Click 👉Today in History (general history), Oct. 7.
On This Day in Confederate History, Oct. 7.
1862: General Braxton Bragg's Army of the Mississippi and Maj. Gen. Don Carlos Buell's Army of Ohio converged near Perryville, Ky., on the eve of the great battle there. Buell's army had 55,000 men, but only 22,000 would be engaged in the battle. Bragg had about 16,000 men present for the battle. Bragg would be absent until just before the battle began. Buell would be absent from the battle. The cavalry of both sides clashed on this day. The topography of the land in that area also created an acoustical shadow that had an impact on the battle.
This is the history of one of the hardest-fighting infantry regiments in the War for Southern Independence, the 23rd Tennessee Infantry. The regiment was raised predominantly from the Middle Tennessee counties, where there was considerable support for secession and Southern Independence. The men were overwhelmingly made up of yeoman farmers of predominantly Anglo-Celtic descent who were to face some of the largest, bloodiest, and most memorable battles of the war, both in the West and the East. They got their baptism of fire in the Battle of Shiloh, followed by the battles of Perryville, Murfreesboro, Hoover's Gap, Chickamauga, and Knoxville in the West with the famed Army of Tennessee. They were then transferred to the East, where they fought in the Bermuda Hundred Campaign in Virginia under the legendary General P.G.T. Beauregard, and then in the famed Army of Northern Virginia in the Petersburg Campaign, and ended the war with the great General Robert E. Lee at Appomattox Courthouse. The book covers the history of the regiment from letters, diaries, memoirs, and official records to cover both officers and men in a personal way. It also has an annotated roster of some 1,164 men who served in the regiment, as well as maps, photos, illustrations, bibliography, footnotes, and index.
1864: Price's Missouri Expedition: As Maj. Gen. Sterling Price's Confederate Army moved through Missouri, and skirmishes occurred at Jefferson City, Moreau Creek, and Tyler's Mills, Big River, Mo.
In the Petersburg Campaign in Virginia, the Battle of Darbytown and New Market Roads was fought between the Federal X Corps and two divisions of Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia. The Confederate divisions were those of Maj. Gens. Robert Hoke and Charles W. Field on the Federal defenses along the two roads. The attacks were repulsed, and Confederate Gen. John Gregg was killed in action. Gregg was hit in the neck while leading a counterattack with his Texas Brigade. The Federal casualties totaled 458, including 49 killed, 253 wounded, and 156 captured or missing. Confederate casualties have been estimated at around 700 in total.
Confederate General Birthdays, Oct. 7.
Lieutenant General Richard Heron Anderson was born on this day in 1821 in Sumter County, South Carolina. He graduated from West Point 40th in his class of 56 cadets in 1842. During the Mexican-American War, Anderson was in the Siege of Veracruz, the Battle of Contreras, the Battle of Molino del Rey, and the Mexico City Campaign. He received a brevet promotion to the rank of first lieutenant for his gallantry in battle. Following that war, Anderson served in a variety of frontier outposts. He resigned on March 3, 1861, and was commissioned the colonel of the 1st South Carolina Regulars. He was given command of Fort Sumter after its surrender and was promoted to brigadier general on July 19, 1861, to major general on July 14, 1862, and to lieutenant general on May 31, 1864. His battles and campaigns included Santa Rosa Island, Fla. (wounded), Seven Pines, Second Manassas, Sharpsburg, Fredericksburg, Suffolk, Gettysburg, Wilderness, Spotsylvania, Cold Harbor, and Petersburg. Following the war, he farmed in South Carolina, worked for the railroad, and died on June 26, 1879, at Beaufort, S.C., and was buried there in St. Helena's Episcopal Church.
Lt. Gen. Richard H. Anderson
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Major General William Brimage Bate was born on this day in 1821 in Bledsoe's Lick, Tennessee. During the Mexican-American War, he served in Louisiana and Tennessee regiments and achieved the rank of lieutenant. Following that war, he started a newspaper in Gallatin, Tennessee, and was elected to the Tennessee House of Representatives. He then became a lawyer, supported secession, and was an elector for John C. Breckinridge in the 1860 presidential campaign. During the War for Southern Independence Bate started out as a private and rose to major general. His battles and campaigns included Aquia Creek, First Manassas, Shiloh, Hoover's Gap, Chickamauga, Missionary Ridge, Resaca, New Hope Church, Dallas, Kennesaw Mountain, Peachtree Creek, Atlanta, Franklin, Nashville, and Bentonville. He was wounded three times and six horses were killed from under him. Following the war, Anderson practiced law in Nashville, Tenn., was active in the Democratic Party, served as governor, and was a U.S. Senator. Anderson died March 9, 1905, in Washington, D.C., and was buried there in Mount Olivet Cemetery.
Maj. Gen. William B. Bate
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Major General Bushrod Rust Johnson was born on this day in 1817 in Belmont County, Ohio. He graduated from West Point in 1840, served in the Seminole War and Mexican-American War, and was dismissed from the Army over a bookkeeping discrepancy. He later taught at the Western Military Institute and the University of Nashville and served in the state militia. He began the War for Southern Independence as a colonel in the Tennessee militia, was commissioned in the Confederate Army, and was promoted to brigadier general and then major general. His battles and campaigns included Fort Donelson, Shiloh (wounded), Perryville, Murfreesboro, Chickamauga, Bermuda Hundred, Swift Creek, Petersburg, the Crater, Siege of Petersburg, White Oak Road, Five Forks, and Sayler's Creek. Following the war, Johnson was a professor and co-chancellor at the University of Nashville. He died Sept. 12, 1880, in Brighton, Illinois, and is buried in the Old City Cemetery in Nashville, Tenn.Maj. Gen. Bushrod R. Johnson
(Colorized with AI)
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