Episode Details

Robert Cwiklik, guest author, recounts how, in the wake of the 1874 White League coup, President Grant felt compelled to take decisive action, despite the 1874 midterm elections flipping the House of Representatives to Democratic control. Grant initially used massive military force—including warships and infantry—to restore Governor Kellogg, but he realized a permanent solution was needed as white vigilantes continued to overthrow local officials across the South. Fearing that the gains of the Civil War were being erased, Grant turned to his most trusted and aggressive general, Phil Sheridan. He dispatched Sheridan on a secret mission to New Orleans, instructing him to go "on vacation" and assess how to "put a lid on the situation." This mission was so sensitive that Grant bypassed his cabinet, including Secretary of State Hamilton Fish, to keep it confidential. Grant relied on Sheridan's reputation for "total war" tactics to combat the growing insurgent threat from the White League and other militias. Sheridan's Secret Mission: How the South Won the War After the Civil War (5)