SECTION OF THE MAST OF THE U.S.S. CONSTELLATION

SECTION OF THE MAST OF THE U.S.S. CONSTELLATION
Large section of wood taken as a relic from one of the masts of the U.S.S. CONSTELLATION. This fine relic is triangular in shape and measures 10.25 in. wide, and teh sides each 5 in., 5 in., and 7 in. wide. The wood is mounted atop an old piece of varnished marine plywood with a Dymo label reading: 'PART OF THE MASS FROM THE USS CONSTELLATION' The relic is accompanied by a handwritten letter of provenance from our long-time consignor, a Methodist pastor, who writes: '...My grandfather, Warren A. Hatch, was in the shipping business in Baltimore. In the 1950's, he was on the committee to bring the Constellation back to Baltimore for restoration and preservation. It was towed from Boston...During the restoration, Pop secured this piece of the original mast...' USS Constellation, now a museum ship in Baltimore, is a sloop-of-war, the last sail-only warship designed and built by the Navy. She was built at the Gosport Shipyard between 1853 and 1855 and was named for the earlier frigate of the same name that had been broken up in 1853. The sloop's primary armament was 8-inch shell-firing guns and four 32-pounder long guns, though she carried other guns as well, including two Parrott rifle chase guns. She served with the Mediterranean Squadron until 1858, and in 1859, she was assigned as the flagship of the Africa Squadron, where she served with the African Slave Trade Patrol. During the Civil War from 1861 to 1865, the ship returned to the Mediterranean to patrol for Confederate vessels. In late 1864, she returned to the United States to be decommissioned, as most of her crews' enlistments had expired.