Cassidey's Shipyard [1]
Cassidey's Shipyard
by Bennett L. Steelman, 2006
Cassidey's Shipyard was the smaller of two Confederate shipyards in Wilmington during the Civil War [2] and the construction site of the ironclad [3] CSS Raleigh [4]. The yard was founded when James Cassidey (1792-1866), a ship's carpenter, bought a waterfront lot at the foot of Church Street on the east bank of the Cape Fear River [5]. By the late 1830s he was operating a yard on the site, and by 1846 he was advertising a marine railway. By 1850 the yard was repairing and copper-bottoming sailing ships on the West Indies trade.
Work on the Raleigh, a four-gun steam sloop sometimes classified as a ram, began in mid-1862, about the same time it began on the CSS North Carolina [6] at Beery's Shipyard [7] across the river. However, the Raleigh's construction was frequently stalled. Crews fled the yellow fever epidemics [8] of 1862 and 1863, and workers went on strike when pay was delayed by the Confederate Navy [9] Department. Finally, by 30 Apr. 1863 the Raleigh was in commission.
After the war, Cassidey's Shipyard merged with Benjamin W. Beery's adjoining works at the foot of Nun Street and was renamed Cassidey & Beery. In 1881 S. W. Skinner took over the facility, and by 1911 the Cape Fear Machine Works had moved onto the site.
References:
William N. Still Jr., Iron Afloat: The Story of the Confederate Armorclads (1985).
Tony P. Wrenn, Wilmington, North Carolina: An Architectural and Historical Portrait (1984).
Additional Resources:
"Cassidey Shipyard." North Carolina Highway Historical Marker Program. https://www.ncdcr.gov/about/history/division-historical-resources/nc-highway-historical-marker-program/Markers.aspx?sp=search&k=Markers&sv=DDD-3 [11]
Fonvielle, Jr., Chris E. The Wilmington Campaign: Last Departing Rays of Hope. Mechanicsburg, Penn.: Stackpole Books. 2001 p. 15.
Jackson, III, Claude V. "James L. Cassidey & Sons Shipyard (ca 1830 - 1855); Cassidey Brothers & Ross Shipyard (ca 1868 - 1879); Cassidey Brothers Shipyard (1855 - 1880)" Maritime history and survey of the Cape Fear and Northeast Cape Fear rivers, Wilmington Harbor, North Carolina. Volue 1: Maritime history. Kure Beach, N.C.: North Carolina Office of Archives and History, Dept. of Cultural Resources: 1996. p.213-216. h [12]ttp://digital.ncdcr.gov/u?/p249901coll22,397966 [12]
Image Credits:
Tuther, T., Jr., compiler. Kelley's Wilmington directory to which is added a business directory for 1860-61. Wilmington, N.C.: Geo. H. Kelley. 1860. p. 27. https://archive.org/stream/kelleyswilmingto1860kell#page/26/mode/2up [10]
1 January 2006 | Steelman, Bennett L.