Were there any Civil War shipwrecks located off of Pensacola?

[MichaelB]

I live on Mobile Bay so I know Pensacola has a rich shipwreck history but I haven't found anything that tells me if a Civil War shipwreck exists in waters close to Pensacola. I would appreciate any info.

Thanks

Michael

 

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[birdman]

I grew up on mobile bay, the 13 mile marker on Fort Morgan RD. I know there was a nice little gun fire exchange from Fort Pickens and Fort Barrancis and also some coastal shelling but I have not heard of any ships going down off of P cola during that time.The local state historiens are usually very knowledgeable about such matters.There are a few wrecks that the Navy sunk years later (target practice) but not sure of Civil War era.

 

[pcolaboy]

There are three major ships that I'm aware of.

CSS Judah - A Confederate privateer vessel that the US Marines infiltrated and set fire to while docked at the Navy Yard (occupied by Confederates) in 1862. The ship was cut free of its moorings and drifted further down the bay before sinking. It has been located but the location has never been made public.

CSS Convoy - A sidewheel blockade runner that was sunk in the bay northeast of Ft Pickens. I believe this vessel was scuttled but not sure. There are some published locations of this wreck but it has been reported to be severely broken up and dispursed due to dredging, hurricanes, etc. The tidal currents in this location can be extremely dangerous during outgoing tide and it happens to be in the main ship channel as well.

USS Preble - A 16 gun sloop-of-war that was anchored in the bay near downtown Pensacola that was being used as a "guard ship" for the town in 1863 after the Confederates fled in 1862. The ship caught fire while a crewman was filling a large tank of tar in the hold. This crewman died from asphyxiation but the remainder of the crew abandoned ship safely and cut the ship from its anchor. The ship drifted out into the open bay, burned to the waterline and sank. The exact location has never been published but US Navy divers in 1963 found what they believed to be the wreck of the Preble and recovered a mast and a few scattered artificacts. The remainder of the hull is believed to be buried in a thick layer of mud but largely intact otherwise - presumably with all her guns as well. The only documented work on this wreck was a man who was contracted in the 1870's to clear the wreck area for shipping. Apparently he dropped over kegs of dynamite to blast the wreck apart but there is little confirmation if he actually did anything other than snap the masts in the process. The depth of water in its final resting place was reportedly 20 feet in 1863. This part of the bay however has constantly shifting sand which may have covered the substantial muddy bottom in this location.

Now that I have side-scan imaging capability, I hope to locate all three of these and will post images online. Due to their historic value however, if I do locate them I will be notifying the local preservation board first, followed by the state.

Pcolaboy

 

[Salvor6]

DON'T DO THAT Pcolaboy! The state will ban all diving on the wrecks!

 

[pcolaboy]

LOL...