The originalFulton, a 20-gun steam battery, essentially a floating
fort, was the first steam-powered
warship. Built in
New York City during the
War of 1812, but only saw one day of service, ferrying
PresidentJames Madison across
New York Harbor, and accidentally exploded in 1825. Named Demologos during construction, the death of Fulton prompted the renaming. The ship is also dubbed Fulton the First. It had a central
paddle wheel.
The secondFulton was a side-wheel steamer, built under Capt.
Matthew Perry, who later modeled his
Black Ships partly on the Fulton. It was rebuilt as a warship and saw service in
South American and
Cuban waters, but was laid up in
Pensacola, Florida when the
American Civil War broke out.
Confederate forces destroyed her in 1861 before a Union recapture of the city. Known as both Fulton the Second and Fulton the Third.
The fourthFulton was also a submarine tender laid down in 1941. She rescued survivors of the
Battle of Midway and assisted in the
Operation Crossroadsatomic test. Between 1946 and 1951 she was in the
reserve fleet. From 1951 until decommissioning in 1991, she was a support vessel for nuclear attack
submarines including the
USS Nautilus, which was named after Fulton's submarine prototype.