From Aug. 21st WSIL Channel 3 News.
Spring floods have left the site, at the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers in really bad shape. It is now overgrown.
During the Civil War, Fort Defiance, also called Camp Defiance, was very important strategically. U.S. Grant once commanded the place. In May 2011, the whole city of Cairo, Illinois, just to the north of the fort, was evacuated. Levees to the south of town were breached by the Army Corps of Engineers to save the place.
During the war, there were ironclads built 6 miles up the Mississippi at Mound City. These ironclads patrolled it.
A Forgotten Civil War Site? --Old B-R'er
The Battle of Fort Fisher, N.C.
Monday, October 31, 2011
40th North Carolina Regiment
The 40th Regiment NC State Troops, (3rd Artillery) was organized at Bald head on Smith's Island, North Carolina in November 1853, from heavy artillery companies formed in 1861 and 1862.
Its 1152 men came from Lenoir, Beaufort, Pamlico, Richmond, Robeson. Wayne, Wilson, Edgecombe, Green, New Hanover, Bladen, Anson and Chatham counties in North Carolina.
They were attached to the Confederate Department of North Carolina and Southern Virginia.
Detachments of the regiment served at Fort Holmes, Fort Caswell. Fort Campbell, Fort Anderson and Fort Fisher in the Wilmington/Cape Fear River area.
In 1865, after the fall of Wilmington, they were converted to infantry and fought at Bentonville ansd surrendered with the Army of the Tennessee April 26, 1865.
Commanders of the unit were Col. John Hedrick, Lt.Col. George Tait and Major William A. Holland.
A Real Cape Fear River Group. --Old B-Runner
Its 1152 men came from Lenoir, Beaufort, Pamlico, Richmond, Robeson. Wayne, Wilson, Edgecombe, Green, New Hanover, Bladen, Anson and Chatham counties in North Carolina.
They were attached to the Confederate Department of North Carolina and Southern Virginia.
Detachments of the regiment served at Fort Holmes, Fort Caswell. Fort Campbell, Fort Anderson and Fort Fisher in the Wilmington/Cape Fear River area.
In 1865, after the fall of Wilmington, they were converted to infantry and fought at Bentonville ansd surrendered with the Army of the Tennessee April 26, 1865.
Commanders of the unit were Col. John Hedrick, Lt.Col. George Tait and Major William A. Holland.
A Real Cape Fear River Group. --Old B-Runner
Saturday, October 29, 2011
And, then There Were Those Privateers
From the Oct. 27th Choctaw Plaindealer.
While the Monitor was being built, a trial was going on in New York City as well involving 14 crew members of the Confederate Privateer Savannah who had been captured and were being charged with piracy and treason, both punishable by death.
The Savannah led a short career after receiving permission to privateer from Confederate President Jefferson Davis. It sailed out of Charleston Harbor and captured a ship the first day out. After returning with it, the Savannah made the mistake of attacking a Naval ship, the USS Perry and being captured.
President Davis contacted President Lincoln saying that if the Savannah's crew were executed, 14 Union prisoners would die in retaliation.
The trial began October 23, 1861, and lasted eight days. After a day and night deliberation, the jury's foreman reported they couldn't reach a decision. The jury was dismissed, but crew still held.
In November, 14 Union officers were chosen by lot by the Confederates to meet the same fate as whatever awaited the Savannah's crew.
The Lincoln administration backed down and in February 1862, the privateer's crew was transferred to a POW camp and later exchanged, saving the lives of the Union officers.
So, a Lot of Naval Stuff happening This Week 150 Years Ago. --Old B-R'er
While the Monitor was being built, a trial was going on in New York City as well involving 14 crew members of the Confederate Privateer Savannah who had been captured and were being charged with piracy and treason, both punishable by death.
The Savannah led a short career after receiving permission to privateer from Confederate President Jefferson Davis. It sailed out of Charleston Harbor and captured a ship the first day out. After returning with it, the Savannah made the mistake of attacking a Naval ship, the USS Perry and being captured.
President Davis contacted President Lincoln saying that if the Savannah's crew were executed, 14 Union prisoners would die in retaliation.
The trial began October 23, 1861, and lasted eight days. After a day and night deliberation, the jury's foreman reported they couldn't reach a decision. The jury was dismissed, but crew still held.
In November, 14 Union officers were chosen by lot by the Confederates to meet the same fate as whatever awaited the Savannah's crew.
The Lincoln administration backed down and in February 1862, the privateer's crew was transferred to a POW camp and later exchanged, saving the lives of the Union officers.
So, a Lot of Naval Stuff happening This Week 150 Years Ago. --Old B-R'er
The USS Monitor
From the Oct. 27th Choctaw Plaindealer "The Civil War--New Naval Era for North and South" by C.J. Johnson.
On Oct. 25, 1861, the keel of the Monitor was laid in Greenpoint, New York, after the US government heard rumors that the Confederacy was rushing to complete an ironclad of their own. The Ironclad Board, appointed by Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles gave their approval to start for Swedish-born John Ericsson to begin work in September.
The 987 ton Monitor's wooden keel was laid at the Continental Ironworks. Carpenters worked around the clock on the wooden inner structure while iron plating was being made.
The 172-foot long, 41-foot wide ship was remarkable in that its deck was only 18 inches above the water, and, of course, its twenty foot cylindrical revolving turret mounting two 11-inch Dahlgren guns. Furthermore, the ship was powered only by steam as there was no rigging. drawing 11 feet, the ship could operate in shallow waters as well.
The ship was completed very quickly, but still missed its original Jan. 12, 1862, launch date, not hitting the water until Jan. 30.
After some engine problems were solved, the Monitor was commissioned February 24th and just two weeks later, fought that Confederate ironclad, the CSS Virginia on March 6th.
This Turned Naval Architecture On Its Ear. --Old B-Runner
On Oct. 25, 1861, the keel of the Monitor was laid in Greenpoint, New York, after the US government heard rumors that the Confederacy was rushing to complete an ironclad of their own. The Ironclad Board, appointed by Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles gave their approval to start for Swedish-born John Ericsson to begin work in September.
The 987 ton Monitor's wooden keel was laid at the Continental Ironworks. Carpenters worked around the clock on the wooden inner structure while iron plating was being made.
The 172-foot long, 41-foot wide ship was remarkable in that its deck was only 18 inches above the water, and, of course, its twenty foot cylindrical revolving turret mounting two 11-inch Dahlgren guns. Furthermore, the ship was powered only by steam as there was no rigging. drawing 11 feet, the ship could operate in shallow waters as well.
The ship was completed very quickly, but still missed its original Jan. 12, 1862, launch date, not hitting the water until Jan. 30.
After some engine problems were solved, the Monitor was commissioned February 24th and just two weeks later, fought that Confederate ironclad, the CSS Virginia on March 6th.
This Turned Naval Architecture On Its Ear. --Old B-Runner
Friday, October 28, 2011
A Confederate Soldier Finally Comes Home
From the Nov. 14, 2010, Fayetteville (NC) Observer.
Private Edward Cashwell left his wife and five young children to serve his country and state, the Confederacy and North Carolina, and ended up dying May 13, 1863, at the Fort Fisher hospital and his remains were never returned to his family in Cumberland and Bladen counties. Instead, he was buried in a mass grave with six others.
This past Saturday, the Sons of Confederate Veterans buried a small casket full of dirt from that mass grave next to the grave of his wife at a small cemetery east of Stedman on NC Highway 24.
His great-great grandson, James Cashwell attended and said he knew nothing of Edward until the SCV told him.
Edward Cashwell died of typhoid fever, 15 months after enlisting at the age of 29. His wife, Elizabeth Riley Cashwell, died in 1914.
Officiating at the service, the reverend Herman White said, "He may not have died from an enemy's bullet, but he was just as much of a hero as if he did."
Good to have Him Home At Long Last. --Old B-Runner
Private Edward Cashwell left his wife and five young children to serve his country and state, the Confederacy and North Carolina, and ended up dying May 13, 1863, at the Fort Fisher hospital and his remains were never returned to his family in Cumberland and Bladen counties. Instead, he was buried in a mass grave with six others.
This past Saturday, the Sons of Confederate Veterans buried a small casket full of dirt from that mass grave next to the grave of his wife at a small cemetery east of Stedman on NC Highway 24.
His great-great grandson, James Cashwell attended and said he knew nothing of Edward until the SCV told him.
Edward Cashwell died of typhoid fever, 15 months after enlisting at the age of 29. His wife, Elizabeth Riley Cashwell, died in 1914.
Officiating at the service, the reverend Herman White said, "He may not have died from an enemy's bullet, but he was just as much of a hero as if he did."
Good to have Him Home At Long Last. --Old B-Runner
95th Illinois Flag on Display-- Part 2
Some 250,000 Illinois soldiers served during the war, most in Illinois regiments. Each regiment had two flags: the National and regimental. It was considered a great honor to carry either flag. However, carrying one made you a major target of the enemy and casualties for doing so were very high.
The 95th served from 1862 to 1865 in Tennessee, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri and Alabama. During that time, the unit traveled over 9,000 miles.
The flag on display is six-foot square with fringes on three sides and a swatch missing (probably taken as a souvenir). Most likely, it was made in Philadelphia owing to the elliptical pattern of stars which was a hallmark of flags made in that city.
I'll Have to See It Next Time I'm in Town. --Old B-R'er
The 95th served from 1862 to 1865 in Tennessee, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri and Alabama. During that time, the unit traveled over 9,000 miles.
The flag on display is six-foot square with fringes on three sides and a swatch missing (probably taken as a souvenir). Most likely, it was made in Philadelphia owing to the elliptical pattern of stars which was a hallmark of flags made in that city.
I'll Have to See It Next Time I'm in Town. --Old B-R'er
95th Illinois Flag on Display-- Part 1
From the June 14th Springfield (Il) State Journal Register "Civil War battlefield flag goes on display at Old State Capital" by Chris Dettro.
The flag of the 95th Illinois Infantry Regiment has gone on display at Illinois' Old State Capitol Building in Springfield in honor of the 150th anniversary of the war. This flag is of special interest to me because the men in the regiment were recruited from the country where I live, McHenry and Boone County. It is on loan from the Illinois Military Museum at Camp Lincoln in Springfield.
The Boone County Historical Society and McHenry County Civil War Round Table raised $40,000 to pay for the flag's conservation.
You can see it above what was the adjutant's office during the Civil War, where one U.S. Grant, then a colonel, worked in 1861.
Proud to Have the Colors on View. --Old B-Runner
The flag of the 95th Illinois Infantry Regiment has gone on display at Illinois' Old State Capitol Building in Springfield in honor of the 150th anniversary of the war. This flag is of special interest to me because the men in the regiment were recruited from the country where I live, McHenry and Boone County. It is on loan from the Illinois Military Museum at Camp Lincoln in Springfield.
The Boone County Historical Society and McHenry County Civil War Round Table raised $40,000 to pay for the flag's conservation.
You can see it above what was the adjutant's office during the Civil War, where one U.S. Grant, then a colonel, worked in 1861.
Proud to Have the Colors on View. --Old B-Runner
Thursday, October 27, 2011
A Museum's Odd and Rare Artifacts
Thanks to the Civil War Interactive Blog for alerting me to this story.
From the Oct. 21st Cecil Whig's "Army museum's oddities resettle in Silver Springs." AP.
The National Museum of Health and Medicine has the bullet that killed President Abraham Lincoln as well as some of his skull fragments along with a rather large collection of morbid objects.
In September, it moved from the former Walter Reed Medical Center in Washington, DC, to new quarters in Silver Springs, Maryland, where it is outside a military base where a security clearance is not required to enter.
They have over 25 million objects, including a hairball from the stomach of a 12-year-old girl, the amputated leg from a man with elephantiasis. Also, there is a section of President Garfield's (Civil War veteran) spine that was pierced by assassin Charles Guiteau's gun as well as Guiteau's brain and partial skeleton.
The new place will be closing in January and reopen in July with it's largest-ever exhibit in honor of the institution's 150th anniversary since its founding in 1862. It has been located in ten different places since then.
ON A CIVIL WAR NOTE
In 1862, US Surgeon general William Hammons directed medical doctors in the field to collect "specimens of morbid anatomy" for study along with projectiles and foreign bodies.
One Civil War photo in their collection shows a huge pile of amputated legs stacked like firewood.
They also have the shattered bones of US Army Major general Daniel Sickle's lower right leg beside a 12-pound cannonball like the one that shattered his leg at the Battle of Gettysburg. I think I've heard tell that he would go to the center to visit his leg after the war.
Also in the collection are 2,000 microscopes and hundreds of thousands of brain segments at off-site warehouses.
Something Else to See in the DC Area. --Old B-Runner
From the Oct. 21st Cecil Whig's "Army museum's oddities resettle in Silver Springs." AP.
The National Museum of Health and Medicine has the bullet that killed President Abraham Lincoln as well as some of his skull fragments along with a rather large collection of morbid objects.
In September, it moved from the former Walter Reed Medical Center in Washington, DC, to new quarters in Silver Springs, Maryland, where it is outside a military base where a security clearance is not required to enter.
They have over 25 million objects, including a hairball from the stomach of a 12-year-old girl, the amputated leg from a man with elephantiasis. Also, there is a section of President Garfield's (Civil War veteran) spine that was pierced by assassin Charles Guiteau's gun as well as Guiteau's brain and partial skeleton.
The new place will be closing in January and reopen in July with it's largest-ever exhibit in honor of the institution's 150th anniversary since its founding in 1862. It has been located in ten different places since then.
ON A CIVIL WAR NOTE
In 1862, US Surgeon general William Hammons directed medical doctors in the field to collect "specimens of morbid anatomy" for study along with projectiles and foreign bodies.
One Civil War photo in their collection shows a huge pile of amputated legs stacked like firewood.
They also have the shattered bones of US Army Major general Daniel Sickle's lower right leg beside a 12-pound cannonball like the one that shattered his leg at the Battle of Gettysburg. I think I've heard tell that he would go to the center to visit his leg after the war.
Also in the collection are 2,000 microscopes and hundreds of thousands of brain segments at off-site warehouses.
Something Else to See in the DC Area. --Old B-Runner
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Running the Blockade: Flag Flap-- Housing Market Crash Good for NPS
Running the Blockade: New News about an Old War.
1. FLAG FLAP-- And when is there not one. It seems that there are some people who won't bw happy until all vestiges of the Confederate flag are removed.
This time it is over flag tee shirts being worn by some students in Dowagiac, Michigan. The administration has banned them. I saw a photo of a tee shirt and found nothing offensive with it. It said "If you're offended by this you need to brush up on your history" or something to that effect.
2. HOUSING MARKET CRASH GOOD FOR NPS-- Jim Bievenour has two and a half acres of land across from the entrance to the Gettysburg Museum and Visitor Center and was trying to sell it. The housing crash caused him to drop his price from $400,000 to $300,000 when he sold it to a partner of the National Park Service.
Overall, the NPS has bought 112 acres since the 2008 crash.
Give the FLAG a BREAK!! --Old B-R'er
1. FLAG FLAP-- And when is there not one. It seems that there are some people who won't bw happy until all vestiges of the Confederate flag are removed.
This time it is over flag tee shirts being worn by some students in Dowagiac, Michigan. The administration has banned them. I saw a photo of a tee shirt and found nothing offensive with it. It said "If you're offended by this you need to brush up on your history" or something to that effect.
2. HOUSING MARKET CRASH GOOD FOR NPS-- Jim Bievenour has two and a half acres of land across from the entrance to the Gettysburg Museum and Visitor Center and was trying to sell it. The housing crash caused him to drop his price from $400,000 to $300,000 when he sold it to a partner of the National Park Service.
Overall, the NPS has bought 112 acres since the 2008 crash.
Give the FLAG a BREAK!! --Old B-R'er
An Early Submarine Attack?
From the Civil War Naval Chronology.
October 9, 1861
According to the chronology, this date marked the first documented attempt to sink and enemy ship with a submarine in the Civil War. The target was the USS Minnesota, the location Hampton Roads, Virginia.
The attack failed when the submarine got caught up in some grappling hanging over the Minnesota's jib boom (which its occupants mistook for an anchor cable). The strange vessel escaped.
An October 12th newspaper reported that a Confederate deserter claimed the sub employed an India rubber suction plate to attach to its target and then was to plant a timed bomb on the hull.
I did some research, but never found any other mention of the attack. Of interest, the US Navy currently has a nuclear submarine under construction named the Minnesota.
OTHER EVENTS
October 10, 1861
The USS Daylight, Cmdr. Lockwood, silenced a Confederate battery attacking the American ship John Clark anchored at Lynnhaven Bay, Virginia. This was the ship that started the blockade of Wilmington.
OCTOBER 18th-- The USS Gemsbok, Acting Master Cavendy, captured the brig Ariel off Wilmington with a cargo of salt. (With that cargo, it was probably inbound.)
It's a Sea Thing. --Old B-Runner
October 9, 1861
According to the chronology, this date marked the first documented attempt to sink and enemy ship with a submarine in the Civil War. The target was the USS Minnesota, the location Hampton Roads, Virginia.
The attack failed when the submarine got caught up in some grappling hanging over the Minnesota's jib boom (which its occupants mistook for an anchor cable). The strange vessel escaped.
An October 12th newspaper reported that a Confederate deserter claimed the sub employed an India rubber suction plate to attach to its target and then was to plant a timed bomb on the hull.
I did some research, but never found any other mention of the attack. Of interest, the US Navy currently has a nuclear submarine under construction named the Minnesota.
OTHER EVENTS
October 10, 1861
The USS Daylight, Cmdr. Lockwood, silenced a Confederate battery attacking the American ship John Clark anchored at Lynnhaven Bay, Virginia. This was the ship that started the blockade of Wilmington.
OCTOBER 18th-- The USS Gemsbok, Acting Master Cavendy, captured the brig Ariel off Wilmington with a cargo of salt. (With that cargo, it was probably inbound.)
It's a Sea Thing. --Old B-Runner
Monday, October 24, 2011
Some More Naval Activity 150 Years Ago
From the Civil War Naval Chronology.
OCTOBER 22nd-- Report that Confederate batteries commanded the Potomac River below Alexandria. Washington, DC, essentially blockaded, by water, anyway.
OCTOBER 23rd-- The crew of the Confederate privateer Savannah go on trial for "piracy" in New York City. This caused quite a diplomatic situation.
OCTOBER 25th-- John Ericcson began work on his Monitor. Less than five months later, it fought the CSS Virginia. Quite a remarkably fast construction time.
Flag Officer DuPont stresses the importance of training by the Navy for amphibious landings. Says he had landed a brigade of troops in a training exercise.
OCTOBER 26th-- The CSS Nashville escapes the blockade of Charleston, SC. Union intelligence incorrectly had Slidell and Mason on board the ship.
OCTOBER 27-28th-- Boat crews from the USS Louisiana burned three Confederate vessels at Chincoteagwa Inlet, Virginia. The Louisiana later became the powder ship exploded at Fort Fisher Christmas Eve 1864.
And, It Was an Amphibious Assault That Finally Did Fort Fisher In in 1865. --Old B-R'er
OCTOBER 22nd-- Report that Confederate batteries commanded the Potomac River below Alexandria. Washington, DC, essentially blockaded, by water, anyway.
OCTOBER 23rd-- The crew of the Confederate privateer Savannah go on trial for "piracy" in New York City. This caused quite a diplomatic situation.
OCTOBER 25th-- John Ericcson began work on his Monitor. Less than five months later, it fought the CSS Virginia. Quite a remarkably fast construction time.
Flag Officer DuPont stresses the importance of training by the Navy for amphibious landings. Says he had landed a brigade of troops in a training exercise.
OCTOBER 26th-- The CSS Nashville escapes the blockade of Charleston, SC. Union intelligence incorrectly had Slidell and Mason on board the ship.
OCTOBER 27-28th-- Boat crews from the USS Louisiana burned three Confederate vessels at Chincoteagwa Inlet, Virginia. The Louisiana later became the powder ship exploded at Fort Fisher Christmas Eve 1864.
And, It Was an Amphibious Assault That Finally Did Fort Fisher In in 1865. --Old B-R'er
This Week in the Civil War
From AP's This Week in the Civil War.
Taking a look at the upcoming events taking place 150 years ago.
WEEK OF OCTOBER 23RD:
The Transcontinental telegraph was completed coast-to-coast. The last part between Nebraska and Nevada finished and now direct contact between the two oceans. The telegraph revolutinized warfare.
You don't hear much about the use in naval affairs, but I'm sure it was.
WEEK OF OCTOBER 30TH:
Commander of the US Army, General Winfield Scott, retired because of age and infirmity. It was his plan to blockade the Confederacy and cut it into parts along rivers that became known as Scott's Anaconda Plan.
WEEK OF NOVEMBER 6TH:
The Battle of Port Royal gave the Union a really important base between Charleston and Savannah.
And, real soon, there was the Trent Affair on the 7th.
Lots Going On Along the Naval Front. --Old B-Runner
Taking a look at the upcoming events taking place 150 years ago.
WEEK OF OCTOBER 23RD:
The Transcontinental telegraph was completed coast-to-coast. The last part between Nebraska and Nevada finished and now direct contact between the two oceans. The telegraph revolutinized warfare.
You don't hear much about the use in naval affairs, but I'm sure it was.
WEEK OF OCTOBER 30TH:
Commander of the US Army, General Winfield Scott, retired because of age and infirmity. It was his plan to blockade the Confederacy and cut it into parts along rivers that became known as Scott's Anaconda Plan.
WEEK OF NOVEMBER 6TH:
The Battle of Port Royal gave the Union a really important base between Charleston and Savannah.
And, real soon, there was the Trent Affair on the 7th.
Lots Going On Along the Naval Front. --Old B-Runner
Saturday, October 22, 2011
The Fort's Haunted, Fort Fisher, That Is
Not only do Confederate soldiers haunt Fort Fisher (probably some Yankees as well), but also stories abound that a Confederate general does as well.
From Creepy NC.com.
Fort Fisher, an almost impregnable fortress finally fell to an attack of practically the entire Union fleet and the fact that Confederate General Bragg refused to help the fort. (Well, there was also the Union Army and the Naval Column.)
Confederate General W.H.C. Whiting was wounded and later died from complications of it in a Union prison. Reports have his spirit keeping a ghostly watch out to sea from the fort's remaining parapets.
Whiting did not have to be at the fort during the attack Jan. 13-15, 1865, but came anyway, saying to the fort's commander, Col. William Lamb, "Lamb, my boy. I have come to share your fate."
He was born in Mississippi and graduated West Point at the top of his class and was once also a division commander in the Army of Northern Virginia.
During the hand-to-hand fighting after Union forces gained entrance into the fort, at one point he was called upon to surrender and replied, "Go to hell!!." I've also heard his words were, "Go to hell you Yankee bastards."
Stories are that you can see his ghost on the parapets at dusk.
That About Boos Up the Story. --Old B-Runner
Friday, October 21, 2011
If It's Halloween, It Must Be Fort Fisher
From the Encore Online. Wilmington's Alternative Newspaper.
A "Spooktacular" planned at the old fort by the Fort Fisher State Recreation Team this Saturday, Oct. 21st. Include will be true ghost stories, gory games, hayrides, trick-or-treating and lots of other activities.
For those of you wanting a little more scare for your buck, there is the hour-long 3rd Annual Ghost Walk along trails normally closed to the public.
One ghost often seen is a Confederate guard.
A ranger at the park was locking up when she had a strange sensation that she was being watched. When getting into her car, she saw a "man in blue pants" walking toward her. He disappeared when she shone her flashlight his way.
Also, there is the famous Fort Fisher Hermit who occupied a World War II bunker for many years until he turned up mysteriously murdered in 1972.
Too Spooky for Me. --Old B-Runner
A "Spooktacular" planned at the old fort by the Fort Fisher State Recreation Team this Saturday, Oct. 21st. Include will be true ghost stories, gory games, hayrides, trick-or-treating and lots of other activities.
For those of you wanting a little more scare for your buck, there is the hour-long 3rd Annual Ghost Walk along trails normally closed to the public.
One ghost often seen is a Confederate guard.
A ranger at the park was locking up when she had a strange sensation that she was being watched. When getting into her car, she saw a "man in blue pants" walking toward her. He disappeared when she shone her flashlight his way.
Also, there is the famous Fort Fisher Hermit who occupied a World War II bunker for many years until he turned up mysteriously murdered in 1972.
Too Spooky for Me. --Old B-Runner
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Looking for the CSS Nashville
From the Oct. 17th Civil War Daily Gazette
Octiber 17, 1861, Thursday
The US Navy thought the two Confederate envoys, John Slidell and James Mason had boarded the CSS Nashville for their trip out of Charleston Harbor. The USS James Adger and USS Curlew were dispatched to intercept it. The Curlew was short on coal and turned back, but the Adger went all the way to England pursuing the Nashville.
The USS Connecticut was sent to Bermuda to gather any information it could on the Nashville and then to return to the New York Naval Yard if nothing could be found.
Meanwhile, Mason and Slidell were already in Cuba, arriving on the Theodora. Before reaching Havana, however, the coal supply was short and a stop was made in Cardenas, 100 miles to the east. The Theodora was accompanied by a Spanish steamer at this juncture, having helped guide the blockade-runner through the waters around the Bahamas.
There was a delay because the papers of clearance were for Havana and not Cardenas. During the day, Mason and Slidell landed.
By the time the two got to Havana, they found that they had just missed a ship bound for England by a day. The next ship going there was not set to leave for three weeks.
Missed It By [] Much. --Old B-R'er
Octiber 17, 1861, Thursday
The US Navy thought the two Confederate envoys, John Slidell and James Mason had boarded the CSS Nashville for their trip out of Charleston Harbor. The USS James Adger and USS Curlew were dispatched to intercept it. The Curlew was short on coal and turned back, but the Adger went all the way to England pursuing the Nashville.
The USS Connecticut was sent to Bermuda to gather any information it could on the Nashville and then to return to the New York Naval Yard if nothing could be found.
Meanwhile, Mason and Slidell were already in Cuba, arriving on the Theodora. Before reaching Havana, however, the coal supply was short and a stop was made in Cardenas, 100 miles to the east. The Theodora was accompanied by a Spanish steamer at this juncture, having helped guide the blockade-runner through the waters around the Bahamas.
There was a delay because the papers of clearance were for Havana and not Cardenas. During the day, Mason and Slidell landed.
By the time the two got to Havana, they found that they had just missed a ship bound for England by a day. The next ship going there was not set to leave for three weeks.
Missed It By [] Much. --Old B-R'er
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