View source for CSS Albemarle

{{Hatnote|See [[USS Albemarle]] and [[HMS Albemarle]] for other ships of the same name.}}
{{More footnotes|date=August 2012}}
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|Ship name=''Albemarle''
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|Ship ordered=16 April 1862
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|Ship fate=27 October 1864 sunk by [[spar torpedo]], captured, raised, and sold
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|Ship displacement=376 tons
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|Ship range=120 miles, 193 km
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|Ship armament=two 6.4 [[John Mercer Brooke|Brooke]] double-banded rifles
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'''CSS ''Albemarle''''' was a steam-powered [[ironclad]] [[gunboat]] [[Naval ram#Steam rams|ram]] of the [[Confederate Navy]] (and later the second ''Albemarle'' of the [[United States Navy]]), named for a [[Albemarle, North Carolina|town]] and a [[Albemarle Sound|sound]] in [[North Carolina]]. All three were named for [[General officer|General]] [[George Monck]], the first [[Duke of Albemarle]] and one of the original Carolina [[Lords Proprietor]].

==Construction==
On 16 April 1862, the Confederate Navy Department, enthusiastic about the offensive potential of armored rams following the victory of their first ironclad ram {{ship|CSS|Virginia}} (the rebuilt USS ''Merrimack'') over the wooden-hulled [[United States|Union]] [[blockade]]rs in [[Hampton Roads]], Virginia, signed a contract with nineteen-year-old detached Confederate Lieutenant [[Gilbert Elliott]] of [[Elizabeth City, North Carolina]]; he was to oversee the construction of a smaller but still powerful gunboat to destroy the Union warships in the North Carolina sounds. These men-of-war had enabled Union troops to hold strategic positions that controlled eastern North Carolina.

Since the terms of the agreement gave Elliott freedom to select an appropriate place to build the ram, he established a primitive shipyard, with the assistance of plantation owner Peter Smith, in a cornfield up the [[Roanoke River]] at a place called Edward's Ferry, near modern [[Scotland Neck, North Carolina]]; Smith was appointed the superintendent of construction. There, the water was too shallow to permit the approach of Union [[gunboat]]s that otherwise would have destroyed the ironclad while still on its [[Slipway|ways]]. Using detailed sketches provided by Elliott, the Confederate Navy's Chief Constructor [[John L. Porter]] finalized the gunboat's design, giving the ram an armored [[casemate]] with eight sloping, 30-degree angle sides. Within this thick-walled bunker were two {{convert|6.4|in|mm|adj=on}} Brooke pivot rifles, one forward, the other aft, each capable of firing from three different fixed positions. Both cannons were protected on all sides behind six exterior-mounted, heavy iron shutters. The ram was propelled by twin 3-bladed screw propellers powered by two steam engines, each of {{convert|200|hp|abbr=on}}, and built by Elliott.

[[File:Building the Albemarle.jpg|thumb|left|Building the ''Albemarle'']]
Construction of the ironclad began in January 1863 and continued on during the next year. Word of the gunboat reached the Union naval officers stationed in the region, raising an alarm. They appealed to the [[United States Department of War|War Department]] for an overland expedition to destroy the ship, to be christened ''Albemarle'' after the body of water into which the Roanoke emptied, but the [[United States Army|Union Army]] never felt it could spare the troops needed to carry out such a mission; it was a decision that would prove to be very short-sighted.

==Ordnance and projectiles==
''Albemarle'' was equipped with two {{convert|6.4|in|mm|adj=on}} [[John Mercer Brooke|Brooke]] [[Brooke rifle|rifled cannon]] (similar to a [[Parrott rifle]]); each double-banded cannon weighed more than {{convert|12000|lb|kg}} with its pivot carriage and other attached hardware. Both cannons were positioned along the ironclad's center-line in the armored casemate, one forward, the other aft. The [[field of fire (weaponry)|field of fire]] for both pivot rifles was 180-degrees, from [[port]] to [[starboard]]: each cannon could fire from one of three gun ports, allowing ''Albemarle'' to deliver a two cannon [[broadside]]. ''Albemarle''{{'}}s [[projectiles]] consisted of explosive shells, anti-personnel [[canister shot]], [[grape shot]], and blunt-nosed, solid wrought iron "bolts" for use against Union armored ships. These were an early attempt at [[Armor-piercing shell|armor-piercing shot]]; solid iron like a typical [[Round shot|solid shot]], but elongated rather than spherical, giving far more weight for an equal frontal area than a traditional round ball, and thus greater penetration. Such projectiles could not be effectively fired from a traditional [[smoothbore]] naval gun, as the lack of stability would cause the shot to tumble in flight.

==Service on the Roanoke River==
In April 1864 the newly commissioned Confederate States Steamer ''Albemarle'', under the command of [[Captain (naval)|Captain]] [[James W. Cooke]], got underway down-river toward [[Plymouth, North Carolina]]; its mission was to clear the river of all Union vessels so that [[General officer|General]] [[Robert F. Hoke]]'s troops could storm the forts located there. She anchored about three miles (5&nbsp;km) above the town, and the pilot, John Lock, set off with two seamen in a small boat to take [[Depth sounding|sounding]]s. The river was high and they discovered ten feet of water over the obstructions that the Union forces had placed in the Thoroughfare Gap. Captain Cooke immediately ordered steam and, by keeping to the middle of the channel, they passed safely over the obstructions. The ironclad's armor protected them from the Union guns of the forts at Warren's Neck and Boyle's Mill.

[[File:Sinking of the Southfield.jpg|thumb|''Albemarle'''s ram sinks ''Southfield'']]
However, two [[paddle steamer]]s, {{USS|Miami|1861|6}} and {{USS|Southfield}}, lashed together with [[spar (sailing)|spars]] and chains, approached from up-river, attempting to pass on either side of ''Albemarle'' in order to trap her between them. Captain Cooke turned heavily to [[starboard]], getting outboard of ''Southfield'', but running dangerously close to the southern shore. Turning back sharply into the river, he rammed the Union sidewheeler, driving her under; ''Albemarle''{{'}}s ram became trapped in ''Southfield''{{'}}s hull from the force of the blow, and her bow was pulled under as well. As ''Southfield'' sank, she rolled over before settling on the riverbed; this action released the [[death grip]] that held the new Confederate ram.

''Miami'' fired a shell into ''Albemarle'' at point-blank range while she was trapped by the wreck of ''Southfield'', but the shell rebounded off ''Albemarle''{{'}}s sloping iron armor and exploded on ''Miami'', killing her commanding officer, Captain [[Charles W. Flusser]]. ''Miami''{{'}}s crew attempted to board ''Albemarle'' to capture her but were soon driven back by heavy musket fire; ''Miami'' then steered clear of the ironclad and escaped into Albemarle Sound.

With the river now clear of Union ships, and with the assistance of ''Albemarle''{{'}}s rifled cannon, General Hoke attacked and took Plymouth and the nearby forts.

[[File:WoodVIron.jpg|300px|left|thumb|The encounter at Albemarle Sound, May 5, 1864. From left to right are {{USS|Commodore Hull}}, {{USS|Wyalusing}}, {{USS|Sassacus|1862|6}}, CSS ''Albemarle'', {{USS|Mattabesett|1864|6}} and {{ship|CSS|Bombshell}}]]

On May 5 ''Albemarle'' and {{ship|CSS|Bombshell}}, a captured steamer, were escorting the troop-laden {{ship|CSS|Cotton Plant}} down the [[Roanoke River]]; they encountered a flotilla of eight Union warships, including USS ''Miami'', {{USS|Mattabesett|1864|6}}, {{USS|Sassacus|1862|6}}, and {{USS|Wyalusing}}, in what would become known as the [[Battle of Albemarle Sound]]. All four of the listed ships combined mounted more than sixty cannons. ''Albemarle'' opened fire first, wounding six men working one of ''Mattabesett''{{'}}s two 100-pounder [[Parrott rifle]]s, and then attempted to ram her, but the [[sidewheeler]] managed to round the ironclad's armored bow. She was closely followed by ''Sassacus'', which then fired a broadside of solid {{convert|9|in|mm|abbr=on|0}} and 100-pound shot, all of which bounced off ''Albemarle''{{'}}s casemate armor. However, ''Bombshell'', being a softer target, was hulled by each heavy shot from ''Sassucus''{{'}}s broadside and was quickly captured by Union forces, following her surrender.
[[File:CSSAlbemarle1.gif|300px|right|thumb|''Battle between the Sassacus and the Albemarle, May 1864'']]

[[Lieutenant Commander]] [[Francis Asbury Roe]] of ''Sassucus'', seeing ''Albemarle'' at a range of about {{convert|400|yd|m}}, decided to ram. The Union ship struck the Confederate ironclad full and square, broadside-on, shattering the timbers of her own bow, twisting off her own bronze ram in the process, and jamming both ships together. With ''Sassucus''{{'}}s hull almost touching the end of the ram's Brooke rifle, ''Albemarle''{{'}}s gun crew quickly fired two point-blank rifled shells, one of them puncturing ''Sassucus''{{'}}s boilers; though live steam was roaring through the ship, she was able to break away and drift out of range. ''Miami'' first tried to use her [[spar torpedo]] and then to tangle the Confederate ram{{'}}s screw propellers and rudder with a [[seine net]], but neither ploy succeeded. More than 500 shells were fired at ''Albemarle'' during the battle; with visible battle damage to her [[smokestack]] and other areas on the ironclad, she steamed back up the Roanoke, soon mooring at Plymouth.

==Sinking==
[[File:WilliamBCushing.jpg|right|thumb|Lt William B Cushing, USN]]
''Albemarle'' successfully dominated the Roanoke and the approaches to Plymouth through the summer of 1864. By autumn the U. S. government decided that the situation should be studied to determine if something could be done: The U. S. Navy considered various ways to destroy ''Albemarle'', including two plans submitted by Lieutenant [[William B. Cushing]]; they finally approved one of his plans, authorizing him to locate two small [[steam launch]]es that might be fitted with [[spar torpedo]]es. Cushing discovered two {{convert|30|ft|m|adj=on}} picket boats under construction in New York and acquired them for his mission [some accounts have them as 45 to 47 feet (14 m)]. On each he mounted a [[Dahlgren gun|Dahlgren]] 12-pounder [[howitzer]] and a {{convert|14|ft|m|adj=on}} spar projecting into the water from its bow. One of the boats was lost at sea during the voyage from New York to [[Norfolk, Virginia]], but the other arrived safely with its crew of seven officers and men at the mouth of the Roanoke. There, the steam launch's spar was fitted with a lanyard-detonated torpedo.

On the night of October 27 and 28, 1864, Cushing and his team began working their way upriver. A small cutter accompanied them, its crew having the task of preventing interference by the Confederate sentries stationed on a schooner anchored to the wreck of ''Southfield''; both boats, under the cover of darkness, slipped past the schooner undetected. So Cushing decided to use all twenty-two of his men and the element of surprise to capture ''Albemarle''.

[[File:Naval battles, ancient and modern (1883) (14578563567).jpg|thumb|left|The torpedo explodes against the ''Albemarle'']]
As they approached the Confederate docks their luck turned, and they were spotted in the dark. They came under heavy rifle and pistol fire from both the shore and aboard ''Albemarle''. As they closed with the ironclad, they quickly discovered she was defended against approach by floating [[log boom]]s. The logs, however, had been in the water for many months and were covered with heavy slime. The steam launch rode up and then over them without difficulty; with her spar fully against the ironclad's hull, Cushing stood up in the bow and pulled the lanyard, detonating the torpedo's explosive charge.

The explosion threw Cushing and his men overboard into the water; Cushing then stripped off most of his uniform and swam to shore, where he hid undercover until daylight, avoiding the hastily organized Confederate search parties. The next afternoon, he was finally able to steal a small [[skiff]] and began slowly paddling, using his hands and arms as oars, down-river to rejoin Union forces at the river's mouth. Cushing's long journey was quite perilous and he was nearly captured and almost drowned before finally reaching safety, totally exhausted by his ordeal; he was hailed a national hero of the Union cause for his daring exploits. Of the other men in Cushing's launch, one man, Seaman Edward Houghton, also escaped, two others [A.M.M. John Woodman and 1/C fireman Samuel Higgins] were drowned following the explosion, and the remaining eleven were captured.<ref>"Battles and Leaders of the Civil War" Vol IV pp.641. Lt Cushing's own account can be found in this reference source "The Destruction of the "Albemarle" .pp.634-640]</ref>

Cushing's daring [[commando]] raid blew a hole in ''Albemarle''{{'}}s hull at the waterline "big enough to drive a wagon in." She sank immediately in the six feet of water below her [[keel]], settling into the heavy river bottom mud, leaving the upper casemate mostly dry and the ship's large [[Stainless Banner]] ensign flying from the [[flagpole|flagstaff]] at the rear of the casemate's upper deck. Confederate commander Alexander F. Warley, who had been appointed as her captain about a month earlier, later salvaged both of ''Albemarle''{{'}}s rifled cannon and shells and used them to defend Plymouth against subsequent Union attack.

Lieutenant Cushing's successful effort to neutralize CSS ''Albemarle'' is honored by the [[U.S. Navy]] with a [[battle star]] on the Civil War [[campaign streamer]].

==Raising and later service==
[[File:CSSAlbemarle.jpg|right|thumb|CSS ''Albemarle''. According to Millers Photographic History of the Civil War Vol VI "The Navies" .p.87 this picture was taken after the ram had been raised and salvaged]]
[[File:CSSLadyDavis.jpg|right|thumb|CSS ''Albemarle''. In Millers Photographic History of the Civil War Vol VI "The Navies" .p.87 this picture of the ''Albemarle" is misidentied as the [[CSS Lady Davis]].]]
After the fall of Plymouth, the U. S. Navy raised and temporarily hull-patched the Confederate ram. Near the end of the war, the Union gunboat {{USS|Ceres}} towed ''Albemarle'' to the [[Norfolk Navy Yard]], where she arrived on 27 April 1865. On 7 June orders were issued to repair her hull, and she entered [[dry dock]] soon thereafter. The work was completed on 14 August 1865. Two weeks later, the ironclad was judged condemned by a [[Washington, D.C.]] [[prize court]].

She saw no active naval service after being placed in ordinary at Norfolk, where she remained until she was finally sold at [[public auction]] on 15 October 1867 to J. N. Leonard and Company. She was probably [[scrapped]] for [[salvage value|salvage]]. One of her {{convert|6.4|in|mm|adj=on}} double-banded [[John Mercer Brooke|Brooke]] rifled cannon is on display at the Headquarters of the Commander U. S. [[Fleet Forces Command]] at the [[Norfolk, Virginia]], naval base. Her smokestack is on display at the [[Museum of the Albemarle]] in [[Elizabeth City, North Carolina]].

'''Prize Court Adjudication<ref>Porter, ''Naval History'', p. 834</ref>'''
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Date !! Ship Type !! Prize Name !! Gross Proceeds !! Costs and Expenses !! Amount for Distribution !! Where Adjudicated !! Sent to 4th Auditor for Distribution !! Vessels Entitled to Share
|-
| || Ram || ''Albemarle'' || $79,944.00 || $2,645.30 || $77,298.70|| Washington|| 28 Aug 1865|| Lieutenant Commander Cushing and party
|}

==Replica==
[[File:CSS Albemarle replica.JPG|thumb|right|Replica of CSS ''Albemarle'', photographed in 2003]]
A 3/8 scale, {{convert|63|ft|m|adj=on}} replica of ''Albemarle'' has been at anchor near the Port O' Plymouth Museum in [[Plymouth, North Carolina]], since April, 2002. The replica is self-powered and capable of sailing on the river. Each year CSS ''Albemarle'' takes to the water during Living History Weekend, the last weekend in April each year.<ref>{{cite web|title=CSS Albemarle|url=http://www.fortbranchcivilwarsite.com/history-css_ram_albemarle.aspx|publisher=fortbranchcivilwarsite|accessdate=15 March 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=The Chronicles of an Ironclad|url=http://www.livinghistoryweekend.com/livinghistoryweekend_016.htm|accessdate=15 March 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130227112235/http://www.livinghistoryweekend.com/livinghistoryweekend_016.htm#|archive-date=2013-02-27|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[List of ships captured in the 19th century#American Civil War|Ships captured in the American Civil War]]
*[[Bibliography of early American naval history#American Civil War|Bibliography of American Civil War naval history]]

==Notes==
{{Reflist|40em}}

==References== 
{{refbegin|50em}}
*{{DANFS}}
*{{cite book |last1=Bisbee |first1=Saxon T. |title=Engines of Rebellion: Confederate Ironclads and Steam Engineering in the American Civil War | url=https://books.google.com/books/about/Engines_of_Rebellion.html?id=ptdfDwAAQBAJ|publisher=University of Alabama Press |location=Tuscaloosa, Alabama |isbn=978-0-81731-986-1|date=2018}}
*{{cite web | title = CSS Albemarle| url = https://web.archive.org/web/20050308123211/http://www.cronab.demon.co.uk/alb.htm| website =www.cronab.demon.co.uk| publisher =Maritime History| access-date =March 8, 2005| quote =}}
*{{Citation | last =Cushing| first =William B.| author-link =William B. Cushing| title =The Destruction of the "Albemarle"| journal =The Century Magazine| volume =XXXVI| series =The Career of the Confederate Ram "Albemarle"| pages =386-393| date =1888| year =1888| url =https://archive.org/details/abrahamlincolnba03newy/page/n391/mode/2up| oclc =21247159}}
* {{cite book | last =Edwards| first =E. M. H.| title =Commander William Barker Cushing, of the United States Navy| publisher =F. Tennyson Neely Publisher| year =1898| location =London & New York| url = https://hdl.handle.net/2027/hvd.hx4mfu}}
*{{Citation | last =Elliot| first =Gilbert| title =Her Construction and Service| journal =The Century Magazine| volume =XXXVI| series =The Career of the Confederate Ram "Albemarle"| pages =374-380| date =1888| year =1888| url =https://archive.org/details/abrahamlincolnba03newy/page/n391/mode/2up| oclc =21247159}}
* {{cite book | last =Elliott| first =Robert G.| title =Ironclad of the Roanoke: Gilbert Elliott's Albemarle| publisher =White Mane Publishing| year =1994| location =Shippensburg, PA| url =https://books.google.com/books/about/Ironclad_of_the_Roanoke.html?id=_TAaAQAAIAAJ| isbn =0-942597-63-X}}
*{{Citation| last =Holden| first =Edgar| title =The "Albemarle" and the "Sassacu:" An Attempt to Run Down an Iron-Clad with a Wooden Ship| journal =The Century Magazine| volume =XXXVI| series =The Career of the Confederate Ram "Albemarle"| pages =380-392| date =1888| year =1888| url =https://archive.org/details/abrahamlincolnba03newy/page/n391/mode/2up| oclc =21247159}}
* {{cite book | last =Hinds| first =John W.| title =The Hunt for the Albemarle: Anatomy of a Gunboat War| publisher =Burd Street Press| year =2002| location =Shippensburg, PA| url =https://catalog.loc.gov/vwebv/search?searchCode=STNO&searchType=1&recCount=25&searchArg=9781572492165| isbn =9781572492165| oclc =606812824 }}
*{{Citation | last =Madaus| first =H. Michael| title =Rebel Flags Afloat: A Survey of the Surviving Flags of the Confederate States Navy, Revenue Service, and Merchant Marine| journal =The Flag Bulletin, #115| volume =25| issue =No. 1-2| pages =79| date =1986| url =https://www.worldcat.org/title/rebel-flags-afloat-a-survey-of-the-surviving-flags-of-the-confederate-states-navy-revenue-service-and-merchant-marine/oclc/16908931| issn =0015-3370| oclc =16908931}}
* {{cite book| last =Porter, ADM USN| first =David Dixon| author-link =David Dixon Porter| title =The Naval History of the Civil War| publisher =The Sherman Publishing Company| year =1886| location =New York, NY| url =https://archive.org/details/navalhistcivilwar00portrich/page/n8/mode/2up| oclc =280729 }}
* {{cite book | last =Roske| first =Ralph| last2=Van Doren| first2 =Charles| title =Lincoln's Commando: The Biography of Commander W. B. Cushing, USN, (Revised and Expanded Edition)| publisher =Naval Institute Press| location =Annapolis, MD| url =https://books.google.com/books/about/Lincoln_s_Commando.html?id=UH6aPwAACAAJ| isbn =9781557507372}}
* {{cite book | last =Schneller| first =Robert J.,Jr.| title =Cushing: Civil War SEAL| publisher =Brassey's| series =Brassey's Military Profiles| year =2004| location =London, UK| pages =119 | url =https://books.google.com/books/about/Cushing.html?id=8qm9-3j18PwC| isbn =9781574886962}}
*{{cite book|last=Still|first=William N. Jr.|title=Iron Afloat: The Story of the Confederate Armorclads| url =http://hdl.handle.net/10079/bibid/5349504 |isbn=9780872496163 |edition=Reprint of the 1971|year=1985|publisher=University of South Carolina Press|location=Columbia, SC}}
*{{cite book|last=Silverstone|first=Paul H.|title=Civil War Navies 1855–1883|url=https://www.worldcat.org/title/civil-war-navies-1855-1883/oclc/949751895&referer=brief_results|publisher=Routledge|location=New York|year=2006|series=The U.S. Navy Warship Series|isbn=9781138991354|oclc=949751895 }}
*{{Citation| last =Warley| first =A.P., CAPT CSN| title =The Destruction of the "Albemarle"| journal =The Century Magazine| volume =XXXVI| series =The Career of the Confederate Ram "Albemarle"| pages =393-394| date =1888| year =1888| url =https://archive.org/details/abrahamlincolnba03newy/page/n391/mode/2up| oclc =21247159}}
{{refend}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|CSS Albemarle (ship, 1864)}}
*[http://americancivilwar.com/tcwn/civil_war/Navy_Ships/CSS_Albemarle.html American Civil War Web Site]
*[http://www.csnavy.org/weapons/cannons.htm Confederate States Navy Research Center Mobile, Ala.]
*[http://www.civilwarartillery.com/inventors/Brooke.htm John Mercer Brooke]

{{North Carolina in the Civil War}}
{{CSN Ironclads}}
{{1864 shipwrecks}}
{{Portal|American Civil War}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Albemarle}}
[[Category:Ironclad warships of the Confederate States Navy]]
[[Category:Ships built in North Carolina]]
[[Category:1860s ships]]
[[Category:Shipwrecks of the American Civil War]]
[[Category:Shipwrecks in rivers]]
[[Category:Ships captured by the United States Navy from the Confederate States Navy]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in October 1864]]
[[Category:Raids of the American Civil War]]