The third USS ''Boston'' was a 32-gun wooden- hulled, three- masted

frigate A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied somewhat. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and ...

of the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

. ''Boston'' was built by

public subscription Subscription refers to the process of investors signing up and committing to invest in a financial instrument, before the actual closing of the purchase. The term comes from the Latin word ''subscribere''. Historical Praenumeration An early form ...

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

under the Act of 30 June 1798. ''Boston'' was active during the

Quasi-War The Quasi-War (french: Quasi-guerre) was an undeclared naval war fought from 1798 to 1800 between the United States and the French First Republic, primarily in the Caribbean and off the East Coast of the United States. The ability of Congres ...

with

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

and the

First Barbary War The First Barbary War (1801–1805), also known as the Tripolitan War and the Barbary Coast War, was a conflict during the Barbary Wars, in which the United States and Sweden fought against Tripolitania. Tripolitania had declared war against Sw ...

. On 12 October 1800, ''Boston'' engaged and captured the French corvette ''Berceau''. ''Boston'' was laid up in 1802, and considered not worth repairing at the outbreak of the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

. She was burned at the Washington Naval Yard on 24 August 1814 to prevent her capture by British forces.

Design and Construction

''Boston'' was designed and constructed by

Edmund Hartt Edmund Hartt (1744-1824) was a master carpenter and owned the shipyard in Boston, Massachusetts where was constructed in 1797. The shipyard was located in the North End of Boston, near the location of the present Coast Guard base. He also built ...

, Massachusetts. ''Boston'' was authorized by the funded by the donations from the people of Boston, Massachusetts as part of the group of ships built by the states to supplement the

Original six frigates of the United States Navy The United States Congress authorized the original six frigates of the United States Navy with the Naval Act of 1794 on March 27, 1794, at a total cost of $688,888.82 (). These ships were built during the formative years of the United States Nav ...

provided by the Naval Act of 1794. The frigate has a displacement of 400 tons and had a length between perpendiculars of . She was originally armed with twenty-four 9-pounder and eight 6-pounder guns, and carried a complement of 220 officers and men. She was launched on 20 May 1799 and commissioned soon afterwards, Captain George Little in command.

Service history

''Boston'' cruised in the

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greater A ...

(July 1799 – June 1800) protecting American commerce against French

privateer A privateer is a private person or ship that engages in maritime warfare under a commission of war. Since robbery under arms was a common aspect of seaborne trade, until the early 19th century all merchant ships carried arms. A sovereign or deleg ...

s. Returning to Boston 25 June 1800, she cruised along the American coast until September when she sailed to the

Guadeloupe Guadeloupe (; ; gcf, label=Antillean Creole, Gwadloup, ) is an archipelago and overseas department and region of France in the Caribbean. It consists of six inhabited islands—Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Marie-Galante, La Désirade, and the ...

Station in the West Indies. In , on 12 October 1800, she engaged and captured the French corvette . ''Boston'' lost seven killed and eight wounded in the encounter. She towed her prize to Boston, arriving in November. During her West Indian cruises Boston captured seven additional prizes (two in conjunction with ). During the winter of 1801 ''Boston'' carried Minister Livingston to

and then joined the Mediterranean Squadron off

Tripoli Tripoli or Tripolis may refer to: Cities and other geographic units Greece *Tripoli, Greece, the capital of Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (region of Arcadia), a district in ancient Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (Larisaia), an ancient Greek city in ...

while under the command of Captain Daniel McNeil. She fought an action with six or seven Tripolitanian

gunboat A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies. History Pre-steam ...

s on 16 May 1802, forcing one ashore. ''Boston'' returned to Boston in October 1802 and then proceeded to

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

where she was laid up. Considered not worth repairing on the outbreak of the

, she remained at Washington until 24 August 1814 when she was burned to prevent her falling into British hands.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Boston (1799) Sailing frigates of the United States Navy Ships built in Boston Quasi-War ships of the United States War of 1812 ships of the United States 1799 ships

Design and Construction

Service history

See also

References