View source for CSS Beaufort

{{Short description|Iron-hull gunboat of the American Civil War}}
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 |country=Confederate States
 |flag={{shipboxflag|Confederate States of America|naval}}
 |name = ''Beaufort''
 |namesake=[[Beaufort, South Carolina]]
 |owner=James Cathcart Johnston
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 |builder=[[Pusey & Jones]], Wilmington, Delaware
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 |launched=1854, as the ''Caledonia''
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 |commissioned=July 9, 1861
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 |homeport=[[Edenton, North Carolina]]
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 |fate=*Captured by [[United States Navy]] April 3, 1865
       *Sold September 15, 1865
       * Converted into barge 1878
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 |type= [[Screw steamer]]
 |tonnage=85 tons
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 |beam={{convert|17|ft|5|in|m|abbr=on}} 
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The '''CSS ''Beaufort''''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|b|juː|f|ər|t}} {{respell|BEW|fert}}) was an iron-hull [[gunboat]] that served in [[North Carolina]] and [[Virginia]] during the [[American Civil War]]. Originally [[ceremonial ship launching|launched]] as '''''Caledonia''''' at [[Wilmington, Delaware]], in 1854, the ship was owned by [[James Cathcart Johnston]]. It saw use as a [[tugboat]] on the [[Dismal Swamp Canal]]. On July 9, 1861, ''Beaufort'' was [[ship commissioning|commissioned]] into the navy of the state of [[North Carolina]] for use in the American Civil War. First serving on the North Carolina coast, ''Beaufort'' was present at the battles of [[Battle of Roanoke Island|Roanoke Island]] and [[Battle of Elizabeth City|Elizabeth City]] in February 1862. Escaping the Confederate defeat at Elizabeth City via the Dismal Swamp Canal, ''Beaufort'' reached [[Norfolk, Virginia]], where she joined the [[James River Squadron]].

On March 8, 1862, ''Beaufort'' served as an escort and [[ship's tender]] for the [[ironclad]] [[CSS Virginia|CSS ''Virginia'']] at the [[Battle of Hampton Roads]]. In April, she supported the Confederate defense of [[Yorktown, Virginia]], before the Confederates withdrew up the [[Virginia Peninsula]]. Before the [[Battle of Drewry's Bluff]] in mid-May 1862, ''Beaufort'' was ordered upriver and was mostly inactive until mid-1864. With Union troops having moved upriver, ''Beaufort'' saw some action, including bombarding the [[Fort Harrison]] area after Union troops had captured it. However, the ship was hampered with an understrength crew, as much of her crew had been transferred to North Carolina or to land fortifications along the James River. In January 1865, ''Beaufort'' was part of the Confederate advance before the [[Battle of Trent's Reach]], but ended up spending hours trying to free the ironclad [[CSS Virginia II|CSS ''Virginia II'']] after the latter had [[run aground]]. On the night of April 2/3, after the fall of [[Richmond, Virginia]], the Confederates scuttled the ships of the [[James River Squadron]], but ''Beaufort'' failed to sink. Captured by Union forces, ''Beaufort'' was sold in September 1865. As a civilian merchant vessel, she was renamed ''Roanoke'' and was converted into a [[barge]] in 1878.

==Construction and early history==
Originally known as ''Caledonia'', ''Beaufort'' was [[ceremonial ship launching|launched]] at [[Wilmington, Delaware]], in 1854.{{sfn|Silverstone|1989|p=243}} Constructed by [[Pusey & Jones]],{{sfn|Wiggins|2019|p=245}} ''Caledonia'' had been built for [[James Cathcart Johnston]], who named it after his plantation, although the ship as constructed was found to draw too deep of a [[draft (nautical)|draft]] to navigate to the plantation.{{sfn|Still|Stephenson|2021|p=88}} ''Caledonia'' was originally based out of [[Edenton, North Carolina]].{{sfn|Lytle|1952|p=25}} Later used as a [[tugboat]] on the [[Dismal Swamp Canal]],{{sfn|Trotter|1989|p=20}} the vessel had a tonnage of 85 tons, a length of {{convert|85|ft|m}}, a [[beam (nautical)|beam]] of {{convert|17|ft|5|in|m}}, and a [[depth of hold]] of {{convert|6|ft|11|in|m}}.<ref name="danfs">{{cite web |title=Beaufort |url=https://www.history.navy.mil/content/history/nhhc/research/histories/ship-histories/confederate_ships/beaufort.html |publisher=Naval History and Heritage Command |access-date=19 August 2023 |archive-date=28 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230828232510/https://www.history.navy.mil/content/history/nhhc/research/histories/ship-histories/confederate_ships/beaufort.html |url-status=live }}</ref> An iron-hulled [[screw steamer]],{{sfn|Official Records|1987b|p=246}} power was provided by a single [[marine steam engine|vertical direct acting steam engine]].{{sfn|Silverstone|1989|p=243}}

Early in the [[American Civil War]], the coastline of [[North Carolina]] was recognized as being of strategic importance, and a state Military and Navy Board was created.{{sfn|Trotter|1989|pp=16{{endash}}19}} Part of the state's defenses was the North Carolina Navy (informally known as the [[Mosquito Fleet]]). One of the Mosquito Fleet's vessels was ''Beaufort''.{{sfn|Trotter|1989|p=19}} The ''[[Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships]]'' states that ''Beaufort'' was [[ship commissioning|commissioned]] for military service on July 9, 1861, by [[Lieutenant (navy)|Lieutenant]] R. C. Duvall, while at [[Norfolk, Virginia]], before then traveling to [[New Bern, North Carolina]].<ref name="danfs" /> The ''[[Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies]]'' reports that ''Beaufort'' was purchased at New Bern.{{sfn|Official Records|1987b|p=246}} In order to allow her to mount a cannon, the vessel's structure was strengthened with wooden beams. ''Beaufort'' was armed with a 32-pounder rifled cannon, and her [[Magazine (artillery)#Naval magazine|magazine]] and boiler were located in a position where they would be endangered during naval combat. She was manned by a crew of 35.{{sfn|Trotter|1989|p=20}} The crews of the ships of the North Carolina Navy were generally inexperienced in naval matters and were barely trained for the service they performed, ammunition was often faulty, and the cannons the ships were armed with had a tendency to explode.{{sfn|Barrett|1997|p=35}}

==Confederate service==
===North Carolina===
[[File:Map of Battle of Roanoke Island.jpg|thumb|right|1862 map of the positions of the Union and Confederacy at the [[Battle of Roanoke Island]]]]
''Beaufort'' took part in the first ship-versus-ship action of the American Civil War on July 20,{{sfn|Trotter|1989|p=20}} when it fought [[USS Albatross (1858)|USS ''Albatross'']] near [[Oregon Inlet]].<ref name="danfs" /> ''Albatross'' was a much larger vessel than ''Beaufort'', but both ships spent the 45-minute battle firing from behind the cover of either side of a [[barrier island]].{{sfn|Trotter|1989|p=20}} At this time, ''Beaufort'' was still under the command of Duvall.{{sfn|Official Records|1987a|pp=21{{endash}}23}}  Later that month, ''Beaufort'' and the other ships of the North Carolina Navy were transferred into the [[Confederate States Navy]] from the North Carolina state forces. Along with fellow Mosquito fleet vessels [[CSS Winslow|CSS ''Winslow'']] and [[CSS Raleigh (1861)|CSS ''Raleigh'']], ''Beaufort'' engaged in raiding [[Union (American Civil War)|Union]] merchant shipping along the North Carolina coast, although ''Winslow'' had the most success.{{Sfn|Trotter|1989|p=22}} Confederate Lieutenant [[William Harwar Parker]] took command of ''Beaufort'' on September 9.<ref name="danfs" />

By the time of [[Burnside's North Carolina Expedition]] in February 1862, ''Beaufort'' was part of the Confederate fleet near [[Roanoke Island]] commanded by [[Commodore (rank)|Commodore]] [[William F. Lynch]].{{sfn|Barrett|1997|p=75}} Confederate land forces had built three forts on the island, and Lynch's Mosquito Fleet was present as well, positioned behind a group of [[blockship]]s sunk between the island and the North Carolina mainland.{{sfn|Trotter|1989|pp=75{{endash}}77}} The Union had an infantry force prepared to land, as well a naval force. Both outnumbered their Confederate counterparts. On February 7, the [[Battle of Roanoke Island]] began, with the Union ships firing on the Mosquito Fleet and on the Confederate land defenses. Only one of the forts was in a position where it could return fire. The Mosquito Fleet tried to lure the Union vessels further north into the range of the other two forts, but this was not successful.{{sfn|Barrett|1997|pp=74{{endash}}77}} The Union was able to land infantry on Roanoke Island and overran the island's defenders the next day.{{sfn|Trotter|1989|pp=81{{endash}}86}} After the fight at Roanoke Island, Lynch withdrew his ships to [[Elizabeth City, North Carolina]].  Parker and most of ''Beaufort''{{'}}s crew were sent ashore to man a fortification on February 10, the same day that Union ships attacked and brought on the [[Battle of Elizabeth City]]. Most of the Mosquito Fleet was destroyed in the fighting, but ''Beaufort'' was able to escape up the Dismal Swamp Canal to Norfolk.{{sfn|Trotter|1989|pp=88{{endash}}89}}

===Hampton Roads and inactivity===
At Norfolk, ''Beaufort'' was part of the [[James River Squadron]].{{sfn|Luraghi|1996|p=137}} Led by the [[ironclad]] [[CSS Virginia|CSS ''Virginia'']], the squadron sallied forth against the vessels of the [[Union blockade]] stationed in [[Hampton Roads]] on March 8.{{Sfn|Coski|2005|p=27}} ''Beaufort'' and ''Raleigh'' served as escort vessels for the ironclad.{{sfn|Calore|2002|p=119}} At the mouth of the [[Elizabeth River (Virginia)|Elizabeth River]] on the way to Hampton Roads, ''Beaufort'' had to user a [[hawser]] to assist ''Virginia'' in turning in shallow water.{{sfn|Luraghi|1996|p=140}} ''Virginia'' attacked the blockaders in the [[Battle of Hampton Roads]] and after sinking one Union vessel, badly damaged [[USS Congress (1841)|USS ''Congress'']]. ''Beaufort'' and ''Raleigh'' moved towards ''Congress'' to negotiate surrender of the damaged vessel but came under fire from the shore. After an officer from ''Virginia'' was wounded during another attempt to negotiate the surrender of ''Congress'', ''Virginia'' sank the blockader.{{sfn|Coski|2005|p=27}} ''Beaufort'' also served as a [[ship's tender]] for ''Virginia'' during the battle and fired on other Union ships.{{sfn|Browning|1993|p=43}} The crew of ''Beaufort'' received the [[Thanks of Congress]] from the [[Confederate States Congress]] for her role in the battle.<ref name="danfs" />

On April 18, ''Beaufort'' joined ''Raleigh'' and the gunboats [[CSS Teaser|CSS ''Teaser'']], [[CSS Jamestown|CSS ''Jamestown'']], and [[CSS Patrick Henry|CSS ''Patrick Henry'']] in supporting the Confederate land forces defending [[Yorktown, Virginia]].{{sfn|Luraghi|1996|p=153}} The Confederates retreated from the [[Virginia Peninsula]], and fell back to close to [[Richmond, Virginia]], leading to the abandonment of Norfolk and the [[scuttling]] of ''Virginia''.{{sfn|Coski|2005|pp=28{{endash}}29}} When Union ships moved up the [[James River]] towards [[Drewry's Bluff]] in May, ''Beaufort'' and several other Confederate vessels were sent to a safe position upriver while their crews fought from land positions in the [[Battle of Drewry's Bluff]] on May 15.{{Sfn|Coski|2005|pp=42{{endash}}44}}

The James River Squadron entered into a long period of routine patrolling of a stretch of {{convert|8|miles|km}} of the James River downriver from Richmond until 1864, when the region was threatened by Union ships again.{{sfn|Coski|2005|p=89}} Not long after Hampton Roads, Parker was transferred to [[Charleston, South Carolina]].{{sfn|Coski|2005|p=129}} For a period of time in 1862 and 1863, Lieutenant William H. Murdaugh commanded ''Beaufort''.{{sfn|Coski|2005|p=105}} Lieutenant William Sharp took command in October 1863, and was replaced by Lieutenant Edward J. Means the next month. Means remained in command until June 1864.{{sfn|Coski|2005|p=252}} A second cannon had been added to ''Beaufort''{{'}}s armament by November 30, 1863.{{sfn|Official Records|1987b|p=246}} ''Beaufort'' remained inactive during the time Means was in command. Union vessels had moved upriver towards the Confederate positions in mid-May, and the James River Squadron's new commander, [[Captain (naval)|Captain]] [[John Kirkwood Mitchell]], requested a more experienced officer be assigned to command ''Beaufort'' in anticipation of action.{{sfn|Coski|2005|pp=154{{endash}}158}} Lieutenant J. M. Gardner then took command in June.{{sfn|Coski|2005|p=252}}

===End of war===

On September 29, Union infantry won the [[Battle of Chaffin's Farm|Battle of Fort Harrison]], and captured [[Fort Harrison|Fort Harrison itself]], a Confederate defensive position. In response, ''Beaufort'', along with several other Confederate vessels, bombarded Union troops in the area of the fort from September 29 through October 1. The Confederate fire was effective, and Union return fire did little damage.{{sfn|Coski|2005|pp=167{{endash}}168}} A number of men from ''Beaufort'' were also transferred to man land fortifications.{{sfn|Coski|2005|pp=169{{endash}}170}} Other members of the ship's crew had been transferred to North Carolina in July, and as a result ''Beaufort'' could only provide minimal service due to a shortage of crew members. Some Confederate sailors were released in prisoner exchanges in October, which allowed the vessel to regain some crew strength.{{sfn|Coski|2005|pp=171{{endash}}172}} November saw ''Beaufort''{{'}}s armament reduced to a single 32-pounder cannon.{{sfn|Official Records|1987b|p=246}} Lieutenant [[William Pinckney Mason]] took command of ''Beaufort'' in October, and Lieutenant Joseph W. Alexander took over on December 19.{{sfn|Coski|2005|p=252}} In January 1865, Mitchell decided to sally forth and attack the Union ships in the James River, as many Union ships had been transferred to North Carolina for the operations against Confederate-held [[Fort Fisher]].{{sfn|Coski|2005|pp=196{{endash}}197}}

On the evening of January 23, the Confederate ships began their movements downriver, starting the [[Battle of Trent's Reach]]. As the navigable channel of the river was narrow, the wooden Confederate ships were either lashed to one of the three ironclads in the James River Squadron, or were towed behind another ship. ''Beaufort'' and the tender [[CSS Drewry|CSS ''Drewry'']] were lashed to the ironclad [[CSS Richmond|CSS ''Richmond'']], with ''Drewry'' towing the [[torpedo boat]] [[CSS Wasp|CSS ''Wasp'']].{{sfn|Coski|2005|p=198}}  When the ironclad [[CSS Virginia II|CSS ''Virginia II'']] ran aground, ''Drewry'' and ''Beaufort'' were released to go to her aid. When efforts to free ''Virginia II'' failed. ''Drewry'' later moved downstream, but ''Beaufort'' and the gunboat [[CSS Nansemond|CSS ''Nansemond'']] spent three hours trying to free the ironclad. Before dawn, the Confederate vessels who had not run aground withdrew upriver, but ''Drewry'', ''Richmond'', ''Virginia II'', and the torpedo boat [[CSS Scorpion|CSS ''Scorpion'']] had all grounded within range of Union guns. While the two ironclads were eventually able to get free and escape, ''Drewry'' blew up after being struck by Union fire, and the explosion forced ''Scorpion'' downriver, where she was captured.{{sfn|Coski|2005|pp=202{{endash}}206}}

Command of ''Beaufort'' passed to George Henry Arledge on February 12.{{Sfn|Coski|2005|p=252}} Mitchell was relieved of command on February 18 and replaced by [[Rear Admiral]] [[Raphael Semmes]]. Mitchell left Semmes a description of the condition of the James River Squadron vessels, which noted that ''Beaufort'' was "not servicable, except in emergencies" and that she had problems were her propeller and rudder.{{sfn|Coski|2005|pp=212{{endash}}213}} The Confederates abandoned Richmond on April 2, and the James River Squadron was scuttled. The ironclads were destroyed at Drewry's Bluff, while the wooden ships went upriver to Richmond to be burned on the night of April 2/3.  The fire set on ''Beaufort'' did not sink her, and the ship was captured by Union troops.{{sfn|Coski|2005|pp=219{{endash}}220}} She was operated by the Union until September 15, when she was sold.<ref name="danfs" /> ''Beaufort'' was then used as a civilian merchant vessel,{{sfn|Silverstone|1989|p=243}} and was renamed ''Roanoke'' in October. In 1878 she was converted into a [[barge]].{{sfn|Lytle|1952|p=25}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Sources==
* {{cite book |last=Barrett |first=John G. |title=The Civil War in North Carolina |publisher=University of North Carolina Press |location=Chapel Hill, North Carolina |date=1997|orig-date=1963 |isbn=0-8078-4520-5}}
* {{cite book |last=Browning |first=Robert M. |title=From Cape Charles to Cape Fear: The North Atlantic Blockading Squadron During the Civil War |publisher=University of Alabama Press |location=Tuscaloosa, Alabama |date=1993 |isbn=0-8173-5019-5}}
* {{cite book |last=Calore |first=Paul |title=Naval Campaigns of the Civil War |publisher=McFarland & Company |location=Jefferson, North Carolina |date=2002 |isbn=978-0-7864-1217-4}}
* {{cite book |last=Coski |first=John M. |title=Capital Navy: The Men, Ships, and Operations of the James River Squadron |publisher=Savas Beatie |date=2005 |orig-year=1996 
|location=New York |isbn=978-1-932714-15-9}}
* {{cite book |last=Luraghi |first=Raimondo |title=A History of the Confederate Navy |publisher=Naval Institute Press |date=1996 |translator-last=Coletta |translator-first=Paolo E. |location=Annapolis, Maryland |isbn=978-1-55750-527-9}}
* {{cite book |last=Lytle |first=William M. |title=Merchant Steam Vessels of the United States 1807{{endash}}1868 |date=1952 |publisher=The Steamship Historical Society of America |location=Mystic, Connecticut |url=https://archive.org/details/merchantsteamves0000will/page/n5/mode/2up |oclc=7195533}}
* {{cite book |title=Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion, Series 1 |orig-date=1897 |url=https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=coo.31924051350852&view=1up&seq=9 |volume=6 |year=1987|publisher=National Historical Society|location=Harrisburg, Pennsylvania|isbn=978-0-918678-30-0|ref=CITEREFOfficial_Records1987a}}
* {{cite book |title=Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion, Series 2 |series=U. S. Naval War Records Office. Office memoranda |orig-date=1921 |url=https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=coo.31924051367062&view=1up&seq=7&skin=2021&q1=tuscarora |volume=1 |year=1987|publisher=National Historical Society|location=Harrisburg, Pennsylvania|isbn=978-0-918678-30-0 |ref=CITEREFOfficial_Records1987b}}
* {{cite book |last=Silverstone |first=Paul H. |title=Warships of the Civil War Navies |publisher=Naval Institute Press |location=Annapolis, Maryland |date=1989 |isbn=0-87021-783-6}}
* {{cite book |last1=Still |first1=William N. |author-link1=William N. Still Jr. |last2=Stephenson |first2=Richard A. |title=Shipbuilding in North Carolina, 1688{{endash}}1918 |publisher=University of North Carolina Press |location=Chapel Hill, North Carolina |date=2021 |isbn=978-0-8652-6494-6}}
* {{cite book |last=Trotter |first=William R. |title=Ironclads and Columbiads: The Civil War in North Carolina: The Coast |date=1989 |publisher=John F. Blair |location=Winston-Salem, North Carolina |isbn=0-89587-088-6}}
* {{cite book |last=Wiggins |first=Kenneth R. |title=America's Anchor: A Naval History of the Delaware River and Bay, Cradle of the United States Navy |publisher=McFarland & Company |location=Jefferson, North Carolina |date=2019 |isbn=978-1-4766-7197-0}}

==Further reading==
*Alexander Crosby Brown,'' Notes on the Origins of Iron Shipbuilding in the United States, 1825–1861'', Masters Thesis, College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, Virginia, 1951.
*William Lytle & Forrest Holdcamper, ''Merchant Steam Vessels of the United States, 1790–1868'', Steamship Historical Society, New York, 1975.

{{CSN Armed Tugboats}}
{{Battle of Hampton Roads|state=autocollapse}}
{{1865 shipwrecks}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Beaufort}}
[[Category:Gunboats of the Confederate States Navy]]
[[Category:Ships built by Pusey and Jones]]
[[Category:1854 ships]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in April 1865]]