USS Mingoe

USS Mingoe was a large double-ended, side wheel, ironclad[1] steamer gunboat commissioned by the Union Navy during the American Civil War. With heavy guns and a very fast speed of 11 kn (13 mph; 20 km/h), the ship was intended by the Union Navy for use as a bombardment gunboat. They also stationed it as an interceptor gunboat off Confederate waterways to prevent trading with foreign countries.

For ships with similar names, see USS Mingo.
History
United States
NameMingoe
BuilderD. S. Mershon
Cost$157,000
Laid down1862
Launched6 August 1863
Commissioned29 July 1864
Out of service1865
Fatesold, 3 October 1867
General characteristics
Class and typeSassacus-class gunboat
Displacement974 tons
Length205 ft (62 m)
Beam35 ft (11 m)
Draft6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Propulsion
Sail planSchooner
Speed11 knots (20 km/h; 13 mph)
Complement163/200
Armament
  • two 100-pounder guns
  • two 24-pounder guns
  • two 20-pounder guns
  • one heavy 12-pounder gun
  • one 12-pounder gun
Armoriron clad above waterline

Service history

An ironclad, side wheel, steam gunboat, with schooner rigging, Mingoe was built under contract with Daniel S. Mershon, Jr. at Bordentown, New Jersey, at a shipyard located along the Delaware River.[2] The ship was named after the Mingo people, an Iroquoian-speaking group that had been based in western Ohio in the early nineteenth century. She was based on the same plans as Sassacus. She was reported "laid down" and under construction in Bordentown by the Navy Department on October 15, 1862.[3][4] By January 31, 1863 the keel had been laid.[5] The ship's armor consisted of iron cladding the sides above the water sufficiently to protect the men on deck.[6] By May 29, 1863 the ship was so far along in construction, the New York Times predicted that she would be launched on June 10.[7] She was launched 6 August 1863, and commissioned 29 July 1864 at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Comdr. J. B. Creighton in command.

USS Mingoe joined the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron on 13 August 1864 and performed blockade duty in the St. Johns River and off Charleston, South Carolina, until the end of the year. In February 1865, the Navy used her to assist General William Tecumseh Sherman’s Army in its advance up the James River. After the end of the conflict, Mingoe returned to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The ship was laid up at League Island until sold 3 October 1867.

References
  1. "THE BLOCKADING SERVICE.; Arrival of the Supply Steamer Union--Capture of a Prize. Naval. OUR IRON-CLAD FLEET. Alleged Rebel Project for the Reinvasion of Maryland and Pennsylvania". New York Times. May 22, 1863. Retrieved September 22, 2016.
  2. United States (1921). Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion. United States Naval War Records Office Government Printing Office. p. 145.
  3. Childs, George (1863). The National Almanac and Annual Record for the Year 1863-64. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: George W. Childs. p. 115. Retrieved September 23, 2016.
  4. Silverstone, Paul (2006). Civil War Navies, 1855-1883. Routledge. pp. 38–39.
  5. "Naval Affairs.; LAUNCH OF A MAN-OF-WAR DESCRIPTION OF THE VESSEL THE FLEET TO WHICH IT BELONGS". New York Times. January 31, 1863. Retrieved September 23, 2016.
  6. "Naval Affairs.; LAUNCH OF A MAN-OF-WAR DESCRIPTION OF THE VESSEL THE FLEET TO WHICH IT BELONGS". New York Times. January 31, 1863. Retrieved September 23, 2016.
  7. "LOCAL INTELLIGENCE.; Naval. CHIEF-ENGINEER STIMERS IN TROUBLE". New York Times. May 29, 1863. Retrieved September 26, 2016.
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