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USS Bonito
Schooner:
Built in 1846 as the wooden schooner Bonito by Brown and Bell, New York City, for the Mexican Navy
Launch, date unknown
Purchased by the U.S. Navy, 25 May 1846
Commissioned USS Bonito, 30 May 1846, LT. Hugh Y. Purviance in command.
Bonito joined the Home Squadron in the Gulf of Mexico near the end of the last week in July
On 6 August, Bonito departed the anchorage at Anton Lizardo, near Veracruz, in company with the rest of the Home Squadron
Later that day, the ships anchored off the bar at the mouth of the Alvarado River
That evening, the American warships, including Bonito, opened fire on the defenses of Alvarado and continued a slow bombardment until darkness forced a cease-fire order
The next morning, Bonito and the rest of the squadron with the exception of USS Falmouth, staying behind for blockade duty off the Alvarado,
headed back to Anton Lizardo
USS Bonito's next action occurred 15 October when she joined the other ships of the squadron in standing out of the anchorage bound once again for Alvarado
The ships arrived off the river mouth just after sunrise and prepared to cross the bar and enter the river
Bonito was behind USS Reefer, and both of them were being towed by the steamer USS Vixen (III)
A strong surf foiled the first attempt by the seven ships of the squadron to cross the bar; but, that afternoon, the Americans renewed their efforts. Vixen, wearing COMO.
Conner's flag, and her tows, Reefer and Bonito, crossed the bar successfully at about 1:45, however the second division of ships failed to cross the bar.
The second division, consisting of USRC McLane towing USS Nonata, USS Petrel, and USRC Forward failed
as McLane grounded on the bar, and her tows fouled one another
COMO. Conner decided against advancing on the Mexican ships and land defenses with only one steamer and two lightly armed schooners
He ordered Vixen to come about and, once again, aborted the mission
During both passages of the bar, the three ships of the lead division dueled with shore batteries
Bonito and Reefer escaped damage, but Vixen took two hits, and one of her men was wounded
With McLane refloated, the squadron set sail for Anton Lizardo
On 16 October, Bonito put to sea from Anton Lizardo once again as part of a seven-ship squadron
The flotilla, commanded by COMO. Matthew C. Perry, had orders to reconnoiter the eastern coast of Mexico from the Coatzacoalcos River to Carmen and, if possible, to seize Tabasco and any
other towns along the river
On their way to Tabasco, the American ships encountered an American bark, Coosa, communicating with the Mexicans on shore near the mouth of the Alvarado
They captured her and sent her back to Anton Lizardo as a prize
They later encountered a severe storm and after battling fierce weather for five days, the squadron, minus Reefer, separated in the heavy seas, arrived off the mouth of the
Tabasco River on 22 October
That same afternoon, the American ships entered the Tabasco River with Bonito again being towed by Vixen
Once again, McLane grounded, but her tows, Nonata and boats carrying landing parties, cast off and succeeded in crossing the bar under sail
The Squadron reached Frontera after 3:00 that afternoon to find two steamers preparing to flee
Vixen cast loose Bonito and Forward and churned ahead to stop the flight. Only one Mexican vessel, the schooner Amado, escaped
Bonito surged forward under sail in pursuit overhauling and capturing Amado while Vixen, Nonata, and the boats captured Frontera and
the assembled shipping, two steamers and another schooner
The Americans continued the ascent of the river in an effort to reach the objective, Tabasco, before the Mexicans could increase and consolidate their defenses
Progress, however, remained slow; and the squadron did not reach Tabasco until the early afternoon of the 25th after having stopped that morning at abandoned Fort Acachapan to spike the guns
After passing a tense night at Tabasco, Perry concluded that he had insufficient forces to hold Tabasco though enough strength to capture it
Knowing he could not hold Tabasco Perry ordered a withdrawal downriver to Frontera and dropped anchor there shortly after midnight
After destroying some of the prizes and sending others back to Anton Lizardo, the squadron departed Frontera, 31 October, and headed back to Anton Lizardo, leaving McLane and
Forward on blockade station off the mouth of the Tabasco
On 12 November Bonito she set sail with six other ships of the squadron bound for Tampico
The Tampico operation proved to be a walkover, the Mexicans had abandoned the city and the squadron moved up to the town unopposed 14 November
The ships remained in the vicinity until the end of the month when COMO. Conners began dispersing the squadron
At that time, Bonito left the Panuco River and returned to Anton Lizardo along with Vixen and Petrel (I), all three towed by
USS Mississippi
In an effort to cut off the rest of Mexico from supplies coming through Yucatan, COMO. Conners sent COMO. Perry to the town of Carmen with the ships
Mississippi, Vixen, Bonito, and Petrel
They arrived off the bar, 20 December; and, leaving the deep-draft Mississippi outside the river mouth, the other three ships crossed the bar and easily captured the town
Leaving Vixen and Petrel at Carmen, Perry recrossed the bar in Bonito, 22 December
Mississippi took Bonito in tow and upon their arrival at the mouth of the Tabasco River, cast the schooner loose
After replenishment of water and supplies Bonito departed the area on Christmas Day 1846
Bonito remained on blockade duty off the mouth of the Tabasco River for just over two months
Early in February 1847, orders went out to the Home Squadron to gather at Anton Lizardo in preparation for the Veracruz operation
During the 9 March landing, Bonito moved to within 90 yards of the shoreline with the four other schooners serving as gunboats
Since General Winfield Scott's Army troops went ashore unopposed, Bonito and her colleagues played no active role in the assault
However, later in the siege, 22 and 23 March, she joined them in bombarding Veracruz itself
On 23 March Bonito, Vixen and USS Spitfire (IV), moved inshore as far as possible to bombard the town and the Castle San
Juan de Ulloa guarding it, Veracruz capitulated formally, 29 March
Bonito's next operation began, l April when she stood out of the anchorage at Anton Lizardo, once more bound for Alvarado
By noon, she and 12 other American warships were anchored off the bar at Alvarado. Unknown to them was the fact that Alvarado's garrison had already abandoned the town and that it had
surrendered the previous day to USS Scourge (III). Six of the ships, including Bonito, crossed the bar to threaten the town
However, as soon as the surrender became known, the ships landed Marines to hold the town and prepared to ascend the river
The following morning, Bonito joined six other ships in a day-long excursion upriver as far as Tlacotalpan with little to show for it except a promise fo a bargain price
for 500 horses for the Army
Bonito next put to sea, 12 April when she and the bulk of the squadron embarked upon the mission to capture Tuxpan
Though scattered by a storm en route, the ships arrived off the mouth of the Tuxpan River singly on the morning of 17 April
The following morning, Bonito joined Spitfire, Vixen, Scourge, Petrel, and Reefer in crossing the bar
into the river
That afternoon, in company with 30 barges, the warships started up the river toward Tuxpan. Along the way, they dueled with three sets of fortifications before sending landing parties
ashore which carried all three forts
By about 3:30 that afternoon, the flotilla hove to off Tuxpan and disembarked a force which quickly secured the town
The ships remained at Tuxpan for four days while landing parties carried out expeditions in the surrounding countryside and destroyed or carried off any item of military value to the Mexicans
On 22 April, the ships departed Tuxpan, sailed down the river, and crossed the bar, leaving USS Albany and Reefer to cover the river
mouth, the rest of the squadron, including Bonito, headed back to Anton Lizardo
Early in May, Bonito joined USS Etna on blockade station off Frontera at the mouth of the Tabasco River
On 12 and 13 June, the remaining ships of Perry's squadron joined them in preparation for the ascent of the Tabasco River to capture the town
On 14 June, Bonito crossed the bar with the eight other ships of the squadron whose drafts were shallow enough to make the crossing
After capturing Frontera quickly that afternoon, the nine warships, towing 40 ship's boats and carrying a landing force of almost 1,200 men, began the journey upriver
The flotilla moved slowly up the river on the evening and night of the 14th, through the morning of the 15th and into the afternoon.
At about 4:00 on the 15th, the ships approached the first of three ambushes laid by the Mexicans. About 150 Mexicans opened on the ships with musketry, but most of their shots passed harmlessly over the ships
Bonito and her colleagues returned the fire and continued unscathed on their mission
At dusk, the squadron reached a treacherous curve in the river called Devil's Bend
There they encountered the second ambush, an ineffectual fusillade quickly suppressed by ships' gunfire
However, they learned that the Mexicans had placed obstructions in the river just above the bend and had erected a breastwork on the right bank adjacent to the obstructions
Realizing that his ships had no chance of passing the double obstacle at night and that his landing force might be required ashore to carry the breastwork by storm, Perry decided upon the
dangerous expedient of passing the night in the narrows of the bend
The ships passed the night with only a minor incident and, early the next morning, set about the work of putting the landing force ashore
Bonito, Spitfire, and Scourge laid down a barrage of grape, shell, and musketry
The landing went forward unopposed and completed the task by 8:00 on the morning of the 16th
The double obstacle proved no real problem to the landing party which marched by it between its right flank and the river bank
The ships themselves quickly dispatched the obstructions in the river with explosive charges and moved on upriver to join in the combined operation against the major defensive work, Fort Acachapan
Perry's land force, however, arrived first and carried the redoubt with a highly unorganized, but mad and noisy dash. The Mexicans simply abandoned the fortification and dispersed
into the chaparral
From that point on, the leading role in the capture of Tabasco reverted to the faster moving force afloat
The ships arrived at the town late on the morning of the 16th and found it ungarrisoned
Shortly after noon, a landing force from the ships took formal possession of the town
Perry and the main landing force reached the town about three hours later
The squadron remained at Tabasco until 22 June destroying all fortifications and military items it could find
Then, leaving Spitfire, Scourge, and Etna at Tabasco, Perry retired downriver with the remainder of the force
By late July, yellow fever and ever braver Mexican troops forced the small garrison back downriver to Frontera
Bonito remained at Frontera with Scourge and Etna while the rest of the squadron recrossed the bar and returned to Sacrificios Island
For the remainder of the Mexican War, Bonito served on blockade station off the east coast of Mexico
Sometime during the summer of 1848, she returned to the United States at Norfolk, VA. where she was decommissioned
She remained there until sold, 15 October 1848
Final Disposition, fate unknown
Specifications:
Displacement 74t.
Length 59'
Beam unknown
Depth of Hold unknown
Draft 7'
Speed unknown
Complement 40
Armament one 32-pdr carronades
Propulsion sail
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Bonito
Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships
Last Updated 12 August 2022