This is the first published comprehensive survey of naval action on the Mississippi River and its tributaries for the years 1863-1865. Following introductory reviews of the rivers and of the U.S. Navy's Mississippi Squadron, chronological Federal naval participation in various raids and larger campaigns is highlighted, as well as counterinsurgency, economical support and control, and logistical protection. The book includes details on units, locations and activities that have been previously underreported or ignored. Examples include the birth and function of the Mississippi Squadron's 11th District, the role of U.S. Army gunboats, and the war on the Upper Cumberland and Upper Tennessee Rivers. The last chapter details the coming of the peace in 1865 and the decommissioning of the U.S. river navy and the sale of its gunboats.

Author: Myron J. Smith

ISBN: 978-1476672205

327 pages / black and white

paperback

7 x 0.66 x 10 inches

 

A professional librarian and historian since 1966, Tusculum College Emeritus Library Director and Professor Myron J. "Jack" Smith, Jr. arrived in Tennessee in 1990. He had previously served a 15-year tenure as Library Director and Professor at Salem College (now Salem-International University) in West Virginia, as well as holding posts in Maryland and Indiana. Prof. Smith is an internationally known author and bibliographer on subjects on topics relating primarily to naval history, although he has dabbled in subjects as diverse as baseball and the airline industry. The author of 90 volumes of bibliography and history, Smith has been the recipient of a variety of literary honors and awards and remains the only American to have received Germany's Richard Franck Preis for historical bibliography. In 2016, his "Civil War Biographies from the Western Waters" was named Best Print Reference Title of 2015 by "Library Journal."