USS ''King Philip'' was a steamer that was originally named ''Powhatan''; she was acquired by the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...

. She was used by the

Union Navy The Union Navy was the United States Navy (USN) during the American Civil War, when it fought the Confederate States Navy (CSN). The term is sometimes used carelessly to include vessels of war used on the rivers of the interior while they were un ...

as a

dispatch boat Dispatch boats were small boats, and sometimes large ships, tasked to carry military dispatches from ship to ship or from ship to shore or, in some cases from shore to shore. Dispatch boats were employed when other means of transmitting a message w ...

, providing various services.

Service history

''Powhatan''—a side-wheel steamer built in

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in 1845 by John A. and E. T. Robb—operated on the

Potomac River The Potomac River () drains the Mid-Atlantic United States, flowing from the Potomac Highlands into Chesapeake Bay. It is long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map. Retrieved Augu ...

out of Georgetown, D.C. Early in the Civil War, the

Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union of the collective states. It proved essential to th ...

seized the side wheeler on 21 April 1861 and transferred her to the United States Navy. The next day, she entered the

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to be fitted out for war service. A week later,

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John Glendy Sproston was ordered to take command of ''Powhatan'' and proceed to Kettle Bottom Shoals to replace and protect buoys there which had been removed by Confederate agents. After patrol duty in the Potomac River, helping to protect

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, during the early months of the Civil War, ''Powhatan'' steamed to Baltimore for repairs. She was renamed USS ''King Philip'' on 4 November. Throughout the Civil War, ''King Philip'' was used as a dispatch boat, shuttling mail, supplies, and passengers between Washington, D.C., and Union ships on the Potomac and

Rappahannock River The Rappahannock River is a river in eastern Virginia, in the United States, approximately in length.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 1, 2011 It traverses the entir ...

s. In 1862 she served as a temporary home for the crew of the famous USS ''Monitor'' while they were waiting for their ship to be repaired and refitted. Quarstein, 2010, p. 156 ''King Philip'' was sold at auction to H. F. Harrill on 15 September 1865.

References

Sources

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:King Philip Ships of the Union Navy Ships built in Baltimore Steamships of the United States Navy Dispatch boats of the United States Navy American Civil War auxiliary ships of the United States 1845 ships