When Lincoln Returned to Richmond

The Weekly Standard ^ | 12/29/03 | Andrew Ferguson

[Grand Old Partisan]

Abraham Lincoln, with his son Tad in tow, walked around Richmond, Virginia, one day 138 years ago, and if you try to retrace their steps today you won't see much that they saw, which shouldn't be a surprise, of course. The street grid is the same, though, and if you're in the right mood and know what to look for, the lineaments of the earlier city begin to surface, like the outline of a scuttled old scow rising through the shallows of a pond. Among the tangle of freeway interchanges and office buildings you'll come across an overgrown park or a line of red-brick townhouses, an unlikely old belltower or a few churches scattered from block to block, dating to the decades before the Civil War and still giving off vibrations from long ago.

[Non-Sequitur]

The more I read, the more of an enigma he becomes. The man seems to have had no principle that was above sacrifice.

Then you've not read the man at all.

[Non-Sequitur]

If I read something and selectively picked only those things I agreed with, or that painted a rosy-red picture of a man, then I'd probably agree with you.

Selectively picking only those things that you agree with seems to have served you well to date. I don't expect you to change.

[Non-Sequitur]

.hhhfwjhmdwhcvdn,dcddrekmhefkhhkbmmb , n,rgfhkrgfhrreorjrjfnfnfnb gbfnfdnlrjler

Looks like he's a real chip off the ol' block when it comes to debating.

[Grand Old Partisan]

Neo-Confederates are so consumed with hatred for the United States of America that they cannot think clearly, just like the current batch of USA haters to threat our national security.

[Non-Sequitur]

Neo-Confederates are so consumed with hatred for the United States of America that they cannot think clearly, just like the current batch of USA haters to threat our national security.

I think that they must have been bitten by a Yankee when they were babies.

[GOPcapitalist]

He went to college in South Carolina.

He grew up in Charleston where his mother lived for most of this period in his life.

[GOPcapitalist]

Which division was that?

It was known as J.W. Pegram's Battallion. There were two units of black troops formed in Richmond - the Winder-Jackson Battallion and Pegram's.

[GOPcapitalist]

Kind of hard to refute the arguement "It's true because I say it is."

You mean like your bizarre and economically unfounded assumption that it is inherently efficient to ship directly from producer to final consumer? That is certainly of the "it's true because I say it is" type of argument, though I must differ with your characterization of it. That little gem of yours was refuted with ease, though even that fact has not stopped you from ignorantly persuing it further.

It's sad to say, Non-Seq, but you and the venerable Ms. Tubbs-Jones have a lot in common when it comes to the economy.

[Grand Old Partisan]

Gangs of slave laborers given military-sounding names in the closing days of the war do not count as combat units. Please provide any evidence that they were armed.

You said the unit of black rebel soldiers at Saylor's Creek unit was a division -- now it is a batallion.

If it was a division, in which Corps was it? A division in those days had 5000-7000 men. The Confederates fielded 5000-7000 black troops in a battle and the entire country was not rocked by the event!? Forget your wispy anecdotes. Show me hard evidence, the volumes of books that would surely have been written about it. Every aspect of the Civil War has been gone over in minute detail for more than a century, yet the world has to hear about a division of black rebels from you?

If the Saylors Creek and other black units were batallions, in which regiments, divisions, and corps did they belong? Please provide a link to any one of the doznes of websites which must exist showing their place in the Confederate Order of Battle.

[Grand Old Partisan]

Do you mean this Winder-Jackson Battallion? Your division of black rebels is now down to two companies, of non-uniformed hospital workers, "not in the Confederate service". What a joke!

From the Richmond Sentinel, 3/23/65
PARADE. – Dr. Chambliss’ battalion, from the Winder and Jackson hospitals, paraded on the Capitol Square last evening, in the presence of several thousand persons. The two negro companies of the battalion were the feature of the occasion, and attracted universal attention and commendation.

From the Richmond Dispatch, 3/23/1865
PARADE. - Yesterday afternoon the Camps Winder and Jackson battalion paraded on the Capitol Square. In the battalion were two companies of negroes (not uniformed), which were made up from the negroes employed about the hospitals. They are not, we believe, in the Confederate military service. In marked contrast to the appearance of these negroes was that of a squad of Major Turner's colored troops, neatly uniformed, and showing a good soldierly carriage. These regulars had gone up to look at their colored brethren. Volunteering would be much encouraged by the parade of Major Turner's men, which will, we hope, soon take place.

[GOPcapitalist]

Gangs of slave laborers given military-sounding names in the closing days of the war do not count as combat units. Please provide any evidence that they were armed.

I already have - go read the little historical display on the side of the rural highway between Amelia and Farmville, VA about 15 minutes east of the Sailor's Creek battlefield. It documents a union calvalry charge upon black soldiers moving with Lee's wagon train towards Farmville. According to battle reports they are known to have fired at least one organized volley upon the calvalry attackers, repulsing them temporarily, followed by a regroup in which the confederate position was then overrun.

You said the unit of black rebel soldiers at Saylor's Creek unit was a division -- now it is a batallion.

It was a division. The common name by which it was known among the confederates and reported in their newspapers was "Pegram's battallion" after its commanding officer. The other unit was known as the "Winder-Jackson battallion" after the location where many of its recruits came from, a hospital.

Forget your wispy anecdotes. Show me hard evidence, the volumes of books that would surely have been written about it.

HEADQUARTERS JACKSON HOSPITAL,
February 14, 1865.

 Lieut. Gen. R. S. EWELL:

DEAR SIR: For my own gratification, as well as those who are taking great interest in the important question, with regard to the using of the slaves of the Confederacy as an assisting element to us in defending our homes, firesides, and country from those who would destroy us, I would respectfully say that this morning I caused the hired male slaves at this hospital to be convened, and after asking them the deliberate question, if they would be willing to take up arms to protect their masters' families, homes, and their own from an attacking foe, sixty out of seventy-two responded they would volunteer to go to the trenches and fight the enemy to the bitter end.

Very respectfully, your most obedient servant,

 F. W. HANCOCK,
Surgeon in charge.

----------------------

Hd Qrs Jackson Battalion
March 16th 1865

Sir
                    I have the honor to report that in obedience to your orders received through Surg Hancock I ordered my Battalion from the 1st 2d 3 & 4 Div of Jackson Hospital to the front on Saturday night at 12 o’clk and reported by order of Maj. Pegram to Col. Ship P.A.C.S. Comdg Cadet Corps.

I have great pleasure in stating that my men acted with the utmost promptness and good will.

I had the pleasure of turning over to Major Chambliss a portion of my negro command to be attached to his negro command. Allow me to state that they behaved in extraordinary commendable(?) manner. I would respectfully ask that Major Chambliss be particularly noticed for the manner which he handled that very important element to be inaugurated in our service.

Respy your Obdt Servt

H. C. Scott
Surg(?) & Major Comdg
Jackson Battln

[GOPcapitalist]

Every aspect of the Civil War has been gone over in minute detail for more than a century, yet the world has to hear about a division of black rebels from you?

Actually, the world first heard about it circa March 21, 1865 when it was publicly reported in the Richmond newspapers:

"THE BATTALION from Camps Winder and Jackson, under the command of Dr. Chambliss, including the company of colored troops under Captain Grimes, will parade on the square on Wednesday evening, at 4½ o’clock. This is the first company of negro troops raised in Virginia. It was organized about a month since, by Dr. Chambliss, from the employees of the hospitals, and served on the lines during the recent Sheridan raid." - Richmond Sentinel, March 21, 1865

On the 23rd the Richmond Dispatch similarly reported on "a squad of Major Turner's colored troops, neatly uniformed, and showing a good soldierly carriage. These regulars had gone up to look at their colored brethren. Volunteering would be much encouraged by the parade of Major Turner's men, which will, we hope, soon take place."

For the record, Major Turner was a commanding officer in Pegram's battallion.

The Winder-Jackson battallion was there as well:

"THE CORPS D’AFRIQUE. – The appearance of the battalion of colored troops on the Square, yesterday afternoon, attracted thousands of our citizens to the spot, all eager to catch a glimpse of the sable soldiers. The bearing of the negroes elicited universal commendation. While on the Square, they went through the manual of arms in a manner which would have done credit to veteran soldiers, while the evolutions of the line were executed with promptness and precision. As an appropriate recognition of their promptness in forming the first battalion of colored troops in the Confederacy, we suggest to the ladies of Richmond the propriety of presenting the battalion with an appropriate banner." - Richmond Enquirer, March 23, 1865

"PARADE. – Dr. Chambliss’ battalion, from the Winder and Jackson hospitals, paraded on the Capitol Square last evening, in the presence of several thousand persons. The two negro companies of the battalion were the feature of the occasion, and attracted universal attention and commendation." - Richmond Sentinel, March 23, 1865

[Grand Old Partisan]

1) "a little historical marker" is all you've got?

2) sixty men constituted a division?

3) Cite one serious history of the Civil War which describes the combat role the Saylors Creek battle of 5000-7000 black rebel troops

4) Please provide any evidence that Pegram's black rebels were armed and participated in combat. How many black rebel troops were allegedly under Pegrams's command?

[GOPcapitalist]

Do you mean this Winder-Jackson Battallion? Your division of black rebels is now down to two companies, of non-uniformed hospital workers, "not in the Confederate service".

The one that fought at Amelia was Pegram's, also referred to under its commanding officer Turner. In case you did not read your own sources, they report them as "a squad of Major Turner's colored troops, neatly uniformed, and showing a good soldierly carriage. These regulars had gone up to look at their colored brethren."

Nor does your quote state that the Winder-Jackson troops were "not in the Confederate service" but rather "They are not, we believe, in the Confederate military service" meaning the newspaper reporters did not know for certain. The documents from the confederate military records in the Official Records of the War of Rebellion series, which I just posted for you, demonstrate that this belief was mistaken. So do the simultaneous reports of two other Richmond newspapers on this same day, which I also quoted for you in another post.

[GOPcapitalist]

1) "a little historical marker" is all you've got?

An historical marker put there by the US Government you adore so much. It's part of those "Civil War History Trail" things that the park service puts out for each state where major civil war events occurred. That said, it is not "all i've got" as the event has been written about in several articles and books. It is also mentioned in the official records.

A quick google search pulls up several of these. Here's a quote from a newspaper article on the US military wires: "On April 4, a Confederate courier observed black Confederates defending a wagon train near Amelia Court House, Va. When Union cavalry approached, the black soldiers formed up, fired and drove them off. The cavalry re-formed, charged and took the wagon train." http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Feb1996/n02051996_9602053.html

Another link recounts the brief battle from a witness:

"Private R.M. Doswell was hastening back to his unit after carrying an order when something attracted his attention. The young Virginian had just spotted one of the new Confederate companies of black soldiers, "a novel sight to me." the black Confederates were guarding a wagon train near Amelia Court House on the retreat from Richmond. Doswell reined in about 100 yards to the rear of the wagon train and watched in fascination as a Union cavalry regiment formed up to charge. The black Confederates fired their weapons like veterans and drove back the overconfident Federals. The horse soldiers re-formed for another charge. This time they broke up the wagon train and scattered the defenders. The black soldiers were captured and disarmed. Doswell suddenly realized his own danger and rode away without being noticed. The date was April 4, 1865. Five days later, Lee would surrender his Army of Northern Virginia at Appomattox Court House." http://www.civilwarhistory.com/slavetrade/blacksoldiersCSA.htm

2) sixty men constituted a division?

I'm not certain as to where you got those figures for a battle that you apparently still think did not exist. IIRC, the union report of the skirmish near Amelia gives the number of black prisoners they took as a few hundred. I'll have to search the records again for that exact figure, though I do recall posting it for you several months ago. You evidently did not believe it then either and, IIRC, attempted to argue that the "Official Records of the War of the Rebellion," the primary United States Government series of civil war documents, was a "neo-confederate publication."

3) Cite one serious history of the Civil War which describes the combat role the Saylors Creek battle of 5000-7000 black rebel troops

The battle in which they fought was a smaller one in between Amelia and Farmville about 15 minutes to the east of Sailor's Creek, so that request of yours is immaterial. As I noted, a rough estimate of the black soldiers in it is somewhere in the 2 to 3 hundred range though I'll have to pull that up for certain later.

4) Please provide any evidence that Pegram's black rebels were armed and participated in combat.

See the articles above. Reports of the battle indicate they fired on and repulsed at least one calvalry attack on their position.

[Non-Sequitur]

It was known as J.W. Pegram's Battallion. There were two units of black troops formed in Richmond - the Winder-Jackson Battallion and Pegram's.

So we go from a division of black troops to a battalion. Then we find that the Winder-Jackson Battalion actually consisted of one, perhaps two companies of black troops. Quite a difference.

[Grand Old Partisan]

It's pathetic, really. FACTS mean nothing to the neo-Confederate cultists.

[GOPcapitalist]

So we go from a division of black troops to a battalion.

No, non-seq. The black divisions were simply known and referred to at the time as "Winder-Jackson Battallion" etc. They were still divisions but for whatever reason - most likely the fact that formally designated numerical units were commonly known instead by the name of their commander - they called it the "Winder-Jackson Battallion."

[GOPcapitalist]

It's pathetic, really. FACTS mean nothing to the neo-Confederate cultists

That is a curious statement to come from you, Partisan. If anything I factually represented the historical names of each of these units while never once stating that they were numerically classified battalions or anything more than divisions. Unable to refute the factual data attesting to their existence, not to mention all the other factual data I have posted, you and non-seq have apparently opted to latch onto this fabricated red herring that ambiguity exists between their formal status as a numerical battallion or smaller divisional unit. If anything it shows that the two of you are not at all interested in the facts of history. Rather you desire only to obscure them for the purpose of continuing your earlier lie.

[Grand Old Partisan]

Pegram was only a major, yet you insist his unit was a division, not a batallion. And, his batallion consisted of only two companies, 60 men or so, yet you insist that the unit was a division, which during the Civil War consisted of 5000-7000 men.

You're delusional.