Naiad on the Western Rivers during the American Civil War, reproduced as a stereograph. Note mine-clearing "rake" projecting from her bow | |
History | |
---|---|
United States | |
Name |
|
Namesake | naiad |
Launched | 1863 |
Acquired | bought 3 March 1864 |
Commissioned | 3 April 1864 |
Decommissioned | 30 June 1865 |
Fate |
|
General characteristics | |
Type | gunboat |
Displacement | 183 long tons (186 t) |
Length | 156 ft 10 in (47.80 m) |
Beam | 30 ft 4 in (9.25 m) |
Draft | 6 ft (1.8 m) |
Depth | 4 ft 5 in (1.35 m) |
Propulsion | stern wheel paddle steamer |
Speed | 5 knots (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph) |
Armament | 8 × 24-pounder guns |
USS Naiad was a sternwheel paddle steamer of the Union Navy in the American Civil War. In Greek mythology, naiads are nymphs who lived in and gave life to lakes, rivers, springs, and fountains.
Built as Princess in 1863 at Freedom, Pennsylvania, the ship was purchased by the Navy from F. Martin at Cincinnati, Ohio, on 3 March 1864; and commissioned on 3 April 1864, Acting Master Harry T. Keene in command.
Acquired to bolster Union strength along the Mississippi River and its tributaries against Confederate cavalry and guerrilla raids, Naiad served in the shallow waters through the end of the American Civil War, from time to time fighting Southern shore batteries. On 15 and 16 June 1864, with USS General Bragg and USS Winnebago, she dueled Southern artillery at Ratliff's Landing, Louisiana, silencing the riverbank guns on both occasions. Again on 2 September, she snuffed out the fire of a Confederate battery near Rowe's Landing, Louisiana. The constant patrol of the rivers by Naiad and her sister "tinclads" helped the Union to maintain open communications and supply lines in the West while preventing the South from mustering her resources to oppose Generals Sherman and Grant.
Naiad decommissioned at Cairo, Illinois, on 30 June 1865 and was sold at auction at Mound City, Illinois to B. F. Beansly, on 17 August 1865. Renamed Princess in post-war civilian service, she struck a snag and sank at Napoleon, Missouri, on 1 June 1868.
The third USS Lexington was a timberclad gunboat in the United States Navy during the American Civil War.
USS Sciota was a Unadilla-class gunboat built on behalf of the United States Navy for service during the Civil War. She was outfitted as a gunboat, with both a 20-pounder rifle for horizontal firing, and two howitzers for shore bombardment, and assigned to the Union blockade of the waterways of the Confederate States of America.
The first USS Tuscumbia was a gunboat in the United States Navy during the American Civil War. She was named for the town of Tuscumbia, Alabama, which had been named for a Cherokee chief.
Laurent Millaudon was a wooden side-wheel river steamboat launched at Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1856 operating in the New Orleans, Louisiana, area, and captained by W. S. Whann. At the beginning of the American Civil War she was taken into service by the Confederate Navy as CSS General Sterling Price. On 6 June 1862, she was sunk at the Battle of Memphis. She was raised and repaired by the Union army, and on 16 June 1862 was moved into Union service as USS General Price and served until the end of the war.
USS Monarch was a United States Army sidewheel ram that saw service in the American Civil War as part of the United States Ram Fleet and the Mississippi Marine Brigade. She operated on the Mississippi River and Yazoo River during 1862 and 1863.
USS General Bragg was a heavy (1,043-ton) steamer captured by Union Navy forces during the American Civil War. She was outfitted as a U.S. Navy gunboat and was assigned to enforce the Union blockade of the waterways of the Confederate States of America.
USS Rachel Seaman was a wooden schooner purchased by the Union Navy during the American Civil War.
USS Sarah Bruen was a wooden schooner acquired by the United States Navy during the beginning of the American Civil War.
USS Winona was a Unadilla-class gunboat built for service with the Union Navy during the American Civil War. Winona was heavily armed, with large guns for duels at sea, and 24-pounder howitzers for shore bombardment. Winona saw significant action in the Gulf of Mexico and in the waterways of the Mississippi River and was fortunate to return home safely after the war for decommissioning.
USS Calhoun was a captured Confederate steamer and blockade runner acquired by the Union Navy from the prize court during the American Civil War.
USS Fort Hindman was a steamer acquired by the Union Navy during the American Civil War. She was placed in service and used by the Navy to patrol navigable waterways of the Confederacy to prevent the South from trading with other countries.
USS Cricket was a steamer acquired by the Union Navy during the American Civil War.
USS Fairy was a steamer purchased by the Union Navy during the American Civil War.
USS Reindeer was a steamer purchased by the Union Navy during the American Civil War.
USS Exchange was a steamer acquired by the Union Navy during the American Civil War.
USS Great Western was a steamer acquired by the Union Navy during the American Civil War. She was used by the Union Navy as an ammunition ship in support of the Union Navy.
USS Juliet was a steamer acquired by the Union Navy during the American Civil War. She was used by the Union Navy as a gunboat in support of the Union Navy blockade of Confederate waterways.
USS Gamage was a large steamer acquired by the Union Navy during the last months of the American Civil War. She was used as a gunboat to collect naval assets of the defeated Confederacy.
USS Stockdale was a steamer commissioned by the Union Navy during the American Civil War.
USS Tensas was a small 41-ton steamer captured by the Union Navy during the American Civil War.