USS Sangamon (1862)
| The USS Jason at New York during the Spanish-American War. |
The USS Jason at New York during the Spanish-American War. | | Career | |
|---|
| Laid Down: | 1862 |
| Launched: | 9 September 1862 |
| Commissioned: | 9 February 1863 |
| Decommissioned: | 1899 |
| Fate: | sold, April 1904 |
| General Characteristics |
|---|
| Displacement: | 1,335 tons |
| Length: | 200 ft (61 m) |
| Beam: | 46 ft (14 m) |
| Draft: | 11 ft 6 in (3.5 m) |
| Propulsion: | Screw Steamer |
| Speed: | 7 knots (13 km/h) |
| Complement: | 77 |
| Armament: | • 1 × 15 in (380 mm), and
• 1 × 11 in (280 mm)
Dahlgren smoothbore guns |
| Armor: | • 11 in (28 cm) turret,
• 8 in (20 cm) pilothouse,
• 5 in (13 cm) hull,
• 1 in (3 cm) deck |
The first
USS Sangamon, a
Passaic-class monitor built by
John Ericsson, was laid down under the name
Conestoga in the summer of
1862; renamed
Sangamon on
9 September 1862; launched on
27 October 1862; and commissioned on
9 February 1863 at
Chester, Penn.,
Commodore Pierce Crosby in command.
The monitor was assigned to the
North Atlantic Blockading Squadron and soon began efficient but unspectacular operations in
Hampton Roads and in the many roughly parallel rivers which empty into
Chesapeake Bay.
Sangamon was one of the vital ships of the
Navy which guaranteed the
Union Army control of the waters which border and penetrate the bitterly contested land which separated
Washington and
Richmond.
After repairs at
Philadelphia on
21 February 1864, she was towed by
Wachusett to
Port Royal, S.C., for duty with the
South Atlantic Blockading Squadron. After
blockade duty off
Charleston, S.C., she returned to Hampton Roads in the summer to support
General Ulysses S. Grant's drive on Richmond.
Sangamon performed widely varied duties. She conducted reconnaissance expeditions up the river to obtain information, and often dueled
Confederate forces hidden along the banks. She guarded Union troop concentrations and served as part of the Union naval force which patrolled the upper James to prevent the Confederate flotilla from threatening Union transports.
In March and April 1865, during the final thrust on Richmond, she assisted in clearing the river of Confederate torpedoes and countering the threat of Confederate
ironclads so that Union shipping could proceed safely to the Confederate capital.
After the war ended,
Sangamon was decommissioned at Philadelphia and placed in reserve. Renamed
Jason on
10 June 1869, no record has been found of any subsequent active service until she was recommissioned on
13 May 1898 for service during the
Spanish-American War. The old monitor was stationed at
Fisher's Island,
Long Island,
N.Y. where she provided the
New York area with some degree of naval protection against the perceived threat of a raid by
Spanish cruisers. In 1899, she returned to reserve at
League Island, and she remained there until she was sold in April 1904.
*See
USS Sangamon for other ships of this name.
*See
USS Jason for other ships of this name.
*See
USS Conestoga for other ships of this name.
This article contains text from the US Naval Historical Center.*
*
history.navy.mil: USS Sangamon*
navsource.org: USS Sangamon *
hazegray.org: USS Sangamon 
