1862

January 27, 1862— Lincoln Takes Action. President Lincoln issued a war order authorizing the Union to launch a unified aggressive action against the Confederacy. General McClellan ignored the order. General George B. McClellan

February 20, year-old Willie Lincoln dies of typhoid fever in the White House. His death was a devastating blow to his parents, and it cast a dark shadow over the remaining years of Lincoln's Presidency, already made tragic by the Civil War. Willie Lincoln

March 8: McClellan Loses Command as General-in-Chief of the US Army. President Lincoln—impatient with Gen. McClellan’s inactivity—issued an order reorganizing the Army of Virginia and relieving McClellan of supreme command. McClellan was given command of the Army of the Potomac, and ordered to attack Richmond. This marked the beginning of the Peninsular Campaign. His position was not filled by another officer. Lincoln, Sec. of War Edwin Stanton, and a group of officers called the "War Board" directed the strategic actions of the Union armies that spring.

March 9, 1862—Battle of the Ironclads/Battle of Hampton Roads Monitor v. Merrimac (C.S.S. Virginia)

April 6-7, 1862—Battle of Shiloh, TN Confederate forces attacked Union forces under Gen. U.S. Grant at Shiloh, Tennessee. Confederate forces attempt to block Union troops moving along the Tennessee River. Generals P.G.T. Beauregard and Albert Sidney Johnston command 40,000 Rebels, who met a superior force of 63,000 Yankees under Generals Ulysses S. Grant and Don Carlos Buell. The Union defeats the Confederacy; however, Grant is criticized for high loss of life. The South loses one of its finest generals, Albert Sidney Johnston. Casualties: US =13,047 (1,754 killed, 8,408 wounded, 2,885 captured/missing) CSA = 10,699 (1,728 killed, 8,012 wounded, 959 captured/missing) Victory:

May 1862—“Stonewall” Jackson Defeats Union Forces Confederate General Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson, commanding forces in the Shenandoah Valley, attacked Union forces in late March, forcing them to retreat across the Potomac. As a result, Union troops were rushed to protect Washington, D.C.

June & July 1862—The Seven Days’ Battles (The Peninsular Campaign) Between June 25 and July 2, Union and Confederate forces fought a series of battles: Mechanicsville, Gaines’ Mill, Savage’s Station, Frayser’s Farm, and Malvern Hill. Over the course of several battles, Confederate General Robert E. Lee mounts a brilliant offensive attack and halts Union General George B. McClellan’s drive toward Richmond, Virginia, saving the Confederate capital from capture. Union troops are forced to retreat to Washington, D.C., but Confederate losses are heavy. McClellan gains reputation as overly cautious and faint hearted.

July 11, 1862—A New Commander of the Union Army. After four months as his own general-in-chief, Lincoln hands over the task to Major General Henry Halleck. General John Pope is named commander of all the armies north and west of Virginia. McClellan maintains command of a single army, the Army of the Potomac. Major-General Henry Halleck General John Pope

August 29-30, 1862—2 nd Battle of Bull Run Union General John Pope suffered defeat at the Second Battle of Bull Run. It was the culmination of an offensive campaign waged by Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia against Union Major General John Pope's Army of Virginia, and a battle of much larger scale and numbers than the First Battle of Bull Run. The result of the battle was an overwhelming Confederate victory, but the Union army was left largely intact in comparison to Irvin McDowell's army after the First Battle of Bull Run/Manassas. General Fitz-John Porter was held responsible for the defeat because he had failed to commit his troops to battle quickly enough; he was forced out of the army by Victory:

September 17, 1862—Battle of Antietam/Sharpsburg The Battle of Antietam Creek (or Sharpsburg) on September 17, 1862, climaxed the first of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's two attempts to carry the war into the North. About 40,000 Southerners were pitted against the 87,000-man Federal Army of the Potomac under Gen. George B. McClellan. And when the fighting ended, the course of the American Civil War had been greatly altered. Confederate forces under General Lee were caught by General McClellan near Sharpsburg, Maryland. This battle proved to be the bloodiest day of the war; 2,108 Union soldiers were killed and 9,540 wounded—1,546 Confederates were killed and 7,752 wounded. The battle had no clear winner, but because Gen. Lee withdrew to Virginia, McClellan was considered the victor. The battle convinced Britain and France—who were contemplating official recognition of the Confederacy—to reserve action. The Army of the Potomac remained in possession of the field, and the photographers were able to photograph the site. Casualties: US = 12,401 CSA = 10,316 Victory:

Sunken Road at Antietam/Sharpsburg, Maryland Now & Then

Photo of Antietam Battlefield after the battle ended.

Hagerstown Pike, Antietam/Sharpsburg, Maryland Now &Then

Dunker Church, Antietam/Sharpsburg, MD This Church is located on a ridge near Sharpsburg, on the battle-field of Antietam. It suffered severely in that engagement, and it was against this point that General Hooker, made his assaults, and near it where he would be wounded. Now & Then

Burnside Bridge, Antietam/Sharpsburg, Maryland Now & Then One mile below Sharpsburg on Antietam Creek, a stone structure, known as the "Burnside Bridge," crosses the stream. Bold bluffs, crowned with oaks and fringed with tangled bushes, form a most delightful valley, through which the miniature river, broken here and there by tiny cascades, hurries down to the Potomac. It was at this point that some of the most desperate fighting of the battle of Antietam occurred.

Photos by Ms. Barger, Summer 2008

October 11: The Confederate Congress passes a bill exempting from army service anyone owning 20 or more slaves. The measure demonstrated the Southerners fear of slave insurrections in the South.

On November 7, 1862—McClellan relieved of all military duties Lincoln replaces McClellan with General Ambrose Burnside. McClellan returns to New Jersey and doesn't command again, but he will re-appear when he runs against Lincoln for President in General George B. McClellanGeneral Ambrose E. Burnside

December 13, 1862—The Battle of Fredericksburg The Battle of Fredericksburg, fought in and around Fredericksburg, Virginia, on December 13, 1862, between General Robert E. Lee's Confederate Army of Northern Virginia and the Union Army of the Potomac, commanded by Maj. Gen. Ambrose E. Burnside, is remembered as one of the most one-sided battles of the American Civil War. The Union Army suffered terrible casualties in futile frontal assaults against entrenched Confederate defenders on the heights behind the city, bringing to an early end their campaign against the Confederate capital of Richmond. The casualties sustained by each army showed clearly how disastrous the Union army's tactics were, and Burnside was relieved of command a month later. The Union army suffered 12,653 casualties (1,284 killed, 9,600 wounded, 1,769 captured/missing). Two Union generals were mortally wounded: Brig. Gens. George D. Bayard and Conrad F. Jackson. The Confederate army lost 5,377 (608 killed, 4,116 wounded, 653 captured/missing), most of them in the early fighting on Jackson's front. Confederate Brig. Gen. T. R. R. Cobb was killed. Victory:

After the Battle of Fredericksburg