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| John Mackie, the
Marine Corp’s first Medal of Honor
winner. The award was made July 10, 1863. |
Nearly everyone has heard of the Civil
War ironclad warships. They changed forever the history of naval
warfare, especially the Union USS Monitor. But who has
heard of the Monitor’s sister ship the Galena,
launched from the Maxson Fish & Co. shipyard at West Mystic,
Connecticut on February 14, 1862? It was one of three new
ironclads commissioned by the U.S. government in 1861 to meet
the threat of the Confederate’s new CSS Virginia (formerly
the USS Merrimac). Ironclad technology was still in its
infancy and not everyone was convinced it would work. But things
changed when the Confederates in 1861 stormed the Gosport Navy
Yard across the river from Norfolk, Virginia. They snatched one
of the U.S. Navy’s latest steam frigates, the USS Merrimac.
In a bold and daring move their Secretary of Navy, Stephan
Mallory, authorized the conversion of the ship into an ironclad.
Suddenly the Confederates would have a ship that could sink
anything in the Union Navy. Gideon Welles, the Union Secretary
of Navy, immediately recognized the danger. He knew the Union
had to get their own ironclads and there was no time to spare.
He lobbied hard and on July 19, 1861 a bill was introduced for
ironclad ship construction. Convinced of the need, President
Lincoln signed the bill into law only two weeks later.
The bill set up an "Ironclad Board," made up of
shipbuilding experts. Because no one could agree on the best
design, board members approved three designs, all different.
John Ericsson, designer of the Navy’s first steam-powered
vessel in 1844, would oversee construction of the Monitor
in New York. Merrick & Sons would build the New Ironsides
in Philadelphia, and railroad magnate Cornelius Bushnell would
supervise building of the Galena in Mystic, Connecticut.
Bushnell thought the 210 foot boat should be named the Retribution,
but he was overruled. The military successes of a young new
general in the West by the name of U.S. Grant led to the naming
of the boat after his hometown, Galena, Illinois.
The Galena was plated with multiple layers of one-half
inch thick iron, but of the three ironclads it was the most
lightly armored. It retained, however, much of the
maneuverability and quickness of a wooden hulled vessel. Action
came almost immediately.
On May 8, 1862 the Galena headed up the James River of
Virginia with two other gunboats in an effort to reach Richmond
and compel its surrender. On board was a detachment of 12
Marines.
USS Galena and
U.S. Marines Join Forces
The U.S. Marine Corps consisted of less
than 2,000 officers and enlisted men in 1861. That number was
further reduced when many chose to follow the Confederacy.
Corporal John F. Mackie, a native of New York City, stayed with
the Union. A few days before, he had reported for duty aboard
the newly commissioned USS Galena. He was joined by 11
other loyal Marines.
As the Union gunboats moved up the James the Confederate
ironclad CSS Virginia a few days before. The latter was
going to be used to defend Richmond but her draft was too deep
for the journey. To keep her from falling into Union hands, she
was set ablaze, but only after her crew removed her guns. Both
crew and guns were then sent up the river to Drewry’s Bluff.
Drewry’s Bluff was a strategic point overlooking the James
River. It was a perfect place to stop the Union flotilla
advancing up the river. The fate of Richmond depended on it.
The commander of the Galena hoped to engage the
Confederate battery while the rest of the flotilla slipped by.
The heavily clad Monitor was unable to elevate her guns high
enough to help. As a result, the Galena found herself in
a crippling position as cannon fire soon rained down upon her
deck.
"We turned our attention to the Galena,"
reported Confederate Commander Ebenezer Farrand, "nearly
every one of our shots telling upon her iron surface." The
rebel barrage was too much for the lightly armored Galena.
Punctured plates were ripped apart and splintered wood flew
through the ship.
Adding insult to injury, Confederate Marines were in
sniping positions along the shore. "Our sharpshooters did
good service, picking off every man who showed himself,"
Farrand later wrote.
"Here’s a chance for the Marines!"
On board the Galena, Corporal Mackie and his
Marines resolutely returned fire. Suddenly a huge round hit the
deck of the Galena, wiping out an entire gun crew. Mackie,
nearby, jumped up and shouted, "Come on, boys. Here’s a
chance for the Marines." His stunned men rallied, clearing
the decks of dead and wounded.
Amidst a hail of Confederate fire, Mackie and his Marines
began loading and firing the remaining Parrott rifle. Though
they feverishly kept firing, Mackie saw the ship turning into a
complete wreck!"
The Galena was finally forced to break off the
engagement, limping back downstream to join the retreating Union
flotilla. In three hours of conflict she lost 12 men dead and 11
wounded. The ship had taken at least 28 direct hits from rebel
artillery. Many of the smoldering projectiles were still lodged
in the hull and deck.
Amazingly, the Galena was repaired, but in February of 1864
the iron plating was removed and she was re-commissioned as a
wood-hulled ship. She served valiantly as part of Admiral David
Farragut’s fleet off Mobile, Alabama. She continued to serve
after the War, finally being decommissioned in 1869.
Corporal John Mackie, meanwhile, became the first Marine ever
to be awarded the newly created Congressional Medal of Honor. It
was for his extraordinary gallantry aboard the USS Galena,
where both men and machine refused to give up. Surely Grant and
the citizens of Galena would have been proud.
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