CSSAlbemarleremained a thorn in the side of the Union at its dock in Plymouth, North Carolina. Rear Admiral David Dixon Porter had replaced Rear Admiral Samuel Lee as the commander of the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron. And Porter was determined to destroy the Confederate ram.
Admiral Porter wrote his commanders:
CSSAlbemarlewas one of three ironclads laid down in early 1863 to combat control of the North Carolina sounds. Only the ramAlbemarlewould become operational and able to contest Union control of eastern North Carolina until its dramatic sinking in October 1864.
A 19-year-old boatbuilder, Gilbert Elliot of Elizabeth City, North Carolina, sent a proposal to Confederate Secretary of the Navy Stephen Russell Mallory. His idea: to construct ironclads up the various rivers that were out of reach of Union forces. Mallory agreed. So, Elliot submitted sketches to Confederate Naval Constructor John L. Porter, who established working drawings.
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