Walter Coffey's Blog, page 170
January 20, 2019
Confederates Target New Bern
January 19, 2019
Reconstruction Begins in Arkansas
January 17, 2019
Eastern Tennessee: The Dandridge Engagement
July 10, 2015
General Announcements
I have recently been questioned about the Confederate flag on my logo:
While the Confederate flag has sadly been co-opted by hatemongers, it is NOT in and of itself a symbol of hate. It was the flag of a nation attempting to declare its independence, just as the U.S.A. declared its independence almost 239 years ago to this day. More brave and noble men died to defend that flag than the number of hatemongers disgracing its memory today.
As a Civil War historian and a member of the Sons of Union Veterans, I support the resolution approved by my fraternity’s national organization, which I invite you to read here.
The logo will not be changed.
This Site Is Closing
I will no longer contribute articles to this blog. I will be devoting my full attention to my new blog, CivilWarMonths.com. Thank you all for your support these past three years, and I encourage you to please follow my new blog to learn about the true history of the greatest conflict in American history.
For liberty and posterity!
Walter Coffey
June 1, 2015
The Civil War This Week: May 11-31, 1865
Thursday, May 11
Brigadier General M. Jeff Thompson surrendered the remains of his Confederate brigade at Chalk Bluff, Arkansas under the terms that Federal General-in-Chief Ulysses S. Grant had given to Confederate General-in-Chief Robert E. Lee.
The Battle of Palmito Ranch began on the banks of the Rio Grande in Texas. Confederate cavalry drove Federals back to Boca Chica.
The Battle of Palmito Ranch | Image Credit: Wikispaces.com
C.S.S. Stonewall arrived at Havana, Cuba.
A Federal expedition began from Brazos Santiago, Texas.
Friday, May 12
The Battle of Palmito Ranch continued as Federals attacked a Confederate outpost then withdrew under pressure.
The eight people accused of conspiring to assassinate Abraham Lincoln pleaded not guilty before a military commission at Washington.
Hoods worn by the Lincoln conspirators during their trial | Image Credit: Flickr.com
President Andrew Johnson appointed Major General Oliver O. Howard to head the Freedmen’s Bureau.
Saturday, May 13
The Battle of Palmito Ranch ended as Confederates repulsed the Federals back, ironically ended the last major land battle of the war in a Confederate victory.
Confederate General E.K. Smith | Image Credit: CivilWarDailyGazette.com
The Confederate governors of Arkansas, Louisiana, Missouri, and a delegate from Texas met with General Edmund Kirby Smith, commanding the Confederate Trans-Mississippi District, at Marshall, Texas to discuss future plans.
Sunday, May 14
A Federal expedition began from Brashear City, Louisiana. Skirmishing occurred in Missouri.
Monday, May 15
Edmund Kirby Smith refused a demand from Major General John Pope, commanding the Federal Department of the Missouri, to surrender.
A Federal expedition began from Pine Bluff, Arkansas.
Tuesday, May 16
No noteworthy action occurred.
Wednesday, May 17
Ulysses S. Grant assigned Major General Philip Sheridan to command Federals west of the Mississippi and south of the Arkansas.
Scattered Confederate troops in Florida surrendered to Brigadier General Israel Vogdes.
Thursday, May 18
A Federal expedition began from Lebanon, Missouri.
Friday, May 19
The Confederate raider C.S.S. Stonewall surrendered at Havana, Cuba.
A Federal expedition began from Kingsville, Missouri.
Saturday, May 20
Federals skirmished with guerrillas near Longwood, Missouri.
Sunday, May 21
No noteworthy action occurred.
Monday, May 22
President Johnson removed commercial restrictions on southern ports except Galveston, La Salle, Brazos Santiago, and Brownsville, Texas.
Federal authorities imprisoned former Confederate President Jefferson Davis in a cell at Fortress Monroe, Virginia.
Alfred Waud sketch of Jefferson Davis jailed at Fort Monroe | Image Credit: Wikispaces.com
Skirmishing occurred in Missouri.
Tuesday, May 23
Major General George G. Meade’s Federal Army of the Potomac marched down Pennsylvania Avenue in a grand review.
The Grand Review at Washington | Image Credit: Flickr.com
The pro-U.S. government of Virginia began operations at Richmond.
Federal expeditions began from Thibodeaux, Louisiana; Warrensburg, Missouri; and Pine Bluff, Arkansas. Skirmishing occurred in Missouri.
Wednesday, May 24
Major General William T. Sherman’s Federal Army of the West marched down Pennsylvania Avenue in a grand review.
A Federal expedition began from Napoleonville, Louisiana. Skirmishing occurred in Missouri.
Thursday, May 25
Lieutenant General Simon B. Buckner, representing Edmund Kirby Smith, began negotiations to surrender the Confederate Trans-Mississippi District at New Orleans.
Federal army units began disbanding, and troops began going home.
Confederates abandoned Sabine Pass, Texas.
A massive explosion occurred when 20 tons of captured Confederate gunpowder ignited in a warehouse in Mobile, Alabama. Officials estimated the property loss at $5 million.
A Federal expedition began from Bayou Beouf, Louisiana.
Friday, May 26
Simon B. Buckner surrendered the Confederate Army of the West, to Major General Peter J. Osterhaus at New Orleans. This disbanded the last significant Confederate force still in the field.
Saturday, May 27
17th President Andrew Johnson
President Andrew Johnson ordered the release of most people imprisoned by military authorities.
Skirmishing occurred in Missouri.
Sunday, May 28
No noteworthy action occurred.
Monday, May 29
President Andrew Johnson issued two proclamations:
Granting conditional amnesty to former Confederates
Forming a civil government in North Carolina
Federals operated against guerrillas in Texas on the Rio Grande; this continued throughout the year.
Tuesday, May 30
No noteworthy action occurred.
Wednesday, May 31
A Federal expedition began from Barrancas, Florida.
THE WAR ENDED AND RECONSTRUCTION BEGAN.
—–
Primary Sources:
Foote, Shelby, The Civil War: A Narrative: Volume 3: Red River to Appomattox (Vintage Civil War Library, Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, Kindle Edition, 2011)
Long, E.B. and Long, Barbara, The Civil War Day by Day (New York: Da Capo Press, Inc., 1971), p. 687-91
May 10, 2015
The Civil War This Week: May 4-10, 1865
Thursday, May 4
General Richard Taylor surrendered all Confederate forces in Alabama and Mississippi to Federal General E.R.S. Canby at Citronelle, Alabama.
Confederate President Jefferson Davis and his party continued their southward flight toward Georgia.
Federal President Abraham Lincoln was laid to rest at Springfield, Illinois.
A Federal expedition began from Pine Bluff, Arkansas. Skirmishing occurred in Alabama and Missouri.
Friday, May 5
The Connecticut legislature ratified the Thirteenth Amendment abolishing slavery.
Jefferson Davis and his party��reached Sandersville, Georgia.
A Federal expedition began from Pulaski, Tennessee. Skirmishing occurred in Georgia and Missouri.
Saturday, May 6
The War Department issued orders setting up the military commission to try the alleged conspirators to Abraham Lincoln’s assassination.
Jefferson Davis and his group continued moving��southward as Federals scoured the countryside searching for them.
Federal expeditions began from Richmond, Virginia and Little Rock, Arkansas.
Sunday, May 7
Jefferson Davis and his��party continued avoiding Federal troops.
Monday, May 8
E.R.S. Canby accepted the paroles of Richard Taylor’s troops and began preparing to move against the Confederate army west of the Mississippi River.
Federal expeditions began from various points in Missouri; Plum Creek in the Nebraska Territory; and Spring Hill, Alabama. Skirmishing occurred in Missouri.
Tuesday, May 9
Negotiations took place for the surrender of Brig Gen M. Jeff Thompson’s Confederates at Chalk Bluff on the St. Francis River in Arkansas.
President Andrew Johnson recognized Francis H. Pierpont as governor of Virginia.
The trial of the eight alleged conspirators to Abraham Lincoln’s assassination began in Washington.
Jefferson Davis and his wife Varina met near��Dublin on the Oconee River in Georgia. Federal cavalry closed in on them this evening.
Wednesday, May 10
Federal cavalry captured Jefferson Davis and his group��near Irwinville, Georgia.
President Johnson issued a proclamation that “armed resistance to the authority of this Government in the said insurrectionary States may be regarded as virtually at an end…” Therefore the Navy should arrest the crews of commerce raiders still on the high seas and bring them in. He also warned against continued hospitality by foreign powers toward Confederate ships. The naval blockade east of the Mississippi was partially lifted.
Major General Samuel Jones surrendered his Confederate forces��at Tallahassee, Florida.
Federal irregulars mortally wounded William Clarke Quantrill near Taylorsville in Spencer County, Kentucky. Quantrill died on 6 June in Louisville.
—–
Primary Sources:
Foote, Shelby, The Civil War: A Narrative: Volume 3: Red River to Appomattox (Vintage Civil War Library, Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, Kindle Edition, 2011)
Long, E.B. and Long, Barbara, The Civil War Day by Day (New York: Da Capo Press, Inc., 1971), p. 685-87
May 4, 2015
The Civil War This Week: Apr 27-May 3, 1865
Thursday, April 27
The steamboat Sultana exploded and sank in the Mississippi River, killing up to 1,800 recently released Federal prisoners of war in the worst maritime disaster in American history.
Early this morning, the steamship carrying the body of John Wilkes Booth arrived at Washington. At least 10 people who had known Booth identified the body as his. Federal officials imprisoned eight people accused of conspiring with Booth to kill Abraham Lincoln in Washington’s Old Penitentiary.
Federal Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton warned Major General George Thomas, commanding troops at Nashville, that Confederate President Jefferson Davis was moving toward Texas with $6 to $13 million. Stanton ordered Thomas to “use all possible means to prevent the escape of Davis.”
Meanwhile, Davis held a cabinet meeting at Fort Mill, where he expressed dismay that General Joseph E. Johnston had surrendered without even being surrounded or threatened with destruction. Treasury Secretary G.A. Trenholm submitted his resignation, too ill to continue the southward journey.
The Lincoln funeral train paused at Rochester and Buffalo, New York. Former President Millard Fillmore and future President Grover Cleveland paid tribute to Lincoln in Buffalo.
Federal General-in-Chief Ulysses S. Grant left Raleigh, North Carolina after conferring with Major General William T. Sherman.
Skirmishing occurred in Missouri.
Friday, April 28
Jefferson Davis continued moving into South Carolina. He accepted G.A. Trenholm’s resignation, thanking him for his “lofty patriotism and personal sacrifice,” and replaced him with Postmaster General John Reagan.
Some 50,000 people viewed Abraham Lincoln’s coffin in Cleveland. Workers hastily built an outdoor pavilion to accommodate the crowd, as 10,000 people filed past the coffin each hour in driving rain.
Rescuers collected survivors and debris from the Sultana explosion.
William T. Sherman left his officers to handle the dissolution of Joseph E. Johnston’s Confederate army and headed to Savannah, Georgia.
Saturday, April 29
President Andrew Johnson removed trade restrictions in former Confederate territory east of the Mississippi River.
People viewed Abraham Lincoln’s coffin at Columbus, Ohio.
Jefferson��Davis and his��party reached Yorkville, South Carolina.
Skirmishing occurred in Kentucky.
Sunday, April 30
North of Mobile, Federal General E.R.S. Canby and Confederate General Richard Taylor agreed to a truce prior to Taylor surrendering all Confederates in Alabama and Mississippi.
The Lincoln funeral train arrived at Indianapolis.
A Federal expedition began from Brashear City, Louisiana.
Monday, May 1
President Johnson appointed officers to form a commission and try the��eight people accused of conspiring to assassinate Abraham Lincoln.
In Chicago, a procession of about 50,000 people for Abraham Lincoln began at 12th Street and Michigan Avenue. Escorting Lincoln’s hearse were 36 girls in white representing the 36 states. The procession ended��with Lincoln lying in state in the Cook County courthouse. A sign over the courthouse read: “Illinois Clasps to Her Bosom Her Slain, but Glorified Son.”
Jefferson Davis and his��party arrived at Cokesbury, South Carolina.
Missouri Governor Thomas Fletcher replaced members of the state government in accordance with a resolution passed by a constitutional convention that vacated the state supreme court and about 800 jobs.
A Federal expedition began from Ojo de Anaya in the New Mexico Territory.
Tuesday, May 2
E.R.S. Canby telegraphed Ulysses S. Grant that Richard Taylor had agreed to surrender based on the same terms that Grant had given Robert E.��Lee.
President Johnson issued a proclamation accusing Jefferson Davis and others of conspiring to assassinate Abraham Lincoln and offering a $100,000 reward for Davis’s capture.
Lincoln’s coffin continued lying in state in Chicago’s Cook County courthouse. An estimated 125,000 mourners paid respects before the procession left town this evening, passing through Joliet around midnight on its way to Springfield.
The Davis party reached Abbeville, South Carolina. Davis held��a council of war with his cabinet members and expressed his desire to continue the war. However, the others unanimously agreed that they would not conduct a guerrilla war to support a government-in-exile. They agreed to help Davis reach Mexico but nothing more. Shocked by his advisors’ resolve, Davis said, “All is lost indeed,” and the meeting adjourned. Navy Secretary Stephen R. Mallory resigned, and the remaining members of the Davis party left Abbeville before midnight.
Wednesday, May 3
Jefferson Davis and his party crossed the Savannah River and reached Washington, Georgia. Davis accepted Stephen Mallory’s resignation. Secretary of State Judah Benjamin also left the party and eventually escaped to Great Britain in a desperate attempt to garner foreign aid.
The Lincoln funeral train reached its final destination at Springfield, with Lincoln lying in state in the Illinois Statehouse. The mayor of St. Louis loaned Springfield a hearse valued at $6,000. A delegation of Illinoisans gathered in front of Lincoln’s home at 8th and Jackson streets.
President Johnson met with a Pennsylvania delegation and declared his intention to punish Confederate leaders for the war. However, Johnson asserted he would be lenient toward Confederate soldiers who had simply followed draft laws and served in the military.
A Federal expedition began from Fort Adams and Rodney in Mississippi. Skirmishing occurred in Missouri.
—–
Primary Sources:
Foote, Shelby, The Civil War: A Narrative: Volume 3: Red River to Appomattox (Vintage Civil War Library, Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, Kindle Edition, 2011)
Long, E.B. and Long, Barbara, The Civil War Day by Day (New York: Da Capo Press, Inc., 1971), p. 683-85
April 26, 2015
The Civil War This Week: Apr 20-26, 1865
Thursday, April 20
The Arkansas state legislature ratified the Thirteenth Amendment abolishing slavery.
Former Confederate General-in-Chief Robert E. Lee wrote from Richmond to President Jefferson Davis, “I believe an army cannot be organized or supported in Virginia,” or anywhere else east of the Mississippi River. Lee opposed a partisan war and recommended suspending hostilities to restore peace.
General James Harrison Wilson’s Federal troops occupied Macon, Georgia. Skirmishing occurred in Georgia and Alabama.
Friday, April 21
The body of President Abraham Lincoln left Washington en route to its final resting place in Springfield, Illinois.
John S. Mosby disbanded his Confederate partisans at Millwood, Virginia.
President Andrew Johnson told an Indiana delegation that he believed the southern states had never left the Union. This contrasted with the views of the Radical Republicans in Congress, who asserted that the southern states committed political “suicide” by seceding and must thus be treated as conquered provinces, not as equals to the northern “loyal” states.
Federal expeditions began from Donaldsonville, Louisiana and Rolla, Missouri.
Saturday, April 22
James H. Wilson’s Federal cavalry occupied Talladega, Alabama.
President Lincoln’s assassin John Wilkes Booth and accomplice David Herold crossed the Potomac River into Virginia.
The Lincoln funeral train reached Philadelphia from Harrisburg.
President Davis met with his cabinet at Charlotte to consider the surrender agreement between Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston and Federal Major General William T. Sherman.
General Henry W. Halleck assumed command of the Federal Military Division of the James, and Nathaniel P. Banks resumed command of the Department of the Gulf.
A Federal expedition began from Deer Creek in the Dakota Territory. Skirmishing occurred in North Carolina, Georgia, and Missouri.
Sunday, April 23
James H. Wilson’s Federals skirmished at Munford’s Station, Alabama while General George Stoneman’s Federal cavalry fought near Hendersonville, North Carolina.
President Davis’s cabinet unanimously approved the surrender agreement between Joseph E. Johnston and William T. Sherman. Davis��wrote to his wife Varina.
Federal expeditions began near Fort Zarah, Kansas and Pulaski, Tennessee.
Monday, April 24
Federal General-in-Chief Ulysses S. Grant arrived at the headquarters of Major General William T. Sherman to inform him that the Johnson administration had rejected the surrender document signed by Sherman and Joseph E. Johnston last week. Sherman notified Johnston that the truce was suspended until a new agreement could be reached.
John Wilkes Booth and David Herold crossed the Rappahannock River at Port Conway, Virginia.
Tuesday, April 25
Joseph E. Johnston requested a new meeting with William T. Sherman to avoid renewing hostilities. Sherman accepted.
The Lincoln funeral train began moving toward Albany, New York.
A Federal expedition began from Pine Bluff, Arkansas. Skirmishing occurred in Missouri.
Wednesday, April 26
Around 2 a.m., Federal cavalry caught up to John Wilkes Booth and David Herold in a tobacco barn on the farm of Richard H. Garrett. Herold surrendered but Booth refused and was shot to death.
Joseph E. Johnston agreed to surrender all Confederate troops under his command to William T. Sherman according to the same surrender terms that Ulysses S. Grant had given to Robert E. Lee.
President Davis met with his cabinet at Charlotte and agreed to head southwest to get across the Mississippi River. Attorney General George Davis resigned.
A Federal expedition began from Little Rock, Arkansas.
—–
Primary Sources:
Foote, Shelby, The Civil War: A Narrative: Volume 3: Red River to Appomattox (Vintage Civil War Library, Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, Kindle Edition, 2011)
Long, E.B. and Long, Barbara, The Civil War Day by Day (New York: Da Capo Press, Inc., 1971), p. 680-83
April 19, 2015
The Civil War This Week: Apr 13-19, 1865
Thursday, April 13
Major General William T. Sherman’s Federal army entered the North Carolina capital of Raleigh. Confederates under��General Joseph E. Johnston moved from Greensboro to��Hillsboro, North Carolina.
U.S. Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton ordered an end to the military draft and cut military appropriations.
President Abraham Lincoln conferred with General-in-Chief Ulysses S. Grant, Navy Secretary Gideon Welles, Stanton, and others.
A Federal expedition began from Lexington, Kentucky. Skirmishing occurred at Whistler or Eight Mile Creek Bridge and at Wetumpka, Alabama.
Friday, April 14
Northern officers and dignitaries attended a flag-raising ceremony at Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor. Henry Ward Beecher delivered an oration; President Lincoln had declined an invitation to attend.
William T. Sherman accepted the surrender of Raleigh, North Carolina, as his��Federals advanced from Raleigh to Durham Station. Joseph E. Johnston received permission from President Jefferson Davis to ask Sherman if he was “willing to make a temporary suspension of active operations.”
President Lincoln was shot in the head by prominent actor John Wilkes Booth while attending a play at Ford’s Theatre in Washington.
Skirmishing occurred in North Carolina, Tennessee, and Alabama.
Saturday, April 15
President Abraham Lincoln died of his gunshot wound at 7:22 a.m.��Andrew Johnson became the 17th U.S. president; to the horror of many northerners, Johnson was a southern Democrat.
Fugitives John Wilkes Booth and accomplice David Herold escaped from Washington and stayed at the home of Dr. Samuel Mudd, who set Booth’s broken leg.
Jefferson Davis left Greensboro, North Carolina with a cavalry escort.
Federal expeditions began from Randolph and Pocahontas counties, West Virginia and Bath and Highland, Virginia. Skirmishing occurred in North Carolina and Missouri.
Sunday, April 16
Northerners deeply mourned the death of Abraham Lincoln, and southerners knew that Lincoln’s death would result in vengeance against them.
Federal troops pursued John Wilkes Booth and David Herold, who reached the home of Samuel Cox in Rich Hill, Maryland.
The fleeing Confederate government reached Lexington, North Carolina.
Federal cavalry under General James Wilson captured West Point and Columbus in Georgia.
Skirmishing occurred in Alabama.
Monday, April 17
William T. Sherman and Joseph E. Johnston met at the Bennett House near Durham Station, North Carolina.
Jefferson Davis and his party reached Salisbury, North Carolina en route to Charlotte.
John Wilkes Booth and David Herold hid in a cluster of trees while trying to gain transport across the Potomac River south of Port Tobacco, Maryland.
This evening, the body of President Lincoln was taken from the guest chamber of the White House to the East Room, where it lay in state until the funeral on the 19th.
James Wilson’s Federal cavalry destroyed Columbus, Georgia and the ironclad gunboat C.S.S. Muscogee or Jackson.
A Federal expedition began from Blakely, Alabama. Skirmishing occurred in North Carolina.
Tuesday, April 18
William T. Sherman and Joseph E. Johnston signed a “Memorandum, or Basis of Agreement,” which proved highly controversial.
Jefferson Davis and his party continued southward to Concord, North Carolina.
The body of Abraham Lincoln lay in state in the East Room of the White House.
James Wilson’s Federal cavalry skirmished in Georgia. Other skirmishing occurred in Kentucky and Tennessee.
Wednesday, April 19
Funeral services took place for Abraham Lincoln in the White House and later at the U.S. Capitol.
Major General John Pope, commanding the Federal Military Division of the Missouri, wrote to Lieutenant General E. Kirby Smith, commanding the Confederate Trans-Mississippi Department, requesting Smith’s surrender based on the terms that Ulysses S. Grant had given to Robert E. Lee.
Major General Henry W. Halleck became commander of the Federal Military Division of the James, which included Virginia and parts of North Carolina not occupied by Sherman’s forces.
Jefferson Davis and his party arrived at Charlotte, North Carolina, where Davis first heard of Lincoln’s assassination. Confederate General Wade Hampton wrote to Davis proposing to cross the Mississippi River and continue the fight.
A Federal expedition began from Memphis, Tennessee and Terre Bonne, Louisiana. Skirmishing occurred in Georgia.
—–
Primary Sources:
Foote, Shelby, The Civil War: A Narrative: Volume 3: Red River to Appomattox (Vintage Civil War Library, Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, Kindle Edition, 2011)
Long, E.B. and Long, Barbara, The Civil War Day by Day (New York: Da Capo Press, Inc., 1971), p. 675-80
April 12, 2015
The Civil War This Week: Apr 6-12, 1865
Thursday, April 6
The Battle of Sayler’s Creek occurred, in which Federals routed Confederate General-in-Chief Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia as it fled west from Petersburg and Richmond.
Federal cavalry under General James H. Wilson and General Nathan Bedford Forrest’s Confederates��clashed near Lanier’s Mills, Sipsey Creek, and King’s Store in Alabama. Skirmishing occurred in southwest Virginia and West Virginia.
Friday, April 7
Federal General-in-Chief Ulysses S. Grant sent Robert E. Lee a message “asking of you the surrender of that portion of the C.S Army known as the Army of Northern Virginia.” Lee responded by asking “the terms you will offer on condition of its surrender.”
Tennessee ratified the Thirteenth Amendment and inaugurated abolitionist W.G. “Parson” Brownlow as governor.
Officials of the U.S. and Great Britain opened correspondence over claims arising from depredations of the Confederate commerce raider Alabama.
James H. Wilson and Nathan Bedford Forrest clashed at Fike’s Ferry on the Cahawba River in Alabama. A Federal expedition began from Blakely, Alabama.
Saturday, April 8
Ulysses S. Grant answered Robert E. Lee’s query of yesterday by stating that “the men and officers surrendered shall be disqualified from taking up arms again against the Government of the United States until properly exchanged.”
Confederate defenders evacuated Spanish Fort guarding Mobile, Alabama during the night.
A Federal expedition began from Vienna and Fairfax Court House, Virginia. Skirmishing occurred in North Carolina and Missouri.
Sunday, April 9
Robert E. Lee surrendered the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia to Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Court House, Virginia. This virtually sealed the Confederacy’s defeat.
Monday, April 10
Robert E. Lee issued General Order No. 9, his last official order as commander of the Army of Northern Virginia: “After four years of arduous service, marked by unsurpassed courage and fortitude, the Army of Northern Virginia has been compelled to yield to overwhelming numbers and resources…”
Confederate President Jefferson Davis, upon learning of Lee’s surrender, left Danville, Virginia to relocate at Greensboro, North Carolina.
James H. Wilson’s Federals clashed the Nathan Bedford Forrest’s Confederates at Lowndesborough and Benton, Alabama. Skirmishing occurred in Virginia and North Carolina.
Tuesday, April 11
Major General William T. Sherman’s Federal Army of the West entered Smithfield, North Carolina, where they learned of Lee’s surrender two days ago.
President Abraham Lincoln delivered a speech to a joyous crowd from a second floor window in the White House. His legalistic explanation of what could be expected in the upcoming reconstruction period dampened spirits a bit.
Wednesday, April 12
James H. Wilson’s Federals occupied the Alabama state capital of Montgomery, which had also been��the first Confederate capital.
Jefferson Davis and his cabinet arrived at Greensboro to a cold reception. Davis consulted with General P.G.T. Beauregard on how to continue the fight.
A formal surrender ceremony took place as the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia relinquished its arms.
President Lincoln revoked��permission for the pro-Confederate Virginia legislature to assemble at Richmond.
William T. Sherman’s Federals��approached Raleigh, North Carolina.
Federal expeditions began from Port Hudson, Louisiana; Tallahassa Mission in the Indian Territory; Dakota City in the Nebraska Territory; and Fort Stanton in the New Mexico Territory.
—–
Primary Sources:
Foote, Shelby, The Civil War: A Narrative: Volume 3: Red River to Appomattox (Vintage Civil War Library, Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, Kindle Edition, 2011)
Long, E.B. and Long, Barbara, The Civil War Day by Day (New York: Da Capo Press, Inc., 1971), p. 667-75
