 The USSSantee moored at the United States Naval Academy, 1905 as a Barracks Ship. | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Laid down | 1820 |
| Launched | 16 February 1855 |
| Commissioned | 9 June 1861 |
| Fate |
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| General characteristics | |
| Tonnage | 1726 |
| Length | 190 ft (58 m) (between perpendiculars) |
| Beam | 45 ft (14 m) |
| Depth of hold | 14 ft 5 in (4.39 m) |
| Propulsion | sail |
| Complement | 480 officers and enlisted |
| Armament |
|
USSSantee was a wooden-hulled, three-masted sailingfrigate of theUnited States Navy. She was the first U.S. Navy ship to be so named and was one of its lastsailing frigates in service. She was acquired by theUnion Navy at the start of theAmerican Civil War, outfitted with heavy guns and a crew of 480, and was assigned as agunboat in theUnion blockade of theConfederate States. She later became atraining ship then abarracks ship for theU.S. Naval Academy.
Rated at 44 guns, she was laid down in 1820 by thePortsmouth Navy Yard, but due to a shortage of funds, she long remained uncompleted on the stocks. She was finally launched on 16 February 1855, but not commissioned until 9 June 1861, Captain Henry Eagle in command.[1]Santee departedPortsmouth, New Hampshire on 20 June 1861, stopped atHampton Roads, Virginia to load ammunition, and resumed her voyage to theGulf of Mexico on 10 July.[1] On 8 August, thefrigate captured theschoonerC. P. Knapp in the gulf some 350 miles south ofPensacola and escorted theblockade runner to that port. On 27 October,Santee took her second prize,Delta, offGalveston; thehermaphrodite brig had attempted to slip into Galveston with a cargo of salt fromLiverpool.[1]
Shortly before midnight on 7 November, boats left the frigate and enteredGalveston Bay hoping to capture and burn the Confederate armed steamer,General Rusk. However, in attempting to avoid detection, the boats ran aground.[1] Since he had lost the advantage of surprise, the expedition's commander, Lt.James Edward Jouett, cancelled his plans to attackGeneral Rusk and turned his attention to the chartered Confederate lookout vessel,CS Royal Yacht. After a desperate hand-to-hand fight, he capturedRoyal Yacht's crew, set the armed schooner afire, and retired toSantee with about a dozen prisoners.[1] During the action, one man from the frigate was killed and two of her officers and six of her men were wounded, one mortally.[1] A young 15-year-old sailor namedJames Henry Carpenter was wounded in the thigh and mentioned in dispatches due to his actions. Carpenter would becomeSantee's actingMaster's mate and would serve again onSantee when she served as a school ship for theUnited States Naval Academy.[2] Another ofSantee's sailors,George H. Bell, was awarded theMedal of Honor for his part in the action.[3]
On 30 December, after a five or six-mile chase on boats fromSantee, they captured 14-ton Confederate schooner,Garonne. Captain Eagle stripped the prize for use as alighter.[1] In January 1862, when the Union naval force in the Gulf of Mexico was divided into two squadrons,Santee was assigned to Flag OfficerDavid Farragut's newWest Gulf Blockading Squadron. Under the new organization,Santee continued to blockade theTexas coast, primarily off Galveston, until summer. Then, becausescurvy had weakened the frigate's crew and the enlistments of many of her sailors had expired, the ship sailed north. She reachedBoston, Massachusetts on 22 August and was decommissioned on 4 September.[1]
Refitted at theBoston Navy Yard, the ship was recommissioned there exactly a month later and sailed forNewport, Rhode Island, to serve as aschool ship at the Naval Academy, which had been moved there fromAnnapolis, Maryland, for security during the Civil War. At Newport,midshipmen lived, studied, and attended classes in frigatesSantee andConstitution as they prepared for positions of leadership in the Union Navy.[1] After the close of the Civil War, the Naval Academy returned to Annapolis, Maryland, andSantee, carrying midshipmen, sailed for that port and moored nearFort Severn on 2 August 1865. There, she continued her duty as school ship which she had performed at Newport.[1]
In 1866, she became a gunnery ship and was used by midshipmen to master the art of naval gunnery. About the same time, the frigate began to be used as abarracks ship for midshipmen being punished and for new fourthclassmen receiving their first taste of Navy life.[1]
Before dawn on 2 April 1912, after a half a century of duty as an educator,Santee sank at her mooring. Efforts to refloat the frigate proved unsuccessful.[1] She was sold toHenry A. Hitner's Sons Company, ofPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania, on 2 August 1912, the anniversary of her arrival at Annapolis. After six months of effort, she was finally raised; and, on 8 May 1913,Santee departed theSevern River under tow and proceeded to Boston, where she was burned for thecopper andbrass in her hull.[1]
This article incorporates text from thepublic domainDictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be foundhere.
Media related toUSS Santee (ship, 1855) at Wikimedia CommonsShipwrecks and maritime incidents in 1912 | |
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Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in 1913 | |
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| Other incidents |
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