daves American Civil War

It was a long tiring winter after the Union army pushed the Confederate army further south. The Union captured Forts Henry and Donelson on the Tennessee and Cumberland rivers. This is where I had to take over reporting the war for my brother Mike Bloom who was killed in the line of duty. It was his job that's is now mine John Bloom to report for the Union Observer.

After these courageous Union victories the Confederate army General Sidney Johnston was forced to abandon much of west and middle Tennessee as well as Kentucky. Johnston felt that it was necessary to protect the only all weather access between Richmond and Memphis. Which was the Charleston and Memphis railroad. There he set up a new defensive line.

While this was going on I was stationed at Fort Shiloh with some 40,000 soldiers who were busy drilling yet mostly hanging around grasping the little leisure and rest time they ever saw. I asked one solider who just got out of the creek after a refreshing swim “Why he was swimming and not training”. His response was “Didn’t you know that Shiloh is the Hebrew word for place of peace” we both got a good chuckle out of that and he gave me some moon shine.

After talking with the troops I decided it was time to ask the commanding officer who was General Ulysses S. Grant what the plan of action was.

I asked the General if he had any orders his response was “My superior General H.W. Halleck has ordered me to sit tight at Shiloh and wait for the reinforcement of General Don Carlos Buell and his army from Ohio to arrive.” I then asked him hat did he feel was the catalyst of this war? “ Well in my opinion I fell that if the South just could have thought about their morals and how immoral slavery was which is why the North made it illegal and wanted it abolished from the South.” Are there any other reasons you think the war started? “Yes I also feel that when the South succeeded from the Union was also a large factor.” Thank you sir for all of that information the people up north will be enveloped with your opinion.

Little did I know that when I was sleeping that the Confederate troops were mounting an attack this night of April 5, 1862.