USS ''Ohio'' was a

schooner A schooner () is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than the mainmast. A common variant, the topsail schoon ...

"launched at Cleveland in 1810 by merchants named Murray and Bigsbey." purchased by the US Navy in 1812; converted to a warship by Henry Eckford; and commissioned prior to 13 June 1813, with

Sailing Master The master, or sailing master, is a historical rank for a naval officer trained in and responsible for the navigation of a sailing vessel. The rank can be equated to a professional seaman and specialist in navigation, rather than as a military ...

Daniel Dobbins Daniel Dobbins (January 5, 1776 – February 29, 1856) was a sailing master in the United States Navy and captain in the United States Revenue Cutter Service. He fought in the War of 1812 and was in charge of the building of the ships at Eri ...

in command. ''Ohio'' served on

Lake Erie Lake Erie ( "eerie") is the fourth largest lake by surface area of the five Great Lakes in North America and the eleventh-largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and therefore also has t ...

in the squadron commanded by Captain

Oliver Hazard Perry Oliver Hazard Perry (August 23, 1785 – August 23, 1819) was an American naval commander, born in South Kingstown, Rhode Island. The best-known and most prominent member of the Perry family naval dynasty, he was the son of Sarah Wallace A ...

during 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 ...

. The squadron's mission was to wrest control of the lake from the British. With four other purchased ships, ''Ohio'' lay at Black Rock below the Falls in the

Niagara River The Niagara River () is a river that flows north from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario. It forms part of the border between the province of Ontario in Canada (on the west) and the state of New York (state), New York in the United States (on the east) ...

, prevented by British blockade from entering Lake Erie. Finally, in a combined operation with the Army, Perry was able to bring the ships out to join the remainder of the squadron in

Presque Isle Bay Presque Isle Bay is a natural bay located off the coast of Erie, Pennsylvania, United States. Its embayment is about in length, about across at its widest point, and an average depth of about . The bay is at an elevation of 571 ft (174 m) ...

Erie, Pennsylvania Erie (; ) is a city on the south shore of Lake Erie and the county seat of Erie County, Pennsylvania, United States. Erie is the fifth largest city in Pennsylvania and the largest city in Northwestern Pennsylvania with a population of 94,831 a ...

. ''Ohio'' arrived at Erie on 8 July 1813. After searching for the British, the squadron anchored at Sandusky on 17 August. ''Ohio'' returned to Erie for provisions and stores for the squadron, rejoining her sister ships on 3 September. The same day she set sail for Erie again, and thus was not with the squadron when it won the memorable victory over the British at Put-in Bay on 10 September. Three days later ''Ohio'' reached Put-in Bay with sorely needed fresh vegetables and meat. As soon as the ice cleared in early 1814, ''Ohio'' began patrolling between Long Point and Erie to intercept any British movement by water. In May she assisted in fitting out prizes and at Put-in Bay, and convoyed them to Erie. On 12 August 1814, ''Ohio'' was captured along with the schooner by the British within pistol shot of

Fort Erie Fort Erie is a town on the Niagara River in the Niagara Region, Ontario, Canada. It is directly across the river from Buffalo, New York, and is the site of Old Fort Erie which played a prominent role in the War of 1812. Fort Erie is one of Ni ...

. ''Somers'' was renamed ''Huron'' while ''Ohio'' was renamed ''Sauk.'' " e ''Sauk (ex-Ohio)'' and ''Huron (ex-Somers)'' were taken up Chippewa Creek and submerged in one of its tributaries, Street's Creek, just in case the American tried to recapture them in a raid across the Niagara." The schooners were raised and refitted in the spring of 1815. They both wintered at the Royal Navy station at the mouth of the Grand River. The ''Ohio's'' subsequent history is unknown after 1817.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ohio (1812) Schooners of the United States Navy War of 1812 ships of the United States Great Lakes ships History of Erie, Pennsylvania 1810 ships War of 1812 ships of the United Kingdom Vessels captured from the United States Navy