Civil War naval books? - update with book reviews

[awp101]

Looking for suggestions for good books covering naval combat in the Civil War. Actually, anything from the Civil War era up to WWI would be of interest but I think books covering the CW era will probably be easier to find right now (and mostly in English... )

Over the past couple of weekends, I've been digging around and reading up on WWI naval combat (yeah, I like esoteric stuff ). Off and on I found myself looking for information on the previous designs and developments that led to the WWI designs and developments.

And as usual, I find the really off the beaten path stuff most interesting. For example, I found a couple of links today that I need to read that deal with torpedo boats in the Spanish-American War.

Like I said, esoteric....

[jshinal]

I strongly recommend Iron Afloat, which covers the Confederate States' naval building programs, and includes good detailed descriptions of many naval actions. It is a scholarly book in its research and depth, but it's written in a pretty good narrative style. The author includes a HUGE number of personal accounts from many collections of letters - that alone makes the book worth the price ! It's rather lacking in maps, so you'll want something else to allow you to really follow the maneuvers of the battles.

It covers a lot of interesting matter on the liveability of the ironclads, their weird variety of armoring (railroad rails ! ), and the strange personalities of many of the officers and particularly the big-shot commanders (what a bunch, really full of too much pride and too little brain).

I've been reading it in bits when I visit my brother-in-law and sister's place. Highly recommended if you like the details, and it sounds like you have similar tastes to my own.

University of South Carolina Press (December 1988)
ISBN-10: 0872496163
ISBN-13: 978-0872496163

[Rusty]

A friend of mine donates to a society to preserve the Hunley. The CSA Submarine that was recovered several years ago. He goes to Charleston several times a year to see what progress they are making.

http://www.hunley.org/

[deafrn]

And as usual, I find the really off the beaten path stuff most interesting.

Pretty far off the beaten path is the Union Army's own "navy," about which is Chester Hearn's book "Ellet's Brigade: The Strangest Outfit of All."

The Ellet family's adventures were unknown to me until I heard a cryptic remark by my wife's paternal grandmother about her ancestor who was "a marine but wasn't in the Marine Corps;" it led us to the discovery of a beaten-up old copy of "The History of The Ram Fleet and the Mississippi Marine Brigade" in a soon-to-be demolished farmhouse, and eventually we were able to trace her family tree back to an Illinois soldier who had become gravely ill with typhoid fever and who eventually transferred to the infantry regiment of the Marine Brigade.

(Convalescing soldiers were tempted by such recruiting promises as - and this is verbatim - "Soldiering made easy! No hard marching! No carrying knapsacks!" If it sounds too good to be true, it is... and was.)

Although the Ram Fleet was lauded for its part in the "Battle of Memphis," the Marine Brigade seems to have been generally disliked by everyone they came in contact with, although they were also a handy, believable scapegoat for a lot of people on both sides (the government conveniently "lost" their official records right after the MMB was disbanded at Vicksburg in January of 1865).

Anyway, Hearn's book makes an interesting side trip for anyone who is interested in the "Brown Water Navy" of the CW or just in obscure/unusual military units. Harder to find books on the subject would be the units' own "semi-official" combined history mentioned above (Crandall and Newell's 1907 "The History of The Ram Fleet and the Mississippi Marine Brigade") and the smaller, out-of-print book "Warfare Along the Mississippi," based on some letters of Lt Col George E. Currie (who was in both units) and edited by Norman Clarke.

[awp101]

I strongly recommend Iron Afloat, which covers the Confederate States' naval building programs, and includes good detailed descriptions of many naval actions. It is a scholarly book in its research and depth, but it's written in a pretty good narrative style. The author includes a HUGE number of personal accounts from many collections of letters - that alone makes the book worth the price ! It's rather lacking in maps, so you'll want something else to allow you to really follow the maneuvers of the battles.

Wonderful! And a chance to post my new favorite pic/smilie:

It covers a lot of interesting matter on the liveability of the ironclads, their weird variety of armoring (railroad rails ! ), and the strange personalities of many of the officers and particularly the big-shot commanders (what a bunch, really full of too much pride and too little brain).

Sounds a lot like when the Brits allowed the purchasing of commissions...

it sounds like you have similar tastes to my own.

I have many interests but I'm having to pare them down due to lack of time and gray matter. This falls under the general purview of "military history" therefore it fits....

Thanks Rusty, I'd forgotten about the Hunley!

Pretty far off the beaten path is the Union Army's own "navy," about which is Chester Hearn's book "Ellet's Brigade: The Strangest Outfit of All."

That one sounds mighty interesting as well. I wonder if it's in the public domain and has been scanned by the Gutenburg Project or someone similar? Weren't the river monitors part of the US Army's Navy as well?

[bmtshooter]

My recommendation is:

GUNS ON THE WESTERN WATERS
THE STORY OF RIVER GUNBOATS IN THE CIVIL WAR
BY H. ALLEN GOSNELL

LIEUTENANT COMMANDER, U.S.N.R. (RET.)

LOUISIANA STATE UNIVERSITY PRESS Baton Rouge

(For those of us whose interests include both leverguns and muzzleloading artillery)

[deafrn]

Pretty far off the beaten path is the Union Army's own "navy," about which is Chester Hearn's book "Ellet's Brigade: The Strangest Outfit of All."

That one sounds mighty interesting as well. I wonder if it's in the public domain and has been scanned by the Gutenburg Project or someone similar? Weren't the river monitors part of the US Army's Navy as well?

Hearn's book was published by The Louisiana State University Press in 2000, so it is probably too new to be public domain, but the 1907 history is available online (at least for the present) at:

http://books.google.com/books/reader?id ... pg=GBS.PP1

(The "family" copy we have is a bit fragile, as can be seen; the sabre was also in the family, but was not actually used by my wife's MMB ancestor... we suspect it was just a memento he picked up right after the war.)

Clarke's edited version of George Currie's letters is a tough one to track down, and as it also covers his reminiscences of Pea Ridge, etc, some of it isn't necessarily RF/MMB related. It does, however, have the best firsthand description of the MMB's brief use of a 20-pounder Parrott as a "sniper's weapon" during the siege of Vicksburg, firing from an MMB-excavated (and railroad iron armored) "hide" across the Mississippi River.

I believe the river monitors, "City"-class ironclads, timberclads and tinclads were all under Navy auspices, with the Army having control of only the Ram Fleet and Mississippi Marine Brigade boats, along with some transports. "Control" is a flexible term when talking about the Ellet organizations, as nobody but Sec'y of War Edwin Stanton seemed to know exactly who was ultimately in charge of what, and he occasionally waffled a bit on the matter himself. The Navy did supply some materials and expertise, but it was continually exasperated by the setup... to be fair, the MMB was almost equally irritating to the Army.

I attached the only photo of an MMB boat I could find on the 'net: the former steam packet "Baltic," shown all planked up to protect from small arms (but not even remotely artillery-proof) and ready for action. The whole MMB concept was quite novel for the time, with each boat theoretically being able to steam up to the riverbank, run out gangplanks and have cavalry, infantry and artillery (!) assets on dry ground and ready to go almost instantly. Sadly, the unit rarely lived up to its potential.

This is as good a place as any to add that Myron J. Smith, Jr has written some interesting books on riverine warfare during the CW (his "Tinclads in the Civil War" even mentions the MMB here and there... that particular book will tell a person as much about tinclad operations as one could hope for).

[awp101]

Pretty far off the beaten path is the Union Army's own "navy," about which is Chester Hearn's book "Ellet's Brigade: The Strangest Outfit of All."

That one sounds mighty interesting as well. I wonder if it's in the public domain and has been scanned by the Gutenburg Project or someone similar? Weren't the river monitors part of the US Army's Navy as well?

Hearn's book was published by The Louisiana State University Press in 2000, so it is probably too new to be public domain, but the 1907 history is available online (at least for the present) at:

http://books.google.com/books/reader?id ... pg=GBS.PP1

That was a "Duh!" moment on my part. I posted before searching and it was past my bedtime...

A full copy of the Ram Fleet book can be downloaded here: http://archive.org/details/historyoframflee00cran

Clarke's edited version of George Currie's letters is a tough one to track down, and as it also covers his reminiscences of Pea Ridge, etc, some of it isn't necessarily RF/MMB related. It does, however, have the best firsthand description of the MMB's brief use of a 20-pounder Parrott as a "sniper's weapon" during the siege of Vicksburg, firing from an MMB-excavated (and railroad iron armored) "hide" across the Mississippi River.

That reminds me of the stories I've read from Viet Nam where 105mm recoilless rifles would be used as a counter-sniper weapon.

I attached the only photo of an MMB boat I could find on the 'net: the former steam packet "Baltic," shown all planked up to protect from small arms (but not even remotely artillery-proof) and ready for action. The whole MMB concept was quite novel for the time, with each boat theoretically being able to steam up to the riverbank, run out gangplanks and have cavalry, infantry and artillery (!) assets on dry ground and ready to go almost instantly.

The first Higgins boat! Yeah, it looks like one good near miss would do her in....

This is as good a place as any to add that Myron J. Smith, Jr has written some interesting books on riverine warfare during the CW (his "Tinclads in the Civil War" even mentions the MMB here and there... that particular book will tell a person as much about tinclad operations as one could hope for).

OK, another to add to the list. Thanks!

[Ji in Hawaii]

I've read "Confederate Phoenix" The history of the CSS Virginia (formerly the Merrimack), very interesting reading.

[Old No7]

The Maine author James L. Nelson has written a terrific series of novels about Confederate ironclads during the Civil War. His research, technical writing ability and characterizations are top rate -- outstanding, in my opinion. He has crewed on many sailing vessels and I think he must have salt water in his veins. (Well, he is a Mainer... )

I also enjoyed his other nautical series on the Revolutionary War at Sea and about Pirates too. They're wonderful books to read.

Here's a Handy Link to his website.

I have the 2nd in the Samuel Bowater series on the Civil War, which I'd gladly let you borrow, but it may not be as fun to read if you haven't read the first one. PM me if you're interested...

Old No7

[awp101]

Thanks Ji, I'll add it to the list.

Old No.7, thanks! I'm looking for non-fiction right now but if those are as good as Bernard Cornwell's Sharpe's Rifles series, I'll probably be making my way back to them.

[awp101]

OK, Iron Afloat has been ordered along with 2 Osprey books, one on CSA subs and torpedo boats and one on Mississippi River gunboats.

All three are a little before what I'm really looking for, but if I know me I'll want to know what took place before the era that has my fancy at the moment...

[awp101]

OK, I managed to spend the past week or so reading Mississippi River Gunboats of the American Civil War 1861-65 (New Vanguard) and Confederate Submarines and Torpedo Vessels 1861-65 (New Vanguard), both by Angus Konstam and illustrated by Tony Bryan.

First off both are thin, around 50 pages each including the illustrations and illustration information. Both are just a basic overview of the subject covered and each one tends to repeat information a couple of times throughout the book (for example, the book on Confederate subs discusses the CSS H.L. Hunley attack on the USS Housatonic in three different parts of the book IIRC). The book on Mississippi River gunboats really only covers three actions in any detail and they all take place around New Orleans in 1862. Any other actions are just mentioned in passing.

I suspect part of the reason these two books are so "light" is due to financial considerations by the publisher (IIRC they were under $14 each shipped from Amazon). A big upside to these two books is the bibliography at the end of each one. They give what should be a good starting point for further reading.

The best part of each (IMO) are the color plates. One thing Osprey has always been good about is finding top notch illustrators and the work by Tony Bryan is very well done, as usual. If I had more wall space, I'd try to find another copy of each on the used (cheapskate ) market and frame a couple of the illustrations.

Would I recommend these two books? Yes but with a qualification: if you know next to nothing about these two subjects (like me) and aren't sure you want to dig any deeper into them, then they are worth checking out. If you're already familiar with the subjects and/or are looking for lots of detailed information I'd suggest spending a little more for something else. Unless you need more pictures to hang on the wall of the man cave...

[deafrn]

Would I recommend these two books? Yes but with a qualification: if you know next to nothing about these two subjects (like me) and aren't sure you want to dig any deeper into them, then they are worth checking out. If you're already familiar with the subjects and/or are looking for lots of detailed information I'd suggest spending a little more for something else. Unless you need more pictures to hang on the wall of the man cave...

I think that is a pretty accurate view of most of the offerings in that series. Osprey's WWI aircraft books can be almost bewilderingly detailed, but some of the other series... well, not so much. I also have a copy of the "Mississippi River Gunboats of the American Civil War 1861-65" and think it is a reasonably good "foot in the door" as far as the subject matter, but does contain an error or two (for example: the picture of Charles Rivers Ellet has a caption that actually refers to his father, Charles Ellet, Jr.).

I hadn't mentioned it before, but a fairly recent overview of the CW river fleets is "Mr. Lincoln's Brown Water Navy" by Gary D. Joiner; I've seen it available at a few bookstores and even our local library has a copy. It isn't a massive book, but it is a good treatment of the subject that doesn't cost an arm and a leg. There are no color plates, but does have some decent photos and small maps.

[awp101]

Osprey's WWI aircraft books can be almost bewilderingly detailed, but some of the other series... well, not so much.

Oddly enough I haven't checked out their WWI offerings for some reason, but based on my experience with their WWII aviation and Napoleonic Era series I was expecting...more. As you said, they are a good foot in the door so I can't really say I am disappointed. More of an appetite whetter.

Thanks for the info on the errors. I might stick a post-it note in the cover with the correct info.

I hadn't mentioned it before, but a fairly recent overview of the CW river fleets is "Mr. Lincoln's Brown Water Navy" by Gary D. Joiner; I've seen it available at a few bookstores and even our local library has a copy. It isn't a massive book, but it is a good treatment of the subject that doesn't cost an arm and a leg. There are no color plates, but does have some decent photos and small maps.

I found it on amazon and that looks like a very good book! I'll have to add it to The List, thanks!

[44-40 Willy]

I've got A History of the Confederate Navy by Luraghi who really covered as well as any other book I've read on the subject.

Any book calling itself a history of the Mississippi River operations and doesn't cover the CSS Arkansas, is falling way short of the mark.

[trapper45]

Several suggestions:
David W. Shaw, Sea Wolf of the Confederacy: The Daring Civil War Raids of Naval Lt. Charles W. Read
Jack D. Coombe, Gunsmoke Over the Atlantic; Thunder Along the Mississippi; and Gunfire Around the Gulf
Edward Stokes Miller, Civil War Sea Battles: Seafights and Shipwrecks in the War Between the States
Tom Chaffin, The H.L. Hunley: The Secret Hope of the Confederacy
Two about the CSS Shenandoah:
Tom Chaffin, Sea of Gray: The Around-the-World Odyssey of the Confederate Raider Shenandoah; and
John Baldwin and Ron Powers, Last Flag Down: The Epic Journey of the Last Confederate Warship

Others still packed away include
Grey Shark of the Confederacy, about the CSS Florida; Duel Between the Ironclads; and another about Raphael Semmes of the CSS Alabama, the exact title of which eludes me at the moment.

For WWI:
Dreadnought (about the naval race between the Royal Navy and the Kaiser) and Castles of Steel: Britain, Germany, and the Winning of the Great War at Sea , both by Robert K. Massie;
Barrie Pitt, Coronel and Falkland: Two Great Naval Battles of the First World War
Edwin P. Hoyt, Swan of the East: The Life and Death of the German Cruiser Emden in World War I
Dan Van der Vat, Gentleman of War: Karl Mueller and the Emden
Richard Guilliatt and Peter Hohnen, The Wolf: How One German Raider Terrorized the Allies in the Most Epic Voyage of WWI
Giles Foden, Mimi and Toutou's Big Adventure: The Bizarre Battle of Lake Tanganyika (the real-life inspiration for C.S. Forester's The African Queen)

The Kaiser's Pirates, author temporarily mentally misplaced, is great about surface raiders in WWI.

There are others, but these are some either at hand or which come to memory just now. Hope they help.