During the U. S. Civil War printed in Northern newspapers under the headline "Naval Record" one often finds the names of commissioned vessels followed by a single number (at least no double digit examples have been noted). The following are random examples mostly from March 1862: ship Ino, 8 (later 9) steamer Rhode Island, 5 steamer Madgie, 2 steam sloop Tuscarora, 7 steamer Quaker City, 5 steam sloop Iroquois, 6 steam sloop Kearsage, 7 I presume these numbers refer to naval squadrons or operating theaters. Can anyone supply more specific knowledge of their meaning? Thanks in advance. Bruce Lane