USS ''Congress'' was a

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

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

in operation between 1842 and 1862. The fourth Navy ship to carry the name ''Congress'', she served in the Mediterranean, South Atlantic Ocean, and in the Pacific Ocean. She continued to operate as an American warship until the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

, when she was sunk by the

ironclad An ironclad was a steam engine, steam-propelled warship protected by iron armour, steel or iron armor constructed from 1859 to the early 1890s. The ironclad was developed as a result of the vulnerability of wooden warships to explosive or ince ...

CSS ''Virginia'' in the

Battle of Hampton Roads The Battle of Hampton Roads, also referred to as the Battle of the ''Monitor'' and ''Merrimack'' or the Battle of Ironclads, was a naval battle during the American Civil War. The battle was fought over two days, March 8 and 9, 1862, in Hampton ...

, Virginia, in 1862.

Service history

''Congress'' was launched at the Portsmouth Navy Yard on August 16, 1841 and placed in commission under Captain Philip Voorhees on May 7, 1842. Her first cruise, starting on July 15, took her to the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...

for service with the Squadron of Commodores Charles W. Morgan and Charles Morris. In December 1843, Voorhees joined Commodore Daniel Turner's Brazil Squadron blockading

Montevideo Montevideo (, ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Uruguay, largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2023 census, the city proper has a population of 1,302,954 (about 37.2% of the country's total population) in an area of . M ...

in safeguarding U.S. trade during the

Uruguayan Civil War The Uruguayan Civil War, also known in Spanish as the ''Guerra Grande'' ("Great War"), was a series of armed conflicts between the leaders of Uruguayan independence. While officially the war lasted from 1839 until 1851, it was a part of armed ...

. On September 29, 1844, Voorhees captured an armed Argentine

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

that delivered a mail to the Argentine commanding officer.Written on September 11, 1844 to Mrs. Philip F. Voorhees by American author

James Fenimore Cooper James Fenimore Cooper (September 15, 1789 – September 14, 1851) was an American writer of the first half of the 19th century, whose historical romances depicting colonial and indigenous characters from the 17th to the 19th centuries brought h ...

, http://www.fulkerson.org/jersey.html This overreaction damaged the US-Argentina relation and resulted in a court martial for Voorhees. His impetuosity resulted in a few months suspension, for Voorhees, but did little damage to his career.David Foster Long, ''Gold Braid and Foreign Relations: Diplomatic Activities of U.S. Naval Officers, 1798–1883'', pg 157–160, Naval Institute Press, 1988 ''Congress'' remained active in the theatre until January 1845. She was then placed in ordinary at Norfolk, Virginia in March. ''Congress'' was recommissioned on September 15, 1845, as

flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of navy, naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically ...

of Commodore Robert F. Stockton and sailed for the Pacific Ocean in late October. After landing the U.S. Commissioner to the Sandwich Islands at

Honolulu, Hawaii Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...

on June 10, she proceeded to

Monterey Bay Monterey Bay is a bay of the Pacific Ocean located on the coast of the U.S. state of California, south of the San Francisco Bay Area. San Francisco itself is further north along the coast, by about 75 miles (120 km), accessible via California S ...

where she joined the Pacific Squadron. Captain Elie A. F. La Vallette assumed command on July 20 and employed her along the west coast during the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War (Spanish language, Spanish: ''guerra de Estados Unidos-México, guerra mexicano-estadounidense''), also known in the United States as the Mexican War, and in Mexico as the United States intervention in Mexico, ...

. Large detachments of her crew participated in battles on Rio San Gabriel and the plains of La Mesa, and in the occupation of

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. She assisted in the bombardment and capture of Guaymas in October 1847, and in November furnished a detachment that aided in the occupation of Mazatlán. On August 23, 1848, she departed

La Paz, Baja California Sur La Paz (, ) is the capital and largest city of the Mexico, Mexican States of Mexico, state of Baja California Sur, with a 2020 census population of 250,141 inhabitants, making it the most populous city in the state. La Paz City is located in La ...

for

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. It had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Virginia, third-most populous city ...

, arriving the following January to be placed in ordinary. In May 1850, she was assigned a threefold mission; protect U.S. interests between the mouth of the Amazon River and

Cape Horn Cape Horn (, ) is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island. Although not the most southerly point of South America (which is Águila Islet), Cape Horn marks the nor ...

, prevent the use of the American flag to cover the

African slave trade Slavery has historically been widespread in Africa. Systems of servitude and slavery were once commonplace in parts of Africa, as they were in much of the rest of the ancient and medieval world. When the trans-Saharan slave trade, Red Sea s ...

, and maintain neutral rights during hostilities among the South American countries. Departing Hampton Roads, Virginia on June 12, she arrived at

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...

, Brazil on September 1 and assumed duty as flagship of the Brazil Squadron under Commodore Issac McKeever until June 1853. She returned to New York City on July 20 for decommissioning. On June 19, 1855, ''Congress'' sailed for the Mediterranean and there followed two years as flagship of Commodore Samuel Livingston Breese. Sailing from Spezia, Italy on November 26, 1857, she arrived at

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

on January 13, 1858, and was placed out of commission. In 1859, ''Congress'' was reassigned as flagship of Commodore Joshua R. Sands and the Brazil Squadron, remaining in that area until the Civil War precipitated her return to

Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

on August 22, 1861.

American Civil War service

On September 9, 1861, she was ordered to duty under command of Capt. Louis M. Goldsborough in the Atlantic Blockading Squadron, later to serve under

commanding officer The commanding officer (CO) or commander, or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually give ...

W. Smith, and

executive officer An executive officer is a person who is principally responsible for leading all or part of an organization, although the exact nature of the role varies depending on the organization. In many militaries and police forces, an executive officer ...

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

Joseph B. Smith Joseph Bryant Smith (December 29, 1826 – March 8, 1862) was an officer in the United States Navy who was killed in action during the American Civil War. Early life and education Joseph Bryant Smith was born on December 29, 1826, in Belfast, M ...

. ''Congress'' was anchored off

Newport News, Virginia Newport News () is an Independent city (United States), independent city in southeastern Virginia, United States. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 186,247. Located in the Hampton Roads region, it is the List of c ...

, as part of the

Union blockade The Union blockade in the American Civil War was a naval strategy by the United States to prevent the Confederate States of America, Confederacy from trading. The blockade was proclaimed by President Abraham Lincoln in April 1861, and required ...

of that port on March 8, 1862, when she fell under attack by the Confederate

, CSS ''Virginia'' (ex-'' USS Merrimack'') and five other small ships. Serving aboard ''Congress'' at this time was McKean Buchanan, brother of the commanding officer of the ''Virginia'', Franklin Buchanan.Davis, 1996, ''The Civil War'', p.216 After exchanging broadsides with ''Virginia'', ''Congress'' slipped her moorings and ran aground in shallow water. The ironclad and her consorts attacked from a distance and inflicted great damage on the ship, killing 120, including the commanding officer,

. Executive officer Austin Pendergrast assumed command. Ablaze in several places and unable to bring guns to bear on the enemy, ''Congress'' was forced to strike her colors and raise a white flag. Heavy shore batteries prevented ''Virginia'' from taking possession. Instead she fired several rounds of hot shot (red-hot cannonballs) and incendiary causing ''Congress'' to burn to the water's edge, and her

magazine A magazine is a periodical literature, periodical publication, print or digital, produced on a regular schedule, that contains any of a variety of subject-oriented textual and visual content (media), content forms. Magazines are generally fin ...

to explode. Lt. Smith, having been in command at the time, died in the action. Eventually, during the battle, ''Congress'' sank by the stern. In September 1865, ''Congress'' was raised and taken to the

Norfolk Navy Yard The Norfolk Naval Shipyard, often called the Norfolk Navy Yard and abbreviated as NNSY, is a United States Navy, U.S. Navy facility in Portsmouth, Virginia, for building, remodeling and repairing the Navy's ships. It is the oldest and largest ...

where she was later sold. She later was stripped for the valuable wood and metal near her mast. The sails later were used to make a flag in memory of the ship.

References

External links

Watch-, Quarter-, and Station-Bill of the U.S.S. Congress, 1842-1873 (bulk 1842-1845) MS 86
held by Special Collections & Archives, Nimitz Library at the United States Naval Academy {{DEFAULTSORT:Congress 4 Sailing frigates of the United States Navy Mexican–American War ships of the United States Ships of the Union Navy American Civil War patrol vessels of the United States Shipwrecks of the Virginia coast Ships built in Kittery, Maine Maritime incidents in March 1862 1841 ships Shipwrecks of the American Civil War Naval magazine explosions Heavy frigates of the United States Navy

Service history

American Civil War service

See also

References

External links