Tag Archives: Thomas A. Morris

More Confederate Disasters After Rich Mountain

Military, Virginia July 13, 2016 Comments: 2

July 13, 1861 – One Confederate commander surrendered his command, and another became the first general killed in action in the war.

Pegram Captured

Confederate Lt Col John Pegram | Image Credit: CivilWarDailyGazette.com

Confederate Lt Col John Pegram | Image Credit: CivilWarDailyGazette.com

Major General George B. McClellan accepted Lieutenant Colonel John Pegram’s offer to surrender his 555 Confederates. Their retreat had been cut off by Brigadier General William S. Rosecans’s Federals two days earlier. Pegram’s men had suffered the worst privations of the war thus far; their 60-hour retreat from Rich Mountain had included just five hours of rest and no food, with many men dropping from the ranks and finding themselves in predominantly Unionist country against an overwhelming enemy.

McClellan offered Pegram generous terms that included rations, shelter for the 33 captured officers in the Beverly Hotel, and tents for the troops. McClellan reported that he had given the captured slaves a choice to either stay with their masters or go north to freedom, and most chose to stay. McClellan’s superiors directed him to allow officers and men to return home if they pledged never to take up arms against the U.S. again; but officers who had formerly served in the U.S. army would be sent to confinement in Baltimore’s Fort McHenry.

News of the Federal victory at Rich Mountain was telegraphed to Washington from Beverly. McClellan reported that his Federals had killed 200 men and captured 1,000, which were wildly inflated numbers. Even so, the engagement at Rich Mountain and the subsequent operations placed nearly all northwestern Virginia under Federal control, including rivers, railroads, and communication lines.

Newspapers began reporting on these minor victories, and desperate northerners quickly hailed McClellan as a conquering hero, which did little to diminish his ego. General-in-Chief Winfield Scott sent congratulations to the general whom people began calling “the Young Napoleon” and “Little Mac”: “The general in chief, and what is more, the Cabinet, including the President, are charmed with your activity, valor and consequent successes.” Rosecrans, who had done most of the planning and execution of the campaign, received minimal coverage.

McClellan praised his troops in a proclamation: “Soldiers of the Army of the West!… You have annihilated two armies… You have taken five guns, 12 colors, 1,500 stand of arms, 1,000 prisoners… Soldiers! I have confidence in you, and I trust you have learned to confide in me.” He directed one of his forces to move from Grafton to cut off the rest of Brigadier General Robert S. Garnett’s Army of the Northwest.

Garnett Pursued

Brig Gen R.S. Garnett | Image Credit: Wikipedia.org

Brig Gen R.S. Garnett | Image Credit: Wikipedia.org

Garnett’s Confederates withdrew from Laurel Hill and crossed Cheat Mountain with a Federal brigade under Brigadier General Thomas A. Morris in pursuit. Both forces marched hard over harsh terrain in a heavy storm. On July 13, the Federals caught up to the enemy near Corrick’s Ford about 12 p.m. on the Cheat River, 30 miles from Rich Mountain.

Skirmishing occurred as the Confederates crossed the river. The Federals routed the 23rd Virginia, which was acting as a rear guard. When the fire became too heavy, Garnett led a movement to another ford about a mile away and personally directed the crossing on horseback. Once the Confederates reached this second ford, the running skirmish resumed. Federals shot Garnett dead while he was placing a company to stop the enemy from crossing the river.

Word spread among the Federals that a general had been killed. Garnett’s former West Point roommate, Federal Major John Love, identified his body. Garnett became the first general officer killed in combat on either side. Federals recovered the body, and McClellan returned it to his family. The rest of Garnett’s men retreated toward Monterey in Highland County, and Morris halted his pursuit after capturing a cannon and 40 wagons. Federals suffered between 10 and 53 casualties, while Confederates lost about 20 killed or wounded and 50 captured.

Confederate officials at Richmond learned of the disaster at Rich Mountain-Laurel Hill-Corrick’s Ford, as well as Garnett’s death, the next day. Brigadier General Henry R. Jackson took temporary command of the Confederate Army of the Northwest, which now numbered only about 1,300 men. General Robert E. Lee, military advisor to President Jefferson Davis, directed General William W. Loring to take command of the army and begin a new offensive at his discretion.

Meanwhile, a Federal detachment under General Charles Hill continued pursuing the Confederates, as Hill received intelligence that the enemy was 25 miles southeast of his forces near Williamsport. Confederate Major M.G. Harmon reported to General Lee: “Our retreat to Monterey, is disastrous to us.” Harmon told Lee that if the Confederates could hold the Cheat Mountain passes near McClellan’s camp at Huttonsville, they might be able to repulse McClellan’s forces.

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Sources

CivilWarDailyGazette.com; Davis, William C., First Blood: Fort Sumter to Bull Run (Alexandria, VA: Time-Life Books, 1983), p. 92-93; Denney, Robert E., The Civil War Years: A Day-by-Day Chronicle (New York: Gramercy Books, 1992 [1998 edition]), p. 57-58; Foote, Shelby, The Civil War, A Narrative: Fort Sumter to Perryville (New York: Vintage Books, 1958), p. 70; Fredriksen, John C., Civil War Almanac (New York: Checkmark Books, 2007), p. 44-45; Freeman, Douglas Southall, Lee (Scribner, Kindle Edition, 2008), Loc 2663; Guelzo, Allen C., Historical Times Illustrated Encyclopedia of the Civil War (New York: Harper & Row, 1986, Patricia L. Faust ed.), p. 633;Long, E.B. with Long, Barbara, The Civil War Day by Day (New York: Da Capo Press, Inc., 1971), p. 93-95; McPherson, James M., Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era (Oxford History of the United States Book 6, Oxford University Press, Kindle Edition, 1988), p. 301; Pollard, Edward A., Southern History of the War (New York: The Fairfax Press, 1990), p. 94; Power, J. Tracy, Historical Times Illustrated Encyclopedia of the Civil War (New York: Harper & Row, 1986, Patricia L. Faust ed.), p. 300; Smith, Dean E., Historical Times Illustrated Encyclopedia of the Civil War (New York: Harper & Row, 1986, Patricia L. Faust ed.), p. 538; Wert, Jeffry D., Historical Times Illustrated Encyclopedia of the Civil War (New York: Harper & Row, 1986, Patricia L. Faust ed.), p. 185

The Battle of Rich Mountain

Military, Virginia July 11, 2016 Comments: 3

July 11, 1861 – A detachment of Major General George B. McClellan’s Federal force attacked an isolated portion of Brigadier General Robert S. Garnett’s Confederates near the town of Beverly in western Virginia.

By July 9, McClellan had 12,000 troops to confront Garnett’s 4,500 Confederates near the important crossroads town of Beverly in the Tygart River Valley. Garnett had divided his force to guard the northern and western approaches to the town. Lieutenant Colonel John Pegram commanded 1,300 men and four cannon five miles west of the town at Rich Mountain, and Garnett personally commanded his remaining men and four cannon on Laurel Hill, 16 miles north of Beverly. Log breastworks defended both positions.

Garnett believed that the main Federal attack would be at Laurel Hill, even after a “reconnaissance in force” resulted in the Federal capture of Roaring Run Flats in Pegram’s front. As such, he rejected Pegram’s request to launch a surprise attack.

To keep Garnett thinking that he would attack Laurel Hill, McClellan sent some 4,000 Federals under Brigadier General Thomas A. Morris from Philippi to threaten the position, bombarding the position with artillery for 10 hours on the 10th. Garnett readied his men for the attack he was sure would come. Meanwhile, Brigadier General William S. Rosecrans led McClellan’s remaining 8,000 men in three Federal brigades against Pegram’s small force.

McClellan had estimated Pegram’s strength on Rich Mountain at 2,000, 700 more than the actual total. Federal reconnaissance netted two Confederate prisoners who boasted that they had between 8,000 and 9,000 men. Reluctant to attack the mountain head-on, Rosecrans eagerly listened to local teen David B. Hart, a Unionist who told him about an obscure, unguarded wagon trail that could lead the attacking Federals around the Confederate left flank.

Rosecrans reported this path to McClellan, who agreed to Rosecrans’s plan to send one brigade in a flanking attack while leaving the other two ready as reinforcements. McClellan approved only if Rosecrans got them into position by 10 a.m. the next morning, and only if Rosecrans provided hourly reports.

The Federal attack force advanced from Buckhannon and moved all night through heavy rain. Using the same strategy that Robert E. Lee had used at the Battle of Cerro Gordo in the Mexican War, McClellan sent a detachment of about 2,000 Ohio and Indiana soldiers under Rosecrans down the little path that David B. Hart had shown them. McClellan planned to send his remaining 6,000 troops against the rest of Pegram’s works once Rosecrans’s assault began.

The march lasted longer than anticipated due to the rainstorms and the abandoned road’s poor condition. When McClellan did not receive the hourly reports from Rosecrans as required, he issued orders canceling the attack. However, Confederates captured the messenger before he could deliver the order to Rosecrans.

The Federals eventually moved up the mountain, pushing the surprised 300-man advance guard back before attacking the main body of Confederates on Pegram’s left. The defenders tried making a stand, but they soon wavered before the superior numbers. Rosecrans later told his wife, “If the enemy had disciplined troops and any enterprise, how they would have stirred us up.” McClellan heard the firing through the mountain thickets; wrongly assuming that Rosecrans was being repulsed, McClellan did not commit his remaining men to the battle.

The Battle of Rich Mountain | Image Credit: CivilWarDailyGazette.com

The Battle of Rich Mountain | Image Credit: CivilWarDailyGazette.com

The attack became a rout when Pegram’s men retreated northeast down the mountain after three hours of combat. Pegram and his officers resolved to try joining with Garnett’s main force at Laurel Hill, about 16 miles north. The remaining Confederates withdrew from the northern crest in groups. By day’s end, about half of Pegram’s men had escaped capture due to McClellan’s failure to attack in full force. Pegram’s group kept moving through the mountainous woods, hoping to find Garnett.

Federals suffered 61 casualties (12 killed and 49 wounded), while Confederates lost 170 killed, wounded, or captured, along with two of their four cannon. Pegram’s defeat enabled the Federals to threaten Garnett’s communication lines to Beverly. Incorrectly believing that the Federals had cut him off completely from Beverly, late on the night of the 11th Garnett kept campfires burning while he pulled his men off Laurel Hill. This opened the road to Beverly for the Federals.

The engagement at Rich Mountain marked the first battle in which Confederates were defeated due to being placed in isolated locations against superior Federal numbers. McClellan eagerly accepted credit for the victory, even though he withdrew his men across Roaring Creek and Rosecrans directed the actual fighting. “Little Mac” quickly became a great hero among northerners.

The next day, some of Pegram’s men escaped to Staunton, while others reached Beverly. Pegram and Garnett could have joined forces at Beverly, but both avoided the town due to false intelligence that the Federals had already seized it. Pegram’s 550 men remained hidden in the woods, and Garnett’s 3,000 Confederates withdrew northeast over Cheat Mountain. The men then entered the Cheat River Valley, moving from Kaler’s Ford to Corrick’s Ford. General Morris, who finally realized that Garnett had retreated 12 hours after he left, sent 1,800 Federals in pursuit.

Rain poured through the morning of the 12th as the Federals seized control of the turnpike from Rich Mountain to Beverly. Confederates evacuated the town around 11 a.m., and the first of General McClellan’s 6,000 Federals entered an hour later. Based on the Federal advances, Pegram believed he was trapped against the eastern slope of Rich Mountain. Moreover, his men had gone two days without food. He wrote to McClellan:

“I write to state to you that I have, in consequence of the retreat of General Garnett and the jaded and reduced condition of my command, most of them having been without food for two days, concluded, with the concurrence of majority of my captains and field officers, to surrender my command to you to-morrow as prisoners of war. I have only to add, I trust they will only receive at your hands such treatment as has been invariably shown to the Northern prisoners by the South.”

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Sources

Catton, Bruce, The American Heritage Picture History of the Civil War (New York: American Heritage Publishing Co., 1960), p. 92, 97; CivilWarDailyGazette.com; Davis, William C., First Blood: Fort Sumter to Bull Run (Alexandria, VA: Time-Life Books, 1983), p. 89-92; Denney, Robert E., The Civil War Years: A Day-by-Day Chronicle (New York: Gramercy Books, 1992 [1998 edition]), p. 56-57; Fredriksen, John C., Civil War Almanac (New York: Checkmark Books, 2007), p. 43-44; Foote, Shelby, The Civil War, A Narrative: Fort Sumter to Perryville (New York: Vintage Books, 1958), p. 69-70; Freeman, Douglas Southall, Lee (Scribner, Kindle Edition, 2008), Loc 2663; Guelzo, Allen C., Historical Times Illustrated Encyclopedia of the Civil War (New York: Harper & Row, 1986, Patricia L. Faust ed.), p. 633; Linedecker, Clifford L. (ed.), The Civil War A to Z (New York: Ballantine Books, 2002), p. 217-18; Long, E.B. with Long, Barbara, The Civil War Day by Day (New York: Da Capo Press, Inc., 1971), p. 92-94; McPherson, James M., Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era (Oxford History of the United States Book 6, Oxford University Press, Kindle Edition, 1988), p. 300-01; Pollard, Edward A., Southern History of the War (New York: The Fairfax Press, 1990), p. 89; Wert, Jeffry D., Historical Times Illustrated Encyclopedia of the Civil War (New York: Harper & Row, 1986, Patricia L. Faust ed.), p. 185, 426

Federals Advance in Northwestern Virginia

Military, Virginia July 7, 2016 1 Comment

July 7, 1861 – Heavy skirmishing erupted at the foot of Laurel Hill as Major General George B. McClellan’s Federals prepared to attack Confederate defenders led by Brigadier General Robert S. Garnett.

Brig Gen R.S. Garnett | Image Credit: Wikipedia.org

Brig Gen R.S. Garnett | Image Credit: Wikipedia.org

By this month, Garnett had positioned his Army of the Northwest, the primary Confederate force in northwestern Virginia, at Laurel Hill and Rich Mountain near the town of Beverly. Garnett had no more than 4,500 effectives to face an advancing force of 12,000 Federals under McClellan.

Garnett submitted a somber report on the 1st, warning his superiors that “with the railroad running across my entire front, I have become satisfied that I cannot operate beyond my present position with any reasonable expectation of substantial success, with the present force under my command, and deem it my duty to state the fact.” Garnett’s troops were “in a most miserable condition as to arms, clothing, equipment, and discipline.” Moreover, he had gained only eight local recruits because “these people are thoroughly imbued with an ignorant and bigoted Union sentiment.”

That same day, Major General Robert E. Lee, military advisor to President Jefferson Davis, wrote to Garnett informing him that a few thousand men in some infantry companies and two cavalry companies would be sent to Beverly to reinforce him. They were to guard the passes where the main roads ran from the Shenandoah Valley to Wheeling and Parkersburg. Lee complimented Garnett on his defenses and reminded him that “the rupture of the railroad at Cheat River (near Rowlesburg) would be worth to us an army.”

Maj Gen G.B. McClellan | Image Credit: Wikispaces

Maj Gen G.B. McClellan | Image Credit: Wikispaces

McClellan’s Federals arrived at Buckhannon, eight miles west of Laurel Hill, on July 2. They had marched 25 miles in two days. As McClellan moved on from Buckhannon, he received a message from his brigade commander at Philippi, Brigadier General Thomas A. Morris. Morris requested reinforcements to face a potential enemy threat. McClellan reluctantly sent him the 6th Ohio “on temporary duty with you until the crisis has passed.” And since the troops could probably “be employed to more advantage at other points, this is all the re-enforcement I can now spare.”

McClellan also told Morris that “if 4,000 (nearly) of our men, in a position selected and fortified in advance, with ample time to examine the ground carefully and provide against any possible plan of attack, are not enough to hold the place against any force these people can bring against it, I think we had better all go home at once.” He then warned Morris that if he “cannot undertake the defense of Philippi with the force now under your control, I must find some one who will… Do not ask for further re-enforcements. If you do, I shall take it as a request to be relieved from your command and to return to Indiana. I have spoken plainly. I speak officially.”

In a letter to his wife, McClellan called Morris “a timid old woman.” He had no better words for Brigadier General William S. Rosecrans, another subordinate, calling him a “silly fussy goose.” On July 5, McClellan reported his progress against Garnett to the War Department: “The delays I have met have been irksome to me in the extreme, but I feel that it would be exceedingly foolish to give way to impatience and advance before everything is prepared.”

Meanwhile, Garnett informed Lee that he believed the Federals were probably finished occupying territory in northwestern Virginia. Lee disagreed: “I do not think it probable that the enemy will confine himself to that portion of the northwest country which he now holds, but, if he can drive you back, will endeavor to penetrate as far as Staunton. Your object will be to prevent him, if possible, and to restrict his limits within the narrowest range, which, although outnumbered, it is hoped by skill and boldness you will accomplish.” McClellan’s advance prevented Garnett from receiving this message.

McClellan placed two Ohio volunteer regiments under Colonel Robert L. McCook in the lead, and they came up to two of Garnett’s regiments on Laurel Hill. McClellan planned to simultaneously move his three other brigades toward the enemy at nearby Rich Mountain. Despite receiving reinforcements, Garnett wrote to Lee still expressing doubt that he could defend against the advancing Federals.

As McCook’s Federals probed Garnett’s defenses at the foot of Laurel Hill on the 7th, McClellan had Morris move his 4,000 Federals toward Laurel Hill as well to deceive Garnett into thinking the main attack would be there. McClellan’s real attack would be against Rich Mountain. Skirmishing continued intermittently for the next four days as a full-scale battle loomed.

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Sources

CivilWarDailyGazette.com; Davis, William C., First Blood: Fort Sumter to Bull Run (Alexandria, VA: Time-Life Books, 1983), p. 89; Fredriksen, John C., Civil War Almanac (New York: Checkmark Books, 2007), p. 42-43; Freeman, Douglas Southall, Lee (Scribner, Kindle Edition, 2008), Loc 2651-63; McPherson, James M., Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era (Oxford History of the United States Book 6, Oxford University Press, Kindle Edition, 1988), p. 299-300; Smith, Dean E., Historical Times Illustrated Encyclopedia of the Civil War (New York: Harper & Row, 1986, Patricia L. Faust ed.), p. 538; Wert, Jeffry D., Historical Times Illustrated Encyclopedia of the Civil War (New York: Harper & Row, 1986, Patricia L. Faust ed.), p. 426

The Battle of Philippi

Military, Virginia June 3, 2016 Comments: 3

June 3, 1861 – Federals won a minor victory that cleared Confederates out of the Kanawha Valley of western Virginia and secured the railroad line between Washington and the West.

On June 2, Colonel George A. Porterfield’s Confederates withdrew 15 miles southward from Grafton to the small village of Philippi. Porterfield had learned that Colonel Benjamin F. Kelley’s Federals were approaching, with Brigadier General Thomas A. Morris’s Federal forces just 20 miles northwest. Upon crossing the Ohio River into western Virginia, the Federals’ initial objective was Grafton, 60 miles south of Wheeling, where the Virginia Railroad joined the Baltimore & Ohio line to Parkersburg.

Virginia Governor John Letcher had assigned Porterfield to defend Grafton, but Porterfield’s force had dwindled from 1,500 to just 773 effectives, and he now faced some 3,000 enemy troops. The Federal advance featured forced night marches through steep hills and roads turned to mud by heavy rain. The region’s narrow valleys often channeled the runoff, turning streams into impassable lakes. The Federals made remarkable progress considering they had only been in service for a month and had no experience moving through such harsh terrain.

By the 3rd, two Federal columns of Ohio and Indiana troops led by Morris (directed by overall commander Major General George B. McClellan from his Cincinnati headquarters) had advanced from Grafton, east of Clarksburg on the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad line, 30 miles southward. Morris gave the impression that he intended to attack Harpers Ferry, but his true objective was Colonel Porterfield’s Confederate camp at Philippi. In pouring rain at dawn, an artillery round into Porterfield’s sleeping camp signaled a general attack by the five Federal regiments.

The Battle of Philippi | Image Credit: CivilWarDailyGazette.com

The Battle of Philippi | Image Credit: CivilWarDailyGazette.com

The Federals caught the Confederates by complete surprise, sending the demoralized enemy into the woods and mountains. The Confederates inflicted two Federal casualties along the way; one was Colonel Kelley of the Unionist 1st Virginia. The Confederates suffered 15 casualties while losing several battle flags and leaving most of their equipment behind.

Porterfield met with his officers and chose retreat due to shortages on cannon, ammunition, and seasoned officers. A Federal pursuit was unsuccessful due to lack of cavalry; nevertheless a subsequent Confederate report labeled the rout “disgraceful.”

This was just a minor engagement, but it cleared the Kanawha Valley of organized Confederate resistance and secured the B&O line for the Federals. The northern press hailed it as a tremendous victory and dubbed it the “Philippi Races.” The Unionist Wheeling Intelligencer, resentful of elitist eastern Virginians, reported: “The chivalry couldn’t stand. They scattered like rats from a burning barn.”

The Federals ultimately used both main routes of attack through western Virginia: one from Grafton, Philippi, and Beverly; and one from the Ohio River up the Great Kanawha Valley to Charleston. A third route via Harpers Ferry and the Shenandoah Valley would soon develop as well. Federal forces concentrated at Philippi on the 4th, where they rested before continuing along the first route of attack toward Beverly.

Federal success in the northwestern counties of Virginia encouraged the Unionists in the region to resist the rest of the state’s support for the Confederacy. McClellan took full credit for the success and began garnering a reputation as a great commander, despite not directly commanding in the field. Although he seemed to drive Confederate forces out of the region with ease, some of his aides expressed concern that he lacked aggression in following up his victories.

On June 8, Robert S. Garnett received a brigadier general commission and was assigned to replace Colonel Porterfield as commander of the new Confederate Army of the Northwest. Porterfield received a mild reprimand for his role in the “Philippi Races.” He later demanded a court of inquiry to investigate the engagement, which concluded that he had been valiant in combat but did not establish adequate enough defenses to counter a surprise attack.

Garnett hurried to the Alleghenies to bolster defenses; he would command 5,000 men, as militia in seven counties received orders to join him. Garnett was also authorized to recruit volunteers in the region, but because the area was heavily Unionist, Garnett picked up just 23 men.

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Sources

Catton, Bruce, The American Heritage Picture History of the Civil War (New York: American Heritage Publishing Co., 1960), p. 92, 97; Davis, William C., First Blood: Fort Sumter to Bull Run (Alexandria, VA: Time-Life Books, 1983), p. 85-87; Denney, Robert E., The Civil War Years: A Day-by-Day Chronicle (New York: Gramercy Books, 1992 [1998 edition]), p. 48-49; Foote, Shelby, The Civil War, A Narrative: Fort Sumter to Perryville (New York: Vintage Books, 1958), p. 69; Fredriksen, John C., Civil War Almanac (New York: Checkmark Books, 2007), p. 35-36; Freeman, Douglas Southall, Lee (Scribner, Kindle Edition, 2008), Loc 2604; Long, E.B. with Long, Barbara, The Civil War Day by Day (New York: Da Capo Press, Inc., 1971), p. 82-83; McPherson, James M., Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era (Oxford History of the United States Book 6, Oxford University Press, Kindle Edition, 1988), p. 299; Musick, Michael P., Historical Times Illustrated Encyclopedia of the Civil War (New York: Harper & Row, 1986, Patricia L. Faust ed.), p. 581; Pollard, Edward A., Southern History of the War (New York: The Fairfax Press, 1990), p. 86; Smith, Dean E., Historical Times Illustrated Encyclopedia of the Civil War (New York: Harper & Row, 1986, Patricia L. Faust ed.), p. 538; Ward, Geoffrey C., Burns, Ric, Burns, Ken, The Civil War (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1990), p. 58-59