Libertad (schooner) 1847

Libertad (schooner) 1847
USS Dale (right) and USS Liberdad (left) burning Alerta (center) off Loreto, Mexico.
Location Loreto, Baja California Sur, Mexico

Libertad, meaning "liberty" in Spanish, was a merchant schooner built on the west coast Mexico for service between Mexico and Baja California peninsula and along its coast. During the Mexican American War it was captured at Loreto with another schooner Fortuna on October 1, 1846 by the USS Cyane under Commander Samuel Francis Du Pont.

Libertad was fitted for duty as a tender, equipped with one 9 pounder gun, retaining its name and was placed in service with Commodore Robert F. Stockton’s Pacific Squadron early in 1847. Near the end of the war in February 1848, Libertad was sold at public sale.

References

This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.

External links

• THE USS LIBERTAD BOMBARDING PUNTA SOMBRERO, William H. Meyers. Watercolor. 1847. Naval Sketches of the War in California. Limited Edition 1,000. Grabhorn Press. San Francisco. 1939.

The USS Libertad, tender ship of the USS Dale under command of Lieutenant T. A. M. Craven, USN, bombarding Punta Sombrero in the operation against the communications of Mexican troops at Muleje. 31 October 1847. From the collection of Franklin Delano Roosevelt.