jazzeum
Four Star General
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- Apr 23, 2005
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Having been on vacation, I'm a little behind on recent articles in the New York Times' Disunion blog.
Last week Disunion had four different articles on the Battle of Bull Run and since this was the first major encounter of the Civil War, I thought it better for it to have its own thread.
The articles can be accessed by clicking on the underlined and bolded links.
Where Ignorant Armies Clash, overview of the battle by Gary Gallagher.
Professor Gallagher notes "The First Battle of Bull Run gave citizens in both the Confederacy and the United States a small taste of the carnage to come over the next four years. Though the casualty counts paled in comparison to those at Antietam or Gettysburg, they exceeded those of any previous battle in the American history: out of the of the approximately 18,000 men on each side who got into action, nearly 3,000 federal and 2,000 Confederate soldiers were killed, wounded or taken prisoner. Morale soared across the Confederacy, while the loyal citizenry of the United States braced for a longer and harder war than most could have imagined."
The Campbell Rangers Hit Bull Run, the story of a cavalry company from Campbell County in the Blue Ridge Mountains, who were eventually mustered into service with the 30th Regiment Virginia Volunteers, later designated the Second Virginia Cavalry. They were called the Campbell Rangers and served with distinction on July 21, suffering only one casualty, a wound to their captain and commander.
The Capture of Ambrose Burnside's Valet. Robert Holloway, a freedman had served with General Burnside since they saw action in 1850 in New Mexico Territory. During Bull Run Holloway was captured and Burnside's mission was to rescue his servant, which finally bore fruit in March 1862. Holloway would stay at Burnside's side until 1877 when Holloway passed away. Burnside died in 1871.
Writes the author of the peice Ronald Coddington "In 1886, former federal soldiers who belonged to the Bristol post of the Grand Army of the Republic , the leading veteran’s organization, commemorated Decoration Day, known today as Memorial Day, with a procession to town hall, followed by music and a speech. The final tribute, a recital of the Roll of Honor, included the names of 125 deceased comrades who served Rhode Island and the Union. Among those honored that day were Burnside and Holloway."
Private Conant and the First Bull Run Prisoners. The travails of Private Marcus Conant, a member of the Boston Volunteers, which formally mustered into the army as the 11th Massachusetts Infantry. Private Conant suffered a head wound during Bull Run, a wound from which he never really recovered, and was taken to a field hospital, which was captured by the Confederates. He was eventually released in 1862, recovered from his wounds and incredibly rejoined the Army. He went on to serve as a private in the Sixth Infantry, from 1862-1863, where he comprised part of the garrison of Suffolk in Union-occupied southeast Virginia. He then became an officer in the Third Heavy Artillery from 1863 through the end of the war and served as commander of the 30-man garrison of Fort Dupont, part of the string of forts and batteries that protected Washington. When he died in 1893 at the Columbian Exposition in Chicago, his wounds were attributed to his war wounds.
Last week Disunion had four different articles on the Battle of Bull Run and since this was the first major encounter of the Civil War, I thought it better for it to have its own thread.
The articles can be accessed by clicking on the underlined and bolded links.
Where Ignorant Armies Clash, overview of the battle by Gary Gallagher.
Professor Gallagher notes "The First Battle of Bull Run gave citizens in both the Confederacy and the United States a small taste of the carnage to come over the next four years. Though the casualty counts paled in comparison to those at Antietam or Gettysburg, they exceeded those of any previous battle in the American history: out of the of the approximately 18,000 men on each side who got into action, nearly 3,000 federal and 2,000 Confederate soldiers were killed, wounded or taken prisoner. Morale soared across the Confederacy, while the loyal citizenry of the United States braced for a longer and harder war than most could have imagined."
The Campbell Rangers Hit Bull Run, the story of a cavalry company from Campbell County in the Blue Ridge Mountains, who were eventually mustered into service with the 30th Regiment Virginia Volunteers, later designated the Second Virginia Cavalry. They were called the Campbell Rangers and served with distinction on July 21, suffering only one casualty, a wound to their captain and commander.
The Capture of Ambrose Burnside's Valet. Robert Holloway, a freedman had served with General Burnside since they saw action in 1850 in New Mexico Territory. During Bull Run Holloway was captured and Burnside's mission was to rescue his servant, which finally bore fruit in March 1862. Holloway would stay at Burnside's side until 1877 when Holloway passed away. Burnside died in 1871.
Writes the author of the peice Ronald Coddington "In 1886, former federal soldiers who belonged to the Bristol post of the Grand Army of the Republic , the leading veteran’s organization, commemorated Decoration Day, known today as Memorial Day, with a procession to town hall, followed by music and a speech. The final tribute, a recital of the Roll of Honor, included the names of 125 deceased comrades who served Rhode Island and the Union. Among those honored that day were Burnside and Holloway."
Private Conant and the First Bull Run Prisoners. The travails of Private Marcus Conant, a member of the Boston Volunteers, which formally mustered into the army as the 11th Massachusetts Infantry. Private Conant suffered a head wound during Bull Run, a wound from which he never really recovered, and was taken to a field hospital, which was captured by the Confederates. He was eventually released in 1862, recovered from his wounds and incredibly rejoined the Army. He went on to serve as a private in the Sixth Infantry, from 1862-1863, where he comprised part of the garrison of Suffolk in Union-occupied southeast Virginia. He then became an officer in the Third Heavy Artillery from 1863 through the end of the war and served as commander of the 30-man garrison of Fort Dupont, part of the string of forts and batteries that protected Washington. When he died in 1893 at the Columbian Exposition in Chicago, his wounds were attributed to his war wounds.
