You Have Got Too Much

The Battle of Orchard Knob, a rocky hill to the east of Chattanooga was fought November 23^rd 1863.

Union General George H Thomas formed his troops up in the valley between Chattanooga, Tennessee and rocky hill about 100 feet high, known as Orchard Knob on the afternoon of November 23^rd 1863.  Confederates posted on top of Orchard Knob watched the Union troops from behind rifle pits, as they move as though on parade in front of their position.

Somewhere around 1:30 pm the 14,000 Union soldiers began to march on the Confederate position at the double quick.  There were only 634 Confederates holding the line on Orchard Knob.  The Confederate soldiers had time only to fire a single volley before Thomas’ troops closed in on the Knob, pushing the Confederates back to the base of Missionary Ridge.  By 3 pm Union General Thomas J Wood was sending the message to Thomas, that "I have taken the first line of the enemy's entrenchments."  Thomas sent back the order, “Hold on; don't come back; you have got too much; entrench your position."

Union General Ulysses S Grant would use Orchard Knob on November 25^th 1863 as his forward observation point, while watching the Union assault on Missionary Ridge.

Holding The Gaps

George H Thomas

The Battle of Hoover’s Gap a part of the Middle Tennessee Campaign was fought June 24^th 1863.

After the Battle of Stones River, Confederate General Braxton Bragg established a line from Shelbyville to Wartrace along the Duck River, this included holding the Bellbuckle, Hoover’s and Liberty Gaps.  Union leaders fearing that Bragg would go to the support of Vicksburg pushed Major General William Rosecrans to attack Bragg’s position.

Rosecrans made a move towards Shelbyville on June 23^rd 1863 to get Bragg’s attention, while the mass of his troops headed for the Gaps.  On June 24^th 1863 Union Major General George H Thomas attacked Hoover’s Gap.  Thomas used Colonel John T Wilder’s mounted infantry known as the “Lightning Brigade” armed with Spencer Rifles to spearhead the attack.  They met Confederate Colonel J Russell Butler’s 1^st Kentucky Cavalry, and pushed them back 7 miles, before Wilder’s men came up against Brigadier General William B Bate’s brigade.  Wilder entrenched on the hills to the south of the gap and held throughout several Confederate attacks.  More units arrived on both sides and everyone settled down hold their position.

On June 26^th 1863 the Confederate force began pulling back.  Although rain made moving slow Rosecrans pushed Bragg’s men until they fell back to a defensive line at Tullahoma.

Old Reliable Resigns

Confederate General William Joseph Hardee resigned his United State Army commission on January 31st 1861.

William Joseph Hardee the son of Major John and Sarah [Ellis] Hardee, he was born October 12th 1815 at his families home in Camden County, Georgia. He attended the United State Military Academy at West Point, graduating 26 out of a class of 45 in 1838. Hardee was commissioned Second Lieutenant in the 2nd United States Dragoons. The Army sent him to France in 1840 to study military tactics. During the Mexican - American War Hardee was serving under General Zachary Taylor when he was captured at Carricitos Ranch, Texas. After being exchanged on May 11th 1846 he served under General Winfield Scott and was wounded at La Rosia, Mexico in 1847. He wrote “Rifle and Light Infantry Tactics” [known as “Hardee’s Tactics”] in 1855. Hardee returned to West Point where he taught tactics and served from 1856 to 1860 as commandant of cadets.

When Georgia seceded from the United States, Hardee resigned his commission on January 31st 1861. He became at Colonel in the Confederate States Army on March 7th 1861, with command of Fort Morgan in Alabama. Hardee was made a Lieutenant General October 10th 1862. His assignment was to organize an Arkansas regiment. Do to his seeing that his men were well supplied, they nicked named him “Old Reliable”. Hardee was a Corps commander in General Albert Sidney Johnston’s Army of Mississippi during the Battle of Shiloh, where he was wounded. His Corps was defeated by Union Major General George Henry Thomas during their assault on Missionary Ridge as part of the Battle of Chickamauga. Hardee was in the Battle of Bentonville in March 1865, where his only son 16 year old William was mortally wounded. Hardee surrendered to Union General William Tecumseh Sherman at Durham Station April 26th 1865.

Following the war Hardee went back to his wife’s plantation in Alabama. He latter moved to Selma, Alabama where Hardee worked in insurance and warehousing. He would become the president of the Selma and Meridian railroad, and co-author the book “The Irish in America” in 1868. Hardee took sick while with his family on vacation in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia, and died November 6th 1873 in Wytherville, Virginia. He is buried in the Live Oak Cemetery in Selma, Alabama.

A Military Man

General Andrew Jackson Smith who was a Union Corps commander was born April 28th 1815.

Andrew Jackson Smith was born April 28th 1815 in Bucks County Pennsylvania. He attended the United States Military Academy and graduated 36th out of 45 in 1837. Smith saw service in the Mexican American War, and saw action in the Oregon and Washington territories. He moved up the ranks and was a Major by 1861.

When the Civil War started Smith was made Colonel of the 2nd California Volunteer Cavalry. In 1862 he had moved east to command the Union cavalry of the Department of Mississippi and had the rank of Brigadier General. He would be assigned to the Army of Tennessee and took part in the capture of Arkansas Post. Smith commanded a division in the Vicksburg Campaign. He was brevetted Brigadier General for defeating Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest in the Battle of Tupelo July 14th 1864. He then joined forces with Major General George Henry Thomas when Confederate Lieutenant General John Bell Hood threatened Nashville, Tennessee. Smith was in command of the 16th Corps in the final campaign in Mobile Alabama in 1865.

Smith resigned his commission and became a Colonel of the United States 7th Cavalry in 1866, serving in West. In April 1869 Smith retired from the military. He became the Postmaster of St Louis, Missouri thanks to an appointment from Ulysses S Grant. Smith died in St Louis January 30th 1897 and is buried there.

Before the Music Made the City

On the cold icy winter afternoon of December 16th 1864 Union troops led by General George H Thomas handed a crushing defeat to Confederate forces in Nashville, TN. The Battle of Nashville had begun the day before December 15th 1864, after two weeks of waiting for good weather and reinforcements to arrive.

The first Union troops, led by Major General James Steedman, set out to hit the Confederates before daylight on the 15th. The Confederate were battered by dark when the fighting ended for the day, but General John B Hood was still confident. Hood placed his line of resistance along Shy’s and Overton’s Hills to prepare for the next days fighting.

The first days fighting had been a matter of overwhelming numbers of Union forces. The Union spent most of the morning of the 16th moving into position. The plan was to hit the Confederates on two fronts. It took until about 4pm before the Confederates on Shy’s Hill, under attack from three side broke and ran for the rear. With darkness and a heavy rain falling, Hood collected what was left of his troops and withdrew southward. This was the beginning of the end for the fighting in the Western Theater.