![]() The morning of Augdawned with near-perfect conditions for Farragut to unleash his attack. Once there, Farragut planned on using his ironclads and wooden, steam-powered warships to overwhelm the Confederate naval forces. ![]() Speed and determination would be required to get his vulnerable ships past Fort Morgan and into the bay. Undeterred by these challenges, Rear Admiral David Farragut prepared to push his fleet of 18 warships quickly through the narrow channel between Fort Morgan and its 46 heavy guns and a field of underwater mines. This ship and the others gathered by the Confederates were under the command of Admiral Franklin Buchanan – the same man who had commanded the CSS Virginia ( Merrimac) at the historic Battle of Hampton Roads in 1862. Not only would the Union fleet have to overcome several powerful forts guarding the bay’s entrance, but once inside the bay, there were reports that the Confederates had built and deployed a new ironclad warship named the CSS Tennessee. Despite growing Union naval resources, the Confederate defenses guarding Mobile Bay were formidable. ![]() One of those ports, and the only one remaining on the Gulf Coast in 1864, was the port at Mobile, Alabama.Īfter the successful capture of Vicksburg, Mississippi, in July of 1863, the Union naval forces in the western theater were freed for use against Mobile. Despite continued Federal efforts, several key ports remained open to Confederate blockade runners bringing important military supplies. Possessing the far larger and more capable navy, the Union sought to use its naval power to cut off all Confederate access to the sea through a coastal blockade. Rear Admiral David Farragut (Library of Congress) ![]()
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