USS Spitfire (1803)

History
United States
NameUSS Spitfire
Completed1803
Acquired25 April 1805
Commissioned25 April 1805
Decommissioned3 August 1806
In serviceJuly 1807
Out of serviceDecember 1807
Fatebroken up at the Norfolk Navy Yard in 1820
General characteristics
Typebomb ketch
Displacement92 tons
PropulsionKetch sail
Complement25
Armament
  • 1 × 13 in (330 mm) mortar
  • 2 × 9-pounder guns

USS Spitfire was a bomb ketch converted from a sloop that served the U.S. Navy during the republic's early years. She carried ammunition for the U.S. Navy warships in the Mediterranean in their battles with the Barbary pirates, and was later involved in the Little Belt affair prior to the War of 1812.