History of the Thirty-sixth Regiment Massachusetts Volunteers. 1862-1865
by Henry S. Burrage · English · Gutenberg #50422 · 981,785 chars · public domain (US)
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Title: History of the Thirty-sixth Regiment Massachusetts Volunteers. 1862-1865
Author: Henry S. Burrage
William H. Hodgkins
Edmund W. Noyes
S. Alonzo Ranlett
Alonzo A. White
Release date: November 10, 2015 [eBook #50422]
Most recently updated: October 22, 2024
Language: English
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*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HISTORY OF THE THIRTY-SIXTH REGIMENT MASSACHUSETTS VOLUNTEERS. 1862-1865 ***
HISTORY
OF THE
THIRTY-SIXTH REGIMENT
MASSACHUSETTS VOLUNTEERS.
1862-1865.
_BY A COMMITTEE OF THE REGIMENT._
BOSTON:
PRESS OF ROCKWELL AND CHURCHILL.
89 ARCH STREET.
1884.
TO
Our Comrades
OF THE
_THIRTY-SIXTH MASSACHUSETTS VOLUNTEERS_
THIS RECORD OF A COMMON EXPERIENCE
IS
_AFFECTIONATELY INSCRIBED_.
_Ah, never shall the land forget_
_How gushed the life-blood of her brave,--_
_Gushed, warm with hope and courage yet,--_
_Upon the soil they sought to save._
_Now all is calm, and fresh, and still;_
_Alone the chirp of flitting bird,_
_And talk of children on the hill,_
_And bell of wand'ring kine, are heard._
_No solemn host goes trailing by,_
_The black-mouthed gun and stag'ring wain;_
_Men start not at the battle-cry;_
_Oh, be it never heard again!_
--WILLIAM CULLEN BRYANT.
PREFACE.
Not long after the close of the war a plan was proposed, by some of
the officers of the regiment, for the preparation of a history of the
Thirty-sixth Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteers; but the plan was
not carried into execution. At the regimental reunions, in subsequent
years, parts of such a history were read by Comrades White, Ranlett,
and Hodgkins, and the desire for a complete history of the regiment,
which found expression on these occasions, was so strong that, at the
reunion of the regiment at Worcester, in September, 1876, a committee,
consisting of Comrades White, Ranlett, Burrage, and Hodgkins, was
appointed to procure materials for a history of the regiment.
Some progress was made by the committee in the performance of the
work thus assigned to them; but it was not so great as they, or their
comrades of the Thirty-sixth, desired. At the reunion, September 2,
1879, the matter was again considered, and it was finally voted, "that
Comrades White, Ranlett, Hodgkins, Burrage, and Noyes, be chosen a
committee to have charge of the compiling, revising, and printing the
history of the regiment, to be ready for delivery at our next reunion;
and that the committee have power to procure any help they may need."
Many difficulties were encountered in the progress of the work, and it
was found that it would be impossible to prepare, within the limit of
time prescribed, such a history as would be worthy of the regiment. The
different members of the committee, amid the activities of busy lives,
could give to the work only such intervals of leisure as they could
find amid their daily tasks. At the annual reunions of 1880, 1881, and
1882,--testing the patience of their comrades who had entrusted to them
this important task,--they were compelled to report progress only. In
September, 1883,--the last reunion,--however, they were able to say
that the work was already in press, and would be ready for delivery in
the course of a few weeks.
In the table of contents will be found the names of the authors of
the different chapters. The work of Comrades White, Ranlett, Olin,
and Noyes, entitles them to the hearty thanks of all their companions
in arms. Especially, however, are such thanks due to Comrade W. H.
Hodgkins, not only for his own contribution to the history, but
also for his careful attention to the innumerable details which the
preparation of such a work required. Indeed, without his unwearied
endeavors in gathering materials, securing the coöperation of others,
and attending to the business of publication, the history would not so
soon, and might never, have been completed.
To the writer of these lines was assigned the editorial supervision
of the work. From the materials placed in his hands he arranged the
history of the regiment as it now appears. Two proofs of the entire
work have passed under his eye, and in this part of his task he has had
the invaluable assistance of Major Hodgkins. The history, of course,
is not free from errors of statement; and it will doubtless be found
that there are omissions which the writers of the different chapters,
as well as their comrades, will deeply deplore. Yet, with all its
imperfections, this volume is believed to be substantially a faithful
history of the part which the regiment had in the great conflict for
the preservation of the National Union, which was waged during the
years 1862-1865; and, as such, it is certainly a history of which all
those who participated in it may well be proud.
H. S. B.
PORTLAND, ME., Sept. 26, 1883.
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I. PAGE
ORGANIZATION OF THE REGIMENT.--ALONZO A. WHITE 1-10
CHAPTER II.
TO THE FRONT.--ALONZO A. WHITE 11-18
CHAPTER III.
IN VIRGINIA.--ALONZO A. WHITE 19-36
CHAPTER IV.
THE KENTUCKY CAMPAIGN.--S. ALONZO RANLETT 37-48
CHAPTER V.
IN THE REAR OF VICKSBURG.--S. ALONZO RANLETT 49-57
CHAPTER VI.
THE MOVEMENT ON JACKSON.--S. ALONZO RANLETT 58-72
CHAPTER VII.
THE RETURN TO KENTUCKY.--S. ALONZO RANLETT 73-78
CHAPTER VIII.
IN EAST TENNESSEE.--S. ALONZO RANLETT 79-87
CHAPTER IX.
THE RETREAT FROM LENOIR'S AND THE BATTLE OF CAMPBELL'S
STATION.--HENRY S. BURRAGE 88-100
CHAPTER X.
THE SIEGE OF KNOXVILLE.--HENRY S. BURRAGE 101-122
CHAPTER XI.
SUBSEQUENT OPERATIONS IN EAST TENNESSEE.--HENRY S. BURRAGE 123-134
CHAPTER XII.
REORGANIZATION.--WILLIAM H. HODGKINS 135-145
CHAPTER XIII.
IN THE WILDERNESS.--WILLIAM H. HODGKINS 146-159
CHAPTER XIV.
AT SPOTTSYLVANIA.--WILLIAM H. HODGKINS 160-177
CHAPTER XV.
ON THE NORTH ANNA AND THE PAMUNKEY.--WILLIAM H.
HODGKINS 178-187
CHAPTER XVI.
AT COLD HARBOR.--WILLIAM H. HODGKINS 188-200
CHAPTER XVII.
THE MOVEMENT ON PETERSBURG.--WILLIAM H. HODGKINS 201-215
CHAPTER XVIII.
IN THE TRENCHES.--WILLIAM H. HODGKINS 216-222
CHAPTER XIX.
DIARY OF THE SIEGE.--WILLIAM H. HODGKINS 223-232
CHAPTER XX.
THE MINE AFFAIR.--WILLIAM H. HODGKINS 233-241
CHAPTER XXI.
THE SIEGE CONTINUED.--WILLIAM H. HODGKINS 242-252
CHAPTER XXII.
IN THE PINES.--EDMUND W. NOYES 253-257
CHAPTER XXIII.
THE ACTION AT PEGRAM FARM.--EDMUND W. NOYES 258-265
CHAPTER XXIV.
AGAIN IN THE TRENCHES.--EDMUND W. NOYES 266-275
CHAPTER XXV.
IN WINTER QUARTERS.--WILLIAM H. HODGKINS 276-281
CHAPTER XXVI.
THE FINAL ASSAULT AT PETERSBURG.--WILLIAM M. OLIN 282-291
CHAPTER XXVII.
CLOSING SCENES.--WILLIAM H. HODGKINS 292-311
CHAPTER XXVIII.
CONCLUSION.--WILLIAM H. HODGKINS 312-315
ROSTER AND RECORD OF THE THIRTY-SIXTH REGIMENT OF
MASSACHUSETTS VOLUNTEERS, COMPILED AND CORRECTED
BY WILLIAM H. HODGKINS 316
RECAPITULATION 385
NAMES OF MEMBERS OF THE REGIMENT WHO DIED IN REBEL
PRISONS 386
NARRATIVE OF ISRAEL H. SMITH 387
INDEX 391
THIRTY-SIXTH REGIMENT,
MASSACHUSETTS VOLUNTEERS.
CHAPTER I.
ORGANIZATION OF THE REGIMENT.
Early in July, 1862, when the war of the rebellion had been in progress
a little more than a year, President Lincoln issued an order for three
hundred thousand volunteers, to serve three years, or during the war.
It was a time of sore discouragement and general depression throughout
the loyal States. Our army in Virginia, under General McClellan, during
a seven days' fight near the Chickahominy, had met with such reverses
that it had been compelled to "make a change of base," and fall back
to the James river, near Harrison's Landing. Nobly, however, and
cheerfully, did the people of the North respond to the President's call
for reinforcements. On every hand was heard the chorus:--
"We're coming, Father Abraham, three hundred thousand more."
Massachusetts was not behind her sister States in raising her quota,
which was fifteen thousand men. In a general order, dated July 7, 1862,
Governor Andrew announced the call which had been made upon him by the
President, stated the number of men which every city and town would
be required to furnish, and closed with these words: "The government
demands new regiments, and our brave men who have so nobly upheld
the honor of Massachusetts call loudly from the battle-fields of the
South to their brethren at home to come forward at once and fill their
decimated ranks, and take the places of the brave men who have fallen
and suffered in the cause of the Union and of American Constitutional
Liberty." Like the blast of a trumpet this order stirred the hearts
of the people in all parts of the state, and cities and towns vied
with each other, in patriotic endeavors to hurry forward the work of
enlistment.
A subsequent order, dated July 16, 1862, containing instructions
relative to the new recruitment, designated Camp John E. Wool, at
the city of Worcester, as the general rendezvous for the counties of
Berkshire, Franklin, Hampden, Hampshire, and Worcester. Colonel George
H. Ward, of the Fifteenth Massachusetts Volunteers, who had lost a
leg at the battle of Ball's Bluff, and was now at home on account of
disability, was placed in command of the camp.
The order of July 7th contained this announcement: "The new regiments
now partly formed, and to be formed, are the Thirty-second,
Thirty-third, Thirty-fourth, Thirty-fifth, Thirty-sixth, and
Thirty-seventh. To complete these regiments to the maximum standard,
the Thirty-second regiment requires 300 men; the Thirty-third, 650
men; the Thirty-fourth, 800 men; and the Thirty-fifth, 850 men." It
was accordingly ordered that recruiting for the Thirty-sixth and
Thirty-seventh regiments should not commence until the four first named
were filled. The order, however, was not strictly observed.
The first detachment for the Thirty-sixth entered Camp Wool August 1st,
and was a part of the quota of the town of Fitchburg. This detachment
consisted of sixty-four men, under the command of Captain T. L. Barker.
Recruits for the regiment had been received at Camp Wool previous to
August 1st; but this was the first organized company in camp, and, in
the organization of the regiment, it was assigned to the right of
the line, and known as Company A. As early as August 6th this company
had its minimum number of recruits; and, in a few days, others, from
Fitchburg, Leominster, and adjacent towns, raised the number to the
maximum.
Company B, Captain John B. Norton, was recruited in Charlestown during
the month of July. It was at first intended that this company should
be attached to the Thirty-fourth Regiment as a flank company, and
the officers at first received commissions in that regiment; but the
requisite authority for such a company could not be obtained at the
War Department, and the company was transferred to the Thirty-sixth,
and the officers recommissioned. For a time, very naturally, it was
a disappointment to the members of this company that they could not
remain in the Thirty-fourth; but of the survivors there is, doubtless,
not one who is not satisfied that the record of the company was made
with the Thirty-sixth.
Recruiting for Company C was commenced in the city of Worcester, August
8th, and on the 12th the company was full. Eight days after, under the
command of Captain Arthur A. Goodell, the company entered Camp Wool. No
other company in the regiment was raised in so brief a space of time.
Company D was recruited principally in the towns of Templeton and
Winchendon. The first detachment entered Camp Wool, August 4, under the
command of Captain Amos Buffum, of Baldwinville, late second lieutenant
in the Twenty-fifth Massachusetts Volunteers. In a few days the ranks
of this company were full.
The men of Company E were recruited from the towns of Palmer, Monson,
and the western towns of Worcester County. The first detachment entered
Camp Wool, August 10th, under the command of First Lieutenant R. M.
Cross. Captain S. C. Warriner, who had been discharged from the Tenth
Massachusetts Volunteers, in order to accept a captain's commission
in the Thirty-sixth, arrived in camp about the 20th of August, and
assumed command of the company, and completed its organization.
Company F was formed principally of recruits from Milford and vicinity,
with a detachment from Sutton. The first detachment arrived at Camp
Wool August 10th, under the command of Second Lieutenant A. S. Tuttle.
He remained in command of the company until September 17, when Captain
William F. Draper, promoted from first lieutenant in the Twenty-fifth
Massachusetts Volunteers, joined the regiment then in the field, and
assumed command of the company.
Company G was organized from unassigned recruits, representing the
eastern towns of Worcester County. S. Henry Bailey, of Northboro', was
commissioned captain of the company August 22d.
Company H was formed by adding to the quotas of Gardner and Orange
the unassigned recruits then in camp; and Christopher Sawyer, of
Templeton, who had entered Camp Wool as first sergeant of Company D,
was commissioned captain of this company August 22d.
Company I was recruited in Berlin, Marlboro', Upton, Uxbridge, and
adjoining towns, and entered Camp Wool in the early part of August,
under the command of Captain Christopher Hastings, of Berlin. The
company was filled to the maximum a few days after entering camp.
Indeed, Captain Hastings recruited men enough nearly to fill two
companies.
Company K, like G and H, was formed of unassigned recruits from the
various towns whose quotas reported at Camp Wool. James B. Smith, late
first lieutenant in the Twenty-fifth Massachusetts Volunteers, was
commissioned captain of the company.
On the 27th of August these ten companies, constituting the
Thirty-sixth Massachusetts Volunteers, having completed their
organization, were mustered into the United States service, for three
years, unless sooner discharged.
The field, staff, and line officers were not mustered into the service
until September 2d, the day the regiment left Camp Wool for the seat of
war. Indeed, for the most part, the field officers were not appointed
until after the mustering in of the regiment.
Lieutenant-Colonel John W. Kimball, of Fitchburg, then serving in the
Fifteenth Regiment,--a true and accomplished officer,--was commissioned
colonel of the Thirty-sixth, August 11th, and application was made
by Governor Andrew for his discharge from the Fifteenth, in order to
accept promotion. But, in the critical state of affairs at that time,
it was not deemed advisable by the authorities at Washington to grant
the governor's request. Consequently, on the 22d of August, Major Henry
Bowman, of the Thirty-fourth regiment, then at Camp Casey, on Arlington
Heights, was promoted to the colonelcy of the Thirty-sixth; and,
receiving his discharge from the Thirty-fourth, he at once joined his
command at Camp Wool.
Captain John B. Norton, of Charlestown, who entered Camp Wool as
captain of Company B, was commissioned lieutenant-colonel, August 28th,
and on the same day, James H. Barker, of Milford, was commissioned
major.
James P. Prince, of Lynn, was commissioned surgeon, with Warren
Tyler, of North Brookfield, and Albert H. Bryant, of Natick, as
assistant-surgeons. Rev. Charles T. Canfield, of Worcester, was
commissioned chaplain, and F. B. Rice, also of Worcester, as first
lieutenant and quartermaster. An adjutant was not appointed until a
later date.
The regiment was now nearly ready for the field. Most of the men had
been hurried into camp, with the promise of a few days' furlough
before leaving the State. Many of them had left their business affairs
unsettled and their families unprovided for. But all applications for
furlough were denied by the United States officer at Boston, who was
in charge of mustered regiments. Colonel Ward endeavored to secure
a furlough for the men; but his efforts proved unavailing. Colonel
Bowman, on joining the regiment, and learning the condition of affairs,
renewed these efforts, stating his unwillingness to leave the State
until the pledge which had been given to the men had, in a measure at
least, been redeemed.
On Saturday, August 30th, Colonel Bowman received orders to have
the Thirty-sixth Regiment ready to leave for Washington as early as
September 2d. At the same time he was given permission to grant to his
men furloughs for twenty-four hours, one-half of the regiment only to
be absent from camp at the same time. This order was not received by
Colonel Bowman until late Saturday afternoon. Accordingly, furloughs
were granted first of all to those men whose homes were at the greatest
distance from the camp. These were to return Monday morning, when the
rest of the men would receive their furloughs. This second half of
the regiment, by some mysterious process, became very small Saturday
evening and on Sunday. The sentinels paced their beats, but in some
instances so absorbed in their duties as seemingly to have lost the
sense both of sight and hearing.
A sergeant, with a comrade, making the rounds of his guard late on one
of these nights, found a faithful son of Erin walking his beat with
soldier-like precision. As they approached he promptly challenged:
"Who goes there?" and was as quickly answered, "Friend, with the
countersign." As they approached to give the countersign, the sergeant
asked, in confiding tones, "Could anyone get out here?" The sentinel,
as confidingly, asked, "Would ye bring a little whiskey? Be jabbers a
pint of whiskey might make a man both blind and _dafe_!" He then turned
his back, and marched away.
But while it was a great disappointment to the men to lose the few
days' furlough which had been promised to them, and especially to those
who had important business interests that demanded attention, leading
in some cases to a seeming disregard of discipline, yet all of the
companies were in camp on Tuesday morning. At an early hour on that
day the company commanders drew arms (Enfield rifles) and equipments
for their men, and these were at once distributed among them. All was
bustle and confusion throughout the camp. Few of the men had had any
experience as soldiers, and the selection and adjustment of their arms
and equipments, as well as the brief space of time allotted for these
and other preparations for moving, made it look still more difficult
and annoying.
Late in the forenoon the regimental line was formed, and a beautiful
national flag was presented to the regiment by Honorable P. Emory
Aldrich, Mayor of Worcester. In presenting the flag the Mayor said:--
"_Colonel Bowman_,--Your friends, and the friends of your command
in this city, have procured this beautiful banner, and requested me
to present it to you as the worthy commander of the Thirty-sixth
Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteers for the war. It will be seen
that its azure fold is studded with the full constellation of
stars, representing the undivided Union, and that not one of the
original stripes is omitted or erased, showing that, however much
your friends may deplore the present unhappy condition of our
distracted and bleeding country, they still firmly believe that,
when the clouds of war that now lower upon us shall have passed
away, these stars will again shine as from a clear and cloudless
sky with none of their ancient lustre lost or obscured. And permit
me to say that this flag, still unchanged and radiant, signifies,
in the truest and highest sense, the kind of service expected
of you and this noble regiment you are about to lead from this
comparatively peaceful camp of preparation to the stern and heroic
duties of the field; that you are to aid, by force of arms, in
restoring the Union, which traitors have temporarily impaired, and
in reestablishing the supremacy of the constitution and laws over
every portion of territory lying within the acknowledged boundaries
of the Union, from the great lakes to the gulf, and from the
Atlantic to the Pacific oceans, so that, when you and your brave
comrades return, as we trust you will, with this flag, soiled and
rent it may be by the smoke and leaden hail of battle,[1] you
shall bring it back, not as the sign of a shattered constitution,
and dissevered Union, but as the proud emblem of a reunited and
indivisible republic, and then it shall continue to be known and
honored throughout the civilized world, and everywhere become a
free and safe passport to all men of every race who have the right
to claim protection beneath its ample folds.
[1] "Soiled and rent," its staff shattered, this flag, which was
carried by the regiment throughout its entire period of service, is
now preserved in the State House, in Boston, with the flags of the
Massachusetts regiments.
"In delivering this proud ensign of our nationality into your
hands, your friends know they are entrusting it to one who is not
only familiar with the ordinary duties of the soldier, but to one
who has been tried and not found wanting amidst the perils and
carnage of the battle-field, and who has suffered what is more
intolerable to every true soldier than any dangers of field or
camp, and that is captivity and confinement for weary months in
the loathsome prisons of the enemy; and now, after protracted
and vexatious delays, you have but recently been relieved from
your parole, so that you can, without dishonor, enter again the
military service of your country; and, having availed yourself
of the earliest opportunity to return to avenge your own and
your country's wrongs, may a propitious Providence and all good
influences attend you, and protect you, and your command in every
hour of trial and danger.
"Yours is the fourth regiment which has been organized within
this enclosure, which may now very properly be called our _Campus
Martius_, and the fifth that has gone out from our city within
the last twelve months. The Fifteenth, beginning its brilliant
career at Ball's Bluff,--where, indeed, it encountered a repulse
for which neither its officers nor men were responsible,--has
with signal gallantry fought its way over many a bloody field
to a high position on the roll of fame. And the Twenty-first
and Twenty-fifth, being with each other in the performance of
patriotic duty, and in the memorable race for military renown, have
made Roanoke and Newberne, and other fields, wherein they have
exhibited the highest qualities of the soldier, ever memorable both
to friend and foe. And it is not altogether improbable that the
Thirty-fourth, which took up its line of march but a few days since
from this camp, under the accomplished Wells,[2] may have already
found itself involved in the smoke of its first battle, and taking
its first lesson in the art of war. And scarcely will your regiment
have left our presence, before another will encamp within the
limits of the city. And we bid you tell our brethren in the field
that thus shall regiment after regiment, in endless succession,
be sent to their aid until this accursed rebellion is utterly
extinguished.
[2] Colonel Wells was killed near Cedar Creek, Va., Oct. 13, 1864.
"The lateness of the hour, the necessity of your moving at once,
admonish me that I should omit a portion of what I had proposed to
say on this occasion; but this is of little account, and I would
not delay your march for a single moment to listen to any poor
words of mine. Words in this hour are simply air. Action--instant,
resistless, heroic action--is the only thing that can avail us
in this perilous crisis. And I can only add that, while you and
these brave men who are to follow you, will do your full duty in
upholding and restoring the authority of the constitution and its
laws, you can never fail in loyalty, and the great idea of liberty
which now inspires the hearts and nerves the hands of all the loyal
men of the land; and that, when you have marched through rebel
districts, none but loyal and _free men_ shall be found. And now
accept this standard, proffered by friendly hands, and let it be
borne in your regiment as the emblem of liberty and law. And should
you or any of those, your comrades in arms, fall in its defence,
your memories shall be held in grateful remembrance, and history
will preserve their names among those of heroes and martyrs who
have died to defend or consecrate a great and noble cause. Remember
that the life is longest which best answers life's great end, and
that to die upon the battle-field in defence of the liberties of
mankind is the most cherished road to immortality."
The band played the "Star-Spangled Banner," and Colonel Bowman
responded in patriotic terms.
The several companies of the regiment then marched to Agricultural
Hall,--a large building on the camp ground,--where a bountiful
collation had been provided by the friends of the regiment. Then
followed the filling of haversacks, the packing of knapsacks, and all
were soon in readiness for the order to move.
CHAPTER II.
TO THE FRONT.
There was no delay. At noon, Tuesday, September 2d, the assembly was
sounded, the line was formed, and the Thirty-sixth, with a large number
of the friends of the regiment, who had come to say a long and perhaps
a last farewell, left Camp Wool amid the cheers of a great throng of
people assembled along the line of march to witness the departure of
the regiment, and moved up Highland street, through Main street, to
the Common. There cars were in waiting. These were soon filled, the
horses and baggage were taken aboard, the last farewells were spoken,
and, about two o'clock, followed by the loud cheers of the multitude,
and the waving of adieus, the long train drew out of the station, and
hurried toward Boston. On the arrival of the regiment in Boston the
line was again formed, and the Thirty-sixth, receiving a brilliant
ovation from the citizens, marched through Washington street, down
State street to Battery wharf, where the steamer "Merrimac," a new and
large ocean steamer, was in readiness to receive us. One-half of the
steamer had been assigned to the Twentieth Maine, Colonel Adelbert
Ames, and his regiment was already on board, having arrived from
Portland earlier in the day. In the crowded condition of the steamer
there was, necessarily, some delay in getting the companies into the
places to which they were assigned, and also in transferring the
horses and baggage; and it was not until late in the evening that the
embarkation was accomplished; then the steamer dropped out into the
stream. Early the next morning, September 3d, the "Merrimac" left her
anchorage and steamed down the harbor into the bay.
We soon learned that our destination was Alexandria, Va. The voyage
throughout was a pleasant one, and the men of the two regiments mingled
in friendly companionship. On the second day out, on the quarter-deck,
some of the men of Company B gave an exhibition, consisting of
singing, declamations, etc., which was greatly enjoyed by a large
and enthusiastic audience. Friday noon we reached the capes of the
Chesapeake, had a glimpse of Fortress Monroe, and, moving up the bay,
many of us looked upon the "sacred soil" for the first time; the
steamer entered the Potomac river about ten o'clock in the evening, and
shortly after midnight came to anchor. At five o'clock Saturday morning
we again were under way, and had a most delightful sail up the Potomac,
with both shores in full view. At length we passed Mt. Vernon, once the
home and now the grave of Washington, and soon after, about noon, we
were at the wharf in Alexandria.
Here we learned that the Thirty-fourth Massachusetts, which left
Worcester August 15th, was doing guard duty and building fortifications
near Alexandria. The Twentieth Maine was landed, but we remained on
the steamer during the night. The next morning, Sunday, September 7th,
we were transferred to the steamer "City of Norwich," in which we
proceeded up the river to Washington, and landed not far from the Navy
Yard.
Lee, in the last days of August, had defeated Pope within sound of the
capitol, and was now pushing his victorious columns northward with
the purpose of carrying the war into the Union States. The forces
under General McClellan, who was again in command of the army, were
also moving northward, but through Maryland, in order to intercept
Lee's columns and give him battle. We encamped near the capitol until
September 9th, when, having been assigned to General Burnside's
command, the Ninth Corps, we left Washington, and marched to
Leesboro'. But Burnside was no longer there, and several days were lost
in obtaining further orders. September 12th the regiment left Leesboro'
at an early hour, and marched about twelve miles, to Brookville, near
which we went into camp on a beautiful grassy slope belonging to the
estate of Hon. John Hall, formerly of the United States Post-Office
Department. Near us was the camp of the First Rhode Island Cavalry.
On Sunday, September 14th, we held our first religious service in the
field, and the chaplain preached. On that day the distant sound of
artillery was heard, and we knew that, somewhere beyond us, the two
armies had again met. It was the day of the battle of South Mountain,
in which General Burnside, it will be remembered, gained an important
battle, carrying the mountain pass which Lee had directed his forces to
hold "at every hazard."
On Monday, September 15th, Colonel Bowman received from a mounted
orderly a note written in pencil, which purported to be an order from
General McClellan, signed "R. B. Marcy, Chief of Staff," directing all
troops on the road to hurry forward as rapidly as possible. Colonel
Bowman doubted the genuineness of this hasty scrawl, and the more so
on account of the appearance of suspicious persons about the camp the
night before. Not knowing the result of the battle of the previous
day, and afraid that an attempt might be made to capture his regiment
in its isolated position, he decided not to move his command until he
received further instructions or had better information concerning the
state of affairs at the front. This delay undoubtedly prevented our
participation in the battle of Antietam, which was fought September
17th. On that day, having learned that the road was open, we left
Brookville, and, moving forward rapidly, we encamped at night about
three miles beyond the village of Damascus. On the following day
we marched through Unity, Monrovia, Newmarket, and Frederick, and
encamped about a mile beyond the latter place. During the day, while
on the march, we passed the men of Colonel Miles' command at Harper's
Ferry, who, on the 15th, were surrendered to Stonewall Jackson and
paroled,--in all, five or six regiments, containing about five thousand
men. They were now on their way to Annapolis. It was not a pleasant
sight to see so many of our soldiers going to the rear; but they
cheered us with reports of the battle on the 17th, in which our army
was victorious.
September 19th we resumed the march about ten o'clock in the forenoon,
crossed the Catoctin mountains to Middletown, enjoying the magnificent
prospect at the summit, and encamped beyond the town at the place
where, on the Sunday before, General McClellan and General Burnside had
their head-quarters during the battle of South Mountain.
On the following day we crossed South Mountain. Here and there
by the roadside were newly-made graves,--in one place we counted
twenty-six,--and the trees and fences bore marks of the recent fight.
We passed also long trains of ambulance wagons, loaded with wounded
men from the battle-field at Antietam, and also many of the wounded on
foot, who were on their way to the hospitals in Frederick. Places of
interest were pointed out to us on our way. One was the spot where,
just at the close of the action on Sunday, General Reno fell. Another
was the ground where the Thirty-fifth Massachusetts formed, and over
which it made its brilliant charge, driving the enemy from the woods
beyond.
Descending into a valley, we passed through Boonsboro', where was a
hospital full of wounded rebels, and encamped at Keedysville, about
two miles east of the Antietam battle-ground. Everywhere around us
were the sad memories of the terrible conflict that was waged on that
hard-fought field. Houses, barns, sheds, places of shelter of all
kinds, were filled with the wounded, and on the field where the battle
was fought, hundreds of the dead still lay unburied, although a large
force had been steadily engaged in this service since the preceding
Wednesday. Looking upon these scenes we were brought face to face with
the dread realities of war. Among the wounded we found many friends and
acquaintances who belonged to other Massachusetts regiments, and whose
sad condition enlisted our warmest sympathies, and drew from many the
expression, "If there be glory in war, it is dearly bought."
September 21st we left Keedysville in the afternoon, crossed the famous
stone bridge from which Burnside, on the 17th, gallantly dislodged the
enemy, passed through Sharpsburg, which bore the marks of our shot and
shell, and encamped a short distance beyond, near General Burnside's
head-quarters.
Here the Thirty-sixth was assigned to the Third Brigade of the first
division of the Ninth Corps. In the brigade were the Forty-fifth and
One Hundredth (Roundheads) Pennsylvania regiments, to which we soon
became warmly attached, and with which we were to be associated during
nearly our whole period of service. Than these two regiments there
were no better in the Ninth Corps; and our regard for both officers
and men increased as common experiences drew us nearer together.
Indeed, they became to us almost as brothers, and we have reason to
believe that this feeling was mutual. Colonel Welch, of the Forty-fifth
Pennsylvania, commanded the brigade, and General O. B. Willcox, the
division.
September 23d, about half-past three o'clock in the morning, there was
a general alarm. "Fall in! Fall in!" resounded through the camp, and
for two hours we stood in line of battle on the edge of an adjoining
cornfield; but it was only an alarm, and about half-past five we
returned to our quarters.
On the 25th we were ordered to be in readiness to march. The tents were
struck, our regimental baggage was packed, all of our preparations for
a movement were completed; but about four o'clock in the afternoon the
order was countermanded, and we pitched our tents on our former camp
ground.
The next morning we received orders to be ready to march at one o'clock
P.M. We were in line at that time, but as the whole corps was in
motion, and we were in the rear, there was some delay for us. It was a
beautiful sight, as the several brigades and divisions of the corps,
with the long train of baggage-wagons, moved over the hills. At length
our brigade started. We crossed Antietam Creek at Isabella Furnace,
the troops passing over the bridge, and the wagons fording the stream.
Just at sundown we encamped near Antietam Iron Works, about five miles
above Harper's Ferry. The tents of the men were soon up, and the
camp-fires lighted. A more brilliant scene can hardly be imagined than
that presented by these fields around us, illuminated by innumerable
camp-fires.
By order of General Willcox, Sunday, September 29th, was observed by
the division as a day of special religious service, to give thanks
to God for our recent victories in Maryland. The whole division was
brought together, and the services were conducted by Chaplain Canfield,
of the Thirty-sixth, and other chaplains of New York and Pennsylvania
regiments. The band first played "Old Hundred." The 46th Psalm was then
read, and a hymn sung to the well-known tune of Balerma. Remarks were
then made by four chaplains belonging to the division. The services
were very interesting and solemn throughout. In the afternoon Chaplain
Canfield preached.
On Tuesday, September 30th, there was a division review in the
forenoon, and monthly regimental inspection in the afternoon. On
Friday, October 3d, the corps was reviewed by President Lincoln and
General McClellan. We formed our regimental line at seven o'clock,
then marched to a field in the rear of our camp, and were assigned to
a position on the left of our brigade. The President arrived on the
ground shortly after nine o'clock, and passed us in review about ten.
This visit gave many in the regiment their first opportunity to see Mr.
Lincoln, and the day was one of great interest.
On Tuesday, October 7th, the Thirty-sixth experienced what was as yet
its most difficult and trying march. We had received orders to move
at daylight. The _reveillé_ was sounded at three o'clock. At half-past
five we left camp. The head of the column was toward Maryland Heights,
which we were to cross into Pleasant Valley. The road was a narrow
mountain road, in many places quite steep, and during the recent
movements it had been obstructed by fallen trees. At length we reached
the summit, where there was a magnificent view; and then we commenced
the equally difficult descent. The day was intensely hot, and the men,
completely exhausted, fell out in large numbers, and at a halt about
half-past two, Colonel Welch ordered the roll to be called. About
four o'clock we encamped in a most delightful and beautiful locality
in Pleasant Valley, on a wooded bank, which sloped gradually down to
a clear stream of running water, ten or twelve feet wide, near which
were cool springs of pure water sufficient for all our wants. Harper's
Ferry, above us, was about ten miles distant, and Knoxville the same
distance below us, on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad.
While the regiment was at dress parade on Saturday, October 11th,
we received orders to be ready to move immediately, with haversack,
canteen, and overcoat, and without blankets. The line was formed at
once. The guns were loaded, and with the Forty-fifth and One Hundredth
Pennsylvania, and a section of artillery, we marched down the road
to Weverton, a little station on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad,
where platform cars were awaiting us. The Thirty-sixth took a train
by itself, and left the station at seven o'clock. When the cars
stopped, about midnight, we found that we were at Frederick. Leaving
the cars we marched into the town, and were ordered to make ourselves
as comfortable as we could upon the cold sidewalks. No fires were
allowed, and it was impossible to keep warm in the chilly night air.
At six o'clock we marched to a field on the edge of the town, where
we took breakfast, and where we remained until noon, when we took a
new position on the Washington road. We now learned the object of this
movement. Stuart's cavalry were on their return from a raid into
Pennsylvania, and it was supposed that they would attempt to destroy
the government stores at Frederick, of which there was a considerable
quantity. At five o'clock they were at Newmarket, eight miles distant;
and the presence of our brigade at Frederick undoubtedly led them to
turn aside. Moving toward the Potomac they at once crossed the river,
and so made their escape, with the loss of a few prisoners brought in
by our cavalry.
Late in the afternoon, while we were awaiting orders upon the
Washington road, it began to rain, and there was the promise of a
cheerless night. Just at dark we marched to the station. The train left
about seven o'clock, our destination unknown. At length we reached
Point of Rocks, where the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad strikes the
Potomac. Leaving the cars we marched up the road a short distance in
the darkness and rain, and halted. Companies A, B, and C were advanced
to picket the heights above the station. The rest of the regiment,
officers and men alike, sought shelter wherever it could be found. The
morning revealed some of these luckless sleepers emerging from the
two apologies for houses near at hand; some from beneath them; some
from the pigsty and hen-house; many from beneath the shocks of corn in
adjacent fields; while others had made no attempt to sleep, but had
travelled about all night, stumbling over their comrades. The line was
formed, and we moved out about half a mile, to a pleasant field near
the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, and encamped. There we remained until
Wednesday, October 15th, when we had orders to return to our camp in
Pleasant Valley. We left Point of Rocks at half-past ten o'clock in the
forenoon, and, following the towpath of the canal, we reached Weverton
at half-past three. After some delay in waiting for the rest of our
brigade we reached our old camp about five o'clock.
On Tuesday, October 21st, the regiment was inspected by an officer on
Gen. McClellan's staff. On Friday following there were indications of a
forward movement, which, it seemed, could not now long be deferred.
CHAPTER III.
IN VIRGINIA.
Sunday morning, October 26th, we were aroused at half-past three
o'clock, and ordered to be ready to move at daylight. We struck our
tents in a pouring rain, had breakfast, but did not leave our camp
until after seven. Then we marched down the river to the little
village of Berlin, where a pontoon bridge had been thrown across the
Potomac. There we halted until afternoon. It was a general movement.
Not only were the regiments of our own brigade with us, but a large
number of other regiments. For hours, while the cavalry was crossing,
we were obliged to stand in a drenching rain awaiting the crossing of
the infantry, which was to follow. At length our line was in motion,
and the long column of infantry, having reached the Virginia shore,
continued the march, dragging its weary length through the mud, ankle
deep, and such mud as only Virginia can boast. About four o'clock, and
after advancing several miles from the river, we turned into a field
which had been sown with winter wheat, and on which the wheat was two
or three inches high. A more disagreeable and uncomfortable place could
hardly have been found; and there, in the mud, wet, cold, and weary, we
were ordered to halt, stack arms, and make ourselves comfortable for
the night. This order, however, was at length countermanded, and the
men removed to the fences and the grassy fields adjoining. Although
it was still raining, and a cold north wind was blowing a gale, the
orders were not to take rails for fires. But there was no other wood
at hand, and it was not long before bright fires, made of the rails
from the fences around, were blazing along the whole line, and every
man was doing his best to make his condition tolerable. For fatigue,
discomfort, and vexation, that first day's experience on Virginia
soil was rarely exceeded in the history of the regiment. It is but
just to state that for the selection of this camp the officers of the
Thirty-sixth were in no way responsible.
About ten o'clock the next forenoon the clouds parted, and the sun came
out bright and beautiful. With warmth and rations came good cheer to
the men. On the following day large numbers of troops joined us, and
we were expecting to move at any moment. But we remained in camp until
the next day, Wednesday, October 29th, when, about two o'clock in the
afternoon, we received orders to march. We advanced through a beautiful
country, the farms looking more like New England farms than any we
had seen; and, passing through the village of Waterford in the early
evening, we encamped a short distance beyond the village, and about ten
miles from Snicker's Gap. Here we remained until Sunday.
Pleasant days were those which we spent at Waterford. Saturday
afternoon, November 1st, we had orders to be in readiness to move on
the following day. Our preparations were made in the early morning, but
we did not move until eleven o'clock. It was a bright, sunny day, and
quite warm. We reached Hamilton about two o'clock in the afternoon;
and, after a short rest, continued our march until eight o'clock,
when we encamped in an oak grove at Philemont. Ahead of us there was
cannonading throughout the day.
On Monday, November 3d, we continued our march at one P.M., our course
being nearly parallel to the Blue Ridge. At Union, Gen. Burnside
passed us with his staff. At seven o'clock we halted for the night.
The next day some quartermaster's stores were issued to the men, and
one day's rations. About noon there was heavy firing in advance of
us, but still distant. Wednesday, November 5th, the bugles sounded at
five o'clock, and we were ordered to be in readiness to march; but
it was eight o'clock before the column moved. Heavy firing was heard
most of the forenoon. About half-past one in the afternoon, having
arrived at Manassas Gap Railroad, we encamped a short distance beyond
Rectortown. While on this march Corporal Parker, of Company D, died in
the ambulance, probably of apoplexy. He died within sound of cannon,
yet not on the field of battle. About sunset he was buried under a tree
near our camp, his company and the officers of the regiment following
his remains to the grave. It was the first death in the regiment; and
this, with the circumstances of his lonely burial, cast a shadow of
sadness over us all.
On Thursday, November 6th, we resumed our march at an early hour. As we
passed through Salem there were so many evidences of disloyalty that
the bands played Yankee Doodle for the edification of the inhabitants.
The afternoon march was a severe one. There were few rests, and those
were short; and toward night many of the men fell out from exhaustion.
About six o'clock we encamped at Orleans. The night that followed was
intensely cold, and water froze. In the morning, November 7th, it
began to snow. At noon, when we received orders to march, it was still
snowing, and there were two or three inches of snow on the ground. We
advanced only a few miles, and encamped on the north bank of a branch
of the Rappahannock, not far from Waterloo.
Late that night a special messenger from the War Department arrived at
Gen. McClellan's head-quarters, with the following order:--
WASHINGTON, Nov. 5, 1862.
By direction of the President of the United States, it is ordered
that Major-General McClellan be relieved from the command of the
Army of the Potomac, and that Major-General Burnside take command
of that army.
By order of the Secretary of War,
E. D. TOWNSEND, _Ass't Adj't Gen._
We remained in camp on Saturday and Sunday, November 8th and 9th,
suffering from the cold, and knowing nothing of the important change
thus announced. On Sunday, morning and afternoon, special religious
services were held among the regiments of our division, by order of our
commanding general. Gen. Burnside's order, assuming command of the Army
of the Potomac, was now prepared, and was as follows:--
HEAD-QUARTERS ARMY OF THE POTOMAC,
WARRENTON, VA., Nov. 9, 1862.
GENERAL ORDERS NO. 1.
In accordance with General Orders No. 182, issued by the President
of the United States, I hereby assume command of the Army of the
Potomac.
Patriotism and the exercise of my every energy in the direction of
this army, aided by the full and hearty coöperation of its officers
and men, will, I hope, under the blessing of God, ensure its
success.
Having been a sharer of the privations, and a witness of the
bravery, of the old Army of the Potomac in the Maryland campaign,
and fully identified in their feelings of respect and esteem for
General McClellan, entertained through a long and most friendly
association with him, I feel that it is not as a stranger that I
assume this command.
To the Ninth Corps, so long and intimately associated with me, I
need say nothing; our histories are identical.
With diffidence for myself, but with a proud confidence in the
unswerving loyalty and determination of the gallant army now
entrusted to my care, I accept its control with the steadfast
assurance that the just cause must prevail.
A. E. BURNSIDE,
_Major-General Commanding_.
This order was not received by us until Tuesday, November 11th, and
while we were still in camp near Waterloo. We shared in the general
esteem in which General McClellan was held throughout the army; but we
loved Burnside, and had confidence in his ability to lead us on to
victory. On this day there was no bread for the men. Our supply-train
had been delayed, and for several days the ration for each man was two
ears of corn and a small piece of fresh meat. This place will always be
known to the survivors of the Thirty-sixth by the suggestive name of
"Hungry Hollow."
On Thursday, November 13th, the supply-train arrived, and the
Thirty-sixth received eight boxes of hard bread. In the morning of that
day Corporal Perry, of Company G, died. He had been sick only since
Saturday. The burial occurred that night.
November 15th, while at breakfast, we received orders to march; and,
with the rest of our division, now under the command of General W.
W. Burns (Colonel Welch commanding the brigade), we moved forward to
White Sulphur Springs,--a noted watering-place, whose buildings had
been nearly destroyed by General Sigel's troops in an engagement with
the enemy in passing through the place in August. While on the march
we heard sharp musketry ahead, and as we approached the Springs a few
shots were fired. We accordingly left the main road, and formed in line
of battle behind a hill; but the enemy fell back, and in a little while
we received orders to go into camp.
Sunday, November 16th, we were aroused early with orders to march. The
teams were sent off before light, but the regiment did not leave camp
until ten o'clock. At noon we rested at Fayetteville. The afternoon's
march was a most wearisome one; and it was not until after dark, when
near Warrenton Junction, that we halted for the night.
The next day, November 17th, we marched at noon, and were four hours on
the road without any rest. The whole corps seemed to be in motion. The
artillery and wagons occupied the road, while the infantry moved in two
columns, one on each side of the road. A rainy night followed.
Tuesday, November 18th, we were called by the bugles at half-past
three, and at quarter-past five we were on the march. At twelve we
encamped, having advanced about fourteen miles toward Fredericksburg.
General Willcox, now our corps commander, passed us on the road,
and was warmly cheered. An order was received from General Burnside
assigning the Ninth Corps to the right grand division of the Army
of the Potomac, under the command of Major-General Sumner. General
Burnside and staff encamped near us about two o'clock.
November 19th we commenced our march about eight o'clock. Private
Pierce, of Company D, died just before we left our camp, and the
pioneer corps were directed to remain and bury the body. It was a
rainy, drizzly day, and the march was a wearisome one. We had a fine
view of the camp of the Second Corps as we approached Falmouth. About
one o'clock we were opposite Fredericksburg, and encamped in an open
field, in the mud. A part of the regiment received orders to go on
picket. For two days and nights it continued to rain, and our camp
became one vast mud-puddle.
On Sunday, November 23d, at the regular service, the chaplain read
the Thanksgiving proclamation of Governor Andrew to the Massachusetts
soldiers in the field, and also his proclamation to the people of the
State. The day before Thanksgiving, Wednesday, November 26th, the Ninth
Corps was reviewed by General Sumner. It had rained the night before,
and it was somewhat uncomfortable standing three hours in mud and water
waiting for the appearance of the general. At length he passed us in
review, and we were dismissed.
Thursday, November 27th, was Thanksgiving. The day opened gloriously,
the sun rising unclouded. Many were the efforts which the men made to
prepare from army stores a suitable feast for the day. About eleven
o'clock, in the midst of these efforts, we received orders to change
the location of our camp. We moved only a few hundred yards, but to
a young pine forest, which proved to be a much more agreeable spot
than that which we had hitherto occupied. The day closed as brightly
as it opened. Having arranged our new camp, the regiment resumed daily
drills, and the usual routine of camp duty. On Friday, November 28th,
we had our first dress-parade since leaving Waterford.
November 30th, which was Sunday, special religious services were held,
by request of President Lincoln. In our brigade the services were
conducted by Chaplain Canfield and the chaplain of the Forty-fifth
Pennsylvania. At night Companies E and H went out on fatigue duty, and
worked on fortifications near the Lacy House. Private Sager, of Company
B, died in the regimental hospital this morning.
December 1st, S. Alonzo Ranlett, orderly sergeant of Company B, was
commissioned first lieutenant, and subsequently was appointed adjutant
of the regiment.
Meanwhile General Lee was fortifying the heights back of
Fredericksburg; and on the part of our soldiers there was not a little
of impatience expressed at General Burnside's delay in advancing upon
the enemy. This delay, however, could not be avoided, on account
of the necessity of opening communications with Aquia Creek, and
also of procuring pontoons with which to cross the river. Indeed,
the preparations for the movement upon the enemy, urgent as General
Burnside was, were not completed until December 10th. On that day
the Thirty-sixth received orders to be ready to move. At night, the
Stafford Heights, and the left bank of the Rappahannock opposite
Fredericksburg, were occupied by one hundred and forty-seven pieces
of artillery; and before dawn our pontoniers were busily employed in
preparations for laying five bridges, upon which the troops were to
cross.
The Thirty-sixth was early in line on the morning of the 11th, and,
with the brigade, moved down toward the river, and there remained
during the rest of the day, while the attempt was made to lay the
bridges under cover of our artillery. But the workmen near the Lacy
House were greatly hindered in their efforts by sharp-shooters
advantageously posted on the opposite bank of the river; and a
terrific shelling of the city did not succeed in dislodging them. At
length, from the regiments near at hand, volunteers were summoned to
cross the river in boats, and drive the rebel sharp-shooters from their
position. Men from the Seventh Michigan, Nineteenth and Twentieth
Massachusetts, answered the summons; and with men from the Fiftieth
New York, as boatmen, crossed the river. Then, darting up the bank,
in a few minutes they compelled the enemy to withdraw. The work of
laying the pontoons was soon pushed rapidly forward, and late in the
afternoon the bridges were completed. The army then began to cross,
Lee being unable to oppose its advance on account of the commanding
position afforded our batteries by the Stafford Heights. Franklin's
grand division crossed below the city, and formed the left wing of the
army. Sumner's crossed at the upper bridges, and formed the right wing.
Hooker's grand division was held in reserve on the northern bank of
the river, ready to reinforce either Sumner or Franklin. Most of the
troops crossed on the 12th. That morning the several divisions of the
Ninth Corps were early in line; and, as they reached the Fredericksburg
side of the river, they were placed in position on the left of Sumner's
grand division, and just below the city. In the crossing, a few men
were killed or wounded by the enemy's shells that fell short of our
batteries, at which they were aimed. Two men of the Thirty-sixth were
in this way slightly wounded.
That night we moved up into the city, and, stacking arms in the street,
spent the night on the sidewalk and in the deserted houses in rear of
the guns. Early in the morning of December 13th preparations were made
for the approaching battle. Burns' division of the Ninth Corps, to
which our brigade belonged, was assigned to a position below the city.
There, across Hazel Run, behind a rise of ground, we remained under
arms in reserve, listening to the roar of artillery and musketry as the
battle raged along the line from left to right, expecting every minute
to be called to participate in the terrible conflict; but no orders
came until afternoon, when we moved further down the river, crossed
Deep Run, and were placed in position in front of the Barnard House,
covering the lower pontoon bridge. At dark the Thirty-sixth moved
forward, and supported a battery in front of the Sligo House.
During the day General Meade, with his division, won a temporary
success on the left, but was at length compelled to fall back, for
the want of adequate support. In rear of the city the divisions of
French, Hancock, and Humphrey successively endeavored to carry Marye's
Heights, but were repulsed with great loss. General Burnside was
greatly disappointed at the result of the day's fighting. It seemed
to him that there was lack of spirited leadership, and he accordingly
determined to renew the battle early in the morning, and lead his
old corps, the Ninth, in person, in an assault on Marye's Heights,
with the right and left vigorously supporting. In reference to this
proposed attack, Colonel Leasure of the One Hundredth Pennsylvania,
who commanded our brigade, says: "I received an order, through General
Burns, from General Willcox, stating that the Ninth Corps would assault
the enemy's works on the next day, and that my brigade, the Third,
would lead the attack; and I was requested to submit a plan of attack,
subject to the approval of the commanding general. Consequently,
I submitted the following: I would advance my own regiment, the
One Hundredth Pennsylvania, or Roundheads, in the darkness of
night, as close as possible to the enemy's works, as skirmishers
and sharp-shooters, supporting them as nearly as possible with the
remainder of my brigade,--the Forty-fifth Pennsylvania and Thirty-sixth
Massachusetts,--which, in turn, were to be supported by the remainder
of the division and the other divisions of the corps. In the gray of
the morning the One Hundredth should advance suddenly, driving in the
enemy's pickets, or capturing them, and as much as possible pick off
their gunners, then charge their works in the confusion, throwing
in brigade after brigade. This plan was sent to General Burns as the
one most feasible; but with it went my most solemn protest against
the inevitable destruction of my brigade if it should be adopted,
and it was sent to General Burnside with the protest endorsed on it
by the commanding officer of the corps and also by General Sumner.
But, notwithstanding, it was early morning before the assault was
abandoned." In fact, the Third Brigade took position at the front in
accordance with the above plan, the Thirty-sixth, with the Forty-fifth
on its right, being in line of battle behind a steep, wooded bank,
above which, in the early dawn, the outlines of the enemy's works were
plainly visible. The One Hundredth was well up toward the enemy's
lines, lying low. And here we remained on our arms, expecting every
moment to charge the rebel works on the left of the open field,
where so many of our brave comrades had fallen the day before, when,
unexpectedly to all, we were ordered back to our old position below
the city. At daylight, after rations were issued, our whole division
moved up to the city, where the Ninth Corps was massed in five lines,
near the river. No further advance was made, and there we remained
throughout the day. At night we moved back again to our old position
below the city, where we remained during the night and all the next day.
It is easy to criticise General Burnside's plan of battle. It is plain,
however, that, if our soldiers had carried Marye's Heights, Burnside
could not have occupied them, as they are commanded by still higher
ground in their rear. But it should be remembered that General Burnside
designed that the weight of his assault, December 13th, should fall
upon General Lee's right, and his mistake seems to have been that his
force at that point was not greatly increased, and placed under the
command of an officer from whom he could expect the most hearty support.
About dark on the 15th we were again in line. The One Hundredth
Pennsylvania and the Second Michigan, old and tried regiments, were
ordered out, while the Forty-fifth Pennsylvania and the Thirty-sixth
Massachusetts remained under arms awaiting orders. To secure strict
silence, the men were not to speak, and to avoid coughing as much
as possible. This, together with the ominous injunction of Colonel
Leasure to his old regiment, as they joined him: "Now do your duty,
Roundheads," was interpreted as meaning serious work near at hand.
About ten o'clock in the evening the rest of our brigade moved up into
the city quietly, where, to our surprise, we found the place was nearly
deserted, there being in the streets, at this point, only one regiment,
the Eighty-ninth New York, and that had just been withdrawn from the
picket-line. Several batteries were near the river, limbered up and all
ready to move. The Thirty-sixth relieved the Eighty-ninth New York, and
waited for the One Hundredth Pennsylvania, which was on the extreme
front of the picket-line. So we were among the last troops to leave the
city. We crossed unharmed, and returned to our old camp, back of the
Phillips House, on the morning of December 16, sharing, with the rest
of the army, the disappointment that was felt on account of the repulse
and the serious losses sustained by many of our regiments, yet feeling
that, while the fruitless task that was assigned to others had not
fallen to our lot, we had done all that was required of us as faithful
soldiers.
On the 17th general inspection was ordered. The Thirty-sixth mustered
about six hundred and fifty guns. Of the remaining three hundred and
fifty of our comrades who left Massachusetts with us, quite a large
number were detailed on special duty, many were on the sick-list, and
ten had died.
As soon as the men had arranged their quarters, and with as much
comfort as they were able, the usual round of camp and picket duty was
resumed. The pickets of both armies had hitherto been very friendly,
and they now became more friendly than ever, often exchanging
courtesies, and chatting freely on matters pertaining to the war.
Many of the soldiers received boxes from home, and there were a few
Massachusetts visitors at our camp.
January 16th orders were received to be ready to move the next day,
at an early hour, with three days' rations, and sixty rounds of
ammunition. It was also announced that General Sedgwick had been
assigned to the command of the Ninth Corps. The following day was clear
and cold, but there were no orders to move. Nor were any received on
the 18th, and we had a quiet Sunday. On Monday, too, all was quiet
on the Rappahannock. At noon on Tuesday, January 20, however, orders
came for us to be in readiness to move early the next morning. It was
now evident that another movement was to be made across the river.
General Hooker's and General Franklin's grand divisions of the army
were already in motion in our rear. At dress parade that night, an
order from General Burnside was read by Colonel Bowman to the regiment,
informing us that the Army of the Potomac was about to meet the enemy
once more, and calling upon officers and men to coöperate with him in
securing a victory. When the order had been read, three cheers were
given for our commanding general. Just at night a cold, north-east
storm set in, the wind increased to a gale, and the rain fell in
torrents. Late in the evening orders came for the Thirty-sixth to be
ready to move at three o'clock the next morning, January 21st. At
that time the men were in line, and remained standing four hours in
the drenching rain, with the mud ankle-deep. At about ten o'clock the
regiment was ordered on picket. The storm continued through the day.
Tuesday, January 22d, it was still raining, and the mud deeper than
ever. Hooker and Franklin were literally "stuck in the mud." Artillery
caissons, guns, ambulances, and army wagons were immovable. To go
forward was impossible; and finally, from sheer necessity, all hope of
further advance was abandoned.
Thus again was Burnside compelled to witness the defeat of his plans.
Never did the Army of the Potomac suffer more severely, and never was
experience more demoralizing than during these three days of constant
exposure to wet and cold, in midwinter, without shelter of any kind.
Weary and disheartened, the men of Franklin's grand division struggled
back to camp, singly or in squads. Many had thrown away everything but
haversack and canteen, and curses on everything and everybody filled
the air. It is said that the army in Flanders swore terribly. So did
the demoralized soldiers of the Army of the Potomac as they struggled
back to their old camp.
In the meantime the rebels appeared on the opposite bank of the river,
greatly elated at the discomfiture of our army, and amused themselves
by offering to come over and extricate our men from the mud, to aid
them in crossing, and to show them around on the other side.
A few days of sun, rations, and rest, however, brought about a better
state of feeling among our men; and the Army of the Potomac settled
back into its old quarters, and resumed the usual routine of duty.
Now there followed another change in commanders. General Burnside had
become convinced not only that he did not have the coöperation of a
large number of his subordinate officers of high rank, but that some of
them were doing all in their power to thwart his plans. He accordingly
prepared an order dismissing from the service Generals Hooker, Brooks,
Cochrane and Newton, and relieving from their commands, Generals
Franklin, W. F. Smith, Sturgis, Ferrero, and Col. Taylor. Proceeding
to Washington, he asked the President to approve of this order or
to accept his resignation. The President referred the order to his
military advisers, who declined to recommend its approval. Accordingly,
unwilling to accept his resignation, the President relieved General
Burnside of the command of the Army of the Potomac, and not long after
assigned him to the command of the Department of the Ohio. General
Hooker was made General Burnside's successor, and the change was
announced to the army January 26th.
In taking leave of the army Gen. Burnside issued the following order:--
HEAD-QUARTERS ARMY OF THE POTOMAC,
FALMOUTH, VA., Jan. 26th, 1863.
GENERAL ORDERS NO. 9.
By direction of the President of the United States, the commanding
general this day transfers the command of the army to Major-General
Joseph Hooker.
The short time that he has directed your movements has not been
fruitful of victory or any considerable advancement of our lines;
but it has again demonstrated an amount of courage, patience, and
endurance that, under more favorable circumstances, would have
accomplished great results. Continue to exercise these virtues, be
true in your devotion to your country and the principles you have
sworn to maintain, give to the brave and skilful general who has
so long been identified with your organization, and who is now to
command you, your full and cordial support and coöperation, and you
will deserve success.
In taking an affectionate leave of the entire army, from which he
separates with so much regret, he may be pardoned if he bids an
especial farewell to his long-time associates of the Ninth Corps.
His prayers are that God may be with you, and grant your continual
success until the rebellion is crushed.
A. E. BURNSIDE,
_Major-General_.
Mr. Lincoln's letter to General Hooker, informing the latter of his
appointment, did credit alike to the President's head and heart, and is
worthy of a place here:--
EXECUTIVE MANSION,
WASHINGTON, D.C., January 26th, 1863.
_Major-General Hooker_:--
I have placed you at the head of the Army of the Potomac. Of course
I have done this upon what appear to me to be sufficient reasons.
And yet I think it best for you to know that there are some things
in regard to which I am not quite satisfied with you. I believe
you to be a brave and skilful soldier, which, of course, I like.
I also believe you do not mix politics with your profession, in
which you are right. You have confidence in yourself, which is a
valuable, if not an indispensable, quality. You are ambitious,
which, within reasonable bounds, does good rather than harm. But
I think that, during General Burnside's command of the army, you
have taken counsel of your ambition, and thwarted him as much as
you could, in which you did a great wrong both to the country and
to a most meritorious and honorable brother officer. I have heard,
in such way as to believe it, of your recently saying that both the
army and the government needed a dictator. Of course it was not for
this, but in spite of it, that I have given you the command. Only
those generals who gain successes can set up dictators. What I now
ask of you is military success, and I will risk the dictatorship.
The government will support you to the utmost of its ability,
which is neither more nor less than it has done and will do for
all commanders. I much fear the spirit you have aided to infuse
into the army, of criticising their commander and withholding
confidence from him, will now turn upon you. I shall assist you, as
far as I can, to put it down. Neither you nor Napoleon, if he were
alive again, could get any good out of an army while such a spirit
prevails in it. And now, beware of rashness! beware of rashness!
but, with energy and sleepless vigilance, go forward and give us
victories.
Yours, very truly,
A. LINCOLN.
January 27th we received General Hooker's address to the army, also
General Sumner's farewell, he having been relieved of the command
of the right grand division at his own request. January 29th,
our Major, James H. Barker, also at his own request, received an
honorable discharge, and on the following day he left for his home in
Massachusetts. He was a faithful officer, a man of sterling integrity,
of upright life, and his departure we greatly regretted.
On Thursday, February 5th, we received orders for the Ninth Corps to
proceed forthwith to Fortress Monroe, under General Smith. On the
following day the Third Division took cars for Aquia Creek. On Sunday,
February 8th, General Willcox assumed command of the First Division,
General Burns having been ordered West. In the afternoon Colonel
Ward, of the Fifteenth Massachusetts, who was in command of Camp Wool
during the organization of the Thirty-sixth, visited our camp, and
was cordially greeted by officers and men. February 10th, about noon,
orders came for us to pack up and be ready to move immediately. At
ten o'clock we marched to the station, the Thirty-sixth leading the
brigade. The cars left at five o'clock, and at half-past six we were
at Aquia Creek, where we embarked on steamer "South America." About
eight o'clock the next morning we started down the Potomac; but, on
account of a storm, the captain found it necessary to anchor in the
middle of the afternoon at the mouth of the St. Mary's river. The next
morning we started again; and at night, just at dark, we arrived off
Fortress Monroe, and anchored. Early the next morning Colonel Bowman
went ashore with the captain of the steamer, and reported our arrival.
On their return, about ten o'clock, we weighed anchor, passed the
steam-frigate "Minnesota" and the iron-clad "Nahant," and landed at
Newport News, a few miles above. About the middle of the afternoon we
went into camp about a mile and a half from the landing, and on a high
bluff overlooking the James river. All of the regiments of the corps
were furnished with ~A~ tents, and the camp throughout was the most
perfect in its arrangements of any that we occupied during the war. The
quarters of the Thirty-sixth were regarded by the men with especial
pride.
Here the regiment remained for six weeks. During this time much
attention was given to regimental, brigade, and division drills. About
five hours each day were devoted to these exercises, and they were of
great value in perfecting the discipline and adding to the efficiency
of the regiment.
On Wednesday, February 18th, we learned that Captain Goodell, of
Company C, had been commissioned major of the regiment, vice Barker,
resigned. February 25th, General Dix, who was in command at Fortress
Monroe, reviewed the Ninth Corps. The day was a beautiful one, and
the review a most brilliant and successful affair. Colonel Bowman and
Lieutenant-Colonel Norton both being absent, Major Goodell commanded
the regiment,--his first appearance in his new rank.
On Sunday, March 1st, Chaplain Canfield preached on the character
of Washington. It was our first religious service since New Year's.
March 11th, with other regiments in our brigade, we attended a flag
presentation at the quarters of the Eighth Michigan. Unexpectedly, on
the evening of March 18th, we received orders to be in readiness to
move with five days' cooked rations.
Great had been our enjoyment of the sunny side of a soldier's life
which we experienced at this place; and it was not without regret that
we received the order to leave the comfortable quarters on which so
much time and labor had been expended. Many pleasant circumstances
had combined to make this a most desirable encampment. In the first
place, we were in convenient communication with our friends at home;
some of them visited us, also the wives of several of the officers,
and the camp had quite a home-like appearance. Then, too, we received,
from time to time, many well-filled boxes, and numerous other tokens
of regard which friends at home had prepared for us. A severe and
protracted storm delayed our departure, and some of these boxes which
had been anxiously awaited, and which we should have failed to receive
had it not been for the delay, made the closing days of our camp-life
at Newport News almost a continual feast. The scenes that followed the
arrival of these boxes were often amusing as well as touching. For
example: a day or two before our departure several boxes were received
by a squad of about fifteen men from one town. At the opening of the
boxes all were present, and as their contents were distributed these
sun-browned and apparently rough men, in the gladness of their hearts,
laughed, sung, and chatted like children. Impromptu speeches were made,
abounding in the most extravagant praise of those who had joined in
filling these richly-laden boxes. In the midst of this hilarity one
proposed seriously that God should be acknowledged in this reception of
these generous gifts. In a moment all heads were uncovered and bowed in
reverent silence, while one of the number gave thanks to the Giver of
all good for favors so kindly bestowed; and then, in tenderest words
and choked utterance, commended to His protection and care, the loved
ones at home who had been so thoughtful of them.
The storm having passed, we struck our tents on the afternoon of
March 22d, and marched to the landing at Newport News. There seven
of the companies embarked on the steamer "Kennebec," the remaining
three companies,--B, C, K,--on the steamer "Mary Washington," with the
Forty-fifth Pennsylvania.
CHAPTER IV.
THE KENTUCKY CAMPAIGN.
We left Newport News early the next morning, March 23d, and sailed
up the bay to Baltimore, where we arrived about three o'clock on the
morning of the 24th. The "Kennebec" hauled in at Pier No. 1, but we
did not land until afternoon. Cars then were in waiting for us, and we
learned that we were to go west by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad,
Cincinnati, Ohio, being our destination. At Eutaw street soft bread
was issued to the men, and then, about six o'clock, we started on our
long journey. The freight-cars in which we were packed were crowded
with rough board seats, so that there was no room in which to lie
down; but the scenery through which we passed was of the wildest and
grandest description, and the journey throughout was one of thrilling
interest to all. In the early part of it we passed through Point of
Rocks, Berlin, Sandy Hook, and Harper's Ferry,--all familiar places. At
Harper's Ferry, where we arrived early in the morning of the 25th, we
had bread and coffee. For miles beyond the track had been torn up by
the rebels in the preceding year, and here and there the rails, twisted
by fire, lay in heaps by the roadside, unfit for further use.
The country grew mountainous as we advanced. We reached Cumberland
about four o'clock in the afternoon. At Piedmont, which we reached
at six o'clock, we were most cordially entertained by the Fourteenth
Virginia regiment, which was guarding the railroad at this point. The
utmost good feeling was manifested; and, as we left our Virginia
comrades, to resume our journey, all joined in three rousing cheers.
After a most fatiguing ride, with little rest or sleep, we arrived at
Parkersburg on the Ohio river, about five o'clock in the afternoon
of the following day, March 26th. There we embarked on the steamer
"Bostonia," a fine, commodious boat. We left the landing about ten
P.M. It was a beautiful moonlight evening, and all greatly enjoyed the
change from the crowded cars. The next day was cool, but pleasant, and
we were delighted with the charming scenery through which we passed
as we rapidly glided down the river. At almost every place on the
Ohio side, and at some points on the opposite shore, we were greeted
with much enthusiasm. The people flocked _en masse_ to the banks of
the river, cheering and waving flags, and bidding us God-speed in our
efforts to win victory and peace.
We reached Cincinnati about seven o'clock in the evening. The regiment
remained on the boat during the night, only the officers being allowed
to go ashore. Nor were the men allowed to land the next day. That they
were moved to indignation by this restriction was a natural result.
Other regiments of the corps, which had preceded us, had been most
cordially received by the citizens, and most hospitably entertained.
The sons of Massachusetts resident in the city were prepared to
give the Thirty-sixth a no less hearty welcome, and had provided a
breakfast to which the regiment was invited on the morning of the 28th.
Expectation ran high, and the regiment was putting on its finest airs
in anticipation of the reception, and especially at the prospect of
one good "square meal" after the long and tedious journey, when, for
some then unaccountable reason, the colonel declined the invitation,
and peremptorily refused to allow the men to go ashore. When this
became known the indignation of the men was almost unbounded, and their
disappointment found expression in words of bitter complaint, more
especially as this refusal seemingly cast a reflection on the good name
and discipline of the regiment. In this feeling of disappointment
the citizens most heartily shared, many of them visiting the boat,
and expressing their regrets. It was afterwards ascertained that, on
account of the bad conduct of some regiment that preceded us, General
Burnside had issued an order that no more regiments should stop in
the city. This relieved Colonel Bowman of the responsibility for the
disappointment of the men of his command; but the disappointment was no
less keenly felt.
March 28th we crossed the river to the Kentucky shore, and landed at
Covington. There was some delay in procuring transportation; and, as
there was a large amount of whiskey near the station, some of the men
became not a little demoralized. One of this number had complained for
some time of severe lameness, and the surgeon, who had been puzzled
by his case, after watching him carefully, was about to secure his
discharge from the service. But, under the exhilaration of the hour,
forgetting his lameness, the man marched off so smartly that Colonel
Bowman informed him that the game was up; and, providing him with a
gun, ordered him back to his company.
Leaving Covington at night, we found ourselves the next morning,
Sunday, March 29th, at Lexington, ninety-eight miles from Covington.
Here we encamped in a grove of black walnut trees, adjoining the
beautiful cemetery, in which a magnificent monument has been erected
over the remains of Kentucky's illustrious son, the brilliant orator
and statesman, Henry Clay. The shaft is of gray limestone, one hundred
and thirty-two feet in height, and is surmounted by Clay's statue.
Ashland, the residence of Henry Clay, is about a mile and a half
distant.
Colonel Leasure, commanding the Third Brigade, was assigned to the
command of the post. In the days that followed, the Thirty-sixth was
engaged in doing provost duty in the city, and in building a fort. The
camp, although very attractive, and kept scrupulously clean, did not
prove a healthy one. The cold April weather, and the naturally moist
ground, as we were without fires in our tents, caused much sickness
from colds, chills, and intermittent fevers.
On the 30th of March a pleasant surprise was given to the colonel, in
the presentation of an elegant equipage for his horse, by the sergeants
of the regiment. The horse had previously been presented to the colonel
by the commissioned officers.
Nothing of especial interest occurred until Sunday, April 5th. On
that day a brigade service had been appointed, and at three o'clock
in the afternoon the Thirty-sixth and the One Hundredth Pennsylvania
assembled. In the midst of the service, orders came for us to break
camp immediately. We struck our tents, and marched to the depot, where
cars were in waiting. Our baggage was put on board, and we were off
for Cincinnati at half-past five. We reached Covington shortly after
midnight, but remained in the cars until morning. We then marched to an
open field near the station, and stacked arms. The colonel reported the
arrival of the regiment to General Burnside, and learned that it was
election day in Cincinnati, and we were there to quell any disturbance
that might arise at the polls. But no disturbance occurred. We remained
all day in the field near the depot, suffering not a little from the
cold, bleak wind. Tuesday morning, about half-past seven o'clock, we
left Covington, and reached Lexington about half-past three in the
afternoon, when we marched to our old camp-ground, and spent the rest
of the day in rearranging our quarters. On the journey we received a
hearty greeting from the Forty-fifth Pennsylvania, at Paris, where the
regiment was stationed, and also from the One Hundredth Pennsylvania,
at Lexington, on our return.
The next morning, April 8th, greatly to our surprise, we received
orders, about eight o'clock, to strike tents. All was soon in
readiness, and the brigade, the One Hundredth Pennsylvania in advance,
marched through Lexington. The Thirty-sixth never made a better
appearance than in the streets of Lexington that day. We reached
Nicholasville about five o'clock in the afternoon, and encamped just
beyond the town. The next morning we resumed our march, about seven
o'clock. The men became quite footsore as we advanced, and many fell
out. About one o'clock we crossed the Kentucky river. The scenery was
most attractive, high rocky cliffs overhanging the river. We reached
Camp Dick Robinson, near Bryantsville, about four o'clock. The camp had
been occupied by the rebel General Bragg, who retreated on the approach
of the Union troops, having been informed by a citizen that a large
force was approaching.
April 13th, General Welch, formerly colonel of the Forty-fifth
Pennsylvania, but recently promoted, arrived at Camp Dick Robinson,
and assumed command of the First Division. On the same day, Rev. C. M.
Bowers, of Clinton, Mass., reached our camp, on a visit to the company
from that town. When he returned home, a few days after, many of the
men sent by him money which the paymaster had just left in their hands,
and most kindly and faithfully he attended to the many little details
of business thus confided to him.
The Forty-fifth Pennsylvania rejoined the brigade at this place. April
20th, Colonel Norton, who had been home on leave of absence, arrived
in camp. The next day, April 21st, Colonel Bowman received orders to
select four hundred men from his command, and to be ready to move
the next morning in light marching order. The battalion, commanded
by Colonel Bowman, left camp about six o'clock A.M., April 22d, in a
drenching rain, which continued until noon, when the sun came out very
warm, and made the march in the mud a fatiguing one. But the change
from the routine of camp-life to a march through a wild and beautiful
country was most exhilarating. At about three o'clock in the afternoon
the battalion reached Harrodsburg, an aristocratic town, largely in
sympathy with the rebellion, and encamped for the night on a beautiful
green slope just outside of the town. In the morning we marched through
the town again, exciting much curiosity and some enthusiasm. From
Harrodsburg the march was continued ten or twelve miles, through a most
delightful country, to the beautiful town of Danville, where we arrived
about two o'clock in the afternoon, and halted for dinner. A leisurely
march of about eight miles brought us, in the early evening, to our
quarters at Camp Dick Robinson. The purpose of this march has never
been disclosed. Colonel Bowman was not told. He was ordered to move;
the roads, the halting-places, etc., were designated, but concerning
the end in view he was not informed.
The regiment, with the brigade, remained at Camp Dick Robinson until
April 30th, when we were aroused at four o'clock A.M., with orders
to move at six. At the appointed time we were on the march. It was a
beautiful day, and the roads were in excellent condition. We passed
through Lancaster about noon, and halted for dinner. Later in the
afternoon we encamped about a mile beyond Stanford. On the next day,
May 1st, we remained in camp until one o'clock P.M., when we continued
our march, and encamped about a mile beyond Hustonville. May 2d we
advanced about ten miles in the afternoon, and encamped at Middleburgh,
which is situated on a branch of the Green river.
On these marches amusing incidents were of frequent occurrence. One
day the Twenty-seventh Michigan, a new regiment, had the advance;
and, like all new troops, the men marched too fast, and too long a
distance without rest. The next day the Forty-fifth Pennsylvania had
the lead, and the Twenty-seventh Michigan was sandwiched in between
the Forty-fifth and the Thirty-sixth. These two regiments had an
agreement in reference to the day's march. The Forty-fifth started off
with a long swing, and the Thirty-sixth followed up "right smart," in
rear of the Twenty-seventh. The result was that the Twenty-seventh
had a hard day of it. Many of the men fell out on the march, and
laid down by the roadside, exhausted. Of course it was a good pull
for the old regiments. One man in the Thirty-sixth fell down and
fainted apparently. His eyes closed, and he seemed to be in a bad way.
However, his case was not considered a serious one. The next morning
the surgeon, who had some suspicions that the man was "playing it,"
asked him some amusing questions, and dismissed him without giving any
decision in his case. "What shall I mark him?" asked the sergeant;
"excused from duty, or not?" "Mark him for the land of Canaan," said
the surgeon.
May 3d, the day after we reached Middleburgh, two colored boys came
into camp, one of whom Captain Raymond hired, and the other was hired
by the non-commissioned staff. The boys had just been arrayed in
United States blue when the master of Captain Raymond's boy made his
appearance with a cavalry officer, and, showing a writing, demanded
his slave. The boy was frightened at the sight of his master, and said
he would rather be shot where he was than go back to the whipping that
awaited him. But we had no authority to detain him, and the master took
him by the collar, and led him off. After he had gone, the other boy,
finding that we could give him no protection, thought he had better go
home voluntarily. So he started. Such, at that time, was the "peculiar
institution" in Kentucky.
On the same day a Mr. Markham and three daughters--refugees from East
Tennessee--visited our camp. In September, 1861, they were living in
Scott County. One day a party of rebels approached the house in search
of the father, who was a Union man. One of the rebels came forward to
reconnoitre, and asked one of the daughters where her father was. She
declined to answer. He then advanced toward her with bayonet fixed. To
defend herself she seized an axe, and endeavored to parry his thrusts,
but he succeeded in forcing the bayonet into her skull, just above
the eye, putting out the eye, and causing the brain to protrude. The
father, hearing her cries, rushed from his hiding-place, and shot the
rebel dead. He then made his escape immediately. One of the sisters ran
to the house to warn her cousin to flee also; but, the rest of the
rebels coming up, he was soon killed. Two of their neighbors they hung,
and left on the tree. This was a new side of the war to us,--a side of
which we were to see more at a later period, when the regiment was in
East Tennessee.
May 4th we moved our camp forward about a mile, in order to get
upon better ground. On the following day our regimental baggage was
reduced. Only three tents were allowed at head-quarters, while the
line officers had five tents instead of ten, as heretofore. Wednesday,
May 6th, at dress-parade a despatch from General Willcox to General
Welch, announcing cheering news from the Rappahannock, was read. Not
until two days later did we receive the tidings of Hooker's defeat
at Chancellorsville. On Sunday, May 10th, there were rumors of the
capture of Richmond. The first came early in the afternoon. Not long
after dress-parade Colonel Bowman received a despatch, stating that
Hooker, reinforced, had recrossed the Rappahannock, and that Stoneman
and Dix had raised the stars and stripes on the rebel capitol. The
news was at once communicated to the regiment, and was received with
the wildest enthusiasm. Fires were built on a high hill near the camp,
candles were issued to the men, and soon the camp of the Thirty-sixth
was all ablaze. Then the several companies, under command of Captain
Smith, with candles fixed on their bayonets, marched to the camp of the
Twenty-seventh Michigan and One Hundredth Pennsylvania, cheering and
receiving cheers from both regiments, which were in line to receive
us. When the regiment returned to camp there were congratulatory
speeches by Colonel Bowman, Acting Adjutant Hodgkins, Captain Warriner,
Lieutenant Brigham, and others. It was a fourth of July occasion. We
soon learned that we had exulted too soon.
On Wednesday, May 13th, rumors of a rebel raid by Morgan reached us.
The pickets were strengthened and thrown farther out. Two days later
a limited number of furloughs were granted in each company, and the
men under Captain Raymond left for Stanford on their way home. There
was no further information concerning the rebel raid. The division
supply-trains moved back to Hustonville, also Edmunds' Battery.
We remained at Middleburgh until Saturday, May 23d. On that day, at
noon, orders were received to move. The Thirty-sixth led the brigade
column. We encamped at night, about nine miles beyond Liberty, on the
banks of the Green river. There we remained over Sunday. On Monday,
May 25th, the bugles called us out at half-past three in the morning,
and at five we were on the road. Our march was through a thick forest
during a greater part of the day. About three o'clock in the afternoon
we encamped a short distance from Neatsville. On the following day, May
26th, the _reveillé_ was sounded at half-past two in the morning, and
we marched at half-past three. As on the preceding day, our route lay
through an almost unbroken forest. At half-past nine o'clock in the
forenoon we encamped about a mile from Columbia.
May 27th we had orders to be in readiness to march at seven P.M., in
light marching order. At that time we left camp, with the One Hundredth
Pennsylvania and a section of Edmunds' Battery, Colonel Leasure in
command. Before reaching Columbia a squadron of cavalry joined us. It
was understood that we were in pursuit of Morgan's guerillas. Passing
through the town, we took the Waynesburgh road; but, after marching
a mile or so, we faced about, returned to town, and took the road to
Glasgow. It was a beautiful moonlight evening. The road was somewhat
rough, and mostly through woods. We reached Gradyville about one
o'clock on the morning of the 27th, and bivouacked for the rest of
the night. Later in the morning we marched to a grove of magnificent
beeches, on a hillside near by. There we remained all day, while the
cavalry scoured the neighborhood. About noon they brought in two rebel
officers. At night it commenced to rain, but we made ourselves as
comfortable as possible.
The next day, Friday, May 29th, we marched about eight o'clock, and
found the road very rough as we advanced. Notwithstanding the rain, we
pushed on to Breedingsville, fourteen miles from Columbia and sixteen
from Burkesville, on the Cumberland river. Weary and wet, we sought
shelter for the night in the out-buildings of a farm-house, while our
cavalry scouts set out for the river.
The next day, May 30th, the scouts having returned, we turned our faces
toward Columbia, which we reached between eleven and twelve o'clock in
the evening, having marched forty-seven miles during our absence from
camp, and captured twenty-five prisoners.
Meanwhile a serious accident had occurred at the camp. The armorer was
repairing some guns. One, which was not supposed to be loaded, he put
into the fire for some purpose, and the gun was discharged. The ball
entered the tent of Quartermaster-Sergeant Joseph H. Sawyer, and struck
one of his knees. The wound was so severe that amputation was deemed
necessary, and the operation was skilfully performed by Surgeon Prince.
Monday, June 1st, Colonel Bowman was assigned to the command of the
brigade, which now consisted of the Thirty-sixth Massachusetts,
Forty-fifth Pennsylvania, Seventeenth and Twenty-seventh Michigan
regiments. That night we received orders to march, and at once
proceeded to Jamestown, commonly called "Jimtown," on the Cumberland
river. It was twenty miles from Columbia, and we reached the place
about four o'clock Tuesday morning. We had hardly stacked arms on a
wooded hillside near the town when a sharp skirmish fire was heard on
the road at our right, and presently a squad of our cavalry dashed
up the road toward the town, followed closely by a company of rebel
horsemen. Our men were quickly in line of battle, under a ridge running
parallel with the road, and Companies A and F were thrown out as
skirmishers. But the rebels, at the first sight of our men, wheeled
and made good their escape. They had evidently intended to make a dash
into the town, but the timely arrival of our brigade was an unexpected
episode in the morning's adventure.
One of the rebels a citizen soon brought in as a prisoner. It was found
that he had been thrown by his horse, and that the horse had escaped.
The citizen met the rebel as he was crossing a brook, after losing his
horse, and kindly offered to hold his gun--one of Colt's revolving
rifles--until he was over. The rebel innocently handed the gun to the
citizen, who at once informed him that he was his prisoner, and marched
him into our camp. Colonel Bowman gave the citizen the rifle as a
reward for his strategy. According to the prisoner, his party consisted
of three hundred men. He was a conscript from East Tennessee, he said,
and belonged to Pegram's command.
Upon assuming command of the new brigade, which had been formed in
consequence of the reorganization of the division, Colonel Bowman
appointed First Lieutenant Raymond as acting assistant inspector
general, and Second Lieutenant Hodgkins as acting assistant adjutant
general of the brigade. The last-named officer had performed the duties
of adjutant of the regiment during the illness of Adjutant Ranlett,
from January 19th, until his appointment upon the brigade staff, when
the latter resumed his duties as adjutant.
We remained at Jamestown until Thursday, June 4th, when at noon, to
the surprise of all, we received orders to proceed at once to Lebanon,
which was sixty miles away, our nearest railroad connection with the
North. Although we had had little or no rest for a week, in forty-eight
consecutive hours, including halts and sleep, we made the sixty miles,
arriving at Lebanon at noon, June 6th. And this long journey was
accomplished in heavy marching order, under a scorching sun, and in
dust which was almost insufferable.
As his limb had not sufficiently healed, we were obliged to leave
Quartermaster-Sergeant Sawyer at Columbia. Private James E. Spear, of
Company B, remained with him, and both eventually succeeded in reaching
our lines in safety, having been paroled by John Morgan, who, with his
cavalry, drove out our cavalry two days after we left.
At Lebanon we learned that our destination was Vicksburg, Miss., Grant
being in need of reinforcements. On the afternoon of the following
day, June 7th, we took the cars for Louisville, where we arrived late
at night, and the regiment was paid off in the depot. The next day we
crossed the Ohio, by ferry, to Jacksonville, Ind. There cars were in
waiting, and we proceeded to Cairo, Ill., by way of Seymour, Ind., and
Sandoval, Ill. All the way we were received with kindest attentions, in
many instances ladies remaining all night at the stations to serve us
with refreshments, and cheer us with loyal words. We reached Cairo on
the 9th of June.
CHAPTER V.
IN THE REAR OF VICKSBURG.
Late in the afternoon of Wednesday, June 10th, the fine steamer
"Meteor," with the regiment (numbering about 760 officers and men), all
its camp equipage, and horses, cast off from the levee at Cairo, and
steamed down the river. The boat, though large, was somewhat crowded,
and deeply laden. A large part of the regiment was quartered on the
hurricane deck, which was the most comfortable part of the boat. The
officers had the use of the state-rooms and the cabin, and had no
reason to find fault with their accommodations.
Many of the regiment had provided themselves with little maps of the
river, and, with true Yankee curiosity, studied the various points of
interest with the skill and style of veteran tourists. And truly these
points were not rare, for this region had already become famous in the
war's history. Before sunset the boat had passed the battle-field of
Belmont, Mo., the scene of General Grant's first battle of the war,
and Columbus, Kentucky. At the latter place the boat was brought to by
a shell across its bows, the captain, through neglect or ignorance,
failing in compliance with the rules of the river to report to the
commander of the place before passing. A short distance below Columbus
the boat was moored to the shore for the night, it not being considered
safe, at this season of low water, to move a heavily laden boat at
night.
The following day passed somewhat slowly, the country through which
the Mississippi winds being low, monotonous, and with few features of
interest, Island No. 10 alone being worthy of note. Officers and men
amused themselves in various ways,--reading, writing, cards, etc. All
military duties being necessarily abandoned, it was a season of welcome
rest to all.
At nine o'clock P.M. the boat arrived at Memphis, Tenn., where it
remained three days to await the remainder of the corps, which was
delayed up the river. This time passed rather heavily. On two occasions
the regiment landed, and the boat was thoroughly policed, the change
serving as a rest for all. General Potter, with his staff, came aboard
at Memphis. At six P.M. of June 14th the boat cast off, and steamed
down the river until dark, and then lay to for the night. All day of
the 15th moving rapidly South we reached Helena, Ark., where a brief
landing was made for forage and provisions. At night the boat stopped
near White River; and, being now in a thoroughly hostile region, a
picket was posted on shore, Captain Sawyer, of Company H, being in
command. Not long after dark, by some nervous sentry, an alarm was
given, which proved needless. "All quiet on White River" was the
watchword as the men lay down to rest for the night.
The fleet, on leaving Memphis, consisted of five heavily laden
steamers, carrying the entire First Division of the corps, with all its
artillery, baggage, and animals. As the river, at certain points, is
narrow and densely wooded, affording excellent positions for ambuscades
of hostile parties, a guard was mounted on the upper deck of each boat,
with loaded rifles, and orders to scan the shore carefully at such
points. This was called the "guerilla guard."
On the morning of the 16th, when the fleet got under way, a river
gun-boat joined us as escort, bringing up the rear of the line. Its
importance was soon felt by all. These boats were iron-clad, having
roofs slanting like the gable-roof of a house, with port-holes, out
of which grimly peeped the muzzles of some 10-pounder Parrott guns.
About eleven A.M., while in the neighborhood of Columbus, Ark., the
"Meteor," being in the van of the fleet, suddenly received from
the western shore a sharp volley, the bullets striking the boat
in several places, fortunately doing no serious injury. The boat
following the "Meteor," at the same time, was also fired on, and was
less fortunate, one man of the Seventeenth Michigan being wounded, and
two horses killed. The gun-boat and the "guerilla guards" immediately
opened a heavy fire. The enemy found the place rather hot, and soon
their gray-clad forms could be seen running "helter-skelter" from
their ambush. Whatever damage was done them we never knew; but it is
doubtful if they all escaped the Minies and bursting shells which for
a few minutes flew in volleys after them. This incident tended to
vary the monotony of life on board, and the usual good fortune of the
Thirty-sixth seemed to attend it still. Late in the afternoon the fleet
arrived at Lake Providence, and remained over night. This place was
famous for the feat of engineering which, by means of a short canal,
had shortened the river very much, by diverting the channel from one
of its great bends. The First Kansas and Sixteenth Wisconsin regiments
were stationed here, and the Massachusetts boys were soon fraternizing
with the hardy Western pioneers, armed in the same good cause.
June 17th the boat entered the Yazoo river, and, at eleven A.M.,
arrived at Snyder's Bluff, where the regiment debarked, and then
marched about four miles, passing Haines' Bluff. On every hand were
fortifications crowned with cannon, encampments of troops, army wagons,
etc., etc.
This day, to a part of the regiment, was one of peculiar import.
Company B, of Charlestown, had in its ranks many who were lineal
descendants of the men who made the 17th of June glorious in our
history; and to them the booming of the cannon, heard from early in
the day, was a grim reminder of many a holiday at Bunker Hill, where,
to use a trite expression, "the day was ushered in with the ringing of
bells and firing of guns."
The first impressions of the men upon landing, far from favorable,
were never changed, except for the worse. In many places the soil was
so dry and parched with the heat that it seemed to have cracked open
like a blistered skin beneath the tropical rays of the sun. The wind
blew hot from every point of the compass, bringing clouds of dust
along with it. Gnats and flies made night hideous, and drove sleep
from the weary. Venomous snakes and other reptiles infested the woods
and thickets. Lizards soon became no novelty, and even the resort of
keeping them out of one's boots, by wearing them day and night, would
not prevent their crawling down one's back occasionally, causing a
sensation like an animated icicle.
But these were minor inconveniences. It is not pleasant to have a
thunder-squall burst almost from a clear sky and find the guys of one's
tent slacked up for air. Any old soldier knows the result of such
negligence. It means a sudden breaking up of house-keeping, and a wet
day to move.
During the 18th, 19th, and part of the 20th of June, the regiment lay
quietly in camp in a wood somewhere in the township of Milldale, a very
pleasant and picturesque spot. The wild magnolia trees, now in full
bloom, filled the air with their fragrance. From many of the trees hung
the "Spanish moss," which was gathered in large quantities and used for
beds, and it proved an agreeable variation from the hard, limestone
beds of Kentucky. At three o'clock P.M., of June 20th, the regiment
marched about three miles, and went into camp at a cross-road, which
proved to be its permanent location during the rest of the siege of
Vicksburg. The One Hundred and Fourteenth Illinois Regiment, which had
been stationed here, gave way to the Thirty-sixth, and went down into
the trenches at Vicksburg.
This point was considered an important one, and the camp of the
regiment was arranged in a kind of semicircle, crossing the road
leading to Vicksburg, with a strong picket thrown out for about a mile
through the forest road which led to the Big Black river. Rifle-pits
were dug, and trees cut away to give sweep for a long distance to
the artillery. At this point Durrell's Battery of the First Division
was placed in position commanding the different approaches. These
precautions were rendered necessary by the presence of a large rebel
force, under General Joe Johnston, just across the Big Black; and it
appeared that to the Ninth Corps was assigned the important duty of
watching him and protecting our men before Vicksburg from an attack in
the rear. Grant's army, therefore, presented the singular and rather
precarious military spectacle of facing in two directions, the one
portion attacking Pemberton, shut up with over thirty thousand in
Vicksburg, and the other facing Johnston, who, with a force estimated
at between thirty and forty thousand, was manœuvring to break in and
raise the siege. The latter was liable to be heavily reinforced at any
moment, and there was no little anxiety in the mind of the commanding
general lest this should come to pass.
As the Thirty-sixth Regiment was not a part of the line attacking
Vicksburg, it is not perhaps necessary to say much concerning the city
and its defences.
The Mississippi river, about six miles above Vicksburg, bends suddenly
to the north-east, runs in this direction six miles and then turns
as suddenly to the south-west. By this bend in the river a tongue of
land reaches out from the Louisiana shore, and near the end of this
tongue, just below the bend, on the left bank of the river, stands
Vicksburg, on a bluff of some two hundred feet or more in height.
Being also higher than any ground in its rear, it was a position of
unusual strength, completely controlling the river, though Admiral
Porter had succeeded, with considerable loss, in running the batteries
with a part of his fleet. Stretching away from Vicksburg to the
north-east is a range of hills, called Walnut Hills, which terminate
at Haines' Bluff, on the Yazoo river. Here the rebels had erected
heavy batteries commanding the river, and had forced General Grant to
approach Vicksburg from the south. In the great battles at Champion
Hill, Raymond and Baker's Creek, Grant had succeeded in separating the
forces of Pemberton and Johnston; and, following up the former, had
driven him into Vicksburg, at this time getting possession of Haines'
Bluff. This gave him a good base for supplies, and direct communication
by river with the north. Before commencing a regular siege, it was
determined to try and carry Vicksburg by assault. It was thought that
the demoralized condition of Pemberton's army, whipped from place to
place, would render them hopeless of success, and a long and tiresome
siege be avoided. The commanding general, officers, and men, were all
of one mind in this matter, and the soldiers were eager for the assault.
On the 22d of May an attempt was made along the entire line to
storm the city, but without success. The rebels, at last driven to
desperation, and protected by their ramparts, fought well, and after
heavy loss it was found impossible to break through at any part of
their lines.
Regular approaches were now commenced by sappers, and General Grant,
finding his ranks thinning by the severity of the trench service,
the increasing heat of summer, and Johnston, with a large force,
threatening his rear, called for reinforcements. Such, briefly, was the
condition of affairs, and such were the reasons which found the Ninth
Corps and the Thirty-sixth Massachusetts in their present position.
The history of the regiment for the fortnight ending with the fall of
Vicksburg can be briefly written. It is a story of discomforts, from
causes before enumerated, against which the men fortified themselves by
all the means possible. Tents were made comparatively comfortable by
cane-pole shades and beds of moss and grass. No duties were required
except picket and such as were absolutely necessary. Parties were
detailed from time to time to help dig rifle-pits, for it was thought
best to be well prepared for any sudden and violent attack of Johnston.
A large part of the line held by the Ninth Corps was fortified in this
way. But the work was done as much as possible during the cooler parts
of the day, morning and night. There was not a dress-parade of the
regiment during the Mississippi campaign. Not much can be said of the
rations, though they were, perhaps, as good as the men had been in the
habit of receiving. On the 26th of June Quartermaster Francis B. Rice
was discharged, and Lieutenant Cutter, of Company D, was appointed
quartermaster.
June 29th the whole First Division, with the exception of the
Thirty-sixth Regiment and Durrell's Battery, moved out several miles to
the front, and the head-quarters of the brigade were about five miles
distant. Company F was at this time on duty at corps head-quarters.
Cases of sickness became more numerous every day. Captains Bailey,
Sawyer, and Lieutenant Howe, were all sick at this time, the latter
with small-pox, which he was supposed to have contracted in visiting
a hospital at Memphis. He died July 7th. He was a graduate of
Amherst College, where he achieved distinction in the department of
mathematics. In character and conduct, during his connection with the
regiment, he showed that he was a true man and a faithful soldier.
When it became known that this dire disease had broken out among us
there was much anxiety and alarm in the regiment, for the possibility
of its spreading was great, and there was no way to meet it with usual
precaution, the medical department being poorly supplied. A hospital
was established at some distance from the regiment, and as soon as any
man showed symptoms of the disease he was removed to it. In this way
the spread of the disease was checked.
July 2d, burial service, with military honors, was performed over the
remains of Private Boswell, of Company C, who died in the regimental
hospital, July 1. Each day seemed to have some event of more or less
importance to vary the monotony of camp life, which was now about to
be disturbed by events of great moment, and from the dull routine of
daily life to be changed to the more severe duties of the march and
battle-field. Even now, in the distant North, the two great armies of
the Potomac and Northern Virginia, under Meade and Lee, were grappling
with each other on the soil of Pennsylvania, and the fate of the nation
was trembling in the balance on the slopes of Cemetery Ridge, at
Gettysburg. Massachusetts was pouring out her blood freely on that now
historic field, while far away, in the south-west, her sons stood ready
to uphold her fame and carry her white flag, side by side with the
stars and stripes, to victory. The moment pregnant with heroic effort
and sacrifice was at hand.
For a week prior to the 4th of July rumors of the impending surrender
or storming of Vicksburg prevailed in the camp. The last extremity
of famine was nearly reached by the beleaguered rebels, who boasted
from their ramparts of the tenderness of mule steaks. No hope remained
for them save from without, and Lee was too closely occupied with his
movement into Pennsylvania to despatch any of his force to Pemberton's
relief. Johnston clung to the east bank of the Big Black river. General
McPherson's corps had pushed the lines of investment up under the very
forts of the enemy, and there seemed to be nothing left but to carry
their works by assault, or wait for famine to do its work. The roar
of artillery was incessant. Day and night, with scarcely a moment's
interval, the heavy booming of the siege guns was heard, and a thick
cloud of smoke hung ever like a pall over the doomed city. If a rebel
showed so much as a hand above the fortifications he became the target
of our vigilant riflemen, and the enemy found it impossible to man
and serve his artillery, so deadly was the fire. If morning revealed
some place where the rebels had repaired the ramparts and brought some
guns into position, ten minutes sufficed for our artillery utterly to
destroy the work of the night. Their works were mined; but, wherever
they suspected a mine, resort was had to countermining, and for a time
spades were trumps at Vicksburg.
At three o'clock P.M., of July 3d, Generals Grant and Pemberton met
under a flag of truce. Pemberton proposed that his army be allowed
to march out with the honors of war, carrying their muskets and
field-pieces, but leaving their heavy artillery. Grant smiled at this
proposal. The interview terminated in an hour, with the understanding
that Grant should send in his _ultimatum_ before ten o'clock that
night. This _ultimatum_ was, that Pemberton should surrender Vicksburg
with all its property, his officers being allowed to retain their
side-arms, and the officers and men should be paroled as prisoners of
war. It was accepted, and, on the morning of the 4th of July, General
Logan's division of McPherson's corps took possession of the works of
Vicksburg, the rebels marching out, stacked their arms, and laid their
colors on the stacks. The Forty-fifth Illinois Regiment marched at the
head of Logan's column, and placed its flag upon the Court-House. The
magnitude of this victory is apparent from the fact that it comprised
in its results 31,600 officers and men (2,153 of whom were officers,
and 15 of these generals), munitions of war sufficient for an army of
60,000, 172 cannon, many locomotives, cars, and steamboats, and large
quantities of cotton and other valuable merchandise.
CHAPTER VI.
THE MOVEMENT ON JACKSON.
Hardly had the news of the surrender become known to the regiment,
however, before orders came to break camp and prepare for field service
in light marching order.
This was in accordance with an order which General Sherman had received
directing him to take his own corps, the Fifteenth, the Ninth Corps,
to which was temporarily assigned General Smith's division of the
Sixteenth Corps, and the Thirteenth Corps, now under General Ord,
pursue Johnston, and capture or destroy his army. General Grant's order
read as follows: "I want you to drive Johnston out in your own way, and
inflict upon the enemy all the punishment you can. I will support you
to the last man that can be spared."
Before ten o'clock A. M., July 4th, Sherman's army was in motion, and
by various roads moving rapidly toward the Big Black river. Johnston,
finding himself suddenly an object of particular interest, commenced
a precipitate retreat toward Jackson, feebly disputing our advance
in some places where the ground was favorable. Upon the receipt of
marching orders the picket of the Thirty-sixth was hastily called in,
and the regiment was soon on the march to overtake the brigade, which
it did not do, however, until the next day.
A considerable part of the 6th was occupied by the regiment, and men of
other regiments in the brigade, in constructing a bridge across the Big
Black river at a place called Birdsongs Ferry. This was a good, strong
piece of work, and over it a large part of the army passed in safety.
General Ord's two divisions crossed at the railroad some distance
below, and the Fifteenth Corps at Messenger's Bridge.
From the 4th to the 10th of July the army pushed steadily on,
overcoming many obstacles, skirmishing sharply day and night with
Johnston's rear guard, and encountering sufferings from the heat and
exposure to sun and tempest and malarial swamps, that are well-nigh
indescribable. The rebels, as they retreated, poisoned the wells,
or killed animals in the ponds or streams, their putrid carcasses
rendering the water unfit for use. Such acts only reacted upon
themselves, for it enraged the army from the commanding general down to
the private soldier, and they would have saved themselves the pillage
and devastation that marked our line of march, had they adopted the
rules of honorable warfare. But it seemed, in their case, as if the old
proverb was true, that "whom the gods wish to destroy, they first make
mad."
The rapid advance of the army made it impossible for the supply-trains
to keep up, and for days the rations consisted of the unripe corn,
roasted in the husks. All fared alike, officers and men. The tents
and all the baggage, save blankets, had been left behind, and, during
this campaign of three weeks, the regiment slept with the sky for a
canopy, exposed to the deadly night-air and frequent tempests. Nights
when no humane man would drive a dog out of doors found this entire
army in the open field. Late in the afternoon of July 7th, while on the
march, a thunder-storm burst upon us that no man of this regiment, then
present, will ever forget, and one that the natives call the severest
known in that region for years. The storm came apparently from all
directions, and lasted over two hours. The lightning struck all around,
and the roar of thunder was incessant. The horses became terrified, and
officers were forced to dismount and lead them. The mud was ankle-deep,
and finally impeded the movement of the artillery, which stuck in the
roads up to the hubs and blocked the passage of the infantry. About
10 P.M. the storm lulled, and the regiment went into bivouac in an
open field, and the men were ordered to make themselves comfortable.
Then came a second edition of the storm,--if possible, worse than the
first,--and there, shelterless in that open field, the boys stood in
grim despair and let it pelt. Finally, with the stolid indifference of
desperation the men laid down in the mud of that old stubble-field and
made themselves comfortable. But all things come to an end, and so at
last did the storm, when the field was quickly ablaze with camp-fires,
and a dipper of hot coffee, innocent of milk or sugar, revived the
spirits of the men.
Jackson, the capital of Mississippi, is situated on the west or right
bank of the Pearl river, in a very fertile and pleasant region. Being
at the juncture of the Vicksburg and Meridian and Mississippi Central
Railroads, it is a position of great strategical importance. The State
House, which cost half a million dollars, Executive Mansion, State
Lunatic Asylum, and Penitentiary are the principal buildings; but
being the seat of government, as well as a considerable commercial
mart, there are many fine residences in the town and its suburbs. The
site of the town itself is rather level, but back of it the country is
undulating and well adapted for defence. It was expected that Johnston
had been preparing for the present emergency, and had fortified the
place extensively. The moral effect of the loss of the town would be
great, and the idea was quite prevalent that it would be desperately
defended. Indeed, as the army approached it, the more stubborn
resistance of Johnston's forces indicated that they intended to dispute
possession of their capital.
In the afternoon of July 10th the Ninth Corps came out into open
country in sight of the town. As the different regiments and batteries
debouched from the woods the colors were unfurled. It was a beautiful
sight, that "battle's magnificently stern array." The sun was about an
hour high, and its slanting rays glanced brightly from the muskets and
the brass field-pieces. A gentle breeze stirred the silken folds of
the standards, and made them float proudly and defiantly. Conspicuous
among them could be seen the white flag of Massachusetts, carried by
the Twenty-ninth, Thirty-fifth, and Thirty-sixth regiments. Sloping
away in front was the valley along which extends the track of the
Mississippi Central Railroad. Beyond, the ground rose gradually for
about an eighth of a mile, and the crest was crowned with a dense
wood, in the edge of which could be seen the rebel gray uniforms, and
the gleaming of bayonets. The lines were formed. The Thirty-sixth
Massachusetts held the extreme right of the First Division, having
on its left the remainder of the First Brigade, the Seventeenth and
Twenty-seventh Michigan, and the Forty-fifth Pennsylvania deployed as
skirmishers along the entire brigade front. On the right was Smith's
division of the Sixteenth Corps, and connecting with the Thirty-sixth
Massachusetts was the Forty-sixth Ohio. What a glorious sight! The
old Bay State, with Ohio on her right, and Michigan on her left,
Pennsylvania leading, about to close in conflict with Mississippi,
and far away on the right stretch the dark blue lines of Sherman's
veterans, famous in later times from "Atlanta to the Sea." And now
there was a pause, a silence that was ominous. Meanwhile, the intervals
were closed, and alignments rectified. Curiously we peered into the
distant wood, wondering whether it masked the rebel artillery. Where
could they find a better place to use grape and canister? In the rear
the splendid battery of the First Division was preparing for action.
Lieutenant Benjamin's famous twenty-pounder rifled Parrotts, Battery E,
Second United States Artillery, whose iron throats had carried dismay
and death into the rebel ranks in other fields, far away in Virginia,
Maryland, and North Carolina, were about to speak. Breathlessly all
awaited the puff and the angry flash. It came, and over the valley,
with a scream and whir-r-r, was hurled the iron messenger of death.
It struck exactly on the crest of the hill, and exploded. Scarcely
had the reverberation ceased, when the order was passed along the
line: "Battalion forward! Guide centre, march!" With a simultaneous
movement the lines advanced, slowly at first, but more rapidly as
they approached the railroad. Behind us the Parrotts were talking in
thunder tones that shook the very earth, and the shells were screaming
overhead. The gallant Forty-fifth crossed the railroad, and their thin
line was soon seen pushing up the hill. The Thirty-sixth followed in
steady line of battle. The suspense was awful. Why don't they open
fire? On the rebel side, save a few scattering Minies, that sang
harmlessly by, all was silent. Suddenly the men became enthusiastic.
With a "Hurrah," the men rushed up the hill. The rebels fired a
scattering volley, and fell back upon their second line. The wood was
gained, and with no loss. A few moments sufficed to re-form the lines,
which again moved forward, passing the State Lunatic Asylum,--a large,
white marble building, whose inmates, wild with the excitement of the
unusual scene, raved at the regiment from the iron-barred corridors. A
guard was placed upon the building, to protect the unfortunates. The
lines moved cautiously forward, until the skirmishers were checked, and
the rebel line developed. But the shades of night were now darkening
the landscape, and orders were received to establish a strong picket,
and hold the position until morning. Weary with the march and exciting
close of the day, all gladly improved the opportunity for rest, laid
down with loaded rifles by their side, or gathered in groups, and
discussed the events of the day, or speculated upon the morrow. And
some, alas! laid down that night to happy sleep, who, ere another came,
were lying in a soldier's grave. Save occasional sharp firing by the
pickets, the night passed quietly.
At three o'clock A.M. of the 11th the men were noiselessly aroused,
and coffee, prepared by the company cooks, was served out. With
the earliest streak of dawn the lines again moved forward, and the
skirmishing opened sharply. The rebels yielded ground stubbornly, but
were forced back into their main line of defence,--a formidable work
constructed of cotton bales. Here they opened a heavy fire of grape and
canister, against which it was impossible to advance. But not an inch
was yielded. The brigade laid flat on the ground, and the iron storm
passed over, doing little damage. The line was formed in a wood, in
front of which was an open field, the other side of which, about two
hundred yards distant, was held by the rebels, and their riflemen were
in trees, picking off our men, wherever exposed. The skirmishers of the
Forty-sixth Ohio suffered considerable loss, being less sheltered by
the wood than those of our brigade. Nothing farther could be done until
artillery could be brought up; but the ground was unfavorable for it,
and matters came to a pause.
Lieutenant Benjamin reconnoitred the ground and the position of the
enemy, but could not find any position which gave him room to work
his guns. All day the regiment lay under a constant and galling fire
awaiting orders.
Companies A and F were sent out to skirmish, relieving the Forty-fifth
Pennsylvania. Captain Draper was ordered to connect with the
skirmishers of Smith's division, who were said to be in position in a
wood at our right, and several hundred yards to the front. In our own
front was an open field, sloping toward the enemy's position. The two
companies promptly deployed, and went forward on the double-quick,
driving in the rebel pickets, only to find that the line supposed to
be General Smith's skirmishers was the rebel main line. They opened
fire, killing two and wounding six of Company F, who, with Company
A, returned the fire. Seeing that some mistake had been made, and to
prevent needless sacrifice, Captain Draper ordered a retreat, halting
at a point midway between the enemy's line and our own, where the
ground afforded some protection. Here the two companies held their
position nearly all day until relieved.
The rebels during this time were unable to send out any more pickets,
owing to our fire; but several adventurous men among them tried to
observe our movements, and take an occasional shot by climbing trees
inside their lines. Our boys had the good fortune to bring two or
three of them to the ground during the day, Sergeant Daniel Wright,
afterwards lieutenant, making one of the successful shots. The loss in
Company F was two killed and six wounded. George H. Ellis, of Milford,
one of the killed, was shot through the breast. This young man, the
only son of a widowed mother, was a favorite in his company and with
all who knew him. He had been acting as clerk at head-quarters until
just prior to the commencement of this movement, and by his cheerful
and gentlemanly conduct had won the regard of all the officers there.
His death was deplored by all. Amos Hoyt was also killed, shot through
the stomach. O. Howard, James Smith, T. L. Ellsworth, J. C. Higgins, D.
Perham, and E. W. Anson, were wounded. Company A, being less exposed,
met with no loss, though it also received a heavy fire from the rebel
sharp-shooters.
This loss in Company F can only be considered as an unnecessary one. No
impression was made upon the enemy; the main line was not advanced, for
the First Division was now close upon the enemy, and any advance would
have brought on a general engagement, which, it seems, General Sherman
did not desire. There was evidently some misunderstanding between
Generals Sherman and Parke, for the latter had made all his disposition
for an assault on the morning of the 11th. This may have been caused by
the check met with by the Thirteenth Corps, on the right. One division
of this corps, General Lauman's, had been roughly handled, and repulsed
with a loss of over five hundred men and some colors. The position of
Johnston's forces was stronger than had been expected, and his troops
fought well. There was much anxiety on the part of both Colonel Bowman,
commanding the brigade, and Lieutenant-Colonel Norton, commanding the
Thirty-sixth Regiment, when Companies A and F were ordered out without
supports, and only positive orders prevented Colonel Norton from going
out with his regiment to the support of these companies when it was
learned what their position was. If a reconnaissance was the object it
was eminently successful; but otherwise the brave advance of Company F
can only be cited as a proof of the good fighting qualities of the men,
and a credit to their discipline.
The skirmishers upon the right of the First Brigade were not more
than two rods in advance of the position held by the Thirty-sixth
Massachusetts, and it was with this line that Companies A and F were to
connect. There were some very dangerous intervals between the different
brigades, considering the near proximity of the rebel force, and only
good luck, or the concealment afforded by the woods, prevented their
being observed and taken advantage of by the enemy.
Toward night a thunder-squall came up, and for over an hour the battle
raged with even greater fury, the booming of man's artillery seeming
to vie with Heaven's. It was a perfect pandemonium of sound. The rain
fell in torrents, the lightning flashed, thunder pealed incessantly,
and shot and shell from the rebel guns fell and burst around. It
seemed as if "man fought on earth, and fiends in upper air." At four
P.M. Companies A and F were relieved by E and K. The latter had hardly
taken position when they were handsomely charged upon by the rebel
skirmishers, who were as handsomely repulsed, Captain Warriner being in
command of the picket. That night the men lay on their arms quietly,
and on the morning of the 12th the brigade was relieved by a brigade of
the Second Division, and marched to the rear, taking a position near
the Lunatic Asylum.
The movement now settled down into the nature of a siege. General
Sherman, being desirous of saving life, resolved upon regular
approaches by rifle-pits to force a surrender of the city. During the
12th and 13th the regiment lay quietly in the rear, resting and keeping
as cool as possible in the shelter of a piece of wood. Occasionally the
rebels would throw a thirty-two pound shot over into our neighborhood,
creating some excitement, but doing no harm.
On the 14th and 15th the regiment was again at the front, and occupied
the rifle-pits, Major Goodell being in command. No loss was suffered
during these two days, the men having good shelter and having learned
not to expose themselves unnecessarily. The heaviest fighting seemed
to be upon the extreme right, the lines of investment having the Pearl
river on both flanks.
Some exciting incidents occurred, from time to time, to vary the
monotony. One day the men of the Second Michigan lost their temper; and
with the idea, perhaps, of taking Jackson alone, made a gallant charge,
breaking through two lines of rebels, greatly to the astonishment of
the second line, whose arms were stacked and the men here and there,
not expecting callers. Not being supported, they were compelled to fall
back, which they did, very coolly, bringing their killed and wounded.
Even a battle is not without its laughable side. One day, while the
regiment was in reserve, the men occupied in various ways to kill time,
suddenly shouting and firing were heard on the right. The noise rapidly
increased and approached, and, its cause being doubtful, the men fell
in on the stacks. Presently there came dashing along a black pig, one
of the semi-wild species which wander about in this region, and had
rashly approached the lines, not being aware that pork was a favorite
dish. He met with a warm reception. A sharp fusillade was opened upon
him, and piggy fell, covered with glory, having almost attained the
honor of breaking through the lines of the Fifteenth Corps. Ere the
echo of his dying squeal had fairly ceased he was broiling in steaks
over the camp-fires.
July 12th news was received of the fall of Port Hudson, the battle of
Gettysburg, and the defeat of Lee. The cheering along the lines was
deafening, and the drooping spirits of all were roused by the glorious
tidings. Early on the morning of the 13th the rebels made a sudden
and vigorous sortie in front of Colonel Griffin's command. They were
repulsed with severe loss, and did not repeat the attempt.
On the 16th General Potter, with the Second Division and Smith's
division, made a reconnoissance. They advanced until the enemy
opened heavily with shell and canister, when they fell back, having
accomplished the desired end of discovering the exact position and
strength of the enemy. This day General Sherman received a large supply
of ammunition, of which he had run very short, and it was determined to
bombard the works and assault them on the 17th; but during the night
the enemy's artillery and wagons could be distinctly heard moving
through the town, and, when morning dawned, a white flag was seen on
the rebel earthworks. General Ferrero's brigade, in which was the
Thirty-fifth Massachusetts, entered Jackson, placed guards over the
public property, and sent out parties to pick up stragglers from the
retreating rebels. One thirty-two pounder was found in their works,
about one thousand stand of arms, and a large quantity of munitions of
war. One officer and one hundred and thirty-seven men were captured.
The railroad depot, and a few buildings containing public property,
were destroyed. The flag of the Thirty-fifth Massachusetts waved from
the dome of the capitol of Mississippi.
General Johnston, in his "Narrative" (page 209), says his army
retreated east, to Brandon, where some soldiers, who had been asleep
when he evacuated Jackson rejoined him late in the day, "and reported
that at the time they left Jackson, at seven or eight o'clock, the
enemy had not discovered his [Johnston's] retreat." This is incorrect.
In the report of the Adjutant-General of Massachusetts, 1863, the
Thirty-fifth Massachusetts reports as follows: "_At about daylight_,
discovering that the enemy's works were evacuated, moved forward," etc.
The writer of these pages recorded, in a diary written on the spot, the
following: "_At daylight_ this morning the Second Division, being in
front, heard loud cheering, and learned that the rebels had evacuated
Jackson." In a letter written home at the time, I also find these
words: "_At six o'clock_ this morning it was found that the enemy had
abandoned Jackson, and General Ferrero's brigade _at once_ entered the
city." Certainly this should dispose of the charge of lack of vigilance
on our part. It seems that these men did not report how they got
across Pearl river, the bridges of which were destroyed by Johnston's
rear guard before daylight, and if they were not aroused by their own
comrades movements it is not very strange that the retreat was not
discovered by our pickets. In this engagement Johnston had about 28,000
by his own admission,[3] though the rebel Secretary of War reported
his force at 34,000. Johnston reported his army drawn from different
commands, as follows: From Pemberton, 9,831; Bragg, 7,939; Beauregard,
6,283; in all, 24,053. He also had a force of about 2,500 cavalry under
General Jackson. These figures are no doubt nearly correct. The lines
around Jackson were defended by these troops in four divisions,--the
right, under General Loring, extending from Pearl river to the Canton
road; General Walker's division, from the Canton road to across the
Clinton road; General French's division, from the Clinton road to
the New Orleans Railroad, and the left, under General Breckenridge,
extended from the railroad to the river. That part of the line held by
General Walker was in front of the Thirty-sixth Massachusetts.
[3] Johnston's "Narrative," page 195.
General Johnston reported his loss in the battle 71 killed, 504
wounded, and 25 missing. As we captured 138 prisoners, there seems to
be a wide discrepancy between their _missing_ and our _captures_. It
is, therefore, quite probable that the rebel losses were much greater
than their general admits in killed and wounded.
The losses on our part, according to General Sherman's report, were
as follows: Thirteenth Corps, 762 killed wounded, and missing; Ninth
Corps, 37 killed, 258 wounded, 33 missing; Fifteenth Corps, a few;
number not stated. General Sherman also adds that he captured, in all,
over 1,000 prisoners during the battle. These captures must have been
made by the Thirteenth and Fifteenth Corps. The latter, Sherman's own
corps, consisted of the First and Third Divisions, under Generals
Steele and Tuttle, and held the centre; the Thirteenth Corps, as before
remarked, being on the right. Why this fine corps, the Fifteenth, was
held back, and allowed to take so little part in this battle, as is
evident from their slight loss, is among the mysteries of the war.
The battle seemed to be one of disjointed attacks, first in one place
and then another. It was the general opinion among the officers that
a simultaneous and vigorous assault of Johnston's lines on the first
day of the fight would have carried them. It is possible that General
Sherman feared to risk the consequences of a repulse so far from any
base or reinforcements. The movement up to the attack upon Jackson was
a bold one, and boldly pushed. Much dissatisfaction was expressed that
an affair that might have been settled in a day should have dragged
along a week in this most trying season of the year for such work.
General Johnston felt well satisfied to be able to draw off his army
safely from what might have been made a second Vicksburg.
It was hoped that the capture of Jackson would be the close of the
campaign, the impolicy of pursuing a demoralized enemy further at
this season being apparent to all. But there was hard work yet to do.
Scarcely was it known that the city was in possession of our forces ere
marching orders were received, and together with the other regiments of
the First Division the Thirty-sixth marched about eight miles north, to
a place called Grant's Mills, where we bivouacked for the night. Early
on Saturday, the 18th, we marched five miles and struck the Mississippi
Central Railroad. During this day and until ten A.M. of the 19th the
regiment was engaged in destroying this railroad. Tough work it would
have been, even in the coolest weather and under the most favorable
circumstances; but under a burning July sun, with no shelter, the work
was terribly exhausting. The method of proceeding was to tear up the
rails and lay them crosswise with alternate rows of sleepers. When a
pile was built as high as the rails could be lifted, a fire was kindled
beneath, and the rails, red-hot, were warped and ruined by the weight
of the mass of rails and sleepers above. Another way was to heat the
middle of a rail red hot and twist it around a tree. In this way about
ten miles of this railroad were destroyed by the division in two days,
rendering a main line of transportation useless and seriously crippling
the rebel communications.
At noon of the 19th, after setting fire to a depot which burned like a
tinder-box, we commenced the return march to Jackson. The fatigues and
sufferings of this march were partially forgotten in the glad tidings
which there awaited us, that the Ninth Corps was under orders to
proceed North at once.
At three A.M., July 20th, the regiment was on the march, and with the
exception of a halt from eleven A.M. to three P.M. marched till dark,
in all a distance of eighteen miles.
In recalling this day and the one following no man of the Thirty-sixth
can fail to be overcome with the memories to which it will give rise.
The regiment was a mere wreck. When it halted for the night, on the
20th, one man of Company E dropped down and died of exhaustion, and
while on the march one of Company H died from the same cause in an
ambulance. When the regiment halted at noon of the 21st it did not
stack one hundred guns, and, for no apparent reason whatever, on these
two days, the regiment marched a distance of thirty-two miles. The
heat and dust were overpowering, and officers forgot all discipline
and straggled with the rest. The ambulance and teams were crowded with
exhausted men. At nine P.M. of the 21st the regiment halted about a
mile from the Big Black river, bivouacking in a cornfield; a delightful
place in some respects, because lying between the hills one could not
easily roll out of bed, and the savory diet on which the regiment had
regaled for about three weeks could be picked in all its luxuriance
from the bed-posts. The single objection to cornstalks two or three
inches in diameter for bedding is that they have a depressing influence
upon the bones of the hips and back.
July 22d the regiment did not move until noon, and then only four
miles, crossing the Big Black river, and camped in a shady wood, with
plenty of water at hand. It appeared to have dawned upon some one
in command of this division or corps that there is a limit to man's
endurance. July 23d _reveillé_ was sounded at two A.M. and, marching at
four, we pushed on rapidly, the day being unusually comfortable, and at
eleven o'clock A.M., after a march of fourteen miles, arrived at the
old camp at Milldale.
The condition of the regiment at this time was miserable indeed.
Sixteen cases of small-pox and varioloid, three being officers, were
under treatment, and the regimental hospital was filled with sick. The
adjutant's morning report of July 24th was as follows: 6 officers and
98 men present sick, and 63 men absent in hospitals, 25 officers and
343 men present for duty.
It was a season of general depression among all, and the only thing
to relieve the gloom was the prospect of a speedy departure for the
North,--an event most anxiously awaited and desired. To add to the
general discouragement, a number of officers of the regiment who had
resigned received their discharge. Colonel Bowman, Lieutenant-Colonel
Norton, and Lieutenants Tucker and Holbrook left for the North August
2d, making six officers lost to the regiment since its arrival in
Mississippi. Major Goodell took command of the regiment July 30th. The
resignation of Colonel Bowman left the brigade in command of Colonel
David Morrison, of the Seventy-ninth New York "Highlanders," and the
brigade was now composed of the Seventy-ninth New York, Forty-fifth
Pennsylvania, Eighth and Seventeenth Michigan, and Thirty-sixth
Massachusetts,--the entire brigade numbering hardly five hundred men
fit for service.
CHAPTER VII.
THE RETURN TO KENTUCKY.
The days between our arrival at Milldale and the departure for the
North were devoted to rest and recruiting the shattered strength of the
men. Never was rest so welcome, never so necessary, as now. Various
diseases prevailed. Mumps and chills and fever spread rapidly, and it
is safe to say that there was not an officer or man in the regiment who
could call himself well and hearty. Whiskey, doctored with quinine, was
served out at this time as a protection against chills. Although it was
of the genuine "lightning" brand "commissary" it probably did little
good, the mischief being already done, and the "ounce of prevention"
came too late.
August 2d all the sick who could be moved were sent off to a hospital
boat, and Surgeon Prince went in charge of them. On this day also the
following Special Order was received from General Grant:--
HEAD-QUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF THE TENNESSEE,
VICKSBURG, MISSISSIPPI, July 31st, 1863.
SPECIAL ORDER NO. 207.
In returning the Ninth Corps to its former command, it is with
pleasure that the general commanding acknowledges its valuable
services in the campaign just closed. Arriving at Vicksburg
opportunely, taking position to hold at bay Johnston's army, then
threatening the forces investing the city, it was ready and eager
to assume the aggressive at any moment. After the fall of Vicksburg
it formed a part of the army which drove Johnston from his position
near the Big Black river into his entrenchments at Jackson, and,
after a siege of eight days, compelled him to fly in disorder from
the Mississippi valley. The endurance, valor, and general good
conduct of the Ninth Corps are admired by all, and its valuable
coöperation in achieving the final triumph of the campaign is
gratefully acknowledged by the Army of the Tennessee. Major-General
Parke will cause the different regiments and batteries of his
command to inscribe upon their banners and guidons "Vicksburg and
Jackson."
By order of Major-General U. S. GRANT.
T. S. BOWERS, _A. A. General_.
At eight o'clock A.M., August 4th, orders were received to break camp
and proceed to the landing. Never was an order obeyed with more joy
and alacrity than this. The regiment was quickly on the march, and,
though the day was hot and the road dusty, the march of seven miles was
cheerfully borne, for we could not be sufficiently thankful to get away
from Mississippi. Upon arriving near the landing, it was found that
the boats had not arrived, but were taking in fuel at Vicksburg, and
another night must be spent here. A worse, more uncomfortable night the
regiment did not experience in Mississippi. As if to improve their last
opportunity, swarms of gnats, of the most savage description, attacked
the regiment, and few will ever forget that sleepless night. It was
indeed a fitting close of the campaign.
The boat arrived in the night, and the forenoon of the 5th was employed
in loading her with the baggage, horses, and guns, of Battery E, Second
United States. At three o'clock P.M. the regiment marched aboard the
fine steamer "Hiawatha," in company with the Forty-fifth Pennsylvania,
Twenty-seventh Michigan, and the regulars of Battery E, which crowded
the boat most uncomfortably, though her accommodations were large.
About four P.M. the boat cast off, and, steaming down the Yazoo,
entered the Mississippi at sunset, and as her course was directed
northward a worn but happy band of the Thirty-sixth Massachusetts laid
down to rest, thankful, after all their trials, to have been spared
through that short but fatal campaign.
All night of the 5th the boat moved slowly North, being very heavily
laden, and her crowded condition made it very tedious for all. Late in
the afternoon of the 6th the boat passed Columbus, Ark., noteworthy as
the place where the regiment received a "guerilla" salute, on its way
down the river.
August 7th, all day we were moving slowly up river, and at sunset we
stopped about twenty minutes at Helena, Ark., for provisions.
We arrived at Memphis on the forenoon of the 8th, and the men were
landed on an island a short distance above the city, where they
remained while the boat was thoroughly cleansed, and at five P.M.,
we reëmbarked, and were off again. August 9th was Sunday, and in the
forenoon divine services were held by the chaplain of the Forty-fifth
Pennsylvania. Private M. H. Fay, of Company G, died this day on board,
and at night the boat stopped at New Madrid, Mo., while his body was
buried ashore.
Monday, August 10th, at nine o'clock A.M., two months to a day from
the time the regiment left Cairo, it arrived there and landed, glad
enough to step once again on Northern soil. Late in the afternoon the
regiment was transferred to cars of the Illinois Central Railroad, rode
all night, all the next day, and late in the evening reached Vincennes.
All along the road the troops were received with great enthusiasm. The
well-known old Ninth Corps, fresh from its new triumphs, received the
cordial greeting of a grateful people. This was most gratifying to the
soldiers, and partially repaid them for their sufferings. Flowers were
literally showered by fair ladies upon the bronzed veterans, collations
were provided wherever the cars stopped, and the course of the regiment
through Illinois was one continuous ovation.
At noon, August 12th, the regiment arrived at Cincinnati, and after a
bountiful collation at the Fifth-street Market, provided by generous
citizens, we crossed the river to Covington, Ky., and went into
quarters in some barracks. The baggage was delayed, and many of the
officers slept this night on as soft a board as they could find, with
no covering, and did not suffer with the heat.
Major Goodell, having left for home "on leave" for twenty days, the
regiment was now under command of Captain Barker, of Company A. For
four days the regiment lay in camp at Covington, and had its first
dress-parade for a period of three months. The adjutant's walk from the
right to the centre was a very short one.
Every day the effect of the southern campaign was shown in the
increasing number of the sick. Many were sent to hospitals, and the
regiment rapidly decreased. Chills and fever were most prevalent, and a
disease similar to scurvy broke out, and caused the death of several,
whose flesh actually fell from their limbs before death relieved them
from their sufferings. All complained of a feeling of exhaustion, and
officers and men dragged themselves painfully and slowly about the camp.
Of the officers who had been left behind on account of sickness two
died. Second Lieutenant Frederick H. Sibley, of Company A, died in
hospital at Louisville, Ky., August 17th. He had been commissioned
First Lieutenant, but died before receiving his commission. Captain
Christopher S. Hastings, of Company I, died September 8th, in hospital
at Mound City, Ill. Both were true, faithful men, and their loss was
deeply lamented.
August 17th the regiment took cars, and, after riding all night,
arrived at Nicholasville at daylight. Marching out about three miles
from the town, we encamped in a fine shady grove, with plenty of water
at hand. Here we remained ten days, and enjoyed a most welcome rest.
The paymaster arrived, and paid off the regiment, August 19th, and more
than $3,000 of their pay was sent to Worcester, by the men, for their
families. Dr. Bryant, the only surgeon present, being sick, the surgeon
of the Seventy-ninth New York was detailed to attend the sick of the
Thirty-sixth.
The regimental musicians, from the ravages of small-pox and other
diseases, were now all gone, and for a time it became necessary to
obtain the services of musicians of the Forty-fifth Pennsylvania to
sound the calls for the Thirty-sixth.
August 27th _reveillé_ sounded at three A.M., and at half-past five
the regiment was on the march, a large number being left behind, too
weak to march. We passed through Bryantsville at half-past nine o'clock
A.M., and when the regiment halted for a rest, at ten o'clock, it
stacked ninety-eight muskets.
One year ago this day the Thirty-sixth Massachusetts was mustered into
the United States service, 1,040 strong. At eleven o'clock we went into
camp, at Camp Dick Robinson where the regiment was encamped in the
spring.
August 28th we were early on the march, and a very hard one it was for
what was left of the regiment, and that was not much. We marched eleven
miles, passing through Lancaster with colors flying, and the regiment
stacked sixty-eight guns, when it halted at noon four miles beyond
Lancaster.
This bare fact seems to render needless all further comment as to the
condition of the regiment. It was no longer a regiment, but a worn and
weary band, a squad of each company struggling on, fighting bravely
against fatigue, and heat, and illness. But what was now left may well
be called the very heart and soul of the Thirty-sixth,--men who had
never flinched; who had borne all, thus far, cheerfully and bravely,
with indomitable spirit. Very many were gone; but enough still remained
to guard the colors, to escort them on many a long and weary march, and
carry them in the front of many a battle yet to come.
August 29th the march was continued about six miles, to Crab Orchard,
where the regiment encamped in the edge of a wood, and remained
until September 10th. This brief period was occupied in various camp
duties, and preparations for an active campaign, for the corps was
under marching orders for Tennessee, and this halt was only to allow
the remainder of the corps to come up. Each day there were drills
and dress-parade, and men who had been left behind were constantly
rejoining the regiment until it began again to present quite a
respectable front.
Saturday, September 5th, the regiment was inspected by Captain Simcoe,
Division Inspector General, and the report thereon was briefly:
"Equipments much worn, and clothing poor, but muskets in fine order."
With the cooler weather of autumn, better rations, and rest from
fatiguing marches, the men rapidly improved in health and spirits.
Crab Orchard is quite a favorite resort of the people of Kentucky, and
is celebrated for its mineral springs, and as a very healthy region.
Whether the men tried the waters of the springs or not the writer
cannot say; they certainly were not delectable to the taste, and it is
very doubtful whether they were used medicinally. Twenty very happy men
left here for home, on a furlough for twenty days, greatly envied by
their comrades.
It was long ere any of these rejoined the regiment, and some never
returned. Lieutenant-Colonel Goodell, having exchanged the golden
leaves of Major, for the well-earned silver leaves, rejoined the
regiment, August 31st, and was heartily welcomed, as was also Major
Draper, upon whom the golden leaves had deservedly fallen, and who
returned September 9th, with Dr. J. H. Prince.
CHAPTER VIII.
IN EAST TENNESSEE.
At an early hour in the morning of September 10th, the familiar call
of "assembly" sounded once more. Camp was quickly broken, and at eight
o'clock the regiment was on the march for Tennessee. Having the head
of the column we did not find the march a severe one, though the roads
were rough; and at five o'clock P.M., after a tramp of eleven miles,
we halted for the night at Mount Vernon. More than one hundred and
fifty of the regiment were left at Crab Orchard on the sick list, too
feeble to march, but most of them rapidly gaining strength; and if the
regiment could have remained there a week longer many of them would
have been in the ranks again, for active service.
September 11th _reveillé_ was sounded at half-past three o'clock A.M.,
and we marched at five. The sun was hot and the roads rough; country
mountainous, and thinly settled. We marched fifteen miles, and at night
bivouacked on the bank of Little Rockcastle river. A courier from
General Burnside brought stirring news from the front, of the capture
of Cumberland Gap, and its garrison of over two thousand rebels.
September 12th the regiment marched eight miles, and went into camp at
noon. A severe thunder-shower came up at night; the baggage being far
behind, and the field and staff without any tents, Lieutenant Tuttle,
in charge of the division ambulance corps, kindly provided a tent for
the use of the head-quarters.
September 13th, Sunday, we lay quietly in camp,--a very welcome
rest,--for the men were getting very footsore from the rough Kentucky
roads. It would be hard to find worse ones even in rocky New England.
September 14th we were on the march at five A.M., and moving rapidly
until after one P.M., a distance of fourteen miles. Between eleven
and twelve o'clock the regiment halted by the roadside and witnessed
the passage under guard of the rebel prisoners captured at Cumberland
Gap. They numbered about twenty-two hundred, and consisted of the
Sixty-second and Sixty-fourth North Carolina, Fifty-ninth Georgia, and
a Virginia regiment of infantry and some artillery. It was generally
conceded that they were a very forlorn-looking set, and would fare
much better as prisoners than as fire-eaters. General Frazer, their
commander, was with them, riding in an ambulance. It appeared that
they had been led to believe that the Ninth Corps had surrounded them,
and they were much disgusted to find they had surrendered to the
Twenty-third Corps, which was composed of new troops.
Between sunrise and noon of the 15th we marched fourteen miles, and
encamped at Barboursville, on the Cumberland river. Before marching
this morning, a detail of three officers (Captain Holmes, Lieutenants
Hodgkins and Davis), and six men left us, for the purpose of returning
to Massachusetts, and bringing out the conscripts assigned to the
Thirty-sixth Regiment, according to orders received at Nicholasville.
September 16th the regular order for some days had been _reveillé_ at
half-past three and move at five A.M., and this day was no exception
to the rule. The march was slow and quite easy,--only ten miles. The
regiment was in camp by ten o'clock A.M., and had a good long day to
rest.
There is very little level ground in Eastern Kentucky, and the luck
of the regiment seemed to be to camp on side-hills, where some care
had to be exercised to avoid rolling off. To prevent sliding down hill
endwise, a log or rail was laid at the foot of the tent and secured.
This proved a very good foot-board. We remained at this place until
the 19th, and the paymaster arrived. No person was more welcome in
camp, or received such general attention. The adjutant gave checks, on
the city banks of Worcester, for the large sum of $3,917.50. This fact
is very creditable, and a good index of the solid, frugal character of
the men, who, though their wants were numerous and our popular sutler
was present with a good stock, did not forget the little family of
loved ones at home; but in many cases, to the writer's knowledge, sent
home their hard-earned pay to the last dollar.
September 18th it rained in torrents all day, and seemed very much
like the equinoctial storm. The order to march at six this morning was
countermanded, though the regiment was up at half-past four o'clock,
and all ready.
September 19th, on the march at six A.M. The roads were badly washed by
the storm, or rather the places where the roads were; for they could be
called little better than cow-paths. We crossed the Cumberland river at
Cumberland ford, and encamped at noon. The weather began to be cold and
raw as we approached the high region of the Cumberland mountains.
Sunday, September 20th, as usual we were in line at six A.M., and
marched until noon, much of the distance up hill, a rather toilsome
march of nine miles. Passed through Cumberland Gap at half-past eleven
A.M., and encamped in Tennessee at noon. The march was relieved of much
of its tediousness by the grandeur of the scenery. As the regiment
moved from one height to another of the ranges of hills the scene in
every direction was magnificent; and when, at length, the Gap was
reached, there was an universal expression of admiration. Standing in
the Gap is a large, square, white stone, of the native limestone, which
marks the corner boundaries of three States, and at this point the view
is grand; the ranges of hills and the valleys of Tennessee stretching
away as far as the eye could reach, the great Smoky range of North
Carolina bounding the southern horizon. It seemed incredible to all
that this place, a perfect Gibraltar, should have been surrendered as
it was. Fortified extensively with bomb-proofs, having only a narrow,
winding approach on either side, it seemed as if a few resolute men
could hold it against an army. And so they could; but, alas for the
South, Frazer was no Leonidas!
Between five A.M. and five P.M. of the 21st, with a rest of two hours
at noon, the regiment marched nineteen miles, and camped near the
Clinch river. We passed through Tazewell, a considerable town, but
showing signs of its recent occupation by the rebel and Union troops
alternately. The absence of the top rails in this region was especially
remarked, now that the season for evening camp-fires had arrived.
A long march of twenty-two miles was made on the 22d (a mile for every
day of the month), and during the day the Clinch and Holston rivers
were forded. This was a very interesting sight, especially to those who
had got safely over and looked back to see some luckless wader lose his
footing and take an involuntary bath, which, the water being shallow,
was attended with no great peril. The bare-legged "Highlanders"
seemed to enjoy the temporary necessity for their native costume. The
line of march this day was through the most attractive part of East
Tennessee. No State in the Union can boast of more beautiful scenery,
and the regiment must have been inspired by it; for though one of the
longest day's marches on its record, up hill and down and across broad
rivers, there was no straggling, and the entire command stacked arms at
sunset at Morristown, Tennessee, on the line of the Virginia and East
Tennessee Railroad.
On the 23d and 24th the regiment made an unnecessary march of twenty
miles, owing to the blunder of a telegraph operator, and at ten A.M.
of the 24th reëntered Morristown, where it was found that the division
had gone to Knoxville, and the Thirty-sixth was ordered to remain and
garrison the town in company with the Twelfth Michigan Battery, which
it did until the afternoon of the 26th, when it was relieved by the
Twelfth Kentucky.
At ten o'clock P.M. the regiment embarked in the cars, and, riding all
night, arrived at Knoxville, marched a half mile, and encamped in a
wood in the suburbs, where we remained until October 3d. Captain Smith,
of Company K, rejoined the regiment here on the 28th of September, and
was warmly received. Rumors prevailed of a severe battle at or near
Chattanooga, and the defeat of Rosecrans; and it was also reported that
a large force of rebels was concentrating at Greenville for an attack
upon Burnside. The few days of rest here were enjoyed by all, and the
men improved them in repairing their wardrobes and preparations for
more hard work.
Before daylight, October 3d, orders were received to march at eight
A.M., in "light marching order, with five days' rations and forty
rounds of ammunition per man," the destination being "a point beyond
Greenville." As this "point" was known to be the rebel force, the
affair savored strongly of a fight. As the regiment passed through
Knoxville on its way to the cars, with drums beating and colors flying,
it passed the head-quarters of General Burnside, and gave him a
marching salute.
We had a long day in the cars, going slowly, as the road was a pretty
rickety affair in many places, and about sunset we arrived at Bull's
Gap, sixty miles from Knoxville, where a small force was found,
consisting of the One Hundred and Third Ohio Infantry and Second East
Tennessee Regiment. Large numbers of men were constantly coming in
from the east, many of them refugees, and some rebel deserters. The
former were mostly anxious to enlist in the Union ranks, and seemed
bitterly in earnest in their desire to drive the rebels from here.
Their sufferings and privations since the war broke out had been
terrible,--their homes destroyed, families scattered or forced to
hide in caves in the hills. It is no wonder they welcomed the Union
army as their saviors and liberators. Old men and women stood by the
roadside and audibly thanked God and blessed the soldiers as they
marched past. Little Union flags, made of the roughest material, but
with the true colors, that had long been hidden sacredly away, were
waved triumphantly, and were greeted with cheers by the Yankee boys,
who no less proudly displayed the beloved silken standard that they
had followed so long, and which, like them, was beginning to have a
war-worn, veteran look.
A march of four miles, October 4th, brought the regiment to a place
called "Lick Creek," where it remained until the 10th, awaiting
the arrival of other troops and the Commanding General. The Eighth
Tennessee Infantry, and the Ninth Michigan and Seventh Ohio Cavalry
were already here, the enemy being in force at Blue Springs, about
three miles from this place, closely watched by the cavalry pickets.
Probably all who went into camp with the Thirty-sixth this day recall
the amusing incident of the grand rabbit-hunt when the regiment broke
ranks. The field seemed to be alive with the little animals, and the
men, never averse to variety in their bill-of-fare, turned into Nimrods
like magic. The bewildered rabbits, headed off in every direction,
rushed upon their fate, and game suppers were "_à la mode_."
The Second Brigade of the First Division, and four large regiments and
three batteries of new troops under General Willcox, arrived on the
8th, and on this day the cavalry captured a rebel foraging train of
thirteen wagons and nine drivers. From them it was learned that a large
force, under Generals Breckenridge, Jones, Crittenden, Courcy, and
Ransom, was at Blue Springs, in a strong position, and meant fight. The
regiment was now small in numbers, but tough and healthy, and certain
to give a good account of itself whatever service it might be called on
to perform.
The nature of the country about Blue Springs was such that it was easy
to conceal a large force of troops, and difficult to reconnoitre.
Strips of dense woodland, alternating with open and some hilly country,
gave good opportunity for planting and masking artillery, and it was
necessary to approach the rebel position cautiously, it being difficult
to develop. Early on the morning of October 10th the entire force was
on the march, Burnside being present in command, and as usual, when he
showed himself to his boys, he was warmly and vociferously greeted.
The regiment moved slowly until, at about noon, it appeared to be
checked, and heavy firing of artillery showed that the engagement was
opened. Until about 3 P.M. the fighting was left to the Twenty-third
Corps, which, however, seemed to make little or no impression upon
the enemy, and was meeting with considerable loss. Up to this hour
the First Brigade, of which the Thirty-sixth was a part, was in
reserve, within easy rifle-shot of the rebel line, awaiting orders.
Not far from the left of the brigade a section of Osborn's New York
battery was engaged in shelling a piece of wood at a distance of about
one hundred and fifty yards in front, where the rebel soldiers were
posted, and had all day very obstinately resisted the efforts of the
artillery and Twenty-third Corps to dislodge them. Generals Burnside,
Willcox, Ferrero, and other officers were near this section, watching
the effect of the firing. About half-past three o'clock P.M., General
Burnside ordered General Ferrero to advance with his division and clear
out this wood at the point of the bayonet. The First Brigade was at
once in motion, the Seventy-ninth New York on the right, Thirty-sixth
Massachusetts in the centre, and Eighth Michigan on the left; the
Forty-fifth Pennsylvania, as usual, was deployed as skirmishers. After
moving a short distance by the right flank to get the shelter of a
wood, the right of the brigade struck the rebel line, and received
a heavy fire, from which the Seventy-ninth New York sustained some
loss. The brigade then "changed front forward," which brought the
Thirty-sixth and Eighth Michigan out into an open field, when the enemy
opened a sharp fire of musketry from behind a fence that bordered the
strip of wood. But no sooner did the brigade front their position than
it dashed forward, and in less time than it takes to tell it drove
back the rebel force, killing some and capturing fifteen men of a
Georgia regiment. Their entire line broke, fled through the woods over
a hill, and took shelter behind their artillery, which now opened fire
at short range.
The brigade followed the retreating enemy until ordered to halt
by General Ferrero and await further orders, having done all it
was expected to do in a very short space of time. The halting of a
charging line of infantry under a heavy fire is a delicate manœuvre.
The men, excited by the charge, can more easily be led forward than
held steadily in the position taken. At such a moment the example
of the officers is indispensable, and it was while in front of the
colors, calling upon the regiment to keep the line "steady," that
Lieutenant-Colonel Goodell fell, severely wounded by a piece of shell
in the thigh. He was carried to the rear, and the command devolved
upon Major Draper. There was much sorrow at the loss of the young and
favorite colonel, and a desire was expressed to get at the battery that
threw the shell.
The regiment lay quietly and coolly under the fire of the rebel guns
until dark, and, being sheltered by the slight rise of ground along
its front, did not suffer much loss. Lieutenants Holmes and Robinson
were wounded, the latter in the head, and three men of Companies A,
D, and H; only one severely,--Woodward, of Company H. Considering the
severe fire to which the regiment was exposed for more than an hour,
its escape from great loss was noteworthy. General Burnside sent an aid
down to congratulate the brigade upon the manner in which it carried
the wood and unmasked the rebel batteries.
It was thought that the rebels, being so strongly posted and in large
force, would hold their ground. During the night earthworks were thrown
up along the ridge held by the brigade, and before daylight two guns of
Roemer's battery were brought up and trained. With the earliest morn
the Eighth Michigan skirmished forward, and found that the rebels had
retreated, evidently in haste. The pursuit was at once commenced and
pushed rapidly; the regiment marched nineteen miles, and a little after
dark halted at a place called Rheatown, eight miles beyond Greenville.
All along the route were seen the evidences of the hasty retreat of the
enemy, who abandoned their wounded and much baggage. Their rear was
harassed by our cavalry, who killed and captured many.
All day, October 12th, orders were expected to continue the pursuit,
and the regiment lay in line. But the cavalry reported the enemy
so scattered and broken up that General Burnside concluded not to
follow them further with infantry, and the corps was ordered back to
Knoxville. The next day the regiment marched sixteen miles, passing
through Greenville again,--a considerable town, which is noteworthy as
the home of Andrew Johnson, and the place where he is now buried.
October 14th, the Seventy-ninth New York, Forty-fifth Pennsylvania,
and Companies H and F of the Thirty-sixth, took cars for Knoxville at
noon. The rest of the regiment, with the Eighth Michigan, marched to
Bull's Gap to take the cars,--a march of fourteen miles,--and arrived
at Knoxville late in the night. There was a general idea now prevalent
that the corps would go into winter-quarters here; but, after a rest
of five days, the regiment marched to Loudon, about thirty miles
south-west of Knoxville, on the south bank of the Little Tennessee
river, an attack by the enemy from this quarter being threatened.
CHAPTER IX.
THE RETREAT FROM LENOIR'S AND THE BATTLE OF CAMPBELL'S STATION.
From October 22d to October 28th the Thirty-sixth Massachusetts was
encamped at Loudon, but the enemy failed to appear. At half-past two
o'clock, on the morning of the 28th, the baggage was sent across the
river, the regiment followed, and the pontoons were taken up. The
regiment then marched to Lenoir's, about twenty-three miles south-west
of Knoxville, and halted for the night. On the following day orders
were received to establish a permanent camp for the winter. Never was
such an order more welcome. A year of varied and arduous toil was to be
followed, it was supposed, by a season of grateful rest.
The place selected for the winter-quarters of the regiment was a
thrifty young oak grove, nearly a quarter of a mile east of the little
village of Lenoir's. The camp was laid out with unusual care. In
order to secure uniformity throughout the regiment, the size of the
log-houses--they were to be ten feet by six--was announced in orders
from regimental head-quarters. The work of construction was at once
commenced. Unfortunately we were so far from our base of supplies--Camp
Nelson, Kentucky--that nearly all our transportation was required
by the Commissary Department for the conveyance of its stores.
Consequently the Quartermaster's Department was poorly supplied,
and the only axes that could be obtained were those the pioneers
and company cooks had brought with them for their own use. These,
accordingly, were pressed into the service, and their merry ringing,
as the men cheerfully engaged in the work, could be heard from early
morning until evening. Small oaks, four and five inches in diameter,
were chiefly used in building these houses. The logs were laid one
above another, to the height of four feet, intersecting at the corners
of the houses like the rails of a Virginia fence. The interstices were
filled with mud. Shelter tents, buttoned together to the size required,
formed the roof, and afforded ample protection from the weather, except
in very heavy rains. Each house had its fireplace, table, and bunk.
On the 13th of November the houses were nearly completed throughout
the camp; and as we sat by our cheerful fires that evening, and looked
forward to the leisure and rest of the winter before us, we considered
ourselves the happiest of soldiers. Unless something unforeseen should
happen, we thought we were sure of a quiet and pleasant winter at
Lenoir's.
That something unforeseen, however, was at hand, and our pleasant
dreams were destined to fade away like an unsubstantial pageant,
leaving not a rack behind. At four o'clock, on the morning of the
14th, the sergeant-major hurried to the officers' quarters with the
order, "Be ready to march at daybreak." The order was at once repeated
to the orderly sergeants of the several companies. Forthwith the camp
was astir. Lights flashed here and there through the trees. "Pack up!
pack up!" passed from lip to lip. "Shall we take everything?" was the
eager inquiry on every hand. "Yes, everything," was the reply from
head-quarters. Reluctantly the shelter-tents were stripped from the
well-built houses, which were justly the pride of both officers and
men. Knapsacks and trunks were packed. The wagon for the officers'
baggage came, was hurriedly loaded, and driven away. A hasty breakfast
followed; then, forming our line, we stacked arms, and awaited further
orders.
The meaning of all this is not so dark now as it was then.
Lieutenant-General Longstreet, who was in command of the best corps
in Bragg's army at Chattanooga, received instructions, November
3d, at a counsel of war, to move his command against Burnside.
Bragg's formal letter of instructions was dated November 4th, and
on that day Longstreet put his troops in motion, with orders "to
drive Burnside out of East Tennessee first; or, better, to capture
or destroy him." He had with him more than fifteen thousand men,
besides Wheeler's cavalry,--"portions of five brigades" (perhaps five
thousand more),--and eighty pieces of artillery. General Grant, who
at that time was mustering his forces for an assault on Bragg, at
once was informed of the movement. As early as October 26th he had
thought of the possibility of such a movement, and had telegraphed to
Burnside, "Do you hear of any of Bragg's army threatening you from the
south-west?" He now, November 5th, announced to Burnside the departure
of Longstreet, saying, "I will endeavor, from here, to bring the enemy
back from your right flank, as soon as possible." Accordingly, two
days later, he ordered Thomas to attack Bragg. "The news is of such a
nature," he said, in his order, "that it becomes an imperative duty for
your force to draw the attention of the enemy from Burnside to your own
front." But Thomas had no horses with which to move his artillery, and
the attack was necessarily delayed. November 12th Burnside telegraphed
to Grant: "We will endeavor to hold in check any force that comes
against us, until Thomas is ready."
This force, under Longstreet, was close upon us. The next day,
November 13th, Burnside ascertained that Longstreet had reached the
Tennessee river at Hough's Ferry, a few miles below Loudon. He at
once informed Grant, and proposed to concentrate his forces and fall
back on Knoxville, so as to draw Longstreet as far from Bragg as
possible. And this was the reason why we were so suddenly called to
leave our comfortable winter-quarters at Lenoir's. Longstreet had
thrown a pontoon across the river, and was moving across his entire
command, except the cavalry under Wheeler, which he had sent by way
of Marysville, with orders to seize the heights on the south bank of
the Holston river, opposite Knoxville. Knoxville was Longstreet's
objective. It was the key of East Tennessee. Should it fall into
the enemy's hands we should be obliged to retire to Cumberland Gap.
Lenoir's did not lie in Longstreet's path. If we remained there
he would push his columns past our right, and get between us and
Knoxville. It was evident, therefore, that the place must be abandoned,
and there was need of haste. The mills and factories in the village
were accordingly destroyed, and the wagon-train started north.
The morning had opened heavily with clouds, and as the day advanced the
rain came down in torrents. A little before noon our division, then
under the command of General Ferrero, moved out of the woods, but,
instead of taking the road to Knoxville, as we had anticipated, the
column marched down the Loudon road. Grant had telegraphed Burnside:
"If you can hold Longstreet in check until Sherman gets up, or, by
skirmishing and falling back, can avoid serious loss to yourself,
and gain time, I will be able to force the enemy back from here, and
place a force between Longstreet and Bragg that must inevitably make
the former take to the mountain passes by every available road, to
get to his supplies." We, then, were to watch the enemy, and so not
only secure the safety of our trains and material, then on the way
to Knoxville, but also to have a part in the great work Grant had
undertaken in the campaign upon which he had just entered.
A few miles from Lenoir's, while we were halting for rest in a
drenching rain, General Burnside passed us on his way to the front;
under his slouched hat there was a sterner face than there was wont to
be. "There is trouble ahead," said the men; but the cheers which rose
from regiment after regiment, as with his staff and battle-flag he
swept past us, told the confidence which we all felt in Old "Burnie."
One incident of that march is still fresh in memory. Captain Buffum's
mess had secured several goodly turkeys, which were still fattening for
the approaching Thanksgiving. They were entrusted that morning to Jim,
the captain's colored servant, with many injunctions to faithfulness.
Late in the afternoon Jim was discovered empty-handed. "Where are those
turkeys?" thundered the captain. "I don't know, sah," replied Jim; "I
was tired, and lef' 'em by the road." "O Jim," added the captain, "I
knew you would yet ruin me!"
Chapin's brigade of White's command (Twenty-third Army Corps), was in
the advance; and, about four o'clock, his skirmishers met those of the
enemy, and drove them back a mile and a half. The country became hilly
as we advanced, and our artillery moved with difficulty. At dark we
were in front of the enemy's position, having marched nearly fourteen
miles. Our line was formed in a heavy timber, and we there stacked
arms, awaiting orders. It still rained hard; but here and there, we
hardly know how, fires were made, to prepare the ever-welcome cup of
coffee; and then, weary and wet, we laid down on the well-soaked ground.
During the evening a circular was received, notifying us of an intended
attack on the enemy's lines, at nine o'clock P.M., by the troops of
White's command; but, with the exception of an occasional shot, the
night was a quiet one. The rain ceased about ten.
Two additional despatches had been sent by Grant that day. The first
asked, "Can you hold the line from Knoxville to Clinton for seven
days?" And again, at ten o'clock, he added, "It is of the most vital
importance that East Tennessee should be held. Take immediate steps to
that end."
The next morning, at daybreak, our line was noiselessly formed, and we
marched out of the woods into the road. But it was not an advance as we
anticipated. During the night Burnside had issued orders for his troops
to return to Lenoir's. Such was the state of the roads, however, on
account of the heavy rainfall of the day before, that it was almost
impossible to move our artillery. At one time our whole regiment was
detailed to assist Roemer's battery. Near Loudon we passed the Second
Division of our corps, which, during the night, had moved down from
Lenoir's, in order to be within supporting distance. But the enemy did
not seem to be disposed to press us. We reached Lenoir's about noon.
Sigfried, with the Second Division, followed later in the day. Our
brigade (Morrison's) was now drawn up in line of battle on the Kingston
road, to check any movement the enemy might make in that direction. A
small force appeared in our front about three o'clock, and drove in the
pickets. The Eighth Michigan was at once deployed as skirmishers. The
Thirty-sixth Massachusetts and Forty-fifth Pennsylvania at the same
time moved forward to support the skirmishers, and took a position in
the woods, on the left of the road. Just at dark, to feel our position,
the enemy made a dash, and pressed our skirmishers back nearly to our
line, but declined to advance any further.
Burnside now made preparations to withdraw from Lenoir's, and fall back
on Knoxville. About the station nearly one hundred wagons were drawn
up, and as the mules were needed in order to move the artillery, the
spokes of the wheels were cut, and the stores and baggage in the wagons
were destroyed. At the same time a portion of the Ninth Corps, under
Colonel Hartranft, and a body of mounted infantry, were sent toward
Knoxville, with orders to hold the junction of the road from Lenoir's
with the Knoxville and Kingston roads, near the village of Campbell's
Station. The distance was only eight miles; but the progress of the
columns was much retarded. Such was still the condition of the roads
that the artillery could be moved only with the greatest difficulty.
Colonel Biddle dismounted some of his men and hitched their horses to
the guns. In order to lighten the caissons, some of the ammunition was
removed from the boxes and destroyed; but as little as possible, for
who could say it would not be needed on the morrow? Throughout the long
night officers and men faltered not in their efforts to help forward
the batteries. In the light of subsequent events, as it will be seen,
they could not have performed any more important service. Colonel
Hartranft that night displayed the same spirit and energy which he
infused into his gallant Pennsylvanians at Fort Steadman in the last
agonies of the rebellion, when, rolling back the fiercest assaults
of the enemy, he gained the first real success in the trenches at
Petersburg, and won for himself the double star of a major-general.
Meanwhile the Thirty-sixth and the other regiments of Morrison's
brigade remained on the Kingston road in front of Lenoir's. The
enemy, anticipating an evacuation of the place, made an attack on our
lines about ten o'clock P.M.; but a few shots from our pickets were
sufficient to satisfy him that we still held the ground. Additional
pickets, however, were sent out to extend the line held by the Eighth
Michigan. The Thirty-sixth Massachusetts and Forty-fifth Pennsylvania
still remained in line of battle in the woods. Neither officers nor men
slept that night. It was bitter cold, and the usual fires were denied
us, lest they should betray our weakness to the enemy. The men were
ordered to put their canteens and tin cups in their haversacks, and
remain quietly in their places, ready for any movement at a moment's
notice. It was a long, tedious, anxious night; what would the morrow
bring? It was Sunday night. The day had brought us no rest, only
weariness and care. No one could speak to his fellow; and in the thick
darkness, through the long, long night, we lay on our arms, waiting for
the morning. How many hearts there were among us which, overleaping
the boundaries of States, found their way to Pennsylvania and New
England homes; how many which, on the morrow, among the hills of East
Tennessee, were to pour out their life's blood even unto death!
At length the morning came. It was cloudy as the day before. White's
division of the Twenty-third Corps was now on the road to Knoxville;
and, besides our own brigade, only Humphrey's brigade of our division
remained at Lenoir's. About daybreak, as silently as possible, we
withdrew from our position on the Kingston road, and, falling back
through the village of Lenoir's took the Knoxville road, Humphrey's
brigade, consisting of the Second, Seventeenth, and Twentieth Michigan
regiments, covering the retreat. The enemy, Hood's division, at once
discovered this movement, but, lingering around the burning baggage
and stores, did not press us till we were within about two miles of
Campbell's Station. Humphrey, however, held them in check with the loss
of a few killed and wounded,--among the former Colonel Smith, of the
Twentieth Michigan,--and Morrison moved rapidly on to the point where
the road from Lenoir's unites with the road from Kingston to Knoxville.
It was evidently Longstreet's purpose to cut off our retreat at this
place. For this reason he had not pressed us at Lenoir's, the afternoon
previous, but had moved the main body of the force under his command to
our right. But the mounted infantry, which had been sent to this point
during the night, and which had moved out on this road, were able to
hold his advance in check till Hartranft came up.
On reaching the junction of the roads Morrison ordered us into an
open field on our left, and the Thirty-sixth was directed to take
position in rear of a rail-fence, with our right resting on the
Kingston road. The Eighth Michigan was on our left. The Forty-fifth
Pennsylvania was deployed as skirmishers. Meanwhile the rest of the
troops on the road from Lenoir's, and those which had preceded us,
were moving to a position selected by Burnside, a little way beyond
the village of Campbell's Station; and we were left to cover the
movement. Unfurling our colors we awaited the advance of the enemy.
There was little delay. In our front there was an occasional shot,
and also to our right; but it was soon evident that the enemy were
moving to our left, in order to gain the cover of the woods and obtain
a more favorable position for attack. Moving off by the left flank,
therefore, we took a second position in an adjoining field. Finding now
the enemy moving rapidly through the woods, and threatening our rear
with increasing numbers,--Hood's division, that had followed us from
Lenoir's, being now up,--we executed a left half-wheel, and, advancing
on the double-quick to the rail-fence which ran along the edge of
the woods, we opened a heavy fire. The manner in which Major Draper
handled the regiment in these trying circumstances was worthy of the
highest praise. From this new position the enemy at once endeavored
to force us. His fire was well directed, but the fence afforded us a
slight protection. Lieutenant J. B. Fairbank and a few of the men were
here wounded. For a while we held the enemy in check, but at length
the skirmishers of the Forty-fifth Pennsylvania, who were watching
our right, discovered a body of rebel infantry pushing toward our
rear from the Kingston road. Colonel Morrison, our brigade commander,
at once ordered the Thirty-sixth Massachusetts and Eighth Michigan
to face about, and establish a new line in rear of the rail-fence on
the opposite side of the field. We advanced on the double-quick, and,
reaching the fence, our men, with a shout, poured a volley into the
rebel line of battle, which not only checked its advance, but drove
it back in confusion. Meanwhile the enemy in our rear moved up to the
edge of the woods, which we had just left, and now opened a brisk fire.
We at once crossed the fence, in order to place it between us and his
fire, and were about to devote our attention again to him when orders
came for us to withdraw, it being no longer necessary for us to hold
the junction of the roads, as all our troops and wagons had now passed.
The enemy, too, was closing in upon us, and his fire was the hottest.
We moved off in good order; but our loss in killed and wounded was
quite heavy, considering the time we were under fire.
Among the killed was Lieutenant P. Marion Holmes (Co. B), of
Charlestown, Massachusetts, of whom it might well be said,
"He died as fathers wish their sons to die."
Lieutenant Holmes had been wounded in the foot at the battle of Blue
Springs, October 10th, and, as the wound was not fully healed, had
made the march from Lenoir's that morning with great difficulty. But
he would not leave his men. On his breast he wore the badge of the
Bunker Hill Club, on which was engraved the familiar line from Horace,
which Warren quoted just before the battle of Bunker Hill: "_Dulce et
decorum est pro patria mori_,"--It is sweet and glorious to die for
one's country. In the death of Lieutenant Holmes the regiment sustained
a great loss. Frank, courteous, manly, brave, he had won all hearts;
and his sudden removal from our companionship, at that moment, will
ever remind us of the great price with which that morning's success was
bought. His men made a noble endeavor to bear the body from the field;
but the enemy were pressing us so hard that they were reluctantly
compelled to leave it near the spot where the lieutenant fell. There he
was buried, and his grave marked, so that, a few weeks after, friends
from home found the spot, and took up the remains, and brought them to
Charlestown, Mass., where funeral services were held January 18, 1864.
As we left the open field, and entered the woods between us and
Campbell's Station, the enemy manœuvred to cut us off from the
road, so that we were obliged to oblique to the left. Moving on the
double-quick, receiving an occasional volley, and barely escaping
capture, we at length emerged from the woods on the outskirts of the
village. Our formation by fours was well preserved in this movement,
and Major Draper afterwards learned from a rebel officer, that the
order and steadiness displayed by the Thirty-sixth under these trying
circumstances, prevented an attack upon us which might have led to
a serious disaster to our brigade. He said they thought there was a
"Regular" regiment among the rest, upon which the others might form.
Passing through the village of Campbell's Station, we were soon under
cover of our artillery, which General Potter, under the direction of
General Burnside, had placed in position on high ground, just beyond
the village. Campbell's Station is situated between two low ranges of
hills, which are nearly a mile apart. Across the intervening space our
infantry was drawn up in a single line of battle. Ferrero's division of
the Ninth Corps held the right; White's division of the Twenty-third
Corps held the centre; and Hartranft's division of the Ninth Corps held
the left. Benjamin's, Buckley's, Getting's, and Von Schlein's batteries
were on the right of the road. Roemer's battery was on the left. The
Thirty-sixth Massachusetts supported Roemer.
Longstreet, meanwhile, had disposed his forces for an attack on our
position, but was delayed on account of the difficulty experienced in
moving his artillery. At noon the rebels came out of the woods just
beyond the village, in two lines of battle, with a line of skirmishers
in front. The whole field was open to our view. Benjamin and Roemer
opened fire at once; and so accurate was their range that the rebel
lines were immediately broken, and they fell back into the woods
in confusion. The enemy, under cover of the woods on the slope of
the ridge, now advanced against our right. Christ's brigade, of our
division, at once changed front. Buckley executed the same movement
with his battery, and, by a well-directed fire, checked the enemy's
progress in that direction. The enemy next manœuvred to turn our left.
Falling back, however, to a stronger position in our rear, selected
by General Burnside, we established a new line about four o'clock
in the afternoon. This was done under a heavy fire from the enemy's
batteries. Ferrero was now on the right of the road. Morrison's brigade
was placed in rear of a rail fence, at the foot of the ridge on which
Benjamin's battery had been planted. Several of the Thirty-sixth were
wounded by the packing of the shells fired by Benjamin; and by a piece
of a shell from the same battery, that burst prematurely, Sergeant
Gallup, of Company A, was so severely wounded that he died in a short
time. The position for the regiment was a very trying one. The enemy,
however, did not seem inclined to attack us in front, but pushed along
the ridge, on our left, aiming to strike Hartranft in flank and rear.
He was discovered in this attempt; and, just as he was moving over
ground recently cleared, Roemer, changing front at the same time with
Hartranft, opened his three-inch guns on the rebel line, and drove it
back in disorder, followed by the skirmishers. Longstreet, foiled in
all these attempts to force us from our position, now withdrew beyond
the range of our guns, and made no further demonstrations that day.
Our troops were justly proud of their success; for, with a force not
exceeding five thousand men, they had held in check, for an entire day,
three times their own number, and with a comparatively small loss.[4]
In the Ninth Corps there were twenty-six killed, one hundred and
sixty-six wounded, and fifty-seven missing. Of these the Thirty-sixth
Massachusetts had one officer and three enlisted men killed, three
officers and fourteen enlisted men wounded, and three enlisted men
missing.
[4] General Longstreet, in his official report of this action, says:
"As soon as McLaws got up he was ordered to deploy three of his
brigades in front of the enemy, and to put the other brigade upon a
ridge on our left, so as to threaten the enemy's right. At the same
time, Colonel Alexander put his artillery in position, and General
Jenkins was ordered with Hood's division around the enemy's left, and,
upon arriving opposite the enemy's position, to make an attack upon
their flank, while General McLaws was advancing against the enemy's
front to follow General Jenkins' attack. The flank movement and the
fire of our batteries caused the enemy to retire in some haste. McLaws'
division advanced promptly, and brought the enemy to a stand about a
mile further toward his rear, in a more commanding position. If General
Jenkins could have made his attack during this movement, or if he
could have made it after the enemy had taken his second position, we
must have destroyed this force, recovered East Tennessee, and in all
probability captured the greater portion of the enemy's forces. He
attributes his failure to do so to some mismanagement of General Law.
Before I could get a staff officer to him to ascertain the occasion of
the delay, night came on and our efforts ceased."
At six o'clock P.M. Ferrero's division, followed by Hartranft's,
moved to the rear, taking the road to Knoxville. White's division of
the Twenty-third Corps covered the retreat. Campbell's Station is a
little more than sixteen miles from Knoxville; but the night was so
dark, and the road so muddy, that our progress was much retarded, and
we did not reach Knoxville till about four o'clock the next morning.
We had now been without sleep forty-eight hours. Moreover, since the
previous morning, we had marched twenty-four miles and fought a battle.
Halting just outside the town, wea
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