United States Sanitary Commission records. Army of the Potomac archives

1862-1865

The Sanitary Commission conducted field relief, battlefield relief, and special relief operations in support of the Army of the Potomac beginning in 1861. In an effort to systematize and develop such work, they established the Field Relief Corps (1863) and Auxiliary Relief Corps (1864) to better meet the needs of the Army on campaign. These relief operations included the Army of the James during the final year of the war.

On July 17, 1863, shortly after the battle of Gettysburg, General Secretary Frederick Law Olmsted issued instructions for the operation of the Field Relief Corps (FRC). These were implemented the following day when Lewis H. Steiner, USSC Chief Inspector of the Army of the Potomac, left Boonesboro, Maryland to meet the Army across the Potomac River. The plan resulted from earlier discussions and reorganization of field relief work by Olmsted, Steiner, John H. Douglas and others, in the months following the battle of Antietam. During the winter of 1862-1863, USSC field support of the Army of the Potomac was based at Acquia Creek and along the Rappahannock River, at Falmouth opposite Fredericksburg, and in March, at Belle Plain. Isaac N. Kerlin supervised operations until his resignation in May, when Steiner took charge in the position of Chief Inspector.

Steiner was responsible for the efficiency of the Corps and was supported by a field superintendent and an assistant superintendent, J. Warner Johnson and Isaac Harris respectively. Johnson remained in this position until January 1865 and was succeeded by J. Henry Davis.

The superintendent and his assistant were aided by relief agents, each assigned to a corps of the Army of the Potomac. To make the supply and relief system more mobile, each agent was placed in charge of a supply wagon stocked from USSC field storehouses, traveling with his designated Army corps so as to become familiar with the needs of its medical officers, field hospitals and troops. The superintendent and his assistant moved throughout the Army, overseeing work and helping as needed. In December, 1863, Steiner was named Chief Inspector for the Armies in Eastern Virginia and Maryland, a position he held until his resignation on July 12, 1864.

Whenever the Army of the Potomac moved its support bases in its manoeuvres against southern troops, the USSC moved its base of operations and relief stations accordingly. The FRC set up fixed headquarters on January 14, 1864 at Brandy Station, Virginia, the Army’s winter quarters. This station, known as the Shebang, consisted of a storehouse and tents to lodge USSC staff, visitors, and soldiers in transit, many convalescing. Relief agents visited the nearby Corps on saddle horses, supplying from the storehouse. As the Army prepared to move for what would be the battles of the Wilderness and Spotsylvania (May 1864) and other battles and skirmishes making up Grant’s Overland Campaign, the USSC left Brandy Station on May 4, 1864 and supplies were next forwarded to Belle Plain, Virginia.

In anticipation of the Army of the Potomac’s 1864 spring and summer campaigns, the USSC established the Auxiliary Relief Corps (ARC) in April-May 1864. While the FRC served the needs of the Army in the field, the ARC developed stations at field hospitals associated with particular Army corps, working closely with medical officers. Many staff members were students at northern theological seminaries serving for limited periods of time. The Corps attended to the wounded arriving by ambulance or in large numbers from battlefields, provided feeding stations for soldiers in transit, assisted sick soldiers with letter writing and other personal needs (such as supplying reading matter), provided fresh clothing, ensured that soldiers had proper food and stimulants and that USSC supplies were distributed appropriately, and provided last rites and supervised burials as needed. FRC and ARC staff worked together when circumstances required. Frank B. Fay of Chelsea, Massachusetts was Superintendent of the Corps from its inception until January 1865. A. M. Sperry succeeded Fay, holding the position until the end of the war.

Belle Plain served as the next USSC supply base beginning on May 10, 1864. The USSC was busy there and at Fredericksburg with the wounded from the battle at Spotsylvania Court House which began on May 8. Once General Ulysses S. Grant continued his advance to Richmond, Virginia, USSC supplies and relief stations were moved to Aquia Creek on May 21. The USSC continued to support the Army’s needs during events surrounding the battle of Cold Harbor (May 31-June 12), moving to Port Royal, White House, and eventually Fortress Monroe.

From mid-June 1864 to May 1865, City Point, on the James River, served as Grant's headquarters and the center of operations for the Union armies there. City Point also became the center for USSC operations with the arrival of the USSC relief corps on June 18, 1864. The USSC was able to utilize elaborate railroad, shipping, and communication facilities, setting up its own relief and transportation networks to support Army hospitals and troops, including the transportation of wounded soldiers to northern hospitals.

Grant’s Army of the Potomac and General Benjamin F. Butler’s Army of the James were combined on June 22, 1864, thereby expanding the USSC’s work and operational structure. John H. Douglas, an associate secretary of the USSC, was placed in charge of the entire work of the Commission in Virginia. Douglas oversaw the general direction of field relief at City Point and was responsible for USSC transportation needs by water and land, and coordinating the distribution of USSC supplies. Alexander McDonald was appointed chief inspector of the USSC’s Department of the Peninsula and Norfolk. He was placed in charge of relief activities at the Commission’s stations at Norfolk, Portsmouth, Bermuda Hundred, and Point of Rocks, with a base of operations at Deep Bottom, Virginia supporting the Army of the James.

By July 1864, over 200 individuals were employed in the area by the USSC. Douglas continued his role of oversight, with McDonald serving as inspector and executive officer, William F. Swalm as inspector and comptroller of supplies, Charles S. Clampitt as chief storekeeper, James J. Brooks as purveyor, J. Warner Johnson as the superintendent of Field Relief, and Frank B. Fay as superintendent of Auxiliary Relief. W. D. Mosman was the cashier and clerk at City Point and was chiefly responsible for financial affairs. By the end of that month, Joseph Parrish was placed in charge of all USSC operations with the Armies operating against Richmond.

The USSC continued to work from City Point and Deep Bottom during the Richmond and Petersburg campaigns throughout June 1864 to March 1865. On April 2-3, 1865, Petersburg and Richmond fell to the Union. By April 12 the USSC had permission from the Army to occupy a large house in Petersburg to serve as a storehouse and soldiers lodge. Relief stations were also established at Richmond and Burkesville, Virginia.

Toward the end of April 1865, as soldiers began returning home, the USSC’s relief work in the area drew to a close. April 26, 1865 was McDonald’s last day with the USSC in Virginia, leaving Isaac Harris and J. Warner Johnson in charge until M. D. Benedict was named chief inspector on May 25. Relief stations, lodges, and storehouses began to dispose of supplies and equipment, or forward them to other USSC locations. At City Point, some supplies were prepared for the U.S. Army’s Texas Expedition. By June 25, USSC operations at Petersburg, Richmond and City Point had closed; on that day, remaining City Point staff departed by boat for Washington.