TWO-MILE,
Near Charleston, Va., July 17, 1861.
GENERAL: Yours of the 11th instant was received last evening. General Garnett was mistaken in his anticipations about the enemy not invading the Kanawha Valley and in his apprehension of my moving from Charleston direct upon Parkersburg. We are now on both sides [of] the Kanawha as high as the mouth of Coal River, front to front to the foe. He has about 1,600 approaching Coal, on the Guyandotte road; 3,000 coming up the Kanawha, with three steamers and several heavy pieces of artillery; 1,500, it is supposed, on each side, with his artillery on this side, and intending, I think, to concentrate all his forces first against Coal, approaching and threatening the post at Two-Mile and at Elk Mouth by the valley road, and at the same time by the road from Ripley, to which place, and ten miles below, they have advanced forces from Ravenswood, Murraysville, and Letart Falls, and it may be from Parkersburg. At Coal I have posted 900 efficient men, under Lieutenant-Colonel Patton. At Two-Mile and Elk I have posted in all, efficient and inefficient forces—say 800 efficient—about 1,600, and at Gauley Bridge, Summersville, and the Old Mill, on the Birch River, in all 1,000, with instructions to scout towards Suttonville, where the enemy are already in possession. I have anticipated General Garnett, you see, in this movement. I cannot re-enforce him, but he may me by the road leading from Huttonsville up Tygart’s Valley road to Rackstone; up that fork to where it crosses the range of Rich Mountain; thence between Grassy Creek and Back Fork of Elk to where it crosses Elk; thence southwest to the head of Laurel Creek; thence to the head of Big Birch River, and down the same to the old mill near there, at the gorge of Birch Mountain, in my outpost from Summersville.
Now, if General Floyd can re-enforce Coal River and General Garnett can, in considerable number, re-enforce Birch and Elk, I will make a diversion that shall distract and defeat the enemy. My plan of defending the valley of the Kanawha is to hold its head and Coal and Elk and Two-Mile and the head of summer navigation with, say, 3,000, and to expand outposts to Barboursville on the one side, say 1,000, and to Ripley, California, the Forks of Elk, Arnoldsville, Sutton, Old Mill, and Summersville, say 3,000, requiring in all 7,000 men at least, if not 10,000, and you see we have but 3,500 in all, facing 6,000 at least on this and the other side of the Ohio. We have now 10 small pieces of artillery—6 iron, 3 brass, 1 made at Malden, private property. Our troops, raw, unequipped, not half armed and accoutered, untented, out of reach of clothing, unofficered, unorganized, yet they are prime personnel and fight well. I have tried them at Ripley, and yesterday my aide, Colonel Clarkson, with Brock’s and Becket’s troops of horse, about 120, thrashed about 200 of their infantry, charging them up the mountain side to its top, driving them in to their cannon, and killing eight known, with the loss of one horse only killed. All we want is your fostering attention. Give us arms and ammunition speedily and I will drive them into the Ohio River and across, and then turn on Master McClellan, with the co-operation of Generals Garnett and Floyd.
I implore of you, sir, two things: First, re-enforce us with men, arms, and ammunition, and ask the President to allow me to increase the legion to 4,000 men. Please obtain for me these requests at once and I will be answerable for the rest.
Inclosed is an inventory of arms, &c., two days past. The militia here are literally in the way of action. They require help from us. Let me add two more ideas: We are treading on snakes while aiming at the enemy. The grass of the soil we are defending is full of the copperhead traitors; they invite the enemy, feed him, and he arms and drills them. We are surrounded with extraordinary difficulty of defense. A spy is on every hill top, at every cabin, and from Charleston to Point Pleasant they swarm. We will fight hard, retire slowly if we must, and make a last stand at Gauley. The men we have are true, but there are no deserters to us, and if we advance to meet the enemy at the mouth of Kanawha he comes down behind us from the north, and if we advance to attack him in the north he comes up behind us from the mouth of the valley. He aligns us from Parkersburg to Philippi on the north, and from Guyandotte through Gallipolis, Letart Falls, Flesher’s, Ravenswood, and Murraysville to Parkersburg on the west. He has sent but few regiments, comparatively, as yet from Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio eastward; holds the whole Northwest in reserve; and has command of all the navigation and railroad steam-power. This all combined makes it wonderful that we make a stand at all. Besides, sir, remember this army here has grown by neglect at Richmond. It has been literally created by Colonel Tompkins, at first beginning with Patton’s company alone, since assisted by my legion, which I have created between this and Richmond. General Garnett’s army was sent out with him equipped. Let him come to us; we need his help. In connection with this I have ordered Colonel Tompkins to account for pay-rolls. We have had no pay for State troops, Paymaster-General Hill informs me, for want of rolls, and Colonel Tompkins and Captain Carr will account for them.
Most respectfully,
HENRY A. WISE,
Brigadier-General.
Sources
The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. Series I, Vol. II. With additions and corrections. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1902.
Spirit of '61 