This Day in Naval History - Oct. 21

From the Navy News Service

1797 - USS Constitution is launched at the Charlestown Navy Yard, Boston, Mass. The ship is now the oldest commissioned ship in the U.S. Navy.

1842 - Commodore Thomas Catesby Jones, commander, Pacific Command mistakenly seizes Monterey, thinking the United States has gone to war with Mexico.

1942 - A British submarine lands Capt. Jerauld Wright and four Army officers at Cherchel, French North Africa, to meet with a French military delegation to learn the French attitude toward future Allied landings.