JAMES B. EADS.
James B. Eads was born in Lawrenceburg, Indiana, in the year 1820. His
father was a man of moderate means, and was able to give him a fair
English education. From his earliest childhood he evinced a remarkable
fondness for all sorts of machinery and mechanical arrangements. This
fondness became at length a passion, and excited the surprise of his
friends, who could not imagine why a mere child should be so much
interested in such things. His greatest delight was to go to the machine
shops in his neighborhood, in which he had many friends, and watch the
workings of the various inventions employed therein.
When he was nine years old his father removed to Louisville, Kentucky.
During the voyage down the Ohio, young Eads passed the most of his time
in watching the engines of the steamer. The engineer was so much pleased
to see his interest in the machinery that he explained the whole system
of the steam-engine to him. The boy listened eagerly, and every word
remained fixed in his mind. Two years later, with no further instruction
on the subject, he constructed a miniature engine, which was worked by
steam. This, for a boy of eleven years, was no insignificant triumph of
genius. His father, anxious to encourage such unmistakable talent, now
fitted up a small workshop for him, in which he constructed models of
saw mills, fire engines, steamboats, and electrotyping machines. When he
was only twelve years old he was able to take to pieces and reset the
family clock and a patent lever watch, using no tool for this purpose
but his pocket-knife.
At the age of thirteen his pleasant employment was brought to a sudden
end. His father lost all his property by the failure of some commercial
transactions, and the family was brought to the verge of ruin. It now
became necessary for young Eads to labor for his own support, and for
that of his mother and sisters. Boy as he was, he faced the crisis
bravely. Having in vain sought employment in Louisville, he resolved to
go to St. Louis. He worked his passage there on a river steamer, and
landed in that city so poor that he had neither shoes to his feet nor a
coat to his back. He found it as difficult to procure work here as it
had been in Louisville, and was at length compelled to resort to
peddling apples on the street in order to secure a living. He did this
for some time, never relaxing his efforts to obtain more desirable
employment.
After many attempts he succeeded in getting a situation in a mercantile
house, at a fair salary. One of his employers was a man of wealth and
culture, and was possessed of one of the finest private libraries in the
West. Learning the extraordinary mechanical talent possessed by his
young clerk, this gentleman placed his library at his disposal. The
offer was promptly and gratefully accepted, and young Eads devoted
almost all his leisure time to the study of mechanics, machinery, and
civil engineering. He remained with this house for several years, and
then obtained a clerkship on one of the Mississippi River steamers,
where he passed several years more. During this time he became
intimately acquainted with the great river and its tributaries, and
acquired an extensive knowledge of all subjects appertaining to western
navigation, which proved of great service to him in his after life.
In 1842, being then twenty-two years old, and having saved a moderate
sum of money, he formed a copartnership with Messrs. Case & Nelson, boat
builders, of St. Louis, for the purpose of recovering steamboats and
their cargoes which had been sunk or wrecked in the Mississippi.
Accidents of this kind were then very common in those waters, and the
business bade fair to be very profitable. The enterprise succeeded
better than had been expected, and the operations of the wrecking
company extended from Galena, Illinois, to the Balize, and into many of
the tributaries of the great river. The parties interested in the scheme
realized a handsome profit on their investments. Mr. Eads was the
practical man of the concern, and worked hard to establish it upon a
successful footing. In 1845 he sold out his interest in the company, and
established a glass manufactory in St. Louis. This was the first
enterprise of the kind ever attempted west of the Mississippi. Two years
later, in 1847, he organized a new company for the purpose of recovering
boats and cargoes lost in the Mississippi and its tributaries. This
company started with a capital of fifteen hundred dollars. It was slow
work at first, but a steady improvement was made every year, and in
1857, just ten years from the date of their organization, the property
of the firm was valued at more than half a million of dollars. During
the winter of 1856-'57, Mr. Eads laid before Congress a formal
proposition to remove the obstructions from the western rivers and keep
them open for a term of years, upon payment of a reasonable sum by the
General Government. Had this proposition been accepted, the benefits
thereby secured to all who were engaged in the navigation of those
rivers would have been very great. A bill was reported in Congress
authorizing the acceptance of Mr. Eads' offer, but was defeated through
the influence of the Senators from Mississippi (Jefferson Davis) and
Louisiana (J.P. Benjamin).
In 1857, Mr. Eads was compelled, on account of ill-health, to retire
from business. He had earned a handsome fortune by his industry and
enterprise, and could well afford to rest for a short time, preparatory,
as it afterward proved, to the most important part of his whole career.
When the secession troubles began to agitate the country, toward the
close of the year 1860, Mr. Eads cast the weight of his private and
public influence on the side of the Union. He felt that the war, if it
should come, would be a very serious affair for the West, as the
prosperity of that section depends largely upon the absolute freedom of
the navigation of the Mississippi. The Confederates well understood
this, and prepared from the first to close the great river until their
independence should be acknowledged by the General Government. Dr.
Boynton, in his "History of the United States Navy During the
Rebellion," thus describes the condition of affairs in the West, a
proper understanding of which will show the reader the importance of the
services subsequently rendered by Mr. Eads:
The main features of the rebel plan of war in the West were to
seize and hold Missouri, and, as a consequence, Kansas and
Nebraska, and thus threaten or invade the free States of the
North-west from that point; to hold Kentucky and Tennessee, and, if
possible, to cross the Ohio, and make the Northern States the
theater of the war; or, in case they should be unable to invade the
North, to maintain their battle line unbroken along the Ohio and
through Missouri; to keep the great rivers closed, and thus holding
back the North, and being secure within their own territory, at
length compel the recognition of their independence. They certainly
presented to the North a most formidable front, a line of defenses
which was indeed impregnable to any means of assault which the
Government at first possessed. No army could be moved into
Tennessee by land alone, because the line of communication with a
Northern base could not be held secure, and a defeat far from the
Ohio would be the destruction of an army, and open the road for an
invasion of Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio, and the destruction of
their cities.
It was quite evident that no impression could be made upon the
power of the rebellion in the West, until a firm foothold could be
gained in Kentucky and Tennessee, and until the Mississippi could
be wrested from the conspirators' control. It was clear that the
whole seaboard might be regained, even to Florida, and yet the
rebellion remain as dangerous as ever, if the rebels could hold the
Mississippi River and the valley up to or near the Ohio.
France was looking with eager eyes toward Texas, in the hope of
securing and extending her Mexican usurpation. England was ready to
give all the assistance in her power to any step which would weaken
the North; and had the rebels been pressed back from the seaports
and the Northern Atlantic slope, they would have had it in their
power, if still holding the Mississippi, the South-west, including
Tennessee, and the great natural fortresses of the mountains, to
have so connected themselves with Mexico and France as to have
caused the most serious embarrassment. It became absolutely
necessary to the success of the Government that the rebels'
northern line of defenses should be broken through, and that the
Mississippi should be opened to its mouth.
At first, and before the nature of the work was fully understood,
the whole was placed under the direction of the War Department, as
it was thought the few armed transports which would be needed would
be a mere appendage of the army. The idea of a formidable river
navy of a hundred powerful steamers did not in the beginning enter
into the minds of any.
It was soon seen, however, that an entirely new description of
craft was needed for this work. It was clear that the river boats,
which had been built for the common purposes of freight and
passage, were not capable of resisting the fire of heavy artillery,
and that the batteries of the rebels could not be captured nor even
passed by them. They could not even be safely employed alone in the
transportation of troops, for they could be sunk or crippled by the
field batteries that could be moved from point to point. The
question of iron-clads was proposed, but with only the ocean
iron-clads as a guide, who should conceive the proper form of an
armored boat which could navigate our rivers and compete
successfully with the heavy guns, rifled as well as smooth-bore, of
the fortifications. It was by no means easy to solve this problem,
but it was absolutely necessary that the attempt should be made....
These forts could only be reduced by the aid of gunboats, and
these were almost literally to be created.
There was in the Cabinet of President Lincoln at this time a western
man, intimately acquainted with the steamboat interest of the
Mississippi. This was Edward Bates, the Attorney-General of the United
States. He was an old friend of Mr. Eads, and felt assured that in case
of war the services of that gentleman would be of the greatest value to
the country. When it was found that hostilities could not be avoided, he
mentioned the name of Mr. Eads to the Cabinet, and strongly urged that
his services should be secured at the earliest possible moment. On the
17th of April, 1861, three days after Fort Sumter had fallen, he wrote
to Mr. Eads, who was living in comfortable retirement, at St. Louis: "Be
not surprised if you are called here suddenly by telegram. If called,
come instantly. In a certain contingency it will be necessary to have
the aid of the most thorough knowledge of our western rivers, and the
use of steam on them, and in that event I have advised that you should
be consulted."
A few days later Mr. Eads was summoned to Washington. Mr. Bates there
explained to him in full a plan he had conceived for occupying Cairo,
and endeavoring to hold the Mississippi by means of gunboats. Mr. Eads
warmly indorsed the plan, and was introduced by Mr. Bates to the
President and members of the Cabinet. When the plan was proposed to the
Cabinet, the Secretary of War pronounced it unnecessary and
impracticable, but the Secretary of the Navy was much impressed with
it, and requested Mr. Eads to submit his views in writing, which was
done. The paper embodied Judge Bates's general plan in addition to Mr.
Eads's own views, and contained suggestions as to the kind of boats best
fitted for service on the western rivers, and also in regard to the best
points on those streams for the erection of land batteries. This paper
was submitted to the Navy Department on the 29th of April, 1861, and was
referred by the Secretary to Commodore Paulding, who reported in favor
of its adoption.
The Secretary of the Navy now detailed Captain John Rodgers to accompany
Mr. Eads to the West, and purchase and fit out such steamers as should
be found necessary for the service. Up to this time the Secretary of War
had manifested the most supreme indifference in regard to the whole
subject, but he now claimed entire jurisdiction in the matter, and this
interference caused considerable vexation and delay. At length he issued
an order to Mr. Eads and Captain Rodgers to proceed with their
purchases. These gentlemen obtained the approval of General McClellan,
in whose department the purchases were to be made, and began their
operations.
Upon arriving at Cairo, they found one of the old snag-boat fleet,
called the "Benton." Mr. Eads knew the boat well, as he had formerly
owned her, and proposed to purchase and arm her, but Captain Rodgers did
not approve the plan for converting her into a gunboat. Mr. Eads then
proposed to purchase and arm several of the strong, swift boats used for
the navigation of the Missouri River, and equip them at St. Louis, from
which point there would always be water enough to get them below Cairo.
Captain Rodgers disapproved this plan also, and went to Cincinnati,
where he purchased and equipped the "Conestoga," "Tyler," and
"Lexington," and started them down the river. They were not iron-clad,
but were merely protected around the boilers with coal bunkers, and
provided with bullet-proof oaken bulwarks. Mr. Eads had warned Captain
Rodgers that he could not depend upon the Ohio to get his boats down to
Cairo, and his predictions were realized. The boats were started from
Cincinnati some time in July; they were detained on the bars of the Ohio
for six or seven weeks, and did not reach Cairo until about the first of
September; then the bottom of the "Tyler" was found to be so badly
damaged by sand-bars that she had to be put on the marine railway for
repairs.
In July, 1861, the War Department advertised for proposals to construct
a number of iron-clad gunboats for service on the Mississippi River. On
the 5th of August, when the bids were opened, it was found that Mr. Eads
proposed to build these boats in a shorter time and upon more favorable
terms than any one else. His offer was accepted, and on the 7th of
August he signed a contract with Quartermaster-General Meigs to have
ready for their crews and armaments, _in sixty-five days_, seven
vessels, of about six hundred tons each, each to draw six feet of water,
to carry thirteen heavy guns, to be plated with iron two and a half
inches thick, and to steam nine miles per hour. "They were one hundred
and seventy-five feet long, and fifty-one and a half feet wide; the
hulls of wood; their sides placed out from the bottom of the boat to the
water line at an angle of about thirty-five degrees, and from the water
line the sides fell back at about the same angle, to form a slanting
casemate, the gun-deck being but a foot above water. This slanting
casemate extended across the hull, near the bow and stern, forming a
quadrilateral gun-deck. Three nine or ten-inch guns were placed in the
bow, four similar ones on each side, and two smaller ones astern. The
casemate inclosed the wheel, which was placed in a recess at the stern
of the vessel. The plating was two and a half inches thick, thirteen
inches wide, and was rabbeted on the edges to make a more perfect
joint."
In undertaking to complete these vessels in sixty-five days, Mr. Eads
had assumed a heavy responsibility. The manufacturing interests of the
West were sadly crippled by the sudden commencement of hostilities, and
doubt and distrust prevailed every-where. The worst feature of all was,
that skilled workmen were either enlisting in the army or seeking
employment in States more remote from the scene of war. Every thing
needed for the gunboats was to be made. Even the timber for their hulls
was still standing in the forest, and the huge machinery which was to
roll out and harden their iron plates had yet to be constructed. No
single city, no two cities, however great in resources, could possibly
supply every thing needed within the stipulated time, and it was
necessary to employ help wherever it could be obtained.
The very day the contract was signed, the telegraph was kept busy
sending instructions all over the West for the commencement of the
various parts of the work. The saw-mills in Kentucky, Tennessee,
Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Minnesota, and Missouri were set to getting out
the timber, which was hurried to St. Louis by railroad and steamboat as
fast as it was ready. There were twenty-one steam engines and
thirty-five boilers to be made, and the machine-shops in St. Louis,
Cincinnati, and Pittsburgh were put to work upon them. The huge
rolling-mills of Cincinnati and Portsmouth, Ohio, Newport, Kentucky, and
St. Louis were engaged in making the iron plates, and employed for this
purpose no less than four thousand men. Night and day, Sundays included,
the work went on with an almost superhuman swiftness. Mr. Eads paid the
workmen on the hulls large sums from his own pocket, in addition to
their wages, to induce them to continue steadily at their work.
On the 12th of October, 1861, just forty-five days from the time of
laying her keel, the first iron-clad, belonging to the United States,
was launched, with her engines and boilers on board. Rear Admiral Foote
(then a flag officer), appointed to command the Mississippi squadron,
named her the "St. Louis," but upon being transferred to the Navy
Department her name was changed to the "Baron de Kalb." She was followed
by the other vessels in rapid succession, all being completed within the
stipulated time.
In September, 1861, General Fremont ordered the purchase of the snag
boat "Benton," which had been proposed by Mr. Eads and rejected by
Captain Rodgers, and sent her to Mr. Eads to be armored and equipped as
a gunboat. Work was at once begun on her, and pushed forward with the
same energy that had been displayed in the construction of the other
iron-clads. Her performances during the war fully sustained the high
esteem in which she was held by the officers of the navy. Admirals Foote
and Davis pronounced her the "best iron-clad in the world."
By dint of such skill and energy as we have described, Mr. Eads, in the
brief period of one hundred days, built and had ready for service a
powerful iron-clad fleet of eight steamers, carrying one hundred and
seven heavy guns, and having an aggregate capacity of five thousand
tons. Such a work was one of the greatest in magnitude ever performed,
and, as may be supposed, required a heavy capital to carry it to
perfection. Mr. Eads soon exhausted his own means, and but for the
assistance of friends, whose confidence in his integrity and capacity
induced them to advance him large sums, would have been compelled to
abandon the undertaking; for the Government, upon various pretexts,
delayed for months the stipulated payments, and by its criminal
negligence came near bringing the iron-clad fleet, so necessary to its
success, to an untimely end. It was prompt enough, however, to
commission the vessels as soon as they were ready. At the time they
rendered such good service in the conquest of Forts Henry and Donelson,
and compelled the fall of Island No. 10, they were still unpaid for, and
the private property of Mr. Eads.
In the spring of 1862, Mr. Eads, in accordance with the desire of the
Navy Department, submitted plans for light-draught armored vessels for
service on the western rivers. He proposed an ingenious revolving turret
to be used on these vessels, the performance of which he agreed to
guarantee to the satisfaction of the Department; but the Government
decided to use the Ericsson turret, which the recent encounter between
the Monitor and Merrimac had proved to be a success. Mr. Eads was
allowed, however, to modify the Ericsson turret considerably, in order
to avoid making the draft of his steamers greater than was desired. He
built the "Osage" and "Neosho," and when these vessels were launched,
with all their weight on board, it was found that they were really
lighter than the contract called for, a circumstance which permitted the
thickness of their armor to be afterward increased half an inch without
injuring their draught or speed.
In May, 1862, at the request of the Navy Department, Mr. Eads submitted
plans for four iron-clads, iron hull propellers, to carry two turrets
each of eight inches thickness, four eleven inch guns, and
three-quarters inch deck armor, to steam nine nautical miles per hour,
to carry three days' coal, and not to exceed a draught of six feet of
water. His plans were accepted, and he constructed the "Winnebago,"
"Kickapoo," "Milwaukee," and "Chickasaw." Like the "Osage" and "Neosho,"
these vessels were found to be of lighter draught than had been agreed
upon, and the Department ordered all four to have an extra plating of
three-quarters inch armor, which was done. Three of the vessels were
also reported, by the officers of the navy sent to examine them, to
exceed the speed required by the contract, while the fourth was fully up
to the standard.
Of how many "Government Contractors" during the war can it be said that
their work was much better than they had agreed to furnish? Verily, we
think Mr. Eads stands almost alone in this respect, his proud position
made still more honorable by its comparative isolation.
Mr. Eads built, during the war, fourteen heavily armored gunboats, four
heavy mortar boats, and converted seven transports into musket-proof
gunboats, or "tin-clads," as they were called on the river. He had a
share in other enterprises of a similar nature during the war, and
besides rendering good service to the Union, was enabled to retire at
the close of the struggle with a handsome fortune, won by his own
patriotic skill and energy.
Whatever may be the distinction awarded to others, to him belongs the
credit of having been the first to provide the Government with the means
of securing that firm hold upon the great river of the West which, once
gained, was never relaxed.
Mr. Eads resides in St. Louis. He is still in the prime of life, is
admired and honored by his fellow-citizens, and affords a splendid
example of what genius and industry can do for a poor, friendless boy in
that glorious western country which is one day to be the seat of empire
in the New World.