Friends Good Will
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States
| |
| Name: | Friends Good Will |
| Builder: | John Scarano, Albany, NY |
| Laid down: | 2004 |
| Launched: | August 29, 2004 |
| Status: | In service |
| Notes: | Reproduction of a bermuda sloop bearing the same name that was involved in the War of 1812. |
| General characteristics | |
| Type: | square topsail sloop |
| Displacement: | 150,000 lbs |
| Tons burthen: | 6372⁄94 (bm; by calculation) |
| Length: |
|
| Beam: | 16 ft 10 in (5.13 m) |
| Draft: | 8 ft 9 in (2.67 m) |
| Propulsion: | 165 hp (123 kW) Yanmar diesel engine |
| Sail plan: | 3,180 square feet, (Main, staysail, 2 jibs, square topsail) |
| Complement: | Crew: 7, Passengers: 28. |
| Armament: | 9-pounder pivot gun + 2 × 6-pounder guns |
| Notes: | Laminate wood planks over frame. |
The Friends Good Will is a working American reproduction of the historical Friends Good Will (1811-1813), a merchant square-rigged topsail sloop that was overtaken by the events of the War of 1812. The British captured her in a ruse of war shortly after they captured of Fort Mackinac. In British service she was armed with a 9-pounder pivot gun and two 6-pounder guns, and they renamed her HMS Little Belt. Recaptured during the Battle of Lake Erie, she served in the US Navy before she was destroyed by enemy action at the end of December 1813.
The current vessel sails out of South Haven, Michigan at the Michigan Maritime Museum, where she brings the area's history to life through educational tours, day sails, and school field trips. She can also be found visiting ports throughout the Great Lakes for maritime festivals and American Sail Training Association races.
During Michigan winters, the Friends Good Will remains at the Michigan Maritime Museum. Her lines, spars, and sails are removed each October during the downrigging process, and inspected, repaired and/or replaced during ongoing winter maintenance by the volunteers of the Ship's Company. The following April, the Ship's Company removes the vessel's cover and performs her uprigging over the course of two weekends.
The USS Providence, John Paul Jones' first command as a Captain, was a similar square topsail sloop.