Chesterfield
(SwStr: t. 204)
Chesterfield, a light draft side-wheel cargo steamer built at Charleston, S.C., in 1853, was privately owned by Mr. John Ferguson, and chartered monthly by the Confederate Army as early as 1 June 1861 for South Carolina coast defense. Army-operated, she moved ammunition, ordnance, general supplies and troops from Charleston to Edisto, from Port Royal to Coles Island and among the various military posts in the harbor.
Chesterfield participated in the defense of Charleston from 1-20 August 1863, and was often under heavy fire while bringing in troops and supplies and removing sick and wounded. She continued to operate along the South Carolina coast throughout 1864.
