Name Tuscaloosa Laid down 1862 Beam 34 ft (10.4 m) Launched 7 February 1863 | Namesake Tuscaloosa, Alabama Out of service April 12, 1865 Construction started 1862 Length 46 m | |
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Fate Scuttled in Spanish River to prevent capture Builder Selma, Alabama in the American Civil War | ||
CSS Tuscaloosa was a screw ironclad steamer ram in the Confederate States Navy that was laid down by the Confederate Naval Works at Selma in 1862.
History
Tuscaloosa was launched at Selma, Alabama on February 7, 1863, prior to being ready for duty. Tuscaloosa proceeded downriver under her own power to Mobile for completion. She had 4 in (10.2 cm) armor plate that was delivered by the Shelby Iron Company of Shelby, Alabama and the Atlanta Rolling Mill.
Under the command of Charles H. McBlair, Tuscaloosa served in the waters around Mobile. She escaped up the Spanish River following the Battle of Mobile Bay on August 5, 1864. The city of Mobile held out another eight months, with the upper portion of Mobile Bay remaining in Confederate hands. She, along with the CSS Huntsville, was scuttled in the Spanish River below where it splits off from the Mobile River on the north side of Blakeley Island, just north of Mobile, on April 12, 1865 to prevent her capture following the surrender of the city. Her crew and material were put aboard CCS Nashville. The wreck was located in the river in 1985.