This photograph shows an unidentified sailor from the USS Benton, a Union ironclad gunboat. A sailor’s flat hat often bore a ribbon with the name of the ship to which he was assigned; note the name of the Benton on this sailor’s hat.

The USS Benton was converted by St. Louis engineer James B. Eads from a catamaran snagboat and commissioned in February 1862. The Benton saw action at Island No. 10, Memphis and Grand Gulf, and bombarded the city of Vicksburg during the 1863 Union siege. After participating in the Red River Expedition, USS Benton was decommissioned in July 1865.

Tintype by Unknown Photographer

Image Courtesy Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield; WICR 30264