Information courtesy of the
Minnesota Civil War Commemoration Task Force
(www.mncivilwar150.com and “Minnesota Civil War 150” on Facebook)
Major Highlights for the Week
Wednesday August 19, 1863
Northern authorities resumed the draft in New York City with no difficulties, although troops protected the draft headquarters against a repetition of the disastrous riots of July.
In Charleston Harbor, South Carolina, the guns boomed for a third day against Fort Sumter and Battery Wagner.
Thursday August 20, 1863
The bombardment of Fort Sumter and Battery Wagner continued in Charleston Harbor, while Major General William Rosecrans Federal Army of the Cumberland neared the Tennessee River west of Chattanooga, and more Federal troops arrived at Covington, Kentucky for the offensive in East Tennessee.
In Kansas, guerrilla forces under William Clarke Quantrill approached the unsuspecting town of Lawrence.
Friday August 21, 1863
SACKING OF LAWRENCE, KANSAS
Approximately 117 men and boys died and approximately $1.5 million worth of property destroyed in the massacre at Lawrence, Kansas. Storming into the town at dawn, nearly 450 Confederate and Missouri bushwhackers under William Clarke Quantrill sacked, burned and murdered. Only women and small children were spared, though some men escaped the wrath by hiding. The raid grew out of festering bitterness created by the Federal raid on Osceola, Missouri, and by Quantrill’s personal grudge against Lawrence. The target of the attack was James Lane, who was influential in the abolition movement and a key figure in the growth of the Underground Railroad in the vicinity.
Saturday August 22, 1863
Fort Sumter was feeling the impact of the sustained bombardment, now in its sixth day. Only four guns remained serviceable in the fort. Five Federal monitors made a night attack, and only two guns returned fire. Nevertheless, there was no indication of a surrender. Other Union guns opened fire on Charleston itself. The Federals suffered a severe blow when the famed Swamp Angel exploded while firing its thirty-sixth round.
Sunday August 23, 1863
The first period of bombardment on Fort Sumter came to an end but only after 5,009 rounds had been fired by the Federals and only one gun left in good condition in the fort, which was now a pile of rubble and wreckage.
Confederates captured two small Federal gunboats, the Satellite and Reliance, at the mouth of the Rappahannock River in Virginia. Lieutenant L. Taylor Wood accomplished the feat with four small boats with sixty men and thirty sharpshooters.
Monday August 24, 1863
In Alabama, skirmishing occurred at Gunter’s Landing near Port Deposit.
Other action included a Federal scout at Barbee’s Crossroads and skirmishing at Coyle’s Tavern near Fairfax Courthouse, near King George Courthouse and near Warm Springs, all in Virginia.
Tuesday August 25, 1863
Guerrilla warfare in Missouri and Kansas reached a climax in Lawrence, Kansas, four days after the massacre. Federal Brigadier General Thomas Ewing, in command at Kansas City, issued General Order No. 11, which stated that all persons in Jackson, Cass and Bates counties, and parts of Vernon County, all in Missouri, were to leave their homes. Those who could prove their loyalty would be permitted to stay at military posts. All others had to vacate the area. An estimated twenty thousand people lost their homes around Kansas City, while barns, houses and crops were burned. The anti-guerrilla move had little effect on the raiders, but cause deep animosities that lasted for generations.
Where Minnesota Regiments were the week of August 19-25, 1863
1st Minnesota Volunteer Infantry – On detached duty in New York City until September 16, 1863.
2nd Minnesota Volunteer Infantry – On the march through the Cumberland Mountains and Tennessee River for the Chickamauga Campaign.
3rd Minnesota Volunteer Infantry – On the march to Little Rock, Arkansas until September 10, 1863.
4th Minnesota Volunteer Infantry – On garrison duty at Vicksburg, Mississippi until September 12, 1863.
5th Minnesota Volunteer Infantry – On duty at Bear Creek, Mississippi until October 14, 1863.
6th Minnesota Volunteer Infantry –Participated in Brigadier General Henry H. Sibley’s expedition in Dakota Territory until September 12, 1863.
7th Minnesota Volunteer Infantry –Participated in Brigadier General Henry H. Sibley’s expedition in Dakota Territory until September 12, 1863.
8th Minnesota Volunteer Infantry – On duty at Fort Ridgely, Minnesota until June 5, 1864.
9th Minnesota Volunteer Infantry –Participated in Brigadier General Henry H. Sibley’s expedition in Dakota Territory until September 12, 1863.
10th Minnesota Volunteer Infantry –Participated in Brigadier General Henry H. Sibley’s expedition in Dakota Territory until September 12, 1863.
1st Regiment Minnesota Cavalry “Mounted Rangers” – Participated in Brigadier General Henry H. Sibley’s expedition in Dakota Territory until September 12, 1863.
Brackett’s Battalion of Minnesota Cavalry – Participated in the Occupation of Middle Tennessee until September 6, 1863.
1st Minnesota Light Artillery Battery – On duty at Vicksburg, Mississippi, until April 4, 1864.
2nd Independent Battery, Minnesota Light Artillery – On the march through the Cumberland Mountains and Tennessee River for the Chickamauga Campaign.
3rd Battery, Minnesota Light Artillery - Participated in Brigadier General Henry H. Sibley’s expedition in Dakota Territory until September 12, 1863.
2nd United States Sharpshooters, Company A – On duty in Virginia until October 1863.
