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Richmond Ironclads at Trent's Reach
Photograph
Detail from Library of Congress photo: LC-DIG-cwpb-00018


Trent’s Reach from the Howlett Heights


With dawn approaching, the view from Confederate Battery Dantzler on Howlett Heights would have revealed the C.S. Navy sprawled across the river below. The Virginia II and Richmond, which had waited in 30 feet of water while the Scorpion opened the gap, had swung on their anchors and run aground. The Fredericksburg, the only ironclad to have cleared the gap, had returned to help her sister ships but was unable to do so, and the Scorpion and gunboat Drewry were stuck near the Richmond. The seven Confederate vessels still afloat took cover behind Farrar's Island, the point that juts out on the left. (The Union obstructions in this image are just below the distant heights, which were dotted with U.S. guns.)  
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