USS Keokuk (1862)

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USS Keokuk (1862) was an early ironclad warship of the U.S. Navy, named after Keokuk, Iowa. Built in New York City by Charles W. Whitney, it was laid down in 1862, launched December 6, 1862, and commissioned in March 1863 under Commander Alexander C. Rhind. It was one of the first ships made almost entirely of iron, with wood used mainly for decks and armor filler.

Keokuk’s hull combined iron bars and pine planks, giving about 5.75 inches of armor. It carried two 11-inch Dahlgren guns housed in two cone-shaped gun towers, which looked like double turrets but were actually separate fixed towers. The ship was powered by two 250-horsepower steam engines and could reach about 9 knots. Its crew consisted of about 92 men.

The ship joined the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron and went to Charleston to help attack Fort Sumter and Fort Moultrie. In the First Battle of Charleston Harbor on April 7, 1863, Keokuk came under heavy fire. After being hit many times and with armor that could not stop all the shots, the ship pulled back and anchored out of range. By the morning of April 8, it began taking on water and sank off Morris Island. A Black pilot, Robert Smalls, helped steer the ship during the action.

Fourteen crew members were wounded; Captain Rhind was injured, and Acting Ensign Mackintosh later died of his wounds. Quartermaster Robert Anderson received the Medal of Honor for his actions during the battle.

The wreck could not be refloated, so the Confederates salvaged the ship’s two 11-inch Dahlgren guns. One gun was destroyed later; the other remains on display at White Point Garden in Charleston, though mounted on an old carriage.