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Seven United States Navy ships have been named 'USS ''Columbia''', after the personification of the United States, also after the city of Columbia, South Carolina.

★ A privately owned sloop named Columbia Rediviva under Captain Robert Gray.

★ A 44-gun frigate ''Columbia'' was under construction at the Washington Navy Yard, but was burned in 1814 to prevent capture by the British.

★ The first ''Columbia'' was a 50-gun sailing frigate launched in 1836 and in occasional service until 1861, when she was burned to avoid capture by the Confederates.

★ The second ''Columbia'' was a captured Confederate screw steamer that ran aground in 1863.

★ The third ''Columbia'' was an ironclad, also captured from the Confederates in 1865 and in use until June of that year(?).

★ The fourth ''Columbia'' (C-12), later CA-16, was a protected cruiser in service from 1894 to 1921. At the end of its career it was renamed USS ''Old Columbia''.

★ The fifth ''Columbia'' (AG-9) was originally the ''Great Northern'', a troop transport, renamed in 1921 and used until 1922.

★ The sixth ''Columbia'' (CL-56) was a light cruiser launched 17 December 1941 and active throughout World War II.

★ The seventh ''Columbia'' (SSN-771) is a ''Los Angeles''-class attack submarine commissioned in 1995 and currently in active service.
The Space Shuttle ''Columbia'' (OV-102), which flew 28 missions between 1981 and 2003, is occasionally referred to as USS ''Columbia''; this is incorrect, however, as she was not a vessel of the United States Navy.