“Don’t give up the ship!” were the dying words uttered this day, June 1, 1813, by Capt. James Lawrence as he lay on the deck of the U.S. Frigate Chesapeake. The British had bombarded them as they sailed out of Boston during the War of 1812. Capt. Oliver Hazard Perry was so taken by his courage that he named his flagship on Lake Erie “Lawrence” and put Lawrence’s dying words on his battle flag. It later became the slogan of the U.S. Navy. After a great victory on Lake Erie, Perry stated: “The prayers of my wife are answered.”
