Battle Between Confederate Gunboats and Union Field Artillery

Battle Between Confederate Gunboats and Union Field Artillery (HM85F)

Location: Port Wentworth, GA 31407 Chatham County
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Country: United States of America
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N 32° 8.525', W 81° 9.426'

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Inscription

(December 12, 1864)

In December, 1864, was fought on the Savannah River near here one of the few battles in which Confederate gunboats and Union field artillery were engaged against each other.

Colerain Plantation, as these lands were then known, had been occupied on December 10, 1864, by units of Sherman`s army. Anticipating an attempt by a Confederate naval flotilla, which had been engaged in protecting a railroad bridge further upstream, to return to Savannah, Captain C. E. Winegar's battery was posted on a bluff about one mile East of this marker.

Early on the morning of December 12, 1864, the CSS Sampson and Macon and their tender, the Resolute, attempted to run past the Federal battery. There a "terrific fire" from both sides, according to John Thomas Scharf, a midshipman on the Sampson who later became a well-known historian of the Confederate States Navy. The gunboats were struck several times.

Unable to get past the battery, the vessels turned about. In doing so the Resolute collided with the gunboats and drifted helplessly upon Argyle Island where she was captured by troops of the 3rd Wisconsin Regiment. With the aid of barrels of bacon thrown in their furnaces, the two gunboats were able to steam out of range. They escaped to Augusta.
Details
HM NumberHM85F
Series This marker is part of the Georgia: Georgia Historical Society/Commission series
Tags
Marker Number025-79
Year Placed1961
Placed ByGeorgia Historical Commission
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Wednesday, September 17th, 2014 at 8:29am PDT -07:00
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Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)17S E 485183 N 3556195
Decimal Degrees32.14208333, -81.15710000
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 32° 8.525', W 81° 9.426'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds32° 8' 31.50" N, 81° 9' 25.56" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Area Code(s)912
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 520-598 S Coastal Hwy, Port Wentworth GA 31407, US
Alternative Maps Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap

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