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On This Day in Confederate History, Aug. 31.

1862: The Confederate victory in the Second Battle of Manassas, Va. was one of the most impressive in military history and a masterfully planned and carried out campaign by General Robert E. Lee. Casualties for the Federals were 1,747 killed, 8,452 wounded, and 4,263 captured or missing for a total of 14,462. Casualties for the Confederates were 1,096 killed and 6,202 wounded for a total of 7,298.

 

Lt. Gen. James Longstreet 

His 1st Corps delivered the "coup de main"

to the Federal flank at 2nd Manassas.

1863: Confederate General P.G.T. Beauregard reports on what happened in the Siege of Charleston, S.C.: "Early on the morning of the 31st, as the steamer, Sumter was returning from Morris Island with troops on board, she was unfortunately fired into from the Sullivan’s Island batteries and sunk. Four men were killed or drowned, and the greater portion of the arms was lost. Between 11 a. m. and 12 m. one of the monitors approached Fort Moultrie, and when within range was opened on by the fort. The enemy replied with shrapnel, all of which fell short. After about an hour’s engagement, the monitor withdrew. About 2 p. m. the enemy again approached with four monitors, and engaged the fort for four hours. A steady fire was kept up on them from Fort Moultrie and other Sullivan’s Island batteries. During the engagement, the enemy fired about 60 shots, striking Fort Moultrie fifteen times, but doing no damage. The fort fired 132 shots. The enemy’s fire on Fort Sumter was slack throughout the day. Captain [Samuel] Le Roy Hammond, Twenty-fifth South Carolina Volunteers, reported during the day that, in obedience to instructions, he had made a reconnaissance of Light-House Inlet and the south side of Black Island. On the island, he saw pickets and bivouac fires, but discovered no earthworks."

1864: The first day of the Battle of  Jonesborough, Ga. takes place on this day in the Atlanta Campaign. Confederate Gen. John Bell Hood misinterprets the relocation of two Federal armies from in front of Atlanta, which Hood thought was a retreat, but which was actually a flank march to cut the last two Confederate rail lines into the city. Hood sends only 24,000 men from the Army of  Tennessee under Lt. Gen. William Hardee, to confront Maj. Gen. W.T. Sherman's Army of the Tennessee and Army of the Cumberland, 70,000 men in all. The Federals were already well entrenched and ready to receive the frontal attacks of Hood's Corps, commanded by Maj. Gen. Patrick Cleburne, and Lt. Gen. Stephen D. Lee's Corps, but were easily repulsed.  Cleburne's Corps suffered 400 casualties and Lee's 1,300 casualties. Hood withdrew Lee's Corps back to Atlanta. 

 

Maj. Gen. Patrick Cleburne 

"The Stonewall Jackson of the West"

Confederate General Birthdays, Aug. 31.

Brigadier General Goode Bryan was born on this day in 1811 in Hancock County, Georgia. He graduated from West Point in 1834 ranking 25th in his class of 36 cadets. Bryan resigned from the army 10 months after entering it and became a lawyer in Alabama and was elected to the state assembly in 1843. In the Mexican-American War, he took part as a major in the 1st Alabama Infantry. Following that war, he moved back to Georgia where he practiced law and farmed. After serving as a delegate in the Georgia Secession Convention, he joined the Confederate Army as a captain in the 16th Georgia Infantry. Promotions followed to lieutenant colonel, then colonel, and finally to brigadier general in 1864. His battles and campaigns included the Peninsula Campaign, the battles of Second Manassas, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Mine Run, the Wilderness, Cold Harbor, and the Siege of Petersburg. Suffering from chronic health problems, Bryan resigned on Sept. 20, 1864, and went back home to Georgia. Following the war, he never regained his health and lived in Augusta, Georgia, and helped establish the Confederate Survivors Association. Bryan died on August 16, 1885, in Augusta and was buried there in Magnolia Cemetery.

Brig. Gen. Goode Bryan

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On This Day in Confederate History, Aug. 30.

1862: On the third day of the Second Battle of Manassas, Va., Gen. Pope doesn't believe reports that Longstreet's wing of the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia is on his flank, and orders an attack that morning on Stonewall Jackson's front. His attacks fail and the Second Louisiana Brigade gains fame by throwing rocks at the Yankees after running out of ammunition. That afternoon, Longstreet launched his devastating flank attack rolling up the Federal Army of the Potomac and sending them reeling back to the safety of Washington, D.C.'s fortifications. General Lee has won another signal victory. Pope is relieved and sent to a secondary job and General McClellan is put back in command by Lincoln.

Starke's Louisianians resorted to throwing rocks when

they ran out the ammunition at Second Manassas.

(Library of Congress)

1863: Confederate Gen. P.G.T. Beauregard reported on the Siege of Charleston, S.C. the following: "During the night, the enemy's guns were silent in front of Battery Wagner, but they renewed the bombardment of Fort Sumter before daylight on the morning of the 30ths, and during the day threw 634 shots against it. They were also busily engaged in completing their advanced works, though greatly disturbed by the fire from Wagner and our James Island batteries, which compelled them to desist from the work of advancing a sap on the left of Battery Wagner. In the evening, the enemy opened a brisk fire on Wagner with both mortars and Parrott guns. No serious damage was done to the work but several casualties occurred. During the night, Battery Wagner kept up a steady and effective fire on the enemy's advanced works."

Confederate General Birthdays, Aug. 30.

Lieutenant General Alexander Peter Stewart was born on this day in 1821 in Rogersville, Tennessee. He graduated from West Point Military Academy in 1842 and served in the U.S. Army in the 3rd U.S. Artillery until resigning on May 31, 1845. He then became a college professor. During the war, he worked his way up from a major of artillery to a lieutenant general and one of the most competent commanders in the Army of Tennessee, which he was commanding at the end of the war. His battles included Belmont, Shiloh, Perryville, Stones River, Hoover's Gap, Chickamauga, Missionary Ridge, Ezra Church, Second Franklin, and Nashville. Stewart was wounded in the head at Ezra Church. Following the war, Stewart became an insurance executive, chancellor of the University of Mississippi, and of the Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park. He died Aug. 30, 1908, in Biloxi, Miss., and was buried in Bellefontaine Cemetery in St. Louis, Mo.

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On This Day in Confederate History, Aug. 29.

1862: The second day of the Second Battle of Manassas, Va. brings more heavy fighting as Stonewall Jackson set his wing of the Army of Northern Virginia in a good defensive position along an unfinished railroad grade. Maj. Gen. John Pope's Federals attacked the Confederates in a series of bloody frontal assaults in desperate fighting. General Robert E. Lee arrived with General Longstreet's wing of the army on Jackson's right flank in a perfect position to launch a massive flank attack on Pope's left flank. Jackson says in his report of this day's fighting: "For a short time Gregg's brigade, on the extreme left, was isolated from the main body of the command; but the Fourteenth South Carolina Regiment, then in reserve with the Forty-ninth Georgia, left of Colonel Thomas, attacked the exultant enemy with vigor, and drove them back across the railroad track with great slaughter." Also, the First Louisiana Tiger Brigade slammed into Grover's Federal Brigade and steadily drove them back. Meanwhile, Pope is oblivious to the arrival of Longstreet's 25,000 men on his left flank.

 

Lt. Col./Col. Daniel A. Ledbetter, 1st S.C.

(Orr's Rifles) Inf., Gregg's Brig., 

A.P. Hill's Div.Jackson's Corps. 

He was mortally wounded on Aug. 29, 

1862, & died  Sept. 1, 1862.  Col. J. Foster

Marshall of the same regiment was also

killed in the battle on Aug. 29, 1862 making

Ledbetter the colonel until he died.

1863: Siege of Charleston, S.C.: Confederate General P.G.T. Beauregard reported on this day: "The enemy did not fire at Fort Sumter during the 29th but worked industriously at his fortifications on Morris Island. His advanced works were shelled throughout the day by Battery Wagner, Fort Moultrie, and James Island batteries." Also on this day, Lt. John A. Payne, commander of the Confederate submarine H.L. Hunley makes a fatal mistake when he accidentally steps on the diving lever while cruising on the surface. The submarine then dives with the hatches open. Only Payne and one other man escape, and five crewmen drown.

C.S.S. H.L. Hunley, painting by Conrad Wise Chapman

1864: Price's Missouri Campaign: At Camden, Arkansas, Maj. Gen. Sterling Price began a major expedition through Arkansas, Missouri, and Kansas with the goal of driving the enemy out of Missouri. Price's Army of Missouri consisted of 12,000 men and 14 artillery pieces. He has three Confederate cavalry divisions, including those of Maj. Gen. James F. Fagan, Maj. Gen. John S. Marmaduke, and Brig. Gen. Joseph O. Shelby. However, the infantry he had planned to take was sent to another area. Price was opposed by the Federal Gen. Samuel R. Curtis and his Army of the Border which consisted of about 35,000 men of all arms.

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On This Day in Confederate History, Aug. 28.

Unidentified soldier in Confederate uniform with 

secession badge with pistol and musket

(Liljenquist Collection, Library of Congress)

1862: The Second Battle of Manassas, Va. got underway on this day when major fighting erupted at Brawner's Farm (Groveton). The Confederate Brig. Gen. William Starke (commanding Taliaferro's Division) and the Second Louisiana Brigade, under the supervision of Stonewall Jackson, had a stand-up fight with Federal Brig. Gen. John Gibbon's Mid-Western Brigade lasted for hours. The Federal artillery drove of the Confederate artillery. Both sides were reinforced and the volley of fire continued until 9 o'clock P.M. Two division commanders, major generals William Taliaferro and Richard S. Ewell were both severely wounded. The Confederates were left in charge of the field when the Federals withdrew.

Maj. Gen. William Taliaferro was 

severely wounded early in the battle

and replaced by Brig. Gen. William Starke

of the 2nd La. Brigade.

1863: In the Siege of Charleston, S.C., Confederate Gen. P.G.T. Beauregard reports: "On the 28th, the enemy was extremely quiet, firing only 6 shots at Sumter; but his approaches toward Battery Wagner advanced rapidly, notwithstanding the fire directed upon him from Gregg, the James Island batteries, and the sharpshooters in Battery Wagner.

1864: Lt. Gen. Jubal Early's Army of the Valley has been reduced by hard fighting and campaigning to about 8,500 infantry, 2,900 cavalrymen, and three battalions of artillery to defend the valley. Federals under Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan built up their forces to over 30,000 for the coming fall campaign.

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ON THIS DAY IN CONFEDERATE HISTORY, Aug. 27.

1862: At the Second Battle of Manassas, Va., Lt. Gen. T.J. "Stonewall Jackson, Army of Northern Virginia, moved his army in position on the same battlefield as the First Battle of Manassas in 1861. The Confederates were placed along an unfinished railroad below Stony Ridge and the heavily wooded area enabled the Southerners to conceal their position. Gen. Robert E. Lee with Lt. Gen. James Longstreet's First Corps of the ANV was rapidly approaching the battlefield and springing the planned trap on the befuddled Maj. Gen. John Pope's Federal Army of Virginia before Maj. Gen. G.B. McClelland's Army of the Potomac could reinforce him. It was a brilliant plan.

1863: In the Chickamauga Campaign in Georgia, Confederate Lt. Gen. Braxton Bragg was moving the Army of Tennessee, numbering about 52,000 men, was maneuvering to set a trap for Maj. Gen. William Rosecrans' Army of the Cumberland, about 65,000 men, in northern Georgia and east of Chattanooga, Tenn. Rosecrans believed Bragg was in retreat into northern Georgia rather than maneuvering him into a trap, as was the actual case.

Also in 1863, Confederate Gen. P.G.T. Beauregard gave this update on the Siege of Charleston, S.C.: The fire against Fort Sumter was limited on the 27th to 4 shots. In front of Battery Wagner, the enemy had advanced his trenches to within 300 yards of the work, while the number of the enemy's guns and the accuracy of his fire prevented the opening of the embrasures in Battery Wagner except at night. 

Lieutenant Colonel Warren Adams of Co. H,

1st South Carolina (Butler's) Infantry Regiment in uniform

He is probably wearing an S.C. Militia uniform in this image.

He was born in Richland Co., S.C. in 1838 and died in 1884

in Richland Co. Although designated as infantry, Butler's

1st S.C. actually served most of the war as artillery in defense of 

Charleston, S.C, and in Jan. 1865, infantry in the 

North Carolina Campaign.

(Liljenquist Collection, Library of Congress)

1864: In the Atlanta Campaign, to break the Siege of Atlanta, Maj. Gen. W.T. Sherman was planning to move six of his seven corps south of Atlanta to cut Gen. John Bell Hood's Confederate Army of Tennessee's last railroad link to the city at Jonesborough and thus force him out of Atlanta. The Yankee XX Corps was covering a railroad bridge over the Chattahoochee River. The IV and XIV corps were moving south. The XXIII Corps remained at East Point. The Yankee cavalry was covering Sherman's north and south flanks. Hood was still oblivious to what was happening.

Confederate General Birthdays, Aug. 27.

Brigadier General Roger Weightman Hanson was born on this day in 1827 in Winchester, Kentucky. He gained military experience in the Mexican-American War when he served in the 4th Kentucky Regiment and took part in the Battle of Cerro Gordo where he was cited for bravery. Afterward, Hanson was a lawyer, a member of the state legislature, served in the U.S. Congress, and was an elector from Kentucky in the 1860 Presidential Election. During the War for Southern Independence, he was the colonel of the 2nd Kentucky Infantry which was part of the Confederate surrender at Fort Donelson. Hanson was exchanged and promoted to brigadier general in December 1862. He was mortally wounded on January 2, 1862, in the Battle of Murfreesboro, Tenn. 

Brig. Gen. Roger W. Hanson

👱

Brigadier General James Alexander Walker was born on this day in 1832 at Mt. Sidney, Virginia. He was a student at the Virginia Military Institute in 1852 when he got into a famous dispute with his professor of natural history, Thomas Jonathan Jackson, and challenged the future "Stonewall Jackson" to a duel. The duel never happened, and Walker was expelled. Walker returned home and became a prominent lawyer in Pulaski County, Va. When war came in 1861, he became the lieutenant colonel of the 13th Virginia Infantry and was promoted to colonel in March 1862. He served under Stonewall Jackson and the two patched up their past differences and developed a respect for each other. As a colonel, he acted as a temporary brigade commander in several battles, including Gaines' Mill, Sharpsburg (wounded), and Fredericksburg. Walker was promoted to brigadier general in May 1863, General Jackson, on his deathbed, recommended him to command the famous Stonewall Brigade. Walker led the brigade with distinction at Gettysburg, Mine Run, and the Wilderness, and was severely wounded at Spotsylvania Courthouse. No longer able for a field command. After recovering enough, he commanded a division at Petersburg in 1864 and was surrendered and paroled at Appomattox Court House on April 9, 1865. Returning home, he rebuilt in law practice and became a prominent member of the U.S. Congress. Walker died Oct. 21, 1901, in Wytheville, Va., and was buried in the East End Cemetery there.

                                                    

                                                            Brig. Gen. James A. Walker

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On This Day in Confederate History, Aug. 26.

1862: The Second Battle of Manassas is rapidly taking shape when Lt. Gen. Stonewall Jackson's wing of the Army of Northern Virginia, now in the rear of Yankee Maj. Gen. John "My headquarters are in the saddle," Pope's much larger army, and captures Manassas Junction. The railroad junction has mountains of supplies for the Federal Army. The always hungry Confederates feasted on the Yankee rations and carried off everything they could use and burned the rest. The other wing of the ANV, with General Lee and General Longstreet, is rapidly approaching and will be on Pope's flank before the Northern general even knows it.

Unidentified soldier with musket and

"Victory or Death" sign.

(Liljenquist Collection, Library of Congress)

1863: Confederate Gen. P.G.T. Beauregard gives an update on what happened in the Siege of Charleston, S.C. on this day: "On the 26th, 130 shots were fired at Sumter, Batteries Wagner and Gregg receiving the bulk of the fire. At 5 o'clock in the evening, the enemy concentrated his fire on our rifle pits in front of Battery Wagner. Between 7 and 8 p.m. the rifle pits in front of Battery Wagner. Between 7 and 8 p.m., the rifle-pits were carried by an overwhelming force, who also succeeded in capturing 76 out of 89 men of the Sixty-first North Carolina Volunteers, who formed the picket."

1864: North and South clash again in the Shenandoah Valley at the Battle of Smithfield Crossing, W. Va. between Aug. 25-29. Lt. Gen. Jubal Early's two infantry divisions crossed the Opequon Creek there when on the 29th forced back the Federal cavalry division of Maj. Gen. Westley Merritt. However, a federal infantry division stopped the Confederate advance on Charles Town. It is ranked as a tactical stalemate with about 300 casualties on both sides.

Confederate General Birthdays, Aug. 26.

Brigadier General Theodore Washington Brevard was born on this day in 1821 in Tuskegee, Alabama. A prewar lawyer in Florida, he was elected to the Florida House of Representatives and served in 1858 and 59. He got military experience serving in the Florida Militia as an adjutant and inspector general. He resigned from that position to serve as a first lieutenant in the Florida Mounted Volunteers in the Seminole War in 1857. After he was promoted to major and promoted to the militia adjutant general again. In the War for Southern Independence, he started as a captain in the 2nd Florida Infantry, was appointed a major and commander of Brevard's Partisan Rangers and fought in the Battle of Olustee. Then, with Finegan's Brigade, Brevard was promoted to colonel of the 11th Florida Infantry in the Battle of Cold Harbor, Va., the Second Battle of Ream's Station, the Battle of Globe Tavern, the Battle of Hatcher's Run, and the Battle of Sailor's Creek and was made a brigadier general April 6, 1865, when he was captured. He may not have learned he was a brigadier general until after the war. He returned to his home in Tallahassee, Florida, and died there on June 20, 1882. Brevard was buried in St. John's Episcopal Church Cemetery. 

Brig. Gen. Theodore W. Brevard

👱

Brigadier General Danville Ledbetter was born on this day in 1811 in Leeds, Maine. He graduated from West Point in 1836 third in a class of 49 cadets. Commissioned as a second lieutenant, he served until he resigned in 1857 and settled in Alabama. Ledbetter joined the Confederate Army on March 16, 1861, to oversee the construction of Mobile, Ala. defenses. He was promoted to lieutenant colonel on Nov. 11, 1861, and to brigadier general on Feb. 27, 1862, and put in command of the 1st Brigade of the District of East Tennessee. He then became the Chief Engineer of the department and of the Army of Tennessee in 1863. Ledbetter oversaw the building of the defenses of Knoxville, Tenn. He next was put in command of the District of the Gulf where he ended the war. After the war, Ledbetter moved to Mexico and then Canada where he died in 1866. He was buried at Magnolia Cemetery in Mobile, Ala.

Brig. Gen. Danville Ledbetter

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On This Day in Confederate History, Aug. 25.

1862: The Skirmish at Waterloo Bridge was fought this day as part of the Second Manassas Campaign. The skirmish followed a raid by Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart's cavalry on Aug. 23 at Catlett Station on Maj. Gen. John Pope's headquarters. This and other skirmishes along the Rappahannock River pinned Pope's army there while Lt. Gen. Stonewall Jackson successfully made his flank march and gained the rear of Pope's army. General Lee sent Lt. Gen. James Longstreet's wing of the army after Jackson. There were about 225 casualties in both armies at Waterloo Bridge.

Unidentified soldier in Confederate uniform

 and Georgia state seal belt buckle with a musket.

(Liljenquist Collection, Library of Congress)

1863: General P.G.T. Beauregard gives another report on the Siege of Charleston, S.C.: "Until 3 o'clock in the afternoon of the 25th, the enemy's fire was principally directed against Fort Sumter. After that time Battery Wagner was fiercely bombarded, as well as the space between our rifle pits and work. At dusk, the enemy endeavored to carry the position held by our pickets but were repulsed. Our loss was 5 killed and 19 wounded. A very large amount of ammunition and ordnance stores were removed from Fort Sumter during the night."

1864: The Second Battle of Ream's Station, Va. takes place when Lt. Gen. A.P. Hill's Third Corps of the Army of Northern Virginia attacks and drives back Maj. Gen. Winfield Scott's Corps of the Army of the Potomac. Hill has between 8,000 and 10,000 men to Hancock's 9,000. The Federals had been tearing up the railroad tracks there. Hancock ordered a withdrawal at nightfall back to Petersburg. The Northerners lost 117 men killed, 439 wounded, and 2,046 missing or captured. The Southerners' casualties totaled 814.

Lt. Gen. A.P. Hill

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On This Day in Confederate History, Aug. 24.

1861: The Trent Affair: President Davis appointed the new Confederate commissioners to Europe, John Slidell to France, James Mason to Great Britain, and Pierre Rost to Spain. 

1862: Second Manassas Campaign: General Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson is with his 24,000-man wing of the Army of Northern Virginia on a soon-to-be-famous march around Maj. Gen. John Pope's army was tied down on the Rappahannock River by General Lee. Jackson moves his men to the upper Rappahannock and continues through Amissville, Orlean, Salem, across the Bull Run Mountains at Thoroughfare Gap, and gets in Pope's rear. The Second Battle of Manassas will completely befuddle Pope.

First Lieutenant Daniel J. Hatter of Co. I, 

23rd Alabama Infantry Regiment

 and probably his brother, Thomas A. Hatter

 of Co. C, 15th Alabama Cavalry Regiment

 in uniform.

(Liljenquist Collection, Library of Congress)

1863: At the Siege of Charleston, S.C., General Beauregard reports on this day: "On the 24th, the fire on Fort Sumter lessened considerably; not more than 150 shots were thrown against it in the course of the day. Every endeavor was made to retard the approach of the besiegers to Battery Wagner. His working parties were fired on from the battery, but this had to be discontinued and embrasures closed in order to prevent our pieces from being dismounted."

Confederate General Birthdays, Aug. 24.

Brigadier General Thomas Fenwick Drayton was born on this day in 1808 in Charleston, South Carolina. He graduated from West Point in 1828 and was commissioned a second lieutenant in the 6th U.S. Infantry. He resigned in 1832 and became a civilian engineer in railroad construction in South Carolina, served in the state militia, and the S.C. legislature, and was a supporter of States' Rights. During the War for Southern Independence, Drayton was appointed a brigadier general in September 1861 and took part in the battles of Port Royal, Thoroughfare Gap, Second Manassas, South Mountain, and Sharpsburg. He was transferred to the Trans-Mississippi Department and given administrative duties. Following the war, Drayton moved to Georgia and governed a plantation, then to North Carolina where he sold insurance and became president of the South Carolina Immigrant Society. He died Feb. 18, 1891, in Florence, S.C., and was buried in Elmwood Cemetery in Charlotte, N.C.

Brig. Gen. Thomas F. Drayton

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Brigadier General Benjamin Grubb Humphreys was born on this day in 1808 in Claiborne County, Mississippi. He was admitted to West Point but was expelled in 1826 for misconduct. Humphreys returned to Mississippi and became a politician. He was elected to the state senate in 1844 and ran a cotton plantation. During the War Between the States, Drayton became the colonel of the 21st Mississippi Infantry and was then promoted to brigadier general in 1863. His battles included Sharpsburg, Gettysburg, the Overland Campaign, the Siege of Petersburg, and the Appomattox Campaign. Following the war, he was elected governor of Mississippi in 1865, re-elected in 1868, and was removed by the Radical Republican Reconstruction government. He then made a living in the insurance business and died Dec. 20, 1882, in Jackson, Miss., and was buried in the Wintergreen Cemetery in Port Gibson, Miss.

Brig. Gen. Benjamin G. Humphreys

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Brigadier General George Earl Maney was born on this day in 1826 at  Franklin, Tennessee. He served in the Mexican-American War as a second lieutenant in the 1st Tennessee Volunteers. Maney then joined the U.S. Army as a first lieutenant in the 3rd U.S. Dragoons and was in Scott's Campaign to Mexico City. After that war, became a lawyer in Tennessee and served in the Tennessee legislature. During the War for Southern Independence, he became colonel of the 1st Tennessee Infantry and was promoted to brigadier general on April 16, 1862. His battles included Cheat Mountain, the Kentucky Campaign, Murfreesboro, Chickamauga, the Chattanooga Campaign, the Atlanta Campaign, and the Carolinas Campaign. Following the war, Maney became president of the  Tennessee and Pacific Railroad, became a Republican, was an ambassador in South America, and died Feb. 9, 1901, in Washington, D.C., and was buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery in Nashville, Tenn.

Brig. Gen. George E. Maney

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Brigadier General George Hume Steuart was born on this day in 1828 in Baltimore, Maryland. He graduated from West Point in 1848, ranking 37th in his class, and was commissioned a second lieutenant in the 2nd Dragoons. He was stationed on the frontier fighting Indians. During the War for Southern Independence, he became the colonel of the 1st Maryland Infantry, CSA, and was promoted to brigadier general on March 6, 1862. His battles included the First Battle of Manassas, First Winchester, Cross Keys, Gettysburg, Mine Run, the Wilderness, Spottsylvania Court House, Petersburg, Five Forks, Sayler's Creek, and Appomattox Court House. Following the war, Steuart returned to Maryland and farmed, commanded the Maryland Division of the United Confederate Veterans, lived in a hotel in  Baltimore,  and died Nov. 22, 1903, in South River, Maryland, and was buried in Green Mount Cemetery in Baltimore, Md.

Brig. Gen. George H. Steuart

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Brigadier General Walter Husted Stevens was born on this day in Penn Yan, New York. He graduated from West Point in 1848, 4th in his class, and became a second lieutenant in the Army Corps of Engineers. He served mainly in Louisiana and Texas and married a Louisiana girl, the sister of Brig. Gen. Louis Hebert. Stevens resigned from the U.S. Army on March 2, 1861, and served in the Confederate Army as an engineer in Florida and then in Virginia. He was promoted to brigadier general on Aug. 28, 1864. His battles include First Manassas, the Peninsula Campaign, Seven Pines, the Richmond Defenses, Petersburg, and Appomattox. Following the war, Stevens moved to Mexico and was an engineer for the Mexican Imperial Railroad, and died of yellow fever at Vera Cruz, on Nov. 12, 1867. Stevens was buried in Hollywood Cemetery, on April 9, 1865. 

Brig. Gen. Walter H. Stevens

👋

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On This Day in Confederate History, Aug. 30.

1862: In the Second Manassas Campaign, Confederate and Federal artillery batteries duel with their big guns across the rain-swollen Rappahannock River in 1862. Meanwhile, generals Stonewall Jackson and JEB Stuart prepare to carry out General Robert E. Lee's plan to outflank the Yankees under the arrogant and pompous Maj. Gen. John Pope. There was also skirmishing across the river at Beverly Ford, Fant's Ford, and Springfield Springs, Va.

Pvt. W.T. (William Thomas) Harbison, Co. B, 11th N.C. Inf.

According to his military service record,

he was 18 (but may have been 17) and from Burke Co., N.C.

 when he enlisted on Feb. 1, 1862. He served in most

of the battles of his regiment and was wounded

in the right leg by a sharpshooter at Cold

Harbor, Va. June 12, 1864, but survived the war.

He farmed in North Carolina after the war,

married, had a family, and died on July 18, 1896.

(Liljenquist Collection, Library of Congress)

1863: The Federal heavy artillery piece they call the Swamp Angel blows up as it bombards the city of Charleston, Morris Island, and Fort Sumter. The massive 16,500 pound rifled-Parrott gun was supposed to terrify the civilian population of Charleston and knock down the walls of Fort Sumter. But the big gun burst after just 36 rounds was fired. It was fired from the Marsh Battery near Morris Island.

A Confederate artillery crew near Charleston, S.C.

1864: Siege of Fort Morgan, Ala.: The Confederate garrison on Fort Morgan at the opening of Mobile Bay surrendered on this day after a siege that started on August 5, 1864. All the fort's guns had been knocked out by the heavy bombardment of both the Federal army's and navy's big guns. Few men were killed and the City of  Mobile will hold out to the end of the war. The commander of the fort, Brig. Gen. Richard Page said he had nothing left to fight with.

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On  This Day in Confederate History,  Aug. 22.

1862: In the Second Manassas Campaign, Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia needed to cross the Rappahannock River on its way back up to Manassas, Va. This time General Lee was focused on chastising the arrogant Maj. Gen. John Pope, who was in command of 75,000 Federals. Pope had been making war on the civilian population of Virginia. Lee's command consisted of 48,500 men ANV. The Blue and the Gray fought along the river at Waterloo Bridge, Lee Springs, Freeman's Ford, and Sulphur Springs, but both sides were hampered by high water levels. Lee decided rather than force his way across the river, chose to send Gen. Stonewall Jackson's Second Corps and Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart's magnificent cavalry on a flaking maneuver to sever Pope's line of communications, the Orange & Alexandria Railroad.

Lt. Gen. Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson

1863: In the Siege of Charleston, South Carolina the Federals opened up on Charleston and Morris Island with a huge artillery piece they nicknamed the Swamp Angel. It was a massive 8-inch Parrott Rifle which Federal Maj. Gen. Quincy Gilmore intended to level Fort Sumter, Morris Island, and the city of Charleston. After warning Gen. Beauregard to evacuate Charleston and the others, but since the warning message was unsigned, it was sent back to be verified. Gilmore opened fire on the 22nd. The Confederates returned fire and the artillery duel would continue into the next day.

Confederate General Birthdays, Aug. 22.

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Today in History (general history)/ On This Day in Confederate History/ Confederate General Birthdays, Aug. 21.

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On This Day in Confederate History, Aug. 21.

1863: Quantrill's Raid on Lawrence, Kansas occurred on this day. Captain William Clarke Quantrill with 450 partisan rangers, called guerillas by the enemy, attacked Lawrence, Kansas in retaliation for attacks by Federal raiders under James H. Lane's Jayhawkers who were headquartered there. Female family members of some of Quantrill's men had been arrested and imprisoned in a building in Kansas City, Mo. The building collapsed and killed four of the young women and others were seriously injured and/or crippled. The Jayhawkers had also burned Osceola, Mo. Quantrill's partisan rangers struck Lawrence the morning of the 21st but Lane escaped through a cornfield in his nightshirt. The raid was over by 9 o'clock that morning with 150 men and boys old enough to carry firearms dead and most of the town burning. The North labeled the raid as a "massacre."

1864: The weather has cleared for the third and last day of the Battle of Globe Tavern, Va., and finds the Federals safely in the new earthworks. The Confederates under Brig. Gen. Johnson Hagood and Brig. Gen. John C.C. Sanders of Mahone's Division launched attacks on the Federals in their earthworks and were repulsed. Among the dead was young General Sanders, who was just 24 years old. The Confederates withdrew leaving the Federals in control of the three miles of Weldon Railroad, thus cutting that rail line to Richmond and Petersburg. However, the Confederates soon established a wagon train supply line to get their vital supplies to those cities. Federal casualties for the three-day battle were 251 killed, 1,148 wounded and 2,897 missing or captured. The Confederates lost 211 men killed, 990 wounded, and 419 missing or captured.

Brig. Gen. John Caldwell Calhoun Sanders, KIA in

Battle of Globe Tavern, Va.

Confederate General Birthdays, Aug. 21.

Brigadier General William Barksdale was born on this day in 1821 in Rutherford County, Tennessee. Before the war, he was an attorney in Mississippi, editor of a newspaper, congressman, and a committed secessionist. When the War for Southern Independence erupted, Barksdale resigned from the U.S. Congress and accepted a position as quartermaster general in the Mississippi Militia. He was appointed a colonel of the 13th Mississippi Infantry on May 1, 1861, and participated in the battles of First Manassas and Balls Bluff. In 1862, he fought in the Peninsula Campaign, the battles of Savage Station, Malvern Hill (and was promoted to brigadier general on Aug. 12, 1862), Second Manassas, Sharpsburg, and Fredericksburg. In 1863, he led his brigade at the Battle of Chancellorsville. Barksdale was then mortally wounded at the Battle of Gettysburg on July 2, 1862, leading his Mississippians in a famous charge in the Peach Orchard sector. He was captured and died on July 3, 1863. Barksdale was buried in his family plot without a marker in Greenwood Cemetery in Jackson, Miss. There are cenotaphs to his memory at both that cemetery and Friendship Cemetery in Columbus, Miss.

Brig. Gen. William Barksdale

(Library of Congress)

Today in History/ On This Day in Confederate History/ Confederate General Birthdays, Aug. 20.

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On This Day in Confederate History, Aug. 20.

1861: President Davis approves sending more commissioners to Europe to buy armaments and other goods needed by the Confederacy. The Confederacy's first diplomats to Europe were William Yancey, Pierre Rost, and A. Dudley Mann. They were seeking recognition and support for their nation. The arrest in November 1861 by a U.S. warship of two later Confederate diplomats on their way to Europe on the British ship Trent, James Murray Mason, and John Slidell resulted in a major diplomatic crisis between the U.S. and Great Britain. 

1862: Major General Richard Taylor was assigned to command the Army of Western Louisiana, which he had to build from a few scattered units, and Mouton's Louisiana Infantry Brigade which was transferred from the Army of the Mississippi after suffering heavy casualties at the Battle of Shiloh. Taylor would succeed in forming it into a highly effective unit with Mouton's Louisiana-Texas Division, Walker's Texas Infantry Division, Green's Cavalry Cavalry Division, and Churchill's Arkansas and Missouri Divisions.

1863: President Jefferson Davis proclaimed on August 20, 1863, that August 21, 1863, should be a "Day of Fasting, Humiliation, and Prayer for Soldiers of the South" throughout the Confederacy.

1864: The third day of the Battle of Globe Tavern, Va. takes place but heavy rain prevents fighting. Late that night, Federal Maj. Gen. Gouverneur K. Warren pulls his forces back several miles to a new trench line.

Confederate General Birthdays, Aug. 20.

Brigadier General Francis Redding Tillou Nicholls was born this day in 1834 at Donaldsonville, Louisiana. He graduated from West Point in 1855 and served in the 2nd U.S. Artillery. Nicholls participated in the Third Seminole War in Florida and then resigned his commission in the army. He practiced law in Napoleonville, La. During the War for Southern Independence, Nicholls initially served as a captain, then when the 8th Louisiana Infantry Regiment formed, became the first lieutenant colonel. He was with the 8th Louisiana Infantry at the First Battle of Manassas, but the regiment was in reserve guarding supplies. He led the regiment at the First Battle of Winchester, Va., was wounded in the left arm and captured, and had to have the arm amputated by a Federal surgeon. He was promoted to brigadier general while still a prisoner and was given command of the Second Louisiana Brigade. After exchange and reporting for duty, he led the brigade at the Battle of Chancellorsville and lost his left leg. He was permanently disabled for further field service. Nicholls finished the war in the Trans-Mississippi Department directing the Volunteer and Conscript Bureau. Following the war, Nicholls practiced law and was involved in the Reconstruction Era political strife in Louisiana. He was elected governor of the state and then became Chief Justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court. Nicholls died on Jan. 4, 1912, near Thibodaux, Louisiana, and was buried there in St. John's Episcopal Church Cemetery.

Brig. Gen. Francis R.T. Nicholls

(Library of Congress)

Today in History (general history)/ On This Day in Confederate History/ Confederate General Birthdays, Aug. 19.

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On This Day in Confederate History, Aug. 19.

1861: The Second Confederate Congress passed legislation establishing a Confederate state government in Missouri, which seceded and had a pro-Confederate governor.

1864: The second day of the Battle of Globe Tavern, Va. took place over the vital Weldon Railroad south of Richmond. More reinforcements for both sides poured in with  Gen. P.G.T. Beauregard commanding at the Petersburg fortifications and Lt. Gen. A.P. Hill commanding the troops attacking the Federals at the Weldon Railroad. Because of heavy rain, fighting is restricted to skirmishing most of the day. But in the late afternoon Maj. Gen. William Mahone's brigades launch a flank attack on the Federal right. Mahone's Confederate gain the Federal rear and capture large numbers of Yankees.  Maj. Gen. Henry Heth's Division launches a frontal assault which is repulsed. The Federal's counterattack and fighting became hand-to-hand which lasts until dusk. The Virginia militia was providing a significant amount of the manpower in the Richmond area defenses.

Private William H. Presgraves of Company K, 

97th Militia Virginia Infantry Regiment, with rifle.

(Liljenquist Collection, Library of Congress)

Confederate General Birthdays, Aug. 19.

Major General John Porter McCowan was born on this day in Sevierville, Tennessee. He graduated from West Point in 1840 ranking 10th out of 42 cadets. McCowan served in the 4th U.S. Artillery in the Mexican American War. He fought in the Battle of Cerro Gordo, Mexico, and was breveted to the rank of captain for his service. He also participated in the Seminole War in Florida and the Utah War during the 1850s. McCown resigned from the U.S. Army on May 17, 1861, and was given commissions in the Confederate Army that predated that. He was also given command of artillery with the rank of colonel on the same date he resigned from the US. Army. He was promoted the brigadier general on Oct. 12, 1861, and participated in the Battle of Belmont, Mo. on Nov. 7, 1861. He was promoted to major general on March 10, 1862, and was in the Battle of Island No. 10 in the Mississippi River. McCowan was also in the Battle of Murfreesboro, Tenn. but got on Lt. Gen. Braxton Bragg's bad side and was relieved of his command. He finished the war in North Carolina where he was defending a river crossing. Following the war, McCowan was a teacher in Knoxville, Tennessee, and farmed in Arkansas. He died in Little Rock on January 22, 1879, and was buried in City Cemetery in Magnolia, Arkansas.

Maj. Gen. John P. McCowan

Today in History (general history)/ On This Day in Confederate History/ Confederate General Birthdays, Aug. 18.

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On This Day in Confederate History, Aug. 18.

1862: President Davis spoke to the opening session of the Second Confederate Congress in Richmond, Va., highlighting the progress of the Confederates and the necessity of triumphing over the despotic North in its uncivilized war against the Southern people.

1863: General P.G.T. Beauregard gives the following report on the Siege of Charleston, S.C. in 1863: "On August 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, and 23, the fierce bombardment of Fort Sumter was continued by the enemy, both from his land batteries and at intervals from his fleet. From the 17th to the 23d, inclusive, he fired against the fort a total of 5,643 shots, of which number 2,643 struck inside, 1,699 outside, and 1,301 missed. These projectiles varied in weight from 30 pounds to 300 pounds and were fired from Parrott and 15-inch smooth-bore guns. An average of 150 pounds per shot would give a weight of nearly 385 tons discharged against the walls of Fort Sumter during this period of seven days. At the end of this time, nearly all the guns remaining in the fort were unserviceable, and the damage to the gorge wall and the northwest face by the reverse fire was great; but the sand that had been placed on the outside of the gorge wall, in conjunction with the filling up of the barracks and casemates with cotton bales, and, above all, the crumbling of the masonry under the enemy’s fire, converted this portion of Fort Sumter into a mass of debris and rubbish on which the enemy’s powerful artillery could make but little impression. Throughout the siege, the unremitting exertions of the engineer corps hourly increased the defensive power of the work." Confederate General History, Aug. 18."

Captain William Powell, Co. A, 33rd Va. Inf.

Stonewall Brigade

Army of Northern Virginia

(Liljenquist Collection, Library of Congress)

1864: The Battle of Globe Tavern south of Petersburg, Va. marks the fight for the important Weldon Railroad. The attacking force is under Maj. Gen. Gouverneur K. Warren with his 20,000 men corps against about 14,000 troops under Gen. P.G.T. Beauregard and Lt. Gen. A.P. Hill. Warren's men in the morning begin ripping up railroad tracks until the afternoon when the first Confederates arrive, two brigades from Maj. Gen. Henry Heth's Division and push the bluecoats back to Warren's main line. Fighting begins at 2 p.m. and both sides funnel in reinforcements. 

Maj. Gen. Henry Heth

Confederate General Birthdays, Aug. 18.

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