USS Patapsco (1862)

USS Patapsco was a Passaic-class ironclad monitor in the United States Navy during the American Civil War. She was named for the Patapsco River in Maryland.

For other ships with the same name, see USS Patapsco.
Pencil sketch of USS Patapsco
History
Name: USS Patapsco
Builder: Harlan & Hollingsworth
Laid down: Unknown
Launched: 27 September 1862
Commissioned: 2 January 1863
Stricken: 1865 (est.)
Fate: Sunk by mine on 15 January 1865
General characteristics
Class and type: Passaic-class ironclad monitor
Displacement: 1,875 long tons (1,905 t)
Length: 241 ft (73 m)
Beam: 46 ft (14 m)
Draft: 10 ft 10 in (3.30 m)
Installed power: 320 ihp (240 kW)
Propulsion:
Speed: 6 kn (6.9 mph; 11 km/h)
Complement: 105 officers and enlisted
Armament: 1 × 15 in (380 mm) smoothbore gun, 1 × 8 in (200 mm) Parrott rifle
Armor:
  • Side: 3–5 in (7.6–12.7 cm)
  • Turret: 11 in (28 cm)
  • Deck: 1 in (2.5 cm)
Notes: Armor is iron.

Built in Wilmington, Delaware

Patapsco was the fourth U.S. Navy ship to bear that name. She was built by Harlan & Hollingsworth, Wilmington, Delaware; launched on 27 September 1862; and commissioned on 2 January 1863, Commander Daniel Ammen in command.

Civil War service

Assigned to the South Atlantic blockade

Assigned to the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron, she took part in a bombardment of Fort McAllister on 3 March. On 7 April, Patapsco joined eight other ironclads in a vigorous attack on Fort Sumter, and received 47 hits from Confederate gunfire during that day.

Officers of her sister ship Sangamon in the James River, 1865

Beginning in mid-July, she began her participation in a lengthy bombardment campaign against Charleston's defending fortifications. This led to the capture of Fort Wagner in early September. Fort Sumter was reduced to a pile of rubble, but remained a formidable opponent.

In November 1863, Patapsco tested a large obstruction-clearing explosive device that had been devised by John Ericsson. Remaining off South Carolina and Georgia during much of 1864 and into 1865, the monitor — or her boat crews — took part in a reconnaissance of the Wilmington River, Georgia, in January 1864 and helped capture or destroy enemy sailing vessels in February and November of that year.

Sunk by a mine

On 15 January 1865, while participating in obstruction clearance operations in Charleston Harbor, Patapsco struck a Confederate mine and sank, with 75 lost. The ship's Executive Officer, Lieutenant William T. Sampson was one of a handful of survivors.

References
  • This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
  • Additional technical data from Gardiner, Robert (1979). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905. Conway Maritime Press. p. 120. ISBN 0-85177-133-5.

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