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Tag Archives: CSS Shenandoah
Shellbacks, Polliwogs, and Crossing the Equator Amid Civil War
Anyone watching a movie about sailing ships can quickly become confused with the overwhelming distinct terminology. There are much more than words that signify a sailor, however. Spending months at a time at sea, sailors have developed their own vocabulary, … Continue reading
Unpublished — The International War: Alabama Claims Documentation
This source is not exactly unpublished, but close. It was printed once—long ago—by the U. S. government. Until recently, it was scarce and mostly unknown. And it is a treasure trove of primary source material for the international and naval … Continue reading
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
Ending the War, More or Less
April 9, 1865, is the day that most people think the American Civil War came to an end. General Robert E. Lee realized his gallant Army of Northern Virginia was simply too beaten up to continue its fight for Confederate … Continue reading
Posted in Civil War Events, Emerging Civil War, Leadership--Confederate, Leadership--Federal, Trans-Mississippi, Western Theater
Tagged Andrew Johnson, Appomattox, Col. Edward Canby, CSS Shenandoah, ending-the-war, General Grant, General Joseph Johnston, General Lee, General Richard Taylor, General Sherman, Stand Watie
4 Comments
Primary Sources: Through a Telescope Backwards
Perhaps no experience is more fulfilling for a historian than becoming immersed in contemporary first-person chronicles, viewing dramatic happenings through the eyes of those who lived them. Thankfully, our Civil War ancestors were avid and literate recorders of that fascinating … Continue reading
A Confederate New Year Far, Far Away
December 31, 1864: The CSS Shenandoah—the remotest and loneliest outpost of the beleaguered Confederacy—stretched her wings with all sails set as she surged across the Indian Ocean. Her officers were a cross section of the South from Maryland, Virginia, North … Continue reading
From the ECW Archives: Queen of Delphine, Part II
(Continuing the story from Part I of Lillias Nichols as prisoner of war and her captors aboard the CSS Shenandoah.) New Year’s Day 1865 continued clear and balmy. All sails were set with just enough breeze to fill them, the … Continue reading
Posted in Civil War Events, Civilian, Holidays, Navies
Tagged CSS Alabama, CSS Shenandoah, James Waddell, Women's History Month
3 Comments
From the ECW Archives: Queen of the Delphine, Part I
A warship at sea was an exclusively male domain and sailors were a superstitious lot. Having a woman on board was unlucky as well as a confounded nuisance. In December 1864, one New England lady found herself a prisoner of … Continue reading
Posted in Civil War Events, Civilian, Navies
Tagged Captain George Nichols, Charles Lining, CSS Shenandoah, Delphine, James Waddell, Women's History Month
2 Comments
Confederates Invade San Francisco?
Shortly before his death in 1886, James I. Waddell, former captain of the CSS Shenandoah, wrote in his memoirs: “I had matured plans for entering the harbor of San Francisco and laying that city under contribution.”[i] Waddell never did pass … Continue reading
A Rebel’s Duty
While researching the Southern Historical Society Papers on another topic, I came across the following passage from 1907: When the question is asked what the followers of Lee and Jackson fought for, let the ringing, unchangeable and ever true response … Continue reading
Posted in Memory, Navies, Personalities, Politics
Tagged Confederate veterans, CSS Shenandoah, Memory, politics, William Whittle
14 Comments
