USS Vandalia (1828)

USS Vandalia (1828)

The first "Vandalia" was an 18-gun sloop-of-war in the United States Navy during the Second Seminole War and the American Civil War. She was named for the city of Vandalia, Illinois.

"Vandalia" was laid down at the Philadelphia Navy Yard in 1825; launched in 1828; and commissioned on 6 November of that year, Commander John Gallagher in command.

"Vandalia" left Philadelphia on 16 December 1828, bound for duty with the Brazil Squadron off the eastern seaboard of South America. She remained off the coasts of Brazil and Argentina for the next three years, during a period of political unrest on the continent of South America. She returned to Norfolk, Virginia, on 18 December 1831; was decommissioned the next day; and remained inactive until 4 October 1832 when she was recommissioned for service with the West Indies Squadron.

"Vandalia" again put into Norfolk in August 1834 and was decommissioned there on the 24th for major repairs. Recommissioned on the last day of the year, she joined the West Indies Squadron in January 1835 and served with that organization into the summer of 1838; cooperating with land forces in Florida during the second Seminole Indian War; and helping to suppress the slave trade. After almost three months laid up undergoing repairs from 30 August to 24 November, the ship was reactivated and returned to duty for a year in the Caribbean, ending when her commissioning pennant was again hauled down at Norfolk on 23 November 1839.

Following more than two years on the stocks, the ship was returned to commission on 3 February 1842, joined the newly created Home Squadron in 1842, and performed routine patrol and reconnaissance duties at scattered points as far north as Newfoundland and as far south as the mouth of the Amazon River. During a visit to Haiti in the early spring of 1845, an epidemic of yellow fever broke out in the ship. She returned immediately to Norfolk, was decommissioned on 30 April, and was laid up. During the sloop's period in ordinary which lasted until 1849, she was lengthened by 13 feet in 1848. The renovated "Vandalia" was re-commissioned on 9 August 1849 and joined the Pacific Squadron on 5 September 1849 as that organization was expanding to service the territory which the United States had recently acquired on the Pacific coast. She made several visits to the Hawaiian Islands in 1851 before returning to the New York Navy Yard on 6 October 1852 and going out of commission again on the 14th.

"Vandalia's" rest ended on Valentine's Day 1853, and the ship soon joined Commodore Matthew C. Perry's East Indies Squadron. She was present at Commodore Perry's historic entrance into Tokyo Bay on 13 February 1854 and in 1855 helped to protect American interests in China during the Taiping Rebellion. "Vandalia" was decommissioned at the Portsmouth Navy Yard on 30 September 1856 but was recommissioned on 11 November 1857 for duty with the Pacific Squadron. In 1859, the warship rescued survivors of the American clipper ship "Wild Wave", wrecked off Oeno and Pitcairn Islands, and conducted an expedition against natives at Waya, Fiji Islands, following the murder of two American citizens. "Vandalia" returned to the New York Navy Yard early in 1860 and was decommissioned on 6 January of that year but was recommissioned there on 8 November and assigned to duty with the East Indies Squadron.

With the outbreak of the Civil War in April 1861, "Vandalia" was called back home and assigned to the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron on 31 May for blockade duty off Charleston and Bull's Bay, South Carolina. There, she captured the schooner "Henry Middleton" on 21 August and assisted in the capture of the sailing ship "Thomas Watson" in 15 October. The vessel also participated in the successful amphibious assault upon Roanoke Island, North Carolina, on 7 November and 8 November. This victory closed the supply lines to Confederate-held Norfolk Navy Yard and was largely responsible for the evacuation of that vital naval facility six months later. "Vandalia" put into New York on 24 November to deliver the officers and crew of the wrecked steamer "Governor".

"Vandalia" soon returned to duty with the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron and was deployed off Tybee Roads, Georgia, in December. She remained at Tybee until April 1862, at which time she was ordered to proceed to the blockade at Wassaw Sound, Georgia. The sloop returned to Port Royal, South Carolina, in June and took up blockade duty off Charleston in July. She served at Port Royal as a guardship in September and was repaired and resupplied there in November. Later that month and in December, she cruised along the outside line of the blockade off Charleston and Port Royal Bay, performing reconnaissance duties as well as giving practical sailing experience to recent Naval Academy graduates. On 12 December, the vessel was ordered north for major structural repairs at New York.

"Vandalia" was decommissioned at the New York Navy Yard on 4 February 1863 and then sailed for Portsmouth, New Hampshire, on 17 October for use as a receiving and guard ship. She remained at Portsmouth until broken up there sometime between 1870 and 1872.


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • USS Vandalia — has been the name of four ships in the service of the United States Navy. All of the ships are named for Vandalia, Illinois.*USS Vandalia (1828), an 18 gun sloop of war *USS Vandalia (1876), a screw sloop *USS Vandalia (IX 191), originally known… …   Wikipedia

  • List of United States Navy ships, V — V* USS V 1 (SS 163) * USS V 2 (SS 164) * USS V 3 (SS 165) * USS V 4 (SS 166) * USS V 5 (SS 167) * USS V 6 (SS 168) * USS V 7 (SS 169) * USS V 8 (SS 170) * USS V 9 (SS 171) * USS V 43 (1915)Va* USS Vaga (YT 116, YTB 374) * USS Vagrant (PYc 30) *… …   Wikipedia

  • Liste der Schiffe der United States Navy/V — Schiffe der United States Navy A B …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • List of sloops of war of the United States Navy — Sailing sloops of war *USS Adams (1799) *USS Albany (1846) *USS Alligator (1813) *USS Belle Italia (1862) *USS Boston (1825) *USS Brockenborough (1862) *USS Constellation (1854) *USS Cyane (1837) *USS Dale (1839) *USS Decatur (1839) *USS Eagle… …   Wikipedia

  • List of counties in Illinois — Counties of Illinois This is a list of the 102 counties in the state of Illinois. Information on the FIPS county code, county seat, year of establishment, origin, etymology, population, area and map of each county is included in the table below …   Wikipedia

  • Cadwalader Ringgold — (20 August 1802 29 April 1867) was an officer in the United States Navy who served in the United States Exploring Expedition, later headed an expedition to the Northwest and, after initially retiring, returned to service during the Civil War.(His …   Wikipedia

  • List of Illinois county name etymologies — This is a list of Illinois county name etymologies. Many counties in the U.S. state of Illinois were named for early American leaders, especially of the American Revolutionary War, as well as soldiers from the Battle of Tippecanoe and the War of… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”