USA > Indiana > The Eighty-sixth regiment, Indiana volunteer infantry : a narrative of its services in the civil war of 1861-1865 > Part 42
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" And the air was so calm, and the forest so dumb, That we heard our heart-beats. like taps of a drum- "Column! Forward!"
Everything now was keyed to the utmost pitch, but the regiment proceeded steadily, although very quietly, for- ward, and the brigade followed in like manner. All passed quietly and without notice by the rebels with the exception
475
INDIANA VOLUNTEERS.
of one regiment. Temporarily connected with the Third brigade-on this retreat only-was the Fortieth Missouri, a new regiment that had been pushed immediately to the front. and which the boys had denominated the "Fortieth Misery," on account of their extreme nervousness. On such an occa- sion as this the new regiment that would pass without con- siderable trepidation would certainly be the exception. It is said that in marching by the rebel camps the division actu- ally marched through the enemy's picket line, that it extend- ed across the pike, and that a part of the line was cut off and therefore feared to fire upon the column. But at any rate one or two of the pickets on the side of the rebel camp fired into the "Fortieth Misery" as it passed, and such a tumbling of raw recruits, and such a clatter of frying pans and cooking utensils, is seldom heard in an army. Those green levies were piled about five deep in the center of the pike, and tried hard to pile higher still. There was groan- ing and lamentations equal to a negro camp meeting. They had lain down to escape the enemy's fire, having been out long enough to learn that much. But this halted the column in the immediate rear, which was Major Snyder, with the veteran Thirteenth Ohio. The Major was a man of quick, decisive action. He did not care to be delayed long here, and therefore at once rode quietly forward and asked the nature of the trouble. Upon learning the cause of the halt he saw that the delay was far more dangerous than the fire. and advised the Colonel to march his men on as speedily and quietly as possible, and thus clear the road for the troops behind. The Colonel of the Fortieth hesitated. It did not require but a moment for the Major to decide, and riding back to the head of his regiment, he ordered the Thirteenth to "Forward, March!" and it literally walked over the "Fortieth Misery" and proceeded on its way. When the Missourians saw, or heard, or felt, the Ohio troops passing on undisturbed, they, too, picked up courage, gathered them- selves up from that pile of cooking utensils and canteens, and resumed the march, though very cautiously. The com- mand reached Spring Hill at daylight. and was there halted
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THE EIGHTY-SIXTH REGIMENT,
for sometime to the right of the pike, behind some rail barri- cades, until the trains drew well out on the road to Franklin, when it again proceeded on its way. Of this passage of the National troops by the rebel bivouacs, General J. D. Cox, in his history of the Franklin and Nashville campaign, says: " About midnight Hood was informed that troops were pass- ing on the Columbia road, and sent Johnson's division of Lee's corps to extend Bate's line and stop the movement; but the night was dark and country unfamiliar, and nothing came of it, but a slight occasional skirmish while our col· umns marched by in full view of the enemy's camp-fires, which were burning less than a half mile away."
While this work was in progress the First division came up, rapidly passed through Spring Hill, and pushed on toward Franklin. The wagon train was now all out upon the road and moving northward. The Third division then moved out, marching east of the road a short distance and parallel to it, as a cover to the train. The Second division followed the Third. After leaving Spring Hill the enemy's cavalry, under Forest, made a dash upon the train, dispersed a squad of guards, captured and burned a number of wagons, but was finally driven off, and the train proceeded. The rebel cavalry made a second dash at the train, but was again quickly repulsed by two regiments of the Third division, deployed as skirmishers, aided by a section of artillery.
Wood's division reached the vicinity of Franklin without further trouble, only the men were very tired. Beatty's brigade was halted for breakfast about a mile out from Franklin at the foot of a circle of hills that encompass the town. Here the men had only fairly begun their frugal meal, when the boom of Wagner's batteries sounded, in a bold attempt to stay the progress of Hood's onward rushing bat- talions. The "Fortieth Misery" was on its feet instantly, slung knapsack's and tired as the men were, they were ready to tramp on when the old soldiers checked them in their wild career by yells of derision. Wagner's division, the Second of the Fourth corps, was acting as rear-guard for Schofield's forces, and could not long delay Hood's advance.
1
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INDIANA VOLUNTEERS.
Upon arriving at Franklin the two divisions of the Twenty-third corps had taken position in the suburbs of the village, with their left resting on the Harpeth river above the town and their right across and west of the turnpike. Kimball's First division, of the Fourth, corps was the next to arrive and it was posted on the right of the Twenty-third corps, with its right resting on the river below the town. Intrenchments were at once thrown up by the Twenty-third corps and Kimball's division, of the Fourth corps. Wood's division was the next to arrive, and the line all being occu- pied, it was ordered to cross the river, and await orders. Wagner's Second division, which was marching in the rear, was ordered to halt on a range of hills nearly two miles south of the town and deploy the command to hold the enemy in check. In the meantime the transportation of the train was being rapidly made across the river. General Wagner reported the enemy in heavy force in his front evidently pre- paring for an attack. He was ordered to retire nearer to the town, which he did, posting two brigades about a third of a mile south of the intrenched position of the Twenty-third corps, the other brigade, Opdycke's, being sent inside the main works as a reserve. Wagner's two brigades were ordered to fall back to the main line upon the approach of the enemy in force, which they failed to do. The responsi- bility rested upon the division commander, who failed to give the order to his two exposed brigades.
After Wood's division crossed the river, rations were drawn, and the Third brigade moved to the left of Fort Granger to protect that flank of the forces defending Frank- lin. From the brigade's position near the Fort the battle could be witnessed until the smoke of the contest and dark- ness hid the combatants from view, but the roar of the bat- teries and the terrific musketry told quite well that just "beyond the river" a terrible battle was being waged, and that many were "crossing over" the last dark stream in that cloud of smoke. General Schofield had taken his position in Fort Granger, where the ground was higher than on the south side of the river, that he might have a
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THE EIGHTY-SIXTH REGIMENT,
better view of the battle-field. General Stanley was with General Schofield at his headquarters, and saw the enemy's entire force forming for the attack, "and yet," says he, "in view of the strong position we held, and reasoning from the former course of the rebels during this campaign, nothing appeared so improbable that he would make an assault." As soon as the firing com- menced he left General Schofield and rode to the front. He arrived just as Wagner's two brigades came back in disorder from their exposed position in front of the works. Stanley then says: "I rode quickly to the left regiment of Opdycke's brigade and called to it to charge. At the same time I saw Colonel Opdycke near the center of his line urging his men forward. I gave the Colonel no order, as I saw him doing the very thing to save us." When the men on the line saw Opdycke's brigade start for the works they began to rally. Stanley says he heard the old soldiers call out, "Come on, men, we can go wherever the General can," and making a rush retook the line. The struggle now became terrible. and assumed a savage ferocity. The enemy, though a fright- ful lane had been cut through his ranks, refused to yield the ground he had so gallantly won, and a gladiatorial contest followed, in which the combatants stood face to face, thrust- ing their bayonets into each others' bosoms, and with demoni- acal yells, fought in the deepening twilight, more like savages than civilized men. It was just after retaking the line that General Stanley's horse was killed. He had no sooner re- gained his feet until he received a musket ball through the back of the neck. His wound, however, did not compel him to leave the field, and he was furnished a remount by Gen- eral Cox.
To show the fierceness of the contest, General Stanley reported that one hundred loads of ammunition, artillery and musket cartridges, were expended in this short battle, in about forty minutes, belonging to the ordnance train of the Fourth army corps. The Twenty-third corps must have ex- pended as much. The battle raged, but with not such feroc- ity, until far in the night. The hastily constructed in-
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INDIANA VOLUNTEERS.
trenchments of the Fourth and Twenty-third corps proved to be impregnable, manned as they were by brave men. The enemy's dead and wounded lay in great heaps in front. Hood was at last compelled to give up and retire-to mourn over the loss of over six thousand men, and six general offi- cers killed, six wounded and one captured. The Union loss was twenty-three hundred, more than half of which occurred in the Second division of the Fourth corps, caused by Wag- ner's blunder.
The Eighty-sixth did not participate directly in this engagement, as Wood's division was, by orders, crossed over to the north side of the Harpeth river, but it did the duty assigned it. The division was held in position at the river until all troops and trains were out of Franklin. The battle was practically over by 11 o'clock p. m., and Schofield ordered the withdrawal of his forces. But a fire broke out in the town which enabled the enemy to see plainly if an attempt at evacuation was begun at that time. Therefore, a delay of one hour was found necessary, and at 12, midnight, the withdrawal began. Wood's division remained in position until all troops were clear of the town and marching well toward Brentwood, then, after destroying the bridges, it, too, quietly marched out at 4o'clock a. m., December 1. Just as the division got into column upon the road the enemy seemed to have discovered the withdrawal, and opened with a battery upon the pike, or tried to do so, on which it was marching northward toward Nashville, but no farther attempt was made to attack.
Ever since leaving Pulaski on the 23d the nights had been nights of watching or marching. The first night out from Pulaski the regiment marched with less than an hour's sleep during the night. On reaching Columbia the Eighty- sixth was placed on picket. This, therefore, was a night of vigils. After this the enemy was pressing so closely that it required constant watchfulness. On the night of the 27th a great portion of the night was taken up in getting safely over Duck river and getting to the place of bivouac. On the night of the 28th the Eighty-sixth was again on picket.
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THE EIGHTY-SIXTH REGIMENT,
There was neither sleep nor rest on the night of the 29th as the division had marched from Duck river, the march con- tinuing all night, and now another night's loss of sleep and wearisome marching.
On leaving the vicinity of Fort Granger the division marched at a very slow pace, but when once it was well out upon the road, and the road in front cleared of troops and trains, the pace was quickened. "Wood's Greyhound's" showed their speed in an astonishing manner. Their East Tennesse sprinting campaign and their experience on the Atlanta campaign had been of great benefit to them and had given them remarkable powers of endurance.' The division breakfasted about 8 o'clock. At the outposts there was every indication that a general retreat would be made. All government property that could be moved was being hur- riedly conveyed back to Nashville. Guards of stations and stockades were ready to take the last train back or were marching on the road to the city limits. A general concen- tration of the Union forces was being made in Tennessee. Hood was coming and the final contest on the red field of war was not yet at hand. Franklin was only the beginning of the end of the campaign. About three miles out from the city the division was halted and drew rations; three days rations of sugar and coffee, and two of hard bread and bacon, but it did not bivouac here. After receiving the rations it marched within two miles of its outskirts. The troops were put in order for defense of the city should Hood make an immediate attack. Thus after many halts and delays, almost as wearisome as marching, the tired men reached a place where they might hope to secure a little rest and sleep after undergoing a most trying and dangerous retreat from Pulaski, commenced on the evening of November 23 and fin- ished on December 1.
A copious shower of rain fell on the night of December 1. On the morning of December 2 the final and permanent alignment of Thomas' army was commenced. The Eighty- sixth was moved some two hundred yards from its bivouac, but at length came back to it and were ordered to construct
491
INDIANA VOLUNTEERS.
a line of breastworks. The line of intrenchments ordered were soon under way to completion. General Stanley har- ing been disabled by a wound at the battle of Franklin, Gen- eral Wood assumed command of the corps and General Beatty of the Third division. The Third brigade of Beatty's division occupied the salient angle of Wood's line, about midway between the Hillsboro pike on the right, and the Granny White pike on the left. The line of the brigade was mostly to the left of the angle and faced to the southeast. The Fourth corps line extended from at or near the Granny White pike on the left to beyond the Hillsboro pike on the right. Nearly midway, but probably a little nearer the Hillsboro road, was the salient above referred to. To the right of this angle the line of intrenchments extended nearly in a northwest direction. The Fourth corps connected on the left with their old companion campaigners, the Twenty- third corps, and on the right with General A. J. Smith's troops, a portion of the Sixteenth corps.
It required a great deal of work to construct the intrench- ments. The rain had rendered the ground muddy, and wading back and forth in mud shoe-mouth deep, digging and shoveling in the tough clay was work indeed. This position of the Third brigade was on what was known as the Aeklen property. Near the angle of the line of intrenchments out- side the works was a large brick house which would serve as an excellent target for the rebel artillerists. It was, there- fore, ordered to be torn down, which was accordingly done. There was some skirmishing on this day indicating that Hood, notwithstanding his rough treatment at Franklin, was closing down upon Thomas' forces around Nashville.
On the morning of the 3d the Eighty-sixth had orders to be ready to march at 5 o'clock a. m .. but no move was made. The enemy continued to advance. The skirmishing was quite lively most of the day, the musket balls of the enemy whistling at a lively rate. The morning of the 4th was cold and disagreeable. A detail was made from the Eighty-sixth for picket. The picket or skirmish line cov- ered the front of the salient angle. The station for the
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THE EIGHTY-SIXTH REGIMENT,
reserve was near the ruins of the brick house which had been torn down. It was located just to the left of the angle of the line of intrenchments. About the ruins, the angle of the works, and the reserve station, the rebel skirmishers' balls made music continually. A number of men passing to and fro were wounded here, but none of the pickets. It was, how- ever, thought to be so dangerous that it was decided not to send out any reliefs during daylight, but place the second relief immediately after dark, and the third at 12 midnight. During a part of the afternoon and evening the Federal bat- teries opened fire on the enemy's skirmish pits and thus kept down his fire. Hood's army regained a healthier tone, and had it not been for the cold, inclement weather, might have regained, to a considerable extent, the morale lost at Frank- lin. But illy clad and poorly fed, the weather changeable, frequently quite cold and stormy, his soldiers suffered much, and kept their spirits low. In fact, both armies spent most of the time these chill December days hovering about their camp-fires when not on duty, or laboring to build themselves more comfortable habitations. On the 5th General Thomas was around the lines viewing the position of both armies.
On the 6th Captain Matthew McInerny took command of Company H. On the 8th about 10 o'clock a. m. the troops were ordered into the works to prepare to resist a supposed assault, as the enemy had driven the pickets of the First division in and showed a disposition, it was thought, to press on toward the works. About this time the weather became very bad. It rained a great deal and then turned colder, and on December 9 a most terrific storm of sleet and rain fell. The rain froze as it fell and the whole country was enveloped in a sheet of ice. It also snowed some. So the day was one of the most disagreeable which the men experienced during their term of service. This northern winter in a southern clime started the boys out anew to build winter quarters, but as material was extremely scarce their efforts usually result- ed in failure, at best, only a miserable "shack" would be constructed. This cold snap shut down on the skirmishing, as it was too disagreeably cold, too cold for one half-frozen
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INDIANA VOLUNTEERS.
wretch to try to shoot another as nearly frozen as himself. It must have been even worse on Hood's half-clad soldiers than on the rugged northern boys. But one hardship the Federals suffered that Hood's men did not, and that was the scarcity of fuel. Hood's army was mostly. if not all, con- veniently situated close to timber, where they could procure an abundance of fuel, while the Union line of battle was almost destitute of fuel from the first. As the weather grow colder the wants were more urgent, the needs greater, and it required a very great deal of labor to procure fuel in suffi- cient quantity to keep from freezing, and carrying most of the supply on the backs to camp from wherever it could be found was no easy task. This together with the other duties and the inclement weather renders the siege of Nashville a memorable one to those who there participated in the per- formance of the duties on the front battle line as did those of the Eighty-sixth Indiana. As General Sherman said, "these soldiers performed an important duty in the final campaign that ended the war."
On the 10th it grew quite cold, so cold that those who were not well clad, and a great many were not, suffered greatly from the cold. They hovered around their fires, or worked half frozen, getting up a scant supply of fuel. Others, stirred to energetic action by the pinching cold, went to work to build fire-places and chimneys to their shanties the better to protect themselves from what, in their needy circumstances. seemed extreme cold weather. This day there was but little skirmishing but there was an occasional can- non-shot fired around the lines, but the stinging cold pun- ished far more just now than did the enemy. The 11th was extremely cold and very windy, rendering the weather extremely disagreeable and greatly increasing the suffering. The night of the 11th was the coldest yet experienced during the winter. The 12th was a little milder and the ice began to thaw, and reports began to travel the rounds of the camps that the army "would move the next day"-that an advance would be made as soon as the weather would per- init. On the 13th a detail from the Eighity-sixth was on
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THE EIGHTY-SIXTH REGIMENT,
picket. The weather had moderated. It thawed consider- ably during the day, making it quite muddy everywhere about the Union battle line. There was but little firing around the lines to denote the strained situation of affairs that actually existed. Still there were some indications that Hood was not completely at his ease. From the reserve picket station the enemy could be seen moving artillery to the right-his left-but as was afterwards learned Hood expected to be attacked on his right by Thomas' left, and this moving his artillery in plain view may have been with hope of deceiving Thomas, but if so it failed signally.
The organization of the Fourth corps now was as follows: FOURTH ARMY CORPS, Brigadier General T. J. Wood, Commanding. FIRST DIVISION, Brigadier General Nathan Kimball, Commanding. First Brigade, Colonel Isaac M. Kirby, Commanding. Second Brigade, Brigadier General Walter C. Whitaker, Commanding. Third Brigade, Brigadier General William Grose, Commanding.
SECOND DIVISION,
Brigadier General Washington L. Elliott, Commanding. First Brigade,
3 Colonel Emerson Opdycke, Commanding. Second Brigade, Colonel John Q. Lane Commanding. Third Brigade, Colonel Joseph Conrad, Commanding. THIRD DIVISION, Brigadier General Samuel Beatty, Commanding. First Brigade, Colonel Abel D. Streight, Commanding.
Eighty-ninth Illinois, Fifty-first Indiana,
Fifteenth Ohio, Eighth Kansas,
Forty-ninth Ohio.
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INDIANA VOLUNTEERS.
Second Brigade,
(1). Colonel Sidney M. Post, Commanding.
(2). Lieutenant Colonel Robert L. Kimberly, Commanding.
Fifty-ninth Illinois,
Forty-first Ohio.
Seventy-first Ohio, Ninety-third Ohio,
One Hundred and Twenty-fourth Ohio.
Third Brigade,
Colonel Fred Knefler, Commanding.
Seventy-ninth Indiana,
Thirteenth Ohio,
Eighty-sixth Indiana,
Nineteenth Ohio.
The strength of the Fourth corps is given by the official records as follows: On November 30, commissioned officers. 766; enlisted men, 16,200; total, 16,966. On December 10 it was as follows: Commissioned officers, 686; enlisted men. 14,415; total, 15,101.
On December 10, the strength of the Twenty-third corps with General Thomas is given as follows: Commissioned officers, 496; enlisted men, 9,781; total, 10,277.
The strength of General A. J. Smith's command-the Sixteenth corps-three divisions of it-is given on the 10th of December as follows: Commissioned officers, 581; en- listed men, 11,345; total 11,926.
It will be seen by the above that notwithstanding its hard service and great loss in the Atlanta campaign, the Fourth was the strongest corps in Thomas' army, and the one around which he ranged his many heterogeneous organ - izations for the impending battle in defense of the city of Nashville. The Fourth corps served the same purpose to Thomas' army at Nashville that the Army of the Cumber- land did to Sherman's army on the Atlantic campaign: it was the main-stay and center around which he constructed a magnificent army for defense and attack, and one which won imperishable glory on the field,
CHAPTER XXVIII.
THE BATTLE OF NASHVILLE.
Two Days' Hard Fighting-The Plan of the Battle-Montgomery Hill Captured by the Fourth Corps-The Second Days' Battle-Overton's Hill Assaulted-The "The Colored Troops Fought Nobly "-The Gallant Second Brigade Repulsed With Heavy Loss-Colonel Post Wounded-The Third Brigade Assaults and Captures Overton's IIiII-Union Success-Ilood Makes a Hasty Flight-Pur- suit of the Enemy-A Frightful March-In Camp at Huntsville-General Wood's Congratulatory Order.
The 14th of December was comparatively a quiet day. Nothing of importance transpired on the line to denote an early move or indicate an impending battle. There was some slight skirmishing, but it was not particularly hot or spiteful, although the weather had moderated and freed the soldiers from its icy grasp. On the afternoon of the 14th, General Thomas called a meeting of the corps commanders for consultation and having discussed the plan of attack until thoroughly understood he issued Special Field Order No. 342, of which the following is a part:
Paragraph IV. As soon as the state of the weather will admit of offensive operations, the troops will move against the enemy's position in the following order:
Major General A. J. Smith, commanding detachment of the Army of the Tennessee, after forming his troops on and near the Harding pike, in front of his present position, will make a vigorous assault on the enemy's left.
Major General Wilson, commanding the cavalry corps. Military Division of Mississippi, with three divisions, will move on and support General Smith's right, assisting, as far as possible, in carrying the left of the enemy's position. and be in readiness to throw his force upon the enemy the moment a favorable opportunity ocenrs. Major General Wil- son will also send one division on the Charlotte pike to elear that road of the enemy, and observe in the direction of Bell's Landing to protect our right rear until the enemy's position is fairly turned, when it will rejoin the main force.
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