Between September 20, 1860, and February 1, 1861, seven southern states seceded from the United States and formed the
Confederate States of America. Fighting began on April 12, 1861, when American troops were attacked at
Fort Sumpter in
South Carolina. This is considered the beginning of the American Civil War. Four additional states, including
Virginia, seceded during the next three months. However, the war continued through the summer, and President
Abraham Lincoln called for volunteers to fight against the rebels of the Confederacy. Powell resigned his civilian job on August 1, 1861, and recruited enough men to form a company of
cavalry and was elected their
captain. but Ohio governor
William Dennison refused to accept the unit's application because he had been instructed to accept no more new cavalry. Powell's company was designated Company B, and he was
commissioned as its captain on August 14. The regiment's first significant action was on January 7, 1862, in
Louisa, Kentucky, where it assisted a force commanded by Colonel
James A. Garfield, future
President of the United States. Powell led his company, reinforced with men from the regiment's Company C, in a charge that drove back a Confederate
rearguard.
Kanawha Valley During 1862–1863, the 2nd Loyal Virginia Cavalry spent much of its time confronting
bushwhackers—who were despised. The bushwhacker was thought of as an "unprincipled scoundrel who was too cowardly to join the army and fight as a man…", who would "sneak around like a thief in the night…." Eventually, Union forces in the mountains of what became West Virginia became very ruthless in their treatment of bushwhackers. Powell was usually stationed near the
Kanawha River Valley, in the southwestern portion of present
West Virginia—which was part of Virginia at the time. Entire regiments were not needed for bushwhacker duty, so the regiment often worked in detachments of two companies. In April 1862, Powell's regiment was divided into two
battalions. Powell's battalion, commanded by Colonel William M. Bolles, joined some Ohio
infantry regiments to form the 3rd Brigade of General
Jacob Dolson Cox's
Kanawha Division. The
brigade was commanded by Colonel (later Major General)
George Crook, a professional soldier with fighting experience in the
American West. Crook's brigade normally operated independently from the other portion of Cox's division. Its
camp was located at
Meadow Bluff, west of
Lewisburg in
Greenbrier County. Powell's major fighting experience as part of this brigade happened on May 27, against Confederate General
Henry Heth. Crook's brigade ambushed Heth's force in Lewisburg, killing or wounding over 150 enemy soldiers and capturing over 150. The cavalry pursued the fleeing
rebels and stopped only when a bridge was destroyed. On June 25, 1862, Powell was promoted to
major because of his gallant conduct in Kentucky and to fill a vacancy caused by the Bolles resignation.
Kanawha Valley Campaign During August 1862, many of the Union soldiers stationed in western Virginia were sent to
Washington to reinforce the
Army of Virginia. This caused the two battalions from the 2nd Loyal Virginia Cavalry to be reunited, and it was stationed with two infantry regiments in
Kanawha Falls, close to
Gauley Bridge, in what is now south central West Virginia. The small force was commanded by Colonel
Joseph Andrew Jackson Lightburn. In September, the Confederate Army became aware of the Union Army's lack of manpower, and devised a plan of attack. The Confederates sent a large force led by General
William W. Loring, incorrectly rumored to be 10,000 men, to attack Lightburn from the southeast. A cavalry brigade of about 550 men led by Colonel
Albert G. Jenkins patrolled along the Ohio River with the intention of preventing a
retreat by Lightburn. A large portion of the 2nd Loyal Virginia Cavalry, commanded by Colonel
John C. Paxton, was sent to confront Jenkins. Powell led the
advance guard, which happened to be Powell's company (CompanyB) before his promotion to major. Thus, Powell's advance guard for Paxton enabled a safe retreat to the Ohio River for the remaining portion of Lightburn's small force.
Sinking Creek raid Confederate gains in the Kanawha Valley did not last long, and Union troops reoccupied much of the valley. In November 1862, the 2nd Loyal Virginia Cavalry camped for the winter along the Kanawha River, about upriver from
Charleston. Newly promoted
Brigadier General George Crook commanded Union troops in the valley, and Paxton commanded Powell's regiment, the 2nd Loyal Virginia Cavalry. Crook was an experienced
Indian fighter, and believed that adverse weather was an advantage in the hit-and-run fighting style of
raids. On November 23, he ordered Paxton to rendezvous with an infantry regiment on Cold Knob Mountain, and then lead an attack on two rebel camps in Sinking Creek Valley. Before the cavalry regiment departed, Crook confidentially told Powell to not return without good results. The cavalry reached their meeting place near the top of Cold Knob Mountain on November 26. The
11th Ohio Infantry had arrived a few hours earlier. The men from the infantry had marched through rain, and were caught (as was the cavalry) in a snowstorm. After a conference between Paxton and the infantry's Colonel Philander P. Lane, the infantry aborted their mission and began a return to camp. Paxton also considered aborting the mission, but was persuaded by Powell to continue. Paxton sent Powell and
2nd Lieutenant Jeremiah Davidson with 20 men from Company G down the mountain to scout for the rebel camps. Powell and his men found one of the camps, determined that it was poorly guarded, and decided to capture it themselves. Each member of Powell's advance guard was armed with a
saber and two six-shot
revolvers. Powell decided to attack with sabers so that the other rebel camp would not be alarmed. They charged into the 500-man rebel camp with sabers drawn, and completely surprised the rebels. Many of the weapons captured were not loaded. Although hundreds of the rebels scattered into the countryside, a captain, a lieutenant and 112
enlisted men were captured, along with 200 weapons, a few wagons and some camping equipment. Powell's only casualties were the loss of two horses. Two rebels were killed and two wounded. The trip back to camp was difficult because of the cold weather, and two men were hospitalized at the infantry's Summerville camp because of
frostbite. Ten horses were lost because of cold and exhaustion. Paxton ended his report by writing "I cannot close this report without deservedly complimenting the officers and men, but, where all behaved so gallantly, it is impossible to particularize. But all honor is due Major Powell, who led the charge...." Powell and Davidson were promoted shortly afterwards—Powell from major to
lieutenant colonel, and Davidson from second lieutenant to
first lieutenant. After the war, Powell was awarded the
Medal of Honor for his performance in the Sinking Creek raid. In 1889, Crook said that he regarded the "expedition as one of the most daring, brilliant and successful of the whole war."
Regiment commander During March 1863, Powell became severely ill, and was unable to recover at camp. He eventually resigned from the cavalry, and returned to his home in Ohio. Powell was also unhappy with Paxton, although this was revealed to only a few. On May 1, Paxton led a night raid (without Powell) near Lewisburg, and the regiment was defeated with significant
casualties. Total losses were sixteen killed, missing, or wounded—plus 28 horses killed. General
Eliakim P. Scammon, the division commander after Crook had been sent elsewhere, dismissed Paxton after the regiment returned to camp. Paxton was popular with his troops, but the troops also respected Powell. At the time of Paxton's dismissal, Powell's resignation had yet to be accepted, and he was still at home in Ohio regaining his health. After a petition by the regiment, Powell was persuaded to retract his resignation. He was promoted to colonel and became the regiment's commander effective May 13, 1863.
Wytheville raid The
Wytheville raid occurred on July 18, 1863, in southwestern Virginia. Powell was second in command of a small 800-man brigade of cavalry and
mounted infantry. He had some disagreements with how his commander, an infantry veteran named Colonel John Toland, handled the cavalry, and both men were shot early in the raid; Toland being killed on a street in Wytheville, and Powell believed to be mortally wounded. Although the Union brigade was able to secure the town, it suffered numerous casualties—and left town less than 24 hours after its arrival. Powell's wound was painful enough that he could not be moved, and he became a prisoner of the Confederates. The citizens of Wytheville blamed Powell for the burning of several homes and buildings, although the damage occurred after he was wounded. When it appeared he might be harmed, a few of the local women intervened by hiding him in a hotel. Powell unexpectedly recovered enough that he could be moved, and was eventually sent to Richmond's
Libby Prison. He was placed in solitary confinement on charges of robbery and murder. One of the men from the 2nd West Virginia cavalry wrote that "It was well known that the confederate authorities had placed Colonel Powell in a dungeon for some imaginary wrong...." One of the main causes for his predicament was the burning of a house and barn near Lewisburg, West Virginia, an act that the Confederate army and Lewisburg community considered unjustified and without military purpose.
Cove Mountain Around the time of Powell's return, Crook was assigned command of the entire Kanawha Division. In April, General
William W. Averell arrived in Charleston with two regiments of cavalry. On April 30, Crook organized a two prong attack against strategic Confederate locations along the
Virginia and Tennessee Railroad. Crook led infantry from Charleston toward the Confederate regional headquarters at the
Dublin Depot in Virginia. He sent cavalry under the command of Averell to attack
Saltville, Virginia. Averell found Saltville strongly defended, so he decided to attack Wytheville instead. To get to Wytheville, Averell needed to move the cavalry through the mountains at Cove Gap (also known as Grassy Lick) in northern
Wythe County. The second in command, General
Alfred N. Duffié, had a "conspicuous absence", so command fell to Powell. Powell was unable to get the cavalry through the gap, but he was able to make effective use of the 2nd West Virginia Cavalry, and hold off the larger Confederate force. The result of the battle was an inconclusive standoff that ended at dusk. Fighting continued periodically all day, and stopped at dusk. During this time, additional rebel troops were arriving in Lynchburg via the railroad.{{cite web ==American Civil War: Shenandoah Valley==