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USS Ranger
Eight ships of the
United States Navy
have borne the name
Ranger
.
The first
Ranger
was an 18-gun ship sloop built in
1777
and commanded by
John Paul Jones
. It was the first US ship to be saluted and the first US ship to defeat a British
Royal Navy
ship,
HMS Blake
during the
American Revolutionary War
. However she was captured by the British in
1780
and renamed
HMS Halifax
.
The second
Ranger
was a
schooner
mounting a single 18-pounder gun, purchased in
1814
and sold in
1816
.
The third
Ranger
was a 14-gun
brig
also purchased in
1814
for operations on
Lake Ontario
, and sold in
1821
.
The fourth
Ranger
was an iron vessel mounting four guns, commissioned in
1876
, converted to a nautical school ship in
1908
, and broken up in
1940
.
The fifth
Ranger
was a steel yacht commissioned in
1917
and stricken
1918
, subsequently serving in the
Coast Guard
.
The sixth
Ranger
was a
minesweeper
built in
1882
and commissioned
11 September
1918
, and used in coastal defense until returned to her owner
10 January
1919
.
The seventh
Ranger
(CV-4)
was the first Navy ship originally designed to be an
aircraft carrier
, operating in the Atlantic during
World War II
.
The eighth
Ranger
(CVA-61)
was also an
aircraft carrier
, the largest in the world when launched in
1957
, decommissioned
1993
and presently mothballed, although there is interest in making her into a
museum ship
.