- USS Lilac (1863)
USS "Lilac" (1863) was a steamer acquired by the
Union Navy during theAmerican Civil War . She was used by the Navy as atugboat and in other minor roles."Lilac", a steam tug built at
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania , early in1863 , was acquired by the Navy15 April 1863 ; and commissioned at Philadelphia28 April 1863 .Assigned to the North Atlantic Blockade
The new tug joined the
North Atlantic Blockading Squadron atHampton Roads, Virginia ,2 May . During the remainder of1863 , she operated in the Roads and on the lower James River performing dispatch, picket, and towing duty."Lilac" carries messages from Alexander Stephens to Lincoln
On
4 July 1863 , the day of Vicksburg’s surrender and the day following the retreat ofRobert E. Lee ’s army fromGettysburg, Pennsylvania , southern tug "Torpedo", carryingAlexander Stephens , steamed up to "Lilac" under aflag of truce to request safe conduct toWashington, D. C. , so that the Confederacy’s Vice President might confer with PresidentAbraham Lincoln asJefferson Davis ’ personal emissary. For the next 2 days "Lilac" carried messages between Union flagship "Minnesota", "Fort Monroe", and "Torpedo".Lincoln resolves not to communicate with Alexander Stephens
However, Lincoln persevered in his resolve to eschew all direct communications with the Confederate leaders, lest such contact be interpreted as recognition of the South’s government. On the 6th "Lilac" bore Stephens word that his request was “...considered inadmissible” and that “customary agents and channels are adequate for all needful military Communications...between the U.S. forces and the insurgents.” On the night of
15 October , accompanied by tug "Young America", "Lilac" ascended the James River seeking to capture a Confederate steamer reported above Hog Island. However, the southern ship had fled to safety before the Union ships arrived. On the expedition "Lilac" shelled a Confederate signal station.Ordered down the Eastern seaboard
Early in
1864 Rear Adm.Samuel Phillips Lee ordered "Lilac" toBeaufort, North Carolina , for harbor defense and towing. Her service there continued until December and won her Admiral Lee’s praise as “very useful.” As the year waned, "Lilac" returned toNorfolk, Virginia , to help tighten the noose whichUlysses S. Grant and Porter were closing aroundRichmond, Virginia . On4 April , as Lee’s valiant army was at last about to be driven from the South’s capitol, "Lilac" captured Confederate Army tug "Seaboard" at Tree Hill Bridge which spanned the James below Richmond. As the Confederacy crumbled, "Lilac" continued to operate in the James until she steamed north late in May.Post-war decommissioning, sale, and civilian career
She decommissioned
16 June 1865 and was sold at public auction atNew York City to H. G. Farrington12 July 1865 . Redocumented as "Eutaw"5 October 1865 , the tug served commercial shipping until abandoned in1888 .References
See also
*
United States Navy
*American Civil War External links
* [http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/l6/lilac-i.htm USS Lilac]
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