CSS Richmond
A wash drawing of Richmond by R. G. Skerrett
| |
History | |
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Confederate States | |
Name | Richmond |
Namesake | Richmond, Virginia |
Operator | Confederate States Navy |
Ordered | 1862 |
Builder |
|
Laid down | March 1862 |
Launched | 6 May 1862 |
Commissioned | July 1862 |
Fate | Burned and scuttled, 3 April 1865 |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | ironclad |
Length |
|
Beam | 43 ft (13.1 m) |
Draft | 12–13 ft (3.7–4.0 m) |
Depth | about 11 ft (3.4 m) |
Installed power | 2 × fire-tube boilers |
Propulsion |
|
Speed | 6 knots (11 km/h; 6.9 mph) |
Complement | 150 officers and men |
Armament |
|
Armor |
CSS
Background and description
The ship was built to a design by the Chief Naval Constructor,
The propulsion systems of the Richmond-class ironclads were different for each of the ships, often depending on what could be sourced locally. Richmond's single-cylinder, 80-
Richmond was armed with four 7-inch (178 mm)
Sources agree that Richmond's 100-foot-long (30.5 m) casemate was protected by 4 inches (102 mm) of
Construction and career
Named for the
During 1863 and early 1864 the James front was quiet, but from May 1864 momentous events followed in quick succession. The Confederate Navy had three new ironclads in Captain French Forrest's James River Squadron there, and minor actions were frequent.
During 1864 Richmond, under
Commanders
The commanders of the CSS Richmond were:[15]
- Commander Robert B. Pegram (November 1862 – May 1864)
- Commander William Harwar Parker (May–June 1864)
- Lieutenant John S. Maury (July–October 26, 1864)
- Commander William A. Webb (October–November 1864)
- Commodore John McIntosh Kell (December 30, 1864-February 1865)
- Lieutenant Hamilton Henderson Dalton (February 1865-)
- Passed Midshipman J.A. Peters (during February 1865)
Notes
Citations
- ^ Silverstone, p. xviii
- ^ Canney, pp. 34, 40–41
- ^ a b c d Marcello
- ^ Bisbee, p. 87; Holcombe, p. 16
- ^ a b c Silverstone 2006, p. 152
- ^ a b Canney, p. 39
- ^ Canney, p. 41, Bisbee, p. 189
- ^ Luraghi, p. 48, footnote 147
- ^ Coski, p. 113
- ^ Coski, p. 80
- ^ a b Canney, p. 41
- ^ a b c d Holcombe, p. 17
- ^ a b Luraghi, p. 208
- ^ Silverstone 1984, p. 52
- ^ Coski, pp.
References
- Bisbee, Saxon T. (2018). Engines of Rebellion: Confederate Ironclads and Steam Engineering in the American Civil War. Tuscaloosa, Alabama: University of Alabama Press. ISBN 978-0-81731-986-1.
- Coski, John M. (2005) [1996]. Capital Navy: The Men, Ships and Operations of the James River Squadron. New York: Savas Beatie. ISBN 1-932714-15-4.
- Canney, Donald L. (2015). The Confederate Steam Navy 1861-1865. Atglen, Pennsylvania: Schiffer Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7643-4824-2.
- Holcombe, Robert (1978). "The Richmond Class Confederate Ironclads" (PDF). Confederate Historical Association of Belgium News. 6: 16–20. Retrieved June 19, 2022.
- Marcello, Paul J. (November 13, 2015). "Richmond 1862–1865". Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. Naval History and Heritage Command. Retrieved June 19, 2022.
- Silverstone, Paul H. (2006). Civil War Navies 1855–1883. The U.S. Navy Warship Series. New York: Routledge. ISBN 0-415-97870-X.
- Silverstone, Paul H. (1984). Directory of the World's Capital Ships. New York: Hippocrene Books. ISBN 0-88254-979-0.
- Still, William N. Jr. (1985) [1971]. Iron Afloat: The Story of the Confederate Armorclads. Columbia, South Carolina: University of South Carolina Press. ISBN 0-87249-454-3.