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Author Archives: Dwight Hughes
“Praise the Lord and Admiral Porter”: Running the Vicksburg Batteries
“We still live,” wrote Lieutenant Elias Smith of the USS Lafayette. “The whole gunboat fleet passed the Vicksburg batteries on Thursday night [April 16, 1863], without receiving material damage. All praise to the Lord and Admiral Porter.” As far as … Continue reading
Home Libraries: A Salty Civil War Library
Back in the 90’s, Judi and I loved cruising beautiful Virginia country byways and rural towns always seeking that musty little used-book store. She headed for the garden section and I, of course, made a beeline for the Civil War … Continue reading
What Doomed the Crew of the HL Hunley?
On February 17, 1864, the Confederate submarine H L Hunley became the first combat submarine to sink a warship when she snuck up on and rammed her spar torpedo into the hull of the screw sloop-of-war USS Housatonic outside Charleston … Continue reading
Burning Bridges to Baltimore
It’s always fun when researching obscure primary sources to come across a good story that has nothing to do with the original search. One such source is the memoir of a Union telegrapher published in 1910 in which he addresses … Continue reading
Posted in Material Culture, Primary Sources
Tagged baltimore, railroad bridges, telegraph, Telegraphy
2 Comments
What’s In a (Confederate) Name?
Visitors to the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis are engulfed in history. The magnificent grounds on the Severn River (known officially as “the yard”) abound in monuments, plaques, halls, and displays memorializing the nation’s naval heritage. Names of heroes … Continue reading
A Most Curious Battle: Memphis, June 6, 1862
In the early morning hours, hundreds of Memphis citizens assembled high on the bluffs to observe the battle. But there were no surging ranks of blue and gray in the valley below, just the Big Muddy rolling broad and inexorable … Continue reading
Posted in Battles, Emerging Civil War, Navies, Western Theater
Tagged Battle of Memphis, Charles Ellet Jr., Charles H. Davis, City-Class Ironclads, Confederate River Defense Fleet, Eads gunboats, ironclads, James B. Eads, Mississippi campaign, Mississippi Marine Brigade, Mississippi River Squadron, Mississippi Valley Campaigns, Pook Turtles, Samuel Pook, Unites States Ram Fleet, USS Benton, USS Cairo, USS Carondelet, USS Louisville, USS St. Louis, Western Gunboat Flotilla
3 Comments
Ending The War: The Darkest Day
“The darkest day of my life,” wrote Lieutenant William Whittle in his journal entry for August 2, 1865. “The past is gone for naught—the future is dark as the blackest night. Oh! God protect and comfort us I pray.” The … Continue reading
The Emergency Ironclads
In late summer 1861, the United States Navy initiated a crash program to build their first ironclad warships, leading directly to the titanic clash between the USS Monitor and the CSS Virginia (ex USS Merrimack) in Hampton Roads on March … Continue reading
Posted in Navies
Tagged Civil War Strategy, CSS Virginia, Gideon Welles, International affairs, ironclads, naval strategy, USS Monitor
6 Comments
A Fun Civil War Movie: The General
We know the great Civil War movies, but how about one that is both great and really fun? The General starring and directed by Buster Keaton is a 1927 silent film (79 minutes). Keaton plays sad-sack little engineer, Johnny Gray, … Continue reading
History in Pieces
History comes in many pieces. My good friend Hal, a retired navy captain, collects Civil War naval artifacts. He acquired items that caught his eye over the years without any particular theme in mind only to find threads and connections … Continue reading
Posted in Material Culture, Memory, Navies
Tagged Charleston Harbor, CSS Chicora, CSS Palmento State, Fort Sumter, USS Housatonic, USS Mercedita
1 Comment
