Ironclad Did Federal gunboats have their names painted on them?

Your sarcasm makes me wonder if you are trying divert attention away from something.

A warning shot across the bow here to keep things pleasant. :smile:

To my knowledge, the 'timberclads' Lexington, Tyler/Taylor, and Conestoga bore no numbers. ('Timberclads' is a retrofit word-- at the time, they were simply called 'gunboats'. 'Tinclad' and 'Cottonclad' do appear to have been used at the time.)
 
A warning shot across the bow here to keep things pleasant. :smile:

To my knowledge, the 'timberclads' Lexington, Tyler/Taylor, and Conestoga bore no numbers. ('Timberclads' is a retrofit word-- at the time, they were simply called 'gunboats'. 'Tinclad' and 'Cottonclad' do appear to have been used at the time.)
Thank you for a straight answer.
 
I
I was only referring to your statement concerning timberclads having a numerical identification.
The Conestoga, Tyler, and Lexington were timberclads.
Do you have evidence for your statement that they had their identification numbers painted on their pilothouses?

Your sarcasm makes me wonder if you are trying divert attention away from something.
I thought the Zeta was kinda funny. The torpedo laying on the foredeck is absurd looking. It does have a six on the stack, so obviously numbers were used to designate vessels other than tinclads.

There aren’t enough images of the timber-clads for me to make a definitive judgement about any tactical markings. Images of the Quartermaster’s small gunboats too rare, as far as I know, to say anything about.

The Mississippi Squadron tinlads certainly had numerals on their pilot houses. That was rational, given how many of them there were. I would have edited the post, but there is a time limit.

Anyways, I always enjoy poking around in the NavSource images.
 
Some posts (8th, I think)back there is a picture of 3 Ellett Rams with letters between the smokestacks. A sidewheeler is next to them, fouth from the bottom I believe, On her side is the big letter "S". Was this a common practice? And just out of curiosity, what ship is depicted?
 
Some posts (8th, I think)back there is a picture of 3 Ellett Rams with letters between the smokestacks. A sidewheeler is next to them, fouth from the bottom I believe, On her side is the big letter "S". Was this a common practice? And just out of curiosity, what ship is depicted?
The large letters were a tactical marking for Ellet’s ram flotilla. It was the Mississippi Marine Brigade, a bureaucratic anomaly that reported directly to the Secretary of War. It had nothing to do with the U.S. Marines or the naval chain of command which befuddled folks then & now.

I do not know the identity of the “S” boat.
 
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The large letters were a tactical marking for Ellet’s ram flotilla. It was the Mississippi Marine squadron, a bureaucratic anomaly that reported directly to the Secretary of War. It had nothing to do with the U.S. Marines or the naval chain of command which befuddled folks then & now.

I do not know the identity of the “S” boat.

The Switzerland, I'd think.
 
Would you please be kind enough to explain the difference between Ellet's Ram Fleet and the Mississippi Marine Brigade to those who don't know?

Essentially, the MMB evolved from the ram fleet. It happened about the time that Porter and the Navy took over the inland gunboat operations. It was a bit of an administrative mess and there was some infighting between the Navy and War Departments. I don't remember the specifics off the top of my head, but fortunately there's a great book to point you to:

Hearn, Chester G. Ellet's Brigade: The Strangest Outfit of All. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State Univ. Press, 2000. 256 pp.
 
The large letters were a tactical marking for Ellet’s ram flotilla. It was the Mississippi Marine Brigade, a bureaucratic anomaly that reported directly to the Secretary of War. It had nothing to do with the U.S. Marines or the naval chain of command which befuddled folks then & now.

I do not know the identity of the “S” boat.
This might be the Switzerland.
 
An interesting addendum to this discussion: the painting of names on turrets of monitors seems to have been done in layup post war and was done to river monitors, as evinced by this photo of layup post war in Mound City. "Neosho" very clearly has her name painted on her turret.

Does anyone know why so many monitors post war had their names painted on like this? Did the few monitors that were active back them retain the names painted on the turrets when they were at sea, or was this strictly part of putting them into layup?

neoshofrontshot_opt.jpg
 
As Mark F. Jenkins has pointed out, CW era Monitors had surprisingly long post war careers. The images in the NavSource archive, which I recommend to all, of CW Monitors brought back into service for the Spanish American War as harbor protection craft are more than a bit surprising. Monitors were also used as training vessels for Annapolis midshipmen. I can't say as how bringing up a head of steam in a profoundly obsolete vessel & heading out to sea would have necessarily been all that inspirational, career wise. It is really sad that nobody ever thought that it would be appropriate to save one or two of the combat veterans as museum ships. I don't think anybody back then ever gave such a thing a thought.
 
giantsteamboats_hippolytesebron1600x1100.jpg

Looking through some steamboat pictures I have saved and found this, which might be used as reference for where to put the name on, say, a converted gunboat. Aside from the paddle wheel covers, note that the name is also borne on the from of the boats cabin bellow the bell, in conjunction with some lettering denoting her owners along the side. This is a painting, so take it with a glass of salt water, but still an interesting view. It's set in 1853, in New Orleans and was painted in 1855.
 
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