USS Callao (YFB-11)

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History
Flag of the United States.svgUnited States
Name: USS Callao
Namesake: Callao, a seaport city in Peru (Spanish Navy name retained)
Builder: Manila Ship Company, Cavite, Philippines
Launched: 1888
Completed: 1888
Acquired: Captured from Spain 12 May 1898
Commissioned: 17 July 1898 [1]
Fate: Sold for scrap 13 September 1923
Notes: Served in Spanish Navy as gunboat Callao 1888–1898
General characteristics
Class and type: Samar-class
Type: gunboat
Displacement: 243 long tons (247 t)
Length: 119 ft (36 m)
Beam: 17 ft 6 in (5.33 m)
Draft: 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
Installed power: 250  hp (190 kW)
Propulsion:
Speed: 9.7  kn (11.2 mph; 18.0 km/h)
Capacity: 32 long tons (33 t) coal
Armament: 4 × 3-pounder guns, 2 × 1-pounder guns
Armor: None

Callao was a gunboat of the United States Navy which fought in the Spanish–American War and served in the U.S. fleet from 1898–1923.

Gunboat naval watercraft designed for bombardment of coastal targets

A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies.

United States Navy Naval warfare branch of the United States Armed Forces

The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most capable navy in the world and it has been estimated that in terms of tonnage of its active battle fleet alone, it is larger than the next 13 navies combined, which includes 11 U.S. allies or partner nations. with the highest combined battle fleet tonnage and the world's largest aircraft carrier fleet, with eleven in service, and two new carriers under construction. With 319,421 personnel on active duty and 99,616 in the Ready Reserve, the Navy is the third largest of the service branches. It has 282 deployable combat vessels and more than 3,700 operational aircraft as of March 2018, making it the second largest and second most powerful air force in the world.

Spanish–American War Conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States

The Spanish–American War was fought between the United States and Spain in 1898. Hostilities began in the aftermath of the internal explosion of USS Maine in Havana harbor in Cuba, leading to U.S. intervention in the Cuban War of Independence. U.S. acquisition of Spain's Pacific possessions led to its involvement in the Philippine Revolution and ultimately in the Philippine–American War.

Contents

Prior to her U.S. service, Callao was a gunboat in the Spanish Navy. For her characteristics and career in Spanish service, see Spanish gunboat Callao.

Spanish Navy Naval warfare branch of Spains military

The Spanish Navy is the maritime branch of the Spanish Armed Forces and the oldest active naval force in the world. The Spanish navy was responsible for a number of major historic achievements in navigation, the most famous being the discovery of America by Christopher Columbus and the first global circumnavigation by Magellan and Elcano. For several centuries, it played a crucial logistical role in the Spanish Empire and defended a vast trade network across the Atlantic Ocean between the Americas and Europe and across the Pacific Ocean between Asia and the Americas.

Callao was a Samar-class gunboat of the Spanish Navy which served in the Spanish fleet from 1888 to 1898 and fought in the Spanish–American War.

Technical Characteristics

Callao was built at Cavite, the Philippines by the Manila Ship Company, [2] intended for Spanish colonial duty in the Philippines. She was both launched and completed in 1888. She had two masts and a steel hull, and was unarmored. [3]

Cavite Province in Calabarzon, Philippines

Cavite is a province in the Philippines located on the southern shores of Manila Bay in the Calabarzon region on Luzon island. Situated 21 kilometres (13 mi) southwest of Metro Manila, it is one of the most industrialized and fastest growing provinces in the Philippines. Its population of 3,678,301 (2015) makes it one of the most populated provinces in the country.

Philippines Republic in Southeast Asia

The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Situated in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of about 7,641 islands that are categorized broadly under three main geographical divisions from north to south: Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. The capital city of the Philippines is Manila and the most populous city is Quezon City, both part of Metro Manila. Bounded by the South China Sea on the west, the Philippine Sea on the east and the Celebes Sea on the southwest, the Philippines shares maritime borders with Taiwan to the north, Vietnam to the west, Palau to the east, and Malaysia and Indonesia to the south.

Operational history

Her Spanish crew unaware that the Spanish–American War had broken out, Callao was steaming toward port in Manila Bay on 12 May 1898 when she was taken completely by surprise by the presence and hostile actions of the U.S. Navy's Asiatic Squadron under Commodore George Dewey and was captured by the protected cruiser Raleigh. Callao immediately was put into American service with Lieutenant B. Tappan in command, and was commissioned officially into the U.S. Navy on 17 July 1898 [4] as gunboat USS Callao, with Lieutenant Tappan remaining in command.

Manila Bay natural harbour, industrial port of Manila on Luzon

Manila Bay is a natural harbour which serves the Port of Manila, in the Philippines. Strategically located around the capital city of the Philippines, Manila Bay facilitated commerce and trade between the Philippines and its neighbouring countries, becoming the gateway for socio-economic development even prior to Spanish occupation. With an area of 1,994 km2 (769.9 sq mi), and a coastline of 190 km (118.1 mi), Manila Bay is situated in the western part of Luzon and is bounded by Cavite and Metro Manila on the east, Bulacan and Pampanga on the north, and Bataan on the west and northwest. Manila Bay drains approximately 17,000 km2 (6,563.7 sq mi) of watershed area, with the Pampanga River contributing about 49% of the freshwater influx. With an average depth of 17 m (55.8 ft), it is estimated to have a total volume of 28.9 billion cubic metres. Entrance to the bay is 19 km (11.8 mi) wide and expands to a width of 48 km (29.8 mi). However, width of the bay varies from 22 km (13.7 mi) at its mouth and expanding to 60 km (37.3 mi) at its widest point.

Asiatic Squadron

The Asiatic Squadron was a squadron of United States Navy warships stationed in East Asia during the latter half of the 19th century. It was created in 1868 when the East India Squadron was disbanded. Vessels of the squadron were primarily involved in matters relating to American commerce with China and Japan, though it participated in several conflicts over 34 years of service until becoming the Asiatic Fleet in 1902.

Commodore was an early title and later a rank in the United States Navy, United States Coast Guard and the Confederate States Navy. For over two centuries, the designation has been given varying levels of authority and formality.

Callao served through the remainder of the Spanish War as tender to Commodore Dewey's flagship—the protected cruiser Olympia—as part of Dewey's squadron. She took part in the 13 August 1898 attack on Manila, serving on the left flank of Army forces, who credited her for very effective gunfire support to the troops ashore. [5]

Ships tender boat used to service a ship

A ship's tender, usually referred to as a tender, is a boat, or a larger ship used to service or support other boats or ships, generally by transporting people or supplies to and from shore or another ship. Smaller boats may also have tenders, usually called dinghies.

Flagship vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships

A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically the first, largest, fastest, most heavily armed, or best known.

USS <i>Olympia</i> (C-6)

USS Olympia (C-6/CA-15/CL-15/IX-40) is a protected cruiser that saw service in the United States Navy from her commissioning in 1895 until 1922. This vessel became famous as the flagship of Commodore George Dewey at the Battle of Manila Bay during the Spanish–American War in 1898. The ship was decommissioned after returning to the U.S. in 1899, but was returned to active service in 1902.

After the war, Callao ranged throughout the Philippines, patrolling to suppress smuggling, covering Army scouting parties operating against Philippine insurgents, transporting troops, and firing on insurgent positions, until decommissioned for repairs at Cavite on 21 February 1901.

Upon her recommissioning on 20 December 1902, Callao carried supplies among the Philippine Islands until February 1903, when she arrived at Hong Kong to begin 13 years of service patrolling the coast and rivers of China with the Yangtze Patrol, together with several other gunboats that the US Navy had captured during the Spanish–American War. Along with her participation in the exercises, maneuvers, and visits of the Asiatic Fleet, she gave essential protection to American citizens and interests, often threatened by political disturbance in volatile China.

Callao was decommissioned at Hong Kong on 31 January 1916, and then sailed for Olongapo, Luzon, the Philippines, where she laid up. While laid up, she was classified as a patrol gunboat with hull number PG-37 on 17 July 1920.

Callao was redesignated as a ferry and returned to service with hull number YFB-11 in June 1921. She served in the 16th Naval District as a ferryboat in the Philippines until sold for scrap at Manila on 13 September 1923.

Awards

Notes

  1. ↑ Per The Spanish–American War Centennial Website: Gunboat Callao and the Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, although Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905, p. 167, and The Spanish–American War Centennial Website: Spanish 2nd-Class Gunboats both claim the commissioning date was 2 July 1898.
  2. ↑ Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905, p. 167
  3. ↑ The Spanish–American War Centennial Website: Gunboat Callao
  4. ↑ Per The Spanish–American War Centennial Website: Gunboat Callao and the Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, although Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905, p. 167, and The Spanish–American War Centennial Website: Spanish 2nd-Class Gunboats both claim the commissioning date was 2 July 1898
  5. ↑ The Spanish–American War Centennial Website: Spanish 2nd-Class Gunboats

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References

This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships .

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