Its was known by some all along that they were not the same ship, but the
Baltimore group that had control was quite insistent that they were the same.
Conclusive proof they were not the same was published by the Navy in a book
titled "Fouled Anchors: The Constellation Question Answered," 1991.

The group controlling the ship now bills here as the "last sailing ship built by
the Navy" and the "last Civil War era ship." The original is mentioned as her
namesake. However, there are still those that claim many of the parts of the
new ship came from the original and therefore they are the same. It isn't clear
to me how much value 60 year old gear and rigging would have for a new ship.
This article even say that since the Constitution has had several refits, they
are essentially in the the same category.

http://www.baltimoremd.com/monuments/sea02.html

The Consitution refit mentioned, in 1833, was major, but the frames and keel
were untouched, as well as the gun deck beams, and most of the planking below
the waterline. The fastenings (made by Paul Revere) were said to be sound.
Much of this is still original. This was the refit associated with the famous
poem:

OLD IRONSIDES
By Oliver Wendell Holmes
September 16, 1830

Ay, tear her tattered ensign down!
Long has it waved on high,
And many an eye has danced to see
That banner in the sky;
Beneath it rung the battle shout,
And burst the cannon's roar;
The meteor of the ocean air
Shall sweep the clouds no more.
Her deck, once red with heroes' blood,
Where knelt the vanquished foe,
When winds were hurrying o'er the flood,
And waves were white below,
No more shall feel the victor's tread,
Or know the conquered knee;
The harpies of the shore shall pluck
The eagle of the sea!
Oh, better that her shattered bulk
Should sink beneath the wave;
Her thunders shook the mighty deep,
And there should be her grave;
Nail to the mast her holy flag,
Set every threadbare sail,
And give her to the god of storms,
The lightning and the gale!





"Navigator" wrote in message
...
Jeff you said:

"Recent inspection has proven that the framing is completely different
from the original, so any claim that the new ship was some form of refit
of the original is simply bogus. At some later point someone actually
rebuilt the new Constellation to resemble the original, and the hoax was
adopted well meaning folks in Baltimore. They now admit there is little
or no connection between the ships."

When was the hoax uncovered by inspection? Could this be the cause of my
confusion about the ship's name (and the passage of time) and could it
be that I was one of the 'well meaning folks'? Shame on the userers! But
I still think she should have been looked after better and she is old!

Cheers