Collection Summary
Silas Casey Papers
1771-1941
1862-1903
1771-1941
1862-1903
MSS51482
Casey, Silas, 1841-1913
300 items
6 containers
2 linear feet
English
Collection material in English
Manuscript Division, Library of Congress
Washington, D.C.
Naval officer. Correspondence, journal,
daybook, bills, receipts, commissions, and other papers relating to Casey’s naval
service.
Selected Search Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the LC
Catalog. They are grouped by name of person or organization, by subject or location, and
by occupation and listed alphabetically.
People
Casey, Silas, 1841-1913.
Coggeshall, Joseph. Joseph Coggeshall account book. 1771-1786.
Organizations
Colorado (Steam screw frigate)
Greenwich (Privateer)
Marlborough (Privateer)
Niagara (Steam frigate)
Portsmouth (Sloop of war)
Providence (Privateer)
Quinnebaug (Screw corvette)
United States. Navy--Foreign service--Japan.
United States. Navy--Foreign service--Panama--Panama, Bay of.
United States. Navy--Foreign service--Samoan Islands.
United States. Navy. North Atlantic Blockading Squadron (1861-1865)
Wisconsin (Battleship : BB-9)
Wyoming (Sloop of war)
Subjects
Arsenals--United States.
Naval education--United States.
Navy-yards and naval stations, American.
Privateering.
Sabotage.
Spanish-American War, 1898.
Places
Japan--Foreign relations--United States.
Kanghwa-gun (Korea)--History.
Korea--Foreign relations--United States.
Panama--Foreign relations--United States.
Panama--History.
United States--Foreign relations--Japan.
United States--Foreign relations--Korea.
United States--Foreign relations--Panama.
United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865--Blockades.
United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865--Naval operations.
United States--History--Revolution, 1775-1783--Naval operations.
Occupations
Naval officers.
Acquisition Information
The papers of Silas Casey, naval officer, were deposited in the Library of Congress by
the Naval Historical Foundation in 1949 and converted to a gift in 1998.
Processing History
The papers of Silas Casey were arranged and described in 1968. The finding aid was
revised in 2010 by J. Butler. The finding aid was updated in 2023 by Maria Farmer as
part of a division-wide remediation project by the Inclusive Description Working
Group.
Additional Guides
The Casey Papers are described in
Silas Casey [and] Stanford Caldwell Hooper, Naval Historical Foundation
Collection, a Register of their Papers in the Library of Congress
(Library of Congress: Washington, D.C., 1978).
Copyright Status
The status of copyright in the unpublished writings of Silas Casey Papers is governed by
the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S.C.).
Access and Restrictions
The papers of Silas Casey are open to research. Researchers are advised to contact the
Manuscript Reading Room prior to visiting. Many collections are stored off-site and
advance notice is needed to retrieve these items for research use.
Preferred Citation
Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information:
Container number, Silas Casey Papers, Naval Historical Foundation Collection, Manuscript
Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Biographical Note
Date
Event
1841, Sept. 11
Born, East Greenwich, Rhode Island
1860
Graduated, United States Naval Academy, Annapolis, Md.
1860
1862
Duty in Niagara (frigate)
1861
Promoted to master
1862
Commissioned lieutenant
1862
1863
Duty in Wissahickon (gunboat), South Atlantic
Blockade Squadron
1863
1865
Duty in Quaker City (steamship), North Atlantic
Blockade Squadron
1865
1867
Duty in Winooski (gunboat), North Atlantic
Squadron
1866
Promoted to lieutenant commander
1867
1870
Duty in United States Naval Academy, Annapolis, Md.
1870
1873
Duty in Colorado (frigate), Asiatic
Squadron
1873
1874
Ordnance duty in Philadelphia Navy Yard
1874
Promoted to commander
1875
1876
Commanded Portsmouth (sloop of war), Pacific
coast
1876
1879
Inspector, Twelfth Light House District
1880
1882
Commanded Wyoming (sloop of war) and later Quinnebaug (corvette), European Squadron
1882
1884
Duty in Washington Navy Yard
1884
1889
Inspector, Fifth Light House District
Commanded Dale (sloop of war)
1889
Promoted to captain
1890
1893
Duty in and then commander of Newark
(cruiser)
1894
1897
Commanded Vermont (warship)
1897
1900
Commanded League Island Navy Yard, Philadelphia, Pa.
1899
Promoted to rear admiral
1901
1902
Commanded Wisconsin (battleship)
1903
Retired from United States Navy
1913, Aug. 4
Died, Warm Springs, Va.
Scope and Content Note
The papers of Silas Casey (1841-1913) span the years 1771-1941, with the bulk of the
material falling between the years 1860-1903. The papers include official and general
correspondence, a few pieces of personal correspondence, dispatches, orders, a complete
set of commissions for each of the ranks attained by Casey, typescript articles,
departmental and legislative reports, printed matter, a holograph journal relating to
events in which Casey played a role, a Revolutionary War account book, and other
material.
Subjects in the collection include Casey's service during the cruise of the Niagara (frigate) to Tokyo, Japan, in 1860-1861, with the
Japanese ambassador and his staff; naval actions and blockades in the Civil War; and the
punitive expedition to Korea aboard the Colorado (frigate)
in 1871. The papers also document Casey's service as commander of the Portsmouth (sloop of war) operating as a naval school and of
the Wisconsin (Battleship : BB-9) during negotiations with
Panama, 1901-1902. Other subjects relate to suspected sabotage of navy yards and
arsenals during the Spanish-American War and naval customs of the nineteenth century.
Included also are photographs and printed matter pertaining to the capture of Fort McKee
on Ganghwa Island (then referred to as Kanghoa Island of Kanghwa-gun), Korea, in 1871.
Material regarding the role of Casey's ancestors in the American Revolution includes
Joseph Coggershall's account book of the Greenwich
(privateer), Marlborough (privateer), and Providence (privateer). Other ships represented include the
Quinnebaug (corvette) and the Wyoming (sloop of war).
Arrangement of the Papers
This collection is arranged alphabetically by type of material.
Container List
Container
Contents
1
General correspondence, 1862-1941
1862-1941
2
Naval letterbooks
2
Portsmouth (sloop of war), 1875-1876
1875-1876
2
Wyoming (sloop of war) and Quinnebaug (corvette), 1880-1882
1880-1882
3
Naval orders relating to Casey,
1856-1903
1856-1903
3
Miscellany
3
Articles relating to Casey and naval attachment
at Valparaiso, Chile
3
Bills and receipts
3
Biographical material
3
Commissions, 1860-1899
1860-1899
3
Inventory of the collection, 1913
1913
3
Journal kept on board Niagara (frigate)
3
Naval documents, inspection reports;
"complement" of Portsmouth (sloop of war); duty
tour of Newark (cruiser); draft of a "fire
bill"
3
Notes on first Japanese embassy
3
Printed matter
4
Oversize
4
Journal of a cruise of
Niagara
4
Watch, Quarter, and Station bills of the Colorado (frigate)
5
Photograph album
6
Account book of Joseph Coggershall,
1771-1786
1771-1786