The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union And Confederate Armies. Series 3, Volume 2. Page: iii
This book is part of the collection entitled: War of the Rebellion and was provided to The Portal to Texas History by the UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
PREFACE.
SThe work of preparing the records of the war for public use was
begun, under the resolution of Congress of May 19, 1864, by Col. E. D.
:Townsend, assistant adjutant-general, U. S. Army (then in charge
:of the Adjutant-General's Office, and subsequently the Adjutant-
:General), who caused copies to be made of reports of battles on file
in his office and steps to be taken to collect missing records.
Under the provisions of joint resolution of July 27, 1866, Hon. Peter
H. Watson was appointed to supervise the preparation of the records
and to formulate a plan for their publication, but he performed no
'service under this appointment, which expired July 27, 1868, by limi-
:tation. This resolution having also repealed the former one, the
project was suspended for the time being.
The first decisive step taken was the act of June 23, 1874, providing
the necessary means " to enable the Secretary of War to begin the
publication of the Official Records of the War of the Rebellion, both
of the Union and Confederate Armies," and directing him " to have
copied for the Public Printer all reports, letters, telegrams, and gen-
eral orders, not heretofore copied or printed, and properly arranged
in chronological order." Appropriations have been made from time
to time for continuing such preparation. Under this act the prelimi-
nary work was resumed by General Townsend.
Subsequently, under meager appropriations, it was prosecuted in
a somewhat desultory manner by various subordinates of the War
Department until December 14, 1877, when the Secretary of War,
perceiving that the undertaking needed the undivided attention of
a single head, detailed Capt. Robert N. Scott, Third U. S. Artillery
(subsequently major and lieutenant-colonel same regiment), to take
charge of the office.
The act of June 23, 1874, enlarged upon the first scheme of publi-
cation. On this more comprehensive basis it was determined that the
volumes should include not only the battle reports, correspondence,
etc., in possession of the War Department, but also " all official docu-
ments that can be obtained by the compiler, and that appear to be of
any historical value." Colonel Scott systematized the work, and,
upon his recommendation, the Secretary of War approved the follow-
ing order of publication:
The first series will embrace the formal reports, both Union and Confederate,
of the first seizures of United States property in the Southern States, and of all
military operations in the field, with the correspondence, orders, and returns
relating specially thereto, and, as proposed, is to be accompanied by an Atlas.
III
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This book can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Matching Search Results
View 784 pages within this book that match your search.Related Items
Other items on this site that are directly related to the current book.
The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union And Confederate Armies. Additions and Corrections to Series 3, Volume 2. (Pamphlet)
Errata sheets for the Records of the War of the Rebellion include additions and corrections to the text and the index for Series 3, Volume 2.
Relationship to this item: (Is Referenced By)
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Book.
United States. War Department. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union And Confederate Armies. Series 3, Volume 2., book, 1899; Washington D.C.. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth139264/m1/4/?q=%221862%22: accessed July 16, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.