The War Journal of Midshipman Cary

THE WAR JOURNAL OF MIDSHIPMAN CARY Edited by Brooks Thompson and Frank Lawrence Owsley, Jr. On March 18, 1865, a Confederate sailor, Clarence Fairfax Cary, just turned twenty, reflectively set aside a journal he had kept since joining the crew of the commerce-raider C.S.S. Chickamauga in September , 1864. Cary, a native of Virginia, had been appointed an active midshipman of die Confederate States Navy at age sixteen. He had seen considerable service before being assigned to the Chickamauga, having saüed on the C.S.R.S. United States, the C.S.S. Nashville, the C.S.S. Palmetto State, and die steamers Henry and Virginia.1 Cary's journal, which has never before been published in full, is of uncommon interest. The young man's last assigned ship operated out of the important port of Wilmington, North Carolina, and he consequendy reported much of the comings and goings of Soudiern blockade runners, by which a thin trickle of goods from abroad stiU nourished die declining Confederacy. His own ship's difficulties in threading die hazardous screen of Union vessels posted off Cape Fear ülustrate the increasing effectiveness of the blockade. Cary's subsequent account of harassing Northern shipping on the Atlantic seaboard, his sojourn in Bermuda, and finaUy die return to Wümington and his part in die defense of Fort Fisher, provide an exceUent picture of Confederate naval duty in die last months of the conflict. After the war, Cary's diary played a dramatic role. The young sailor surrendered on May 4, 1865, and took his oatii of allegiance to die Union a mondi later. The United States government confiscated his journal, employing information from it in die government's successful postwar indemnity claims against Great Britain for damages caused by Englishbuilt commerce raiders. Aldiough known as die "Alabama claims" matBrooks Thompson is a professor of history at Troy State College in Alabama. His co-editor, Frank Lawrence Owsley, Jr., teaches in the History Department at Auburn University. ? Register of Officers of the Confederate States Navy, 1861-1865 (Washington, 1931), p. 32. Hereafter cited as RO. 187 188THOMPSON AND OWSLEY ter, the negotiations included consideration of die C.S.S. Florida, and Cary's notes on his stay at Bermuda were evidendy diought to reveal significant evidence about diat vessel.2 StiU later, excerpts concerning the Confederate defense of Fort Fisher were deemed important enough to merit inclusion in the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies. The manuscript then disappeared into die labyrindiine files of die National Archives, to be rediscovered almost a century later by one of the editors of diis article. The editors have retained Cary's original speUing, even to the breaking of words now commonly joined, and have reproduced abbreviations used by die audior. They have usually substituted periods for Cary's sentence-ending dashes, and have added an occasional comma for the sake of clarity. Finally, the repetitious notation "1864" has several times been deleted from the entry datelines. I reported on board die CS.[S.] Chickamauga on die 17ti» of Sept. 64 having left Richmond on die 14ti». —Clarence Cary September 24th 1864 Lt. Comdy Jno Wükinson & Lt. F. M. Roby C.S.N, have returned from Richmond, where they have been on business connected widi die ship,3 and I am heartily glad of it, for now perhaps we may see some energy displayed in getting our vessel ready. Got on board die carriage and gun ( 10 pdr Parrish ) for the Forecastle, hope to get coal this evening. The Blockade Runners are loud in dieir complaints against us—(confound an Englishman anyway) for, by order of die [Confederate] Govmt. diey have to give us each a days coal, diey hope we wiU be captured I have no doubt. From present indications I diink we wül be away from here in two or diree days. I, fervendy hope so. A small sized Masters Mate named Gibson from Richmond reported diis morning—there is already a crowd in our steerage. Captain Jno. N. Maffit C.S.N, came on board on a visit diis morning.4 2 On p. 1 of the diary, which is torn, is...