The Kanawha Division was a

Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...

division Division or divider may refer to: Mathematics *Division (mathematics), the inverse of multiplication *Division algorithm, a method for computing the result of mathematical division Military *Division (military), a formation typically consisting ...

which could trace its origins back to a brigade originally commanded by

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 ...

. This division served in western Virginia and Maryland and was at times led by such famous personalities as

George Crook George R. Crook (September 8, 1828 – March 21, 1890) was a career United States Army officer, most noted for his distinguished service during the American Civil War and the Indian Wars. During the 1880s, the Apache nicknamed Crook ''Nantan ...

and

Rutherford B. Hayes Rutherford Birchard Hayes (; October 4, 1822 – January 17, 1893) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 19th president of the United States from 1877 to 1881, after serving in the U.S. House of Representatives and as governor ...

.George Crook and Rutherford B. Hayes

History

Kanawha Brigade

On July 1, 1861 Brig. Gen.

took command of a brigade, composed of Ohio volunteer regiments. He titled his command "Kanawha Brigade" in reference to its duty in the

Kanawha Valley The Kanawha River ( ) is a tributary of the Ohio River, approximately 97 mi (156 km) long, in the U.S. state of West Virginia. The largest inland waterway in West Virginia, its valley has been a significant industrial region of the sta ...

in West Virginia. The brigade became part of the new District of the Kanawha, both of which were commanded by Cox. Cox and the brigade took part in the

Battle of Princeton Court House The Battle of Princeton Court House was fought May 15–17, 1862 in Mercer County, Virginia (now West Virginia) in conjunction with Stonewall Jackson's Valley Campaign. It was a minor victory for the Confederate States Army. Background B ...

in 1862.

Second Bull Run

By 1862 the unit grew to the size of a division. As early as June 1862 the name "Kanawha Division" was officially being used for service in the Mountain Department. In preparation for the upcoming battle of

Second Bull Run The Second Battle of Bull Run or Battle of Second Manassas was fought August 28–30, 1862, in Prince William County, Virginia, as part of the American Civil War. It was the culmination of the Northern Virginia Campaign waged by Confederat ...

, Cox and the Kanawha Division were transferred to the

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 ...

. Only one brigade under Col. Eliakim P. Scammon was involved in the engagement and that was only in the preliminary fighting near Bull Run Bridge on August 27. In the aftermath of Bull Run the Kanawha Division was transferred to the Washington Defenses which Cox also assumed command of upon his arrival in Washington.

Maryland Campaign

During the Maryland Campaign the Kanawha Division was removed from Washington and attached to the

IX Corps 9 Corps, 9th Corps, Ninth Corps, or IX Corps may refer to: France * 9th Army Corps (France) * IX Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars Germany * IX Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial Germ ...

. The division was composed of two brigades commanded by colonels Eliakim P. Scammon and Augustus Moor. Cox remained in command and led the division at the

Battle of South Mountain The Battle of South Mountain—known in several early Southern accounts as the Battle of Boonsboro Gap—was fought on September 14, 1862, as part of the Maryland campaign of the American Civil War. Three pitched battles were fought for posses ...

. Days before the

Battle of Antietam The Battle of Antietam (), or Battle of Sharpsburg particularly in the Southern United States, was a battle of the American Civil War fought on September 17, 1862, between Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia and Union G ...

an unusual change in command occurred. 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 ...

had recently commanded the IX Corps, but during the Maryland Campaign had been raised to that of a "Wing" commander, having under his command the IX Corps and I Corps. General Jesse L. Reno had been acting IX Corps commander, but upon his death at South Mountain, Jacob Cox being the next ranking general in the corps replaced Reno in command. Colonel Scammon, though only a colonel, was the next ranking officer and took command of the Kanawha Division. At Antietam, Burnside still held on to his title of Wing commander, even though the two corps in his wing were on complete opposite sides of the battlefield. Burnside remained with his old IX Corps but elected to keep Cox in corps command, creating an extra and unnecessary link in the chain of command. The Kanawha Division's two brigades were now commanded by Col.

Hugh Ewing Hugh Boyle Ewing (October 31, 1826 – June 30, 1905) was a diplomat, author, attorney, and Union Army general during the American Civil War. He was a member of the prestigious Ewing family, son of Thomas Ewing, the eldest brother of Thomas ...

(succeeding Scammon) and Col.

(replacing Moor, who had been captured Sept 13). Crook's brigade crossed

Burnside Bridge The Burnside Bridge is a 1926-built bascule bridge that spans the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon, United States, carrying Burnside Street. It is the second bridge at the same site to carry that name. It was added to the National Register of ...

in support of Samuel D. Sturgis's division while Ewing's brigade crossed

Antietam Creek Antietam Creek () is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed August 15, 2011 tributary of the Potomac River located in south central Pennsylvania and western Maryland in the ...

at Snavely's Ford in support of

Isaac P. Rodman Isaac Peace Rodman (August 18, 1822 – September 30, 1862) was a Rhode Island banker, politician, and a Union Army Brigadier general (United States), brigadier general in the American Civil War, who became mortally wounded at the Battle of ...

.Antietam on the Web: Kanawha Division

West Virginia and Morgan's Raid

After Antietam, Cox was transferred to duty in the Department of the Ohio and the Kanawha Division returned to West Virginia. George Crook replaced Scammon in command of the division during the winter of 1862/1863 until he was also transferred further west, at which time Scammon returned to command. By the time Scammon returned to command the division lost its official designation as the "Kanawha Division" and was now designated the 3rd Division in the Department of West Virginia. This period also marked a time of relative inactivity for the division. Fighting devolved to guerrilla operations against Confederate partisans, particularly those under

John S. Mosby John Singleton Mosby (December 6, 1833 – May 30, 1916), also known by his nickname "Gray Ghost", was a Confederate army cavalry battalion commander in the American Civil War. His command, the 43rd Battalion, Virginia Cavalry, known as Mosb ...

. One noteworthy unit to come out of the division at this time was the so-called

Blazer's Scouts Blazer's Scouts was a unit of the Union Army during the second half of the American Civil War. They were particularly active in tracking down and confronting Confederate partisans and guerrillas in West Virginia and Virginia; especially those of ...

created by Colonel Carr B. White. One of the division's brigade commanders, Colonel

, scorned Scammon for his cautious nature and the resulting inactivity. When George Crook returned to command the division in 1864, Hayes welcomed the aggressive new commander.

Cloyd's Mountain

Crook took command of the Kanawha Division in February 1864. At the time only a few regiments remained from the original Kanawha Division which had fought at South Mountain and the division was officially designated the 2nd Division in the Department of West Virginia. The division had three brigades commanded respectively by colonels Rutherford Hayes, Carr B. White and Horatio G. Sickel. West Virginia Union regiments were dispersed throughout the three brigades, the original Ohio regiments were divided between Hayes and White and two Pennsylvania regiments were added with the arrival of Colonel Sickel. Crook led the division into action at the

Battle of Cloyd's Mountain The Battle of Cloyd's Mountain was a Union victory in western Virginia on May 9, 1864, that allowed the Union forces to destroy a large bridge on the Virginia and Tennessee Railroad. The railroad was used to carry Confederate troops and suppli ...

and then joined

David Hunter David Hunter (July 21, 1802 – February 2, 1886) was an American military officer. He served as a Union general during the American Civil War. He achieved notability for his unauthorized 1862 order (immediately rescinded) emancipating slaves ...

's army for the

Battle of Lynchburg The Battle of Lynchburg was fought on June 17–18, 1864, two miles outside Lynchburg, Virginia, as part of the American Civil War. The Union Army of West Virginia, under Maj. Gen. David Hunter, attempted to capture the city but was repulsed by ...

Army of the Kanawha and Army of West Virginia

On July 2, 1864 George Crook took command of what he called the Army of the Kanawha. At the same time Crook also personally commanded the 1st and 2nd "Kanawha" Divisions of his army. By the end of July

Joseph Thoburn Joseph Thoburn (April 29, 1825 – October 19, 1864) was an Irish-born American officer and brigade commander in the Union Army during the American Civil War. An accomplished physician and soldier from the state of West Virginia, he was ki ...

assumed command of the 1st Division and Isaac H. Duval of the 2nd Division. A third division of infantry and two divisions of cavalry were also added. Crook led his short-lived army into the

Second Battle of Kernstown The Second Battle of Kernstown was fought on July 24, 1864, at Kernstown, Virginia, outside Winchester, Virginia, as part of the Valley Campaigns of 1864 in the American Civil War. The Confederate Army of the Valley under Lt. Gen. Jubal A. Ear ...

. On August 8, Crook renamed his forces the

Army of West Virginia The Army of West Virginia served in the Union Army during the American Civil War and was the primary field army of the Department of West Virginia. It campaigned primarily in West Virginia, Southwest Virginia and in the Shenandoah Valley. It is not ...

. Crook's "army" joined

Philip H. Sheridan Philip, also Phillip, is a male given name, derived from the Greek (''Philippos'', lit. "horse-loving" or "fond of horses"), from a compound of (''philos'', "dear", "loved", "loving") and (''hippos'', "horse"). Prominent Philips who popularize ...

's forces outside

Winchester, Virginia Winchester is the most north western independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is the county seat of Frederick County, although the two are separate jurisdictions. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines the city of Winchester wit ...

under the banner of the VIII Corps. Colonel Duval continued in command of the Kanawha Division at the

battle of Opequon The Third Battle of Winchester, also known as the Battle of Opequon or Battle of Opequon Creek, was an American Civil War battle fought near Winchester, Virginia, on September 19, 1864. Union Army Major General Philip Sheridan defeated Confederate ...

and was initially held in reserve. At a critical point in the fighting the division was called forward and the brigade of Colonel Hayes made a charge against the Confederate flank. During the fighting Colonel Duval was wounded and Hayes assumed command of the Kanawha Division. At Opequon the division had two brigades initially commanded by colonels Hayes and Daniel Johnson. Colonel Hiram Devol succeeded Hayes in command of the 1st Brigade command and Lt. Col. Benjamin F. Coates replaced the wounded Johnson in command of the 2nd Brigade during the fighting. Despite the inquiries of several brigadier generals for command of the Kanawha Division, Crook decided to keep Hayes in command, much to the Ohio politician's delight. Hayes and Crook helped coordinate the successful flank attack at the

battle of Fisher's Hill The Battle of Fisher's Hill was fought September 21–22, 1864, near Strasburg, Virginia, as part of the Valley Campaigns of 1864 during the American Civil War. Despite its strong defensive position, the Confederate States Army, Confederate ...

carried out by Hayes' division. At the

battle of Cedar Creek The Battle of Cedar Creek, or Battle of Belle Grove, was fought on October 19, 1864, during the American Civil War. The fighting took place in the Shenandoah Valley of Northern Virginia, near Cedar Creek, Middletown, and the Valley Pike. Du ...

the entire Union army was caught off guard by the Confederate surprise attack and Crook's entire command bore the weight of the initial assault. Hayes was wounded and narrowly escaped capture. Despite this poor showing of Hayes and the Kanawha Division, earlier successes in the campaign assured their reputations would escape any permanent blemish. Hayes remained in command of the Kanawha Division until December 1864. Cedar Creek would be its last major fight of the war.

Command History

Units

These regiments fought in the Kanawha Division from South Mountain to Cedar Creek *

12th Ohio Infantry 12th Ohio Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. History The 12th Ohio Infantry Regiment was organized at Camp Dennison, Cincinnati, Ohio, on May 3, 1861, for three-months service, and reorga ...

23rd Ohio Infantry The 23rd Ohio Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment in the Union Army during much of the American Civil War. It served in the Eastern Theater in a variety of campaigns and battles, and is remembered with a stone memorial on the Antietam Nati ...

(notable members included Eliakim P. Scammon,

, James Comly and

William McKinley William McKinley (January 29, 1843September 14, 1901) was the 25th president of the United States, serving from 1897 until his assassination in 1901. As a politician he led a realignment that made his Republican Party largely dominant in ...

) * 36th Ohio Infantry (notable members included

) * 1st Ohio Artillery

References

{{reflist

External links

https://web.archive.org/web/20071027092509/http://aotw.org/officers.php?unit_id=25

http://www.antietam.stonesentinels.com/MarkersUS/M059.php

* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20080820020632/http://www.dimacleod.co.uk/history/antietam/us-kan.htm https://web.archive.org/web/20080820020632/http://www.dimacleod.co.uk/history/antietam/us-kan.htm
http://www.ohiocivilwar.com/acw1.html
West Virginia in the American Civil War Ohio in the American Civil War Union Army divisions 1862 establishments in the United States Military units and formations established in 1862 Military units and formations disestablished in 1864