USRC Bibb ( 1843 ) The revenue cutter George M . Bibb was an iron - hulled steamboat built at Pittsburgh in 1845 , named after the then - Secretary of the Treasury George M . Bibb , which served on blockade duty during the war with Mexico in 1846 , and was transferred to the U . S . Coast Survey in 1847 . Its engines were salvaged for a second " Bibb " that is sometimes considered to be a rebuild of the " George M . Bibb " . Design and Construction . The shipbuilding industry in Pittsburgh and the rest of the United States had declined after the War of 1812 . The advent of steam propulsion and iron hulls put Pittsburgh back in the business , however , and the federal government would take a leading role in reviving Pittsburgh ' s role as a builder of ships for both fresh - and salt - water service . On 9 September 1841 , Congress authorized the construction of an iron - hulled steamboat for Great Lakes service . This led to the construction of by the firm of Stackhouse and Tomlinson , ordered May 19 . 1842 . It would be completely assembled , then broken down and hauled in sections to Erie along the Beaver Division of the Pennsylvania Canal . " Michigan " would be the first iron warship in the United States Navy . Soon after construction on " Michigan " began , the Revenue Marine ordered three iron steamers from the firm of Freeman , Knapp and Totten ; these would be built at the Fort Pitt Foundry , across the Allegheny from Pittsburgh . The first of these , the screw - driven was constructed in a fashion similar to that used for " Michigan " ; plates and frames were assembled at the Fort Pitt works , then transported by canal boat to Oswego on Lake Ontario . A second , was completed at Pittsburgh , then towed to New Orleans to be fitted out for service in the Gulf of Mexico . The third of the Freeman , Knapp and Totten cutters was the " George M . Bibb " ( briefly named " Tyler " ) , which was designed around the " Hunter wheel " ( also , " Hunter ' s wheel " ) an experiment that featured paddle wheels mounted horizontally in the hull , rather than vertically on each side . This scheme was the brainchild of Lt . William W . Hunter , and it enjoyed a brief vogue in the mid - 1840s before the superiority of Ericsson ' s screw was demonstrated . The paddle wheels were enclosed in chests , or cases , below the ship ' s waterline ; only the paddles themselves extended from the vessel ' s sides . " Hunter ' s wheels " promised a great deal , including added protection from enemy shell fire , a lower center of gravity , and ( it was hoped ) increased efficiency and speed ; the design was conceived at a time when hydrodynamics was little understood , and proved a complete failure . " Bibb " was launched on March 8 , 1845 without warning , and as spectators scrambled out of the way , two workmen were injured , one fatally . She took on her armament of eight guns at the docks in Pittsburgh and set off down the Ohio for New Orleans . She made it to Cincinnati , but at that place sprang a leak that left her on the river bottom in a matter of hours . The inquiry into " Bibb " ' s condition found that a packing around the shaft of one of the paddle wheels was to blame , rather than any fault of design . Nevertheless , the Treasury Department ordered that the cutter be rebuilt at Cincinnati with stronger frames , a more powerful engine and conventional side - mounted paddle wheels . Service with the Revenue Marine . By 1846 , reconstruction was complete , and " Bibb " was on station at New Orleans under the command of Capt . Winslow Foster ; she operated out of there until 18 May 1846 , when she was ordered to blockade duty off the coast of Mexico , with 10 other cutters . With her sisters , " Bibb " spent her wartime service in support of the larger vessels in the American blockade , scouting coastal waters , carrying mail and supplies , and convoying or towing ships . After returning to New Orleans , she departed for Boston on 31 May 1847 , arriving on 11 July . Coast Survey and the second " Bibb " . Upon arrival in Boston , " Bibb " was transferred to the United States Coast Survey . Although sources diverge on her future history , " Bibb " ' s engines were salvaged for a new revenue cutter , , which was built at the Boston Navy Yard in 1853 . Many authorities , including the Coast Guard Historian ' s office , consider this second " Bibb " to simply be a rebuild of the first .