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USS Beauregard (1861)
The began the war as a Confederate privateer. The Union Navy acquired the schooner from the prize court and outfitted the vessel for blockade duty. Privateer As one method to counter Union naval power, the Confederacy issued letters of marque to facilitate the use of privateers against northern shipping. A group headed by A. F. W. Abrams of Charleston, S.C. acquired the schooner ''Priscilla C. Ferguson'' to arm her as a privateer. They renamed her vessel ''Beauregard'' and fitted out with a single 24–pounder rifled gun and accommodations for a 40-man crew. The privateer ''Beauregard'' was commissioned in Charleston, S.C. on October 14, 1861. The ship's preparations did not go unreported. By October 24, 1861, a northern ship master had notified Secretary of the Navy Welles that both ''Beauregard'' and ''Dixie'' were at Charleston preparing for service as privateers. Captain Gilbert Hay, with two lieutenants, one purser, and 23 crewmen, succeeded in running the blocka ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Union Navy
), (official) , colors = Blue and gold , colors_label = Colors , march = , mascot = , equipment = , equipment_label = , start_date = , battles = , anniversaries = 13 October , decorations = , battle_honours = , website = , commander1 = President Abraham Lincoln , commander1_label = Commander-in-Chief , commander2 = Gideon Welles , commander2_label = Secretary of the Navy , notable_commanders = The Union Navy was the United States Navy (USN) during the American Civil War, when it fought the Confederate States Navy (CSN). The term is sometimes used carelessly to include vessels of war used on the rivers of the interior while they were under the con ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Howitzers
A howitzer () is a long-ranged weapon, falling between a cannon (also known as an artillery gun in the United States), which fires shells at flat trajectories, and a mortar, which fires at high angles of ascent and descent. Howitzers, like other artillery equipment, are usually organized in a group called a battery. Howitzers, together with long-barreled guns, mortars, and rocket artillery, are the four basic types of modern artillery. Mortars fire at angles of elevation greater than 45°, and are useful for mountain warfare because the projectile could go over obstacles. Cannons fire at low angles of elevation (<45°), and the projectile lands much faster at its target than it would in the case of a mortar. But the cannon is not useful if there is an obstacle like a hill/wall in front of its target. Etymology The English word ''howitzer'' comes from the Czech word , from , 'crowd', and is in turn a borrowing from the Middle High German word or (moder ...[...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ships Of The Union Navy
A ship is a large watercraft that travels the world's oceans and other sufficiently deep waterways, carrying cargo or passengers, or in support of specialized missions, such as defense, research, and fishing. Ships are generally distinguished from boats, based on size, shape, load capacity, and purpose. Ships have supported exploration, trade, warfare, migration, colonization, and science. After the 15th century, new crops that had come from and to the Americas via the European seafarers significantly contributed to world population growth. Ship transport is responsible for the largest portion of world commerce. The word ''ship'' has meant, depending on the era and the context, either just a large vessel or specifically a ship-rigged sailing ship with three or more masts, each of which is square-rigged. As of 2016, there were more than 49,000 merchant ships, totaling almost 1.8 billion dead weight tons. Of these 28% were oil tankers, 43% were bulk carriers, and 13% were co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Key West, Florida
Key West ( es, Cayo Hueso) is an island in the Straits of Florida, within the U.S. state of Florida. Together with all or parts of the separate islands of Sigsbee Park, Dredgers Key, Fleming Key, Sunset Key, and the northern part of Stock Island, Florida, Stock Island, it constitutes the City of Key West. The Island of Key West is about long and wide, with a total land area of . It lies at the southernmost end of U.S. Route 1, the longest north–south road in the United States. Key West is about north of Cuba at their closest points. It is also southwest of Miami by air, about by road, and north-northeast of Havana. The City of Key West is the county seat of Monroe County, Florida, Monroe County, which includes a majority of the Florida Keys and part of the Everglades. The total land area of the city is . The official city motto is "One Human Family". Key West is the southernmost city in the contiguous United States and the westernmost island connected by highway in th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
New Smyrna, Florida
New Smyrna Beach is a city in Volusia County, Florida, United States, located on the central east coast of the state, with the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Its population is 30,142 in 2020 by the United States Census Bureau. The downtown section of the city is located on the west side of the Indian River and the Indian River Lagoon system. The Coronado Beach Bridge crosses the Intracoastal Waterway just south of Ponce de Leon Inlet, connecting the mainland with the beach on the coastal barrier island. The surrounding area offers many opportunities for outdoor recreation; these include fishing, sailing, motorboating, golfing, and hiking. Visitors participate in water sports of all kinds, including swimming, scuba diving, kitesurfing, and surfing. In July 2009, New Smyrna Beach was ranked number nine on the list of "best surf towns" in '' Surfer.'' It was recognized as "one of the world's top 20 surf towns" by '' National Geographic'' in 2012. It has also been dubbed "The Shark Bi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tampa, Florida
Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the County seat, seat of Hillsborough County, Florida, Hillsborough County. With a population of 384,959 according to the 2020 census, Tampa is the third-most populated city in Florida after Jacksonville, Florida, Jacksonville and Miami and is the List of United States cities by population, 52nd most populated city in the United States. Tampa functioned as a military center during the 19th century with the establishment of Fort Brooke. The cigar industry was also brought to the city by Vicente Martinez Ybor, Vincente Martinez Ybor, after whom Ybor City is named. Tampa was formally reincorporated as a city in 1887, following the American Civil War, Civil War. Today, Tampa's economy is driven by tourism, health care, finance, insurance, tec ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Blockade Runners
A blockade runner is a merchant vessel used for evading a naval blockade of a port or strait. It is usually light and fast, using stealth and speed rather than confronting the blockaders in order to break the blockade. Blockade runners usually transport cargo, for example bringing food or arms to a blockaded city. They have also carried mail in an attempt to communicate with the outside world. Blockade runners are often the fastest ships available, and come lightly armed and armored. Their operations are quite risky since blockading fleets would not hesitate to fire on them. However, the potential profits (economically or militarily) from a successful blockade run are tremendous, so blockade-runners typically had excellent crews. Although having ''modus operandi'' similar to that of smugglers, blockade-runners are often operated by state's navies as part of the regular fleet, and states having operated them include the Confederate States of America during the American Civil W ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
William McKean
William Wister McKean (19 September 1800 – 22 April 1865) was an admiral in the United States Navy during the American Civil War. He was noted for his service in the Union blockade that effectively closed Confederate seaports in the Gulf of Mexico. Biography Born in Pennsylvania, McKean was the grandson of Thomas McKean, the governor of that state. William Wister McKean was appointed midshipman on 30 November 1814. He served in the Navy from the War of 1812 to the Civil War, when he rose to the rank of flag officer in command of the Gulf Blockading Squadron in early 1862 and later the East Gulf Blockading Squadron. McKean was relieved from active duty on 4 June 1862. McKean died at Binghamton, New York Binghamton () is a city in the U.S. state of New York, and serves as the county seat of Broome County. Surrounded by rolling hills, it lies in the state's Southern Tier region near the Pennsylvania border, in a bowl-shaped valley at the conflue ..., 22 April 1865. Dates of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
East Gulf Blockading Squadron
The Union blockade in the American Civil War was a naval strategy by the United States to prevent the Confederate States of America, Confederacy from trading. The blockade was proclaimed by President Abraham Lincoln in April 1861, and required the monitoring of of Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico, Gulf coastline, including 12 major ports, notably New Orleans and Mobile, Alabama, Mobile. Those Blockade runners of the American Civil War, blockade runners fast enough to evade the Union Navy could carry only a small fraction of the supplies needed. They were operated largely by foreign citizens, making use of neutral ports such as Havana, Cuba, Havana, Nassau, Bahamas, Nassau and Bermuda. The Union commissioned around 500 ships, which destroyed or captured about 1,500 blockade runners over the course of the war. Proclamation of blockade and legal implications On April 19, 1861, President Lincoln issued a ''Proclamation of Blockade Against Southern Ports'': Whereas an in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Old Bahama Channel
The Old Bahama Channel ( es, Canal Viejo de Bahama) is a strait of the Caribbean region, between Cuba and the Bahamas. Geography The strait/channel is located off the Atlantic coast of north-central and northeastern mainland and the Sabana-Camagüey Archipelago of Cuba, and south of the Great Bahama Bank of the Bahamas. It is approximately long and 13.6 miles (22 km) wide at its narrowest place. It divides the northernmost bank of the Caribbean islands into two nearly equal parts. To the north and northeast is the Great Bahama Bank and the Bahama Islands; and to the south the bank on which the island of Cuba rests. The Old Bahama Channel is connected at its north-western extremity end to the Florida Straits by two arms, enclosing Cay Sal Bank, of which the northern is called Santaren Channel and the southern Nicholas Channel. It is considered as terminating on the east between Cape Maysi in Cuba, and Inagua island in the Bahamas. However, it can also be considered to include ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Schooner
A schooner () is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than the mainmast. A common variant, the topsail schooner also has a square topsail on the foremast, to which may be added a topgallant. Differing definitions leave uncertain whether the addition of a fore course would make such a vessel a brigantine. Many schooners are gaff-rigged, but other examples include Bermuda rig and the staysail schooner. The origins of schooner rigged vessels is obscure, but there is good evidence of them from the early 17th century in paintings by Dutch marine artists. The name "schooner" first appeared in eastern North America in the early 1700s. The name may be related to a Scots word meaning to skip over water, or to skip stones. The schooner rig was used in vessels with a wide range of purposes. On a fast hull, good ability to windward was useful for priv ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gideon Welles
Gideon Welles (July 1, 1802 – February 11, 1878), nicknamed "Father Neptune", was the United States Secretary of the Navy from 1861 to 1869, a cabinet post he was awarded after supporting Abraham Lincoln in the 1860 election. Although opposed to the Union blockade of Southern ports, he duly carried out his part of the Anaconda Plan, largely sealing off the Confederate coastline and preventing the exchange of cotton for war supplies. This is viewed as a major cause of Union victory in the Civil War, and his achievement in expanding the Navy almost tenfold was widely praised. Welles was also instrumental in the Navy's creation of the Medal of Honor. Early political career Gideon Welles, the son of Samuel Welles and Ann Hale, was born on July 1, 1802, in Glastonbury, Connecticut. His father was a shipping merchant and fervent Jeffersonian; he was a member of the Convention, which formed the first state Connecticut Constitution in 1818 that abolished the colonial charter and offi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
