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

Surprise (I)

Sloop:
  • Laid down as the sloop Hercules, date and location unknown
  • Launched, date unknown
  • Purchased by the Royal Navy at Jamaica British West Indies in June 1776, renamed and commissioned into the Royal Navy as HMS Racehorse, LT. Charles Everitt RN in command
  • CDR James Jones RN assumed command of Racehorse from LT. Everitt in August 1776
  • HMS Racehorse was off Puerto Rico, 6 December 1776, where she encountered the Continental navy brigantine Andrew Doria. After a two-hour single-ship engagement Racehorse struck her colors
  • Racehorse was taken into the Continental navy and commissioned Surprise, CAPT. Benjamin Dunn in command
  • In April 1777 Surprise joined Andrew Doria and the sloop Fly in clearing the Cape May channel of British ships
  • Surprise was then stationed in the Delaware River through the spring and summer of 1777
  • When VADM. Lord Howe RN brought his British fleet into the river in September 1777, Surprise was part of the forces charged with defending Philadelphia
  • Following the British occupation of Fort Mifflin, 16 November, Surprise, with the remaining ships of the Continental Navy, including Andrew Doria, sought shelter under the guns of Fort Mercer at Red Bank, N,J.
  • Final Disposition, with the evacuation of Fort Mercer, 20 November, CAPT. Isaiah Robinson of Andrew Doria gave orders the next day for the crews to burn their ships to prevent their capture
    Specifications:
    Displacement 98 t.
    Length 59'
    Beam 20'9"
    Depth of Hold 9'
    Draft unknown
    Speed unknown
    Complement unknown
    Armament ten 4-pdr guns
    Propulsion sail
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		Size Image Description Source
    There are no images of USS Surprise (I) available at NavSource
    USS Surprise (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 18 February 2022