Jan. 30, 1865: Action at Half Moon Battery, North Carolina

JANUARY 30TH, 1865:  The USS Cherokee, Acting Lieutenant William F. Dennison, exchanged gunfire with Confederate troops at Half Moon Battery, Cape Fear River.

Earlier in the month, 19 January, the USS Governor Buckingham, Acting Lieutenant John MacDiarmid, opened on the battery in support of Army efforts ashore to clear the area of Confederates following the fall of Fort Fisher.

--Old B-Runner

Jan. 15, 1865-- Part 5: Over a 1,000 Union Casulaties

Fort Fisher had not been taken without considerable loss.  The Union forces -- Army and Navy -- sustained some 1,000 casualties, more than twice as many as the defenders suffered.  Porter wrote:  "Men, it seems, must die that this Union may live, and the Constitution under which we have gained our prosperity must be maintained."

More than 35 sailors and Marines were awarded the Medal of Honor for their heroism in this action that closed the Confederacy's last supply line from Europe.

The second Federal assault on Fort Fisher revealed again the inherent  ability of a fleet-supported  amphibious force to capitalize on the superior mobility conferred by command of the sea, forcing defenders to spread their forces thinly in a vain effort to be strong at all threatened points simultaneously.

This operation also provided dramatic demonstration of a fleet's ability to  mass superior firepower at any point of a shore defense position.  Fear of concentrated  naval gunfire forced  inaction of General Hoke's Confederate division stationed between the fort and Wilmington, forestalling any interference with the landing of  the Federal expeditionary force and enabling General Terry to split the Confederate defense force.

--Old B-Runner

Jan. 15, 1865-- Part 4: "Fort Fisher Is Ours"

Cries of victory rose from the embattled Confederate defenders, who with the defeat of the naval brigade, believed they had beaten back the main Union attack, but their exultation was short-lived.  While the naval land assault was going on, General Terry's troops had meanwhile taken the western end of the fort by the Cape Fear River.

The Confederates instantly launched a counter-attack and desperate hand-to-hand fighting ensued.

The naval shore bombardment then renewed again (it had fallen silent during the naval assault) and this intervention proved to be decisive.  The guns of Porter's armada, firing at right angles to the direction of the Union charge, opened with "deadly precision" into the Confederate ranks.

Other ships now directed their fire to neutralize the river bank behind the fort to stop any attempts to reinforce.  Lamb later recorded that "as the tide of the battle seemed to have turned in our favor, the remorseless fleet came to the rescue of the faltering Federals."

Both General Whiting and Colonel Lamb were put out of action with severe wounds leading the counter attacks.  Major James Reilly assumed command of the fort.  He and his men surrendered later that night.

"Fort Fisher," Porter wired Welles, "is ours."

--Old B-Runner

Jan. 15, 1865-- Part 3: The Naval Brigade at Fort Fisher

"All the officers," Robley Evans wrote, "in their anxiety to be first into the fort, had advanced to the heads of the columns, leaving no one to steady the men in behind;  and it was in this way  we were defeated, by the men breaking from the rear."

The significance of the naval assault, even in failure, was perceived by the fort's commander, Col. Lamb, when he wrote that "their gallant attempt enabled the army to enter and obtain a foothold, which they otherwise could not have done."

--Old B-Runner

Jan. 15, 1865-- Part 2: "Under A Perfect Hail of Lead"

Ensign Robley D. Evans described the Naval Brigade attack:  "About five hundred yards , from the fort, the head of the column suddenly stopped, and if by magic, the whole mass of men went down like a row of falling bricks.... The officers called on the men, and they responded instantly, starting forward as fast as they  could go.

"At about three hundred yards they again went down, this time under effect of canister added to the rifle fire.  Again we rallied them, and once more started  to the front  under a perfect hail of lead, with men  dropping rapidly in every direction."

Some 60 men under Lieutenant Commander Thomas O. Selfridge reached and broke through the palisade, but it was the high water mark of the charge.  They were hurled back and others recoiled under the withering fire after approaching the stockade at the base of the parapets.

--Old B-Runner

January 15, 1865: The Fall of Fort Fisher-- Part 1: The Naval Brigade Attack

Taken from the Civil War Naval Chronology.

At 3 p.m. on the 15th the signal to cease firing was sent to the fleet, and the soldiers, sailors and Marines ashore charged the Confederate fortifications.  Because the Army advanced through a wooded area while the Naval Brigade dashed across a open beach, the he defenders opened a concentrated fire at point blank range on the naval attack, "ploughing lanes in the ranks."

Leading the assault, Lieutenant Samuel W. Preston, one of the war's ablest young naval officers, and Lieutenant Benjamin H. Porter, commanding officer of the flagship, USS Malvern, were among those killed.  (Porter was not related to Rear Admiral David D. Porter, commander of the fleet.

Unchecked, however, this assaulting force, under the command of Lieutenant Commander K. Randolph Breese pressed forward.

Ensign Robley D. Evans, later  to become a Rear Admiral with the well-earned sobriquet "Fighting Bob" -- suffered four wounds, two crippling his legs.

--Old B-Runner

January 22, 1865: Union Navy Moving Up the Cape Fear River

JANUARY 22ND, 1865:  Rear Admiral Porter ordered Commander John Guest, USS Iosco, to "regulate the movements o vessels in the Cape Fear River above Fort Fisher...."  Porter sought to move the line of ships as near Fort Anderson, the position to which the Confederates had withdrawn following the fall of Fort Fisher and adjacent forts, "as is consistent with safety, and in doing so care must be taken of torpedoes and other obstructions."

The same day USS Pequot, Lieutenant Commander Daniel L. Braine, steamed upriver and opened fire on Fort Anderson to reconnoiter and test its defenses.  The Confederates brought only two "small rifle pieces" in action, but Braine reported:  "I observed 6 guns, evidently smoothbore, pointing down the river, protected by ordinary sand traverses."

Having sealed off Wilmington, the last major port in the South, the Union was now moving to,occupy it.

--Old B-R'er

January 21, 1865: Schofield's XXIII Corps Arrives at Cincinnati On Their Way to Fort Fisher

JANUARY 21ST, 1865:  Elements of the Twenty-Third Army Corps, Major Gcincieneral Schofield, disembarked from transports at Cincinnati, Ohio, which they had reached in five days via the Tennessee and Ohio rivers from Clifton, Tennessee.

From Cincinnati, they entrained for Washington, D.C., Alexandria, Virginia, and Annapolis, Maryland, where the first echelon arrived 31 January.

They had been ordered to join forces with Union troops at Fort Fisher for operations against Wilmington, North Carolina.  The movement took just 17 days to cover from Clifton, Tennessee to Fort Fisher, quite an accomplishment.

--Old B-Runner

January 21, 1865: Confederate James River Squadron to Attack City Point

JANUARY 21ST, 1865:  Secretary Mallory again wrote Flag Officer Mitchell urging an immediate movement by the James River Squadron past the obstructions at Trent's Reach and assault on general Grant's operations at City Point.

"You have an opportunity, I am convinced, rarely presented to a naval officer, and one which may lead to the most glorious results to your country."

That same day, Mitchell sent a telegram to General Lee, whose troops depended heavily on a successful completion of the attack, informing him that the squadron would attempt to pass the obstructions on the 22nd.

"I have not time to visit you," he wrote," and would therefore be glad to meet on board of the flagship at Drewry's  Bluff any officer whom you could appoint to meet me, to give your view and wishes as to my cooperation with the army down the river in the event of our being successful."

--Old B-Runner

Learn About the Impressment of Slaves and Native Americans in the Construction of Fort Fisher Tonight

The Federal Point Historic Preservation  Society will hold ts monthly meeting Monday, January 20, at 7:30 PM, at the History Center next to the Carolina Beach, N.C. Town Hall off US Highway 421.

Dr. Jamie Martinez will speak about the impressment of privately owned slaves and Native Americans (the Lumbee Indians) which were used to help build Fort Fisher.  Under policies instituted by the Confederacy, white Virginians and North Carolinians surrendered their control over portions of slave populations to state authorities, military officials and the national government to defend their new nation.

State and local officials cooperated with the Confederate War department and Engineer Bureau, as well as individual generals, to ensure a supply of slave labor for fortifications.

Dr. Martinez is an Associate Professor of History at the University of North Carolina at Pembroke where she teaches classes on the U.S. Civil War, Antebellum America, African American history, Historical methods and general U.S. history.

--Old B-R'er

See Photos of the Battle Re-enactment at Fort Fisher on January 18, 2020

I was able to go, but did enjoy the 80 photographs in the January 19, Wilmington (NC) Star-News Online site.

It shows Confederate and Union re-enactors battling it out at Shepherd's Battery by the Cape Fear River.  This is where Union troops entered the fort back 155 years ago  which led to its capture.

You can view the pictures at Photos: 155th anniversary of the Battle of Fort Fisher.

--Old B-Runner

Big To Do at the Fort This Weekend-- Part 5: Sunday, Jan. 19

1:00 PM--  Dr. Angela Zombek  "Military Prisons & POWs During the Civil War"  at the Masonboro Parlor at the E. Gehrig Spencer Theater.

**  Infantry demonstration at Shepherd's Battery.

1:30  PM--  Free guided tour of the fort.

2:00 PM--  Artillery demonstration at Shepherd's Battery.

**  Above the Scenes tour, tickets required; limited to 25 persons.

**  Junior Reserves  "Cyphers" in the Living History Area.

2:30 PM--  Dr. Jamie Martinez, "Confederate Slave Impressment in North Carolina."

**  Torpedo demonstration in Living History Area.

**  Infantry demonstration at Shepherd's Battery.

**  Free guided tour.

3:30 PM--  Infantry demonstration at Shepherd's Battery.

4:00 PM--  Artillery demonstration at Shepherd's Battery.

5:00 PM--  Visitors Center closes.

It's Over Now.  --Old B-Runner

Know Before You Go to Fort Fisher This Weekend for the 155th Commemoration

**  Free paring will be available at the Fort Fisher Air Force Recreation Area.  From there, Cape Fear Coach Lines  will drive you, at no charge, to the fort.

**  Or, you can choose to walk the wooded trail to the fort (about 1/2 mile).

**  Handicap parking  will be available onsite at the Visitors Center, for those with a placard.

**  Battle Acre parking will be closed starting Friday morning (January 17) until Sunday (Jan. 19)  due to the fireworks which will be used during the re-enactment.

**  The Southport-Fort Fisher Ferry is closed until March.

**  Hot dogs and refreshments will be available on site by the Federal Point Historic Preservation Society.

This event has been made possible through the donations of individuals, Friends of Fort Fisher members, New Hanover County, Carolina Beach and Kure Beach.

Come On Down!!  --Old B-R'er

Big To Do at the Fort This Weekend-- Part 4: Activity Schedule for Sunday, Jan. 19

9:00 AM--  Visitors center opens.

**  Free guided tour of the fort.

**  Music bu the Huckleberry Brothers in E. Gehrig Spencer Theater and throughout the day in the Living History Area.

10:00 AM--  Battle Scenario around Shepherd's Battery. There will be several hundred re-enactors recreating the Second Battle of Fort Fisher.

11:30 AM--  Remarks by Rod Gragg  "My Friend, the Enemy."

12:00 PM--  Free guided tour of the fort.

**  Torpedo demonstration in Living History Area.

12:30  PM--  Artillery demonstration at Shepherd's Battery

**  Above the Scenes Tour, requires a ticket; limited to 25 persons.

**  Junior Reserves   Signal Flags" in the Living History Area.

More Coming Today.  --Old B-Runner

Big To Do at the Fort This Weekend, Fort Fisher, N.C.-- Part 3

Continuing with the events of January 18, 2010.

1:00 PM--  Battle Scenario around Shepherd's Battery.  This is the major re-enactment of the Battle of Fort Fisher.  There will be some 400 re-enactors involved.  The fort was taken traverse  by traverse.

2:30 PM--  Presentation by Bernard George:  "United States Colored Troops in the Cape Fear."

**  Junior Reserves "Signal Flags" in the Living History area.

**  Above the Scenes Tour (Requires ticket and limited to 25 participants.)  Led by Chris Fonvielle.

**  Torpedo demonstration in the Living History Area.

3:00 PM--  Free guided tour of the fort

5:00 PM--  Visitor Center closes.

--Old B-RunnerWouldSureLikeToBeThere

Big To Do at the Fort This Weekend, Fort Fisher's 155th Anniversary-- Part 2

Events Saturday, January 18, 2020:

9:00 AM--  Visitors Center opens.

***********

10:00 AM--  Music by the Huckleberry Brothers in the E. Gehrig Spencer Theater and throughout the day at various spots.

Ray Flowers will speak in the Speakers' Tent about "Stories from the Garrison."

Torpedo demonstration in the Living History area.

***********

10:30 AM--  Junior Reserves  "School of the Soldier"  in the Living History Area.  (Children)

************

11:00 AM--  Infantry Demonstration at Shepherd's Battery

Free guided tour if the fort.

*************

11:30 AM--  Above the Scenes Tour (requires a ticket); limited to 25 participants.  Led by Dr. Chris Fonvielle, "Desperate Bravery and Brilliant Valor."

And, There's Much More.  --Old B-Runner

Big To Do at the Fort This Weekend: The 155th Anniversary of the Second Battle of Fort Fisher-- Part 1

From the Friends of Fort Fisher.

On January 15, 1865, Fort Fisher, the largest fortification defending the last open Confederate port (Wilmington, N.C.) fell to Union hands.  The battle was the country's largest land/sea engagement until D-Day during World War II.  Many brave men gave their lives on both sides.

Join us this Saturday and Sunday, Jan. 18-19, as we commemorate this pivotal event in the fort's history and in the American Civil War history.

The battle re-enactments, which happen only every five years at Fort Fisher,  will start at 1 pm on Saturday and  and 10 am on Sunday.  And, that's not all, there will be speakers, book signings, music, living history demonstrations, photography,  cannon firings, kids' activities and more!

--Old B-R'er

Just in Time for Fort Fisher's 155th Anniversary: Lots of Pictures and Photos of Fort Fisher

From the January 15, 2020, Wilmington (NC) Star-News online.

A collection of 25 paintings, illustrations and photographs of Fort Fisher, including the famous photos taken by Timothy O'Sullivan shortly after the fort's capture.

Of particular interest is one of a Fort Fisher survivors meeting and what the fort and area looked like in the early 20th century.

#15 is incorrectly identified as the bombardment of Fort Fisher.  It is actually the explosion of the powder magazine after the fort's capture.

It is amazing how inaccurate the illustrations were, though.

--Old B-RunnerFisher

January 15, 1865: The Fall of Fort Fisher-- Part 1: The Naval Column Comes Under Heavy Fire

JANUARY 15TH, 1865:  Porter's fleet reopened their terrific bombardment while Union troops readied for an attack on the western end of Fort Fisher's land face by the river.  Meanwhile, sailors and Marines landed to the north of the fort and advanced along the beach in preparation to attack the northeast part of the fort by the ocean.

At 3 pm on the 15th, the signal to cease firing was sent to the fleet, and the soldiers, sailors and Marines ashore charged the Confederate fortifications.  Because the Army advanced through a wooded area while the Naval Brigade dashed across an open beach, the defenders opened a concentrated fire at point-blank range on the naval attack, "ploughing lanes in the ranks.'

Leading the assault, Lieutenant Samuel W. Preston, one of the Union's ablest young naval officers, and Lieutenant Benjamin H. Porter (no relation to the admiral), commanding officer of the flagship USS Malvern, were among those killed.

Unchecked, however, this assaulting force under the command of Lieutenant Commander K. Randolph Breese pressed forward.

There is a whole lot more about the attack and fall of Fort Fisher that I will write about the next several weeks.

The End of Fort Fisher.  --Old B-Runner

January 14, 1865-- Part 2: The CSS Chickamauga and a Two-Pronged Attack

JANUARY 14TH, 1865:  During the day, the CSS Chickamauga fired on recently landed Union troops from her position in the Cape Fear River, but on the 15th the USS Monticello, Lieutenant Commander William B. Cushing, drove the former Confederate raider out of range.

On the evening of the 14th, General Terry visited Porter on his flagship, the USS Malvern, and the two planned the timing of the next day's operations.  The fleet would maintain its bombardment until the moment of attack in mid-afternoon.

Then, half of the 8,000 soldiers would assault the land face at the western end of the fort (by the Cape Fear River) and the 2,000 sailors and Marines from the ships would attack the "northeast bastion" where the fort's land face joined the sea face by the ocean.

The remaining troops would hold the defensive line to the north in case of a possible attack from Bragg in Wilmington.

--Old B-R'er

January 14, 1865-- Part 1: A Second Day of Bombardment, Only One Serviceable Gun on the Land Face

JANAUARY 14TH, 1865:  The monitors remained at station and had maintained a harassing fire during the night of January 12-14; then at daylight of the second day of the attack the fleet's big guns reopened the bombardment in full fury.

General W.H.C. Whiting who had come to the fort to "counsel" with Colonel Lamb and share his fate, remarked:  It was beyond description, no language can describe that terrific bombardment."

The Confederates were hardly able to bury their dead, much less repair the works, as the fleet poured in, according to one estimate, 100 shells a minute.

The defenders suffered some 300 casualties from the naval bombardment and had but one gun serviceable on the land face.

--Old B-Runner

January 13, 1865, the Beginning of the Second Battle of Fort Fisher-- Part 2

In the meantime, General Terry  selected a beachhead out of the range of Fort Fisher's guns and made naturally defensible on the northern side by a line of swamps and woods, extended across the peninsula where he landed his 8,000 troops unopposed.

This landing was supported by U.S. Navy warships.

That unopposed land has been the question raised ever after as General Bragg, the Confederate overall commander of Wilmington, did nothing to oppose it.

By daybreak of the 14th Terry had thrown up a line of defensive breastworks facing Wilmington, to the north.  This was to protect against any attack from that direction by Bragg's 6,000 troops.

Porter wrote Welles:  "We have a respectable force landed on a strip of land, which our naval guns completely command, and a place of defense which would enable us to hold against a very large army."

--Old B-R'er

January 13, 1865: The Beginning of the Second Battle of Fort Fisher-- Part 1

JANUARY 13TH, 1865:  Early on the morning of the 13th. the second amphibious assault on Fort Fisher was begun.  Read Admiral Porter took some 59 warships into action.  Major General Alfred Terry commanded 8,000 soldiers.  The naval landing party of 2,000 sailors and Marines would raise the assaulting force to 10,000.

Col. Lamb's valiant defenders in the fort numbered 1,500.

The USS New Ironsides, Commodore William Radford, led the monitors Saugus, Canonicus, Monadnock and Mahopac to within 1,000 yards of Fort Fisher and opened on the batteries.

A spirited engagement ensued.

Porter wrote Secretary Welles:  "It was soon quite apparent that the iron vessels had the best of it; traverses began to disappear and the southern angle of Fort Fisher commenced to look very dilapidated."

The USS Brooklyn, Captain Alden, and USS Colorado, Commodore Thatcher, led the heavy wooden warships into battle and the federal fleet maintained a devastating bombardment throughout the day until after dark.

--Old B-Runner

January 12, 1865: Porter's "Great Armada" Gets Underway to Fort Fisher From Beaufort, N.C.

JANUARY 12TH, 1865:  "The Great Armada," as Confederate Colonel Lamb described Rear Admiral Porter's fleet, got underway from Beaufort, North Carolina, where a rendezvous had been made with 8,000 Union troops under the command of Major General Terry.

The fleet, up to that time the largest American force to be assembled under one command, proceeded along the Carolina coast northeast of Wilmington and arrived off Fort Fisher that same night.

Preparations were made for commencing a naval bombardment the following morning and for the amphibious landing of 10,000 soldiers, sailors and Marines.

--Old B-Runner

Fort Fisher Sailor's Letters to Be Discussed-- Part 2: At Second Battle of Fort Fisher Then James River

The Pawtuxet remained of Wilmington after the fall of Fort Fisher and then operated in the Cape Fear River.  After the fall of  Wilmington on 22 February 1865, the Pawtuxet  proceeded to Beaufort, North Carolina, a major Union base for the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron.  Once again ready for service, the ship went to the James River Squadron in Virginia.

By then, that squadron had  at least 42 warships, including some monitors.  The Union Army was pushing toward the final destruction of Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia.

Sidney Stockbridge wrote about daily life on the James River, including the hustle and bustle at  City Point, a formerly obscure spot  where the Appomattox River joins the James River, about 30 miles below Richmond.

City Point became one of the busiest seaports in the world as it supplied and fed some 150,000 Union troops.  Land forces dominated this arena, but maritime forces were crucial to victory.

U.S. Navy dominance of the sea lanes and inland waterways allowed  General Grant to continually move his forces around the flank of Lee's army.  There was no interruption in supplies.

The Cape Fear Civil War Round Table meets the second Tuesday of every month.  Programs start at 7:15.  Guests are welcome.  Yearly membership is $30.

--Old B-Runner

Fort Fisher Sailor's Letters Discussed at Cape Fear Civil War Round Table-- Part 1

From the Jan. 8, 2020, New Bern (NC) Sun Sentinel.

Becky Sawyer, interpreter and collections manager at the Fort Fisher State Historic Site will  speak about a trove of long lost letters written by a mariner aboard of Union naval ship in the last days of the war.

The Cape Fear Civil War Round Table out of Wilmington, North Carolina, will (well, had) a presentation at 6:30 pm, at Harbor Church, 4853 Masonboro Loop.  Unfortunately, it is too late, but she has given this talk several times in the area so will probably do it again.

Becky Sawyer is a native of St. Louis, Mo.,  and earned her Masters degree in public history at UNC-Wilmington.  She is also a re-enactor .

Over the course of three years, with the assistance of Rick Morrison, Sawyer and the staff at Fort Fisher have been transcribing letters of the Sydney Stockbridge who served as clerk on the USS Pawtuxet in the Second Battle of Fort Fisher (whose anniversary is January 15).

These letters are on loan from Joe Stockbridge  of Surry, Maine,  the great nephew of Sydney Stockbridge.

--Old B-Runner

Seaman Dennis Conlan's Fort Fisher Medal of Honor

From the Jan. 5, 2020, Ammoland Shooting Sports News : "Medal of Honor Monday:   Navy seaman David Conlan."

Born 1838 in New York City.  Age about 26 when his actions earned him a Congressional Medal of Honor, which occurred December 23, 1864, during the First Battle of Fort Fisher.

Conlan was serving aboard the USS Agawam when he and several others volunteered to  pack the USS Louisiana with explosives and take it in close to Fort Fisher and blow it up with the hope that the concussion of explosion would damage or even knock down the fort.

Late at night, it was towed in close to Fort Fisher by the USS Wilderness to within 300 yards of the fort's Northeast Bastion.  Once in place, Conlon and the others lit the elaborate fuse and clockwork system then built backup fires in the stern.

They then abandoned the ship and went back to the Wilderness and joined the rest of the fleet about 12 miles away to await the explosion.

Unfortunately, the breeze and strong undertow had driven the Louisiana further off the beach than expected and the explosion did no damage to the fort other than awaken some.

But, all ten men who volunteered for the mission were awarded Medals of Honor.

--Old B-Runner

Southport-Fort Fisher Ferry to Close for Three Months

From WITN NBC News,Wilmington, N.C.

This is important news to all visitors to Fort Fisher, especially with the 155th anniversary of the Second Battle of Fort Fisher coming up soon.

It is being closed for three months to make repairs and update ramp equipment and closed Monday, Jan. 6.  The $3 million project is expected to be finished by April.

This closure will be a headache to tourists and commuters as the 30-minute trip across the Cape Fear River there, will now involve an hour-plus trip to go north and through Wilmington with all its traffic and photo-enforced stoplights.

--Old B-Ferry

January 7, 1865: Sherman Places Blame for Failure of First Attack on Fort Fisher

JANUARY 7, 1865:  General Sherman writing to Rear Admiral Dahlgren about his plans for the Carolina Campaign closed with his thoughts on the attack on Fort Fisher in December:  The more I think on the affair at Wilmington the more I feel ashamed of the army there; but Butler is at fault, and he alone.

"Admiral Porter fulfilled his share to admiration.  I think the admiral will feel more confidence in my troops, as he saw us carry points on the Mississippi where he had silenced with fire.  All will turn out for the best yet."

There are no other daily accounts of the Second Battle of Fort Fisher until January 12, when the fleet arrived at Fort Fisher for the attack.

--Old B-Runner

January 6, 1865: Army on the Move Against Fort Fisher

JANUARY 6, 1865:   Army transports carrying nearly 10,000 troops of the Federal Army depart Hampton Roads, Virginia, in route for Fort Fisher.

--Old B-Runner

January 4, 1865: Porter's Plan For a Sailor Assault on Fort Fisher

JANUARY 4TH, 1865:   Rear Admiral Porter, laying meticulous plans for the second Fort Fisher attack, ordered each of his commanding officers to "detail as many of his men as he can spare from the guns as a landing party."

They were to be armed with cutlasses and revolvers, and were to hit the beach when the assault signal was made "and board the fort in a seaman-like way.  The marines will form in the rear and cover  the sailors.  While the soldiers are going over the parapets in front, the sailors will take the sea face of Fort Fisher."

--Old B-Runner

January 3, 1865: Terry Appointed to Command Troops Attacking Fort Fisher

JANUARY 3RD, 1865:  General Grant ordered Major General Alfred H. Terry to command the troops intended for the second attack on Fort Fisher.  "I have served with Admiral Porter," he wrote, "and know that you can rely on his judgment and his nerve to undertake what he proposes.  I would, therefore,  defer to him as much as is consistent with with your own responsibilities."

The same day Grant wrote Porter that he was sending Terry to work with him and wished the Admiral "all sorts of good weather and success...."

--Old B-Runner

Doing A Real Time Thing Leading Up to the Capture of Fort Fisher

Starting with January 1, I am attempting to do a real-time countdown to the fall of Fort Fisher on January 15, 1865.

I am using the Civil War Naval Chronology to do this.

--Old B-Runner

Jan. 2, 1865: Welles Proposes Attack on Fort Caswell to Close Wilmington

JANUARY 2ND, 1865:  In September 1864, Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles had discussed with Vice Admiral Farragut the importance of seizing Wilmington to cut General Lee's vital link with Europe and to stop the Confederacy's credit-producing cotton shipments abroad.

He now called on Secretary of War Stanton's attention to the present "fit opportunity to undertake such an operation."

 Pointing to the availability of troops, "as the armies are mostly going into winter quarters," he urged on Stanton a proposal of Rear Admiral Porter to land an assault force at Fort Caswell, guarding the west entrance to the Cape Fear River, and stressed that the naval blockaders, which thus would be able to lie inside the river, would close Wilmington, "the only port by which any supplies whatever reach the rebels."

--Old B-Runner

January 1, 1865: Fort Fisher Attack To Be Renewed-- Part 2: "Day and Night" Preparations

Porter replied immediately to Grant:  "...thank God we are not to leave here with so easy a victory at hand...."

He assured his old Vicksburg colleague that he would "work day and night to be ready."

At Fort Fisher, mindful of general Lee's message that the work must be held at all costs or the Army of Northern Virginia could not be supplied, Colonel William Lamb and his garrison readied themselves for further attacks forecast by the sizable Federal  naval force which had remained off the Cape Fear River entrances since the first attempt to take the fort in December had broken off.

--Old B-Runner

January 1, 1865: Fort Fisher Attack To Be Renewed, Porter Gets Ready

JANUARY 1ST, 1865:  Receiving General Grant's December 30 notification of a renewed Army assault on Fort Fisher with "an increased force and without the former commander [General Benjamin Butler]", Rear Admiral Porter acted vigorously to set up a massive and overwhelming attack behind the fleet's heavy guns.

He directed that his 43 warships  concentrate at Beaufort, North Carolina, and the 23 on station off the Cape Fear River send in their operational charts for corrections and on-load "every shell that can be carried" for shore bombardment.

--Old B-R'er

The 9th Year and 4022nd Post of This Blog

Well, I guess I missed the big 4000th post.

But this is now the 9th year of this blog and this is the 4022nd post.  It started in 2012.

This blog grew out of my Saw the Elephant:  The Civil War blog.  When it comes to the war, I am a bigger naval fan and I saw that the other blog was beginning to be the main part so started this one.

It was also the sesquicentennial of the Civil War.

The sign-off names (Old B-Runner and Old B-R'er) come from the blockade running, and, of course, I'm a bit old.

--Old B-Runner