- USS Intrepid (1874)
The second USS "Intrepid", was a steam-powered
torpedo ram built in 1874 that had the distinction of being the first U.S. Navy ship armed with self-propelledtorpedo es. In concept and design she was roughly comparable to the Royal Navy's HMS "Polyphemus", although "Intrepid" was completed more than half a decade earlier.Construction
"Intrepid", like the other torpedo rams, was a product of the confusion that followed the invention of the self-propelled torpedo, which saw the world's navies struggle to find a way to effectively utilize the earliest torpedo designs. Her keel was laid down at the
Boston Navy Yard and she was launched on5 March 1874 , sponsored by Miss H. Evelyn Frothingham Pooke. After construction completed, "Intrepid" was commissioned into the U.S. Navy on31 July . Hercommanding officer wasCommander Augustus P. Cooke .ervice
As with most of the earliest torpedo-armed warships, "Intrepid" was a largely experimental vessel of little true value as an actual fighting ship. After her commissioning ceremony, she departed Boston on
3 August for the naval base atNewport, Rhode Island . Since she was a new and untried design, "Intrepid" remained in coastal waters for the majority of the voyage, and arrived in Newport the next day. After a little less than a month at Newport she was transferred to New York. Leaving on31 August , she arrived at theNew York Navy Yard on1 September . The following two months were devoted to torpedo trials along theNorth Atlantic Coast, which showed that "Intrepid's" design was generally unsatisfactory. Her final trial cruise ended when she returned to New York Navy Yard on24 October , and she was decommissioned a week later on30 October ."Intrepid" remained out of service at New York for the remainder of 1874 and the first half of 1875 before being recommissioned on
28 August . Even though she would remain in commission for the remainder of the decade, with the exception of brief visits toNew England ports in 1875 and 1876, she remained at the Navy Yard.Despite her unsatisfactory and experimental nature, the financially-starved Navy Department looked for ways to utilize her to some good purpose, since money and congressional support for new warships was almost non-existent during this period. The Navy eventually decided to convert "Intrepid" to a light-draft
gunboat for service in Chinese waters. As a result she was decommissioned on22 August 1882 and moved to the shipyard at the New York Navy Yard for conversion. The work proceeded slowly and was suspended altogether in 1889. Years of inactivity had taken their toll on the ship, and a survey undertaken in early 1892 found that she had become unserviceable. Since the funding needed to restore "Intrepid" would be far more than could be possibly be justified by her future value as a gunboat, it was decided to dispose of her. "Intrepid" was stricken from the Navy List and on9 May 1892 she was sold to a certain Mathew Gill, Jr., of Philadelphia. She was probably broken up soon afterwards.References
*DANFS|http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/i2/intrepid-ii.htm
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