(Action of 19 June, 1864.)
Kearsarge and Alabama
The Yankee cruiser hove in view, the Kearsarge was her name, It ought to be engraved in full upon the scroll of fame; Her timbers made of Yankee oak, And her crew of Yankee tars, And o’er her mizzen peak she floats the glorious stripes and stars. Hoist up the flag, and long may it wave Over the Union, the home of the brave. Hoist up the flag, and long may it wave, God bless America, the home of the brave!
A challenge unto Captain Semmes, bold Winslow he did send! “Bring on your Alabama, and to her we will attend, For we think your boasting privateer Is not so hard to whip; And we’ll show you that the Kearsarge is not a merchant ship.” Hoist up the flag, and long may it wave Over the Union, the home of the brave. Hoist up the flag, and long may it wave, God bless America, the home of the brave!
It was early Sunday morning, in the year of sixty-four, The Alabama she stood out and cannons loud did roar; The Kearsarge stood undaunted, and quickly she replied And let a Yankee ’leven-inch shell go tearing through her side. Hoist up the flag, and long may it wave Over the Union, the home of the brave. Hoist up the flag, and long may it wave, God bless America, the home of the brave!