USS Patapsco (1862)

	Pencil sketch of USS Patapsco
History
United States
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	1 × Ericsson vibrating lever engine; 2 × Martin boilers; 1 × shaft;
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.

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.

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.

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.