USA > Kentucky > History of the 3d, 7th, 8th and l2th Kentucky C.S.A > Part 3
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HISTORY OF THE 3D, 7TH, 8TH AND 12TH KENTUCKY.
with a single enemy. Early in the morning of the 16th, General Buck- ner, who had assumed command, opened up negotiations with Grant for the purpose of surrendering the army. Thus ended an engage- ment, coming at the time it did, had a greater tendency to discourage the Southern people and their cause, perhaps, more than any other battle of the war, not excepting Vicksburg or Gettysburg. It came at a time when the mind of the people, especially those of Kentucky and Tennessee, was in a formative state whether or no they would take sides with the South. The disastrous result at Fort Donelson doubtless caused thousands to stay out of the Confederate army. The Eighth Kentucky, including its gallant commander, surrendered with the rest of the Confederates, and were sent to Northern prisons.
We will now return to the Third Kentucky. This regiment re- mained with General Johnston at Bowling Green. Just before Fort Donelson fell, the Confederates, under General Zollicoffer, had been defeated at Fishing Creek and that general killed. General Johnston was forced to give up Bowling Green and form a new line further south ; the men of the Third Kentucky, with sad hearts, turned their backs upon their homes and dear ones. On the 13th day of February they broke camp and commenced moving in the direction of Nash- ville. It is not my intention to give a minute detail of the march through Nashville, Murfreesboro, Burnsville and on to Decatur, Ala .; the fact is, the writer was not on this march and, therefore, could not give any account of it from his own observation; so we skip over the movements of the Third until just before the battle of Shiloh.
After the fall of Fort Donelson, General Grant commenced mak- ing preparations to move his army up the Tennessee River, and by the 16th of March he had his army, of something near fifty thousand men, encamped near Pittsburg Landing on the south or southwest side of the Tennessee River, and about twenty miles from Corinth, where General Johnston was mobilizing his army. In addition to this army under Grant, Buell was marching through the country from Nashville with an army of thirty-six thousand, making his way as fast as troops could be marched, for the purpose of forming a junction with Grant, or rather to join Grant at Pittsburg Landing; the object was to move south as soon as the junction of the two armies could be consum- mated. In the meantime, Johnston was pushing every means at his command to organize an army at or near Corinth large enough to cope with the Federals. Columbus had been evacuated about the first of March, and Polk's command had been moved south toward the vicinity of Corinth, all available troops from other points were rushed to that point. Johnston was doing all he could to concentrate his army and crush Grant before Buell could get to him; arrangements were all made to make the attack on April 5th, but owing to incessant hard rains, which caused such bad roads, he did not get his army ready to attack until the morning of the 6th. General Johnston organized his army into four corps, the first under General Polk; second under General Bragg; third under General Hardee, and the reserve under General Breckinridge. The Third Kentucky was under Breckinridge and in the brigade composed of the Fourth Alabama, Thirty-first Ala-
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ORGANIZATION OF THE 3D AND 8TH KENTUCKY.
bama, Third Kentucky, Fourth Kentucky, Ninth Kentucky and Sixth Kentucky, commanded by General R. P. Trabue. There were two batteries of light artillery attacked, one commanded by Captain Ed- ward P. Byrn and the other by Captain Robert Cobb, also Captain John H. Morgan's squadron of cavalry was attached to this brigade. The whole number was reported to be two thousand four hundred strong. On the afternoon and night of April 5th, General Johnston had succeeded in placing his army in a position to commence his at- tack on the Federals early on the morning of the 6th. Colonel Trabue made an interesting report of the movements and action of his brigade, from which I quote :
"On Sunday morning, April 6th, having advanced about one mile from place of bivouac, with this brigade leading, the command was again halted at the intersection of the Bark and Interior roads until the front was cleared by the march forward of a portion of the com- mand of General Polk, who was to proceed the Reserve Corps. When this occurred I received Geenral Breckinridge's order to move forward in a condition for easy deployment in rear of General Polk's line, and almost immediately afterward was commanded to form line of bat- tle and advance in that manner. The line having been instantly formed, the Third Kentucky on the right and the Fourth Kentucky on the left, with the batteries in the rear and opposite the center, the brigade was put in motion, following General Polk's command. Having pro- ceeded thus a short distance, General Breckinridge communicated to me an order, just then received by him, to move with his two rear brigades on the Hamburg road, which lead far to the right of the position first assigned to him. He, at the same time, directed me to continue moving forward on the line previously indicated, inclining to the left of the principal line of battle, in the rear of General Polk, and then he parted from me.
"Moving forward as directed, I came under the enemy's fire at 9:30 in the morning, having reached the verge of a long, crescent- shaped open field, which was without fencing, about one mile from Pittsburg Landing. The shot and shell from the woods on the oppo- site side of the field fell thick and fast around us, but caused very few casualties.
"Governor George W. Johnson and Colonel Robert McKee, vol- unteer aides, here lost their horses, when the governor shouldered a musket and joined the company of Captain Ben Monroe, of the Fourth Kentucky.
"I here halted the command for an instant in a slight depression of the ground, and rode forward on the open field to observe what might lie before and around me, and to place Cobb's battery in posi- tion, which I did, but it was afterward moved under orders from someone and without my knowledge.
"Shortly after this, by orders of General Beauregard, I had de- tached the Third Kentucky, Fourth Alabama Battalion and Crew's Tennessee battalion, with Byrn's battery, to the right, to support Gen- eral Anderson, and in the engagement Lieutenant-Colonel Anderson, commanding Third Kentucky, and Major Johnson, of the same, were
24
HISTORY OF THE 3D, 7TH, 8TH AND 12TH KENTUCKY.
wounded. Captains Stone, Pearce and Emerson, Lieutenant Bagwell, commanding company, and Acting-Lieutenant White, of that regiment, were killed. Captain Bowman, Adjutant McGoodwin and Lieutenants Ross and Ridgeway were wounded, the adjutant severely."
Colonel Trabue continued to push his lines, sweeping everything before him, hotly engaged almost continually. Later on he said :
"At length, after having extended my line by adding my reserve to the left of it and obtaining as a support General Stewart, with a part of his brigade, and a part of General Anderson's command, which I found in my rear in a wooded ravine, I gave orders to fix bayonets and move forward in double-quick time at a charge, which was exe- cuted in the handsomest manner and with complete success. The enemy, unwilling and unable to stand this charge, ran through their camps into the woods in their rear, whither we followed them. They were, however, too badly routed to make a stand, and for several hun- dred yards I moved forward without opposition. These woods in- tervening between the field and camps I have described and the field and camp in which General Prentiss surrendered, are about three- quarters of a mile in width.
"Soon after having entered the woods I found the ground broken and covered with thick underbrush, so that I was obliged to move cautiously and with my front covered with skirmishers. I moved for- ward to the verge of the field in which General Prentiss surrendered, having encountered and dispersed a regiment, said to be of Missouri, and taken several prisoners, who were sent to the rear."
It seemed to be understood by all that the crisis had come. The Confederates had brought up all their reserves and were hurling the whole force against the enemy, whose lines had been broken every- where. The Confederate chieftain and his subordinates made one last great effort to finally crush and destroy the enemy. The Con- federates were flushed with constant victory throughout the day; Gen- eral Breckinridge, realizing the situation, determined to charge. Call- ing the staff around him, he communicated to them his intentions, and remarked that he would lead them. They were not all Kentuckians, and though it was their privilege to fight that day with the Kentucky brigade, they were yet men who knew how to die bravely among strangers, and some, at least, would live to do justice to the rest. The Commander-in-Chief, General Johnston, rode up at this juncture, and learning the contemplated movement, determined to accompany it. Placing himself on the left of Little's regiment, his commanding figure in full uniform, conspicuous to every eye, he waited the signal. Gen- eral Breckinridge, disposing his staff along the line, rode to the right of the same regiment ; then, with a wild shout, which rose high above the din of battle, on swept the line through a storm of fire, over the hill, across the intervening ravine, and up the slope occupied by the enemy. Nothing could withstand it. The enemy broke and fled for a half mile, hotly pursued, until he reached the shelter of his batteries. Well did the Kentuckians sustain that day their honor and their fame. Of the little band of officers, who started on that forlorn hope, but
FALL OF GEN. ALBERT SIDNEY JOHNSTON, WITH ORGANIZATION OF 3d AND 8th KY.
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ORGANIZATION OF THE 3D AND 8TH KENTUCKY.
one was unscathed, the gallant Breckinridge himself. Colonel Haw- kins was wounded in the face; Captain Allen's leg was torn to pieces by a shell; the horses of the fearless boy, J. Cabell Breckinridge, and that of the adjutant-general, were killed under them, and General Johnston was lifted, dying, from his saddle.
Who knows but that in the fall of General Johnston, the Cause of the South went down with him? Up to the moment he fell, the victory was complete. The Federal army had been driven from the field, completely routed and demoralized, and would have required only one more hour of vigorous pushing to have destroyed it. It is said of the Federal officers of Buell's army, who came in that night, that they found Grant's army in such a state of demoralization that they were wholly uncontrollable, and were huddled around the river bank, un- der the protection of the Federal gun-boats, hundreds of them in such a panic that they were jumping into the river to make their escape from the Confederates. Every Confederate, and perhaps a large num- ber of the Federal soldiers, who witnessed the condition of the two armies at that crisis, believe that the Confederates could have an- nihilated Grant's army.
Colonel Trabue further states that his command that night oc- cupied the vacated camps of the Forty-sixth Ohio and Sixth Iowa Regiments on the Purdy road, near the bridge over Owl Creek, but the tents having been mainly destroyed, his men were again exposed to the rain, which fell during the night. The camps, however, were rich in subsistence, as in almost everything else. After a bountiful supper they slept, despite the rain, and that on the morning of the 7th he was in the engagement early, was hotly fighting the enemy un- til the Confederates commenced moving from the field.
The Third Kentucky lost in the engagement one hundred and seventy-four of its number, including all the regimental officers who were engaged in the battle.
CAPTAIN J. M. EMERSON.
In 1861, at the time the war between the States commenced, there lived in the southern part of Graves County, Ky., a young man in the full bloom of young manhood, Joe Emerson. Known all over his sec- tion and beloved by all on account of the grandeur of his make-up, per- fect physique, handsome as the good Lord makes men, he was in- tellectually the equal of the best. Honorable and upright in all things, in fact a beau ideal of a young man. His family was one of the best and his early surroundings were such as to ennoble his life. Full of courage and Southern chivalry, he had just located in Mayfield, the county town, and commenced the preparation of the practice of law, the profession he had selected for his life work, and there was none who had better prospects for success.
When the tocsin of war was sounded he was among the first to offer his services to the Cause of the Southland: He and his friends, neighbor boys, recruited a company and, of course, he was made cap- tain, and soon proved himself as competent and brilliant in the new
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HISTORY OF THE 3D, 7TH, 8TH AND 12TH KENTUCKY.
role as in the civic walks of life. His company was mustered into serv- ice as Company E, Third Kentucky Regiment. His first engagement was at Shiloh, where he offered up his life upon the altar of his coun- try bravely leading his men in a charge on one of the hotest contested points on that bloody battle-ground, fell, pierced through the breast with a minie ball from which he only survived a few hours. I have before me now the written account of the good chaplain taking the Christian confession of the dying hero, who gave his life to the Cause of the South and his soul to his Maker.
In giving the account of the untimely taking off of the beloved and lamented Captain Joe Emerson, I am only repeating the history of hun- dreds of others. I selected him because I knew him from my small boy- hood days. He was my ideal of all that it takes to make perfect manhood ; and there is still another reason: I had two brothers, members of his company, who gave up their lives at the same time.
I pray God that an appreciative posterity will ever keep alive the heroism of the South's fallen sons.
CHAPTER III.
Organization of the Seventh Kentucky; Their Movement up to and including the Battle of Shiloh.
The Seventh Kentucky was organized at a place called "Camp Burnett," about two miles west of Clinton, Hickman County, Ky., some time in September, 1861. Charles Wickliff was elected Colonel; W. D. Lannom, Lieutenant-Colonel; W. J. N. Wilborn, Major; T. F. Clardy, Surgeon ; J. P. Humphries, Assistant Surgeon ; S. Ragsdale, Chaplain ; Ed. K. Warren, Assistant Quartermaster ; Thomas S. Bur- nett, Adjutant; R. A. Browder, Sergeant-Major. The companies were made up in Western Kentucky, in what is known as the Pur- chase counties. The names of the commanding officers and men can be found in another part of this book under the head of "Muster Rolls of the Companies."
The men were armed with any kind of arms they could get, some with the old flint-lock musket, but they were all soon furnished with a musket which had been changed from a flint-lock to a percussion, and a very destructive gun. This gun was used by a large percentage of the Confederates at the battle of Shiloh.
Camp Burnett was only about eight miles from Columbus, where General Polk's army was located. As soon as the companies were organized into a regiment they were put to drilling almost constantly every day; they soon became quite proficient in both the movements and manual of arms. The men were furnished with tents, cooking utensils and such other things as were necessary to make the camp comfortable. Here the men were put through the seasoning process of camp life. The most of the men were not far from the homes of their people, who constantly sent them great quantities of good things to eat, and hundreds of articles of wearing apparel for which they had no sort of use. Nearly every man had a big knife from eight inches to two feet long, made from big files, buggy or wagon springs or tires; these were the instruments of warfare with which they in- tended to prosecute the war against the Federal armies in the event they could not get arms. They were all left behind, however, on the first march.
Occasionally reports would go the rounds that the enemy was mov- ing upon them from Paducah, or some other point, which would fur- nish the men some little excitement. On the 7th of November there was a real alarm sounded by the booming of cannons and the rattle of musketry in the direction of Columbus. At first the impression prevailed that the enemy was making an attack on Polk's army. For hours the deadly rattle of the battle continued; it was the first the men of the Seventh ever heard. Along in the afternoon orders were issued to strike tents and pack up to move. The command stood in readiness to move for hours; finally, sometime after nightfall, the regiment started on its march to Columbus. In the meantime they had learned
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HISTORY OF THE 3D, 7TH, 8TH AND 12TH KENTUCKY.
that the firing they had heard was the battle being fought between some regiments of General Polk's command encamped on the west bank of the Mississippi River, and a body of Federals who came from Cairo to attack the Confederates. As no part of the command of which I am writing in this work were engaged there, I will not go into details of what is known as the battle of Belmont. It is well known to all readers of history that General Grant came down the river from Cairo on the morning of November 7th, and attacked some Con- federates who were encamped opposite Columbus at a village called Belmont. The Federals made a vigorous attack, and for a while the Confederates were in a critical position, but re-inforcements were soon sent, and the Federals were driven from the field.
In a short time after arriving in Columbus the regiment was as- signed to police duty, and went into camp in the edge of the town, where they constructed log houses for winter quarters. Although com- fortably housed, measles broke out, from which a number died. Noth- ing of very especial importance occurred during the winter, the men per- formed their routine duty, patrolling the streets and river banks of the town. February 16, 1862, Fort Donaldson fell into the hands of the Federals. General Albert Sidney Johnston fell back from Bowling Green and commenced moving his army south, which made it im- perative for General Polk to evacuate Columbus and move his com- mand south. On the first of March he moved his troops out from Columbus to Jordan and State Line Station, where he embarked on cars of the Mobile & Ohio Railroad and moved to Humboldt, Tenn., where he disembarked and went into camp for a short time. The Seventh was moved to Corinth, Miss., and then back to Bethel Station, and they were at that point when they were ordered to move in front of the Federal army at Pittsburg Landing, where General Johnston was concentrating his forces to engage General Grant in battle.
From the time they broke camp at Bethel it rained in torrents almost constantly until they reached the vicinity where the battle of Shiloh was fought. The constant heavy rains made the country roads over which they marched almost impassable ; the artillery and wagon trains cut the roads up so that the footmen could scarcely pull through the mud, yet there was no shirking; every man was determined to do his duty. On the afternoon of the 5th, worn to the point of exhaustion, the regiment arrived at the designated point. On the morning of April 6 the regiment was aroused by firing in their front. In a short time Colonel Charles Wickliff, the commander of the Seventh, called the men into line and in a solemn, loud tone of voice, read the address of General Johnston, which was issued just on the eve of the battle. The reading made a deep impression on the men; it was perfectly apparent to every soldier at that moment that they were going into battle. It is a matter of regret to everyone who fought with that regiment that no one ever wrote a report of its heroic struggle during those days of blood and carnage. It is true Colonel W. D. Lannom did write a few lines, but not enough to throw any light on its operations. So I will write of it as I saw it and have gathered from other sources.
SHILOH BATTLE SCENE CHARGE ON PRENTICE; ORGANIZATION OF THE 7th KY.
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ORGANIZATION OF THE 7TH KENTUCKY.
As has been stated, the regimental officers were Colonel Wickliff, Lieutenant-Colonel W. D. Lannon, W. J. N. Wilborn, Major. It was brigaded with the First, Sixth and Ninth Tennessee; Smith's battery was attached. The brigade was commanded part of the first day by Colonel W. H. Stephens, and the remainder of the time by Colonel George Money, of the First Tennessee. The brigade was in General B. F. Cheatham's division and Polk's corps. Major Wilborn was mortally wounded the first day and Colonel Wickliff the second day. Lannom was in bad health, and was unable to serve the regiment after that. After the reading of General Johnston's address the men were directed to take off their knapsacks, blankets, and so on, and deposit them in a pile, which was the last they ever saw of them. In a short time they were moved to the front. General Polk said, "By head of column, by brigade." I know the Seventh moved by head of column, and Company A, commanded by Captain Jim Pirtle, was in front.
About 9 o'clock in the morning, while marching in this order, making their way in the direction of the firing-line, a bomb-shell front one of the enemy's batteries exploded near the head of the column, wounding Captain Pirtle, who was the first man hurt in the regiment. First Lieutenant G. A. Collins took charge of Company A and re- mained in command until wounded. At about this time General Polk said he was ordered by General Beauregard to send a brigade to the support of Bragg, who was hard pressed. Orders were given to Gen- eral Cheatham, who took charge of the brigade in person. As will be remembered, the Seventh belonged to this brigade. Cheatham says: "I was ordered to proceed with the Second Brigade to the ex- treme right of our line, and to ascertain where the firing was the heav- iest, and there engage the enemy at once. At 10 o'clock we reached the front in an open field and discovered the enemy in strong force, occupying several log houses and behind a fence and in the bed of an old road." On the edge of this old field the Seventh formed and witnessed, for the first time, an artillery duel, and it was through this old field they were destined, in a few moments, to make their first onslaught on the enemy, and to lose so many men from their wither- ing fire, posted as described by General Cheatham.
For something like one hour the artillery duel continued, the en- emy's shots cutting the limbs above the heads of the men, which were falling constantly among them. Finally the brigade was ordered to charge the battery in front of their lines, and moved out in double- quick across the open field, about three hundred yards in width. As soon as our lines entered the field the enemy opened fire upon us from his entire front, a terrific fire of both artillery and small arms. When we were fully in the field, the Seventh on the extreme right, in addi- tion to the fire in our front, a withering enfilading fire was opened up on our unprotected right flank. It was here that Major Wilborn fell, mortally wounded, and so many of the men fell, either killed or wounded. Company A occupied the extreme right on that flank and suffered terribly. The Collins boys, "Fon" and "Lon," first and second lieutenants of the company, were both wounded, together with a
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HISTORY OF THE 3D, 7TH, 8TH AND 12TH KENTUCKY.
great number of men; in fact, all the companies of the regiment suf- fered a shocking loss at this point.
Somewhere near the center of the field, the regiment came to a standstill and opened fire on the enemy for a short time, and then fell back to or near the original line. In a little while they were moved to the right a short distance and then to the front, on to the enemy again, and after an obstinate stand the enemy gave way; and while we were re-aligning on the ground whence the enemy had been driven, we were informed that General Prentiss, of the Federal army, with a considerable number of his men, had surrendered. From there we advanced on toward the Tennessee River, passing near the old Shiloh church, but were not engaged with the enemy any more that afternoon. When night came on we occupied tents which the enemy had been driven from. General Cheatham says in his report: "At the close of the day, a part of my command remained in the field, and a portion returned to our camp of the night previous." Colonel Wickliff spent the night with that portion of the regiment which returned to the camp and was not, therefore, with the men in front the next morning when the battle began.
General Beauregard found the regiment the next morning near the firing-line, without a field officer ; he introduced to the men a man whom he called "Colonel Lockett," who he said would take charge of us until our Colonel came up; he also said something about having other use for our colonel; anyway we were at once moved to the front and were under fire in a few moments. The command never saw Colonel Lockett any more. The regiment moved forward on line with other troops, seemingly without a commander. At one time, when the line was standing delivering its fire it was started forward by Captain H. S. Hale, who, at the top of his clear, ringing voice, ordered, "Forward, men!" Hale was afterward made lieutenant-colonel, but at that time was captain of Company H. The line moved forward and drove the enemy back. Just at this time Colonel Wickliff appeared on our line, having come up from the camp with that portion of the regiment who returned there the previous night. He at once took a position in front and led the charge. General Cheatham says of this part of the engagement : "It was for four hours the most hotly con- tested field I ever witnessed. My command fought with great cool- ness and determination, and for two hours I gradually drove the enemy back." Of Colonel Wickliff, he said: "After his noble con- duct under my eye on Sunday, he received his mortal wound at about 12 noon on Monday, bravely leading the charge." I remember dis- tinctly the circumstances at the time he fell. There seemed to be a general forward movement on all our part of the line ; Colonel Wick- liff rode to the front of the regiment and was leading a charge, and urging the men on when he fell. I did not see him when he received his mortal wound, but did a moment before. Colonel George Money, who commanded the brigade on Monday, said of Colonel Wickliff : "I directed Colonel Wickliff, of the Seventh Kentucky, who rendered me most efficient service by his activity and gallantry, to re-inforce
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