Identification & Site Information

  • Original Name: Scorpion (United States Navy)
  • Captured Name: Confiance (Royal Navy, Lake Huron squadron)
  • Vessel Type: Schooner (armed)
  • Guns: 2 (documented in British service logs)
  • Hull Material: Wood
  • Number of Decks: 1
  • Number of Masts: 2 (fore‑and‑aft rigged Schooner)
  • Tonnage (est.): ~60–70 tons burthen (typical for U.S. Lake Erie/Erie-class schooners)
  • Builder: U.S. Navy yard (Lake Erie theater), ca. 1813
  • Launch Location: Presqu’Isle, Pennsylvania (modern Erie, PA)
  • Registry: U.S. Navy (1813–1814), captured into Royal Navy (1814)

Service History

  • 1813 – Built for the United States Navy on the Lake Erie/Upper Lakes theater during the War of 1812. Part of the post-Perry flotilla, likely intended to support blockades and convoy duties.
  • 6 Sept 1814 – Captured by the British on Lake Huron, along with USS Tigress, during the Mackinac / Nottawasaga River operations. These captures ended U.S. naval presence in the upper lakes.
  • Renamed HMS Confiance – Commissioned into the Royal Navy Lake Huron squadron, operating primarily from Penetanguishene and Drummond Island.
  • 1817 – Listed as “in ordinary” (laid up, unarmed) at the Penetanguishene naval base after the Rush‑Bagot Agreement began demilitarization of the Great Lakes.
  • 1831 – Officially ordered broken up, but contemporary records note that the vessel sank in the naval basin at Penetanguishene instead of being fully dismantled.

Final Disposition

  • Date of Loss: Circa 1831 (abandonment and sinking)
  • Location: Penetanguishene Harbour, Georgian Bay, Lake Huron (Ontario)
  • Cause of Loss: Neglect and sinking in ordinary after years of deterioration
  • Current Condition:
    • Likely buried timbers or partial Hull in soft mud of the historic naval basin
    • May survive as part of the Penetanguishene Historic Naval & Military Complex underwater archaeological footprint
  • Heritage Status: Potentially under Parks Canada / Ontario Heritage Act protections as a War of 1812 relic

Historical Significance

  • One of only a handful of vessels captured by the British during the War of 1812 that survived into the 1830s.
  • Represents the shift from U.S. dominance to British control of the upper Great Lakes post‑1814.
  • Forms part of the Penetanguishene “ship graveyard”, along with Tecumseh, Newash, and other laid‑up vessels of the Lake Huron squadron.

Resources & Archival Leads

Research Notes

  • A side‑scan sonar or diver survey of the Penetanguishene naval basin could reveal ballast stones, frames, or fastenings from Confiance.
  • Collaboration with Parks Canada’s Underwater Archaeology Service is recommended for any modern verification.