Wednesday, August 31, 2016

Lefever (Maj. or Mr.), USA, stationed in Cleveland, Tennessee, March 1864

Attempts to Identify People in the Myra Inman Diary

Major Lefever, Mr. ___ Lefever 
Lefever is mentioned in the Myra Inman diary, pages 252, 254.

Attempting to identify Lefever; work in progress...

Various Lefevers from other sources, not sure which, if any, he is:

1) Le Favour, Heber, 22nd Michigan. Negative--was prisoner of war that spring. 22nd Michigan was probably at Cleveland. This Le Favour could not have been in Cleveland in March 1864. Heber Le Favour of Detroit, Michigan (22nd Infantry) was taken prisoner at Chickamauga and not exchanged until May 7, 1864. Source: Record of Service of Michigan Volunteers in the Civil War, vol. 22 (22nd Mich. Inf.), 89-90, s.v. "Le Favour, Heber."
https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015019372963;view=2up;seq=106

2) Colonel Lefevor mentioned, Battle of Chickamauga. Maybe. I've only partially identified him so far. It could even be the one aforementioned, but spelled differently. I don't yet know his record of service. This Col. Lefever was at the Battle of Chickamauga. He was under General Steedman then. At Chickamauga, Lefever was on extreme left of General Whittaker's Brigade, per this doc.:
https://archive.org/stream/03377448.3226.emory.edu/03377448_3226_djvu.txt
Whitaker, of the Second Brigade, Fourth Army Corps was headquartered at Blue Springs, five miles in advance of Cleveland, Tennessee, in the spring of 1864. Some of Steedman's troops were probably at Blue Springs or Cleveland. Steedman himself was in the area at some point.

3) Andrew F. Lefever (Co. B, 64th Ohio)
Link to several Lefevers of Crawford Co., Illinois, at least one of whom was at the Battle of Chickamauga. Don't know yet whether this unit was stationed at or near Cleveland. There are other Lefevers on this page, but I think he may be the only one who was in the war.
http://bit.ly/Lefever-in-Crawford-Co-Illinois-Historical-pg758

Will look for more possibilities...

RELATED POSTS, THIS BLOG:

Fourth Army Corps
http://musescivilwar.blogspot.com/2016/08/fourth-army-corps-oliver-o-howard_22.html

Myra Inman Diary (bibliog. info only, with links to bookstores)
http://musescivilwar.blogspot.com/2016/08/myra-inman-diary-bibliographic.html

Lt. Louis Alden Simmons, 84th Illinois Infantry (stationed at Cleveland, Tenn., Spring 1864)

Identity of Lt. Simmons in the Myra Inman Diary

The Myra Inman diary mentions Lt. Simmons, also known as A. Simmons, who courts her in the Spring of 1864 while he is stationed at Cleveland, Tennessee. She is Southern and says that she dislikes him (though there were signs that she liked him, at times). This Lt. Simmons has his 31st birthday on March 16, 1864 (Inman Diary pg. 254). After he leaves Cleveland, he gets married. On December 27, 1865, she learns the news about Mr. Simmons from a friend, Lizzie Lea, who received a letter. Myra hears "that he was married to a woman from Lynchfield, Mass. (Inman Diary 333)."

William R. Snell, ed. Myra Inman: A Diary of the Civil War in East Tennessee, (Macon: Mercer University Press, 2000), 254, 333.

Bibliog. info on Myra Inman: A Diary of the Civil War in East Tennessee
http://musescivilwar.blogspot.com/2016/08/myra-inman-diary-bibliographic.html

My identification, based on genealogy profiles and sources, is that he is:

Louis Alden Simmons, 1st Lieutenant and 2nd Major, 84th Illinois Infantry, and author of the regimental history, is the son of Hezekiah and Zoa (Daily) Simmons, who married in North Bridgewater, Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1830. Louis Simmons was born in Massachusetts on March 16, 1833 (which would make him 31 in 1864). He married (1) Maria Theresa Harwood on November 20, 1865, in Fitchburg, Worcester, Massachusetts (not Lynchfield, as Myra recalled the town's name). The marriage occurred about a month before Myra heard the news. Simmons moved to Illinois by about 1850, eventually settling in Macomb, McDonough, Illinois. Simmons died December 6, 1888, and is buried at Prairie Lawn Cemetery, Wellington, Sumner, Kansas, US.

I attached some notes about the Inman diary to this soldier's profile on FamilySearch.org.

Current Individual ID:

Louis Alden Simmons  •  L8HQ-W3W
16 March 1833 – 6 December 1888

URL (requires account and log-in):
https://familysearch.org/tree/#view=ancestor&section=details&person=L8HQ-W3W


Louis A. Simmons's own memoir, The History of the 84th Reg't. Ill. Vols., is very much a regimental history and doesn't give many details as to the author's own social experiences within the town, except to say that it was a pleasant town, full of loyal Unionists who made the soldiers feel welcome. He doesn't mention the young Southern lady (not a loyalist) who apparently won his heart.

He does tell about the march to Cleveland and the gladness of the soldiers to find that they would camp there for the winter. Pages 148 to 152 of his book describe the march, first to Charleston, Tennessee, and on to Cleveland. Simmons's account has slightly conflicting dates; he first has the brigade leaving its camp at Tyner's Station (now part of Chattanooga) on February 3, 1863, but then mentions that they marched toward Charleston on the 2nd to escort a wagon train (this may have been a detachment). The 84th marched in a northeasterly direction toward Cleveland, Tennessee. (They probably followed a route approximating today's I-75 from Cleveland to Chattanooga, passing through a gap of White Oak Mountain.) The soldiers' first encounter with the town was a brief but pleasant one. Their unit soon left Cleveland, but later returned to be quartered there--some at Cleveland and some at nearby Blue Springs. These camps were very agreeable to them. Chapter 12 (page 153) is entitled, "Camp at Cleveland--Reconnoisance to Rocky Face Ridge and Preparation for the Atlanta Campaign."

Simmons must have marched on February 2nd. He and his unit camped overnight near Cleveland, and the next day "passed through Cleveland about noon" (Simmons 149).

Apparently this was February 3rd, because Myra Inman notes in her diary on that day that "A Lt. Simmons came in and stayed about an hour and talked" (Inman diary 245). This would have been their first meeting.

Toward the end of February, the troops left Cleveland and marched to Dalton, Georgia, to make an assault against Bragg's army. It was unsuccessful and the army returned to Blue Springs. Simmons is disappointed because the soldiers are ordered to stay at Blue Springs, and don't get to return to their comfortable camps at Cleveland, which he blames on the despised Colonel Grose (Simmons 158).

The History of the 84th Reg't Ill. Vols
https://archive.org/details/historyof84threg00simmo
L.A. Simmons, (Macomb: Hampton Brothers, Publishers, 1866). Archive.org

U.S. Census References (index and images):
1850: Warren county, Warren, Illinois, pg. 476: Lewis A Simmons, age 17, white, male. Birth: 1833, Massachusetts; listed in the household of Hezekiah Simmons.

1860: Macomb 4th Ward, McDonough, Illinois, pg. 205: L A Simmons, age 27, male, apparent head. Birth: 1833, Ills. Occupation: Atty at Law.

1870: Ward in city of Macomb, McDonough, Illinois, pg. 9: S A Simmons [as indexed; should be 'L A.' Compare 'L' in 'Louisa']. Male, age 37, born Massachusetts. Occupation: Attorney-at-Law.

1880: Macomb, McDonough, Illinois, pg. 462 B: Louis A Simmons, age 47, male, self (head). Birth: 1833, Massachusetts.

Various NARA microfilm publications (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.); as indexed at FamilySearch.org (with viewable document images).

84th Illinois Infantry

84th Illinois Infantry was attached to Oliver O. Howard's 4th Army Corps from October 1863 to June 1865. It was one of the regiments of Col. William Grose's Third Brigade, in Maj Gen. David S. Stanley's First Division. Note that even though this was an infantry regiment, it was placed in a cavalry brigade. This is not so unusual in the Civil War.  General Oliver O. Howard's Fourth Army Corps was headquartered at Blue Springs, five miles in advance of Cleveland, Tennessee, in February 1864.

The following extract is courtesy of 
Illinois in the Civil War:
That website cited A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion, vol. III, Regimental Histories
by Frederick H. Dyer [1908]

84th Regiment Illinois Infantry

  • Organized at Quincy, Ill., and
  • mustered in September 1, 1862.
  • Left State for Louisville, Ky., September 23.
  • Attached to 10th Brigade, 4th Division, 2nd Army Corps, Army of the Ohio, to November, 1862.
  • 3rd Brigade, 2nd Division, Left Wing 14th Army Corps, Army of the Cumberland, to January, 1863.
  • 3rd Brigade, 2nd Division, 21st Army Corps, Army of the Cumberland, to October, 1863.
  • 3rd Brigade, 1st Division, 4th Army Corps, to May, 1865.
  • 2nd Brigade, 1st Division, 4th Army Corps, to June, 1865.
  • Passage of Cumberland Mountains and Tennessee River and Chickamauga (Ga.) Campaign August 16-September 22.
    • Reconnoissance from Rossville September 17.
    • Ringgold, Ga., September 17.
    • Battle of Chickamauga, Ga., September 19-20.
  • Siege of Chattanooga, Tenn., September 24-November 23.
  • Chattanooga-Ringgold Campaign November 23-27.
    • Lookout Mountain November 23-24.
    • Mission Ridge November 25.
    • Pursuit to Ringgold, Ga., November 26-27.
    • Ringgold Gap, Taylor's Ridge, November 27.
  • March to relief of Knoxville November 28-December 17.
  • At Whiteside, Tyner's Station and Blue Springs till May, 1864.
  • Demonstration on Dalton, Ga. February 22-27, 1864.
    • Near Dalton February 23.
    • Tunnel Hill, Buzzard's Roost Gap, and Rocky Faced Ridge February 23-25.
  • Atlanta (Ga.) Campaign May to September.
    • Tunnel Hill May 6-7.
    • Demonstration on Rocky Faced Ridge May 8-11.
    • Buzzard's Roost Gap May 8-9.
    • Demonstration on Dalton May 9-13.
    • Battle of Resaca May 14-15.
    • Kingston May 18-19.
    • Near Cassville May 19.
Reference for the location of the 84th Infantry as part of Oliver O. Howard's First Division: O.R., Ser. 1, Vol. 32, Pt. 3, p.551. Link to page 551.

Myra Inman Diary - Bibliographic Information, Link to Amazon, etc.

William R. Snell, ed., Myra Inman: A Diary of the Civil War in East Tennessee (Macon: Mercer University Press, 2000).

Title: Myra Inman: A Diary of the Civil War in East Tennessee
Editor: William R. Snell
Publisher: Mercer University Press
Location: Macon, Georgia
Year of Publication: 2000
Format: Hardcover Book

ISBN: 0-86554-590-1


This book is very narrowly focused on events in Cleveland, Tennessee (Bradley County, Tennessee). The young lady who writes it is more interested in sewing her chemise and feeding her nephew than she is in battles and skirmishes. However, it is very useful to anyone working on the Civil War in Cleveland, Tennessee. She mentions friends and family by name, mentions births and deaths (scant mentions, but helpful for cross matching things). Certain Union troops were stationed in Cleveland, Tennessee, from about February 1864 to May 1864. A few officers visit her family's boarding house/restaurant frequently, and are mentioned by rank and surname. She occasionally mentions a skirmish (bare mention) in the Tennessee towns of Cleveland and Charleston. She mentions Dalton, Georgia, a few times. She begins to worry when local people are being arrested for having aided the Confederate enemy just before the Union troops came into town. The diary is useful for gauging the feelings of citizens in Cleveland.

In other posts, I'm going to try to identify some of the troops which were stationed in Cleveland, Charleston, and Calhoun, Tennessee in 1864. Col. Eli Long and his troops of the Second Brigade were there (which includes, I think, the Second Michigan, First Tennessee, and 9th Pennsylvania); I know that the first two were there. Oliver O. Howard (4th Corps) was there, at least part of the time. Click here to browse my posts about Cleveland, Tennessee... 


Myra Inman (Amazon.com)
https://www.amazon.com/Myra-Inman-Diary-Civil-Tennessee/dp/0865545901/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1472626042&sr=1-1&keywords=Myra+inman

Myra Inman (Barnes and Noble)
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/myra-inman-william-r-snell/1113569749



Tuesday, August 30, 2016

Link: Eli Long Report on 7th Pennsylvania site (July 1864, Atlanta Campaign)

Eli Long Report, 12 July 1864

http://www.7thpennsylvaniacavalry.com/reports-of-colonel-eli-long-fourth-ohio-cavalry-commanding-second-brigade-july-12-1864/

Quick save of above report and website.

Thursday, August 25, 2016

1) Quick Links: Wikipedia Articles on Selected Civil War Battles, Persons, and Other Topics

Quick Links: Wikipedia Articles on Selected Civil War Battles, Persons, and Other Topics

Since I'm always having to do quick lookups of battle dates, I'm providing quick links to Wikipedia articles on selected battles, personages, and other topics.

First Battle of Dalton 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Battle_of_Dalton

Second Battle of Dalton
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Battle_of_Dalton

Battle of Resaca
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Resaca

Battle of Tunnel Hill
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tunnel_Hill,_Georgia

Battle of Chickamauga
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Chickamauga

First Battle of Chattanooga
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Battle_of_Chattanooga

Second Battle of Chattanooga
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Battle_of_Chattanooga

Battle of Chattanooga (Campaign)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Chattanooga


First Battle of Dalton: Official Records, Volume 32 (various parts)

First Battle of Dalton, Late February 1864

Various Bits of Correspondence from O.R., Series 1, Volume 32 (Parts 1-3)

Chapter 44, "Demonstration on Dalton, Ga." 

About February 20, the Federals started down toward Dalton, Georgia, in force. There were three columns of Federal troops, moving from Ringgold, Georgia; Red Clay, Georgia; and Charleston, Tennessee. This was after the Chattanooga Campaign, around the beginning of The Atlanta Campaign (with some correspondence, just before the "official" beginning of the Atlanta Campaign).

This is a quick post of my file, without page links. Find links to O.R. volume at bottom of this post!

Correspondence about two weeks before the movement shows that Grant hoped to take Dalton:

[General Ulysses S. Grant to General George H. Thomas]: 
Should you not be required to go into East Tennessee, could you not make a formidable reconnaissance toward Dalton, and, if successful in driving the enemy out, occupy that place and complete the railroad up to it this winter?
from:
O.R., Series 1,  Vol. 32, Pt. 2 (Corresp.), 373.
Washington: Government Printing Office, 1891.
Chapter 44, "Demonstration on Dalton, Ga."

[Next, on the same page, is this correspondence from Schofield, as to the possibility of pushing Longstreet out of East Tennessee. He advises waiting until spring.]

[QUOTE]:
Knoxville, Feb. 12, 1864--1:30 p.m.
Major-General Thomas, Chattanooga:
   It is not practicable to move this army with artillery and wagon transportation before spring, and then the railroad will have to be relied on chiefly. The infantry might be supplied by a train of pack-mules from this place if forage for the mules can be brought here by rail until the railroad can be opened to any new position we may obtain.
   With 10,000 additional infantry I believe I would be strong enough without artillery to drive Longstreet out of East Tennessee. I can have the pack train here by the 1st of March. If you can give me 10,000 infantry, and supply me here with provisions and forage, I am willing to undertake the rest.
   My opinion is, however, that it would be wiser to wait until spring, but am willing to leave by the 1st of March, if time is deemed of sufficient importance.
   I have telegraphed substantially the above to Major-General Grant.
J. M. Schofield,
   Major-General, Commanding.
[END QUOTE]
________


 [Thomas to Grant, Chattanooga, February 12, 1864]. 
"I think an advance on Dalton would be successful, if you will let me have the division of Logan during the movement." (pg. 373)
______
 [Grant to Thomas, Nashville, February 12, 1864--3.20 p.m.]:
 "Logan's troops started yesterday morning. If I decide not to make the move at present into East Tennessee, I will send them back, unless you require them to aid in advance on Dalton." (pg. 373)
Above is from: O.R., Series 1,  Vol. 32, Pt. 2 (Corresp.), 373.

NEXT PAGE...

On page 374, Schofield writes to Grant explaining what would be needed to move against Longstreet. Grant replies (Feb. 12):
"No movement will be made against Longstreet at present. Give your men and animals all the rest you can preparatory for early operations in the spring. Furlough all the veterans you deem it prudent to let go." (p.374)
  from: O.R., Series 1,  Vol. 32, Pt. 2 (Corresp.), 374.

After the fact, Sherman (and probably Grant, as well), hem-hawed around and rewrote the story to say, Well, shucks, it was just a little old demonstration, never meant to try to take Dalton; and besides (they say), it was Thomas's idea... ;-)
______________________________

RELATED, FROM OTHER VOLUMES:

O.R., Series 1, Vol. 32, Pt. 1 (Reports).
Washington: Government Printing Office, 1891.
Chapter 44, "Demonstration on Dalton, Ga."

(p.449, on 22 Feb. 1864):
Gen. Thos. says, "Cruft occupies Red Clay, and has pushed a reconn. twd. Varnell's Station.

(p.449, 23 Feb. 1864, Tunnel Hill, Ga.) Whipple reports to Thomas: "Reconn. to Tunnel Hill completed. Enemy retreating before our skirmishers. About 400 cavalry, no infantry; on battery of artillery. Main position of our force between Ringgold Gap and ridge 3 miles this side of Tunnel Hill.
   Loss 1 sgt, killed, & 4 or 5 wounded. "Rebel works and quarters at Tunnel Hill abandoned."

Chapter 44, "Demonstration on Dalton, Ga."

Col. Thomas E. Champion, 96th Illinois Infantry, cmdg. Second Brigade, writes from "In the Field, near Stone Church, February 27, 1864. Reports that on Mond. 22nd, he left camp @ Blue Springs, Tenn., & (w/3rd Brig.) went on reconn. to Red Clay. Stayed till 23rd. Marched to Tiger Creek, on the rd. to Catoosa Platform, arrived that night. On Wed. 24th: returned to Lee's house. Proceeded to Tunnel Hill on a reconn., returned to Lee's. ON THURS., LEFT CAMP, together w/Col. Dickerson's brigade, 15th Army Corps, 3 a.m., > Dalton. "Arriving within about 2 1/2 miles of Buzzard Roost Gap, we found the cavalry under Colonel Long skirmishing with the enemy in the direction of the gap." [I formed brigade into 2 lines, w/Grose's brig. on rt. & Dickerson's in rsv. Advanced, driving enemy 1 1/2 mi., dislodging him from a densely wooded ridge. (Problems/delays w/right forming--is 14th corps, so we halted on hill to avoid being flanked). Lay entire day, surrounded by heavy force. Lost 36. Took 10 pris. Enemy loss d.k. Thinks "greater than ours." Left 11 pm > Lee's, stayed till 26th. Proceeded to Tunnel Hill, remained till 9 pm, returned to Stone Church near Catoosa Platform.
Remained till 1 pm on 27th, then mched to Blue Springs @ 12m. [Thos. E. Champion, Col., cmdg Brigade] (pp. 430-431).
---------
(p.450, on 23 Feb. 1864, Tunnel Hill, Ga.) Whipple informs Thos. that "Colonel Long reports on Spring Place road, 3 1/2 miles from Dalton; drove one infantry regiment out of their quarters; captured 12 prisoners. He thinks the enemy is leaving Dalton."(p.450) (3-1/2 has "1/2" as superscript, no space or hyphen)

(p.450, 24 Feb. 1864, Thomas to Palmer: "If you succeed in driving the enemy from Dalton, send back all the wagons you can spare at once..."


(p.450)[24 Feb. Whipple to Thos.]: "Some fighting this evening on the Cleveland road, where Grose is."

24 Feb. 1864

Long's cavalry, as an advance force, met rebels 3 1/2 miles W of Dalton (infantry & cavalry).  Wm. Grose, 36th Indiana Infantry, w/small force, was in support.

Long drove enemy cavalry 2 miles, then met (what citizens called) "Stewart's division of infantry in sight of and at the railroad." Grose advanced his infantry, checked & held back enemy at 1 mile from RR till night, then drew back to Widow Burke's Farm, 3 miles from the HQ of the Third Brigade, First Div., 4th Army Corps (loc. unstated), leaving Col. Long & 1 regt. of infantry "2 miles to our front." Don't believe it's a lg. force of rebels, "but too much for our small force." Double our force could have gained the RR & held it. "The enemy used no artillery. We fired 5 rounds. ... (p.431-432, from Col. Wm. Grose, 36th Indiana Infantry, cmdg. Third Brigade, to ___)


[In another report, Grose thinks they could have taken Dalton w/another 10,000 men on our left.](p.434)

"Many of the men were almost without shoes, and yet without a murmur of complaint they marched four nights and every day of the seven while on this trip." (O.H.P. Carey, Lt. Col., Comdg., Thirty-sixth Indiana Volunteers)(p.441, "Report of Lieut. Col. Oliver H. P. Carey, Thirty-sixth Indiana Infantry."
   --Blue Springs, March 1, 1864. (p.440-441)

D.W. Norton, Major & Acting Assistant Adjutant-General, wrote from Chattanooga, by order of Maj. Gen. J. M. Palmer, on 1 March 1864. He congratulated them on their offensive reconn twd. Tunnel Hill & Dalton, but complained that some stragglers and skirkers had caused some "wanton destruction of property" among peaceable citizens near the action.

-------------------------

(p.470, 23 Feb. 1864, "At Cross-Roads of Benton and Dalton Road and Varnell's Station and King's Lower Bridge Road, 6 Miles Southeast of Varnell's Station and 9-1/2 Miles from Dalton, February 23, 1864--1.25 p.m."

Long, at 11.30 this a.m., "attacked and drove out of their camp at least a regiment of rebel infantry, 3-1/2 miles this side of Dalton. They had winter quarters (log-huts), and as they were completely surprised they had not time to move any plunder out of their huts, and from their appearance and the small amount of plunder in them I believe they were preparing to leave. The cars were whistling furiously while the skirmish was going on. I have not force enough to cope single-handed with all of their cavalry, but I think you may advance with safety if you can still keep your supports, Palmer's troops, &c., within supporting distance. I believe they are leaving the place, and they should not be allowed to do "[so]" undisturbed. I shall be compelled to go somewhere to get some forage. Please let me hear.... I shall either wait here or move up on the road to Varnell's Station until I hear from you."
... Eli Long, Colonel, Commanding. (p.470)

(p.470)
"Hdqrs. Second Brigade, Second Cavalry Division,
Varnell's Station, February 24, 1864--8 a. m.
"Sir: I have just arrived here. Will push down the dirt road that runs alongside of the railroad as far toward Dalton as practicable. I believe there are some rebel cavalry on the main Cleveland and Dalton road. I will be compelled to go back to the Connesauga or somewhere else to-morrow unless I have better luck in foraging to-day than I did yesterday. Please to forward a copy of this to General Palmer. A brigade of infantry was encamped where we had the skirmish yesterday. I have met nothing this morning. Let me know your location by the bearer.
"Very respectfully....
"Eli Long, Colonel, Commmanding Brigade." [to Maj. W. H. Sinclair, Assistant Adjutant-General."] [They all seem to be reporting to Sinclair]

NEXT, p.471, he writes "On Road from Dalton to Varnell's Station, Just East of Tunnel Mountain, Feb. 24, 1864--2 p.m.
He has driven in w/1 squadr. of infantry pickets on the dirt and rail roads 3 miles from Dalton, & am now in line w/pickets skirm.g. in front. [Rebs have infantry on all roads]. I am now 5 miles from Dalton & [won't] go further until I hear further from you & result of your reconn." (Eli Long) He sends a company to remain on picket at Varnell's Stat. to watch the Cleveland and Dalton road that goes down on the other side of the RR.

He runs into lg. infantry cantoment 3 miles +/- from Dalton; runs out again. (Left Dalton).

----
(p.471) 25 Feb. (Ammo nearly exhausted): I have my command near a gap road wh. runs thru the ridge on your left, w/pickets down the RR some qtr. of a mile. "Nothing can come through the gap without my knowing, and I think this is the only road between here and Dalton through which a force can get on your flank or rear, and as my ammunition is nearly exhausted I will reman here until further orders.
"Respectfully,
"Eli Long, Colonel, Commanding Cavalry.
[to Gen. Cruft]
---

(p.471) 25 Feb. 1864--4.15 o'clock.

"General: The fire has just driven me out of the woods on the ridge that I was occupying. I still have a picket on the road in the gap, however. A few minutes since about 40 infantry skirmishers moved up on our right, advancing toward your lines. The rebel lines, I think, extend farther east than yours. At any rate, they came to the foot of the ridge I have been occupying, and I think there may be some danger of their lapping you on your left unless your lines extend completely across the valley in which your left rested this morning. Please let me know for my guidance where your left now is. Cannot your quartermaster send me some forage? Your commissary would not deliver me any rations on Captain Kniffin's order, which please find inclosed with note of commissary.
"Respe... Eli Long, Colonel, Comdg. Second Brig., Second Cav. Div.
"Brigadier-General Cruft,
   Commanding Division.
  "P.S.--The rebel cavalry pickets are in sight in our front. Please indorse Captain Kniffin's order, so that I can get the rations." "E.L."
----------[next, on p.472, is the report about having left Calhoun w/600 men...camped at Mr. Waterhouse, on Connesauga River, about 30 miles south of Calhoun. (Feb. 27, 1864, reporting from near Lee's House, Ga.)
__________________________________

CONFEDERATE CORRESPONDENCE, ABOUT TWO WEEKS BEFORE THE BATTLE OF DALTON. JOHNSTON WAS WORRIED ABOUT A FEDERAL TROOP MOVEMENT TOWARD MOBILE, ALABAMA:

Official Records, Series 1, Volume 32, Part 2 (Corresp., etc.), 729.

-----------------------

Full citation by Google:

Title: The War of the Rebellion: v.1-53 [serial no. 1-111] Formal reports, both Union and Confederate, of the first seizures of United States property in the southern states, and of all military operations in the field, with the correspondence, orders and returns relating specially thereto. 1880-1898. 111v.
Contributors: United States. War Records Office, United States. Record and Pension Office

Publ.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1891
Digitized: 6 Jul. 2011.

[From Cover Page]: 
Series 1, Vol. 32, Pt. 1--Reports."
Washington: Government Printing Office, 1891.

Links to Official Records, Volume 32
I don't have specific page links at moment, but here are links to the volume:

Official Records, Series 1, Volume 32, Part 1 (Reports).
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth152618/

Official Records, Series 1, Volume 32, Part 2 (Correspondence, etc.).
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth152633/

Official Records, Series 1, Volume 32, Part 3 (Correspondence, etc.).
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth152650/

Courtesy of Texas University

Wednesday, August 24, 2016

J. S. Hurlburt (attempts to identify him through references)

J.S. Hurlburt, author of the Rebellion in Bradley County, East Tennessee... Who Was He?

J. S. Hurlburt was the author of an 1866 book about the Civil War in East Tennessee, specifically in Cleveland, Tennessee, and surrounding areas. The book is strongly biased toward the Union and details abuses of local Unionists by Confederates. It is part documentary and part tinged with the dramatic style of "yellow journalism" so popular in the 19th century. It also gives specific accounts, some very detailed, of events that happened in and around Cleveland, Tennessee, which are not available elsewhere.

This is a link to his book (digital image, interactive, at Archive.org):
History of the Rebellion in Bradley County, East Tennessee
by J.S. Hurlburt
https://archive.org/details/historyofrebelli00hurl

J.S. Hurlburt, History of the Rebellion in Bradley County, East Tennessee, (J.S. Hurlburt: Indianapolis, 1866).

In a later reprint of the book (or in some other reference), an editor called into question the identity of the author as J.S. Hurlburt. I wondered why the comment was made, and what the evidence was. I began to look for ways to identify Hurlburt, if that was not a pseudonym.

In the preface of Hurlburt's book, the author alludes to another project, A History of the 9th Indiana, which he had hoped to published, but could not raise enough money through subscriptions. He hoped, by publishing the Bradley County book, to raise money for that other project. I did find some documents related to that other project (which never came off, apparently, as there seems to be no History of the 9th Indiana Infantry). Hurlburt wrote to General Robert H. Milroy, detailing his plan for the book; and he published a Prospectus, trying to get subscribers. I am providing links to those documents (at Jasper County Public Library).


Letter to Gen. Milroy: Hurlburt's Earlier Book Proposal: History of the 9th Indiana

J.S. Hurlburt's 1863 book proposal for a History of the 9th Indiana [Infantry] Regiment (with links to the document object (interactive image of the letter) and transcript (text) on Jasper County Public Library site for Jasper County, Indiana.

Summary:

J. S. Hurlburt had planned to publish a history of the 9th Indiana [Infantry, as commanded by Robert H. Milroy]. He had even written a letter to General R.H. Milroy, regarding costs and publication details, in a letter dated September 24, 1863. Apparently, the men of the 9th Regiment, Indiana, started planning this history of the regiment before the war was even over. At the time of this letter, J.S. Hurlburt, the author of it, is actually on his way back to the regiment, where he will remain for two months. He is asking General Milroy for a photograph (of the general) to put in the book.

To that end, Hurlburt describes the project, mentioning specific costs. He plans to take the writing up to the regiment's current engagements ("perhaps the close of the Winchester affair"), and take up the story again (subsequent actions) in volume two. He mentions also an engraving of Cravens, and discusses the qualities of stone and steel engravings, so he does appear to be getting information from a printer.

Hurlburt states that the regimental officers have donated funds ($81) to purchase the steel engraving of the general's likeness for an engraved illustration to be used as a frontispiece to the book, and that the regiment has put down $600 to publish the first volume. He describes the plan for the size, style, and format of the intended book.

Description: Digital image (document object) of a handwritten letter; 1 sheet, double folded, 4 sides of writing; white stationery with light blue lines. Below is a link to the letter, as presented on the Jasper County Public Library site, which also has a text transcript of it:

Web page: "History of the 9th Indiana Infantry Regiment and J. S. Hurlburt"
http://cdm16066.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/Milroy/id/1887

History of the 9th Indiana Infantry Regiment and j. s. hurlburt
Rights: This item is owned by the Jasper County Public Library. Permission to publish or reproduce this item is required and must be obtained from the Director of the Jasper County Public Library, Rensselaer, Indiana. Please visit www.myjcpl.org for more information.
Identifier: RHM_1863-162_d.jpg [IMAGE PDF RHM_1863-162_a ]
_________________________________

Flyer: Prospectus for Hurlburt's Book
http://bit.ly/JasperCo-Ind-Library-JS-Hurlburt-CivilWar-book-flyer

Jasper County Public Library also has an image and transcription of a flyer, entitled "Prospectus. To a forthcoming History of the Ninth Regiment Indiana Volunteers" and signed "J.S. Hurlburt." He gives his address as Michigan City, Indiana (which is in Laporte County). In this source, Hurlburt says that he travelled with the 9th Indiana (implying that he was not actually an officer or soldier in the regiment).

The flyer describes the Civil War and background, and importance of keeping the history. The article says, "We propose, accordidgly, to write the History of the Ninth Indian Regiment...." It goes on to list plans and features, with eleven numbered articles or sections, of a paragraph or more each, listing his detailed plan for the regimental history (which never was published and may not have been written, unfortunately). Here are a few selected features:

  "1st. The Work is to embrace a complete History of the Ninth during the three months service, beginning with its organization, under Col. Milroy, (now Major General,) at Camp Morton, and giving, in sufficient detail, an account of everything of interest in relation to the Regiment, its marches and skirmishes, all the particulars of the sick, killed and wounded, a brief statement..." (it goes on; in other words, a full, detailed history)

  "2d. The narrative will be taken up and continued..."

  "3d. Perhaps the most novel...a biographical sketch of the life of every private in the Regiment, who becomes a subscriber to the book. The full name, age, birth and birth-place, parentage, enlistment in the army..."

The flyer continues. He has eleven articles. It is a full page of small-font text, like an encyclopedia or newsletter page. At the bottom, in the text, it has:
   "At the present advanced rates of publication, the subscription price cannot be fixed at less than $4 per volume.
   "Address at Michigan City, Indiana.
   "J. S. Hurlburt." (name in big, bold capitals).

There is then a small space for "Names" (prob. subscribers).

http://bit.ly/JasperCo-Ind-Library-JS-Hurlburt-CivilWar-book-flyer

Title: To Ind 9th Regt From JS Hurlburt Date Unknown
Description: A flier advertising a work that Hurlburt proposes to write on the history of the 9th Indiana, a history of Indiana troops in the war, and a history of the war itself.
Creator: Hurlburt, J. S.
Military Units: Indiana Infantry Regiment, 9th (1861-1865)
Owner: Jasper County Public Library: http://www.myjcpl.org
Long URL: http://cdm16066.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/compoundobject/collection/Milroy/id/444/rec/1
_________________________________

Not found on published roster.
Hurlburt does not claim to have been a soldier in the 9th Infantry. He just says that he travelled with the regiment. However, I decided to do a search of the roster of that regiment, anyway. Not surprisingly, it turned up negative. There is a James Humbert, Jr., is present (Co. E, Allen County), but that is not the same surname at all, just similar.
http://www.civilwarindex.com/armyin/soldiers/9th_in_infantry_soldiers.pdf
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Possible Relevance: References to J. S. Hurlburt, which may or may not relate to our subject.

J.S. Hulburt, of Laporte, Indiana, in FamilySearch.
Different surname spelling (and we don't actually know our subject's age or birth place): J.S. Hulburt of right era in Laporte, Indiana (which is the same place as the address given on the flyer was printed--Michigan City is in Laporte). However, haven't found him in other census records yet.

FamilySearch (but free account and login are required).
To view the individual's ID page requires a FamilySearch log-in:
https://familysearch.org/tree/#view=ancestor&section=details&person=L5KX-RH7

J.S. Hulburt in U.S. Census, 1860, Laporte, Indiana (FS acct. and login required)
https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M4N5-Z6Z?from=lynx1&treeref=L5KX-RH7
_________________________________


United States Census, 1870, Michigan City, La Porte, Indiana
Page 32, Dwelling 239, Family 268, Line 36 (shared line): Jas S [Hurlbert], aged 58, male, listed in the household of Wm Faulkner. Birth: 1811-1812, New York. Occupation not stated. Value of Real Estate: 1300; Personal Estate: 100. [Note: Jos share line 36 with Anna; his name and data has been squeezed in above hers. Also, the indexers have probably misinterpreted the surname, leaving it blank; I think it should be "Hurlbert," which appears to be Jos's surname.]
___________________________________

Here is mention that may or may not refer to the same J.S. Hurlburt:

Reference to J.S. Hurlburt, a former journeyman, in Biennial Report (1888)
Not known if this is the same J.S. Hurlburt, but it is only 22 years after the date that his book was published, so it could be him. 

"Paperhanger, Milwaukee--Dissolve all unions. I was a journeyman for thirty years; never struck for higher wages; always got the best work by working for the interest of my employers. I do not believe in organizations, because they compel a man to pay more than his business will allow.--(J.S. Hurlburt."

Frank A. Flower, Commissioner, et al. Third Biennial Report of the Bureau of Labor and Industrial Statistics: Wisconsin, 1887-1888 ("Biennial Report"). (Madison: Democrat Printing Co., State Printers, 1888), 58. http://bit.ly/GoogleBooks_JS-Hurlburt-in-1888-Biennial-Rept-pg52 
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J. S. Hurlburt mentioned for bravery:
Possibly the same person: he was in the right place at the right time. 

One of my blog readers commented on a reference he or she found: "I also recently became curious as to who he was. While his journalism was a bit biased, he tended to nail down more correct information than most others reported on specific people. I saw he was pulling bodies out of harms way at Stones River in 1862, perhaps as hospital corps? (if this was indeed him as reported by Col Lake)." The reader provided this link to a clipping from Congressional serial set, Vol. 1174, (Special Session of March 1863), page 443 (Report of Major General Rosecrans), on Google Books. 

Title: United States Congressional serial set, Volume 1174
United States Congressional serial set, United States. Congress
Contributor United States. Congress
Publisher U.S. Government Printing Office, 1863
Original from the University of California
Digitized Apr 28, 2011
___________________________________

Similar name found in:
History of Ionia County, Michigan: Her People, Industries and Institutions

There is nothing to say the following reference is to Hurlburt, or to any relation of his. However, the reference is to an early pioneer of Michigan, and some Michigan regiments were stationed in and around Cleveland, Tennessee, for some months in the spring of 1864. In this source, one "James Hurlbut" is mentioned as one of the officials chosen at the first township meeting in Cass Township (April 2, 1838). He was among the men chosen as constables (70). It think it might be relevant, or at least, is worth keeping, just in case:

Reference: 
E. E. Branch, "Berlin Township" (Chapter 3), History of Ionia County, Michigan: Her People, Industries and Institutions,  70.

E. E. Branch, ed., History of Ionia County, Michigan: Her People, Industries and Institutions, With Biographical Sketches of Representative Citizens and Genealogical Records of Many of the Old Families. Volume 1 (full text, digitized by Google; auto-generated, with errors), (Indianapolis: B. F. Bowen & Company, Inc., 1916). http://bit.ly/GoogleDigitized-Hist-of-Ionia-Co-Michigan-1916 (text file at Archive.org).


__________________________________________

Not known if related or relevant:

There is a Dr. Rev. J. S. Hurlburt of the Methodist Conference. At least one mention appears in an Indiana newspaper, so it could be relevant. If he is a reverend, it could explain why/how he came to travel with an army unit.

Rev. J. S. Hurlburt (of Methodist Conference, 1896)
"For secretary of the Sunday school and Tract society but one ballot was required. Those nominated were Dr. J. S. Hurlburt, formerly secretary; J. C. W. Cox.... On the first ballot Dr. Hurlburt received 276 out of 418 votes cast, thus re-electing him." (Cleveland, Ohio, May 22 [1896]): "Dr. Hurlburt Re-Elected: Methodist Conference Indorses Secretary of Tract Society," |Fort Wayne Daily News, The| (Fort Wayne, Indiana), 23 May 1896, page 2.
https://www.fold3.com/image/241719917?terms=J.%20S.%20hurlburt (accessed 8 March 2018).

Illinois, City Directories, Chicago, 1849, page 261
(Directory Listing)
Lady's Western Magazine, 107 Lake, Monthly, B. F. Taylor and Rev. J. S. Hurlburt, Editors.

https://www.fold3.com/image/74999090?terms=J.%20S.%20hurlburt (accessed 8 March 2018).

Civil War Map of Chattanooga, Tennessee - 1863

Civil War Map of Chattanooga, Tennessee, 1863

Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division.


Original referring site, where I first found it:
Civil War Trust, CivilWar.org (Chattanooga Map)
http://bit.ly/CivilWarTrust-1863-ChattanoogaMap

Library of Congress website (download, various sizes).
https://www.loc.gov/item/2003630438/


The Chattanooga Campaign: Map of Chattanooga During Siege of Chattanooga


Monday, August 22, 2016

Veteran Furlough: Practices, Pay, Incentives (sources)

Two Quotes about the Practice of Furloughs as Incentive, from The Union Must Stand: The Civil War Diary of John Quincy Adams Campbell


The Practice of Veteran Furloughs
(from pg 142, Google Preview of: The Union Must Stand…)

Part of the incentive to reenlist was a badge of honor for the unit.
"...if three-quarters of the men in a given regiment reenlisted, the unit could both retain its identity and add 'Veteran' to its official title (as in the 'Fifth Iowa Veteran Volunteer Infantry').
"...soldiers who reenlisted could immediately go home on 'veteran furlough,' rather than await the expiration of their terms of service. Returning veterans would also receive a federal bounty of four hundred dollars as well as varying amounts from state and local governments, but the 'veteran regiment' and 'veteran furlough' gambits were by far the most effective. Ultimately 136,000 Union veterans--slightly over half--decided to reenlist."
Note: April 1, 1864: date that Campbell returned home.

CITATION:
John Quincy Adams Campbell, Mark Grimsley, and Todd D. Miller, (Google Preview of) The Union Must Stand: The Civil War Diary of John Quincy Adams Campbell, (Knoxville: Univ. of Tennessee Press, 2000), (search result: "furlough," pg. 142). http://bit.ly/Union-Must-Stand-preview142-furloughs.
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"Soldier's Pay," A CCWRT Presentation by Moffat, 1965
http://www.cincinnaticwrt.org/data/ccwrt_history/talks_text/moffat_soldiers_pay.html

William C. Moffat, Jr., "Soldiers Pay" (Jan. 1965), (CCWRT History: "Talks"), Cincinnati Civil War Round Table (The Cincinnati Civil War Round Table, 2000). http://www.cincinnaticwrt.org/data/ccwrt_history/talks_text/moffat_soldiers_pay.html.
_____________________________

More about pay and bonuses (link to article).

RELATED, THIS BLOG: FURLOUGHS AND INCENTIVES, VET RECALL


Veteran Furloughs: Understanding the Practice

Veteran Furloughs: Understanding the Practice

Trying to understand the effect of this recall. Logic says that if a soldier's term is up and he doesn't reenlist, he goes home. Therefore, if the furlough is cancelled or revoked, why not just say, "Then I won't reenlist"?

Well, the practice or tradition was that, if a soldier went ahead and reenlisted at the time of muster, then he could go home on leave before his term of service was up. It was still an incentive, because if he stayed to end of term, he might be badly wounded or killed before his term was up (or something else might come up), and he might never see home again.

Other incentives were used to tempt soldiers to reenlist. The army appealed to his regimental and personal pride and sense of honor (if 3/4 of the regiment reenlisted, the regiment could have "Veteran" added to its title, the regiment would be called the (xx) "Veteran Vols"; and the soldier could wear a specially made badge, a chevron, that designated him as a Veteran Volunteer.

There was also a $400 bonus, which was something like a year's pay.

It was a source of regimental pride and honor to keep one's regiment intact, to preserve the identity of the regiment; especially so to the commissioned officer who had formed and recruited the regiment. There was also a feeling of brotherhood and camaraderie among members of the regiment. When these officers went home on furlough, they actively recruited men for the depleted ranks of the regiment to maintain the regimental organization. (If they could not get enough men, the regiment's soldiers might be merged into another unit). At the time of the Spring 1864 furlough, James McPherson wrote to the governors of several states urging them to help fill the ranks of the states' regiments. I suppose the implication here is that he was asking for anything from state-given bonuses, calls for volunteers, encouragements to recruits, and even state drafts.

Related, in my own project: 

Second Michigan to be ReMounted, Refitted. 
When J.H. Wilson took over command of the cavalry in 1864, he noted that newly forming regiments were green and inexperienced. Some (such as the new Tennessee units) were disorganized and perhaps incompetent, made up of men who had avoided being conscripted into the enemy army, but had also avoided joining up with the Federals. He preferred, instead, to mount and refit his experienced veterans. He called for over twenty units to be refitted, including the Second Michigan Cavalry and the First Tennessee Vols (my particular subjects of interest).

Veteran Furloughs of the Second Michigan Cavalry
Marshall P. Thatcher, in A Hundred Battles in the West,  mentions veteran furloughs, new recruits, and "non-veterans," experienced soldiers who had not yet come to the end of their enlistments (182-183).

Note: Some of the furloughed vets must have already gone home. Maybe they got to finish their furloughs. However, non-veterans, and veterans whose furlough date or expectation of furlough was still upcoming at the time of the recall, probably did not get to go home early (364).

In April 1864, some of the Second Michigan vets were arrested in Chattanooga for disorderly conduct related to pillaging wood for quarters and assaulting an officer (not known to be an officer, says Thatcher). One of the threatened punishments was revocation of their furlough, but apparently, this was dropped. Instead, there was a brief stay in jail and a fine (390-391).

The veteran recall mentioned in O.R. came at about the same time that this incident happened. It could be that the pillaging incident mentioned by Thatcher, above, was used as an excuse; the Chief of Cavalry wanted the Second Michigan back, anyway (O.R., s.1, v.32, pt.3, 255-258). See my blog post.

Thatcher quotes camp records showing that the veterans left for home on April 14, 1864, and that they returned some time after the non-veterans moved on Resaca and Kennesaw, participating in actions in Georgia (184).

Also see: James H. Wilson, Chief of the Cavalry Bureau, Washington, to Edwin M. Stanton, 4 April 1864 (in O.R.).

_______________________________________

Citations:
Marshall P. Thatcher, A Hundred Battles in the West: St. Louis to Atlanta, 1861-1865: The Second Michigan Cavalry, (Detroit: Marshall P. Thatcher, 1884), 182-183, 364, 390-391.

Official Records, Series 1, Volume 32, Part 3 (Correspondence, etc.), 271.

Official Records, Series 1, Volume 32, Part 3 (Correspondence, etc.), 255-258.



RELATED, THIS BLOG: 

http://musescivilwar.blogspot.com/2016/08/sherman-gives-control-of-army-to-thomas.html

Correspondence (blog post, with O.R. reference): James H. Wilson, Chief of the Cavalry Bureau, Washington, to Edwin M. Stanton, 4 April 1864.
http://musescivilwar.blogspot.com/2016/07/correspondence-jh-wilson-chief-of.html

Posts about Furloughs and Incentives

Blue Springs, Bradley County, Tennessee (near Cleveland); not the same as the one in Greene County.

Blue Springs, Tennessee - 1863 Map and Discussion

"One division (Stanley's), Fourth Corps, is stationed at Blue Springs (5 miles in advance of Cleveland, on the railroad between that place and Dalton) and at Ooltewah."
Quoted from:Official Records, Series 1, Volume 32, In Three Parts. Part 3, Correspondence, etc., 90. https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth152650/m1/99/

In the Spring of 1864, some brigades of General Oliver O. Howard's Fourth Army Corps were stationed at Blue Springs, Tennessee, and some, at nearby Cleveland, Tennessee.
Official Records, Series 1, Volume 32, Part 3, 551.
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth152650/m1/560/

RELATED BLOG POST: FOURTH ARMY CORPS: OLIVER O. HOWARD...CLEVELAND AND BLUE SPRINGS

Identifying Blue Springs, Tennessee (the 1864 camp)

Blue Springs does not appear on many maps and should not be confused with Blue Springs, Tennessee, near Mosheim in Greene County, Tennessee, where a battle occurred. This Blue Springs may not have been a town, but just a "watering place" ~ a mineral spring and resort area, where people came to enjoy the mountain water. However, the Federals do sometimes refer to it as "Blue Springs, Tennessee," as one would designate a town.

Library of Congress has a hand-drawn map of Cleveland, Tennessee, in 1863 (below), but it doesn't show Blue Springs. Blue Springs was in the area near where the mapmaker has drawn the mileage scale, but probably was far enough south of there (near the state line) to make it outside the range of this map. To help locate Blue Springs in proximity to Cleveland, Tennessee, I've used two post-war maps of the Bradley County, Tennessee, area, that actually show "Blue Springs" (one, as a railroad stop). Then, I've taken a screenshot from the modern satellite view in Google Maps.

Information Map: Southeastern Tennessee (detail), 1863,
Courtesy of Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division.

Blue Springs is not shown on the Information Map, above, but should (I think) be at the very bottom, near the center of the map, about where the mileage scale is shown. Below are two post-war maps, showing Blue Springs below Cleveland, not too far north of the Tennessee-Georgia state line, though the maps are very general.

1882 Rand McNally Railroad Map (detail, Cleveland, Tenn. area),
Courtesy of Library of Congress Geography and Map Division.

Rand Mcnally, 1888 New Enlarged Railroad Map,
detail of Bradley County, Tennessee, from Library of
Congress, Geography and Map Division.
The 1888 Tennessee map (detail, above) gives some place names, such as Ooltewah, Benton, and Conasauga, that can be compared to the grayish-white 1863 Information Map of Southeastern Tennessee, and also to the Google Earth map, below.


Google Map, above: Probable location of Blue Springs, marked with a pointer.

If the Blue Springs area was named for a spring, it may have even been named for the incredibly beautiful blue, sacred Council Spring on the park grounds, though there are other springs in the area.

RELATED BLOG POST: FOURTH ARMY CORPS: OLIVER O. HOWARD...CLEVELAND AND BLUE SPRINGS
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Citation for 1863 Southeastern Tennessee Map:
United States Army. Department Of The Cumberland. Topographical Engineers. [Information map: Southeastern Tennessee] (detail of map, cropped). [Chattanooga: Topographical Engineer Office, Head qrs., Army of the Cumberland, 1863] Map. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/2006635115/. (Accessed August 22, 2016.)

Citation for Rand McNally [1882] Virginia, Tennessee, and Georgia Air Line...
Rand Mcnally And Company, and Tennessee Virginia. The Virginia, Tennessee, and Georgia Air Line; the Shenandoah Valley R.R.; Norfolk & Western R.R.; East Tennessee, Virginia, & Georgia R.R. its leased lines, and their connections. Chicago, 1882. Map. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/98688846/. (Accessed August 22, 2016.)

Citation for Rand McNally 1888 Railroad Map:
Rand McNally And Company. New enlarged scale railroad and county map of Tennessee showing every railroad station and post office in the state, 1888. Chicago, 1888, 1888. Map. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/98688560/. (Accessed August 22, 2016.)


Use their search tool to search by date, map title, etc.



Battle of Blue Springs Map Compared with the Other Blue Springs: Coincidental Resemblance!

In comparing the two place names of Blue Springs, Tennessee, I became confused as to the location and identification of the place and its relation to a historical map.

"My" Blue Springs (the place that is relevant to my project) is a mineral spring, or watering place (resort) near Cleveland, Bradley County, Tennessee. In Official Records, it is identified as being five miles from Cleveland, Tennessee, between Cleveland (Tenn.) and Dalton, Georgia. The Federals are there on April 30, 1864.

The other Blue Springs was in Greene County, Tennessee, and is now a town called Mosheim, Tennessee. There was a battle at that place in October 1863. Poe was in that battle.

When I found a map sketched by Poe, I thought I had a map of the Bradley County site, and started to make comparisons. Oddly, it fits very closely to the modern-day satellite view of the Blue Springs that is near Red Clay State Historic Park. Apparently, the likeness is just a fluke! Look at the comparison:

Google Satellite image still, of Red Clay State Historic Park. 
North of it is the probable location of Blue Springs
1864 camp. Image © 2016 Google Imagery

Above are the historic drawing (1863 Blue Springs Tennessee map from Library of Congress) and a still shot of the Google Satellite map of today (© 2016 Google Imagery), cropped for comparison.

Citation for Google Satellite Still Image:
Google Imagery, "Google Satellite Image Still" (screenshot), © 2016 Google Imagery, Google Maps (accessed Aug. 22, 2016).

Citation for 1863 Blue Springs Map/Drawing:
Orlando Metcalfe Poe and Orlando B. Willcox. [Blue Springs: Tennessee]. [1863] Map/Drawing. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/86691125/. (Accessed August 22, 2016.)

Blue Springs: Poe Map, Willcox Reserve, Battle of Blue Springs, Tennessee, October 1863



Position of Willcox Reserve, Blue Springs, Tennessee, 1863, 
Courtesy of Library of Congress, Geography and Map Division
This 1863 map by Poe is related to the Battle of Blue Springs, Tennessee (in present-day Mosheim, Tennessee). It shows the position of Willcox's Reserve during that battle. The location is in Greene County, Tennessee. This is in the papers of Poe, so it must relate to the battle site, not the camp site in Bradley County, Tennessee. 

However, I found it while looking for information on Blue Springs, Bradley County, Tennessee, and it certainly does look like the area of Blue Springs in that county. It matches so closely the modern-day satellite view of the "other" Blue Springs, I would really like to see aerial views of the place it is supposed to represent. Of course, mountains and hills can look similar, but that little curved area beside the name, "Willcox," looks so like a farm that is nestled in the mountains at that other Blue Springs.

Citation for 1863 Blue Springs Map/Drawing:
Orlando Metcalfe Poe and Orlando B. Willcox. [Blue Springs: Tennessee]. [1863] Map/Drawing. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/86691125/. (Accessed August 22, 2016.)


Fourth Army Corps: Oliver O. Howard, Commanding. HQ at Cleveland and Blue Springs, Tennessee, April 30, 1864.

Organization of Oliver O. Howard's Fourth Army Corps, April 30, 1864 (as one of the corps in the Department of the Cumberland, under Major-General George H. Thomas).


After the Battles of Chattanooga in November 1863, Union troops came into the mountains around East Tennessee. Colonel Eli Long and various divisions had set up camp in Charleston and Calhoun, Tennessee, in December 1863, later moving down to Cleveland. According to Myra Inman (from her published diary), O.O. Howard's troops were camped near Cleveland on December 13, 1863.

(William R. Snell, ed., Myra Inman: A Diary of the Civil War in East Tennessee, (1859-1866), (Macon: Mercer University Press, 2000), 234.

These next references are later, in the spring of 1864. In Official Records, it shows that some of the brigades were headquartered at Cleveland, Tennessee, and some were headquartered at nearby Blue Springs, Tennessee. This is not the same Blue Springs, Tennessee, that is in Greene County (now called Mosheim). This area was a community near Cleveland, Tennessee, known as a mineral spring or watering place. It is identified in O.R. as being between Cleveland, Tennessee, and Dalton, Georgia:
"One division (Stanley's), Fourth Corps, is stationed at Blue Springs (5 miles in advance of Cleveland, on the railroad between that place and Dalton) and at Ooltewah."
Quoted from:
Official Records, Series 1, Volume 32, In Three Parts. Part 3, Correspondence, etc., 90. https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth152650/m1/99/

FOURTH ARMY CORPS: OLIVER O. HOWARD
Headquartered at Cleveland, Tennessee, and nearby Blue Springs, Tennessee.
Partial extract of: Official Records, Ser. 1, Vol. 32, Pt. 3, 551.

FIRST DIVISION, COMMANDED BY DAVID S. STANLEY
Headquartered at Cleveland and Blue Springs, Tennessee.

First Brigade (Cleveland, Tennessee), commanded by Brigadier General Charles Cruft.

Second Brigade (Blue Springs, Tennessee), commanded by Walter C. Whitaker.

Third Brigade (Blue Springs, Tennessee), commanded by William Grose.

Artillery (Blue Springs, Tennessee), commanded by Captain Peter Simonson.


SECOND DIVISION, COMMANDED BY JOHN NEWTON
Headquartered at Cleveland, Tennessee.

First Brigade (Cleveland, Tennessee), commanded by Col. Francis T. Sherman.

Second Brigade (Cleveland, Tennessee), commanded by Gen. George D. Wagner.
 
The above divisions consist of various regiments from Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Missouri, a few of which are on furlough or just returned from furlough. These are listed specifically under the division headings. Refer to source for complete listing.


Source Citation:
Official Records, Series 1, Volume 32, Part 3 (Correspondence, etc.), 551.

The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union And Confederate Armies. Series 1, Volume 32, In Three Parts. Part 3, Correspondence, etc. 

In 1864, The Fourth Army Corps (Oliver O. Howard, commanding) is under General George H. Thomas in the Department of the Cumberland.

Citation for 1863 Southeastern Tennessee Information Map:

United States Army. Department Of The Cumberland. Topographical Engineers. [Information map: Southeastern Tennessee]. [Chattanooga: Topographical Engineer Office, Head qrs., Army of the Cumberland, 1863] Map. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/2006635115/. (Accessed August 22, 2016.)

The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union And Confederate Armies. Series 1, Volume 32, In Three Parts. Part 3, Correspondence, etc.

Sunday, August 21, 2016

1862 Map of Kentucky and Tennessee (link to Map at Library of Congress)

Link to 1862 Map of Kentucky and Tennessee at Library of Congress.

Map of Kentucky and Tennessee, 1862.
https://www.loc.gov/item/2006636271/

The Library of Congress site is interactive, so this map can be enlarged. Files or paper maps can be purchased, but you don't have to purchase a file to view this map in a good, legible size. Some sizes are downloadable free, I think.

Cavalry Horses in Bad Shape, Hard to Get New, Trained Horses (links)

Starting a quick list of references to the state of the U.S. cavalry's horses in 1864.

Sherman suggests using some dismounted cavalry.

Nashville, April 6, 1864
Sherman mentions the difficulty of getting horses; suggests mounting the best men and using the remaining cavalry as dismounted cavalry.

Official Records, Series 1, Volume 32, Part 3, (271-272, Sherman to Thomas), 272.
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth152650/m1/281/

________________________________

Official Records, Series 1, Volume 32, Part 3, 406-407.

Suggestion for Solving Cavalry's Horse Problem
Grierson to Thomas, April 18, 1864.
Suggestion for setting price for northern horses and impressing horses if citizens won't accept the price. Mount all men in unit or else dismount and train them as infantry.
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth152650/m1/415/

The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union And Confederate Armies. Series 1, Volume 32, In Three Parts. Part 3, Correspondence, etc.

Skirmish at Spring Place, Georgia ; Intelligence on Johnston's force at Dalton, April 1864

Thomas at Chattanooga, to Sherman at Nashville, April 22, 1864.

Thomas to Sherman, April 22, 1864

Intell: Johnston has 60,000 at Dalton; not moving...
           Rest of Wheeler's cavalry on way back to Dalton.

"Colonel La Grange returned to Cleveland to-day from a scout toward Spring Place, near which place he surprised an outpost of the enemy, capturing 2 commissioned officers, 12 men, 6 horses, 8 saddles, and 15 rifles."

Official Records, Series 1, Volume 32, Part 3 (Correspondence, etc.), 444.
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth152650/m1/453/

Place References: Dalton, Georgia ; Spring Place, Georgia ; Cleveland, Tennessee

Sherman Gives Control of Army to Thomas. Wants Furloughed Vets to Return, April 1864

Sherman Gives Control of Army to Thomas. Wants Furloughed Vets to Return

Sherman Gives Control of Army to Thomas
Hdqrs. Military Division of the Mississippi, Nashville, April 6, 1864.

Sherman to Thomas (Comdg. Department of the Cumberland, Chattanooga):

 (Army will) "retain control over our furloughed veterans."
"I have ordered, through the State authorities, all absentees to come forward at once, or at furthest at the expiration of their furloughs. I have also sent forward to General Schofield a division of 5,000 infantry (Hovey's), which once at or near Hiwassee will enable you to draw below that river all of the Fourth Corps heretofore detached. These changes simply give you the absolute control of the Army of the Cumberland proper, in a shape that will enable you to handle and control it perfectly."

Official Records, Series 1, Volume 32, Part 3 (Correspondence, etc.), 271-272.
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth152650/m1/280/

________________________________________

Men Protest Suspension of Furlough; Offer to Reenlist if Furloughed.

Men protest the army's plan to retain control over furloughed veterans (not allowing reenlisting veterans to furlough). Men say they will reenlist if they can get the furlough.

Official Records, Series 1, Volume 32, Part 3, 60.
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth152650/m1/69/?q=furlough________________________________________

RELATED: FURLOUGH, STATE OF CAVALRY; OTHER CORRESPONDENCE

Condition of Cavalry, Furloughs, and Horse Problems
Grierson to Thomas, April 18, 1864.
Eight regiments under Grierson's command have furloughed. Suggestion for setting price for northern horses and impressing horses if citizens won't accept the price. Mount all men in unit or else dismount and train them as infantry.

Official Records, Series 1, Volume 32, Part 3, 406-407.
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth152650/m1/415/


The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union And Confederate Armies. Series 1, Volume 32, In Three Parts. Part 3, Correspondence, etc.
____________________________________

Colton's New Guide Map of the United States and Canada, 1863, with reference to Official Records

Colton's New Guide Map of the United States and Canada, 1863 - O.R. reference


Colton's New Guide Map of the United States and Canada, 1863

(nice MAP, mentioned by Sherman in O.R. Ser. 1, Vol. 32, Pt. 3, 261-262; it has lots of small towns, listed large in the states).

Official Records, Series 1, Volume 32, Part 3 (Correspondence, etc.), 261.



Special Field Orders 93, HQ, Dept. of the Cumberland, April 2, 1864 - Organization of the Cavalry. Ed McCook - partial list, link to full

Reorganization, Army of the Cumberland by General Thomas
April 1, 1864 (communicated April 2, 1864).


Special Field Orders 93
Headquarters, Department of the Cumberland, Chattanooga, April 2, 1864

VIII. The following is announced as the organization of the cavalry of this department, to take effect April 1, 1864:
    First Division, Col. Edward M. McCook, commanding:
    First Brigade: Second Michigan Cavalry, First Tennessee Cavalry, Eighth Iowa Cavalry.
 
    [etc., others are named]

(By order of Gen. George H. Thomas, through staff)

Official Records, Series 1, Volume 32, Part 3 (Correspondence, etc.), 238.
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth152650/m1/247/


Edward M. McCook: Nomination to Brigadier, April 1864
Edward M. McCook's nomination to brigadier had come from the War Department in April. Reference: 2 April 1864, Letter from Edwin M. Stanton, War Department, Washington, to Maj.-Gen. Sherman. 
"General Grant's return is expected to-morrow. Colonel Hatch, of Iowa, and Colonel Edward M. McCook, are nominated for brigadiers."
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth152650/m1/229/

Governor Andrew Johnson (Tennessee) wants General Thomas to command (not Sherman).

Governor Andrew Johnson wants President Abraham Lincoln to Put General George H. Thomas in charge of the Department of the Cumberland.


Letter from Andrew Johnson, Governor of Tennessee, to Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States. March 21, 1864.


[BEGIN QUOTE]:
Louisville, Ky., March 21, 1864.
(Received 6 p. m.)
His Excellency President Lincoln:
      The Department of the Cumberland ought to be placed under the command of Major-General Thomas, receiving his instructions and orders directly from Washington.
      I feel satisfied from what I know and hear that placing the command of the department under General Sherman, over Thomas, will produce disappointment in the public mind and impair the public service.
      General Thomas has the confidence of the army and the people, and will discharge his duty, as he has from the commencement of the rebellion. He will, in my opinion, if permitted, be one of the great generals of the war, if not the greatest. I will be in Nashville to-morrow and will dispatch you again.
ANDREW JOHNSON,
Governor of Tennessee.
[END QUOTE]

Official Records, Series 1, Volume 32, Part 3 (Correspondence, Etc.--Union), 105.
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth152650/m1/114/

Related: Among other things, Sherman called off a scheduled raid into East Tennessee in November 1861, leaving loyal East Tennesseans without support.

Thomas: Lack of Cavalry and Inability to Support More, March 1864

General Thomas: Lack of Cavalry and Inability to Support More, March 1864

Thomas to Sherman, HQ, Dept. of the Ohio, Knoxville, Tenn., March 30, 1864:

"My lack of cavalry and inability to support more makes it the more necessary for me to be superior to the enemy in infantry."

Official Records, Series 1, Volume 32, Part 3 (Correspondence, etc.), 96.
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth152650/m1/105/


Placement of Troops, East Tennessee and North Georgia, Spring 1864.

Placement of Troops, East Tennessee and North Georgia, Spring, 1864.

Official Records, Series 1, Volume 32, Part 3 (Correspondence, etc.), 89-90 (Thomas to Sherman).

[Report of]:

Geo. H. Thomas, Major-General, U.S. Volunteers, Commanding.
Headquarters Department of the Cumberland, Chattanooga, Tenn., March 18, 1864

[To]: Maj. Gen. W. T. Sherman, Comdg. Mil. Div. of the Mississippi, Nashville, Tenn.:

[Report contains placements of his troops including these few following, selected, related to my own project]:

LINK TO PAGE 90

Quotes (all on page 90; not necessarily in order--pulled out of paragraphs):

"The Eleventh Corps (Howard's) on the railroad, between Bridgeport and this place."

"Two divisions of the Fourth Corps, under Gordon Granger, and the Tennessee brigade of infantry, are on detached service with the Army of the Ohio in East Tennessee."

"One division (Stanley's) Fourth Corps, is stationed at Blue Springs (5 miles in advance of Cleveland, on the railroad between that place and Dalton) and at Ooltewah."

"The troops occupy strong positions, and are favorably placed to guard the railroad to East Tennessee and the Charleston railroad, so far as occupied."________

Other towns and troops are mentioned. Towns include Ringgold, Graysville, and La Fayette.

He mentions intelligence from Dalton, Rome, Kingston, Resaca, and Etowah Bridge.



Union Intelligence - East Tennessee and Dalton, Georgia - March 1864

Union Intelligence Regarding Couriers, Communications, Railroads, etc., specific to East Tennessee and Dalton, Georgia. March 1864.

Official Records, Series 1, Volume 32, Part 3 (Correspondence), 89-90.

Intelligence Specific to East Tennessee and Dalton, Georgia
Headquarters Department of the Cumberland, Chattanooga, Tenn., March 18, 1864, General George H. Thomas to General William T. Sherman (Correspondence).
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth152650/m1/98/

Link to s1, v32, pt 3, pg. 89

Brief Citation:
Official Records, Series 1, Volume 32, Part 3 (Correspondence), 89-90.

Related to Scouts and Scouting (Couriers, Spying, Scouting, Intelligence Gathering).

East Tennessee Bridge Burnings (links)


Unionists tried to burn bridges, take Tennessee in 1861
(Article in Knoxville News Sentinel, Nov. 05, 2011.
http://www.knoxnews.com/news/state/unionists-tried-to-burn-bridges-take-tennessee-in-1861-ep-402657779-357414431.html

Wikipedia Article: East Tennessee Bridge Burnings
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/East_Tennessee_bridge_burnings



Movements toward Hiwassee River, advancing via Spring Place, Georgia

Sherman orders Schofield to move toward Hiwassee River and break railroad; advance via Spring Place. Send citizens to rear if necessary.

East Tennessee and North Georgia  ̶

Ser. 1, Vol. 32, Pt. 3 (Corresp., etc.--Union), 87.

[QUOTE pg. 87-88]:
 [p.87]
Headquarters Division of the Mississippi,
Nashville, March 18, 1864.
Major-General Schofield,
     Commanding Department of the Ohio, Knoxville:

  General: I am just arrived and assumed command. General Grant leaves for the East to-morrow. I have had a full conversation with him, and to enable him to fulfill his plans I can merely foreshadow coming events. You will push Longstreet from up the
 [p.88]
valley as far as you can, and prepare to break up the railroad back toward Knoxville. Hold Knoxville and the gap. Also arrange to have a force of cavalry, infantry, and light artillery on the waters of the Big Sandy in the direction of Prestonburg, which must subsist on the country, and not locate, but act so as to threaten or attack any force coming from the northeast. Your main army should at once be organized for offense, ready at the proper time to drop down to the Hiwassee, to move in concert with the main army. I am aware of the difficulties you have in maintaining your army. Appoint good officers to take charge of this branch of your business, and accumulate stores rather at the Hiwassee than at Knoxville. Your route of advance will be most probably by Spring Place. Keep your own counsel; discourage the presence of all stranger; make the citizens feed themselves, and if they are likely to consume the reserves of the country facilitate their removal to the rear. The necessities of war must have precedence of civilians. Write me fully and frankly always. I will see you in person as soon as I can.
W. T. Sherman,
Major-General, Commanding.
[END QUOTE]

Brief Citation: 
Official Records, Series 1, Volume 32, Part 3 (Corresp., etc.--Union), 87-88.

Link to s1, v32, pt3, page 87
https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth152650/m1/96/


REFERENCES: By the time of these events, Union troops were stationed in Calhoun, Charleston, and Cleveland, Tennessee. Johnston's Confederate Army of Tennessee was at Dalton, Whitfield County, Georgia. Spring Place is in Murray County, Georgia. It was, and is, the location of the historic Chief Vann House.

The source of the Hiwassee River is in Towns County, Georgia. The river flows north into North Carolina, then runs in a northwesterly direction into Tennessee to Delano, then down to Benton, and west to Charleston, Tennessee. The bridge across the Hiwassee River at Charleston, Tennessee goes north to Calhoun, Tennessee. That bridge was one of the bridges burned in the East Tennessee raid, November 8, 1861. From the Calhoun-Charleston area, the Hiwassee River runs northwest almost to Dayton, Tennessee, where the Hiwassee empties into the Tennessee River.

This area was important for the East Tennessee and Georgia Railroad.