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What was the most significant event on April 3 during the U.S. Civil War?
1861 focus on relieving the beleaguered Ft Sumter
1863 the southern cities are running out of food with little relief in sight
1864 secret Confederate expedition to blow up the 1859 Cape Lookout lighthouses and oil stores.
1865 Petersburg and Richmond fall to the Union. Lincoln is met with silence and then gratitude by the grateful and cold stares from hard core rebels.
ELKINS FERRY - A SHORT HISTORY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kUB6-OCKaw8
FYI COL Mikel J. BurroughsCOL Randall C. LTC Stephen C. SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSLMaj John Bell Maj William W. 'Bill' Price CWO3 (Join to see) CWO4 Terrence Clark PO3 Steven Sherrill SN Greg Wright PO1 William "Chip" Nagel 1stSgt Eugene Harless Capt Seid Waddell
1861 focus on relieving the beleaguered Ft Sumter
1863 the southern cities are running out of food with little relief in sight
1864 secret Confederate expedition to blow up the 1859 Cape Lookout lighthouses and oil stores.
1865 Petersburg and Richmond fall to the Union. Lincoln is met with silence and then gratitude by the grateful and cold stares from hard core rebels.
ELKINS FERRY - A SHORT HISTORY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kUB6-OCKaw8
FYI COL Mikel J. BurroughsCOL Randall C. LTC Stephen C. SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSLMaj John Bell Maj William W. 'Bill' Price CWO3 (Join to see) CWO4 Terrence Clark PO3 Steven Sherrill SN Greg Wright PO1 William "Chip" Nagel 1stSgt Eugene Harless Capt Seid Waddell
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1861 a test vote in Virginia shows a 2-1 margin against secession
1863 siege of Little Washington, NC [March 30 to April 19] is slogging along as both sides were running low on supplies, and conditions grew miserable in the rain and mud.
1863 second straight day of food shortage protests in Richmond, VA. A group of Richmonders gathers to protest food shortages, but is discouraged from rioting.
1864 Report from Richmond, VA: The James River is very high, and all the streams are so much swollen that no military operations in the field are looked for immediately. … So no diminution of prices is yet experienced. It is now a famine.
1865 Richmond authorities, after learning of reports of looting by Union soldiers in other southern cities which fell worked to burn the supplies of tobacco and destroy the liquor supplies. The burning tobacco caused fires which union forces helped put out the following day. Liquor was dumped into the gutters but the smell attracted too many wannabe drinkers who filled their hats up with whiskey and/or lapped it from the gutters.
Since RallyPoint truncates survey selection text I am posting events that were not included and then the full text of each survey choice below:
1. Sunday, April 3, 1861: A "test vote" in the Virginia convention shows a 2-1 margin against secession
http://blueandgraytrail.com/year/186104
2. Thursday, April 3, 1862: A.S. Johnston and Beauregard get the Army of the Mississippi moving late in the day, but the snarl of traffic in Corinth and lack of coordination amongst the corps commanders result in little progress. The generals move the march time back 24 hours. Meanwhile, Johnston drafts new marching orders, and orders for battle deployment when the army reaches the battlefield: an unusual formation, with the three main corps in column, rather than spread over a wider front. He issues orders to his army: Soldiers of The Army of the Mississippi: I have put you in motion to offer battle to the invaders of your country, with the resolution and discipline and valor becoming men, fighting, as you are, for all worth living or dying for. You can but march to a decisive victory over agrarian mercenaries sent to subjugate and despoil you of your liberties, property and honor.
Remember the precious stake involved, remember the dependence of your mothers, your wives, your sisters, and your children, on the result Remember the fair, broad, abounding lands, the happy homes, that will be desolated by your defeat. The eyes and hopes of eight million people rest upon you. You are expected to show yourselves worthy of your valor and courage, worthy of the women of the South, whose noble devotion in this war has never been exceeded in any time. With such incentives to brave deeds, and with the trust that God is with us, your general will lead you confidently to the combat, assured of success.
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=April+3%2C+1862
3. Thursday, April 3, 1862: —On this date, Pres. Lincoln issues orders that, contrary to Gen. McClellan’s wishes, his I Corps, under command of Gen. Irwin McDowell, is to be detached from the Army of the Potomac to remain in protection of Washington, and not to go to the Peninsula.
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=April+3%2C+1862
4. Thursday, April 3, 1862: —Julian C. Ruffin, of the Confederate Army, writes home to his wife Lottie, and shares an interesting dilemma with southern Quaker draftees in the army–who believe neither in war nor slavery: There are some Methodists here from Dinwiddie, who have prayer meetings at night_ sometimes they only sing. I have been around to their rooms on several such occassions. There are also some Quakers brought from Southampton. You know that it is contrary to their religion to fight. They are determined not to do anything to help on the war. They say they won’t stand up in line for drill, nor will they answer to their names. They will not even cut the food provided by government for our subsistence. I understand that the Commandant says that they shall be held up in the ranks by a man on each side if they will not stand up. It would be much better to let them go home. Religious persecution never did any good.
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=April+3%2C+1862
5. Thursday, April 3, 1862: THE PRESIDENT, Richmond, General Buell is in motion, Buell moving rapidly from Columbia to Savannah, leaving a division of 10,000 moving toward Decatur. Confederate forces, 40,000, ordered forward to offer battle near Pittsburg. Hope engagement before Buell can form junction. A.S. JOHNSTON
http://americancivilwar.com/authors/Joseph_Ryan/150-Year-Anniversary/April-1862/April-1862-War-In-The-West/April-1862-War-West.html
6. Thursday, April 3, 1862: HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF THE MISSISSIPPI, Corinth, Miss., April 3, 1862
Soldiers of the Army of the Mississippi: I have put you in motion to offer battle to the invaders of your country. Remember the precious stake involved; remember your mothers, your wives, your sisters, your children depend on the result; remember the fair, abounding land of ours, the happy homes that would be desolated by your defeat.
The eyes and hopes of eight million people rest on you. Show yourselves worthy of your race, worthy of the women of the South. With such incentives as these, your general will lead you to the combat, assured of success.
A.S. JOHNSTON, General
http://americancivilwar.com/authors/Joseph_Ryan/150-Year-Anniversary/April-1862/April-1862-War-In-The-West/April-1862-War-West.html
7. Thursday April 3, 1862: General Albert Sidney Johnston’s army set out in pursuit of Grant’s army but delays forced a postponement of the planned April 4 attack. Despite Federal gunboats on patrol from Savannah, Tennessee; Eastport, Mississippi; and Chickasaw, Alabama; and a small skirmish near Monterey, Tennessee near Pittsburg Landing, the Federal forces at Pittsburg Landing were unaware of the Confederate advance.
http://thisweekinthecivilwar.com/?p=1114
8. Thursday April 3, 1862: Discovering that fewer than 20,000 troops were left in Washington, President Lincoln held back Brigadier General Irvin McDowell’s corps, despite protests from Major General George B. McClellan.
http://thisweekinthecivilwar.com/?p=1114
9. Thursday April 3, 1862: The U.S. Senate voted 29 to 14 in favor of abolishing slavery in the District of Columbia.
http://thisweekinthecivilwar.com/?p=1114
10. Friday April 3, 1863: Battle of Washington, North Carolina [March 30 – April 20, 1863] Inconclusive: Hill unable to take North Carolina town from Union forces.
The Battle of Washington took place from March 30 to April 19, 1863, in Beaufort County, North Carolina, as part of Confederate Lt. Gen. James Longstreet's Tidewater operations during the American Civil War. This battle is sometimes referred to as the Siege of Little Washington.
Background
After the culmination of Burnside's North Carolina Expedition little attention had been given to North Carolina by the Confederate Army. In December 1862 a Union expedition from New Berne destroyed the railroad bridge at Goldsboro, N.C. along the vital Wilmington and Weldon Railroad. This expedition caused only temporary damage to the railroad, but did prompt Confederate authorities to devote more attention to the situation along the coast of Virginia and North Carolina.
Following the Confederate victory at Fredericksburg, General Robert E. Lee felt confident enough to dispatch a large portion of his army to deal with Union occupation forces along the coast. The whole force was put under the command of Lt. Gen. James Longstreet. While Longstreet personally operated against Suffolk, Maj. Gen. D. H. Hill led a column which moved against Federal garrisons at New Berne and Washington, North Carolina.
Maj. Gen. John G. Foster, commanding the Department of North Carolina, was responsible for the overall defense of the Union garrisons along the North Carolina coast. After Hill's attack against New Berne failed, Foster arrived in Washington to take personal command of the garrison.
Siege
Foster, a West Point trained Army engineer, put his skills to good use improving the town's defenses as well as employing the use of three gunboats in the defense. By March 30, the town was ringed with fortifications, and Brig. Gen. Richard B. Garnett's brigade began the investment of Washington. Meanwhile, Hill established batteries as well as river obstructions along the Tar River to impede reinforcements. He also posted two brigades south of Washington to guard for any relief efforts coming overland from New Bern. The Confederates sent a reply to Foster demanding surrender. Foster replied saying "If the Confederates want Washington, come and get it." Despite this defiance, Foster lacked the strength to dislodge the besiegers, and Hill was under orders to avoid an assault at the risk of sustaining heavy casualties. Thus, the engagement devolved into one of artillery, and even so the Confederates limited their bombings to conserve their ammunition. In time both sides were running low on supplies, and conditions grew miserable in the rain and mud. Despite the lack of progress against Washington, Hill was accomplishing a vital objective in the form of foraging parties so long as the Federals were pinned down.
Relief Efforts
A Federal relief column under Brig. Gen. Henry Prince sailed up the Tar River. Once Prince saw the Rebel batteries, he simply turned the transports around. A second effort under Brig. Gen. Francis Barretto Spinola moved overland from New Bern. Spinola was defeated along Blount's Creek and returned to New Bern. Foster decided that he would escape Washington and personally lead the relief effort leaving his chief-of-staff, Brig. Gen. Edward E. Potter in command at Washington. On April 13, the USS Escort braved the Confederate batteries and made its way into Washington. The Escort delivered supplies and reinforcements in the form of a Rhode Island regiment. It was aboard this ship on April 15 that Foster made his escape. The ship was badly damaged and the pilot mortally wounded, but Foster made it out.
Raising the Siege
About the same time Foster made an escape, Hill was faced with numerous reasons that ultimately led to his withdrawal: the completion of his foraging efforts, Union supplies reaching the Federal garrison, and finally a message arrived from Longstreet requesting reinforcements for an assault on Suffolk. Hill broke off the siege on April 15 and began to withdraw Garnett's brigade fronting Washington's defenses.
Meanwhile, Foster had made it back to New Bern and immediately began organizing a relief effort. He ordered General Prince to march along the railroad towards Kinston to hold off Confederates in the vicinity of Goldsboro, while Foster personally led a second column north from New Bern towards Blount's Creek where General Spinola had earlier been turned back. On April 18, Foster ordered Spinola to drive the Confederates from their road block at Swift Creek guarding the direct road from Washington to New Bern. At the same time, General Henry M. Naglee attacked the Confederate rear guard near Washington capturing several prisoners and a regimental battle flag. On April 19 Foster returned to the Washington defenses and by April 20 the Confederates had completely withdrawn from the area.
11. Friday, April 3, 1863 --- The New York Times publishes a notice for a public rally against “Copperheadism” -that is, Northerners who tended to favor the South and oppose the Union war efforts: UNION MEETING TO-NIGHT.
The Young Men’s Republican Central Committee inaugurate to-night a series of Anti-Copperhead meetings at their headquarters, corner Broadway and Twenty-third-street. E. DELAFIELD SMITH, United States District Attorney, and other well-known speakers, will address the audience.
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=April+3.+1863
12. Friday, April 3, 1863 --- James Henry Gooding, a soldier in the new 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment, one of the first black regiments, writes to a Boston-area paper about camp life and the training of the men: Camp Meigs, Readville, Messrs. Editors: The 54th progresses daily. This week past the men who have been in camp the longest time have been practicing in the manual of arms. It really makes one’s heart pulsate with pride as he looks upon those stout and brawny men, fully equipped with Uncle Sam’s accoutrements upon them, to feel that these noble men are practically refuting the base assertions reiterated by copperheads and traitors that the black race are incapable of patriotism, valor or ambition. Officers of distinction, whose judgements are not warped by prejudice, pronounce this regiment to be the nucleus of an army equaling in discipline and material the Imperial Hosts of Europe. I, for one, hope their liberal assumptions will in the end prove true—and it is merely a question of time to make it so. Our first dress parade took place this afternoon, and those who know say the men behaved admirably, for so short a period in drilling. . . .
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=April+3.+1863
13. Friday, April 3, 1863 --- James Kendall Hosmer, of the Union Army, writes of his experiences in southern Louisiana, and of the other-worldly paradise that must have moved many a Yankee to such rhapsodies: Seldom does an army march under circumstances so delightful. The miles were not weary ones; for the same really remarkable conditions made our progress comparatively easy from first to last, — a bright sky and sun, but a cool northern breeze, and a road, for the most part, in perfect condition to receive the soldier’s foot-fall. On one side rose the slope of the Levee; ten or twelve feet high from the road, two or three from the water on the other side. When the column halted, we could run up the slope, then stoop to the cool bayou to drink, or to wash face, hands, and feet. On our right, as we marched, we passed, now houses of moderate size, bare of elegance — sometimes even squalid in appearance; now, again, mansions of comfortable look; and, not unfrequently, beautiful seats, set up high to preserve them from danger in case-of a crevasse, with colonnades ornamented tastefully with orange-groves and the glorious live-oak, with trees full of roses instead of bushes.
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=April+3.+1863
14. Friday, April 3, 1863 --- For the second straight day, a group of Richmonders gathers to protest food shortages, but is discouraged from rioting. The previous day, the City Battalion had threatened violence against protesters.
http://www.encyclopediavirginia.org/richmond_during_the_civil_war
15. Friday, April 3, 1863: Snow's Hill, Tennessee: A Union detachment of 1,500 infantry and cavalry, commanded by Brig. Gen. David S. Stanley, was sent on a scouting expedition toward the area of Snow Hill. The Confederate force in the area was commanded by Col. Richard M. Gano. Gano learned of the Union approach and stationed his men at Snow's Hill. Snow's Hill was a series of level-topped ridges and deep ravines sloping westward from a plateau into the valley where Liberty was located. Gano deployed his 2 brigades in a defensive line midway down the ridges. At daylight, Stanley fired on the Confederate line with his artillery. This had a devastating effect on the Confederates. Next, the Union infantry charged the Confederate line while the Union cavalry advanced up a dry creekbed on the Confederate left flank. Surrounded, the Confederate force was soon routed.
http://www.mycivilwar.com/battles/1863s.html
16. Sunday April 3, 1864 --- On this date, as Gen. Frederick Steele’s Army of Arkansas (U.S.) marches southeast towards Shreveport, Rebels from the command of Gen. John Marmaduke march west from Camden and strike at several places along Steele’s column, in a series of confused skirmishing that accomplishes little and leaves both commanders with little idea of the enemy’s locations.
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=April+3%2C+1864
17. Sunday, April 3, 1864 --- John Beauchamp Jones of Richmond records his thoughts in his journal: The snow has disappeared; but it is cloudy, with a cold northwest wind. The James River is very high, and all the streams are so much swollen that no military operations in the field are looked for immediately. It is generally believed that Grant, the Federal lieutenant-general, will concentrate an immense army for the capture of Richmond, and our authorities are invoked to make the necessary dispositions to resist the attempt. . . .
So no diminution of prices is yet experienced. It is now a famine, although I believe we are starving in the midst of plenty, if it were only equally distributed. But the government will not, it seems, require the railroads to bring provisions to the exclusion of freight for the speculators. Certain non-combating officers of the government have abundance brought them by the Southern Express Co., and the merchants have abundance of goods brought hither by the same company for the purposes of speculation. Well, we shall see the result! One is almost ready to believe that the government declines to fill the depots here, harboring the purpose of abandoning the city. That would be abandonment of the cause. Nearly all who own no slaves would remain citizens of the United States, if permitted, without further molestation on the part of the Federal authorities, and many Virginians in the field might abandon the Confederate States army. The State would be lost, and North Carolina and Tennessee would have an inevitable avalanche of invasion precipitated upon them. The only hope would be civil war in the North, a not improbable event. What could they do with four millions of negroes arrogating equality with the whites?
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=April+3%2C+1864
A. Sunday, April 3, 1861: Readying USS Powhatan for the Sumter relief expedition. USS Powhatan, a sidewheel steam frigate built in 1850 was a powerful vessel for her time, armed with one 11-inch Dahlgren gun as a pivot gun and ten more 9-inch Dahlgren guns--five on each broadside. Powhatan was intended to provide the kind of heavy firepower necessary for a relief force to punch its way into Charleston Harbor to relieve Fort Sumter.
The orders to prepare the USS Powhatan for service in the expeditions to relieve Fort Sumter and Fort Pickens caught the commandant of the New York Navy Yard flat-footed. The USS Powhatan, a large sidewheel steam frigate built in 1850 had just arrived in New York after a long period of active service. She was due for an overhaul and--before the order to hold her in readiness was received--she had unloaded all her ammunition and gunpowder, transferred her crew to the floating barracks receiving ship, and sent most of her officers on leave. On Wednesday April 3, 1861 Commandant Andrew H. Foote reported on his frantic efforts to recall the Powhatan's dispersed officers and crew and reload the vessel's ammunition and powder.
NAVY YARD, NEW YORK, April 3, 1861. SIR: I have the honor to report to the Department that the following-named officers have been directed by telegraph and letter to rejoin the Powhatan forthwith, viz: Lieutenant W. W. Queen, Philadelphia; Lieutenant George Brown, Washington; Lieutenant Thomas C. Harris, Philadelphia; First Assistant Engineer James F. Lamdin, Baltimore; First Assistant Engineer W.J. Lamdin, Baltimore; Second Assistant Engineer John Purdy, Washington; Second Assistant Engineer Jackson McElmell, Philadelphia; Third Assistant Engineer H. C. McIlvaine, Philadelphia; Third Assistant Engineer H. C. McIlvaine (duplicate), Reading, Pa.; Lieutenant Marines James Wiley, Philadelphia; Lieutenant Marines James Wiley (duplicate), Washington; Sailmaker Jacob Stephens, Philadelphia.
The following officers are present for duty, viz:
Captain Samuel Mercer, Lieutenant Egbert Thompson, Surgeon Joseph Wilson, Passed Assistant Surgeon James Laws, Chief Engineer Harman Newell, Third Assistant Engineer W. H. Glading, Third Assistant Engineer Elijah Laws, Boatswain Francis McLoud, Gunner Bernard Duycker.
I have directed Lieutenants Thomas S. Phelps and John Downes (the latter by telegraph), also Lieutenant Watson Smith and Carpenter Chick to report to me for duty on board the Powhatan. The ship will in all probability drop down to the North River on Friday to take in her powder, and I have every reason to believe that she will be ready to sail on Saturday.
I have the honor to be, very respectfully, your obedient servant, A.H. FOOTE, Pro Commandant.
The USS Powhatan was a powerful vessel for her time, armed with one 11-inch Dahlgren gun as a pivot gun and ten more 9-inch Dahlgren guns--five on each broadside. Powhatan was intended to provide the kind of heavy firepower necessary for a relief force to punch its way into Charleston Harbor to relieve Fort Sumter. If Foote was right, Powhatan would be ready to sail on Saturday April 6, 1861.
http://www.civilwar-online.com/2016/04/april-3-1861-readying-uss-powhatan-for.html
B Sunday April 3, 1864: Battle of Elkin's Ferry, Arkansas [April 3 – 4]. The Confederates were unable to prevent Union Little Missouri River crossing. Major-General Frederick Steele had the 3rd Division of the Seventh Army Corps and two cavalry brigades (about 8,500 men) under his command, whereas Brigadier-General John Marmaduke had three cavalry brigades (about 7,500 men) under his command. During the Camden expedition, Federal forces had to ford the Little Missouri River because all of the bridges were impassable.
The Battle of Elkin's Ferry (April 3–4, 1864) was fought in Clark and Nevada counties in Arkansas as part of the Camden Expedition, during the American Civil War.
Battle
With all the bridges across the river destroyed, Steele ordered Brigadier-General Frederick Salomon, commanding the Third Division, to take and hold a ford known as Elkin's Ferry on the afternoon of April 2, 1864. The 43rd Indiana was tasked with this objective, supported by elements of the 36th Iowa Infantry and the 2nd Missouri Light Artillery. Following a forced march, the 43rd arrived at the crossing after dark that evening, crossed the river, and set up defensive positions while awaiting the rest of Steele's army.
Opposing the Federal advance was a division of three cavalry brigades under Marmaduke—about 7500 troopers altogether. Marmaduke ordered Brigadier-General Joseph Shelby to attack the 43rd and take back the ford. Federal Colonel William McLean states what happened next: The day after my arrival [3 April 1864], occasional firing along my picket lines, and skirmishing in front, convinced me that the enemy were on the alert, either for the purpose of watching the movements of the army, of which my brigade constituted the advance [guard]; or, if possible, by a direct attack upon me in overwhelming numbers, to cut me off before reinforcements could be obtained from across the river. Early on the morning of the third instant, I ordered Major Norris, of the 43rd Indiana, to proceed with four companies of that regiment to the front, to reconnoiter the position of the enemy, deploy the men as skirmishers, and support the cavalry pickets. He soon succeeded in discovering the position of the advance pickets and skirmishers of the enemy, drove them back for some distance, pressing them so closely that the retreat of a number of them being cut off, sixteen came into our line and surrendered.
On the same evening, being satisfied that the enemy were in our front in force, and designed attacking us during the night or the next morning, I ordered Lieutenant Colonel Drake, 36th Iowa, to proceed with three companies from that regiment, and three companies from the 43rd Indiana, to a position on the main road leading from the ford immediately in our front, to deploy his men on the right and left of the road, to watch the movements of the enemy, and to resist their approach as long as was prudent, and retire to the reserves when they approached in force. One section of artillery, under Lieutenant Peetz, was planted so as to fully command the road and the leading approach on our right and left.
At six o'clock on the morning of the 4th the enemy approached in force, and commenced an attack on the advance companies of Lieutenant Colonel Drake, who resisted them gallantly for nearly two hours, being well supported by the artillery of Lieutenant Peetz. Too much praise cannot be awarded Colonel Drake for the very distinguished gallantry and determined courage he exhibited during this contest.
The capture by his forces early in the morning of a Rebel lieutenant—an aid-de-camp of General Marmaduke—confirmed me in the belief that the General was near in person, with a large portion of his division. After a very lively skirmish of nearly two hours, the enemy having discovered the position of our battery, and replying to it vigorously with four pieces of artillery, our pickets and advanced skirmishers were driven back on the left upon their infantry reserves, while upon the right they maintained their position.
The enemy (since ascertained to be General Cabell's brigade, sixteen hundred strong), charged with a yell upon our left, for the purpose of flanking us and capturing our battery. Their approach from the cover of the timber was met gallantly by two or three well directed volleys from the 36th Iowa Immediately after the charge and repulse of the enemy, the reinforcements sent for by me arrived, consisting of the 29th Iowa Infantry and the 9th Wisconsin Infantry, of Brigadier General Rice's brigade. But before they were put in position by him the enemy withdrew; not, however, until a grape-shot from the batter had inflicted a slight wound upon the General's head, from the effect of which, I am gratified to say, he recovered.
Aftermath
Losses on both sides in the Battle of Elkin's Ferry were light, with 18 Confederate soldiers killed and 50 wounded, and with 30 Union soldiers wounded. On the evening of April 4, Shelby's brigade joined Marmaduke, and together they withdrew 16 miles south to Prairie D'Ane the following morning.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Elkin%27s_Ferry
C Sunday, April 3, 1864: A secret expedition of Confederate troops attempts to blow up both the 1812 and the 1859 Cape Lookout lighthouses, but are only partially successful. Union and Confederate reports give conflicting information on the extent of the damage from this attack. Certainly, the oil supply was destroyed and a portion of the iron spiral staircase in the 1859 lighthouse was badly damaged.
D Monday, April 3, 1865: 1865: Richmond and Petersburg occupied by Union Soldiers
Monday April 3, 1865: Richmond, VA. The Union cavalry entered town. By 7:15 Monday morning, April 3, two guidons of the Fourth Massachusetts Cavalry flew over the capitol building. Not long after, two officers of the 13th New York Artillery took down the little triangular flags and ran up the great United States flag. Union General Godfrey Weitzel sent a telegram to General Grant: "We took Richmond at 8:15 this morning. I captured many guns. The enemy left in great haste. The city is on fire in two places. Am making every effort to put it out. The people received us with enthusiastic expressions of joy."
Weitzel ordered his troops to put out the fire. The city's two fire engines worked, bucket brigades were formed. Threatened buildings were pulled down to create firebreaks. Five hours later the wind finally shifted, and they began to bring it under control. All or part of at least 54 blocks were destroyed, according to Furgurson. Weitzel wrote "The rebel capitol, fired by men placed in it to defend it, was saved from total destruction by soldiers of the United States, who had taken possession." And the city rested.
http://www.civilwar.org/education/history/warfare-and-logistics/warfare/richmond.html?
Background: Evening of Sunday April 2, 1865: Richmond, VA. Despite every effort made on the part of the few remaining Confederate soldiers and the city's officials, chaos ruled Richmond that night. Knowing that the Union army was about to enter the town, and having heard how badly the city of Columbia, South Carolina had fared when Union soldiers discovered the stores of whisky, Richmond's officials ordered all liquor to be destroyed. In the need for haste, however, those men charged with going through the stocks of every saloon and warehouse found the most expedient way was to smash the bottles and pour the kegs into the gutters and down the street drains. The stench attracted crowds. They gulped the whisky from the curbstones, picked it up in their hats and boots, and guzzled it before stooping for more. So the action taken to prevent a Union army rampage started a rampage by the city's own people.
Lt. Gen. Richard S. Ewell, Richmond's military commander, was also under orders to destroy the city's tobacco, cotton, and foodstuffs before the Yankees got to them. To destroy the tobacco, Ewell had it moved to buildings that he believed could burn without setting the rest of the city on fire and asked the fire department to stand by to keep the fire from spreading.
In a city that had been suffering from scarcity, where high officials held "Starvation Balls," no one believed there could be much food left to destroy. But they were wrong. "The most revolting revelation," wrote LaSalle Pickett, "was the amount of provisions, shoes and clothing which had been accumulated by the speculators who hovered like vultures over the scene of death and desolation. Taking advantage of their possession of money and lack of both patriotism and humanity, they had, by an early corner in the market and by successful blockade running, brought up all the available supplies with an eye to future gain, while our soldiers and women and children were absolutely in rags, barefoot and starving." The crowd, seeing the commissaries filled with smoked meats, flour, sugar, and coffee, became ugly.
Enraged, they snatched the food and clothing and turned to the nearby shops to loot whatever else they found. They were impossible to stop. Ewell tried, but he had only convalescent soldiers and a few army staff officers under his command at this point. Not nearly enough men to bring order back to the streets. The fires, though, grew out of control, burning the center of the city and driving the looters away.
Embers from the street fires of official papers and from the paper torches used by vandals drifted. The wind picked up. Another building caught fire. The business district caught fire. Worse, as Admiral Raphael Semmes wrote, "The Tredegar Iron Works were on fire, and continual explosions of loaded shell stored there were taking place....The population was in a great state of alarm." Lawley reported that as he walked toward the railroad station he saw a column of dense black smoke. Semmes had set his ironclads on fire to keep them out of Union hands. Moments later, the warships' arsenals exploded blowing the windows out for two miles around, overturning tombstones, and tearing doors from their hinges.
http://www.civilwar.org/education/history/warfare-and-logistics/warfare/richmond.html?
COL Mikel J. Burroughs LTC Stephen C. LTC (Join to see) CSM Charles Hayden SFC William Swartz Jr SGM Steve Wettstein SP6 Clifford Ward PO1 John Miller PO2 William Allen Crowder SGT Randal Groover SrA Christopher Wright SGT John " Mac " McConnell SP5 Mark Kuzinski SPC Corbin Sayi SSgt (Join to see) SSgt Robert Marx SPC (Join to see) CPO Tim Dickey SGT (Join to see) CW5 (Join to see)
1863 siege of Little Washington, NC [March 30 to April 19] is slogging along as both sides were running low on supplies, and conditions grew miserable in the rain and mud.
1863 second straight day of food shortage protests in Richmond, VA. A group of Richmonders gathers to protest food shortages, but is discouraged from rioting.
1864 Report from Richmond, VA: The James River is very high, and all the streams are so much swollen that no military operations in the field are looked for immediately. … So no diminution of prices is yet experienced. It is now a famine.
1865 Richmond authorities, after learning of reports of looting by Union soldiers in other southern cities which fell worked to burn the supplies of tobacco and destroy the liquor supplies. The burning tobacco caused fires which union forces helped put out the following day. Liquor was dumped into the gutters but the smell attracted too many wannabe drinkers who filled their hats up with whiskey and/or lapped it from the gutters.
Since RallyPoint truncates survey selection text I am posting events that were not included and then the full text of each survey choice below:
1. Sunday, April 3, 1861: A "test vote" in the Virginia convention shows a 2-1 margin against secession
http://blueandgraytrail.com/year/186104
2. Thursday, April 3, 1862: A.S. Johnston and Beauregard get the Army of the Mississippi moving late in the day, but the snarl of traffic in Corinth and lack of coordination amongst the corps commanders result in little progress. The generals move the march time back 24 hours. Meanwhile, Johnston drafts new marching orders, and orders for battle deployment when the army reaches the battlefield: an unusual formation, with the three main corps in column, rather than spread over a wider front. He issues orders to his army: Soldiers of The Army of the Mississippi: I have put you in motion to offer battle to the invaders of your country, with the resolution and discipline and valor becoming men, fighting, as you are, for all worth living or dying for. You can but march to a decisive victory over agrarian mercenaries sent to subjugate and despoil you of your liberties, property and honor.
Remember the precious stake involved, remember the dependence of your mothers, your wives, your sisters, and your children, on the result Remember the fair, broad, abounding lands, the happy homes, that will be desolated by your defeat. The eyes and hopes of eight million people rest upon you. You are expected to show yourselves worthy of your valor and courage, worthy of the women of the South, whose noble devotion in this war has never been exceeded in any time. With such incentives to brave deeds, and with the trust that God is with us, your general will lead you confidently to the combat, assured of success.
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=April+3%2C+1862
3. Thursday, April 3, 1862: —On this date, Pres. Lincoln issues orders that, contrary to Gen. McClellan’s wishes, his I Corps, under command of Gen. Irwin McDowell, is to be detached from the Army of the Potomac to remain in protection of Washington, and not to go to the Peninsula.
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=April+3%2C+1862
4. Thursday, April 3, 1862: —Julian C. Ruffin, of the Confederate Army, writes home to his wife Lottie, and shares an interesting dilemma with southern Quaker draftees in the army–who believe neither in war nor slavery: There are some Methodists here from Dinwiddie, who have prayer meetings at night_ sometimes they only sing. I have been around to their rooms on several such occassions. There are also some Quakers brought from Southampton. You know that it is contrary to their religion to fight. They are determined not to do anything to help on the war. They say they won’t stand up in line for drill, nor will they answer to their names. They will not even cut the food provided by government for our subsistence. I understand that the Commandant says that they shall be held up in the ranks by a man on each side if they will not stand up. It would be much better to let them go home. Religious persecution never did any good.
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=April+3%2C+1862
5. Thursday, April 3, 1862: THE PRESIDENT, Richmond, General Buell is in motion, Buell moving rapidly from Columbia to Savannah, leaving a division of 10,000 moving toward Decatur. Confederate forces, 40,000, ordered forward to offer battle near Pittsburg. Hope engagement before Buell can form junction. A.S. JOHNSTON
http://americancivilwar.com/authors/Joseph_Ryan/150-Year-Anniversary/April-1862/April-1862-War-In-The-West/April-1862-War-West.html
6. Thursday, April 3, 1862: HEADQUARTERS ARMY OF THE MISSISSIPPI, Corinth, Miss., April 3, 1862
Soldiers of the Army of the Mississippi: I have put you in motion to offer battle to the invaders of your country. Remember the precious stake involved; remember your mothers, your wives, your sisters, your children depend on the result; remember the fair, abounding land of ours, the happy homes that would be desolated by your defeat.
The eyes and hopes of eight million people rest on you. Show yourselves worthy of your race, worthy of the women of the South. With such incentives as these, your general will lead you to the combat, assured of success.
A.S. JOHNSTON, General
http://americancivilwar.com/authors/Joseph_Ryan/150-Year-Anniversary/April-1862/April-1862-War-In-The-West/April-1862-War-West.html
7. Thursday April 3, 1862: General Albert Sidney Johnston’s army set out in pursuit of Grant’s army but delays forced a postponement of the planned April 4 attack. Despite Federal gunboats on patrol from Savannah, Tennessee; Eastport, Mississippi; and Chickasaw, Alabama; and a small skirmish near Monterey, Tennessee near Pittsburg Landing, the Federal forces at Pittsburg Landing were unaware of the Confederate advance.
http://thisweekinthecivilwar.com/?p=1114
8. Thursday April 3, 1862: Discovering that fewer than 20,000 troops were left in Washington, President Lincoln held back Brigadier General Irvin McDowell’s corps, despite protests from Major General George B. McClellan.
http://thisweekinthecivilwar.com/?p=1114
9. Thursday April 3, 1862: The U.S. Senate voted 29 to 14 in favor of abolishing slavery in the District of Columbia.
http://thisweekinthecivilwar.com/?p=1114
10. Friday April 3, 1863: Battle of Washington, North Carolina [March 30 – April 20, 1863] Inconclusive: Hill unable to take North Carolina town from Union forces.
The Battle of Washington took place from March 30 to April 19, 1863, in Beaufort County, North Carolina, as part of Confederate Lt. Gen. James Longstreet's Tidewater operations during the American Civil War. This battle is sometimes referred to as the Siege of Little Washington.
Background
After the culmination of Burnside's North Carolina Expedition little attention had been given to North Carolina by the Confederate Army. In December 1862 a Union expedition from New Berne destroyed the railroad bridge at Goldsboro, N.C. along the vital Wilmington and Weldon Railroad. This expedition caused only temporary damage to the railroad, but did prompt Confederate authorities to devote more attention to the situation along the coast of Virginia and North Carolina.
Following the Confederate victory at Fredericksburg, General Robert E. Lee felt confident enough to dispatch a large portion of his army to deal with Union occupation forces along the coast. The whole force was put under the command of Lt. Gen. James Longstreet. While Longstreet personally operated against Suffolk, Maj. Gen. D. H. Hill led a column which moved against Federal garrisons at New Berne and Washington, North Carolina.
Maj. Gen. John G. Foster, commanding the Department of North Carolina, was responsible for the overall defense of the Union garrisons along the North Carolina coast. After Hill's attack against New Berne failed, Foster arrived in Washington to take personal command of the garrison.
Siege
Foster, a West Point trained Army engineer, put his skills to good use improving the town's defenses as well as employing the use of three gunboats in the defense. By March 30, the town was ringed with fortifications, and Brig. Gen. Richard B. Garnett's brigade began the investment of Washington. Meanwhile, Hill established batteries as well as river obstructions along the Tar River to impede reinforcements. He also posted two brigades south of Washington to guard for any relief efforts coming overland from New Bern. The Confederates sent a reply to Foster demanding surrender. Foster replied saying "If the Confederates want Washington, come and get it." Despite this defiance, Foster lacked the strength to dislodge the besiegers, and Hill was under orders to avoid an assault at the risk of sustaining heavy casualties. Thus, the engagement devolved into one of artillery, and even so the Confederates limited their bombings to conserve their ammunition. In time both sides were running low on supplies, and conditions grew miserable in the rain and mud. Despite the lack of progress against Washington, Hill was accomplishing a vital objective in the form of foraging parties so long as the Federals were pinned down.
Relief Efforts
A Federal relief column under Brig. Gen. Henry Prince sailed up the Tar River. Once Prince saw the Rebel batteries, he simply turned the transports around. A second effort under Brig. Gen. Francis Barretto Spinola moved overland from New Bern. Spinola was defeated along Blount's Creek and returned to New Bern. Foster decided that he would escape Washington and personally lead the relief effort leaving his chief-of-staff, Brig. Gen. Edward E. Potter in command at Washington. On April 13, the USS Escort braved the Confederate batteries and made its way into Washington. The Escort delivered supplies and reinforcements in the form of a Rhode Island regiment. It was aboard this ship on April 15 that Foster made his escape. The ship was badly damaged and the pilot mortally wounded, but Foster made it out.
Raising the Siege
About the same time Foster made an escape, Hill was faced with numerous reasons that ultimately led to his withdrawal: the completion of his foraging efforts, Union supplies reaching the Federal garrison, and finally a message arrived from Longstreet requesting reinforcements for an assault on Suffolk. Hill broke off the siege on April 15 and began to withdraw Garnett's brigade fronting Washington's defenses.
Meanwhile, Foster had made it back to New Bern and immediately began organizing a relief effort. He ordered General Prince to march along the railroad towards Kinston to hold off Confederates in the vicinity of Goldsboro, while Foster personally led a second column north from New Bern towards Blount's Creek where General Spinola had earlier been turned back. On April 18, Foster ordered Spinola to drive the Confederates from their road block at Swift Creek guarding the direct road from Washington to New Bern. At the same time, General Henry M. Naglee attacked the Confederate rear guard near Washington capturing several prisoners and a regimental battle flag. On April 19 Foster returned to the Washington defenses and by April 20 the Confederates had completely withdrawn from the area.
11. Friday, April 3, 1863 --- The New York Times publishes a notice for a public rally against “Copperheadism” -that is, Northerners who tended to favor the South and oppose the Union war efforts: UNION MEETING TO-NIGHT.
The Young Men’s Republican Central Committee inaugurate to-night a series of Anti-Copperhead meetings at their headquarters, corner Broadway and Twenty-third-street. E. DELAFIELD SMITH, United States District Attorney, and other well-known speakers, will address the audience.
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=April+3.+1863
12. Friday, April 3, 1863 --- James Henry Gooding, a soldier in the new 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment, one of the first black regiments, writes to a Boston-area paper about camp life and the training of the men: Camp Meigs, Readville, Messrs. Editors: The 54th progresses daily. This week past the men who have been in camp the longest time have been practicing in the manual of arms. It really makes one’s heart pulsate with pride as he looks upon those stout and brawny men, fully equipped with Uncle Sam’s accoutrements upon them, to feel that these noble men are practically refuting the base assertions reiterated by copperheads and traitors that the black race are incapable of patriotism, valor or ambition. Officers of distinction, whose judgements are not warped by prejudice, pronounce this regiment to be the nucleus of an army equaling in discipline and material the Imperial Hosts of Europe. I, for one, hope their liberal assumptions will in the end prove true—and it is merely a question of time to make it so. Our first dress parade took place this afternoon, and those who know say the men behaved admirably, for so short a period in drilling. . . .
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=April+3.+1863
13. Friday, April 3, 1863 --- James Kendall Hosmer, of the Union Army, writes of his experiences in southern Louisiana, and of the other-worldly paradise that must have moved many a Yankee to such rhapsodies: Seldom does an army march under circumstances so delightful. The miles were not weary ones; for the same really remarkable conditions made our progress comparatively easy from first to last, — a bright sky and sun, but a cool northern breeze, and a road, for the most part, in perfect condition to receive the soldier’s foot-fall. On one side rose the slope of the Levee; ten or twelve feet high from the road, two or three from the water on the other side. When the column halted, we could run up the slope, then stoop to the cool bayou to drink, or to wash face, hands, and feet. On our right, as we marched, we passed, now houses of moderate size, bare of elegance — sometimes even squalid in appearance; now, again, mansions of comfortable look; and, not unfrequently, beautiful seats, set up high to preserve them from danger in case-of a crevasse, with colonnades ornamented tastefully with orange-groves and the glorious live-oak, with trees full of roses instead of bushes.
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=April+3.+1863
14. Friday, April 3, 1863 --- For the second straight day, a group of Richmonders gathers to protest food shortages, but is discouraged from rioting. The previous day, the City Battalion had threatened violence against protesters.
http://www.encyclopediavirginia.org/richmond_during_the_civil_war
15. Friday, April 3, 1863: Snow's Hill, Tennessee: A Union detachment of 1,500 infantry and cavalry, commanded by Brig. Gen. David S. Stanley, was sent on a scouting expedition toward the area of Snow Hill. The Confederate force in the area was commanded by Col. Richard M. Gano. Gano learned of the Union approach and stationed his men at Snow's Hill. Snow's Hill was a series of level-topped ridges and deep ravines sloping westward from a plateau into the valley where Liberty was located. Gano deployed his 2 brigades in a defensive line midway down the ridges. At daylight, Stanley fired on the Confederate line with his artillery. This had a devastating effect on the Confederates. Next, the Union infantry charged the Confederate line while the Union cavalry advanced up a dry creekbed on the Confederate left flank. Surrounded, the Confederate force was soon routed.
http://www.mycivilwar.com/battles/1863s.html
16. Sunday April 3, 1864 --- On this date, as Gen. Frederick Steele’s Army of Arkansas (U.S.) marches southeast towards Shreveport, Rebels from the command of Gen. John Marmaduke march west from Camden and strike at several places along Steele’s column, in a series of confused skirmishing that accomplishes little and leaves both commanders with little idea of the enemy’s locations.
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=April+3%2C+1864
17. Sunday, April 3, 1864 --- John Beauchamp Jones of Richmond records his thoughts in his journal: The snow has disappeared; but it is cloudy, with a cold northwest wind. The James River is very high, and all the streams are so much swollen that no military operations in the field are looked for immediately. It is generally believed that Grant, the Federal lieutenant-general, will concentrate an immense army for the capture of Richmond, and our authorities are invoked to make the necessary dispositions to resist the attempt. . . .
So no diminution of prices is yet experienced. It is now a famine, although I believe we are starving in the midst of plenty, if it were only equally distributed. But the government will not, it seems, require the railroads to bring provisions to the exclusion of freight for the speculators. Certain non-combating officers of the government have abundance brought them by the Southern Express Co., and the merchants have abundance of goods brought hither by the same company for the purposes of speculation. Well, we shall see the result! One is almost ready to believe that the government declines to fill the depots here, harboring the purpose of abandoning the city. That would be abandonment of the cause. Nearly all who own no slaves would remain citizens of the United States, if permitted, without further molestation on the part of the Federal authorities, and many Virginians in the field might abandon the Confederate States army. The State would be lost, and North Carolina and Tennessee would have an inevitable avalanche of invasion precipitated upon them. The only hope would be civil war in the North, a not improbable event. What could they do with four millions of negroes arrogating equality with the whites?
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=April+3%2C+1864
A. Sunday, April 3, 1861: Readying USS Powhatan for the Sumter relief expedition. USS Powhatan, a sidewheel steam frigate built in 1850 was a powerful vessel for her time, armed with one 11-inch Dahlgren gun as a pivot gun and ten more 9-inch Dahlgren guns--five on each broadside. Powhatan was intended to provide the kind of heavy firepower necessary for a relief force to punch its way into Charleston Harbor to relieve Fort Sumter.
The orders to prepare the USS Powhatan for service in the expeditions to relieve Fort Sumter and Fort Pickens caught the commandant of the New York Navy Yard flat-footed. The USS Powhatan, a large sidewheel steam frigate built in 1850 had just arrived in New York after a long period of active service. She was due for an overhaul and--before the order to hold her in readiness was received--she had unloaded all her ammunition and gunpowder, transferred her crew to the floating barracks receiving ship, and sent most of her officers on leave. On Wednesday April 3, 1861 Commandant Andrew H. Foote reported on his frantic efforts to recall the Powhatan's dispersed officers and crew and reload the vessel's ammunition and powder.
NAVY YARD, NEW YORK, April 3, 1861. SIR: I have the honor to report to the Department that the following-named officers have been directed by telegraph and letter to rejoin the Powhatan forthwith, viz: Lieutenant W. W. Queen, Philadelphia; Lieutenant George Brown, Washington; Lieutenant Thomas C. Harris, Philadelphia; First Assistant Engineer James F. Lamdin, Baltimore; First Assistant Engineer W.J. Lamdin, Baltimore; Second Assistant Engineer John Purdy, Washington; Second Assistant Engineer Jackson McElmell, Philadelphia; Third Assistant Engineer H. C. McIlvaine, Philadelphia; Third Assistant Engineer H. C. McIlvaine (duplicate), Reading, Pa.; Lieutenant Marines James Wiley, Philadelphia; Lieutenant Marines James Wiley (duplicate), Washington; Sailmaker Jacob Stephens, Philadelphia.
The following officers are present for duty, viz:
Captain Samuel Mercer, Lieutenant Egbert Thompson, Surgeon Joseph Wilson, Passed Assistant Surgeon James Laws, Chief Engineer Harman Newell, Third Assistant Engineer W. H. Glading, Third Assistant Engineer Elijah Laws, Boatswain Francis McLoud, Gunner Bernard Duycker.
I have directed Lieutenants Thomas S. Phelps and John Downes (the latter by telegraph), also Lieutenant Watson Smith and Carpenter Chick to report to me for duty on board the Powhatan. The ship will in all probability drop down to the North River on Friday to take in her powder, and I have every reason to believe that she will be ready to sail on Saturday.
I have the honor to be, very respectfully, your obedient servant, A.H. FOOTE, Pro Commandant.
The USS Powhatan was a powerful vessel for her time, armed with one 11-inch Dahlgren gun as a pivot gun and ten more 9-inch Dahlgren guns--five on each broadside. Powhatan was intended to provide the kind of heavy firepower necessary for a relief force to punch its way into Charleston Harbor to relieve Fort Sumter. If Foote was right, Powhatan would be ready to sail on Saturday April 6, 1861.
http://www.civilwar-online.com/2016/04/april-3-1861-readying-uss-powhatan-for.html
B Sunday April 3, 1864: Battle of Elkin's Ferry, Arkansas [April 3 – 4]. The Confederates were unable to prevent Union Little Missouri River crossing. Major-General Frederick Steele had the 3rd Division of the Seventh Army Corps and two cavalry brigades (about 8,500 men) under his command, whereas Brigadier-General John Marmaduke had three cavalry brigades (about 7,500 men) under his command. During the Camden expedition, Federal forces had to ford the Little Missouri River because all of the bridges were impassable.
The Battle of Elkin's Ferry (April 3–4, 1864) was fought in Clark and Nevada counties in Arkansas as part of the Camden Expedition, during the American Civil War.
Battle
With all the bridges across the river destroyed, Steele ordered Brigadier-General Frederick Salomon, commanding the Third Division, to take and hold a ford known as Elkin's Ferry on the afternoon of April 2, 1864. The 43rd Indiana was tasked with this objective, supported by elements of the 36th Iowa Infantry and the 2nd Missouri Light Artillery. Following a forced march, the 43rd arrived at the crossing after dark that evening, crossed the river, and set up defensive positions while awaiting the rest of Steele's army.
Opposing the Federal advance was a division of three cavalry brigades under Marmaduke—about 7500 troopers altogether. Marmaduke ordered Brigadier-General Joseph Shelby to attack the 43rd and take back the ford. Federal Colonel William McLean states what happened next: The day after my arrival [3 April 1864], occasional firing along my picket lines, and skirmishing in front, convinced me that the enemy were on the alert, either for the purpose of watching the movements of the army, of which my brigade constituted the advance [guard]; or, if possible, by a direct attack upon me in overwhelming numbers, to cut me off before reinforcements could be obtained from across the river. Early on the morning of the third instant, I ordered Major Norris, of the 43rd Indiana, to proceed with four companies of that regiment to the front, to reconnoiter the position of the enemy, deploy the men as skirmishers, and support the cavalry pickets. He soon succeeded in discovering the position of the advance pickets and skirmishers of the enemy, drove them back for some distance, pressing them so closely that the retreat of a number of them being cut off, sixteen came into our line and surrendered.
On the same evening, being satisfied that the enemy were in our front in force, and designed attacking us during the night or the next morning, I ordered Lieutenant Colonel Drake, 36th Iowa, to proceed with three companies from that regiment, and three companies from the 43rd Indiana, to a position on the main road leading from the ford immediately in our front, to deploy his men on the right and left of the road, to watch the movements of the enemy, and to resist their approach as long as was prudent, and retire to the reserves when they approached in force. One section of artillery, under Lieutenant Peetz, was planted so as to fully command the road and the leading approach on our right and left.
At six o'clock on the morning of the 4th the enemy approached in force, and commenced an attack on the advance companies of Lieutenant Colonel Drake, who resisted them gallantly for nearly two hours, being well supported by the artillery of Lieutenant Peetz. Too much praise cannot be awarded Colonel Drake for the very distinguished gallantry and determined courage he exhibited during this contest.
The capture by his forces early in the morning of a Rebel lieutenant—an aid-de-camp of General Marmaduke—confirmed me in the belief that the General was near in person, with a large portion of his division. After a very lively skirmish of nearly two hours, the enemy having discovered the position of our battery, and replying to it vigorously with four pieces of artillery, our pickets and advanced skirmishers were driven back on the left upon their infantry reserves, while upon the right they maintained their position.
The enemy (since ascertained to be General Cabell's brigade, sixteen hundred strong), charged with a yell upon our left, for the purpose of flanking us and capturing our battery. Their approach from the cover of the timber was met gallantly by two or three well directed volleys from the 36th Iowa Immediately after the charge and repulse of the enemy, the reinforcements sent for by me arrived, consisting of the 29th Iowa Infantry and the 9th Wisconsin Infantry, of Brigadier General Rice's brigade. But before they were put in position by him the enemy withdrew; not, however, until a grape-shot from the batter had inflicted a slight wound upon the General's head, from the effect of which, I am gratified to say, he recovered.
Aftermath
Losses on both sides in the Battle of Elkin's Ferry were light, with 18 Confederate soldiers killed and 50 wounded, and with 30 Union soldiers wounded. On the evening of April 4, Shelby's brigade joined Marmaduke, and together they withdrew 16 miles south to Prairie D'Ane the following morning.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Elkin%27s_Ferry
C Sunday, April 3, 1864: A secret expedition of Confederate troops attempts to blow up both the 1812 and the 1859 Cape Lookout lighthouses, but are only partially successful. Union and Confederate reports give conflicting information on the extent of the damage from this attack. Certainly, the oil supply was destroyed and a portion of the iron spiral staircase in the 1859 lighthouse was badly damaged.
D Monday, April 3, 1865: 1865: Richmond and Petersburg occupied by Union Soldiers
Monday April 3, 1865: Richmond, VA. The Union cavalry entered town. By 7:15 Monday morning, April 3, two guidons of the Fourth Massachusetts Cavalry flew over the capitol building. Not long after, two officers of the 13th New York Artillery took down the little triangular flags and ran up the great United States flag. Union General Godfrey Weitzel sent a telegram to General Grant: "We took Richmond at 8:15 this morning. I captured many guns. The enemy left in great haste. The city is on fire in two places. Am making every effort to put it out. The people received us with enthusiastic expressions of joy."
Weitzel ordered his troops to put out the fire. The city's two fire engines worked, bucket brigades were formed. Threatened buildings were pulled down to create firebreaks. Five hours later the wind finally shifted, and they began to bring it under control. All or part of at least 54 blocks were destroyed, according to Furgurson. Weitzel wrote "The rebel capitol, fired by men placed in it to defend it, was saved from total destruction by soldiers of the United States, who had taken possession." And the city rested.
http://www.civilwar.org/education/history/warfare-and-logistics/warfare/richmond.html?
Background: Evening of Sunday April 2, 1865: Richmond, VA. Despite every effort made on the part of the few remaining Confederate soldiers and the city's officials, chaos ruled Richmond that night. Knowing that the Union army was about to enter the town, and having heard how badly the city of Columbia, South Carolina had fared when Union soldiers discovered the stores of whisky, Richmond's officials ordered all liquor to be destroyed. In the need for haste, however, those men charged with going through the stocks of every saloon and warehouse found the most expedient way was to smash the bottles and pour the kegs into the gutters and down the street drains. The stench attracted crowds. They gulped the whisky from the curbstones, picked it up in their hats and boots, and guzzled it before stooping for more. So the action taken to prevent a Union army rampage started a rampage by the city's own people.
Lt. Gen. Richard S. Ewell, Richmond's military commander, was also under orders to destroy the city's tobacco, cotton, and foodstuffs before the Yankees got to them. To destroy the tobacco, Ewell had it moved to buildings that he believed could burn without setting the rest of the city on fire and asked the fire department to stand by to keep the fire from spreading.
In a city that had been suffering from scarcity, where high officials held "Starvation Balls," no one believed there could be much food left to destroy. But they were wrong. "The most revolting revelation," wrote LaSalle Pickett, "was the amount of provisions, shoes and clothing which had been accumulated by the speculators who hovered like vultures over the scene of death and desolation. Taking advantage of their possession of money and lack of both patriotism and humanity, they had, by an early corner in the market and by successful blockade running, brought up all the available supplies with an eye to future gain, while our soldiers and women and children were absolutely in rags, barefoot and starving." The crowd, seeing the commissaries filled with smoked meats, flour, sugar, and coffee, became ugly.
Enraged, they snatched the food and clothing and turned to the nearby shops to loot whatever else they found. They were impossible to stop. Ewell tried, but he had only convalescent soldiers and a few army staff officers under his command at this point. Not nearly enough men to bring order back to the streets. The fires, though, grew out of control, burning the center of the city and driving the looters away.
Embers from the street fires of official papers and from the paper torches used by vandals drifted. The wind picked up. Another building caught fire. The business district caught fire. Worse, as Admiral Raphael Semmes wrote, "The Tredegar Iron Works were on fire, and continual explosions of loaded shell stored there were taking place....The population was in a great state of alarm." Lawley reported that as he walked toward the railroad station he saw a column of dense black smoke. Semmes had set his ironclads on fire to keep them out of Union hands. Moments later, the warships' arsenals exploded blowing the windows out for two miles around, overturning tombstones, and tearing doors from their hinges.
http://www.civilwar.org/education/history/warfare-and-logistics/warfare/richmond.html?
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