Here is an article in the Washington Post about a South Carolina blockade-running connection:

Though it is commonplace to read of the exploits of Confederate naval officers in England during the war and to hear them called heroes, it is rare for that accolade to be accorded to a civilian. Alan Stuart Hanckel surely deserves it, if only for his part in the so-called Trent Affair.


It will be interesting to take leads like this and see how they pan out with the McRae Collection in future research. If anyone finds information like this, please let us know!

Krissy Dunn
Curator of History
South Carolina Confederate Relic Room and Military Museum