USS Weehawken ( 1862 ) The first USS " Weehawken " was a " Passaic " - class ironclad monitor in the United States Navy during the American Civil War . " Weehawken " was launched on 5 November 1862 at Jersey City , New Jersey by Zeno Secor & Company ; sponsored by Ms . Nellie Cornstock ; and commissioned on 18 January 1863 , Captain John Rodgers in command . " Weehawken " was an improved and enlarged version of . Accompanied by and towed by , she departed New York on 18 January 1863 , bound for Port Royal , South Carolina , and duty with the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron . The three vessels encountered gale force winds and high seas off the New Jersey coast on 20 January . " Iroquois " and " Boardman " headed for sheltered waters ; but Rodgers pressed on in " Weehawken " . The " Passaic " ironclads differed from the original " Monitor " in having less deck overhang and a rounded lower hull . This enabled " Weehawken " — unlike her famous prototype — to ride out a heavy sea with relative ease . Rodgers reported that " the behavior of the vessel was easy , buoyant , and indicative of thorough safety . " " Weehawken " put into Norfolk for minor repairs , leaving on 1 February in tow of screw steamer . She arrived at Port Royal on 5 February , and deployed in the blockade off Charleston , South Carolina . On 7 April , " Weehawken " led the Union fleet in the first major naval assault against Confederate installations in Charleston harbor . The attack failed miserably , and the fleet withdrew after only 40 minutes . During the action , " Weehawken " took 59 hits and had a torpedo ( naval mine ) explode beneath her keel without suffering serious damage . Shortly after the attack , Rear Admiral John A . Dahlgren replaced Rear Admiral Samuel Francis DuPont as commander of the squadron . After repairs , " Weehawken " proceeded to Wassaw Sound , Georgia , on 10 June to block the expected sortie of ironclad . The Confederate ram and two escort steamers showed themselves early on the morning of 17 June . " Weehawken " and weighed anchor to meet " Atlanta " which ran hard aground only moments after entering the sound . " Weehawken " commenced firing at 05 : 15 and ceased a quarter of an hour later when the Confederate vessel surrendered . With only five shots , Rodgers blew the roof off " Atlanta " s pilothouse and pierced the grounded ram ' s casemate , putting two gun crews out of action . Capt . Rodgers became a national hero and received commendations from Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles , President Abraham Lincoln , and Congress . He was promoted to commodore and ordered north to command the new ironclad . Both " Weehawken " and " Atlanta " returned to Port Royal . " Weehawken " resumed operations against Confederate strongholds in and around Charleston harbor . On 10 – 11 July , Union ironclads , , " Nahant " , and " Weehawken " shelled Confederate batteries at Fort Wagner on Morris Island , South Carolina , to cover an Army amphibious landing under Brigadier General Quincy A . Gillmore . Despite additional bombardments on 18 and 24 July , the monitors failed to silence the fort , leaving General Gillmore ' s troops pinned down on the beach caught between a murderous hail of cross fire . Fort Wagner was finally reduced during a naval bombardment of Forts Gregg , Sumter , and Moultrie on 17 August . " Weehawken " , " Montauk " , " Nahant " , , and now took aim at Fort Sumter , pounding it to rubble during two separate bombardments on 23 August and 1 – 2 September . Admiral Dahlgren demanded Sumter ' s surrender on 7 September and ordered " Weehawken " to deploy in a narrow channel between the fort and Cumming ' s Point on Morris Island . There , " Weehawken " grounded , taking concentrated gunfire from Fort Moultrie and Sullivan ' s and James Island . The vessel was refloated with the help of tugs on 8 September , and received a " Well done ! " from Admiral Dahlgren for outstanding defensive gunnery while aground . " Weehawken " repaired at Port Royal until 4 October , then returned to Charleston for routine patrol duty in the harbor . The next two months were uneventful , and " Weehawken " lay anchored off Morris Island during a moderate gale early on the morning of 6 December . Suddenly , the ironclad signalled for assistance and appeared to observers ashore to be sinking . Attempts to beach the vessel failed , and she sank bow first five minutes later in of water . A court of inquiry found that " Weehawken " had recently taken on a considerable amount of heavy ammunition in her forward compartments . This change excessively reduced her forward freeboard , causing water to rush down an open hawsepipe and hatch during the storm . As the bow sank , and the stern rose , water could not flow aft to the pumps and the vessel foundered . Four officers and 27 enlisted men drowned aboard " Weehawken " .