French corvette Prony

French Navy corvette warship

NameProny

OwnerFrench Navy

Launched23 September 1847

FateWrecked 5 November 1861

History




France
Name	Prony
Owner	French Navy
Launched	23 September 1847
Fate	Wrecked 5 November 1861


General characteristics
Class & type	Corvette
Tons burthen	c.700
Installed power	320 hp (240 kW)
Propulsion	Sails, Steam engine
Sail plan	Full-rigged ship
Complement	140
Armament	6 × 30-pounder cannons

Prony was a French Navy corvette warship during the American Civil War that ran aground and was lost off Ocracoke Inlet, North Carolina. It proved impossible to refloat the vessel, and efforts at assistance were hampered by both the weather and the fact that she had run aground in an area where Union and Confederate forces were opposing each other.

Prony, a mixed sailing ship and steamer, was built in Brest from 1844 and launched in 1847 (Jacques Vichot, Répertoire des navires de guerre français, 1967, p. 111).

In 1854 it was sent to the South Seas along with a small fleet to claim possession of New Caledonia. Prony Bay is named after this ship.

Loss

Prony had left New York harbor on 20 October with the intention of observing as a neutral the activity of the Union Navy blockading the port of Charleston. She arrived off Charleston on 30 October, staying there for two days before heading north, intending to return to New York. She was caught in a storm on 4 November off Ocracoke Inlet. Despite some efforts being made to save her, it proved impossible. No loss of life occurred.

At the time of her loss, Prony was under the command of Capitaine de corvette De Fontanges with a crew of 140 and 6 30-pound guns. She was of roughly 700 tons burthen and her engines were of 320 horsepower (240 kW).

References

Rawson, Edward K.; Woods, Robert H., eds. (1897). Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion. Series I. Vol. 6: Atlantic Blockading Squadron (July 16, 1861 - October 29, 1861), North Atlantic Blockading Squadron (October 29, 1861 - March 8, 1862). Washington: Government Printing Office. pp. 397–400.
"The Wreck of the French Corvette Prony.; Arrival of the Shipwrecked Seamen--Statement of Capt. De Fontanges-Full Particulars, &c". The New York Times. November 14, 1861.

v t e Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in 1861
Shipwrecks	20 Feb: Enchantress 5 Mar: Monarch 8 Apr: Witchcraft 20 Apr: USS Columbus, USS Delaware, USS Germantown, USS Merrimack, USS Pennsylvania, USS Plymouth, USS Raritan 21 Apr: USS Columbia, USS Dolphin, USS New York 1 Jun: Lord Hungerford 4 Jun: Canadian 3 Jul: Victory 28 Jul: Petrel 2 Aug: Stag Hound 3 Aug: HMS Driver 18 Aug: Jefferson Davis 1 Oct: Infernal 5 Oct: CSS Venus 11 Oct: USS South Wind 5 Nov: Prony 7 Nov: CSS Winslow 10 Nov: Keystone State 14 Nov: SMS Amazone 23 Nov: CSS Tuscarora 5 Dec: USS Phoenix 8 Dec: USS Cossack, USS Peter Demill, USS South America 19-20 Dec: USS Amazon, USS Garland, USS Rebecca Sims, USS Tenedos 20 Dec: USS American, USS Archer, USS Herald, USS L. C. Richmond, USS Leonidas 21 Dec: USS Kensington 29 Dec: HMS Conqueror December (unknown date): USS Lewis, USS Maria Theresa, USS Robin Hood Unknown date: Glentanner
Other incidents	9 Jan: HMS Cossack 15 Jan: Anna Paulowna 4 Mar: Marco Polo 12 Mar: Black Prince 20-21 Apr: Nightingale 24 Apr: Defence 25 Apr: Syren 4 May: HMS Victor Emmanuel 13-14 May: North Star 19 May: USS Baltimore 10 Jun: HMS Hydra 6 Jul: HMS Aboukir August (unknown date): HMS Hecate, HMS Imperieuse 22 Oct: HMS Virago 8 Nov: Trent (Trent Affair) Unknown date: Challenger, Surprise
1860 1862

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