Talk:Jenkins' Trans-Allegheny Raid

This review is transcluded from Talk:Jenkins' Trans-Allegheny Raid/GA1. The edit link for this section can be used to add comments to the review.

Nominator: TwoScars (talk · contribs)

Reviewer: Hog Farm (talk · contribs) 01:38, 21 March 2024 (UTC)Reply

It'll probably be a few days until I can get to this but I'll for sure review it. Hog Farm _Talk 01:38, 21 March 2024 (UTC)Reply

• Thanks for looking at this. Not a lot of excitement in this raid, although Jenkins crossed into Ohio. It is related to the Battle of Charleston (1862) that you reviewed last November. It is also related to Kanawha Valley Campaign of 1862 and the Battle of Fayetteville (1862) (finishing being reviewed now). TwoScars (talk) 16:03, 21 March 2024 (UTC)Reply

• "Bushwhackers and Partisan rangers utilized guerrilla warfare for both sides to help gain control of the region" - would Partisan Ranger Act be a better piped link here as a more specific article than the general one?
  • Made change, although I believe the new Wikilink is better for the CSA but not for the pro-Union. TwoScars (talk) 18:34, 29 March 2024 (UTC)Reply
• "During 1861, Union forces commanded by Major General Jacob Dolson Cox gained control of a large portion of southwestern Virginia along the Kanawha River Valley" - wasn't Cox a brigadier general in '61?
  • Yes, and part of '62. The Aftermath notes when he was promoted to MG. Fixed. TwoScars (talk) 18:52, 29 March 2024 (UTC)Reply
• "Union Colonel Lightburn, in his report, stated that Jenkins' force was 1,200 to 1,500 when it was attacked at Barboursville" - I'd omit this. Lightburn would have had no way of accurately knowing Confederate strength, and it was almost universal during the war for officers to overestimate (or over-report) enemy strength
  • Dropped sentence, although we know 1) that is what Lightburn claimed; 2) in Note 5 we learn that Jenkins had some new recruits; and 3) a newspaper believed Jenkins had 1,500 to 2,000 men with more expected to join him. TwoScars (talk) 18:52, 29 March 2024 (UTC)Reply
• "Rathbone's force totaled to about 300 men, although 100 men were poorly-equipped or unarmed" - is this just the 5 companies of Rathbone's regiment, or does it include the scout's as well? It's unclear if the scouts were under Rathbone's authority or not
  • Agree that it is unclear. Source says "Rathbone had nearly 300 men, although about 100 were either without arms or poorly equipped...." It also says "Rathbone surrendered about 218 men, including 45 of the dreaded Snakehunters, who bitterly cursed the colonel." It appears to me that if the Snakehunters had a choice, they would not have surrendered—so they must have been under Rathbone's authority. I also found a "Letters from a soldier" book that says that the Snakehunters consisted of only 45 men. Changed wording to "Under Rathbone's command were five companies from the 11th Loyal Virginia Infantry and an independent company known as the "Snakehunters" that eventually became the regiment's Company A. The Union force numbered nearly 300...."
• "He quickly found it necessary to send one company on another mission." - do we know what the purpose of this detachment was?
  • Lowry only says "During the day [of his departure from Salt Sulphur Springs] Jenkins discovered he needed to sand a small force to come in on the south side of the Kanawha, for which he sent Cpt. william E. Herndon and his men (Company G, 8th Virginia Cavalry)." OR from Jenkins says "a condition of things which made it desirable to send a small force by the opposite route to come in on the south side of the Kanawha...." Changed sentence to say "He quickly found it necessary to send one company in the opposite direction to approach the Kanawha River from the south side instead of the north." TwoScars (talk) 19:52, 29 March 2024 (UTC)Reply
• "Arriving at Buckhannon near 3:00 pm, Jenkins approached the town with most of his men dismounted. Waiting for the Confederates were a light artillery company, a company of militia, and a new company of 60 regulars from the 10th Loyal Virginia Infantry Regiment) commanded by Captain Lewis M. Marsh" - is there a missing open parenthesis or a spurious closing one?
  • Fixed spurious closing pren. TwoScars (talk) 20:06, 29 March 2024 (UTC)Reply
• "Using captured arms and ordnance, Jenkins was able to resupply his poorly-armed men with Enfield and Harper's Ferry rifles." - I'm not convinced that this is the correct link for the Harper's Ferry rifles. The Springfield Model 1855 was also produced heavily in Harper's Ferry, and would have been a more likely candidate for improving Jenkins' armament than model 1803 converted flintlocks. Unless a source is more specific as to what is being referred to (IMO probably just weapons manufactured at the Harper's Ferry armory rather than a specific model of firearm), I'd drop the link
  • Dropped link. TwoScars (talk) 20:10, 29 March 2024 (UTC)Reply
• "Under Rathbone's command were five companies from the 11th Loyal Virginia Infantry. Also present was an independent company known as the "Snakehunters" that eventually became Company A of the 11th Loyal Virginia. The total Union force numbered nearly 300, although about 100 men were poorly equipped." - this essentially duplicates material from earlier in the article; I'd trim it down in one of the two places
  • Changed it here to say "Rathbone's force numbered about 300, including at least 45 men from an independent company known as the "Snakehunters"." TwoScars (talk) 20:27, 29 March 2024 (UTC)Reply
• "and he was urged remain in town and fight." - missing a word
  • Changed to "and he was urged to remain...." TwoScars (talk) 20:27, 29 March 2024 (UTC)Reply
• Do the sources say what Jenkins did with the 48 men he didn't parole at Spencer?
  • Added the sentence "The locals hated Captain Baggs and his Snakehunters, so the Snakehunters asked to go with Jenkins because they were afraid of retaliation from the town's citizens." This accounts for most of the 48 difference. TwoScars (talk) 20:27, 29 March 2024 (UTC)Reply
• What makes Cutright et al. a reliable source?
  • Never thought about it. I can use pages 56 and 57 from Lowry instead. TwoScars (talk) 20:44, 29 March 2024 (UTC)Reply
• You should indicate what volume of Starr is being cited
  • Added "Volume II" to title. TwoScars (talk) 20:31, 29 March 2024 (UTC)Reply

I'll do spot-checks on this soon. Hog Farm _Talk 19:02, 28 March 2024 (UTC)Reply

Spot-checks

• The Starr citation checks out
• "After firing a round or two, the Union forces fled, and Jenkins captured the town. Jenkins reported casualties of four wounded" - checks out
• "He was also involved with oil fields at Burning Springs" - checks out
• "An additional marker discusses Daniel Frost, and it mentions that his newspaper was burned during Jenkins's raid" - checks out
• " Loring's force actually consisted of about 5,000 men instead the rumored 10,000, but he expected to add to it by recruiting and organizing existing local militias" - checks out

No issues with spot-checks, passing for GA. Hog Farm _Talk 02:41, 4 April 2024 (UTC)Reply