Battle of St. Johns Bluff Living History Weekend Recap

Since 2007, the Ft. Caroline National Monument in Jacksonville has hosted a Civil War Living History event to commemorate the actions of Union and Confederate military forces in the area during the war and the conditions endured by the citizens of Jacksonville. In particular, the event recalls the actions between Union Navy and Army forces and a Confederate Battery constructed on St. Johns Bluff (adjacent to the National Monument) in the late summer of 1862. This year we celebrated the fifth anniversary of this Living History event and the 150th Anniversary of the St. Johns Bluff engagement. I have profiled the Naval portions of this engagement in posts on Sept. 9, Sept. 16, and Sept. 29.

October 20; Day 1. The day dawned cool, with the first real touch of fall in northeast Florida. Present were Army units representing those which occupied Jacksonville during the war, and which participated in the final assault on the St. Johns Bluff battery, folks with the Port Columbus Museum of Civil War Naval History, representing the USS Water Witch, which was a participating gunboat in some of the St. Johns Bluff actions, Army medical and engineer units, and folks representing the civilian population in Jacksonville during the war. We had a pretty good public turn-out (the National Monument folks recorded 1,000 visitors that day), which I thought was a decent turnout, since we had some competition from another Navy group; the Blue Angels were doing an airshow at the "beaches" area right next to us along the coast. I talked to a bunch of folks about the U.S. Navy's involvement on the St. Johns River during the CW.

The USS Water Witch/Port Columbus Camp:

Dahlgren boat howitzer at dawn; ready to do its deadly work:

October 21, Day 2. Things dawned even a bit chillier this morning. Yesterday I wore my summer white frock over blue trousers, but today donned wool winter blue frock with by blue trousers. Spectator turn-out was a bit lighter, especially in the morning, which I have learned is typical for Sunday mornings at many events. Things picked up a bit in the afternoon, but turn-out was lighter today than yesterday. Still had some good interaction. One thing I have added to my display is a rack with a couple of "single sticks" used for cutlass drill. I typically engage young men (but sometimes also young ladies) in the drill when they stop to ask questions. This is a huge hit, not only with the kids but also with their parents who get tons of "Kodak moment" photos.

An old tar in his camp:

Civilians representing the Jacksonville population during the CW:

Navy Cutlasses in the Civil War

One of the many things I like about portraying a US Navy Seaman at CW living history and re-enactment events is that we get to wear and use more “stuff” than a US Army soldier. Your basic soldier has his musket, leathers, and bayonet. Sailors were similarly armed, but we also get to wear pistol and cutlass. Up to the Civil War, the cutlass had always been a basic weapon for sailors, dating back to at least the 1700’s. The name is derived from the French word for knife, “cutler”. Because sailors in combat often found themselves in close quarters, surrounded by fallen spars, lines, blocks, etc., the cutlass was designed with a shorter blade than a typical army sword or saber, so that it could be swung freely without getting hung up. The shorter blade also prevented tripping as a sailor boarded an enemy ship; its blade was heavier than a standard saber, because a seaman did not have the force of a galloping horse behind him.

At the beginning of the Civil War, most Navy ships (both US and CS) stocked the Ames model 1841 Navy cutlass in their small arms locker (also sometimes listed as the M1842 cutlass). Somewhat resembling an old Roman broadsword, it was a heavy weapon with a 21” straight double-edged blade and a total length of about 26”. It had a brass strap as a knuckle guard and was sheathed in a black leather scabbard with brass tip. It has been described as “unwieldy”, probably because of its weight.

Semi-circular rack of M1841 cutlasses on the bulkhead of the USS Water Witch at the Port Columbus Museum of Civil War Naval History:


In 1860, the Navy contracted with Ames to produce the model 1861 cutlass (I have also seen it referred to as the M1860 cutlass). These were patterned after the French naval cutlass. This weapon was 32” in total length with a 26” single-edge curved blade and a more substantial brass knuckle guard. It was also sheathed in a black leather scabbard with brass tip. This was a superior weapon to the M1841, and during the war 25,000 of these were purchased by the US Navy. The cutlass saw service on both sides during the CW. The weapon remained in use in the USN through the Spanish-American War and WW1 and a few M1861 cutlasses could still be found on USN ships at the beginning of WW2, largely for traditional purposes.

M1861 Cutlass and scabbard:


The cutlass is a close-range weapon, used for defense of the ship (“repel boarders”) or for boarding and capturing the crew of enemy ships as a prize. Photos of sailors at gun drill show the gun crews armed with pistol and cutlass for defense against boarders.

Gun drill (possibly USS Miami); note sailors center-right (bending over with big wrench) and standing on the gunwale (far right) wearing pistols, cartridge boxes and M1861 cutlasses (source NHHC on-line photo archives):


Sailors would drill with single sticks on a regular basis to learn how to wield the cutlass in hand-to-hand combat; sometimes for up to 2 hrs.

Another edged weapon which saw occasional use by USN sailors in the CW was the Dahlgren bayonet or bowie knife:


Dahlgren designed this knife to be fitted as a bayonet on a .69 caliber Plymouth-style musket he also designed. It had a 12”, Bowie-style blade. I have found mixed evidence regarding the USN adopting his musket for widespread use, but it appears that at least 500 Dahlgren knives were separately ordered by the Navy and some sailors may have preferred using those rather than the M1861 cutlass.

With the eventual phasing out of the practice of capturing ships for prize money, and the more advanced weaponry with greater killing power at longer range, the pistol and cutlass were rapidly becoming obsolete by the end of the Civil War. According to the NHHC web site, the last time a bluejacket swung a cutlass in combat is unknown. It was officially declared an obsolete weapon by Naval Order in 1949.

Photos of 1841 and 1861 cutlasses (good comparison) can be viewed at: http://www.oregonknifeclub.org/Newsletter%200911.pdf and also in McAulay, John D. Civil War Small Arms of the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps. 1999. Andrew Mowbray Publishers, Lincoln, RI.

Cutlass Drill

A sailor’s typical day on a Union Navy blockading ship was filled with drill; fire drill, general quarters, gun drill, small arms drill, and on and on. Part of this repertoire was cutlass drill using “single sticks,” pieces of wood the same dimension as the standard 1861 Ames cutlass. Use of these prevented accidental (or purposeful, if you didn’t like your sparring partner) injury, plus they were a lot lighter in weight than the actual cutlass; an important consideration when the cutlass drill lasted up to two hours each day.

The drill involved learning both defensive and offensive sequences with the cutlass. According to the 1869 drill manual, the defensive phase of the drill was “le fort” and the offensive phase was “le faible.” Footwork was as important as the wielding of the edged weapon, with the sailor generally advancing aggressively towards his opponent on offense and backing up on defense.

When we are in camp as the USS Ft. Henry at events, we put on demonstrations of single stick drill for the public, which is always a big hit.


Photos from the Library of Congress Civil War Drawings collection (online) and the USS Ft. Henry.