General William T. Sherman’s March to the Sea, also known as the Savannah Campaign, began on November 15 when Sherman’s forces left Atlanta, Georgia. The Confederate defeat at Savannah on December 21, 1864 marked the end of the campaign. Teachers can find an overview of this campaign in Professor Anne Bailey’s entry on the New Georgia Encyclopedia. The Library of Congress also has a number of related resources, including battle maps, photographs, and illustrations. In addition, the Digital Library of Georgia has all of the  images from  Barnard’s Photographic Views of the Sherman Campaign (1866), including several pictures of Savannah. Lt. Cornelius C. Platter’s diary, which was noted in an earlier post, is another resource that offers an interesting perspective on a Union officer’s experience. Platter, who served with the 81st Ohio Infantry Volunteers, added an entry on almost every day of the campaign. As his company prepared for their “marching orders” in early November, Platter described:

“Many different opinions have been expressed as to our probable destination – Some think we will make direct for Charleston S.C. others that we will visit Mobile – but the most general belief is that Savannah will be the objective point – Nothing definite however is known concerning the coming movement. Received orders this evening to move at six o’clock tomorrow morning – All tents and other government property which we can not take with us to be left standing undisturbed.”

continue reading "General Sherman’s March to the Sea (November – December 1864)"

The Battle of Cold Harbor (also known as Second Cold Harbor) took place in Hanover County, Virginia from May 31-June 12, 1864.  As a part of the overland campaign to Richmond of 1864 General Robert E. Lee and the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia defeated Ulysses S. Grant and the Army of the Potomac.  On June 3, the Union II, XVIII, and IX Corps attacked the Confederates at the Bethesda Church-Cold Harbor line and were massacred.  The casualties sustained by the Union Army led Grant to say that  “this charge seemed to revive [Confederate] hopes temporarily.”  The National Park Service’s  website provides an overview of the battle that recounts the day to day activity of the fighting as well as a list of Union and Confederate troops present at the battle.  The National Parks Service’s website also includes a list of suggested readings for teachers and offers interactive travel trunks that are available for loan to classes.  There is a link available that presents visitors with a map  of different stops throughout a tour of the battlefield and gives suggestions for teachers to plan a fieldtrip to the battleground.  The Civil War Preservation Trust ’s website has links to suggested readings, online resources, and battle facts about the events at Cold Harbor.  The site includes a map that details the plan of battle for the Union and Confederate forces.  Another resource that may be interesting to browse is Gordon C. Rhea’s Cold Harbor: Grant and Lee, May 26-June 3, 1864 , available in limited view on Google Books, which gives a rather detailed preview regarding the events of the battle.  Grant commented on the battle in his memoirs:

“I have always regretted that the last assault on Cold Harbor was ever made.  I might say the same thing of the assault of the 22 of May, 1863, at Vicksburg.  At Cold Harbor no advantage was ever gained to compensate for the heavy loss we sustained.  Indeed, the advantages other than those of relative losses, were on the Confederate side.”

On the morning of June 19, 1864, before the naval battle with the USS Kearsarge Captain Raphael Semmes of the CSS Alabama, in an impassioned address, spoke to his crew:

• “you have been all over the world and it is not too much to say that you have destroyed and driven for protection under neutral flags one half of the enemy’s commerce which at the beginning of the war covered every sea This is an achievement of which you may well be proud and a grateful country will not be unmindful of it The name of your ship has become a household word wherever civilization extends Shall that name be tarnished by defeat The thing is impossible Remember that you are in the English Channel the theatre of so much of the naval glory of our race and that the eyes of all Europe are at this moment upon you The flag that floats over you is that of a young Republic who bids defiance to her enemies whenever and wherever found Show the world that you know how to uphold it.”

Semmes recorded his personal experiences as the captain of CSS Alabama and Sumter in his personal memoir My Adventures Afloat … (1869), available on Google Books. Captain Semmes’ stirring speech did not stop the USS Kearsarge on June 19, 1684 from sinking the Alabama and putting an end to her formidable record. In less than two years the CSS Alabama, a Confederate ship that engaged in commerce raiding by destroying Union merchant ships, sunk 62 ships including the USS Hatteras. The Naval History & Heritage Command, an agency of the Department of the Navy, outlines the history of the ship in an educational website that includes a wide range of resources for classroom use. Students can view images of the battle as published in contemporary newspapers, read excerpts from the official reports of both the Union Captain John Winslow and the Confederate Captain Semmes, or explore recent press releases about the underwater archaeological work being conducted on the wreck since its discovery in 1988 off the coast of France. For other resources, see Historyofwar.org , where they provide maps of the CSS Alabama’s routes and of the battle with the USS Kearsarge.

The Battle of Olustee took place on February 20, 1864 in Baker County, Florida where the Union Army under Brigadier General Truman B. Seymour was defeated and forced to retreat back to Jacksonville in the largest battle fought in Florida during the American Civil War.  Under Brigadier General Joseph Finegan, the reinforced Confederate soldiers inflicted massive casualties on Union troops. Estimates on both sides list the total casualties for the Union Army at 1,860, almost 40% of the participating soldiers and 946 Confederate casualties, 20% of their soldiers at Olustee. Seymour’s army was notable for the participation of three colored regiments; the 8^th United States Colored Troops, the 35^th United States Colored Troops and the 54^th Massachusetts Infantry. For more information on these regiments during Olustee, check out portions of J. Matthew Gallman’s chapter in Wars within a War: Controversy and Conflict over the  American Civil War. Other documents of interest related to the Battle of Olustee can be found in volume 35 of the Official Records.

The most extensive collection of resources can be found at the Battle of Olustee site developed by Thomas R. Fasulo which includes primary sources such as official reports, maps, letters, diaries, images, speeches and periodicals. The Olustee Battlefield Historic State Park commemorates the battle and offers visitors a chance to immerse themselves through walking tours of the battlefield and a visitor center with historical information and artifacts. There is an annual reenactment of the battle in February and a Civil War Expo in September that provides visitors an authentic experience of the battle with hands on activities and historical reenactments

The Battle of Kennesaw Mountain took place on June 27, 1864 in Cobb county, Georgia when General William T. Sherman ordered his forces to attack General Joseph E. Johnston’s Army of Tennessee. Sherman, who was unable to dislodge Johnston’s men, was forced to withdraw  later that day. Some estimates put the number of total casualties at 4,000 (3,000 Union, 1,00 CSA). Teachers will find several resources on the National Park Service’s site, including a short overview of the battle and a Google Earth Tour. This viritual tour shows the location of the Confederate and Union forces on the battlefield as well as hiking and horse trails. The Library of Congress also has some resources , including several sketches by Alfred R. Waud and several maps of General Sherman’s Atlanta Campaign. In addition, Google Books has several interesting accounts of the battle. William Chamberlin, who served with the Ohio Infantry Volunteers, decribed the impact on his regiment:

“Kennesaw Mountain! What soldier who saw it during these days will ever forget its fiery flaming brow? Into how many households does the name bring the gushing tears of sorrow for the loved one whose spark of life went out before that death-dealing giant of Nature? Kennesaw Mountain held Sherman’s army at bay fourteen days during which the loss in killed and wounded was greater than at any previous part of the campaign.”

Lieutenant Warren, who served in the Missouri Confederate Brigade, described the “poor fellows” in the “solid line of blue” whose attack was repulsed. One can find other primary sources related to this battle in Cornell University’s Making of America, including General Johnston’s account and other reports in the Official Records.

The Siege of Port Hudson began in late May 1863 with a series of battles, including one on May 27 that was among the first major engagements that involved African American regiments. After General Franklin Gardner received reports that confirmed the Confederate defeat at Vicksburg, he surrendered his forces to General Nathaniel P. Banks on July 9, 1863. Some estimates put the total number of casualties during the siege at 12,208 (Union 5,000 / CSA 7,208). The National Park Service offers a great lesson plan about Port Hudson through their Teaching with Historic Places program. Teachers will find a short overview of the battle, several accounts from soldiers who participated in the battle, and links to several photographs. Louisiana State University’s Marshall Dunham photograph album also has a number of photographs of Port Hudson. In addition, several battle maps are available from the Library of Congress. Port Hudson may not be that well known, but as General Ulysses S. Grant explained in his Personal Memoirs (1885-1886), the Union’s victory on July 9 was a significant one. “From that day to the close of the rebellion the Mississippi River, from its source to its mouth, remained in the control of the National troops,” as Grant noted. You can also find other documents about this battle in volume 26 of the Official Records. (A list of all the reports starts on page 41).

Within twenty four hours of the Union’s victory at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania in July 1863, Confederate General John C. Pemberton surrendered his forces at Vicksburg, Mississippi on July, 4, 1863 to General Ulysses S. Grant after a long siege. Vicksburg is a city located along the Mississippi River and the Confederacy’s loss of such an important port was a serious loss. Teachers should check out the great resources on National Park Service’s page and in their online exhibit, which are described in an earlier post. House Divided has several interesting documents that offer a variety of perspectives on Vicksburg, including a Confederate private who told his wife what he believed was responsible for the defeat. General Pemberton’s forces surrendered “on the account of provisions,” as Private William Stoker explained. Stoker, who was with General John Walker’s Texas Division in Louisiana when he heard about Vicksburg, argued that “[the Union] could [never] of whipped us there if we…of had [enough] provisions.” General William T. Sherman, who also participated in the Vicksburg Campaign, reflected after the war on some negative consequences of the Union’s victory:

“But our success at Vicksburg produced other results not so favorable to our cause a general relaxation of effort, and desire to escape the hard drudgery of camp: officers sought leaves of absence to visit their homes, and soldiers obtained furloughs and discharges on the most slender pretexts; even the General Government seemed to relax in its efforts to replenish our ranks with new men, or to enforce the draft, and the politicians were pressing their schemes to reorganize or patch up some form of civil government, as fast as the armies gained partial possession of the States.”

In addition, this short newspaper article from the Vicksburg Whig provides a nice example of the way southern editors portrayed Union soldiers’ conduct during the campaign. You can find other primary sources in the Vicksburg Campaign major topic at House Divided as well as in volume 15 of the Official Records.

On May 31, 1897, the city of Boston erected a monument created by the American sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens in honor of the 54th Massachusetts and its colonel, Robert Gould Shaw.  The monument commemorates the regiment’s participation in the second attack on Fort Wagner, South Carolina on July 18, 1863. The August 8 edition of Harper’s Weekly, available in a transcribed form at Assumption College’s primary source-rich database “Northern Vision of Race, Religion & Reform” recorded that at Fort Wagner: “The 54th Massachusetts (negro), whom Copperhead officers would have called cowardly if they had stormed and carried the gates of hell, went boldly into battle, for the second time, commanded by their brave Colonel, but came out of it led by no higher officer than the boy, Lieutenant Higginson.”  Sergeant James Henry Gooding of Company C of the 54th wrote weekly letters to the New Bedford Mercury, a periodical in the company’s hometown.  Gooding’s letters were published as On the Altar of Freedom: A Black Soldier’s Civil War Letters from the Front, and some are available on Google Books.  Gooding’s July 20 letter documents the 54th’s attack of Fort Wagner: “When the men saw their gallant leader [Colonel Shaw] fall, they made a desperate effort to get him out, but they were either shot down, or reeled in the ditch below. One man succeeded in getting hold of the State color staff.” The “one man” who reached the flag was Sergeant William H. Carney, originally of Norfolk, Virginia, as he maintained the sanctity of the flag by keeping it from touching the ground. Though Carney was wounded in both of his legs, one arm, and his chest he kept the flag aloft and is recorded as exclaiming, “the old flag never touched the ground, boys!”  During the 1897 monument dedication Carney raised the flag once more, an action that Booker T. Washington recorded in his autobiography, Up from Slavery (1901), as causing such an effect on the crowd that “for a number of minutes the audience seemed to entirely lose control of itself.” Three years later, Carney received the Congressional Medal of Honor for his actions during the battle of Fort Wagner. Though Carney is often listed as the first African-American recipient of a Medal of Honor, instead, Carney’s rescue of the colors at Fort Wagner was the earliest African-American act of bravery to be recognized with a Medal of Honor. The medal notation reads: “Medal of Honor awarded May 9, 1900, for most dinstinguished gallantry in action at Fort Wagner, South Carolina, July 18, 1863.”

Confederate forces under the command of General Robert E. Lee and Maj. Gen. Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson had 40,000 fewer soldiers fighting at the Battle of Chancellorsville, Virginia than Maj. Gen. Joseph Hooker’s Union troops.  Nonetheless, General Lee executed what historian John Murrin has labeled “the riskiest operation of his career” coming out victorious on May 8, 1863 after seven days of fighting.  William Swinton, in his 1882 analysis Campaigns of the Army of the Potomac, credits Hooker with the mistake of taking a defensive stance and leaving his “right flank thrown out ‘in the air,’” and giving Lee the opportunity to attack.  The Civil War Preservation Trust provides an interactive map of the battle, which shows the forces’ movements over the course of May 1st.  Though the Confederacy won the Battle of Chancellorsville, Stonewall Jackson was mortally wounded by his own troops on May 2nd, “the event of the Chancellorsville conflict which caused intense sorrow to the enemy [the Confederate troops],” according to Samuel Bates’ The Battle of Chancellorsville (1882), and “was regarded as entailing the greatest injury to their cause.”  The Virginia Military Institute, where Jackson was a member of the faculty from 1851 until 1861, has an online research center with an extensive Stonewall Jackson exhibit. Their Jackson exhibit includes a photo gallery, a collection of Jackson’s papers available as originals or transcriptions, a Jackson family genealogy, as well as an informational timeline and biography. The Battle of Chancellorsville has also been preserved as part of the Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania County Battlefields Memorial by the National Parks Service.  The NPS website includes a wide variety of resources for teachers including “troop position maps” for May 2nd and May 3rd, links to General Lee and Hooker’s official reports, as well as an extensive list of suggested readings on the battle which range from firsthand accounts to children’s books.

The battle of Shiloh took place on April 6-7, 1862 in Hardin County, Tennessee between the Union Army of the Tennessee & the Army of the Ohio and the Army of the Mississippi. After several decisive victories, Union forces had largely driven the Confederates out of Kentucky and central Tennessee. However, Confederates regrouped under General Albert Sidney Johnston and they launched a major offensive on April 6 that caught Union forces by surprise. The first day of fighting left thousands of casualties on both sides, including General Johnston, who was mortally wounded. The following day General Johnston’s second in command, General P. G. T. Beauregard, ordered another attack, but he did not know that General Ulysses S. Grant’s depleted forces had been reinforced overnight by General Don Carlos Buell. Eventually General Beauregard decided to withdraw his forces from the battle. On April 8 General Grant sent General William T. Sherman in pursuit of General Beauregard’s troops.

The National Park Service website has several resources that both students and teachers might find useful, including a detailed map, a historic pamphlet, and a short essay about the battle. Anyone planning a field trip to this site should check out this page, which provides important information on the park’s policy for waiving entrance fees for school groups as well as an overview of the various places to visit. Another interesting resource is an animated battle map from Civilwaranimated.com, which also offers animated maps on other key battles like Gettysburg and Vicksburg. The Official Records also published a number of documents related to this battle, including a report by General John A. McClernand. (A full list of reports related to this engagement starts on page 93 of Series 1 – Volume 10 (Part 1)). Union officers like General McClernand immediately recognized that their victory had been a critical one. “Had our army been captured or destroyed…, the rebellion would have rolled back over Tennessee, Kentucky, and Missouri before another army could have been raised and equipped adequate to retrieve the disaster,” as McClernand noted in his report. As for General Grant, this battle completely changed his perspective on what conditions were necessary for the Union to win the Civil War. Grant explained in his Personal Memoirs (1885-1886) that:

“Up to the battle of Shiloh, I, as well as thousands of other citizens, believed that the rebellion against the government would collapse suddenly and soon if a decisive victory could be gained over any of its armies. Donelson and Henry were such victories. An army of more than twenty one thousand men was captured or destroyed….. But when Confederate armies were collected which not only attempted to hold a line farther south, from Memphis to Chattanooga, Knoxville, and on to the Atlantic , but assumed the offensive and made such a gallant effort to regain what had been lost, then, indeed, I gave up all idea of saving the Union except by complete conquest.”