page_title: Original six frigates of the United States Navy
section_title: Congress
hierarchical_section_title: Original six frigates of the United States Navy / Frigates / Congress
caption_attribution_description: Sail Plan of the USS Congress (1799) by sailmaker Charles Ware.
context_page_description: The United States Congress authorized the original six frigates of the United States Navy with the Naval Act of 1794 on March 27, 1794, at a total cost of $688,888.82. These ships were built during the formative years of the United States Navy, on the recommendation of designer Joshua Humphreys for a fleet of frigates powerful enough to engage any frigates of the French or British navies yet fast enough to evade any ship of the line.
context_section_description: Congress—rated at 38 guns—was launched on August 15, 1799 from Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, under the command of Captain James Sever. Beginning her maiden voyage on January 6, 1800, she headed for the East Indies, but soon after her masts were destroyed in a gale, forcing her return to port; repairs took six months. She sailed again on July 26 for the West Indies and made uneventful patrols through April 1801.
  Under the command of John Rodgers, Congress sailed for the Mediterranean in June 1804 and performed services during the First Barbary War. She assumed blockade duties off Tripoli and participated in the capture of a xebec in October. In July 1805, she helped to blockade Tunisia, and in September of that year carried the Tunisian ambassador back to Washington, D.C. Afterward, she served as a classroom for midshipman training through 1807.
  Under the command of Captain John Smith during the War of 1812, she made three extended cruises in company with President and briefly with United States. She was part of a pursuit of a fleet of British merchant ships and assisted President in the attempted capture of HMS Belvidera.  On the return voyage, Congress and President captured seven merchant ships. Congress' second cruise began in October 1812, and she pursued HMS Galatea and captured the merchant ship Argo. Arriving back in Boston on December 31, she assisted in capturing eight additional merchant ships. After repairs, she sailed in company with President on April 30, 1813, and pursued HMS Curlew, which escaped. Setting off on her own, she made a lengthy voyage off the Cape Verde Islands and the coast of Brazil. During this long cruise she captured only four small merchant ships, returning home in late 1813. Because of a lack of materials to repair her, she was placed in reserve for the remainder of the war.
  In 1815 she returned to active service for the Second Barbary War under Captain Charles Morris, and in August Congress joined a squadron and began patrol duties, subsequently making appearances off Tripoli and Tunis. Returning to Boston, she decommissioned in December. She patrolled against piracy in the Gulf of Mexico from December 1816 to July 1817 and made a voyage to South America in 1818. Early in 1819 she made a voyage to China, becoming the first U.S. warship to visit that country. In 1822 she served as the flagship of James Biddle, combating piracy in the West Indies.  Under Biddle she made a voyage to Spain and Argentina. She began serving as a receiving ship in 1824 and remained on that duty until ordered broken up in 1834.
caption: Sail plan of Congress.
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