The New Mexico Campaign, 1861-1862 Part VII: Remembrance and Assessment

 

Remembrance & Historiography

At the end of the campaign Albert Peticolas, having just endured the horrid retreat from New Mexico, noted in his journal that “our operations out here will all be lost in history, when such great struggles are going on nearer home…”[1] The Civil War in the Southwest would indeed be considered a sideshow, though it would receive a few articles in Battles and Leaders of the Civil War. One of the writers, Brigadier-General Latham Anderson, attempted to argue the importance of the campaign. He wrote that if Sibley’s men had reached California, they would have doubtlessly created a strong presence in the state and created large implications for the Union war effort. With California’s coastline added to Confederate territory, the already strained Union blockade would have lost any effectiveness. However, such grand ramifications, even when expressed by a Civil War veteran and late 19^th Century general, remain speculative as Sibley’s campaign was done in before it could ever get out of New Mexico.[2] Only one Confederate, Teel, provided an article in which he castigated Sibley. “He did not husband his resources, and was too prone to let the morrow take care of itself,” he wrote. Teel believed that if Baylor had been given command, “the result might have been different.”[3] There was some argument among the Union contributors over Canby’s leadership, but this failed to spark any great historical inquiry into the campaign.

Some veterans kept memories of the campaign more alive through unit histories or published speeches. Once these survivors had died off, the war for the Far West became a piece of trivia, unknown by many. It often did not garner a mention in general Civil War histories, including Bruce Catton’s centennial trilogy. This is not to say that historians totally forgot about it. Several books were published in the 50s and 60s. Sibley’s campaign was presented in Robert Lee Kerby’s The Confederate Invasion of New Mexico and Arizona (1958), Martin Hardwick Hall’s Sibley’s New Mexico Campaign (1960), and several other works. Hall’s account of the campaign was the expansion of a doctoral dissertation, fleshed out with a wealth of newly discovered sources. Arthur Wright’s The Civil War in the Southwest (1964), is actually oriented around the adventures of James Carleton’s California Column rather than Sibley’s battles with Canby and the Coloradans.

The New Mexico Campaign, 1861-1862 Part V: The Battle of Glorieta Pass

The Battle of Apache Canyon

Each army was now based out of a ranch on at an end of Glorieta Pass, the Texans at Johnson’s Ranch and the Federals at Pigeon’s Ranch. Glorieta Pass ran on a northward slant from both east and west, creating a semi-triangular pathway. The Federals’ base of Pigeon’s Ranch was inside the pass itself, creating a narrow, defensible area. The ranch held may buildings and corrals, much of the former made of protective adobe. On the other end, the Texans tried to go to sleep on the night of the 25^th, but this proved difficult thanks to the cold ground. The men were finally able to get some shuteye in the middle of the 26^th, when the sun warmed up the ground. While it was still fairly dark, a Union scouting party encountered four reconnoitering Santa Fe Brigands. The Brigands asked if they were being relieved. The commander of the Federals replied “Yes, we came to relieve you of your arms.” The first encounter of Glorieta Pass was a bloodless surrender.[1]

On the 26^th Chivington and his Coloradan volunteers, as well as elements of the 3^rd U.S. Cavalry, turned the northward bend and headed south into Apache Canyon. At this moment he had over 400 men. Pyron himself led nearly 450 Texans out of camp. Two evenly matched forces were set for a blind collision. Pyron was aware of his blindness, not having heard from his four Brigand scouts since the previous evening. He sent 30 men ahead to investigate along with two artillery pieces (an odd supplement for a scouting force, but as it turned out a smart move). Around 2 PM this tiny force bumped into Chivington’s column. The surprised Texans lost an officer to capture, but were able to unlimber their guns. The Rebels fired off their artillery and the Coloradans went up the two mountainsides on their left and right. This firing alerted and in some cases woke up the rest of Pyron’s men. They temporarily halted the Federal advance with their artillery.[2] Chivington kept most of his men on the slopes. In his official report he claimed that his plan was to lure the enemy in so that they would pass by the hidden men. Then the Federals could descend and surround them. In fact the Confederate were withdrawing, and the ensuing entrapment came about because part of Pyron’s force failed to join the retreat, exposing their flank. The Federals poured into their rear. They formed a line at the mouth of a side canyon, funneling the enemy into one front. Major John Shropshire came to the rescue, riding right through the Federals to rally the men. He urged, “Boys, follow me.” When informed the men did not have enough ammunition to affect a breakout, he countered, “Then take your knives and follow me.” The following escape was largely successful, though not without some losses. Two soldiers tried to hide in a hole, but as the second crawled into it a Federal spotted his legs and pulled. The soldier was dragged out. Coming along with him was the other Texan, who was desperately clinging to his comrade.[3]