AMERICAN WEEKLY MESSENGER, Philadelphia, July 2, 1814  

* USS Independence launching 
* United States Navy 74-gun ship
* War of 1812 

This issue has a wealth of content on the War of 1812. Included on the back page is: "Launch Of The Seventy-Four" which was the USS Independence. This was the first ship-of-the-line launched for the U.S. Navy from the Boston (Charlestown) Navy Yard. While rated for 74 guns, Independence was armed with 87 guns when she was launched.
Also within: "Launch of The Guerriere" "A Proclamation" signed by President James Madison; various correspondences from naval officers; "Lake Ontario" and more.
Sixteen pages, 6 by 10 inches, very nice condition.

history notes: The USS Independence, launched in 1814 and built at the Boston Navy Yard, was the first 74-gun ship of the line constructed for the United States Navy, representing a major step in American naval power during the War of 1812. Designed for fleet engagements, she carried heavy broadsides of 32- and 24-pounder cannons, intended to rival the largest European warships. Commissioned late in the war, she saw little combat but served as a formidable symbol of U.S. maritime strength and deterrence. Following the war, the Independence undertook peacetime missions, including flagship duties in the Mediterranean, demonstrating the expanding reach and prestige of the Navy. Her considerable size and maintenance demands eventually led to her decommissioning, and she was dismantled in 1915, though parts were preserved as historical artifacts.