8 Feb 62, Roanoke Island, NC - Battleground 5: Antietam

8 February 1862, Roanoke Island, NC [Curt Cabbage]

The Federal soldiers moved out promptly on the morning of February
8, advancing north on the only road on the island. Leading was
the First Brigade's 25th Massachusetts, with Midshipman Porter's
howitzers immediately following. They were soon halted, when
they struck the Confederate redoubt and some 400 infantry blocking
their path. Another thousand Confederates were in reserve, about
250 yards (230 m) to the rear; the front was so constricted that
Col. Shaw could deploy only a quarter of his men. The defensive
line ended in what were deemed impenetrable swamps on both sides,
so Shaw did not protect his flanks. The leading elements of
the First Brigade spread out to match their opponents' configuration,
and for two hours the combatants fired at each other through
blinding clouds of smoke. The 10th Connecticut relieved the exhausted,
but not badly bloodied, 25th Massachusetts, but they too could
not advance. No progress was made until the Second Brigade arrived,
and its commander, Brig. Gen. Jesse L. Reno, ordered them to
try to penetrate the "impenetrable" swamp on the Union left.
Brig. Gen. John G. Foster then ordered two of his reserve regiments
to do the same on the right. About this time, Brig. Gen. John
G. Parke came up with the Third Brigade, and it was immediately
sent to assist. Although they were not coordinated, the two flanking
movements emerged from the swamp at nearly the same time. Reno
ordered his 21st Massachusetts, 51st New York, and 9th New Jersey
to attack. As they were firing on the Confederates, the 23rd
Massachusetts, from the First Brigade, appeared on the other
end of the line. The defensive line began to crack; noting this,
Foster ordered his remaining forces to attack. Under assault
from three sides, the Confederates broke and fled. As no fall-back
defenses had been set up, and he was bereft of artillery, Col.
Shaw surrendered to Foster. Included in the capitulation were
not only the 1,400 infantry that he commanded directly, but also
the guns in the forts. Two additional regiments (2nd North Carolina
and 46th Virginia) had been sent as reinforcements. They arrived
too late to take part in the battle, but not too late to be take
part in the surrender. Altogether, some 2,500 men became prisoners
of war. Aside from the men who went into captivity, casualties
were rather light by American Civil War standards. The Federal
forces lost 37 killed, 214 wounded, and 13 missing. The Confederates
lost 23 killed, 58 wounded, and 62 missing.[