AH-WR-0867

USS Katahdin

Harbor-Defense Ram · United States · Lost September 1909 · Chesapeake Bay

An experimental 1890s harbor-defense ram, later used as a naval gunnery target, whose innovative low hull shape influenced early submarine design.

Artistic recreation based on recorded historical documents.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

Documented Likeness. Drawn from surviving builder's plans or clear photographs of this vessel. See the documented evidence.

The Vessel and Her Loss

Built in 1893 by Bath Iron Works as an unusual low-freeboard ramming vessel, Katahdin served briefly during the Spanish-American War before being decommissioned. Stricken from the Navy list in 1909, she was sunk by gunfire off Virginia's Rappahannock Spit as an experimental target. Her wreck has not been officially charted, though technical divers have located a probable sonar target near Windmill Point.

Vessel

Built: 1893
Builder: Bath Iron Works
Yard: Bath, Maine
Material: Steel
Length: 250.75 ft
Beam: 43.4 ft
Tonnage: 2155
Propulsion: Steam, twin-shaft triple expansion
Owners: United States Navy

Loss

Date: September 1909
Cause: Intentional sinking
Location: Off Rappahannock Spit, near Windmill Point, Chesapeake Bay, Virginia
Water: Chesapeake Bay
Voyage: Not established
Cargo: Not established
Aboard: Not established
Lives lost: Not established
Master: Not established

The Wreck Today

Depth: 28 ft
Condition: Unconfirmed; a linear sonar target of comparable length has been located but not conclusively identified as the wreck
Orientation: Not established
Discovered: 2024
Protection: Not established

Position

Coordinates: 37.61° N 76.28° W
Accuracy: General area only
Nearest: Windmill Point, Virginia
Region: Chesapeake Bay

General area only: coordinate of Windmill Point (Rappahannock River entrance) from the USGS Geographic Names Information System, marking the named place of loss recorded for this vessel, not a surveyed wreck position.

Evidence

Overall confidence: Partially documented (65/100)

The wreck has not been officially charted or conclusively confirmed by the Navy; its exact position remains an approximate identification by technical divers based on side-scan sonar surveys.

Naval History and Heritage Command, DANFS
Build, service history, decommissioning, loss as target
Battle of the Atlantic Research & Expedition Group (BAREG)
2024 sonar search and unconfirmed wreck location details
USGS Geographic Names Information System — Windmill Point, Lancaster County, Virginia
coordinate of the named place of loss