In Virginia, the faculty of the University of Virginia convene and appoint one of their own to meet Union General Philip Sheridan, whose nearby forces are bearing down on the city of Charlottesville. Their hope is that the Federals will have mercy and spare the university. Yet not all are ready to give up the…
The month of February draws to a close with four major, strategic cities of the Deep South under Union control: Atlanta, Savannah, Columbia and Charleston. In addition, the port city of Wilmington, North Carolina is also occupied, leaving the Confederacy with no ports from which to sail naval vessels. With the Union coastal blockade now…
While only minor skirmishes occur this day, in Virginia Union General Ulysses S. Grant orders Major General Phil Sheridan‘s force of some 10,000 cavalry to move south of Winchester on a mission to destroy the Virginia Central Railroad and James River Canal. In addition, Sheridan is tasked with capturing Lynchburg, if possible. Indeed, with Sherman…