Despite defiance mere days earlier, Confederate forces evacuate from Savannah today, leaving the city to Sherman‘s army.
An official Confederate report of the evacuation notes: “The troops from the western lines were quietly withdrawn in the order and at the hours indicated in the circulars issued by the lieutenant general for the evacuation of the city. No confusion prevailed, and the movement was executed silently and in good order. Guns were spiked, and ammunition destroyed as far as this could conveniently be done without attracting the notice of the enemy in our immediate front. To conceal the movement, occasional firing was kept up until the latest moment.”
The Federals prepare to enter the city on the morrow.
Nearby is Goodman Brown,an African American Baptist who was born as a free black on July 24, 1840 in Surry County, Virginia. On November 1, 1862 Brown enlisted in the U.S. Navy as a cabin boy, serving aboard the USS Maratanza.
Today, even as Confederate forces evacuate Savannah, he is discharged from the Navy near the city.
Following the war, Brown returns to Surry County and soon becomes a community leader working among freedmen.
Sources: “Sherman Arrives in Front of Savannah,” History.com (link); “Goodman Brown, 1840-1929,” Encyclopedia Virginia (link)
