Letters on: Lee's Tenth Division, and Last Confederate Commander Correction.

Lee's Tenth Division

During the preparations for the invasion of the North in the summer of 1863, Lee could have formed another infantry division. The troops would have been available if Jeff Davis had given Lee a bit more support in his efforts to build his army as strong as possible. General Trimble was available to command this division as he was currently attached to II Corps.

The organization is for Fire and Fury rules. I have used this as the Army Reserve directly under Lee's orders in my campaign. This information was found in The Gettysburg Campaign, A Study in Command, by Edwin B. Coddington. Refer to chapter 1 and notes 39, 41, 42, and 43.

Trimble's Division: 1 leader
Unit	FandF Specs	Strength
Ransom's Brigade	15/13/11 (Elite)	3,067
Jenkins' Brigade	13/11/9 (Elite)	2,644
Cooke's Brigade	11/9/7 (Elite)	2,332
Colquitt's Brigade	9/7/5	1,854
Evans' Brigade	8/6/4	1,500 (3-25-63 returns)
Artillery	1 battery	about 8 guns

The Elite ratings are based on the following passage in the book on page 19:

"Lee thought Hill had troops to spare, especially the brigades of Brigadier Generals Robert Ransom, Jr., Micah Jenkins, and John Rogers Cooke, all of which had once been with the Army of Northern Virginia. Lee wished them back, not for sentimental reasons, but because the generals were all top-notch brigadiers in command of experienced soldiers."

I am not familiar enough with Colquitt or Evans to give them a special rating. Any help would be appreciated.

Last Confederate Commander Correction!

Dear Dave,

The magazine still looks great. I hope to write a few more articles for you, but right now I am concluding my term as Judge Advocate-in-Chief for the Sons of Confederate Veterans and as national heritage chairman. I hope you read my columns in The Confederate Veteran magazine.

As a point of clarification, Paul Price wrote a short "correction" in the Spring 1996 issue stating that Kirby Smith was the "last significant general to surrender west of the Mississippi." The last "significant general" to surrender would be Brigadier General Stand Watie, leader of the Confederate Indians. He surrendered at Doaksville, Oklahoma. Watie's was the last army to surrender.

However, Brigadier General Jo Orville Shelby and the "Iron Brigade" of Arkansas-Missouri never surrendered their colors. Embarking his command into Mexico, General Shelby had his battle flags wrapped in stones and sunk in the Red River. One of these flags was recovered several weeks later by a returning Confederate cavalryman. The flag was passed down the generations and now hangs in Confederate Hall at the Oklahoma Historical Society Museum. It is a beautiful old silk flag that is unfortunately deteriorating badly because of silk-rot. The Oklahoma Division of the Sons of Confederate Veterans has targeted this flag for restoration/ preservation by the state of Oklahoma.

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