"U.S.S. Constitution" - Bunker Hill Monument in backgroground.
"OLD IRONSIDES"
The U.S.S. Constitution was called "Old Ironsides" because cannonballs could not penetrate her tough oak sides. It was one of the first of the original six frigates that made up the U.S. Navy.
A 44-gun frigate built at the Edmond Hartt Shipyard, Boston, MA, in 1797. Her dimensions are 53,34x13,26x6,0 (d) m [175'0x43'6"x16'7"] and with a displacement of 2000 tons. The ship carried a crew of more than 450. The ship served in the undeclared naval war with France (1798-1800) and was the Flagship in the Mediterranean squadron, in the Tripolitan War (1801-05). In the War of 1812 the Constitution won battles with the British frigates Guerriere and Java; the former battle took place about 1,200 km (750 mi) east of Boston on Aug. 19, 1812, and the latter off the coast of Brazil on Dec. 29, 1812.
The Constitution made its last combat tour in 1814-15. The ship was scheduled to be scrapped in 1830, but Oliver Wendell Holmes's poem "Old Ironsides" inspired a public movement to save it. Restored in 1925, the Constitution is now The oldest commissioned vessel in the US Navy. It is moored in Boston and presently serves as a museum ship at the Charleston Navy Yard.