Aug.-Sept. 1862 - Jenkins' Raid & Battle of Charleston (1862)

Aug.-Sept. 1862 

Jenkins' Raid; or  Jenkins' Expedition in West Virginia and Ohio; or Jenkins' Trans-Allegheny Raid

Various sites throughout West[ern] Virginia, and yes- briefly into Ohio

Units including the Upshur Battery and Battery E, West Virginia Light Artillery; and the Home Militia: Col. John C. Rathbone in command; Col. John C. Paxton; Ltc. William H.H. Russell; elements from 2nd, 11th, & 4th Loyal Virginia Cavalry (and Co. E of the 10th West Virginia is waiting for him in Buckhannon under Capt. Marsh)  

vs.

Brig. Gen. Albert G. Jenkins; later Col. John Imboden; 8th Virginia Cavalry Regiment led by Col. James Corns, and five more companies of mounted men led by Capt. W.R. Preston, later 14th Virginia Cavalry Regiment (all under Maj. Gen. Loring)

* First Confederate to invade Ohio. Not to be confused with Morgan's Raid (Summer '63), which is the one that gets slightly farther North, the farthest of any Confederate excursion actually (setting aside their cross-border shenanigans from Canada). 

* Yep, he raided Beverly. Then Buckhannon. Other places too, but those are the places I visited in WV - this time(2024)! But now I have another reason to visit the Point Pleasant area. [Update: See below for my 2025 trip]

* We are still in West Virginia, but this is no longer The First Campaign. Instead, this is part of the Kanawha Valley Campaign of 1862: later and a little further southwest in the state from the mountain passes fought over in 1861. There was stuff down there in 1861 too, but it's too far west to be on my completist agenda for The Eastern Theatre. [2025: Carnifax Ferry FTW!]

* This is also NOT the nearby Jones-Imboden raid (see April-May 1863), despite the presence of both Imboden and raiding. No Jones here.

...But first, there's something you should know about Buckhannon, WV:

https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=178976
&
https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=178980

The Lurch Bench

Theodore Crawford "Ted" Cassidy AKA "Lurch"

Did you know that Ted Cassidy who played the beloved role of "Lurch" the butler on the classic, cult comedy television show "The Addams Family" that aired from 1964-66, used to walk the streets of our Buckhannon as a West Virginia Wesleyan College student?

Born on July 31, 1932 in Pittsburgh, Ted grew up in neighboring Philippi excelling academically, artistically, & athletically. He finished high school at age 16, & moved to Buckhannon where he attended WVWC & was a member of the Alpha Sigma Phi fraternity. The Cassidy family later relocated to Florida, & Cassidy transferred to Stetson where he was the star center on the Stetson University Basketball Team from 1952-55. His six feet nine inch frame aided his 17 point & 10 rebound per game average.

Ted Cassidy was a true renaissance gentleman who was very gifted musically playing the organ while being drawn to theatre. While Ted became most famous for his lovable role as Lurch, he played many roles during his three decades as an actor including as "Thing" also in the Addams Family; "Creech," an outer space creature; "Injun Joe" on The New Adventures of Huckleberry Finn;" the voice of "Balok" in Gene Roddenberry's Star Trek episode "The Carbomite Maneuver"; the android "Ruk" in Star Trek's "What Are Little Girls Made Of?" episode; & the voice of "Gorn" in Star Trek's "Arena" episode. Cassidy also played "Isiah" in Roddenberry's post-apocalyptic dramas "Genesis II" & "Planet Earth." He appeared in dozens of TV shows & movies including roles in The Man From U.N.C.L.E., Lost In Space, Daniel Boone, I Dream Of Jeannie, Bonanza, The Beverly Hillbillies, Tarzan, The Bionic Woman, Flash Gordon, "Bigfoot" in The Six Million Dollar Man, & was narrator of the opening for "The Incredible Hulk." He appeared as "Goliath" in the 1978 mini-series, "Greatest Heroes of the Bible."

Cassidy's many cinematic contributions further included roles as the Martian in 1960's The Angry Red Planet, Mackenna's Gold, The Last Remake of Beau Geste, & the role of "Harvey Logan" in Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid in which Ted uttered his famous line– "Rules?…In a knife fight?…" He co-wrote the screenplay for & appeared in The Harrad Experiment.

In 1965, Ted Cassidy released an album featuring the songs "The Lurch" & "Wesley." Also in '65 he introduced the dance & performed the song & dance "The Lurch" on Shivaree, the Los Angeles based Rock & Roll TV show. On Halloween of 1965, Ted appeared on Shindig, another musical, variety show with Boris Karloff performing "The Monster Mash." His deep "Basso Profundo" resulted in his being featured in dozens of cartoons particularly with Hanna-Barbera studios, including as "Metallus" on "Space Ghost" & "The Thing" on "The Fantastic Four," & "Brainiac" & "The Black Manta" on "Challenge of the Superfriends." Ted Cassidy's distinctive, iconic tone made him one of the most famous & recognizable voices in American history. In a 1978 interview given shortly before his death, Ted Cassidy stated:

"If I'm up for a part if, I'm asked to do something, I really worry what I'm going to be because they always make fellows like me the big dumb galoot, the oaf who doesn't know anything, who trips over himself. We are apparently idiots, all big men. You end up never leading anyone to anything. You end up holding people, while the boss hits them in the face -- scratching your head a lot wondering where all your marbles went. Well that kind of thing doesn't appeal to me at all. I used to think that's how it was and I would do it, but I won't do it anymore. I turn down everything that comes along like that. So, the only thing you can rely on are those who have worked with you and know that you are consistent, talented and reliable, and maybe they're friends of yours and are willing to put you to work so you don't end up in the welfare line."

In June of 1966, Mr. Cassidy returned to Buckhannon serving as the Grand Marshall of the silver anniversary of our WV Strawberry Festival (photo above). He left us way too early dying in Los Angeles on January 16, 1979, survived by his son Sean, & daughter Cameron.

We now honor & will forever remember the beloved, gentle giant of a man who preached against bullying before it was fashionable, & who once walked among us here on our streets of Buckhannon.

You're gonna wanna see "The Lurch" before we get back to the dreaded war between the states:

* * * *

https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=58723

Destruction at the Courthouse

The Raiders Strike

—Jenkins's Raid—

Confederate Gen. Albert G. Jenkins led 550 cavalrymen on a 500-mile raid from Salt Sulphur Springs, Aug. 22-Sept. 12, 1862, attacking Federal forces and destroying military stores. He captured and paroled 300 Union soldiers, killed or wounded 1,000 others, destroyed about 5,000 small arms, and seized funds from a U.S. paymaster. At Ravenswood, he forded the Ohio River and raised the Confederate flag in Ohio on Sept. 4. He captured Racine, recrossed the river, and ended the raid at Red House on the Kanawha River.

On August 30, 1862, after Confederate Gen. Albert G. Jenkins’s cavalry defeated the town’s Union defenders here, they marched the prisoners to the courthouse and made them haul weapons and ammunition outside and burn them. Bonfires of guns, store goods, furniture, wagons, and personal property burned on Main Street, during the night of August 31. A Federal brass cannon was thrown into the courthouse well. The prisoners were then marched to the Federal commissary in the Southern Methodist church on West Main Street (now the Upshur County History Center). They carried out thousands of pounds of bacon, many bushels of corn and oats, and hundreds of sacks of green coffee and burned them. In 1886, Sheriff J.J. Morgan while cleaning the courthouse well, found a container with half a gallon of rifle balls that had been dumped there.

The county’s first courthouse, built in 1855, served as an armory and suffered abuse throughout the war. In December 1861, Capt. Lot Bowen organized Co. E, 3rd West Virginia Cavalry. Union Gen. William W. Averell later visited the Federal forces occupying the town. The courthouse and church buildings were commandeered for storage and housing. On January 23, 1865, the desperate county court, angered by the unending damage to the building, passed a resolution: “Whereas, the military authorities have taken possession of the courthouse and mutilated and destroyed the interior…by tearing away the Bar and breaking up and burning the seats…Be it resolved the Sheriff present to Commander of this Post, this appeal asking him to move the troops under his command out of the courthouse..”

Buckhannon, WV

https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=178961

https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=261806

I drove over a mountain in the rain to see this?! I was really trying to hit all the 1861 sites (like this one), but appreciated the chance to catch up with Jenkins. See July 1861, but TL;DR - McClellan had a camp in Buckhannon during the First Campaign. A LOT of the markers were in comparable conditions in West Virginia. 

So anyway, back to Jenkins, here in this cute little pocket park. I thought it was the last of the markers about Jenkins, but sadly a missed a couple before I raced back to Beverly for the Heritage Days celebration (see Summer 1861). 

https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=58725

Jenkins in Buckhannon

The Raiders Strike

—Jenkins's Raid—

(Preface): Confederate Gen. Albert G. Jenkins led 550 cavalrymen on a 500-mile raid from Salt Sulphur Springs, Aug. 22-Sept. 12, 1862, attacking Federal forces and destroying military stores. He captured and paroled 300 Union soldiers, killed or wounded 1,000 others, destroyed about 5,000 small arms, and seized funds from a U.S. paymaster. At Ravenswood, he forded the Ohio River and raised the Confederate flag in Ohio on Sept. 4. He captured Racine, recrossed the river, and ended the raid at Red House on the Kanawha River.

Confederate Gen. Albert G. Jenkins and his cavalry halted a few miles east of Buckhannon on the Staunton and Parkersburg Turnpike on August 30, 1862. He knew that an immense quantity of Union supplies and several thousand small arms were stockpiled there. “After a few hours for rest and food, “Jenkins reported, “we proceeded down French Creek toward the town of Buckhannon. The population along this creek is among the most disloyal in all western Virginia.”

The day before, the Federal garrison in Buckhannon had learned of Jenkins’s approach. Units were called quickly into service, including Co. E, 10th West Virginia Infantry; the Upshur Battery and Battery E, West Virginia Light Artillery; and the Home Militia. The Home Militia was not regularly equipped---the members brought their personal shotguns, muskets and rifles.

When the defenders marched to Battle Hill (present-day Water Tank Hill, in front of you) to entrench on August 30, they were surprised to find the Confederates already there. The Federals quickly threw up breastworks of rails, logs, and straw stacks nearby, including across the junction of Marion and Kanawha Street below the hill and near this triangle park. Jenkins attacked. The defenders fought until the Confederate fire got too hot for them and beat a hasty retreat and scattered in every direction.

Jenkins’s men gathered all of the arms and supplies they could carry away, burned the rest, and then headed for Weston. They also took all of the surgical instruments and left only a handsaw to treat wounded Federals.

Slight view of Water Tank Hill
 

No, I did NOT take this picture while driving....its subject will have to remain a mystery because the white people never put it in the database. Let's not forget Stonewall Jackson's uncle though!

https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=173488

In 1784, Harrison County was formed from Monongalia by an Act of General Assembly. Commissioners who were to be members of the first county court met, as directed by the Assembly, at the home of George Jackson (an uncle of Stonewall Jackson) at Bush's Fort on the Buckhannon River to organize the new county. The site of the meeting is in present Upshur County, but in 1784 was a part of Harrison.

It will be a while before I get to the other side of West Virginia for the rest of Jenkins' Raid, but it could happen...

*******************************************

and it did, Spring Break 2025:

Battle of Charleston

September 13, 1862

Charleston, WV

https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=59143

Battle of Charleston

Lightburn's Retreat

—Jenkins's Raid—

 Confederate Gen. Albert G. Jenkins led 550 cavalrymen on a 500-mile raid from Salt Sulphur Springs, Aug. 22-Sept. 12, 1862, attacking Federal forces and destroying military stores. He captured and paroled 300 Union soldiers, killed or wounded 1,000 others, destroyed about 5,000 small arms, and seized funds from a U.S. paymaster. At Ravenswood, he forded the Ohio River and raised the Confederate flag in Ohio on Sept. 4. He captured Racine, recrossed the river, and ended the raid at Red House on the Kanawha River.

As Confederate Gen. Albert G. Jenkins conducted his raid through western Virginia, Union Col. Joseph A.J. Lightburn began consolidating scattered Federal forces to defend important positions and resources. Not only Jenkins, but also Confederate Gen. William W. Loring, acting in concert with Jenkins, threatened Union positions. Leading a combined command of infantry, cavalry, and horse artillery, Loring struck at Federal forces in the Kanawha River Valley.

On September 13, 1862, part of Loring’s force caught up with Lightburn here as the Federals withdrew through Charleston and down the valley. A Confederate detachment under Col. John McCausland occupied the high ground across the river from here and posted cannons on the heights west of the present I-64 bridge. Under artillery fire, Lightburn’s men crossed the Elk River Suspension Bridge that stood to your left rear and then cut the cables to obstruct a Confederate pursuit. Lightburn’s column, which included not only soldiers, but also a 700-wagon supply train and hundreds of loyal Unionists and slaves on foot and in boats, retreated fighting west to the Ohio River. His successful fifty-mile retreat kept a vast quantity of supplies from falling into Confederate hands.

https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=228736

On September 13, 1862, armies under command of Gen. Loring (CSA) and Col. Lightburn (USA) fought for control of salt works, recruitment, and natural resources within the Kanawha Valley. Following a 5-hour fight, Lightburn's forces retreated to Point Pleasant. Confederates remained in control of the area until driven out in late October by Gen. Cox's Union forces.

https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=59137

Battle of Charleston

Downtown Battleground

—Jenkins's Raid—

Confederate Gen. Albert G. Jenkins led 550 cavalrymen on a 500 mile raid, Aug. 22-Sept. 12, 1862, attacking Federal forces, capturing prisoners, and destroying military stores. From Salt Sulphur Springs he rode along the Tygart and Buckhannon Rivers, taking 5,000 weapons in Buckhannon and occupying Weston. He captured the Union garrison at Spencer on Sept. 2, then took Ripley, where he seized funds from the U.S. paymaster. At Ravenswood, he forded the Ohio River and raised the Confederate flag in Ohio on Sept. 4. He captured Racine, recrossed the river, and ended the raid at Red House on the Kanawha River.

As Confederate Gen. Albert G. Jenkins raided western Virginia, Union Col. Joseph A.J. Lightburn consolidated scattered Federal forces to defend important positions and resources. Not only Jenkins, but also Confederate Gen. William W. Loring, acting in concert with Jenkins, threatened Union positions. Leading a combined command of infantry, cavalry, and horse artillery, Loring struck at Federal forces in the Kanawha River Valley.

On September 13, 1862, part of Loring’s force caught up with Lightburn here as he withdrew down the valley. The Federals had occupied Charleston since April, and Lightburn had his headquarters at a log house at present-day 1536 Kanawha Boulevard (moved in 1976 to Daniel Boone Park). He ordered Col. Lyman S. Elliott, 47th Ohio Infantry, to “hold the upper part of the town” near the present state capitol for as long as possible. Under pressure, Elliott’s force retired west to a new position in the heart of Charleston and held it from mid-afternoon, when Lightburn ordered him to burn government stores and withdraw. The fire spread to buildings, and Loring reported that “the rapidity of our advance saved the city from flames” as his forces extinguished the fires.

The Confederates captured the Union garrison flag as the Federals retreated past here and across the Elk River Suspension Bridge. Batteries on both sides kept firing, and infantry skirmishes continued until dark. Confederate forces occupied the town with 18 killed and 89 wounded. The Federals reported 25 killed, 95 wounded and 190 missing.

"While we were watching ... a squad of Confederate skirmishers suddenly appeared. ... I had on a blue flannel suit and blue cap, and [Steele] Hawkins also had on a blue coat and cap. When we saw them we jumped up and they, thinking we were Federal soldiers, fired at us. ... I lost all interest in things down in town and started up the hill on the double." - Thomas E. Jeffries, who as a boy witnessed the battle

A pedestrian walkway on the bridge to your right crosses the river above the former site of Union Camp White. A carriage trail built later passes a memorial for two women allegedly executed as spies during the war and leads to a scenic view of the valley.

https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=178802

In 1860 Virginia, nearly 491,000 men, women, and children of African descent were held in slavery under the law. Less than 4 percent lived in present-day West Virginia, the majority concentrated in seven counties. The geography and economy of western Virginia limited the use of slave labor. Slavery in WV was officially ended by the state legislature on February 3, 1865.

https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=178804

Two companies of this regiment, consisting of 212 African American soldiers, were credited to WV. The men were recruited in Philadelphia in 1864, with several identified as born in WV, and fought at Chaffin's Farm, New Market Heights, Hatcher's Run, Fair Oaks, Petersburg, and the Appomattox campaign. Sent to Texas in May 1865, they mustered out and were discharged in December 1865

*****

Also re: Charleston (2 markers, not pictured):

Military Occupation

A Bitter Pill to Swallow

"I direct you to have guns in readiness to fire on Charleston. If rebels come in here Charleston shall be destroyed, for it is the work of disloyal citizens." - Gen. Eliakim P. Scammon, May 12, 1863, to Col. Rutherford B. Hayes.

Union and Confederate forces occupied Charleston several times during the Civil War. The town was placed under martial law, and loyalties among the residents were divided. The downtown suffered terribly. Fire-ruined rubble from the Bank of Virginia and the Kanawha House occupied and entire block after the Battle of Charleston on September 13, 1862. The troops of both sides frequently moved through the town and vicinity, not only foraging for provision is accordance with the practices of war, but also occasionally stealing personal property,. Guerrilla activity occurred on both sides, following no rules of conduct, and the hostilities pitted friends and neighbors against one another. Civilian bushwhackers occasionally targeted Union soldiers, leading the occupying Federal troops to retaliate.

According to local tradition, the remains of two women were unearthed across the river during carriage trail construction in 1905. A Civil War veteran claimed to recall their trial and execution as spies by Confederate forces. A second veteran supported the story but claimed that Union troops were responsible. A third veteran confessed on his deathbed that he had served on the Federal firing squad that carried out their death sentences---and it haunted him until his dying day. The women were reinterred beside the trail, and a stone memorial was later erected at the site.

"All will think it horrible, but they have been playing the game of treachery and must take the result. I have ordered 100 men to be brought over as a firing party. I have been reading the treacherous correspondence of the people for the last three months, and I think that our wives and children deserve as much consideration as those of Charleston."

Gen. Eliakim P. Scammon, May 12, 1863, to Col. Rutherford B. Hayes

*

Presidential Presence

Tending to Family, Fort, and Ferry

Camp White, the main Union camp at Charleston, was located directly across the Kanawha River from here. Col. Rutherford B. Hayes, 23rd Ohio Infantry, occupied the camp and Charleston in March 1863. He ordered his men to build a fort on top of the hill to your right, where Confederate artillery had shelled Federal troops during the Battle of Charleston on September 13, 1862. Fort Scammon strengthened the Union army’s control over the Kanawha and Elk Rivers, the James River and Kanawha Turnpike, and the ferry that connected Charleston to the main road south.

On June 15, 1863, Hayes’s wife Lucy Hayes, their four young sons, and her mother visited Camp White. The family had just settled into a cottage when the youngest son, 18 month-old Joseph, fell ill with dysentery and died. Within a week, Lucy Hayes returned to Ohio with her grief-stricken children and mother. After the war, Rutherford Hayes was elected a U.S. Senator and then governor of Ohio. He was elected President of the United States in 1877.

Another future president, William McKinley enlisted in Hayes’s regiment in 1861 as a private. For McKinley’s courage and coolness under fire, Hayes promoted him first to sergeant and then to lieutenant. McKinley mustered out in 1865 as a captain.

"We have nearly finished a tolerable fort, and have a gunboat. I have thirteen pieces of artillery." - Col. Rutherford B. Hayes, Camp White, May 17, 1863

"Conley heard a couple of ladies singing secesh songs as if for his ear in a fine dwelling in town. Joe has got his revenge by obtaining an order for use three rooms for hospital patients. The announcement caused grief and dismay - they fear smallpox (a chase has appeared). I think Joe repents his victory now." - Col. Rutherford B. Hayes, Apr. 5, 1863, letter to wife, Lucy W. Hayes

And a bit more Charleston-adjacent (memorial not pictured because fuck'em):

 Kanawha Riflemen

Hometown Boys in Gray

A memorial dedicated to the Kanawha Riflemen stands across the road behind you, on the exact route of the James River and Kanawha Turnpike. Former Confederate Gen. John McCausland, the last surviving Confederate general officer, attended the dedication ceremony in 1922. This was the town cemetery during the Civil War. The graves, except those in the small Ruffner family plot, were later moved to Spring Hill Cemetery Park.

Capt. George S. Patton, grandfather of Gen. George S. Patton, Jr., of World War II fame, formed the Kanawha Riflemen as a county militia company in 1856. Patton, a lawyer, had moved to Charleston that year. Like other “elite” militia units of the antebellum period, Patton's company was privately financed and equipped, and included in its ranks many socially prominent sons of area salt makers. Patton was a strict disciplinarian who drilled the men extensively in what was then open land where the memorial now stands.

After the Civil War began, the Kanawha Riflemen were mustered into Confederate service as Co. H, 22nd. Virginia Infantry (formerly 1st Kanawha Regiment) in July 1861. As a major, Patton fought with the regiment at Scary Creek, where he was wounded in the shoulder, captured, paroled and exchanged. After recovering, he rejoined the regiment and soon was promoted to colonel. He was mortally wounded at the Third Battle of Winchester (Opequon) on September 19, 1864, captured, and died on September 25. The regiment continued to serve in the Shenandoah Valley until disbanded in the spring of 1865.

Kanawha Riflemen – Company Orders No. 1

1. In compliance with the requisition of a Proclamation of the Governor of Virginia dated at Richmond the 19th of April 1861, this command will hold itself in readiness for marching orders.

2. In case such orders shall arrive, each one must provide himself with the following articles at least in addition to dress and fatigue uniforms, to wit: two shirts, four collars, two pair of socks, two pair of drawers, one blacking brush and box, two pair white Berlin gloves, one quart tin cup, one white cotton haversack, one case knife, fork and spoon, two towels, two handkerchiefs, comb and brush, and toothbrush. Some stout linen thread, a few buttons, paper of pins and a thimble in a small buckskin or cloth bag…

5. By the liberality and patriotism of the residents of Charleston (one of them a lady) flannel cloth (grey) has been furnished for fatigue Jackets, and provisions made for cutting them, all members of the company are hereby required at once to have their measures taken and Jackets cut by Mr. James B. Noyes, tailor. Many ladies have kindly undertaken to make them up. All members of the company are required to have their Jackets finished by Wednesday afternoon next at the latest. George S. Patton, Captain

*

The 35th Star

West Virginia Statehood

 Sectional differences in western and eastern Virginia fueled resentment and political divisions before the Civil War. The divisions soon became irrevocable after the convention in Richmond voted on April 17, 1861, for Virginia to secede and join the Confederacy. Far to the north of here, Wheeling, delegates of Virginia's western counties convened in June. They first reorganized and restored the loyal government of Virginia, and then subsequently decided to create a new, loyal state from Virginia's western counties. In the midst of the conflict, President Abraham Lincoln signed a bill creating West Virginia. On June 20, 1863, West Virginia became the only state born of the Civil War.

   Wheeling became the state capitol - but not for long. In 1870, the seat of government moved south to Charleston after former Confederates regained the right to vote. Lawmakers, however, considered Charleston isolated and provincial (with a population of only 3,162), so the capitol returned to Wheeling, which had 19,280 residents. A statewide referendum eventually settled the issue, and Charleston became the permanent capital in 1885.

Salt industry pioneer Daniel Ruffner built the house behind you in 1815 as a tavern or "house of private entertainment." It was ideally situated on a well established transportation route, the James River and Kanawha Turnpike. By the time of the Civil War, this area (including the present capitol complex) was part of his estate called Holly Grove.