Oliver Hazard Perry in the context of South Kingstown, Rhode Island

Erie is a city on the south shore of Lake Erie and the county seat of Erie County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is the fifth-most populous city in Pennsylvania and the most populous in Northwestern Pennsylvania with a population of 94,831 at the 2020 census. The two-county Erie Metropolitan Area had a population of 270,876 in 2020. Erie is about 80 miles (130 km) from Buffalo, 90 miles (140 km) from Cleveland, and 120 miles (190 km) from Pittsburgh.

The city takes its name from the Native American Erie people, who inhabited the area until the mid-17th century. Its nicknames include "Gem City", a reference to its fine natural harbor, the "Gem of the Great Lakes"; and more recently, "Flagship City", from a local marketing effort to play up the homeport of Oliver Hazard Perry's flagship Niagara.

A battle ensign is the name given to a large war ensign (flag) hoisted on a warship's mast just before going into battle.

In what could become a very confusing situation with thick clouds of gunsmoke the ensign gave additional identification, hence their large size, which for the Royal Navy in the 17th and 18th centuries was about 20 by 40 ft (6.1 by 12.2 m). It was commonly accepted that so long as a ship flew its ensign it was an active participant in battle; prior to action it was an acceptable ruse to fly a false flag.

The Oliver Hazard Perry class is a class of guided-missile frigates named after U.S. Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry, a commander noted for his role in the Battle of Lake Erie. Also known as the Perry or FFG-7 (commonly "fig seven") class, the warships were designed in the United States in the mid-1970s as general-purpose escort vessels inexpensive enough to be bought in large numbers to replace World War II-era destroyers and complement 1960s-era Knox-class frigates.

In Admiral Elmo Zumwalt's "high low fleet plan", the FFG-7s were the low-capability ships, with the Spruance-class destroyers serving as the high-capability ships. Intended to protect amphibious landing forces, supply and replenishment groups, and merchant convoys from aircraft and submarines, they were also later part of battleship-centered surface action groups and aircraft carrier battle groups/strike groups. 55 ships were built in the United States: 51 for the United States Navy and four for the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). Eight were built in Taiwan, six in Spain, and two in Australia for their navies. Former U.S. Navy warships of this class have been sold or donated to the navies of Bahrain, Egypt, Poland, Pakistan, Taiwan, and Turkey.

42°8′14″N 80°5′15″W / 42.13722°N 80.08750°W / 42.13722; -80.08750

USS Niagara, commonly called the U.S. Brig Niagara or the Flagship Niagara, is a wooden-hulled snow-brig that served as the relief flagship for Oliver Hazard Perry in the Battle of Lake Erie during the War of 1812. As the ship is certified for sail training by the United States Coast Guard, she is also designated SSV Niagara. Niagara is usually docked behind the Erie Maritime Museum in downtown Erie in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania as an outdoor exhibit for the museum. She also often travels the Great Lakes during the summer, serving as an ambassador of Pennsylvania when not docked. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973 and was designated the official state ship of Pennsylvania by the Pennsylvania General Assembly in 1988.