July 21, 1864 – The first United States ship – a steam frigate – that eventually bore the name ‘U.S.S. Iowa’ is launched from the Boston Navy Yard.
This steam frigate – the U.S.S. Ammonoosuc – was constructed in the Boston Navy Yard during the American Civil War, and was launched, apparently without ceremony, on July 21, 1864. She was intended to be used against the British should England decide to take the side of the Confederate States of America and attack the American Union North. However, as the war progressed, England’s support of the Confederacy diminished, and the fast and powerful ship was never placed into service. Instead, she was laid up in the Boston Navy Yard, and while there was renamed the U.S.S. Iowa on May 15, 1869. She was sold on September 27, 1883 to the firm of Hubel and Porter, of Syracuse, New York.
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