Chronological History of the American Civil War

P a g e | 71

Friday, August 8, 1862 : President Lincoln directs his secretary of war to issue order for arrest of persons engaged in draft dodging enlistments. It seems people were moving and not leaving forwarding addresses. Saturday, August 9, 1862 : Some knew it as Cedar Mountain, after today it was better known as Slaughter Mountain. General John Pope (U.S.) was near Culpeper, Virginia, heading for Gordonsville to capture the railroad junction there. Stonewall Jackson’s (CSA) corps was there in wait. The Federals gained an early advantage, but a Confederate counterattack led by A.P. Hill (CSA) repulsed the Federals and won the day. Confederate General, William Winder was killed along with 1,200 other Southerners and 1,500 Northerners. Sunday, August 10, 1862 : With the all volunteer army in both North and South not working too well after over a year of fighting, draft laws were set and being enforced everywhere. In the North for $300 you could buy your way out of the service, but in Texas today, a party of 61 German Texans from the Hill Country counties, who were fleeing to Mexico, were overtaken by the Texas Confederate cavalrymen on the Nueces River. Shots were fired and as a result 34 German Texans were killed, with some being executed after being taken prisoner.

Monday, August 11, 1862 : Colonel J.T. Hughes’s Confederate force, including William Quantrill (pictured), attacked Independence, Missouri at dawn. They drove through the town to the Union Army camp, capturing, killing and scattering the Yankees. During the melee, Colonel Hughes was killed, but the Confederates took Independence which led to a Confederate dominance in the Kansas City area for a short time. Quantrill's role in the capture of Independence led to his being commissioned a captain in the Confederate Army. Also today, a Union force entered Saulsbury, Tennessee and attacked a group of Confederate guerrilla cavalry. The Confederates were soon routed from the area. Tuesday, August 12, 1862 : Confederate General John Hunt Morgan’s

cavalry captures the U.S. garrison at Gallatin, Tennessee. Morgan's men set fire to a captured Union supply train, which Morgan had loaded up with hay, and pushed the train into the 800 foot railroad tunnel. Inside the tunnel, the wooden support beams caught fire and burned until they collapsed. This action would have the railroad and tunnel closed for months to come and destroys South Tunnel on the railroad. In Bolivar, Tennessee, John Houston Bills of “The Pillars” writes: “Some 20 of our Citizens who have not taken the oath of Allegiance are arrested yesterday and 15 of them sent north by the train this morning. Amongst them Jo Neilson & Jerome Hill.” Wednesday, August 13, 1862 : John Houston Bills continued in his diary: “Still very dry & hot. No favourable change in the War Matters. Just beyond endurance. 850 have Sworn allegiance to the U.S.” The Union steamers, U.S.S. George Peabod y and U.S.S. West Point , were travelling on the Potomac River. Unfortunately, both ships collided into each other. Both were carrying wounded men from Burnside’s corps, who had recovered enough to go to a convalescent hospital. The death toll in the collision was 73. General Robert E. Lee (CSA) issues orders in preparation for the Army of Northern Virginia's movement north to engage John Pope's (U.S.) Army of Virginia. Skirmish starts near Medon, Tennessee. Thursday, August 14, 1862 : President Lincoln, meets with a "committee of colored men," to whom he proposes a program by which blacks living in America would voluntarily relocate to a Central American country. Lincoln explains, "You and we are different races. We have between us a broader difference than exists between almost any other two races. Whether it is right or wrong I need not discuss, but, this physical difference is a great disadvantage to us both, as I think your race suffer very greatly, many of them by living among us, while ours suffer from your presence. In a word, we suffer on each side." Friday, August 15, 1862 : With new orders from General Halleck (U.S.); General George McClellan (U.S.) withdraws from the Virginia Peninsula. Commodore Wilkes (U.S.) sent three gunboats, the U.S.S. Galena, Satellite and Port Royal , up the James River to the Chickahominy. Their assignment was to