What was the most significant event on June 24 during the U.S. Civil War?

LTC Stephen F. — Sun, 26 Jun 2016 18:35:16 -0400

In 1863, tens of thousands of soldiers and thousands of horses and team animals pulling wagons were generally making their way north from Virginia through, Maryland and making their way to Pennsylvania on dirt roads. Rain and broken wagon wheels or axles caused stoppages or slowdowns of movement. The weather in June was warm to hot with flies, mosquitoes and other bugs irritating men and animals. When columns of forces met at intersections right of way needed to be worked out – sometimes very roughly.
Cross country travel was difficult in farm areas as well as in wooded areas which is why soldiers tended to march along roads. When cavalry or “important” horse mounted people came through, NCOs or commissioned officers or both would get troops to move to the side to make room for the riders to pass. Marching on dirt roads which grew wet from rain mixed with animal manure and urine made the march less than pleasant for most.
Tuesday, June 24, 1862: Josiah Marshall Favill, an officer in the 57th New York Infantry, notes this interesting observation about a soldier’s life in his journal: “Almost every man in the regiment got a thorough drenching last night; their arms, too. The colonel ordered fires lighted to dry the blankets and clothing, and on the color line at break of day every ball cartridge was withdrawn and the men ordered to clean their muskets. After breakfast the regiment fell in, and arms were carefully inspected, then reloaded. It is extraordinary how little the men require looking after in regard to their muskets! There are few men who do not keep them in perfect order all the time.
Pictures: 1863 Gettysburg Campaign Map; USS Queen City; 1864-06 Sheridan's Trevilian Station Raid return Map; CSS Tacony

A. 1862: First Oregon Cavalry was ordered to Walla Walla Country and Mining Districts of Nez Perce and Salmon River Countries to protect emigrants and miners. On June 24 the following companies began moving from near Oregon City to Fort Dalles and then to Fort Walla Walla, Washington Territory: Company "A", Company "C", Company "D" and Company "F".
B. 1863: Portland, Maine. The Confederate raider CSS Tacony, commanded by Lieutenant Charles Read, CSN was being pursued by the Union Navy. The crew of the CSS Tacony captured the fishing schooner USS Archer off Portland. Realizing that some Union naval ships were pursuing his ship, Reed and his men burned the Tacony then slipped into Portland harbor about 2 days later aboard the Archer.
C. 1864: The Battle of Saint Mary's Church. CSA Maj. Gen. Wade Hampton's cavalry force approached and prepared to attack dismounted, while simultaneously entrenching. From 3 to 4 p.m., Hampton's five brigades attacked Brig. Gen. David McM. Gregg's two. The pressure was too great on the Union cavalrymen and they began to withdraw down the road to Charles City Court House, which they reached about 8 p.m. Skirmishing lasted until 10 p.m. One of the Confederates wrote, "The enemy position was a strong one. ... They fought vigorously for a while but as our boys closed in on them they fled and when they broke the mounted cavalry was order[ed] to charge which they did driving pell mell for 3 miles capturing quite a number of prisoners, they leaving their dead and wounded in our care."
Background: As Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan's Union cavalry of the Army of the Potomac returned from their unsuccessful raid against the Virginia Central Railroad and the Battle of Trevilian Station, they gathered up supply wagons from the recently abandoned supply depot at White House and proceeded toward the James River. On June 24, the Confederate cavalry under Maj. Gen. Wade Hampton attacked the column of Brig. Gen. David McM. Gregg's division at St. Mary's Church. The Confederates outnumbered the Union cavalrymen five brigades to two and were able to drive them from their breastworks, but Gregg's men successfully screened the wagon train, which continued to move unmolested to the James.
Sheridan headed toward Deep Bottom on his way to link up with Union infantry at Bermuda Hundred. Near Westover Church, Union Brig. Gen. Alfred T. A. Torbert's division was stalled by Confederate resistance. On June 24, Brig. Gen. David McM. Gregg's division occupied a covering position near Samaria Church, on the road to Charles City, while Sheridan ferried Torbert's division and the supply train across the James at Douthat's Landing.
Battle: On June 24, Gen. Alfred T. A. Torbert s division continued to escort the wagons toward Harrison's Landing on the James as Gregg's division followed a parallel route, protecting the right flank. Torbert encountered Brig. Gen. Lunsford L. Lomax's brigade near the Charles City Court House and drove it back. At about 8 a.m., Gregg's brigade under Brig. Gen. Henry E. Davies, Jr., arrived in the vicinity of Samaria Church, at the intersection of three roads, where they found Confederate pickets. A charge by the 2nd Pennsylvania Cavalry pushed the pickets to the north and Davies's brigade entrenched to the west of the intersection. Davies took up the right flank of the line and Col. J. Irvin Gregg (General Gregg's cousin) the left.
Hampton's force approached and prepared to attack dismounted, while simultaneously entrenching. From 3 to 4 p.m., Hampton's five brigades attacked Gregg's two. The pressure was too great on the Union cavalrymen and they began to withdraw down the road to Charles City Court House, which they reached about 8 p.m. Skirmishing lasted until 10 p.m. One of the Confederates wrote, "The enemy position was a strong one. ... They fought vigorously for a while but as our boys closed in on them they fled and when they broke the mounted cavalry was order[ed] to charge which they did driving pell mell for 3 miles capturing quite a number of prisoners, they leaving their dead and wounded in our care."
D. 1864: Cavalry versus Navy on the White River in Arkansas. Early in the morning, a Confederate cavalry brigade under the command of Brigadier General Joseph Shelby to the White River. Once there, he spotted 3 Union steamers traveling towards his position. Once the ships were within range, he ordered his men to open fire. They attacked all 3 ships. Two of the ships managed to escape, but the USS Queen City was captured while it was docked at Clarendon. After stripping the ship of weapons, the Confederates set it afire. It drifted down the White River until it exploded. Three additional Federal ships soon arrived on the scene and engaged the Confederates on the riverbank, eventually forcing them to retreat from the town.

The Battle of Hoover's Gap, June 24, 1863
The Civil War battle of Hoover's Gap in Middle Tennessee , June 24th 1863 and the use of the Spencer repeating rifle of Wilder's Lightning Brigade
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=osaJ_PioTjY
FYI PV2 Larry Sellnow PV2 Scott M. LTC Trent Klug Maj Bill Smith, Ph.D. SPC Maurice Evans COL Randall C. SSgt David M. MAJ Private RallyPoint Member SPC Michael Oles SR Maj Marty Hogan CPT Chris Loomis CPT Private RallyPoint Member SSG Pete Fleming SSG Michael Scott SSG Bill McCoy SFC Ralph E Kelley 1stSgt Eugene Harless GySgt Jack Wallace

The Battle of Hoover's Gap

The Civil War battle of Hoover's Gap in Middle Tennessee , June 24th 1863 and the use of the Spencer repeating rifle Wilder's Lightning Brigade

Response by LTC Stephen F. made Jun 26 at 2016 6:40 PM

LTC Stephen F. — Sun, 26 Jun 2016 18:40:54 -0400

While the states were consumed with the Civil War, the people in the territories were dealing with economic and physical survival from the elements, drought, and occasional bandit or Indian attacks. Regular US Army soldiers and cavalry troopers were stationed in the western territories to maintain order and protect the settlers, prospectors, miners, etc.
Below are a number of journal entries from 1862 and 1863 which shed light on what life was like for soldiers and civilians – the good, the bad and the ugly.
Tuesday, June 24, 1862: In the U.S. Senate, Senator Willard Saulsbury, Sr., of Delaware (who once had distinguished himself by threatening the Senate’s sergeant-at-arms with a pistol to the head, in chambers), bares his opposition to the Confiscation Acts in a spirited protest on the basis of Constitutional law: “Mr. Saulsbury, of Delaware: Under the pretense of suppressing a causeless rebellion, the executive and legislative departments of this Government are, in my opinion, daily engaged in the grossest violations of the fundamental law. If in times of peace the Constitution is the surest protection of the citizen, in times of civil war it is his only hope of safety.
It is my purpose today, to strip assumption of its false pretensions, and to expose to public view the real authors and abettors of my country’s ruin. From my place I say that it is my deliberate and solemn conviction that either abolitionism or constitutional liberty must forever die; the two cannot exist together. Abolitionism has for the time being dissolved the Union. While it lives and rules, the Union will remain dissolved. . . .
For purposes of convenience they entered, as independent States, each with the other, into Articles of Confederation. In 1787, for the purpose of forming a more perfect union between them, these separate, independent, and sovereign States appointed delegates to a common convention, to consider and agree upon terms of union for purposes common to them all, subject, however, to their separate ratification and approval. The approval of a majority of all the people of these States could not make the agreement of the delegates a constitution for all or any of them. It required the separate approval of each separate State to make that agreement its constitution. When nine States had thus separately ratified this agreement, it became their constitution, but not the constitution of those States which had not given it their assent. . . . No one was mad enough then to propose emancipation of slaves as a condition of Union. . .
Seventy years later Lincoln was elected, Fort Sumter was fired. . . . On the day following the fall of Sumter, Congress passed a resolution that this war was to be waged to restore the Union, not to free slaves.
And how have you kept that word? You have abolished slavery in the District, when slave-owners claim their property, you turn the military upon them, making it an offense for any military officer to return a slave to his master. You have decoyed and afforded shelter to thousands of slaves. You are now feeding and clothing them. You are paying thousands of negroes to act as teamsters and you are arming the slaves. You are attempting to build up an abolition party in the Border States, and you have recognized Hayti and Liberia. You have by your bills proposed the emancipation of almost the entire slave population of the South. . . . Governments according to our theory, derive all their just powers from the consent of the governed. There is no divine right in the ruling power. In the Declaration of Independence, life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are declared to be inalienable rights; and that to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed; that whenever a government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to abolish it. . . .
This is the doctrine of Lincoln. In 1848, sitting in Congress, Lincoln said, “any people anywhere being inclined, and having the power, have the right to rise up and shake off the existing government. and form a new one that suits them better.”
Mr. President, the true theory of our government is this: the Federal Government is the creature of the States. They, being sovereign, made it. Within the sphere of its delegated powers they agreed that it should be supreme. They did not thereby relinquish their own sovereignty. . . . The Government of the United States was made by the people of the several States, acting in their separate State capacity, and not by a majority of the whole people of the United States, acting in their collective capacity. . . .
If you wage this war for the restoration of the Union as it was and the Constitution as it is, observing your own obligations under it. But if, in waging it, you mean to subvert the Constitution, which is the only bond and obligation of Union, if you mean to destroy or impair the rights of States or the people, you wage it under a false pretense and your war is murder and your success treason. . . . Did not slavery exist in the Southern States you never would have thought of this confiscation bill. You did not think of it in the war of 1812, in the war with Mexico. Why do you think of it now? Your design is to make this a war for the abolition of slavery. You desire to destroy the domestic institutions of the States. Abolition shouts Union, while meaning to destroy the only bond of Union.
Wednesday, June 24, 1863: Andrew J. Proffitt, a young Confederate soldier in Longstreet’s I Corps, writes home from a friends’ home and tells of the killing march through Virginia on the way to Pennsylvania: “. . . we have had another hard march from Fredericksbur toward Win-chester the march was so hard and the weather so hot that hundred give out I marched three days un-til I could go no more they halled me one day but the ambulances were so crowded that they broke part of them down so the doctors give me a pass to shift for myself I am at a first rate place & can stay as long as I choose I do not know when I will be able to go on but I suppose I will in a week or so. There is nothing the matter more than I am broken down, my feet worn out & my head pains me right smartly. All of which make me quite weak I can say to you that A. N. give out & was sent back to Culpepper he was right sick but I hope not dangerous. It was said that many marched until they fell dead on this march you need not be uneasy that I will do that I guess that I have been some where since I left home. do not be uneasy about me I am treated as kindly as I would at home. (from the Louis Round Wilson Special Collections, U. of North Carolina)

Pictures: 1864-06-24 Skirmish At Hares Hill June 24 Map; A. J. Blue, Union cavalry soldier; pacific northwest military forts and outposts

A. Tuesday, June 24, 1862: First Oregon Cavalry was organized at large in Oregon from February to April, 1862, and was under the command of Cols. Thomas R. Cornelius, Reuben F. Maury; Lieut.- Cols. Reuben F. Maury, Charles S. Drew; Majs. Charles S. Drew, J. S. Rinearson, Sewall Truax. The regiment concentrated in Williamette Valley and ordered May, 1862, to Walla Walla Country and Mining Districts of Nez Perce and Salmon River Countries to protect emigrants and miners. Headquarters at Fort Walla Walla, Washington Territory.
Company "A" moved from near Oregon City to Fort Dalles; thence to Fort Walla Walla, Washington Territory, June 24-July 12, 1862. Left Fort Walla Walla July 25, 1862, for Salmon Falls on Snake River Expedition against Snake Indians in Idaho August 19-October 11, 1862, and protecting emigrant roads until November.
Company "B" moved from Salem, Ore., to Fort Vancouver; thence to Fort Walla Walla via Fort Dalles May 14-June 2, 1862. Left Fort Walla Walla July 25. 1862, for Salmon Falls on Snake River. Expedition against Snake Indians in Idaho August 19-October 11, 1862, and protect emigrant roads until November 1, 1862.
Company "C" moved from near Oregon City to Fort Vancouver June 24, 1862. (A Detachment ordered to Jacksonville, Ore., July 2, 1862.)
Company "D" moved from near Oregon City to Fort Dalles; thence to Fort Walla Walla June 24-July 12, 1862. Left Fort Walla Walla July 25 for Salmon Falls on Snake River. Expedition against Snake Indians in Idaho and protecting emigrant roads August 19 to October 11, 1862.
Company "E" moved from Salem to Fort Vancouver; thence to Fort Walla Walla via Fort Dalles May 14-June 3, 1862. Duty at Fort Walla Walla until April, 1863. Expedition to Grand Ronde Prairie August 10-22, 1862.
Company "F" moved from near Oregon City to Fort Dalles; thence to Fort Walla Walla June 24-July 12, 1862. Duty near Lewiston, Nez Perce Reservation, July 25 to November 1, 1862.
B. Wednesday, June 24, 1863: Portland, Maine. The Confederate raider CSS Tacony, commanded by Lieutenant Charles Read, CSN was being pursued by the Union Navy. The crew of the CSS Tacony captured the fishing schooner USS Archer off Portland. Realizing that some Union naval ships were pursuing his ship, Reed and his men burned the Tacony then slipped into Portland harbor about 2 days later aboard the Archer.
C. Friday, June 24, 1864: The Battle of Saint Mary's Church (also called Samaria Church in the South, or Nance's Shop) was an American Civil War cavalry battle fought on
June 24, 1864, as part of Union Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's Overland Campaign against Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia.
As Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan's Union cavalry of the Army of the Potomac returned from their unsuccessful raid against the Virginia Central Railroad and the Battle of Trevilian Station, they gathered up supply wagons from the recently abandoned supply depot at White House and proceeded toward the James River. On June 24, the Confederate cavalry under Maj. Gen. Wade Hampton attacked the column of Brig. Gen. David McM. Gregg's division at St. Mary's Church. The Confederates outnumbered the Union cavalrymen five brigades to two and were able to drive them from their breastworks, but Gregg's men successfully screened the wagon train, which continued to move unmolested to the James.
Sheridan headed toward Deep Bottom on his way to link up with Union infantry at Bermuda Hundred. Near Westover Church, Union Brig. Gen. Alfred T. A. Torbert's division was stalled by Confederate resistance. On June 24, Brig. Gen. David McM. Gregg's division occupied a covering position near Samaria Church, on the road to Charles City, while Sheridan ferried Torbert's division and the supply train across the James at Douthat's Landing.
Battle: On June 24, Gen. Alfred T. A. Torbert s division continued to escort the wagons toward Harrison's Landing on the James as Gregg's division followed a parallel route, protecting the right flank. Torbert encountered Brig. Gen. Lunsford L. Lomax's brigade near the Charles City Court House and drove it back. At about 8 a.m., Gregg's brigade under Brig. Gen. Henry E. Davies, Jr., arrived in the vicinity of Samaria Church, at the intersection of three roads, where they found Confederate pickets. A charge by the 2nd Pennsylvania Cavalry pushed the pickets to the north and Davies's brigade entrenched to the west of the intersection. Davies took up the right flank of the line and Col. J. Irvin Gregg (General Gregg's cousin) the left.
Hampton's force approached and prepared to attack dismounted, while simultaneously entrenching. From 3 to 4 p.m., Hampton's five brigades attacked Gregg's two. The pressure was too great on the Union cavalrymen and they began to withdraw down the road to Charles City Court House, which they reached about 8 p.m. Skirmishing lasted until 10 p.m. One of the Confederates wrote, "The enemy position was a strong one. ... They fought vigorously for a while but as our boys closed in on them they fled and when they broke the mounted cavalry was order[ed] to charge which they did driving pell mell for 3 miles capturing quite a number of prisoners, they leaving their dead and wounded in our care."
Background: Following the Battle of Trevilian Station (June 11–12, 1864), Sheridan's cavalry began to return on June 13 from their unsuccessful raid against the Virginia Central Railroad. They crossed the North Anna River at Carpenter's Ford and then headed on the Catharpin Road in the direction of Spotsylvania Court House. On June 16 the column passed through Bowling Green and, traveling along the north bank of the Mattaponi River, arrived at King and Queen Court House on June 18.
While Sheridan's men were off on their raid, Grant's army had begun moving from Cold Harbor to cross the James River for an attack against Petersburg. In conjunction with this move, Grant ordered that his principal supply base be moved from White House on the Pamunkey River to City Point on the James. Sheridan learned that the White House depot had not yet been broken up, so he sent his wounded, prisoners, and African-Americans who had been following his column, to White House under escort on June 19, and then marched back to Dunkirk, where he could cross the Mattaponi.
Hampton's Confederate cavalry left Trevilian Station and followed Sheridan on roughly parallel roads to the south. His force consisted of Brig. Gen. Matthew C. Butler's and Brig. Gen. Thomas L. Rosser's brigades from his own division, Brig. Gen. Williams C. Wickham's brigade from Maj. Gen. Fitzhugh Lee's division, and Brig. Gen. John R. Chambliss's brigade from Maj. Gen. W.H.F. "Rooney" Lee's division. He added a newly formed cavalry brigade under Brig. Gen. Martin W. Gary.
On June 20, Fitz Lee attempted to attack the Union supply depot at White House, but Sheridan's arrival relieved the garrison there. On June 21, Sheridan crossed over the Pamunkey River, broke through the Confederate cordon at St. Peter's Church, and led 900 wagons toward the James River. They crossed the Chickahominy River on June 22 and June 23, bypassing stiff opposition south of Jones's Bridge on June 23; Hampton had been unable to intercept Sheridan prior to this, so crossed the Chickahominy upstream from the Union crossing and hastened south.
Aftermath: Except for the men left behind, Gregg's division escaped relatively intact. Among the prisoners was Col. Pennock Huey of the 8th Pennsylvania Cavalry. Casualties were about 350 Union, 250 Confederate. Having been blocked by Hampton's cavalry, Sheridan withdrew on June 25 and moved through Charles City Court House to Douthat's Landing, where the trains crossed the James on flatboats. His cavalry followed on June 27 and 28. The Confederate cavalry attempted to position themselves for another attack, but the Union force was too strong and the Southern horsemen were too worn out. Hampton received orders from Robert E. Lee to proceed to Petersburg as quickly as possible to deal with the Wilson-Kautz Raid against railroads south of the city. His men crossed the James on a pontoon bridge at Chaffin's Bluff, also on June 27 and 28.
Hampton was brilliant that hot, dry summer. Demonstrating his prowess as a fighter and only slightly restrained by the toll taken on his horses and men, he chased the Union cavalry all over Virginia and thrashed it each time they met. An early Confederate cavalry historian proclaimed that the Trevilian Raid "demonstrated anew that the Confederate cavalry under Hampton was just as enterprising, as valiant, as enthusiastic, and as brave and dauntless as when it fought under Stuart."
Eric J. Wittenberg, Glory Enough for All: Sheridan's raid to Trevilian Station and back to the Army of the Potomac achieved mixed results. He successfully diverted Confederate attention from Grant's crossing of the James, but was unsuccessful in his objective of cutting the Virginia Central Railroad, a critical supply line to the Confederate capital and Lee's army. He also suffered relatively heavy casualties—particularly in his officer corps—and lost a large number of his horses to battle and heat exhaustion. And yet Sheridan claimed his raid was an undeniable victory. In his 1866 official report on operations he wrote, "The result was constant success and the almost total annihilation of the rebel cavalry. We marched when and where we pleased; were always the attacking party, and always successful."
The results of Hampton's cavalry activities against Sheridan were also mixed, but are usually seen in a more positive light than Sheridan's. He had succeeded in protecting the railroads and, indirectly, Richmond. He achieved tactical victories on the second day of Trevilian Station and against Gregg at Samaria Church, but failed to destroy the Union cavalry or its trains. in August, he was named commander of the Cavalry Corps of the Army of Northern Virginia, filling the position that had remained open since the death of J.E.B. Stuart.
D. Friday, June 24, 1864: Cavalry versus Navy on the White River in Arkansas. Early in the morning, a Confederate cavalry brigade under the command of Brigadier General Joseph Shelby to the White River. Once there, he spotted 3 Union steamers traveling towards his position. Once the ships were within range, he ordered his men to open fire. They attacked all 3 ships. Two of the ships managed to escape, but the USS Queen City was captured while it was docked at Clarendon. After stripping the ship of weapons, the Confederates set it afire. It drifted down the White River until it exploded. Three additional Federal ships soon arrived on the scene and engaged the Confederates on the riverbank, eventually forcing them to retreat from the town.

1. Tuesday, June 24, 1862: General Lee issues Special Order No. 75, detailing each general’s role in the operation. General Jackson’s command is to be south of Hanover Court House by the evening of the 25th and will move out to begin the battle at 3 a.m. on the 26th. Meanwhile, General McClellan, though aware of the approach of Jackson and his troops, decides to take the high ground around Old Tavern on the Nine Mile Road on the 25th. It is a good spot to place his artillery and force the Confederates out of their fortifications. The Union general sees this as the first of a series of “regular steps,” after which he will ultimately be in a position to shell Richmond directly.
https://bjdeming.com/2012/06/18/the-american-civil-war-150th-anniversary-june-18-24-1862/
2. Tuesday, June 24, 1862 --- Outside of Richmond, Gen. Joseph Hooker’s U.S. division advances its picket lines closer to the city; there is considerable skirmishing with the Rebels in this operation.
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=June+24%2C+1862
3. Tuesday, June 24, 1862: The first exchange of fire took place between troops near Richmond.
http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/the-american-civil-war/american-civil-war-june-1862/
4. Tuesday, June 24, 1862 --- Josiah Marshall Favill, an officer in the 57th New York Infantry, notes this interesting observation about a soldier’s life in his journal: “Almost every man in the regiment got a thorough drenching last night; their arms, too. The colonel ordered fires lighted to dry the blankets and clothing, and on the color line at break of day every ball cartridge was withdrawn and the men ordered to clean their muskets. After breakfast the regiment fell in, and arms were carefully inspected, then reloaded. It is extraordinary how little the men require looking after in regard to their muskets! There are few men who do not keep them in perfect order all the time.
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=June+24%2C+1862
5. Tuesday, June 24, 1862 --- In the U.S. Senate, Senator Willard Saulsbury, Sr., of Delaware (who once had distinguished himself by threatening the Senate’s sergeant-at-arms with a pistol to the head, in chambers), bares his opposition to the Confiscation Acts in a spirited protest on the basis of Constitutional law: “Mr. Saulsbury, of Delaware: Under the pretense of suppressing a causeless rebellion, the executive and legislative departments of this Government are, in my opinion, daily engaged in the grossest violations of the fundamental law. If in times of peace the Constitution is the surest protection of the citizen, in times of civil war it is his only hope of safety.
It is my purpose today, to strip assumption of its false pretensions, and to expose to public view the real authors and abettors of my country’s ruin. From my place I say that it is my deliberate and solemn conviction that either abolitionism or constitutional liberty must forever die; the two cannot exist together. Abolitionism has for the time being dissolved the Union. While it lives and rules, the Union will remain dissolved. . . .
For purposes of convenience they entered, as independent States, each with the other, into Articles of Confederation. In 1787, for the purpose of forming a more perfect union between them, these separate, independent, and sovereign States appointed delegates to a common convention, to consider and agree upon terms of union for purposes common to them all, subject, however, to their separate ratification and approval. The approval of a majority of all the people of these States could not make the agreement of the delegates a constitution for all or any of them. It required the separate approval of each separate State to make that agreement its constitution. When nine States had thus separately ratified this agreement, it became their constitution, but not the constitution of those States which had not given it their assent. . . . No one was mad enough then to propose emancipation of slaves as a condition of Union. . .
Seventy years later Lincoln was elected, Fort Sumter was fired. . . . On the day following the fall of Sumter, Congress passed a resolution that this war was to be waged to restore the Union, not to free slaves.
And how have you kept that word? You have abolished slavery in the District, when slave-owners claim their property, you turn the military upon them, making it an offense for any military officer to return a slave to his master. You have decoyed and afforded shelter to thousands of slaves. You are now feeding and clothing them. You are paying thousands of negroes to act as teamsters and you are arming the slaves. You are attempting to build up an abolition party in the Border States, and you have recognized Hayti and Liberia. You have by your bills proposed the emancipation of almost the entire slave population of the South. . . . Governments according to our theory, derive all their just powers from the consent of the governed. There is no divine right in the ruling power. In the Declaration of Independence, life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are declared to be inalienable rights; and that to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed; that whenever a government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to abolish it. . . .
This is the doctrine of Lincoln. In 1848, sitting in Congress, Lincoln said, “any people anywhere being inclined, and having the power, have the right to rise up and shake off the existing government. and form a new one that suits them better.”
Mr. President, the true theory of our government is this: the Federal Government is the creature of the States. They, being sovereign, made it. Within the sphere of its delegated powers they agreed that it should be supreme. They did not thereby relinquish their own sovereignty. . . . The Government of the United States was made by the people of the several States, acting in their separate State capacity, and not by a majority of the whole people of the United States, acting in their collective capacity. . . .
If you wage this war for the restoration of the Union as it was and the Constitution as it is, observing your own obligations under it. But if, in waging it, you mean to subvert the Constitution, which is the only bond and obligation of Union, if you mean to destroy or impair the rights of States or the people, you wage it under a false pretense and your war is murder and your success treason. . . . Did not slavery exist in the Southern States you never would have thought of this confiscation bill. You did not think of it in the war of 1812, in the war with Mexico. Why do you think of it now? Your design is to make this a war for the abolition of slavery. You desire to destroy the domestic institutions of the States. Abolition shouts Union, while meaning to destroy the only bond of Union.
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=June+24%2C+1862
6. Wednesday, June 24, 1863 --- Siege of Vicksburg, Day 33
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=June+24%2C+1863
7. Wednesday, June 24, 1863 --- Siege of Port Hudson, Day 28
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=June+24%2C+1863
8. Wednesday, June 24, 1863 --- Andrew J. Proffitt, a young Confederate soldier in Longstreet’s I Corps, writes home from a friends’ home and tells of the killing march through Virginia on the way to Pennsylvania: “. . . we have had another hard march from Fredericksbur toward Win-chester the march was so hard and the weather so hot that hundred give out I marched three days un-til I could go no more they halled me one day but the ambulances were so crowded that they broke part of them down so the doctors give me a pass to shift for myself I am at a first rate place & can stay as long as I choose I do not know when I will be able to go on but I suppose I will in a week or so. There is nothing the matter more than I am broken down, my feet worn out & my head pains me right smartly. All of which make me quite weak I can say to you that A. N. give out & was sent back to Culpepper he was right sick but I hope not dangerous. It was said that many marched until they fell dead on this march you need not be uneasy that I will do that I guess that I have been some where since I left home. do not be uneasy about me I am treated as kindly as I would at home. (from the Louis Round Wilson Special Collections, U. of North Carolina)
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=June+24%2C+1863
9. Wednesday, June 24, 1863: Gettysburg campaign: The Army of Northern Virginia and the Army of the Potomac are both moving northwards.
The two armies caused massive traffic jams everywhere they went. (Sven H)
The two armies cause massive traffic jams throughout the area’s urban corridors. (Sven H)
Skirmishing between Yankee and Rebel is ongoing in parts of Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania pretty much on a daily basis. General Hooker tells Washington that he will send at least a corps across the Potomac to protect Washington and then block Lee’s probable line of retreat. Lincoln is not impressed by this plan.
https://bjdeming.com/2013/06/27/the-american-civil-war-150th-anniversary-june-24-30-1863/
10. Wednesday, June 24, 1863 --- The Gettysburg Campaign. Jeb Stuart writes orders to detail off two of his brigades---under Grumble Jones and Beverly Robertson, under Robertson’s overall command---to harass and scourge the Yankees, and to keep a screen between the enemy and Lee’s army, “keeping on its right and rear.” In the meantime, Stuart is apparently taking the option of riding around the Yankee army with his three remaining brigades of Hampton, Lee, and Chambliss.
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=June+24%2C+1863
11. Wednesday, June 24, 1863 --- The Gettysburg Campaign. Chambersburg, Penn. Gen. Ewell’s men of the II Corps enter Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, one of the key points that Lee needs to supply his campaign. The men of Rodes’ division enter first, and the locals are surprised and gratified that the Rebels are not looting and ransacking the town. Gen. Early’s division detaches Gen. Steuart (no relation to Jeb) with his infantry brigade to move west from Greencastle to Mercersburg and then McConnellsburg, due west of Chambersburg. Ewell sends Early east from Chambersburg toward Cashtown and then the crossroads town of Gettysburg. Rodes’ division will continue to follow the main pike towards Shippensburg (where Jenkins’ small cavalry brigade is) and then Carlisle, where a modest force of Yankee cavalry and infantry await.
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=June+24%2C+1863
12. Wednesday, June 24, 1863 --- Gen. Richard Anderson’s division of A.P. Hill’s III Corps crosses the Potomac into Maryland today.
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=June+24%2C+1863
13. Wednesday, June 24, 1863 --- The renowned Pennsylvania Reserves division is called up into active service again. Gen. Samuel W. Crawford is given command of the 1st and 3rd Brigades, with the 2nd brigade is added to the troops protecting Washington.
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=June+24%2C+1863
14. Wednesday, June 24, 1863 --- Gen. Rosecrans’ Federal troops skirmish with Confederate troops in Tennessee, near Guy’s, Liberty, and Hanover gaps.
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=June+24%2C+1863
15. Wednesday, June 24, 1863 --- Col. Mizener (Misener?) and a raiding force of Federal cavalry return to La Grange, Tennessee from a raid down into Mississippi, leaving a wake of destruction in his path.
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=June+24%2C+1863
16. Wednesday, June 24, 1863: Louisiana operations: Skirmishing at Mound Plantation, Lake Providence, Bayou Boeuf Crossing and Chacahoula Station.
https://bjdeming.com/2013/06/27/the-american-civil-war-150th-anniversary-june-24-30-1863/
17. June 24, 1864 at Saint Mary's Church, Virginia - On June 24, Maj. Gen. Wade Hampton's cavalry attempted to cut off Maj Gen Philip Sheridan’s cavalry returning from their raid to Trevilian Station. Maj. gen. Philip Sheridan fought a delaying action to protect a long supply train under his protection, then rejoined the Union army at Bermuda Hundred. This was part of Grant's Overland Campaign
http://www.mycivilwar.com/battles/1864s.html
18. Friday, June 24, 1864: Sheridan’s raid: St. Mary’s Church.
https://bjdeming.com/2014/06/22/the-american-civil-war-150th-anniversary-june-23-29-1864/
19. Friday, June 24, 1864: Siege of Petersburg, The battle of Jerusalem Plank Road ends. Siege of Petersburg, Wilson-Kautz (USA) raid: Both Wilson and Kautz spend the day wrecking track and destroying railroad facilities. Kautz rejoins Wilson in the evening between Meherrin Station and Keysville.
https://bjdeming.com/2014/06/22/the-american-civil-war-150th-anniversary-june-23-29-1864/
20. Friday, June 24, 1864: Per General Sherman: “During the 24th and 25th of June General Schofield extended his right as far as prudent, so as to compel the enemy to thin out his lines correspondingly, with the intention to make two strong assaults at points where success would give us the greatest advantage. I had consulted Generals Thomas, McPherson, and Schofield, and we all agreed that we could not with prudence stretch out any more, and therefore there was no alternative but to attack “fortified lines,” a thing carefully avoided up to that time. I reasoned, if we could make a breach anywhere near the rebel centre, and thrust in a strong head of column, that with the one moiety of our army we could hold in check the corresponding wing of the enemy, and with the other sweep in flank and overwhelm the other half. The 27th of June was fixed as the day for the attempt, and in order to oversee the whole, and to be in close communication with all parts of the army, I had a place cleared on the top of a hill to the rear of Thomas’s centre, and had the telegraph-wires laid to it. The points of attack were chosen, and the troops were all prepared with as little demonstration as possible.”
https://bjdeming.com/2014/06/22/the-american-civil-war-150th-anniversary-june-23-29-1864/

A First Oregon Cavalry was organized at large in Oregon from February to April, 1862, and was under the command of Cols. Thomas R. Cornelius, Reuben F. Maury; Lieut.- Cols. Reuben F. Maury, Charles S. Drew; Majs. Charles S. Drew, J. S. Rinearson, Sewall Truax. The regiment concentrated in Williamette Valley and ordered May, 1862, to Walla Walla Country and Mining Districts of Nez Perce and Salmon River Countries to protect emigrants and miners. Headquarters at Fort Walla Walla, Washington Territory.
Company "A" moved from near Oregon City to Fort Dalles; thence to Fort Walla Walla, Washington Territory, June 24-July 12, 1862. Left Fort Walla Walla July 25, 1862, for Salmon Falls on Snake River Expedition against Snake Indians in Idaho August 19-October 11, 1862, and protecting emigrant roads until November.
Company "B" moved from Salem, Ore., to Fort Vancouver; thence to Fort Walla Walla via Fort Dalles May 14-June 2, 1862. Left Fort Walla Walla July 25. 1862, for Salmon Falls on Snake River. Expedition against Snake Indians in Idaho August 19-October 11, 1862, and protect emigrant roads until November 1, 1862.
Company "C" moved from near Oregon City to Fort Vancouver June 24, 1862. (A Detachment ordered to Jacksonville, Ore., July 2, 1862.)
Company "D" moved from near Oregon City to Fort Dalles; thence to Fort Walla Walla June 24-July 12, 1862. Left Fort Walla Walla July 25 for Salmon Falls on Snake River. Expedition against Snake Indians in Idaho and protecting emigrant roads August 19 to October 11, 1862.
Company "E" moved from Salem to Fort Vancouver; thence to Fort Walla Walla via Fort Dalles May 14-June 3, 1862. Duty at Fort Walla Walla until April, 1863. Expedition to Grand Ronde Prairie August 10-22, 1862.
Company "F" moved from near Oregon City to Fort Dalles; thence to Fort Walla Walla June 24-July 12, 1862. Duty near Lewiston, Nez Perce Reservation, July 25 to November 1, 1862.
http://www.thomaslegion.net/americancivilwar/oregoncivilwarhistory.html
B Wednesday, June 24, 1863: Portland, Maine - On June 24, the Confederate raider CSS Tacony, commanded by Lt. Reed (according to some sources, he was known as C.S. Reed, according to other sources he was C.W. Read), captured the fishing schooner USS Archer off Portland.
Realizing that some Union naval ships were pursuing his ship, Reed and his men burned the Tacony then slipped into Portland harbor about 2 days later aboard the Archer
http://www.mycivilwar.com/battles/1863s.html
B+ Wednesday, June 24, 1863: The Battle of Portland Harbor was an incident during the American Civil War, in June 1863, in the waters off Portland, Maine. Two civilian ships engaged two vessels under Confederate States Navy employment.
Around June 24, a Confederate raider named the Tacony, commanded by Lieutenant Charles Read, CSN, was being pursued by the Union Navy. To thwart their pursuers, at about 2 AM on the 25th, the Confederates captured the Archer, a Maine fishing schooner out of Southport. After transferring their supplies and cargo onto Archer, the Confederates set fire to Tacony, hoping the Union Navy would believe the ship was destroyed.
http://www.gutenberg.us/article/WHEBN [login to see] /Battle%20of%20Portland%20Harbor
C Friday, June 24, 1864: Sheridan’s raid: St. Mary’s Church, Charles City, Virginia. Inconclusive results. Major General Wade Hampton's cavalry attempted to cut off Sheridan's cavalry returning from their raid to Trevilian Station. Sheridan fought a delaying action to protect a long supply train under his protection, then rejoined the Union army at Bermuda Hundred. Forces Engaged: Divisions. Estimated Casualties: 630 total
http://www.americancivilwar.com/statepic/va/va066.html
C+ Friday, June 24, 1864: The Battle of Saint Mary's Church (also called Samaria Church in the South, or Nance's Shop) was an American Civil War cavalry battle fought on June 24, 1864, as part of Union Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's Overland Campaign against Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia.
As Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan's Union cavalry of the Army of the Potomac returned from their unsuccessful raid against the Virginia Central Railroad and the Battle of Trevilian Station, they gathered up supply wagons from the recently abandoned supply depot at White House and proceeded toward the James River. On June 24, the Confederate cavalry under Maj. Gen. Wade Hampton attacked the column of Brig. Gen. David McM. Gregg's division at St. Mary's Church. The Confederates outnumbered the Union cavalrymen five brigades to two and were able to drive them from their breastworks, but Gregg's men successfully screened the wagon train, which continued to move unmolested to the James.
Background: Following the Battle of Trevilian Station (June 11–12, 1864), Sheridan's cavalry began to return on June 13 from their unsuccessful raid against the Virginia Central Railroad. They crossed the North Anna River at Carpenter's Ford and then headed on the Catharpin Road in the direction of Spotsylvania Court House. On June 16 the column passed through Bowling Green and, traveling along the north bank of the Mattaponi River, arrived at King and Queen Court House on June 18.
While Sheridan's men were off on their raid, Grant's army had begun moving from Cold Harbor to cross the James River for an attack against Petersburg. In conjunction with this move, Grant ordered that his principal supply base be moved from White House on the Pamunkey River to City Point on the James. Sheridan learned that the White House depot had not yet been broken up, so he sent his wounded, prisoners, and African-Americans who had been following his column, to White House under escort on June 19, and then marched back to Dunkirk, where he could cross the Mattaponi.
Hampton's Confederate cavalry left Trevilian Station and followed Sheridan on roughly parallel roads to the south. His force consisted of Brig. Gen. Matthew C. Butler's and Brig. Gen. Thomas L. Rosser's brigades from his own division, Brig. Gen. Williams C. Wickham's brigade from Maj. Gen. Fitzhugh Lee's division, and Brig. Gen. John R. Chambliss's brigade from Maj. Gen. W.H.F. "Rooney" Lee's division. He added a newly formed cavalry brigade under Brig. Gen. Martin W. Gary.
On June 20, Fitz Lee attempted to attack the Union supply depot at White House, but Sheridan's arrival relieved the garrison there. On June 21, Sheridan crossed over the Pamunkey River, broke through the Confederate cordon at St. Peter's Church, and led 900 wagons toward the James River. They crossed the Chickahominy River on June 22 and June 23, bypassing stiff opposition south of Jones's Bridge on June 23; Hampton had been unable to intercept Sheridan prior to this, so crossed the Chickahominy upstream from the Union crossing and hastened south.
Sheridan headed toward Deep Bottom on his way to link up with Union infantry at Bermuda Hundred. Near Westover Church, Union Brig. Gen. Alfred T. A. Torbert's division was stalled by Confederate resistance. On June 24, Brig. Gen. David McM. Gregg's division occupied a covering position near Samaria Church, on the road to Charles City, while Sheridan ferried Torbert's division and the supply train across the James at Douthat's Landing.
Battle: On June 24, Torbert's division continued to escort the wagons toward Harrison's Landing on the James as Gregg's division followed a parallel route, protecting the right flank. Torbert encountered Brig. Gen. Lunsford L. Lomax's brigade near the Charles City Court House and drove it back. At about 8 a.m., Gregg's brigade under Brig. Gen. Henry E. Davies, Jr., arrived in the vicinity of Samaria Church, at the intersection of three roads, where they found Confederate pickets. A charge by the 2nd Pennsylvania Cavalry pushed the pickets to the north and Davies's brigade entrenched to the west of the intersection. Davies took up the right flank of the line and Col. J. Irvin Gregg (General Gregg's cousin) the left.
Hampton's force approached and prepared to attack dismounted, while simultaneously entrenching. From 3 to 4 p.m., Hampton's five brigades attacked Gregg's two. The pressure was too great on the Union cavalrymen and they began to withdraw down the road to Charles City Court House, which they reached about 8 p.m. Skirmishing lasted until 10 p.m. One of the Confederates wrote, "The enemy position was a strong one. ... They fought vigorously for a while but as our boys closed in on them they fled and when they broke the mounted cavalry was order[ed] to charge which they did driving pell mell for 3 miles capturing quite a number of prisoners, they leaving their dead and wounded in our care."
Aftermath: Except for the men left behind, Gregg's division escaped relatively intact. Among the prisoners was Col. Pennock Huey of the 8th Pennsylvania Cavalry. Casualties were about 350 Union, 250 Confederate. Having been blocked by Hampton's cavalry, Sheridan withdrew on June 25 and moved through Charles City Court House to Douthat's Landing, where the trains crossed the James on flatboats. His cavalry followed on June 27 and 28. The Confederate cavalry attempted to position themselves for another attack, but the Union force was too strong and the Southern horsemen were too worn out. Hampton received orders from Robert E. Lee to proceed to Petersburg as quickly as possible to deal with the Wilson-Kautz Raid against railroads south of the city. His men crossed the James on a pontoon bridge at Chaffin's Bluff, also on June 27 and 28.
Hampton was brilliant that hot, dry summer. Demonstrating his prowess as a fighter and only slightly restrained by the toll taken on his horses and men, he chased the Union cavalry all over Virginia and thrashed it each time they met. An early Confederate cavalry historian proclaimed that the Trevilian Raid "demonstrated anew that the Confederate cavalry under Hampton was just as enterprising, as valiant, as enthusiastic, and as brave and dauntless as when it fought under Stuart."
Eric J. Wittenberg, Glory Enough for All: Sheridan's raid to Trevilian Station and back to the Army of the Potomac achieved mixed results. He successfully diverted Confederate attention from Grant's crossing of the James, but was unsuccessful in his objective of cutting the Virginia Central Railroad, a critical supply line to the Confederate capital and Lee's army. He also suffered relatively heavy casualties—particularly in his officer corps—and lost a large number of his horses to battle and heat exhaustion. And yet Sheridan claimed his raid was an undeniable victory. In his 1866 official report on operations he wrote, "The result was constant success and the almost total annihilation of the rebel cavalry. We marched when and where we pleased; were always the attacking party, and always successful."
The results of Hampton's cavalry activities against Sheridan were also mixed, but are usually seen in a more positive light than Sheridan's. He had succeeded in protecting the railroads and, indirectly, Richmond. He achieved tactical victories on the second day of Trevilian Station and against Gregg at Samaria Church, but failed to destroy the Union cavalry or its trains. in August, he was named commander of the Cavalry Corps of the Army of Northern Virginia, filling the position that had remained open since the death of J.E.B. Stuart.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Saint_Mary%27s_Church
D Friday, June 24, 1864: White River, Arkansas Early in the morning, a Confederate cavalry brigade under the command of Brigadier General Joseph Shelby attacked and captured the USS Queen City while it was docked at Clarendon (Monroe County). After stripping the ship of weapons, the Confederates set it afire. It drifted down the White River until it exploded. Three additional Federal ships soon arrived on the scene and engaged the Confederates on the riverbank, eventually forcing them to retreat from the town.
http://www.encyclopediaofarkansas.net/encyclopedia/entry-detail.aspx?entryID=6779
D+ Friday, June 24, 1864: White River, Arkansas - On June 24, Col. Jo Shelby led his Confederate cavalrymen to the White River. Once there, he spotted 3 Union steamers traveling towards his position. Once the ships were within range, he ordered his men to open fire. They attacked all 3 ships. Two of the ships managed to escape, but the USS Queen City was captured, looted, and then destroyed before the Confederates left the area.
http://www.mycivilwar.com/battles/1864s.html
FYI SPC Michael Duricko, Ph.D MAJ Roland McDonald SSG Franklin Briant CPO William Glen (W.G.) Powell 1stSgt Eugene Harless PO3 Private RallyPoint MemberMSG Greg Kelly CPT Private RallyPoint Member LTC Thomas Tennant GySgt Jack Wallace LTC David Brown LTC Private RallyPoint Member SFC Eric Harmon SSG Bill McCoy SPC Private RallyPoint Member MAJ Byron Oyler SSG Private RallyPoint Member Sgt Axel HastingA1C Pamela G Russell Maj Bill Smith, Ph.D.

The American Civil War 150th Anniversary – June 18-24, 1862

Here are some of the events of the Civil War that were happening 150 years ago this week. Sources are numbered according to the list at the bottom of this post. The Civil War in 3D The Library of C…

Response by SGT John " Mac " McConnell made Jun 27 at 2016 9:55 AM

SGT John " Mac " McConnell — Mon, 27 Jun 2016 09:55:33 -0400

Long ,hot road marches. Keep your weapons clean ! Basic soldier life of the Infantry. Thanks for sharing LTC Stephen F.

Response by MSG Brad Sand made Jun 27 at 2016 2:00 PM

MSG Brad Sand — Mon, 27 Jun 2016 14:00:46 -0400

Cavalry, or at the very least Mounted Infantry, capturing Navy ships...okay armed riverboats...this has to be the most significant event on June 24 during the U.S. Civil War...as long as you do not let the fact that it really did not have any great effect?

Response by MSG Stan Hutchison made Jun 24 at 2022 5:49 PM

MSG Stan Hutchison — Fri, 24 Jun 2022 17:49:53 -0400

This date is important to my family. My Great-Great-Grandfather was killed while acting as a Scout/skirmisher in preparation for the Battle of Atlanta.
Changed our entire family history.