THE C ONFEDERATE NAVALHISTORICAL SOCIETY NEWSLETTER

Issue Number Seven -- June 1991

U.S. DISTRICT COURT AWARDS BELL FROM THE C.S.S.ALABAMA TO U.S. NAVY IN LANDMARK DECISION

First Lieutenant John Mclntosh Kell faces the camera on board C.S.S. Alabama at Capetown, South Afri-ca in a newly-discovered photo, courtesy of the C.S.S. Alabama Trust in Birkenhead, England.

In a landmark decision May13th, Newark, New Jersey FederalDistrict Court Judge Dickinson R.Debevoise declared the bell of theC.S.S. Alabama, until then in pri-vate hands, to be the property ofthe United States.

As we reported last issue, thebell had come into the hands of an-tiques dealer Richard Steinmetz,who had announced intentions toauction it off late last year. Thebell had apparently been broughtup by a salvage diver in 1936 andhad been traded to a pub in Guern-sey, where it was used to ring theclosing until the pub was de-stroyed by aerial bombardment

during World War II. From thereit made its way to Hastings, whereit was used in another pub and fi-nally sold to an antiques dealerthere, from whom Steinmetz ob-tained it by trading other itemsworth around $12,000 in 1979.Steinmetz then tried to se(ll it tothe Naval Academy but withoutsuccess, and it sat on the shelf fortwelve years until he finally de-cided to put it up for auction lastDecember.

Subsequently, the U.S. NavalHistorical Center sued in the fed-eral district court in the area forpossession of the article, claimingit to be a government-owned arti-

fact of great historical signifi-cance, the ownership of whichhad never been relinquished bythe U.S. government or the U.S.Navy.

The Navy based its claims onseveral different important legalpoints that may have far-reachingimpact on future preservation ofConfederate Naval craft. Thejudge ruled in favor of the Navyfor the following reasons (excerp-ted from the text of the ruling):

"A. Right of capture. The bell is theproperty of the United States both by theright of capture and by virtue of the factthat the United States is successor to the

(continued on page three...)

Editorial:Where The Ships Meet The Shore

At the recent fourth gathering ofthe National Maritime Alliance (aspin-off of the National Trust ForHistoric Preservation) in Balti-more, much was discussed aboutthe future missions of maritimemuseums and maritime preserva-tion. A lot of it was moaning andgroaning about how to get moremoney, a common problem for allof us in this recession, but therewas also discussion of just howmuch "maritime" really covers.

This is an important question,because it determines just what itis we want to go out and research,preserve, and make available tofuture generations. Are we justtalking ships and their equipment?How about the officers and sailorsthat ran them and their gear? Howabout the folks at dockside thatloaded and unloaded, bought andsold the supplies and cargoes andtheir gear? How about the fortsthat protected the harbors the shipsused for safe haven and theirequipment, and their gear, and theequipment and gear of the folksthat ran them? And what abouthe wives and families of all of the

above and their surrounding ac-coutrements — and everybody'sdiaries and journals and relativesand homes and warehouses?

All these Questions are reallyonly part of the big issue to be de-cided: what is it, essentially, weare trying to save. Is it things, ors it people? Or is it, somehow,>oth? And why are we trying toreserve them anyway?

We believe that it is a culturend a way of life that we are tryingo understand, which although in-lusive of both people and things

is something greater than the sumof its parts. The impact of the seaupon humanity is derived from thelives of those that live upon it andthe technologies and philosophieswith which they must live themboth on and off the water. Be-

cause everything and everyonethat went anywhere in all but themost recent past did so at least inpart over water, maritime cultureis the filter through which all ofthe rest of the world's culturesmust pass in order to grow andcommunicate. It is the culturalsubstrate that we all have in com-mon, no matter what our nationali-ty, race, or geographical location.

With that large overview inmind, we must conclude that thesort of objects or information wewant to preserve is anything thatcontributed to maritime culture.

In the specialized context of theConfederate Navy, that means wewant to make very sure that notjust the ships on the bottom (most-ly) are preserved or properly re-trieved, but that places like Ft.Fisher and Ft. Darling and theforts in Mobile Bay which were socrucial to the welfare of the CSNand which are all seriously threat-ened with destruction are also pro-tected.

This issue we have covered theplight of Ft. Fisher, which is themost endangered — a single tropi-cal storm could now sweep intothe sea all that is left of that greatstructure and the history it repre-sents. We will cover the problemsof erosion at Ft. Darling in theJames River in future issues andsome of the plans to make shore-side connections with the Confed-erate Navy more secure.

Similarly, research efforts to un-cover the details of the life sur-rounding the ships shoreside aswell as at sea are essential. It isjust as important (and often moreinteresting) what went on in DaisyLamb's parlor as what went on un-der fire between ironclads. Onewent hand in hand with the other.It is the whole picture of the lifeand times we want to uncover andpreserve for the better understand-ing of our ancestors and ourselves.

Review:Confederate Goliath

Confederate Goliath, by RodGragg, Harper Collins 1991. This isthe story of the battle of Fort Fisher(read about its current problems onpp.4-5), told in considerable detailand comprising probably the mostextensive work on the subject todate. The title is just to hook you in— Ft. Fisher was big, but terribly un-dermanned, and the U.S. forcescould hardly be compared to littleDavid. It is well written in journa-listic style, with a personal approachto the individuals involved whichgive special insight into their mo-tives and characters as well as justtheir action.

It is extremely well-documentedand annotated, with plenty of pic-tures of the fort, the main players,and some of the ships involved. Ifyou want to know about the battleof Fort Fisher, this is the book tohave. If their are any drawbacks,they might be that it concentrates al-most exclusively on the period sur-round the two battles in late '64 andearly '65 and neglects the colorfulhistory of the fort and its numerousentertaining and interesting inci-dents with blockader and blockaderunners. It would be nice to seemore of the Confederate naval sideof what went on with the ships.

Nevertheless, a best buy!

This newsletter is published quarterly byThe Confederate Naval Historical Society,Inc., the non-profit corporation for the pres-ervation of the maritime history of the Con-federacy, for distribution to its Associate*.All material ©copyright 1991 by The Con-federate Naval Historical Society, Inc. Backissues are $3 ppd to Associates only. Asso-ciate membership in the CNHS is availableat the following ranks: Lieutenant ($20),Captain (S50), Commodore ($1000+), andRear Admiral (510*000+). All associates re-ceive a 15"xl8" CSN Commission for theirranks, Capt, and above receive special pres-entations commensurate with their stations.All contributions are tax deductible.CNHS, 710 Ocran Road, White Stone, VA22578, U.S.A. Phone: (804) 435-0014,Editor: John Townley.

The Confederate Naval Historical Society -- 2 -- Newsletter Number Six, February 1991

BUT IS IT REAL?The testimony of Mr. Steinmetz regarding the

provenance of the bell combined with its physi-cal condition lead to the conclusion that the bellwas probably removed from the wreck of theC.S.S. Alabama. But at least one English compa-ny, C.S. S. Alabama, Ltd., reportedly manufac-tured and sold a number of different items in the1960's, fraudulently described as artifacts fromthe Alabama. These fakes included simply-produced or modified articles such as uniformbuttons, belt plates, leather goods, and ships' chi-na. Elaborate fakes such as LeMat revolvers andan anchor were also produced. This very bell hasbeen rumored to be a fake for several years.When the bell was displayed for sale at a NewJersey antique mall prior to listing at auction, itwas disregarded by several serious collectors be-cause of suspicions raised by the rumor. Thepossibility that the bell is & clever fake should beexamined scientifically. — Kevin Foster

rights and property of the ConfederateStates of America. Salvage rights cannot beasserted against the United States, and theUnited States has not abandoned the C.S.S.Alabama or any of its equipment...

Prior to its sinking, Captain Semmes ofthe C.S.S. Alabama surrendered his vesselto U.S.S. Kearsarge. Captain Semmes' actof surrender conferred upon the UnitedStates title and possession of C.S.S. Ala-bama and all of her appurtenant equipmentprior to its sinking...

"B. Right of Succession. Also C.S.S. Al-abama is the property of the United Statesas the successor to all the rights and proper-ty of the Confederate Government. Thisprinciple was recognized by the Englishcourts in litigation following the Civil Warin such cases as The Rappahannock (1866)and U.S. v. Prioleau (1865).

"C. Lack of Abandonment. Article IV,Section 3, Clause 2 of the United StatesConstitution provides : "The Congress shallhave Power to dispose of and make allneedful Rules and Regulations respectingthe territory or other Property belonging tothe United States; and nothing in this Con-stitution shall be so construed as to Preju-dice and Claims of the United States, or ofany particular State." Thus, under theabove clause only Congress and those per-sons authorized by Congress may dispose ofUnited States property pursuant to appropri-ate regulations.

"In the similar case of Hatteras, Inc. v.U.S.S. Hatteras, her engines, etc., in rem andUnited States of America, in personam, in1984 involving a claim to the wreck of theU.S.S. Hatteras and artifacts from it, the Dis-trict Court for the Southern District of Texasheld that although the wreck had lain un-touched since the Civil War, title and owner-ship of the wreck remained with the UnitedStates.

"The United States has never formally aban-doned the wreck of the C.S.S. Alabama. It istherefore, in all respects similar to U.S.S. Hat-teras. In view of this, the wreck, and by exten-sion, the ship's bell, remain the property of theUnited States. Moreover, the claim of theUnited States to title and ownership of the bellof C.S.S. Alabama and its right to possess it areconsistent with International Law regardingwarships sunk during armed conflict. It is theposition of the United States Department ofState that warships and their remains which areclearly identifiable as to the flag State of originare clothed with sovereign immunity and there-fore entitled to a presumption against abandon-ment of title."

Mr. Steinmetz made three counter-claims — one, that the bell was his, andtwo others claiming restitution forwhat he had put into obtaining it. With-out relinquishing the right to the bell,which he failed to do, the other twocould not be legally addressed, soSteinmetz lost everything. The Navyprivately offered him a collection of

other relics by way of compensa-tion, but he turned them down as"pure junk."

Theoretically, as a result of thisdecision, the government could layclaim to thousands of Confederateartifacts in private hands. Thechances are it will not bother to doso except in particularly importantinstances such as this, but it willhave the ameliorating effect of seri-ously damping the looting of navalwrecks and battlefields and the lu-crative trade that has fueled it.Dealers and collectors will be look-ing over their shoulders (as theyshould have been already) and dou-ble-checking to make sure that whatthey have is truly private propertythat may go to the highest bidderand not the property of the peopleof the United States of America,who are now more aggressivelythan ever asserting their rights totheir historical naval heritage.

It is with particular pride that wecongratulate two CNHS Directorsfor playing key roles in this drama:William Dudley for initiating in thecase on behalf of the Navy, and Ke-vin Foster for gathering the evi-dence and authenticating the bell.

Well done!

The Confederate Naval Historical Society ~ 3 — Newsletter Number Seven, June 1991

Ft. Fisher's Final Battle

On January 15, 1865 the com-bined forces of the Union army,navy, and marines completed whatthen was the largest amphibious at-tack in history, which resulted inthe fall of the greatest earthworkfort of the Confederacy, Ft. Fisher.With it fell the port of Wilmingtonand the last channel for suppliesfrom Europe.

For nearly four years Confeder-ate naval ships and foreign block-ade runners had sought refuge un-der the guns of Ft. Fisher andbrought presents of appreciation tothe fort's commander Col. WilliamLamb and his wife Daisy. Therewas probably no other shoresideediface so intimately linked withthe naval history of the Confedera-cy.

Now, 126 year later, Ft. Fisherfaces an even more grim attackthan shell and shot, cannon andsteel, ever threatened in its heyday.

The Confederate Naval

Over the past few decades, the forthas been eroded away by the sea ata spiraling rate, until now fully halfthe fort has been totally eradicatedand lies beneath the Atlantic Ocean.This year the battle is on to savewhat remains of this national land-mark — a battle against budgets andmistaken ideas of how the problemarose in the first place.

Some North Carolina conserva-tionists have called the disaster anatural act of the environment ~ theshifting sands of the coast are con-stantly being rearranged by the seaand the general policy now has beento let nature take its course. This,however, is not entirely a naturalact. In the 1930's, a natural break-water of coquina rock which hadprotected the fort from the^ravagesof the sea was thoughtlessly minedaway (to make a better road to thefort, ironically), and the sea was letin to do its worst. In a few scant

decades, what had stood impregna-ble for centuries was washed awaylike a sand castle, until all that re-mains of the giant fort is the west-ern ramparts which were scaled inthe final attack.

The Corps of Engineers has ex-pressed willingness to build a revet-ment just north of the fort whichwould halt the erosion and saveNorth Carolina's most visited land-mark, but the state will have to foothalf the bill, to the tune of almostfive million dollars. In this reces-sion time of budget crunch in virtu-ally every state, this has made theproject a hard one to sell when com-pared to other urgent state needssuch as education.

Yet, of course, the fort is an en-during education resource that is notrenewable as well as a magnet forvisitors from all over the world. Ayear ago the prospects for gettingthe necessary funds was bleak, but

Historical Society -- 4 ~ Newsletter Number Seven, June 1991

recently the ship of hope has ap-peared on the horizon, albeit hulldown. Interested preservationgroups such as the CNHS and theAmerican Battlefield ProtectionProgram have joined forces to showthe extent of national concern aboutthe preservation of Ft. Fisher withsome good results. North Carolinalegislators would like to support theproject, but it's a hard sell and theyhave welcomed outside concernand support.

We are happy to report that thenecessary appropriations werepassed in the state House of Repre-sentatives with the help of Appro-priations Committee ChairmanFrank Bowman, and the ensuingSenate vote will be closely watchedby local and national politicianswho support it, liberal and conser-vative alike.

To express you support and be-come directly involved, write orphone: Paul M. Laird, Committeeto Save Ft. Fisher, Box 330, Wilm-ington, NC 28402. Phone: (919)762-2611.

If you want to see Col. Lamb's dining room, where so many raiderand blockade runner captains toasted champagne to the good coloneland his wife in gratitude for their hospitality and protective gunfire,here is where you'll have to go. You'll need a boat ~ only mackerel andblues inhabit it now, and only a $10 million stone revetment built off thefar point can save the rest of historic Ft Fisher from a watery grave.

FORT FISHER'SBATTLE WITH THE SEA

ATLANTIC OCEAN

The Confederate Naval Historical Society ~ 5 - Newsletter Number Seven, June 1991

Where They Lie:

The Star Of The WestBy Lamar Roberts

Some miles above Greenwood, Missis-sippi in a sharp bend of the TallahatchieRiver lies a ship which entered the War Be-tween The States as a civilian vessel undercharter to the Union, but was sunk as a Con-federate transport. The sinking of the Starof the West was, to say the least, a hasty ac-tion and a waste of valuable equipment. Itwas thought that the hull of the Star wouldeffect a blockade to protect Fort Pemberton.The fort had natural protection and the Un-

ion vessels never approached the blockadeperfected by the Star. When the Tallahatch-ie is low in the summer, boys from Green-wood probe the exposed wreck, looking forparts of the Star of the West.

The Star of the West was not built as afighting vessel, but on January 9, 1861 shewas the target of the first shot fired in theWar Between The States. This shot wasfired over three months before the shot firedApril 9, 1861, which is usually called thefirst shot. It was the Star of the West thattried to relieve Ft. Sumter. The Star wasalso one of the first vessels captured by theConfederacy.

The Star of the West was a sidewheelsteamer with a displacement of 1,172 tons.She was built in San Francisco in 1855 as amember of the Vanderbilt fleet and wasconsidered among the finest of the day. Shewas to run from New York to Aspinwall onthe route to California.

After South Carolina seceded from theUnion in December, 1860, the state troopsdemanded that Fort Sumter, in Charlestonharbor, be handed over as it was in their wa-ters. Major Anderson refuse to surrenderthe fort, but he could not hold the fort with-out supplies and reinforcements. PresidentBuchanan and the cabinet decided tostrengthen the defenses of Fort Sumter.A.C. Shultee, a shipping agent in NewYork, suggested that the government chartera merchant vessel. The U.S. officers agreedto charter a vessel at the rate of $1500 perday to replace the Brooklyn, which hadbeen assigned to this mission. The captain

of the Star of the West, John McGowan,chartered his ship to the United States. Ifthe Union had used the Brooklyn, one oftheir navy vessels, it would have been anact of war and would have indicated theirtrue purposes.

The Star left New York at 5 PM, Janu-ary 5, 1861, to point down the bay, andthen dropped anchor. While at rest she re-ceived 250 Yankee soldiers with four offi-cers, along with their arms and ammuni-tion, then steamed out crossing the bar atSandy Hook that night at nine o'clock.This was considered a move to supply, notarm, the fort, but the soldiers were orderedto go below the main deck as the vesselneared Charleston.

The Star of the West arrived off theCharleston bar at 1:30 AM on the morningof January 9. The lights were all out andthere were no guiding marks, so the Stareased ahead until at 4 AM she found her-self in four and a half feet of water, whereshe stopped until dawn. Just as daylightbegan to light the sky a small steamer nearthe shore spotted the Star of the West andlit her signal lamps: a blue light and twored lights was her signal. This was the sig-nal given to all ships flying the U.S. flagnot to enter the harbor. Captain McGowansent the Union troops below deck in an at-tempt to conceal the real purpose of thetrip.

The Star of the West crossed the bar andset sail up the channel, and when she wastwo miles from Fort Moultrie, the maskedbattery on Morris Island opened fire. Thebattery was five-eighths of a mile from theStar and continued to fire for over ten min-utes. The Star continued up the channel,with several shots passing overhead, oneshot passing close to the pilot house, an-other close to the tall smokestack. Thentwo shots made hits — the first made a dentin the forward planking and the other al-most tore the rudder away. Then otherships in the harbor began to move towardthe Star. Captain McGowan, in order toescape capture or sinking, turned the Stararound and fled back across the bar

straight for New York.The commander of Ft. Sumter sent a

message to the governor of South Carolinawith the details of the attack on an un-armed vessel of the United States, ques-tioning whether this was done with his ap-proval. The governor replied that anyattempt to send troops into Charleston Har-bor would be regarded as an act of war andwould be met with resistance.

The Star of the West arrived back inNew York on January 12. The soldiers onboard were transferred to steam tugs andthe ship docked at the foot of WarrenStreet. An inspection of the vessel re-vealed an egg-shaped dent — the force ofthe shot was almost spent when it struckthe side of the Star. This was the first shotof the War Between The States to leave itsmark.

The Charleston Mercury ran an editorialon January 10 stating: "South Carolinamay be proud of her historic fame and an-cestry...The haughty echo of her cannonhas...reverberated through every hamlet ofthe North...And if...blood they want, bloodthey shall have...For, by the God of our fa-thers, the soil of South Carolina Shall BeFree!"

The Star of the West was again char-tered by the Federal government and wassent to Texas to receive U.S. Army person-nel that were being withdrawn from Texasand to return to New York with these pas-sengers. Before she could load her cargo,the Star was captured off the Texas coast.

As eager as the South was for war, shewas not prepared for a war, but all trueSoutherners were ready to answer any callby President Davis. One of the greatestneeds of the Confederacy was a navy.Without the time required to build ships,the people set out to arm and rework riverboats. Another way to build this needednavy was to capture Union vessels. One ofthe first vessels to be captured was the Starof the West.

Col. Earl Van Dorn was in Galveston inApril of 1861 and called for volunteers tocapture the Union vessel at anchor off In-

The Confederate Naval Historical Society ~ 6 — Newsletter Number Seven, June 1991

The Star of the West before her capture ~ from Harper's Weekly

dianola, Texas. In less than three hours hehad 71 volunteers from the Island City Ri-fles and the Wigfall Guards, two companiesmade up of German and Irish soldiers. Thisgroup boarded the steamer Matagorda andset sail. With the men concealed in thestaterooms, she arrived at her desired desti-nation at five in the afternoon. The trans-port Fashion was in port at Indianola, load-ing 6,000 U.S. troops with their baggage.The Fashion was to sail out past the bar,where Capt. Howe with the Star of the Westwas waiting in deep water. The Matagordareturned to Siluria, eighteen miles up thecoast and transferred the small armed forceto the General Rusk. After midnight theRusk approached the Star. The Star hailedthe approaching vessel which replied, "TheGeneral Rusk with troops on board, can youtake our line now?" "Certainly," was the re-ply from the captain of the Star, believingthe troops belonged to the United States.When Capt. Howe asked about the Fashion,he was told that she would be along withmore troops in a few hours. The sea was alittle rough but the Rusk was made fastalongside after some trouble. As soon asthe troops were aboard, they presented theirweapons and their officer commanded Capt.Howe to surrender.

"To what flag am I requested to surren-der?" was the question asked by Capt.Howe. Ensign Duggan, of the WigfallGuards, then displayed the Lone Star Texasflag and in his truest Irish brogue declared,

"That's it, look at it, my byes; did ye iversee th' Texas flag on an Irish jackstaff be-fore?" Then, without resistance or evenanother word, the captain surrendered.The capture of the Star of the West includ-ed forty-two men and 900 barrels of provi-sions, but none of the Federal troops, arms,or munitions were on board.

The prisoners were well treated. Thesteamer left immediately for Galveston.Everyone laughed and joked as they triedto picture the officers on board the Fashionthe next morning when the Star of the Westwas nowhere to be found.

Upon arrival at Galveston, Col. VanDorn placed First Mate Falval of the Mexi-co on the Star of the West as her captain,along with Mexico's engineer. The sol-diers who had volunteered for the captureremained on board as crew to see the Starsafely to New Orleans. After arriving inNew Orleans, the Star was turned over tothe C.S. Navy and was used as a receivingship.

The Star of the West was rechristened StPhillip, as a ship of the Confederate Navy,but the name was never used. She was theStar of the West when she was sent up theMississippi and the Yazoo River to YazooCity to escape the battle at New Orleans.Her cargo included supplies for the newnavy yard, but more important were thetons of gold and silver bullion from NewOrleans banks for trans-shipment to Rich-mond from Vicksburg.

The Star was at the naval yard in YazooCity on February 17, 1863 where she wasto be outfitted with the armament that Un-ion forces thought she already had. TheUnion forces were now making an attemptto enter the Yazoo River by way of the Ya-zoo Pass. The Pass had been closed whenthe levee was built to hold back the floodwaters of the Mississippi River. The leveewas blown open with explosives and as thewater filled the old Pass the Union vesselsbegan their trip downstream. This missionwas never completed because of the prepar-ations by the Confederate forces. The mainobstacle was the dirt and log fort construct-ed north of Greenwood in a sharp bendwhere the Yallobusha River and the Talla-hatchie River meet to form the Yazoo Riv-er. This fort became known as Ft. Pember-ton.

On February 21, 1863, General Loringfeared that the raft obstructions would notbe completed in time to protect Ft. Pember-ton, but the Star of the West could be sunkLa the channel to act as a blockade. Thom-as Weldon was sent to Yazoo City on Feb-ruary 24 to bring the Star upstream. Shewas stripped of her engine, fire pump, andany other equipment that could be re-moved. The Star of the West began her lastvoyage towed by the gunboat Capitol. Lt.A.A. Stoddard, a militiaman from Green-wood, was the last skipper of the Star. Ashe gave the signal, his crew drilled 250holes below the water line and pluggedeach hole with oak bungs. The Star wasplaced across the river with cables from herbow and stern to trees on each bank. OnMarch 11, with the Union gunboats closingin, Stoddard gave the signal and the crewquickly pulled all the plugs. As the Starbegan to settle into the river bed, one of thecables snapped and caused her to shift to adiagonal position across the stream, butstill she blocked the river. The gunboatsnever came to the Star of the West, but can-celled their action to reach Vicksburg byway of the Yazoo Pass and returned to theMississippi.

Lamar Roberts is an engineeringexecutive and historian from Vick-sburg, Mississippi and a CNHSCaptain.

The Confederate Naval Historical Society - 7 - Newsletter Number Seven, June 1991

Research, Requests, &Comments...From the Baron Banfield and JohnDe Courcy Ireland Maritime Mu-seum:

Dear Sirs,I am trying to create a theme

maritime museum in Ireland basedon the theme of courage in adversi-ty of seamen connected with this is-land and those who served withthem. My work has been acceptedunder the above names for charita-ble status, but I have no buildingand have a long way to go. TheCSN is my favourite subject alongwith the Austro-Hungarian Navy.

1. I would like to suggest youput what journal, the date, andwhere illustrations and paintingscame from, e.g. the Kate in issue#6, also Tallahassee.

2. Would you please send me theaddresses of where I may buy thebooks reviewed in issue #3: War-ships of the Civil War by Paul H.Stone, Warships and Naval Battlesof the Civil War by Tony Gibbons,

and Rebel Flags Afloat by H. Mi-chael Madans.

3.1 am appealing for help on thecareers of the following:

J. P. McCorkle, Ordnance Engi-neer at Atlanta and Selma — look-ing for photograph of him and in-formation, also Capt. JohnNewland Maffitt. I am looking forcopies of any articles he wrote be-fore and after the War. When hejoined the U.S. Navy he stated hewas from Ireland.

Charles W. Quinn, engineer andinventor, served on C.S.S. Virginiaand on C.S.S. Florida. I am tryingto find any information about himand his (including photograph)family and where they came fromin Ireland.

P.U. Murphy of C.S.S. Selma,which took part in the Battle ofMobile Bay, also any informationand photographs of him.

H. McClintock who designedC.S.S. Hunley — I am looking forinformation on his life both beforeand after the War in Boston.

Last, would you know of someperson near Washington, Rich-mond, Boston, or New York who

does genealogy for a fee?— Patrick Flood, 58 Terenure

Road West, Dublin 6W, IrelandPhone:01-906840

To take them in order:1. We try to identify our illustra-

tions where possible, but some ar-rive at our doorstep with insuffi-cient documentation.

2. We are frequently askedabout these books. The first twoare in general circulation and canbe ordered through your localbookstore if it does not carry them.The last is available through theConfederate Naval Museum, Co-lumbus, Georgia.

3. For the rest, we hope that ourreadership will get in touch andlend a hand in the research foryour museum. The "Liverpool Con-nection" with the CSN has been oft-explored in these pages — it's niceto hear someone is working on theIrish connection. Mqffit, by theway, was actually bom at sea onthe way over to America from Ire-land. And while you're at it, don'toverlook fiery Michael Marsaboard the C.S.S. Alabama!

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