Service Aboard the CSS "Virginia."

Memoirs of James Thomas Brady.

On May 23, 1907, an article appeared in the now defunct Kosse (Texas) newspaper, the Cyclone, relating the service details of a Confederate sailor, James Thomas Brady, who was present at the naval engagement between the ironclad vessels, the USS Monitor and the CSS Virginia, at Hampton Roads, Virginia, in March, 1862. Brady was born on May 5, 1839, and died in either November or December, 1908. His memorial notice appears in the Cyclone of December 3, 1908. He is buried in a small cemetery near Marlin, Texas, and his tombstone includes his date of birth, without indicating his place of birth.

I was originally contacted by Mabry Tyson, of Los Altos, California, who advised me that the great grandson of Brady, Mr. Joseph C. Ford, of Layton, Utah, had provided him (Tyson) with some details of the service of Brady, and with a transcript of the Cyclone article. Mr. Ford had indicated that he had a copy of a reprint of the roster of the CSS Virginia which lists Brady, ordinary seaman, as a member of the crew of that vessel. However, a check of the roster of the Virginia as listed in the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion, Series 2, Volume 1, failed to show James Brady amongst the crew. Mr. Ford feels that the reprints of the roster that he has in his possession may have been an altered version, which included a fifth page showing Brady's name. The roster in the Official Records only lists four pages of crew members of the Virginia. The final conclusion is left to the reader.

Additional information provided by Mr. Ford shows that Brady had served in the Confederate service, enlisting in the South Carolina Infantry on May 9, 1861, at Charleston, South Carolina, and was the recipient of a pension. He apparently had a query article in Volume 16, Number 7 (July, 1908) of the Confederate Veteran magazine.

Mr. Ford has advised that a copy of the article is held on file at the University of Texas, at Austin. Another copy is available, together with Brady's obituary and a picture of his family, at the Hill Memorial Library, Louisiana State University.

Appended below is a transcript of the article from the Cyclone.

NAVAL REMINISCENSES.

An Ex-Confederate's Account of the Monitor and Merrimac Battle.

Dear Mr. Editor: - If you will give me space in your columns, I will give you my experiences as a Confederate sailor. As I have never seen any one of them writing to the Cyclone, thought I would try my hand.

I had the honor of being one of the crew of the first gunboat the south ever had, and that was the Lady Davis, in Charleston Harbor, commanded by Lieutenant Pelot; and I remained with him until after the fight off Fort Sumpter. A shipping master came to Charleston from Richmond to ship crew for the Patrick Henry and about forty of us boys went with him and shipped on the Patrick Henry during the war, to go out to sea privateering. She was fitted up at Richmond. Her commander was John R. Tucker, and a braver man never lived. We tried to get out to sea but the blockading fleet on Hampton Roads was in the way.

In the winter of sixty-one they were fixing up the Merrimac at Portsmouth Navy yards and several of us boys were sent aboard of her, and she was ready for the fray on the 8th of March, sixty-two. About twelve o'clock the fife and drum called all hands to quarters with Admiral Buchanan in command. He told the boys what he was going to do, and if there were any one who did not want to go with him, to step aside and take his hammock and clothes bag and go ashore in the Navy Yard, six or seven stepped aside. There was a regiment of Louisiana troops stationed in the Navy Yard and our Commander called for volunteers, to fill the vacant places, and there was no trouble to get them and good brave men too. With everything ready we steamed out for Hampton Roads. Now Mr. Editor that was the longest hour and a half I have ever passed over. When we got within one hundred yards of the Cumberland and Congress the boys on those two frigates gave three cheers and said 'One Broad Side and we will sink her.'

Now our boys were ready for the racket and we had to run between them, and as we did they gave us a broadside each of thirty-two shots, but these shots had no more effect on the Merrimac than so many peas, so you see they never sank us. We turned and went back the same route, when they tried their hand again to no effect, we turned again and going back the same way our Commander gave orders to our pilots to steer for the Cumberland's quarters and so he did. When the crew on the Cumberland saw what was up they manned the yards to be ready to board us, but when we struck the Cumberland our gun deck was fifty or sixty feet away from them. All the forecastle and quarter deck of the Merrimac was under water. The Merrimac had a long prow in front about eighteen or twenty feet long, and this prow being fastened in the Cumberland, she would have taken us down with her if that prow had not broken, and when it broke it looked like our gun carriages sprung up off the deck two or three inches. So the Cumberland went down with all on board, except the few we could save.

Now for the Congress. When she saw what was up she slipped her anchors and drifted in on shallow water so we could not go to her. They raised a white flag to surrender, so we sent a boat's crew to receive the surrender and they opened fire on our boys (sic) came back to the ship, this made our boys mad and you know shelling for a little while she got. We could not set her on fire with shells so we tried hot shot and I will tell you we gave it to her a little while. The fire got to her magazine about ten or eleven o'clock that night and she blowed (sic) up. During all this time the Minnesota lay aground and we gave her a few rounds, we ran in under Sewall's Point Batteries and came to an anchor for the night. During this fight Admiral Buchanan got (sic) wounded.

The next morning was Sunday, the 9th of March 1862. We had early breakfast and after things were cleaned up we weighed anchor, and then the fife and drum called all hands to quarters, and we steamed out to clean up the Minnesota sloop of war, and when we got out there the Monitor slipped out from alongside the Minnesota, and so we met on the battleground. Now the Monitor had three advantages over the Merrimac as follows: 1st, light draft only twelve feet of water, while the Merrimac drew twenty-four. 2nd, her cannons two eleven inch rifles, while the Merrimac only had ten guns (as follows: one ten inch smoothbore, one nine inch rifle and eight smooth bore, broadside guns. And 3rd, the Monitor had eleven inches of steel on her turret while the Merrimac's roof was twenty four inches of timber, and five inches of railroad iron and a good coat of what the sailors call slush. Now we went at it like two prize fighters knocking at each other. The Monitor would run in on shallow water while we had to keep the channel, and while we were trying to run in to her we got aground and stayed there some time. The Monitor ran into us while we lay aground but the good Lord was with us and we floated away.

Mr. Editor I have this much to say that they did some of the poorest shooting I ever heard of. The Merrimac had fourteen port holes and no port shutters and they ran into us several times while we were on the bottom and never did put a shot inside of us. You know how large port holes are, about two feet square, and the nearest they ever came to putting a shot inside the Merrimac was while one of our broadside guns was run out to shoot a glancing like (sic) struck it and broke twelve or fourteen inches off the barrel, and this killed four of our boys, but others took their places and kept shooting the gun. Now this is what I call poor shooting. Sometimes I think Dewey must have had old Confederates sons for gunners for they done good shooting [this obviously refers to the battle of Manila Bay during the Spanish American War]. Now we fought until about three or four o'clock in the evening, and both vessels drew off. We went up to Norfolk, and the Monitor went down to Fort Monroe. We then had port shutters put on and in a few days we went out to Hampton Roads again prepared to take her in, but she did not show up, we stayed out there three days, and had the whole waters to ourselves.

Now some may say, as I have heard said, why didn't the Merrimac go around to Washington and burn that city? I will answer this. Her roof was too heavy, and she was not seaworthy. So in June when Lee's army fell back to Richmond, we got orders to blow the Merrimac up. She drew too much water to go up the river so we blowed (sic) her up and we landed on the south side of the James River and marched to Drewry's Bluff, seven miles below Richmond, where we worked night and day getting ready for the Yankee Iron Clad Galena. She came up the river and silenced all the batteries in the river until she struck Drewry's Bluff. The boys that manned these guns were the Merrimac's crew, the Jamestown's crew and the crews of some smaller gunboats, and also Major Smith's heavy Artillery. About seven o'clock in the morning she moored herself broadside with our guns, not over a quarter of a mile from our batteries. Our boys were ready for her, and the ball opened up with a regular roar of cannons for about eight hours. We sure gave her hot shot, and she didn't go to Richmond, but was glad to slip her anchors and go back the way she came. We lost several men and the enemy's loss was heavy. The next day there was plenty of nice grub sent down to our boys from Richmond, and that grand old man Jefferson Davis, our President, came down too and congratulated the boys for their bravery.

In the summer of sixty-three I was at the capture of two Yankee gunboats on the Rappahannock river below Fredrichburg (sic), their names were the Satelite (sic) and Reliance. One of the Lieutenants by the name of Hoge was wounded during this fight, but he got well. That night we ran the gunboats out into the Potomac bay and captured some schooners of coffee and run back to Fredrichburg and turned the gunboats over to our government and went back to our old command at Drewry's Bluff.

In the fall of sixty-three a good many of our boys were sent to Charleston to stand picket duty at night in small boats between Batteries Wagner and Fort Sumpter (sic), our headquarters were on the full rig ship Indian Chief. While on picket one night we discovered the enemy coming in small boats to capture the fort, the navy and army. We made for the fort and gave the report, but had no more than got inside the fort when the enemy rowed up to the fort and now there was a hot time for a little while, the brave boys in the fort gave them a warm reception and they were glad to get back to their ships and batteries. In this fight the enemy's loss was heavy while ours was light.

Shortly after this they called for volunteers out of our crowd to go to Newberne, North Carolina to capture the first class gunboat Underwriter and of course I was one of the boys that went. So we started. Our commander was Jim Smith, a boatswain from Savannah, Ga., and a braver man never lived. We met a squad from Wilmington, N.C., on our route, and we went to Goldsboro, N.C. where we met a squad from Richmond, Va., commanded by Col. Woods, who took [command] of the expedition, we went on [to] Kingston where we launched our boat in the Nueces River, so we pulled down the river until we came to a small island where we stayed a few hours, and about midnight we got into out boats again and pulled down to Newberne Bay where within a mile of the gunboats, that grand old man, Col. Woods, circled the boats around him and made the boys a talk, and told them he wanted every one of them to do his duty, and said he would sure do his part. I will never forget those words. So we pulled for the gunboats, and when we were within one hundred yards of them they hailed us but we gave no reply, now you know we bent those oars until we got alongside. We had several men killed before we reached her, but we got on board and it was work but for a little while we beat them all back on the quarter deck and after killing several of them they finally surrendered. They opened fire on us from the shore they crippled the vessel so we could not move her. That was a cowardly act shooting and killing some of their own men after they had surrendered. So we got the wounded and all the wounded (sic) and prisoners on the small boats and set a slow match to her magazine and we left our fireman and coal passers getting up steam on the gunboat thinking all the time they were with us. They seeing they were left and the gunboat going to blow up swam ashore and were taken by the enemy, and were afterward exchanged. We got about three miles from the gunboat when she blew up. When we had got about ten miles we stopped and had breakfast and cared for the wounded and buried the dead. We went back to Kingston. There we had a big time for a little while, then we went on to Goldsboro where we separated, each crowd going to their own command.

Shortly after this we were sent back to the James River Squadron. And I was signed to the Ironclad Drederichburg [Fredericksburg], under Capt. Shepard, and it was not long until the bravest Admiral that ever stepped on a ship's deck took command of our squadron. His name was Raphael Semmes, of the Alabama, and I was with him the rest of the war. I was one of the boys who were detailed to burn the bridges on the James River between Richmond and Manchester the night General Lee evacuated Petersburg. That grand old man Semmes had command of us. After we burned the bridges we started for Lee's command but he was surrounded, then we made it to Danville where we stayed a few days, and then started for Johnston's command, and at a little place called Reedsville myself and some other boys were out foraging and the Yankee cavalry captured us, and sent us to Suffolk, Va., and from there to Fort Munroe and from there to Castle Thunder in Richmond, and I was looking through the iron bars when Sherman's army marched through Richmond going back north. I got out of prison the 28th day of May 1868. So I rolled back to my old home, Charleston, S.C.

Now if any shipmate sees this in print I would like to hear from him and shake his hand at Richmond on the 30th day of May, or at the reunion. I want to say for the benefit of those who think that the Yankees sank the Merrimac, that I was one of the bunch that set the old ship on fire, and thus with our own hands we burned the grand old vessel we all loved so well.

I love an old Confederate sailor or soldier. I will be sixty-seven years old on the 5th day of next May if I live that long.

An Irishman,

J.T. Brady.

Once again, it should be emphasised that James Brady's naval service has not been confirmed, and the account should be read with some degree of caution. Any additional information that will confirm his service will be appreciated.

Copyright, Terry Foenander

December, 2000.