Showing posts with label Bear Creek Bridge. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bear Creek Bridge. Show all posts

Tuesday, May 6, 2025

Diary of Private Richard R. Hancock: Sunday, April 13, 1862

Two gun-boats and two transports came up to Chickasaw and landed about one hundred and twenty cavalry and three regiments of infantry about daylight.* Our picket fell back in advance of the Federals to Bear Creek. After crossing the bridge they (the picket) set fire to it. The Federals continued their movement along the east side of Bear Creek in the direction of the railroad bridge that spans said creek about eight miles from Chickasaw. Having no artillery and only about two hundred cavalry at Iuka, we were poorly prepared to protect said bridge while a force so much superior to ours was now apparently bent on its destruction. However, about one hundred of our battalion and a part of Captain Sanders' Company mounted and moved out to the bridge to see what was up. A few moments after we arrived at the bridge the enemy came in sight on the opposite side of the creek, and firing commenced. We soon found that the enemy had another advantage of us in having long-range guns. A few of our men who happened to have long-range guns returned the fire. Considering it useless for us to make further effort to protect the bridge with such odds against us, we were ordered to fall back. The Federals, after burning the bridge and cutting the telegraph wire, went back to Chickasaw, reboarded their boats and moved back toward Pittsburg Landing that night. No one of our battalion was killed, but three were wounded. One of them, George Davenport, was from Captain Allison's Company. And, by the way, he was the first man of said company that had been wounded. George C. Moore, First Sergeant of Sanders' Company, was wounded. We were reinforced about midnight by cavalry, infantry and artillery, but it was too late to save the bridge.
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*General W. T. Sherman was in command of this expedition.

SOURCE: Richard R. Hancock, Hancock's Diary: Or, A History of the Second Tennessee Confederate Cavalry, p. 165-6

Friday, March 19, 2010

Tribune’s Correspondence

WASHINGTON, April 25.

A special order has been issued form the War Department conferring upon Doctors Brown and Alexander and such assistant surgeons as they may appoint, the right to embalm the dead of the U. S. army, any where within the lines, either in the camp or in the field, and to follow up the advance of the land forces.

Our Minister at London, Mr. Adams, recently visited Paris for an official conference with Mr. Dayton upon an important subject of diplomatic negotiation. The former by the last steamer reports that he has returned to his post.

The House to-day reversed its yesterday’s action on the motion to print 25,000 copies of the agricultural part of the Patent Office report in the German language. Mr. Walton, chairman of the military committee stated that the government printing office has neither German type nor German printers. He said the work would have to be translated.

The Sanitary Commission will to-morrow dispatch the steamer Daniel Webster to Fort Monroe as a floating hospital. She is to carry a large supply of hospital stores, medicines, clothing, ice, &c., and a corps of surgeons, nurses and hospital dressers.

The Navy Department has received dispatches from Com. Foote, enclosing a report from Lieut. Commanding Gwynn, dated 14th inst., in which he says: The Tyler and Lexington conveyed two transports, containing 2,000 troops, infantry and cavalry, under command of General Sherman, to Chickasaw, where they disembarked and proceeded rapidly to Bear Creek bridge, at the crossing of the Memphis and Charleston railroad, for the purpose of destroying it and as much of the trestle work as they could find. The bridge, consisting of two spans of 110 feet each, was completely destroyed, that is the superstructure, together with 500 feet of trestle work and half a mile of telegraph line. The rebels made a feeble resistance to our cavalry, 120 in number, but soon [retreated], losing four killed. Our loss none.

The navy department is desirous of learning the address of Mr. Birney, the inventor of the combustion shell.

A dispatch received at the War department from Ft. Monroe says that the Richmond Dispatch states that a Federal gunboat has successes in passing Ft. Jackson, below New Orleans, but the rebels say they regard it as of little importance, as they have other defences to be depended on.

– Published in The Davenport Daily Gazette, Davenport, Iowa, Monday Morning, April 28, 1862, p. 1

Wednesday, July 8, 2009

From Tennessee

PITTSBURG LANDING, April 14.

A force of 4,000 men on five transports left the Landing on Saturday night, accompanied by the gunboats Tyler and Lexington, proceeded up the Tennessee to a point near Eastport, Miss., where they landed and proceeded inland to Bear Creek bridge and destroyed the two bridges, on the Mobile & Ohio RR. One measured 121, the other 216 feet in length. A Cavalry force of 150 men was found there, who, after having four killed, skedaddled in the most approved southern style. The expedition returned Tuesday night without the loss of a man. This was one of the most successful operations of it’s kind during the war, completely cutting off communications of the main rebel body at Corinth, and the rest of the confederacy, except at New Orleans.

A flag of truce arrived at our outposts yesterday with Gov. Johnson’s son of Ky., asking the fate of his father.

– Published in the Davenport Daily Gazette, Davenport, Iowa, Wednesday Morning, April 16, 1862, p. 1

Thursday, May 7, 2009

A Successful Expedition – Two Rebel Bridges Destroyed

PITTSBURGH LANDING, Tenn., April 14. – A force of 4,000, on five transports, left the Landing on Saturday night, accompanied by the gunboats Tyler & Lexington, proceeded up the Tennessee to a point near Eastport, Miss., landed and proceeded inland to Bear Creek Bridge and destroyed the two bridges on the Mobile & Ohio Railroad, one measuring 121 feet, and the other 210 feet in length. A cavalry force of 150 men was found there, who, after having 4 killed, skedaddled in the most approved Southern style. The expedition returned Sunday night, without having lost a man. This is one of the most successful operations of its kind during the war – completely cutting off communication of the main rebel body at Corinth and the rest of the Confederate army, except New [Orleans].

A flag of truce arrived at our out post yesterday with Gov. Johnson’s son, of Kentucky, asking the fate of his father.

– Published in the Burlington Weekly Hawk-Eye, Burlington, Iowa, Saturday, April 19, 1862