AN HISTORICAL RECORD OF THOSE NOW IN SERVICE AND OF THEIR PREDECESSORS OF THE SAME NAME 1776-1915
NEW YORK
NEW YORK.—One of the United States. It was first visited by Sebastian Cabot in 1497, and colonized by the Dutch East India Company in 1609, from whom it was captured by the British in 1664. The state joined the union in 1776, and ratified the Constitution in 1778. The city of New York is the largest and most important trade center in North America. It is situated on Manhattan Island, which was discovered by Hendrik Hudson in 1609. The Dutch founded a colony here in 1631, and called it the settlement of New Amsterdam, but in 1664 Richard Nicholls took Possession of it in the name of the Duke of York, when it received its present name.
The New York is an armored steel battleship of the first class, known to-day as a super-dreadnought. She is one of the two ships authorized by Congress on June 24, 1910, and was built by the government at the New York navy yard, where she was launched on October 30, 1912. She is a ship of 27,000 tons displacement, and has the following dimensions: length, 565 feet; breadth, 95 feet 2 inches; draft, 28 feet 6 inches. Her engines are of the quadruple expansion type and she has Babcock and Wilcox boilers. Her estimated speed is 21 knots, and she has a bunker coal capacity of 2850 tons, exclusive of 400 tons of oil. Her armor is of Krupp steel, which protects her water-line in an 8-foot wide belt, varying in thickness from 12 inches amidships to 4 inches at the ends; in addition she has 9-inch to 11-inch armored bulkheads forward and aft, 14-inch plates on her turrets, 12-inch barbettes, and 6 inches on her- battery and casemates. Her armament consists of ten 14-inch B. L. R.'s, twenty-one 5-inch R. F.'s, four 3-pounders, two 1-pounders, two 3-inch field guns, and two .30-caliber machine guns. She also has two 21-inch submerged torpedo tubes. Her complement is, as flagship, 63 officers and1009 men. The contract cost of her construction was $6,000,000.
On April 15, 1914, the New York went into commission at the New York navy yard, whence, on Apri1.26, in command of Captain Thomas S. Rodgers, she sailed for Mexican waters, where she became the flagship of Rear Admiral C. McR. Winslow, commanding the special service squadron. After several months' duty at Vera Cruz, the New York returned to home waters, where she was assigned to the first division of the Atlantic fleet, being, for a time, Admiral Fletcher's fleet flagship.
The armored cruiser New York, now known as the Saratoga, was the fifth ship of that name. Authorized by Act of Congress on September 7, 1888, she was launched at the shipyard of William Cramp & Sons, Philadelphia, Pa., on December 2, 1891. She is a ship of the first rate, of 815o tons displacement, 380 feet 6 inches length, 64 feet 10 inches breadth, and 23 feet 3 inches draft. She is an armored steel vessel, with a water-line belt 4 inches thick, a 6-inch sloping protective deck, 572 inches of steel on her turrets, and a barbette of 10 inches. Her engines are of the vertical )triple . expansion type, of 17,075 H. P., and on her trial developed a speed of 21 knots. She has Scotch boilers, and a bunker coal capacity of 1325 tons. Her original contract cost was $2,985,000. Her complement is 34 officers and 525 men.
When first commissioned, in 1893, the New York carried a battery of six 8-inch B. L. R.'s, twelve 4-inch R. F. G.'s, eight 6-pounder D. S.'s, and four Hotchkiss I-pounders. This armament remained substantially the same for 13 years, with the exception of occasional changes in her secondary I-pounder battery, which was more than doubled in 1897 and 1898, and afterwards gradually decreased. In 1906 her armament was changed to four 8-inch B. L. R.'s, ten 5-inch R. F.'s, eight 3-inch R. F.'s, four 3-pounder R. F.'s, and four .30 caliber automatics.
On August 1, 1893, the New York went into commission at Philadelphia under Captain J. W. Philip, and proceeded immediately to the South Atlantic station where she was engaged in protecting American interests until June 29, 1894, when he was ordered north for duty in home waters with the North Atlantic squadron. On August 23, 1894, Captain R. D. Evans relieved Captain Philip. The New York then became the flagship of the North Atlantic station, and cruised regularly with the squadron, except in June, 1895, when she was ordered to Kiel, Germany, for the opening of the new North Baltic Sea canal. Returning to the United States, Captain Evans was succeeded in command of the New York by Captain W. S. Schley, who in turn was relieved by Captains S. Casey (March 14, 1897)* and French E. Chadwick (1897).
*Dates in parentheses, immediately following an officer’s name, indicate the date of his taking command of the ship.
The 15th of February, 1898, found the New York at Dry Tortugas, Fla. Immediately the ship proceeded to Key West, where she was fitted for war service, and on March 26 became the flagship of Rear Admiral W. T. Sampson. Three days after the declaration of hostilities, she sailed for the Havana blockade and while on that station, on April 27, shelled some new Spanish defences at Matanzas, Cuba, with the Puritan and Cincinnati. Four days later Key West was visited for coal, and then, in company with the Indiana and Iowa, two monitors and two cruisers, Admiral Sampson sailed for San Juan, Porto Rico, where, after many difficulties, owing to the necessity of towing the monitors, the squadron arrived on the 12th, and proceeded to bombard the defences. The surprise was complete; it was eight minutes before there was an answering shot. But two hours' firing by the ships did comparatively little damage to the forts, and the vessels withdrew having been struck three times.
On May 21, the New York arrived on the north coast blockading station, whence she cruised in the early part of June between Key West and Santiago, arriving off the latter port in time to participate in the bombardments of the Spanish forts on June 6 and 16. On July 1, the New York went with the Gloucester and Suwanee to Aguadores to make a demonstration in cooperation with a detachment of the army, and on the day following the flagship and the fleet bombarded Morro Castle and the Socapa battery at Santiago to cover an assault by the American troops, which, however, did not take place.
A few minutes before 9 a. m. on July 3, the New York left her station on the blockade for Siboney where Admiral Sampson was to consult with General Shafter. At 9.35 the smoke of a gun at the Santiago harbor entrance interrupted her eastward progress. In another moment the Spanish ships were seen coming out. The New York's helm was immediately put hard over and the engineer's department was urged to exert every effort to make steam. But, at 9.35 the ship was seven miles from Morro Castle, and the distance was too great to lessen rapidly. Still, the presence of the New York towards the close of the chase, when she and the Oregon, Brooklyn and Texas were rapidly overhauling the Cristobal Colon did much to bring the last fleeing Spanish cruiser to bay. After this engagement the New York participated in but one more action, the bombardment of the batteries at Santiago on July 11. On August 20 the ship steamed up the Hudson River, New York.
On December 12, 1899, Captain A. S. Snow took command of the New York, which still was attached to the North Atlantic squadron. But under Captains M. R. S. Mackenzie (February 16, 1901) and J. J. Hunker (January 3, 1903) she was the flagship of the Pacific station, performing various duties, and, in February- March, 1903, proceeded to the coast of Honduras for the protection of American interests. Returning to the Atlantic coast, the ship was, on March 31, 1905, placed out of commission at the Boston, Mass., navy yard. Four years later, the New York was again placed in commission (May 15, 1909), in command of Captain Spencer S. Wood, and proceeded to the Mediterranean with the armored cruiser squadron, where she cruised during the winter of 1908-1909, and, on her return, was assigned again to the North Atlantic fleet (August, 1909), remaining until December 31, 1909, when she was placed in first reserve. On being recommissioned (April 1, 1910), the New York proceeded to the Asiatic station, under Commander J. L. Jayne (March 16, 1910), where she became the flagship of the commander-in-chief of that fleet. On February 16, 1911, the name of the New York was changed to the Saratoga, in order that the newest battleship authorized by Congress might bear the name of the empire state.
The fourth New York was, until May 15, 1869, known as the Ontario. Like her predecessor, the third New York, she never was completed. She was built by the government at the New York navy yard, her keel being laid in 1863. She was one of the first rate screw sloops authorized by Congress during the war, of 3177 tons tonnage, 312 feet 6 inches length, and 47 feet breadth. Her engines were of the horizontal back action type, of 36 inches stroke, and were built by the Etna Iron Works of New York at a cost of $385,000. She had four main and two super-heating boilers. Her proposed battery (December 9, 1864) was two 30-pounder Parrott rifles, one 6o-pounder Parrott, two 100-pounder Parrotts, sixteen 9-inch smooth-bores, two 24-pounder howitzers, one 12-pounder rifle, and one 12-pounder smooth-bore. The New York was carried on the Navy Register until 1888, when she was broken up on the stocks.
The third New York was a sailing ship-of-the-line, one of the vessels authorized by the Act of April 29, 1816. She was a ship of 2633 tons, built of wood, and of the following dimensions: length, 196 feet 3 inches; breadth, 53 feet; depth, 22 feet. Her armament (assigned in 1850) was to consist of twelve 8-inch smooth-bores, and seventy-two long 32-pounders, and she was to be manned by 820 men. She was built at the Norfolk, Va., navy yard by the government at a cost of $215,328.76, but never completed. Her keel was laid in 1818, and she was still on the stocks on April 20, 1861, when the navy yard was burnt. What was left of her was sold on May 31, 1888, at New York to C. H. Gregory for $10.
The second New York was a, frigate of 36 guns, built, on the outbreak of the war with France, with money advanced by citizens on the credit of the United States under authority of the Act of June 30, 1798. She was launched at New York in 1799, and carried 38 officers and 340 men. Her initial cost was $159,639.
On October 20, 1800, she was ordered to the Guadeloupe station, under the command of Captain Richard V. Morris, where she made an uneventful cruise for the protection of American commerce with Commodore Barry's squadron. At the close of hostilities, in the spring of 18m, the New York was laid up at Washington.
The outbreak of the war with Tripoli brought the New York into service again, and she was put into commission on August 13, 1802, by Captain James Barron, who had as his first lieutenant Stephen Decatur. Proceeding to the Mediterranean, Captain Barron first touched at Algiers, where he delivered to the American consul $30,000, which our government hoped the Dey would accept as tribute in lieu of naval stores, after which the New York put into Port Mahon to refit, arriving later at Gibraltar. On April 6, 1803, Commodore R. V. Morris, commanding the squadron, shifted his flag to the New York, taking with him Captain Isaac Chauncey, while Captain Barron went to the Chesapeake. An unfortunate accident on board, shortly after, during the passage of the ship from Gibraltar to Malta, nearly ended in disaster. Through carelessness, a quantity of powder was exploded in the vicinity of the magazine. Bulkheads were blown down and the ship was on fire and full of smoke below. Nineteen officers and men were injured. But perfect discipline prevailed, and volunteers, headed by Captain Chauncey, succeeded in putting out the fire. Arriving at Malta May 1, 1803, the New York was detained repairing the damage done by the explosion. Putting to sea again in the latter part of May the commodore proceeded to blockade Tripoli, off which port one day a number of coasting vessels were chased and forced to put into the harbor of the Old Town. An attack was made by the boats of the American squadron under Lieutenant Porter in the face of a hot fire from a large force of troops on shore, and all the stranded vessels were fired, but the Tripolitans, with reckless courage, rushed out from behind their breastworks, put out the flames and saved their shipping, besides inflicting a loss of fifteen killed and wounded on the landing party.
On May 28 the squadron made an attack on the Tripolitan gunboats off the Bashaw's capital, but the New York was unable to participate owing to the lightness of the wind, and Commodore Morris was in consequence charged with mismanagement. In fact, this bombardment concluded Morris's offensive campaign against the Tripolitans. On June 10 he sailed away with the New York and Enterprise, leaving two frigates on blockade off the port, and these, after their capture of the Tripolitan frigate Meshuda, he also withdrew to collect his whole forces at Naples. In September, 1803, Commodore Morris was recalled by the Navy Department, and Commodore John Rodgers hoisted his broad pennant in the New York, but as Commodore Preble was already on his way to relieve him, the New York did not see much more service in Mediterranean waters. A short visit to Tangier—where the Sultan of Morrocco was so impressed by the force of the American squadron that he declared only most friendly sentiments and made all haste to confirm the treaty of 1786—and Commodore Rodgers, with the John Adams in company, set sail October 19, 1803, for the United States, where the New York was laid up at Washington. When the War of 1812 broke out, she was reported as unworthy of repair; in 1814 she was a sheer hulk, and in that condition (August, 1814) she was burnt to prevent capture by the British troops that occupied the capital.
The first New York was a gondola constructed by the American troops on Lake Champlain in the summer of 1776 in their efforts to establish a flotilla on that waterway to dispute the British advance from Canada against Ticonderoga. She was built at Skenesborough, N. Y., of forest timber, and mounted one long 12-pounder, two nines, and eight swivels. Her crew consisted of 45 men.
Under Captain Reed, the New York formed part of General Benedict Arnold's flotilla. Leaving Crown Point on August 24, the vessel cruised about the lake, stopping first at Willsborough, then at Isle la Motte, and lastly at Valcour Island, where Arnold took up an excellent defensive position with his small force to await the coming of the British flotilla under Captain Pringle. He had not long to wait. On the 1st of October news of the enemy's approach was received and 11 days later his ship, schooners, and smaller vessels were sighted rounding Cumberland Head. In the action that followed, the American vessels suffered severely. Two were lost and the others were so hulled and shattered that Arnold decided to abandon his position and retreat to the shelter of Crown Point. On this first day of action the New York lost every one of her officers except her captain, and expended three-fourths of her ammunition.
The flotilla's withdrawal was successfully accomplished, and on the morning of the 12th Arnold reached Schuyler's Island, 12 miles away, stopping there only to stop leaks and mend sails. But the delay was sufficient to enable the British to overtake the fleeing Americans. One by one Arnold's vessels were forced to run ashore or surrender. The former was the fate of the New York. On October 13 she was beached, after a running fight, and burnt to prevent falling into the hands of the enemy.
TEXAS
TEXAS.—The largest of the United States. The first European who landed on this part of the continent was the French explorer La Salle, in 1685. Originally part of Mexico, it had many settlers from the United States, who, oppressed by the Mexican Government, formed themselves into a republic in 1835. In 1845 Texas renounced its independence and joined the union.
The Texas is a sister-ship of the New York, having been authorized by same Act of Congress, June 24, 1910, and having been built from the same plans. She is an armored steel battleship of the first rate, of 27,000 tons. Her length is 565 feet, her breadth, 95 feet 2 inches, and she draws 28 1/2 feet of water. Her engines are of the quadruple expansion type, developing a speed, on trial, of 21.05 knots. Her bunker capacity is 2850 tons of coal, exclusive of 400 tons of oil. She was built by contract at the yard of the Newport News Shipbuilding Co., at a cost of $6,000,000, and was launched on May 18, 1912. Her armament consists of ten 14-inch B. L. R.'s, twenty-one 5-inch R. F.'s, four 3-pounders, two S. A. 1-pounders, two field guns, two machine guns, and four submerged 21-inch torpedo tubes. Her complement, as flagship, is 63 officers and 1009 men.
On March 12, 1914, the Texas was commissioned at the Norfolk navy yard, and 12 days later she put to sea, under the command of Captain Albert W. Grant, for special service in Mexican waters. Arriving at Vera Cruz she was attached to Rear Admiral C. McR. Winslow's squadron. On her return north in the summer of 1914, she was assigned to the first division of the Atlantic fleet, which is her present duty.
The previous Texas was one of the fist two modern armor-clad ships built for the new navy. She and the Maine were provided for in the Act of Congress of August 3, 1886. The Texas was the second ship in our navy to bear that name. She was built by the government, from plans drawn by the Barrow Shipbuilding Co. of England, at the Norfolk navy yard, and was there launched on June 28, 1892. Her principal dimensions were: displacement, 6315 tons; length, 301 feet 4 inches; breadth, 64 feet 1 inch; draft, 22 feet 6 inches. Her engines were of the vertical triple-expansion type of 8610 H. P., and her four boilers were double-ended Scotch. Her speed was 17.8 knots, and with 85o tons of coal in her bunkers her steaming radius at 10 knots was 2900 miles. She had a water line belt of 12 inches of armor, while added protection was given to her vitals by a 2-inch sloping protective deck. On her turrets were 12-inch steel plates. Her battery, in 1895, consisted of two 12-inch B. L. R.'s, six 6-inch B. L. R.'s, twelve 6-pounders, six 1-pounders, four 37-mm. Hotchkiss revolvers, two Colts, one field gun, and two Whitehead torpedo tubes. Her complement was 30 officers and 478 men.
On August 15, 1895, the Texas went into commission at the Norfolk navy yard, and on the 6th of the month following she. went out for her preliminary trials. Her first commanding officer was Captain H. Glass. From January 26 to July 20, 1896, she was out of commission at the Norfolk navy yard, but the remainder of the time she was attached to the North Atlantic station. Captain W. C. Wise relieved Captain Glass on March 31, 1897, and he in turn was succeeded by Captain John W. Philip on October 18, 1897.
On the outbreak of the Spanish-American War the Texas formed part of the flying squadron. On May 19, she proceeded to Cienfuegos, thence to Santiago, and from that place to Guantanamo Bay. Her station from June II to 30, was, judging from her movements, on the blockade between Morro Castle and Guantanamo Bay, which, after the occupation of McCalla Hill by the marines on June 10 to 14, became the general base of the American fleet for coaling and repairs; the Vulcan, a repair ship, having been ordered there for the use of the fleet. The only warlike operations at Guantanamo Bay after this, except for a reconnoissance a few days later, were the attack made by the Texas on June 15, on the small and antiquated fort commanding the approach to Caimanera, the chief result of this maneuver being the bringing to the surface of two Spanish contact mines—one of them broken adrift by the propeller of the Texas, the explosion of which would probably have destroyed the ship.
On four different occasions the Texas participated in the bombardments of the Spanish forts at the entrance of Santiago harbor, on June 6 and 16, and on July 2, and on the night of July 4-5. On June 22, while the American army, under General Shafter, was landing at Daiquiri, the Texas participated in the diversion against the Socapa battery and was struck by one Spanish shell, which killed one man and wounded eight others.
When the Spanish fleet, under Admiral Cervera, came out of Santiago harbor, the Texas was on her station directly before Morro Castle. "The first shots of the Texas," wrote Captain Philip, "were directed at the Teresa at long range (4200 yards). . . . Every one of the Spanish vessels fired as she came broadside on, rounding the western point of the harbor entrance…I altered the Texas's course to the westward, seeing that was the direction in which the Spanish squadron was going. Then occurred the incident which caused me more alarm than anything Cervera did that day. As the Texas veered westward, the Brooklyn was ploughing up the water at a great rate in a course almost due north, direct for the oncoming Spanish ships, and nearly a mile away from the Texas. The smoke from our guns began to hang so heavily and densely over the ship that for a few minutes we could see nothing. Suddenly a whiff of breeze and a lull in the firing lifted the pall, and there, bearing towards us and across our bows, turning on her port helm, was the Brooklyn…'Back both engines hard,' went down the tube to the astonished Engineers…The collision which seemed imminent, even if it was not, was averted."
The Maria Teresa was now standing along the coast; and two other Spanish cruisers had by this time also made their exit. At 10.30 the Teresa headed for the shore, a towering mass of smoke. After the other fleeing cruisers, the American fleet raced. The Texas warmly engaged the Oquendo, which was the last to come out, firing from her main battery guns only when a good target could be seen, for the smoke from her own guns hung so heavily about the ship, that, "often for minutes at a time, for all we could see, we might as well have been down in the double bottoms as on the bridge." And the secondary battery was also brought into play when the Spanish destroyers made their appearance. At 10.35 the Texas passed the Oquendo as that ship ran up the white flag. Leaving her, Captain Philip continued the chase after the Vizcaya and the Colon, which were still crowding on all steam. But shortly after 11 the first named veered toward the shore, on fire fore and aft. At noon the Colon was steaming 144 knots, but the Texas dogged her heels, making 95.2 turns on her port engine, about 13.8 knots—almost as much as the speedy New York which, at that hour, was making but 13.92 knots. But at 12.50, the Oregon's 13-inch turret-guns found the range of the gallant Colon, four and a quarter miles away, and the chase was won.
Thanks to the fact that the range at which the action was fought was shorter than that expected by the Spaniards, the American ships escaped with slight injury. The Texas was struck but once and had four men wounded, but she suffered other damage from the effect of the concussion of her own 12-inch guns.
After the war, Captain Philip was relieved in command of the Texas by Captain Charles D. Sigsbee (September 4, 1898). From this time on the ship cruised with the North Atlantic fleet, participating in the usual fleet evolutions, target practices, etc., until she went out of commission at Norfolk on November 3, 1900. Previous to this Captain Sigsbee had been relieved by Captain W. S. Gibson (January 22, 1900), who in turn was succeeded in command by Captain M. R. S. Mackenzie.
On November 3, 1902, the Texas was again put in commission as flagship of the coast squadron of the North Atlantic fleet. Her commanders during this period were Captain William T. Swinburne and Captain George A. Bicknell (19o4). Under Commander Charles F. Plunkett (June 26, 1906), the ship remained at the Norfolk navy yard in reserve. In September she again went into full commission under Commander George R. Clark (August 25, 1906), and conveyed a force of marines to Cuba to reinforce the army of occupation, after which she returned to reserve duty at Norfolk on November 9, 1906, remaining there, in charge of Commander Clark and Lieutenant Commander Edward T. Witherspoon (August 17, 1907), until she was placed out of commission on January 11, 1908.
There being a need for a station and receiving ship at Charleston, S. C., the Texas was put in service for that duty on September 1, 1908. Her commanding officers from 1908 until 1911 were Commander William A. Gill, Lieutenant William H. Allen (July 29, 1910) and Commander Albert W. Key (September 26, 1910). On February 3, 1911, her name was changed to the San Marcos, under which name she continued in service until October 11, 1911, when she was stricken from the Navy Register.
The first Texas was an ironclad ram captured from the Confederates at the fall of Richmond, Va., on April 4, 1865, and taken by Admiral Porter "for the use of the navy." She was a ship of the first rate, built of wood and iron, at an estimated cost of $126,848. Her dimensions were: length, 217 feet; breadth, 48 feet 6 inches; depth, 13 feet; and draft, 13 feet 6 inches. She had twin screws, and four horizontal direct-acting engines of 20 inches stroke, and two return-flue boilers. She was sold at Norfolk, Va., on October 15, 1867, to J. N. Leonard for $3200.
ARKANSAS
ARKANSAS.—One of the Southern states of the union, on the Mississippi River. First settled by the French in 1685, it formed part of the Louisiana purchase in 1803,.and was admitted into the union in 1836.
The battleship Arkansas now in service is the third ship of the navy to bear the name of the State of Arkansas. She is a ship of the first line, of 26,000 tons (normal displacement), 554 feet length, 93 feet 272 inches breadth, and 28 feet 6 inches draft. Built by contract under authority of the Act of Congress of March 3, 1909, at Camden, N. J., by the New York Shipbuilding Co., at a cost of $4,675,000, she was launched on January 14, 1911. Her propelling machinery consists of four-screw Parsons turbines, for which steam is furnished by Babcock and Wilcox boilers. Her trial speed was 21.05 knots. Her main battery includes twelve 12-inch B. L. R.'s, while for secondary defence purposes she is armed with twenty-one 5-inch rifles, four 3-pounders, two 1 pounders, two 3-inch field pieces, and two .30-caliber M. She has also four 2Iinch torpedo tubes. Her complement is, as flagship, 62 officers and 978 men.
On September 17, 1912, the Arkansas went into commission, under the command of Captain Roy C. Smith, at the Philadelphia navy yard, whence she immediately proceeded to New York for the October naval review. After a shaking-down cruise, she received the President on board for passage to the Panama Canal (December, 1912). In June, 1913, she joined the first division of the Atlantic fleet, performing, for a time, duty as escort to the Brazilian battleship Minas Geraes. In November she went to the Mediterranean with the fleet. From July to December, 1914, the Arkansas was engaged in the usual fleet maneuvers, drills and target practices, during one of which he achieved the distinction of establishing a world's record with one of her 12-inch turrets, making a perfect score at 2000 yards with both guns in six shots fired in 57 seconds.
In April, 1914, the Arkansas became the flagship of the commander-in-chief, Rear Admiral Charles J. Badger. Two weeks later, while preparing for target practice, the ship was suddenly ordered to Mexican waters in company with such of the ships of the Atlantic fleet as were immediately available. At 1 o'clock on the morning of the 22d she arrived in Vera Cruz. The bluejackets and marines of the Florida and Utah had already been landed, but were not in sufficient force to maintain their positions. So the Arkansas's landing force of 18 officers and 328 men was at once called away and put ashore in time to participate in the second day's fighting, losing two men killed and three wounded. On April 27, the American flag was officially raised over the city of Vera Cruz and the Arkansas's battalion remained on shore until relieved by the army on April 30.
For several months longer the Arkansas remained at Vera Cruz with the other ships of the Atlantic fleet, returning in the fall to her home yard at New York, where Captain William R. Shoemaker succeeded Captain Smith in command of the ship.
The present Arkansas's predecessor was one of the single-turret harbor-defence monitors authorized by Congress on May 4, 1898, just after the outbreak of the Spanish-American War. She is still in service, as the Ozark, her name having been changed on March 2, 1909, in order that one of the new battleships might bear the name. She is a steel vessel of 3225 tons displacement, having the following dimensions: length, 252 feet; breadth, 50 feet; draft, 12 feet 6 inches. Her rig is one military mast and she has one funnel. She was built by contract for $960,000, by the Newport News Shipbuilding Co., and was launched on November 10, 1900. She is a twin-screw ship, with two vertical triple-expansion engines, of 1830 H. P., and 24-inch stroke, to which steam is supplied by four Thornycroft boilers. Her trial speed was 12.71 knots, and her coal bunker capacity is 344 tons, sufficient to enable her to steam about 168o miles at 10 knots.
Built for harbor defence, the Arkansas was planned along the lines of the monitors constructed at the close of the Civil War, only her armament was considerably reduced, and she carries only two 12-inch B. L. R.'s mounted in a forward turret, while for a secondary battery she was furnished with four 4-inch R. F.'s, eleven 1-pounders, and two .30-caliber automatic rifles. Her armor protection consists of a water-line belt II inches thick, with from 9 to 11 inches on her turrets and barbettes. Her complement is 13 officers and 209 men.
Commissioned on October 28, 1902, the Arkansas formed part of the coast squadron of the North Atlantic station. Her first commanding officer was Commander C. E. Vreeland, under whom she sailed from Norfolk on December 3, 1902, making a cruise for the instruction of the midshipmen from the Naval Academy. On October 27, 1904, Commander R. H. Galt assumed command of the ship on the same station, participating in the joint army and navy maneuvers of that summer, and making, besides, several cruises with the midshipmen, and finally, on September 2 to 4, 1906, attending the presidential review at Oyster Bay, L. I. Arriving at Annapolis, Md., on September 6, 1906, the Arkansas was placed in reserve on September II. Commander Bradley A. Fiske, on November 22, 1906, succeeded Commander Galt in command, and under him the Arkansas made a cruise with the midshipmen from June 4 to August 31, 1907, when she again went into reserve. Under Commander Harry M. Dombaugh (August 29, 1907), the ship was again commissioned for the same purpose on June 1, 1908, being finally placed in reserve, on her return to the Naval Academy, on September 1, 1908.
The first Arkansas was a 752-ton wooden steamer purchased at Philadelphia from S. & J. W. Flanagan by Commodore C. K. Stribling in 1863 for $98,000. Her original name was the Tonawanda. She was a single-screw vessel of the third rate, with a barkentine rig. Her length was 191 feet, her breadth 30 feet, and her depth 19 feet. She had one vertical condensing engine, of 30 inches stroke, and a bunker capacity of 400 tons of coal. Her trial speed was 15 knots. On September 4, 1863, her armament consisted of four 32-pounders of 33 cwt., and one rifled 12-pounder, to which, on October 9, was added one 20-pounder Parrott rifle, and on June 21, 1865, still another 20-pounder. Her complement was 13 officers and 75 men.
The Arkansas was commissioned at Philadelphia on September 5, 1863, in charge of Act. Vol. Lieut. D. Cate, and attached to the West Gulf blockading squadron where she performed continuous service as supply-, dispatch-, and transport-vessel. On September 27, 1864, she captured the schooner Watchful, and this, with the exception of several bales of cotton picked up off the Texas coast on March 28, 1864, was the only prize she made. In June, 1864, she went on the ways at Algiers, La., in charge of Act. Ensign F. H. Beers, and on coming off met with an accident, whereby she became very much hogged and developed such serious structural weaknesses that during May, 1865, she was obliged to remain at New Orleans for repairs. On July 13, 1864, Act. Vol. Lieut. J. F. Harden took command of the ship until Lieutenant Cate relieved him on August 30, when the Arkansas resumed her duties on the station. After the war, the vessel proceeded to the Portsmouth, N. H., navy yard, under Act. Vol. Lieut. N. Kirby (May 21, 1863), where she went out of commission on June 30, 1865. On July 20, 1865, she was sold at Portsmouth to G. S. Leach for $40,100.