The 1864 Broad River Campaign Series

The genesis of the Broad River Campaign was the dispatch shown below from William Tecumseh Sherman to Henry Halleck. Sherman in November of 1864 was heading for Savannah, Georgia, the final stop in his march across Georgia, and wanted Major General John Foster, commander of the Union’s Department of the South, to destroy the Savannah and Charleston Railroad in the area of Pocotaligo for two reasons. The first was so that reinforcements and supplies could not be sent to Savannah from Charleston, and the second was to prevent the escape of Confederate Lieutenant General William Hardee’s 10,000 man force from Savannah.

Foster and Rear Admiral John Dahlgren organized a force they called the Coastal Division, which was made up of 5,000 infantry and 500 Sailors and Marines under the command of Brigadier General John Hatch. The infantry would come not only from Hilton Head but also Morris Island, Folly Island, North Carolina and Jacksonville, Florida. Foster planned, with help from the Navy, to move up the Broad River and destroy the Charleston and Savannah Railroad. This resulted in the Battles of Honey Hill and Tulifinny Crossroads. Each time the Federals failed to cut the railroad.

The Battle of Honey Hill- November 30, 1864