Naval Role in the American Civil War
Three days after the bombardment of Fort Sumter, on April 15, 1861, Lincoln called for seventy-five thousand volunteers to enlist for three months. Soon after he called for additional forty-two thousand men to sign on for three years, and provided large increases in the army and navy budgets. With an unlimited budget for both army and navy, lack of planning in the North and poor resources in the South meant that the campaign at sea got off to a slow start. Also, valuable time was needed to build up navies from scratch. The Union Navy received an increase of eighteen thousand men, and in July, as it became obvious that this was not going to be a short campaign, Lincoln asked for additional four hundred thousand men for the army and navy. Once started, the South organized more quickly than the North as it established a navy after the first states had seceded. By August 1861 Stephen R. Mallory, the Confederate Secretary of the Navy had already contracted for several powerful vessels in the west. Here again the South was well in advance of the North. A few problems would arise for the south after a good start. Few Southern shipyards were of sufficient size, and plants for th
On top of the hull was a flat wooden deck covered with two layers of half-inch iron plates. The Monitor only measured to be 172 feet long and 41 feet wide. Eventually three companies were able to produce armor of the required thickness, but it took a very long time to achieve. It was covered with eight layers of iron protecting two massive guns, mounted side by side. Also, the production of suitable machinery was a constant problem and many Confederate ironclads were lost because they lacked enough power for the vessels. When the European harvest failed in the early 1860s, the bumper crops of the Midwest were still sold to eager Europeans and trade continued to flourish. Later, small towns, which were often, located miles up winding, shallow rivers, would play an important part in creating a navy. It was immediately raised, and the black-powder in the copper tanks was found to be in good condition. After being rejected several times they final accepted John Ericsson?s plan for an ironclad. In the last year it became as nearly perfect as only a handful of vessels passed it. It began by purchasing all suitable vessels, quickly arming them, and rushing them into service with crews who, in many cases, were as fresh to naval service as the ships, themselves. Final the vessel made its first voyager to New York's East River, only 18 days after the contracted date. Poor transportation was not the only reason for this; the Union had made a point of occupying the parts of the South that produced most of the iron ore. Of the ten yards belonging to the US Navy in 1860, only two were in the South.
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