And So It Began

Today, December 20th 1860 was the true beginning of the Civil War. As Charleston South Carolina voted to be the first state to seceded from the Union.

Once if was assured that Abraham Lincoln had won the presidency, the Governor of South Carolina called for a convention to discuss secession. Support for the Union was almost nil, one of the lone supporters allegedly said; our state is to small to be a nation and to large to be an insane asylum. Two day after passing the Ordinance of Secession on December 22nd 1860 the state sent commissioners to Washington, DC to negotiate for the release of forts and other federal property within the state. During the next six weeks, six more southern states joined South Carolina.

The First General Prisoner

James Jay Archer the first general captured from the Army of Northern Virginia was born on December 19th 1817.

James Jay Archer was the son of John and Ann [Stump] Archer and was born December 19th 1917 in Bel Air, MD. In 1835 he graduated from Princeton, and than studied law at the University of Maryland. When the Mexican-American War began he volunteered for service in the United States Army. He was cited for bravery brevetted to the rank of Major. After the war he return to his law practice, but decided in 1855 to re-join the army as a Captain in the 9th United States Infantry.

At the beginning of the Civil War Archer was stationed at Fort Walla Walla, Washington. He resigned his commission on May 14th 1861 and joined the Confederate Army. Although he was a native of Maryland, he became the Colonel of the 5th Texas Infantry. Archer was promoted on June 3rd 1862 to Brigadier General and given command of regiments from Tennessee. These units would be joined by others to form the “Light Division” under General AP Hill.

At Gettysburg Archer’s health was deteriorating. His brigade was now part of Major General Henry Heth’s division. On the first day of fighting, after attacking Union Major General John F Reynolds first Corps, and than being pushed back across Willoughby Run, the sick and exhausted Archer took cover in a thicket, where Union Private Patrick Maloney of the 2nd Wisconsin took Archer prisoner. This made him the first General to be captured from the Army of Northern Virginia since Robert E Lee took over command. He was sent to Fort Delaware along with his younger brother and aide-de-camp Robert Harris Archer. James Archer was eventually sent to Johnson’s Island in Ohio on the coast of Lake Erie, where he was held for about a year. He was exchanged in the late summer of 1864, reporting on August 9th to the Army of Tennessee. It was during the Siege of Petersburg that his health caused a collapse after the Battle of Peebles’ Farm. He died October 24th 1864 in Richmond, VA and is buried in Hollywood Cemetery.

A Military Man

General Charles Griffin a Union general was born on December 18th 1825 in Granville, Ohio.

He went to Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio and graduated 23rd out of a class of 38 from West Point in 1847. He served with the 2nd US Artillery during the Mexican-American War.

General Griffin formed and than led the “West Point Battery”; Battery D of the 5th US Artillery at the First Manassa. He married Sallie Carroll of Maryland in December of 1861. He was leading men during the Peninsula Campaign when he was promoted to Brigadier General. Although he had a hard time getting along with his superiors, his leadership abilities continued to bring him promotions. He was given the honor by Ulysses S Grant to receive the arms and colors of the Army of Northern Virginia at Appomattox. After the Civil War was over he commanded the Reconstruction in Texas with headquarters in Galveston. He succumbed to Yellow Fever in Texas September 15th 1867, he is buried in Oak Hill Cemetery in Washington DC.

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.

The Fight in NC

In Lenoir Co, North Carolina on December 14th 1862 the Battle of Kinston was fought.

A Union force lead by General John G Foster headed out from New Bern, North Carolina, with orders to destroy the railroad at Goldsborough, North Carolina. They were met near the Kinston Bridge by a brigade under the command of Confederate General Nathan Evans. However the Confederates were outnumbered and had to pull back in the direction of Goldsborough.

Fighting Over the Mountain

Forces lead by Confederate Colonel Edward Johnson occupied the summit of Allegheny Mountain in Pocahontas Co,Virginia [now West Virginia] on December 13th 1861, to defend the Staunton Parkersburg Pike.

On the morning of December 13th 1861, Union troops under the leadership of Brigadier General Robert Milroy attacked the Confederates holding the pass. With each side maneuvering for advantage, the fighting went on through out the morning. The Union troops were finally repulsed by a artillery battery and Milroy’s men retreated to Green Spring Run near Cheat Mountain. There were an estimated 137 Union, and 146 Confederate casualties.

The end of the year found Confederate Colonel Edward Johnson with five regiments still in Camp Allegheny on the mountain top, were they suffered through the winter weather until April 1862.

The Youngest In West Point

In Philadelphia PA on December 3rd 1826 George B McClellan was born.

George Brinton McClellan was the Major General of the Army of the Potomac from Nov 1861 to March 1862. He played an important role in creating the organized and well-trained army that became the Union force. He was the son of Dr George and Elizabeth Steinmetz [Brinton] McClellen. He was the third of five children born to the couple. Gen McClellan first attended University of PA in 1840 at the age of 13, but two years latter decided his goal was military service. With the help of a letter written to President John Tyler by his father, some rules where changed and he was allowed to enter West Point at the age of 15. He graduated in 1846 the second in his class. After his term of military service he entered politics, running as a Democrat in the 1864 Presidential election against Lincoln. He was finally elected to the Governor of New Jersey in 1877. George McClellan died October 29th 1885 in Orange,NJ.

For further reading