Exploring the most important 55 months in American history
165 YEARS AGO: Confederate and U.S. officials work to develop strategies to wage war against each other on the waters. The Confederate Navy Secretary pushes for building armored warships, while the Federal naval blockade intensifies and strategy turns to capturing Confederate ports.
The C.S.S. Atlanta attempts to break the Federal blockade on the Georgia coast but is met by formidable Federal ironclads in response.
Rear-Admiral Samuel F. Du Pont angrily refutes claims that he should not have retreated in the recent naval battle in Charleston Harbor.
Federal ironclad warships attack the Confederate forts guarding Charleston Harbor in what becomes the largest naval attack of the war.
General P.G.T. Beauregard, commanding the Confederate defenses in South Carolina and Georgia, issues a proclamation warning citizens that a Federal attack on either Charleston or Savannah is imminent.
A slave hands over a Confederate vessel to the Federal blockade fleet off South Carolina, along with key information about Confederate positions around Charleston.