Battle of Newton

Background

An area of relatively low population and economic importance in Antebellum Alabama, Dale County had been relegated to the status of a backwater during the Civil War era, largely neglected by the state government in Montgomery. Mostly covered by pine forest and with few big farms or plantations, the area proved an attractive gathering location for deserters from the Confederate Army, as well as Southern Unionists who had been harassed or worse by their "Secessh" neighbors. These "bushwackers", as they were called, hid out in the forests of Dale and adjacent counties, seeking aid and supplies from Federal forces in Pensacola—or, more often than not, simply seizing them from the largely-defenseless locals.

One "bushwacker" leader was Joseph G. Sanders, a millwright and resident of Dale County who had first served as a private in the 31st Georgia Infantry before being elected captain of Company C in that regiment. In 1864 Sanders had resigned his commission; facing the possibility of being drafted to fight for the South as a private, he chose to go over to the Union side, where he was commissioned as a second lieutenant and assigned to Company F, 1st Regiment of Florida Cavalry (US). Sanders' unit attracted not just Confederate deserters and local Unionists, but also outright criminals and other less-than-desirable elements, as well.

In the late winter of 1865, Brigadier General Alexander Asboth, commanding Federal forces in the Florida Panhandle, ordered Sanders to make a raid into Washington County, Florida, to raise recruits and also to "confiscate" horses and cattle. However, instead of carrying out these orders, Sanders and his men made their way into the Forks of the Creek swamp near Campbellton, where they waited for a chance to attack Newton and burn the courthouse there, which contained records of Sanders' previous service with the Confederate Army. The courthouse at Elba in adjacent Coffee County had been torched by a "bushwacker" unit under the leadership of John Ward, and Sanders hoped to repeat their escapade in Newton. Accordingly, he set out for there on the night of 14 March 1865. Newton was also the location of the local Confederate conscription office, staffed at the time by Captain Joseph Breare, a former officer with the 15th Alabama Infantry who had been wounded at Gettysburg and returned home to lead efforts against local draft-dodgers and deserters. This made it an even more tempting target for Sanders, who was seen as a traitor by the citizens of Dale County.

Battle

Unbeknownst to Sanders, he and his men had been spotted on the roads leading toward Newton, and their probable destination had been guessed. Jesse Carmichael, a veteran of the 15th Alabama who had served as a corporal and lost a hand at Antietam in 1862, was notified by his father of Sanders' impending arrival in Newton that night, and he hastened to warn the town. As the citizens formed up to defend their village, Carmichael and another wounded veteran of the 15th, John McEntyre, rode some distance outside of town, to provide an early warning of Sanders' arrival. Spotting Sanders at the head of a mounted company of 44 men, Carmichael quickly rode back to Newton, where he led his neighbors to an ambush site he had chosen near a spring a mile east of town. However, once he had headed out on another reconnaissance mission these men abandoned this position and returned to town, fearful for the safety of their families.

Meanwhile, Breare and his home guard unit had arrived in Newton, and upon hearing what was happening, Breare immediately took charge of the town's defense. Breare wanted to keep the defenders close to the square, so that they might surprise Sanders and catch him amidst Newton's buildings and streets, leaving him less room to maneuver. Accordingly, he formed his men on the west side of the square, opposite of the direction that Carmichael believed that Sanders would be coming.

Disagreeing with Breare's approach, and unable to dissuade him from this course of action, Carmichael took nine of his friends and arranged them to the east of the square: Carmichael and three of the men took up positions near a hotel, while the other six formed up further down in a side street between the hotel and the square. Sanders and his company rode into Newton from the southeast at full gallop, yelling "huzzah, huzzah; here we are!" and heading for the courthouse. Carmichael and his outfit let them pass, then opened up on them from behind with double-barrelled shotguns and rifles while their friends up ahead simultaneously fired into the front of the attacking column. Thoroughly alarmed by this unexpected development, the attackers bolted for the edge of town and rode off into the night, reportedly hampered by malfunctioning pistols and rifles as they tried to return fire. A one-handed ex-corporal and his nine friends had routed a Union cavalry force four times their size—on foot and in the dark, without one of them being hurt or killed, and with Breare's men on the other side of the square never getting off a shot in the process. Sanders, for his part, reported three dead and five wounded among his troops.

Aftermath

Sanders' actions in Alabama became the subject of an investigation in June 1865 when he returned to Pensacola after an unauthorized four-month absence. He had been given fourteen days for his mission, and when he returned after four months with only eight men out of the twenty he started with, the Army demanded to know why. Sanders' proffered explanation seems to have satisfied his superiors, for no court-martial ensued, and he was permitted to resign at his own request and "for the good of the service" on 13 September 1865, after saying that he feared for the safety and welfare of his family (who were living in Dale County at the time). Sanders returned to Alabama after leaving the army, where several citizens of Newton attempted to arrest him at his home but were repulsed with one of them being killed in the process. He fled to Decatur County, Georgia, where his victim's father allegedly tracked him down and killed him.

Though completely unimportant in terms of the war as a whole, Carmicheal reported that the successful outcome of the home guard's minuscule engagement at Newton gave hope to local citizens, who had suffered much at the hands of raiders like Sanders and Ward. The town later constructed a monument to those of its citizens who defended it that evening, which can be seen adjacent to the square (now minus the courthouse; the county seat was moved to nearby Ozark in 1870).

In recent years, the battle has become an item of immense local interest, with an annual festival and reenactment on the third weekend of October.