Outdated before serviceSourced
They built sailing warships.
Steam had arrived by launch.
The U.S. Navy's Potomac-class frigates were designed to sail without engines. Construction took so long that steam-powered ships had made them obsolete by the time they entered service.
Brand-new ships
from a fading era.
Summary / translation: Unbubly · CC BY-SA 4.0
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Potomac-class frigate · Wikimedia contributors
Adapted, summarized and translated from the source. Adapted text is also available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Reviewed: 2026-10-01