The Ship in My Header

My colleague Chris Graham asked me this morning about the ship drawing I put on the blog header. I guess I could offer some explanation, so here goes:

USS Daylight
The ship was a screw steamer (also rigged for sail as you can see in the drawing) and was built in New York in 1859. She was 170' long, 30'6" wide, and drafted 13'. Her crew complement was 57 officers and men, and she mounted four 32-pounders. The US Navy purchased and commissioned her in early summer 1861 and she served with the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron. She was decommissioned and sold immediately after the war.

The reason I put her up there is that she is one of the ships our living history unit portrays at some of our programs. She was involved in a number of engagements in coastal NC, including the Battle of Fort Macon in April 1862 and some smaller operations in coastal waters. I think she is a good looking ship that is very representative of the types of ships operating in coastal waters. So there you have it. I have drawings of other ships we portray as a unit and will change them up from time to time so keep a lookout on that header!

Biting Off More than I Could Chew?

I've recently had a very frustrating episode in my professional life. Back in October I volunteered to write an article for a magazine that is published by a national professional organization. I had a coauthor whom I had never met, but had talked to in conference calls with larger groups. I also employed the assistance of one of the higher-ups in my division, who has over 25 years experience and I knew would be of immense help in this project. The drafts were reviewed and edited by another well-respected colleague. We got the article together and met the deadline, which was early December. I felt pretty good about the article at the time considering it was the first of this length I had written. Jump ahead six months...

I got an email last week from the magazine editor stating that there were problems with the article that would require a fairly significant reworking. First, the article was too short. Never in my academic or professional career had I been told something was too short, so that was a bit of a shock. Granted, it was a little more than 1,000 words short of the suggested length I had been given (admittedly short, not arguing that point). Some editorial suggestions had been made and some requests to flesh out certain areas of the article. Here's what really got me - they wanted it turned around in two weeks. The article was in their possession for almost six months, yet they wanted a major rework turned around in two weeks. I was slightly taken aback, but agreed to do the best I could to accomplish what they were asking. Luckily I had nothing on my plate last week and was able to read, research, and rework all that was asked. I have met the suggested word limit and the draft is now being reviewed by aforementioned esteemed colleague. I will turn it in this week after receiving his comments and suggestions.

Now I find myself questioning my abilities as a writer. Did I bite off more than I could chew in this particular instance? Maybe so. Was it a good learning experience for me? Definitely. I still believe that the magazine's editor could have been more timely in asking for these revisions; I still feel like I was rushed to produce what was asked, but I feel that I did a credible job. This is certainly not going to be my best work, but maybe its a lesson learned for the future.

Some Photos from Edenton

All photos courtesy of Jim Willard, NC Historic Sites, Raleigh, NC


Andrew Duppstadt and Don Smith talk about rope work and weapons


Al Mitchell and Chris Grimes discussing ironclad construction and torpedoes


Al Mitchell explaining how steam engines work

Edenton - Part Two

Things went very well in Edenton on Saturday. It turns out that Civil War history does play in a colonial town. While we only saw about 200 visitors, they were all very interested and enthusiastic. Lots of folks were asking when we were going to do another program. We got some great questions; here's my favorite:

At the conclusion of a musket firing demonstration a high school student with an eco-tour group asked me "So is this your job, or just a hobby?" I smiled and said "Both." I love it!

Civil War Living History at a Traditionally Colonial Site

Tomorrow our living history group will provide a Civil War era program at Historic Edenton, which is traditionally a colonial/Revolutionary/Federal period site. The site has never before done any Civil War programming. When we submitted our proposal for living history last year, we were actually trying to cultivate another Age of Sail event for our group. We were certain the site staff would want to focus on their traditional time period. However, they asked for a Civl War era program.

Edenton is not without Civil War history. Over the past few years, the town has received via long-term loan two of the original four cannons in the Edenton Bell Battery. Their history is linked with the Albemarle Sound, which witnessed a number of naval operations during the Civil War. Harriet Jacobs, a slave who escaped via the Maritime Underground Railroad and later wrote the book Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl was from Edenton. So the context and background for our program is pretty extensive.

The question is more one of what the reaction of Edenton's residents will be to a Civil War era program. I fully expect a tremendous amount of interest and enthusiasm. Folks in Edenton are very history minded and I think they will see this as another avenue for exploring their town's history and drawing tourists to their location. Everyone I've talked to so far thinks this is a wonderful opportunity for their community. I think it speaks volumes that even though they haven't seen our "product" yet, they have already scheduled us to come back again next year. We're excited about this opportunity and look forward to a good day.

Conserving a Ship (or at least part of one)

For almost six years, I worked as the Assistant Site Manager at the CSS Neuse State Historic Site in Kinston, NC. We had on display the hull of the ironclad and were working on developing a new museum to house it in a climate controlled environment to prevent further deterioration.



The project is ongoing, pending funding of course, and my new office is actually in the building that will eventually house the new museum. Working with such a fragile artifact that has such a definite time limit on its preservation was sometimes very frustrating on a number of levels. I'll never cease to be amazed at how many visitors would ask if we planned to restore the ironclad to its original condition. Of course, that would be impossible given the current state of the hull, and the goal is to preserve what we have left rather than try to restore something that cannot be restored.

Thanks to Kevin Levin at Civil War Memory, I have found another organization that has been working to preserve a hull. It seems that they've got the whole issue of climate control handled at this point. It makes me wonder how many visitors ask if they plan to restore the vessel to its original condition. After reading the article, its obvious that they can't.

Oh, and as a side note, the whole idea of reenacting the funeral is interesting as well, but that would take us in a totally different direction. Maybe later.

Thanks to Fellow Bloggers

A number of other Civil War bloggers have recently taken notice of my blog and added mine as a link. Just wanted to say thanks and let you all know I appreciate the recognition. Aside from the blogs already mentioned on my "Frequently Read" list (most of whom link to me), I'll be adding Civil War Bookshelf , Hoofbeats and Cold Steel, My Civil War Notes, and Yankee Tirade.

Thanks again, everyone! I hope you enjoy my musings.

Skipping Out on Confederate Memorial Day

This weekend, at various locations across North Carolina, Confederate Memorial Day was commemorated. I know of at least three ceremonies that took place within two hours of my home on either Saturday or Sunday. My wife and I usually attend the ceremony at Oakdale Cemetery in Wilmington. She is a member of the Cape Fear Chapter #3, United Daughters of the Confederacy, which sponsors this particular ceremony each year. For those not familiar with Wilmington, Oakdale is the prototypical old southern cemetery. The ceremony is always held at the Confederate memorial in the cemetery where many unnamed soldiers are buried. From the monument you can see the grave of Captain Joseph Price, the third and final captain of the ironclad CSS Neuse. Many other prominent folks are buried in the cemetery, including Major General W.H.C. Whiting, Commander of the Cape Fear District and focus of my wife's research. For us, Confederate Memorial Day is a chance to go and visit the graves of our respective heroes, and see a lot of folks that we normally don't see except for at these types of events. I also dress out and fall in with the honor guard each year, which is a Confederate Marine Corps unit based in Wilmington.


Photo of me and Dr. Chris Fonvielle at a previous CMD ceremony at Oakdale

All intentions were to go this year, but the fates conspired against us. My stepdaughter has been sick all weekend and we knew she would rebel if we tried to pry her out of the bed. It is also the end of the semester and I had final exams and other assignments to grade for the three classes I teach at the community college. Plus, when we got up this morning the weather was terrible - windy, slightly rainy, and chilly. By this afternoon the sun had come out, but the wind and temps had not improved, so Confederate Memorial Day went by the wayside this year. On the positive side, I got all my grading done, I didn't have to clean a musket when I got home, and we can always visit the Captain and the General later. Sure, I missed seeing old friends and doing my part for the Lost Cause (which I don't mind doing from time to time), but there's always next year.

Encyclopedia Entries

Recently, I was asked to write a few entries for the North Carolina History Project. This is sponsored by the John Locke Foundation and its main emphasis is an online encyclopedia of North Carolina history. My first entry was posted this morning, and it is on the Confederate Navy in North Carolina. Very soon I will also have entries on the US Navy in North Carolina during the Civil War and on James Iredell Waddell, the commander of the Confederate cruiser CSS Shenandoah. There are of course many other fascinating articles on this website, so I hope that you will go and take a look. The project is still young, so there is much that is not on the encyclopedia yet. However, I hope to put a serious dent in the paucity of material relating to the Civil War in North Carolina, particularly where the navy is concerned.