Painting by Édouard Manet of the battle between the Kearsarge and the Alabama

Join us on Sunday, April 27 at 1 PM for The Hunt is On: The Battle of the Kearsarge and the Alabama, a gallery talk and walk by Dr. Peter van Alfen. During the Civil War, the Confederate commerce raider, CSS Alabama, became the scourge of the Atlantic Ocean, attacking, capturing, and burning dozens of Union naval and merchant vessels alike. Sent out in hunt of the Alabama, the Union sloop of war, USS Kearsarge, caught up with the raider while she was undergoing repairs at Cherbourg, France. When the Alabama eventually emerged from the port, the much-anticipated battle commenced, with hundreds of witnesses on shore and in boats, including the famed painter Édouard Manet. Within the hour, Kearsarge sank Alabama and so earned an esteemed place in naval history, along with numerous medals of honor for her crew. Dr. van Alfen will share a slideshow overview of the battle followed by a tour in the museum’s galleries to examine paintings, models, and other holdings in the Collection related to this famed duel at sea.

Peter van Alfen is Chief Curator at the American Numismatic Society and is also a graduate of the Nautical Archaeology Program at Texas A&M University.