Compiled by Jim Hachtel, President
Gen. William T. Sherman Memorial Civil War Roundtable
July 7, 1863 - The Army of the Potomac commanded by General Meade reoccupies Maryland Heights, Maryland after moving from Gettysburg. President Lincoln still hopes for vigorous pursuit of Lee's army.
July 7, 1863 - President Lincoln receives more detail about the fall of Vicksburg. While noting that triumph, he writes of Gettysburg: "If General Meade can complete his work, so gloriously prosecuted thus far, by the literal or substantial destruction of Lee's Army, the rebellion will be over."
July 7, 1863 - Confederate Raider John H. Morgan skirmishes at Shepherds, Kentucky and seizes two steamers at Brandenburg, Kentucky.
July 7, 1863 - Jackson, Mississippi houses about 26,000 Confederate men in hastily constructed earthworks. General Joseph E. Johnston awaits the arrival of superior Union forces under General William T. Sherman, moving east after the fall of Vicksburg.
July 8, 1863 - At Port Hudson, Louisiana, negotiations for the surrender of this strategic river port city is slow until General Franklin Gardener, low on food and supplies, learns of Vicksburg. He surrenders to General Nathaniel P. Banks early the next day.
July 8, 1863 - John H. Morgan's raiders cross the Ohio River at Cumming's Ferry, Kentucky. He raids into Indiana and Ohio. A Federal gunboat begins a 500-mile trip up the Ohio River to assist in the capture of Morgan and his men.
July 9, 1863 - An accidental ordinance explosion at Fort Lyon, Virginia, kills 20 Union soldiers and 14 more are injured.
July 10, 1863 - The Union Department of the South gets a new leader when General Quincy A. Gillmore is promoted to major general and replaces General David Hunter. He prepares to capture Charleston, South Carolina.
July 10, 1863 - General Robert E. Lee concentrates at Williamsport, Maryland. His rearguard continues to be in contact with pursuing Union soldiers.
July 10, 1863 - Morris Island in Charleston Harbor is invaded by 3,700 of General Quincy Gillmore's force. Gillmore prepares to take Battery Wagner, a strategic position controlled by General William B. Taliaferro. The South Edisto River bridge below Morris Island becomes a Union objective to be used as a diversion and the 250 man South Carolina Colored Infantry and the 1st Connecticut Battery approach the bridge by boat. Sharpened timber spikes in the river block the way.
July 10, 1863 - Admiral Dahlgren bombards Confederate positions on Morris Island, suffering minor damage from shore fire. Another period of constant shelling begins at Charleston, South Carolina.
July 10, 1863 - The Mississippi state capital at Jackson, occupied by General Joseph E. Johnston's Confederates and the objective of William T. Sherman's occupation, is the site of heavy skirmishing.
July 11, 1863 - American minister to Britain Charles F. Adams admonishes Britain Foreign Secretary Earl John Russell for the continued building of ironclads and blockade-runners for the Confederacy.
July 11, 1863 - The implementation of new draft laws in New York cause a stir. Irish and other lower classes resent African Americans recently arrived from the south.
July 11, 1863 - General Gilmore's assault on Battery Wagner underestimates the number and strength of the defenses and the island geography funnels the attack through a narrow strip. Union forces are beaten back. A siege battery is established with 40 rifled cannons and mortars. A continuous barrage follows.
July 12, 1863 - General George Meade surveys the Confederate earthworks at Williamsport, Maryland and decides to throw up fortifications of his own.
July 12, 1863 - General John Morgan's party reaches Vernon, Indiana.
July 13, 1863 - General John M. Schofield, commanding in Missouri, arrests William McKee, editor of the "St. Louis Democrat" newspaper for alleged antiwar activity. Schofield is admonished by President Lincoln.
July 13, 1863 - In New York, violent anti draft riots erupt when the initial list of names are drawn for induction. A mob of some 50,000 Irish attacks the draft office and burn it. At least 1,000 people, principally African Americans, are killed over the next four days.
July 13, 1863 - At Williamsport, Maryland, General Lee deploys pontoon bridges over the Potomac River now that the water level begins to recede. General Meade orders cavalry reconnaissance of the Confederate position. Late in the day, the Army of Northern Virginia starts to move back into Virginia.
July 13, 1863 - General John Morgan's cavalry reaches Ohio. Martial law is declared in Cincinnati.
July 13, 1863 - Yazoo City, Mississippi is captured by Union forces.
July 13, 1863 - A Union brigade led by Colonels Nathan A.M. Dudley and Joseph S. Morgan moves down both banks of Bayou La Fourche, Louisiana. Confederate General Joseph Green strikes first with his 700 troops and the Union force retreats in confusion. Colonel Morgan panics. The disgraced Morgan is charged with being drunk and is discharged.
