List of sailing frigates of the United States Navy

USS Constitution in 1997

This is a list of sailing frigates of the United States Navy. Frigates were the backbone of the early Navy, although the list shows that many suffered unfortunate fates.

The sailing frigates of the United States built from 1797 on were unique in that their framing was made of American live oak, a particularly hardy genus that made very resilient hulls; as a result of this, the ships were known to withstand damage that would have scuppered frigates of other nations. American frigates were also very heavily armed; the USN's 44s carried 24-pound cannon as opposed to the 18-pounders usual in frigates, and like most ships of the period carried more than their nominal rate, 56 guns or more. On the other hand, the USN classed ships with 20 to 26 guns as "third-class frigates", whereas the Royal Navy did not.

Continental Navy

Congress authorized 3 Frigates of 18, 13 Frigates of 12 ( 5 of 32, 5 of 28 and 3 of 24)

Name	Class	Rate[1]	Dates of Service	Fate
Alliance[2]	Alliance-class[3]	Frigate of 18	1778–1785[2]	abandoned near Philadelphia[2]
Bonhomme Richard[4]	Massiac-class[4]	42	1779–1779[4]	sank after taking Serapis[4]
Boston[3]	Boston-class[3]	24	1777–1780[3]	captured by the British[3]
Bourbon	Alliance-class	Frigate of 18	1783	never completed
Bricole		36	1764	build in France, Le Havre
Confederacy	Alliance-class	Frigate of 18	1778–1781	captured by the British
Congress (II)		28	1776–1777	never completed
Deane		24	1778–1783	build in France,Nantes
Delaware		24	1776–1777	captured by the British
Effingham		28	1777	never completed
Fox	Enterprise-class	28	7 June 1777-8 July 1777	captured by Hancock and Boston in June 1777,recaptured by Hms Flora
Hancock[3]	Hancock-class[3]	32	1776–1777[3]	captured by the British[3]
Montgomery		24	1776–1777	destroyed to prevent capture, Hudson River
Protector		26	1779–1781	captured become Hms Hussar 1781 20 guns 586 tons
Providence	Providence-class	28	1776–1780	captured by the British, Charleston, South Carolina
Queen of France		28	1777–1780	sunk to avoid capture by the British
Raleigh	Hancock-class	32	1776–1778	captured by the British, Matinicus Isle, Maine
Randolph[3]	Randolph-class	32	1776–1778[3]	exploded in battle[3]
Serapis[3]	Roebuck-class	44	1779–?[2]	transferred to the French
South Carolina		40	1777–1782	build in Holland, biggest war-ship
Truite		26	1779–1780	build in France, Le Havre
Trumbull	Providence-class	28	1776–1781	captured by the British
Virginia		28	1776–1778	captured by the British
Warren[3]	Randolph-class[3]	32	1776–1779[3]	destroyed to prevent capture, Penobscot Expedition[3]
Washington	Randolph-class	32	1776–1777	destroyed to prevent capture, Philadelphia

United States Navy

Name	Type	Rate[1]	Class	Dates of Service	Fate
Adams[3]	2nd class[5]	28		1799–1814[3]	scuttled and burned to prevent capture[3]
Baltimore	3rd class	20		1798–1801	sold
Boston[3]	2nd class[5]	28		1799–1814[3]	burned to prevent capture[3]
Brandywine[6][7]	1st class[6]	50	Potomac-class[8]	1825–1864[9]	destroyed by fire[9]
Chesapeake[2]	2nd class[5]	36		1800–1813[2]	captured by the British[2]
Columbia[9]	1st class[6]	44	Guerriere-class[10]	1813–1814[9]	burned on the stocks to prevent capture[9]
Columbia[6]	1st class[6]	50	Potomac-class[8]	1838–1861	scuttled and burned to prevent capture
Congress[2]	2nd class[11]	36 (38)	Constellation-class[2]	1799–1834[2]	broken up[2]
Congress[12]	1st class[12]	52		1841–1862[10]	burned and sank after action with CSS Virginia[10]
Connecticut	3rd class	24		1799–1801	sold
Constellation[2]	2nd class[11]	36 (38)	Constellation-class[2]	1797–1853[2]	broken up
Constitution[2]	1st class[11]	44	United States-class[2]	1797[3] to date	remains in commission
Cumberland[6]	1st class[6]	50	Potomac-class[8]	1842–1855	converted to sloop 1855 sunk by CSS Virginia 1862
Cyane	3rd class	22	Banterer-class	1815–1836[13]	broken up
Delaware	3rd class[14]	20		1798–1801	sold
Essex[3]	2nd class[15]	32		1799–1814[3]	captured by the British[3]
Ganges	3rd class[16]	24		1798–1801	sold
General Greene[3]	2nd class	30		1799–1805[3]	hulked; destroyed by fire 1814[3]
George Washington	3rd class[14]	24		1798–1802	sold
Guerriere[11]	1st class[11]	44	Guerriere-class[10]	1814–1841[10]	broken up[10]
Hudson[17]	1st class[17]	44		1828–1844[9]	broken up[9]
Independence[12]	1st class[12]	54		1836–1912	Built 1814 as a 90-gun ship of the line, razeed 1836, scrapped 1915 at San Francisco
Insurgent[9]	2nd class[9]	32	Sémillante-class[18]	1799–1800[9]	lost at sea[9]
Java[10]	1st class[11]	44	Guerriere-class[10]	1814–1842[10]	broken up, Norfolk, Virginia[10]
John Adams[3]	2nd class	28		1799–1867[3]	razeed to 20-gun corvette 1807; rebuilt as 24-gun frigate 1812 sold[3]
Macedonian[11]	2nd class[11]	38	Lively-class[19][20]	1812–1828	broken up, Norfolk, Virginia
Macedonian[6]	2nd class[6]	36		1836–1852	razeed to sloop-of war, 1852 sold 1871
Merrimack	3rd class	24		1798–1801	sold
Mohawk[8]	2nd class	38		1814–1823[8]	sunk[8]
Montezuma	3rd class[14]	20		1798–1799	sold
New York[3]	2nd class[5]	36		1800–1814[3]	burned by the British[3]
Philadelphia[3]	1st class[21]	44 (36)[22]		1799–1804[3]	captured by Tripoli[3] boarded and burned by Stephen Decatur[3]
Plattsburg[8]	1st class			1814–1825[8]	sold on ways[8]
Portsmouth	3rd class	24		1798–1801	sold
Potomac[11]	1st class[11]	50	Potomac-class[8]	1831–1877	sold
President[2]	1st class[5]	44	United States-class[2]	1800–1815[2]	captured by the British[2]
Raritan[6]	1st class[6]	50	Potomac-class[8]	1843–1861	destroyed to prevent capture
Sabine[6]	1st class[6]	52	Sabine-class[8]	1855–1883	sold
Santee[8]	1st class[12]	52	Sabine-class[8]	1855–1912[9]	sank at moorings[9]
Savannah[6]	1st class[6]	50	Potomac-class[8]	1844–1857	converted to sloop 1857 sold 1883
St. Lawrence[6]	1st class[6]	50	Potomac-class[8]	1848–1875	sold
Superior[9]	1st class	50		1814–1825[8]	sold[9]
Trumbull	3rd class	24		1799–1801	sold
United States[2]	1st class[11]	44	United States-class[2]	1797–1861[2] 1862–1866[2]	broken up for scrap
Warren	3rd class	24		1799–1801	sold

Ten additional ships of the Potomac class were appropriated, but never built.

See also

• List of sloops of war of the United States Navy
• Bibliography of early American naval history
• Continental Navy
• Pages that link to this list

References

• Chapelle, Howard Irving. The History of the American Sailing Navy; The Ships and Their Development. New York: Norton, 1949.
• Retrieved from "List of sloops of war of the United States Navy"

Notes

1. Nominal rating; actual armament was generally greater
2. Silverstone, Paul H. (2001). The Sailing Navy, 1775–1854. Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1-55750-893-5.
3. Bauer, Karl Jack; Roberts, Stephen S. (1991). Register of ships of the U.S. Navy, 1775–1990. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-313-26202-9.
4. Boudroit, Jean; Roberts, David H. (1987). John Paul Jones and the Bonhomme Richard: A Reconstruction of the Ship and an Account of the Battle With H.M.S. Serapis. Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-0-87021-892-7.
5. Griffis, William Elliot (2009). Matthew Calbraith Perry: A Typical American Naval Officer. BiblioLife. ISBN 978-1-103-04626-3.
6. New York Journal of Commerce (19 December). December 1832. Missing or empty |title= (help)
7. Laid down as Susquehanna
8. Bauer, K. Jack (1991). Register of Ships of the US Navy, 1775–1990: Major Combatants. Greenwood Press. ISBN 978-0-313-26202-9.
9. This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.
10. Canny, Donald L. (2001). Sailing Warships of the US Navy. US Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1-55750-990-1.
11. This article includes information collected from the Naval Vessel Register, which, as a U.S. government publication, is in the public domain.
12. Register of the Commissioned and Warrant Officers of the Navy of the United States, including Officers of the Marine Corps, and other, for the Year 1852.
13. ex-HMS Cyane, captured by Constitution 1815
14. Purchased merchant ship
15. Brownell, Henry Howard (1863). North and South America Illustrated: The English in America. Hollbert, Williams, & Company.
16. ex-Indiaman
17. Williams, Edwin (1836). The New-York Annual Register for the Year of Our Lord 1836. Edwin Williams.
18. ex-L'Insurgente, captured by Constellation 1799
19. De Kay, James Tertius (2000). Chronicles of the Frigate Macedonian, 1809–1922. W. W. Norton & Co. ISBN 978-0-393-32024-4.
20. ex-HMS Macedonian, captured by United States 1812
21. McKee, Christopher (1996). Edward Preble: A Naval Biography. Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1-55750-583-5.
22. re-rated 1803