April 16, 1862 began
a chapter in the history of the Confederate States Navy that would be
one of its most inspiring and one of its most devastating in the
history of that magnificent fighting force. On this day, Lieutenant
Gilbert Elliott of Elizabeth City, NC was ordered by naval
authorities in Richmond to begin planning the construction and
deployment of a powerful ironclad gunboat that could be utilized to
rid the North Carolina coast of Yankee invaders. Soon, Elliott would
lay the groundwork for what would become the CSS Albemarle, one of
the most successful ironclad gunboats ever produced by the
Confederacy.
Elliott was only 19
years of age, but was already a skilled naval architect. He was born
on Milford Plantation in Camden County, NC on December 10, 1843. As a
young boy, Elliott learned the art of shipbuilding from his
grandfather, Charles Guice, who owned a large shipyard on the
Pasquotank River near Elizabeth City. Elliott had intended to become
an attorney prior to the War of Northern Aggression and had studied
Admiralty Law and was working as a law clerk at the outbreak of
hostilities. When the war began, he joined the 17th North
Carolina Infantry as a 1st LT, but his shipbuilding
experience was soon learned of in Richmond and he was transferred to
the Confederate Navy. This shipbuilding experience would be put to
the test in the challenges that would arise in building the CSS
Albemarle.
Starting with
limited resources, thanks to the Yankee blockade of North Carolina
and the rest of Dixie, Elliott set up a makeshift shipyard in the
cornfield of Peter Smith on the Roanoke River at Edward's Ferry near
present-day Scotland Neck. This position was wisely chosen by Elliott
because it would allow construction and deployment of the CSS
Albemarle directly into the Roanoke River, however it was shallow
enough that the invading Yankees could not reach the shipyard with
their naval vessels.
Construction of the
CSS Albemarle began in January of 1863 and was plagued from the start
by material shortages. To combat these shortages, Elliott chose to
construct the Albemarle primarily from white oak and other hardwoods
common to North Carolina that he knew would be helpful in repulsing
the Yankee cannonballs that would be thrown at the ship. Elliott and
his able team of skilled North Carolina shipwrights and sailors
further showed their ingenuity by scouring the countryside for all
available iron and hardware and often converted old iron cookware
into nails, hinges, iron armor plating, and other items that the
Albemarle needed. Through their ingenious efforts, Elliott and his
team were able to finish and launch the ship on April 17, 1864.
Elliott and his team
saw that the CSS Albemarle was armed with two 6.4-inch Brooke Rifles
that were mounted on 180 degree swivel carriages on the bow and
stern. Because of this unique mounting of the two cannons, the ship
was given the ability to fire one cannon forward and aft and both
cannons could be brought to bear on either the port or starboard
broadside. This gave the ship more firepower than most of its enemies
on the Roanoke River.
In late April of
1864, Elliott passed command of the CSS Albemarle to Captain James W.
Cooke of the Confederate Navy. Captain Cooke would command the vessel
until its demise in October of 1864.
Cooke was a native
of Beaufort, North Carolina. Having grown up on the coast, Cooke
entered the US Navy as a midshipman in 1828. In 1861, he resigned
from the United States Navy and joined the Virginia State Navy. Upon
Virginia's secession, Cooke became a Confederate naval officer.
Because of his knowledge of the North Carolina coast, Cooke was
placed in command of the CSS Ellis and charged with the defense of
Roanoke Island. In February of 1862, Cooke was wounded and captured
in a hard fight with the Yankee invaders in the waters off of
Roanoke. He was later paroled and given command of the Albemarle.
On April 19, 1864,
Cooke took the CSS Albemarle down the Roanoke River and attacked
Union positions near Plymouth, NC. In the ensuing action, the CSS
Albemarle rammed and sank the USS Southfield and forced the other
Union ship in the area, USS Miami, to retreat to the safety of
Albemarle Sound. Having cleared the Roanoke River of any opposition
by the US Navy, the CSS Albemarle assisted General Hoke and the
Confederate Army units in the area with their assault and recapture
of Plymouth, NC and its surrounding forts.
Following the
success of the Albemarle and the recapture of Plymouth, Cooke took
the ship into action on May 5, 1864. In this action the CSS Albemarle
was escorting the CSS Bombshell and CSS Cotton Plant in a troop
movement operation to further extend Confederate positions on the
Roanoke River. In the following conflict, the Confederate squadron
took on four Union ships: USS Miami, USS Mattabesett, USS Sassacus,
and USS Wyalusing. Although the CSS Bombshell was captured in the
fight, the CSS Albemarle was able to defeat the Yankee fleet and
protect the CSS Cotton Plant. The Albemarle was rammed however and
took over 500 hits against her armor. Although she was significantly
damaged, the Albemarle was able to force the Yankee ships to flee the
Roanoke River. Throughout the summer of 1864, the CSS Albemarle was
master of the waves in the area around Plymouth.
The autumn however
would see the fall of the CSS Albemarle from her perch as uncontested
master of the Roanoke River. Because of the success of the Albemarle,
the US Navy wanted her destroyed. They had tried numerous
conventional means to attack and destroy her, but none were
successful. It would finally be a commando raid conducted on the
night of October 27, 1864 by US Navy Lieutenant William Cushing and
a picked team of US Marines that would finally sink the CSS
Albemarle. Cushing and his men sank the Albemarle by sneaking in
under the cover of darkness and detonating a spar torpedo along the
waterline of the ship. The CSS Albemarle suffered a hole in her size
the size of a wagon and sank in 6 feet of water. Because the
Confederates lacked the resources needed to repair the ship, this
disaster spelled the end of the ship.
In April 1865, the
US Navy raised the vessel and had her repaired at the Norfolk Navy
Yard in Norfolk, VA. She was later sold to J.N. Leonard and Company
and scrapped as war salvage. Today one of the Albemarle's Brooke
Rifles can be seen at the Headquarters of the US Navy's Atlantic
Command at the Norfolk Navy Yard and the smokestack of the CSS
Albemarle is displayed in Elizabeth City, North Carolina at the
Museum of the Albemarle. In April of 2002, a 3/8 scale replica of the
original CSS Albemarle was launched on the Roanoke River where the
ship now cruises as the unopposed master of the water.
Sources
JR Potts, “CSS
Albemarle Ironclad Ram,” Military Factory
Andrew Duppstadt,
“Confederate States Navy in North Carolina,” North Carolina
History Project
“CSS Albemarle,”
Wikiwand
“Gilbert Elliott,”
Under Both Flags – Civil War in the Albemarle
“Gilbert Elliott,”
Wikipedia
“James W. Cooke,”
Wikiwand
