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USS Satellite (1854)
Encyclopedia
USS Satellite (1854) was a steam powered large tugboat
, acquired by the Union Navy
during the American Civil War
and equipped with two powerful 8-inch guns. She was assigned to the Union blockade
of the Confederate States of America
.
She served the Union Navy well, until captured and destroyed by Confederate
forces.
in 1854, was purchased by the Navy at New York on 24 July 1861; and commissioned at the New York Navy Yard on 12 September 1861, Acting Master Joseph Spinney in command.
and reached the Washington Navy Yard
on the 16th. That afternoon, she steamed back down river to join the Potomac River Flotilla off the mouth of Occoquan Creek
and began almost two years of operations in the roughly parallel rivers which drain tidewater Virginia
and empty into the Chesapeake Bay
.
On 15 November, a boat from the ship rowed down stream on a scouting expedition and returned before the following dawn with two scow
s and three skiff
s as prizes. Two days later, Satellite shelled positions below Boyd's Hole.
On 7 December, four shells fired from Shipping Point passed over her deck between her pilot house and wheels. On the 22d, the sound of artillery from Boyd's Hole drew the ship downstream to investigate. She found a Union merchant schooner
which had been disabled by the cannonade and, while assisting the damaged ship, came under fire herself. Two shells hit Satellite's wheel house without causing casualties or serious damage, and Satellite replied in kind, silencing her adversaries.
Similar action enlivened her service in the following months. Her log records three engagements in January 1862, one in February, and eight in March. On 15 February, after a shell exploded in 's paddle box, disabling her as she passed Shipping Point, Satellite assisted the damaged revenue cutter.
, under presidential orders, to gather intelligence on Southern forces in the area, and to neutralize any threat from that quarter to General George B. McClellan
's army which was then fighting up the peninsula
, between the James and York river
s, toward Richmond
.
The next day, the Union ships shelled fortifications along the shore and landed boat parties to destroy Fort Lowry which Southern troops had abandoned. During their operations, the gunboats ascended the river to Tappahannock, Virginia
. On 20 April, Satellite and captured sloop
, Reindeer, and schooner
s, Sarah Ann and Sabine, all of Tappahannock.
In May, Satellite returned to the Potomac River
. On the 26th, while the ship was being repaired at the Washington Navy Yard
, most of her crew traveled to Harper's Ferry, Virginia, to help defend that strategic post which was threatened by General T. J. “Stonewall” Jackson's
brilliant operations in the Shenandoah Valley
.
to join Union naval forces on the James River in supporting McClellan's drive toward the Confederate
capital.
, which, it was hoped, would be able to destroy the railroad bridge across the Appomattox River
at Petersburg, Virginia
, and to clear the obstructions from the channel of the James below Drewry's Bluff. Satellite accompanied the submarine, which was later named , up the river; but Comdr. John Rodgers, the senior naval officer on the James, felt that the submarine would be unable to perform the underwater demolition missions. The shallowness of the Appomattox, he felt, would prevent her from reaching the bridge submerged; and a surface approach would expose the vulnerable craft to destruction or capture. In Confederate hands, Rodgers feared, the submarine might seriously threaten northern warships.
As for the obstructions in the James, Union tugs, Rodgers reasoned, might succeed in pulling the sunken, stone-laden lighters from the channel of the James. However, if the submarine should succeed in destroying the hulks, their cargoes of stone would remain to obstruct navigation
and would be almost impossible to remove while covered by Confederate guns. For these reasons, he sent the submarine back to Fort Monroe.
in a naval force led by Rodgers. The warships were impeded by musketry and obstructions. Finally, shallow water stopped them too far away from Petersburg to launch a boat attack against the railroad bridge. When efforts to refloat the grounded sidewheeler, Island Belle, proved futile, a party from Satellite stripped the tug and set her afire.
Following their return to the James, the gunboats supported General McClellan's army which was then fighting General Robert E. Lee
's troops in the bloody Seven Days Campaign.
During McClellan's retreat to Harrison's Landing, the Union Army
's gunboat-protected haven on the James, Satellite and ascended the Chickahominy River
to strengthen his right flank. In the ensuing weeks, Satellite protected Union troops ashore and transports afloat, often engaging Confederate forces on the riverbanks. On 27 July, boats from Satellite and ascended Chippoak Creek and captured schooner, J. W. Sturges, and a schooner-rigged lighter laden with wood. They also found two other schooners and a steamer which had been scuttled before they arrived.
In mid-August, after Union leaders had decided to abandon the peninsula, Satellite, , and covered the retirement as McClellan's rear guard withdrew across the Chickahominy toward Fort Monroe.
At the end of August, as Lee and Jackson routed a Union army under General Pope
in the second Battle of Bull Run
, Satellite and a large portion of the James River Flotilla were transferred to the Potomac to help protect the threatened Federal capital and its line of communications by water, the Potomac River
.
In mid-September, at Antietam Creek
, Maryland, Gen. McClellan relieved the pressure on Washington, D.C.
, when he stopped Lee's thrust into the North and forced the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia to retreat south of the Potomac. Nevertheless, the ships of the Potomac Flotilla were kept in the Potomac to try to stop communication and commerce across the river between Virginia
and Southern sympathizers in Maryland
.
On 30 October, Satellite captured a canoe and five men off the Wicomico River
; and, three days later, she took a yawl
near Neal's Creek. On 21 November, the side-wheeler returned to the Washington Navy Yard with a number of prisoners who had been arrested for blockade violations.
prepared to resume the offensive with a drive through Fredericksburg, Virginia
, Satellite departed Washington and headed for the Rappahannock River
to help assure the new Northern commander, Major General Ambrose Burnside
, control of that river. She remained on the Rappahannock after Lee skillfully parried Burnside's thrust at Fredericksburg in mid-December. On 2 January 1863, Satellite and three other Union ships steamed to the Piankatank River
seeking a schooner which had run through the blockade and entered that stream. However, the Confederates learned of the expedition and scuttled the schooner before the Northern gunboats could reach her. In mid-January, Satellite returned to the Washington Navy Yard
for repairs.
The following spring, the ship resumed activity on the Rappahannock hoping to support the Union Army's new offensive; but again Lee adroitly bested the Northern commander, now General Joseph Hooker
, and won an all-but-decisive victory at Chancellorsville
. Nevertheless, Satellite continued to operate on the Rappahannock. From 12 through 14 May, she participated in an expedition with captured schooners, Sarah Lavinia and Ladies Delight, and took a large quantity of goods from warehouses at Urbana
.
On the 21st, she joined and in seizing schooner, Emily, at the mouth of the Rappahannock. A week later, she captured schooners, Sarah and Arctic, up the eastern branch of the Great Wicomico River
, an estuary between the Rappahannock and the Potomac. With and , she took a canoe and a flatboat on 13 July near the Rappahannock's Union Wharf. Satellite's last score came on 17 August when she captured schooner, Two Brothers, near the Great Wicomico.
, CSN -- grandson of the former President of the United States, Zachary Taylor
, and nephew of Jefferson Davis
, the Confederate President -- captured Union gunboats, Satellite and Reliance, off Windmill Point on the Rappahannock. Wood took the prizes up river to Urbana.
. There, together with Satellite and , they too were stripped of useful parts and destroyed on 28 August to prevent recapture.
Tugboat
A tugboat is a boat that maneuvers vessels by pushing or towing them. Tugs move vessels that either should not move themselves, such as ships in a crowded harbor or a narrow canal,or those that cannot move by themselves, such as barges, disabled ships, or oil platforms. Tugboats are powerful for...
, acquired 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...
and equipped with two powerful 8-inch guns. She was assigned to the Union blockade
Union blockade
The Union Blockade, or the Blockade of the South, took place between 1861 and 1865, during the American Civil War, when the Union Navy maintained a strenuous effort on the Atlantic and Gulf Coast of the Confederate States of America designed to prevent the passage of trade goods, supplies, and arms...
of the Confederate States of America
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...
.
She served the Union Navy well, until captured and destroyed by 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...
forces.
Commissioned at New York City in 1861
The first ship to be named Satellite by the Navy, Satellite was a wooden, side-wheel tug built 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...
in 1854, was purchased by the Navy at New York on 24 July 1861; and commissioned at the New York Navy Yard on 12 September 1861, Acting Master Joseph Spinney in command.
Assigned to the Potomac River Flotilla
The next day, the ship sailed for the Potomac RiverPotomac 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 reached 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...
on the 16th. That afternoon, she steamed back down river to join the Potomac River Flotilla off the mouth of Occoquan Creek
Occoquan River
The Occoquan River is a tributary of the Potomac River in northern Virginia, in the mid-Atlantic region of the United States. The river is long, and its watershed covers about . It is formed by the confluence of Broad Run and Cedar Run in Prince William County; Bull Run enters it east-southeast of...
and began almost two years of operations in the roughly parallel rivers which drain tidewater Virginia
Tidewater region of Virginia
The Tidewater region of Virginia is the eastern portion of the Commonwealth of Virginia formally known as Hampton Roads. The term tidewater may be correctly applied to all portions of any area, including Virginia, where the water level is affected by the tides...
and empty into the Chesapeake Bay
Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States. It lies off the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by Maryland and Virginia. The Chesapeake Bay's drainage basin covers in the District of Columbia and parts of six states: New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West...
.
Satellite fired upon, returns fire
Her first action came on 25 September when she was fired upon by a Confederate battery at Freestone Point; but, during the action, she suffered no casualties or damage. From that time on, her duels with artillery and riflemen hidden along the shores were frequent. On 18 October, the tug bombarded Confederate positions at Shipping Point, Virginia.On 15 November, a boat from the ship rowed down stream on a scouting expedition and returned before the following dawn with two scow
Scow
A scow, in the original sense, is a flat-bottomed boat with a blunt bow, often used to haul bulk freight; cf. barge. The etymology of the word is from the Dutch schouwe, meaning such a boat.-Sailing scows:...
s and three skiff
Skiff
The term skiff is used for a number of essentially unrelated styles of small boat. The word is related to ship and has a complicated etymology: "skiff" comes from the Middle English skif, which derives from the Old French esquif, which in turn derives from the Old Italian schifo, which is itself of...
s as prizes. Two days later, Satellite shelled positions below Boyd's Hole.
On 7 December, four shells fired from Shipping Point passed over her deck between her pilot house and wheels. On the 22d, the sound of artillery from Boyd's Hole drew the ship downstream to investigate. She found a Union merchant 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....
which had been disabled by the cannonade and, while assisting the damaged ship, came under fire herself. Two shells hit Satellite's wheel house without causing casualties or serious damage, and Satellite replied in kind, silencing her adversaries.
Similar action enlivened her service in the following months. Her log records three engagements in January 1862, one in February, and eight in March. On 15 February, after a shell exploded in 's paddle box, disabling her as she passed Shipping Point, Satellite assisted the damaged revenue cutter.
Gathering intelligence on Southern forces
On 13 April, with the other ships of the 2d Division of the Potomac Flotilla, Satellite sailed for the Rappahannock RiverRappahannock 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...
, under presidential orders, to gather intelligence on Southern forces in the area, and to neutralize any threat from that quarter to General George B. McClellan
George B. McClellan
George Brinton McClellan was a major general during the American Civil War. He organized the famous Army of the Potomac and served briefly as the general-in-chief of the Union Army. Early in the war, McClellan played an important role in raising a well-trained and organized army for the Union...
's army which was then fighting up the peninsula
Peninsula
A peninsula is a piece of land that is bordered by water on three sides but connected to mainland. In many Germanic and Celtic languages and also in Baltic, Slavic and Hungarian, peninsulas are called "half-islands"....
, between the James and York river
York River (Virginia)
The York River is a navigable estuary, approximately long, in eastern Virginia in the United States. It ranges in width from at its head to near its mouth on the west side of Chesapeake Bay. Its watershed drains an area including portions of 17 counties of the coastal plain of Virginia north...
s, toward Richmond
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...
.
The next day, the Union ships shelled fortifications along the shore and landed boat parties to destroy Fort Lowry which Southern troops had abandoned. During their operations, the gunboats ascended the river to Tappahannock, Virginia
Tappahannock, Virginia
Tappahannock is the oldest town in Essex County, Virginia, United States. The population was 2,068 at the 2000 census. Located on the Rappahannock River, Tappahannock is the county seat of Essex County...
. On 20 April, Satellite and 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....
, Reindeer, and 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....
s, Sarah Ann and Sabine, all of Tappahannock.
In May, Satellite returned to 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...
. On the 26th, while the ship was being repaired 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...
, most of her crew traveled to Harper's Ferry, Virginia, to help defend that strategic post which was threatened by General T. J. “Stonewall” Jackson's
Stonewall Jackson
ຄຽשת״ׇׂׂׂׂ֣|birth_place= Clarksburg, Virginia |death_place=Guinea Station, Virginia|placeofburial=Stonewall Jackson Memorial CemeteryLexington, Virginia|placeofburial_label= Place of burial|image=...
brilliant operations in the Shenandoah Valley
Shenandoah Valley
The Shenandoah Valley is both a geographic valley and cultural region of western Virginia and West Virginia in the United States. The valley is bounded to the east by the Blue Ridge Mountains, to the west by the eastern front of the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians , to the north by the Potomac River...
.
Ordered to support McClellan on the James River
On 9 June, after repairs had been completed and her crew had returned, Satellite got underway for Fort MonroeFort Monroe
Fort Monroe was a military installation in Hampton, Virginia—at Old Point Comfort, the southern tip of the Virginia Peninsula...
to join Union naval forces on the James River in supporting McClellan's drive toward the 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...
capital.
Supporting the submarine Alligator
Soon after she reached Hampton Roads, Virginia, the tug was ordered to protect a submarineSubmarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
, which, it was hoped, would be able to destroy the railroad bridge across the Appomattox River
Appomattox River
The Appomattox River is a tributary of the James River, approximately long, in central and eastern Virginia in the United States, named for the Appomattocs Indian tribe who lived along its lower banks in the 17th century...
at Petersburg, Virginia
Petersburg, Virginia
Petersburg is an independent city in Virginia, United States located on the Appomattox River and south of the state capital city of Richmond. The city's population was 32,420 as of 2010, predominantly of African-American ethnicity...
, and to clear the obstructions from the channel of the James below Drewry's Bluff. Satellite accompanied the submarine, which was later named , up the river; but Comdr. John Rodgers, the senior naval officer on the James, felt that the submarine would be unable to perform the underwater demolition missions. The shallowness of the Appomattox, he felt, would prevent her from reaching the bridge submerged; and a surface approach would expose the vulnerable craft to destruction or capture. In Confederate hands, Rodgers feared, the submarine might seriously threaten northern warships.
As for the obstructions in the James, Union tugs, Rodgers reasoned, might succeed in pulling the sunken, stone-laden lighters from the channel of the James. However, if the submarine should succeed in destroying the hulks, their cargoes of stone would remain to obstruct navigation
Navigation
Navigation is the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another. It is also the term of art used for the specialized knowledge used by navigators to perform navigation tasks...
and would be almost impossible to remove while covered by Confederate guns. For these reasons, he sent the submarine back to Fort Monroe.
Scrapping the Island Belle
Satellite remained up river and, on 26 June, entered the Appomattox RiverAppomattox River
The Appomattox River is a tributary of the James River, approximately long, in central and eastern Virginia in the United States, named for the Appomattocs Indian tribe who lived along its lower banks in the 17th century...
in a naval force led by Rodgers. The warships were impeded by musketry and obstructions. Finally, shallow water stopped them too far away from Petersburg to launch a boat attack against the railroad bridge. When efforts to refloat the grounded sidewheeler, Island Belle, proved futile, a party from Satellite stripped the tug and set her afire.
Following their return to the James, the gunboats supported General McClellan's army which was then fighting General Robert E. Lee
Robert E. Lee
Robert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....
's troops in the bloody Seven Days Campaign.
Seven Days Campaign
In this series of battles, the Northern soldiers beat their way across the peninsula from the York River to the James where Rodgers' floating firepower could prevent Lee from closing his pincers. After he learned of the disposition of the Federal ships, Lee reported: “As far as I can see there is no way to attack him (McClellan) to advantage; nor do I wish to expose the men to the destructive missiles of his gunboats ... I fear he is too secure under cover of his boats to be driven from his position . . .”During McClellan's retreat to Harrison's Landing, the Union Army
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
's gunboat-protected haven on the James, Satellite and ascended the Chickahominy River
Chickahominy River
The Chickahominy is an river in the eastern portion of the U.S. state of Virginia. The river rises about northwest of Richmond and flows southeast and south to the James River...
to strengthen his right flank. In the ensuing weeks, Satellite protected Union troops ashore and transports afloat, often engaging Confederate forces on the riverbanks. On 27 July, boats from Satellite and ascended Chippoak Creek and captured schooner, J. W. Sturges, and a schooner-rigged lighter laden with wood. They also found two other schooners and a steamer which had been scuttled before they arrived.
In mid-August, after Union leaders had decided to abandon the peninsula, Satellite, , and covered the retirement as McClellan's rear guard withdrew across the Chickahominy toward Fort Monroe.
At the end of August, as Lee and Jackson routed a Union army under General Pope
John Pope (military officer)
John Pope was a career United States Army officer and Union general in the American Civil War. He had a brief but successful career in the Western Theater, but he is best known for his defeat at the Second Battle of Bull Run in the East.Pope was a graduate of the United States Military Academy in...
in the second Battle of Bull Run
Second Battle of Bull Run
The Second Battle of Bull Run or Second Manassas was fought August 28–30, 1862, as part of the American Civil War. It was the culmination of an offensive campaign waged by Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia against Union Maj. Gen...
, Satellite and a large portion of the James River Flotilla were transferred to the Potomac to help protect the threatened Federal capital and its line of communications by water, 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...
.
In mid-September, at Antietam Creek
Antietam Creek
Antietam Creek is a tributary of the Potomac River located in south central Pennsylvania and western Maryland in the United States, a region known as the Hagerstown Valley...
, Maryland, Gen. McClellan relieved the pressure on 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....
, when he stopped Lee's thrust into the North and forced the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia to retreat south of the Potomac. Nevertheless, the ships of the Potomac Flotilla were kept in the Potomac to try to stop communication and commerce across the river between 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...
and Southern sympathizers in 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...
.
On 30 October, Satellite captured a canoe and five men off the Wicomico River
Wicomico River (Potomac River)
The Wicomico River is a tributary of the lower tidal portion of the Potomac River located in the U.S. state of Maryland south of Washington, DC. The river empties into the Potomac at Cobb Island and St. Margaret's Island. The Wicomico's watershed drains of Charles, St. Mary's, and southern Prince...
; and, three days later, she took a yawl
Yawl
A yawl is a two-masted sailing craft similar to a sloop or cutter but with an additional mast located well aft of the main mast, often right on the transom, specifically aft of the rudder post. A yawl (from Dutch Jol) is a two-masted sailing craft similar to a sloop or cutter but with an...
near Neal's Creek. On 21 November, the side-wheeler returned to the Washington Navy Yard with a number of prisoners who had been arrested for blockade violations.
Operations on the Rappahannock
On 29 November, as the Union's Army of the PotomacArmy of the Potomac
The Army of the Potomac was the major Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War.-History:The Army of the Potomac was created in 1861, but was then only the size of a corps . Its nucleus was called the Army of Northeastern Virginia, under Brig. Gen...
prepared to resume the offensive with a drive through Fredericksburg, Virginia
Fredericksburg, Virginia
Fredericksburg is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia located south of Washington, D.C., and north of Richmond. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 24,286...
, Satellite departed Washington and headed for 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...
to help assure the new Northern commander, Major General Ambrose Burnside
Ambrose Burnside
Ambrose Everett Burnside was an American soldier, railroad executive, inventor, industrialist, and politician from Rhode Island, serving as governor and a U.S. Senator...
, control of that river. She remained on the Rappahannock after Lee skillfully parried Burnside's thrust at Fredericksburg in mid-December. On 2 January 1863, Satellite and three other Union ships steamed to the Piankatank River
Piankatank River
The Piankatank River is a river in the U.S. state of Virginia. Located on the Middle Peninsula, between the Rappahannock and York rivers, it was the site of numerous actions during the American Civil War....
seeking a schooner which had run through the blockade and entered that stream. However, the Confederates learned of the expedition and scuttled the schooner before the Northern gunboats could reach her. In mid-January, Satellite returned to 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...
for repairs.
The following spring, the ship resumed activity on the Rappahannock hoping to support the Union Army's new offensive; but again Lee adroitly bested the Northern commander, now General Joseph Hooker
Joseph Hooker
Joseph Hooker was a career United States Army officer, achieving the rank of major general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Although he served throughout the war, usually with distinction, Hooker is best remembered for his stunning defeat by Confederate General Robert E...
, and won an all-but-decisive victory at Chancellorsville
Battle of Chancellorsville
The Battle of Chancellorsville was a major battle of the American Civil War, and the principal engagement of the Chancellorsville Campaign. It was fought from April 30 to May 6, 1863, in Spotsylvania County, Virginia, near the village of Chancellorsville. Two related battles were fought nearby on...
. Nevertheless, Satellite continued to operate on the Rappahannock. From 12 through 14 May, she participated in an expedition with captured schooners, Sarah Lavinia and Ladies Delight, and took a large quantity of goods from warehouses at 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 ....
.
On the 21st, she joined and in seizing schooner, Emily, at the mouth of the Rappahannock. A week later, she captured schooners, Sarah and Arctic, up the eastern branch of the Great Wicomico River
Great Wicomico River
The Great Wicomico River is a river in the U.S. state of Virginia, located approximately northeast of Richmond. In 1864, during the American Civil War, one of the torpedo boats of Admiral David Dixon Porter's fleet ran into the Great Wicomico River and was captured.-Geography:The Great Wicomico...
, an estuary between the Rappahannock and the Potomac. With and , she took a canoe and a flatboat on 13 July near the Rappahannock's Union Wharf. Satellite's last score came on 17 August when she captured schooner, Two Brothers, near the Great Wicomico.
Satellite captured during a night raid by Southern forces
On the night of 22 and 23 August 1863, a daring Confederate boat expedition commanded by Lt. John Taylor WoodJohn Taylor Wood
John Taylor Wood was an officer in the United States Navy who became a "leading Confederate naval hero" as a captain in the Confederate Navy during the American Civil War.-Biography:...
, CSN -- grandson of the former President of the United States, Zachary Taylor
Zachary Taylor
Zachary Taylor was the 12th President of the United States and an American military leader. Initially uninterested in politics, Taylor nonetheless ran as a Whig in the 1848 presidential election, defeating Lewis Cass...
, and nephew of Jefferson Davis
Jefferson Davis
Jefferson Finis Davis , also known as Jeff Davis, was an American statesman and leader of the Confederacy during the American Civil War, serving as President for its entire history. He was born in Kentucky to Samuel and Jane Davis...
, the Confederate President -- captured Union gunboats, Satellite and Reliance, off Windmill Point on the Rappahannock. Wood took the prizes up river to Urbana.
Satellite scrapped to prevent recapture by Union Navy
Satellite, now under Lt. Wood, returned to the mouth of the Rappahannock on the 25th and seized schooner, Golden Rod, laden with coal, and schooners, Coquette and Two Brothers, with cargoes of anchors and chain. The Confederates stripped and burned Golden Rod because of her deep draft and took the other prizes up river to Port Royal, VirginiaPort Royal, Virginia
Port Royal is an incorporated town in Caroline County, Virginia, United States. The population was 170 at the 2000 census.Port Royal was established in the mid-17th century in the Colony of Virginia primary as a port on a navigable portion of the Rappahannock River for export of tobacco, Virginia's...
. There, together with Satellite and , they too were stripped of useful parts and destroyed on 28 August to prevent recapture.
See also
- List of United States Navy ships
- American Civil WarAmerican Civil WarThe 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...
- Confederate States NavyConfederate States NavyThe Confederate States Navy was the naval branch of the Confederate States armed forces established by an act of the Confederate Congress on February 21, 1861. It was responsible for Confederate naval operations during the American Civil War...