Please report any broken links or trouble you might come across to the Webmaster. Please take a moment to let us know so that we can correct any problems and make your visit as enjoyable and as informative as possible.

NavSource Online: "Old Navy" Ship Photo Archive

USS Spark (I)

Brig:
  • Built as a privateer in 1813 at Sag Harbor, Long Island, N.Y.
  • Purchased by the Navy at Baltimore in 1814 for service in the war with England
  • However, the war ended before the brig could get to sea for active service against the Royal Navy
  • Spark, commanded by LT. Thomas Gamble, departed New York, 20 May 1815, and sailed for the Mediterranean joining Commodore Stephen Decatur's squadron against pirates of Algiers
  • The Brig reached Gibraltar, 15 June 1815 and, two days later, helped in operations resulting in the capture of the Algerian flagship, Mashuda, near Cape de Gatt
  • Spark along with Epervier, Torch, and Spitfire ran Estedio ashore where she was boarded and captured, 19 June 1815
  • Spark sailed for home, 6 October 1815, in a squadron commanded by Commodore William Bainbridge reaching Newport, R.I., 15 November and was laid up for repairs
  • Recommissioned, 1 July 1816, the Brig sailed again for the Mediterranean on 6 September carrying a letter from the President of the United States for the Dey of Algiers and orders appointing Commodore Isaac Chauncey and Consul-General Shalter commissioners to negotiate for peace
  • In the autumn of 1821, Spark, LT. John H. Elton, in command, departed Boston for the Caribbean for operations against pirates
  • In January 1822, she captured a Dutch sloop and brought her and seven pirates to Charleston, S.C., for trial. She returned to the Caribbean and spent over three years suppressing buccaneers
  • Sparkreturned home in 1825 and was sold at New York in 1826
  • Final Disposition, fate unknown
    Specifications:
    Displacement 310 t.
    Length 103'
    Beam 25' 4"
    Draft unknown
    Depth of Hold 12' 8"
    Speed unknown
    Complement 90
    Armament
    ten 18-pdr carronades
    two long18-pdrs
    Propulsion sail
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		 Size Image Description Contributed
    By
    Guerriere
    098655201    		 449k USS Spark sail plan, circa 1813
    Chappelle, Howard I., "The History of the American Sailing Navy: The Ships and Their Development", New York: W. W. Norton and Company, Inc., 1949, ISBN 1-56852-222-3, Plate XII, facing p. 201. unattributed, apparently from U.S. National Archives.    		 Robert Hurst
    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
    Macedonian
    098654913    		 112k Print by George G.Smith (1795-1878) engraver George Girdler Smith of the United States squadron under Com. Bainbridge returning triumphant from the Mediterranean in 1815, The print shows the American squadron at sea, includes, on the left;
    USS Macedonian (I),
    USS Firefly (I),
    USS Torch,
    USS Boxer (I), at center,
    USS Independence,
    USS Spark (I),
    USS Saranac (I)
    USS Enterprise (III),
    USS Lynx (i), and on the right,
    USS Congress (III)
    USS Chippewa (II),
    USS Spitfire (III) and
    USS Flambeau.
    United States Library of Congress's Prints and Photographs division under the digital ID cph.3a47975    		 Robert Hurst
    USS Spark (I)
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)
    Back To The Navsource Photo Archives Main Page Back To The Old Navy" Steam and Sail Index
    Comments, Suggestions, E-mail Webmaster.
    This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
    All pages copyright NavSource Naval History
    Last Updated 10 March 2023