This is the journal of a Civil War Marine Officer, Frank L. Church. A career officer, Church maintained a personal journal through most of the Red River Expedition of 1864. The Red River was a major trouble spot for the Federal river forces in the west, and during the expedition of 1864, Church commanded the Marine guard on the U.S. Steamer Black Hawk, Admiral David Dixon Porter's flagship of the Mississippi Squadron, and the Cricket, a tinclad, which served as flagship for the expedition.Dr. Edward P. Keuchel, a member of the Department of History, Florida State University, together with Dr....

The Southern states responded to the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860 and to the President's call for troops on April 15, 1861, by calling state conventions to vote on secession. With a war between the states imminent, many officers from all branches of Federal service tendered their resignations and offered their services to the Southern states. The Marine Corps, which consisted of 63 officers and 1,712 enlisted men on 31 October 1860, lost 20 officers to the Southern Confederacy. Six resigned and 14 were dismissed when their resignations were rejected. Twelve were citizens of southern...