An Encyclopedia of Early Civil War Virginia
The following story appeared in the book Camp-Fire Chats of the Civil War: Being the Incident, Adventure and Wayside Exploit of the Bivouac and Battle Field, as Related by Members of the Grand Army of the Republic, edited by Washington Davis. It was published in 1884, and is a collection of anecdotes told by Union…
During the critical period of April-May 1861, Preston and Monongalia counties, in what was then northwestern Virginia, remained firmly in the Union camp. Both counties shared a northern border with Pennsylvania and, unlike their southern neighbors, organized no Confederate volunteer companies, though a few individuals may have enlisted in the Southern cause. Slavery was rare,…
Continue reading ➞ The Union, Right or Wrong: Preston and Monongalia Counties Choose a Side
From May to July 1861, the Second Virginia Infantry (U.S.) did not operate as a cohesive regiment. Instead, several of its companies acted independently in support of Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan’s campaign to secure northwestern Virginia and the Baltimore & Ohio (B&O) Railroad for the Union. The regiment did not fully come together until…
The First Virginia Infantry Regiment (U.S.) featured prominently in Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan's advance into northwestern Virginia in late May 1861. Its presence helped reassure nervous civilians that this was a limited operation designed to protect the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad and expel secessionist militias, not a heavy-handed federal invasion. The regiment's colonel, Benjamin…
Determining the composition of the Union force that attacked Philippi on June 3, 1861, is, thankfully, easier than for their opponents. The orders outlining which units were to take part, and the number of companies assigned, have long been published. Even so, estimates of the total strength vary, and the sources do not always explain…
Continue reading ➞ Union Forces Involved in the Action at Philippi
From firing one of the first naval shots of the Civil War off Charleston Harbor to helping secure a vital Union foothold on North Carolina’s Outer Banks, the USS Harriet Lane played an outsized role in the conflict’s opening months. Follow her journey from revenue cutter to warship, highlighting her actions at Fort Sumter, Pig…
Small and lightly built with a teetotaling veteran captain, the USS Monticello (Star) became an early workhorse of the Union blockade, trading fire with Confederate batteries from the James River to Cape Hatteras. The USS Monticello was a schooner-rigged, wooden screw steamer constructed at Mystic, Connecticut, in 1859. The U.S. Navy chartered her in May…
Continue reading ➞ Captain Henry Eagle and the USS Monticello (Star)
A small, lightly armed tugboat doesn’t sound like the kind of vessel that makes history, until it does. In the Civil War’s opening weeks, USS Yankee, under Lt. Thomas O. Selfridge, Jr., became the Navy’s eyes on the Chesapeake, scouting hostile waterways and snapping up prizes. Notable for exchanging the first shots of the Civil…
Continue reading ➞ The Role of USS Yankee in Early Civil War Naval Operations
As the first general officer killed in the Civil War, the death of Brig. Gen. Robert S. Garnett at Corrick’s Ford on July 13, 1861 has remained a subject of discussion for over 160 years. As veterans of the conflict aged, a controversy emerged not only over who fired the fatal shot, but also regarding…
The following account of the death of Brig. Gen. Robert S. Garnett at Corrick's Ford on July 13, 1861 was written by Henry Clay Wheeler (1841-1924), Company E, 7th Indiana, who claimed to be among the party who fired at the general on that fateful day. It appeared in The National Tribune, a veterans' newspaper,…
Spirit of '61 