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re: 150 years ago this day...
Posted on 3/9/15 at 8:39 pm to BadLeroyDawg
Posted on 3/9/15 at 8:39 pm to BadLeroyDawg
Friday, 10 March 1865 (continued)
One of Young's gunboats had noted that upriver "the stream is very narrow and tortuous, with a strong current. Finding that I could not make the turns without using hawsers, and then fouling paddle boxes and smokestack in the branches of large trees, I concluded to return. The people, white and black, whom I questioned, state that the Chickamauga is sunk across the stream at Indian Wells, with a chain just below. Her two guns are on a bluff on the western bank of the river." Operating conditions on these low, shallow rivers, often backed by swamp and forest, had many similarities with those encountered 100 years later in South Vietnam by the US Navy Advisory group.
The Federals had long held New Bern, 80 air miles northeast of Wilmington-but some three times that by water-near where the Neuse River abruptly narrows from a main arm of Pamlico Sound. The city was the gateway for another supply route from the sea on General Sherman's route North to unite with Grant. This date, at the request of the Army, a small naval force got underway up the river to cut a pontoon bridge the Confederates were reported building below Kinston.
Robert E. Lee wrote to Confederate President Jefferson Davis, advising him to recruit slaves into the Confederate armies as soon as possible: "I attach great importance to the result of the first experiment with these troops..." Meanwhile, Congress reconciled the House and Senate versions of the slave recruitment bill.
A Federal expedition from Suffolk, Virginia, to Murfree's Depot, North Carolina, with skirmish at South Quay, Virginia. Federals scout from Little Rock to Clear Lake, Arkansas, with a skirmish at Clear Lake. Skirmish between Boyd's and the Woodville Station, Alabama.
On this day in 1865, Confederate General William Henry Chase Whiting dies in prison from wounds suffered during the fall of Fort Fisher, North Carolina.
Born in 1824 in Biloxi, Mississippi, Whiting was educated in Boston and at Georgetown College (now University) in Washington, D.C., where he graduated first in his class at age 16. He then entered the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, where in 1845 he again topped his graduating class. Whiting joined the Corps of Engineers and designed coastal fortifications in the West and South, including the defenses for the Cape Fear River in North Carolina. During this project, he married and settled in Wilmington, North Carolina.
When the Civil War began, Whiting offered his services to the Confederacy. He was at Fort Sumter in South Carolina when the Union garrison surrendered at the start of the war. Whiting returned to Wilmington in the summer of 1861 to supervise the construction of defenses for the city, and then moved to northern Virginia as chief engineer for the Confederate army forming there. Whiting was responsible for moving troops from the Shenandoah Valley to Manassas in time for the First Battle of Bull Run on July 21, 1861. His work was a vital component of the Confederate rout of Union troops there.
Whiting was given command of a division, and his leadership during the Seven Days’ Battles in June 1862 earned him the praise of the top Confederate leaders. In November 1862, he was given command of the District of Wilmington, allowing him to return to his North Carolina home. He set about strengthening the city’s defenses and constructing Fort Fisher at the Cape Fear River’s mouth. Partly due to his efforts, Wilmington was one of the most important blockade running ports for the Confederates throughout the war. Whiting spent the rest of the war in Wilmington, with the exception of a few months in 1864 spent shoring up the defenses around Petersburg, Virginia.
Whiting’s Fort Fisher was a formidable barrier to the Union capture of Wilmington. General Benjamin Butler led a Yankee force against Fort Fisher in December 1864, but the garrison fended off the attack. The next month, General Alfred Terry launched another assault; this time, Fort Fisher fell to the Yankees. Whiting was badly wounded and captured during the attack. He was shipped to New York and died on March 10 at age 40 while imprisoned at Governors Island.
One of Young's gunboats had noted that upriver "the stream is very narrow and tortuous, with a strong current. Finding that I could not make the turns without using hawsers, and then fouling paddle boxes and smokestack in the branches of large trees, I concluded to return. The people, white and black, whom I questioned, state that the Chickamauga is sunk across the stream at Indian Wells, with a chain just below. Her two guns are on a bluff on the western bank of the river." Operating conditions on these low, shallow rivers, often backed by swamp and forest, had many similarities with those encountered 100 years later in South Vietnam by the US Navy Advisory group.
The Federals had long held New Bern, 80 air miles northeast of Wilmington-but some three times that by water-near where the Neuse River abruptly narrows from a main arm of Pamlico Sound. The city was the gateway for another supply route from the sea on General Sherman's route North to unite with Grant. This date, at the request of the Army, a small naval force got underway up the river to cut a pontoon bridge the Confederates were reported building below Kinston.
Robert E. Lee wrote to Confederate President Jefferson Davis, advising him to recruit slaves into the Confederate armies as soon as possible: "I attach great importance to the result of the first experiment with these troops..." Meanwhile, Congress reconciled the House and Senate versions of the slave recruitment bill.
A Federal expedition from Suffolk, Virginia, to Murfree's Depot, North Carolina, with skirmish at South Quay, Virginia. Federals scout from Little Rock to Clear Lake, Arkansas, with a skirmish at Clear Lake. Skirmish between Boyd's and the Woodville Station, Alabama.
On this day in 1865, Confederate General William Henry Chase Whiting dies in prison from wounds suffered during the fall of Fort Fisher, North Carolina.
Born in 1824 in Biloxi, Mississippi, Whiting was educated in Boston and at Georgetown College (now University) in Washington, D.C., where he graduated first in his class at age 16. He then entered the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, where in 1845 he again topped his graduating class. Whiting joined the Corps of Engineers and designed coastal fortifications in the West and South, including the defenses for the Cape Fear River in North Carolina. During this project, he married and settled in Wilmington, North Carolina.
When the Civil War began, Whiting offered his services to the Confederacy. He was at Fort Sumter in South Carolina when the Union garrison surrendered at the start of the war. Whiting returned to Wilmington in the summer of 1861 to supervise the construction of defenses for the city, and then moved to northern Virginia as chief engineer for the Confederate army forming there. Whiting was responsible for moving troops from the Shenandoah Valley to Manassas in time for the First Battle of Bull Run on July 21, 1861. His work was a vital component of the Confederate rout of Union troops there.
Whiting was given command of a division, and his leadership during the Seven Days’ Battles in June 1862 earned him the praise of the top Confederate leaders. In November 1862, he was given command of the District of Wilmington, allowing him to return to his North Carolina home. He set about strengthening the city’s defenses and constructing Fort Fisher at the Cape Fear River’s mouth. Partly due to his efforts, Wilmington was one of the most important blockade running ports for the Confederates throughout the war. Whiting spent the rest of the war in Wilmington, with the exception of a few months in 1864 spent shoring up the defenses around Petersburg, Virginia.
Whiting’s Fort Fisher was a formidable barrier to the Union capture of Wilmington. General Benjamin Butler led a Yankee force against Fort Fisher in December 1864, but the garrison fended off the attack. The next month, General Alfred Terry launched another assault; this time, Fort Fisher fell to the Yankees. Whiting was badly wounded and captured during the attack. He was shipped to New York and died on March 10 at age 40 while imprisoned at Governors Island.
This post was edited on 3/10/15 at 4:31 am
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Posted on 3/10/15 at 10:44 am to BadLeroyDawg
quote:
Unlike the US Army, white Southerners now marched, patrolled and fought with Negroes side by side, as opposed to their own segregated units commanded by white officers like the Union colored troops did. IIRC, the US forces didn't accomplish integration like this until well into WWII. More importantly, American Industrialization with electricity and the gas engine is just a decade and one half away. In comparison to the cost of ownership of slave labor, a tractor is mighty cheap.
As much as I'd like to believe this, I can't find any credible source that can back this up. Blacks made up quite a few of the camp followers for any Southern army, but there are no stories I can find of any blacks serving in combat with whites, or serving (armed) in combat vs Yankee forces at all. Perhaps there was one, but the proof eludes.
Posted on 3/10/15 at 11:04 am to cokebottleag
quote:
As much as I'd like to believe this, I can't find any credible source that can back this up. Blacks made up quite a few of the camp followers for any Southern army, but there are no stories I can find of any blacks serving in combat with whites, or serving (armed) in combat vs Yankee forces at all. Perhaps there was one, but the proof eludes.
I know the New York Times isn't very credible, but here's a first person account of a black confederate soldier serving in combat at the first Bull Run.
Here's a short paper with examples. It is on the sons of confederate veteran's website but the paper has a bibliography so the info should be verifiable.
Harvard University has a guy that says it happened too.
The number is quite small and nowhere near what some people would have you believe, but there's no doubt at all that black soldiers served (some willingly, many not) alongside whites and in combat for the Confederacy.
Posted on 3/10/15 at 8:24 pm to JustGetItRight
Here's another one that might be difficult to believe. The Union Army used slave labor, referred to as "Contrabands" for grunt and shovel work, to free up white soldiers for combat. They were not paid for their services, but were given food and occasionally clothing. Sound a little like a cheap version of the plantation? BTW, there were many free blacks in the South prior to the outbreak of the hostilities. They defended their homes as well.
Posted on 3/10/15 at 8:25 pm to BadLeroyDawg
Posted on 3/10/15 at 9:20 pm to MasCervezas
Saturday, 11 March 1865
In southern North Carolina, the left wing of Major General William T. Sherman’s Union troops occupy Fayetteville, an important city on the Cape Fear River. The second step of Sherman’s Carolina Campaign comes to an end with the occupation of Fayetteville. The whole army pulls up to the city in the southeastern part of the state after light skirmishing.
Sherman dispatches messengers upriver to Wilmington, North Carolina, to make contact with Major General John M. Schofield, in order to report his presence and arrange for coordination with the armada coming in from the sea and form a two-pronged attack against Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston’s (commanding all Southerners in the region) meager forces.
Sherman reports: "Up to this period I had perfectly succeeded in interposing my superior army between the scattered parts of my enemy." Johnston warns General Robert E. Lee that if Sherman and Schofield joined forces, "...their march into Virginia cannot be prevented by me."
President Abraham Lincoln proclaims a pardon to all soldiers and sailors who had deserted from the military or naval forces of the United States and return to their units, stations and ships within sixty days. If they do not return, they will forfeit their rights of citizenship.
The United States Senate adjourns after a brief special session to deal primarily with confirming Lincoln’s executive appointments. Presidential secretary John George Nicolay was also confirmed as the U.S. consul in Paris, France.
The steamer Ajax puts into Nassau, Bahamas. Lieutenant John Low, who had been on board as a "...passenger assumed command, and on 25 March transferred her registry." Governor Rawson W. Rawson of Bermuda carefully examines the ship and concludes that "...nothing [was] found on her..." She now appears to be intended for a tug. It is suspected that she was intended as a tender to the Confederate Ironclad vessel [Stonewall], said to be now in a Spanish Port, watched by two Federal cruisers. By early April, the Ajax was ready to sail for Bermuda.
More skirmishes break out around Fayetteville, North Carolina, as the Union vessels USS Eolus, Lenapee, Maratanza and Nyack sail up the Cape Fear River towards the town.
Full report: Lieutenant Commander George W. Young, senior officer present off Wilmington, leads a naval force consisting of the USS Eolus and boat crews from USS Maratanza, Lenapee, and Nyack up the Cape Fear River to Fayetteville, where the expedition rendezvoused with General Sherman's army. The naval movement had been undertaken at the request of Major General Alfred Terry, who, Young reported, had said on the morning of the 11th "...that he was about starting an expedition up the North West Branch [of the Cape Fear River] for the purpose of clearing the way to Fayetteville, and wished to have one of the gunboats, as a support, to follow." The expedition was halted for the night at Devil's Bend because of "...the circuitous nature of the river..." but resumed the next morning and arrived at Fayetteville on the evening of the 12th. In addition to opening communications between Sherman and the Union forces on the coast the naval units arrived in time to protect the General's flank while he crossed the river.
In Virginia, Major General Philip H. Sheridan’s Federals skirmish at Goochland County Court House and are now in a position to threaten Richmond.
Skirmishing occurs in Missouri and Arkansas.
Brigadier General Edmund J. Davis, USA, is assigned to the command of the District of Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
A Federal expedition travels from Fortress Monroe aboard steamers, into Westmoreland County, Virginia, and skirmishes near Warsaw, Virginia, with the destruction of all Confederate property of any value.
In southern North Carolina, the left wing of Major General William T. Sherman’s Union troops occupy Fayetteville, an important city on the Cape Fear River. The second step of Sherman’s Carolina Campaign comes to an end with the occupation of Fayetteville. The whole army pulls up to the city in the southeastern part of the state after light skirmishing.
Sherman dispatches messengers upriver to Wilmington, North Carolina, to make contact with Major General John M. Schofield, in order to report his presence and arrange for coordination with the armada coming in from the sea and form a two-pronged attack against Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston’s (commanding all Southerners in the region) meager forces.
Sherman reports: "Up to this period I had perfectly succeeded in interposing my superior army between the scattered parts of my enemy." Johnston warns General Robert E. Lee that if Sherman and Schofield joined forces, "...their march into Virginia cannot be prevented by me."
President Abraham Lincoln proclaims a pardon to all soldiers and sailors who had deserted from the military or naval forces of the United States and return to their units, stations and ships within sixty days. If they do not return, they will forfeit their rights of citizenship.
The United States Senate adjourns after a brief special session to deal primarily with confirming Lincoln’s executive appointments. Presidential secretary John George Nicolay was also confirmed as the U.S. consul in Paris, France.
The steamer Ajax puts into Nassau, Bahamas. Lieutenant John Low, who had been on board as a "...passenger assumed command, and on 25 March transferred her registry." Governor Rawson W. Rawson of Bermuda carefully examines the ship and concludes that "...nothing [was] found on her..." She now appears to be intended for a tug. It is suspected that she was intended as a tender to the Confederate Ironclad vessel [Stonewall], said to be now in a Spanish Port, watched by two Federal cruisers. By early April, the Ajax was ready to sail for Bermuda.
More skirmishes break out around Fayetteville, North Carolina, as the Union vessels USS Eolus, Lenapee, Maratanza and Nyack sail up the Cape Fear River towards the town.
Full report: Lieutenant Commander George W. Young, senior officer present off Wilmington, leads a naval force consisting of the USS Eolus and boat crews from USS Maratanza, Lenapee, and Nyack up the Cape Fear River to Fayetteville, where the expedition rendezvoused with General Sherman's army. The naval movement had been undertaken at the request of Major General Alfred Terry, who, Young reported, had said on the morning of the 11th "...that he was about starting an expedition up the North West Branch [of the Cape Fear River] for the purpose of clearing the way to Fayetteville, and wished to have one of the gunboats, as a support, to follow." The expedition was halted for the night at Devil's Bend because of "...the circuitous nature of the river..." but resumed the next morning and arrived at Fayetteville on the evening of the 12th. In addition to opening communications between Sherman and the Union forces on the coast the naval units arrived in time to protect the General's flank while he crossed the river.
In Virginia, Major General Philip H. Sheridan’s Federals skirmish at Goochland County Court House and are now in a position to threaten Richmond.
Skirmishing occurs in Missouri and Arkansas.
Brigadier General Edmund J. Davis, USA, is assigned to the command of the District of Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
A Federal expedition travels from Fortress Monroe aboard steamers, into Westmoreland County, Virginia, and skirmishes near Warsaw, Virginia, with the destruction of all Confederate property of any value.
Posted on 3/11/15 at 8:45 pm to BadLeroyDawg
Sunday, 12 March 1865
Union Major General William T. Sherman’s army remained in Fayetteville, North Carolina. They undertook the usual destruction of machinery, buildings and property they deemed useful to the Confederate war effort, including the former U.S. Arsenal and the machinery brought up from the old Harper’s Ferry Arsenal in 1861. Sherman also ordered the coastal troops to march straight for Goldsboro, North Carolina.
A boat arrived from the Cape Fear River to deliver mail to the Union troops, many of whom had not received news from the outside world since leaving Savannah in January.
Sherman informed Federals at Wilmington and New Berne that he would move on March 15 for Goldsboro after feinting toward Raleigh. Sherman wrote to U.S. General-in-Chief Hiram U. Grant, guessing that General Joseph E. Johnston would try concentrating his Confederates at Raleigh.
Skirmishing occurs near Peach Grove, Virginia; Morganza Bend, Louisiana; and near Lone Jack, Missouri.
Federals scout from Lewisburg into Yell and Searcy Counties, Arkansas, where the Yankees deal death to partisan guerrillas near Danville, and in Searcy County. The Federals also seize some wheat.
A Union expedition sails from Vicksburg, Mississippi, with the 53rd US Colored Troops, aboard the steamer, Diana, and accompanied by the Union gunboat, Mound City, to Grand Gulf and vicinity.
Brigadier General Mosby M. Parsons, CSA, is assigned to the command of the Missouri District of Infantry, as Major General Sterling "Old Pap" Price, CSA, is relieved.
Federal expeditions move from Fort Churchill to Pyramid and Walker's Lakes, Nevada, with skirmishes against Smoke Creek Indians at Mud Lake and near Walker's Lake, Nevada.
Federals scout in Loudoun County, Virginia, in pursuit of Major John S. Mosby's Partisan Rangers of the 43rd Battalion, Virginia Cavalry. Mosby is wary, and as usual, evades the Yankees.
A skirmish breaks out near Peach Grove, 2 miles from Vienna, Virginia, with partisan guerrillas, that results in loss of Union life and several Yankee casualties.
At the request of Brigadier General Schofield, Acting Master H. Walton Grinnell, leading a detachment of four sailors, succeeded in delivering important Army dispatches to General Sherman near Fayetteville. Grinnell and his men began their trip on the 4th in a dugout from Wilmington. About 12 miles up the Cape Fear River, after passing through the Confederate pickets undetected, the men left the boat and commenced a tedious and difficult march towards Fayetteville. Near Whiteville, Grinnell impressed horses and led a daring dash through the Confederate lines. Shortly thereafter, the group made contact with the rear scouts of Sherman's forces, successfully completing what Grinnell termed "...this rather novel naval scout." Naval support, no matter what form it took, was essential to Sherman's movements.
The USS Althea, Acting Ensign Frederic A. G. Bacon, was sunk by a torpedo in the Blakely River, Alabama. The small 72-ton tug had performed duties as a coaling and supply vessel since joining the West Gulf Blockading Squadron in August 1864. She was returning from an unsuccessful attempt to drag the river's channel when she "...ran afoul of a torpedo". The Althea went down "immediately" in 10 to 12 feet of water. Two crewmen were killed and three, including Bacon, were injured. Althea had the dubious distinction of being the first of seven vessels to be sunk by torpedoes near Mobile in a five week period. The Confederate weapons took an increasing toll of Union ships as they swept for mines and pressed home the attack in shallow waters. Althea was later raised and recommissioned in November 1865.
The USS Quaker City, under Commander William F. Spicer, captured the blockade running British schooner R.H. Vermilyea in the Gulf of Mexico with a cargo of coffee, clothes, rum, tobacco, and shoes.
This morning, with the main Southern armies facing long odds against must larger Union forces, the Confederacy--in a desperate measure--reluctantly approves the use of black troops.
The situation was bleak for the Confederates in the early spring of 1865. The Yankees had captured large swaths of Southern territory, General William T. Sherman’s Union army was tearing through the Carolinas, and General Robert E. Lee was trying valiantly to hold the Confederate capital of Richmond, Virginia, against General Hiram U. Grant’s growing force. Lee and Confederate President Jefferson Davis had only two options. One was for Lee to unite with General Joseph Johnston’s army in the Carolinas and use the combined force to take on Sherman and Grant one at a time. The other option was to arm slaves, the last source of fresh manpower in the Confederacy.
The idea of enlisting blacks had been debated for some time. Arming slaves was essentially a way of setting them free, since they could not realistically be sent back to plantations after they had fought. Major General Patrick Cleburne had first suggested enlisting slaves more than a year before, but few in the Confederate leadership considered the proposal, since slavery was the foundation of Southern society. One politician asked, “What did we go to war for, if not to protect our property?” Another suggested, “If slaves will make good soldiers, our whole theory of slavery is wrong.” Lee weighed in on the issue and asked the Confederate government for help. “We must decide whether slavery shall be extinguished by our enemies and the slaves be used against us, or use them ourselves.” Lee asked that the slaves be freed as a condition of fighting, but the bill that passed the Confederate Congress on March 13, 1865, did not stipulate freedom for those who served.
The measure did little to stop the destruction of the Confederacy. Even though several thousand blacks were enlisted in the Rebel cause, they could not begin to balance out the nearly 186,000 Negroes who became Union soldiers.
Union Major General William T. Sherman’s army remained in Fayetteville, North Carolina. They undertook the usual destruction of machinery, buildings and property they deemed useful to the Confederate war effort, including the former U.S. Arsenal and the machinery brought up from the old Harper’s Ferry Arsenal in 1861. Sherman also ordered the coastal troops to march straight for Goldsboro, North Carolina.
A boat arrived from the Cape Fear River to deliver mail to the Union troops, many of whom had not received news from the outside world since leaving Savannah in January.
Sherman informed Federals at Wilmington and New Berne that he would move on March 15 for Goldsboro after feinting toward Raleigh. Sherman wrote to U.S. General-in-Chief Hiram U. Grant, guessing that General Joseph E. Johnston would try concentrating his Confederates at Raleigh.
Skirmishing occurs near Peach Grove, Virginia; Morganza Bend, Louisiana; and near Lone Jack, Missouri.
Federals scout from Lewisburg into Yell and Searcy Counties, Arkansas, where the Yankees deal death to partisan guerrillas near Danville, and in Searcy County. The Federals also seize some wheat.
A Union expedition sails from Vicksburg, Mississippi, with the 53rd US Colored Troops, aboard the steamer, Diana, and accompanied by the Union gunboat, Mound City, to Grand Gulf and vicinity.
Brigadier General Mosby M. Parsons, CSA, is assigned to the command of the Missouri District of Infantry, as Major General Sterling "Old Pap" Price, CSA, is relieved.
Federal expeditions move from Fort Churchill to Pyramid and Walker's Lakes, Nevada, with skirmishes against Smoke Creek Indians at Mud Lake and near Walker's Lake, Nevada.
Federals scout in Loudoun County, Virginia, in pursuit of Major John S. Mosby's Partisan Rangers of the 43rd Battalion, Virginia Cavalry. Mosby is wary, and as usual, evades the Yankees.
A skirmish breaks out near Peach Grove, 2 miles from Vienna, Virginia, with partisan guerrillas, that results in loss of Union life and several Yankee casualties.
At the request of Brigadier General Schofield, Acting Master H. Walton Grinnell, leading a detachment of four sailors, succeeded in delivering important Army dispatches to General Sherman near Fayetteville. Grinnell and his men began their trip on the 4th in a dugout from Wilmington. About 12 miles up the Cape Fear River, after passing through the Confederate pickets undetected, the men left the boat and commenced a tedious and difficult march towards Fayetteville. Near Whiteville, Grinnell impressed horses and led a daring dash through the Confederate lines. Shortly thereafter, the group made contact with the rear scouts of Sherman's forces, successfully completing what Grinnell termed "...this rather novel naval scout." Naval support, no matter what form it took, was essential to Sherman's movements.
The USS Althea, Acting Ensign Frederic A. G. Bacon, was sunk by a torpedo in the Blakely River, Alabama. The small 72-ton tug had performed duties as a coaling and supply vessel since joining the West Gulf Blockading Squadron in August 1864. She was returning from an unsuccessful attempt to drag the river's channel when she "...ran afoul of a torpedo". The Althea went down "immediately" in 10 to 12 feet of water. Two crewmen were killed and three, including Bacon, were injured. Althea had the dubious distinction of being the first of seven vessels to be sunk by torpedoes near Mobile in a five week period. The Confederate weapons took an increasing toll of Union ships as they swept for mines and pressed home the attack in shallow waters. Althea was later raised and recommissioned in November 1865.
The USS Quaker City, under Commander William F. Spicer, captured the blockade running British schooner R.H. Vermilyea in the Gulf of Mexico with a cargo of coffee, clothes, rum, tobacco, and shoes.
This morning, with the main Southern armies facing long odds against must larger Union forces, the Confederacy--in a desperate measure--reluctantly approves the use of black troops.
The situation was bleak for the Confederates in the early spring of 1865. The Yankees had captured large swaths of Southern territory, General William T. Sherman’s Union army was tearing through the Carolinas, and General Robert E. Lee was trying valiantly to hold the Confederate capital of Richmond, Virginia, against General Hiram U. Grant’s growing force. Lee and Confederate President Jefferson Davis had only two options. One was for Lee to unite with General Joseph Johnston’s army in the Carolinas and use the combined force to take on Sherman and Grant one at a time. The other option was to arm slaves, the last source of fresh manpower in the Confederacy.
The idea of enlisting blacks had been debated for some time. Arming slaves was essentially a way of setting them free, since they could not realistically be sent back to plantations after they had fought. Major General Patrick Cleburne had first suggested enlisting slaves more than a year before, but few in the Confederate leadership considered the proposal, since slavery was the foundation of Southern society. One politician asked, “What did we go to war for, if not to protect our property?” Another suggested, “If slaves will make good soldiers, our whole theory of slavery is wrong.” Lee weighed in on the issue and asked the Confederate government for help. “We must decide whether slavery shall be extinguished by our enemies and the slaves be used against us, or use them ourselves.” Lee asked that the slaves be freed as a condition of fighting, but the bill that passed the Confederate Congress on March 13, 1865, did not stipulate freedom for those who served.
The measure did little to stop the destruction of the Confederacy. Even though several thousand blacks were enlisted in the Rebel cause, they could not begin to balance out the nearly 186,000 Negroes who became Union soldiers.
Posted on 3/12/15 at 9:20 pm to BadLeroyDawg
Monday, 13 March 1865
The Confederate Congress, after much delay and debate, finally sent a measure calling for the enlistment of Negroes in the Army to Confederate President Jefferson Davis, who immediately signed it. Davis was authorized to call upon owners to volunteer their slaves and, it was general understood even if it wasn’t specifically stated, that any slaves who fought for the Confederacy would be made free by action of the states. The law was too late to be of much value. Davis was authorized to recruit up to 300,000 blacks into the armies. The law did not grant freedom to slaves who served the Confederacy, but it was generally understood that they would be freed after their service.
Davis requested that members of the Confederate Congress stay in special session to enact "...further and more energetic legislation..." for the War effort. Davis accused congressmen of not acting boldly enough to handle the crisis by failing to pass laws facilitating the increase of manpower, supplies, and revenue. This message only alienated many members of Congress.
A skirmish near Beaver Dam Station, Virginia, breaks out with Major General Philip H. Sheridan's Cavalry force on their way to join up with the Union forces under Lieutenant General Hiram U. Grant on the siege lines of Petersburg, Virginia.
Commander Alexander Colden Rhind, Senior Naval Officer at New Bern, reported to Commander William Henry Alexander Macomb, commanding in the North Carolina sounds, that the expedition up the Neuse River had returned the previous evening. "A deserter from a North Carolina regiment came on board the [Army steamer] Ella May yesterday morning. He states that the whole Rebel force under Bragg (estimated by him at 40,000) had evacuated Kinston, moving toward Goldsboro, but that Hoke's division returned when he left. The ironclad [ Neuse ] is afloat and ready for service; has two guns, draws 9 feet. No pontoon was found in the Neuse. If you can send me a torpedo launch at once he may have an opportunity of destroying the ironclad. The bridge (railroad) at Kinston has been destroyed by the enemy.
General Johnston, recalled to duty, had been sent to North Carolina to oppose General Sherman. Troops withdrawn from Kinston were part of his consolidation of divided armies seeking to gain a force of respectable size to fight effectively against Sherman's large army. The withdrawal, however, left a vacuum which the Federals promptly filled. They occupied Kinston on the 14th; meanwhile the Confederates had destroyed the ram Neuse to prevent her capture.
Lieutenant Commander Edward Hooker led a naval expedition, consisting of the USS Commodore Read, Morse, Delaware, and Army gunboat Mosswood, up the Rappahannock River to assist an Army detachment engaged in mopping-up operations on the peninsula formed by the Rappahannock and Potomac Rivers. At Rappahannock, a landing party from Delaware, Acting Master Joshua H. Eldridge, destroyed eight boats including a large flatboat used as a ferry. The bridge connecting Rappahannock with evacuated Fort Lowry was then destroyed by the well directed gunfire from Delaware and Morse, Acting Master George NV. Hyde. During these operations the squadron exchanged fire for two hours with two rifled field pieces concealed in a wooded area. The vessels also opened on Confederate cavalry units in the vicinity and, Hooker reported, "...emptied some of their saddles."
Major A. M. Jackson (10th U.S. Colored Heavy Artillery) passes on a spy’s report on a Confederate submarine at Houston, Texas and four other such vessels at Shreveport, Louisiana. The description of the boats is almost identical to Hunley, and the ships were probably built by members of the Singer Submarine Corps who had been ordered to the West the year before.
George Washington Getty, U.S.A., is appointed Major General.
James Brewerton Ricketts, U.S.A., is appointed Major General.
Wager Swayne, U.S.A., is appointed Brigadier General.
An affair occurs 1 mile from Dalton, Georgia, as the attacking Confederates capture 5 railroad hands on the Cleveland road. The Yankees pursue and kill 2 of the Rebels, and capture 1.
Colonel John Morrill, with the 64th Illinois Infantry, is assigned to the command of the District of Rolla, Missouri.
The Confederate Congress, after much delay and debate, finally sent a measure calling for the enlistment of Negroes in the Army to Confederate President Jefferson Davis, who immediately signed it. Davis was authorized to call upon owners to volunteer their slaves and, it was general understood even if it wasn’t specifically stated, that any slaves who fought for the Confederacy would be made free by action of the states. The law was too late to be of much value. Davis was authorized to recruit up to 300,000 blacks into the armies. The law did not grant freedom to slaves who served the Confederacy, but it was generally understood that they would be freed after their service.
Davis requested that members of the Confederate Congress stay in special session to enact "...further and more energetic legislation..." for the War effort. Davis accused congressmen of not acting boldly enough to handle the crisis by failing to pass laws facilitating the increase of manpower, supplies, and revenue. This message only alienated many members of Congress.
A skirmish near Beaver Dam Station, Virginia, breaks out with Major General Philip H. Sheridan's Cavalry force on their way to join up with the Union forces under Lieutenant General Hiram U. Grant on the siege lines of Petersburg, Virginia.
Commander Alexander Colden Rhind, Senior Naval Officer at New Bern, reported to Commander William Henry Alexander Macomb, commanding in the North Carolina sounds, that the expedition up the Neuse River had returned the previous evening. "A deserter from a North Carolina regiment came on board the [Army steamer] Ella May yesterday morning. He states that the whole Rebel force under Bragg (estimated by him at 40,000) had evacuated Kinston, moving toward Goldsboro, but that Hoke's division returned when he left. The ironclad [ Neuse ] is afloat and ready for service; has two guns, draws 9 feet. No pontoon was found in the Neuse. If you can send me a torpedo launch at once he may have an opportunity of destroying the ironclad. The bridge (railroad) at Kinston has been destroyed by the enemy.
General Johnston, recalled to duty, had been sent to North Carolina to oppose General Sherman. Troops withdrawn from Kinston were part of his consolidation of divided armies seeking to gain a force of respectable size to fight effectively against Sherman's large army. The withdrawal, however, left a vacuum which the Federals promptly filled. They occupied Kinston on the 14th; meanwhile the Confederates had destroyed the ram Neuse to prevent her capture.
Lieutenant Commander Edward Hooker led a naval expedition, consisting of the USS Commodore Read, Morse, Delaware, and Army gunboat Mosswood, up the Rappahannock River to assist an Army detachment engaged in mopping-up operations on the peninsula formed by the Rappahannock and Potomac Rivers. At Rappahannock, a landing party from Delaware, Acting Master Joshua H. Eldridge, destroyed eight boats including a large flatboat used as a ferry. The bridge connecting Rappahannock with evacuated Fort Lowry was then destroyed by the well directed gunfire from Delaware and Morse, Acting Master George NV. Hyde. During these operations the squadron exchanged fire for two hours with two rifled field pieces concealed in a wooded area. The vessels also opened on Confederate cavalry units in the vicinity and, Hooker reported, "...emptied some of their saddles."
Major A. M. Jackson (10th U.S. Colored Heavy Artillery) passes on a spy’s report on a Confederate submarine at Houston, Texas and four other such vessels at Shreveport, Louisiana. The description of the boats is almost identical to Hunley, and the ships were probably built by members of the Singer Submarine Corps who had been ordered to the West the year before.
George Washington Getty, U.S.A., is appointed Major General.
James Brewerton Ricketts, U.S.A., is appointed Major General.
Wager Swayne, U.S.A., is appointed Brigadier General.
An affair occurs 1 mile from Dalton, Georgia, as the attacking Confederates capture 5 railroad hands on the Cleveland road. The Yankees pursue and kill 2 of the Rebels, and capture 1.
Colonel John Morrill, with the 64th Illinois Infantry, is assigned to the command of the District of Rolla, Missouri.
Posted on 3/13/15 at 10:59 pm to BadLeroyDawg
Tuesday, 14 March 1865
Major General Jacob D. Cox’s Union troops occupied Kinston, North Carolina, in their advance inland from the sea towards Goldsboro and his junction with Major General William T. Sherman’s army. Meanwhile, Major General John M. Schofield’s Federals rebuild the bridges over the Neuse River after three days of work.
General Robert E. Lee informed President Jefferson Davis that General Joseph E. Johnston was uniting forces at Raleigh, and although he was outnumbered in "tone," Johnston planned to "...strike the enemy in detail." Lee stated, "The greatest calamity that can befall us is the destruction of our armies. If they can be maintained, we may recover our reverses, but if lost we have no resource."
The Confederate envoy to Great Britain, James Mason, conferred with British Prime Minister Lord Palmerston about whether Britain would recognize the Confederacy as an independent nation. Mason then wrote to Confederate Secretary of State Judah P. Benjamin that "...the most ample concessions on our part in the matter referred to (emancipation) would have produced no change in the course determined by the British government." The Confederates offered emancipation in exchange for recognition, but it was too late in the war for Britain to accept.
President Abraham Lincoln held his weekly cabinet meeting from his bed. Some claimed Lincoln suffered from influenza, but others simply blamed fatigue.
Major General Philip H, Sheridan’s Federals skirmish at the South Anna Bridge in Virginia, as his cavalry move towards Petersburg, Virginia.
A skirmish ensues near Dalton, Georgia, where the Yankees are surprised to capture a Rebel belonging to General Robert E. Lee's Virginian Army.
A Federal reconnaissance moves from Fayetteville on the Goldsboro road to Black River, North Carolina, and skirmishes with partisans.
A Federal reconnaissance travels from Fayetteville on the Raleigh road to Silver Run Creek, North Carolina, and skirmishes.
The limits of the District of Oregon are extended to include the entire State of Oregon.
A skirmish flares up at Woodstock, Virginia.
Federals scout from New Creek to Moorefield, West Virginia, in search of any Confederates still in the area.
Federals also scout from Philippi to Carricks's Ford, West Virginia, in search of any Confederate forces remaining in the area.
Major General Jacob D. Cox’s Union troops occupied Kinston, North Carolina, in their advance inland from the sea towards Goldsboro and his junction with Major General William T. Sherman’s army. Meanwhile, Major General John M. Schofield’s Federals rebuild the bridges over the Neuse River after three days of work.
General Robert E. Lee informed President Jefferson Davis that General Joseph E. Johnston was uniting forces at Raleigh, and although he was outnumbered in "tone," Johnston planned to "...strike the enemy in detail." Lee stated, "The greatest calamity that can befall us is the destruction of our armies. If they can be maintained, we may recover our reverses, but if lost we have no resource."
The Confederate envoy to Great Britain, James Mason, conferred with British Prime Minister Lord Palmerston about whether Britain would recognize the Confederacy as an independent nation. Mason then wrote to Confederate Secretary of State Judah P. Benjamin that "...the most ample concessions on our part in the matter referred to (emancipation) would have produced no change in the course determined by the British government." The Confederates offered emancipation in exchange for recognition, but it was too late in the war for Britain to accept.
President Abraham Lincoln held his weekly cabinet meeting from his bed. Some claimed Lincoln suffered from influenza, but others simply blamed fatigue.
Major General Philip H, Sheridan’s Federals skirmish at the South Anna Bridge in Virginia, as his cavalry move towards Petersburg, Virginia.
A skirmish ensues near Dalton, Georgia, where the Yankees are surprised to capture a Rebel belonging to General Robert E. Lee's Virginian Army.
A Federal reconnaissance moves from Fayetteville on the Goldsboro road to Black River, North Carolina, and skirmishes with partisans.
A Federal reconnaissance travels from Fayetteville on the Raleigh road to Silver Run Creek, North Carolina, and skirmishes.
The limits of the District of Oregon are extended to include the entire State of Oregon.
A skirmish flares up at Woodstock, Virginia.
Federals scout from New Creek to Moorefield, West Virginia, in search of any Confederates still in the area.
Federals also scout from Philippi to Carricks's Ford, West Virginia, in search of any Confederate forces remaining in the area.
Posted on 3/14/15 at 9:31 pm to BadLeroyDawg
Wednesday, 15 March 1865
In North Carolina, both wings of Major General William T. Sherman’s Union army cross the Cape Fear River, moving north to feint against Raleigh before heading to join Major Generals John M. Schofield and Jacob D. Cox at Goldsboro. Meanwhile, General William Joseph Hardee’s Confederates entrenched between the Cape Fear River and a swamp near Averasboro, which Sherman’s left wing would have to pass to get to either Raleigh or Goldsboro. This evening, the left wing, commanded by General Henry Warner Slocum, arrived and camped about eight miles south of Averasboro. Union cavalry under General Hugh Judson Kilpatrick had contacted some of Hardee’s men along the old Plank Road northeast of Fayetteville earlier this afternoon and skirmished, but could not punch through, so Kilpatrick withdrew and regrouped to wait on Slocum.
In Virginia, Major General Philip Sheridan’s Federals reached Hanover Court House, skirmishing near Ashland.
Thomas Casimer Devin, USA, is appointed Brigadier General.
Skirmishes broke out at Boyd's Station and Stevenson's Gap, Alabama, as the almost vanquished Confederates do everything they can to garner Southern Independence. This morning, they attack and capture men of the 101st US Colored Infantry.
Federal troops scout from Fort Sumner, in the New Mexico Territory, to the Rio Conchas, Rio Turpentine, Anton Chico, the Pecos, as well as around the town of Anton Chico, to ascertain the truth of whether Navajo and Apache Indians from the local reservation were stealing sheep and cattle. The Yankees are convinced this is not the case but more of unscrupulous white men who sell inferior stock and to save themselves, blame the Indians when they disappear. In addition, there are even reports a group of Navajoes returned a large flock of sheep they found that were lost in the blinding snowstorms. And finally, it appears that anytime livestock is missing, the natives are blamed for it.
A skirmish occurs near Smith's Mills, on the Black River, North Carolina, as Major General William T. Sherman marches on; meanwhile General Joseph E. Johnston attempts to assemble a respectable Confederate force to contest his advance.
Another skirmish flares up at South River, North Carolina.
Rear Admiral Samuel P. Lee, commanding the Mississippi Squadron, warned of the receipt from "...the highest military sources..." of the information "...that the Rebel Navy is reported to have been relieved from duty on the Atlantic coast and sent to operate on the Western rivers." He added: "The design of the enemy is believed to be to interfere with the naval vessels and the transports on these rivers, or to cover the transfer of Rebel troops from the west side of the Mississippi..."
Acting Lieutenant Robert P. Swann, commanding the USS Lodona, reported to Rear Admiral John A. B. Dahlgren that he had destroyed an extensive salt work on Broro Neck, in McIntosh County, Georgia. Destroyed were 12 boilers, 10 buildings, 100 bushels of salt, a large quantity of timber and a number of new barrels and staves.
In North Carolina, both wings of Major General William T. Sherman’s Union army cross the Cape Fear River, moving north to feint against Raleigh before heading to join Major Generals John M. Schofield and Jacob D. Cox at Goldsboro. Meanwhile, General William Joseph Hardee’s Confederates entrenched between the Cape Fear River and a swamp near Averasboro, which Sherman’s left wing would have to pass to get to either Raleigh or Goldsboro. This evening, the left wing, commanded by General Henry Warner Slocum, arrived and camped about eight miles south of Averasboro. Union cavalry under General Hugh Judson Kilpatrick had contacted some of Hardee’s men along the old Plank Road northeast of Fayetteville earlier this afternoon and skirmished, but could not punch through, so Kilpatrick withdrew and regrouped to wait on Slocum.
In Virginia, Major General Philip Sheridan’s Federals reached Hanover Court House, skirmishing near Ashland.
Thomas Casimer Devin, USA, is appointed Brigadier General.
Skirmishes broke out at Boyd's Station and Stevenson's Gap, Alabama, as the almost vanquished Confederates do everything they can to garner Southern Independence. This morning, they attack and capture men of the 101st US Colored Infantry.
Federal troops scout from Fort Sumner, in the New Mexico Territory, to the Rio Conchas, Rio Turpentine, Anton Chico, the Pecos, as well as around the town of Anton Chico, to ascertain the truth of whether Navajo and Apache Indians from the local reservation were stealing sheep and cattle. The Yankees are convinced this is not the case but more of unscrupulous white men who sell inferior stock and to save themselves, blame the Indians when they disappear. In addition, there are even reports a group of Navajoes returned a large flock of sheep they found that were lost in the blinding snowstorms. And finally, it appears that anytime livestock is missing, the natives are blamed for it.
A skirmish occurs near Smith's Mills, on the Black River, North Carolina, as Major General William T. Sherman marches on; meanwhile General Joseph E. Johnston attempts to assemble a respectable Confederate force to contest his advance.
Another skirmish flares up at South River, North Carolina.
Rear Admiral Samuel P. Lee, commanding the Mississippi Squadron, warned of the receipt from "...the highest military sources..." of the information "...that the Rebel Navy is reported to have been relieved from duty on the Atlantic coast and sent to operate on the Western rivers." He added: "The design of the enemy is believed to be to interfere with the naval vessels and the transports on these rivers, or to cover the transfer of Rebel troops from the west side of the Mississippi..."
Acting Lieutenant Robert P. Swann, commanding the USS Lodona, reported to Rear Admiral John A. B. Dahlgren that he had destroyed an extensive salt work on Broro Neck, in McIntosh County, Georgia. Destroyed were 12 boilers, 10 buildings, 100 bushels of salt, a large quantity of timber and a number of new barrels and staves.
Posted on 3/15/15 at 8:56 pm to BadLeroyDawg
Thursday, 16 March 1865
The Battle of Averasboro occurred in North Carolina, as Major General William T. Sherman's Federals, advancing from Fayetteville, attacked a smaller force of Confederates blocking their path. The Confederates withdrew toward Smithfield after suffering some 865 virtually irreplaceable casualties; the Federals lost 682.
Full report: On this day in 1865, the mighty "Bummer" army of Union General William T. Sherman encounters its most significant resistance as it continues tearing through the Carolinas on its way to join General Hiram U. Grant’s army at Petersburg, Virginia. Confederate General William J. Hardee tried to block one wing of Sherman’s force, commanded by General Henry W. Slocum, but the patchwork Rebel force was eventually swept aside at the Battle of Averasboro, North Carolina.
Sherman’s army left Savannah, Georgia, in late January 1865 and began to drive through the Carolinas with the intention of inflicting the same damage, or worse, on those states as it infamously had done on Georgia two months prior. The vastly outnumbered Confederates could offer little opposition save a few well placed cavalry skirmishes, and Sherman rolled northward while engaging in only a few other small battles. Now, however, the Rebels had mobilized more soldiers and dug in their heels as the Confederacy entered its final days.
Hardee placed his troops across the main roads leading away from Fayetteville in an effort to determine Sherman’s objective. Union cavalry under General Hugh Judson Kilpatrick contacted some of Hardee’s men along the old Plank Road northeast of Fayetteville on 15 March. Kilpatrick could not punch through, so he regrouped and waited until this morning to renew the attack. When they tried again, the Yankees still could not break the Confederate lines until two divisions of Slocum’s infantry finally arrived. In danger of being outflanked and possibly surrounded, Hardee adroitly withdrew his troops and headed toward a rendezvous with General Joseph Johnston’s gathering army at Bentonville, North Carolina.
The Yankees lost approximately 95 men killed, 530 wounded, and 50 missing, while Hardee lost about 865 total. The battle did little to slow the march of Sherman’s army.
Several members of the Confederate Congress submitted a rebuttal to President Jefferson Davis' message from three days ago: "Nothing is more desirable than concord and cordial cooperation between all departments of Government. Hence your committee regrets that the Executive deemed it necessary to transmit to Congress a message so well calculated to excite discord and dissension..."
Major General Edward R. S. Canby requested Rear Admiral Henry Knox Thatcher to provide naval gunfire and transport support to the landing and movement of Federal troops against Mobile, Alabama. The response again demonstrated the close coordination with ground operations which was so effective throughout the conflict; Thatcher replied: "I shall be most happy and ready to give you all the assistance in my power. Six tinclads are all the light-draft vessels at my disposal. They will be ready at any moment."
The USS Pursuit, Acting Lieutenant William R. Browne in charge, captured the British schooner Mary attempting to run the blockade into the Indian River on the East Coast of Florida. Her cargo consisted of shoes, percussion caps, and rum.
The USS Quaker City, under Commander William F. Spicer, captured the small blockade running sloop Telemico in the Gulf of Mexico with a cargo of cotton and peanuts.
The Battle of Averasboro occurred in North Carolina, as Major General William T. Sherman's Federals, advancing from Fayetteville, attacked a smaller force of Confederates blocking their path. The Confederates withdrew toward Smithfield after suffering some 865 virtually irreplaceable casualties; the Federals lost 682.
Full report: On this day in 1865, the mighty "Bummer" army of Union General William T. Sherman encounters its most significant resistance as it continues tearing through the Carolinas on its way to join General Hiram U. Grant’s army at Petersburg, Virginia. Confederate General William J. Hardee tried to block one wing of Sherman’s force, commanded by General Henry W. Slocum, but the patchwork Rebel force was eventually swept aside at the Battle of Averasboro, North Carolina.
Sherman’s army left Savannah, Georgia, in late January 1865 and began to drive through the Carolinas with the intention of inflicting the same damage, or worse, on those states as it infamously had done on Georgia two months prior. The vastly outnumbered Confederates could offer little opposition save a few well placed cavalry skirmishes, and Sherman rolled northward while engaging in only a few other small battles. Now, however, the Rebels had mobilized more soldiers and dug in their heels as the Confederacy entered its final days.
Hardee placed his troops across the main roads leading away from Fayetteville in an effort to determine Sherman’s objective. Union cavalry under General Hugh Judson Kilpatrick contacted some of Hardee’s men along the old Plank Road northeast of Fayetteville on 15 March. Kilpatrick could not punch through, so he regrouped and waited until this morning to renew the attack. When they tried again, the Yankees still could not break the Confederate lines until two divisions of Slocum’s infantry finally arrived. In danger of being outflanked and possibly surrounded, Hardee adroitly withdrew his troops and headed toward a rendezvous with General Joseph Johnston’s gathering army at Bentonville, North Carolina.
The Yankees lost approximately 95 men killed, 530 wounded, and 50 missing, while Hardee lost about 865 total. The battle did little to slow the march of Sherman’s army.
Several members of the Confederate Congress submitted a rebuttal to President Jefferson Davis' message from three days ago: "Nothing is more desirable than concord and cordial cooperation between all departments of Government. Hence your committee regrets that the Executive deemed it necessary to transmit to Congress a message so well calculated to excite discord and dissension..."
Major General Edward R. S. Canby requested Rear Admiral Henry Knox Thatcher to provide naval gunfire and transport support to the landing and movement of Federal troops against Mobile, Alabama. The response again demonstrated the close coordination with ground operations which was so effective throughout the conflict; Thatcher replied: "I shall be most happy and ready to give you all the assistance in my power. Six tinclads are all the light-draft vessels at my disposal. They will be ready at any moment."
The USS Pursuit, Acting Lieutenant William R. Browne in charge, captured the British schooner Mary attempting to run the blockade into the Indian River on the East Coast of Florida. Her cargo consisted of shoes, percussion caps, and rum.
The USS Quaker City, under Commander William F. Spicer, captured the small blockade running sloop Telemico in the Gulf of Mexico with a cargo of cotton and peanuts.
Posted on 3/16/15 at 8:53 pm to BadLeroyDawg
Friday, 17 March 1865
Sporadic, but at times heavy, skirmishing continued at Falling Creek, North Carolina, following the previous day’s battle at Averasboro as General William Joseph Hardee issued a congratulatory order to his Confederate troops for "...giving the enemy the first check he has received since leaving Atlanta."
Union Major General Edward Richard Sprigg Canby began maneuvering his 32,000 troops against Mobile, a vital Confederate seaport city on Alabama’s coast. One Federal force moved from Pensacola, Florida, and another from the area of Mobile Point up the east side of Mobile Bay. About 2,800 Confederates under Brigadier General Randall Lee Gibson defended the city.
In Washington, D.C., Union President Abraham Lincoln addressed the increasing sales of arms to Native Americans by proclaiming that all people detected in the sale of arms and/or ammunition to the Indians or caught conducting such transactions would be arrested and tried by a military tribunal court martial.
The following are appointed Confederate Brigadier Generals: Richard Montgomery Gano, CSA; Henry Gray, CSA; William Polk Hardeman, CSA; Walter Paye Lane, CSA.
More Federal expeditions commence against partisan guerrillas from Pine Bluff to Bass' Plantation, Arkansas, crossing the river aboard the steamer, Argosy, but reporting no encounters with the enemy.
Colonel John Morrill, 64th Illinois Infantry, assumes the command of the District of Rolla, Missouri.
Federal troops scout from Winchester to Edinburg, in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley.
A Federal expedition begin from Pine Bluff, Arkansas.
The Coast Survey Steamer Bibb, commanded by Charles O. Boutelle, struck a submerged torpedo in Charleston Harbor. "Fortunately for us..." Boutelle reported, "...the blow was upon the side. To this fact and the great strength of the vessel may be ascribed our escape from serious injury." Nevertheless, as Rear Admiral John A. B. Dahlgren noted a few days later, the Bibb "...was much jarred..." by the impact and required considerable repairs.
The USS Quaker City, Commander William F. Spicer in charge, captured the blockade running schooner George Burkhart in the Gulf of Mexico with a cargo of cotton, bound from Lavaca, Texas for Matamoras, Mexico.
The USS Wyalusing, under Lieutenant Commander Earl English, while engaged in clearing and opening the tributaries of Albemarle Sound, removed 60 nets and captured a Confederate schooner in Scuppernong and Alligator Rivers.
In a speech to the 140th Indiana, Lincoln said, "Whenever (I) hear any one, arguing for slavery I feel a strong impulse to see it tried on him personally." Lincoln also voiced support for the Confederacy’s recent measure recruiting slaves into the Confederate armies: "I am rather in favor of the measure...We have to reach the bottom of the insurgent resources, and that they employ or seriously think of employing the slaves as soldiers gives us glimpses of the bottom..."
Famed actor and Confederate sympathizer John Wilkes Booth developed a plan to kidnap Lincoln and exchange him for Confederate prisoners of war. This evening, Booth and his accomplices put on disguises and rode to the Soldiers Home on the Washington outskirts, where the Lincolns often stayed. Booth learned that Lincoln was not there and soon changed his plot from mere kidnapping to assassination, following the framework of the Union's Dahlgren-Kilpatrick Raid directed toward Richmond and Jefferson Davis a year earlier.
Sporadic, but at times heavy, skirmishing continued at Falling Creek, North Carolina, following the previous day’s battle at Averasboro as General William Joseph Hardee issued a congratulatory order to his Confederate troops for "...giving the enemy the first check he has received since leaving Atlanta."
Union Major General Edward Richard Sprigg Canby began maneuvering his 32,000 troops against Mobile, a vital Confederate seaport city on Alabama’s coast. One Federal force moved from Pensacola, Florida, and another from the area of Mobile Point up the east side of Mobile Bay. About 2,800 Confederates under Brigadier General Randall Lee Gibson defended the city.
In Washington, D.C., Union President Abraham Lincoln addressed the increasing sales of arms to Native Americans by proclaiming that all people detected in the sale of arms and/or ammunition to the Indians or caught conducting such transactions would be arrested and tried by a military tribunal court martial.
The following are appointed Confederate Brigadier Generals: Richard Montgomery Gano, CSA; Henry Gray, CSA; William Polk Hardeman, CSA; Walter Paye Lane, CSA.
More Federal expeditions commence against partisan guerrillas from Pine Bluff to Bass' Plantation, Arkansas, crossing the river aboard the steamer, Argosy, but reporting no encounters with the enemy.
Colonel John Morrill, 64th Illinois Infantry, assumes the command of the District of Rolla, Missouri.
Federal troops scout from Winchester to Edinburg, in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley.
A Federal expedition begin from Pine Bluff, Arkansas.
The Coast Survey Steamer Bibb, commanded by Charles O. Boutelle, struck a submerged torpedo in Charleston Harbor. "Fortunately for us..." Boutelle reported, "...the blow was upon the side. To this fact and the great strength of the vessel may be ascribed our escape from serious injury." Nevertheless, as Rear Admiral John A. B. Dahlgren noted a few days later, the Bibb "...was much jarred..." by the impact and required considerable repairs.
The USS Quaker City, Commander William F. Spicer in charge, captured the blockade running schooner George Burkhart in the Gulf of Mexico with a cargo of cotton, bound from Lavaca, Texas for Matamoras, Mexico.
The USS Wyalusing, under Lieutenant Commander Earl English, while engaged in clearing and opening the tributaries of Albemarle Sound, removed 60 nets and captured a Confederate schooner in Scuppernong and Alligator Rivers.
In a speech to the 140th Indiana, Lincoln said, "Whenever (I) hear any one, arguing for slavery I feel a strong impulse to see it tried on him personally." Lincoln also voiced support for the Confederacy’s recent measure recruiting slaves into the Confederate armies: "I am rather in favor of the measure...We have to reach the bottom of the insurgent resources, and that they employ or seriously think of employing the slaves as soldiers gives us glimpses of the bottom..."
Famed actor and Confederate sympathizer John Wilkes Booth developed a plan to kidnap Lincoln and exchange him for Confederate prisoners of war. This evening, Booth and his accomplices put on disguises and rode to the Soldiers Home on the Washington outskirts, where the Lincolns often stayed. Booth learned that Lincoln was not there and soon changed his plot from mere kidnapping to assassination, following the framework of the Union's Dahlgren-Kilpatrick Raid directed toward Richmond and Jefferson Davis a year earlier.
Posted on 3/16/15 at 8:56 pm to BadLeroyDawg
quote:
Famed actor and Confederate sympathizer John Wilkes Booth developed a plan to kidnap Lincoln and exchange him for Confederate prisoners of war. This evening, Booth and his accomplices put on disguises and rode to the Soldiers Home on the Washington outskirts, where the Lincolns often stayed. Booth learned that Lincoln was not there and soon changed his plot from mere kidnapping to assassination
Interesting.
Posted on 3/16/15 at 9:38 pm to TbirdSpur2010
Was interesting to me as well, TbirdSpur2010. Had never heard of the Dahlgren Raid prior to researching this last year. The Orders that were found on Ulric Dahlgren's body were posted in the Richmond newspapers. When the city fell in April 1865, Union Secretary of War Edwin Stanton had them confiscated and personally burned. But we all know that the winners write History, huh?
Posted on 3/17/15 at 9:08 pm to BadLeroyDawg
Saturday, 18 March 1865
The Confederate Congress ended its session in a fit of contention with President Jefferson Davis. Many essential war measures were left unpassed and for the last few days its main business was to argue with Davis whether he or Congress had delayed action and was responsible for some of the difficulties facing the Confederacy. It was symptomatic of the need to blame someone for the obvious impending disaster. Both branches were continuing to accuse each other of inactivity; many war measures to improve finances, mobilize subsistence, or enhance army recruiting did not pass. Davis wrote to a friend: "Faction has done much to cloud our prospects and impair my power to serve the country."
Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston was attempting to concentrate his forces against Major General William T. Sherman’s Federals, who were advancing towards Goldsboro, North Carolina. The Confederates had fewer than 20,000 troops versus well over 30,000 Union forces that were just south of Bentonville. Johnston planned to attack one section of Sherman’s army at a time, thus diminishing Sherman’s numerical superiority. The target was Sherman’s left wing under Generals Henry W. Slocum and Judson Kilpatrick.
Skirmishing occurred along Mingo Creek, Bush Swamp and near Benton’s Cross Roads, North Carolina; Livingston, Tennessee; near Dranesville, Virginia and on the Amite River in Louisiana.
A Federal expedition began from Fort Gibson in the Indian Territory.
At Mobile Bay, approximately 1,700 Federal troops advanced from Dauphin Island on the west side of the bay to deceive the Confederate defenders as to which side would be attacked; the main effort would be to the east.
A naval expedition, led by Lieutenant Commander Thomas H. Eastman, consisting of the U.S.S Don, Stepping Stones, Heliotrope and Resolute, proceeded up the Rappahannock River and its tributary, Mattox Creek, on 16 March to the vicinity of Montrose, Virginia, where it destroyed a supply base that had been supporting Confederate guerrillas on the peninsula between the Rappahannock and Potomac Rivers. Eastman led a landing force of 70 Marines and sailors up the right fork of Mattox Creek where he found and destroyed four boats. The landing party, led by Acting Ensign William H. Summers, that cleared the left fork encountered heavy musket fire but successfully destroyed three schooners. Houses in the vicinity were also searched and contraband destroyed. Acting Ensign John J. Brice, who led the 40 man search party,"...found himself opposed by about 50 cavalry. He formed his men to receive their attack. While doing this, 8 or 10 cavalry came down on his left flank, which he drove off. The main portion, on seeing this, retired to the woods."
The Confederate Congress ended its session in a fit of contention with President Jefferson Davis. Many essential war measures were left unpassed and for the last few days its main business was to argue with Davis whether he or Congress had delayed action and was responsible for some of the difficulties facing the Confederacy. It was symptomatic of the need to blame someone for the obvious impending disaster. Both branches were continuing to accuse each other of inactivity; many war measures to improve finances, mobilize subsistence, or enhance army recruiting did not pass. Davis wrote to a friend: "Faction has done much to cloud our prospects and impair my power to serve the country."
Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston was attempting to concentrate his forces against Major General William T. Sherman’s Federals, who were advancing towards Goldsboro, North Carolina. The Confederates had fewer than 20,000 troops versus well over 30,000 Union forces that were just south of Bentonville. Johnston planned to attack one section of Sherman’s army at a time, thus diminishing Sherman’s numerical superiority. The target was Sherman’s left wing under Generals Henry W. Slocum and Judson Kilpatrick.
Skirmishing occurred along Mingo Creek, Bush Swamp and near Benton’s Cross Roads, North Carolina; Livingston, Tennessee; near Dranesville, Virginia and on the Amite River in Louisiana.
A Federal expedition began from Fort Gibson in the Indian Territory.
At Mobile Bay, approximately 1,700 Federal troops advanced from Dauphin Island on the west side of the bay to deceive the Confederate defenders as to which side would be attacked; the main effort would be to the east.
A naval expedition, led by Lieutenant Commander Thomas H. Eastman, consisting of the U.S.S Don, Stepping Stones, Heliotrope and Resolute, proceeded up the Rappahannock River and its tributary, Mattox Creek, on 16 March to the vicinity of Montrose, Virginia, where it destroyed a supply base that had been supporting Confederate guerrillas on the peninsula between the Rappahannock and Potomac Rivers. Eastman led a landing force of 70 Marines and sailors up the right fork of Mattox Creek where he found and destroyed four boats. The landing party, led by Acting Ensign William H. Summers, that cleared the left fork encountered heavy musket fire but successfully destroyed three schooners. Houses in the vicinity were also searched and contraband destroyed. Acting Ensign John J. Brice, who led the 40 man search party,"...found himself opposed by about 50 cavalry. He formed his men to receive their attack. While doing this, 8 or 10 cavalry came down on his left flank, which he drove off. The main portion, on seeing this, retired to the woods."
Posted on 3/18/15 at 9:17 pm to BadLeroyDawg
Sunday, 19 March 1865
Union Major General William T. Sherman did not expect an attack when the Federals resumed their march and ran headlong into waiting Confederates near Bentonville, North Carolina. Initially, there did not seem to be a serious obstacle, but by early afternoon they were being pressed. The Northerners fended off cavalry attacks by General Wade Hampton, but then General Joseph E. Johnston’s main force advanced.
At first the Confederates crashed through the Yankee breastworks, partially demoralizing one section of the Federal force and completely routing the left flank.In the aftermath of the attack, a strong stand by Major General Jefferson C. Davis held firm, giving Sherman time to gather reinforcements. Other Federal units from their vast reserves came in to stem the advance. The battle lasted until after dark when the three main Confederate assaults were finally beaten off. Late that night, the Confederates pulled back to their starting points and both sides spent the night preparing their positions. Meanwhile, Sherman hurried his right wing to the scene.
The next day, Johnston would establish a strong defensive position and hope for a Yankee assault. More Union troops will arrive and give Sherman a nearly three to one advantage over Johnston. When a Union force threatens to cut off the Southerners' only line of retreat on 21 March, Johnston withdraws his army northward.
The Union lost 194 men killed, 1,112 wounded, and 221 missing, while the Confederates lost some 240 killed, 1,700 wounded, and 1,500 missing. About Sherman, Johnston wrote to Lee that: "I can do no more than annoy him." A month and a week later, Johnston would surrender his army to Sherman.
Federal Major General Phillip H. Sheridan’s Union cavalry made it to White House on the Pamunkey River in Virginia after wrecking the Virginia Central Railroad and the James River Canal in its successful march from Winchester to join Lieutenant General Hiram U. Grant’s Army of the Potomac at Petersburg, Virginia.
The First U.S. Sharpshooters Company I members mustered out of Federal service. Those with time remaining were transferred to the First Battalion of Minnesota Infantry.
Skirmishing at Celina, Tennessee; Welaka and Saunders, Florida rounded out the day.
Brigadier General Thomas Kilby Smith, USA, assumes the command of the District of South Alabama, in the Mobile, Alabama, Campaign.
Federals scout from Warrensburg to Columbus, Missouri, and skirmish with partisan guerrillas near Greenton.
The USS Massachusetts, under Acting Lieutenant William H. West, struck a torpedo in Charleston Harbor; "...fortunately..." West reported, "...it did not explode." The incident took place only two days after the Coast Survey steamer Bibb had been damaged by a torpedo in the harbor and occurred within 50 yards of the wreck of the USS Patapsco, which had been sunk by a torpedo two months before. The danger to those attempting to clear torpedoes from the waters previously controlled by the South was constant, as was the risk to ships that were simply operating in these waters.
A new battalion of white hospital convalescents and black hospital orderlies began drilling on Richmond’s Capitol Square in accordance with the new Confederate law permitting the recruitment of slaves into the Southern armies.
Union Major General William T. Sherman did not expect an attack when the Federals resumed their march and ran headlong into waiting Confederates near Bentonville, North Carolina. Initially, there did not seem to be a serious obstacle, but by early afternoon they were being pressed. The Northerners fended off cavalry attacks by General Wade Hampton, but then General Joseph E. Johnston’s main force advanced.
At first the Confederates crashed through the Yankee breastworks, partially demoralizing one section of the Federal force and completely routing the left flank.In the aftermath of the attack, a strong stand by Major General Jefferson C. Davis held firm, giving Sherman time to gather reinforcements. Other Federal units from their vast reserves came in to stem the advance. The battle lasted until after dark when the three main Confederate assaults were finally beaten off. Late that night, the Confederates pulled back to their starting points and both sides spent the night preparing their positions. Meanwhile, Sherman hurried his right wing to the scene.
The next day, Johnston would establish a strong defensive position and hope for a Yankee assault. More Union troops will arrive and give Sherman a nearly three to one advantage over Johnston. When a Union force threatens to cut off the Southerners' only line of retreat on 21 March, Johnston withdraws his army northward.
The Union lost 194 men killed, 1,112 wounded, and 221 missing, while the Confederates lost some 240 killed, 1,700 wounded, and 1,500 missing. About Sherman, Johnston wrote to Lee that: "I can do no more than annoy him." A month and a week later, Johnston would surrender his army to Sherman.
Federal Major General Phillip H. Sheridan’s Union cavalry made it to White House on the Pamunkey River in Virginia after wrecking the Virginia Central Railroad and the James River Canal in its successful march from Winchester to join Lieutenant General Hiram U. Grant’s Army of the Potomac at Petersburg, Virginia.
The First U.S. Sharpshooters Company I members mustered out of Federal service. Those with time remaining were transferred to the First Battalion of Minnesota Infantry.
Skirmishing at Celina, Tennessee; Welaka and Saunders, Florida rounded out the day.
Brigadier General Thomas Kilby Smith, USA, assumes the command of the District of South Alabama, in the Mobile, Alabama, Campaign.
Federals scout from Warrensburg to Columbus, Missouri, and skirmish with partisan guerrillas near Greenton.
The USS Massachusetts, under Acting Lieutenant William H. West, struck a torpedo in Charleston Harbor; "...fortunately..." West reported, "...it did not explode." The incident took place only two days after the Coast Survey steamer Bibb had been damaged by a torpedo in the harbor and occurred within 50 yards of the wreck of the USS Patapsco, which had been sunk by a torpedo two months before. The danger to those attempting to clear torpedoes from the waters previously controlled by the South was constant, as was the risk to ships that were simply operating in these waters.
A new battalion of white hospital convalescents and black hospital orderlies began drilling on Richmond’s Capitol Square in accordance with the new Confederate law permitting the recruitment of slaves into the Southern armies.
Posted on 3/19/15 at 8:28 pm to BadLeroyDawg
Monday, 20 March 1865
In North Carolina, Major General William T. Sherman’s right wing of Union reinforcements under Major General Oliver O. Howard arrived at daybreak for the second's day fighting around Bentonville, and soon Sherman’s entire 100,000-man army took up positions to confront General Joseph E. Johnston's barely 16,000 Confederates. Considerable amounts of heavy skirmishing ensued as Sherman prepared for a general counter attack.
Major General George Stoneman and over 4,000 Federal cavalrymen left Jonesboro, Tennessee, to support Sherman in North Carolina with destruction operations.
Union General-in-Chief Hiram U. Grant sent a message to President Abraham Lincoln: "Can you not visit (Grant's headquarters at) City Point for a day or two?" Lincoln immediately accepted the invitation. The visit was intended to be part vacation, part observation, and part conference with Grant on future plans.
Grant also messaged Major General Philip H. Sheridan at White House, Virginia: "Start for this place as soon as you conveniently can." Grant instructed Sheridan to wreck the Southside and Danville railroads, "...and then either return to this army or go on to Sherman, as you may deem most practicable." Grant emphasized that "...the principal thing being the destruction of the only two roads left to the enemy at Richmond."
The advance of the Union forces--Major General Frederick Steele's column, of Major General Edward R. S. Canby's Army--operating with the main attack on Mobile, Alabama, moved towards that city from Pensacola, Florida.
Skirmishing occurred near Falling Creek, North Carolina; Ringgold, Georgia; and at Talbot’s Ferry, Arkansas.
A Federal column advanced on Mobile from Pensacola, Florida. Federal expeditions began from Brashear City, Louisiana; Lexington, Missouri; Kabletown and Harpers Ferry, West Virginia; and Winchester, Virginia.
A Federal expedition sailed with the 93rd US Colored Infantry from Brashear City aboard the gunboat, No. 49, to Bayou Pigeon, Louisiana, to bring within the Union lines the family of a government employee, with a skirmish at Bayou Teche.
Federals scout against guerrillas from Lexington, Missouri, to Tabo Church, 12 miles east, Wellington and the Snibar Hills. The Yankees commence with the banishment of certain widows--including the widow of the late partisan Wilhite, killed a year ago--who are suspected of continuing to aid and abet the Rebels in the vicinity.
Union troops scout from Winchester to Edenburg, Virginia, with a skirmish near Fisher's Hill, in the Shenandoah Valley.
Other Federals scout from Harper's Ferry into Loudoun County, Virginia, with skirmishes near Hamilton and at Goose Creek.
A Federal expedition moves to Kabletown, Myerstown, and Myers' Ford, West Virginia.
Commander William H. Macomb, operating the USS Shamrock, reported the successful raising of the Confederate ram Albemarle. The formidable ironclad had been sunk the previous autumn on 27 October in a daring attack led by Lieutenant William B. Cushing in an improvised torpedo boat.
In North Carolina, Major General William T. Sherman’s right wing of Union reinforcements under Major General Oliver O. Howard arrived at daybreak for the second's day fighting around Bentonville, and soon Sherman’s entire 100,000-man army took up positions to confront General Joseph E. Johnston's barely 16,000 Confederates. Considerable amounts of heavy skirmishing ensued as Sherman prepared for a general counter attack.
Major General George Stoneman and over 4,000 Federal cavalrymen left Jonesboro, Tennessee, to support Sherman in North Carolina with destruction operations.
Union General-in-Chief Hiram U. Grant sent a message to President Abraham Lincoln: "Can you not visit (Grant's headquarters at) City Point for a day or two?" Lincoln immediately accepted the invitation. The visit was intended to be part vacation, part observation, and part conference with Grant on future plans.
Grant also messaged Major General Philip H. Sheridan at White House, Virginia: "Start for this place as soon as you conveniently can." Grant instructed Sheridan to wreck the Southside and Danville railroads, "...and then either return to this army or go on to Sherman, as you may deem most practicable." Grant emphasized that "...the principal thing being the destruction of the only two roads left to the enemy at Richmond."
The advance of the Union forces--Major General Frederick Steele's column, of Major General Edward R. S. Canby's Army--operating with the main attack on Mobile, Alabama, moved towards that city from Pensacola, Florida.
Skirmishing occurred near Falling Creek, North Carolina; Ringgold, Georgia; and at Talbot’s Ferry, Arkansas.
A Federal column advanced on Mobile from Pensacola, Florida. Federal expeditions began from Brashear City, Louisiana; Lexington, Missouri; Kabletown and Harpers Ferry, West Virginia; and Winchester, Virginia.
A Federal expedition sailed with the 93rd US Colored Infantry from Brashear City aboard the gunboat, No. 49, to Bayou Pigeon, Louisiana, to bring within the Union lines the family of a government employee, with a skirmish at Bayou Teche.
Federals scout against guerrillas from Lexington, Missouri, to Tabo Church, 12 miles east, Wellington and the Snibar Hills. The Yankees commence with the banishment of certain widows--including the widow of the late partisan Wilhite, killed a year ago--who are suspected of continuing to aid and abet the Rebels in the vicinity.
Union troops scout from Winchester to Edenburg, Virginia, with a skirmish near Fisher's Hill, in the Shenandoah Valley.
Other Federals scout from Harper's Ferry into Loudoun County, Virginia, with skirmishes near Hamilton and at Goose Creek.
A Federal expedition moves to Kabletown, Myerstown, and Myers' Ford, West Virginia.
Commander William H. Macomb, operating the USS Shamrock, reported the successful raising of the Confederate ram Albemarle. The formidable ironclad had been sunk the previous autumn on 27 October in a daring attack led by Lieutenant William B. Cushing in an improvised torpedo boat.
Posted on 3/20/15 at 8:39 pm to BadLeroyDawg
Tuesday March 21, 1865
Union Major General William T. Sherman’s troops kept up the pressure on Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston’s forces at Bentonville, North Carolina. The men of Major General Joseph A. Mower moved from the far Federal right around the Confederate left flank late in the afternoon and threatened the Mill Creek Bridge on Johnston’s retreat line. Counter-attacks halted the menace after considerable fighting, which effectively ended the Battle of Bentonville, the last significant Confederate effort to halt Sherman’s advance. During the night, Johnston decisively ordered evacuation after reports that Union Major General John M. Schofield had taken Goldsboro. Casualties for the Federals totaled more than 1,500 while Confederates sustained more than 2,600 losses, many of whom were captured.
President Jefferson Davis wrote to Confederate General-in-Chief Robert E. Lee, agreeing with him that Mobile, Alabama, should be held at all practicable costs and "...all the recent indications are that the purpose of the enemy is to cut off all communication with Richmond..."
Union General-in-Chief Hiram U. Grant sent a follow-up message from yesterday to Major General Philip H. Sheridan: "There is now such a possibility, if not probability, of Lee and Johnston attempting to unite that I feel extremely desirous not only of cutting the lines of communication between them, but of having a large and properly commanded cavalry force ready to act with in case such an attempt is made..."
A Federal expedition begins from Pine Bluff, Arkansas.
The CSS Stonewall, commanded by Captain Thomas Jefferson Page--a grandson of a signer of the Declaration of Independence--having been detained in Ferrol, Spain, for several days because of foul weather, attempted to put to sea. The seas outside, however, were still too heavy and the ironclad put back into port. Two days later, another attempt would be made to get to sea but met with similar results. Page then off-loaded some 40 tons of coal to make her more seaworthy.
Lieutenant Commander Arthur R. Yates, commanding the USS J.P. Jackson, in Mississippi Sound, reported to Rear Admiral Henry Knox Thatcher that he had issued food from his ship's stores to relieve the destitute and starving condition of people in Biloxi, cut off from Mobile from which provisions had been formerly received. Yates' actions illustrated the rarely used humanitarian heritage of the Navy.
The heavy guns of Union gunboats supported the landing of troops of General Edward Richard Sprigg Canby's command at Dannelly's Mills on the Fish River, Alabama. This was a diversionary operation intended to prevent the movement of additional Confederate troops to Mobile during the week prior to the opening of the Yankee attack against that city.
Union Major General William T. Sherman’s troops kept up the pressure on Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston’s forces at Bentonville, North Carolina. The men of Major General Joseph A. Mower moved from the far Federal right around the Confederate left flank late in the afternoon and threatened the Mill Creek Bridge on Johnston’s retreat line. Counter-attacks halted the menace after considerable fighting, which effectively ended the Battle of Bentonville, the last significant Confederate effort to halt Sherman’s advance. During the night, Johnston decisively ordered evacuation after reports that Union Major General John M. Schofield had taken Goldsboro. Casualties for the Federals totaled more than 1,500 while Confederates sustained more than 2,600 losses, many of whom were captured.
President Jefferson Davis wrote to Confederate General-in-Chief Robert E. Lee, agreeing with him that Mobile, Alabama, should be held at all practicable costs and "...all the recent indications are that the purpose of the enemy is to cut off all communication with Richmond..."
Union General-in-Chief Hiram U. Grant sent a follow-up message from yesterday to Major General Philip H. Sheridan: "There is now such a possibility, if not probability, of Lee and Johnston attempting to unite that I feel extremely desirous not only of cutting the lines of communication between them, but of having a large and properly commanded cavalry force ready to act with in case such an attempt is made..."
A Federal expedition begins from Pine Bluff, Arkansas.
The CSS Stonewall, commanded by Captain Thomas Jefferson Page--a grandson of a signer of the Declaration of Independence--having been detained in Ferrol, Spain, for several days because of foul weather, attempted to put to sea. The seas outside, however, were still too heavy and the ironclad put back into port. Two days later, another attempt would be made to get to sea but met with similar results. Page then off-loaded some 40 tons of coal to make her more seaworthy.
Lieutenant Commander Arthur R. Yates, commanding the USS J.P. Jackson, in Mississippi Sound, reported to Rear Admiral Henry Knox Thatcher that he had issued food from his ship's stores to relieve the destitute and starving condition of people in Biloxi, cut off from Mobile from which provisions had been formerly received. Yates' actions illustrated the rarely used humanitarian heritage of the Navy.
The heavy guns of Union gunboats supported the landing of troops of General Edward Richard Sprigg Canby's command at Dannelly's Mills on the Fish River, Alabama. This was a diversionary operation intended to prevent the movement of additional Confederate troops to Mobile during the week prior to the opening of the Yankee attack against that city.
Posted on 3/21/15 at 9:48 pm to BadLeroyDawg
Wednesday, 22 March 1865
At Bentonville, North Carolina, Major General William T. Sherman ended his brief pursuit of General Joseph E. Johnston and issued orders to link with Major General John M. Schofield’s Federals at Goldsboro. Some of Sherman’s advance units arrived in the town today. Johnston moved his forces back toward Raleigh and Weldon; Johnston wrote to General Robert E. Lee, "Sherman’s course cannot be hindered by the small force I have. I can do no more than annoy him."
Sherman issued a congratulatory order to his Federal troops: "After a march of the most extraordinary character, nearly 500 miles over swamps and rivers deemed impassable to others, at the most inclement season of the year, and drawing our chief supplies from a poor and wasted country, we reach our destination in good health and condition."
Theodore Washington Brevard, CSA, is appointed Brigadier General.
Brigadier General James Harrison Wilson's US Cavalry Raid, 13,500 strong, begins advancing from Chickasaw to Selma, Alabama, to not only capture the important communications center, but to divert attention from the major assault planned on Mobile. Wilson then travels on to Macon, Georgia, in an attempt to destroy one of the last remaining munitions manufacturing facilities of the Confederacy.
Brigadier General Edward Hatch, USA, assumes the command of all the troops of the Cavalry Corps, the Military Division of the Mississippi, remaining at Eastport, Mississippi.
Guerrilla's operations commence about Stephenson's Mill, 16 miles southwest of Salem, Missouri, on the Current River, as partisans set fire to, and burn the fort there, in part, for retaliation for the local miller failing to have the much needed quantity of meal ground for 250 Rebels they had demanded yesterday.
Skirmishes broke out at Black Creek, at Hannah's Creek, and at Mill Creek, North Carolina; as well as at Celina, Tennessee.
Skirmish 9.5 miles from Patterson Creek Station, West Virginia, as a large contingent of Union Cavalry attacks McNeill's Partisan Rangers.
Union Assistant Secretary of the Navy Gustavus Vasa Fox directed Commodore John B. Montgomery, Commandant of the Washington Navy Yard, to have the USS Bat ready to convoy the steamer River Queen at noon the next day: "The President will be in the River Queen, bound to City Point." Lincoln was headed for a conference with his top commanders. In a hard fought battle, Major General William T. Sherman had just defeated a desperate slashing attack by General Joseph E. Johnston at Bentonville, midway between his two river contacts with the sea at Fayetteville and Goldsboro. At Goldsboro, Sherman was joined by General John M. Schofield's army, which had been brought to Wilmington by ships. Confident of the security of his position, Sherman could leave his soldiers for a few days and take the steamer Russia to City Point and the meeting with Lincoln, Lieutenant General Hiram U. Grant, and Rear Admiral David D. Porter.
Bonus report; 250 years ago today...In an effort to raise funds to pay off debts and defend the vast new American territories won from the French in the Seven Years’ War (1756-1763), the British government passes the Stamp Act on this day in 1765. The legislation levied a direct tax on all materials printed for commercial and legal use in the colonies, from newspapers and pamphlets to playing cards and dice.
Though the Stamp Act employed a strategy that was a common fundraising vehicle in England, it stirred a storm of protest in the colonies. The colonists had recently been hit with three major taxes: the Sugar Act (1764), which levied new duties on imports of textiles, wines, coffee and sugar; the Currency Act (1764), which caused a major decline in the value of the paper money used by colonists; and the Quartering Act (1765), which required colonists to provide food and lodging to British troops.
With the passing of the Stamp Act, the colonists’ grumbling finally became an articulated response to what they saw as the mother country’s attempt to undermine their economic strength and independence. They raised the issue of taxation without representation, and formed societies throughout the colonies to rally against the British government and nobles who sought to exploit the colonies as a source of revenue and raw materials. By October of that year, nine of the 13 colonies sent representatives to the Stamp Act Congress, at which the colonists drafted the “Declaration of Rights and Grievances,” a document that railed against the autocratic policies of the mercantilist British empire.
Realizing that it actually cost more to enforce the Stamp Act in the protesting colonies than it did to abolish it, the British government repealed the tax the following year. The fracas over the Stamp Act, though, helped plant seeds for a far larger movement against the British government and the eventual battle for independence. Most important of these was the formation of the Sons of Liberty, a group of tradesmen who led anti-British protests in Boston and other seaboard cities, and other groups of wealthy landowners who came together from the across the colonies. Well after the Stamp Act was repealed, these societies continued to meet in opposition to what they saw as the abusive policies of the British empire. Out of their meetings, a growing nationalism emerged that would culminate in the fighting of the American Revolution only a decade later.
At Bentonville, North Carolina, Major General William T. Sherman ended his brief pursuit of General Joseph E. Johnston and issued orders to link with Major General John M. Schofield’s Federals at Goldsboro. Some of Sherman’s advance units arrived in the town today. Johnston moved his forces back toward Raleigh and Weldon; Johnston wrote to General Robert E. Lee, "Sherman’s course cannot be hindered by the small force I have. I can do no more than annoy him."
Sherman issued a congratulatory order to his Federal troops: "After a march of the most extraordinary character, nearly 500 miles over swamps and rivers deemed impassable to others, at the most inclement season of the year, and drawing our chief supplies from a poor and wasted country, we reach our destination in good health and condition."
Theodore Washington Brevard, CSA, is appointed Brigadier General.
Brigadier General James Harrison Wilson's US Cavalry Raid, 13,500 strong, begins advancing from Chickasaw to Selma, Alabama, to not only capture the important communications center, but to divert attention from the major assault planned on Mobile. Wilson then travels on to Macon, Georgia, in an attempt to destroy one of the last remaining munitions manufacturing facilities of the Confederacy.
Brigadier General Edward Hatch, USA, assumes the command of all the troops of the Cavalry Corps, the Military Division of the Mississippi, remaining at Eastport, Mississippi.
Guerrilla's operations commence about Stephenson's Mill, 16 miles southwest of Salem, Missouri, on the Current River, as partisans set fire to, and burn the fort there, in part, for retaliation for the local miller failing to have the much needed quantity of meal ground for 250 Rebels they had demanded yesterday.
Skirmishes broke out at Black Creek, at Hannah's Creek, and at Mill Creek, North Carolina; as well as at Celina, Tennessee.
Skirmish 9.5 miles from Patterson Creek Station, West Virginia, as a large contingent of Union Cavalry attacks McNeill's Partisan Rangers.
Union Assistant Secretary of the Navy Gustavus Vasa Fox directed Commodore John B. Montgomery, Commandant of the Washington Navy Yard, to have the USS Bat ready to convoy the steamer River Queen at noon the next day: "The President will be in the River Queen, bound to City Point." Lincoln was headed for a conference with his top commanders. In a hard fought battle, Major General William T. Sherman had just defeated a desperate slashing attack by General Joseph E. Johnston at Bentonville, midway between his two river contacts with the sea at Fayetteville and Goldsboro. At Goldsboro, Sherman was joined by General John M. Schofield's army, which had been brought to Wilmington by ships. Confident of the security of his position, Sherman could leave his soldiers for a few days and take the steamer Russia to City Point and the meeting with Lincoln, Lieutenant General Hiram U. Grant, and Rear Admiral David D. Porter.
Bonus report; 250 years ago today...In an effort to raise funds to pay off debts and defend the vast new American territories won from the French in the Seven Years’ War (1756-1763), the British government passes the Stamp Act on this day in 1765. The legislation levied a direct tax on all materials printed for commercial and legal use in the colonies, from newspapers and pamphlets to playing cards and dice.
Though the Stamp Act employed a strategy that was a common fundraising vehicle in England, it stirred a storm of protest in the colonies. The colonists had recently been hit with three major taxes: the Sugar Act (1764), which levied new duties on imports of textiles, wines, coffee and sugar; the Currency Act (1764), which caused a major decline in the value of the paper money used by colonists; and the Quartering Act (1765), which required colonists to provide food and lodging to British troops.
With the passing of the Stamp Act, the colonists’ grumbling finally became an articulated response to what they saw as the mother country’s attempt to undermine their economic strength and independence. They raised the issue of taxation without representation, and formed societies throughout the colonies to rally against the British government and nobles who sought to exploit the colonies as a source of revenue and raw materials. By October of that year, nine of the 13 colonies sent representatives to the Stamp Act Congress, at which the colonists drafted the “Declaration of Rights and Grievances,” a document that railed against the autocratic policies of the mercantilist British empire.
Realizing that it actually cost more to enforce the Stamp Act in the protesting colonies than it did to abolish it, the British government repealed the tax the following year. The fracas over the Stamp Act, though, helped plant seeds for a far larger movement against the British government and the eventual battle for independence. Most important of these was the formation of the Sons of Liberty, a group of tradesmen who led anti-British protests in Boston and other seaboard cities, and other groups of wealthy landowners who came together from the across the colonies. Well after the Stamp Act was repealed, these societies continued to meet in opposition to what they saw as the abusive policies of the British empire. Out of their meetings, a growing nationalism emerged that would culminate in the fighting of the American Revolution only a decade later.
Posted on 3/23/15 at 5:15 am to BadLeroyDawg
Thursday, 23 March 1865
From the James River, Rear Admiral David Dixon Porter directed Commander William Henry Alexander Macomb, commanding in the North Carolina Sounds: "It seems to be the policy now to break up all trade, especially that which may benefit the Rebels, and you will dispose your vessels about the sounds to capture all contraband of war going into the enemy's lines. You will stop all supplies of clothing that can by any possibility benefit a soldier; seize all vessels afloat that carry provisions to any place not held by our troops and send them into court for adjudication. Recognize no permits where there is a prospect of stores of any kind going into Rebel hands...For any capture, send in prize lists and make full reports. You will see by the law (examine it carefully) that an officer is authorized to send all property 'not abandoned' into court, especially property afloat."
Skirmishes break out near Dannelly's Mills, Alabama, as Brigadier General James H. Wilson, and his Union Cavalry move toward Lieutenant General Nathan Bedford Forrest, CSA, and his Southern Cavalry, during the Mobile, Alabama, Campaign.
Brigadier General Michael K. Lawler, USA, is assigned to the command of the District of Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Federal troops scout from Donaldsonville to Bayou Goula, Louisiana, where the Yankees capture a few Confederates hiding out in local plantation homes.
A skirmish commences at Cox's Bridge, Neuse River, North Carolina, as Major General William T. Sherman, USA, concentrates his forces around Bentonville to square off against the last remaining Confederate forces in North Carolina under General Joseph E. Johnston, CSA.
Colonel Reuben F. Maury, 1st Oregon Cavalry, assumes the command of the District of Oregon.
Brigadier General Benjamin Alvord, USA, relinquishes the command of the District of Oregon.
President Abraham Lincoln departs from Washington, DC, with his wife and son, to confer with Lieutenant General Hiram U. Grant and Major General William T. Sherman, USA, at City Point, Virginia, outside Petersburg.
The USS Constellation, approaching the 68th birthday of her launching and already the United States' oldest warship afloat, as she still is today, continued to serve a useful purpose in the new era of steam and iron. This date Commodore William Radford reported from Norfolk to Rear Admiral Potter: "I have ordered the men transferred from the Wabash to this ship [USS Dumbarton] for the James River Flotilla on board the Constellation."
From the James River, Rear Admiral David Dixon Porter directed Commander William Henry Alexander Macomb, commanding in the North Carolina Sounds: "It seems to be the policy now to break up all trade, especially that which may benefit the Rebels, and you will dispose your vessels about the sounds to capture all contraband of war going into the enemy's lines. You will stop all supplies of clothing that can by any possibility benefit a soldier; seize all vessels afloat that carry provisions to any place not held by our troops and send them into court for adjudication. Recognize no permits where there is a prospect of stores of any kind going into Rebel hands...For any capture, send in prize lists and make full reports. You will see by the law (examine it carefully) that an officer is authorized to send all property 'not abandoned' into court, especially property afloat."
Skirmishes break out near Dannelly's Mills, Alabama, as Brigadier General James H. Wilson, and his Union Cavalry move toward Lieutenant General Nathan Bedford Forrest, CSA, and his Southern Cavalry, during the Mobile, Alabama, Campaign.
Brigadier General Michael K. Lawler, USA, is assigned to the command of the District of Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Federal troops scout from Donaldsonville to Bayou Goula, Louisiana, where the Yankees capture a few Confederates hiding out in local plantation homes.
A skirmish commences at Cox's Bridge, Neuse River, North Carolina, as Major General William T. Sherman, USA, concentrates his forces around Bentonville to square off against the last remaining Confederate forces in North Carolina under General Joseph E. Johnston, CSA.
Colonel Reuben F. Maury, 1st Oregon Cavalry, assumes the command of the District of Oregon.
Brigadier General Benjamin Alvord, USA, relinquishes the command of the District of Oregon.
President Abraham Lincoln departs from Washington, DC, with his wife and son, to confer with Lieutenant General Hiram U. Grant and Major General William T. Sherman, USA, at City Point, Virginia, outside Petersburg.
The USS Constellation, approaching the 68th birthday of her launching and already the United States' oldest warship afloat, as she still is today, continued to serve a useful purpose in the new era of steam and iron. This date Commodore William Radford reported from Norfolk to Rear Admiral Potter: "I have ordered the men transferred from the Wabash to this ship [USS Dumbarton] for the James River Flotilla on board the Constellation."
This post was edited on 3/23/15 at 5:16 am
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