From the March 9, 2011, Mobile (Al) Press-Register "Blakely Park, where the Civil War ended, still faces threats" by Gary Busby.
Blakely is known as the site of the last major engagement of the war, but it is not well-known. That makes it vulnerable to modern-day threats like budget cutting. The Civil War in Mobile was the subject of a symposium held last weekend at the Historic Blakely State Park and East Point Baptist Church.
Some 50,000 troops on both sides took part in the fight for Mobile's eastern defenses at Spanish Fort and Fort Blakeley in 1865. It was vastly overshadowed by Lee's surrender to grant in the same week in April and then the Lincoln assassination.
In the 1980s, Blakely became a state historical park with around 3,500 acres. But, since then, its budget has been drastically cut. In 2011, close to $170,000 was cut from the budget.
More to Come. --Old Secesh
The Battle of Fort Fisher, N.C.
Showing posts with label Battle of Spanish Fort. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Battle of Spanish Fort. Show all posts
Wednesday, December 5, 2012
Monday, May 16, 2011
US Naval Battery at Battle of Spanish Fort
While looking for information of Fort Huger, I came across mention of a Naval Battery that participated in the Union attack on Spanish Fort, Mobile Bay, Alabama.
Of interest, it was commanded by Lt.-Cmdr. James H. Gillis and his sailors from the monitor USS Milwaukee which had sunk a few days earlier after it struck a mine in the Blakely River.
Today, the site of the battery is located between two private homes on a deadend street of a Spanish Fort subdivision. The land rises at this point which makes it an ideal location for a battery. There is a Spanish Fort Battle marker at the site.
I have written about the USS Milwaukee before. Of interest to me since I'm also a roadie, is that after the war, the ship was raised and its iron used for the construction of St. Louis' Eads Bridge across the Mississippi.
From the Civil War Album.com. The marker reads:
"Manned work by sailors and commanded by Lt. Cmdr. Gillis of the USS Milwaukee, sunk by a Confederate torpedo in the Blakely River. Armed with two 4.2-inch Parrott rifled cannons firing projectiles weighing 30 lbs., these guns fired on Confederate Batteries Red Fort and Slocomb during the Battle of Spanish Fort March 26-April 8, 1865."
The USS Milwaukee sank March 28, 1865.
Lt.-Cmdr. Gillis also commanded the USS Commodore Morris when it was commissioned Nov. 19, 1862.
Finding Something Else for a Crew to Do After Their Ship Was Sunk. --Old B-R'er
Of interest, it was commanded by Lt.-Cmdr. James H. Gillis and his sailors from the monitor USS Milwaukee which had sunk a few days earlier after it struck a mine in the Blakely River.
Today, the site of the battery is located between two private homes on a deadend street of a Spanish Fort subdivision. The land rises at this point which makes it an ideal location for a battery. There is a Spanish Fort Battle marker at the site.
I have written about the USS Milwaukee before. Of interest to me since I'm also a roadie, is that after the war, the ship was raised and its iron used for the construction of St. Louis' Eads Bridge across the Mississippi.
From the Civil War Album.com. The marker reads:
"Manned work by sailors and commanded by Lt. Cmdr. Gillis of the USS Milwaukee, sunk by a Confederate torpedo in the Blakely River. Armed with two 4.2-inch Parrott rifled cannons firing projectiles weighing 30 lbs., these guns fired on Confederate Batteries Red Fort and Slocomb during the Battle of Spanish Fort March 26-April 8, 1865."
The USS Milwaukee sank March 28, 1865.
Lt.-Cmdr. Gillis also commanded the USS Commodore Morris when it was commissioned Nov. 19, 1862.
Finding Something Else for a Crew to Do After Their Ship Was Sunk. --Old B-R'er
Monday, April 12, 2010
McHenry County, Illinois, in the Civil War-- Part 2
The 95th Illinois Infantry was mostly from McHenry County. Its US and regimental flags are preserved in the Illinois National Guard Militia Historical Society Museum in Springfield.
They organized at Camp Fuller in Rockford, Illinois September 4, 1862. A total of 1,324 volunteers served in it during the course of the war and they traveled 9,960 miles.
Service Record:
VICKSBURG-- May 18 and 22, 1863
MERIDIAN EXPEDITION-- Feb. 14, 1864
RED RIVER CAMPAIGN-- March 9 to April 22, 1864
BRICE'S CROSSROADS
SHERMAN'S Campaign Against Atlanta-- June 24 to September, 1864
NASHVILLE-- Dec. 15, 1864
SPANISH FORT-- April 8, 1865
BLAKELY FORT-- April 9, 1865
I found out that John Hatch is buried in Marengo Cemetery. He died January 30, 1924, and was in Co. E, 95th Illinois.
A Bit of Local History. --B-Runner
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