Today in History (general history)/ On This Day in Confederate History/ Confederate General Birthdays, March 25.

 Click 👉TODAY IN HISTORY (general history) March 25.

ON THIS DAY IN CONFEDERATE HISTORY, March 25.

1863: Confederates make it difficult for Federals to extricate their remaining boats and troops after the Steele's Bayou Expedition near Vicksburg, Miss. Confederates had slipped around Porter's flotilla and felled some trees in the rear, possibly cutting the flotilla off from the troops. Porter sent Sherman an appeal for help, and he received it. Reinforcements rush to the scene so Porter's flotilla can safely retreat.

1864: The Battle of Paducah, Kentucky, takes place between Maj. Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest with 3,000 troopers, and the Federal garrison there under the command of Col. Stephen G. Hicks, 650 men in Fort Anderson. The fort was also supported by two Federal gunboats on the Ohio River. Forrest occupied the town and demanded Hicks surrender his command, but the Federal commander refused. Forrest decided it would be too costly to assault the fort so he decided instead to take all the supplies and livestock he could and leave. But some of the Kentuckians in his command assaulted the fort on their own unsuccessfully. The Confederates suffered 90 casualties and the Federals 50.

1865: Confederates launch an attack on Fort Stedman at Petersburg. Maj. Gen. John Brown Gordon leads 10,000 Southern troops in a desperate attempt to break the siege. Defending the fort are some 14,898 Federals under Maj. Gen. John G. Parke. The Confederates attacked early, achieved surprise, and occupied part of the fort. But when Federal reinforcements arrive, Gordon, with permission from General Robert E. Lee, who was on the scene watching, withdraws the Southerners. Confederate casualties were 72 killed, 450 wounded, and 522 captured or missing. The Federals lost 600 killed, 2,400 wounded, and 1,000 captured or missing.

Col. Eugene Waggaman led the 

Consolidated Louisiana Brigade as

the tip of the spear, spearheading the

Confederate attack for Gen. Clement A. Evans' 

Click👉Division  in the Battle of Fort Stedman

CLICK👉Confederate States Rangers

of the 10th Louisiana Infantry

This is the history of Company K, Confederate States Rangers, and the regiment to which it belonged, the 10th Louisiana Infantry. It fought in nearly every major engagement of General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia, including the Yorktown Peninsula of 1862, the Seven Days, Cedar Run, Second Manassas, Sharpsburg (Antietam), Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Mine Run, The Wilderness, Spotsylvania Court House, the Shenandoah Valley Campaign of 1864, Petersburg, and Appomattox. The book features photographs, illustrations, maps, a bibliography, and an Index.

CONFEDERATE GENERAL BIRTHDAYS, March 25.

Major General William Thompson Martin was born on this day in 1823 in Glasgow, Kentucky. Prior to the war, he was a district attorney who opposed secession in Mississippi. During the war, he raised cavalry troops and served as a colonel under Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart. He was promoted to brigadier general in January 1863. His battles included Williamsburg, Seven Pines, Stuart's Ride Around McClellan's Army, the Seven Days Battles, Second Manassas, Sharpsburg, Dumfries, and Occoquan. He was promoted to major general and transferred to the Army of Tennessee in 1863 and commanded a division under Maj. Gen. Fighting Joe Wheeler. He took part in the Tullahoma Campaign, Chickamauga, Knoxville, and Atlanta, and then commanded the Northwest District of Mississippi. Following the war, he practiced in Mississippi and died March 16, 1910, in Natchez, Miss., and was buried in Natchez City Cemetery.

Maj. Gen. William T. Martin

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Brigadier General Martin Witherspoon Gary was born on this day in 1831 in Cokesbury, South Carolina. Prior to the war, he practiced law at Edgefield, S.C., was elected to the state legislature in 1860, and supported secession. During the war, he started in 1861 as a captain in Hampton's Legion infantry and fought in the First Battle of Manassas. He rose to the command of a regiment and fought in various battles in Virginia before being transferred in 1863 to the Army of Tennessee. He was promoted to brigadier general and was transferred back to the Army of Northern Virginia and commanded a cavalry brigade. Gary refused to surrender at Appomattox and escorted President Davis with 200 cavalrymen to Greensboro, N.C., and left the army at that time. After the war, he practiced law in Edgefield, S.C. again and fought against Radical Republicans in his state. After Reconstruction, he was elected to the state senate until 1881 and moved to Cokesbury, S.C., and died there on April 9, 1881.

Brig. Gen. Martin W. Gary

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Today in History (general history)/ On This Day in Confederate History/ Confederate General Birthdays, March 24.

 Click 👉TODAY IN HISTORY (general history) March 24. 

ON THIS DAY IN CONFEDERATE HISTORY, March 24.

1863: Confederate forces foil General Grant's efforts to bypass Vicksburg, Mississippi. Grant ordered Sherman to cease Steele's Bayou Expedition on this day. This was a Confederate victory in the Vicksburg Campaign.

1864: Red River Campaign: In Louisiana, while Maj. Gen. Richard Taylor is still waiting for reinforcements from Texas and Arkansas, Maj. Gen. Nathaniel Banks arrives in Alexandria and orders his still-gathering forces to begin their advance on Shreveport, the Confederate headquarters for the Trans-Mississippi Dept. Banks, however, is faced with the low water level of the Red River and orders to return Major Gen. A.J. Smith's 10,000 troops borrowed from Vicksburg by April 15.

Col. Henry Gray

He commanded Mouton's Brigade in

the Red River Campaign. He was promoted to

brigadier general before the end of the war.

(Library of Congress)

Click👉Mouton's Brigade 

In the War for Southern Independence

This is the story of one of the most unique Louisiana infantry brigades in the War for Southern Independence. It was made up of an ethnically diverse hodgepodge of Louisiana's very diverse population, including South Louisiana Cajuns, North Louisiana Rednecks, and New Orleans Irish, Germans, and other ethnic groups then populating the Crescent City. The regiments of the brigade included the 18th Louisiana Infantry Regiment, the 24th Louisiana Infantry (Crescent) Regiment, the 10th (Yellow Jackets), and the 12th/16th Louisiana Infantry battalions. Early in the war, some of the units fought in other brigades at the Battle of Shiloh, Tennessee. When the brigade was formed in Louisiana in the fall of 1862, they fought in the Lafourche Campaign of 1862, the Bayou Teche Campaign of the spring of 1863, the Great Texas Overland Expedition of 1863, and the Red River Campaign of 1864. The brigade was led by one of the most colorful, chivalrous, and competent Confederate commanders of the war, Brigadier General Alfred Mouton of Lafayette, Louisiana. The fighting men of the brigade, time and again, fought with great valor and left a legacy of gallantry that makes their descendants proud to this day.

1865: General Robert E. Lee plans to cut the Federal supply line and force Grant to constrict the Yankee siege line by launching an offensive at Fort Stedman, Petersburg, Va. The desperate assault will be launched by Maj. Gen. John Brown Gordon the next day.

CONFEDERATE GENERAL BIRTHDAYS, March 24.

Brig. Gen. William Henry Wallace was born on this day in 1827 in Laurens District, South Carolina. He was a pre-war planter, newspaperman, and politician who supported secession. During the war, he rose from private in the 18th South Carolina Infantry, to lieutenant, captain, lieutenant colonel, and then to brigadier general in 1864. His battles included the Second Battle of Manassas, Sharpsburg, the defense of Charleston, S.C., and the Siege of Petersburg, Va. He was disabled by the mine explosion there on July 30, 1864, called the Battle of the Crater. He finished the war with General Lee at Appomattox on April 9, 1865. Following the war, Wallace practiced law in South Carolina and returned to farming, and again served in the state legislature and as a circuit judge. He died March 21, 1901, at Union, S.C., and was buried in the Presbyterian Cemetery there.

Brig. Gen. William H. Wallace

Today in History (general history)/ On This Day in Confederate History/ Confederate General Birthdays, March 22.

Click 👉TODAY IN HISTORY (general history) March 22. 

ON THIS DAY IN CONFEDERATE HISTORY, March 22.

1862: Gen. Stonewall Jackson, in the Shenandoah Valley Campaign, received orders from Gen. Joseph E. Johnston that he was not to let Gen. Nathaniel Banks' Federals leave the valley. Jackson's army marched 22 miles on this day to catch the retreating Yankees. Jackson's cavalry, under Col. Turner Ashby, fights a skirmish with the Federals under Maj. Gen. James Shields, who was wounded in the engagement. Jackson's three main opponents in the campaign were Banks, John C. Frémont, and Irvin McDowell. Jackson's Army of the Valley had a total of 17,000 men, while his three opponents had a combined total of 52,000 men. The Shenandoah Valley Campaign was one of the most amazing in military history.

Lt. Gen. T.J. "Stonewall Jackson

1863: More fighting continues in the vicinity of Murfreesboro, Tenn., between the blue and the gray. In Kentucky, Brig. Gen. John Hunt Morgan and Brig. Gen. John Pegram both continue their raids in Kentucky. 

1865: Lt. Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest has been dispatched to stop the Federal cavalry raid of Brig. Gen. James H. Wilson, which began on this day with 13,480 troopers. But the Confederates only had some 5,000 men, poorly equipped and widely scattered, to stop them.

CONFEDERATE GENERAL BIRTHDAYS, March 22.

General Braxton Bragg was born on this day in 1817 in Warrenton, North Carolina. He graduated from West Point in 1837, ranking fifth out of 50 graduates in the class. In his U.S. Army career, he served in the Seminole War and the Mexican War, where he performed brilliantly, commanding an artillery battery. Bragg resigned from the army effective Jan. 3, 1855, and became a sugar cane planter in southeast Louisiana. He was also active politically and a major general in the Louisiana militia. On orders from the governor, he led 500 state militia in a non-violent takeover of the U.S. Arsenal in Baton Rouge on Jan. 11, 1861. With the formation of the Confederacy, he became a brigadier general in the Confederate and was quickly promoted to major general, leading a corps in the Battle of Shiloh. He took command of what would be renamed the Army of Tennessee. His abrasive personality and martinet treatment of the men alienated many of his subordinate generals and enlisted men. He led the army in the battles of Perryville, Murfreesboro, Tullahoma, Chickamauga, and Missionary Ridge, after which he resigned his command. At the end of the war, he again led troops in defeats at Second Fort Fisher, Wyse Fork, and Bentonville. He had a wide range of jobs after the war and finally moved to Texas and died there in Galveston on Sept. 27, 1876, and was buried in Magnolia Cemetery in Mobile, Alabama.

Gen. Braxton Bragg

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Major General William Henry Chase Whiting was born on this day in Biloxi, Mississippi. He graduated first in his class at West Point in 1845. He had a variety of assignments as an engineer in the army, but missed service in the Mexican-American War. Whiting resigned from the U.S. Army on Feb. 20, 1861, joined the Confederate Army as an engineer serving under General Beauregard at Charleston, S.C., improving defenses there, and was promoted to brigadier general. He also served as the chief engineer on the staffs of other generals and was assigned to command a division in the Peninsula Campaign and was made a wing commander at Seven Pines on May 31, June 1, 1862. Whiting led his division at Gaines' Mill, Malvern Hill, and was given command of the District of Wilmington, North Carolina. Whiting was wounded in the thigh and captured at the Second Battle of Fort Fisher, N.C. He died a prisoner of war on March 10, 1865, of dysentery at Fort Columbus on Governors Island, New York. 

Maj. Gen. William H.C. Whiting

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Brigadier General William Wirt Adams was born on this day in 1819 in Frankfort, Kentucky. Prior to the war, he gained a little military experience when he joined the army in 1839 in the Republic of Texas as a private. He was promoted to captain and adjutant of a regiment and took part in a campaign against Indians in northeast Texas. Adams moved back to Mississippi, became a banker, and was elected to two terms in the Mississippi legislature. In the War for Southern Independence, he became a brigadier general and led a cavalry brigade. His battles included Shiloh, Corinth, Iuka, Hatchie's Bridge, Raymond, Champion Hill, Vicksburg, Port Hudson, and Meridian. He was paroled at Gainesville, Alabama, on May 12, 1865. Following the war, he had a variety of jobs in Mississippi, including as a revenue agent and postmaster. He was killed May 1, 1888, in Jackson, Miss. in a gun battle with a newspaper editor who had criticized him, and he also killed the editor. Adams was buried in Greenwood Cemetery in Jackson.

Brig. Gen. William W. Adams

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Brigadier General Francis Asbury Shoup was born on this day in 1834 in Laurel, Indiana. He graduated from West Point in 1855, fifteenth in his class of 34 cadets. He served in the Seminole War and resigned from the army on Jan. 10, 1860, and settled in Indianapolis, Ind. where he was a lawyer and commanded the Indianapolis Zouave militia. He moved to St. Augustine, Florida in 1860 to continue his legal career. With the coming of the war, his Southern sympathies led him into the Confederate Army and he served as chief of artillery under Maj. Gen. William J. Hardee at the Battle of Shiloh. Shoup was promoted to brigadier general on Sept. 12, 1862, and he commanded a division at the Battle of Prairie Grove. Shoup commanded a Louisiana brigade at the Siege of Vicksburg, being captured along with the garrison at the end. After being exchanged, he served in the Battle of Atlanta and became the chief of staff for General John Bell Hood in the Army of Tennessee. Following the war, Shoup was a professor at the University of Mississippi and the University of the South. Shoup also became an Episcopal rector. He died Sept. 4, 1896, in Columbia, Tenn., and was buried at the University of the South.

Brig. Gen. Francis A. Shoup

👋

Today in History (general history)/ On This Day in Confederate History/ Confederate General Birthdays, March 20.

Click 👉TODAY IN HISTORY (general history) March 21. 

ON THIS DAY IN CONFEDERATE HISTORY, March 21.

1863: The Battle of Vaught's Hill, TN, took place on this day when a Federal brigade of 1300 infantry and artillery commanded by Col. Albert S. Hall was on a reconaissance mission to find Brig. Gen. John Hunt Morgan's 3500 man Confederate Cavalry Division in Rutherford County, TN. The two clashed at Vaught's Hill when Morgan's men, who outnumbered the bluecoats, began deploying and shelling the Federals. However, the Northerners were deployed in a strong rocky position. After several assaults over a several hour period, Morgan decided to withdraw to continue a planned raid on the North. The Federals had between 48 and 62 casualties. The Confederates suffered between 180 and 373 casualties.

1864:   The Battle of Henderson Hill, Louisiana, occurred on this day during the Red River Campaign when part of the 2nd Louisiana Cavalry and Edgar's Battery, 1st Texas Light Artillery, were surprised and captured by the 35th Iowa Infantry and 33rd Missouri Infantry upriver from Alexandria, Louisiana. The Federals made their approach during wretched weather with rain and hail helping mask their approach, after dark, guided by deserters and jayhawkers. The two Federal regiments pushed forward toward the camp of the 2nd Louisiana Cavalry, commanded by Colonel William Vincent. At about 10:30 p.m., the guards at eight Confederate picket posts were surprised and captured without a shot being fired. Then at about midnight, the bluecoats found the main Confederate camp, and the 35th Iowa surrounded and captured some of the Southerners in a house and a section of Edgar's Battery before their presence had been discovered. The Confederate guns were ready with horses hitched and two of the pieces loaded with canisters, but obviously, the men were not ready. The two Federal regiments then fixed bayonets and moved in on the rest of the camp, captured another section of the artillery, and then the cavalrymen, some of whom were mounting their horses. Only a few shots were fired in resistance. While Colonel Vincent escaped, 16 officers and 206 men were captured, along with horses, cavalry equipment, and artillery pieces, and the encampment was completely destroyed. Confederate General Richard Taylor lost most of the available cavalry he had at that time.

1st Lt. William B. Champlin, Co.D & F, 2nd La. Cav. 

He was captured on Nov. 30, 1863, near the Salt

Works near New Iberia, La., and exchanged Dec.

31, 1863. (Printerest, quarter plate ambrotype)

A Confederate cavalryman,

as indicated by the "C" for

 cavalry buttons on his shell jacket.

(Possibly one of Morgan's men?)

(CDV, M.D. Jones Collection)

1865: On the last day of the Battle of Bentonville, N.C., there is heavy fighting on the Confederate left at the Mill Creek bridge, which was on the Confederate line of retreat. General Joseph Johnston's forces can halt the Federal advance. On the first day of the battle, March 19, 1865, the Confederates made several unsuccessful attacks on the Federals, and they dug in and went on the defensive. On the second day of fighting, both combatants engaged in skirmishing. Johnston successfully withdrew his army on the night of March 21. The battle cost the Confederates 239 killed, 1,694 wounded, and 673 missing. Federal losses were 194 killed, 1,112 wounded, and 221 missing. Sherman continued toward Petersburg, Va.

Gen. Joseph E. Johnston

CONFEDERATE GENERAL BIRTHDAYS, March 21.

NONE.

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

CLICK👉Today in History (general history) March 19.

ON THIS DAY IN CONFEDERATE HISTORY

1861-Northern President Lincoln sent Gustavus Vasa Fox to Charleston, SC, to evaluate the situation with Forts Sumter, which had become the focus of the tension between the two nations. It was under the command of Major Robert Anderson. Fox reached Charleston, SC, and met with Gov. Francis Pickens and Gen. PGT Beauregard and was given permission to meet with Anderson at Fort Sumter. While meeting with Anderson, he hinted that Lincoln would send reinforcements. 

1862-At New Orleans, the Confederacy's largest and most industrialized city, while the Confederate Army and Navy and Louisiana's State Militia are busy building up their forts and river fleet, Cmdr. D.D. Porter arrived with his mortar ships to reinforce Rear Admiral David Farragut's West Gulf Blockade Squadron in preparation for their attack of Forts St.Philip and Jackson. The forts had protected New Orleans from the British fleet in 1815, and the Confederates were gambling they could do the same in  1863. However, Gen. Beauregard had warned authorities they probably could not do it this time. The Confederates were also gambling on two powerful ironclads they were building to back up the forts, but would they be ready in time?

1863-The CSS Georgiana, built in Scotland to be a power cruiser with an iron hull steam propeller, was on its maiden voyage when it was approached by a Federal Navy blockader. It was supposed to be fitted out with its guns and receive its full crew in Charleston. Rather than be captured, the captain of the ship scuttled her. The wreck was found in 1965 in shallow water just outside the harbor.

1864-The Battle of Laredo, Texas, took place on this day on the Texas-Mexico border when a contingent of Federal infantry, cavalry, and artillery, totaling 200 men, tried to capture a Confederate stockpile of cotton guarded by Colonel Santos Benavidas's command of cavalry and local militia, totaling 72 men. Although outnumbered, the Confederates put up a determined defense, and the Federals withdrew. The victory secured 5,000 bales of cotton, which were shipped through Mexico. The only casualties were 2 Federals killed.

Col. Santos Benavidas

33rd Texas Cavalry

Cofederate officers of the 33rd Texas Cavalry,

Refugio Benavides, left, Atanacio Vidaurri, Cristobal 

Benavides and John Z. Leyendecker. 

(University of Texas at San Antonio Library)

CONFEDERATE GENERAL BIRTHDAYS

Brigadier General Johnson Duncan was born on this day in Chanceford, York County, PA, in 1827. He was appointed to West Point on July 1, 1845, and graduated in June 1849 was ranking 5th in a class of 43 cadets. Duncan was brevetted a second lieutenant in the 2nd U.S. Artillery and promoted to second lieutenant on Oct. 31, 1849. He saw action in the Seminole War in Florida. He was assigned to Fort Sullivan, Maine and received a promotion to first lieutenant in 1853. He resigned from the U.S. Army in 1855. He moved to New Orleans, where he was employed as an engineer on the staff of Major P.G. Beauregard, who was then the head of the Army Corps of Engineers, as well as being appointed the Chief Engineer for Louisiana. He married a local girl and started a family. Duncan also became involved in local politics. He was also active with the State Militia and was appointed by the governor to be a captain in the 1st Louisiana Heavy Artillery, which manned the various forts around the city. Promoted to colonel in the Confederate Army, he was put in command of all the forts with headquarters at Fort Jackson. He was promoted to brigadier general on January 7, 1862. While he commanded with distinction, during the Battle of New Orleans, in April, 1862, he had to surrender when the Federal Navy got past the forts and many of the men at Fort Jackson mutinied. After being exchanged, he was assigned to be chief of staff for General Braxton Bragg. But on Dec. 18, 1862, he died of malaria and was buried at McGavock Cemetery on Carnton Plantation, in Franklin, Tennessee. His son, who was named in his honor, later wrote a history of the New Orleans Campaign of 1862 that was published in the Battles and Leaders series for Century Magazine,

Brig. Gen. Johnson Kelly Duncan

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

Click 👉TODAY IN HISTORY (general history) March 18.

ON THIS DAY IN CONFEDERATE HISTORY, March 18.

1861: The Arkansas secession convention voted 39-35 against seceding from the Union. The Arkansas convention was led by unionists and held a unionist majority from the beginning. It does provide for a vote of the people on the issue later in the summer.

1862: President Jefferson Davis moved Judah Benjamin from his Secretary of War position to Secretary of State. Benjamin was much more able in his new cabinet post.

1863: Major General Franklin Gardner at Port Hudson, La. has his Confederates gather an enormous number of supplies and equipment from the retreating Northern Army of the Gulf. The riches are reportedly 15 wagon loads of supplies and livestock as well. The below picture of Pvt. Louis Cormier depicts the typical Confederate uniform issued to troops at Port Hudson and Vicksburg in 1863. A group picture of the Port Hudson shows most of those soldiers in the picture are wearing this type of uniform.

Pvt. Louis Cormier, Boone's La. Battery Light Artillery

Port Hudson Confederate garrison.

(Port Hudson State Historic Site)

1864: Major General Richard Taylor on this day in the Red River Campaign keeps his Army of Western Louisiana stationary at a position 50 miles from Natchitoches while waiting for reinforcements. He especially needs cavalry to keep an eye on Federal forces which were gathering forces and supplies at Alexandria, Louisiana in the central part of the state.

1865: The Confederate Army of Tennessee under General Joseph E. Johnston at Bentonville, North Carolina gets ready to try to block Maj. Gen. W.T. Sherman's Federal juggernaut of 60,000 bummers who have been burning and looting their way across the Carolinas. Johnston has only about 21,000 Southern soldiers.

At Mobile, Alabama: Confederate forces under Maj. Gen. Dabney Maury with just 6,000 men, prepares for an attack by a Federal Army under Maj. Gen. E.R.S. Canby with 45,000 men. Major fortifications around the city include Fort Blakely under Brig. Gen. St. John Liddell and Spanish Fort under Brig. Gen. Randall L. Gibson. 

CONFEDERATE GENERAL BIRTHDAYS, March 18.

Brigadier General William Robertson Boggs was born on this day in 1829 in Augusta, Georgia. He graduated from West Point in 1853 and ranked fourth in his class of 47 cadets. He got a choice assignment as a brevet second lieutenant in the Topographical Bureau. Despite his promising career, he only reached the rank of first lieutenant by 1861. He resigned from the U.S. Army when Georgia seceded and became a staff officer for General Braxton Bragg. Boggs was appointed Chief Engineer for Georgia in 1862, and in 1863 was promoted to brigadier general and became chief of staff for General E. Kirby Smith in the Trans-Mississippi Department. He resigned as chief of staff after quarreling with Smith and was temporarily commander of the District of Louisiana. He was awaiting orders in Houston when the war ended and he was paroled on June 9, 1865. Following the war, he was a railroad construction engineer, and a professor at the Virginia Polytechnic Institute, and died in Winston-Salem, N.C. Sept. 11, 1911, and was buried in Salem Cemetery.

Brig. Gen. William R. Boggs

Today in History (general history)/ On This Day in Confederate History/ Confederate General Birthdays, March 17.

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!

Click 👉TODAY IN HISTORY (general history) March 17. 

Among the most famous Irish-Texas heroes of the 19th Century was Lt./Maj. Richard W. Dowling and the Jefferson Davis Guard, officially known as Company F, 1st Texas Heavy Artillery, Confederate States of America. They fought in the Battle of Galveston, Texas against the blockaders of the Texas coast and at the Second Battle of Sabine Pass. Being a native of Ireland, Dowling was also an active Fenian who believed in independence for Ireland and was the Fenian commander in Texas after the war and raised money for the Fenian cause. This is the story of Dick Dowling and the Jefferson Davis Guard. Click below for more information. 

         CLICK👉Dick Dowling and the Jefferson Davis Guard

ON THIS DAY IN CONFEDERATE HISTORY, March 17.

1863: At the Battle of Kelly's Ford, Virginia, 800 Confederate cavalrymen under Brig. Gen. Fitzhugh Lee engaged with 2,1000 Federal cavalrymen under Brig. Gen. William W. Averell. When the Federals try to cross Kelly's Ford on the Rappahannock River but 60 Confederate sharpshooters drive them back. The 1st R.I. Cavalry eventually force the crossing Gen. Fitzhugh Lee then leads his 800 gray cavalrymen against the Federals. But, outnumbered more than two to one, the Confederates had to withdraw to a Woodline. Averell then decides to withdraw his force back across the river. The Federals lost 6 killed, 50 wounded, and 22 missing. The Confederates suffered 11 dead, 88 wounded and 34 captured. 

1864: Red River Campaign: Brig. Gen. Alfred Mouton's brigade marched 20 miles on this day in Northwest Louisiana. The Confederates settle in 50 miles from Natchitoches and wait for the arrival of Vincent's Louisiana Cavalry, and Walker's Texas Infantry Division. Many of Vincent's men are recent conscripts. Also coming is Brig. General Camille Polignac's Texas Infantry Brigade to form a powerful new infantry division with Mouton's brigade, which Mouton will command. Brig. Gen. Thomas Green's Texas Cavalry is coming from Texas to help defeat the Federal advance up the Red River.

CONFEDERATE GENERAL BIRTHDAYS, March 17.

Brig. Gen. Sterling Alexander Martin Wood is born on this day in 1823 in Florence, Alabama. He was a pre-war lawyer, state legislator, and newspaper editor. He was elected on May 18, 1861, colonel of the 7th Alabama Infantry Regiment. Wood was promoted to brigadier general on Jan. 7, 1862, and commanded a brigade at the battles of Shiloh (wounded), Perryville, Murfreesboro, Tullahoma, and Chickamauga. Wood resigned from his commission on October 17, 1863, and resumed his law practice. Following the war, he received a pardon on November 1865. He was elected to the Alabama legislature. He died on Jan. 26, 1891, in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and was buried in Evergreen Cemetery there.

Brig. Gen. S.A.M. Wood

Brig. Gen. S.A.M Wood and staff, from l-r,

seated, Lt. Henry Class Wood, aide-de-camp, and Gen.

Wood; standing, Surgeon Major William Cordwell Cross, Rev. Alexander Lockett

Hamilton, and possibly asst. Q.M. Martin Walt. 

                                       (Ala. Photographs & Pictures Collection, Ala. Dept. of Archives and History.)