USS Aries (1863)
Sketch of USS Aries as she appeared after the Civil War |
|
| Career | |
|---|---|
| Namesake: | Aries (constellation) |
| Builder: | James Laing's Deptford yard, Sunderland, England |
| Laid down: | 1861 |
| Launched: | 1862 |
| Acquired: | 20 May 1863 |
| Commissioned: | 25 July 1863 at the Boston Navy Yard |
| Decommissioned: | 14 June 1865 at the Boston Navy Yard |
| Struck: | 1865 (est.) |
| Captured: | by Union Navy forces, 28 March 1863 |
| Fate: | Sold in 1865 and Scrapped in 1908 |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 820 tons |
| Length: | 201 ft (61 m) |
| Beam: | 27.8 ft (8.5 m) |
| Draft: | 15.7 ft (4.8 m) |
| Propulsion: | Steam engine Screw-propelled |
| Speed: | 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph) |
| Complement: | 90 |
| Armament: | • 4 × 8 in (200 mm) smoothbore guns • 1 × 30-pounder Parrott rifle • 1 × 12-pounder rifle |
| Armor: | Iron-hulled |
USS Aries (1863) was a 820-ton iron screw steamer built at Sunderland, England, during 1861-1862, intended for employment as a blockade runner during the American Civil War. She was captured by Union Navy forces during the Union blockade of the Confederate States of America, and was commissioned as a Union gunboat. Aries was named for the constellation.
Although sold by the United States Navy post-war in 1865, Aries — the first ship to bear that name for the U.S. Navy — continued her work in the merchant service for nearly half a century, before being scrapped in 1908.
Read more about USS Aries (1863): Built in Sunderland, England, Blockade Running, Capture By Union Navy Forces, Post-war Sale and Subsequent Career, See Also