The USS Neosho was the lead vessel of her class of ironclad river monitors constructed for the Union Navy during the American Civil War. Laid down in mid-1862 by James Eads at Union Iron Works in Carondelet, Missouri, she was launched on February 18, 1863, and commissioned on May 13, 1863, under Commander John C. Febiger. The vessel measured approximately 180 feet in length with a beam of 45 feet, and had a displacement of 523 tons burden. Her construction included a steam-powered sternwheel propulsion system driven by four boilers and a two-cylinder engine, allowing a maximum speed of around 12 miles per hour. The Neosho’s main armament comprised two 11-inch Dahlgren smoothbore guns mounted in a single turret with a 300° arc of fire. The turret was protected by 6 inches of wrought iron armor, while the hull had 2.5 inches of armor, and deck and paddle housing armor plates were 1.25 inches thick. Her design featured a bow-mounted breakwater added after commissioning, and her crew numbered about 100 officers and men. Operationally, Neosho played a significant role in patrolling the Mississippi River and its tributaries, defending Union supply lines against Confederate raiders and shore batteries. Notably, during December 1863, she helped defend the merchant steamer Henry Von Phul against a Confederate attack. She participated in the Red River Campaign from March to May 1864, where she faced challenges such as being trapped above falls at Alexandria, Louisiana, requiring the construction of Bailey’s Dam to facilitate her movement downstream. In December 1864, she supported the Union Army during the Franklin-Nashville Campaign, bombarding Confederate artillery batteries on the Cumberland River and providing fire support during the Battle of Nashville, despite being struck over 100 times. Decommissioned in July 1865 and placed in reserve, the USS Neosho was renamed twice—Vixen in June 1869 and Osceola in August 1869—and sold in August 1873 for $13,600. Her service exemplifies the strategic importance of ironclad river monitors in controlling inland waterways during the Civil War.

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