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For ships with similar names, seeUSS New Orleans.
New Orleans,as portrayed by the UnionThe Philadelphia Inquireron April 11, 1862[1]
History
Confederate States of America
NameNew Orleans
CommissionedOctober 14, 1861
FateScuttled, April 8, 1862
NotesCaptured by Union forces and used as a floating drydock. Burned by the Confederates in August or September 1863
General characteristics (as designed)
TypeFloating battery
Armament
  • 1 × 9 in (23 cm) gun
  • 17 × 8 in (20 cm) guns
  • 2 × 32-pounder rifles
ArmorIron sheathing

CSSNew Orleanswas afloating batteryused by theConfederate States Navyduring theAmerican Civil War.Converted from afloating drydockin 1861, she wascommissionedon October 14, 1861. The vessel was unable to move under her own power and lacked facilities for her crew to live aboard, soCSSRed Roverwas used to move the floating battery and house her crew. She was then sent upriver to assist in the Confederate defense ofColumbus, Kentucky,arriving there in December. After the Confederates abandoned Columbus in March 1862,New Orleanswas moved toIsland No. 10nearNew Madrid, Missouri.The Confederate defenders of Island No. 10 surrendered on April 8, andNew Orleanswasscuttledthat day. Not fully sunk, the floating battery drifted downriver to the New Madrid area, where it was captured byUnionforces. In Union hands,New Orleanswas used as a floating drydock until the Confederates burned her in August or September 1863.

Construction and characteristics

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In early 1861, the secessionistConfederate States of Americaproclaimed its independence, although the United States government did not recognize the secession. The Confederates lacked a navy and had to build one from scratch.New Orleans, Louisianawas one of the premier ports of the Confederate states, and the city was one of the points of focus for the Confederates when building their navy.[2]Control of theMississippi Riverwas considered to be an important facet of theAmerican Civil Warby both sides.[3]In September 1861, Confederate troops commanded byLeonidas PolkoccupiedColumbus, Kentucky,violatingthe state's official neutrality.[4]Columbus became the northernmost major Confederate defensive point on the Mississippi River.[5]The Confederates initiated a shipbuilding effort at New Orleans, part of which were twofloating batteries– CSSNew OrleansandCSSMemphis.[6]

Both floating batteries were converted from existingfloating drydocks.The one used forNew Orleanscost the Confederacy $50,000,[1]was known as the Pelican Drydock[7]and had been based atAlgiers, Louisiana.[8]The conversion process ofNew Orleansalone consumed 70,000 feet (21,000 m) of pine boards, and 16 tons of iron sheathing. She had acasematefor protection of the guns and crew that consisted of a slanted wooden frame armored with iron. The naval historian Donald L. Canney states that the vessel's dimensions are unknown,[9]but historians Larry J. Daniel and Lynn N. Bock state that she measured 60 feet (18 m) by 180 feet (55 m).[10]Through the use of a pump, thedraftofNew Orleanscould be raised and lowered as needed, including far enough so that the portion protected by iron sheathing was low enough to be thewaterline.[10]Her designed armament was 20 cannons:[11]seventeen 8-inch (20 cm) pieces, two 32-pounder guns, and a 9-inch (23 cm)Dahlgren gun.[7]The 32-pounder guns wererifled artillery.[11]Additional self-defense was provided by a setup of boilers and pumps that allowedNew Orleans'crew to use hoses to squirt boiling water at any potential boarding parties. The setup also provided for intentional flooding of the ship's magazine if necessary.[1]New Orleanswas incapable of moving under her own power, and lacked living quarters for her crew, so thesidewheel steamerCSSRed Roverwas used to tow the floating battery around and house her crew. The two vessels shared most of their crew.[11]

Service history

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Map of the Confederate defenses at New Madrid and Island No. 10

New Orleanswascommissionedon October 14, 1861, commanded byLieutenantSamuel W. Averett.[12]First LieutenantJohn J. Guthrie commandedRed Rover.[11]On November 20,New Orleanswas sent up the Mississippi River from New Orleans, towed byCSSIvy.Red Roverleft New Orleans five days later, and later metIvyatColumbia, Arkansas,where it took over the process of towingNew Orleans.The floating battery reached Columbus on December 11.[13]The total crew of the floating battery numbered nine officers and about 25 enlisted men at the time that it left New Orleans.[14]At this time, it was armed with six 8-inchcolumbiads;[10]this differed from the designed armament of 20 guns.[11]On January 7, 1862,New Orleansprepared for action upon the approach ofUnion Navywarships, but the Union vessels withdrew after sighting the floating battery.[15]Four days later,Red RovertowedNew Orleansto accompany three other Confederate vessels in an operation that became theBattle of Lucas Bend.Red Rovercame under Union fire, and returned to Columbus, still towingNew Orleans.[16]

The Confederates abandoned Columbus on March 2 after Union victories at the battle ofFort HenryandFort Donelson,withdrawing toNew Madrid, Missouri,and the fortified position ofIsland No. 10.[17]Three 8-inch Columbiads were taken fromNew Orleansfor use in the land batteries at Island No. 10.[18]March 7 saw a cannon on the gunboatCSSMcRaeburst, and one of the floating battery guns was taken to replace it.[19]On March 13,New Orleanswas reported to have been armed with a single 32-pounder rifled cannon and eight 8-inch columbiads.[20]At Island No. 10, the vessel was positioned in a location near the island where it could fire on the north river channel that went past.[21]New Madrid was captured by Union troops on March 14, leaving the Confederates at Island No. 10 with only a tenuous supply route through a swamp toTiptonville, Tennessee.[22]The same day, the1st Alabama Infantry Regimentarrived at Island No. 10, and a company of the regiment was assigned to the floating battery to help serve the artillery.[23]Union artillery fired onNew Orleanson the night of March 17/18, although the Confederates claimedNew Orleanssilenced the guns with return fire.[24]

April 2 saw the floating battery moved to another position where it could fire on Union shore batteries. The Confederate fire was ineffective, andNew Orleanswas returned to her prior location. The Union Navy responded by bombarding the floating battery with three vessels, resulting in the floating battery suffering significant damage and one gun disabled. Its mooring cable was shot away, and the battery had to be retrieved by the transportOhio Belle.[25]On the night of April 4/5, the UnionironcladUSSCarondeletran past the Confederate batteries at Island No. 10 downriver to New Madrid.New Orleansjoined in with the Confederate shore defenses in firing at the ironclad, but the Union vessel did not suffer major damage.[26]The floating battery fired six or eight shots during the engagement.[27]Early on the morning of April 7, the ironcladUSSPittsburghcompleted another run past the island, and the Confederate defenders of Island No. 10 began evacuating on the night of April 7/8. Their retreat was blocked by Union Navy vessels early on the morning of April 8, and they surrendered. When Union forces approached the floating battery and the small force left behind at the island,New Orleanswasscuttledby her crew by opening valves that allowed water in.[28]This resulted in the battery becoming partially submerged.[29]The abandonedNew Orleansthen floated downstream, where it was fired on by Union batteries at New Madrid. It ran aground on theMissouribank of the river.[30]When Union troops examined her, they found five 8-inch Columbiads and a 32-pounder rifled gun aboard.[31]She was captured by Union forces and again used as a floating drydock; she was burned by Confederate forces in August or September 1863.[32]

See also

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References

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  1. ^abcChatelain 2020,p. 70.
  2. ^Chatelain 2020,pp. 7–10.
  3. ^Daniel & Bock 1996,p. 1.
  4. ^Chatelain 2020,p. 39.
  5. ^Chatelain 2020,p. 92.
  6. ^Hearn 1995,pp. 78–79.
  7. ^abCanney 2015,p. 176.
  8. ^Daniel & Bock 1996,p. 13.
  9. ^Canney 2015,pp. 176–177.
  10. ^abcDaniel & Bock 1996,p. 14.
  11. ^abcdeChatelain 2020,p. 71.
  12. ^Chatelain 2020,pp. 70–71.
  13. ^Chatelain 2020,p. 75.
  14. ^Dufour 1994,p. 106.
  15. ^Chatelain 2020,pp. 92–93.
  16. ^Chatelain 2020,p. 93.
  17. ^Chatelain 2020,p. 98.
  18. ^Daniel & Bock 1996,p. 30.
  19. ^Daniel & Bock 1996,p. 57.
  20. ^Daniel & Bock 1996,p. 34.
  21. ^Chatelain 2020,p. 109.
  22. ^Chatelain 2020,p. 108.
  23. ^Daniel & Bock 1996,p. 35.
  24. ^Chatelain 2020,p. 110.
  25. ^Daniel & Bock 1996,pp. 120–122.
  26. ^Chatelain 2020,p. 115.
  27. ^Daniel & Bock 1996,p. 126.
  28. ^Chatelain 2020,pp. 116–117.
  29. ^Daniel & Bock 1996,p. 136.
  30. ^Daniel & Bock 1996,p. 138.
  31. ^Canney 2015,p. 177.
  32. ^Gaines 2008,pp. 100–101.

Sources

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  • Canney, Donald L. (2015).The Confederate Steam Navy 1861–1865.Atglen, Pennsylvania:Schiffer Publishing.ISBN978-0-7643-4824-2.
  • Chatelain, Neil P. (2020).Defending the Arteries of Rebellion: Confederate Naval Operations in the Mississippi River Valley, 1861–1865.El Dorado Hills, California:Savas Beatie.ISBN978-1-61121-510-6.
  • Daniel, Larry J.; Bock, Lynn N. (1996).Island No. 10: Struggle for the Mississippi Valley.Tuscaloosa, Alabama:University of Alabama Press.ISBN0-8173-0816-4.
  • Dufour, Charles L. (1994) [1960].The Night the War Was Lost.Lincoln, Nebraska:University of Nebraska Press.ISBN0-8032-6599-9.
  • Gaines, W. Craig (2008).Encyclopedia of Civil War Shipwrecks.Baton Rouge, Louisiana:Louisiana State University Press.ISBN978-0-8071-3274-6.
  • Hearn, Chester G. (1995).The Capture of New Orleans 1862.Baton Rouge, Louisiana:Louisiana State University Press.ISBN0-8071-1945-8.

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