Rhode Island in the American Civil War
Encyclopedia
The state of Rhode Island during the American Civil War, as with all of New England
, remained loyal to the Union
. Rhode Island furnished 25,236 fighting men to the Union Army
, of which 1,685 died. On the home front, Rhode Island, along with the other northern states
, used its industrial capacity to supply the Union Army with the materials it needed to win the war. Rhode Island's continued growth and modernization led to the creation of an urban mass transit system, and improved health and sanitation programs.
During the war, Fort Adams
near Newport
was used temporarily as the United States Naval Academy
. In May 1861, the Academy was moved to Newport from Annapolis, Maryland
, due to concerns about the political sympathies of the Marylanders, many of which were suspected of being supporters of the breakaway Confederate States of America
. In September, the Academy moved to the Atlantic House hotel in Newport and remained there for the rest of the war.
In 1862 Fort Adams became the headquarters and recruit depot for the 15th U.S. Infantry Regiment. This regiment, along with several others, had an organization in which the regiment had three eight company battalions. The 3rd Battalion of the 15th Infantry was organized at the fort in March 1864.
The USS Rhode Island
was a side-wheel steamer commissioned in 1861 for the Union Navy
. It served to intercept blockade runner
s in the West Indies and was later a part of the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron.
U.S. Senator Henry B. Anthony
, a former governor born in Coventry
, was a powerful newspaper owner and staunch advocate of the policies of President Lincoln during the Civil War. The other Senator from Rhode Island, Samuel G. Arnold
of Providence, was also a Republican; he served in the Union Army until 1862 when he was elected to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of James F. Simmons
.
Rhode Island's early war governor, William Sprague, accompanied a detachment of state troops in the First Battle of Bull Run
on July 21, 1861. He declined a commission as a brigadier general
and remained in office. In 1862, he attended the Loyal War Governors' Conference
in Altoona, Pennsylvania
, which ultimately backed Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation
and the Union war effort. After failing to be re-elected as governor, he was elected as a U.S. Senator to replace Arnold, taking office in 1863 and serving into Reconstruction. During the war, Sprague married Kate Chase
, daughter of Secretary of the Treasury
Salmon P. Chase
.
In March 1863, Sprague was replaced as governor by prominent businessman William C. Cozzens
, but he did not fulfill his term, leaving office that May. James Y. Smith
then led Rhode Island during the last two years of the war.
Maj. Gen.
Ambrose Burnside
, an antebellum arms manufacturer, politician, and general in the Rhode Island state militia, was perhaps the most influential Rhode Island army officer. He rose to command of the Army of the Potomac
before his disastrous defeat at the Battle of Fredericksburg
in December 1862. He later commanded the Department of the Ohio
as well as the IX Corps
. He star-crossed field duty ended during the Siege of Petersburg
with another fiasco for which he took the blame, the Battle of the Crater
.
Maj. Gen. Silas Casey
of East Greenwich
led a division
in the Army of the Potomac during the 1862 Peninsula Campaign
that suffered heavy losses at Battle of Seven Pines
facing George Pickett
’s brigade. He wrote the three-volume System of Infantry Tactics, including Infantry Tactics volumes I and II, published in August 1862 and Infantry Tactics for Colored Troops, published in March 1863. The manuals were used by both sides during the Civil War.
Isaac P. Rodman
commanded the 3rd Division of the IX Corps during the Maryland Campaign
. He led the efforts to take Turner's Gap
during the Battle of South Mountain
in September 1862. A few days later, he was mortally wounded at the Antietam
defending against a counterattack
by Confederates under A.P. Hill.
Brig. Gen. Richard Arnold
, the son of Rhode Island governor and United States congressman Lemuel Arnold, was the Chief of Artillery for the Department of the Gulf
. His guns helped force the surrender of two important Confederate
towns—Mobile, Alabama
, and Port Hudson, Louisiana
.
Zenas Bliss
of Johnston
led an infantry brigade
in the IX Corps during the Siege of Petersburg. After the war, he was a recipient of the Medal of Honor
for gallantry at Fredericksburg. Another officer who made a significant contribution was George S. Greene
of Apponaug
, who spearheaded the defense of the Union right flank at Culp's Hill
during the Battle of Gettysburg
in July 1863. At the very end of the war, Greene was in command of the 3rd Brigade in Absalom Baird
's 3rd Division, XIV Corps
, and participated in the capture of Raleigh
and the pursuit of Gen. Joseph E. Johnston
's army until its surrender.
Brig. Gen. Thomas W. Sherman
of Newport
commanded the defenses of New Orleans
before taking command of a division in Maj. Gen. Nathaniel P. Banks's army, which he led into action at the Siege of Port Hudson
, where he was severely wounded, leading to the amputation of his leg and consignment to desk duty for the rest of the war. Frank Wheaton
of Providence led first a brigade and then a division in the Army of the Potomac, seeing action in a number of major actions, including the Overland Campaign
and the Siege of Petersburg. His men were hurried by train to Washington, D.C.
, in time to help repel Jubal Early's raid on the capital in the summer of 1864.
William Rogers Taylor
was Fleet Captain of the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron in 1863. He participated in attacks on the Confederate fortifications protecting Charleston, South Carolina
. He then commanded the steam sloop Juniata during 1864-65 and took part in the operations that led to the capture of Fort Fisher, North Carolina.
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
, remained loyal to the Union
Union (American Civil War)
During the American Civil War, the Union was a name used to refer to the federal government of the United States, which was supported by the twenty free states and five border slave states. It was opposed by 11 southern slave states that had declared a secession to join together to form the...
. Rhode Island furnished 25,236 fighting men to the Union Army
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
, of which 1,685 died. On the home front, Rhode Island, along with the other northern states
Northern United States
Northern United States, also sometimes the North, may refer to:* A particular grouping of states or regions of the United States of America. The United States Census Bureau divides some of the northernmost United States into the Midwest Region and the Northeast Region...
, used its industrial capacity to supply the Union Army with the materials it needed to win the war. Rhode Island's continued growth and modernization led to the creation of an urban mass transit system, and improved health and sanitation programs.
Rhode Island during the war
Fort Adams
Fort Adams in Newport, Rhode Island, was established on July 4, 1799 as a First System coastal fortification. Its first commander was Captain John Henry who was later instrumental in starting the War of 1812.-History:...
near Newport
Newport, Rhode Island
Newport is a city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States, about south of Providence. Known as a New England summer resort and for the famous Newport Mansions, it is the home of Salve Regina University and Naval Station Newport which houses the United States Naval War...
was used temporarily as the United States Naval Academy
United States Naval Academy
The United States Naval Academy is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located in Annapolis, Maryland, United States...
. In May 1861, the Academy was moved to Newport from Annapolis, Maryland
Annapolis, Maryland
Annapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Maryland, as well as the county seat of Anne Arundel County. It had a population of 38,394 at the 2010 census and is situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east of Washington, D.C. Annapolis is...
, due to concerns about the political sympathies of the Marylanders, many of which were suspected of being supporters of the breakaway Confederate States of America
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
. In September, the Academy moved to the Atlantic House hotel in Newport and remained there for the rest of the war.
In 1862 Fort Adams became the headquarters and recruit depot for the 15th U.S. Infantry Regiment. This regiment, along with several others, had an organization in which the regiment had three eight company battalions. The 3rd Battalion of the 15th Infantry was organized at the fort in March 1864.
The USS Rhode Island
USS Rhode Island (1861)
|-References:*Bauer, Karl Jack and Roberts, Stephen S. : Register of Ships of the U.S. Navy, 1775-1990: Major Combatants, Greenwood Publishing Group, ISBN 9780313262029.-External links:*...
was a side-wheel steamer commissioned in 1861 for the Union Navy
Union Navy
The Union Navy is the label applied to the United States Navy during the American Civil War, to contrast it from its direct opponent, the Confederate States Navy...
. It served to intercept blockade runner
Blockade runner
A blockade runner is usually a lighter weight ship used for evading a naval blockade of a port or strait, as opposed to confronting the blockaders to break the blockade. Very often blockade running is done in order to transport cargo, for example to bring food or arms to a blockaded city...
s in the West Indies and was later a part of the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron.
Politics
Henry B. Anthony
Henry Bowen Anthony was a United States newspaperman and political figure. He served as the editor and later part owner of the Providence Journal and later was the 21st Governor of Rhode Island between 1849 and 1851, as a member of the Whig Party.The son of William Anthony and Mary Kennicut...
, a former governor born in Coventry
Coventry, Rhode Island
Coventry is a town in Kent County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 35,014 at the 2010 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of . of it is land and of it is water...
, was a powerful newspaper owner and staunch advocate of the policies of President Lincoln during the Civil War. The other Senator from Rhode Island, Samuel G. Arnold
Samuel G. Arnold
Samuel Greene Arnold, Jr. was a United States Senator from Rhode Island. Born in Providence, Rhode Island, he received his early education under private tutors, and graduated from Brown University in 1841 and, in 1845, the law department of Harvard University, gaining admission to the bar that year...
of Providence, was also a Republican; he served in the Union Army until 1862 when he was elected to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of James F. Simmons
James F. Simmons
James Fowler Simmons was a United States Senator from Rhode Island. Born on a farm near Little Compton, he attended a private school in Newport and moved to Providence in 1812. He was employed in various manufacturing concerns in Rhode Island and Massachusetts and engaged in the manufacture of...
.
Rhode Island's early war governor, William Sprague, accompanied a detachment of state troops in the First Battle of Bull Run
First Battle of Bull Run
First Battle of Bull Run, also known as First Manassas , was fought on July 21, 1861, in Prince William County, Virginia, near the City of Manassas...
on July 21, 1861. He declined a commission as a brigadier general
Brigadier general (United States)
A brigadier general in the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, is a one-star general officer, with the pay grade of O-7. Brigadier general ranks above a colonel and below major general. Brigadier general is equivalent to the rank of rear admiral in the other uniformed...
and remained in office. In 1862, he attended the Loyal War Governors' Conference
War Governors' Conference
The Loyal War Governors' Conference was an important political event of the American Civil War. It was held at the Logan House Hotel in Altoona, Pennsylvania on September 24 and 25, 1862. Thirteen governors of Union states came together to discuss the war effort, state troop quotas, and the...
in Altoona, Pennsylvania
Altoona, Pennsylvania
-History:A major railroad town, Altoona was founded by the Pennsylvania Railroad in 1849 as the site for a shop complex. Altoona was incorporated as a borough on February 6, 1854, and as a city under legislation approved on April 3, 1867, and February 8, 1868...
, which ultimately backed Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation
Emancipation Proclamation
The Emancipation Proclamation is an executive order issued by United States President Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863, during the American Civil War using his war powers. It proclaimed the freedom of 3.1 million of the nation's 4 million slaves, and immediately freed 50,000 of them, with nearly...
and the Union war effort. After failing to be re-elected as governor, he was elected as a U.S. Senator to replace Arnold, taking office in 1863 and serving into Reconstruction. During the war, Sprague married Kate Chase
Kate Chase
Katherine Jane Chase Sprague was the daughter of Ohio politician Salmon P. Chase, Treasury Secretary during President Abraham Lincoln's first administration and later Chief Justice of the United States...
, daughter of Secretary of the Treasury
United States Secretary of the Treasury
The Secretary of the Treasury of the United States is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury, which is concerned with financial and monetary matters, and, until 2003, also with some issues of national security and defense. This position in the Federal Government of the United...
Salmon P. Chase
Salmon P. Chase
Salmon Portland Chase was an American politician and jurist who served as U.S. Senator from Ohio and the 23rd Governor of Ohio; as U.S. Treasury Secretary under President Abraham Lincoln; and as the sixth Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court.Chase was one of the most prominent members...
.
In March 1863, Sprague was replaced as governor by prominent businessman William C. Cozzens
William C. Cozzens
William Cole Cozzens was an American politician and the 28th Governor of Rhode Island.-Early life:Cozzens was born in Newport, Rhode Island on August 26, 1811....
, but he did not fulfill his term, leaving office that May. James Y. Smith
James Y. Smith
James Youngs Smith was an American politician and the 29th Governor of Rhode Island .-Early life:...
then led Rhode Island during the last two years of the war.
Union Army
Major general (United States)
In the United States Army, United States Marine Corps, and United States Air Force, major general is a two-star general-officer rank, with the pay grade of O-8. Major general ranks above brigadier general and below lieutenant general...
Ambrose Burnside
Ambrose Burnside
Ambrose Everett Burnside was an American soldier, railroad executive, inventor, industrialist, and politician from Rhode Island, serving as governor and a U.S. Senator...
, an antebellum arms manufacturer, politician, and general in the Rhode Island state militia, was perhaps the most influential Rhode Island army officer. He rose to command of the Army of the Potomac
Army of the Potomac
The Army of the Potomac was the major Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War.-History:The Army of the Potomac was created in 1861, but was then only the size of a corps . Its nucleus was called the Army of Northeastern Virginia, under Brig. Gen...
before his disastrous defeat at the Battle of Fredericksburg
Battle of Fredericksburg
The Battle of Fredericksburg was fought December 11–15, 1862, in and around Fredericksburg, Virginia, 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...
in December 1862. He later commanded the Department of the Ohio
Department of the Ohio
The Department of the Ohio was an administrative military district created by the United States War Department early in the American Civil War to administer the troops in the Northern states near the Ohio River.General Orders No...
as well as the IX Corps
IX Corps
List of military corps List of military corps by numberA number of countries have Ninth, or IX, Corps:* IX Waffen Mountain Corps of the SS * IX Corps * IX Corps * IX Corps * IX Corps...
. He star-crossed field duty ended during the Siege of Petersburg
Siege of Petersburg
The Richmond–Petersburg Campaign was a series of battles around Petersburg, Virginia, fought from June 9, 1864, to March 25, 1865, during the American Civil War...
with another fiasco for which he took the blame, the Battle of the Crater
Battle of the Crater
The Battle of the Crater was a battle of the American Civil War, part of the Siege of Petersburg. It took place on July 30, 1864, between the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia, commanded by General Robert E. Lee and the Union Army of the Potomac, commanded by Major General George G. Meade The...
.
Maj. Gen. Silas Casey
Silas Casey
Silas Casey was a career United States Army officer who rose to the rank of Major General during the American Civil War.-Early life and military career:...
of East Greenwich
East Greenwich, Rhode Island
East Greenwich is a town in and the county seat of Kent County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 13,146 at the 2010 census. East Greenwich is the wealthiest municipality within the state of Rhode Island....
led a division
Division (military)
A division is a large military unit or formation usually consisting of between 10,000 and 20,000 soldiers. In most armies, a division is composed of several regiments or brigades, and in turn several divisions typically make up a corps...
in the Army of the Potomac during the 1862 Peninsula Campaign
Peninsula Campaign
The Peninsula Campaign of the American Civil War was a major Union operation launched in southeastern Virginia from March through July 1862, the first large-scale offensive in the Eastern Theater. The operation, commanded by Maj. Gen. George B...
that suffered heavy losses at Battle of Seven Pines
Battle of Seven Pines
The Battle of Seven Pines, also known as the Battle of Fair Oaks or Fair Oaks Station, took place on May 31 and June 1, 1862, in Henrico County, Virginia, as part of the Peninsula Campaign of the American Civil War. It was the culmination of an offensive up the Virginia Peninsula by Union Maj. Gen....
facing George Pickett
George Pickett
George Edward Pickett was a career United States Army officer who became a general in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War...
’s brigade. He wrote the three-volume System of Infantry Tactics, including Infantry Tactics volumes I and II, published in August 1862 and Infantry Tactics for Colored Troops, published in March 1863. The manuals were used by both sides during the Civil War.
Isaac P. Rodman
Isaac P. Rodman
Isaac Peace Rodman was a Rhode Island banker and politician, and a Union Army brigadier general in the American Civil War, mortally wounded at the Battle of Antietam.-Early life and career:...
commanded the 3rd Division of the IX Corps during the Maryland Campaign
Maryland Campaign
The Maryland Campaign, or the Antietam Campaign is widely considered one of the major turning points of the American Civil War. Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's first invasion of the North was repulsed by Maj. Gen. George B...
. He led the efforts to take Turner's Gap
Turner's Gap
Turner's Gap is a wind gap in the South Mountain Range of the Blue Ridge Mountains, located in Frederick County and Washington County, Maryland. The gap is traversed by U.S. Route 40 Alt, the Old National Pike. The Appalachian Trail also crosses the gap....
during the Battle of South Mountain
Battle of South Mountain
The Battle of South Mountain was fought September 14, 1862, as part of the Maryland Campaign of the American Civil War. Three pitched battles were fought for possession of three South Mountain passes: Crampton's, Turner's, and Fox's Gaps. Maj. Gen. George B...
in September 1862. A few days later, he was mortally wounded at the Antietam
Battle of Antietam
The Battle of Antietam , fought on September 17, 1862, near Sharpsburg, Maryland, and Antietam Creek, as part of the Maryland Campaign, was the first major battle in the American Civil War to take place on Northern soil. It was the bloodiest single-day battle in American history, with about 23,000...
defending against a counterattack
Counterattack
A counterattack is a tactic used in response against an attack. The term originates in military strategy. The general objective is to negate or thwart the advantage gained by the enemy in attack and the specific objectives are usually to regain lost ground or to destroy attacking enemy units.It is...
by Confederates under A.P. Hill.
Brig. Gen. Richard Arnold
Richard Arnold (general)
Richard Arnold was a career U.S. Army officer who served as a brigadier general in the Union forces during the American Civil War...
, the son of Rhode Island governor and United States congressman Lemuel Arnold, was the Chief of Artillery for the Department of the Gulf
Army of the Gulf
The Army of the Gulf was a Union army that served in the general area of the Gulf states controlled by Union forces. It mainly saw action in Louisiana and Alabama.-History:...
. His guns helped force the surrender of two important Confederate
Confederate States Army
The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...
towns—Mobile, Alabama
Mobile, Alabama
Mobile is the third most populous city in the Southern US state of Alabama and is the county seat of Mobile County. It is located on the Mobile River and the central Gulf Coast of the United States. The population within the city limits was 195,111 during the 2010 census. It is the largest...
, and Port Hudson, Louisiana
Port Hudson, Louisiana
Port Hudson is a small unincorporated community in East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana, United States. Located about northwest of Baton Rouge, it is most famous for an American Civil War battle known as the Siege of Port Hudson.-Geography:...
.
Zenas Bliss
Zenas Bliss
Zenas Randall Bliss was an officer and general in the United States Army and a recipient of the Medal of Honor. He formed the first unit of Seminole-Negro Indian Scouts, and his detailed memoirs chronicled life on the Texas frontier.Bliss was a native of Rhode Island and graduated from West Point...
of Johnston
Johnston, Rhode Island
Johnston is a town in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 28,769 at the 2010 census. Johnston is the site of the Clemence Irons House a stone-ender museum and the only landfill in Rhode Island...
led an infantry brigade
Brigade
A brigade is a major tactical military formation that is typically composed of two to five battalions, plus supporting elements depending on the era and nationality of a given army and could be perceived as an enlarged/reinforced regiment...
in the IX Corps during the Siege of Petersburg. After the war, he was a recipient of the Medal of Honor
Medal of Honor
The Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed by the President, in the name of Congress, upon members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves through "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her...
for gallantry at Fredericksburg. Another officer who made a significant contribution was George S. Greene
George S. Greene
George Sears Greene was a civil engineer and a Union general during the American Civil War. He was part of the Greene family of Rhode Island, which had a distinguished military record for the United States. His greatest contribution during the war was his defense of the Union right flank at Culp's...
of Apponaug
Apponaug, Rhode Island
Apponaug is a neighborhood in central Warwick, Rhode Island, situated on Apponaug Cove, a tributary to Greenwich Bay and nearby Narragansett Bay. The name Apponaug is a derivation of the Narragansett Indian word for "place of oysters"...
, who spearheaded the defense of the Union right flank at Culp's Hill
Culp's Hill
Culps Hill is a Battle of Gettysburg landform south of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, with a heavily wooded summit of . The east slope is to Rock Creek , 160 feet lower in elevation, and the west slope is to a saddle with Stevens Knoll with a summit lower than the Culps Hill summit...
during the Battle of Gettysburg
Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg , was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The battle with the largest number of casualties in the American Civil War, it is often described as the war's turning point. Union Maj. Gen. George Gordon Meade's Army of the Potomac...
in July 1863. At the very end of the war, Greene was in command of the 3rd Brigade in Absalom Baird
Absalom Baird
Absalom Baird was a career United States Army officer who distinguished himself as a Union Army general in the American Civil War. Baird received the Congressional Medal of Honor for his military actions-Early life:...
's 3rd Division, XIV Corps
XIV Corps (ACW)
XIV Corps was a corps of the Union Army during the American Civil War. It was one of the earliest corps formations in the Western Theater of the American Civil War.-Creation:...
, and participated in the capture of Raleigh
Raleigh, North Carolina
Raleigh is the capital and the second largest city in the state of North Carolina as well as the seat of Wake County. Raleigh is known as the "City of Oaks" for its many oak trees. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city's 2010 population was 403,892, over an area of , making Raleigh...
and the pursuit of Gen. Joseph E. Johnston
Joseph E. Johnston
Joseph Eggleston Johnston was a career U.S. Army officer, serving with distinction in the Mexican-American War and Seminole Wars, and was also one of the most senior general officers in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War...
's army until its surrender.
Brig. Gen. Thomas W. Sherman
Thomas W. Sherman
Thomas West Sherman was a United States Army officer with service during the Mexican-American War and the American Civil War....
of Newport
Newport, Rhode Island
Newport is a city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States, about south of Providence. Known as a New England summer resort and for the famous Newport Mansions, it is the home of Salve Regina University and Naval Station Newport which houses the United States Naval War...
commanded the defenses of New Orleans
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
before taking command of a division in Maj. Gen. Nathaniel P. Banks's army, which he led into action at the Siege of Port Hudson
Siege of Port Hudson
The Siege of Port Hudson occurred from May 22 to July 9, 1863, when Union Army troops assaulted and then surrounded the Mississippi River town of Port Hudson, Louisiana, during the American Civil War....
, where he was severely wounded, leading to the amputation of his leg and consignment to desk duty for the rest of the war. Frank Wheaton
Frank Wheaton
Frank Wheaton was a career military officer in the United States Army during the American Civil War and Indian Wars.-Early life and career:...
of Providence led first a brigade and then a division in the Army of the Potomac, seeing action in a number of major actions, including the Overland Campaign
Overland Campaign
The Overland Campaign, also known as Grant's Overland Campaign and the Wilderness Campaign, was a series of battles fought in Virginia during May and June 1864, in the American Civil War. Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, general-in-chief of all Union armies, directed the actions of the Army of the...
and the Siege of Petersburg. His men were hurried by train to Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, in time to help repel Jubal Early's raid on the capital in the summer of 1864.
Union Navy
William Rogers Taylor
William Rogers Taylor was a rear admiral of the United States Navy who served during the Mexican-American War and the American Civil War.-Biography:...
was Fleet Captain of the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron in 1863. He participated in attacks on the Confederate fortifications protecting Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
. He then commanded the steam sloop Juniata during 1864-65 and took part in the operations that led to the capture of Fort Fisher, North Carolina.
See also
- List of Rhode Island Civil War units
- History of Rhode IslandHistory of Rhode IslandThe history of Rhode Island includes the history of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations from pre-colonial times to modern day.-Pre-colonization:...