James Crosby Long, CSN-- Part 2: Service

Served on:

C.S.R.S.  (Confederate States Receiving Ship) United States 11861

CSS Curlew 1861-62

CSS Virginia; participated in the Battle of Hampton Roads, Va., March 8-9, 1862

Drewry's Bluff, Va. 1862

CSS Steamers Richmond and Patrick Henry, James River Squadron 1862-63

CSS Savannah, Savannah Squadron, 1863-64

CSS Albemarle, 1864

Blockade Runner Owl, 1865

Old B-R'er

In Honor of the USMC's Birthday Today: The Confederate States Marine Corps

The official birthday of the USMC on November 10, 1775.  On this day, the Second Continental Congress established the Continental Marines.  All across the world, Marines, current and retired, will be celebrating today.

There was also a little-known second Marine Corps and that was the CSMC, The Confederate States Marine Corps from 1861 to 1865.  It was set up the same way as the USMC.

I was preparing a list of Confederate States Navy and Marines captured at Fort Fisher from Richard Triebe's book "Confederate Fort Fisher: A Roster 1864-1865"and will list some of the Marines today.

**  Ranson J. Adcock, private, Co. B, CSMC.  Duty on CSS Tallahassee.

**  James Barrett, Co. E, CSMC.  Duty on CSS Savannah  (Sailors and Marines from the Savannah Station were transferred to Wilmington after that city fell to Sherman)

**  Michael Bow, private, Co. B, CSMC, Duty on CSS Richmond and CSS Tallahassee.  Wounded in breast and bowels.  Not sent to prison.  Died of wounds at Fort Fisher Jan. 17, 1865.

--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

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

155 Years Ago, December 26, 1861: Action At Savannah

DECEMBER 26TH, 1861:  Confederate fleet, including the CSS Savannah, Commodore Tattnall, Resolute, Sampson, Ida and Barton, attacked Union blockading ships at the mouth of the Savannah River.  Before returning to his anchorage under the guns of Fort Pulaski, Tattnall forced the blockaders to move seaward temporarily.

**  USS Rhode Island, Lt. Trenchard, captured Confederate schooner Venus southeast of Sabine Pass, off the Louisiana coast.

--Old B-Runner

155 Years Ago, November 26, 1861: Engagement at Savannah

NOVEMBER 26TH, 1861:  The CSS Savannah, Commodore Tattnall, and three steamers sortied against the Union fleet at Cockspur Roads, Savannah; unsuccessful in effort to draw blockading vessels within range of Fort Pulaski's guns.

**  CSS Sumter, Commander Semmes, captured and burned American schooner Arcade  north of the Leeward Islands.

--Old B-Runner

CSS Savannah: Pride of the Savannah Squadron

The CSS Savannah was a Richmond-class casemate ironclad built in Savannah by H.F. Willink.  It was 150 feet long, 34 feet wide with a crew of 180, mounting two 7-inch rifled cannons and two 6.4-inch rifled cannons.

It was commissioned into Confederate service June 30, 1863 in the squadron commanded by Flag officer William H. Hunter.  Under command of Commander Robert F. Pinckney, it was reputed to be the most efficient vessel in the squadron.

However, it never engaged Union ships and was destroyed as Sherman captured its city that it guarded.

--Old B-Runner

Where Confederate Ironclads Cruised: Savannah River

Sitting here typing away in the middle of a storm at the Holiday Inn Express in downtown Savannah overlooking the Savannah River.

Just thinking that a little over 150 years ago, ships and ironclads of the Savannah River Squadron would have been in the river.

Actually, three ironclads were built here during the war.

CSS Atlanta, a 204-foot ironclad built from the hull of the blockade-runner Fingal.  This ship was captured by Union monitors and became the USS Atlanta.

CSS Georgia, 1862, the "Ladies' Gunboat," built by contribitions of the women of Savannah.  This ship was underpowered and turned into a floating battery anchored by Fort Jackson.  It was destroyed to prevent capture when Sherman captured Savannah.  It is currently being raised for the widening and deepening of the river channel.

CSS Savannah, 1862.  Destroyed to prevent Shereman from capturing it.

--Old B-Runner

Confederates Destroy the Savannah Squadron Before the Fall of the City-- Part 2

Then Thomas Brent continued: "....Under these circumstances it did not seem to me possible to carry out the instructions of the Department in regard to taking the Savannah to sea and fighting her way into this [Charleston] or some other port."

After attempting to move the smaller of his vessels upriver, Flag Officer Hunter this date destroyed the CSS Savannah, Isondiga, Firefly and floating battery Georgia,

General Sherman occupied Savannah on December 23rd, having fought his way across Georgia to the sea where he knew the mobility of the Union's seapower would be ready to provide him with support, supplies and means of carrying out his next operation, a march through South Carolina and into North Carolina.

--Old B-Runner

Confederates Try to Save Remnants of the Savannah Squadron-- Part 1

DECEMBER 21ST, 1864:  The Confederate Navy continued vigorous efforts to save the remnants of the Savannah squadron still at the city on the eve of its capture.  On 10 December Commander Thomas Brent of the CSS Savannah, ordered the torpedoes in Savannah Harbor removed in order that his vessels might fight their way to Charleston, S.C..

As Brent later reported to Flag Officer Hunter: "...after every endeavor he found that with all the appliances at his command, grapnels, etc., he was unable with the motive power of the boats to remove any of them, the anchors to which they are attached being too firmly embedded in the sand...."

--Old B-Runner

150 Years Ago Today: November 9, 1863-- The Confederate Navy at Savannah

NOVEMBER 9TH:

Intelligence on Confederate ships in Georgia reached Union Army and Navy commanders. The CSS SAVANNAH, Cmdr. Robert F. Pinckney, had two 7-inch and two 6-inch Brooke rifled guns and a torpedo mounted on her bow as armament and two other torpedoes in her hold. Her sides were plated with 4 inches of rolled iron and her speed in smooth water was about seven knots.

The CSS ISONDIGA was a wooden steamer reported to have old boilers and "unreliable" machinery.

The frames of two other rams were on the stocks at Savannah, but no iron could be obtained to complete them.

The CSS RESOLUTE was thought to be awaiting to run the blockade and had been converted to a tender. All cotton in Savannah being transferred to Wilmington to run the blockade.

The CSS GEORGIA was a floating battery commanded by Lt. Washington Gwathmey, CSN, was anchored near Fort Jackson and reported to be a failure.

Such intelligence enabled the Union to constantly update the blockade. Obviously, with perhaps the exception of the CSS Savannah, there was no threat at Savannah and the fact that cotton was being moved to Wilmington meant that the port had successfully been closed.

--Old B-R'er

CSS Oconee (Savannah)-- Part 2

The CSS Savannah (late CSS Oconee) was attached to Flag Officer Josiah Tattnall's fleet, whose ships were so small, it was dubbed the "Mosquito Fleet," one of two in Confederate service, the other being in the sounds of North Carolina around Roanoke Island.

The ships of this impromptu fleet, based out of Savannah, consisted of the Savannah and three converted tugs, the Resolute, Sampson and Lady Davis.

--Old B-Runner

CSS Oconee-- Part 1

From July 2013 to April 2014, I was unable to use paragraphs in any of my blogs.  I am now going back in 2018 and putting them in where they should be.  This is what my blogs looked like during the no paragraph period.

Last month, I wrote about the CSS Oconee sinking in a storm in the Atlantic Ocean. I'd never heard of it so some more research was in order. ////  From the New Georgia Encyclopedia. /// This was the second of three ships named CSS Savannah. The first one was a privateer that had a very short career. The second CSS Savannah was a wooden gunboat (the third was an ironclad). Later, this one was referred to as the Old Savannah. /// Originally it was a sidewheel steamer named Everglades built in 1856 in New York and purchased by the state of Georgia and converted into a 406-ton gunboat mounting one 32-pounder cannon. And, it was under the command of one Lt. John Newland Maffitt, whom I have been writing about a lot lately in connection with his command of the Confederate commerce raider CSS Florida. /// --Old B-Runner

Naval Happenings 150 Years Ago: June 27 to 30th, 1863-- The Naval Side of Gettysburg

JUNE 27TH

CSS Florida, Lt. Maffitt, seized and bonded whaling schooner V.H. Hill en route to Bermuda.


JUNE 28TH

Rear Admiral Dahlgren noted in his private journal that the French Admiral had told him that he thought there were torpedoes near Fort Sumter "and that fifteen monitors might take it if they fired faster.  He said we fired once in eleven or twelve minutes for each turret."

CSS Georgia captured City of Bath near Brazil.

JUNE 28TH-30TH

As Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia moved into Maryland and Pennsylvania (Battle of Gettysburg), Washington, Annapolis and Baltimore were threatened.  The US Navy Department ordered Rear Admiral S.P. Leeto send ships for their defense.


JUNE 30TH

Captain Semmes of the CSS Alabama wrote that it had been two years since he ran the bklockade in the CSS Sumter.  They had been an exciting two years with all the cruising and capturing.

Captain Josiah Tattnall wrote Cmdr. William W. Hunter that the inronclad steamer Savannah was ready except for its officers, but "I have the pleasure to transfer her to your command."

Old B-R'er

Lt. Thomas Pelot, CSN

From the Pelot family genealogy.

Thomas Postell Pelot was born June 28 or 29, 1835. He is buried in Lot 778, Laurel Grove Cemetery.

He married Clara Therese Freeman of Beaufort, SC, who is buried at Magnolia Cemetery in Charleston, SC.

Pelot followed in the footsteps of his uncle John Francis Pelot and became a midshipman in the US Navy, entering in 1846. he also graduated from the US Naval Academy.

In 1862, he was ordered to take command of the CSS Savannah. There is a memorial for him at Magnolia Cemetery.

A Confederate Hero. --Old B-Runner