Chapter 5

BATTLEGROUND OF MISSIONARY RIDGE NEAR CHATTANOOGA, TENNESSEE, TWO DAYS AFTER BATTLE

BATTLEGROUND OF MISSIONARY RIDGE NEAR CHATTANOOGA, TENNESSEE, TWO DAYS AFTER BATTLE

BATTLEGROUND OF MISSIONARY RIDGE NEAR CHATTANOOGA, TENNESSEE, TWO DAYS AFTER BATTLE

CONFEDERATE PRISONERS AT CHATTANOOGA

CONFEDERATE PRISONERS AT CHATTANOOGA

CONFEDERATE PRISONERS AT CHATTANOOGA

CHICKAMAUGA has been called the greatest battle in the West. When the smoke of the conflict had lifted, the war photographers found the Federal Army closed up in Chattanooga. The Confederate general moved to cut off all communication to the Federal lines, seizing roads, destroying the bridges and preventing access to Nashville where the base of supplies had been located. The Army of the Cumberland was reduced to the verge of starvation. Not less than 10,000 horses and mules perished. Grant was given command of the department of the Mississippi, comprising the armies and departments of the Ohio, Tennessee and Cumberland. He telegraphed to Thomas: "Hold Chattanooga at all hazards." The hero of Chattanooga replied: "I will hold the town until we starve."

BLOCKHOUSES NEAR CHATTANOOGA

BLOCKHOUSES NEAR CHATTANOOGA

BLOCKHOUSES NEAR CHATTANOOGA

GENERAL ULYSSES S. GRANT IN MISSISSIPPI CAMPAIGN, 1863

GENERAL ULYSSES S. GRANT IN MISSISSIPPI CAMPAIGN, 1863

GENERAL ULYSSES S. GRANT IN MISSISSIPPI CAMPAIGN, 1863

"BATTLE ABOVE THE CLOUDS" ON LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN IN TENNESSEE—ENGINEERS OF ARMY OF THE CUMBERLAND IN CAMP

"BATTLE ABOVE THE CLOUDS" ON LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN IN TENNESSEE—ENGINEERS OF ARMY OF THE CUMBERLAND IN CAMP

"BATTLE ABOVE THE CLOUDS" ON LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN IN TENNESSEE—ENGINEERS OF ARMY OF THE CUMBERLAND IN CAMP

THE war cameras reached Nashville on the same day that Grant entered the city, October 21, 1863, and followed him closely throughout the campaign. Grant hurried to Chattanooga and found the troops without shoes or clothing, and all food exhausted. He telegraphed to Burnside to hold Knoxville and appealed to Admiral Porter at Cairo to send gunboats to convey transports carrying rations from St. Louis for Sherman's Army, which was moving up from the Mississippi. Bragg was entrenched on Missionary Ridge, extending along the crest and across Chattanooga Valley to Lookout Mountain. The Confederate fortifications were very strong and their lines reached over the Raccoon Mountain. The war cameras were taken to the foothills of Lookout Mountain, where an engineers' brigade of the Army of the Cumberland was encamped. Grant succumbed to appeals to stand before the camera and the negative is here reproduced. The haggard expression on his face shows the tremendous responsibility that rested upon him. On the twenty-third of November, in 1863, long lines of infantry moved forward and the heavy guns opened fire. The Federal lines flashed across the valley sweeping everything before them, pushing the Confederate skirmish line from their rifle pits, to the foothills of Lookout Mountain. On the twenty-fourth, Grant stood on the top of Orchard Knob, watching Hooker's men rush to the side of Lookout Mountain, leaping from one rocky ledge to another, scrambling over huge boulders, and through deep chasms in a rain of solid shot and shell. They charged almost to the muzzle of the enemy's cannon, gaining ground foot by foot, until at last they reached the foot of the Palisades, and were finally lost in the mist that veiled the mountain. For three hours the battle raged above the clouds. At sunset the mist disappeared and moonlight fell on old Lookout. The Confederate forces could be seen occupying the summit. Hooker's men scaled the Palisades. The Confederates withdrew into the woods and sought the protection of the night. At sunrise, on the twenty-fifth of November, these Kentucky soldiers unfurled the Stars and Stripes. A great cheer arose from the army in the valley.

THE Battle of Lookout Mountain is the most spectacular in history. It was impossible to carry the war camera over its rugged heights. Had they succeeded in getting to the summit, the mist that enveloped the valley would have made it impossible to have secured a single scene of the great conflict. The Federals occupied a strong position on the mountain, looking across the Chattanooga Valley to Missionary Ridge, where Bragg had concentrated his entire army. The twenty-fifth of November was a magnificent day. Seldom has a battle begun under a brighter sun. The Confederate artillery frowned from the summit of Missionary Ridge. The glittering steel of Hooker's men flashed on Lookout Mountain. The Cumberland veterans under Thomas were a solemn phalanx in the valley while Sherman's compact lines were eager for the charge. On the top of Orchard Knob stood Grant's bugler and the echoes of the "Forward" signal fell into the valley, being taken up by the other buglers in melodious refrain. Hooker's men moved down the eastern slope of Lookout Mountain, sweeping across the valley in grand lines. Bragg's batteries were centered on Sherman, who swept his men heroically forward over a succession of low hills.

GENERALS GRANT, SHERMAN, SHERIDAN, HOOKER, HARNEY, DODGE, GIBBON, POTTER, AT FORT SANDERS

GENERALS GRANT, SHERMAN, SHERIDAN, HOOKER, HARNEY, DODGE, GIBBON, POTTER, AT FORT SANDERS

GENERALS GRANT, SHERMAN, SHERIDAN, HOOKER, HARNEY, DODGE, GIBBON, POTTER, AT FORT SANDERS

CONFEDERATE ARTILLERY CAPTURED AT MISSIONARY RIDGE—PARKED NEAR CHATTANOOGA

CONFEDERATE ARTILLERY CAPTURED AT MISSIONARY RIDGE—PARKED NEAR CHATTANOOGA

CONFEDERATE ARTILLERY CAPTURED AT MISSIONARY RIDGE—PARKED NEAR CHATTANOOGA

UNDER fire from the Confederates, Corse's Brigade struggled desperately for an hour and a half without gaining advantage, while Generals Loomis and Smith took possession of Missionary Ridge. At two in the afternoon occurred one of the most impressing spectacles ever witnessed on a battlefield. Union soldiers with fixed bayonets rushed into the storm of shell without firing a shot until after the skirmish line had been taken and the Sixth Brigade swept over the Confederate rifle pits. The men flung themselves to the earth to avoid the volleys of canister, grape and musketry that were hurled upon them. At sunset Sherman held Bragg's right in check; Hooker was driving at his left. The final assault on his center was begun and in twenty minutes Missionary Ridge was belching flames. Every Confederate gun and cannon was in action. The Federal soldiers rushed into the very mouth of death, reaching the crest, breaching the Confederate lines until they gave way and retreated. The cannon which they abandoned were swung and turned upon them. The victory had cost the Union Army 5,616, killed, wounded and missing, against a Confederate loss of 8,684.

THE siege of Knoxville, Tennessee, was raised late in 1863. When the news of Bragg's defeat at Chattanooga reached Longstreet, who was besieging Knoxville, he knew that Grant would now send Burnside relief. Bragg decided to carry the city by storm. The attack was to be made on Fort Sanders, a Federal fort of great strength, containing twenty-six guns. The Confederate columns forced their way through a network of wire that had been wound from stump to stump, until they finally reached the parapet. A Confederate officer sprang to the summit with the flag of his regiment and demanded surrender. Pierced by a shower of bullets, his body rolled into the ditch, his hand clutching the flagstaff. The Confederates charged again only to be repulsed. Under a flag of truce the fighting ceased while Longstreet's men carried away their dead, dying and wounded. Grant had ordered twenty thousand men under General Granger to the rescue of the besieged city, but they failed to start, and Sherman hurried to the relief. He reached Knoxville on the fifth of December and found the siege reduced and Longstreet had started for Virginia. Sherman's troops had marched four hundred miles to fight at Chattanooga, then marched one hundred and two miles to compel the Confederates to retire from Knoxville. When the news reached the North, Grant was hailed as the Nation's saviour. Congress bestowed upon him a gold medal, while Bragg, the Confederate general, went down before a storm of indignation in the South. One of the war cameras shortly after the battle was placed on the parapet of Fort Sanders, and this negative of the ruins was taken, showing the University of Tennessee.

PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN OVER THE RUINS AT KNOXVILLE, TENNESSEE, IN 1863, FROM FORT SANDERS

PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN OVER THE RUINS AT KNOXVILLE, TENNESSEE, IN 1863, FROM FORT SANDERS

PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN OVER THE RUINS AT KNOXVILLE, TENNESSEE, IN 1863, FROM FORT SANDERS

LIBBY PRISON AT RICHMOND CROWDED WITH UNION PRISONERS IN 1864

LIBBY PRISON AT RICHMOND CROWDED WITH UNION PRISONERS IN 1864

LIBBY PRISON AT RICHMOND CROWDED WITH UNION PRISONERS IN 1864

ANDERSONVILLE PRISON WITH ITS "DEAD LINE" AND "BROOK"

ANDERSONVILLE PRISON WITH ITS "DEAD LINE" AND "BROOK"

ANDERSONVILLE PRISON WITH ITS "DEAD LINE" AND "BROOK"

IT is estimated that 188,000 Union soldiers and sailors endured the hardships of the sixteen Confederate prisons during the Civil War. In the prison yards are 36,401 graves. 11,599 of those released from prisons died before reaching their homes, and 12,000 after reaching home—making 60,000 lives sacrificed in Confederate prisons. Several estimates place the deaths as high as 80,000. Strange as it may seem, the war photographers succeeded in taking their cameras behind prison walls. Three of these remarkable negatives are here revealed. The first one was taken at Libby prison, Richmond, where most of the commissioned officers were confined. In Libby, men were often shot for approaching near enough to a window for a sentry to see their heads. The other two were secured within the "dead line" at Andersonville prison in Georgia. It was an open stockade with little or no shelter, covering about 30 acres. The palisade was of pine logs 15 feet high, closely set together. Outside of this, at a distance of 120 feet, was another palisade, and between the two were the guards. About 20 feet from the inner stockade was a railing known as the "dead line," and any prisoner who passed it was instantly shot. A small stream flowed through the enclosure and furnished the prisoners their only supply of water. The cook houses and camp of the guards were placed on this stream, above the stockade. Starvation and disease drove many of the prisoners mad and they wandered across the "dead line" to end their misery. Fugitives were followed by horsemen and tracked by a large pack of blood hounds. The crowded condition of the prisons at the beginning of 1864 was appalling. There were as many as 33,000 hungry and dying men confined in Andersonville at one time, which gave a space of about four feet square to each man. Some of the other Confederate prisons were at Salisbury, North Carolina, at Florence, South Carolina, on Belle Island in the James River, at Tyler, Texas, at Millen, Georgia, and at Columbia, South Carolina. At Belle Isle the prisoners were packed so close that when they lay sleeping no one could turn over until the whole line agreed to turn simultaneously. While many imaginary pictures have been drawn from descriptions of Andersonville, it has remained for the lens to to engrave the actual scenes, and they are here perpetuated by the negatives.

ANDERSONVILLE PRISON WITH ITS STOCKADE AND GUARD TOWERS

ANDERSONVILLE PRISON WITH ITS STOCKADE AND GUARD TOWERS

ANDERSONVILLE PRISON WITH ITS STOCKADE AND GUARD TOWERS

AMERICANS are the most loyal people on the face of the earth. Self-government encourages fidelity to Home and Country. In a nation where thecitizens are the Government, patriotism cannot die. Unfurl the flag of a monarchy and there will be a dutiful reverence to it. Unfurl the Stars and Stripes of the Republic and there will arise a mighty ovation that thrills from the hearts of men—a spontaneous outburst that has never been heard except under the Emblem of Freedom. Liberty is everywhere the mother of patriots.

SURGEONS ADMINISTERING TO THE WOUNDEDLIVES SACRIFICED FOR THEIR COUNTRYBURIAL OF THE DEAD HEROES

SURGEONS ADMINISTERING TO THE WOUNDED

SURGEONS ADMINISTERING TO THE WOUNDED

SURGEONS ADMINISTERING TO THE WOUNDED

LIVES SACRIFICED FOR THEIR COUNTRY

LIVES SACRIFICED FOR THEIR COUNTRY

LIVES SACRIFICED FOR THEIR COUNTRY

BURIAL OF THE DEAD HEROES

BURIAL OF THE DEAD HEROES

BURIAL OF THE DEAD HEROES

PHOTOGRAPHS TAKEN ON THE BATTLEFIELDS DURING THE CIVIL WAR IN THE UNITED STATES

In the Civil War the heart of American Citizenship was put to the test and it was found "tried and true." The first call for volunteers came on April 15, 1861 for 75,000 militia for three months, and 91,816 men answered. The second call was on May 3, 1861, when Lincoln asked for 500,000 men and the reply was 700,680. The third call on July 2, 1862 for 300,000 troops for three years' service to their country brought 421,465. The fourth call on August 4, 1862, for nine months' service met the response of 87,588 men. Under the fifth proclamation, on June 15, 1863, for militia for six months' service, the ranks were recruited by 16,361 men. The calls of October 17, 1863, and February 1, 1864, brought 369,380 men. Under the call of March 14, 1864, came 292,193 men; between April 23 and July 18, 1864, there were 83,612 mustered into the United States' service. Lincoln's appeal to the manhood of the Nation on July 18, 1864 was met by 386,461 men. The last call for volunteers came on December 19, 1864, and 212,212 patriots marched to the battle ground to help strike the last blow of the conflict. The willingness with which these men offered their lives to their country is the greatest tribute that can ever be paid to American patriotism. After the disasters on the Peninsula over 80,000 troops were enlisted, organized, armed, and marched to the battleground within four weeks. An army of 90,000 infantry came to the front from the five states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, and Wisconsin, within twenty days. In many instances over 60,000 recruits fell into line in less than a month. At the last moment of the War, and to the very scene of surrender, thousands of men were pouring into the field.

If the world could have looked upon the marvelous spectacle of all the men who took part in the Civil War, marching five abreast, the triumphant procession would have stretched from the Atlantic, across the Continent, to the Pacific—a grand pageant of 1,696 regiments, six companies infantry; 272 regiments, two companies cavalry; 78 regiments, two companies artillery. The boys who wore the Gray could have intercepted this procession by another magnificent pageant reaching from the Canadian borders to the mountains of Mexico.

The war cameras during 1864 were taxed to their utmost. It was the hardest test that had ever been given the new science of photography. The thrilling story of this closing year is told in the rare old negatives in these pages—actual photographs taken at the scene of battle.

THE last days of 1863 were inactive. The armies in the East were going into winter quarters. Brady's men had experienced a hard year with their cameras, but had perpetuated many tragic incidents. One of the cameras was held in winter quarters at Rappahannock Station until early in 1864. It was used in recording conditions in camp and one of its negatives is here reproduced. This camp was occupied by the 50th New York Engineers. It was the duty of these engineers to construct roads, bridges and fortifications, and their services in the Civil War were of great importance. An interesting feature of this photograph is the row of pontoon boats on wheels. These pontoons are vessels, used to support the roadway of floating bridges. The boats were a small, substantial frame of wood, light of weight, and easily transported overland. By stretching them across a river an army could begin its movement to the other side within half an hour on reaching the banks. A pontoon train of the army carries about one hundred yards of pontoon bridge for each army corps, including the boats, roadway planks, etc. Early in the spring of 1864 the skirmishing began for what promised to be the deadliest year of the Civil War. Sherman organized his expedition in February against Meridian, Mississippi, a position of great importance to the Confederacy, as it controlled the railroad communications with Mobile and Wilmington. Banks began his Red River expedition in March. Meade's columns crossed the Rapidan River, in Virginia, in May. Grant was placed in command of all the United States armies in the field on March 1, 1864, while Sherman was given command of Federal armies in the West.

PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN IN WINTER QUARTERS AT RAPPAHANNOCK STATION, VIRGINIA, IN 1864

PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN IN WINTER QUARTERS AT RAPPAHANNOCK STATION, VIRGINIA, IN 1864

PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN IN WINTER QUARTERS AT RAPPAHANNOCK STATION, VIRGINIA, IN 1864

THE first great conflict of 1864 occurred on the fifth of May when the Army of the Potomac met Lee's forces in the Battle of the Wilderness. It was a virgin forest of oak and pine, choked with dense undergrowth. The Federal soldiers knew nothing of its entanglements, but the Confederates had full knowledge of the roads and wagon paths intersecting the woods. It was so dense that the troops found it necessary at times to move in single file. The artillery and cavalry had great difficulty in getting into the encounter, and in one of the sallies nearly all the men and horses were killed. The battle was deadly. Regiments shot into their own ranks as they fled through forest and undergrowth, becoming separated from the main line. General Longstreet, of the Confederate Army, was shot and severely wounded by his own men. Tremendous volleys of musketry rang through the woods. Dead leaves and branches were swept with flames. Men lost their way and wandered into the enemy's lines. So rapid was the fire that the muskets became hot and blistered the fingers of the soldiers. The losses in this great two-days' battle cannot be stated accurately. One estimate places the Union killed, wounded and missing at 18,387 and the Confederate, 11,400. On the afternoon of the seventh of May, Grant moved his army toward Spottsylvania Court House, fifteen miles southeast of the Wilderness Battlefield, with the intent of getting between the enemy and Richmond and compelling Lee to fight at a disadvantage. It was during these maneuvers that this photograph was taken while the artillery was stationed at the edge of the forest. The negative was taken in the full light of the noonday sun in the Spring of 1864.

PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN WHILE ARTILLERY WAS AT EDGE OF WOODS NEAR BATTLE OF WILDERNESS IN 1864

PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN WHILE ARTILLERY WAS AT EDGE OF WOODS NEAR BATTLE OF WILDERNESS IN 1864

PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN WHILE ARTILLERY WAS AT EDGE OF WOODS NEAR BATTLE OF WILDERNESS IN 1864

GENERAL MEADE AND GENERAL SEDGWICK WITH STAFF OFFICERS AT RAPPAHANNOCK STATION, MARCH, 1864

GENERAL MEADE AND GENERAL SEDGWICK WITH STAFF OFFICERS AT RAPPAHANNOCK STATION, MARCH, 1864

GENERAL MEADE AND GENERAL SEDGWICK WITH STAFF OFFICERS AT RAPPAHANNOCK STATION, MARCH, 1864

MAJOR-GENERAL G. K. WARREN AND STAFF AT BEVERLY HOUSE, SPOTTSYLVANIA

MAJOR-GENERAL G. K. WARREN AND STAFF AT BEVERLY HOUSE, SPOTTSYLVANIA

MAJOR-GENERAL G. K. WARREN AND STAFF AT BEVERLY HOUSE, SPOTTSYLVANIA

LOOKING TOWARDS SPOTTSYLVANIA COURT HOUSE FROM BEVERLY HOUSE, HEADQUARTERS OF GENERAL WARREN IN MAY, 1864

LOOKING TOWARDS SPOTTSYLVANIA COURT HOUSE FROM BEVERLY HOUSE, HEADQUARTERS OF GENERAL WARREN IN MAY, 1864

LOOKING TOWARDS SPOTTSYLVANIA COURT HOUSE FROM BEVERLY HOUSE, HEADQUARTERS OF GENERAL WARREN IN MAY, 1864

GERMANIA FORD, RAPIDAN RIVER, WHERE TROOPS CROSSED IN GRANT'S CAMPAIGN AGAINST RICHMOND BEFORE BATTLE OF THE WILDERNESS

GERMANIA FORD, RAPIDAN RIVER, WHERE TROOPS CROSSED IN GRANT'S CAMPAIGN AGAINST RICHMOND BEFORE BATTLE OF THE WILDERNESS

GERMANIA FORD, RAPIDAN RIVER, WHERE TROOPS CROSSED IN GRANT'S CAMPAIGN AGAINST RICHMOND BEFORE BATTLE OF THE WILDERNESS

MAJOR-GENERAL JOHN SEDGWICK AND STAFF—SEDGWICK WAS KILLED AT SPOTTSYLVANIA IN 1864

MAJOR-GENERAL JOHN SEDGWICK AND STAFF—SEDGWICK WAS KILLED AT SPOTTSYLVANIA IN 1864

MAJOR-GENERAL JOHN SEDGWICK AND STAFF—SEDGWICK WAS KILLED AT SPOTTSYLVANIA IN 1864

GENERALS OF THE CAVALRY CORPS—SHERIDAN, MERRITT, DAVIS, GREGG, TORBERT AND WILSON

GENERALS OF THE CAVALRY CORPS—SHERIDAN, MERRITT, DAVIS, GREGG, TORBERT AND WILSON

GENERALS OF THE CAVALRY CORPS—SHERIDAN, MERRITT, DAVIS, GREGG, TORBERT AND WILSON

CONFEDERATE DEAD ON THE BATTLEFIELD OF SPOTTSYLVANIA COURT HOUSE IN 1864

CONFEDERATE DEAD ON THE BATTLEFIELD OF SPOTTSYLVANIA COURT HOUSE IN 1864

CONFEDERATE DEAD ON THE BATTLEFIELD OF SPOTTSYLVANIA COURT HOUSE IN 1864

BOTH armies faced each other in full force at Spottsylvania Court House in the forenoon of the ninth of May, 1864. The Brady cameras arrived with the Government supply trains and perpetuated the historic scenes. While the Union lines were placing their batteries, they were annoyed by sharpshooters, and General Sedgwick was killed. His death was a great loss to the Federals, just as Jackson's had crippled the Confederacy. During the first day at Spottsylvania the Federals lost fully 10,000 men, while the Confederates' loss was very nearly 9,000. The unburied bodies of 3,000 men lay scattered along the slopes of the ridges and under the trees. Out of the 200,000 Federals and Confederates who rushed into battle on the fifth of May, 43,000 were either dead, wounded, or prisoners, after three days of fighting. During the week the fighting extended along the Fredericksburg road, Laurel Hill and Ny River, reaching to Swift Creek and Cloyd's Mountain. The Army of the Potomac, since it crossed the Rapidan River, had lost nearly one-fourth of its men in the brief space of eight days, and now had a fighting force of only 87,000. The photograph of the Confederate dead was taken near Spottsylvania Court House, May 12, 1864, after Ewell's attack.

SLING CART USED IN HAULING CAPTURED CONFEDERATE ARTILLERY AT DREWRY'S BLUFF ON THE JAMES RIVER IN 1864

SLING CART USED IN HAULING CAPTURED CONFEDERATE ARTILLERY AT DREWRY'S BLUFF ON THE JAMES RIVER IN 1864

SLING CART USED IN HAULING CAPTURED CONFEDERATE ARTILLERY AT DREWRY'S BLUFF ON THE JAMES RIVER IN 1864

DUTCH GAP CANAL ENTERING JAMES RIVER IN VIRGINIA—BUILT UNDER SEVERE FIRE

DUTCH GAP CANAL ENTERING JAMES RIVER IN VIRGINIA—BUILT UNDER SEVERE FIRE

DUTCH GAP CANAL ENTERING JAMES RIVER IN VIRGINIA—BUILT UNDER SEVERE FIRE

OBSTRUCTIONS IN JAMES RIVER NEAR DREWRY'S BLUFF

OBSTRUCTIONS IN JAMES RIVER NEAR DREWRY'S BLUFF

OBSTRUCTIONS IN JAMES RIVER NEAR DREWRY'S BLUFF

CONFEDERATE FORT DARLING AT DREWRY'S BLUFF

CONFEDERATE FORT DARLING AT DREWRY'S BLUFF

CONFEDERATE FORT DARLING AT DREWRY'S BLUFF

AIKEN'S LANDING, WHERE PRISONERS WERE EXCHANGED

AIKEN'S LANDING, WHERE PRISONERS WERE EXCHANGED

AIKEN'S LANDING, WHERE PRISONERS WERE EXCHANGED

WHILE Grant was moving toward Richmond from the north, Butler was forcing his way from Yorktown on the south, threatening Richmond from the peninsula as McClellan had done two years before. It was at this time that the photographs here shown were taken in May, 1864. Butler succeeded in destroying part of the road from Petersburg to Richmond. He received word that Lee was in full retreat for Richmond, with Grant close upon his heels. One of the extreme southern positions in the defense of Richmond was Fort Darling at Drewry's Bluff. On the thirteenth of May, Butler succeeded in carrying a portion of the outer lines, capturing a considerable amount of artillery, but on the sixteenth he was repulsed and fell back upon Bermuda Hundred. A powerful Confederate battery on the James River barred the bridge toward Richmond. Butler conceived the idea of cutting a canal through the narrow neck of land known as Dutch Gap for the passage of the monitors. A photograph was taken of this canal, which was constructed under a severe and continuous fire. The dredge and steam pump used were bomb-proof. The greater part of the excavation was done by colored troops, who sought cover, from the bombardment of the enemy, in earthen dugouts that covered the site of the work. The canal was only 174 yards long, 43 yards wide at the top, 27 yards at the water level, and 13 5/10 yards at a depth of 15 feet below water level. It cut off 4-3/4 miles of river navigation and the excavation was nearly 67,000 cubic yards. The war photographers secured many negatives of these operations and several of the most important ones are shown on these pages. One of them was taken at Aiken's Landing, where the flag-of-truce boat from Richmond came to discharge her cargo of poor, starved, and often dying Union prisoners, and received in exchange the same number of healthy, well-fed rebels from our guards. Two or three rough old canal boats, and the grim old monitor there at anchor, but above all the glorious old Stars and Stripes, and on the shore the loving hearts and kindly hands of friends. The soldiers called it "the gate into God's country."

PONTOON BRIDGE AT JERICHO MILLS ON NORTH ANNA RIVER, VIRGINIA

PONTOON BRIDGE AT JERICHO MILLS ON NORTH ANNA RIVER, VIRGINIA

PONTOON BRIDGE AT JERICHO MILLS ON NORTH ANNA RIVER, VIRGINIA

COUNCIL OF WAR AT MASSAPONAX CHURCH, VIRGINIA, IN 1864—GENERALS GRANT AND MEADE, ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF WAR DANA AND STAFF OFFICERS

COUNCIL OF WAR AT MASSAPONAX CHURCH, VIRGINIA, IN 1864—GENERALS GRANT AND MEADE, ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF WAR DANA AND STAFF OFFICERS

COUNCIL OF WAR AT MASSAPONAX CHURCH, VIRGINIA, IN 1864—GENERALS GRANT AND MEADE, ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF WAR DANA AND STAFF OFFICERS

HEADQUARTERS OF GRANT AND MEADE AT MASSAPONAX CHURCH, VIRGINIA

HEADQUARTERS OF GRANT AND MEADE AT MASSAPONAX CHURCH, VIRGINIA

HEADQUARTERS OF GRANT AND MEADE AT MASSAPONAX CHURCH, VIRGINIA

AFTER the battle of Spottsylvania Court House the war photographers exposed many negatives, during the five days that the relative positions of the two armies remained unchanged. Grant and Lee were engaged in brilliant strategy. Grant had thrown out his left until it rested on Massaponax Church. While the great General was in council of war at this place on the twenty-first of May, 1864, a remarkable photograph was taken. In the reproduction on this page it will be seen that the pews have been brought out under the trees and the officers are gathered to discuss the situation. Grant is sitting on the bench against the trees. With him are General Meade, Assistant Secretary of War, Charles A. Dana, and the staff officers. This was a critical time. The Union losses had been heavy and Lee had not yet been outwitted. This photograph is of much historic significance. In advance of Grant's movements, General Sheridan had started on a raid, with 10,000 sabres, and reaching the North Anna River, captured Beaver Dam Station, destroyed ten miles of railroad track and three freight trains containing a million and a half Confederate rations. Here he was fiercely assaulted by "Jeb" Stuart, but he succeeded in crossing the North Anna River by Ground-Squirrel Bridge and proceeded toward Richmond as far as Yellow Tavern, six miles from the Confederate Capital. Stuart fell mortally wounded and died in the city of Richmond. Sheridan then attempted to capture the works around Richmond, and Custer crossed the first line and seized two pieces of artillery and one hundred prisoners. Lee had fallen back from the North Anna River and assumed a position still covering Richmond. A photograph was taken of the pontoon bridge constructed across the North Anna River at Jericho Mills, where General Warren's five corps crossed on the twenty-third of May. The Federal base of supplies was shifted to the White House on the Pamunkey River where the remainder of the Federal Army crossed on the twenty-eighth of May, followed by the war cameras.

BATTLEFIELD AT RESACA, IN GEORGIA, MAY 13-16, 1864

BATTLEFIELD AT RESACA, IN GEORGIA, MAY 13-16, 1864

BATTLEFIELD AT RESACA, IN GEORGIA, MAY 13-16, 1864

BATTLEGROUND ON KENESAW MOUNTAIN, GEORGIA, IN JULY, 1864

BATTLEGROUND ON KENESAW MOUNTAIN, GEORGIA, IN JULY, 1864

BATTLEGROUND ON KENESAW MOUNTAIN, GEORGIA, IN JULY, 1864

BATTLEFIELD OF NEW HOPE CHURCH, IN GEORGIA, MAY 25 TO JUNE 4, 1864

BATTLEFIELD OF NEW HOPE CHURCH, IN GEORGIA, MAY 25 TO JUNE 4, 1864

BATTLEFIELD OF NEW HOPE CHURCH, IN GEORGIA, MAY 25 TO JUNE 4, 1864

WHILE Grant was moving on toward Richmond, Sherman's armies of Arkansas, Cumberland, Ohio and Tennessee, with 352,000 men distributed in many garrisons over this wide expanse of territory, was moving against Atlanta, Georgia. Opposed to Sherman was Lieutenant-General Joseph E. Johnston, who commanded all the Confederate troops in the West, including the men of Bragg's old army. Atlanta was of equal importance with Richmond. It was a great railroad center and it contained the Confederate depots, mills, foundries and the manufactories of military supplies. Sherman had moved simultaneously with the Army of the Potomac, on the second day of the Battle of the Wilderness. On the thirteenth of May, Sherman's men met the Confederates at Resaca, Georgia. There was brisk, sharp fighting all along the lines. On the night of the fifteenth the Confederates abandoned the town and crossed the Oostenaula River, setting fire to the bridges. At dawn of the sixteenth the Federals entered Resaca and began a vigorous pursuit, and the camera recorded the scene of the abandoned entrenchments. The fields across which the Confederates withdrew may be seen in the distance. The Confederates concentrated their forces near New Hope Church on the twenty-fifth, and attacked the advancing Union troops but were driven back with heavy loss. The war photographers here secured a photograph of the entrenchments in the woods where there was continuous fighting for six days. The Federal Army forced its way through the mountainous country to the towering peaks of Kenesaw Mountain, Lost Mountain, and Pine Mountain. On all these heights the Confederates had signal towers. The outlying hills were occupied by batteries. The cameras were carried to the heights of Kenesaw Mountain and taken into its entrenchments. Sherman's troops climbed this slope, through its tangled wood and rifle pits, in the face of a steady musketry and artillery fire. This really ended the first movement of Sherman's campaign against Atlanta. Sherman's losses during May and June were over 2,000 killed and 13,000 wounded. Johnston's losses were about 1,200 killed and nearly 14,000 wounded. During the fifty-four days, both armies were depleted by 3,200 killed, 27,000 wounded.

PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN WHILE SKELETONS OF DEAD SOLDIERS WERE BEING REMOVED SEVERAL MONTHS AFTER BATTLE OF COLD HARBOR

PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN WHILE SKELETONS OF DEAD SOLDIERS WERE BEING REMOVED SEVERAL MONTHS AFTER BATTLE OF COLD HARBOR

PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN WHILE SKELETONS OF DEAD SOLDIERS WERE BEING REMOVED SEVERAL MONTHS AFTER BATTLE OF COLD HARBOR

GRANT and Lee met at Cold Harbor in a desperate struggle on the first day of June in 1864. The following day was occupied by a general massing for the deadly encounter. Meade's army moved silently on the enemy at daylight on the third and the result was the fiercest battle of the entire war. There was a drizzling rain. The armies could hardly see the faces of their antagonists. Not a shot was fired until they were upon each other. One hundred thousand muskets simultaneously began their murderous work at a range of sixty to seventy yards. Two hundred pieces of artillery added to the deafening roar. It was the tragedy of Fredericksburg and Gettysburg re-enacted. The Union soldiers pressed toward the solid mass of lead and flame from the Confederate entrenchments only to be forced back. At times they swept to the breastworks against the torrents of musketry and mounted the parapets. The assault lasted but twenty minutes and the Union Army lost in killed, wounded and missing over 14,000 men; the Confederate loss has been estimated at 1,700. The two armies stayed at Cold Harbor for ten days, working on their field entrenchments, and fighting whenever either side grew bold. Lee remained immovable in his entrenchments before Richmond and on the afternoon of the sixteenth of June, Grant's army, horse, foot and artillery, had crossed the James River. On the seventh of June the dead were buried and the wounded gathered during an armistice of two hours. This is a ghastly view, showing the process of collecting the remains of Union soldiers who were hastily interred at the time of the battle. This photograph was taken on the battlefield months after the battle, when the Government ordered the remains gathered for permanent burial. The grinning skulls, the boots still hanging on the bones, the old canteen, all testify to the tragedy.

SHERMAN, in his campaign in Georgia in 1864, was much interested in the cameras that followed his army and urged the photographer to take negatives of every movement as his forces pushed the Confederates toward Atlanta. On the morning of July 3, 1864, the Stars and Stripes fluttered on the crest of old Kenesaw Mountain. All the Federal corps were in rapid motion, and on Independence Day Sherman could distinguish the houses of Atlanta only nine miles away. General Johnston withdrew into the city and a storm of indignation swept the Confederacy. Johnston resigned his command and was succeeded by General J. B. Hood. Sherman set his troops in motion for the city on the seventeenth of July. On the nineteenth, the troops were so near Atlanta, and were meeting such feeble resistance that it was supposed the Confederates were evacuating, until they poured out of their entrenchments and opened furious fire on the north side of Peach Tree Creek. The war cameras were busily engaged and one of the negatives is an abandoned Confederate fortification on the road leading to Atlanta. A camera was taken into this fort shortly after its capture by Sherman. It shows the extent to which the Confederates had protected themselves. It is one of the rare pictures in which chevaux-de-frise construction is shown. It is here seen that the defense is a temporary obstruction by placing rails in a row with their pointed ends directed against the enemy. They impeded the advance of the foe and afforded cover for the defenders. During the conquest of Georgia the Confederates were much awed by the Brady "what is it?" wagons. It is the first time that field photography was witnessed in the far South.

PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN AT A CONFEDERATE FORT ON MARIETTA ROAD, NEAR ATLANTA, GEORGIA, AFTER CAPTURE BY SHERMAN, SEPTEMBER 2, 1864

PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN AT A CONFEDERATE FORT ON MARIETTA ROAD, NEAR ATLANTA, GEORGIA, AFTER CAPTURE BY SHERMAN, SEPTEMBER 2, 1864

PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN AT A CONFEDERATE FORT ON MARIETTA ROAD, NEAR ATLANTA, GEORGIA, AFTER CAPTURE BY SHERMAN, SEPTEMBER 2, 1864

PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN ON THE LINES BEFORE ATLANTA, GEORGIA, IN 1864—GENERAL WILLIAM TECUMSEH SHERMAN AND STAFF

PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN ON THE LINES BEFORE ATLANTA, GEORGIA, IN 1864—GENERAL WILLIAM TECUMSEH SHERMAN AND STAFF

PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN ON THE LINES BEFORE ATLANTA, GEORGIA, IN 1864—GENERAL WILLIAM TECUMSEH SHERMAN AND STAFF

WHILE Sherman's Army was literally standing at the gates of Atlanta, this photograph was taken. The great general was with his staff in a Federal fort on the outlying hills. He was leaning on the breech of the cannon in one of his most characteristic attitudes. At this time Sherman was forty-four years of age. When sixteen years old he had entered West Point as a cadet, through the influence of his father, who was a Supreme Court judge in Ohio. At twenty years of age he entered the United States regular army and during the Mexican War was engaged in service in California. When thirty-three years of age, Sherman resigned from the army and became President of the State Military Institute of Louisiana. At the outbreak of the Civil War he left the South and offered his services to the Union. He was a colonel at the Battle of Bull Run. After that battle, when the Northern Army was reorganized, Sherman was appointed Brigadier-General of Volunteers and commanded the Department of the Cumberland. He demanded 200,000 men to reach the Gulf, but it was refused and he was ordered into Missouri. He was for a time inactive but came to the front again at Shiloh in command of a division under Grant. His bravery secured his promotion to Major-General and he became active in the campaign around Vicksburg. He then entered into the Mississippi Campaign and led the forces against Atlanta, resulting in his famous march to the sea. This photograph was taken on the eighteenth day of July, in 1864, on the lines before Atlanta. Sherman was much interested in the new science of photography and he always protected the cameras.

BATTLEFIELD OF PEACH TREE CREEK, GEORGIA, JULY 20, 1864—HOOD'S FIRST SORTIE NEAR ATLANTA

BATTLEFIELD OF PEACH TREE CREEK, GEORGIA, JULY 20, 1864—HOOD'S FIRST SORTIE NEAR ATLANTA

BATTLEFIELD OF PEACH TREE CREEK, GEORGIA, JULY 20, 1864—HOOD'S FIRST SORTIE NEAR ATLANTA

WHERE GENERAL MCPHERSON WAS KILLED, JULY 22, 1864, NEAR ATLANTA—HOOD'S SECOND SORTIE

WHERE GENERAL MCPHERSON WAS KILLED, JULY 22, 1864, NEAR ATLANTA—HOOD'S SECOND SORTIE

WHERE GENERAL MCPHERSON WAS KILLED, JULY 22, 1864, NEAR ATLANTA—HOOD'S SECOND SORTIE

BATTLEFIELD AT ATLANTA, GEORGIA, JULY 22, 1864—HOOD'S SECOND SORTIE

BATTLEFIELD AT ATLANTA, GEORGIA, JULY 22, 1864—HOOD'S SECOND SORTIE

BATTLEFIELD AT ATLANTA, GEORGIA, JULY 22, 1864—HOOD'S SECOND SORTIE

MILL AND RAILROAD DESTROYED BY CONFEDERATES ON EVACUATION OF ATLANTA, SEPTEMBER 2, 1864

MILL AND RAILROAD DESTROYED BY CONFEDERATES ON EVACUATION OF ATLANTA, SEPTEMBER 2, 1864

MILL AND RAILROAD DESTROYED BY CONFEDERATES ON EVACUATION OF ATLANTA, SEPTEMBER 2, 1864

CAPTAIN JOHN A. WINSLOW AND OFFICERS ON DECK OF "KEARSARGE" ON RETURN TO AMERICA AFTER DESTRUCTION OF THE "ALABAMA" IN THE ENGLISH CHANNEL

CAPTAIN JOHN A. WINSLOW AND OFFICERS ON DECK OF "KEARSARGE" ON RETURN TO AMERICA AFTER DESTRUCTION OF THE "ALABAMA" IN THE ENGLISH CHANNEL

CAPTAIN JOHN A. WINSLOW AND OFFICERS ON DECK OF "KEARSARGE" ON RETURN TO AMERICA AFTER DESTRUCTION OF THE "ALABAMA" IN THE ENGLISH CHANNEL

CONFEDERATE IRONCLAD RAM "TENNESSEE" CAPTURED AT MOBILE BAY AUGUST 5, 1864, BY ADMIRAL FARRAGUT

CONFEDERATE IRONCLAD RAM "TENNESSEE" CAPTURED AT MOBILE BAY AUGUST 5, 1864, BY ADMIRAL FARRAGUT

CONFEDERATE IRONCLAD RAM "TENNESSEE" CAPTURED AT MOBILE BAY AUGUST 5, 1864, BY ADMIRAL FARRAGUT

ATLANTA was evacuated by the Confederates on the first day of September, in 1864 after a long, hard siege. The formal surrender was made by the Mayor on September second and the city became a military depot governed by military law. During this campaign of four months the Federals lost 31,680 men; the Confederates 34,986. The war photographers secured many negatives of the battlefields in the siege around Atlanta. A view is here shown of Peach Tree Creek where the Federal loss was 1,710 and the Confederate 4,796. Another camera was taken to the woods where the Union general, McPherson, was killed in Hood's second sortie outside of the city. The daring commander rode directly into the enemy's line, without knowledge of danger. An interesting picture is that of the earth works before Atlanta, during Hood's first sortie, in which the Union losses were 3,641, and the Confederate 8,499. The destruction that was wrought during the siege of Atlanta is perpetuated by many of these negatives. While the armies were making these decisive blows, the "Kearsarge" 3,000 miles away, met and sunk the Confederate ship, "Alabama," in the English Channel on Sunday morning, June 19, 1864. The "Alabama" had been roaming the seas nearly two years, capturing and burning American merchantmen. Another important naval conflict occurred on the 5th of August when Admiral Farragut gained possession of Mobile Bay, Alabama, and the war cameras caught a picture of the rebel ram, "Tennessee," the ironclad captured at that time by Farragut.

DEVASTATION ON "MARCH TO THE SEA"

DEVASTATION ON "MARCH TO THE SEA"

DEVASTATION ON "MARCH TO THE SEA"

SHERMAN'S MEN DESTROYING RAILROAD

SHERMAN'S MEN DESTROYING RAILROAD

SHERMAN'S MEN DESTROYING RAILROAD

CONFEDERATE DEFENSES AT CHATTAHOOCHIE RIVER BRIDGE, GEORGIA, IN 1864

CONFEDERATE DEFENSES AT CHATTAHOOCHIE RIVER BRIDGE, GEORGIA, IN 1864

CONFEDERATE DEFENSES AT CHATTAHOOCHIE RIVER BRIDGE, GEORGIA, IN 1864

GENERAL U. S. GRANT AND STAFF AT CITY POINT, VIRGINIA, IN AUGUST, 1864

GENERAL U. S. GRANT AND STAFF AT CITY POINT, VIRGINIA, IN AUGUST, 1864

GENERAL U. S. GRANT AND STAFF AT CITY POINT, VIRGINIA, IN AUGUST, 1864

BATTLEGROUND OF ALLATOONA PASS, IN GEORGIA, OCTOBER 5, 1864

BATTLEGROUND OF ALLATOONA PASS, IN GEORGIA, OCTOBER 5, 1864

BATTLEGROUND OF ALLATOONA PASS, IN GEORGIA, OCTOBER 5, 1864

WHILE the combined armies under Sherman lay in and around Atlanta until October, 1864, the war photographers were used extensively. Fierce encounters took place early in that month around Kenesaw Mountain and along Allatoona Pass. During this famous encounter Sherman stood on the top of Kenesaw. General Corse, who was leading the Union Division into combat, sent him this message: "I am short a cheek-bone and one ear, but am able to whip all hell yet." It was to this that Sherman made his famous reply: "Hold the fort, for I am coming." Sherman began his famous march to the sea on the fifteenth of November. As the columns left Atlanta the Federal engineers applied their torches to the depot, roundhouse, and the machine shops of the Georgia railroad. The columns extended to the northern part of the city. Stores, warehouses, hotels, and mills, with many private dwellings, were destroyed to the value of more than three millions of dollars. Amid the fierce heat and roar Sherman rode out of Atlanta on the afternoon of November 16th. The great army for five consecutive weeks swept across Georgia. The 62,000 men, 20,000 horses and mules, marched 300 miles in a route from 20 to 60 miles wide. The army captured twenty million pounds of corn and fodder, three million rations of bread and meat, one million rations of coffee and sugar and 350 miles of railroad track were destroyed. Sherman estimated the property losses at over one hundred millions of dollars. The Federal losses during the campaign were but 63 men killed on the field, 245 wounded, and 259 missing. The Confederacy was severed and a decisive step taken toward ending the Civil War.


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