One Last Fight

The Battle of Wyse Fork [aka the Battle of Southwest Creek], a part of the Carolina Campaign ramped up again on March 10^th 1865.

The city of Wilmington, North Carolina fell into Union hands in February 1865.  Union Major General John M Schofield moved in from the coast and joined his force with Major General William T Sherman at Goldsboro, North Carolina where they would move against Confederate General Joseph E Johnston’s army.

As the Union troops advanced they encountered Confederate General Braxton Bragg who was entrenched along the Southwest Creek near Kinston, North Carolina on March 7^th 1865.  Bragg’s position threatened a cross road and the New Bern Goldsboro Railroad.  Bragg moved to the offensive and sent Confederate General Robert Hoke into the Union left flank.  On March 8^th 1865 he crossed the creek about noon and slammed into the Union flank and rear and captured about 1,500.  After an active advance by the Confederates the two sides settled into skirmishing for the next couple of days.

Hoke again tried to turn the Union left flank on March 10^th 1865.  The Union position had been strongly fortified and they repulsed Hoke’s men within about an hour.  Confederate General Daniel Harvey Hill then made a moved on the Union center, but again they were repulsed by Union artillery.  At this point remaining members of the Union XXII corps arrived from Tennessee, and finding himself facing five Union divisions, Bragg had his men withdrawn.

He Made Mines

Confederate Gabriel James Rains was promoted to Brigadier General on September 23^rd 1861.

Gabriel James Rains was born June 4^th 1803 in New Bern, North Carolina, the son of Gabriel Manigault and Ester [Ambrose] Rains.  He attended West Point and graduated with the class of 1827.  Rains served in many post in the United States Army and fought in the Mexican American War and Seminole Wars.  He was wounded twice during the Indian wars.

Rains resigned as a Lieutenant Colonel from the United State Army and join the Confederate Army on July 31^st 1861.  He was assigned to Daniel Harvey Hill’s division and made a Confederate Brigadier General September 23^rd 1861.  Rains developed one of the first successful anit-personal mines in 1862.  He used artillery shells with a trip wire.  The first casualty of Rains’ device was a scout on horseback on a road in the vicinity of Williamsburg on May 4^th 1862.  Rains was wounded at the Battle of Seven Pine and was removed from field command.  After this he was assigned to the Confederate conscription and torpedo bureaus.  He set up a system of torpedoes to protect the Charleston, Mobile and Savannah harbors.

After the war Rains lived for a time in August, Georgia before moving to Aiken, South Carolina.  He died in Aiken September 6^th 1881 from the lasting effect of wounds received in the Seminole Wars.