Water Witch incidentArticle Free Pass Water Witch incident,
(1855), brief military skirmish near the Paraguayan Ft. Itapirú,
involving the USS “Water Witch,” commanded by Lt. Thomas J.
Page, and Paraguayan troops who fired as the vessel was
exploring the Paraná River, in international waters. In 1853 the
“Water Witch” set out on a scientific study, organized by the
U.S. government, of the Río de La Plata waterways. In 1854,
after Page became involved in a controversy between the
Paraguayan president Carlos Antonio López and a North American
firm, Paraguay barred foreign war vessels from its waters. In
the subsequent incident in 1855 on the Paraná River, one U.S.
seaman was killed and several others were injured, and gunfire
from the “Water Witch” killed a number of Paraguayan troops. In
1859 the U.S. government dispatched a naval force to Paraguay to
force a settlement of its claims involving the “Water Witch”
incident and earlier disputes. The settlement included a formal
apology to the U.S. government for t