One Of The First American Ironclad Warships, USS Cairo Is Right Here In Mississippi
By Daniella DiRienzo|Published April 27, 2020
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Daniella DiRienzo
Author
Though Daniella was born in New York and has lived in a couple of other states, Mississippi has been her home for more than 30 years. After graduating from the University of Southern Mississippi, Daniella began to hone her writing skills through various internships. In the years since, she’s had the privilege of having her articles appear in several publications, such as the Mississippi-based Parents & Kids Magazine. She’s also had the honor of interviewing actress Sela Ward for The Mississippi Arts and Entertainment Experience.
There are several places in Mississippi where you can learn about the Civil War. In addition to museums and battlefields, the Magnolia State is home to the Vicksburg National Military Park. The renowned park is brimming with war-related sites and relics. Among them, you’ll find the USS Cairo, one of the first ironclad warships built at the start of the war. Sunk in battle, the ship sat at the river’s bottom for decades before being raised from its watery grave. Take a look:
With over 1,340 monuments, markers, tablets, and plaques, the Vicksburg National Military Park is one of the most densely monumented battlefields in the entire world.
But that’s not all the park has going for it. It’s also home to the USS Cairo, which was one of seven river ironclads built at the beginning of the Civil War.
All seven ironclads were named after towns situated along the upper Mississippi and Ohio Rivers. The USS Cairo, for instance, was named in honor of Cairo, Illinois.
Specifically designed for use in shallow waters, the ironclads trolled the Mississippi River and attached waterways, ravaging Confederate supply lines.
The USS Cairo was commissioned in January of 1862 and met its demise on December 12th of the same year. On that cold December morning, the USS Cairo was navigating the Yazoo River when it came under fire a few miles north of Vicksburg.
During the impromptu battle, the ironclad was rocked by two explosions and extensively damaged. The first explosion tore a huge hole in the left side of the vessel, at which point it began to quickly fill with water.
Recovering the Civil War vessel from the murky river waters was no easy task. However, there was a plus side – the river’s silt and mud basically formed a protective cocoon, creating an oxygen-free environment and ultimately safeguarding the ship’s contents from deterioration.
In the summer of 1965, the USS Cairo was raised from its watery grave and transported to Ingalls Shipyard in Pascagoula, where it was cleaned, repaired, and stored.
