Photo #: NH 56745
Burning of the frigate Philadelphia in Tripoli harbor,
16 February 1804
Chart by Charles Wellington Furlong, 1904, depicting (by dot
and dash lines) the course followed by the ketch Intrepid,
under Lieutenant Stephen Decatur, as she entered and left Tripoli
harbor on her mission to destroy the captured USS Philadelphia.
Heavy dashed line indicates Philadelphia's drift after
she was set afire. Position "A" marks Philadelphia's
position when boarded by Decatur's men, while "B" is
the location of her wreck when Furlong located it about a century
later and recovered artifacts.
Position "X" (just west of the Jerba Passage) is the
location of Intrepid's wreck after she blew up on 4 September
1804, during another mission into Tripoli harbor.
Courtesy of Charles Wellington Furlong, July 1939.
U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph.
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