Name/Title
U.S.S. GRAMPUS Ship ModelEntry/Object ID
2005.13.0001Description
Wood ship model of the USS GRAMPUS. Model ship is in a oak and plexi case with a walnut base.
U.S.S. Grampus was a schooner in the United States Navy. Grampus was built at the Washington Navy Yard under the supervision of naval constructor William Doughty, based on a design by Henry Eckford. Her 73 ft (22 m) keel was laid down in 1820. She was launched in early August 1821.
Lt. F. H. Gregory commanded Grampus on her first cruise, which took her to the West Indies in pursuit of pirates. In the company of Hornet, Enterprise, Spark, Porpoise, and Shark, Grampus helped convoy merchant vessels in the region, a policy encouraged by the lack of merchant ship protection received from local governments. Indeed, in October 1821, the governor at Gustavia in St. Barthelmy (modern Guadaloupe) refused to seize a known pirate ship or recover stolen American goods. Public opinion back in the United States waxed indignant over outrages like these and the squadron escorted friendly ships out of St. Thomas into 1822.
On 16 August 1822, Grampus gave chase to a brig flying Spanish colors, but which Lt. Gregory suspected was a pirate. When called upon to surrender, the privateer, the brig Palmyra out of Puerto Rico, replied with desultory cannon and musket fire. To this rebutt, Grampus answered in turn, firing broadsides that reduced Palmyra's rigging to a complete wreck, killing one and wounding six. The brig struck shortly thereafter, surrendering a crew of 88, one long 18-pounder gun and eight 18-pound carronades. Lt. Gregory discovered Palmyra carried the papers of a privateer merely as a subterfuge, as her officers acknowledged they had robbed the American schooner Coquette.
Grampus and the rest of the squadron shifted operations to Thompson's Island (later Key West) in 1823, continuing patrol and anti-piracy operations for ships sailing in the West Indies. The schooner took part in the landings in Puerto Rico in 1824, where the U.S. received an apology from the Spanish for firing on schooner Fox in March 1823.Collection
Artifact CollectionMade/Created
Manufacturer
Paul T. ClementTime Period
19th Century, 20th CenturyLexicon
Nomenclature 4.0
Nomenclature Primary Object Term
ModelNomenclature Sub-Class
Other DocumentsNomenclature Class
Documentary ObjectsNomenclature Category
Category 08: Communication ObjectsDimensions
Height
21 inWidth
24-1/2 inDepth
14-1/2 inRelationships
Related Person or Organization
Person or Organization
United States Navy
