U.S.S. Marblehead: The Gunboats of 1861 and 1894
Marblehead, Massachusetts, a seafaring port 15 miles north of Boston, has been intimately involved in things naval from colonial times, when it was the sixth largest town in the British colonies. In fact, the first ships of the Continental Navy, authorized in 1776, were converted trading vessels leased from Colonel John Glover, a wealthy Marblehead merchant and patriot later responsible for rowing Washington across the Delaware and other amphibious exploits of the Continental Army. Glover's schooner Hannah is still recalled with pride as the forerunner of the U.S. Navy. The national service was not launched until 1796. President John Adams championed a powerful national navy as one solution to the troubles with revolutionary France; in this (notwithstanding the misrepresentations of later historians) Adams had the full support of his rival, Thomas Jefferson.
The first U.S. Navy warship to bear the Town's name, the Marblehead of 1862 was an Unadilla class "90-day gunboat," produced in record time by the yards of the North in hopes of speedily crushing the Rebellion. That these hopes were in vain was no reflection on the quality of these vessels or the men who manned them, as proven by the Marblehead's history in service. The photo above, by Byron of New York, shows her as re-rigged following repair of her combat damage in 1864.
According to the DANFS: "USS Marblehead, a 691-ton Unadilla class screw steam gunboat, was built at Newburyport, Massachusetts. Commissioned in March 1862, she initially served on Virginia's York and Pamunkey Rivers in support of the Army's Peninsular campaign. In mid-1862, Marblehead was transferred to the blockade of the Georgia and South Carolina coasts, where she participated in engagements with the Confederates on the Stono River, S.C., in July and December 1863 and the bombardment of Fort Wagner in Charleston harbor in August 1863.
"During an intense battle on the Stono River on Christmas Day, 1863, Marblehead suffered 20 hits, but was able to capture two of the enemy’s VIII-inch seacoast howitizers before returning north for repairs and reassignment. In the battle she had been ably assisted by her sister ship Pawnee. From June 1864 until September 1866 Marblehead was a practice ship at the Naval Academy, taking time off from that employment to conduct coastal patrols during the last part of 1864. As a unit of the North Atlantic Squadron, the gunboat operated in the Caribbean from late 1866 until mid-1868. USS Marblehead decommissioned and was sold in September 1868. She was subsequently converted to a sailing bark for civilian use."
The first U.S. Navy warship to bear the Town's name, the Marblehead of 1862 was an Unadilla class "90-day gunboat," produced in record time by the yards of the North in hopes of speedily crushing the Rebellion. That these hopes were in vain was no reflection on the quality of these vessels or the men who manned them, as proven by the Marblehead's history in service. The photo above, by Byron of New York, shows her as re-rigged following repair of her combat damage in 1864.
According to the DANFS: "USS Marblehead, a 691-ton Unadilla class screw steam gunboat, was built at Newburyport, Massachusetts. Commissioned in March 1862, she initially served on Virginia's York and Pamunkey Rivers in support of the Army's Peninsular campaign. In mid-1862, Marblehead was transferred to the blockade of the Georgia and South Carolina coasts, where she participated in engagements with the Confederates on the Stono River, S.C., in July and December 1863 and the bombardment of Fort Wagner in Charleston harbor in August 1863.
"During an intense battle on the Stono River on Christmas Day, 1863, Marblehead suffered 20 hits, but was able to capture two of the enemy’s VIII-inch seacoast howitizers before returning north for repairs and reassignment. In the battle she had been ably assisted by her sister ship Pawnee. From June 1864 until September 1866 Marblehead was a practice ship at the Naval Academy, taking time off from that employment to conduct coastal patrols during the last part of 1864. As a unit of the North Atlantic Squadron, the gunboat operated in the Caribbean from late 1866 until mid-1868. USS Marblehead decommissioned and was sold in September 1868. She was subsequently converted to a sailing bark for civilian use."
This painting of the USS Unadilla, built to the same standardized plans, gives an idea of how the first Marblehead looked under way. Specifications for the class: Dimensions: 158'4" x 28' x 10'6" Displacement: 691 tons. Armament: (2) 24-pdr smoothbores; (1) 11" Dahlgren smoothbore; (1) 20-pdr. Sail rig: 2-mast topsail schooner. Auxiliary steam engine, single screw. Speed: 11 kts. Crew: 81.
U.S.S. Marblehead: The 1894 Gunboat (C-11)
Dimensions: 269'6" x 37' x 14'6". Displacement: 2,072 tons. Armament: (9) 5", (6) 6-pdr, (2) 1-pdr, 2 machine guns. Propulsion: Triple-expansion steam engines, twin screw. Speed: 18 kts. Crew: 274.
The USS Marblehead of 1894 was rated as a Montgomery class cruiser -- the smallest protected cruiser in the U.S. "New Navy;" but these ships were more accurately called gunboats. They had an internal, curved protective deck, but it only provided 5/8" (8mm) protection to engines, boilers, and magazines. This niggardly armor made the Montgomerys latter-day heirs of the Civil War tinclad tradition. In fact, the 6 ships of this class were reclassified as gunboats in the 20th century. The paucity of their protection, however, only served to emphasize the boldness of their commanders when they were committed to action in the Spanish-American War of 1898.
Again according to the DANFS: "USS Marblehead, a 2072-ton cruiser, was built at City Point Shipyard, Boston, Massachusetts, and commissioned in April 1894. Her early service years were spent in Caribbean, European and western Atlantic waters. During the Spanish-American War, she operated off Cuba. Marblehead distinguished herself as a particularly pugnacious participant, involved in the bombardment of Cienfuegos and cutting the international cable there. In company with the square-rigged cruiser Yankee, Marblehead captured the lower bay of Guantánamo as a base for the fleet on 7 June, and on the 10th supported the landing of a battalion of Marines there. Continuing operations in the Bay, she helped [the] battleship Texas destroy the Spanish fort on Cayo del Toro 15 June. She was present at the defeat of Adm. Ernesto Cervera's squadron in the Battle of Santiago on July 3, 1898.
"In 1899 Marblehead steamed to the Pacific, serving there as a cruiser and Naval Militia training ship until 1918, when she transferred to the Caribbean area for World War I operations. Returning to the Pacific after the War, Marblehead decommissioned in August 1919. She was reclassified as a gunboat (PG-27) a year later and was sold [for scrapping] in August 1921."
The USS Marblehead of 1894 was rated as a Montgomery class cruiser -- the smallest protected cruiser in the U.S. "New Navy;" but these ships were more accurately called gunboats. They had an internal, curved protective deck, but it only provided 5/8" (8mm) protection to engines, boilers, and magazines. This niggardly armor made the Montgomerys latter-day heirs of the Civil War tinclad tradition. In fact, the 6 ships of this class were reclassified as gunboats in the 20th century. The paucity of their protection, however, only served to emphasize the boldness of their commanders when they were committed to action in the Spanish-American War of 1898.
Again according to the DANFS: "USS Marblehead, a 2072-ton cruiser, was built at City Point Shipyard, Boston, Massachusetts, and commissioned in April 1894. Her early service years were spent in Caribbean, European and western Atlantic waters. During the Spanish-American War, she operated off Cuba. Marblehead distinguished herself as a particularly pugnacious participant, involved in the bombardment of Cienfuegos and cutting the international cable there. In company with the square-rigged cruiser Yankee, Marblehead captured the lower bay of Guantánamo as a base for the fleet on 7 June, and on the 10th supported the landing of a battalion of Marines there. Continuing operations in the Bay, she helped [the] battleship Texas destroy the Spanish fort on Cayo del Toro 15 June. She was present at the defeat of Adm. Ernesto Cervera's squadron in the Battle of Santiago on July 3, 1898.
"In 1899 Marblehead steamed to the Pacific, serving there as a cruiser and Naval Militia training ship until 1918, when she transferred to the Caribbean area for World War I operations. Returning to the Pacific after the War, Marblehead decommissioned in August 1919. She was reclassified as a gunboat (PG-27) a year later and was sold [for scrapping] in August 1921."
The photo of the Marblehead above shows her "stripped for action" at Guantánamo Bay in 1898, according to the caption. Obviously day-to-day life continues even in a ship stripped for action, judging from the laundry drying in the rigging. All photos on this page appear courtesy of U.S. Naval Historical Center.
