Utah Expedition
1857-1858
Utah War
1857-1858 Also known as the Utah Expedition and Buchanan's Blunder, the Utah War was an armed confrontation between Mormon settlers in the Utah Territory and the armed forces of the United States government. Troubles between Mormons and non-Mormons soon developed when federal officials who were sent to the territory reported that Young tended to rule…
Vicksburg Campaign
December 26, 1862 – July 4, 1863 The Vicksburg Campaign was a series of operations and battles conducted by Union forces during the American Civil War. The goal of the campaign was to capture the strategic city of Vicksburg, Mississippi, located on the Mississippi River. At the onset of the American Civil War, the State…
Washington Peace Conference
1861 Proposed by Virginia and chaired by former U.S. President John Tyler, the Washington Peace Conference was an unsuccessful eleventh-hour attempt to save the Union and avoid the American Civil War. On November 6, 1860, American voters elected Republican Abraham Lincoln as the sixteenth President of the United States. Alarmed by what they considered to…
Western Virginia Campaign
June–October, 1861 Also known as the Rich Mountain Campaign, or simply Operations in Western Virginia, the Western Virginia Campaign was a struggle between Union and Confederate forces in 1861 for control of the mountainous area of western Virginia. As the possibility of civil war in the United States evolved during the early months of 1861,…
Wilderness Campaign
May 5-June 24, 1864
Wilson-Kautz Raid
June 22 – July 1, 1864 Part of the Petersburg Campaign, the Wilson-Kautz Raid (June 22 – July 1, 1864) was a Union cavalry foray into the area southwest of Petersburg, Virginia, designed to destroy railroad track and facilities critical to supplying the Army of Northern Virginia encamped at Richmond. On March 10, 1864, President…
Wilson’s Raid
March 22 – April 20, 1865 Between March 22 and April 20, 1865, Brevet Major General James H. Wilson led roughly 13,000 Union cavalrymen on a destructive raid through Alabama and Georgia. On March 12, 1864, President Abraham Lincoln appointed Ulysses S. Grant as General-in-Chief of the Armies of the United States. Upon his arrival…
Yazoo Pass Expedition
February 3–April 8, 1863 The Yazoo Pass Expedition was a failed Union attempt to advance on Vicksburg, Mississippi, in the spring of 1863. By late 1861, President Abraham Lincoln was pressuring Union commanders in the west to invade the South. In early 1862, Brigadier General Ulysses S. Grant's forces gained control of two of the…