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Overview
Captain James Carlin is a biography of a shadowy nineteenth-century British Confederate, James Carlin (1833–1921), who was among the most successful captains running the US Navy’s blockade of Southern ports during the Civil War. Written by his descendent Colin Carlin, Captain James Carlin ventures behind the scenes of this perilous trade that transported vital supplies to the Confederate forces.
An Englishman trained in the British merchant marine, Carlin was recruited into the US Coastal and Geodetic Survey Department in 1856, spending four years charting the US Atlantic seaboard. Married and settled in Charleston, South Carolina, he resigned from the survey in 1860 to resume his maritime career. His blockade-running started with early runs into Charleston under sail. These came to a lively conclusion under gunfire off the Stono River mouth. More blockade-running followed until his capture on the SS Memphis. Documents in London reveal the politics of securing Carlin’s release from Fort Lafayette.
On his return to Charleston, General P. G. T. Beauregard gave him command of the spar torpedo launch Torch for an attack on the USS New Ironsides. After more successful trips though the blockade, he was appointed superintending captain of the South Carolina Importing and Exporting Company and moved to Scotland to commission six new steam runners.
After the war Carlin returned to the southern states to secure his assets before embarking on a gun-running expedition to the northern coast of Cuba for the Cuban Liberation Junta fighting to free the island from Spanish control and plantation slavery.
In researching his forebear, the author gathered a wealth of private and public records from England, Scotland, Ireland, Greenland, the Bahamas, and the United States. The use of fresh sources from British Foreign Office and US Prize Court documents and surviving business papers make this volume distinctive.
“A groundbreaking work that lifts the veil off the all-important ship captains who supplied the Confederacy with the necessary supplies to sustain its fight for independence. The author does a superb job in relating the story of his relative, James Carlin, a key member of the cadre of captains who sustained the Confederacy by running supplies through the northern blockade on specialized vessels. . . . A sweeping story from England to Charleston, Florida, and Cuba. This book is a must for anyone interested in Southern/Confederate maritime history.” —Stephen R. Wise, author of Lifeline of the Confederacy: Blockade Running during the Civil War
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9781611177145 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | University of South Carolina Press |
| Publication date: | 04/13/2022 |
| Series: | Studies in Maritime History |
| Sold by: | Barnes & Noble |
| Format: | eBook |
| Pages: | 304 |
| File size: | 5 MB |
| Age Range: | 18 Years |
About the Author
Colin Carlin, a retired business executive with a strong connection to Africa and latter on art dealer, is author of William Kirkpatrick of Malaga, Consul, Négociant and Grandfather of the Empress Eugénie. He lives in Bath, England.
Table of Contents
List of Illustrations and Maps xiii
Preface xv
Acknowledgments xix
Introduction 1
Chapter 1 Early Days, 1833-1848 6
Chapter 2 Navigation School, the Apprentice, 1850-1856 10
Chapter 3 United States Coast Survey, 1856-1860 12
Chapter 4 A Romantic Interlude, 1857 20
Chapter 5 Transition, 1860 25
Chapter 6 The Blockade Is Declared. 1860-1861 28
Chapter 7 The Wildcatter, Blockade Running Under Sail, 1861-1862 34
Chapter 8 The First Gunfire: The Alert, October 1861 42
Chapter 9 The Confederacy Confronts the Blockade: The Business of Blockade-Running, 1861-1862 51
Chapter 10 Running through the Blockade for Trenholm and Company, 1861-1862 58
Chapter 11 The Memphis Affair, July 31-Augusr 1, 1862 66
Chapter 12 The Trial of the Memphis, August-September, 1862 76
Chapter 13 Recriminations and Fallout, 1862 83
Chapter 14 Fort Lafayette: Anglo-American Diplomatic Exchanges and James Carlin's Struggle for Release, August-December 1862 86
Chapter 15 Still a Captive, Late 1862 97
Chapter 16 Diplomatic Power Play, Christmas 1862-January 1863 101
Chapter 17 Carlin Stakes His Claim, January-July 1863 110
Chapter 18 Resumption of Trade: "The Intrepid Carlin," January-May 1863 115
Chapter 19 The "Commodore" of the I&E Company: "Knights of the Sea," June-July 1863 120
Chapter 20 Charleston Under Siege, 1863 128
Chapter 21 The CSS Torch Incident: Drama and Treachery, August 1863 139
Chapter 22 Trouble in Bermuda: Or How Not to Run the Blockade, September-November 1863 150
Chapter 23 Preparing for Change, December 1863 158
Chapter 24 Appointment in Scotland, December 1863-1864 160
Chapter 25 Liverpool and the Last Days of the Confederacy, March 1864-June 1865 165
Chapter 26 The Last of the Cotton, April-May 1865 173
Chapter 27 Financial Matters, 1864-1866 178
Chapter 28 Life in England, June 1865-1871 181
Chapter 29 Charleston and Florida Ventures, 1865-1869 183
Chapter 30 The Steamer Salvador and the Cuban Revolution, 1869 190
Chapter 31 The Cuban Run, May 1869 195
Chapter 32 The Cuban Shore, May-June, 1869 201
Chapter 33 The Queen v. Salvador and British Foreign Enlistment Act 59, Geo. Ill 1819 c.69., May 1869 205
Chapter 34 Caribbean Repercussions: The Governor Tenders His Resignation, 1869-1878 212
Chapter 35 What Happened Next, 1870-1891 216
Appendix 1 Additional Documents 227
Appendix 2 Reflections on Confederate Finance 235
Appendix 3 Alexander D. Bache's Correspondence with James Carlin 239
Appendix 4 Bahamian Exports, 1861-1865 241
Notes 243
Bibliography 259
Index 267
What People are Saying About This
Colin Carlin has produced a ground breaking work that lifts the veil off the all-important ship captains who supplied the Confederacy with the necessary supplies to sustain its fight for independence. The author does a superb job in relating the story of his relative, James Carlin, a key member of the cadre of captains who sustained the Confederacy by running supplies through the northern blockade on specialized vessels. James Carlin's career not only included operating blockade runners, but also a Charleston based torpedo boat, and after the war he served as a gun runner to Cuban rebels. A sweeping story from England to Charleston, Florida, and Cuba. This book is a must for anyone interested in Southern/Confederate maritime history.
Captain James Carlin's fascinating adventures come to life in this superbly researched biography. As a British captain, commodore, and ship owner, Carlin ran vessels into Confederate ports from North Carolina to Texas. Civil War and naval scholars and enthusiasts alike will welcome Colin Carlin's fresh insights into this shadowy world.