United States Coast and Geodetic Survey: Difference between revisions

[[Image:Reconnaissance of the Mississippi River.jpg|thumb|right|A survey of the [[Mississippi River]] in [[Louisiana]] below [[Fort Jackson, Louisiana|Fort Jackson]] and [[Fort St. Philip]] made by the U.S. Coast Survey to prepare for the [[Battle of Forts Jackson and St. Philip|bombardment of the forts]] by [[David Dixon Porter]]'s [[Mortar (weapon)|mortar]] fleet in April 1862 during the American Civil War.<ref>''Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies'', Series I, Volume 18, p. 362.</ref>]]

The outbreak of the American Civil War in April 1861 caused a dramatic shift in direction for the Coast Survey. All U.S. Army officers were withdrawn from the Survey, as were all but two U.S. Navy officers. Since most men of the Survey had [[Union (American Civil War)|Union]] sympathies, all but seven of them stayed on with the Survey rather than resigning to serve the [[Confederate States of America]], and their work shifted in emphasis to support of the [[Union Navy]] and [[Union Army]]. Civilian Coast Surveyors were called upon to serve in the field and provide mapping, hydrographic, and engineering expertise for Union forces. One of the individuals who excelled at this work was [[Joseph Smith Harris]], who supported [[Rear admiral (United States)|Rear Admiral]] [[David Farragut|David G. Farragut]] and his [[Union blockade|Western Gulf Blockading Squadron]] in the [[Battle of Forts Jackson and St. Philip]] in 1862; this survey work was particularly valuable to [[Commander (United States)|Commander]] [[David Dixon Porter]] and his [[Mortar (weapon)|mortar]] bombardment fleet. Coast Surveyors served in virtually all theaters of the war and were often in the front lines or in advance of the front lines carrying out mapping duties, and Coast Survey officers produced many of the coastal charts and interior maps used by Union forces throughout the war. Coast Surveyors supporting the Union Army were given assimilated military rank while attached to a specific command, but those supporting the U.S. Navy operated as civilians and ran the risk of being executed as [[Espionage|spies]] if captured by the Confederates while working in support of Union forces.<ref name="timeline18071899"/><ref name="noaahistoryuscgs">[http://www.history.noaa.gov/legacy/corps.html NOAA History: NOAA Corps and the Coast and Geodetic Survey]</ref>

During the [[Mexican–American War|Mexican War]] (1846–1848), the [[brig]] {{USRC|Washington|1837|6}}, a [[revenue cutter]] on loan from the U.S. Revenue-Marine, became the first Coast Survey ship to see U.S. Navy service. During the American Civil War (1861–1865), the [[Spanish–American War]] (1898), World War I (1917–1918), and World War II (1941–1945), some of the Survey{{'}}s ships served in the U.S. Navy and U.S. Revenue-Marine, U.S. Revenue Cutter Service, or [[United States Coast Guard]], while others supported the war effort while remaining part of the Survey{{'}}s fleet.