JUNE 29TH, 1865: Rear Admiral Thatcher sent the Navy department the Confederate flag flown from the CSS LeCompt captured by the USS Cornubia off Galveston, Texas, on 24 May.
Thatcher wrote: "It is believed to be the last rebel flag on the coast afloat captured from the rebels during the war."
--Old B-R'er
Tuesday, June 30, 2015
Waddell Describes the Whalers-- Part 1: In and Out Among the Ice Floes
Waddell described the usual whaler of that period: "The whaling vessels vary from 90 to 100 feet in length with great beam, consequently they can be turned around more easily than vessels of greater length; powerful in construction dull sailers, and sheathed for forty feet from the stern, which is generally shod with iron, they are calculated to resist contact with ice that floats in detached floes or pilot ice some sixteen feet in thickness and in abundance in the Bering Sea and northwards.
"They are equipped with boats much elevated at either end and strongly built. On the sternpost are fitted collars for lines to pass over when attached to a whale. These lines are made of white hemp from 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 inches in circumference, varying from 100 to 250 fathoms (600 to 1,500 feet) in length and coiled in large tubs, (made to fit the boats expressly for this purpose) a precautionary measure to secure their easy flight and keep them from being entangles, which might cause the boat to capsize, so rapidly does the whale move when struck by a harpoon, the lance, and a two inch muszzle blunderbus, of short barrel, constructed of iron, and weighing about 40 pounds."
A Whaling We Go. --Old B-Runner
--
"They are equipped with boats much elevated at either end and strongly built. On the sternpost are fitted collars for lines to pass over when attached to a whale. These lines are made of white hemp from 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 inches in circumference, varying from 100 to 250 fathoms (600 to 1,500 feet) in length and coiled in large tubs, (made to fit the boats expressly for this purpose) a precautionary measure to secure their easy flight and keep them from being entangles, which might cause the boat to capsize, so rapidly does the whale move when struck by a harpoon, the lance, and a two inch muszzle blunderbus, of short barrel, constructed of iron, and weighing about 40 pounds."
A Whaling We Go. --Old B-Runner
--
Monday, June 29, 2015
The Shenandoah's Single Most Successful Day-- Part 2: 38 Ships
Waddell then bonded the ship James Murray and the bark Nile then placed his 336 prisoners on board for passage to San Francisco. The latter whaler was selected for this mission because her master had died, leaving a widow and two small children on board; "the poor widow had the remains of her husband in board preserved in whiskey".
Waddell stripped the vessels of supplies and recruited nine men. He noted that their enlistment was "evidence that if they had heard any report of the military failure of the South, they had considered it unreliable".
Waddell put the torch to the ships Hillman, Nassau, Brunswick, Isaac Howland and barks Waverly, Martha, Favorite, Covington and Congress and recorded in his memoirs that "the horizon was illuminated with a fiery glare presenting a picture of indescribably grandeur, while the water was covered with black smoke mingled with flakes of fire."
This field day against American commerce climaxes a very successful cruise in which the Shenandoah captured a total of 38 American vessels valued at $1,361,983.
Lighting the Skies. --Old B-Runner
Waddell stripped the vessels of supplies and recruited nine men. He noted that their enlistment was "evidence that if they had heard any report of the military failure of the South, they had considered it unreliable".
Waddell put the torch to the ships Hillman, Nassau, Brunswick, Isaac Howland and barks Waverly, Martha, Favorite, Covington and Congress and recorded in his memoirs that "the horizon was illuminated with a fiery glare presenting a picture of indescribably grandeur, while the water was covered with black smoke mingled with flakes of fire."
This field day against American commerce climaxes a very successful cruise in which the Shenandoah captured a total of 38 American vessels valued at $1,361,983.
Lighting the Skies. --Old B-Runner
Maury Still Working On New Country to Live
JUNE 28TH, 1865: Matthew F. Maury dined with the Emperor and Empress Charlotte at the Chapultepec Palace in Mexico City. The Emperor extended the unusual courtesy to Maury of requesting that from then on, unlike others, he "remain seated when the Emperor was in the room". Empress Charlotte, the daughter of Leopold I of Belgium and first cousin to Queen Victoria, asked for his photograph for her album.
Looking for a New Country. --Old B-R'er
Looking for a New Country. --Old B-R'er
The Shenandoah's Most Successful Single Day-- Part 1: Eleven Whalers
JUNE 28TH, 1865: This date marked the most successful single day the CSS Shenandoah enjoyed as a commerce raider during her long cruise that spanned 13 months and 58,000 miles, and during which Waddell often successfully followed his conviction that "nothing is to be gained if risk is not taken." Near the narrows of the Bering Strait, Lt. Waddell fell in with a rendezvous of eleven American whalers.
The ship Brunswick of New Bedford had been stove in by an ice floe and the others had gathered either to render assistance or to bid on supplies and oil in the event the master decided to abandon ship and offer bargains. To insure that none escaped, Waddell entered the bay under the American flag and while five boats were quickly being armed and manned, he maneuvered his ship to a position in which the raider's guns commanded the whalers.
A soon as the armed boats were away, he lowered the American flag and ran up the Stars and Bars. Ten of the whalers immediately surrendered. The single exception was the Favorite of New Haven whose flag remained on the gaff defended by her drunken master flourishing a harpoon gun.
The resistance was short lived as the whaler was boarded without bloodshed.
A Good Day in the Biz. --Old B-Runner
The ship Brunswick of New Bedford had been stove in by an ice floe and the others had gathered either to render assistance or to bid on supplies and oil in the event the master decided to abandon ship and offer bargains. To insure that none escaped, Waddell entered the bay under the American flag and while five boats were quickly being armed and manned, he maneuvered his ship to a position in which the raider's guns commanded the whalers.
A soon as the armed boats were away, he lowered the American flag and ran up the Stars and Bars. Ten of the whalers immediately surrendered. The single exception was the Favorite of New Haven whose flag remained on the gaff defended by her drunken master flourishing a harpoon gun.
The resistance was short lived as the whaler was boarded without bloodshed.
A Good Day in the Biz. --Old B-Runner
Saturday, June 27, 2015
All Confederate Vessels On the Roanoke River In N.C. Now Captured
JUNE 27TH, 1865: Commander Macomb, commanding the Union naval forces in the Albemarle Sound, reported to the commander of the Atlantic Squadron that he had captured all the Confederate naval vessels in the Roanoke River.
He took possession of the sternwheel steamer Cotton Plant, the screw steamer Egypt Mills, the unfinished gunboat Halifax, and one lighter. he also seized 99 bales of cotton. The two steamers had been privately owned at one time but had been taken over by the Confederate Navy in the latter stages of the. war.
--Old B-R'er
He took possession of the sternwheel steamer Cotton Plant, the screw steamer Egypt Mills, the unfinished gunboat Halifax, and one lighter. he also seized 99 bales of cotton. The two steamers had been privately owned at one time but had been taken over by the Confederate Navy in the latter stages of the. war.
--Old B-R'er
Maury Meets Maximilian in Mexico City
JUNE 27TH, 1865: Emperor Maximilian was absent from mexico City when Matthew F. Maury arrived early in the month. In the last week he arrived and promptly gave him an audience. After other meetings, he granted Maury a long audience to present his emigration plan in full. He then had Maury leave a written draft for study.
Hiding Out. --Old B-Runner
Hiding Out. --Old B-Runner
Friday, June 26, 2015
Another Successful Day for the CSS Shenandoah: 6 Whalers in One Day
JUNE 26TH, 1865: Shortly after midnight the CSS Shenandoah commenced a highly successful day of operations. At 1"30 a.m. she sailed alongside three becalmed whalers. In short order Waddell put Nimrod, William C. Nye and Catherine to the torch, ordered their crews into small boats to be towed astern of the Shenandoah and set out in pursuit of three other sails spotted to the northward.
Next, the barks General Pike, Isabella and Gipsey were captured before noon, and, after making a cartel ship out of the General Pike and bonding her, the other two whalers were burned. "Within forty-eight hours," Waddell wrote, "the Shenandoah had destroyed and ransomed property to the value of $253,000."
--Old B-Runner
Next, the barks General Pike, Isabella and Gipsey were captured before noon, and, after making a cartel ship out of the General Pike and bonding her, the other two whalers were burned. "Within forty-eight hours," Waddell wrote, "the Shenandoah had destroyed and ransomed property to the value of $253,000."
--Old B-Runner
Thursday, June 25, 2015
Mississippi Squadron Reduced and Naval Stations Closed
JUNE 25TH, 1865: Secretary Welles ordered the further reduction of the Mississippi Squadron to five ships and directed the abandonment of all the naval stations of the Mississippi Squadron, except the one at Mound City, Illinois.
Saving Money. --Old B-Runner
Saving Money. --Old B-Runner
CSS Shenandoah Captures and Burns the General Williams
JUNE 23RD, 1865: The CSS Shenandoah, Lt. Waddell, captured and burned at sea the ship General Williams near St. Lawrence Island in the Bering Sea. In this area "several Esquimaux canoes wit natives from the island visited us and our crew struck up a brisk trade with them for furs and walrus tusks" using sign language.
--Old B-R'er
--Old B-R'er
Waddell Describes How He Destroys Prizes: How to Burn a Ship
JUNE 22ND, 1865: Waddell burned most of the ships he captured in the northern seas. Earlier in his journal he had discussed their destruction.
According to the freighting for some ships, one could simply "knock a hole in her bottom from inboard below the waterline and the vessels sinks rapidly and finally disappears leaving only a few pieces of plank floating over the great abyss which has closed over her.
"It frequently occurs that to destroy a prize, fire must be resorted to, and there is no escape from that ruthless element. However much it may be condemned, it is better than to leave a prize disabled and injured as to be formidable enough to endanger the navigation of the ocean. Fire serves as a beacon to inform the sailor of danger, but it leaves a small portion of the vessel, the floor and the keel to float upon the surface of the water.
"To prepare a vessel for destruction by fire, first remove all living animals, take out all useful equipment which may be wanted, discover what combustibles are in her hold, such as tar, pitch, turpentine, and see to the removal of gunpowder. All of these things should be thrown into the sea. Combustibles are then scattered throughout the vessel, bulkheads torn down and piled up in her cabins and forecastle.
"All hatches are opened and all halyards let go that sails may hang loosely and yards counter braced. Fire is then taken from the galley or cooking stove and deposited in various parts of her hold and about her deck.
"If she is very old she burns like tinder. The painful duty which sometimes becomes necessary would have been avoided had we been allowed to take our prizes into port for adjudication."
Now You Know How to destoy a Shop. --Old B-Runner
According to the freighting for some ships, one could simply "knock a hole in her bottom from inboard below the waterline and the vessels sinks rapidly and finally disappears leaving only a few pieces of plank floating over the great abyss which has closed over her.
"It frequently occurs that to destroy a prize, fire must be resorted to, and there is no escape from that ruthless element. However much it may be condemned, it is better than to leave a prize disabled and injured as to be formidable enough to endanger the navigation of the ocean. Fire serves as a beacon to inform the sailor of danger, but it leaves a small portion of the vessel, the floor and the keel to float upon the surface of the water.
"To prepare a vessel for destruction by fire, first remove all living animals, take out all useful equipment which may be wanted, discover what combustibles are in her hold, such as tar, pitch, turpentine, and see to the removal of gunpowder. All of these things should be thrown into the sea. Combustibles are then scattered throughout the vessel, bulkheads torn down and piled up in her cabins and forecastle.
"All hatches are opened and all halyards let go that sails may hang loosely and yards counter braced. Fire is then taken from the galley or cooking stove and deposited in various parts of her hold and about her deck.
"If she is very old she burns like tinder. The painful duty which sometimes becomes necessary would have been avoided had we been allowed to take our prizes into port for adjudication."
Now You Know How to destoy a Shop. --Old B-Runner
Wednesday, June 24, 2015
Cushing Receives Honors for His Role in the War
JUNE 23RD, 1865: Lt.-Cmdr. Cushing received orders to report to the USS Lancaster, flagship of Rear Admiral George F. Pearson, commanding the Pacific Squadron.
Shortly after reporting on board the ship at San Francisco, the people of that city extended to Cushing the freedom of the city in recognition of his courageous and heroic war record.
On five separate occasions he led daring raids and each time was successful in destroying a Confederate ship. The most famous of these was conducted 27 October 1864, when he sank the CSS Albemarle with a spar torpedo.
He also led one of the assaulting columns of sailors and Marines against the Northeast Bastion of Fort fisher on January 15, 1865.
A True Hero. --Old B-R'er
Shortly after reporting on board the ship at San Francisco, the people of that city extended to Cushing the freedom of the city in recognition of his courageous and heroic war record.
On five separate occasions he led daring raids and each time was successful in destroying a Confederate ship. The most famous of these was conducted 27 October 1864, when he sank the CSS Albemarle with a spar torpedo.
He also led one of the assaulting columns of sailors and Marines against the Northeast Bastion of Fort fisher on January 15, 1865.
A True Hero. --Old B-R'er
The Shenandoah Learns of the Fall of Richmond
JUNE 22ND, 1865: The CSS Shenandoah, Lt. Waddell, captured the Susan Abigail, recently from San Francisco. A newspaper was found on board dated April 17, 1865. It told of the capture of Richmond but also contained President Davis' Danville Proclamation declaring that the war would be continued with renewed vigor.
Moreover, Waddell noted: "Three of the Susan Abigail's crew joined the Shenandoah, which was good evidence at least that they did not believe the war had ended."
The master of the prize stated that in San Francisco, "Opinion is divided as to the ultimate result of the war. For the present the North has the advantage, but how it will all end no one can know, and as to the newspapers they are not reliable."
After burning the Susan Abigail, Waddell continued northward to the Bering Strait, the northern exit to the Arctic Sea.
Over or Not, Waddell Wants to Know. --Old B-Runner
Moreover, Waddell noted: "Three of the Susan Abigail's crew joined the Shenandoah, which was good evidence at least that they did not believe the war had ended."
The master of the prize stated that in San Francisco, "Opinion is divided as to the ultimate result of the war. For the present the North has the advantage, but how it will all end no one can know, and as to the newspapers they are not reliable."
After burning the Susan Abigail, Waddell continued northward to the Bering Strait, the northern exit to the Arctic Sea.
Over or Not, Waddell Wants to Know. --Old B-Runner
Tuesday, June 23, 2015
Death of Rear Admiral Samuel F. DuPont
JUNE 23RD, 1865: Rear Admiral Samuel F. DuPont died unexpectedly at age 61 while on a visit to Philadelphia. he had commanded the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron during the first two years of the war and had led the naval forces in the important capture of Port Royal by an amphibious assault on 7 November 1861.
The author J.T. Headley wrote of DuPont: "A gentleman of the old school...whose bearing was that of dignified courtesy to all. Chivalrous in his own feelings, he was incapable of wounding those of others. --Insensible to fear, he never shrank from encouraging any danger, while he was absolutely incapable of thrusting himself forward to obtain notoriety."
Unlike Admiral Porter. --Old B-Runner
The author J.T. Headley wrote of DuPont: "A gentleman of the old school...whose bearing was that of dignified courtesy to all. Chivalrous in his own feelings, he was incapable of wounding those of others. --Insensible to fear, he never shrank from encouraging any danger, while he was absolutely incapable of thrusting himself forward to obtain notoriety."
Unlike Admiral Porter. --Old B-Runner
Master Braine Heads to Liverpool
JUNE 22ND, 1865: Upon learning of the final collapse of the Confederacy, Master John C. Braine, CSN, took passage for Liverpool, England, from Kingston, Jamaica.
On several occasions during the war Braine had led naval parties in successful seizures of Federal merchantmen and quite likely would have been prosecuted for piracy had he been apprehended.
The schooner St. Mary's, which he seized in Chesapeake Bay and had sailed to Nassau, was abandoned in Kingston just prior to his booking passage for Liverpool. Previous to seizing the St. Mary's, he had seized the steamer Chesapeake off Cape Cod (7 December 1863) and the steamer Roanoke off Havana (29 September 1864) while leading Confederate naval parties masquerading as passengers.
This man would be a good topic for a book.
A Really Brainy Decision for Braine. --Old B-R'er
On several occasions during the war Braine had led naval parties in successful seizures of Federal merchantmen and quite likely would have been prosecuted for piracy had he been apprehended.
The schooner St. Mary's, which he seized in Chesapeake Bay and had sailed to Nassau, was abandoned in Kingston just prior to his booking passage for Liverpool. Previous to seizing the St. Mary's, he had seized the steamer Chesapeake off Cape Cod (7 December 1863) and the steamer Roanoke off Havana (29 September 1864) while leading Confederate naval parties masquerading as passengers.
This man would be a good topic for a book.
A Really Brainy Decision for Braine. --Old B-R'er
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