History | |
---|---|
United States | |
Ordered | as Chowan[1] |
Launched | May 1857[1] |
Acquired | October 1858 by the U.S. Navy |
Commissioned | 27 October 1858[1][2] |
Decommissioned | 13 June 1865 at the Washington Navy Yard[2] |
Renamed | Southern Star, Crusader[1] |
Fate | Sold, 20 July 1865[2] |
General characteristics | |
Displacement | 545 tons[2] |
Length | 169 ft (52 m)[2] |
Beam | 28 ft (8.5 m)[2] |
Draft | 12 ft 6 in (3.81 m)[2] |
Propulsion |
|
Speed | 8 knots (15 km/h)[2] |
Complement | 92[2] |
Armament |
|
USS Crusader was a screw steamer of the United States Navy that served prior to, and during, the American Civil War.
Crusader was heavily armed and was used in a "gunboat diplomacy" role when the United States needed to place political pressure on Paraguay. After completing that mission, she returned to the United States to participate as a gunboat in the blockade of the Confederate States of America.