The main event related to the Civil War in 1864 was the wreck of the blockade runner the Wild Dayrell off Stump Inlet. The blockade runner was named after the famous English thoroughbred racehorse of the same name. Born in 1852 he raced four times. He won his first three races including the prestigious Epsom Derby. In his fourth career race he suffered an injury to his left foreleg, pulled up lame and was retired to stud. The blockade runner Wild Dayrell was built by the Jones, Quiggin and Company in Liverpool along with an identical sistership, Lucy. Both ships were constructed of iron, each measuring 215 feet in length, 20 feet in beam and with a hold that was 10-foot 3-inches deep. The Wild Dayrell was built for speed with oscillating steam cylinder engines constructed by Fawcett, Preston and Company in Liverpool, which measured 52 inches in diameter with a 48-inch stroke. The Wild Dayrell was also equipped with feathering paddle wheel floats and a forecastle hood. Two raked pole masts and two raked retractable funnels were all that protruded above the level of the steamer’s paddle boxes. The Wild Dayrell was launched on September 17, 1863. Although the steam trials of the Wild Dayrell were never reported, its sistership Lucy made 15½ knots against a strong wind and tide during her trials in October 1863. On November 12th Edward Lawrence and Company, entered the vessel at Liverpool Customs for loading for Nassau. The fully loaded Wild Dayrell cleared for sea two days later. In December, the steamer made Nassau and, after being painted a lead color, took on a cargo for Wilmington. After two successful round trips the Wild Dayrell ran ashore on February 1, 1864.

In his report, shown in full below, Lieutenant Commander Roe of the U. S. Navy, was commanding the USS Sassacus off Stump Inlet of Topsail Island when about 11:00 AM on February 1st he discovered a steamer close inshore, showing heavy columns of smoke. He headed for her and found the ship had run aground near Stump Inlet. Her crew was throwing her cargo overboard with much of it scattered along the beach. The crew fled in their boats when the Sassacus opened fire. The Federals boarded and took possession of what her papers showed was the blockade runner Wild Dayrell. She had left Nassau two days earlier. He found the vessel and her machinery in perfect working order with a portion of the cargo still on board. An initial attempt to pull the ship off the shoal failed due to falling tides. At 1:00 AM on February 2nd another attempt also failed and with a storm coming in the Sassacus put back out to sea until daylight. When they returned they threw about 20 tons of coal overboard to lighten the load. At 2:00 PM at high tide they tried again but after lightly striking bottom they steamed to a new position and anchored. By this time, the USS Florida arrived under commander Peirce Crosby and came to their aid but together they could not get the Wild Dayrell free. As they tried again on the 3rd they came under fire from Rebels on the shoreline. Both vessels opened fire driving the Confederates off. After a meeting with Commander Crosby the decision was made to destroy the steamer. A signal was given to the men on board the Wild Dayrell to set her on fire and return. Both ships then opened fire on the blockade runner, and she was riddled at about the water line with raking shots. No attempt was made to save her cargo and the Sassacus put back to sea at about 8:00 PM of the evening of the 3rd.

Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies, Series I, Volume 9, pages 438-439- Report of Lieutenant-Commander Roe.

Commander Crosby of the USS Florida also filed his own brief report. In addition to what Lieutenant-Commander Roe described, he stated that the cargo of the Wild Daryell was largely shoes, blankets and provisions. He allowed his crew to take what they needed from the cargo before it was burned. He also voiced his opinion that he thought the ship grounded by accident. His full report appears below.

Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies, Series I, Volume 9, pages 437-438, Report of Commander Crosby.

Commander Crosby was indeed correct the Wild Daryell did run aground of its own accord. Shortly thereafter two articles appeared in the Wilmington Journal from the Confederate perspective, one from the ship’s captain (Thomas Cubbines) and the other from its pilot (James Burriss). Both articles are shown below in their entirety, where each man blames the other for the ship grounding. The Wild Daryell was far off course being off Topsail Island far to the north of New Inlet at the Cape Fear River about 18 miles away. The pilot would claim this was the first ship he had ever lost. Five days after he wrote the letter to the editors of the Wilmington Journal James Burriss, the pilot, would ground another ship, the Fanny and Jenny, near Masonsboro Inlet a little further south at Wrightsville Beach.

The Wilmington Daily Journal, Thursday, February 04, 1864, page 2

Wilmington Journal, Thursday, February 11, 1864, page 4

A modern day image of the wreck.

An investigation of the site was published in 2006 by Coastal Planning & Engineering, Inc. entitled Cultural Resource Investigation: Location of the Remains of the Wild Dayrell in Rich Inlet (link).

From the report- ”The remains of the Anglo-Confederate Trading Company’s steamer Wild Dayrell, lie in Rich Inlet approximately 20 miles north of Fort Fisher. That vessel was built by the firm of Jones, Quiggin and Company in Liverpool along with an identical sistership, Lucy. Lucy and Wild Dayrell were constructed of iron, each measuring 215 feet in length, 20 feet in beam and 10 foot 3 inch depth of hold. The vessels’ oscillating steam cylinder engines were built by Fawcett, Preston and Company in Liverpool and measured 52 inches in diameter with a 48-inch stroke. The Wild Dayrell was also equipped with feathering paddle wheel floats and a forecastle hood. Two raked pole masts and two raked retractable funnels were all that protruded above the level of the steamer’s paddle boxes. The Wild Dayrell was launched on 17 September 1863. Although the steam trials of the Wild Dayrell were not reported in the press, its sistership Lucy proved to be capable of 15 ½ knots against a strong wind and tide during her trials in October 1863. On 12 November the vessel’s registered owners, Edward Lawrence and Company, entered the vessel at Liverpool Customs for loading for Nassau. The fully loaded Wild Dayrell cleared for sea two days later. In December, the steamer made Nassau and, after being painted a lead color, took on a cargo for Wilmington. After two successful round trips the Wild Dayrell was run ashore on February 1, 1864. The wreck of the Wild Dayrell was never lost. It lies in the shallow water of Rich Inlet south of Figure Eight Island and has been a popular site for fishing (Figure 6). However, because of strong currents in the inlet, the Wild Dayrell has never been a popular dive site though sport divers have recovered portholes from the hull during the early 1980s. In spite of the environment, the wreck was mapped by the staff and students of the East Carolina University (ECU) Program in Maritime History and Underwater Archaeology in 1985 (Figure 7).”

Shortly after leaving the scene of the wreck of the Wild Daryell Lieutenant-Commander Roe encountered another blockade runner the Nutfield which he chased north all the way to New River Inlet. Around 7:00 AM on February 4, 1864 while along the Bermuda line they saw a ship to their northwest. They chased the ship about 12 miles when it changed course and headed for land. Traveling 12-13 knots per hour they closed within range of their 100-pounder rifle around noon. About 45 minutes later the crew ran her ashore near New River Inlet and fled leaving the engine running. The Federals boarded her around 1:00 PM and found her to be the paddle-wheel steamer Nutfield from Bermuda. One of her boats had capsized, and the purser was rescued. The rest of the boat’s crew were presumed drowned. The fire in her hold was extinguised and attempts made to haul her off. From the purser Roe learned the Nutfield was a new iron steamer, with a cargo of merchandise, munitions of war, Enfield rifles, a battery of eight Whitworth rifled guns, and a quantity of pig lead. The battery and the lead were thrown overboard during the chase. By the next day it was clear that the Nutfield was impossible to free. The Enfeld rifles, a quantity of quinine, and several compasses were removed, and the ship set on fire. About this time the USS Florida came up, and both vessels riddled her with shot. The Sassacus put out to sea about 7 PM. The full report of Lieutenant- Commander Roe is shown below.

Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies, Series I, Volume 9, pages 459-460.

The Buffalo Commercial, Feb. 17, 1864

Lieutenant-Commander Roe also forwarded an appraisal of the value of the Nutfield, and also a list of arms taken from her. He allowed the officers and crew to take some provisions, blankets, and small articles for their personal use, report below.

Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies, Series I, Volume 9, pages 465