 The River Defense Fleet being destroyed at the First Battle of Memphis; General M. Jeff Thompson is the sinking vessel in the left foreground
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 Confederate States | |
| Name | General M. Jeff Thompson |
| Namesake | M. Jeff Thompson |
| Acquired | January 1862 |
| In service | April 11, 1862 |
| Fate | Ran aground and blew up, June 6, 1862 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Sidewheel steamer |
| Propulsion | Steam engine, side wheels |
CSS General M. Jeff Thompson was a warship which served in the River Defense Fleet of the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War. Purchased in January 1862, the vessel was operated by the Confederate States Army and named after M. Jeff Thompson, an officer in the Missouri State Guard. She was equipped with a ram and armored as a cottonclad. General M. Jeff Thompson participated in the Battle of Plum Point Bend in May 1862, before being sunk on June 6 in the First Battle of Memphis. Her wreck remained on the floor of the Mississippi River until it was removed by a snagboat in July 1867; it had caused a shipwreck about six months earlier when another vessel struck it.