USS Weasel (original) (raw)

The USS Weasel was a three-gun schooner in the United States Navy. The Weasel was built at Baltimore and was initially intended to serve as a merchant vessel that would operate the area of Chesapeake Bay. However, the build of her keel favored the strategic approach of the West Indies Squadron, which became notorious for using smaller vessels to pursue escaping pirates into shallow waters, so it was acquired by the Navy in 1822 and outfitted for military use. The process took place at Norfolk, with the ship being commissioned in 1823.