USS Rattler ( 1862 ) USS " Rattler " ( 1862 ) was a steamer acquired by the Union Navy during the American Civil War . She was used by the Navy to patrol navigable waterways of the Confederate States of America , especially the Mississippi River , and to be employed as a gunship when required . Built at Cincinnati in 1862 . " Florence Miller " ( " tinclad " " gunboat No . 1 " . ) , a wooden stern - wheel steamer built at Cincinnati , Ohio , in 1862 , was purchased by the Navy there on 11 November 1862 ; renamed " Rattler " 5 December 1862 ; and commissioned 19 December 1862 at Cairo , Illinois , Acting Master Amos Longthorne , in command . Civil War service . Assigned to the Mississippi Squadron . With " Rattler " in the lead , sounding as she went along , Admiral David Dixon Porter ' s Mississippi Squadron ascended the White and Arkansas Rivers to attack Fort Hindman at Arkansas Post on 10 January 1863 , in a joint Army - Navy expedition as part of the larger campaign against Vicksburg , Mississippi . While the other gunboats bombarded Fort Hindman , " Rattler " closed within 50 yards of the Confederate guns in an unsuccessful effort to clear away a barrier of chevaux - de - frise and was forced by heavy fire to return to station . Participating in the Vicksburg Campaign . The next day " Rattler " and dashed past the fort to enfilade the Confederate position ; their guns drove the Rebel troops out of rifle pits allowing Federal troops under General William T . Sherman to reach the fort unopposed . The gunboat ' s cannonade forced the Rebel commander to surrender Fort Hindman and some 6 , 500 Confederate troops . " Rattler " next served as flagship of a flotilla of " tinclads " and Army transports carrying 6 , 000 men of General Sherman ' s Corps during the Yazoo Pass expedition , an abortive attempt to bypass and isolate Vicksburg by means of bayous . The expedition failed in attacks against Fort Pemberton 11 – 13 March at the confluence of the Yalobusha and Tallahatchie Rivers . During the action Rattler lost one man killed , and another was wounded by fire from the riverbanks . Mississippi River operations . After the success of the campaign against Vicksburg , 4 July 1863 , Porter ' s squadron controlled the entire Mississippi River now " unvexed to the sea . " From 12 to 20 July , " Rattler " joined in raids up the Red , Black , Tensas , and Ouachita Rivers . During these operations , she teamed with to capture the Rebel steamer " Louisville " ( later ) on the Little Red River . In the late summer , " Rattler " patrolled the Mississippi River near Rodney , Mississippi , below Natchez , Mississippi , to intercept crossing attempts by Confederate forces , inspect river craft , and convoy supply boats , helping to seal off the South from supplies and manpower west of the mighty river . Commanding officer captured while attending church services . On 13 September 1863 , " Rattler ' s " commanding officer , Acting Master E . H . Fentress , and 16 crewmen were captured by Rebel guerrillas while attending church at Rodney . After this incident , the gunboat patrolled the river near Rodney for over a year . " Rattler " sinks after striking a snag and is abandoned . On 30 December 1864 , during a heavy gale near Grand Gulf , Mississippi , " Rattler ' s " anchor cable parted and she was driven ashore , struck a snag , and sank . After her supplies and most of her guns were salvaged she was abandoned . Rebel troops subsequently set " Rattler " afire and destroyed her .