This day in Charleston
3 entries · 1862–1865
A Federal reconnaissance to the Wright River, part of the steady probing of the creeks between Port Royal and the Savannah. Robert E. Lee, commanding the department from Coosawhatchie, had already decided the sea islands could not be held and had pulled the defense back to the mainland railroad line.
Official Records, Series I, Vol. 6
An eight-day Federal expedition onto John’s and James Islands opened, with skirmishing near Bugbee Bridge on the ninth through the eleventh. Its purpose was less to take ground than to hold Confederate troops at Charleston while Federal forces landed in Florida — a diversion that ended at Olustee on 20 February.
Official Records, Series I, Vol. 35, Pt. 1
Action at Fishburn’s Plantation near Lane’s Bridge on the Little Salkehatchie, with skirmishes at Cowpen Ford and near Barnwell. The Confederate defense of South Carolina had become a series of rear-guard fights at water crossings, each one lost a little faster than the last.
Official Records, Series I, Vol. 47
Entries are dated from the War of the Rebellion official records, the naval official records and contemporary Charleston sources. Browse the whole year.