AH-WR-0965

Venus

Blockade Runner · United Kingdom · Lost 1863 · The Outer Banks

Loaded with rifle muskets and rum, this British blockade runner was shelled, grounded, and blown up by pursuing Union gunboats north of Fort Fisher.

Become Captain of Record

Artistic recreation based on recorded historical documents. See the documented evidence.

Historically Reconstructed. Drawn from partial documentation of this vessel together with her known class and configuration. See the documented evidence.

The Vessel and Her Loss

Venus, a British iron side-wheeler built in 1862, was carrying rifle muskets, cartridges, and other supplies from Nassau when USS Nansemond discovered and chased her before dawn on 21 October 1863. Struck repeatedly by shellfire from Nansemond, Niphon, and Iron Age, she grounded while taking on water. Unable to refloat her, Union sailors blew up her boilers and burned the wreck, capturing her captain and most of the crew.

Vessel

Built: 1862
Builder: Not established
Yard: Govan, Scotland
Material: Iron
Length: 265 ft
Beam: 17 ft
Tonnage: 365
Propulsion: Steam, side-wheel
Owners: Not established

Loss

Date: October 21, 1863
Cause: Enemy action
Location: About 1.5 miles north of Gatlin's Battery, near New Inlet, North Carolina
Water: Atlantic Ocean
Voyage: Nassau, Bahamas → Wilmington, North Carolina
Cargo: Not established
Aboard: Not established
Lives lost: 1
Master: Not established