The Day Before The Battle of the Ironclads Part 1...Virginia Kicks Butt and Takes names

This is going to be a long entry, gang. In fact I've decided to split the events of March 8^th, 1862 into two separate posts, because that was one very busy day on the waters of Hampton Roads, let me tell ya!

Also, there's here's a reason I didn't title this post 'The Day Before The Battle of Hampton Roads'. When the majority of people think about 'The Battle of Hampton Roads', they think about only one part of it...The Monitor and the Virginia. (And lets be honest...when they think about that epic battle, most think of it as the battle between The Monitor and the Merrimack. They may or may not remember that pesky terminal 'K'.) The point is, of course, that the battle between the two ironclads was just a small part of The Battle of Hampton Roads. That battle started when the U.S. Navy blockaded the CSA's Atlantic ports, Hampton Roads among them.

The US Navy had sent a formidable blockade fleet to Hampton Roads, deploying several major warships between the mouth of the James River and the Chesapeake Bay,along the north shore of Hampton Roads. Riding point at Newport News point, at the mouth of the James (Straddling the strip of water that The Monitor-Merrimac Bridge-Tunnel would occupy 140 years later ), were USS Cumberland and USS Congress.

Both ships were conventional broadside warships, big sailing frigates powered by sail only. Either warship would have been a formidable adversary against a conventional warship. Cumberland displaced 1726 tons, had a length of 175', a beam of 45', and drew just over 21'. She was armed with twenty-two 9” Dahlgrens as well as a pair of 10” Dahlgren pivot guns mounted on her deck (Likely one forward and one aft).

Congress was slightly larger at 179' in length, with a beam of just under 48' and a draft of 22' 6” She mounted four 8” Dahlgrens and forty eight 32 pounders (6.5 inchers). Both frigates could deliver a devastating broadside that would have decimated a wooden hulled ship of similar size. They were manned by dedicated, motivated, well trained crews who were spoiling for a fight with the contraption that the 'Rebs' had thrown together. And they were doomed.

Their impending doom had to wait, though. The Confederate Navy's super weapon was having a few teething pains of her own. CSS Virginia, from all accounts, had even less time for sea trials than Monitor. She was commissioned on Feb 17^th (Almost a week before the Monitor) and on the 24^h Franklin Buchanan was named as commander of the Confederate James River defenses with Virginia as his flagship. One day later the Virginia's crew found out that that their first sortie against the blockade fleet was going to be delayed by a lack of gunpowder. While waiting for the gunpowder and a few other necessities to be delivered, Buchanan grilled Virginia’s chief engineer about the readiness, condition, and reliability of her engines (He'd heard about their near-legendary crappyness) and how sturdy their foundations and those of her boilers were. As in would the engines and boilers stay put if subjected to the kind of shock that would result from ramming another ship. (The Virginia was, after all, classified as an ironclad ram). Buchanan was already formulating a game plan.

The final shipment of gunpowder from Richmond arrived on March 6th, and her first sortie against the blockade fleet was set for that night, and...well, things still didn't go exactly as planned. As a contemporary first hand account written by Virginia's Executive Officer noted, her pilots pointed out that there were no lighted navigation aids that would allow them to stay in the deep water channel. They also pointed out that, with Virginia's deep draft and the aforementioned lack of visible navigational aids they couldn't guarantee a safe trip...'Safe' meaning a sortie that didn't include her keel becoming deeply embedded in the soft mud and sand bottom of either the Elizabeth River or Hampton Roads. The sortie was pushed back about a day and a half to the late morning of Saturday March 8^th. 

Map of Hampton Roads showing ship positions on March 6th and 9th, 1862

And Virginia's Adversaries for the day:

USS Cumberland at sea.

 

USS Congress At sea, 1842

Another shot of  Cumberland...This one an actual photograph...at Portsmouth Navy yard
It's been a long LONG time since the Hampton Roads area was this uncongested!Add caption

Virginia left the navy yard and headed up the Elizabeth River at 11AM on the 8^th, during the last thirty or so minutes of flood (Incoming) tide to give her as much water beneath her keel as possible. She was accompanied by CSS Raleigh and CSS Beaufort, a pair of small iron hulled former tugs converted to gunboats. The gunboats, being smaller, faster and far more nimble than the Virginia, acted as her tenders.
The Virginia's appearance, of course, was not unexpected by either the US Navy or the local citizens. She'd barely cleared Gosport Naval Yard with her two escorts before word started spreading like the proverbial wildfire (This in an era 150 years before cell phones and text messaging!) and by the time Virginia cleared the mouth of The Elizabeth River crowds were forming on the shoreline to watch the fight.

Due to her deep draft The Virginia had to follow the Elizabeth River Channel nearly due north, to Sewell's Point, then swing to port into the main channel of Hampton Roads. (The Beaufort still had to assist her with a tow when The Virginia's bottom dragged on the bottom opposite Craney Island . Keep Craney Island in mind by the way...that place would come back to haunt CSS Virginia in a big way a couple of the mouths down the road).

The U S Navy didn't have the advantage of the civilian grape vine of course, but they did have look-outs. By 12:30PM, lookouts on Both USS Congress and USS Cumberland spotted the Virginia and her escorts steaming across Hampton Roads with smoke boiling from their stacks and bones in their teeth. The two gunboats, being shallow draft, swung Northwest, straight across Hampton Roads while the Virginia followed the channels. Aboard the two Union frigates gun crews were called to battle stations, The Congress unfurled her top sails, and shot, shell and powder was laid out on the gun deck.

Across the Roads, at Old Point Comfort, just off Fortress Monroe the crews of USS Minnesota and the USS Roanoke had also spotted the trio of Confederate vessels and smoke started drifting from the funnels as their engine room crews lit off their boilers to get heads of steam up. Virginia probably hadn't made the turn into the South Channel good when Minnesota and Roanoke slipped their mooring cables and headed out to engage her. But Virginia and her escorts had been five or six miles away when they were spotted, had about a ten mile run to Newport News, and both U.S. Navy ships were sister ships of Merrimack...the Frigate whose burned out hull the Virginia had been built on. They had the same draft and performance as Virginia and by the time the two Union frigates got under way, Virginia was setting up to engage Cumberland

With Virginia's county-sized turning radius (Buchanan estimated it would take her 30 minutes to make a 180 degree turn, and he was just about dead on) any battle plan had to be pretty well thought out before the mooring lines were even slipped. When Virginia's helmsman swung her into the main channel, Buchanan already had a pair of goals in mind...Ramming Cumberland, then sinking Congress with gun fire. The Virginia had been fitted with a 1500 pound ram extending several feet from her bow, just below the waterline, and it was about to get's its baptism by fire. Cumberland would be their first target. Virginia reached her and Congress at about 3PM, opening up on Cumberland with her bow gun (A big rifled 7 inch pivot gun which could be fired through any of three gun ports...straight ahead across her bow and about 30 degrees to either side of the bow. The stern gun emplacement was identical)
 Both Cumberland and Congress opened up on her, as did shore batteries, and solid shot clanged off of her armor, riddling her stack, and taking away boats, stanchions, and other deck hardware. Virginia's broadside guns answered the shore batteries and the guns of Congress as she bore straight for Cumberland.

The incoming tide had swung the Cumberland on her anchor chain so her starboard side was towards Virginia. As Cumberland's hull became a wooden wall filling the pilot's view port, shot pounded off of her armor and near misses blew water columns skyward. Buchanan ordered all stop (2 bells in the engine room) then all reverse full (Three bells). The first order so Virginia wouldn't rip into Cumberland under full power, which would have driven her entire bow deeply into the Frigate's hull, dooming both ships; the second so she would be backing off as soon as she holed Cumberland's hull. At least that's how it was supposed to work...Virginia almost did too good of a job of holing Cumberland.

This is the view that Cumberland's crew may have had of Virginia as she bore down on them. This alos illustrates how Virginia rode, with her decks awash, very clearly

Virginia rams Cumberland

Virginia smashed through the heavy timber protective obstacles surrounding the frigate's bow before ramming her prow into Cumberland's starboard bow, heeling Cumberland far over to port. Virginia was stuck fast for a moment as Cumberland righted herself and started down by the bow, threatening to drag the Virginia with her. Meanwhile gunners tried to either elevate or depress their guns enough to hit each other, depending on which of the ships they were aboard and sharp shooters on Cumberland fired gallantly but ineffectually on the ironclad. Cumberland's gunners got couple of hits in, one of which exploded inside Virginia's stack, creating lots of noise and bedlam but no damage or casualties in the engine room. Another blanged loudly off of the muzzle of one of the Virginia's big Dahlgrens, taking a couple of feet of the muzzle with it.

Virginia's engines pounded in full reverse. (Try and imagine what it was like in her engine room, as The Virginia began to go down perceptibly by the bow herself while the connecting rods for those two big horizontal engines slammed back and forth, spinning the propeller shaft for all they were worth as the battle raged loudly above them). A well timed wave helped out after a couple of minutes that probably seemed like a day or so, rocking the Cumberland, then lifting Virginia. Virginia popped out like a cork, leaving her ram behind as she swung parallel to Cumberland. While all of this was going on, the crew of Virginia's stern gun were lobbing shots at Congress, whose gunners couldn't fire back for a couple of minutes for fear of hitting the doomed Cumberland.

Virginia backed away from the sinking frigate then turned, bringing herself back into position to lob broadsides at the Cumberland as well as the shore batteries that were firing on her. Cumberland took forty minutes to sink, and her gun crews stayed at their posts, exchanging broadsides with Virginia just about the whole time.. One of Cumberland's shells hit another of Virginia's guns, breaking it off short (It's been suggested that this round may actually been fired by Congress). Another hit the bow gun port while the gun was run in for loading and exploded, killing two of Virginia's crew and injuring several others. Cumberland kept up a valiant and merciless rate of fire until her gun ports were all but taking on water...only then did her crew abandon ship. They never surrendered, her colors were never struck. As Buchanan noted in his report on the action 'Cumberland was destroyed, but not conquered...never before has a crew fought more gallantly'

As far as Buchanan and the rest of Virginia's crew was concerned, it was now Congress' turn. Had Frank Buchanan known one little fact about Congress' crew I can't help wondering if he'd have had a few mixed feelings about attacking her. The Congress' paymaster was one McKean Buchanan...Franklin Buchanan's brother. Neither of the Buchanans knew the other was involved in the battle until much later.

Before Virginia attacked Congress she had to get turned around so her gun crews could actually bring her guns to bear.. The sunken Cumberland's masts were between Virginia and Congress and Virginia’s deep draft and wide turning radius wouldn't allow her to just swing around Cumberland's wreck to get in position. She had to head up river, swing around, and return. Buchanan reported that Virginia had very little water beneath her keel for most of this maneuver, and they came under fire from shore batteries on both legs of the turn. They returned fire, silencing a couple of the batteries and doing considerable damage to the waterfront as well

Congress' crew thought that Virginia had quit the fight when she headed up the James River, and let out a trio of cheers to celebrate chasing off the Rebel. The cheers died quickly as they watched Virginia reach a wide portion of the channel and execute a long, slow, sweeping 180, then watched white water curl from her bow as she pounded back down river. It became obvious that Congress was in for the same manner of pounding Cumberland had just received, and the decision was made to get the hell outa Dodge, so to speak. Congress slipped her moorings and started to come about (A seriously tricky maneuver in a big sailing vessel). Her bows came around smartly and she was on her way to making her own 180 to head for the protection of Fortress Monroe, at Old Point Comfort. She never made it around...She ran hard aground just outside of the channel, bow toward the shoreline. Worse, because of the position she was in relative to the shoreline and the Virginia, Virginia could stand off and lob broad side after broad side into her while Congress couldn't bring anything but her stern pivot guns guns to bear.

As if the Union Navy wasn't having enough trouble, as Cumberland settled to the bottom of The Roads, he Confederates gunboats Patrick Henry (1300 ton walking beam side-wheeler, former passenger and freight steamer converted into a 12 gun gunboat), Teaser (Former tug, converted to a 2 gun gun boat) and Jamestown (Sister ship of CSS Patrick Henry, but armed with only 2 guns) steamed out to assist Virginia. Union shore batteries immediately heavily engaged them, taking some of the heat from that direction off of Virginia and allowing her to concentrate on Congress. The gunboats didn't come out entirely unscathed...Patrick Henry took a hit in one of her boilers, scalding four of her crew to death. She was towed out of action until temporary repairs could be made.

The steam frigates Minnesota (4830 tons, 2 × 10 in guns, 28 × 9 in guns, 14 × 8 in guns) and Roanoke(4770 tons, 2 × 10 in guns, 28 × 9 in guns, 14 × 8 in guns) were enroute to engage Virginia of course, their crews hoping to save Congress in the bargain. They were accompanied some time later by the sail frigate St Lawrence,(1726 tons, 8 8' guns, 42 6.5' guns) which was under tow by the gun boat Cambridge. The fact that these three ships were on the way to assist Congress would have a bearing on both Congress fate, and the next day's events...but back to the the one sided battle between Congress and Virginia.

After turning around Virginia positioned herself off of Congress' stern quarter and proceeded to lob broadside after broadside into her. Navel guns were sighted just like huge rifles in that era, firing solid or explosive round shot, canister shot or grape shot on straight, flat trajectories at close range. Virginia's gun crews probably had the range down to perfection after the second broad side if not the first, every broadside slamming into the Congress and wreaking devastating havoc on her. Congress' officers were neither ignorant, foolhardy, or suicidal, and with none of her guns able to bear on Virginia and broad side after broadside tearing into her, it was quickly obvious where things were heading. A pair of white flags was run up...one on the main mast and one on the gaff. Virginia immediately ceased fire as the able bodied remaining of Congress' crew took to the boats and pulled for shore. Beaufort was signaled to come within hailing distance and her CO...Lt Parker...was sent to board Congress, take her officers prisoner while allowing the crew to land, and set fire to the ship prevent it from being pulled off of the shoal and repaired. Keep in mind she had white flags flying...things were about to get real interesting!

Parker took Beaufort alongside Congress and accepted the surrender of her officers (Commander William Smith and Lieutenant Pendergrast) both of whom were allowed to return to Congress and assist in transferring the injured to Beaufort.. Neither of them returned to Virginia..Maybe letting them return to Congress wasn't that hot of an idea after all!

Virginia engages Congress.  Note that Congress is aground, bow in to shore, and that Virginia is off of her stern quarter, where Congress' guns couldn't be brought to bear. This was a seaborne Turkey Shoot

Raleigh had also gone alongside Congress to assist with removing prisoners and burning the frigate. With white flags flying on Congress, shore batteries opened up on the two gunboats (Some sources state that some of the fire came form Congress as well) and the two gunboats withdrew. Parker never reported to Buchanan, who was waiting to see smoke start rolling up from Congress. Virginia was receiving heavy and sustained fire form the shore batteries (And giving it back to 'em just as heavily)

With Minnesota, Roanoke, and St Lawrence on the way from fortress Monroe, the Congress still not burning, and her salvage and repair a definite possibility, Buchanan mentioned to one of his lieutenants that Congress needed to be burned...like NOW. The Lieutenant...Lt. Minor by name...volunteered to to take a boat over to Congress and burn her. Buchanan agreed, a boat was launched, and Teaser was signaled to cover the boat and it's crew. As the boat was approaching Congress, the shore batteries opened up with accurate and withering fire, injuring Lt Minor and several of his men and causing the quick retreat of the boat and crew. Buchanan had had enough at this point...he ordered Congress destroyed using hot shot. (Solid shot heated in a furnace until it was red hot). Very shortly after this order was given, Buchanan himself was injured, he transferred command over to her Executive Officer, Lt Catesby Jones.

Congress just starting to burn after Virginia fired on her using 'Hot Shot'

Congress Burning with herehr crew swimming for shore. I have to wonder if the artist didn't add a little drama to this one as most if not all of Congress' crew had already abandoned ship before she was set on fire.

This time they were successful in lighting up Congress...in minutes the crackle of flames could be heard at Newport News Point and a column of smoke was roiling skyward as flames ate into her hull. She burned brightly throughout the night until just after midnight, when fire reached her magazines and she exploded with a 'Whoom' that shook windows throughout the area...

Hey...wait a minute here! What happened to Minnesota, Roanoke, and St Lawrence???

******************NOTES, LINKS, AND STUFF*********************

The interesting thing about digging into Civil War history is that detailed accounts of both sides of just about every battle are available for the reading. The sometimes frustrating thing about that is that those accounts can be radically different (I ran into that a bit with this, in fact. ). You have to read the accounts, and see which facts seem to be repeated the most. For example some eyewitnesses on the Minnesota and the Roanoke thought that Virginia was under tow (They probably saw her being assisted when she dragged bottom off of Craney Island) I figured Buchanan's account would be the most accurate if possibly a little skewed...it came right out of the official report he submitted to Confederate Naval Headquarters.

This one bears repeating...the battle between Virginia and Congress illustrates one of the most chilling aspects of The Civil War, Brother fighting Brother. Franklin Buchanan's brother McKean Buchanan was the paymaster on Congress

Everyone's heard the colorful description bestowed upon USS Monitor 'Cheese Box on a Raft, or a similar variation, Tin Can on A Shingle. Less well known are the descriptions US Crews gave to Virginia. 'A floating barn roof belching smoke from a chimney' and more sinister sounding 'A partially submerged, crocodile stalking it's prey'

Both navies used the same types of guns...Dahlgrens...extensively. The name was derived from the designer rather than a manufacturer (And much as the residents of Dahlgren Va would like to dispute this, they were not designed in that very beautiful little town. Interestingly enough, though, the U S Navel Surface Warfare Center is located in Dahlgren). The guns were designed and built with a distinctive bottle shape...thickest at the breech...to prevent them from bursting when in use. It worked...not a single one of them ever burst while being fired. Due to their distinctive shape, they were all but inevitably nick named 'Soda Bottles'
 Among the casualties aboard Cumberland was Caotain John D. Lenhart, the ships Chaplain. He was the first Navel chaplain killed in action and the only Chaplain killed in action until Pearl Harbor a bit over 80 years later.

And now for some links:

http://www.wtj.com/archives/acwnavies/buchanan.htm

Franklin Buchanan's official report on the action against Cumberland and Congress

http://cssvirginia.org/

Again, Excellent site on the Virginia. Click on 'Ironclad Battle on the left for links and time lines for both the 8^th and 9^th.

http://www.history.navy.mil/museums/hrnm/files/daybook/pdfs/volumexiissue3.pdf

PDF format issue of The Daybook, The Hampton Roads Navel Museum's newsletter with several excellent articles about Cumberland including one articledetailing the battle from Cumberland's crew's point of view.