Tag Archives: Raphael Semmes

Home Libraries: A Salty Civil War Library

Posted on September 22, 2020 by Dwight Hughes

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 →

Posted in Books & Authors, Navies | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

A Most Peculiar Target of Naval Gunnery

Posted on July 8, 2020 by ECW Guest Post

ECW welcomes Neil Chatelain The USS Rhode Island was operating in the Caribbean Sea on July 30, 1863, part of Acting Rear Admiral Charles Wilkes’ West India Squadron, having just completed a convoy of the Panama steamer Ocean Queen through … Continue reading →

Posted in Navies | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Sailors, Diplomats, Tycoons and the Campaign to Control California’s Gold in the Civil War

Posted on August 17, 2017 by ECW Guest Post

Today, we are pleased to welcome back guest author Neil Chatelain As massive operations spread across the United States during the Civil War, a secret and ever-important campaign was being waged at sea. This was not ironclad warships battling one … Continue reading →

Posted in Civil War Events, Navies | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

My Favorite Historical Person: Eugene Matthew O’Brien

Posted on June 14, 2017 by Dwight Hughes

Eugene Matthew O’Brien is among those obscure Civil War multitudes whose collective stories inspire for their courage, dedication, and sacrifice even if we know little about them individually—although his story is a bit unusual. O’Brien was a steam engineer who … Continue reading →

Posted in Navies, Personalities | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Mexican-American War 170th: Siege of Vera Cruz

Posted on March 29, 2017 by Ryan Quint

Morning of March 29, 1847 came and brought two long parallel lines of American troops. The soldiers, begrimed and dirty from the exertions of the past 20 days, formed a gauntlet that their defeated foe would march through. The rows … Continue reading →

Posted in Armies, Battlefields & Historic Places, Battles, Mexican War | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Mexican-American War 170th: Vera Cruz Landings

Posted on March 9, 2017 by Ryan Quint

Cannon pointed out of their gun ports, aimed at the walled city in the distance. With commands to fire, the naval ordnance roared to life and the guns recoiled, pulling their holding ropes taught. Dirty white smoke fluttered across the … Continue reading →

Posted in Armies, Battlefields & Historic Places, Battles, Campaigns, Mexican War | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

World on Fire

Posted on April 8, 2015 by ECW Guest Post

Today, we are pleased to welcome back guest author Dwight Hughes. This post is based on a forthcoming book on the CSS Shenandoah. In the cool dusk of Sunday, 2 April 1865, Abraham Lincoln sat with Rear Admiral David Porter … Continue reading →

Posted in Campaigns, Civil War Events, Common Soldier, Leadership--Confederate, Leadership--Federal, Navies, Personalities, Sesquicentennial | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Rebels Down Under

Posted on February 19, 2015 by ECW Guest Post

Today, we are pleased to welcome back guest author Dwight Hughes. Part One in a Series. One hundred fifty years ago this month, the CSS Shenandoah steamed into Hobson’s Bay, Melbourne, Australia with flag flying. Vessels large and small saluted … Continue reading →

Posted in Campaigns, Civil War Events, Leadership--Confederate, Navies, Newspapers, Personalities, Sesquicentennial | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Civil War Echoes: Graf Spee 1939

Posted on December 13, 2014 by Chris Kolakowski

75 years ago today, the German pocket battleship Admiral Graf Spee fought a British squadron off the River Plate on South America’s coast. After an hour of battle, the Graf Spee’s captain, Hans Langsdorff, ran into neutral Montevideo harbor for … Continue reading →

Posted in Navies, Ties to the War | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Civil War Echoes: Erich Raeder’s Navy

Posted on September 15, 2014 by Chris Kolakowski

Raphael Semmes published his Memoirs of Service Afloat During The War Between The States in 1869, providing a far-ranging discussion of the Confederate naval war and his role in it as a commerce raider, squadron commander, and field commander. This … Continue reading →

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