View source for Joint Expedition Against Franklin

{{short description|Coordinated military engagement of American Civil War}}
{{good article}}
{{use dmy dates|date=February 2025}}
{{Infobox military conflict
| conflict    = Joint Expedition Against Franklin
| partof      = the [[American Civil War]]
| image       = Virginia BattleField map JEAF extract.jpg
| image_size  = 300px
| alt         = 
| caption     = Extract from 1892 map of the subject area.  The Blackwater River flows north-south in left of the image.
| date        = {{start date|1862|10|03|df=yes}}
| place       = [[Franklin, Virginia]]<br />& nearby [[Blackwater River (Virginia)|Blackwater River]]
| coordinates = {{coord|36|40|29|N|76|55|50|W|display=inline,title}}
| map_type    = Virginia#United States
| map_relief  = no
| latitude    = 36.674954
| longitude   = -76.930799
| result      = Confederate victory
| combatant1  = {{unbulleted list|[[Union Navy|United States Navy]]|[[Union army|United States Army]]}}
| combatant2  = [[Confederate States Army]]
| commander1  = {{unbulleted list|[[Charles W. Flusser|C. W. Flusser]]|[[Edmund Colhoun|Edmund R. Colhoun]]|Charles A. French|[[Samuel P. Spear]]}}
| commander2  = {{unbulleted list|Dennis Dozier Ferebee|[[James K. Marshall|J. K. Marshall]]<!-- commanding the 52nd -->|Edward Graham|[[Collett Leventhorpe|Collet Leventhorpe]]<!-- commanding the 11th -->}}
| strength1   = {{unbulleted list|3 [[Gunboat]]s|1,300 [[Infantry]]<br />{{spaces|2}}w/1 × [[Artillery]] section}}
| strength2   = 10,000–12,000 [[Infantry]]
| casualties1 = 5 [[Killed in action|KIA]], 21 wounded
| casualties2 = Estimated 70&ndash;100
}}

The '''Joint Expedition Against Franklin''' was a joint engagement between the [[Union army|United States Army]] and [[Union Navy|Navy]] against the [[Confederate States Army]] during the [[American Civil War]].  The engagement was intended to move Union forces into an area where Confederate forces were gathering as they prepared to move on Suffolk, Virginia.  Originally planned as a coordinated two-pronged attack with a naval [[flotilla]] supporting an infantry advance on [[Franklin, Virginia]], communications delays caused the Navy to start the mission before the Army was ready to support it.  Instead, {{start date|1862|10|03|df=yes}} found Union Naval forces on the [[Blackwater River (Virginia)|Blackwater River]] greatly outnumbered by Confederate infantrymen and ultimately forced to retreat.  The naval action alone is also known as the '''Action at Crumpler's Bluff''' or the '''Battle of Crumpler's Bluff'''.<ref name="Downtown Franklin Association: War Comes to the Blackwater" /><ref name="1992 Crofts" />

Simultaneously, a nearby Army reconnaissance team conducted a failed assault on the town on the basis that the audibly nearby Naval forces&mdash;which they did not know were then in retreat&mdash;would bring support.  The outcome left the Union forces with a combined 5 casualties and 21 wounded.  Dialogue between officers following the conflict left the Navy questioning the usefulness of gunboats in joint expedition settings in which they would not be capable of supporting themselves.

==The conflict==
===Background===
Receiving orders early 12 September 1862, the [[Confederate States Army|Confederate Army]]'s [[4th North Carolina Cavalry|4th North Carolina (NC) Cavalry]] immediately proceeded from [[Garysburg, North Carolina]] to [[Franklin, Virginia]], arriving late the next day.  There, the 4th NC Cavalry, under the command of a [[ranks and insignia of the Confederate States#Officers|Colonel]] Dennis Dozier Ferebee, was joined by the [[52nd North Carolina Infantry]], Edward Graham's [[Petersburg Artillery]], and (two weeks later) the [[11th North Carolina Infantry]].  The 4th NC Cavalry's first major assignment was to construct a [[Pontoon bridge|floating bridge]] across the nearby [[Blackwater River (Virginia)|Blackwater River]] to replace the [[Seaboard and Roanoke Railroad]] bridge<ref name="1995-10-06 Command and General Staff College" /> and thereby facilitate the eastward transfer of men and equipment into Franklin.  Col. Ferebee reported the bridge finished on 18 September.<ref name="2003 Raiford: First Taste of Fire" />

A small [[Union army]] cavalry force was stationed in nearby [[Suffolk, Virginia]] under the command of [[Major general (United States)|Major General]] [[John J. Peck]].  On 23 September, Peck sent [[Colonel (United States)|Colonel]] [[Samuel P. Spear]] to reconnoiter Franklin and the Confederates therein.  Spear reported back to Peck about the Confederate's replacement bridge capable of supporting artillery pieces, as well as an estimated Confederate concentration of 10,000&ndash;12,000 men.<ref name="2003 Raiford: First Taste of Fire" /><ref name="1862-09-24 Dix → Lee" />  Peck forwarded this information on to his [[commanding officer]], Major General [[John Adams Dix]] who, in turn, developed a twofold mission to roust the enemy from Franklin and destroy the floating bridge with a [[joint warfare|joint service]] attack with the Army and Navy respectively.<ref name="1995-10-06 Command and General Staff College" />

[[File:CharlesWFlusserUSN.jpg|thumb|left|LCDR C. W. Flusser (1864)]]
Dix requested Union naval support from Acting [[Rear admiral (United States)|Rear Admiral]] [[Samuel Phillips Lee]].<ref name="1862-09-24 Dix → Lee" />  Lee, in turn, sent orders to [[Lieutenant commander (United States)|Lieutenant Commander]] [[Charles W. Flusser|C. W. Flusser]], directing him to give all assistance to General Dix's purposes.<ref name="1862-09-24 Lee → Flusser" />  Three [[United States Navy]] [[steam engine|steam-powered]] [[ferry]]boats stationed at [[Albemarle Sound]] were sent;<ref name="1992 Crofts" /><ref name="1862-10-05 Dix" /> {{USS|Commodore Perry}}, commanded by Lieutenant Commander Flusser, {{USS|Hunchback}}, commanded by Acting [[Lieutenant#Lieutenant|Lieutenant]] [[Edmund Colhoun|Edmund R. Colhoun]], and {{USS|Whitehead}}, commanded by Acting [[Master (naval)|Master]] Charles A. French.<ref name="1862-10-26 Lee" />

Acting on Union [[picket (military)|picket]] intelligence of the Confederate's position in Franklin, both Generals Peck and Dix felt that it would be wiser to wait on the joint assault.<ref name="2003 Raiford: First Taste of Fire" />  However, because Dix's messenger arrived five hours late, Commander Flusser never received word that the former's forces were delaying "until about the 10th".  Peck did however order a [[reconnaissance]] mission be undertaken in the area; at 9:00&nbsp;p.m. on October 2, Colonel Spear left Suffolk with 1,300 soldiers, one artillery section, and orders to survey Franklin and determine the extent of the Confederate forces south of Suffolk.<ref name="1995-10-06 Command and General Staff College" /><ref name="2003 Raiford: First Taste of Fire" /><ref name="1862-10-05 Dix → Lee" />

===Attack===
<!-- ordered per ingress to Franklin -->[[File:U.S. Gunboat "Commodore Perry" on Pamunkey River,1861–65.jpg|thumb|{{USS|Commodore Perry}} (on [[Pamunkey River]], early 1860s)]]
[[File:USS Hunchback crewmen in the American Civil War.png|thumb|{{USS|Hunchback}} and crew]]
[[File:USS Whitehead (1864, cropped).jpg|thumb|{{USS|Whitehead}} (1864)]]
The evening of 2 October, Confederate pickets observed the three riverboats waiting around [[South Quay, Virginia]], approximately {{convert|3|mi|spell=in}} downriver from Franklin.<ref name="2003 Raiford: First Taste of Fire" /><ref name="1862-10-06 Flusser I" />  At 5:45&nbsp;a.m. the next day, the three ships began moving towards the city while shelling the nearby banks.  The attack was led by ''Commodore Perry'', followed by ''Whitehead'' astern ''Hunchback''.<ref name="1862-10-06 Flusser I" />  While the Union shelled the banks of the Blackwater, Confederate troops began distributing themselves along the riverside to take advantage of the concealment there.  Some of the 4th North Carolina Cavalry was dismounted and taken up by [[James K. Marshall|Colonel Marshall]] of the 52nd, and positioned along with his men at [[Crumpler's Bluff|Crumpler's]] and neighboring [[cliff|bluffs]] to fire upon the riverboats.  Colonel Ferebee took the rest of the 4th NC Cavalry and dismounted and positioned them behind the trees and bushes along the banks of the Blackwater, under the command of a Lieutenant Ruffin.<ref name="2003 Raiford: First Taste of Fire" />  According to a Union naval officer later, the Confederate's forces along the Blackwater also included "some nonuniformed [[irregular military|irregulars]] and even '[[military history of African Americans in the American Civil War|some negroes]].{{'"}}<ref name="1992 Crofts" />

At 7:00 a.m., approximately {{convert|.75|mi}} from Franklin, ''Commodore Perry'' came under fire from the Confederate forces along the river and atop the bluffs. As ''Perry'' was too close to bring its large-bore guns to bear, Commander Flusser ordered his sailors to shelter themselves as best they could while the ship tried to steam past the enemy.  Due to the narrowness of the bend, ''Commodore Perry'' [[ship grounding|ran aground]];<ref name="1862-10-06 Flusser I" /> Lt. Ruffin and his men were so close to the grounded riverboat, they later claimed to have heard ''Perry''{{'s}} officers [[Profanity|cursing]] the enlisted sailors.<ref name="2003 Raiford: First Taste of Fire" />  Freed, ''Perry'' rounded the bend and maneuvered to provide [[suppressive fire]] to allow ''Hunchback'' and ''Whitehead'' to follow;<ref name="1862-10-06 Flusser I" /> the combined shelling of all three ships forced Lt. Ruffin and his detachment to withdraw from the banks of the river.<ref name="2003 Raiford: First Taste of Fire" />  However, all three ships' progress was soon halted by a [[barricade]] in the river.  While the barricade was removable with Commander Flusser's available manpower, he could not attempt to do so due to the "terrible fire to which [they] were exposed."  While continuing to assault the Confederacy with their "IX-inch [[grapeshot|grape]] and shell" guns, "[[Dahlgren gun#Thirty-two-pounder|32-pounder]]" guns, field gun, and [[musket]]s, the three ships waited at the barricade hoping to hear the gunfire of General Dix's infantry forces.<ref name="1862-10-06 Flusser I" />

At 10:15&nbsp;a.m., Commander Flusser ordered retreat from the river barrier.  All three ships remained under heavy fire by enemy forces from multiple angles until between 2:30 and 3:30&nbsp;p.m.<ref name="2003 Raiford: First Taste of Fire" /><ref name="1862-10-06 Flusser II" />  An incomplete rear barricade of felled trees failed to stop the ships which "[pushed through] with a heavy head of steam."<ref name="1862-10-06 Flusser I" />  Flusser later opined that this new barricade would have been impassable had the ships remained north of it for several more hours, waiting for General Dix's quiescent forces.<ref name="1862-10-06 Flusser II" />

Meanwhile, Colonel Spear arrived around 1:00&nbsp;p.m. and anticipating support from the now-retreating naval gunships, his Union infantrymen conflicted with the Confederates in Franklin.  After six hours of combat, running low on ammunition, realizing that he only had 1,300 men (not the 1,700&ndash;2,000 he'd thought),<ref name="2003 Raiford: First Taste of Fire" /> and losing two [[rifleman|riflemen]] to Confederate [[defection]], Spear withdrew the Union forces around Franklin, and returned to Suffolk abandoning one brass [[field artillery|field piece]], a few [[overcoat]]s, and a [[horse]].<ref name="1995-10-06 Command and General Staff College" /><ref name="2003 Raiford: First Taste of Fire" /><ref name="1862-10-05 Dix → Lee" />

===Aftermath===
Upon return to Ablemarle Sound, Commander Flusser sent ''Hunchback'' on to Plymouth to bury their dead sailors; at [[Roanoke Island]], Flusser was lent {{USS|Emily}} to carry the wounded to [[Norfolk Naval Hospital]].<ref name="1862-10-06 Flusser I" />

==Outcome==
[[File:Franklin VA sign.JPG|thumb|1988 sign noting the occurrence of several Civil War skirmishes around Franklin in 1862 and 1863]]
The Confederate forces around Franklin held back the Navy and ultimately forced them, and the Army reconnaissance team, to retreat.  While the Union Navy lost no ships, they suffered four casualties and 15 wounded; the Army suffered one fatality and six wounded, although General Dix believed the infantry to have robbed the enemy of 70&ndash;100 in return.<ref name="1862-10-26 Lee" /><ref name="1862-10-05 Dix → Lee" />  For the Confederates, this was the 4th NC Cavalry's first combat action of the war, and gave Colonel Ferebee and his men confidence in their abilities; they and the other Confederate forces in Franklin spent the rest of October 1862 surveilling the Union forces across the river.<ref name="2003 Raiford: First Taste of Fire" />  After the Union shelling, most of Franklin's civilians left the town, leaving it in the hands of the Confederate soldiers there; they did not return until after the April 1865 [[Battle of Appomattox Court House#Surrender|surrender of General Lee]].<ref name="Downtown Franklin Association: War Comes to the Blackwater" />  The Joint Expedition has been described as the only fighting of significance to occur in [[Southampton County, Virginia]] during the war.<ref name="1992 Crofts" />

For their distinguished services in the battle, Union servicemen [[Thomas Barton (Medal of Honor)|Thomas Barton]], [[John Breen (sailor)|John Breen]], [[James H. Burbank]], [[Daniel Lakin]], [[Alfred Peterson]], [[Edwin Smith (Medal of Honor)|Edwin Smith]], and [[John Williams (Medal of Honor, born 1832)|John Williams]] were all awarded the [[Medal of Honor]].<ref name="Center of Military History: A&ndash;L" /><ref name="Center of Military History: M&ndash;Z" />  In his summation of the Joint Expedition Against Franklin, Acting Rear-Admiral Lee said, "The Department will perceive that Lieutenant-Commander Flusser (senior officer present) displayed his usual gallantry, and that the officers and crews of the three gunboats did their parts well, under very trying and difficult circumstances."<ref name="1862-10-26 Lee" />

In his [[after action report]] to Admiral Lee of 6 October 1862, Lieutenant Commander Flusser described his losses as heavy and opined that it was "folly to fight these people on the banks, where they have every advantage", and that he could not be of any further service to the Army forces.<ref name="1862-10-06 Flusser II" />  In the aftermath of the failed mission, both Navy and Army [[flag officer]]s suggested that the cause was attempting to cooperate with the respective sister service.  Admiral Lee wrote to [[United States Secretary of the Navy|Naval Secretary]] [[Gideon Welles]] that "where the situation does not allow [...] gunboats to take care of themselves, they can not assist the army."  Further, General Peck wrote to General Dix saying, "there is great uncertainty in operations with gunboats."<ref name="1995-10-06 Command and General Staff College" />

==References==
{{reflist |refs=

<!-- dated sources sorted chronologically -->

<ref name="1862-09-24 Dix → Lee">{{cite book |last1=Dix |first1=John Adams |author1-link=John Adams Dix |editor1-last=Long |editor1-first=John D. |editor1-link=John Davis Long |editor2-last=Rawson |editor2-first=Edward K. |editor3-last=Stewart |editor3-first=Charles W. |date=1862-09-24 |chapter=Letter from Major-General Dix, U. S. Army, to Acting Rear-Admiral Lee, U. S. Navy, asking cooperation. |location=[[Fort Monroe]] |title=Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=z_vazSor5nUC |series=1 |language=en |volume=8 |publication-place=[[Washington, D.C.]] |publisher=[[United States Government Printing Office]] |publication-date=1899 |pages=104&ndash;105}}</ref><!-- exhausted -->

<ref name="1862-09-24 Lee → Flusser">{{cite book |last1=Lee |first1=Samuel Phillips |author1-link=Samuel Phillips Lee |editor1-last=Long |editor1-first=John D. |editor1-link=John Davis Long |editor2-last=Rawson |editor2-first=Edward K. |editor3-last=Stewart |editor3-first=Charles W. |date=1862-09-24 |chapter=Order of Acting Rear-Admiral Lee, U. S. Navy, to Lieutenant-Commander Flusser, U. S. Navy, to cooperate with Major-General Dix, U. S. Army. |location={{USS|Minnesota|1855|6}} |title=Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=z_vazSor5nUC |series=1 |language=en |volume=8 |publication-place=[[Washington, D.C.]] |publisher=[[United States Government Printing Office]] |publication-date=1899 |page=105}}</ref><!-- exhausted -->

<ref name="1862-10-05 Dix">{{cite book |last1=Dix |first1=John Adams |author1-link=John Adams Dix |editor1-last=Long |editor1-first=John D. |editor1-link=John Davis Long |editor2-last=Rawson |editor2-first=Edward K. |editor3-last=Stewart |editor3-first=Charles W. |date=1862-10-05 |chapter=Report of Major-General Dix, U. S. Army. |location=[[Fort Monroe]] |title=Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=z_vazSor5nUC |series=1 |language=en |volume=8 |publication-place=[[Washington, D.C.]] |publisher=[[United States Government Printing Office]] |publication-date=1899 |page=107}}</ref><!-- exhausted -->

<ref name="1862-10-05 Dix → Lee">{{cite book |last1=Dix |first1=John Adams |author1-link=John Adams Dix |editor1-last=Long |editor1-first=John D. |editor1-link=John Davis Long |editor2-last=Rawson |editor2-first=Edward K. |editor3-last=Stewart |editor3-first=Charles W. |date=1862-10-05 |chapter=Letter from Major-General Dix, U. S. Army, to Acting Rear-Admiral Lee, U. S. Navy. |location=[[Fort Monroe]] |title=Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=z_vazSor5nUC |series=1 |language=en |volume=8 |publication-place=[[Washington, D.C.]] |publisher=[[United States Government Printing Office]] |publication-date=1899 |page=106&ndash;107}}</ref><!-- exhausted -->

<ref name="1862-10-06 Flusser I">{{cite book |last1=Flusser |first1=C. W. |author1-link=Charles W. Flusser |editor1-last=Long |editor1-first=John D. |editor1-link=John Davis Long |editor2-last=Rawson |editor2-first=Edward K. |editor3-last=Stewart |editor3-first=Charles W. |date=1862-10-06 |chapter=Report of Lieutenant-Commander Flusser, U. S. Navy, commanding U. S. S. Commodore Perry. |location={{USS|Commodore Perry}} |title=Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=z_vazSor5nUC |series=1 |language=en |volume=8 |publication-place=[[Washington, D.C.]] |publisher=[[United States Government Printing Office]] |publication-date=1899 |pages=108&ndash;110}}</ref><!-- exhausted -->

<ref name="1862-10-06 Flusser II">{{cite book |last1=Flusser |first1=C. W. |author1-link=Charles W. Flusser |editor1-last=Long |editor1-first=John D. |editor1-link=John Davis Long |editor2-last=Rawson |editor2-first=Edward K. |editor3-last=Stewart |editor3-first=Charles W. |date=1862-10-06 |chapter=Report of Lieutenant-Commander Flusser, U. S. Navy, commanding U. S. S. Commodore Perry. |location={{USS|Commodore Perry}} |title=Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=z_vazSor5nUC |series=1 |language=en |volume=8 |publication-place=[[Washington, D.C.]] |publisher=[[United States Government Printing Office]] |publication-date=1899 |pages=112}}</ref><!-- exhausted -->

<ref name="1862-10-26 Lee">{{cite book |last1=Lee |first1=Samuel Phillips |author1-link=Samuel Phillips Lee |editor1-last=Long |editor1-first=John D. |editor1-link=John Davis Long |editor2-last=Rawson |editor2-first=Edward K. |editor3-last=Stewart |editor3-first=Charles W. |date=1862-10-26 |chapter=Report of Acting Rear-Admiral Lee, U. S. Navy, transmitting correspondence and reports. |location={{USS|Philadelphia|1861|6}} |title=Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=z_vazSor5nUC |series=1 |language=en |volume=8 |publication-place=[[Washington, D.C.]] |publisher=[[United States Government Printing Office]] |publication-date=1899 |page=104}}</ref><!-- exhausted -->

<ref name="1992 Crofts">{{cite book |last1=Crofts |first1=Daniel W. |author-link1=Daniel W. Crofts |year=1992 |chapter=Civil War |location=[[Charlottesville, Virginia]] |title=Old Southampton: Politics and Society in a Virginia County, 1834&ndash;1869 |language=en |publisher=[[University of Virginia Press]] |page=201 |isbn=978-0-8139-1385-8}}</ref><!-- exhausted -->

<ref name="1995-10-06 Command and General Staff College">{{citation |mode=cs1 |last1=May |first1=James J. |title=Joint Operations in the North Carolina Sounds During the Civil War |page=155 |publisher=[[United States Army Command and General Staff College]] |date=1995-10-06}}</ref><!-- exhausted -->

<ref name="2003 Raiford: First Taste of Fire">{{cite book |last1=Raiford |first1=Neil Hunter |year=2003 |chapter=First Taste of Fire: Skirmishes Along the Blackwater |location=[[Jefferson, North Carolina]] |title=The 4th North Carolina Cavalry in the Civil War: A History and Roster |language=en |publisher=[[McFarland & Company]] |pages=13&ndash;20 |isbn=978-0-7864-1468-0}}</ref><!-- exhausted -->

<!-- undated sources sorted alphabetically -->

<ref name="Center of Military History: A&ndash;L">{{cite web |url=http://www.history.army.mil/html/moh/civwaral.html |title=Medal of Honor Recipients: Civil War (A&ndash;L) |publisher=[[United States Army Center of Military History]] |location=[[Fort Lesley J. McNair]] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090212153452/http://www.history.army.mil/html/moh/civwaral.html |archive-date=2009-02-12 |access-date=2025-02-28}}</ref><!-- exhausted -->

<ref name="Center of Military History: M&ndash;Z">{{cite web |url=http://www.history.army.mil/html/moh/civwarmz.html |title=Medal of Honor Recipients: Civil War (M&ndash;Z) |publisher=[[United States Army Center of Military History]] |location=[[Fort Lesley J. McNair]] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090223063700/http://www.history.army.mil/html/moh/civwarmz.html |archive-date=2009-02-23 |access-date=2025-02-28}}</ref><!-- exhausted -->

<ref name="Downtown Franklin Association: War Comes to the Blackwater">{{cite web |location=[[Franklin, Virginia]] |title=War Comes to the Blackwater |url=http://downtownfranklinva.org/page/war-comes-to-the-blackwater/ |language=en |publisher=Downtown Franklin Association |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160910203833/http://downtownfranklinva.org/page/war-comes-to-the-blackwater/ |archive-date=2016-09-10 |access-date=2025-02-27}}</ref><!-- exhausted -->

}}

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[[Category:1862 in the American Civil War]]
[[Category:1862 in Virginia]]
[[Category:battles of the American Civil War in Virginia]]
[[Category:battles of the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War]]
[[Category:Confederate victories of the American Civil War]]
[[Category:Franklin, Virginia]]
[[Category:Isle of Wight County, Virginia]]
[[Category:naval battles of the American Civil War|Franklin]]
[[Category:October 1862]]
[[Category:riverine warfare]]
[[Category:Southampton County, Virginia]]