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414 HISTORY OF MARYLAND.
Harris's creek. The telegraph poles and wires were also cut and destroyed
in several places on both roads. The action of the police board was subsequently explained by them in their report to the Legislature, from which the
following is an extract:
" The absolute necessity of the measures thus determined upon by the governor, mayor
and police board, is fully illustrated by the fact that early on Sunday morning, reliable
information reached the city of the presence of a large body of Pennsylvania troops,
amounting to about twenty-four hundred men, who had reached Ashland near Cockeys-
ville, by the way of the Northern Central Railroad, and were stopped in th«ir progress
towards Baltimore, by the partial destruction of the Ashland bridge. Every intelligent
citizen at all acquainted with the state of feeling then existing, must be satisfied, that if
these troops had attempted to march through the city, an immense loss of life would
have ensued, in the conflict which would necessarily have taken place. The bitter feelings
already engendered would have been intensely increased by such a conflict; all attempts
at conciliation would have been vain, and terrible destruction would have been the consequence, if, as is certain, other bodies of troops had insisted upon forcing their way
through the city. The tone of the whole of the Northern press, and of the mass of the
population, was violent in the extreme. Incursions upon our city were daily threatened,
not only by troops in the service of the Federal Government, but by the vilest and most
reckless desperadoes, acting independently, and as they threatened, in despite of the Government, backed by well-known influential citizens, and sworn to the commission of all
kinds of excesses. In short, every possible effort was made to alarm this community. In
this condition of things, the board felt it to be their solemn duty to continue the organization which had already been commenced, for the purpose of assuring the people of Baltimore that no effort would be spared to protect all within its borders to the full extent of
their ability. All the means employed were devoted to this end, and with no view of
procuring a collision with the general government, which the board were particularly
anxious to avoid; and an arrangement w^as happily effected by the mayor with the general government that no troops should be passed through the city. As an evidence of the
determination of the board to prevent such collision, a sufficient guard was posted for
several nights in the neighborhood of Fort McHenry, to arrest all parties who might be
engaged in a threatened attack upon it,l and a steam tug was employed, properly manned,
to prevent any hostile demonstration upon the receiving-ship Alleghany, lying at anchor
in the harbor, of all which the United States officers in command were duly notified."2
i " Office Board of Police, ! of the regularly organized militia of the State,
"Baltimore, April 20,1861, 8 o'clock, P. M. * now called out pursuant to law, and actually in
A Captain Robinson, U.S.A , the service of the State of Maryland. The
" Commanding at Fort McHenry: commanding officer of the detachment will be
'■'■Dear Sir—From rumors that have reached instructed to communicate with you. Permit
us, the Board are apprehensive that you may be me here to repeat the assurance I verbally gave
annoyed by lawless and disorderly characters you this morning, that no disturbance at or near
approaching the walls of the fort to-night. We your post shall be made with the sanction of
propose to send a guard of perhaps 200 men, any of the constituted authorities of the City of
to station themselves on Whetstone Point, of Baltimore, but that, on the contrary, all their
course entirely beyond the outer limits of the powers shall be exerted to prevent anything of
fort, and within those of the city. Their orders the kind by any parties. I have the honor to be,
will be to arrest and hand over to the civil au- very respectfully, your obedient servant,
thorities any evil-disposed or disorderly persons " Charles Howard, President.
who may approach the fort. We should have " P.S— There may probably be a troop of vol-
conflded this duty to our regular police force, unteer cavalry with the detachment; these will,
but their services are so imperatively required of course, be under the orders of the officer in
elsewhere that it is impossible to detail a sum- command. Yours, etc., C. H., President."
cient number of men to your vicinity to insure '2 Document " D," House of Delegates, 1861,
the accomplishment of our object. This duty extra session,
has, therefore, been entrusted to a detachment
Object Description
| Title | History of Maryland - 3 |
| Creator | Scharf, J. Thomas (John Thomas) |
| Publisher | J. B. Piet |
| Place of Publication | Baltimore |
| Date | 1879 |
| Language | eng |
| Type | Books/Pamphlets |
Description
| Title | 00000445 |
| Type | Books/Pamphlets |
| Transcript | 414 HISTORY OF MARYLAND. Harris's creek. The telegraph poles and wires were also cut and destroyed in several places on both roads. The action of the police board was subsequently explained by them in their report to the Legislature, from which the following is an extract: " The absolute necessity of the measures thus determined upon by the governor, mayor and police board, is fully illustrated by the fact that early on Sunday morning, reliable information reached the city of the presence of a large body of Pennsylvania troops, amounting to about twenty-four hundred men, who had reached Ashland near Cockeys- ville, by the way of the Northern Central Railroad, and were stopped in th«ir progress towards Baltimore, by the partial destruction of the Ashland bridge. Every intelligent citizen at all acquainted with the state of feeling then existing, must be satisfied, that if these troops had attempted to march through the city, an immense loss of life would have ensued, in the conflict which would necessarily have taken place. The bitter feelings already engendered would have been intensely increased by such a conflict; all attempts at conciliation would have been vain, and terrible destruction would have been the consequence, if, as is certain, other bodies of troops had insisted upon forcing their way through the city. The tone of the whole of the Northern press, and of the mass of the population, was violent in the extreme. Incursions upon our city were daily threatened, not only by troops in the service of the Federal Government, but by the vilest and most reckless desperadoes, acting independently, and as they threatened, in despite of the Government, backed by well-known influential citizens, and sworn to the commission of all kinds of excesses. In short, every possible effort was made to alarm this community. In this condition of things, the board felt it to be their solemn duty to continue the organization which had already been commenced, for the purpose of assuring the people of Baltimore that no effort would be spared to protect all within its borders to the full extent of their ability. All the means employed were devoted to this end, and with no view of procuring a collision with the general government, which the board were particularly anxious to avoid; and an arrangement w^as happily effected by the mayor with the general government that no troops should be passed through the city. As an evidence of the determination of the board to prevent such collision, a sufficient guard was posted for several nights in the neighborhood of Fort McHenry, to arrest all parties who might be engaged in a threatened attack upon it,l and a steam tug was employed, properly manned, to prevent any hostile demonstration upon the receiving-ship Alleghany, lying at anchor in the harbor, of all which the United States officers in command were duly notified."2 i " Office Board of Police, ! of the regularly organized militia of the State, "Baltimore, April 20,1861, 8 o'clock, P. M. * now called out pursuant to law, and actually in A Captain Robinson, U.S.A , the service of the State of Maryland. The " Commanding at Fort McHenry: commanding officer of the detachment will be '■'■Dear Sir—From rumors that have reached instructed to communicate with you. Permit us, the Board are apprehensive that you may be me here to repeat the assurance I verbally gave annoyed by lawless and disorderly characters you this morning, that no disturbance at or near approaching the walls of the fort to-night. We your post shall be made with the sanction of propose to send a guard of perhaps 200 men, any of the constituted authorities of the City of to station themselves on Whetstone Point, of Baltimore, but that, on the contrary, all their course entirely beyond the outer limits of the powers shall be exerted to prevent anything of fort, and within those of the city. Their orders the kind by any parties. I have the honor to be, will be to arrest and hand over to the civil au- very respectfully, your obedient servant, thorities any evil-disposed or disorderly persons " Charles Howard, President. who may approach the fort. We should have " P.S— There may probably be a troop of vol- conflded this duty to our regular police force, unteer cavalry with the detachment; these will, but their services are so imperatively required of course, be under the orders of the officer in elsewhere that it is impossible to detail a sum- command. Yours, etc., C. H., President." cient number of men to your vicinity to insure '2 Document " D," House of Delegates, 1861, the accomplishment of our object. This duty extra session, has, therefore, been entrusted to a detachment |
