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Cargo of blockade runner Denbigh reveals much about Civil War-era Mobile
Published: Friday, November 18, 2011, 9:10 AM Updated: Friday, November 18, 2011, 9:18 AM
By John Sledge
The Civil War blockade runner Denbigh is depicted in an 1864 painting by Thomas Cantwell Healy. (Used by permission)
Mobile, Alabama -- Before the Civil War, Mobile exported cotton and imported just about everything else needed for daily life. In fact, the old joke was that during a man's funeral the only things local were the corpse and the pine box. The shoes, the clothes, the pocket watch and chain, his ring, spectacles if he had them, and even the preacher's Bible would have all come in by sea. When secession fever struck in the spring of 1861, cooler heads knew that such an export/import imbalance would spell trouble if there was war and a blockade. All too predictably, when the shooting began so did the blockade, and by 1863 shortages were so severe that Port City women took to the streets demanding relief.
Fortunately for Mobilians in particular and Southerners in general, the blockade wasn't fully effective, and right up until the summer of 1864, when Farragut finally sealed the bay, a fairly steady traffic of blockade runners kept at least some supplies coming. Of the sleek gray vessels that braved hostile fire and capture to turn a tidy profit, perhaps none was as successful as the British steamer Denbigh, dubbed "the packet" by Yankee jack tars for her clockwork-like schedule between Mobile and Havana. Now, thanks to the diligent research of J. Barto Arnold III, director of Texas Operations for the Institute of Nautical Archaeology, we have a thorough accounting of exactly what was aboard this ship on her many runs into and out of Mobile Bay. "The Denbigh's Civilian Imports: Customs Records of a Civil War Blockade Runner Between Mobile and Havana" (Institute of Nautical Archaeology, paper, $40) presents over 500 pages of invoices and customs forms culled from records now housed at the National Archives Southeast Regional Center in Atlanta. The results of this research are nothing short of fascinating.
Arnold's interest in the Denbigh is part of a larger effort to fully document the vessel and her colorful history. After the closure of Mobile Bay, the Denbigh began making runs to Galveston, where in 1865 she finally ran aground and was burned by Union shellfire. Today the wreck is under investigation and excavation by Arnold's institute.
So what was aboard on the Denbigh's Mobile runs? According to these incredibly detailed records, it was mostly cotton outbound. That was how the Confederate government paid for the weapons, munitions and medicines it imported. But where things become intriguing are the numerous small individual and family orders that were placed with the Denbigh. These were low-cost necessities for the most part, and if the ship was captured no one's personal losses would be significant. Other than the inconvenience of not getting a much-needed pair of shoes or bit of hardware, it wasn't crippling. Tellingly, large orders by merchants, such as were common before the war, were rare for the opposite reason: A loss or capture of a big order could spell doom for an already strapped dry-goods or hardware store.
The range and variety of items enumerated in these dozens of little lists is extraordinary. Mobile being Mobile, alcohol was as ever a vital lubricant and included claret, whiskey, champagne, wine, Spanish rum (or cana), gin, brandy and scotch. Clothing and fabric were a common want and included Morocco shoes, black slippers, shoe strings, suspenders, gloves, socks, linen shirts, woolen overshirts, flannel, silk, black cloth gaiters, trousers, corset laces, hoop skirts, print dresses, silk belts, bonnet trimmings and straw hats. Also common were little odds and ends that women did not want to do without — tin foil, buttons, thread, hair pins, Epsom salts, oil, quinine, brown sugar, soap, glue, fans, needles, buckles, scissors and trunks. For the men there were thousands upon thousands of Cuban "segars," rope, drills, handsaws, nails, trace chains and penknives. For the children there were toys and candy. Of food and spices there were cheese, pickles, pepper, soda crackers, mustard, fish, nutmegs, peppermint, cinnamon and jelly.
Some of the orders were from prominent citizens, including Gen. Dabney Maury, the city's military commander, whose list betrays a woman's hand — hair pins, lace, ladies' and babies' shoes, poplin, calico and white linen. Specifically marked for the general — no doubt military command was a grubby business — a box of soap.
While intended as a reference work for researchers, "The Denbigh's Civilian Imports" is not without interest to local Civil War buffs in general. For within its pages lies a vivid portrait of daily life in Confederate Mobile.
John Sledge edits the Press-Register's Books page. He may be reached at the Press-Register, P.O. Box 2488, Mobile, AL 36652.
http://blog.al.com/entertainment-press-register/2011/11/cargo_of_blockade_runner_denbi.html
Published: Friday, November 18, 2011, 9:10 AM Updated: Friday, November 18, 2011, 9:18 AM
By John Sledge
The Civil War blockade runner Denbigh is depicted in an 1864 painting by Thomas Cantwell Healy. (Used by permission)
Mobile, Alabama -- Before the Civil War, Mobile exported cotton and imported just about everything else needed for daily life. In fact, the old joke was that during a man's funeral the only things local were the corpse and the pine box. The shoes, the clothes, the pocket watch and chain, his ring, spectacles if he had them, and even the preacher's Bible would have all come in by sea. When secession fever struck in the spring of 1861, cooler heads knew that such an export/import imbalance would spell trouble if there was war and a blockade. All too predictably, when the shooting began so did the blockade, and by 1863 shortages were so severe that Port City women took to the streets demanding relief.
Fortunately for Mobilians in particular and Southerners in general, the blockade wasn't fully effective, and right up until the summer of 1864, when Farragut finally sealed the bay, a fairly steady traffic of blockade runners kept at least some supplies coming. Of the sleek gray vessels that braved hostile fire and capture to turn a tidy profit, perhaps none was as successful as the British steamer Denbigh, dubbed "the packet" by Yankee jack tars for her clockwork-like schedule between Mobile and Havana. Now, thanks to the diligent research of J. Barto Arnold III, director of Texas Operations for the Institute of Nautical Archaeology, we have a thorough accounting of exactly what was aboard this ship on her many runs into and out of Mobile Bay. "The Denbigh's Civilian Imports: Customs Records of a Civil War Blockade Runner Between Mobile and Havana" (Institute of Nautical Archaeology, paper, $40) presents over 500 pages of invoices and customs forms culled from records now housed at the National Archives Southeast Regional Center in Atlanta. The results of this research are nothing short of fascinating.
Arnold's interest in the Denbigh is part of a larger effort to fully document the vessel and her colorful history. After the closure of Mobile Bay, the Denbigh began making runs to Galveston, where in 1865 she finally ran aground and was burned by Union shellfire. Today the wreck is under investigation and excavation by Arnold's institute.
So what was aboard on the Denbigh's Mobile runs? According to these incredibly detailed records, it was mostly cotton outbound. That was how the Confederate government paid for the weapons, munitions and medicines it imported. But where things become intriguing are the numerous small individual and family orders that were placed with the Denbigh. These were low-cost necessities for the most part, and if the ship was captured no one's personal losses would be significant. Other than the inconvenience of not getting a much-needed pair of shoes or bit of hardware, it wasn't crippling. Tellingly, large orders by merchants, such as were common before the war, were rare for the opposite reason: A loss or capture of a big order could spell doom for an already strapped dry-goods or hardware store.
The range and variety of items enumerated in these dozens of little lists is extraordinary. Mobile being Mobile, alcohol was as ever a vital lubricant and included claret, whiskey, champagne, wine, Spanish rum (or cana), gin, brandy and scotch. Clothing and fabric were a common want and included Morocco shoes, black slippers, shoe strings, suspenders, gloves, socks, linen shirts, woolen overshirts, flannel, silk, black cloth gaiters, trousers, corset laces, hoop skirts, print dresses, silk belts, bonnet trimmings and straw hats. Also common were little odds and ends that women did not want to do without — tin foil, buttons, thread, hair pins, Epsom salts, oil, quinine, brown sugar, soap, glue, fans, needles, buckles, scissors and trunks. For the men there were thousands upon thousands of Cuban "segars," rope, drills, handsaws, nails, trace chains and penknives. For the children there were toys and candy. Of food and spices there were cheese, pickles, pepper, soda crackers, mustard, fish, nutmegs, peppermint, cinnamon and jelly.
Some of the orders were from prominent citizens, including Gen. Dabney Maury, the city's military commander, whose list betrays a woman's hand — hair pins, lace, ladies' and babies' shoes, poplin, calico and white linen. Specifically marked for the general — no doubt military command was a grubby business — a box of soap.
While intended as a reference work for researchers, "The Denbigh's Civilian Imports" is not without interest to local Civil War buffs in general. For within its pages lies a vivid portrait of daily life in Confederate Mobile.
John Sledge edits the Press-Register's Books page. He may be reached at the Press-Register, P.O. Box 2488, Mobile, AL 36652.
http://blog.al.com/entertainment-press-register/2011/11/cargo_of_blockade_runner_denbi.html
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