 U. S. S. Huron, which was lost Nov. 24, 1877 near Oregon Inlet, North Carolina | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | USSHuron |
| Namesake | Lake Huron |
| Builder | John Roach & Sons |
| Laid down | 1873 |
| Launched | 1875 |
| Commissioned | 15 November 1875 |
| Fate | Wrecked 24 November 1877 |
| Notes | 98 of crew lost; 34 saved |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Gunboat |
| Displacement | 1,020 long tons (1,040 t) |
| Length | 175 ft (53 m) |
| Beam | 32 ft (9.8 m) |
| Depth of hold | 15 ft (4.6 m) |
| Armament | 1 × 11 in (280 mm)Dahlgren gun, 2 × 9 in (230 mm) Dahlgren guns, 1 × 60 pdr (27 kg)Parrott rifle, 1 × 12 pdr (5.4 kg)howitzer, 1 ×Gatling gun |
USSHuron | |
| Nearest city | Nags Head, North Carolina |
| Area | 1.6 acres (0.65 ha) |
| Built | 1877 |
| Architect | Delaware River Shipbuilding Co. |
| Architectural style | Alert-class Sloop of War |
| NRHP reference No. | 91001625[1] |
| Added to NRHP | 15 November 1991 |
USSHuron was an iron-hulledgunboat of theUnited States Navy. She was a screwsteamer with full-rig auxiliary sail, built byJohn Roach & Sons inChester, Pennsylvania from 1873 to 1875 and commissioned atPhiladelphia Navy Yard on 15 November 1875.
Huron arrived on 11 December 1875 for duty at theNorfolk Navy Yard, and spent the next two years cruising in theCaribbean and theGulf of Mexico. She stopped atVeracruz andKey West on her first cruise, returning toPort Royal on 4 August 1876 and visited many Caribbean and Venezuelan ports from March–June 1877.
After repairs atNew York Navy Yard in August, the ship sailed toHampton Roads, and departed on 23 November 1877 for a scientific cruise on the coast ofCuba. Soon after her departure,Huron ran aground[2] offNags Head, North Carolina in heavy weather, and was wrecked shortly after 1 a.m. next morning. For a time, her crew worked in relatively little danger, attempting to free their ship, but she soon heeled over, carrying 98 officers and men to their deaths. Of the fatalities 83 remains were recovered and buried; of which the remains of 8 officers and 61 men were identified while 14 others could not be identified.[3][4]
Today, theHuron wreck can be dived (Scuba or free dived) from shore. The bow of the wreck GPS coordinates are 35.97751, -75.63092 which is around 250 yard swim from shore. The wreck is often marked with a buoy during the summer months.
This article incorporates text from thepublic domainDictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be foundhere.
Media related toUSS Huron (ship, 1875) at Wikimedia Commons
