Revenge of the Tribe of Dan: A Look at Alexander McCook’s Captured Correspondence

    On December 30, 1862 Major General Alexander McDowell McCook’s headquarters wagon and ambulance were captured by Confederate cavalrymen at LaVergne. The contents were thoroughly picked over; someone absconded off with McCook’s rather large frock coat while others took ordnance reports and other bits of intelligence that were handed over to General Braxton Bragg.

One of the more interesting items found that was not turned over to General Bragg included three private letters from McCook’s father Daniel McCook. Written in November and December 1862 in the wake of McCook’s roughing up at Perryville, the leader of the “Tribe of Dan” keeps his son informed about the perceptions of the battle of Perryville, and the actions of the Buell Commission. He also offers plenty of advice to his son as to how to deal with Army politics, but perhaps his most chilling injunction was one that touched on the murder of his son General Robert L. McCook the previous August. “You will winter in southern Tennessee, northern Alabama, or Georgia,” Dan wrote. “If you do, I hope you will make the country bleed- remember the death of your lamented brother.”

The Mobile Advertiser & Register received the letters in early February from “a friend in the Army of Tennessee” and published them in their February 19, 1863 edition. “McCook’s father is evidently a venomous old blackguard whose morals are about on a par with his spelling,” the newspaper grumped. “If we had an opportunity, we should certainly send a copy to Generals Buell and Gilbert and some other persons whom the old sinner makes mention.” I’ve included some of the juicier excerpts from the three letters below as a window into the high command politics of the Army of the Cumberland between the Kentucky and Stones River campaigns.

 

Major General Alexander McDowell McCook led the Right Wing (later designated the 20th Army Corps) during the Stones River campaign. His wing bore the brunt of the Confederate assaults on the morning of December 31, 1862 but the day before McCook's headquarters wagon and ambulance were captured by Confederate cavalry. 

Columbus, Ohio

November 2, 1862

          You no doubt see by the papers that the question whether or not Buell was at fault at the battle of Perryville is still under discussion. Let Mr. Buell and his friends say what they please and let the Louisville Journal [one of Buell’s few press allies-my note] continue in his defense as long as Father Prentice is able to wield a pen. There is but one prevailing opinion in the mouth of every intelligent man and woman and that is that he was willfully, wickedly guilty of a great misdemeanor for which if he was put before a jury of his countrymen, he would be condemned and shot as the fullest possible mode of punishment. Thousands believe him to be a traitor and that he desired your troops either to be cut to pieces or captured. Although I think he is largely interested in the welfare of the South and would have no objection to see the Southern Confederacy permanently established. I cannot think he is a traitor and would sell his country, but his conduct in refusing to furnish you with the necessary support in your great extremity is most marvelous, indeed. And a great and wonton neglect that he can never explain away. And that infamous [General Charles C.] Gilbert is more worthy of death than the coward Colonel [Jonah] Taylor [50th Ohio] who was very unwisely permitted to resign.

          We have great cause of thankfulness to Almighty God for the preservation of your life and that your little division of raw troops had not been entirely destroyed and taken prisoners. If Buell had advanced when you made your personal visit to him, he would have obtained a decided victory and his temples now would have been adorned with the wrath of honor and glory instead of the one of disgrace that now surrounds them.

          I think that Bragg is not sustained by his government in that inglorious retreat of his, although he boasts of capturing all the baggage and servants of General McCook, he was not included in the batch of lieutenant generals made since the battle while other (much more distinguished men) have been. This is significant of something. You will winter in southern Tennessee, or northern Alabama, or Georgia; if you do, I hope you will make the country bleed- remember the death of your lamented brother. We would all rejoice to see you in Ohio enjoying the company of dear friends and the many thousands of your admirers, but you cannot leave your command until circumstances will justify it.

Alexander's older brother General Robert Latimer McCook had led the 9th Ohio Infantry in the early months of the war and had been wounded at Mill Springs. Commissioned a brigadier, he was mortally wounded in a fight with Rebel cavalry near Salem, Alabama and died August 6, 1862 in Huntsville. Many of his men believed that he had been gunned down while lying helpless in an ambulance and considered his death a murder, not an act of war. Daniel McCook apparently believed the same.  


          I saw [Henry] Villard in Cincinnati on his way to New York; let his feelings be what they may heretofore, he now sustains you but is most bitter against General Buell. General Lytle speaks in the most condemnable manner of Buell while Judge Swain of this city says that if half of what Lytle says about Buell is true, that he ought to be hung. Villard fears a conspiracy between Buell, Crittenden, and Rousseau to injure you. I cannot think that Rousseau would be guilty of a mean act towards you. I do not know whether his asking that his troops should be withdrawn from your command could be construed into opposition to your or not. They are Kentuckians and bear watching, but I think Rousseau has said more about the immortal Negro than you ever did.

 

Columbus, Ohio

November 23, 1862

          I resume you have seen the article by Villard in the New York Tribune of the 12th; if you have not got it, I will send a copy. It is a scathing rebuke to General Buell. A correspondent in the Cincinnati Commercial yesterday tried to bolster him up in his general administrative conduct as an officer and tried to revive him by throwing a large amount of censure upon other gentlemen for not carrying out his suggestions in regard to the campaign in Kentucky and Tennessee. He passes over the battle of Perryville very smoothly and never attempts to answer the general charges of incompetency and neglect which are made against him. I know very little about the capability of committees appointed to investigate the charges. I subscribe I presume that the ablest man on the board, old man [General Daniel] Tyler is an imbecile. Lew Wallace will not be disposed to probe very deep as he thinks that he is at present under the bane of General Halleck and others at Washington. A vigorous investigation will depend entirely upon the legal talent of Don Piatt. If Joe Holt was there as judge advocate you might expect an honest investigation and full report, but as it is, I think he will get a good whitewashing . I am of the opinion that Buell ought to be dismissed from the service and that Gilbert ought to be hung. He and Buell have no doubt understood each other and winked at your partial defeat on that bloody day. Gilbert being on trial, [General Albin] Schoepf’s testimony alone would convict him.

 

Daniel McCook, Sr., patriarch of the "Tribe of Dan" of the Fighting McCooks or "the venomous old blackguard" according to Southerners. The eldest McCook would himself be killed in battle the following summer at the battle of Buffington Island, the only significant Civil War battle fought in McCook's home state of Ohio. Eight of his nine sons fought for the Union during the Civil War, three of them were killed during the war. The first to die, 18 year-old Charles Morris McCook of the 2nd Ohio Infantry, died in Dan's arms at First Bull Run.

Columbus, Ohio

December 10, 1862

          In the Cincinnati Gazette of today I find the report of General Buell’s official report of his campaign in Kentucky, especially the battle of Perryville in which, by his innuendos, he tried to throw the defeat of our army in that battle at your door. In your personal report on the morning of the 8th, I understand that you informed him that the enemy were in your front ready to attack you. Did he then make arrangements to sustain you? Even at the hour of 4 in the evening, he hesitated to believe that the cannonading that he heard was nothing more than a reconnaissance. What was his aide doing on the 8th that he knew nothing that was going on in the vicinity? I have no doubt that he will try through his staff and other toadies to throw the responsibility of the day upon you. I hope Rousseau will do you justice in denying the fact that your brought on the engagement. He concedes the fact that the enemy had attacked Daniel’s [McCook’s] brigade and that he was relieved between 10 and 11 o’clock by Buell’s orders, hence he must have known that the enemy were in the vicinity and his entire force ought to have been brought up, at least the corps of Gilbert that were within short range ought to have engaged the enemy. But they wanted to destroy you, and when he says that the disaster is to be attributed to your great confidence in yourself, that you could manage the matter without the knowledge or controls of your commander, he does you great injustice.

          I think Mitchell, Carlin, Sheridan, and Schoepf will do you justice. Let me hear from you when the commission leaves Nashville and state whether he will attempt to throw the responsibility of that sad day upon you. Put Rousseau into the mill and make his show his hand. He will no doubt try to save Buell, but he cannot charge that you were instrumental in bringing on the fight.

 

Source:

“Captured Correspondence,” Mobile Advertiser & Register (Alabama), February 19, 1863, pg. 2

Comments

Post a Comment

Most Popular Posts

Arming the Buckeyes: Longarms of the Ohio Infantry Regiments

Image
     A common question that comes up in conversation about Civil War Buckeye regiments is "What were they armed with?" We are fortunate in that the state of Ohio kept good records of how the regiments were armed when they went into service, this being especially true for those regiments which went into service in 1861 and 1862. The state adjutant general's reports for 1861 and 1862 have been heavily drawn upon to construct this article, as well as consultation with Phil Spaugy who has done extensive research on how Ohio's troops were armed during the war.      Buckeyes carried a fairly wide variety of weapons into the field, and the below article breaks this down into weapons of both domestic manufacture and imported arms. The early days of the war found the state of Ohio practically bereft of longarms; as an example, when the 1st and 2nd Ohio Volunteer Militia left the state in late April 1861, they left unarmed, being armed at Lancaster, Pennsylvania on their way to
Read more

Bullets for the Union: Manufacturing Small Arms Ammunition During the Civil War

Image
       Civil War bullets are perhaps the most common item collected from the era; the two armies expended bullets by the millions during the four years’ conflict and spent or deformed bullets of all shapes and sizes have made fascinating and affordable collectibles since the guns went silent in 1865.       I recently acquired a display piece featuring 35 different types of small arms ammunition used during the Civil War, including everything from a small .28 caliber ball up to a .69 caliber three-ring Minie and it triggered some questions: how did the Federal army obtain its small arms ammunition during the war? Where did the lead come from to make the bullets, and where and how was the ammunition manufactured? This post seeks to answer those questions. A typical .58 caliber 3-ring Minie bullet   “Whenever the blasts of war blow in the ears of men who trade in the implements of destruction, they are apt to experience more joy than the true warrior, for then comes the harvest of gain.
Read more

Dressing the Rebels: How to Dye Butternut Jeans Cloth

Image
     In the early days of the Civil War,  the Southern states found themselves with an abundance of cotton but a shortage of cloth with which to make army uniforms. The trade in cloth prior to the war had largely been to send raw cotton or wool north to New England (or Great Britain) where it was converted into usable cloth; but now that trade was broken and the Southern states were thrown upon their own resources in their efforts to properly clothe the Confederate army.  This collection of Confederate enlisted men's frock coats and shell jackets gives some indication of the variety of shades of butternut worn during the war. All of them are shades of yellow brown, some heavier on the yellow and some heavier on the brown. The blue used around the collar or as rank insignia indicates that the soldier was in the infantry. Surviving Confederate uniforms are considered rather rare and command quite a healthy price in the collecting market. For an in-depth study of how Confederate jacke
Read more

The Wizard of Oz and the Civil War

Image
T he 1939 film The Wizard of Oz has delighted viewers for 85 years and ranks as a personal favorite, especially during the Halloween season. While watching it with the family the other night, I wondered if there were any connections between the film and the Civil War. Not surprisingly, the answer is yes and those connections touch both the blue and the gray.           Interestingly both “witches” in the film not only had Civil War ancestors but had connections with Civil War soldiers from Ohio. Margaret Hamilton, the “Wicked Witch of the West,” was born in Cleveland, Ohio on December 9, 1902, to attorney Walter Jones Hamilton and his wife Mary Jane Adams; Margaret’s grandfather was Judge Edwin Timothy Hamilton. Judge Hamilton had served as a private in Co. D of the 84 th Ohio Infantry during the summer of 1862. The 84 th Ohio, a three months’ regiment, served nearly the whole of its service attached to the Railroad District in western Maryland, performing provost duty at Cumberlan
Read more

The Vaunted Enfield Rifle Musket

Image
     The English-made Model 1853 .577 caliber Enfield Rifle Musket was widely regarded as the best infantry arm in the world at the outbreak of the Civil War in April 1861. Favorable international press describing its efficiency in the Crimean War and in suppressing the Indian rebellion led to the widespread desire of American infantrymen (both Federal and Confederate) to be armed with these accurate and well-made arms. The lock plate of this well-worn P1853 Enfield rifle musket produced in 1862 shows the typical markings of a British-made weapon that made it through the Federal blockade.  ( Army of Tennessee Relics ) Enfield-pattern weapons were imported into the states by the tens and hundreds of thousands during the war years; one estimate stated that the Federal government purchased 500,000 while the Confederates purchased another 400,000. The Confederate government dispatched Captain Caleb Huse to Europe in April 1861 to purchase weapons and Huse focused on securing all the Enfi
Read more

In front of Atlanta with the 68th Ohio

Image
  The arrow corps badge of the 17th Army Corps was worn by many members of the 68th Ohio in the latter days of the war.       Private Edward A. Bigelow of Co. F of the 68th Ohio Volunteer Infantry wrote this brief account of the Battle of Atlanta just two days afterwards to his father back home in Henry County, Ohio. The regiment formed a part of Colonel Robert K. Scott's three regiment all-Ohio brigade consisting of the 20th, 68th, and 78th regiments, being designated the Second Brigade of the Third Division of Frank Blair's 17th Army Corps. Bigelow's letter originally appeared in the Napoleon Press newspaper and was copied in the Toledo Daily Commercial which was providential as no known copies exist today of the wartime Napoleon Press.  
Read more

Charging Battery Robinett: An Alabama Soldier Recalls the Vicious Fighting at Corinth

Image
W riting 30 years after the Battle of Corinth, James A. McKinstry of the 42 nd Alabama recalled his experiences storming Battery Robinett with Colonel William P. Rogers of the 2 nd Texas and expressed guilt that it was perhaps his action that brought about the colonel’s demise. “On seeing a line of Federals approaching, and before giving the situation a thought, I immediately raised my gun and fired full into the breast of a Federal sergeant, who was in front of the column, and only a short distance from us.  'Twas then that Captain George Foster shouted, "Cease firing, men! cease firing!" and waved his handkerchief, then I realized the true situation. 'Twas too late! That fatal volley had been turned on our little band from the muzzles of 1,500 muskets. I was still standing just as I was when I fired my last shot, and within a few feet of Colonel Rogers, when a Minie ball went crashing through my left hip and turned me half round; another went tearing through my
Read more

Federal Arms in the Stones River Campaign

Image
  T he following list, constructed after many years of research, lists unit by unit which type of weapons were carried by the Army of the Cumberland during the Stones River campaign. A number of sources were consulted including state ordnance reports, Federal quarterly ordnance reports (thank you Research Arsenal ), Ken Baumann’s Arming the Suckers, regimental histories and memoirs, captured ordnance reports, and consultation with knowledgeable experts in the field of firearms. Some of this information has been shared on the blog before in “ Rosy’s Heavy Metal: Artillery of the Army of the Cumberland ” or “ Shoulder Arms: How Sheridan’s and Davis’s Divisions Were Armed at Stones River ” but this is the first time the army as a whole has been presented. The overall conclusion I drew from looking at this data is that the Army of the Cumberland in December 1862 was an organization in the midst of transformation as far as arms. Many of the regiments still retained their original issue
Read more

Cook & Brother of New Orleans

Image
    The lockplate of a New Orleans-made Cook & Brother Enfield rifle produced in 1862 shows the fine craftsmanship that became the hallmark of the maker throughout the Civil War. Note the stars and bars flag at left, an emblem used on C&B's production throughout the war and the Cook & Brother, N.O. 1862 markings. Earlier production weapons at New Orleans had the flag located just above the maker's name while later weapons produced in Athens, Georgia would have a modified flag and Athens on the plate followed by the serial number.        In the spring of 1861, two English-born businessmen, Ferdinand and Francis Cook of New Orleans, perceived the need for the South to have its own domestic production of firearms and  set out to prove "that rifles could made here as well as in Yankee land or in Europe." The brothers  elected to produce copies of the British Model 1853 .577 caliber Enfield rifle as this was considered the benchmark longarm at the outset of the
Read more

Revisiting Snodgrass Hill: Memories of a 21st Ohio Officer

Image
Captain Isaac Cusac, Co. G, 21st Ohio Volunteer Infantry proudly displaying his rank as captain in an image likely dating from early 1863. One of his shoulder straps was shot off in the final stages of the 21st Ohio's fight atop Snodgrass Hill on September 20, 1863. Cusac brought it back to Chickamauga 50 years later.  I n September 1913, 83-year-old Isaac Cusac, a retired Presbyterian minister from the little town of McComb, Ohio, returned to Chattanooga to attend the national G.A.R. encampment. The former captain of the 21 st Ohio returned to Snodgrass Hill on the old Chickamauga battlefield on the 50 th anniversary of the battle carrying with him a precious relic of his wartime experiences. “He carried with him there an epaulet that was shot from his shoulder at the battle,” it was reported. “The bullet clipped off the epaulet and then struck him on the left hand, injuring two fingers.”           The flood of memories as he walked the grounds must have been overwhelming. The f
Read more