USS Congress (1841) — the fourth United States Navy

United States Navy

The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...

 ship to carry that name — was a sailing frigate

Frigate

A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...

, like her predecessor, .

Congress served with distinction in the Mediterranean, South Atlantic Ocean, and in the Pacific Ocean. She continued to operate as an American warship until the American Civil War

American Civil War

The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

, where she was sunk by the ironclad CSS Virginia

CSS Virginia

CSS Virginia was the first steam-powered ironclad warship of the Confederate States Navy, built during the first year of the American Civil War; she was constructed as a casemate ironclad using the raised and cut down original lower hull and steam engines of the scuttled . Virginia was one of the...

 in battle off Newport News, Virginia.

The frigate was launched at the Portsmouth Navy Yard on 16 August 1841 and placed in commission under Captain

Captain (naval)

Captain is the name most often given in English-speaking navies to the rank corresponding to command of the largest ships. The NATO rank code is OF-5, equivalent to an army full colonel....

 Philip Voorhees

Philip Voorhees

Philip Falkerson Voorhees was an officer in the United States Navy, who served during the War of 1812, and later commanded the East India Squadron.-Biography:...

 on 7 May 1842.

Mediterranean and South Atlantic Ocean operations

Her first cruise — starting on 15 July — took her to the Mediterranean

Mediterranean Sea

The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...

 for service with the Squadron of Commodores Charles W. Morgan

Charles W. Morgan (naval officer)

Commodore Charles W. Morgan was an officer in the United States Navy during the War of 1812.-Biography:Born in Virginia, Morgan served during the War of 1812 as a lieutenant on the Constitution during her battle with the and also served aboard the Franklin...

 and Charles Morris

Charles Morris (naval officer)

Commodore Charles Morris, USN was a United States naval officer and administrator whose service extended through the first half of the 19th century.-Biography:...

. In December 1843, she proceeded to the east coast of South America

South America

South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...

, seizing the Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...

 naval squadron blockading Montevideo

Montevideo

Montevideo is the largest city, the capital, and the chief port of Uruguay. The settlement was established in 1726 by Bruno Mauricio de Zabala, as a strategic move amidst a Spanish-Portuguese dispute over the platine region, and as a counter to the Portuguese colony at Colonia del Sacramento...

 on 29 September 1844, where she was active until January 1845 in safeguarding U.S. trade.

She was placed in ordinary at Norfolk, Virginia in March.

Mexican-American War operations

Congress was recommissioned on 15 September 1845, as flagship

Flagship

A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, reflecting the custom of its commander, characteristically a flag officer, flying a distinguishing flag...

 of Cmdre. Robert F. Stockton

Robert F. Stockton

Robert Field Stockton was a United States naval commodore, notable in the capture of California during the Mexican-American War. He was a naval innovator and an early advocate for a propeller-driven, steam-powered navy. Stockton was from a notable political family and also served as a U.S...

 and sailed for the Pacific Ocean

Pacific Ocean

The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...

 in late October. After landing the U.S. Commissioner to the Sandwich Islands

Hawaiian Islands

The Hawaiian Islands are an archipelago of eight major islands, several atolls, numerous smaller islets, and undersea seamounts in the North Pacific Ocean, extending some 1,500 miles from the island of Hawaii in the south to northernmost Kure Atoll...

 at Honolulu, Hawaii

Honolulu, Hawaii

Honolulu is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii. Honolulu is the southernmost major U.S. city. Although the name "Honolulu" refers to the urban area on the southeastern shore of the island of Oahu, the city and county government are consolidated as the City and...

 on 10 June, she proceeded to Monterey Bay

Monterey Bay

Monterey Bay is a bay of the Pacific Ocean, along the central coast of California. The bay is south of San Francisco and San Jose, between the cities of Santa Cruz and Monterey....

 where she joined the Pacific Squadron

Pacific Squadron

The Pacific Squadron was part of the United States Navy squadron stationed in the Pacific Ocean in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Initially with no United States ports in the Pacific, they operated out of storeships which provided naval supplies and purchased food and obtained water from local...

. Capt. Elie A. F. La Vallette

Elie A. F. La Vallette

Elie Augustus Frederick La Vallette was one of the first rear admirals appointed in the United States Navy when President Abraham Lincoln created the rank in July 1862.-Biography:...

 assumed command on 20 July employing her along the west coast during the Mexican-American War.

Large detachments of her crew participated in battles on Rio San Gabriel

Battle of Rio San Gabriel

The Battle of Rio San Gabriel fought on January 8, 1847 was a decisive action of the California campaign of the Mexican-American War and occurred at a ford of the San Gabriel River, at what are today parts of the cities of Whittier, Pico Rivera and Montebello, about ten miles south-east of downtown...

 and the plains of La Mesa

Battle of La Mesa

The Battle of La Mesa of the Mexican-American War occurred on January 9, 1847, in present-day Vernon, California, the day after the Battle of Rio San Gabriel during the California Campaign.-Background:...

, and in the occupation of Los Angeles

Los Angeles, California

Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...

. She assisted in the bombardment and capture of Guaymas

Guaymas

Guaymas is a city and municipality located in the southwest part of the state of Sonora in northwestern Mexico. The city is located 117 km south of the state capital of Hermosillo, and 242 miles from the U.S. border, and is the principal port for the state. The municipality is located in the...

 in October 1847, and in November furnished a detachment which aided in the occupation of Mazatlán

Mazatlán

Mazatlán is a city in the Mexican state of Sinaloa; the surrounding municipio for which the city serves as the municipal seat is Mazatlán Municipality. It is located at on the Pacific coast, across from the southernmost tip of the Baja California peninsula.Mazatlán is a Nahuatl word meaning...

. On 23 August 1848, she departed La Paz, Baja California Sur

Baja California

Baja California officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Baja California is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is both the northernmost and westernmost state of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1953, the area was known as the North...

 for Norfolk, Virginia

Norfolk, Virginia

Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....

, arriving the following January to be placed in ordinary.

Suppressing the slave trade

In May 1850, she was assigned a threefold mission; protect U.S. interests between the mouth of the Amazon

Amazon River

The Amazon of South America is the second longest river in the world and by far the largest by waterflow with an average discharge greater than the next seven largest rivers combined...

 and Cape Horn

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...

, prevent the use of the American flag to cover the African slave trade

African slave trade

Systems of servitude and slavery were common in many parts of Africa, as they were in much of the ancient world. In some African societies, the enslaved people were also indentured servants and fully integrated; in others, they were treated much worse...

, and maintain neutral rights during hostilities among the South American countries.

Departing Hampton Roads, Virginia on 12 June, she arrived at Rio de Janeiro

Rio de Janeiro

Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...

, Brazil

Brazil

Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...

 on 1 September and assumed duty as flagship of the Brazil Squadron

Brazil Squadron

The Brazil Squadron, the Brazil Station, or the South Atlantic Squadron was an overseas military station established by the United States in 1826 to protect American commerce in the South Atlantic during a war between Brazil and Argentina...

 under Cmdre. Issac McKeever until June 1853. She returned to New York City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

 on 20 July for decommissioning.

Mediterranean operations

On 19 June 1855, Congress sailed for the Mediterranean and there followed two years as flagship of Cmdre. Samuel Livingston Breese

Samuel Livingston Breese

Samuel Livingston Breese was a Rear Admiral in the United States Navy. His active-duty career included service in the War of 1812, the Mexican–American War, and the American Civil War.-Early life and career:...

. Sailing from Spezia, Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

 on 26 November 1857, she arrived at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...

 on 13 January 1858, and was placed out of commission.

In 1859, Congress was reassigned as flagship of Cmdre. Joshua R. Sands

Joshua R. Sands

Joshua Ratoon Sands was an officer in the United States Navy who rose to the rank of Rear Admiral. He served in the War of 1812, the Mexican–American War, and the Civil War.-Biography:...

 and the Brazil Squadron, remaining in that area until the Civil War precipitated her return to Boston, Massachusetts on 22 August 1861.

American Civil War service

On 9 September 1861, she was ordered to duty under command of Capt. Louis M. Goldsborough

Louis M. Goldsborough

Louis Malesherbes Goldsborough was a rear admiral in the United States Navy during the Civil War. He held several sea commands during the Civil War, including the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron...

 in the Atlantic Blockading Squadron

Atlantic Blockading Squadron

The Atlantic Blockading Squadron was a unit of the United States Navy created in the early days of the American Civil War to enforce a blockade of the ports of the Confederate States...

, later to serve under commanding officer

Commanding officer

The commanding officer is the officer in command of a military unit. Typically, the commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitude to run the unit as he sees fit, within the bounds of military law...

 W. Smith, and executive officer

Executive officer

An executive officer is generally a person responsible for running an organization, although the exact nature of the role varies depending on the organization.-Administrative law:...

 Lieutenant

Lieutenant

A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...

 Joseph B. Smith

Joseph B. Smith

Joseph B. Smith was an officer in the United States Navy who was killed in action during the American Civil War.-Biography:...

.

Congress was anchored off Newport News, Virginia

Newport News, Virginia

Newport News is an independent city located in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area of Virginia. It is at the southeastern end of the Virginia Peninsula, on the north shore of the James River extending southeast from Skiffe's Creek along many miles of waterfront to the river's mouth at Newport News...

, as part of the blockade

Blockade

A blockade is an effort to cut off food, supplies, war material or communications from a particular area by force, either in part or totally. A blockade should not be confused with an embargo or sanctions, which are legal barriers to trade, and is distinct from a siege in that a blockade is usually...

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

CSS Virginia

CSS Virginia was the first steam-powered ironclad warship of the Confederate States Navy, built during the first year of the American Civil War; she was constructed as a casemate ironclad using the raised and cut down original lower hull and steam engines of the scuttled . Virginia was one of the...

 (ex-USS Merrimack) and five other small ships. 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, W. Smith. Ablaze in several places and unable to bring guns to bear on the enemy, Congress was forced to strike her colors. Heavy shore batteries prevented Virginia from taking possession. Instead she fired several rounds of hot shot (red-hot cannon balls) and incendiary

Incendiary ammunition

-World War I:One of the first uses of incendiary ammunition occurred in World War I. At the time, phosphorus—the primary ingredient in the incendiary charge—ignited upon firing, leaving a trail of blue smoke. They were also known as 'smoke tracer' for this reason. The effective range of...

 causing Congress to burn to the water's edge, and her magazine

Magazine (artillery)

Magazine is the name for an item or place within which ammunition is stored. It is taken from the Arabic word "makahazin" meaning "warehouse".-Ammunition storage areas:...

 to explode. Lt. Smith — having been in command at the time — died in the action. Eventually, during, the battle, the Congress sank by the stern to her watery grave.

Hulk raised and sold

In September 1865, Congress was raised and taken to the Norfolk Navy Yard 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

Flag

A flag is a piece of fabric with a distinctive design that is usually rectangular and used as a symbol, as a signaling device, or decoration. The term flag is also used to refer to the graphic design employed by a flag, or to its depiction in another medium.The first flags were used to assist...

in memory of the ship.