At the Sons of Confederate Veterans National Convention in Mobile last July, I stayed in the Admiral Semmes Hotel.  Semmes was the captain of the CSS Alabama, a Confederate Cruiser that terrorized the Federal shipping industry during the War Between the States. At that conference, Oliver J. Semmes III, a descendant of Semmes, was a featured speaker, as was Dr. John Lancaster, a descendant of the Lancaster who rescued Raphael Semmes after the Alabama was sank. Funeral services were also held for an unknown Confederate crewmember whose body was discovered recently on the Alabama during salvage efforts. I learned a great deal about the Confederate Navy as a result of attending the SCV conference.
All the exposure to this raiding ship affected me deeply. Inspired by a song of Jed Marum, I’m hoping to write a short story based on the Shenandoah, another cruiser of the Confederate Navy. Jed is sending me a diary from one of the ship’s officers.  Someday, I may post the lyrics of that song here. After I catch up on university work, I’m also about to dive into Two Years on the Alabama: A Firshand Account of the Daring Exploits of the Infamous Raider written by Arthur Sinclair.