MAY 15TH, 1861: Secretary of Navy Weklles appointed Lt. Thomas M. Brasher to command the USS Bainbridge and ordered him to proceed to Aspinwall, New Granada (Panama), to protect California steamers against "vessels sailing under pretended letters of marque issued by the insurrectionary States."
California steamers transported large amounts of gold from Aspinwall to New York. Confederate ships were constantly on the alert for these vessels as the blockade tightened and the need for specie became increasingly desperate.
--Old B-R'er
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