of wood to the exterior of the armor and sheathed it with a armor plate. The weight of the wood was partially responsible for increasing Onondagas draft by almost a foot more than was designed. The armor of the turrets and the pilot house atop the forward turret consisted of layers of armor plates totaling in thickness. A soft iron band was fitted around the base of the turrets to prevent shells and fragments from jamming them as had happened during the First Battle of Charleston Harbor in April 1863. Onondagas deck was protected by two layers of one-inch plates and the base of the funnel was armored as well. Construction and career The Navy solicited bids for a twin-turret ironclad for harbor and coastal service on 20 February 1862 and accepted George W. Quintard's design that generally followed the specifications, albeit built in iron rather than wood and using Ericsson's turrets rather than those designed by Cowper Coles. The Navy ordered Onondaga from Quintard on 25 May at a cost of $625,000; he was the manager of the Morgan Iron Works and built the engines while sub-contracting the rest of the ship to the Continental Iron Works, also in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. Onondaga, the first U.S. Navy ship to bear the name, was launched on 29 July 1863 and was sponsored by Sally Sedgwick, daughter of former U.S. Representative Charles B. Sedgwick. She was commissioned at the New York Navy Yard on 24 March 1864 with Captain Melancthon Smith in command. Construction was delayed by shortages of material, labor and the closing of the shipyard during the New York City draft riots in July 1863. The ship cost $759,673.08, a budget overrun of almost 22 percent. Escorted by the gunboat , the ship departed New York City on 21 April and arrived at Hampton Roads in Union-occupied Virginia two days later. Assigned to the James River Flotilla, she supported General Ulysses S. Grant's drive on Richmond, Virginia. Together with the other ships of the flotilla, Onondaga patrolled the river and occasionally engaged Confederate artillery batteries on the river. Battle of Trent's Reach Early in January 1865, most of the Union ironclads were withdrawn from the James River as Rear Admiral David D. Porter assembled most of his ships for the forthcoming attack on Fort Fisher, North Carolina. Onondaga was the only ironclad left to guard Union forces along the James