Ironclad of the Roanoke

Ironclad of the Roanoke: Gilbert Elliott’s Albemarle. By Robert G. Elliott (Shippensburg: White Mane, 1994. Pp. xiv + 372. Illustrations. Bibliography. Notes. Index.

The sensational naval history of the American Civil War has been overlooked; deference in history books has been given to the great personalities who fought in Northern Virginia and the rapid and stunning naval advances of the United States and the Confederate South have been ignored. Robert Elliott’s Ironclad of the Roanoke seeks to redress this oversight by focusing on one of many regional ironclads built in the Confederacy. The CSS Albemarle’s fame in Eastern North Carolina is well-deserved. The ship single-handedly pestered a Union squadron from the spring of 1864 until it was sunk in October. Elliott’s contribution is not simply a battle history of the ship, but instead almost a biography. He tells the tale of the Albemarle from its inception, to its construction, sinking, raising, and ultimate veneration. Gilbert Elliott (an inferred antecedent of the author) figures just as large as the Albemarle itself; his family and the men and families that aided in the construction and crewing of the Albemarle are given significant portions of this work, making Ironclad of the Roanoke a sort of social naval history of North Carolina.

Elliott framed his book within the context of the larger Confederate naval strategy. His claim that an “overconfident Union Army was routed at First Manassas by the audaciously effective Confederate Army” will give pause to military historians. His claim that “Union forces spent nine months in rehabilitation would positively enrage proponents of the Western theater such as Thomas Connelly and Steven Woodworth. But his small biography of Stephen Mallory is informative as his analysis of the raising of the USS Merrimack (soon to be transformed into the CSS Virginia). The reader will be surprised by the considerable detail of Elliott’s scholarship. The often ignored Civil War in North Carolina was actually a dynamic naval conflict centered on the two great sounds, the Albemarle and the Pamlico. Gilbert Elliott’s beginnings as a shipbuilder and the contract negotiations that led to the construction of the Albemarle are explained comprehensively. The detail sometimes leads to confusion. The chapter on the Edwards Ferry Shipyard where the Albemarle was built actually details the building of the ship more than the situation of the shipyard itself. The constant fear of Union advances from the coast and the High Command’s decision to move supplied inland several hundred miles to the Charlotte Naval Yard made things difficult for the builders of the Albemarle. The assistance of the Halifax Shipyard actually allowed the Albemarle to be completed. The actual construction of the ship was a marvel. The 152’ long ship’s draft was less than nine feet, allowing a relatively large vessel such as the Albemarle to operate in the shallow riverine and coastal waters on North Carolina.

The ships battle history creates the most interesting chapters of the book. Included within the section are detailed information on the daily life of the Albemarle’s crew; their pay, living arrangements, and their day-to-day reality is explained. Outside of the battles, the literal happenings of what seems like every moment on the Albemarle. What sailors happened to be assigned guard duty is not too small a detail for Elliott’s work. The author is most in his element when describing the battles the Albemarle took part in. His excellent use of illustrations and detail atone for sometimes stilted writing. The Albemarle admittedly acquitted itself well in battle. On more than once occasion the ship was quite literally surrounded by Union ships that could not sink it.

Elliott’s book is an excellent account of the Albemarle’s service life, but this reader was disappointed at his lack of analysis over the need for an ironclad ship in an remote area like Tidewater North Carolina. A much more economic government might have spent more time building ironclads to protect Wilmington, a town of 10,000 people and a major Confederate port. And if Confederate ironclads were the as effective as the Albemarle, why was a squadron of the same ships unable to put up more resistance to the Union advance up the Mississippi River? For all its problems, Elliott’s work is a well-researched and detailed account of the life of a hard-fighting and venerable ship and her Tar Heels.

Miles Smith Texas Christian University

Ironclad of the Roanoke: Gilbert Elliott’s Albemarle. By Robert G. Elliott. Shippensburg, Pennsylvania: White Mane Publishing, 1994.

In this book, amateur historian, Robert G. Elliot presents the sum of his research into history of the Confederate ironclad, christened the Albemarle. In addition to providing painstaking details of the construction, launch, completion, and battles of this vessel, Elliot also provides all of the extant information regarding its builder Gilbert Elliott. Unfortunately, the presentation of the research fails to create significance for the obscure ironclad or its builder. The book is devoid of any overarching arguments. For example, the author does not assert any reasons for why his subject should be studied—what it tells us about the Civil War, what it tells us about the Confederate navy, or what it tells us about the construction of ironclads. The author seems to believe that because the Albemarle exists as part of the Civil War’s heritage, it should be studied. Since the book is in its third printing, perhaps he is right. Moreover, with the exception of continually noting the lack of iron in the Confederate States, the author does not place the events in the construction of the Albemarle within the context of establishing the Confederate navy or the development of the Civil War in general. In as much as the author incorporated two to four block quotes per pages, this book ultimately amounts to a 300 page string of quotes.

The Confederate attempts to construct an ironclad along the Roanoke River in North Carolina were continually beset by a variety of set backs. In October 1861 the Confederate navy contracted the seventeen year old Gilbert Elliott to construct an ironclad. The author details Elliott’s efforts to build the vessel including the bringing in of parts, capital, carpenters, and labors. Prior to its completion the hull and shipyard at Elizabeth City were destroyed by the Federals in February 1862. Subsequently, Elliot was contracted to construct additional ironclads and floating batters for the Confederates. Included among these was the Albemarle. The vessel was constructed at Edward’s Ferry in which a large corn field was converted into a shipyard. Again the author documents Elliot’s efforts to construct the craft. To some extent the author reveals some of political maneuverings regarding the Albemarle’s construction. For example, because Confederate ship building was not supported through an act of congress, an adequate supply of iron, which was in short supply, was difficult to obtain. In the case of the Albemarle, Zebulon Vance, the governor of North Carolina, played an important role in procuring the iron. The threat of Federal invasion continually hampered the Albemarle’s construction. For this reason, prior to its completion she was moved from Edward’s Ferry to the shipyard at Halifax in October 1863.

Following General Robert E. Lee’s request for ironclad vessel to help take New Bern, in January 1864 the Albemarle was launched under the command of James W. Cooke while workers continued to install the iron siding. The Albemarle engaged in two maritime battles. In both she was outgunned and out numbered generating her legendary reputation. First, she gained a victory over the Miami and the Cotton Plant on the Roanoke near Plymouth. This entanglement resulted in the sinking of the Cotton Plant and the death of the commander of the Miami, Charles W. Fusser, who died after firing at the Albemarle at point blank range. The shot ricocheted off the angled side of the Albemarle and exploded in the air in front of the commander. The other engagement pitted the Albemarle against seven Federal gun ships. Though the Albemarle sustained forty four hits, she emerged victorious. Ironically, the end of the ironclad of the Roanoke came through stealth sabotage while docked at Plymouth. Following the war, she was sold for scrap at auction.

The text is enhanced by dozens of portraits, paintings of the battles scenes, maps, schematics of the Albemarle, and pictures of relics. In addition, the author has provided a number of appendices regarding the genealogy of Gilbert Elliot, the crew and construction workers of the Albemarle. Unfortunately, the narrative does not offer the reader any insight into the Civil War beyond the construction of this vessel.