102 



CHARLESTON, S. 0. 



CHARLESTON, VA. 



the channels of Charleston harhor and the Sa- 

 vannah River ; and this, if effectually done, will 

 prove the most economical and satisfactorymeth- 

 od of interdicting commerce at those points." 



Two fleets of vessels were obtained for the 

 blockade of Charleston and Savannah. The 

 first consisted of twenty-five vessels ; the sec- 

 ond of twenty. The largest number of these 

 vessels had been used in the whale fisheries and 

 in the trade to India. They were ships and 

 barks of a burthen between two and five hun- 

 dred tons, which had become too old to encoun- 

 ter any longer the hazards of a long voyage at 

 sea. They were purchased by the Government 

 at about ten dollars per ton, principally in the 

 seaports of New Bedford and New London. 

 The vessels, although old, were substantial and 

 generally double-deckers. They were stripped 

 of their copper and other fittings not necessary 

 for so short a voyage, and loaded with picked 

 stone as deeply as was safe. At light-water 

 mark in each vessel one or more holes were 

 bored through the sides, into which a lead pipe 

 was carefully inserted, the ends of which were 

 nailed down on each side of the vessel, a plug 

 was driven intfrom the outside and another 

 from within, and both secured by a rod pass- 

 ing through them, and fastened within by a 

 nut and screw. Each fleet carried about six 

 thousand tons of stone. The vessels were each 

 manned by about fourteen men. The orders 

 given to the commander were as follows : 



" To Captain , Sir : The now nnder 



your command, having been purchased by the Navy 

 Department for service on the Southern coast of the 

 United States, the following are your orders for your 

 proposed voyage : 



" You will proceed from this port on , the 



instant, or with the first fair wind, and when clear of 



the land make a direct passage to the port of , 



and there deliver your ship to the commanding officer 

 of the blockading fleet off said port, taking his receipt 

 for her return to me. After the delivery of your ves- 

 sel, yourself and crew will be provided with passages 

 to the port of New York, by the Navy Department, 



and on your arrival there you will call on , who 



will furnish you with funds to return to this port. 



" On the voyage down it would be well, as far as 

 practicable, to keep in company of your consorts, to 

 exhibit lights by night and sound horns or bells in 

 case of fog near the coast. 



" You will also examine daily the pipe in the quar- 

 ter of your ship under water, to see that it remains 

 safe. 



" The only service required of you is the safe de- 

 livery of your vessel ; and as she is old and heavily 

 laden, you will use special care that she sustains no 

 damage from unskilful seamanship or want of pru- 

 dence and care. 



"On a close approach to your port of destination, 

 begin to put between-decks cargo into lower hold, 

 and, before anchoring permanently, have your second 

 anchor and chain, (if you have one,) secured on deck. 

 On leaving your vessel, unless otherwise ordered, you 

 will bring away papers, chronometer, charts, com- 

 passes, spy-glass, and any other valuable portable 

 articles not required by the commander of the block- 

 ading fleet there, and return them safely to me. 



" In case of disaster, to preclude going on, you can 

 call at Fortress Monroe, Hampton Roads, to repair 

 damages, reporting to the flag-officer there. 



" Wishing you a safe and speedy passage, 



" I am yours, respectfully, ." 



The effect of sunken vessels upon the chan- 

 nels of a harbor, if uninfluenced by winds and 

 currents, is to stop the navigation. These old 

 hulks become points for the accumulation of 

 alluvials which the rivers bear down, and of the 

 sands which the tides carry back. Becoming 

 thoroughly imbedded in the sand, they cause 

 the accumulations to increase with time, form- 

 ing unconquerable obstacles to re-opening the 

 channels. The strong westerly winds which 

 prevail at Charleston tend to sweep out the 

 channels of its harbor by the increased force 

 of the ebb tide. Two or three hulks which 

 were sunk by the State authorities before the 

 bombardment of Fort Sumter were soon after- 

 wards swept out in this manner. In some in- 

 stances obstructions of this kind have caused 

 the water to cut out new channels. On the 

 21st of December seventeen of these vessels 

 were sunk across the principal entrance to 

 Charleston by orders from the Navy Depart- 

 ment at "Washington. They were placed in 

 three or four rows across the channel, not in 

 uniform, but in a chequered order. 



The occupation of Beaufort by the Federal 

 troops with an immense fleet of transports ex- 

 cited great apprehensions at Charleston. An 

 increased military force was gathered ; the de- 

 fences increased and put in a complete state 

 of readiness to resist an attack. In case 

 of an alarm, the orders by which the troops 

 in the city were to proceed were to this pur- 

 port: 



In case of an alarm, requiring the prompt assem- 

 bling of all the troops in the city of Charleston, the 

 signal for each assembling will be fifteen strokes upon 

 all the fire bells; an interval of one minute, and the 

 fifteen strokes will be repeated. The strokes will be 

 repeated five times. 



_ Upon the sounding of such a signal the troops in the 

 city will immediately assemble, under arms, and in 

 marching order, at the respective regimental muster 

 grounds, and being formed in line will await further 

 orders. 



The regiment of the reserves will assemble on the 

 street immediately in front of the Citadel, the color 

 company resting on the gate of the Citadel, and will be 

 retained in the city for its immediate defence, unless 

 otherwise specially ordered. 



The officers commanding the Sixteenth and Seven- 

 teenth regiments of infantry, First Regiment of rifles 

 and First Regiment of artillery, will have their tran&- 

 portation wagons turned out and loaded with the regi- 

 mental tents and stores, and will proceed to press 

 horses and mules as may be required for the transpor- 

 tation. 



Upon an alarm being communicated to the conntry, 

 the officers commanding companies will immediately 

 extend the same in the mode pointed out. 



CHARLESTON, VA., is the capital of Ka- 

 nawha County. It is situated on the Kanawha 

 River, 60 miles from its mouth, and at its con- 

 fluence with Elk River, 308 miles west by north 

 of Richmond. The river here is three hundred 

 yards wide, and is navigable for steamboats at 

 all seasons of the year. The principal thorough- 

 fare from Richmond to the Ohio River passes 

 through the town. The Virginia troops under 

 Gen. Wise collected here in considerable num- 

 bers in July, but upon the approach of the 



