This is the story of the experience of three African Americans who served on the USS Tulip, and later survived an explosion on the doomed steamer.
Many followers of American Civil War history may be aware of the tragedy that occurred at Ragged Point in the River Potomac, November 11th, 1864. About 6 p.m. that day the boilers on the USS Tulip exploded, causing the loss of nearly all its crew.
Three of the survivors were African-Americans, their names have been lost to history and the narrative concerning the fate of the USS Tulip. One of the few survivors who spoke of his experiences on the vessel was Ensign John Davis, an Englishman born in Meonstoke, Hampshire in 1839.
In John’s memoires concerning the catastrophe he recalled that he numbered among the Tulip’s three sole survivors. John believed that seven men had been picked up by the army tugboat Hudson, and four later died. However recent research suggests that seven crew members out of ten hauled from the icy water survived the explosion and the Civil War too.
After the ten survivors were hauled on board the Hudson, the rescuers tried to search diligently in the darkness for other men but eventually gave up the rescue and steamed on to St. Inigoes. They arrived around 11 p.m. that night and the remnants of the Tulips crew were placed on the storeship USS Wyandank. There they received medical attention under the care of its surgeon M F Delano.
The three African Americans taken care of by the surgeon were:
Landsman Nelson Gaskins. He was a former cook born in Virgnia or Baltimore. The explosion caused him to suffer a dislocated knee. Nelson left the Wyandank, and later served on the USS New Hampshire, he was discharged on May 18th, 1867. Their fate thereafter is not known.
1st Class Boy Frank Snowden sustained a fractured femur. He was eighteen years old and had been born in Virginia. Frank was a labourer prior to his enlistment on July 24th, 1864, at Washington. After leaving the Wyandank he went on to serve on several other Union Vessels including the Fushia, Mercury, Marblehead, Hornet and Bienville. Frank was discharged January 5th, 1867, and a pension application later filed. He died on January 3rd, 1902, at Eastport, Maryland.
Landsman Fleet Burrill/Burrell was scolded as an outcome of the explosion, and later suffered life changing issues with his right leg. Prior to his enlistment on July 28th, 1864, he had been a wheelwright. He was born in Richmond, Virginia in about 1844.
After receiving treatment Fleet went to the field hospital at Point Lookout on November 14th where he was treated for his injuries. Thereafter he spent time at hospital in Washington and Brooklyn. He transferred to the USS Constellation was discharged from the receiving ship Vermont on March 18th, 1866. He suffered burns but eventually lost his right foot as an outcome of the explosion. It was thought to have been dislocated. However surgeons at a hospital in Portsmouth, Virginia discovered it was so shattered they had to amputate it just below the knee. His upper right leg was rendered completely paralysed too.
He was able to get a disability pension, it can be accessed on Fold3 and is 416 pages long! Indicative of the struggles he had for pension increase. In one letter dated September 27th, 1892, he wrote to senator Joseph. R. Hawley in Washington seeking help;
“Dear General, I know that you are in full sympathy with every true soldier who in the hour of our country's peril, failed not in their duty and therefore I know that you will aid me now, I served during the late war in the U S. Navy on the gunboat tulip and lost my lower right leg when she was blown up Nov 11. 1864…”
Fleet did receive a disability pension, but he still suffered with his injuries, his right leg was withered and of little use. Despite his physical condition it seems that he lived well into old age and died on July 14th, 1921, in Hampton, Virginia. He was likely to have been the Tulips last remaining survivor.
On November 13th 1864, John Davis reflected on the trauma inducing experience. He remained on board the steamer USS Wyandank berthed at St Inigoes Bay. Whilst there he submitted a report to Commodore Foxall A Parker;
“Sir in obedience to your orders, I would respectfully make the following report of the disaster to the United States steamer Tulip. On the 11th of November at three o clock. p.m. we left St. Imagoes Naval Station bound for Washington, steaming under one boiler. After passing the guard schooner, Wm. Bacon I being officer of the deck, the pilot asked me why we were going to stop at Piney Point. I told him I did not know. He then asked senior engineer Geo. H . Parks and he told him that they were going to get up steam on the other boiler. Third assistant engineer John Gordon then on watch said that it was not necessary to stop that he had already steam on the other boiler. We did not stop at Piney Point but passed on up the Potomac. Nothing unusual occurred up to 6 pm when I was relieved.
About sixteen minutes past six o'clock. I was on the fore part of the vessel; heard some noise and excitement in the engine room, started aft saw volumes of steam come up the engine and fire room hatch ways and heard engineer Jordan cry out, ‘Haul your fires!’. At that moment Senior Engineer Parks rushed down to the engine room and engineer Gordon cried out, ‘For God's sake. Somebody raise the safety-valve!’. Seeing there was danger I walked aft. When I came abreast of the cabin companion-way the explosion occurred and the after part of the vessel went down in about two minutes.
Very respectfully. Your ob’t serv’t , John Davis Acting Masters Mate”.
In 1865 John resigned from naval service, and eventually returned to London. Until his death he was profoundly affected by his experiences on the Tulip. John suffered physically; shaking and sweating whenever he heard the sound of hissing. He experienced PTSD too.
Peer support was incredibly important to John, he became a missionary and also founded the London Branch of American Civil War veterans in 1910.Therefore one can only wonder how he may have navigated the post event trauma of the Tulip explosion with someone with similar experience to talk to?
John held a mistaken belief that he was one of three men who survived the explosion, but research has revealed the truth. John died in London, England on January 5th, 1917, without knowing that a former comrade, former Landsman Fleet Burrill was alive and lived in Hampton Virginia. It seems a terrible tragedy that with the loss of the Tulip, the few survivors lost comradeship and peer support too.
In memory of those who served on the USS Tulip.
Fleet Burrells pension file can be accessed here _
Comments