USS Princeton (1843)
American warship / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The first USS Princeton was a screw steam warship of the United States Navy. Commanded by Captain Robert F. Stockton, Princeton was launched on September 5, 1843.
USS Princeton | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | Princeton |
| Namesake | Princeton, NJ |
| Ordered | November 18, 1841 |
| Builder | Philadelphia Navy Yard |
| Laid down | October 20, 1842 |
| Launched | September 5, 1843 |
| Commissioned | September 9, 1843 |
| Decommissioned | October 1849 |
| Fate | Broken up |
On February 28, 1844, during a Potomac River pleasure cruise for dignitaries, one gun exploded, killing six people including Secretary of State Abel P. Upshur and Secretary of the Navy Thomas Walker Gilmer, and injuring others, including a United States Senator and Captain Stockton. The disaster on board the Princeton killed more top U.S. government officials in one day than any other tragedy in American history.[1] President John Tyler, who was aboard but below decks, was not injured. The ship's reputation in the Navy never recovered.