Benjamin Drummond served aboard the USS Morning Light from March 20, 1862 until January 17, 1863, when he was shot in the leg during the engagement in which the ship was captured by two Confederate "Cotton Clads" off of Sabine Pass, Texas.
The Morning Light was built by William Cramp at Kensington, Pennsylvania, and launched on August 15, 1853. Five months after the start of the Civil War it was purchased by the Navy, fitted as an eight-gun warship, and placed on blockade patrol. Assigned to the West Gulf Blockading Squadron and participated in the Union operation that captured New Orleans on April 25, 1862. On 18 January 1863, Morning Light, Acting Master John Dillingham now in command, was ordered to blockade off Sabine Pass. Three days later the Morning Light was captured by two Confederate “Cotton Clad” steamers. Unable to move the ship into the Sabine River the Confederates burned the Morning Light on January 23, 1863, when Union gunboats arrived with orders to recapture the ship. For more information, refer to the Dictionary of American Fighting Ships.
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Last updated October 26, 2008
