USS ''Chenango'' was a side-wheel steamer in the service of the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

. ''Chenango'' was launched on 19 March 1863 by J. Simonson,

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; outfitted at

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; and commissioned on 29 February 1864. ''Chenango'', the first Navy ship of the name, was named after the Chenango river, county, and town in

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State.

Boiler explosion on initial cruise

Assigned to the

South Atlantic Blockading Squadron The Atlantic Blockading Squadron was a unit of the United States Navy created in the early days of the American Civil War to enforce the Union blockade of the ports of the Confederate States. It was formed in 1861 and split up the same year for th ...

, ''Chenango'' left

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for

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on 15 April 1864. Before she reached the open sea, her port

boiler A boiler is a closed vessel in which fluid (generally water) is heated. The fluid does not necessarily boil. The heated or vaporized fluid exits the boiler for use in various processes or heating applications, including water heating, centra ...

exploded, scalding 33 men, 28 fatally, with another suffering a head concussion from collateral damage. A raging fire was brought under control and extinguished by the courageous work of her crew, and the ship was towed back to New York for repairs. Placed out of commission on 21 April 1864, ''Chenango'' was ready for action and re-commissioned on 1 February 1865.

Blockade duties

Sailing from New York on 17 February 1865, ''Chenango'' joined her squadron at

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the List of municipalities in South Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint of South Carolina's coastline on Charleston Harbor, an inlet of the Atla ...

, on the 20th, and until May played an important part in the closing phases of the squadron's long and successful efforts to keep the

Confederacy A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

cut off from overseas supply, one of the Navy's great contributions to Union victory. She operated in the Charleston area as well as along the

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coast, and on 25 February captured the

blockade runner A blockade runner is a merchant vessel used for evading a naval blockade of a port or strait. It is usually light and fast, using stealth and speed rather than confronting the blockaders in order to break the blockade. Blockade runners usua ...

, laden with

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and

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. Twice she performed reconnaissance, and on 9 March she engaged a Southern force at Brown's Ferry on the Black River. One of her men was wounded in this exchange of fire.

Decommissioning

''Chenango'' cleared Charleston on 16 May 1865, towing the armed steamer to

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, where she arrived on 20 May, was decommissioned on 1 July 1865, and sold 28 October 1868.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chenango Steamships of the United States Navy Ships built in Brooklyn Ships of the Union Navy Sassacus-class gunboats American Civil War patrol vessels of the United States 1863 ships Maritime boiler explosions

Boiler explosion on initial cruise

Blockade duties

Decommissioning

See also

References