ACWS - On This Day in the American Civil War 13th March

Capt. Nathaniel Lyon, 2d US Infantry, is assigned to the command of the Saint Louis, MO, Arsenal, with subsequent orders to arm the loyal citizens and execute the laws of the United States of America.
President Abraham Lincoln continues to refuse to meet with any Confederate envoys so as to not imply the acceptance of the Government of the Confederacy.

John Bordenave Villepigue, CSA, is appointed Brig. Gen.
Daniel Tyler, USA, is appointed Brig. Gen.
Action at Spring River, AR.
Maj. Gen. Henry Wager Halleck, USA, assumes the command of the Dept. of the Mississippi.
The destruction of the Beach Creek Bridge, on the Mobile and Ohio Railroad, TN.
The US Army Corps are organized in the Army of the Potomac, VA, under the following Army Corp Commanders:
- Maj. Gen. Irvin McDowell, - I Army Corps
- Brig. Gen. Edwin Vose Sumner, - II Army Corps
- Brig. Gen. Samuel Peter Heintzelman, - III Army Corps
- Brig. Gen. Erasmus Darwin Keyes, - IV Army Corps
- Maj. Gen. Nathaniel Prentiss Banks, - V Army Corps
Gen. Robert E. Lee, CSA, is charged with the conduct of military operations in the Armies of the Confederacy.
Additional Article of War is approved forbidding all officers and soldiers of the US Army from aiding in the capture and return of fugitive slaves to their disloyal owners, VA.

The following are appointed Union Brigadier Generals:
- Thomas Ewing, Jr., USA
- Abner Clark Harding, USA
- Robert Brown Potter, USA
- Hugh Thompson Reid, USA
The capture of Confederate conscripts near Charlotte, TN. (Mar 13-14)
Skirmish at Rover, TN, with Union cavalry and Brig Gen. John Austin Wharton, CSA.
The 3rd Army Division, 9th US Army Corps, Maj. Gen. Smith, USA Commanding, is transferred from Newport News to Suffolk, VA. (Mar 13-16)
The Confederate Ordnance Laboratory, Brown's Island, near Richmond, VA, explodes, killing nearly 70, mostly women who are working in the munitions factory.

Skirmish at Carrollton, AR.
Federal scouts from Yellville to Buffalo River, AR, including encounters with guerrillas and bushwackers. (Mar 13-26)
The Confederate steamer, Sumter, is captured in Lake George, FL, by the Federal armed tug, the Columbine.
Skirmish at Cheek's Cross-Roads, TN.
Skirmish at Spring Hill, TN.
Skirmish at Los Patricios, TX, with Federal cavalry.

George Washington Getty, U.S.A., is appointed Maj. Gen.
James Brewerton Ricketts, U.S.A., is appointed Maj. Gen.
Wager Swayne, USA, is appointed Brig. Gen.
Affair 1 mile from Dalton, GA, as the attacking Confederates capture 5 railroad hands on the Cleveland road. The Yankees pursue and kill 2 of the Rebels, and capture 1.
Col. John Morrill, 64th Illinois Infantry, is assigned to the command of the District of Rolla, MO.
Skirmish near Fayetteville, NC.
Skirmish near Beaver Dam Station, VA, with Maj. Gen. Philip H. Sheridan's, USA, Cavalry force on their way to join up with the Union forces under Lieut. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, USA, on the siege lines of Petersburg, VA.
After delays and debate which has been going on for quite some time, the Confederate Congress approves putting Negroes in the Confederate Army to shore up the weak numbers. President Jefferson Davis signs the bill immediately.
Skirmish near Charlestown, WV.

On This Day information kindly provided by Martin Cross, 2nd U.S. Artillery, Bty B.