Battle
As part of the Union blockade of Chesapeake Bay during the American Civil War, the Union gunboat USS Monticello, commanded by Captain Henry Eagle with Lieutenant (later Rear Admiral) Daniel L. Braine second in command, exchanged cannon fire with Confederate batteries on Sewell's Point, Virginia, in Norfolk County, Virginia (present day City of Norfolk, Virginia), in an attempt to enforce the blockade of the Hampton Roads area in southeastern Virginia. The two sides did each other little harm. On May 18, 1861, the Monticello fired on the unfinished Confederate battery at Sewell's Point, which commanded the entrance to the Elizabeth River and the harbor at Norfolk, Virginia but which had no guns yet in place, with little effect.
By 5:00 p.m. on May 19, 1861, the Confederates had installed three 32-pound guns at the Sewell's Point battery. When the Monticello began to fire on the works at about 5:30 p.m., the battery returned fire, which drove off the Monticello. Captain Peyton H. Colquitt of the Columbus Light Guard from Georgia commanded the battery. Captain Colquitt raised a Georgia state flag at the battery since he did not have a Confederate flag.
On May 21, 1861, the Monticello fired two shots at the battery but again drew off when the battery returned fire.
Read more about this topic: Battle Of Sewell's Point
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