The First Enterprize: A Legendary Little Ship with a Storied Name

By Deborah Spencer

Spencer traces the full story of this historic ship from its conception and construction in 1799 to its ultimate demise in 1823, when she was stranded and broke up on Little Curacao Island in the West Indies.

"History enthusiasts and those with a naval or military background

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tactical 16 Publishing
• Release date: Mar 9, 2023
• ISBN: 9781088123454

Deborah Spencer

Born on Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama, Deborah's interest in American history began with her father's stories of various base assignments that included Pearl Harbor where she first heard the name Enterprise. Her discovery of the TV series Star Trek as a youth solidified her interest in the name. Later Deborah's brother, a NASA scientist, took her to see the International Space Station mockup at the Marshall Space flight Center. Like her brother, Deborah embarked on a career in science. She studied computer science at the University of Alabama in Huntsville while interning at a Fortune 500 company. That path led Deborah to her current position as the chief technology officer with an Orlando, Florida-based advertising technology company founded by Army veterans. While spending summers in the San Juan Mountains in Western Colorado, Deborah's interest in history merged with her love of nature and hiking, cycling, and photography.

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The First Enterprize

PRAISE FOR DEBORAH A. SPENCER

Deborah takes readers on an insightful and riveting account of a marvelous ship. I was gripped from the first page. A must for the Navy Reading List!

ENRIQUE ACOSTA GONZALEZ, CEO, TRIAD LEADERSHIP SOLUTIONS

A riveting look at the scrappy origins of the United States Navy in the Age of Sail, courtesy of the first of a legendary line of warships.

JOSH GAGLIARDI

THE FIRST ENTERPRIZE

A LEGENDARY LITTLE SHIP WITH A STORIED NAME

DEBORAH A. SPENCER

Tactical 16

The First Enterprize:

A Legendary Little Ship with a Storied Name

Copyright © 2022 by Deborah A. Spencer

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means (including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods), without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations in a book review and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

First Edition

Although the publisher and the author have made every effort to ensure that the information in this book was correct at the time of publication and while this book is designed to provide accurate information in regard to the subject matter covered, the publisher and the author assume no responsibility for errors, inaccuracies, omissions, or any other inconsistencies herein and hereby disclaim any liability to any party for any loss, damage, or disruption caused by errors or omissions, whether such errors or omissions result from negligence, accident, or any other cause.

Due to the dynamic nature of the internet, web addresses or links contained in this publication may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. Any links which are included in this publication are provided as a convenience and for informational purposes only; they do not constitute an endorsement or an approval by the publisher. Tactical 16 Publishing, as well as its employees and/or affiliates, bears no responsibility for the accuracy, legality or content of the content on third-party websites.

Cover Painting by Patrick O’Brien — www.patrickobrienstudio.com

Published by Tactical 16 Publishing

Colorado Springs, Colorado

www.Tactical16.com

CONTENTS

Acknowledgments

Preface

A Note on Terminology

A Note from the Publisher

Prologue

1. Stoddert’s Navy

2. From the Eastern Shore of Maryland

3. Guadeloupe Station

4. Sterett Takes Command

5. To the Med

6. The Tripoli

7. Year of Frustration

8. Too Little, Too Late

9. New Commodore in Port

10. The Tragedy and the Hero

11. To the Shores of Tripoli

12. Once More Unto the Breach

13. Venice

14. What duty for me, Commodore?

15. The Embargo

16. Prelude to 1812

17. Tempest

18. I die contented

19. Lucky Little Enterprize

20. Return to Barbary

21. The Florida Connection

22. Pirates of the Caribbean

23. Dead Men Tell No Tales

24. Klein Curaçao

Epilogue

Appendix A

Endnotes & Footnotes

Bibliography

Image Credits

About the Author

About the Publisher

For Dad

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

When I started on this journey, I had no idea where it would take me and whose paths I would cross. Everyone I approached was extremely helpful and supportive. There are a multitude of people I would like to thank.

In starting my journey, David Hanna (Knights of the Sea) provided me some of his research material on the construction of Enterprize and her final fate. Stephen H. W. Duffy (Captain Blakeley and the Wasp), along with providing much encouragement and advice, loaned me a copy of Volume 1 of Enterprize’s logbook.

Senior Chief Aerographer’s Mate Enrique Acosta González, USN, Retired, provided encouragement and enthusiasm for this project and a great naval history perspective.

Tom McDonald took it upon himself to help edit the first draft of the manuscript and provided many useful suggestions.

PREFACE

Photograph of the Space Shuttle Enterprise being lifted into the dynamic test stand at the George C. Marshall Space Flight Center

Space Shuttle Enterprise being lifted into the dynamic test stand at the George C. Marshall Space Flight Center (Image I.1)

In 1978, NASA flew the Space Shuttle Enterprise to my hometown of Huntsville, Alabama, the Rocket City, or the Space Capital of the Universe, as some people called it. My father and I went out to NASA’s George C. Marshall Space Flight Center to watch Enterprise land on the back of a Boeing 747. A few days later we went to an open house where we could walk around the shuttle. Enterprise would be the very first shuttle mated to an external tank and solid rocket boosters; she was vibration tested at Marshall’s large dynamic test stand to simulate the forces that she would encounter during launch. I was already a big fan of Star Trek and seeing the shuttle, which carried the same name as the show’s starship, was an incredible thrill.

My father was a history buff, and the living room wall was filled with books on the Civil War. He was a veteran of the Second World War and told of being stationed at Fort Sherman on the Atlantic entrance to the Panama Canal in the late 1930s before the war; he clearly recalled seeing the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise (CV-6) pass through the Gatun Locks. When his tour of duty was over, he sailed on a troop ship for San Francisco, making a pit stop in Honolulu, Hawaii on December 6, 1941. The next morning the Japanese attacked, and he saw low flying planes and smoke rising from nearby Pearl Harbor. His troop ship immediately put back to sea and returned to Panama on a zig-zag course to avoid submarines.

As I read more about Pearl Harbor, I discovered how important USS Enterprise was in the Pacific War. She was the most decorated ship of the Second World War, and at one time stood alone as the only American aircraft carrier in the Pacific.

On my father’s bookshelf was the Dictionary of American Naval Warships and it contained the stories of every ship to bear the name Enterprise. I read the history of each ship, but to be quite honest, at the time I was not that interested in sailing vessels.

A few years ago, I picked up Brian Kilmeade and Don Yeager’s book, Thomas Jefferson and the Barbary Pirates: The Forgotten War That Changed American History. As I read the book, it became apparent that the American Navy schooner Enterprize played a significant role in the First Barbary War, far more significant than the brief description I remembered from Dictionary of American Naval Warships. I decided to find a book about Enterprize and read more, but I found no definitive work. F. Stanhope Hill published Lucky Little Enterprize in 1900, but at only twenty-six pages, it barely scratched the surface of this little ship’s history. I had started to dabble in writing and now I had a subject for a history book — an interesting subject of which little has been written about explicitly.

I started out to write a book about a schooner, but quickly realized the schooner was just a vehicle for the officers and men who served aboard her. And serve they did. This little ship was home to some of the most famous people in the early history of the United States Navy. She was one of the favorite ships in the fleet for the commodores in whose squadrons she sailed and, until the War of 1812, was arguably one of the most well-known and revered vessels in the Navy. It turned out that the one Enterprize I knew the least about had a far more interesting story than I could have ever imagined.

Even after she was long gone, her name lived on in a new generation of ships, both on the water and in space. But every story has a beginning, and this story began with a pair of little schooners, the smallest ships in the new Navy, and one of them would be fortuitously named Enterprize.

A NOTE ON TERMINOLOGY

In the two hundred years since the story told here took place, much has changed in the common vernacular. This includes place names, common terms, and spellings. Quotations in this book have been left as much as possible as is, with some minor spelling corrections for clarity. Letter writers of the day had atrocious spelling and grammar, and their penmanship sometimes left much to be desired.

At the turn of the eighteenth century enterprize was spelled with a z instead of an s. As such, to honor the legacy of the first Enterprize, the historic spelling is used throughout. The modern spelling is used when referring to any Enterprise constructed after 1830.

The Italian peninsula at the time was made up of several kingdoms and principalities. Borders were constantly changing during the Napoleonic Wars. For clarity, cities on the Italian peninsula are referred to as being in Italy instead of the principality they were in.

Many place names were referred to by different names in the day. For clarity, the modern name of the place is used. Examples include Livorno, Italy instead of Leghorn, and Syracuse, Sicily instead of Saragosa.

It was not until the early twentieth century that ships of the United States Navy were referred to with the USS (United States Ship) prefix. As such, American naval ships in this story are not referred to with a USS prefix, unless referring to a modern incarnation. British naval ships are always referred to initially with the HMS (His Majesty’s Ship) prefix, though at the time, it was common to refer to them as HBM (His Britannic Majesty) or HBMS (His Britannic Majesty’s Ship).

The ranks of officers in the early Navy went through several changes, and it was customary to call an officer by his honored rank rather than his actual rank. Until the Civil War, the highest rank in the Navy was that of captain, but a captain who commanded a fleet of ships was referred to by his honorary title of commodore. In addition, commanders of ships smaller than frigates were typically junior officers, lieutenant, lieutenant commandant, or master commander, and referred to as captain when they were in command; but in this book, they will be referred to by their actual rank.

A NOTE FROM THE PUBLISHER

The printed edition of The First Enterprize includes both footnotes and endnotes. A large majority of these are endnotes which reference sources for the information in the text, but the footnotes include both helpful context and background information for the text.

Since eBooks format both footnotes and endnotes in the same way, and we want you to know when a note icon includes footnote information and is not a reference, we have included asterisks (*) next to each note icon that is a footnote in the printed version the book.

Half Title

PROLOGUE

General Thomas Gage was outraged. His attempts at putting down a minor rebellion and restoring order in the Province of Massachusetts Bay had been met with a string of setbacks. An operation to seize a stockpile of rebel arms and ammunition had resulted in an open skirmish which led to more than seventy of his troops killed in what became known as the Battles of Lexington and Concord. Worse yet, the rebels had succeeded in bottling up most of Gage’s army in Boston.

The rebels knew it was only a matter of time before the might of the British Empire would be thrust upon them. The Massachusetts Committee of Safety, the de facto rebel government, authorized an ambitious plan to take Fort Ticonderoga in upstate New York. A colonel from Connecticut, along with Ethan Allen and his Green Mountain Boys, would be sent to capture the lightly defended British fort at the south end of Lake Champlain before it could be reinforced. The fort commanded a strategic artery that cut across the heart of New England, the only water level route from Canada to New York. Whoever controlled this corridor controlled the fate of the colonies. It was vital that the rebellious Americans control this corridor for their very survival, and it would become crucial for the British to take control of it and cut rebellious New England off from the rest of the colonies. Though for now, these wild backwoods territories were only defended by a scant few British soldiers. News of Lexington and Concord had not even reached Fort Ticonderoga as the surprised garrison was taken without a fight, the second American victory over the British in this growing rebellion.

To capitalize on his success, the Connecticut colonel set off north on Lake Champlain and captured the small fort at Crown Point, just north of Fort Ticonderoga. He was told about a ten-gun sloop at the north end of the lake, and fearful the British could use it to mount a counterattack, decided he would capture it. He led his small band of raiders up the Richelieu River, the natural outlet of the lake to the St. Lawrence River, on a small sloop named Liberty. ¹ With no resistance, they captured the British garrison of Fort St. Johns, today the city of Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec. He seized the sloop George, ²* which he claimed as a prize, and returned with it to Fort Ticonderoga where he rechristened the sloop, Enterprize. The word enterprise, defined as a bold undertaking, was an appropriate name for this first little ship in a long line of namesakes and describes the actions and ambitions of this daring colonel from Connecticut, Benedict Arnold. The naming of the sloop Enterprize would predate the founding of the Continental Navy by almost six months. She would be fitted with six carriage guns and twelve swivel guns, making her, for a brief time, the most powerful ship plying the waters of Lake Champlain. ³

Arnold wanted to press the fight forward and invade Canada, but a series of troubles were beginning for this ambitious colonel. First was a dispute over command structure. After capturing Fort Ticonderoga, Arnold and Ethan Allen clashed over who would take command of the fort, a confrontation that did not go Arnold’s way. Next, the Massachusetts Committee of Safety decided to replace Arnold with another Connecticuter who had more political connections, Colonel Benjamin Hinman. Arnold considered Hinman a subordinate and at first refused to recognize his authority. Arnold felt that his actions as one of the few colonial rebels to successfully go on the offensive should prove his worthiness, a trait that would follow him throughout his career. Then, to add insult, Massachusetts denied payment to Arnold for his debts incurred on the offensive and withheld pay for his troops. So, with honor in hand, Arnold resigned his post. ⁴

But before he could depart, Arnold would suffer another humiliation. When word spread that they would not be paid, the troops started their own rebellion. As Arnold ate dinner one afternoon on board Enterprize, some of his own men stormed aboard and locked Arnold below decks, demanding payment from the Massachusetts Committee of Safety members sent to investigate the issues in the chain of command. The troops succeeded in getting their payment after threatening to sail the ship and surrender it to the British. Arnold, though innocent and enraged by the affront to his own honor, was implicated by some as the true instigator. Disgraced and insulted, Arnold departed on July 4, 1775, not knowing that he would be back, and via a very different route. ⁵

After Arnold’s departure, James Smith took command of Enterprize. He did not think much of this little vessel and recommended some alterations, for which there was no time. A bold move was in the works for the young rebellion. In late August, a small fleet under the command of General Richard Montgomery, which included Enterprize loaded with troops, sailed north from Ticonderoga. Their mission: re-take the garrison at Fort St. Johns which Arnold had raided that spring. While General George Washington had the bulk of the British forces under General Gage bottled up in Boston, Montgomery would launch an invasion of Canada taking Montreal and Quebec, forcing the British from Canada. ⁶

Enterprize participated in a siege of Fort St. Johns, which was not so easy to capture the second time around. It took more than a month to take the fort, a delay which may have ultimately doomed the mission to failure. Because Fort St. Johns was above the fall line of the Richelieu River with rapids preventing any sailing ship from proceeding downstream, the small little fleet was unable to proceed. Montgomery was forced to march overland and easily captured Montreal.

Montgomery continued toward Quebec City where he linked up with Benedict Arnold, who had made a daring march through the vast uncharted wilderness of northern Maine. Ultimately, the winter battle for Quebec was a disastrous defeat for the Americans. General Montgomery was killed in the attack, and Arnold was severely wounded in the leg. Had Arnold been allowed to execute his invasion plans earlier that spring, the outcome could have been very different. When British reinforcements arrived in the spring of 1776, the Americans abandoned Montreal and retreated back up the Richelieu River to the relative safety of Lake Champlain.

The British, back in control of Fort St. Johns, began an effort to build their own small navy. Arnold was given command of the small American fleet on Lake Champlain, and he understood that the British goal was to drive south and re-take Fort Ticonderoga before the long winter set in. Arnold decided to lay a trap. Knowing the British would need a north wind to propel them down the lake, he anchored his ships in a bay behind Valcour Island, just south of what is now Plattsburg, New York. The island would shield Arnold’s fleet from view of any ships that sailed past on the lake. Arnold could sail out with the wind at his back and have an advantage over any superior force. ⁷

Map of Lake Champlain area, showing present day cities

On October 11, 1776, a British flotilla under General Guy Carleton sailed past the southern tip of Valcour Island with twenty-five ships, including the new eighteen-gun HMS Inflexible, a 180-ton three-masted frigate which was now the largest and most powerful warship on Lake Champlain. Arnold, though, had the wind as his advantage when the first naval battle in the history of the American Navy commenced. Enterprize and the schooner Royal Savage sailed out from behind their protective island cove and fired at the passing enemy, before turning back to the bay behind Arnold’s defensive line. HMS Carleton, in chase of Enterprize, entered the bay and suddenly realized she was sailing into a trap. Enterprize escaped back into the bay, but Royal Savage was not so lucky. Chased by the far superior Inflexible, Royal Savage was deliberately grounded on Valcour Island and later burned by the British to prevent the Americans from retaking her. The Americans fought valiantly but were no match for the superior British guns. The Americans lost most of their larger vessels before nightfall. Enterprize, now under the command of Captain Ruben Dickinson, ⁸* had been converted to a hospital ship and was spared from the fight, but took on many of the wounded from the battle. ⁹

As night fell, both squadrons withdrew. Outgunned, outmanned, and with ammunition running low, the Americans decided to make a run for it. Through a dark and foggy night, the Americans made a bold push south. With the galley Trumbull leading the way, followed closely by Enterprize, the remains of the fleet secretted out of the bay, with barely a whisper between the crew, and passed the anchored British ships. Rowing slowly down the lake in single file, each ship following a lantern on the aft of the ship before. By morning they had put six miles behind them. At dawn the British were astonished that the Americans were gone. After a brief search, the British began their pursuit south. The Americans continued on, but not before losing more ships to the pursuing British. Of Arnold’s fifteen ships, only four, including Enterprize, survived the action and made it back to the safety of Fort Ticonderoga. ¹⁰

While the Battle of Valcour Island resulted in a tactical victory for the British, it did not provide an immediate strategic advantage. With winter coming on, the British were forced to retreat north and put off for another year any attempt at driving south to link up with General William Howe, who by then had soundly defeated General Washington and taken control of New York City. British plans to control the center part of the colonies by commanding the Hudson River Valley and Lake Champlain would have to wait until the following year. Though, outside of building a few defenses, the Americans did little to prepare for the inevitable return of the British.

Drawing of the First Continental Enterprize on Lake Champlain

First Continental Enterprize on Lake Champlain (Image P.1)

In late June of 1777, a British force under the command of General John Burgoyne began dis-embarking troops on the shore of Lake Champlain just north of Fort Ticonderoga. Burgoyne did what was thought impossible and drove cannons to the top of Mount Defiance, which had a commanding view of the fort. In the face of overwhelming odds, Fort Ticonderoga commander, General Arthur St. Clair, made a daring but controversial call to evacuate the fort without a fight. With the British in pursuit, Enterprize, convoying several smaller ships, made sail for Skenesborough at the very southern end of Lake Champlain. ¹¹

On July 6, 1777, just two days after the first anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, Enterprize was run aground near Skenesborough and set afire with two other remaining ships to prevent their capture and use by the British. So ended the two-year career of the first Enterprize of the Continental Navy. From her capture, just after the taking of Fort Ticonderoga, to her demise shortly after the fort’s fall, Enterprize participated in every engagement of the Lake Champlain campaign — not a bad precedent for a line of naval vessels which would go on to share her name. ¹²

Even with the loss of Fort Ticonderoga, the delay in the British advance the previous year at Valcour Island allowed the Americans to gather enough strength in the Hudson Valley to defeat Burgoyne and capture his entire army at Saratoga, where Arnold showed his heroics and again was wounded in the same leg. The American victory at Saratoga was a key turning point in the Revolution, demonstrating that America could indeed stand up to the British Empire.

While Enterprize was supporting the invasion of Canada at the north end of Lake Champlain, another Enterprize briefly sailed Chesapeake Bay. A former privateer, she was purchased for the Continental Navy on December 20, 1776. Not much is known about this Enterprize. She was a schooner with eight guns, under the command of Captain James Campbell. For eight weeks, she patrolled Chesapeake Bay, convoying merchant ships and performing reconnaissance. She also guarded the coastline in an effort to prevent British foraging parties from going ashore to look for food and water. Sometime before the end of February 1777, after a little over two months of service, she was returned to the Maryland Safety Council. ¹³

It would not be until the formation of the United States Navy two decades later, that another ship would bear the name USS Enterprize. Albeit at the time, she would be referred to as the United States Schooner Enterprize, and she would continue in the same legendary spirit of the first Continental Enterprize.

1

STODDERT’S NAVY

Benjamin Stoddert was surprised when a letter arrived at his Georgetown home. Ben, as most people called him, and his wife, Rebecca, lived in a luxurious mansion overlooking the Potomac River. His one contribution to the federal government, only a decade old in 1798, had been a few years before, when President George Washington asked him to quietly buy up several tracts of land southeast of Georgetown in what was then Maryland. When the location of the new federal city was announced on the banks of the Potomac, Washington knew speculators would rush in and drive up land prices. Stoddert could then resale the land to the government at its original cost. ¹

Still, Stoddert was not expecting this letter, which was to change his life, bring him prestige, and cause him to suffer financial hardships. From the instant he saw the letter was from Secretary of State Timothy Pickering, he knew that whatever the letter contained, it was of the utmost importance. He opened the letter and read the message. He now had a decision to make, and an answer was needed soon. The question conflicted him to his very core. The request would be both a tremendous challenge and a great honor. But he needed a little time to decide.

The fifty-four-year-old ²* Marylander was not in the best of health. He continued to suffer from injuries sustained as a captain in the Continental Army at the Battle of Brandywine some twenty years before. His father Thomas had served as a captain in the British army during the French and Indian War and was allegedly at General Edward Braddock’s defeat, along with George Washington, while trying to take Fort Duquesne from the French. Following in his father’s footsteps, Ben rose quickly to the rank of captain, but his injuries left him unable to fight. Recognizing his talents and willingness to serve, he was appointed as Secretary of the Continental Board of War. His Federalist fervor led him to strongly support the annexation of Canada with such zeal that he earned the nickname of Benjamin Canada Stoddert.

Along with the message from Pickering, the letter to Stoddert contained an appointment, duly ratified by the Senate of the United States, for Benjamin Stoddert to be the first Secretary of the Department of the Navy. President John Adams had put his name into submission three days before when his first choice, George Cabot of Massachusetts, declined the nomination. Pickering had tried to convince Cabot to take the appointment, writing him from the United States capital city of Philadelphia, If you decline taking the office, where will we find a substitute? There is not one in Philadelphia, and you will readily believe there is no one Southward of it. ³ Cabot though, felt unqualified for the position, and declined the appointment.

Pickering next took it upon himself to suggest Stoddert to President Adams. Pickering had known Stoddert from his days on the Continental Board of War and now figured he would be the perfect man for the job. A successful businessman, Stoddert was a partner at the shipping and merchant firm Murdock, Stoddert and Forrest, which specialized in tobacco exports. His father in-law, Christopher Lowndes, who had helped found the town of Bladensburg, Maryland, was a well-known merchant and ship builder. His background on the Board of War, business success, and understanding of merchant shipping made Stoddert an excellent candidate for this new position. The Navy Department existed in name only, and Adams needed someone who could organize and run potentially one of the largest bureaucracies in the infant government. As a shipping merchant, Stoddert knew well the dangers of putting ships to sea. His business partner, Uriah Forrest, who had suffered even greater injuries at the Battle of Brandywine, was a friend of President Adams and likely put in a good word for him. ⁴

Like Cabot, Stoddert had serious reservations about accepting the appointment. His injuries suffered at Brandywine continued to plague him, and accepting a public office meant he would not have time to devote to his business. A few days after he received Pickering’s letter, he wrote to his brother-in-law, Francis Lowndes:

I suppose you have heard of my appointment to be Secretary of the Navy of the United States. I have not determined to accept—and what you think more extraordinary—I have not determined to refuse. I hate office—have no desire for real importance and wish to spend my life in retirement and ease without bustle of any kind. Yet it seems cowardly at such a time as this to refuse an important and highly responsible position.

⁵

Adams desperately needed leadership in the Navy and pushed Stoddert to accept even if for a short time to help stand up this new cabinet department and get it organized. ⁶

Portrait of Benjamin Stoddert, First Secretary of the Navy

Benjamin Stoddert, First Secretary of the Navy (Image 1.1)

Reservations aside, Benjamin Stoddert heeded the call to duty and accepted the appointment as Secretary of the Navy, taking the oath on June 18, 1798. He took control of a department that was not yet organized, and few were qualified for the task. He wrote to Adams, It was unfortunate then in conferring the appointment … upon me, the President could not also confer the knowledge necessary. One observer noted that, I cannot believe he accept[ed]… He appeared to be a man of good sense. ⁷

Immediately, Stoddert realized the enormity of his task. The Navy Department had only been created by Congress six weeks earlier. He would take over all naval responsibilities from the Department of War, run by James McHenry, so McHenry could concentrate on the Army. McHenry’s department was struggling to oversee the construction of frigates and suggested a new department that could focus on this task. Just weeks before he took the oath of office, Congress had annulled the Treaty of Alliance with France, and the country was preparing for war. With no navy to defend itself, the country was completely vulnerable, and it was Stoddert’s job to organize a department and get ships to sea.

Benjamin Stoddert, taking the reins of the Navy Department, immediately issued directives to seize French Republic ships and repel attacks from foreign vessels. He realized quickly that the infant United States Navy had too few ships to protect American merchants. So, at the end of 1798, Stoddert released a call for action, chastising Congress for not acting earlier and urging the building of more ships. ⁸

A so-called Quasi-War with France became apparent when the frigate Constellation captured the French warship L’Insurgente after a fierce battle. A few weeks later Congress acted on Stoddert’s recommendations, passing another act authorizing the building of twelve more ships: six 74-gun ships of the line and six 18-gun sloops. ⁹ As much as Stoddert felt impressive big ships of the line would make the new navy a formidable force, none would actually be built until the War of 1812. It was the small sloops that would prove to be the most valuable. Jeremiah Yellott, the naval agent in Baltimore, had been pushing Stoddert for some time to build these smaller boats. ¹⁰

A month after the authorizing act, Stoddert sent a letter to Yellott, to:

... have one built and fitted as early as possible — It is left with yourself to determine whether she shall be a Brig, or a Schooner – she must not exceed 18 Guns, but she need not mount so many, if you should judge that a Schooner of 12 or 14 Guns, would better answer the purpose.

¹¹

Stoddert’s request was in capable hands. Yellott had arrived in Baltimore from Yorkshire, England just before the Revolution and within four years he was master of a small schooner running the British blockade of Chesapeake Bay. As a privateer, Yellott ran much needed supplies into the Colonies from the West Indies, where he and his crew were entitled to a significant portion of any prize ships they captured; and capture them they did, in one instance taking a British privateer who had seized the luggage of the Marquis de Lafayette. Yellott’s reputation was such that the British warned their merchant vessels to avoid the waters around Chesapeake Bay. ¹²

His success as a privateer and merchant man during the war had elevated Yellott to become one of the most prominent men in Baltimore. He acquired land near the wharves of the well-known shipping magnate Jesse Hollingsworth and married his daughter. He was as prosperous as demanding, ordering his warehouse workers to move ballast from one end of the yard and then back again just to keep them busy. ¹³

It was Yellott, more than any of his contemporaries, who championed the top sail schooners with elegant swept back masts as light, fast vessels able to outsail the lumbering warships of the Royal Navy; their worth had already been proven through the successful blockade running during the Revolution. Based on a design of fast pilot boats which ferried harbor and bay pilots to incoming ships, these schooners would clip along with great speed and would become known in subsequent generations as Baltimore Clippers. ¹⁴

In 1794 with his reputation and fortune growing, Yellott was appointed as naval agent for Baltimore. And it was to the forty-eight-year-old ¹⁵* Yellott who Stoddert first wrote, even before taking his oath as Navy Secretary, instructing him to purchase the sloop Montezuma on Yellott’s own accounting of it being a proper ship for the public service. ¹⁶ Unfortunately, Montezuma would eventually prove not to be the proper ship it was hoped, being too slow and cumbersome to handle as a ship of war. New ships were needed, fast and easy to maneuver in shallow waters where the French privateers found it was easy to escape from the big American frigates.

From Stoddert’s communication to Yellott, he showed an implicit trust in his judgment, indicating the two had known each other for some time. Stoddert knew Yellott could, better than anyone, oversee building these fast shallow-water sloops. Yellott decided that a two-masted, top-sail schooner of twelve guns would best fit the requirements laid out by Congress for the requested sloop and