September 5, 1864---The Beefsteak Raid

SEPTEMBER 5, 1864:      

Abraham Lincoln orders “A Day of National Rejoicing” in honor of the fall of Atlanta and Mobile Bay. While the United States rejoices, restored Louisiana and Tennessee both adopt new State Constitutions reorganizing their governments and abolishing slavery.

In Petersburg, General Wade Hampton C.S.A. leads a “Beefsteak Raid” against a vast herd of cattle destined for Union field kitchens. His men capture 2,500 head and eleven supply wagons. They also free more than 300 Rebel P.O.W.s.

Problematically, the Confederates lack feed or grazing land and are forced to slaughter the cattle as soon as possible and salt the meat (as much as possible) to prevent spoilage. They use up much of their dwindling salt stocks in the process.

The Beefsteak Raid is a windfall that offsets the ever more self-evident end for the war a week or two at most. The fresh meat boosts the stamina of Southern troops temporarily. The Army of Northern Virginia feasts on steak for days, even trading some across the lines for fresh vegetables. When the steak runs out, the men go back to eating cornmeal.

The Rebs have a good time taunting the Union troops --- thanking them for dinner --- while the beef lasts. The Union troops are not discommoded in the least. The Beefsteak Raid doesn’t put even put a ding in the Union’s seemingly endless supplies. Lincoln, hearing of the Raid, laughs it off as “the durn slickest piece o’ cattle rustling of which I ever heard tell.”