USA > Indiana > Posey County > History of Posey County, Indiana : from the earliest times to the present, with biographical sketches, reminiscences, notes, etc. : together with an extended history of the Northwest, the Indiana territory, and the state of Indiana > Part 38
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THE MILITIA SYSTEM.
After the defeat of the Indians at Tippecanoe, in November,
T
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1811, there was but little trouble from that source. The old sys- tem of the militia was kept up for many years, and the "general training " days were kept up. At these all those who had seen any of the active service of war, were objects of general interest. The few old Revolutionary soldiers that still lingered among the people were nearly always surrounded by a group of ready listen- ers to listen to their oft told tales of the days when they were with Washington or Lee. These musters were kept up for some time, and there was a fine imposed for not attending. They had company drills and regimental drills. As before stated, James Duckworth was the major and chief officer of the county. . The Posey County Regiment was the Thirty-fifth, early in the decade of the twenties. In Black Township there were two companies commanded by Capts. Harshman and Dunn. Other captains were W. A. S. Green, Alexander Mills, H. G. Lerton and Mr. Ellis.
THE TEXAN AND MEXICAN WARS.
The war with Texas in 1836 called a few men from this coun- . ty. Willis Edson was the captain of the company, and it went. under the command of Col. Wiggington, a prominent attorney of Louisville.
The war with Mexico caused the organization of a full com- pany from Posey County, with Enoch R. James as captain, and Alvin P. Hovey, first lieutenant. On account of the quota of the State being filled, this company could not get in. The regiment to which it was assigned was the Second, commanded by William A. Bowles, of more recent notoriety throughout the State.
PUBLIC SENTIMENT IN 1861.
The causes that led to the civil war are matters of such gen- eral history as are understood by a majority of the people, and review of them here would be both tedious and foreign to the scope of this work. Suffice it to say that through that fraternal strife, Posey County was on the Union side, and ever faithful to the unity of the Republic. At the outset there may have been some who were opposed to the war, for who could honestly desire it. The county had been originally settled, largely by Southern people whose education and training had been Southern, and in addition to this many of their strongest ties of kinship were in
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the States of the South. Another strong inducement for peace was the fact of the county being located so near to the heart of the States in rebellion, and it was nothing more than a reason- able expectation that the county should be made the theater of the war. Before the firing on Fort Sumter, meetings were held throughout the county for the purpose of expressing opinions upon the trying questions of the hour. These were usually called Union meetings, and were addressed by the various local orators of the times. Many thought the General Government had no power to coerce a State, and the different views were almost as numerous as the individuals.
ACTION OF THE COUNTY BOARD.
On the 22d of April, 1861, a special session of the county board was held for the purpose of preparing the county for the emergencies of war. The governor of the State was requested to deliver to the county its quota of the public arms of the State. It was also "ordered that the treasurer of Posey County.pay Enoch R. James, chairman of the Vigilance Committee of the county, the. sum of two thousand dollars out of the county funds," to be used to protect the citizens and public property of the county of Posey, by purchasing arms and munitions of war. The county commis- sioners were then A. C. Williams, Josiah Forth and R. G. Thomas. Another special session was held on the 21st of May following, at which time the following order was adopted by the. board: "Ordered that Robert Dale Owen and Alvin P. Hovey be, and they are hereby authorized and directed to go to Indianapolis. or any other place they may deem proper to negotiate for arms for Posey County; their necessary traveling expenses to be paid out of the county treasury. The said agents are authorized and empowered to propose to the State of Indiana on behalf of Posey County, to advance ten thousand dollars for the purchase of arms for the use of Posey County, in consideration of receiving from the State a like. sum ($10,000), in State bonds; said arms to be delivered to the board of commissioners of said county, and sub- ject to their disposal under the laws of the State. It is further ordered that the county shall and will indemnify and pay to the Bank of Mount Vernon any sum not exceeding ten thousand dol- lars, that said Owen and Hovey may draw for upon said bank, and
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that said county shall save said bank harmless of all loss on account of said advancement." Of the $2,000 granted to Enoch R. James, only $765 were expended by him, and the balance was, in June following, ordered to be returned to county treasurer. One hundred kegs of powder had been pur- chased, and of them A. P. Hovey was placed in charge and ordered to keep them in the east cell of the county jail, until a colonel should be appointed within the limits of the county.
Thus it will be seen that Posey County recognized the gravity of the situation. Civil war was actually begun, and it behooved people to meet it with firm determination and active preparation. Scarcely had the echo of the last gun at Fort Sumter died away ere Indiana was preparing for the struggle. On the 15th of April, 1861, the day after the surrender, Gov. Morton offered President Lincoln 10,000 men "for the defense of the nation, and to uphold the authority of the Government." Upon the same day the President issued a proclamation calling forth the militia of the several 'States of the Union to the amount of 75,000 in order to suppress the Rebellion and cause the laws to be executed. The quota of Indiana was fixed at six regiments, comprising in officers and men, 4,683 to serve for the period of three months unless sooner discharged. The excitement and enthusiasm throughout the State was so great that in less than a week more than 12,000 had been tendered. Posey County was not represented in this first call for troops. Indeed, but few counties at a distance from Indianapolis, the place of rendezvous, were able to get there in time to be accepted. These six regiments were, in May following, transferred to the United States service under the call of the President May 3d for 42,034 volunteers for the regular army to serve three years.
THE FIRST MEN FOR THE FIELD.
The Twenty-fifth Regiment Indiana Volunteers contained the first full companies of men from Posey County. These were Companies A and F, and they were mustered into the service on the 19th of August, 1861, four months after the commencement of the war. At its organization in July, Company A had these men for its commissioned officers: George W. Saltzman, of New Harmony, captain; Enoch J. Randolph, Mount Vernon, first
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lieutenant; Absalom Boren, New Harmony, second lieutenant. Capt. Saltzman was a man that was highly esteemed by his com- pany. He served until April 6, 1862, when he was killed at the battle of Shiloh. During its entire term of service, Company A had for its captains the following men in addition to Capt. Saltz- man: Enoch J. Randolph, April 10, 1862; Absalom Boren, Janu- ary 22, 1863; James P. Bennett, August 18, 1864: Gilbert M. Smith, August 25, 1864; George W. Ham, March 1, 1865. Their commissions were dated as given. Capt. Bennett was commis- sioned three days after he was killed at Atlanta, Ga. Gilbert M. Smith was never mustered as captain and was discharged as second lieutenant, November 8, 1864. The other first lieu- tenants were Absalom Boren, April 10, 1862; James P. Bennett, January 22, 1863; George W. Ham, August 25, 1864; James W. Black, May 1, 1865. The second lieutenants were James P. Bennett, April 10, 1862; Gilbert M. Smith, January 22, 1863; William Todd, May 1, 1865. The company started out with an enrollment of 100 men, and its whole number of recruits was 69. It lost in killed and died, 32; and 4 men deserted. Besides those already mentioned, John Hugo was killed at Fort Donel- son February 15, 1862; Jacob Jordan and Henry Myer at Shiloh.
At its organization, Company F, of the Twenty-fifth Regi- ment, had for its captain and lieutenants, Victor C. Larkin, Rob- ert G. Shannon and Miles Wilsly. The other captains with the dates of their commissions were Robert G. Shannon, August 21, 1864; John H. Oaks, March 25, 1865. Additional first lieuten- ants were John H. Oaks, March 20, 1865; Nathaniel Henderson, June 5, 1865. Second lieutenants were Rufus F. Larkin, Sep- tember 4, 1862; John H. Oaks, January 11, 1865; Joseph Bar- rett, May 1, 1865. The only commissioned officer that was killed was Robert G. Shannon. He had served in the war with Mexico and was wounded at the battle of Chapultepec. In the civil war he was wounded three times, at Hatchie River, October 5, 1862; at Snake Creek Gap, October 15, 1864, and at Bentonville, March 21, 1865. His death on the 23d of March, 1865, was the result of his last wounds. It too started out with an enrollment of 100 men, and during its term of service was recruited with 54 men, and lost in killed and died 16 men. Albert Norcross and Seth
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Johnson were killed at Atlanta, August, 1864, and John Ellis at Snake Creek Gap, October 14, 1864. Capt. Larkin was commis- sioned major August 5, 1864.
SKETCH OF THE TWENTY-FIFTH REGIMENT.
The Twenty-fifth Regiment rendezvoused at Evansville, where it was organized July 17, 1861, and was mustered into the serv- ice for three years, on the 19th of August. A week later it re- moved to St. Louis, where it remained until the middle of Sep- tember, and then went to Jefferson City. In October it marched 240 miles with Fremont in sixteen days. In December it marched with Pope's division and assisted in the capture of 1,300 rebels on the Black Water, December 19. On the follow- ing day it took charge of the prisoners and conducted them to St. Louis, where it remained until February, 1862. At that time it left to join the expedition against Fort Donelson. On the 13th it lost in that engagement 16 killed and 80 wounded. After the surrender, it occupied the fort until the 5th of March when it went to Fort Henry. At that place on the 11th, it em- barked for Pittsburgh Landing, arriving there the 18th. It was. actively engaged in the battle of Shiloh on the 6th and 7th of April, losing 27 killed, and 122 wounded. After this, it took part in the siege of Corinth. It then went to Memphis and re- mained there, doing little more than guard duty until the 6th of
September. With Hurlbert's division it engaged Price and Van Dorn at Hatchie River on the 5th of October. The regiment's. loss was 3 killed and 76 wounded. Six companies under Col. Morgan were attacked at Davis' Mills, in Mississippi, by the rebel Gen. Van Dorn, with a large force of mounted in- fantry. The enemy was repulsed with heavy loss. On the 29th of February, 1864, the regiment re-enlisted, and soon after came home on veteran furlough. Its next engagement of any consequence was at the siege of Atlanta, where its loss was 3 killed, 6 wounded and 4 prisoners. After the occupation of At- lanta, the regiment rested until the 3d of October, when it started northward in pursuit of Hood's army, and while in the advance, it engaged the enemy at Snake Creek Gap on the 15th of October, with a loss of 9 killed and 14 wounded. It returned to Atlanta in time to join in Sherman's "march to the
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sea." Arriving at Savannah on the 9th of December, it partici- pated in the investment of that place until the 14th, losing 9 wounded: It camped at that place from December 22 to Janu- ary 4. At that time it was transported to Beaufort, S. C., whence it moved to Pocotaligo. From there on the 30th it started to Goldsboro, N. C., and during that march was engaged in the bat- tle at River Bridge, on the 2d and 3d of February, with a loss of 10 wounded and 1 captured. At Bentonville, on the 19th of March with a loss of 2 killed, 12 wounded and 2 missing. On the 24th of March it arrived at Goldsboro, having marched 500 miles in fifty-four days. From there it marched to Raleigh and re- mained until the surrender of Johnson's army. It was discharged at Indianapolis in the latter part of July, 1865.
MEN FOR THE FIRST CAVALRY.
The First Cavalry (Twenty-eighth) Regiment Indiana Vol- unteers contained a large number of Posey County men. No less than three full companies were organized in the county for this regiment. They were C, D and H, and were organized. during the months of July and August, 1861. John K. Highman was the captain of Company C, a brave man who was killed at Fred- ericktown, Mo., in November, 1861. His successors were Julian D. Owen, November 12, 1861; William W. McReynolds, Janu- ary 13, 1863; James L. Carey, July 6, 1863. The first lieuten- ants were Josiah Forth, August 20, 1861; William W. McRey- nolds, November 12, 1861 (resigned) ; Mark McCauley, January 15, 1862; William W. McReynolds, January 13, 1863; James L. Carey, January 13,1863; Charles S. Randolph, July 6,1863. Second lieutenants, Julian D. Owen, August 20, 1861; Mark McCauley, November 12, 1861; James L. Carey, January 15, 1862; Charles S. Randolph, January 13, 1863; George W. Richards, July 6, 1863. All these officers were credited to New Harmony, and nearly the entire company was from the northern part of the county. It started out with an enrollment of seventy-seven men and did considerable active service. From this company Julian D. Owen was promoted lieutenant-colonel, Josiah Forth and Mark McCauley, majors of the First Cavalry Regiment. Lient. Randolph was murdered at Carrolton, La., in February, 1864. Alexander M. Fretageot died in the field September 7,
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1862. Elihu Robinson died in New Orleans in September, 1863, and John Williamson at Greenville, Mo. Four deserted.
The commissioned officers of Company D were-Captains; Lyman W. Brown, August 20, 1861; George P. De Weese, March 25, 1862; James B. Talbott, October 17, 1862; Orrison J. Kyler, April 2, 1864. First lieutenants: George P. De Weese, August 20, 1861; James B. Talbott, March 25, 1862; Orrison J. Kyler, October 17, 1862; John D. Krousch, April 2, 1864. Second lieutenants: James B. Talbott, August 20, 1861; George W. Brown, March 25, 1862; Orrison J. Kyler, April 30, 1862; John D. Krousch, December 22, 1862. This company started out with 76 men and was recruited with 25 during its entire service; 11 died and 11 deserted. Charles Pabst, Thomas Asbury and Thomas Snyder died at St. Louis; Lemuel Asbury, Charles Hin- on and John H. Scott died at Pine Bluff, Ark .; Samuel. Atkins, died at Pilot Knob; John Goarty and William W. Marshall died at Helena, Ark. ; Dorastus Ruple died at Cairo, and Peter Winter- ath died at Indianapolis in 1864, four days after his discharge.
Company H, also of the First Indiana Cavalry, was organized largely from Mount Vernon and vicinity. Its commissioned offi- cers were-captains: James H. Barter, August 20, 1861, and John Harding, June 6, 1863. First lieutenants: Edward S. Hayes, August 20, 1861, and John Harding, December 18, 1861. Second lieutenants: John Harding, August 20, 1861, and Francis M. Greathouse, December 18, 1861. Capt. Barter, resigned June 5, 1863, and Lieut. Hays, December 4, 1861. Company H had seventy-seven men in all, and of these fifteen died. They were Thomas Acuff, Thomas Chatsman, Benjamin Cook, Lowrey Daven- port, Lafayette Hall, George F. Huck, Charles Isenhart, Frederick Kemper, James McDeryman, George F. Majors, John Neely; Henry C. Sherbourn, William Stork, Conrad Thumire, Jonathan Topper. Those who were killed, or died of wounds, were Thomas Acuff, Charles Isenhart and William Stork.
SKETCH OF THE FIRST CAVALRY.
The First Cavalry (Twenty-eighth) Regiment, Indiana Volun- teers, was organized in accordance with instructions issued from the War Department June'10, 1861, to form a cavalry regiment from the counties bordering on the Ohio. Camps of rendezvous
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were established at Evansville and Madison. The organization of eight companies was completed at Evansville and mustered into the service on the 20th of August, 1861, with Conrad Baker as colonel. Under his command they left Evansville on the 21st of August and proceeded to St. Louis, and soon after to Ironton, Mo. On the 12th of September, near there, three companies un- der Maj. Gavitt had a sharp skirmish with the rebels. The fol- lowing month the regiment was placed on duty in the vicinity of Pilot Knob, where it remained until the following spring. While there, on the 18th of October, the regiment participated in the engagement at Fredericktown, and in a charge that decided the fate of the battle captured a piece of artillery and drove the enemy from the field. It was in this charge that Maj. Gavitt and Capt. Highman were killed. In the spring of 1862 the regiment moved to Arkansas and July 7, fought the battle of Round Hill. On reach- Helena it was assigned to the First Brigade, Second Cavalry Di- vision of the Thirteenth Army Corps, and, with the exception of Company C, remained on duty in Arkansas. For more than a year it remained at Helena and engaged in various expeditions in every direction from that point. During the last year of its serv- ice it was stationed at Pine Bluff. Company C, which had been detached as escort to Gen. Hovey, did not rejoin the regiment un- til just before its departure home. This company marched with Grant's army to the rear of Vicksburg and took part in that cam- paign. Afterward it joined Gen. Franklin's command in western Louisiana, and returned to New Orleans in December, 1863, where it remained until July following, when it joined the balance of the regiment in Arkansas. With the exception of the recruits whose term of service had not expired, the regiment was in August, 1864, ordered to Indianapolis, where it was discharged early in September. Of the recruits whose terms had not yet expired there were thirty-eight. They were all but three in Company B, "reorganized." Orrison J. Kyler was captain, William B. Ells- worth, first lieutenant, and Samuel L. Mellen, second lieutenant. The other three were in Company A, reorganized, with James A. Pine, of Rockport, captain. These two companies were stationed at Pine Bluff, and on the 15th of September had a severe engage- ment with the enemy and was compelled to fall back, losing eight men, wounded and prisoners. In January it moved to the mouthi
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of White River, in Arkansas. From there, on the 20th of March, it was ordered to St. Charles, where it remained until June 24. At that time it started for Indianapolis, where it was discharged, numbering 125 men and three officers.
NUMBER OF VOLUNTEERS.
Thus it will be seen that by the time the war had been in pro- gress four months Posey County had five companies organized and ready for active service. In addition to these a considerable number of men had volunteered in the Fifteenth and Sixteenth Regiments, for which the county never received credit. Of the Fifteenth, which was at Lafayette in June, 1861, Richard Owen, of New Harmony, was commissioned lieutenant-colonel, and Michael W. Smith, of the same place, adjutant. Later in the war Daniel W. Nettleton became captain of Company C, in the same regiment. He too was a resident of New Harmony. Lieut. Col. Owen was, in October following, promoted colonel of the Sixtieth Regiment at its organization.
FIRST COMPANIES OF THE LEGION.
In the meantime the citizens of the county had taken active steps for home defense. By the middle of June seven companies were organized under the act of the Legislature passed May 11, 1861. These seven companies belonged to what was known as the Indiana Legion, and in which Posey County had during the war a total of sixteen companies. They were known as the First Regiment, First Brigade of the Indiana Legion. Alvin P. Hovey was commissioned its first colonel June 7. Concerning this regi- ment the adjutant-general of the State in his report says: Colonel Hovey evinced the utmost zeal, energy and tact, to which the loyal people of his county responded with cordial alacrity, and his com- mand was making rapid progress toward military efficiency, when, about three months from the date of his appointment, he resigned the commission to accept the colonelcy of the Twenty-fourth In- diana Volunteers. His successor, Col. Enoch R. James, continued the work so successfully begun and soon had nine companies of infantry and one company of artillery fully armed, partially uni- formed and well drilled. Company and battalion drills were well attended for several months and the regiment, on frequent
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dress-parades, received the commendation of military men for their proficiency in the manual of arms and soldierly. bearing. On several occasions during Col. James' incumbency the people of Mount Vernon were alarmed by threats of guerrilla incursions, but the promptness with which the Legion rallied for the defense of the town, allayed public apprehension and restored a sense of security. Detachments from the Independent Guards and Union Rifles rendered important service in assisting to make arrests of dangerous characters in Kentucky. In the spring of 1862 a detail of about ten men from each company was called ont to guard prisoners at Camp Morton. The men promptly re- ported at rendezvous, but the order being countermanded, they returned to their homes. Upon the resignation of Col. James, a little more than a year from the date of his appointment, Col. John A. Mann was appointed to fill the vacancy, and entering at once upon his duties, he proceeded to organize two new compan- ies, one of infantry and one of cavalry, to take the places of two of the original companies which had been disbanded on account of most of their members having entered the active volunteer service. The cavalry company, well officered, thoroughly drilled and effectively armed, was often called upon for scouting and picket duty when the presence of guerrillas on the Kentucky side of the river warned the military authorities of the necessity of vigilance and preparation.
REBEL RAIDS.
Guerrilla parties roaming through Henderson, Union, and ad- jacent counties of Kentucky plundering the inhabitants and com- mitting almost every species of outrage, were a constant source of alarm to the citizens this side of the river. During the winter and spring of 1863 alarms occurred with unusual frequency, and the First Regiment was often called upon to do guard duty along the river for a distance of thirty miles. Late at night on the 9th of July, 1863, Col. Mann received orders from Gov. Morton to hold his command in readiness for immediate service in pre- venting rebel reinforcements, the raid of John Morgan being then in progress in another part of the State. Messengers were despatched to rally the companies, and although many of the men resided at a distance, some of them as far as fourteen miles from
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headquarters, such promptitude was displayed that every company and nearly every man belonging to the regiment had reported at Mount Vernon before noon of the 10th. At 9 P. M. seven compa- nies of infantry embarked on board transports and proceeded up the river while the cavalry marched in the same direction. Arriv- ing at Evansville the regiment went into camp. Rumors of a threatened guerrilla raid into Posey County to help Morgan in- duced Col. Mann to return to Mount Vernon with his cavalry on the following day. When it became evident that they could not be used against Morgan, the men of the regiment were dismissed to their homes. During the remainder of 1863 things along this portion of the border remained quiet, and the regiment was not again called upon. But in 1864 the alarms were frequent, and the services of the First Regiment were varied and arduous. In March of that year Forrest's raid through western Kentucky and attack on Paucha created considerable excitement, and fears were entertained that the border towns of Indiana were to be raided and plundered. A few weeks later large bands of guerrillas ap- peared along the Kentucky shore, and with more than their usual boldness, attempted to steal a number of horses from the citizens of Mount Vernon and vicinity, but succeeded in securing only one horse. The Legion was called to arms, and a permanent guard established along the entire border of the county. In July of the same year the regiment was again called out in the expedition to Kentucky under command of Gen. Hovey.
MEN FOR THE TWENTY-FOURTH REGIMENT.
The Twenty-fourth Regiment, of which Alvin P. Hovey was made the first colonel, was organized and mustered into the ser- vice at Vincennes on the 31st day of July, 1861. It contained but few men from Posey County. Richard F. Barter, who after- ward became its lieutenant-colonel, and later colonel of the One Hundred and Twentieth Regiment, was a resident of Mount Ver- non, as were also Charles Fitch, its chaplain, and Charles Larch, a first lieutenant in Company C. William S. Pollard of Cyn- thiana became captain of Company K, and at the reorganization of the regiment was made lieutenant-colonel. The regiment took active part in the war, and at the battle of Shiloh, April 6th and 7th, 1862, was conspicuously engaged, losing many men and of-
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