It is hard to fathom, but in 1861, the Confederacy’s most celebrated general was shunted to a seemingly backwater command. Of course, after the debacle in western Virginia in late 1861, Lee was not yet the most celebrated general. Those accolades fell to Joseph E. Johnston and P.G.T. Beauregard, the heroes of First Manassas and Fort Sumter. It was not until after the Seven Days battles that “Granny Lee” was promoted in the minds of the press and general population. But still, Lee’s engineering skills were present in the minds of those who mattered, and Jefferson Davis sent Lee to command the department of the Military District of South Carolina, Georgia, and Eastern Florida.
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| Robert E. Lee |
Lee’s task was to protect
the railroad and ports of entry along the lower east coast. Like most generals
in command of an army or department, he had too few troops and too much
territory. He arrived in Charleston on
November 7 and assumed command the following day. This was not Lee’s first trip
to the area. As a young engineer, he had worked on Fort Pulaski in Savannah in
1829-1830, and was in Florida examining coastal defenses in Pensacola,
Fernandina Beach, and points south in 1849. [1]
While serving as
departmental commander, Lee made many inspection trips. His headquarters were located
on the Coosawhatchie River in South Carolina, using an abandoned house owned by
the Mackay family. Lee was frequently in Savannah, Charleston, and near the
Port Royal Sound, working on coastal defenses. Twice, he visited the defenses
on Amelia, spending November 20, 1861, and January 13, 1862, on Amelia Island.[2]
What was so important
about Amelia Island? Florida was the third state to leave the Union. It
contains over 1,300 miles of coastline with many harbors. However, Florida
lacked railroads connecting it to other Southern states. Just two lines
crisscrossed the northern section of the state. The Florida Railroad went from
Fernandina to Cedar Key, while the Florida, Atlantic, and Gulf Central ran from
Jacksonville to Lake City and the Pensacola and Georgia ran to Quincy. It was
not until March 1865 that the Atlantic and Gulf Railroad stretched south to
Live Oak and Florida gained a small connection with railroads outside the state.
Fernandina Beach
was the eastern terminus of the Florida Railroad. The community sat just south
of where the St. Mary’s River, dividing Florida and Georgia, emptied into the
Atlantic Ocean. Any troops or supplies coming out of Florida could use this railroad
to access the port. Above Fernandina Beach, on the northern end of Amelia
Island, sat Fort Clinch. Construction began on the small brick missionary fort
in 1847, but the fort was unfinished when the war began. Only two walls had
been finished to their complete height, and the only buildings were the
guardroom, prison, and carpenter’s shop. And there were no cannons. Fort Clinch
was seized by state forces in January 1861. Those state forces moved cannons
from the recently captured Fort Marion in St. Augustine to Fort Clinch on the
ship Everglade. Batteries for the cannons were constructed in the
surrounding sand dunes, as Fort Clinch was unable to support the cannons.[3]
Lee wrote General Samuel Cooper on November 21, a day after his first war-time visit to Florida. He makes no real mention of the defenses save that he had been to Fernandina. However, in a letter to two of his daughters written on November 22, he stated that he had been as far south as “Amelia Island to examine the defences. They are poor indeed & I have laid off work enough to employ our people a month. I hope our enemy will be polite enough to wait for us.”[4]
On his second visit
on January 13, Lee followed up with a letter to the “commanding Officer,
Fernandina, Fla.” (Lee did not address this person by name, although he had
been to the site two days earlier. It appears that Col. Edward Hopkins, 4th
Florida Infantry, was in charge.) Lee’s
letter dealt with rifles, accouterments, powder, and the shipment of additional
cannons to strengthen the armament in the area. Lee also wrote home regarding
his visit, this time addressing his January 19 letter to his son George
Washington Custis Lee. “I have just returned from a visit to the coast as far
as Fernandina. Our defences are growing stronger, but progress slowly, The
volunteers dislike work & there is much sickness among them besides. Guns too
are required, ammunition, & more men. Still, on the whole, matters are
encouraging & if the enemy does not approach in overwhelming numbers we
ought to hold our ground.”[5]
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| Fort Clinch |
Lee’s time as commander
of the department came to an end in early March 1862. He was in Charleston on
March 4, and then worked his way north. General John C Pemberton replaced him. Two
weeks earlier, Lee ordered that Fort Clinch, Fernandina, and all of Amelia
Island were to be abandoned by Confederate forces. [6]
Robert E. Lee visited
Florida once more, just a few months before he died. His ship docked in
Jacksonville, and he was on on his way to Palatka and an old friend. One wonders
if he was able to catch a glimpse of Fort Clinch and Amelia Island as he sailed
past. After the island was abandoned by the Confederates, Federal forces
reoccupied the fort and finished its construction. Fort Clinch is now a state
park and open to the public.[7]
[1] Freeman, R.E. Lee, Vol. 1, 304.
[2] Knight,
From Arlington to Appomattox, 82, 92.
[3] Ofeldt,
Fort Clinch, Fernandina, and the Civil War, 21-23.
[4] Official
Records, Vol. 6, 327; Dowdey and
Manarin, The Wartime Papers of R.E. Lee, 89.
[5] Official Records, Vol. 6, 327; Dowdey and Manarin, The Wartime Papers of R.E. Lee, 89.
[6] Knight,
From Arlington to Appomattox, 102; Official Records, Vol. 6,
93-95.
[7] Johnson,
In the Footsteps of Robert E. Lee, 164-195.
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