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New Bern
Other Names: New Berne
Location: Craven County
Campaign: Burnside's North Carolina Expedition (February-June 1862)
Date(s): March 14, 1862
Principal Commanders: Brig. Gen. Ambrose E. Burnside [US]; Brig.
Gen. Lawrence O’B. Branch [CS]
Forces Engaged: Expeditionary Force and Foster’s, Reno’s,
and Parke’s Brigades [US]; 5 regiments, militia [CS]
Estimated Casualties: 1,080 total
| Satellite view of New Bern, North Carolina |
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| (Click to Enlarge Map) |
Description: On March 11, Brig. Gen. Ambrose E. Burnside’s
command embarked from Roanoke Island to rendezvous with Union gunboats at Hatteras Inlet for an expedition against New Bern. On March 13, the fleet sailed up the
Neuse River and disembarked infantry on the river’s south bank to approach the New Bern defenses. The Confederate defense
was commanded by Brig. Gen. Lawrence Branch. On March 14, John G. Foster’s, Jesse Reno’s, and John G. Parke’s
brigades attacked along the railroad and after four hours of fighting drove the Confederates out of their fortifications.
The Federals captured nine forts and 41 heavy guns and occupied a base which they would hold to the end of the war, in spite
of several Confederate attempts to recover the town. The capture
of New
Bern reflected another accomplishment towards the fulfillment of General Winfield Scott's "Anaconda Plan." (also see Battle of New Bern: Detailed)
Result(s): Union victory
Source: National Park Service
Recommended
Reading: Ironclads and Columbiads:
The Coast (The Civil War in North Carolina)
(456 pages). Description: Ironclads
and Columbiads covers some of the most important battles and campaigns in the state. In January 1862, Union forces
began in earnest to occupy crucial points on the North Carolina
coast. Within six months, Union army and naval forces effectively controlled coastal North Carolina
from the Virginia line south to present-day Morehead
City. Union setbacks in Virginia, however, led to the withdrawal of many
federal soldiers from North Carolina, leaving only enough Union troops to hold a few coastal strongholds—the vital ports
and railroad junctions. The South during the Civil War, moreover, hotly contested the North’s ability to maintain its
grip on these key coastal strongholds.
Battle of New Bern: A History
The Battle of New Bern (also
known as the Battle of New Berne) was fought on 14 March 1862, near the city of New Bern, North Carolina, as part of the Burnside Expedition of the American
Civil War. The US Army's Coast Division, led by Brigadier General Ambrose E. Burnside and accompanied by armed vessels from
the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron, were opposed by an undermanned and rather badly trained Confederate force of North Carolina soldiers and militia led by Brigadier General Lawrence
O'B. Branch. Although the defenders fought behind breastworks that had been set up long before the time of the battle, their
line had a weak spot in its center that was exploited by the attacking Federal soldiers. When the center of the line was penetrated,
many of the militia broke, forcing a general retreat of the entire Confederate force. General Branch was unable to regain
control of his troops until they had retreated to Kinston,
more than 30 miles (about 50 km) away. New Bern came under
Federal control, and remained so for the rest of the war.
| Civil War North Carolina: Battle of New Bern |
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| (Click to Enlarge) |
| NC Harbor Defenses |
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| Historical & Present-day |
Geography
New Bern lies on the right
(southwest) bank of the Neuse River, about
37 miles (60 km) above its exit into Pamlico Sound. The river is quite broad in this vicinity, and is deep enough that vessels that can navigate the sound can also ply
the river. In the colonial era, the town was quite important as a seaport, but by the time of the Civil War Morehead
City and Beaufort had largely supplanted it. Nevertheless, New Bern was still a significant military target, as the railroad (Atlantic
and North Carolina Railroad) that connected the coast with the interior passed through the city. A short distance further
up, at Goldsboro (spelled Goldsborough in the 19th century), the line crossed the Wilmington and Weldon Railroad (North Carolina American Civil War Railroads), noted for keeping the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia supplied throughout the war. Thus, if New Bern were to fall into Federal hands, an important link in the supply chain of that army
would be broken.
The land in this part of
North Carolina is low and rather flat, and is sometimes
marshy. In 1862, it was mostly covered with open pine forest, although in places it was broken into low hills with deciduous
forests, separated by ravines. It is crossed by many creeks that sometimes rise to the status of small rivers. One of these,
the Trent River, separates New Bern from the land to its south.
Another that is only a little smaller is Slocum's Creek, 16 miles (26 km) farther down the Neuse.
It was to be the landing site for the attacking Federal forces. The entire action, aside from the takeover of the city itself,
was confined to the land between these two streams. The railroad ran on a system of berms and occasional cuts about a mile
(1.6 km) inland from the river. Between the tracks and the river was a county road connecting New Bern
with Morehead City
and Beaufort; in the manner of the time, the road was unpaved, as the Union soldiers learned to their sorrow.
Preliminaries
Following the secession
of North Carolina from the Union, the defenses of the state were badly neglected by the Confederate
government in Richmond. The War Department there, directed
at first by Secretary Leroy P. Walker and later by Judah P. Benjamin, drained off its best-trained and best-equipped troops
to take part in the campaigns in Virginia, which were regarded
as more important. When Hatteras Island fell to Union forces in August 1862, only six regiments of infantry were available
to defend the entire coast of the state. Already by that time the coastal defense had been divided into separate districts
for command purposes; the northern part, from near Cape Lookout to the Virginia border, was assigned to Brig. Gen. Daniel
H. Hill, who set up the defensive lines around New Bern expecting that the garrison would ultimately be increased in size,
but he was transferred to service in Virginia before the hoped-for additional troops arrived. Shortly after he was succeeded
by Brig. Gen. Lawrence O'B. Branch, the district was divided again. Branch's command extended from Cape Lookout north only
to the limits of Pamlico Sound. From there to the Virginia
border and beyond was assigned to Brig. Gen. Benjamin Huger, whose primary concern was the defense of Norfolk and environs. This meant in particular that Roanoke Island, between Croatan Sound
and Roanoke Sound just north of Pamlico Sound, was not included in Branch's command.
Roanoke
Island fell to a combined operation of the Union Army's Coast Division, under Brig. Gen. Ambrose E. Burnside,
and a Union gunboat flotilla assembled from the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron, under Flag Officer Louis M Goldsborough,
on 7–8 February 1862. That battle was rapidly followed up by the gunboats alone, who wiped out the Confederate Navy's
Mosquito Fleet in an assault on Elizabeth City.
Shortly afterward, Goldsborough had to leave the sounds for duties at Hampton Roads, and immediate command of the ships he
left behind fell to Commander Stephen C. Rowan. As a result of the battles, Union forces could move at will in Albemarle and Pamlico Sounds. Every city and town accessible to those sounds hence became
vulnerable to attack. The most important was New Bern, and
Burnside soon resolved to take it.
The importance of New Bern was no more obvious to Burnside than it was to the Confederate authorities in Richmond, but they did little to secure it. Although more than a month passed after Roanoke Island fell before Burnside could mount an attack on the city, the local command received no
reinforcements. One of General Branch's aides estimated that the lines would need at least 6,130 men to hold them, but he
had only about 4,000 at his disposal, a number often reduced by sickness. Furthermore, many of the men were poorly-armed militiamen.
The disparity between necessity and reality persuaded Branch to draw his lines in, abandoning some of the strong breastworks
erected by his predecessor. The principal defense would be a line based on Fort Thompson, a work of thirteen guns facing the Neuse
River. The fort was strong, but only three of its thirteen guns would
bear on the landward approach.
The Fort Thompson breastworks that were set up
by General Hill extended only from the river to the railroad. They ended on the right in a brickyard that would figure prominently
in the fighting. Because the land farther to the right was fairly firm and would allow his position to be flanked, General
Branch decided to extend the line beyond the railroad and end it in a swamp. This just about doubled the length of the defensive
line. He made a major blunder in laying out the line, however. In haste to complete the extension and faced with an exasperating
shortage of labor, he decided to use a small creek as a natural part of the line. This creek intersected the railroad at a
point some 150 yards (135 meters) up from the brickyard. The line of breastworks therefore had a dogleg in its center.
| Forts protecting Wilmington Weldon Railroad |
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| Most Important Railroad of the Civil War |
Battle
Opposing Forces:
Union and Confederate Orders of Battle
Union Order of Battle
Coast Division of the US Army (Brig. Gen. Ambrose E. Burnside)
First Brigade (Brig. Gen.
John G. Foster)
10th Connecticut
24th Massachusetts
25th Massachusetts
27th Massachusetts
Second Brigade (Brig. Gen.
Jesse L. Reno)
9th New Jersey
21st Massachusetts
51st New York
51st Pennsylvania
Third Brigade {Brig. Gen.
John G. Parke)
8th Connecticut
11th Connecticut
4th Rhode Island
5th Rhode Island
Unassigned units:
1st New York Marine Artillery
(detachment)
99th New York (Union Coast Guard) (Company B)
Army gunboat Picket
US Naval Forces in Pamlico
Sound (Commander Stephen C. Rowan)
Philadelphia
Stars and Stripes
Louisiana
Hetzel
Underwriter
Delaware
Commodore Perry
Valley City
Commodore Barney
Hunchback
Southfield
Morse
Lockwood
Henry Brinker
Confederate Order of Battle
Pamlico District of the
Department of North Carolina (Brig. Gen. L. O'B. Branch)
7th North Carolina
19th North Carolina (cavalry)
26th North Carolina
27th North Carolina
28th North Carolina
33rd North Carolina
35th North Carolina
37th North Carolina
North Carolina Heavy Artillery
(company)
Special Battalion, North Carolina Militia
| Civil War Battle of New Bern, North Carolina |
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| (Click to Enlarge) |
Advance
The soldiers of the Coast
Division clambered into their transports at Roanoke Island on 11 March 1862 and got under way early the next morning, accompanied
by 14 Navy gunboats and one gunboat of their own. One of the Navy vessels was detached to guard the mouth of the Pamlico
River, where it was incorrectly rumored that the Rebels were preparing
two ships to cut off transports that might become separated from Navy protection. The main force traversed Pamlico Sound,
entered the Neuse River,
and anchored near the mouth of Slocum's Creek at dusk. At dawn on 13 March, the troops began to disembark. A small Rebel unit
that was intended to contest the landing was quickly driven away by fire from the gunboats, and the morning was spent getting
men and equipment ashore. With the infantry came six boat (Navy) howitzers and two Army howitzers. Because of the weather,
Burnside decided to land his other artillery closer to the enemy lines, but dense fog soon closed in, and he could not communicate
with the fleet. His remaining guns were not landed.
A little after noon they
began to move toward the Confederate lines, and at about the same time the rains began. The road was soon turned into mud,
and the mere act of walking required great exertion. The gunners with the howitzers accompanying the infantry soon were exhausted
trying to move their pieces, so a regiment of foot soldiers were detailed to help them. Many of those foot soldiers long remembered
this as the most arduous part of the battle. As they made their slow progress, the gunboats kept a short distance ahead, shelling
places where Rebels might be waiting. Late in the day, the advance forces came upon a line of Confederate breastworks that
looked formidable, but was discovered on closer inspection to have been recently abandoned. (General Branch had ordered his
men out of this line, known as the Croatan Works, because he believed that Union naval supremacy would allow Burnside to land
his soldiers behind the works and take them in reverse. He could not defend the entire six miles of river bank between the
line and New Bern with the number of men he had available.)
The Coast Division soon
resumed its march. Leaving the Croatan Works, First (Foster's) Brigade moved on the right, following the county road, while
Second (Reno's) Brigade followed the railroad on the left.
Third (Parke's) Brigade followed after the First. They continued until they came in contact with enemy pickets, about a mile
and a half (2 km) away from the Fort Thompson
line held by the Rebels. Daylight having been exhausted, Burnside ordered a halt and had the brigades bivouac in the order
of their march: First Brigade on the right near the road, Second Brigade on the left near the railroad, and Third Brigade
to the rear of the First. The howitzers did not arrive until 0300 the next morning.
| Goldsboro Expedition (Foster's Raid) |
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| Civil War Strikes Eastern North Carolina |
The Fight
The field was covered by
a dense fog on the morning of 14 March. Burnside ordered his forces to form and advance on the Rebel works. The Yankees did
not have complete information concerning their opponents' disposition at this time; so far as they knew, the Confederate line
extended only from the river to the brickyard. In keeping with this knowledge, Burnside ordered the First Brigade to engage
the enemy left, while the Second Brigade would try to turn their right, at the brickyard. The eight howitzers were deployed
across the county road. Third Brigade was held as a reserve. The Army also got some dubious support from the gunboats under
Commander Cowan, who shelled the Rebel positions although they were hidden by intervening forests. This gunfire greatly disturbed
the North Carolinians,
but it was inaccurate enough that Burnside eventually asked Cowan to change direction.
Meanwhile, on the other
side, General Branch had put his regiments into the line. From his left, at Fort
Thompson, to the brickyard on his right, were the 27th, 37th, 7th, and
35th North Carolina Regiments. His reserve was the 33rd Regiment. The right flank of the 35th was anchored in a brickyard
kiln that was loopholed for artillery. The entire line beyond the railroad was occupied by a single regiment, the 26th North Carolina, plus a few companies of cavalry. The gap in his line
created by the dogleg at the railroad was covered only by his weakest unit, a militia battalion with only two weeks of training,
and armed with shotguns and hunting rifles.
On the Confederate right,
General Reno, still unaware of the extension of the enemy lines beyond the railroad, ordered a part of the 21st Massachusetts to charge the brick kiln, while his other units would
engage the enemy in support. The charge was successful at first, but they then found themselves under fire from the whole
line and were forced to pull back.
Burnside at this time ordered
his reserve, the Third Brigade, into the line to support Reno's
Second Brigade. The 4th Rhode Island replaced the 21st Massachusetts,
which had used up its ammunition. While trading places, Colonel Isaac P. Rodman of the 4th Rhode Island
was told by Lieutenant Colonel William S. Clark of the 21st Massachusetts
that he thought that another attack on the brick kiln would be successful. Rodman sent a courier to General Parke informing
him that he was taking responsibility, then formed his regiment and ordered them to charge. Armed with better knowledge of
the enemy, this charge was successful. The 4th Rhode Island
captured nine brass field pieces, and found themselves in rear of the Rebel entrenchments.
At this point, the Confederate
line broke. The rupture started when the green militiamen fled and exposed the units on both of their flanks. Branch ordered
his reserves to plug the gap, but they did not arrive in time. As the line was rolled up on both wings, each regimental commander
in succession pulled his unit back to escape being slaughtered. General Branch ordered a retreat, which soon became a rout.
The fleeing North Carolinians dashed across the bridge over the Trent River into New
Bern, then burned the bridge so precipitately that some of their compatriots were left behind and were
captured. Even in New Bern, however, they were not safe, as the Union warships were there ahead
of them, so the retreating units could not reform until they had fled all the way to Kinston.
Branch had lost 68 killed,
116 wounded, and 400 captured or missing, compared to Burnside's 90 killed, 385 wounded, and a single man captured.
Follow-up
New Bern fell and was occupied. It remained in control of the Union Army for the rest of
the war. Immediately following the battle, Burnside turned his attention to his next important objective, getting control
of the port at Beaufort, which was defended by Fort Macon. The Rebels did not defend Morehead
City, which was occupied immediately by the Yankees, or Beaufort, which
was taken on 25 March. The siege of Fort Macon
began at that time.
References are listed at bottom of page.
Recommended
Reading: The
Civil War on the Outer Banks: A History of the Late Rebellion Along the Coast of North Carolina from Carteret to Currituck
With Comments on Prewar Conditions and an Account of (Hardcover: 243 pages). Description: The ports at Beaufort, Wilmington, New Bern and Ocracoke, part of the Outer Banks (a chain of barrier islands that
sweeps down the North Carolina coast from the Virginia Capes to Oregon Inlet), were strategically vital for the import
of war materiel and the export of cash producing crops. From official records, contemporary newspaper accounts, personal journals
of the soldiers, and many unpublished manuscripts and memoirs, this is a full
accounting of the Civil War along the North Carolina coast.
Recommended
Reading: The Civil War in the Carolinas (Hardcover). Description: Dan Morrill relates the
experience of two quite different states bound together in the defense of the Confederacy, using letters, diaries, memoirs,
and reports. He shows how the innovative operations of the Union army and navy
along the coast and in the bays and rivers of the Carolinas affected the general course of
the war as well as the daily lives of all Carolinians. He demonstrates the "total war" for North Carolina's vital coastal railroads and ports. In the latter
part of the war, he describes how Sherman's operation cut
out the heart of the last stronghold of the South. Continued below...
The author
offers fascinating sketches of major and minor personalities, including the new president and state governors, Generals Lee,
Beauregard, Pickett, Sherman, D.H. Hill, and Joseph E. Johnston. Rebels and abolitionists, pacifists and unionists, slaves
and freed men and women, all influential, all placed in their context with clear-eyed precision. If he were wielding a needle
instead of a pen, his tapestry would offer us a complete picture of a people at war. Midwest Book Review: The Civil War in the Carolinas by civil war expert and historian
Dan Morrill (History Department, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, and Director of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Historical
Society) is a dramatically presented and extensively researched survey and analysis of the impact the American Civil War had
upon the states of North Carolina and South Carolina, and the people who called these states their home. A meticulous, scholarly,
and thoroughly engaging examination of the details of history and the sweeping change that the war wrought for everyone, The
Civil War In The Carolinas is a welcome and informative addition to American Civil War Studies reference collections.
Recommended
Reading: The
Civil War in Coastal North Carolina (175 pages) (North Carolina Division of Archives and History). Description: From the drama of blockade-running to graphic descriptions of battles on the state's islands and sounds,
this book portrays the explosive events that took place in North Carolina's coastal region during the Civil War.
Topics discussed include the strategic importance of coastal North Carolina,
Federal occupation of coastal areas, blockade-running, and the impact of war on civilians along the Tar Heel coast.
Recommended
Reading: Storm over Carolina: The Confederate Navy's Struggle for Eastern
North Carolina. Description: The struggle for control of the eastern waters of North Carolina
during the War Between the States was a bitter, painful, and sometimes humiliating one for the Confederate navy. No better
example exists of the classic adage, "Too little, too late." Burdened by the lack of adequate warships, construction
facilities, and even ammunition, the South's naval arm fought bravely and even recklessly to stem the tide of the Federal
invasion of North Carolina from the raging Atlantic. Storm Over Carolina is the account of the Southern navy's struggle in North Carolina waters and it is a saga of crushing defeats interspersed with moments of
brilliant and even spectacular victories. It is also the story of dogged Southern determination and incredible perseverance
in the face of overwhelming odds. Continued below...
For most of
the Civil War, the navigable portions of the Roanoke, Tar, Neuse, Chowan, and Pasquotank rivers were
occupied by Federal forces. The Albemarle and Pamlico sounds, as well as most of the coastal towns and counties, were also
under Union control. With the building of the river ironclads, the Confederate navy at last could strike a telling blow against
the invaders, but they were slowly overtaken by events elsewhere. With the war grinding to a close, the last Confederate vessel
in North Carolina waters was destroyed. William T. Sherman
was approaching from the south, Wilmington was lost, and the
Confederacy reeled as if from a mortal blow. For the Confederate navy, and even more so for the besieged citizens of eastern
North Carolina, these were stormy days indeed. Storm Over Carolina describes their story, their struggle, their history.
Recommended
Reading: Graveyard of the Atlantic: Shipwrecks of the North
Carolina Coast [ILLUSTRATED] (Hardcover:
276 pages) (The University of North Carolina Press). Description: This outstanding research
of the shipwrecks off the North Carolina Coast includes: a detailed listing of shipwrecks along the North Carolina Coast and
Outer Banks; detailed accounts of most of the shipwrecks and, in some cases, the author gives extensive details, e.g., he
devotes a chapter to the Steam Packet Pulaski. The author provides a chronological
listing at the end of the book, a detailed index, and descriptive drawings of the various types of ships along with a map
of the area. For anyone interested in ships, shipwrecks, the NC Outer Banks, then this is a great read.
Recommended
Reading: Confederate Military
History Of North Carolina: North Carolina
In The Civil War, 1861-1865. Description: The author, Prof. D. H. Hill, Jr., was the son of Lieutenant General
Daniel Harvey Hill (North Carolina produced only two lieutenant
generals and it was the second highest rank in the army) and his mother was General “Stonewall” Jackson’s
wife's sister. In Confederate Military History Of North Carolina, Hill discusses
North Carolina’s massive task of preparing and mobilizing for the conflict; the many
regiments and battalions recruited from the Old North State; as well as the state's numerous
contributions during the war. Continued below...
During Hill's Tar Heel State
study, the reader begins with interesting and thought-provoking statistical data regarding the 125,000 "Old North State"
soldiers that fought during the course of the war and the 40,000 that perished. Hill advances with the Tar Heels to the first
battle at Bethel, through numerous bloody campaigns and battles--including North
Carolina’s contributions at the "High Watermark" at Gettysburg--and concludes
with Lee's surrender at Appomattox.
References: National Park Service;
Browning, Robert M. Jr., From Cape Charles to Cape
Fear: the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron during the Civil War. Univ. of Alabama, 1993; Campbell, R. Thomas, Storm over
Carolina: the Confederate Navy's struggle for eastern North
Carolina. Cumberland House, 2005; Davis, George B., Leslie J. Perry, and Joseph W. Kirkley, Atlas
to accompany the official records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Government Printing Office, 1891–1895; reprint,
Arno, 1978; Johnson, Robert Underwood, and Clarence Clough Buel, Battles and leaders of the Civil War. Century, 1887, 1888;
reprint ed., Castle, n.d; Trotter, William R., Ironclads and columbiads: the coast. Joseph F. Blair, 1989; US Navy Department,
Official records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion. Series
I: 27 volumes. Series II: 3 volumes. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1894–1922;
US War Department, A compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate Armies.
Series I: 53 volumes. Series II: 8 volumes. Series III: 5 volumes. Series IV: 4 volumes. Washington:
Government Printing Office, 1886–1901; Microsoft Virtual Earth (2D) and Microsoft Virtual Earth (3D).
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