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Anav
12-20-2011, 07:13
The first Essex was launched 30 September 1799 by Enos Briggs, Salem, Mass., at cost of $139,362 subscribed by the people of Salem and Essex County, Mass. On 17 December 1799 she was presented to the United States and accepted by Captain Edward Preble.

With the United States involved in naval action against France on 6 January 1800 Essex, Captain Edward Preble, departed New York in company with Congress to rendezvous with and convoy merchant ships returning from Batavia, Dutch East Indies. Congress was dismasted only a few days out, and Essex was obliged to continue her voyage alone, making her mark as the first U.S. man-of-war to double the Cape of Good Hope, both in March and in August 1800 prior to successfully completing her convoy mission in November.

Captain William Bainbridge commanded Essex on her second cruise whereon she sailed to the Mediterranean with the squadron of Commodore Richard Dale. Dispatched to protect American trade and seamen against depredations by the Barbary Powers, the squadron arrived at Gibraltar on 1 July 1801 and spent the ensuing year convoying American merchantmen and blockading Tripolitan ships. Following repairs at the Washington Navy Yard in 1802, Essex resumed her duties in the Mediterranean under Captain James Barron in August 1804. She participated in the successful attack on the town of Derne on 27 April 1805 and remained in these waters until the conclusion of peace terms in 1806.

Returning to the Washington Navy Yard in July, she was placed in ordinary until February 1809 when she was recommissioned for sporadic use in patrolling American waters and a single cruise to Europe. When war was declared against Britain on 18 June 1812, Essex, commanded by Captain David Porter, made a successful cruise to the southward. On 11 July near Bermuda she fell in with seven British transports and by moonlight cut out and seized one of them. On 13 August she encountered and captured the sloop Alert after an engagement. By September when she returned to New York, Essex had taken 10 prizes.

Essex sailed in South Atlantic waters and along the coast of Brazil until January 1813 when Captain Porter undertook the decimation of English whale fisheries in the Pacific. Although her crew suffered greatly from a shortage of provisions and heavy gales while rounding Cape Horn, she anchored safely at Valparaiso, Chile, on 14 March, having seized schooners, Elizabeth and Nereyda in course. The next 5 months brought Essex 13 prizes, including Essex Junior, (ex Atlantic) who cruised in company with her captor to the Island of Nukahiva for repairs.

In January 1814, Essex sailed into neutral waters at Valparaíso, only to be trapped there for six weeks by the British frigate, Phoebe (36 guns) and the sloop-of-war Cherub (18 guns) under Captain James Hillyar. On 28 March 1814, Porter determined to gain the open sea, fearing the arrival of British reinforcements. Upon rounding the point, Essex lost her main top-mast to foul weather and was brought to action just north of Valparaíso. For 2½ hours, Essex, armed almost entirely with powerful, but short range carronades (which Porter had complained to the Navy about on several occasions), resisted the enemy's superior fighting power and longer gun range. A fire erupted twice aboard the Essex, at which point about fifty men abandoned the ship and swam for shore; only half of them landing. Eventually, the hopeless situation forced the frigate to surrender. The Essex suffered 58 dead and 31 missing of her crew of 154, while the British casualties were 5 dead, 10 wounded. One the crew members of the Essex present at this action was 12 year old Midshipman David Farragut, the foster son of Captain Porter, who would rise to the rank of Admiral and achieve renown during the American Civil War.

Essex was repaired by the British, sent to England, and in 1833 served as a prison ship at Kingston, Jamaica. On 6 June 1837 she was sold at public auction.

David Manley
12-20-2011, 07:49
Of course the first ESSEX was a 48-gun third rate "Speaker"class frigate built for the navy of the Commonwealth of England by Phineas Pett II at Deptford, and launched in 1653, but we know what you mean :)

She was captured by the Dutch during the Four Days battle, thus beginning a tradition for ships of that name to end their lives with new owners!

Anav
12-20-2011, 07:53
no.....not sure what you mean at all!! LOL

csadn
12-20-2011, 16:21
[...]Essex, armed almost entirely with powerful, but short range carronades (which Porter had complained to the Navy about on several occasions),

One notable point: _Essex_'s captures carried cannon of their own, to include "military-grade" 12- and 18-lb. weapons. There is some question as to why Porter, who had complained long and loud re the carronade-biased firepower of _Essex_, did not take the opportunities presented to re-arm _Essex_ with the longer-ranged weapons; and how might the fight with _Phoebe_ and _Cherub_ have played out if he had done so.

Anav
12-20-2011, 16:32
Probably had to do with time and available guns. Maybe the Navy wanted to experiment with an all carronade ship.

The Cowman
12-21-2011, 13:31
Any clue what happened to the Essex after she was purchased in 1837?

csadn
12-21-2011, 14:50
Probably had to do with time and available guns.

I've been doing some research on this -- time wasn't a factor, as _Essex_ spent a couple days with each prize pillaging it for supplies; and at least one prize (the ship later named _Essex Jr._) was converted to an auxiliary combat unit. As to available guns: I haven't been able to work up a full list of what prize was armed with what guns as yet, but the data I have suggests _Essex_ could easily have been rearmed as a 12-lb.er frigate (with a few carronades for up-close work). Ned to find my notes, damn it....


Maybe the Navy wanted to experiment with an all carronade ship.

Not from the data I've been able to find -- it appears the captain preceding Porter had decided (as was the prerogative of US captains at the time) to rearm with mostly carronades; when Porter requested to rearm _Essex_ to its original configuration, he was told there was no budget for it. (The original loadout, as best I can tell, was: 26 12-lb. long-barrels on the main deck, 16 24-lb. carronades on the spar deck; the idea was to keep the weight low, to improve sailing qualities. The rearmed version replaced 20 of the 12-lb. guns with 24 32-lb. guns; not only did this render it incapable of long-range fighting, but also ruined its handling.)

Anav
12-22-2011, 13:13
One indication:
During some recent resurfacing work on the east pier of Dún Laoghaire harbour the permanent mooring anchor of the Essex was discovered embedded in the pier.
most likely broken up.

Anav
12-22-2011, 14:14
to its original configuration, he was told there was no budget for it.

Is this not the answer you are looking for?
Money is usually the issue with the Navy.

csadn
12-22-2011, 16:49
Is this not the answer you are looking for?
Money is usually the issue with the Navy.

Well, as has been discussed in other threads ( :) ), the written record isn't always what actually happened....

I'm trying to find other points of data, to see if this was in fact the case. (One wonders: If there was no money for it, how in hell were other captains modifying theirs?)

Anav
12-22-2011, 16:55
Same kind of things happen now. Its in who you know and what your willing to pay for yourself.

Well, as has been discussed in other threads ( :) ), the written record isn't always what actually happened....

I'm trying to find other points of data, to see if this was in fact the case. (One wonders: If there was no money for it, how in hell were other captains modifying theirs?)

David Manley
12-23-2011, 00:36
Its in who you know and what your willing to pay for yourself.

Indeed. it is well documented that RN captains were able to make at times fairly extensive modifications to their ships if they (a) had contacts in the dockyards who could ease the supply of equipment or (b) were prepared to pay for it themselves. Their leeway in doing this tended to reduce the higher up the ship's rating system they went.

David Manley
12-23-2011, 00:42
During some recent resurfacing work on the east pier of Dún Laoghaire harbour the permanent mooring anchor of the Essex was discovered embedded in the pier.


I recall this at the time it was found. IIRC the thinking was this was just left behind when the ship was moved. It was, after all, a permanent mooring and had been in place for some 4 years, so recovering it would most likely have been time consuming and it was just left in place. After that amoutn of time it could well have been stuck fast anyway.


most likely broken up.

Agreed - in modern terms "recycled" (although then, as now the term is quite appropriate - when Chesapeake was broken up in 1819 her timbers were used in the construction of a mill in Hampshire, which you can still visit - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chesapeake_Mill)

Berthier
12-23-2011, 03:48
I
Agreed - in modern terms "recycled" (although then, as now the term is quite appropriate - when Chesapeake was broken up in 1819 her timbers were used in the construction of a mill in Hampshire

And they needed to recycle. Britain in particular had been virtually deforested of oak and relied on imports from the Baltic, particularly Russia. The Victory required around 6000 trees, 90% of which were oak and the remainder elm, pine and fur.