Department of the Monongahela
Encyclopedia
The Department of the Monogahela was a military department created by the United States War Department during the Gettysburg Campaign
of the American Civil War
.
Abraham Lincoln
, responding to Robert E. Lee
's impending invasion of Maryland
and Pennsylvania
, called for 100,000 volunteers from those two states, as well as West Virginia
and Ohio
, to help repel the invasion, with only about 33,000 recruits answering his call. The Secretary of War
, Edwin M. Stanton
, ordered the creation of two departments to organize these militia
and defend Pennsylvania. The Department of the Susquehanna
consisted of most of central and eastern Pennsylvania. The Department of the Monogahela consisted of western Pennsylvania, including Johnstown
, the Laurel Highlands
, and Erie
, as well as Hancock
, Brooke, and Ohio
counties in West Virginia
, and the Ohio counties of Columbiana
, Jefferson
, and Belmont
. The headquarters were established in Pittsburgh
, under the command of Maj. Gen.
William T. H. Brooks
, a combat veteran of the Union
Army of the Potomac
.
Brooks energetically set out to defend Pittsburgh, ordering citizens and railroad crews to build an elaborate network of earthworks and fortifications along key routes of approach that any invader might use. He organized home guard units, and sent out scouts looking for signs of Confederate
activity. He established communications linkages with Maj. Gen. Ambrose Burnside
, commanding the adjacent Department of the Ohio, as well as the Department of the Susquehanna's Maj. Gen. Darius N. Couch
. Pennsylvania Governor Andrew Curtin sent 10,000 rifles, ammunition, and supplies to Pittsburgh, and Federal troops were hastily diverted to assist in the defense of the river town should it be threatened.
Brooks's fears over a Confederate attack on Pittsburgh would prove unfounded, although Morgan's Raid
through southern Ohio caused concern, as did John D. Imboden
's raid on the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad in Bedford County, Pennsylvania
, well east of Pittsburgh. Satisfied that Pittsburgh was indeed safe with the repulse of Robert E. Lee
at the Battle of Gettysburg
and the capture of John Hunt Morgan
following the Battle of Salineville
, Brooks sent home the volunteers and militia, and the forts were abandoned.
The department was merged into the Department of the Susquehanna on April 6, 1864, forming a new Department of Pennsylvania. General Brooks returned to active field command, leading a division in the XVIII Corps
in the Army of the James
.
Gettysburg Campaign
The Gettysburg Campaign was a series of battles fought in June and July 1863, during the American Civil War. After his victory in the Battle of Chancellorsville, Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia moved north for offensive operations in Maryland and Pennsylvania. The...
of the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
.
History
On June 9, 1863, PresidentPresident of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
, responding to Robert E. Lee
Robert E. Lee
Robert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....
's impending invasion of Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
and Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, called for 100,000 volunteers from those two states, as well as West Virginia
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
and Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, to help repel the invasion, with only about 33,000 recruits answering his call. The Secretary of War
United States Secretary of War
The Secretary of War was a member of the United States President's Cabinet, beginning with George Washington's administration. A similar position, called either "Secretary at War" or "Secretary of War," was appointed to serve the Congress of the Confederation under the Articles of Confederation...
, Edwin M. Stanton
Edwin M. Stanton
Edwin McMasters Stanton was an American lawyer and politician who served as Secretary of War under the Lincoln Administration during the American Civil War from 1862–1865...
, ordered the creation of two departments to organize these militia
Militia
The term militia is commonly used today to refer to a military force composed of ordinary citizens to provide defense, emergency law enforcement, or paramilitary service, in times of emergency without being paid a regular salary or committed to a fixed term of service. It is a polyseme with...
and defend Pennsylvania. The Department of the Susquehanna
Department of the Susquehanna
The Department of the Susquehanna was a military department created by the United States War Department during the Gettysburg Campaign of the American Civil War...
consisted of most of central and eastern Pennsylvania. The Department of the Monogahela consisted of western Pennsylvania, including Johnstown
Johnstown, Pennsylvania
Johnstown is a city in Cambria County, Pennsylvania, United States, west-southwest of Altoona, Pennsylvania and east of Pittsburgh. The population was 20,978 at the 2010 census. It is the principal city of the Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes Cambria County...
, the Laurel Highlands
Laurel Highlands
The Laurel Highlands is a region in southwestern Pennsylvania made up of Fayette County, Somerset County and Westmoreland County. It has a population of about 600,000 people....
, and Erie
Erie, Pennsylvania
Erie is a city located in northwestern Pennsylvania in the United States. Named for the lake and the Native American tribe that resided along its southern shore, Erie is the state's fourth-largest city , with a population of 102,000...
, as well as Hancock
Hancock County, West Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 32,667 people, 13,678 households, and 9,506 families residing in the county. The population density was 394 people per square mile . There were 14,728 housing units at an average density of 178 per square mile...
, Brooke, and Ohio
Ohio County, West Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 47,427 people, 19,733 households, and 12,155 families residing in the county. The population density was 447 people per square mile . There were 22,166 housing units at an average density of 209 per square mile...
counties in West Virginia
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
, and the Ohio counties of Columbiana
Columbiana County, Ohio
Columbiana County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of 2010, the population was 107,841. It is named for Christopher Columbus and the county seat is Lisbon....
, Jefferson
Jefferson County, Ohio
Jefferson County is a county located in the state of Ohio. As of 2010, the population was 69,709. Its county seat is Steubenville and is named for Thomas Jefferson, who was at the time Vice President....
, and Belmont
Belmont County, Ohio
Belmont County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. It is part of the Wheeling, West Virginia Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2010, the population was 70,400. Its county seat is St. Clairsville...
. The headquarters were established in Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
, under the command of Maj. Gen.
Major General
Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...
William T. H. Brooks
William T. H. Brooks
William Thomas Harbaugh Brooks was a career military officer in the United States Army, serving as a major general during the American Civil War.-Early life:...
, a combat veteran of the Union
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
Army of the Potomac
Army of the Potomac
The Army of the Potomac was the major Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War.-History:The Army of the Potomac was created in 1861, but was then only the size of a corps . Its nucleus was called the Army of Northeastern Virginia, under Brig. Gen...
.
Brooks energetically set out to defend Pittsburgh, ordering citizens and railroad crews to build an elaborate network of earthworks and fortifications along key routes of approach that any invader might use. He organized home guard units, and sent out scouts looking for signs of Confederate
Confederate States Army
The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...
activity. He established communications linkages with Maj. Gen. Ambrose Burnside
Ambrose Burnside
Ambrose Everett Burnside was an American soldier, railroad executive, inventor, industrialist, and politician from Rhode Island, serving as governor and a U.S. Senator...
, commanding the adjacent Department of the Ohio, as well as the Department of the Susquehanna's Maj. Gen. Darius N. Couch
Darius N. Couch
Darius Nash Couch was an American soldier, businessman, and naturalist. He served as a career U.S. Army officer during the Mexican-American War, the Second Seminole War, and as a general officer in the Union Army during the American Civil War.During the Civil War, Couch fought notably in the...
. Pennsylvania Governor Andrew Curtin sent 10,000 rifles, ammunition, and supplies to Pittsburgh, and Federal troops were hastily diverted to assist in the defense of the river town should it be threatened.
Brooks's fears over a Confederate attack on Pittsburgh would prove unfounded, although Morgan's Raid
Morgan's Raid
Morgan's Raid was a highly publicized incursion by Confederate cavalry into the Northern states of Indiana and Ohio during the American Civil War. The raid took place from June 11–July 26, 1863, and is named for the commander of the Confederates, Brig. Gen...
through southern Ohio caused concern, as did John D. Imboden
John D. Imboden
John Daniel Imboden was a lawyer, teacher, Virginia state legislator. During the American Civil War, he was a Confederate cavalry general and partisan fighter...
's raid on the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad in Bedford County, Pennsylvania
Bedford County, Pennsylvania
Bedford County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 census, the population was 49,762. The county seat is Bedford. It is part of the Altoona, Pennsylvania, Metropolitan Statistical Area.- History :...
, well east of Pittsburgh. Satisfied that Pittsburgh was indeed safe with the repulse of Robert E. Lee
Robert E. Lee
Robert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....
at the Battle of Gettysburg
Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg , was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The battle with the largest number of casualties in the American Civil War, it is often described as the war's turning point. Union Maj. Gen. George Gordon Meade's Army of the Potomac...
and the capture of John Hunt Morgan
John Hunt Morgan
John Hunt Morgan was a Confederate general and cavalry officer in the American Civil War.Morgan is best known for Morgan's Raid when, in 1863, he and his men rode over 1,000 miles covering a region from Tennessee, up through Kentucky, into Indiana and on to southern Ohio...
following the Battle of Salineville
Battle of Salineville
The Battle of Salineville occurred July 26, 1863, near Salineville, Ohio during Morgan's Raid in the American Civil War. It was one of the northernmost military actions involving the Confederate States Army. The decisive Union victory shattered John Hunt Morgan's remaining Confederate cavalry and...
, Brooks sent home the volunteers and militia, and the forts were abandoned.
The department was merged into the Department of the Susquehanna on April 6, 1864, forming a new Department of Pennsylvania. General Brooks returned to active field command, leading a division in the XVIII Corps
XVIII Corps (ACW)
XVIII Corps was a corps of the Union Army during the American Civil War.- Origins and makeup :The XVIII Corps was created on December 24, 1862, and initially composed of five divisions stationed in North Carolina, making it one of the largest in the Union Army , placed under the command of General...
in the Army of the James
Army of the James
The Army of the James was a Union Army that was composed of units from the Department of Virginia and North Carolina and served along the James River during the final operations of the American Civil War in Virginia.-History:...
.