Click 👉Today in History (general history) Oct. 1. On This Day in Confederate History, Oct. 1.
1861: Three of the Confederacy's top generals had a council of war at
Centreville, Va. with President Jefferson Davis to decide on a strategy
for securing Southern Independence. Generals Joseph Eggleston Johnston,
P.G.T. Beauregard, Maj. Gen. Gustavus Woodson Smith met with their
commander-in-chief, but they decide that the Confederate Army isn't yet
ready to mount an offensive. President Davis also inspected the army
encampments around Centreville, Va.
1862: Maj. General John C. Pemberton is given command of the new Department of Mississippi, and East Louisiana,
to take charge of the defense of the Confederacy's two bastions on the
Mississippi River, Vicksburg and Port Hudson, to keep the
Trans-Mississippi connected with the eastern Confederacy. The vast area
to the west of the Mississippi was a vital source of men and supplies
for the great armies of the east.
Pvt. L. Cormier of Boone's Battery
Louisiana Light Artillery, Miles Louisiana Legion
wearing a typical uniform worn by the Confederate
garrison at Port Hudson, La.
(CDV, Port Hudson State Historic Site)
1864: Fighting continued on this day along Confederate the Petersburg, Va. siege line as
the Federal and Confederate cavalry clash at the Battle of Vaughan
Road. The Federals are led by Maj. General David McMurtrie Gregg and
Brigadier General Henry E. Davies, and Confederate commanders are Maj.
Gen. Wade Hampton and brigadier generals John Dunovant, Pierce M.B.
Young, and Matthew C. Butler. The Confederate horse soldiers opened ball
in the morning determined to take back positions held by the Federals.
The Confederates are finally driven off but fighting resumes that
afternoon the bluecoats hold on at the end of the fighting. But the
Confederates prevented the Federals from achieving all their objectives.
The Confederates have 130 casualties and the Federals 90 in the day's
combat. Brig. Gen. Dunovant was killed in action while leading a charge
in this battle.
Brig. Gen. John Dunovant
Laid down his life on the altar of
Southern Independence on this day, aged 39.
Confederate General Birthdays, Oct. 1.
Brigadier General Robert Huston Anderson was
born on this day in 1835 in Savanah, Georgia. He graduated from West
Point in 1857 and served as a second lieutenant in the prewar U.S. Army.
He resigned in 1861 and initially served as a lieutenant of artillery
in the Confederate Army. Promotions to major of the 1st Georgia
Sharpshooter Battalion, colonel of the 5th Georgia Cavalry, and
brigadier general on July 26, 1864. His battles included Fort
McAllister, Chattahoochee River, Noonday Creek, Atlanta, Buckhead,
Kennesaw Mountain, Big Shanty, Decatur, and Brown's Mill. Savannah,
Carolinas Campaigns, Morrisville. Anderson was wounded twice during the
war. After the war, Anderson was the police chief of Savannah, Ga.,
founded the Georgia Sabre Club, and served on the board of visitors at
West Point. He died Feb. 8, 1888, in Savannah and was buried there in
Bonaventure Cemetery.
Brig. Gen. Robert H. Anderson
👱
Brigadier William Hicks "Red" Jackson was
born this day in 1835 in Paris, Tennessee. He graduated from West Point
in 1856 and served as a second lieutenant in the prewar U.S. Army.
While on frontier duty, he skirmished with Indians and participated in
the Comanche and Kiowa Expedition of 1860. Resigning from the U.S. Army
on May 16, 1861, and joined the Confederate Army as a captain of the
artillery. Promotions followed and he was appointed colonel of the 1st
Tennessee Cavalry, and on December 29, 1862, was promoted to brigadier
general. His battles include Belmont, the Vicksburg Campaign, the
Atlanta Campaign, Brown's Mill, and Wilson's Raid. After the war, was
involved in agricultural pursuits, The Grange movement, and died at his
plantation, Belle Meade, Tennessee on March 30, 1903, and was interred
in the family mausoleum on the plantation. His remains were later moved
in 1906 to Mount Olivet Cemetery in Nashville, Tenn.
Brig. Gen. William H. "Red" Jackson
👱
Brigadier General Claudius Charles Wilson was
born this day in 1831 in Effingham County, Georgia. A prewar lawyer in
Savannah, Ga. He joined the Confederate Army in 1861 as a captain in the
25th Georgia Infantry and was promoted to colonel on Sept. 2, 1861.
Anderson's battles and campaigns included the Vicksburg Campaign, and
the Battle of Chickamauga, and died of "camp fever on Nov. 27, 1863, at
Ringgold, Georgia. He was buried at Bonaventure Cemetery in Savannah,
Ga. Anderson was promoted to brigadier general posthumously which was
confirmed by the Confederate senate on Feb. 17, 1864.
Brig. Gen. Claudius C. Wilson
👋
