Pacific Ocean Operations
After a stormy transit of the Straits of Magellan, she called at Valparaíso, Chile, arriving 15 January 1855, then visited Honolulu from 28 March to 23 June. Sailing on to Washington Territory, Decatur entered the Strait of Juan de Fuca 19 July.
On her way to Seattle, on 7 December 1864, Decatur ran aground on rocks at Restoration Point, Bainbridge Island, Washington Territory. Had she not righted herself with the incoming tide, the fate of Seattle might have turned out very differently. Decatur remained in the Pacific Northwest to deter Native American outbreaks, providing support to the settlers in the Battle of Seattle (26 January 1856) (Decatur Senior High School in Federal Way Wa was named after her to honor this defense). She cruised to San Francisco, California between 2 August and 27 September 1855 for supplies.
On 13 June 1856, she arrived at Mare Island Navy Yard for repairs, and on 8 January 1857, sailed for Panama, touching at Central American ports for the protection of U.S. interests. She sailed 3 June to Nicaragua to evacuate U.S. citizens connected with the filibustering expedition of William Walker to Panama, where she arrived 5 August. She cruised off Panama, Peru, and Chile until 23 March 1859 when she was ordered to return to Mare Island.
Read more about this topic: USS Decatur (1839)
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