American Colonial Frigate Raleigh (information from DANFS) 697 tons; length 131’ 5” (on gun deck);
breadth 34’ 5’; draft 11’ One of the Revolutionary War frigates, Raleigh was authorized by the Continental Congress in December, 1775, laid down in March of 1776 and launched in May of the same year. Designed and built by Hackett, Hill, and Paul at Portsmouth, NH, the Raleigh appears on the great seal of the State of New Hampshire. Raleigh put to sea in August 1777 under the command of Thomas Thompson in company with the Alfred (24 guns). The two ships sailed the Atlantic and captured several prizes, but in March 1778, while they were separated, the Alfred was captured by HMS Ariadne (20) and HMS Ceres (16). Thompson was accused of cowardice and dereliction of duty in the loss of the Alfred, relieved of command, and replaced by John Berry in June of that year. In September 1778, Raleigh sailed in convoy for Portsmouth, VA. En route, they encountered the HMS Unicorn (26) and the HMS Experiment (50). Barry sent the merchantmen to port and drew off the enemy in a 7 hour running fight which ended when the Raleigh ran around. Barry evacuated the crew to shore and ordered a party to destroy the ship, but this order was thwarted by Midshipman Jeacocks who struck the colors and surrendered the ship to the British. Raleigh was refloated, repaired, and taken into the Royal Navy as HBMS
Raleigh. She participated in the capture of Charleston, SC in 1780. In
1781 she was decommissioned in England and sold off in 1783. |
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