Focusing on the latter part of the war, this work provides an in-depth look at the realities of life as a cadet at the Confederate Naval Academy. Beginning with an overview of the academy, the book contains a brief biographical sketch of each of the school's principal instructors. The main focus of the work, however, is the diary which Hubbard Minor kept as a cadet requirement. One of only two such documents to survive, it provides a day-by-day account of Minor's duties as well as his active service on board the CSS Savannah. Events covered include the June 1864 raid on the USS Water Witch,...

A steam engineer by profession, James Tomb devoted much of his life to work in the navy, including the Confederate States Navy during the American Civil War, these are his memoirs.

No body of water was more vital to the Confederacy's efforts in the Civil War than the Mississippi River and its tributaries. Though the Confederate Congress declared the Mississippi free and open to all states north and south, the Union launched plans for an effective blockade of the 1700 miles of Southern coastline, coupled with a strong naval and army thrust down the Mississippi Valley from Cairo, Illinois, to the Gulf of Mexico. To defend the river and to prevent Union forces from advancing, the South would require a strong naval force. There was only one problem with the strategy: The...

Offers an account of the design, construction, and engagements of the Confederate Navy's ironclad warships. It is a perplexing story. On the one hand, it is the description of vision, ingenuity, and courage, coupled with grim perseverance and determination. On the other hand, it is tale of frustration, innumerable delays, and "too little too late".