View source for USS Polaris (1871)

{{short description|Gunboat of the United States Navy}}
{{other ships|USS Polaris}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2019}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2019}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin
 |infobox caption   = USS ''Polaris''}}
{{Infobox ship image
 |Ship image        = U.S.S. Polaris, Washington Navy Yard. LOC cwpbh.03348 (cropped).jpg
 |Ship caption      = ''Polaris'' at [[Washington Navy Yard]]}}
{{Infobox ship career
 |Ship country      = United States
 |Ship flag         = {{USN flag|1861}}
 |Ship name         = USS ''Periwinkle''
 |Ship operator     = [[Union Navy]]
 |Ship acquired     = {{start date|1864|12|09}}
 |Ship commissioned = January 15, 1865
 |Ship homeport     = [[Norfolk Navy Yard]]}}
{{Infobox ship career
 |Ship name         = USS ''Polaris''
 |Ship namesake     = [[Alpha Ursae Minoris]]
 |Ship operator     = [[Hall scientific expedition]]
 |Ship acquired     = June 9, 1871
 |Ship commissioned = June 29, 1871
 |Ship homeport     = [[Washington Navy Yard]]}}
{{Infobox|child=yes
| label1 = Sunk
| data1 = {{end date|1872|10|24}}, off [[Etah, Greenland|Etah]]{{citation needed|date=February 2021}}
}}{{Infobox ship characteristics
 |Header caption    = (1864)
 |Ship type         = [[Screw steamer]]
 |Ship displacement = 383 tons
 |Ship length       = {{convert|140|ft|0|abbr=off|sp=us}}
 |Ship beam         = {{convert|28|ft|0|abbr=off|sp=us}}
 |Ship draft        = {{convert|10+1/2|ft|0|abbr=off|sp=us}}
 |Ship hold depth   = {{convert|12|ft|0|abbr=off|sp=us}}
 |Ship sail plan    = [[Schooner#Rig types|Two-mast schooner rig]]
 |Ship complement   = 37 officers and men}}
|}

'''USS ''Polaris''''', originally called the '''''America''''', was an 1864 [[screw steamer]] procured by the [[Union Navy]] as '''USS&nbsp;''Periwinkle''''' during the final months of the [[American Civil War]]. She served the Union Navy's struggle against the [[Confederate States]] as a [[gunboat]].

After the war, the ship was retained by the [[U.S. Navy]]. She was renamed ''Polaris'' in 1871 and became the designated vessel of the [[Hall scientific expedition]] to the [[North Pole]]. It was on this voyage that she proceeded into Arctic waters, only to have her hull crushed by the ice in October 1872.

== Construction ==
''America'', a heavy screw [[tugboat]] built at [[Philadelphia]], in 1864, was purchased by the [[Union Navy]] December&nbsp;9, 1864, from John W. Lynn; renamed ''Periwinkle''; and commissioned early in January 1865, acting Master Henry C. Macy in command.

== Potomac Flotilla ==
The two-masted, [[schooner]]-rigged, white oak tug joined the [[Potomac Flotilla]] on January 15, 1865, as a gunboat, operating primarily in the [[Rappahannock River]].

In mid-March, a fleet of [[oyster schooners]] operating in the area was threatened by a Confederate enemy force, and ''Periwinkle'' with {{USS|Morse|1861|6}}, blockaded the mouths of the Rappahannock and [[Piankatank]] rivers to protect them. The Flotilla also interrupted contraband business between lower Maryland and Virginia, and cleared the rivers of mines, and fought guerillas ashore.

After the [[American Civil War|Civil War]] ended, ''Periwinkle'' continued to serve with the flotilla until June&nbsp;1865. Next, ordered to [[Norfolk, Virginia]], she operated out of the [[Norfolk Navy Yard]] until placed in ordinary during 1867.

== Furthest North ==
In late 1870, she was selected for service with the [[Hall scientific expedition]], led by [[Charles Francis Hall]], and was sent to the [[Washington Navy Yard]] for refitting. Renamed USS ''Polaris'' in early-1871, she arrived at the [[New York Navy Yard]] on June&nbsp;9 to complete loading of stores and provisions for the expedition. She set sail in July&nbsp;1871.

Aiming for the [[North Pole]], she reached [[82nd parallel north|82°&nbsp;29′N latitude]], then the [[Furthest North|furthest point north]] reached by a vessel. ''Polaris'' was caught in the ice on the homeward voyage in October&nbsp;1872, and carried for some distance before being crushed. Her crew was subsequently rescued, including a party of 18 people led by [[William F. C. Nindemann]], who had debarked to land provisions after the hull of the ''Polaris'' had begun to leak, only to have the section of the ice floe they were on break away from the section holding the ''Polaris''.

The lost party floated for 196 days and were subsequently rescued separately from the vessel.

== References ==
* {{DANFS|https://www.history.navy.mil/content/history/nhhc/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/p/periwinkle.html}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category|USS Polaris (ship, 1871)|USS ''Polaris''}}

{{Polar exploration}}
{{1872 shipwrecks}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Polaris}}
[[Category:1864 ships]]
[[Category:American Civil War patrol vessels of the United States]]
[[Category:Arctic exploration vessels]]
[[Category:Gunboats of the United States Navy]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in October 1872]]
[[Category:Polaris expedition]]
[[Category:Research vessels of the United States Navy]]
[[Category:Ships built in Philadelphia]]
[[Category:Ships of the Union Navy]]
[[Category:Shipwrecks of the Canadian Arctic coast]]
[[Category:Steamships of the United States Navy]]