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PostPosted: Tue Apr 29, 2014 4:50 pm 
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April 30, 1864 Saturday
President Jefferson Davis again wrote Gen Polk that “Captured slaves should be returned to their masters on proof and payment of charges.” Then personal tragedy struck – five year old Joe Davis died after falling off the high veranda of the Confederate White House in Richmond. Thus while in the service of their countries, both Presidents lost sons.

Others died on the battlefield: at Whitmore’s Mill and Jenkin’s Ferry, part of the ill-fated Federal Camden, Arkansas Expedition; at Decatur, Alabama; and in an expedition by Federals from Memphis, Tennessee to Ripley, Mississippi that lasted until May 9. Three blockade runners escaped form Galveston, Texas under cover of night and rain. Mosby Monroe Parsons, CSA, was appointed to Major General. Brigadier General William Read Scurry ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Read_Scurry ), CSA, dies from bleeding to death after refusing being taken from the battlefield during the Battle of Jenkins' Ferry, Arkansas. Brigadier General Samuel Allen Rice ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_A._Rice ), USA, is mortally wounded during the Battle of Jenkins' Ferry, Arkansas. His ankle bone, shattered by a Confederate minie ball, does not heal, and he dies at his home in Oskaloosa, Iowa, on July 6, 1864. U.S.S. Conemaugh, commanded by Lieutenant Commander James C. P. De Krafft, captured schooner Judson 18 miles east of Mobile with cargo of cotton. U.S.S. Vicksburg, commanded by Lieutenant Commander Daniel L. Braine, seized blockade running British schooner Indian at sea east of Charleston. She carried a cargo of only one hogshead of palm oil.

President Lincoln wrote Gen Grant to express his “entire satisfaction with what you have done up to this time, so far as I understand it.” ( http://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/t/text/te ... oln7%3A719 ) President Lincoln discusses with O. H. Browning and former Sen Thomas Ewing (Ohio) case of Commodore Charles Wilkes ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Wilkes ) guilty of unauthorized publication of letters of Sec Welles, and case of Capt Samuel Black.

President Lincoln "pardon[s]" and frees twenty-five "Indian prisoners now in confinement at Camp McClellan near Davenport Iowa." The men represent a portion of the Indians who have been confined since November 1862, as a result of the August 1862 Dakota uprising. Missionary Thomas S. Williamson and Special Commissioner to the Indians George E. H. Day wrote to Lincoln and urged him to release the prisoners. Day wrote, "[I]n the name of humanity [I] beg that you will . . . order them released and sent to take care of their starving families now perishing for want of food."

Secretary Mallory reported on existing Confederate naval strength on the East Coast. In the James River, under Flag Officer French Forrest, eight ships mounting 17 guns were in commission, including school ship Patrick Henry; under Commander Robert F. Pinkney on the inland waters of North Carolina there were two commissioned ships mounting 4 guns; and on the Cape Fear River, under Flag Officer William F. Lynch, there were three ships and a floating battery in commission mounting a total of 12 guns.

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PostPosted: Wed Apr 30, 2014 3:43 pm 
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May 1, 1864 Sunday
The first day of May saw action primarily west of the Mississippi River. As the Red River Campaign drew to a close with the Federal withdrawal to Alexandria, Louisiana Confederates captured U.S. transport Emma at David’s Ferry and there were four days of skirmishing at Gov Moore’s plantation. Elsewhere in Louisiana skirmishing broke out at Clinton and Ashton, and an affair took place at Berwick. In Arkansas skirmishes occurred at Pine Bluff and Lee’s Creek. Far off in California an affair at Booth’s Run marked the Humboldt River Indian operations. At Stone Church, Georgia near Chattanooga, a skirmish presaged the increase in scouting, which culminated in Sherman’s move against J.E. Johnston. Brig Gen John P. Hatch ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_P._Hatch ) assumed command of the Federal Department of the South, relieving Maj Gen Q.A. Gillmore. U.S.S. Fox, commanded by Acting Master Charles T. Chase, captured sloop Oscar outbound from St. Marks, Florida, with cargo of cotton.

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PostPosted: Thu May 01, 2014 5:04 pm 
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May 2, 1864 Monday
Skirmishing continued along the Red River as Confederates harassed Federals at Wells’ Plantation, Wilson’s Landing, and Bayou Pierre, Louisiana. In California there was a skirmish at Kneeland’s Prairie; in Tennessee a skirmish at Bolivar and a ten-day Union scout in Hickman and Maury counties; in Missouri an affair on Bee Creek. To the nineteenth Federal expeditions operated against the Virginia and Tennessee Railroad in southwestern Virginia, a land of resources for the Confederates now being invaded by the foe. In Georgia, near Tunnel Hill and Ringgold Gap, outposts of Johnston and Sherman skirmished.

In Richmond the first session of the Second Confederate Congress gathered. President Davis in his message again condemned the “barbarism” of the Federals in their “Plunder and devastation of the property of noncombatants, destruction of private dwellings, and even of edifices devoted to the worship of God; expeditions organized for the sole purpose of sacking cities, consigning them to the flames, killing the unarmed inhabitants, and inflicting horrible outrages on women and children.” He saw no immediate hope for foreign recognition, but about military and other matters he was optimistic.

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PostPosted: Fri May 02, 2014 6:36 pm 
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May 3, 1864 Tuesday
The orders went out from Gen U.S. Grant through Maj Gen George G. Meade that the Army of the Potomac was to move across the Rapidan River next morning, march around the right flank of Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia, and head toward Richmond once more.

There was a minor Federal raid on Bulltown, West Virginia. In the West the defeated Federal column of Frederick Steele arrived back at Little Rock from the Camden Expedition. Also in Arkansas skirmishing broke out near the mouth of Richland Creek. Skirmishes occurred between Bayous Redwood and Olive Branch near Baton Rouge, Louisiana and between Federals and Indians at Cedar Bluffs, Colorado Territory. Along Chickamauga Creek, at Catoosa Springs and at Red Clay the Georgia Campaign became more lively as skirmishing increased. U.S.S. Chocura, commanded by Lieutenant Commander Bancroft Gherardi, captured blockade running British schooner Agnes off the mouth of the Brazos River, Texas, with cargo of cotton. Later that same day, Chocura overhauled and captured Prussian schooner Frederick the Second, also laden with cotton, which had run the blockade with Agnes. U.S.S. Virginia, commanded by Acting Lieutenant C. H. Brown, captured schooner Experiment off the Texas coast and destroyed her after removing the cotton cargo.

The Federal Cabinet and President Lincoln discussed the alleged atrocities committed by Confederates during the attack on Fort Pillow, Tennessee.

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PostPosted: Sat May 03, 2014 6:39 pm 
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May 4, 1864 Wednesday
“Soon after midnight, May 3d-4th the Army of the Potomac moved out from its position north of the Rapidan River, to start upon that memorable campaign.” So wrote Gen Grant. It was the beginning of the big Federal push in Virginia that culminated in the siege of Petersburg and finally Appomattox. From now on the pressure would not be relaxed. By late in the day Grant had 122,000 men present for duty. He positioned the Second Corps of Hancock, the Fifth Corps of Warren, and the Sixth Corps of Sedgwick across the river via Germanna and Culpeper Mine fords, and Burnsides’ Ninth Corps was coming up. Grant moved quickly around Lee’s right, and the Army of Northern Virginia, some 66,000 present for duty, rushed up from the Orange Court House – Gordonsville area to meet him. Ewell led the Confederates, followed by A.P. Hill and Longstreet. However, only a brief skirmish near burned-out Chancellorsville showed the battling to come.

Other Federal advances marked the day. Following Grant’s many-pronged strategy to weaken the thin Confederate defense, Ben Butler’s Army of the James assembled in transports in Hampton Roads. The army would move up the James River to operate against Richmond from the south side. At first almost nothing barred his way.

Farther south, along Albemarle Sound, North Carolina skirmishing flared on the Trent Road and south of the Trent River, and Federals lost an outpost at Croatan to attacking Confederates. C.S.S. Albemarle, the powerful iron-clad ram built on the Roanoke River, presented a real menace to the Federal position in North Carolina and a challenge was expected soon. May 4-21 a Federal expedition from Vicksburg to Yazoo City included skirmishing.

On a fourth front Gen Sherman prepared to move his 98,000 men from the Chattanooga area toward Atlanta. Light skirmishing continued in Georgia with a fight at Varnell’s Station. Major General Frank P. Blair, Jr. ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_P._Blair,_Jr. ), USA, assumes command of the Federal 17th Army Corps. On Louisiana’s Red River Confederates destroyed a U.S. steamer and captured two others May 4-5 during an engagement at David’s Ferry, and a skirmish took place at Ashwood Landing. There was skirmishing also at Doubtful Canyon, New Mexico Territory and an affair at Callaghan’s Station, Virginia. The Federal House passed the controversial and radical Wade-Davis Reconstruction Bill 73 to 59.

Steamers U.S.S. Sunflower, commanded by Acting Master Edward Van Sice, and Honduras, commanded by Acting Master John H. Platt, and sailing, bark J. L. Davis, commanded by Acting Master William Fales, supported the capture of Tampa, Florida, in a combined operation. The Union ships carried the soldiers to Tampa and provided a naval landing party which joined in the assault. Van Sice reported of the engagement: "At 7 A.M. the place was taken possession of, capturing some 40 prisoners, the naval force capturing about one-half, which were turned over to the Army, and a few minutes after 7 the Stars and Stripes were hoisted in the town by the Navy." The warships also captured blockade running sloop Neptune on 6 May with cargo of cotton.

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Blood 'n Guts hisself, a land lovin' pirate. Show me some arty tubes and we'll charge 'em.
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PostPosted: Sun May 04, 2014 6:28 pm 
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May 5, 1864 Thursday
“It is a beautiful spring day on which all this bloody work is being done,” wrote a Confederate private of the Army of Northern Virginia. In Virginia’s Wilderness Gouverneur K. Warren’s Fifth Corps faced Richard Ewell’s Second Corps on the Orange Turnpike. The first great battle of 1864 was joined ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Wilderness and http://www.civilwar.org/battlefields/wi ... y5map.html ). Warren advanced, supported by some of Sedgwick’s force, but was driven back by Ewell, who also moved ahead. By late morning the two corps were in the throes of full-scale combat. In a separate afternoon engagement Hancock fought A.P. Hill, who came in for the Confederates from the Orange Plank Road. Desperate but indecisive fighting proved to the Federals that the enemy opposed them in force and to the Confederates that they had to attack Grant’s full army. Both armies entrenched east of the Germanna Plank Road during the night and anxiously awaited the morrow. Brigadier General Leroy Augustus Stafford ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leroy_Augustus_Stafford ), CSA, is mortally wounded while leading his men during the Battle of the Wilderness, dying three days later, May 8, 1864. Brigadier General John Marshal Jones ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_M._Jones ), CSA, is killed as his brigade opened the Battle of the Wilderness, shot down from his horse while rallying his men from the initial Federal assault on the Confederate lines. Major General Alexander Hays ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Hays ), USA, is killed while leading his command near the intersection of the Brock Road and Orange Plank Road during the Battle of the Wilderness.

Southward, along the James River, Gen Butler landed some 30,000 Federals at City Point and Bermuda Hundred on the south side of the river, aiming at Richmond via Petersburg. Butler’s proposed night march on Fort Darling on the James River was turned down by his officers. May 5-11 Federal cavalry raided toward Petersburg and the Weldon Railroad with several skirmishes.

In North Carolina Confederate attempts to retake New Berne were defeated. C.S.S. Albemarle, Commander Cooke, with Bombshell, commanded by Lieutenant Albert G. Hudgins, and Cotton Plant in company, steamed into Albemarle Sound and engaged Union naval forces in fierce action off the mouth of the Roanoke River. Bombshell was captured early in the action after coming under severe fire from U.S.S. Sassacus, and Cotton Plant withdrew up the Roanoke. Albemarle resolutely continued the action. Sassacus, commanded by Lieutenant Commander Roe, gallantly rammed the heavy ironclad but with little effect. Sassacus received a direct hit in her starboard boiler, killing several sailors and forcing her out of action. Side-wheelers U.S.S. Mattabesett, commanded by Captain M. Smith, and U.S.S. Wyalusing, commanded by Lieutenant Commander Walter W. Queen, continued to engage the Southern ram until darkness halted the action after nearly three hours of intensive fighting. As Assistant Surgeon Samuel P. Boyer, on board Mattabesett, wrote: "Shot and shell came fast like hail." Albemarle withdrew up the Roanoke River and small side-wheelers U.S.S. Commodore Hull and Ceres steamed to the river's mouth on picket duty to guard against her reentry into the sound. The ironclad had returned to her river haven, but she had given new evidence that she was a mighty force to be reckoned with. Captain Smith reported: "The ram is certainly very formidable. He is fast for that class of vessel, making from 6 to 7 knots, turns quickly, and is armed with heavy guns. . . ." And Lieutenant Commander Roe noted: ". . . I am forced to think that the Albemarle is more formidable than the Merrimack or Atlanta, for our solid 100-pounder rifle shot flew into splinters upon her iron plates." Albemarle's commander was more critical of her performance. Three days later he wrote Secretary Mallory that the ram "draws too much water to navigate the sounds well, and has not sufficient bouyancy. In consequence she is very slow and not easily managed. Her decks are so near the water as to render it an easy task for the enemy's vessels to run on her, and any great weight soon submerges the deck." For the next five months Union efforts in the area focused on Albemarle's destruction.

Federal cavalry under William W. Averell ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Averell ) set out from Logan Court House, West Virginia on another expedition against the Virginia and Tennessee Railroad. Confederate troops raided the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad between Bloomington and Piedmont, West Virginia. Federal scouts in Craighead and Lawrence counties, Missouri lasted five days. On the Red River skirmishing at Graham’s Plantation and at Natchitoches, Louisiana marked the slow Federal withdrawal after the campaign. In Georgia skirmishing at and near Tunnel Hill lasted three days; in Kentucky Federals scouted in Meade and Breckinridge counties.

While Rear Admiral Porter's fleet awaited the opportunity to pass over the Red River rapids, the ships below Alexandria were incessantly attacked by Confederate forces. This date, wooden steamers U.S.S. Covington, commanded by Acting Lieutenant George P. Lord, U.S.S. Signal, commanded by Acting Lieutenant Edward Morgan, and transport Warner were lost in a fierce engagement on the Red River near Dunn's Bayou, Louisiana. On 4 May, Covington and Warner had been briefly attacked by infantry, and the next morning the Confederates reappeared with two pieces of artillery and a large company of riflemen. Warner, in the lead, soon went out of control, blocked the river at a bend near Pierce's Landing, and despite the efforts of Lord and Morgan was forced to surrender. Signal also became disabled and although Covington attempted to tow her upstream, she went adrift out of control and came to anchor. The gunboats continued the hot engagement, but Lord finally burned and abandoned Covington after his ammunition was exhausted and many of the crew were killed. After continuing to sustain the Confederate cannonade alone, the crippled Signal was finally compelled to strike the colors. The Southerners then sank Signal as a channel obstruction.

President Davis informed Gen Lee of Butler’s landings on the James River and it appeared in Richmond that two major drives were heading toward the capital.

Chief Engineer Henry A. Ramsay of the newly established Confederate Navy Yard, Charlotte, North Carolina, advised Commander Brooke, Chief of the Naval Bureau of Ordnance, that because of difficulties in recruiting skilled workers and a shortage of mechanics he was unable to operate some of the equipment for arming Southern ironclads; nor could he repair the locomotives assigned to that station by Secretary Mallory. He added: "I understand from you that the iron-clad Virginia [No. II] at Richmond is now in readiness for action except her gun carriages and wrought-iron projectiles, which are being made at these works. If we had a full force of mechanics this work would have been finished in one-half the time. . . ." Two days later, Lieutenant David P. McCorkle wrote Brooke in a similar vein from the Naval Ordnance Works at Atlanta, Georgia. This chronic shortage of skilled workers combined with the material shortages occasioned by the blockade could not be surmounted by the Confederacy.

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Blood 'n Guts hisself, a land lovin' pirate. Show me some arty tubes and we'll charge 'em.
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PostPosted: Mon May 05, 2014 7:24 pm 
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May 6, 1864 Friday
The entrenched armies of Grant and Lee awaited each other in the dawn of the Wilderness.

On the Federal right along the Orange Turnpike, Sedgwick and Warren drove westward early in the morning. To the south, on the Federal left, Hancock’s men inched ahead on the Orange Plank Road. Sedgwick and Warren made little or no progress against Ewell, and Hancock was in trouble in his fight against A.P. Hill. At first Hancock made some advance, but troops of Longstreet and another division of Hill’s came up. For most of the morning the firing rolled on with no great advantage won by either side. Toward noon part of Longstreet’s corps struck the Federal line on its left flank and rear. Hancock’s men reeled back and more Confederates drove in, but Longstreet was severely wounded ( http://www.civilwarhome.com/jlongstreetwilderness.htm and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Longstreet ). Brigadier General Micah Jenkins ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Micah_Jenkins ), CSA, is mortally wounded during the Battle of the Wilderness, dying from a Federal minie ball that lodged in his brain. .

In late afternoon another Confederate attack by Longstreet’s men was halted at the Union breastworks. Horsemen fought this day also, with Sheridan’s troops opposing Stuart’s near Todd’s Tavern. Toward sunset Gen John B. Gordon’s brigade swept the Federal right flank, proceeding rapidly and successfully until darkness, but without real support, despite Gordon’s pleas to Ewell for full attack. However, “the great fight of the Wilderness” was over. At headquarters, Gen Grant coolly smoked a cigar and whittled. Gen Lee rode among his men and was shouted to the rear by his protective troops. No one supposed it was over – somewhere soon it would start up again, unless of course the Federals pulled back over the river as they had done in the months gone by.

The casualties were staggering. Of over 100,000 Federals engaged, 2246 were killed, 12,037 wounded, and 3383 missing for a total of 17,666; Confederates numbered something over 60,000; losses are uncertain but probably totaled more than 7500. Major General James Samuel Wadsworth ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_S._Wadsworth ), USA, is mortally wounded from a Confederate minie ball lodging in his brain, while he rode his horse leading his troops during the Battle of the Wilderness. He dies two days later, May 8, 1864.

On the James River, Butler’s men saw the steeples of Petersburg seven miles to the southwest. Richmond lay about fifteen miles to the north. There were fewer than 10,000 Confederates in a fifty-mile area around Richmond and Petersburg to oppose the Army of the James, numbering nearly 39,000. Butler ordered troops of his two corps, commanded by W.F. Smith and Quincy A. Gillmore, to break the Richmond and Petersburg Railroad. Smith sent one brigade, Gillmore none. Gen Pickett, no longer with Lee, gathered what men he could. After modest skirmishing, the Federals returned to camp; the first of numerous half-hearted attempts at Petersburg, Richmond, and the lines of communication in between had failed.

Far from the Wilderness, guns sputtered as always. On the Red River there were skirmishes at Bayou Lamourie and at Boyce’s and Wells’ plantations, Louisiana. Skirmishing at Princeton, West Virginia marked the Virginia and Tennessee Railroad expedition. Other skirmishes broke out on the Blackwater River in Virginia; at Tampa, Florida (temporarily occupied by Federals); near Boynton’s Prairie, California; and Morganfield, Kentucky. Federals scouted from Bloomfield and Patterson, Missouri. Confederates staged a raid on Napoleonville, Louisiana. In Georgia skirmishing continued at Tunnel Hill. James Samuel Wadsworth, USA, was appointed to Major General; and appointments to Brigadier General were made for John Bratton, CSA; Samuel Jameson Gholson, CSA; and Stand Watie, CSA.

U.S.S. Commodore Jones, commanded by Acting Lieutenant Thomas Wade, was destroyed by a huge 2,000-pound electric torpedo in the James River while dragging for torpedoes with U.S.S. Mackinaw and Commodore Morris. From the Norfolk Naval Hospital, Wade later reported that the torpedo "exploded directly under the ship with terrible effect, causing her destruction instantly, absolutely blowing the vessel to splinters." Other observers said that the hull of the converted ferryboat was lifted completely out of the water by the force of the explosion which claimed some 40 lives. A landing party of sailors and Marines went ashore immediately and captured two torpedo men and the galvanic batteries which had detonated the mine. One of the Confederates, Jeffries Johnson, refused to divulge information regarding the location of torpedoes under interrogation, but he "signified his willingness to tell all" when he was placed in the bow of the forward ship on river duty, and Johnson became the war's "unique minesweeper."

Early in the evening, C.S.S. Raleigh, Flag Officer Lynch, steamed over the bar at New Inlet, North Carolina, and engaged U.S.S. Britannia and Nansemond, forcing them to withdraw temporarily and enabling a blockade runner to escape.

U.S.S. Granite City, commanded by Acting Master C. W. Lamson, and U.S.S. Wave, commanded by Acting Lieutenant Benjamin A. Loring, were captured by Confederate troops in Calcasieu River, Louisiana. Steamer Granite City and tinclad Wave had been dispatched to Calcasieu Pass to receive refugees on 28 April and both ships carried out this duty until the morning of the captures, landing a small army detachment on shore as pickets. The Southerners, with artillery and about 350 sharpshooters from the Sabine Pass garrison, overwhelmed the Union landing party, and took the ships under fire on the morning of 6 May. After an hour's engagement, Granite City surrendered; upon receiving shot in her boiler and steam drum, Wave shortly followed suit.

U.S.S. Grand Gulf, Commander George M. Ransom, captured blockade running British steamer Young Republic at sea east of Savannah with cargo of cotton and tobacco.

Conscious of the double threat to Richmond from the north and from the southeast, President Davis wired Gen Beauregard, commanding south of the capital, “I hope you will be able at Petersburg to direct operations both before and behind you, so as to meet necessities.”

_________________
Gen Ned Simms
2/XVI Corps/AotT
Blood 'n Guts hisself, a land lovin' pirate. Show me some arty tubes and we'll charge 'em.
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PostPosted: Tue May 06, 2014 8:53 pm 
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May 7, 1864 Saturday
In Virginia the great armies paused in the Wilderness. Grant had long since decided to continue toward Richmond and Lee, anxious not to face superior numbers of Federals out in the open, preferred to fight in the scraggling woods. By midevening Grant’s troops were on their way toward Spotsylvania Court House to the southeast. Lee, aware of his opponent’s move, ordered Maj Gen Richard Heron Anderson ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_H._Anderson ), commanding in place of the wounded Longstreet, to march by night for the same place. Spotsylvania Court House was important only because roads went through it to Chancellorsville, Wilderness Tavern, and Fredericksburg. Confederate cavalry slowed the Federal advance by cutting down trees and harassing the columns.

Gen Grant had instructed Sherman to move against Johnston and head into the interior of Georgia. There is controversy over just whose idea it was, but nevertheless, the task was now begun. At Dalton Johnston was soundly entrenched along a high ridge with only a few gaps. Toward Atlanta were more barriers, the roads were poor, the country rough. Sherman’s force of nearly 100,000 men was divided into the Army of the Cumberland under Thomas near Ringgold; the Army of the Tennessee under McPherson at Lee and Gordon’s Mills on the Chickamauga field; and the Army of the Ohio under Schofield north of Dalton. To oppose the Federals, nearly 60,000 Confederates held a fine defensive position.

Sherman found the main position too strong to assault and so he determined to turn Johnston’s left flank. McPherson, with cavalry in front, headed toward Snake Creek Gap; Thomas’ army demonstrated against Tunnel Hill and Rocky Face Ridge, Johnston’s main position. There was skirmishing at Varnell’s Station and near Nickajack Gap, Georgia.

Once more Butler’s men moved forward south of the James River. Some 8000 Federals seized the Richmond and Petersburg Railroad, held a section briefly, and retired again. The opposition force numbered less than 2700. Soldiers began to call the campaign a “stationary advance.”

Meanwhile, skirmishing occurred at Stony Creek Station, Virginia; near Florence, Alabama; and on the Red River at Bayou Boeuf. Ironclad ram C.S.S. Raleigh went aground and had to be destroyed, but not until she had engaged two blockaders on the sixth and four Federal vessels off the mouth of the Cape Fear River, North Carolina on this day. Edward Richard Sprigg Canby, USA, was appointed to Major General; Oliver Edwards, USA, and August Valentine Kautz, USA, were appointed to Brigadier General.

At a marine band concert in Washington the President declined to make a speech but proposed three cheers for Grant “and all the armies under his command.”

U.S.S. Shawsheen, commanded by Acting Ensign Charles Ringot, was disabled, captured and destroyed by Confederates in James River. Shawsheen, a 180-ton side-wheel steamer, had been ordered to drag the river for torpedoes above Chaffin's Bluff, and had anchored near shore shortly before noon so that the crew could eat, when Confederate infantry and artillery surprised the gunboat. A shot through the boiler forced many sailors overboard to avoid being scalded. Lieutenant Colonel W. M. Elliott, CSA, reported that Shawsheen was completely disabled and "though reluctantly, she nevertheless hauled down her colors and displayed the white flag in token of surrender. A boat was dispatched to enforce the delivery of the prisoners on board, the enemy's boats being made available to bring them off. The officer was also instructed to fire the vessel, which was effectively done, the fire quickly reaching the magazine, exploding it, consigning all to the wind and waves."

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Gen Ned Simms
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Blood 'n Guts hisself, a land lovin' pirate. Show me some arty tubes and we'll charge 'em.
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PostPosted: Wed May 07, 2014 4:28 pm 
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May 8, 1864 Sunday
Through the night men had marched in Virginia’s Wilderness and when Warren’s Union column neared Spotsylvania Court House in what they thought was a move around Lee’s right flank, there they found that Anderson’s corps had beaten the Federals to the Court House area ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_ ... ourt_House ). Fighting revealed the new line. Other troops came in on both sides and in late afternoon Federals of Warren and Sedgwick assaulted the entrenched Confederates of R.H. Anderson and Ewell. The attack failed and during the night both sides established new lines. Grant ordered Sheridan with the cavalry to move around Lee, hit railroads and supply lines, and then join Butler on the James River. A prime object would be to divert Stuart’s Confederate cavalry from Grant. The various fights of the day went by the names of Todd’s Tavern, Corbin’s Bridge, Alsop’s Farm, and Laurel Hill. Maj Gen Jubal Early ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jubal_Early ) took temporary command of A.P. Hill’s corps, as Hill was sick. Thus, with Longstreet and Hill gone, two of Lee’s three corps had new commanders in the midst of battle. On the south side of the James River, Federal cavalry skirmished at Jarratt’s Station and White’s Bridge.

Sherman’s army in Georgia continued its movement with demonstrations against Rocky Face Ridge and fighting at Buzzard Roost or Mill Creek Gap and Dug Gap. McPherson was penetrating into Snake Creek Gap on the right in his attempt to swing past Johnston’s occupied army.

Sporadic action elsewhere included an affair at Halltown near Harper’s Ferry and a skirmish at Jeffersonville, West Virginia on the Virginia and Tennessee Railroad; skirmishing near Decatur, Alabama; near Maysville, Arkansas; and at Bayou Robert on the Red River.

A disturbed President Lincoln awaited the news in Washington.

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Blood 'n Guts hisself, a land lovin' pirate. Show me some arty tubes and we'll charge 'em.
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PostPosted: Thu May 08, 2014 5:53 pm 
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May 9, 1864 Monday
The crescendo of action continued across the various fronts. There was no heavy fighting at Spotsylvania but plenty of skirmishing, sharpshooting, and the establishing of lines. In the morning the Union lost a brave, modest, and very capable corps commander when Maj Gen John Sedgwick ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Sedgwick ) was killed instantly by a Confederate sharpshooter's minie ball to his left cheek, while sitting on his horse in an exposed position bragging that Confederate snipers couldn't hit an elephant. Brig Gen Horatio G. Wright ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horatio_Wright ) assumed command of the Sixth Corps. Burnside’s Ninth Corps, attached to the Army of the Potomac, moved up nearer the battle lines and there was constant readjustment on both sides. Lee was firmly entrenched in the Wilderness in an irregular position somewhat resembling a horseshoe. Late at night orders were issued for a Federal advance the next day. Meanwhile, Sheridan’s cavalry, drawing Stuart with them for a while, began a sixteen-day ride and raid toward Richmond. Fights at Davenport, Beaver Dam Station, North Anna, and Davenport Ford marked the first day.

Federal troops in Georgia under Thomas and Schofield pressed hard against Johnston’s hill positions near Dalton at Buzzard Roost and Rocky Face Gap, testing the Confederate defenses. At times the intended skirmishes took on the aspects of a major assault against the rocky stronghold. By midafternoon McPherson, coming through Snake Creek Gap, a moderately wide valley in the mountain wall, pushed toward Resaca to get in Johnston’s rear. However, McPherson decided the defenses were too strong to assault and he pulled back to the lower mouth of Snake Creek Gap and reported to Sherman. Sherman was disappointed in McPherson’s failure to cut in behind Johnston and it has been a source of dispute ever since. Considerable cavalry skirmishing flared around the edges of the armies, with a serious combat at Varnell’s Station. Other skirmishes broke out at Boyd’s Trail, Snake Creek Gap, and Sugar Valley.

Farther west, Colonel Bailey and his regiments of Maine and New York soldiers succeeded, after eight days of grueling work, in nearly completing the dam across the Red River at Alexandria, and hopes rose that Rear Admiral Porter would be able to save the Mississippi Squadron, marooned above the rapids. On 9 May, two of the stone-filled barges which had been sunk as parts of the dam gave way under the increasing pressure of the backed-up water. The barges, however, swung into position to form a chute over the rapids, and Porter quickly ordered his lighter draft vessels to attempt a passage through the gap. As the water was falling, ironclads Osage and Neosho and wooden steamers Fort Hindman and Lexington careened over the rapids with little damage. As Porter later recalled about this thrilling moment: "Thirty thousand voices rose in one deafening cheer, and universal joy seemed to pervade the face of every man present." But all of Porter's vessels were not yet safe, as the larger ships of the squadron remained above the falls. "The accident to the dam," the Admiral related, "instead of disheartening Colonel Bailey, only induced him to renew his exertions, after he had seen the success of getting four vessels through." Bailey and his men, despite the fact that eight days of the heaviest labor had been swept away, turned immediately to work on a new dam.

In the Far West May 9-June 22 a Federal expedition operated against Indians from Fort Crittenden, Utah Territory to Fort Mojave, Arizona Territory. May 9-10 Federals scouted from Indian Ranch to Cedar Bluffs, Colorado Territory. May 9-June 3 the Gila, Arizona Territory expedition operated against Indians. Federal troops on a railroad-destroying raid in Virginia fought Confederates at Cloyd’s Mountain ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_ ... s_Mountain ), successfully assaulting a strong position. Casualties were considerable on both sides. Brigadier General Albert Gallatin Jenkins ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_G._Jenkins ), CSA, is mortally wounded during the Battle of Cloyd's Mountain, near Dublin, Virginia. Captured, and having his arm removed by Federal surgeons, he does not recover, dying May 21, 1864. In Kentucky a skirmish took place near Pound Gap and a five-day Federal expedition moved from Louisa, Kentucky to Rock House Creek, West Virginia. In St John’s River, Florida Confederates destroyed the U.S. transport Harriet A. Weed. In Arkansas there was a skirmish at Eudora Church. Maj Gen Stephen D. Lee assumed command of the Confederate Department of Alabama, Mississippi, and East Louisiana, as Polk and many of his troops had gone to join Johnston in Georgia.

Butler ordered his whole army out against the Richmond-Petersburg lines of communications south of the James River. Gillmore’s men started to destroy the railroad. The rest of the advance moved slowly despite little opposition. The fighting was recorded as being at Fort Clifton, Ware Bottom Church, Brandon or Brander’s Bridge, Swift Creek or Arrowfield Church. Confusion set in. Butler ordered the army back to its original lines the next morning. Everyone seemed to be at fault.

President Davis wrote embattled Gen Lee, “Your dispatches have cheered us in the anxiety of a critical position….” President Lincoln told another serenading group, “Our commanders are following up their victories resolutely and successfully….I will volunteer to say that I am very glad at what has happened; but there is a great deal still to be done.”

U.S.S. Connecticut, Commander Almy, seized blockade running British steamer Minnie with cargo of cotton, tobacco, turpentine, and $10,000 in gold. The steamer was a well-known successful blockade runner.

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Gen Ned Simms
2/XVI Corps/AotT
Blood 'n Guts hisself, a land lovin' pirate. Show me some arty tubes and we'll charge 'em.
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PostPosted: Fri May 09, 2014 6:05 pm 
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May 10, 1864 Tuesday
Hancock, Warren, and Wright’s corps of the Army of the Potomac attacked Anderson’s Confederate corps northwest of Spotsylvania in the late afternoon and early evening. Assaulting the entrenched Confederates twice, the Federals were thrown back, though some reached the parapets. At the salient or “Mule Shoe” in the center of the Confederate line ( http://www.civilwarbattlefields.us/spot ... _shoe.html and http://www.civilwar.org/battlefields/sp ... ue-at.html ), Emory Upton’s division of Wright’s corps struck at 6 PM and breached Ewell’s lines, but Gordon’s Confederates came up to plug the gap partially. Finally Upton had to withdraw in the darkness. On the far Federal left Burnside’s corps moved close to Spotsylvania Court House itself and entrenched in front of Early’s corps. The first major day of the Spotsylvania battle ended in repulse of Union assaults after causing dents in the Confederate lines. Brigadier General James Clay Rice ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Clay_Rice ), USA, is mortally wounded in the thigh during the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House, Virginia. His leg is amputated, but he dies that evening in a Federal field hospital. Brigadier General Thomas Greely Stevenson ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_G._Stevenson ), USA, is killed instantly while leading his command during the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House, Virginia.

Sheridan’s raiders still fought skirmishes with Stuart’s cavalry along the North Anna and near Beaver Dam Station. By nightfall Sheridan was south of the South Anna, less than twenty miles from Richmond. Stuart’s cavalry took position between Sheridan and Richmond. Custer’s brigade destroyed railroad tracks and running equipment between the North and South Anna Rivers on the Virginia Central.

South of the James River action erupted at Chester Station, and a Confederate torpedo station on the James River was destroyed. Other lesser fighting included skirmishing at Lost River Gap, West Virginia and Dardanelle, Arkansas. A two-week Union scout moved from Pilot Knob, Missouri to Gainesville, Arkansas; guerrilla fighting occurred at Winchester, Tennessee; and in the Virginia railroad raiding engagements took place at Cove Mountain or Grassy Lick, near Wytheville, and there was a skirmish at New River Bridge. Off Charleston, Rear Admiral Dahlgren’s ship commanders voted against attacking Fort Sumter directly. Thomas Moore Scott, CSA, and Francis Fessenden, USA, were appointed to Brigadier General.

In Georgia Joe Johnston learned of McPherson’s efforts to turn his left at Resaca and Snake Creek Gap. Demonstrations and skirmishes continued. Polk’s corps from Mississippi was on the way to reinforce Johnston. Sherman, now that McPherson had partially failed, decided to swing his entire army by the right flank through Snake Creek Gap.

U.S. Army transport Harriet A. Weed, supporting troop movements in the St. John's River, was destroyed by a torpedo. Sinking in less than a minute, the steamer became the third victim of stepped-up Confederate torpedo activity in the St. John's River in less than six weeks. While reconnoitering the river near Harriet A. Weed's hulk, U.S.S. Vixen recovered a torpedo of the type that destroyed the transport. The keg torpedo was, reported Charles O. Boutelle of the Coast Survey, "simple and effectual. . . ."

U.S.S. Mound City, commanded by Acting Lieutenant Amos R. Langthorne, and U.S.S. Carondelet, commanded by Lieutenant Commander John G. Mitchell, grounded near where work was proceeding on the wing dams across the Red River rapids above Alexandria. Next day, as the Red River slowly continued to rise behind the two wing dams, ironclads Mound City, Carondelet, and U.S.S. Pittsburg, commanded by Acting Lieutenant William R. Hoel, were finally hauled across the upper falls above the obstructions by throngs of straining soldiers. As the troops looked on in tense anticipation, the gunboats, all hatches battened down, successfully lurched through the gap between the dams to safety. Rear Admiral Porter later reported to Secretary Welles: "The passage of these vessels was a beautiful sight, only to be realized when seen." U.S.S. Ozark, Louisville, and Chillicothe, ironclads which had crossed the upper falls, were preparing to follow the next day.

U.S.S. Connecticut, Commander Almy, captured blockade running British steamer Greyhound, commanded by Lieutenant George H. Bier, CSN, with cargo of cotton, tobacco, and turpentine on the Government account.

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Blood 'n Guts hisself, a land lovin' pirate. Show me some arty tubes and we'll charge 'em.
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PostPosted: Sat May 10, 2014 5:30 pm 
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May 11, 1864 Wednesday
Some six miles north of Richmond at a place called Yellow Tavern, Jeb Stuart and his cavalry faced the Federal raiders of Philip Sheridan. In a sharp, helter-skelter encounter Stuart ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J.E.B._Stuart ) fell from his horse, mortally wounded. Sheridan’s men drove back Stuart’s troops but the engagement gave the Confederates time to strengthen the defenses of Richmond and Sheridan had to return toward the James River. Other fighting broke out at nearby Ground Squirrel Church or Bridge, Glen Allen Station, and Ashland. Once more victory was mixed with sorrow – the capital of the Confederacy was saved from raiders but the “Cavalier of Dixie” died May 12.

To the north there was a breathing spell along the entrenched lines around Spotsylvania, with only a reconnaissance on Grant’s left flank by men of Burnside’s corps. However, Grant, learning about the bulge in the Confederate center, determined to attack it.

In Georgia Sherman ordered a general movement toward Resaca from Snake Creek Gap on the twelfth. A Confederate reconnaissance in Sugar Valley resulted in rather extensive casualties.

In the seldom considered but strategically important Union raids on Confederate railroads deep in southwest Virginia there was a skirmish at Blacksburg. A Federal expedition May 11-14 moved from Point Lookout, Maryland to the Rappahannock River in Virginia. Maj Gen E.R.S. Canby ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Canby ) assumed command of the Union Military Division of West Mississippi. Three Federal ironclads escaped from Alexandria, Louisiana after dams raised the water level. Other naval vessels got over the rapids on the thirteenth.

At the Louisiana Constitutional Convention in New Orleans the reconstructed Federal state government adopted an ordinance of emancipation without compensation. It was ratified by the people July 22. President Davis wrote Lee that he was trying to send more troops, but “we have been sorely pressed by enemy on south side. Are now threatened by the cavalry….”

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PostPosted: Sun May 11, 2014 5:56 pm 
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May 12, 1864 Thursday
A fierce day of fighting at Spotsylvania opened at 4:30 A.M. Straight at the salient of the Confederate lines charged Hancock’s Federals. Possibly four thousand prisoners, including two generals, artillery, small arms, and stands of colors were taken from Ewell’s corps. Bayonets bristled in the charge. Through the brush and small trees the Federals pushed Ewell’s overwhelmed but hard-fighting defenders back to a second line of defense. Masses of Federal troops were opposed mainly by infantry, due to an unfortunate withdrawal of Ewell’s artillery. But the Confederate lines were stiffening and holding now. To the right of Hancock’s drive Wright’s corps moved in to help; until past midnight raged the ferocious struggle known as the “Bloody Angle of Spotsylvania.” ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Bloody ... otsylvania)#May_12:_The_Bloody_Angle ) All told, twenty-four Federal brigades attacked only a few hundred yards of entrenchments. For the most part the main Confederate line held, but eventually they were withdrawn to a new line as their salient was eliminated. Even farther to the right Warren’s corps drove in against Anderson but was repulsed. Meade and Grant believed Warren had been slow. On the Federal left Burnside also attacked Early and part of Ewell’s force but gained little except to keep Confederate reinforcements from the main battle line.

It was one of the murderous days of the war; Federal killed, wounded, and missing are put at about 6800; Confederates lost perhaps 5000 killed and wounded alone. Two great armies had fought, and only rather unimportant bits of ground changed hands. Yet attrition was more serious for the Confederates. Where were the replacements to come from? Brigadier General Junius Daniel ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Junius_Daniel ), CSA, is killed while leading his command in an attempt to retake the 'Mule Shoe,' which had been captured by Federal troops, during the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House. Brigadier General Abner Monroe Perrin ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abner_Monroe_Perrin ), CSA, is killed while leading his command during the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House, Virginia.

One Yankee exclaimed, “This has been the most terrible day I have ever lived.” Again his soldiers shouted “Lee to the rear” when they thought him in danger. One Southern man wrote of Grant, “We have met a man this time, who either does not know when he is whipped, or who cares not if he loses his whole Army.” Northerners, too, accused Grant of butchery.

Sheridan, riding east of Richmond along the Chickahominy River, tried to get to Butler’s camps on the James River. Confederates fought Sheridan’s cavalry at Meadow Bridge, Mechanicsville, Strawberry Hill, Brook Church, and along the Richmond defenses. Other fighting during Sheridan’s operations near Richmond included, until May 24, action at Mattapony Church, Jones’ Bridge, Haxall’s, White House Landing, and Hanover Court House. Brigadier General James Byron Gordon ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_B._Gordon ), CSA, is mortally wounded during the Battle of Meadow Bridge, Virginia, while defending Richmond, Virginia, from Federal assault. He dies in a Confederate hospital in Richmond, Virginia, on May 18, 1864.

South of the James River, Butler’s troops from City Point and Bermuda Hundred were supposedly threatening both Petersburg and Richmond. So far the Federals had bungled the campaign. Beauregard, who had succeeded Pickett, was gathering in what few troops he could find for defense. There had already been considerable skirmishing and forays by Federal cavalry. Butler advanced upon Drewry’s Bluff and Confederate Fort Darling on the south side of the James River. Meanwhile, Federal cavalry under Brig Gen A.V. Kautz ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_Kautz ) raided the Richmond and Danville Railroad. The Confederate capital was thus threatened from the north and from the southeast and pestered by cavalry raids as well.

Down in Georgia, Sherman’s army, except for one corps, had passed through Snake Creek Gap and was near Resaca by day’s end. Johnston learned of the threat to his rear and during the night evacuated Dalton and positioned his army at Resaca in front of Sherman’s army. It was the first major step in a campaign by two masters of maneuver.

Fighting elsewhere was minor by comparison, but an affair occurred at Strasburg, Virginia; and skirmishes at Jackson’s Ferry, Alabama; Smith’s Station, Nebraska Territory; Bayou Lamourie on the Red River, Louisiana; and in southwest Virginia at Newport, Brown’s Ferry, Salt Ponds, and Gap Mountain.

Horatio Gouverneur Wright, USA, is appointed to Major General; and the following appointments were made to Brigadier General: Joseph Bailey, USA; John Rutter Brooke, USA; Samuel Sprigg Carroll, USA; Simon Goodell Griffin, USA; John Frederick Hartranft, USA; Joseph Hayes, USA; Nelson Appleton Miles, USA; and Emory Upton, USA.

U.S.S. Beauregard, commanded by Acting Master Edward C. Healy, seized blockade running sloop Resolute off Indian River, Florida.

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Blood 'n Guts hisself, a land lovin' pirate. Show me some arty tubes and we'll charge 'em.
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PostPosted: Mon May 12, 2014 6:41 pm 
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May 13, 1864 Friday
Around Resaca, Georgia Joseph E. Johnston had taken up new positions, joined by Polk’s reinforcements, and faced the advance of Sherman’s full army. Fighting broke out at Tilton, Resaca, and near Dalton during the course of the realignment.

Late in the day, Warren’s corps in Virginia shifted around to the left as Grant, having failed to break Lee’s line at Spotsylvania, continued his move to the south and east. Sheridan’s cavalry left the Richmond area and headed for the James River at Haxall’s Landing.

At Drewry’s Bluff Butler’s Federals were laboriously getting into position to attack, thus giving Beauregard’s Confederates time to arrange their thin line of defenders.

Climaxing two weeks of unceasing effort to save the gunboats and bring to a close the unsuccessful Red River campaign, U.S.S. Louisville, Chillicothe, and Ozark, the last ships of Rear Admiral Porter's stranded fleet, succeeded in passing over the rapids above Alexandria, Louisiana. By midafternoon the gunboats steamed down the river, convoying Army transports; thus ended one of the most dramatic exploits of the war, as Lieutenant Colonel Bailey's ingenuity and the inexhaustible energy of the men working on the obstructions raised the level of the river enough to save the Mississippi Squadron. Porter later wrote to Secretary Welles: "The water had fallen so low that I had no hope or expectation of getting the vessels out this season, and as the army had made arrangements to evacuate the country I saw nothing before me but the destruction of the best part of the Mississippi squadron. . . ." He rightly praised the work of Colonel Bailey: " Words are inadequate to express the admiration I feel for the abilities of Lieutenant Colonel Bailey. This is without a doubt the best engineering feat ever performed . . . he has saved to the Union a valuable fleet, worth nearly $2,000,000. . . ." Bailey's services received prompt recognition, for in June he was promoted and he later received the formal thanks of Congress.

On the Red River the Federal gunboats and Banks’ infantry column continued their retreat. Meanwhile, to the north, Steele’s Federal column had returned to Little Rock. The Federals’ entire spring operation across the Mississippi River had been a failure.

May 13-16 Federal guns struck Fort Sumter against at Charleston, firing 1140 rounds in four days. Skirmishes flared at Pulaski, Tennessee; Spavinaw, Arkansas; and Cuba, Missouri. Jo Shelby’s Confederate cavalry began a new campaign north of the Arkansas River, with skirmishing at Cypress Creek in Perry County. Shelby’s operations lasted the rest of the month.

President Davis, beset with many threats and concerns, wrote Gen Lee, “If possible will sustain you in your unequal struggle so long and nobly maintained.”

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Gen Ned Simms
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Blood 'n Guts hisself, a land lovin' pirate. Show me some arty tubes and we'll charge 'em.
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PostPosted: Tue May 13, 2014 5:54 pm 
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May 14, 1864 Saturday
Sherman’s Federals still intended to assault Johnston’s lines at Resaca, Georgia but delays and extensive deployments held down the attack. Although there was some fighting on both flanks, with moderate Union success, the real struggle for Resaca would have to wait. It still was primarily a campaign of movement and probing operations.

In Virginia Grant continued to shift his troops to the left, Wright following Warren, as both armies sought to recover from the pounding each had received around Spotsylvania. The hard march and heavy rain caused a Federal attack to be called off. Other skirmishing was at Wilson’s Landing on the Red River in Louisiana.

There were prospects of renewed action in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley. Franz Sigel had moved south with some 6500 Union men, facing only cavalry opposition by Confederate John D. Imboden. But now Gen Breckinridge was bringing in about 5000 Confederate defenders and a skirmish at Rude’s Hill gave indication that things would be different.

President Davis wrote Gen Lee from Richmond, “Affairs here are critical …” meaning Butler’s operations against Drewry’s Bluff and Petersburg.

John Brown Gordon, CSA, and Andrew Jackson Smith, USA, were appointed to Major General.

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Blood 'n Guts hisself, a land lovin' pirate. Show me some arty tubes and we'll charge 'em.
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