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North Carolina Ironclads
North Carolina Blockade-Runners
Wilmington
The Confederate government had three sources for war materials-arms and supplies taken from battlefields after Confederate victories, items produced within the South, and goods imported from abroad. With the outbreak of hostilities in 1861, the Federal government placed Union ships, called blockaders, along the east coast to prevent ships from bringing supplies into Confederate ports. North Carolina operated its own blockade-running ships to ensure a supply of both military and civilian goods for the state. Privately owned blockade-runners also operated along the coast and earned tremendous profits from the sale of their cargoes.
John Newland Maffitt
Upon the outbreak of war, John Newland Maffitt resigned from the United States Navy. He assumed command first of the blockade-runner Cecile and then of the gunboat CSS Florida. Maffitt could not begin attacking Union vessels with the Florida, however, because its guns were inoperable, and yellow fever incapacitated its crew. Maffitt's stepson died from the fever, and Maffitt himself was unconscious for several days. After his recovery, Maffitt sailed for the Confederate port at Mobile. Four Federal ships blockaded the harbor, but on September 3, 1862, Maffitt charged straight into the port at full steam. He later wrote, "The loud explosions, roar of shot, crashing spars and rigging, mingling with the moans of the sick and wounded, instead of intimidating, only increased our determination to enter the destined harbor." Maffitt cleverly steered straight toward the Federal ship Oneida, which backed up to avoid a collision, giving the Florida "a momentary advantage." He also maneuvered the Florida between two Union gunboats, forcing them to cease fire temporarily in order to avoid shelling each other. Thus the Florida slipped into Mobile Bay in one of the most daring naval exploits of the war. The Florida had orders to "cruise at discretion," doing "the enemy's commerce the greatest injury in the shortest time." As captain of the Florida, Maffitt carried out these instructions admirably, capturing twenty-four ships.
Rose O'Neal Greenhow
A prominent Washington City socialite, Rose O'Neal Greenhow became a legendary Confederate spy. Greenhow, a confidant of President Jefferson Davis, often represented Confederate interests unofficially in France and England. A blockade-runner bringing her back from England entered North Carolina waters on September 30, 1864. In an attempt to escape pursuing Federal ships, Greenhow left the blockade-runner on a small skiff but drowned when the vessel capsized in the surf. Her body was recovered the next day, wrapped in a Confederate flag, and buried in Wilmington with full military honors.
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The Advance
The enterprise of running the blockade and importing army supplies from abroad has proven a complete success.
—Governor Zebulon B. Vance, November 1863
Originally built as the Lord Clyde for British service, the Advance was a blockade-runner owned by North Carolina. Between June 1863 and September 1864, the Advance made seventeen successful runs into Southern ports, each time bringing badly needed supplies for North Carolina civilians and soldiers. The ship was finally captured as it left Wilmington on September 10, 1864.
Continue to the next section: Wilmington >>
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