136 



AEMY OPERATIONS. 



hours and a quarter, captured all his strongholds upon 

 that part of tne island, and pushed forward my infan- 

 tryto within six hundred yards of Fort Wagner. 



We now hold all the island except about oiie mile on 

 the north end, which includes Fort Wagner and a bat- 

 tery on Cummings' Point, mounting at the present 

 time fourteen or fifteen heavy guns in the aggregate. 



The assaulting column was gallantly led by Brig.- 

 Gen. Strong. It landed in small boats under cover of 

 my batteries on Folly Island and four monitors led 

 by Rear-Admiral Dahlgren, which entered the main 

 channel abreast of Morris Island soon after our bat- 

 teries opened. The monitors continued their fire dur- 

 ing the day mostly on Fort Wagner. 



On the morning of the llth instant, at daybreak, an 

 effort was made to carry Fort Wagner by assault. The 

 parapet was gained, but the supports recoiled under 

 the fire to which they were exposed and could not be 

 got up. Our loss in both actions will not vary much 

 from one hundred and fifty in filled, wounded, and 

 prisoners. We have taken eleven pieces of heavy ord- 

 nance and a large quantity of camp equipage. 



The enemy's loss in killed, wounded, and missing, 

 will not fall short of two hundred. 



Q. A. GILLMORE, Brig. -Gen. Commanding. 



The portion of Morris Island not yet taken 

 by Gen. Gillmore was well fortified. Fort 

 Wagner was a strong work, constructed of im- 

 mense timbers and rafters covered over with 

 earth and sand some twenty feet thick. Its 

 distance from Fort Sumter in an air line was 

 about a mile and a half, and four and a half 

 miles from Charleston. On the part of the 

 island called Cummings' Point was Battery 

 Gregg, about three-fourths of a mile from Fort 



Sumter. Morris Island is about five miles 

 long and some three or four miles wide. 

 Along the sea coast is an irregular ridge made 

 of sand heaps, which is about half a mile wide, 

 the rest of the island is low, level, marshy land, 

 much of which is flooded at high tide. The 

 Confederate forces on the island were under the 

 command of Brig.-Gen. Harrison, of Georgia; 

 Fort Sumter, which stands within the entrance, 

 and nearly in the centre of the harbor, was 

 under the command of Col. Ehett. The walls 

 were protected by tiers of sand bags in the in- 

 side, some twenty feet thick, thus making an 

 obstruction of brick and sand some twenty-six 

 feet. Fort Moultrie is nearly opposite Sumter, 

 on the north side of the harbor, and distant 

 about one and one-fourth miles. Up the har- 

 bor on the southern side is Fort Johnson, one 

 and one-fourth miles distant. About a mile 

 beyond, in the middle of the harbor, on the 

 " middle ground," is Fort Ripley. Castle Pink- 

 ney is in the same line, and on the north side 

 of the harbor at the mouth of the Cooper river. 

 There were, in addition, numerous batteries at 

 various points on all the islands and the front 

 of the city, and also works facing the land at- 

 tack on James Island. The whole number of 

 guns in position and afloat for the defence of 

 Charleston, was estimated at three hundred 

 and seventy-six. 

 The naval force under Admiral Dupont, com- 



