Friday, February 13, 2026

Sunken Civil War Gunboats Near Covington

Somewhere in the Bogue Falaya River near Covington are the wrecks of three Confederate gunboats. They were the Carondelet, Bienville and the Oregon. The first two boats were built at a  New Orleans shipyard on Bayou St. John, but the Oregon was built in New York a few years earlier. All three were used for a while in the New Orleans area during the early days of the Civil War.

The Bienville and the Carondelet were small paddle-wheelers mounting a few heavy guns that became ready for service in March 1862. The Oregon was a small army gunboat. They all helped evacuate Confederate troops from the New Orleans to Mandeville when Union forces began to overrun New Orleans. They carried some 1500 soldiers out of New Orleans, and after that the boats were taken up the Tchefuncte River and the Bogue Falaya River, all their guns and armor were removed and the ships themselves were scuttled so they wouldn't fall into Yankee hands. 

Here is a map of the river made a few years after the Civil War showing where the boats were laid to rest. Over the years many Civil War historians have visited the sites and rescued whatever items of historical interest they could find. 


Map showing locations of the wreckage of the Carondelet and the Bienville

Click on the maps to make them larger. 

The Bienville was described as a sidewheel steamer, built in March of 1861 and sunk on April 21, 1862. The Carondelet was built in 1862 and scuttled on April 4, 1862. 


A map showing the location of the wreckage of the Oregon, just upstream of where the Abita River branches off from the Bogue Falaya.

The Oregon, also a sidewheel steamer, was built in 1846 at New York City and sunk in 1862.It was described as weighing 532 tons, 216 feet long and 26 feet wide. The information for this posting came from several Civil War websites. 

The above maps were made in 1871 by the U.S. Corps of Engineers.

Links of Interest:

McGlothlin Searched For Artifacts