USS ''Ino'' was a

clipper ship A clipper was a type of mid-19th-century Merchant ship, merchant Sailing ship, sailing vessel, designed for speed. The term was also retrospectively applied to the Baltimore clipper, which originated in the late 18th century. Clippers were gen ...

acquired by the Union Navy during the course of 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 ...

. She was capable of great speed and distance, and was a formidable

warship A warship or combatant ship is a naval ship that is used for naval warfare. Usually they belong to the navy branch of the armed forces of a nation, though they have also been operated by individuals, cooperatives and corporations. As well as b ...

with powerful guns. ''Ino'' was a clipper ship, purchased at

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, Massachusetts, 30 August 1861 and commissioned at the

Boston Navy Yard The Boston Navy Yard, originally called the Charlestown Navy Yard and later Boston Naval Shipyard, was one of the oldest shipbuilding facilities in the United States Navy. It was established in 1801 as part of the recent establishment of t ...

23 September, Lt. J. P. Cressy in command. Unusual speed and large storage space suited her ideally for long-range cruising against

Confederate 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 ...

commerce raiders Commerce raiding is a form of naval warfare used to destroy or disrupt logistics of the enemy on the open sea by attacking its merchant shipping, rather than engaging its combatants or enforcing a blockade against them. Privateering is a form ...

Privateer Hunting

Her first duty began 27 September when she departed

, Massachusetts, in search of "rebel pirates." When word came that the South's famed cruiser CSS ''Sumter'', under the brilliant master of seamanship, Captain

Raphael Semmes Raphael Semmes ( ; September 27, 1809 – August 30, 1877) was an officer in the Confederate Navy during the American Civil War. He had served as an officer in the United States Navy from 1826 to 1860. During the American Civil War, Semmes was c ...

, was in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

an waters, ''Ino'' sailed from Boston 5 February 1862 and reached Cadiz, Spain, only 13 days and 16 hours later. She assisted and to blockade Semmes at

Gibraltar Gibraltar ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory and British overseas cities, city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Bay of Gibraltar, near the exit of the Mediterranean Sea into the A ...

where he vainly sought repairs. Semmes finally abandoned ''Sumter'' there in order to get back into action. An interesting side light to this operation occurred at

Tangier Tangier ( ; , , ) is a city in northwestern Morocco, on the coasts of the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. The city is the capital city, capital of the Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima region, as well as the Tangier-Assilah Prefecture of Moroc ...

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

26 February when ''Ino'' took two crewmen of ''Sumter'' from a threatening mob and turned the prisoners over to the Boston-bound American merchant ship ''Harvest Home''.

Stateside operations

Back in Boston, ''Ino'' was ordered to

Port Royal, South Carolina Port Royal is a town on Port Royal Island in Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 14,220 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Hilton Head Island–Bluffton metropolitan area. Port Royal is home to Marine Corps R ...

, for duty in 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 ...

4 August 1862. On her voyage south she captured the French bark ''La Manche'' attempting to run the

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 ...

blockade A blockade is the act of actively preventing a country or region from receiving or sending out food, supplies, weapons, or communications, and sometimes people, by military force. A blockade differs from an embargo or sanction, which are ...

23 August.

Searching for Semmes again

Six days later she arrived at St. George, Bermuda, to obtain from the American consul the latest information on blockade running activity in that quarter. She got underway the next day at the behest of the neutrality-conscious governor of

Bermuda Bermuda is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. The closest land outside the territory is in the American state of North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. Bermuda is an ...

and made Port Royal 7 September. Only 4 days later she set sail for

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

to be prepared for a cruise in search of her old adversary, Semmes, who was now attacking northern merchantmen with his new raider, . ''Ino'' departed New York 5 November and cruised in the lanes frequented by American merchantmen and whalers, arriving at

St. Helena Saint Helena (, ) is one of the three constituent parts of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, a remote British overseas territory. Saint Helena is a volcanic and tropical island, located in the South Atlantic Ocean, some 1,874 km ...

5 January 1863. She remained in waters off

until setting course for the United States 1 March. She arrived New York 15 April for repairs. ''Ino'' departed New York 29 May 1863 escorting

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

-bound clipper ''Aquilla'' carrying the disassembled parts of monitor ''Comanche''. After successfully shepherding her charge to safe waters well below the

equator The equator is the circle of latitude that divides Earth into the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Southern Hemisphere, Southern Hemispheres of Earth, hemispheres. It is an imaginary line located at 0 degrees latitude, about in circumferen ...

, she searched for and in waters ranging to the island of

Fernando de Noronha Fernando de Noronha (), officially the State District of Fernando de Noronha () and formerly known as the Federal Territory of Fernando de Noronha () until 1988, is an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, part of the state of Pernambuco, Brazil, and ...

, thence to New York, arriving 7 September 1863.

Disguised as a merchantman in order to lure CSS Florida

After repairs at New York, ''Ino'' joined the

North Atlantic Blockading Squadron The Union blockade in the American Civil War was a naval strategy by the United States to prevent the Confederacy from trading. The blockade was proclaimed by President Abraham Lincoln in April 1861, and required the monitoring of of Atlantic ...

. Disguised as a merchantman to lure into action, she cruised in the North

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...

24 October when she arrived

Portland, Maine Portland is the List of municipalities in Maine, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine and the county seat, seat of Cumberland County, Maine, Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 at the 2020 census. The Portland metropolit ...

. ''Ino'' was transferred to the

East Gulf Blockading Squadron The Union blockade in the American Civil War was a naval strategy by the United States to prevent the Confederacy from trading. The blockade was proclaimed by President Abraham Lincoln in April 1861, and required the monitoring of of Atlantic ...

22 November where she served until after the end of the war. She returned to New York 1 August 1865 and remained there under repairs until 16 October when she sailed to serve in the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...

and off the coast of

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

Post-war decommissioning and sale

''Ino'' set-course for the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

13 December 1866 and arrived Boston 25 January 1867. She decommissioned there 13 February and was sold at public auction 19 March 1867 to Samuel G. Reed. After the sale, the ship was renamed ''Shooting Star'' (not to be confused with the

-built clipper of the same name).

References

External links

Passenger List, Clipper Ship ''Ino'', Arrived San Francisco from New York, July 12, 1852

Painting of clipper ship ''Ino''
, Mystic Seaport Museum {{DEFAULTSORT:Ino Ships of the Union Navy California clippers Barques Individual sailing vessels Age of Sail merchant ships of the United States Merchant ships of Finland Ships built in New York (state) 1851 ships