USS Bat ( 1864 ) USS " Bat " ( 1864 ) was a steamer captured by the Union Navy during the American Civil War . She was used by the Union Navy as a gunboat in support of the Union Navy blockade of Confederate waterways . She was also later assigned to carry President Abraham Lincoln to Richmond , Virginia . " Bat " purchased in England by the Confederacy . " Bat " was a very fast , steel hulled , side wheel steamer built in 1864 at Liverpool , England , for private speculators by Jones Quiggins and Co . , Ltd . Their plan called for her to run through the Union blockade with highly profitable cargo desperately needed by the beleaguered South and then to slip back out to sea again , laden with cotton for the idle textile mills of England . However , early in September — while the ship was still on the stocks , but too far advanced to be modified significantly — she was purchased for the Confederate Government by Capt . James D . Bullock , CSN . Proceeding to Nova Scotia across the Atlantic Ocean . Laden with heavy machinery and a large quantity of office supplies — including a goodly amount of red tape — required by Jefferson Davis ' administration , the side wheeler put to sea on 6 September and proceeded under the command of veteran blockade tester , A . Hora — a reserve officer of the Royal Navy — to Halifax , Nova Scotia . After re - coaling at that port , the ship sailed for the North Carolina coast . Union Navy alerted to blockade runner " Bat " by American Embassy in London . Meanwhile , Thomas H . Dudley , the American consul at Liverpool , had taken pains to learn of Bullock ' s activities and had informed Washington , D . C . , of the South ’ s purchase of " Bat " and of that ship ' s departure from the British Isles . As the blockade runner approached the Cape Fear River on the night of 8 October , Union warships in the vicinity had been alerted and were expecting her . First met by " Eolus " , " Bat " retired down the coast to the vicinity of Georgetown , South Carolina , remained anchored there throughout the 9th , and weighed anchor again in the wee hours of the 10th to begin another attempt to speed through the Union line into Wilmington , North Carolina . Blockade runner " Bat " spotted by " Emma " . Upon nearing the western bar , she encountered " Emma " which ship gave chase , opened fire , and sent up rockets to announce the presence and course of the stranger . After " Bat " quickly outdistanced that steamer , " Vicksburg " began pursuing the speedy Southern ship , but soon lost sight of her quarry and hove to when she reached the outer edge of her assigned area . Finally , " Montgomery " spotted Bat , opened fire , and struck the fleeing vessel in her forecastle , killing an Austrian seaman named Mateh Madick who had been the captain of the forecastle of " CSS Alabama " during that Confederate cruiser ' s recent epic battle with . " Bat " surrenders and is purchased by the Union Navy . Soon thereafter , " Bat " surrendered and was sent to Beaufort , North Carolina , under a prize crew commanded by Acting Ensign Robert Wiley . From that port , she steamed on to Boston , Massachusetts , where she was condemned by an admiralty court . Purchased by the United States Government for service in the Union Navy , the side wheeler was repaired , fitted out at the Boston Navy Yard , and placed in commission there on 13 December 1864 , Lt . Comdr . John S . Barnes in command . " Bat " assigned to the North Atlantic Blockade . Assigned to the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron , " Bat " soon sailed for Hampton Roads , Virginia , but encountered a severe storm during her voyage south and lost her foremast . Sent to the Washington Navy Yard for repairs , the steamer remained there until mid January 1865 . On the 23d , when " Bat " finally joined her squadron off Wilmington , North Carolina — where recently a fleet commanded by Rear Admiral David Dixon Porter had cooperated with Army troops in the final major combined operation of the Civil War , the capture of Fort Fisher — Porter decided to take advantage of her great speed by using her as a dispatch vessel . On the day of the steamer ' s arrival , she began a cruise south through the Confederacy ' s inland waters as far down the coast as Georgetown , South Carolina . Her mission was to attempt to communicate with General William Tecumseh Sherman who — after completing his march from Atlanta , Georgia , through Georgia to the sea — had swung north to move his army toward Richmond , Virginia , in support of General Ulysses S . Grant ' s operations against the Confederate capital . This assignment kept the side wheeler busy through the end of January when Porter called her back to the Cape Fear River . For more than a month thereafter , the admiral used the steamer in maintaining quick communication within his squadron , occasionally breaking his flag in her . " Bat " chosen to carry President Lincoln to Richmond , Virginia . An interesting period for " Bat " — one in which she rendered her most notable service — began on 20 March when General Grant invited the President to visit his headquarters at City Point , Virginia . At this time both the Commander - in - Chief and Mrs . Lincoln were worn out by the burdens of presiding over the wartime White House . Each was completely drained of strength by almost four years of the most bloody fratricidal war ; by grief over the loss of their son , Willie ; and by the sadness of knowing that the men in Mrs . Lincoln ' s family had been fighting for the Southern cause . Thus the President welcomed an opportunity to get away from Washington while visiting the Union troops beleaguering Richmond . Since " Bat " was the fastest vessel in the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron , the Navy ordered her to Washington so that she might carry Mr . Lincoln to Grant ' s headquarters on the James River . The speedy steamer reached the Washington Navy Yard late on the 20th , and Lt . Comdr . Barnes reported in person to Assistant Secretary of the Navy Gustavus Fox . The two men arranged to have suitable accommodations for the President installed in " Bat " and then proceeded together to the Executive Mansion where they discussed the proposed voyage with Mr . Lincoln . Passenger Lincoln cancels – " Bat " instead chosen to convoy Lincoln in " River Queen " . However , the next day , Barnes was summoned back to the White House and told by the President that Mrs . Lincoln had decided to accompany him to City Point . Because " Bat " was not outfitted to accommodate ladies and could not be readily made so , the work on her was stopped ; and another fast steamer , the " River Queen " , was found for the task . Accordingly , " Bat ' s " role was changed to escorting the President ' s unarmed ship during her voyage to the James . She was to stay with " River Queen " throughout his visit and then to accompany her back to Washington . The dangers involved in providing security for President Lincoln . Plots against the President had been discovered soon after Lincoln ' s election in the autumn of 1860 and had continued to be hatched throughout his time in office . Consequently , fear for his safety was strong in the Navy Department , especially during the final phase of the war when frustration and hostility in many Southern hearts were being inflamed by growing certainty that the collapse of the Confederacy was imminent . Moreover , besides the threat of assassination , naval leaders were also worried by the possibility that the President ' s ship would strike a mine or come to grief in some other way . The previous autumn — during a conference to plan an expedition against Fort Fisher – " Greyhound " , an Army transport similar in design to " River Queen " – had been set afire by a bomb disguised as a lump of coal that exploded in her boiler . On that occasion , General Benjamin F . Butler and Rear Admiral David Dixon Porter had barely escaped from the blazing vessel with their lives . " Bat " is assigned as backup in case of damage to " River Queen " . Thus , " Bat ' s " mission was considered to be of the utmost importance . She was to protect the " River Queen " from attackers of any sort ; and , should his ship be damaged , she was to take Mr . Lincoln and his party on board and to carry them to safety . President Lincoln becomes ill from drinking contaminated water . The two ships got underway on the afternoon of 23 March , stopped at Fortress Monroe the next morning to get fresh water for use of the President who had become ill the previous night after drinking contaminated water from " River Queen ' s " tanks , and anchored off City Point late that night . During the ensuing days , Lt . Comdr . Barnes was a frequent companion of the President , both afloat and during excursions ashore . Lincoln meets with Sherman , then promptly sends him back to his army on " Bat " . On the evening of the 27th , General William Tecumseh Sherman arrived at City Point for conferences with General Grant and the President . Sherman ' s absence from his army during this critical phase of the war caused Lincoln great uneasiness and brought orders for Barnes to return the general in " Bat " to his troops in North Carolina with the greatest possible despatch . After filling her coal bunkers and taking on provisions , " Bat " — with Sherman ; the General ' s brother , Senator John Sherman ; the son and confidential clerk of the Secretary of War , Edwin Lamson Stanton ; and a number of prominent Army officers embarked — got underway on the morning of the 28th and proceeded at top speed to New Bern , North Carolina , which she reached late on the evening of the 30th . After disembarking her passengers and refueling , she began the run back to the James the next day and reached City Point on the evening of 2 April . " Bat " delivers Sherman to North Carolina , returns to Lincoln ’ s party in Richmond . By this time , the defensive works that had protected the Confederate capital had crumbled . The First Lady — after being indisposed during much of her visit to City Point — had returned to Washington ; and her husband had joined Porter in the Admiral ' s flagship , " Malvern " . About mid morning on the 4th , " Bat " got underway to follow " Malvern " and " River Queen " up the James toward Richmond , as those ships threaded their way along a channel cleared of mines and obstructions . When " Malvern " ran aground a short distance below the Confederate capital , Porter invited the President into his barge , in which they were rowed ashore . Barnes followed in a boat from " Bat " and accompanied Lincoln when he visited the Southern executive mansion — from which President Jefferson Davis had just fled — and during much of his subsequent tour of the burning city . That evening , Lincoln and Porter reembarked in " Malvern " and Barnes in " Bat " . The next day , Mrs . Lincoln returned from Washington to the James ; and , after she had visited Richmond on the 7th , plans were laid for the First Family ' s voyage back to Washington . Rumors of danger cause a security scare during the Richmond trip . Meanwhile , the Navy had received reports of a Confederate plot to capture the ferry at Havre de Grace , Maryland , and of Southern plans to launch other actions in the Chesapeake Bay which might be dangerous to the President . As a precaution , Barnes assigned two officers and a guard of sailors — presumably from " Bat " — to " River Queen " with instructions to guard Lincoln . " Bat " escorts " River Queen " and the presidential party back to Washington , D . C . . " Bat " escorted " River Queen " to City Point on the evening of the 7th , and the two ships sailed for Washington the next morning . Barnes remained in the latter with the President as the two ships dropped down the river , leaving " Bat " under temporary command of her executive officer , but resumed command of his own ship at Fortress Monroe for the run up the Chesapeake Bay and the Potomac River to the Federal capital . Upon leaving the salt water of the bay and entering the fresh water of the river , " Bat " developed foam in her boilers which lowered her steam pressure and slowed her engines . This forced her to fall behind " River Queen " and allowed the President ' s ship to reach the Washington Navy Yard ahead of her . When " Bat " was moored at the yard on the 10th , she learned that General Robert E . Lee had surrendered his Army of Northern Virginia at Appomattox Courthouse the day before . News arrives of the surrender of Robert E . Lee . Following brief repairs , " Bat " headed down river on the 11th and anchored in Hampton Roads the next day . Awaiting her was word that Porter expected to be there on the 13th and orders to be ready to take him to Washington . However , the admiral did not arrive until the 14th and then remained in " Tristram Shandy " , the ship that had brought him from City Point , for the remainder of the homeward voyage . " Bat ' s " commanding officer called to " Monodnock " to read a dispatch . On the morning of the 15th , lookouts in " Bat " received a signal from " Monodnock " ordering the dispatch ship ' s commanding officer to come on board . When Barnes reached " Monodnock ' s " deck , Comdr . William Ronckendorf met him in silence while handing him a telegram from Secretary Welles which read : " Bat " waits for orders to pursue Confederate officials . " Bat " remained in Hampton Roads for the next few weeks waiting for instructions to assist in efforts to capture the President ' s assassins or for orders to pursue any officials of the fallen Confederate government who might attempt to escape by sea . Such a message never arrived . Post - war decommissioning and sale . On 6 May 1865 , " Bat " was ordered to Washington , D . C . Decommissioned at New York City on the 17th , the ship was sold at public auction there on 25 May 1865 to Russell Surgiss and Associates and was documented on 6 November 1865 as " Teaser " . Subsequent civilian maritime career . In merchant service , the former " Bat " operated between ports on the U . S . East Coast — especially New York City and Boston , Massachusetts — and New Orleans , Louisiana . In 1871 , she was sold to a Canadian owner , renamed " Miramichi " and subsequently operated between ports on the St . Lawrence River and in the Gulf of Newfoundland . In 1902 , the ship was acquired by the Richelieu and Ontario Steam Navigation Co . ; and , soon thereafter , she was scrapped .