Saxon Bisbee - Engines of Rebellion: Confederate Ironclads and Steam Engineering in the American Civil War

Pondering and researching is one thing; actually writing is quite another. I have many wonderful people to thank for helping me in this regard; I hope I have not forgotten anyone. First and foremost, I thank Brad Rodgers for his patience and for helping greatly to make my work more readable. I also thank Nathan Richards and Wade Dudley, experts in historical maritime archaeology and the history of sea power. I feel especially privileged to have corresponded closely with Bill Still, an expert on the Confederate navy, through all phases of the research and writing process.

I owe a great deal to Bob Holcombe, who next to Dr. Still is probably the worlds leading expert on Confederate ironclads. There is a large amount of material in this work that he kindly provided, and the book would have been much less comprehensive without his input. I am also grateful to the staff of the Port Columbus Civil War Naval Museum, especially Bruce Smith, Ken Johnston, Jeff Seymour, and Jerry Franklin. Their hospitality and dedication made my research and stay in Georgia very enjoyable.

Other helpful people were David Rousar, who allowed me to use scans of never-before-seen original machinery plans, and Kazimierz Zygadlo and Bil Ragan, for their generous sharing of obscure images and data. Also invaluable were the staffs of the National Archives; Emory Universitys Manuscript, Archives, and Rare Book Library; University of North Carolinas Southern Historical Collection; University of Alabamas Special Collections; the Alabama Department of Archives and History; East Carolina Universitys Joyner Library; the North Carolina Underwater Archaeology Branch; the Virginia Historical Society; the Museum of the Confederacy; the CSS Neuse Interpretive Center; and the Mariners Museum Library.

I thank my family and friends for their love and support on all fronts. A final thanks is also due to Fred Hocker, who initially convinced me to pursue this difficult topic.