The Guns of USS Peterhoff at Fort Fisher

Dec 7

US Navy 32-Pounder of 51 Hundredweight Number 8 and 32-Pounder of 42 Hundredweight Number 59 are in storage at Fort Fisher State Historic Site. Note, there is water at this site because it had been raining all day when I had the opportunity to see these guns.

Four iron cannon recovered from the wreck of USS Peterhoff are currently in storage but planned for future display at Fort Fisher State Historic Site in Kure Beach, North Carolina. The four, each a distinct model, show both the armament system adopted by the US Navy in 1845 and the variety of guns a ex-merchant ship might be armed with on blockade service in the American Civil War.

USS Peterhoff was originally built in London as a yacht for the Emperor of Russia, Nicholas I, in 1850. She was run aground on her delivery voyage and after salvage was taken into British merchant service. She was seized by the US Navy as a blockade runner in February of 1863 and after fitting out for blockade duty was commissioned into the US Navy in February of 1864.

On March 6th, 1864 while on station off of New Inlet near Fort Fisher, USS Peterhoff was accidentally rammed and sunk by USS Monticello. Her crew was taken off the ship. At low tide that day, US Navy sailors were dispatched in boats to wreck as much of the ship as possible to prevent anything from being recovered the the Confederates. They felled the masts and threw overboard the 30-Pounder Parrott on the forecastle and the 12-Pounder Boat Howitzer on the quarterdeck - those raised decks being submerged under only about a foot of water, but they could not get to the heavier guns on the main deck (See Official Records - Navies Ser. 1. Vol. 9. pp. 536-538).

The wreck was rediscovered in 1963. By the mid-1970s four of her guns had been salvaged. The 30-Pounder, which had been thrown overboard to prevent capture was discovered by UNCW students participating in a Marine Archeology class who assisted with its recovery. The four cannons are:

32-Pounder of 51 Hundredweight Number 8 which had been manufactured by Tredegar in 1847
32-Pounder of 42 Hundredweight Number 59 which was manufactured by Fort Pitt Foundry in 1842 Previously displayed at Fort Fisher Air Force Recreation Area.
32-Pounder of 42 Hundredweight Number 301 which was manufactured by West Point Foundry in 1847. Previously displayed at the Underwater Archeology Branch.
30-Pounder Parrott Rifle Number 97 which was manufactured by West Point Foundry in 1862. Previously Displayed at University of North Carolina Wilmington

Even though the two 32-Pounders of 42 Hundredweight are nominally the same type, they are of two different designs. According to Olmstead et al., there were actually four distinct designs of the 42cwt gun manufactured between 1842 and 1849. While most of the 42cwt were chambered guns (the powder chamber being 5.82-inch in diameter while the rest of the gun is 6.4-inches), the last of the series, including Number 301 are unchambered (the area for the charge is the full 6.4-inches in diameter). See Olmstead/Stark/Tucker pp. 38-39, 211.

All four recovered iron guns show significant deterioration due to a century under water near the beach as well as the conservation techniques of the 1960s and 1970s. I cannot read any markings on them, though they may have been partially legible prior to conservation. Although the pictures of the guns in storage might be the cause of some concern, all three 32-Pounders had good coatings on them - and the water visible in the photos is not normally there, it had been raining heavily for hours when I photographed them.

I have heard verbally from multiple individuals connected with Fort Fisher that at least one other iron gun remains at the wreck sight. I do not know if the bronze Boat Howitzer was recovered at some other time or not. (The boat howitzer would have been the easier gun to recover and likely the most desirable.)

While I was attending the 35th Annual North Carolina Maritime History Conference at Fort Fisher, I was shown all four of the Peterhoff guns which are currently in storage and/or awaiting further conservation work. I understand that it it is intended to prepare new carriages or mounts for the guns for future display at Fort Fisher.

When this work is done, Fort Fisher will display five guns of four different types of the 1845/1846 system - a uniquely large display. All 32-Pounders of the 1846 system fired the same 32-Pound solid shot, but used different powder charges. The 42cwt gun used a maximum 6 pound propellant charge. The 51cwt gun could use an 8 pound charge. The 57cwt gun used a 9 pound charge. Smaller 27 and 32cwt guns fired 4 and 4.5 pound charges respectively.

Fort Fisher State Historic Site opened its new museum and expanded grounds in October of 2024. The museum and site are very well presented with many historic artifacts on display telling the stories of the people who built, defended, bombarded, and captured Fort Fisher. Please support the site by visiting it!