USS Princeton (1843)

For other ships with the same name, see USS Princeton.

USS Princeton
History
United States
NamePrinceton
NamesakePrinceton, New Jersey
Ordered18 November 1841
BuilderPhiladelphia Navy Yard
Laid down20 October 1842
Launched5 September 1843
Commissioned9 September 1843
DecommissionedOctober 1849
FateBroken up

USS Princeton was a screw steam warship of the United States Navy. Commanded by Captain Robert F. Stockton, Princeton was launched on 5 September 1843.

On 28 February 1844, during a Potomac River pleasure cruise for dignitaries, one gun exploded, killing six people, including Secretary of State Abel P. Upshur and Secretary of the Navy Thomas Walker Gilmer, and injuring others, including a United States Senator and Captain Stockton. The disaster on board the Princeton killed more top US government officials in one day than any other tragedy in American history. President John Tyler, who was aboard but below decks, was not injured. The ship's reputation in the Navy never recovered.

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.