USS Clematis (1863)

USS Clematis (1863) was a steamer acquired by the Union Navy during the American Civil War. She was used by the Union Navy to patrol navigable waterways of the Confederacy to prevent the South from trading with other countries.

History
United States
Laid down: date unknown
Launched: 1863
Acquired: 2 August 1864
Commissioned: 14 September 1864
Decommissioned: 6 June 1866
Stricken: 1866 (est.)
Fate: sold, 26 November 1866
General characteristics
Displacement: 297 tons
Length: 127 ft (39 m)
Beam: 22 ft (6.7 m)
Draught: 10 ft (3.0 m)
Propulsion: steam engine
Speed: 12 knots
Complement: 46
Armament:
  • one 30-pounder rifle
  • two 12-pounder smoothbore guns

Clematis, a steam tugboat, was built in 1863 at Cleveland, Ohio, and purchased by the Navy 2 August 1864. She was taken to New York Navy Yard to be outfitted, and placed in commission there 14 September 1864, Acting Volunteer Lieutenant Elias D. Bruner in command.

North Atlantic Blockade operations

Departing New York 4 October 1864 with the monitor Mahopac in tow, Clematis arrived at Fort Monroe, Virginia, 6 October. She operated as a tug in the James and Elizabeth Rivers and at Norfolk Navy Yard until 5 November when she sailed for duty on the blockade off Wilmington, North Carolina.

Gulf Coast Blockade operations

After repairs in Norfolk, Virginia, from 13 December 1864, Clematis again served up the James River in March and April 1865. On 27 April she cleared Fort Monroe, Virginia, for Mobile, Alabama, arriving 21 May 1865. Retained in service at the close of the Civil War, she served the Gulf Squadron until 23 May 1866 when she sailed for Philadelphia Navy Yard, arriving 31 May.

Final decommissioning and sale

She was placed out of commission 6 June 1866 and sold 26 November 1866.

References

This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.

See also

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