February 5, 1863 - Thursday - 160 years ago today

Status - John Baer - 40th Indiana Regiment - Crittenden's Corps - Wood's Division - Wagner's Brigade 

Among the many things that General Rosecrans found lacking was the paymasters' organization and the lack of timely payments to the soldiers.  Here is a dispatch to the Secretary of War describing the current state of soldier pay in his army:

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MURFREESBOROUGH, TENN.,

February 3, 1863 - 10:30 PM.

E. M. Stanton:

   Paymasters have arrived with funds for payment of my command to October 31 only.  I think this army richly merits all pay due it.  The last payment was to August 31, and in the case of some fifty regiments was made after the preparation of the October rolls, which, of course, bear no trace of the August payment, and must, therefore, be made over.  October rolls of some regiments were lost in the late battle, and cannot well be replaced.  Such commands, with many others, have their December rolls only.  The Acting Paymaster-General advises my chief paymaster that money for the December payment will probably be furnished by the time of the conclusion of the October payment.  This will require all the trouble and labor of two payments, which might be embraced in one.  This is very undesirable, in view of the fact that my pay corps - by no means large - is mostly composed of paymasters just appointed, whose utter lack of practical experience would make a double payment slow, tedious, and unnecessarily burdensome.  The present concentration of the bulk of my command presents and opportunity for a prompt and thorough payment which may not long be available.  I earnestly request that Major Larned be authorized to make his payments to December 31 at once, and that funds for their completion be immediately furnished.

 W. S. ROSECRANS, 

Major-General, Commanding.

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It appears that pay at the time was 3 months behind for the soldiers of the Army of the Cumberland.  Here is a page that describes the payment of soldiers in the Civil War: Soldier's Pay

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There was a small battle at Fort Donelson during this time, in which the Confederate cavalry was repulsed with more losses than the Union defenders.  The Confederate cavalry fell back into south central Tennessee.

More Information:

• Link: War Operations, see Volume XXIII, Chapter XXXV, Part II, Correspondence,  pp. 33-49.
• The Civil War Day by Day, John S. Bowman, Ed. pp. 96-97.
• Shelby Foote: The Civil War, A Narrative, Vol 1I, Fredericksburg to Meridian, pp. 166-174. 
• New Market Historical Society, Soldier's Pay.

 

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