Commander Isaac Newton Brown, C.S.N. Papers

Henry

Cadet
Joined
Jun 1, 2009
Location
Florida
Lt. Commanding Gwin of the Oakclad Gunboat Tyler managed to snag a pile of papers belonging to Commander I.N. Brown, C.S.N., on a forceful movement down the Tennessee River to Florence under Lieutenant Commanding S.L. Phelps. I've found no recent reference to these papers, perhaps I'm not looking hard enough. Do they still exist and where?
 
Thanks for mention of Sue Palmer-Elliots effort regarding the action on the rivers, I'm familiar with this one, 5fish. What I am seeking is any knowledge of the actual papers of Brown's. They'd sure fill in a lot of the gaps missing in the historical record.
 
Thanks for mention of Sue Palmer-Elliots effort regarding the action on the rivers, I'm familiar with this one, 5fish. What I am seeking is any knowledge of the actual papers of Brown's. They'd sure fill in a lot of the gaps missing in the historical record.

A paragraph below form the link I posted earlier...These papers where about covering stream boats to military use...It seems form the capture papers they learned of the Eastport and that is why they went further up the river to destroy it.

Besides the destruction of three steamers, the Union men also claimed another prize: the papers of Lieutenant Isaac Brown detailing Confederate efforts to convert the steamboats. With this intelligence in hand, the Union boats steamed farther upriver to Cerro Gordo, their sights set on the Eastport, then in the midst of its conversion.


Here you looking to where the original papers are kept...
 
There is mention of the papers of Brown's in the OR's, as well as an article published in the Cincinnati Gazette in late February, 1862. The papers did not make it to Gideon Welles' department, one of the occurances caused by the Western waters being under army control due to the interior position until September of 1862. No sign of them, I believe they'd be an interesting read. Hank
 
Thanks for the links, 5fish. The amount of detail of the papers you refer to is due to the fact that much of the communication with Brown was with Major General L. Polk and with Secretary of the Navy Stephen Russell Mallory. The communications were duplicated in some cases and entered in letter books. The three letters from Matthew Fontaine Maury were entered in an August 2, 1861 message to Polk regarding submarine batteries. The original copies of Brown still elude.
 
I've had conversation with Jack Smith, author of the Timberclads, this past week, 5fish. We both use another website specific to Civil War maritime events. According to him the papers are not extant. Nobody left to tell me what A.H. Foote did with them.
 
What about Admiral Foote personal papers with the liberty of Congress.....Here is a link.. There seems to Microfilm of some of his papers

http://www.loc.gov/rr/mss/text/foote.html

There is a bio written in 1874 by the following....

See his biography by Prof. J. M. Hoppin (1874).

There maybe something in it about the papers you are looking for.... Mr. Hoppin knew the people Foote knew..

I am trying to find leads but the papers are most likely buried in some old box of civil war documents in some warehouse over looked over the decades...
 
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