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USS Romeo

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History
United States
CompletedAugust 1862
AcquiredOctober 31, 1862
CommissionedDecember 11, 1862
DecommissionedJune 30, 1865
FateSold, August 17, 1865
General characteristics
TypeSternwheel steamer
Tonnage175 tons
Length154 ft 2 in (46.99 m)
Beam31 ft 2 in (9.50 m)
Draft4 ft 6 in (1.37 m)
Propulsion2 × steam engines
Armament6 × 24-pounder howitzers (May 1, 1863)

USS Romeo was a sternwheel steamer that saw service as a tinclad warship during the American Civil War. Completed in August 1862 for civilian trade on the Wabash River, she was instead purchased by the Union Navy for military service in October. Commissioned in December, she cleared naval mines on the Yazoo River later that month before participating in the operations against Confederate-held Fort Hindman in January 1863. After the fall of Fort Hindman, Romeo was part of an expedition up the White River. In February and March 1863, she was part of the Yazoo Pass Expedition, and she fought with Confederates at river landings later in the year to help isolate Vicksburg, Mississippi, during the Vicksburg campaign.

Later in 1863, Romeo served on the White River for part of the Little Rock campaign, but was reported to be in poor condition and required repairs, before a transfer to the Tennessee River. During February 1864, she was part of an expedition up the Yazoo River to Yazoo City, Mississippi, and then spent most of the rest of the war patrolling on the Mississippi River. During this time patrolling, she had multiple encounters with Confederate land forces. By April and May 1865, the war was ending, and Romeo was declared surplus on May 29. Decommissioned on June 30, she was sold on August 17 and was then used in the merchant trade. At some point in her civilian career, she was converted into a sidewheel steamer. Romeo ceased to appear in the shipping registers in 1870.

Construction and characteristics

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In mid-1862, with the American Civil War ongoing, the Union Navy authorized Commodore Joseph B. Hull to purchase civilian vessels for conversion into military warships.[1] Some of these civilian ships were converted into tinclad warships, a process that involved building a wooden casemate and then at least partially covering it with thin metal armor for protection, reinforcing certain internal structures, removing the existing pilothouse and installing a new armored one, adding cannons as armament, and generally removing the texas.[2] One of the vessels purchased by Hull was Romeo,[3] who was bought at Cincinnati, Ohio, on October 31, 1862,[4] at a cost of $17,459. Romeo had been completed in August 1862 at Brownsville, Pennsylvania,[5] for John Rhoades, who was also the owner of a vessel that became USS Juliet.[6] Romeo had been earmarked for trade use on the Wabash River when she was built.[5] The process of preparing her for military service occurred at Cairo, Illinois.[4]

Romeo was 154 feet 2 inches (46.99 m) long, with a beam of 31 feet 2 inches (9.50 m), and a draft of 4 feet 6 inches (1.37 m).[7] Her depth of hold was 1.2 metres (4 ft), and her tonnage was 175 tons.[4] A sternwheel steamer, power was provided by two steam engines fed by a total of two boilers. The engines had a cylinder diameter of 0.30 metres (1 ft) and a stroke of 1.2 metres (4 ft).[7] Romeo was reported to have a speed of 5 knots (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph) when going upstream. Originally armed with six 24-pounder Dahlgren howitzers,[8] by July 1864 she had two additional 24-pounders, but by the end of September was back down to six.[3]

Service history

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The Mississippi River and its major tributaries. Romeo served on several of these rivers.

Fort Hindman

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Romeo was commissioned on December 11, 1862, and was placed under the command of Acting Ensign Robert B. Smith. The next day, she moved downriver to Helena, Arkansas, in order to join the Mississippi River Squadron. On December 21, she left Helena, and then moved up the Yazoo River along with other vessels in support of a Union Army attempt to capture Confederate-held Vicksburg, Mississippi.[4] From December 23 until December 26, Romeo cleared naval mines from the Yazoo River.[7] It then spent through January 3, 1863, operating on the Yazoo and its tributaries, patrolling the area and skirmishing with Confederate land forces.[4] On December 29, 1862, Romeo joined the tinclad USS Marmora in moving up the Old River to shell Confederate positions near Vicksburg.[9] The Union Army's campaign failed,[4] leading to the vessels up the Yazoo River including Romeo being withdrawn to the mouth of the river on January 2.[10] On January 4, almost all of the Union vessels that had been supporting the Yazoo River expedition moved upriver, as part of Union operations against Confederate Fort Hindman in Arkansas.[11] For this campaign, Romeo was assigned to a naval force commanded by Lieutenant Commander Watson Smith.[12]

After moving to the mouth of the White River, the Union flotilla, accompanied by troop transports, ascended the White on January 8, and then took a cutoff that led into the Arkansas River.[13] On January 10, army forces assaulted the fort, while some of the Union vessels provided supporting fire; the Confederates surrendered the next day.[14] January 12 saw the ironclads USS Baron de Kalb and USS Cincinnati move up the White River, in conjunction with an army movement towards St. Charles, Arkansas. Romeo was sent upriver after the two ironclads, bearing supplies. When St. Charles was reached, it was found that the Confederates had abandoned it, taking two cannons with them on a transport vessel. Baron de Kalb, Romeo, a loaded troop transport, and the tinclad USS Forest Rose, continued upstream in pursuit of the transport.[15] The expedition reached DeValls Bluff on January 17, where they captured two cannon, 200 small arms, and some prisoners. The next day, Des Arc was reached, where prisoners, ammunition, and corn were taken.[16] Having determined that flooding would make an overland advance on Little Rock infeasible,[17] the Union force then turned back downriver, destroying much of St. Charles on the way.[16]

Vicksburg and Yazoo City

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Marmora, who was also a sternwheel tinclad

Romeo returned to the Yazoo River on February 6, 1863,[4] and then participated in the Yazoo Pass Expedition.[7] Along with other vessels under the command of Smith, Romeo arrived at Helena on February 12; at this time Union soldiers were still working on clearing obstructions from Yazoo Pass.[18] Once Smith received word that the removal of the obstructions was mostly complete, his vessels moved downriver from Helena to the Yazoo Pass area; by the afternoon of February 21, Romeo and five other vessels had entered Moon Lake through a cut between the lake and the Mississippi River.[19] The path of the Union expedition moved from Moon Lake through Old Pass into the Coldwater River. The path through the waterways was difficult and edged by thick vegetation that damaged some of the vessels; Romeo had both of her chimneys knocked off.[20] As part of the expedition, she was involved in the fighting along the Fort Pemberton area on the Tallahatchie River from March 11 through 23.[7] Romeo and the other tinclads USS Petrel and USS Signal were loaded with troops, with plans of bringing the troops forward to storm Fort Pemberton if a Union effort on March 16 could knock out the Confederate guns, but the Confederate guns were not silenced and the landing did not occur.[21]

On April 18, Acting Volunteer Lieutenant John V. Johnston was transferred to Romeo to take command of the vessel.[22] On April 29 and April 30, Romeo was part of a feint designed to draw Confederate attention from the primary Union movement further downstream.[23] Through the rest of the Vicksburg campaign, Romeo provided naval support, engaging Confederate troops at river landings to help cut off the city.[4] On May 19, once Union land forces had reached the vicinity of Vicksburg, Romeo was part of a Union naval force that ascended the Yazoo River to open up contact with the army positions.[24] The next day, she returned to the Mississippi River.[25] June 6 saw the appearance of Romeo and Petrel play a role in causing Confederate forces to abandon a planned assault on Young's Point.[26] In mid-June, the tinclads were assigned identifying numbers to be painted on their pilothouses;[27] Romeo was given the number 3.[28] On June 29, she fired on Confederate raiding forces in a stage of the Battle of Goodrich's Landing.[29] Late on July 2, Confederate forces in the Donaldsonville, Louisiana, area deployed an artillery battery to ambush Union shipping. Not long after deploying, the transport Iberville came past the ambush point. Confederate artillery fire disabled Iberville, but Romeo then passed through the area escorting another transport. The two transports were able to escape while Romeo engaged the battery.[30] Vicksburg surrendered on July 4.[17]

Prairie Bird, another tinclad that Romeo served with at times

Before the fall of Vicksburg, the Mississippi Squadron had been divided into sub-districts for administrative purposes. Following an August revision, the Fifth District, which was commanded by Lieutenant Commander Elias K. Owen, encompassed the area from Vicksburg to the mouths of the Arkansas and White Rivers. Romeo was assigned to the Fifth District.[31] In August, Romeo was part of a small naval force that operated on the White River in conjunction with Brigadier General John W. Davidson's cavalry command in the Little Rock campaign. Romeo was reported to be in poor condition at this time, and did not participate in an operation up the Little Red River that resulted in the capture of two Confederate vessels. It was later determined that the repairs needed would be of such an extent that a trip to a dry dock would be necessary.[17] In October she was transferred to the Tennessee River,[32] having evidently been repaired by this time.[17] On November 12, Romeo was released from duty on the Tennessee River, as she was no longer needed for convoy duties,[33] and later that month she was sent back to Cairo before returning to the Tennessee River the next month.[4] By January 1864, she was back on the Mississippi River, being stationed near Bolivar, Mississippi,[34] and on January 15 was reported to be commanded by Acting Master T. Baldwin.[35]

On February 2, Romeo re-entered the Yazoo River, as part of a squadron commanded by Owen that also included the tinclads USS Exchange, Marmora, USS Prairie Bird, and Petrel. Owen's command was to cooperate with an army brigade commanded by Colonel James H. Coates.[36] The expedition fought a minor skirmish with Confederate forces near Satartia, Mississippi, that day before facing heavier resistance near Liverpool the next day.[36] In the action at Liverpool, Romeo passed the Confederate position before the Confederate artillery finished deploying, but the other vessels were halted when the artillery opened fire. Romeo moved back downriver to support the other vessel. A Union infantry landing and assault was unsuccessful. Romeo was struck by small arms fire in the fighting at Liverpool, but suffered no significant damage. On February 4, the Union vessels successfully ran past the Confederate position at Liverpool,[37] On February 4, the column reached a mill 6 miles (9.7 km) from Yazoo City. Most of the force remained in the area of the mill while Exchange and Marmora continued on to Yazoo City, which they found held by Confederate forces. The next day, the expedition withdrew to Satartia. After the Meridian campaign drew Confederate troops away from the Yazoo City area, the Union forces occupied the place on February 9.[38]

Later service

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In May, she was assigned to the area between Vicksburg and Natchez, Mississippi, for patrolling purposes, although she also patrolled as far as the mouth of the Arkansas River. She continued in this duty for most of the rest of the war.[4] On May 24, Confederate artillery under the command of Colonel Colton Greene[17] opened fire on the tinclad USS Curlew from the banks of the Mississippi River in Arkansas.[39] The artillery left when the timberclad USS Tyler approached the area, and Curlew moved upriver to join Romeo. Together, the two tinclads would escort the transport Nicholas Longworth downriver. Curlew had a machinery failure on the way, and was left behind. Near Columbia, Arkansas, Romeo and Nicholas Longworth came under artillery fire. Romeo fought with the Confederates, while Nicholas Longworth continued on downriver. However, the transport came under more Confederate fire. Romeo ran out of ammunition and had to return to where Curlew had been left behind to pick up more. Together, Romeo and the transport were able to make it downriver to Greenville, Mississippi, although they had suffered damage to the hull and upper structure. Two vessels from the Mississippi Marine Brigade escorted the transport downriver, while Romeo returned to Columbia for repairs. Confederate artillery also returned to Columbia, and further damaged Romeo.[40] One sailor on Romeo was wounded; Greene reported that his artillery fire had struck Romeo seventeen times.[17] In early July, Romeo's boilers were reported to be in poor condition.[41]

On August 10, Romeo intervened when Confederate artillery and cavalry badly damaged and almost captured the packet steamer Empress, driving off the Confederate forces. The following morning, she escorted the civilian vessel to safety, and later in the day came to the assistance of Prairie Bird when that vessel was fired on by Confederate forces in the same area.[42] Owen did not approve of Baldwin's handling of this situation, stating that he believed "a more competent person ought to be placed in command of the Romeo", and that Baldwin was "entirely too old and too unused to a naval life".[43] For most of the rest of the war, Romeo operated between Natchez and the mouth of the Arkansas.[17] On September 30, Romeo was fired on by a group of Confederate guerrillas. No Union sailors were injured, and fire from the vessel drove off the Confederates.[44] Two crewmen from Romeo were captured in March 1865; Acting Rear Admiral Samuel Phillips Lee attributed the loss to a lack of carefulness on the part of Baldwin.[45] Towards the end of the war, Romeo was briefly assigned to the Ohio River;[4] this had happened by mid-April.[46] In late April, Romeo was one of the vessels earmarked to patrol portions of the Mississippi River where fleeing Confederate president Jefferson Davis was expected to try to cross the river; Davis was eventually captured in Georgia in May.[47] Romeo returned to Cairo in May.[4] By April and May, the war was winding down with a Confederate defeat,[48] and by May 29, Romeo was one of a number of vessels reported to be surplus.[49] On June 30, she was decommissioned,[4] while stationed at Mound City, Illinois.[3] She was laid up in ordinary, and Acting Volunteer Lieutenant Joseph G. Megler was assigned to take charge of her while she awaited sale.[50] On August 17, she was sold at auction.[6][a] During her time in military service, she had required $11,524.98 in repair costs.[3] After her sale, she was converted into a sidewheel steamer. Romeo was used in the merchant trade at Evansville, Indiana, captained by J. Hamp Throop; one George Throop was her clerk. In 1870, she ceased to appear in the shipping registers.[6]

Notes

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  1. ^ According to the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies, this was in the amount of $7,100 to Nathaniel Williams.[3] Mark K. Christ, writing for the Encyclopedia of Arkansas, provides Nathaniel Williams as the name of her purchaser.[17] Way's Packet Directory names her purchaser as Edward Williams and gives a purchase price of $7,150.[6] The naval historian Myron J. Smith states that Edward Williams paid $7,100 for the vessel.[51]

References

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  1. ^ Smith 2010, p. 43.
  2. ^ Smith 2010, pp. 45–46.
  3. ^ a b c d e Official Records 1921, p. 194.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m "Romeo". Naval History and Heritage Command. October 20, 2005. Retrieved December 3, 2022.
  5. ^ a b Smith 2010, p. 358 fn. 18.
  6. ^ a b c d Way 1994, p. 401.
  7. ^ a b c d e Silverstone 1989, p. 178.
  8. ^ Smith 2012, p. 397 fn. 32.
  9. ^ Bearss 1991a, p. 21.
  10. ^ Smith 2012, p. 123–124.
  11. ^ Smith 2012, pp. 126–127.
  12. ^ Tomblin 2016, p. 203.
  13. ^ Tomblin 2016, pp. 203–204.
  14. ^ Tomblin 2016, pp. 204–206.
  15. ^ Tomblin 2016, p. 209.
  16. ^ a b Christ 2010, pp. 90–91.
  17. ^ a b c d e f g h Christ, Mark. K. (December 19, 2024). "USS Romeo". Encyclopedia of Arkansas. Retrieved February 24, 2025.
  18. ^ Smith 2012, pp. 160–161.
  19. ^ Smith 2012, p. 177.
  20. ^ Smith 2012, pp. 183–185.
  21. ^ Smith 2012, pp. 215–218.
  22. ^ Official Records 1911, p. 569.
  23. ^ Smith 2012, pp. 308–312.
  24. ^ Tomblin 2016, pp. 261–262.
  25. ^ Bearss 1991b, p. 713.
  26. ^ Bearss 1991b, p. 1184.
  27. ^ Smith 2010, p. 46.
  28. ^ Silverstone 1989, p. 174.
  29. ^ Tomblin 2016, pp. 275–276.
  30. ^ Smith 2010, p. 131.
  31. ^ Smith 2012, pp. 357–358.
  32. ^ Smith 2010, p. 149.
  33. ^ Official Records 1912, p. 486.
  34. ^ Official Records 1912, p. 678.
  35. ^ Official Records 1912, pp. 691–692.
  36. ^ a b Smith 2010, p. 162.
  37. ^ Smith 2012, pp. 364–366.
  38. ^ Smith 2010, p. 163.
  39. ^ Smith 2010, pp. 229–232.
  40. ^ Smith 2010, pp. 233–234.
  41. ^ Official Records 1914, p. 465.
  42. ^ Smith 2010, pp. 257–259.
  43. ^ Official Records 1914, p. 504.
  44. ^ Smith 2010, p. 267.
  45. ^ Official Records 1917, p. 91.
  46. ^ Official Records 1917, pp. 143–144.
  47. ^ Smith 2010, p. 325.
  48. ^ Kennedy 1998, pp. 437–438.
  49. ^ Smith 2010, pp. 332–333.
  50. ^ Official Records 1917, pp. 299–301.
  51. ^ Smith 2021, p. 246.

Sources

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