USA > Iowa > Muscatine County > History of Muscatine County, Iowa, from the earliest settlements to the present time, Volume I > Part 18
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Early in 1865 the regiment with its brigade embarked for the short voyage on the Atlantic to Beaufort, South Carolina, and from that place again took up the line of march for the north. In this closing campaign of the war, noted for the great hardships endured by the troops upon the long and toilsome march, the skirmishes and conflicts with the retreating rebel army, which was com- pelled to surrender when successful resistance was no longer possible, the Eleventh Iowa performed its full share of duty. After the surrender of John- ston's army at Raleigh, North Carolina, the Union troops marched on to Wash- ington. 'Arriving there, it went into camp and when the veteran troops of the Tennessee marched down Pennsylvania avenue, no state was more proudly rep- resented in that great marching column of war-worn and battle-scarred veter- ans than Iowa, and among all the Iowa regiments none presented a more sol- dierly appearance or received greater honor from the cheering multitude than the Eleventh Iowa and its associate organizations in the old Iowa Brigade.
SIXTEENTH IOWA INFANTRY.
The organization of the Sixteenth Regiment of Infantry began when the first company was ordered into quarters by Governor Kirkwood, September 17, 1861. The designated rendezvous was Camp McClellan, Davenport, Iowa, and there seven companies of the regiment were mustered into service on dates ranging from December 10, 1861, to March 12, 1862, by Captains Alexander Chambers and S. A. Wainright, of the United States army. It was more than six months from the date on which the first company was organized into quar- ters before the organization of the regiment was completed.
The regiment left Davenport, March 20, 1862, was conveyed by steamer to St. Louis, marching thence to Benton Barracks, where it went into quarters, was furnished with arms, ammunition and field equipage, and without having the opportunity for drill and instruction except to the most limited extent, was hurried to the front. It had the good fortune, however, of having a commander who was a graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point, and a thoroughly trained soldier. The regiment was thus better fitted for immediate active service than it would have been under a commander without military training. On the Ist of April, Colonel Chambers was ordered to embark his
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regiment and proceed to Pittsburg Landing, Tennessee, and upon arriving there, to report to General Grant.
TAKE PART IN BATTLE OF SHILOH.
On the morning of April 6, 1862, the regiment arrived at Pittsburg Land- ing. The great battle of Shiloh had begun and the roar of the conflict was heard as the regiment was leaving the boat. Here the men loaded their guns for the first time. Wounded men and some panic-stricken stragglers began to arrive from the firing line with tales of disaster to the Union troops, indicating that the rebel forces were superior in numbers and were victorious on every part of the field. This was a hard experience for these men, who had but a few days before left their homes in Iowa, and was a severe test to their courage and discipline even before they were ordered forward to meet the enemy. The orders soon came and the regiment marched promptly to the front under the leadership of their gallant colonel, to the aid of the troops who were being hard pressed by the enemy.
The experience gained by the regiment in this great battle was invaluable and in the numerous battles in which it was subsequently engaged it had the advantage of the training and drill which it had not received before the battle of Shiloh. But it was never afterward placed in a position in which the bravery and fortitude of the officers and the men received a more thorough test. It was a common experience of all soldiers that their first battle, no matter how favorable the conditions under which it was fought, was the severest test of their courage. At Shiloh the conditions under which the Sixteenth Iowa went into action were most unfavorable. The fact that the men of this new and untried regiment did not become infected with the feeling of panic but marched steadily forward and went into that hell of battle with the coolest of veterans, fought until the only alternative was retreat or surrender, afterward rallied to their colors and rendered important service until the close of the battle, entitles them to a place in the front rank as heroic soldiers.
After the battle the regiment was ordered to move toward Corinth, the strongly fortified position to which the rebel army had retreated. General Grant's army cautiously advanced, constructing earthworks at regular intervals along its front, thus guarding against another possible attack by the enemy and preparing for the siege of the rebel stronghold. On the 27th of April the or- ganization of a brigade, consisting of the Eleventh, Thirteenth, Fifteenth and Sixteenth Regiments of Iowa Infantry, was effected, and Colonel M. M. Crocker, of the Thirteenth, became its commander. This organization was maintained until the close of the war and was known throughout the war as "Crocker's Iowa Brigade." However, after Colonel Crocker was promoted to brigadier general it had many different commanders, most of whom, if not all, were or had been officers of some one of the regiments.
ARDUOUS DUTIES AT SIEGE OF CORINTH.
During the siege of Corinth the regiment, with the brigade, performed ardu- ous and important service and contributed its full share to bring about the evacuation of that stronghold just as General Grant had determined to order
Reduced Fac-Simile of Charter Original Post No. 1 .- Copyright, 180G, by C. R. Stce'c.
GRAND ARMY OF THE REPUBLIC, Department of Illinois.
To all whom it may Concern --- Greeting:
Einolu YE, "That the Commander of the Department of Flencis. reposing special trust and confidence in the patriotism and fidelity of Mo F Kanran, S.R. Steele Su. H. Dunning, S. C. Dugh. & N. Chrale. J.J. Bishop, b. Chitsame, & It. ERoulh. Of. Sibley S. A. Collie, Joseph Priorand. A. Joland does, by the authority in hem vested, empower and constitute them as CHARTER MEMBERS, of an Encampment of the Grand Slamy of the Republic, to be known as Post Number One of Decatur District of Macon Department of Ilinos, and they are hereby constituted as said Post, and authorized to make By- Laws for the government of said Post, and to do and perform all acts necessary to conduct and carry'on said organization in accordance with the Constitution of the Grand Sumy of the Republic. Done at Springfield, Il, this Sixth day of April- 1866.
B.F. blethenew Commanding Department Robert Ulb. Woods
Adjutant General Rec ded Bank A Page 5.
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an assault upon the fortifications. The evacuation took place during the night of May 30, 1862. The regiment now went into camp near Corinth, where it remained until the 28th of July, at which time it marched with its brigade to Bolivar, Tennessee, where it was engaged in watching the movements of the enemy, erecting fortifications and guarding against threatened attack by the enemy. A considerable rebel force remained in the vicinity of Bolivar for sev- eral weeks, but as was later shown, not with the intention of attacking the Union troops, but to draw away from Corinth enough Union troops to make it possible for the rebels to recapture that important post. When the real pur- pose of the enemy was discovered, the regiment with its brigade was ordered to return to Corinth. Upon its arrival there it was ordered to march toward Iuka and watch the movements of the enemy.
On the 19th of September, 1862, the brigade was in close proximity to the enemy. The Sixteenth Regiment was ordered forward late in the evening of that day, while the other regiments of Crocker's brigade were held in reserve. The part taken by the regiment in the battle was important. Colonel Add. H. Sanders, reporting to Colonel Sanborn, stated that fourteen had been killed, forty-eight wounded and fourteen missing. The Colonel commended Captain Smith of Company A for bravery, the Captain being the last to leave the field.
The regiment had again contributed its full share to the defeat of a superior force of the enemy in this hard fought battle. Its loss was even greater than at Shiloh in proportion to the number engaged. Soon after the battle of Iuka the regiment returned with its brigade to Corinth, and on the 3d and 4th of October participated in the battles which were fought there.
For the third time the regiment had met the enemy in a hard fought en- gagement and acquitted itself with honor. Its losses in battle and on the skir- mish line aggregated two hundred and fifty. It had also lost a large number by death and disease and by discharge for disability, yet it had only been six months in active service on the field. Its subsequent splendid record cannot be adequately described. The regiment now remained in camp for nearly a month. On the 2d of November the brigade was ordered to march to Grand Junction, and arriving there on the 5th, joined the army which was to engage in the movement against Vicksburg. November 28th the march to the south began, the Third Brigade of the Sixth Division of Hamilton's Corps (Crock- er's Iowa Brigade) being assigned to the advance. The Sixteenth Iowa with its brigade bore the full share of the great hardships of that winter campaign, which proved a failure on account of the brilliant exploit of the enemy's cav- alry in getting in the rear of General Grant's army and capturing the immense depot of supplies which had been accumulated at Holly Springs, Mississippi. This compelled the abandonment of the expedition and the retreat of the army. During this retreat the troops suffered from cold and lack of food. The regi- ment with its brigade and division reached Memphis early in January, 1863, and on January 18th again started for Vicksburg, this time on transports down the Mississippi river. Landing at Milliken's Bend, the troops went into camp. From this point detachments from the Sixteenth and other regiments of the Iowa Brigade were sent out for the purpose of watching the movements of the.
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enemy and were engaged in some skirmishing in which slight losses were in- curred.
CONNECT LAKE PROVIDENCE WITH MISSISSIPPI RIVER BY CUTTING CANAL.
On the 20th of January, 1863, the regiment with its brigade and division was assigned to the Seventeenth Army Corps. February 8th the brigade and division were conveyed to Lake Providence and there began the arduous un- dertaking of connecting the lake with the Mississippi river by cutting a canal. This work was steadily prosecuted and completed on the 16th of March. April 21, 1863, the brigade left Lake Providence and from that time until the sur- render of Vicksburg was actively engaged in the operations which culminated in that most important event. About the time these operations began, Colonel Crocker was promoted to brigadier general and was assigned to the command of the Seventh Division of the Seventeenth Army Corps. Colonel Hall of the Eleventh Iowa succeeded to the command of the Vicksburg campaign.
The services of all four of the regiments of the Iowa Brigade during this period were of practically the same character. The compiler of the history of the regiment writes: "During the entire campaign which ended with the sur- render of Vicksburg, the Sixteenth Iowa with its brigade, performed important service. It was moved from point to point, was part of the time with the army of observation in the real lines of troops engaged in the siege, and part of the time with the investing forces in the entrenchments, assisting the prosecution of the siege but everywhere doing its full duty and sustaining its well won repu- tation."
At the time of the surrender the regiment was skirmishing with the enemy on Black river, in the rear of Vicksburg.
CAPTURED BY THE "JOHNNIES."
In the desperately fought battle before Atlanta, July 22, 1864, after com- pletely exhausting its ammunition and being entirely surrounded by the enemy, the regiment with its gallant commander, Lieutenant Colonel A. H. Sanders, surrendered as prisoners of war. Upon his return from captivity Colonel San- ders made a detailed report for Adjutant General Baker. Captain C. W. Wil- liams also submitted a report of the battle with a list of the killed, wounded and missing, and Oliver Anson, sergeant major of the regiment, gave an account of the experience while in prison of those who were captured. Colonel Sanders . in his report, among other things, said: "I have the honor to report the action of the Sixteenth Iowa Veteran Infantry in the battle before Atlanta, Georgia, July 22, 1864, resulting in the capture of nearly all of said regiment and myself. On the morning of July 21 my regiment charged on the rebel batteries and after a desperate assault lost sixty-five men. On the afternoon of the 21st the old Iowa Brigade was removed to the extreme left flank of Sherman's army, about two miles from Atlanta. The Sixteenth Iowa formed a line at right angles with the main line of the army. Immediately on the right of the Sixteenth's works were planted two Napoleon guns of the Second Illinois Battery, pro-
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tected by heavy works. On the left of the Sixteenth and a little to the rear the Fifteenth Iowa had rifle pits. About a hundred yards to the rear of the Six- teenth, the Thirteenth Iowa had breastworks. During the night of the 21st each regiment of the brigade built substantial rifle pits along the line that I have designated and each cleared a space of fifty yards in front of its works. Still the heavy underbrush concealed the works of the different regiments from each other's view. On the 22d we were under arms at daylight but no enemy appeared. The afternoon before, immediately on our arrival, I had thrown out two companies (B and G) several hundred yards in front to act as pickets and skirmishers. About noon on the 23d I received an order from General Smith in person, to have my regiment ready to fall in at a minute's notice and that he expected me to hold these works to the last, as the safety of the division might depend upon the delay we would occasion the enemy at that point. This was the last order I received that day from my commanding officer. About I:30 p. m. our skirmishers in front commenced a brisk firing. I immediately formed the regiment in the entrenchments, and soon after the skirmishers were driven in upon us. I again sent them out but a strong line of the enemy forced them back. Lieutenant Powers commanding the battery, opened fire on the advancing enemy but I requested it be stopped until the enemy should get nearer. I ordered my men not to fire a gun until they received my command, no matter how close the enemy came. The rebel line advanced steadily to the charge and I permitted them to approach to the open place of fifty yards in front of my works, when, cautioning the men to aim well and fire low, I ordered the rear rank to fire, and then the front rank. The response was a terrific and deadly volley from one rank, followed immediately by another, and then a continuous rapid firing fast as eager and experienced soldiers could load and discharge their guns. The result of our fire was terrible. The enemy's line seemed to crumble to the earth, for even those not killed or wounded fell to the ground for protection. Lieutenant Powers' battery here did excellent execution. An- other heavy line of the enemy advanced and were repulsed in the same terrible manner."
The report then describes the desperate situation in which the regiment was placed; how the fight was continued against tremendous odds until it be- came evident that the other regiments of the brigade had been outflanked and compelled to abandon their works, when, all hope of receiving reinforcements being abandoned, the brave officers and men of the Sixteenth Iowa reluctantly surrendered themselves as prisoners of war. At the conclusion of his report, Colonel Sanders shows the utter hopelessness of the situation and that he would not have been justified in urging his brave men to further resistance.
Sergeant Major Oliver Anson in a communication addressed to General Baker, relative to the capture of the Sixteenth and their treatment while prison- ers of war, says in part: "We were taken to Macon and there the enlisted men were separated from the officers and taken to Andersonville, six miles farther south. The enlisted men of the regiment captured, numbered two hundred and twenty-five. The men suffered to lie out in the open air without any shelter whatever, and many of them are in a manner naked. They do not get enough to eat and what they do eat is not fit to eat. It is killing the men faster than Vol. I-10
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the army. When I went into the prison on the 28th of July, there were over thirty-three thousand prisoners, and on the 7th of September the issuing clerk told me they issued twenty-nine thousand five hundred and fifty-three, and since the 28th they had captured the Eighth Iowa Cavalry, some of the Fifth and a large number from McCook and Stoneman, besides making captures from Sherman's army, and yet the number ran down in spite of them."
SEVENTH IOWA INFANTRY.
The companies composing the Seventh Iowa were ordered to rendezvous at Burlington, Iowa, and were mustered into the service of the United States by Lieutenant Alexander Chambers, United States Army, on dates ranging from July 23 to August 2, 1861. Its first field officers were: Colonel, Jacob G. Lau- man; lieutenant colonel, 'Augustus Wentz; and major, Elliott W. Rice. Like its predecessors, the Seventh had but a short stay in its camp at rendezvous, for on the 6th day of August, only four days after its last company had been mustered, the regiment was ordered to St. Louis, and embarked on the steamer Jennie Whipple, with its equippage and baggage. It arrived in St. Louis on the morning of the 8th and marched to the government arsenal, where it was armed, the two flanking companies with Springfield rifles, and the other eight companies with improved Springfield muskets.
The regiment was in Jefferson Barracks for a short time, then went to Pilot Knob, thence to Ironton, where it remained in camp about two weeks, during which time it had the first opportunity to learn the manual of arms and was instructed in some of the more simple movements of the company, battalion and regimental drill. About the Ist of September it started on its first campaign with a division composed of six regiments, under command of Brigadier Gen- eral B. M. Prentiss.
BATTLE OF BELMONT.
Jackson and Cape Girardeau, Missouri, were occupied and from the latter place the regiment proceeded by steamboat to Cairo, Illinois, and immediately after its arrival there was sent to occupy the position afterward known as Fort Holt, Kentucky. It remained there but two weeks and then moved to a point near Columbus, where the rebels had constructed a strong fort. From this point, named Camp Crittenden, the main body of the regiment moved to Fort Jefferson on the Mississippi river, but left a strong picket guard at Camp Crit- tenden, where one man was wounded in a skirmish with the enemy. Leaving Fort Jefferson, the regiment proceeded to Norfolk and Bird's Point and at the latter point remained for some weeks, doing picket and guard duty. November 6th the regiment proceeded on board transports to a point on the Missouri shore about three miles above Belmont, where eight of its ten companies disembarked, leaving two companies to guard the transports, and joining the Twenty-second Illinois Regiment, advanced on the left of the Union line against the enemy. The official report of Colonel Lauman shows the entire loss in killed, wounded, prisoners and missing out of an aggregate of somewhat over four hundred engaged, to be : killed, fifty-one; died of wounds, three; missing, ten ; prisoners, thirty-nine; and wounded, one hundred and twenty-four.
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General Grant reported the total loss in his command at four hundred and eighty-seven. It will thus be seen that the Seventh Iowa sustained a loss of nearly one-half that of the two brigades engaged in the battle of Belmont. It seemed almost incredible that these untrained troops, fighting their first battle and led by regimental and -company officers without military training or ex- perience, should have acquitted themselves when under fire for the first time as well as in any of the subsequent battles in which they were engaged, and in all of which they nobly maintained the honor of the state which sent them into the field. Another notable feature of the battle of Belmont was the fact that it was the first in which General Grant had command of the Union troops and his opportunity to demonstrate his fitness and capacity to command. While the Seventh Iowa Infantry had a long and most honorable record of service and greatly distinguished itself upon other battlefields, the limitation of space will not permit a complete report of this battle.
Like the commander under whom it fought its first-and measured by the loss in killed and wounded, its greatest-battle, it went steadily and stubbornly forward to accomplish the work set before it. Early in November, 1861, the regiment was ordered to proceed to Benton Barracks, near St. Louis, where it enjoyed a brief season of rest and partly made up for its losses by recruit- ing. During this time it also diligently improved the time in drilling and of learning more fully the duties of soldiers in time of war. On the 13th of Jan- uary, 1862, the regiment was embarked on the steamer Continental and again started for the south, but the weather was so intensely cold and the river so full of floating ice that they made but little progress and after proceeding about twenty miles, the boat became fastened in the ice in the middle of the river. The weather remaining cold, the ice became solid enough in a couple of days for the regiment to pass over it to the shore, and it returned to St. Louis by rail, the next day crossed the Mississippi and proceeded to Cairo, Illinois. A few days later it was ordered up the Tennessee to assist in the capture of Fort Henry but Commodore Foote with his fleet of gunboats had captured the fort just before the arrival of the regiment. Upon its arrival the regiment entered Fort Henry and remained there until the 12th of February, when it took up the line of march from Fort Donelson and assisted in its capture.
The loss of the regiment in this engagement was two killed and thirty-seven wounded. Its relatively small loss as compared with the Second Iowa is ac- counted for by the fact that the Second led in the assault, while the Seventh was with the supporting column and therefore was not greatly exposed to the heavy fire of the enemy's musketry and artillery, but the regiment performed its full duty in the position in which it was placed. After the fall of Donelson, the regiment remained in the fort for some three weeks, quartered in the rude cabins which the rebels had erected. It then marched to Metal Landing on the Tennessee and after about a week there went on board the steamer White Cloud, proceeding to Pittsburg Landing, where it went into camp. On the morning of April 6, 1862, the regiment went into action under command of Lieutenant Col- onel J. C. Parrott and in the two days' progress of that great battle again nobly maintained the honor of its state.
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On the second day the gallant Lieutenant Colonel Parrott was so prostrated by illness and exposure that he was compelled to relinquish the command to Major E. W. Rice, of whom he says in his official report : "I knew it was placed in good hands, and from him I was proud to learn that it did its duty unflinch- ingly."
CONSPICUOUS AT THE BATTLE OF SHILOH.
On the first day of the battle of Shiloh, Iowa troops were conspicuous in this last line of resistance, where the fighting continued until after dark and resulted in checking the advance of the enemy and retrieving the disasters of that day. At the close of this battle the Seventh Iowa had been in the service but about eight months, had participated in three important battles with an ag- gregate loss of three hundred of the eight hundred and eighty-four officers and men with which it had left the state, and yet it had not completed one-third of its long and arduous term of service. After the battle of Shiloh the regiment remained in camp until the Union army again assumed the offensive and the advance upon Corinth began, which resulted in the siege of that stronghold and its evacuation by the enemy on the 30th of May, 1862.
In all the operations of the brigade and division to which it was attached during this advance and siege, the Seventh Iowa had its full share on the skirmish and picket line during the advance in trenches during the siege and in the pur- suit of the enemy after the evacuation. The pursuit ended at Boonville, Mississippi, the enemy having made good its retreat, and the Seventh, with its brigade and division, returned to Corinth, going into camp about two miles south- east of that place, where it remained for the balance of the summer, doing picket and camp guard duty and perfecting itself in company and battalion drill and manual of arms. In his official report Lieutenant Colonel Parrott says: "On the 15th of September we were ordered to Iuka; arrived there on the 17th and, as stated in General Grant's order No. I, our division deserves as much credit and praise as the troops who were actually engaged."
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