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USS Osage (1863)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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|
| Career |  |
|---|---|
| Laid down: | 1862 |
| Launched: | 13 January 1863 |
| Commissioned: | 10 July 1863 |
| Fate: | Sunk by mine, 29 March 1865, raised and sold, 17 August 1873 |
| General Characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 523 tons |
| Length: | 180 ft |
| Beam: | 45 ft |
| Draft: | 4 ft 6 in |
| Propulsion: | Steam Paddlewheel |
| Speed: | 7.5 knots |
| Complement: | 100 |
| Armament: | 2 × 11 in Dahlgren smoothbore guns |
The first USS Osage was a single-turreted Neosho-class river monitor named after a Sioux Indian tribe living in Missouri. Osage was launched 13 January 1863 by James B. Eads at his Union Iron Works, Carondelet, Mo., and commissioned at Cairo, Il. 10 July 1863, Acting Vol. Lt. Joseph P. Couthany in command.
Osage and her sister Neosho were the first of Eads’ river warships to employ the “turtleback” design which became his hallmark and were the only monitors to be propelled by stern wheels. Their shallow draft made them extremely useful in the riverine warfare to come.
She sailed from Cairo for patrol duty in the Red River, and participated in the expedition up the Black, Ouachita, and Washita Rivers, 29 February to 5 March 1864. She also participated in the expedition up the Red River to Alexandria, La., 12 March to 22 May and assisted in the capture of Fort De Russy, La. 14 March.
Transferred to the West Gulf Blockading Squadron 1 February 1865, Osage participated in the attack on Spanish Fort, Al., near Mobile, Al., 28 March 1865. The next day she was sunk by a torpedo in the Blakely River. Her hulk was raised and sold at auction at New Orleans 22 November 1867.
This article includes text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.