Summary:
Union colonel G. H. Sharpe writes General Andrew Humphreys concerning Confederate
troop movements in May, 1864. Sharpe reports that a captured prisoner detailed
his unit's departure from the Valley on the railroad from Staunton.
Maj.-Gen. HUMPHREYS,
Chief of Staff:
May 26, 1864
GEN.:
Among prisoners just brought in we have a deserter from the Twenty-sixth Virginia Battalion, Echols' brigade; left his command day before yesterday a.m. in camp at Hanover Court-House, where they had just arrived from Hanover Junction. Belongs to Breckinridge's force. Says they left the valley about the 18th, took cars at Staunton about the 20th, and got off at Hanover Junction. Three brigades in Breckinridge's command, Wharton's, Imboden's, and Echols'. Two batteries and one regiment of his brigade which has always been with Sam. Jones at Greenbrier. Thinks his brigade is about 1,000 strong, the other two about the same. Breckinridge is there personally. Don't know whether anything is left in the valley or not.
We have also prisoners taken day before yesterday on the skirmish line from Ewell's corps, which they say is on the right of Longstreet, Rodes' division being on the extreme right of their line; on that part they have two lines of battle. A South Carolina man returning from furlough left Richmond on Monday in a long train filled with men returning to different regiments, but no organized commands. Before he left Columbia, S. C., about a week ago, Aiken's brigade of cavalry was ordered to Richmond; one-half being sent forward with their horses and the others given ten days' furlough to get horses and to report mounted at Richmond.
G. H. SHARPE,
Col., &C.,
Bibliographic Information : Letter Reproduced from The War of The Rebellion: Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Series 1, Volume 36, Serial No. 69, Pages 208-209, Broadfoot Publishing Company, Wilmington, NC, 1997.
