William Barker Cushing is considered one of the navys greatest heroes of the Civil War. After his expulsion from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1861, Cushing managed to get an appointment as a masters mate on one of the warships of a blockading squadron. Cushings daring and exceptional performance in battle led to a spectacular rise in rank, responsibility, and reputation. His military career culminated in his torpedoing of the Confederate ironclad Albermarle on the Roanoke River in 1864, an operation he executed under heavy enemy fire. This new and fully annotated edition of Cushings memoir, originally written in 18671868, conveys the excitement and drama of a truly extraordinary Civil War naval career.
