USS Uncas (1843)
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USS Uncas, with steam sloop USS Tuscarora and gunboat USS Winona, escort U.S. Army transports on their way to capture Roanoke Island and cut Albemarle Sound off from the sea early in 1862 during the American Civil War.
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| History | |
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 United States
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| Name: | USS Uncas |
| Namesake: | Uncas (c. 1588 - c. 1683), a sachem of the Mohegan tribe |
| Laid down: | date unknown |
| Launched: | 1843 |
| Acquired: | 20 September 1861 |
| In service: |
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| Out of service: |
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| Struck: | 1863 |
| Fate: | Sold 21 August 1863 |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 192 tons |
| Length: | 118 ft 6 in (36.12 m) |
| Beam: | 23 ft 4 in (7.11 m) |
| Draught: | 7 ft 6 in (2.29 m) |
| Propulsion: | Steam engine, screw-propelled |
| Speed: | 11.5 knots |
| Armament: |
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The first USS Uncas was a 192-ton steamer acquired by the Union Navy during the American Civil War.
Uncas was used as a gunship by the Navy to patrol navigable waterways of the Confederacy to prevent the South from trading with other countries.
Uncas—a screw steamer built at New York City in 1843—was purchased by the Navy there on 20 September 1861 from Dudley Buck for use with the U.S. Coast Survey. She was refitted at the New York Navy Yard from September 1861 to February 1862 and placed in service early in March, Acting Master Lemuel G. Crane commanding.
However, before Uncas could begin her duties for the Coast Survey, the Confederate ironclad ram CSS Virginia attacked the Union warships blockading Hampton Roads, Virginia, sinking frigates Cumberland and Congress and endangering their consorts. As a result of the havoc created by the resurrected Merrimack, Uncas was sent to Hampton Roads to strengthen the Union naval forces still afloat there.
She had arrived in that strategic roadstead by 14 March and, three days later, was officially transferred to the Navy and assigned to the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron. Unfortunately, by that time, Uncas' brief service had revealed serious deficiencies in the ship; and she was ordered to Baltimore, Maryland, for repairs.
While she was being readied for action, the Navy again changed its plans for the vessel and sent her to the western part of the Gulf of Mexico where Flag Officer David Farragut was preparing for his daring attack on New Orleans, Louisiana.
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Wikipedia