Pensacola connection, part 1

[Ozzy 648]

Had not given much thought to this, until I was in the chat room with Manassas Belle and Perry. There was more of a Pensacola connection to the Battle of Shiloh than I realized...

 

Will start with the attached link, a concise description of the Battle of Santa Rosa Island. (Note some of the names involved: Chalmers, Jackson, Patton Anderson... but the battle commander, BGen Richard Anderson went east, instead of following Bragg to Corinth.)

 

http://www.exploresouthernhistory.com/santarosa.html

 

Cheers

 

Ozzy

[Manassas1 158]

Ozzie.......

 

Great accounts of civil war encounters in Florida.  You don't hear much about them in the history books, but they are interesting, all the same.  Looks like I may have to do some exploring on my next trip to Florida.  Thanks for sharing with the group. 

 

THE MANASSAS BELLE

[Perry Cuskey 277]

Ah, good deal, thank you Ozzy. Saved me some searching! You got both of our interests up with some of that in the chat room last night.

[Ozzy 648]

Belle and Perry

 

There is another aspect to the situation at Pensacola, often overlooked by time-constrained historians: called the 'Fort Pickens Armistice' (sometimes referred to as the 'Pickens Truce'), it was an understanding worked out between Senator Stephen Mallory (D-Fla) and President James Buchanan, whereby United States forces would not reinforce Union-held Fort Pickens (where Adam Slemmer held out with a combined Army/Navy force of 76 men). In return, Florida forces would not attack the fort.

 

The 'understanding' came about after Senator Mallory caught wind of Union intentions, early in January 1861, to send USS Brooklyn (with an Army contingent, under command of Captain Israel Vogdes) from Fortress Monroe to Fort Pickens. The Brooklyn set sail, but arrived off Fort Pickens with orders from the President not to offload any troops: she sat offshore, waiting for developments. Meanwhile, Stephen Mallory (whose home was in Pensacola) resigned from the Senate on January 21st, 1861, and became Secretary of the Confederate States Navy in March 1861. 

 

The truce persisted until early April 1861, when USS Powhatan was sent south to reinforce Fort Pickens... before the Bombardment of Fort Sumter.

 

Ozzy

[Manassas1 158]

Ozzy, 

 

These are all interesting little pieces to the bigger puzzle!   When it comes to the American Civil War, there is always more to learn.  You really need more than one dedicated lifetime to explore it all!  Thanks, again, for sharing your knowledge.

 

THE MANASSAS BELLE

[Ozzy 648]

Belle

 

Part of what I find fascinating about the Civil War: unexpected connections. And as you suggest, someone truly interested could spend a lifetime researching, and still not uncover them all.

 

To an extent, historians do us a favour, by 'weeding out' the 'less important' from the 'more important.' But, for the sake of brevity, sometimes 'the truly interesting' gets lost.

 

Ozzy

[Ozzy 648]

http://www.c-span.org/search/?searchtype=All&query=the+civil+war%3A+abraham+lincoln+and+fort+sumter  "The Civil War: Abraham Lincoln and Fort Sumter," produced by C-SPAN and featuring Craig Symonds (2011).

Probably the best video to be found (as of 2018) that describes the interconnection of the dual problems focused on Fort Sumter and Fort Pickens; and the deliberate (and unintended) decisions and actions resulting in outbreak of War of the Rebellion where, and when it occurred. Craig Symonds does a wonderful job presenting the situation inherited by Abraham Lincoln upon assuming the Presidency on 4 March 1861. And while the focus of the fifty minute presentation is on Fort Sumter, the similar dire, problem-in-search of solution, situation at Fort Pickens is returned to, again and again.

Along the way, personalities familiar to members of SDG are introduced: Andrew Hull Foote (caught up by accident of geography, about to retire, and serving out his remaining time at Brooklyn Navy Yard); Montgomery Meigs (a junior Army officer, only recently returned from Fort Jefferson in the Dry Tortugas to work on Capitol improvements); David Dixon Porter (in Washington to receive orders, in conjunction with Montgomery Meigs and Secretary of State William Seward, hatched a plan... the full details of which were only known by Seward, Meigs, Porter and President Lincoln.) PGT Beauregard and many others are mentioned, with their roles in the National dilemma discussed.

It may be the most important hour you ever invest in viewing a video.

Ozzy

 

[Ozzy 648]

As further incentive to view the above video -- The Civil War: Abraham Lincoln and Fort Sumter -- the credentials of Craig Symonds (who has served as Professor of History at both the United States Naval Academy, and at the U.S. Naval War College) see the attached link:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Craig_Symonds   

Cheers

Ozzy