Ron van Maanen
With a measurement of 1,300 tons were her dimensions 250‘x 34‘x 13‘ or 76 x 10 x 3,0 metres. Her crew numbered 150 men while her armament consisted of 1-10” SMOOTHBORE GUN, 1-64pdr gun, 6-8”guns and 2-32pdr muzzle loaded rifles. Launched at the yard of William H. Webb at New York in May 1859 as the merchant ship Yorktown on account of the Old Dominion Steam Ship Line. As a freighter which also transported passenger between Richmond and New York City she was brigantine-rigged. By the Virginia Navy in mid April 1861 seized and later handed over to the Confederate States Navy which he rebuild her as the warship Patrick Henry despite she often still was called Yorktown. She became part of the James River Squadron. After Norfolk was captured by the Union forces on 10 May 1862 she was equipped as a school ship and since October 1863 used to accommodate the Confederate Naval Academy. There between the 52and 60 midshipmen on board while 13 teachers were available. When the Confederate forces left Richmond on 3 April 1865 she was burned to avoid being captured by the Union forces.
In a report dated Richmond 5 November 1864 of the secretary of the Confederate Navy S.R. Mallory to the president he wrote dealing with the naval academy:
P. 5: “So far as the limited resources at the command of this department are available for the education and training of midshipmen, they have been organized; and under the efficient direction of Lieutenant W.
p. 6: H. Parker, the beneficial results of the school-ship "Patrick Henry" are being felt in the service. Many acting midshipmen, who had but entered the United States Naval Academy of Annapolis, when the .war began, have hero complete 1 their course of naval studies, and, in addition to these, twenty nine youths, appointed originally to this school and representing nearly every portion of the Confederacy have graduated as passed midshipmen or masters, and they will compare favorably with those of like grades in any naval service. The number of acting midshipmen is limited, by existing laws, to one hundred and six, who ate being appointed from the several Congressional districts of the Confederate States as equally as practicable; and as the school-ship affords accommodations but for one half of this number, their scholastic course is divided between the vessels in service and the school ship.
