Following the American Civil War Sesquicentennial with day by day writings of the time, currently 1863.

Wednesday, July 3, 2013

Post image for A Diary of American Events.

A Diary of American Events.

July 3, 2013

The Rebellion Record—A Diary of American Events; by Frank Moore

July 3.—The following “commendable appeal” to the foreign residents of Richmond, Va., appeared in the Enquirer, published in that city, to-day:

To British Subjects:

Fellow-countrymen : If you desire to protect your homes, and the homes of your friends, from the touch of the ruthless invader; if you believe, as we do, in the justice of the Southern cause, and desire its success; if you have interests here to defend, then it is manifestly your duty, as brave and chivalrous men, to take up arms at this crisis. The history of our past precludes the possibility of our being cowards; but let us here, and now, in this righteous struggle for constitutional law and liberty, add another laurel to our ancestral history.

Those of you who are willing to offer yourselves, for either temporary or permanent duty, should report at once to the undersigned: Sydney II. Davis, Lieutenant H. B. M., Sixteenth regiment, Arlington House. F. L. Buxton, Lieutenant Royal Berks volunteers, Mrs. Duval’s, corner Fourteenth and Ross streets.

—At Vicksburgh, Miss., at eight o’clock this morning, flags of truce appeared before A. J. Smith’s front, when the rebels, Major-General Bowen and Colonel Montgomery, were led blindfolded into the Union lines. They bore a communication from General Pemberton, of the following purport:

“Although I feel confident of my ability to resist your arms indefinitely, in order to stop the further effusion of blood, I propose that you appoint three commissioners, to meet three whom I shall select, to arrange such terms as may best accomplish the result.”

General Grant replied in these words:

“The appointment of commissioners is unnecessary. While I should be glad to stop any unnecessary effusion of blood, the only terms which I can entertain are those of unconditional surrender. At the same time, myself and men, and officers of this army, are ready to testify to the distinguished gallantry with which the defence of Vicksburgh has been conducted.”

At eleven o’clock the messengers returned. This afternoon General Grant met General Pemberton between the lines, and after an hour’s consultation settled the surrender of the place. —(Docs. 25, 36, and 146.)

—The National Guards, Colonel “Wright commanding, composed of the most substantial citizens of Newbern, N. C., received their arms and equipments and entered upon duty at the garrison of that place.

—Major-general French sent a force toward Williamsport, Md., which was successful in capturing and destroying the pontoon train of the rebels. The guard, consisting of a lieutenant and only thirteen men, were taken.—General French’s Despatch.

—The following orders were issued at New Orleans, La., by Brigadier-General Emory: “Hereafter no public assemblages, except for public worship under a regular, commissioned priest, will be allowed in this city for any purpose or on any pretence whatever, by white or black, without the written consent of the Commander of the defences of New-Orleans ; and no more than three persons will be allowed to assemble or congregate together upon the streets of the city. Whenever more than that number are found together by the patrol, they shall be ordered to disperse, and failing to do so, the offenders shall be placed in arrest.

“All bar-rooms, coffee-houses, stores, and shops of every description, will be closed at nine o’clock P.M.

“All club-rooms and gambling-houses are hereby closed until further orders.

“No citizens or other persons, except the police and officers in the United States service, or soldiers on duty or with passes, are to be allowed in the streets after nine o’clock P.M.”—

The United States transport boat Zephyr was fired into, at a point six miles below Donaldsonville, La, and two men were wounded.—A fight occurred at Fairfield, Pa., between the Sixth United States cavalry, under Major Samuel H. Starr, and two brigades of rebel cavalry, under Generals Robinson and Jones.— Philadelphia Enquirer.

—The battle of Gettysburgh was concluded this day. Repulsed at every point, General Lee withdrew in the night, leaving General Meade master of the field.—(Docs. 20 and 118.)

—Suffolk, Va., was evacuated by the Union troops.—A circular letter was issued from the Treasury Department by Secretary Chase, regulating the disposition of abandoned, captured and confiscable property in the rebel districts.

Post image for Death of General Zook.–Diary of Josiah Marshall Favill.

Death of General Zook.–Diary of Josiah Marshall Favill.

July 3, 2013

Diary of a Young Officer–Josiah Marshall Favill (57th New York Infantry)

[July 3d]

Zook was calm, serene, and dignified, speaking occasionally, but never of himself, and apparently suffered but little pain. At daylight we concluded to move still further to the rear, as the cannon balls sometimes reached even this dreadful spot, so we took up the stretcher, and moved down the road amidst a motley crowd of ambulances, ammunition trains, and disorganized men, making it very difficult to get along; about a mile down the road we turned to the right, and took possession of a comfortable house; it was occupied by several women, who were scared out of their wits, and glad to have us in the house. We placed the general on the stretcher in the front room to the left on entering, and had the women make some chicken soup or broth. I asked the general if he would not like to see Dwight, the noted chaplain of the Sixty-sixth, a special favorite of his, but he declined, saying it was too late. He signified his wishes in respect to his private affairs, and requested me to attend to everything for him, then calmly awaited the end. At times he brightened up and spoke with considerable animation, so that we began to think the doctor might be mistaken, and tried to make him think so too, but he shook his head and said there was no hope. We had frequently amongst ourselves discussed the nature of various wounds, and were all aware that a shot through the intestines was considered necessarily fatal. He drank a little whiskey at times, and some of the broth that the women made for him, but towards evening he began to fail, and at five o’clock peacefully breathed his last.

Thus ended the career of a brilliant officer, an estimable gentleman, and a faithful friend. Killed at the head of his troops, on his native soil, defending the honor and integrity of the country he loved so well, is after all a glorious death to die, and so far as he is concerned, perhaps is the most fitting climax of a brilliant career. It is quite a different thing for those of us belonging to his military family, who have gone hand in hand together, since the very formation of the army of the Potomac. I was his chief aide-de-camp and enjoyed his confidence completely. He was to all of us friendly in the extreme, just, exacting at times, but always ready to acknowledge and give us credit whenever we deserved it. His death interrupts all our plans for the future, and our interest in military affairs seems to have entirely evaporated. What a blank in our lives his death will cause. From the day I met him first on Staten Island, when I turned out the guard to please him, I have been with him and always close to him, and knew him more intimately than any other person in the army. He was ambitious and intended getting transferred to the west at the first opportunity, where he held greater chances existed for independent commands, and consequently for gaining distinction.

Broom wrote Mitchell, of Hancock’s staff, a line notifying him of the general’s death, and asking for passes, so that we could take the body home, which were immediately sent to us. Early the following morning, July 4th, we secured some ice, packed the remains in a rude box, and sent them over to the railway station in an ambulance.

Post image for The Siege Itself.

The Siege Itself.

July 3, 2013

War Diary of a Union Woman in the South by Dora Richards Miller

July 3d, 1863.—H. was going to headquarters for the requisite pass, and he saw General Pemberton crawling out of a cave, for the shelling has been as hot as ever. He got the pass, but did not act with his usual caution, for the boat he secured was a miserable, leaky one—a mere trough. Leaving Martha in charge, we went to the river, had our trunks put in the boat, and embarked; but the boat became utterly unmanageable, and began to fill with water rapidly. H. saw that we could not cross it and turned to come back; yet in spite of that the pickets at the battery fired on us. H. raised the white flag he had, yet they fired again, and I gave a cry of horror that none of these dreadful things had wrung from me. I thought H. was struck. When we landed H. showed the pass, and said that the officer had told him the battery would be notified we were to cross. The officer apologized and said they were not notified. He furnished a cart to get us home, and to-day we are down in the cellar again, shells flying as thick as ever. Provisions are so nearly gone, except the hogshead of sugar, that a few more days will bring us to starvation indeed. Martha says rats are hanging dressed in the market for sale with mule meat,—there is nothing else. The officer at the battery told me he had eaten one yesterday. We have tried to leave this Tophet and failed, and if the siege continues I must summon that higher kind of courage—moral bravery—to subdue my fears of possible mutilation.

______

Note: To protect Mrs. Miller’s job as a teacher in New Orleans, the diary was published anonymously, edited by G. W. Cable, names were changed and initials were often used instead of full names — and even the initials differed from the real person’s initials.
Post image for Through Some Eventful Years

Through Some Eventful Years

July 3, 2013

The American Civil War,Through Some Eventful Years by Susan Bradford Eppes

July 2nd, 1863.—Yesterday fighting began on Pennsylvania soil. The army of Northern Virginia, the bravest army in the history of wars, may, even now be struggling with the foe. Oh, how horrible it is to know that those you love are in such danger! There must be aching hearts at the North as well as here. I feel for all who suffer and it seems to me the bond of brotherhood, which once united the two sections, ought to make us kinder in our judgments; more merciful in our actions. But war is a monster and destroys charity.

Post image for A Rebel War Clerk’s Diary

A Rebel War Clerk’s Diary

July 3, 2013

A Rebel War Clerk's Diary at the Confederate States Capital, By John Beauchamp Jones

by John Beauchamp Jones

            JULY 3D.—My son Custis stayed out all night, sleeping on his arms in the farthest intrenchments. A little beyond, there was a skirmish with the enemy. We lost eight in killed and wounded. What the enemy suffered is not known, but he fell back, and ran toward the White House.

            This morning, Mr. Child, agent for exchange of prisoners, reported that “not a Yankee could be found on the face of the earth.” And this induced a general belief that the enemy had retired, finally, being perhaps ordered to Washington, where they may be much needed.

            The Secretary of War, believing the same thing, intimated to Gen. Elzey (who for some cause is unable to ride, and therefore remains in the city) a desire to send several regiments away to some menaced point at a distance. In response, Elzey writes that none can be spared with safety; that the enemy had apparently divided his force into two bodies, one for Hanover, and the other for the Chickahominy, and both strong; and he advised against weakening the forces here. He said he had not yet completed the manning of the batteries, the delay being in arming the men—and he hoped “Hill could hold out.”

            We have 3400 convalescents at CampLee, and as many more may be relied on for the defense of the city; so we shall have not less than 22,000 men for the defense of Richmond. The enemy have perhaps 35,000; but it would require 75,000 to storm our batteries. Let this be remembered hereafter, if the 35,000 sent here on a fool’s errand might have saved Washington or Baltimore, or have served to protect Pennsylvania—and then let the press of the North bag the administration at Washington! Gen. Lee’s course is “right onward,” and cannot be affected by events here.

            My friend Jacques (clerk) marched out yesterday with the Department Guard; but he had the diarrhœa, and was excused from marching as far as the company. He also got permission to come to town this morning, having slept pretty well, he said, apart from the company. No doubt he did good service in the city today, having his rifle fixed (the ball, I believe, had got down before the powder), and procuring a basket of edibles and a canteen of strong tea, which he promised to share with the mess. He said he saw Custis this morning, looking well, after sleeping on the ground the first time in his life, and without a blanket.

            We have nothing further from the North or the West.

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