USS Ferret (1822)
| History | |
|---|---|
  United States
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| Name: | USS Ferret |
| Acquired: | 20 December 1822 at Baltimore, Maryland |
| Fate: |
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| General characteristics | |
| Type: | Schooner |
| Tonnage: | 51 |
| Sail plan: | Schooner |
| Complement: | 31 |
| Armament: | 3 guns |
USS Ferret was a two masted schooner, the third U.S. Navy vessel to bear this name, and was purchased 20 December 1822 at Baltimore, Maryland and commissioned early in 1823, with Lieutenant R. Henley in command. It was the first U.S. naval ship commanded by the famous naval hero David Farragut. Ferret served transporting U.S. sailors, marines and supplies to the pirate infested waters of the Caribbean and was used to search out and attack pirate ships and pirate strongholds for a little more than two years when her career was cut short when the vessel capsized in a gale force storm off the coast of Cuba.
USS Ferret was part of a naval fleet that sailed to the Caribbean to subdue the occurrence of pirate raids on merchant ships that had increased to almost 3,000 by the early 1820s. The financial losses to the United States was great while murder and the practice of torture were common. Losses to American ships and merchants had increased to such proportions that the situation began making headlines in American newspapers. In little time merchants and shippers along with the American public were demanding that the U.S. Navy take definite action against piracy that was out of control in the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico. In November 1822 when the captain of the USS Alligator was killed in a battle with the notorious Cuban pirate Domingo that was the last straw. Response was quick and by 22 December President James Monroe authorized the creation of the West Indies squadron for purposes of seeking and routing out pirates and their numerous strongholds about the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico. They were also directed to suppress the international slave trade which also operated out of this region and outlawed in the United States. Following Monroe's authorization the Secretary of the Navy, Smith Thompson, promoted David Porter to commodore, allocated $500,000 to him and appointed him to take commanded of and outfit the squadron for war against the pirates. British interests in the Caribbean also threatened, the West Indies squadron fought piracy in a concerted effort with the Royal Navy.
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