Ellet's Marine Rams

Borderruffian

1st Lieutenant
Joined
Aug 4, 2007
Location
Marshfield Missouri
The Mississippi Marine Rams were the idea of Charles Ellet, Jr., an engineer and bridge builder who had the idea of reinforcing the framework of big, old heavy steamboats and using them as rams. The ships usually had the deck lined with cotton bales for added protection and sometimes were lashed to a barge filled with cotton or coal in an attempt to protect themselves from cannon fire.They were for the most part, unarmed, and when participating in their intended use, were quite effective. They were also used to carry supplies, soldiers, prisoners, etc. Ellet had assembled "fleet" of nine old river boats and proved his theory at the battle of Memphis in June of 1862 by the destruction of the Confederate fleet there and the surrender of the city to the Union forces. The only casualty was Ellet himself, who was wounded by enemy small arms fire. He died two weeks later, and command of the fleet was turned over to his brother, Alfred. Of the twelve officers in the brigade, four were of the Ellet family. Colonel Ellett, below, is Col. Charles Rivers Ellet, age 19, son of Charles Ellet, Jr.. John Ellet was the son of Gen. Alfred Ellet. Col. Charles Rivers Ellet took over the command of the Switzerland after his father died.

In early March of 1863, most of the ram fleet was above Vicksburg, the river there being very effectively controlled by the many guns on the bluffs overlooking it. Admiral Farragut had requested two rams and an ironclad to assist him blockade the Red River below Vicksburg. The ironclad was never furnished but the Switzerland and Lancaster were ordered to go under the guns and report to Farragut. The accounts below, found in the Official Records, written by the participants, give an extremely graphic picture of the events that followed.


http://www.scattercreek.com/~normw/rams.html

http://www.brownwaternavy.org/mmb/or-mmb-2.htm

By the middle of 1862, the commanders of the Union Navy and Army forces operating in the western theatre were convinced that the western rivers could only be conquered and controlled by close cooperation between the two services. However, the lack of sufficient combat-ready troops to secure large areas forced the Union to man many of its garrisons and supply depots along the western rivers with relatively untrained African Descent regiments not otherwise dedicated for combat duties. It was initially thought that the units manning these isolated outposts could be supported by Navy gunboats stationed at strategic points along the river. However, it soon became obvious that a more aggressive plan was needed to counter the "fire-and-run" tactics of small Confederate units and the numerous bands of guerillas operating along the rivers.

Although the Union controlled the rivers above Vicksburg, the surrounding countryside was still very much under the influence of the Confederate Army and the guerillas. Naval gunfire and landing parties could do little more than temproarily chase off the attackers. Recognizing the unique problems presented by these highly-mobile menaces, Brigadier General Alfred W. Ellet, USA, now in command of the Ram Fleet—with the endorsement of Rear Admiral Porter—convinced Washington to organize a new unit which would consist of mounted infantry, cavaly and artillery which would be permanently stationed aboard steamboats (See Official Record). This new unit would patrol the rivers, responding quickly to any threat or harassment from the shore and was to be called the Mississippi Marine Brigade (MMB). This unfortunate misnomer has led to quite a bit of historical confusion since MMB personnel were not marines, it was not organized in Mississippi nor was it limited to operations on that river. Simply put; the MMB was to be an Army unit operating on water, commanded by General Ellet under the nominal control of the Navy.


http://www.brownwaternavy.org/mmb/mmb.htm
 
Side Wheel Ram:

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Switzerland and Lancaster running the Vicksburg Blockade:

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Colonel Charles Ellet
 
Great stuff! I never realized the rams were so "top-heavy".
 
WASHINGTON, Friday, May 20.

An official dispatch to the War Department, received to-day from Gen. ELLET, commanding the Marine brigade, dated Helena, Ark., May 25, says:

"As my command was descending the river from Memphis, May 23, the Commissary and Quartermasters' boat was fired into from the Mississippi side by a band of the enemy, with two pieces of artillery, about six miles above Austria. I returned yesterday, and landed my force. The enemy had, a few hours before my arrival, captured a small trading steamer and burned her, taking her crew captors and appropriating her freight. I could obtain no intelligence from the inhabitants by which to guide my movements. My cavalry, under Maj. HUBBARD, 200 strong, came up with the enemy, 1,000 strong, all mounted, and eight miles out. The fight lasted near two hours. The Major was compelled to take shelter in a favorable position, where he succeeded in repulsing the enemy, and finally drove them off before the infantry could come to his relief. Our loss was two killed and nineteen wounded, most of them slightly. The enemy left five dead upon the field, and one Lieutenant mortally wounded, and twenty-two stand of arms. We captured three prisoners. I burned the town of Austria, having first searched every building. As the fire progressed, the discharge of loaded firearms was like volleys of musketry, as the fire reached their hiding-places, and two heavy explosions of powder also occurred.

Of Mayor HUBBARD and his battalion. I cannot speak too highly. They are deserving all praise. Every officer and man of the little force is reported to have acted with the most distinguished bravery, and prompt obedience to orders."


http://www.nytimes.com/1863/05/30/news/gen-ellet-s-marine-brigade-encounter-with-enemy-near-austria-mississippi.html



HISTORICAL SKETCH
MISSISSIPPI MARINE BRIGADE
(Iowa men in the United States Navy, either directly enlisted or detailed from the Iowa
regiments to which they belonged, for service in "The Mississippi Marine Brigade.")
The archives of the office of the Adjutant General of Iowa contain but scant material
from which to compile the record of her sons who were either directly or indirectly—
connected with the naval branch of the service, during the great War of the Rebellion.
The compiler has, therefore, had recourse to such sources Of information as were
obtainable, to show the part taken by Iowa men in the brilliant achievements of the
United States Navy.
The following brief extracts are made from a carefully prepared paper, read before the
"Crocker's Iowa Brigade Association" at Waterloo, Iowa, September 14, 1904:
It Is for the purpose of reminding you of the eminent service performed, In part, by
Iowa boys as sailors in the War of the Rebellion that I appear before you. . . The 131,954
United States Sailors and Marines, by their bravery, endurance, and genius, locked up
more than three thousand miles of shore line, wrested from a wary and active foe one
thousand five hundred miles of internal water line, excited the wonder Of all nations by
its dramatic achiat the number of enlisted men furnished by Iowa for the Navy is above
eight hundred. Most of these served in the Mississippi Squadron. Thus the Young state of
Iowa, far removed from the scenes that lure to sailor life, furnished to the Navy a body of
men whose number, in the aggregate—almost equaled a full regiment of Infantry.
Ensign Michael gives in detail the history of the achievements of vessels of the
Squadron, the names of which are identified with all the early battles of the war which
were fought by the Navy, during the war, ranging in rank from Ensign to Lieutenant
commander, and four commissioned officers in the Marine Corps. In the Volunteer Navy
she had thirty six officers, namely: three Lieutenants, three Masters, seven Ensigns, seven
Masters' Mates, one Chief Engineer, five First Assistant Engineers, six Second Assistant
Engineers, three Third Assistant Engineers, and one Surgeon. The Fleet Paymaster of this
Squadron was also an Iowan. The most painstaking research has led me to the conclusion
that the number of enlisted men furnished by Iowa for the Navy is above eight hundred.
Most of these served in the Mississippi Squadron. Thus the Young state of Iowa, far
removed from the scenes that lure to sailor life, furnished to the Navy a body of men
whose number, in the aggregate—almost equaled a full regiment of Infantry.
Ensign Michael gives in detail the history of the achievements of vessels of the
Squadron, the names of which are identified with all the early battles of the war which
were fought in the near vicinity of navigable rivers, where they were enabled to co
operate with, and render valuable service to, the army. Some of the most notable of these
were Belmont, where General Grant s little army of three thousand men was saved from
being captured by the enemy by the timely arrival of the gunboats Conestoga and
Lexington. Fort Henry was captured by the naval vessels alone, the land forces not
arriving until after the fort had surrendered. The iron clads Tyler, Lexington and
Carondelet, were important factors in winning the victory at Fort Donelson. At Shiloh—


http://iagenweb.org/civilwar/books/logan/mil804.htm

http://www.nps.gov/hps/abpp/battles/la014.htm
 

The Fighting Ellets
Ingenuity, Courage, Nepotism and Corruption?The Ellets Go to War. In early 1862, the Union forces operating along the Mississippi River faced a potentially grave new threat from Confederate ironclads. Major General Charles Halleck, in command of the Department of Missouri in St. Louis, sent an urgent request to Secretary of War Edwin Stanton requesting assistance.1 Stanton had just the man to solve Halleck’s problem.
What neither Stanton nor Halleck recognized was all the determination and energy that a single man and his family would bring to the war effort. A project initially aimed at meeting a threat which challenged Union gunboats on the Mississippi River would result in: a new class of naval ships; the first riverine force in American history; a unit with Army ranks commanding boats and reporting to a Naval commander; a prominent Naval commander wanting to rid himself of this unit; a prominent Army commander wanted take control of the unit or disband it in order to get its naval assets; and, most interesting, one the biggest examples of nepotism in the entire war - nepotism which worked to the Union’s advantage! Finally, there were allegations of cotton speculation and war profiteering.
Charles Ellet, Jr. was a very learned engineer of high reputation as a bridge builder for railroads. At one time, his suspension bridge at Wheeling, West Virginia, was the longest and highest of its kind ever built in the world. He was renowned among builders of railroads, but his plan to improve navigation and control floods along the Mississippi River was his great work. While traveling in the Crimea during the war between England and France against Russia, he theorized that an effective way to break the naval blockade was by using ships specially designed to "ram" the opposing forces. Not successful convincing the Russians to adopt his suggestion, he tried to sell it to the Allies. A devote Union man, he returned to the United States in 1861 and repeatedly wrote to the Department of the Navy warning of the ironclad threat to conventional ships. However, professional military and naval officers already knew Ellet for another reason; by early 1862 he had published two articles attacking Union generalship.2 When the ironclad threat materialized, Charles Ellet was invited to Washington to brief Lincoln and Stanton. They saw a solution to a problem, even if the United States Navy did not!
In late March, 1862, Ellet was ordered to Pittsburgh and Cincinnati to build his "rams." Within a month, Ellet was on his way to Halleck in St. Louis to meet the rebel threat.3 The Navy’s initial reaction was not favorable, and probably solidified Ellet’s view that the Navy was simply not flexible enough to use new ideas, a view which aggravated the future relations between Ellet’s force and his Navy counterparts. His articles against poor Union generalship already caused that service to have a skeptical view of Ellet. But, given a position reporting directly to Stanton, Ellet had great latitude and freedom of action.
No one could ever say that Charles Ellet, Jr. was not a man of action! In early June, less than three months after starting his project and only three weeks after arriving on the great river, his rams, operating with minimal Navy support, won the Battle of Memphis and ended the major Confederate Navy threat on the river. Though Charles Ellet, Jr. received a mortal wound,4 his "ram fleet" proved its value and his men proved their merit under fire. And exactly who were his men? A surprising number, especially those in responsible positions, were Ellets!
Stanton appointed Charles Ellet, Jr. a colonel in the United States Volunteers, the highest rank available without Congressional approval, in order to give him legal standing. Stanton granted a request that his brother, A.W. Ellet, then a Captain in the 59th Illinois Infantry, be appointed second-in-command. Charles Ellet, Jr.’s son, Charles Rivers Ellet, was a Medical Cadet (and at that rank he rowed ashore to accept the surrender of the City of Memphis.) Another brother of Charles and A.W., John A., commanded one of the rams, while A.W.’s son, Edward C., also served in the fleet. All the Ellet’s shared two qualities: courage and energy. The two senior Ellet’s also shared a distrust of military and naval professionals and a love for independent command,5 which A.W. Ellet may have also turned into profiteering from time to time.
Assuming command of the Ram Fleet after Charles Ellet’s death, then Lieutenant Colonel A.W. Ellet proved to be just as aggressive, bold and resourceful as his sibling. Within three weeks, on June 25, 1862, serving under a naval officer, his small fleet combined with Navy gunboats, Army infantry and cavalry forces, went up the Yazoo River in order to cut rebel communications with Vicksburg and search for rebel gunboats. The rebels saw them coming and burned their three boats. But the expedition and the Ellets’ previous actions reflected so well that, at Stanton’s initiative, A.W. Ellet was promoted to Brigadier General.6 At the same time, Union leaders had ample reason to fear the threat to transports and other ships from rebel guerrilla forces and irregulars.7 Brigadier General Ellet was aware of this threat and took action against it, showing excellent initiative and resourcefulness.8
The older Ellets were not the only ones who demonstrated courage and energy. No less a warrior than Major General William T. Sherman described Charles R. Ellet in glowing terms, "... full of energy and resources..."9 when, in January, 1863, the nineteen year old colonel prepared to run two of his rams past Vicksburg to support Admiral Farragut below the city. During the same month, Porter also specifically commended C. R. Ellet in a report to Secretary of the Navy Welles.10 Unfortunately, the young Ellet also fell victim to the war before the end of 1863, dying of a self-administered morphine overdose while recuperating from disease at his aunt’s home (at his death, command of the Ram Fleet went to his uncle, John A., the fourth Ellet colonel to serve in that position!) 11

http://ehistory.osu.edu/uscw/library/essays/missmarinebrigade.cfm

On July 29th 1861, at Elizabethtown, Hardin County Illinois, Robert Henry Ledbetter, son of John and Elizabeth (Wright) Ledbetter of Hardin County Illinois, enlisted in the Illinois Infantry for a period of Three Years. Robert Henry, a married man at the age of 25, stood 6 foot in height with fair complexion, blue eyes and light hair. His occupation was that of a farmer. Robert Henry and his wife Manervia, was the parents of two sons. One of which (James) had died at less than one year of age. When Robert Henry, left his home to serve his county, he left his wife Manervia and son John at their home in Hardin Co. Illinois.

On this date: August 19th 1861, at the age of 25, Robert Henry Ledbetter, was mustered into the 29th Illinois Infantry, at Camp Butler, near Springfield, Illinois. He was placed in the 29th Inf. Company A, as a private to serve under, Capt. Ferrell. He was detailed to serve as a Teamster. In March 1862, he was wounded and sick. He was sent to the "New House of Refuge USA, General Hospital," at St. Louis, Missouri. Known also as, Jefferson Barracks Hospital. Robert Henry, remained at this location until March 1863. When he became able to work, he was assigned duty at the hospital as a nurse and cook.

When the Mississippi Marine Brigade, was formed to patrol the Mississippi and any river flowing into it which were navigable, General Alfred Washington Ellet, solicited recruits from this Hospital. Robert Henry, signed up to serve in this unit.

Robert Henry, was discharged from the regular army and enlist into the Marine Brigade. His papers for discharge from the Illinois 29th caught up with him at Nachez, Miss. in 1864, along with a statement he transferred into the Marine Brigade in Sept. 2, 1863. According to the Company Muster Pay Roll, Robert Henry was enlisted in the Marine Brigade March 06, 1863. This March payroll date would place Robert Henry among the first to sign up for the Marine Brigade duty.

Records from the War Department Washington.
Transfers Robert Henry Ledbetter, to the Marine Brigade General Order No. 312, Date Sept. 2, 1863. His pay records are transferred to Company C, Marine Regt. U.S. Vols.
Reading through the pension application documents filed with the government for a disability pension; I learned two of two campaigns Robert Henry was a part of. One was the Fort Donaldson campaign, in the winter of 1862. Another, was a skirmish at Walnut Ridge Arkansas, in the fall of 1863. It appears Robert Henry was wounded in the right side from a piece of shell during the skirmish at Walnut Ridge.

http://homepages.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~mahudson/ledbetter/led-rh-cw.htm

Navy O.R.-- Series 1--Volume 23 pg 555-6
Naval Forces On Western Waters.
From April 12 To December 31, 1862.

U. S. RAM MONARCH,
Off Cairo, Ill., December 20, 1862.
GENERAL: I have the honor to report to you that on the 12th instant Captain E. W. Sutherland, commanding steam ram Queen of the West, was sent, at his own request, by Captain Walke, U, S. Navy, on an expedition up Yazoo River, in company with four gunboats, the Marmora, Signal, Cairo, and Pittsburg. The object of the expedition was to remove some torpedoes which had been placed in the channel by the enemy. Captain Walke impressed upon Captain Sutherland the necessity of observing the utmost caution on this dangerous enterprise, instructing him particularly not to get too near to the other boats and to avoid the middle of the channel.
According to the design of Captain Walke, the Marmora and Signal, being light-draft boats, were to hug the shore and take up the torpedoes, while the Queen, Cairo, and Pittsburg were to protect them with their guns. While the fleet, however, was on its way up the Yazoo, Captain Selfridge, who commanded the expedition and who brought up its rear in the gunboat Cairo, frequently and peremptorily ordered Captain Sutherland to move faster, a command which periled the safety of the boats ahead of the Queen, for, if in that narrow and tortuous stream the leading boats had been compelled by some unexpected danger, such as a battery or a torpedo, suddenly to stop or back, one of them would have been inevitably sunk by the ram.
The fleet arrived in sight of the enemy's fort and opened an irregular fire. Captain Selfridge came alongside of the Marmora with the Cairo and enquired why they did not go ahead. The answer was that they were right at the torpedoes; the buoys, in fact, were plainly visible just before them. Captain Selfridge then advanced himself with the Cairo, moving up the middle of the stream. The unfortunate but natural consequence was that a torpedo immediately exploded under the Cairo, blowing her almost out of the water; she went down in about ten minutes, sinking almost over her chimneys. Immediately after the explosion Captain Selfridge called for assistance. For some unexplained reason none of the gunboats volunteered to comply with this request. Disregarding the commands of several of their officers to keep away, Captain Sutherland passed with the Queen to the side of the sinking vessel and removed her crew and the chief portion of their effects. He and his officers and men deserve credit for their conduct on this occasion.
Very respectfully,
CHARLES RIVERS ELLET,
Colonel, Commanding Ram Fleet.
Brigadier General ALFRED W. ELLET,
Commanding Mississippi Marine Brigade.


 
THE MISSISSIPPI EXPEDITION.; The Capture of the Rebel Steamer Fair Play, and the Destruction of the Rebel Batteries on the Yazoo. Correspondence of the Chicago Evening Journal.
Published: September 1, 1862.

UNITED STATES TEAM RAM FLEET, ABOVE VICKSBURGH, Miss., Aug. 21, 1862.

The rams Switzerland, Monarch, Sampson and Lioness, of Col. ALFRED W. ELLET'S Mississippi ram fleet, in connection with the gunboats Benton, Mound City and Gen. Bragg, under command of CaptPHELPS, of the Benion, (who is in command of the gunboat flotilla duriing Com. Davis Illness,) together with the transports A. McDowell and Rocket, with the Fifty-eighth and Seventy-sixth Regiments Ohio Volunteers and a battalion of cavalry, under command of Col. WOOD, of the Seventy-sixth Ohio, left Helena, Arkansas, on Saturday morning, Aug. 16, for a cruise down the Mississippi. Nothing of interest took place until Sunday afternoon, when we picked up seven "contrabands" in a skill, who reported that a rebel steamer had come up the river a short distance above them the day before. There being a plantation below, we landed to see if we could get any information from the planter. He denied having seen any boat, but the negroes confirmed the report of the boys we had picked up. He was the meanest Secesh I have yet seen. He said he had no corn nor any kind of vegetables, but we found any amount and sent the negroes down to the boats, loaded with corn and beans. We also captured two pigs to roast, besides chickens. He begged very hard for some coffee, a luxury he had not indulged in for a long time. We gave him a little, but not enough to treat him much.

We proceeded down the river, and early Monday morning we captured the rebel steamer and transport Fair Play, loaded with arms, ammunition and stores for Gen. HINDMAN's Division of the rebel army. She had 5,500 stands of arms, part Enfield rifles, a large amount of ammunition, etc. There was also a regiment of cavalry and infantry camped near the bank of the river, where there was a section of the Vicksburgh and Shreveport Railroad. On our approach the rebels fled in great haste. Our troops were landed as soon as possible, and sent in pursuit. They followed the rebels as far as Richmond, and captured fifty prisoners and several baggage-wagons, besides numerous muskets, etc. We burned the depot and many cars, and destroyed the railroad bridge. Our men were much fatigued, as they had started without breakfast, and it was near noon before they returned, and the weather was very warm.
There were six or eight ladies on the Fair Play, "dreaming the happy hours away," little dreaming, however, that the terrible federals were so near them; but when they awoke, and found how near we were to them, they immediately left, up the bank, and took refuge in a cornfield. They left en deshabille, with portions of their clothing in their arms. The gentlemanly reporter of the NEW-YORK TIMES called my attention to a young lady, going up the bank, her fair form encircled in a long white dress; but I immediately left for the other end of the steamer, being a very bashful young man. He being a married man, it did not make so much difference. A trusty guard was sent out by the gallant Captain of the Benton, and, after hunting for some time, found six ladies, and assured them they were welcome to come aboard for their clothing, and they need have no fear. They came, and I saw several of them in a wagon, with their servants and baggage, going on a visit to some, friends.


http://www.nytimes.com/1862/09/01/news/mississippi-expedition-capture-rebel-steamer-fair-play-destruction-rebel.html
 
Important From Vicksburg.

February 8, 1863, The New York Herald
The Union Ram Queen of the West Successfully Rams the Blockade.
Sketch of the Queen of the West and Her Commander.
The Queen of the West is one of the celebrated ram fleet organized by the late Colonel Charles Ellet, Jr., and now commanded by his son, Brigadier General (formerly Lieutenant Colonel) A. W. Ellet. The fleet was established under the cognizance of the Secretary of War, and was under the orders of that department until very recently, when it was transferred to the Navy Department and placed under the control of Admiral D. D. Porter. The fleet has played an important part in the operations of the United States forces on the Mississippi river from and after the time of the fall of Island No. 10.
WHEN SHE FIRST CAME INTO NOTICE.
The Queen of the West was first brought prominently before the public in the naval engagement above Memphis on the 6th of June, 1862, in which engagement the organizer of the fleet was seriously wounded, of which wounds he afterwards died. Colonel Ellet, in his report, said: “I ordered the Queen, my flagship, to pass between the gunboats and run down upon the two rams of the enemy. The Queen struck one of them fairly, and for a few minutes was fast to the wreck, but after separating the rebel steamer sunk. The Queen was then herself struck by another rebel steamer and disabled, but, though damaged, can be saved.” In another paragraph he praised conduct of the pilots, engineers and military guard of the Queen and the brave conduct of her captain. In a subsequent report, in speaking of the conduct of the men of the Queen of the West, he stated that two rebel steamers had been sunk out right and immediately by the shocks of the ram.


http://www.cw-chronicles.com/blog/important-from-vicksburg/

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The Ram Fleet in Action.

Capt. DAVIS, the flag-officer of the Western river fleet at Memphis, in his official report of the naval battle that resulted in the surrender of that place, gives great credit to Col. CHARLES ELLET, Jr., the commander of the Ram Fleet, which did such remarkable service in the engagement. This is the first naval fight in which ram met ram; and though there are no absolutely new principles in the science of naval warfare illustrated by it, it is important as initiating a kind of fighting which is not unlikely to be largely practiced in the future; and it is interesting as showing the great practical utility of aquatic rams. Prior to the arrival of ELLET's ram fleet, the battle of the gunboats was an affair which promised to be of dubious result. The swift craft of the rebels dodged the shot of our ponderous and clumsy ironclad scows, and poured in an occasional fire with damaging effect. If, finally, they had been repulsed, they would have steamed off to some other point, (for they were swifter than our vessels,) and given us more trouble and further fight elsewhere. In fact, the rebel fleet was just in the act of seeking temporary safety by flight, when, (says a Western correspondent):

"Suddenly a hurried puffing, a dashing as if Neptune himself was convulsing Father Mississippi, and out from among our gunboats darted the rams Queen and Monarch. With a speed that half buried her prow under water, the former struck boldly for the nearest Confederate. Immediately the fire of every gun was directed upon our adventurous little vessel. But she passed safely, the balls intended for her falling far beyond. On one vessel -- the nearest -- our little Queen bore down with a terrible velocity. It appeared as if at the shock both would be dashed to pieces, the rapid current aiding her powerful engines. A slight miscalculation on the part of the Queen, and desperate effort on the part of the rebel, enabled the latter to barely avoid her destructive adversary, and sent a shot through in passing. The ram, however, with speed undiminished, brushing its opponent's stern and knocking off some railing, darted thirty yards further on and struck the Gen. Price amidships. The collision was fearful, the rebel gunboat's side crushed in like paper, and she careened until her pipes almost dipped the water. Just reaching land, she sank. The Monarch, no less boldly than her compeer, dashed among the rebel fleet, and singling out the Lovell, under full speed struck her fairly near the wheel, her prow crashing far into the hull, and remaining for a moment fastened as in a vice. The Lovell instantly commenced sinking, careening heavily on one side as the water rushed in'


http://www.nytimes.com/1862/06/17/news/the-ram-fleet-in-action.html

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