USS Bloomer (1856) was a stern-wheel steamer 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...

. 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:...

 with orders to patrol navigable waterways of the Confederacy

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...

 to prevent the South from trading with other countries.

An unofficial acquisition of a stern-wheeled steamer

Bloomer -- a stern-wheel steamer built in 1856 at New Albany, Indiana

New Albany, Indiana

New Albany is a city in Floyd County, Indiana, United States, situated along the Ohio River opposite Louisville, Kentucky. In 1900, 20,628 people lived in New Albany; in 1910, 20,629; in 1920, 22,992; and in 1940, 25,414. The population was 36,372 at the 2010 census. The city is the county seat of...

 -- was laid up at the outbreak of the Civil War in the Choctawhatchee River

Choctawhatchee River

The Choctawhatchee River is a river in the southern United States, flowing through southeast Alabama and the Panhandle of Florida before emptying into Choctawhatchee Bay in Okaloosa and Walton counties...

 in Alabama

Alabama

Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...

, about a mile south of Geneva, Alabama

Geneva, Alabama

Geneva is a city in and the county seat of Geneva County, Alabama, United States. It is part of the Dothan, Alabama Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is also the largest city of Geneva County, and has a population of 4,388 according to the 2000 census....

, by her owner, a loyal Union man. On 27 December 1862, a joint expedition composed of officers and men of Potomac

USS Potomac (1861)

The second USS Potomac was an old whaler, purchased 1 November 1861. She was a part of the "Stone Fleet", a group of ships used to block the entrances to Confederate harbors, and was sunk for this purpose 9 January 1862....

 and troops of the 91st New York State Volunteers, led by Lieutenant James H. Stewart took possession of her and delivered her to the Pensacola Navy Yard where she was repaired and armed. A small crew was placed on board and, on 24 January 1863, Acting Ensign Edwin Crissey assumed command. The ship was put in operation without being sent to an admiralty court

Admiralty court

Admiralty courts, also known as maritime courts, are courts exercising jurisdiction over all maritime contracts, torts, injuries and offences.- Admiralty Courts in England and Wales :...

 to be libelled.

Destroying 380 salt works and the town of St. Andrews

Although she spent most of her naval career operating in the West Gulf Blockading Squadron, her most notable service occurred in December 1863 during a brief tour of duty with the East Gulf Blockading Squadron. This operation in St. Andrew's Bay, Florida -- in which she was assisted by her tender, the sloop Caroline, and the bark Restless

USS Restless (1861)

USS Restless was a barque acquired by the Union Navy during the American Civil War.She was used as a gunboat by the Union Navy to patrol navigable waterways of the Confederacy to prevent the South from trading with other countries....

 --resulted in the destruction of 380 different salt works and of much of the town of St. Andrew's. Her commanding officer received high praise for Bloomer's part in the successful accomplishment of this mission.

Bloomer finally acquired officially by the Union Navy

Near the very end of 1863, Bloomer was at last ordered to the prize court

Prize court

A prize court is a court authorized to consider whether or not a ship has been lawfully captured or seized in time of war or under the terms of the seizing ship's letters of marque and reprisal...

 of 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...

, to be libelled. The final decree in the case, rendered on 4 January 1865, declared this was not a case of "prize" but of "salvage." Early in 1865, she was finally purchased by the United States Navy

United States Navy

The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...

 and continued on duty on the coast of Florida

Florida

Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...

 in the vicinity of 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...

.

Bloomer sinks, is raised, and is sold into commercial service

In June 1865 she sank in East Pass, Santa Rosa Island, Florida

Santa Rosa Island, Florida

Santa Rosa Island[p] is a 40-mile barrier island located in the U.S. state of Florida, thirty miles east of the Alabama state border...

. After the wreck was raised, it was sold on 22 September 1865 to S. P. Griffin & Co., of Woolsey, Florida. Redocumented as Emma on 5 April 1866, the vessel served a private owner until 1868 when she was sold to a foreign purchaser and disappeared from American shipping records.
The Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies of the War
of the Rebellion (ORN) lists the Bloomer both as a sidewheeler,
and, later as a sternwheeler.

One of the persons from Geneva who assisted in the raid was a
pilot named Jones, who is not otherwise identified; however, records
of the ORN Show that a Thomas G. Jones was, at one time,
in command of the Bloomer, after she was captured—perhaps
in reward for his services.