Ht•prilltPd frout '1'/u~ ./rmrnal of ('umml'rce und Shipping Teli'(JTa]Jh, Sat 11 rday, N O\'em her 14, HJ4~

BRITISH-BUILT BLOCKADE RUNNERS OF THE

Extracts from a paper read by Mr. ARTHUR C. WARDLE, M.I.Ex., - before - The Nautical Research Society on November 7th, 1942.

No. 7. A 'I' a time u-hen State and local passE.'d hut a spc:>erl\· craft. paint.·d records a r,, ,.renN·n ll:r innl"ces­ white or gre.r (forerunne;· of on r sible, it may Sl'l'lll pt·esumptuous Admiralty f.);rcy) sped stealthily into to put forward any lengthy treatise the blackness towards one of the on this subjE'<'t, and the following Confedcmte port~. pages met·ely rep resent a re\· iew of This dandestinc tr·affie, however. notes collated casuall_,. during tl1e was not. due nwn·ly to the plan" of past two _years. BnlloPh and his European agents. ~o comprehensin• work relatiul! Enterprising Bt·itish mNehants, to the hloelwde-runners has en:•r mainlv associated with the American lwen compiled. Indeed, such a cottm; trade, fiuding that the war task would hP difficult, for their was destined to kill their nornwl trade was often clandestine, they trade for the:> time beiug, were qni•·i: <·hanged names and ownershir)s to discern the financial benefi:, many times. and on oceasion Wl'rf' which might aePI"lle from a contr,t­ quite indifferent as to the national flag the:v wore. band tradt> with the Southern On t)lis sidl' of the Atlantic. States. official lists of seizures and losses FABULOUS FREIGHT RATES are not available, and so the his­ The hazards of the vPntnre were torian must content himself with a great, and increased with the grow­ discerning scrutiny of c-ontem­ porary newspapet· files, shipbuildt>rs' ing vigilanc(' and E>fficiency of the lists and fleet lists. blockading forces, but the pri?.e At the outset of the war, when was valua.ble. Fabulous freight rates Federa 1 ern isers of moderate speed pre\·ailed, and abnormally high rates onl~· we-re in commission, the of pay attracted many skilful and blockadE' proved t·ather lax, and by intrepid British mariners, as well as •June, 1861, the " runners " had highly qualified engineers . got into almost full stride, Chnrles­ Thu·s, the Confedemtes paid dear!_,. ton and Wilmington bemg then for such importations as reached <·onsidered relatively easy trips. them by this method. Fortunes Those who have read Captain were made and lost bv merchants Bulloch's Secret Service of the and shipownl'fs who · owned the Confederate States will recollect the vessels, and some indication of the ohject of his mission to Europe and naval and maritime risks involved his use of Li,·erpool as a base for may be gained from the fact that, hi;;; activities. in 1864, of the 71 blockade-nmners FAST BRITISH CRAFT which used one base alone, Bermuda, It was from that port that he 43 had been lost by the end of negotiated the purchase and con­ November of that year. struction of the armed raiders One of the earliest blockade­ Oreto (re-named Florida) and runners to be constructed in the .\labama, which were soon to prove United Kingdom was the iron-scr('W so costly to Anglo-American friend­ steamer Bermuda, 897 tons gross, and to the British taxpayerr. built by Pearce and Lockwood, in The Confederate Government also 1861, at Stockton-on-Tees, and fitted appointed the firm of Fraser Tren­ with engines of 135 h.p. by Fossic-k holme and Co., Liverpool, as and Hackworth. She was completed European financial agents. the in August and moved round to JJiver­ rf'sident partner being then Charles pool, where she was registered in K nhn Prioleau. the name of Edwin Haigh, a local ~o time was lost in the acquir·~­ cotton broker. ment or construction of fast British Within a few days of the regis­ eraft for official Confederate tration, however, a certificate of ;JCCOtmt for the pwrposes of running sale was exeruted in favour of t-he blockade. Bermuda. the A. S. Henckel and George Alfred Bahamas, and Havana were fixPd Trenholme, of Charleston. She made as the chief entrepots for the trade. several successful trips, ami was Swift, spick and span paddle manned by a crew of 30 under com­ steamers, loaded down to their rails mand of Captain Eugene Tessier, almost with cargo and bunkers, and later Captain C. W. Westen­ ·were despatched from British ports dorff, until seized and condemned under the British flag for some such by the Federal Govemment towa~·ds t·endezvous as Nassau. where, after the end of 1862. filling empty bunker space with Her sister ship, the Bahama, 88i additional cargo, they would make tons, \vas launched " by torch light '' a swift run into Savannah or other block wed port ami then return. from thl' same yard on Janual"y 24. laden with cotton, &c.. often 1862. and eventually fitted out on the Mersey, where she was reais­ arriving with masts shot awa~· and hulls battered after encountering t.ered in the name of Edwin Haigh, FedE>ral of war. who later transferred her to Nassau developed particularb· as Frederick Chapman, of IJondon. a base. Coal depots were estab­ Both vessels were barque-rigged lished on Hog's Island, in addition and measured 215ft. length hv to construction of a drck in wl1ich 29.2ft. beam and 8.98ft. depth. Th'P damaged 11 runners " could he Bahama made many trips, and ~cted repaiTt>d; and scarcely a night as a tender to the raider Alahama clUJ·in~ t.he latter's armament on the l";wour ul" Thomas E. Taylor, on!· )f high s<>as. In August, 1862, she is Lawrence's employes, and who shown as clearing from Liverpool for became his agent at Nassau, for Nassau, with a crew of 45 men under whence she cleared from the Mersey Captain .K L. Tessier, her agents on )larch 2, 1863, with a crew of being l\J. G. Klingender and Co. :16. Her plates were ~in. and ~in. The name of Melchior George thick, and she pro\•ed so leaky at Kling;l'nder appears man\· timl.'s as the outsE-t that she was compelled I"l'gister('(] owllel· or pseudo-owner to put into an Irish port and, after of ,·essels employed as bloekade­ •·ppair, rpached Nassau safely. runners, and in 1860 he was agent The BanshE-e made eight successful at LiH•rpool for the GalwaY Line bloC'knde-rHnning trips which re­ ~1f stL•au1crs to St. John'S: ~ew­ hu·npd her sha •·eholders 700 per loundland, and the United :-itates. Cl'nt. of the-ir C'apital, until she was :\either the Bermuda nor the captnn•d in 1863 by n Federal gun­ llahama had a speed exceedin~.!; 10 boat and converted into a ship nf o1· 11 knots, and indeed at this war. Th!' storv of the Banshee is Parl.v stag:!' of the war little mm·e well told ir. Tom .E. Taylor's "Hun­ was needed to l"iude thP ,.jnre, and on November 17, of 186~ th~. blo!"kadl' tight!'nl"d up~ 1863, c·leared for Nassau, with a a ud so sw1ft!'r craft wl're ne!'ded. c-r~:>w of 26 under Captain T. Cub­ J n April of that year the iron bins. Her carei"J" proved short, paddle steamers Anglia (-!.56 tons news reaching the :\lersey early m g;mss) and Rcotia (462 tons gross) l<'ebruarv, 1864, that she had been huilt in 18-!7 at West Ham an(i destroyed off Charleston. Black wall respflctively, were pur­ Meanwhile, a sister ship, the chased and despatched from the Lucy, a steel paddle steamer, fitted )le•·sey for Nassau. Both had been with 150 h.p. engines by Fawcett, em plrpool r~:>gist.ry \Vilmington. as owned hy .\l!'xnnd!'r Duranb·, a ~ocal merchant. SllP was capti1recl ANOTHER BANSHEE 1n 186:l by_ Federal warships. A second and hll"ger Banshee was The Scotla, unde1· Captain R. H. built in 1864 for the Lawrence firm. Eustace and later Captain Lilly. of She was a steel paddle vessel of 628 CharlE>ston. made several voyages tons gross and ,138 tons net. from until captlll"ed in 1862. She \vas the ya-rd of Aitken and Mansell, on registered at Li,·erpool in the names the Clyde. She measured 252.6ft. of J. Dorrington, merchant of length, 31.2 beam and 11.2ft. depth -'Innchester. and W. B'. Forwo~d, a and, fitted with engines of 250 h.p., )IJ"Ominent Liverpool merchant. attainl"d a speed of 16 knots. Built The first Liverpool-built blockade­ at a high cost, she carried a erew runner was the little steel paddle­ of 53, and proved a most efficient st~amcr BansheE>, :125 tons gross, blockade-runner. ~1 1 tons nett, built hv .J ones, Once she ran into Wilmington Quigg·in and Co. in 1862. ·Her con­ through a fleet of 64 vessels, the struction !'Onsisted of steel plates ~nst part of the journey being made 011 an iron frame, and for this she m broad daylight and in full 1•iew is remarkable as heing the first steel of the Federal fleet. steamer e\·er to make the North On another occasion tl1e Banshee .\ tlantil' "l"oyage. made a wild bid f01· Gah·eston O\'er She measured 214ft. length, 20ft. a notorious shoal, during which she breadth. and 8ft. depth, and had was exposed the whole time to extrnordinarv fine hues, with an fire. With funnels riddled elliptical stern and a turtle-back Federal deck forward, while her rig con­ with shot, however, she bumped her sisted of two pole masts without way over the shoal nod got safely yards. Rhe was fitted with enginl"s into port. This vessel was last of 120 h.p .. which gave her a speed heard of at Havana at the close of of more than 11 knots. the war. ~he was registerl"d undl'r thP AmoYJg the Mersey-built blockad<>­ owne1·ship of John Toulmin Law­ runners was the famous Colonel rl"nce, a well-known Livprpool mE-r­ J,amb, a steel paddle vessel of 1,132 chant. . . . • but within a fl'w da.vs tons She was a rakish model, a certificate of sale was <'XE'<'Hted in !.('hoonN-rigged, with two funnels and an elliptic stern. her measure­ •hen sold to the Brazilian Go,·ern­ ments being 2i9.5ft. len(.!;th, :i5.!):jtt. ment and _ehnrt<•n•d to take n <.·argo breadth, and l5.35ft. depth. Built ot explosn·es across thc:> Atlantic:. by Jom•s, Quigp:in and Co .. slw was hut was blown up while ridin~ at launched in 18&1 and C'hristent'd bv anchor in the :'\JNSI'.V on the mght Mrs. Tom Lockwood. · b('fore sailing. 'f!~e largest steel-built \'essel up One of the first firms eom­ to that date, she excited much attPn­ missioned. throngh Captain Bulloeh. tion 9.nd there existed great specula­ for construC'ting bloekade-runnl"rs tion as to her vocation. particularly was William C . .l\Jiller and Co., who r.ince she was fitted with ('ngines ••f also eonstrnded the famous armed 350 h.p. by James Jack and Co., raider Florida, ex Oreto, and thP Liverpool. less successful gun-boat Alex:nndra. Her paddles, equipped with seized by British authorities while feathering floats, had a diameter of outfitting at Liverpool. One of this fit·m's blockade­ 25ft., and for a trial trip she was rtmnPrs met a tE'rrible fate. She raced against the Isle of Man Steam was thp Lelia. a step) paddler of 640 Packet Co.'s steamer Douglas (11.), tons. 300 h.p .. built in 1864. with a attaining a speed of 16~ knots speed of over 18 miles an hour. against heavy seas and head winds. She was registered at Livet]>ool She was registered at Liverpool in in the name of Henry Elias Moss. September, 1864, in the nam(' of and left the l\lersp~· on .Januar~· 16. William Quiggin, who later assigned 1865. Like all the " runnprs," sh1• her to J B. Fafitte. of Nassau. lay ,·erv low in the water. being Named after the valiant com­ loaded down b~· bunkers and carg?· mander of Fort Fisher, whose f:!:Uns Under the command of Captam had so often saved blockade-runnNs Thomas Buxton Skinner, of Virginia. from the fire of pursuing Federal sh!· C'arried a rrew of 49, which in­ ships, she was obviously designed cluded 20 in the engine-room staff. for the blockade service, but she in addition to the Cork pilot and appeared so large that much se,·eral passengers. among whom suspicion was aroused in the minds WE're Thomas Miller, son of the of Federal representatives het·e. builder. J. B. Cropper. a Liverpool mPrehant, and a Captain Arthur St. BLOWN UP AT ANCHOR Clare. Captain Skinner was 38 :-,·ears A report from the Consulate at of age. 7, 1864, The \"esse! hE't'self was insured fot· Liverpool dated September £32.000, and lea,·ing Liverpool she states: '' Enclosed is a description headed into a fiE'rC'e storm outside of the new steel steamer Colonel the l\Ierse:v and foundered. Pas­ Lamb just finished at this port. sengers and crew made for thl" This is one of the largest and best boats, but 47 lives were lost, this built steamers that has been con­ bean toll (accordin~ to subsequent structed in this country for running inqnirv findings) bemg due to the the blockade...... fact tfmt the Lelia's four boats werP " I understand that this steamer found in the emergency to be with­ has been built for the Confederaf'y out rowlocks. The C'aptain and all and now belongs to them, but no hi::. officers lost their li"I'E'S. doubt Fraser Trenholme will take While the existence and acti,•ities out a British register for her. of the bloC'kade-runners proved a I regard her as eostly business to both belligerents. a very superior steamer. If armed thet·e can be little doubt that the with one or two guns she would be seamanship, courage, engineering able t•> do much mischief as a skill anrl inno,•ation in ship desigu privateer." and construction must have influ­ After leaving the 1\fersey she enced the subsequent development proved quite a bogey to the of the North Atlantic liner, for it Northerners, and on October 5, is hard to realise that the speed of 1864, was reported from Halifax to these paddle-steamers ~ometimes be leaving for Wilmington, being reached 20 knots-a speed which our large ocean " greyhounds " did describer! as a " long, low, raki~h not achiev!' until some 30 years vessel, at present light lead colour.·' latPr. A letter from the Secretan of the Just a few of the hund·rPds of Navy to Rear-Admiral Porter even blockade-nmnet·s, built in this went so far as to state that a Euro­ country, have been selected from pean State, possibly Poland. would my records, but it is hoped that ~"nd some 30,000 solrliers to help the Routhern forces. and that 50 such as have been mentioned arr steamers of the Colonel Lamb dass sufficient to pE'rmit us to appreeiate would be built to run these troops the wide extent of this clandestine through the blockade. A later des­ traffic ancl to distinguish firm):\· patch mentions a belief tl1at the betwl"en blockade-runne1• and arml'cl \"Pssel would be converted into a rnider, for it is notorious that surlt privateer. cruisers as the Alahnma, Shensmrl­ The Colonel Lamb was com­ oah, Florida, &c., are popularly mander'~ bv the famous Tom Lock­ mentioned as being " blocknde­ wood and· proved one of the first nmners,'' which they were not! vessPIR tn ~et bB.f'k to the Mersey at the close of the war. She was

CHARLES BIRCHALL a SONS. LTD •• 17. JAMES STREET. LIVERPOOL. 2.