72 



ARMY OPERATIONS. 



sandy plain, sufficiently elevated for drainage. 

 The enemy had supposed that the attack -would 

 be made on the west, and on this side the city 

 was most strongly fortified, but to no purpose 

 in the final attack. The 16th corps, Gen. A. 

 J. Smith, was landed on Dauphin Island, oppo- 

 site Mobile Poin^ and reached Fort Gaines on 

 March 12th. All the cavalry under Gen. Grier- 

 son, crossing Pontchartrain, reached Mobile 

 Point, and on the 18th, every thing being in 

 readiness, the march commenced. A brigade 

 of the 3d division of the 16th corps, about two 

 thousand strong, left Dauphin's Island to effect 

 a landing on Cedar Point, above Fort Powell, 

 and to clear the way for the rest of the corps. 

 On the previous day a brigade of the 2d division 

 of the 13th corps was landed on Mobile Point, 

 to proceed as the advance of the corps on the 

 mainland on the east side of the bay. At the 

 same time Gen. Steele, in command of a division 

 of colored troops at Pensacola and Barrancas, 

 commenced a march across to Blakely on the 

 Tensaw River, about twelve miles north of east 

 of Mobile. On the 18th, the whole 13th corps 

 under Gen. Granger followed the advance bri- 

 gade, marching by land along the shore of Bon 

 Secour Bay, which forms the southeasterly cor- 

 ner of Mobile Bay, near its mouth, and just 

 north of Mobile Point, on which is Fort Mor- 

 gan. Fish River, running south on the east 

 side of Mobile Bay, empties into Bon Secour 

 Bay, and the rendezvous of the army was fixed 

 about eight miles from its mouth. On the 19th 

 the 16th corps, under Gen. Smith, were taken 

 in transports and moved across Mobile Bay, and 

 disembarked at the rendezvous up the river by 

 the night of the 21st. On the 22d and 23d the 

 13th corps, under Gen. Granger, which had 

 been delayed in its march by the bad roads, be- 

 gan to arrive. Slight skirmishing occurred 

 with the enemy along the route. The advance 

 toward Spanish Fort at the head of Mobile Bay, 

 . on the east side, was made on the 25th. The 

 13th corps was on the left, direct for the fort, 

 and the 16th corps on the right moving tow- 

 ard Blakeley. Constant skirmishing was kept 

 up by the enemy, and the road was found to bo 

 thickly planted with torpedoes. On the 27th 

 both corps marched into position, to invest 

 Spanish Fort, and the enemy fell back toward 

 Blakeley. At the same time the fleet got under 

 way, and proceeded up the bay to Howard's 

 Landing, below the fort. The Metacomet, 

 Stockdale, Milwaukee, Cincinnati, Albatross, 

 Winnebago, Genesee, and Osage, were ordered 

 in toward the shore, and opened a cannonade, 

 which the enemy did not return. The commu- 

 nication between the city and the fort was cut 

 off by the fleet, with the loss of the Milwaukee 

 and Osage blown up by torpedoes. The land 

 forces brought up the artillery, and the appear- 

 ance of a regular siege was presented. The 

 fleet of the enemy at a distance also occasionally 

 opened fire on the troops. On April 3d the in- 

 vestment was complete, and a fire was opened 

 upon it both by land and water, which resulted 



in silencing the guns of the enemy by midnight. 

 An hour afterwards the fort was surrendered 

 with its dependencies. The number of men 

 made prisoners was five hundred and thirty- 

 eight and twenty-five officers. Gen. Canby 

 reported that the major part of the garrison 

 escaped by water. There was found in the fort 

 five mortars and twenty-five guns. 



Meanwhile Gen. Steele left Pensacola March 

 19th, and marched through Pollard toward Mo- 

 bile. On the 25th he encountered the 6th 

 Alabama cavalry at Mitchell's Creek, and a 

 sharp contest ensued, in which the enemy were 

 routed. Thence he continued his march tow- 

 ard Blakeley, and came in on the right of Gen. 

 Canby. 



After the surrender of Spanish Fort, the gun- 

 boat Octarora opened fire on Forts Tracy and 

 Huger, near the mouth of the Tensaw River, 

 but both works were abandoned by the enemy 

 after spiking eight heavy guns. Blakeley was 

 now invested by the gunboats in front, which 

 had advanced up the river after the surrender 

 of the forts and the removal of torpedoes, and 

 by the troops on the land side. The works 

 were carried by assault on April 9th, and two 

 thousand ' four hundred prisoners and twenty 

 guns taken. On the next day, the 10th, the 

 enemy commenced evacuating Mobile, which 

 was completed on the llth by their retreat 

 with their fleet up the Alabama River. On the 

 next day it was surrendered to Gen. Canby and 

 Rear-Admiral Thatcher, and occupied by the 

 corps of Gen. Granger. Gen. Canby reported 

 that he found in Mobile and its defences over 

 one hundred and fifty guns, a very large 

 amount of ammunition, and supplies of all 

 kinds, and about one thousand prisoners. The 

 Federal loss had been two thousand five hun- 

 dred men, and that of the fleet fifty men. 



On April 19th an officer of G*en. Taylor's 

 staff arrived at Gen. Canby's headquarters with 

 a flag of truce to make terms for the surrender 

 of the troops east of the Mississippi. On May 

 4th surrender was executed. The delegation 

 upon the Union side consisted of Gens. Canby, 

 Osterhaus, Andrews ; Col. Christenson ; Capts. 

 Barrett and Perkins; and, by invitation of Gen. 

 Canby, Admiral Thatcher. At Citronelle, Ala- 

 bama, where the conference was held, were 

 found Gen. Taylor and staff, Commander Far- 

 rand, and Lieut. Commander Myers, of the Con- 

 federate navy, and a largo concourse of other 

 officers. After considerable discussion and con- 

 sultation, ending at 7:30 p. M., the following 

 conditions were agreed to and signed as the 

 terms of surrender : 



Memorandum of the conditions of the surrender of 

 the forces, munitions of war, etc., in the department 

 of Alabama, Mississippi, and East Louisiana, com- 

 manded by Lieut. -Gen. Richard Taylor, Confederate 

 States army, to Major-Gen. Edward R. S. Canby, 

 United States army, entered into on the 4th day of 

 May, 1865, at Citronelle, Alabama : 



1. The officers and men to be paroled until duly 

 exchanged or otherwise released from the obligations 

 of their parole by the authority of the Government of 



