Battle of Mobile Bay

At the RV Park in Vicksburg I met a keen Civil War Historian who told me about the Battle of Mobile Bay. I was not going that far south but for this diary I am adding this account.

Mobile Bay, Alabama is just east of New Orleans, Mississippi. New Orleans had been captured by Union Forces in 1862.

In 1864 in the middle of the American Civil War (1861- 1865) Mobile Bay was the site of more blockade runners than any port other than Wilmington North Carolina. These blockade runners were supported by the British and the French and were supplying the Confederate Navy and Confederate Army.  The British had built Iron Clads for the Confederate Navy. One was the Alabama. Later during the Presidency of Ulysses S. Grant the British paid compensation to the US for their support of the Confederacy and particularly the building of the Alabama.

In August 1864 Admiral Farragut of the US Navy (Union) launched a navy/army operation against Mobile Bay.  The US Navy had four Monitors (Iron Clads) and 15 Wooden Steam ships. The Confederate Navy had one Iron Clad and three wooden gun boats. The battle continued till the spring of 1865 when the Captain of the Confederate Navy’s Tennessee as a last effort to make a difference came up with the call for “Damn the Torpedoes”.  Torpedoes were what would later be called mines.

It was not until April 12th 1865 that Mobile surrendered to land forces and the final surrender of the land forces of the Confederacy in this area was on May 4th 1865.


See: www.battleofmobilebay.com