James Skidmore, born on April 12, 1830 in Hardy County, West Virginia, today enlists in the Fifty-First Illinois. Though a relatively young 31 years of age, Skidmore’s life to this point has been filled with sorrow. He married Rebecca C. McBee in Hardy County in 1852. In 1856 the couple moved, with their three children,…
Freedom finally arrives today for some African slaves, including many Baptists, of Port Royal, South Carolina. Following a four-day coastal siege held in check by stormy weather, a Union Navy fleet accompanied by soldiers overwhelms the meager Confederate defense, sending Confederate soldiers and white civilians fleeing inland and/or northward to Charleston. The “Day of the…
On October 21, the 20th Illinois, fighting alongside other Union regiments, had defeated Missouri State Guard Brig. Gen. M. Jeff Thompson’s 1500-man force in the Battle of Fredericktown, Missouri. A minor battle, the victory was nonetheless welcome for the United States, which is struggling to retain control of Missouri and, in the larger picture, has…