Admiral David Farragut eyed a potentially lethal minefield guarding
the entrance to Mobile Bay, Alabama, as his attack column of
ironclad monitors rushed forward, opening the assault against the
Confederate citadels on shore.
One vessel, the U.S.S. Tecumseh, looked every inch an invincible
monster. As the sleek, turreted warship drew close to its Rebel
enemies, a geyser of water shot up on its starboard side followed
by a muffled rumble. The ship heeled over and sank in seconds,
carried to its watery doom by its own war-speed and momentum.
Crewmen aboard the rest of the Union ships looked on in horror.
"Damn the torpedoes, full steam ahead!" Admiral David Farragut
shouted from the bridge of the U.S.S. Hartford as he sensed the
growing panic among his sailors. As the vessel churned forward
the primer caps of primitive but deadly naval "torpedoes"—dubbed
"infernal machines" by the men who faced them—snapped and
popped beneath the Yankee ships but failed to explode. Despite
the threat of instant and violent death, the Hartford pressed on,
inspiring the fleet and leading toward ultimate victory. Farragut's
words, some of the most famous in American history, were written
in fire and blood that August day as the United States Navy came
of age.
Award-winning author Jack Waugh takes a fresh look at the stirring
land and sea battles surrounding the capture of one of the
Confederacy's most important cities, Mobile, Alabama.
_________________________________________________________
JOHN C. WAUGH is no stranger to readers of history. His two books,
The Class of 1846: From West Point to Appomattox and Reelecting
Lincoln: The Battle for the 1864 Presidency, have received numerous
awards and much critical acclaim. Waugh, a distinguished journalist
and editor, has an impressive list of publications to his credit. Waugh
retired to Arlington, Texas, after a long and noteworthy career as
bureau chief and staff correspondent for the Christian Science Monitor.
His writings have appeared in the New York Times, the Los Angeles
Times, the Boston Globe, American Heritage, and Civil War Times
Illustrated. He is also the author of 20 Good Reasons to Study the
Civil War and Sam Bell Maxey and the Confederate Indians, other
McWhiney Foundation Press titles.
Number Twenty-two: Civil War Campaigns and Commanders Series
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