USS Black Hawk (1848)
| 300px USS Black Hawk | |
| Career (US) | Union Navy Jack 100x35px |
|---|---|
| Ordered: | as New Uncle Sam |
| Laid down: | date unknown |
| Launched: | 1848 |
| Acquired: | 24 November 1862 |
| Commissioned: | 6 December 1862 |
| Out of service: | 22 April 1865 |
| Struck: | 1867 (est.) |
| Fate: | sold, April 1867 |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 902 tons |
| Length: | 260 ft (79 m) |
| Beam: | 45 ft 6 in (13.87 m) |
| Draught: | depth of hold 8' |
| Propulsion: |
steam engine side wheel-propelled |
| Speed: | not known |
| Complement: | not known |
| Armament: |
four 32-pounder smoothbores two 30-pounder rifled guns one 12-pounder rifled gun one 12-pounder smoothbore |
| Armour: | tinclad |
USS Black Hawk (1848) was a large steamer purchased by the Union Navy during the American Civil War.
She was assigned by the Union Navy to gunship duty in the waterways of the rebellious Confederate States of America.
Contents
Built as New Uncle Sam at New Albany, Indiana, in 1848
Black Hawk, a side-wheel river steamer, was built in 1848 as Uncle Sam at New Albany, Indiana; purchased by the Navy at Cairo, Illinois, 24 November 1862 as New Uncle Sam; commissioned 6 December 1862, Lieutenant Commander K. R. Breese in command; and renamed Black Hawk 13 December 1862.
Civil War service
During most of her service Black Hawk served as flagship for Rear Admirals David Dixon Porter and Samuel Phillips Lee, successive commanders of the Mississippi Squadron.
She participated in the following operations:
- Vicksburg, Mississippi (December 1862)
- capture of Fort Hindman, Arkansas (11 January 1863)
- attack on Haines Bluff, Mississippi (29 April-2 May)
- siege of Vicksburg (19 May-4 July)
- Red river Expedition (12 March-29 May 1864)
Subsequent patrols and sinking
Thereafter she patrolled in the Mississippi River and its tributaries. On 22 April 1865 she accidentally burned and sank, three miles above Cairo, Illinois. Her wreck was raised and sold at St. Louis, Missouri, in April 1867.
References
- This article includes text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
See also
- Pages with broken file links
- Wikipedia articles incorporating text from the Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships
- Ships of the Union Navy
- United States Navy steamships
- Gunboats of the United States Navy
- American Civil War patrol vessels of the United States
- Ships built in Indiana
- Shipwrecks of the Mississippi River
- 1848 ships
