USS Keystone State was a wooden sidewheel steamer that served in the Union Navy during the American Civil War. She was a fast ship for her day and was used effectively to blockade Confederate ports on the Atlantic coast. She participated in the capture or destruction of 17 blockade runners. In addition to her military service, Keystone State had a lengthy commercial career before the war. Renamed San Francisco, she also sailed commercially after the war. The ship was built in 1853 and scrapped in 1874.
Construction and characteristics
Keystone State was commissioned by the Philadelphia and Savannah Steam Navigation Company. She was intended to carry passengers and cargo as one of a pair of vessels offering weekly service between the two cities. Her hull was built at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania at the Vaughn & Lynn Shipyard. Her frame was built of live oak and locust wood, and she was planked with white oak. The ship was long, with a beam of , and a depth of hold of . She displaced 1,364 tons.
She was propelled by a coal-fired side-lever steam engine. Steam was produced in two boilers. The engine had a single cylinder that was in diameter, with a stroke of . The engine was built by the Southwark Foundry & Machine Company of Philadelphia, operated by Merrick & Sons. The steam engine drove paddlewheels which were in diameter with face of . Her maximum speed was 14 knots, but the state of her hull and machinery reduced her maximum speed to as little as 10.5 knots on occasion.
The ship had two masts and was rigged as a bark. She could sail, but was slower and less maneuverable than under steam.
As originally built, she had 46 staterooms, a couple of salons, a dining room, ladies' parlor, smoking room, and a passenger library. She had running water in the washrooms, storage for ice, and cold rooms to keep food fresh for passengers. Her original cost was reported as $180,000.
Keystone State was launched on 18 June 1853. Sea trials of the newly completed ship took place on 19 September 1853. She was immediately placed in commercial service.
Her namesake, The Keystone State, is a nickname for Pennsylvania.
Philadelphia and Savannah Steam Navigation Company (18531861) Keystone State completed her first trip from Philadelphia to Savannah on 23 September 1853 after a 56.5 hour run. This was considered a fast sailing at the time. This trip inaugurated weekly scheduled service between the two cities. She and State of Georgia alternated departures and each completed a single one-way trip per week. Cabin passage cost $20 and steerage was $8.
On a north-bound trip in March 1854, a black man was found stowed-away inside the housing of one of the paddle wheels. This position was extremely dangerous and he was compelled to call for help. He claimed he was a free person, but being unable to prove his status, he was put ashore, jailed, and returned to Savannah.
On the night of 10–11 May 1855, while inbound to Philadelphia, she was hit by two small vessels. At 10 pm the schooner Adrian, carrying coal for Fall River, Massachusetts, ran into Keystone State and sank in 15 minutes. The ship lowered a boat and managed to save three of her crew, but two others perished. Four hours later the schooner Little Tom hit the Keystone State and sank. This time the ship's boat was able to rescue the entire crew of five. A more serious collision occurred at 1 am on the foggy night of 25 May 1856 when Keystone State hit the bark Cavalier. Keystone State's bow was crushed and she immediately began to flood. Her steam pumps barely kept up with the incoming water, and her captain was able to run the ship up onto the mud flats near Norfolk, Virginia to keep her from sinking. While the colliding ships were briefly locked together, the 1st and 3rd mates and three sailors of Cavalier leapt aboard Keystone State. Despite the damage, Keystone State was back to her regular runs between Philadelphia and Savannah within a month.
In November 1855 the Philadelphia and Savannah Steam Navigation Company came to the conclusion that there was not enough business for two ships on the route, and switched State of Georgia to sailing between Philadelphia and Charleston, South Carolina. Keystone State continued her service to Savannah.