He was born at Mt. Mellick, Queens County, Ireland, in 1773, and came to the United States in 1790, settled in Philadelphia, and entered the merchant marine.
Appointed Lieutenant in the United States Navy on 3 August 1798, he first served in Montezuma in Commodore Thomas Truxtun's squadron in the West Indies during the early part of the Quasi-War with France. On 20 October 1799, he was given command of the schooner Enterprise in which, during the next year, he captured seven armed French vessels and recaptured several American merchantmen. By the time he was relieved of command due to ill health in October 1800, he had made Enterprise one of the most famous vessels of the Navy.
During the Barbary War, Shaw commanded frigate Adams in the Mediterranean under Commodore John Rodgers from May to November 1804; and frigate United States during the War of 1812. Captain Shaw died at Philadelphia.
Two destroyers have been named after John Shaw: DD-68 and DD-373. In an odd coincidence, both destroyers lost their bows in action yet were repaired and continued their service. DD-68 had 90 feet of her bow cut off by HMS Aquitania during a collision in 1918 and DD-373 is best known for its spectacular explosion during the attack on Pearl Harbor.
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