The Franklin Mint History Of The United States, 1776-1973
Manufacturer
The Franklin Mint
DateNo Date
MediumSilver
DimensionsOverall: 1 3/4 in. (45 mm.)
ClassificationsDecorative arts
Credit LineGift of Dr. Eugene F. Poutasse
Object number76.81.22
On View
Not on viewThe 1797 medal: First Vessel of New Navy Launched
The Revolutionary War destroyed the Continental Navy. At the end the sailors were discharged to save money. Then, in 1794, six frigates were authorized by Congress to combat the Algerian pirates. But after a treaty was signed with Algiers in 1795, work on the frigates was stopped. It might have been many more years before the navy was reborn had it not been for the war beteen England and France. Each began seizing ships trading with the other. An estimated 316 American ships were captured between July 1796 and July, 1797.
To protect American commerce and to prepare for possible war with England or France, the frigates were ordered completed. The first to be launched was the "United States," a 44-gun frigate, on May 10, 1797 at Philadelphia. Capt. John Barry was commander.
The second frigate launch was the "Constitution" (later to become famous as "Old Ironsides") at Boston on October 21. Carrying 44 guns, the commander during its first years was Commodore Silas Talbot.
The design and building of the frigates was in charge of Joshua Humphreys (1751-1888), a naval architect and shipbuilder who had outfitted the Continental Navy. He recommended that since the new navy was so small it should concentrate on frigates and sloops which would be fast enough to escape larger ships they could not defeat and powerful enough to fight ships of similar size or armament on an equal basis. In the years to come, the superiority of design was proven many times.
Benjamin Adworth Richardson
ca. 1907
