The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 51, July 1947 - April, 1948 Page: 129
406 p. : ill., ports. ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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Confederate Loss and Recapture of Galveston
centration of ships and do immeasurable damage to the Federal
forces, during the night, before any effective resistance could be
made to his attack. Accordingly, he arrived off Galveston Harbor
late on the afternoon of January 1 , 1863, in search of easy prey.
He had not intended to make his presence known, but the care-
lessness of the lookout had allowed his ship to progress to a point
relatively close to the harbor before the warning was given, and
as a consequence he was sighted by Bell's forces.51
As soon as the report of the strange sail was made to Bell, he
sent the USS Hatteras, under Lieutenant Commander H. C.
Blake, to investigate; neither Bell nor Blake suspected, at the
time, that the stranger was a dangerous foe.52 The Hatteras put
on all speed to overtake the Alabama and within a relatively
short time had done so, but not until both ships were out of
sight of the remaining Federal force and until the failing light
made the identification of the Alabama more difficult; Semmes
had seen to that in his maneuvering. On approaching within
hailing distance, Blake became suspicious of the identity of the
pursued vessel and signalled the fleet that he feared trickery, but
Bell failed to see the signal and was therefore ignorant of the
danger to his ship. On reaching the requisite distance, Blake
hailed the stranger, who replied that he was a British warship.
Because of the suspicions of Blake, he ordered a boat from the
Hatteras to board and inspect the papers of the strange craft,
but the boat had hardly left the parent ship before the Alabama
opened fire on the Federal vessel. The issue was soon settled;
the Hatteras, after a fight lasting no more than fifteen minutes,
was sunk by the superior Alabama, and the crew was taken
aboard the victor.53 The flashes of the guns were seen by Bell
and the rest of the fleet, and the major Federal vessels went to
the aid of the Hatteras, too late. Not until the next day did Bell
discover the sunken wreck of the defeated ship. As soon as he
saw her, he realized that she had probably been engaged with
the Alabama, and he immediately dispatched the Clifton with
51Captain Raphael Semmes to Mallory, May 12, 1863, in ibid., Vol. II, p. 683.
52Bell to Farragut, January 12, 1863, in ibid., Vol. XIX, p. 506.
53Semmes to Mallory, May is, 1863, in ibid., Vol. II, p. 683; Bell to Farragut,
January 13, 1863, in ibid., Vol. XIX, p. 508; Blake to Welles, January 21, 1863, in
ibid., Vol. II, p. 18.129
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Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 51, July 1947 - April, 1948, periodical, 1948; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101119/m1/171/: accessed April 19, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.