Battle Of Sewell's Point
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The Battle of Sewell's Point was an inconclusive exchange of cannon fire between the Union
gunboat A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies. History Pre-steam ...
USS ''Monticello'', supported by the USS ''Thomas Freeborn'', and
Confederate A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...
batteries on
Sewell's Point Sewells Point is a peninsula of land in the independent city of Norfolk, Virginia in the United States, located at the mouth of the salt-water port of Hampton Roads. Sewells Point is bordered by water on three sides, with Willoughby Bay to t ...
that took place on May 18, 19 and 21, 1861, in
Norfolk County, Virginia Norfolk County was a county of the South Hampton Roads in eastern Virginia in the United States that was created in 1691. After the American Civil War, for a period of about 100 years, portions of Norfolk County were lost and the territory of th ...
in the early days of the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
. Little damage was done to either side. By the end of April 1861, USS ''Cumberland'' and a small number of supporting ships were enforcing the
Union blockade 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 ...
of the southeastern Virginia ports at the southern end of the
Chesapeake Bay The Chesapeake Bay ( ) is the largest estuary in the United States. The bay is located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region and is primarily separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Delmarva Peninsula, including parts of the Ea ...
and had captured several ships which attempted to pass the blockade. USS ''Monticello's'' bombardment of the Sewell's Point battery was one of the earliest Union Navy actions against Confederate forces during the Civil War. While it has been suggested by some sources that the ''Monticello's'' action may have been the first gunfire by the Union Navy during the Civil War, a brief exchange of cannon fire between the U.S. gunboat USS ''Yankee'' and shore batteries manned by Virginia volunteer forces which had not yet been incorporated into the
Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the Military forces of the Confederate States, military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) duri ...
at
Gloucester Point, Virginia Gloucester Point is a census-designated place (CDP) in Gloucester County, Virginia, United States. The population was 9,402 at the 2010 census. It is home to the College of William & Mary's Virginia Institute of Marine Science, a graduate school ...
on the York River occurred on May 7, 1861.Although sources differ on the date of the Gloucester Point engagement, the reports of the commanders clearly state the date as May 7, 1861.


Background

Although providing for a vote on May 23, 1861, the Virginia state convention voted for and effectively accomplished the secession of that state from the Union on April 17, 1861, which was three days after the surrender of
Fort Sumter Fort Sumter is a historical Coastal defense and fortification#Sea forts, sea fort located near Charleston, South Carolina. Constructed on an artificial island at the entrance of Charleston Harbor in 1829, the fort was built in response to the W ...
to Confederate forces and two days after
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...
Abraham Lincoln's call for volunteers to reclaim federal property and to suppress the rebellion. During the night of April 20, 1861, the Commander of the U. S. Gosport Navy Yard in Norfolk County, Virginia (now the Norfolk Naval Yard in the City of Portsmouth, Virginia) Charles S. McCauley, fearing he could not hold the yard against the rebels and although without instructions from authorities in Washington, D.C., ordered the evacuation and burning of the yard and any ships that could not be sailed away, including the . This ended the presence of Union land forces in the Norfolk area of south Hampton Roads for over one year. On April 27, 1861, President Lincoln ordered the Union blockade of the Confederacy extended to the coasts of
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...
and
North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...
, which were already in the process of joining the
Confederate States of America The Confederate States of America (CSA), also known as the Confederate States (C.S.), the Confederacy, or Dixieland, was an List of historical unrecognized states and dependencies, unrecognized breakaway republic in the Southern United State ...
although they did not officially do so until May 1861. Virginia Militia Major General and, effective May 1, 1861, Virginia Provisional ArmyAlthough this army was organized as a state establishment that was something more than a militia and which would become part of the Confederate Army, it was not the Provisional Army of the Confederacy and did not become part of it until after the May 23, 1861 Virginia secession vote. Gwynn never held a rank above colonel in the PACS. Brigadier General
Walter Gwynn Walter Gwynn (February 22, 1802 – February 6, 1882 ) was an American civil engineer and soldier who became a Virginia Provisional Army general and North Carolina militia brigadier general in the early days of the American Civil War in 186 ...
, a former U.S. Army engineering officer and former railroad engineer and surveyor, sited and supervised the construction of batteries to defend Norfolk, Virginia in late April and early May 1861, including the battery at Sewell's Point. Gwynn commanded the defense of Norfolk until he was relieved by regular Confederate forces on May 23, 1861.


Battle

As part of the Union blockade of Chesapeake Bay during the American Civil War, the Union
gunboat A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies. History Pre-steam ...
USS ''Monticello'', commanded by Captain Henry Eagle with Lieutenant (later Rear Admiral) Daniel L. Braine second in command, exchanged cannon fire with
Confederate A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...
batteries on Sewell's Point, Virginia,Some early sources spell the name of this location as Seawell's Point. in Norfolk County, Virginia (present day
City of Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. It had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in Virginia and 100th-most populous city in the United States. The city holds a strate ...
), in an attempt to enforce the blockade of the
Hampton Roads Hampton Roads is a body of water in the United States that serves as a wide channel for the James River, James, Nansemond River, Nansemond, and Elizabeth River (Virginia), Elizabeth rivers between Old Point Comfort and Sewell's Point near whe ...
area in southeastern Virginia. The two sides did each other little harm. On May 18, 1861, the ''Monticello'' fired on the unfinished Confederate battery at Sewell's Point, which commanded the entrance to the Elizabeth River and the harbor at Norfolk, Virginia but which had no guns yet in place, with little effect. By 5:00 p.m. on May 19, 1861, the Confederates had installed three 32-pound guns at the Sewell's Point battery. When the ''Monticello'' began to fire on the works at about 5:30 p.m., the battery returned fire, which drove off the ''Monticello''. Captain Peyton H. Colquitt of the Columbus Light Guard from GeorgiaCaptain Colquitt should not be confused with Brigadier General Alfred Holt Colquitt, who also was from Georgia. commanded the battery. Captain Colquitt raised a Georgia state flag at the battery since he did not have a Confederate flag. On May 21, 1861, the ''Monticello'' fired two shots at the battery but again drew off when the battery returned fire.


Aftermath

After the battle, the USS ''Thomas Freeborn'' joined the Federal
Potomac Flotilla The Potomac Flotilla, also called the Potomac Squadron, was a unit of the United States Navy created in the early days of the American Civil War to secure Union communications in the Chesapeake Bay, the Potomac River and their tributaries, and to ...
. Under the command of Commander James H. Ward, the ''Thomas Freeborn'' attacked the Confederate batteries at the confluence of the Potomac River and Aquia Creek in the
Battle of Aquia Creek The Battle of Aquia Creek was an exchange of cannon fire between Union Navy gunboats and Confederate shore batteries on the Potomac River at its confluence with Aquia Creek in Stafford County, Virginia. The battle took place from May 29, 1861 t ...
on May 29 and 30 and June 1, 1861, to little effect. The Sewell's Point battery and other batteries in the area engaged Union vessels on other occasions over the next 12 months, including engagements of Union vessels or supporting fire against them during the clash of the ironclads (the Union's USS ''Monitor'' and the Confederacy's CSS ''Virginia'', formerly USS ''Merrimack'') during the
Battle of Hampton Roads The Battle of Hampton Roads, also referred to as the Battle of the ''Monitor'' and ''Merrimack'' or the Battle of Ironclads, was a naval battle during the American Civil War. The battle was fought over two days, March 8 and 9, 1862, in Hampton ...
on March 9, 1862. Union Navy gunboats, including the ''Monitor'', shelled the Sewell's Point batteries and other targets in the area again on May 8, 1862. Because of the threat of invasion by the large Union Army force at Fort Monroe across Hampton Roads from the threatened cities of Norfolk, Virginia and Portsmouth, Virginia and the County of Norfolk, Virginia, although many of the Union soldiers were then engaged in the Peninsula Campaign, the Confederates evacuated the Norfolk area on May 9, 1862 and the early morning of May 10, 1862. Federal troops occupied Norfolk and Portsmouth on May 10, 1862. When they arrived at Norfolk and Portsmouth, the Federal troops found that the Confederates had abandoned the batteries at Sewell's Point and other fortified positions in the vicinity. No sign of the Sewell's Point battery exists today. The location is within the U.S. Navy's
Norfolk Naval Base Naval Station Norfolk is a United States Navy base in Norfolk, Virginia, that is the headquarters and home port of the U.S. Navy's Fleet Forces Command. The installation occupies about of waterfront space and of pier and wharf space of the Ha ...
.


Notes


Footnotes


References

* * * * * * Rush, Lt. Commander Richard and Robert H. Woods. Naval War Records Office, United States. Navy Dept
‘’Official records of the Union and Confederate navies in the war of the rebellion’’
Washington, DC.: Government Printing Office, 1896. Report of Lt. Thomas O. Selfridge to Flag Officer G. J. Pendergrast, May 7, 1861. Series 1, Volume 4. . Page 381. Retrieved April 24, 2011. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sewells Point, Battle Of Sewells Battles of the Chesapeake Bay Blockade of the American Civil War Battles of the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War Battles and conflicts without fatalities Inconclusive battles of the American Civil War Naval battles of the American Civil War
Sewell's Point Sewells Point is a peninsula of land in the independent city of Norfolk, Virginia in the United States, located at the mouth of the salt-water port of Hampton Roads. Sewells Point is bordered by water on three sides, with Willoughby Bay to t ...
1861 in the American Civil War 1861 in Virginia May 1861 History of Norfolk, Virginia