It was 146 years ago this week that a collection of vessels under the command of General Ambrose Burnside set off from the Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland to make their way to Hatteras Inlet.

Two forts, Hatteras and Clark, had been constructed near Hatteras Inlet by Confederate troops, but had fallen into Union hands in 1861 by soldiers under the command of General Benjamin Butler. 

The plan was for the ships of the Burnside Expedition to enter Hatteras Inlet and proceed up the sound and capture Roanoke Island.  The fleet sailed down the Chesapeake Bay and into the open ocean where it encountered a fierce winter gale.  Many ships were unable to cross the bar at Hatteras Inlet because of high wind and water.  Some foundered at sea and were lost. 

By February 5th, the conditions had improved and all ships that had not wrecked made it through Hatteras Inlet and prepared to seize Roanoke Island.