AH-WR-1615

USS Otsego

Sidewheel Gunboat · United States · Lost 1864 · The Outer Banks

USS Otsego was a Union sidewheel gunboat lost in the Roanoke River during the Civil War.

Artistic recreation based on recorded historical documents.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

Interpretive Reconstruction, drawn to convey the vessel's era, type and general form. See the documented evidence.

The Vessel and Her Loss

Otsego was a Sassacus-class double-ended sidewheel gunboat built at New York City. It was commissioned in 1864 and served in the North Carolina sounds. It participated in the capture of Plymouth in October. On 9 December 1864 it struck Confederate mines in the Roanoke River and sank.

Vessel

Built: Not established
Builder: Not established
Yard: Not established
Material: Not established
Length: Not established
Beam: Not established
Tonnage: Not established
Propulsion: Steam, sidewheel
Owners: Not established

Loss

Date: December 9, 1864
Cause: Enemy action
Location: Near Jamesville, North Carolina
Water: Roanoke River
Voyage: Not established
Cargo: Not established
Aboard: Not established
Lives lost: Not established
Master: Not established

The Wreck Today

Depth: Not established
Condition: Not established
Orientation: Not established
Discovered: Not established
Protection: Not established

Position

Coordinates: Not established
Accuracy: Position not established
Nearest: Near Jamesville, North Carolina
Region: The Outer Banks

No numeric position transcribed from the sources reviewed.

Evidence

Overall confidence: Documented (87/100)

Exact coordinates, depth and casualty totals are not established here.

North Carolina Office of State Archaeology, Eastern North Carolina Civil War Shipwrecks, 1861-1865
Service, loss circumstances and archaeological context; Bazely site 0008ROR and Otsego site 0009ROR are cited in the bibliography.
U.S. Naval Historical Center, USS Otsego photographic history, HyperWar archive
Class, construction location, commissioning, service and 9 December loss.