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re: 150 years ago this day...
Posted on 3/26/15 at 9:33 pm to BadLeroyDawg
Posted on 3/26/15 at 9:33 pm to BadLeroyDawg
Monday, 27 March 1865
Aboard the steamer River Queen at City Point, Virginia, President Abraham Lincoln, Lieutenant General Hiram U. Grant, Major General William T. Sherman and Rear Admiral David Dixon Porter conferred about the state of the respective campaigns. The first day’s talk, largely social, included an account of Sherman’s campaign, since Sherman came up from Goldsboro, North Carolina, where his army was located. Sherman shared stories from the Carolinas Campaign. The commanders agreed that "...one more bloody battle was likely to occur before the close of the War." Lincoln also brought up a discussion concerning his policy on Confederate surrender and reconstruction.
Full report: On this day in 1865, President Abraham Lincoln meets with Union Generals Hiram U. Grant and William T. Sherman at City Point, Virginia, to plot the last stages of the Civil War.
Lincoln went to Virginia just as Grant was preparing to attack Confederate General Robert E. Lee’s lines around Petersburg and Richmond, an assault that promised to end the siege that had dragged on for 10 months. Meanwhile, Sherman’s force was steamrolling northward through the Carolinas. The three architects of Union victory convened for the first time as a group–Lincoln and Sherman had never met—at Grant’s City Point headquarters at the general-in-chief’s request.
As part of the trip, Lincoln went to the Petersburg lines and witnessed a Union bombardment and a small skirmish. Prior to meeting with his generals, the president also reviewed troops and visited wounded soldiers. Once he sat down with Grant and Sherman, Lincoln expressed concern that Lee might escape Petersburg and flee to North Carolina, where he could join forces with Joseph Johnston to forge a new Confederate army that could continue the war for months. Grant and Sherman assured the president the end was in sight. Lincoln emphasized to his generals that any surrender terms must preserve the Union war aims of emancipation and a pledge of equality for the freed slaves.
After meeting with Admiral David Dixon Porter on 28 March, the president and his two generals went their separate ways. Less than four weeks later, Grant and Sherman had secured the surrender of the Confederacy.
Major General Frederick Steele's Union column reaches Canoe Station, Alabama, in the Mobile Campaign.
Major General Edward Richard Sprigg Canby’s 32,000 Federals began laying siege to Spanish Fort outside Mobile, Alabama. Ironclads in the Gulf of Mexico backed the Federal siege.
Major General Philip Sheridan’s Federals finished crossing the James and joined the Army of the Potomac. Sheridan had hurried out of fear that Sherman would persuade Grant to send him to North Carolina instead of joining the final drive against General Robert E. Lee.
The Tenth US Army Corps is reorganized and Major General Alfred H. Terry, USA, is assigned to its command in North Carolina.
Brigadier General Elkanah Greer, CSA, is assigned to the command of the Reserve Corps in the State of Texas. Vice-Brigadier General Jerome B. Robertson, CSA, is relieved, and assigned to the command of a brigade.
Federal troops scout from Winchester to Woodstock, Virginia.
Captain Henry S. Stellwagen, the senior naval officer at Georgetown, South Carolina, reported to Rear Admiral John A. B. Dahlgren "...the return of another expedition of four days' duration up the Waccamaw River some 50 miles, to Conwayboro." Detailing the nature of one of the ceaseless naval expeditions in coastal and inland waters that facilitated the land campaign, Stellwagen continued: "Having heard that threats of a visit in force had been made by the guerrillas against the plantations and settlements, in view of which great alarm was felt on the whole route by blacks and whites, I dispatched the Mingoe, having in tow some ten armed boats, to proceed as high as Buck's Mills, and leaving it discretionary with Lieutenant-Commanders G. U. Morris and William H. Dana to proceed the remaining distance by boats or land. The arrival of the steam launch and two large row launches from the Santee [River] enabled me to follow with them, and the steam tug Catalpa determined to ascend as far as the water would permit. I found the Mingoe ashore near her destination, towed her off, and caused her to drop to a point where she could anchor. The shore expedition had gone on, and I took the remainder of boats in tow as far as practicable, then causing them to row. After incredible labor and difficulty, succeeded in getting to Conwayboro at nightfall, just after the Marching division. No enemies were encountered, but it was reported many small parties fled in various directions on our approach by river and land.
"The people of the town were glad to see us; even those having relatives in the army professed their joy at being saved from the raiding deserters. They assure us that the penetration of our parties into such distances, supposed to be inaccessible to our vessels, has spread a salutary dread, and that our large force of Catalpa, 4 large launches, and 10 boats, with about 300 men in all, at the highest point, presented such a formidable display, with 7 howitzers, that they thought they would be completely prevented [from] returning to that neighborhood."
Union Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles ordered the USS Wyoming, Commander John P. Bankhead in charge, then at Baltimore, to sail in search of the CSS Shenandoah. So delayed were communications between the Pacific and Washington that although Wyoming was ordered to cruise from Melbourne, Australia, to China, the Shenandoah had departed Australia more than five weeks before and was now nearing Ascension Island. The Wyoming would join USS Wachusett and Iroquois on independent service in an effort to track down the elusive commerce raider.
Captain Thomas Jefferson Page, commanding the CSS Stonewall, wrote Commander James Dunwoody Bulloch in England that he would sail from Lisbon, Portugal, to Teneriffe and then to Nassau where his subsequent movements "...must depend upon the intelligence I may receive..." That evening, USS Niagara and Sacramento, which had followed the Stonewall from Coruna, Spain, entered Lisbon. The Confederate ram, however, was able to put to sea the next day without interference because international law required the two Union ships to remain in port for 24 hours after the Stonewall had departed.
Combined Army-Navy operations, the latter commanded by Rear Admiral Thatcher, aimed at capturing the city of Mobile commenced. The objective was Spanish Fort, located near the mouth of the Blakely River and was the key to the city's defenses. Six tinclads and supporting gunboats steamed up the Blakely River to cut the fort's communications with Mobile while the army began to move against the fort's outworks. The river had been thickly sown with torpedoes which necessitated sweeping operations ahead of the advancing ironclads. These efforts, directed by Commander Peirce Crosby of USS Metacomet, netted 150 torpedoes. Nevertheless, a number of the Confederate weapons eluded the Union with telling results. In the next five days three Northern warships would be sunk in the Blakely.
Aboard the steamer River Queen at City Point, Virginia, President Abraham Lincoln, Lieutenant General Hiram U. Grant, Major General William T. Sherman and Rear Admiral David Dixon Porter conferred about the state of the respective campaigns. The first day’s talk, largely social, included an account of Sherman’s campaign, since Sherman came up from Goldsboro, North Carolina, where his army was located. Sherman shared stories from the Carolinas Campaign. The commanders agreed that "...one more bloody battle was likely to occur before the close of the War." Lincoln also brought up a discussion concerning his policy on Confederate surrender and reconstruction.
Full report: On this day in 1865, President Abraham Lincoln meets with Union Generals Hiram U. Grant and William T. Sherman at City Point, Virginia, to plot the last stages of the Civil War.
Lincoln went to Virginia just as Grant was preparing to attack Confederate General Robert E. Lee’s lines around Petersburg and Richmond, an assault that promised to end the siege that had dragged on for 10 months. Meanwhile, Sherman’s force was steamrolling northward through the Carolinas. The three architects of Union victory convened for the first time as a group–Lincoln and Sherman had never met—at Grant’s City Point headquarters at the general-in-chief’s request.
As part of the trip, Lincoln went to the Petersburg lines and witnessed a Union bombardment and a small skirmish. Prior to meeting with his generals, the president also reviewed troops and visited wounded soldiers. Once he sat down with Grant and Sherman, Lincoln expressed concern that Lee might escape Petersburg and flee to North Carolina, where he could join forces with Joseph Johnston to forge a new Confederate army that could continue the war for months. Grant and Sherman assured the president the end was in sight. Lincoln emphasized to his generals that any surrender terms must preserve the Union war aims of emancipation and a pledge of equality for the freed slaves.
After meeting with Admiral David Dixon Porter on 28 March, the president and his two generals went their separate ways. Less than four weeks later, Grant and Sherman had secured the surrender of the Confederacy.
Major General Frederick Steele's Union column reaches Canoe Station, Alabama, in the Mobile Campaign.
Major General Edward Richard Sprigg Canby’s 32,000 Federals began laying siege to Spanish Fort outside Mobile, Alabama. Ironclads in the Gulf of Mexico backed the Federal siege.
Major General Philip Sheridan’s Federals finished crossing the James and joined the Army of the Potomac. Sheridan had hurried out of fear that Sherman would persuade Grant to send him to North Carolina instead of joining the final drive against General Robert E. Lee.
The Tenth US Army Corps is reorganized and Major General Alfred H. Terry, USA, is assigned to its command in North Carolina.
Brigadier General Elkanah Greer, CSA, is assigned to the command of the Reserve Corps in the State of Texas. Vice-Brigadier General Jerome B. Robertson, CSA, is relieved, and assigned to the command of a brigade.
Federal troops scout from Winchester to Woodstock, Virginia.
Captain Henry S. Stellwagen, the senior naval officer at Georgetown, South Carolina, reported to Rear Admiral John A. B. Dahlgren "...the return of another expedition of four days' duration up the Waccamaw River some 50 miles, to Conwayboro." Detailing the nature of one of the ceaseless naval expeditions in coastal and inland waters that facilitated the land campaign, Stellwagen continued: "Having heard that threats of a visit in force had been made by the guerrillas against the plantations and settlements, in view of which great alarm was felt on the whole route by blacks and whites, I dispatched the Mingoe, having in tow some ten armed boats, to proceed as high as Buck's Mills, and leaving it discretionary with Lieutenant-Commanders G. U. Morris and William H. Dana to proceed the remaining distance by boats or land. The arrival of the steam launch and two large row launches from the Santee [River] enabled me to follow with them, and the steam tug Catalpa determined to ascend as far as the water would permit. I found the Mingoe ashore near her destination, towed her off, and caused her to drop to a point where she could anchor. The shore expedition had gone on, and I took the remainder of boats in tow as far as practicable, then causing them to row. After incredible labor and difficulty, succeeded in getting to Conwayboro at nightfall, just after the Marching division. No enemies were encountered, but it was reported many small parties fled in various directions on our approach by river and land.
"The people of the town were glad to see us; even those having relatives in the army professed their joy at being saved from the raiding deserters. They assure us that the penetration of our parties into such distances, supposed to be inaccessible to our vessels, has spread a salutary dread, and that our large force of Catalpa, 4 large launches, and 10 boats, with about 300 men in all, at the highest point, presented such a formidable display, with 7 howitzers, that they thought they would be completely prevented [from] returning to that neighborhood."
Union Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles ordered the USS Wyoming, Commander John P. Bankhead in charge, then at Baltimore, to sail in search of the CSS Shenandoah. So delayed were communications between the Pacific and Washington that although Wyoming was ordered to cruise from Melbourne, Australia, to China, the Shenandoah had departed Australia more than five weeks before and was now nearing Ascension Island. The Wyoming would join USS Wachusett and Iroquois on independent service in an effort to track down the elusive commerce raider.
Captain Thomas Jefferson Page, commanding the CSS Stonewall, wrote Commander James Dunwoody Bulloch in England that he would sail from Lisbon, Portugal, to Teneriffe and then to Nassau where his subsequent movements "...must depend upon the intelligence I may receive..." That evening, USS Niagara and Sacramento, which had followed the Stonewall from Coruna, Spain, entered Lisbon. The Confederate ram, however, was able to put to sea the next day without interference because international law required the two Union ships to remain in port for 24 hours after the Stonewall had departed.
Combined Army-Navy operations, the latter commanded by Rear Admiral Thatcher, aimed at capturing the city of Mobile commenced. The objective was Spanish Fort, located near the mouth of the Blakely River and was the key to the city's defenses. Six tinclads and supporting gunboats steamed up the Blakely River to cut the fort's communications with Mobile while the army began to move against the fort's outworks. The river had been thickly sown with torpedoes which necessitated sweeping operations ahead of the advancing ironclads. These efforts, directed by Commander Peirce Crosby of USS Metacomet, netted 150 torpedoes. Nevertheless, a number of the Confederate weapons eluded the Union with telling results. In the next five days three Northern warships would be sunk in the Blakely.
1
Posted on 3/27/15 at 9:26 pm to BadLeroyDawg
Tuesday, 28 March 1865
President Abraham Lincoln, Lieutenant General Hiram U. Grant, Major General William T. Sherman and Rear Admiral David Dixon Porter continue their discussions aboard the steamer River Queen off of City Point, Virginia. The generals detailed their plans and pointed out that one more major campaign would be needed to force an end to the War. Lincoln expressed hope that high-ranking Confederates, including President Jefferson Davis, would flee the country. Regarding surrender, Lincoln said: "Let them once surrender and reach their homes, they won’t take up arms again. Let them go, officers and all. I want submission and no more bloodshed." When the fighting stopped, Southerners "...would at once be guaranteed all their rights as citizens of a common country." Lincoln said, "I want no one punished, treat them liberally all around. We want those people to return to their allegiance to the Union and submit to the laws."
The City Point conference set the tone for how the Union commanders would handle the Confederates in upcoming engagements. Following the talks, Sherman returned to Goldsboro.
Naval report: Rear Admiral Porter visited President Lincoln with Generals Grant and Sherman on board the steamer River Queen, the President's headquarters during his stay at City Point. The four men informally discussed the war during the famous conference, and Lincoln stressed his desire to bring the war to a close as quickly as possible with as little bloodshed as possible. He added that he was inclined to follow a lenient policy with regard to the course to be pursued at the conclusion of the war. After the conference Sherman returned to New Bern, North Carolina, on board USS Bat, a swifter ship than the steamer on which he had arrived at City Point. Porter had ordered Lieutenant Commander Barnes: "You will wait the pleasure of Major General W. T. Sherman, and when ready will convey him, with staff, either to New Berne, Beaufort, or such place as he may indicate. Return here as soon as possible." Sherman's troops at Goldsboro were little more than 125 miles in a direct line from the front south of Petersburg.
Following the Presidential conference on board River Queen, Rear Admiral Porter ordered Commander William Henry Alexander Macomb, commanding in the North Carolina Sounds, "...to cooperate with General Sherman to the fullest extent" during operations soon to be opened in the area. "They will want all your tugs, particularly, to tow vessels or canal boats up to Kinston, North Carolina."
It will be absolutely necessary to supply General Sherman by the way of Kinston." Porter continued: "There will be a movement made from Winton after a while. It is necessary for us to get possession of everything up the Chowan River, so that Sherman can obtain his forage up there...I trust to Captain Rhind to remove the obstructions at New Berne and to tow up rapidly all the provisions, and General Sherman can supply his army for daily use by the railroad, and you can get up the stuff required for the March."
Commander Macomb received the Admiral's orders via the swift steamer USS Bat on 30 March, and the following day replied from Roanoke Island: "I immediately had an interview with the general and arranged that Captain Rhind would attend to everything relating to the Navy in the Neuse. I am on my way to Plymouth to carry out your orders as regards sending vessels to Winton, on the Chowan, and holding the same. The Shokokon and Commodore Hull are on their way up from New Berne. As soon as possible after my arrival at Plymouth I shall proceed up the Chowan, dragging ahead for torpedoes." Control of the sea and rivers continued to be as invaluable to the North in operations at the end of the war as it had from the start.
Skirmishes commence near Elyton, Alabama, with Union Brigadier General James H. Wilson's troops.
A Federal expedition sails from Fort Pike, Louisiana, aboard the sloop, Rosetta, to Bay Saint Louis, Mississippi, in an unsuccessful attempt to capture some of Lieutenant General Nathan Bedford Forrest's Confederate Cavalry troops.
A skirmish occurs at Bull Creek, in Christian County, Missouri.
Brigadier General Robert E. Mitchell, USA, is relieved from the command of the District of Nebraska, and is assigned to the command of the District of North Kansas.
A skirmish breaks out near Snow Hill, North Carolina, with Major General George Stoneman's USA, Cavalry approaching from the west.
Skirmishing occurs at Germantown, Tennessee, with the Union pickets there.
The District of the Plains is formed, to consist of the Districts of Utah, Colorado, and Nebraska. Brigadier General Patrick E. Connor, USA, is assigned to its command.
A Union expedition moves from Deep Bottom, Virginia, with the assistance of transports, ferries, and gunboats, to near Weldon, North Carolina, where the Yankees meet little resistance, and with minor skirmishes, capturing some prisoners and Confederate supplies, cotton, and equipment.
Shifting of troops by the Federals in front of Petersburg marks the preparations for a forthcoming advance, which Confederate General Robert E. Lee noted in a letter to his daughter. Lee wrote, “Genl Grant is evidently preparing for something & is marshaling & preparing his troops from some movement, which is not yet disclosed..."
The USS Milwaukee, Lieutenant Commander James H. Gillis in charge, struck a torpedo in the Blakely River, Alabama, while dropping downstream after shelling a Southern transport which was attempting to supply Spanish Fort. Just as Gillis returned to the area that had been swept for torpedoes and supposed the danger from torpedoes was past, "...he felt a shock and saw at once that a torpedo had exploded on the port side of the vessel..." Milwaukee's stern went under within three minutes but the forward compartments did not fill for almost an hour, enabling the sailors to save most of their belongings. Although the twin turreted monitor sank, no lives were lost.
The USS Niagara, under Commodore Thomas T. Craven, was fired upon by one of the forts in the harbor of Lisbon, Portugal. In a report to James E. Harvey, U.S. Minister Resident in Lisbon, Craven stated: "With view of shifting her berth farther up the river, so as to be nearer the usual landing stairs, at about 3:15 p.m. the Niagara was got underway and was about being turned head upstream when three shots were fired in rapid succession directly at her from Castle Belem." Portugal later apologized for the incident.
Union Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles advised Commodore Sylvanus W. Godon that he had been appointed an acting Rear Admiral and was to command the Brazil Squadron. Welles' letter was a significant commentary on the progress of the war afloat: "It is proposed to reestablish the Brazil Squadron, as circumstances now admit of the withdrawal of many of the vessels that have been engaged in the blockade and in active naval operations and sending them on foreign service..."
President Abraham Lincoln, Lieutenant General Hiram U. Grant, Major General William T. Sherman and Rear Admiral David Dixon Porter continue their discussions aboard the steamer River Queen off of City Point, Virginia. The generals detailed their plans and pointed out that one more major campaign would be needed to force an end to the War. Lincoln expressed hope that high-ranking Confederates, including President Jefferson Davis, would flee the country. Regarding surrender, Lincoln said: "Let them once surrender and reach their homes, they won’t take up arms again. Let them go, officers and all. I want submission and no more bloodshed." When the fighting stopped, Southerners "...would at once be guaranteed all their rights as citizens of a common country." Lincoln said, "I want no one punished, treat them liberally all around. We want those people to return to their allegiance to the Union and submit to the laws."
The City Point conference set the tone for how the Union commanders would handle the Confederates in upcoming engagements. Following the talks, Sherman returned to Goldsboro.
Naval report: Rear Admiral Porter visited President Lincoln with Generals Grant and Sherman on board the steamer River Queen, the President's headquarters during his stay at City Point. The four men informally discussed the war during the famous conference, and Lincoln stressed his desire to bring the war to a close as quickly as possible with as little bloodshed as possible. He added that he was inclined to follow a lenient policy with regard to the course to be pursued at the conclusion of the war. After the conference Sherman returned to New Bern, North Carolina, on board USS Bat, a swifter ship than the steamer on which he had arrived at City Point. Porter had ordered Lieutenant Commander Barnes: "You will wait the pleasure of Major General W. T. Sherman, and when ready will convey him, with staff, either to New Berne, Beaufort, or such place as he may indicate. Return here as soon as possible." Sherman's troops at Goldsboro were little more than 125 miles in a direct line from the front south of Petersburg.
Following the Presidential conference on board River Queen, Rear Admiral Porter ordered Commander William Henry Alexander Macomb, commanding in the North Carolina Sounds, "...to cooperate with General Sherman to the fullest extent" during operations soon to be opened in the area. "They will want all your tugs, particularly, to tow vessels or canal boats up to Kinston, North Carolina."
It will be absolutely necessary to supply General Sherman by the way of Kinston." Porter continued: "There will be a movement made from Winton after a while. It is necessary for us to get possession of everything up the Chowan River, so that Sherman can obtain his forage up there...I trust to Captain Rhind to remove the obstructions at New Berne and to tow up rapidly all the provisions, and General Sherman can supply his army for daily use by the railroad, and you can get up the stuff required for the March."
Commander Macomb received the Admiral's orders via the swift steamer USS Bat on 30 March, and the following day replied from Roanoke Island: "I immediately had an interview with the general and arranged that Captain Rhind would attend to everything relating to the Navy in the Neuse. I am on my way to Plymouth to carry out your orders as regards sending vessels to Winton, on the Chowan, and holding the same. The Shokokon and Commodore Hull are on their way up from New Berne. As soon as possible after my arrival at Plymouth I shall proceed up the Chowan, dragging ahead for torpedoes." Control of the sea and rivers continued to be as invaluable to the North in operations at the end of the war as it had from the start.
Skirmishes commence near Elyton, Alabama, with Union Brigadier General James H. Wilson's troops.
A Federal expedition sails from Fort Pike, Louisiana, aboard the sloop, Rosetta, to Bay Saint Louis, Mississippi, in an unsuccessful attempt to capture some of Lieutenant General Nathan Bedford Forrest's Confederate Cavalry troops.
A skirmish occurs at Bull Creek, in Christian County, Missouri.
Brigadier General Robert E. Mitchell, USA, is relieved from the command of the District of Nebraska, and is assigned to the command of the District of North Kansas.
A skirmish breaks out near Snow Hill, North Carolina, with Major General George Stoneman's USA, Cavalry approaching from the west.
Skirmishing occurs at Germantown, Tennessee, with the Union pickets there.
The District of the Plains is formed, to consist of the Districts of Utah, Colorado, and Nebraska. Brigadier General Patrick E. Connor, USA, is assigned to its command.
A Union expedition moves from Deep Bottom, Virginia, with the assistance of transports, ferries, and gunboats, to near Weldon, North Carolina, where the Yankees meet little resistance, and with minor skirmishes, capturing some prisoners and Confederate supplies, cotton, and equipment.
Shifting of troops by the Federals in front of Petersburg marks the preparations for a forthcoming advance, which Confederate General Robert E. Lee noted in a letter to his daughter. Lee wrote, “Genl Grant is evidently preparing for something & is marshaling & preparing his troops from some movement, which is not yet disclosed..."
The USS Milwaukee, Lieutenant Commander James H. Gillis in charge, struck a torpedo in the Blakely River, Alabama, while dropping downstream after shelling a Southern transport which was attempting to supply Spanish Fort. Just as Gillis returned to the area that had been swept for torpedoes and supposed the danger from torpedoes was past, "...he felt a shock and saw at once that a torpedo had exploded on the port side of the vessel..." Milwaukee's stern went under within three minutes but the forward compartments did not fill for almost an hour, enabling the sailors to save most of their belongings. Although the twin turreted monitor sank, no lives were lost.
The USS Niagara, under Commodore Thomas T. Craven, was fired upon by one of the forts in the harbor of Lisbon, Portugal. In a report to James E. Harvey, U.S. Minister Resident in Lisbon, Craven stated: "With view of shifting her berth farther up the river, so as to be nearer the usual landing stairs, at about 3:15 p.m. the Niagara was got underway and was about being turned head upstream when three shots were fired in rapid succession directly at her from Castle Belem." Portugal later apologized for the incident.
Union Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles advised Commodore Sylvanus W. Godon that he had been appointed an acting Rear Admiral and was to command the Brazil Squadron. Welles' letter was a significant commentary on the progress of the war afloat: "It is proposed to reestablish the Brazil Squadron, as circumstances now admit of the withdrawal of many of the vessels that have been engaged in the blockade and in active naval operations and sending them on foreign service..."
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