VOYAGE OF MERCY: The USS Jamestown, the Irish Famine, and the Remarkable Story of America's First Humanitarian Mission

In an unprecedented move by Congress in 1847, the warship USS Jamestown, had been placed in civilian hands, stripped of its guns, and committed to the peaceful delivery of food, clothing, and supplies for famine stricken Ireland, in a mission that would launch America's first full-blown humanitarian relief effort.