The first U.S. Navy surface ship powered by electric motors was the USS Jupiter.

She was later converted into the first aircraft carrier (see image below) and renamed the USS Langley.

According to MIT’s site on electric ship history here, “the early electrically powered naval vessels employed two electrical systems: one for propulsion and the other for services such as lights, radar, sonar, cargo pumps, cranes and any other required systems.” After the 1940s most electric-drive ships fell out of favor because of the inefficiency of having two separate electric systems.

This from the Naval History and Heritage Command site here.

“USS Jupiter, a 19,360-ton collier (originally classified as a “Fuel Ship”) built at the Mare Island Navy Yard, California, was commissioned in April 1913. The Navy’s first surface ship propelled by electric motors, she was an engineering prototype for the turbo-electric propulsion system widely used in Navy capital ships built during the later “Teens” and the 1920s. Jupiter provided transportation and coal carrying services for the Pacific fleet until October 1914, when she transited the Panama Canal to begin operations in the Atlantic. During the First World War, she carried cargo to Europe and supplied coal to combat and logistics forces on both sides of the Atlantic. Jupiter decommissioned in March 1920 to began conversion to an aircraft carrier. Renamed Langley in April 1920 and designated CV-1 when the Navy implemented its hull number system in July 1920, she recommissioned two years later as the first ship in the Navy’s seagoing air fleet.”

Unfortunately, she was abandoned and scuttled after receiving Japanese bomb damage south of Java, 27 February 1942.

NEXT COURSE:

I have just signed up for my next class, History of Sea Power which starts January 3rd. We’re allowed one elective in my program and, given my research interests in the naval history of the American Civil War, this one fits well.

Course Description
This course is an in-depth study of the art of war at sea from Salamis to the naval operations in Desert Shield/Desert Storm, and examines the expanding role of sea power in supporting operations in combating terrorism. Students evaluate the development of the classical theories of naval warfare, as reflected by Mahan, in light of today’s world conditions, threats, and roles.

I’m very excited that our professor, Stanley Carpenter, is with the U.S. Naval War College and a specialist in British military history.

BOOK LIST:

I ordered my books today and they’ll be wrapped and put under the Christmas tree. Several are available at no cost on Kindle or from other sources (http://gutenberg.org).

One Hundred Years of Sea Power: The U.S. Navy, 1890-1990

The Rise and Fall of British Naval Mastery, 2nd Ed

The Command of the Ocean : Naval History of Britain, 1649-1815

Influence of Sea Power on Ancient History

Influence Of Sea Power Upon History 1660-1783

Some Principles of Maritime Strategy

Naval Power: A History of Warfare and the Sea from 1500 Onwards

I’m always on the hunt for something new in Civil War exhibitions. The good folks at the National Archives and Records Administration have produced a brief video about their exhibition, “Discovering the Civil War” which you can view by clicking the image below.

In the exhibition, they “share little-known facts and extraordinary discoveries found in the incomparable Civil War holdings at the National Archives.” Many stories and documents “are shared for the first time in this exhibition, the most extensive display ever assembled from these records.” A highlight is “rarely-seen original footage from Civil War reunions in 1917 in Vicksburg, MS, and 1938 in Gettysburg, PA.”

The exhibit invites visitors to consider and ask questions about the evidence found in the records, listen to a wide variety of voices from the Civil War era, and make up their own minds about the struggle that tore apart these United States.

The exhibit will feature fascinating environments and compelling interactives, but what makes the exhibit extraordinary is surprising records. Displayed alongside famous milestone documents will be hundreds of less well-known ones, such as the unratified 1861 version of the 13th amendment, a message from a Southern governor rejecting Lincoln’s call for troops to put down the rebellion, and the Constitution of the Confederacy.

Shown in two parts in Washington D.C., Discovering the Civil War” Part One, “Beginnings,” ran from April 30, 2010, through September 6, 2010. Part Two, “Consequences,” opened November 10, 2010, at the Lawrence F. O’Brien Gallery at the National Archives in Washington, DC.

After the Washington venue closes on April 17, 2011, the two parts of “Discovering the Civil War” will be combined and travel to seven additional venues around the country beginning in June 2011. I’m hopeful that Kansas City will be one of them!

The exhibition’s very fine website is accessible here.

I was very pleased to receive a review copy of Gregory H. Wolk’s new book, A Tour Guide to Missouri’s Civil War: Friend and Foe Alike. This is a book that can be enjoyed by Civil War enthusiasts anywhere. Wolk provides a well crafted overview of the history that led up to the war and why that history was particularly volatile in Missouri and along its borders. Stuart Symington, Jr.’s fine “Foreward” sets the scene for Wolk’s exploration of why Missouri’s Civil War experience lasted longer and was arguably uglier than that of any other state. You may be surprised to learn, for example, that Missouri saw more Civil War battles or engagements than any state except Virginia and Tennessee. In fact, “almost half of the battles fought in 1861 occurred in Missouri.”

Wolk provides a good balance between narrative history, illustrations, maps, and photographs. Over 230 historic sites are described.

For those who want to get out and see the important sites and battlefields of the war in Missouri, Wolk provides five driving tours that include

• St. Louis and the Southeast,
• North Central,
• South Central,
• the Kansas City Region, and
• Southwest Missouri.

He’s designed the tours as “Loop’s” that each take about two days to complete. Within each loop there are at least thirty heritage sites. Even if you don’t plan to take all of the driving tours, the book’s descriptions provide an excellent overview of the history of each region during the war era.

One of the book’s many strong points is its profiles of the fascinating individuals involved in the conflict. Readers are introduced, for example, to Lt. Colonel Frisby Henderson McCullough, the most prominent of fifteen southern men executed after the Battle of Kirksville for parole violations. Tour Stop 85 marks the “Kirksville Massacre Site” where the executions by firing squad took place on 7 August 1862 by the order of Col. John McNeil.

Wolk’s website and blog provide a gathering place for reference, discussion, and feedback. Visit friendandfoe.org to gain additional historical insights or to correspond with the author.

About the author: Gregory H. Wolk is a graduate of New York University School of Law and practices law in St. Louis. He is President of Missouri’s Civil War Heritage Foundation, Inc., who’s wonderful website I reviewed here.

HIGHLY RECOMMEND

Bill Gates Predicts Technology Will Make ‘Place-Based’ Colleges Less Important in 5 Years – Wired Campus – The Chronicle of Higher Education.

Couldn’t agree more.

• Hardcover
• August 2010
• ISBN 978-0-393-06039-3
• 6.5 × 9.5 in / 336 pages

The good folks at W. W. Norton & Company, Inc. sent me a pre-release copy of Elizabeth D. Leonard’s new book, Men of Color to Arms! Black Soldiers, Indian Wars, and the Quest for Equality. As with many good books of history, Leonard chronicles the experiences of individuals including Christian A. Fleetwood, winner of the  Congressional Medal of Honor for his actions during the Battle of Chaffin’s (Chapin’s)  Farm (Virginia, 1864). But she also sheds a light on pervasive prejudice against advancement and even recognition of the contribution of black soldiers to the war effort.

Particularly insightful is Leonard’s coverage of the role of black regulars in the clearing of the west’s natives for white settlement. This excerpt…

The strengthening of the fort system in Texas, and indeed all along the nation’s western frontier, and the posting of active duty soldiers at Fort Davis and a multitude of other military installations in this vast region constituted a key component of the army’s response to its postwar charge. Now that the Confederate rebellion had been suppressed and the South had been, in theory at least, reclaimed for the Union, a task of primary strategic importance for the united nation – though, in the eyes of many then and now, a morally questionable one – was to “pacify” the remaining unsettled land and Native people located within the boundaries of the United States in preparation for the advance of “American civilization. The black Regulars were to play a key role in this process. (pp. 76-66).

Leonard’s insightful overview of the Battle of Beecher’s Island is well worth a read. The Tenth Cavalry, largely black Regulars, saved the day.

The book is receiving well deserved “buzz.”  This from James M. McPherson (Battle Cry of Freedom):

“Once again Elisabeth Leonard demonstrates the versatility and range of her skills as a historian and writer. This penetrating account of the black regular regiments in the U.S. army after the Civil War joins her earlier studies of women during the Civil War and the prosecutors of Lincoln’s assassins on a select shelf of important books.”

I’ll add that the book is just a pleasure to read. Highly recommend!

Elizabeth D. Leonard is the John J. and Cornelia V. Gibson Professor of History at Colby College. Other books by professor Leonard include: Yankee Women: Gender Battles in the Civil War, All the Daring of a Soldier: Women of the Civil War Armies, and Lincoln’s Avengers: Justice, Revenge, and Reunion after the Civil War.

A resident of Waterville, Maine, Leonard received her M.A. in United States History from the University of California, Riverside in October of 1988 and her Ph.D. in June, 1992.

I was recently contacted by a group of history educators in Pennsylvania about The Civil War Augmented Reality Project. The team (see below or the “about” link for members) has provided the following concise description of the project:

Our project, the Civil War Augmented Reality Project, is intended to enhance the experiences of visitors to Civil War sites. It is also intended to increase attendance and revenue for historic sites by offering both “high” and “low” tech experiences to best reach the majority of the population. We feel that our project is fulfilling a need that educators, park workers, technology enthusiasts, and Civil War enthusiasts have discussed in the past: How can historic sites both raise public interest in their institutions though technology, and not alienate the non-technical history fans? We have worked hard on the answer. The objective of the project is to develop and implement augmented reality services related to the American Civil War in Pennsylvania, and to modify soon to be released tablet personal computers to allow the general public a chance to experience the applications.

Full disclosure…my day job is in wireless telecommunications marketing and in the past year I’ve been involved with the launch of Blackboard Mobile^TM Learn on Sprint (also very cool) so this project resonates with me big time. It’s about making education relevant and fun to all generations but particularly those who grew up using wireless and internet technologies. I’m so excited about it that I’ve created a new category on my links nav bar titled History and Augmented Reality.

I encourage you to visit The Civil War Augmented Reality Project blog which you can access here. Be sure to check out the June 23rd 2010 post, What is Augmented Reality just in case this is new territory for you. It provides a good grounding in the technology and potential AR holds.

Consider donating to the funding of the project. They’ve created a fun, Civil-War flavored funding campaign on Kickstarter accessible here. Be sure to view the video they’ve prepared at this site which really makes the team’s vision come to life. I am most impressed with the AR contest concept conceived around the battle for Little Round Top. The AR app being developed will work on Android devices (this would rock on the HTC EVO^TM 4G because of the screen size), iPhones^TM, and undisclosed soon to launch tablet PCs which have cameras. The team points out that while the Apple iPad^TM has driven adoption of tablets, it falls short for AR use because it lacks a camera).

Hats off to the team leads for The Civil War Augmented Reality Project which includes:

Jeff Mummert- Hershey High School and York College of Pennsylvania
Art Titzel- Hershey Middle School
Jay Vasellas- Red Lion Area High School and York College of Pennsylvania

Sprint is the trademark of Sprint. Blackboard and Blackboard Mobile are the trademarks or registered trademarks of Blackboard, Inc. iPad and iPhone are trademarks of Apple, Inc.

I’m narrowing down my thesis topic. I plan to examine the Civil War experience of those who enlisted in the navy under the rank of “Boy” including 1st, 2nd, and 3rd class who were under the age of eighteen. From what I’ve seen to date, this is an area not extensively researched. As is always true with the beginning of a research project, I’m gathering a list of sources. If you have any recommendations, PLEASE don’t hesitate to let me know

I’ve acquired several books in support of the topic above, some directly related, some peripherally so. I’ll be highlighting these in individual posts. First up, Union Jacks: Yankee sailors in the Civil War by Michael J. Bennett. This book is extremely good. Bennett’s bibliography is excellent as is his use of primary resources including several diaries of “Boy” ranked sailors. It is clear that Bennett did a superb job of researching this topic which resulted in a doctoral dissertation from Saint Louis University.

The book won several awards including the 2004 John Lyman Book Award in United States Naval History, North American Society for Oceanic History and the 2004 Fletcher Pratt Literary Award, Civil War Round Table of New York.  The latter puts him in the company of historians like Bruce Catton (1956 for This Hallowed Ground: The Story of the Union Side of the Civil War and 1969 for Grant Takes Command, Shelby Foote (1963 for The Civil War: A Narrative – Vol. 2 and 1974 for The Civil War: A Narrative – Vol. 3) and Steven E. Woodworth (1995 for Davis and Lee at War). Good company.

• Published on: 2004-06-28 by The University of North Carolina Press
• Released on: 2003-12-06
• Binding: Hardcover
• 368 pages

I am quite confident that a trip to the National Archives will become a necessity so that I can examine the muster roles and rendezvous (naval recruiting station) reports.

I am adding  NARAtions to my blogroll along with other sites that help me with my research. I’m sure this won’t be news to many of you but NARAtions is, as my article title suggests, the U.S. National Archives blog. The stated purpose…

We began this blog because we are hoping to talk with you about online public access to the records held by the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA).   We care about improving your researcher experience.

There are currently seven bloggers most of whom appear to be “history geeks” – a phrase I use only with the utmost respect and admiration.

As I embark on my own thesis research in Civil War naval history, I am both appreciative and disappointed with what is online from our National Archives. Apparently,  the cost of digitization means that a small percentage of available materials have been digitized. What a shame that there isn’t more. Interestingly, ancestry.com has pension records for soldiers and sailors of the American Civil War and I have full access to the site (yes a pretty penny).

They’ve also created a Wiki called “Our Archives” where the public can contribute. It is accessible here. This could actually be a good thing if adopted. It will be interesting to see if it is given more respect among historians than other Wikis. The stated purpose of the Wiki is as follows:

Our Archives is an online space for researchers, educators, genealogists, and Archives staff to share information and knowledge about the records of the National Archives and about their research.

Primary sources are gold for this emerging historian. An assignment for my Historical Research Methods class led me to Terry Abraham‘s Repositories of Primary Sources maintained at the University of Idaho. Effectively a database of websites, it provides links to thousands of sites across the globe holding primary sources of varying kinds. It’s important to note that many of the sites listed do not provide digitalized versions of primary sources accessible on the web. Abraham is clear in pointing out that while the site provides links to  “holdings of manuscripts, archives, rare books, historical photographs, and other primary sources for the research scholar,” they are “solely of web sites that describe” these collections. Because the focus is on the repositories, virtual collections and exhibitions themselves won’t be found on the site.  Abraham points out that other sites maintain listings of archival exhibits on the web. An excellent example is the  Smithsonian Institution Libraries. [Do a search on the Civil War.]

Organization of Repositories of Primary Sources is geographical. Thus one needs to have some idea where a holding institution is physically located. There is also an “Additional General Links” list which has, among other things, other archival portals across the globe.

Abraham, Emeritus Professor, was Head of  Special Collections and Archives at the University of Idaho Library from 1984 to 2005. He has an interesting article on lessons learned in bringing archival materials to the web available for reading here.