Result(s): Union victory

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.

History of the Battle at Goldsborough Bridge 

     The Battle of Goldsborough Bridge was fought December 17, 1862, at the Wilmington & Weldon Railroad Bridge across the Neuse River, three miles south of Goldsborough, North Carolina. Troops and supplies aboard trains from the Deep South and the port at Wilmington had to cross this bridge on their way to Virginia, making this bridge a vital link in the Confederate supply chain. Because of the intersection of two railroads at Goldsborough, the Wilmington & Weldon and the Atlantic & North Carolina, that city had become one of the most important railroad centers in the South. There were other railroad bridges and depots between Wilmington and Virginia, but the presence of the two railroads at Goldsborough, with the fact that Goldsborough was only 60 miles from Union-occupied New Berne, made the railroad bridge at Goldsborough an important objective for the Union War Department. The War Department believed that the destruction of this bridge would impact the ability of the Confederacy to wage war, if completed in conjunction with a major Union victory in Virginia. A defeated Confederate army, denied re-supply, could be swept aside, leaving the Confederate capital at Richmond vulnerable. The time to implement this plan arrived late in 1862. In December, the commander of the Union Army of the Potomac, General Ambrose Burnside, was planning an attack on General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia at Fredericksburg, Virginia. Plans were developed for the Union commander in North Carolina, General John G. Foster, to simultaneously launch an attack from New Berne against the railroad bridge at Goldsborough. This expedition has come to be known as Foster’s Raid. 

 

     Foster’s Raid was a tactical success for the Union. The vital railroad bridge near Goldsborough was destroyed, temporarily halting the flow of supplies from the Deep South and the port at Wilmington to Virginia. The success Foster enjoyed at Goldsborough was muted, however, by events in Virginia. Burnside’s attack against Lee at Fredericksburg was a disaster for the Union (which was soundly defeated). The triumphant Confederate army in Virginia was thus able to withstand a temporary loss of supplies and reinforcements from the South, nullifying what would have otherwise been a major strategic victory for the Union. Because of the importance of the Goldsborough Bridge to the Confederate chain of supply, men and engineers were rushed to the site and the bridge was rebuilt in a matter of weeks. The next time the Union army would get so close to Goldsborough was on March 21, 1865, when three Union armies over 100,000 strong, captured the city and its vital railroad bridge and depots. These Union armies, commanded by Generals William T. Sherman, Alfred Terry and John Schofield, used the railroad lines at Goldsborough to re-supply for a final push on the state capital at Raleigh, which was to be followed by a link-up with General U. S. Grant’s army in Virginia. The three armies left Goldsborough on April 10, 1865; just one day after General Robert E. Lee surrendered to Grant at Appomattox Court House, Virginia. The war was all but over.

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 North Carolina. Description: Numerous battles and skirmishes were fought in North Carolina during the Civil War, and the campaigns and battles themselves were crucial in the grand strategy of the conflict and involved some of the most famous generals of the war. John Barrett presents the complete story of military engagements across the state, including the classical pitched battle of Bentonville--involving Generals Joe Johnston and William Sherman--the siege of Fort Fisher, the amphibious campaigns on the coast, and cavalry sweeps such as General George Stoneman's Raid.

 

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. Continued below...

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.

 

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: Lifeline of the Confederacy: Blockade Running During the Civil War (Studies in Maritime History Series). From Library Journal: From the profusion of books about Confederate blockade running, this one will stand out for a long time as the most complete and exhaustively researched. Though not unaware of the romantic aspects of his subject, Wise sets out to provide a detailed study, giving particular attention to the blockade runners' effects on the Confederate war effort. Continued below...

It was, he finds, tapping hitherto unused sources, absolutely essential, affording the South a virtual lifeline of military necessities until the war's last days. This book covers it all: from cargoes to ship outfitting, from individuals and companies to financing at both ends. An indispensable addition to Civil War literature.