| Summary |
The purpose of this thesis is to illustrate the strategic importance of Lynchburg, Virginia, during the Civil War and to examine the effect which the war had on the city's inhabitants. Lynchburg was the main supply depot for the Army of Northern Virginia. It was also the key line of communication which enabled the Confederates to move troops from one line of defense to another. Lynchburg was the largest and most central city in piedmont Virginia. Four major transportation systems converged in this Confederate city--the Orange and Alexandria Railroad running south, the Virginia and Tennessee Railroad running east, the South Side Railroad running south-east, and the James River and Kanawha running east. The railroads and the canal connected the piedmont to the mountains as well as other parts of the Confederacy. The Confederate government utilized the service of these facilities for transporting horses, mules, wagons, commissary stores, freight, and men. The railroads were among the more important ones in the Confederacy as they led to Richmond. Consequently, because of the central location. the hills and mountains, and the good transportation the city was an ideal location for hospitals and prisons. Lynchburg's seventeen military hospitals cared for more sick and wounded men than any city in Virginia except Richmond. The average number cared for by the surgeons, attendants, and women was about 2,500. The city was also second only to Richmond in the number of prisoners. In the Lynchburg prisons Union soldiers received more humane treatment than in most Confederate ones. During the course of the Civil War the Union forces recognized the importance of the Lynchburg facilities. Because of the strategic location of the city, it was inevitable that sooner or later a campaign would be waged against it. The Union attack came June 17-18, 1864, when Lieutenant-General Ulysses S. Grant ordered a general assault on Lynchburg and the surrounding area. Major-General David Hunter was directed to advance upon Lynchburg destroying the canal and railroads as he went. This campaign was part of a larger plan by General Grant to end the war. General Robert E. Lee sent Lieutenant-General Jubal A. Early to meet and defeat Hunter. He feared that if the Southern forces could not hold the Valley, then the capital would be taken. Had the North won the Lynchburg campaign, then the war might have ended sooner. Early and his forces succeeded in defeating Hunter's army. The Union army retreated into West Virginia with General Early in pursuit. The success of the Confederate forces here was part of the South's last effort to push the Union army from the Valley. The fall of Lynchburg would have seriously affected the Confederate logistical support in Virginia. Throughout the war the suffering and hardships endured by the citizens of Lynchburg was very similar to that found in other Confederate towns. They entered the war with pride, honor, and optimism. When difficulties manifested themselves the people faced the tasks before them with courage. When defeat came, it was yielded in honor. |
