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"DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT"
(IJOTH REGIMENT OF NEW YORK STATE VOLUNTEER tvi..vvt;^v\
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IN THE CIVIL WAR
ITS STORY AS TOLD BY ITS MEMBERS
BASED UPON THE WRITINGS OF
REV. EDWARD O. BARTLETT, D. D.
EDITED BY
G. COOK, M. D. AND CHARLES E. BENTON
PANBURY, CONN. THF DANB'JRY MEDICAL PRINTING CO., INC. 1907
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THE
"DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT"
(IoOth regiment of new YORK STATE VOLUNTEER INFANTRY)
IN THE CIVIL WAR
ITS STORY AS TOLD BY ITS MEMBERS
BASED UPON THE WRITINGS OF
REV. EDWARD O. BARTLETT, D. D.
EDITED BY
S. G. COOK, M. D. AND CHARLES E. BENTON
PANBURY, CONN. THE DANBURY MEDICAL PRINTING CO., INC. 1907
COPYRIGHT, 1907
BY WILLIAM C. WILE
Danbury, Conn.
THEA.V.HAIOHTl PRINTERS POUGHKEEPSIE NEW YORK
1740440
TO THOSE OF OUR REGIMENT WHO LOST THEIR OWN LIVES WHILE SAVING OUR COUNTRY'S LIFE THIS VOLUME IS AFFECTION- ATELY DEDICATED AS A TRIBUTE TO THEIR UNFALTERING HEROISM
PREFACE
The surviving members of the Dutchess County- Regi- ment have always desired to have a Regimental History written. The subject came up at the first reunion in 1865, and at nearly every subsequent reunion since.
It was generally concluded that Major Smith (I like to call him "Major") was the proper person to write it, as it was believed that he had more data upon which to base the history of the regiment than any other member of it. It is also generally believed that he did write said history, but that his sudden and untimely death robbed us of his very valuable manuscripts.
It is thought probable that these manuscripts were in one of the many boxes that were sold at auction soon after his death, but said box could never be traced, al- though great efforts have been made to find it.
The matter drifted along until 1899 when the subject was brought up by Judge Gildersleeve, and a resolution offered and adopted that the history be written and pub- lished in book form, and the Rev. E. O. Bartlett, D.D., late Chaplain of the Regiment, volunteered to undertake it, and if the "Story of the Dutchess County Regiment" ever gets past the printer's hands and becomes a fixed fact, as "In God we trust" it will, great credit will be due Dr. Bartlett for his initiative work. No structure can be erected without a foundation, and he furnished the basis which made our final success possible.
viii PREFACE.
At the Annual Reunion in 1902, or three years later, he presented the fruit of his labors to the Association in 207 typewritten pages. A motion was made that this be printed at once, but objection was made to this on the grounds that the Association did not know what the manuscript contained, and that no one man could satis- factorily write the history, giving dates and incidents cor- rectly. Thereupon a committee on review and revision was appointed. I well remember how hard I tried to have Joseph H. Cogswell appointed Chairman of this Committee, because he was the ranking living line officer of the regiment, was a combatant, and since the war had been engaged in literary work, but against my earnest protest he turned the tables on me, and I was made Chair- man, with George H. Williams, Miles K. Lewis, Perry W. Chapman, William R. Woodin, William E. Gurney and William S. Van Keuren as my associates. In 1903 Joseph H. Cogswell, and the Hon. John I. Piatt, an hon- orary member of the Association, were added to it.
At the time I accepted the chairmanship of the com- mittee I realized what it meant, for I had been chairman of committees before. It meant that the chairman should do most of the work.
From some of my associates on the committee I have received valuable assistance.
On receipt of Dr. Bartlett's manuscript, I immediately had a dozen typewritten copies made, and at once divided it into chapters (which Dr. Bartlett had failed to do), apportioning a chapter each to some fifteen or twenty of the members of the old regiment for revision. In some of the chapters the Rev. Doctor will look in vain for the familiar expressions from his own pen, for most of them,
PREFACE. ix
in their final form, are essentially the production of those whose names are given as the authors.
About this time Charles E. Benton's book, "As Seen from the Ranks," came into my possession, and I recog- nized at once what a valuable editorial assistant he would be in this undertaking. I was not long in securing his co-operation, and I will here state that his assistance has been invaluable. In fact, I doubt if I would have been able to finish it without his aid, inasmuch as the added years were beginning to hang heavily upon me.
In looking up official documents and records, J. H. Cogswell, George H. Williams and William E. Gurney have been of great service. Cogswell's compilation of the Regimental Roster relieved me of a tremendous amount of work.
To those who were prompt in sending in their chapters and data for Personal Sketches (and even to those who sent them at all), I hereby tender my grateful acknowl- edgments.
In the circular letter I sent out in December, 1902, I asked for diaries. To this there was a liberal response, all of which have been useful in their way, but my "Bible and Prayer Book" has been that of Piatt C. Curtiss, late Sergeant of Co. I. His was complete, and when differ- ences of opinion as to dates and localities have arisen I have turned to it and have never been disappointed.
This will be one of the last of Regimental Histories, because such history must of necessity be written by one or more of its members, and those who took part in that war are fast passing away. Nearly two generations have passed since the war ended. Year by year memories grow more Indistinct or fade out entirely. Though last,
X PREFACE.
we are hoping it will not be regarded as least. So far as is known it is entirely unique in its plan and scope. It is believed to be the first regimental history with signed chapters written by so many different members of the regiment. This fact, besides adding to its value for those personally interested, and general readers, should give it a welcome place in all of the public libraries of the nation, and doubtless will.
If my surviving comrades and the families of those who have been "mustered out" are pleased with our efforts I am satisfied. I am very, very sorry that our Colonel, "John Henry," could not have lived to have en- joyed reading it, as it was a matter of lively interest to him during the latter years of his life.
Stephen G. Cook, M.D.
CONTENTS.
PAGE
Preface vii
Chapter I.
By Henry A. GUdersJeeve.
The Origin and Inception of the Civil War i
Constitutional Questions Involved — Lincoln and his In- augural Address — The South Precipitated the War — Why We Enlisted.
Chapter II.
By Henry A. Gildersleeve.
Organization and Stay in Baltimore 8
The First Practical Step — "Josh Billings' " Resolution — Authority from Governor Morgan — War Meetings all over the County — Mustered into the United States Service — The Journey to Baltimore — Small Campaigns — Turning Our Faces Towards the Enemy.
Chapter III.
By JVilliam E. Gurney.
From Baltimore to Gettysburg 21
Departure From Baltimore — Learning Campaign Service — "Battle Hymn of The Republic" — Becoming Part of the Army of the Potomac — Just Before the Battle.
Chapter IV.
By Joseph H . Cogszvell.
Battle of Gettysburg 28
Approaching the Field — Held in Reserve — Entering the En- gagement— Developing the Enemy — "Good Fighting Any- where"— Those who Fell — Pickett's Grand Charge — Bury- ing the Dead — The List.
xii CONTENTS.
Chapter V. By Charles E. Benton.
PACK
From Gettysburg to Virginia 40 .
The Wreckage of Battle— Tragic Scenes — Following the Enemy — Long Distance Marching — Topography of the Country — Again Confronting the Enemy — Historic Harper's Ferry — Blackberries, a Feast for the Gods — Sickness in Camp.
Chapter VI.
By Piatt C. Ciirtiss.
From Virginia to Tennessee 51
Traveling in Freight Cars — Mountain Scenery — Patriotism on the Way — A Winter Guarding the Railroad — Murders by Bushwhackers — Taxing the Citizens to Suppress It — More Murders — "The Simple Life" — Consolidation of Army Corps — "Fighting Joe."
Chapter VII.
By Stephen G. Cook.
From Normandy to Resaca 66
The Peculiarities of Memory — The Second Pleasant Win- ter in the Army — The nth and 12th Corps Consolidated — Leaving Normandy, Tenn., for a More Southern Trip — That Thunder Shower — A Mule "Potter's Field" — Lookout Mountain — Snake Creek Gap — The Battle of Resaca.
Chapter VIII.
By John E. West.
From Resaca to Kenesaw Mountain 83
Difficult Campaign to Record — Pursuing the Enemy — "Left in Front ! There'll Soon be a Fight !" — Battle of New Hope Church — Bloody Assault — Death of General Polk — Battle of Lost Mountain — Hot and Wet — Bluecoats and Blackberries — Battle of Kolli's Farm — Death of Lieutenant Gridlcy and Others — Pickets' Protection — Tantalizing Con- fetleratc Flag — Enemy Retreats to Kenesaw Mountain.
CONTENTvS. xiii
Chapter IX. By John E. JFest.
PA^E
From Kenesaw Mountain to Peach Tree Creek. ... 97
We Lose a Battle — "The Gate City of the South" — Friend- ly Truce Between the Pickets — We Cross the Chattahoochee — Battle of Peach Tree Creek — Straightening the Skirmish Line— "Who Calls Major !"— Contraband of War — Hard- tack "B. C." — Surprised at Breakfast — Distant Roar of Battle.
Chapter X.
By JViUiam C. JVile.
The Siege of Atlanta io6
Time Occupied — Organization of the Corps — Its Officers — Hot Fighting — Intrenching the Line — Getting Social with the Rebel Pickets — Exchange of Bullet and Shell by Day, and Music by Night — Surprising the Rebel Pickets — De- seriters from the Enemy — Moving on the Citj' — Losses Sustained.
Chapter XI.
By JViUiam C. JVile.
Atlanta Occupied ii8
Great Destruction of Property by the Enemy — City Sur- renders— The Town and its Defenses — Regulation of Trade — Inhabitants Sent Away— Sunday Observance — Foraging for Food — Fighting off the Enemy — Preparations for Abandoning the City — Last Scenes Spectacular and Fas- cinating— "As We Go Marching On."
Chapter XII.
By JViUiam H. Bartktt.
From Atlanta to Milledgeville 131
Election in Camp — Field Orders — Reorganization of the Army — None But the Strongest Retained — More Destruc- tion of Property — City Abandoned — Campaign of Labor — Course Taken — Corduroyed Roads — Freak "Legislature" — Foraging — ^"Uncle Billy's Summers" — Skirmishing.
xiv CONTENTS.
Chapter XIII. By George H. JVilliams. p^ge
From MlUedgevIlle to Savannah 143
Leaving Milledgeville — Fine Country and Fine Living — Tough Goose — Skirmish, and Chickens — Swamps and More Skirmishing — In Front of Savannali — Capture of Steam- boat— Fighting on Argj-le Island — Colonel Ketcham Woiindf'd — Cantnre of i-ion- AT^AHister — Hardtack and Home Letters — Surrender of City.
Chapter XIV.
By Samuel H. Paulding.
From Savannah to Goldsborough 149
"Obey Orders" — Enemy Retreats — Surrender of City — Pursuit of Enemy — Cold and Wet — Dry Inside — Destruc- tion of Railroads — Flooded Swamps — Corduroyed Roads — Foraging — Battle of Av°rnsborough — Death of Lieutenant Sleight — Battle of Bentonville — A New Base.
Chapter XV.
By Miles K. Lewis.
From Goldsborough Home 159
Close of the "Hardest Campaign" — "Pop" Williams — Assassination of the President — Surrender of Lee and Johnston — End of the War — March to Washington — Over Old Battlefields — Grand Review — Home Reception — En- thusiastic Rejoicing — Pathetic Scenes — "Good Bye."
Chapter XVI.
By Stephen G. Cook.
The Monument and Its Dedication 169
How the Money Was Raised — Description of the Monu- ment— Ceremonies and Addresses at its Dedication — Speak- ers of the Day — Others Present — Evening Campfire.
Chapter XVII.
By Charles E. Benton.
Regimental Band 177
How it Was Created — Its Members — A Unique Character — Its Services in Battle — Regiment's Position Marked by One of Its Members — Band Men Wounded — Faithful to a Variety of Duties.
CONTENTS. XV
Chapter XVIII. By Thomas E. Vassar. p^^^jg
Reminiscences 183
Records of the Old Diai^ — Cheers and Tears — Apples and Turkeys from Home — Regimental Debating Club^Dog of the Regiment — Campaigning — Battle Scenes Both Ludicrous and Pathetic — Virginia Camps — Resignation and "All Hail."
Chapter XIX.
By Hubbard F. Roberts and James H. Vassar.
The Songs We Used to Sing 197
"America" — "Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!" — '"Red, White and Blue" — "The Battle Cry of Freedom"' — "Tramp ! Tramp ! Tramp!" — "Battle Hymn of the Republic" — "The Vacant Chair" — "Tenting on the Old Camp Ground" — "When John- ny Comes Marching Home."
Chapter XX. Personal Slcetches 217
John H. Ketcham — Alfred B. Smith — Henry A. Gildersleeve — Cornelius N. Campbell — ^Thomas E. Vassar — Edward O. Bartlett— Stephen G. Cook — William H. Bartlett — Frank V. B. Gildersleeve — Stephen V. R. Cruger — Henry Grid- le}' — Cyrus S. Roberts — Charles E. Benton — Edwin A. Davis — Eugene M. Kempton — Miles K. Lewis — Albert B. Reed — E. Nicholas Shelden — George Rynus — James H. Vassar — John A. Wallace — Andrew J. Ostrom — Charles T. Johnson — Matthias Jois — Levi Lumb — William S. Van Keuren — William E. Gurney — Julius O. Hicks — James New- man— John M. Shaw — William K. Watson — Joseph Wooley — William N. Palmer — Obed Wheeler — Perry W. Chapman Samuel H. Paulding — James H. Rhynders — Jeremiah Col- lins— Charles E. Horsfall — Myron W. Roberts — John E. West— William C. Wile— George H. Williams— Platte M. Thorne — James Banks — Hubbard F. Roberts — David B. Sleight— Josiah H. Budd— Piatt C. Curtiss— Edward L. Florence — Charles H. Smith — Isaac T. Sweezey — Landon Ostrom — Stephen R. Tator.
Chapter XXI.
By Joseph H. Cogszvell.
Roster of the Regiment 345
Mustered into the United States Service October 11, 1862,
at
Camp Dutchess, Poughkeepsie, New York,
To Serve Three Years.
CHAPTER XX.
Personal Sketches.
PAGE
John H. Ketcham 217
Henry A. Gildersleeve 230
Edward O. Bartlett 243
Cyrus S. Roberts 260
Eugene M. Kempton 270
E. Nicholas Shelden 275
John A. Wallace 283
Matthias Jois 290
William E. Gurney 295
John M. Shaw 301
William N. Palmer 305
Samuel H. Paulding 312
Charles E. Horsfall 317
William C. Wile 321
James Banks 326
Josiah H. Budd 331
Charles H. Smith 335
William R. Woodin 343
William H. Bartlett 249
George T. Willson 281
Alfred B. Smith 228
Cornelius N. Campbell 237
Stephen G. Cook 245
Charles E. Benton 266
Miles K. Lewis 271
George Rynus 278
Andrew J. Ostrom 285
Levi Lumb 291
Julius O. Hicks 297
William K. Watson 301
PAGE
Obed Wheeler 306
James H. Rhynders 314
Myron W. Roberts 318
George H. Williams 323
Hubbard F. Roberts 328
Piatt C. Curtiss 333
Isaac T. Sweezey 336
Stephen R. Tator 338
Henry Pearce 341
Frank V. R. Gildersleeve... 252
Joseph H. Cogswell 224
Thomas E. Vassar 240
Henry Gridley 257
Edwin A. Davis 268
Albert B. Reed 274
James H. Vassar 279
Charles T. Johnson 286
William S. Van Kcuren 292
James Newman 298
Joseph Wooley 303
Perry W. Chapman 309
Jeremiah Collins 314
John E. West 318
Platte M. Thorne. 32s
David B. Sleight 3-^9
Edward L. Florence 334
Landon Ostrom 337
Benjamin S. Broas 340
Stcph-cn V. R. Crngcr 254
The Dutchess County Regiment.
chapter i.
the origin and inception of the civil war.
By Henry A. Gildersleeve.
Constitutional Questions Involved — Lincoln and His Inaugural Address — The South Precipitated the War — Why We Enlisted.
The attempted secession from the Union, of the South- ern States, brought on the " Great Civil War" in 1861. The differences between the North and the South arose over the institution of slavery. Mr. Seward very truth- fully declared that they constituted an " irrepressible con- flict." The vast Western country was rapidly becoming populated; territories were constantly applying for ad- mission to the Uniqn as states, and the slave-holding states seemed destined at an early day to become greatly in the minority. The extension of slavery was the all- absorbing question before the country.
An overwhelming majority of the Northern people were opposed to further extension,- because they believed slavery was wrong. The anti-slavery spirit of the people of the North was a thorn in the side of the Southern brethren, and engendered deep bitterness and severe re- sentment towards the North. Had the slaveholders been
2 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
satisfied with the retention of slavery in the old slavehold- ing states, the North, as a whole, stood ready to favor all reasonable legislation necessary to protect the South in the enjoyment of its property in slaves.
It was generally believed, certainly in the Sou'th, that President Lincoln owed his nomination and election to his anti-slavery-extension principles. His elevation to the ofiice of Chief Executive of the nation was the " last straw," and the Southern statesmen, many of whom had long contemplated the advisability of secession, believed the time was ripe for the move. They had a very feeble conception of the energy and determination an attempt to destroy the Union would arouse in the North.
It was the claim of the Secessionists that the United States was a confederation of sovereignties from which each might secede at will. They maintained that the right of secession was vested in the inherent sovereign power of each state. Moreover, they asserted that seces- sion was a legal right. They rested this latter theory upon the Tenth Amendment of the Constitution, which provides that powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the " States," are reserved to the states respectively, or to the people.
It is not proposed to enter here upon a discussion of the doctrine of " State Sovereignty," or the support for secession which, it was claimed, was afforded by the Con- stitution. Regardless of all that may be urged for or against the so-termed " lost cause," all Intelligent citizens, both North and South, now understand the character of our political system, and recognize the true legal order of sovereignty, as established irrevocably by the result of the appeal to arms. The momentous problem of sover-
THE ORIGIN AND INCEPTION OF THE CIVIL WAR. 3
eignty was solved upon the battlefield. National sover- eignty triumphed, and the sovereignty of the " States " became subordinated thereto for all time.
We think it is true that a majority of the Secession leaders were sincere in the belief that their case rested in sound principles, and that in undertaking secession they espoused a righteous cause.
When the purpose of the Southerners to dismember the Union was realized at the North, and it was seen that all efforts at compromise must fail. President Buchanan most unwisely, under a misapprehension of the authority he possessed as Chief Executive and the Commander-in- Chief of its Militarv and Naval forces, took the ground that the Government was without any legal power to hold the States together.
This was the tenor of his first message to Congress on the conduct of the South, under date of December 3, i860. He went unreasonably far in his efforts at pacification, to avoid hostilities, but subsequently wiser counsels prevailed.
In November, i860, Abraham Lincoln was elected President of the United States, and on March 4, 1861, he took the oath of office. At this time secession ordi- nances had been passed by seven of the Southern States, and the Confederate Government fully organized. It brought together its forces with great dispatch, and before the end of March had a greater military and naval power than the Federal Government.
The condition President Lincoln had to meet was one of the gravest that ever confronted man. His inaugural address was a calm, plain statement of his intention to preserve the Union and execute the laws throughout the
4 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
whole country. He took the ground that the Union was older than the Constitution, and that " no state upon its own motion " could " lawfully get out of the Union; that resolves and ordinances to that effect " were " legally void."
He affirmed that, despite the secession ordinances, and the formation of the Confederate Government, the Union was still unbroken; that the laws of the United States were still supreme, and that it was his purpose to execute the laws of the Union in all the states.
Fort Sumter, in Charleston Harbor, was occupied by a small garrison of Federal troops under command of Major Anderson. The attitude of the South Carolinians had been such as to furnish good reason to apprehend an attack upon the fort. The President sent reinforce- ments and supplies to Fort Sumter from New York on the steamer Star of The West, and when this vessel attempted to approach the fort, on January 9, 1861, it was fired upon by the South Carolinians.
Unable to reach the garrison the vessel returned to New York. This firing upon United States soldiers on the way with supplies, under orders from the President, was just as much a hostile act as the subsequent bombard- ment of Fort Sumter on April 12, 1861, but so anxious was the President to bring about pacification that he elected not to regard the incident of January 9 as an overt act.
On the afternoon of April 11, 1861, General Beaure- gard, the Confederate Commander at Charleston, de- manded from Major Anderson the surrender of Fort Sumter, which was promptly declined. A second de- mand was sent at about eleven o'clock in the evcninir.
THE ORIGIN AND INCEPTION OF THE CIVIL WAR. 5
To this demand Anderson replied in the early morning of the 1 2th and offered to evacuate upon certain condi- tions, which however proved unsatisfactory to Beaure- gard, and at twenty minutes past three on the morning of the 1 2th the latter informed Major Anderson that fire would be opened upon the fort by the Confederate bat- teries in one hour from that time.
Accordingly, at half-past four on the morning of April 12, 1 86 1, the gates of fraternal war were formally opened. The flag of the Union was assailed by the Con- federate guns which hurled their missiles of death and destruction upon the Federal fort, and on the 14th it surrendered.
Thus the seceding "States" became the aggressors, and assailed the power it was their duty to obey.
At the end of June, 1862, the war had been in prog- ress about fifteen months, and over eight hundred thous- and volunteers, including three-months men, had entered the military service of the United States. The actual strength of the Federal army on duty at this time was about five hundred thousand men. In the West the Union forces under Grant, Buell and others, had secured very creditable results. Shiloh, Fort Donelson, Pitts- burg Landing, Corinth, and other points of strategic importance had been captured by the Union armies.
But the general result of the campaigns in Virginia was not considered to reflect credit upon our army, and In consequence thereof there was a widespread feeling of dissatisfaction in the North. Lukewarm Unionists and Southern sympathizers began to openly proclaim their faith in, and announce their adherence to, the Southern cause. This hostile force in our midst, too cowardly to
6 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
fight In the open field, and without an excuse for their disloyalty and treachery, retarded enlistments at home, encouraged foreign Intervention, and in every way pos- sible gave support to the South.
Happily, this class of citizens, known as " Copper- heads," constituted a very small portion of each com- munity, and In no locality in the Northern States was it in control. The Copperheads were rarely in favor of African Slavery, and as they were generally opposed to its extension their discreditable attitude may charitably be attributed to a lack of patriotic sentiment, and failure to comprehend the ground upon which the liberty and prosperity of the people rested. I do not recall that. In and around Dutchess County, during the early stages of the war, the question of slavery In the South was con- sidered, or often the topic of conversation.
With us the rally to arms was not for the purpose of freeing the enslaved negroes, for we did not then appre- ciate, what we now see, that the spirit of civilization and progress was working for more advanced results than the establishment of the supremacy of the laws of the United States. The emancipation of a race, and a better civilization, were Involved In the struggle. The unfortu- nate condition of the negro slaves had no part in the sentiment that actuated the Dutchess County Volunteers at this period of the war.
It was proclaimed that our Country's flag had been fired upon by Insurgents; the power of the Federal Government insolently defied ; the Constitution violated and the Union placed In peril. The farmers, mechanics, tradespeople, and professional classes, one and all, rushed to the support of the Federal standards, because they
THE ORIGIN AND INCEPTION OF THE CIVIL WAR. 7
felt and believed that the Union should be preserved, the Governmental power maintained at all hazards, and that in no other way could the general welfare of all the people be promoted, and the blessings of liberty secured to themselves and their posterity.
The powerful and thoroughly equipped Army of the Potomac was intrenched in works, vast in extent and most formidable in character, within sight of Richmond, and it was confidently hoped that the battlecry, " On to Rich- mond!" would soon be realized.
Within a few days the remnants of that threatening host were upon the James River, thirty miles from Rich- mond, seeking to recover, under the protection of their gunboats, from the effects of a series of disastrous defeats. This routing of McClellan's army thoroughly aroused the Government to the danger in which the country was placed, and an earnest determination was manifested to provide against its consequences.
CHAPTER 11.
ORGANIZATION AND STAY IN BALTIMORE.
By Henry A. Gildersleeve.
First Practical Step — "Josh Billings' " Resolution — Authority from Governor Morgan —
War Meetings All Over the County — Mustered Into the United States Service
— The Journey to Baltimore — Small Campaigns — Turning our Faces
Towards the Enemy.
On July 2, 1862, the President of the United States issued a proclamation calling for three hundred thous- and men to serve for three years, or during the war.
In answer to this call the Dutchess County Regiment was organized. The prompt response of the Empire State, including the loyal citizens of Dutchess County, to the proclamation of the President in those dark days of the rebellion, gave an impetus to enlistments through- out the whole North, and under the call 431,958 volun- teers were mustered into the Federal Army. This quickly gathered new force not only supplied great addi- tional strength, but improved the morale of the armies already in the field, and gave to the men in high station, upon whom rested the grave responsibility of conducting the war, the greatest confidence and encouragement.
Prior to this large numbers of Dutchess County men had enlisted in the Union armies. Some marched to the front with the 20th New York Infantry, while others followed the colors of the 128th, and still others enlisted
ORGANIZATION AND STAY IN BALTIMORE. 9
111 the 48th, and in various other New York regiments, in the cavah-y and artillery branches of the service, as well as In the Infantry.
Mrs. Benson J. Lossing took the first practical step toward the formation of the new regiment. On Thurs- day, the 2 1 St of August, 1862, this patriotic lady caused to be published an appeal to the citizens for a Dutchess County regiment. Isaac Piatt, proprietor and editor of the Poughkeepsie Eagle, heartily endorsed the appeal in his paper issued on the morning of that day, and within forty-eight hours the following young men handed to A. B. Smith of Poughkeepsie, as one of the resident mem- bers of the General War Committee, requests to be al- lowed to recruit volunteers and enter the United States service in a Dutchess County regiment.
The names are Cogswell, McConnell, Gildersleeve, Titus, Woodin, Wickes, Sweet, Gridley, Broas, Cruger, Underwood, Steenburgh, Van Keuren, Scofield and Tripp.
Henry W. Shaw (better known as "Josh Billings"), a member of the Board of Supervisors of Dutchess County, offered. In that legislative body, a resolution drafted by Mr. A. B. Smith, which was passed with unanimity and alacrity. It read as follows :
Resolved, Tliat the County of Dutchess will pay fifty dollars bounty to each man who will enlist in a Dutchess County regiment, and the Executive War Committee of the County is requested to procure per- mission from Governor Morgan to raise such a regiment, with camp located at Poughkeepsie.
Provided with a certified copy of this resolution, and letters of Introduction from Congressman Baker and Mr. Justice Emott, Mr. Smith, under instructions from the War Committee, Avent to Albany on August 23rd and
10 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
made application to His Excellency, Governor Morgan, for authority to recruit "A Dutchess County Regiment." The application was immediately granted, and Mr. Smith returned with the following authorization:
To Hon. James Einott,
Chairman of Executive War
Committee of Dutcliess County : Permission is granted to your War Committee to raise a Dutchess County Regiment, with camp located at Poughkeepsie.
Edwin D. Morgan, Hillhouse, Governor.
A. A. G.
Previous to this Governor Morgan had appointed a General War Committee for the Congressional District, with Mr. William Kelly of Rhinebeck as Chairman. From this General Committee an Executive War Com- mittee had been chosen, consisting of James Emott, Wil- liam Kelly, Ambrose Wager, George W. Sterling, Ben- son J. Lossing, James H. Weeks, Stephen Baker, Joseph F. Barnard and John H. Ketcham.
As soon as the foregoing authority was promulgated the work of bringing into life, form, and discipline, the Dutchess County Regiment, was entered upon with great activity and earnestness. Not only was the spirit of patriotism fully awakened, but home pride became thor- oughly aroused in the breasts of the citizens of the County, and martial enthusiasm reached its climax.
Many young men who from the first breaking out of the war felt inclined to enlist, but were restrained by business engagements they could not well forego, or by home ties that were painful to sever, had frequently de- clared that they would join a Dutchess County regi- ment when such a one should be organized.
That day was now at hand, and led on by John H.
ORGANIZATION AND STAY IN BALTIMORE. 11
Ketcham, who was commissioned Colonel of the regiment, the young men of Dutchess County, true to their vows, eagerly enlisted as volunteers for three years, or the war, in the 150th Regiment New York. Volunteer Infantry. The memories of those days recall the conflicts between love of country and love of kindred; private business interests and public duty. Patriotism triumphed, and the work of recruiting moved on rapidly.
The young leaciers who undertook the responsibility of securing enlistments openeci up headquarters in various sections of the County. The days were occupied In ex- plaining to young men contemplating enlistment the ad- vantages to be gained by joining the 150th; the pay, the bounties, the chances of promotion, and the probable time by which the organization would be completed and move to the scene of action. Each recruit received, when accepted and sworn in, a bounty of fifty dollars from the County. All able-bodied men between the ages of eigh- teen and forty-five were eligible, and each recruit had to submit to a thorough surgical examination as to his physical condition. Those under the age of twenty-one were required to produce the written consent of parent or guardian.
The compensation of the private was thirteen dollars per month, with clothing and rations. Clothing was supplied to the amount of a limited value each year, anci for all clothing issued in excess of this allowance the value was deducted from the soldier's pay. Non-com- missioned officers received more than the privates. In pro- portion to their rank. Commissioned officers received higher compensation than enlisted men, but were obliged to furnish their own clothing, rations, and equipments.
12 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT,
The nights were devoted to " war meetings " in dif- ferent parts of the County, but the larger gatherings were at our general headquarters in Poughkeepsie. Frequently four and six-horse teams bore young soldiers, already in blue uniform, with banners flying and bands playing, to meetings in the country districts to secure en- listments. There was scarcely a place in Dutchess County, sufficiently large to support a post office, that did not have its one or more war meetings each week, and there were scenes of enthusiastic gatherings at which bands played patriotic airs, while from barrels, stoops, wagons, and horse-blocks, orators harangued the assem- bled crowds with war speeches until the excitement ran high and many names were added to the enlistment rolls.
From the Sheriff's Office in the Court House In the City of Poughkeepsie, which was turned into a Recruit- ing Office, was displayed a banner bearing the following words :
" Come in out of the draft."
Already provision had been made by the Government to obtain men by drafting. In the event of a shortage of volunteers, and the significance of these words was ap- parent, causing no little comment. To the Indifferent they were a gentle reminder of what might be expected if a sufficient number of volunteers were not promptly forthcoming, and to those who were anxious to enlist, but who were restrained by relatives and friends, they furnished a powerful argument In favor of consent.
The threatened drafts, and liberal bounties, un- doubtedly brought some men into the service, but pure patriotism was generally the sole moving power, and
ORGANIZATION AND STAY IN BALTIMORE. 13
especially was this true of the 150th Regiment, com- posed as it largely was, of intelligent and thoughtful men. They hastened to the defense of their country with a spontaneous impulse born of a correct knowledge of the true nature of the cause for which they were to suffer fatigue, exposure, hunger, thirst, and the perils of battle, believing that their country's cause was their personal cause, and that the success of the Union arms would be a victory for their individual principles.
The Union Volunteers, generally, were not mere machines, enrolled, disciplined, and ranged In living palisades before the enemy, but they were men with ideas, who could, when occasion required, think and act for themselves.
As we have seen, the work of recruiting went briskly on. As soon as eighty men were enrolled by any one recruiting officer, he went to Albany and received his commission as Captain, and also received commissions for First and Second Lieutenants of his own selection. Usually the latter offices were promised beforehand to young men who aided the Captain in the enrollment. The Captains took rank according to the date of their commissions, and the Companies received their alpha- betical designation, commencing with "A," in the order in which their respective Captains were commissioned.
Our rendezvous at Poughkeepsie was named " Camp Dutchess," and was located nearly a mile northeast from the Court House, and just north of the old Alms House Farm. On that rocky side-hill field were built our bar- racks, of rough boards, and all of us had our meals in a common mess-hall. There was but little opportunity for drill and discipline, but the rudiments of a soldier's
14 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
duties were here inculcated, and some feeble notion ac- quired of the life before us.
At this camp, on the nth of October, 1862, the Regi- ment was mustered into the service of the United States. We now realized that we were real soldiers, and begun to appreciate the importance of the step we had taken.
Our march down Main Street that night, uniformed and equipped for battle, has remained always in the memory of those who participated in or witnessed it. Sad and painful were the partings; the good-byes were said with moist eyes and aching hearts; but all those who were to go, and those who were to remain behind, bore themselves with fortitude and courage. We boarded the steamboat Oregon, and sailed down the Hudson River for Jersey City, where we arrived the following day.
It was nearly night when we took the cars for Balti- more, and about midnight when we reached Philadelphia and, leaving the train, were marched to the " Soldiers' Retreat," for supper. This welcome hostelry consisted of an old cooper's shop near the depot, fitted up as a mess-hall, where free meals were served to soldiers on their way to the front. It was profusely decorated with American flags, and in conspicuous view were portraits of Washington and Lincoln.
This provision for feeding the hungry soldiers en route was a contribution from the patriotic citizens of the Quaker City in the name of the Union Relief Associa- tion, and many an old soldier remembers it with grati- tude. Philadelphia was not an exception in this regard, for similar nicss-halls were provided in nearly all the large cities of the North. When supper was over we all agreed that we had enjoyed a " square meal," and
ORGANIZATION AND STAY IN BALTIAIORE. 15
officers and men, In unison, expressed their appreciation and thanks in three rousing cheers.
We renewed our journey at 2 A. M., crossing the Sus- quehanna by ferry (the river had not then been bridged at this point) and arrived at Baltimore Monday after- noon, October 13th. In moving from the Northern to the Southern station we passed through the street where, April 19, 1861, several Companies of the 6th Massachu- setts Regiment were attacked by a mob that had assem- bled to oppose their progress. Four of the soldiers were slain and many of the rioters killed. In crossing a bridge where the hottest of the fight occurred we could still see the marks of the bullets on portions of the structure. They were the first tangible evidences we witnessed of violence resulting from the war, and excited among us no little comment and curiosity.
Baltimore had long been a peaceful city, and we had no reason to apprehend opposition. Nevertheless, as we passed the spot where Union soldiers had been attacked and killed while on their way to defend the Capital, the deep indignation we felt when, more than a year before, the news of the attack reached the North, again rose in our breasts, and we were seized with a belligerent spirit such as we had never before experienced. We almost wished that some such mob might assail us !
We remained that afternoon and night on the plat- forms of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad station. On the following day, September 14th, we marched to the western suburbs of Baltimore, and there established a camp which we named " Camp Millington."
Later we were assigned a permanent location at the head of Eutaw Street, and there constructed comfortable
16 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
wooden barracks which constituted our headquarters dur- ing the remainder of our stay in the city. This we named " Camp Belger," in honor of Colonel Belger, the Depart- ment Quartermaster. Baltimore was included in the " Middle Department " of the Armies of the United States, and at the time of our arrival was commanded by the distinguished veteran soldier, Major-General Wool.
General Wool was the first olHcer of high rank to re- view the regiment. His presence at our headquarters was a matter of deep interest to the command, and all made an earnest effort to appear well and create a favor- able impression, and we were greatly encouraged by his words of commendation. General Wool was soon suc- ceeded by General Schenck, who gave us our first instruc- tion in brigade drill.
We were willing and ambitious, but in our few weeks of service had acquired the simple rudiments of company and regimental drill only, and possessed no knowledge of brigade movements. Thanks to the activity of field officers, and their tactical book learning, each Captain re- ceived— before the order was executed — some explana- tion of what the maneuver was to be, and we got through very creditably.
Our long stay in Baltimore gave us an unusual oppor- tunity for military education, and we were moulded into form and discipline of the highest grade. A Regimental Band was organized from the members of the regiment, and soon furnished good and inspiring music at our dress parades. These parades were frequently attended by large numbers of the loyal citizens of Baltimore, who applauded the precision and elegance of the ceremonies. At times we were exercised in battalion drill in some of
ORGANIZATION AND STAY IN BALTIMORE. 17
the principal streets of the city. We practiced especially on these occasions methods of street fighting, in which we became very proficient.
Occasionally we witnessed slight evidences of derision from Baltimore ladies of Southern sympathies, but this was always more than offset by marks of approval from loyal citizens. We were invited to the homes of some of the citizens for dinners and entertainments, and re- ceived considerable social attention. Several times dur- ing the winter Union Assemblies were given at the Opera House, attended by many of the best families, and the Union ofiicers were the principal guests. At these gather- ings we had an opportunity to meet the ladies of Balti- more, famed for their refinement and beauty, and we learned that their reputations were well deserved.
Study of the tactics and army regulations, drill and guard duty, interspersed with a few social diversions of the character mentioned, occupied the winter. A con- siderable portion of the time Company C was detailed to do guard duty at the Camden Station, occupying a house immediately opposite the station and charged with the responsibility of maintaining order among the troops that passed through, and in protecting Government property.
Steuart's Hospital, formerly the residence of a Balti- more family of that name, but now an institution for the care and shelter of the sick and wounded, was also a post for which our regiment provided guard. Other points at times required the services of our men.
Late in December Stuart's cavalry were raiding In the vicinity of Elysville, twenty miles west of Baltimore. Here was a bridge over the Patapsco River, and the town
18 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
also possessed a valuable cotton mill. Company D, under Captain Woodin, was sent to protect this prop- erty and remained on duty there a few days, experiencing no occurrence worthy of notice.
This J. E. B. Stuart of Confederate Cavalry fame, commonly spoken of as " Jeb " Stuart, was of another family from the Stcuart family after which our Baltimore hospital was named.
When the holiday season arrived we were remembered by our friends at home in the form of a bountiful supply of roasted turkeys, and many delicacies, all of which were greatly enjoyed by rank and file. We were frequently visited in Camp Belger by relatives and friends from the North. Some officers had their wives or sisters in this camp, and the presence of this colony of ladies added much to the pleasure of the hours not needed for military duty.
On December 9th the routine of camp life was inter- rupted by a command requiring us to make ready to march at a moment's notice. It was reported that Con- federate cavalry had crossed the Potomac at Point of Rocks, and that a raid on the Baltimore and Ohio Rail- road was apprehended. We proceeded in freight cars to Adamstown, near Monocacy Junction, but could find no enemy, and returned to Baltimore after an absence of less than forty-eight hours, with virgin swords. The only blood shed was from two opossums captured by men on picket duty. The move was an uneventful one, and its only claim to mention is that it was our first cam- paign.
On March 20, 1863, Lieutenant Bowman of Company F, Sergeant McGill, Corporal Ostrandcr, and twcKc pri-
ORGANIZATION AND STAY IN BALTIMORE. 19
vates, were detailed as a Provost Guard at Westminster, a small village located about thirty-three miles from Balti- more, on the Hagerstown pike. Their duties consisted in apprehending deserters, and in detecting and suppress- ing the efforts of men hostile to the Union cause, who were trying to afford aid and comfort to the enemy. Lieutenant Bowman and his men were well received and handsomely entertained by the loyal citizens, and also assisted by them in the performance of their duties. They made many arrests and ascertained much valuable in- formation.
All went well until June 28th, when a squadron of the 1st Delaware Cavalry, two hundred strong, arrived and quartered themselves just east of the village. The fol- lowing day, while many of the Union Cavalry horses were at the blacksmith shops being shod, a body of Stuart's cavalry suddenly appeared on the west side of the village. No pickets had been put out in that direc- tion, as the approach of the enemy from that quarter was considered highly improbable.
The Delaware troopers that still remained in camp hastily mounted, charged down the street upon the ad- vancing foe, and engaged them in a hand-to-hand conflict. Meantime, Lieutenant Bowman rallied his little command and undertook a flank movement. As the attacking party proved to consist of several thousand of Stuart's veterans, the ambitious detail from the 150th did not get very far before it was surrounded and captured. Two of Bow- man's command. Hooper of Company D, and Matthews of Company C, made their escape. The prisoners, after hard marching with little rest and food, were paroled at Dov^er, Pennsylvania, on July ist.
20 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
Before the end of June the battle of Chancellorsville had been fought and lost; Confederate General Ewell had begun his march down the Shenandoah Valley; Mil- roy had been defeated at Winchester, and the triumphant rebel army, led by General Robert E. Lee, was marching into the State of Pennsylvania. The most intense excite- ment and alarm prevailed throughout the North, and the authorities at Washington were filled with fear and con- sternation. It seemed a question of a few days only when the rebel host would be sacking the cities of the North, levying contributions upon its citizens and demanding entrance to the Capital of the nation.
The principal streets of Baltimore were barricaded, and our regiment was distributed at different points to defend barricades and resist the approach of the Con- federate soldiers. All the horrors of civil war were threatening the homes of the men who were defending the Union, and the fate of the nation seemed to rest with the Army of the Potomac, then under command of General Joseph Hooker, but who was superseded in com- mand, before we joined that army, by General George G. Meade.
On June 25, 1863, with full ranks thoroughly drilled and disciplined, in bright uniforms and with colors spot- less and untarnished, to the strains of martial music the Dutchess County Regiment marched out of Camp Belger and turned its face toward the enemy.
CHAPTER III.
FROM BALTIiMORE TO GETTYSBURG.
By William E. Gurney.
Departure from Baltimore — Learning Campaign Service — "Battle Hymn of the Repub- lic"— Becoming Part of the Army of the Potomac — Just Before the Battle.
On the morning of June 25, 1863, all was stir and excitement in and around Belger Barracks, in the City of Baltimore, an excitement which was shared to some extent throughout the city itself. The different companies which had been doing guard duty at the various hospitals and depots in the city had been ordered to assemble at the barracks, as marching orders had been received, and they were to leave their comfortable quarters to go, — none knew where.
The boys were very busy packing their surplus cloth- ing and keepsakes that had accumulated during the eight months and more of our stay in the city, and the express wagons came into camp and were loaded with the boxes and bundles that were to be sent to their Northern homes. The rank and file were all jubilant at the idea of duty at the front, for many of them had begun to think that their full time of enlistment would be spent in doing guard duty, which was far from being a pleasing thought to the majority of those composing the regiment.
Little did they realize what was in store for them; the long and tedious marches through swamps and over mountains; the bivouac at night without shelter to keep
22 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
them from those Southern storms of rain and wind; the long and lonely nights spent on picket; and last but not least, the horrors of the battlefield. Surely it was all for the best that they could not look into the future and see that which was awaiting them.
About the middle of the afternoon, the process of pack- ing having been completed, the line was formed, and, with the band playing and the flags flying, the regiment marched out of its winter camp amid the cheers of many who had become friendly with its members during their long stay in the city.
They made quite a display as they marched through the streets, with their clean uniforms and bright guns glistening In the sun, anci with their knapsacks slung on their backs; — and such knapsacks as those were! They were packed so full that they were In danger of bursting, and each had a blanket or overcoat strapped on top. I doubt whether any regiment ever carried such loads be- fore or since; certainly not for more than a day or two.
The regiment, under command of Col. John H. Ketcham, soon left the noisy streets of Baltimore behind and movecl off on the country roaci at a good swinging pace, and many were the joyous and patriotic songs that floated over the Maryland hills and valleys on that lovely June afternoon. Before dark we reached Ellicott's Mills, a small town some nine miles from Baltlnjore, where we went into camp for the first night. Though they had made but a short distance, not being accustomed to marching, the men were tired, and many of them had already worn blisters on their feet, some of which were large and painful.
Near where we camped for the night a stream of cool,
FROM BALTniORE TO GETTYSBURG. 23
clear water ran rippling through the meadow land, and, in a very short time after the order to break ranks was given, the banks of the stream were lined with those who were anxious to soak their burning and blistered feet in the cooling waters of that friendly stream. After relief had been obtained for their suffering feet, the haversacks were overhauled and all enjoyed their frugal supper of pork and hardtack, washing it down with army coffee.
Blankets were then spread and preparations made for the night, which, however, proved not to be the most pleasant night of the year for sleeping out of doors. A shower came up which lasted until nearly daylight, and, as few had shelter, they were thoroughly soaked when morning came. So our first night's experience of actual campaign life proved to be rather disagreeable, and it is probable that some of the members of the regiment wished themselves back In the comfortable quarters of the old barracks.
On the 26th the march was continued westward, and was marked by no unusual event, save the grumblings of those whose feet were in such a condition that It was pain- ful for them to walk. At the close of the following day, June 27th, after another hot and tiresome march, the regiment reached Monocacy Bridge, and climbed to the top of a high hill, where It remained over Sunday, the 28th.
From this hill we for the first time caught sight of that grand old Army of the Potomac. Across the river, as far as the eye could reach, the hills seemed to be covered with a moving mass of soldiers, together with horses, army wagons, artillery, and the general pararphernalla of an army, with flags flying at every quarter.
24 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
Our men stood as if spellbound and gazed with aston- ishment at the magnitude of that famous army, of which they were to become a part. Pen cannot describe the feelings of those who for the first time beheld that great body of troops, of which they had so often read, knowing it was composed of men who had passed through many a hard-fought battle, and were now engaged in the pur- suit of their enemy, who had left the Old Dominion state, and whose advance guard was at that very moment in Pennsylvania, threatening to burn and destroy.
This was the scene of which it has been said — whether truly or not I do not know — that it furnished to Mrs. Julia Ward Howe the inspiration from which sprang that immortal song, — " Battle Hymn of The Republic." It is easy to believe that she may have stood on the crown of some hill similar to that on which we were camped, and there, as she viewed the seemingly endless processions of armed hosts, travel-worn, dust-covered, and mud- stained, but marching resolutely and resistlessly onward, there sprung to her lips the first line :
Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord; —
And then, when darkness had closed in, and all the landscape, away to the distant horizon of the great South Mountain range, was lit up by myriads of campfires, did not the heart and soul, rather than the intellect, re- ceive the inspiration which gave form to the second verse, beginning, —
I have seen Iliin in llio watcli-fire of a liundrcil circling camps, —
And again, as she witnessed in the morning once more that living, swaying column, crowned with its line of
FROM BALTIMORE TO GETTYSBURG. 25
rifles gleaming in the dawn, did the sight furnish the in- spiration for the third verse? Listen to its opening: —
I liave read a fiery gospel writ in buniished rows of steel; —
As the far-reaching notes of the bugle echoed and re- echoed throughout the vale, did that give the key-note to another verse?
He lias sounded fortli the trumpet that shall never call retreat!
The tale may have been drawn from some one's imagination, but the conception fits the scene, and one in whose memory the picture still gleams undimmed can easily believe that under the stimulus of these great events the soul of the poet rose to that glorious exaltation in which partisanship is eliminated, anci she urges the dedica- tion of the loyal nation to the higher cause of Humanity, giving expression to this exalted sentiment in the last verse.
In the beauty of the lilies Christ was born across the sea, With a glory in His bosom that transfigures you and me. As He died to make men holy, let us die to make men free,
\Miile God is marching on.
She must have witnessed this, or some like scene, to have caught the flow of that perfect refrain, — " march- ing on."
The members of the regiment now began to realize the greatness of the war in which they were engaged, and again they renewed their vows that they would, if neces- sary, devote their lives to maintain the best government that was ever built.
On the morning of June 29th we marched down the hill, over the bridge which here spans the Monocacy river, and, resting at the roadside, awaited our turn to take our position in the marching line. Along with two
26 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
Maryland regiments we had been formed Into a brigade, which was placed under command of Brig. Gen. Henry H. Lockwood, and the brigade thus formed became known as " Lockwood's Independent Brigade." It soon took its place in the First Division of the 12th Corps.
While the brigade was waiting by the roadside we were most unmercifully guyed and blackguarded by the veterans of the army as they passed by, for carrying such loads on our backs, but when the time came for the regi- ment to move a great change had taken place in the men's appearance, for the heavy baggage that had been lugged all the way from Baltimore lay scattered around where we had been waiting. No one wished to retain anything that was not really indispensable, and the boys were now stripped for the work which was before them.
Thus lightened of their burdens, having had nearly two days of rest, and their feet relieved of much of their soreness, they were now able to make a pretty good show- ing on the road as compared with the hardened veterans of the Army of the Potomac. On that memorable march from Monocacy Bridge to Gettysburg, we camped on the first night near Frederick City, the place known as the home of the brave Barbara Frietchie. Here the boys began to show signs that they were fast learning to be " veterans," for some of them started out foraging on their own account, and it Is believed that some of the officers as well as the enlisted men, partook of a better meal that night than they had been accustomed to having, as a steady diet, for several months.
On the night of June 30th, we were encamped near Littlestown, about twelve miles from Gettysburg. On the next day, July ist, the whole 12th Army Corps was
FROM BALTLMORE TO GETTYSBURG. 27
moved to the vicinity of Two Taverns, a small hamlet or cross-roads near Littlestown, and only eight miles from the field where both the armies were gathering for the great struggle.
While lying here, occasionally hearing the distant boom of cannon, we became aware that the fight had already begun, but a few miles away, and it was soon evident to all that the 150th New York Volunteers was to receive its initiation into real battle. The brigade was formed and made ready to move when and where it might have orders to go, and Colonel Maulsby, addressing his regiment of Maryland Volunteers, told them that they were soon to go into battle, and exhorted his men to stand firm and do honor to the brigade, none of the three regiments having yet been in an engagement.
Our own Colonel Ketcham, being a man of action rather than of words, said but little to his men, but by his looks, and those of his command, it was evident that their friends at home would have no cause to be ashamed of the boys they had sent to stand between them and their Southern foes.
Very early in the morning of July 2nd, came the order for us to move, and it was done with a will. There was no thought given then to sore feet, and, the line moving out promptly, the distance between the camp and the battlefield was covered in a short time.
So the " Dutchess County Regiment " was at last really a part of the great Army of the Potomac, and engaged in the most important battle fought during the century. It was a battle which then seemed likely to decide the fate of the nation, — and perhaps it did.
CHAPTER IV.
BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG.
By Joseph H. Cogswell.
Approaching the Field — Held in Reserve — Entering the Engagement — Developing the
Enemy — "Good Fighting Anywhere" — Those Who Fell — Pickett's
Grand Charge — Burying the Dead — The List.
The part borne by the 150th New York Vokmteers, Colonel John H. Ketcham, in the battle of Gettysburg can be briefly told. It is not my purpose to write a history of the battle, which is the most celebrated battle ever fought on United States soil, but only to relate the modest part borne by our regiment on that occasion. To do this I find it will be necessary to allude to the regiments with whom we were immediately connected, and to add a brief description of the culmination of the battle on July 3rd, known as " Pickett's Charge." Those who wish a report that will cover the whole field can find their desire grati- fied by consulting the works of hundreds of ambitious writers.
My story begins with the " long roll " that roused us from our slumbers as we bivouacked in a piece of woods eight miles south-east of Gettysburg, near a place known as Littlestown, Thursday, July 2, 1863. Scant time was allowed for coffee and hardtack, and at 3 A. M. we were in line awaiting the order to march.
A provisional brigade had been made up, consisting of the I St Maryland Regiment, Potomac Home Brigade, Colonel William P. Maulsby ; the ist Eastern Shore Mai7-
BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG. 29
land Infantry, Colonel James Wallace; the 2nd Eastern Shore Infantry, and the 150th New York Volunteers. These four regiments were organized under the command of General Henry H. Lockwood, a graduate of West Point who had long been in civil life, but whose patriot- ism was of too fine a grain to allow him to remain inactive when his country was imperiled. Only three of these regiments were at Gettysburg however, as the 2nd Mary- land Eastern Shore Regiment was kept at Baltimore, and did not receive orders to join us until July 6th. Upon reaching Gettysburg we were formally assigned to the 1 2th Corps, commanded by General Henry W. Slocum, (its corps badge being the five-pointed star), ist Division, commanded by General A. S. Williams, of which ours was the 2nd Brigade, commanded by General Lockwood.
At this point let me state that later, just before we crossed the Potomac, the three Maryland regiments re- fused to leave the state, claiming that they were " Home Guards," and then we were assigned to the 3rd Brigade, ist Division, 12th Corps; our brigade commander being General Thomas H. Ruger, and our co-regiments, from four of whom we never parted till the end of the war, were the 2nd Massachusetts, 3rd Wisconsin, 27th Indiana, 13th New Jersey and 107th New York. The Indiana regiment left our brigade at Savannah, Ga., January, 1865. It at once became and continued to be a matter of pride with us that our soldiership in every respect should win commendation from the seasoned veterans of the Army of the Potomac.
But to return to our Littlestown camp. Soon came the order to march. On the afternoon of the day before we had heard, for the first time, hostile cannonading. All
30 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
sorts of rumors had reached us, evolved mainly from the inner unconsciousness-of-the-truth of the narrators. We learned however, that in the first shock of battle, July I St, Lee's army had forced our line back with heavy losses, and that our General John F. Reynolds had been killed.
The forced march of two hours, covering eight miles, was without particular incident, and at 5 :oo A. M. we really became a part of the Army of the Potomac. The position to which we were assigned placed us on the ex- tension of the 1 2th Corps' line south from Gulp's Hill, with only the cavalry on our right, which made us the extreme right of Meade's infantry. All we had to do here was to " possess our souls in patience " and wonder how soon it woulci be our turn to enter the fight, whether we would come out alive or be objects of attention for some "burial squad;" and should we "conquer in the strife!"
As the day wore on the incidents of a battlefield were wanting in our immediate vicinity, but to our left, and along the longest part of our line from the extreme left on Little Round Top towards Gettysburg, which, as we stood, was exactly in our rear, there was an engagement going on that taxed to the utmost our veterans who were confronting the Army of Virginia.
Lee tried all day to find a weak spot in Meade's armor, and strong assaults were made at Gulp's Hill, and along the line to Gettysburg. The right-centre, the centre and the left-centre all were tested, but discomfiture to the enemy was the result in every case, until at last Lee observed that the 3rd Gorps, commanded by General Sickles, was somewhat out of position with an inverted
BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG. 31
" V " shaped angle extended to the front. This discovery, with an idea he entertained that our extreme left at Round Top had been left unguarded, induced him to throw a mass of soldiers against us there. i\nd he almost succeeded!
The Peach Orchard, the now famous Wheat Field, the Bloody Angle, Devil's Den and Round Top ! Their story of deeds of heroism is safe!
It was conjectured by the Union commander that Lee would at once reinforce his right and make a further assault on our extreme left. Our troops at that part of the line had about reached the limit of soldier-endurance and fresh forces were needed. They were obtained by withdrawing regiments from the right and sending them across the field, a mile or more, to the point of danger. Our regiment was a part of the force so placed, and in the brief march which began at 6:00 P. M. we saw for the first time the terrible and ghastly aspect of a battle- field. A few shells from the enemy's batteries flew over our heads, but fortunately did us no harm.
When near the end of our march, which had been by the flank, we reached an open space at the north of Little Round Top, and forming in line, battalion front, ad- vanced across the fields to a point about half a mile west of where the line had been formed. The position to w^hich the regiment advanced that night is now indicated by a granite marker near the Trostle house. The enemy had fallen back upon the first approach of reinforcements and were now concealed from view. We neither saw^ them again, nor discharged a musket, and soon after nine o'clock took up our line of march to the position which we had occupied on the right during the day. Three pieces of
32 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
a Rhode Island battery which had fallen into the enemy's hands, but were later abandoned by them, were drawn off the field by Companies B and G of our regiment.
Not long afterward we regained our former position and found no trouble in dropping to sleep, but a fusillade from some source swept over our line with a sharp sing- ing tone, cutting branches and twigs overhead. It brought us to our feet in an instant. We expected that something worse was coming, but nothing further dis- turbed us, and to tell the truth I think we were all glad that no more such battlefield reminders came through the night; and thus ended Thursday, July 2nd, at Gettys- burg, as far as we were concerned.
We come now to the experiences of Friday, July 3rd. While the extreme right of our line had been drawn upon so heavily the night before to reinforce the left, as hereto- fore stated, the enemy took advantage of the fact and at once occupied a part of our breastworks at the right of Gulp's Hill, which had been thrown up by the 12th Corps. A sharp fight in the dark by the returning regi- ments to regain their breastworks was only partly success- ful, but the necessity of restoring our broken line was so vitally important that arrangements were made during the night for an early morning attack.
Colonel Hunt, Meade's Chief of Artillery, posted dur- ing the dark hours four batteries on an elevation and in a position to reach the enemy who had made themselves at home in our breastworks. At 2 :oo A. M, our regiment was put in motion and after a short march was halted in line of battle twenty rods in front of a piece of woods having dense underbrush. Companies A and F, on the right of the line, were ordered to deploy as skirmishers
BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG. 33
and advance to the edge of the woods, covering the regi- mental front. Had we known that a few rods from us, well protected behind breastworks in those woods, the " Johnnies " were waiting for us, our feelings might have been different.
In an hour we were ordered back and Colonel Ketcham was directed to place our regiment on the left of one of the batteries I have mentioned, and in its support. Colonel Maulsby's Marylanders supported the same battery on the right. At 4:30 A. M. the battery, six brass 12- pounders, opened, directing its shot into the woods on our front. After a half hour, in v/hich the guns were served with great rapidity, an aide galloped up and im- parted an order to General Lockwood to take one of his regiments and advance into the woods which had been so vigorously shelled, and develop the enemy. As Maulsby was on the right and nearest the place indicated, the General ciirected him to execute the order, and as he marched away the right division of our regiment, five companies, moved from its position on the left and became the support of the battery on its right.
When the Marylanders, who moved away by the right flank, reached the open glade in front of the woods where our two companies had been deployed, as before stated, they formed in battalion front and advanced. The shelling had ceased. It was a fine display. As their line was parallel to the edge of the woods they were all out of sight at once, and we waited in dread suspense, but not long. A thousand rifles opened from the contending forces, but our men suffered the most, as the enemy had our captured breastworks for protection.
Our wounded who were able to come back drew out
34 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
of the woods and limped to the rear. A regiment of Regulars charged the enemy's right flank at about this time, and soon the breastworks were retaken and our line established as it existed before the troops were with- drawn the night before. The loss to Maulsby's men in those few minutes was 24 killed and 72 wounded. The foe they met was the ist Maryland Confederate Volun- teers, and mainly Baltimoreans.
By this time, about 6:00 A. M., the battle was joined and pressed with more or less vigor from our extreme left at Round Top to the village of Gettysburg, and to the extreme right, near where we were. There was "good fighting anywhere," as General Phil. Kearney once graphically described a similar situation, and the impres- sion on the men was as varied as their several tempera- m.ents. How would they feel and act under fire? We were not long in finding out, as at once we began march- ing by flank off to the left. An aide from some dfllicer's staff was our guide and we turned to the right from the main road into woods with Gulp's Hill in front. We swung into battalion front, and when the Colonel's com- mand, "Forward, 150th!" was given, we advanced at double-quick with a rush and a cheer.
Ours not to reason why, Ours bnt to do and die!
Our course of forty rods led up over a ridge and then down a slope where we found a long line of hastily built breastworks filled with soldiers who were pouring an incessant fire into the valley below. We then learned that our duty was to relieve a regiment which had been on this firing line two hours, and as wc took its place we found it was the ist Eastern Shore Maryland Infan-
BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG. 35
try of our brigade, which had arrived that morning. Our orders were to load and fire till relieved, and right earnestly was the order obeyed. It is estimated that we expended 150 rounds to a man. The woods in our front were branched low and full of undergrowth. Very seldom was there a living target to be seen, but our shots went down into that valley continuously.
Coming under my own observation the first man to fall was Charles Howgate of Company A. He had ex- hausted his cartridge box, and gone back a few rods to get a new supply from some boxes of ammunition which had been brought on to the field. His position was above the le\'el of the breastworks and easily within range of the enemy's fire. A gaping wound was torn through the top of his head. I had time only to reach him, grasp his hand and speak to him, but it was all over. Possibly he never knew what hit him. I hope so.
A little later Edward Tuttle spoke to me, saying, "John Van Alstyne has got it!" and I beheld, close to the breastworks, the stalwart form of that big, good soldier sink slowly to the ground. A bullet had struck him just below the inner corner of the eye, and his life- blood gushed out in a torrent.
Not long afterward my youngest boy, little Johnny Wing, of slight build and not yet eighteen, anci Levi Rust, one of the oldest men in the company, were killed by the same shot. Johnny was squarely behind Levi, and they dropped almost instantaneously.
Privates Jedidiah Murphy, Co. E; Barnard C. Burnett, Co. G; William H. Barnes, Co. I; and Tallmadge Wood, Co. C, were the other lour who drew the deadly blanks.
36 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
but I can add no particulars of their mortal wounding. The number wounded was 23.
In about two hours we were relieved and fell back of the woods, giving place to another regiment. Later we again rallied on the same rifle pits and poured our leaden hail on " whom it might concern." At one time a squad of four score of the enemy displayed a flag of truce and we ceased firing long enough for them to get over the breastworks and join our other prisoners in the rear. A little before noon we again fell back from the trenches, being relieved by other troops, and took our place in the reserve at the rear.
The grand climacteric of the day and the battle was at three o'clock in the afternoon of that day, when Lee made his mighty culminating effort to break our lines. At one o'clock he had placed the artillery of Hill's and Longstreet's Corps, 115 guns in all, opposite our centre, and opened the heaviest and most terrific cannonading witnessed during the war. Our thin line on Cemetery Ridge was the target, but many of the shells flew over the ridge and landed uncomfortably near us. It had been alleged that Lee's ammunition was defective ; cer- tainly hundreds of shells exploded high over our heads. Colonel Hunt, our Chief of Artillery, says that he could muster only 80 guns to oppose the 115 guns of the enemy. He divined Lee's purpose and husbanded his men and resources, slackening his fire until the enemy's plan was fully developed. At 3:00 P. M., Pickett's famous charge was seen to be in motion.
Let no one ever sneer at or try to belittle the Southern soldier. No one will who saw or has correctly under- stood this heroic movement. For a mile these troops
RATTLE OF GETTYSBURG. 37
had to march under the most galling fire, most of the way up a rising ground. They came on in three lines, 15,000 men in fine alignment, banners flying, and with a fixed purpose to carry the day. The centre of the 2nd Corps was their objective point, and when Hunt saw that they were near enough his guns opened on them. Those in front had a point-blank range, while those at the right and at the left had a partially enfilading fire. Their cannon shots were going over the heads of our infantry line, which was holding its fire.
But the time came when the enemy was near enough to be within easy range of the infantry, and our thou- sands of rifles mowed them down by hundreds and hun- dreds. Still they came on, until they reached the stone wall, behind which our thin line met them in a hand to hand conflict, but could not, at every point, withstand the impact, and a few of the charging force actually crossed our line; but it was unimportant on the general result.
Our infantry and batteries to the right and left of the main body of the enemy now delivered an enfilading fire which did terrible execution in their ranks. Pickett's brave men were half a mile from any support, and the Confederate artillery could not be used without inflicting as much damage on their own troops as on ours. To retreat was as bad as to advance, for a considerable part of their forces, and they became prisoners. That part which could, fell back, but received the attention of our guns and small arms until out of range. The place at which our line was broken is now indicated by a sub- stantial marker, and is known as the " High- Water Mark of the Rebellion."
In anticipation of the possible needs of the day, several
38 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
regiments, ours being one, were massed in rear of the 2nd Corps, and held in reserve. We were protected by ris- ing ground, and had the pleasure of seeing a few thou- sand of the prisoners taken there marched to the rear. The battle was over and the field won; but at a fearful cost.
Towards sundown we returned to the right and held a part of the breastworks during the night. We did not know that the battle was ended, the troops being kept alert as though they might be assailed at any minute, and no vigilance was relaxed. Saturday morning, July 4th, Colonel Ketcham was ordered to take our regiment out on an exploring tour to find where the enemy was. We marched to the front, well beyond the positions held by the enemy on the two previous days, and much to our delight found no " Johnnies " anywhere. Lee had drawn back his left flank, but held his position in front of our left. The day passed without incident, and Sunday morning, July 5th, Lee was in full retreat for the Potomac.
Details were made from all the regiments to bury the dead. As the dead of the ist Maryland Confederate regiment, whom Maulsby's men met in the morning of July 3rd, were brought out of the woods, among them I noticed a stalwart six-footer with a heavy, short, black beard. He had, even in death, a look of severity if not of cruelty. Just then a squad of Maulsby's men came along and one of them, a little, stout chunk of a boy, stopped a moment, and, touching the fallen giant with the toe of his shoe, said, " You'll never kick me down the Maryland Listitute steps again!" Llpon inquiry, I
BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG. 39
learned that the man just slain had been Marshal Henry's Chief of Police in Baltimore before the war.
A plat of ground was subsequently selected for a Ceme- tery, and much care taken to designate the name of every soldier buried therein, but there are over six hundred graves in the plot marked "Unknown." In 1867, the interments numbered 3,564, showing that nearly 500 of those first reported as wounded had been added to those killed in action. Should any who visit Gettysburg wish to find the graves of our men, the following memoranda will aid them: Co. A, John Van Alstyne, Grave 20, Section B, New
York Plat. Co. A, John P. Wing, Grave 21, Section B, New York
Plat. Co. A, Levi Rust, Grave 9, Section C, New York Plat. Co. A, Charles Howgate, Grave 11, Section C, New
York Plat. Co. C, Tallmadge Wood, Grave 82, Section B, New
York Plat. Co. G, B. C. Burnett, Grave 10, Section C, New York
Plat. Co. E, Jedidiah Murphy, Unknown. Co. I, William H. Barnes, Unknown.
CHAPTER V.
FROM GETTYSBURG TO VIRGINIA.
By Charles E. Benton.
The Wreckage of Battle — Tragic Scenes — Following the Enemy — Long-Distance Match- ing— Topography of the Country — Again Confronting the Enemy — Historic Harper's Ferry — Blackberries, a Feast for the Gods — Sickness in Camp.
The greatest battle of the greatest war of the 19th century had been fought and won. It was the introduc- tion of " The Dutchess County Regiment " to the gods of war, and the friends of the organization had no cause to bkish for the manner in which it had conducted itself in the presence of the new and trying scenes.
Foot-sore and wasted by the forced marches and scant rations of the past week, worn with fatigue and loss of sleep during the battle, and without food for forty-eight hours, we awakened on the morning of July 4th to soon hear the welcome news that the enemy had retreated dur- ing the night, leaving both their dead and their severely wounded.
We were on ground which had been plowed from one direction by such of Lee's shells as had skipped over Cemetery Ridge, and from the other direction by the enemy's fire from their line which had confronted us at Culp's Hill and Rock Creek. On every side was the wreckage of battle, and many of the wounded had not received even the first attention of the surgeons. Our
FROM GETTYSBURG TO VIRGINIA. 41
long fast was soon broken by the distribution of rations, which, during the whole of our participation in the battle, owing to the fact that the regiment had been so con- stantly under fire, the commissary had failed to supply us with.
One of the first duties to which a detail was assigned was the burial of the regiment's dead, eight in number, who were laid at rest at the slcirt of the woods which covered Gulp's Hill, their graves being marked by boards on which the names, companies and regiment were cut. But during the year intervening before the bodies were removed to the National Cemetery the boards were prob- ably broken or lost, for only six of the names can be found in the New York Plat of the Cemetery.
Another detail was engaged for some two hours in assisting to bury the enemy's ciead, which lay so thickly strewn in front of the line which our brigade held for fiv^e hours of the previous day. From this duty they were relieved, by order of General Lockwood, and towards night the regiment was marched some distance to the left, where it went into camp.
On the following day, July 5th, we remained at this place until nearly night,- when we received marching orders. It now became the regiment's duty to follow along the rear of the army, and arrest and bring forward the stragglers, of which there were always a dragging trail in the wake of the army. Besides the minority who became detached from their commands by reason of wantonness, there were the greater number who thus lagged solely from their inability to keep up in the army's chase of the retreating enemy. Some were prostrated at the side of the road by sickness; some were completely
42 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
exhausted by hunger and fatigue ; and there were some of the less seriously wounded who were attempting to keep their place in the line but could not.
Of these, the first class were arrested and sent to their commands under guard, there to be dealt with by their own officers. But the others had to be provided for by means of wagons and ambulances, so far as possible. The supply however was inadequate, and many were left behind, and among them were some of our own regiment, who joined us weeks afterward. This labor lasted until lo :oo P. M., when we arrived at a point near Littlestown, Pa., where we went into camp for the remainder of the night. On the next day we moved but a few miles, and again halted for the night.
On July yth, we broke camp at 3 :oo A. M., and before noon had made a record for rapid long-distance march- ing. Sixteen miles was then accounted to be a fair day's march, in doing which the troops were expected to aver- age about two miles an hour. But in a little less than nine hours from the time at which we had started on this day we covered nearly thirty miles. When it is con- sidered what the regiment had previously undergone, it will be seen that this was a severe strain on the powers of the men. Fortunately we went but a short distance in the afternoon, and early encamped for the night.
It was during this fatiguing day that the news came to us of the surrender of Vicksburg on July 4th, the very day on which Lee had begun his retreat from Gettys- burg. It was wafted along the line like a good omen, as indeed it was, and doubtless added an important factor in sustaining the flagging vitality of the regiment. Yet
FROM GETTYSBURG TO VIRGINIA. 43
of the full significance of this double victory on our National Day, none of us could know at that time.
In order for the reader to understand the movements of the two armies, I will say a few words regarding the topography of the country in which we were operating.
Western Maryland is divided across, from north to south, by successive mountain ranges of the great Appala- chian mountains, and between these ridges lie valleys of some of the finest farming lands in the East. I remem- ber it as one of the pleasantest pastoral landscapes that I have ever seen, for it was entirely lacking in the dead uniformity of the Western farm scenes. While there were wide stretching fields rolling away in the distance, yellow with unharvested wheat, there were also wooded lands, rocky ridges, uplands, roads winding along pleasant streams, cascades and dells, and comfortable homesteads nestling among the shade trees and orchards.
The mountain range lying immediately west of our line of march since we left Gettysburg, was South Moun- tain, and on its farther side was Cumberland Valley, famed throughout a century for its fine farming lands. In this valley was Lee's army, making the best of its way back towards Virginia, harassed on its rear and flanks by our cavalry, and faced at every pass by the infantry.
On July 8th, we continued twenty miles farther to the south, passing through Frederick City and Middletown, to Burketsville, where we went into camp for the night. July 9th we moved towards the west, passing the moun- tain range through Crampton Gap, reaching Rhorersville about noon, having come twelve miles. We were now in the Cumberland Valley, in which Lee's army was, and in our entrance we were close to its borders, as was indicated
44 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
by subsequent events. On the following day we moved southward again some twelve miles farther, reaching the village of Smoketown.
July iith, the regiment moved five miles farther, to the village of Fairplay, at which place there were indica- tions that we were in the near vicinity of the enemy. At one place a line of battle was formed, and skirmishers were thrown out. Several times during the day they were fired upon, but though every one was kept on the qui vive, yet there was no general engagement. At five the next morning there was another forward movement for about a mile, and again a line of battle was formed. In this position the regiment remained until night, when the line fell back a short distance and labored at the erection of breastworks, working all night.
These breastworks ran, a portion of the way, through woods of heavy timber, and where this was the case the timber of trees was largely used in their construction. For a considerable distance in our front also the timber was cut, and falling at random it formed, with its entangled branches and trunks, a formidable chcvaux-de-frise, over which it would have been almost impossible for the enemy to attack us. I also noticed that there were convenient gaps so arranged that masked batteries could easily en- filade an assaulting force.
Morning found the regiment still at work, and with only the pauses for meals the labor continued all day. The breastworks thus hastily constructed were said to be some seven miles in length, with the ends resting on the Potomac river, and in their semicircular sweep enclosing Lee's army, which was thought to be crossing the river under difficulties, owing to high water from the late rains.
FROM GETTYSBURG TO VIRGINIA. 45
About a mile in our front we could see the enemy build- ing similar defences, while between us were the two skirmish lines, who kept up a rapid firing during the day.
July 14th, our regiment, with two of the Maryland regiments, formed part of a force which was ordered to make a reconnoissance. A line was formed and skirmish- ers thrown out, but they moved only a short distance, and about the middle of the afternoon were ordered to fall back to the breastworks again. But about 8 o'clock in the evening marching orders were again received, and this time the regiment started on the most trying march of the campaign. The night was intensely dark, and the roads, from the rains and the passing of armies, were but swimming beds of water, and when we attempted to cross the fields the rich soil, if not as deep, made a more adhesive mud. And as if to increase our discomfort, the elements now broke forth in a furious night tempest.
I have not been able to ascertain how far we marched that night, but it could not have been many miles, though it was after midnight when the regiment halted. It seemed to us, still unaccustomed to campaigning, like an irony of military fate that at the earliest dawn we re- traced our steps and marched back to the breastworks we had left on the evening before. But in time we be- came accustomed to such beyond-understanding move- ments. Yet now we did not halt at the breastworks, but continued in a southeasterly direction, following the gen- eral course of the Potomac river, and before night we had covered twenty miles, arriving at Antietam Iron Works. Here the regiment remained until the morning of the following day, July i6th, when it again took up the line
46 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
of march and before noon reached the vicinity of Har- per's Ferry.
At this point the Shenandoah river, flowing in a north- erly direction through Virginia, joins the Potomac. Here, with united forces, the streams pass through the Blue Ridge range of mountains in a deep and picturesque gorge, famed for its romantic beauty and grandeur. The great mountain bluff which rises on the north side of this gorge is known as Maryland Heights. Following our line of march along the tow-path of the old canal which borders the river, we passed under the towering heights and around to their southeastern face. Here we climbed to a little side valley known as Pleasant Valley, and went into camp near Sandy Hook.
Up to this time we had been brigaded with three Maryland regiments, which were, in some sense, a kind of State Militia, for they were enlisted to serve north of the Potomac only. These regiments were now to be left behind, and in the new organization we became a part of the 3rd Brigade, ist Division, of the 12th Army Corps. This Corps was commanded by Major-General Slocum. Colonel Ketcham was ordered to report to General Thomas H. Ruger, who commanded the 3rd Brigade, and we thus became an integral part of the Army of the Potomac.
Harper's Ferry is a post village situated on the south side of the Potomac, and on the west side of the Shenan- doah where these rivers join. It seemed as if nature never intended the place for a town, for on this narrow peninsula the village, from very necessity, is crowded together on the steep sidehill, and almost overhangs the water fronts. But insignificant as tbc place itself may
FROM GETTYSBURG TO VIRGINIA. 47
appear, it is connected with a tragedy which is ranked with some importance among the nation's epochs. It was the scene of the only organized stand for liberty which' the negro race have ever made in this country.
Some of us visited the old engine house which had served John Brown as a last fortress, and in which he was captured. He had knocked out bricks here and there, forming embrasures through which he could use his muskets. The walls had been mended, but the dif- ference in the color of the bricks showed plainly where the holes had been. The place had passed through scenes of camp and battle before we came there, and the bridge across the Potomac had been destroyed; but there was a pontoon bridge in its stead, which, for all army purposes, was a fairly good substitute.
July 19th, the regiment again broke camp, feeling a little restored by its two days of rest, and marching down the hill, and again under the overhanging brow of Mary- land Heights, we took our place in the seemingly endless stream of men, horses, wagons and munitions which con- stituted the army. We crossed on the pontoon bridge to Harper's Ferry, and skirting along the water fronts, crossed the Shenandoah on the old wooden bridge, and then began the tiresome mountain climb on the southern side of the gorge where the river cleaves the Blue Ridge mountains. After passing over the mountain we skirted along its eastern base until we reached the vicinity of Hillsdale, where the regiment halted for the night. On the following day we moved some eleven miles further and went into camp near Snicker's Gap, where the regi- ment remained three days.
The locality is not a " gap " in the ordinary sense, but is
48 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
a dip In the mountain range, where a road leads across to the Shenandoah Valley on the other side. The point Is a place of some strategic Importance, and there were evi- dences on every hand that It had been camped upon many times before our arrival.
This rest was a most fortunate one for the regiment. In the condition the men were reduced to by the hard- ships of war, and into which they had been so suddenly plunged. It seemed to us that Dame Nature had espe- cially provided here, in advance of our coming, a healing balm for our woes. On the old fields and hillsides of the abandoned plantations had sprung up a marvelous growth of blackberries, and they were just then in their fullest prime of ripeness. As may readily be imagined, this delicious fruit, with its well known healing and nour- ishing qualities, was to us a veritable feast of the gods. The men roved over the fields, eating unlimited quanti- ties; In fact they almost lived upon them for a few days.
We were now at the western border of that great undulating slope which, beginning at the base of the Blue Ridge mountains, stretches away eastward to the Poto- mac river and Chesapeake Bay, and over which so much active warfare had already been conducted during the previous two years. On the morning of July 23rd, the regiment again took up the line of march, and passing to the westward of Upperville, went towards Ashby's Gap; then returning, came back through Upperville, and after much marching anci countermarching at last halted, about midnight, a few miles from Manassas Gap.
But our rest was short, for by four in the morning we were again on the road, and halted for the next night near White Plains. On the next day, July 25th, we
FROM GETTYSBURG TO VIRGINIA. 49
marched through White Plains to Haymarket, and on the following day to Warrenton Junction, where the regi- ment was detained for fiv^e days. July 31st we moved about sixteen miles, reaching the Rappahannock river at Kelley's Ford, and on the following day crossed the river on a pontoon bridge. But on August 2nd the troops were moved to the north side of the river again, where the regiment established a more permanent camp.
The site selected for this camp was a most unfortunate one, for there were no good springs in its immediate vicinity. Though not close to the river, it was upon the low lands adjoining it, and it was peculiarly subject to the malarial fevers which infest the river districts of Virginia during the heated term of summer. This first campaign of an unusually hot summer was a very trying one for the men, and i» their reduced condition they fell an easy prey to malaria, typhoid fever and dysentery, and the many kindred diseases.
Some conception of the extent of the sickness may be formed when it is stated that of the thirty-eight commis- sioned officers of the regiment there w^re presently but seven who reported for duty, the others being disabled by reason of sickness; and a like, or probably greater, pro- portion of the enlisted men were in a similar condition. The hospitals held about 250 of our members, but they were full to overflowing. As for the others, they were cared for In the camp by their comrades as best they might be.
Our duty here consisted in guarding the ford. The river at this place has a strength of current which made rapid and easy fording by a large force somewhat difficult,
50 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
hence it formed a natural front for our army there encamped.
After a month's experience with these malarial low- lands, during which we drank bad water most of the time, the regiment was removed a mile to the rear and placed in a new camp situated on a little hill of pines. It was also, at about this time, excused from the most of the army duties. The sanitary conditions of this camp were much better, and there was soon a perceptible improvement in the regimental health. But on September 15th there was another forward movement of the army. The regiment again crossed the Rappahannock, and passing through Stevensburg, marched to Raccoon Ford on the Rapidan; again encamping on low, swampy ground. It was now engaged in doing picket duty until September 24th, when it was again marched northward, reaching Brandy Station on the 25th, where, for the first time since leaving Balti- more, the regiment was paid.
CHAPTER VI.
FROM VIRGINIA TO TENNESSEE.
By Platt C. Curtiss.
Traveling in Freight Cars — Mountain Scenery — Patriotism on the Way — A Winter
Guarding the Railroad — IVIurders by Bushwhackers — Taxing the Citizens
to Suppress It — More Murders — "The Simple Life" —
Consolidation of Army Corps — "Fighting Joe."
At this time great national events were being enacted in the West. After Grant's triumph at Vicksburg some of his troops had been moved towards Lower East Ten- nessee, but before they had arrived, there had been fought, just at the time when the " Dutchess County Regiment " was doing picket duty on the Rapidan, the battle of Chickamauga. It resulted in a defeat to our army there engaged. Yet while the victory was nomi- nally with the Confederates, it had cost them dearly, and proved to be a barren victory.
Sherman was now hurried forward from Vicksburg towards Chattanooga, Tennessee, with reinforcements, while arrangements were being made to send the nth and 1 2th Corps from the Army of the Potomac to the same destination. In accordance with this plan for the dis- position of forces, on September 27, 1863, the " Dutchess County Regiment," then at Bealton, Va., some twelve miles north of the Rappahannock, loaded itself on a freight train which had been provided, and began its journey to its new field of achievements, in the West.
52 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
The cars were of the box type, much smaller than the cars of to-day, and furnished with fixed board seats run- ning transversely. About sixty men were allotted to each car, and by judicious stowage there was almost room enough for each man to have a seat. These were the conditions during our waking hours. Our route was via Washington and Harper's Ferry and across the Alle- ghany mountains westward.
The exhilarating and bracing effect of the mountain air and bright sunshine of late September soon dispelled the malaria from our systems, and we felt like " Giants refreshed with new wine." And the magnificent moun- tain scenery! I shall not attempt to describe it. Some- times we skirted along the brow of a precipice where one might look down a sheer thousand feet into a sea of foli- age of variegated hues, and anon we plunged into the mid- night darkness of a tunnel, and then again into the bright sunshine.
We were not making schedule time, and often would be on the side-track for hours, thus having an oppor- tunity to boil coffee and fry bacon. Of course our com- missariat was looked after as well as human foresight could provide for, and Colonel Ketcham, whose first, last and constant thought was the welfare and comfort of his " boys," was constantly on hand to cheer and encourage us by his genial presence; yet there were many deficiencies, even in our limited bill of fare.
As I stated previously, our space in the car allowed nearly room enough for each man to breathe in, provided all did not breathe simultaneously, in which event the sides of the car would have been unable to withstand the press- ure. Then, to revert to a subject which I dread to
FROM VIRGINIA TO TENNESSEE. 53
think of, even after the lapse of more than forty years, I will endeavor to convey to your minds an idea of how we slept. We just had to sleep. Even mountain scenery and rarefied air were not everything.
Tired Nature's sweet restorer must have her innings, and we found by actual experiment that the average man required about two and a half or three times more space when sleeping in a recumbent position than he did when awake and sitting up. We also discovered that when we slept in layers more than two deep, the lower strata showed symptoms of discomfort, and was disposed to kick, and it was no figurative "kick" either.
Something had to be done. To the roof of the car! That's the idea ! Along the centre of the roof of the car was a plank, raised a couple of inches by blocks. Those of us who did not like the accommodations of the dormi- tory inside, could come up to the roof and have quarters on top. Such of us as went to the roof to sleep (about half of that car load I think) took the precaution to lash ourselves fast to the plank of which I hav'e spoken, by canteen straps and gun-slings, so that Uncle Sam would not lose one of his good soldiers during the night. The government owned us for three years, and we had no right to jeopardize " Government property !"
As nearly as I can remember, we were two or three days and nights in crossing the Alleghany mountains, which is sub-divided into Blue Ridge, Shenandoah, Poca- hontas and Laurel Ridge ranges. Finally the mountains came to an end, and now we were gliding down the west- ern slope of the Alleghanies into the Ohio Valley. In due time we arriveci at the Ohio river, and crossed at Benwood, four miles below Wheeling. Our journey
54 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
through the states of Ohio and Indiana was marked by such spontaneous manifestations of patriotism and loyalty that we felt as though we were really back in " God's Country " again.
From every farm house, hamlet and town, " Old Glory " greeted us, and more than ever before taught us that we were soldiers of a country well worth fighting for. The vast cornfields of these states, sometimes thou- sands of acres in extent; the flourishing cities and towns, with apparently uninterrupteci traffic, and the evidences of material prosperity everywhere visible, broadened our view of our country's greatness, and proved to our minds that the resources of the North were practically unlimited.
At several places we were tendered receptions by the citizens en masse; notably at Xenia, Ohio, where the pupils of a young ladies' seminary, arrayed in red, white and blue, sang patriotic airs and waved flags, and, best of all, gave us all we could eat and drink; and at last they seemed really disappointed that our capacity had a limit.
Our route took us through the finest sections of Ohio and Indiana, and near the historic scene of Colonel George Rogers Clark's famous expedition, which gained for us the great Northwest in the preceding century. Crossing the Ohio river again, at Jeffersonvllle, Ind., we landed at Louisville, Ky., on the southern bank of the river. The " Blue Grass '' region is one of the finest countries in the world, and we ceased to wonder why the pioneer, Daniel Boone, forsook civilization and chose it for his home.
So we journeyed southward through the states of Ken- tucky and Tennessee, with no conductor to bother us about our tickets, and never a worry about our baggage, nor
FROM VIRGINIA TO TENNESSEE. 55
whether we should be able to connect with the next train. The principal source of anxiety and misgiving with the soldier is whether his rations will be forthcoming at the proper time, and whether the paymaster will appear when he is due.
We arrived in Tennessee, where we found conditions much the same as in Kentucky. The capital, Nashville, is situated in a beautiful section, and the capitol building was a rather pretentious edifice, built of Tennessee marble, and founded on a limestone ledge several acres in extent. In time we arrived at the Cumberland Mountains and commenced their slow ascent. There were heavy grades to be overcome, and it was a repetition, in a lesser degree, of the crossing of the Alleghanies. The only difference was that by this time we had become physically hardened, calloused and toughened to such a degree that we could scarcely detect the difference between the hard and soft sides of a board, and could sleep anywhere, everywhere, and at any time.
At last we reached the northern portion of Alabama, and it struck us as a curious coincidence that the name of the state is said to be the Indian synonym for " Here We Rest." It is a record of fact which I write, that after we disembarked from our nine days' ride, it took us some time to get the kinks out of our legs, and get into shape for marching.
But our rest in Alabama was brief. A portion of our Corps went on still further, to where East Tennessee borders on Georgia, where they participated in the battles of Lookout Mountain and Missionary Ridge, while the balance of the Corps, including our Division (the ist Division) was sent back to guard the railroad between
56 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
Nashville and Chattanooga, for it was constantly menaced by the enemy's cavalry. Headquarters of the 12th Army Corps, Major-General Henry W. Slocum commanding, was established at Tullahoma, Tenn., on the Nashville and Chattanooga R. R. It is in the county of Coffee, near the southern tier of counties which border on Alabama.
Our regiment was sent to Normandy, seven miles north of Tullahoma. At Normandy there is a considerable stream, Duck River, a branch of which is spanned at that place by a railroad bridge of some height and length, and it was the special duty of our regiment to guard this structure. Rising abruptly at the end of the bridge, on the southeast, was a hill some two hundred feet in height, and at the north end of this hill was an opening in the rocks, which was the entrance to a cave of considerable extent.
It was said to have been a rendezvous and hiding place for guerillas who fired on passing trains, and as they fired from within the cave it was impossible to determine where the shots came from.
Opposite regimental headquarters was an old black- smith shop, and here, during the winter, religious ser- vices were held, and the room was usually well filled. Many of the men were afflicted at this time with scurvy, caused by a lack of vegetable food, and several consign- ments of sanitary stores, such as pickled onions, dried fruits, condensed milk, vegetables, etc., from the Sani- tary Commission, greatly improved the health of the regiment.
There were also consignments from the same source of delicacies for such as were in the hospital, and a large trunk, filled with stockings and mittens, sent from the
FROM VIRGINIA TO TENNESSEE. 57
Presbyterian Church In Poughkeepsie, arriving in Febru- ary, the contents were distributed among the men, gen- erally while they were on picket duty. The Christian Commission also contributed many comforts, including even literature for the lads who were lonesome.
These two " Commissions " were voluntary organiza- tions of citizens, by means of which the loyal people of the North kept in touch with the volunteer soldiers of the civil war. Their agents were usually the Chaplains of the regiments, and through them the armies in the field, as well as the sick in the hundreds of hospitals, were sup- plied with many comforts which could not well have been furnished by the War Department.
There were many of the natives who led double lives. Part of the time they were guerillas, or " bushwhackers," as they were termed in the army slang of that day, and at other times they would be — apparently — peaceful citi- zens. It was found to be difficult to fasten proof on these marauders, and therefore the general in command of that department resolved to adopt heroic measures to suppress such illegitimate methods of warfare, and an order for that purpose was issued by Maj.-Gen. George H. Thomas.
After recounting the circumstances of one of the worst instances, which the General spoke of as " these atrocious and cold-blooded murders, equaling in savage ferocity any ever committed by the most barbarous tribes on this continent," etc., the order proceeded to direct that a tax of $30,000 should be levied on the property of rebel citizens living within ten miles of where the murders were committed, and the money, when collected, divided among the families of the murdered men.
58 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
Some of these murderers were sub^quently captured, and were tried by a Military Commission sitting at Tulla- homa. They had able lawyers who appeared for their defense, but the evidence against them was too conclusive to admit of a doubt, and their conviction followed. They were executed at Nashville not long after.
In pursuance of this order. General Slocum detailed six companies of our regiment, and a squadron of cavalry, Colonel Ketcham in command, to collect the tax. The battalion broke camp January i6, 1864, and by the middle of the afternoon was well on the way to Tulla- homa. The country through which we passed during this first day had no fences, and but few cultivated fields, and was, for the most part, thickly wooded.
The companies reported at General Ruger's head- quarters at nightfall, and preparations were made for an early start in the morning. This portion of the expedition consisted, beside the six companies of our regiment, of which I have spoken, of ten mounted officers, four six-mule wagons and two ambulances. Colonel Ketcham remained until the next day, to bring up the squadron of cavalry.
The weather, although it was mid-winter, was balmy, and at mid-day positively warm, and the men, who were in heavy marching order, perspired freely, so that fre- quent stops for rest were granted. On our route we passed a house which was said to have been at one time the home of the world-renowned Davy Crockett, and this locality was the scene of many of his wonderful feats with gun and trap. The close of the day found the expedition at Lynchburg, a small village with houses all on the main road, and with about a dozen stores, all of which however were closed.
FROM VIRGINIA TO TENNESSEE. 59
The farmers were generally well off in worldly goods, and In making an apportionment of the tax, from the County Records, Colonel Ketcham found two men in the assessed district worth over a million dollars each, and five others worth over a half million each. The position of these men was a trying one, and they were to be made to feel the cost of secession as they had never felt it before.
On the second day out, the forage train visited two plantations and filled 50 army wagons with corn and oats, and then piled corn stalks on top. From another farm there was gathered 3,000 bushels of oats and corn, and a large number of cattle. For all of this property receipts were given to the owners by the officer In command of the forage train. The battalion was on the march by 8 A. M. on the following day, and by noon had reached Mulberry, the County Seat of Lincoln County. We found the stores closed, and most of the houses deserted, and the citizens who remained said that similar conditions prevailed throughout the state.
Headquarters was established In a well-built house of brick, which stood in the center of the village, and Cap- tain Cogswell, of Co. A, occupied a house near the village church. There was no sugar to be had, and honey was used to sweeten our coffee, but as there were plenty of chickens, and some wild game, we did not suffer for lack of meat. On Sunday, January 24th, services were held by Chaplain Bartlett of our regiment, in the Baptist Church, and he had a large attendance, for, beside the six companies of the 150th, nearly one hundred of the citizens attended.
The expedition lasted two weeks, and, Its object having
60 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
been satisfactorily accomplished, a return to TuUahoma was ordered. The return journey was marked by the murder of two of our men by the guerillas of that section. George Lovelace and John Odell were leading horses a short distance in advance of the main column, which was moving leisurely along without the least idea of danger. The two men had gone not over half a mile ahead, around a turn in the road between the hills, when down came a squad of guerillas in front of them, while another gang came up in their rear, all firing as they closed in on their victims. Both men were killed outright, being shot through the lungs in both cases, one from the back and the other through the breast.
The regiment, alarmed by the fusillade, hastened to the spot, only to find the two men dead, one in the road- way and the other in a cornfield near at hand. Lieut. Bowman gave chase with a squad of cavalry and after a pursuit of seven or eight miles succeeded in recapturing the horses and wounding several of the guerillas, and finding two pairs of boots, and several other articles plundered from the bodies of our unfortunate comrades.
Their bodies were tenderly taken up, placed in the am- bulance, and brought sadly into camp. The next day the funeral was held, and the late lamented Captain Woodin, in a letter which was published in the Poughkeepsie Eagle, rendered a graphic account of the impressive ceremonies, which were of a military character, conducted by Chaplain Bartlett; the remains being escorted to the grave by the Regimental Band, which played a dead march for the whole distance.
Colonel Ketcham having succeeded in collecting $5,000 more than was required by the order, recommended that
FROM VIRGINIA TO TENNESSEE. 61
the amount be equally divided between the families of these two comrades, and, his recommendation being ap- proved by the Government, the wiciows of Lovelace and Odell each received $2,500.
Four of the ten companies composing our regiment were not stationed at Normandy during the winter. Two companies, I and H, were detailed to guard a water tank near Wartrace, Tenn., where all trains stopped for water. They built there a block-house of hewn logs, for we had several men who were carpenters before they became soldiers. The block-house was two stories in height, the upper story being placed octagonally upon the lower, so that the house had eight fronts, with loop-holes for our rifles. The timbers were eight inches square and thirty feet in length, and it cost us considerable labor, working as we did with poor and insufficient tools, but the result was quite satisfactory. Though we never had occasion to use the structure as a defense, yet we did use it as a shelter. Trains were passing at all hours of the day and night, loaded with munitions and supplies for the front.
After a few weeks of duty at this place. Companies I and G were sent to guard the bridge which spanned the Duck river near Wartrace, Tenn., Lieutenant Undenvood being in command. This bridge was an important link in the line of communication, and its destruction would have been a serious affair. As soon as we arrived, we set to work building our huts for shelter and warmth, using logs for walls, and boards when we could get them, for the roofs and floors. Each hut had a large fire-place and chimney constructed of stones and clay mortar. The dimensions of our huts were about 8x12 feet, and they were expected to house five or six men each. Rude
62 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT,
bunks were built in tiers across the rear end, and were the principal part of our furniture.
Duck river runs through an ideal farming country, for the soil is fertile and the water excellent, while the wooded portion, which was at that time a virgin forest, included a vast amount of splendid timber. Along the river were large tracts of level bottom-lands covered with tall broom- grass which afforded fine shelter for rabbits. Amuse- ments were not abundant then, and occasionally, when conditions were favorable, we would organize a round-up of rabbits. We would surround a tract of say fifty acres, and at a given signal each one of us would move towards a common center, beating the grass with a pole, and shout- ing. As we narrowed the circle we could see the quarry jumping here and there and the grass waving from their movements, and at its close we were generally rewarded with a good catch.
Mails came to us with reasonable regularity, but read- ing matter was scarce in camp, and the surrounding com- munity was by no means of a high literary character; in fact it was quite the reverse. That country was then comparatively new, and hence was as yet sparsely settled, and several conscriptions by the Confederacy had robbed the community of its young and middle-aged men, leaving only the youths and aged at home. The female portion of the remaining society were very outspoken in their sentiments regarding the war, and firmly believed in the justice and ultimate success of the Southern cause.
Wartrace was a small station on the railroad, and con- sisted, at the time of which I write, of a depot building, a dozen houses, a couple of general stores where goods were sold or bartered for produce, a blacksmith shop and
FROM VIRGINIA TO TENNESSEE. 63
a church. It was a primitive community, and typical of the rural districts of Tennessee in the 6o's. A rudely constructed log cabin, often all in one room, a few acres of clearing, sufficient to raise corn and potatoes to fatten a few pigs and supply corn meal for the making of the' ever-present " corn pone," and, incidentally, enough corn for the manufacture of " Moonshine " whiskey, which was considered by these people to be one of the prime necessities of life ; such was the home of the " poor white " of Tennessee at that time. Their wants were few, and in fact they were the exponents of " The Simple Life."
The homes of the slave owners were of a more luxuri- ant type, but gave evidence in their surroundings of a measure of barbaric crudeness of a most lavish character. They were in no respects as good, nor as comfortable and convenient, as the residences of the average Northern farmers.
The health of the regiment was good at that time, very few of its members being in the hospital, which argued well for the efficiency of our medical and surgical department, as well as for the physical condition of the men. During the last w^eek in March, George Pinhorn, of Co. B, was assisting in the survey of a road from Tullahoma to Shelbyville. While he and William Law- son were eating their dinner, seated on a log under a tall tree, the wind, which was blowing hard at the time, broke off a large limb which in its fall struck Pinhorn on the head and caused his death; he surviving the injury but a few hours. Pie was buried at Tullahoma.
He was a very capable young man, and had, but a short time before, been detailed to the Engineer Corps, and it was understood that he was soon to have been promoted
64 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
to the rank of Captain. The same limb which caused his death also struck a cup of coffee from the hand of Lawson, shattering the cup into many fragments, which he afterward sent to Engine Company No. 6, of Pough- keepsie, of which he was a member, desiring that they should have a souvenir of his narrow escape from death by accident.
At last the month of March had taken its departure and spring time had come in the Sunny South, the buds bursting into life after their winter of sleep. Rumors of the coming campaign, which was to be, as we fondly hoped, the finish of the war, were thick in the air. The note of preparation was sounded, and the army began to make final preparations for an active campaign, for there was considerable vitality yet left in the rebellion, and it died hard.
All deficiencies in our equipment and armament were made good, and everything necessary for a vigorous conduct of the advance into the heart of the Confederacy was furnished. We firmly believed that the coming cam- paign would see the national authority established in all the states which had defied it. So when marching orders came on April 25, 1864, we thought we could see the beginning of the end, and although many of us were fated to fall upon bloody fields of battle, we were glad when the order was given, " Break camp and he in readi- ness to march for the front." We marched for " the front " at the date appointed.
By General Order No. 144, under date of April 4, 1864, the iith and 12th Army Corps (ours was the 1 2th) were consolidated, the new organization thus formed being designated the 20th Army Corps, having
FROM VIRGINIA TO TENNESSEE. 65
the five-pointed star as its corps badge, and it was placed under the command of Major-General Joseph Hooker; " Fighting Joe," as he was familiarly spoken of in the ranks; and in this corps we entered the campaign of 1864 as one of the six regiments which composed the 2nd Brigade of its ist Division, and in it remained until the close of the war. It was destined to take us into and through the Confederacy to the Atlantic coast, and north- ward through the Carolinas and Virginia to Washington again.
CHAPTER VII.
FROM NORMANDY TO RESACA.
By Stephen G. Cook.
The Peculiarities of Memory — The Second Pleasant Winter in the Army — The iithand 1 2th Corps Consolidated — Leaving Normandy, Tennessee, for a .More South- ern Trip — That Thunder Shower — A Mule "Potter's Field" — Lookout Mountain — Snake Creek Gap — Tiie Battle of Resaca.
Some one has said that " Memories brighten as they take their flight," and I, from personal experience, believe the saying to be true. What old soldier is there, as he looks back over a vista of forty years and recalls the in- cidents of his army service, who does not linger with fondness over the pleasanter portions of it?
The sleeping on the ground in the rain and the cold, the weariness, the forced marches, the hunger, the battle, the diseases contracted and even the wounds received are only half remembered, but the merry quip, the jest, the songs we used to sing, and the pleasures of good com- radeship will linger in our minds until time for us shall be no more. Our memories at best go back clearly but a little way, or if they go back far, they pick up here a date and there an occurrence half forgotten, and of those remembered the pleasantest are sure to be much the larger portion. We forget the brambles and the thorns and remember only the roses and the wild flowers that bloomed along our path.
This is my own experience, and that of many others
FROM NORMANDY TO RESACA. 67
with whom I hav^e conversed on this subject and I behevx if the memories of the two hundred hving members (October, 1905,) of the old regiment could be tested it would be found that their experience would correspond very nearly with mine ; another evidence of the kindness of Divine Providence.
As the spring of 1864 opened the regiment could real- ize that it had passed two very pleasant winters in the service, the first at Baltimore, surrounded by the gaieties and pleasures of that intensely Union and just as in- tensely Rebel city, between which conditions its inhabi- tants were fairly divided, but even the rebel portion could not altogether forget its native hospitality to the " stran- gers within her gates," and the second winter at Nor- mandy, Tenn., whose rural simplicity was in striking con- trast to the former, but where we enjoyed ourselves very well in an entirely different way.
On April 4, 1864, the nth and 12th Army Corps were consolidated and made the 20th Corps by the fol- lowing order:
Genoral Order No. 144,
Adjutant Opnoral's OfTicc, Washington, D. C. April 4, 18G4. Tlie 11th and 12th Army Corps are eonsolidated and will be called the 20th Corps. Major Ccn. J. Hooker is assigned to this command.
For weeks the camp was filled with rumors of a cam- paign to the south of us, with Atlanta, Ga., as the objec- tive point. The rumors thickened as the spring ad- vanced. How they originated we never knew, for it is not likely that the commanding generals gave out their plans so long in advance. On the 25th of April, 1864,
68 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
the long-looked-for order came, and on Tuesday, April 26th, we started upon our southern pilgrimage.
The first day we marched only to Tullahoma, a dis- tance of seven miles. There we were joined by the 13th N. J., 2nd Mass. and 27th Indiana regiments. The 3rd Wisconsin and 107th N. Y., with whom we had also been brigaded, were somewhere a short distance in our rear, guarding a wagon train. These six regiments, from this time on, composed the 2nd Brigade of the ist Divis- ion of the 20th Corps, to which we were now attached, under the command of General " Joe " Hooker.
We remained at Tullahoma until the morning of April 28, 1864, preparing for the work we then instinctively knew was before us, when we again started on our south- ern march, reaching Decherd, a small town situated near the western base of the Cumberland mountains, a distance of thirteen miles from Tullahoma by rail and probably fifteen miles by the route we took.
Up to this time we had been marching close to the railroad over which trains of sixteen cars were following each other in quick succession as they were hurried to the front, loaded with commissary stores for the army at Chattanooga and for a reserve for the summer cam- paign. On the morning of April 29th we left the rail- road and taking an apology for a wagon road up the mountain, reached the top and that night encamped on the summit of the Cumberland Mountains, on a broad plateau some six or seven miles in width, level as a table and heavily timbered. This plateau is said to extend the whole length of these mountains as though they had been planed down by some tremendous force while they were in a more plastic condition than we found them.
FROM NORMANDY TO RESACA. 69
During the night we were treated to one of the most terrific thunder showers we had up to that time, or have since, ever Hstened to. It seemed to say, "You midgets think you are somewhat great on cannonading ! Just hsten to what I can do." We Hstened. It is a promi- nent fact that every one of the numerous diaries in my possession speaks of this thunder shower as the most ter- rific in the writer's experience.
The next day, April 30th, we descended the eastern slope of the mountain, coming out in the " Big Sequatchie Valley." We encamped for the night on the banks of Battle Creek, noted as the locality of many a hard-fought battle between General Andrew Jackson and the Indian Chief Wethersford.
Up to this point the country was familiar to us, as in the fall before we had been hurried to this place with the view of taking part in the battle of Lookout Mountain ; but on our arrival here it was learned that the battle had been fought and won, and we were ordered back to Normandy, Tenn., to guard the railroad, or " Cracker Line " as it was more commonly called, and where we spent the winter.
On May ist about 11 A. M. we reached Bridgeport, Ala., which for several months had been the southern terminus of the Nashville and Chattanooga railroad. We had expected to find it a good sized town, at the head of steamboat navigation on the Tennessee River. Imagine our surprise, instead of streets, stores, dwellings, churches and hotels, to find not a single house of any kind except the sheds the Government had built to protect the com- missary stores.
This may have been only the railroad station, and
70 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
there may have been a " City of Bridgeport " hidden away behind the numerous hills and mountains in the vicinity, but we did not get a glimpse of it. We did not tarry there long enough to ask many questions, but kept right on until about nine that night, encamping in a wet cornfield, the atmosphere of which was pervaded by an almost overpowering smell of decaying flesh. The next morning we found we had encamped in a Potter's Field of almost numberless dead mules.
Before the capture of Lookout Mountain by Gen. Hooker's troops during the November previous, a part of the railroad between Bridgeport and Chattanooga was commanded by Confederate guns on its top and this wagon roaci we were following was the only route for conveying subsistence to the troops at Chattanooga, and the dead mules left by the roadside were very numerous, and the turkey buzzards had not yet completed their gruesome task.
On the night of May 2nd we encamped at Whitesides, by the side of the railroad and well wedged in by moun- tains. We awoke in the morning to find there had been quite a frost during the night, the pools having a decided skim of ice on their surface and the leaves on the trees being frozen stiff. We thought this pretty good for the " Sunny South " in early May, Dutchess County seldom doing better.
During the day of May 3d we crossed the nose of Lookout Mountain, which extends northward toward Chattanooga and the Tennessee River like a cowcatcher on a locomotive. Chattanooga was lying to the north, seemingly at our feet, but really three miles distant.
The mountain itself rises a steep 1800 feet above the
FROM NORMANDY TO RESACA. 71
river which washes its northern base, and up near the top commenced a precipice thirty to sixty feet in height, re- sembHng the " Pahsades " on the lower Hudson River. How General Hooker's forces ever succeeded in driving the rebels from the top of this mountain seems unaccount- able, but they did and the " Battle of Lookout Mountain " will forever be famous in history. ^' Nothing succeeds like success." Had it failed, it would have been char- acterized as " foolhardy." It is sometimes poetically re- ferred to as the " Battle above the clouds."
The railroad from Bridgeport to Chattanooga was then quickly repaired and there was no longer a necessity for a " Potter's Field " of dead mules in the valley lying between them.
We encamped the night of May 3d on the western slope of Missionary Ridge in a location from which we could see the elaborate preparations the enemy had made to give us a cordial reception. The forests were leveled on the western slope of every hill to the east of us, while rifle pits, breastworks, battery pits and forts sprouted forth in every conceivable position. All those had been abandoned and they were awaiting our coming a few miles farther south, their main army being at Dalton, some twenty-five or thirty miles to the southeast of Look- out Mountain.
Somewhere during this march we had our first view of General U. S. Grant, who afterwards was to figure so con- spicuously in the history of the war of the rebellion. He was then known to us as the hero of Shiloh, Donelson and Vicksburg.
The story was then current that a party of temperance fanatics had called upon President Lincoln and informed
72 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
him thcit the General was addicted to drinking too much whiskey and asked for his removal. After listening to them the President kindly asked them if they knew from what particular source he obtained it, adding that if they would inform him he would send a gallon to every Gen- eral in the army.
I have forgotten at which station it was that, when the cars stopped, he stepped out on the rear platform of the only passenger car on the rear end of a long freight train and quietly looked us over. The boys, recognizing him at once, began to call " Speech! Speech! " With a smile he quietly shook his head, as much as to say, " You may hear from me later but not in the way of speechmaking."
We did not know then (at least I did not) that he had been placed in command of all the Union Armies. In March he had been summoned to Washington by Presi- dent Lincoln, with whom he then had his first interview, and had received his commission of Lieutenant-General, the highest rank in the United States Army. He had come south to Tennessee and Georgia to confer with Gen. Sherman, whom he had placed in command of the armies now concentrated in and around Chattanooga. From later information we learned that there was to be a gen- eral forward movement of the army under General Meade across the Rapidan as his centre, Butler's army at Fort- ress Monroe as his left, and Sherman's at Chattanooga as his right wing.
These three armies were to move simultaneously and the 4th of May had been selected as the date. Up to this time there had been no concert of action between the several Union Armies. Heretofore General Lee, occupy- ing interior lines, could easily detach a portion of his
FROM NORMANDY TO RESACA. 73
troops from one army to assist another when threatened with disaster, but a general advance of all the Union Army on the same date frustrated a repetition of these tactics on the part of General Lee.
It is related that when General Grant was making one of his forward movements with the Army of the Potomac, it was reported to him that General Johnston had detached General Longstreet's Corps to assist General Lee in the defence of Richmond. He telegraphed General Sherman about this report, and General Sherman telegraphed back this characteristic reply, " Don't believe a word of it. I am keeping him too busy down here."
In accordance with this general plan, Sherman's army, of which our regiment had almost unconsciously become a part, started from Chattanooga and vicinity on May 4, 1864, to try conclusions with General "Joe" Johnston's army, whose headquarters were then at Dalton, Ga. Between the elevations of two great mountain ranges, the Cumberland and the Alleghany, lies the valley of East Tennessee. The Tennessee River sw^eeps southward throughout its length, and embraced in one of its graceful curves near the valley's southern extremity lies the town of Chattanooga, and from that point the river rushes away to the west through mountain gorges. It was a strategic point of great value; " The gateway to the Con- federacy," as it was termed, and our feet were firmly planted in the " gateway," never to be forced out again.
To the south and west of Chattanooga is a country where hills, spurs, valleys with riv^ers, isolated peaks, with mountains both large and small, are mingled to- gether in a manner confusing to the student of geography, and it was among these that the enemy had now — the
74 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
Spring of 1864 — taken positions of defense. One of the mountains, " Rocky Face," had been tunneled to per- mit the passage of the railroad. The mountain itself was known as " Tunnel Hill," while its top was known as " Buzzards Roost," names familiar to every survivor of the old regiment, for on and around them occurred a good deal of skirmish fighting and some severe battles, as these positions were the key to our further advance towards Dalton, our first real objective point.
Between these mountainous spurs are several streams winding their way in a southerly direction towards the Atlantic Ocean. Our Corps (Hooker's) was ordered through "Snake Creek Gap" several miles to the west of the railroad and terminating south of Dalton. Here we had the distinction of seeing General Kllpatrlck of the Cavalry carried to the rear wounded, and where I had the honor of taking off his blood-soaked dressings, and substituting fresh ones. We thought a lot of " Killy " and were very sorry not to have him in front of us. His wound proved to be not serious and a few days later he was again at the head of his cavalry, selecting a pathway for us to the " Gate City," as Atlanta was then and is now called.
If my memory plays me no tricks we were one day and two nights In this "gap" without seeing a single "snake," but during one of the nights, owing to heavy rains, the creek became a roaring torrent, driving us from Its im- mediate banks and causing us to seek such shelter as we could on the adjoining hillsides. Memory still retains a distinct recollection of the inconvenience and suffering we underwent that night in the cold, pouring rain, without shelter or chance of warmth, but the sun shone the next
FROM NORMANDY TO RE SAC A. 75
day and the miseries of "Snake Creek Gap " were things of the past.
For some reason not generally understood, General Sherman distrusted our Corps Commander, " Fighting Joe " Hooker, and during the day we were lying in this " gap " we had the mortification to see General McPher- son's Corps march past us to take the initiative in the attack upon Resaca when we should emerge onto the plains south of it.
All generals make mistakes and this was one of General Sherman's, in selecting McPherson to take the command instead of General Hooker. He practically admits this in his "Personal Memoirs" (page 34, 2d Vol.), wherein he says, " McPherson startled Johnston in his fancied security, but had not done the full measure of his work. He had in hand twenty-three thousand of the best men of the Army and could have walked into Resaca (then held by a small brigade), or he could have placed his whole force astride the railroad above Resaca, and there withstood the attack of all Johnston's Army, with the knowledge that Thomas and Schofield were on his heels. Had he done so, I am certain that Johnston would not have ventured to attack him in position but would have retreated eastward by Spring Place, and we should have captured half his army and all of his artillery and wagons at the very beginning of the campaign. Such an oppor- tunity does not occur twice in a lifetime, but at the critical moment McPherson seems to have been a little too cautious."
Knowing of their intimate friendship and of his esteem for McPherson it was not to be expected that he would criticise very harshly; hence the mildness of the foregoing
76 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
criticism. But had Hooker made such a bkinder he would have had him court martialed and driven out of the army in disgrace. Think for a moment what this would have meant for us in that Atlanta campaign; " Half of Joe Johnston's army captured, and all his artillery and wagons, at the very beginning of the campaign." Why, the rest of the route to Atlanta would have been a " walk over," and Oh, the time, the skirmishing, the fighting, the flanking and the lives it would have saved! After forty years to get indignant about the blunder McPherson then made, is unseemly, perhaps, but how can I help it? Tennyson says, " There is no fool like the old fool," and I subscribe to the sentiment.
The distance between Dalton and Resaca is about eigh- teen miles. They are both on the railroad leading from Chattanooga to Atlanta, and at the former place Gen. Johnston had concentrated his main army behind very strong natural and artificial fortifications to await our coming.
Sherman in his " Memoirs " says that the passage of our army through Snake Creek Gap was " a complete surprise to the enemy." To a non-combatant this seems utterly incomprehensible. Further on (page 36) he re- peats the statement, "The movement through Snake Creek Gap was a total surprise to him." (General Johnston.)
According to the scale of miles on the war map in my possession the distance between Resaca and Snake Creek Gap is, in a straight line, about seven miles.
How a general of Johnston's acknowledged ability could allow an army of twenty-three thousand men to be placed in his rear, and on his principal line of communica- tion without his knowledge and to his " complete sur-
FROM NOR^IANDY TO RESACA. 77
prise," is unaccountable. He must have been laboring under the delusion that Sherman's army, in order to ac- complish its purpose, must first capture his extraordinary fortified position at Dalton. The appearance of Hooker's and McPherson's corps some twenty or more miles in his rear must have been a startling revelation to him. At any rate, it caused him to abandon his almost impregnable position at Dalton and to fall back to Resaca which had also been strongly fortified lest some unlooked-for emer- gency should compel its occupation. In fact, the whole route down to Atlanta for a hundred miles or more had been strongly fortified in many places in anticipation of reverses to the Confederate army.
As I look back over a vista of forty years it seems to me that had General Johnston fortified this " gap " in the mountain, a thousand men could have held it against Sherman's whole army, as the three hundred Spartans held the pass of Thermopylae against the immense Persian Army of Xerxes. Fortunately for us he did not do it.
We emerged from " Snake Creek Gap " into " Sugar Valley " on May 9th and during the next few days were shifted from place to place as we might be needed as a '* reserve " for the 23d Corps, now in our advance. Everybody felt that the prelude to a big battle was being played and that it was not far off. A rebel battery on Buzzard's Roost was belching away in plain sight of us. but as we were beyond its range it did not interest us very much. There was never a day nor scarcely an hour we did not hear the roar of cannon or the sound of musketry somewhere in our immediate vicinity, but we had no part of it.
About sundown on the 14th heav^y firing, both artillery
78 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
and musketry, was heard a short distance In our front and we were hurried forward some two or three miles toward the place from where it emanated. We soon heard that the rebels had made a determined effort to capture a battery (5th Indiana), hoping thus to double back our left flank, and thereby control a very advan- tageous position.
When we arrived on the scene it was just between day- light and darkness, not so dark but that the troops of both sides could be plainly seen from the little eminence on which I was standing, and yet dark enough to see the streams of fire as they issued from the musketry and cannon below me.
General Hooker and his staff had ridden forward in ad- vance of the infantry and seeing at a glance the perilous position of the artillery, had dismounted and rushed among them, and in emphatic language urged them to stand by their guns. "Give them hell!" he shouted, " My boys will be here within five minutes." His " boys " zvere there on schedule time, and as the 3d Brigade of our division met the advancing rebels with a volley of musketry they halted in their charge and then turned and fled in the utmost confusion. It was a small aftair on our part but from where I stood it made a picture that is still vividly impressed on my memory.
The 15th of May was Sunday, but instead of listening to " church-going bells " there was the echo of heavy cannonading on all sides of us. About eleven A. M. there was a council of war held in our immediate vicinity. Besides General Sherman, there were Generals Thomas, Hooker, McPherson, Howard (with but one arm). Sickles (with but one leg), Slocum, Logan, Williams,
FRO^r NORMANDY TO RESACA. 79
Geary (afterwards Governor of Pennsylvania), Davis, and Palmer; men whose fame covered the earth as the waters cover the sea, making the name of the American soldier, like the ancient Roman, an honored passport throughout the world. This council was the prelude to a pretty stubborn battle that afternoon, although Gen. Grant in his works alludes to it as a " skirmish." To the man who gets the bullet right, it matters but little whether it be called a " skirmish " or a " battle."
" Fall in, non-combatants to the rear!" was the signal that hot work was near at hand. " To the rear " did not mean much in this Georgia campaign. Taking it in a too literal sense meant to get lost or gobbled up as a straggler, so that the point was never to lose the trail of the regiment, no matter how threatening affairs at the Iront might appear.
The regiment followed a lonely road through a ravine for about two miles. A hill between the first line of battle and this ravine gave effectual shelter during the march, but at the end was an open plain swept by a rebel battery. Over this plain the ist Division marched in two lines of battle, the 150th forming the left of the front line, to the top of a little hill that in the morning had been occupied by a rebel battery.
The three divisions of the 20th Corps marched out and formed two lines of battle on the plain. Rebel shells were exploded in their midst, causing great swaying back- wards and forwards, but when the lines were formed, the whole body of six thousand men moved majestically across the plain towards the enemy, with our regiment still on the extreme left, to a little hill crowned by a small house. Here breastworks were hastily constructed of fence rails and
80 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
such other things as would stop a bullet. Company B being thrown out as skirmishers crossed a plain some three or four hundred yards wide and entering a piece of woods on its farther side, they quickly came in contact with the advancing rebel force. One of the most vivid im- pressions of the war is the remembrance of that company of skirmishers as it emerged from the woods into the open plain in our front, and their run for life across it, rebel bullets kicking up a dust as they struck the ground all around and between them. Yet, according to the best of my recollection, every one of them got back safely.
After the return of our skirmishers the rebels in force came out of the woods on the other side of the plain op- posite our lines, and formed their line of battle as coolly as though on dress parade. The order to advance was given and they started for our position. Our orders from Colonel Ketcham were not to fire until he gave the word, and fully one-half of the distance had been trav- ersed before the order came. The volley that followed decimated their ranks as a staggering blow, but like the brave men they were, they closed up and started for us afresh, " Eager as love and wild as hate." Then it was " Load and fire at will," and the terrible fire we poured into the advancing lines would have quickly discouraged any soldiers not of American blood. They were repulsed ; but not until their dead lay within eighteen feet of our slender line of breastworks.
Without intended egotism, I hope I may be permitted to say that I was one of the best shots of the regiment, and with the carbine the Union Ladies of Baltimore had presented to me (a singular gift to a non-combatant) I entered a log corn-crib in our lines before the attack
FROM NORMANDY TO RESACA. " 81
and there, comparatively safe, "loaded and fired at w\\V^ until ordered out to take care of the wounded. During this experience I saw advancing a man carrying a sword, who turned and waved it to his followers as though urg- ing their advance. As he faced again, I pulled the trigger of my carbine, and he fell prone, face downwards.
In the midst of the severest part of the fight I was ordered to come out of the log corn-crib, where I was practically safe, to attend the wounded. The first person that met my gaze after coming out was Adjutant Cruger, who was standing holding on to a little tree, spanning it with his hands above his head, with blood pouring out of his mouth in a stream. Without a thought of the danger I seized and carried him behind the house where " Tommy " O'Neil and another relieved me, and he was carried to a place of safety. We believed then that his wound was fatal and it was so reported, but after two or three months he returned to us, seemingly as well as ever.
There were several casualties that day but not one of them immediately fatal. From my diary of that date I find the casualties to be as follows: Adjt. S. V. R. Cruger, Corporal George Stage, Co. E; Benjamin Watts, Co. E ; Tolson Richardson, Co. B ; Thomas Wright, Co. G; Benjamin Harp, Co. G; Amerlcus Mosher, Co. K; seven in all. Considering the number of the dead rebels who were found lying in front of our regiment, number- ing into the hundreds, the nearest one but eighteen feet from our slight breastworks, our loss was remarkably small.
After the battle was over. Colonel Ketcham and I were going over the field together and when we came to a man lying prone on his face with arms extended and a
82 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
sword clutched in his right hand, I said to the Colonel, " If I shot this man he got it right in the centre of his forehead." With his foot the Colonel turned the body over, and, as he saw the bullet wound in his forehead, his only remark was, "Well, by Gol!"
During the evening the Colonel and I rode back to the field hospital to learn the condition of Adjutant Cruger and the other wounded of the regiment, and while return- ing rode into a lively musket fire of the enemy, which rattled around us like the drops of rain in an April shower.
In the morning we found the enemy had deserted their strongly fortified position, and the Battle of Resaca was a thing of the past.
CHAPTER VIII.
FROM RESACA TO KENESAW MOUNTAIN
By John E. West.
Difficult Campaign to Record — Pursuing the Enemy — "Left in Front ! There'll Seen be A Fight ! " — Battle of New Hope Church— Bloody Assault — Death of Gen- eral Polk — Battle of Lost Mountain — Hot and Wet — Bluecoats and Blackberries — Battle of Kolb's Farm — Death of Lieutenant Gridley and Others — Picket's Protection — Tan- talizing Confederate Flag — Enemy Re- treats to Kenesaw Mountain.
It must be acknowledged that that portion of our cam- paign in the summer of 1864 which extended from the Battle of Resaca to the time when the army closed in its strangling grip about the City of Atlanta, is the most difficult to follow in all its details, and accurately record, of any in our time of service. Though it lasted but little more than two months, yet during that time the conflicting forces were in close contact and the fighting was practically continuous.
The armies were two great giants engaged in desperate combat, constantly striking and sparring, and constantly shifting ground as the various parts were moved to the right or left — often in the night — while Sherman drove his antagonist from point to point with a consummate skill and energy that made the old-world military critics rub their eyes. It has sometimes been compared to a vast game of chess, in which the constantly moving " pieces " were corps, divisions and brigades; organizations in which in-
84 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
dividual regiments hardly found themselves mentioned in the official reports of those kaleidoscopic movements.
During the month of June it rained three-fourths of the days, as shown by records and letters, and many of these rains were heavy and continuous, while much of July was little better. Under these conditions the roads and fields became quagmires which, combined with the in- tense heat and humidity of that summer, would have daunted any but the most energetic of commanders; one commanding the best army in the world.
At this distance of time the memories of individuals cannot be implicitly relied upon as to all the details, and aside from the letters and diaries consulted recourse has been had to various histories. The best of these for the purpose — because following most closely the detailed movements of the 20th Corps — is that by Colonel William F. Fox, of the 107th N. Y. (of our brigade), entitled, '* Slocum and his Men," and the writer of this and the following chapter has made copious extracts from that work, feeling sure that these chapters will thus be of more interest than they would be had they been entrusted en- tirely to my own pen.
The last chapter brought us to the close of the Battle of Resaca, and during the night which followed the enemy retreated while our wearied men slept, but early on the morning of May i6th we were moving again, passing through the wreckage of the two days battle. Going thus over the position which had been held by the enemy we found their dead scattered about, and the ground strewn with clothing and broken guns. There was also considerable captured property, consisting of artillery and ammunition.
FROM RESACA TO KENESAW MOUNTAIN. 85
We crossed the Conesauga above the town of Resaca, and on the 17th we crossed the Coosawattee. These two streams form a junction near Resaca, and below the town the river is known as the Oostenaula. Then, keeping to the east of the raih'oad, we marched twenty miles to a point near Calhoun. May i8th we moved to Spring Mills, a place south-east of Adairsville, and bivouacked that night on the so-called " Gravelly Plateau."
On the 19th the march was continued over a rough country covered with dense woods and thickets of under- brush, and after some lively skirmishing we reached Cass- ville, where our Corps formed in line within four hundred yards of the enemy's breastworks; but during the night the Confederates again retreated.
The rapidity with which our army repaired the badly broken railroads was almost miraculous, and has often been commented on by historians. We had hardly left Dalton before trains WMth ammunition and other sup- plies arriv'ed, and while we were skirmishing at Calhoun the locomotive's w^histle sounded in Resaca. Commencing May 2 1 St our brigade was given three days of rest while the railroad and telegraph were being repaired. Baggage left behind came forward to officers and men, and neces- sary supplies, at the hands of smiling quartermasters and commissaries, now found us. The dead were buried, the w^ounded made more comfortable, and everybody re- ceived and wrote letters.
We had marched and fought our way eighty-five miles since leaving Chattanooga, and Atlanta was still fifty- three miles distant, while the Confederates had retreated beyond the Etowah River to the AUatoona Hills.
On May 23rd we left Cassville, crossing the Etowah
86 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
on a pontoon bridge near Milam's, and bivouacked that night along the Euharlie and Raccoon Creeks. On the 24th, after marching all day over mountain roads and by-paths, we encamped at Burnt Hickory in a heavy rain storm. On May 25th, after we had crossed Pumpkin Vine Creek (a small stream presenting no impediment to an army), orders were received to turn back and take the road to New Hope Church, where the skirmishers of the Second Division of our Corps had developed the enemy in force.
This place is situated at the intersection of the roads leading to Dallas, Marietta, and Acworth, four miles northeast of Dallas, and takes its name from a little Methodist meeting-house built of logs that stood there then. As it formed an important point, it had been en- trenched by the Confederates, the country about being hilly and densely wooded.
We had halted for dinner within ten miles of Dallas when we received orders to countermarch anci hasten to the support of the 2nd Division. As our column moved off, faced to the rear, the veterans in the ranks were heard to remark, — " Left in front! There'll soon be a fight! " This was one of the trite sayings and traditions of the old 1 2th Corps, and in this case at least it proved to be a true omen. Recrossing the creek we marched rapidly for several miles until, at 5 P. M., we reached Geary's Division and immediately, without halting to recover breath, went into action on the left of his force.
As we now advanced, some of the troops on the double- quick, first the strong skirmish lines of the enemy, then his reserves, were driven back a mile and a half by our division. Part of the ground passed over was covered
FROM RESACA TO KENESAW MOUNTAIN. 87
with woods in which the timber had been killed by gird- ling the trees, a method of clearing often employed in the Southern States previous to the war. I recall that on this occasion the solid shot and shells from the Con- federate batteries went crashing through the dead tops of the trees, making the broken limbs fall thickly on the charging ranks.
During this advance the order came for our brigade to relieve the line in front and take the lead, and in exe- cuting this new movement the 3rd Brigade moved " By companies to the rear," our brigade advancing through the openings to the front. One writer says of this move- ment,— " The evolution was performed under fire, but with steadiness and precision."
The column now pressed forward again through the dense woods until a sudden discharge of artillery and musketry ciisclosed the main line of the enemy strongly posteci behind formidable breastworks, their position having been previously concealed by the foliage and thick underbrush.
Our advancing regiments met this unexpected fire with- out flinching, although the men w^ent down by scores; but they were obliged to halt. Yet we held, our ground and returned their fire as fast as we could load and fire, keep- ing it up until our ammunition was exhausted and we were relieved by Knipe's Brigade. Thus ended the day, and night found us bivouacked in dense woods, where we were exposed, unprotected, to a drenching rain; yet ever and anon the contending lines were lit up by the lurid flash of rifles and cannon.
The 2nd Division, Geary's, also took part in the charge, advancing to the assault about 6 P. M. and fighting its
88 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
way through a storm of bullets and canister up to the very breastworks of the enemy, but was there compelled to halt. A portion of Butterfield's Division was also in it, relieving Knipe's Brigade and continuing the fighting, in spite of the rain and darkness, far into the night. Gen- eral Geary, in his oflficial report, uses the following lan- guage concerning this action: " The discharges of canister and shell from the enemy were heavier than in any other battle of this campaign in which my command was engaged."
Though the attack was not successfully carried to the capturing of the enemy's works, yet there was no con- fusion in our lines, nor in our own regiment, and no falling back of the charging columns; they did not re- linquish a foot of the ground which they had won. The troops along the farthest points of advance held their places during the night, and threw up entrenchments. No regiment was long in front of Johnston's army without having virtually as good a breastwork as an engineer could plan, for War, that stern teacher, had taught us never to halt in front of the adversary without putting up adequate defences.
This engagement, at first known as the Battle of Pump- kin Vine Creek, but now termed the " Battle of New Hope Church," was fought entirely by our Corps, no other troops participating. General Ruger says In his ofiicial report of It that the dead of our brigade lay nearer the enemy's works than those of any other command on the field.
The loss in dead, wounded, and missing in our corps during this engagement was 1665; and of this number our own brigade lost 361.
FRO^r RESACA TO KENESAW MOUNTAIN. 89
During the week which followed we continued to press the rebels closely anci additional works were put up, in some of which artillery was planted. In some portions of these new works they took the form of individual rille- pits, each being protected by short logs placed in the shape of a " V," with the apex to the front. Day and night the forest echoed with the crack of rifles as the opposing pickets plied their deadly work, the daily loss in killed and wounded being unusually severe. Several times the enemy made desperate assaults on these works of ours in the night, but in each instance they were beaten off, suffer ing heavy losses in their attempts. The soldiers called the place " Hell Hole," and always mentioned it after- ward by that title.
Finding that they could not long withstand our en- circling lines here the Confederates abandoned their works on the night of June 3rd, and concentrated their forces in front of Marietta. Here they constructed a chain of earthworks from Kenesaw Mountain on their right, westward to Lost Mountain on their left. Their line now ran in the rear of Pine Hill, or " Pin'e Knob," as it was sometimes called, a steep, conical peak which was occupied by them as an outpost and point of observation, its summit being only about 800 yards from our artillery.
There was an incident which occurred at this locality which has claimed some attention from historians, and is of interest, though not specifically a part of the history of our regiment.
On June 14th a group of Confecierate generals, among them Johnston, Hardee and Polk, were standing on this peak and examining, through their field-glasses, our lines in the adjacent valley. The party was In plain view of
90 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
the troops In General Thomas' line, though not indi- vidually recognizable.
At this moment General Sherman happened to be rid- ing along this part of his own line, and when he dis- covered this group of officers of the enemy, taking obser- vation of his works, he ordered that the batteries near him should train their guns on the party and lire, "By volley." General Sherman then continued his ride, but his orders were executed and at the second discharge one of the shells struck Confederate General Polk in the breast, killing him instantly.
Our artillery, as well as our sharpshooters, made Pine Hill too hot for the rebels, and they abandoned it that night; the next day it was occupied by some of our troops. June 15th we took up a forward movement, pushing to and beyond this elevation until the main line of the enemy's works were reached, and here we were formed for assault; Geary's and Butterfield's Divisions being in the front, while ours was held as a supporting column.
All was In readiness when, at quarter past two In the afternoon, the troops advanced In line of battle, encounter- ing the enemy and immediately driving them into their entrenchments. These works In which they now took shelter 'had been carefully constructed in advance for just such an emergency as this, and were unusually strong.
Commencing at the bottom of the hill the trees were felled, the tops outward and- the limbs sharply pointed, and so up to the top of the hill, which was surrounded by a deep ditch, the earth of which had been thrown back, forming a heavy breastwork In front of which was a cJicvaiix-dC'frisc composed of sharpened stakes driven into the embankment at an angle of 45 degrees, stretching
FROM RESACA TO KENESAW .AIOUNTAIN. 91
out over the ditch, so that any of our men attemptnig to jump tlie ditch would be impaled on these sharp points.
The earthworks were surmounted by a palisade of trunks of trees set in the ground side by side, with small port holes cut In them, so that the marksmen might have good protection from an assaulting force; the tops of these tree-trunks being also sharpened.
The writer afterward worked his way through this maze of entrenchments, and it Is his belief that one thousand good men in these works could have held at bay and destroyed five times as many in an attacking body. To have assaulted this position in the front would only have resulted In a useless loss of life. But m the end Sherman's superior generalship made It unnecessary to assault them; the rebels were glad to get out, of their own accord.
But so eager were our troops that Geary's Division did penetrate the abattis in places, yet without being able to completely carry the position. But the attacking lines maintained their advanced position close under the ene- my's w^orks, throwing up entrenchments there.
This engagement near Pine Hill, June 15, 1864, is known as the "Battle of Lost Mountain." On the fol- lowing day our corps pressed the enemy strongly along his whole front, with the skirmish lines, and with the use of artillery, the long line of Sherman's army now over- lapping the enemy on the left, and on the next day, June 17th, the Confederates evacuated their w^orks at Lost Mountain and retired within their cicfences at Kenesaw Mountain.
Throughout the entire campaign thus far the troops had suffered from the unusually prolonged rains. It
92 THE DUTCHEvSS COUNTY REGIMENT.
rained continuously for seventeen days, and a home letter sent by one of the boys mentions that there were twenty- three consecutive days during which it rained every day. It not only added to the bodily discomfort, but it made the marching toilsome, while at the same time the swollen streams and mirey roads rendered the movement of artil- lery and wagon trains exceedingly difficult. There were several days in which, owing to the absence of commis- sary trains, the men were on scant rations, or for a time could get nothing at all to eat.
From the 17th to the 21st of June our regiment was in that portion of the corps which was engaged In pushing its way southward, extending the general line In that direction. There was considerable skirmishing and fight- ing all the way, and the records show that during this time our regiment lost men day by day, a loss amounting in the aggregate to so much that it made serious Inroads on our numbers.
On the 17th our artillery, under Major Reynolds, achieved further honorable distinction at a place known as "Muddy Creek." Here the 13th New York Battery, commanded at that time by Lieutenant Bundy, opened at four hundred yards on the enemy's works, silencing his guns, dismounting two of the pieces and knocking two more of their guns over. Considerable loss was also In- Hicted here on the enemy's infantry, which were In their support.
At Noyes' Creek, June 19th, there was some more lively skirmishing, the sharpshooters of both sides doing some effective work. On June 21st our corps — the 20th — established itself along the Powder Springs and
FROM RESACA TO KENESAW MOUNTAIN. 93
Marietta road, about three miles southeast of the latter place.
On June 2 2d our regiment became again involved, being rushed in, about noon, to the right, while on our left was Geary's — the 2nd Division — and here we took possession of an important ridge on what was known as "Kolb's Farm," some historians calling it "Gulp's Farm." The ground in our front here was for the most part open fields, with heavy woods on the opposite ridge, and a small ravine in the valley before us and slightly to our left.
The line formed by the "Dutchess County Regiment" was in a second growth of timber, with a rail fence at our front, and the troops at our left were just back of the ridge and out of sight of the enemy. In the open ground on the ridge to our left was our gallant General "Fight- ing Joe Hooker," and his staff, in full view of the enemy's skirmishers.
Near General Hooker was Winegar's battery of three- inch rifled cannon, along with Woodbury's battery of brass smooth-bores, anci they commanded all the open ground in our front. These batteries so fortunately placed shelled the enemv's skirmish pits while our skirmishers advanced and chased them into the woods.
We were resting on the ground when Col. Ketch am passed down the line in his usual fatherly way, and his quick eye detected the situation at once. He immediately told the men to tear down the fence and with that, and anything else at hand, to throw up breastworks to protect themselves. This caution of our beloved Colonel no doubt saved many lives in our regiment.
The transformation of the rail fence into a breastwork
94 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
did not take much time, and when the enemy returned later in the day they were doubtless surprised to see the sudden change. After the breastworks had been erected it was discovered that the field in our front contained a fine lot of blackberries, and it was but a moment before it was dotted with " blue-coats," filling their tin cups with berries.
The men were very much engaged in their new occupa- tion when Major Smith appeared, shouting, — " Get back you ' skallawags ' ! What are you doing out there ! How can we get the Johnnies out with you there?"
We took the hint at once, and in less than the time it takes to tell the story we were again inside the works, secure from the enemy's vision. We had hardly regained our position when our skirmishers, who so gallantly a short .time before haci driven the enemy's skirmishers up the opposite hill and into the woods, themselves came running back as though the devil himself were after them.
The cause of their hasty return was soon evidenced. Hood's Confederate Corps emerging from the woods into the open and advancing on the double-quick, forming in three lines of battle as they came on. From our con- cealed position the sight was an inspiring one, and our attention was much attracted by a gallant officer riding up and down their line, mounted on a w^hite horse.
On they came with a rush, advancing into the valley and then up the rise of ground in our front until we could almost see the whites of their eyes, when they received such a withering fire from our line and the two batteries at our left that they wavered and finally fell back to the ravine for shelter, leaving the space thickly strewn with their dead and wounded.
FROM RESACA TO KEXESAW MOUNTAIN. 95
We kept up our fire untii our anuiiunition was about exhausted, and, when the men who had been sent to the ammunition train for a fresh supply returned and reported that they were unable to find it, we received orders to cease firing. Just at this critical juncture there came from a Kentucky regiment which was with the 23rd Corps on our right, the welcome sound of those " yelping" repeat- ing rifles, showing that that corps had arriveci and was protecting our flank.
As soon as the shades of night had fallen the enemy commenced to remove their dead and wounded, continuing until daylight appeared, and even then they were obliged to leave many of their dead on the field.
The writer was one of the " lucky " prize winners to be detailed for picket duty that night, within the ravine where the enemy were at work not over one hundred yards aw^ay. We were detailed in groups of two, and advanced about midway between the lines upon a bare side-hill without any protection. But we had learned the trade of war, and with Yankee pluck we immediately started to dig a pit to protect ourselves. The ground happened to be of a sandy nature, and one with his bayonet dug the earth loose Avhile the other scooped it out with his tin dinner-plate, heaping it up in front, and by daylight we had a fair-sized pit in which to protect ourselves. But it was now of no use, for In the night the enemy had retreated.
In this engagement First Lieutenant Henry Gridley, then commanding his company. Company A, was killed, shot through or near the heart, and Benjamin Harp of Com- pany G, was wounded, — his blood spurting on my sleev^e, — a wound from which he died a few days later. John
96 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
Simon, a member of the regimental band, was also wounded here, and he afterward died of his wound in the hospital at Chattanooga.
The decayed trunk of a tree, some fifteen feet high, stood at about the centre of the ravine. Behind this a Color-Sergeant lay, waving the Confederate flag in a most tantalizing manner. It of course attracted the attention of our men, and hundreds of bullets were sent in that direction in hopes of seeing it fall ; but it kept on waving until darkness set in, when the rebel forces withdrew to the protection of their works, again leaving the ground behind them thickly strewn with the bodies of those who had fallen.
Our losses in this action were comparatively slight, while the casualties to the enemy, as reported by the At- lanta newspapers, were more than one thousand.
CHAPTER IX.
FROM KENESAW MOUNTAIN TO PEACH TREE CREEK.
By John E. West.
We Lose a Battle — "The Gate City of the South" — Friendly Truce Between the Pick- ets— We Cross the Chattahoochee — Battle of Peach Tree Creek — Straight- ening the Skirmish Line — "Who Calls iVIajor!" — Contraband of War— Hardtack "B C."— Surprised at Break- fast - Distant Roar of Battle.
The last chapter closed with the Battle of Kolb's Farm. This conflict was precipitated by the rebels assaulting our lines on the right flank of Sherman's army — that part in which we were — in the hope of regaining some of their lost positions. The result was, as already stated, that they lost heavily and gained nothing, the assault being handsomely repulsed at every point, and while their loss was severe ours was comparatively slight.
The enemy, however, were so strongly fortified, with the Kenesaw Mountains and their foot-hills as a salient to their works covering Marietta and the railroad in their rear, that they were enabled to hold a very long line of defense, and Sherman could not hope to make secure his whole front and at the same time spare force enough to flank their strong position.
With this state of affairs Sherman now determined that he would try an assault with his army, and this he did June 27th in a line of battle some ten miles in length, with the result that the assault fiiled, entailing a heavy
98 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
loss on our army. Fortunately for us we were not en- gaged in this battle, our corps being held in reserve.
General Sherman's next strategy was to move a large section of his army to his right, making a wide sweep around the enemy's left flank, leaving their fortified posi- tions behind and aiming at the railroad in their rear. This was an entire success, and July 2nd the enemy aban- doned all their strong positions at and about Kenesaw and Marietta, falling back to the Chattahoochee River, over which their army crossed on the 9th.
In the general forward movement of our army which now followed it was July 5th when we approached the Chat- tahoochee River, and, going into position on a high ridge which overlooked the Confederate line, our men caught their first view of Atlanta, " The Gate City of the South." The next day we crossed Nickajack Creek, and on July 9th our pickets advanced to the bank of the Chat- tahoochee, where we remained encamped quietly for eight days, giving a sorely needed rest to battle-and-march-worn soldiers.
As soon as the men occupied the banks of the river they established friendly relations with the pickets on the farther side. Our veterans who had served in the 12th Corps, remembering the temporary truces they had ar- ranged while on the banks of the Rappahannock River in Virginia, now entered into an agreement with their opponents to suspenci all unnecessai^y firing on each other.
It is related that one day, while the pickets were idly standing on each side of the river, a Confederate officer rode up and ordered his men to fire on the Yankees across the stream; but the "Johnnies" refused to violate their agreement. It was further understood that when hos-
FROI\I KENESAW MOUNTAIN TO PEACH TREE CREEK. 99
tilities were resumed on either side, the first volley should be fired in the air.
The peaceful time that ensued was a grateful relief from the incessant discharge of rifles on the picket line, which had been kept up daily in one place or another since the opening of the campaign, causing considerable loss of life. Were it not for the occasional sound of dis- tant cannon there was nothing now to remind us that we were still on an active campaign.
During our truce with the rebel pickets along the Chat- tahoochee the privilege of bathing in the river was freely accorded to both sides, and there was also quite a little exchange of courtesies — as well as of commodities, such as cofi^ee for tobacco — between our boys and these South- ern youths. Warm-hearted, full of fun, ready to give or take a joke, never harsh or ill-tempered, in all — except uniforms — they seemed one with ourselves. But while our association with them was in progress we received orders to march.
The next day we crossed the Chattahoochee, at Pace's Ferry, and the third day after crossing a portion of our regiment took part in the Battle of Peach Tree Creek, which was fought July 20th. Some two or three com- panies of the regiment were crowded out of the line of battle, because of lack of space, and forced to remain in a second line.
The difficulty of making an accurate and clear record of our formation in this battle is evident, for historians differ radically in their accounts. The writer of " Slocum and His Men " says that it was formed with Knipe's and Robinson's brigades in the line, and Ruger's (ours) in the rear. But this would leave our brigade unengaged, and
100 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
if correct then the 150th was not in the engagement at all. But Colonel Fox must be in error here, for diaries, home letters, and records, as well as the recollection of sur- vivors, all agree that the regiment — except the Companies crowded out as mentioned — was very decidedly in the Battle of Peach Tree Creek, and we lost several men there.
The musketry along the " Red Star Line," as our divi- sion was called, because its badge was a red star, was furious and well sustained. Some of the men loaded and fired so fast that their rifles became overheated; so hot that the barrel could not be grasped in the soldier's hand. The historian of the 123rd New York says, — " Corporal Smith's rifle went off while he was in the act of ramming home the charge, and ' John ' had to hunt round and find another ramrod."
In this engagement Ward's Division took four stands of colors from the rebels. Private Bulkley, of the 136th New York, captured the battle-flag of the 31st Mississippi by knocking down the color-bearer with the butt of his musket and wrenching the flag-staff from his hands. The 26th Wisconsin, of this same division, bore off in triumph the colors of the 33rd Mississippi, and after three hours of desperate fighting the enemy retired, discomfitted and beaten, and as they had so often done before, leaving hundreds of their dead and wounded lying on the ground.
Of this battle General Geary, who commanded the 2nd Division of our Corps, said, — " The field everywhere bore marks of the severity of the conflict, and recalled to my mind, in appearance, the scene of the conflict fought at Gettysburg. Not a tree or bush within our range but bore the scars of battle." It was in this engagement that
FROM KENESAW MOUNTAIN TO PEACH TREE CREEK. 101
Benjamin Harrison, afterward President of the United States, commanded a brigade in the 3rd Division of our Corps, a division at that time commanded by General Wil- Ham T. Ward.
Two of our officers, Lieutenants Van Keuren and Bar- low, were severely wounded here, and Corporal Simon P. Teal of Company G, who was on the skirmish line, was wounded and captured. As his name does not appear again in the rolls it is probable that he may have died in the enemy's hands. Budd and Dykeman of Com- pany I, were also among the wounded, as was also Cor- poral Shelden of Company A. But this is by no means a complete list of the casualties at this battle.
On the morning of the 21st some of us, of inquisitive propensities, took a stroll over the battle-field in search of relics. While we were so engaged Colonel Ketcham came around and ordered every Company to fall in for roll- call, and every absentee was ordered for extra picket duty that night. Although Sergeant Murfitt reported that he thought West was down at the creek washing, it wouldn't work, and as usual I " drew a prize," spending the night on extra picket duty.
Major Smith was Brigade Officer of the Day, and received orders after dusk to straighten the line somewhat, which necessitated advancing the picket line. We were at one edge of a ravine, and on the opposite hill, in the woods, we could see the skirmish pits of the enemy.
Major ordered, — "Forward!" and we went a little way, but as it was dark and no one knew whether the enemy was in the pits above us or not it looked risky. But now again came the command, — " Forward! "
Up the hill we went, and at the top we found a road
102 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
running parallel to the edge of the woods, and beyond this an open field; and now we saw glimmering lights in the distance.
" Forward!" again came the command. But presently a still, small voice was heard to murmur, — " Major!"
Then followed a silence, and presently, — " Who calls Major?" — was heard sounding in the darkness.
" Major! Major! You're right on the enemy's works! Let's fall back!" murmured the small voice again, and in an instant the order came from the Major to fall back.
We needed no second command, and down the hill we went to our former position on the opposite side of the ravine, where we halted. In the morning, before day- break, we were ordered forward once more and forbidden to light fires under any circumstances. We came to the opening and could see the enemy's works beyond the clearing, and soon we were advancing again, the enegiy having evacuated the position during the night. Then we rushed into the works and the men hastily examined every nook and corner in search of tobacco or anything else that they might have left in their hurry. We were not allowed to rest more than a few minutes at a time, but kept moving, feeling our way in the darkness as we went.
We would hardly halt when small fires would be built — against orders of course — in the hopes of being able to make a little coffee. But they would hardly commence to blaze when some of the oflicers (how mean it seemed to us then!) would advance and kick them out. Thus matters progressed until about 9 A. M., when we came upon the skirmish pits of the enemy, located upon a hill, the approach to which was through an open field on the
FROM KENESAW MOUNTAIN TO PEACH TREE CREEK. 103
slope. We made a rush and captured that hill, when we were halted and the Major returned to report the success of the movement.
Now on the right of us, near the road leading towards Atlanta, was a dwelling, and In the garden near by was a dead Confederate, probably one who had fallen before our picket fire, and In his possession was a half-peck of freshly dug potatoes. It did not take long to divide this "contraband of war" among us, the potatoes being a great prize, useful In warding off the scurvy which was making its appearance on account of the long campaign In which we had salt meats most of the time.
Having as yet had no breakfast we decided to get one at this late hour by partaking of such a repast as oppor- tunity offered. In this case consisting of army crackers, better known as " hardtack." They were about four inches square, and consisted of flour and water pressed and baked so hard that only flour remained, and many of them bore the letters " B. C." on their sides. These were said to be the initials of the contractor who furnished them to the government, but on account of their Infernal hardness — and sometimes lack of freshness — the boys always Insisted that the letters referred to the date of their manufacture.
But while we were resting behind the garden fence and munching this primeval breakfast food we still kept watch on the " Johnnies " In our front, and we presently noticed men running down the side of what appeared to be a hill (but which afterward proved to be the side of a fort) and disappearing In the ravine. We wondered what they were doing, but had not long to wait, for a line of the enemy came suddenly out of the woods before us and
104 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
began climbing over the fence at the other side of the garden, probably not a hundred feet away.
This surprise caused active movements along our skirmish line, but we realized that they had the upper hand of us, and concluded it was not a good position to remain in. After giving them a volley, bowling over some of them, we hastened to our reserve which was along the ridge across the valley to our rear, each and every one for himself, and none stood on the order of going.
The writer, being somewhat slower in moving, owing to being heavily loaded with a new blanket and the addi- tional load of potatoes, was a few feet to the rear and had a good view of his comrades in front, and a good laugh also as they rushed down the green slope, throwing knapsacks, etc., to the ground to enable them to cover the space more quickly; for none cared to be taken prisoner so far from home.
But " our friends, the enemy," had no ambition to come farther than the ridge from which we had driven them a few hours earlier, so we lost none of our men, but all gathered on the hill some two hundred yards in the rear of where we had had our skirmish, and com- menced again to eat breakfast. But just at this point Major Smith returned from headquarters, and seeing the condition of affairs again ordered the skirmishers to ad- vance, which we did, moving forward into the valley within one hundred yards of the enemy's skirmish line.
The line as it was now arranged brought the writer farther to the left than he was placed in the morning's advance, and where he was protected by woods. There we lay quietly all the afternoon, listening to the raging of the battle still farther to the cast where Hood's corps
FROM KENESAW MOUNTAIN TO PEACH TREE CREEK. 105
of the enemy were trying to crush our left flank; General McPherson being killed during the afternoon.
This engagement is known as the " Battle of Atlanta," and was fought July 22, 1864.
Of this campaign in which we were engaged General Sherman speaks as follows: "We had been operating in a country devoid of food and forage, and were dependent for supplies on a poorly constructed railroad back to Louisville, a distance of five hundred miles."
That it was so highly successful, in spite of the mani- fold difliculties encountered, is the marvel of historians.
CHAPTER X.
THE SIEGE OF ATLANTA.
By William C. Wile.
Time Occupied — Organization of the Corps — Its Officers — Hot Fighting — Intrenching
the Line — Getting Social with the Rebel Pickets — Exchange ot Bullet and Shell
by Day, and Music by Night — Surprising the Rebel Pickets — Deserters
from the Enemy — Moving on the City — Losses Sustained.
In determining the period of time which may properly be allotted to that portion of Sherman's campaign com- monly known as " The Siege of Atlanta," we find that there is a general consensus of opinion among several of the prominent officers engaged on both sides, that the siege proper began on the day following the battle of Peach Tree Creek, and continued until the day of the occupation of the city by our Corps, i. e., from July 21st to September 2, 1864, a period of forty-two days.
Our regiment, throughout the operations of the siege, remained under command of Colonel John H. Ketcham. It consisted of ten companies, probably numbering at that time not more than 300 men present for duty. Together with the five other regiments of the brigade, we consti- tuted the 2nd Brigade, under command of General Thomas H. Ruger, of the ist Division, under command of General A. S. Williams, of the famous 20th Army Corps, then under command of Major-General Joseph Hooker.
General Hooker shortly afterward became dissatisfied
THE SIEGE OF ATLANTA. 107
over General Howard's appointment to the command of the Army of the Tennessee (at McPherson's death), and resigned, July 27th. On August 27th, the corps was placed under command of General Henry W. Slocum. In the interim (July 27th to August 27th), our Division Commander, General A. S. Williams, was in temporary command of the Corps, his place in the Division being filled during that time by Brigadier-General Knipe, of the I St Brigade of our Division.
General Hood had been placed in command of the rebel armies a day or two before the commencement of the siege, having superseded General Joseph E, Johnston, whose Fabian method of warfare during the present campaign had not met with the approval of Jefferson Davis. This new commander was known to us all as a " fighter," and we thought we had an abundant foretaste at Peach Tree Creek, on July 20th, of his probable future policy.
On the day following this battle our regiment remained practically in the same position that seven of its ten com- panies had occupied during the greater part of the en- gagement; i. e., in the second line of the brigade, in a little cross-ravine lying about half a mile south of the creek, where we had thrown up impromptu breastworks the night before.
We were engaged most of the day burying our own, as well as some of the enemy's dead (who had been found lying on the side of the slope in our front), and in caring for the wounded. Our section of the division hospital was about three-quarters of a mile in the rear of our line, within easy shelling distance of the enemy, but out of range because placed in a ravine sheltered by hills. The sick and wounded were removed from the field on
108 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
Stretchers and blankets, by ambulance attendants and musicians.
Friday, July 22nd, the second day after the battle of Peach Tree Creek, the enemy attacked the extreme left of Sherman's army, three and a half miles east of us, and a severe battle ensued, lasting four or five hours. The attack was eventually repulsed and the rebels with- drew to the city. It was in this section, known as the " Battle of Atlanta," that the beloved McPherson, Com- mander of the Army of the Tennessee, was killed. From this time on, his veteran troops were commanded by Major-General O. O. Howard.
We took no part in this engagement, but at 6 o'clock the next morning, preceded by a skirmish line, moved down Pace's Ferry road, three miles, toward Atlanta. At 10 o'clock on the previous night the enemy had with- drawn from their breastworks in our front, and fallen back into the main lines of their defences around the city.
At noon we took our position in the second line of the Brigade, about 500 yards in front of the enemy's works. By 7 :oo P. M., our line was permanently arranged, the right extremity of the regiment resting on the railroad, and the balance extending across the main road running from Marietta into Atlanta. We were now about a mile northwest of the general passenger depot, and a mile and a half from the heart of the city, which we could plainly discern in the background.
We immediately began to intrench ourselves in our new position on the afternoon of this first day (July 22nd), behind breastworks of slashed timber and lines of abattis, during which we were continually being shelled by the rebels from several of their batteries. Many of these
THE SIEGE OF ATLANTy\. 109
shells exploded right among the men when working. Their sharpshooters, too, tried to pick off every man they could see. But our pickets were thrown out, skirmish- ing as usual, and the works were finished before dark, though they were made stronger during the night.
Excepting to advance our lines, August 4th, to within 250 to 300 yards of the enemy's works, we made no change in our position during the entire siege, until August 25th, when we moved back to the railroad bridge over the Chattahoochee river, as I shall describe later. For five weeks we remained in our trenches, engaged prin- cipally in picket duty. The weather was intensely hot during those mid-summer days, and the huge black flies swarmed down upon us, like the locusts of Egypt. The nights were very cool. There was not a night during the hottest weather, in the march from the Chattahoochee to Savannah, when two heavy woolen blankets, covered by an army rubber blanket, were more than a comfortable covering.
Ours was by no means a comfortable place in which to spend the month of August. Picket duty was of the most disagreeable nature. The men stood in pits or holes in the ground, deep enough to protect their bodies and enable then to crouch down to avoid exposure. This position was cramped and uncomfortable; but we must remain, constantly vigilant, in sun or rain, sick or well, from 2 o'clock in the morning until relieved twenty-four hours later.
Within a few yards of us was the rebel picket line, and unless a truce was agreed on, any carelessness of a soldier was likely to cost him his life. But there were sometimes truces, and they generally came about in this way. A
110 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
rebel, tired of crouching in his pit, would call out as follows :
" I say, Yank 1"
"Well, 'John Reb,' what is it?"
" I'm goln' to put my head out. Don't shoot."
" Well, I won't. Let's stretch our legs."
" All right."
Then for an hour there would be peace, after which, recalled to a sense of duty, the cry would be, —
"Time's up, Yanks. Look out, we 'ns 's go'n' to shoot. Be keerful."
"All right, Johnnies; lay low:" — and the vigil was on again.
In this way, for thirty-six days and nights, the regi- ment with its corps lived under the burning sun, the dews of night, and the rains that fell often in that battle- summer in Georgia. The soil was yellow joint clay, sticky and yielding when wet, but it cracked, disintegrated and became dusty when dry. The floor of the trench was of this clay, and under the tramp and wear of so many feet for so many days, it became as smoothly even and firm as a cemented floor. The daily routine of the regiment was somewhat as follows :
Roll-call after breakfast, at 7 :oo A. M., roll-call at noon, and roll-call again at 5 :oo P. M., when details were made for picket duty. Roll-call again at 9 :oo P. M., then came "Taps." The picket guard was awakened at 2 :oo A. M., when the old picket was re- lieved and returned to the regiment, the fresh one taking its place.
If the enemy had not succeeded in occasionally blowing up some portion of our works with their shells, com-
THE SIEGE OF ATLANTA. Ill
pelling nightly repairs with shovel and pick-axe, the monotony of life would have been even worse, for save the roll-calls and picket duty, there was little to do but cook, eat, play cards, write letters, mend clothes and clean arms and accoutrements.
One of the pests that stayed with us from early morn till dewy eve, was the common house-fly; and he was only one of the several breeds of pests that "stayed with us!" This little torment swarmed in legions, and the legions were myriads. Sleep was impossible while daylight lasted, so persistently savage were they. One was re- quired to keep a hand in constant motion to ward off their attacks, and all sorts of devices were tried to get a brief sleep. The men, during these hot and sultry days (particularly they who had been awake and alert all the previous night and day on picket), desired to get a chance to sleep during the day, but Mr. Fly said, "No!" — and he was no respecter of persons.
As said before, there was no sleep while daylight lasted, and when night came on there were many alarms, false and otherwise, of an attack or sortie by the enemy. One method adopted by the boys to drive out the fly was satis- factory to behold, if not effective in results. It was some- what as follows :
A party of a half dozen or more would contribute each a spoonful of sugar to a mass, which was sprinkled in a circular line, about two feet in diameter, on the trench floor. The powder from a few cartridges was then sprinkled on the sugar, and the syndicate waited for the flies to cover the line, which they soon did in a dense black swarm. Then a match was applied to the circle, and instantly the ground was covered with a writh-
112 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
ing mass of wingless flies. Yet these wholesale slaugh- ters of the winged tyrants never for a moment freed the "Land of Nod" from their Invasions.
After a day of roaring turmoil of flying shot and shell (such days were not Infrequent), the shades of night gen- erally brought rest and quiet to the troops of both armies; and when darkness had fairly settled down upon us, the men of the regiment came out of the trenches and reclined on the outer slopes, chatting and smoking, while violin and flute played the sweet and plaintive airs of other days, in other lands more peaceful; and then the voices of the men would gather in strength and the melody of "Annie Laurie" was rifted on the summer air, even as it had been In the trenches before Sevastopol.
Occasionally the band would take a position within the works of the battery, and give charming music, of selec- tions from the great masters, without the flare and flame of cymbal and drum. " Our friends, the enemy," were always sympathetic listeners. Evidently it was a great treat to them; for no band was ever heard within their lines, and seldom a drum, but the bugle, often.
In the clear evenings the two lines bombarded each other with song. The Union men would sing the pa- triotic songs of the North, and there were many excellent voices among those strong-lunged, strong-hearted fellows. The rebels would listen until their turn came, and then pay us back with " Dixie," " My Maryland," and other songs calculated to " fire the Southern heart." Then for a time the two lines would exchange ditties of love and war, and finally close with some grand old sacred hymn, known to us all.
The morale of our troops was fine, though the same
THE SIEGE OF ATLANTA. 113
could not be said regarding their health, for complaints of not feeling well were frequently heard. Notwith- standing our situation in a healthy region of the country, with an abundance of good water, the men suffered con- siderably from scurvy, owing to the limited amount of vegetable diet. Most of the diseases were of a dietetic character. About one-third of the men who had started with us in April were staying at the hospital during the greater part of the siege.
And all of this time Sherman was slowly and gradually drawing his lines about the city, feeling for the railroad toward the South, which supplied the rebel army and made Atlanta a place of military importance. With the exception of one instance (July 28th), when he made an abortive attack on the right of our main army, Confederate General Hood remained entirely on the defensive within his lines of works around the city, at an average distance of a mile and a half. But our cannon-shot, passing over this line, must have eventually destroyed the town. We understood, too, that there was no forage in the city at all, that the horses of the enemy were being fed on small patches of green corn. It was the general belief that Hood's army could not stand the bombardment many days longer.
On one occasion, August 13th, after a heavy artillery fire from our guns, a big fire broke out in the city about II o'clock at night; bells ringing and cries of "fire" being plainly audible to us. The fire grew larger during the night and continued until daylight. Again, the next day, the fire broke out shortly after dark and lasted about three hours, affording a fine spectacle from our vantage ground.
114 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
At this time the picket line of our division was occupy- ing a low hill known as "burnt houses" (where we had succeeded in burning some outbuildings in a brilliant sortie made July 27th), situated about 150 yards in advance of the original position of our regiment, and not more than 200 yards distant from the enemy's front and from one of their two forts on the Marietta road. This hill had been occupied by the enemy's picket, but was captured by a detachment from our brigade a fortnight before.
At break of day, on the morning of July 30th, our picket line, supported by the 2nd Massachusetts, was ad- vanced to the ridge, surprising the enemy and taking a number of prisoners. The position was one of great im- portance to the rebels, as was evidenced by their efforts all day to regain it. Our pickets were plainly to be seen by us as they immediately began to throw up a line of rail breastworks, during the progress of which they were seriously annoyed by the enemy's sharpshooters and the fire from their fort and redoubts. The latter was fre- quently silenced by the men of the 2nd Massachusetts, whose accurate fire through the embrasures rendered the artillery useless. The moment their fire slackened, how- ever, the enemy quickly took advantage of the opportunity to fire grape-shot into the ranks of our troops. But in spite of all the enemy could do to hinder us, the works were pushed to completion and the position held.
In consequence of our picket line having gained posses- sion of this desirable position, a few days later, August 4th, we advanced the line of our regiment 50 yards and began to throw up works, which we continued to strengthen nearly every day during the remainder of the siege. The same closing-in movement was general at
THE SIEGE OF ATLANTA. 115
this time at all points of the besieging circle. We were steadily tightening our grip about the city.
We were now within 250 yards of the enemy's line, which we could see was covered by a strong breastwork, in front of which was an abattis, chcvaiix-dc-frise and wooden palisade. The enemy's fort (up the road) was occupied by their infantry, the embrasures of the fort being filled with sand bags, and several redoubts and rifle-pits were close at hand. As we lay within rifle range of these works, the fire of their sharpshooters became very annoying. From this time on, the duty was as try- ing to the troops as experience during an ordinary battle. It was generally admitted that the position occupied by our regiment was one of the most hazardous of any around the city.
It was at about this time that desertions from the enemy became frequent. On the night of the big fire, already referred to (August 13th), a rebel officer found his w^ay into our lines and gave an account of the situation of affairs in the city, which we listened to with no little interest and curiosity. This man was Captain Jordon, Commander of Company G, 36th Ala. Infantry, in Gen- eral A. P. Stewart's division of Hood's old corps. He said that the rebel soldiers felt that there was no longer any chance of success, and, although they would fight desper- ately if attacked in their works, they w^ould refuse to make a general charge.
He was confident that if the men could be made to know how they would be treated after coming over, the majority of Hood's soldiers would desert him; and that If the practice of the picket lines agreeing to a truce for a few hours at a time was encouraged, a great many men
116 THE DUTCHESS COUNTY REGIMENT.
would desert every day. Their men had great confidence in the honor of our soldiers, and a proposition to cease firing was at once accepted. It was during one of these armistices along the picket lines that he questioned oui pickets as to the kind of treatment he would receive if he deserted, and was told that he would be sent to the North.
The rebel captain Informed us that their men were taught our government would force them into the army as soon as they came over. He had been looking for a chance to desert during the whole campaign, and im- proved the opportunity when told he would be sent to the North and allowed to stay there. He added that their rations consisted of bacon and corn bread, occasion- ally beef, and often the men of his company would eat a day's supply at one meal, and then not be satisfied. He said that one-third of the men in their trenches were kept up all night, and that at 3 o'clock the whole force was ordered under arms until daylight.
The position of our regiment remained unchanged until the night of August 25th, when, with the brigade and clivision, we were ordered to move back towards the Chat- tahoochee river, to guard the railroad communication and protect Sherman's supplies, then well up. Up to that time we had lost about thirty men In the trenches, from sickness and casualties.