USS Bazely ( 1863 ) USS " Bazely " ( 1863 ) ( also designated " Tug No . 2 " and " Beta " ) was a steamer acquired by the Union Navy during the American Civil War . She was used by the Union Navy in a tugboat / patrol boat role in support of the Union Navy blockade of Confederate waterways . Conversion of tugboat role to patrol craft role . " J . E . Bazely " — a screw tug built in 1863 at Gloucester , New Jersey — was one of six similar vessels purchased at Philadelphia , Pennsylvania , by the U . S . Navy on 3 June 1864 to support other Union warships in all the varied ways in which tugs assist larger ships . These vessels were also needed to help protect Northern men of war and Union Army transports against surprise attacks by Confederate rams , torpedo boat s , or other novel craft which had been a cause of great concern since " CSS Virginia ’ s " first foray on 8 March 1862 . The submersible H . L . Hunley ’ s sinking of the screw sloop of war " Housatonic " and the ironclad ram " Albemarle ’ s " destruction of the side wheel gunboat " Southfield " later underscored the dangers posed by such innovative Southern vessels . Redesignation process of names to numbers . When the U . S . Navy Department designated these tugs as patrol boat s , " J . E . Bazely " became " Patrol Boat No . 2 " . Her sister tugs lost their merchant names ; and , thereafter , each was referred to by her new designation . In practice , however , for some reason " Patrol Boat No . 2 " continued to carry a shortened version of her former name , " Bazely " . Civil War service . Assigned to the North Atlantic Blockade . All six tugs were assigned to the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron ; and , although " Bazely " first appeared on its list of vessels on 17 June , she did not reach Hampton Roads , Virginia , until late in July . Commanded by Acting Ensign John Conner , the tug was assigned to the North Carolina Sounds . Towed by side wheel steamer " Nansemond " , she and " Belle " got underway for Hatteras Inlet on the 27th ; and the trio , along with sister tugs " Hoyt " and " Martin " who had been pulled by " Monticello " , entered the inland waters on the 29th . " Bazely " began operations in Albemarle Sound supporting the Union light draft warships which were guarding the mouth of the Roanoke River lest the dreaded Southern ram " Albemarle " reemerge and attempt to destroy the Union forces which were struggling to maintain a tenuous control on the area . " CSS Albemarle " destroyed by spar torpedo on " Picket Launch No . 1 " . After Conner fell ill in mid August , Acting Master ’ s Mate John Woodman , detached from " Ceres " , relieved him in command of " Bazely " that had since added " Tug No . 2 " to her list of names . Well into the autumn , most of the tug ’ s attention — and that of the other warships within the sounds — was concentrated upon the Confederate ironclad . Then , suddenly , on the night of 27 October , Lt . William B . Cushing put an end to that menace by his courageous ascent of the Roanoke River in " Picket Launch No . 1 " to destroy " Albemarle " by exploding a spar torpedo against her hull . " Bazely " supports attack and capture of Plymouth , North Carolina . His daring feat freed Union naval forces in the sounds to undertake operations that would strengthen their hold on North Carolina and cleared the way for " Bazely ’ s " most notable achievement , her participation in the Union expedition that recaptured Plymouth , North Carolina . Before the attack upon that Southern position , Comdr . William H . Macomb , the senior naval officer in the sounds , had a tug lashed to each of the principal warships to assure her propulsion in the event her own engine became disabled . " Bazely " was tied to " Shamrock " ; and her new commanding officer , Acting Ensign Mark D . Ames , was praised for working and fighting his ship admirably and was recommended for promotion . Besides taking the town , the expedition captured “ 22 cannon , 200 stand of arms , 37 prisoners , and all the enemy ’ s flags . ” A confusion of names as " Bazely " returns to the North Atlantic Blockade . About the time " Bazely " and her sister tugs - - " Picket Boat No . 1 " through " Picket Boat No . 6 " — joined the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron , and six somewhat smaller craft also appeared on the squadron ' s list of vessels under similar names : " Picket Launch No . 1 " through " Picket Launch No . 6 " . The profound confusion that resulted from this likeness in nomenclature prompted the Navy sometime between 1 November and 5 December 1864 to rename the former " J . E . Bazely " and her sisters for the first six letters of the Greek alphabet Alpha through Zeta . Thus " Picket Boat No . 2 " , alias " Bazely " and " Tug No . 2 " , became " Beta " . Nevertheless , she did not get the opportunity to carry this new name for long , if at all . " Bazely " , assisting another stricken vessel , strikes a mine and sinks . More weighty matters than name changes seemed to be occupying the leaders of the Navy in the North Carolina sounds . Besides consolidating the Union position in the wake of " Albemarle ’ s " destruction , Comdr . Macomb , the senior naval officer in the area , felt concern over the report of another Confederate ironclad rumored under construction up the Roanoke River at Halifax , North Carolina . On the afternoon of 9 December , an expedition under his command started to move farther up the Roanoke from Plymouth to capture Rainbow Bluff and to destroy the reported ram . That evening , however , the double - ender " Otsego " struck two torpedoes near Jamesville , North Carolina , and sank . " Beta " — still called " Bazely " in Macomb ’ s report — headed for " Otsego " to lend assistance , but herself struck a torpedo ( mine ) whose explosion killed two men and caused the tug to sink . Her sister ships return later to destroy the remains of " Bazely " . The surviving ships of the expedition continued upstream , but the necessity of dragging for torpedoes ( mines ) slowed their progress , a delay that allowed the Southerners to reinforce Rainbow Bluff . Since Union troops — who were scheduled to cooperate with the gunboats — did not arrive to support the attack , Macomb decided on 20 December to withdraw his ships . They arrived back at Jamesville on Christmas Day and carried out the task of destroying " Beta " — which they still called " Bazely " — lest she fall into Confederate hands .