City Class Ironclads

The city-class gun-boats of the American civil war were purpose built, flat bottom warships designed specifically to operate on the Mississippi river and its many tributaries. They were built in 1862 by a wealthy industrialist named James Buchanan Eads and were built around the idea of the Mississippi river boats. As you can see on the pictures, they were literally built like floating bunkers whose most prominent feature was their armoured casemate made of 2½ inch iron plates. Though spacious on the inside, they were crewed by 251 men and officers, so sleeping accomidation was provided by tenting on top of the casement.

Seven ships of this class were made at the same time and due to funding issues they served in the Union Army's Mississippi River Squadron, before later serving in the Union Navy. They saw action in numerous battles, even before they had been fully manned, amongst other famous battles they fought at the Battle of Fort Henry, the Battle of Fort Donelson, the Battle of Island Number Ten, the Battle of Plum Point Bend, the Battle of Memphis, and the Seige of Vicksburg.

As brown water warships, the city-class were good (at Memphis four of them annhilated eight Confederate 'cotton-clad' rams), but not invincible. At St. Charles, in Arkansas, on 17 June 1862, a Rebel cannon shot penetrated the casemate of USS Mound City and exploded her steam drum and killed or badly scalded most of her crew. The ship survived and of the original seven vessels, only two were lost to enemy fire.

City-class iron-clads were 53 metres long and 15.2 metres wide. They were originally designed to carry 16 guns but experience showed 13 guns of mixed types was better and this is the configeration most images show. Three guns to the fore, four on either broad side and two to the rear. As paddle steamers, they had two paddle wheels in an internal space which was armoured above. They had two non-condensing reciprocating steam engines (plus an auxilliary) powered by five boilers. The firebox was positioned under the boilers and the smoke funnels to the fore of the boilers. (I'm not sure how this arrangement worked as yet, but it seems the boilers were heated both from below and from within, though the deck plans I have procured show the fire room is to the fore of the boilers as are the smoke funnels. Very strange).


USS Cairo.
This image clearly demonstrates the over all design of the class, with the forward and port side batteries visible. Directly before the twin smoke funnels is the sloping hexagonal bridge house from where the ship was steered and commanded.

Probably the most famous of her class, the USS Cairo was sunk in the Yazoo River in 1862 by a remotely detonated mine, then after having lain for one hundred and three years in the mud and silt she was raised and partially restored. Today she can be seen at the Vicksburg National Military Park.

USS Mound City.
Another nice clear photograph showing the fore and portside batteries. This image also shows an additional structure added to the top of the bridgehouse designed to improve visibility for ships commander. As far as I am aware, none of the other city-class gun-boats had this addition.

USS Mound City served in numerous battles and survived until she was decommisioned and sold on 9th November. 1865.


USS Cincinnati.
Seen from the rear, with awnings and washing lines set. Clearly visible in this image is the location of the paddle wheels in their armoured casement. To the rear and fore of this are deck houses. Also visible in this image are the two rudders and the rearward battery.

At the Battle of Port Pillow (10 May 1862), the USS Cincinnati was rammed and sunk, but she was later raised and returned to service. She was then transferred to the Navy Department with other vessels of the Western Gunboat Flotilla. She took part in numerous operations before joining the attack on the Vicksburg batteries on 27th May 1863. USS Cincinnati came under heavy fire during the battle and was sunk for the second time, suffering 40 casualties.

She was duly raised a second time and took part in the Unions great blokade of the south until the war ended. She was decommisioned 4th August 1865.

USS Carondelet.
The above is a contemporary illustration showing coloured bands used for identification on the vessels smoke funnels. Like all city-class gun-boats, the USS Carondelet carried four ships boats.

She was decommissioned at Mound City on 20th June. 1865.


USS Baron De Kalb (formerly USS Louis).
Renamed after a famous Prussian general who had fought in the American War of Independence, the USS Baron De Kalb saw several battles and was sunk by a mine on the Yazoo River on the 13th July. 1863. Unlike the USS Cairo, she was never raised so I guess she must be the only city-class wreck left to find. Some reports indicate her commander may have been a mason and demonstrated this by virtue of masonic heraldry in between her smoke funnels.


USS Pittsburgh.
This image appears to show the USS Pittsburgh with a crane of some sort mounted on the bow. I'm not sure what this was, but it could have been to remove the many obstacles for which the Mississippi was infamous.

The USS Pittsburgh served long and hard, heavily damaged several times, but never sunk. She led the attack on the batteries at Grand Gulf April 29, and was heavily damaged during the five-and-a-half hour engagement which secured Union control of an important stretch of the river, making it possible for Grant to cross the river and attack Vicksburg from the rear. She was decommissioned at Mound City on 29th November. 1865.


USS Louisville.
Like her sister ships she saw extensive fighting during the war and apparently came through with hardly a scratch. She was decommissioned 21th July. 1865.
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