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NavSource Online: "Old Navy" Ship Photo Archive

USS Tigress (I)


Schooner:
  • Built in 1812-13, as the schooner Amelia at Erie, PA., by the firm of Adam and Noah Brown
  • Launched in the spring of 1813, probably in April
  • Acquired by the Navy for service with Captain Oliver Hazard Perry's forces on Lake Erie
  • Renamed Tigress and placed under the command of LT. Augustus H. M. Conkling
  • Tigress participated in the engagement at Put-in-Bay on 10 September 1813 in the Battle of Lake Erie
  • In October USS Tigress, USS Scorpion and USS Porcupine, under the command of LT. Jesse D. Elliott, ascended the Thames River to support General William Henry Harrison overland expedition in the Battle of the Thames
  • Tigress subsequently sailed for Lake Huron, where she took part in blockading operations into the summer of 1814
  • On 3 September Tigress was attacked and boarded by British forces and in the ensuing battle the schooner was captured by the attackers
  • On 8 September using the captured Tigress, still with American flag flying, the British commander, LT. Bulger, ran the schooner alongside Scorpion also capturing her
  • The British renamed their prizes soon thereafter. Tigress became HMS Surprise, an appropriate name in view of the nature of her capture, and Scorpion became HMS Confiance
  • Both subsequently served the Royal Navy until laid up at the Colborne Basin, Ontario, Canada, and dismantled.
  • In the spring of 1933, Tigress' remains were raised and placed on the town dock at Penetanguishene, Ontario
    Specifications:
    Displacement 52 t.
    Length 50'
    Beam 17'
    Depth of Hold 5'
    Draft unknown
    Speed 9 kts
    Complement 27
    Armament
    one 32-pdr gun
    Propulsion sail

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    USS Tigress (I)
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)
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    Battle of Lake Erie - Building the Fleet in the Wilderness
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    Last Updated 24 February 2017