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John V. Quarstein

Director emeritus of the USS Monitor Center

John presents Civil War tours and lectures across the country and is the author of 18 books, with three more on the way. He leads the Museum’s Civil War and Hampton Roads Lecture Series and is now writing blogs and presenting online content via YouTube Live. John’s deep interest in all things related to the Civil War stems from his youth living on Fort Monroe, walking where heroes like Abraham Lincoln and R. E. Lee once stood. An avid collector of decoys, waterfowl/maritime art, and oriental rugs, John lives among them in his home, the 1757 Herbert House on Sunset Creek in Hampton, Virginia. On the National Register of Historic Places, this is the only house to have survived August 7, 1861, burning of Hampton.

Latest from John V. Quarstein

  • Commerce Raider CSS NASHVILLE

    • Civil War
    • Military Conflict

    CSS Nashville played an important role in the Confederate search for European recognition.

  • Up, Up and Away: Civil War Ballooning in Hampton Roads

    • Civil War
    • Hampton Roads History
    • Military Conflict
    • Technology

    The Civil War introduced many new technologies to achieve victory in a total war.

  • Battle of Port Royal Sound

    • Black History
    • Civil War
    • Military Conflict

    The Civil War’s second major amphibious operation was the capture of Port Royal Sound on November 7, 1861.

  • Battle of Galveston

    • Civil War
    • Military Conflict
    • Shipbuilding

    Major General John Bankhead Magruder arrived in Texas in late October 1862 and immediately sought to regain the laurels he had earned on the Virginia Peninsula.

  • Hampton Roads Invaded: The Anglo-Dutch Naval Wars

    • Hampton Roads History
    • Military Conflict

  • RAPHAEL SEMMES AND CSS SUMTER

    • Civil War
    • Military Conflict

    The Sumter’s cruise launched the career of one of the greatest commerce raider commanders in history.

  • USS ROANOKE: THE THREE-TURRETED MONSTER

    • Civil War
    • Hampton Roads History
    • Military Conflict

    The USS Roanoke was a Merrimack-class steam screw frigate built at the Gosport Navy Yard. When the Civil War erupted, Roanoke captured several blockade runners and fought during the March 1862 Battle of Hampton Roads.

  • USS Hatteras: The First Warship Sunk by CSS Alabama

    • Civil War
    • Military Conflict

    When President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a blockade of the entire southern coastline, the US Navy only had 93 warships, and almost half of these were outdated or unusable. So, the US Navy went on a buying spree purchasing every steamer that could mount cannons. One of these vessels was the St. Mary which was soon commissioned as USS Hatteras.

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