1862-1863 CONFEDERATE GENERAL DANIEL RUGGLES—THREE-DOCUMENT CIVIL WAR ARCHIVE—UNION GUNBOATS, CORINTH, SHILOH CAMPAIGN AND CONSCRIPTION
An important three-document Confederate military archive associated with Brigadier General Daniel Ruggles, a Massachusetts-born West Point graduate who became one of the Confederacy’s most notable division commanders and organized the massive artillery concentration known as “Ruggles’s Battery” at the Battle of Shiloh.
The centerpiece is a two-page report signed by Ruggles at Corinth, Mississippi, February 22, 1862, only six days after the fall of Fort Donelson and approximately six weeks before Shiloh.
Written from the “Head Quarters C.S. Forces, Corinth,” the report concerns Ruggles’s command along the strategically vital Memphis & Charleston Railroad. He discusses reports of enemy gunboats moving on the Tennessee River, intelligence from the Florence and Tuscumbia region, Confederate troop dispositions and the immediate necessity of preparing to meet the Federal advance.
The report closes with Ruggles’s signed endorsement:
“Very respectfully,
Your obt. Servt.,
Daniel Ruggles
Brig. General Comdg.”
Corinth was one of the most important transportation centers in the Western Theater. Its intersecting railroads enabled Confederate forces to assemble there before advancing against General Ulysses S. Grant at Shiloh on April 6, 1862.
Also included is a signed military note dated March 19, 1862, written only eighteen days before Shiloh. It reports that the enemy had “retired to the river” and that Confederate forces were holding their position pending further orders. The note is signed “Daniel Ruggles, Comdg.”
The third document is an original South-Western Telegraph Company telegram sent from Okolona, Mississippi, on July 25, 1863, only weeks after the fall of Vicksburg. Addressed to Captain L. D. Sandridge, it orders the revocation of instructions to send men who refused to enroll “ignominiously beyond the trenches” and demands an immediate answer. The telegram is transmitted in Ruggles’s name as brigadier general. The telegraphic signature is believed to have been entered by the receiving operator rather than personally signed by Ruggles.
Together, the documents trace two critical phases of the war in Mississippi: the concentration of Confederate forces before Shiloh and the desperate effort to enforce military enrollment after Vicksburg.
Condition: Expected wartime folds, toning, staining and edge wear; several small holes and areas of faded writing; manuscript corrections and cancellations; old mounting hinges and tape remnants on the reverses. The telegraph form has staining and evidence of previous mounting. Ruggles’s principal signature remains identifiable. Please consult all photographs.
An unusually substantive Confederate archive combining a pre-Shiloh report from Corinth, enemy gunboat intelligence, railroad-defense content, a second signed field communication and a rare Confederate telegraph concerning conscription.
More info...
Ruggles was a Massachusetts-born West Point graduate who resigned from the United States Army and joined the Confederacy. He is best remembered for commanding a division at the Battle of Shiloh, where the enormous artillery concentration known as “Ruggles’s Battery” helped break the Union position at the Hornets’ Nest.
1. Two-page report signed by Daniel Ruggles
Corinth, Mississippi, February 22, 1862
Written from:
“Head Quarters C.S. Forces, Corinth, Miss.”
This report concerns Ruggles’s command of Confederate forces protecting the strategically critical Memphis & Charleston Railroad and movements of Union gunboats on the Tennessee River.
Ruggles reports that enemy gunboats had moved upriver and later returned downriver. He discusses the immediate necessity of meeting the Union advance, the collection of intelligence, Confederate units near Florence and Tuscumbia, and the strength and probable intentions of Federal forces.
The report closes:
“Very respectfully,
Your obt. Servt.,
Daniel Ruggles
Brig. General Comdg.”
This was written during an exceptionally important moment. Fort Donelson had fallen only six days earlier, forcing Confederate forces out of much of Tennessee. Corinth’s intersecting railroads consequently became the principal concentration point for the Confederate army that fought at Shiloh on April 6–7, 1862.
2. Military field note signed by Ruggles
March 19, 1862
This short signed communication reports information received from a general officer concerning the enemy:
“Genl. [—] writes ‘enemy retired to the river.’ Holding same position still further orders. Recd. and filed in Head Quarters Cavalry.”
Signed:
“Daniel Ruggles
Comdg.”
Although brief, it was written only eighteen days before the Battle of Shiloh, while Confederate commanders were actively monitoring Union movements in northern Mississippi and Tennessee.
3. Confederate South-Western Telegraph Company message
Okolona, Mississippi, July 25, 1863
A wartime telegram sent from Okolona to Captain L. D. Sandridge, reading:
“Revoke that portion of your letter to the Sheriff sending those who do not enroll ignominiously beyond the trenches. Answer immediately.
Danl Ruggles
Brig Genl”
A manuscript notation adds:
“Had request answer before he starts. Sadler.”
The reverse contains additional contemporary military docketing and what appears to be a working draft concerning conscription enforcement. It references the sheriff and directs that individuals who failed or refused to enroll be taken beyond Confederate lines.
The telegram dates from only three weeks after the fall of Vicksburg, when Confederate authorities in Mississippi were struggling to rebuild depleted forces and enforce conscription.
Importantly, the name “Danl Ruggles” on the telegram is probably a telegraphic operator’s transcription, not Ruggles’s personally written signature. The two 1862 communications, however, appear to carry genuine ink signatures or signed endorsements by Ruggles.
Historical significance
The strongest document is the February 22, 1862 report. It was written during the rapidly developing Fort Donelson–Corinth–Shiloh campaign and specifically addresses:
- Union gunboats on the Tennessee River
- Confederate intelligence gathering
- Operations near Florence and Tuscumbia
- Defense of the Memphis & Charleston Railroad
- The concentration of Confederate forces at Corinth
Corinth was strategically essential because the Memphis & Charleston and Mobile & Ohio railroads crossed there. The Confederate army assembled at Corinth before advancing against Grant at Shiloh. The National Park Service identifies Ruggles as a commander of forces at both Corinth and Shiloh. National Park Service biography
The July 1863 telegram adds a different but equally revealing dimension: the growing Confederate manpower crisis following Vicksburg and the increasingly coercive enforcement of military enrollment.
Condition
The documents exhibit expected folds, toning, stains, edge wear, occasional ink erosion and manuscript corrections. Several sheets have old mounting hinges or tape remnants on their reverses. The two-page February report has small punctures and some writing is pale or difficult to decipher. The March note is considerably faded. The telegraph form is generally well preserved, with staining and a reinforced or mounted reverse.
The principal Daniel Ruggles signature on the February 1862 report remains identifiable. All items should be sold with the condition fully illustrated and without removing the old mounting material.
An important three-document Confederate military archive associated with Brigadier General Daniel Ruggles, a Massachusetts-born West Point graduate who became one of the Confederacy’s most notable division commanders and organized the massive artillery concentration known as “Ruggles’s Battery” at the Battle of Shiloh.
The centerpiece is a two-page report signed by Ruggles at Corinth, Mississippi, February 22, 1862, only six days after the fall of Fort Donelson and approximately six weeks before Shiloh.
Written from the “Head Quarters C.S. Forces, Corinth,” the report concerns Ruggles’s command along the strategically vital Memphis & Charleston Railroad. He discusses reports of enemy gunboats moving on the Tennessee River, intelligence from the Florence and Tuscumbia region, Confederate troop dispositions and the immediate necessity of preparing to meet the Federal advance.
The report closes with Ruggles’s signed endorsement:
“Very respectfully,
Your obt. Servt.,
Daniel Ruggles
Brig. General Comdg.”
Corinth was one of the most important transportation centers in the Western Theater. Its intersecting railroads enabled Confederate forces to assemble there before advancing against General Ulysses S. Grant at Shiloh on April 6, 1862.
Also included is a signed military note dated March 19, 1862, written only eighteen days before Shiloh. It reports that the enemy had “retired to the river” and that Confederate forces were holding their position pending further orders. The note is signed “Daniel Ruggles, Comdg.”
The third document is an original South-Western Telegraph Company telegram sent from Okolona, Mississippi, on July 25, 1863, only weeks after the fall of Vicksburg. Addressed to Captain L. D. Sandridge, it orders the revocation of instructions to send men who refused to enroll “ignominiously beyond the trenches” and demands an immediate answer. The telegram is transmitted in Ruggles’s name as brigadier general. The telegraphic signature is believed to have been entered by the receiving operator rather than personally signed by Ruggles.
Together, the documents trace two critical phases of the war in Mississippi: the concentration of Confederate forces before Shiloh and the desperate effort to enforce military enrollment after Vicksburg.
Condition: Expected wartime folds, toning, staining and edge wear; several small holes and areas of faded writing; manuscript corrections and cancellations; old mounting hinges and tape remnants on the reverses. The telegraph form has staining and evidence of previous mounting. Ruggles’s principal signature remains identifiable. Please consult all photographs.
An unusually substantive Confederate archive combining a pre-Shiloh report from Corinth, enemy gunboat intelligence, railroad-defense content, a second signed field communication and a rare Confederate telegraph concerning conscription.
More info...
Ruggles was a Massachusetts-born West Point graduate who resigned from the United States Army and joined the Confederacy. He is best remembered for commanding a division at the Battle of Shiloh, where the enormous artillery concentration known as “Ruggles’s Battery” helped break the Union position at the Hornets’ Nest.
1. Two-page report signed by Daniel Ruggles
Corinth, Mississippi, February 22, 1862
Written from:
“Head Quarters C.S. Forces, Corinth, Miss.”
This report concerns Ruggles’s command of Confederate forces protecting the strategically critical Memphis & Charleston Railroad and movements of Union gunboats on the Tennessee River.
Ruggles reports that enemy gunboats had moved upriver and later returned downriver. He discusses the immediate necessity of meeting the Union advance, the collection of intelligence, Confederate units near Florence and Tuscumbia, and the strength and probable intentions of Federal forces.
The report closes:
“Very respectfully,
Your obt. Servt.,
Daniel Ruggles
Brig. General Comdg.”
This was written during an exceptionally important moment. Fort Donelson had fallen only six days earlier, forcing Confederate forces out of much of Tennessee. Corinth’s intersecting railroads consequently became the principal concentration point for the Confederate army that fought at Shiloh on April 6–7, 1862.
2. Military field note signed by Ruggles
March 19, 1862
This short signed communication reports information received from a general officer concerning the enemy:
“Genl. [—] writes ‘enemy retired to the river.’ Holding same position still further orders. Recd. and filed in Head Quarters Cavalry.”
Signed:
“Daniel Ruggles
Comdg.”
Although brief, it was written only eighteen days before the Battle of Shiloh, while Confederate commanders were actively monitoring Union movements in northern Mississippi and Tennessee.
3. Confederate South-Western Telegraph Company message
Okolona, Mississippi, July 25, 1863
A wartime telegram sent from Okolona to Captain L. D. Sandridge, reading:
“Revoke that portion of your letter to the Sheriff sending those who do not enroll ignominiously beyond the trenches. Answer immediately.
Danl Ruggles
Brig Genl”
A manuscript notation adds:
“Had request answer before he starts. Sadler.”
The reverse contains additional contemporary military docketing and what appears to be a working draft concerning conscription enforcement. It references the sheriff and directs that individuals who failed or refused to enroll be taken beyond Confederate lines.
The telegram dates from only three weeks after the fall of Vicksburg, when Confederate authorities in Mississippi were struggling to rebuild depleted forces and enforce conscription.
Importantly, the name “Danl Ruggles” on the telegram is probably a telegraphic operator’s transcription, not Ruggles’s personally written signature. The two 1862 communications, however, appear to carry genuine ink signatures or signed endorsements by Ruggles.
Historical significance
The strongest document is the February 22, 1862 report. It was written during the rapidly developing Fort Donelson–Corinth–Shiloh campaign and specifically addresses:
- Union gunboats on the Tennessee River
- Confederate intelligence gathering
- Operations near Florence and Tuscumbia
- Defense of the Memphis & Charleston Railroad
- The concentration of Confederate forces at Corinth
Corinth was strategically essential because the Memphis & Charleston and Mobile & Ohio railroads crossed there. The Confederate army assembled at Corinth before advancing against Grant at Shiloh. The National Park Service identifies Ruggles as a commander of forces at both Corinth and Shiloh. National Park Service biography
The July 1863 telegram adds a different but equally revealing dimension: the growing Confederate manpower crisis following Vicksburg and the increasingly coercive enforcement of military enrollment.
Condition
The documents exhibit expected folds, toning, stains, edge wear, occasional ink erosion and manuscript corrections. Several sheets have old mounting hinges or tape remnants on their reverses. The two-page February report has small punctures and some writing is pale or difficult to decipher. The March note is considerably faded. The telegraph form is generally well preserved, with staining and a reinforced or mounted reverse.
The principal Daniel Ruggles signature on the February 1862 report remains identifiable. All items should be sold with the condition fully illustrated and without removing the old mounting material.
