Beery-Confederate yard dogged by fever, destructive fires

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Beery-Confederate yard dogged by fever, destructive fires

By Ben Steelman
[email protected]
Published: Tuesday, June 11, 2013 at 2:09 p.m.

Last Modified: Tuesday, June 11, 2013 at 2:09 p.m.
Q. What's the story on the Confederate Shipyard on Eagles Island?
A. In May 1861, brothers Benjamin and William Beery bought the "Cape Fear Marine Railway" on Eagles Island, on the west bank of the Cape Fear River, to produce vessels for the New Confederacy. This yard is often referred to as "the Confederate Navy Yard" or just "the Navy Yard," to distinguish it from Robert H. Beery's shipyard, which operated after the Civil War at the foot of Castle Street.
The Beery-Confederate yard was just north of the present location of the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge. ("The Big Book of the Cape Fear" by Claude V. Jackson III and edited by Jack Fryar, reproduces a contemporary photo of the site, with a wrecked tugboat moldering in the foreground.)
Its first project was converting the 285-ton steam tug Mariner into a Confederate privateer. Benjamin Beery was commissioned the Mariner's first captain and took several prizes under letters of marque issued by President Jefferson Davis before relinquishing command and returning to full-time shipbuilding.

For the rest: http://www.starnewsonline.com/artic...derate-yard-dogged-by-fever-destructive-fires
 
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