MANCHESTER MAN 
Sept. 15, 1916, 
DENNIS O’SULLIVAN 
OnE oF Two 
Known Survivors oF ENGAGE- 
MENT AT PENSACOLA, FLA. 
Dennis O’Sullivan of Manchester, 
who will round out his 73rd year on 
the roth of next January, paid a visit 
last Friday to an old comrade, George 
Hickman of Gloucester. The latter, 
who is 79 years old, and Mr. O’Sulli- 
van are the sole survivors of the 
memorable naval engagement at Pen- 
sacola navy yard, September 14, 1861, 
when the rebel privateer, Judah, was 
“cut-out” from under the guns of the 
Confederate forts. The two survi- 
vors talked over the event, which 
Admiral Porter characterized as one 
of the most daring naval expeditions 
during the Civil war. 
Mr. O’Sullivan, who is a native of 
County Cork, Ireland, was one of 10 
children. He came to Boston with 
his family when he was seven years 
old. The trip, which took five weeks 
and three days, was considered a re- 
markably quick one in those days. 
Mr. O’Sullivan’s family left Boston 
after a year, but he returned later and 
learned the blacksmith’s trade at 
which he worked until the outbreak 
of the Civil War. He enlisted, May 
3, 1861, as a marine and was assigned 
to the frigate Colorado. Henry T. 
Bingham of Manchester was abroad 
the same vessel. In June the Colo- 
rado proceeded to Key West and later 
to Pensacola to assist in maintaining 
the blockade. 
The Confederate batteries on the 
navy yard side of the harbor were 
heavily supported and under their 
shelter the schooner was being fitted 
out to prey upon the commerce of the 
North. The squadron lying four 
miles outside the forts under com- 
mand of Commodore Mervin watched 
with interest the perparations of the 
Judah to get away. On the night of 
September 13th a boat expedition 
was fitted out from the frigate Colo- 
rado consisting of the first cutter, un- 
der command of Lt. J. H. Russell, in 
charge of the expedition, and three 
other cutters. In all there were 100 
men in the party who had volunteered 
for the dangerous duty. 
‘It was 3 o'clock on the morning of 
the 14th when the attack was made. 
The Confederates had mounted two 
heavy guns on the wharf as a pre- 
caution against the cutting out of the 
Judah and over 1000 men were sta- 
tioned there to prevent an attack. 
When the boarding party reached the 
schooner they found the crew waiting 
for them. The fight, which ensued, 
was a desperate one. The boarding 
party became separated and some of 
them succeeded in spiking the guns 
upon the wharf while the remainder 
battled with the crew. During the 
struggle the schooner was set on fire 
by the Union sailors, broke from her 
moorings and drifted down the har- 
bor where she sank. When the fight 
was at its height the marines turned 
the schooner’s guns upon the support- 
ing party on the wharf and poured 
shot into them by the light of the 
burning schooner, dispersing them. 
Mr. O’Sullivan and his comrade, 
Hickman, were in the first cutter 
which led the attack. An idea of the 
danger of the expedition may be ob- 
tained from the information that one- 
fifth of the boarding party was killed 
or wounded. 
When his enlistment in the navy 
expired Mr. O'Sullivan joined the 
20th Maine infantry. He went to the 
front at Petersburg and received a 
wound in the groin at Hatch’s Run. 
His life was saved by the bullet strik- 
ing a knife in his pocket. He still has 
the bullet. He served with his regi- 
ment until the close of the war and in 
i866 enlisted in the 4th U. S. cavalry. 
With the regulars he escorted mail 
and emigrant trains across Texas and 
New Mexico and took part in many 
Indian fights . He crosed the Stake 
plains 16 times during his service 
with the regulars. Returning to Bos- 
ton he entered into a partnership in 
the blacksmith business, but soon left 
for Salem. He came to Manchester 
36 years ago and entered the employ 
of Asa Richardson, then the only 
blacksmith in Manchester. Six years 
NORTH SHORE BREEZE and Reminder 37 
later he went into business for him- 
self and has continued ever since. He 
is still hale and hearty and able to 
take a hand at the forge. Although 
unable to stand the strain of con- 
tinued effort in the shop he can shoe 
a horse as well as ever. 
Mr. O’Sullivan is a member of 
Allen Post 67, G. A. R., and has been 
its color-bearer for 26 years. His 
stalwart figure is always seen when- 
ever the local post parades. He will 
take part in the big parade of the Es- 
sex County G. A. R. in Manchester 
tomorrow, which by coincidence 
takes place within two days of the 
55th anniversary of the memorable 
engagement at Pensacola in which 
Mr. O'Sullivan took a part. 
Write THerr APPRECIATION 
The following letter was received 
last week by Mrs. L. W. Carter, chair- 
man of the Manchester committee of 
the Essex County chapter of the Red 
Cross, which has sent supplies to the 
national guardsmen on the Mexican 
border: 
% “Ey Paso, Texas. 
Dear Mrs. Carter: 
“We desire to express to you our 
sincere thanks for the express case 
which you and your committee so 
kindly sent us, and if you had as 
much pleasure in sending it to us 
as we did in sharing it with our com- 
rades, then a small thing like thanks 
cannot repay you. Out here, where 
we cannot see our friends or families, 
a fine gift like yours is truly appre- 
ciated and reminds us that those 
whom we left behind still think of us 
and our welfare. 
“The comfort bags were indeed 
‘comfort,’ and I am sure we will enjoy 
them very much, as there are many 
times when the articles contained 
therein will prove a blessing. Re- 
member the Manchester boys to all 
and rest assured that those boys from 
outside of the town are also very 
grateful. | 
“Thanking you again and trusting 
that in the future we may be able to 
show our thanks in a more substan- 
tial manner by aiding your committee 
in any way we can after our return, 
we remain, 
“Very sincerely yours, 
WILLIAM GAGE HAmonp, Clerk. 
Co. H, 8th Mass. Infantry.” 
The letter also bore the signatures 
of Walter N: Smith, David W. Chad- 
wick, Harry D. Baker, Perley Rod- 
erick and Frank B. Amaral, Manches- 
ter boys in the company. 
Take your bicycle to Peters to be 
repaired.—Opposite Manchester Elec- 
tric Co., Summer st. adv. 
Taxi—Phone Manchester 290. adv. 
