Smith Family Letters
Four Carroll County, Virginia
Soldiers in the American Civil War, 1861-1865
Produced by CATH
SMITH LETTERS CHRONOLOGY
25 June 1861: Company I of the 50th Va Infantry enlisted at
Newburn, Pulaski County, VA. with Thomas Poage as Captain
8-25 July 1861: Company I of the 50th Va Infantry at Wytheville,
VA
25 July 1861: 50th Va Infantry departs for Monroe County WV
2 August 1861: 50th Va Infantry joins the 45th Virginia Infantry
at Camp Bee, Allegheny County VA
2-6 August 1861: 50th Va Infantry, under General Floyd, marches
to Camp Arbuckle near Lewisburg WV
26 August 1861: 50th Va Infantry skirmishes at Cross Lanes, WV
and proceeds to Camp Gauley
10 September 1861: 50th Va Infantry repulses an attack at
Carnifax Ferry, WV
11 September 1861: 50th Va Infantry retreats from Camp Gauley to
Meadow Bluff near Blue Sulphur Springs WV
21 September 1861: R. E. Lee visits Floyd's camp
30 September 1861: 50th Va Infantry marches to join R. E. Lee's
forces at Sewell Mountain WV, arriving 4 October
12-21 October 1861: 50th Va Infantry under John Floyd moves to
Gauley Bridge via Raleigh Court House and Fayetteville
1-2 November 1861: 50th Va Infantry fights at Cotton Hill WV
14 November 1861: 50th Va Infantry, retreating with Floyd's
forces, fights at McCoy's Mill WV
28 November 1861: 50th Va Infantry sets up winter camp at
Peterstown near Red Sulphur Springs WV
5 December 1861: 50th Va Infantry ordered to Dublin Depot, and
then move to Newbern VA by 23 December
24 January 1862: 50th Va Infantry, now part of McCausland's
Brigade, move by train to Russellville TN to counter Grant's assaults on Fort Henry in western
Tennessee
15-16 February 1862: 50th Va Infantry fight at Fort Donelson, TN,
which is then evacuated by General Floyd
17 February 1862: Floyd retreats 250 miles across Tennessee to
Chattanooga via Murphreesboro, arriving 6 March; Floyd is relieved of command 11 March
18 March 1862: 50th Va Infantry travel to Knoxville, TN by train
from where many depart for Abingdon on furlough
Early May 1862: Company I detached from the 50th Va Infantry and
assigned to Finney's Battalion of Henry Heth's brigade
10-11 May 1862: Company I of the 50th Va Infantry skirmish at
Giles Court House, VA and a establish camp at Narrows
12 May 1862: Company I of the 50th Va Infantry is reorganized
with Thomas Poage as Colonel; they are rejoined by additional companies of the regiment
17 May 1862: From their camp at Wolf Creek,the 50th Va Infantry
attack Princeton, WV, then march on Lewisburg
23 May 1862: 50th Va Infantry take Lewisburg, WV but are then
routed with heavy casualties by Union forces west of the town
24-25 May 1862: Company I of the 50th Va Infantry retreat to
Rocky Gap, VA where they remain through June; Captain Poage of Company I is promoted to
regimental colonel 25 May
July-August 1862: 50th Va Infantry camp at the mouth of Wolf Creek
near Narrows VA; they raid the Union garrison at Pack's Ferry 5 August
6 September 1862: 50th Va Infantry, now under the command of
General Loring, depart Narrows for an attack on Charleston WV
11-13 September 1862: General Loring's forces, with the 50th Va
Infantry, capture Charleston, WV where they remain into October
8 October 1862: General Loring, disobeying orders, departs for
Lewisburg; Loring is subsequently relieved of command
23 October 1862: The 50th Va Infantry, now commanded by General
John Echols, returns to Charleston; they retreat by forced marches arriving at Narrows VA 4
November
16 December 1862: 50th Va Infantry departs for Franklin in
southeast VA, traveling by train from Dublin Depot, laying over several weeks near
Petersburg
17 December 1862: 29th Va Infantry departs by train from
Wytheville, bound for Richmond, Petersburg and ultimately Southampton in eastern VA
24 December 1862: 29th Va Infantry arrives in Petersburg where
they go into winter camp until March
11 January 1863: 50th Va Infantry, now under the command of
General Roger Pryor, depart Petersburg for Franklin VA arriving on the 13th
30 January 1863: 50th Va Infantry are mauled in the artillery
attack at Kelly's Ford; Colonel Poage is killed
February 1863: 50th Va Infantry in winter quarters near Franklin
VA
19 March 1863: 50th Va Infantry return to Dublin Depot in SW VA;
30 March they are ordered to join Lee's Army of Northern Virgina
25 March 1863: 29th Va Infantry departs Petersburg, marching to
Southampton County VA
9 April 1863: 50th Va Infantry arrive at Moss Neck south of
Fredericksburg, assigned to Stonewall Jackson's Second Corps
9 April 1863: 29th Va Infantry lays siege to Suffolk VA
2-4 May 1863: 50th Va Infantry, now under the command of Raleigh
E. Colston, fight at Chancellorsville, VA
3 May 1863: 29th Va Infantry raises the siege of Suffolk and
marches to Chesterfield County, arriving 9 May
20 May 1863: 50th Va Infantry camp at Hamilton's Crossing,
remaining until 5 June when they depart for the assault on Pennsylvania
25 June 1863: 29th Va march to Hamilton's Crossing, from thence
traveling by train to Gordonsville VA
2-6 July 1863: 50th Va Infantry fight at Gettysburg, PA,
participating in the unsuccessful attack on Culp's Hill and suffer heavy casualties
10 July 1863: 29th Va march from Gordonsville to Winchester VA to
meet Lee's retreating army, arriving 13 July
14 July 1863: The retreating 50th Va Infantry cross the Potomac
at Williamsport MD
17-21 July 1863: 50th Va Infantry at Martinsburg, WA assigned to
damage the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
21-22 July 1863: 29th Va skirmishes at Chester Gap; they then
march to Orange VA, arriving before August
11 August 1863: After a series of marches and skirmishes the 50th
Va Infantry camps at Orange Court House, VA
14 September 1863: 29th Va travels by train from Petersburg to
Sullivan County TN, arriving 16 September and departing again for Petersburg on 30
September
19 September 1863: 50th Va Infantry move to block a Union
assault, camping at Germanna Ford on the Rapidan River until 8 October
24 September 1863: On or about this date Barton Smith, having
taken departed without leave or overstayed his leave, is killed by the Home Guard at his home
in Carroll County
October 1863: While on leave William Alexander Smith marries Ann
Electra Utley (the sister of Barton's wife, Mary)
8-28 October 1863: 50th Va Infantry assigned to destroy the
Orange and Alexandria Railroad
8-27 November 1863: 50th Va Infantry camp at Mount Pisgah Church
near the Rappahannock River
27 November 1863: 50th Va Infantry, now under the command of
General William A. Witcher, fight at Payne's Farm, VA near Bartlett's Mill
2 December 1863: 50th Va Infantry go into picket duty at Morton's
Ford on the Rappahannock, where they would remain, alternating with winter camp near Mount
Pisgah Church, until May
5-6 May 1864: 50th Va Infantry fights in the inconclusive Battle
of the Wilderness
10-12 May 1864: At Spotsylvania Court House the 50th Va Infantry
received the brunt of the attack on the 12th and was overrun with most of the unit killed or
captured
September 1864: Col. Robert Trigg of the 54th Virginia is detached
to SW Virginia to round up deserters from the Army of Tennessee
October 1864: Trigg's detachment of volunteers and ex-deserters
fights at the first Battle of Saltville
December 1864: Trigg's detachment of the 54th Virginia
Infantry guards the Virginia and Tennessee Railroad in SW Virginia
February 1865: Some 50 soldiers desert from Trigg's detachment,
which then numbered 2-300 men
Late March 1865: The remnant of Trigg's detachment departs Abingdon
VA for Richmond, which falls before they arrive