USA > Massachusetts > Massachusetts in the war, 1861-1865 Pt. 1 > Part 12
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Colonel, George II. Gordon; lieutenant colonel, George L. Andrews; major, Wilder Dwight; adjutant, Charles Wheaton, Jr. ; quarter- master, R. Morris Copeland of Roxbury; surgeon, Lucius M. Sar- gent, Jr .; assistant surgeon, Lincoln R. Stone of Salem ; chaplain, Rev. Alonzo H. Quint of Jamaica Plain; sergeant major. George W. Blake; quartermaster sergeant, George F. Browning of Salem; com-
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missary sergeant; Erastus B. Carll; hospital steward, Joseph W. Nut- ting; principal musician, Henry Kesselhuth.
Company A, Abbott Grays of Lowell-Captain, Edward G. Abbott; first lieutenant, Harrison G. O. Weymouth; second lieutenant, James Francis.
Company B-Captain, Greely S. Curtis; first lieutenant, Charles F. Morse of Roxbury; second lieutenant, James M. Ellis.
Company C, Andrew Light Guard of Salem - Captain, William Cogswell; first lieutenant, Edwin R. Hill; second lieutenant, Robert B. Brown.
Company D-Captain, James Savage, Jr .; first lieutenant, William D. Sedgwick of Lenox; second lieutenant, Henry L. Higginson.
Company E-Captain, Samuel M. Quincy; first lieutenant, William B. Williams of West Roxbury; second lieutenant, Ochran H. Howard of Ware.
Company F-Captain, J. Parker Whitney; first lieutenant, Charles R. Mudge; second lieutenant, Robert G. Shaw.
Company G-Captain, Richard Cary; first lieutenant, Henry S. Russell; second lieutenant, Anson D. Sawyer.
Company H-Captain, Francis H. Tucker; first lieutenant, Thomas L. Motley, Jr., of Roxbury; second lieutenant, Steven G. Perkins of Milton.
Company I-Captain, Adin B. Underwood; first lieutenant, Marcus M. Hawes; second lieutenant, Rufus Choate.
Company K-Captain, Richard C. Goodwin; first lieutenant, George P. Bangs; second lieutenant, Charles P. Horton.
A band of 24 members from different towns and cities was led by Charles Speigle of Boston.
The regimental camp, named in honor of the governor, was located at Brook Farm in West Roxbury, on the estate of Rev. James Freeman Clarke. Company A was the first to reach the spot, on the 11th of May, and was rapidly followed by other com- panies and detachments, so that on the 18th four companies and parts of others had been mustered into the national service by Captain Amory of the United States Army. The commissions of the officers began to be issued on the 24th. There were the usual flag presentations, the first being on the 26th of June, when J. Lothrop Motley made the presentation in behalf of the ladies of Boston. This was the battle flag, and on the 1st of July a state banner was presented by Hon. George S. Hillard, in behalf of the ladies of Boston. On the 6th of July an order was received from General Scott, commanding the Union Army, for the Second Regi- ment to report as soon as possible at Williamsport, Md., for the reinforcement of General Patterson. On the morning of the 8th
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THIE SECOND REGIMENT.
cars were taken for Boston, thence to Groton, Ct., and by steamer to New York, whence the command re-embarked for Elizabethport, 'N. J. By railroad the journey continued during the night across New Jersey and through Pennsylvania, until on the afternoon of the 11th the destination beside the Potomac was reached.
Early next morning the river was forded and the regiment marched to Martinsburg, where it joined General Patterson's main body, and was assigned to the Sixth Brigade, Colonel Abercrombie command- ing. On the morning of the 15th the army advanced to Bunker Hill, and on the 17th to Charlestown. Next day the Second was ordered back to Harper's Ferry and three days later, Confederate General Johnston having eluded him and gone to Bull Run, Gen- eral Patterson fell back with his whole force. Colonel Gordon was made commander of the post at Harper's Ferry, with his regiment as garrison, and while there the loyal women of the town presented the regiment with a flag, which they had secretly made and kept for such an occasion. About this time Captain Underwood with his company was sent down the river to the mouth of the Monocaey, where he remained on duty for some weeks.
General Banks succeeded Patterson in command of the forces about Harper's Ferry on the 25th of July, withdrawing to Pleasant Valley on the Maryland side the few troops that remained after the departure of the three-months' men. Colonel Gordon remained in command of the Ferry, with three companies of the Second, while the other six companies bivouacked in support of the Federal guns on Maryland Hights. Soon afterward General Banks's command was extended down the river, covering the different fords and cross- ings, and on the 20th of August the Second, being relieved, started to rejoin the brigade near Hyattstown, which was reached after a three-days' march. The regiment encamped in Hall's field, where it remained for about two months, and soon after Colonel Gordon took temporary command of the brigade, which at that time con- sisted of the Twelfth Massachusetts, Twelfth and Sixteenth Indiana Regiments, in addition to his own. The arrival of fresh troops soon made a reorganization necessary, in which the Second Massa- chusetts went to the Third Brigade, of which Colonel Gordon was for a time commander, the other regiments being the Twenty-eighth and Nineteenth New York, Fifth Connecticut and Forty-sixth Penn- sylvania, the Rhode Island Battery A being added later. On the
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15th of October General A. S. Williams took command of the bri- gade,-an able officer under whom most of the subsequent service of the regiment was had.
After several preliminary orders during the day, one came in the carly evening of the 21st of October to march immediately, and the Second led the column, which moved rapidly toward Leesburg, meet- ing on the way fugitives from the fatal field of Ball's Bluff, the bat- tle of which had been fought the 21st. Before morning Conrad's Ferry was reached, and the regiment was stationed along the bank of the river, where during the day assistance was given in getting off the Union soldiers who were still clinging to the opposite shore. On the 23d an alarm came up from Edwards Ferry, and during the night the Second marched there and marched back again. Three days later the regiment was transferred to General Abercrombie's Brigade-the First-composed of the Twelfth Massachusetts, Twelfth and Sixteenth Indiana. On the same day-the 26th-the division was ordered back to Darnestown, the Second encamping after two days' march at Seneca Creek, three miles from the town, where they were for some time engaged in picketing the river. The health of the men suffering severely, a change of camp was made shortly after, but gave no exemption from the deadly malaria. Amid many discouragements, the Massachusetts Thanksgiving Day was not allowed to pass without due observance, and owing to the kindness of friends and the care of officers a very creditable feast, with proper accompaniment of devotion and recreation, made the day memorable.
The brigade was relieved on the 4th of December, and set out for Frederick, where after three days of marching and waiting, camp was pitched in a pleasant wood four miles east of the city be- side the Baltimore pike, where the winter months passed with very little to break the monotony of camp life, though the proximity of Frederick and the friendliness of the people, as well as the case of communication with home, made the situation agreeable. The bands of the various regiments did much to cheer the dull season, giving frequent concerts at Frederick and playing in camp; while among other innovations the Second Regiment boasted a Masonic lodge, of which Colonel Gordon was Master.
This life at " Camp Hicks" came to an end on the morning of February 27, 1862, when the regiment marched to Frederick and
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TIIE SECOND REGIMENT.
took cars to Sandy Hook, whence it crossed the ponton bridge to Harper's Ferry, being quartered in some of the deserted dwellings. Company F was detailed for provost duty and Lieutenant Colonel Andrews was made provost marshal of the place. The following day a reconnaissance was ordered to Charlestown, and the regiment entered that historic town to the music of " Jolin Brown." Gen- cral McClellan at once ordered a permanent occupation of the place, and the following Sunday the Second held religious services in the court-house where John Brown had been condemned to death, the chaplain occupying the seat used by the judge at the trial. The forward movement against " Stonewall " Jackson at Winchester be- gan on the 9th of March, the Second moving by way of Berryville, with the usual contradictory orders, countermarches and skirmishes, only to find that the Confederates had retreated, leaving the tenant- less fortifications, in the vicinity of which the Second remained some ten days.
At this time another reorganization of the division took place, the Second Regiment being transferred to the Third Brigade, of which Colonel Gordon took command, the other regiments being the Third Wisconsin, Twenty-seventh Indiana and Twenty-ninth Pennsylva- nia. On the 26th of March General Banks took command of the Fifth Corps, composed of his own division and that of General Shields, and General A. S. Williams succeeded him as division commander.
On the 20th the Second with other troops were ordered toward Washington, and two days later marched as far as Snicker's Ferry, where a broken-down ponton bridge prevented their crossing. While waiting for it to be repaired the regiment was ordered back toward Winchester on account of renewed activity on the part of the enemy, reaching that place on the 24th after a sharp march, to find that General Shields's Division had driven off Jackson's threatening forces. The following evening the pursuit was taken up as far as Strasburg, in which vicinity several days were passed preliminary to the sharp onward movement of the 1st of April. On that day the regiment led the column, keeping up a running fight with the retiring enemy till brought to a stand by the destruction of a bridge at Edenburg, where with the river between them the opposing forces watched each other two weeks longer, while preparations for a vigorous movement against Jackson were completed. On the 17th
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Banks advanced against the enemy at Mount Jackson, Gordon's Brigade being sent to the right to fall upon the Confederate flank. The demonstration caused the retreat of the foe and a pursuit fol- lowed, across the north fork of the Shenandoah and through New- market.
From that point, the regiment advanced on the 25th to near Har- risonburg, where the enemy were reported, but a reconnaissance of 11 miles two days later revealed none. General Banks being ordered to fall back to Strasburg, the Second marched a short dis- tance on the evening of May 4, and the following day retreated to Newmarket. At midnight they were aroused to climb the Mas- sanutten range on false information, returning to camp after two days passed on the eastern slope, finally reaching Strasburg on the 13th, where General Banks was directed to remain and fortify, with the two brigades of Colonels Gordon and Donelly.
The anticipated attack from " Stonewall" Jackson began to fall on Banks's little force on the 23d of May, when Colonel Kenly with the First Maryland and a few detachments stationed at Front Royal as an outpost was attacked and driven back, Kenly being wounded. This opened the way for the enemy to Winchester, in the rear of Banks, and next morning Strasburg was evacuated and a rapid move- ment down the Valley began, the Union commander hoping to reach Winchester in advance of the Confederates. Consequently most of the troops preceded the trains, which were necessarily long and cumbersome ; but at Newtown the enemy appeared among the wagons, cutting off a considerable number, and Colonel Gordon was sent back with his brigade and some artillery to repair the mischief. Lieuten- ant Colonel Andrews and the Second were ordered to drive the foe from Newtown, which was done, Companies A and C being deployed as skirmishers, and the place was held for some hours. Colonel Andrews then burned such wagons as he could not bring off for want of horses, and at twilight the retreat was continued.
Three or four companies of the Second formed the rear guard of Banks's column, and several attacks were made by the enemy in strong force, but all were repelled or checked so as to afford ample protection to the column in front. At Kernstown a halt was made and the wounded of the regiment, in charge of Surgeon Leland, were gathered in one of the houses, as ambulances could not be ob- tained to send them forward. Another attack was soon made, and
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THE SECOND REGIMENT.
the regiment after returning the fire fell back to the vicinity of Winchester, which was reached at 2 o'clock. After skirmishing through the rest of the night, line of battle was formed at daylight with Donelly's Brigade on the left of the road south of Winchester and Gordon's on the right,-the Second Regiment on the flank. The skirmishers were soon driven in by the Confederate Stonewall Brigade, and the battle began, Companies D and G of the Second being thrown forward to a stone-wall to harass the enemy's gunners, which was very effectively done. After two hours of sharp fight- ing the Union position was flanked and the Second retired through Winchester, fired upon from the houses as they passed, and out upon the Martinsburg road, forming the rear of the retreating army.
A march of 32 miles without a halt, threatened often by the pur- suing enemy, brought the column to Martinsburg, where the pursuit ceased ; a few " hard tack " were distributed among the hungry soldiers, then on again 13 miles further to Williamsport, where the Potomac was crossed and Banks's little band was safe. Four com- panies of the Second with an equal detail from the Third Wiscon- sin and a section of artillery guarded the approaches to the river for three days while the crossing was effected and the camps were established on the Maryland side. . The regiment had been severely tested ; constantly serving as rear guard, it had marched 56 miles in 33 hours, besides fighting in one " pitched battle " and in frequent skirmishes. Its loss had been seven killed, six mortally and 41 otherwise wounded and 94 taken prisoners, 17 of whom were wounded. Among the captured were Major Dwight, who had stopped for a moment in Winchester to assist a wounded man ; Surgeon Leland, in charge of the wounded at Kernstown; and Assistant Surgeon Stone, left at the hospital at Winchester- all of whom were paroled within a few days. On account of his distinguished services in this retreat, Colonel Gordon was made a brigadier general, the lieutenant colonel and major were each ad- vanced one grade and Captain Savage became major. The com- mand of the brigade was for a time transferred 'to General George S. Greene, formerly colonel of the Sixtieth New York.
The next movement up the Valley began on the 10th of June, when the Potomac was crossed, the Second bivoucking that night at Falling Waters and the next at Bunker Hill; Williams's Division marched through Winchester on the 12th with drums beating, con-
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MASSACHUSETTS IN THE WAR.
tinuing the journey of that day to Bartonsville, where a halt of six days followed. On the 18th a movement was made to near Front Royal ; then another halt, lasting till the 6th of July, during which General Gordon returned to the command of the brigade. On the 6th of July the Second marched by slow stages to and through Front Royal, next day to Chester Gap, reaching Warrenton on the 11th.
The regiment had now entered the Army of Virginia, commanded by General Pope, General Banks's troops being designated as the Second Corps. The First Division consisted of two brigades, the First under General Crawford and the Third under Gordon ; the Second Division under General Augur had three brigades. Gordon's Brigade now consisted in addition to the Second of the Third Wiseon- sin and Twenty-seventh Indiana. The order directing Banks to Warrenton proved to be a mistake-Little Washington was the place meant, and on the 16th and 17th the regiment marched to its proper destination where it remained till August 6.
Marching on that day and the following to Hazel River, the Second there received 50 recruits, marching on the 8th to Culpeper, while Crawford's Brigade was sent toward Cedar Mountain to the support of the Union cavalry. The Second went into bivonac about midnight, and in the morning General Banks with the rest of his corps was ordered forward to the support of Crawford, some six miles away. In the battle which followed Gordon's Brigade was at first the only reserve, and when Crawford's Brigade, forming the Federal right, was broken Gordon pushed forward at the double- quick to fill the gap, the Second on the left of the brigade line. Almost immediately a terrible attack was received, crumbling away the entire right till the Second stood alone and almost enveloped, when a retreat to the former position was ordered. When the Union line was strengthened and reformed during the night the Second took a position near the center, but it was not again engaged, and next day moved to a wood some distance to the left.
The casualties of the regiment in the battle of Cedar Mountain were heavy, embracing more than a third of the force taken into action. Of 23 officers only seven were unhurt ; Captains Abbott, Cary, Williams and Goodwin and Lieutenant Perkins were killed; Major Savage was mortally wounded and a prisoner. Of the en- listed men 36 were killed and 13 mortally hurt, while 99 others were wounded and 14 captured. Surgeon Leland was wounded in
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the head early in the action, and Captain Russell was made prisoner while striving to care for Major Savage. A Zouave company, for- merly General Banks's body guard, which had recently been at- tached to the regiment, lost 12 in killed and missing. Many of the wounded of the regiment, as well as of other regiments, were cared for by Chaplain Quint of the Second, whose services at such times were often commended.
When the rest of Pope's army advanced, Banks's Corps, owing to its shattered condition, was returned to Culpeper, and there the Second remained for six days, its roster comprising one field, six line and three staff officers. On the 19th, in connection with the retreat northward of Pope's army before the reinforced Jackson, the Second moved by way of Brandy Station across the Rappahan- nock, and that evening the depleted ranks received the welcome ad- dition of 90 recruits just from Massachusetts. In a day or two the regiment took up the campaign of maneuvers in earnest. First down the river for a mile or two, and then up, from one ford or bridge to the next, day after day, now under fire and then watching the skirmishing of others, till Waterloo Bridge was reached ; thence eastward by Warrenton to Kettle Run on the 28th, and for the two days following forming the extreme right of Pope's command while the second battle of Bull Run was fought and lost-the regiment in hearing of the terrible conflict but called to take no active part. On the 31st, making a detour of 20 miles to accomplish four-to avoid an imaginary force of the enemy-the Second led its corps, crossing Bull Run, passing one night at Centerville, then on to Fair- fax Court House, that evening under fire in support of Reno's line at Chantilly, the brigade ordered back next day to Fairfax to bring off stores, where the enemy was in full force ; finally on the 3d of September halting near Fort Albany, a part of the Army of the Potomac and under the command of General MeClellan.
In the reorganization of the army great changes were at once made. General Banks, who had been hurt at Cedar Mountain, was placed in command of the defenses about Washington, while his two divisions became the Twelfth Corps, which General Williams temporarily commanded. The two brigades of the First Division remained practically unchanged, except that to Gordon's two regi- ments of new troops were added a few days later-the Thirteenth New Jersey and the One Hundred and Seventh New York.
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MASSACHUSETTS IN TIIE WAR ..
The Second Regiment crossed the Potomac by the bridge at Georgetown on the 4th of September, camping near Tennallytown, and the next day moved on to Rockville, where the Second and Twelfth Corps formed the center of the army, under command of General Sumner. Four days passed without further movement, at the end of which the army in parallel columns advanced toward Frederick, near which historic town the Second encamped on the 13th. Next day the advance was continued, through the streets of the town, through fields, forests and every imaginable obstacle, to the sound of the artillery at the mountain passes in front.
General Mansfield took command of the corps on the morning of the 15th, and the following morning a short march took the regiment with its fellows near Antietam Creek, in readiness for the great battle. During the day there was no further movement of the corps, but at 10 o'clock that night orders came to move at once, and the Twelfth Corps crossed the Antietam in support of Hooker, who had already deployed his First Corps beyond the stream. After the latter had been fighting an hour or two the following morning Williams's Division was ordered forward to his support, Crawford's Brigade on the right and Gordon's on the left. As they advanced General Mansfield was killed and the command of the corps devolved on General Williams.
The three old regiments of the brigade went first into action, the Second on the right, formed along a fence and separated from its fellow-regiments by a battery. Presently, the other two regi- ments suffering very severely from the fire of the enemy, the posi- tion of the Second was changed somewhat, so that it gave a flank fire with terrible effect, driving the foe back, when the Union line advanced, the Second capturing the battle-flag of the Eleventh Mississippi. Soon Sumner's Corps went hurrying to the front, and General Gordon was ordered to give him support. The Second and Thirteenth New Jersey, the only available regiments, were moved some distance forward and took a position, where they became heavily engaged in a short time by Jackson's reinforcements, and being vastly ontnumbered and isolated the order was given to fall back, and the regiment did no further serious work, though moving from point to point, in support of batteries and other service. The loss of the regiment, with less than 300 men taken into action, had been 15 killed and 50 wounded, among the latter Lieutenant Colonel
تضم مطعة قأرب
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Dwight fatally. Lieutenant Sedgwick, who was on the staff of General John Sedgwick, died of wounds on the 27th.
On the 20th the Second found themselves again at Maryland Ilights, opposite Harper's Ferry, near their station of a year pre- vious, and there they remained for some time picketing the river. Colonel Andrews was at that time assigned to the command of a brigade, and was soon after commissioned brigadier, the regiment being for some time in command of Captain Cogswell, who was presently commissioned lieutenant colonel, the other field commis- sions being of Captain Quincy (absent wounded) as colonel and Captain Charles R. Mudge as major. General H. W. Slocum now became the commander of the Twelfth Corps.
Thanksgiving day was formally celebrated by the command November 27, and on the 12th of December the regiment broke camp, crossed the Potomac at Harper's Ferry, moving thence by way of Leesburg to Fairfax Station, which was reached on the 17th; starting thence southward but returning after a day or two of toil- ing through the mud to wait, with some false alarms, till the 19th of January, when the division moved down to Stafford Court House, near which on the 23d it encamped to remain for more than three months. At this time, as often during the history of the Second, many of its officers were sent out to responsible positions in other commands, and here General Gordon resigned from broken health, the command of the brigade passing to General Thomas J. Ruger, formerly colonel of the Third Wisconsin.
The Chancellorsville movement began on the 27th of April, the men starting out with eight days' rations and 60 rounds of cart- ridges, marching that day to near Hartwood Church. The next night the Second, commanded by Colonel Quincy, bivouacked within two miles of Kelly's Ford, which the Eleventh Corps had already crossed, passed to the front next morning and with the Third Wiscon- sin and Twenty-seventh Indiana led the march to Germania Ford on the Rapidan, where over a hundred Confederates who were building a bridge were captured. The regiment then forded the river and a bridge for the passage of the Union army was quickly constructed. On the 30th the Second formed the rear of the Twelfth Corps, marching by the plank road to near Chancellorsville, a little distance to the westward of which it went into position. During the 1st of May the corps was moved a mile or two to the cast, encountered
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