USS Colorado (1856)

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

Career
USS Colorado
Name:	USS Colorado
Builder:	Norfolk Navy Yard
Laid down:	1856
Launched:	19 June 1856
Sponsored by:	Ms. N. S. Dornin
Commissioned:	13 March 1858
Decommissioned:	8 June 1876
Fate:	Sold, 18 February 1885
General characteristics
Class and type:	Colorado
Type:	Screw frigate
Displacement:	3,425 long tons (3,480 t)
Length:	263 ft 8 in (80.37 m)
Beam:	52 ft 6 in (16.00 m)
Draft:	22 ft 1 in (6.73 m)
Propulsion:	Steam engine
Sail plan:	Three masts
Speed:	9 kn (10 mph; 17 km/h)
Complement:	674 officers and men^[1]
Armament:	2 × 10 in (250 mm) guns, 28 × 9 in (230 mm) guns, 14 × 8 in (200 mm) guns
General characteristics 1864
Class and type:	Colorado-class frigate ^(?)
Armament:	• 1 × 150 pdr rifle • 1 × 11 in (280 mm) smoothbore guns • 46 × 9 in (230 mm) smoothbore guns • 4 × 12 pdr howitzers ^[1]
General characteristics 1871
Class and type:	Colorado-class frigate ^(?)
Armament:	• 2 × 100 pdr rifle • 1 × 11 in (280 mm) smoothbore guns • 42 × 9 in (230 mm) smoothbore guns • 2 × 20 pdr howitzers • 6 × 12 pdr howitzers ^[1]

The first USS Colorado — a 3,400 long tons (3,500 t)-class, three-masted^[2] steam screw frigate — was launched on 19 June 1856 by the Norfolk Navy Yard. It was sponsored by Ms. N. S. Dornin, and commissioned on 13 March 1858, Captain W. H. Gardner in command.

Pre-Civil War

Putting to sea from Boston on 12 May 1858, Colorado cruised in Cuban waters deterring the practice of search by British cruisers until 6 August, when she returned to Boston and was placed in ordinary until 1861.

Civil War

Colorado was recommissioned on 3 June 1861 and sailed from Boston on 18 June to join the Union Navy's Gulf Blockading Squadron, under the task force command of Commodore William Marvine's flagship for the Blockade.^[2] On 14 September, an expedition under Lieutenant J. H. Russell from Colorado cut out the schooner Judah, believed to be preparing for service as a privateer and spiked one gun of a battery at the Pensacola Navy Yard, losing three men in the raid. On 11 December, another expedition was sent to Pilot Town and succeeded in capturing a small schooner and two men. Colorado assisted in the capture of the steamer Calhoun (or Cuba) on 23 January 1862 off South West Pass at the mouth of the Mississippi River, and a week later engaged four Confederate steamers.

In April 1862 the Colorado, built for fighting at sea, was prevented from participating in the Battle of New Orleans because her draft was too deep to cross the bar. Nineteen guns and one howitzer were removed and distributed across the fleet.^[3] She returned to Boston on 21 June and was decommissioned from 28 June-10 November.

Colorado sailed from Portsmouth, New Hampshire on 9 December to rejoin the blockading force off Mobile, Alabama on 13 March 1863. She shared in the capture of the schooner Hunter on 17 May. Returning to Portsmouth Navy Yard on 4 February 1864, she was again placed out of commission from 18 February-1 September.

Clearing Portsmouth on 6 October, she joined the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron and cruised off the coast of North Carolina until 26 January 1865. Colorado participated in the bombardment and capture of Fort Fisher from 13–15 January. She was struck six times by enemy fire which killed one man and wounded two.

By late 1864, Wilmington, North Carolina was the only port left to the Confederacy. Its access to the sea was protected by Fort Fisher, at the mouth of the Cape Fear River.

A joint Army-Navy attack in December failed (the First Battle of Fort Fisher, 7–27 December 1864).[4]

A second attack came in January (the Second Battle of Fort Fisher, 13–15 January 1865). Colorado was engaged, and Dewey played a key role in her success.

Colorado, being a wooden ship, was placed in the line outside the monitors and other armored vessels but got a full share of conflict. Toward the end of the second engagement, when matters were moving the right way, Admiral Porter signaled Thatcher to close in and silence a certain part of the works. As Colorado had already received considerable damage, her officers remonstrated. But Dewey, who, had now acquired marked tactical ability, was quick to see the advantage to be gained by the move and the work was taken in fifteen minutes. The New York Times, commenting upon this part of the action, spoke of it as "the most beautiful duel of the war". When Admiral Porter came to congratulate Commodore Thatcher the latter said generously: "You must thank Lieutenant Dewey, sir. It was his move." Nevertheless Thatcher was promoted to Rear Admiral. He tried to take Dewey with him as his fleet captain when he went to supersede Farragut at Mobile Bay. This was not permitted, but Dewey was promoted to lieutenant-commander.[4]

Prizes

Date^[1]	Prize Name^[1]	Gross Proceeds	Costs and Expenses	Amount for Distribution	Where Adjudicated	Sent to 4th Auditor for Distribution	Vessels Entitled to Share
13 Sep 1861	Judith						destroyed ^[1]
6 May 1862	Lewis Whitmore

Post-Civil War

A posed photograph of U.S. Navy officers holding a council of war aboard Colorado off Korea in June 1871 prior to the Korean Expedition. The ship‍ 's commanding officer, Captain George H. Cooper, is seated at center, and the Asiatic Squadron‍ 's commander, Rear Admiral John Rodgers, leans over the table at right.

European Squadron

From 3 February-25 May 1865, Colorado was again out of commission at New York Navy Yard. Ordered to the European Squadron as flagship, she sailed on 11 June and cruised off England, Portugal, and Spain, and in the Mediterranean and Adriatic Seas until she departed Cherbourg on 23 July 1867 for New York where she was placed in ordinary from 7 September 1867-15 February 1870. During this period LCDR Dewey's next tour of duty was in 1867 and 1868 as executive officer onboard USS Colorado.

Asiatic Squadron

Colorado was flagship of the Asiatic Squadron. America had emerged from the Civil War and its foreign policy at the time was to rival the European powers (France, Russia and Britain) in their efforts to establish trade and spheres of influence in China, Japan and Korea.

Colorado cruised on the Asiatic Station from 9 April 1870-15 March 1873. As flagship for Rear Admiral John Rodgers' squadron, she carried the U.S. Minister (to China and Korea) on a diplomatic mission in April 1871.

On 1 June 1871, an unprovoked attack was made on two ships of the squadron by shore batteries from two Korean forts on the Salee River. When no explanation was offered, a punitive expedition known as the Sinmiyangyo was mounted that destroyed the forts and inflicted heavy casualties on the Koreans.

Clearing Hong Kong on 21 November 1872, Colorado sailed by way of Singapore and Cape Town for New York, arriving on 11 March 1873.

North Atlantic Squadron

Colorado sailed from New York on 12 December to cruise the North Atlantic Station, and became flagship of the North Atlantic Squadron on 27 August 1874.

Decommissioned

Returning to New York on 30 May 1876, Colorado was placed out of commission on 8 June. From 1876-1884, she was used as a Receiving Ship at New York Navy Yard. She was sold on 14 February 1885 to a private company; and broken up for salvage material and burned for her copper fastenings.^[2]

References

This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.

Silverstone, Paul H. Warships of the Civil War Navies Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, MD, 1989, ISBN 0-87021-783-6.

↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Silverstone, Warships, p. 29.
↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 USS Colorado Home Page
↑ Miller, Francis Trevelyan (1912). The Photographic History of the Civil War, Volume 6, The Navies. Review of Reviews Company. Retrieved 28 January 2015.