WI No Beriah Magoffin

WI, instead of Magoffin, Kentucky in 1861 had a governor who was a staunch Unionist, as I understand most of the Legislature were?

Could we see effective help going to the Unionists of East Tennessee, so that the whole of that state might have been regained for the Union almost as fast as Missouri was? Could there be battles in northern Georgia about the time of the OTL Battle of Shiloh? And where do we go from there?

Thoughts?
 

TFSmith121

Banned
Certainly possible

WI, instead of Magoffin, Kentucky in 1861 had a governor who was a staunch Unionist, as I understand most of the Legislature were? Could we see effective help going to the Unionists of East Tennessee, so that the whole of that state might have been regained for the Union almost as fast as Missouri was? Could there be battles in northern Georgia about the time of the OTL Battle of Shiloh? And where do we go from there? Thoughts?

Certainly possible, given there were Tennessee USV regiments being organized in Kentucky in 1861, even during the "Neutrality" period. The converse, however, is that it was never simple to get into East Tennessee from the north, certainly not from southwestern Kentucky, and some version of Mill Springs presumably needs to be fought.

It can be done, as Burnside showed in his campaign, so yes; the candidate for such a governor is tricky, but William O. Butler is a possibility, despite his age.

The issue generally, however, is that while the Missouri rebels could not be supported from east of the Mississippi, and the Missouri loyalists could, the situation was reversed in Tennessee; West Tennessee and Middle Tennessee could presumably be held until the equivalent of the Henry-Donelson campaign opens the door, and Memphis could be (relatively) easily sustained from the south as long as Island Number 10 (or something like it) was in place on the Mississippi.

Both sides were in a mobilization race in 1861 in the west, and geography had a huge influence on that.

Best,
 
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