October 13, 2025, marks the U.S. Navy’s 250th Birthday. In celebration, we revisit a moment in naval history, the day USS Constitution sailed under her own power for the first time in more than a century.

The Constitution, the world’s oldest commissioned warship afloat, first launched in 1797. Known as “Old Ironsides,” she earned her nickname in the War of 1812 when, according to legend, a cannonball bounced off her wooden hull, and a sailor exclaimed, “Her sides are made of iron!”

After decades of service and a storied career at sea, she was eventually converted into a museum ship in Boston. Over the years, she underwent multiple restorations and reconstructions that prepared her return.

On July 21, 1997, “Old Ironsides” sailed again after 116 years. Deck Commander Joe Wilson said, “I

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