Alabama entered the Gulf of Mexico after receiving supplies and attempted to support Confederate ground operations at Galveston. She sank USS Hatteras, a Union sidewheel gunboat markedly inferior in capability to the raider. On a subsequent South Atlantic cruise, Alabama captured 29 ships while moving down the Brazilian coast. Semmes commissioned the captured Conrad as CSS Tuscaloosa. The decision created another Confederate raider but weakened Alabama's already short crew, exposing the manpower cost of commissioning a prize.
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From Galveston to CSS Tuscaloosa
Alabama shifted from supporting Confederate operations at Galveston to a major South Atlantic prize haul, where commissioning CSS Tuscaloosa imposed a manpower cost.