When Louisburg Surrendered
The uar uas over, and nou Iho drcail rral-
ily of lMk<*omin£ *'a subijugafod people" uas
upon lliom.
On April 15th. 1865. Louisburg sur¬
rendered to General Sherman, the Of¬
ficer in Command of the U.S. Forces at
Raleigh. North Carolina. On April 9th
General Lee had surrendered but
Sherman’s forces were moving north
ami Louisburg. thirty miles north of
Raleigh, was exposed to the ravages of
war. Hence, the necessity for surren¬
der in the hope that the town and its
citizens would be protected.
Two of Louisburg's most prominent
citizens. Dr. Ellis Malone and Mr.
Jones Fuller, were selected by the
Board of Commissioners to go to Ra¬
leigh and confer with General Sher¬
man. They carried with them a letter
from the Mayor. Mr. W. H. Pleasants,
addressed to General Sherman, their
authorization for said mission.
Friends and relatives brought silver
dollars and some gold to Dr. Malone
and Mr. Fuller to help defray expenses
incurred, as of course their Confeder¬
ate money was worthless at this lime.
Their mode of travel was typical of that
era. a horse and buggy, and from the
date of the letters below. April 15.
1865. they made exceptionally good
time in reaching Raleigh and meeting
General Sherman.
-louisburg. N.C.
April 15. 1865
To The Officer in Command of
The U.S. Forces at Raleigh,
N.C.
Sir:
In accordance with a resolu¬
tion passed by the Board of
Commissioners of the town of
Louisburg. N.C.. I hereby for¬
mally surrender this place to the
authorities of the United States,
and in behalf of our citizens de¬
sire and request that you will be
pleased to send us a guard under
a proper officer, to be stationed
here, so as to preserve order and
afford us that protection which
under existing circumstances we
feel authorized to claim under the
Constitution and laws of the
го
By tuMim-:» w. >i vi om:
United States. Should you be
good enough to comply with our
wishes in this respect, you may
be well assured of our united
cooperation. Messrs. J. Fuller
and Dr. H. Malone are deputed as
the bearers of this communica¬
tion.
Most obediently yours.
W. H. PLEASANTS.
Mayor of Louisburg."
Gen. Sherman's reply follows:
"Hdqrts. Military Div. of the
Miss, in the Field. Raleigh. N.C.
April 15. 1865.
W. H. Pleasants. Esq..
Mayor of Louisburg.
Dear Sir:
Your communication of this
date is received. It is not my
present intention to move any
pan of this army through Louis¬
burg. and I do not think you will
be molested in any manner: nor
From the Jinn' of Anna Long
Thomas Fuller, wife of Jones
Fuller and mother of Edwin
Wiley Fuller, poet and author,
and Anna
Й.
Fuller Malone, the
following excerpts amplify the
significance of this episode in our
history.
APRIL I5th. 1865
"I have not the language to depict
the horrors of the past four or five
days. The gloom and despondency that
hang around everything is o'er
whelming. We arc almost a conquered
people, at least, we are overpowered.
Gen. Lee surrendered, with ten or
twelve thousand troops, last Sunday
<9th> about five o'clock p.m.. the rest
of his Army is scattered in every direc¬
tion. The enemy now is in hot pursuit
after Gen. Johnson, and it is seriously
can I send a small detachment,
because it would be exposed to
danger from Hampton's cavalry.
But I think I can promise you that
events are in progress that will
soon give peace to all the good
people of North Carolina. Mr.
William A. Graham, of Hillsbor¬
ough. has gone to Governor
Vance to assure him that he has
my full promise of assistance and
protection if he will return and
maintain good order in the State.
I am also now in correspondence
with General Johnston, which I
hope will result in a universal
peace. The gentlemen who bear
this letter can explain many
things that will. I hope, tend to
allay any fears occasioned by the
falsehoods circulated by the
rebel cavalry.
I am. with respect, your obe¬
dient servant,
W. T. SHERMAN.
Major-General. U.S. Army"
apprehended, that he too will surren¬
der. For the last three days, we have
been hourly expecting the Yankees
here. Yesterday morning wc were
aroused from sleep, before day. by the
servants telling us. that they were at
Franklinton. We dressed hastily for I
thought they would be here very soon,
but they came not. We looked and lis¬
tened all day. Almost every sound
startled me.
This morning Mr. Fuller and Dr.
Malone started for Raleigh, (by au¬
thority, of course) to surrender our
town, and ask protection from Gen.
Sherman, for the Citizens. I feel
lonely, and so disappointed, and
humiliated that Gen. Lee should have
to surrender. 1 believe God has per¬
mitted this dire calamity to befall us.
for some wise purpose. I trust wc shall
see it. and be a better people. My anxi-
Yankee Forces Arrive
THE STATE. APRIL 1979