Operations on Florida's St. John's River

APRIL 5TH, 1864: Navy ships on Florida's St. John's River, under Commander Balch continued to patrol and convoy Army troops as it had for the past month. On 4 April Union troops had evacuated Palatka. Ships involved in these operations were the USS Ottawa (Lt. Cmdy. Breese), Pawnee, Mahaska, Unadilla, and Norwich. //// This date, General John P. Hatch wrote: ...I consider it very important...that the naval force should be retained here as a patrol of the river, to aid us in the event of an attack, and to cover the landing of troops at other points.... The length of the river now occupied (100 miles) requires for its thorough patrol a naval force od the size of the present squadron. ////