Battle of Wassaw Sound The Battle of Wassaw Sound ( or the Capture of the CSS " Atlanta " ) was an American Civil War naval battle between the Confederate ram CSS " Atlanta " and the " Passaic " - class ironclad monitor s USS Weehawken and USS Nahant , which took place on 17 June 1863 in Wassaw Sound , a bay in the present day state of Georgia . " Atlanta " ran aground while attempting to break the Union blockade , and after a short battle surrendered to the Union forces . Captain Rodgers became a national hero , and he was promoted to Commodore and received the Thanks of Congress as a result of his decisive victory . Background . On 10 June 1863 , Rear Admiral Du Pont had received reports " Atlanta " was about to descend the Wilmington River for a foray into Wassaw Sound and ordered monitors USS " Weehawken " and USS " Nahant " to enter Wassaw Sound to stop the Southern ironclad ram ' s attack , should she make one , and to prevent her escape . Captain John Rodgers in " Weehawken " had overall command of this Union force . Five days later , in the early evening of the 15th , " Atlanta " got underway and passed over the lower obstructions in the Wilmington River to get into position for a strike at the Union forces in Wassaw Sound . Webb dropped anchor at 8 : 00 p . m . and spent the remainder of the night coaling . The next evening " . . . about dark . . . , " Webb later reported , he " . . . proceeded down the river to a point of land which would place me in 6 or 7 miles of the monitors , at the same time concealing the ship from their view , ready to move on them at early dawn the next morning . " Battle . " Atlanta " , accompanied by wooden steamers CSS Isondiga and CSS Resolute , got underway before daylight on the 17th . A percussion torpedo was fitted to a long spar projecting forward from the ram ' s bow which Webb intended to detonate against the " Weehawken " . The " Atlanta " suddenly ran aground and swayed at an angle which made it difficult to shoot . The USS " Weehawken " held fire until it was at 300 yards and then pounded the immobile ship . The USS " Nahant " had watched the action without firing a shot . After receiving five of the " Weehawken " < nowiki > ' < / nowiki > s 350 - pound shots , which knocked a hole in her casemate , crushed the pilot house and port shutter and severely wounded its pilots and several helmsmen , Webb was compelled to surrender immediately . The " battle " lasted only a few minutes , and the " Atlanta " became the first Confederate ironclad to surrender to the Union . Meanwhile , the two boats escorting the " Atlanta " scurried upriver for safety . Aftermath . The CSS " Atlanta " suffered the sole fatality of the battle , as well as 16 wounded . At the time of capture , 21 officers and 124 men , including marines were taken captive . " Atlanta " was condemned by a prize court in September 1863 , repaired and commissioned as USS Atlanta on 2 February 1864 . Captain Rodgers became a national hero , and received the Thanks of Congress along with a promotion to Commodore . The USS " Nahant " had headed for the action but withheld fire , which later led to a Supreme Court case which determined the commander and crew of the " Nahant " deserved participation in the prize for the captured vessel .