The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1914-07-28

Capt. r. l.. Page, afterWard Generdi
Page. was placed in command Il me
| works. and had his headquarters. ard
| also his residence. at the u. 5. Mint
on West Trade street. where his fam
ily lived during his administration OF
| the affairs of the Navy Yard.
shortly after the machinery refer
| red to had been forwarded 20 Cfar-
lotte. n. G., the Acknowledgements,
| which had been guarding h APP
breaches to Norfolk. Va. had to be
destroyed, together with other Con
federate property at Norfolk. and
tCapt. Catesby, Capt. K. Jones and the
writer Oh. Ashton Ramsay who was
chief engineer Of the "Virginia' we
ordered to Charlotte. N. C., in conntc-
ton with constructing the ordinance
works. Subsequently General Page
was transferred to the army and or
dered to the command of Fort Nor
gan, near Mobile, Ala. and Capt. Jones
was ordered to ordinance works at
Selma. Ala. leaving the writer II.
Ashton ramsay in OF the
naval station at Charlotte, N. G.
A number of large, frame struc-
lures were erected on the property &C
Quired, including a shop,
a laboratory and a torpedo Sop, and
"A large forge shop. where the largest
steam hammer in the South was built,
and where propeller shafting WAS
lofSeu loI Ill Il ~ III
clads; The Virginia No. H. at Rich
mond. The Albermar.e." which sue
cesSfully rammed and destroyed sew
eral United States %gunbOats in the
Roanoke river; the gunboats built
in Charleston and Savannah; the
iron cladS, Tennessee" Mobile" and
other iron clads built at New Orleans;
in fact none of the vessels could have
been constructed had it not been for
the works at Charlotte. Rifles, solid
shot. shell and tOrpedOes were manu-
featured at these works in Charlotte
and supplied the batteries of all the
vessels aid ShOr. batteries manned
by the Confederate navy.
In the last six n.onthS ot the war,
when General SLOVENIAN burnt Sails
bury. N. c., and was expected to ad-
r vance on Charlotte, the w-iter (Ram-
say, then In COMMAND was furnished
S with 800 muSke.s and directed to form
a battalion o. three 80 companies
a from the employees of the naval work;
and to hip as many - the ava
l stores and smaller tools IS possible OF
railroad cars to LincointOn, N. c.. ane
n to hold the battalion in IS t.
receive orders from Genera Beaure
= gard, to / this battalion had bee.
assigned.
When Charlotte Was ~ital.
n After the burning Of Columbia, S. G
:" ny 'cnoTd sherman, he dUVdHCcl W
'e ward Charlotte as far as Chester. s
er c.. but in the meantime, the remnan
of General Hoods army crossed owe
l. the country and CT ne into Chariot
over the railroad bridge across tn
OK Catawba river, which We were in
e. structed t. plaI-k over so the WACO
train could cross. General JOhnSO
s. then assumed command of all tn
forces concentrated at Charlotte an
An Immediately transported his troop
. eastward and confronted Genera
I'm Sherman at B~entonville, where til
ne last battle was fought aid the enem
checked for the first time since tn
capture of Atlanta, Ga. Soon afte
ne this, President Jefferson Davis and h
n cabinet came to Charlotte, N. c.. an
o. for a few lays Charlotte was the cap
ne tai of the COnfederacy.
or Mr.. Davis and his cabinet starte
lr- from Charlotte soon after the su
ne render Of General Lee, towards Wasl
I'M ington, Ga, under the escor, of Gel
ng eral Wheeler's cavalry and one con
re pany OF the navy yard battalion u
ng der Captain Tabb. the other cor
panies remaining to garrison Cha
riy lotte, and were surrendered togeth
rd, with n rest Of General johnson
Din army when the army ca%pitu1ated
Ins Greensboro. N. c., April. 1855.
ige You will note by the above, tn
Id Charlotte. although several times me
ur- aced by hostile forces, and at 0
time the central focus of the COME
eracy, was never actually captured
or the enemy. their forces not coming
ina to Charlotte until after the surrend
nu- at Greensboro"
(Signed) H. A. RAMSEY.
as Late Chief Engineer. c. S. N. a
one Lieut-Colonel G. 8
diy Baltimore. Md. March 1910
IN Miss Alexander was unable 70 6
tain data concerning nm, ne
nee John M. Brooke referred to by Ca
'rds Ramsey Mrs. John Wilkes, one
of lChariotte's most patriotic and belo>
)rO- women at Miss s-ren1e
sti- repaired the following sketch Of
ed Charlotte Navy Yard. This article y
ateS read by Mrs. Wilkes before the u.
eet, c., of which she was one time h
by ~tOrian. in April. 1914 manuscr
hen cOpy is filed with the u. D.. G. Oh;