USS Tacony (1863)

Tacony attacking Plymouth, North Carolina
USS Tacony (far left) attacking Plymouth, North Carolina
History
United States
NameUSS Tacony
NamesakeA section of northeastern Philadelphia on the bank of the Delaware River
BuilderPhiladelphia Navy Yard
Laid downDate unknown
Launched7 May 1863
Commissioned12 February 1864 at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Decommissioned7 October 1867 at Portsmouth, New Hampshire
Stricken1868 (est.)
FateSold, 26 August 1868
NotesDouble ended ship
General characteristics
Class and typeSassacus-class gunboat
Displacement974 tons
Length205 ft (62 m)
Beam35 ft (11 m)
Draft8 ft 10 in (2.69 m)
Depth of hold11 ft 6 in (3.51 m)
PropulsionSteam engine, side wheel-propelled
Speed15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph)
Complement145
Armament
  • 2 × 11 in (280 mm) Dahlgren smoothbore guns
  • 3 × 9 in (230 mm) Dahlgren smoothbore guns
  • 1 × 24-pounder howitzer
  • 2 × 12-pounder guns
  • 1 × brass fieldpiece

USS Tacony was a double-ended, side-wheel steamboat acquired by the Union Navy during the third year of the American Civil War. She was outfitted as a heavy gunboat with powerful guns and used in the Union blockade of the waterways of the Confederate States of America.