The Department of Virginia and North Carolina was a

United States Military The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is the ...

department encompassing

Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

-occupied territory in the

Confederate States The Confederate States of America (CSA), commonly referred to as the Confederate States or the Confederacy was an unrecognized breakaway republic in the Southern United States that existed from February 8, 1861, to May 9, 1865. The Confeder ...

during the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

. In 1863 it was formed by the merging of two previously existing departments: the Department of Virginia and the Department of North Carolina. In 1865 the two departments were once again separated.

Department of Virginia

1861

The Department of Virginia was created on May 22, 1861, to include any areas within a 60-mile radius of

Fort Monroe Fort Monroe, managed by partnership between the Fort Monroe Authority for the Commonwealth of Virginia, the National Park Service as the Fort Monroe National Monument, and the City of Hampton, is a former military installation in Hampton, Virgi ...

and any sections of North Carolina and South Carolina occupied by the Union Army. Major General Benjamin F. Butler was appointed its first commander. Early battles undertaken by troops from this department under General Butler included actions at Big Bethel and Hatteras Inlent. Early on the department was also known as the Department of Southeastern Virginia. On January 7, 1862, the areas of North Carolina were detached to form the

Department of North Carolina The Department of Virginia and North Carolina was a United States Military department encompassing Union-occupied territory in the Confederate States during the Civil War. In 1863 it was formed by the merging of two previously existing departme ...

. On June 1, 1862, the area south of the

Rappahannock River The Rappahannock River is a river in eastern Virginia, in the United States, approximately in length.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 1, 2011 It traverses the entir ...

and east of the Fredericksburg-Richmond-Petersburg-Weldon Railroad were added to the department. From June 26, 1862, to September 12, 1862, John Pope's

Army of Virginia The Army of Virginia was organized as a major unit of the Union Army and operated briefly and unsuccessfully in 1862 in the American Civil War. It should not be confused with its principal opponent, the Confederate Army of ''Northern'' Virginia ...

operated within the department. On July 15, 1863, the Dept. of Virginia was merged with the Dept. of North Carolina.

1865

On January 18, 1865, the Department of Virginia was re-created to consist of the area within 60 miles of Fort Monroe, the areas south of the

and east of the Fredericksburg-Richmond-Petersburg-Weldon Railroad. On April 19, 1865, much of the rest of Virginia was added, excluding the

Shenandoah Valley The Shenandoah Valley () is a geographic valley and cultural region of western Virginia and the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia. The valley is bounded to the east by the Blue Ridge Mountains, to the west by the eastern front of the Ridge- ...

. From January 18, 1865, to August 1, 1865, the

Army of the James The Army of the James was a Union Army that was composed of units from the Department of Virginia and North Carolina and served along the James River (Virginia), James River during the final operations of the American Civil War in Virginia. Histor ...

consisted of troops from this department which were the first to enter the fallen capital city of

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...

Commanders

1861
Benjamin F. Butler (May 22, 1861 – August 9, 1861)
John E. Wool (August 9, 1861 – June 2, 1862)

George B. McClellan George Brinton McClellan (December 3, 1826 – October 29, 1885) was an American soldier, Civil War Union general, civil engineer, railroad executive, and politician who served as the 24th governor of New Jersey. A graduate of West Point, McCl ...

(appointed June 1, 1862 – never assumed command)

John Adams Dix John Adams Dix (July 24, 1798 – April 21, 1879) was an American politician and military officer who was Secretary of the Treasury, Governor of New York and Union major general during the Civil War. He was notable for arresting the pro-Souther ...

(June 2, 1862 – April 6, 1863)
Erasmus D. Keyes (April 6, 1863 – April 14, 1863)

(April 14, 1863 – July 15, 1863)
1865
E.O.C. Ord (January 18, 1865 – June 14, 1865)

Henry W. Halleck Henry Wager Halleck (January 16, 1815 – January 9, 1872) was a senior United States Army officer, scholar, and lawyer. A noted expert in military studies, he was known by a nickname that became derogatory: "Old Brains". He was an important par ...

(appointed April 16, 1865, but revoked April 19, 1865)

Alfred H. Terry Alfred Howe Terry (November 10, 1827 – December 16, 1890) was a Union army, Union Major general (United States), general in the American Civil War and the military commander of the Dakota Territory from 1866 to 1869, and again from 1872 to 18 ...

(June 14, 1865 – August 6, 1866)

Posts in the Department of Virginia

Fort Monroe, VA Fort Monroe, managed by partnership between the Fort Monroe Authority for the Commonwealth of Virginia, the National Park Service as the Fort Monroe National Monument, and the City of Hampton, is a former military installation in Hampton, Virgi ...

, 1861–65,

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

* Fort Calhoun, Virginia, 1861–62, renamed Fort Wool, Virginia, 1862–65, Norfolk * Fort Norfolk, VA, 1862–65, Norfolk *

Norfolk Military Prison, VA Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North ...

, 1862–63, Norfolk *

Camp Naglee Camp may refer to: Outdoor accommodation and recreation * Campsite or campground, a recreational outdoor sleeping and eating site * a temporary settlement for nomads * Camp, a term used in New England, Northern Ontario and New Brunswick to descri ...

, 1862–1864, Norfolk *

Post at Newport News, VA Post or POST commonly refers to: *Mail, the postal system, especially in Commonwealth of Nations countries ** An Post, the Irish national postal service **Canada Post, Canadian postal service **Deutsche Post, German postal service ** Iraqi Post, I ...

, 1863–65

Newport News Newport News () is an independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. At the 2020 census, the population was 186,247. Located in the Hampton Roads region, it is the 5th most populous city in Virginia and 140th most populous city in the Uni ...

Civil War Defenses of Williamsburg Civil may refer to: * Civic virtue, or civility *Civil action, or lawsuit * Civil affairs *Civil and political rights * Civil disobedience *Civil engineering * Civil (journalism), a platform for independent journalism *Civilian, someone not a m ...

, 1862–1865, Williamsburg * Burwell's Landing Batteries, 1862, Kingsmill-on-the-James *

Defenses of Jamestown Island Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense industr ...

, 1862, 1863–1865,

Jamestown, Virginia The Jamestown settlement in the Colony of Virginia was the first permanent English settlement in the Americas. It was located on the northeast bank of the James (Powhatan) River about southwest of the center of modern Williamsburg. It was ...

* Swann's Point Battery, 1862, 1863–1865, north of Surry, Virginia

Department of North Carolina

1862

The Department of North Carolina was created on January 7, 1862, to include the areas of North Carolina occupied by Union forces. These areas were formerly part of the Department of Virginia. Brigadier General

Ambrose E. Burnside Ambrose Everett Burnside (May 23, 1824 – September 13, 1881) was an American army officer and politician who became a senior Union general in the Civil War and three times Governor of Rhode Island, as well as being a successful inventor ...

was the department's first commander. Early territories captured by Burnside's Expeditionary Force included

Roanoke Island Roanoke Island () is an island in Dare County, North Carolina, Dare County, bordered by the Outer Banks of North Carolina, United States. It was named after the historical Roanoke (tribe), Roanoke, a Carolina Algonquian people who inhabited the ar ...

New Bern New Bern, formerly called Newbern, is a city in Craven County, North Carolina, United States. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 29,524, which had risen to an estimated 29,994 as of 2019. It is the county seat of Craven County and t ...

Morehead City Morehead City is a port town in Carteret County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 8,661 at the 2010 census. Morehead City celebrated the 150th anniversary of its founding on May 5, 2007. It forms part of the Crystal Coast. Hist ...

Beaufort Beaufort may refer to: People and titles * Beaufort (surname) * House of Beaufort, English nobility * Duke of Beaufort (England), a title in the peerage of England * Duke of Beaufort (France), a title in the French nobility Places Polar regions ...

and

Fort Macon A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

. On December 24, 1862, XVIII Corps was created, composed of the five divisions stationed in North Carolina. On July 15, 1863, the department was merged with the Department of Virginia. The Department of North Carolina was headquartered at the

Slover-Bradham House Slover-Bradham House is a historic house located at New Bern, Craven County, North Carolina. It was built about 1848, and is a three-story, Renaissance style brick dwelling with a low hipped roof. During the American Civil War, under the direc ...

New Bern, North Carolina New Bern, formerly called Newbern, is a city in Craven County, North Carolina, United States. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 29,524, which had risen to an estimated 29,994 as of 2019. It is the county seat of Craven County and t ...

1865

On January 31, 1865, the department was re-created to include Union-occupied areas of North Carolina excluding those occupied by the armies of

William T. Sherman William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

. General John M. Schofield was hand picked by Ulysses Grant to head the department. Schofield assembled troops within the department into the Wilmington Expeditionary Force which he personally led in the capture of Wilmington. Significant territories included in the department were those captured by Ambrose Burnside in 1862 along with recently captured

Fort Fisher Fort Fisher was a Confederate fort during the American Civil War. It protected the vital trading routes of the port at Wilmington, North Carolina, from 1861 until its capture by the Union in 1865. The fort was located on one of Cape Fear River' ...

and Wilmington. In March 1865, The troops of the Department of North Carolina formed the "revived"

X Corps 10th Corps, Tenth Corps, or X Corps may refer to: France * 10th Army Corps (France) * X Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars Germany * X Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial German Army * ...

, under the command of

Alfred Terry Alfred Howe Terry (November 10, 1827 – December 16, 1890) was a Union general in the American Civil War and the military commander of the Dakota Territory from 1866 to 1869, and again from 1872 to 1886. In 1865, Terry led Union troops to v ...

. On May 19, 1866, it was merged into the

Department of the Carolinas Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

Commanders

1862
Ambrose Burnside (January 7, 1862 – July 6, 1862)

John G. Foster John Gray Foster (May 27, 1823 – September 2, 1874) was an American soldier. A career military officer in the United States Army and a Union Army, Union general during the American Civil War, he served in North Carolina, North and South Caroli ...

(July 6, 1862 – March 29, 1863)
Innis N. Palmer (March 29, 1863 – April 16, 1863)

(April 16 – July 15, 1863)
1865
John M. Schofield (January 31, 1865 – June 20, 1865)

Jacob D. Cox Jacob Dolson Cox, Jr. (October 27, 1828August 4, 1900), was a statesman, lawyer, Union Army general during the American Civil War, Republican politician from Ohio, Liberal Republican Party founder, educator, author, and recognized microbiologist ...

(June 20, 1865 – June 28, 1865)
Thomas H. Ruger (June 28, 1865 – May 19, 1866)

Posts in Department of North Carolina

* Fort Ocracoke, 1861–1865), Beacon Island * Fort Clark, 1861–1865,

Hatteras Inlet Hatteras Inlet is an estuary in North Carolina, located along the Outer Banks, separating Hatteras Island and Ocracoke Island. It connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Pamlico Sound. Hatteras Inlet is located entirely within Hyde County. History ...

* Camp Wool, 1862–1865, just west of Fort Clark * Fort Hatteras, 1861–1865, Hatteras Inlet * Bogue Sound Blockhouse, 1862–1864, Morehead Township *

, 1862–1865, Atlantic Beach *

Newport Barracks Newport Barracks was a military barracks on the Ohio River, across from Cincinnati, Ohio in Newport, Kentucky. It was operational from 1803 until 1894. History In 1803, James Taylor Jr. solicited the help of his cousin, James Madison, who was ...

, 1862–1864, Newport * Fort Lane, 1862, James City * Defenses of New Bern, NC, (1862–1865),

* Camp Hoffman, 1862–1865, near

Tuscarora Tuscarora may refer to the following: First nations and Native American people and culture * Tuscarora people **''Federal Power Commission v. Tuscarora Indian Nation'' (1960) * Tuscarora language, an Iroquoian language of the Tuscarora people * ...

* Defenses of Washington, NC, (1862–1865),

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

Department of Virginia & North Carolina

The Department of Virginia & North Carolina was created on July 15, 1863, composed of all the territories formerly part of the Department of Virginia and Department of North Carolina. From December 21, 1863, to June 27, 1864 St. Mary's County, Maryland was also part of the department. On January 18, 1865, the department was again separated into the Dept. of Virginia and Dept. of North Carolina. From August 12, 1863, to April 25, 1864, the

Army of North Carolina The Department of Virginia and North Carolina was a United States Military department encompassing Union-occupied territory in the Confederate States during the Civil War. In 1863 it was formed by the merging of two previously existing departme ...

consisted of troops from the District of North Carolina within the Department of Virginia & North Carolina.Eicher p.856 The Army and District of North Carolina were commanded by

John J. Peck John James Peck (January 4, 1821 – April 21, 1878) was a United States soldier who fought in the Mexican–American War and American Civil War. Early life Peck was born on January 4, 1821, in Manlius, New York. His father, John W. Peck, who had ...

. From April 28, 1864, to January 18, 1865, the

was composed of troops within the Dept. of Virginia & North Carolina. It primarily served in Virginia during the Bermuda Hundred Campaign and during the

siege of Petersburg The Richmond–Petersburg campaign was a series of battles around Petersburg, Virginia, fought from June 9, 1864, to March 25, 1865, during the American Civil War. Although it is more popularly known as the Siege of Petersburg, it was not a cla ...

conducting operations against the city of Richmond north of the

James River The James River is a river in the U.S. state of Virginia that begins in the Appalachian Mountains and flows U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed April 1, 2011 to Chesapea ...

Commanders

George W. Getty George Washington Getty (October 2, 1819 – October 1, 1901) was a career military officer in the United States Army, most noted for his role as a division (military), division commander in the Army of the Potomac during the final full year of t ...

(July 15, 1863 – July 18, 1863)

(July 18, 1863 – August 28, 1863)
Benjamin F. Butler (August 28, 1863 – August 27, 1864)
E.O.C. Ord (August 27, 1864 – September 5, 1864)

David B. Birney David Bell Birney (May 29, 1825 – October 18, 1864) was a businessman, lawyer, and a Union general in the American Civil War. Early life Birney was born in Huntsville, Alabama, the son of an abolitionist from Kentucky, James G. Birney. The Bi ...

(September 5, 1864 – September 7, 1864)
Benjamin F. Butler (September 7, 1864 – December 14, 1864)
E.O.C. Ord (December 14, 1864 – December 24, 1864)
Benjamin F. Butler (December 24, 1864 – January 7, 1865)
E.O.C. Ord (January 7, 1865 – January 18, 1865)

References

*Eicher, John H., & Eicher, David J., ''Civil War High Commands'', Stanford University Press, 2001, . {{DEFAULTSORT:Department Of Virginia And North Carolina Virginia and North Carolina, Department of the Virginia and North Carolina 1861 establishments in the United States

Department of Virginia

1861

1865

Commanders

Posts in the Department of Virginia

Department of North Carolina

1862

1865

Commanders

Posts in Department of North Carolina

Department of Virginia & North Carolina

Commanders

See also

References