The Legendary "Old Ironsides"
The USS CONSTITUTION was one of the six original frigates authorized for construction by Congress in 1794. The famous American shipbuilder Joshua Humphreys constructed her in 1797 and, at the present time, she is the oldest commissioned vessel in the US Navy. She received her nickname, "Old Ironsides" when, during a battle in the War of 1812, a sailor remarked that she must have sides of iron, because bullets did not penetrate her hull.

Paul Revere forged the copper spikes and bolts that held the plank in place and the copper sheathing that protected the hull. She fought famously in several wars throughout her career. Her first commission was in in the war against the French in 1798, followed by service in North Africa. Her legendary service in the War of 1812 included destroying the British frigate Gruerrier with a single shot. In another incident, she outran the British by employing the highly taxing process of kedge hauling, which involves throwing anchors out in front of the vessel and then using the line to pull the ship forward.

She was saved from the scrap heap in 1830 when Oliver Wendell Holmes's poem, "Old Ironsides" inspired the American public to lobby for her restoration. After extensive re-fitting, she served in Africa, in the 1850's searching for slavers, and was a sail training ship during the Civil War.

In 1905, the public rallied for her salvation, once again, and money collected from school children and patriotic groups funded another restoration. In 1931, she was recommissioned and set out on an American tour of port cities. A decade later, she was placed in permanent commission and an act of congress in 1954 made the Secretary of the Navy responsible for her upkeep.

As the oldest commissioned vessel in the US Navy, the USS Constitution serves as a powerful reminder of America's proud naval heritage.