USS Varuna
Union Navy Gunboat
American Civil War

USS Varuna (1862-1862)

USS Varuna , a 1300-ton screw steam gunboat, was purchased by the Navy in late December 1861, while under construction at Mystic, Connecticut, for civilian use. After conversion to a warship, she was commissioned in February 1862. Soon sent to the Gulf of Mexico for service, she was present when Federal warships confronted Confederate-held Forts Jackson and St. Philip on the lower Mississippi River. On 24 April 1862, as the Union fleet boldly steamed past those fortifications to attack New Orleans, Varuna was closely engaged and rammed by the Confederate ships Governor Moore and Stonewall Jackson (identified in one contemporary print as the General Breckinridge ). The fatally-damaged Varuna 's gun crews continued firing on the enemy until their ship sank.

"The Last Broadside of the Varuna."
Line engraving, published circa the 1860s, depicting USS Varuna continuing to fire at Confederate forces as she sank, during the battle off Forts Jackson and St. Philip, below New Orleans, Louisiana, on 24 April 1862.


Life in Mr. Lincoln's Navy
A tantalizing glimpse into the hardships endured by the naval leadership to build and recruit a fighting force. The seaman endured periods of boredom, punctuated by happy social times and terrifying bouts of battle horror





Confederate Phoenix: The CSS Virginia
The CSS Virginia of the Confederate States Navy destroyed two of the most formidable warships in the U.S. Navy. Suddenly, with this event, every wooden warship in every navy in the world became totally obsolete



Confederate Submarines and Torpedo Vessels 1861-65
Interesting information and many excellent illustrations. It addresses the CSA David class torpedo boats and the Hunley (and its predecessors), as well as Union examples such as the Alligator and the Spuyten Duyvil

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American Civil War Naval Book Titles

Ironclad of the Roanoke: Gilbert Elliott's Albemarle
The story of a Confederate Ironcald that was a powerful force until sunk by a Union Torpedo Boat after its brief stormy life. Ironic in the fact it was built in a Cornfield. Confederate Ingenunity at it finest!

Ironclads and Big Guns of the Confederacy : The Journal and Letters of John M. Brooke
Information about the Confederate Navy's effort to supply its fledgling forces, the wartime diaries and letters of John M. Brooke tell the neglected story of the Confederate naval ordnance office, its innovations, and its strategic vision.

Wolf of the Deep: Raphael Semmes and the Notorious Confederate Raider CSS Alabama
In July 1862, the Confederate captain Raphael Semmes received orders to report to Liverpool, where he would take command of a secret new British-built steam warship. His mission: to prey on Union commercial vessels and undermine the North's ability to continue the war

The Hunt for the Albemarle: Anatomy of a Gunboat War
The Confederate ironclad Albemarle was the key to the river wars in North Carolina.

Civil War History Documentary DVD Movie Titles

Halls of Honor
The U.S. Navy Museum takes you on an informed and entertaining romp through one of North America s oldest and finest military museums. The museum has been in continuous operation at the Washington Navy Yard since the American Civil War

Raise The Alabama
She was known as "the ghost ship." During the Civil War, the CSS Alabama sailed over 75,000 miles and captured more than 60 Union vessels. But her career came to an end in June of 1864 when she was sunk by the USS Kearsarge off the coast of Northern France

The Civil War - A Film by Ken Burns
Here is the saga of celebrated generals and ordinary soldiers, a heroic and transcendent president and a country that had to divide itself in two in order to become one

Civil War Journal - The Conflict Begins
These four programs from the History Channel series Civil War Journal cover critical aspects of the early days of the war.


American Military Gear Recruiter and History
United States Marines gear history and support of Semper Fi Fund
United States Army History Timeline

 

Sources:
U.S. National Park Service
U.S. Library of Congress
US Naval Archives


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