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NavSource Online: "Old Navy" Ship Photo Archive

Alpha (I)
ex
 Picket Boat No. 1

Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons

Civil War Medal
Screw Tug:
  • Built in 1863 as the screw tug Fred Wheeler at Philadelphia
  • Purchased by the Union Navy at Philadelphia, 3 June 1864
  • Designated Picket Boat No. 1, Acting Ensign Nathaniel R. Davis in command
  • During the Civil War Picket Boat No. 1 was assigned to the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron, 1 November 1864
  • Assigned to the James River to protect Union shipping which supported General Grants's operations against Richmond
  • Renamed Alpha (also called Tug No. 1) between 1 November and 5 December 1864
  • Participated in an expedition upstream to Richmond immediately after General Lee's Army had abandoned the city
  • Sold at public auction at the Washington Navy Yard, 23 September 1865 to William L. Wall and Co., Baltimore
  • Redocumented Alpha, 7 October 1865
  • Final Disposition, destroyed by fire, 5 June 1886
    Specifications:
    Displacement 55 t.
    Length 66'
    Beam 14'
    Depth 6'
    Draft 7' 8"
    Speed 9 kts.
    Complement 13
    Armament
    eight Enfield rifles
    Propulsion steam
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    Alpha (I)
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)
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    Last Updated 28 October 2011