- USS Sciota (1861)
USS "Sciota" (1861) was a
steamship rushed into production by theUnion Navy at the start of theAmerican Civil War . She was outfitted as agunboat , with both a 20-pounder rifle for horizontal firing, and twohowitzers for shore bombardment, and assigned to theUnion blockade of the waterways of theConfederate States of America .Commissioned in Philadelphia in 1861
The first
U.S. Navy ship to be so named, USS "Sciota" was one of the "ninety-day gunboats" rushed through construction at the beginning of the American Civil War, "Sciota" was laid down in the summer of1861 atPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania by Jacob Birley and J. P. Morris and Company; launched on15 October 1861 ; and commissioned at thePhiladelphia Navy Yard on15 December 1861 , Lieutenant Edward Donaldson in command.Civil War service
Assigned to the Gulf Blockade
The new screw gunboat was assigned to the
Gulf Blockading Squadron and arrived atShip Island, Mississippi , on the afternoon of8 January 1862 . On6 February , she capturedblockade runner , "Margaret", offIsle of Breton, Louisiana , as thesloop was attempting to escape to sea laden withcotton .When Secretary of the Navy
Gideon Welles divided naval jurisdiction in theGulf of Mexico between Flag OfficerWilliam McKean and Flag OfficerDavid Farragut , "Sciota" was assigned to Farragut'sWest Gulf Blockading Squadron which had been created to wrestNew Orleans, Louisiana from Southern hands.During the first weeks in April, "Sciota", supported Farragut's efforts to get his deep draft ships across the bar off Pass a L'Outre and into the
Mississippi River . During this period, she also steamed up the river gathering information about Southern defenses.Bombarding Mississippi River forts
On the 18th, the ships of Farragut's fleet took position close to
Fort St. Philip and Fort Jackson. "Sciota" bombarded these forts, and she continued to duel with the Confederate guns intermittently for the next six days.In the early morning darkness of the 24th, "Sciota" got underway with the fleet and dashed up river past the forts. After
New Orleans, Louisiana , surrendered, "Sciota" operated up the river with Farragut. She attacked and passed the Confederate forts atVicksburg, Mississippi on28 June when Farragut raced by that riverside stronghold to join Flag Officer Charles H. Davis' Western flotilla.Since the Army was unable to provide the troops necessary for joint operations against Vicksburg, Farragut decided to return down river to turn his attention to the blockade in the western gulf. "Sciota" again ran the gauntlet past the Southern batteries.
The gunboat continued operations on the Mississippi below Vicksburg for much of the remainder of the year. She engaged Southern batteries at
Donaldson, Louisiana , on4 October .Gulf of Mexico operations
On
3 January 1863 , Farragut ordered gunboats, "Sciota", "Cayuga", and "Hatteras" toGalveston, Texas which had just been captured by the South in a surprise attack shortly after midnight onNew Year's Day . On the 10th, Commodore Bell, in "Brooklyn" led an attack by "Sciota", "Owasco", and "Katahdin" on the Confederate batteries at Galveston. They learned that the Southern guns were capable of firing past the Union squadron-more than two and one-half miles.After the engagement, "Sciota" continued to operate in the
Gulf of Mexico , bolstering the still leaky blockade in the area. On14 July , she collided with the Union steamer, "Antona", in theMississippi River about eight miles above Quarantine and sank. However, she was raised late in August and taken to New Orleans to be refitted.Returned to operations after having been sunk
The ship returned to blockade duty off the
Texas coast early in December. On the last day of1863 , she and "Granite City" made areconnaissance fromPass Cavallo, Texas , and landed soldiers on the gulf shore ofMatagorda Peninsula in action continuing through1 January 1864 .While "Granite City" covered the troops ashore from attacks by Confederate cavalry, "Sciota" reconnoitered the mouth of the
Brazos River . Returning to the landing area, "Sciota" anchored close to the beach and shelled Confederate positions. "Granite City" steamed down to Pass Cavallo to call up "Monogahela", "Penobscot", and "Estrella" to assist. Confederate gunboat, "John F. Carr", closed and fired on the Union troops,:"making some very good hits..."
but was driven ashore by a severe gale and destroyed by fire. The Union troops were withdrawn on board ship. Reporting on the operation, Lt. Col. Frank S. Hasseltine wrote:
:"Captain Perkins, of the "Sciota", excited my admiration by the daring manner in which he exposed his ship through the night in the surf till it broke all about him, that he might, close to us, lend the moral force of his . . . guns . . . and by his gallantry in bringing us off during the gale."
On
21 January 1864 , "Sciota" and "Granite City" joined several hundred troops in a reconnaissance of the Texas coast. They covered the troops atSmith's Landing, Texas , and the subsequent foray down the Matagorda Peninsula.On
4 April , "Sciota" captured schooner, "Mary Sorly", attempting to run the blockade at Galveston with a cargo of cotton. She had previously been United States Revenue Cutter, "Dodge", seized by the Confederates at Galveston at the war's outbreak."Sciota" continued operations on the Texas coast through the summer. On
13 September , she came across a large quantity of cotton afloat at sea, picked up 83 bales, and sent them toNew Orleans, Louisiana . On27 October , she captured Prussion schooner, "Pancha Larispa", attempting to run through the blockade into either Velasco orSan Luis Pass, Texas . The next day, she took "Cora Smyser" while that British schooner vainly attempted the same feat.Sunk while clearing mines
In November, "Sciota" was ordered to
Pensacola, Florida for repairs. In January1865 , she steamed toMobile Bay to help clear torpedoes from the waters there. On14 April , the day of PresidentAbraham Lincoln 's assassination, she struck a torpedo and sank offMobile, Alabama . Her commanding officer, Acting Lieutenant James W. Magune, reported::"The explosion was terrible, breaking the beams of the spar deck, tearing open the waterways, ripping off starboard forechannels, and breaking fore-topmast."
Hulk raised and sold
Early in July, she was raised. Her hulk was sold at public auction at
New York City on25 October 1865 .ee also
*
American Civil War
*Union Navy
*Confederate States Navy References
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* *cite web
url= http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-usn/usnsh-s/sciota.htm
title= USS Sciota (1861-1865)
date= 9 September 2001
work= Online Image Library | publisher=Naval Historical Center
accessdate= 2008-01-30
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