Book Description
This second book in the series lists the ships of the U.S. Navy and the Confederate Navy during the war between the North and South and the years immediately following--a significant period in the evolution of warships, the use of steam propulsion, and the development of ordnance. Other books on the subject simply do not provide the wealth or variety of information brought together here by Paul Silverstone. Each ship's size and time and place of construction are given along with particulars of naval service. Historical details include actions fought, damage sustained, prizes taken and ships sunk, dates in and out of commission, as well as when the ship left the navy, names used in other services, and the ultimate fate of each ship. Close to 150 photographs, including one of the Confederate cruiser Alabama recently uncovered by the author, bring the ships to life. Accurate and up-to-date, the coverage provided in this single volume saves readers time and the inconvenience of trying to track down information located in numerous books.
Customer Reviews:
Definitive reference, the "Jane's" of Civil War ships.......2007-04-02
As others have noted, Paul Silverstone's book is not a study of the U.S. and Confederate navies themselves, but rather of the many vessels that constituted the navies. Every known vessel is listed and organized by type and class. The format is both pictorial and tabular. The encyclopedic nature of the work makes it an excellent reference companion when studying any American Civil War naval action.
Silverstone begins with a brief introduction, then a section explaining the presentation format of the data, provides a list of abbreviations, and then includes a section on naval ordnance by W.J. Jurens before proceeding to the bulk of the work. Civil War Navies is divided into two parts. Part I covers U.S. Navy warships and is divided into the following chapters: Armored Vessels, Unarmored Steam Vessels, Acquired Combatant Vessels, Service Vessels, Sailing Ships, The Mississippi River Fleet, The U.S. Revenue Cutter Service, and the United States Coast Survey. Part II presents the Confederate States Navy warships and includes the following chapters: Introduction, Armored Vessels, Unarmored Steam Vessels, Area Defense Forces, Privateers, Blockade Runners, and Tenders. The book concludes with an appendix list of shipbuilders, a bibliography, and index of ship names.
Typical entries are arranged by class with a short table of names, builders, lay down date, launch date, and commissioning. Photographs of the actual vessels are included where available. Below the vessel name list for the class are tonnage, dimensions, machinery (propulsion), ship's complement, and armament. Differences between vessels of the same class are noted here, and rearmament is also listed where known. Further notes are then provided, then the service records, (sometimes with mention of casualties), and known captures of enemy vessels.
I highly recommend Mr. Silverstone's work as an indispensable reference to those studying American Civil War naval warfare
Finally - a "Jane's" for the Civil War!.......2004-12-20
This book has practically everything you need to know about Civil War naval ships in an easy to read "Jane's" type format - sorted into categories such as armored vessals, unarmored steam vessals, sailing ships, etc. and listing tonnage, armaments, complement, and a brief service record for each ship. As far as I can tell, the research is impeccable - quite a few photos never seen before. A real labor of live. The book is a little overpriced at $50, especially since it does not include other country's navies, have any maps, or include any other "goodies", but is really the only resouce of its kind for Civil War naval buffs.
Excellent supplementary book.......2001-04-22
This book is an ideal companion to other histories of the Civil War. Its title, however, is a bit misleading. It is a book about ships, not about navies. It gives the vital statistics and brief service records for all the Union and Confederate ships but contains little else. Its real value is that it "puts a face" to the ship names in most civil war histories.
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Uss New Ironsides in the Civil War: William H. Roberts
William H. Roberts
Manufacturer: US Naval Institute Press
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ASIN: 1557506957 |
Book Description
This is the first modern scholarly look at the little-known yet remarkable USS New Ironsides--America's first seagoing ironclad and the only one to see combat in the American Civil War. It describes the design, construction, and wartime career of the armored frigate, which included sixteen months of combat off Charleston, South Carolina, where she fired more shots than all of Rear Adm. John Dahlgren's monitors put together and caused the Confederates to offer $100,000 for her destruction. The 1865 assault against Fort Fisher led Adm. David Dixon Porter, a hard man to impress, to call the ship the best in the fleet for offensive operations.
Here, a former surface warfare commander chronicles New Ironsides's entire story, from inception as the Navy's insurance policy in 1861 through the straining urgency of construction and blockade service in the stormy early months of 1863 to the hard-fought engagements at Charleston Harbor and Fort Fisher. He places the ship in a broader context of warship design during a period of rapid technological change. He also reexamines the circumstances of 1861 to debunk the myth that the ironclad was a regressive design created by mossbacked naval traditionalists. This complete assessment of the ship's career shows both her operational and technical superiority. It also explains why, despite the success demonstrated by New Ironsides, the monitors dominated the Union ironclad program.
Customer Reviews:
USS New Ironsides.......2000-02-01
Despite being an excellent source on the construction and operations of this unique ship, this book is also a comment on what could have been had more of this superior design been built, or the orginal not accidentally destroyed. The book does a good job of addressing the "Monitor Fever" of the time that caused many monitors to be built despite the flaws of the design. Monitors appeared in variety from one to three turrets, while only two seagoing broadside ironclads saw service. Designed for ship to ship combat, Monitors did not have the large battery's necisary to tackle forts, the broadside ironclads did. Since forts were common, but CSN ironclads were few and far between and were broadside ships to begin with, the puzzle is why the US did not explore this design further. The answer, the author proves, was politics.
Book Description
A fascinating story of the design and development of the Confederate torpedo boats and the courageous officers who took them into battle.
Customer Reviews:
The only in-depth study of Confederate Torpedo Boats.......2001-02-23
Joseph A. Derie - Civil War News - Prolific Confederate naval historian R. Thomas Campbell has turned his efforts to writing about the torpedo boats of the Confederate States Navy (and Army). These evolved when the South attempted to find ways to use torpedoeswhich we would call mines todayas an offensive weapon. Originally the torpedoes were kegs or casks, waterproofed, and either secured to the bot-tom or buoyed, filled with explosives and armed with a fuse set to explode when a ship's hull brushed against it. An attempt to use them offensively was made by securing two torpedoes to-gether with a piece of line about 200 feet long, then rowing to a point some distance above an enemy vessel and releasing the two torpedoes to drift with the current. The idea was for the line between the torpedoes to be snagged by the vessel and for one or both of the torpedoes to swing against the hull. This was tried against Union warships in Hampton Roads in October 1861, without success. Captain Francis D. Lee, a Confederate Army engineer working on chemical fuses for tor-pedoes in Charleston, thought that the best way to use the torpedo offensively would be to mount it on a spar forward of the bow of a boat and deliver it by ramming it into the side of its target. This vessel would obviously be a torpedo ram or torpedo boat. He convinced General Beaure-gard this was the type of quick, easy to build weapon the Confederates needed to defend Charleston Harbor against the vastly superior federal fleet and the Confederate torpedo boat pro-gram was bom. The initial type of torpedo boat was a rowboat or launch. Later, specially designed mod-els were developed, powered by steam, either with an open deck (CSS Squib class) or partially covered with wood or iron (CSS Torch class), and designed to ride low in the water to make them hard to detect. The other type was the David, a semi-submersible, with a cylindrical hull that was bal-lasted by iron or by water (via pumps) enabling them to ride low in the water. These came in a number of models with various sized torpedoes. Most were about five feet in diameter and about 48 feet long with a 14 foot long spar for the torpedo. However, one captured at the end of the war was 160 feet long and 11.5 feet in diameter. Davids were generally powered by steam but a few were powered by oars or a screw turned by the crew. The latter was also the propul-sion system of a fully submersible torpedo boat, the Hunley, which is not part of this story. Confederate successes with torpedo boats were few. The USS New Ironsides was se-verely damaged and had to be dry-docked by an attack from the original David. Unfortunately, the torpedo struck right at the bulkhead, which prevented the ship from sinking. The CSS Squib slightly damaged the USS Minnesota. Ironically, the most successful and famous torpedo boat attack was Commander William B. Cushing's destruction of the CSS Albemarle. The torpedo boats' prime contribution to the Confederate war effort was the fear they struck in the Union Navy, and the actions taken to guard against such attacks. In an appendix there is a wonderful statement by Commander William T. Glassell, the commander of the CSS David the night it damaged the USS New Ironsides. Writing after the war he described "the ironclad vessels of that fleet enveloped like women in hoopskirt petticoats of netting, to lay in idle admiration of themselves for many months." The book is very well illustrated with drawings and many pictures of torpedo boats and spar torpedoes. It is highly recommended for those with an interest in the Confederate Navy and general readers will also find it worthwhile.
Hunters of the Night.......2000-10-25
As used during the War Between the States, the term "torpedo" meant any underwater explosive device. Torpedo boats were any and all of the various designs employed to deliver the devices to the side of enemy vessels. This is the history of the design, manufacture and utilization of such boats. Unfortunately, the Confederate leadership failed to recognize the real value of this new weapon. Although the building of these boats was authorized early in the war, the actual building of them was often hindered by officials who failed to recognize their potential value. However, when available, these relatively speedy boats proved that by operating within the cover of darkness they could bring fear and destruction to a strategically overpowering and more numerous foe. They caused many a Union sailor to lie awake wondering if the bump he had just heard was a log hitting his ship or a torpedo that would blow him away. Rather than the destruction of great numbers of enemy ships, the greatest contribution made by these boats was the deterrent factor they became to the Union invaders. Vast quantities of seamen, materials, and ships had to be allocated to guard against their expected attacks. Union offensive plans were often swayed by consideration of their use against the attackers. Confederate General P.G.T. Beauregard paid tribute to the torpedo boats when he commented that future Southerners would ask "how it was that with such a great discovery, offering such magnificent results, we never applied it to any useful purpose in this contest for our homes and independence." This is a welcome addition to available information on Confederate naval activity.
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"Friends in Peace and War": The Russian Navy's Landmark Visit to Civil War San Francisco (Military Controversies)
C. Douglas Kroll
Manufacturer: Potomac Books Inc.
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Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 1597970549 |
Book Description
Great friendship existed between the United States and Imperial Russia during the nineteenth century. The Old World Russian autocracy supported the young New World democracy because of the emerging U.S. role as a bulwark against Great Britain’s ambitions, in Asia and in the North Pacific Ocean region especially. In fact, when the American Civil War threatened to divide the United States, Russia alone among the European great powers gave no aid or comfort to the seceding states.
The surprise 1863 arrival of squadrons of Russian warships and thousands of Russian sailors in New York and San Francisco proved fortuitous, coming when the Union feared British and French intervention on the Confederacy’s behalf. C. Douglas Kroll, using both Russian and U.S. documents, investigates why the Russian Pacific Squadron came to San Francisco, a port of departure for California and Nevada gold headed east; what happened during its nearly year-long visit; and how its presence influenced events. With the units of the U.S. Navy’s small Pacific Squadron widely dispersed and Confederate commerce raiders on the loose, the Russians’ arrival suggested to on-lookers that they intended to defend the Union against interference.
Whether actively supporting the Union or training and refitting or both, the Russian officers and sailors endeared themselves to San Francisco’s citizens. Parades and balls, as well as dinners hosted by both sides, helped San Franciscans overlook the various differences they had with their Russian visitors. Kroll gives us a thorough examination of the Russians’ visit and its social, diplomatic, and military impact.
Customer Reviews:
The Best Book on the Confederate Cruisers.......2007-07-15
I found Gray Raiders of the Sea extremely enjoyable, reading more like a novel than a history tome, and very well organized and paced. Following the careers of commerce raiders like the CSS Alabama and the CSS Florida, as well as other, less famed vessels, separately makes eminent sense, since several Confederate raiders operated at the same time and to trace their depredations simultaneously would have made the book far less readable. Also, given the length of these ships' voyages and the sheer number of prizes captured, Mr. Hearn has done an outstanding job of supplying both necessary and interesting detail, without overburdening the reader with an endless account of facts. An excellent work, recommended for the ordinary reader and student of history alike.
SOUND RESEARCH & NICE JOB.......2005-12-19
Although this book has been criticized for a disorganized presentation, the nature of the subject almost demands that the story of each of the Confederate raiders be told separately. For anyone interested in the naval side of the Civil War, this work is both an excellent reference and a good read. The detailed accounts of the engagements of the eight cruisers, Sumter, Nashville, Florida, Tallahassee, Chickamauga, Alabama, and Shenandoah, are based on a good variety of sources, primarily the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion, but also including a range of memoirs, journals, contemporary periodicals, and solid secondary sources. A concise summary of the Alabama claims case, settled between Britain and the United States in 1872, rounds out the story. Hearn makes a good argument that the eight raiders succeeded in driving ships from U.S. registry and U.S. ownership, and in this regard, the book makes an interesting and important contribution that goes beyond the naval side of the Civil War.
Not for the casual reader.......2005-09-13
"Gray Raiders of the Sea" is a well-researched, informative, interesting, but disorganized account about the Confederate navy's successful commerce-raiding campaign against the North during the Civil War. This book is valuable because it tells a little-known story, but much of its value is lost because it fails to tell that story well.
This book is recommended for any reader with a serious interest in the Civil War or in naval history. It is not recommended for casual readers. Its writing style is dry and matter-of-fact, and the book is poorly organized. Although the eight Confederate raiders that the book focuses on often operated at the same time (and even in the same waters), because the book focuses on each sequentially, the reader learns of each ship independently. It is hard for the reader to see each ship as part of a larger strategy. Furthermore, the author could have done a better job explaining the admiralty law that governed these actions. Although this law was important to the combatants and neutrals, at no point does he adequately explain the entire framework. Instead, he explains small bits and pieces as needed.
Much of the narrative is dry and matter-of-fact. Encounters between the Confederate captains and the merchant captains or owners are often described in one or two sentences, without any explanation as to why one ship was released, another was bonded, and another would be sunk. Although this leaves the reader frustrated at the lack of details, this is probably a result of the limited sources available to the author. The accounts in the book are often based only on one source: the captain's journal. It is a shame that no other accounts of these encounters exist.
Despite these weaknesses, this book is still valuable for many reasons. It is well-researched. Hearn does a good job supporting his thesis: that the eight Confederate raiders almost drove Union merchant shipping from the seas, and that the United States' merchant shipping never recovered. And this book covers a subject that ahs been ignored by other historians.
This book has its strong points, but it also has glaring negatives. This book could serve as a good secondary resource about the Confederate merchant raiding campaign. Beyond that, "Gray Raiders of the Sea" would only be of interest to the hardcore Civil War or naval historian.
Broad coverage, seems accurate, but poorly organized........1998-08-24
This book superficially covers the operations of the commerce destroyers of the Confederate State Navy during the American Civil War. For an historical work, this book is poorly organized. It bounces all over the place when it should have maintained chronological order. Moreover, the events discussed appear to have occurred in limbo. There is very little attempt to place them in context with other events of the period. Coverage seems accurate, but I would have liked to have seen a bit more depth. Sources are first rate and the the work is well documented.
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The Introduction of the Ironclad Warship (Classics of Naval Literature)
James Phinney Baxter
Manufacturer: US Naval Institute Press
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Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 1557502188 |
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Introduction by Donald L. Canney. James Phinney Baxter's landmark study, originally published in 1933, was the first complete, fully researched history of the ascendance of the ironclads. Some of the more notable ships highlighted in this text are the USS Princeton, USS Monitor, USS Merrimack, the HMS Warrior, HMS Achilles and the CSS Virginia. Using U.S. and British sources, the author broke new ground by relating the entire development of these unique ships, including revolutions in naval ordnance, propulsion technology, and ship construction. Despite the passage of nearly seventy years, this volume remains the standard text on the subject. Commenting that Baxter's work has stood the test of time, historian Donald Canney introduces the book by pointing out that no serious study on ironclads can proceed without Baxter as an authoritative underpinning.
Average customer rating:
- Errors mar an otherwise useful work
- Great reference
- General descriptions of Civil War Ironclads
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Warships of the Civil War Navies
Paul H. Silverstone
Manufacturer: Naval Inst Pr
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ASIN: 0870217836 |
Customer Reviews:
Errors mar an otherwise useful work.......2003-04-16
Warships of the Civil War Navies consists of data tables listing and describing Union and Confederate naval vessels. These tables are taken directly from post-war government publications. There is very little original material in the book. Its value, however, is in bringing this information into a single volume.
It would also be of value for the numerous photographs illustrating the major ship classes, but this is where the problem lies. Some of the photos are incorrectly identified. The photo on p. 159 that is labeled as the USS Conestoga is actually the Tyler. On the following page the photo identified as the Lexington is in reality the Conestoga. Below it is a correctly labeled second photo of the Tyler. I'm not familiar enough with the other ship classes to say if there are additional mistakes, but on the basis of these rather blatant errors I would not want to trust or recommend the book as a pictorial reference.
Great reference.......2001-10-03
It is a general description on nearly all vessels of the ACW. Format entry for all vessels including small tugs. I found it to be a great reference for tabletop wargaming the ACW navy period. Many authors of game rules should read this. It lists all the guns and modifications to the number and type of guns during the war. However, early sailing vessels used in the war are lightly covered and can be found in detail in another book for that period.
General descriptions of Civil War Ironclads.......1997-12-08
Mr. Silverstone gives a general description of Civil War ironclads with a few pictures included in the book. The descriptions are the same layout for each ship describing the same characteristics, but if a basic general reference of almost all ironclads used during the civil war is what you are looking for, this is the book.
Book Description
The cruiser evolved from a variety of powered sailing warships, employed in independent operations. The impact of rapid technological advance during the Victorian era saw the cruiser quickly assume familiar forms.
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