Bayou City, a 165-foot side-wheel steamer, was built for commercial use at Jeffersonville, Indiana, in 1859. She was chartered in September 1861 for service in the Texas Marine Department. Initially operated by the State of Texas as a cottonclad gunboat in the Galveston area, she was taken over by the Confederate Army in October 1862. On 1 January 1863, Bayou City and the tug Neptune were used by Confederate troops in a daring operation to drive Union warships out of Galveston bay. This attack was a complete success, with USS Harriet Lane boarded and captured and USS Westfield blown up. Following the action, Bayou City served the Confederacy in Texas waters until the conclusion of the Civil War.
This page features our only views related to the Confederate Army gunboat Bayou City.
If you want higher resolution reproductions than the digital images presented here, see: "How to Obtain Photographic Reproductions." |
Click on the small photograph to prompt a larger view of the same image.
If you want higher resolution reproductions than the digital images presented here, see: "How to Obtain Photographic Reproductions." |
Page made 13 October 2000