This Day In Naval History: September 16
1814 - A squadron from the schooner USS Carolina attacks and raids the base of the pirate Jean Lafitte, at Barataria, La., capturing six schooners and other small craft while the pirates flee the attack. 1823 - Samuel Southard becomes the seventh Secretary of the Navy, serving until March 3, 1829. During his tenure, he enlarges the Navy, improves administration, purchases land for the first Naval Hospitals, begins construction of the first Navy dry docks, undertakes surveying U.S. coastal waters and promotes exploration in the Pacific Ocean. 1854 - Mare Island, Calif. becomes the first permanent U.S. naval installation on the west coast, with Cmdr. David G. Farragut as its first base commander. 1922 - Cmdr.
This Day in Coast Guard History – August 31
1819-The cutters Alabama and Louisiana captured the privateer Bravo in the Gulf of Mexico. The Bravo's master, Jean Le Farges -- a lieutenant of Jean Lafitte -- was later hanged from the Louisiana's yardarm. The cutters then sailed for Patterson's Town on Breton Island to destroy the notorious pirates' den there. 1852-The Lighthouse Board was created and charged with administering the Lighthouse Service, as the Revenue Cutter Service was again decentralized. The board was comprised of Army and Navy officers, and civilian scientists. Channel marking and light operation acquired scientific precision and engineering. Classical lenses and lateral buoy systems were introduced. (Source: USCG Historian’s Office)
