In January, 1865, Gen. Wm. T. Wofford, of Wofford's Brigade, ANV, was at home in Cassville, Cass (now Bartow) County, recuperating from a wound. The situation in north Georgia was terrible. Because of the Atlanta campaign the year before, no crops had been grown. The area was over run with draft dodgers, deserters, and bushwhackers. Animosity between secessionists and union supporters exacerbated the difficulties.

According to the "History of Bartow County", cited on this site, http://www.angelfire.com/ok2/kristi/briggen.html the General wanted to bring his brigade from Virgina, but Jefferson Davis would not allow it.

On January 23, 1865, by request of his own people, Gov. BROWN, and by his own desires, Gen. WOFFORD was appointed Department Commander for north Georgia.

...Colonel Isaac W. AVERY, in his "History of Georgia", gives an eye-witness acount of the devastations left by SHERMAN in this once favored section. 'Left for months outside the protecting aegis of both governments, the hiding place of guerillas in both armies, the theater of that worst of all strifes that exist between hostile factions, it realized in all its dread malignancy what is meant by a state of anarchy...Strolling bands of deserters and robbers, herded in the mountain caves, made predatory excursions from their fastnesses and in their inhuman collisions and murderous orgies kept up a reign of terror...

...It was a labor of love for General WOFFORD, and he entered upon his difficult duty with zeal. He called in and organized 7,000 men, large numbers of them deserters and stragglers. He exhibited decided executive ability in his work...He obtained corn, which he distributed among the starving people. His cool and resolute tact was the very quality needed for handling the turbulent lawlessness of his section. He sent a flag of truce to General JUDAH, the Federal commander in north Georgia, and obtained a personal conference in which he induced General JUDAH to do the noble act of distributing corn to the starving people whose names were furnished by General WOFFORD.'

...Gen. WOFFORD's headquarters were at Kingston and this station served as the distributing point. He asked for 30,000 bushels of corn, and permission to use government stock scattered over the country. General JUDAH granted all of this.

...On the 12th of May, 1865, Gen. WOFFORD made the last surrender this side of the Mississippi river."

During the Atlanta Campaign, Henry Judah, a west Point Graduate, was relieved of his command for alcoholism and dereliction of duty, according to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_M._Judah#Civil_War

Judah was placed on routine administrative duty in the Department of the Cumberland until the end of the war, stationed in Marietta, Georgia. He was brevetted a lieutenant colonel and colonel in the Regular Army on March 13, 1865. On May 12, he received the surrender of Brig. Gen. William T. Wofford's estimated 3,000 to 4,000 Confederate soldiers. Since no crops had been grown here on the battlefields in 1864 and, as the surrender had paralyzed the local economy and government, the citizens and former soldiers lacked food, funds and employment. Judah, seeing that aid was needed to prevent suffering, issued corn and bacon to the needy until a crop could be harvested. The rations helped put the Georgians and their economy back on a sound basis, and served as a humanitarian gesture.

That Wofford was able to bring so much rder out of chaos is remarkable. He had been against secession, but when the decision was made, raised the regiment that became the 18th Georgia. Upon arrival in Virginia, the 18th was assigned to Hood's Texas Brigade. After Hood's promotion, Wofford commanded the Texas Brigade at Antietam.

In November 1862 the 18th was assigned to Cobb's Brigade. They were in the sunken road at Fredericksburg. Wofford was given the brigade command when Cobb was killed. Until the end of the war it was Wofford's brigade. He supported Barksdale in the wheat field at Gettysburg.

The point is, Wofford was no REMF, but a front line general. That he was able to get so many men under control for five months demonstrates his ability, as does his securing help from the enemy commander to feed the people of the area. He was no "Home Guard" officer. Stan