December 13, 2016 – Tuesday
We will leave Dog River Marina this morning and cross Mobile Bay into the protected waters of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GICW).
A few historical facts about Mobile
• Mobile Bay was the first body of water in the new world to be accurately charted. This was accomplished by the Spanish explorer Alonso Alvarez de Pineda in 1519.
• Mobile was founded as the capital of colonial French Louisiana in 1702 and remained a part of New France for over 60 years. The flags of six nations and republics have flown over the city since its founding: France, Spain, Great Britain, the Alabama Republic, the Confederate States of America and the United States.
• Mobile is home to the oldest Mardi Gras celebration in the United States. The city held its first Carnival in 1703.
• During World War II the population of Mobile more than doubled in three years due to the influx of people coming to work in the shipyards.
• The Port of Mobile is the only deep-water port in Alabama and one of the Top 10 ports in the U.S. by tonnage.
Civil War History (April 12, 1861 – May 9, 1865)
On August 5, 1864, at the Battle of Mobile Bay, Union Admiral David Farragut, (1801-70), led his flotilla through the Confederate defenses to gain control over one of the last major Southern ports. During this battle, when the USS Brooklyn started backing up because of suspicious looking buoys, Admiral Farragut commanded, “Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!” His flagship Hartford swept past the USS Brooklyn into the rows of torpedoes and the rest of the fleet followed.
David Glasgow Farragut, who entered the U.S. Navy at age 9, received his first command in 1824 during the War of 1812, serving on the USS Essex, he commanded the Union blockade of the western Gulf of Mexico. In 1863 he helped secure victory at the Battle of Vicksburg, the last major Confederate stronghold on the Mississippi River, bringing the Mississippi River under Union control. An interesting article about Farragut and Buchanan.
Serendipity: From 2000-2004, Rick and I worked at David Glasgow Farragut High School in Rota, Spain.