NORFOLK NAVY YARD Marcus W. Robbins, Historian & Archivist
Copyright. All rights reserved.
Birth of the Gosport Yard & into the 19th Century
BOOKS:
History of
the United States Navy-Yard at Gosport, Virginia,
(Near Norfolk)
By Edward P. Lull, A. M.,
Commander, United States Navy
For the Bureau of Yards and Docks, Navy Department
Rear-Admiral C. R. P. Rodgers, U. S. N., Chief of Bureau
Washington: Government Printing Office,
1874.
[4] P R E F A C E .
In gathering materials for the following pages, the writer was surprised to find how meager were the sources of trustworthy information. The records of the navy-yard having been entirely lost in the destruction of which the yard was twice a victim daring the rebellion, there remained only the official records and correspondence of the Navy Department, published histories, sketches, &c, the documents of private individuals, and the recollections and traditions preserved by old employees of the yard and residents of its neighborhood. Since the re-organization of the Navy Department in 1842 all correspondence has been very carefully preserved and indexed in such a manner as to be readily referred to; but previous to that time, more particularly during the first twenty or thirty years after the creation of the Department, although a great deal was preserved and is still on file, a great deal more was either lost or not thought worthy of being kept. In addition to this the correspondence was indexed only under the names of the persons to whom addressed or from whom received, without giving either the vessel or station to which the officer was attached, or the subject-matter of the letter, both of which are now done. It was therefore necessary to examine every page of every volume, in order to make sure of gathering all there was. A great deal of time was thus consumed for very small returns. The second source, i. e., publications, gave comparatively little. The documents and papers preserved in families, from which considerable was hoped, could not be reached, partly, to be sure, because the writer did not know to whom to apply. The traditions of the yard were found to be so confused as to dates, names, &c., that they had to bo entirely rejected, as the endeavor was to give only what could be relied upon. In this connection the writer begs to thank Doctor Kennedy, of the civil engineer's office at Gosport, for his labor in collecting information, though scarcely any of it could be used.
Search was made through several libraries, including the Congressional and that of Georgetown College, for any accounts of the exploits of the Virginia navy during the Revolution, but scarcely anything could be found. In regard to the events occurring at and immediately before the abandonment of the yard in April, 1861, it is feared that officers who were concerned in them may find many things omitted, but the writer consulted all the sources at hand. It is hoped that the publication of this little memoir may draw out more complete information
[5] CHAPTER I.
Location—Discoveries and early settlements—Origin of names, etc.
No navy-yard belonging to the United States, from its geographical position, is more important than that at Gosport, Va. Located near enough to the entrance of the Chesapeake Bay to be easily accessible, it is, at the same time, in a position readily defended from attacks either by land or by water, and one, as has been repeatedly shown, which can be held by a small force against a very largely superior one. There is in the vicinity an abundant supply of timber and other material, while the close proximity of a populous city secures to it the command of all the skilled labor that can be required. Such is the mildness of the climate, that work of all sorts can be carried on at all seasons of the year without interruption. Hampton Roads, the outer harbor, is an excellent point of rendezvous for a fleet or squadron.
A glance at the map will demonstrate the very great importance of a naval station in this vicinity. The Chesapeake, with its navigable tributaries, penetrates into the heart of several of the richest States in the Union, reaching to the national capital. A foothold in its waters would, therefore, be of the utmost strategic importance to an invading enemy, and would probably be one of the earliest objects sought by them, as past history has fully shown. The width of the entrance of the bay is so great that it would be impossible to defend it except by a naval force, which should have a repairing, coaling, and victualing station as near at hand as possible, consistent with entire defensibility for itself, with a reasonably secure outer harbor, large enough for the necessary maneuvers of a squadron in getting under way and forming. All of these conditions are admirably filled by the location of the Gosport yard.
The Chesapeake Bay was discovered about the year 1586 by the first colonists sent out to Virginia by Sir Waiter Raleigh under a charter granted by Queen Elizabeth. So greatly was Sir Walter attracted by the magnificence of the "Father of Waters" (as the Indian name Chesapeake is said to mean) that he selected its shores as the location of his second colony, sent from England in 1587 under John White as governor. The naval officer in command of the ships which conveyed the colonists, however, was so anxious to reach the West Indies that he left the ill-fated party upon Roanoke Island, from which they afterward disappeared, leaving behind them an inscription upon the bark of a tree to indicate the direction in which they had gone, the following of which was not rewarded by any discoveries of the party, whose fate remains a mystery to this day.
[6] The first permanent settlement in Virginia was made, under the auspices of the London Company, by a party of which the famous Captain John Smith was the ruling spirit. It consisted of one hundred and five men, who embarked in three small vessels, commanded by Captain Newport, and whose united tonnage amounted to but one hundred and sixty tons burden.The little squadron entered the Chesapeake on the 26th of April, 1607. Capes Charles and Henry were named by the company for the two sons of James I, the then sovereign of England. The naming of Old Point Comfort is thus told by Percy, (as quoted by Charles Deane in his edition of Captain John Smith's True Relation of Virginia:) On the 28th of April, launching their shallop, "the captain and some gentlemen went in her and discovered up the bay," and "found a riuer on the south side running into the maine." After exploring for some time, they rowed back to their ships, "which road at the mouth of the riuer." They found the waters shallow; but, pulling over to a point of land where they found from six to twelve fathoms, they were "put in good comfort," and named the place Point Comfort, or Cape Comfort.
Passing up the bay and into the river called by the natives the Powhatan, but to which they gave the name of James River, they landed upon its shores, about fifty miles from its mouth, and established the colony of James Town.
Our present inquiry not being connected with this colony, we will not follow its history further except as it is incidentally connected with the discoveries and settlement of that portion of the State in the vicinity of Norfolk.
In the summer of 1608, Captain Smith, with an open barge and a few companions, made an examination and survey of the Chesapeake Bay and some of its tributaries, and prepared a map, which is still in existence, and is wonderfully accurate considering the slender means at his command.
The portion of Virginia lying between the sea and the base of the Blue Ridge was, at the date of its discovery, occupied by some forty tribes of Indians, thirty of which formed the confederacy of the famous chief Powhatan. Of these last, the Chesapeakes occupied the greater portion of what are now Norfolk and Princess Anne Counties.
The name of Norfolk, formerly spelled Norfoke and Norfolke, and generally abbreviated in early days to Norff, was given to the region of country now comprising Nansemond, Norfolk, and Princess Anne Counties, by Colonel Thorogood, one of the earliest explorers and settlers in that part of the State.
In 1662, two hundred acres of the laud now occupied by the city of Norfolk was owned by one Lewis Vandermull, and was sold by him to Nicholas Wise, sen., a shipwright.*
*See Forrest's Sketches of Norfolk, &c.
[7] On the 8th of June, 1680, an act of assembly was passed entitled, "An act for cohabitation and encouragement of trade and manufacture?* providing for the purchase of fifty acres of ground "in Lower Norfolke County on Nicholas Wise his land on the Eastern Branch of Elizabeth River, at the entrance of the branch."The law provided for the erection of warehouses, &c, and required that all products of the colony for sale or export, and all "merchandizes" imported, should be brought to this or one of the other towns established by the same act.
In pursuance of this act, the land was, on the 16th of August, 1682, purchased by trustees from Nicholas Wise, a house-carpenter, of Elizabeth Parish, in the county of Lower Norfolk, † and the settlement of Norfolk was begun.
Wise was the son of the individual of that name above mentioned, and the land was part of the two hundred acres purchased by his father. The trustees, or "ffeofees in trust," were Capt. William Robinson and Lieut. Col. Anthony Lawson.
In 1705 a considerable population had been attracted to the place by its favorable situation for trade, and in October of that year Norfolk was by act of assembly regularly established a town.†
Colonel Byrd thus describes Norfolk as he saw it in 1728:‡ "Norfolk has most the air of a town of any in Virginia. There were then near twenty brigantines and sloops riding at the wharves, and oftentimes they have more. It has all the advantages of situation requisite for trade and navigation. * * * This place is the mart for most of the commodities produced in the adjacent parts of North Carolina. They have a pretty deal of lumber from the borders of the Dismal, who make bold with the king's land thereabouts without the least ceremony. They not only maintain their stock upon it, but get boards, shingles, and other lumber out of it in great abundance. . * * * * It is not a town of ordinaries and public houses, like most others in this country? but the inhabitants consist of merchants, ship-carpenters, and other useful artisans, with sailors enough to manage their navigation."
Norfolk was formed into a borough September 15,1736, by royal charter from George II. ƒ
We have very little record of the origin and growth of Portsmouth, but it is said by Lippincott's Gazetteer to have been founded in 1752.
* See Henning's Statutes at Large, vol. 2.
† See Forrest's Sketches of Norfolk,
‡ See Westover MSS., as quoted by Howe.
ƒ See Howe's Virginia, &c.
[8] CHAPTER II.
Establishment of a Marine-Yard at Gosport by the British—Confiscation of the
Marine-Yard by the State of Virginia—The Virginia Navy of the War of
the Revolution—Sale of the Gosport Lands.Just before the breaking out of the war of the Revolution, the British established a marine-yard, for the use of its navy, on the site of the present navy-yard at Gosport, (as that portion of Portsmouth has always been called,) having, as is stated in a letter now on file in the Navy Department, written in 1824, by Miles King,* United States navy-agent, selected this point after a careful survey of all the ports within its dominions in North America, as the most eligible situation for a naval station. The name of Gosport was doubtless taken from Gosport, near Portsmouth, England, where one of the most important of the British dockyards is located. There is a tradition that this spot had been used for some time by the British as a careening-ground for their ships, but the writer has not been able to find any proof of the fact. Mr. King's letter further states that scarcely had the British government commenced its works for the completion of the naval establishment when the Revolution began, and the yard, together with the adjoining property of Andrew Sprowle, the British navy-agent, became confiscate and forfeited to the State of Virginia.
Virginia immediately commenced preparations for establishing a navy, and vigorous measures were adopted to that end. Several vessels were built or purchased. A rope-walk was established, which was probably at Gosport, though, it is not certain. The published histories of Virginia and of the United States Navy are alike singularly silent upon the subject of the Virginia navy. The most that the writer has been able to find have been the acts of assembly authorizing its creation, subsequent additions and changes, and its final abolishment.
In the fourth volume of the Virginia Historical Register there is given a brief account of the invasion of Virginia by Sir George Collier and General Matthews, in May, 1770, copied from a volume published in England, entitled a "Detail of some particular services performed in America during the years 1776, 1777, 1778, & 1779," supposed to be chiefly taken from a journal kept on board the ship Rainbow, commanded by Sir George Collier. From this narrative we extract the following:
After giving a detailed description of the attack and capture of the American fortifications and the dispersion of the Virginia flotilla, the
* Miles King was a son of ono of the commissioners appointed by law in 1784 to sell the public the public lands in Gosport, and was probably very well informed concerning that place.
[9] account goes on to say, "The town of Portsmouth, within half a mile of the fort, was taken possession of at the same time. Norfolk, on the opposite shore, and Gosport, where the rebels had fixed a capital marine-yard for building ships, were all abandoned at the same time by the enemy, and the men-of-war moved up into the harbor, where they moored. The enemy, previous to their flight, set fire to a fine ship of war of 28 guns, ready for launching, belonging to Congress; and also to two large French merchantmen, one of which was loaded with bale-goods and the other with a thousand hogsheads of bacon. The quantity of naval stores of all kinds found in their arsenals was astonishing. Many vessels for war were taken on the stocks in different forwardness: one of 36 guns; one of 18; three of 16 guns; and three of 34, besides many merchantmen. The whole number taken, burnt, and destroyed while the king's ships were in the river amounted to one hundred and thirty seven sail of vessels. A most distressing stroke to the rebels, even without other losses. * * * Many of the privateers and other vessels fled up the different branches of the river, but as there was no outlet the commodore either captured or destroyed them all. * * * * * * * General Matthews having made application to the commodore that the troops might be re-embarked on the 24th of May, in order to return to New York, Sir George endeavoured to dissuade that measure being carried into execution till the return of the express he had sent to the commander-in-chief of the army, to whom he had wrote in very strong terms, pointing out the infinite consequence it would be to the king's service, the keeping possession of Portsmouth, as the doing so would distress the rebels exceedingly, from their water communication by the Chesapeake being totally stopped, and by which Washington's army was supplied with provisions, and an end put to their foreign trade; that the natural strength of the place was singularly great, both by sea and land, and might be maintained with a small force against a very superior one; that the marine-yard was the most considerable one in America, and the quantity of seasoned oak timber there for ship-building very large; which, as well as a vast deal of other stores, could not be embarked then for want of vessels, but might be sent by degrees to England, where it was much wanted. * * * * * General Matthews, however, conceiving him self tied down to the letter of his instructions, did not care to recede, and preparations were therefore made for abandoning this valuable settlement. As many of the naval stores as could be carried away were shipped off, but great quantities were unavoidably left behind and set on fire. The conflagration in the night appeared grand beyond description, though the sight was a melancholy one. Five thousand loads of fine seasoned oak-knees for ship-building, an infinite quantity of plank, masts, cordage, and numbers of beautiful ships of war on the stocks, were at one time in a blaze, and all totally consumed, not a vestage remaining but the ironwork that such things had been."
[10] The account from which we have been quoting states that on the day-following that on which the squadron got to sea, they were rejoined by the express-boat, which had been sent to Sir Henry Clinton, and which brought his answer, "Now of no consequence, as the evacuation of Portsmouth had taken place—a fatal and unfortunate measure, universally regretted by all who were acquainted with its importance, and the advantages which would have resulted to Great Britain from its being in possession of the king's troops." This error the British vainly attempted to repair two years later.The letter of Sir George Collier, above referred to, was published in the Westminster Magazine of June, 1799, and bears the date of May 19, 1779. We quote from it as follows: "You are too good a judge, sir, of the very great importance of this place, we now hold, to render my saying much upon the subject necessary; permit me, however, as a sea-officer, to observe that this port of Portsmouth (Virginia) is an exceedingly safe and secure asylum for ships against ail enemy, and is not to be forced even by great superiority. The marine-yard (Gosport) is large and extremely convenient, having a considerable stock of seasoned timber, besides great quantities of other stores. From these considerations, joined to many others, I am firmly of opinion that it is a measure most essentially necessary for His Majesty's service that this port should remain in our hands, since it appears to me of more real consequence, and advantage than any other the crown possesses in America; for by securing this the whole trade of the Chesapeake is at an end, and consequently the sinews of the rebellion destroyed. I trust and hope, sir, you will see this matter in the same important light I do, and give such directions for reinforcements to be sent here as you may think necessary in order to our preserving and improving those advantages which we have with so much good fortune acquired."
The Virginia navy was employed mainly for the defense of the bays and rivers of the State. Commodore Barron was appointed its commander-in-chief, being styled "Commodore of all the armed vessels of the Commonwealth." His two sons, Samuel and James Barron, and also Richard Dale, all afterwards distinguished officers of the United States Navy, served under his command. At the conclusion of the war the State navy was disbanded.
It seldom occurs that the harbor of Norfolk is obstructed by ice to so great extent as to prevent ingress and egress by vessels; but the winter of 1779-'80 is described by Forrest, in his Sketches of Norfolk, as having been so severe that the Chesapeake was frozen thickly enough to permit teams to cross from shore to shore as far down as the capes. The Atlantic was frozen as far out from the shore as a depth of forty fathoms. The ice was piled up along the coast to a height of twenty feet, and two small schooners returning to Norfolk from the West Indies took refuge in a temporary harbor, formed in the ice. several miles south of Cape, Henry, [11] and there discharged their cargoes, which were conveyed to the town in carts, and received their return cargoes by the same means.
By an act* of the general assembly of Virginia., passed in May, 1781, Joseph Jones, Paul Loyall, William Lee, Mann Page, Benjamin Harrison, Thomas Nelson, Miles King, Henry Tazewell, and John Kearnes were appointed commissioners for the sale of certain public lands belonging to the commonwealth, among which were the "lands commonly called Gosport, adjoining the town of Portsmouth, except such part thereof as, in their opinion, may be necessary for the use of the public, taking care to lay off the said lands into lots, so as to make them uniform with the town of Portsmouth."
It seems that the commissioners above named never procured a meeting of a sufficient number to act, in consequence of which the law was amended in October of the same year, so as to place the appointing of the commissioners in the hands of the governor by and with the advice of the council; and the commissioners were empowered to sell such portions of the Gosport lands as the governor and council should direct, after having laid them off into lots and convenient streets. The persons appointed and who acted as commissioners for the carrying out of the law were William Ronald, Edward Carrington, and Benjamin Temple.
The marine-yard was retained for the benefit of the commonwealth, though no use is known to have been made of it until the year 1701. The lands adjoining the yard were sold in 1785. A large portion of them, in addition to the yard, as will be seen further on, was afterward purchased by the United States.
* See Henning's Statutes at Large.
[12] CHAPTER III.
Establishment of the Present Navy—Temporary Occupation of the Marine-Yard
at Gosport—Creation of the Navy Department—Growing Importance of the
Gosport Yard.On the 27th of March, 1794, by an act entitled an "Act to provide a naval armament," the President was authorized by Congress to procure, by purchase or otherwise, equip and employ, to protect our commerce from the Algerines, four ships to carry 44 gnus each, and two ships to carry 36 guns each, and to appoint the requisite number of officers to command them. The duty of carrying out the provisions of this law was assigned to the Secretary of War, the lion, Henry Knox.
It was resolved that the ships should be built, and immediate preparations were made for procuring materials and plans for executing the work. Mr. Joshua Humphreys was appointed naval constructor, and seems to have had the general charge of all the ships that were laid down. Six captains were appointed, and one was assigned to duty as superintendent of the construction of each of the frigates.
In a report submitted to the House of Representatives by Secretary Knox, under date of December 27, 1794, after stating the character, armament, &c, of the vessels ordered, the materials to be used and how to be obtained and prepared, he goes on to say that, in order as well to distribute the advantages arising from the operation as to ascertain where the work could be executed to the greatest advantage, the building of the ships had been ordered in six different ports of the Union; one of the ports selected was Portsmouth, Va., where a frigate of 44 guns was laid down. The Secretary further says that the following arrangement had been adopted for the construction and equipment of the frigates, viz:
1st. All contracts for the principal materials for construction and equipment had been made, under pursuance of law, under the direction of the Secretary of the Treasury.
2d. All labor and inferior materials, not otherwise provided by the Secretary of the Treasury, were to be procured by agents, who were to be allowed a compensation of 2-1/2 per cent, upon moneys expended by them.
3d. The captains of the frigates were to superintend the construction and equipment.
4th. A master builder or constructor was appointed at each yard, and also a clerk of the yard to receive, issue, and account for all public property belonging to the ships. To each of these officers had been sent his special instructions.
The Secretary concludes his report by stating that at the time the [13] work was commenced few or no materials for construction or equipment existed in their proper shape; that everything, if not to be created, was to be modified; the wood of which the frames were to be made was standing in the forests, the iron for cannon lying in its natural bed, and the flax and hemp probably in the seed; but that vigorous measures were being made for collecting the materials and pushing on the work, and it was hoped that the ships would be afloat during the following year, (1795.)
The marine-yard at Gosport was lent to the Government by the State of Virginia, and, as will be seen further on, it was not purchased by the United States until several years later. Capt. Richard Dale* was appointed superintendent of the yard; Josiah Fox, naval constructor or master-builder; and William Pennock, navy-agent.
Timber of sufficient size for the purpose required was not to be had in the market, and the government was compelled to contract for live-oak and red cedar, standing in the forests of Georgia, the Government to cut the wood, and the contractors to haul it to navigable waters. A large number of ship-carpenters and choppers were sent out from New England. Mr. John T. Morgan, a master-shipbuilder of Boston, was appointed to superintend the operations of the party; to select the timber to be cut; cause it to be shaped by moulds; and to ship it north to the various yards. As the work could be done only at certain seasons, much delay was experienced, and the end of the year 1795 found not one of the frigates ready for launching.
In a report of the Secretary of War, dated December 12 of that year, † it is stated that about two-thirds of the live-oak frame of the frigate at Norfolk [Gosport] had been received, a part of the planking, the copper for sheathing and fastening, most of the iron-work, the masts and spars, and the most of the other materials necessary were in store or getting ready. The keel had been laid, and part of the frame bolted together and ready for raising.
On the establishment of peace, early in 1796, between the United States and Algiers, work was suspended upon the ship at this yard, and such of the materials collected as were thought perishable were sold, and the rest put in store; Mr. Pennock, the agent, being employed to take charge of them. In June, 1797, the materials on hand at Gosport were valued at $52,9S9.
The breaking out of war with France in 1798 gave afresh impetus to the infant navy, and considerable sums of money were appropriated by Congress for building, purchasing, or hiring vessels to be used against that republic.
By an act of Congress approved April 30,1798, a separate Department was created for the administration of the affairs of the Navy,
* Captain Dale was afterward appointed to the Ganges, a purchased ship armed as a 24, and which, under his command, was the first vessel of the present Navy to get to sea, sailing in May, 1798.† See American State Papers, vol. 1, "Naval Affairs."
[14] and Mr. Benjamin Stoddert was appointed the first Secretary of the Navy, Mr. George Cabot, of Massachusetts, having declined the appointment.In July, orders were sent to Mr. Pennock to recommence work on the frigate at Gosport, for which the name Chesapeake had been chosen. During the same mouth, a brig of two hundred tons, which had been built near the navy-yard, by Mr. Herbert, and which was nearly ready for launching, was purchased by the Government and fitted out, under the name of Norfolk. Captain Thomas Williams, of Norfolk, was appointed superintendent, and afterward commander of the brig, being regularly commissioned in the Navy.
Mr. Josiah Fox, who had been discharged from the yard upon the suspension of work in March, 1790, was now re-appointed as naval constructor, and directed to proceed with the work upon the Chesapeake, on a plan proposed by himself, by which the size of the vessel was reduced from a 44 to a 36 gun ship. The following extract of a letter from Mr. Stoddert to the navy-agent, under date of August 17,1798, will be of interest, as showing the reasons for reducing the size of the ship, and which I refer to more particularly, as a distinguished naval, historian has made a very different explanation of the matter, in his efforts to correct history. Mr. Stoddert says:
"Believing that there will be occasion for tins ship in the spring, doubting whether it would be possible to have her ready so early without materially altering her dimensions, and, indeed, not being entirely satisfied of the policy of increasing the size and expense of our frigates so far beyond what is known in Europe without increasing their force, I have determined, although the keel has been laid, to reduce the size of the frigate at Norfolk to the largest-sized frigates in the British navy. This, Mr. Fox assures me, can be done with very great advantage, and with a prospect of finishing the ship in half the time it would take to complete her on the former scale, and with half the expense. In pursuance of this idea, I now enclose you the dimensions by which the frigate is to be built. The keel, already laid, must of course be cut, and some alterations must be made in the stern. This, Mr. Fox informs me, can be easily done. * * * * The greatest inconvenience will be in altering the moulds. This, Mr. Fox says, he can do in full time after getting to Norfolk."
Considerable activity prevailed at the yard during the remainder of the year. A brig was purchased by the citizens of some of the principal towns of Virginia, and presented to the Government. It was named the Richmond, and was fitted out under the command of Capt. Samuel Barron, who had served in the Virginia navy during the Revolution.
The vessels of Commodore Truxton's squadron frequently resorted to the yard for repairs and supplies and to pay oil' their crews.
We also find that large quantities of bread and of some other articles of provisions were furnished during the year and the next succeeding [15] for other stations. The yard was also made a depot for the supply of masts and spars to cruising ships, and even to vessels fitting at Baltimore and Philadelphia.
By a report submitted to Congress by the Secretary of State, March 2,1790, it appears that commissions were issued for the district of Norfolk, between July 9,1798, and January 1, 1799, to ten private armed vessels, mounting in the aggregate 65 guns.
In June, 1799, a brig, called the Augusta, was purchased and fitted out at Gosport.
July 16, 1799, Commodore Samuel Barron was ordered to duty as superintendent of the yard; Mr. Pennock, the agent, not having exercised the degree of economy which the Department desired. In the following month, however, Commodore Barron was detached and ordered to the command of the Constellation, at New York. In November, of the same year, we find him again ordered to hold himself in readiness to superintend the Chesapeake, which, contrary to the expectations of the Secretary of the Navy, was not yet finished, but which was finally launched in the following month, to begin her ill-fated career.
[16] CHAPTER IV.
Purchase of the Marine-Yard at Gosport, and the Permanent Establishment
of the Navy-Yard.The importance of the Gosport yard, particularly as an equipping, recruiting, and victualing station, had now become so well established that the Secretary of the Navy resolved to make it one of the permanent navy-yards of the country. To this end, he addressed the following letter to the governor of Virginia, with a view to the purchase of the ground:
"NAVY DEPARTMENT, January 20,1800.
"Sir: The United States have heretofore occupied for navy purposes a piece of ground at Gosport belonging to the commonwealth of Virginia. It is supposed to contain about ten acres.* The ground is considered to be very well situated for a permanent navy-yard; and if it should be so appropriated, it will be desirable to commence immediately some buildings for the accommodation of workmen and the security of timber.
"Permit me, therefore, by order of the President, to solicit the favor of your excellency to communicate to the legislature of Virginia the desire of the Government of the United States to obtain this property? either by purchase or in such other way as the legislature shall deem proper.
"I have the honor to be, with great respect, your excellency's obedient servant,
"BENJAMIN STODDERT.
"His excellency JAMES MONROE, Esq.,
"Governor of Virginia."
The request of the Secretary was promptly complied with, and on the 25th of the same month the legislature passed an act, of which the following is a transcript: †"Chap. 64. An act authorizing the governor of this common wealth to convoy to the United States, upon certain conditions, the property of this commonwealth called Gosport.
"Whereas it has been represented to the present general assembly that the Government of the United States are desirous that certain lands the property of this commonwealth, commonly called and known by the name of Gosport, should be vested in the United States, for the purpose of establishing a navy-yard upon the same:
"I. Be it enacted by the general assembly, That it shall and may be lawful for the governor of this commonwealth, and he is authorized, to ap-
* The yard really contained about sixteen acres.† See Shepard's Statutes at Large of Virginia, new series, vol. ii.
[17] point some fit and proper person to meet such persons as shall be appointed on the part of the United States, to ascertain and fix the value of the property belonging to this commonwealth, situate near the town of Portsmouth, in the county of Norfolk, and commonly called and known by the name of Gosport. So soon as the value of the property shall be ascertained, and the governor shall be satisfied the Government of the United States are willing to pay the amount thereof to this commonwealth, then, and in that case, it shall be lawful for the governor of this commonwealth, and he is hereby authorized, for and in behalf of this commonwealth, by proper deed in writing, under his hand and the seal of the commonwealth, to convey, transfer, assign, and make over unto the United States, all interest in and title to, as well as all the jurisdiction which this commonwealth possesses over, the public lands commonly called and known by the name of Gosport, before mentioned, for the purpose of establishing a navy-yard: Provided, That nothing herein contained shall be so construed as to prevent the officers of this State from executing any process whatever within the jurisdiction hereby directed to be ceded.
"II. And be it further enacted, That in case the Government of the United States shall at any time hereafter abandon the design of establishing a navy-yard at the place hereby ceded to the United States, or, after the establishment thereof, shall discontinue the same, then, and in that case, the property in the soil and the jurisdiction over the territory directed to be vested in the United States shall revert to this commonwealth, and shall be considered as the property and subject to the jurisdiction of the same, in like manner as if this act had never been made: Provided, That in such case this commonwealth will repay to the Government of the United States the sum or sums paid by the United States in consideration of the cession hereby directed to be made.
"This act shall commence and be in force from and after the passing thereof."
In accordance with the requirements of the above-quoted law, Thomas Newton, jr., esq., was appointed on behalf of the State of Virginia, and, by an order dated 7th of April, 1800, Mr. William Pennock was appointed to act on the part of the United States to ascertain, with Mr. Newton, the value of the lands required. In a letter bearing the same date, the Secretary of the Navy enjoined the greatest economy on the part of Mr. Pennock, informed him that the only funds available out of which the property could be paid for were those appropriated for the building the u 74-gun ships."* He also intimated to Mr. Newton that the less the amount paid for the property the more there would be available for improvements, and suggested $100 per acre as a fair valuation.
In a report to the President, dated April 26,1800, Mr. Stoddert, in
*See act of Congress approved February 25, 1799, for "The augmentation of the Navy," and which, among other provisions, authorized the construction of six ships, to be armed with not less than 74 guns each.
[18] recommending the establishment of permanent navy-yards, to be the property of the United States, remarks that a large part of the expense of building the frigates arose from handling the timber, owing to the confined space in which it was piled—enough, he thinks, to have purchased ground and to have improved it. He states that the ground at Gosport had recently been ceded to the United States on condition of the payment of its value, which he hopes will not exceed $2,000.
To the surprise of the Secretary, the value assigned to the land was $12,000, or $750 per acre. In a letter addressed to Mr. Pennock on the 7th of August, Mr. Stoddert expresses the opinion that the ground should have been given to the Government without charge, but that it must be taken at the valuation named, though he considered it exorbitant. He also directs Mr. Pennock to have prepared plans for improving the timber-dock, a creek making up into the yard, and which was then used as such.
January 24, 1801, $12,000 were remitted to Mr. John Hopkins, of Richmond, Va., to be paid to the State, as the purchase-money of the Gosport lands, and under date of 15th June, 1801, a deed was executed by Governor Monroe, by which the title and jurisdiction of the property were conveyed to the United States. This deed is now on file in the Bureau of Yards and Docks, Navy Department.
In a report submitted to the House of Representatives April 27, 1802, by Mr. Mitchell, from the Committee on Naval Affairs, that gentleman stated that $12,000 had been expended for purchase and $4,000 for improvements at Gosport without authority of law. Under date of March 10, 1802, Mr. Mitchell, from the same committee, reported that, in the opinion of the committee, Gosport and Charlestown, Mass., from the improvements already made, and from other circumstances, were the most eligible places for receiving and repairing the ships in actual service; and that, should any additional improvements be necessary at those places, they ought to be made. He also recommended the appointment of suitable persons to make plans for improving those yards, and the appropriation of $50,000 to carry the plans into effect.
The $4,000 above referred to as having been expended in improvements at Gosport had been used to build a spar-shed, timber-shed, a bridge across a small creek, which separated the yard from the rest of Gosport at that time, (outside of where the present north wall stands,) and probably in part for wooden wharves along the water-front? and a fence around the property.
We find mention of vessels laying up, repairing, and fitting out at this yard in 1800, 1801, and 1802. In 1801, a squadron under Commodore Dale fitted out. On the 27th of July, 1801, orders were sent to heave dozen the Chesapeake for repairs.
In October, 1801, a marine-guard was sent to Gosport yard, and the navy-agent was directed to furnish them with quarters. It is probable that the wooden barrack-building which stood on about the same site [19] that the brick barracks were afterward built upon (see plan, (Plate 2) was erected for the purpose.
In April, 1802, Mr. Pennock recommends the building of a store-house for provisions, &c, within the yard. Up to that time, private warehouses had been hired for the use of the navy-stores.
April 26,1802, Mr. Pennock was removed, and Daniel Bedinger was appointed navy-agent and superintendent of the navy-yard.
In May, 1802, a circular-order was addressed by the Department to navy-agents informing them that specific appropriations had been made for the expenses of the Navy, and that, among other items, $190,575 had been appropriated for purchase and transportation of timber and other materials, including ordnance for the 74-gun ships, and $50,000 for improvements of navy-yards.
In April, 1803, $10,000 were sent to Mr. Bedinger to build a warehouse and a timber-shed at Gosport. We find by the correspondence of a little later date that, instead of expending the money for the purpose authorized, Mr. Bedinger built with it, first, a brick wall, beginning a short distance from the water-side, running along the north front of the yard, and down the west side to the creek which formed the southern boundary, and part of which forms the present timber-basin; secondly, a brick dwelling-house for himself within the yard, and which was afterward, for many years, used as the commandant's house, (see plan,) and, with what money was left, a very indifferent shed for timber, and a warehouse, which afterward had to be taken down to prevent its falling.
August 6, 1804, an order was sent to Mr. Bedinger detaching the marine-guard from the navy-yard and ordering it to Washington.
In May, 1805, Bedinger was ordered to repair the wharves, which had been represented by a citizen as being much out of order. We find, under date of February 6,1806, a report from Mr. Thomas Turner, accountant of the Navy, in which that gentleman states that $42,748.78 had been expended in improvements and repairs at this yard, and yet, except the wall, scarcely anything of permanent value seems to have been done. The wharves were, and continued to be for many years later, of wood, and, of course, in waters infested with the Teredo navalis, were constantly requiring extensive repairs, and even complete renewal. During the summer of 1806 we find several gunboats and ketches fitting out and laying up, under the direction of Lieut. Arthur Sinclair.
On the 28th of November, 1806, Capt. Stephen Decatur was ordered to superintend the building of four gunboats at Norfolk. He seems to have superseded Lieutenant Sinclair in his duties also, although that officer continued on duty under him. In July, 1807, Mr. Bedinger was ordered to contract for materials for ten additional gunboats, and, a little later, to contract for building the same. Captain Decatur was ordered to superintend the construction. We now find Captain Decatur addressed by the Department as "Commanding naval forces at Norfolk," and he appears to have continued this command until November, 1811; [20] part of the time his force consisting of the frigate United States, which he himself commanded, and of such gunboats and other vessels as were from time to time put into commission. He appears, however, to have had no immediate charge of the navy-yard, which continued under the control of the navy-agent.
In November, 1807, a marine guard was again ordered to the yard. February 10,1808, Bedinger's appointment was revoked, and Theodore Armistead appointed in his place as navy-agent and superintendent of the navy-yard. We now find complaints lodged against Bedinger for having used the public wharves and property in repairing his own vessels, though whether these charges were substantiated does not appear.
The agents up to this time seem not to have been required to give bonds, and, in fact, to have been held very little responsible for their acts, the Department having no military control over them.
In March, 1808, Mr. Armistead was authorized to contract for fifty tons of native hemp, and to have it made into cordage for the Navy. The work was done by private manufacturers, however, and not at the yard.
In April of the same year authority was sent to Mr. Armistead to build a new timber-shed and a warehouse.
In May, 1809, an order was sent to build a powder-magazine in the yard. This stood near the creek, (now timber-basin,) and its location is marked on the plan.
[21] CHAPTER V.
A Commandant ordered to the Yard—Preparations for "Resisting the Insolence
of the British"—Enforcing the Embargo—Declaration of war—
Blockade of the Constellation.In June, 1810, on account of the uncertain relations with Great Britain, a small cruising squadron was ordered to Norfolk under the command of Commodore Decatur.
July 7 of the same year, the Department having become tired of the practice of operating the navy-yard under irresponsible civil administration, ordered Commodore Samuel Barron as commandant of the yard, the gunboats, the officers, and men. The navy-agent was, however, still continued as purchasing and disbursing agent, and, as such, in charge of u all stores other than military." The following letter, addressed to Commodore Barron by the Secretary of the Navy, is of some interest as being the first instructions to the commandant:
"NAVY DEPARTMENT, September 29, 1810.
"Sir: In defining your duties and your authority in the yard at Gosport, it will be sufficient for me to state that all the military stores of every description will be under your care; that the direction of all improvements in the yard, and of all reparations to our vessels at the yard are committed to you; and that within the yard you are to have the entire, undivided command.
"The navy-agent, as heretofore, will have the charge of all stores other than military, and he must have a warehouse at the yard for their safe-keeping, with perfect liberty of ingress and egress.
"PAUL HAMILTON."
The house which has been mentioned as having been built by Mr. Bedinger was assigned to Commodore Barron as a residence. It was, at the time, occupied by the store-keeper or clerk of the yard, an eccentric person of the name of Thomas Dulton, an ex-shipmaster. Although the navy-agent was, nominally, superintendent of the yard, Captain Dulton had been in immediate charge of it for some years, performing all sorts of offices therein, ringing the bell, and mustering the workmen himself. Many singular anecdotes of him are preserved among the traditions of the yard.
Commodore Barron had scarcely entered upon his command, when, on the 29th of October, 1810, he was overtaken by death. Lieut. Robert Henley, under date of November 10, was ordered to assume temporary command of the yard, until* a relief should be ordered.
In May, 1811, Capt. Samuel Evans was ordered as commandant, and [22] from that time we find lieutenants, masters, medical officers, boatswains, and gunners attached to the yard and to the vessels in ordinary.
Captain Evans continued in command until August 10, 1812, when Capt. John Cassin was ordered to relieve him. Captain Cassin had, as lieutenant and master-commandant, been for several years attached to the navy-yard at Washington, part of the time as superintendent and part of the time second in command. The Department seems to have regarded him as a valuable dock-yard officer, and the pay and allowances of a captain commanding a separate squadron were given him in his new position, although he was almost the junior captain on the list when ordered to the command.
On the laying of the embargo in April, 1812, we find Commodore Decatur's squadron again at Norfolk, and he was ordered by the Department, with the vessels under his command and with the gunboats ordered to be fitted out at the navy-yard, to prevent vessels sailing from. the Chesapeake without regular clearances. A few days later we find him ordered to leave the enforcement of the embargo to the gunboats, under the direction of Captain Evans, and to cruise to the eastward with his squadron.
On the 21st of May, 1812, Commodore Decatur's squadron was ordered to New York, in anticipation of war with Great Britain, which, on the 18th of June, was formally declared.
The only force at Norfolk at this time consisted of twenty-one gunboats, the greater part of which were fitted out and used for harbor-defense. On the 14th of July, an order was sent to Captain Evans, limiting the complement of men of each gunboat to eight exclusive of officers, or just enough to exercise the guns, and informing him that in case of emergency he must rely upon volunteers to bring the crews up to an efficient number. This order greatly impaired the usefulness of the gunboats a little later, as it was found impossible to procure volunteers to serve in them.
In August, as above stated, Captain Evans was relieved by Captain Cassin. Very little of interest occurred during the remainder of the year. In October, a blacksmith's shop was erected on the spot marked on the plan. By the letters of Captain Cassin, we find that considerable quantities of timber, lumber, and other stores, and of munitions of war, were furnished from time to time from the navy-yard to the army in the vicinity, particularly to the engineer-officers, who were erecting fortifications. During the summer, Captain Cassin's little force was increased by an armed yacht under Lieut. E. P. Kennedy.
Early in February, 1813, Capt. Charles Stewart, in the Constellation, which had fitted out at Washington, in attempting to get to sea, was met by a large force of British ships, which were seen entering the Chesapeake as he came abreast the Horse Shoe. It being calm when he discovered the enemy, Captain Stewart kedged the Constellation [23] from the Horse Shoe to a position in the Elizabeth River, just opposite Fort Norfolk, now the Navy magazine.
Captain Stewart now became commanding officer of the station in general by virtue of his seniority, though Captain Cassin continued to command the gunboat-flotilla, and made his reports directly to the Department. The most untiring vigilance, activity, and skill were now required to defend the frigate and flotilla from capture, and at the same time to annoy the enemy as much as possible. Both objects were successfully accomplished.
The inconvenience of having the gunboats so poorly manned was severely felt; every effort was made to procure volunteers for them, but without effect, even though very considerable bounties were offered for one month's service. It was soon found necessary to put out of commission all but ten; the crews of those laid up being drafted into those that were kept in commission, though even this left them very short-handed. In March, four block-ships were sunk off Lambert's Point, to obstruct the channel and to prevent the ships of the enemy from passing up the Elizabeth, as they were hourly expected to do. Several attempts were made by the enemy to cut out the Constellation with boats, but were thwarted by the vigilance of Captain Stewart and his officers and crew. In the spring of 1813, Captain Stewart was detached from the Constellation, and the command was given to Captain Tarbell, which made Captain Cassin the senior officer on the station.
On the 20th of June, 1813, a handsome attack was made by Captain Tarbell in the gunboats, which he had officered and manned from the Constellation, and with volunteers from among the troops garrisoning the forts, upon a frigate of the enemy, then lying in Hampton Roads. The attack was made before daylight in the morning, and the frigate was roughly handled before she succeeded in answering the fire.
She made but a lame defense, and soon got under way and edged down to two of her consorts, which were lying also in the Roads, but farther out. These also got under way, and gradually closed in, the wind being light, until they came within range of the gunboats, when Captain Tarbell, finding the force superior to his own, ordered a retreat. The loss of the flotilla was very slight, being one master's mate killed and two men wounded. Two days later, the enemy landed a very large force near the mouth of the Nansemond. Lieutenants Neale, W. B. Shubrick, (now rear-admiral, and the oldest officer in the Navy,) and Sanders of the Constellation, with one hundred seamen, and fifty marines under Lieutenant Breckenbridge, were sent on shore to man a portion of the guns on Craney Island. About 8 a. m. of the 22d, the boats of the enemy's ships attempted to land in front of Craney Island, but were handsomely beaten off by the batteries; three of their boats having been sunk, and forty prisoners taken from them. Norfolk continued to be blockaded until the close of the war, though [24] no successful attempt was made by the enemy to take the place, or any of its defenses.
On the 30th of November, 1813, Mr. Jones, the Secretary of the Navy, in answer to a resolution of the House of Representatives calling for information on the subject of navy-yards, submitted, among other papers the following letter of Captain Cassin, giving a description of the yard at the date of the report:
"NAVY-YARD, GOSPORT, May 25, 1813.
"Sir: I have the honor to inclose you a statement of the accommodations provided in this yard, with the number of officers and men attached. ***** The commander's dwelling of brick, two stories high, made comfortable quarters; marine-barracks, miserable huts of wood, wanting much repair; the officers7 quarters are low two-story frame-buildings, the whole 150 feet from the west wall, which is only 5} feet high; the northwest is bounded by warehouses and timber-sheds, having to extend a fence on the east end to low-water mark.
"The marine hospital stands in the center of the yard, two stories high, was formerly occupied as boatswain's and gunner's store-rooms, built of wood, the center of which is occupied as the hospital, the garret as rigging-loft, and lower part gunner's store, store-keeper's office, purser's issuing-room and office.
"The blacksmith's shops, begun of brick, 165 feet by 50, including anchor and plumbers' shops, not completed, the old shops being dangerous to heat a large fire.
"One large timber-shed, 300 feet long, with brick pillars, and 50 feet wide.
"One small shed for the armorer and plumber; two sheds appropriated, one for the joiners, the other for mast-makers.
"JOHN CASSIN."
In April, 1815, an order was sent to Captain Cassin by the Secretary of the Navy to raise the hulks which had been sunk in the channel during the war, and which constituted a serious obstruction to the narrow channel.
[25] CHAPTER VI.
Examination of Chesapeake Bay and its Approaches by the Naval Commissioners—
Diversity of Opinion as to the Best Site for Navy-Yard—Building of Two Line-of-Battle Ships.During the summer of 1816, under an order dated the 7th of May of that year, an examination was made by the Board of Navy Commissioners,* then consisting of three of the most distinguished officers in the Navy, viz, Commodores John Rodgers, Stephen Decatur, and David Porter, to ascertain the best manner of defending the Chesapeake Bay, and also to determine the most advantageous site for a naval station and depot within its waters.
Differing somewhat in their opinions, especially as to the best location for a naval station, each officer made a separate report. Commodore Rodgers favored a position in York River, ten miles above York, called the Clay Banks; Commodore Porter, the mouth of the Saint Mary's River; and Commodore Decatur, the site already occupied at Gosport.
The main objections urged by Commodores Rodgers and Porter to continuing the station at Gosport were, first, the insecurity of Hampton Roads as an outer harbor, especially in winter and during heavy northeast gales; secondly, the tortuousness of the channel from the Roads to Norfolk, making ingress and egress impossible except with a leading wind; and, thirdly, the fact that there was comparatively little water at the entrance of the Elizabeth, not over twenty feet at low tide. It must be remembered that sails were at that time the only motive-power for ships, and that the tortuousness of the channel, which then constituted so strong an objection, has, with the introduction of steam, ceased to be so serious a detriment to the harbor. The board, though differing as to the best locality for a naval station, were unanimous in their opinion that there should be one somewhere on the Chesapeake Bay. All the members of the board admitted certain advantages of the site in use, such as the abundance of timber in the vicinity, and the great ease with which the yard could be defended from attack either by land or by sea; while Commodore Decatur especially urged the desirability of the establishments being near a populous city, from which supplies of both materials and labor could be drawn.
The reports are published complete in the American State Papers, vol. 1, "Naval Affairs," together with letters of Lieutenant-Colonel Bomford, Ordnance Department, United States Army, who appears to have been a consulting member of the board, and of Captains Arthur Sinclair and Robert T. Spence, United States Navy, who made surveys of
* This board was organized April 25, 1815, having been authorized by an act of Congress approved February 7 of the same year.
[26] the York River and of the Tangier Islands. It has not been thought necessary to reproduce here the whole of the reports referred to, inasmuch as so many changes have occurred since their date, more particularly the introduction, as above mentioned, of steam as a motive power, of iron-clad ships, of torpedoes, rifled ordnance, &c, which, had they existed then, would in all probability have modified materially the opinions of the board.No action seems to have been taken upon the reports of the board, or upon any of them, and no material changes occurred for the next few years.
In the summer of 1817, the keel of a line-of-battle ship was laid. The timber for this ship had been in store for years, having been collected under the provisions of the act of Congress of February 25, 1799, and subsequent amendments. The name afterward chosen for this ship was Delaware.* We find authority given during the same summer to build a saw-shed and a steam-stove.
In January, 1818, authority was sent to Captain Cassin to remove or pull down the old hospital, which was situated within the yard. A small frame-building, located near the present dry-dock, was afterward used for some years as a hospital.
In June, 1818, the ship Alert was assigned as receiving-ship at Norfolk; Commander Jesse Wilkinson being ordered to command her.
In September, 1818, Capt. Arthur Sinclair was ordered to this navy-yard to superintend the construction of the Delaware, under Captain Cassin. Captain Sinclair is soon after addressed as commanding naval-officer afloat at Norfolk, and held a command separate from the yard for several years later. The receiving-ship was a part of his command, and all recruiting was done under his direction. We find about this period, and for some years after, considerable quantities of timber, plank, knees, masts, and mast-pieces, and also of cordage furnished from Gosport to the navy-yards in other parts of the country.
In the latter part of 1818, the old wooden buildings used as marine-barracks were pulled down and a brick building put up in their place. The line-of-battle ship New York was also commenced in this year. †
In October, 1820, the Delaware was launched and housed over, not being required for service immediately.
In June, 1821, Captain Cassin was relieved by Capt. Lewis Warrington. During the summer of that year, Captain Warrington was directed to fill in the old timber-basin. This was a shallow basin, originally formed by a creek or cove, and included the spot where ship-house B was afterward built; its banks were protected by wharf-logs, with a wharf
* This noble old ship was scuttled and burned to the water's edge at the destruction of the navy-yard in 1861, and, after the close of the war, what remained of her hulk was sold to wreckers, who raised and broke her up in 1867-'68 for the copper. Her live-oak timbers were found to be as sound as the day she was launched, nearly fifty years before.† The New York was never launched but was burned at the time the navy-yard was destroyed in April, 1861.
[27] across the entrance, provided with slips for boats to enter. A ship-house was authorized to be built over the New York; this was afterward lettered A. A pair of masting-shears was also authorized.In August, 1821, a school for midshipmen was established under the charge of Chaplain David P. Adams, on board the Guerriere, frigate, then in ordinary at Norfolk.
Improvements to the navy-yard buildings, repairs to the wharves, filling in and leveling the grounds, were carried on from year to year under the current appropriations. In November, 1823, the Secretary of the Navy reported to Congress the following as the improvements at Gosport up to that date, the most of which have been previously noticed in these pages, viz: a brick wall around the yard; a comfortable dwelling for the commandant; a large and convenient smiths shop of brick- two large brick warehouses; a few frame-buildings used as joiners' shop, coopers' shops, &c; very convenient houses and quarters for the marines; a building-slip; a substantial ship-house; and a pair of mast-shears.
In December, 1824, Captain Warrington was relieved from the command of the yard by Master-Commandant* James Renshaw
* The title of master-commandant was changed to that of commander; and sailing master, to master, by act of Congress approved March 3, 1837.
[28] CHAPTER VII.
Report of the Secretary of the Navy urging the building of two dry-docks, one
of which at Gosport—Negotiations Commenced for Purchasing Additional
Land at Gosport—Commodore Barron's Plan for Improving the Yard.On the 25th of May, 1824, the Senate of the United States passed a resolution calling upon the Secretary of the Navy for information upon the following points:
1st, The expediency, usefulness, economy, and necessity of a dry-dock of sufficient capacity for receiving, examining, and repairing ships of the line.
2d. The best location for a dry-dock.
3d. The probable expense of the construction of one of the size mentioned, in a solid and durable manner, with the needful appendages for an advantageous use of it.
The Hon. Mr. Southard, then Secretary of the Navy, in his answer to the resolution, under date of January 3,1825, urged in very strong terms the necessity not only of one, but of at least two dry-docks for the Navy, at its then present, size. He called attention to the fact that not one existed in the country, though the arguments to prove the propriety of building one or more had several times been offered since the organization of the Navy Department in 1798; that twice appropriations had been made by Congress for the construction of docks, [on the 25th of February, 1799, and on the 3d of March, 1813,] but the amounts appropriated were so small as to be entirely inadequate to the purpose. He stated that the only method of examining and repairing the hulls of heavy ships below the water-line, then available, was that of heaving down, an exceedingly slow, expensive, laborious, and dangerous operation, and very unsatisfactory in its results; while, with a dry-dock, work might be performed in a few hours, and at trifling expense, which would take weeks by the process then in use.
In regard to the location, he quoted the opinion of the Navy-Commissioners, that there should be one in the eastern part of the Union and one in the waters of the Chesapeake. For the site of the first of these he proposed Charlestown, Mass., and for the second, Gosport. The following paragraphs are copied from the Secretary's letter:
"At Gosport there is also a valuable yard, with improvements; but there is not within its limits so good a position for a dock as upon the adjoining land, which may be bought for a small sum, and add much to the convenience and utility of the establishment already there.
"The Chesapeake and its waters form a first object in every plan relating to the national defense, and somewhere upon them must be placed [29] an important portion of our naval means. Whether our principal depot ought to be there the resolution does not direct us to inquire. But let that question be decided as it may, Gosport must be retained as a repairing and refitting station, to which resort can be had in cases of need. Lying behind the strong defenses of Old Point Comfort and the Rip Raps, it can never be unimportant as a naval position. It has a numerous surrounding population, deep waters, susceptibility of defense, accessibility at all times, freedom from frost, great facilities in obtaining supplies of materials, and stands at once in the most important and connecting points in that great line of internal intercourse and navigation to which the public attention has at all times been so strongly directed."
The estimated cost of construction of two docks, based mainly upon an estimate for one at Boston by Col. Loammi Baldwin, then one of the first civil engineers in the country,* was $700,000.
No immediate action was taken by Congress upon the report of the Secretary of the Navy, but Mr. Southard, on the 21st of March, 1825, directed the navy-agent at Norfolk to ascertain the prices at which the land adjoining the yard to the southward, and extending in that direction to the river, could be purchased. Under date of April 14, Mr. King, the navy-agent, reported that the aggregate cost of the several parcels of land would be $44,500. Mr. Southard regarded this sum as altogether too great, and directed Mr. King to proceed no further in his negotiations.
On the 25th of May, 1825, Commodore James Barron relieved Captain Renshaw as commandant of the yard.
On the 28th of November, Commodore Barron, in answer to a complaint of the Secretary of the Navy that too long a time was required to repair and fit out ships, informed the Secretary that the delays were immediately owing to want of proper work-shops, store-houses, and a dock, and proposed a plan for the improvement of the yard, which involved the purchase of more land, (the yard being altogether too confined for the purpose for which it was required,) the erection of suitable buildings and shops, and of a floating dry-dock. He furnished a plan and estimates for the last. He especially urged the inexpediency of erecting wooden wharves and docks in waters infested with the Teredo navalis, which destroyed the structures at the water's edge, and left the substructure to form actual obstructions in the channel.
The question of purchasing additional ground seems thus to have been re-opened, and, under date of February 26, 1826, Mr. King, the navy-agent, suggests to the Navy Department the plan of applying to the county court to appoint a jury to appraise the lands required by the Government. This suggestion was approved by the Secretary, but seems to have been a very slow process.
* Colonel Baldwin was one of a family of engineers, all more or less distinguished in their profession. Ho had visited many of the dry-docks of Europe, and was particularly qualified for the work which he afterward performed of building the docks at Gosport and Charleston.
[30] CHAPTER VIII.
Site for a Dry-Dock Selected by Authority of Congress—Appropriation for
Gradual Improvement of the Navy—Plans for the Improvement of the
Several Navy-Yards—Purchase of Additional land at Gosport—Construction
of the Dry-Dock.On the 22d of May, 1826, a resolution of Congress of the following purport was approved, viz:
The President to cause an examination and accurate survey to be made by skillful engineers of a site for a dry-dock at the navy-yards at Portsmouth, N. H., Charlestown, Mass., Brooklyn, N. Y., and Gosport, Va., respectively, and that such engineers be required to state the dimensions necessary for such docks, the advantages of each of the above-named establishments, and the objections that apply to either, with a detailed estimate of the expense of a suitable site, and of constructing a dock at each of said places; and the President be requested to communicate the same to Congress in the first week of the next session.
On the 20th of July, Colonel Baldwin (the civil engineer before mentioned) was appointed by the Department to make the required surveys. The first spot selected at Gosport as the site of the dock was at the northern side of the entrance of the creek, now forming a timber-dock; this site was chosen as being the best in the yard as it then existed.
During the same year (1820) the frigate St. Lawrence was laid down, and a ship-house built, afterward lettered B.
On the 3d of March, 1827, Congress passed an act entitled "An act for the gradual improvement of the Navy of the United States," by which there was appropriated the sum of $500,000 per annum for six years, to be applied to the purposes specified in the act.
By section 4 of the act, the President was authorized to cause to be constructed two dry-docks on the most approved plan, for the use of the Navy of the United States; one of the said docks to be erected at some point to the south and the other to the north of the Potomac River.
By section 6, the President was authorized to cause the navy-yards of the United States to be thoroughly examined, and plans to be prepared for the improvement of the same and the preservation of the public property therein; from which plans, after they should be sanctioned by the President, no deviation should be made but by his special order.
On the 29th of March, 1827, Mr. King, the navy-agent, reported that the lands from Jefferson street, along the line of Third street to the county-road, and thence down to the water, could be purchased for $7,825. He was authorized to make the purchase, and also of such other lands adjoining the yard on the south as should be deemed necessary, and was directed to consult with Commodores Bainbridge, Mor-[31] ris, and Chauncey, who then constituted the board, charged, under authority of the act above alluded to, with the examination of the yards and the formation of plans for their improvement.
The lands finally purchased included all the ground south of Lincoln street and east of Third street to the creek, and several parcels of land lying to the southward of the creek, and now included within the walls of the yard, being town-lots Nos. 120 to 151, both inclusive, and the parcels of laud marked from 1 to 7 on the plan, (Plate 1.)
The following is a list of the purchases made, the dates of the conveyances, the prices paid respectively, and the names of the vendors:
LOTS DATE COST NAMES OF VENDORS Nos. 120, 121, 124, 125 Junee 9, 1826 Mordecai Cook et ux. Nos. 122, 123 Nov. 23, 1826 Enoch Choat et ux. Nos. 126, 127 Mar. 2 6, 1829 Mary A. Fowler Nos. 128 to 135 inclusive Nov. 17, 1827 Arthur Emmerson et ux. Nos. 136, 137 June 30, 1826 John Andrews, Catherine Wilkinson, and others Nos. 138, 139 Mar. 24, 1827 Ann Drewry and Mary Kidd Nos. 140, 141 June 8, 1827 William B. Lamb et ux. Nos. 142, 143 Nov. 29, 1826 Thomas Edwards et ux. Nos. 144, 145 June 2, 1827 Martha Herbert Nos. 146, 147 May 4, 1827 Thomas Edwards et ux. Nos. 148, 149 Mar. 19, 1829 John Collins et ux. Nos. 150, 151 Apr. 13, 1827 John Wilson et ux. No. 1 June 2, 1827 Thomas Edwards et ux. No. 2 May 8, 1827 Ann Galt No. 3 May 28, 1827 Sophia Bradford No. 4 May 28, 1827 William Bingley et ux. No. 5 May 28, 1827 Arthur Emmerson et ux. No. 6 *Mar 31, 1826 Margaret Livingston No. 7 Apr. 8, 1828 Sophia Bradford
In taking possession of the newly-acquired property, the Government also took possession of as much of Second, Nelson, Jefferson, and Fayette streets as were included in it, though, as will be shown further on, these were not purchased until some years later. It may be here said that the streets above mentioned were never actually made or used as such. A county-road ran along the south side of the creek to the river, where a bridge crossed from a point near the southern end of the present mast-house and house-joiners' shops. (No. 28.)The Board of Commissioners, of which Commodore Bainbridge was president, during the winter of 1827-'28 made an elaborate plan for the improvement of the yard, based on a thorough survey of the yard and the adjacent waters by Colonel Baldwin. † (See Plate II.) As will be seen by reference to the plate, the position before chosen for a dry-dock was abandoned and sites for three docks selected on the addition to the
* It will be seen that some of the deeds of conveyance boar dates anterior to that on which the purchases were authorized; the writer can account for this only on the supposition that the navy-agent bargained for the property in anticipation of authority to purchase it.
† Capt. W. P. S. Sanger, now the able chief civil-engineer of the Navy, was one of Colonel Baldwin's assistants in making the survey.
[32] southward of the creek. The report of the Commissioners was dated 1st of April, 1828, and was approved by the President, John Quincy Adams, on the 24th of the following November.
CONSTRUCTION OF THE DRY-DOCK.
The work upon the dry-dock was commenced in November, 1827. Colonel Baldwin was appointed engineer in charge of the construction of this as well as of that authorized at Boston ; and Capt. W. P. S. Sanger was appointed resident engineer at Gosport. Captain Sanger continued the immediate charge of the work under Colonel Baldwin until its completion, and to him the writer is indebted for the most of the following information on the subject, a part of which, derived from the same source, was published some years since by Mr. Charles B. Stuart.
The northernmost of the three sites selected for docks in the plan was chosen for the one about to be built. As will be seen by reference to the plan, the site as laid down projected about 130 feet outside of the shore-line or into about 10 feet of water. The average surface of the ground inside the shore-line was 6 feet above high-water mark.
COFFER-DAM.
A strong water-tight coffer-dam was built as a preliminary step to beginning the excavation ; this consisted of two rows of piles 12.5 feet apart, directly in front of the dock, and 8 feet apart at the sides. Each row consisted first of ribbon-piles 14 inches square and 45 feet long, driven 8 feet apart, to which were bolted ribbons of 12 by 14 inch yellow-pine timber, one at the. head of the piles, one 6-1/2 feet, and one 10-1/2 feet lower; inside of the ribbons, i. e., toward the interior of the dam, were driven sheet-piles 13 inches square, and tongued and grooved. The rows were then secured to each other by tie-beams laid across and secured to the heads of the ribbon-piles; and by 2-inch iron bolts through the lower ribbons, one between each two of the ribbon-piles. The intervening space between the rows was then filled with clay from the excavation. The dam was found to be perfectly tight and secure, and never gave any trouble while in use.
COB-WHARF.
Joining on to the coffer-dam, on either side, was constructed a cob-wharf; that to the southward extended only some 40 yards when it turned in to the shore; but that to the northward extending along the proposed line of the quay-wall to the entrance of the proposed timber-dock, where it joined a crib-work built along the line designated for the south wall of the latter.
SOIL AND EXCAVATION.
The excavation for the dock was now pushed steadily forward, and the earth removed was used to fill in from the shore-line to the cob-wharf above mentioned, and to level other portions of the yard. The [33] soil for a depth of from 5 to 12 feet was a yellow sand; next a stratum of fine compact blue clay, with here and there upon its upper surface irregular strata of blue sand, and of shells mixed with clay. The blue clay extended at the entrance of the dock about 30 feet below the bottom of the pit, and at the head diminished to 15 feet, where a bed of gravel was reached, so hard that an auger would not penetrate it. The pit was, when the excavation was finished, 40 feet deep, 340 feet long, and 100 feet wide at the bottom; the sides sloping so as to make it about 60 feet wider, and as much longer at the top. A chalybeate spring was met in the excavation, the flow of which was so strong as to force the water through the pores, of the piles which were driven. An auger-hole being bored in the head of a pile, the water would flow out of it freely. The summit of this spring was some six feet below the level of the low-water mark.
FOUNDATION OR BEARING PILES.
The pit having been prepared, foundation or bearing piles were driven in rows 3 feet apart from center to center, but somewhat closer along the central line of the pit. These piles were about 30 feet long at the entrance, and gradually diminished in length to 15 feet at the head, being driven down to the stratum of gravel above referred to, into which it was impossible to make them enter more than a few inches. A row of sheet-piles was next driven across the head and along either side of the pit, a row across the front entrance, one under where the grooves for the floating-gate were to be, one under the turning-posts of the gates, and one under the gallery. These rows of sheet-piles act both as stop-waters and as additional supports to the foundation.
FOUNDATION.
The heads of the bearing-piles were cut off level, and upon them were placed, transversely with the axis off the dock, yellow-pine beams 12 inches thick either way, and secured to the piles by treenails. The spaces between the beams and to the level of their upper surfaces were then filled with broken stone, after which a close floor of 4-inch yellow-pine plank was laid, and upon this and directly over .the lower was placed a second course of timber 12 inches thick by 16, laid edgewise; the intermediate spaces between these were filled with brick laid in cement, after this another floor similar to the first was put down.
MASONRY.
All the dimension stone of this dock is of granite from different Massachusetts quarries, and nearly all of it was dressed in the quarries from the plans, and so well was this work done that it is estimated that not $100 were spent in altering stone. The rubble-backing to the side-walls was obtained principally from the quarries at Port Deposit, Md. A small portion, however, came from the Falls of the James River, near Richmond.
[34] The chamber of the dock, or the portion ordinarily used for docking ships, is 253 feet long and 85-1/2 feet wide at the coping. The extreme length of the dock, which can be made available by placing the floating-gate outside the entrance and not using the turning-gates, is 320 feet. The United States ship Severn, measuring 324 feet over all, was recently docked by blocking up to raise her above the miter-sills. The floor of the chamber is 227 feet long and 30 feet wide. The increase in the width of the chamber from the floor to the coping is produced by offsets in the side-walls forming the altars. The side-walls are 35 feet thick at the bottom and but 7 at the coping. The floor is laid in two courses of cut granite in the form of an inverted arch, to resist the upward pressure of the water; the lower course is tapering in form, 1 foot thick at the entrance of the chamber and 2 feet 3 inches at the head, thus giving a rise of 1 foot 3 inches; the second course is of uniform thickness, i. e., 3 feet.
The lowest two altars have a rise of 15 inches each, the floor rising to the level of the lowest altar at the head of the chamber; the next three have a rise of 1 foot each. These five altars are laid so as to form a continuation of the inverted arch; the next three rise 3 feet each; the next three, 4 feet 4-1/2 inches each; when a further rise of 4 feet 4-1/2 inches brings us to the coping. The width of the altars from the lowest up are as follows: The first, 3 feet; the next three, 2 feet each; the next, 4 feet; the next two, 2-1/2 feet each; the next, 4 feet; and the upper three, 2 feet each. The head of the chamber is semicircular. There are five timber-slips in the head of the dock, with landings upon the broad altars. There are six flights of stone stairs in the chamber for the use of workmen, three on each side, viz, one at the head; one at the center; and one at the entrance. At the entrance of the chamber is the gallery, which is the lowest part of the floor, and from which the water passes through gates into the discharging-culverts. Next, outside the gallery, is the great inverted arch; the miter-sills against which the turning-gates rest when closed, abut against this arch. Vertical recesses in the side-walls receive the turning-gates when open. Outside of these recesses, at the entrance of the dock, is another inverted arch, a groove in which, and continued up the side-walls, receives the floating-gate. The floating-gate may, however, as has been mentioned above, be placed against shoulders in the face of the entrance, thus increasing the capacity of the dock.
CULVERTS.
On either side of the dock a culvert 4 feet high and 2-1/2 feet wide in the opening, and provided with a bronze gate, leads from the gallery to the reservoir across the head of the dock; the culverts are built of hard brick laid in cement, with straight side-walls and semicircular tops and bottoms; the thickness of the walls is 14 inches.
The reservoir is 12 feet high and 7 feet wide, built with straight side- [35] walls of cut granite, a semicircular top of brick 14 inches thick, and a brick inverted arch at the bottom of the same thickness.
From the south end of the reservoir, (where a well is situated, reaching to the surface,) a tunnel, with cross-section elliptical in form, 4 feet high and 2 feet 9 inches wide in the opening and about 190 feet long, leads to the pump-well. From the pump-well a discharge-culvert about 150 feet long leads into the creek at the southwest corner of the yard; it is about 4 feet square at the mouth, and supplied with a composition gate.
Water is admitted to the dock through filling-culverts, one on either side, 14 feet 9 inches below the coping, and leading inside of the turning-gates; these culverts also are supplied with bronze gates.
PUMP-WELLS AND ENGINE-HOUSE.
There are two pump-wells 15 feet 9 inches in diameter each, and connected together; they are built of brick; the bottoms are inverted arches, 2 feet thick; the side-walls are 2-1/2 feet thick, with four projecting courses of cut stone at proper intervals to support the pump-frames. On the tops of the walls are stone copings 1 foot deep and 18 inches wide.
There are four lift-pumps in each well, each 30 inches in diameter and of 3 feet stroke, made of cast iron, lined with composition staves and supplied with composition boxes and valves. The pumps are driven by pinion-wheels fitted on either end of the engine-shaft, working in cog wheels on the shafts of the pumps.
The engine-house was a two-story brick building, 200 feet long by 50 feet wide; but 50 feet of the lower story was used for the lifting-engines; the rest of the building was at first occupied as a saw-mill and as a machine-shop. The whole is now used as a machine-shop.
GATES.
The turning-gates are constructed of timber and composition, and covered with copper. Each gate is 36 feet wide and 30 feet 8 inches in height. The turn-posts are fitted with composition saucers in the lower ends, which rest upon composition pintles fixed in the masonry; the tops of the posts are secured in place by straps keyed to anchors laid in the coping. Each gate is supplied with two composition rollers, and cast-iron tracks are laid upon the floor for these to travel upon.
FLOATING GATE.
The floating-gate, or caisson, is built of white-oak timber and yellow pine plank, copper-fastened. It is 60 feet long, 30 feet high, and 16 feet wide amidships. The stems and keel are each 2 feet thick, and project 14 inches into the grooves in the walls and arches. There is a fore-and-aft bulk-head from stem to stern and from deck to keelson, composed [35] of solid timber, and 2 feet thick. Three courses of tie-beams from this bulk-head to the sides resist the pressure of the water Four copper ship's pumps on each side, and worked by brakes on deck, are used for pumping out the water when it is desired to lift the gate out of the grooves.
On the 17th of June, 1833, the anniversary of the battle of Bunker Hill, the dock was opened for the reception of the line-of-battle ship Delaware, the first liner built at Gosport, and the first national ship ever docked in a dry-dock belonging to the United States.
Large numbers of ladies and gentlemen were present to witness the opening ceremonies, which were made as imposing as possible, the occasion being one of great rejoicing as well to the citizens of Norfolk and Portsmouth as to the whole Navy.
The line-of-battle ship North Carolina was soon afterward admitted to the dock.
The dry-dock was turned over to the commandant of the navy-yard complete on the 15th of March, 1834. The total cost of the work was $974,356.65. The following is a tabulated statement of expenditures up to October 1,1833, as published in the report of the Secretary of the Navy for that year:
ITEMS AMOUNTS Offices, shop, and stables Tools, lighters, driving-machines, &c Pine-timber, plank, mails, iron, &c Surveys and plans of navy-yards Coffer-dam Pier wharves Cob-wharves Excavation Foundation Drainage, (temporary) Masonry of dock Banking up Wells and tunnel Engine-house Engine and pumps Turning-gates Floating-gate Removal of coffer-dam Miscellaneous Superintendence TOTAL
* These items not belonging properly to the dock, their cost should not be included. The engine-house was used for other purposes also, so that part only of its cost should be charged to the dock.
[37] CHAPTER IX.
Titles and Jurisdiction of Lands—Tub Pennock Claim—The Harper Claim—Improvements
of the Yard under the "Approved Plan."In 1830 a claim was set up by the widow and trustees of William Pennock to the square of ground which had formerly comprised lots 128 to 335, both inclusive. This ground had been purchased by the United States from Arthur Emmerson, whose title was derived from the State of Virginia, and was of comparatively recent date. It was now asserted by the claimants that the square had been purchased by Wells Cowper, in 1785, from the commissioners appointed by law to sell the Gosport lands, and had been sold and conveyed by the heirs of the said Cowper to Mr. Pennock.
On the 23d of March, 1830, Mr. Emmerson informed the Navy Commissioners, in answer to a communication from them on the subject, that he knew of no title to conflict with his own; but that if anybody could produce a valid title, he was willing to refund the money he had received for it, or if suit was entered he held himself ready to defend the title.
Under date of June 25, 1830, Mr. Nash Legrand, the navy-agent at Norfolk, was directed by the Secretary of the Navy to cause the conflicting titles to be examined. In his answer, dated July 20, Mr. Legrand states that the heirs of Cowper held a receipt for the purchase-money paid to the Commissioners in 1785, but that if any deed had ever been executed conveying the property to them it had been lost. They had however, held uninterrupted possession of the land, "except the owner ship of Emmerson under the State patent." Mr. Legrand had consulted the State's attorney, whose opinion was that the claimants could easily establish their title.
The claimants several times declared their intention of entering suit for the property, but seem never to have done so. As it was not desirable to build upon the ground so long as there was any doubt as to the title, Mr. Legrand was directed, on the 30th of April, 1831, to enter into a contract on the part of the Government with the claimants (they having previously expressed their willingness to do so) by which the latter bound themselves to convey the property to the United States in case their title to it should be established, for the same amount that had been paid to Mr. Emmerson, and which amount that gentleman had again promised to refund should the decision be against him. The contract was executed accordingly on the 31st of October, 1831, but no further steps seem ever to have been taken.
In 1832 a correspondence was commenced by a Mr. John Harper, who had obtained from the State of Virginia, under date of November 13, [38] 1832, a grant of such portions of Second, Fayette, Nelson, and Jefferson streets as were included in the newly-added portions of the yard, and described as "waste and abandoned lands," and which he had caused to be surveyed after it was not only in possession of the Government of the United States but actually inclosed, as was certified to by the surveyor himself. Mr. Harper now desired the Navy Department to purchase his title.
The Department, of course, declined to consider his proposal; and on the 27th of February, 1833, an act was passed by the general assembly of Virginia authorizing the trustees of the town of Portsmouth to convey the title of the property in question to the United States upon payment of its value, and also ceding to the United States the jurisdiction of all the lands recently purchased. The ground contained in the streets was assessed at $4,779, and was duly conveyed to the Government in 1833, by the trustees of Portsmouth, on the payment of that sum; there being some informality in the deed, however, a new conveyance was made in May, 1837.
In accordance with the further provisions of the act of 27th February, 1833, above referred to, Governor Littleton W. Tazewell, by deed dated April 1,1835, conveyed to the United States the jurisdiction of all the lands recently added to the navy-yard as well as of that purchased in 1826 near Fort Nelson, and upon which the naval hospital was after ward, erected, under conditions that should the Government at any time, for the space of five years, fail to use the property for the purpose specified, the jurisdiction should revert to the State of Virginia, and also providing that the officers of the State should at no time be prevented from executing within the limits of the property any process whatsoever.
Mr. Harper continued to urge his claim until the year 1839, when the last of his letters is dated.
The title-deeds to all the different parcels of land forming the navy-yard are on file in the Bureau of Yards and Docks, Navy Department, as well as all correspondence and documents referring to the titles or jurisdiction of the same.
While the work of building the dry-dock was going on, some progress was being made under the plan for the improvement of the yard. This mainly consisted in putting up work-shops, erecting a wall around the yard, filling in and leveling the grounds, &c. After the completion of the dock, Capt. W. P. S. Sanger became the civil engineer of the yard, which position he continued to hold until 1842, when he was transferred to the Bureau of Yards and Docks, then newly created.
A plan of the yard, made by Captain Sanger about the year 1840, (there is, unfortunately, no date upon it,) shows the progress up to that time of the work of improvement, which consisted of the following, viz: A smithery; an iron store, including coppersmiths', tinsmiths', and other [39] small shops; five timber-sheds; a store-house; a mast-shop, with shed for masts and spars; a boat-shop and boat-house; a work-shop for capstans, rudders, and other heavy work; a cooperage and store-house for water-tanks, staves, &c.; dwelling-houses for the commandant and four other yard officers, all substantial brick buildings; besides these, a few temporary timber-sheds, and a number of small buildings not contemplated in the "approved plan," consisting of stables, saw-house, watch-house, oil-house, tar-house, &c. In addition to these, a large portion of the quay-wall had been built on the water-front, and about three-fourths of that surrounding the timber dock or basin. The timber-dock was commenced in 1835. Specific appropriations were made for the quay-wall in 1835, and continued from year to year until 1840.
Commodore Warrington, who had assumed command of the yard May 26,1831, continued it until the 7th of October, 1840. The yard was constantly used in the mean time for fitting out, refitting, repairing, and laying up the ships and vessels of the Navy.
The sloop John Adams was built in 1830. The frigate Macedonian was rebuilt here between the years 1832 and 1836. The surveying-brig Pioneer was launched in 1836. The line-of-battle ship Pennsylvania became the receiving ship in 1837. The sloop Yorktown was commenced in 1835 and launched in 1839.
Of the old buildings that were standing in 1837, the ship-houses, the office-buildings along the north wall, the commandant's house, and a portion of the marine-barracks, were still standing in 1840; the rest had all been removed or rebuilt.
Commodore W. B. Shubrick assumed command of the yard in October, 1840, and retained it until October, 1843. A plan of the yard, made under his direction by Captain Sanger and received at the Bureau of Yards and Docks in November, 1842, shows little progress up to that date beyond what is mentioned above; the continued appropriation for "gradual improvements" having ceased. A blacksmith's shop and turning-machine and a foundery and plumbery had been added to the steam-engine house, and some other store-houses had been begun.
The steamer Union was laid down at the yard in 1841 and launched in 1842. The store-ship Southampton was commenced in 1842.
In October, 1843, Commodore Shubrick was relieved by Commodore Jesse Wilkinson as commandant.
In 1842 an appropriation was made by Congress for a dredging-machine for this yard, which was completed the following year, and successfully used for deepening the channel in front of the dry-dock and along the wharves; the earth brought up was used for filling up where needed in the yard. During the year 1843, the ground around the dry-dock was graded and the pavement relaid; by this the dock was protected from injury to which it had been subject from filtration.
The brig Perry was laid down in 1843 ; some additional machinery [40] was erected in different shops during the same year. The quay-wall was completed during that and the following years, i. e., 1843-'44, as far as ship-house B.
The sloop Jamestown was laid down in 1843 and launched in 1844. In 1845 another store-house, No. 16, was built. A bridge across the timber-dock was completed. The dock itself was still in an unfinished state; no appropriation having been made for several years., Work was suspended on the quay-wall in 1845 for the same reason. A new building-slip was commenced in 1845 under special appropriation. The store-ship Southampton was launched the same year.
On the 26th of August, 1846, the lot of ground opposite the navy-yard, on the Norfolk side of the Elizabeth, and known as Saint Helena, was purchased and added to the yard. This ground was needed for ordnance purposes. Commodore Wilkinson had purchased it some time previously, without letting it be known that the Government contemplated doing so, and now conveyed it to the United States for $2,403.50, the amount he had paid for it, with interest to date, his sole object in making the purchase from his private means having been to save the Government from the exorbitant valuation likely to be put upon the land as soon as it should be ascertained that it was desired as an addition to the Navy-yard. Jurisdiction of the Saint Helena property was ceded to the United States by an act of the general assembly of Virginia, dated March 22, 1847.
Commodore Lawrence Kearny became commandant on the 1st of June, 1847. Some progress was made that year upon the launching-slip previously spoken of. Another store-house, No. 13, commenced the year before, was finished. The frigate St. Lawrence and the brig Perry were launched. The former had been on the stocks for over twenty years. The steam-frigate Powhatan was laid down.
January 19,1848, Commodore John D. Sloat was ordered to relieve Commodore Kearny as commandant.
In 1848 a small appropriation was made by Congress for continuing the quay-wall, and was applied to build a coffer-dam for the north wall of the timber-dock. Appropriations were also made for a new pair of masting-shears, for additional machinery, for various shops, and for improvements at Saint Helena.
In September, 1849, Fort Norfolk and the grounds about it were turned over to the Navy by the War Department for the establishment of a magazine for powder and shells. Work was immediately commenced upon the shell-house. A building near the site of the present saw-mill, outside of the yard, when built, had been used as a magazine for some years previously. During the same year, building No. 51 (see plan) was erected, also some brick stables. An engine-house to the smithery was commenced. A gun-park, a coal-house, and a landing-wharf were built at Saint Helena. Work upon the quay-wall progressed as far as the appropriation would permit.
[41] Between the years 1850 and 1860 great progress was made in improving the yard, under current appropriations, while at the same time great activity prevailed in building, repairing, fitting out, and laying up the ships and vessels of the Navy. The steam-frigate Powhatan was launched in 1850.
Work upon the quay-wall was steadily continued from year to year, though that portion to the southward of the timber-dock, instead of being placed where it was originally designed to be on the "approved plan," was built on a continuance of the line of that to the northward of the dock. This brought it into considerably deeper water, and at the same time added to the area of that portion of the yard. In 1854 the method of building coffer-dams to exclude the water from the section of wall in progress was abandoned, and the work was carried on by the use of diving-bells. This change not only facilitated the labors but very considerably reduced the cost.
The timber-dock was finished in 1854, together with the bridges across it. A culvert was built in 1853 to drain the lands adjoining the yard and to conduct the water from them into the dock, thereby considerably freshening that in the dock. The culvert was built of brick laid upon a pine-plank floor.
There being but a limited supply of fresh water at Gosport, appropriations were made in 1850 for building cisterns for collecting rain-water; one was completed in 1851, with a capacity of 38,000 gallons. Afterward two large reservoirs were built—one completed in 1856, holding 124,000 gallons, with a head, when full, 14-1/2 feet above the grade of the yard. Pipes from this cistern lead to hydrants in different parts of the yard, and to the wharf at the masting shears, thus supplying the yard and ships with water, and also the engines in case of fire. Water was supplied to the cistern from the roofs of store-houses Nos. 14 and 16, near which it was located. The other reservoir was completed in 1857— was located near timber-sheds Nos. 32 and 33, from the roofs of which it was supplied with water; its capacity is 128,000 gallons.
Work upon the magazine and the keeper's house at Fort Norfolk was commenced in 1851, but not completed until 1856. A reservoir was built near the magazine to contain 90,000 gallons of water. A sea-wall and landing-wharf were also built, and two old houses converted, one into a store-house and the other into a filling-house.
Building No. 19, a rigging-loft, armory, and offices, and the entrance-gateway, was erected in 1851-'52. A building was constructed in 1853 near timber-shed No. 33, which was designed for a saw-mill and burnetizing-house. It was entirely devoted to the latter purpose, however, and in 1856 a saw-mill was erected at the south end of the yard, on one of the sites intended for a dry-dock. A culvert was constructed in 1855 from the burnetizing-house to the timber-dock.
In 1855, Gosport, Norfolk, and Portsmouth were visited by that ter- [42] rible scourge, yellow fever. A ship called the Ben Franklin arrived in May or June with yellow fever on board, and was sent below to the quarantine, where she was kept until it was supposed all danger was past, when she was allowed to come up to Dickson's wharf in Gosport, and there discharge her cargo. This occurred during the first week in July. A few days afterward the fever broke out in Gosport, and gradually spread to Portsmouth, and thence to Norfolk, assuming the most virulent type, and raging without sensible abatement until frost set in, late in October. Work at the navy-yard almost entirely ceased, the panic being so great that it was impossible to procure mechanics, with the exception of a small number of old hands. Almost everybody who could do so left the city, remaining away till the danger was past.
Dredging was carried on from year to year during the decade, deepening the channel and furnishing material for filling in the low places of the yard, and the space between the old shore-line and the quay-wall as well as at Saint Helena. A new dredging-machine was built in 1854.
Grading the yard was also attended to; pavements were laid around the buildings, and brick foot-walks through the yard in various directions $ roads were macadamized, and a thorough system of drainage established, by which the sanitary condition of the yard was much improved.
Gas for lighting the yard and buildings was introduced in 1855.
On the removal of the saw-mill in 1855 and 1856, new machinery was added to the machine-shop, and a new foundery was erected, completed in 1859, on site 41, designed in the "approved plan "for an iron and copper store. A boiler-shop was commenced to the northward of the machine-shop. A new engine for pumping out the dry-dock was completed and set up in 1856. A large and commodious building was erected in 1856 as a receiving and issuing store for the department of provisions and clothing. It was located on the new-made ground, just south of the entrance of the timber-dock, into which a culvert from its cellars leads. An ordnance building not on the approved plan was commenced in 1858 and completed in 1859. Gun and shot platforms were built at Saint Helena, and also at the yard south of the ship-house A.
Two large lifting-cranes were erected on the quay-wall in 1857, and a large amount of machinery of various sorts was added to the different shops through the yard. Alterations, additions, and improvements were made to some of the buildings under the appropriation for "repairs of all kinds." Rail-tracks were laid down at Saint Helena and also at the yard; in the latter connecting the anchor-racks near the dry-dock, the different shops and store-houses, with the wharf near the shears.
Considerable building, repairs, &c, of ships, was carried on during the same period. In 1855 the magnificent steam-frigates Roanoke and Colorado were laid down; these vessels were finished and launched in 1857. The steam-sloops Dakota and Richmond were begun in 1858 [43] and launched, the former in 1859 and the latter in 1860. A purchased steamer called the Dispatch was rebuilt in 1859 under the name of Pocahontas.
The following were the commandants of the yard during this period, viz: Capt. Silas H. Stringham, (now rear-admiral,) from 17th February, 1851, to 1st April, 1852; Capt. Samuel L. Breeze, from 1st April, 1852, to 10th May, 1855; Commodore Isaac McKeever, from 10th May, 1855, until his death, which occurred on the 1st of April, 1856; Capt. Thomas A. Dornin, (now commodore,) from 6th May, 1856, to 30th April, 1859; Capt. Charles H. Bell, (now rear-admiral,) from 30th April, 1859, to 1st August, 1860, when he was relieved by Commodore Charles S. McCauley.
(Continued.)
Site Table of Contents
Portsmouth Table of Contents
Norfolk Table of Contents
Chesapeake Table of Contents
