War is all Hell
From the editor: Two of the most famous quotes relating to the violence of the Civil War were made by William Tecumseh Sherman and Nathan Bedford Forrest. According to Sherman, war “is all hell." Forrest was more specific. "War means fighting. And fighting means killing." Generals have come and gone, and battles have been won and lost, but the most consistent feature about this war is that men, mostly young men, have died almost every day since its inception. When the death toll from Shiloh was released it sent the nation, both north and south of the Potomac River, into shock. Never before had Americans witnessed such a catastrophic loss of life on a single battlefield. Since that time, the blood soaked fields of Antietam, Fredericksburg, and on the Peninsula have rendered the Shiloh casualty figures almost routine. Two men who fought on those battlefields and lived to tell the tale, died this week. In most respects they were complete opposites, yet they both faced the enemy with bravery and were loyal to their beliefs. Sixty-six year old Edwin ‘Bull Head’ Sumner was a career soldier and veteran of forty-four years of military service. Shaken after seeing his corps cut up at Antietam and then dashed to pieces against Fredericksburg's stone wall, Sumner asked to be relieved of his command and died suddenly as he was traveling to his next assignment. According to reports, his last words were, "God save my country, the United States of America." The South is grieving with the news of the death of twenty-three year old Major John Pelham. Dubbed "the gallant Pelham" by J.E.B. Stuart, Pelham was felled by an exploding shell after joining a cavalry charge near Kelly's Ford, Virginia. Women throughout the South put on their mourning clothes as words of Pelham's death spreads. Described by Fitz. Lee as "tall, slender, [and] beautifully proportioned," he is remembered for being "as grand a flirt as ever lived." In a gesture of respect, Pelham is promoted to Lieutenant-Colonel as his body is lay in state in Richmond. Sumner and Pelham join the scores of other men, many now long forgotten, who sacrificed their lives in this bloody civil war.
March 15 1863 (Sunday)
Since given the unenviable position of commander of the Department of the Ohio in October 1862, Horatio G. Wright has struggled with a lack of troops and supplies. (The department consists of the states of Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, and that part of Kentucky east of the Tennessee River.) Always under pressure to launch an attack into Unionist East Tennessee and to protect the Kentucky border from Rebel cavalry incursions, Wright has seen his department stripped of most of its available troops. He reports: "I have sent off...the troops of the department, till there was left only enough to protect the State of Kentucky." With only 15,000 men available to him, Wright has been constantly requesting reinforcements. Wright warns: "If the present pleasant weather continues...the condition of the roads and rivers will render an invasion of Kentucky by the rebels possible.... To resist such an attempt...I have not the force at my command." Unhappy that his promotion to major-general has not been confirmed, Wright offers to be removed from his command. His offer is quickly accepted. In his stead, former Army of the Potomac commander Ambrose Burnside is directed to “resume command of the Ninth Army Corps, and immediately relieve General H.G. Wright." Reunited with his old Ninth Corps, Burnside’s move to western Kentucky will beef up the Union military strength in the area without upsetting Joe Hooker's command in Northern Virginia.
HEADQUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF THE OHIO, Cincinnati, Ohio, March 15, 1863.
Brig. Gen. [George] W. CULLUM, Chief of Staff, Hdqrs. of the Army, Washington, D.C.: The recent action of the Senate, in refusing my confirmation as major-general...can be looked upon only as a condemnation of my administration of the affairs of this department.... In this view of the case, I feel bound to suggest to the military authorities at Washington my removal from this command, by the assignment thereto of someone who shall fully command the confidence of the people and the troops in the department.... The Department of the Ohio, with the southern boundary of Kentucky as its limit toward the enemy, is the seat of active operations only when that enemy chooses to cross the border...; yet it requires...one who combines administrative ability in its most enlarged sense with military knowledge, in order to secure its proper administration.... Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
H.G. WRIGHT.
Back in Goldsborough after the debacle at New Berne, D.H. Hill continues to seethe after the defeat. Hill's anger is directed mainly at ‘Little Billy’ Whiting, the Cape Fear District commander for withholding needed artillery. However, Hill has plenty of vitriol to spare for the military officials in the War Department. In a letter to James Longstreet, he writes: "I have received nothing but contemptuous treatment from Richmond from the very beginning of the war." Hill's failure is welcomed by John G. Foster, the beleaguered commander of the Union’s Department North Carolina, who has been embroiled in a war of words of his own with Henry Halleck in Washington, D.C. He reports: "The...attack on this town, which was intended to have been strong..., was feeble, very feeble, in all places." To make sure that the Rebel troops have departed, Foster sends out "parties in all directions to harass the enemy's retreat."
HEADQUARTERS OUTPOSTS, March 15, [1863] ---8 o'clock p.m.
Lieut. Col. SOUTHARD HOFFMAN, Assistant Adjutant-General: I have just returned from a reconnaissance to Deep Gully, &c. I found no enemy there, nor within 3 miles beyond, and...it would seem that the main body of their force moved away last evening and the residue early this morning, in full retreat. From the examination I made they had eight pieces in battery in the field behind the Gully....From the signs on the ground made by the recoil of pieces, &c., they fired but little....Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
J. RICHTER JONES, Colonel Fifty-eighth Pennsylvania Volunteers.
Other Union activity reported on this date:
1. In a driving snowstorm, Colonel J.N. Schoonmaker, 14th Pennsylvania Cavalry, leads a scout from Harper’s Ferry to Leesburg, Virginia. He reports: “no Confederates in or about it.”
2. From Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Colonel T.E. Chickering, 41st Massachusetts, reports that the U.S.S. Iberville has collected forty survivors from the U.S.S. Mississippi which was sunk last week.
Other Confederate activity reported on this date:
1. Braxton Bragg issues orders that “negro teamsters will not be substituted for white drivers in ordnance and ambulance trains.”
2. From Fort Brown, Texas, H.P. Bee reports that “a party, composed of citizens and soldiers off duty” crossed into Mexico and captured *Colonel E.J. Davis. He “promptly” disowns the act as unauthorized and offers to “make such reparation as is in my powers.”
Editor’s Note: Edmund J. Davis was a supporter of former Governor Houston and refused to take the C.S. oath of allegiance. Instead, he obtained a commission as colonel of the First Texas Cavalry (U.S.).
March 16 1863 (Monday)
After repairing the damage to the U.S.S. Chillicothe, Leonard F. Ross and Lieutenant-Commander Watson Smith prepare for another assault on Fort Pemberton. They decide that the gunboats will close rapidly on the fort and attempt to smother the defenders while three infantry regiments, loaded aboard tin-clads, land and carry the fort by escalade. Lieutenant-Colonel James H. Wilson, Chief of Topographical Engineers, is not confident that such an attack will be a success. He reports: "I am not over-sanguine of success…. The Chillicothe is an inglorious failure the wooden backing to her armor is of only 9-inch pine, and shivers into pieces every time the plating is struck.... The De Kalb stands it well as long as she is square to the front, though her sides do not fare so well." Under orders to "hold” his present position by concentrating all of his force, William ‘Blizzards’ Loring continues to strengthen Fort Pemberton by constructing secondary strong points, which are manned by the remainder of Lloyd Tilghman's brigade. When the Chillicothe advances, she receives numerous hits to her gunports. Unwilling to risk losing his gunboat, Smith aborts the planned attack.
HEADQUARTERS YAZOO EXPEDITION, Curtiss' Plantation, 5 miles north of Greenwood, March 16, 1863.
Major-General GRANT, Commanding Army of the Tennessee: The Chillicothe, followed by the De Kalb, moved out with the intention of "going in" upon the well-established principle of gunboat warfare, "close quarters and quick work," but the former had hardly reached her old position...before she was struck with great violence several times, and in fifteen minutes…she was struck six times…resulting in closing “hermetically” both ports so that neither could be opened till they were lifted off and hammered out. The De Kalb, for the reason that the Chillicothe was compelled to retire, was also drawn out…. I urged that the De Kalb alone should try it at close quarters, but it was not done.... I have no confidence in the snap or activity of the present naval commander in this quarter, and don't hesitate to say I regard him entirely responsible for the failure to take this place without a fight.... I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant,
J.H. WILSON, Lieutenant-Colonel.
Admiral David Dixon Porter has spent the last two weeks studying his charts and interrogating people who live in the Mississippi Delta region. From the admiral's maps it seems quite possible that a naval force could navigate the tangled waterways of Steele's Bayou, Black Bayou, Deer Creek, Rolling Fork, and the Big Sunflower River to reach the Yazoo River above Haynes' Bluff. Porter convinces Ulysses S. Grant to join him on Task Force Porter, and together they navigate twenty-eight miles up Steele's Bayou to the mouth of Black Bayou. Grant reports: "Admiral Porter and myself went in a large gunboat, preceded by four of the old "turtles." These boats are pushing on with all dispatch to get into the Yazoo." Grant returns to Young's Point and begins organizing a strike force to support the naval expedition. William T. Sherman gets the assignment, along with orders to "proceed as early as practicable up Steele's Bayou...for the purpose of determining the feasibility of getting an army...at a point from which they can act advantageously against Vicksburg." Boarding a tug at dawn, Sherman catches up with Admiral Porter and together they explore the approaches to Deer Creek.
HEADQUARTERS, Deer Creek, March 16, 1863.
Maj. Gen. U.S. GRANT: Deer Creek is not as large nor has it as much current as I expected, but the water is deep and narrow. The ironclads push their way along unharmed, but the trees and overhanging limbs tear the wooden boats all to pieces.... I don't think any boat can as yet come through this Black Bayou, but I will push the work. There is no high land here, nor is the route practicable for troops unless the admiral cleans out the Yazoo and secures the mouth of Deer Creek.... We are only 25 miles by land from Haynes' Bluff, but I don't apprehend they will do worse than send a party up to ascertain our strength and purposes.... Yours, truly,
W.T. SHERMAN, Major General, Commanding.
Other Union activities reported on this date:
1. The U.S. Congress appoints three commissions “to investigate the condition of the colored population emancipated by acts of Congress and the President's proclamation.”
2. Admiral D.D. Farragut brings his two remaining ships, the Hartford and Albatross, to anchor at the mouth of the Red River.
3. D.P. Woodbury is “relieved from duty with the Army of the Potomac, and assigned to…command the District of Key West and Tortugas.”
Other Confederate activities reported on this date:
1. B. Bragg orders the cavalry divisions of his command to be “designated as corps, and will be known by the name of their respective commanders.”
2. F.K. Gardner, commanding at Port Hudson, reports: “We have only ten days' allowance of corn.”
3. J.P. McCown, “under arrest by order of General Bragg,” requests a “speedy” court-martial and “waives all exceptions to the rank of officers ordered to try him.”
March 17 1863 (Tuesday) ** Saint Patrick’s Day **
After weeks of preparations, Thomas F. Meagher's Irish Brigade hosts the wildest St. Patrick's Day celebration in the Army of the Potomac. Attended by Army of the Potomac commander ‘Fighting Joe’ Hooker himself, Meagher has arranged a feast complemented by horse races, Irish dancing, wheelbarrow races, and trying to catch a greased pig. Unable to attend the celebration, William W. Averell, Second Cavalry Division, is hoping to give his old West Point classmate Fitzhugh Lee, a little Saint Patrick's gift of his own. Several weeks earlier, Lee left a note for Averell during a cavalry raid across the Rappahannock River: "If you won't go home, return my visit and bring me a sack of coffee." With the requested sack of coffee tied to his saddle, Averell leads his troopers across Kelly's Ford to return the favor. Averell's raid is considered a success as, for the first time, Union cavalrymen hold their own in a pitched battle with J.E.B. Stuart's vaunted cavalry. After the battle, Secretary of War Edwin Stanton sends his congratulations: "It is good for the first lick. You have drawn the first blood, and I hope now soon to see the boys up and at them."
HEADQUARTERS SECOND CAVALRY DIVISION.
Maj. Gen. [Daniel] BUTTERFIELD, Chief of Staff, Army of the Potomac: I left the main body of this army...for the purpose of crossing the Rappahannock River and attacking the cavalry forces of the enemy..., under the command of General Fitzhugh Lee. My orders were to attack and rout or destroy him.... After advancing in line of battle three-quarters of a mile, driving the enemy before us through the woods..., we found...ourselves in the face of the enemy, drawn up in line of battle.... We never lost a foot of ground, but kept steadily advancing until we arrived at a stubble-field, which the enemy set on fire to the windward, to burn us out…. It was 5.30 p.m., and it was necessary to...make a direct and desperate attack, or to withdraw across the river.... I deemed it proper to withdraw.... The principal result achieved by this expedition has been that our cavalry has been brought to feel their superiority in battle; they have learned the value of discipline and the use of their arms.... I believe it is the universal desire of the officers and men of my division to meet the enemy again as soon as possible. I am, general, very respectfully, your obedient servant,
WM. W. AVERELL, Brigadier-General of Volunteers, Commanding.
During the battle at Kelly's Ford, Fitzhugh Lee is joined by his cavalry chief J.E.B. Stuart and the young artillerist John Pelham. Stuart had been at nearby Culpepper, called as a witness in a court-martial, and Pelham was on an inspection tour of the horse artillery stationed along the Rapidan River and for a quick visit to a local young lady. When they learn Fitz. Lee's troopers are being attacked, Stuart and Pelham ride to the brigade field headquarters. In the fast developing fight, Pelham, unburdened with his artillery pieces, rushes to join the charging gray column. After their unsuccessful charge, Pelham is found lying on the ground and carried to safety. Three surgeons examine the young major and find that a shell fragment, "no larger than the tip of the little finger," had entered the back of his skull. "About 1.00 p.m. Pelham opened his eyes, drew a long breath and, without so much as a whisper, died."
Report of Maj. Gen. James E.B. Stuart, C.S. Army, commanding Cavalry Division, Army of Northern Virginia.
SIR: The major-general commanding approaches with reluctance the painful duty of announcing to the division its irreparable loss in the death of Maj. John Pelham, commanding the Horse Artillery. He fell mortally wounded...with the battle-cry on his lips and the light of victory beaming from his eye.... You well know how, though young in years, a mere stripling in appearance..., he yet disclosed on the battlefield the conduct of a veteran, and displayed in his handsome person the most imperturbable coolness in danger. His eye had glanced over every battle-field of this army.... The memory of "the gallant Pelham," his many manly virtues, his noble nature and purity of character, are enshrined as a sacred legacy in the hearts of all who knew him.... By command of Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart:
R. CHANNING PRICE, Major and Assistant Adjutant-General.
Casualties at Kelly's Ford, Virginia:
U.S.: 78 (6 killed, 50 wounded, 22 missing/captured)
C.S.: 133 (11 killed, 88 wounded, 34 captured/missing)
Other Union activity reported on this date:
1. W. Dwight, Jr. leads an expedition from Montesano Bayou toward Port Hudson.
2. A.E. Burnside assumes command of IX Corps, currently in camp at Suffolk, Virginia.
Other Confederate activity reported on this date:
1. President Davis countermands the “seizure of the State railroad” in Georgia.
2. B. Bragg reports he needs “400,000 rations of meat” to “subsist this army up to the 31st of March.” He writes, “The meat must be sent.”
3. Robert Ould, Commissioner of Exchange, reports “a flag-of-truce boat has arrived with 350 political prisoners.” He writes: “The arrangement I have made works largely in our favor. We get rid of a set of miserable wretches and receive some of the best material I ever saw.”
4. Captain J.S. Mosby reports: "I attacked a body of the enemy's cavalry at Herndon Station, in Fairfax County, completely routing them I brought off 25 prisoners."
5. Scout T.H. Harrison brings information that New Berne, North Carolina, has been reinforced.
March 18 1863 (Wednesday)
In January 1861, during the crisis that erupted around Fort Sumter, Citadel cadets manned artillery pieces on nearby Morris Island. In fact, Cadet George E. Haynsworth claimed the honor of firing the first shots of the war when he opened fire on the Star of the West, a supply ship sent to relieve the beleaguered garrison. Since that time, the cadets have returned to their studies and have spent the tumultuous war years in relative quietude. As the threat of a Union attack on Charleston intensifies, Pierre G.T. Beauregard has requested that the cadets prepare to return to the field. To date, Citidel cadets have participated in small engagements at Wappoo Cut and on James Island.
HDQRS. DEPT. SOUTH CAROLINA, GEORGIA, AND FLORIDA, Charleston, S.C., March 18, 1863.
Brig. Gen. [Roswell] S. RIPLEY, Comdg. First Military District, Charleston, S.C.: The Citadel Cadets...having been ordered to report to me in case of an attack on this city, can they not be used to guard and defend the battery at the new bridge? They might go there to practice every day, although living at the Citadel, for it is not desirable to put them in camp at present.... Respectfully, your obedient servant,
G.T. BEAUREGARD, General, Commanding.
Immediately after being notified that Union forces are crossing the Rappahannock River in force near Kelly's Ford, Robert E. Lee requests that the divisions of John Bell Hood and George Pickett be returned to Northern Virginia. Longstreet reports: "I shall start back to Rappahannock tomorrow unless other news is received." Despite Lee's request, ‘Old Pete’ is reluctant to return the two divisions of veteran fighters, and he counsels Lee that a "better plan" would be for him "to fight the enemy on the Rappahannock with the force that you have there” and to and to leave the force here “to drive back the enemy in North Carolina.” Longstreet gets his wish when Lee learns that the Union force in question is only Averell's cavalry, and that they have returned across the river. He reports: "No infantry of enemy reported to be crossing. Cavalry retiring. Stuart pursuing. Divisions can either resume former or take more convenient positions. No more troops needed here."
HEADQUARTERS, Petersburg, Va., March 18, 1863.
General R.E. LEE, Commanding, &c., Fredericksburg, Va.: I do not think it would be well to draw off any portion of Pickett's division at present. All of it cannot well be taken from here as long as the enemy holds this force of his so near Richmond....I cannot divest myself of the opinion that an obstinate resistance on the Rappahannock will hold that line, and the force that I had here would then do to drive the enemy out of North Carolina, where it seems we must get our supplies. With the force left here by the withdrawal of Hood's division nothing can be done more than to hold our fortified positions and railroads, and the latter is somewhat doubtful. If it is necessary to give ground anywhere it seems to me that it would have been better to retire your force across the Anna, and to keep possession of all that part of North Carolina where we may be able to get supplies....I remain, general, your most obedient servant,
JAMES LONGSTREET, Lieutenant-General.
Other Union activity reported on this date:
1. S.P. Carter is placed in command of the U.S. Forces “in and about” Lexington, Kentucky.
2. Lieutenant-Commander W. Smith falls ill and leaves “for a more salubrious climate.” His replacement, Captain J.P. Foster, U.S.N., orders the withdrawal of the fleet back to the Yazoo River.
Other Confederate activity reported on this date:
1. T.H. Holmes is officially relieved of command of the Trans-Mississippi Department and “assigned to the command of the District of Arkansas, including the Indian Territory and the State of Missouri.”
2. Albino Lopez, Governor of the State of Tamaulipas, reports that Colonel E.J. Davis has been returned to Mexican territory.
3. In Charleston, Captain S.D. Lee reports that he has "fitted out ten boats...with spars and bracing gear” and that he has “"tested four of the torpedoes and prepared them for immediate use,
4. Lieutenant W.T. Glassell, C.S.N., tests one of the torpedo bearing boats in Charleston Harbor. The “enterprise” fails when the boat runs “aground in Drunken Dick Shoal.”
March 19 1863 (Thursday)
After being delayed by a train accident, Joe Johnston arrives at Tullahoma, Tennessee, to take command of the Army of the Tennessee during Braxton Bragg’s trip to confer with President Davis in Richmond. Johnston is unhappy to learn that he can expect no reinforcements from Lee's army. President Davis explains: "An unexpected activity has been exhibited by the enemy in Northern Virginia. [Robert E. Lee] has...hoped for a condition of things...which might enable him to detach a corps for service in the West. The desire continues, but the prospect...is now less promising." Johnston also learns that Braxton Bragg's wife Eliza Bragg has contracted typhoid fever, and that the general has given over his daily command responsibilities to be at her bedside. Under such circumstances, Johnston informs President Davis, he is unwilling to send Bragg to Richmond. Bragg’s Louisiana home near Bayou Laforche (called Bivouac) was occupied by Federal troops in October. When she returned several days later she found that “the house was pillaged, and everything broken up.” She also lost all one hundred and thirty slaves that lived on the sugar plantation. Since then, she has traveled with her husband whenever possible.
TULLAHOMA, March 19, 1863.
Hon. JAMES A. SEDDON, Secretary of War, Richmond: On account of Mrs. Bragg's critical condition, I shall not now give the order for which I came. The country is becoming practicable. Should the enemy advance, General Bragg will be indispensable here.
J.E. JOHNSTON, General.
Nathaniel Banks withdraws his troops from their position near Port Hudson back to Baton Rouge. He reports: "I returned to New Orleans from Port Hudson last evening.” Banks also complains Henry Halleck about the “total insufficiency of the forces and material within my reach for the work that is expected of me in this department." In Port Hudson, commander Franklin Gardner orders out reconnaissance parties to "endeavor to find" the enemy's position. He reports: "My object is not to attack the enemy..., but to…cause him to develop his troops." With Banks' force gone, Gardner is able to resume procuring supplies from the Red River, until he learns that Admiral Farragut's two ships have passed the batteries at Grand Gulf and are now "at anchor just below Warrenton" even though they were "struck repeatedly by 10-pounder Parrotts" as they "passed Grand Gulf."
HEADQUARTERS FIRST BRIGADE, SECOND DIVISION, Grand Gulf March 19, 1863.
Maj. [John] J. REEVE, Assistant Adjutant General: I have the honor to report that the gunboats Hartford and Monongahela [Albatross] passed by this morning on their way up the river. [Colonel William Wade], commanding the Parrott battery, reserved his fire...until the vessels were nearly opposite his guns.... As soon as he opened...all the fire was directed against the sloop of war. The firing was very accurate, and almost every shot struck the mark, but with what effect could not be perceived. They answered with heavy guns, but harmed nothing except a battery flag-staff.... I allowed the Grand Era to go on down to Red River this afternoon, there being no danger below. The Fulton..., I retained...to go to Hard Times..., to get a thousand or so sacks of corn, which await transportation there.... Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
[John] S. BOWEN, Brigadier-General, Commanding.
After being delayed by a train accident, Joe Johnston arrives at Tullahoma, Tennessee, to take command of the Army of the Tennessee during Braxton Bragg’s trip to confer with President Davis in Richmond. Johnston is unhappy to learn that he can expect no reinforcements from Lee's army. President Davis explains: "An unexpected activity has been exhibited by the enemy in Northern Virginia. [Robert E. Lee] has...hoped for a condition of things...which might enable him to detach a corps for service in the West. The desire continues, but the prospect...is now less promising." Johnston also learns that Braxton Bragg's wife Eliza Bragg has contracted typhoid fever, and that the general has given over his daily command responsibilities to be at her bedside. Under such circumstances, Johnston informs President Davis, he is unwilling to send Bragg to Richmond. Bragg’s Louisiana home near Bayou Laforche (called Bivouac) was occupied by Federal troops in October. When she returned several days later she found that “the house was pillaged, and everything broken up.” She also lost all one hundred and thirty slaves that lived on the sugar plantation. Since then, she has traveled with her husband whenever possible.
TULLAHOMA, March 19, 1863.
Hon. JAMES A. SEDDON, Secretary of War, Richmond: On account of Mrs. Bragg's critical condition, I shall not now give the order for which I came. The country is becoming practicable. Should the enemy advance, General Bragg will be indispensable here.
J.E. JOHNSTON, General.
Other Union activity reported on this date:
1. U.S. Grant sends an urgent request for “thirty boats of less than 200 feet in length,” but is told they “cannot be procured.”
2. The first two divisions of IX Corps embark at Newport News, en route for Bardstown and Lexington, Kentucky.
3. From Indianapolis, Indiana, Colonel H.B. Carrington, District of Indiana, warn that “Southern Indiana is ripe for revolution.”
Other Confederate activity reported on this date:
1. H.P. Bee reports “the notorious outlaw [Octaviano Zapata]” has “arrived at the Boca del Rio, with a considerable number of arms destined for the use of the Zapata outlaws.”
2. Lieutenant-Colonel S.W. Ferguson, 28th Mississippi, reports he has “arrived with infantry and four pieces of artillery at junction of Rolling Fork with Little Sunflower [River].” He writes, “If the enemy get into the Sunflower, there is nothing to prevent their reaching Yazoo City.”
March 20 1863 (Friday)
Admiral David D. Porter's twisted route through the tangled waterways of the Delta encompasses a voyage of two hundred miles to reach a point only twenty miles northeast of where it began. The further Porter pushes forward, the more twisted and narrow become the muddy waterways. To make matters worse, "the dead trees were full of vermin of all sorts." Rats, mice, snakes, raccoons, and lizards come raining down on the decks and have to be swept overboard by sailors. Aware of Porter's advance, Vicksburg commander Carter L. Stevenson rushes troops to Rolling Fork. He reports: "If they reach Rolling Fork before us, they may have command of Yazoo." John C. Pemberton also rushes forces to Deer Creek in an effort to trap Porter's ships and prevent their escape. As Porter's flotilla approaches the Sunflower River, it is stopped by a tangle of willow so thick that no boat can penetrate it. Unable to continue forward, Porter is dismayed when Confederate troops begin to harass his slow retreat and he sends an urgent message to William T. Sherman to rush forward some infantry support. "I beg that you will shove up troops to us at once.... It takes all my men to defend the position I have taken." Accordingly, Colonel Giles A. Smith's Eighth Missouri, is sent forward along the east bank of Deer Creek. Sherman reports: "I have heard some considerable cannonading above this morning, which was doubtless from the gunboats.... I take it for granted the five iron-clad gunboats can fight anything that can be brought against them."
DEER CREEK, March 20, 1863.
Major-General [Dabney H.] MAURY [Maury’s Division]: We arrived here today.... We see the boats. We attacked them this evening, and drove them back 1½ miles. The enemy are at the junction of Deer Creek and Rolling Fork. We intend to take the boats tonight or early in the morning. Porter is here. You had better send me all the balance of my brigade. We want Deer Creek blocked or obstructed, so as to prevent them from getting in our rear.... Very respectfully,
[Winfield] S. FEATHERSTON [Second Brigade, First Division, Department of Mississippi and East Louisiana], Brigadier-General, Commanding.
Fully aware that his time to secure some sort of victory is running short, Ulysses S. Grant sends a report to Henry Halleck that is as optimistic as possible. Of the canal near Young's Point, Grant says, "If required...the canal can be made to pass boats of ordinary size in a few days." In describing the progress of his Lake Providence efforts, Grant relates, "Ordinary Ohio River boats can now pass from Lake Providence into Bayou Macon, and thence, by easy navigation, to the mouth of Red River." Grant also emphasizes the progress Admiral Porter's expedition is making. "Admiral Porter has gone into Deer Creek by the way of Steele's Bayou and Little Black Bayou....With the exception of overhanging trees in some places, the navigation was good." However, Grant neglects to inform his commander about the troubles that Leonard F. Ross and Watson Smith have encountered at Fort Pemberton. This omission is quickly seized upon by the wily Halleck as he chides Grant about his scattershot approach to capturing Vicksburg.
WASHINGTON, March 20, 1863.
Maj. Gen. U.S. GRANT, Commanding Department of the Tennessee: When the Operations of an army are directed to one particular object it is always dangerous to divide forces. All accessories should be sacrificed for the sake of concentration. The great object on your line now is the opening of the Mississippi River, and everything else must tend to that purpose. The eyes and hopes of the whole country are now directed to your army. In my opinion, the opening of the Mississippi River will be to us of more advantage than the capture of forty Richmonds. We shall omit nothing which we can do to assist you.... Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
H.W. HALLECK, General-in-Chief.
Casualties at Vaught’s Hill, Tennessee:
U.S.: 55 (7 killed, 48 wounded)
C.S.: 200 (30 or 40 killed, 150 wounded, 12 missing/captured)
Other Union activity reported on this date:
1. Aeronaut T.S.C. Lowe requests $300 to test the use of “colored signal balloons,” which can be seen “from 15 to 100 miles.” His request is “not favorably considered.”
2. Colonel William Hoffman reports the steamer State of Maine has “arrived with about 325 prisoners, paroled Union soldiers and citizens from Richmond.”
3. Col. A.S. Hall, 105th Ohio, reports on the action at Vaught’s Mill: “Among the enemy's dead was a mulatto, killed on the advance line, fully uniformed and equipped.”
Other Confederate activity reported on this date:
1. J.H. Morgan’s cavalry attacks a Union reconnaissance force at Vaught’s Hill near Milton, Tennessee. After several unsuccessful assaults, Morgan breaks off the attack. He reports: “Our loss heavy in officers.”
2. J. Finegan, District of East Florida, reports “the constant presence” of gunboats at Jacksonville has prevented him “from making an attack on the town.” He writes, “My command has been engaged in skirmishing with them constantly since their occupation, inflicting on them a considerable loss.”
3. B. Huger is ordered to “proceed” to the Trans-Mississippi Department and “make a thorough inspection of the artillery and ordnance stores in that department.”
March 21 1863 (Saturday)
The prison exchange cartel continues to show signs of completely breaking down. In an effort to reduce some of the confusion, the Virginia Legislature relinquishes all responsibility for holding prisoners and transfers "to the Confederate Government the whole subject of prisoners of war." The growing numbers of prisoners waiting to be exchanged severely taxes the ability of both the North and South to properly care for these men. At Camp Butler, near Springfield, Illinois, 1,620 Rebel soldiers captured at Arkansas Post are still being held. Captain Henry W. Freedley, Second U.S. Infantry, after inspecting the camp, reports: "Large amounts of filth and offal [have been] permitted to accumulate in the vicinity of the prisoners' quarters until they were almost too filthy to visit." The barracks are found to be "exceedingly filthy," and, of the hospital Freedley is “surprised to find such a filthy place for sick men." With the men lacking "sufficient clothing," and suffering from "a total neglect of all sanitary regulations," the mortality rate of the camp grows to an alarming rate. In the last month, 103 of the prisoners have died of sickness and disease. With the economy of the Confederacy suffering from the ravages of war, conditions in Southern prison camps are similarly depraved.
WAR DEPARTMENT, Richmond, Va., March 21, 1863.
Col. [Abraham] C. MYERS.
MY DEAR SIR: If the exigencies of our army require the use of trains for the transportation of corn pay no regard to the Yankee prisoners. I would rather they should starve than our own people suffer. I suppose I can safely put it in writing "Let them suffer." The words are memorable and it is fortunate that in this case they can be applied properly and without the intervention of a lying quartermaster. Very truly, your faithful friend,
*[Robert Ould, Confederate Agent of Exchange]
*Editor’s Note: Robert Ould succeeded Barton Scott Key as the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbus after Key was killed by Daniel Sickles. Ould charged Sickles with murder, but lost the case when Sickles’ lawyers successfully argued temporary insanity.
Confronted with a fort that seems to be unassailable and worried about their long and tenuous supply line, Leonard F. Ross decides to withdraw from Fort Pemberton. He reports: "The rebels' works were so surrounded by swamps, bayous, and overflowed country as to be inaccessible for land forces. The ironclads were nearly out of ammunition and the Chillicothe so damaged as to be disabled. We had heard nothing from reinforcements that were expected..., and we had information of rebel movements to establish a blockade at the mouth of Coldwater.... Under these circumstances, being wholly destitute of siege artillery, or any means of effecting the reduction of the fort, it was thought advisable to fall back." ‘Blizzards’ Loring sends back the good news to John C. Pemberton: "The enemy have abandoned operations against Fort Pemberton, and have retreated up the Tallahatchee." However, shortly after beginning to work their way back up the Coldwater River, the Union troops meet by a relief column from Isaac F. Quinby's Seventh Division.
STEAMER PRIMA DONNA, March 21, 1863.
Maj. Gen. J.B. McPHERSON, Commanding Seventeenth Army Corps I immediately had an interview with General Ross, and, after weighing carefully his reasons for making this retrograde movement, deemed it best to order him to return with me to the point he had left above Greenwood....I also had an interview with [Lieutenant-Commander James P. Foster], commanding the gunboat fleet, and induced him to return likewise. We all leave at daylight to-morrow morning, and hope to reach our immediate destination before dark. After disembarking, I shall send up a sufficient number of transports to bring down the Second and Third Brigades of this division. This, of course, will leave me without means of transporting the whole of my command by water, which may, at any moment, become desirable.... I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant,
I.F. QUINBY, Brigadier-General, Commanding.
General Officer fatalities on this date:
Sumner, Edwin Vose (1797-1863) Born in Boston, Sumner entered the U.S. Army as a lieutenant in 1819 and was promoted to first lieutenant in 1825. He served in the Black Hawk war and other Indian campaigns and was promoted to captain in the First U.S. Dragoons in 1833. He was twice brevetted for bravery during the Mexican War where he earned the nickname ‘Bull Head’ when a spent musket ball bounced off this head. After the war he was promoted to lieutenant-colonel and served as the military governor of the New Mexico Territory. In 1855, he was promoted to colonel in the First U.S. Cavalry and went on to command the Department of the West. In 1861, he was assigned as senior officer to accompany President-Elect Abraham Lincoln from Springfield, Illinois, to Washington, D.C. In May 1861, after the resignation of Albert Sidney Johnston, he was promoted to brigadier-general and assigned to command the Department of the Pacific. In November 1861, he was transferred back east to command a division. In March 1862, he was selected by President Lincoln as one of the four corps commanders based on his seniority. He commanded II Corps throughout the Peninsular Campaign and excelled during the Seven Days’ battles, earning a brevet promotion to major-general in the regular army for gallantry. Sumner was promoted to major-general of volunteers in July and commanded the Right Grand Division of the Army of the Potomac at Antietam and at Fredericksburg. Greatly shaken by the heavy casualties incurred by his men and disillusioned by the infighting within the army, Sumner requested to be relieved of command in January 1863. He was reassigned command the Department of the Missouri and was traveling to his new assignment when he stopped to visit his sister in Syracuse, New York. Shortly after his arrival, he contracted pneumonia and died. Over 20,000 people viewed his body as it lay in state and thousands more attended the funeral procession to Oakwood Cemetery in Syracuse.
Other Union activity reported on this date:
1. The fortifications along the east bank of the Potomac River are renamed Fort Sumner.
2. J. Hooker orders the adoption of corps insignia of various shapes and colors to ease the identification of soldiers.
3. N.P. Banks reports all objects of his expedition to Port Hudson were “successfully accomplished.” He reports: “First, communication with the land and naval forces at Vicksburg; second, defeating the construction of new batteries between Port Hudson and Vicksburg; third, cutting off supplies by the Red River.”
Other Confederate activity reported on this date;
1. R.E. Lee gives permission to J. Longstreet to utilize the divisions of J.B. Hood and G.E. Pickett in eastern North Carolina. He writes, “[If] you see an opportunity of dealing a damaging blow…do not be idle, but act promptly.”
2. Captain S.G. Street, leading “80 men,” makes a “gallant dash behind the enemy” at Grand Junction, Tennessee, and throws a “construction train off the track.”