THE BOMBARDMENT OP PORT PISHER, AS SEEN PROM THE MOUND BATTERY.
the “mound battery,” which was more difficult to silence, while those mounted on the land-face were by this time disabled.
Before noon the signal was made for the assaulting column of sailors and marines to land. From thirty-five of the sixty ships of the fleet boats shoved off, making, with their flags flying as they pulled toward the beach in line abreast, a most spirited scene. The general order of Admiral Porter required that the assaulting column of sailors should be armed with cutlasses and pistols. It was also intended that trenches or covered ways should be dug for the marines close to the fort, and that our assault should be made under the cover of their fire; but it was impossible to dig such shelter trenches near enough to do much good under fire in broad daylight.
The sailors as they landed from their boats were a heterogeneous assembly, companies of two hundred or more from each of the larger ships, down to small parties of twenty each from the gun-boats. They had been for months confined on shipboard, had never drilled together, and their arms, the old-fashioned cutlass and pistol, were hardly the weapons to cope with the rifles and bayonets of the enemy. Sailor-like, however, they looked upon the landing in the light of a lark, and few thought the sun would set with a loss of one-fifth of their number.
After some discussion between Lieutenant-Commander K.B. Breese, and some of the senior officers, it was decided to form three divisions, each composed of men from the corresponding division squadrons of the fleet; the first division under the command of Lieutenant-Commander C. H. Cushman, the second under Lieutenant-Commander James Parker (who was Breese’s senior but waived his rank, the latter being in command as the admiral’s representative), the third under Lieutenant-Commander T. 0. Selfridge, Jr.; a total of 1600 blue-jackets, to which was added a division of 400 marines under Captain L. L. Dawson.
The whole force marched up the beach and lay down under its cover just outside rifle range, a wait-
CAPTAIN T. O. SELPRIDGE, JR., U. S. N.
From a photograph.
upon the land-face of the fort that was found to be destroyed or dismounted. The weight of fire was such that the enemy could make but a feeble reply. At nightfall the fleet hauled off, excepting the ironclads, which kept up a slow fire through the night.
During the 14th a number of the smaller gunboats carrying 11-inch guns were sent in to assist in dismounting the guns on the land-face. Their fire was necessarily slow, and the presence of these •small craft brought the enemy out of their bomb-proofs to open upon them, during which the Huron had her main-mast shot away. Upon seeing this renewal of fire, the Brooklyn, Mohican, and one or two other vessels were ordered in by Porter, and with this reinforcement the fire of the fort slackened. The bombardment from the smaller gun-boats and ironclads was kept up during the night. This constant duty day and night was very hard upon these small vessels, and the officers and crew of my own vessel, the Huron, were worn out.
Fort Fisher was at this time much stronger than at the first attack. ... It was arranged that the grand bombardment should begin on the morning of the 15th, and the separate assaults of soldiers and sailors should take place at 3 p. M. A code of signals was agreed upon between the two commanders, and the assault was to be signaled to the fleet by a blowing of steam-whistles, whereupon their fire would be directed to the upper batteries. After the assault of the sailors had failed the Ironsides used her 11-inch guns with great effect in firing into the traverses filled with Confederates resisting the advance of the Union forces. At 9 A. m. the fleet was directed by signal to move in three divisions, and each ship took its prescribed place as previously indicated to her commander ; consequently there was no disorder.
All felt the importance of this bombardment, and, while not too rapid to be ineffective, such a storm of shell was poured into Fort Fisher that forenoon, as I believe had never been seen before in any naval engagement. The enemy soon ceased to make any reply from their heavy guns, excepting 242
within a short distance of the fort, when Butler and Weitzel decided that the place could not he carried by storm. The second attack, JanuarylSth, 1865, Captain Selfridge describes as follows: ]
Upon receiving Admiral Porter’s despatches, Mr. Welles again sought the cooperation of the army, to which General Grant at once acceded, sending back the same force of white troops, reinforced by two colored brigades under General Charles J. Paine, the whole under the command of Major-General Alfred H. Terry. While lying at Beaufort, Admiral Porter determined to assist in the land attack of the army by an assault upon the sea-face of Fort Fisher with a body of seamen. In a general order volunteers from the fleet were called for, and some two thousand officers and men offered themselves for this perilous duty.
General Terry arrived off Beaufort with his forces on the 8th of January, 1865, a plan of operations was agreed upon, and the 12th was fixed for the sailing of the combined force.
Upon the morning of the 13th the ironclads were sent in to engage the fort. Going in much closer than before, the monitors were within twelve hundred yards of the fort. Their fire was in consequence much more effective.
The remainder of the fleet were occupied till 2 p. M. in landing the troops and stores. This particular duty, the provisioning of the army, and the protection of its flank was afterward turned over to the lighter gun-boats, whose guns were too small to employ them in the bombardment of the fort, the whole under the charge of Commander J. H. Upshur, commanding the gun-boat A. D. Vance.
On the afternoon of the 13th the fleet, excepting the ironclads, which had remained in their first positions close to the fort, steamed into the several positions assigned them and opened a terrific fire. By placing a buoy close to the outer reef, as a guide, the leading ship, the Minnesota, was enabled to anchor nearer, and likewise the whole battleline was much closer and their fire more effective, the best proof of which is the large number of guns
MAJOR-GENERAL ALFRED H. TERRY, U. S. A. From a photograph.
THE BOMBARDMENT AND CAPTURE OF FORT FISHER.
BY THOMAS O. SELPRIDGE, JR., CAPTAIN, U. S. N. Commander of a division in the naval column during the assault.
VT7"HEN the Secretary of the Navy, Mr. Welles,
y y recognizing the importance of closing the port of Wilmington, urged upon President Lincoln to direct a cooperation of the army, General Grant was requested to supply the necessary force from the troops about Richmond. As Fort Fisher lay within the territorial jurisdiction of General Butler, commanding the Department of Virginia and North Carolina, the troops were detailed from his command, and in the first attack Butler, with General Weitzel in immediate command of the troops, had control of the land operations. The naval command of the expedition having been declined by Admiral Farragut, on account of ill-health, Bear-Admiral Porter, who had so successfully cooperated with the army in opening the Mississippi, was selected, and was allowed to bring with him five of his officers, of whom the writer was one, being detailed for the command of the gun-boat Huron. The Atlantic and Gulf coasts being almost entirely in our possession, the Navy Department was able to concentrate before Fort Fisher a larger force than had ever before assembled under one command in the history of the American navy — a total of nearly 60 vessels, of which five were ironclads, including the New Ironsides, besides the three largest of our steam-frigates, viz., the Minnesota, Colorado and Wabasli. The fleet arrived in sight of the fort on the morning of December 20th, 1864. . . .
[Bombardment was opened at intervals between the 20th and 25th, and on the last date was resumed with vigor to cover a land attack. The troops advanced to