John Yates Beall-- Part 5: Lincoln Refuses to Get Involved and His Execution

Beall was then transported to Fort Columbus on Governors Island  in New York Harbor to await execution.

Then, the story of Beall's arrest and trial had reached the newspapers and efforts were made in his behalf to save him.  Appeals were made to President Abraham Lincoln by many prominent people, including six U.S. senators and 91  members of Congress.

But Lincoln refused to intervene. He usually would issue a pardon with that many requests.

Beall was executed February 24, 1865.

--Old Secesh

John Yates Beall-- Part 4: The Last Mission, Arrest and Trial

From Wikipedia.

John Yates Beall decided to attempt to free some Confederate officers who were prisoners by derailing a passenger train in New York in December 1864.  But he and a companion by  the name of George S. Anderson were arrested in Niagara, New York, on December 16.

They were imprisoned at Fort Lafayette, New York, and here Anderson agreed to testify against Beall in return for leniency.

General John Adams Dix ordered a military commission for Beall's trial, which began on January 16, 1865,   Beall was represented by noted New York lawyer James T. Brady.    The arrest of Beall had not been reported in any newspaper and Confederate authorities were unaware of the trial.  Had they become aware of the trial there might have been a reprisal.

The commission found him guilty on all charges and sentenced him to death.

--Old Secesh

John Yates Beall-- Part 3: His Burial

Evidently, his body was returned to his family as he was buried at Charles Town, West Va..

Born 1 January 1835,  Charles Town, Virginia (now West Virginia)

Death Governor's Island, New York City  February 24, 1865  (The write up on him had his death on December 24, 1864.)  I believe the February date to be more accurate.

Burial:  Zion Episcopal Churchyard, Charles Town, West Virginia.

--Old Secesh

John Yates Beall-- Part 2: Privateering, Johnson's Island, Hanged

In the meantime, he began a series of privateering missions along the Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay.  he was captured in November 1863, and imprisoned at Fort McHenry in Baltimore.  This led to reprisals by the Confederate government.

On May 5, 1864, he was formally exchanged.

With Beall's own initiative and without government support, he returned to Canada with his original aim of liberating the prisoners held at Johnson's Island.

On September 18, 1864, Beall and a small group of men captured the steamers Philo Parsons and Island Queen.  However, he was unable to get to Johnson's Island because of a mutiny in his followers.

Wearing civilian clothing, he was captured in civilian clothing at Niagara, New York, on December 16, 1864,   Tried a a guerrilla, he was found guilty and hanged at Governor's Island, New York, on December 24, 1864.

--Old Secesh

John Yates Beall, Confederate Guerrilla-- Part 1: Plan to Liberate Confederates Held on Johnson's Island

From  Find-A-Grave

JOHN YATES BEALL  (1835-1865)  Buried in Zion Episcopal Cemetery in Charles Town, West Virginia.

Even though I have written a lot about him in my Civil War Navy blog, I will write what Find-A-Grave had to say about him.

Civil War Confederate guerrilla.

After receiving a law degree from the University of Virginia, he existed as a farmer in Jefferson County, Virginia (now West Virginia)  until the outbreak of the Civil War.  He enlisted in Company G, 2nd Virginia Infantry after the fall of Fort Sumter and was wounded at the First Battle of Manassas (Bull Run).

Upon recovery, he went west and later moved to Canada.  While in Canada, he developed a plan to liberate the Confederate prisoners (officers) held at Johnson's Island in Lake Erie.

He returned South and tried to obtain approval from Confederate authorities.  Commissioned  as an acting master in the Confederate Navy, he was never assigned a ship.

And He Was Just Beginning.  --Old Secesh

Other Burials in Zion Episcopal Church Cemetery, Charles Town, W.Va.

From Find-A Grave.

Lewis William Washington was buried in this cemetery.

Other notable burials:

John Yates Beall (1835-1865)  I have written a lot about him in my Civil War Navy blog.  A very interesting character hanged by the Union as a spy.

Roger Preston Chew  (1843-1921)  Confederate Lt.Col.

William Price Craighill  (1833-1909)  Union officer

Andrea King  (1919-2003)  American movie and TV actress.

William Lucas (1800-1877)  Lawyer, Congress, delegate, horticulturalist.

--Old Secesh

While On the Subject: Some Other George Washington Artifacts In the New York State Library

**  George Washington's Farewell Address written in his own handwriting when he decided not to run for a third term as president.

**  Washington's first career was as a surveyor and the library has  some of his drawing instruments as well as a compass made by David Rittenhouse, a celebrated Philadelphia instrument-maker.

**  An exceedingly rare copy of "Representation of the Clothing of His Majesty's Household and  of all the Forces upon the Establishments of Great Britain and Ireland."  A book of British military uniforms received by Washington in 1847.

**  A bronze bust of Washington

**  A statement of household expenses from 1789.

**   A manuscript "Opinion of  the Surviving Generals of the Revolution" penned by Washington.

The items in this collection were purchased  by the State of New York from Mrs. Lewis  W. Washington in  1871.  Mrs. Washington was the widow of Col. Lewis W. Washington, who was the grandson of Willaim Augustine Washington, who was a nephew of George Washington.

--Old Secesh

George Washington's Pistols

They have a picture of a pistol, with   these words:

"A horseman's  pistol given to George Washington by the Marquis de Lafayette.

"The pistol was one of a pair of heavy horseman's pistols which general Lafayette used during the  the Revolutionary War."

No mention as to what happened to the other pistols.  Perhaps the library never received the second one.

--Old Secesh

George Washington's Sword

From the NYSED site

The George Washing Collection at the New York State Library.

In an earlier post I mentioned Lewis Washington's George Washington's Frederick the Great's sword and the pistols given him by Lafayette having been given by Lewis' widow to the New York State Library.  I decided to see if they still have them.

They do.

There is a picture of the sword and these words:  This is one of George Washington's swords, alleged to have been given to him by Frederick the Great of Germany.  It was frequently worn by Washington on dress occasions and is represented in the portrait painted in 1834 by Vanderlyn for the United States House of Representatives.

The Pistol (S) Next.  --Old Secesh
.

Lewis Washington-- Part 4: Buried in Charles Town, West Virginia

From Find-A-Grave.

Major Lewis William Washington

It said he was a major in the Confederate Army.  I could find no mention of his service.

Born 30 November 1812 in Georgetown, District of Columbia.
Died 1 October 1871 (age 58) in Jefferson County, West Virginia

Buried Zion Episcopal Churchyard in Charles Town, West Virginia.

--Old Secesh

Lewis Washington-- Part 3: What Happened At the Trial and the George Washington Artifacts

During John Brown's trial for treason against the State of Virginia, Lewis Washington testified as a witness for the prosecution.  During the cross-examination, Washington testified that Brown had treated his hostages well and gave orders not to harm civilians.

When the Civil War began, Lewis sided with the Confederacy.  On July 17, 1865, he was pardoned by President Andrew Johnson.

Many pieces of the Washington family, including the sword given George Washington by Frederick the Great and the pistols from Lafayette, were donated to the New York State Library by his widow in 1871.

Lewis Washington married twice, and one of his sons was James Barroll Washington, the friend of Custer.  James had one son, William Lanier Washington, who died in 1933, but had sold the rest of the Washington of the family collection of George Washington heirlooms at public auction in 1917.

--Old Secesh

Lewis William Washington-- Part 2: The Harpers Ferry Raid

Lewis Washington inherited several George Washington relics, including a sword allegedly given by Frederick the Great of Prussia and a pair of pistols given by Lafayette.

John Cook, who served in John Brown's advance party before the attack befriended Lewis Washington  and noted these relics as well as the slaves at Beall-Air Mansion.  John Brown was fascinated with George Washington relics. (Kind of surprising since Brown hated slave owners so much.)

During Brown's October 16, 1859, raid on Harpers Ferry, a detachment of his force led by Cook seized the relics along with Lewis Washington and three slaves.  The hostages were taken to Harpers Ferry by way of Allstadt House and Ordinary where more hostages and slaves were taken.

They all went to John Brown's base at the fire engine house of the Harpers Ferry Federal Arsenal.  All survived their captivity and Washington identified Brown to the Marine rescue party.  During the assault on John Brown's Fort, a saber thrust by Marine Lieutenant Green at John Brown was allegedly  deflected by the belt buckle of George Washington's sword.

--Old Secesh

Lewis William Washington-- Part 1: Grand-Nephew of George Washington

From Wikipedia.

November 30, 1812- October 1, 1871

Great grand-nephew of President George Washington and father of Custer's classmate at the USMA, James Barroll Washington.

He is principally known  for being a hostage of abolitionist John Brown during his raid on Harpers Ferry and as a prosecution witness during Brown's trial.

Son of George Corbin Washington, the grandson of William Augustine Washington, half brother of George Washington.

Lewis Washington inherited Beall-Air plantation near Halltown, Virginia (now West Virginia) from his mother and lived there from 1840 to his death in 1871.

--Old Secesh

Confederate Lt. James Washington-- Part 4: People Associated With Him

From FrontierNet.Net

People associated with James Barroll Washington.  All are accompanied by photographs.

COLONEL LEWIS WILLIAM WASHINGTON, Son of George Corbin Washington

Lewis was the great grandnephew of George Washington and father of James Barroll Washington.    He added the front half  of the Beallair Manor house in 1850-1855.  He was captured by John Cook during the John Brown Raid.  He later testified at John Brown's trial and other trials and hearings.

JOHN COOK

John Cook led John Brown's Raiders in their capture of Lewis Washington.  Several months before the raid, he had scouted the area and visited Beallair.

Beallair Mansion still stands in eastern West Virginia.

--Old Secesh

Confederate Lt. James Washington-- Part 3: Friendship With Custer Continued

From Frontier Net.  James Barroll Washington.

Was a graduate of  West Point where he became friends with George Armstrong Custer.  They maintained their friendship during the war and on several occasions, Custer assisted him and his family.

A photograph accompanies this showing him as being a major in the Confederate Army and at some point after the war.

This site also has people associated with James Barroll Washington.

--Old Secesh

Confederate Lt. James Washington-- Part 2: After Exchange Was Ordnance Officer in Montgomery

It was while he was on Gen. Johnston's staff that he was captured on May 31, 1862, at the Battle of Seven Pines, Virginia.

During this captivity he happened to meet with George Custer, an acquaintance of his from his days at the USMA at West Point.  The two former plebes, and now adversaries later sat together for a series of photographs.

Washington remained a prisoner until exchanged on September 21, 1862, at Aiken's Landing, Virginia.

Afterwards, he was assigned as an Ordnance Officer in Montgomery, Alabama.

After the war, he became an executive with the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad.  he died in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 6 March 1900 and was buried at Green Mount Cemetery in Baltimore, Ohio.

--Old Secesh

Confederate Lt. James Barroll Washington-- Part 1: Native of Baltimore and Friend of Custer

From GENi

Born August 26, 1839 in Baltimore, Maryland.  Died March 6, 1900 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Father Lewis William Washington.  Mother Mary Ann Washington.

From Find-A-Grave

Buried Green Mount Cemetery in Baltimore, Maryland.

Civil War Confederate officer  Descendant of President George Washington was a native of Baltimore, Maryland and attended the USMA at West Point.

He resigned from the Army when the Civil War began and became an officer in the Provisional Army of Virginia (PAVA).  Then became a lieutenant in the Confederate Army  and assigned to the staff of General Joseph Eggleston Johnston as an aide de camp.

--Old Secesh

George Custer and Friend Confederate Lt. Washington-- Part 2

"A camp photographer, seeing the two seated on a log, chatting, was preparing to photograph them, when young Washington called out to a small darkey standing near, and placed the child between them, saying the picture ought to be called 'Both sides, the cause.'

The "darkey" was a young slave boy who did not appear to be too happy to be there.

"And so it appeared in Harper's Weekly."

Photograph of Custer and Confederate Lt. James Barroll Washington (prisoner) and 2nd Lt. Custer with a young slave sitting between them.

The two men had been friends at the USMA before the war, now on different sides.

An Interesting Photo.  --Old Secesh

George Custer and Friend Confederate Lt. James Washington-- Part 1

From the book "Custer in Photographs" by D. Mark Katz.

I picked up this book on Tuesday at the Friends of Woodstock (Illinois) Library book sale.  It is of every known photograph taken of George Armstrong Custer.  The captions tell you about the people in the photograph and when it was taken and other information.

From page 6 and 7.

Lt. James Barroll Washington (Confederate prisoner, Custer's friend and classmate), a member of General Joseph E. Johnston's staff, captured at the Battle of Fair Oaks, Virginia, May 31, 1862, seated by 2nd Lieutenant George A. Custer, may 31, 1862, by James F. Gibson.

Two Friends Meeting Under Less Than Wonderful Circumstances, Especially for Lt. Washington.  --Old Secesh

UNC and 'Silent Sam'-- Part 4: What To Do With the Statue Now?

But the symbolism of an adolescent soldier became all the more polarizing after documents in the university's archives revealed the white supremacist language used at its 1913 dedication, including a gleeful account of the whipping of a young black woman.

Some members of this very liberal community (Chapel Hill, N.C. and UNC) now envision another, more painful battle if the UNC's governing body, whose members were chosen by the state's Republican-held General Assembly, decrees that the statue should be reinstalled.

The North Carolina  statewide Board of Governors met Tuesday and set a November 15 deadline for UNC-Chapel Hill's chancellor and Board of Trustees to present a plan to preserve the sculpture which has been hauled away to a secret location.

The chancellor, Carol Folt was against the way the statue was pulled down, but is leaving options open, including a "location on campus to display the monument in a place of prominence, honor, visibility, availability and access, where we can ensure the monument's preservation and place in the history of UNC and the nation."

My Thoughts On This Sad Situation Coming Up Eventually.   --Old Secesh

UNC and 'Silent Sam'-- Part 3: Faced Defiantly North

Some visitors to where the statue was continue to lament the sacrifices made by the young men who gave up their studies here to fight and die for a cause they believed in.

"Their bodies are who knows where.  What do they have?"  said Sandra Aldridge, who spat in disgust as she circled the railings after coming to campus for an appointment.  "If you don't like something, you don't just tear it down."

Decades of debate about the statue and its prominence on the campus have escalated into a politicized public drama, one heightened by the similarities to the controversy in Charlottesville a year ago.

Silent Sam has long been a flash point, facing defiantly north, overseeing a main entryway to UNC's historic campus.

--Old Secesh

9/11/01: Such A Beautiful Day Until...

Here is one blogger who isn't forgetting.

On just a little while, I am going outside to put up my United States flags.  Hope you will be doing so as well.

And, it was an absolutely beautiful day both here and in New York City, Washington D.C. and Pennsylvania.  How could something so horrible happen on such a beautiful day?

Not Forgetting.

UNC and 'Silent Sam'-- Part 2: 'Died On the Field Of Honor'

UNC Chancellor Carol Folt is hoping that people will be able to see that there is a difference between people who see the statue as a memorial to fallen ancestors and those who push white supremacy.

The pedestal from which "Silent Sam" stood for over a century is empty and surrounded by metal crowd control fences.  You can see where it fell headfirst to the ground and crashed through the barrier.

For awhile, a bouquet of flowers sat inside the barriers with a card inscribed to "James J. Cherry," one of the Confederate Roanoke Minute Men and a member of the University of North Carolina Class of 1862 who "died on the field of honor."  This is what a Confederate statue means to me.

The Statue Honored UNC Graduates, Students and Professors.  --Old Secesh

UNC Ponders What To Do With Toppled 'Silent Sam'-- Part 1

From the September 5, 2018, Chicago Tribune by Frances Stead Sellers and Susan Svrluga, Washington Post.

CONFEDERATE STATUE COULD BE RESTORED ELSEWHERE AT SCHOOL

Two weeks ago a group of protesters (actually thugs guilty of a horrendous hate crime) illegally desecrated the statue of a Confederate soldier at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill.  You can probably guess where I stand on this.

Now, there is uncertainty about what to do with the statue.

Many argue that it is a relic of racism and want it gone forever, school officials are thinking about putting it up again, but somewhere less prominent.

This from UNC Chancellor Carol Folt who thinks it doesn't belong at the school's "front door", where it was originally, but that the statue means different things to different people.  Many see it as a memorial to fallen Confederate soldiers, some of them ancestors, and that it "has a place in our history and on our campus where its history could be taught."

She seems to have changed her tune since the incident.  At first she seemed to be on the side of the desecrators.  Now, not so much.

This Monument Was Put Up To Honor the Students, Alumni and Faculty of UNC Who Gave Their Lives For the Confederacy.  --Old Secesh

Getting Ready to Go To the Lincoln Funeral Car in Antioch

I have to thank my buddy Glenn who last night at the American Legion mentioned that he and Barb had gone to the Lincoln Funeral Car in Antioch, Illinois, on Thursday.  I had forgotten entirely about it being there.

It has been there for two weeks.  On August 25, out McHenry County Civil War Round Table discussion group had visited it.  Of course, I would have been with them, but that happened to be Liz and my 45th wedding anniversary and we were in Galena, another place with a fair bit of Civil War history.

There were also other Civil-related things going on in Antioch while it was here, but again, I forgot about it all together.

Well, Thanks Glenn.  --Old Secesh

Robert E. Lee's 'Gregorie's Line' in S.C.-- Part 2: Forts and a Traveller Connection

These were specifically designed to stop the constant threat of Union invasion from nearby Beaufort which had been captured shortly after the war began.

General Lee laid out a series of half moon fortifications extending from the Cumbahee River to Pocotaligo.  Numerous local properties still have these forts and other earthworks on them.  Other earthworks were thrown up to stop Sherman's March through the Carolinas in 1865.

I have not been able to find out anything else about this "Gregorie's Line."

General Lee's famous war horse, Traveller, was shipped to him via the railroad while he was at  his headquarters at Coosawhatchie during Christmas 1861.

Nice Christmas Present.  --Old Secesh

Robert E. Lee's 'Gregorie's Line' in South Carolina-- Part 1

From That Genealogy "Yamassee's History."

Yamassee, South Carolina, is a town near where the Battle of Tuliffiny was fought,

Once South Carolina seceded and war began, this area near the Savannah River on the S.C. side became important from a military standpoint with the rice grown in the area, the Charleston and Savannah Railroad and telegraph lines.

Confederate General Robert E, Lee, an engineer by training, designed a line of fortifications in the area between the Stono, Edisto and Combahee rivers.  (This was before he became the commander of the Army of Northern Virginia.  These were built to protect both the Charleston and Savannah Railroad's main line running through the towns of Pocotaligo and Yamassee and the numerous rice plantations.

--Old Secesh

Battle of Tuliffiny-- Part 7: Union Ships

Union Naval vessels that participated in the amphibious landing at Tuliffiny

Note, I am of the belief these were ships of the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron probably based at the Union base at Hilton Head, S.C.. (Port Royal)

USS St, Louis  (The only Civil War ship by this name I could find was one of the Mississippi River ironclads.)

USS Pawnee
USS Canandaigua

USS Flag
USS New Hampshire  (this was a former ship-of-the-line and storehouse based at Port Royal).

USS Sonoma  This one was definitely at the battle.
USS Mingoe

USS Pontiac
USS Saratoga

USS James Adger
USS Camarron

USS Donegal

These ships were under command of Rear Admiral James Dahlgren (Dahlgren guns) of the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron.

The Naval Support Brigade ashore was commanded by Commander George Henry Preble.

--Old Secesh

Battle of Tuliffiny-- Part 6: Union Forces

The Battle of Tuliffiny was fought by soldiers from the U.S. Army, a large number of U.S. Marines and ships of the U.S. Navy.  It was an army-navy operation out of the major Union base at Hilton Head, South Carolina.  It did not involve units from Sherman's Army, but men from the Military department of the South.

Total forces of the Union are estimated at 5,000.

MILITARY DISTRICT OF THE SOUTH

Major General John G. Foster, commanding.

Brigadier General John Porter Hatch (Medal of Honor recipient)

Brigadier General Edward E. Potter

UNITS

56th New York
127th New York
144th New York
157th New York
25th Ohio
3rd New York Light Artillery  Battery F
3rd Rhode Island Heavy Artillery
32nd  U.S. Colored Troops
33rd U.S. Colored Troops

USMC   First Lieutenant (Acting Lieutenant Colonel) George G. Stoddard, commanding.

--Old Secesh

Battle of Tuliffiny-- Part 5: The "Swamp Fox: Hideout

The Tuliffiny Creek is located in Jaspar County, the South Carolina county located across the Savannak River from Savannah.

The amphibious landing on the Tuliffiny River was conducted primarily by the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps and was also successful in moving 5,000 troops to Gregorie Point, which is a peninsula bounded by the Tuliffinay and Coosawatchie  rivers located near the town of Yemassee and some 45 miles north of Savannah.

Much of this area is covered by swamps and thick foliage and large trees.    General Francis Marion, "The Swamp Fox" of the American Revolution  fought the British and encamped near this area  on several occasions.

The Union objective was to cut the Charleston-Savannah  Railroad by destroying a railroad trestle bridge that crossed the Tuliffiny River.

--Old Secesh

The Battle of Tuliffiny-- Part 4: Sherman Aproacheth

BACKGROUND

In early December 1864 Major general William T. Sherman and his 62,000-man army  was approaching the South Carolina border on his March to the Sea with Savannah as an objective.  Sherman had ordered his men to adopt a "scorched earth" policy against the Confederates.  That meant burning and destroying crops, homes, confiscation  and killing of livestock and the consumption of any supplies needed by his army.

This early example of total war  was meant to cause mass desertion in the enemy ranks and break the South's will to fight.

Tuliffiny was one of eight engagements during the war in which cadets from the South Carolina Military Academy (SCMA) (also known as the Battalion of State Cadets) participated.

Old Secesh

Battle of Tulifinny-- Part 3: The Only Time In History An Entire Student Body of a U.S. College Engaged in Combat

From Wikipedia

Fought December 6-9, 1863, in South Carolina during Sherman's March to the Sea, also known as the Savannah Campaign.

Outnumbered 5 to 1, a Confederate force successfully defensed a critical section of the Charleston-Savannah Railroad allowing troops and supplies from Savannah to be evacuated.

The battle was historically significant because it was one of the rare occasions when the United States Marine Corps fought in combat during he Civil War.  (I don't know about that.)  In addition, the Confederate force also included the  entire Corps of Cadets from the South Carolina Military Academy in Charleston, now the Citadel.

More than a third of the Confederate force was comprised of the Citadel Corps of Cadets and it was the only time when the entire student body of a U.S. college fought in combat.

In a Nutshell.  --Old Secesh

Citadel Cadets and VMI Cadets

You always hear a lot about the role the cadets from the Virginia Military Institute played in the Battle of New Market, but not so much about the Citadel Cadets at the Battle of Tuliffiny.

Like I said, I'd never even heard of this battle until I saw it listed as one in which the German Light Artillery took part.

You Learn Something New All the Time.  --Old SecDidn'tKnow

Battle of Tuliffiny-- Part 2: The Battalion of State Cadets From the Citadel and Arsenal Took Part

From the Battle of Tuliffiny blog.

This battle is of particular interest because it involved the use of  entire Battalion of State Cadets from the Citadel and Arsenal Academies as an independent military unit.  They were commanded by Major General Samuel Jones, Commanding General of the South Carolina and Georgia Departments.

In December 1864, the governor of South Carolina ordered them to deploy at Tuliffiny Creek, south of Charleston, to reinforce Confederate troops guarding a key railroad bridge against larger advancing Union forces.

On December 7, 1864, the Battalion, along with Georgia, North and South Carolina militia engaged the Union forces and forced the enemy back.  On December 9, the Battalion successfully repulsed a Union counter attack.

The Battalion suffered eight casualties, including one dead.  They were commended for their action at the battle by General Jones.

A depiction of the Dec. 9 engagement at the Tuliffiny Creek railroad bridge  is on display at the Daniel Library at the Citadel.

--Old Secesh

Battle of Tuliffiny-- Part 1: What About Its Name?

Two posts ago, I wrote about the German Light Artillery being at this battle.  I'd never heard of this battle before, so did some further research on it.

The engagement was listed as the Battle of Tulliffiny Creek in the post.  Looking it up, I found the name was spelled Tuliffiny, but with a double "l".  Then it was referred to as Battle of Tuliffiny Station and I've also seen it referred to as the Battle of Tuliffiny Creek.

This probably was due to Confederates naming engagements after towns or places and the Union naming them after water.

I will just be calling it the Battle of Tuliffiny.

--Old Secesh