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NavSource Online: "Old Navy" Ship Photo Archive

USS Mount Washington
ex
 USS Mount Vernon (1861)

Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons

Civil War Medal
Sidewheel Gunboat:
  • Built as Mount Vernon at Philadelphia in 1846
  • Seized by the War Department, 21 April 1861 and transferred to the Navy on that date
  • Commissioned USS Mount Vernon, date unknown, LT J. Glendy Sprosteon in command
  • Mount Vernon was initially assigned to the Potomac Flotilla in May
  • Reassigned to the James River Squadron in July
  • Renamed USS Mount Washington, 4 November 1861
  • During the period 1861 to 1862 USS Mount Washington (USS Mount Vernon) performed utilitarian duties such as patrol, towing and carrying supply and ordnance
  • Mount Washington joined the Suffolk Campaign in April 1863 exchanging artillery fire with the Confederates at Hampton Roads on the 14th
  • At the mouth of the Western Branch, 6 May she was completely riddled and disabled
  • She next participated in the naval action against the batteries at Hatt's Point on 12 May which nearly destroyed her
  • Mount Washington joined the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron at Norfolk 25 February 1865
  • In April, she served as supply ship downriver until decommissioning
  • Decommissioned, date unknown
  • Sold at public auction at Baltimore 21 June 1865, redocumented 18 October 1865, she continued to serve American commerce until 1880
  • Final Disposition, fate unknown
    Specifications:
    Displacement 500 t.
    Length 200'
    Beam 24'
    Depth of Hold unknown
    Draft 6'6"
    Speed 12 kts
    Complement unknown
    Armament one 32-pdr smoothbore
    Propulsion steam
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		 Size Image Description Contributed
    By
    Mount Washington 143k "The U.S. Steamer Mount Vernon Reconnoitring the Unfinished Rebel Batteries on Mathias Point, on the Virginia Bank of the Potomac, Sixty Miles below Washington."
    Line engraving published in Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper, 1861, depicting a scene on the foredeck of USS Mount Vernon (later renamed Mount Washington) during her operations on the Potomac River in mid-1861. Note the 32-pounder smoothbore gun.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command Photo # NH 45740    		 Robert Hurst
    USS Mount Vernon / USS Mount Washington
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)
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    This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
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    Last Updated 24 March 2017