CSS Pamlico

CSS ''Pamlico'' was a sidewheel steamer that served in the Confederate States Navy during the early stages of the American Civil War. Originally a passenger vessel on Lake Pontchartrain, she was purchased by Confederate authorities on July 10, 1861, and converted into a gunboat. She participated in two minor naval actions in the vicinities of Horn Island and Ship Island in December, before taking part in two more small battles defending the Pass Christian area in March and April 1862. In late April, Union Navy ships passed the defenses of New Orleans, Louisiana. After ferrying Confederate troops out of the city, ''Pamlico'' was burned by her crew on Lake Pontchartrain on April 25 to prevent capture.

Service history

Civilian service and conversion

A sidewheel steamer, ''Pamlico'' was built in 1856 in New York City, and was based out of the New Orleans, Louisiana area. In early July 1861, she was advertised as making passenger trips between the Louisiana towns of Mandeville, Lewisburg, Madisonville, and Covington and the Lake Pontchartrain railhead of the Pontchartrain Railroad. At the outset of the American Civil War in 1861, the breakaway Confederate States of America was at a significant naval disadvantage to the United States of America. While the United States had a functioning navy, the Confederates had to essentially build one from scratch with limited infrastructure and manufacturing abilities. The Confederates began inspecting vessels to determine if they were suitable for acquisition and conversion into gunboats, and ''Pamlico'' was purchased on July 10, 1861 for that purpose. Along with ''Pamlico'', the Lake Pontchartrain passenger vessels ''Arrow'' and ''A. G. Brown'' were seized as well, leading residents of areas on the lakeshore to complain that the Confederate government had taken their means of transportation and communication. A small vessel, ''Pamlico'' displaced . Her other dimensions are unknown. She was commissioned on September 2, and placed under the command of First Lieutenant William G. Dozier. On November 21, 1861, and February 27, 1862, she was reported to be armed with two cannons, but she was also reported to have been armed with three smoothbore cannons and a Brooke rifle; according to naval historian W. Craig Gaines this could represent the addition of two extra cannons rather than an inconsistency between sources.

Military use

''Pamlico'' entered active service immediately after her commissioning, patrolling Mississippi Sound as far east as Horn Island. Together with the gunboat CSS ''Florida'', ''Pamlico'' was involved in an attempt to board the steamer USS ''Montgomery'', which was part of the Union blockade, on December 4. The plan was to disable ''Montgomery'' with long-range fire from the single rifled cannon each ship carried and then board her; ''Pamlico'' carried around 400 soldiers for the boarding. The commander of the Union vessel correctly guessed the Confederate intentions, and ''Montgomery'' escaped into the open ocean. Three days later, on a trip westwards from Horn Island, ''Pamlico'' spotted the blockading gunboats USS ''New London'' and USS ''De Soto'' near Mississippi City, Mississippi. The gunboat CSS ''Oregon'', which was transporting powder mill equipment, was at Mississippi City, and together the two ships, under the overall command of Dozier, confronted the Union vessels. The Confederates fired at longer range with their two rifled guns while remaining in shallow waters that the blockading ships could not enter; ''New London'' and ''De Soto'' later withdrew after the Confederates ignored a challenge for closer combat. The ''Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships'' describes ''Pamlico''s involvement in the two December clashes as ineffectual. After the December 7 engagement, ''Pamlico'' escorted ''Oregon'' to Lake Borgne; on December 20, both gunboats were part of an attempt to escort a blockade runner past the Union blockade that failed when they encountered Union blockaders near Ship Island.

On March 25, 1862, ''Pamlico'' provided an escort for ''Oregon'' to the Pass Christian area. After dropping off supplies, ''Oregon'' continued east to scout in the Ship Island area, and encountered ''New London''. ''Oregon'' returned to ''Pamlico'', and the two ships advanced towards ''New London''. The two sides fired at each other from a range of . A round fired from one of ''Pamlico''s 8-inch guns exploded prematurely, leading Dozier to no longer trust the ammunition he had for those guns. After a jammed shot disabled the Brooke rifle on ''Pamlico'', the Confederate ships withdrew, with ''Pamlico'' heading to Fort Macomb for repairs to her gun deck and pilothouse. The fighting had lasted about two hours. On April 3, three Union vessels''New London'', the steamer USS ''John P. Jackson'', and the troop transport USS ''Henry Lewis'' made an offensive against Pass Christian. ''Pamlico'', ''Oregon'', and the gunboat CSS ''Carondelet'' responded. ''Henry Lewis'' was temporarily forced to withdraw when she was hit by a Confederate shell, but after an hour of fighting, the Confederates withdrew; ''Oregon'' and ''Carondelet'' had suffered minor damage. After the Confederate withdrawal, the Union troops on ''Henry Lewis'' were able to land and take control of Pass Christian, including destroying a Confederate camp in the area. The three Confederate vessels took up positions on Lake Pontchartrain, where they guarded Chef Menteur Pass and the Rigolets. Some of ''Pamlico''s sailors were taken on April 21 to help crew the ironclad CSS ''Louisiana''.

On April 24, Union ships passed the Confederate defenses at Fort Jackson and Fort St. Philip. They then passed further defenses at Chalmette the next day, rendering New Orleans essentially indefensible. ''Oregon'' was sunk as a blockship, but the wreck later prevented ''Pamlico'', ''Arrow'', ''Carondelet'', and the gunboat CSS ''Bienville'' from escaping. The four Confederate vessels ferried Confederate troops from New Orleans across Lake Pontchartrain to Covington. Their cannons were removed and were sent to the defenses at Vicksburg, Mississippi. ''Pamlico'' was burned by her crew on Lake Pontchartrain to prevent capture, on April 25.

References

Sources

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Pamlico

Gunboats of the Confederate States Navy
Scuttled vessels
Maritime incidents in April 1862
Ships built in New York City
1856 ships