Neosho-class monitor
A drawing of Neosho as she appeared in 1863
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| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name: | Neosho class |
| Builders: | Union Iron Works, Carondelet, Missouri |
| Operators: | United States Navy |
| Built: | 1862–63 |
| In service: | 1863–73 |
| Retired: | 2 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type: | River monitor |
| Tons burthen: | 523 |
| Length: | 180 ft (54.9 m) |
| Beam: | 45 ft (13.7 m) |
| Draft: | 4 ft 6 in (1.4 m) |
| Depth of hold: | 9 ft (2.7 m) |
| Installed power: | |
| Propulsion: |
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| Speed: | 12 miles per hour (19 km/h) |
| Complement: | 100 officers and men |
| Armament: | 2 × 11-inch (280 mm) smoothbore Dahlgren guns |
| Armor: |
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The Neosho-class monitors were a pair of ironclad river monitors laid down in the summer of 1862. After completion in mid-1863, both ships spent time patrolling the Mississippi River against Confederate raids and ambushes as part of Rear Admiral David Porter's Mississippi Squadron. Both ships participated in the Red River Campaign in March–May 1864, although Osage supported the capture of Fort DeRussy in March and participated in the Battle of Blair's Landing in April. Osage was grounded on a sandbar for six months after the end of the campaign while Neosho resumed her patrols on the Mississippi. The latter ship supported the Union Army's operations on the Cumberland River and provided fire support during the Battle of Nashville in December.
Osage, after being refloated and repaired, was transferred to the West Gulf Blockading Squadron in early 1865 for the campaign against Mobile, Alabama. During the Battle of Spanish Fort in March 1865 she struck a mine and rapidly sank. The ship was later salvaged and sold in 1867. Neosho was decommissioned after the war and remained in until sold in 1873.
The original plans for the Neosho-class ships, designed by James Eads, resembled the City-class ironclads with a draft of 5 feet 6 inches (1.7 m), but the successful performance of the Monitor during the Battle of Hampton Roads caused the navy to revise its requirement to include a gun turret. Eads responded with an impressive design that included a turret with 8 inches (203 mm) of armor, a fully armored sternwheel and a draft of 4 feet 6 inches (1.4 m), but the navy wanted even less draft and rejected his design. Eads adopted a turtleback deck design that promised to only draw 3 feet 6 inches (1.1 m).
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