Amid the despair of the spring months, one individual offered words of comfort and wisdom to Alabamians facing a tumultuous summer. James O. Andrew, a bishop in the Methodist Episcopal Church, reminded Alabamians that although the “soldiers have fought bravely” and the South had maintained a long and bloody struggle,” their “anticipations of a separate nationality have, in the Providence of God, been disappointed.” Therefore, Andrew urged his parishioners to “submit quietly” to federal rule cultivate kindly feelings” toward the Union soldiers stationed within the state. Undoubtedly, Andrew hoped his advice would lead to a more peaceful transition back into the United States, but others in Alabama did not share his vision of the future. And the summer months of 1865 would bring chaos as Alabamians tried to adjust to life after the war.
As Wilson’s raiders moved through Alabama in early April, Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia was struggling to survive in the East. On April 2, 1865, General Lee had to abandon Richmond, Virginia, forcing the Confederate government to evacuate. Meanwhile, the Confederates moved westward through Virginia, intermittently tangling with Union Gen. Ulysses S. Grant’s pursuing Army of the Potomac. One soldier serving in the Ninth Alabama, William Cowan McClellan of Athens, Alabama, wrote to his brother on March 24, 1865, that “Grant has had to contend with the greatest gen. the world ever produced.” Despite confidence in Lee, however, McClellan confided to his brother that he was “low down” and could “see but little hope for these confederate states in these times.” McClellan was captured by northern soldiers before the war ended a few weeks later, when Lee surrendered to Grant at Appomattox Court House on April 9, 1865. But even as Lee was surrendering in Virginia, the war raged on in Alabama as Union forces closed in on the state. “What a fearful day it was for us,” remembered Parthenia Hague, who spent the war in Eufaula, “when…word came into our placid valley that the Northern army was almost at our doors! I could not begin to describe our chagrin and terror.” One elderly woman Hague knew all her jewelry in a small jar, cemented the top tightly on, placed it in an old bucket, and let it down into her well.” As worried Alabamians desperately tried to protect their valuable possessions, the cities of Mobile and Montgomery remained threatened. Ever since the United States Navy captured Mobile Bay in August of 1864, Admiral Farragut had been planning to invade and occupy Alabama’s major port city. By March 1865, the United States had enough troops near the city begin their attack. On April 12, 1865, Confederate retreated from the city, and the Union army occupied the town the next day. Meanwhile, Wilson continued toward Montgomery with his raiders. Arriving on April 12, the northern raiders destroyed the city; the local militia refused to attempt to defend the former capital of the Confederacy. Less than three weeks later, on May 4, the remaining Confederate troops surrendered at Citronelle, Alabama. With that, the war ended, leaving Alabama destroyed.
Amid the despair of the spring months, one individual offered words of comfort and wisdom to Alabamians facing a tumultuous summer. James O. Andrew, a bishop in the Methodist Episcopal Church, reminded Alabamians that although the “soldiers have fought bravely” and the South had maintained a long and bloody struggle,” their “anticipations of a separate nationality have, in the Providence of God, been disappointed.” Therefore, Andrew urged his parishioners to “submit quietly” to federal rule cultivate kindly feelings” toward the Union soldiers stationed within the state. Undoubtedly, Andrew hoped his advice would lead to a more peaceful transition back into the United States, but others in Alabama did not share his vision of the future. And the summer months of 1865 would bring chaos as Alabamians tried to adjust to life after the war. Comments are closed.
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Becoming Alabama:
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