USS Kanawha (1861)
Encyclopedia
USS Kanawha was a built for the U.S. 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 Navy 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.
Commissioned at New York City
Kanawha was launched 21 October 1861 by G. B. & W. H. Goodspeed, East Hadden, ConnecticutConnecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
; and commissioned at New York Navy Yard 21 January 1862, Lt. John C. Febiger in command.
Assigned to the Gulf Blockade
Assigned to the Gulf Blockading Squadron, the new gunboat arrived off Pass a l'OutrePass a Loutre
Pass a Loutre is a wetland in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, United States of America. It contains the Pass a l'Outre lighthouse.-External links:* and *...
, Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
, 13 February and a week later was ordered to take station off Mobile, Alabama
Mobile, Alabama
Mobile is the third most populous city in the Southern US state of Alabama and is the county seat of Mobile County. It is located on the Mobile River and the central Gulf Coast of the United States. The population within the city limits was 195,111 during the 2010 census. It is the largest...
, where she soon distinguished herself for vigilance.
Kanawha proves very efficient at capturing blockade runners
She drew first blood with a vengeance 10 April capturing four blockade-running schooners in a single day: Southern Independence, Victoria, Charlotte, and Cuba. The first three had attempted to slip to sea laden with cottonCotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....
and naval stores while the latter had tried to run into Mobile, Alabama
Mobile, Alabama
Mobile is the third most populous city in the Southern US state of Alabama and is the county seat of Mobile County. It is located on the Mobile River and the central Gulf Coast of the United States. The population within the city limits was 195,111 during the 2010 census. It is the largest...
, with supplies badly needed by the South.
Thereafter, her kills were frequent. She caught 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....
R. C. Files carrying cotton out of Mobile 21 April and took British sloop Annie on the 29th between Ship Island and Mobile headed for Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
. On 17 November near Mobile she and Kennebec
USS Kennebec (1861)
USS Kennebec was a built for the U.S. Navy following the outbreak of the American Civil War. She was named for the Kennebec River.Kennebec was launched 5 October 1861 by G. W...
chased an unidentified schooner ashore where she was set afire by her crew. Then the guns of the Union ships assured her complete destruction by preventing Confederate coast guards from boarding her to extinguish the flames.
On 25 March 1863 Kanawha, then commanded by Lt. Comdr. William K. Mayo, took schooner Clara attempting to run the blockade at Mobile. Schooner Dart attempted to slip into Mobile from Havana, Cuba, 1 May but fell prey to this vigilant blockader. A fortnight
Fortnight
The fortnight is a unit of time equal to fourteen days, or two weeks. The word derives from the Old English fēowertyne niht, meaning "fourteen nights"....
later the same fate befell British brig Comet some 20 miles east of Fort Morgan on Mobile Point. On 17 May Kanawha snared schooner Hunter, laden with cotton for Havana, running out of Mobile. The next day she caught schooner Ripple attempting the same feat.
Kanawha is hulled by a cannonball from Fort Morgan, and smartly backs off
Dawn of 12 October disclosed steamer Alice aground under the guns of Fort Morgan and an unidentified Confederate tug attempting to pull her free. Kanawha, accompanied by tender EugenieUSS Eugenie (1862)
USS Eugenie was a captured Confederate schooner acquired by the Union Navy from the prize court during the American Civil War. She was put into service by the Union Navy to guard the Union-controlled port of Key West, Florida....
, steamed boldly toward the strongly defended Confederate shore to destroy the Southern vessels; but Fort Morgan's batteries, outranging the guns of the Union ships, hulled Kanawha, forcing the Union ships to retire. Lackawanna
USS Lackawanna (1862)
The first USS Lackawanna was a screw sloop-of-war in the Union Navy during the American Civil War.Lackawanna was launched by the New York Navy Yard on 9 August 1862; sponsored by Ms. Imogen Page Cooper; and commissioned on 8 January 1863, Captain John B. Marchand in command...
and Genesee
USS Genesee (1862)
USS Genesee was a steamer acquired by the Union Navy during the American Civil War. She was used by the Navy to patrol navigable waterways of the Confederacy to prevent the South from trading with other countries....
then headed in to finish the task with their 150-pounders; but, before they got in range, the daring tug managed to refloat Alice and escaped with her into Mobile Bay
Mobile Bay
Mobile Bay is an inlet of the Gulf of Mexico, lying within the state of Alabama in the United States. Its mouth is formed by the Fort Morgan Peninsula on the eastern side and Dauphin Island, a barrier island on the western side. The Mobile River and Tensaw River empty into the northern end of the...
.
Undermining the South’s financial structure
On 29 November Kanawha took schooner Albert, also called Wenona, attempting to carry cotton, naval stores, and tobacco out of Mobile. The toll collected by relentless Northern blockaders like Kanawha in capturing Southern blockade runners steadily drained away the life blood of the Confederacy. The loss of ships carrying the products of Southern fields and forests to foreign markets undermined the South's financial structure and increased her difficulty in purchasing war material abroad. The loss of incoming ships deprived Southern armies of a growing proportion of the shrinking supplies and equipment persuasive Confederate agents did manage to procure.Reassigned to patrolling the Texas coast
In the spring of 1864 Kanawha was transferred to the TexasTexas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
coast. On 8 July, now under Lt. Comdr. Bushrod B. Taylor, she forced steamer Matagorda aground near Galveston, Texas
Galveston, Texas
Galveston is a coastal city located on Galveston Island in the U.S. state of Texas. , the city had a total population of 47,743 within an area of...
. On 9 September, after Union troops had been withdrawn from the area, Kanawha reinstituted the blockade of Brownsville, Texas
Brownsville, Texas
Brownsville is a city in the southernmost tip of the state of Texas, in the United States. It is located on the northern bank of the Rio Grande, directly north and across the border from Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico. Brownsville is the 16th largest city in the state of Texas with a population of...
, which had been lifted by Presidential proclamation in mid-February. On 28 December she forced an unidentified 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....
ashore near Caney Creek, Texas, and destroyed her. She captured Mary Ellen of Montreal, Canada, 3 January 1865 as the 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....
tried to run into Velasco, Texas
Velasco, Texas
Velasco was a town in Texas, United States, that was later annexed by the city of Freeport. Founded in 1831, Velasco is situated on the east side of the Brazos River in southeast Texas. It is sixteen miles south of Angleton, Texas, and four miles from the Gulf of Mexico.The town's early history is...
. She remained on blockade duty until after the end of the war and was ordered north 27 May.
Post-war decommissioning and sale
Kanawha decommissioned 5 July and was sold at New York 13 June 1866.External links
- USS Kanawha images, U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command website.