Harper’s Weekly – August 31, 1861

Harper's Weekly archives ^ | August 31, 1861

[Homer_J_Simpson]

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[Homer_J_Simpson]

One of the more recent biographies is good for filling in some important things about his life that he doesn’t mention in his memoirs (especially the circumstances of his resignation from the army through his time in Galena), but the memoirs are considered among the best of that genre ever written. That’s why I use both in this project.

[Jim W N]

Thanks Homer. I really enjoyed “Lincoln” by David Herbert Donald inspired by your project here, so maybe I’ll get both “Grant,” by Jean Edward Smith and his autobiography.

I was getting ready to start reading a three-volume set on the life of “Andrew Jackson” by Robert Remini, but now I’m not sure if I shouldn’t just get the Grant books first. Reading Jackson first might be helpful in a chronological sense.

[Homer_J_Simpson]

Reading Jackson first might be helpful in a chronological sense.

I bet that is correct. I understand the origins of the Republican party, since I started my reading with the Kansas-Nebraska Act and "Bleeding Kansas" in 1854. Before that I am fairly ignorant. The period from the Missouri Compromise through 1850 is important and Jackson was a major figure through most of that time.

[BroJoeK]

Here again is a listing of Civil War engagements to date -- as of September 3, 1861.
The total is 43 engagements in four Union states/territories (MD, WVA, MO & NM) and three Confederate states (SC, VA & NC), resulting in about 11,200 total casualties, including nearly 1,700 killed.

Date	Engagement	Military Units	Losses	Victor
April 12-14	Fort Sumter, SC	Confederate artillery (Beauregard), Union garrison (Anderson)	None	CSA
April 15	Evacuation of Fort Sumter, SC	Union garrison	Two Union soldiers killed, four wounded by accidental explosion	N.A.
April 19	Baltimore Riots, MD	MA 6th, PA 26th vs secessionist crowd	4 Union soldiers killed, 12 civilians killed, hundreds wounded	USA
May 10	St. Louis Riots, MO	Union forces vs secessionist crowd	4 Union soldiers killed, 3 prisoners, 28 civilians killed	USA
May 18-19	Sewell's Point, VA	Union naval squadron vs Confederate shore artillery	10 total	inconclusive
May 29- June 1	Aquila Creek, VA	Union naval squadron vs Confederate shore artillery	10 total	inconclusive
June 1	Fairfax Court House, VA	detachments from CSA & USA armies	8 on each side, 1 each killed	inconclusive
June 1	Arlington Mills, VA	detachments from USA ( ~200 McDowell) & CSA (~9 Bonham) armies	Union 2-total (1 killed); CSA 1 wounded	inconclusive
June 3	Philippi, WVA	Union Dept of Ohio (McClellan) -3,000, CSA infantry (Porterfield) -800	Union 4, CSA 26 (killed or wounded)	USA
June 10	Big Bethel, VA	Union (Butler) -3,500, CSA (Magruder) -1,400	Union 71-total (18-killed); CSA: 10-total (1-killed)	CSA
June 15	Hooe's Ferry (near Mathias Point) VA	Union schooner Christina Keen; CSA Farmer's Fork Grays	none -- Christina Keen captured and burned	CSA
June 17	Vienna, VA	Detachments from both Union & CSA armies	Union: 12-total (8 killed); CSA: none reported	CSA
June 17	Boonville, MO	Union Western Dept (Lyon) -1,700 vs. MO State Guard (Marmaduke) ~1,500	Union: 12-total (5-killed); MO Guard 22-total (5-killed)	USA
June 18	Camp Cole, MO	Union Home Guards (~500) vs. Confederate State Guards (~350)	Union: 120-total (35 killed, 60 wounded 25 captured); CSA: 32-total ( 7-K, 25-W)	CSA
June 27	Matthias' Point, VA	Union gunboats ~50 vs. Confed garrison ~500	Union: 1-killed, 4-wounded; CSA none	CSA
July 2	Hoke's Run, WVA	Union Army of the Shenandoah (2 brigades, Patterson) -8,000 vs. Confederate Army of the Shenandoah (1 brigade, Stonewall Jackson) - 4,000	Union: 70-total (3-killed); CSA 23-total ( 9-killed)	USA
July 5	Carthage, MO	Union Department of the West (Sigel) -- 1,000 vs. Confederate Missouri State Guard (Jackson) -- 4,000	Union: 44-total; CSA 200-total	CSA
July 5	Neosho, MO	Union 3rd Missouri vs. Confederate cavalry	Union: 137-total; CSA zero total	CSA
July 8	Laurel Hill, WVA	Union Dept of Ohio vs. Confederate Army of the Northwest	Union: 8-total; CSA unknown	USA
July 11	Rich Mountain, WVA	Union Department of the Ohio (McClellan & Rosecrans) -7,000 vs. Confederate Army (Pegram & Garnett) -1,300	Union: 46-total; CSA 300-total	USA
July 12	Barboursville, WVA	Union 2nd Kentucky vs. Confederate rangers & locals	Union: 16-total; CSA 1-total	USA
July 13	Corrick's Ford, WVA	Union Department of the Ohio (McClellan & Rosecrans) -20,000 vs. Confederate Army (Garnett) -4,500	Union: 53-total; CSA 620-total CSA Gen. Garnett killed	USA
July 17	Scary Creek, WVA	Union Department of the Ohio (Cox) -1,000 vs. Confederate Army of the Kanawha (Wise & George S. Patton) -800	Union: 51-total; CSA 10-total including Patton wounded	CSA
July 18	Blackburn's Ford, VA (pre-Manassas)	Union Department of NE Virginia (McDowell, Richardson) -3,000 vs. Confederate Army of VA (Beauregard, Longstreet) -5,100	Union: 83-total; CSA 70-total	CSA
July 21	Bull Run/Manassas, VA	Union Department of NE Virginia (McDowell, Patterson) -54,000 (18,000 engaged) vs. Confederate Army of VA (Beauregard, Longstreet) -34,000 (18,000 engaged)	Union: 2,708-total (481-killed); CSA 1,897-total (387-killed)	CSA
July 22	Forsyth, MO	Union Department of the West vs. Confederate Missouri State Guard	Union: 3-total ;Confederates: 15-total	USA
July 25	Mesilla, New Mexico	Union Department of the New Mexico (~300) vs. Confederate 2nd Texas Mounted Rifles (~380 +artillery )	Union: 9-total (2-killed); Confederates: 19-total (13-killed)	CSA
July 27	Fort Fillmore, NM	Union Department of the New Mexico (~500) vs. Confederate 2nd Texas Mounted Rifles (~300)	Union: 500-total (surrendered); Confederates: none	CSA
Aug 2	Dug Springs, MO (leadup to Wilson's Creek)	Union Department of the West (~6,000) vs. Confederate Missouri State Guard (~12,000)	Union: 38-total (8 killed ); Confederates:84-total (40 killed)	USA
Aug 3	Curran Post Office, MO (leadup to Wilson's Creek)	Union Department of the West (~6,000) vs. Confederate 1st Arkansas Rifles	Unknown	inconclusive
Aug 5	Athens, MO	Union 21st MO Infantry, Home Guards (~500) vs. Confederate Missouri State Guard (~2,000 + 3-cannons)	Union 23-total (3-killed); Confederate 31-total	USA
Aug 7	CSA burned Hampton, VA	Union (Butler) vs. Confederate Cavalry (Magruder)	Union unknown; Confederates unknown	CSA
Aug 8	skirmish at Lovettsville, VA	Union vs. Confederate	Union unknown; Confederates 6-total	USA
Aug 10	Wilson's Creek, MO	Union Dept of the West (Lyon -5,430)vs. Confederate MO State Guard, Dept 2 (Price -12,120)	Union 1,317-total (285-killed incl Gen. Lyon); Confederates 1.232-total (277-killed)	CSA
Aug 10	Potosi, MO	Union Home Guard (~75 troops) vs. Confederate cavalry (~120 troops)	Union 5-total (1-killed); Confederates 5-total (2-killed)	USA
Aug 17	Palmyra, MO	Union 16th Illinois (entrained) vs. Confederate guerillas	Union 2-total (1-killed); Confederates 5-killed	USA
Aug 25	Mason's Hill, VA	Union (Lowe's observation balloon) vs. Confederate Army NVA (Longstreet, Stuart)	Union unknown; Confederates unknown	USA
Aug 26	Kessler's Cross Lanes, WVA	Union Dept of Ohio (Tyler ~1,000) vs. Confederate infantry (Floyd ~2,000)	Union 73-total (15 killed); Confederates 40-total	CSA
Aug 28	Hatteras Inlet, NC	Union NY 9th & 20th Infantry (Butler -935) plus 7 US Navy ships (including Harriet Lane & Pawnee) vs. Confederate NC 17th Infantry (Barron ~900)	Union 3-total (1 killed); Confederates 715-total (4 killed, 691 captured)	USA
Aug 29	Morse's Mills near Lexington, MO	Union MO Home Guards vs. Confederate cavalry	Union unknown; Confederates unknown	CSA
Aug 31	Munson's Hill, VA	Union Army of the Potomac vs. Confederate Dept of Northern VA	Union 5-total; Confederates unknown	USA
Sep 2	Dry Wood Creek, MO	Union Dept of the West (Lane ~1,200) vs. Confederate MO State Guard (Price ~12,000)	Union 25-total (2 killed); Confederates 14-total (5 killed)	CSA
Sep 3	Bailey's Cross Roads, VA	Union & Confederat detachments	Union 8-total; Confederates none	CSA

[BroJoeK]

Here is a summary of engagements to-date, overall the numbers of victories & losses are surprisingly equal:

Summary of Civil War Engagements as of Sep 3, 1861:
Engagements in Confederate states:

State	Union Victories	Confederate Victories	Inconclusive	Total Engagements
South Carolina	0	1	1	2
Virginia	3	8	4	15
North Carolina	1	0	0	1
Total Engagements in CSA	4	9	5	18

Engagements in Union states/territories:

State	Union Victories	Confederate Victories	Inconclusive	Total Engagements
Maryland	1	0	0	1
West Virginia	6	2	0	8
Missouri	7	6	1	14
New Mexico	0	2	0	2
Total Engagements in Union	14	10	1	25
Total Engagements to date	18	19	6	43

[Homer_J_Simpson]

Continued from September 2 (reply #17).

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Bruce Catton, Terrible Swift Sword

[Homer_J_Simpson]

Continued from September 4 (reply #30).

Jean Edward Smith, Grant

[Homer_J_Simpson]

Continued from September 4 (reply #31).

Personal Memoirs of U.S. Grant, Volume One

[Homer_J_Simpson]

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The Civil War Papers of George B. McClellan: Selected Correspondence 1860-1865, edited by Stephen W. Spears

[Homer_J_Simpson]

Diary of Major Rutherford B. Hayes: Friday September 6, 1861 (“As judge-advocate, with General Benham, Colonels Scammon, Smith, et al., I tried two cases. J. W. Trader, etc.”)

https://civilwarnotebook.blogspot.com/2014/11/diary-of-major-rutherford-b-hayes_21.html

Major Wilder Dwight to 1st Lieutenant Howard Dwight [Wilder’s little brother – HJS], September 6, 1861 (“General Fremont is on his way to Memphis. As sure as sunrise he will go there. Go with him. Now is the opportunity for adventure, for success.”)

https://civilwarnotebook.blogspot.com/2015/07/major-wilder-dwight-to-lieutenant.html

Diary of Corporal David L. Day: Milford, Mass., Sept. 6, 1861. (First diary entry.)

https://civilwarnotebook.blogspot.com/2019/04/diary-of-corporal-david-l-day-milford.html

Diary of John Beauchamp Jones: September 6, 1861 (“The New England manufacturers are furnishing us, with whom they are at war, with arms to fight with, provided we agree to pay them a higher price than is offered by their own Government!”)

https://civilwarnotebook.blogspot.com/2015/05/diary-of-john-beauchamp-jones-september_28.html

Diary of Judith W. McGuire: September 6, 1861 (“General Floyd, in Western Virginia, had a severe skirmish with the enemy, about a week ago, and drove them off with considerable loss. Our loss was small.”)

https://civilwarnotebook.blogspot.com/2015/01/diary-of-judith-w-mcguire-september-6.html

[Homer_J_Simpson]

Today’s posts:

“Terrible Swift Sword,” reply #46
“Grant,” #47
Grant’s memoirs, #48
George B. McClellan, #49
Links to 5 items at Civil War Notebook, #50

[Hebrews 11:6]

Please add my heartfelt “Thanks!” to what must be quite a collection of grateful viewers for your splendid scorecards.

[BroJoeK]

;-)