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Home>Digest>03/02
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Photo Caption:
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Raphael Semmes was a commander in the United States Navy when he resigned his commission when Alabama seceded from the Union. He joined the Confederate Navy as a Commander and was appointed as the official head of the Confederate States of American Lighthouse Bureau under CSA Secretary of the Navy Stephen Mallory. As Captain of the CSS Alabama from 1862 to 1864 he captured and sank 55 ships, more than any other Confederate cruiser. In a naval battle off the coast of France with the USS Kearsage he was defeated and a number of his crew were killed. However, he was rescued and subsequently appointed a Rear Admiral in the CSN. However, since he was afforded little opportunity for continued Naval action, he formed his own brigade from sailors and naval cadets and was then appointed a Brigadier General. At the conclusion of the war he was arrested and brought to Washington DC and was tried for treason and piracy and was also investigated for the mistreating of prisoners and violating the rules of war. He died in Mobile, Alabama on August 30, 1877. And now the rest of the story . . . Before Semmes was appointed as head of the Confederate States Lighthouse Bureau, he was Secretary of the United States Lighthouse Board.
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Story:
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What happened to the Confederate Lighthouse Flag?
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