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USS Malvern (I)

Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons

Civil War Medal
Sidewheel Steamer:
  • Built in 1860, as SS William G. Hewes by Harlan and Hollingsworth Co., Wilmington, DE., for the Southern Steamship Co.
  • Delivered and placed in regular commercial service between New York City and New Orleans 11 January 1861
  • Seized, 28 April 1861 by the Governor of Louisiana and put into service as a Confederate blockade runner
  • Renamed SS Ella and Annie in April 1862, while operating out of Charleston, S.C.
  • In April 1863 Ella and Annie renewed blockade running to Bermuda
  • Captured by USS Niphon off New Inlet, N.C.
  • Condemned by the prize court in Boston, Ella and Annie was sold to the US Navy
  • Provisionally commissioned USS Malvern, 10 December 1863, at Boston Navy Yard
  • Formally commissioned, 9 February 1864, at Boston Navy Yard
  • USS Malvern was assigned to the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron, as Admiral Porter's flagship
    Participated in the attacks and capture of Fort Fisher, N.C. in December 1864 and January 1865
    Captured blockade running steamers Stag and Charlotte, 19 January 1865 off New Inlet
    Participated in the attack on Fort Anderson, 18 February 1865, on the Cape Fear River
  • Decommissioned, 24 October 1865, at New York City
  • Sold at auction at New York to S. G. Bogart, who promptly resold her to her original owner, renamed SS William G. Hewes and reconditioned for passenger and freight service at Wilmington, DE., during January 1866
  • Operated between New Orleans and the Texas Gulf ports until 1878
  • Final disposition, caught in a violent gulf storm in February 1895 and wrecked on Colorado Reef off the coast of Cuba
    Specifications:
    Displacement 1,477 t.
    Length 239' 4"
    Beam 33'
    Depth unknown
    Draft 10'
    Speed unknown
    Complement unknown
    Armament unknown
    Propulsion steam
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		 Size Image Description Source
    SS Ella and Annie
    Malvern 97k SS Ella and Annie, Confederate Blockade Runner, Artwork by R.G. Skerrett, 1900. Built as the steamship William G. Hewes in 1860, Ella and Annie was captured off New Inlet, North Carolina, in November 1863.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command photo # NH 61575    		 US Naval History and Heritage Command
    Malvern 69k Acting Master Francis Nathaniel Bonneau, CSN. Bonneau was Master of the blockade runner SS Ella and Annie in 1863. When she was captured, 9 November 1863. He was subsequently convicted of piracy on the basis of the aggressive tactics he employed to avoid capture, but the conviction was suspended and Bonneau was paroled in September 1864.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command photo # NH 56209    		 Robert Hurst
    USS Malvern (I)
    Malvern 73k USS Malvern at the Norfolk Navy Yard, VA., circa 1865, while serving as flagship of the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron. Note the ruined buildings in the background.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command photo # NH 46617     		Bill Gonyo
    Maumee 94k "Bombardment of Fort Fisher" "Jan. 15th 1865"
    Lithograph after a drawing by T.F. Laycock, published by Endicott & Co., New York, 1865, depicting the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron bombarding Fort Fisher, North Carolina, in preparation for its capture. The print is dedicated to Commodore S.W. Godon, USN. Ships present, as named on the original print, are (from left to right in the main battle line):
    USS Tacony;
    USS Maumee;
    USS Ticonderoga;
    USS Shenandoah;
    USS Tuscarora;
    USS Juniata;
    USS Wabash;
    USS Susquehanna;
    USS Colorado;
    USS Minnesotaa;
    USS Brooklyn;
    USS New Ironsides and
    USS Mohican.
    Ships in the foreground are (left to right, from the center of the view):
    USS Powhatan;
    USS Mackinaw;
    USS Vanderbilt and
    USS Malvern (Flagship of Rear Admiral David Dixon Porter).
    Monitors in the right middle distance are:
    USS Monadnock (with two turrets);
    USS Mahopac;
    USS Saugus and
    USS Canonicus.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command photo # LC-USZ62-144 from the collections of the Library of Congress.    		 Bill Gonyo
    Malvern 83k Capture of Fort Fisher, North Carolina, 15 January 1865.
    Watercolor by eyewitness Ensign John W. Grattan, of Rear Admiral David Dixon Porter's staff, depicting Porter's fleet bombarding the fort prior to the ground assault. Side-wheel steamer in the right foreground is Porter's flagship, USS Malvern. USS New Ironsides and USS Monadnock are in the right distance.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command photo # NH 50468-KN (Color). Courtesy of the Naval Historical Foundation, Grattan Collection.    		 Robert Hurst
    Malvern 79k Capture of Fort Fisher, North Carolina, 15 January 1865.
    Watercolor by eyewitness Ensign John W. Grattan, of Rear Admiral David Dixon Porter's staff, depicting the storming of the fort, as the bombarding fleet stands offshore. Side-wheel steamer in the center, flying signal flags, is Porter's flagship, USS Malvern. USS New Ironsides is at right.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command photo # NH 50467-KN (Color). Courtesy of the Naval Historical Foundation, Grattan Collection.    		 Robert Hurst
    Malvern 65k Watercolor by Erik Heyl, 1952 of USS Malvern, painted for use in his book "Early American Steamers", Volume I. Originally built in 1860 as the steamship SS William G. Hewes, this steamer was the blockade runner SS Ella and Annie when captured in November 1863 and served for the rest of the Civil War as USS Malvern. After sale to civilian owners late in 1865 she again was named William G. Hewes and kept that name until wrecked in 1895.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command photo # NH 63855 courtesy of Erik Heyl    		 US Naval History and Heritage Command
    Malvern 128k Shipping at City Point, Virginia, circa 1864-1865. Most of the vessels near shore appear to be schooners, though some are barges and other small craft. Several steamships are in the distance, including a large former blockade runner in the center. Beyond her is USS Malvern, flagship of the commander of the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron, Rear Admiral David Dixon Porter.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command photo # NH 1753    		 US Naval History and Heritage Command
    Malvern 124k Rear Admiral David Dixon Porter, USN, Commanding, North Atlantic Blockading Squadron. (center) With members of his staff, on board his flagship USS Malvern in Hampton Roads, VA, December 1864. The officer standing at far left is LCDR. William B. Cushing, USN.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command photo # NH 61924    		 US Naval History and Heritage Command
    Malvern 102k Rear Admiral David Dixon Porter, USN, Commanding, North Atlantic Blockading Squadron on the main deck of his flagship, USS Malvern, circa late 1864, leaning on a heavy 12-pounder Dahlgren smooth-bore howitzer that is mounted on a slide carriage. Photographed by Alexander Gardner.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command photo # NH 91416    		 US Naval History and Heritage Command
    USS Malvern (I)
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)
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    Last Updated 24 March 2017