Letter

Earl Van Dorn to Sterling Price, October 1, 1862

Pocahontas, Tenn., October 1, 1862.

Major-General PRICE, Commanding Army of the West:

GENERAL: I had intended to call and see you this evening, but have not been able to do so. I have ordered General Lovell to move his division in the morning toward Chewalla and the cavalry to meet Armstrong near there, and to move forward and feel the condition of affairs about Corinth—that is, the cavalry—also to cut the Jackson Kailroad. I have ordered General Lovell to leave you 12,000 rations. Please hold yourself in readiness with your army corps to march at short notice. It may be that we shall march some time to-morrow; it will depend upon

Lovell’s report. Fifteen regiments have left Corinth since the 23d ; three trains also of artillery and a large quantity of ammunition. Please order the bridge over the Hatchie at Pocahontas made, if possible, by to-morrow night. I send a courier in the morning to Holly Springs. You have an opportunity to write. Send to-night. Very truly and respectfully, sir,

your obedient servant,

Major-General.

Editor's Notes
From: Operations in West Tennessee and Mississippi, Pt. 1. Location: Pocahontas, Tenn.. Summary: Earl Van Dorn instructs Sterling Price to prepare his army for a possible march based on reconnaissance reports and to ensure logistical support by securing rations and repairing a bridge near Pocahontas in 1862.
Sources
The War of the Rebellion: Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Series I, Volume 17, Part 1 View original source ↗