"A Stronghold Of Rebellion:" Confederate Defense Of The Central Gulf Coast During The Civil War

Summary

When the South seceded from the Union in 1861, cotton was the currency they believed would fuel the war effort and bring Britain as an ally to the Southern cause.  Maintenance of two of the critical ports of the antebellum cotton trade, New Orleans, Louisiana, and Mobile, Alabama was key to the Confederacy's survival and ultimately to its failure.  Archaeological investigations at the site of the river defenses in the Mississippi River delta confirmed historical accounts leading to the fall of New Orleans early in the war while others have shed light on the elaborate fortifications of Mobile, which were considered an engineering marvel subsequently studied in military academies in the U.S. and Europe. This paper examines the impact of the fall of New Orleans on the defense of Mobile and the strategy that lead to the collapse of both.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• To "Hazard a Turbulent Sea:" Marine Archaeology in the Gulf of Mexico--Examining 500 Years of Exploration and Exploitation   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2016

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Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 424