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re: 150 years ago this day...
Posted on 10/4/14 at 10:40 pm to BadLeroyDawg
Posted on 10/4/14 at 10:40 pm to BadLeroyDawg
Wednesday, 5 October 1864
The Army of Tennessee under Major General Samuel Gibbs French was locked in mortal combat with the Federal garrison under Brigadier General John Murray Corse at the railroad pass at Allatoona, Georgia. With about 2000 men on each side, the fighting was so fierce that the casualty rates were appalling: 706 Union and almost 800 Confederates were killed or wounded, about 40% of all troops involved. Major General William Tecumseh Sherman could see the smoke of the battle from his headquarters on Kennesaw Mountain, 18 miles away. At the end of the day, French received a report that a message had come to Corse from Sherman to hold on because a large relief force was coming to hit French in the rear. The report was false but French could not know this, and consequently pulled out. An evangelist, Philip Paul Bliss, on hearing the story of this battle wrote a hymn, “Hold the Fort, For We Are Coming” which was popular for decades after the War.
Full report: After losing the city of Atlanta, Confederate General John Bell Hood this morning attacks Union General William T. Sherman's supply line at Allatoona Pass, Georgia. Hood's men could not take the Union stronghold, and they were ultimately forced to retreat into Alabama.
Hood took charge of the Confederate army in late July 1864, replacing the defensive-minded Joseph Eggleston Johnston. Confederate President Jefferson Davis had been frustrated with Johnston's constant retreating against a force more than two and one-half times his own army, so he appointed Hood, who was known for his aggressive style. Hood immediately attacked Sherman's much larger army three times: at Peachtree Creek, Atlanta and Ezra Church. All of the attacks were unsuccessful, and they almost completely destroyed the Confederate army's offensive capabilities.
After evacuating Atlanta in early September 1864, Hood planned to draw Sherman back northward. Hood did not have the troop strength to move against Sherman, so he swung west of Atlanta and moved against the railroad that supplied the Yankee army from Chattanooga, Tennessee. At first, this worked well. Retracing Sherman's advance on Atlanta, Hood's men began to tear up the Western and Atlantic Railroad. Starting on September 29, the Rebels destroyed eight miles of track and captured 600 prisoners. Hood sent General Alexander Stewart's corps to secure Allatoona, site of a large Federal supply depot.
Sherman realized the threat to his lines and dispatched a brigade under General John Corse to secure the area. Corse's 2,000 men arrived at Allatoona before one of Stewart's divisions, led by Samuel French, attacked on October 5. French also had about 2,000 troops, but the Yankees overcame any difference with their new Henry repeating rifles. French attacked and pushed the Federals back at first, but Allatoona was easily defended. By midday, French realized that he could not take the depot. He withdrew and rejoined Hood's army. French lost 897 men, while the Union lost 706. Realizing that his army was in no shape to fight, Hood took his force west into Alabama. In November, he would invade Tennessee.
The USS Mobile, under Acting Lieutenant Pierre Giraud, seized the blockade running British schooner Annie Virdon south of Velasco, Texas, with a cargo of cotton.
A boat expedition commanded by Acting Ensign Henry Eason, from the USS Restless, destroyed large salt works on St. Andrew's Bay, Florida, along with 150 buildings used to house the compound and its employees. Salt works, providing as they did both a foodstuff and an invaluable preservative, were a constant target for fast-hitting Union boat expeditions aimed at drying up the source of intended supplies for Southern armies.
President Jefferson Davis addressed a crowd in Augusta, Georgia, accompanied by Generals Pierre Gustave Toutant Beauregard, William Joseph Hardee, and others. Davis said, “Never before was I so confident that energy, harmony, and determination would rid the country of its enemy and give to the women of the land that peace their good deeds have so well deserved… we must beat Sherman, we must march into Tennessee… we must push the enemy back to the banks of the Ohio.”
In Indiana, Federal military authorities arrested Lambdin Purdy Milligan for conspiring against the United States, giving aid and comfort to the Confederates, and inciting insurrection. A military tribunal unlawfully convicted Milligan in December and sentenced him to death in June 1865. He was granted a presidential reprieve, and the Supreme Court ultimately ruled in Ex Parte Milligan (1866) that military authorities had no right to try civilians outside the actual theater of war.
Major General Sterling Price’s Confederates fought along the Osage River in Missouri.
President Lincoln conferred with navy officials about naval prisoners. Lincoln’s secretary John Nicolay headed west to gauge election prospects in Missouri.
Federals operated near Tunica Landing and Natchez, Mississippi.
Skirmishes occurred at Alexander's Creek, near St. Francisville and at Atchafalaya, Louisiana.
A Union expedition originated from Baton Rouge, to Clinton, Greensburg, Osyka, and Camp Moore, Louisiana, where the Federals capture 4,000 pounds of bacon, 12 barrels of whiskey, 100 dozen pairs of boots and shoes, 2,000 pounds of salt, and other materiel.
Lieutenant General Hardee assumes command of the Confederate Department of South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida, as he and Lieutenant General John Bell Hood could not get along, and so are separated by President Davis.
The Army of Tennessee under Major General Samuel Gibbs French was locked in mortal combat with the Federal garrison under Brigadier General John Murray Corse at the railroad pass at Allatoona, Georgia. With about 2000 men on each side, the fighting was so fierce that the casualty rates were appalling: 706 Union and almost 800 Confederates were killed or wounded, about 40% of all troops involved. Major General William Tecumseh Sherman could see the smoke of the battle from his headquarters on Kennesaw Mountain, 18 miles away. At the end of the day, French received a report that a message had come to Corse from Sherman to hold on because a large relief force was coming to hit French in the rear. The report was false but French could not know this, and consequently pulled out. An evangelist, Philip Paul Bliss, on hearing the story of this battle wrote a hymn, “Hold the Fort, For We Are Coming” which was popular for decades after the War.
Full report: After losing the city of Atlanta, Confederate General John Bell Hood this morning attacks Union General William T. Sherman's supply line at Allatoona Pass, Georgia. Hood's men could not take the Union stronghold, and they were ultimately forced to retreat into Alabama.
Hood took charge of the Confederate army in late July 1864, replacing the defensive-minded Joseph Eggleston Johnston. Confederate President Jefferson Davis had been frustrated with Johnston's constant retreating against a force more than two and one-half times his own army, so he appointed Hood, who was known for his aggressive style. Hood immediately attacked Sherman's much larger army three times: at Peachtree Creek, Atlanta and Ezra Church. All of the attacks were unsuccessful, and they almost completely destroyed the Confederate army's offensive capabilities.
After evacuating Atlanta in early September 1864, Hood planned to draw Sherman back northward. Hood did not have the troop strength to move against Sherman, so he swung west of Atlanta and moved against the railroad that supplied the Yankee army from Chattanooga, Tennessee. At first, this worked well. Retracing Sherman's advance on Atlanta, Hood's men began to tear up the Western and Atlantic Railroad. Starting on September 29, the Rebels destroyed eight miles of track and captured 600 prisoners. Hood sent General Alexander Stewart's corps to secure Allatoona, site of a large Federal supply depot.
Sherman realized the threat to his lines and dispatched a brigade under General John Corse to secure the area. Corse's 2,000 men arrived at Allatoona before one of Stewart's divisions, led by Samuel French, attacked on October 5. French also had about 2,000 troops, but the Yankees overcame any difference with their new Henry repeating rifles. French attacked and pushed the Federals back at first, but Allatoona was easily defended. By midday, French realized that he could not take the depot. He withdrew and rejoined Hood's army. French lost 897 men, while the Union lost 706. Realizing that his army was in no shape to fight, Hood took his force west into Alabama. In November, he would invade Tennessee.
The USS Mobile, under Acting Lieutenant Pierre Giraud, seized the blockade running British schooner Annie Virdon south of Velasco, Texas, with a cargo of cotton.
A boat expedition commanded by Acting Ensign Henry Eason, from the USS Restless, destroyed large salt works on St. Andrew's Bay, Florida, along with 150 buildings used to house the compound and its employees. Salt works, providing as they did both a foodstuff and an invaluable preservative, were a constant target for fast-hitting Union boat expeditions aimed at drying up the source of intended supplies for Southern armies.
President Jefferson Davis addressed a crowd in Augusta, Georgia, accompanied by Generals Pierre Gustave Toutant Beauregard, William Joseph Hardee, and others. Davis said, “Never before was I so confident that energy, harmony, and determination would rid the country of its enemy and give to the women of the land that peace their good deeds have so well deserved… we must beat Sherman, we must march into Tennessee… we must push the enemy back to the banks of the Ohio.”
In Indiana, Federal military authorities arrested Lambdin Purdy Milligan for conspiring against the United States, giving aid and comfort to the Confederates, and inciting insurrection. A military tribunal unlawfully convicted Milligan in December and sentenced him to death in June 1865. He was granted a presidential reprieve, and the Supreme Court ultimately ruled in Ex Parte Milligan (1866) that military authorities had no right to try civilians outside the actual theater of war.
Major General Sterling Price’s Confederates fought along the Osage River in Missouri.
President Lincoln conferred with navy officials about naval prisoners. Lincoln’s secretary John Nicolay headed west to gauge election prospects in Missouri.
Federals operated near Tunica Landing and Natchez, Mississippi.
Skirmishes occurred at Alexander's Creek, near St. Francisville and at Atchafalaya, Louisiana.
A Union expedition originated from Baton Rouge, to Clinton, Greensburg, Osyka, and Camp Moore, Louisiana, where the Federals capture 4,000 pounds of bacon, 12 barrels of whiskey, 100 dozen pairs of boots and shoes, 2,000 pounds of salt, and other materiel.
Lieutenant General Hardee assumes command of the Confederate Department of South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida, as he and Lieutenant General John Bell Hood could not get along, and so are separated by President Davis.
This post was edited on 10/5/14 at 6:34 am
1
Posted on 10/5/14 at 9:21 pm to BadLeroyDawg
Thursday, 6 October 1864
When General Hiram U. Grant needed a man to solidify the Union hold on the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, he had sent back to the Western Theater for a man he could count on: Phil Sheridan. Sheridan, however, was an infantry commander, not a cavalryman, so when he had to become one he surrounded himself with the best the Regular Cavalry had to offer. One such man proved his worth today. Confederate forces under General Jubal Early had been pretty much on the retreat since the battles of Winchester and Fisher Hill, but they were by no means defeated. The forces of Thomas Lafayette (Tex) Rosser attacked two regiments under George Armstrong Custer at Brock’s Gap. The two were former West Point classmates and close personal friends. Although surprised, Custer’s men eventually managed to fend off the attack. It was a disconcerting reminder that this project would be a long one.
Another report: Brock’s Gap is located in the Shenandoah Valley, and in the fall of 1864 the area was a hot prize between the two armies. Union General Philip Sheridan was burning his way down the valley, hitting farms, towns and crops in the field. The soldiers of the “Laurel Brigade" under the command of Rosser, wished to remove the threat of these troops. They caught up with Sheridan’s rear, being lead by Custer on 6th October 1864 near Brock’s Gap. Custer was able, with the help of artillery to hold a hill, until dark fell and allowed Custer’s men to retreat.
Acting Master Charles W. Lee, of the USS Wamsutta, reported that the blockade running steamer Constance had run aground and sunk near Long Island in Charleston Harbor while trying to enter the port. Lee wrote: "...as she is completely submerged in about 3 fathoms water I could ascertain nothing about her except that she is a Clyde-built vessel, of the class of the Mary Bowers, and was evidently bound in."
More action continued at Florence, Alabama, between Major General Nathan Bedford Forrest and Major General William T. Sherman's rear guard.
Skirmishing occurs in Cole County, Missouri, as Major General Sterling Price, CSA, continues moving away from St. Louis.
Fighting broke out at Kingsport, Tennessee, with Major General Stephen A. Burbridge's troops. Burbridge, a Georgetown, Kentucky, native, was a controversial Union commander during the War who was known as “Butcher” Burbridge or the “Butcher of Kentucky.” He had attended Georgetown College and the Kentucky Military Institute, then became a lawyer. When the War broke out, he formed his own Federal regiment and officially joined the army as a colonel.
After participating in several campaigns, including the successful final Battle of Cynthiana against John Hunt Morgan, Burbridge, in June 1864, was given command over the state of Kentucky to deal with the growing problem of Confederate partisan guerrilla campaigns. This began an extended period of military siege that would last through early 1865, beginning with martial law authorized by President Abraham Lincoln.
On 16 July 1864, Burbridge issued Order No. 59 which declared: "Whenever an unarmed Union citizen is murdered, four guerrillas will be selected from the prison and publicly shot to death at the most convenient place near the scene of the outrages." During Burbridge's service in Kentucky, he directed the execution and imprisonment of numerous people, including public figures, on charges of treason and other high crimes, many of which were baseless. While continuing in charge of Kentucky, Burbridge, in October 1864, led Union assaults against the salt works near the town of Saltville, Virginia. He controversially led black troops into a battle that ultimately failed. Wounded troops left behind were killed by Confederate soldiers, with special ire directed toward Burbridge's black troops.
To ensure Lincoln’s re-election, Burbridge tampered with returns in Kentucky and arrested candidates and campaign participants he considered objectionable as well as people he thought might vote for someone other than Lincoln. Lieutenant Governor Richard Taylor Jacob and Kentucky Supreme Court Chief Justice Joshua Bullitt were among those arrested and taken away. Despite Burbridge's efforts, George B. McClellan won the state by a wide margin, although Lincoln was ultimately re-elected. After a falling out with Governor Thomas E. Bramlette, including an attempt to take control of Bramlette's troops and arms, Burbridge was dismissed from his role of overseeing operations in Kentucky. He resigned from the army soon thereafter. Burbridge finally left Kentucky in 1867 and died in Brooklyn, New York, 2 December 1894. He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.
When General Hiram U. Grant needed a man to solidify the Union hold on the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, he had sent back to the Western Theater for a man he could count on: Phil Sheridan. Sheridan, however, was an infantry commander, not a cavalryman, so when he had to become one he surrounded himself with the best the Regular Cavalry had to offer. One such man proved his worth today. Confederate forces under General Jubal Early had been pretty much on the retreat since the battles of Winchester and Fisher Hill, but they were by no means defeated. The forces of Thomas Lafayette (Tex) Rosser attacked two regiments under George Armstrong Custer at Brock’s Gap. The two were former West Point classmates and close personal friends. Although surprised, Custer’s men eventually managed to fend off the attack. It was a disconcerting reminder that this project would be a long one.
Another report: Brock’s Gap is located in the Shenandoah Valley, and in the fall of 1864 the area was a hot prize between the two armies. Union General Philip Sheridan was burning his way down the valley, hitting farms, towns and crops in the field. The soldiers of the “Laurel Brigade" under the command of Rosser, wished to remove the threat of these troops. They caught up with Sheridan’s rear, being lead by Custer on 6th October 1864 near Brock’s Gap. Custer was able, with the help of artillery to hold a hill, until dark fell and allowed Custer’s men to retreat.
Acting Master Charles W. Lee, of the USS Wamsutta, reported that the blockade running steamer Constance had run aground and sunk near Long Island in Charleston Harbor while trying to enter the port. Lee wrote: "...as she is completely submerged in about 3 fathoms water I could ascertain nothing about her except that she is a Clyde-built vessel, of the class of the Mary Bowers, and was evidently bound in."
More action continued at Florence, Alabama, between Major General Nathan Bedford Forrest and Major General William T. Sherman's rear guard.
Skirmishing occurs in Cole County, Missouri, as Major General Sterling Price, CSA, continues moving away from St. Louis.
Fighting broke out at Kingsport, Tennessee, with Major General Stephen A. Burbridge's troops. Burbridge, a Georgetown, Kentucky, native, was a controversial Union commander during the War who was known as “Butcher” Burbridge or the “Butcher of Kentucky.” He had attended Georgetown College and the Kentucky Military Institute, then became a lawyer. When the War broke out, he formed his own Federal regiment and officially joined the army as a colonel.
After participating in several campaigns, including the successful final Battle of Cynthiana against John Hunt Morgan, Burbridge, in June 1864, was given command over the state of Kentucky to deal with the growing problem of Confederate partisan guerrilla campaigns. This began an extended period of military siege that would last through early 1865, beginning with martial law authorized by President Abraham Lincoln.
On 16 July 1864, Burbridge issued Order No. 59 which declared: "Whenever an unarmed Union citizen is murdered, four guerrillas will be selected from the prison and publicly shot to death at the most convenient place near the scene of the outrages." During Burbridge's service in Kentucky, he directed the execution and imprisonment of numerous people, including public figures, on charges of treason and other high crimes, many of which were baseless. While continuing in charge of Kentucky, Burbridge, in October 1864, led Union assaults against the salt works near the town of Saltville, Virginia. He controversially led black troops into a battle that ultimately failed. Wounded troops left behind were killed by Confederate soldiers, with special ire directed toward Burbridge's black troops.
To ensure Lincoln’s re-election, Burbridge tampered with returns in Kentucky and arrested candidates and campaign participants he considered objectionable as well as people he thought might vote for someone other than Lincoln. Lieutenant Governor Richard Taylor Jacob and Kentucky Supreme Court Chief Justice Joshua Bullitt were among those arrested and taken away. Despite Burbridge's efforts, George B. McClellan won the state by a wide margin, although Lincoln was ultimately re-elected. After a falling out with Governor Thomas E. Bramlette, including an attempt to take control of Bramlette's troops and arms, Burbridge was dismissed from his role of overseeing operations in Kentucky. He resigned from the army soon thereafter. Burbridge finally left Kentucky in 1867 and died in Brooklyn, New York, 2 December 1894. He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.
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