Image of the USS Constitution from the NHS collections
“Old Ironsides” recently set sail in Boston Harbor for the first time in many years, a rare event in the country’s oldest commissioned war vessel. The USS Constitution was launched in 1797 and visited Newport in August 1798 with great celebration and pride. She returned to Newport several times and served as the official training vessel of the US Naval Academy while it was located in Newport during the Civil War. Sister ship USS Constellation had a longer presence in Newport as a training vessel associated with the Naval War College at Coaster Harbor Island. The Newport Historical Society has many documents outlining the Constitution‘s various repair and outfitting orders during the early 1800s.