What was the most significant event on August 30 during the U.S. Civil War?

Bull Run dominated the date of August 20 in the Civil War. Yet each year between 1861 and 1864 saw skirmishes, battles and hardships for soldiers, sailors, marines and civilians.
“Saturday, August 30, 1862: Confusion and Denial Lead to Defeat At Second Manassas. General Robert E. Lee’s line at Manassas was silent and waiting. Over the night, he had contemplated an attack by James Longstreet’s men on the right, but decided to let his adversary, General John Pope, commanding the Union Army of Virginia, to make the first move.
Like Lee, Pope was inactive, but for very different reasons. A division of Rebel reinforcements came up in the early dawn, but without a guide, they came within a few hundred yards of the Union lines. Before they were detected, they were warned by comrades and began to withdraw to Longstreet’s position. Their advance had not been seen by the Yankees, but their withdrawal had been. When the report reached Pope, he, like the previous day, believed the entire Rebel force was retreating towards the mountains.
This waiting and mistaken idea of victory stretched on all through the morning. If he had been waiting for reinforcements from Washington, he had been waiting in vain. Rumors that Lee’s army of 120,000 (double its actual size) was storming towards Washington had caused General-in-Chief Henry Halleck to hold the troops under Generals Sumner, Tyler and Cox around the city for protection. As for William Franklin’s Corps of 11,000, they were allowed to go on a probing mission to find the Rebel army. In Washington, everyone seemed to be acting like Pope’s army of over 60,000 simply disappeared.
General Lee’s Confederates were well aware that Pope hadn’t disappeared. All morning, Pope had been shifting troops around, causing small clashes and artillery fire – all of which should have clued him in to the fact that the Rebels had not retreated. In the late morning, reports from up and down his line, from commanders such as Isaac Stevens, Philip Kearny, John Reynolds, and Fitz John Porter, insisted that the Confederates were still in the woods to their front, still huddled behind the unfinished railroad embankment.
The news froze Pope. He locked up, unable to wrap his head around the notion that Stonewall Jackson had not retreated. And so, at 11am, he simply decided that the Rebels were in fact in full retreat. Word from an escaped prisoner, probably fed misinformation by the Confederates, further convinced him that his task was now a mop up job. Adding to this were the reports coming from Irvin McDowell and Samuel Heintzelman on the Union right. They reconnoitered the ground themselves and found no trace of the Rebels. In reality, Jackson had pulled back a bit in front of the Union right and the Federal officers took it as a retreat.
Fitz John Porter, under orders from Pope, had sent two brigades to probe where Jackson’s right flank had been. They became embroiled in a hot debate between skirmishers and couldn’t easily be extracted. It was during this scuffle that Pope finally released his orders.
At noon, General Pope called for a two-pronged attack to drive the retreating Rebels. General McDowell would command the assault, which would throw Porter at the Rebel right to get behind the fleeing Confederates and cut off their line of retreat. Meanwhile, Heintzelman would hold the Rebel left. To Pope, however, the Rebel line was just in the woods before him. He finally realized that Longstreet had arrived, but didn’t believe he extended the enemy’s lines – Longstreet merely filed in behind Jackson. In truth, Longstreet rested on Jackson’s right, a position that would wind up on the right flank of Porter’s ordered attack.
At 3pm, the Union attack began amidst complaints by Pope’s subordinates who knew better. By this time even McDowell was convinced that Pope was horribly mistaken. And yet, all went forward. While Pope’s orders for the right prong of his attack could have met with some success, the orders for his left, under Porter, stood no chance at all. Porter’s 10,000 would be up against Longstreet’s 25,000, lying in wait and more or less officially undetected.
Porter’s command was confused, with brigades and divisions scattered about and in no shape for an assault that involved a turning movement to get around the supposed enemy flank. Before it stepped off, McDowell wrestled John Reynolds Division from him, promising Franz Sigel’s entire corps in return should he need it. However, McDowell had no command over Sigel and never passed along the deal to General Pope. Though Porter soon called for Sigel, McDowell ignored it.
The Union line stretched for over a mile – a beautiful and deadly sight. With Longstreet’s hidden men not the object of the attack, Porter’s command swung right to hit what was hoped to be Jackson’s flank. In fact, it was Jackson’s front along the abandoned railroad embankment. Porter’s men rolled on through destructive volleys and killing artillery. When wide holes opened, they were quickly filled. Nothing seemed able to stop them and Jackson’s lines began to crumble.
Officers, including Col. William Baylor of the Stonewall Brigade fell, leaving their commands headless. The struggle became an intense street fight. When some of the Confederate regiments ran out of ammunition, they hurled rocks down upon their attackers. All of Jackson’s reserves had been called forward and General Lee ordered Longstreet to send an entire division to bolster Stonewall’s lines.
He also ordered Longstreet to attack. First, Longstreet ordered his artillery to batter Pope’s exposed left flank. At once, a dozen or more guns played hell upon the Union left, tearing it to shreds and sending bodies flying like sticks. This completely devastated the Union attack. And that is when Longstreet unleashed his 25,000.
Seeing his comrades move forward, Jackson ordered his tattered command to attack, but they were understandably so disorganized that little could be done right away. Nevertheless, the Rebels seemed to come from every direction, swallowing whole the fleeing Yankees.
Back at the original Union position, anchored upon Henry Hill, the rise where the Rebels made their stand over a year before, the Confederate counterattack was quickly coming. Pope was at first in complete denial. But all of a sudden, it made sense. It was as if something clicked in his mind. His left wing was completely crushed and he quickly shuffled six brigades from his right to hold the hill. Had Jackson’s men been able to join, he would have had no such luxuries.
At 6pm, with the sun dipping ever closer to the horizon, the ridge between Henry Hill and the Rebel position fell. Pope grabbed every brigade he could to defend his line. Having done all he could, he began to issue orders for retreat. But first, Henry Hill must be saved. If it fell, his army would be routed.
Pope mounted up and rode the main lines of battle himself, showing a decisive bravery completely missing thus far in since coming east from Mississippi. The Rebel attack was brutal, but the Federals held. General Lee had nothing else to throw at Henry Hill. If he had, the position may very well have been carried.
With darkness came rain, and Pope, leaving the details of the withdrawal to General McDowell, moved his headquarters to Centreville, several miles on the other side of Bull Run. Over the next few hours, with the fighting at an end, Pope’s army safely dislodged itself and marched across Bull Run to the fortifications at Centreville. By midnight, almost all of the Federals were away from the field of battle.
During the night, General Lee penned a missive to Richmond, telling them of the great triumph.
“This army achieved today on the plains of Manassas a signal victory over the combined forces of Genls McClellan and Pope. On the 28th and 29th each wing under Gensl Longstreet and Jackson repulsed with valour attacks made on them separately. We mourn the loss of our gallant dead, in every conflict yet our gratitude to almighty God for His mercies rises higher and higher each day, to Him and the valour of our troops a nation’s gratitude is due.”
The battle was over, but the campaign would continue. Lee was not ready to rest upon his laurels and Pope, though defeated, was not to be taken lightly. Adding to this, General McClellan’s Army of the Potomac was still gathering. Some units, like General Porter’s, had joined the fray at Manassas, but soon, Lee would have many, many more before him.”
http://civilwardailygazette.com/confusion-and-denial-lead-to-defeat-at-second-manassas-2/

Below are a number of journal entries from 1862 and 1864 which shed light on what life was like for soldiers and civilians – the good, the bad and the ugly. Maj Gen William T. Sherman provides a daily update on the siege of Atlanta in 1864.
Saturday, August 30, 1862: During the night after Second Bull Run ended, General Lee penned a missive to Richmond, telling them of the great triumph. “This army achieved today on the plains of Manassas a signal victory over the combined forces of Genls McClellan and Pope. On the 28th and 29th each wing under Gensl Longstreet and Jackson repulsed with valour attacks made on them separately. We mourn the loss of our gallant dead, in every conflict yet our gratitude to almighty God for His mercies rises higher and higher each day, to Him and the valour of our troops a nation’s gratitude is due.”
Saturday, August 30, 1862: 1st Lieutenant William Penn Lloyd, of the 1st Pennsylvania Cavalry Regiment, offers in his journal his view of Longstreet’s attack on the Federal left flank, and his blame on Pope: “The incessant roar of musketry and the deep toned thunder of cannon as regiment after regiment came up, and battery after battery opened, mingled with the bursting of shells, the ominous and unearthly shriek of the rifled cannon shot, and the whistling of bullets, which appeared to thicken the air, showed that the action up till now was but a prelude to what was comming. Hotter and hotter, became the fire of the artillery, and closer drew the contending lines, till the space, [interweaving?] between the two armies, was filled with the struggling hosts. Wild and chaotic, indeed, was the scene, the field now presented, full forty-thousand men armed with the most improved implements of destruction, struggling in mortal combat. Dense clouds of [dust?] mingled with the smoke of battle, which rolled up in massive columns, soon hid the field from view, and it was only by the sound of the conflict or when, for a moment, the cloud which hung over the field, would shift and reveal the work of death, that you could discern when the battle raged the fiercest.
We hear of battles, and read descriptions of them; but it is only when on the field, and a spectator of the scene, that one can realize half their grandeur, or their horrors.
For more than two hours, the battle continued thus to rage, when the enemy having, [unperceived?] or [unheeded?] by our Genls., thrown a heavy body around on our left, suddenly poured a cloud of troops down on our flank and rear; and our exhausted columns, unable to withstand the torrent that came rolling against them, broke, and fell back in confusion. Here was the Great and fatal error of the day. From the time our left was attacked, till our flank was turned, Genl. Pope was repeatedly advised of the probability of the enemy attempting this movement; but deaf to all advice and entreats, he not only neglected to make the necessary disposition of his forces, to meet such a contingency; but continued with drawing troops from the extreme left, and marching them to the center and right, and even so for forgot the duties of a general, as to neglect having videtts out on the left to warn him of the approach of the enemy.”
Saturday, August 30, 1862: Union army Surgeon Alfred L. Castleman, ever irrepressible in expressing his opinion, writes angrily in his journal about McClellan’s refusal to hurry to help Pope: “5 P. M.—We have just reached Centreville. The battle rages in sight, yet we stop again to rest when no one is tired, but all anxious to rush on. After having "rested" for two hours, we moved slowly forward for two miles, when we met a courier, who exclaimed: "Oh, why not one hour earlier!" Close on his heels followed the flying crowd, again overpowered, beaten and whipped at Bull Run, the disastrous battle field of last year, and we too late to save it.
Alas, my poor country! and must you at last be sacrificed to the jealousies, the selfishness, the ambition, the treachery or the incompetency of those to whom you have entrusted your treasure, life, honor, every thing? Grouchy failed to come. So did Hancock, Franklin and McClellan. There may be good reasons for our delay, and we not be permitted to know what they are. The subordinate is forbidden to discuss the merits or the motives of his superior, but we must not be blamed for thinking. Pope was whipped. Thousands of our neighbors and our friends died on that bloody field, whilst struggling to hold it till we could reach and save them, and the joyous faces of many officers of our Army of the Potomac made us think that the whipping of Pope and the slaughter of his men, had something to do with their joy. . . “
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=August+30%2C+1862
Saturday, August 30, 1862: Private Robert Knox Sneden, a cartographer on the staff of Gen. Heintzelman, recounts his gruesome experience of the battle in his journal: “The Rebels had two or more Whitworth guns. The peculiar screech of their missiles were heard above the whizzing of other projectiles. The Rebel artillery was fired at a high elevation and their shells burst mostly in rear of our lines for a long while. But they rectified this when our men were ordered to lie down. Still many were killed in this position while our artillery horses were cut up badly. For an hour the Rebels, being out of ammunition, fired pieces of railroad iron at us. Two pieces bound with telegraph wire, these would stick in the tree tops and slide down on our men’s heads. This confused and mystified the troops who scattered and broke ranks continually. [They] thought it a new explosive until after it had been solved. . . .
I saw the head of one of our atillerymen taken off, shot within fifty feet of my position. His blood spattered his gun. He was pulled up by his arms a few paces away, the blood gushing in streams from his neck. . . . The other artillerymen kept on loading and firing without giving him further notice. All the guns of the battery were worked with great rapidity. The men were loading and firing like madmen. The wounded were crawling around on their hands and knees. Others were tearing up their shirts to make bandages for their bloody wounds . . . while from a low strip of bushes the Rebels were firing on our wounded in front who were crawling to our lines. The wounded and dying Rebels along our front in the open ground held up their hands in token of surrender, while piercing shrieks, yells, cheers, and oaths filled the air, heard above the deafening reports of the artillery and crash of musketry. . . . Having seen enough of the terrible fighting, I returned to our headquarters. . . .”
Saturday, August 30, 1862: George Templeton Strong writes in his journal of the reaction to the battle in New York City: “A noteworthy day for good or evil; we do not certainly know which. The morning papers were not cheerful. We were out-generalled and out-flanked. Washington in danger again, everything bungled and botched. It was clear that both armies had got into each others’ rear and were so mixed up that they couldn’t be disentangled without breaking something. . . . Our loss say 8,000; rebel loss twice that; a grand victory. God grant this may be true and the whole truth. But I am not prepared to crow quite yet. Pope is an imaginative chieftan and ranks next to [James Fenimore] Cooper as a writer of fiction. . . . I expect to be informed by tomorrow morning’s papers that strategic considerations lead General Pope to follow up his victory by skedaddling at full speed, leaving guns and prisoners in the hands of the enemy. It is a bad sign that we have no extra tonight. . . .”
Tuesday, August 30, 1864: Siege of Atlanta: Per General Sherman: “Schofield, with the Twenty-third Corps, presented a bold front toward East Point, daring and inviting the enemy to sally out to attack him in position. His first movement was on the 30th, to Mount Gilead Church, then to Morrow’s Mills, facing Rough and Ready. Thomas was on his right, within easy support, moving by cross-roads from Red Oak to the Fayetteville road, extending from Couch’s to Renfrew’s; and Howard was aiming for Jonesboro.
I was with General Thomas that day, which was hot but otherwise very pleasant. We stopped for a short noon-rest near a little church (marked on our maps as Shoal-Creek Church), which stood back about a hundred yards from the road, in a grove of native oaks. The infantry column had halted in the road, stacked their arms, and the men were scattered about—some lying in the shade of the trees, and others were bringing corn-stalks from a large corn-field across the road to feed our horses, while still others had arms full of the roasting-ears, then in their prime. Hundreds of fires were soon started with the fence-rails, and the men were busy roasting the ears. Thomas and I were walking up and down the road which led to the church, discussing the chances of the movement, which he thought were extra-hazardous, and our path carried us by a fire at which a soldier was roasting his corn. The fire was built artistically; the man was stripping the ears of their husks, standing them in front of his fire, watching them carefully, and turning each ear little by little, so as to roast it nicely. He was down on his knees intent on his business, paying little heed to the stately and serious deliberations of his leaders. Thomas’s mind was running on the fact that we had cut loose from our base of supplies, and that seventy thousand men were then dependent for their food on the chance supplies of the country (already impoverished by the requisitions of the enemy), and on the contents of our wagons. Between Thomas and his men there existed a most kindly relation, and he frequently talked with them in the most familiar way. Pausing awhile, and watching the operations of this man roasting his corn, he said, “What are you doing?” The man looked up smilingly “Why, general, I am laying in a supply of provisions.” “That is right, my man, but don’t waste your provisions.” As we resumed our walk, the man remarked, in a sort of musing way, but loud enough for me to hear: “There he goes, there goes the old man, economizing as usual.” “Economizing” with corn, which cost only the labor of gathering and roasting!
As we walked, we could hear General Howard’s guns at intervals, away off to our right front, but an ominous silence continued toward our left, where I was expecting at each moment to hear the sound of battle. That night we reached Renfrew’s, and had reports from left-to-right (from General Schofield, about Morrow’s Mills, to General Howard, within a couple of miles of Jonesboro).

Pictures: 1864-08-30 Gen. Sherman’s men tearing up the railroad leaving Atlanta, Ga; 1863-08-30 Fort Johnson; 1862-08-30 2nd Bull Run; 1863-08 Battery Meade Morris Island SC Bombards Charleston

A. Friday, August 30, 1861: Without approval from the White House, Maj. Gen. John C. Fremont, commander of the Army's Dept. of Missouri, declares martial law throughout all of Missouri. He also orders the confiscation of property of all pro-Southerners who are in arms against the government. He also declares all slaves in his district to be free. President Lincoln immediately cancelled all of Fremont’s decrees, calling them “dictatorial." He caught political hell for them anyway.
Details: Fremont Makes Freemen of Slaves, Declares Martial Law. There was no getting around how much of a mess Missouri had become in the months since armies marched across its borders. St. Louis had erupted in a murderous riot, the center of the state tolerated an overthrow of the government, the southwestern counties suffered the battles of Carthage and Wilson’s Creek while in the east, armies under Grant and Polk faced off, ready to do battle.
General John Fremont, commander of Union Western Department and the Republican’s first presidential candidate, tried the best he could to keep the peace throughout the state. Two weeks prior, he declared martial law in St. Louis, where he was headquartered. On this date, he decided to “demand the severest measures to repress the daily crimes and outrages which are driving off the inhabitants and ruining the State.”
Martial law could only be enforced in the parts of the states occupied by the Union army, of course. Fremont outlined precisely which territory, extending “from Leavenworth, by way of the posts of Jefferson City, Rolla, and Ironton, to Cape Girardeau, on the Mississippi River” would come under his direct rule.
Fremont declared that “all persons who shall be taken with arms in their hands within these lines shall be tried by court-martial, and if found guilty will be shot.” Typically in war, they would be treated as prisoners, not found guilty of treason.
The next step taken by Fremont was brazen and, technically, unconstitutional. His proclamation stated that any Missourian who was to “take up arms against the United States, or who shall be directly proven to have taken an active part with their enemies in the field,” would have their property “confiscated to the public use,” and their slaves, if they had any, “hereby declared freemen.”
Fremont, who was no doubt familiar with the Confiscation Act of August 6, which freed the slaves working for the Confederate government by forcing them to work for the Union government, did what many Southern slaveowners feared: he freed their slaves.
While the Confiscation Act placed the “freed” slaves under the jurisdiction of the Union army, Fremont’s proclamation declared them “freemen.” Of course, this only effected the slaves owned by secessionists in Missouri. Technically, slaves owned by Missouri Unionists would remain untouched.
B. Saturday, August 30, 1862: Confederate victory at Second Manassas/ Bull Run. Stonewall Jackson’s men started to run out of ammunition. Jackson responded to this by ordering an all-or-nothing counterattack. The attack would either win or lose the battle for Jackson. John Pope commits his last reserve against Jackson, and CSA General James Longstreet launches a massive assault, driving the Federals off the field. Pope had to withdraw his forces and ordered a withdrawal to Washington DC. The South lost about 8,500 men killed and wounded at the Second Battle of Bull Run, while the North lost 12,000 men killed, wounded or taken prisoner.
Details: 1. Morning: Gen. Lee decides to wait for Pope to make the first move and then use that to his advantage in releasing Longstreet’s attack. Pope also waits, although his behavior is odd considering his conviction that the Rebels are retreating and trying to get away. He maintains this delusion all morning.
2. Pope attacks: Lee, believing that Pope is going to attack, places 18 guns under Col. Stephen D. Lee on high ground in front of Jackson’s center, in a position to sweep the field. Pope, after counseling with his officers (who are divided in their opinions), issues orders around 1:00 P.M.: Porter is to attack Jackson’s right, and hold on the Rebel left.
3. Longstreet’s Assault: Gen. Lee and Gen. Longstreet agree that with the Union left thus weakened, the time was right for the attack. Longstreet’s four divisions (Hood, Evans, Kemper, and Jones–with Anderson in reserve), 25,000 men in a line a mile and a half long, step off in a wide right wheel, plunging into the flank and rear of the Union army. Only two undermanned brigades under Warren and McLean are in line ready to resist them. Warren has only two regiments, and they do not even slow down the Rebel attack.
4. Attack on Henry House Hill: The resistance of these six Union brigades, however, has slowed the Southern attack by more than two hours, and by this point, Pope has built a line. Longstreet sends Jones’ division forward on the right, and then two brigades from Anderson, who is able to damage the Union flank enough to ascend Henry House Hill—but Anderson fails to exploit this, due to the gathering darkness. Despite orders from Lee to assist, Jackson does not launch a supporting attack from his lines until late. Pope’s makeshift line holds, and during the night, his army withdraws across Bull Run and moves quickly back to the safety of the Washington defenses.
C. Sunday, August 30, 1863: Siege of Charleston Harbor: Shelling Fort Sumter resumes, as the Confederates try to dig their guns out of the rubble when they can. “The bombardment of the incredibly sturdy old Fort Sumter continued in Charleston Harbor today. The breech batteries (cannon) of the Union attackers on Morris Island fired-round-after-round, and inflicted damage in places. As gun placements were damaged by the fire, the Confederate defenders would dig the guns out and transport them into Charleston proper. Return fire was of course attempted. It did little damage to the Federals but in a tragic accident, the Confederates of Fort Moultrie fired on a small steamship that was thought to be bringing reinforcement to the Yankees. It held reinforcements, all right…but they were fellow Southerners. The ship was sunk.”
D. Tuesday, August 30, 1864: Such Rails Could Not Be Used Again’ – Sherman Destroys, Sabotages Railroad. William Tecumseh Sherman’s horde had fallen upon the railroad running southwest out of Atlanta. Both the Armies of the Tennessee and the Cumberland spent the 29th “breaking it up thoroughly.” “The track was heaved up in sections the length of a regiment, then separated rail by rail; bonfires were made of the ties and of fence-rails on which the rails were heated, carried to trees or telegraph-poles, wrapped around and left to cool. Such rails could not be used again; and, to be still more certain, we filled up many deep cuts with trees, brush, and earth, and commingled them with loaded shells, so arranged that they would explode on an attempt to haul out the bushes. The explosion of one such shell would have demoralized a gang of negroes, and thus would have prevented even the attempt to clear the road.” – William Tecumseh Sherman, Memoirs.
In all, thirteen miles of the West Point & Atlanta Railroad were destroyed. It was a sight to behold, but mostly pointless, as the line had hardly been used by the Rebels. The railroad of interest was actually, the line to Macon, running southeast away from Atlanta. And this was Sherman’s next objective.
On this date, the armies marched, spread out in three columns. The Army of the Cumberland marched to cut off the line north of Jonesboro, though by near dusk, they were six miles short, and along the Flint River.
The Army of the Tennessee also made for the Flint, finding themselves by the late afternoon hardly a half mile from the railroad and Jonesboro. They were considerably separated from the Army of the Cumberland, which was several miles beyond their left and rear.
Holding the Federal left, beyond the Army of the Cumberland, was John Schofield’s Army of the Ohio, now little more than the Twenty-third Army Corps. On this day, they marched from Mount Gilead Church and then to Morrow’s Mills, where they turned north to face the town of Rough and Ready from the south.
General Sherman spent the day with George Thomas, leading the Army of the Cumberland – the Union center. Thomas was leery on the idea of such an advance. Sherman’s entire force would need to be fed, and he doubted their ability to live off the land.
Through the day, Sherman could hear guns to the southeast. This was Olive Otis Howard’s Army of the Tennessee just outside Jonesboro. As they marched, they threw back Rebel skirmishers, stopping to exchange a few shots and then running for their lives. He had expected to hear similar firing to the north from Schofield’s guns, but no such reports rang true.
This march brought them to within easy reach of the Atlanta & Macon Railroad, and the next day Sherman would fall upon that as well. But towards dusk, columns of dust were spotted. According to one of the Army of the Cumberland’s forward scouts, there was “a column of troops moving into position northeast of Mann’s house at about sundown this evening.” Though hardly a half mile away, it could not be made certain that these were not men from the Army of the Ohio, perhaps wayward.
But it was not Schofield’s troops. Before them now marched the Rebels. General John Bell Hood had received reports throughout the day that the bulk of the Federal host was moving still around his left, south of Atlanta. They were, came the word, making for Jonesboro and the railroad.
Hood’s command, much smaller than Sherman’s, was still formidable. Near East Point, where the two southerly railroads junctioned, he had placed William Hardee’s Corps. Hardee was ordered to “take whatever measure you may think necessary to prevent the enemy from gaining Jonesborough or Rough and Ready this afternoon, so that he may make other dispositions tonight.” Hood was nearly certain that Sherman wouldn’t try to attack Jonesboro on this day. But at the day wore on, Hood became less so, figuring at least that Sherman’s men would fall upon the railroad, blocking any attempt Hardee might make to usher his men to the outlying town.
Finally, near dusk, Hood anticipated Sherman’s hand. “You corps will move to Jonesborough tonight,” he wrote to Hardee. “Put it in motion at once if necessary to protect the railroad.” But also there was S.D. Lee’s Corps, formerly commanded by Hood himself. To Lee, Hood gave the same orders, having him follow Hardee.
Hardee and Lee weren’t simply to arrive in Joneseboro to wait it out, they were to “attack the enemy, and drive him, if possible, across Flint River.” As Hardee’s troops were moving, however, they ran into a few Northern skirmishers, which through the timeline into complete disarray. This would stall their efforts to be in Jonesboro by dawn the following day. This would stall the attack.And so as the Federal troops rested, the Rebels scrambled as they could to get into position, hoping to hit their enemy before they could concentrate.


1. Saturday, August 30, 1862: 1st Lieutenant William Penn Lloyd, of the 1st Pennsylvania Cavalry Regiment, offers in his journal his view of Longstreet’s attack on the Federal left flank, and his blame on Pope: “The incessant roar of musketry and the deep toned thunder of cannon as regiment after regiment came up, and battery after battery opened, mingled with the bursting of shells, the ominous and unearthly shriek of the rifled cannon shot, and the whistling of bullets, which appeared to thicken the air, showed that the action up till now was but a prelude to what was comming. Hotter and hotter, became the fire of the artillery, and closer drew the contending lines, till the space, [interweaving?] between the two armies, was filled with the struggling hosts. Wild and chaotic, indeed, was the scene, the field now presented, full forty-thousand men armed with the most improved implements of destruction, struggling in mortal combat. Dense clouds of [dust?] mingled with the smoke of battle, which rolled up in massive columns, soon hid the field from view, and it was only by the sound of the conflict or when, for a moment, the cloud which hung over the field, would shift and reveal the work of death, that you could discern when the battle raged the fiercest.
We hear of battles, and read descriptions of them; but it is only when on the field, and a spectator of the scene, that one can realize half their grandeur, or their horrors.
For more than two hours, the battle continued thus to rage, when the enemy having, [unperceived?] or [unheeded?] by our Genls., thrown a heavy body around on our left, suddenly poured a cloud of troops down on our flank and rear; and our exhausted columns, unable to withstand the torrent that came rolling against them, broke, and fell back in confusion. Here was the Great and fatal error of the day. From the time our left was attacked, till our flank was turned, Genl. Pope was repeatedly advised of the probability of the enemy attempting this movement; but deaf to all advice and entreats, he not only neglected to make the necessary disposition of his forces, to meet such a contingency; but continued with drawing troops from the extreme left, and marching them to the center and right, and even so for forgot the duties of a general, as to neglect having videtts out on the left to warn him of the approach of the enemy.”
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2. Saturday, August 30, 1862: Union army Surgeon Alfred L. Castleman, ever irrepressible in expressing his opinion, writes angrily in his journal about McClellan’s refusal to hurry to help Pope: “5 P. M.—We have just reached Centreville. The battle rages in sight, yet we stop again to rest when no one is tired, but all anxious to rush on. After having "rested" for two hours, we moved slowly forward for two miles, when we met a courier, who exclaimed: "Oh, why not one hour earlier!" Close on his heels followed the flying crowd, again overpowered, beaten and whipped at Bull Run, the disastrous battle field of last year, and we too late to save it.
Alas, my poor country! and must you at last be sacrificed to the jealousies, the selfishness, the ambition, the treachery or the incompetency of those to whom you have entrusted your treasure, life, honor, every thing? Grouchy failed to come. So did Hancock, Franklin and McClellan. There may be good reasons for our delay, and we not be permitted to know what they are. The subordinate is forbidden to discuss the merits or the motives of his superior, but we must not be blamed for thinking. Pope was whipped. Thousands of our neighbors and our friends died on that bloody field, whilst struggling to hold it till we could reach and save them, and the joyous faces of many officers of our Army of the Potomac made us think that the whipping of Pope and the slaughter of his men, had something to do with their joy. . . “
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=August+30%2C+1862
3. Saturday, August 30, 1862: Private Robert Knox Sneden, a cartographer on the staff of Gen. Heintzelman, recounts his gruesome experience of the battle in his journal: “The Rebels had two or more Whitworth guns. The peculiar screech of their missiles were heard above the whizzing of other projectiles. The Rebel artillery was fired at a high elevation and their shells burst mostly in rear of our lines for a long while. But they rectified this when our men were ordered to lie down. Still many were killed in this position while our artillery horses were cut up badly. For an hour the Rebels, being out of ammunition, fired pieces of railroad iron at us. Two pieces bound with telegraph wire, these would stick in the tree tops and slide down on our men’s heads. This confused and mystified the troops who scattered and broke ranks continually. [They] thought it a new explosive until after it had been solved. . . .
I saw the head of one of our atillerymen taken off, shot within fifty feet of my position. His blood spattered his gun. He was pulled up by his arms a few paces away, the blood gushing in streams from his neck. . . . The other artillerymen kept on loading and firing without giving him further notice. All the guns of the battery were worked with great rapidity. The men were loading and firing like madmen. The wounded were crawling around on their hands and knees. Others were tearing up their shirts to make bandages for their bloody wounds . . . while from a low strip of bushes the Rebels were firing on our wounded in front who were crawling to our lines. The wounded and dying Rebels along our front in the open ground held up their hands in token of surrender, while piercing shrieks, yells, cheers, and oaths filled the air, heard above the deafening reports of the artillery and crash of musketry. . . . Having seen enough of the terrible fighting, I returned to our headquarters. . . .”
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=August+30%2C+1862
4. Saturday, August 30, 1862: George Templeton Strong writes in his journal of the reaction to the battle in New York City: “A noteworthy day for good or evil; we do not certainly know which. The morning papers were not cheerful. We were out-generalled and out-flanked. Washington in danger again, everything bungled and botched. It was clear that both armies had got into each others’ rear and were so mixed up that they couldn’t be disentangled without breaking something. . . . Our loss say 8,000; rebel loss twice that; a grand victory. God grant this may be true and the whole truth. But I am not prepared to crow quite yet. Pope is an imaginative chieftan and ranks next to [James Fenimore] Cooper as a writer of fiction. . . . I expect to be informed by tomorrow morning’s papers that strategic considerations lead General Pope to follow up his victory by skedaddling at full speed, leaving guns and prisoners in the hands of the enemy. It is a bad sign that we have no extra tonight. . . .”
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=August+30%2C+1862
5. Saturday, August 30, 1862: Confederate Heartland Offensive: The battle of Richmond, Kentucky, ends in a Confederate victory.
https://bjdeming.com/2012/10/12/the-american-civil-war-150th-anniversary-august-27-to-september-2-1862/
6. Saturday, August 30, 1862: Western Theater: Confederate cavalry under General Frank C. Armstrong skirmish with Union forces near Bolivar, Tennessee.
https://bjdeming.com/2012/10/12/the-american-civil-war-150th-anniversary-august-27-to-september-2-1862/
7. Saturday, August 30, 1862: In Bolivar, The Federals drew back at nightfall and prepared for a renewed attack the next day.
https://sites.google.com/site/civilwarhardemancotn/part-seventy-two
8. Saturday, August 30, 1862: From Decherd, Tennessee, General Buell writes a letter explaining his decisions and current movements to the state’s military governor, Andrew Johnson, with whom he has tangled in the past.
https://bjdeming.com/2012/10/12/the-american-civil-war-150th-anniversary-august-27-to-september-2-1862/
9. Saturday, August 30, 1862: Battle of Richmond, Kentucky, Day 2: The day begins with an artillery duel, and then Gen. Cleburne advances his two-brigade division. Gen. Nelson has ordered up Gen. Charles Cruft and his brigade to reinforce Manson. (Most of Nelson’s troops are purely green regiments raised specifically in answer to the threatened Rebel invasion that Kirby-Smith and Bragg are now conducting.) South of Richmond, near Mt. Zion Church, Cleburne’s troops drive in the Federal skirmish line, and both sides bring up more artillery. Cleburne moves against the Federal left; Gen. Manson, in response, takes troops from his right flank and sends them to his left. But about that time, unseen by the Yankees, Gen. Thomas Churchill and his division of Arkansans and Texans come charging up out of a ravine, and hit the weakened Federal right. Manson’s green troops gave way before the assault, and the left finally collapsed as well, although Cleburne had been shot in the jaw and was taken from the field. As the Federals retreat back up the road, Manson is finally able to rally them around 11:00 A.M. Kirby-Smith orders Churchill to attack again, while Col. Preston Smith (taking Cleburne’s place) attacks the Federal left---and again the Yankee line breaks, and they continue to retreat in disorder back to Richmond. General "Bull" Nelson arrives on the field, and attempts to stem disaster: he organizes a new line in a cemetery just outside of town. Col. Smith sends his two brigades forward, and as dusk settles, this line breaks, too, and the Yankees retreat in a rout northward. Two miles north of Richmond, however, Scott;’s cavalry brigade (1st Georgia, 1st Louisiana, 3rd Tennessee, and a squadron of Kentucky riders) catch the panicked Federals and, blocking their retreat, attack. The Northerners surrender in large numbers, and only Nelson and a few troops escape. Confederate Victory.
Forces: U.S. Maj. Gen. Wm. "Bull" Nelson, 6,500 men
C.S. Maj. Gen. Edmund Kirby-Smith, 6,850 men
Losses: Killed Wounded Captured and Missing Total
Union 206 844 4,303 5,353
Confederate 78 372 1 451
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=August+30%2C+1862
10. Sunday, August 30, 1863: More of Rosecrans’ Army of the Cumberland crosses the Tennessee River, in the face of little resistance.
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=August+30%2C+1863
11. Sunday, August 30, 1863: Fighting continues from Bayou Meto, Arkansas to Leesburg, Virginia, but the constant Union bombardment of Fort Sumter in Charleston, South Carolina's harbor was taking it toll. The Confederates dig their cannons out from under the rubble in their batteries and start transferring them to Charleston, SC. One Confederate battery from Fort Moultrie in the harbor fired on a small steamship that was thought to be bringing reinforcements to the Yankees. It held reinforcements, all right...but they were fellow Southerners. The ship was sunk.
https://sites.google.com/site/civilwarhardemancotn/departments/department-c/week-125
12. Sunday, August 30, 1863: /Little Rock Campaign: Skirmishing at Washington and at Shallow Ford on Bayou Meto.
https://bjdeming.com/2013/08/26/the-american-civil-war-150th-anniversary-august-26-september-2-1863/
13. Sunday, August 30, 1863: Near Shoal Ford, on the Arkansas River, Col. Ritter and his brigade of Federal cavalry attempt to force the crossing, with the 5th Arkansas Cavalry, under Col. Robert Newton, resisting the crossing, in a skirmish that lasts several hours. Gen. Frederick Steele, commanding the Union forces, is still trying to find a satisfactory approach to Little Rock.
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=August+30%2C+1863
14. Sunday, August 30, 1863: By this date, the 9th Kansas Cavalry regiment, under a Lt. Col. Clark, has killed forty of the guerillas under Quantrill who participated in the Lawrence Massacre, after chasing Quantrill’s men through three counties.
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=August+30%2C+1863
15. Tuesday, August 30, 1864: Georgia operations, Siege of Atlanta: Per General Sherman: “Schofield, with the Twenty-third Corps, presented a bold front toward East Point, daring and inviting the enemy to sally out to attack him in position. His first movement was on the 30th, to Mount Gilead Church, then to Morrow’s Mills, facing Rough and Ready. Thomas was on his right, within easy support, moving by cross-roads from Red Oak to the Fayetteville road, extending from Couch’s to Renfrew’s; and Howard was aiming for Jonesboro.
I was with General Thomas that day, which was hot but otherwise very pleasant. We stopped for a short noon-rest near a little church (marked on our maps as Shoal-Creek Church), which stood back about a hundred yards from the road, in a grove of native oaks. The infantry column had halted in the road, stacked their arms, and the men were scattered about—some lying in the shade of the trees, and others were bringing corn-stalks from a large corn-field across the road to feed our horses, while still others had arms full of the roasting-ears, then in their prime. Hundreds of fires were soon started with the fence-rails, and the men were busy roasting the ears. Thomas and I were walking up and down the road which led to the church, discussing the chances of the movement, which he thought were extra-hazardous, and our path carried us by a fire at which a soldier was roasting his corn. The fire was built artistically; the man was stripping the ears of their husks, standing them in front of his fire, watching them carefully, and turning each ear little by little, so as to roast it nicely. He was down on his knees intent on his business, paying little heed to the stately and serious deliberations of his leaders. Thomas’s mind was running on the fact that we had cut loose from our base of supplies, and that seventy thousand men were then dependent for their food on the chance supplies of the country (already impoverished by the requisitions of the enemy), and on the contents of our wagons. Between Thomas and his men there existed a most kindly relation, and he frequently talked with them in the most familiar way. Pausing awhile, and watching the operations of this man roasting his corn, he said, “What are you doing?” The man looked up smilingly “Why, general, I am laying in a supply of provisions.” “That is right, my man, but don’t waste your provisions.” As we resumed our walk, the man remarked, in a sort of musing way, but loud enough for me to hear: “There he goes, there goes the old man, economizing as usual.” “Economizing” with corn, which cost only the labor of gathering and roasting!
As we walked, we could hear General Howard’s guns at intervals, away off to our right front, but an ominous silence continued toward our left, where I was expecting at each moment to hear the sound of battle. That night we reached Renfrew’s, and had reports from left to right (from General Schofield, about Morrow’s Mills, to General Howard, within a couple of miles of Jonesboro).
https://bjdeming.com/2014/08/25/the-american-civil-war-150th-anniversary-august-25-31-1864/
16. Tuesday, August 30, 1864: The Democratic National Convention meets in Chicago, Illinois and nominates Major General George B. McClellan as their candidate for the Presidency in the upcoming election. McClellan is running on a peace platform. Although the party platform called for an immediate end to the war, McClellan is now supporting to continue the conflict. Major General David Hunter (US) is relieved of duty as Brig. General George Crook (US) is now assigned to the command of the Dept. of West Virginia. Federals capture the West Point-Atlanta Railroad leaving only the Macon Railroad line open into Atlanta, Georgia.
https://sites.google.com/site/civilwarhardemancotn/departments/1864/week-177

A Friday, August 30, 1861: General John Fremont in Missouri declares martial law, allows for the confiscation of property belonging to 'those who shall take up arms against the United States,' and proclaims the emancipation of slaves of pro-Southerners. President Lincoln immediately cancelled all of Fremont’s decrees, calling them “dictatorial." He caught political hell for them anyway.
https://sites.google.com/site/civilwarhardemancotn/departments/department-a/part-twenty-1
A+ Friday, August 30, 1861: Without approval from the White House, Maj. Gen. John C. Fremont, commander of the Army's Dept. of Missouri, declares martial law throughout all of Missouri. He also orders the confiscation of property of all pro-Southerners who are in arms against the government. He also declares all slaves in his district to be free.
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=August+30%2C+1861
A++ Friday, August 30, 1861: Fremont Makes Freemen of Slaves, Declares Martial Law. There was no getting around how much of a mess Missouri had become in the months since armies marched across its borders. St. Louis had erupted in a murderous riot, the center of the state tolerated an overthrow of the government, the southwestern counties suffered the battles of Carthage and Wilson’s Creek while in the east, armies under Grant and Polk faced off, ready to do battle.
General John Fremont, commander of Union Western Department and the Republican’s first presidential candidate, tried the best he could to keep the peace throughout the state. Two weeks prior, he declared martial law in St. Louis, where he was headquartered. On this date, he decided to “demand the severest measures to repress the daily crimes and outrages which are driving off the inhabitants and ruining the State.”
Martial law could only be enforced in the parts of the states occupied by the Union army, of course. Fremont outlined precisely which territory, extending “from Leavenworth, by way of the posts of Jefferson City, Rolla, and Ironton, to Cape Girardeau, on the Mississippi River” would come under his direct rule.
Fremont declared that “all persons who shall be taken with arms in their hands within these lines shall be tried by court-martial, and if found guilty will be shot.” Typically in war, they would be treated as prisoners, not found guilty of treason.
The next step taken by Fremont was brazen and, technically, unconstitutional. His proclamation stated that any Missourian who was to “take up arms against the United States, or who shall be directly proven to have taken an active part with their enemies in the field,” would have their property “confiscated to the public use,” and their slaves, if they had any, “hereby declared freemen.”
Fremont, who was no doubt familiar with the Confiscation Act of August 6, which freed the slaves working for the Confederate government by forcing them to work for the Union government, did what many Southern slaveowners feared: he freed their slaves.
While the Confiscation Act placed the “freed” slaves under the jurisdiction of the Union army, Fremont’s proclamation declared them “freemen.” Of course, this only effected the slaves owned by secessionists in Missouri. Technically, slaves owned by Missouri Unionists would remain untouched.
http://civilwardailygazette.com/fremont-makes-freemen-of-slaves-declares-martial-law/
B Saturday, August 30, 1862: Manassas/Second Manassas: Pope commits his last reserve against Jackson, and CS General Longstreet launches a massive assault, driving the Federals off the field.
https://bjdeming.com/2012/10/12/the-american-civil-war-150th-anniversary-august-27-to-september-2-1862/
B+ Saturday, August 30, 1862: The fighting at Bull Run continued for a third day. Jackson’s men started to run out of ammunition. Jackson responded to this by ordering an all-or-nothing counterattack. The attack would either win or lose the battle for Jackson. It worked and Pope had to withdraw his forces and ordered a withdrawal to Washington DC. The South lost about 8,500 men killed and wounded at the Second Battle of Bull Run, while the North lost 12,000 men killed, wounded or taken prisoner.
https://sites.google.com/site/civilwarhardemancotn/part-seventy-two
C Sunday, August 30, 1863: Shelling Fort Sumter resumes, as the Confederates try to dig their guns out of the rubble when they can.
http://civilwarsesquicentdaily-wolfshield.blogspot.com/search?q=August+30%2C+1863
C+ Sunday, August 30, 1863: Siege of Charleston Harbor: “The bombardment of the incredibly sturdy old Fort Sumter continued in Charleston Harbor today. The breech batteries (cannon) of the Union attackers on Morris Island fired round after round, and inflicted damage in places. As gun placements were damaged by the fire, the Confederate defenders would dig the guns out and transport them into Charleston proper. Return fire was of course attempted. It did little damage to the Federals but in a tragic accident, the Confederates of Fort Moultrie fired on a small steamship that was thought to be bringing reinforcement to the Yankees. It held reinforcements, all right…but they were fellow Southerners. The ship was sunk.”
https://bjdeming.com/2013/08/26/the-american-civil-war-150th-anniversary-august-26-september-2-1863/
D Tuesday, August 30, 1864: Such Rails Could Not Be Used Again’ – Sherman Destroys, Sabotages Railroad. William Tecumseh Sherman’s horde had fallen upon the railroad running southwest out of Atlanta. Both the Armies of the Tennessee and the Cumberland spent the 29th “breaking it up thoroughly.” “The track was heaved up in sections the length of a regiment, then separated rail by rail; bonfires were made of the ties and of fence-rails on which the rails were heated, carried to trees or telegraph-poles, wrapped around and left to cool. Such rails could not be used again; and, to be still more certain, we filled up many deep cuts with trees, brush, and earth, and commingled them with loaded shells, so arranged that they would explode on an attempt to haul out the bushes. The explosion of one such shell would have demoralized a gang of negroes, and thus would have prevented even the attempt to clear the road.” – William Tecumseh Sherman, Memoirs.
In all, thirteen miles of the West Point & Atlanta Railroad were destroyed. It was a sight to behold, but mostly pointless, as the line had hardly been used by the Rebels. The railroad of interest was actually, the line to Macon, running southeast away from Atlanta. And this was Sherman’s next objective.
On this date, the armies marched, spread out in three columns. The Army of the Cumberland marched to cut off the line north of Jonesboro, though by near dusk, they were six miles short, and along the Flint River.
The Army of the Tennessee also made for the Flint, finding themselves by the late afternoon hardly a half mile from the railroad and Jonesboro. They were considerably separated from the Army of the Cumberland, which was several miles beyond their left and rear.
Holding the Federal left, beyond the Army of the Cumberland, was John Schofield’s Army of the Ohio, now little more than the Twenty-third Army Corps. On this day, they marched from Mount Gilead Church and then to Morrow’s Mills, where they turned north to face the town of Rough and Ready from the south.
General Sherman spent the day with George Thomas, leading the Army of the Cumberland – the Union center. Thomas was leery on the idea of such an advance. Sherman’s entire force would need to be fed, and he doubted their ability to live off the land.
Through the day, Sherman could hear guns to the southeast. This was Olive Otis Howard’s Army of the Tennessee just outside Jonesboro. As they marched, they threw back Rebel skirmishers, stopping to exchange a few shots and then running for their lives. He had expected to hear similar firing to the north from Schofield’s guns, but no such reports rang true.
This march brought them to within easy reach of the Atlanta & Macon Railroad, and the next day Sherman would fall upon that as well. But towards dusk, columns of dust were spotted. According to one of the Army of the Cumberland’s forward scouts, there was “a column of troops moving into position northeast of Mann’s house at about sundown this evening.” Though hardly a half mile away, it could not be made certain that these were not men from the Army of the Ohio, perhaps wayward.
But it was not Schofield’s troops. Before them now marched the Rebels. General John Bell Hood had received reports throughout the day that the bulk of the Federal host was moving still around his left, south of Atlanta. They were, came the word, making for Jonesboro and the railroad.
Hood’s command, much smaller than Sherman’s, was still formidable. Near East Point, where the two southerly railroads junctioned, he had placed William Hardee’s Corps. Hardee was ordered to “take whatever measure you may think necessary to prevent the enemy from gaining Jonesborough or Rough and Ready this afternoon, so that he may make other dispositions tonight.” Hood was nearly certain that Sherman wouldn’t try to attack Jonesboro on this day. But at the day wore on, Hood became less so, figuring at least that Sherman’s men would fall upon the railroad, blocking any attempt Hardee might make to usher his men to the outlying town.
Finally, near dusk, Hood anticipated Sherman’s hand. “You corps will move to Jonesborough tonight,” he wrote to Hardee. “Put it in motion at once if necessary to protect the railroad.” But also there was S.D. Lee’s Corps, formerly commanded by Hood himself. To Lee, Hood gave the same orders, having him follow Hardee.
Hardee and Lee weren’t simply to arrive in Joneseboro to wait it out, they were to “attack the enemy, and drive him, if possible, across Flint River.” As Hardee’s troops were moving, however, they ran into a few Northern skirmishers, which through the timeline into complete disarray. This would stall their efforts to be in Jonesboro by dawn the following day. This would stall the attack.And so as the Federal troops rested, the Rebels scrambled as they could to get into position, hoping to hit their enemy before they could concentrate.
http://civilwardailygazette.com/such-rails-could-not-be-used-again-sherman-destroys-sabotages-railroad/
FYI GySgt Jack Wallace CWO4 Terrence Clark SMSgt Lawrence McCarter A1C Pamela G RussellLTC Trent Klug SFC Bernard Walko SFC Stephen King SSG Franklin Briant SSG Byron Howard Sr CPL Ronald Keyes Jr SFC William Farrell CMDCM John F. "Doc" Bradshaw SPC Lyle MontgomeryDeborah GregsonPO2 Marco MonsalveSPC Woody Bullard SSG Michael Noll SSG Bill McCoy MSgt (Join to see) Sgt Christopher Collins

I know a little about Manassas. Mountain Goat Navy. Spook/Spy Base up in tham thar hills overlooking Manassas.

Thanks LTC Stephen F. Ill have to get down there one of these days to the battlefields.