Fort Blakely

Joined
Aug 30, 2015
Location
Alabama
There have been allegations that Fort "Blakely was the Yankee Fort Pillow." In fact, “Remember Fort Pillow” was the battle cry during the assault at Fort Blakely on April 9, 1865. Below are some accounts of this occasion from both Confederate and Union sources.


“Blakely was the Yankee Fort Pillow. The place was stormed, the garrisoned shot down or bayoneted at their posts, others chased into the water and fired at, many being killed and wounded.”

Stephenson, Philip Daingerfield. The Civil War Memoir of Philip Daingerfield Stephenson, D.D. Edited Nathaniel Cheairs Hughes, Jr. Conway, AR: UCA Press, 1995, 368.Stephenson, Philip Daingerfield. The Civil War Memoir of Philip Daingerfield Stephenson, D.D. Edited Nathaniel Cheairs Hughes, Jr. Conway, AR: UCA Press, 1995, 368.


“…they heard a confederate officer behind the works exclaim, “Lay low and mow the ground – the damned n***ers are coming!” C.C. Andrews, History of the Campaign of Mobile (New York: London: Trubner & Co., 1867), 200.




“It was a lovely day. I remember that it was about three o’clock [incorrect time] in the afternoon when we heard the roar of the attack by the 10,000 negroes, then a silence, then the roar of the guns of our men. Then each young commander in his boat gave the order, “Give way strong!” steering direct for the shore. We expected to see our infantry running toward us and to hear the roar of the guns from our vessels firing over our and their heads; but something had happened “not on the program.” The commander of the fort (Liddell), it seemed, concluded to fire another round at the enemy, as the slaughter from the first had been so great; but those behind came over the bodies of their comrades in the ditch, and before anybody knew anything the Yanks and Rebs were so mixed up that the vessels dared not fire their guns. And then there came with a rush of our poor fellows, closely followed by the enemy. Our men jumped in the water. Many could not swim, and those who could were an easy mark for the negro soldiers, who fired at them from the bank and at us in the boats. We picked up all we could and quickly retired to our respective vessels, where we landed them and returned for more. I do not know how many were rescued; but many were drowned, some killed in the water and some on the shore, and the rest surrendered”Cameron, William Lochel (young officer attached to the CSS Nashville on the Blakely River), “The Battles Opposite Mobile,” in Confederate Veteran. Volume XXIII, Nashville, TN, 1915. 305-306


“It was stated that at first the negro troops cried, “Remember Fort Pillow!” and tried to shoot down our men, but white United States troops had arrived and rescued them.”

Cameron, William Lochel, “The Battles Opposite Mobile,” in Confederate Veteran. Volume XXIII, Nashville, TN, 1915. 306


“ …were soon piling over the parapet and the rebels confronting us threw down their arms. The prisoners captured amounted to 21 officers and 200 men - a small number owing to the fact when we entered many of the enemy, fearing the conduct of my troops ran over to where the white troops were entering.”

General Hawkins on the assault on Blakely. United States War Department, The War of Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume XLIX, Part I (Washington, D.C., Government Printing Office 1897) 1:3532, 287.


“As they got close to the works some of the confederates, dreading to fall into their hands (blacks), ran off to surrender to the white troops.” In Drew’s front, several of the confederates, with muskets, remained outside of the works, refused to surrender, and maintained a cool and desperate struggle till they fell. C.C. Andrews, History of the Campaign of Mobile (New York: London: Trubner & Co., 1867), 200.


“…the negro troops rushed over our works, brandishing their guns in great rage, accusing us of having fired upon after we had surrendered, shooting down Captain Lanier, inspector general of the Mississippi brigade, and clubbing “Long” Smith, of Tarrant’s Battery. It looked as though we were to be butchered in cold blood, so I passed word along our line that if another man was shot I seize a musket, as would every man of us, and we die fighting to the last. The officers of the negroes, however, succeeded in getting control of them, and there were no more outrages.”

Tarrant, E.W. “The Siege and Capture of Fort Blakely.” Confederate Veteran, S.A. Cunningham Editor, Volume XXIII, Nashville, TN 1915. 457-458.


“Many of the enemy garrisoning these works threw down their arms and ran toward their right to the white troops to avoid capture by the colored soldiers fearing violence after surrender. All my officers and men behaved splendidly.” WM A PILE - Brigadier General Commanding. United States War Department, The War of Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume XLIX, Part I (Washington, D.C., Government Printing Office 1897) 1:3532, 289-290.


“The colored troops so worked up by the time they got in the fort that their officers couldn’t control them. They set up yell, Remember Fort Pillow and were determined to do as the rebels had done with the colored troops at Fort Pillow. Kill them, surrender or no surrender! They had to bring up a division of white troops to stop them…The rebels were very indignant at being subjected to such a disgrace as they considered it and they seemed to be terable afraid of the darkeys I supposed they knew that the darkeys didn’t owe them much sympathy. Some of them discovered some of their old slaves among the colored soldiers and wanted to be friendly with them. I supposed they thought it was policy under the circumstances and they would come up to them and call them by name and offer to shake hands. But Sam and Tom, etc. say stand back dar massa, Ise massa now.

Wiley, William. The Civil War Diary of a Common Soldier, William Wiley of the 77th Illinois Infantry. Terrence J. Winschel Editor, Baton Rouge, La: Louisiana State University Press, 2001. 150-151


“We were sent to Gen. Steele’s Corps, around to the right, and supported the colored troops.”


“…with the cry, “Give them hell, boys! Remember Fort Pillow!” and many a Johnny had to nip the dust. Lots of them ran into the bay and were drowned or shot by the colored troops. We tried to stop the killing of the rebels, but had to stand back, for the colored troops had blood in their eyes and meant to have revenge for the murder of their comrades at Fort Pillow.”

Samuel P. Combs, Co. G, 29th Iowa, Grant City, Mo. The National Tribune (Washington, DC). “A Sharpshooter’s Story.” 15 December 1887, 3.



After the Battle was over:

"a colored soldier of the Fiftieth regiment found his former young master among the prisoners. They appeared happy to meet, and drank from the same canteen." Some of the Louisiana [USCT] made an attack on the prisoners and were with difficulty restrained from injuring them. The latter almost invited attack by manifesting an unreasonable dread of the colored soliders; huddling together in heaps, and acting as if the captors were wild beasts. Capt. Norwood and Lieut. Gleason of the Sixty-eighth were wounded, the latter mortally, in their efforts to save the prisoners."

C.C.Andrews, History of the Campaign of Mobile (New York: London: Trubner & Co., 1867), 201.
 
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