USS Onkahye
| History | |
|---|---|
| United States | |
| Name | Onkahye |
| Builder | William Capes |
| Laid down | 1839 |
| Launched | 1840 |
| Acquired | 1843 |
| Commissioned | 1843 |
| Fate | Wrecked 1848 |
| General characteristics | |
| Tons burthen | 250 |
| Length | 96 ft (29 m) |
| Beam | 22 ft (6.7 m) |
| Draft | 12 ft (3.7 m) |
| Armament | 2 guns |
USS Onkahye was a topsail schooner of the United States Navy. A unique ship in the American Navy under sail, the vessel occupied a significant place in ship development, being the only converted sailing yacht to serve on a distant station before the American Civil War. Its design was influential and it is considered the model for modern American sailing yachts.
While serving in the anti-piracy/anti-slave trade patrols in the Caribbean, it went down in 1848 off East Caicos, in the Turks & Caicos Islands. A NOAA-supported expedition in 2008 conducted field work in search of the Onkahye and the USS Chippewa, also known to have gone down in that area in 1816.