MS -- Raymond:
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- Specific picture descriptions: Photos above with "i" icons next to the bracketed sequence numbers (e.g. "[1] ") are described as follows:
- RAY_070130_036.JPG: Raymond Courthouse
- RAY_070130_056.JPG: St. Marks Episcopal Church, 1854. The church was organized in 1837 and still is an active church. It was used as a hospital after the Battle of Raymond for Union wounded as the courthouse was full of Confederate casualties. Blood stains can still be seen on the floor of the sanctuary.
- RAY_070130_081.JPG: Raymond Courthouse:
Built 1857-9, by the famous Weldon brothers with skilled slave labor crew. After the Battle of Raymond, fought 1-1/4 mile S.W. of here, May 12, 1863, this building served as a Confederate hospital.
- RAY_070130_089.JPG: Confederate cavalry position
- RAY_070130_127.JPG: Gregg's Battle Plan:
Confederate Brig. Gen. John Gregg arrived in Raymond on May 11 with orders from Pemberton to contain the right flank of the Federal army as it advanced north and determine where it was heading. Thinking he faced a force only half the size of his, the combative Gregg decided to attack. To insure victory, Gregg devised an ambush in which one regiment would stop the Federal advance at Fourteenmile Creek while two other regiments would cross over from the Gallatin Road and push the Federals against a bend in the deep creek bed of Fourteenmile Creek.
All in all, it was a good plan, except that Gregg's troops did not face an inferior force. Without sufficient cavalry to act as scouts, Gregg simply did not know how many Union soldiers were marching up the road.
- RAY_070130_135.JPG: The Battle of Raymond as a Pivotal Point in the Vicksburg Campaign:
General Grant successfully transferred his army onto the east side of the Mississippi River and was marching northeast from Port Gibson to attack Vicksburg from the east. His 48,000 men were spread out along several roads headed for a stretch of the Southern Railroad of Mississippi between Edwards and Clinton. Grant's objective was simple: destroy the railroad -- Vicksburg's lifeline -- and then turn on Lt. Gen. John C. Pemberton and Vicksburg.
The far right, or eastern flank of Grant's army was Maj. Gen. James B. McPherson's XVII Corps. At 3:30 in the morning on May 12, 1863, these 12,000 soldiers set out on their nine-mile march from Roach's plantation to Raymond, where they hoped to find drinking water and a Confederate commissary.
Meanwhile, Confederate Brig. Gen. John Gregg arrived in Raymond on May 11, after an arduous eight-day, two-hundred mile journey and, without accurate information, assumed that the Federal column coming up the Utica Road toward Raymond was only a brigade with perhaps 1,600 men. He positioned his troops south of Raymond to intercept and capture this isolated wing of Grant's army.
The boldness of John Gregg's actions at Raymond on May 12, 1863, convinced Grant that the Confederate forces in the Jackson vicinity had grown too large to be ignored. Thinking he was now caught between two Confederate armies, Grant audaciously split his forces, he protected the rear of his army with one corps and with the other two attacked Jackson, dispersing one Confederate army and destroying the two railroads that intersected there.
- RAY_070130_139.JPG: This Walking Trail:
While this trail covers only a portion of the battlefield, it includes the action at the bridge across Fourteenmile Creek. The terrain provides clues as to why the battle unfolded as it did. Research indicates that weather conditions, erroneous assumptions and misinformation dramatically affected the course of the battle. ....
- RAY_070130_143.JPG: The Little J Railroad:
Two historic transportation routes are incorporated along this walking trail.
The concrete highway, ca. 1927, is generally the same route used by the Union army marching toward Raymond in may 1863. The bridge and highway, however, are more elevated and possibly a few feet to the west of the earlier roadway.
Another portion of the trail is the abandoned roadbed of the "Little J" railroad. Completed in 1882 between Natchez and Jackson, the Natchez, Jackson, and Columbus Railroad invigorated small towns and created new ones along its route. As was typical of successful railroads of the day, it was purchased in 1890 by a larger railroad company, the Louisville, New Orleans, and Texas Railroad, which was purchased in 1892 by the Yazoo and Mississippi Valley Railroad, a subsidiary of the Illinois Central Railroad. It was always known locally, however, as the "Little J" because it was the only narrow-gauge ("little") railroad that entered Jackson ("J") when it was built.
- RAY_070130_151.JPG: Off in the distance, at the treeline is the Fourteenmile Creek. Federal forces crossed along a bridge that is on the far left side of it.
- RAY_070130_160.JPG: The Campaign Turns East:
By late afternoon, as Brig. Gen. John Gregg, his officers, and soldiers realized they were seriously outnumbered, they managed to extricate themselves from the fight and withdraw through Raymond toward Jackson.
From here you can see the road that follows the historic route west (left) to Dillon's plantation, seven miles away. There, Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant and Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman were camped and heard the sounds of battle coming from Raymond. When the reports came in, Grant realized he was between two Confederate armies and immediately determined to attack Jackson before advancing on Vicksburg.
- RAY_070130_170.JPG: This route went south to the plantation where Grant and Sherman were camped.
- RAY_070130_177.JPG: Fourteenmile Creek
- RAY_070130_182.JPG: Looking north from Fourteenmile Creek
- RAY_070130_184.JPG: A "Soldiers Battle" in the Underbrush:
Upstream, to your left, Confederate and Union soldiers fought through the creek's thick underbrush. Here at the far right of the Confederate line, Col. Hiram Granbury's 7th Texas regiment, CSA, charged into the thickets but were confronted by Ohio and Illinois troops, USA, who had already reached the deep-banked creek and occupied it as a fortification. Without any hope of dislodging entrenched troops, the Texans' charge broke and hand-to-hand fighting commenced.
Confusion Compounded:
The haze in this valley on that Tuesday and the dense cover of underbrush prevented the commanders from seeing what was happening. This breakdown in communication is an example of a "soldiers' battle" where the commanders lose control and field officers or even individual soldiers take charge of their own actions.
- RAY_070130_198.JPG: Confederate position looking across Fourteenmile Creek toward the approaching Union line.
- RAY_070130_207.JPG: McPherson's Deployment:
Marching north toward Raymond on the Utica Road, the vanguard of Logan's Union army was met by gunfire as the soldiers approached the Fourteenmile Creek bridge. Although confident that he outnumbered the enemy, Maj. Gen. James McPherson cautiously committed his troops to the battle. As his troops came over the ridge behind you and down into the bottomland, they spread out in a battle line in the freshly plowed fields facing Fourteenmile Creek.
Windless and oppressive weather that day allowed the dust and gun smoke to linger in the air in this valley, preventing the commanders from clearly seeing what was happening on the battlefield.
One thing was certain, however. McPherson had more men to commit to the battle than they had room in which to maneuver. And when the Confederates coming from the Gallatin Road made it across the creek, they suddenly found themselves confronted by farm more Federals than they expected.
- RAY_070130_214.JPG: DeGolyer's Battery and the Artist's Eye:
As soon as the fighting broke out that morning, six guns of the 8th Michigan Light Artillery, marching near the front of the column, unlimbered and "went into battery" about a hundred yards from the bridge. They returned fire on the Confederate artillery about a thousand yards down the road, approximately where the water tower is seen today.
Realizing his cannon could be captured by enemy troops breaking out of the wooded undergrowth along the creek, DeGolyer moved back to a slight ridge about a hundred yards south of here. Eventually, twenty-two cannon were arrayed to support the infantry.
- RAY_070130_223.JPG: Union artillery position facing the Confederates. The Confederate artillery was roughly where the water tower is.
- RAY_070130_250.JPG: Close-up of a sign showing the driving tour around here.
- RAY_070130_255.JPG: Close-up of the same map. I have no idea what happened to the text when it started generating the gibberish at the top.
- RAY_070130_273.JPG: Artillery Ridge: Union brigades continued to arrive on the field and deployed on both sides of the Utica Road, massing 22 pieces of artillery along the ridge to support the infantry. They pushed forward at 1:30pm and drove the Confederates back across Fourteenmile Creek. The fighting was confused because neither commander knew the location of his units. Union strength finally broke the Confederate right flank along the Utica Road and the battle ended with Gregg's retreat through Raymond and out the Jackson Road, where they bivouacked for the night near Snake Creek. McPherson's troops remained at the tiny village of Raymond. Major General Grant made his headquarters at Waverly, the home of Major John Peyton.
- RAY_070130_281.JPG: Union forces swept over these fields seeking to flank the Confederates along Fourteenmile Creek.
- RAY_070130_307.JPG: Belcher House, 1855. Built in the Greek Revival style, it originally had an iron fence surrounding it. This was torn up for scrap during the Civil War and only a small portion remains.
- RAY_070130_319.JPG: Confederate Cemetery, 1863: There are 132 graves of soldiers, 72 of which are from one battle, the Battle of Raymond. The Sons of the Confederate Veterans located and marked 108 of these graves. The State Department of Archives has noted a very unusual monument in the cemetery marked with five flags representing the five counties that settled this part of the country. In 1980, headstones with Confederate names replaced earlier markers that read "Unknown Confederate Soldier" for the 108.
- RAY_070908_002.JPG: The Battle Unfolds vantage point.
Just to the right, you can see Gallatin Road (modern Dry Grove Road) where Confederate regiments were posted to strike the Union right and rear as part of Confederate General Gregg's trap. It is known as McGavock's Ridge since Col. Randall McGavock, CSA, a former mayor of Nashville, Tennessee, was killed in that action.
The paved road is concrete State Highway 18. It follows the route of the Union army toward Raymond from its overnight encampment around Roach's plantation, nine miles south.
- RAY_070908_004.JPG: A Battle Unfolds:
From this vantage point, Maj. Gen. James McPherson, USA, should have been able to watch the unfolding of the battle, but the smoke and dust clouds hung motionless near the ground all day. Nevertheless, he was able to see a skirmish line along the creek where it crossed under the bridge, the Confederate battle line beyond, and additional forces on the Gallatin Road to the right.
- RAY_070908_025.JPG: This is a property they're working to protect from encroachment
- RAY_070908_053.JPG: Up the road to the right, you can see the other tour bus parked at the overlook.
- RAY_070908_058.JPG: Raymond Courthouse plaque on the Confederate memorial
- RAY_070908_062.JPG: The Confederate memorial says:
We of the South remember,
We of the South revere.
- RAY_070908_065.JPG: The ranger said the steps were anachronisms and were used to prevent horses from leaving the fenced-in courtyard.
- RAY_070908_067.JPG: The veranda of the courthouse
- RAY_070908_077.JPG: The ranger said this was an operating room during the war. The table was used as an operating table.
- RAY_070908_140.JPG: Blood stains on the church floor
- Wikipedia Description: Battle of Raymond
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Battle of Raymond was fought on May 12, 1863, near Raymond, Mississippi, during the American Civil War. The bitter fight pitted Union Army elements of General Ulysses S. Grant's Army of the Tennessee against garrison forces of General John C. Pemberton's Confederate Department of the Mississippi and East Louisiana in a losing bid to prevent the Federal troops from reaching the Southern Railroad and isolating Vicksburg, Mississippi, from reinforcement and resupply. The ranking Confederate General, John Gregg (CSA), attempted to achieve tactical surprise and rout the Federal force. He was in turn tactically surprised and routed from the field by Federal units under the command of General James B. McPherson. The Union casualties at Raymond comprised 68 killed, 341 wounded, and 37 missing. The Confederate casualties were nearly double: 100 killed, 305 wounded, and 415 captured.
The small battle had an inordinately large impact on the Vicksburg Campaign. Union interdiction of the railroad interrupted Pemberton's attempt to further consolidate his forces and prevented him from linking up with his commanding officer, Joseph E. Johnston. As a result, Pemberton was limited to three options: abandon Vicksburg, withdraw into Fortress Vicksburg and accept a siege, or fight a meeting engagement against a superior force. Facing conflicting orders from his superiors and open insurrection from his subordinates, Pemberton would be forced into the latter choice on May 16, 1863, at the Battle of Champion Hill.
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