USA > Iowa > A history of the Sixth Iowa infantry > Part 5
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The social event of the month at the Tipton post was an officers' ball given on the night of February 27th, when much hilarity was indulged in by the Lieutenant-Colonel commanding the post and a few other convivial spirits. This event was of a character not calculated to set the best example for the officers and men, or to promote a high standing of military discipline in the regiment. Lieutenant Beverly Searcy celebrated the occasion by marrying a young girl, only 18 years old.
The next day - the last day of the month - was a "red letter" day in camp, when battalion drills and the usual camp ceremonies were attempted and all attended with demoralizing failure, resulting from the bibulous dissipa- tion and a laxity of discipline in the command. On March 1st, the report at guard mount showed there were 27 prisoners in the guard house, charged with minor in- fractions of camp orders and military discipline. The 2nd day of March presented a novelty in the weather in the form of a severe snowstorm accompanied by loud peals of thunder and vivid flashes of lightning. The ele- ments seemed to be as much out of harmony with the season as the recent bad conduct in the camp was detri- mental to good morals and military discipline.
On March 3rd, Colonel McDowell returned from a short leave of absence but did not meet with a very warm re- ception from the men, on account of the wabbling insub-
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ordination still rife in the command. On the next day marching orders were received for the regiment to pro- ceed to St. Louis on the cars, which set the men wild with joy at the prospect of getting out of the winter camp. The strength of the regiment was shown by a report to be as follows: present for duty, officers 27, men 701, total present, 728; absent, officers 11, men 85, total absent, 96; aggregate present and absent, 824.
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V ON TO SHILOH
In the army and throughout the country public attention was almost entirely absorbed by the great victories won at Fort Henry on the Tennessee River and Fort Donel- son on the Cumberland River by the Union army com- manded by General U. S. Grant. It was a laudable am- bition and the patriotic desire of every worthy soldier in the western army to join the victorious legions gather- ing on the Tennessee River under the command of a lead- er who had developed the military capacity to win sub- stantial victories. There was a constant fear and dread of again being assigned to a command that would cam- paign in Southwest Missouri and Northwest Arkansas, which haunted the mind of every soldier in the regiment like an ugly nightmare, so that when the orders to proceed to St. Louis were received there were great demonstra- tions of joy, and the enthusiasm in the camp was un- bounded.
A wearisome and anxious waiting occurred on account of delay in furnishing the cars to carry the command for- ward. The anxiety was relieved, however, when the cars arrived at 5 p. m., March 6th, to transport the regiment to St. Louis. The four companies at Syracuse, whose tour of duty at that post had been without particular in- cident, and the six companies at Tipton, including bag- gage, wagons and mules, were all loaded on the cars and at 11 p. m. the whistle blew, the bell rang, "all aboard" was announced, and the train pulled out amid the joy-
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ous shouts of the many and the regretful good-byes of a few.
While en route to St. Louis was a fitting opportunity for the men to dwell on the events of their eight months service in the army and pass in retrospective review their soldier life in Missouri. The winter camps were left behind with few regrets for the parting, although pleasant memories lingered with many of enjoyable social events and friendships made in pleasant families, at the towns and in the country adjacent to the camps. Pleasant evening parties, home-made dinners, and coun- try dances composed the social entertainments of the win- ter, and they were limited by the facilities of those who furnished them.
The hot summer days, at Camp Jessie; the epidemic of measles and scourge of fevers, at Camp Curtis; the profitless march to Springfield; the dismal camp and sole- leather pies, at Sedalia; the intense cold and morning prayers, at La Mine Bridge; the convivial and wrangling time at Tipton - all were passed in panoramic re- view, but whatever animosities there were then, time's relenting influence has dissolved.
But saddest of all reflections was the knowledge that so many of those who had enlisted in the vigor of their young manhood had been stricken by disease and had al- ready filled patriots' graves. A much larger number who had been prostrated by disease and the rigors of the ser- vice had been discharged for disability - greatly thin- ning the ranks of the regiment.
The rank and file were growing sensitive about the fact that the regiment had been in the service, camping, drill- ing, marching, and building fortifications, for eight months without coming in hostile contact with the enemy
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in larger force than a squad or company of scouts. But the scenes of early labors and trials soon passed out of view, and all hopes and aspirations were centered in the new fields of operations opening up with the new year campaigns where fame and glory were tempting in the gathering storm of war.
At the German village of Hermann en route, where the citizens were intensely loyal to the Union cause, a large quantity of native wine in bottles was distributed among the soldiers, with great generosity and liberality. The train arrived in the city of St. Louis at 3 p. m. and the regiment marched to the levee where it was at once marched on board the large and finely equipped river steamer, "Crescent City". Large details were made and worked until midnight transferring the baggage and wagon transportation to the steamer. The boat remained at the landing during the next day and night and on March 9th, at 2 p. m. it started down the river. . It rained all the afternoon, to the great discomfort of those who were quartered on the upper deck. Finally, on account of a thick fog the boat landed and tied up for the night. During the next day, while the steamer was gliding down the river, new Springfield rifled muskets - the best muzzle loading arms used in the army -- were issued to the men. The city of Cairo was reached at 11 p. m., and the boat tied up for the remainder of the night.
The river front was crowded with steamboats, loaded with troops and army supplies, with gunboats and other boats anchored in the stream, and camps and soldiers, in all directions on shore. Thus, an interesting and inspir- ing scene was revealed to the waking soldiers in the early morning.
At 11 a. m. the boat started up the Ohio River, arrived
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at Paducah, Kentucky, at 6 p. m., and tied up at a landing a short distance above the city. A great flood in the Ohio River had overflowed the bottoms and lowlands for miles on either side. The levee and landings at the city of Paducah were a repetition of the scenes at Cairo, everything indicating the greatest activity and prepar- ation for the forward movement of the army into the cen- ter regions and heart of the Confederacy.
On March 12th, at 3 a. m. the lines were cast loose, the staging hauled in and the steamer again proceeded up the river; turned into the Tennessee River and arrived at Fort Henry, the scene of General Grant's and Commo- dore Foote's first victory, at 11 a. m. The burned rail- road bridge, a few miles above the fort, was passed, and small parties of the enemy were seen on horseback, at safe distances inland from the river. The steamer land- ed in a wilderness and tied up for the night, when guards were placed out on the shore.
On March 13th, the boat arrived at the village of Sa- vannah, where General Grant had his headquarters, with his army embarked on a fleet numbering nearly a hundred steamers, all lying in the river above and below the land- ing. The spring freshet in the Tennessee River being at its highest stage, all classes of river craft-including the largest Mississippi boats - were engaged in the expedi- tion and all were loaded down to the guards with troops and munitions of war.
While the "Crescent City" was lying at Savannah, or- ders were received assigning the regiment to the Fifth Division of the Army of the Tennessee, and to a brigade composed of the 6th Iowa, Colonel John Adair McDowell ; 40th Illinois, Colonel Stephen G. Hicks; 46th Ohio, Colonel Thomas Worthington; and the Morton (Indiana)
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Battery, Captain Frederick Behr. Colonel McDowell commanded the brigade and Brigadier-General William T. Sherman commanded the division.
The steamer remained at the landing until 6 p. m. the next evening, when it proceeded up the river four miles and took its position in the fleet. General Halleck, in a message to the army congratulating it for services gal- lantly performed, said :
Fighting is but a small part of a soldier's duty. It is discip- line, endurance, activity, strict obedience to orders, as much as steadiness and courage in battle, that distinguishes the true veteran and soldier.
The long voyage on board the steamer, crowded from hold to hurricane deck with 700 troops, 50 boat crew, 150 mules and horses, baggage and garrison equipage, army stores and supplies; with scarcely any conveniences for cooking; poorly arranged and inadequate sanitary con- ditions; with severe exposure and great discomfort, on account of frequent showers of rain and blustering flurries of snow - put to the test the patience and endur- ance of the men, who so soon thereafter showed distin- guished courage on the battlefield.
On March 15th, the "Crescent City" started up the river at sunrise, preceded by the gunboat "Tyler". It put in at Pittsburg Landing for a short stop, then pro- ceeded up the river 15 miles to where a large force was attempting to land and strike the railroad inland several miles. In the afternoon the gunboat "Tyler", with Gen- eral Sherman on board and accompanied by the "Cres- cent City", made a reconnoissance up the river to the mouth of Bear Creek, where the guns on the "Tyler" opened fire, shelling the enemy's Chickasaw Battery, but
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nothing was effected and the boats returned to the re- connoitering fleet, after which the whole expedition re- turned to Pittsburg Landing. The severity of the rain- storm that prevailed was evidenced by the fact that the Tennessee River rose 15 feet, plumb water in 24 hours, submerging the banks and bottoms back to the bluffs. On the 16th, the fleet remained tied up all day, under the high bluff above the landing. In the evening the regi- ment was ordered to prepare for a three days scout in- land, with cooked rations in the haversacks. A battalion of cavalry in the advance got off promptly in the even- ing, followed by Colonel McDowell's brigade at midnight - the 6th Iowa in advance. When the brigade had pro- ceeded a mile on a narrow country road through the dark woods, the cavalry force was met returning, whereupon the whole command returned to the river, where they stacked arms and remained until morning. At 8 a. m., March 17th, the regiment in light marching order pro- ceeded out on the Purdy road to Owl Creek, where Com- pany I went on picket guard at Owl Creek bridge, and the regiment halted for the night, back on the bluff over- looking the bridge.
On Tuesday, March 18th, the regiment again scouted the front out on the Purdy road for 3 miles and then re- turned to the east side of Owl Creek and established camp with the rest of the brigade. Company D was left on picket guard at the bridge over Owl Creek on the Purdy road, near the little old grist mill. The tents and baggage did not arrive until Thursday, and during the time there was an almost constant downpour of rain, causing great inconvenience and discomfort. When the tents arrived the brigade camp was established, with the 6th Iowa on the right of the line and the brigade holding
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the position on the right of the front line of the army, fronting to the southwest. Owl Creek, a small stream flowing to the north, with the valley skirting its banks, lay to the right and west of the camps, with a small branch heading near the Shiloh Church and emptying into Owl Creek above the Purdy road bridge. It was covered along its banks with a thick growth of underbrush and vines, making a strong barrier protecting the front of the brigade.
The general alignment of the brigade camp was along the south side of the Purdy road, the right resting at the top of the hill leading up from Owl Creek bridge and the left extending cast to near the Shiloh Church, with head- quarters and the Morton Battery across the Purdy road and in the rear of the brigade line. Captain Walden, with his company, was allowed to establish permanent camp and remain on duty at the outpost on Owl Creek.
What was at first only intended as a reconnoissance in large force to destroy the railroads leading into Corinth, resulted in the whole army debarking and establishing the camps at Pittsburg Landing. It continued to rain incessantly, from day to day, until all the creeks and swamps were a fiood of water and the wagon roads made impassable for wagon transportation and army move- ments. Company and battalion drills were inaugurated as a daily practice in the camps, and, on March 23rd, the whole division was reviewed by General Sherman.
The rain having ceased the camps were thoroughly and systematically policed each day and a system of guards established which gave the camps an air of mili- tary discipline and cleanliness in harmony with the bright sunshine of the early spring days. A bountiful supply of good wholesome rations, a superb equipment of arms,
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and an excellent camp and garrison outfit, caused general satisfaction, while the magnitude of the forces and camps inspired great confidence throughout the army.
The presence of a vigilant and powerful enemy to dis- pute the advance of the army was almost daily demon- strated by engagements between the outpost and large scouting parties of the enemy's cavalry.
The surrender of Fort Henry and Fort Donelson, with their garrisons; the fall of Nashville and the abandon- ment of Kentucky, and Middle Tennessee; the defeat of Price and McCulloch at Pea Ridge, in Arkansas, and the evacuation of Columbus on the Mississippi River were all crushing defeats for the Confederates, and caused great depression and discouragement in their army and throughout the whole southern country. The civil authorities of the Confederate government at Richmond and the commanders of the army in the field were spurred to superhuman efforts to win a decisive and redeeming victory for their cause in the Western Department and the Mississippi Valley.
Corinth was the storm center for the concentration of the Confederates, and at that point were fast gath- ering the forces of General Albert Sidney Johnston, from Bowling Green and Central Kentucky; General Braxton Bragg, from Mobile and Pensacola; General L. Polk, the great bishop and soldier, from Columbus and Western Kentucky; General John C. Breckinridge, with a strong reserve division, and all the small detachments and com- mands, from the south and west - creating a large and powerful army, with General Johnston in chief command and General P. G. T. Beauregard - a skilled and intrepid . officer, having great prestige, on account of service at Charleston and commanding at Bull Run - the second in
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command. The latter was entrusted with the organiza- tion of the army.
General Henry W. Halleck, in chief command of the Western Department of the Union armies, with head- quarters at St. Louis, General Grant's army at Pitts- burg Landing, and General Don Carlos Buell's Army of the Ohio at Nashville were the gathering hosts for the Union. All, Union and Confederate, were preparing for the titan grapple in human conflict so soon precipitated, on the plains of Shiloh.
Following the Confederate surrender and Union vic- tories at Fort Henry and Fort Donelson in February in- termeddling was begun by jealous and designing persons which engendered misunderstanding among the Union commanders and the authorities at Washington. This caused General U. S. Grant - the recognized hero and rising commander in the Union army - to be temporari- ly suspended from the command of his victorious army, and General Charles F. Smith - a veteran officer of the regular army - to be assigned to the command of the troops composing the expedition then forming and pro- ceeding up the Tennessee River.
The position at Pittsburg Landing was selected by General Smith, and it was by his orders that the army disembarked and went into camp at that place, March 16th. This plan was afterwards approved by General Henry W. Halleck, Department Commander, and adopted by General Grant, when restored to the command of the army.
To continue the operations so successfully begun on the Tennessee River, it was the purpose and plan of the Union commanders to concentrate a large and well equipped army in that vicinity, so that when the weather
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became more settled, the country roads passable for wagon transportation, and everything in readiness the contemplated movement upon Corinth, Mississippi -- twenty miles distant to the southwest of Pittsburg Landing, at the crossing of the Memphis and Charleston, and Mobile and Ohio railroads - would be inaugurated. It was well understood throughout the army that the Confederates were concentrating all of their available . forces at that point. Every soldier in the Union army, from private to commanding general, understood the sit- uation to be that the pending contest was for the mastery and military supremacy in the Mississippi Valley, and that the decisive battle would be fought at Corinth.
With confident reliance in the security of the position and no apprehension of offensive operations by the enemy, no defensive preparations were made in and about the Union camps, on the west bank of the Tennessee River. The ordinary outposts for guarding the main roads lead- ing into the camps were maintained with cavalry and in- fantry, and the usual camp guards established through- out the camps. Scouting parties were sent out daily, more to develop the roads and general topography of the country, than to locate or engage the enemy. The whole trend of operations was conducted upon the theory that when the concentration of the army was complete and the condition of the weather favorable the army would ad- vance and engage the enemy on his chosen ground and fortified position at Corinth.
When the weather permitted, company and battalion drills were practiced daily, which produced good results in health and tactical instruction, and showed marked im- provement in discipline in the regiment and throughout the whole command.
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The inclement weather through March had caused the men to cling to their heavy coats and blankets; but, on March 28th, many took advantage of the opportunity of- fered and shipped extra clothing and blankets to their homes in Iowa.
On Sunday, March 30th, the Sixth Iowa went through the formal Sunday morning inspection and attended church services in the afternoon, which was interrupted in the evening by a cavalry skirmish with the enemy be- yond the outpost on the Corinth road.
With new Springfield muskets, good clothing, fine camp equipage, plenty of wholesome rations -including soft bread supplied by the regimental bakery, superb field transportation, improved medical and hospital accommo- dations, splendid bands and drum corps --- dispensing inspiring music, the troops were happy and supremely confident.
Active campaigning and contact with a large army had improved the morale of the regiment, raised the standard of efficiency, and inspired confidence, so that the men in the regiment, who were actuated by patriotic motives and the spirit of true soldiers, were greatly encouraged and hopeful for the future good name and good conduct of the command.
On Friday morning, April 4th, a scouting party of Con- federate cavalry made an attack on the picket guard post- ed on the Purdy road beyond Owl Creek, which was guarded by Captain Walden with his company at the bridge. Here Charles F. Stratton, company drummer, serving on the picket post at the time, was shot and se- verely wounded in the hand, causing the amputation of a finger. The bold raiders were speedily driven away, by
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the guards on duty, without any additional casualties. The jolly drummer boy of Company D had the distinction of being the first man in the regiment to be shot by the enemy. A battalion of cavalry was sent in pursuit of the fleet horsemen, but nothing further was developed, and the battalion returned before night.
On the same evening a severe engagement was had on the main Corinth road, which rose to the dignity of a battle, infantry, cavalry, and artillery being engaged on both sides.
Orders were issued increasing the guards for the night at all critical points, fresh supplies of ammunition were distributed in all regiments in MeDowell's brigade, and the men instructed to sleep on arms in quarters ready to respond to the call at any moment during the night. At 1:30 a. m., Saturday morning, April 5th, the men of McDowell's brigade were quietly aroused and the regi- ments formed in line of battle on the parade grounds in front of the camps fully armed and equipped for battle, and remained in that position until a severe rainstorm set in, when they returned to the tents. At daybreak they were again formed in front of the camps and stood to arms until long after daylight.
Every soldier in that camp, who had given any atten- tion to the hostile demonstrations of the enemy, expected a battle to commence that morning, with just as much certainty as he expected the sun to rise. As the morn- ing wore away apprehension of immediate danger seemed to quiet down and the camps assumed the usual daily rou- tine of duties. Orders, however, were issued requiring the men to remain close in quarters during the day, where anxiety still remained at the highest tension. The men on duty at the outposts were vigilant and watchful
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of every sound and movement at the front, where they knew the enemy was in great force, with hostile intent. Frequent collisions occurred during the day between the outposts and small scouting parties of the enemy, and at noon their cavalry assailed the guard on the Corinth road with great fury, but were soon driven away by the reserves kept there in watchful expectancy of an attack.
The usual evening parades were held by all the regi- ments camped in the front lines, when the music of the bands was distinctly heard in the lines of the enemy's advance forces. The bugles and drums sounded the tattoo at 9 p. m., which rang out clear and distinct on the evening air, indicating plainly the location and number of regiments in the lines of the Union army. The ming- ling of noises and the general hum in the camp of the enemy was distinctly audible to the Union pickets on the Corinth and Purdy roads, and especially at evening the sound was very distinct. Dogs accompanying the enemy's troops were attracted to the Union outposts dur- ing the evening, owing to the proximity of the lines.
On Saturday evening, April 5th, the situation in the Union camps was substantially as follows: the outlying camps, forming the front line, extended from the Ham- burg crossing on Lick Creek - near the Tennessee River -- across the wooded ridges and ravines to the Purdy road crossing of Owl Creek, three and a half miles west and south, from Pittsburg Landing. The four newly organized brigades composing Sherman's Fifth Division, with two partially organized brigades of. General B. M. Prentiss' Sixth Division, occupied the line; Colonel McDowell's brigade on the extreme right of the line, at Owl Creek, Colonel Stuart's brigade on the left at Lick Creek, with Hildebrand's and Buckland's brigades, near
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the Shiloh Church, and Prentiss' troops to the left of the church, and slightly in advance of the general line. Gen- eral McClernand's First Division, General Hurlbut's Fourth Division, and General W. H. L. Wallace's Second Division were camped in the rear of the front line at con- venient supporting distance, extending back to Pittsburg Landing. General Lew Wallace's Third Division, with 5000 effective men, was camped at Crump's Landing, five or six miles below Pittsburg Landing, and below the mouth of Snake Creek. General Grant had his head- quarters with a small guard of troops at Savannah, on the east bank of the Tennessee River ten miles below, where he had gone to spend the night.
The strength present for duty in the five divisions camped at Pittsburg Landing is shown by the field re- turn of the army, dated April 4th-5th as follows: McCler- nand's division 7028, W. H. L. Wallace's division 8708, Hurlbut's division 7302, Sherman's division 8830, and Prentiss' division 5463; aggregate, 37,331 men and 132 guns7 of field artillery. This return included all men on duty as clerks, teamsters, cooks, hospital attendants, men under arrest, and those sick in quarters, so that the actual number present and in line with arms in their hands has been estimated at 33,000 officers and men.
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