The USS San Jacinto under Captain Charles Wilkes had been searching for the Confederate cruiser Sumter and at Cuba when he learned that the Confederate commissioners Slidell and Mason were in Havana. he waited off the coast until the RMS Trent left with them aboard and so began the international incident.
Wikipedia
The CSS Sumter was originally built in Philadelphia in 1859 as the merchant ship Habana. It was purchased by the Confederate government in New Orleans in April 1861 and converted into a cruiser. renamed the Sumter and under the command of Rahael Semmes, it slipped through the blockade in late June, capturing eight US-flagged ships off Cuba and two more near Brazil.
In September and October, it captured two more in Caribbean waters.
So, that was Why Wilkes Was Near Cuba. --Old B-R'er
The Battle of Fort Fisher, N.C.
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