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| Saturday April 20, 1861 |
Gosport Navy Yard in Norfolk Va. is abandoned. This was a vital
and important base for the federals. It effects the ability for the
Federal Navy to conduct the blockade. Several vessels at the
yard as burned to the waterline. One of these is the U.S.S.
Merrimck. This ship will later be rebuilt as the C.S.S. Virginia.
There are also over a thousand cannons at the yard that will be
used in Confederate defense works.