Pipe Creek Civil War Round Table - A Civil War History organization in Carroll County, Maryland
  • Home
  • Meetings and Calendar
  • Programs
  • Contact
  • Carroll County in The Civil War
  • Corbits Charge Commemoration Event
  • Corbit's Charge Dance
  • Home
  • Meetings and Calendar
  • Programs
  • Contact
  • Carroll County in The Civil War
  • Corbits Charge Commemoration Event
  • Corbit's Charge Dance

Carroll County in the Civil War

A brief glimpse into Carroll County's rich Civil War History. 
Scroll down for a Timeline of notable events and a listing of Carroll County Civil War Veterans. 

Antebellum - "Before the War"

Mobilizing for War

As the Civil War loomed upon the horizon, tensions grew within the community. Several local militias were started  including the Carroll Guards (in Westminster),  the Smallwood Militia (in Smallwood) , the Taneytown Guards (in Taneytown), the Washington Blues, the Manchester Greys (in Manchester), the Carroll Infantry, and Carroll Artillerists.  As the Civil War began members of these respective militia groups joined the fight for the Union or the Confederacy. 

​Author: Steven Carney



Picture

1862

The Maryland Campaign      

Picture
Tintype of
Col. Thomas Rosser, C.S.A.
​On the evening of September 11, 1862, during the Sharpsburg/Antietam Campaign, Col. Thomas Rosser and his 5th VA Cavalry rode into Westminster, MD on a raid. This force of several hundred cavalrymen was accompanied by an artillery piece under command of Capt. James Breached, a Maryland native. They entered Westminster on Goose Pond Lane (modern day Liberty Street), and positioned the cannon in the fork of West Main Street and Pennsylvania Avenue facing South toward the railroad.
Many Southern-sympathizing residents of Westminster greeted the Confederates warmly. During the interactions, troopers gave citizens uniform buttons, locks of hair, and other articles. Col. John Brooke Boyle welcomed Col. Rosser into his home for dinner with his family. Boyle’s home, located at 79 W. Main Street, was chosen as Col. Rosser’s headquarters. The home has since been referred to as “Rosser’s Choice.” The majority of the Confederates bivouacked on John St. in Westminster.
The Odd Fellow’s Hall, located at 140 E. Main Street, served as the armory of the Carroll Guards Militia, a prewar local militia unit. During the night of September 11th, the building was raided and the contents taken. The next day, the roster of the Carroll Guards Militia was found in the street vandalized with a bootprint across it.
On September 12, 1862, the Confederates  left Westminster headed in the direction of South Mountain. Several days later, the Battle of Sharpsburg/Antietam occurred on September 17, 1862.      
​
​Author: Steven Carney

1863 

The Gettysburg Campaign

1863 brought the most activity into Carroll County during the War. Carroll County was known as the "Springboard of the Union Army" into Gettysburg. Thousands of Union soldiers from the Army of the Potomac traveled through Carroll County on their way to fight at Gettysburg. 

On June 29th, 1863, the Battle of Westminster, known as "Corbit's Charge"  occurred on Main Street in Westminster and the Intersection at Washington Rd.   Union Captain Corbit of the 1st Delaware Cav led a charge against a far superior Confederate Cavalry  force which has been considered an act of "suicidal bravery." Although the fight is considered small, this action was a contributing factor  which delayed Confederate General J.E.B. Stuart's cavalry column from arriving at the Battle of Gettysburg until  the evening of July 2nd. 

During the Battle of Gettysburg, Westminster was a significant supply depot for the Union Army of the Potomac.  Trains would bring supplies to Westminster, the supplies would be unloaded and hauled by wagons and mules up the Baltimore Pike to Gettysburg. 

Following the Battle of Gettysburg, thousands of Confederate Prisoners were brought to Westminster before being transferred to prisoner of war camps. Numerous wounded soldiers were also brought to Westminster to be loaded onto trains and evacuated to hospitals.  
​
​Author: Steven Carney
Picture
Image courtesy of Civil War Trails 

1864

The Johnson Gilmor Raid       

Picture
​Lithograph of
Gen. Bradley T. Johnson, C.S.A.
Picture
​Tintype of
Maj. Harry Gilmor, C.S.A.
In June and July 1864, Confederate General Jubal Early along with the Army of the Shenandoah Valley, moved North into Maryland for the third time during the Civil War. This effort was meant to clear the Union forces from the Shenandoah Valley, draw Union troops away from Richmond, and attack Washington D.C. In addition, General Bradley T. Johnson was given the task of liberating the newly 14,000 Confederate Prisoners being held at the prisoner of war camp in Point Lookout, MD. On July 9, 1864, while Early was engaged at the Battle of Monocacy, General Bradley T. Johnson’s Cavalry Brigade was sent East to proceed with their mission.

On July 9, Gen. Johnson’s Brigade of between 600-800 men entered New Windsor, MD. While in New Windsor, the Brigade raided the town in search of provisions such as food, clothing, equipment, and livestock. While in New Windsor, Maj. Harry Gilmor, leading the 1st and 2nd MD Cavalry regiments, recruited a number of students from Calvert College to join the Confederate ranks. A 1903 article in the Union Bridge Pilot described the raid: “Some people stayed out of their homes at night, some put their clothes in sacks and had them out of doors, some put money in bottles and buried it for safety, and at no time during the rebellion was this part of Maryland more agitated, more frightened, and more nearly crazed by war.”

​By late afternoon on July 9, 1864, Maj. Harry Gilmor entered Westminster, MD with a force of 20 men. Gilmor’s men exchanged some gunfire with the detail of  Union troops stationed in Westminster before the Union troops withdrew towards Baltimore, MD. Gilmor’s men secured and cut telegraph lines around Westminster. Johnson had ordered Gilmor to ransom Westminster for 1,500 units of clothing including boots and shoes. Westminster Mayor Jacob Grove and the City Council made efforts to fill the demands, but failed. When Gen. Johnson arrived in Westminster a few hours later, he made his headquarters at the Shellman House. Maj. Gilmore persuaded Gen. Johnson to drop the ransom and spare Westminster. On the morning of July 10, 1864, the Confederate force left Westminster moving toward Reisterstown continuing on their mission. Later, Gen. Early recalled Johnson and Gilmor, ending their efforts to liberate the Point Lookout camp.                                                                  

​Author: Steven W. Carney 

1865

Tensions remain high

On April 6, 1865,  Joseph Shaw, editor of the Western Maryland Democrat newspaper in Westminster, and outspoken Confederate sympathizer published a   newspaper article calling on "providence" to remove Abraham Lincoln as President and replace him with Vice President Andrew Johnson. Throughout the Civil War, Shaw had freely written that President Lincoln was wrong and criticized his actions. However,  eight days after the article was written, Abraham Lincoln was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth. 

On the night of Lincoln's  death, a town meeting was held at the Carroll County Courthouse. The meeting  voted to run Joseph Shaw out of town. They also voted to refuse paroled Confederate soldiers from returning to Carroll County. Following the meeting, rioters descended on Shaw's newspaper office, trashed it, and threw his equipment into the street. The mob warned Joseph Shaw to leave town or be lynched.  Joseph Shaw left town that evening, but returned on April 24th,  1865. 

Five men descended upon Shaw at his room in the Anchor Hotel in Westminster. The five men shot Shaw, stabbed him, and dragged him to the lobby of the Hotel, where he bled to death on the  floor.  The five men were tried, but were not convicted of the crime. 

Author: Steven Carney
Picture
The Democratic Advocate was a newspaper that  was created from the Ashes of Shaw's paper. This article is from November 20, 1865.  (Courtesy of the Library of Congress)

John E. Buffington, Medal of Honor Recipient

Picture
Tintype of John Buffington , circa 1863
Picture
John E. Buffington (1841-1924)  was born in Carroll County, near Middleburg, MD. He enlisted in Company C of the 6th Maryland Infantry on August 21, 1862. He served during the war until June 20, 1865. In 1863, he was promoted to the rank of Sergeant and  ended the war with the rank of 1st Lieutenant.

On April 2, 1865,  Buffington  was credited as being the first  enlisted soldier of the Third Division to enter the Confederate lines at the Battle of Petersburg, VA.  In recognition for his heroism, he was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor in 1908. 

He is buried in the Trinity Lutheran Church  Cemetery located in Taneytown, MD. He is the only Carroll Countian to receive the Medal of Honor during the Civil War.  

​Author: Steven Carney

Postbellum - "After the War"

Picture

Rebuilding After the War

 Several   Grand Army of the Republic  posts were established in Carroll County. 

​These posts included:
* Post No. 11 - Westminster
* Burns - Westminster
* Pickett  - Winfield
* Miller - Taneytown
* Thaddeus Stevens - New Windsor

 Many veterans returned from the  War with trauma and scars and these organizations helped veterans  in an era where  Post Traumatic Stress Disorder was not understood. 

Civil War Soldiers from Carroll County

Note:  This is a working list and far from comprehensive. If you have information on an Carroll County Civil War Veteran, please contact us. 

Union

1st Maryland Infantry, Co. H
​George Burke 

1st Maryland Infantry, Co. I
Joseph Six    -  Wounded

1st Maryland Eastern Shore Inf., Co. I
Samuel Clingan

2nd Maryland Infantry, Co. C
James Picking  - Wounded, Captured

2nd U.S.C.T. Cavalry, Co. D
Wesley Cook
David Hill
Caleb Johnson

2nd U.S.C.T. Infantry, Co. I
John L. Coates - Sgt.  - Court Martialed,   Imprisoned 

3rd Maryland Infantry, Co. G
Henry Aulthouse   - Wounded

3rd Maryland  P. H.B.  Infantry, Co C. 
​Christian Dayhoff
Uriah Heltibridle

3rd Maryland  P. H.B.  Infantry, Co G.
Ephraim Angell
James Angell
Thomas Angell - Corp., Captured
Joseph Bowers - Captured
John Clabaugh - Captured, Wounded, Died in Hospital 
George Crouse
Samuel Crouse
John Dayhoff
Thomas Eck -  Corp, 2nd LT., Capt. , Captured
William Eck - Sgt., Captured
Jacob Fringer
Worthington Fringer
Jesse H. Haugh - 2nd Sgt, 2nd Lt.,  Color Bearer, Captured
Hezekiah Hawk
Nelson Hawk
Henry Hyser
James Kregelo  - Killed by Accident
John T. Reck - Captured
Conrad Rowe - Captured
Jacob Shaffer
John Shriner
Joseph Shoemaker -  Captured
Albert L. Slagenhaup
Samuel Slagenhaup

4th U.S.C.T. Infantry
At least 53 members of this  regiment were from Carroll County

6th Maryland Infantry 
William A. McKellip - Lt. Col. 


 6th Maryland Infantry ,  Co. A
George Washington Miller
John Miller  - Killed in Action
Emanuel Shoemaker  - Killed in Action
Joseph M. Thompson (Fife Major) - Captured


6th Maryland Infantry,  Co. C 
John T. Bishop   - Died in Camp
John E. Buffington - MOH Recipient, Sgt., 1st Lt. 
 William Crouse  (Drummer) - Captured
Jacob Ocker - Killed in Action
Samuel Rinaman - Killed in Action
Alfred S. Rowe - Sgt. , Wounded, died of wounds
Jacob Royer - Wounded 

John Wolf  - Wounded, died of wounds

​7th Maryland Infantry,  Co. F
W. Frank  Clingan - Sgt., 1st Sgt., Wounded, Captured
Abram Fleagle, Killed in Action
​Jeremiah Fleagle, Wounded
 
Emanuel Hawk - (Color Guard) Corp. , Wounded 

8th Maryland Infantry, Co. I
James Shildt
John Newcomer - Sgt.
Tobias Reid - Corp. 
Joseph Angell
Nathan Angell - Also served with 3rd MD Inf.  P.H.B. Co. G 

23rd U.S.C.T.
James A. Coates - Sgt , Killed in Action


30th U.S.C.T. Infantry, Co. C
Randolph Fraling

32nd U.S.C.T. Infantry
​Samuel Butler - Corp.

39th U.S.C.T. Infantry, Co.  H
William E. Bivens

Cole's Maryland Cavalry, Co . A
Harvey T. Null - Killed in Action
Isaiah Kregelo - Wounded

Cole's Maryland  Cavalry, Co. C
Alonzo Benner
Leander Bowers

Charles C. Currens - Captured
William Currens - Commissary Sgt.  - Wounded by Accident
Alfred Fritchley - Captured
Clayton Kehn
Henry Reaver
David Shildt

Cole's Maryland  Cavalry, Co. D
Joseph Good
William Reindollar - Captured, Died in Andersonville
Samuel McGuigan -  Captured, Died in Andersonville
Vincent Valentine, Captured

Cole's Maryland  Cavalry, Co. E
E. Elias Reck - Captured
John H. Ocker



​







 


Confederate

1st Maryland Infantry, Co A
Eugene Yarbie Goldsborough


1st Maryland Infantry, Co D
Charles DuPont Bird

1st Maryland Infantry, Co F
 Henry Adams

2nd Maryland  Infantry,  Co. C
Robert  Dawson

2nd Maryland  Infantry,  Co. D
Thomas C. Butler - 1st Sgt
Joshua Chilcutt
Samuel B. Dove

​1st Maryland Cavalry, Co. D
Charles Bruce Boyle  
Proudly powered by Weebly