USS ''Wild Cat'' was a captured Confederate
schooner
A schooner () is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than the mainmast. A common variant, the topsail schoon ...
acquired by the
Union Navy from the
prize court during the
American Civil War. She was put into service by the Union Navy to patrol navigable waterways of the
Confederacy to prevent the South from trading with other countries.
Service history
''Wild Cat''—a wooden-hulled schooner captured by the Federal Navy in 1862—served as a tender to
warships of the
South Atlantic Blockading Squadron. The vessel was never labeled, and records of her construction and capture have not been found. Her activities and actual duties during that tour are not described in any detail in the available records, but it is known that she operated from
St. Helena, North Carolina, to
Port Royal, South Carolina.
During that service, she assisted refugees from a
plantation attacked by Confederate marauders. On 13 June, ''Wild Cat'' sailed up to
Hutchinson's Island, off St. Helena
Sound, in company with the
gig
Gig or GIG may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Gig'' (Circle Jerks album) (1992)
* ''Gig'' (Northern Pikes album) (1993)
* ''The Gig'', a 1985 film written and directed by Frank D. Gilroy
* GIG, a character in ''Hot Wheels AcceleRacers'' ...
from the
sloop-of-war
In the 18th century and most of the 19th, a sloop-of-war in the Royal Navy was a warship with a single gun deck that carried up to eighteen guns. The rating system covered all vessels with 20 guns and above; thus, the term ''sloop-of-war'' enc ...
, Lt. W. T. Truxtun, commanding, to investigate a large fire ashore. Upon arrival in the vicinity, the Union sailors found the burning Marsh Plantation, set afire by a marauding Confederate band. The Southern troops had plundered the belongings of the poor negroes there, wounding some, generally striking terror into the hearts of the inhabitants. As ''Wild Cat'' sailed up the river, she came in contact with many
canoes paddled by panic-stricken former inhabitants of the plantation. Lt. Truxtun soon placed all of the refugees on board ''Wild Cat'' and had them transported out of the area. A few days later, while reconnoitering the vicinity, ''Wild Cat'' shelled some Confederate raiders spotted near the
Ashepoo River
Ashepoo River is a short blackwater river in South Carolina, United States. It rises in a confluence of swamps south of Walterboro, flows in a southeast direction and empties into Saint Helena Sound at . The entire course of the river lies withi ...
.
''Wild Cat'' continued to operate in
South Carolina's coastal waters through March 1865. After a brief spell as pilot boat at
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...
, in April, the schooner was transferred to the
Union Army on 15 April 1865. Apparently returned to the Navy within three months time, ''Wild Cat'' was sold at Charleston on 28 July 1865. Her subsequent fate is unknown.
See also
*
Blockade runners of the American Civil War
*
Blockade mail of the Confederacy
References
:
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wild Cat
Ships of the Union Navy
Tenders of the United States Navy
Schooners of the United States Navy