January 25, 1862 (Friday): Balloons and Ice Don't Mix

Potomac River Overlook Near Edwards Ferry

                                           POOLESVILE, January 25, 1862.

Professor Lowe,

      National Hotel, Washington:

   The balloon Intrepid got an inch of ice on it last night and is reported much injured.  Hurry up the smaller one.

                                                                                    C. P. STONE,

                                                                                           Brigadier-General.

Official Records, Series III., Vol. 3, Part 1, Page 269.

Stone used Lowe’s balloon to keep tabs on the Confederate forces near Leesburg.  The balloon was tethered near Edwards Ferry, and could see Fort Evans, encampments near Goose Creek, and the town itself.  The reports of observers offer remarkable detail, making it all the more striking that authorities eventually refused to continue Lowe’s services over his relatively small salary (about that of a colonel).