USS Mount Washington was a steamer purchased 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...

 during the American Civil War

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 as a gunboat

Gunboat

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.-History:...

 assigned to patrol 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...

 waterways.

The side wheel gunboat Mount Vernon, built at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...

, in 1846, was seized by order of the War Department 21 April 1861 and transferred to the Navy on that date for active duty with the Potomac Flotilla

Potomac Flotilla

The Potomac Flotilla, or the Potomac Squadron was a unit of the United States Navy created in the early days of the American Civil War to secure Union communications in the Chesapeake Bay, the Potomac River and their tributaries, and to disrupt Confederate communications and shipping in the...

, Lt. J. Glendy Sprosteon in command.

Assigned to duty on the Potomac River to protect Washington, D.C.

After fitting out at the Washington Navy Yard

Washington Navy Yard

The Washington Navy Yard is the former shipyard and ordnance plant of the United States Navy in Southeast Washington, D.C. It is the oldest shore establishment of the U.S. Navy...

 (striking the wharf in the process), Mount Vernon was ready for duty. In May she reconnoitered the Potomac River

Potomac River

The Potomac River flows into the Chesapeake Bay, located along the mid-Atlantic coast of the United States. The river is approximately long, with a drainage area of about 14,700 square miles...

 and up the Rappahannock River

Rappahannock River

The Rappahannock River is a river in eastern Virginia, in the United States, approximately in length. It traverses the entire northern part of the state, from the Blue Ridge Mountains in the west, across the Piedmont, to the Chesapeake Bay, south of the Potomac River.An important river in American...

 16 May to Urbana

Urbanna, Virginia

Urbanna is a town in Middlesex County, Virginia, United States. Urbanna means “City of Anne” and was named in honor of England’s Queen Anne. The population was 543 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Urbanna is located at ....

, meeting no southern forces. She chased a steamer 16 May and noted, the 18th, that people on shore were most mistrustful. During the summer, she served as a utility boat. Dispatched 26 June to seize a small 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....

 convoying armed men from the Maryland

Maryland

Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...

 to Virginia

Virginia

The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...

 shores, she departed the Washington Navy Yard 28 June for Fortress Monroe. On 5 July, she towed Teaser, the sloop captured by Pocahontas

USS Pocahontas (1852)

The first USS Pocahontas, a screw steamer built at Medford, Massachusetts in 1852 as City of Boston, and purchased by the Navy at Boston, Massachusetts on 20 March 1855, was the first United States Navy ship to be named for Pocahontas, the Algonquian wife of Virginia colonist John Rolfe. She was...

, from Namjemoy Beach to Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

. Part of the James River Squadron

James River Squadron

The James River Squadron was formed shortly after the secession of the State of Virginia as part of the Virginia State Navy. The squadron is most notable for its role in patrolling the James River, which was the main water approach to the Confederate capital, Richmond...

 later in July, she was in Aquia Creek

Aquia Creek

Aquia Creek is a tributary of the tidal segment of the Potomac River and is located in northern Virginia. The creek's headwaters lie in southeastern Fauquier County, and it empties into the Potomac at Brent Point in Stafford County, south of Washington, D.C....

 in August, where Yankee

USS Yankee (1861)

USS Yankee was a steam powered side-wheel tugboat acquired by the Union Navy just prior to the outbreak of the American Civil War.- Provisioning Fort Sumter, evacuating Norfolk :...

 dispatched her for Freehora. She carried troops to Aiken's Landing 17 August.

Change of name to USS Mount Washington

In this area for the remainder of 1861, Mount Vernon changed her name to Mount Washington

Mount Washington

-Mountains and summits:Canada* Mount Washington United States* Mount Washington , highest point in the northeastern United States* Mount Washington * Mount Washington * Mount Washington...

 4 November 1861 to prevent confusion. She carried provisions for the squadron in 1862, arriving Norfolk, Virginia

Norfolk, Virginia

Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....

, from Washington, D.C., 12 July with ordnance stores. She towed Passaic

USS Passaic (1862)

- External links :***...

 to Hampton Roads, Virginia, 24 December 1862.

Heavy action encountered in Virginia waterways

Mount Washington saw heaviest action in 1863 in the Siege of Suffolk

Siege of Suffolk

The Siege of Suffolk was fought around Suffolk, Virginia, from April 11 to May 4, 1863, during the American Civil War.-Background:In 1863 Lt. Gen. James Longstreet was placed in command of the Confederate Department of Virginia and North Carolina. Longstreet was given four objectives: 1) to...

, Virginia. She towed Ossipee

USS Ossipee (1861)

|-External links:* Alaska's Digital Archives. Includes transfer ceremony of Alaska from Russia to the United States on October 18, 1867....

 to Washington 8 January, joining the campaign in April. She found Cohasset

USS Cohasset (1860)

USS Cohasset was a tugboat acquired by the Union Navy during the American Civil War. She was used by the Union Navy for various purposes: as a tugboat, dispatch vessel, escort vessel, and even as a gunboat....

 aground at the mouth of the Nampony River 13 April and learned that the Confederates planned to cross the river to attack the Union's rear forces at Suffolk, Virginia

Suffolk, Virginia

Suffolk is the largest city by area in Virginia, United States, and is located in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 84,585. Its median household income was $57,546.-History:...

, and to silence the gunboats for this purpose. In the subsequent Battle of Suffolk at the Norfleet House Battery

Battle of Suffolk (Norfleet House)

The Battle of Suffolk at the Norfleet House Battery took place from April 13 to April 15, 1863, in Suffolk, Virginia, as part of Confederate Lieutenant General James Longstreet's Tidewater operations during the American Civil War....

, Mount Washington exchanged artillery fire with the Confederates at Hampton Roads, 14 April, meeting sharp musketry. Four sailors temporarily assigned to Mount Washington were awarded the Medal of Honor

Medal of Honor

The Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed by the President, in the name of Congress, upon members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves through "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her...

 for their actions during this battle: Coxswain Robert Jordan, Seaman Henry Thielberg, Coxswain Robert B. Wood, and Seaman Samuel Woods. Later in April, she and Stepping Stones

USS Stepping Stones (1861)

USS Stepping Stones was a steamer purchased by the Union Navy during the early part of the American Civil War.She was used by the Union Navy first as a dispatch boat, and also as a gunboat assigned to patrol Confederate waterways....

 were fired on at Norfleet's Point. Towing West End downriver, Mount Washington ran aground but moved off with the next high tide. Four Negroes boarded her a few days later, reporting no sign of Confederates; nevertheless, Mount Washington was fired on moments later, and a severe engagement ensued.

Severely damaged, Mount Washington continues her work

After this venture, Mount Washington moved to the mouth of the Western Branch, 6 May, where she was completely riddled and disabled. Participating in the naval action against the batteries at Hatt's Point 12 May nearly destroyed her. She towed Sangandon off Jamestown Island

Jamestown, Virginia

Jamestown was a settlement in the Colony of Virginia. Established by the Virginia Company of London as "James Fort" on May 14, 1607 , it was the first permanent English settlement in what is now the United States, following several earlier failed attempts, including the Lost Colony of Roanoke...

 4 June. She joined the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron at Norfolk, Virginia

Norfolk, Virginia

Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....

, 25 February 1865.

End-of-war decommissioning, sale, and civilian career

In April, she served as supply ship downriver until decommissioning. She was sold 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....

 at Baltimore, Maryland, 21 June 1865. Redocumented 18 October 1865, she continued to serve American commerce until 1880.