History of the Ironclads In North Carolina

Three ironclads were contemplated for the region: the Albemarle for the Roanoke, her sister ship the Neuse at Kinston on the river whose name she bore; and a third sister at Tarboro on the Tar; this last ship was never completed. Because of iron shortages the ship's construction took more than a year, while this activity was not ignored by Yankee intelligence. The Albemarle was armed with captured Yankee guns: two 8-inch Parrott rifles, mounted on traverses at either end so they could pivot to fire either straight ahead/astern or on either broadside. These homemade ironclads packed quite a punch.

A majority of available wood in the White Hall vicinity was pine, a variety commonly used in the South for the planking and decking of ships. The Neuse was built with the available timber resources of the immediate area, unlike its sister ship, the Albemarle, which had to have wood brought in to the construction site. The construction of the ironclad at White Hall was a relatively simple procedure. Though the Neuse and Albemarle were built in separate locations by different contractors, both were conceived by the same designer—John L. Porter, the Confederacy's chief shipbuilding architect. The vessels were nearly identical.

Supervising the building of this terrifying trio was Capt. J.W. Cooke, CSN, later to become the Albemarle's skipper. The building began at the famous cornfield at Edwards Ferry, where the waters were too shallow for interference from the Union gunboats which patrolled and controlled the eastern N.C. sounds. The Neuse was built in Whitehead, but later was moved to Kinston to avoid capture and to complete armament.

CSS Albemarle

"We fired about thirty shells at the ram [CSS Albemarle] but they had no effect on her." Surgeon's Steward Sayers O. Nichols, USS Miami, May 4, 1864

Frustrated with the inability to drive Federal forces from eastern North Carolina with infantry alone, the Confederacy turned to the construction of ironclads. Work on the CSS Albemarle began in a cornfield along the Roanoke River at Edwards Ferry in January 1863. Completed at Halifax, Halifax County, the ship proved instrumental in the capture of Plymouth the following April. Determined to destroy the Albemarle, the United States Navy sent Lieutenant William B. Cushing, who managed to sink the ironclad with a torpedo on the evening of October 27, 1864. Without the protection of the Albemarle, Plymouth was soon in Federal hands again.

CSS Neuse

Similar to the Albemarle in design, the CSS Neuse was constructed in the hope of driving the Federals out of New Bern and the Pamlico Sound region. On October 17, 1862, a contract was signed between the Confederate Navy Department and the shipbuilding firm of Howard & Ellis to construct an ironclad gunboat. The vessel Neuse, as it would later be identified, was one of 22 ironclads constructed and commissioned by the Confederate Government. The hull of the ship was to be turned over to the Navy Department by March 1, 1863, "complete in all respects ready to receive the engine and machinery . . . and fasten iron plating on said vessel." Work on the Neuse was begun shortly after the contract was signed. The building of the ship commenced at White Hall, North Carolina (now Seven Springs), on the banks of the Neuse River. She would not be completed for another 15 months after that deadline.

The design of the Neuse, with its flat bottom, was similar to that of a barge. Consequently, carpenters working on the ironclad needed only to possess simple house-building skills. The Navy Department was aware that carpenters could be obtained in the White Hall area and did not bring these men in from out of state.

Construction

During construction of the ship, the most immediate challenge facing the Navy Department was an adequate defense of the construction site. Lieutenant Commander James Cooke, of the Confederate States Navy, was sent to North Carolina to assist in the construction of the Neuse and Albemarle and insure that these ships were placed into service with the least possible delay. Because Union troops had been making periodic raids into eastern North Carolina, Cooke became alarmed that the area around White Hall might be vulnerable to assault. He wrote the Engineer Bureau regarding his apprehensions of a possible attack while the Neuse was being built.

Union attack to destroy the CSS Neuse

Cooke's fear of enemy forces attacking the ironclad while it was under construction was well justified. Under the overall command of Gen. John G. Foster, Union troops departed New Bern on December 11, 1862, on an inland raid toward Goldsboro. Foster's expedition reached Kinston on the 14th, and after an engagement with Confederate forces under Gen. N. G. Evans, the Federals ransacked the town. Departing Kinston on December 15, Union troops moved up the south bank of the Neuse River, following the retreating rebels to White Hall. Confederate reinforcements arrived to help Evans's command further resist the Federal advance.

The Neuse was not severely damaged during the battle. While construction was not aborted, its completion was undoubtedly delayed. After Foster's troops left the White Hall vicinity, workmen were back on the job, preparing the ship for its initial voyage to Kinston—where it would receive its fittings, machinery, and iron plating. Finally, in mid-March 1863, the Neuse slipped from its ways into the river where it was free to drift down river to Kinston. When the Neuse arrived in Kinston, it was moored near the foot of Caswell Street. Later the ship was moved down river about 100 yards to deeper water. This mooring site was referred to as the "cat hole." The riverbank adjacent to the "cat hole" was steep, allowing the ship's machinery to be lowered easily into the hull from the riverbank.

Work Continues, Lack of of Iron, Supplies, and Progress

Work on the Neuse progressed steadily during the summer and fall of 1863, although there were the usual problems in getting enough iron to meet the schedule. During this period, workers installed available iron plating and did interior carpentry work.

Administrative problems also caused delays during this period. The abilities of Flag Officer William Lynch, who was given authority by the Navy Department to oversee the completion of all ironclads under construction in North Carolina, often came under fire. As the year drew to a close, it was obvious that the Neuse was behind in its completion schedule. The first few months of 1864 would prove crucial to the Navy Department for getting the ship into service. During the month of January, machinery from Richmond, Virginia, began to arrive for the ironclad.

Stuck on a Sand Bar

On April 22, 1864, the new warship at last seemed destined for action. The Neuse, under orders from the Navy Department, steamed out of its "cat hole" toward New Bern. The vessel's construction was still incomplete. It was planned that the Neuse and Albemarle would meet at New Bern in an attempt to recapture the port town. True to its luck, however, the Neuse had barely moved one-half mile down river when it grounded hard upon a sand bar.

The river rose again in mid-May and the Neuse was freed at last. Instead of attacking New Bern, however, the gunboat returned to its moorings in Kinston. During the period the ironclad had been grounded, Hoke's men were recalled to Virginia by General Lee to counter the massive buildup of troops posed by Gen. Ulysses S. Grant. Consequently, the Neuse remained idle at Kinston, unable to venture down river without ground support.

Completed, but No Mission

By the beginning of June, the hard luck ironclad was at last completed. Yet without troop support, offensive operations were impractical, and the Neuse and its crew remained inactive. The time for effective employment of the gunboat had passed and without troop support the boat stayed at Kinston. It wasn't until November before the rose enough for the boat to move freely. With the new year came the toppling of the last major strongholds of the Confederacy. By mid-January 1865, Fort Fisher on North Carolina's southeastern coast had fallen after a massive amphibious attack, and Union forces were preparing to march on the crucial port town of Wilmington. Consequently, as Confederate troops were rushed to the Cape Fear region to help defend Wilmington, any hope of ground support for a New Bern expedition by the Neuse was extinguished for good..

Though Robert F. Hoke's division had been sent by General Lee to help safeguard Fort Fisher and Wilmington, the Confederacy was forced to surrender the port on February 22, after a rapid Federal campaign up the Cape Fear River. Two weeks after Wilmington fell, Union forces stood ready to move on the important rail junction of Goldsboro. The objective of the expedition was to link up with Gen. William T. Sherman's enormous "army group" in the vicinity of Goldsboro. Sherman, whose 60,000 Federals were blazing a trail northward through the Carolinas, was set to rendezvous with the commands of Alfred H. Terry and Jacob. D. Cox (the captors of Fort Fisher and Wilmington). Under command of Maj. Gen. John M. Schofield, Cox and Terry were soon en route for Goldsboro. Terry was marching north from Wilmington, while Cox's command, having traveled up the coast, was heading inland from New Bern. Cox set out from New Bern on March 6 with two divisions numbering more than 13,000 men.

Wsye Fork Battle and the demise of the Neuse

Hoke's Division, which had retreated from Wilmington after its fall, gathered in the vicinity of Kinston and attempted to repulse Cox's invading Federals. At Wyse Fork (Southwest Creek) on March 8-10, three miles east of Kinston, Hoke and elements of the Confederate Army of Tennessee were defeated by Cox and forced back toward Goldsboro. Department of North Carolina commander Braxton Bragg, in charge of Confederate operations in the area, promptly ordered the evacuation of Kinston.

Bragg had ordered the destruction of the Neuse. For more than two years, the Navy Department had struggled greatly to build and equip the new vessel for Confederate service. But Federal raiding parties, a scarcity of materials, and lack of ground support had all conspired to keep the luckless ironclad—which Lieutenant Bacot had dubbed the "Neuse'ance"—bottled up at Kinston. After all the delays, the ship's construction was finally complete and its crew was eager for action. But it was not to be.

By the night of March 10, 1865, the retreating Confederates had crossed the Neuse River and were heading toward Goldsboro to escape the advancing Union forces. The Federals did not pursue the Confederates vigorously. During the two days immediately following the evacuation of Kinston, Union commanders were busily engaged in sending telegrams to New Bern requesting the preparation of a steamer, equipped with a torpedo, to ascend the river and blow up the enemy ironclad moored at Kinston.

Union forces began moving into the town on the morning of March 12. Following the orders of General Bragg, Capt. Joseph Price ordered his crew to shell the advancing enemy cavalry units, and then scuttle the doomed gunboat. These were the only shots the Neuse ever fired in hostility. Ablaze in fire she sunk there with her guns onboard.