USS ''Wasp'' was an 8-gun

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 ...

of the

Continental Navy The Continental Navy was the navy of the United Colonies and United States from 1775 to 1785. It was founded on October 13, 1775 by the Continental Congress to fight against British forces and their allies as part of the American Revolutionary ...

. She was originally the merchantman ''Scorpion'', built at

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

, and purchased under authority from the

Second Continental Congress The Second Continental Congress (1775–1781) was the meetings of delegates from the Thirteen Colonies that united in support of the American Revolution and American Revolutionary War, Revolutionary War, which established American independence ...

dated 2 December 1775 by Col. Benjamin Harrison sometime between 2 and 18 December 1775, the first American naval ship to be given that name. She was outfitted in Baltimore from December 1775 to early 1776; and commissioned in December 1775 or January 1776, Capt. William Hallock in command. ''Wasp'' set sail from Baltimore on 14 January 1776 in company with and a convoy of ships bound for the

Delaware Capes Delaware Bay is the estuary outlet of the Delaware River on the northeast seaboard of the United States, lying between the states of Delaware and New Jersey. It is approximately in area, the bay's freshwater mixes for many miles with the saltwat ...

. By virtue of their voyage to meet Commodore

Esek Hopkins Commodore (rank), Commodore Esek Hopkins (April 26, 1718February 26, 1802) was a Continental Navy officer and privateer. He served as the only commander-in-chief of the Continental navy during the American Revolutionary War, when the Continental ...

' squadron at the Delaware Capes, ''Wasp'' and ''Hornet'' appear to be the first ships of the Continental Navy to get to sea. They joined Hopkins' squadron on 13 February; and, four days later, the first American squadron to put to sea began its maiden voyage. Interpreting his orders rather liberally, by ignoring those portions which related to operations in the

Chesapeake Bay The Chesapeake Bay ( ) is the largest estuary in the United States. The bay is located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region and is primarily separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Delmarva Peninsula, including parts of the Ea ...

and along the southern coast of the colonies, Hopkins led his fleet directly to the

Bahamas The Bahamas, officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an archipelagic and island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean. It contains 97 per cent of the archipelago's land area and 88 per cent of its population. ...

. The ships, minus ''Hornet'' and , arrived at Abaco in the Bahamas on 1 March, and Hopkins began laying plans for the raid on

New Providence New Providence is the most populous island in The Bahamas, containing more than 70% of the total population. On the eastern side of the island is the national capital, national capital city of Nassau, Bahamas, Nassau; it had a population of 246 ...

. The fleet ran in to attempt a landing at the port of

Nassau Nassau may refer to: Places Austria * Nassau (Groß Sankt Florian), incorporated village of Groß Sankt Florian Bahamas *Nassau, The Bahamas, capital city of the Bahamas Canada *Nassau District, renamed Home District, regional division in Upp ...

but failed to achieve surprise. The landing, therefore, went forward several miles to the east of the town. ''Wasp'' and covered the

Continental Marines The Continental Marines were the Amphibious warfare, amphibious infantry of the Thirteen Colonies, American Colonies (and later the United States) during the American Revolutionary War. The Corps was formed by the Continental Congress on Novem ...

as they went ashore, but their guns never fired because the landing was not opposed. That afternoon, the landing force took Fort Montague and the following day captured the town of Nassau and Fort Nassau. They took a large quantity of

cannon A cannon is a large-caliber gun classified as a type of artillery, which usually launches a projectile using explosive chemical propellant. Gunpowder ("black powder") was the primary propellant before the invention of smokeless powder during th ...

—close to 90 pieces, and 15 brass mortars—but the governor had managed to foil the mission in its primary objective by spiriting away the bulk of the gunpowder which had been stored there. Hopkins had to settle for 24 casks of powder out of the 174 originally stored there. The cannon and other military stores captured, however, more than justified the enterprise. The fleet remained at Nassau for about two weeks loading the booty of war. So large was the take that several local ships had to be pressed into service to carry the materiel back to North America. Hopkins' squadron finally hoisted sail on 17 March and set course for

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

. ''Wasp'', however, parted with the main fleet and made her way independently back to the Delaware capes and thence into port at

Philadelphia 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 ...

, where she arrived on 4 April. After repairs at Philadelphia, ''Wasp'' returned to duty in the

Delaware River The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States and is the longest free-flowing (undammed) river in the Eastern United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock, New York, the river flows for a ...

and Bay. On 5 May, two British

men-of-war In Royal Navy jargon, a man-of-war (also man-o'-war, or simply man) was a powerful warship or frigate of the 16th to the 19th century, that was frequently used in Europe. Although the term never acquired a specific meaning, it was usually rese ...

, the 44-gun and 28-gun , entered the bay with several prizes. In the face of these two formidable enemies, ''Wasp'' retreated into Christiana Creek, but came out again on the 8th to join a force of galleys in attacking ''Roebuck'' after she had run aground. During the ensuing engagement, the Continental schooner captured the British brig HMS ''Betsey'' and took her into Philadelphia where the ship's officers were placed in jail. The schooner continued to operate on the

and

Bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a ''gulf'', ''sea'', ''sound'', or ''bight''. A ''cove'' is a small, ci ...

and along the nearby Atlantic coast for the remainder of her career. On 28 June, she engaged in the

Battle of Turtle Gut Inlet The Battle of Turtle Gut Inlet (June 29, 1776) was an important, early naval victory for the Continental Navy and the future "Father of the American Navy", Captain John Barry. It was the first privateer battle of the American Revolutionary War. ...

to salvage the cargo of ''Nancy''. Near the end of the year, she took three more prizes—''Leghorn Galley'' late in October, ''Two Brothers'' in December, and an unnamed sloop that same month. She also recaptured ''Success'', an American ship previously taken by ''Roebuck''. Into the fall of 1777, ''Wasp'' continued her operations in the vicinity of the Delaware Capes until November when she and four other ships unsuccessfully engaged the British force under Admiral Sir

Richard Howe Admiral of the Fleet Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe (8 March 1726 – 5 August 1799) was a Royal Navy officer and politician. After serving in the War of the Austrian Succession, he gained a reputation for his role in amphibious operations agai ...

. Philadelphia had already fallen to Howe's brother, General Sir William Howe, late in September, but American forces retained control of the river below the city until losing that engagement. Following the clash, ''Wasp'' was run aground, set afire, and destroyed when her gunpowder exploded.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wasp (1775) Schooners of the Continental Navy 1770s ships Maritime incidents in 1777

See also

References