History
United States
Name	USS Chatham
Builder	John Laird, Sons & Co
Laid down	date unknown
Launched	1836
Commissioned	22 June 1864
Decommissioned	April 1865
Stricken	1865 (est.)
Homeport	Port Royal, South Carolina
Captured	by Union Navy forces 16 December 1863
Fate	Sold, 2 September 1865
General characteristics
Type	Steamer
Displacement	198 long tons (201 t)
Length	120 ft (37 m)
Beam	26 ft (7.9 m)
Draft	7 ft 7 in (2.31 m)
Propulsion	steam engine side wheel-propelled
Speed	Unknown
Complement	Unknown
Armament	Unknown
Armor	Iron

USS Chatham was a Confederate side-wheel steamer captured by the Union Navy during the American Civil War. She was used by the Union Navy as a harbor ship, used to transport military personnel, dispatches, and supplies to and from ships anchored in the harbor.

Confederate service

Chatham — an iron side-wheel steamer — was built in 1836 by John Laird, Birkenhead, England for export to Savannah, Georgia, knocked-down. Assembled in Savannah, she was used as a river steamer until the Civil War when she became a blockade runner. She was captured by USS Huron while attempting to run the blockade on 16 December 1863.

Union service

Chatham was turned over to the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron and commissioned on 22 June 1864, Master E. L. Smith in command.

Assigned as harbor ship at Port Royal, South Carolina, Chatham transported men and supplies in the harbor throughout the remainder of the war, providing support to the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron as it carried out its mission of cutting the Confederacy off from overseas sources of supply.

Chatham was decommissioned in April 1865 and sold on 2 September.

References

• This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.