This Day In The Civil War 7 22 1861

One day following the clash at Manassas (Bull Run), both sides realize there will be no quick settlement.

July 22 (Monday) In Washington, D.C., it is apparent that the southern insurrection will not be over in a short period of time. The conflict is to be a war of rebellion. President Abraham Lincoln calls for an army of 555,000 men to volunteer for a period of three years. In other activity, the large casualties sustained by both sides at the battle on the previous day prompt improvisation to acquire available hospital space to treat the wounded. One such facility is the Union General Hospital in Georgetown, Washington, D.C., which had been formerly known as the Union Hotel. Union troops in these hospitals and those in the field are quickly learning that since their stay away from home is lasting much longer than anticipated, communication with and from their families becomes a priority. Express companies such as the Adams Express Company pop into existence to deliver parcels and mail to the soldiers, lifting their spirits.

In Arkansas,

Confederate General William Joseph Hardee, also known as “Old Reliable,” at about this time becomes commander of the Confederate forces in Arkansas.

In Missouri,

troops attached to General Thomas Sweeny—the 1st Iowa Volunteers, 2nd Kansas Volunteers, the Stanley Dragoons (Captain David S.) and Captain James Totten’s Battery—clash with Confederates at Forsyth in a skirmish that lasts about one hour. The Union sustains three wounded. The Confederates sustain five killed.

In West Virginia,

Confederate General Loring arrives at Monterey and assumes command of the Army of the Northwest.

In Union general officer activity,

Thomas Ogden Osborn (later brigadier general) is commissioned lieutenant colonel of the 39th Illinois Infantry Regiment at about this time. On 1 January he is appointed colonel of the regiment. Also, David Stuart, a lawyer and former Congressman, is commissioned lieutenant colonel (later brigadier general) of the 42nd Illinois Infantry Regiment. Also, Horatio Phillips Van Cleve (West Point, 1831), who left the army during 1836, is commissioned colonel (later brevet major general) of the 2nd Minnesota Infantry Regiment.

This battle is excerpted from Every Day of the Civil War, A Chronological Encyclopedia By Bud Hannings. McFarland Publishing, Incorporated, Jefferson, North Carolina and London. 2010