USS Leonidas (1861)

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For other ships of the same name, see USS Leonidas.

USS Leonidas was originally built as a whaling bark of 231 tons, 320 feet long.

It was active in the Pacific Ocean in 1849, captained by Captain Swift of New Bedford, Massachusetts. From 1850 to 1854, it was partially owned, and captained by, Benjamin Smith Clark, Jr.

Purchased on 27 October 1861 by the US Navy at New Bedford, Massachusetts for $3,050 for use as part of the Stone Fleet. Filled with stone, it sailed from New Bedford in charge of Master John Howland on November 20, 1861. Exactly one month later, it was intentionally sunk, along with 15 other vessels, in an unsuccessful effort to stop blockade runners from using the main shipping channel into Charleston Harbor about four miles south-southeast of Fort Sumter and three miles east-southeast of the light on Morris Island, South Carolina.[1]

[edit] References

  1. ^ Treasures of the Confederate Coast: the "real Rhett Butler" & Other Revelations by Dr. E. Lee Spence, (Narwhal Press, Charleston/Miami, 1995) [ISBN 1886391017] [ISBN 1886391009], p. 146

This article includes text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.