The FReeper Foxhole Profiles Admiral David Farragut - Apr. 12th, 2004

www.nps.gov ^

[SAMWolf]

Lord,

Keep our Troops forever in Your care

Give them victory over the enemy...

Grant them a safe and swift return...

Bless those who mourn the lost.
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FReepers from the Foxhole join in prayer
for all those serving their country at this time.

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Admiral David Glasgow Farragut
(1801 - 1870)

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First Admiral of the Navy

"I soon became fond of this adventurous sort of life."



A significant contributing factor to the Union success at Vicksburg was the skill of the North's naval commanders. One of the most colorful naval commanders of the Civil War was David Glasgow Farragut. Though he was unsuccessful in early naval operations against Vicksburg, Farragut's success at New Orleans and Mobile Bay secured his place in history as one of America's most celebrated heroes. The man who would become the first Admiral of the United States Navy was born James Glasgow Farragut near Knoxville, Tennessee on July 6, 1801. His father, Jorge Farragut, hailed from a seafaring family and emigrated to this country in 1776 from the island of Minorca, off the east coast of Spain. Before his death in 1817, Jorge Farragut would serve his country gallantly in the revolutionary War and the War of 1812. Young James would soon follow in his father's footsteps.

David Porter, one of the Navy's finest officers, befriended the Farragut family through an unusual chain of events in which the Farraguts rescued Porter's unconscious father from the deck of a drifting boat. When the elder Porter passes away, David was grateful to the family for taking care of his father and offered to take young James and train him as a naval officer. Since it was not uncommon then for parents to have a child adopted by someone who could train them in a career, James Glasgow Farragut became the adopted son of David Porter and changed his name to David G. Farragut.



David followed his adopted father to the sea at the tender ago of eight and received his first naval appointment as midshipman at large at the age of nine and a half. At age eleven he saw his first combat and even commanded a vessel at age twelve! The young sailor had seen a lot during his four years at sea, but his greatest achievement was yet to come.

"I am to have a Flag in the Gulf, and the rest depends on me."


The main starting points for blockade runners were Havana, Cuba; Nassau, Bahamas; the West Indies; and Bermuda. Many supplies also came via Matamoros to Brownsville, Texas, but transportation to needy areas (such as Richmond, VA) was limited because many small ports had no rail facilities.

Fifty years later at the outbreak of the Civil War, David Farragut had a difficult decision to make. He was born in Tennessee, raised in Louisiana, and lived in Virginia, yet he felt more devoted to the country he had served for more than five decades. He decided to join the Union and moved his family north. In January 1862, Farragut was named Flag Officer in command of the West Gulf Blockading Squadron with instructions to enter the Mississippi and capture New Orleans. He was placed in command of eighteen wooden vessels including his flagship HARTFORD, a fleet of mortar boats, and 700 men.

To the objection of his stepbrother David Dixon Porter, who was in charge of the mortar boat flotilla, Flag Officer Farragut made the decision to run past Forts Jackson and St. Philip to take the city of New Orleans. To prepare the ships to run past the forts, the crews crisscrossed the hulls with great chains until they were almost as well protected as the ironclads. Further, since he planned to pass the forts at night, Farragut had the hulls covered with mud from the Mississippi to make them less visible from the shore and had the decks painted white so that needed objects would stand out clearly. He even had tall trees lashed to the masts of his vessels so that the enemy would think they were trees on the opposite bank!



Farragut's strategy worked. The commander described the intense passage: "The smoke was so dense that it was only now and then we could see anything but the flash of the cannon ... The passing of Forts Jackson and St. Philip was one of the most awful sights I ever saw." His own vessel, the HARTFORD, was disabled when a raft set afire rammed the flagship and flames damaged the masts and rigging. Nevertheless, the fleet safely reached New Orleans and took possession of the city on April 28, 1862.

"I mean to be whipped or to whip my enemy, and not be scared to death"



In May of 1862, Farragut attempted to subdue the city of Vicksburg, located about 400 river miles above New Orleans but his bombardment was unsuccessful. He did not have enough guns in his fleet to overwhelm the city. Plus, Vicksburg's 200-foot river bluffs were so high that many of his guns could not get sufficient elevation to hit the Confederate defenses. Fearing the receding waters of the Mississippi might strand his oceangoing warships in the summer months, Farragut reluctantly decided to withdraw from the river city. He left six gunboats below Vicksburg and returned to New Orleans.



Upon his return to the Crescent City, Farragut began organizing a second, stronger expedition against the "Gibraltar of the West." His fleet arrived below the Vicksburg bluffs once again on June 25, 1862 and began preparations for a second bombardment. Farragut then received news that Charles H. Davis, commander of the Western Flotilla, had finally captured Fort Pillow and Memphis and was now only 20 miles north of Vicksburg. Consequently, Farragut decided to run his fleet north past Vicksburg, just as he had done at Forts Jackson and St. Philip, and rendezvous with Davis.

At the appointed hour of 0200 on June 28, 1862, Farragut raised two red lanterns on the mast of the HARTFORD as a signal for the fleet to proceed. The ships were spotted at 0400 and Vicksburg's 29 heavy guns were answered by the guns of Farragut's fleet. All of Farragut's ships but three made it through and none were sunk; however, some were badly hit, including the HARTFORD. The captain's cabin was blown apart by a shell just seconds after Farragut had moved to another part of the ship!



Although running the batteries was a gallant act, Farrgut's juncture with Davis did little to bring about the subjugation of Vicksburg. It was clear a combined naval and land attack would be necessary to subdue the "Gibralter of the West."

Before Farragut withdrew his fleet from Vicksburg a second time, he had an encounter with the Confederate ironclad ARKANSAS. Launched at Yazoo City and commanded by Isaac Brown, the ARKANSAS bravely plunged into the midst of the thirty-eight Union warships anchored above Vicksburg in mid-July 1862. Brown's attack was aided by an element of surprise, and the fact there were so many Union ships they had very little room in which to maneuver. As a result, Farragut's warships were only able to bring a few guns to bear at a time against the formidable ironclad. During the fighting, the ARKANSAS caused serious damage to the HARTFORD and Farragut was furious that a makeshift enemy ironclad had steamed right through his fleet. He had enough of the pesky ironclad. Fearing once again his vessels would be stranded due to dropping river levels, Farragut decided to withdraw from Vicksburg and sailed south. The withdrawal of the Union fleet from Vicksburg in July of 1862 closed the first phase of Union naval operations against the city.

"Damn the torpedoes! Full speed ahead!"



Two years later In 1864, Rear Admiral Farragut was summoned from his Now York home to serve his country once more in leading an attack on Mobile Bay, the last Confederate stronghold in the Gulf of Mexico. Mobile Bay was not only protected by Fort Morgan and a fleet of wooden vessels, but also by the formidable Confederate Ram TENNESSEE and a field of explosive mines called torpedoes. Undaunted, Farragut readied his fleet for battle. Using a strategy that had worked before, he ordered his wooden ships lashed together in pairs, one large and one small. In this manner, if the larger frigate was disabled in battle, the smaller vessel could tow it into safety.


Defenders of Fort Morgan

Farragut's fleet of wooden ships, along with four small ironclad monitors, began the attack on Mobile Bay early in the morning of August 5, 1864. When the smoke of battle became so thick that he couldn't see, Farragut climbed the rigging of the HARTFORD and lashed himself near the top of the mainsail to get a better view. It wasn't long before the TECUMSEH, one of the monitors leading the way, struck a torpedo and sank in a matter minutes. In a state of confusion, the fleet came to a halt in front of the powerful guns of Fort Morgan. Realizing the fleet was reluctant to move forward due to the "infernal machines," Rear Admiral Farragut rallied his men to victory, shouting: "Damn the torpedoes! Full speed ahead!"



The Union fleet steamed ahead through the minefield, blasted Fort Morgan, and captured the Confederate ironclad TENNESSEE. Thus, Mobile Bay fell into Union hands in one of the most decisive naval victories of the Civil War.

The Battle of Mobile Bay would be Farragut's last. Overcome with fatigue he returned to New York in December 1864 a national hero. In 1866, Farragut became the first person in the history of the United States Navy to be awarded the rank of Admiral. Two years later In 1868, he was even asked run for the office of President of the United States, but replied, "I hasten to assure you that I have never for one moment entertained the idea of political life." Farragut would have only two years to live. The first Admiral of the Navy died on August 14, 1870 it the age of 69. His funeral procession in New York City included 10,000 soldiers and sailors and was headed by President Ulysses S. Grant. A statue of Admiral Farragut was erected in the heart of our nation's capital known as Farragut Square. It remains a lasting tribute to the most distinguished naval officer of the Civil War.

[SAMWolf]

David G. Farragut

David Glasgow Farragut (July 5, 1801 - August 14, 1870) was an admiral of the United States Navy during the American Civil War.

Admiral David G. Farragut - Circa 1863
Mathew Brady Collection (Army)

Farragut was born at Campbell's Station, near Knoxville, Tennessee. He entered the Navy as a midshipman on 17 December 1810. When only 12 years old, he was given command of a prize ship taken by Essex, and brought her safely to port. Through the years that followed, in one assignment after another he showed the high ability and devotion to duty which was to allow him to make a great contribution to the Union victory in the Civil War and to write a famous page in the history of the United States Navy.



In command of the West Gulf Blockading Squadron, with his flag in Hartford he disproved the theory that forts ashore held superiority over naval forces, when in April 1862 he ran past Fort Jackson and Fort St. Philip and the Chalmette, Louisiana batteries to take the great city and port of New Orleans, Louisiana, (a decisive event in the war). Later that year passed the batteries defending Vicksburg, Mississippi. Port Hudson fell to him 9 July 1863.


Painting by Lieutenant Colonel Edmund S. Sayer, USMC (Retired), December 1938, depicting USS Monongahela ramming CSS Tennessee during the battle.
The artist composed this painting from Rear Admiral David Glasgow Farragut's battle plans.

On 5 August 1864 he won a great victory in the Battle of Mobile Bay. Mobile, Alabama at the time was the Confederacy's last major port open on the Gulf of Mexico. The bay was heavily mined (tethered naval mines were known as torpedoes at the time). Farragut ordered his fleet to charge the bay. When one ship struck a mine the others began to pull back, but then Farragut shouted out the order, "Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!" The bulk of the fleet succeded in entering the bay, and the heroic quote became famous.

Farragut then triumphed over the opposition of heavy batteries in Fort Morgan and Fort Gaines to defeat the squadron of Admiral Franklin Buchanan.



His country honored its great sailor by creating for him the rank of rear admiral on July 16, 1862, a rank never before used in the US Navy.

Admiral Farragut's last active service was in command of the European Squadron, with the screw frigate Franklin as his flagship, and he died at the age of 69 in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.

Numerous destroyers have since been named USS Farragut in his honor, and he has been depicted on US postage stamps twice; first on the $1 stamp of 1903, and then on a 32c stamp in 1995.

[SAMWolf]

Setting the Stage

Though the most famous battles of the Civil War occurred on land, from the beginning both sides recognized that control of the seas would be crucial. This was due to the agriculturally based Southern economy that relied on shipping to receive goods and supplies. Once the Civil War began, President Lincoln ordered a blockade of Southern ports. The South responded to the North's strategy by "blockade running," which became the only way the Confederate states could supply themselves with direly needed wares. Ships filled with goods--some for the war effort, others for Southern consumers--left Nassau, the Bahamas; Havana, Cuba; the West Indies; and Bermuda attempting to sneak by the Union Navy. However, the Union Navy succeeded in closing many harbors such as Mobile, Alabama, which was deep enough to accommodate large ships.


Map taken from J. H. Colton's plans of U.S. Harbors, shows the position and vicinities of the most important fortifications on the sea-board and in the interior. The map was drawn from U.S. surveys and other authentic sources. Printed by Lang & Lang, New York, 1862.

The U.S. Navy had to grow rapidly to perform its roles. Though in 1861 it consisted of just 42 warships, by 1865 it had grown to 675 vessels. The North converted ships originally designed for other functions, such as whalers and tugs, and built others from scratch, many of which adopted the latest technology. The most famous example of innovation was the ironclad or "monitor" ships, which were named after the first vessel of its kind. The USS Monitor and subsequent, similar warships were armored with iron plate that was supposed to make them hard to sink. Union warships gradually added other features, including steam engines and more powerful guns. To counteract the Union Navy, the Confederates introduced a new weapon, which they called a "torpedo." Torpedoes were cheap, easily produced underwater mines that could seriously damage or sink ironclad ships.


Friction Torpedo

The Union's armored ships and the Confederate's torpedoes clashed in combat during the summer of 1864 at Mobile Bay in Alabama. In July, Admiral Farragut prepared to lead the Union Navy in an attack on Fort Morgan, which guarded the mouth of Mobile Bay. In the previous two years he had seized New Orleans and Galveston, and he was now ready to close the last major port still available to blockade runners on the Gulf of Mexico.

The Battle of Mobile Bay


Engraving depicting Farragut's fleet running past Forts Morgan (at right) and Gaines (left) to enter Mobile Bay, in the morning of 5 August 1864.
Ships specifically identified include USS Hartford (center) and CSS Tennessee (toward the right).

The blockade was a crucial part of what the North called the "Anaconda Plan." As its name suggests, this strategy intended to squeeze the Confederacy until it surrendered. The Union Navy would cut off overseas trade by a tight blockade and divide the Confederacy in two by diving like a snake down the Mississippi River with a combined land and naval force. Together these two pressures would hopefully show the South that secession was futile and that it should surrender.


Battle of Mobile Bay
J. Gillray
1875
Oil on canvas

Blockade running became so important to the South that one historian called it "the lifeline of the Confederacy." Successful blockade-runners helped the South receive much-needed goods, while the ships' crews and owners received rich rewards to compensate for the risks taken. It was so vital to the Confederacy that while most of the vessels were privately owned at first, later in the war the state and Confederate governments became co- or full owners of the ships. However, the risks were great. If the Union captured a ship, it became Union property and its captain would spend the rest of the war in a Union prison.


Percussion Torpedo

The same limited industrial facilities that made the South need these ships meant it could only produce a limited number, which left the Confederates at a disadvantage on the seas. As the North worked hard to tighten its blockade, the South began to look to Europe for procuring not only ironclads to keep Union monitors from closing ports, but fast cruisers to keep trade flowing. British shipyards were building blockade-runners with more powerful engines; they also built what were known as commerce raiders, which attacked Union trading ships and took their goods. Yet pressures from the United States on these foreign countries limited the South's ability to secure the number of vessels needed for a successful blockade-running operation and for organizing a strong Confederate Navy.


Farragut's Flagship Hartford scraped the mines, but didn't set them off

The North continued to gain advantage as the war continued. By 1863, large blockade-runners could only operate in and out of Wilmington, North Carolina; Charleston, South Carolina; Mobile, Alabama; and Galveston, Texas. Southern ocean trade dropped to one-third of its original level, and the Confederacy began running out of clothing, weapons, and other supplies.


106. Fort Morgan, with Damage to the South Side of the Fort - Mobile Point, AL, 1864

In an attempt to counteract the Union Navy, especially the ironclads, the Confederates introduced the torpedo, which became very controversial. Before the Civil War, explosive devices had been floated towards enemy ships, but these could be seen on the surface allowing time for reaction. Torpedoes, on the other hand, remained hidden below the water, which provoked complaints from the North that no civilized country would use an "invisible" weapon. Union Adm. David Farragut explained the dilemma the North found itself facing: "Torpedoes are not so agreeable when used on both sides; therefore, I have reluctantly brought myself to it. I have always deemed it unworthy [of] a chivalrous nation, but it does not do to give your enemy such a decided superiority over you."


Print after an artwork by J.O. Davidson, 1886, depicting the Union and Confederate squadrons at the moment that USS Tecumseh sank after striking a mine ("torpedo").
Confederate ships (left foreground) are Morgan, Gaines and Tennessee. Union monitors visible astern of Tecumseh are Manhattan and Winnebago. USS Brooklyn is leading the outer line of Union warships, immediately followed by USS Hartford.

All of these issues converged at the Battle of Mobile Bay, which began on August 5, 1864 when Admiral Farragut's fleet moved into the torpedo-filled Mobile Bay. The fleet included 14 wooden ships (including the flagship Hartford), four monitors (the Tecumseh, Manhattan, Winnebago, and Chickasaw), as well as several gunboats that stayed nearby if needed. As the fleet neared Fort Morgan, the Tecumseh hit a torpedo and quickly sunk.



This loss did not stop the Union attack. Seeing what was happening, Admiral Farragut ordered his fleet to press forward through the underwater minefield into Mobile Bay. The 13 other ships made it past Fort Morgan, then, after some resistance, forced the Confederate ships in the bay to surrender or flee. Over the next three weeks, fire from Farragut's vessels and the Union Army finally forced the defenders of Fort Morgan to surrender. Though the city of Mobile would remain in Confederate hands into 1865, the port was now closed to blockade runners.



This victory brought a tremendous boost to Northern spirits, but at a high cost. Monitors were widely believed to be unsinkable--yet it took the Tecumseh just two minutes to go down. In the end, only 21 of the 114 men aboard escaped death. In addition, while clearing the many torpedoes, seven more Union ships, including two ironclads, sank. Their loss provided a particularly painful illustration of how changing technology affects the men fighting a war.

Additional Sources:

www.nationmaster.com
www.heritagephotographs.com
www.multied.com
www.allposters.com
lsm.crt.state.la.us
home.triad.rr.com/aom
www.history.navy.mil
www.bigcountry.de
www.reevesmaps.com
www.navysna.org
www.chinfo.navy.mil
www.philaprintshop.com
www.americaslibrary.gov
www.civilwarphotos.net
www.pf-militarygallery.com

[SAMWolf]

'A ship without Marines is like a coat without buttons.'

-- Adm. David G. Farragut

'Damn the torpedoes, Full speed ahead!'

-- Adm. David G. Farragut

Percussion Torpedo

Aboard Hartford, Farragut entered Mobile Bay, Alabama, 5 August 1864, in two columns, with armored monitors leading and a fleet of wooden ships following. When the lead monitor Tecumseh was demolished by a mine, the wooden ship Brooklyn stopped, and the line drifted in confusion toward Fort Morgan. As disaster seemed imminent, Farragut gave the orders embodied by these famous words. He swung his own ship clear and headed across the mines, which failed to explode. The fleet followed and anchored above the forts, which, now isolated, surrendered one by one. The torpedoes to which Farragut and his contemporaries referred would today be described as tethered mines.

[SAMWolf]

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[snippy_about_it]

FALL IN to the FReeper Foxhole!



Good Monday Morning Everyone.


If you would like added to our ping list let us know.

[SAMWolf]

Good Morning Snippy. You Alamoed out yet?

[snippy_about_it]

Nope, but now were are back into Band of Brothers! How long is Gods and Generals? When are we gonna have time to work on threads? So many things to do, so little time!

[Soaring Feather]

Good morning everyone!

[SAMWolf]

Gods and Generals is 4+ hours

[SAMWolf]

Good morning Feather. up late aren't ya?

[snippy_about_it]

My goodness your up late! Good morning, which I'll probably say again in a few hours. I'm off to get some sleep. See you later today.

[Soaring Feather]

I know I can't see anymore. See you maybe. LOL

[SAMWolf]

I'm gonna hit the sack too. Night Feather.

[Soaring Feather]

Night Sam, see you tomorrow.

[Aeronaut]

Good morning Snippy.

Kellet YG-1B (1938)

[Iris7]

Farragut's capture of New Orleans was strategically important. A link in the chain, the next being Vicksberg, resulting in the control of the Ohio and Mississippi. The situation for the South then become nearly hopeless. Then Grant and the Western Army went to Chattanooga, and hope was gone. Chickamauga was denouement.

[snopercod]

Another great story!

I noticed that those "torpedoes" looked like they had been made from moonshine stills ;-)

[E.G.C.]

Good morning, Snippy and everyone at the Freeper Foxhole.

[snopercod]

As luck would have it, I took this photo two days ago (sorry, there are only six):

[GailA]

Good Morning. It's raining in Memphis and looks to do so for much of today. It's a good day for another cup of coffee.

Coffee's on

[The Mayor]

Their eyes were opened and they knew Him; and He vanished from their sight. —Luke 24:31

Present pains can lead to permanent gains.

[Valin]

On This Day In History


Birthdates which occurred on April 12:
1573 Jacques Bonfrère Dutch bible expert
1724 Lyman Hall US physician (signed Declaration of Independence)
1777 Henry Clay [the Great Compromiser] US politician
1793 Ferdinand I the Good Natured, Emperor of Austria/king of Hungary
1831 George Burgwyn Anderson Brigadier General (Confederate Army)
1831 Grenville Mellen Dodge Major General (Union volunteers)
1856 William M Conway English historian/explorer (Spitzbergen)
1871 Ioannis Metaxas Greek General/dictator (1936-41)
1879 Frederick G Melcher US, publisher/editor/founded children book week
1883 Imogen Cunningham photographer (1965 ASMP award)
1884 Otto Meyerhof Germany, psychologist/biochemist (Nobel-1922)
1885 Robert Délaunay French painter
1892 Johnny Dodds early jazz clarinettist
1911 Darrell A Amyx US archaeologist (Greek Ceramics)
1912 Herbert Mills singer, (Mills Brothers)
1923 Ann Miller [Lucille Ann Collier] Houston TX, dancer/actress (On the Town)
1923 Maria Callas opera singer (Carmen)
1927 Jane Withers Atlanta GA, actress (All Together Now, Josephine the plumber)
1927 Patrick Meehan petty criminal
1928 Brooklyn Supreme Belgium, stallion, heaviest known horse (1450 kg)
1928 Hardy Kruger Berlin Germany, actor (Barry Lyndon, Wrong is Right)
1932 Tiny Tim [Herbert Butros Khaury] New York NY, singer (Tip Toe Thru' the Tulips With Me)
1937 Igor Petrovich Volk Russia, cosmonaut (Soyuz T-12)
1940 Herbie Hancock Chicago IL, pianist (I Thought it was You)
1942 Frank Bank Hollywood CA, actor (Lumpy-Leave it to Beaver)
1944 John Kay [Joachim F Krauledat] Tilsit East Prussia Germany, rocker (Steppenwolf-Born to be Wild)
1946 Ed[ward] O'Neill Youngstown OH, actor(Al Bundy-Married with Children)
1947 David Letterman Indianapolis IN, comedian (Late Night)
1950 David Cassidy New York NY, singer/actor (Keith-Partridge Family)
1956 Andy Garcia [Andrés Arturo García Menéndez] Havana Cube, actor (Stand & Deliver, 8 Million Ways to Die)
1973 Pamela Polk Berlin WI, Miss Wisconsin-America (1996)

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Deaths which occurred on April 12:
0352 Julius I pope (337-52), dies
1817 Charles Messier "comet ferret" & catalogs famous "M objects", dies
1864 Thomas Green US Confederate Brigadier-General, dies in battle at 50
1878 William M "Boss" Tweed New York politician, dies
1912 Clara Barton organized American Red Cross, dies at 90
1945 Franklin Delano Roosevelt 32nd US President (1933-1945, Democrat), dies of a cerebral hemorrhage in Warm Springs GA at 63
1946 August Borms Flemish nazi collaborator, executed at 67
1956 José Moscardo Ituarte Spanish General (Alcázar 1936), dies at 77
1959 Ernest Willem Mulder composer, dies at 60
1975 Joséphine Baker US/French revue artist (Folies-Bergère), dies at 68
1976 Paul Ford actor (Phil Silvers Show), dies at 74
1977 Philip K Wrigley baseball owner (Chicago Cubs), dies at 82
1981 Joe Louis [Brown bomber] US heavyweight champion (1937-49),dies at 66
1987 Ewan Calague economist/statistician (Social Security) dies at 90
1989 Abbie Hoffman yippie "peace" activist of the 60's, dies at 52
1989 Sugar Ray Robinson [Walker Smith Jr] world welterweight champion (1946-51)/5-time middleweight champion, dies of Alzheimers at 67
1991 James Schuyler US poet (Pulitzer 1980), dies

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Reported: MISSING in ACTION

1966 CONWAY JAMES B.---FRANKLIN TN.
1966 GLASSON WILLIAM A.---LOS ANGELES CA.
1966 HARRIS REUBEN---COLUMBUS OH.
1966 JORDAN LARRY M.---SAN JOSE CA.
1966 PUGH KENNETH W.---LANCASTER CA.
12/16/75 PRG RETURNED ASHES]
1967 CLAY WILLIAM C. III---HENDERSON NC.
[REMAINS RETURNED 95/IDENTIFIED 02/25/97]
1969 DE SOTO ERNEST L.---MANNING AR.
1969 HALL FREDERICK M.---WAYNESVILLE NC.
1969 LAMP ARNOLD WILLIAM JR---HEBRON OH.
[REMAINS IDENTIFIED19 JULY 95]
1970 TABB ROBERT ERNEST
[03/27/73 RELEASED BY PRG, ALIVE IN 98]

POW / MIA Data & Bios supplied by
the P.O.W. NETWORK. Skidmore, MO. USA.

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On this day...
0352 St Julius I ends his reign as Catholic Pope
1065 Pilgrims under bishop Günther of Bamberg reach Jerusalem
1111 Pope Paschalis II crowns Henry V, Roman emperor
1204 4th Crusade occupies & plunders Constantinople
1545 French king François I orders protestants of Vaudois to be killed
1606 England adopts the Union Jack as its flag
1654 England, Ireland & Scotland unite
1709 1st edition of Tattler magazine in England
1770 Townsend Acts repealed
1776 Halifax resolution for independence adopted by North Carolina
1782 Battle at Les Saintes West-Indies British fleet beats French
1811 1st US colonists on Pacific coast arrive at Cape Disappointment WA
1844 Texas became a US territory
1857 Gustave Flaubert's "Madame Bovary" published
1858 1st US billiards championship is held in Detroit (Michael J Phelan wins)
1861 Fort Sumter SC is shelled by Confederacy, starting the Civil War
1862 James Andrews steals Confederate train (General) at Kennesaw GA
1862 Union troops occupy Fort Pulaski GA
1863 Gunboat battle at Bayou Teche LA
1864 Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest captures Fort Pillow TN
1864 Battle of Blair's Landing LA
1869 North Carolina legislature passes anti-Klan Law
1872 Jesse James gang robs bank in Columbia KY (1 dead/$1,500)
1877 Catcher's mask 1st used in a baseball game
1892 George C Blickensderfer patents portable typewriter
1893 Battle at Hoornkrans Southwest-Africa German Schutztruppen chases away Hottentotten under Hendrik Witbooi
1894 British & Belgian secret accord on dividing Central-Africa
1905 Hippodrome arena opens (New York NY)
1905 French Dufaux brothers test helicopter
1911 1st non-stop London-Paris flight (Pierre Prier in 3 hours 56 minutes)
1919 British Parliament passes a 48-hour work week with minimum wages
1927 General Chiang Kai-shek begins counter revolution in Shanghai
1928 Assassination attempt on king Victor Emmanuel II of Italy
1931 Spanish voters reject the monarchy
1934 Highest velocity wind ever recorded on Mount Washington NH, 231 mph
1935 "Your Hit Parade", debuts on radio
1935 Germany prohibits publishing "not-Arian" writers
1940 Italy annexes Albania
1942 Japan kills about 400 Filipino officers in Bataan
1945 Canadian troops liberate Nazi concentration camp Westerbork, Netherlands
1945 Harry Truman sworn in as 33rd US President
1946 Syria gains independence from France
1951 Israeli Knesset officially designates April 13 as Holocaust Day
1954 Bill Haley & the Comets record "Rock Around the Clock"
1954 Joe Turner releases "Shake, Rattle & Roll"
1955 Salk polio vaccine safe & effective; 4 billion dimes marched
1959 France Observator reports torture practice by French army in Algeria
1960 Bill Veeck & Chicago Comiskey Park debut the "Exploding Scoreboard"

1961 Yuri Alexeyevich Gagarin becomes 1st person to orbit Earth (Vostok 1)

1963 Birmingham police use dogs & cattle prods on peaceful demonstrators
1966 Rocker Jan Berry crashes his Corvette into a parked truck
1966 1st B-52 bombing on North Vietnam
1969 Simon & Garfunkel releases "The Boxer"
1970 Yankees dedicate plaques to Mickey Mantle & Joe DiMaggio
1980 US Olympic Committee endorses a boycott of the Moscow games
1981 Maiden voyage Space Transit System-space shuttle Columbia launched
1983 Harold Washington becomes Chicago's 1st black mayor
1983 USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakhstan/Semipalitinsk USSR
1987 Texaco files for bankruptcy
1988 Frank Robinson replaces Cal Ripkin as manager of the Baltimore Orioles
1988 Harvard University patents genetically engineered mouse (1st for animal life)
1988 Sonny Bono elected mayor of Palm Springs CA
1990 1st meeting of East German democratically elected parliament, acknowledges responsibility for Nazi holocaust & asks for forgiveness
1990 Greyhound Bus hires new drivers to replace strikers
1990 James Brown moves to a work-release center after serving 15 months
1991 US announces closing of 31 major US military bases
1991 Nepalese Congress party wins general elections
1992 Lynn Gunther of California threatens to blow herself up in front of UN
1999 A federal judge in Little Rock, Ark., found President Clinton in contempt of court for lying during his sworn deposition in Jan. 1998, when he had testified that he had not had sexual relations with former White House intern Monica Lewinsky. Clinton -- who was fined $1,202, the cost of the judge's trip to Washington to preside over the deposition -- was the first sitting president ever to be held in contempt of court. (legacy alert)
2000 Attorney General Janet Reno met in Miami with the U.S. relatives of Elian Gonzalez, after which she ordered them to bring the 6-year-old boy to an airport the next day so he could be taken to a reunion with his father in Washington. Elian was seized by federal agents 10 days after Reno's order to turn him over. (legacy alert)

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Holidays
Note: Some Holidays are only applicable on a given "day of the week"

Mauritius : Ougadi
North Carolina : Halifax Independence Day (1776)
US : Egg Salad Week
US : National Garden Week Week (Day 2)
Dog Appreciation Month

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Religious Observances
Seventh Day of Passover
Easter Monday

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Religious History
1204 The armies of the Fourth Crusade captured Constantinople and established the Latin Empire.
1572 French-born Swiss reformer Theodore Beza (John Calvin's successor) wrote in a letter to Scottish reformer John Knox: 'They whose citizenship is in heaven ought to have their whole dependence on heaven.'
1799 The Church Missionary Society was organized in London under the original name of the Society for Missions in Africa and the East. This Anglican missions agency currently works in fields located in Africa, Ceylon, India, Pakistan, Iran, Palestine and the Far East.
1882 The Evangelical Reformed Church in Northwest Germany was created by royal decree when the king of Prussia ordered the 124 "reformed" congregations scattered throughout the area to become incorporated as an independent territorial church.
1914 An 11-day constitutional convention in Hot Springs, Arkansas, ended. During its sessions, the Assemblies of God denomination was founded.

Source: William D. Blake. ALMANAC OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. Minneapolis: Bethany House, 1987.

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Thought for the day :
"Egotism is the anesthetic that dulls the pain of stupidity."

---

What a Difference 30 Years Makes...
1970: Growing pot.
2000: Growing pot belly.

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New State Slogans...
New Hampshire: Go Away And Leave Us Alone

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Female Language Patterns...
"Can you help me with the housework"? REALLY MEANS,
"If I keep whining, the fool will do it for me".

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Male Language Patterns...
"I'm a Romantic." REALLY MEANS,
"I'm poor."

[Professional Engineer]

Howdy ma'am

[Professional Engineer]

[Iris7]

"When the people are ready, a master will appear." And soon enough, too.

Thanks for your image of ancient traditions, of love of God, of dreams of Chivalry, as seen in the evanescent and insignificant flowering of a marsh plant.

"Chivalry" was caricaturized absurdly by 1800, "Rob Roy", "Ivanhoe", "The Scottish Chiefs", and all that. But perhaps "Chivalry" has always been a story of past heroism and virtue, and perhaps Richelieu dreamed of Saint Louis (Louis IX of France), who dreamed of Charlemagne, who dreamed of Roland, who dreamed of some long forgotten Beowulf. Maybe even Cromwell dreamed of Joshua. Perhaps even JFKerry has dreams of virtue, as strange a thought as that is. Perhaps he dreams of the Marquis de Sade? Or of "The Debauched Hospodar"?

[Diver Dave]

Mornin' SAM, Snippy. Cool.

Back in the days of WWII, the Navy opened a base in Northern Idaho named Camp Farragut. My father-in-law attended boot camp at Farragut.

The site is now a State Park. From one of several Farragut State Park websites...

Farragut State Park is nestled at the foot of the Coeur
d'Alene Mountains in the Bitterroot Range. At 4,000 acres, it is one of Idaho's largest state parks and borders Lake Pend Oreille. Farragut was the second-largest naval training station in the world during World War II. This site was chosen by Franklin Roosevelt as a secure inland naval training site, suitable for training 30,000 men at a time. Lake Pend Oreille's (Pond Oray) incredible 1,152 foot depth served as an inland sea for whale boat training during the war effort.

Commissioned in 1942 and named for Civil War Admiral David Glasgow Farragut, over 293,000 naval personnel trained at this massive inland facility. In 1965, this area became an Idaho State Park. A tour through this 4,000 acre park setting gives visitors opportunities for viewing whitetail deer, wild turkeys, and snow-white mountain goats on the rock cliffs above Lake Pend Oreille. There is a Visitor's Center/Museum with interpretive displays about Athol, Bayview, and Farragut.

Getting There: From Coeur d'Alene drive 25 miles northeast
on U.S. 95 and 4 miles east of Athol on Highway 41.

[SAMWolf]

Morning aeronaut.

It's hard for me to remember that autogyros and helicopters were being developed and tested in the 30's and 40's. Korea in the 50's always comes to my mind first.

[Iris7]

"Egotism is the anesthetic that dulls the pain of stupidity."

Chuckle. That fits me real well, like a favorite shoe. The "pain of stupidity" is apt, since fear is always the center of pain - that is why morphine works.

[SAMWolf]

Morning Iris7. Today it's hard to remember how important control of rivers were in those times. No highway system, not many bridges, few railroads. They were both obstacles and highways back then.

[SAMWolf]

I noticed that those "torpedoes" looked like they had been made from moonshine stills

LOL! I noticed that too.

[SAMWolf]

Good morning E.G.C.

Nice day here today. Looks like I don't get out of washing all the windows. :-(

[SAMWolf]

Morning GailA.

Always nice to see your biscuits and gravy in the morning.

[aomagrat]

Today's classic warship, USS Farragut (DD-300)

Clemson class destroyer
Displacement. 1,190 t.
Lenght. 314'5"
Beam. 31'8"
Draft. 9'4"
Speed. 35 k.
Complement. 95
Armament. 4 4", 12 21" tt.

The USS Farragut (DD-300) was launched 21 November 1919 by Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corp., San Francisco, Calif., sponsored by Mrs. T. M. Potts and commissioned 4 June 1920, Commander P. L. Wilson in command.

Farragut arrived at San Diego 3 July 1920, and was at once placed in reserve until 31 March 1922. Then she took up a regular training schedule along the west coast, from the Canal Zone to Oregon. On 27 July 1923, at Seattle, she took part in a review taken by President W. G. Harding, on his way home from a visit to Alaska. Returning to San Diego, she, with seven other ships, grounded on a foggy night on Honda Point, 8 September. Farragut alone was able to get clear with only minor damage, while the others remained stranded on the rocky shore.

In both 1924 and 1927, Farragut sailed into the Caribbean for fleet concentrations for maneuvers, in 1927 continuing north to visit New York, Newport, and Norfolk. Her first visit to the Hawaiian Islands was in the summer of 1925, during which she acted as station ship during the flight of seaplanes from the west coast to Hawaii. Again in the spring of 1928 Farragut exercised in the Hawaiians. She was decommissioned at San Diego 1 April 1930, and after scrapping, her materials were sold 31 October 1930 in accordance with the London Treaty for the limitation of naval armaments.

Tin fish in action!

[SAMWolf]

Morning Mayor. Wouldn't be morning at the Foxhole without your steaming cup of coffee and inspiring words.

[The Mayor]

Thanks Sam!

[Soaring Feather]

Good morning PE, love this Flag picture.

[SAMWolf]

1999 A federal judge in Little Rock, Ark., found President Clinton in contempt of court for lying during his sworn deposition in Jan. 1998, when he had testified that he had not had sexual relations with former White House intern Monica Lewinsky. Clinton -- who was fined $1,202, the cost of the judge's trip to Washington to preside over the deposition -- was the first sitting president ever to be held in contempt of court. (legacy alert) 2000 Attorney General Janet Reno met in Miami with the U.S. relatives of Elian Gonzalez, after which she ordered them to bring the 6-year-old boy to an airport the next day so he could be taken to a reunion with his father in Washington. Elian was seized by federal agents 10 days after Reno's order to turn him over. (legacy alert)

My earnest wish is that History ends up treating Clinton and his administration with the utter contempt it deserves.

[SAMWolf]

Morning PE. Got any pictures of Yuri?

[SAMWolf]

Morning Diver Dave.

Thanks for the info on Camp Farragut / Farragut State Park. I've only been through Coeur d'Alene once, but what a magnificent area! It should be part of Oregon, it's too beautiful to be Idaho, LOL!

[SAMWolf]

Morning aomagrat.

One of the old 4 stackers!

I remember reading about the Honda Point "mishap".

[Valin]

Shameless plug
Hunley Findings Put Faces on Civil War Submarine Crew
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1116000/posts
/shameless plug

[Valin]

My earnest wish is that History ends up treating Clinton and his administration with the utter contempt it deserves.


I really think it will. Look at JFK(the original not not the Viet-Nam HEro), 10-15 years ago he was St. Jack founder of camelot.

[SAMWolf]

There may be hope yet. You're right, some of the shine has come off of Camelot.

[Valin]

A book I read years ago,
"South To Java"
By Wm. P. Mack
About a four stacker in the early days of WWII.

"South to Java" by Wm. P. Mack (Vice Admiral USN retired) & Wm. P. Mack Jr. (M.D.)

This is without a doubt one of the finest novels of World War II that I have read. It deals primarily with a little know aspect of the early part of the war in the Pacific. Elements of the Dutch, British, and American navies struggled against overwhelming odds with the Imperial Japanese Navy. The characters in the book are memorable and the events factual.

The U.S.S. O'Leary is a worn out WWI four-stacker destroyer that steams in and out of trouble and participates in some of the major naval actions of the area. Learn about life aboard one of these old ships, from the engine room to the woefully inadequate weapon systems. Learn what kind of men constituted the U.S. Navy at the outset of WWII. Relive many exciting and most often fatal battles with the Japanese.

This book is so interesting and well written, it will appeal to a broad audience. I highly recommend it. Adm. Mack has also written several other WWII novel about Destroyers. I have read them all and they will be reviewed on USVeterans.com when time allows.

Available from:

The Nautical & Aviation Publishing Company of America, Inc.
101 West read Street
Baltimore, MD 21201

Reviewed by Ken Smith, 19 November 1998
http://www.usveterans.com/books/wwii-fiction/South_to_Java.html

[Aeronaut]

Hey Sam.

[SAMWolf]

"South To Java"

OH Man! I totally forgot about that book! Read that a loooong time ago.

[snippy_about_it]

Good morning Aeronaut. Goodness, is there any design they didn't think of!

[snippy_about_it]

Those are very pretty and we always enjoy flowers to brighten up the Foxholes around here. I think of Iris7 everytime I see them! And I think of bentfeather everytime I see a feather. You'd be surprise how often Sam and I think of all our Foxhole FReepers in everyday things we see and do. :-)

It is really good to have you back snopercod.

[snippy_about_it]

Good morning Gail. I'm hungry and those look good!

[snippy_about_it]

Good morning Mayor.