Hello Wanda, Yes, I am familiar with Osband's battle report since it details what happened at Franklin, Holmes County the day after the West Station Depot was torched. Regrettably, it sheds no light on what happened at West Station the day before, nor does it address the alleged burning of that same depot by Grierson in 1863. Osband's report does imply but not state that it may have been elements of the fourth Illinois Cavalry and / or Third U.S. Colored Cavalry that destroyed the depot at West Station. That is about as far as I have gotten to identifying the USA units involved. So far, I have no idea if any CSA units showed up in West Station about the time the fire consumed the Depot. I tend to suspect the Depot's burning may have been uncontested and simply witnessed by civilians. Thanks anyway for having gotten back to me, Wanda. I may be looking for something that no longer exists, but am cursed with the belief that all information still exists and if you haven't found what you're looking - for you just haven't looked in the right place. At 09:52 PM 8/31/2002 -0400, Wanda Lentz wrote: >is this of any help. >Wanda Eakin Lentz >[netkins group] > >From: http://www.coax.net/people/lwf/rpt_edo5.htm > >Report of Col. Embury D. Osband, Third U. S. Colored Cavalry, commanding >Third Cavalry Brigade >HEADQUARTERS THIRD BRIGADE, CAVALRY DIVISON, >DEPARTMENT OF THE MISSISSIPPI >Memphis, Tenn, January 13, 1865 >CAPTAIN: I have the honor to make the following report of the part taken by >the Third Brigade in the recent raid from Memphis, Tenn, to Vicksburg, Miss: > >. . . . > >On the morning of January 1, 1865, I moved, by order of the general >commanding, from Winona Station down to the line of the Mississippi Central >Railroad, flanking the line of march of the main column. I sent strong >dismounted details from the fourth Illinois Cavalry and Third U.S. Colored >Cavalry from Winona Station, through Vaiden and West Station, to a point >five miles below the latter place, a distance of twenty miles. They totally >destroyed 2 ½ miles of track, 19 bridges, 12 culverts, together with station >houses, water tanks, &c. Ten of these bridges were important structures, and >must require thirty days to repair. On the morning of the 2d, learning that >the Confederates were concentrating a strong force at Goodman Station, I >left the line of railroad and moved on the Franklin pike in the direction of >Ebenezer and Benton. When half a mile from Franklin my advance of the Third >U. S. Colored Cavalry was charged by a strong force of the enemy. The charge >was repulsed, and the rebels driven from their advanced position. The forces >proved to be those of Brig. Gen. Wirt Adams, 1,500 strong, who, coming from >Goodman, had pushed one regiment to a junction of the roads, covering them >in some close timber skirting the road and about a church surrounded by >shrubbery. A flank movement of two squadrons of the Third E. S. Colored >Cavalry, commanded by Capt Henry Fretz, Company L, dislodged them from the >church, while seven squadrons of the Third U. S. Colored Cavalry dismounted, >under Maj. E. M. Main dislodged them from the close timber by falling upon >their flank and rear, thus compelling them to fall back to a bridge over a >small stream where General Adams had concentrated the main body of his men. >Major Main immediately charged and carried the bridge, but in turn was >driven over it in some confusion by the enemy, who being heavily >re-enforced, outnumbered from three to one. We should here have lost number >of our men except for the most determined gallantry of our officers >particularly prominent among who was Lieut. Frank W. Calais, Company A. >Third U. S. Colored Cavalry. In the meantime, the Eleventh Illinois Cavalry >moved to our extreme right, where they arrived in time to check a flank >movement of the enemy. After sharp fighting, the movement was checked, their >left turned, and their forces driven to the main body at the bridge. The >Fourth Illinois Cavalry, moved promptly to the support of the Third U.S. >colored Cavalry, met and repulsed a flank movement of the enemy directed to >our left, when quickly dismounting and jumped from tree to tree, soon drove >the rebels to the cover of the houses across the creek. At this time, the >Third U. S. Colored Cavalry again charged and carried the bridge from which >they were not again driven during the fight. The desperate nature of the >fighting, the superiority of numbers displayed by General Adams, and a >summons from the general commanding to immediately join the column, now >fifteen miles to our front and right, induced me to attempt to withdraw my >men and we mutually separated without further fighting. One enlisted man >from the Fourth Illinois Cavalry and one from the Third U. S. Colored >Cavalry, too severely wounded to be moved, were left at Franklin. > > > > > >==== MSATTALA Mailing List ==== >Have you visited the American Local History Network, Attala County web >site yet? You can find it at http://www.usgennet.org/usa/ms/county/attala/ > >============================== >To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy records, >go to: >http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237 Regards, Dennis K. Boswell 301 Crow Canyon Drive, Folsom, CA 95630 Telephone: (916) 987-3599 Fax: (916) 987-3555 Email: dennisb@mindspring.com