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N0KFQ > TODAY 07.04.15 17:24l 46 Lines 2059 Bytes #999 (0) @ WW
BID : 52339_N0KFQ
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Subj: Today in History - Apr 7
Path: IW8PGT<CX2SA<N0KFQ
Sent: 150407/1520Z 52339@N0KFQ.#SWMO.MO.USA.NA BPQ1.4.63
1776
U.S. Navy captures first British warship
On this day in 1776, Navy Captain John Barry, commander of the
American warship Lexington, makes the first American naval
capture of a British vessel when he takes command of the British
warship HMS Edward off the coast of Virginia. The capture of the
Edward and its cargo turned Captain Barry into a national hero
and boosted the morale of the Continental forces.
Barry was born in the seaboard county of Wexford, Ireland, in
1745 and offered his services to the Continental Congress upon
the outbreak of the American Revolution. Congress purchased
Barry's ship, Black Prince, which it renamed Alfred and placed
under the command of Commodore Esek Hopkins. It was the first
ship to fly the American flag, raised by John Paul Jones.
Barry served with distinction throughout the American Revolution.
At sea, he had continued success with the Lexington. On land, he
raised a volunteer force to assist General Washington in the
surprisingly successful Trenton, New Jersey, campaign of 1776-77.
On May 29, 1781, Barry was wounded while successfully capturing
the HMS Atlanta and the HMS Trepassy while in command of a new
ship, Alliance. He recovered and successfully concluded the final
naval battle of the Revolutionary War with a victory over the HMS
Sybylle in March 1783.
Barry's outstanding career has been memorialized on both sides of
the Atlantic. A bridge bearing his name crosses the Delaware
River, and Brooklyn, New York, is home to a park named for him.
In addition, four U.S. Navy ships and a building at Villanova
University carry his name, and statues in his honor stand in
Washington, D.C., Philadelphia and his birthplace, Wexford,
Ireland. On September 13, 1981, President Ronald Reagan declared
Commodore John Barry Day to honor a man he called one of the
earliest and greatest American patriots, a man of great insight
who perceived very early the need for American power on the sea.
73, K.O. n0kfq
N0KFQ @ N0KFQ.#SWMO.MO.USA.NA
E-mail: kohiggs@gmail.com
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