USA > Indiana > Union Army in the Civil War : Indiana Legion reports of brigade and regimental officers, 1st-4th brigades > Part 4
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BRIGADIER-GENERAL A. C. DOWNEY,
BRIGADIER-GENERAL FOURTH BRIGADE, INDIANA LEGION.
INDIANA LEGION, HEADQUARTERS FOURTH BRIGADE, Rising Sun, December 15, 1862.
Major-General JOHN LOVE, Commanding Indiana Legion.
Agreeably to your order, I submit the following report of the operations of the Legion under my command. I received a com- mission from the Governor, dated the 1st day of November, 1861, was sworn into office and assumed command, my Brigade embrac- ing, as I was informed, the counties of Ohio, Dearborn, Franklin, Ripley, Decatur and Shelby. Though I have recommended it, I believe there have never been any field officers appointed in any counties except Ohio and Dearborn, and there is now only a Colonel in each of them. Nor have the few companies in the other counties rendered any service, with the exception of the company of Captain Hill, of Milan, in Ripley county, which was in service for a short time at Aurora.
At first there was no Colonel in Dearborn county, the gentle-
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man appointed having refused to accept and the Lieutenant- Colonel taking little interest in the Legion, shortly afterward resigned. In consequence of this, I appointed Colonel Pattison. at Aurora, to command the forces at that point, and by consent. of Colonel Burkam, (afterward appointed Colonel in Dearborn county,) Colonel Pattison continued in command for a short time after Colonel Burkam's appointment.
In the absence of Colonel Pattison, with my approbation Dr. R. C. Bond was in command at that point.
I spent considerable time in efforts to organize additional com- panies in the Legion in the border counties ; and to promote the efficiency of those already formed, but the constant reduction of the members in the companies by volunteering, and the absence of any inducement in the militia law to go into such companies. were serious obstacles in the way.
On the 11th of July, 1862, I was ordered by the Governor to call upon the officers in my Brigade, and have all companies in readiness at their earliest moment, and to report what could be done. In obedience to this order, I called upon the officers named. and procured from them a statement, showing, 1st. The number of men mustered and sworn into each company ; 2d. The number absent in the service, and otherwise unavoidable; 3d. The number ready for duty.
This information I furnished the Governor. At the same time I urged upon the officers the necessity of filling up the companies and the formation of new ones.
About the 19th of July, 1862, there appeared to be so much danger of lawless incursions, that it was deemed advisable to keep out guards along the river, and particularly at the cities. I accord. ingly issued an order to Colonel H. T. Williams, of Ohio county. to take command of the companies of the Legion, as well as other volunteer companies, and make such disposition as might be necessary in his county, for defense and protection. About the same time, I placed Colonel Pattison in command of the forces a · Aurora, leaving Lieutenant-Colonel Roberts to command a' Lawrenceburg.
On the 24th of July, 1862, application was made to me by the Provost Marshal at Burlington, Kentucky, for forces to guard him his house, and the town against an anticipated attack by rebels il force in his county. Not considering that my power extended t sending my forces out of the State, I telegraphed Governo
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Morton, then at Lawrenceburg, and he directed me' to send the guard.
. I accordingly authorized Colonel Williams to send the necessary number of men, which he did, but he sent only such as volunteered to go. On the next day, learning from Burlington that additional forces were necessary, I made a request that some men be sent from Lawrenceburg and Aurora. I failed to get any from Aurora, for the reason that there was no officer there to take command. From Lawrenceburg about one hundred men volunteered, and were in readiness in a few minutes, and under command of Colonel Spooner and Captain Farquhar, very promptly reported to the Provost Marshal at Burlington, where they remained till next day, when the threatened danger being passed, they, and the forces from Ohio, returned home.
On the 6th of September, 1862, in obedience to your order of that date, I caused to be secured on the Indiana shore all water crafts which could be made available for crossing the troops over the river, collecting them at points along the river, and placing guards over them. Under this order the ferry boats were allowed to run during the day, but were required to lie at this side of the tiver at night.
On the 11th of September, 1862, the danger of the improper use being made of the ferry boats was so great, that I gave orders to commanders at Rising Sun, Aurora, and Lawrenceburg, to take possession of the ferry boats and put them under guard on this side, and allow no crossing of the river except by persons known to be loyal, and for proper purposes.
On the Sth of September, 1862, I received a dispatch from the Governor, dated at. Cincinnati, directing me to call out iny forces and watch every point where the river could be forded between - Lawrenceburg and Vevay. I immediately ordered out all com- panies in this and Dearborn counties, my authority not extending to Switzerland, and by your directions in a dispatch of the 9th, they were furnished subsistence, &c., by their respective regi- mental .quarter-masters.
On the 15th of September, 1962, by order of the Governor, four companies of the Eighty-Third Regiment, Indiana Volunteers, then at Lawrenceburg, were sent to this place, and placed under my command; the rebel army being then on the Lexington and Covington turnpike. The night before the rebels had a small
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force of infantry, cavalry, and artillery at Hamilton, on the river, eight miles below Rising Sun.
. These companies were placed under command of Colonel Williams, and were assigned to duty according to my directions. The expense of their subsistence was paid in part by their own officers, and in part they were provided by Colonel Williams, regimental quarter-master.
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About this date, I received from Captain Grisard, of Vevay, a single piece of artillery, which you had ordered him to send to me. I organized a squad of volunteers to take charge of it, of which Lieutenant M. K. Haines, formerly of the Second Indiana Battery, took command, and to whom I am much obliged.
On the 15th, I ordered Captain Craig, of Lawrenceburg, to this point with his two pieces of artillery, preferring this to 'calling on the artillery at Aurora, which was nearer to this point, because Lawrenceburg did not appear so much exposed as Aurora. Captain Craig and his men, then in camp at Lawrenceburg, responded promptly to my call, and performed cheerfully the duties assigned them.
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On the 19th of September, 1862, you communicated to me the Governor's order that I should use my discretion as to the dis- charge of the companies; and the rebel forces in the adjacent parts of Kentucky having retired, and there seeming to be no longer any necessity to retain the companies in camp, I discharged the com- panies of the Legion, and on the 21st I returned the four compa- nies of the Eighty-Third Regiment to Lawrenceburg.
On the 22d of September, 1862, when the rebel General Bragg was approaching Louisville, I was again ordered to hold my com- mand in readiness to march at a moment's warning, which order I obeyed, and though the men had nothing as an outfit but their guns and accoutrements, they were held in readiness to march till the 25th of September, when I was advised by the Governor that the crisis had passed. Since the last named date, there has been entire quiet along the border in front of my command.
I wish to bear testimony to the ability and efficiency of the officers in my command, and to the prompt and cheerful manner in which the members of the companies, and inany citizens who were not members of any company, when our border was threat- ened, engaged, and while the danger lasted continued in the service.
I appointed Joseph B. Pepper my Aid-de-Camp, with the rank
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of Captain. He has shown ability and willingness to perform the duties of the position.
Much may be done to increase the efficiency of the Legion by proper amendments of the law. There must be some inducements to go into the companies, either by way of exemption from other burdens, or by bounty, or by both. Whatever the inducement may be, it must be a continuing one, so that it will have the effect not only to impel men to join the companies, but to continue in them, and discharge the duties which result from membership. It can not be expected that men will long give up their other employ- ments, and spend their money to get up and maintain military · organizations, without some inducement. When it is remembered that there has been no distribution of the military fund, expressly appropriated to defray the expenses of the Legion, when they have, on the contrary, had to defray these expenses out of their own means, and when it is known what a large per cent. of the men of the Legion have gone as volunteers in the three years' ser- vice, it is wonderful that the organization has kept up as well as it las.
The law should provide a short and efficient means of compel- ling attendance of members at drill, &c. Its provisions ou this subject are circuitous and inefficient. The law provides for swear- ing the members of companies after the election, and it is said, in many instances, that those who have signed the articles of asso- ciation, not getting an office, have refused to take the oath. It is suggested to me that the oath should be administered first, and the election held afterward. Other amendments might be suggested in regard to the organization of companies. The process ought to be greatly simplified.
I send you herewith the reports of Colonel Williams, of Ohio county, and Colonel Burkam, of Dearborn county.
I am, General, very respectfully yours,
A. C. DOWNEY, General Fourth Brigade, Indiana Legion.
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REPORT
OF
COLONEL H. T. WILLIAMS,
COMMANDING ELEVENTH REGIMENT, FOURTH BRIGADE, INDIANA LEGION.
To Brigadier-General A. C. DOWNEY,
Commanding Fourth Brigade, Indiana Legion:
SIR :- I respectfully submit the following report of the condition of the Eleventh Regiment, amount of service rendered by the seve- ral companies belonging to it, and other forces temporarily under my command:
I assumed command of the regiment about the 15th of Sep- tember, 1861, and proceeded at once to organize the regiment by appointing the commissioned and non-commissioned officers of my staff, and designating a time and place for battalion drill. I found the three companies then organized in a good state of discipline, considering the short time they had been organized. Nor were they called upon to perform any service, save that of company and · battalion drill, during that fall and winter.
On the 24th of July, 1862, I was ordered to send one company of my command to Burlington, Kentucky, to assist the Provost Marshal in making some arrests, and to repel an expected attack upon the place that night, and to have another company ready to
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move to their support at the carliest possible moment in the morn- ing. I ordered Lieutenant Culbert, of the Union Rifles. to collect. his command and proceed to Burlington as soon as possible, which was promptly obeyed; and, at the same time. dispatched a mes- senger directing Captain Barcellow, of the Rough and Ready Ritles. to have his company in town, and ready to move at any moment. At or about daylight he reported, with his company, for orders ; but from information received during the night, it was thought unnecessary to send other forces there. Lieutenant Culbert remained two days, made several arrests, and returned without meeting with any serious difficulty.
On the 25th of July, 1862, there were two companies, of eighty men each, organized under the provisions of our ordinance, passed by the council of the city of Rising Sun, and attached to my com- · mand for a home guard, the first under Captain R. G. Young, the second under command of Captain Mark Breadbury, both of which. as well as the Union Rifles, performed a great amount of hard and laborious service prior to the ordering of the other companies into camp, rendered necessary, as I conceived, by the close proximity of a company of guerrillas, whose headquarters were within twelve miles of us, in Kentucky, and the disloyal feeling of a large majority of the people immediately opposite us: and an exhibir is herewith filed, marked A, taken from the morning reports of the several companies, the immediate command of which, for police purposes, had been assigned to Adjutant Whitlock.
On the 8th of September, 1862, 1 was directed to provide suit- able quarters for the three companies of iny command, belonging to the Legion, so that Regimental Quarter-Masters could furnish subsistence, and order them into camp at the earliest period. Two of them, the Union Rifles and the Hartford Rifles, went into camp the next day; the Rough and Ready Rifles on the day following. In the meantime, Quarter-Master Scoggin had made complete provision for their accommodation. Captains Young's and Bread- bury's companies were not required to go into camp, but contiued to furnish their share of men for guard duty at night; the residuc of the company sleeping in the armory. For the number of men. and length of time in camp, you are referred to the regimental report herewith filed. marked B.
On the same day, I was ordered to take prompt measures to secure, upon this side of the Ohio river, all water crafts which could be made available for crossing troops to this side of the
river, and to keep them under guard ; which was promptly obeyed. and every thing in the shape of a boat brought to this point, destroying such as were not willingly given up.
.On the 9th of September, 1862, 1 was ordered to place a strong guard at every point opposite my county, where the enemy could ford the river, as it was as yet uncertain where they would strike; but that a crossing must be prevented. I immediately detailed Captain Joseph Thompson, with a squad of men, to make an accurate sounding of the several shoal places in the river, opposite Ohio county, which developed the fact that there were three points with less than three feet of water, two of which could be forded with perfect safety. At each of these I posted a strong guard during the day ; at night a full company, with pickets on the other side, to signal us on the approach of the enemy On the same day, in accordance with notice previously given, I organized two . companies of militia in Randolph township, in obedienec to an order issued by the Governor on the 5th of September. The first. under the command of Captain George Brown, with instructions to establish his headquarters at some point on the Ohio river. between this city and the line dividing Ohio and Dearborn coun- ties. To keep a strong guard posted on the river bank, and so dis- tributed as to form a continuous line, connecting the forces sta- tioned here with those of Dearborn county. The second company was placed under the command of Captain A. Williams, stationed at Millersburg, with instructions to extend his line of pickets so as to connect with the forces of Switzerland county. Both of these companies rendered valuable and efficient service, in guarding remote parts of our line.
The forces then in camp, under my command, consisted of the . following :
1st, Company A, Captain J. C. Wells, Union Rifles.
2d, Company E, Captain J. R. Cole, Hartford Rifles.
3d, Company C, Captain J. A. Baricklow, Rough and Ready Guards.
4th, Company B, Captain R. G. Young, First Cavalry Guards. 5th, Company D, Captain B. M. Enock, Second Cavalry Guards. With Lieutenant Harris' section of artillery.
For the number of men in the respective camps, and the length of time they were in camp, you are referred to regimental reports herewith filed and marked, although we specified in our details for
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the day, an hour for squad. company, and battalion drill. There was but little drilling aside from battalion drill, dress parade, and guard mounting. owing to the large proportion of men detailed for guard duty at the same time, and the distance of the points where they were required from each other. On the 11th I was ordered to take possession of the ferry boat plying across the river at this point, (which had been permitted to run under certain restrictions,) and allow no persons to cross the river, unless they were known to be loyal, and for proper purposes; the large number of loyal persons fleeing from the enemy, and those depending upon us for their daily supplies, rendered it a most delicate and perplexing duty. In . taking possession of the boat, I was compelled to take into my ' custody two horses, the motive power of the boat. On the 15th, from demonstrations made by the enemy at Humboldt, Ky., for the supposed purpose of taking the mail boat or of effecting a crossing at a shoal place known to us as Gunpowder bar, there were four companies of the Eighty-Third Indiana Regiment, then stationed at Lawrenceburg, sent to this point and attached to my command. One company, Captain Eggleston's, was ordered, and immediately proceeded to a point opposite Gunpowder bar, to guard that cross- ing. One company, Captain Morris' and Lieutenant Humyer's section of artillery was ordered to Millersburg, so as to be in a posi- tion to support the force either at this place or Gunpowder bar, and at the same time two pieces of artillery, under the command of Captain Craig, of Lawrenceburg, were ordered to this place.
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On the morning of the 16th, from telegraphic reports received from the patriots, I was induced to believe that the enemy had or were planting a battery on the hights about Humbolton, I ordered Captain Craig, with his two pieces of artillery, to a point opposite to that place, and accompanied him myself, leaving J. C. Wells in command of the forees here. I also ordered Lieutenant Haines back to this place. On my arrival opposite Humbolton, I made a careful examination of the hills overlooking the place, but could not sec any thing that even looked suspicious, we remained on the ground during the night, saw a few signal rockets thrown up from a point back of the town, but saw nothing indicating the presence of . the enemy ; at an early hour in the morning we returned. Believ- ing it unnecessary to keep Captain Craig's Artillery Company any longer he was ordered back to Lawrenceburg, on the 17th.
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. It was believed by military gentlemen whose position would enable them to form a more accurate opinion than I could, that the
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enemy had planted a battery in the immediate vicinity of Hun- bolton, and masked it so effectually as to escape observation. After consultation with Captains Williams and Ross. of the gun- boats Cottage and Heely, I determined to proceed to that point. and make a careful reconnoissance of the country around that place, those gentlemen promptly offering to act in concert with their boats, and transport any force I wanted to convey to that point.
On the morning of the 18th. I ordered Captain Calvert to detail twenty-five men from his company, and Lieutenant Bridges, then in command of Captain Layard's company, to detail a like nun- ber from his company, and had him provide for the fifty men, who proceeded by land to Humbolton, where they were met by the gunboats Cottage and Heely, with Captains Eggleston's and Morris' . companies on board, who had been ordered to that point per boat. After the infantry had been landed, the gunboats took positions so as to command the only two approaches to the river. The two companies belonging to the boats were thrown out so as to make a critical reconnoissanee of the hights overlooking the town and river. Captains Morris' and Eggleston's companies remained on the ground in order that they might act as emergency should require. while Captain Calvert proceeded with his force down the river to Bigboone creek, then up said creek to a point three miles beyond Bigboone spring. After obtaining the most reliable information in relation to the position, purposes, and movements of the enemy, he returned. The infantry, having satisfied themselves that there was not any of the enemy about, also returned. Having accom- plished some of the objects of the expedition, wc returned about nine o'clock.
On the 19th, having learned, from the most reliable information. that the enemy was retiring back in Kentucky, the several compa- nies were relieved in a great measure from guard duty. On the 20th, Captain Cole's and Captain Baricklow's companies were dis- charged from camp. On the 21st, the four companies of the Eighty-Third Regiment were ordered back to Lawrenceburg : and on the 22d, Captain Wells' company was relieved from duty.
I sincerely regret that other duties have prevented me from giving as full an account of our operations as I would like to have done.
In conclusion, allow me to say that both officers and men dis- charged every duty imposed upon them so promptly and cheer- fully, that I have no special comments to make.
H. T. WILLIAMS, Commanding.
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REPORT
OF
COLONEL J. H. BURKAMI,
COMMANDING TWELFTH REGIMENT, FOURTH BRIGADE, INDIANA LEGION.
INDIANA LEGION, HEADQUARTERS TWELFTH REGIMENT, Lawrenceburg, December 6, 1862.
Brigadier-General A. C. DOWNEY, Commanding Fourth Brigade, Indiana Legion:
DEAR SIR :- On the 6th of September I was placed in command of this regiment, and on the 8th my command was ordered into active service. I had then but seven companies, two of artillery and five of infantry, as follows: Captain Miller, artillery, 64 men; Captain Phalon, 92; Captain Geigolt, 101; and Captain Webber, 64, at Aurora. Captain Craig, artillery, 64 men; Captain Howard, 87 men; and Captain Thompson, 78 men, at Lawrenceburg.
These companies were at once placed on duty at their respective stations, and kept a strong picket by night along the whole of our county bordering on the Ohio river, and by day a vigilant guard at the shallow places in the river, and at the towns of Aurora and Lawrenceburg.
I was greatly aided by Colonel Patterson, at Aurora, and after- ward by R. C. Bond, Esq., as also by Captain Howard, and A.
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Brookwalter, Esq .. of Lawrenceburg, the latter of whom acted as my aid, and greatly facilitated the execution of my orders.
The companies, for the most part, subsisted themselves, for which, with the pay for their services, pay-rolls have been filed at Adjutant-General Noble's office, at Indianapolis.
The immediate danger of our border having passed away, I find it very difficult to keep up sufficient interest in the organized com- panies to continue their drill and efficiency. Their entire depend- ence upon their own donations to keep up armories, music, and other expenses, seriously check their military enthusiasm; and to retain them in organized companies, some direct appropriations must be made to meet these expenses. The law under which these companies are organized is very deficient, and I would suggest its material change. The election of company officers, for example, should precede their being mastered in as a company; and in view of the fact that so few of those of our State, who are liable to do military duty, are required for border defense, those who do not connect themselves with the Legion should pay a speeifie tax to the State for a military fund, out of which the Legion could be uniformed, and all armory expenses paid.
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By legislative eo-operation, the companies now. formed could not only be made more efficient, but new companies would be formed, · and a general desire would be manifested to be enrolled in the Legion.
I am, General, yours most respectfully,
J. H. BURKAM, . Colonel Twelfth Regiment, Indiana Legion.
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N. MANCHESTER, INDIANA
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