civil war camps in maryland

Not every experience behind camp walls was the same, however. In addition to Forts McHenry and Carroll, these included: Fort #1/2 (1864) at West Baltimore and Smallwood Streets. William Penn was the largest Civil War camp for the training of officers to lead African American troops. It has been estimated that, of the state's 1860 population of 687,000, about 4,000 Marylanders traveled south to fight for the Confederacy. After Atlanta fell to Union forces in September 1864, Confederates forces scrabbled to scatter the 30,000 Union soldiers imprisoned at Andersonville Prison in Macon County, Georgia. In recent years, America has commemorated valor by erecting monuments to entire wars, such as the World War II and the Vietnam Veterans Memorials. Lincoln had wished to issue his proclamation earlier, but needed a military victory in order for his proclamation not to become self-defeating. History Florence Stockade operated from September 1864 to February 1865 and 15,000 to 18,000 Union soldiers were processed through the camp. Hatboro, PA: Tradition Press, Whitman H. Ridgway. Most of the men enlisted into regiments from Virginia or the Carolinas, but six companies of Marylanders formed at Harpers Ferry into the Maryland Battalion. Obviously many natives of Maryland were doubtless in 1861 citizens of other States, and could not therefore be reckoned among the soldiers furnished by Maryland to the Confederate armies. [18], Responding to pressure, on April 22 Governor Hicks finally announced that the state legislature would meet in a special session in Frederick, a strongly pro-Union town, rather than the state capital of Annapolis. It was the largest Union POW camp and one of the most secure, as it was Archaeological work is continuing on the only blockhouse now located on county park land at Blockhouse Point. The War of the Rebellion, Series III, Volume 4, pp. This represented 25% of the Federal force and 31% of the Confederate. In July 1864 the Battle of Monocacy was fought near Frederick, Maryland as part of the Valley Campaigns of 1864. The issue of slavery was finally confronted by the constitution which the state adopted in 1864. The song's lyrics urged Marylanders to "spurn the Northern scum" and "burst the tyrant's chain" in other words, to secede from the Union. I therefore hope and trust and most earnestly request that no more troops be permitted or ordered by the Government to pass through the city. The Chesapeake and Ohio Canal (nps.gov) parallels the Potomac River from Washington, D.C., to Antietam. Questions? Stay up-to-date on the American Battlefield Trust's battlefield preservation efforts, travel tips, upcoming events, history content and more. WebWe meet bi-monthly in Frederick, Maryland and have members who live in Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, & West Virginia. Although tactically inconclusive, the Battle of Antietam is considered a strategic Union victory and an important turning point of the war, because it forced the end of Lee's invasion of the North, and it allowed President Lincoln to issue the Emancipation Proclamation, taking effect on January 1, 1863. [47], Captain Bradley T. Johnson refused the offer of the Virginians to join a Virginia Regiment, insisting that Maryland should be represented independently in the Confederate army. Because the state bordered the District of Columbia and the opposing factions within the state strongly desired to sway public opinion towards their respective causes, Maryland played an important role in the war. Jubal Earlys Attack on WashingtonSpeaker: James H. Johnston. [citation needed] This last provision diminished the power of the small counties where the majority of the state's large former slave population lived. Of the 11,764 Confederates who entered Alton Federal Prison, no fewer than 1,500 perished as result of various diseases and aliments. The 1860 Federal Census[7] showed there were nearly as many free blacks (83,942) as slaves (87,189) in Maryland, although the latter were much more dominant in southern counties. [1] In the leadup to the American Civil War, it became clear that the state was bitterly divided in its sympathies. One prisoner commenting on the daily death toll and foul conditions proclaimed, (I) walk around camp every morning looking for acquaintances, the sick, &c. (I) can see a dozen most any morning laying around dead. [citation needed] However, the constitution secured ratification once the votes of Union army soldiers from Maryland were included. In 1864, before the end of the War, a constitutional convention outlawed slavery in Maryland. Many Marylanders were simply pragmatic, recognizing that the state's long border with the Union state of Pennsylvania would be almost impossible to defend in the event of war. The issue of slavery may have been settled by the new constitution, and the legality of secession by the war, but this did not end the debate. As the Sesquicentennial of the Civil War continues, discover Marylands authentic stories through one Salisbury University, 1991). After the war, numerous Union soldiers noted the poor, hastily prepared shelters in the camp, the lack of food, and the high death rate. Fearing that Union forces could cause a jailbreak at Andersonville, a new Union POW camp was established in Florence, South Carolina. Confederate States Army bands would later play the song after they crossed into Maryland territory during the Maryland Campaign in 1862.[13]. Upon inspecting the camp, the U.S Sanitary Commission reported that the the amount of standing water, of unpoliced grounds, of foul sinks, of general disorder, of soil reeking with miasmic accretions, of rotten bones and emptying of camp kettles..was enough to drive a sanitarian mad." Harris states that Lincoln may or may not have been aware of this communication. [12] Chaos ensued as a giant brawl began between fleeing soldiers, the violent mob, and the Baltimore police who tried to suppress the violence. Federal Identification Number (EIN): 54-1426643. Donate Now, Civil War in Montgomery County and the Region. On May 23, 1862, at the Battle of Front Royal, the 1st Maryland Infantry, CSA was thrown into battle with their fellow Marylanders, the Union 1st Regiment Maryland Volunteer Infantry. Despite the controversial number Confederates claiming only a few hundred and the Union claiming upwards of 15,000 mortalities the dreadful conditions Federal prisoners faced is unquestionable. One feature of the new constitution was a highly restrictive oath of allegiance which was designed to reduce the influence of Southern sympathizers, and to prevent such individuals from holding public office of any kind. This presentation, based on the speakers 2009 book, 2023 Montgomery County History Conference, African American History in Montgomery County, Stonestreet Museum of 19th Century Medicine. Due to its proximity to the Eastern Theater, the camp quickly became dramatically overcrowded. The Confederate General A. P. Hill described, the most terrible slaughter that this war has yet witnessed. Named Camp Hoffman probably after William A. Hoffman, commissioner-general of prisoners. Maryland Humanities Council (2001). that "the 23rd was made up of men mostly from Washington and Baltimore" though the regiment was credited to the state of Virginia. WebCivil War Black Wilderness Trapper Stereoview Hunting Musket Powder Horn Rare + $10.75 shipping. In 1864, elements of the warring armies again met in Maryland, although this time the scope and size of the battle was much smaller. ", Cannon, Jessica Ann. Mayor George William Brown and Maryland Governor Thomas Hicks implored President Lincoln to reroute troops around Baltimore city and through Annapolis to avoid further confrontations. $40.00 + $5.80 shipping. The barracks were so filthy and infested that the commission claimed, nothing but fire can cleanse them.". Was he right, or was he just telling another tall soldiers tale? Life in a CCC Camp Lastly, Stuarts army captured and controlled a large Union wagon train laden with supplies, which became a significant impediment to Stuarts expeditious travel onward to Pennsylvania. [citation needed], The first bloodshed of the Civil War occurred in Maryland. Visit the battlefields & sites of Antietam, Gettysburg, Monocacy, South Mountain, Harpers Ferry, Baltimore & Washington, DC. The 1860 Census reported the chief destinations of internal immigrants from Maryland as Ohio and Pennsylvania, followed by Virginia and the District of Columbia. [37] The court objected that this disruption of its process was unconstitutional, but noted that it was powerless to enforce its prerogatives. I don't want to issue a document the whole world will see must be inoperative, like the Pope's Bull against a comet. Elmira Prison, also known as "Hellmira," opened in July of 1864. My father was the neighborhood air raid warden. J.E.B. WebCivil War Black Wilderness Trapper Stereoview Hunting Musket Powder Horn Rare + $10.75 shipping. Frederick County and Washington County, MD | Sep 14, 1862. But few escaped to tell the tale.[65]. WebColonial Wars Pequot War French & Iroquois Wars King Philip's War Pueblo Rebellion King William's War Queen Anne's War Tuscarora War Dummer's War King George's War French & Indian War Pontiac's Rebellion Lord Dunmore's War American Wars Revolutionary War Tripolitan War Tecumseh's War War of 1812 Creek Indian War The First Seminole War [62] The order indicated that Lee had divided his army and dispersed portions geographically (to Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, and Hagerstown, Maryland), thus making each subject to isolation and defeat in detail - if McClellan could move quickly enough. [86], The legacies of the debate over Lincoln's heavy-handed actions that were meant to keep Maryland within the union include measures such as arresting one third of the Maryland General Assembly, which was controversially ruled unconstitutional at the time by Maryland native Justice Roger Taney, and in the lyrics of the former Maryland state song, Maryland, My Maryland, which referred to Lincoln as a "despot," a "vandal," and, a "tyrant.". But the markers, and history, misplace the site. Confederate casualties were 10,318 with 1,546 dead. Despite some popular support for the cause of the Confederate States of America, Maryland did not secede during the Civil War. [52], Overall, the Official Records of the War Department credits Maryland with 33,995 white enlistments in volunteer regiments of the United States Army and 8,718 African American enlistments in the United States Colored Troops. Prison camps during the Civil War were potentially more dangerous and more terrifying than the battles themselves. The sirens whistled. This presentation, based on the speakers 2009 book Send for the Doctor, is available as a first person portrayal of Dr. Stonestreet or as a PowerPoint slide show. The Maryland legislature refused to ratify both the 14th Amendment, which conferred citizenship rights on former slaves, and the 15th Amendment, which gave the vote to African Americans. In some instances, however, simple error and ignorance devolved into treachery and malicious intent, culminating in tragic losses of human life. Moving blindly without his cavalry, Lee stumbled into the huge Union army at a place called Gettysburg where he was soundly defeated. It quickly became infamous for its staggering death rate and unfathoomable living conditions due to theCommissary General of Prisoners,Col. William Hoffman. There were simply too many prisoners and not enough food, clothing, medicine, or tents to go around. Baltimore boasted a monument to Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson[81] until they were taken down on August 16, 2017. Because our textbooks and monuments are wrong. The singular actions of Clara Barton, Julia Ward Howe, Sarah Josepha Hale, Harriet Beecher Stowe, and Harriet Tubman led to their prominence during the war, and launched them into successful public roles following the conflict. Stuart. Lincoln ignored the ruling of Chief Justice Roger B. Taney in "Ex parte Merryman" decision in 1861 concerning freeing John Merryman, a prominent Southern sympathizer arrested by the military. And then theres that Chambersburg thing. His grandson didnt want to talk about it. [25] Butler then sent a letter to the commander of Fort McHenry: I have taken possession of Baltimore. [29] Civil authority in Baltimore was swiftly withdrawn from all those who had not been steadfastly in favor of the Federal Government's emergency measures.[30]. $199.99 + $17.99 shipping. As a result, the Rebels spent their winters shivering in biting cold and their summers in sweltering, pathogen-laden heat. On June 28, 1863, Confederate General J.E.B Stuart and his three cavalry brigades crossed the Potomac River and arrived in Montgomery County. The very nomination of Abraham Lincoln, four years ago, spoke plainly war upon Southern rights and institutions And looking upon African Slavery from the same stand-point held by the noble framers of our constitution, I for one, have ever considered it one of the greatest blessings (both for themselves and us,) that God has ever bestowed upon a favored nation I have also studied hard to discover upon what grounds the right of a State to secede has been denied, when our very name, United States, and the Declaration of Independence, both provide for secession.[80]. However, across the state, sympathies were mixed. They resemble, in many respects, patients laboring under cretinism. Marylands POW Camps in World War II. By December of that year, more than 9,000 were imprisoned. If they should attempt it, the responsibility for the bloodshed will not rest upon me. WebParole Camp Annapolis, Maryland, 1864. The single bloodiest day of combat in American military history occurred during the first major Confederate invasion of the North in the Maryland Campaign, just north above the Potomac River near Sharpsburg in Washington County, at the Battle of Antietam on September 17, 1862. Sign up to receive the latest information on the American Battlefield Trust's efforts to blaze The Liberty Trail in South Carolina. Those who voted for Maryland to remain in the Union did not explicitly seek for the emancipation of Maryland's many enslaved people, or indeed those of the Confederacy. $199.99 + $17.99 shipping. "Lincoln's divided backyard: Maryland in the Civil War era" (PhD dissertation, Rice University, 2010), Crittenden, Amy Gray. History of Maryland From the Earliest Period to the Present Day. Prisoners relied upon their own ingenuity for constructing drafty and largely inadequate shelters consisting of sticks, blankets, and logs.