She took part in one major action of the war, the Battle of Forts Jackson and St. Philip, and when that ended disastrously for the Confederacy, she was destroyed by her crew.

Always in short supply in the Confederacy, its procurement was made even more difficult by the blockade and by Army demands on the overstrained railroads of the South.

The blockade also negated efforts to bring in needed light oak from Florida, forcing the builders to find alternative sources.

[2] Shortly after Louisiana was launched, the Federal West Gulf Blockading Squadron, under Flag Officer (later Admiral) David Farragut had moved into the lower Mississippi River, threatening the Confederate-held Forts Jackson and St. Philip, about 120 kilometers or 75 miles below New Orleans.

Furthermore, the main engines were found to be inadequate; even at dangerously high boiler pressure, she could barely make headway against the river current.

This did not completely mollify General Duncan, who wanted the ship to be positioned below the forts, but Commander Whittle would not risk his vessel, with its unarmored deck, against the plunging fire of the Union mortars.

[5] After nearly a week of mortar bombardment, Farragut concluded that it was ineffective, so he moved his fleet past the forts on the night of 24 April.

The magnitude of her contribution to the ensuing firefight between the forts and the Federal fleet is not known; General Duncan stated that she may have fired as few as 12 shots.

Her fate was henceforth tied to that of the forts, which prepared for an expected attack by the Union army accompanying the fleet, led by Major General Benjamin Butler.

The naval officers on Louisiana were not consulted at any time during the negotiations between Porter and General Duncan, so they considered themselves not bound to respect the truce declared by the two sides.