USS Cairo
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USS ''Cairo'' is one of the first American
ironclad warship An ironclad is a steam-propelled warship protected by iron or steel armor plates, constructed from 1859 to the early 1890s. The ironclad was developed as a result of the vulnerability of wooden warships to explosive or incendiary shells. Th ...
s built at the beginning of the
U.S. Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states t ...
. ''Cairo'' is the
lead ship The lead ship, name ship, or class leader is the first of a series or class of ships all constructed according to the same general design. The term is applicable to naval ships and large civilian vessels. Large ships are very complex and may ...
of the City-class
gunboat A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies. History Pre-ste ...
s and named for Cairo, Illinois. In June 1862, she captured the
Confederate Confederacy or confederate may refer to: States or communities * Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities * Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between 1 ...
garrison of Fort Pillow on the
Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...
, enabling
Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...
forces to occupy
Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Memp ...
. As part of the Yazoo Pass Expedition, she was sunk on 12 December 1862, while clearing mines for the attack on Haines Bluff. ''Cairo'' was the first ship ever to be sunk by a
mine Mine, mines, miners or mining may refer to: Extraction or digging * Miner, a person engaged in mining or digging *Mining, extraction of mineral resources from the ground through a mine Grammar *Mine, a first-person English possessive pronoun ...
remotely detonated by hand. The remains of ''Cairo'' can be viewed at
Vicksburg National Military Park Vicksburg National Military Park preserves the site of the American Civil War Battle of Vicksburg, waged from March 29 to July 4, 1863. The park, located in Vicksburg, Mississippi (flanking the Mississippi River), also commemorates the greater ...
with a museum of its weapons and naval stores.


Service in the American Civil War

''Cairo'' was built by James Eads and Co.,
Mound City, Illinois Mound City is a city and the county seat of Pulaski County, Illinois, United States. It is located along the Ohio River just north of its confluence with the Mississippi River. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 588. History Mound Ci ...
, in 1861, under contract to the United States Department of War. She was commissioned as part of the Union Army's Western Gunboat Flotilla, which had Union Navy, US Navy Lieutenant (navy), Lieutenant James M. Prichett in command. ''Cairo'' served with the Army's Western Gunboat Flotilla on the Mississippi River, Mississippi and Ohio Rivers, and their tributaries until she was transferred to the Navy on 1 October 1862, with the other river gunboats. She was commanded by Flag Officer Andrew Hull Foote. Active in the occupation of Clarksville, Tennessee, 17 February 1862, and of Nashville, Tennessee, 25 February, ''Cairo'' stood down the river on 12 April, escorting Bomb vessel, mortar boats to begin the lengthy operations against Fort Pillow. An engagement with Confederate gunboats at Battle of Plum Point Bend, Plum Point Bend on 11 May, marked a series of blockading and bombardment activities which culminated into the abandonment of the fort by its defenders on 4 June. On 6 June 1862, two days later, ''Cairo'' joined in the triumph of seven Union ships and a tug over eight Confederate gunboats off Memphis. Five of the opposing gunboats were sunk or run ashore during this action; two were seriously damaged, and one managed to escape. That night, Union forces occupied the city. ''Cairo'' returned to patrol on the Mississippi until 21 November, when she joined the Yazoo Pass Expedition. On 12 December 1862, while clearing mines from the river, preparatory to the attack on Chickasaw Bluff, Haines Bluff, ''Cairo'' struck a "torpedo" (or Controlled mines, naval mine) detonated by volunteers hidden behind the river bank and sank in 12 minutes. There were no casualties.


Armament

Like many of the Mississippi theatre ironclads, ''Cairo'' had her Weapon, armament changed over the life of the vessel. To speed up her entrance into the service, ''Cairo'' and the other City-class ships were fitted with whatever weapons were on hand, then had their weapons upgraded as new pieces were made available. Though the smoothbore Dahlgren guns were fairly modern, most of the other original weapons were antiquated, such as the 32-pounders, or modified, such as the 42-pounder "rifles". These were old smoothbores that had been made into rifles. The 42-pounder weapons were of particular concern to military commanders because they were structurally weaker and more prone to exploding than purpose-built rifled cannons. Additionally, the close confines of combat on the rivers greatly increased the threat of boarding parties. The 12-pounder howitzer was equipped to address that concern and was not used in regular combat.Canney, Donald L. ''The Old Steam navy, Volume II, the Ironclads 1842–1885'', pub US Naval Institute, 1993,


Discovery of the wreck

Over the years, the gunboat was forgotten and slowly covered by silt and sand. Impacted in mud, ''Cairo'' became a time capsule in which her unique, historical artifacts were preserved against corrosion and biological degradation. Her whereabouts became a matter of speculation, as members of the crew had died and local residents were unsure of the location. Studying Civil War maps, Ed Bearss, Edwin C. Bearss of
Vicksburg National Military Park Vicksburg National Military Park preserves the site of the American Civil War Battle of Vicksburg, waged from March 29 to July 4, 1863. The park, located in Vicksburg, Mississippi (flanking the Mississippi River), also commemorates the greater ...
set out to search for the lost ship using a simple magnetic compass. With the assistance of Don Jacks and Warren Grabau, the ship was found in 1956. In 1960, numerous artifacts were recovered from the ship, including the pilothouse and an 8-inch cannon, both preserved by the Yazoo River mud. With support from the State of Mississippi, State Senator Homer Vernon Cooper, H.V. Cooper and local authorities, the gunboat was salvaged from the bottom of the river.


Salvage and museum

Hopes of lifting the ironclad and her cargo of artifacts intact were crushed in October 1964, when the 3-inch cables being used to lift ''Cairo'' cut deeply into its wooden hull. It then became a question of saving as much of the vessel as possible. A decision was made to cut ''Cairo'' into three sections. By the end of December, the battered remains were put on barges and towed to Vicksburg, Mississippi. In the summer of 1965, the barges carrying ''Cairo'' were towed to Ingalls Shipyard on the Gulf Coast in Pascagoula, Mississippi. There the armor was removed, cleaned, and stored. The two engines were taken apart, cleaned and reassembled. Sections of the hull were braced internally and a sprinkler system was operated continually to keep the white oak structural timbers from witk:warp, warping and wikt:checking, checking. On 3 September 1971, ''Cairo'' was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In 1972, the United States Congress, U.S. Congress enacted legislation authorizing the National Park Service to accept the title to ''Cairo'' and restore the gunboat for display in
Vicksburg National Military Park Vicksburg National Military Park preserves the site of the American Civil War Battle of Vicksburg, waged from March 29 to July 4, 1863. The park, located in Vicksburg, Mississippi (flanking the Mississippi River), also commemorates the greater ...
. Delays in funding the project halted progress until June 1977, when the vessel was transported to the park and partially reconstructed on a concrete foundation near the Vicksburg National Cemetery. A shelter to cover the vessel was completed in October 1980, with the museum opening in November. The original space-frame shelter has since been replaced by a tension-fabric system to provide better cover. The recovery of artifacts from ''Cairo'' revealed a treasure trove of weapons, ammunition, naval stores, and personal gear of the sailors who served on board. The gunboat and its artifacts can now be seen along the tour road at the USS ''Cairo'' Museum. These include a sailor's rope knife in good condition. Since salvage, ''Cairo'' has suffered degradation due to exposure to the elements, bird droppings, and vandalism. There are only four surviving Civil War-era ironclads in existence: , , USS ''Cairo'', and CSS Muscogee, CSS ''Muscogee''.


See also

*Anaconda Plan *Mississippi Squadron *Union Navy *List of United States Navy ships


Notes


References

* * * ** * * ''This article includes information from the National Park Service and is in the public domain.''


External links

*
USS Cairo Gunboat and Museum
*
Drive On Documentary about James Eads building the City Class Ironclads
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cairo Ships of the Union Navy Ships built in Mound City, Illinois Steamships of the United States Navy Gunboats of the United States Navy American Civil War patrol vessels of the United States 1861 ships Ships sunk by mines Shipwrecks of the Yazoo River Shipwrecks of the American Civil War Mississippi in the American Civil War Museum ships in Mississippi Museums in Warren County, Mississippi American Civil War museums in Mississippi Naval museums in the United States American Civil War on the National Register of Historic Places Ships preserved in museums Buildings and structures in Vicksburg, Mississippi Ironclad warships of the Union Navy Vicksburg National Military Park Historic American Engineering Record in Mississippi National Register of Historic Places in Warren County, Mississippi Shipwrecks on the National Register of Historic Places in Mississippi Maritime incidents in December 1862 1956 archaeological discoveries