MCCWRT Discussion Group Meets Tomorrow: Topic 'That Devil Forrest'

The McHenry County (Illinois) Civil War Round Table Discussion Group will meet tomorrow, March 23, at the Panera Bread in Crystal Lake, Illinois. from 10 am to 11:30.

Discussion topic will be "Nathan Bedford Forrest, Cavalry Commander of the West."  Lots of opinions on this man and Steve normally keeps us somewhat on topic.

The Panera Bread is located at Main Street and US-14 (Northwest Highway).

This will also be on Zoom.

Everyone is welcome.  You do not have to be a member to attend.

--Old Secesh

The Holly Springs Raid Delayed Grant's General Order No. 11 That Expelled Jews from His Department

From Wikipedia.

Van Dorn's raid nearly coincided with U.S. Grant's General Orders No. 11 issued on December 17, 1862.  Thus expelled the Jews as a class from his military district within 24 houirs.  (Van Dorn's raid occurred on December 20.)

Grant believed that Jewish traders violated U.S. Treasury Department cotton trade regulations  which was the reason for the General Order.

Van Dorn's raid disrupted Union communications for weeks.  Additionally, Nathan Bedford Forrest's West Tennessee Raids, starting December 10, destroyed communications along 50 miles of the Mobile & Ohio Railroad behind Grant's front line.

The raid delayed implementation of Grant's orders, saving many Jews from possible expulsion.  It took 11 days for the orders to reach Paducah, Kentucky.  After which, many Jewish leaders appealed to President Lincoln.

At Lincoln's insistence, General-in-Chief of Union armies Henry Halleck ordered Grant to revoke General Order 11.  When Grant ran for president in 1868, this order  proved such an embarrassment that he disavowed it.

--Old Secesh

Forrest's '64 Railroad Raid-- Part 4: Sherman, Forrest, Hood and the SS Sultana

Atlanta had fallen on September 2, and Forrest was hoping to draw Sherman away from that city to go after him.  It didn't work.  Sherman was getting ready for his March to the Sea and Savannah.

Forrest hated Sherman and Sherman hated him.  

The Confederate general in charge of the Army of Tennessee, John Bell Hood, and Forrest did not get along at all.  At one time Forrest supposedly threatened Hood, saying that if he were any more of a man, he'd take him.  That was referring to Hood's loss of the use of one hand and loss of a leg in battle.  

*******************************

The Blacks captured at the Battle of Athens were made up mostly of ex-slaves from around that town.

Forrest burned the Freedman's Camp at the John Brown plantation.  John Brown, not the abolitionist at Harper's Ferry was a general in the Confederate Army and later Tennessee governor.

Blockhouses were made of wood.

Gene Salecker got interested in Forrest's1864 raid because many of the captured Union soldiers were aboard the ill-fated SS Sultana when it blew up and sank.  He has written a book about the Sultana titled "Destruction of the Sultana:  The Worst Maritime Disaster in American History."

--Old Secesh

Forrest's 1864 Railroad Raid-- Part 3: A Success on Paper Anyway

Forrest next crossed into Tennessee and went toward Pulaski, where he ran into an ambush from General John Converse Starkwater's brigade of 6,000 Union troops.  Forced to withdraw, Forrest headed to Fayetteville and with a view of destroying railroad tracks by Tullahoma.

Then, he headed to Spring Hill, Tennessee and, with 2,500 men put plenty of false information on the telegraph lines.  He headed back to Florence.

The total road covered 500 miles in 15 days in which he captured 3,500 prisoners, artillery, 800 horses, 900 cattle, 2,000 small arms.

His losses came to 47 killed and 293 wounded.

Technically, the raid was a success, but he didn't stop Sherman or make Sherman follow him.

--Old Secesh

Forrest's 1864 Railroad Raid-- Part 2: On to Sulfur Creek Trestle

Battle of Sulfur Creek Trestle.

After Forrest defeated Union forces at Athens and Fort Henderson, he  moved north along the railroad with the intent to destroy the strategic trestle at Sulphur Creek, six miles north of Athens.

There, Union forces had erected to blockhouses and fortifications.  There were 928 Union troops defending it including the 111th USCT and the 9th Indiana Cavalry under Col. Ely Lilly.  Rifle pits connected the various defenses.

Forrest surrounded the fort and had 8 pieces of artillery against the Federals 2 cannons.  Outnumbered and outgunned, Lilly surrendered..  Forrest burned the fortification and Union losses were 200 killed and 720 captured.

Union prisoners were transferred to Confederate prisons and many of them died on April 27, 1865, when they were returning home and on board the tragic SS Sultana.

--Old Secesh

MCCWRT March Meeting: Nathan Bedford Forrest's Sept. 1864 Railroad Raid-- Part 1

March 8, 2022 meeting of the McHenry County Civil War Round Table.

*************************

This was both an in person and a Zoom meeting with presentation given by Gene Salecker.

After Sherman captured Atlanta he had long supply lines back to Nashville, Tennessee.

September 24, 1864, Nathan Forrest had 3,600 cavalry troops at Cherokee Station.  He was hoping to break the railroad link and draw Sherman's army after him.

Fort Henderson was at Athens, Alabama, and Forrest and 4,000 of his men surrounded it and made the fort's commander, Colonel Campbell believe he had 13,000 to 15,000 men and scared Campbell into surrendering the 900 men under his command.  Most of the Union troops surrendered were of the 110th USCT.  (Black soldiers surrendering to Confederates, never a good thing.)

There were 13,000 Union troops at Decatur, Alabama, and they sent a force of 378 to Fort Henderson's relief.  They were from the 102nd Ohio and under the command of Lt. Col. Elliott.  Forrest attacked them and after hard fighting, forced them to surrender as well.  Elliott was mortally wounded.  These men were sent to Cahaba Prison.

The Blacks captured at Fort Henderson were sent to Mobile, Alabama, to work on the fortifications there.  While doing this, they came under fire of Union ships.

--Old Secesh

MCCWRT Meeting Tuesday, March 8, 'Nathan Forrest's Railroad Raid'

 On Tuesday, March 8, the McHenry County Civil War Round Table will have a presentation by Gene Salecker on "Nathan Bedford Forrest's  Railroad Raid" from  7 to 8:30 pm at the Woodstock Public Library in Woodstock, Illinois, at 414 West Judd Street

It will be both in person and via Zoom.  Facemasks are optional.

This is our first meeting of 2022 (as there are no meetings in January and February).

Good to be back.

--Old Secesh

7th Minnesota Volunteer Infantry, Henry Mills' Outfit-- Part 1

From MNopedia.

The 7th Minnesota Infantry served on Minnesota's troubled frontier in the summer of 1862 and into the  first half of 1863.  The regiment eventually headed south, taking part in a key battle that essentially destroyed a Confederate army.  They also participated in one of the final campaigns of the war.

They fought in the U.S.-Dakota War of 1862 and were at the Birch Coulee and Wood Lake battles.

Then, they went south and fought Confederate Gen. Forrest's cavalry at the Battle of Tupelo July 14-15.  Then they pursued Confederate Gen. Sterling Price's army across Arkansas and Missouri.

Late in November, they arrived at Nashville where they joined Union Gen. George Thomas's troops facing Confederate Gen. John Bell Hood's Army of Tennessee.

--Old Secesh

Descendants of Victims of Fort Pillow Massacre

in the last entry I mentioned that there were people from this group in attendance at the meeting in Memphis to remove the statues of Jefferson Davis and Nathan Forrest.

I hadn't ever heard of this organization and looked it up.  Unfortunately, I wasn't able to find out anything about them other than they were at the meeting.

I hope there is a group devoted to keeping their memory alive.

--Old Secesh

Failure in the Saddle: Confederate Cavalry at Chickamauga-- Part 6: Not All Bragg's Fault

Braxton Bragg has often been accused of having lost one of the greatest opportunities of the war at the Battle of Chickamauga and considering his record, that probably has a ring of truth to it.  But, at the same time, his two cavalry corps commanders, Joe Wheeler and Nathan Forrest also need to take their shar of the blame according to David Powell.

Bragg himself admitted that he had achieved as big of a victory as might have been because his cavalry let him down.

And, also his Army commanders let him down because of their incessant squabbling among themselves.  The Army of Tennessee had a major reorganization after the battle.

Prior to Chickamauga, Bragg had a high opinion of Forrest,  That opinion is no longer there afterwards.

As for Joe Wheeler, despite his failings at the battle, he got promoted, partly because he refused to criticize Bragg and remained a Bragg loyalist throughout the war.  He ended up in command of all Confederate cavalry in the West.

This was a very interesting and enlightening presentation.  I sure never thought Forrest to be a military failure, ever.  But he sure did not shine at Chickamauga.

--Old Secesh

Failure in the Saddle, Confederate Cavalry at Chickamauga-- Part 5: 3rd Failure

s both sides attacked and counterattacked.  .  On September 20th, a miscommunication among the Union command made a hole in the Union lines just as Longsteet's corps from the Army of Northern Virginia commenced an attack at that very spot.  This resulted in the collapse of the Union line and a general retreat.

THE THIRD CONFEDERATE CAVALRY FAILURE

On September 21st, Forrest sent out cavalry patrols to Missionary Ridge, south of Chattanooga.  he thought the Federals were in complete disarray and rapidly abandoning Chattanooga, but did nothing.  Actually the part of Missionary Ridge that the Confederates got to was the one spot where Union troops were not.  It was soon found that Rosecrans held a very strong defensive position on Missionary Ridge.

So, Forrest Misreported.  --Old Secesh

Failure in the Saddle: Confederate Cavalry at Chickamauga-- Part 4: Second Failure

So, Joe Wheeler's failure to cover and obstruct the Union Army crossing the Tennessee River southwest of Chattanooga was the first Confederate cavalry failure in the campaign.

Once the Union Army was across the river, Bragg was forced to leave Chattanooga without any fight. Rosecrans entered the city the following day and the Union held this strategic point for the rest of the war.  It served Sherman ably as a key supply link in his drive on Atlanta the following year.

 Bragg retired to Lafayette, Georgia and over the next week the two armies spent maneuvering.

Then, on September 18th, came the second great Confederate cavalry failure on the first day of tyhe Battle of Chickamauga.  This time it was Forrest's turn to blunder.

The Union Army launched a flank attack at Lee & Gordon Mill and Forrest did not report the move despite the massive amounts of dust put up as the Union Army moved and the myriad of fires used to light their way the night before.

David Powell believes that Forrest should have seen and reported this, but Forrest was not used to cavalry operations with an army where they were to screen and locate the enemy.

--Old Secesh

Failure in the Saddle: Confederate Cavaly at Chickamauga-- Part 2: Joe Wheeler

The other Confederate cavalry corps commander, Joseph Wheeler was essentially the complete opposite of Forrest.  He had graduated from West Point (and Bragg preferred West Point grads for his officers, in 1859 after five years.  The additional year was added for extra training in tactics, and Wheeler received him in cavalry.  After commissioning, he spent time at the Carlisle Barracks in Pennsylvania which was the headquarters for U.S, cavalry and then, in the time before the Civil War served in the cavalry in the Southwest.  No doubt about Wheeler having the knowledge.

Bragg picked him for cavalry command.  Wheeler was just 26 in 1863.

He immediately started having conflicts with the older, self-taught cavalryman Forrest.  Plus, Wheeler had other problems with his division commanders, especially John Wharton.

--Old Secesh

Failure in the Saddle: Confederate Cavalry at the Battle of Chickamauga-- Part 1: Nathan Bedford Forrest

David Powell's presentation at the McHenry County Civil War Round Table in Woodstock on October 14, 2014.

At the Battle of Stones River, Union General Rosecrans realized that he had a serious lack of cavalry when compared with that of the Confederates he faced.  The Union cavalry was outnumbered two to one.  Before that, there had been much emphasis among the Southerners on their cavalry in the West.  But, by the Battle of Chickamauga, that Confederate advantage had shrunk to 9-10,000 Union troopers to 14,00 Confederate.

Regardless of the side, the role of cavalry before a battle was to screen and locate the enemy.

But, the Confederate cavalry had their own problems.  Its two cavalry corps were commanded by two generals who couldn't have been more different and even worse, they didn't like each other.

One corps was commanded by Nathan Bedford Forrest.  Though he was excellent at independent raid command, regular cavalry operations were not to his liking or strong suit.  He was quarrelsome and violent and about as bad of a subordinate as you could get.  He also wasn't much of and effective disciplinarian.  His troops pretty much did as they wanted.

--Old Secesh

Chickamauga Expert David Powell at McHenry Civil War Round Table Last Night

Last night, October 14th, we were treated to a presentation by David Powell, who wrote the book  "Failure in the Saddle: Nathan Bedford Forrest, Joe Wheeler, and the Confederate Cavalry in the Chickamauga Campaign."  I sure know a whole lot more about the campaign, battle and aftermath of what Powell regards as the second biggest battle of the war (after Gettysburg, of course).

David Powell is a recognized authority on the Battle of Chickamauga whose battlefield tours of it are considered exceptional by those who have been on them.  (Something for me to think about in the future.)

He is a 1983 graduate of the Virginia Military Institute with a BA in History and owns and operates a delivery company in Chicago.  We even had a couple of members of the Chicago Civil War Round Table in attendance.

I was greatly tempted to buy his book, which he had for sale, but didn't as I really should be starting to get rid of stuff instead of buying more (isn't working though).

I will be writing about his presentation beginning tomorrow.

If You get the Chance, Definitely See Him.  --Old Secesh

McHenry County Civil Round Table Meeting Tonight

In a little bit I am leaving for Woodstock, Illinois, to attend the Round Table meeting at the Woodstock Library.

Tonight's topic will be "Failure in the Saddle" and apparently will be about Confederate cavalry generals Nathan Bedford Forrest and Joseph Wheeler.

Personally, I'm not sure Nathan Bedford Forrest can be classified as a military failure even though he has certainly come under a lot of attack in these vehement slavery days because of his pre-war career as a slave trader, the massacre at Fort Pillow and his post-war heading up of the Ku Klux Klan.

I have read some about Joseph Wheeler and been to a Battle of Bentonville presentation day where Wheeler's role was a bit questionable.

I look forward to getting some information on these two men.

--Old Secesh

Heritage Attacks Continue

From the September 15, 2012, WDEF News 12

The Southern Christian Leadership Congress is protesting the proposed monument to Nathan Forrest in Selma, Alabama.  This was being made to replace the one stolen earlier in the year.


January 23, 2013

Persons in Memphis, Tennessee, want the name of Forrest Park (Nathan Bedford Forrest)  to have the name Ida B. Wells added to it.  The park contains the general's grave.


Jan. 18, 2013  ABC 4 Utah News.

Dixie State College decides to change nothing and to keep the name despite the "racial stigma" as it moves from college to university status.  The school was established in 1911 and incorporated the Dixie into its name in 1916.

It Just Doesn't Let Up.  --Old Secesh

Another Loss for the Home Team

From the Sept. 26, 2012, CBS News

The Selma, Alabama, City Council voted to stop work on the statue of Nathan Bedford Forrest in the cemetery because of black marches and opposition.  Ten years ago, their demonstrations led to the statue being removed from outside a public building in a very visible site to the cemetery's Confederate section.

More recently, someone, wonder who, cut the head off the statue.  Groups are trying to restore it, but the blacks and their supporters don't want it.

Looks Like They Have Won This One, At least Temporarily.  --Old Secesh