When the Civil War began, President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a blockade of the southern coastline along the Atlantic and in Gulf of Mexico to interrupt vital flows of supplies to the Confederacy. More than five hundred ships manned by one hundred thousand sailors served on the blockade by the end of the war. Through its sheer size and objectives, the blockade became one of the most extraordinary undertakings by the U.S. Navy.
Be sure to stop by the Library and check out our new exhibit, “Blockaders and Blockade Runners: The Union Blockade during the Civil War,” which highlights the people, ships, and events that made the blockade the scene of dynamic action throughout the Civil War. The exhibit opens on January 9, 2012 and will run through May 2012.