JF Ptak Science Books   Quick Post

Here’s an unusual and somewhat startling point of view from the Civil War–the target of Fort Sumter, Charleston Harbor, South Carolina, (probably for the attack of 7 April 1863).  I assume that this was first published in Harper’s Weekly, though my copy is found in The Soldier in Our Civil War, Volume II, page 173, (1878) which is spilling over with reprints from Harper’s.  There wasn’t very much of Ironclad Weehawken that was above the water, most of its 200′ and crew of about 70 being below the water line. This view is from an observation port on the turret of the ship, and  it looks like you’re looking down a well because the iron armor of the turret was 11″ thick.  The first attack that the Weehawken participated in was in April, 1863, though that was a pretty distinct failure; after repairs, the ship was in the Charleston theater for pretty much the rest of its career, which lasted until December 1864, when she sunk from what seems to be a problem developed by being overloaded with heavy ordnance. In any event, it is a very interesting you-are-there perspective, rare in my experience.