Introduction

CIVIL WAR RAILROADSINTRODUCTION Robert Selph Henry The American CrvrL War has often been called "the first railroad WaT." If by that is meant the first war in which railroads were used, the statement is not strictly correct. Railroads were employed for strategic movement of troops in northern Italy in the Franco-Sardinian war with Austria in 1859. Indeed, logistical use ofrailroads existed in the mobilization of United States troops as early as 1846 in the Mexican War, when railroads made it possible to shorten the movement of the 1st Georgia Infantry to the front by concentrating the regiment on the western border of the state on the navigable waters of the Chattahoochee. But in essence the war of 1861-65 is correctly called the first railroad war. It was then that railroads emerged as a new fact in geography and a new dimension in war, affecting all calculations, altering the magnitude of mobilization and the timing of movements, changing the outcome of battles and the very shape of campaigns, and in large measure determining the very outcome of the great struggle. The timely arrival of Kirby Smith's troops from the Valley tipped the scales at First Manassas. Rail movements from Tupelo to Chattanooga paved the way for Bragg's Kentucky campaign, with all its possibilities for decisive results. The shift of Longstreet's Confederate forces from Virginia to north Georgia enabled Bragg to win the battle of Chickamauga ; the countershift of Hooker's two Federal corps from Virginia to the vicinity of Chattanooga helped make that victory barren. The existence of a single-track line ofrailroads from the Ohio River at Louisville to Atlanta, and the ability to maintain and operate it, was the foundation of success for Sherman's Atlanta campaign. These, though, are just a few of the more conspicuous contributions of railroads to success, or failure, in campaigns and battles. More perRobert Selph Henry needs no introduction to students of the Civil War. His The Story of the Confederacy and "First with the Most" Forrest have long been recognized as classics in the field. As a former executive of the Association of American Railroads, Colonel Henry has an intimate knowledge of the history of the iron horse. Civil War History is indeed honored to welcome him as guest editorfor this special issue. 229 vasive, and more significant, was their influence in the task of transporting men, munitions, and supplies, not only for the military forces but also for the daily operations of the productive processes of the warring sections. It is eminently fitting, therefore, that in the list of special issues of Civil War History there should be one on railroads. Of necessity, such an issue can cover no more than a limited range of topics. Regrettably, it has been necessary to omit many interesting features of this broad subject. But contained herein are monographs on the most important lines in the war effort, as well as treatises on the impact of railroads in the Civil War period. The thanks ofthe editors, and of readers as well, is due to those whose contributions make up this issue of the journal. They have shed new light upon a vital facet of "the first railroad war." 230 ...