Eric | November 1, 2011
November 1, 1861 (Friday) For President Lincoln and his Cabinet, the day began at 9am. They met to discuss and debate General-in-Chief Winfield Scott’s request to be placed on the retired list. The Cabinet was unanimous that it should be accepted and General George B. McClellan should be given the position. Lincoln, however, was not [...]
Eric | October 31, 2011
October 31, 1861 (Thursday, Halloween) “For more than three years I have been unable, from a hurt, to mount a horse or walk more than a few paces at a time, and that with much pain. Other and new infirmities, dropsy and vertigo, admonish me that a repose of mind and body, with the appliances [...]
Eric | October 30, 2011
October 30, 1861 (Wednesday) For several days, President Lincoln and General McClellan had met, along with a few Cabinet members here and there, to discuss the future of the Army of the Potomac. The rift between McClellan and General-in-Chief Winfield Scott (and their staffs) was making headlines in the press. Winfield Scott was getting up [...]
Eric | October 29, 2011
October 29, 1861 (Tuesday) Throughout the summer and early autumn of 1861, it became clear that a full, successful blockade of South Atlantic ports was nearly impossible. The blockade of Charleston, specifically, involved a refueling issue. The ships had to return to a northern port for more coal. Seizing a Southern port and turning it [...]
Eric | October 27, 2011
Sunday, October 27, 1861 The small, but surprising, Union victory in Springfield, Missouri on the 25th had paved the way for General John C. Fremont and his Army of the West to enter the town on this date. Fremont arrived towards evening, accompanied by an infantry division commanded by General Franz Sigel. For a month, [...]
Eric | October 17, 2011
Thursday, October 17, 1861 The Union Navy was quickly realizing that it stood no chance of catching up with the CSS Nashville, the steamer they thought was carrying Confederate envoys to Europe, James Mason and John Slidell. Two ships, the USS James Adger and USS Curlew had been dispatched to intercept the Nashville. While the [...]
Eric | October 15, 2011
Tuesday, October 15, 1861 General Jeff Thompson, of the Missouri State Guards, planned a northward push towards St. Louis, Missouri. His main goal was to destroy the Ironton Railroad and distract some Union forces away from General Sterling Price in the southwest corner of the state. Thompson and 3,000 troops (500 cavalry, 2,500 infantry, including [...]
Eric | October 12, 2011
Saturday, October 12, 1861 At this point in the War, Confederate President Jefferson Davis was clear about several things. For one, the quick victory that many expected after Bull Run was not going to happen. For another, as the War tarried on, the Union blockade of Southern ports would only grow tighter. Also, the Confederacy [...]
Eric | October 9, 2011
Wednesday, October 9, 1861 Confederate General Braxton Bragg’s plan to surprise and capture Fort Pickens near Pensacola, Florida had taken shape. The 1,200 troops had landed on Santa Rosa Island, four miles east of the fort and had driven in a few Union pickets. Union Col. Harvey Brown, commanding at Pickens, had received and dismissed [...]
Eric | October 8, 2011
Tuesday, October 8, 1861 After commanding at Fort Sumter, Robert Anderson was promoted to Brigadier-General and given command of the Department of Kentucky. With things heating up in that state, he was quickly succumbing to the stress and wear that went with the position. A couple of days prior, he had called upon General William [...]
Darla Vincent on General Grant Finally Rids Himself of McClernand
Eric on Pleasonton Looks for Lee – Finds Stuart Instead
George from NJ on Pleasonton Looks for Lee – Finds Stuart Instead
Dave Boyes on Confederate Cavalry Rounds Up Pennsylvania Blacks, Free and Slave Eric on Confederate Cavalry Rounds Up Pennsylvania Blacks, Free and Slave
Civil War Daily Gazette is powered by broccoli and tofu. 