The USS Alexandria was a side-wheel steamer constructed with a wooden hull at Plaquemine, Louisiana, and was originally known as the St. Mary. Completed in early 1862, the vessel was initially operated by the Confederate government, protected by bales of cotton, along the Yazoo and Tallahatchie Rivers. Her design featured side-mounted paddle wheels, a common configuration for riverine vessels of the period, facilitating navigation along shallow and confined waterways. Captured by Union forces during a joint expedition on July 13, 1863, at Yazoo City, Mississippi, the vessel was taken into Union service despite not being formally condemned by a prize court, as her appraised value was less than $8,000. Rear Admiral David Dixon Porter later requested permission to retain her and rename her Yazoo, but this was not approved. After repairs, she may have served briefly as a non-commissioned dispatch boat in the autumn of 1863. On December 12, 1863, the vessel was commissioned into the Union Navy as USS Alexandria at Cairo, Illinois. In Union service, she operated within the Mississippi Squadron's 1st District, fulfilling a vital role as a dispatch and support vessel. Her operational range extended between Donaldsonville, Louisiana, and Cairo, Illinois, navigating the Mississippi River and its tributaries. Her service was primarily supportive, aiding the Union blockade and maintaining communication along key waterways during the Civil War. Following the Confederacy’s defeat, USS Alexandria was decommissioned on August 7, 1865, at Cairo and sold at auction at Mound City, Illinois, on August 17, 1865, to W. Markham of Baton Rouge, Louisiana. She was documented as Alexandria on October 4, 1865, and continued to serve on the Mississippi River until she was lost sometime in 1867. Specific details regarding her ultimate fate remain unknown, as no surviving records document her destruction.

This description has been generated using GPT-4.1-NANO based on the Vessel's wikidata information and then modified by ShipIndex.org staff.