USS Tattnall (DD-125)

Josiah Tattnall was born on 14 June 1794 at Bonaventura, near Savannah, Ga. He was appointed midshipman on 1 January 1812 and attended the Naval School at Washington, D.C., until 1 August when he was assigned to the frigate, Constellation. When his ship tried to slip out to sea, the strong British squadron operating in the Chesapeake Bay forced her to put into Norfolk, Va. Constellation remained bottled up in Hampton Roads for the duration of the War of 1812, but Tattnall and his comrades still managed to get into the fray. He was among the 100 or so Sailors and Marines assigned to the shore battery on Craney Island. On 22 June 1813, the British attempted to carry the island by storm in preparation for an attack on nearby Norfolk. Tattnal's battery and a force of American boats gave the attackers a sound rebuff that deterred the British from further attempts to take the city.

In April 1814, Midshipman Tattnall was detached from Constellation and, by 24 August, was in command of a force of employees from the Washington Navy Yard. He led them into battle at Bladensburg in an unsuccessful effort to stop the British advance on the American capital. On 14 October, he was ordered to Savannah for duty in Epervier. In May 1815, that sloop sailed for the Mediterranean with Commodore Stephen Decatur's squadron to chastise the Algerine pirates. On 17 June, she participated in the capture of the frigate Mashuda and, two days later, of the brig Estedio. In July, when Epervier was ordered back to the United States with dispatches, Tattnall remained in the Mediterranean in Constellation. In January 1817, he transferred to Ontario and returned in her to the United States.

Promoted to lieutenant on 1 April 1818, Tattnall was assigned to the frigate Macedonian on 30 June, and he sailed in her for the Pacific in November. He was detached from Macedonian on 30 August 1820 and returned to the United States. Ordered to Norfolk on 26 December 1822, he joined Commodore David Porter's squadron in schooner Jackall. Lt. Tattnall served in the West Indies on an expedition to suppress piracy until he was detached on 4 May 1823. On 23 June 1824, Tattnall was ordered to Constitution for Mediterranean service. In March 1826, he transferred to Brandywine and returned home in her in May. On the 15th of that month, he was granted six months leave, which was later extended into 1828.

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From the Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, compiled by the Naval History and Heritage Command (Tattnall I (Destroyer No. 125)). A work of the United States Government, in the public domain.