The first USS ''Rhode Island'' was a side-wheel steamer in 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 ...

, commissioned in 1861. ''Rhode Island'' was built in New York City, in 1860 by Lupton & McDermut as ''John P. King''; burned and rebuilt and renamed ''Eagle'' in 1861 before being purchased by the U.S. Navy on 27 June 1861 from Spofford, Tileston & Company, at New York; renamed ''Rhode Island''; and commissioned at New York Navy Yard on 29 July 1861, Commander Stephen D. Trenchard in command.

Service history

Supply ship

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 ...

, ''Rhode Island'' was employed as a supply ship, visiting various ports and ships with mail, paymasters officers stores, medicine, and other supplies. She departed New York on her first cruise on 31 July 1861, returning on 2 September. While cruising off Galveston, Texas, ''Rhode Island'' captured the schooner ''Venus'' attempting to run the blockade with a cargo of lead, copper, tin, and wood. During the remainder of 1861 and 1862 ''Rhode Island'' continued her essential support duties. Departing

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

on 5 February 1862, she supplied 98 vessels with various stores before returning to

Hampton Roads, Virginia Hampton Roads is the name of both a body of water in the United States that serves as a wide channel for the James, Nansemond and Elizabeth rivers between Old Point Comfort and Sewell's Point where the Chesapeake Bay flows into the Atlantic O ...

, on 18 March; on another trip from 5 April to 20 May 1862 she supplied 118 vessels. Assigned to support the

Gulf Blockading Squadron The Union blockade in the American Civil War was a naval strategy by the United States to prevent the Confederacy from trading. The blockade was proclaimed by President Abraham Lincoln in April 1861, and required the monitoring of of Atlantic ...

from 17 April 1862, ''Rhode Island'' chased and forced ashore the British schooner ''Richard O'Bryan'' near San Luis Pass on 4 July 1862.

Loss of USS ''Monitor''

Returning to the north, ''Rhode Island's'' next duties were towing the low-freeboard monitors , , , and south from Hampton Roads to Beaufort, North Carolina, or

Port Royal, South Carolina Port Royal is a town on Port Royal Island in Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 14,220 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Beaufort metropolitan area. Port Royal is home to Marine Cor ...

. On 29 December 1862 ''Rhode Island'' departed Hampton Roads with the famous ''Monitor'' in tow and ''Passaic'' in company. As the ships rounded

Cape Hatteras Cape Hatteras is a cape located at a pronounced bend in Hatteras Island, one of the barrier islands of North Carolina. Long stretches of beach, sand dunes, marshes, and maritime forests create a unique environment where wind and waves shap ...

on the evening of 30 December, they encountered a heavy storm. ''Monitor''s pumps were unable to control flooding caused by underwater leaks so that the order to abandon ship had to be given. Before ''Monitor''s crew could be completely transferred to ''Rhode Island'', the ironclad sank, taking four officers and 12 enlisted men with her. ''Rhode Island'' endeavored to remain as near as possible to the position in which ''Monitor'' sank so as to fix the location, some south-southwest of Cape Hatteras and to await daylight to search for a missing small boat. Seven ''Rhode Island'' crewman were awarded the Medal of Honor for their actions during the sinking: Ordinary Seaman Luke M. Griswold, Seaman Lewis A. Horton, Landsman John Jones, Captain of the Afterguard Hugh Logan, Seaman George Moore, Coxswain Charles H. Smith, and Coxswain Maurice Wagg.

Enforcing the blockade

On 29 January 1863 ''Rhode Island'' was ordered to the

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greate ...

to join in the search for the

Confederate Confederacy or confederate may refer to: States or communities * Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities * Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between 1 ...

steamers ''Oreto'' and ''Alabama''. Unable to help locate the Confederate warships, she did succeed in driving the blockade runner ''Margaret and Jessie'' ashore at Stirrup Cay on 30 May. Continuing her cruising on the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...

coast, ''Rhode Island'' achieved a fourth victory on 16 August when she captured the British blockade runner ''Cronstadt'' north of

Man of War Bay Man o' War Cove (or Man of War Bay and similar names) lies on the Dorset coast in southern England and is flanked by the rocky, steep and slightly projecting headlands of Durdle Door to the west and Man O War (or O' War) Head to the east. Featu ...

, Abaco, Bahamas with a cargo of cotton, turpentine, and tobacco.

Conversion to cruiser

With defective boilers requiring repair, ''Rhode Island'' entered

Boston Navy Yard The Boston Navy Yard, originally called the Charlestown Navy Yard and later Boston Naval Shipyard, was one of the oldest shipbuilding facilities in the United States Navy. It was established in 1801 as part of the recent establishment of t ...

on 28 March 1864 for overhaul and was decommissioned there on 21 April. Extensive alterations were made transforming ''Rhode Island'' into an auxiliary cruiser mounting one 11-inch gun, eight 8-inch (203 mm) guns, one 30-pounder (14 kg)

Parrott rifle The Parrott rifle was a type of muzzle-loading rifled artillery weapon used extensively in the American Civil War. Parrott rifle The gun was invented by Captain Robert Parker Parrott, a West Point graduate. He was an American soldier and inven ...

, and one 12-pounder (5 kg) rifle. Ordered to tow the monitor from Boston to New York on 26 September 1864, ''Rhode Island'' recommissioned on 3 October 1864 and joined the

North Atlantic Blockading Squadron The Union blockade in the American Civil War was a naval strategy by the United States to prevent the Confederacy from trading. The blockade was proclaimed by President Abraham Lincoln in April 1861, and required the monitoring of of Atlantic ...

soon afterward. Employed in cruising along Confederate-controlled coasts ''Rhode Island's'' duty was highlighted by the capture of the British blockade runner ''Vixen'' on 1 December 1864. Sailing from Hampton Roads on 11 December with the monitor in tow, ''Rhode Island'' joined the squadron attacking

Fort Fisher Fort Fisher was a Confederate fort during the American Civil War. It protected the vital trading routes of the port at Wilmington, North Carolina, from 1861 until its capture by the Union in 1865. The fort was located on one of Cape Fear Rive ...

, taking part in the first assault on 24 December and the second, successful attempt of 13–15 January 1865. Signal Quartermaster Charles H. Foy was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions during the

Second Battle of Fort Fisher The Second Battle of Fort Fisher was a successful assault by the Union Army, Navy and Marine Corps against Fort Fisher, south of Wilmington, North Carolina, near the end of the American Civil War in January 1865. Sometimes referred to as the "Gi ...

. Ordered to tow the monitor from Federal Point, North Carolina, to Norfolk, Virginia, on 16 January 1865, ''Rhode Island'' subsequently cruised in company with the seagoing monitor in March. In May ''Rhode Island'' made a cruise to Mobile, Alabama, returning to Hampton Roads on 22 May. Maintained in commission in the years immediately following the end of the Civil War, ''Rhode Island's'' first duty was to help bring the formidable former Confederate armored ram ''Stonewall'' to the United States. Departing on 21 October for

Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

in company with , ''Rhode Island'' returned with the French-built ''Stonewall'' on 23 November.

After the Civil War

Throughout 1866, ''Rhode Island'' continued to cruise in the Atlantic and West Indies, from April 1866

flying the flag ''Flying the Flag'' was a BBC radio sitcom set in a British embassy in the Eastern Bloc during the Cold War. It ran for four series, aired from 1987 to 1992, which have been repeated numerous times. Synopsis Created during the Cold War, thi ...

of Rear Admiral James S. Palmer. On 15 January 1866, Seaman William B. Stacy was awarded the Medal of Honor for rescuing a drowning crewmate while the ship was in the harbor of

Cap-Haïtien Cap-Haïtien (; ht, Kap Ayisyen; "Haitian Cape"), typically spelled Cape Haitien in English and often locally referred to as or , is a commune of about 190,000 people on the north coast of Haiti and capital of the department of Nord. Previousl ...

, Haiti. Calling once at Halifax in 1867 before being decommissioned, ''Rhode Island'' was sold to G. W. Quintard on 1 October 1867. Redocumented as ''Charleston'' on 8 November 1867, the side-wheeler remained in merchant service until abandoned in 1885.

Footnotes

References

*Bauer, Karl Jack and Roberts, Stephen S. (1991): ''Register of Ships of the U.S. Navy, 1775–1990: Major Combatants'', Greenwood Publishing Group, .

External links

Photos of USS ''Rhode Island''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rhode Island Ships of the Union Navy Ships built in New York City Steamships of the United States Navy Gunboats of the United States Navy American Civil War patrol vessels of the United States American Civil War auxiliary ships of the United States Rhode Island in the American Civil War 1860 ships Stores ships of the United States Navy