View source for CSS Maurepas

{{Short description|Confederate states sidewheel steamer}}
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|Ship country=Confederate States
|Ship flag={{flagicon image|Flag of the Confederate States (1861–1863).svg}} 
|Ship name= Maurepas
|Ship owner= *J. A. Cotton
* Bayou Sara Mail Company
|Ship namesake= [[Lake Maurepas]]
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|Ship launched=1858
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|Ship in service=Purchased from civilian service, 1861
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|Ship fate=Sunk as obstruction, June 17, 1862
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|Ship type=[[Sidewheel steamer]]
|Ship tonnage=399
|Ship length= {{convert|180|ft|m}}
|Ship beam= {{convert|34|ft|m}}
|Ship draft= {{convert|7|ft|m}}
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|Ship propulsion= [[Steamboat|Steam]]
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|Ship complement= 79
|Ship armament= * 5 or 6 cannons
** 1x 9-inch [[Dahlgren gun]]
** 24-pounders
** 32-pounders
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'''CSS ''Maurepas''''' was a [[sidewheel steamer]] that briefly served as a [[gunboat]] in the [[Confederate States Navy]] during the [[American Civil War]].  Built in 1858 in [[Indiana]] as '''''Grosse Tete''''' (English: "big head"), the vessel was used in commercial trade until 1860 and then delivered mail until 1861, when she was acquired by the Confederate Navy.

After being outfitted with five or six cannons and renamed ''Maurepas'', she was sent to the defenses of [[Columbus, Kentucky]], in March 1862, and participated in actions near [[Island Number Ten]].  After an abortive naval skirmish near [[Fort Pillow State Historic Park|Fort Pillow]] in [[Tennessee]], ''Maurepas'' and the gunboat [[CSS Pontchartrain|CSS ''Pontchartrain'']] were sent up the [[White River (Arkansas–Missouri)|White River]] to resist [[Union Navy|Union]] advances and aid transport. On June 16, the eve of the [[Battle of St. Charles|Battle of Saint Charles]], ''Maurepas'' was sunk as an obstruction and her cannons sent ashore.

==Service history==
===Construction and civilian usage===
A [[sidewheel steamer]], the vessel was constructed at [[New Albany, Indiana]], in 1858, under the name ''Grosse Tete'', having been ordered by one J. A. Cotton of [[New Orleans, Louisiana]].<ref name="encylo of arkansas">{{cite encyclopedia |last1=Bender |first1=Robert Patrick |title=CSS ''Maurepas'' |url=https://encyclopediaofarkansas.net/entries/css-maurepas-7730/ |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Arkansas |access-date=17 October 2021 |date=October 14, 2021}}</ref> She was {{convert|180|ft|m}} long, had a [[beam (ship)|beam]] of {{convert|34|ft|m}}, measured 399 [[tonnage|tons]], and had a [[draft (ship)|draft]] of {{convert|7|ft|m}}.<ref name="DANFS">{{cite web |title=Maurepas |url=https://www.history.navy.mil/content/history/nhhc/research/histories/ship-histories/confederate_ships/maurepas.html |publisher=Naval History and Heritage Command |access-date=11 October 2021}}</ref> No depiction of the ship is known to exist. It had two sidewheels,{{sfn|Chatelain|2020|p=68}} a wooden [[Hull (watercraft)|hull]], and held a crew of 79.  ''Grosse Tete'' was used for commercial trade until 1860, when she was purchased by the Bayou Sara Mail Company for mail delivery.<ref name="encylo of arkansas" />

===Confederate States Navy===
[[File:Battles of New Madrid and Island Number 10.png|thumb|left|upright=1.2|Map of the Island Number Ten area, showing the Union position across from Tiptonville]]

After the outbreak of the [[American Civil War]], ''Grosse Tete'' was purchased by the [[Confederate States Navy]] at New Orleans in November 1861 to be used as a [[gunboat]],<ref name="encylo of arkansas" /><ref name="DANFS" /> although her sidewheel propulsion system was considered less useful than if she was a [[screw steamer]].  The Confederates rechristened her ''Maurepas'', after [[Lake Maurepas]], and placed her under the command of [[First Lieutenant]] Joseph Fry, formerly of the gunboat [[CSS Ivy|CSS ''Ivy'']].{{sfn|Chatelain|2020|p=68}}  An early report stated the vessel was armed with six cannon, although a later one from February 1862 listed only five.<ref name="encylo of arkansas" />  According to naval historian W. Craig Gaines, these pieces were 24-pounders and 32-pounders;{{sfn|Gaines|2008|p=10}} she was reported to have had at least one 9-inch [[Dahlgren gun]] in April 1862.{{sfn|Chatelain|2020|p=121}}  It is not known if the difference in cannon count between reports represents a piece being removed or if the previous figure of six was an error.<ref name="encylo of arkansas" />  Beginning in November 1861, a number of Confederate warships were sent north up the [[Mississippi River]] to support the defenses at [[Columbus, Kentucky]].  ''Maurepas'' made this journey in March 1862.{{sfn|Chatelain|2020|pp=74{{en dash}}76}}  At Columbus, the vessel was part of a fleet commanded by [[Commander]] [[George N. Hollins]].{{sfn|Chatelain|2020|p=96}}

Beginning on March 12, ''Maurepas'' helped defend [[Island Number Ten]].<ref name="encylo of arkansas" />  [[Union Navy]] forces were bombarding the island, and [[Brigadier General (United States)|Brigadier General]] [[John M. Palmer (politician)|John M. Palmer]]'s Union troops had established batteries downriver across the Mississippi from [[Tiptonville, Tennessee]], in hopes of cutting off Island Number Ten's supply line.  On March 18, Palmer's position opened fire on Confederate transports.  In response, Hollins sent ''Maurepas'' and the gunboats [[CSS Pontchartrain|CSS ''Pontchartrain'']], [[CSS McRae|CSS ''McRae'']], and [[CSS General Polk|CSS ''General Polk'']], downriver to shell Palmer's position.  Return fire from the Union position struck the Confederate ships.  ''General Polk'' was hit by cannon fire, started taking on water, and had to go downriver and out of the fight.  ''Maurepas'' was struck eight or nine times by cannon fire and 30 or 40 times by small arms fire and suffered damage, with internal damage to cabins, her decks covered with splinters, and a [[ship's boat]] knocked away.  Eventually, Palmer's men fell back, and Hollins's ships withdrew from the area.  However, the Union troops reoccupied the position, and Hollins took his ships downriver to avoid fire from the batteries.  Any ships heading upstream to Island Number Ten came under fire from Palmer's position.{{sfn|Chatelain|2020|pp=111{{en dash}}112}}

On the night of April 4/5, the [[ironclad]] [[USS Carondelet (1861)|USS ''Carondelet'']] ran past the Confederate defenses of Island Number Ten to [[New Madrid, Missouri]], which was under Union control.  A second Union ironclad, [[USS Pittsburgh (1861)|USS ''Pittsburgh'']], completed the run early on the morning of April 7, and most of the Confederates withdrew from Island Number Ten during the night of April 7/8, as it was no longer feasible to hold the island.  However, Union forces cut the Confederates off from their escape route at Tiptonville, and the garrison of the island was captured.  Hollins's ships were prevented from going to their support by the two Union ironclads.{{sfn|Chatelain|2020|pp=115{{en dash}}117}}  The Confederate ships then withdrew to [[Fort Pillow State Historic Park|Fort Pillow]] in [[Tennessee]].  On April 9, Hollins was informed that New Orleans was threatened, so he traveled downriver with ''Ivy'' and the gunboat [[CSS Jackson|CSS ''Jackson'']].  In Hollins's absence, the ships were temporarily commanded by First Lieutenant Thomas Huger, with Commander Robert Pinckney expected to arrive shortly to take command.  Huger learned that Union ships were nearby and on the morning of April 12, sent his ships upriver for a surprise attack.  Union scouts picked up the movement, and the ironclad [[USS Benton|USS ''Benton'']] fired on Huger's fleet.  ''Maurepas'' responded with a shot from a 9-inch [[Dahlgren gun]], to no effect.  After navigating a bend in the river, the Confederate ships realized they were facing a large and prepared Union fleet and fell back to Fort Pillow.  The Union ships pursued to a range close enough for them to bombard the fort.  Pinckney soon arrived to take command, and sent ''Maurepas'' and ''Pontchartrain'' to operate on the [[White River (Arkansas)|White River]] to resist Union advances and serve as transports.{{sfn|Chatelain|2020|pp=120{{en dash}}122}}

On June 2, ''Maurepas'' was at the junction of the White River and the [[Black River (Arkansas)|Black River]].<ref name="encylo of arkansas" />  On June 13, a Union Navy flotilla left [[Memphis, Tennessee]], to travel up the White with the intention of resupplying Union land forces further north in Arkansas.{{sfn|Christ|2012|p=407}}  Composed of two ironclads and two [[timberclad]]s, the Union fleet moved upriver.  Two guns from ''Pontchartrain'' were taken ashore near [[St. Charles, Arkansas|St. Charles]], with sailors and a portion of the [[29th Arkansas Infantry Regiment]] manning the fortifications.{{sfn|Chatelain|2020|pp=180{{en dash}}181}}<ref name="honnoll">{{cite encyclopedia |last1=Honnoll |first1=W. Danny |title=Engagement at St. Charles |url=https://encyclopediaofarkansas.net/entries/engagement-at-st-charles-532/ |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Arkansas |access-date=8 October 2021 |date=May 29, 2018}}</ref>  The Union ships approached St. Charles on June 16, but did not attack that day.  As planned obstructions in the river were not complete, ''Maurepas'' and two civilian steamboats were sunk in the river as a blockage,{{sfn|Bearss|1962|pp=313{{en dash}}314, 318}} but not before three{{sfn|Chatelain|2020|p=181}} or four guns from the ship were removed.<ref name="honnoll" />  It had been thought that ''Maurepas'' would be outmatched against the Union ironclads.<ref name="kirk">{{cite web |last1=Kirk |first1=Dianna |title=St. Charles Battle Site |url=https://www.arkansasheritage.com/docs/default-source/national-registry/ar0030-pdf.pdf?sfvrsn=9379542c_0 |publisher=Arkansas Heritage |access-date=10 October 2021 |date=September 10, 1974}}</ref>  The next day, in the [[Battle of St. Charles|Battle of Saint Charles]], the Union forces brushed aside the Confederate defenses, although a cannon shot struck the ironclad [[USS Mound City|USS ''Mound City'']], puncturing the ship's [[steam drum]] and scalding most of those on board.  The Union supply mission eventually failed due to low water levels, and the infantry force had to march overland to a point from which they could be resupplied.{{sfn|Kennedy|1998|p=38}}  For years after the battle, the wreck of ''Maurepas'' could be seen at low water, but is no longer visible.<ref name="kirk" />

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Sources==
* {{cite journal |last1=Bearss |first1=Edwin C. |author1-link=Ed Bearss |title=The White River Expedition June 10{{en dash}}July 15, 1862 |journal=[[Arkansas Historical Quarterly]] |date=1962 |volume=21 |issue=4 |pages=305{{en dash}}362|doi=10.2307/40035686 |jstor=40035686 }}
* {{cite book |last1=Chatelain |first1=Neil P. |title=Defending the Arteries of Rebellion: Confederate Naval Operations in the Mississippi River Valley, 1861{{en dash}}1865 |date=2020 |publisher=Savas Beatie |location=El Dorado Hills, California |isbn=978-1-61121-510-6}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Christ |first1=Mark K. |title="The Awful Scenes That Met My Eyes": Union and Confederate Accounts of the Battle of St. Charles, June 17, 1862 |journal=[[Arkansas Historical Quarterly]] |date=2012 |volume=71 |issue=4 |pages=407{{en dash}}423|jstor=23390055}}
{{Cite Gaines 2008|ref={{sfnRef|Gaines|2008}}}}
{{Cite Kennedy 1998}}

{{CSN gunboats}}
{{1862 shipwrecks}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Maurepas}}
[[Category:Gunboats of the Confederate States Navy]]
[[Category:Ships built in New Albany, Indiana]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in June 1862]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in the United States]]
[[Category:Scuttled vessels]]
[[Category:Battle of St. Charles]]