Andy, thank you for posting this for me. I was also glad to see that this image has stirred some interest. Thank you also to everyone on this forum for their willingness to help. These gunboats are fascinating because they really show human ingenuity during times of crisis and war.
Although there were 20 known converted ferry gunboats (possibly more), these vessels are poorly documented which is something we hope to change. USS Westfield, USS Clifton, and USS J.P. Jackson were by far the largest of these vessels and the most heavily reconfigured. Part of this was to ensure their survival during their trip down the East Coast and into the Gulf of Mexico. This included lowering the hurricane deck, removing the fore and aft promenades, replacing passenger windows with portholes, planking over the sponsons, armoring the gun decks with boiler plate, plus SO much more.
STORY: The seller did cash the check but claims they can't view those records. I tried, but I can't push them on that issue any longer. (Post # 6)
Yes, we are exploring repositories in New York and New Jersey that might contain information on sister ships from the New Jersey Rail Road Line. That is currently a major direction of research. (Post # 8)
For your first comment, Erik Heyl based many of his illustrations on the Bards Brothers paintings. The Bard Brothers created some of the most detailed and accurate representations of steam vessels during the 19th century (Post # 2). For example: The wikipedia link on JP Jackson.
When they dismantled the fore and aft promenade coverings, the two pilot houses and their rudder chain boxes needed to move inward towards amidships so they could be rebuilt over surviving structures. That is why the gun decks look longer. But the bulwarks were completely torn down and reconstructed with oak backing and boiler armor. There are still two pilot houses, but they have been lowered. The aft one is barely visible above the longboat. A platform ( 2 total ) was set up in the engineering compartment to create a new floor/deck for the pilot. Inside the engineering compartment, the pilot would climb a few steps into the new pilot house. (Post # 8 & 10)
There is a perspective error. The ship would still look "pregnant". They did not reduce the "guards" that surrounded the ship. That would have required removing the underlying sponsons and also that would have reduced the width of the gun decks. Please also note that Westfield, Clifton, and J.P. Jackson were much longer vessels than the USS Commodore Perry (Post # 9). Thus, the appearance of a wide amidships area is less noticeable.
No crow's nest. You are seeing an exaggerated interpretation of the "top mast" going into the "top mast head". Also, although built like masts, these are actually signal posts. (Post #12- illustration)
JOHN LITTLEFIELD: First of all, good to hear from you John. I hope you and Tuba are doing well! The original seller, appraiser, and auction house searched their records both on their databases and on external hard drives. Unfortunately, none of them kept records before 2012. The item sold in 2011. (Post # 4)
Here are some of my older notes: ***please note that the top image is another historic eyewitness sketch when she was on the Mississippi.