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| Field name | Value |
|---|---|
| Collection Reference Number | GLC03836.47 |
| From Archive Folder | Correspondence of 90 letters and documents with 3 maps on the blockade of Port Royal, South Carolina |
| Title | Leis H. West to Mary West reporting that nothing has occurred since the battle at Charleston except their capture of a schooner at Bull's Bay |
| Date | 4 May 1863 |
| Author | West, Lewis H. (b. 1829) |
| Recipient | West, Mary |
| Document Type | Correspondence |
| Content Description | Writes to his sister. Says nothing has occurred since the battle at Charleston except their capture of a schooner at Bull's Bay. In frustration says "I have now given up all hope of the Ladona ever doing anything. She is now so covered with grass and barnacles, as to reduce her speed, never great, to five knots an hour, under the most favorable circumstances, and when the wind is ahead, to three." Says the per annum pay of the crew of the ship is $88,000 and that the money might as well be thrown overboard. Says they have given up chasing steamers and only make captures "by vessels running into our arms at night." Says he would serve for nothing if he could get on a good fighting ship. Postscript references a letter from his mother dated 20 April. |
| Subjects | Civil War Military History Navy Union Forces Union Soldier's Letter Soldier's Letter Blockade Battle Prisoner of War Maritime Soldier's Pay Finance Steamboat Humor and Satire Children and Family Confederate States of America |
| People | West, Lewis H. (b. 1829) |
| Place written | Aboard the USS "Ladona" at Bull's Bay, South Carolina |
| Theme | The American Civil War; Naval & Maritime |
| Sub-collection | Papers and Images of the American Civil War |
| Additional Information | West was a Union naval officer in the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron, mostly serving off South Carolina and Georgia. This collection begins with three documents from West's service on a merchant marine ship off China. He served on the USS "Perry" April-August 1861, the USS "Wabash" August-October 1861, the USS "Alabama" October 1861-October 1862, the USS "Ladona" (also spelled Lodona) October 1862-August 1863, the USS "New Ironsides" October 1863-April 1864, and the USS "Fernandina" April 1864-March 1865. Had the rank of Masters Mate from April-August 1861 and then served the rest of the war as an Acting Master. Letters detail the tedium of life in the blockade, coming across runaway slaves and contrabands, as well as several run-ins with Confederate submarines. Three hand drawn maps are at .27, .68, and .89. Most of the letters are to his mother (her initials are RW and she resides at 1316 Walnut Street in Philadelphia - West addresses his letters to her as "Mrs. James West"), sister (Mary), and someone who appears to be West's brother-in-law (Weir). He begins to write a woman he seems to be romantically interested in named Harriet Moore in 1864. From a reference at .63, West was born in 1829. He might have been living in New York before the war, but he definitely resides there after the war. About half the letters have an envelope. |
| Copyright | The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History |
| Module | Civil War, Reconstruction and the Modern Era: 1860-1945 |
| Civil War: Theater of War | Lower Seaboard Theater and Gulf Approach |
| Civil War: Unit | USS "Ladona" |