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USS Wabash

History of USS Wabash

USS Wabash entered the inventory of the United States Navy (USN) prior to the American Civil War (1861-1865). It played a vital role in the conflict, operating along the Atlantic coast and ending the war in a short career.

Surprisingly, despite its origins in the mid-1850s, the steam-spiral frigate was not phased out until 1912. Wabash was laid on May 16, 1854, and launched on October 24, 1855. She was commissioned into the U.S. Navy on August 18, 1859.

At the time of her service, the warship was the first ship in the U.S. Navy to be named "Wabash".

When completed, the Wabash had a displacement of 4,800 tons, a length of 301.5 feet, a beam of 51.3 feet, and a draft of 23 feet. Power comes from the use of a combined arrangement of schooner-type sails and a steam engine, which under ideal conditions propels the vessel to a speed of 9 knots.

Her crew number 642, armament consisted of 2 x 10" Dahlgren smoothbore main guns, 24 to 28 x 9" Dahlgren smoothbore secondary guns, 14 x 8" Dahlgren smoothbore guns and 2 x 12 pounder smoothbore guns.

During the Civil War in July 1863, Wabash's armament plan was revised to include 1 x 150-pound rifled, 2 x 100-pound rifled, 1 x 10-inch Dahlgren smoothbore, 42 x 9-inch Dahlgren, 1 x 30-pound rifled gun and 1 x 12-pound howitzer. The last armament revision took place in 1865.

She is now armed with 1 x 150 pounder main rifle, 1 x 10" Dahlgren smoothbore, 42 x 9" Dahlgren, 4 x 32 pounder and 1 x 30 pounder with rifled barrel.

Her first service was with the Home Squadron, sailing until her retirement on March 1, 1858. She returned to service in May and served as flagship of the Mediterranean Squadron until she was decommissioned again on 20 December 1859.

With the outbreak of the American Civil War in 1861, she was called into action again (May 16 this year) and served as the flagship of the Atlantic Blockade Squadron.

USS Wabash received several Confederate war awards before participating in the August 1961 occupation of Hatterasburg and Fort Clark. From there, she was assigned to the South Atlantic Blockade Squadron and helped capture Port Royal, South Carolina in October.

Their powerful weapons are put to good use. This is especially important because the port would serve as a useful joint naval base for blockade operations in Charleston, South Carolina, and Wilmington, North Carolina.

In April 1862, Wabash helped force Confederates to surrender at Fort Pulaski, Georgia, as part of the Charleston Blockade. She then participated in the Battle of Pocotaligo (South Carolina) in Octoberan annual Confederate victory.

In April 1864, CSS David's torpedo attack on Wabash was thwarted by an alert crew member. By the end of 1864, she was assigned to the North Atlantic Blockade Squadron and attacked Fort Fisher, North Carolina in December. The fort fell next month.

Her next stop was Hampton Roads, then the Boston Naval Shipyard, where she was decommissioned on February 14, 1865.

In the early 1870s, the ship was overhauled and returned to service on October 24, 1871. Once again stationed in the Mediterranean Squadron as flagship, she finally returned to her home waters in January 1874, and was finally decommissioned on April 25 of that year.

From 1876 to 1912, she served as a receiving ship for U.S. Navy recruits until she was officially removed from the Navy register in Novemberher hull was sold and burned.

The USS Wabash is the sister ship of the USS Colorado (1858) - another American Civil War veteran. She shares the same design plan as the pilot boat of the two-man class.