During the American Civil War, Hatteras Inlet, North Carolina was the location of two Confederate forts commanded by Samuel Barron, and deemed a valuable passage for landing the ammunition and supplies of the Confederacy, and for sending cotton out of the country. General Butler and Commodore Stringham fitted out an expedition against these forts, Clark and Hatteras, and sailed from Hampton Roads on August the 26th, 1861, with ten vessels carrying 158 guns and 900 men. FortClark, the weaker position, was speedily reduced on August the 27th, by the guns of the Federal ships Minnesota, Wabash and Susquehanna, and Fort Hatteras was captured after protracted bombardment the next day. Samuel Barron and 700 Confederates were made prisoners. Research Battle of Hatteras Inlet
During the late American Civil War, to complete the Federal blockade of the Southern coast, Commodore Dupont, commanding the Federal frigate, Wabash, fourteen gunboats, thirty-four steamers and twenty-six sailing vessels, attacked the fort at Port Royal, South Carolina, on November the 7th, 1861. The works were garrisoned by 1700 South Carolina troops under Generals Drayton and Ripley and were protected by Commodore Tattnall with six Confederate gunboats. The expedition started from Fort Monroe late in October. The fleet entered the harbour between the two forts, firing upon them simultaneously. Then sailing in an elliptical track the ships concentrated their fire upon Fort Walker, which surrendered after three hours. Fort Beauregard was also speedily reduced. The Confederate fleet had been prevented from rendering assistance by a few gunboats. Research Battle of Port Royal
The USS Wabash is an American Wichita Class replenishment oiler of 13000 tons light displacement designed to provide rapid replenishment at sea of petroleum and munitions to the fleet. The USS Wabash is powered by three Foster-Wheeler boilers providing a top speed of 20 knots and a range of 6500 miles at 19 knots or 10000 miles at 16 knots. She carries a crew of 454 including 20 officers and cargo of 160000 barrels of fuel; 600 tons of munitions; 200 tons of dry stores and 100 tons refrigerated stores. Armaments consist of a Raytheon NATOSea Sparrow Mk 29 octuple surface-to-air missile launcher and two General Electric/General Dynamics 20 mm VulcanPhalanx Mk 15 guns. Research Wabash
Chester (recorded in the Domesday Book as Cestre) is an old city in Cheshire, England. The city began in AD79 when the Romans built the fortress 'Deva' on the site, in a bend of the River Dee, as a base for military operations against the Welsh. Later the fort became a 'citizen fortress' and a trading centre until the Romans withdrew in AD383.
Chester is a city in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, USA. The oldest city in Pennsylvania, Chester was settled by Swedish colonists in 1643 and originally called Upland.
Illinois is a Midwest state of USA. Illinois was formed from the Northwest Territory, which was organized in 1787.
Illinois is bounded on the north by Wisconsin, east by Lake Michigan and Indiana, south-east by Kentucky, from which it is separated by the Ohio, and west by the Mississippi, separating it from Missouri and Iowa. Its greatest length is 370 miles; its greatest breadth, 160 miles; and it has an area of some 56,650 square miles. The surface is somewhat hilly near the Ohio, and undulating towards the west; and a range of bluffs runs for a considerable distance along the margin of the Mississippi; but with these exceptions the state is one continuous plain, with a gentle inclination towards the south-west.
The chief rivers are the Illinois, which traverses the state diagonally north-east to south-west, Rock, Kaskaskia, and Wabash. Lead is found in vast quantities, and the ore (argentiferous galena) contains a considerable percentage of silver; the metal is found chiefly near the Wisconsinfrontier, Galena being the centre of the mining district. Bituminous coal abounds, and is raised in very large quantities, and several valuable salt springs are found in the east and south. The rocks mostly are limestone, gypsum, and sandstone.
On March 1st, 1784, Virginia surrendered her claim over Illinois to the United States. In 1809 it was erected into a territory comprising the present States of Illinois, Wisconsin and part of Michigan. On December the 3rd, 1818, Illinois with its present boundaries became a State. The Black Hawk War broke out in 1832. Reverend Elijah Lovejoy was murdered by a mob at Alton because of his attempt to publish an anti-slavery newspaper in 1837. From 1840 to 1844 the Mormons caused excitement which led to the death at the hands of a mob of two of their leaders and the emigration of the sect from the State.
The Illmois is a river in the United States, formed by the union of the Kankakee and Des Plaines, in the north-eastern part of the state of Illinois. It flows thence south-west, and falls into the Mississippi about 20 miles above the mouth of the Missouri. It is 500 miles long, half of it being navigable. A canal connects the river with Chicago.
Abbreviations
Research Battle of Hatteras Inlet
