CSS Patrick Henry
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CSS ''Patrick Henry'' was a ship built in
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in 1859 by the renowned William H. Webb for the Old Dominion Steam Ship Line as the civilian steamer ''Yorktown'', a brigantine-rigged side-wheel steamer. She carried passengers and freight between
Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, a city in the United States * Richmond, London, a town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town ...
,
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...
, and
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
. ''Yorktown'' was anchored in the
James River The James River is a river in Virginia that begins in the Appalachian Mountains and flows from the confluence of the Cowpasture and Jackson Rivers in Botetourt County U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowli ...
when
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...
seceded from the Union on 17 April 1861 and was seized by the Virginia Navy and later turned over to the
Confederate Navy The Confederate States Navy (CSN) was the Navy, naval branch of the Confederate States Armed Forces, established by an act of the Confederate States Congress on February 21, 1861. It was responsible for Confederate naval operations during the Amer ...
on 8 June 1861.
Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many army, armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countri ...
John Randolph Tucker, who commanded the ship, directed that ''Yorktown'' be converted into a gunboat and renamed ''Patrick Henry'' in honor of
Patrick Henry Patrick Henry (May 29, 1736 ld Style and New Style dates, O.S. May 18, 1736une 6, 1799) was an American politician, planter and orator who declared to the Virginia Conventions, Second Virginia Convention (1775): "Give me liberty or give m ...
, the revolutionary patriot and
Founding Father The following is a list of national founders of sovereign states who were credited with establishing a state. National founders are typically those who played an influential role in setting up the systems of governance, (i.e., political system ...
. She also served as the first flagship of the James River Squadron.Historical Information
Library of Virginia. Retrieved 27 December 2016


Career

Still commonly referred to as ''Yorktown'', she was assigned to a position near Mulberry Island in the James River to protect the right flank of the Confederate Army of the Peninsula. On 13 September 1861 and again on 2 December, Commander Tucker took ''Patrick Henry'' down the river to a point about above
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, and opened fire on the Federal squadron at long range hoping to draw out some of the gunboats. The gambit was refused, but Tucker inflicted some minor damage. During the
Battle of Hampton Roads The Battle of Hampton Roads, also referred to as the Battle of the ''Monitor'' and ''Merrimack'' or the Battle of Ironclads, was a naval battle during the American Civil War. The battle was fought over two days, March 8 and 9, 1862, in Hampton ...
on 8 March 1862 in which CSS ''Virginia'' destroyed the Federal warships USS ''Cumberland'' and USS ''Congress'', ''Patrick Henry'' attempted to take the latter's surrender but was fired upon by shore batteries, and took a shell in her steam chest that killed four men. Towed out of action long enough to make repairs, she soon resumed her former position. During the historic 9 March 1862 action between ''Virginia'' and USS ''Monitor'', ''Patrick Henry'' fired long range at ''Monitor''. The Confederate Congress later accorded special thanks to all officers and men for their gallant conduct during the two-day battle. ''Patrick Henry'' was also present during some of ''Virginia''s other actions. In a daring night operation on 5 May 1862, she helped remove Confederate property from the
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before it was abandoned to the Federals. After the surrender of
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, on 10 May 1862, the James River Squadron, including ''Patrick Henry'', retired up the river to Drewry's Bluff, where pursuing Federal ships were repulsed on 15 May. ''Patrick Henry'' was designated an academy ship in May 1862 and underwent appropriate alterations. In October 1863, ''Patrick Henry'' housed the floating Confederate States Naval Academy at Drewry's Bluff, where instruction for 52 midshipmen began under the superintendency of
Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...
William Harwar Parker. Numbers later increased to sixty, with thirteen teachers in attendance. Sometimes she took part in action with the midshipmen on board. When Richmond was evacuated on 3 April 1865, ''Patrick Henry'' was burned to prevent capture. Her midshipmen were charged with the delivery of a treasury of some CS$500,000 to the new government seat of
Danville, Virginia Danville is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Virginia, Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. The city is located in the Southside (Virginia), Southside Virginia region and on the fall line of the Dan River ( ...
. When they were disbanded each were given $40 in gold to help them reach their homes.


Commanders

The commanders of the CSS ''Patrick Henry'' were:Coski (1996), John M. ''Capital Navy: The Men, Ships and Operations of the James River Squadron'', Campbell, CA: Savas Woodbury Publishers. . *Captain John Randolph Tucker (1861 – June 1862) *Lieutenant William Harwar Parker (1863-end of war)


See also

* Bibliography of American Civil War naval history * List of ships of the Confederate States Navy * Union Navy * USS ''Patrick Henry''


Further reading

*


Notes and references

*


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Patrick Henry Gunboats of the Confederate States Navy Shipwrecks of the American Civil War Shipwrecks of the James River Ship fires Maritime incidents in April 1865 Virginia in the American Civil War Ships built in New York City 1859 ships Ships built by William H. Webb