Texan schooner San Jacinto The Texan schooner " San Jacinto " was a two - masted schooner of the Second Texas Navy from 1839 - 1840 . She was the sister ship of the " San Antonio " and the " San Bernard " . In 1840 , " San Jacinto " was part of the Texas Navy flotilla led by Commodore Edwin Ward Moore which was dispatched to assist Yucatecan rebels that had taken up arms against Mexico . In a storm , " San Jacinto " ran aground at Cayos Arcas and was wrecked . The crew were rescued by the flagship " Austin " . Background of the Texas Navy . The Texas Navy was officially formed in January 1836 , with the purchase of four schooner s : " Invincible " , " Brutus " , " Independence " , and " Liberty " . These ships , under the command of Commodore Charles Hawkins , helped Texas win independence by preventing a Mexican blockade of the Texas coast , seizing Mexican ships carrying reinforcements and supplies to its army , and sending their cargoes to the Texas volunteer army . Nevertheless , Mexico refused to recognize Texas as an independent country . By the middle of 1837 , all of the ships had been lost at sea , run aground , captured , or sold . With no ships to impede a possible invasion by Mexico , Texas was vulnerable to attack . In 1838 , President Mirabeau B . Lamar responded to this threat by forming a second Texas Navy . Unlike Sam Houston , Lamar was an ardent supporter of the Texas Navy and saw the urgent need for its continuation . The second Texas Navy was placed under the command of Commodore Edwin Ward Moore , an Alexandria Academy graduate who was recruited from the United States Navy . One of the ships of this second navy was the " San Jacinto " along with her sister ships , the " San Antonio " and " San Bernard " . History of the " San Jacinto " . Originally built as one of the Baltimore clipper s at the Schott and Whitney shipyard in Baltimore , Maryland and called " Viper " , she was one of the smallest of a class of schooners and brigs built specifically for the slave trade between 1820 and 1850 . A group of six schooners , including " La Amistad " was built in Baltimore around 1836 . They were identified as being " Purposely built and fitted out for use in the slave trade by the United States Consul General in Havana " , and " Viper " was typical of the class . Blockade duty and wreck . On 26 June 1840 , the " San Jacinto " sailed from Galveston with instructions to blockade the Mexican port of Veracruz and seize enemy ships . On 20 August , the " San Jacinto " rejoined Commodore Edwin W . Moore ' s flotilla and remained with them until being detached to Galveston with dispatches for the government . In search of drinking water , the " San Jacinto " called at Cayos Arcas . A violent cold front approached but Lt . O ' Shaunessy nevertheless went ashore , leaving Lt . Alfred G . Gray as senior officer on board . When the ship ' s anchor failed to hold , Gray displayed great ingenuity and seamanship in an attempt to save it , but even a piece of the ship ' s artillery used as an additional anchor could not save the " San Jacinto " from being swept ashore by gale winds . The survivors of The " San Jacinto " were rescued by the " Austin " on 31 October 1840 and the ship was declared a loss . Commanders of the vessel . The " San Jacinto " was commanded by :