The Civil War on Pensacola Bay, 1861-1862

In 1845, sparsely populated Florida had been admitted to the United States along with Iowa in an ill-fated attempt to keep the balance between slave and free states and ultimately avert the civil war that many felt was on the horizon. With the 1861 beginning of hostilities, Florida's Pensacola Bay area with its magnificent harbor, valuable navy yard and impressive fortifications became hotly contested by Union and Confederate forces. While Pensacola's lack of navigable rivers and limited rail access had kept it from developing into one of the country's major commercial centers, its location provided the perfect base for hostile strikes on nearby Mobile and New Orleans.