The North Carolina Built Jeffersonian Gunboats
Sunday, March 13th, Daughters of 1812 members Kitsy Lackey and Dale Spencer attended a presentation in Whiteville, NC at the invitation of the NC Sons of Confederate Veterans Camp 794 in Columbus County, NC. It was a true learning experience for us, as Kitsy and I did not know that Smithville ( present day Southport) built such beautiful, rugged boats. Mr. Greathouse was indeed very knowledgeable about this subject and kept his audience's attention! |
| The Alligator |
Gunboat 166 (U.S. Schooner Alligator)
Gunboat 166 was built by Amos Perry near Wilmington, North Carolina around the town of Smithville (Southport). Perry's naval contract, issued in March of 1808, was for the construction of three sloop rigged 60' gunboats. They were to be numbered 166, 167, and 168. The superintendent of construction was Navy Agent General Benjamin Smith. Mr. Perry built Gunboat 166 with a schooner rig instead of the planned sloop rigging. He also provided the ship with two 6 pounder cannons instead of the single 24 or 32 pounder cannon called for in the contract. Rated at 80 tons, with a length of 60' between perpendiculars, a beam of 16'6", and depth of hold of 6'6", the gunboat received her crew of forty sailors and marines. By the time she was completed and launched on 1 April 1809, the fear of war with Great Britain had subsided and the gunboat was placed in ordinary at Wilmington two months later.
As war clouds again appeared on the horizon, Gunboat 166 was reactivated in the fall of 1811. After being refitted and manned she began patrolling the North Carolina coast. Soon after the declaration of war, she was transferred to South Carolina waters. Near the end of 1812 or early 1813, Gunboat 166 was renamed, Alligator. It was during this period that the Alligator also received two additional cannons. Over the next couple of years she would increase her armament to eight 12 pounder carronades.
The Alligator soon faced a far worse enemy than the British. On 1 July 1814, while patrolling Port Royal Sound, she capsized during a heavy storm. Twenty-three officers and men of the ship were lost. Bassett, now a lieutenant, was one of the few survivors. Plans were quickly put into place to raise the Alligator. After being raised and refitted the schooner resumed her patrol duties; but, Lieutenant Bassett was no longer in command. Soon after the sinking he became ill and died in September. The remaining months of the war were once again filled with the monotonous cruising along the coast between Charleston and Beaufort. In the late spring of 1815, she completed her last cruise. On 12 June 1815, she was decommissioned and sold. The naval career of the Alligator was over.
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| L-R: Member Kitsy Lackey, Mr. Jim Greathouse, Member Dale Spencer |
Source: Jim Greathouse, Park Ranger Historian Fayetteville Area Transportation and Local History Museum
