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THE CIVIL WAR * * DIARY * * Of THE CIVIL WAR * * DIARY * * of General Josiah Gorgas Contents 1. RICHMOND HEARS THE CANNONS................... 1 2. THE ARMY REACHES GETTYSBURG................. 22 3. RICHMOND FEELS THE WINTER................... 66 4. GENERAL LEE DIGS IN......................... 83 5. THE SPIRIT IS WILLING...................... 120 6. THE CONFEDERACY DIES HARD.................. 163 BIBLIOGRAPHY.................................. 188 1*** Richmond Hears The Cannons Richmond, Va., June 12, 1862. Since the last entry in this journal I have passed the most eventful period of my life. Days appear like weeks, and the last day above entered confounds itself with my early life. On the 7th of April [1861] I reached Montgomery, and, on the 8th, took charge of the Ordnance Bureau, being assigned to duty as Chief of Ordnance. On the 1st of June the government established itself here as being nearer the scenes of its most active duties. On the 10th of June was fought the first battle of the war, at Bethel, (l) near Yorktown. The Yankees were signally defeated, with heavy loss, while, on our side, was only one man killed. The artillery did excellent service. General Magruder (2) commanded our troops. A short time before this a man by the name of Jackson killed Ellsworth,(3) Colonel of Zouaves, for entering his home and attempting to haul down the Confederate flag on his house in Alexandria. Jackson was, of course, instantly butchered. His devotion had an electric effect, and was looked on as a happy omen of the spirit of the war. About the middle of July we suffered a reverse in western Virginia. General Garnett,(4) (a classmate), was killed and about four hundred of our men captured. This little success achieved with overwhelming numbers was the sole foundation of McClellan's (5) elevation to command subsequently. On the 21st of July (Sunday) was fought the decisive battle of Manassas, or Bull Run (6) It was preceded by a creditable affair on the 18th. The battle was fought by the united forces of Johnston, bro't from Winchester; and of Beauregard, the latter having made the disposition of the 2 The Civil War Diary of General Josiah Gorgas troops, before Johnston arrived. McDowell commanded the Yankees: The odds were very heavily against us, about 25,000 to 45 or 50,000. We routed the enemy completely, capturing twenty-eight pieces of artillery and a large number of small arms and stores of various kinds. Unfortunately the victory was not followed up, or Washington would have fallen into our hands without further contest. About this time we heard of the victory at Springfield, Mo., which resulted in the death of Lyon, (7) (my classmate and roommate) and the retreat of his forces. Lyon was one of the most valuable of their Generals, being a man of more than average ability, and of unswerving purpose. He would have been the general of the abolition school! He was a man of cruel disposition, who would never forego an advantage over an enemy. He was the grandson of Col. Knowllon, an officer of the Revolution, from Connecticut. His ability was shown at West Point, chiefly in mathematics. He could not acquire languages, chemistry, or anything in which memory played a part. Garnett, mentioned above, was a dashing man, and ambitious. He would have played a good part, and made an active enterprising general. His death was a loss. His capacity was very moderate as a scholar, but he had studied men and manners. He was the nephew of R. M. T. Hunter of Virginia.(8) (I omitted to mention in its proper place that the bombardment of Fort Sumter, which began the war, took place on the 12th (Friday).(9) This began the war. Lincoln immediately called out 75,000 men, whereupon Virginia seceded, accompanied by Arkansas and Tennessee). Up to this time and until the affair in Missouri, where we captured over a thousand prisoners, our success was uniform. In October our reverses began with the capture of Hatteras. Port Royal followed at no long interval-and early in this year, Roanoke Island; a sad blunder, where we lost 2500 prisoners. Then came Crittenden's disaster on the upper Cumberland,* relieved, however, soon after by *Mill Spring. Richmond Hears The Cannons 3 our success at Belmont, opposite Columbus, Ky. But the chief of our reverses was the fall of Fort Donelson and the capture of its entire garrison and the army, then about 7,000 men. This, with the loss of Fort Henry, a week before,(10) opened the Cumberland and Tennessee to the gunboats of the enemy, and lost to us the state of Tennessee. Johnston fell back from Nashville to the line of the Memphis and Charleston Railroad, and the boats of the enemy ascended at once to Florence in Alabama, the river being very full. This was the great mistake of the War. Ten thousand men would have converted Donelson from an overwhelming disaster to a victory-and 18,000 men were literally doing nothing under Gen. Bragg at Pensacola and Mobile. If Grant had been beaten at Donelson, as he might easily have been with proper disposition of troops, the tide would have been rolled back into Kentucky. Our President is unfortunately no military genius, and could not see the relative value of position. Pensacola was nothing compared to Donelson. The Missourians, under Van Dorn, fought about this time a bloody combat at Pea Ridge,(11) in which McCulloch(12) and McIntosh(13) were killed. It was indecisive but by no means discreditable to us. On the 6th of April (Sunday) Johnston attacked Grant at Shiloh,(14) on the Tennessee, where he had effected a landing, and established himself. The forces were not very equal, Grant having heavy divisions of which four were engaged. He was drawn completely from his camps, back to the river under the fire of his boats, and darkness found him completely defeated, our troops being everywhere in possession of their camps. During the night the advance of Bull's (15) Column arrived, on the other side of the river, and began crossing. The fight was renewed next day, and our troops gradually forced back again, without confusion however. Unfortunately Johnston fell on Sunday at about 2:30 p.m., and Beauregard was left in command. Had Johnston continued in command it is possible that his genius and energy would have crushed Grant before night bro't 4 The Civil War Diary of General Josiah Gorgas darkness and Bull to his rescue. The loss was heavy on both sides. Neither party in this contest appear to pay much regard to truth, and especially in the statement of losses must accounts be read with caution. Our loss was probably 5,000,* while the enemy lost a few thousand more. After the fall of Fort Donelson our forces evacuated the lines they had held since last summer at Manassas; all the Potomac was abandoned, and our troops fell back, first to the Rappahannock, and very soon were transferred to Yorktown, whither McClellan had transferred his force. The lines at Yorktown were held until some time in April when the Army fell back to Richmond. On the retreat was fought the bloody combat of Williamsburg, of which we had the best. The abandonment of Yorktown and the Peninsula it is said necessitated the evacuation of Norfolk, and with it came the destruction of the "Merrimac" which had produced such terror in the Yankee Navy. About the 10th of March she attacked the whole Federal Squadron in Hampton Roads. With her iron prow she ran into and sank the Cumberland in five minutes. She then attacked and destroyed the "Congress," both of them frigates of the largest class. An ironclad vessel called the "Monitor" armed with two heavy guns in a revolving tower, which had just come down from New York, interposed and saved the whole fleet from destruction. Com. Buchanan, the commander of the "Merrimac" was wounded. No one event of the war, not even the disaster of Fort Donelson, created such a profound sensation as the destruction of this noble ship. It was intended to bring her up the James River as far as her draught would permit after the evacuation of Norfolk. For this purpose she was lightened by throwing her coal overboard; but after all had been taken out she could not pass the bar at the mouth of James River. She was now in a condition nearly defenceless. Her iron sheathing had come up to the water line, and even *More probably 12,000, while the enemy lost perhaps 15,000 and 3700 prisoners. Richmond Hears The Cannons 5 above it, and her fuel was gone; nothing was left but to blow her up, which was done with 36,000 pounds of powder on board.(16) It was indeed a fearful blunder, and one which came very near being fatal to us. There was nothing now to prevent the gunboats from reaching Richmond. The battery at Drury's Bluff had but three guns mounted; the obstructions were wholly incomplete, and the enemy could have made their way right up to this city. Fortunately they waited until a week after her destruction before making the attempt. The obstructions were completed, and when they did make the attempt on the 17th of May they were signally defeated. It was the turning point in our fortunes. McClellan having crossed a portion of his troops over the Chickahominy, Johnston attacked the Divisions which had crossed on Saturday the 31st of May. The enemy were driven back out of his camps, eight or ten pieces of artillery captured, several standards and about four hundred prisoners, not without severe loss.
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