Brigadier General Rufus Saxton, Commander of Volunteers

Beaufort, South Carolina - October 26, 1862

OCTOBER 24, 1862. -- Affair on Saint Helena Island, S. C.

Report of Brig. General Rufus Saxton, U. S. Army.
BEAUFORT, S. C., October 26, 1862.
GENERAL: I have the honor to report that on Friday last two boat loads of rebels attempted to land on Saint Helena Island, and were fired on and driven off by negro pickets. The people there are somewhat alarmed. I respectfully request that a picket guard of a non-commissioned officer and 12 men be sent there to give confidence to the people.

I am, general, with great respect, your odedient servant,

R. SAXTON,
Brigadier-General, Volunteers.
Major-General MITCHELL.

SOURCE: United States War Department. THE WAR OF THE REBELLION: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. Series I, Volume 14. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1880-1901.