* George Green Shackelford became a member of the library staff of the Virginia Historical Society in June, 1951. A B.A. of the University of Virginia in 1943, Mr. Shackelford was graduated in 1948 a M.A. in History. His thesis topic was “The Youth and Early Career of William Short,” which he has continued in his more recent studies at Columbia University. He edited in the January number of this magazine a series of letters between William Green and John A. Andrew.
1 Sec. War Henry Dearborn to Samuel L. Mitchell (Chairman, Senate Military Affairs Committee), 20 Nov. 1807; American State Papers, Documents Legislative and Executive . . . (Washington, 1832–186, 38 vols.), Military Affairs, I, 219.
2 Sec. War Dearborn to President Thomas Jefferson, Washington, 6 Jan. 1809, ibid., Military Affairs, I, 237.
3 Sec. Navy Paul Hamilton to Langdon Cheves (Chairman, Senate Naval Affairs Committee),
Washington, 3 Dec. 1811; ibid., Naval Affairs,
4 Sec. War John Armstrong to Joseph Anderson (Chairman, Senate Military Affairs Committee), Washington, 10 June 1813; ibid., Military Affairs, I, 383.
5 Thomas Jefferson Wertenbaker, Norfolk: Historic Southern Port (Durham, 1931, 378 pp.), pp. 122–124.
6 Sec. Navy B. W. Crowninshield communicated to the Senate on 20 Jan. 1817 reports by Commodore John Rodgers, by Commodore Stephen Decatur, and by Captain David Porter; A.S.P., Naval Affairs, I, 434–440. All three were the commissioners of the Navy from 1815 and held authority just beneath that of the President and Secretary of the Navy.
Rodgers (1773–1838) came from a Maryland family, and had been a first mate at 17 and a master at 20 in merchant service. He was a commodore at 30. His greatest exploit was as captain of the President when she defeated the Little Belt in 1812, in which war he was the ranking American naval officer. See Charles O. Paulin, “Rodgers, John,” Dictionary of American Biography edited by Allan Johnson and Dumas Malone, New York, 1928–1937, 20 vols.), XVI, 75–77. Decatur (1780–1820) came from a prosperous maritime family of Philadelphia, and by 1804 was posted to captain. He was stationed at Norfolk, 1805–1810. During the War with Tripoli he captured a Tetch which he dubbed the Intrepid and used to destroy the captured Philadelphia. In the War of 1812, his victory in the United States over the Macedonian brought him added fame. He died as a result of a duel with Captain Barron, whose conduct in the Chesapeake affair Decatur had officially censured. See Allan Wescott, “Decatur, Stephen,” D.A.B., V, 187–190. Porter (1780–1843) of Boston was in merchant service two years before entering the navy. In the Barbary Wars he was imprisoned by the corsairs after the capture of the Philadelphia. A captain in 1812, Porter took the first prize in that war with Britain. Imperialistic, Porter’s disregard of Central American sovereignties caused his court martial in 1825, following which he resigned from the navy. He was the father of Admiral David Dixon Porter, U.S.N., of Civil War fame. See Charles O. Paulin, “Porter, David,” D.A.B., XV, 83–85.
7 Lt.-Col. George Bomford to Sec. Navy Crowninshield, Washington, 21 Nov. 1816; A.S.P., Naval Affairs, I, 442–443.
George Bomford (1780–1848) graduated from West Point in 1805. As a first lieutenant of engineers he served as assistant engineer on the defenses of the Chesapeake Bay, 1808–1810. During the War of 1812 he was a major in the ordnance department. By 1815 he was a lieutenant-colonel, although he had been shifted to artillery. Brevetted colonel in 1825, Bomford was made a full colonel and chief of the ordnance corps in 1832. See Appleton’s Cyclopædia of American Biography (edited by James G. Wilson and John Fiske, New York, 1887”1889, 6 vols.), I, 380.
8 Brig.-Gen. J. B. Swift, L. Warrington, W. K. Armistead, W. McRee and J. D. Elliott to Sec. Navy Crowninshield, Old Point Comfort, 24 Jan. 1818; A.S.P. Naval Affairs, I, 492. The estimated costs are not there reproduced. Without discussing whether the substratum was solid (as the Swift Commission had done), Lt.-Col. Bomford in 1816 estimated costs of “a regular (case-mated) pentagon,” mounting 150 guns and mortars on Old Point Comfort at $250,000; “a quadrangular
castle of masonry (four tiers of cannon),” mounting 128 guns on “Willoughby’s shoal” at $209,000; and five “small insulated towers of masonry, carrying one twenty-pounder each” on the margin of Lynnhaven Bay and Cape Charles at $50,000. Total: $509,000.
9 Sec. War John C. Calhoun to Gov. John Wood of Virginia, Washington, 26 Jan. 1821; Virginia Calendar of State Papers (edited by H. R. Mcdlwaine, Richmond, 1875–1893, 11 Vols.), X, 497
10 Chief Engineer John G. Swift to Sec. War Calhoun, Washington, 25 July 1818; A.S.P., Military Affairs, I, 860. The contract was with an Elijah Mix of New York to transport 150,000 perch of stone @ a minimum of 300 perch per month @ $3 per perch. A perch is about 25 cubic feet.
11 Brig.-Gen. J. G. Swift to Sec. War Calhoun, Washington, 17 Oct. 1818; ibid., Military Affairs, I, 811–812.
l2 Maj.-Gen. Alexander Macomb to Sec. War Calhoun, Washington 20 Nov. 1824; ibid., Military Affairs, II, 713. Also Maj.-Gen. Macomb to Sec. War James Barbour, Washington, 21 Nov. 1825; ibid., Military Affairs, III, 137.
By 1835 the engineer complement of the army was increased to 1 col., 1 lieut.-col., 2 majors, 10 capts. (instead of 6), 12 lieuts., 10 cadets, 44 sergeants, and 250 other ratings. See Brig-Gen. Gratiot to Sec. War Lewis Cass, 30 Nov. 1835, Doc. No. 2, Executive Documents, 1st Session 24th Congress, pp. 52–53.
13 Maj.-Gen. Macomb to Sec. War Barbour, Washington, . . . Nov. 1826; A.S.P. Military Affairs, III, 359.
14 Col. Charles Gratiot to Sec. War Peter B. Porter, Washington, 19 Nov. 1828, A.S.P. Military Affairs, IV, 13.
Charles Gratiot, Jr. (1788–1855), son of a French resident of the Louisiana Territory, graduated from West Point in 1806 and was commissioned a second lieutenant of engineers. He was chief engineer of the northwestern army under Maj.-Gen. Harrison during the War of 1812. After the war, Gratiot became a major, and in 1819 a lieutenant-colonel. He was superintending engineer of the construction of the defenses of Hampton Roads, 1819–1829. He became chief engineer of the army in May, 1828 and was brevetted brigadier. On the pretext of discrepancies in Gratiot’s accounts, he was dismissed from the army in 1838. Thereafter, he worked as a clerk in the General Land Office in Washington. Lee was much shaken by Gratiot’s dismissal and studied the matter closely. He came to the conclusion that Gratiot was an honest man, the victim of a cabal. See George W. Cullum, Biographical Register of the Officers and Graduates of the U.S. Mlilitary Academy at West Point . . . (New York, 1868, 2 vols.), 1, 99–’100. See also Douglas S. Freeman, R. E. Lee: A Biography (New York, 1934–1935, 4 vols.), 1, 157–158.
l5 Gratiot to Sec. War John H. Eaton, Washington, 8 March 1830; A.S.P., Military Affairs, IV, 304–305. These appropriations are indicated in a collected table at the end of this article.
16 Brig.-Gen. Gratiot to Sec. War Eaton, Washington, 13 Nov. 1829; ibid., Military Affairs, IV, 164.
17 S. V. Talcott, Talcott Pedigree (Albany, 1876, 297 pp.), pp. 258–259.
18 Gratiot to Sec. War Cass, Washington, 4 Nov. 1831; Doc. No. 2, Executive Documents, 1 Sess. 22 Congress, pp. 76–77. In 1829 Talcott received $13,500 to disburse. See also Gratiot to Capt. Talcott, 18 April and 18 Nov. 1829, Talcott Papers, Virginia Historical Society, Richmond, Virginia.
19 Gratiot to Cass, Washington, 4 Nov. 1831, A.S.P., Military Affairs, IV, 728; see also Doc. No. 2, Executive Documents, 1 Sess. 22 Congress, pp. 76–77, 104.
20 Freeman, R. E. Lee, I, 96–97.
2l Ibid., I, 105, 111.
22 Talcott, Talcott Pedigree, pp. 258–259.
23 Freeman, R. E. Lee, I, 112, 117.
24 Ibid., I, 117–118, quoting Lee to Eliza Mackay [Stiles], 28 Nov. 1833 and 26 June 1834 from private collections. Appreciation is hereby tendered to Dr. Freeman and Charles Scribner’s Sons for permission to make use of this and subsequently indicated material supplementary to the Talcott Papers of the Virginia Historical Society.
25 The Talcott Papers are comprised of 607 pieces and 4 ledgers; they cover the careers of Capt. Andrew Talcott and Col. Thomas Mann Randolph Talcott, C.S.A., whose family have been generous donors of memorabilia to the Society.
26 The South bitterly resented the Tariff of 1828 as discriminating against its economy. When the next tariff was passed with even higher protective schedules, South Carolina in Nov. 1832 declared both tariffs null and void within her boundaries. In Dec. 1832 President Jackson asked Congress for a compromise tariff and authorization to use federal troops and warships to enforce existing tariff regulations. At the same time he denounced Nullification as rebellion and treason. The requested laws were enacted by Congress in March 1833. Thereupon, South Carolina rescinded her ordinance nullifying the tariff, but declared the Force Act null.
27 George W. Corprew (died 1840) was a Virginian who graduated from West Point as No. 10 man in Talcott’s class of 1818. He was an artillerist and was stationed at Norfolk Harbor in 1821 and at Ft. Monroe in 1828–1829 and 1831–1833. He resigned from the army in 1833 and became a cotton planter in Mississippi. See Cullum, Biographical Register, I, 177–178.
28 Joseph E. Johnston (1807–1891), later the Confederate general, graduated No. 13 in Lee’s class (1829) at West Point. At first an artillery officer, Johnston was at Ft. Monroe 1831–1834, although he was temporarily assigned to duty in Charleston during the Nullification crisis. He resigned for a year from the army (1837) and upon reappointment with the same rank (1st Lieutenant) served as a Topographical Engineer. See Conrad H. Lanza, “Johnston, Joseph Eggleston,” D.A.B., X , 144–146.
29 James Monroe (1799–1870), a nehew of the president, graduated from West Point in the class of 1815. An artillerist, he served aboard the Guerrière in 1816; as aide-de-camp to Brevet Maj-Gen. Scott, 1817–1822; and at Ft. Monroe, 1828–1830. He resigned from the army in 1832. See Appleton’s Cyclopædia, IV, 362.
30 William A. Thornton (1803–1866), a New Yorker, graduated from West Point in 1825 as No. 12 man. Though in artillery and ordnance, he was an assistant on the improvement of the Dismal Swamp Canal in 1826. Assigned to Ft. Monroe 1825–1826 and 1831–1832, he was among the many who garrisoned Charleston during the nullification crisis. See Appleton’s Cyclopædia, VI, 105.
3l Richard Gott of Maryland was a clerk in the army subsistence office circa 1830–1835. See Register of Officers and Agents for 1830 and 1835 (Washington, 1830 and 1835, 224 and 297 pp.), p. 81 and p. 92 respectively.
32 Gratiot to Cass, 13 Nov. 1832; A.S.P., Military Affairs, V, 43 et seq.; see also Doc. No. 2, Executive Documents, 2 Sess. 22 Congress, pp. 86–87, 102, 108. Talcott disbursed $68,000 at Ft. Calhoun Oct. 1832–Oct. 1833, though there was little finished-work to be done. Gratiot estimated the final cost of Ft. Calhoun would reach $1,207,312.
33 Gratiot to Cass, 23 Nov. 1833, A.S.P., Military Affairs, V, 191; also Doc. No. 1, Executive Documents, 1 Sess. 23 Congress, pp. 52, 70.
34 Charles S. Sydner, The Development of Southern Sectionalism [vol. 5 in A History of the South series] (Baton Rouge, 1948, 400 pp.), pp. 225–227. See also Joseph C. Robert, The Road from Monticello [No. 24. in Historical Papers of the Trinity College Historical Society] (Durham, 1941, 127 pp.), pp. 3–8. Cf. Freeman, R. E. Lee, I, 394.
35 Gratio to Cass, 23 Nov. 1833, A.S.P., Military Affairs, V, 185; see also Doc. No. 2, Executive Documents, 1 Sess. 23 Congress, p. 52.
36 Nicholas P. Trist to James Madison, SS Potomac, 7 July, 1831; Trist Papers, V.H.S.
Trist (1800–1874) married the grand-daughter of Thomas Jefferson, under whom he had read law. He lived at Monticello during the last years of the former president. Trist was a confidante of Madison and others prominent in the direction of the University of Virginia. He helped select Jefferson’s papers for their first publication. From 1833 to 1848 he served as a diplomat in Cuba, Washington and Mexico. The U.S.-Mexican Treaty of 1848 was concluded by him. See Fred J. Rippy, “Trist, Nicholas Philip,” D.A.B., XVIII, 645–646.
37 Lt. R. E. Lee to Capt. A. Talcott, 12 Sept. 1833, quoted from a private collection in Freeman, R. E. Lee, I, 120.
38 Gratiot to Cass, 23 Nov. 1833; see fn. 35.
39 This is possibly John Tunis, a prosperous and public-spirited merchant who died 8 Dec. 1832. He stood as security when Francis S. Taylor married Jane E. C. Hackley. See William S. Forrest, Historical and Descriptive Sketches of Norfolk (Philadelphia, 1853, 400 pp.), p. 194; see also George H. Tucker, Norfolk City Marriage Bonds (Norfolk, 1934, 268 pp.) p. 100.
40 C. Hall, Mr. Young and Hamby & Abecee cannot be identified.
4l Allyn & Robertson cannot be identified.
42 Sylvanus Thayer (1785–1872) of Massachusetts graduated from West Point in 1808 as an engineer. He served under Maj.-Gens. Dearborn and Hampton in the War of 1812, was a military observer in France in 1815, and was Superintendent of West Point 1817–1833. He was brevetted colonel in 1833. Best known as the “Father of West Point,” Thayer reformed and systematized the course of instruction at that academy. See Gustav V. Fieberger, “Thayer, Sylvanus,” D.A.B., XVIII, 410.
43 Gratiot to Cass, 1 Nov. 1834, A.S.P., Military Affairs, V, 386–387, 393; also Doc. No. 2, Executive Documents, 2 Sess. 23 Congress, pp. 100–102, 116 and 122.
44 Bath, or Berkley Springs, in Morgan Co. of what is now West Virginia, is located 93 miles northwest of Washington and 45 miles northwest-by-west of Harper’s Ferry. A gazeteer wrote in 1835 that “the waters of Bath are now held in high repute . . . ; and hundreds flock to them every season from Maryland and Pennsylvania.” See Joseph Martin, . . . Gazeteer of Virginia and the District of Columbia . . . (Charlottesville, 1835, 632 pp.), pp. 402–403.
45 William H. C. Bartlett (1809–1876) graduated from West Point in 1826 and continued to teach engineering there until 1828. He was assistant engineer in the construction of Fort Monroe in 1828. He then assisted the Chief Engineer at Washington, 1832–1834. Appleton’s Cyclopædia, I, 186.
46 Rufus King (1814–1876) of New York, grandson of the famous federalist, graduated from West Point in 1833 as No. 5. His first duty was as assistant engineer in the construction of Ft. Monroe, 1833–1834. He accompanied Capt. Andrew Talcott on the Ohio Boundary Expeditions of 1834–1836 while they were not improving the Hudson River channel. King resigned from the army in 1836. His first civilian job was under Talcott on the New York and Erie RR. See W. E. McPheeters, “King, Rufus,” D.A.B., X, 400.
47 Richard S. Smith (1813–1877) of Pennsylvania graduated from West Point in 1834 as No. 30 in a class of 36. He served as a brevet 2nd lieutenant of infantry on topographical duty, until his resignation in 1836. Cullum, Biographical Register, I, 458–459. See Thomas M. Spaulding, “Smith, Richard Somers,” D.A.B. XVII, 334–335.
48 Alexander Macomb (1782–1841) entered the army as a comet in 1799 and became a 1st lieut. in 1801. He was occupied in the construction and repair of fortifications principally in the Carolinas, 1805–1812. He served ably under General James Wilkinson and others along the Canadian frontier in the War of 1812 as colonel and brigadier-general. For his victory at Plattsburg, N.Y., Macomb was brevetted major-general. After the reorganization of 1821, Macomb was made colonel and chief engineer. He became General in-chief of the Army in 1828, which post he held until his death in 1841 as a major-general. See Julius W. Pratt, “Macomb, Alexander,” D.A.B., XII, 155–156.
49 John H. Eaton resigned as Secretary of War in 1831 and was succeeded by Lewis Cass.
50 John E. Wool (1784–1869) was commisioned a captain of infantry in June 1812 when he raised a company of New York volunteers. After distinguishing himself at Queenstown and Plattsburg, he was brevetted a lieutenant-colonel. In 1816 he was made a colonel and the inspector-general of the army. In the 1830’s his duties varied from a European mission, to helping remove the Cherokees. Gen. Wool is credited with saving Fort Monroe for the Union in 1861. See William A. Ganoe, “Wool, John Ellis,” D.A.B., XX, 513–514.
51 Walker K. Armistead (1785“1845) of Virginia was the third graduate from West Point (1803) and rose to the rank of captain of engineers by 1806. He was superintending engineer of the defenses of Norfolk, 1808–1811, 1813–1818. During the War of 1812 he was chief engineer of the
army on the Niagara frontier. Armistead was made colonel and chief of the corps of engineers, 1818#&8211;1821. In the reorganization of the army Armistead was shifted to the artillery, commanding the 3rd regiment, which was stationed at Ft. Monroe, 1834–1836. Brevet-Brig.-Gen. (1828) Armistead served in expeditions against the Seminoles 1836–1838, and commanded the army in Florida 1840–1841. See Appleton’s Cyclopædia, I, 90.
52 George Washington Custis Lee, born at Fort Monroe, 16 Sept. 1832.
53 Lucia Beverly Talcott (1833–1856), the first child of Capt. Andrew and Harriet Talcott. The Lees and Talcotts playfully pretended that their children would marry.
54 Charles Gratiot Talcott (28 Feb. 1834–1867).
55 The Talcotts were now living in Albany while Capt. Talcott worked on the channel of the Hudson River.
56 The eclipse of the sun on 30 November 1834 was generally visible throughout the United States. American Almanac and Repository of Useful Knowledge for the year 1834 (Boston, 1834,
336 pp.), pp. 8–15.
57 John J. Abert (1787–1863) of Maryland graduated from West Point in 1811 and at once resigned from the army. He was then a lawyer in Ohio and the District of Columbia. He served as a private in the Battle of Bladensburg, 1814. In the same year he was reappointed to the army, but now with the brevet rank of Major on the staff of topographicael ngineers, whose virtual chief he was from 1829 to 1861, when he retired as a colonel. See Cullum, Biographical Register, 1, 121–122.
58 Cf. fn. 74. Maria Mason married Sidney Smith Lee.
59 John Lind Smith (died 1858) was a native of South Carolina who was appointed a 2nd lieutenant of engineers in 1813. In 1845 he and Lee were on a board to consider fortifications of New York Harbor. See Francis B. Heitman, Historical Register and Dictionary of the U.S. Army (Washington, 1903, 2 vols.), I, 900. See also Freeman, R. E. Lee, I, 195, 219–220, 226, 235, 241, 247, 273.
60 Unidentified.
61 James Jay Mapes (1806–1866) served as major-general of the New York Militia in the War of 1812. An inventor and chemist, he was one of America’s foremost agronomists. See Lee Garby, “Mapes, James Jay,” D.A.B., XII, 264.
62 James Eveleth of Maryland was a clerk in the Engineer Office at Washington, 1835. See United States Official Register (Washington, 1835, 297 pp.), p. 86.
63 Julius F. Heilman (died 1836) of Massachusetts graduated from West Point in 1806. He was stationed at Southern Atlantic posts during the War of 1812, and at Fort Monroe 1824–1828, 1833–1835. He was part of the garrison at Charleston during the nullification crisis, and took part in the Seminole War, 1835–1836. He was brevetted lieutenant-colonel in 1836 after ably commanding the U.S. forces and died soon afterwards. (Lee’s rumour was incorrect.) See Cullum, Biographical Register, I, 97–98.
64 Lucia Beverly Talcott (1833–1856). See S. V. Talcott, Talcott Pedigree, p. 258.
65 Charles Gratiot Talcott (1834–1867), then seven months old, was later associated with his father in his civil engineering projects of the 1850’s. Like him, he preferred not to fight the Union troops and returned to Mexico where he was an assistant engineer for the Mexican Imperial Railway. See ibid., p. 266; Cf. Freeman, R. E. Lee, I, 131.
66 Captain Laughton cannot be identified.
67 Charles M. Thruston (1789–1873) graduated from West Point in 1814. He worked on New York harbor defenses during the War of 1812. As acting adjutant-general of the army in Florida, Thruston took part in the Seminole War, after which he resigned. See Cullum, Biographical Register, I, 139.
68 There was no war vessel of this name listed in the Naval Registers of 1834 or 1835. Presumably it was a commercial packet.
69 Hezekiah Gamer (died 1841) of Maryland was appointed a 2nd lieutenant of artillery in 1820. He was regimental adjutant of the 3rd Artillery 1827–1837, of which Armistead was commanding officer. He became a 1st lieutenant in 1837 and a captain in 1838. See Heitman, Historical Register, I, 446.
70 William A. Eliason (1800–1839) graduated from West Point as No. 1 man in the class of 1819 and thereafter served in the engineer corps. He was stationed at Fort Monroe, 1822–1825, superintended the construction of Ft. Macon, N.C., 1825–1830, worked on the Delaware River improvements 1831–1832, and superintended the construction of Fts. Calhoun and Monroe 1824–1828. See Cullum, Biographical Register, I, 183.
7l George Blaney (died 1835) of Massachusetts graduated from West Point in 1815 and served in the engineer corps. He was assistant engineer in the construction of fortifications at Hampton Roads, 1821–1822 while a 1st lieutenant, and at the time Lee writes was superintending engineer of the construction of Fort Caswell, N.C., and of the Cape Fear River improvements (1825–1835). See ibid., I, 152.
72 Cf. fn. 78 for omission.
73 See fn. 65.
74 Miss Maria Mason of Clermont, Fairfax Co., Va., became Smith Lee’s wife.
75 Dr. William Selden (1808–1887), of Norfolk, married Lucinda Pope Wilson of Kentucky in 1836. See Mary S. Kennedy, Seldens of Virginia . . . (New York, 1911, 2 vols.), I, 47–48.
76 Sebastian Visscher Talcott (1802– ) briefly attended Yale, which he left to work as a civil engineer for his uncle Captain Andrew Talcott on internal improvement contracts for the Hudson River channel, and later on the New York and Erie RR. and Northeastern Boundary Survey. See S. V. Talcott, Talcott Pedigree, pp. 260–261.
77 Dr. Robert Archer, of Virginia, had long been an assistant surgeon at Ft. Monroe and a Visitor of the Academy. T. W. Williamson, Captain William Laughton and Jeptha Reed cannot be identified.
78 The passage appearing between solid lines is the significant portion omitted from Lee’s letter to Talcott of 1 Nov. 1834.
79 Dr. Boykin cannot be identified.
80 These were: Sec. War Cass, Vice-Pres. Van Buren, Brevet Maj.-Gen. Thomas S. Jesup, Brevet Brig.-Gen. John E. Wool, Col. George Croghan, and Col. Roger Jones. See Register of Officers and Agents (Washington, 1833, 267 pp.), p. 95.
81 Lt. R. E. Lee to Capt. A. Talcott, 12 Sept. and 16 Dec. 1833 and 25 Feb. 1834, quoted in D. S. Freeman, R. E. Lee, I, 120 from private collections. Ft. Calhoun had for fiscal ’33 $158,022 new appropriations and $120,000 brought forward.
82 Sec. War Cass’s Report to Congress, 30 Nov. 1835, Doc. No. 2, Executive Documents, 1 Sess. 24 Congress, p. 42, 116–123.
83 Gratiot to Cass, 15 Nov. 1835, A.S.P., Military Affairs, V, 655; also Doc. No. 2, Exective Documents, 1 Sess. 24 Congress, p. 104.
84 Max: cannot be identified.
85 Sidney Smith Lee (1802–1869) was commissioned a midshipman in 1820, and by 1828 had become a lieutenant. He had been R. E. Lee’s best man. The brothers fought alongside one another at Vera Cruz in 1847. Commander S. S. Lee commanded the Mississippi when flagship for Commodore Perry’s mission to Japan. Subsequently he was Commandant of the Naval Academy. He resigned from the navy early in 1861 to serve Virginia, ultimately becoming a Captain, C.S.N. His most important naval service to the confederacy was as commandant of the Gosport navy yard while the C.S.S. Virginia was being fitted out. He condemned evacuation of Norfolk and the scuttling of the ironclad. See J. Thomas Scharf, History of the Confederate States Navy (New York, 1887, 824 pp.), p. 710.
86 Anne Kinloch Lee (1800–1864) married in 1825 Willam Louis Marshal (1803–1869) and lived in Baltimore. Judge W. L. Marshall was a brother of the Chief Justice.
87 James Eveleth, whose right to the title “captain” was either honorary or a militia rank.
88 The happy event was the birth of Harriet Randolph Talcott on 9 Nov. 1835 at Philadelphia. She married Rev. William Southgate in 1858 despite playful match-making of the Lees and
Talcotts.
89 Charles Wilkes, Jr. (1798–1877), of New York City entered the merchant marine in 1815 and was appointed midshipman in 1818. After serving on the Guerrière and Franklin in the Pacific, he studied under F. R. Hassler. He was appointed commanding officer of the Naval Depot of Charts and Instruments at Washington, out of which grew the Naval Observatory and Hydrographic Office. He commanded several exploring expeditions, the most notable of which, 1838–1842, enabled him to chart Wilkes Land of Antarctica. In 1861 Captain Wilkes was posted to command the Merrimac, but arrived the day after the Union forces scuttled her to prevent her capture by the Confederates. As Captain of the San Jacinto, Wilkes became notorious for removing Mason and Slidell from the British mail steamer Trent. See Charles O. Paulin, “Wilkes, Charles,” D.A.B., 216–218.
90 Ferdinand Rudolph Hassler (1770–1843) was first superintendent of the U.S. Coast Survey, and was noted as a geodesist and mathematician. After teaching briefly at West Point and Union College, he established the Coast Survey in 1816–1818. He was supenntendent of Weights and Measures from 1830 until 1832 when he became superintendent of the Coast Survey which position he held until his death. See T. M. R. Talcott, The Talcott Method of Determining Latitude . . . (Richmond, 1919, 61 pp.), pp. 23 et seq. for Talcott-Hassler correspondence. See also H. A. Marner, “Hassler, Ferdinand Rudolph,” D.A.B., VIII, 385–386.
9l Talcott’s resignation from the army became effective on 21 Sept. 1836.
92 Duncan Lamont Clinch (1787–1849) of North Carolina entered the army as 1st lieutenant of infantry in 1808. He became a lieutenant-colonel in 1813 and a colonel in 1819. Brevetted a brigadier in 1829, he resigned on 21 Sept. 1836, after holding a command during the Seminole War. Appleton’s Cyclopædia, I.
93 William Gates (1788–1868) of Massachusetts graduated in 1806 from the military academy into the arillery. He was stationed at Ft. Monroe in 1832 and was part of the garrison of Charleston during the nullification crisis. He participated in the Seminole Wars and assisted in the removal of the Cherokees. See Cullum, Biographical Register, I, 96–97.
94 Gratiot to Sec. War Joel R. Poinsett, 30 Nov. 1837, A.S.P., Mlilitary Affairs, VII, 632; also Doc. No. 3, Executive Documents, 2 Sess. 25 Congress, p. 310.
95 Gratiot to Poinsett, 2 Dec. 1837, Doc. No. 3, Executive Documents, 2 Sess. 25 Congress, pp. 190–191, 201–202.
96 Col. Joseph G. Totten (Chief Engineer) to Sec. War Joel R. Poinsett, 3 Dec. 1840, Doc. No. 2, ibid., 2 Sess. 26 Congress, pp. 104, 160.
97 Totten to J. C. Spencer, 1 Nov. 1842; ibid., 33 Sess. 27 Congress, pp. 244–245.
98 Joseph G. Totten (1789–1864) of Connecticut graduated from West Point in 1805 and served in the engineer corps until his death (except between 1806 when he resigned and 1808 when he was reappointed). A captain in 1812, he was chief engineer on the Niagara frontier in the campaigns of 1812 and 1813, and on the Lake Champlain front 1813–1814. He participated in the Battle of Queenstown Heights and the capture of Ft. George. A major in 1813, he was brevetted lieutenant-colonel the next year for gallantry at Plattsburg. He reverted to major in 1818 and was on the coastal defenses board, 1816–1817, and that in charge of the Hudson River improvement, 1834. See William A. Gande, “Totten, Joseph,” D.A.B., XVIII, 598–599.
99 Brig.-Gen. Totten to Sec. War C. M. Conrad, 30 Nov. 1852; Doc. No. 1, Executive Documents, 2 Sess. 32 Congress, pp. 13, 153.
100 Totten to Sec. War Jefferson Davis, 29 Nov. 1854, Doc. No. 1, part II, ibid., 2 Sess, 33 Congress.
101 Lt. James C. Morton to Board of Visitors of U.S. Military Academy at West Point, June 1857, Doc. No. 1, ibid., 1 Sess. 35 Congress.
102 Totten to Davis, 24 Nov. 1855, Doc. No. 1, part I, ibid., 1 Sess. 34 Congress, pp. 191, 197–198.
103 Totten to Davis, 25 Nov. 1856, Doc. No. 1, ibid., 3 Sess. 34 Congress, pp. 280–281.
104 Totten to Sec. War John B. Floyd, 24 Nov. 1857, Doc. No. 1, Executive Documents, 1 Sess. 35 Congress, p. 177.
l05 Sec. Navy Gideon Welles to Flag-Officer L . M. Goldsborough, 8 Oct. 1861, and other reports, Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion (Washington, series one, 27 vols., 1896–1917), series one, vol. VI, pages 299, 310–313.
106 Sec. War Edwin M. Stanton to Maj.-Gen. John E. Wool, 18 March 1862, The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies (Washington, 1880–1901, 30 vols.), series one, vol. XIII, part 3, page 13.
107 Wool to Stanton, 12 May 1862, ibid., series one, vol. XI, part I, pages 634–635.
108 James T. Wood, “The First Fight of Iron Clads,” Battles and Leaders of the Civil War (New York, 1884–1887, 4 vols.), I, 707. See also to much the same effect “Did the Monitor or Merrimac Revolutionize Naval Warfare,” William and Mary College Quarterly series one, XXIV, 63, 65; “Virginia, Founder of the World’s Navies,” Tyler’s Quarterly, III, 88–89; “The True Story of the Virginia and the Monitor: The Account of an Eye Witness: William Tyndall,” Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, XXXI, 20, 96.
109 Asst. Sec. Navy G. V. Fox to Benjamin F. Wade (Chairman of Senate Committee on the Conduct of the War), 15 Dec. 1864, Report of the Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War, 2 Sess. 38 Congress, p. i.
