The USS Constitution saw 57 years of active duty and during that time, captured 33 ships. It sailed around the world and was used as a naval training ship during the Civil War and later was a floating office ship.
The most significant restoration on the ship was done 1927-1931. At the time, the ship was in such bad condition that it was in danger of sinking at the pier. U.S. school children raised $157,000 in a pennies campaign that funded nearly 85% of the ship.
I believe the poem that I had to memorize in fifth grade in North Carolina, "Old Ironsides" by Oliver Wendell Holmes, was part of the campaign to raise those pennies.
--Brock-Perry
2012 marks the 200th anniversary of America's "Forgotten War," the War of 1812 that took place over three years, 1812 to 1815.
Battle of New Orleans.
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