Killing Confederate Prisoners at Fort Gregg

   Any time someone mentions the killing of prisoners during the war, names like Fort Pillow, Saltville, Plymouth, and Champ Ferguson come to mind. In these events, it is always the Confederates killing their prisoners. It is rare to hear about similar atrocities being committed by Federal forces. Yet it apparently happened at the battle of Fort Gregg on April 2, 1865.

"Shoot and be Damned!"

   Following the debacle at Five Forks, southwest of Peterburg, Virginia, on April 1, 1865, U.S. Grant ordered the Federal forces to launch an assault on Confederate lines. Grant believed that given the amount of Confederates his forces faced at Five Forks, Confederate lines had to be weak some place. That assault, early on the morning of April 2, resulted in the breakthrough, most notably along Arthur’s Swamp, held by four regiments of Brig. Gen. James H. Lane’s North Carolina brigade. (There were, of course, other breakthroughs of the line.) Many of Lane’s men not gobbled up in the ensuing early morning breakthrough, or the ensuing counterattack, drifted back towards Battery 45 and the inner Confederate lines. A portion of Lane’s men, along with some men from Harris’s Mississippi brigade and Thomas’s Georgia brigade, were assigned to the defense of Fort Gregg.

   Fort Gregg, and its sister fort, Fort Whitworth, were the idea of Wade Hampton. Hampton proposed the idea of a series of fortifications between the main Confederate line and the inner Confederate line in a letter to Lee in September 1864.[1] Fort Gregg was a crescent-shaped earthen fort. The fort had four cannon emplacements and a palisade fence across the back. Fort Whitworth was an enclosed earthen fortification. Fort Whitworth is sometimes referred to as Fort Baldwin. Both forts were named for local families and both situated in between the two Confederate lines, designed to slow down a Federal advance if the first line of fortifications were breached. As a permanent garrison Fort Gregg had a detachment of 100 artillerymen, mostly drivers, from several different batteries, along with two guns belonging to Chew’s 4^th Maryland Artillery. Fort Whitworth had a contingent of the Washington Artillery from Louisiana, along with the 18^th and 48^th Mississippi from Harris’s brigade. 

   Crowding into Fort Gregg were members of the 12^th and 16^th Mississippi, 18th, 28^th, 33^rd, and 37^th North Carolina, and the 14^th, 35^th, 45^th, and 49^th Georgia Infantry regiments, plus the artillerymen, and an estimated 334 Confederate soldiers.[2] The Federal attack commenced about noon, and there were at least three different waves of Federal attackers. The final wave was able to break through the back entrance to Fort Gregg, while at the same time, use the embankment created by an unfinished line of breastworks connecting the two forts. Confederates inside Fort Gregg were running low on ammunition, some resorting to hurling rocks and bricks at the attackers. On the third attempt, the Federals were able to break through. Some Confederates continued to fight on. Lawrence Barry, 3^rd Company, Washington Artillery, had the lanyard of his cannon in his hand as Federals came over the works. An officer told him to drop the lanyard or they would fire. “Shoot and be damned!” he told the Federal, pulling the lanyard and obliterating several Federal soldiers. Those remaining opened fire, killing Barry.[3]

   Many Confederates surrendered. Yet there were several stories that emerged that the surrender of some were not accepted. In 1867, Lt. Dallas Rigler, 37^th North Carolina, wrote to James H. Lane about the attack. He mentioned running low on ammunition, using “bats and rocks,” and then the Federals scaling the wall. They entered Fort Gregg’s “walls and after a short struggle they took the fort and some few did fire on after they got possession but their officers tried to stop them.”[4] Captain A. K. Jones, 12^th Mississippi, believed that the Federals “were under the influence of whiskey,” and because of the stiff resistance offered by the Confederate defenders, which had produced “a bloody massacre” on Federal attackers, were planning to kill everyone within the Fort. It was the Federal officers “who with cocked pistols made the men desist. . . We lost about forty men killed in the fort after its capture. . . It was ten minutes before the shooting could be suppressed.”[5] George W. Richards, a surgeon attached to Fort Gregg, wrote that as the Federals swarmed into the fort, they “showed us no quarter.” Richards disagreed with Rigler and Jones as to why the Federals stopped killing the Confederates who had surrendered. “It was not so much their officers who caused them to desist from shooting us,” he wrote. Instead, it was when General Lee ordered Poague’s artillery to open fire on the Fort. “one shot after another in rapid succession drove all the enemy on the opposite side of the fort for shelter. Had it not been for Colonel Poague’s guns I believe they would have killed every one of us.”[6]

   Maj. Gen. John Gibbon, commanding the attacking force – the XXIV Corps, agreed that the defenders of the fort held on to the very last, writing that the assault was “one of the most desperate of the war” and that fort was only taken “by the last of several determined dashes with the bayonet.”[7] Brig Gen. Robert S. Foster agreed with Gibbon: “The fighting on both sides at this point was the most desperate I ever witnessed, being a hand to hand struggle for twenty-five minutes” after the Federals gained the parapet.[8]

   Some of the rank-and-file Federals echoed the Confederates. In an 1889 history of the 39^th Illinois can be found a letter about the assault, a Federal officer wrote that he was one of the first over the walls, witnessing the carnage inside. It “was with the greatest difficulty that we could prevent our infuriated soldiers from shooting down and braining all who survived of the stubborn foe.”[9] A member of the 12^th West Virginia recalled that on the order to charge, “in they went, with an irresistible rush, maddened at the slaughter of their late comrades, and determined to avenge their deaths. That onslaught could not be checked…”[10]

   In the end, the assault cost the Federals, according to John Gibbon’s report, 122 men killed, and 592 wounded. Confederate losses are placed at 57 killed, 243 wounded and captured, with 33 more unwounded captured. All of this to capture two forts that would have abandoned overnight regardless of any other Federal advances. The killing of Confederate soldiers after they had surrendered was quietly chalked up to “maddened” or “infuriated soldiers,” and quietly forgotten. The war in Virginia would all be over in about a week’s time.[11]

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[1] Fox, The Confederate Alamo, 15.

[2] Fox, The Confederate Alamo, 234.

[3] Fox, The Confederate Alamo, 182.

[4] Dallas Rigler to James H. Lane, June 17, 1867, Lane Papers, AU.

[5] Jones, “The Battle of Fort Gregg,” SHSP, Vol. 31, 56-60.

[6] “Fort Gregg Again,” SHSP, Vol. 31, 370-372. More accounts can be found in Fox, The Confederate Alamo, 183-188.

[7] ORs., Vol. 46, 1:1174.

[8] ORs., Vol. 46, 1:1177.

[9] Clark, The History of the Thirty-Ninth Regiment Illinois Volunteer Veteran Infantry, 255.

[10] Egan, The Flying, Gray-haired Yank, 391.

[11] ORs, Vol. 46, 1:1174; Fox, The Confederate Alamo, 229.

Confederates buried at the Congressional Cemetery, Washington, D.C.

    Recently, Dana Shoaf, editor at Civil War Times, did a live stream from the Congressional Cemetery in Washington, D.C. When the guide was asked about the row of Confederate tombstones, he did not really seem sure how they came to be buried in what is considered the nation’s first “national cemetery.” Likewise, the self-guided tour brochure for the Congressional cemetery, states that “Historians believe that these wartime burials were Confederate soldiers who succumbed in nearby hospitals.” Let’s clear this up: these are the graves of Confederate soldiers who died at either the Old Capitol Prison or the Old Capitol Prison Hospital during the war. There are also more graves than the ten tombstones all lined up in a row. According to records, there are at least twenty-five Confederate soldiers interred at the Congressional Cemetery, along with three (or more) civilians.

   The Old Capitol Prison has an interesting history. Located right behind the U.S. Capitol, where the U.S. Supreme Court building now sits, the structure was constructed in 1815 to house Congress after the British burned the capitol building in August 1814. It would take time to reconstruct the U.S. Capitol. Congress met in the building until 1819, and President James Monroe was inaugurated here on March 4, 1817. After 1819, the building served as a private school, then as a boarding house until 1861. (John C. Calhoun died here in 1850.)

   At the start of the war, the property was acquired by the Federal government and turned into a prison for captured Confederates, spies, political prisoners, prostitutes, and Union officers. Among those incarcerated here were Rose Greenhow, Belle Boyd, John Mosby, Henry Wirz, Dr. Samuel Mudd, Mary Surratt, Louis Weichmann, and John T. Ford. Originally, the building could house up to 500, but the acquisition of adjoining buildings pushed the number to 1,500.

   The Old Capitol Prison often served as a funneling spot for other prisons. Most of the prisoners were captured in the eastern theater of the war. Officers passed through and went to Johnson’s Island in Ohio, while privates were sent to Fort Delaware (usually, but not always). According to the official Records, 5,761 prisoners of passed through the Old Capitol Prison. It is unclear if that number covered just Confederate prisoners, or all prisoners. Like other prisons, The Old Capitol Prison had a hospital, although information about this structure (or room), seems to be lacking. At least 457 prisoners died while incarcerated at the prison. Some of these men were buried a mile away at the Congressional Cemetery. (see the Official Records, series 2, volume 8, 990-1004 for additional numbers.)

   In 1807, the Congressional Cemetery was established by a private association. In 1812, once the purchase was paid off, the cemetery was turned over to Christ Church and officially named the Washington Parish Burial Ground. According to the cemetery’s web site, if a member of Congress died in Washington, he was likely interred in this burial ground. The first was Connecticut senator Uriah Tracy, who passed in 1807. Congress soon began purchasing plots, eventually owning almost 1,000, hence the name, Congressional Cemetery, although the property is still owned by Christ Church. There are more than 60 members of Congress buried here, along with former mayors of Washington, Vice President Elbridge Gerry, the Choctaw Chief Push-Ma-Ta-Ha, and John Philip Sousa. There are supposedly more than 60,000 graves, although only about half are marked.

   It is unclear why the Congressional Cemetery was chosen for Confederate Prisoner of War burials. The first appears to be Thomas Chambers, 6^th Alabama Infantry. It is unclear where Chambers was captured, but he was admitted to the “General Hospital, Capitol Hill,” on August 18, 1861 and died on August 22, 1861. (All information on Confederate soldiers was gathered from their Compiled Service Records, Record Group 109, National Archives). Most of the burials took place in 1863. Several who were captured at Hatchers Run in April 1865 died in the following weeks and were buried at the cemetery.

   There are undoubtedly more than those Confederates listed below buried within the Congressional Cemetery. There are also quite a few on this online list of burials, who are listed as Confederate soldiers, but who are, in fact, Federal soldiers. Maybe in time, more research can be done and this piece of forgotten history recovered.

Confederates buried at the Congressional Cemetery, Washington, D.C.

ANDRESS, SETH A, Company G, 41^ST Virginia Infantry. Captured on May 3, 1863, Fredericksburg, Virginia. Arrived in Washington, D.C., May 4, 1863. Transferred to Old Capitol Prison. Died Old Capitol Prison Hospital, May 16, 1863.

 BARR, DAVID, Company I, 2^ND Virginia Infantry. Captured August 3, 1863, at Chester Gap, Virginia, and confined at Old Capital Prison, Washington, D.C. Admitted to the Old Capitol Prison Hospital September 16, 1863, and Died December 11, 1863.

 BARRETT, LEVI, Company C, 15TH North Carolina State Troops. Captured October 14, 1863, Bristoe Station, Virginia. Confined at Old Capitol Prison, October 16, 1863. Admitted to the Old Capitol Prison Hospital November 23, 1863. Died November 27, 1863.

 BAXLEY, WILLIAM G. D., Pvt., Company A, 2^nd Maryland Infantry. Wounded in right thigh and captured on April 2, 1865, at Hatchers Run Virginia. Confined at Old Capitol Prison, April 5, 1865. Died on April 22, 1865. [later removed and reinterred elsewhere]

 BEARD, WILLIAM S., Company B, 28^TH North Carolina Troops. Captured December 3, 1862, Fredericksburg, Virginia. Confined at Old Capitol Prison January 27, 1863. Admitted to the Old Capitol Prison Hospital, March 25, 1863. Died of Fever, April 10, 1863.

 BROOKS J. M., Stafford County, VA, d. 5/--/1863

 CAMPBELL, A LORENZO, Company I, 11^TH North Carolina State Troops Captured in hospital in Winchester, Virginia, July 21, 1863. Confined at Old Capitol Prison. Admitted to the Old Capitol Prison Hospital, July 30, 1863. Died August 5, 1863, of pneumonia.

 CARLTON, C WINSHIP, Company C, 44^th North Carolina Troops. Captured at Brisoe Station. Died Old Capitol Prison of “pleurisy and pericarditis”

 CHAMBERS, THOMAS, Company A, 6^TH Alabama Infantry. Unclear where he was captured.  Admitted to the General Hospital, Capitol Hill, August 18, 1861. Died October 14, 1862, of Variola.

 CHANEY J., Pvt., 6^th Alabama, d.1/28/1862

 COCKRELL, BAILEY, Farmer, Loudon County, Virginia. d. 03/03/1864

 FARROW, R S, CAPTAIN, CONFEDERATE, CONFEDERATE STATES ARMY, d. 04/01/1865.

 FOSDICK, HENRY A, PVT, Company I, 6^TH Alabama Infantry. d. 09/19/1863.

 GASQUE, THOMAS, Company H, 1^st SOUTH Carolina Rifles, d. 09/11/1862

 HARDCASTLE, JOHN, CONFEDERATE STATES ARMY, d. 05/01/1863.

 HARRINGTON, JOHN, Company E, 33RD North Carolina Troops. Captured October 18, 1863, Bristoe Station, Virginia. Confined at Old Capitol Prison October 22, 1863. Admitted to the Old Capitol prison Hospital, November 16, 1863. Died December 10, 1863, “chronic diarrhea.”

 HODGES, JOHN T, CPL, Company H, 61^ST VA Infantry. Captured at Rapidan Station, Virginia, October 7, 1863. Listed as “rebel deserter.” Confined at Old Capitol Prison October 9, 1863. Admitted to the Old Capitol Prison Hospital on October 9, with a “gunshot wound of arm.” Died October 16, 1863.

 HUGHLETT, JAMES, CPL, Company F, 47^TH Virginia Infantry. Date and place of capture unknown (Possibly Gettysburg). Admitted to Old Capitol Prison Hospital July 18, 1863. Died August 3, 1863, of pneumonia.

 JACKSON, JOHN C, Company H, 20TH North Carolina State Troops. Reported missing in September 1862. Admitted to the Capital Hospital, September 21, 1862, Transferred to the Capitol Prison Hospital, September 30, 1862. Died October 30, 1862, dysentery.

 KEYS, REUBEN, CONFEDERATE STATES ARMY, d. 04/18/1863.

 MCMILLAN, WILLIAM, Company A, 14^TH LOUISIANA Infantry. Captured November 7, 1863, near Brandy Station, Virginia. Confined Old Capitol Prison, November 8, 1863. Admitted Old Capitol Prison November 25, 1863. Died December 1, 1863, typhoid fever.

 MILLS, WILLIAM J, Company D, 12^TH GEORGIA Infantry. Captured May 30, 1862, near Front Royal, Virginia. NFR.

 MILSTEAD, JAMES, Company H, 6^TH Virginia Cavalry. Wounded left thigh and captured April 1, 1865, at Hatchers Run, Virginia. Admitted to hospital at City Point, Virginia, April 3, 1865. Transferred to the Lincoln General Hospital, Washington, D.C., April 11, 1865. Died May 23, 1865, of “Chronic Diarrhea.”

 MORAN, ROBERT, Farmer, Loudon County, Virginia. d. 02/29/1864.

 MURCHISON, CICERO, Company G, 44TH, Georgia Infantry. Captured on November 28, 1863, Mine Run, Virginia. Confined at Old Capitol Prison, December 5, 1863. Admitted Old Capitol Prison Hospital, December 6, 1863. Died December 11, 1863, pleurisy.

 NAAK, LUDWIG, 1ST LT & ADJ FIELD &, CONFEDERATE STATES ARMY, d. 01/30/1862.

 NEALLY, ISIAH, Company D, 20TH North Carolina Infantry. Captured December 3, 1863, Mine Run, Virginia. Confined Old Capitol Prison, December 3, 1863.Admitted Old Capitol Prison Hospital, December 24, 1863. Died December 24, 1863, pneumonia.

 PIERCE, STEPHEN, Company D, 48^TH Virginia Infantry. Captured in Front Royal, Virginia, May 30, 1862. NFR.

 POWELL, CHARLES, Company F, 35^TH Georgia Infantry. Reported missing May 5, 1862. Reported in U.S.A. Hospital, Williamsburg, Virginia, May 9-11, 1862. NFR.

 RUCKER, JAMES S, Moorman’s Company, Virginia Horse Artillery. Captured September 13, 1863, near Culpepper, Virginia. Confined at Old Capitol prison September 14, 1863. Admitted to the Old Capitol Prison Hospital on October 3, 1863. Died on October 7, 1863.

 SHIPLETT, WILLIAM, UNKNOWN, ROCKINGHAM, CONFEDERATE STATES ARMY, d. 05/01/1863.

 STONE, JOHN W, CPL, Company H, 4^TH Virginia Cavalry. Captured near Brandy Station on February 23, 1863. Arrived in Washington, D.C., February 23, 1863. Assigned to Old Capitol Prison on February 23, 1863. Admitted to the Old Capitol Prison Hospital on March 9, 1863 Complaint: Pneumonia. Died on May 12, 1863. 

TRIGGER, ROBERT, Company E, 15^TH Virginia Cavalry. Listed as a deserter on Federal prison records. Took the Oath of Allegiance February 19, 1863. Arrived in Washington D.C., February 21, 1863. Died Old Capitol prison, February 25, 1863, of Pneumonia.