April 4, 2012

150 Years Ago Today – The Siege of Yorktown Begins

John B Magruder

As McClellan began the Virginia Peninsula Campaign by pushing his large army (about 120,000) from Fort Monroe, his troops soon encountered a small Confederate army (no more than 15,000) near Yorktown. Commanded by Major General John B. Magruder, they were dug in across the peninsula of the York and James Rivers in a position called the Warwick Line (behind the Warwick River).

Magruder – a colorful personality with a knack for the theatrical – marched his meager forces back and forth over the same ground accompanied by much noise and loud orders. This appearance of a much larger force than actually existed fooled McClellan, causing him to order the construction of siege fortifications. The time required to bring up the heavy guns allowed Johnston to gather forces from varied areas of eastern Virginia (swelling the Rebel force to 50,000) – thus taking away the massive advantages that would have been enjoyed by the Union had more aggressive means been employed.

The Warwick Line even used some of the trenches originally dug by Cornwallis in 1781, although Magruder could adequately man none of the defensive line completely.

Eventually these lines would be probed on April 16 in an engagement called the Battle of Dam Number 1 near present day Newport News. The nature of the conflict convinced McClellan he was facing a force of 100,000. When the line was next attacked in early May, the Confederates were found to have fallen back toward Richmond. The rear guard was engaged on May 5th in the first major conflict of the campaign at Williamsburg.

Some bonus material on John Magruder …

I have written most of a book on the life of Abner Doubleday and hope to someday complete it. Doubleday wrote several hundred pages of notes about the old army of the USA before the Civil War – notes I believe he hoped to publish in a book, though he never did. Much of this information talks about the era of the Mexican War, and of course it includes a great deal of communication about men – then early in their military careers – who would later become famous in the War between the states. Here is an excerpt from my chapter on this old army material, picking up with Doubleday’s orders to head to Mexico:

Joining other companies at Fort Columbus on Governor’s Island in New York Harbor, Doubleday set sail for Texas at the end of August of 1845. The journey aboard the U.S. Store Ship Lexington was long and tedious, with nearly a month being consumed in transit. Doubleday seemed to most remember the voyage for the entertaining presence of John B. Magruder, (who as a future Confederate general would be remembered for the theatrics employed in fooling McClellan in the Peninsula Campaign by marching the same troops repeatedly past the same location, and for a Confederate victory at Galveston). Magruder, who was a fine singer, organized a glee club, and in many other ways proved to be the master of entertainment with varied anecdotes, etc. He was known as “Prince John” amongst his friends, and stories abounded in Doubleday’s accounts of the antics of Magruder in several old army posts.

And another excerpt from a bit later:

Doubleday was much amused by the colorful nature of the population of Corpus Christi at this time, describing it as a charming place for people who dislike the restraints of civilization. Prior to the arrival of the army, Doubleday said that the only law recognized was that of the Bowie knife and pistol. Commenting upon how many people there were in Texas who were criminals—having fled there to escape justice from altercations in the United States—questions concerning a man’s antecedents were thought to be in very bad taste. Doubleday recorded the comment of another officer who pondered, “It’s odd—but every gentleman I have been introduced to since coming here has distinguished himself by committing murder.”21

Magruder again found his way into Doubleday’s narrative. The enterprising officer so fond of amusement arranged for a theatrical company to perform. Doubleday seemed to enjoy their performance, which was well patronized. A humorous incident involved the account of Magruder getting a bit roughed up from apparently venturing too close to the dressing rooms of some of the performers!

Posted by on April 4, 2012 in Abner Doubleday, Sesquicentennial Series and tagged , , , .

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April 1, 2012

150 Years Ago Today – McClellan Leaves Washington for Peninsula Campaign

After months of preparation (along with criticism for the inaction of The Army of the Potomac), McClellan himself departed Washington (“that sink of iniquity”) on this date 150 years ago today. Aboard the Commodore, the destination was Fortress Monroe and ultimately a conquest of Richmond through the Peninsula Campaign.

Fort Monroe as seen during the Civil War

President Lincoln did not see this as the preferred plan of operation, but he had agreed – provided that Washington was sufficiently protected. “Sufficiently” … what did that mean specifically in terms of total numbers of troops? McClellan and Lincoln had variant definitions.

For McClellan, he saw little threat to the city. Therefore, in his view, his cursory accounting of local troops not committed to the peninsula campaign revealed numbers more than sufficient. The General’s listing did not sit well with Lincoln and Stanton, as McClellan had even tallied Banks’ 30,000 troops at Harpers Ferry among the total.

For Lincoln, the threat to the capital was very real – especially in the wake of events at Winchester on March 23rd (see blog posting of 3/23/12). Though history supports McClellan’s view as more accurate, the loss of Washington would be to lose everything and was therefore entirely an insufferable potentiality to not be considered lightly.

Over the coming hours, as Lincoln and Stanton gained a more precise understanding of the accounting of troops designated by McClellan for the defense of the city, the decision was made to withhold McDowell’s Corps of 30,000 troops.

Fort Monroe today as seen from the air - the star-shaped area in the center is the Civil War era fortress.

McClellan’s reaction to this event was entirely predictable, writing to his wife that “history will present a sad record of these traitors who are willing to sacrifice the country & its army for personal spite.”

The movement of the army to the peninsula was hardly a surprise to the Confederates. The Springfield (Massachusetts) Daily Republican wrote at this time: “The latest accounts from Richmond show that the Rebels are crowding troops down upon the York and James River, showing they know where to expect Gen. McClellan.”

But whatever, the Army of the Potomac was on the move, and for this Lincoln was pleased, along with the country and their hopes for success.

Posted by on April 1, 2012 in Sesquicentennial Series and tagged , .

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March 31, 2012

Antietam Battlefield Guides Spring Meeting

A dinner meeting was held last evening involving the Guides program personnel and some of the folks who work for the Battlefield Park regularly.

This was my first opportunity to sit and talk for a while with new Park Superintendent Susan Trail. Having done her Ph.D. research on the development of Antietam over the years, she is uniquely qualified to take on this position. She spoke much of the idea of standing now as the next in a long line of stewards who have brought this American treasure along to the extraordinary place that it occupies today.

When with this group of people, I’m always struck by the cumulative knowledge in one room at one time. Each person represents a unique set of varied interests and expertise on Antietam and the place it has in the broader study of the Civil War. Introspectively, it raises the question of “what in the world am I doing here amongst this gang?”  I don’t know if I’ve written it previously in this blog, but I often say that within this group I am, in the words of the Apostle Paul, “the least of the Apostles.” Yet I hope to learn and grow and take it all in (continuously), and use whatever skills I may possess in synthesizing a vast body of information toward the end of communicating it in a summarily compelling fashion for others.

There are two sides to this venture: knowing the story, and then being able to communicate the story. As I have written in the first of these postings here in Enfilading Lines, there is no end to knowing the story – it is as bottomless as anything I’ve ever seen; there is always more to learn as more is discovered. And communicating the story is the mission of the Guides Program – and there are new and varied ways we shall seek to do just that, particularly in partnership with the Park on the occasion of this sesquicentennial year.

Ezra Carman

We cannot stand apart from the foundation of those who’ve gone before us in this place – upon the shoulders of such as Ezra Carman, O.T. Reilly, and historian Joseph Harsh. And we aspire to be worthy heirs of their research – toward the end of a faithful stewardship of growing it, and then passing it on to others who follow. All in all, it is a great privilege and honor to be even a small cog in such a machine.

Posted by on March 31, 2012 in Antietam / Battlefield Guides and tagged .

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March 30, 2012

A Visit to Danville, Virginia

It was 147 years ago this coming week that the Confederacy was struggling through its final days. Richmond was about to fall, and it was necessary to remove the government south to the next largest city – Danville, Virginia.  It is difficult to imagine this now, but on a line from Richmond to Atlanta, Danville was the largest city. This town, and the Richmond and Danville Railroad, was the main supply route for the Confederate army at Petersburg.

I recently drove through the city and stopped at the Danville home of tobacco entrepreneur Major William T. Sutherlin, best known as the Last Capitol of the Confederacy. Though I will save the bulk of my remarks on Danville for a post at this season in 2015, let me say here now that this museum house is really worth a visit.

The home hosted Jefferson Davis from April 3rd through 10th, and was the final location of Confederate Cabinet meetings and communications. Davis occupied a rear bedroom – to ostensibly facilitate a rapid departure if necessary.

The museum offers an introductory video that is quite good, after which you are given a portable CD player to carry with you throughout the house from stop to stop on a tour at your own pace.

Beyond visiting the home, I also went to the national cemetery where there are well over 1,000 Union soldiers buried. Danville housed over 7,000 prisoners – mostly in six tobacco warehouses converted into prisons (I’ll picture the only remaining building). Disease claimed many lives, especially in the winter of 64-65.

While in the cemetery, I chose to take a dozen or so pictures of various individual gravestones, with the goal of researching those names to discover their stories toward enhancing a blog posting on this cemetery. While doing so, I stumbled across our most common family ancestral name – “Romig.”  A cursory historical look would seem to have this Pennsylvania fellow outside the main line of the family (from PA), but I will continue to dig out more specifics. I do know he was captured in a particularly disastrous event for the Union at Petersburg, and died months later at the height of disease in the Danville Prisons.

Posted by on March 30, 2012 in General Civil War Themes and tagged , , , .

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March 28, 2012

150 Years Ago Today – Battle at Glorieta Pass, New Mexico Territory

A battle often dubbed as “The Gettysburg of the West” was fought 150 years ago today in the New Mexico territory at the base of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains at Glorieta Pass. A lesser advanced-units skirmish occurred two days earlier at Apache Canyon.

Total combatants numbered about 1300 for the Federals and 1100 for the Confederates. The Battle was a tactical victory for the Confederates, though ultimately a strategic one for the Union Forces. The destruction of Southern supplies forced the campaign back to Texas. Glorieta Pass was the westernmost and decisive battle of the New Mexico Campaign.

The original goal of the Confederates was to capture and secure the military supplies and rich mineral resources of the west. In retrospect, the plan was a grandiose endeavor – complicated particularly by the inability of any sizable force to live off the land, given the sparse vegetation of the American southwest.

To read more about the battle and the primary leaders, I would recommend the following link from the Civil War Preservation Trust: http://www.civilwar.org/battlefields/glorietapass/glorieta-pass-history-articles/glorietaalberts.html … Here then is a section from this writing, describing the plan and the unusual nature of Confederate Brigadier General Henry H. Sibley…

“In one stroke, Sibley would bring the entire Southwest, its gold and silver and the terminus of the transcontinental railroad under

Henry H. Sibley

Confederate control. Though farfetched, the scheme cost the Southern treasury little and retained the possibility of a sizable return. It was approved, and Davis commissioned Sibley a brigadier general, giving him authority to raise a mounted brigade in Texas for the campaign.

Sibley was poorly suited to the task. A heavy-drinking dragoon officer, his soldiers came to describe him as a ‘walking whiskey keg,’ or a dreamer prone to let the morrow take care of itself. Nonetheless, during the late summer and early autumn of 1861, he raised a brigade of three mounted regiments, the 4th, 5th and 7th Texas Mounted Volunteers, along with supporting artillery and supply units.”

Climbing through Glorieta Pass as seen from the roof of a train

Posted by on March 28, 2012 in Sesquicentennial Series and tagged .

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March 23, 2012

150 Years Ago Today – Battle of 1st Kernstown

The hamlet of Kernstown, Virginia was just to the southwest of Winchester and is in fact considered essentially a part of Winchester today. This one-day battle on a cold Sunday, March 23 of 1862, pitted about 3,400 Confederate troops against a Union force of roughly 8,500. This marked the first battle of Stonewall Jackson’s famed Valley Campaign of 1862 and was his only tactical defeat.

The bulk of the battle was fought upon the premises of the Pritchard Farm. Here was positioned the Union Army of General James Shields under the command of Col. Nathan Kimball. A total of 16 Federal guns manned the high ground just above the large Pritchard House.

Jackson was wrongly informed that much of this Union force had abandoned the Valley, and in an effort to re-take Winchester ordered an attack upon this artillery position. A destructive fire blasting the advancing Confederates in open field moved the action to another ridge one-half mile to the west. Though the Rebels won Sandy Ridge in a race to gain this high ground, ultimately the superior Union numbers would necessitate a withdrawal from the field for Jackson’s men – now low on ammunition. Over 1,000 soldiers were casualties (total of both sides).

Though the day went against Jackson, the Confederates gave an impression of a larger force than indeed existed. The consequence of this was to cause great concern in Washington, to the extent that it feed the decision of Lincoln and the War Department to retain more troops for the defense of the Capital – just at the time McClellan was begging for a total commitment for his Richmond advance. To what extent this entire scenario contributed to the ultimately failed effort of the Peninsula Campaign is the stuff of historical debate!

Driving south through Winchester this past Sunday, I determined to stop at the battlefield and get some pictures for the blog. I did not expect the building (Pritchard House) to be open at this season of the year, but neither did I expect to be completely locked out of the grounds by an iron gate. However, here is a picture of the Pritchard Home – where I’ll hope to someday visit (on a Sunday in season I guess).

 

Posted by on March 23, 2012 in Sesquicentennial Series and tagged , , , .

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March 18, 2012

150 Years Ago Today – George W. Randolph Named Confederate Secretary of War

Tough we often think of 1862 prior to Antietam as a year of Confederate successes, the early portion was beset by a number of defeats. Blame for setbacks such as the Battle of Roanoke Island (see blog on February 8th) was especially placed at the feet of the Confederate War Department and Secretary of War – Judah Benjamin.

George W. Randolph

So on this date 150 years ago, Jefferson Davis made some Cabinet changes – moving Benjamin to Secretary of State, while appointing George W. Randolph as Secretary of War. Randolph was the grandson of Thomas Jefferson and was actually born at Monticello.

Randolph was the third of a total of five Confederate Secretaries of War – serving throughout most of the remainder of 1862. He strengthened western and southern defenses, along with improving the order of the department in terms of procurement, organization, and conscription policies. Conflict with Jefferson Davis and poor health due to tuberculosis led to his resignation in November.

Judah Benjamin is also an interesting Confederate character. He was the first Attorney General (of four), the second Secretary of War (of five), and the third and final Secretary of State (the first being Robert Toombs – famous at Antietam for commanding the Georgia troops overlooking the Burnside Bridge).

Here are a few Judah Benjamin facts:

Judah Benjamin

  • Entered Yale at age 14
  • Was the earliest Jewish statesman to hold a number of varied high political offices
  • Was a U.S. Representative and Senator from Louisiana … and a great orator
  • Benjamin twice turned down nominations to the U.S. Supreme Court
  • Was sometimes referred to as “the brains of the Confederacy”
  • Was rumored along with Jefferson Davis to have conspiratorially plotted the assassination of Lincoln (absolutely no evidence for this)
  • Fled to England after the War and remained there as a barrister

Posted by on March 18, 2012 in Sesquicentennial Series and tagged , , , .

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March 17, 2012

The Irish, Whiskey, and the Civil War

Since today is a day to celebrate the Irish, I thought I’d relate some Irish stories originally written by my guy Abner Doubleday. The Irish are a bit famous for their love of whiskey, and that is indeed a time when Doubleday seemed to most talk about them.

For example, he wrote of a humorous incident that took place early in the War during his service under General Patterson. This event likely occurred close to the Virginia/West Virginia region near the Antietam Battlefield. He said:

A demijohn - a jug of 3-10 gallons with a wicker covering

“In the Shenandoah Valley campaign, an officer found that some of his men had managed to slip a demijohn of whiskey into one of the wagons, in consequence of which they were becoming quite hilarious.  He stopped the train, took the demijohn out and emptied it on the grass.  An Irish soldier who was very much interested in this proceeding looked on ruefully at the sacrifice and said to a comrade, ‘Dennis, if I’m kilt in the next battle, bring me back and bury me here.’”

It is well-known that a great many of the soldiers of the Civil War were from immigrant ranks, particularly the Germans and Irish. Doubleday is an attitudinal product of his age – while recognizing and often respecting the serious fight these men brought to a battlefield, he also maintained the prejudicial attitudes commonly extended to these classes of people.

Of these immigrant peoples he wrote: “The popular opinion that the dangerous classes make good soldiers is wholly erroneous. … In regard to nationalities so far as my experience goes, Americans from the rural districts, who have pride, patriotism, and self respect, are the best soldiers in the world. A great part of our army, as at present is constituted, is made of emigrants from Europe, who find themselves penniless and without employment in our great cities. They enlist for a livelihood. Of these the Germans are the most desirable. They have been accustomed to a stern military regime in their own country and hence are better fitted for service than the others who are wholly undisciplined. As they rarely indulge in anything stronger than beer they are always quiet and orderly. A rollicking devil may care Irishman who is fond of whiskey will keep an entire garrison in an uproar. He is always ready for a fight and may be depended upon when there is real danger, but these qualities hardly outweigh the serious disorder he occasions at times. He is warm-hearted too, fond of his officers and somewhat reckless of consequences. His humor is inexhaustible.”

Abner Doubleday was not fond of nor patient at all with alcohol, and had a reputation as a total abstainer … not common then, nor now! His view of alcohol is revealed in this excerpt:

“In my judgment, liquor is the bane of army life. Three-fourths of the troubles which arise in garrison or upon the march may be traced to it. How to keep it out is a problem unsolved, and so far as I can see, unsolvable. Prohibition does not prohibit—not even within garrison lines. I have proved that over and over. The strictest prohibitory orders only make the matter worse. When I issued them, whiskey came in—in loaves of bread, in watermelons, in buckets with false tops masquerading as innocent milk. Once a large number of full canteens were smuggled in under the skirts of a camp laundress. Indeed, the ingenuity of the men was boundless when it came to the matter of getting in intoxicants.”

(These accounts are from a typewritten manuscript Abner Doubleday wrote – likely a couple decades after the Civil War – as extensive notes for a book he was apparently contemplating on Army life.)

Posted by on March 17, 2012 in Abner Doubleday, General Civil War Themes and tagged , .

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March 14, 2012

Lincoln’s Summer Cottage

This past summer I took a day trip into Washington to visit the Lincoln Summer Cottage in the northern portion of the city at the Soldiers’ Home.

This retreat was especially enjoyed by the President during the Civil War, as it afforded him the opportunity to get out of the city. He was also able to be near the soldiers, whom he much enjoyed.

The house sat on a higher elevation than downtown Washington, and afforded some breezes and relief from the heat of the city. Though it is in a rather older surrounding city neighborhood now, in the early 1860s, this was the country!

The house itself is still somewhat a work in progress – only being restored and opened to the public for a handful of years (since early 2008 I believe). I am not suggesting it is not worth seeing, but I believe it will be increasingly enhanced. The nearby museum is especially good, and regular tour groups are briefed and then taken through the home.

The tour guide I had the day I visited did a very good job of explaining things. He mentioned a book that was written by one of his college professors – Matthew Pinsker – “Lincoln’s Sanctuary: Abraham Lincoln and the Soldiers’ Home.”  I looked at the book (and did buy it), and noted that the professor is from Dickinson College – where two of my sons attended, as well as my daughter-in-law. Seeing the tour guide still in the museum, I mentioned this to him, and he knew my daughter-in-law, and even ran in the same cross country program with her.

If you go, you are able to park inside the military installation. Just drive up to the gate and the guard will direct you to a specific parking area for your visit. I did not initially understand this, and parked on a nearby street and walked in, which was fine – but unnecessary.

Here is a link to the cottage:  http://www.lincolncottage.org

Posted by on March 14, 2012 in General Civil War Themes and tagged , .

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March 11, 2012

150 Years Ago Today: McClellan Removed as General-in-Chief

In the week prior to this date of March 11, 1862, President Lincoln had summoned General McClellan to tell him rather bluntly that his lack of action toward moving the Army had caused even some accusation that the General wished to see the Washington captured by the Rebels. This stimulated a very angry reaction from McClellan, even as the President assured him that he had no such view of the matter.

McClellan proclaimed that all doubt would be removed by the support (through a vote) of his 12 divisional commanders of his Urbana Plan to move upon Richmond. The actual vote was 8-4. Lincoln and Stanton, though still dubious, had little they could do but go along with the plan… given the support McClellan largely enjoyed from the entire Army.

Confederate Winter Quarters in Manassas

So, on March 8th, Lincoln issued the order approving the Urbana Plan, providing McClellan allowed enough protection for the Capital.

Three days later on the 11th, another order removed McClellan as General-in-Chief, with Lincoln saying that, due to the General’s duties now taking him to the field, he could no longer “do it all.”  Lincoln and Stanton would handle the responsibility.

McClellan responded well – having received his primary desire to see his plan approved, the General even wrote to his political Democrat friend Samuel Barlow of New York: “The President is all right – he is my strongest friend.”

At this same time, the Confederates who had wintered in nearby Manassas retreated south. A march to the camp by McClellan and the Army revealed that the encampment had clearly not housed but even half the number the General claimed. Additionally, “Quaker guns” – logs painted to look like cannons – caused a great deal of embarrassment for McClellan. But the Little Napoleon was now fully focused upon his new endeavor to capture Richmond.

Confederate Quaker Guns

Posted by on March 11, 2012 in Sesquicentennial Series and tagged , , .

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