re: 150 years ago this day...

You appear to be auditioning for a position as Research Assistant, genro. GFI, Dude! Whatchagot?

Saturday, 8 April 1865

The road to Lynchburg, Virginia, the next goal of Confederate General Robert E. Lee’s army, passed through hamlets and villages and Appomattox Station near Appomattox Court House. Behind the remnants of the Army of Northern Virginia was Union Major General George G. Meade with the Second and Sixth Corps., Federal Major General Phil Sheridan’s cavalry and the Fifth Corps to the south. By evening, a detachment of the Army of the James blocked Lee’s route to Lynchburg. Though skirmishing occurred throughout the day, Meade was unable to bring on a general engagement, while Sheridan’s cavalry seized Confederate supply trains at Appomattox Station.

Lee now faces the following. Behind him: Major General George G. Meade and the 2nd US Army Corps, Major General Andrew A. Humphreys commanding; the 6th US Army Corps, Major General Horatio G. Wright Commanding. To his Left: Major General Philip H. Sheridan's Cavalry and 5th US Army Corps, Major General Charles Griffin commanding. In Lee's front towards Lynchburg: Major General E.O.C. Ord and the US Army of the James.

Union Lieutenant General Hiram U. Grant, at Farmville, Virginia, received Lee’s reply asking what terms Grant would offer. Grant offered to meet with Lee to receive the surrender. Lee replied later in the day that he did not intend to propose surrender but merely inquired to ask the terms of the proposition. Still, Lee wanted to meet to discuss this with Grant.

Earlier in the morning, Lee was informed by a number of his officers that had conferred the previous evening and agreed that the army could not break through to join Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston’s troops and recommended that he open negotiations with the Federals.

Confederate President Jefferson Davis got information from Secretary of War John C. Breckinridge and messenger John S. Wise that the situation was critical. Nevertheless, a certain amount of routine business continued.

President Abraham Lincoln visited Petersburg, then late in the evening left City Point, Virginia by boat and headed back to Washington, DC.

Late in the night near Appomattox Court House, Confederate General Robert E. Lee held his final council of war.

Brigadier General George B. Wagner, USA, assumes the command of the Saint Louis, Missouri, District.

A Union pursuit of guerrillas in Northeast Missouri takes place, where 3 notorious partisans are captured and brought back to Macon City to face trial.

Federal troops scout from Fairfax Court House and Vienna into Loudoun County, Virginia, in search of Lieutenant Colonel John Singleton Mosby's 43rd Battalion, Virginia Cavalry, Partisan Rangers.

Invested by General Canby's troops and bombarded heavily by the big guns of Rear Admiral Thatcher's ships, Spanish Fort and Fort Alexis, keys to Mobile, finally fell. In reporting the capture to Secretary Welles, Thatcher noted the efficiency of the naval battery on shore under Lieutenant Commander Gillis. He added: "Eighteen large submerged torpedoes were taken by our boats from Apalachee or Blakely River last night in the immediate vicinity of our gunboats. These are the only enemies that we regard." The loss of half a dozen vessels near Mobile since the Tecumseh was sunk in August 1864 during Admiral Farragut's celebrated battle, which gave the Union control of Mobile Bay, had taught Northern naval officers an unforgettable lesson about torpedo warfare. The Confederate defenders, who suffered heavy casualties during the siege of the forts, were supported by a squadron under Flag Officer Ebenezer Farrand, including the CSS Nashville, Morgan, Huntsville, Tuscaloosa, and Baltic.

Lieutenant W. H. Parker, commander of the Midshipmen who were escorting the Confederate archives and treasury, arrived in Charlotte, North Carolina, from Danville and deposited the important cargo in the Confederate Mint located in that city. While awaiting further orders, Parker learned that a Union cavalry detachment was nearby and since the city was without military protection, the naval officer, on his own initiative, prepared to move the archives and treasury southward. He added the uniformed personnel of the local Navy Yard to his escort, bringing its numbers up to 150 and drew quantities of provisions from the naval warehouse. Parker offered the protection of his command to Mrs. Jefferson Davis, who had only recently arrived in Charlotte, and strongly urged that she accompany him southward. Mrs. Davis accepted Parker's offer, and on the 11th the Navy--escorted entourage bearing the archives, treasury, and first lady of the Confederacy--set out from Charlotte.

quote:

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Lieutenant W. H. Parker, commander of the Midshipmen who were escorting the Confederate archives and treasury, arrived in Charlotte, North Carolina, from Danville and deposited the important cargo in the Confederate Mint located in that city. While awaiting further orders, Parker learned that a Union cavalry detachment was nearby and since the city was without military protection, the naval officer, on his own initiative, prepared to move the archives and treasury southward. He added the uniformed personnel of the local Navy Yard to his escort, bringing its numbers up to 150 and drew quantities of provisions from the naval warehouse. Parker offered the protection of his command to Mrs. Jefferson Davis, who had only recently arrived in Charlotte, and strongly urged that she accompany him southward. Mrs. Davis accepted Parker's offer, and on the 11th the Navy--escorted entourage bearing the archives, treasury, and first lady of the Confederacy--set out from Charlotte.

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That kind of chivalry I admire; it's why I changed my favorite team

Sunday, 9 April 1865

On Palm Sunday, a clear spring sun rose in Virginia. At dawn, near Appomattox Station, the Confederates had bravely attacked with the hope of forcing a passage through the Federals in front of them. At first they were successful, but there was more than just enemy cavalry in front of them. The route was also blocked by infantry. The Union forces drove in, and on the east other Yankees under Major General George G. Meade attacked the Confederate rear guard. Almost completely surrounded, escape was now impossible. Robert Edward Lee arranged to meet with Hiram Ulysses Grant.

On the field, there was confusion with truce flags mixed in with small arms fire. Union Brigadier General George A. Custer demanded the surrender of Confederates.

Yet by the early afternoon in the home of Wilmer McLean at Appomattox Court House, Confederate General Robert E. Lee and one aide met with Federal Lieutenant General Hiram U. Grant, his staff, and several of the major commanders. After pleasantries, Lee called attention to the matter at hand, discussion of surrender terms.

Grant wrote out his proposal, went over it with his staff, then presented it to Lee. The terms did not include surrender of side arms of officers or of their private horses or baggage, and allowed each officer and man to go home and not be disturbed as long as parole was observed. Lee brought up the fact that cavalrymen and artillerists owned their own horses, which would be needed for the spring planting. After a short conference, Grant agreed to let those who claimed horses to keep them. Arrangements were also made to feed Lee’s army from Federal supplies. Thus it was completed – a document from Grant to Lee giving terms of surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia, and one from Lee to Grant accepting those terms. Contrary to legend, Lee did not surrender his sword to Grant.

The War, however, was not quite over. There were still armies in the field and a Confederate government at Danville, Virginia. It was only after a gentle reminder later in the afternoon that Lieutenant General Grant remembered to inform Washington officials as to what transpired at Appomattox Court House.

President Abraham Lincoln arrived back in Washington in early evening as news was spreading throughout the land. Bonfires sprang up as crowds jammed the streets. In the Army of the Potomac, flags waved, bands played, artillery boomed and the air was filled with knapsacks, canteens, tin cups and roaring cheers. When the noise receded, a silence of respect to the fallen dead and the vanquished foe fell over Appomattox as four years of war in Virginia had essentially ended.

Another view: Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrenders his army to Union General Hiram U. Grant at Appomattox Court House, Virginia.

For more than a week, Lee had tried and nearly succeeded, in an attempt to outrun Grant's massive forces to the west of Richmond and Petersburg in Virginia. After a ten-month siege of the two cities, the Union forces finally broke through the defenses and forced Lee to abandon the cleverly dug entrenchments and retreat. The Confederates moved along the Appomattox River, with Union General Phillip Sheridan shadowing them to the south. Lee’s army had little food, and they began to desert in large numbers on the retreat. When Lee arrived at Appomattox, he found that his path was blocked. He had no choice but to request a meeting with Grant.

They met at a house in Appomattox at 2:00 p.m. on the afternoon of 9 April. Lee was resplendent in his dress uniform and a fine sword at his side. Grant arrived wearing a simple soldier’s coat that was muddy from his long ride. The great generals spoke of their service together in the Mexican War, which Grant recalled but Lee did not, and then set about the business at hand. Grant offered generous terms. Officers could keep their side arms, and all men would be immediately released to return home. Any officers and enlisted men who owned horses could take them home, Grant said, to help put crops in the field and carry their families through the next winter. These terms, said Lee, would have “the best possible effect upon the men,” and “will do much toward conciliating our people.” The papers were signed and Lee prepared to return to his men.

In one of the great ironies of the war, the surrender took place in the parlor of Wilmer McLean’s home. McLean had once lived along the banks of Bull Run Creek, in Manassas, Virginia, the site of the first major battle of the war in July 1861. Seeking refuge from the fighting, McClean decided to move out of the Washington-Richmond corridor to try to avoid the almost continual heavy skirmishing that would surely take place there. He moved to Appomattox Court House only to see the war in Virginia end in his home.

Although there were still Confederate armies in the field, the war was considered over. Four years of bloodshed had left a devastating mark on the country: over a million Union and Confederate soldiers had become casualties during the War Between the States.

Naval account: General Lee met General Grant at Appomattox Court House and formally surrendered the Army of Northern Virginia. Rear Admiral Semmes and his naval brigade charged with the defense of Danville were included in the surrender. Lee's struggle to break free from Grant's overwhelming armies, well fed and supplied from City Point, had failed. His effort to join with Joe Johnston, hopefully far enough from the sea to limit Grant's logistics advantage, had come fatefully to an end. One of the greatest armies and leaders of history without an adequate Navy had succumbed to the united power of land and sea.

The contrast between the two Generals at the confrontation in the living room of the McLean House was most striking. Grant's mud splattered uniform was that of a private with only the shoulder straps of a Lieutenant General to designate his rank. His uniform was unbuttoned at the neck and was unadorned by either sword or spurs. Lee on the other hand had taken special pains for this last act of the drama as if dressing for execution. His uniform was immaculate, his jewel studded sword of the finest workmanship. His well-polished boots were ornamented with red stitching and set off by a handsome pair of spurs.

After conversing about their Mexican War experiences, Lee asked the terms upon which his surrender would be accepted. Grant replied: "The terms I propose are those stated substantially in my letter of yesterday, that is, the officers and men surrendered to be paroled and disqualified from taking up arms again until properly exchanged, and all arms, ammunition and supplies to be delivered up as captured property." Lee agreed to the terms and Grant then wrote them out. He specifically provided that Confederate officers would be permitted to retain their side arms, horses and luggage. This exemption was further broadened, at Lee's suggestion, to permit the men in the ranks to retain their horses and mules. Lee observed that these exemptions "...were very gratifying and will do much toward conciliating our people." The long, bitter war was ending ashore, although fiery drama still awaited in far off Northern seas.

Pretty much concur, genro. If you return to the June 1864 battle at Cold Harbor thread and read its aftermath, you'll likely see another,

Tuesday, 11 April 1865

At Mobile, Alabama, the remaining defenses of Forts Huger and Tracy were abandoned and Confederate Major General Dabney H. Maury began evacuation of the city itself: only a rear guard remained behind that night.

Union Major General William T. Sherman’s troops continued to advance towards Goldsborough, North Carolina. Sherman entered Smithfield, North Carolina, where he learned of Lee’s surrender.

The Confederate government train arrived at Goldsborough, North Carolina, early in the day to a cold response in comparison to what they had received in Danville, Virginia. Citizens were concerned about reprisals from Federal troops.

President Abraham Lincoln spoke to an enthusiastic crowd from a window of the White House. He expressed the hope for a “righteous and speedy peace” and discussed reconstruction, including giving the Negro the right to vote. Lincoln admitted the difficulties of reconstruction and desired that plans be kept flexible. It was a serious, anxious speech, full of the future – and was to be his last.

Full report: Two days after the surrender of Confederate General Robert E. Lee's army, virtually ending the Civil War, a jubilant crowd gathered outside the White House, calling for President Lincoln. Reporter Noah Brooks wrote, "Outside was a vast sea of faces, illuminated by the lights that burned in the festal array of the White House, and stretching far out into the misty darkness. It was a silent, intent, and perhaps surprised, multitude."

"Within stood the tall, gaunt figure of the President, deeply thoughtful, intent upon the elucidation of the generous policy which should be pursued toward the South. That this was not the sort of speech which the multitude had expected is tolerably certain."

Lincoln stood at the window over the building's main north door, a place where presidents customarily gave speeches. Brooks held a light so Lincoln could read his speech, while young Tad Lincoln grasped the pages as they fluttered to his feet. The speech introduced the complex topic of reconstruction, especially as it related to the state of Louisiana. For the first time in a public setting, Lincoln expressed his support for black suffrage. This statement incensed John Wilkes Booth, a member of the audience, who vowed, "That is the last speech he will make." A white supremacist and Confederate activist, Booth made good on his threat three days later.

We meet this evening, not in sorrow, but in gladness of heart. The evacuation of Petersburg and Richmond, and the surrender of the principal insurgent army, give hope of a righteous and speedy peace whose joyous expression can not be restrained. In the midst of this, however, He from whom all blessings flow, must not be forgotten. A call for a national thanksgiving is being prepared, and will be duly promulgated. Nor must those whose harder part gives us the cause of rejoicing, be overlooked. Their honors must not be parceled out with others. I myself was near the front, and had the high pleasure of transmitting much of the good news to you; but no part of the honor, for plan or execution, is mine. To Gen. Grant, his skilful officers, and brave men, all belongs. The gallant Navy stood ready, but was not in reach to take active part.

By these recent successes the re-inauguration of the national authority--Reconstruction--which has had a large share of thought from the first, is pressed much more closely upon our attention. It is fraught with great difficulty. Unlike a case of a war between independent nations, there is no authorized organ for us to treat with. No one man has authority to give up the rebellion for any other man. We simply must begin with, and mould from, disorganized and discordant elements. Nor is it a small additional embarrassment that we, the loyal people, differ among ourselves as to the mode, manner, and means of Reconstruction.

As a general rule, I abstain from reading the reports of attacks upon myself, wishing not to be provoked by that to which I can not properly offer an answer. In spite of this precaution, however, it comes to my knowledge that I am much censured for some supposed agency in setting up, and seeking to sustain, the new State government of Louisiana. In this I have done just so much as, and no more than, the public knows. In the Annual Message of Dec. 1863 and accompanying Proclamation, I presented a plan of re-construction (as the phrase goes) which, I promised, if adopted by any State, should be acceptable to, and sustained by, the Executive government of the nation. I distinctly stated that this was not the only plan which might possibly be acceptable; and I also distinctly protested that the Executive claimed no right to say when, or whether members should be admitted to seats in Congress from such States. This plan was, in advance, submitted to the then Cabinet, and distinctly approved by every member of it. One of them suggested that I should then, and in that connection, apply the Emancipation Proclamation to the theretofore excepted parts of Virginia and Louisiana; that I should drop the suggestion about apprenticeship for freed-people, and that I should omit the protest against my own power, in regard to the admission of members to Congress; but even he approved every part and parcel of the plan which has since been employed or touched by the action of Louisiana. The new constitution of Louisiana, declaring emancipation for the whole State, practically applies the Proclamation to the part previously excepted. It does not adopt apprenticeship for freed-people; and it is silent, as it could not well be otherwise, about the admission of members to Congress. So that, as it applies to Louisiana, every member of the Cabinet fully approved the plan. The message went to Congress, and I received many commendations of the plan, written and verbal; and not a single objection to it, from any professed emancipationist, came to my knowledge, until after the news reached Washington that the people of Louisiana had begun to move in accordance with it. From about July 1862, I had corresponded with different persons, supposed to be interested, seeking a reconstruction of a State government for Louisiana. When the message of 1863, with the plan before mentioned, reached New-Orleans, Gen. Banks wrote me that he was confident the people, with his military co-operation, would reconstruct, substantially on that plan. I wrote him, and some of them to try it; they tried it, and the result is known. Such only has been my agency in getting up the Louisiana government. As to sustaining it, my promise is out, as before stated. But, as bad promises are better broken than kept, I shall treat this as a bad promise, and break it, whenever I shall be convinced that keeping it is adverse to the public interest. But I have not yet been so convinced.

I have been shown a letter on this subject, supposed to be an able one, in which the writer expresses regret that my mind has not seemed to be definitely fixed on the question whether the seceding States, so called, are in the Union or out of it. It would perhaps, add astonishment to his regret, were he to learn that since I have found professed Union men endeavoring to make that question, I have purposely forborne any public expression upon it. As appears to me that question has not been, nor yet is, a practically material one, and that any discussion of it, while it thus remains practically immaterial, could have no effect other than the mischievous one of dividing our friends. As yet, whatever it may hereafter become, that question is bad, as the basis of a controversy, and good for nothing at all--a merely pernicious abstraction.

Wednesday, 12 April 1865

The Union forces, under Major General Edward Richard Sprigg Canby occupy Mobile, Alabama, effectively putting an end to the Mobile Campaign.

Skirmishing occurs on the Columbus Road, near Montgomery, Alabama, as the Union forces, under Brigadier General James H. Wilson finally occupy Montgomery, the original Confederate capital.

Federals scout from the Tallahassee Mission, in the Indian Territory, toward the direction of Concharty, with a long range, running skirmish with outlaws.

A Union expedition travels from Port Hudson to Jackson, Louisiana, with the reported Federal capture of various Confederate officers and men.

Federal soldiers scout against Indians, from Dakota City, in the Nebraska Territory, to Elk Creek, the West Fork of Badger Creek, westerly toward the South Fork of the Elk Creek, thence up to the Chalk Branch, finding and capturing some Omaha Indians, probably from the Omaha Indian Reserve.

Federal troops scout from Fort Stanton, in the New Mexico Territory, pursuing four Indians who stole a few head of cattle from a ranch on the Carrizo and Ruidoso Creeks. The Yankees pursue; the Indians split up; the Federals track one lone Indian for days on end, through canons, brush, mountains, etc. He is able to evade them until the Yankees finally give up and return to their Fort.

Confederate President Jefferson Davis confers with General Joseph E. Johnston at Greensboro, North Carolina, and permits Johnston, now being outnumbered over 3 to 1, to meet with Major General William T. Sherman to discuss the issue of surrender. Johnston had told Davis: "Our people are tired of the war, feel themselves whipped, and will not fight. Our country is overrun, its military resources greatly diminished, while the enemy's military power and resources were never greater and may be increased to any extent desired...My small force is melting away like snow before the sun."

Actions take place at Swift Creek, North Carolina, with General Joseph E. Johnston's and Major General William T. Sherman's forces.

Further actions commence and skirmishing breaks out near Raleigh, North Carolina, with Major General William T. Sherman's and General Joseph E. Johnston's troops, as the Union forces under Sherman eventually occupy Raleigh, the capital of North Carolina.

After a skirmish at Grant's Creek, and an engagement at Salisbury, North Carolina, the Union forces, under Major General George Stoneman occupy Salisbury, capturing over 1,300 Confederate prisoners.

Union Major General Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain receives the official surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia by Confederate Major General John Brown Gordon at Appomattox Court House, also known as Clover Hill. In "Passing of the Armies", Chamberlain writes: "The momentous meaning of this occasion impressed me deeply. I resolved to mark it by some token of recognition, which could be no other than a salute of arms. Well aware of the responsibility assumed, and of the criticisms that would follow, as the sequel proved, nothing of that kind could move me in the least. The act could be defended, if needful, by the suggestion that such a salute was not to the cause for which the flag of the Confederacy stood, but to its going down before the flag of the Union. My main reason, however, was one for which I sought no authority nor asked forgiveness. Before us in proud humiliation stood the embodiment of manhood: men whom neither toils and sufferings, nor the fact of death, nor disaster, nor hopelessness could bend from their resolve; standing before us now, thin, worn, and famished, but erect, and with eyes looking level into ours, waking memories that bound us together as no other bond. Was not such manhood to be welcomed back into a Union so tested and assured? Instructions had been given; and when the head of each division column comes opposite our group, our bugle sounds the signal and instantly our whole line from right to left, regiment by regiment in succession, gives the soldier's salutation, from the 'order arms' to the old 'carry'—the marching salute. Gordon at the head of the column, riding with heavy spirit and downcast face, catches the sound of shifting arms, looks up, and, taking the meaning, wheels superbly, making with himself and his horse one uplifted figure, with profound salutation as he drops the point of his sword to the boot toe; then facing to his own command, gives word for his successive brigades to pass us with the same position of the manual,—honor answering honor. On our part not a sound of trumpet more, nor roll of drum; not a cheer, nor word nor whisper of vain-glorying, nor motion of man standing again at the order, but an awed stillness rather, and breath-holding, as if it were the passing of the dead."

At the request of Major General John McAllister Schofield, Acting Master Henry 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 General Sherman's movements. Grinnell would later serve in the Spanish–American War and became a rear admiral and Inspector-General in the Imperial Japanese Navy, where he served at the battle of the Yalu River in the Sino-Japanese War of 1894–95. He was discharged as an admiral at the end of the war.

The USS Althea, Acting Ensign Frederic A. G. Bacon in charge, is 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, captures the blockade running British schooner R.H. Vermilyea in the Gulf of Mexico with a cargo of coffee, clothes, rum, tobacco, and shoes.

Friday, 14 April 1865

Using the bungled Union Dahlgren-Kilpatrick Raid--also known as the Dahlgren Affair, and widely reported in the Southern newspapers--of 2 March 1864 as a blueprint, renowned actor and Confederate sympathizer John Wilkes Booth shoots President Abraham Lincoln during a play at Ford’s Theater in Washington, DC, as his accomplices attempt to wreak havoc inside the Lincoln administration.

Five days earlier, Confederate General Robert E. Lee had surrendered his army to General Hiram U. Grant at Appomattox Court House, Virginia. The War was nearly over, although there were still Confederate forces in the field yet to surrender. The president had recently visited the captured Rebel capital of Richmond, Virginia, and now Lincoln sought a relaxing evening by attending a production of Our American Cousin starring Laura Keene. Ford’s Theater, seven blocks from the White House, was crammed with people trying to catch a glimpse of Grant, who was rumored to be in attendance. In fact, the general and his wife had cancelled abruptly for an out-of-town trip.

Lincoln occupied a booth above the stage with his wife, Mary Todd; Henry Rathbone, a young army officer; and his fiancée, Clara Harris, daughter of New York Senator Ira Harris. The Lincolns arrived late for the comedy, but the president was in a fine mood and laughed heartily during the production. At 10:15, Booth slipped into the box and fired his .44-caliber single-shot derringer into the back of Lincoln’s head. Rathbone rushed Booth, who stabbed the soldier in the shoulder. Booth then leapt from the president’s box to the stage below, breaking his leg as he landed. He reportedly shouted, “Sic semper tyrannis!” (“Thus ever to tyrants!”–the Virginia state motto) and ran from the stage. There was a pause, as the crowd initially thought the unfolding drama was part of the production, but a scream from Mrs. Lincoln told them otherwise. The stricken president was carried from the box to a house across the street, where he died the following morning.

Booth was one of the most famous actors of his day, and Lincoln had previously seen him perform. He was a Maryland native with Southern sympathies who hoped to aid the Confederacy by taking out the Union’s political leadership in one night. With Confederate President Jefferson Davis still free and General Joseph E. Johnston’s army still alive in the Carolinas, Booth thought the Confederate cause was not yet lost. He sent George Atzerodt to kill Vice President Andrew Johnson and Lewis Paine to assassinate Secretary of State William Seward. Atzerodt could not muster the courage to carry out his assignment, but Paine burst into Seward’s home and stabbed him as lay sick in bed. Although seriously wounded, Seward eventually recovered.

Skirmishing breaks out on the Columbus Road, near Tuskegee, Alabama, with Brigadier General James H. Wilson's Cavalry.

Skirmishes continue near Morrisville, and an engagement occurs near Saunders' Farm, both in North Carolina, between General Joseph E. Johnston's and Major General William T. Sherman's forces. Johnston proposes a suspension of hostilities to allow peace talks.

Skirmishes occur at Mount Pleasant, Tennessee.

Naval report: President Abraham Lincoln is shot shortly after 10 p.m. while watching "Our American Cousin" at Ford's Theatre. He dies at 7:22 a.m. tomorrow morning. Rear Admiral David D. Porter, who had departed Hampton Roads on the 14th, learned, when his flagship, the USS Tristram Shandy put into Baltimore on the morning of the 15th, that the President had been shot. The Admiral immediately went to Washington. DC, where he learned that Lincoln had died. The reaction of the tough, battle hardened sea dog to the news expressed the grief of a nation: Porter, who had bid the President a merry farewell exactly one week before at City Point, bowed his head and wept.

In accordance with a previous directive of President Lincoln, Major General Robert Houston Anderson, commander of the Union Army forces at Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina, on 14 April 1861, raised above Sumter's ruins "...the same United States flag which floated over the battlements of that fort during the Rebel assault, and which was lowered and saluted by him and the small force of his command when the works were evacuated on the 14th of April, 1861." As the USS Pawnee had witnessed that event four years before, naval forces of Rear Admiral John A. B. Dahlgren participated in this ceremony.

The USS Sciota, Acting Lieutenant James W. Magune in charge, strikes a torpedo and sinks off Mobile, Alabama. Magune reported: "The explosion was terrible, breaking the beams of the spar deck, tearing open the waterways, ripping off starboard forechannels, and breaking fore-topmast." Dragging for and destroying torpedoes continued to be extremely hazardous duty. A launch from USS Cincinnati, Lieutenant Commander George Brown, was blown up and three men killed when a torpedo which was being removed accidentally swung against the boat's stern.

The CSS Shenandoah, commanded by Lieutenant James I. Waddell, departs Ascension Island, the Eastern Caroline Islands, in the Pacific Ocean, and set a northerly course for the Kurile Islands. Unaware that General Robert E. Lee had surrendered at Appomattox on the 9th, the Shenandoah would continue to inflict crippling damage to the American whaling fleet in the North Pacific. The continuous havoc wrought on Union commerce by Confederate raiders dealt the whaling industry a blow from which it never recovered.

Sunday, 16 April 1865

The North was deep in mourning while the South felt great dismay as news of the Lincoln assassination spread. Federal troops pursued John Wilkes Booth and David Herold in Maryland. Previously, Dr. Samuel Mudd had ordered Booth and Herold out of his house after learning of President Lincoln’s assassination. Early in the morning, the two fugitives arrived at the Rich Hill home of Samuel Cox, after a harrowing trip through swamps and over meager trails. Meanwhile, Federal authorities captured Lewis Paine at the boardinghouse of Mrs. Mary Suratt. Authorities also arrested Mrs. Suratt as a co-conspirator after learning that Booth and his accomplices had discussed assassination plans in her home.

In Washington, DC, Mrs. Lincoln was prostrate with grief while newly sworn President Andrew Johnson was gathering up the reins of his new office. Radical Republicans were hopeful that the new President would be more amenable to their policies than Lincoln had been, which included retribution for secession and further treating the Southern States as conquered territory. Johnson met with former President Lincoln’s cabinet, then with Radical Republican leaders in Congress. Leading Radical Senator Benjamin F. Wade of Ohio told him, "Johnson, we have faith in you. By the gods, there will be no trouble running the government."

In North Carolina, plans were set for a meeting of Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston and Federal Major General William T. Sherman, although more skirmishing occurred at Crawford, Girard and Opelika, Alabama.

The entourage of carriages and horses of President Jefferson Davis and the remnants of the fleeing Confederate government arrived in Lexington, North Carolina, but would have to continue on rapidly in light of the approaching Johnston-Sherman negotiations.

Union Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles directed: "To prevent the escape of the assassin who killed the President and attempted the life of Secretary of State, search every vessel that arrives down the bay. Permit no vessel to go to sea without such search, and arrest and send to Washington any suspicious persons." Response was immediate; ships took stations "...on the coast of Maryland and Virginia."

The Navy Department directed that on 17 April a gun be fired in honor of the late President Abraham Lincoln each half hour, from sunrise to sunset, that all flags be kept at half-mast until after the funeral, and that officers wear mourning crepe for six months.

Skirmishing breaks out at Crawford, at Girard, and near Opelika, Alabama, with Union Brigadier General James H. Wilson's cavalry. They also see action at Columbus, Georgia, before occupying the town. The Union troops then attack Fort Tyler, near West Point, Georgia, and occupy West Point.

Confederate Brigadier General Robert Charles Tyler is mortally wounded by a Federal sharpshooter, while defending a Confederate earth work called Fort Tyler on the western side of the town of West Point, Georgia, against the advancing Federal cavalry under Brigadier General James H. Wilson.