The New Orleans Action Board is the setting for the “brown water” naval battles, fought for control of the Mississippi River during the American Civil War.
Part One: South from the Crescent City
Though it is not shown on the Action Board, the key to this conflict is New Orleans, Louisiana. Known as the “Crescent City” for the shape of its “Vieux Carre,” New Orleans grew from the French colonial settlement that today still clings to the north bank of the Mississippi River.
By 1861, New Orleans had grown into one of the largest port cities on the North American continent.
In the 1860’s the River’s main channel at New Orleans reached down over 50 feet (9 fathoms), deep enough that overseas shipping and other commercial traffic could sail up from the Gulf of Mexico to dock almost at the local merchants’ front door.
For the Confederacy, possession of New Orleans and its control of the Mississippi River was essential to the South’s survival as a nation.