The Department of East Tennessee and West Virginia was a

Confederate Army The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting ...

command in the Trans-Allegheny Theater during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

. This department existed in two previous forms during the war.

Department of Southwestern Virginia

Organized May 8, 1861 for the mountainous region of southwest Virginia and present-day southern West Virginia. Commanders: *

William W. Loring William Wing Loring (December 4, 1818 – December 30, 1886) was an American soldier who served in the armies of the United States, the Confederacy, and Egypt. Biography Early life William was born in Wilmington, North Carolina, to Reuben a ...

- May 8, 1861 - October 16, 1862 *

John Echols John Echols (March 20, 1823 – May 24, 1896) was a general in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. Early and family life John Echols was born in Lynchburg, Virginia. He joined the Virginia Military Institute in 1840 ...

- October 16, 1862 - November 19, 1862 *

John Stuart Williams John Stuart Williams (July 10, 1818July 17, 1898) was a general in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War, and a Reconstruction era of the United States, postbellum Democratic Party (United States), Democratic United States Se ...

- November 19, 1862 - November 21, 1862

Trans-Allegheny Department

Renamed on November 25, 1862 and extended to the border of eastern

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

. On September 25, extended to include the areas of southwestern Virginia formerly encompassed by the Department of East Tennessee and forces east of Knoxville. On March 19, 1864, the area around

Saltville, Virginia Saltville is a town in Smyth and Washington counties in the U.S. state of Virginia. The population was 2,077 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Kingsport– Bristol (TN)– Bristol (VA) Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is a compone ...

was added to the department and, briefly from April 23 to May 2, the entirety of the Department of East Tennessee was added to the department. Commanders: * John Stuart Williams (temp.) - November 21, 1862 - December 10, 1862 * Samuel Jones - December 10, 1862 - February 25, 1864 *

John C. Breckinridge John Cabell Breckinridge (January 16, 1821 – May 17, 1875) was an American lawyer, politician, and soldier. He represented Kentucky in both houses of Congress and became the 14th and youngest-ever vice president of the United States. Serving ...

- February 25, 1864 - May 23, 1864 * William "Grumble" Jones - May 23, 1864 - May 31, 1864 *

George B. Crittenden George Bibb Crittenden (March 20, 1812 – November 27, 1880) was a career United States Army officer who served in the Black Hawk War, the Army of the Republic of Texas, and the Mexican–American War, and later resigned his commission to serv ...

(temp.) - May 31, 1864 - June 22, 1864 * John H. Morgan (temp.) - June 22, 1864 - August 22, 1864 * John Echols (temp.) - August 22, 1864 - September 17, 1864 * John C. Breckinridge - September 17, 1864 - September 27, 1864

Department of East Tennessee and Southwestern Virginia

Organized September 27, 1864. The

Valley District The Valley District was an organization of the Confederate States Army and subsection of the Department of Northern Virginia during the American Civil War, responsible for operations between the Blue Ridge Mountains and Allegheny Mountains of Vir ...

was added on April 9, 1865 from the Department of Northern Virginia. Commanders: * John C. Breckinridge - September 27, 1864 - February 20, 1865 * Jubal A. Early - February 20, 1865 - March 29, 1865 * John Echols - March 29, 1865 - April 19, 1865

Department of Tennessee and Georgia

Merged with the Department of Tennessee and Georgia on April 19, 1865.

Sources

*Eicher, John H., & Eicher, David J., Civil War High Commands, Stanford University Press, 2001, {{ISBN, 0-8047-3641-3.
East Tennessee and West Virginia