Walter Coffey's Blog, page 199

This Week in the Civil War: Sep 10-16, 1862

Wednesday, September 10:  In Maryland, Federal cavalry informed General George McClellan that General Robert E. Lee’s Confederate Army of Northern Virginia was falling back toward the Monocacy River, away from Frederick. McClellan responded by accelerating his previously sluggish pursuit. As Confederates advanced north in Kentucky, 1,000 “squirrel hunters” volunteered in Cincinnati to defend against a possible Confederate invasion.

Thursday, September 11:  In Maryland, Lee’s Confederates entered Hagerstown, and skirmishing with Federal forces increased. Pennsylvania Governor Andrew Curtin called for 50,000 volunteers to defend the state. In Kentucky, Confederates under General Edmund Kirby Smith occupied Maysville. Skirmishing intensified as the Confederates came within seven miles of Cincinnati.

Friday, September 12:  In Maryland, McClellan’s Federals reached Frederick as Lee’s Confederates began dispersing in accordance with Special Orders No. 191. “Stonewall” Jackson’s Confederate corps approached Harpers Ferry, and skirmishing took place over the next five days. In Kentucky, Confederates occupied Glasgow as skirmishing continued. The Federal Army of Virginia was officially absorbed into McClellan’s Army of the Potomac. In Pennsylvania, assets and archives were transfered from Harrisburg and Philadelphia to New York. The Confederate Congress debated the wisdom of the northern invasion. President Jefferson Davis wrote to the governors of Texas, Missouri, Louisiana, and Arkansas attempting to assure them that the Trans-Mississippi theater of war was not being ignored.

Saturday, September 13:  In Maryland, two Federal soldiers found a copy of Robert E. Lee’s Special Orders No. 191. They were forwarded to George McClellan, who now knew that Lee’s forces were divided. McClellan pushed his Federals west, while Lee learned that McClellan had found his order. Skirmishing intensified. In western Virginia, Federals evacuated Charleston as Confederates under General W.W. Loring advanced from the Kanawha Valley. In New Orleans, General Benjamin Butler, commander of Federal occupation forces, ordered all foreigners to register with Federal authorities.

Sunday, September 14:  In Maryland, the left wing of George McClellan’s Federal Army of the Potomac advanced toward Crampton’s Gap to cut off the Confederates at Harpers Ferry and divide Lee’s army. Meanwhile, another Federal force attacked Confederates at South Mountain. After hard fighting, the Confederates withdrew; Federal General Jesse Reno was killed. This became known as the Battle of South Mountain. Meanwhile, “Stonewall” Jackson’s Confederates lay siege to the Federal garrison at Harpers Ferry. In Kentucky, General Braxton Bragg’s Confederates reached Munfordville. Federals under General Don Carlos Buell hurried ahead of Bragg and reached Bowling Green. In Mississippi, a third phase of the overall Confederate offensive began taking shape when Confederates under General Sterling Price occupied Iuka near Corinth.

Monday, September 15:  In Virginia, “Stonewall” Jackson’s Confederates captured Harpers Ferry, taking about 12,000 prisoners. In Maryland, Robert E. Lee’s Confederates at South Mountain fell back to Sharpsburg. Lee was hurriedly concentrating his scattered forces before George McClellan’s Federals could launch a full-scale attack. Lee originally planned to withdraw, but when he learned that Jackson had captured Harpers Ferry, he began forming a line along Antietam Creek. In Kentucky, Edmund Kirby Smith’s Confederates reached Covington across the Ohio River from Cincinnati but quickly withdrew. Braxton Bragg’s Confederates lay siege to Munfordville. 

Tuesday, September 16:  In Maryland, Robert E. Lee gathered his Army of Northern Virginia and established battle lines along Antietam Creek. “Stonewall” Jackson’s Confederates arrived on the scene after a hard march from Harpers Ferry, while one of Jackson’s divisions under General A.P. Hill remained behind to accept the garrison’s surrender. George McClellan faced criticism for not attacking today. In Kentucky, Bragg continued his siege of 4,000 Federals at Munfordville. Smith’s Confederates withdrew from the Ohio River toward Lexington. President Abraham Lincoln, unable to contact McClellan, wired Governor Curtin of Pennsylvania: “What do you hear from Gen. McClellan’s army?”

This Week In The Civil War: Sep 3-9, 1862

Wednesday, September 3:  General Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia began moving to relieve Federal pressure on Virginia by invading the North. The troops moved west toward Leesburg and occupied Winchester. In Washington, Federal General John Pope conferred with President Abraham Lincoln and General-in-Chief Henry W. Halleck. Pope delivered a report accusing General Fitz John Porter of disobeying orders and General George McClellan of failing to support him in the Battle of Second Bull Run. In the Dakota Territory, Sioux Indians unsuccessfully attacked Fort Abercrombie as part of their uprising against Federal authority. In Kentucky, Confederates under General Edmund Kirby Smith continued their invasion by occupying the state capital of Frankfort.

Thursday, September 4:  Lee’s Confederates began crossing the Potomac River into Maryland; the crossing continued for three days. Various skirmishes ensued as politicians conferred in Washington, Federals evacuated Frederick, Maryland, and McClellan began reorganizing the Army of the Potomac. In Minnesota, Federals skirmished with Sioux Indians at Hutchinson. In Kentucky, John Hunt Morgan’s Confederate raiders joined Edmund Kirby Smith’s men. In western Virginia, Confederates under General A.G. Jenkins crossed the Ohio River for a brief northern invasion.

Friday, September 5:  In Washington, Halleck informed Pope that his Army of Virginia would be consolidated into McClellan’s Army of the Potomac. McClellan began gathering Federal troops around Washington as Robert E. Lee continued advancing on Frederick, Maryland. In Indiana, Governor Morton called on citizens to form militias along the Ohio River in defense of a potential Confederate invasion. At Sparta, Tennessee, Bragg proclaimed, “Alabama is redeemed. Tennesseans! your capital and State are almost restored without firing a gun. You return conquerors. Kentuckians! the first great blow has been struck for your freedom.” Meanwhile, General Don Carlos Buell’s Federals abandoned northern Alabama, falling back to Murfreesboro and Nashville.

Saturday, September 6:  In Maryland, Confederates under General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson occupied Frederick. Federal cavalry skirmished with the Confederate invaders over the next nine days. Robert E. Lee had expected to gain recruits in Maryland, but Frederick was abandoned and an observer wrote, “everything partook of a churchyard appearance.” In Virginia, Federals evacuated the important supply center at Aquia Creek near Fredericksburg. John Pope was assigned to command the new Department of the Northwest, which consisted of Wisconsin, Iowa, Minnesota, and the Nebraska and Dakota territories. His main task was to suppress the Sioux Indian uprising. In the Dakota Territory, the Sioux unsuccessfully attacked Fort Abercrombie a second time.

Sunday, September 7:  George McClellan’s Army of the Potomac began slowly moving northward from Washington, protecting the capital and Baltimore while unaware of Robert E. Lee’s location. Harrisburg, Pennsylvania and Hagerstown, Maryland experienced “tremendous excitement,” with frantic people preparing for a Confederate invasion. The Federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry was isolated by Lee’s forces. President Lincoln worried about events in both the eastern and western theaters, asking “Where is Gen. Bragg” and “What about Harper’s Ferry?” U.S.S. Essex battled Port Hudson batteries on the Mississippi River. Confederate President Jefferson Davis wrote to Robert E. Lee, Braxton Bragg, and Edmund Kirby Smith that they should inform northerners “That the Confederate Government is waging the war solely for self-defence, that is has no design of conquest or any other purpose than to secure peace and the abandonment by the United States of its pretensions to govern a people who have never been their subjects and who prefer self-government to a Union with them.”

Monday, September 8:  Apprehension intensified in Maryland and Pennsylvania, as Robert E. Lee’s Confederates continued advancing. Lee proclaimed to Maryland residents: “The people of the Confederate States have long watched with the deepest sympathy the wrongs and outrages that have been inflicted upon the citizens… We know no enemies among you, and will protect all, of every opinion. It is for you to decide your destiny freely and without constraint. This army will respect your choice, whatever it may be.” President Lincoln asked George McClellan at Rockville, Maryland, “How does it look now?” General Nathaniel Banks assumed command of the Washington defenses. Various skirmishing occurred in Tennessee and Kentucky.

Tuesday, September 9:  At Frederick, Robert E. Lee issued Special Orders No. 191, calling for “Stonewall” Jackson to attack Harpers Ferry and General James Longstreet’s corps to advance on Boonesborough, Maryland. These orders would later be found by Federal troops and forwarded to George McClellan. General Samuel P. Heintzelman was given command of the Washington defenses south of the Potomac.

The First Federal Income Tax

In accordance with the Revenue Acts of 1861 and 1862, the first Federal income tax went into effect in September 1862. The New York Herald opined: “To-day begins a new era of this country. Beyond a few local and state taxes, which were felt by none but owners of real estate, this country has never been taxed before… We have… amused ourselves greatly by laughing at the over taxed people of England, where a man is taxed from the cradle to the grave; where light, heat and water are taxed, and where not only every rich man, but even the poorest peasant, is obliged to pay largely to the privilege of bad government…”

The Herald continued: “The effect of the tax will be to deepen public sentiment. The people will be less ready to excuse the mistakes of our government and our generals… The war will be better conducted, for every man, having to pay his money towards carrying on the war, will insist and assist that it shall be properly prosecuted and speedily and gloriously conducted.”

A Soldier’s Letter: Henry Pearson

Letter from Captain Pearson (Company C, 6th New Hampshire Volunteer Infantry) writing home after the Battle of Second Bull Run on September 5, 1862

Friend:

Perhaps you would like to know our experience in the late great battles near Manassas. As my account will probably differ from any which you have seen in the newspapers, I will endeavor to speak only of what I saw.

(August) 28th we slept at Blackburn’s Ford. Jackson was supposed to be at Centreville. Friday (the 29th) we marched up to Centreville and finding no enemy there followed down the Warrenton turnpike to Stone Bridge. Some skirmishing occurred near the bridge, but the enemy falling back, we advanced up the turnpike to the old battle ground. Some of the hills where the old battle was fought have been cleared of their woods, and the open country now lies nearly in the shape of a square bounded on three sides, north, west and south by woods.

About two o’clock Friday, (Major General) Heintzelman attacked the enemy in the belt of the woods on the north side of the square. After half an hour’s sharp fighting, the rebels were driven from it back into the woods on the west side. Here they made another stand. Kearney’s Division and Hooker’s Division were repulsed with great slaughter in succession and driven entirely from this part of the field, leaving nearly half their numbers killed or wounded in the hands of the enemy.

It would seem that after the slaughter of two such divisions as Hooker’s and Kearney’s, General Pope would have sent a larger force into these woods. Instead of this, however, he ordered up our Brigade, the first of Reno’s Division, and ordered us to clear the woods in front of us. We deployed and advanced in line, the 6th New Hampshire on our left. We had not entered the woods more than three or four rods before the muskets began to pop ahead of us and a few bullets to whistle by us. Soon we could see plenty of snuff-colored pants ahead of us not more than seventy-five yards, and the cracking of rifles became general.

We delivered a volley and advanced, loading and firing. The storm of bullets soon became terrible. The rebels fought us every inch of the way. We charged upon them in a sunken road which ran through the woods parallel to our lines and drove them from it. As they were skedaddling from the ditch road, our boys poured in a volley which literally strewed the ground with them. When we had advanced some fifty paces, we could see through the woods into the open fields beyond. The rebel artillery began to play upon our flank, which did us very little damage, however, as the trees were so thick.

Discovering that our regiment was alone and (that) the bullets began to come thick and fast from the rear, the Colonel sent me back to see why the other two regiments did not follow us and to tell them they were firing upon us. Peeping up over the bank, I could hardly trust my eyes when I saw yellow legs standing as thick as wheat not more than twenty-five paces from the ditch. I instantly called to the regiment to retreat to the ditch, which was done at a run. Taking a second look to see if I could spot a flag, I saw one, their battle flag, with a red cross worked in it and a swarm of rebels following it at double quick towards our left, as we were now faced, so as to surround us.

As it was evident that we would soon be surrounded and overwhelmed with numbers, and be all killed or captured, the Col. wisely ordered a retreat up the road which led around into the wood from which Heintzelman had driven the enemy at the beginning of the battle. After fighting until sundown with little better success than we had, the enemy held the field that night.

Saturday, August 30th, for about an hour there was a perfect din of musketry in the woods. A large rebel battery on our left raked our troops with terrible effect, and soon our extreme left and then all the rest of our line gave way and came out of the woods in the greatest disorder, pursued by the enemy, who were yelling in their peculiar effeminate manner.

From the time they began to advance until sundown, they never halted but swept everything before them like a hurricane. At sundown, they had swept away round to our rear and were within a short distance from the turnpike–our only line of retreat. Here they had met the veteran force of Sigel and Reno, who held them at bay until darkness put an end to the contest. Towards midnight, we forded the stream and, our minds depressed with sorrow, bade a final adieu to the ill-fated fields of Bull Run.

General Pope is a most unblushing liar. In his official dispatch, he calls the result of the contest a victory when every man in the army knows that we were defeated at all points both Friday and Saturday and that too because at all points we were out-generaled. Had the great battle been fought Friday, we might have won, because the rebels received large reinforcements that night.

The battle was a great blunder. The defeat was as complete as that of the old Bull Run. The difference was that in this battle when a regiment was defeated it was not panic stricken, but rallied on its colors the moment it got behind the reserves. A rebel prisoner with whom I conversed told the truth when he said, “Boys, you can fight as well as we can, but Old Jackson is always one day ahead of you.”

The Northern people get not the faintest idea from the newspapers of the true state of affairs at the seat of operations. The lying reports of our general and reporters beat anything that ever existed among the rebels. The whole army is disgusted. Are we disposed not to recognize impossibilities? We can do now voluntarily what we shall certainly be compelled to do when thousands of more lives have been sacrificed. You need not be surprised if success falls to the rebels with astonishing rapidity. They certainly have the force, the skill and genius to do it…

Yours Very Respectfully,

H.M. Pearson

Henry Pearson was killed in action on May 26, 1864.

Source: The Brothers’ War by Annette Tapert (Vintage Books, New York, NY: 1988)

A Soldier’s Letter: Dr. Spencer Glasgow Welch

Letter from Dr. Welch (surgeon in the 13th South Carolina Volunteer Infantry) to his wife after the Battle of Second Bull Run, written at Ox Hill, Virginia on September 3, 1862

Dearest:

I was in battle at Manassas and made several very narrow escapes. On Monday (September 1), at this place, I came very near being killed; for a bombshell barely did miss me and bust right at me. I stood the late terrible march surprisingly well, but I have learned what hunger and hardships are. I would often lie down at night on the bare ground without a blanket or anything else to cover (myself) with and would wonder what my dear wife would think if she could see me lying there. We have had some dreadful suffering, especially on these forced marches. The fatigue and the pangs of hunger were fearful.

We marched fast all day Monday and all day Tuesday (August 25 and 26) and until late Tuesday night, when we bivouacked in a field of tall grass near Bristow Station. The next morning (Wednesday) we got up before day and marched fast to Manassas Junction, and almost kept up with the cavalry. Before noon we started towards Washington, and after marching three or four miles we marched back to Manassas Junction again and found many prisoners and negroes there, who were all sent away towards Groveton. We stayed there that night, and all the cars and everything were set on fire about the same time. We were very tired, and all day lay down on the ground, but I remained awake for some time watching the fire, which burned fiercely. Thursday morning (the 28th), we marched nearly to Centreville, and from there towards Groveton, and Ewell’s command got into a fight late that afternoon on our right. We remained there and bivouacked in the oak forest where our brigade fought the next day.

Next morning (Friday), we had breakfast, and I ate with Adjutant Goggans. Our command then took position in the woods near the cut of an unfinished railroad and sent out skirmishers, who soon retreated and fell back on the main line. The Yankee line came up quite near and fired into us from our right, and Goggans was shot through the body. I remained some distance in rear of our line and saw Mike Bowers, Dave Suber and two other men bringing someone back on a litter, and I said: “Mike, who is that?” and he said: “Goggans,” just as they tumbled him down. I looked at him as he was gasping his last, and he died at once. Then the wounded who could walk began to come back, and those who could not were brought to me on litters. I did all I could for them until the ambulances could carry them to the field infirmary, and this continued until late in the afternoon.

I saw an Irishman from South Carolina bringing a wounded Irishman from Pennsylvania back and at the same time scolding him for fighting us. Colonel McGowan came limping back, shot through the thigh, but he refused to ride, and said: “Take men who are worse hurt than I am.”

Shells came over to us occasionally as if thrown at our reserves, and would burst among the men and overhead, but they paid no attention to them and kept very quiet. I did not hear anyone say one word. An occasional spent ball fell near by and one knocked up the dust close to me, but the trees were thick and stopped most of the bullets short of us. The Yankees charged us seven times during the day and were preceded by skirmishers. One ran into the railroad cut and sat down, and Jim Wood shot him dead.

Our brigade was not relieved until about four o’clock. They had been fighting all day and their losses were heavy. I saw General Field, commanding a Virginia brigade, ride in on our left to relieve us, and I then went back to the field infirmary, where I saw large numbers of wounded lying on the ground as thick as a drove of hogs in a lot. They were groaning and crying out with pain, and those shot in the bowels were crying for water. Jake Fellers had his arm amputated without chloroform. I held the artery and Dr. Huot cut it off by candle light.

We did nothing Saturday morning (30th). There were several thousands prisoners nearby, and I went where they were and talked with some of them. Dr. Evans, the brigade surgeon, went to see General Lee, and General Lee told him the battle would begin that morning at about ten o’clock and would cease in about two hours, which occurred exactly as he said. Our brigade was not engaged, and we spent the day sending the wounded to Richmond.

Early Sunday morning (31st), we started away, and I passed by where Goggans’ body lay. Near him lay the body of Captain Smith of Spartanburg. Both were greatly swollen and had been robbed of their trousers and shoes by our own soldiers, who were ragged and barefooted, and did it from necessity. We passed on over the battlefield where the dead and wounded Yankees lay. They had fallen between the lines and had remained there without attention since Friday. We marched all day on the road northward and traveled about twelve miles.

The next morning (September 1), we continued our march towards Fairfax Court House, and had a battle late that afternoon at Ox Hill during a violent thunderstorm. Shells were thrown at us, and one struck in the road and burst within three or four feet of me. There were flashes and keen cracks of lightning nearby, and hard showers of rain fell. The Yankees had a strong position on a hill on the right side of the road, but our men left the road and I could see them hurrying up the hill with skirmishers in advance of the line…

The battle continued till night came on and stopped it. We filled the carriage house, barn and stable with our wounded, but I could do little for them. Colonel Edwards was furious, and told me to tell the other doctors, “For God’s sake to keep with their command.”

The next morning the Yankees were gone. Their General Kearney was killed, and some of their wounded fell into our hands. The two other doctors with our medical supplies did not get there until morning, and many of our wounded died during the night. I found one helpless man lying under a blanket between two men who were dead.

We drew two days’ rations of crackers and bacon about ten o’clock, and I ate them all and was still very hungry. I walked over on the hill and saw a few dead Yankees. They had become stiff, and one was lying on his back with an arm held up.

We hope to be able to go on and catch up with the regiment in a day or two. It has gone in the direction of Harpers Ferry.

Source: The Brothers’ War by Annette Tapert (New York, NY: Vintage Books, 1988)

This Week in the Civil War: Aug 27-Sep 2, 1862

Wednesday, August 27:  In Virginia, the Federals under General John Pope withdrew from the Rappahannock River after being outflanked by advancing Confederates. Pope shifted his troops north toward the railroad junction at Manassas, where General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson’s Confederates were destroying Federal supplies. Pope was confused about Jackson’s purpose, and at the same time General Robert E. Lee was moving north with the rest of his Confederate Army of Northern Virginia to join Jackson. President Abraham Lincoln had no communication with Pope because all telegraph lines to Washington had been cut, and half of Lee’s army was between Pope and the Federal capital. Meanwhile, General George McClellan’s Federal Army of the Potomac began trickling into Washington from the Virginia Peninsula. In Tennessee, skirmishing intensified as Confederate General Braxton Bragg began an excursion to recover eastern Tennessee and Kentucky, as well as to counter the Federal threat to Chattanooga.

Thursday, August 28:  In Virginia, Confederates under “Stonewall” Jackson withdrew to positions west of the old Bull Run battlefield, while John Pope’s Federals arrived at Manassas to find Jackson gone. Pope received conflicting reports about Jackson’s whereabouts, so he decided to concentrate at Centreville, erroneously thinking Jackson was there. When a Federal division accidentally clashed with Jackson at Groveton, Pope believed Jackson was retreating and redirected his forces against him. In Tennessee, Braxton Bragg’s Confederates advanced into central Tennessee.

Friday, August 29:  In Virginia, John Pope’s Federals attacked “Stonewall” Jackson’s Confederates concentrated in a railroad cut north of Groveton and the Warrenton Turnpike. The Federals were dispersed and tired from hard marching in the heat, and their piecemeal attack was ineffective. Pope blamed General Fitz John Porter, whose corps failed to attack because Porter claimed that the Confederate corps under General James Longstreet had arrived and outnumbered him. Meanwhile, Federal General-in-Chief Henry W. Halleck continued urging George McClellan to hurry his troops to reinforce Pope. President Lincoln telegraphed his commanders three times, “What news?” with no response. In the Confederacy, P.G.T. Beauregard succeeded John C. Pemberton as commander of the Department of South Carolina and Georgia. In the Union, Frederick Steele assumed command of the Army of the Southwest.

Saturday, August 30:  In Virginia, John Pope attacked “Stonewall” Jackson’s left flank, erroneously thinking Jackson was retreating. However, James Longstreet counterattacked on Pope’s right with 25,000 troops in the largest mass assault of the war. Combined attacks by Jackson and Longstreet compelled Pope to withdraw by nightfall, and the major fighting in the Battle of Second Bull Run was over. Pope’s Federals established defenses at Centreville; they were defeated but not routed. George McClellan’s feeble efforts to reinforce Pope had failed. Robert E. Lee was victorious, he had relieved Federal pressure on Richmond, but he had not destroyed Pope as hoped. In Kentucky, Confederates under General Edmund Kirby Smith attacked at Richmond, compelling the Federals to retreat toward Louisville. This small but impressive Confederate victory began the invasion of Kentucky. In Washington, President Lincoln anxiously awaited news from both Virginia and Kentucky.

Sunday, August 31:  In Virginia, John Pope concentrated his defeated Army of Virginia on the heights of Centreville. Two corps from the Army of the Potomac finally arrived to reinforce Pope, but they were too late to reverse the defeat. The Confederates moved to turn the Federal right, with “Stonewall” Jackson moving west of Chantilly and James Longstreet following the next day. The Federals abandoned Fredericksburg, leaving behind many supplies. On the Tennessee River, the Federal transport W.B. Terry was captured by Confederates after being grounded on the Duck River Sucks. In the Union, many were alarmed by the recent Confederate successes. The Army Surgeon General called for women and children to scrape lint for bandages.

Monday, September 1:  In Virginia, the last major fighting in the Second Bull Run campaign took place at Chantilly or Ox Hill. Robert E. Lee sent “Stonewall” Jackson’s corps around the Federal right. After severe fighting in heavy rain, the Federals withdrew. Federal General Philip Kearny was killed in the fight, and his death was mourned in both North and South. John Pope’s troops held off the Confederate advance, then withdrew closer to Washington during the night. In Washington, President Lincoln conferred with Henry Halleck and George McClellan about the military situation in Virginia. In the Union, General Ormsby M. Mitchel, famed astronomer and lecturer, was assigned to command the Department of the South. In the Confederacy, General J.P. McCown assumed command of the Department of East Tennessee.

Tuesday, September 2:  In Virginia, John Pope pulled his defeated Army of Virginia back to the Washington area, ending the Second Bull Run campaign. In the fighting of 27 Aug-2 Sep, the Federals lost 1,724 killed, 8,372 wounded, and 5,958 missing (16,054 total casualties) from about 75,000 engaged. The Confederates lost 1,481 killed, 7,627 wounded, and 89 missing (9,197 total casualties) from about 48,500. President Lincoln restored George McClellan to full command in Virginia and around Washington, a decision opposed by cabinet members Edwin Stanton and Salmon Chase. The Confederates gathered near Chantilly to prepare for their next campaign. In Minnesota, the Dakota Sioux uprising continued as the Indians besieged a Federal detachment at Birch Coulee. In Kentucky, Edmund Kirby Smith’s Confederates occupied Lexington. Business was suspended and citizens began drilling in Cincinnati, fearing that Smith would invade Ohio. Meanwhile, Confederates under Braxton Bragg continued moving north from Chattanooga. In the Union, Flag Officer Louis M. Goldsborough was relieved of command of the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron. President Lincoln wrote “Meditation on the Divine Will,” in which he stated, “In great contests each party claims to act in accordance wit the will of God. Both may be, but one must be wrong. God can not be for, and against the same thing at the same time.”

The Occupation of New Orleans

Major General Benjamin Butler, the controversial commander of Federal occupation forces in New Orleans, issued an order assessing “secessionists” a total of $341,916 to

provide for the city’s poor. Butler also authorized enlisting free blacks as Federal soldiers.

U.S. General Benjamin Butler

Confederate President Jefferson Davis protested Federal military atrocities against southern civilians and soldiers, including the arming of slaves and encouraging them to oppose their masters. When the second session of the Confederate Congress assembled, Davis delivered a message reviewing the progress of the war and the nation. He also reiterated his protest of Federal atrocities, directly citing Butler’s conduct in New Orleans.

The Battle of Second Bull Run

U.S. General John Pope

This clash began when John Pope’s Federal Army of Virginia moved to destroy Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson’s Confederates near the site of the Battle of Bull Run in July 1861. The remainder of Robert E. Lee’s Confederate Army of Northern Virginia hurried to link with Jackson, while George McClellan’s Federal Army of the Potomac slowly moved to assist Pope.

Lee’s left “wing” under Jackson occupied Manassas Junction, where the Confederates destroyed Federal supplies and threatened to cut communications between Pope and Washington. Pope moved north to stop Jackson, but he was confused about Jackson’s intentions.

Fighting ensued as Pope chased Jackson from Manassas to Centreville, then to Groveton. Meanwhile, the right “wing” of Lee’s army under Lee and General James Longstreet hurried up from the south. Thinking he had Jackson cornered, Pope attacked Jackson’s entrenched Confederates along an unfinished railroad near Groveton.

The Federal attacks were ineffective, mainly because the troops were scattered and exhausted after chasing Jackson for several days in the August heat. By afternoon, Longstreet’s troops arrived to assist Jackson, and the Confederates were in a strong defensive position. Unaware of Longstreet’s arrival, Pope fell back at nightfall and planned to attack again in the morning. Meanwhile, Federal General-in-Chief Henry W. Halleck ordered McClellan to hurry to Alexandria, but McClellan continued his slow troop transfer off the Virginia Peninsula between the York and James Rivers.

The next day, still believing the Confederates were retreating, Pope renewed his attack on Jackson’s left. Jackson’s troops held firm while Longstreet launched a massive counterattack on the right with 25,000 men; this was the largest mass assault of the war. With his supply lines threatened and his flank crushed, Pope was compelled to withdraw to Centreville.

Skirmishing continued into September as Pope gradually fell back and tried to prevent a complete rout. With his withdrawal, the Federals evacuated Fredericksburg and abandoned vast amounts of supplies, and Jackson’s Confederates moved west to Chantilly. McClellan’s feeble attempts to send reinforcements to Pope had no effect, and Pope succumbed to humiliating defeat after having so boldly predicting total victory.

This Week in the Civil War: Aug 20-26, 1862

Wednesday, Aug 20:  In Minnesota, the Dakota Sioux uprising continued as an Indian attack on Fort Ridgely was repulsed. In Virginia, as George McClellan’s Army of the Potomac continued evacuating the Peninsula, units of John Pope’s Army of Virginia skirmished with advance elements of Robert E. Lee’s Confederate Army of Northern Virginia along the Rappahannock River. The Confederate Department of the Trans-Mississippi was created; it included Missouri, Arkansas, the Indian Territory, Louisiana west of the Mississippi River, and Texas. General Richard Taylor was given command of the Confederate District of West Louisiana.

Thursday, Aug 21:  In Louisiana, Federal troops evacuated Baton Rouge. In the North, postage stamps were issued for small currency for the first time. In Tennessee, Confederate General Braxton Bragg crossed the Tennessee River above Chattanooga to begin a new campaign. In Virginia, skirmishing continued between Robert E. Lee’s Confederates and John Pope’s Federals. Confederate President Jefferson Davis declared that U.S. Generals David Hunter and John W. Phelps would be treated as outlaws if captured for organizing and arming slaves to serve in the U.S. Army. Phelps resigned his commission because the Lincoln administration opposed his slave arming policy.

Friday, Aug 22:  President Abraham Lincoln responded to New York Tribune editor Horace Greeley’s open letter called “The Prayer of Twenty Millions.” Lincoln stated that his prime objective was to interfere with slavery only if it would help preserve the Union. In Virginia, Confederate cavalry commander Jeb Stuart raided John Pope’s headquarters at Catlett’s Station, capturing Pope’s baggage, uniform, papers, and thousands of dollars in cash. In Minnesota, the Dakota Sioux Indians were repulsed from Fort Ridgely again. In New Orleans, Federal General Benjamin Butler authorized enlisting blacks as Federal soldiers.

Saturday, Aug 23:  Extensive skirmishing occurred at dozens of points in Missouri, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, and Virginia. General Horatio Wright assumed command of the Federal Department of the Ohio. The U.S. sloop of war Adirondack was wrecked by a coral reef off Little Abaco in the West Indies, but the crew was saved.

Sunday, Aug 24:  In the Azores, C.S.S. Alabama was supplied and commissioned a Confederate naval cruiser. Skirmishing continued in Missouri and Virginia.

Monday, Aug 25:  U.S. Secretary of War Edwin Stanton authorized the commander of the Southern Department to “receive into the service of the United States” up to 5,000 blacks as guards for plantations and bases. In Minnesota, the Dakota Sioux Indians were driven away from Fort Ridgely, and settlers at New Ulm evacuated, fearing further attacks. In Virginia, the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia was on the move with corps under Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson and James Longstreet headed north from below the Rappahannock.

Tuesday, Aug 26:  In northern Virginia, Fitzhugh Lee’s Confederate cavalry captured the railroad at Manassas Junction. Confederates under “Stonewall” Jackson hurried to the area, pushing through Thoroughfare Gap in the Bull Run mountains and reaching Bristoe Station by nightfall. Federal General John Pope was confused by Jackson’s movement.

A Soldier’s Letter: Private Warren Freeman

Letter from Warren Freeman, Company A, 13th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry after the Battle of Cedar Mountain and before the Battle of Bull Run.

In Camp Near Warrenton, VA

August 25, 1862

Dear Father:

You will be perhaps surprised to learn that we are back here, especially as we are under a general who has always been accustomed to look on the backs of the rebels; but here we are, encamped about five miles from the town. We left Cedar Mountain soon after the battle, and marched round to the south side of the Rapidan, or Robinson River, I supposed it should be called. It was seven or eight miles. There were graves all along the road where the rebels had buried their dead.

Tuesday, August 26… Toward night we packed up in a hurry and went at double-quick across the river and took possession of a knoll near the bridge. Mathews’ Battery crossed immediately after the Thirteenth. We threw out two companies of skirmishers on another knoll to the front and right. The Eleventh Pennsylvania crossed after the battery. They took possession of the hill where our skirmishers were; they supported two pieces of the battery, while we supported the other four… The next morning at daylight, the rebel artillery opened on our right, and so after on our right and center.

While the cannonading was going on, I received your letter of the 17th–rather a sinfular time and place to get news from home. But those who brought letters got frightened and ran across the bridge, taking about half the letters with them; I was fortunate to secure mine, though it took a long time to read it, as I had to make my manners to the rebel shell and shot as they came along. The rebel batteries were finally silenced. There were four killed and wounded in Mathews’ Battery; and the adjutant of the Eleventh Pennsylvania had his horse shot.

During the day, the other two regiments of our brigade crossed the river. At night, it was our turn to go on picket duty. Next day we had to dig trenches on one of the knolls. During the day we got twenty-three head of cattle; they got away from the rebels and came toward our lines. We made a rush, and they made a rush–but we got the cattle.

Towards night, a rainstorm came on, and by the next morning the river had risen to such a degree that we were fearful that the bridge would be carried away. So we all passed to the opposite bank and posted our artillery on the high ground near the river. When the enemy saw we had left the knolls, they advanced to take them. Our artillery played upon them as they advanced to take possession of the first–and were advancing on the second–when some of our guns that were masked poured a terrible fire of grape and canister into their ranks, killing and wounding large numbers, causing them to break ranks and run in all directions. Some of their shot and pieces of railroad iron came fearfully near to our heads, but we had only one man wounded.

We have been within a half a mile of Warrenton, and are now within three or four miles of Waterloo; it seems our luck to visit all places twice. We have not had a chance to send off letters for some time, but our band goes home in the morning and will take letters, I presume. I must close; this constant marching tires a fellow so that he does not feel much like writing.

I am in good health. Farewell all.

Warren

Source: Tapert, Annette: The Brothers’ War (Vintage Books, New York, NY 1988)