George B. Livingston-- Part 2

"USS Despatch," special service, 1878-9;  "USS Enterprise," European Station, 1879-81; Torpedo  Instructor, 1881.

The USS Despatch was involved in the Virginius Affair.

Promoted to Lieutenant-Commander, October, 1881;  "USS Adams," Pacific Squadron, 1882-3:  R.S. "USS Colorado," 1883-4; store-ship "USS  Monongahela, 1883-4; commanding store-ship "USS Monongahela," 1885-6; Navy Yard, New York, 1889; Navy Yard, Norfolk, 1889-90.

--Old b-Runner

The North Carolina Floating Battery Sunk by a Confederate Torpedo

Same source as the last post.

FLOATING BATTERY

Length 20 feet, beam 20 feet, height 8 feet, armor 1.5 foot iron, with six inch oak on two sides.  Armed with six guns on three sides.

Anchored eight miles above Plymouth on the Roanoke River in 2.5-3 fathoms with 2-3 foot of casemate above water.

Was sunk by a floating Confederate torpedo and burned on April 8, 1865, by a launch from the USS Iosco and a cutter from the USS Mattabesett.

Located at Gray's Fisher.  Was removed in 1873 under a contract with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

--Old B-Runner

CSS Marion Sunk By Torpedo in Charleston Harbor-- Part 2

Continued from October 22.

The Marion sank after drifting onto a torpedo it had previously placed, and the bottom of her hull was blown out.

The Marion sank in just thirty seconds on the night of April 6, 1863, off Charleston in 30 feet of water at the mouth of the Ashley River neat the  mouth of Wappoo Creek.

Captain John Floyer was killed, and the ship's machinery destroyed.

--Old B-Runner

CSS Marion Sunk By a Torpedo in Charleston Harbor-- Part 1: Blown Up By Torpedo It Had Placed in Harbor

On May 1, I wrote about Major John Johnson's corrections from his book on "The Defense of Charleston Harbor, Fort Sumter and Adjacent Islands."

One of the corrections dealt with the sinking of the Confederate transport Marion where he said "The Confederate transport Marion was sunk by a torpedo while placing them in the Ashley River (Charleston Harbor) on April 6, 1863."

From "The Encyclopedia of Civil War Shipwrecks" by W. Craig Gaines.

CSS MARION

Confederate.  Sidewheel transport steamer, 258 tons.  Length 132 feet, beam 30 feet, depth 7 feet 2 inches.

Built in 1850 in Charleston, S.C.

Drifted onto a torpedo it had earlier positioned, and the bottom of its hull blew out.

Oops.  Kind of Embarrassing To Get Blown Up By Your Own Torpedo.   --Old B-Runner

Edward Simpson, USN-- Part 3: Postwar Service

I'd never heard of Edward Simpson before this.

After the war, Simpson alternated duty ashore and afloat with tours of ordnance work.  He also was on a mission to Europe in 1870-1872.    Command of the Navy's Naval Torpedo Station was in 1873-1875.

By 1880, he was officer in charge of Naval Station New London, Connecticut.  In 1883, he  was appointed president of a board  to select a site for a government gun factory and made another study trip to Europe.

Promoted to Rear Admiral on February 9, 1884, he served  as President of the Naval Advisory Board and President  of the Board of Inspection  and Survey until his retirement  on March 3, 1886.

Rear Admiral Simpson died  in Washington, D.C., on December 1, 1888, and is buried at Cypress Hills Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York.

--Old B-Runner

April 27, 1865: The Wreck and Disaster of the SS Sultana

APRIL 27TH, 1865:  The river steamer SS Sultana blew up in the Mississippi River above Memphis, Tennessee, killing 1,450 out of 2,000 passengers -- all but 50 of whom were former prisoners of war.  She was en route to Cairo, Illinois, when a violent explosion ripped her apart and turned her into a sheet of flame.

The cause of the explosion has never been determined, but one of the theories advanced was that of a coal torpedo -- such as the one that was suspected of having destroyed Army steamer Greyhound on 27 November 1864 -- had been slipped into the steamer's coal bin.

This was largely overlooked with all the Lee surrender, Lincoln assassination and pursuit of Booth.

A True Disaster.  --Old B-R'er

March 10, 1865: Difficulties in Getting to Fayetteville on the Cape Fear River-- Part 1

MARCH 10TH, 1865:  Lieutenant Commander Young reported to Porter progress in clearing the Cape Fear River for support of Sherman's troops who were now at Fayetteville.  Only small ships or  or steam launches could provide upriver service .

"The gate obstructions are all clear, so that three or four vessels can pass abreast.  The obstructions on the line of the two sunken steamers, where the buoy flags were planted, it will be necessary to take great pains to raise carefully.  We have succeeded in destroying some four torpedoes which were found lodged in the logs of the obstructions."

--Old B-Runner

March 4, 1865: Loss of Army Transport Thorn to a Torpedo in the Cape Fear River

MARCH 4TH, 1865:  The U.S. transport Thorn struck a torpedo below Fort Anderson in the Cape Fear River.  Brigadier General Gabriel J. Rains, Superintendent of the Confederate Torpedo Corps and a pioneer in the development of torpedoes, reported:  "The vessel sunk, as usual in such cases, in two minutes, but in this the crew escaped, but barely with their lives."

The loss of the 400 ton Army steamer within two weeks of the damage to the USS Osceola  and destruction of a launch from the USS Shawmut by torpedoes underscored the fact that although the Union controlled the waters below Wilmington it did not have complete freedom of movement.

The presence -- or even suspected presence -- of Confederate torpedoes forced the Navy to move more slowly than otherwise have been possible.

--Old B-Runner

New Theory As to Why the Submarine Hunley Sank

From the February 23, 2020, WTOC 11 Low Country News by Bill Sharpe.

On the night of February 17, 1864, the Confederate submarine Hunley sank after it used a torpedo to sing the USS Housatonic in Charleston Harbor.  It was the first warship to be sunk by a submarine in world history.

But, the Hunley never returned to its base.  Its location was just found a short time ago by writer and undersea explorer Clive Cussler, who just recently died.

Rachel Lance, a U.S. Navy biomedical engineer who holds an engineering from Duke University has made a bold claim as to why the Hunley sank that night.

In her research, she has determined that  the blast from the torpedo  sent blast waves through the submarine's iron hull and caused instant death for the men inside.

The ship was raised off the Charleston Harbor floor in 2000 and now sits at the Hunley Museum in North Charleston, South Carolina.

This is not a new story, but interesting anyway.

--Old B-Runner

Feb. 19-20, 1865: The "Old Bogey" Goes Back Into Action

FEBRUARY 19TH-20TH, 1865:  One of Porter's officers wrote that "Old Bogey", the make-shift monitor fashioned by the admiral to deceive Fort Anderson's defenders (since he only had one monitor, the USS Montauk)  (See Feb. 16-17), had taken part in the action against Fort Strong:  "Johnny Reb let off his torpedoes without effect on it, and the old thing sailed across the river and grounded in the flank and rear of the enemy's lines on the eastern bank, whereupon they fell back in the night.

"She now occupies the most advanced position of the line, and Battery Lee has been banging away at her, and probably wondering why she does not answer.  Last night after a half day's fighting, the rebs sent down about 50 torpedoes; but although 'Old Bogey' took no notice of them, they kept the rest of us pretty lively as long as the ebb tide ran."

That Old Bogey.  --Old B-Runner

February 19-20, 1865: Fort Strong Engaged and Confederates Release the Torpedoes in the Cape Fear River, NC

FEBRUARY 19TH TO 20TH, 1865:  Following the evacuation of Fort Anderson, Rear Admiral Porter's gunboats steamed seven miles up the Cape Fear River to the Big Island shallows and the piling obstructions and engaged Fort Strong's five guns.  Ship's boats swept the river for torpedoes (mines) ahead of the fleet's advance.

On the night of the 20th, the Confederates released 200 floating torpedoes, which were avoided with great difficulty and kept the boat crews engaged in sweeping throughout the hours of darkness.

Although many of the gunboats safely swept with their nets, the USS Osceola, Commander J.M.B. Clitz, received hull damage and lost a paddle wheel box by an explosion.

Another torpedo destroyed a boat from the USS Shawmut, inflicting four casualties.

--Old B-Runner

155th Anniversary of the Battle of Fort Anderson This Weekend

From the February 13, 2020, Burlington (NC) Times News  ""Cape Fear Unearthed:  The Bombardment of Fort Anderson" by Hunter Ingram.

There will be a two-day living history event from 10 am to 3 pm, Saturday and Sunday, February 15-16.  It will be held at the site along the Cape Fear River on the west bank.

It will feature artillery firings,  and infantry demonstrations.  Lectures will be given by historians as well as  medical and embalming  interpretations as well as an expanded torpedo demonstration.

The fort's recently installed 32-pounder cannon will also be fired for the first time.

It is free for both daytime events.

On Saturday, the site will reopen for a nighttime  bombardment event called "Plunging Shot and Screaming Shells."   This will reenact the final hours of Fort Anderson with a heavy artillery duel, the first in North Carolina since 1865.

Tickets to the nighttime event are $10 or $15 at the door.

--Old B-R'er

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

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

Butler's Steamship Greyhound: The End

Admiral Porter described the Greyhound in his memoirs as deserving "her name, for she was a long, lean-looking craft and the fastest steamer on the river."

But it was not the fastest steamer for much longer.

Porter continued in his memoirs and wrote about her last voyage, a few miles below Bermuda Hundred, Virginia, "a torpedo" blew out the engine room and set the ship afire, the admiral, general, their staffs and crew  barely escaping as the Greyhound was "wrapped in flames from one end to another" in a final"grand spectacle."

Some Southern saboteurs had planted one or more torpedoes in the bunkers disguised as chunks of coal, which the stokers dutifully shoveled into the fires.

Very Sneaky.  --Old B-Runner

Nov. 27, 1864: A Coal Torpedo Destroys Butler's Headquarters-- Part 2

As Admiral Porter later described the incident:  "We had left Bermuda Hundred five or six miles behind us when suddenly an explosion forward startled us, and in a moment large volumes of smoke poured out of the out of the engine-room."

The admiral went on to marvel at the ingenuity which nearly cost him his wife:  "In devices for blowing up vessels the Confederates were far ahead of us, putting Yankee ingenuity to shame."

This device was suspected of being the cause of several unexplained explosions during the war.

--Old B-Runner

November 27, 1864: Explosion and Fire Destroys General Butler's Headquarters Steamer Greyhound-- Part 1

NOVEMBER 27TH, 1864:  An explosion and fire destroyed General Butler's headquarters steamer Greyhound, on the James River, Virginia, and narrowly missed killing Butler, Major General Schenck and Rear Admiral Porter who were on board for a conference on the the upcoming Fort Fisher expedition.

Because of the nature of the explosion, it is likely that one of the deadly Confederate coal torpedoes was responsible and had been planted in the Greyhound's boiler.

"The furnace door blew open," recalled Butler, "and scattered coals throughout the room."

The so-called "coal torpedo" was a finely turned piece of cast iron containing ten pounds of powder and made  to closely resemble a lump of coal, and was capable of being used with devastating effect.

--Old B-Runer

September 13, 1864: Clearing Out Those Pesky Mobile Bay Torpedoes

SEPTEMBER 13TH, 1864:  Rear Admiral Farragut's sailors continued to clear the main ship channel in Mobile Bay of torpedoes such as the one that sank the USS Tecumseh on 5 August.  He reported to Secretary Welles that 22 torpedoes had been raised.

He added:  "This part of the channel is now believed to be clear, for, though beyond doubt many more were originally anchored here, reports says they have sunk over one hundred to the bottom."

Despite the admiral's efforts, Union ships would be destroyed in the vicinity of Mobile Bay by torpedoes for months to come.

Damn the Torpedoes!!  --Old B-Runner