Pictorial history of the war for the Union, volume 2 (of 2)

On the 14th of February, General Grant sent the following communication to General Thomas, containing instructions for a proposed cavalry expedition, under General Stoneman, from General Thomas’s army. It was the design of General Grant that this expedition should have started early in February, and have penetrated as far as Columbia, South Carolina, in cooperation with General Sherman’s forces in that State at that time. As General Stoneman’s troops did not move at the time appointed, it now became necessary to change the plan and route of the expedition:

“General Canby is preparing a movement from Mobile bay against Mobile and the interior of Alabama. His force will consist of about twenty thousand men, besides A. J. Smith’s command. The cavalry you have sent to Canby will be debarked at Vicksburg. It, with the available cavalry already in that section, will move from there eastward, in cooperation. Hood’s army has been terribly reduced by the severe punishment you gave it in Tennessee, by desertion consequent upon its defeat, and now by the withdrawal of many of his men to oppose Sherman. Canby’s movement will attract all the attention of the enemy, and leave the advance from your stand-point easy. I think it advisable, therefore, that you prepare as much of a cavalry force as you can spare, and hold it in readiness to go south. The object would be three-fold: first, to attract as much of the enemy’s force as possible to insure success to Canby; second, to destroy the enemy’s line of communications and military resources; third, to destroy or capture their forces brought into the field. Tuscaloosa and Selma would probably be the points to direct the expedition against. This, however, would not be so important as the mere fact of penetrating deep into Alabama. Discretion should be left to the officer commanding the expedition to go where, according to the information he may receive, he will best secure the objects named above.

“Now that your force has been so much depleted, I do not know what number of men you can put into the field. If not more than five thousand men, however, all cavalry, I think it will be sufficient. It is not desirable that you should start this expedition until the one leaving Vicksburg has been three or four days out, or even a week.

“Major-General G. H. Thomas.”

General Stoneman’s expedition started from East Tennessee on the 20th of March, moving by way of Boone, North Carolina, and struck the railroad at Wytheville, Chambersburg, and Big Lick. The force striking it at Big Lick pushed on to within a few miles of Lynchburg, destroying the important bridges, while with the main force he effectually destroyed the road between New river and Big Lick, and then turned for Greensboro’, on the North Carolina railroad; struck that road and destroyed the bridges between Danville and Greensboro’, and between Greensboro’ and the Yadkin, together with the depots and supplies along it, and captured four hundred prisoners.

General Stoneman, in his dispatch to General Thomas, gives the following account of his operations after leaving Boone:—

“From Boone it became necessary to cross the Blue Ridge into the Yadkin river bottom, in order to obtain supplies for men and horses. There we were detained three days by freshets. From thence we struck for Christiansburg. On the route I detached Colonel Miller, with a portion of his brigade, to Wytheville, and Major Wagner, with a portion of the Fifteenth Pennsylvania, Palmer’s brigade, to Big Lick. These three points were struck almost simultaneously. Colonel Palmer attacked, and, after some fighting, captured Wytheville, destroyed the depot of supplies at that point, and also at Mair’s Meadow. Major Wagner, after striking the railroad at Big Lick, pushed on towards Lynchburg, destroying, on his way, the important bridges over the Big and Little Otter, and got to within four miles of Lynchburg with the main body, and effectually destroyed the road between New river and Big Lick, and then struck for Greensboro’, on the North Carolina railroad.

“Arrived near Salem, N. C., I detailed Palmer’s brigade to destroy the bridges between Danville and Greensboro’, and between Greensboro’ and Yadkin river, and the large depots of supplies along the road. This duty was performed with considerable fighting, the capture of four hundred prisoners, and to my entire satisfaction. With the other two brigades, Brown’s and Miller’s, and the artillery under the command of Lieutenant Reagon, we pushed for Salisbury, where we found about three thousand troops, under the command of Major-General W. M. Gardiner, formed behind Grant’s creek, about two miles and a half from Salisbury. As soon as a proper disposition could be made, I ordered a general charge along the entire line, and the result was the capture of fourteen pieces of artillery, and one thousand three hundred and sixty-four prisoners, including fifty-three officers.

“We remained at Salisbury two days, during which time we destroyed fifteen miles of railroad track and the bridges towards Charlotte, and then moved to this point. From here we shall move to the south side of the Catawba river, and be in a position to operate towards Charlotte and Columbia, or upon the flank of an army moving south.

“The following is a partial list of the public property captured north of Salisbury, and destroyed by us: Four large cotton factories and seven thousand bales of cotton; four large magazines, containing ten thousand stand of small arms and accoutrements, one million rounds of small arm ammunition, one thousand rounds of fixed artillery ammunition, and seven thousand pounds of powder, thirty-five thousand bushels of corn, fifty thousand bushels of wheat, one hundred and sixty thousand pounds of cured bacon, one hundred thousand suits of gray uniforms and clothing, two hundred and fifty thousand army blankets, twenty thousand pounds of harness leather, ten thousand pounds of saltpetre; also a very large amount of sugar, salt, rice, and other stores and medical supplies. In addition to the arsenals at Salisbury, the military workshop was being fitted up, and was filled with machinery sent from Raleigh and Richmond, all of which was destroyed.”