The Best Station of Them All : The Savannah Squadron, 1861-1865

"The Best Station of Them All" is the story of the Confederate navyOCOs Savannah Squadron, its relationship with the people of Savannah, Georgia, and its role in the cityOCOs economy. In this well-written and extensively researched narrative, Maurice Melton charts the history of the unit, the sailors (both white and black), the officers, their families, and their activities aboard ship and in port. The Savannah Squadron worked, patrolled, and fought in the rivers and sounds along the Georgia coast. Though they saw little activity at sea, the unit did engage in naval assault, boarding, capture, and ironclad combat. The sailors finished the war as an infantry unit in Robert E. LeeOCOs Army of Northern Virginia, fighting at SaylerOCOs Creek on the road to Appomattox. Melton concentrates on navy life and the squadronOCOs place in wartime Savannah. The book reveals who the Confederate sailors were and what their material, social, and working lives were like."The Best Station of Them All" is an essential piece of historical literature for anyone interested in the Civil War, its navies, or Savannah. "