USS ''Eagle'', was a ship which served in 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 ...

in 1813-1815. Originally a merchant sloop, she was purchased at

Vergennes, Vermont Vergennes is a city located in the northwest quadrant of Addison County, Vermont, United States. The municipality is bordered by the towns of Ferrisburgh, Panton, and Waltham. As of the 2020 census, its population was 2,553. It is the small ...

Lake Champlain Lake Champlain ( ; french: Lac Champlain) is a natural freshwater lake in North America. It mostly lies between the US states of New York and Vermont, but also extends north into the Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. The New York portion of t ...

in 1812 and fitted as either sloop of war or brig for naval service. The

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

captured her in 1813 and renamed her HMS ''Finch'', only to lose her back to the Americans at the

Battle of Lake Champlain The Battle of Plattsburgh, also known as the Battle of Lake Champlain, ended the final British invasion of the northern states of the United States during the War of 1812. An army under Lieutenant General Sir George Prévost and a naval squadr ...

in 1814. She was sold in 1815.

American service and capture

She cruised on the lake under the command of Sailing Master J. Loomis as a member of

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Thomas Macdonough Thomas Macdonough, Jr. (December 31, 1783 – November 10, 1825) was an early-19th-century Irish-American naval officer noted for his roles in the first Barbary War and the War of 1812. He was the son of a revolutionary officer, Thomas Macdonou ...

's squadron blockading the

advance from

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. Major George Taylor of the 100th Regiment captured ''Eagle'' on 3 June 1813 on the Sorrell River near

Ile aux Noix Ile may refer to: * iLe, a Puerto Rican singer * Ile District (disambiguation), multiple places * Ilé-Ifẹ̀, an ancient Yoruba city in south-western Nigeria * Interlingue (ISO 639:ile), a planned language * Isoleucine, an amino acid * Another ...

on the Canadian side of the lake, after a fight of three-and-a-half hours; British casualties were three men wounded and American casualties were one man killed and eight severely wounded. (Both vessels were taken into Royal Navy service, but the Americans recaptured them the next year.) The British took her into the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...

as HMS ''Shannon'' but later renamed her HMS ''Chubb''.

British service and recapture

''Finch'' accompanied the expedition that burned the arsenal and storehouses at Plattsburgh, New York. She was under the command of Lieutenant William Hicks on 11 September 1814 at the Battle of Lake Champlain. She was bringing up the rear of the British line together with some gunboats. She was ordered to sail towards and engage the USS ''Preble'', a sloop of seven guns. As she did so, the schooner USS ''Ticonderoga'' fired on ''Finch'' shooting away her rigging. ''Finch'' ran aground near Crab Island where a small American shore battery commenced firing on her. Unable to free herself, and with two men wounded, Hicks struck the colors.Hepper (1994), p.151.

Fate

After the Americans recaptured ''Finch'' they took her back into the U.S. Navy under her original name. After the war, she was sold in July 1815 at

Whitehall Whitehall is a road and area in the City of Westminster, Central London. The road forms the first part of the A3212 road from Trafalgar Square to Chelsea. It is the main thoroughfare running south from Trafalgar Square towards Parliament Sq ...

, New York.

Footnotes

;Notes ;Citations

References

* *Silverstone, Paul H. (2001) ''The Sailing Navy, 1775-1854''. (Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press) ISBN 1- 55750-893-3 * {{DEFAULTSORT:Eagle (1812) Sloops of the United States Navy War of 1812 ships of the United States

Finch The true finches are small to medium-sized passerine birds in the family Fringillidae. Finches have stout conical bills adapted for eating seeds and nuts and often have colourful plumage. They occupy a great range of habitats where they are usua ...

1812 ships Vessels captured from the United States Navy Vessels captured by the United States Navy Captured ships

American service and capture

British service and recapture

Fate

See also

Footnotes

References