Today in History (general history)/ On This Day in Confederate History/ Confederate General Birthdays, Sept. 30.

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On This Day in Confederate History, Sept. 30.

1863: Siege of Chattanooga: Maj. Gen. Joseph "Fighting Joe" Wheeler and his Confederate Cavalry began a raid on Maj. Gen. William Rosecrans and the Army of the Cumberland's line of communications to besieged Chattanooga, Tenn. Before the raid, Wheeler drove the enemy off Lookout Mountain so Confederates could occupy it and keep a bird's eye view of the city. Wheeler's two divisions were commanded by Brig. Gen. John A. Wharton of Texas and Brig. Gen. William T. Martin of Mississippi. Wheeler found Maj. Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest's division was in poor shape. He weeded out the unfit men and horses and consolidated the three brigades into one.

Maj. Gen. Joseph "Fightin' Joe" Wheeler

Confederate cavalryman

Painting by William Ludwell Sheppard 

1864: Battle of Fort Harrison: Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee, with 10,000 reinforcements with Maj. Gen. Charles Field, and staged a counterattack on Fort Harrison, which the Federals had taken the previous day in the Battle of Chaffin's Farm and New Market Heights in the Petersburg, Va. defenses. While the counterattack failed, the loss of the fort was compensated for by realigning the Confederate earthworks further west. Losses for the Confederates in the two-day battle were a total of 2,000, including 250 killed, 1,250 wounded and 500 captured or missing. The Federal losses totaled 3,372, including 391 killed, 2,317 wounded, and 649 missing or captured.

The Federals also on this day started the Battle of Peebles's Farm, also known as Poplar Springs Church or Poplar Grove Church on the Petersburg, Va. defenses. Lt. Gen. A.P. Hill held the Confederate position with 10,000 men and Maj. Gen. Gouverneur K. Warren commanded the V Corps and a cavalry division under Brig. Gen. David McM. Gregg, a total of 29,800 men. The Federals attack Fort Archer and seized it. Lee recalled some of the reinforcements he had sent to Fort Harrison. Confederate Maj. Gen. Henry Heth mounted a counterattack that routed the Federal IX Corps. Fighting would continue the next day.

Confederate General Birthdays, Sept. 30.

Brigadier General Thomas Jordan was born on this day in 1819 in Luray, Virginia. He graduated from West Point in 1840 and served in the Seminole War in Florida and the Mexican American War during which he was commended by Gen. David Twiggs. Jordan resigned his commission in the U.S. Army in 1861 and joined the Confederate Army as a lieutenant colonel and fought at the First Battle of Bull Run. He then served as Gen. P.G.T. Beauregard's chief of staff at the Battle of Shiloh. Jordan was promoted to brigadier general on April 14, 1862, and served with Beauregard in the defenses at Charleston, S.C. He died November 27, 1895, at age 76 in New York City and is buried in Mount Hope Cemetery in Westchester County, N.Y.

Brig. Gen. Thomas Jordan

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On This Day in Confederate History, Sept. 29.

1863: The Battle of Stirling's Plantation/Fordoche Bridge is an overwhelming Confederate victory in Louisiana. The Federal forces in the battle were the 19th Iowa and 26th Indiana infantry regiments, the 6th Missouri Cavalry Battalion, the 2nd Illinois Cavalry, a company of mounted infantry of the section of the 1st Missouri Light Artillery, about 1,000 men in a provisional brigade under Lt. Col. J.B. Leake. The Confederate units in the battle were Speight's Texas Infantry Brigade, Mouton's Louisiana Infantry Brigade, Green's Texas Cavalry Brigade, and Maj. Oliver J. Semmes' First Confederate Battery. They had about 3,000 men in all under Brig. Gen. Tom Green. But only about 1,000 Confederates were engaged in the actual fight. The Federals were there to protect Federal shipping on the Atchafalaya River, seven miles below Morganza, La. Although the Federals denied it, the bluecoats were caught by surprise with Semmes' battery opening the ball which was quickly followed by the Confederate infantry charging in the Confederate Cavalry outflanking the Federal position. But the Federals put up a stout defense which was finally broken by the Southerners. Federal casualties totaled 515, including 16 killed, 45 wounded, and 454 captured, including Colonel Leake. The Confederate casualties totaled 121, including 26 killed, 85 wounded and 10 men missing. General Green reported, "The heavy loss sustained by Speight's brigade shows the desperate nature of the conflict, and it is not out of place to mention here, even where all distinguished themselves, the gallant bearing and activity of Lieutenant [John B.] Jones, assistant adjutant general of Speight's brigade."

Brig. Gen. Tom Green

Led the Attack at Stirling's Plantation

(Colorization by M.D. Jones)

1864: The Battle of Chaffin's Farm and New Market Heights at Forts Harrison, Johnson, and Gilmer began on this day at Petersburg, Va. The Federals were under Maj. Gen. Benjamin F. "Beast" Butler with 26,000 men and the Confederates were under General Robert E. Lee and Lt. Gen. Richard S. Ewell with 14,500 men. The New Market Heights were defended by Lee's Grenadier Guard--Hood's Texas Brigade, about 1,800 strong, under Brig. Gen. John Gregg. Their position was attacked by 13,000 Federals and the Texans inflicted some 850 casualties on the attackers while suffering only about 50 of their own. The Federal attack at Fort Harrison succeeded in occupying the fort but they became disorganized. However, the Confederates rallied and contained the enemy's breakthrough. General Lee personally brought up 10,000 reinforcements for the next day's phase of the battle.

General Robert E. Lee

(CDV, M.D. Jones Collection)

Confederate General Birthdays, Sept. 28.

Brigadier General Bradley Tyler Johnson was born on this day in 1829 in Frederick, Maryland. Johnson organized and equipped a company at his expense of the 1st Maryland Infantry, CSA. he was elevated to command of the regiment with the rank of colonel. At the Battle of Front Royal, the 1st Maryland Confederate fought the 1st Maryland Federal and successfully stopped the Yankee 1st Maryland attacks. His other battles included First Winchester, Cross Keys, and the Peninsular Campaign, among others. After the war, he practiced law in Richmond, Va., and in Baltimore, Md. Johnson died Oct. 3, 1903, and is buried in Loudon Park Cemetery in Baltimore.

Brig. Gen. Bradley Johnson

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On This Day in Confederate History, Sept. 28.

1863: President Jefferson Davis appointed James Byron Gordon, Thomas Lafayette Rosser, and Pierce Manning Butler Young as brigadier generals. All three were excellent cavalry generals. The cavalry was a vital part of the army at that time. General Lee in the Gettysburg campaign was greatly hampered by not having Stuart's Cavalry with him for most of the Gettysburg Campaign keeping him informed of Federal movements in a timely way. General Pemberton was greatly hampered by not having adequate, timely cavalry intelligence on Grant's movements in the Vicksburg Campaign in Mississippi in 1863. He had been denied Forrest's Cavalry repeatedly by General Johnston. The same can be said of the Federal Army early in the war before proper cavalry doctrine was implemented.

Lt. Col. Elijah V. White

35th Va. Cav. Bn.

(Find A Grave)

Pvt. Philip Carper

35th Va. Cav. Bn.

(Library of Congress)

1864: The Siege of Petersburg, Va., absent major assaults, continues with daily casualties being produced by sharpshooting on both sides and exchanges of artillery. Gen. Robert E. Lee is kept busy opposing Lt. Gen. U.S. Grant's siege tactics.

    While the fighting continued at Petersburg, widespread skirmishing took place across the states of Georgia, Mississippi, Missouri, Tennessee, and Virginia. In Georgia, there was skirmishing near Decatur five miles out on Decatur Road. In Mississippi, a skirmish was reported between Confederates and Federals at Brownsville. There was also skirmishing with Confederate Major General Sterling Price at Caledonia and Centralia, in the state of Missouri. In Tennessee, Confederates skirmishes with Maj. Gen. Stephen G. "Butcher" Burbridge's at Federals near Rheatown, Tenn. Also, in Virginia, Lt. Gen. Jubal Early's Confederates skirmish in the Shenandoah Valley the Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan's Federals at Port Republic and Rockfish Gap.

Confederate General's Birthday, Sept. 28.

Brigadier General John Gregg was born on this day in 1828 in Lawrence County, Alabama. Gregg was educated at LaGrange College, Alabama, and later studied law and moved to Texas in 1852 where he practiced. He settled in Freestone Couty, married an Alabama girl, and founded a newspaper. A supporter of secession and was a delegate at the Texas secession convention. He entered the Confederate Army in 1861 organized the 7th Texas Infantry and served as its colonel. He was promoted to brigadier general on Aug. 15, 1862, and fought his brigade in the Vicksburg Campaign at the Battle of Raymond and the Battle of Jackson. With the Army of Tennessee, Gregg's Brigade fought at the Battle of Chickamauga where he was severely wounded. After recovery, he was given command of Hood's Texas Brigade and led it at the Battle of the Wilderness, Va. in 1864, where he was again wounded. Back in action, during the Siege of Petersburg, Va., he suffered a fatal gunshot wound to the neck on Oct. 7, 1864, while leading a counterattack in the Battle of Darbytown and New Market Roads. General Gregg is buried in the Odd Fellows Cemetery in Aberdeen, Mississippi.

Brig. Gen. John Gregg

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On This Day in Confederate History, Sept. 27.

1862: Raid on Taylor's Bayou Ridge: Two cutters from the USS Henry James, one packed with 17 Federal sailors armed with rifles and cutlasses and a 12-pounder rifled boat howitzer, and a smaller one with eight seamen attempted to destroy the bridge over Taylor's Bayou, 12 miles upstream from Sabine Pass, Texas. They then attempted to fire the bridge. The Federal commander claimed they destroyed it, but Confederate commander Lt. Col. Ashley W. Spaight reported there was only slight damage to the bridge and that was quickly repaired.

1864: The Battle of Fort Davidson near Pilot Knob, Missouri took place during Maj. Gen. Sterling Price's cavalry raid on this day. The commander of the fort, Brigadier General Thomas Ewing Jr. had 1,456 men and Price had some 5,700 men engaged. The Confederates attacked from different points, but the attacks were piecemeal and driven back by the heavily defended fort. But Ewing evacuated the fort that night and blew it up. Federal casualties numbered 213, and Confederate casualties were said to be costly.

Confederate General Birthdays, Sept. 27.

Admiral Raphael Semmes was born on this day in 1809 in Charles County, Maryland. He had a long career in the U.S. Navy, including the Mexican American War, and held the rank of commander when he resigned in 1861 to join the Confederate Navy. He is most famous for commanding the Confederate cruiser CSS Alabama. He was the most successful commerce raider with a total of 65 prizes. Besides holding the rank of rear admiral in the C.S. Navy, he was also promoted to the temporary rank of brigadier general in the C.S. Army near the end of the war and led the Naval Brigade which surrendered to Sherman with the Army of Tennessee and was paroled. Following the war, Semmes was charged with treason by the U.S. government, but the charges were dropped. He then worked as a professor at the Louisiana State Seminary, editor of the Memphis Bulletin, and wrote one of the greatest memoirs, Memoirs of Service Afloat During the War Between the States. He moved to Mobile, Alabama, and died there on August 30, 1877, and was buried in the Old Catholic Cemetery.

Admiral Raphael Semmes, CSN

(U.S. Naval Institute)

Admiral Raphael Semmes on the deck of Alabama.

Brigadier General Lawrence Sullivan Ross was born on this day in 1838 in Bentonsport, Iowa. He was raised in the Republic of Texas, served in the Texas Rangers, and was in a number of engagements with Indians prior to the war. During the war, he rose from private to brigadier general of cavalry and was in some 135 engagements. Among his battles were Corinth, Thompson Station, and the Franklin-Nashville Campaign. After the war, he served as the 19th governor of Texas and president of what is now Texas A&M University. He died on January 3, 1898, in Brazos County, Texas, and was buried in Oakwood Cemetery in Waco, Texas.

Brig. Gen. Lawrence "Sul" Ross

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On This Day in Confederate History, Sept. 26.

1864: President Jefferson Davis made an inspection trip to the Army of Tennessee after the recent loss of Atlanta, Georgia to evaluate the situation for himself. The relationship between his two top generals, General John Bell Hood and Lt. Gen. William Hardee, had reached the breaking point and Davis tried to find a solution for the good of the army and nation. After meeting separately with both Hood and Hardee, he decided to move Hardee to the command of South Carolina. He also moved General P.G.T. Beauregard to coordinate the entire western region, which gave him technical command over Hood in  Georgia and Tennessee, and of Lt. Gen. Richard Taylor in Alabama, Mississippi, and Eastern Louisiana. But in reality, he would be in command of one or the other only if he was physically present with either one. So Beauregard's position became advisory in nature with no actual control. The situation in the western Confederacy would steadily deteriorate, especially with Hood and his Tennessee campaign.

President Jefferson Davis' trip to straighten out

the problems with the Army of Tennessee failed

to save the army and the Western Confederacy

from pending disasters.

Also at this time, Lt.Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest's raid into Tennessee to cut Sherman's supply line was nearing Pulaski, Tennessee. And in Missouri, Maj. Gen. Sterling Price's raid into Missouri was advancing on Pilot Knob, Missouri.

Confederate General Birthdays, Sept. 26,

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On This Day in Confederate History, Sept. 25.

1862: In the aftermath of the First Battle of Sabine Pass, Texas, Lieutenant Colonel Ashley W. Spaight, command of the 11th Battalion Texas Volunteers, was busy rearranging the positions of his battalion on September 25. Colonel X.B. DeBray, sub-military district commander, assembled reinforcements. Captain Marsh's Company A, cavalry, of Spaight's Battalion, was finally seeing some action against the enemy and was sent to the area around Sabine Pass as scouts to keep a close eye on what the enemy movements were. Company B of Spaight's Battalion (Capt. K.D. Keith's heavy artillery) was sent to Fort Grigsby further up Sabine Pass in case the enemy strikes there also. The three infantry companies of the battalion were dispatched to other spots, Company C to reassemble at Smith's Bluff; Company D was sent to Orange to guard that important river port, and Company E was sent to guard the bridge at Taylor's Bayou. Spaight's other cavalry company, Company F, was sent to scout in the area of  Fort Grigsby. Debray was bringing the 20th Texas Infantry Regiment and the 21st Battalion Texas Infantry.

Believed to be Sgt. Thomas Jefferson Smith,

Co. C, Spaight's Battalion. (Find A Grave)

1863: The Memphis Appeal on this day ran the casualties of the 5th Company Washington Artillery of New Orleans at the Battle of Chickamauga, Ga. on Sept. 19 and 20: "Sept. 19--Killed: Lieutenant S.M. Blair, Privates John Anderson, C.P. Bailey, M. Duggan, E. Reichard, L. Daigle, Jos.Belson. Wounded: Martin Mathis, through thigh slightly; Felix Arroyo, bruised slightly; C.R. Percy, slightly in right-left; John Walsh, slightly. Sept. 20--Killed: Fred Morrel, L. Brocard, (volunteer for the fight) James Bayle, Benjamin Stakeman. Wounded: W.A. Wood, leg amputated, doing well; Myle Greenwood, foot, doing well; J. Weber, slightly; George Pugh, slightly; C. Weingard, bruised slightly; W.G. Crawford, slightly; John Frazar, slightly through the forearm.

A group  picture of the 5th Company Washington Artillery

Confederate General Birthdays, Sept. 25.

 

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On This Day in Confederate History, Sept. 24.

1861: James Ewell Brown Stuart was appointed a brigadier general on this day. Stuart was Robert E. Lee's premier cavalryman in the Army of Northern Virginia and Lee relied heavily on Stuart's expertise in all aspects of the cavalry. In those days the cavalry was the eyes and ears of the armies and were guards of the flanks of the army during battle and in making movements. Stuart was flamboyant and is one of the legendary characters of the war.

Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart

1862: The First Battle of Sabine Pass, Texas occurred on this day and the next in 1862. The battle was between the Federal West Gulf Blockading Squadron, two schooners, and one steamer, under the command of Lt. Frederick Crocker of the USS Kensington, versus the 11th Battalion (Spaight)'s Texas Volunteers, which included infantry, artillery, and cavalry, Daley's Texas Cavalry Battalion, and artillery Company B of Spaight's Battalion.  Major Josephus S. Irvine was in overall command of the Confederates. The draft of the Kensington's draft was too great to get over the bar at the entrance of the pass, so the schooner USS Rachel Seaman and the mortar schooner USS Henry Janes carried out the attack. The Confederates were in Fort Sabine, which is a totally different fort for the more famous Second Battle of Sabine Pass a year later which was Fort Griffin further up the pass. The Confederates were vastly undermanned because there was a yellow fever epidemic and most of the men had been given a furlough. The four heavy artillery guns were manned by Co. B, Spaight's Battalion, 18 men under Capt. K.D. Keith, and 10 cavalrymen of Co. A Spaight's Battalion. The fort was also vastly outgunned by the Federal blockaders. The Confederates rejected a surrender demand. The schooners then stood out of range for the Confederate guns and pummeled the Confederates at a long distance for five hours. At 2 o'clock A.M. Maj. Irvine determined resistance in the undermanned and outgunned little fort was futile and had the guns spiked, saved most of the ordnance and other public property, and withdrew. The next morning, the town was surrendered but because of the yellow fever epidemic, the Federals were too afraid to land and occupy it but did land a party to finish destroying the fort. They did bombard some parts of the helpless village and continued to terrorize the civilian population. No one was killed or wounded on either side but two Confederates were left behind because they were too ill with yellow fever to be moved.

Major Josephus S. Irvine, Spaight's Battalion

He was in overall command during the battle.

Confederate reenactors fired this artillery piece at

a reenactment of the Second Battle of Sabine Pass

on the actual battlefield. (Photo by M.D. Jones)

1864: On the second day of Confederate Major General Nathan Bedford Forrest's action at the Battle of Fort Henderson, Alabama, part of Forrest's raid on Sherman's supply line, the Confederates bombarded the enemy installation for hours. Forrest then met with the Federal commander, Col. Wallace Campbell, who agrees to surrender. Some Federals of the 18th Michigan and 102nd Ohio tried to relieve the fort but were turned back by a Confederate counterattack. Forrest's cavalry moved on destroying other parts of the Nashville and Decatur Railroad and supplying Sherman's army.

Confederate General History, Sept. 24.

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On This Day in Confederate History, Sept. 23.

1863: SIEGE OF CHATTANOOGA--General Braxton Bragg arrived on Missionary Ridge on this day and surveyed the situation. There was no evidence that Maj. Gen. William Rosecrans was going to evacuate Chattanooga, so Bragg stationed Lt. Gen. James Longstreet's Corps of the Army of Tennessee was placed from Lookout Mountain to the east bank of Chattanooga Creek. Lt. Gen. D.H. Hill and Lt. Gen. Leonidas Polk's corps were covering the valley and Missionary Ridge positions. The Confederates are able to seriously restrict Rosecrans's supply line.

Lt. Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest

1864: Battles of Fort Henderson and Sulphur Creek Trestle--Maj. Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest's Confederate Cavalry struck Fort Henderson, Tennessee disrupting Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman's supply line between Nashville and Decatur. The fort was garrisoned by three regiments of U.S. Colored Troops, the 18th Michigan, the 102nd Ohio, and the 2nd Tennessee (Union) Cavalry under the command of Col. Wallace Campbell. Forrest men and the Federals skirmished in the morning and Campbell retreated back into the fort. The siege would conclude the next day.

Two Tennessee Confederate soldiers.

Tennessee furnished over 120,000

soldiers to the Confederate Army.

(Liljenquist Collection, Library of Congress)

Confederate General Birthdays, Sept. 23.

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On This Day in Confederate History, Sept. 22.

1861: U.S. Sen. and Brig. Gen. James Lane and his 2,000 Kansas Jayhawkers sacked the town of Osceola, Missouri and capture a supply train for the pro-Confederate Missouri State Guard. However, the raid ended in plundering the town and civilians. There were only 200 Missouri militiamen under Missouri State Guard Captain John M. Weidemeyer to defend the town. The badly outnumbered militiamen were soon forced to retreat, and the drunken Jayhawkers set to looting the town and burning everything in sight.

1863: Confederates in the Army of Tennesse under Gen. Braxton Bragg besieged Chattanooga, Tennessee and skirmished with Federals at Missionary Ridge and Shallow Ford Gap and occupied the high ground on Missionary Ridge. In the meantime, Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant strikes out of Vicksburg, Mississippi with three divisions of the XV Army Corps of the Army of the Tennessee to relieve Maj. Gen. William Rosecrans and the Army of the Cumberland at Chattanooga. 

1864: The conclusion of the Battle of Fisher's Hill, Va. sees Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan with about 35,000 bluecoats, overwhelms Lt. Gen. Jubal Earl's Army of the Valley forcing them to retreat up the Shenandoah with the loss of about 1,234 men, mostly captured. Federal losses number 528. The defeated Confederates concentrate at Waynesboro, Va.

Confederate General Birthdays, Sept. 22.

Lieutenant General Stephen Dill Lee, a distant cousin of General Robert E. Lee, was born on this day in 1833 in Charleston, South Carolina. He graduated from West Point in 1850 ranking 17th in a class of 46 cadets. Lee served as a second lieutenant in the 4th U.S. Infantry Regiment and was promoted to the first lieutenant in 1856. He took part in the Seminole Wars in 1857. Lee resigned from the U.S. Army in 1861 and became a captain in the South Carolina Militia. On March 16, 1861, he was commissioned a captain in the Confederate Army and served on the staff of Gen. P.G.T. Beauregard. Promotions rapidly followed and he was elevated to brigadier general on Nov. 6, 1862, to major general on August 3, 1863, and to lieutenant general on June 23, 1864. His battles and campaigns included Fort Sumter, the Peninsula Campaign, Seven Pines, Savage's Station, Malvern Hill, Second Manassas, Sharpsburg, Chickasaw Bayou, the Vicksburg Campaign, Champion's Hill (wounded), the Siege of Vicksburg, Siege of Chattanooga, Tupelo, Atlanta Campaign, Ezra Church, Utoy Creek, Jonesborough, Franklin-Nashville Campaign, Spring Hill, Franklin, Nashville, and the Carolina Campaign. Following the war, he lived in Columbus, Mississippi, served in the Mississippi State Senate, and was the first president of Mississippi A&M College. Lee served as commander-in-chief of the United Confederate Veterans and gave the Sons of Confederate Veterans their "charge" in 1906 at the UCV Reunion in New Orleans. He died on May 28, 1908, in Vicksburg, Miss., and was buried in Friendship Cemetery in Columbus, Miss.

Lt. Gen. Stephen D. Lee

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Brigadier General Eppa Hunton was born on this day in 1822 in Fauquier County, Virginia. He practiced law in Brentsville, Va. before the war and was active in the state militia achieving the rank of brigadier general. He was a delegate at the Virginia Secession Convention and when the war came, was commissioned a  colonel of the 8th Virginia Infantry. He was promoted the brigadier general in August 1863. His battles and campaigns included First Manassas, Ball's Bluff, Williamsburg, Seven Pines, Frazier's Farm, Gaines' Mill, Second Manassas, South Mountain, Sharpsburg, Fredericksburg, Gettysburg (wounded), Cold Harbor, the Richmond and Petersburg Campaign, Five Forks, and Sayler's Creek. Following the war, he practiced law in Virginia and was elected to the U.S. Congress (serving both in the House and Senate). Hunton was also active in the United Confederate Veterans. Hunton died Oct. 11, 11, 1908 in Richmond, Va., and was buried in Hollywood Cemetery.

Brig. Gen. Eppa Hunton

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On This Day in Confederate History, Sept. 21.

1863: CHICKAMAUGA  AFTERMATH--The defeated Federal Army of the Cumberland retreats back into the fortifications in Chattanooga, Tennessee, while Confederate Gen. Braxton Bragg fails to send his victorious Army of the Tennessee immediately into Chattanooga before the Northerners can get reorganized and reinforced. Braggs's failure to follow up victories is a major reason why much of his army has lost confidence in him. Instead, Bragg puts Chattanooga under siege in one of the biggest mistakes of the war.  Skirmishing continues around the area, including Rossville, Lookout Church, and Dry Valley, Georgia.

1864: The Battle of Fisher's Hill, Virginia begins as the Federals under Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan follow up their victory at the Third Battle of Winchester on Sept. 16. Confederate Lt. Gen. Jubal Early thought Fisher's Hill would be another "Rock of Gibraltar." Early has only 9,500 men left in his Army of the Valley while Sheridan has $35,000. In the skirmishing, on this day the Northerners capture the high ground and prepare for an assault the next day.

Confederate General Birthdays, Sept. 21.

Major General Carter Littlepage Stevenson was born this day in 1817 in Fredericksburg, Virginia.  He graduated from West Point in1838 and served as a second lieutenant in the 5th U.S. Infantry. Steveson, promoted to the first lieutenant, participated in the Second Seminole War, the Mexican-American War, the Third Seminole war, and the Utah War. He resigned from the U.S. Army in `861, returned to Virginia, and was commissioned a lieutenant colonel in the Confederate Army. Promoted to colonel, he commanded the 53rd Virginia Infantry. He was promoted to brigadier general in February 1862, and to major general in October 1862. His battles and campaigns included Champion's Hill, the Siege of Vicksburg, the Atlanta Campaign, the Battle of Nashville, and the Carolinas Campaign. Following the war, Stevenson was a civil and mining engineer in Caroline County, Virginia. He died August 15, 1888, in Caroline County, Va., and was buried in the Confederate Cemetery in Fredericksburg, Va.

Maj. Gen. Carter. L. Stevenson

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Brigadier General Williams Carter Wickham was born on this day in 1820 in Richmond, Virginia. He was a lawyer, politician, and plantation owner prior to the war. He was elected to both the Virginia House of Delegates and the Virginia Senate. In 1859, in response to John Brown's Raid on Harper's Ferry, he organized the Hanover Dragoons and was commissioned a captain in the Virginia militia. He was against secession and twice against it in the Virginia Secession Convention. But when Virginians voted to ratify Virginia's secession, he led his Hanover Dragoons into the Confederate Army and became lieutenant colonel and colonel of the 4th Virginia Cavalry, and was promoted to brigadier general on Sept. 9, 1863. His battles and campaigns included First Manassas, Williamsburg, Sharpsburg, Chancellorsville, Brandy Station, Gettysburg Campaign, and Yellow Tavern. Following the war, he became a Republican, president of the Virginia Central Railroad, and the president of the Covington & Ohio Railroad. He was also elected to the Virginia Senate. Wickham died on July 23, 1888, in Richmond, Va., and was buried in Hickory Hill Cemetery in Hanover County, Va.

Brig. Gen. Williams C. Wickham

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On This Day in Confederate History, Sept. 20.

1861: Federals in Lexington, Mo. under Col. James Mulligan surrendered on this day to the Missouri State Guard under Maj. Gen. Sterling Price. The siege of the town lasted seven days. The pro-Confederate MSG suffered 30 men killed, and 120 wounded for a total of 150. The Federals lost 36 wounded, 117 wounded, 8 missing, and 3,000 captured. 

1863: The Confederate Army of Tennessee under Lt. Gen. Braxton Bragg wins its biggest victory on this day at the Battle of Chickamauga, Georgia. The key to victory was a breakthrough assault under Lt. Gen. James Longstreet commanding the left-wing, with Maj. Gen. Bushrod Johnson's Division of the AOT is in the forefront followed by two divisions from the Army of Northern Virginia with Maj. Gen. John Bell Hood led all three divisions. The Federal right flank was crushed. Hood was severely wounded and had to have a leg amputated. He was later promoted to lieutenant general to date from Sept. 20, 1863. Confederate Brig. Gen. Benjamin H. Helm was wounded mortally. Brig. Gen. James Deshler was killed in action. Federal Brig. Gen. William H. Lytle was killed in action. Federal losses were 1,657 killed, 9,756 wounded, and 4,757 captured or missing for a total of 16,170 casualties. Confederates suffered 2,312 killed, 14,674 wounded, and 1,456 captured or missing for a casualty total of 18,454.

Lt. Gen. John Bell Hood

was severely wounded.

1864: Simon Bolivar Buckner was promoted to lieutenant general and was assigned to important commands in the Trans-Mississippi Department. Also promoted on this day were Edwin Gray Lee, Patrick Theodore More, and William Henry Wallace, all to brigadier general.

Confederate General Birthdays, Sept. 20.

Major General Sterling Price was born on this day in 1809 in Prince Edward County, Virginia. He was a prewar Missouri politician who served in the Missouri House of Representatives. elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1844 and was governor from 1853-1857. During the Mexican American War, Price was colonel of the 2nd Missouri Mounted Infantry Regiment. During the War for Southern Independence, commanded the Missouri State Guard as a major general and was appointed a major general in the Confederate Army. His battles and campaigns included Carthage, Oak Hill, Lexington, Elk Horn Tavern (wounded), Iuka, Corinth, Helena, the Little Rock Campaign, Camden Expedition, and the Missouri Expedition. Following the war, he lived in Mexico and when his health declined, he moved to St. Louis, Mo. where he died on Sept. 29, 1867, and was buried there in the Bellefontaine Cemetery.

Maj. Gen. Sterling Price

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Brigadier General Edward Asbury O'Neal was born on this day in 1818 in Madison County, Alabama. He was a prewar lawyer and judge who believed in secession. During the War Between the States, O'Neal was appointed the major of the 9th Alabama Infantry Regiment, then colonel of the 26th Alabama Infantry, and was appointed a brigadier general on June 6, 1863, but General R.E. Lee held up the appointment and President Jefferson Davis canceled it. His battles and campaigns included the Peninsula Campaign, Seven Pines (severely wounded), Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Manassas Gap, Mine Run, and the Atlanta Campaign. Following the war, O'Neal practiced law in Alabama and was elected to the Alabama Constitutional Convention in 1875. He was an elector for 1880 Democratic Party presidential candidate Winfield Scott Hancock. O'Neal served as governor of Alabama from 1882 to 1886. He died on Nov. 7, 1890, in Florence, Alabama, and was buried in the Florence City Cemetery.

Brig. Gen. Edward A. O'Neal

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

  Click 👉Today in History (general history) Sept. 19. 

On This Day In Confederate History, Sept. 19.

1862: General Robert E. Lee moved the Army of Northern Virginia across the Potomac River at Boteler's Ford to safety in Virginia. There was skirmishing in Sharpsburg, Shepherdstown, and near Williamsport, Maryland.

1863: At the Battle of Chickamauga, General Braxton Bragg planned a major assault on the Federal Army of the Cumberland early in the morning. However poor communications with his subordinate generals resulted in disjointed and belated attacks that were beaten back by the Federals. Bragg assigned Lt. Gen. James Longstreet, newly arrived from Virginia, who would be in command of the Army of Tennessee's left wing late that night. Confederate Brig. Gen. Preston Smith was mortally wounded while directing a night attack. 

Brig. Gen. Preston Smith

Mortally wounded at Chickamauga

1864: The Confederacy won the first two battles of Winchester, Va. but the third battle there on this day in the Shenandoah Valley was a serious loss for the South. Lt. Gen. Jubal Early's Army of the Valley with 15,514 men to Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan's 40,000 men in two Federal armies, the Army of the Shenandoah and the Army of West Virginia. The Confederates are overwhelmed by numbers and a double envelopment of their flanks. Early's army retreats back to a prepared fortress at Fisher's Hill, Va. after suffering some 5,015 casualties. The Federals lost 5,018 casualties. Among the Confederate casualties was Brig. Gen. Archibald Campbell Godwin, by a shell fragment, and Brig. Gen. Robert Rodes, who was mortally wounded while leading a counterattack. On the Federal side, Brig. Gen. David Allen Russell was instantly killed when hit by a shell fragment to the heart.

Brig. Gen. Archibald C. Godwin

Killed in action at Third Winchester

Click on the map for enlargement

Confederate General Birthdays, Sept. 19.

None.

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

Click 👉Today in History (general history) Sept. 18. 

On This Day in Confederate History, Sept. 18.

1861: Confederate Brig. Gen. Paul Octave Hebert takes command of Confederate forces in the Department of Texas with headquarters in Houston. Texas coastal ports are by the time being blockaded and the threat of invasion seems real.

1862: After the bloodiest day in American history, on the 17th, at Sharpsburg/Antietam, Gen. Robert E. Lee readjusted his defense line to a much stronger position on a hill and waited all day for the Federals to restart their assaults. But they never come. Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan sees that it would be suicidal to send his troops up that hill. Instead, both sides by mutual agreement have an unofficial truce to recover their wounded from the battlefield. That evening, General Lee decided to withdraw the Army of Northern Virginia back over the Potomac River and back into Virginia.

1863: The first official day of the Battle of Chickamauga, Georgia began on this day. The fighting takes on and around Chickamauga Creek between 66,326 Confederates of the Army of Tennesee under Lt. Gen. Braxton Bragg, and 58,222 Federals of the Army of the Cumberland under Maj. Gen. William Rosecrans. On this day Confederate Brig. Gen. Bushrod's Division takes the wrong road and runs into Federal Col. Robert Minty's cavalry brigade at Reed's Bridge but the Confederates succeed in crossing when rushed by the 23rd Tenn. Inf. Johnson is joined by Maj. Gen. John Bell Hood's Division of Longstreet's Corps, arriving from Virginia, pushes on by dark in front of Col. John T. Wilder's mounted infantry brigade, which is armed with Spencer repeating rifles.  Confederate Maj. Gen. Simon Buckner's Division crossed the creek too. Lt. Gen. Leonidas Polk is confronting Federals and Lee & Gordon's Mill. Lt. Gen. D.H. Hill's Corps crosses the creek further south. Troop maneuvering continues. 

Brig. Gen. Bushrod Johnson

Confederate General Birthdays, Sept. 18.

Brigadier General Marcellus Augustus Stovall was born on this day in 1818 in Sparta, Georgia. He got early military experience in 1835-37 when he served as a private in the Georgia State Militia in the Seminole Wars. He was briefly a cadet at West Point but resigned after a year due to poor health. Stovall returned to Augusta to work as a merchant but continued in the Georgia State Militia as an artillery captain. In 1861, he was appointed the colonel of the 2nd Artillery Regiment in the militia but became a lieutenant colonel of the 3rd Georgia Battalion in the Confederate Army. He was promoted to brigadier general on Jan. 20, 1863, and fought with the Army of Tennessee. His battles included the Battle of Murfreesboro, the Siege of Jackson, Miss., the Battle of Chickamauga, the Atlanta Campaign, the Franklin-Nashville Campaign, and the Carolinas Campaign at the end of the war. Following the war, Stovall worked as a merchant, manager of the Georgia Chemical Works, a city alderman, and police commissioner in Augusta.  He died on August 4, 1895, in Augusta, Ga., and was buried in Magnolia Cemetery there.

Brig. Gen. Marcellus A. Stovall

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Brigadier General Henry Constantine Wayne was born on this day in 1815 in Savannah, Georgia. He graduated from West Point in 1838 and became a second lieutenant in the artillery. Wayne participated in the Aroostook War in Maine, was an instructor of artillery at West Point, and in the Mexican-American  War was in the battles of Contreras and Churubusco after which he was brevetted a major. After that war, he proposed using camels in the army and led an expedition to the Middle East to purchase the camels. The War Between the States ended the camel experiment and his service in the U.S. Army. Wayne became Georgia's Quartermaster General. He was promoted to brigadier general on Dec. 16, 1861. He resigned his commission so he could remain with the Georgia militia. He led Confederate troops at the Battle of Ball's Ferry on Nov. 23-26, 1864 during Sherman's March to the Sea. Following the war, Wayne worked in the lumber business in Savannah, Ga. He died on March 15, 1883, and was buried in Laurel Grove Cemetery there.

Brig. Gen. Henry C. Wayne

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On This Day in Confederate History/ On This Day in Confederate History/ Confederate General Birthdays, Sept. 17.

Click 👉Today in History (general history) Sept. 17. 

On This Day in Confederate History, Sept. 17.

1862: The Battle of Sharpsburg/Antietam, the bloodiest day in American military history, begins early when Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan began launching massive attacks at dawn on Gen. Robert E. Lee's greatly outnumbered Army of Northern Virginia. But Lee shows his military genius by the brilliant way he maneuvers his troops, among the best in history, in repulsing attack after attack. The attacks make place names famous such as the East Woods, West Woods, the Cornfield, the Hagerstown Pike fence, the Cornfield, the Bloody Lane, the Dunkard Church, Burnside's Bridge, Mumma's Farm, and others. Lt. Gen. Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson, Lt. Gen. James Longstreet, and Maj. Gen. A.P. Hill all contributes crucial decisions in the day's fighting, which ends after 12 hours in a stalemate. Confederate casualties, out of about 38,000 engaged, are 1,567 killed, 7,752 wounded, and 1,018 captured or missing for a total of 10,316. The Federal casualties, out of 87,164 engaged, including 12,410 killed, 9,549 wounded, and 753 captured or missing for a total of 12,410. The totals for both sides are 22,726.

Brig. Gen. George B. Anderson

was mortally wounded in the 

battle and died on Oct. 16, 1862, in

Raleigh, N.C. He was wounded in the

ankle in defense of Bloody Lane.

 (National Park Service)

Bloody Lane 

(Library of Congress)

U.S. Army

 

1863: There is more skirmishing in the prelude to the Battle of Chickamauga, Ga. at Neal's Gap, Ala., Owen's Ford, West Chickamauga Creek, Ga. Lt. Gen. Braxton Bragg's order to the Army of Tennesse to attack Maj. Gen. William Rosecrans' isolated corps of the Army of the Cumberland fails to materialize and Bragg puts the blame on his subordinate commanders.

1864: Confederate Lt. Col. Vincent A. Witcher leads a Confederate raid into western Virginia during which skirmishes occur at Bulltown, Jacksonville, Westover, Buckhannon, Walkerville, and Weston. Results of the raid include the destruction of $1 million in Federal supplies, 300 Federals taken captive, and livestock captured including 500 horses and 200 head of cattle for the Confederate Army.

Confederate General Birthdays, Sept. 17.

Maj. Gen. Howell Cobb was born on this day in 1815 in Jefferson County, Georgia. He was a major political figure in Georgia and nationally prior to the war. Cobb served five terms in the U.S. House of Representatives, including one as Speaker of the House. He also served as the Secretary of the Treasury during the administration of President James Buchanan. Cobb was also a Founding Father of the Confederacy and served as President of the Provisional Confederate Congress. During the war, he served as colonel of the 16th Georgia Infantry and was promoted to brigadier general on Feb. 13, 1862. He was then promoted to major general on Sept. 9, 1863. His battles and campaigns included the Peninsula Campaign, the Seven Days Battles, the Battle of South Mountain, and the Battle of Sharpsburg. With the Georgia Reserve Corps, he took part in the 1864 Atlanta Campaign, and the Battle of Columbus, Ga. on April 16, 1865. His own plantation was burned at the direct order of Sherman. Following the war, Cobb opposed the North's Reconstruction policy, and on October 9, 1868, while on vacation in New York City was buried in Oconee Hill Cemetery in Athens, Georgia.

Maj. Gen. Howell Cobb

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Maj. Gen. Earl Van Dorn was born on this day in 1820 at Port Gibson, Mississippi. He graduated from West Point in 1838 ranking 52nd in a class of 68 cadets. During the Mexican-American War, he fought in seven battles and received brevet promotions, including the rank of captain. Van Dorn resigned from the U.S. Army on Jan. 31, 1861, and rose rapidly in the Confederate Army. He was a major general in the Mississippi Militia, then a colonel, brigadier general, and major general in the Confederate Army. His battles included Pea Ridge, Second Corinth, the Holly Springs Raid, Thompson's station, and the First Battle of Franklin. He was murdered by a disgruntled doctor on May 7, 1863, at Spring Hill, Tenn. Van Dorn was buried on Sept. 17, 1820.

Maj. Gen. Earl Van Dorn

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Today in History (general history)/ On This Day in Confederate History/ Confederate General Birthdays, Sept. 16.

  Click 👉Today in History (general history) Sept. 16.

On this Day in Confederate History, Sept. 16.

1861: New Orleans Campaign: Confederate forces evacuated Ship Island, Mississippi and a landing party from the USS Massachusetts take possession of it. The Federals use it as a staging area for the invasion of Louisiana under the command of Brig. Gen. Benjamin "Beast" Butler in April 1862.

1862: Battle of Sharpsburg (Antietam): Both Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia and Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan's Army of the Potomac preliminary actions at Sharpsburg Maryland along Antietam Creek in preparation for the big battle the next day, the bloodiest day in American military history. Lee is greatly outnumbered with 38,000 effective troops engaged versus McClellan's 87,164 men. On the 16th, McClellan launched an attack on Maj. Gen. John Bell Hood's Division in the East Woods. The fighting ceased at nightfall except for continuing artillery fire.

Maj. Gen. John Bell Hood

1863: Skirmishing continues in the Chickamauga Campaign in Georgia at Gordon's Mills, on Chickamauga Creek where Lt. Gen. Braxton Bragg's Army of Tennessee has concentrated. Maj. Gen. William Rosecrans concentrated the Army of the Cumberland at Alpine, Ga. Confederates have 65,000 men and the Federals had 60,000.

1864: Forrest's Raid of 1864: Maj. Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest launches a cavalry raid into Northern Alabama and Middle Tennessee to interrupt Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman's supply line and communications. 

Confederate General Birthdays, Sept. 16.

Major General George Washington Custis Lee was born on this day in 1832 at Fortress Monroe, Va. to Robert E. Lee and Mary Custis Lee. He graduated first in his class of 46 cadets and served in the Army Corps of Engineers. He resigned from the U.S. Army in 1861 and joined the Confederate Army in the Confederate Engineers working on fortifications around Richmond, Va. He also served on President Davis' staff as an aide-de-camp and was promoted to brigadier general in 1863 and given command of troops around Richmond. He was promoted to major general in 1864 and led troops in the Battle of Sayler's Creek and was captured on April 6, 1865. After the war, Lee was a professor at the Virginia Military Institute and president of Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Va. He also won a famous court case recovering his property, the Arlington, aka the Custis-Lee Mansion, which had been confiscated by the Northern government during the war and turned into a cemetery. Lee then sold the property to the government for $150,000 which was a fortune in those days. He died Dec. 13, 1913, in Alexandria, Va., and was buried in University Chapel near his family in Lexington.

Maj. Gen. George W.C. Lee