In late April 1862, David Farragut used naval power to augment the land attacks on forts along the Mississippi River, in preparation for the capture of New Orleans. An observer along the river, witnessing the bombardment of Forts Jackson and St. Phillip said, “Imagine all the earthquakes of the world, and all the thunder and lightning together in a space of two miles, and all going off at once. That would be like it.“
As the Federals swept over Louisiana, Sarah Morgan Dawson was frustrated with the meek surrender of New Orleans. Confederate women, she said, knew how to fight.
“O if only I was a man! Then I would don the breeches and slay them with a will! If some southern women were in the ranks, they would set the men an example that they would not blush to follow!“
Sarah Morgan, diary, May 9, 1862, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
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