U. S. STEAM SLOOP PAWNEE,
Potomac River, June 27, 1861.
SIR: I have to report the following casualties resulting from the action at Mathias Point this afternoon:
Killed.—1. Commander J. H. Ward, commanding flotilla, gunshot wound of abdomen; almost immediately fatal.
Wounded dangerously.—1. William J. Best, ordinary seamen, belonging to the Pawnee, gunshot wound fracturing both bones of left leg; a second gunshot wound in soft part of right forearm; a third gunshot wound of right hand. 2. William McChenny, landsman, belonging to Thomas Freeborn, gunshot wound of left thigh, fracturing the femur.
Wounded severely.—1. John Williams, captain of Pawnee, had a gunshot wound of soft part of right thigh. 2. George McKenny, yeoman of Thomas Freeborn, gunshot wound of soft part of left thigh.
Respectfully, yours,
F. M. GUNNELL,
Surgeon, U. S. Navy.
Commander S. C. ROWAN,
Commanding Flotilla in the Potomac River.
Sources
Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion. Series I, Vol. 4. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1896.
Spirit of '61 