Some More Information on Thomas Randall and Little River Before and After the War

From the Little River Chamber of Commerce and Visitors Center.

Until recently, a burned out hulk of a house towered over a grassy slope near the harbor in Little River.  It was the Randall-Vereen House, one of the oldest in Horry County.

The house was one of three built by Captain Thomas Randall of New England, who came to Little River after the War of 1812.  For a time, Little River was called "Yankee Town" by the rest of the county, because a few people from New England had come to live there.

The village became a prosperous port in the 1850s, shipping  fine lumber and naval stores to Northern markets.  It had a saw mill, waterhouse, stores, school and bank.   Several churches were organized and b people built nice homes.

The Civil War, however, wiped out this progress.  A large salt works produced much needed salt for the Confederate Army until it was burned by Union forces.  Shipping and fishing was at a standstill with the coastal blockade.

--Old B-Runner

Thomas Randall's Plantation (Site of Fort Randall)

Fort Randall was built on his property and named after him.

From South Carolina Plantations  "Thomas Randall's Plantation -- Little River --  Horry County."

**  Location:  Little River,  All Saint's Parish, Horry County

Located east of US 17 in the vicinity of Little River Neck

**  Origin of the name:  Named for the owner

**  Other names:  Tilghman Point; Little River in modern times

**  Current status:  privately owned

TIME LINE

1860s:  A Confederate battery was constructed on the property on a  bluff overlooking Little River Inlet.  It was known as Fort Randall.

An outline of it can be seen today.

1920s:  Horace Tilghman , Sr. purchased the property (hence Tilghman's Point name.

--Old B-Runner

Fort Randall Historical Marker

From The Historical Marker database.

Near North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, the Home of Carolina Beach Music.  Get your history and do a little dancing too at Fat Harold's and HOTO's.

INSCRIPTION:

Locaterd  about 5 miles east of here, this Confederate fort included a blockhouse pierced for muskets and earthworks surrounded by a ditch about 10 foot broad and five feet deep.

The fort was captured Jan 1863 by U.S. Navy  Lt. Wm. B. Casuhing and twenty-five men while looking for blockade-runner pilots.  Cushing held the fort briefly until his supply of ammunition was  exhausted.

Erected 1976 by the Horry County Historic Preservation Commission.  (Marker  Number 26-4)

--Old B-Runner

Fort Randall-- Part 4: The USS Maratanza

The Confederates returned to Fort Randall after William Cushing and his men left.

About a month after Cushing's attack on Fort Randall, it was mentioned again in a report filed by  James Gibney and George Smith, both  acting ensigns aboard the USS Maratanza.

The two men led a reconnaissance up the Little River to see if there were any blockade runners there.

They encountered a boat with five men in it and ordered them to stop and be searched.  Instead,  the men in the boat beached it and higtailed it into the woods.

In the boat, they found  weapons and supplies meant for Fort Randall.

All that remains of Fort Randall today is a clearly defined footprint of the fortification.  It commands  a spectaular view.

Old B-Runner

Fort Randall and Cushing-- Part 3: Action at the Fort

"At 8 o'clock at night I crossed the bar with three cutters and  25 men and proceeded up the river.  My object was to look for pilots, and also to find some schooners supposed to be inside," reported William Cushing.

After meeting light resistance, Cushing beached his boats and formed his men about 200 yards from Fort Randall.

"Knowing that the enemy was ignorant of our numbers, I charged with bayonet and captured their works, going over one side as they escaped over the other," he wrote.

In the abandoned camp, Cushing found a blockhouse pierced for muskets, but no cannons.  Apparently they had been taken to more strategic forts.

"The enemy left in such haste that their stores, clothing, ammunition and a portion of their arms were captured.  I destroyed all that I could not bring away," wrote Cushing.  "I went a short distance up the river; had another skirmish; did not see the schooners; got out of ammunition and returned with the loss of but one man shot in the leg."

--Old B-Runner

Fort Randall and Cushing-- Part 2: A Daring Raid...of Course

At the onset of the war,  recognizing the importance of defending the inlet and the village of Little River, Confederates  ordered the construction of an earthen fort on Thomas Randall's land overlooking the inlet.

The fort, actually more of a battery, consisted of  a moat aprroximately ten feet wide and five feet deep.  It had a parapet and a blockhouse from which defenders could fire with protection.

Captain Thomas Dagget, commander of the Waccamaw  Light Artillery onstalled two  six-inch cannons at Fort Randall.  (He also commanded Fort  Ward, believed to have been at nearby Murrells Inlet.

According to Union naval records, there was considerable blockade running done at  the Little River Inlet.  The blockade runners brought in valuable war supplies and left with locally-produced cargo such as resin, turpentine, cotton and lumber.

In January, 1863,  Union naval officer Lt. William Barker Cushing made a daring raid on Fort Randall.

Well, that answers that question.

William Barker Cushing it was.  Of course, in 1864, he achieved even bigger acclaim for sinking the Confederate ironclad CSS Albemarle.

--Old B-Runner

Blockade Runners at Little River Inlet-- Part 1: Was It or Was It Not Will?

From the August 3, 2022, My Horry News (South Carolina) "Blockade runners sought  refuge in Little River Inlet" by Steve Robertson.

The Little River flows into the Atlantic Ocean at the North Carolina-South Carolina border.

With Wilmington to the north and Charleston to the south coming under increasing Union blockade throughout the war, blockade runners increasingly turned to remote and isolated points like Horry County, South Carolina, to deliver their cargoes.

To protect them, Confederates set up small forts in Little River and Murrell's Inlet.  The remnants of one of them, Fort Randall, can be seen by alert boaters traversing the Intercoastal Waterway near Little River.

The Vol.  36, No. 4 edition on the Independent Republic Quarterly, reveal that a surprise attack on this fort ended with a Confederate rout by a small party of Union sailors.  (And, when I see a sneak attack in the area around Wilmington, North carolina, the name William Cushing immediately comes to mind.)

The fort was named for  Captain Thomas Randall, a large landowner who lived on the eastern end of  Little River Neck.

Was This a William Barker Cushing Production?  --Old B-Runner

William Edward Hudgins, CSN

From Find-A-Grave.

WILLIAM EDWARD HUDGINS

BIRTH:  14 March 1838, Matthews County, Virginia

DEATH:  27 July  1920 (aged 82)  Norfolk City, Virginia

 BURIAL:  Elmwood Cemetery,  Norfolk City, Virginia

Gravestone lists him as Lieut.  C.S. Navy.

Parents:  Robert King Hudgins (1812-1903) and Sarah James White Hudgins  (1816-1891)

--Old B-Runner

William D. Hudgins, CSN, at Fort Fisher

From "Confederate Fort Fisher:  A Roster 1864-1865" by Richard H. Triebe.

WILLIAM D. HUDGINS     (I've seen his middle name most often as E..

1st Lieutenant

Confederate States Navy

Joined May 26, 1863, from Matthews County, Virginia.  Age unknown.

Duty on the CSS Savannah.

Wounded in mouth by a shell fragment while defending the Sea Face of Fort Fisher.

Captured.  Prison at Fort Monroe, Virginia.

Exchanged April 26, 1865.

--Old B-Runner

Just Too Cute: Three Baby Otter Pups at Fort Fisher

Unfortunately, I am unable to figure out how to add pictures to this or any of my other seven blogs.  I lost the ability and haven't been able to figure out how to do it.

But, if you really want to see something cute, just search otter pups at Fort Fisher and you will see what I mean.

They are at the North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher, which is on the grounds of the former Confederate fort.

The folks there are looking to have people vote on names for them.  Though my three ideas for names aren't on their list, I'm backing Lamb, Whiting and Maffitt, three names connected to the fort during the Civil War.

After all, they must be Confederate otters.

Just Too Cute.  I Want One.  --Old B-Otter

William E. Hudgins, CSN

Same source as Albert Gallatin Hudgins.

Here is one of the men the person from the previous post was asking questions about.  Was he related to Albert Hudgins?  I don't know.  Both were from Virginia, though.

WILLIAM E. HUDGINS

Born and apointed from Virginia.  Formerly U.S. Revenue Service.  Captain in Virginia  revenue service.

Original entry into Confederate Navy  May 26, 1863.  Lieutenant for the war January 7, 1864, to rank from May 26, 1863.  First lieutenant  Provisional Navy, June 2,  1864, to rank from January 6, 1864.

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

Served on Yorktown  Naval Battery, 1861.

CSS Savannah, Savannah Squadron 1863-1864.

Wounded, captured January 15, 1865, Fort Fisher; paroled April 26, 1865.

And, He Was At Fort Fisher. And That Really Piques My Interest.  --Old B-Runner

Was There a Hudgins Family Fighting for the Confederate Navy?

From Geneaology "Hudgins, family of naval officers from Va." by David M. Sullivan.

He was looking for information as to whether these men were all related and served in either the United States and/or Confederate navies.

Albert Gallatin Hudgins  (He definitely was in both the U.S. and Confederate navies.)

These next four men are all listed on the list of Confederate officers.

Lewis M(Minor?) Hudgins

Robert K. Hudgins

 Thomas Jefferson Hudgins

 William E. Hudgins

Well, according to my last post, Albert Galatin Hudgins did.

--Old B-Runner

Albert Gallatin Hudgins, CSN

From Texas History  "Register of Officers of the Confederate States Navy, 1861-1865)

ALBERT GALLATIN HUDGINS

Born and appointed from Virginia.  Resigned as acting midshipman, U.S. Navy, March 11, 1861.  Acting master , September 24, 1861.  Lieutenant for the war, February 8, 1862,   Second lieutenant September 8, 1862. Second lieutenant, October 23, 181862, to rank from October 2, 1862.

First lieutenant Provisional Navy, June 2,  1864, to rank from January 6, 1864.

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

Served on the CSS  Sumter, 1861, wounded and captured while in charge of prize brig  Cuba, July   8, 1861; exchanged  at Aiken's Landing, Virginia, August  5, 1862.

CSS Baltic, Mobile Squadron, 1862-1863.  Drewry's Bluff, Virginia, 1863.  Participated in the expedition for the capture of  U.S. steamers Satellite and Reliance,  August 23, 1863.  Johnsons Island  expedition, 1863.

C.S. steamers  Raleigh and Arctic, Wilmington Station,  1863-1864.

Special duty, 1864.  CSS Bombshell; captured in Albemarle Sound, May 5, 1864, ; paroled at Charleston, South Carolina, December  15, 1864.

C.S. steamers  Virginia (No. 2) and Richmond, James River squadron, 1865.

Semmes Naval Brigade 1865.  Paroled at Greensboro, North Carolina,  April 28, 1865.

--Old B-Runner

USS Merrimack

Today, the McHenry County Civil War Round Table will be hearing a presentation from Dave Noe on the USS Merrimack, the ship that became the Confederate ironclad CSS Virginia.

Here are some facts about the USS Merrimack:

From Wikipedia.

The USS Merrimack is also sometimes called the USS Merramac and was a steam frigate (powered by a screw propreller).  One of six ordered in 1854.  The others were the  Wabash, Roanoke,  Niagara,  Minnesota and Colorado. (The Minnesota, Colorado and Wabash were at Fort Fisher.)   The Roanoke became an ironclad herself featuring three turrets.  The Niagara spent most of the Civil War in Europe.

The Merrimack was named after a river that starts in New Hampshire and flows to Merrimac, Massachusetts, on the Atlantic Ocean which causes the confusion in spelling.

It was launched by the Boston Navy Yard 15 June 1855. Commander was Captain  Garrett J. Pendergrast.

--Old B-Runner

20th Anniversary of Monitor's Turret Recovery-- Part 3

The recovery, preservation and display of the USS Monitor turret has been a tremendous success.  Howard H. Hoege III, President and CEO of  the Mariner's Museum, told Bay  Bulletin, "About two thirds of our visitors report that that the USS Monitor exhibit was the best part of their visit to the museum.  Last week, we had a French film crew here to document our conservation of the USS Monitor."

Preservation of the turret is ongoing.  According to Hoege,  "No one has ever conducted a restoration of this scale before, so we don't know exactly how long it will take.  The next step will be to turn  the turret over (it is upside down now), remove the top, and continue treatment of the two separate parts."

Originally, the thought was to raise the entire ship, but its hull was too far gone for any attempt to be made.

In addition, there is a full scale model of the Monitor on the Mariners' Museum grounds.

--Old B-Runner

20th Anniversary of Recovery of USS Monitor's Turret-- Part 2

From the August 2, 2022, Chesapeake Bay Magazine"Anniversary celebration: Ironclad Civil War  ship's turret pulled from the ocean" by Kendall Osborne.

It was 20 years ago this week that the turret of the famous USS Monitor was pulled off the ocea floor of North Carolina.

The ship of course, had that famous battle with the ironclad CSS Vorginia at Hampton Roads, Virginia, on March 9, 1862, and then  sank the last day of 1862 before being found in August 1973.  Exploration and recovery  began with smaller pars of the ship being brought up like the propeller.  The largest piece broke  the surface of the Atlantic Ocean on August 5, 2002, the turret and was taken to the Mariners' Museum for preservation.

The recovery of the turret was no small feat.  It took 41 days and 160 divers, mostly from the U.S. Navy, to get the turret to the surface, and it has since most of the last twenty years in an Electrolyte Reduction (ER) System in a 90,000 gallon tank to keep it protected.

--Old B-Runner

20th Anniversary Celebration Today at Mariners' Museum for Recovery of the Monitor's Turret

From the Chesapeake Bay Magazine.

The Mariners' Museum in Virginia, which is also the home and offices of the Monitor National Marine Sanctuary (MNMS), will celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Moniior' turret recovery today, August 6.

There will be a scavenger hunt and visitors of all ages can dig through concretion (the goop that surrounds artifacts on the sea floor) to find additional artifacts. (That sounds really neat to me.)

Representatives from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) will guide visitors through a virtual dive to the wreck of the Monitor through virtual reality headsets.  There will be additional personnel throughout the museum to give visitors additional and interesting  information about specific exhibits.

At 11 am, Dr. John Broadwater, the former superintendent of the MNMS, will describe how the national marine sanctuary, NOAA, the Navy, The Mariners' Museum and other agencies recovered the Monitor's turret and other artifacts.

After lunch, Will Hoffman, director of conservation and chief conservator, will discuss efforts to preserve the turret over the last twenty years.  He will also discuss the 220 tons of other recovered artifacts from the site.

Sure Wish I Could Be There.  --Old B-Runner

USS George Mangham: A Mortar Boat

The last two posts mentioned a Union ship I'd never heard of before, so you know what that means.  Wikipedia, here I come.

From Wikipedia.

USS GEORGE MANGHAM

The George Mangham was a wooden schooner built in 1854 and acquired by the Union Navy at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 21 September 1861 and commissioned at Philadelphia Navy Yard 11 January 1862.  Acting Master  John Collins, Jr., was commander.  It was a mortar boat.

GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS

110 feet length

28  foot beamSpeed:  10 knots

Armament:  

One 13-inch mortar

two 32-pounder guns

Continued September 10.

--Old B-Runner

Maybe This Is the Blockade Runner Dan?-- Part 2

In the afternoon of January 7, 1864,  both the Aries and Montgomery left for their blockade stations and the rebel steamer was boarded by the Mangham's  executive officer, who reported that some of the ship's cargo was still aboard.

Collins did not deem it advisable to stay around any longer as night was approaching and did not make any effort to get any of the cargo.  The Union ship then set sail to get farther outside and just after they sailed a short distance, the rebel steamer  exploded with a great crash.  He believed that the fires set by  Union forces the day before had reached her powder.

During the day, groups of rebel cavalry were seen at various points along the beach but no resistance made by them.

So, Was This the Blockade Runner Dan?  --Old B-Runner

Maybe This Is the Blockade Runner Dan?-- Part 1

Again, finding out about this blockade runner is not easy.  However, I came across this entry in the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion of the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron and the parameters seem to fit the hapless steamer Dan.

Page 224

Report of Acting Master John Collins, Jr., U.S. Navy, commanding  U.S.  schooner  George Mangham, regarding  the destruction of a blockade runner at Lockwood's Folly Inlet, January 7, 1864.

On the afternoon of the 7th, a sail was spotted and the George Mangham got underway and discovered it was a blockade runner being closely pursued by the  U.S. steamers Aries and Montgomery and that it had run ashore.  The U.S. ships sent  boats  in after her.  These boats lost a number of men, including one boat from the Montgomery.

The next moring, the George Mangham was requested to cover a second landing at the blockade runner with the purpose of bringing her off the beach.  The Mangham anchored close in and shelled the beach and rebel steamer at intervals during the morning.

--Old B-Runner