Action in the Kanawha Valley
August 1862-July 1863
In August 1862, Confederate General Albert Gallatin Jenkins and his six-hundred-member cavalry troop began an invasion of the Kanawha Valley, directly through the heart of western Virginia from Salt Sulphur Springs to Buckhannon, Weston, Glenville, Spencer, Ripley, and Ravenswood. Unprepared to defend themselves, these small towns were robbed and plundered by Jenkins' men. At Ravenswood, Jenkins' group split and a portion of it crossed the Ohio River and planted the Confederate flag on Ohio soil.2 In Ohio, the mere presence of the Confederate raiders struck terror in the people of Meigs County. Jenkins' men reunited at Point Pleasant, (West) Virginia, where they found "a Federal unit barricaded in the courthouse."3 Being without the necessary artillery to challenge it, however, Jenkins continued through Buffalo, Barboursville, Logan, Wyoming Court House, and Coal River.4
About a month later, Confederate General William Wing Loring, with 4,000 troops, entered western Virginia and attacked the Union post at Fayetteville, commanded by Colonel J.A.J. Lightburn.5 Loring continued to Charleston, attacking Lightburn's headquarters and forcing him to withdraw to Ravenswood and Point Pleasant.6(See Figure 1, below.)
Figure 1 - Troop Movements, August 1862
Confederate raids were not the only problem facing [West] Virginia Governor Francis H. Pierpont. Because of the political upheaval surrounding the secession and statehood questions, a number of local-level officeholders had resigned. Many areas were left without civil rule, and some counties even lapsed into anarchy.7 Thus, there was a need for the presence of troops not only to guard against Confederate attack, but also to help keep civil order. Union General Jacob D. Cox's letter of December 15, 1862, to Governor Pierpont expresses this need in these words:
The military expediency of having all the available force actively engaged has made General [Henry W.] Halleck desirous of reducing the force in the Kanawha Valley to its lowest possible limit. I have strongly advised that it not be greatly diminished till the new State question has been finally and definitely acted upon, as . . . a weakening of our force there would be followed by a strong effort . . . [by] the rebels to disturb the region, with a view to preventing any action by the people at elections which may be held. I have also feared that such a reduction would be followed by a flight of the Union men from the valley again.8
These were among the incidents of the Fall of 1862 which led to the formation of the military district of West Virginia, to be commanded by General Cox, and the organization of West Virginia Union units. Cox immediately ordered Lightburn and General George Morgan up the Kanawha River, General George Crook to Gauley Bridge, Brigadier General Robert H. Milroy to Beverly, and Colonel Jonathan Cranor to Logan County. (See Figure 2, below.) After a skirmish with Cox on October 29, Jenkins's cavalry retreated up the Kanawha River, while Union troops returned to Charleston and Confederates there withdrew to Princeton, West Virginia.9
Figure 2 - Movements ordered by General J. D. Cox, 1862
The Thirteenth Regiment West Virginia Volunteer Infantry was organized at Point Pleasant and Barboursville, West Virginia, in October 1862, and was attached to the District of Kanawha, West Virginia, Department of Ohio.10 For the last part of 1862 and the first part of 1863, the regiment was stationed at various points in the Kanawha Valley, not only to guard its salt works and natural route to Ohio—the Kanawha River—but also as part of the military presence necessary to maintain law and order. (See Figure 3, below.)
Figure 3 - Posts and Camps of the Thirteenth West Virginia Volunteer Infantry
In November 1862, Companies A, B, D, and G, under Lieutenant Colonel J.R. Hall, were stationed at Winfield in Putnam County, while Companies C, E, and F were at Point Pleasant in Mason County, with their regimental commander, Colonel William R. Brown. In January 1863, Company G was transferred to Coalsmouth in Kanawha County, and in February, Companies A, B, D, and H moved into camp at Hurricane Bridge in Putnam County, commanded by Captain James W. Johnson.11 Also, in January, Colonel Rutherford B. Hayes was appointed to command the 1st Brigade 2nd Kanawha Division.12 By the end of March, Hayes had made his headquarters at Camp White and his brigade officially included the "Thirteenth Virginia Cavalry, Col. Brown," which was then stationed at "Coal's Mouth and Hurricane Bridge."13
Next: Skirmishes at Hurricane Bridge and Point Pleasant, March 28-30, 1863
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Copyright © Kimberly Ball Hieronimus Brownlee, 1998-2003. All rights reserved. This work may not be reproduced in any manner for any media without the express written agreement of the author.