John Newland Maffitt (privateer)
John Newland Maffitt | |
---|---|
Nickname(s) | "Prince of Privateers" |
Born | at sea | February 22, 1819
Died | May 15, 1886 Wilmington, North Carolina | (aged 67)
Allegiance | United States of America Confederate States of America |
Service/ | United States Navy Confederate States Navy |
Years of service | USN 1832-1861 CSN 1861-1865 |
Rank | Lieutenant (USN) Commander (CSN) |
Battles/wars | American Civil War |
John Newland Maffitt (February 22, 1819 – May 15, 1886) was an officer in the
Early life
Maffitt was born at sea on a ship bound for New York City, his parents having emigrated from Ireland. Maffitt's parents, Reverend John Newland Maffitt and his wife Ann Carnicke, settled with their son in Connecticut. When Maffitt was about five years old, he was adopted by his uncle, Dr. William Maffitt who traveled across the Atlantic Ocean with them, and moved to Fayetteville, North Carolina to live at the Ellerslie Plantation.[1][2]
Maffitt was a
Maffitt entered the
Maffitt was ordered to the
In 1857, Maffitt was placed in command of the
In May 1861, with the coming of the
On August 17, 1862, he became the first commanding officer of the
Having taken stores and gun accessories the ship lacked, along with added crew members, Maffitt waited for a violent storm before setting out on January 16, 1863. He used trickery to lose six pursuing blockaders. After coaling at Nassau, Bahamas, Florida spent 6 months off North and South America and in the West Indies, with calls at neutral ports, all the while making captures and eluding the large Federal squadron pursuing her. It was during this period that he acquired the nickname "Prince of Privateers" (which was somewhat inaccurate, since he was a naval officer and not an actual privateer.)
Maffitt was promoted to the rank of Commander in May 1863 "for gallant and meritorious conduct in command of the steam sloop Florida." Ill health due to the lingering effects of yellow fever forced him to relinquish command of Florida at Brest, France on February 12, 1864.
In the summer of 1864, after returning to the Confederate States, Maffit was given command of the
During his service to the Confederacy, Maffitt repeatedly ran the blockade to carry needed supplies and captured and destroyed more than seventy prizes worth $10 to $15 million. Maffitt recognized the importance of a strong navy, for as he said, "The grand mistake of the South was neglecting her navy".[9]
Later life
At the end of the war, he refused to surrender his ship to the United States. Instead, he returned Owl to agents in Liverpool. He chose to remain in England, and, after passing the British naval examination, he served for about two years in command of the British merchant steamer Widgeon running between Liverpool and South America. He returned to the United States in 1868 and settled on a farm near Wilmington, North Carolina. In 1870, Maffit commanded a warship for Cuban revolutionaries during the Ten Years' War.
Maffit died in Wilmington in 1886, leaving an unfinished manuscript about piracy in the West Indies. His collected papers are in the library of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
See also
References
- ^ James Sprunt. "JOHN N. MAFFITT". Confederate States Navy Research Library. Retrieved 11 April 2012.
- ^ Parker, Roy (August 22, 1996). "Stealth Practice Served Blockade Runner Well". Fayetteville Observer. Retrieved March 23, 2015.
- ISBN 0-8047-4708-3.
- ^ a b Gould IV 2002, p. 34-5.
- ^ "Generals of the Confederecy". www.alexandria.lib.va.us. Retrieved 11 April 2012.
- ^ James Sprunt (2 August 1896). "Confederate States Navy Research Library". www.csnavy.org. Retrieved 11 April 2012.
- ^ "Commander John Newland Maffitt". DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY -- NAVAL HISTORICAL CENTER. Archived from the original on 10 April 2012. Retrieved 11 April 2012.
- ^ Tim Winstead. "John Newland Maffitt". The Cape Fear Civil War Round Table. Archived from the original on 20 November 2010. Retrieved 11 April 2012.
- ISBN 0-87249-986-3.
Sources
- Commander John Newland Maffitt, CSN at U.S. Naval Historical Center
- Inventory of the John Newland Maffitt Papers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
- Biography of John Newland Maffitt at Confederate States Navy Museum, Library & Research Institute
- John Newland Maffitt and the Galveston Blockade at Texas A&M University Institute of Nautical Archaeology
- John Newland Maffitt at the Alexandria, Virginia Library
- "Captain John Newland Maffit"[permanent dead link], from Derelicts[permanent dead link] by James Sprunt, at Joyner Library, East Carolina University
- This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.
Bibliography
- ISBN 0-87249-986-3