This weekend marks the 150th anniversary of the Union occupation of the port town of Beaufort, NC. As part of the Burnside Expedition, the occupation of this little town was of vital importance to the U.S. Navy's blockading efforts. Having already captured Roanoke Island and New Bern, the Federal forces began their push toward the coast and the protector of Beaufort Harbor, Fort Macon. Arriving at Beaufort in the pre-dawn hours of March 25, 1862 they found the town devoid of any Confederate forces. The town was occupied peacefully before most of the inhabitants were even awake. After the capitulation of Fort Macon a few weeks later, Beaufort became an important station for the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron. For more on the town's role as such, see Dan Blair's article "One Good Port."
To commemmorate the occupation of Beaufort, the North Carolina Maritime Museum, along with other local historical organizations will host a weekend of activities this weekend centered around a living history program. Union infantry will occupy the grounds of the Beaufort Historical Association, artillery will perform demonstrations at a waterfront park, and sailors will take over the boat building facility at the Maritime Museum. An evening artillery demonstration will also take place at Fort Macon State Park on Saturday evening. For more information contact the NC Maritime Museum or visit their website.
Showing posts with label Atlantic Blockade. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Atlantic Blockade. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Monday, March 12, 2012
Union occupation of Jacksonville and St. Augustine, Florida
US Navy Base at Mayport Mills, Florida, St. Johns River (Fla. Dept. of State on-line photo archive):
After taking Ft. Clinch and the Town of Fernandina on 3-4 March 1862, elements of the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron, along with transports carrying US Army troops, arrived off the mouth of the St. Johns River, Florida on 8 March 1862. After reconnoitering the bar at the river mouth, and after repeated attempts to cross, Lt. Thomas H. Stevens of the gunboat USS Ottawa took the ship’s helm himself, ordered “full speed ahead,” and scraped across the bar on 11 March, along with the gunboats Seneca, Pembina, and Ellen. Ottawa, Seneca, and Pembina were all “Unadilla” class (“90-day”) gunboats, and Ellen was a converted New York ferryboat. Lighter draft ships had penetrated upriver prior to that and captured Ft. Steele, a small Confederate fortification near the mouth of the river built of palmetto logs and armed with 7 guns. The Confederates had abandoned the fort a few days earlier after sighting the arrival of the Union flotilla off the river mouth.
On 12 March, the first occupation of the City of Jacksonville occurred, as companies of the 4rth New Hampshire Infantry Regiment were landed. Jacksonville had a fairly large proportion of pro-Union folks, who were overjoyed to see the Union occupation of the city. To their dismay and horror, by the end of the month, Army forces were ordered withdrawn from the city. Officers on the Union Navy vessels were aghast at this action. In an effort to provide some assistance, the Navy established a permanent base of operations at Mayport Mills, three miles upstream of the river mouth and about 6-7 miles downstream of Jacksonville.
On 10 March 1862, the USS Wabash hove to off the mouth of St. Augustine Inlet, south of the St. Johns River mouth. Shallow depths in the inlet and the harbor did not allow the huge Wabash to enter, and heavy weather that day restricted the use of ship's boats to cross the bar in the Inlet. The next day, 11 March, Commander C.R.P. Rogers entered the inlet in a ship's boat with an unarmed landing party, arrived at the harbor, and accepted the surrender of Ft. Marion (the present-day Castillo de San Marcos National Monument) and the adjacent Town of St. Augustine, Florida. In the span of barely two weeks, the Union Navy and Army had secured a strong foothold in a big chunk of northeast Florida, securing fortifications, land, and secure harbors. This formed the basis for subsequent operations in this area of Florida.
Fort Marion, St. Augustine (Fla. Dept. of State on-line photo archive):
After taking Ft. Clinch and the Town of Fernandina on 3-4 March 1862, elements of the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron, along with transports carrying US Army troops, arrived off the mouth of the St. Johns River, Florida on 8 March 1862. After reconnoitering the bar at the river mouth, and after repeated attempts to cross, Lt. Thomas H. Stevens of the gunboat USS Ottawa took the ship’s helm himself, ordered “full speed ahead,” and scraped across the bar on 11 March, along with the gunboats Seneca, Pembina, and Ellen. Ottawa, Seneca, and Pembina were all “Unadilla” class (“90-day”) gunboats, and Ellen was a converted New York ferryboat. Lighter draft ships had penetrated upriver prior to that and captured Ft. Steele, a small Confederate fortification near the mouth of the river built of palmetto logs and armed with 7 guns. The Confederates had abandoned the fort a few days earlier after sighting the arrival of the Union flotilla off the river mouth.
On 12 March, the first occupation of the City of Jacksonville occurred, as companies of the 4rth New Hampshire Infantry Regiment were landed. Jacksonville had a fairly large proportion of pro-Union folks, who were overjoyed to see the Union occupation of the city. To their dismay and horror, by the end of the month, Army forces were ordered withdrawn from the city. Officers on the Union Navy vessels were aghast at this action. In an effort to provide some assistance, the Navy established a permanent base of operations at Mayport Mills, three miles upstream of the river mouth and about 6-7 miles downstream of Jacksonville.
On 10 March 1862, the USS Wabash hove to off the mouth of St. Augustine Inlet, south of the St. Johns River mouth. Shallow depths in the inlet and the harbor did not allow the huge Wabash to enter, and heavy weather that day restricted the use of ship's boats to cross the bar in the Inlet. The next day, 11 March, Commander C.R.P. Rogers entered the inlet in a ship's boat with an unarmed landing party, arrived at the harbor, and accepted the surrender of Ft. Marion (the present-day Castillo de San Marcos National Monument) and the adjacent Town of St. Augustine, Florida. In the span of barely two weeks, the Union Navy and Army had secured a strong foothold in a big chunk of northeast Florida, securing fortifications, land, and secure harbors. This formed the basis for subsequent operations in this area of Florida.
Fort Marion, St. Augustine (Fla. Dept. of State on-line photo archive):
Saturday, March 10, 2012
Battle of Hampton Roads Day 1 - Seaman Rob's Report
Map of blockade runner routes into the Atlantic Coast. Source: http://www.nccivilwar150.com/maps/fisher/Blockade.pdf
Craig Symonds’ plenary talk at the Civil War Navy Conference here at the Mariner’s Museum in Newport News, VA was free and open to the public this morning, so I had the opportunity to attend. Dr. Symonds talked about the Atlantic Blockade and gave a good, synoptic overview of this blockade effort and how it fit within the larger scope of the Navy’s efforts in the Civil War. There were a few nifty “tidbits” of information that I learned; for instance the North Carolina Sounds behind the barrier islands had long served as a haven for raiders, privateers and etc. The infamous pirate Blackbeard operated out of the area and was killed in Pamlico Sound by US Navy forces. He also reiterated what many historians have concluded about the blockade; although it was never “airtight”, it was a definite contributor to the eventual defeat of the Confederacy by the Union and shortened the War by doing just enough to prevent the export of trade and the import of needed materials. I had the chance to ask a question and asked about the relative importance of taking the Port of Fernandina, Florida. Dr. Symonds felt that it was important, but that it was a matter of resources; DuPont took Port Royal first, then was able to allocate ships and manpower to moving southward to take additional ports. Later on I met and talked with fellow CWN150 Guest Blogger Craig Swain, and he noted that it was largely a question of “real estate”; the three most important words being “location, location, location”, and that this was a factor in deciding between Port Royal and Fernandina. I spent much of the day hanging out with the Hampton Roads Naval Museum folks and their nifty display. All in all a cool first day at the Battle of Hampton Roads Event; looking forward to tomorrow !!!
Craig Symonds’ plenary talk at the Civil War Navy Conference here at the Mariner’s Museum in Newport News, VA was free and open to the public this morning, so I had the opportunity to attend. Dr. Symonds talked about the Atlantic Blockade and gave a good, synoptic overview of this blockade effort and how it fit within the larger scope of the Navy’s efforts in the Civil War. There were a few nifty “tidbits” of information that I learned; for instance the North Carolina Sounds behind the barrier islands had long served as a haven for raiders, privateers and etc. The infamous pirate Blackbeard operated out of the area and was killed in Pamlico Sound by US Navy forces. He also reiterated what many historians have concluded about the blockade; although it was never “airtight”, it was a definite contributor to the eventual defeat of the Confederacy by the Union and shortened the War by doing just enough to prevent the export of trade and the import of needed materials. I had the chance to ask a question and asked about the relative importance of taking the Port of Fernandina, Florida. Dr. Symonds felt that it was important, but that it was a matter of resources; DuPont took Port Royal first, then was able to allocate ships and manpower to moving southward to take additional ports. Later on I met and talked with fellow CWN150 Guest Blogger Craig Swain, and he noted that it was largely a question of “real estate”; the three most important words being “location, location, location”, and that this was a factor in deciding between Port Royal and Fernandina. I spent much of the day hanging out with the Hampton Roads Naval Museum folks and their nifty display. All in all a cool first day at the Battle of Hampton Roads Event; looking forward to tomorrow !!!
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