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NavSource Online: "Old Navy" Ship Photo Archive

USS Ontario (II)

Sloop-of-War:
  • Built by Thomas Kemp, Baltimore, MD., in 1813
  • Launched, date unknown
  • Blockaded in Chesapeake Bay through the War of 1812
  • Sailed from New York for the Mediterranean 20 May 1815, Master Comdt. Jesse D. Elliott, in command.
  • On 17 June 1815 in company with USS Constellation, USS Guerrierre and USS Epervier captured the Algerian frigate Mashouda off the coast of Spain
  • Participated in the blockade of Algiers
  • Arrived at New York in early 1817
  • USS Ontario, CAPT. James Biddle, in command sailed, 4 October 1817, for the Pacific
  • Negotiated the release of American merchantmen seized at Valparaiso by the Spanish in the early spring of 1818
  • Claimed both sides of the Columbia River for the United States, 19 August 1818
  • Finally standing into the Chesapeake Bay, 23 April 1819
  • Assigned to the Mediterranean Squadron, departed New York, 18 January 1821, arriving Gibraltar, 27 April
  • Ontario returned to New York, 25 January 1824
  • After refit Ontario again sailed for the Mediterranean, 24 July 1824
  • Ontario returned to New York, 20 February 1828
  • Ontario made two more trips to the Mediterranean from August 1829 to May 1832 and November 1833 to June 1836
  • Ontario next sailed for the West Indies, 19 August 1837, to protect U.S. commerce from pirate attacks, show the flag in Caribbean ports and protecting American neutrality during the French Intervention in Mexico
  • The sloop returned to New York, 2 June 1840
  • Ontario was dispatched, 22 February 1842, to the Gulf Of Mexico to protect American interests
  • Assigned to duty as a Navy Yard receiving ship at Baltimore from 20 July 1843 to June 1856
  • Decommissioned, date unknown
  • Struck from the Naval Register, date unknown
  • Sold at public auction, 15 July 1856
  • Final Disposition, fate unknown
    Specifications:
    Displacement 509 t.
    Length 117' 11"
    Beam 31' 6"
    Draft 16'
    Speed unknown
    Complement 150
    Armament
    eighteen 32-pdr carronades
    two 18-pdrs
    Propulsion sail
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		 Size Image Description Contributed
    By
    Guerriere 111k COMO.. Stephen Decatur squadron off Algiers comprised of the frigates;
    USF Guerriere, the flagship with 44 guns, commanded by Captain William Lewis,
    USF Constellation with 36 guns, commanded by Captain Charles Gordon;
    USF Macedonia with 38 guns, under the command of Captain Jacob Jones;
    the sloops-of-war USS Eperyie, commanded by Captain John Downes,
    and USS Ontario with 16 guns, commanded by Captain Jesse D. Elliott;
    the brigs USS Firefly,
    USS Spark and
    USS Flambeau, each with 14 guns, commanded by Lieutenants George W. Kodgers, Thomas Gamble, and John B. Nicholson;
    and the schooners USS Torch
    and USS Spitfire, both with 12 guns, commanded by Lieutenants Wolcott Chauncey and Alexander J. Dallas.
    Gardner Weld Allen (1856-1944) - "Our Navy and the Barbary Corsairs".    		 Tommy Trampp
    Guerriere 65k USS Ontario under full sail leading Stephen Decatur's squadron in the Mediterranean, 1815.
    Painting by Geoff Hunt     		Tommy Trampp
    USS Ontario (II)
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)
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    This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
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    Last Updated 6 February 2016