Still yet more thoughts on the
Battle of Plymouth in North Carolina to mark the anniversary of
the fight. This is all detailed in
The Fight For the Old North State: The Civil War in North Carolina, January-May 1864. Here is Thread 3:
THREAD THREE: Yankees, Buffaloes, & USCT Recruits. Who Were the Union Defenders of Plymouth, North Carolina?
The Plymouth garrison, led by Henry Wessells, totaled about 2,800, including the 16th CT, 85th NY, and 101st and 103rd PA - along w/ detachments from the 2nd MA & 3rd PA Heavy Arty, 12th NY Cav., 24th NY Lt. Indep. Batt., 2 co's. of white NC volunteers (2nd NCUV), and 200+ African-American recruits.
The white NC Union volunteers were known as “Buffaloes.” At New Bern in Feb, Pickett captured and executed nearly two dozen of these men after finding they had previously served in rebel units. The controversy from the “Kinston Hangings” would follow Pickett well beyond the war.
Plymouth was an important recruiting station for USCT units. At the time of the battle, recruiting officers from the 10th, 37th, and 38th USCT, & the 2nd USCC were in the town. The new recruits, about 245, filled the fortifications to help fend off the Confederate attack.
Behind Plymouth's fortifications, the USS Southfield and Miami patroled the Roanoke River. The naval commander at Plymouth was Charles Flusser, a young, aggressive officer who had become obsessed with defeating the Confederate ironclad Albemarle incubating upriver.
