Shotline Diving Wreck Profile
- Name: USS Jones
- Type: 18-gun brig
- Year Built: 1814
- Builder: Henry Eckford
- Dimensions: Length 121 ft 6 in (37 m); Beam 31 ft 6 in; Depth of hold
- Registered Tonnage: 509 tons
- Location: Sackets Harbor, New York
- Official Number: U.S. warship
Wreck Location Map
Vessel Type
Vessel Type & Description
- Class: 18-gun war brig, pivot-gun armament.
- Tonnage: 509 (carpenter’s tonnage), beam 31 ft 6 in, length 121 ft 6 in.
- Rigid brig hull, swift under sail and designed to carry heavy ordnance for lake engagement.
Description
Operational History
- Commissioned into Commodore Isaac Chauncey’s Lake Ontario squadron in mid-1814. Operated between Oswego, Niagara, and Kingston, providing supply escort and naval presence during the decline of British shipping in the region.
- After American control reasserted, she served primarily in a stationary capacity at Sackets Harbor into post-war years.
History
Final Disposition & Scuttling
- Fate: Put into “ordinary”—unmanned and laid up at Sackets Harbor by late 1814. Left to decay and eventually sank at her moorings rather than being formally scrapped.
- She was not scuttled ceremonially, but rather abandoned as surplus naval tonnage with the end of hostilities.
Significant Incidents
Site Location & Archaeological Status
- Location: Sackets Harbor, New York, in the sheltered anchorage near the former naval base.
- Surveys: In 1984, underwater archaeological work by Kevin Crisman and Arthur Cohn uncovered remains of her sister brig Jefferson—suggesting potential for similar locating of Jones, though no well-documented excavation of Jones has been published to date.
Final Disposition
Summary Table
| Attribute | Detail |
|---|---|
| Name | USS Jones (18-gun brig) |
| Builder & Launch | Henry Eckford at Sackets Harbor, 10 Apr 1814 |
| Armament | 18 guns, 509 tons |
| Service | Late War 1812 naval actions on Lake Ontario |
| Final Disposition | Laid up, sank at moorings in ordinary status |
| Location | Sackets Harbor, NY |
| Excavation Status | Jefferson sister surveyed; Jones not yet excavated |
Current Condition & Accessibility
Significance & Context
- The brig Jones was part of a robust naval-enlargement programme to challenge British dominance on the lakes.
- Its rapid decommissioning and abandonment after the war reflect the operational cut-down after naval needs subsided—older wooden hulls decayed quickly in ordinary and sank in place, forming local submerged heritage.
- Henry Eckford’s innovative shipyard activity and scale of operations at Sackets Harbor propelled the U.S. naval presence on Lake Ontario during critical late-war months.
Resources & Links
[shotline_reference_links slug=”uss-jones-1814″ title=”References & Links”]
The USS Jones represents a significant piece of naval history from the War of 1812, illustrating the challenges and changes faced by the U.S. Navy in the aftermath of conflict. Its remains, while not yet excavated, hold potential for further archaeological study.
Legacy Notes & Full Historical Record
This section preserves the original unedited Shotline content for this wreck so that no historical detail is lost as we transition to the new logbook format.
(18‑gun Brig, 509 tons, 121 ft 6″ × 31 ft 6″)
Year Built: Launched 10 April 1814 at Sackets Harbor, NY, by Henry Eckford and Adam & Noah Brown’s yard
Official Number: U.S. warship
Builder: Henry Eckford (designer), constructed in the Sackets Harbor naval shipyard during the War of 1812 (Wikipedia)
Vessel Type & Description
- Class: 18‑gun war brig, pivot‑gun armament.
- Tonnage: 509 (carpenter’s tonnage), beam 31 ft 6″, length 121 ft 6″ (lcps-stamps.org)
- Rigid brig hull, swift under sail and designed to carry heavy ordnance for lake engagement.
Operational History
- Commissioned into Commodore Isaac Chauncey’s Lake Ontario squadron in mid‑1814. Operated between Oswego, Niagara, and Kingston, providing supply escort and naval presence during the decline of British shipping in the region (Wikipedia).
- After American control reasserted, she served primarily in a stationary capacity at Sackets Harbor into post-war years (Wikipedia).
Final Disposition & Scuttling
- Fate: Put into “ordinary”—unmanned and laid up at Sackets Harbor by late 1814. Left to decay and eventually sank at her moorings rather than being formally scrapped (Institute of Nautical Archaeology).
- She was not scuttled ceremonially, but rather abandoned as surplus naval tonnage with the end of hostilities.
Site Location & Archaeological Status
- Location: Sackets Harbor, New York, in the sheltered anchorage near the former naval base.
- Surveys: In 1984, underwater archaeological work by Kevin Crisman and Arthur Cohn uncovered remains of her sister brig Jefferson—suggesting potential for similar locating of Jones, though no well‑documented excavation of Jones has been published to date (Wikipedia, shiplib.org).
Summary Table
| Attribute | Detail |
|---|---|
| Name | USS Jones (18‑gun brig) |
| Builder & Launch | Henry Eckford at Sackets Harbor, 10 Apr 1814 |
| Armament | 18 guns, 509 tons |
| Service | Late War 1812 naval actions on Lake Ontario |
| Final Disposition | Laid up, sank at moorings in ordinary status |
| Location | Sackets Harbor, NY |
| Excavation Status | Jefferson sister surveyed; Jones not yet excavated |
Significance & Context
- The brig Jones was part of a robust naval-enlargement programme to challenge British dominance on the lakes.
- Its rapid decommissioning and abandonment after the war reflect the operational cut‑down after naval needs subsided—older wooden hulls decayed quickly in ordinary and sank in place, forming local submerged heritage.
- Henry Eckford’s innovative shipyard activity and scale of operations at Sackets Harbor propelled the U.S. naval presence on Lake Ontario during critical late‑war months (lcps-stamps.org, Wikipedia, U.S. Naval Institute).