USS Massachusetts (1860)
Encyclopedia
USS Massachusetts (1860) was a large steamer acquired by the U.S. Navy prior to the American Civil War
.
She was used by the Union Navy
as a gunship
in the blockade of Confederate
ports. At war's end, she was outfitted as a cargo ship
and served in that capacity until finally decommissioned.
Massachusetts, an iron screw steamer built at Boston, Massachusetts, in 1860, was purchased by the Union Navy 3 May 1861 from the Boston & Southern Steamship Co., and commissioned 24 May 1861 at Boston, Commander Melancton Smith in command.
, departing there 8 June for Pensacola, Florida
.
The next day she took her first prize, British ship Perthshire, near Pensacola. She captured Achilles 17 June and 2 days later took Naham Stetson off Pass a l’0utre, Louisiana, and on the 23d captured Mexican schooner
Brilliant and the Confederate blockade running schooners Trois Freres, Olive Branch, Fanny, and Basile in the Gulf of Mexico
.
While Massachusetts was absent, the South had fortified Ship Island
, and the batteries fired on her when she returned from Pensacola. She engaged the Confederate guns until she ran out of ammunition.
On 13 July she seized schooner Hiland near Ship Island, and next day engaged steamers Arrow and Oregon off Chandeleur Islands
, forcing them to withdraw. Massachusetts captured blockade-running sloop Charles Henry near Ship Island 7 August and gained information on Fort Pike
, which guarded the entrance to Lake Pontchartrain
for the South.
After repairs in early September, Massachusetts fortified Chandeleur Island and set up a light there 13 September. A landing party from the ship took possession of Ship Island 17 September, thereby providing the Union Navy with a valuable shelter during storms and the base from which Admiral David Farragut
would launch his attack on New Orleans, Louisiana
. Returning to Ship Island 20 September, Massachusetts attacked, causing the South to burn the barracks and desert Ship Island passage.
Massachusetts operated near strategically important Ship Island through the remainder of the year. She thwarted Confederate efforts to transport freight through the passage 2 December, captured a small fishing boat 12 December, and turned back Oregon, Pamlico, Gray Cloud, and Florida at Mississippi Sound
19 December.
Early in 1862 Massachusetts steamed northward to decommission at New York City
28 February. Pitted out as a transport and supply ship, she recommissioned 16 April and operated along the Atlantic coast until decommissioning at New York City 3 December.
Massachusetts recommissioned 10 March 1863 and but for a brief period in ordinary late that summer served the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron through the end of the war. She captured sloop
Parsis in Wassaw Sound
12 March and with Commodore Perry captured blockade runner
Caledonia 30 May 1864 south of Cape Fear after a 2 hour chase. In August she aided steamers Gettysburg
and Keystone State
in the capture of Confederate steamer Lilian.
On 19 March 1865 Massachusetts struck a torpedo (mine), which failed to explode, in Charleston Harbor
.
and was sold there at public auction
1 October 1867. Documented 11 February 1868 as Crescent City, she served American commerce until 1872.
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
.
She was used by the Union Navy
Union Navy
The Union Navy is the label applied to the United States Navy during the American Civil War, to contrast it from its direct opponent, the Confederate States Navy...
as a gunship
Gunship
The term "gunship" is used in several contexts, all sharing the general idea of a light craft armed with heavy guns.-In Navy:In the Navy, the term originally appeared in the mid-19th century as a less-common synonym for gunboat.-In military aviation:...
in the blockade of Confederate
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
ports. At war's end, she was outfitted as a cargo ship
Cargo ship
A cargo ship or freighter is any sort of ship or vessel that carries cargo, goods, and materials from one port to another. Thousands of cargo carriers ply the world's seas and oceans each year; they handle the bulk of international trade...
and served in that capacity until finally decommissioned.
Massachusetts, an iron screw steamer built at Boston, Massachusetts, in 1860, was purchased by the Union Navy 3 May 1861 from the Boston & Southern Steamship Co., and commissioned 24 May 1861 at Boston, Commander Melancton Smith in command.
Civil War service
Assigned to the Gulf Blockading Squadron, Massachusetts steamed south 10 May 1861 to anchor off Key West, FloridaKey West, Florida
Key West is a city in Monroe County, Florida, United States. The city encompasses the island of Key West, the part of Stock Island north of U.S. 1 , Sigsbee Park , Fleming Key , and Sunset Key...
, departing there 8 June for Pensacola, Florida
Pensacola, Florida
Pensacola is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle and the county seat of Escambia County, Florida, United States of America. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 56,255 and as of 2009, the estimated population was 53,752...
.
The next day she took her first prize, British ship Perthshire, near Pensacola. She captured Achilles 17 June and 2 days later took Naham Stetson off Pass a l’0utre, Louisiana, and on the 23d captured Mexican schooner
Schooner
A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts....
Brilliant and the Confederate blockade running schooners Trois Freres, Olive Branch, Fanny, and Basile in the Gulf of Mexico
Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico is a partially landlocked ocean basin largely surrounded by the North American continent and the island of Cuba. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States, on the southwest and south by Mexico, and on the southeast by Cuba. In...
.
While Massachusetts was absent, the South had fortified Ship Island
Ship Island (Mississippi)
Ship Island is the collective name for two barrier islands off the Gulf Coast of Mississippi, part of Gulf Islands National Seashore: East Ship Island and West Ship Island. Hurricane Camille split the once single island into 2 separate islands in 1969...
, and the batteries fired on her when she returned from Pensacola. She engaged the Confederate guns until she ran out of ammunition.
On 13 July she seized schooner Hiland near Ship Island, and next day engaged steamers Arrow and Oregon off Chandeleur Islands
Chandeleur Islands
The Chandeleur Islands are a chain of uninhabited barrier islands approximately long, located in the Gulf of Mexico. They form the easternmost point of the state of Louisiana, USA and are a part of the Breton National Wildlife Refuge...
, forcing them to withdraw. Massachusetts captured blockade-running sloop Charles Henry near Ship Island 7 August and gained information on Fort Pike
Fort Pike
Fort Pike is a decommissioned 19th century fort, named after Brigadier General Zebulon Montgomery Pike, which formerly guarded the Rigolets pass in Louisiana. It was near the community of Petite Coquille, Louisiana, and now within the city limits of New Orleans, and was long a tourist attraction...
, which guarded the entrance to Lake Pontchartrain
Lake Pontchartrain
Lake Pontchartrain is a brackish estuary located in southeastern Louisiana. It is the second-largest inland saltwater body of water in the United States, after the Great Salt Lake in Utah, and the largest lake in Louisiana. As an estuary, Pontchartrain is not a true lake.It covers an area of with...
for the South.
After repairs in early September, Massachusetts fortified Chandeleur Island and set up a light there 13 September. A landing party from the ship took possession of Ship Island 17 September, thereby providing the Union Navy with a valuable shelter during storms and the base from which Admiral David Farragut
David Farragut
David Glasgow Farragut was a flag officer of the United States Navy during the American Civil War. He was the first rear admiral, vice admiral, and admiral in the United States Navy. He is remembered in popular culture for his order at the Battle of Mobile Bay, usually paraphrased: "Damn the...
would launch his attack on New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
. Returning to Ship Island 20 September, Massachusetts attacked, causing the South to burn the barracks and desert Ship Island passage.
Massachusetts operated near strategically important Ship Island through the remainder of the year. She thwarted Confederate efforts to transport freight through the passage 2 December, captured a small fishing boat 12 December, and turned back Oregon, Pamlico, Gray Cloud, and Florida at Mississippi Sound
Mississippi Sound
The Mississippi Sound is a sound along the Gulf Coast of the United States. It runs east-west along the southern coasts of Mississippi and Alabama, from Waveland, Mississippi, to the Dauphin Island Bridge, a distance of about 145 kilometers...
19 December.
Early in 1862 Massachusetts steamed northward to decommission at New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
28 February. Pitted out as a transport and supply ship, she recommissioned 16 April and operated along the Atlantic coast until decommissioning at New York City 3 December.
Massachusetts recommissioned 10 March 1863 and but for a brief period in ordinary late that summer served the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron through the end of the war. She captured sloop
Sloop
A sloop is a sail boat with a fore-and-aft rig and a single mast farther forward than the mast of a cutter....
Parsis in Wassaw Sound
Wassaw Sound
Wassaw Sound is a bay of the Atlantic Ocean on the coast of Georgia, United States near Savannah where which the Wilmington River flows.-American Civil War naval battle:...
12 March and with Commodore Perry captured blockade runner
Blockade runner
A blockade runner is usually a lighter weight ship used for evading a naval blockade of a port or strait, as opposed to confronting the blockaders to break the blockade. Very often blockade running is done in order to transport cargo, for example to bring food or arms to a blockaded city...
Caledonia 30 May 1864 south of Cape Fear after a 2 hour chase. In August she aided steamers Gettysburg
USS Gettysburg (1858)
The first USS Gettysburg was a steamer in the Union Navy.The ship was built in Glasgow, Scotland in 1858, named Douglas, and operated for the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company between Liverpool, United Kingdom and Douglas on the Isle of Man until November 1862...
and Keystone State
USS Keystone State (1853)
USS Keystone State was a wooden sidewheel steamer that served in the Union Navy during the American Civil War.Keystone State was built at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1853 by J. W. Lynn. She was chartered by the Navy on 19 April 1861 from the Ocean Steam Navigation Co. at Philadelphia, and...
in the capture of Confederate steamer Lilian.
On 19 March 1865 Massachusetts struck a torpedo (mine), which failed to explode, in Charleston Harbor
Charleston Harbor
The Charleston Harbor is an inlet of the Atlantic Ocean at Charleston, South Carolina. The inlet is formed by the junction of Ashley and Cooper rivers at . Morris and Sullivan's Island, shelter the entrance...
.
Post-war decommissioning
She decommissioned 22 September 1865 at New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and was sold there at public auction
Public auction
A public auction is an auction held on behalf of a government in which the property to be auctioned is either property owned by the government, or property which is sold under the authority of a court of law or a government agency with similar authority....
1 October 1867. Documented 11 February 1868 as Crescent City, she served American commerce until 1872.
External links
- Photo gallery at Naval Historical Center