station off Montevideo, Uruguay, where political disturbances and revolutionary activities threatened the lives and property of foreign nationals. Comdr. Lynch sent a Marine detachment ashore 28 August to protect American interests; during an insurrection three months later a landing party of sailors and marines under Lt. A. S. Nicholson assisted forces from ships of three other nations in guarding consulates and the customhouse. After completing duty with the Brazil Squadron, she departed Bahia 8 January 1857; reached Hampton Roads 9 February ; and decommissioned three days later.

East India Squadron, 1857–1860

Germantown again recommissioned 15 July, Comdr. R. L. Page in command, for duty in the Far East

Far East

The Far East is an English term mostly describing East Asia and Southeast Asia, with South Asia sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons.The term came into use in European geopolitical discourse in the 19th century,...

. Departing Norfolk 4 August, she sailed via the Cape of Good Hope

Cape of Good Hope

The Cape of Good Hope is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula, South Africa.There is a misconception that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Africa, because it was once believed to be the dividing point between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. In fact, the...

 to Ceylon, where in 22 December she joined Flag Officer Josiah Tattnall

Josiah Tattnall

Commodore Josiah Tattnall, Jr. was an officer in the United States Navy during the War of 1812, the Second Barbary War, and the Mexican-American War. He later served in the Confederate Navy during the American Civil War....

's East India Squadron

East India Squadron

The East India Squadron, or East Indies Squadron, was a squadron of American ships which existed in the nineteenth century, it focused on protecting American interests in the Far East while the Pacific Squadron concentrated on the western coasts of the Americas and in the South Pacific Ocean...

 off Point de Gala. For two years she cruised Far Eastern waters and visited the principal ports of China

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

 and Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

, where she found "uniform friendly reception" as the squadron guarded American interests in the Orient. Sailing via the Cape of Good Hope, she returned to Norfolk in April 1860 and decommissioned the 18th.

Civil War, 1860–1864

Completely equipped for sea and awaiting a crew, Germantown was scuttled at Gosport Navy Yard 20 April 1861 as Union forces evacuated Norfolk. The Confederate

Confederate States of America

The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...

s raised her in June; fitted her out as a floating battery to serve near Craney Island

Craney Island (Virginia)

Craney Island is a point of land in the independent city of Portsmouth in the South Hampton Roads region of eastern Virginia in the United States. The location, formerly in Norfolk County, is near the mouth of the Elizabeth River opposite Lambert's Point on Hampton Roads. It is managed by the U.S...

 for the protection of Norfolk; then sank her as an obstruction in the Elizabeth River

Elizabeth River (Virginia)

The Elizabeth River is a tidal estuary forming an arm of Hampton Roads harbor at the southern end of Chesapeake Bay in southeast Virginia in the United States. It is located along the southern side of the mouth of the James River, between the cities of Portsmouth and Norfolk...

shortly before evacuating Norfolk 10 May 1862. Raised by Union forces 22 April 1863, Germantown saw no further service. Her hulk was sold by auction at Norfolk on 8 February 1864.