USA > Massachusetts > Massachusetts in the war, 1861-1865 Pt. 1 > Part 36
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About this time the Army of the James, under command of Gen- eral B. F. Butler, was organized, being composed of the Tenth and Eighteenth Army Corps. General Heckman's command was known as the First Brigade, Second Division, Eighteenth Corps, and was also designated as the Red Star Brigade. It consisted of the Twenty- third, Twenty-fifth and Twenty-seventh Massachusetts and Ninth New Jersey Regiments. On the 26th of April the Twenty-third em- barked on transports at Portsmouth and were taken to Yorktown, where General Butler was organizing his forces, and on the 4th of May went by water to Fortress Monroe. The fleet having gathered there, set sail the following morning and ascended the James river to a point two miles above City Point, where debarkation was rapidly made. Companies B and. H of the Twenty-third were among the first on shore, deploying as skirmishers and advancing some two miles inland to guard against surprise from the enemy. The land- ing having been completed, the column moved forward the next morning some five miles, where the famous line of intrenchments in front of Bermuda Hundred was begun. That afternoon and again the following day the regiment went forward, feeling the posi- tion of the enemy, but taking no active part and meeting no loss. These were the engagements known as Port Walthal Junction or Mary Dunn's Farm, but on the 9th of May at the battle of Arrow- field Church or Swift Creek the Twenty-third were called into more active service. Setting out in the morning, a considerable force
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THE TWENTY-THIRD REGIMENT.
under General W. F. Smith, of which the Red Star Brigade formed part, followed the Richmond road toward Petersburg till the enemy was encountered in considerable force near Arrowfield Church. General Heckman was ordered to dislodge him, and formed his bri- gade in two lines, the Twenty-third supporting the Twenty-fifth on the left side of the road. As the brigade advanced it met a sharp fire, and presently the Confederates charged the front line. They were met by a well-delivered volley which staggered them, and a bayonet charge by the second line sent them back to their works, in front of which the men of Massachusetts paused as night was at hand. The position was held till 10 o'clock next day, when the Fortieth Massachusetts relieved the Twenty-third, which were ordered to the rear and back to the intrenchments, to guard against a rumored attack. The loss of the regiment had been five wounded.
The ill-fated movement toward Richmond which ended in the disaster of Drewry's Bluff began on the 12th, the Army of the James working its way forward almost by inches till it occupied the outer line of Confederate defenses in front of Drewry's Bluff. Heckman's Brigade occupied the extreme Union right, in single line, with still an unoccupied space of more than a mile between its unprotected right flank and the river. The Ninth New Jersey were on the extreme flank ; with the Twenty-third, the Twenty- seventh and Twenty-fifth continuing the line to the left. In this position, on the morning of the 16th, in a very dense fog, the Con- federates in heavy force assaulted the weak line. Their front at- tacks were repeatedly repulsed, till a brigade of Alabamians passed around the flank and came up in the rear of Heckman's command. Further resistance in that position was then out of the question, and the fragments of the regiment which could be extricated were taken to the rear and a new line formed under the direction of Gen- eral Smith, the corps commander. Finally the success of the enemy was stayed, but the decimation of the Star Brigade had been terri- ble. Out of about 220 taken into action, the Twenty-third had 13 killed, 26 were reported wounded, ten of them fatally, and 51 others were captured, 37 of whom died in prison. Among the mortally wounded were Lieutenant Colonel Chambers, who commanded the regiment on that day, and First Lieutenant Richard P. Wheeler of Salem, who was serving on General Heckman's staff. General Heckman himself was among the captured.
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MASSACHUSETTS IN THE WAR.
The battle of Drewry's Bluff ended the advance of the Army of the James toward Richmond, and it at once retired to the strong line of defenses at Bermuda Hundred. Some ten days were passed there in strengthening the fortifications and on picket duty, when the Twenty-third with its brigade, to which the Fifty-fifth Pennsyl- vania was attached, formed part of the provisional corps detached for the reinforcement of the Army of the Potomac. It marched to City Point on the 28th, embarked on transports the following morning and sailed to White House on the Pamunkey. Eight com- panies landed there on the 31st and at once took up the march as directed, reaching New Castle Ferry the following forenoon only to find that by a blunder they had been sent there when they should have gone to New Cold Harbor. The error could only be rectified by another march through the broiling sun, and it was late in the afternoon when the corps, in conjunction with the Sixth, found itself in line of battle confronting the enemy at Cold Harbor. At first the Twenty-third supported the Fifty-fifth in a charge, then occupied rifle-pits further to the right for 24 hours, and during the night of the 2d of June were deployed along a road guarding communica- tion with the Fifth Corps.
Early the following morning the regiment returned to its former position and at once moved to the left and joined in the general as- sault on the Confederate lines. The brigade was massed by divis- ions, the Twenty-third being the third regiment in the column, and under the efficient command of General George J. Stannard ad- vanced heroically until elose to the enemy's line ; but it was impos- sible to reach their works, and the shattered command finally de- sisted, the Twenty-third having lost five killed, 40 wounded-four mortally, and two captured. Among the wounded were Major Brewster and Adjutant Sherman. General Stannard was also struck, and every member of his staff was killed or wounded. Six companies only of the regiment had part in the charge, but the others soon joined the command and served with it till evening of the 12th, when the trenches were quitted and the corps marched toward the transports at White House.
For a few days after landing at Point of Rocks the regiment was attached to a provisional brigade under Colonel Barton, taking part on the 18th in a movement to ent communication between Richmond and Petersburg, but without casualty, and on the 20th was ordered
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THE TWENTY-TIIIRD REGIMENT.
back to the Star Brigade, which next day crossed the Appomattox and took position in the trenches before Petersburg. There the regiment remained till the 25th of August, dividing its time between the front line and those further to the rear, all of which were un- comfortable and dangerous enough, having during the time six men killed and ten wounded by sharp-shooters, and two captured. It then recrossed the Appomattox to the Bermuda Hundred lines, where it remained for more than a week, being on the 4th of Septem- ber ordered to the landing en route for Newbern, where it arrived on the 10th and relieved troops of the Ninth Vermont Regiment. Four companies were stationed at Evans Mills, two at Croatan Sta- tion and two at Fort Spinola on the Neuse river, while the remainder encamped near by, the location being designated as Camp Cham- bers, in honor of the late lieutenant colonel. On the journey to Newbern ten men were left behind at Norfolk, who in attempting to follow next day by the Chesapeake and Albemarle canal were fired upon by bushwackers, one being killed and another severely wounded, while the remainder were made prisoners. In addition to this loss, one man was drowned from the steamer transporting the regiment.
Numerous changes occurred in the list of officers during the period now under consideration. Chaplain Clark, who had resigned some time before, was succeeded during May by Lewis L. Record of Gloucester. Captain Raymond, who had been in command of the regiment most of the time since Cold Harbor, was promoted late in August to the lieutenant colonelcy. Colonel Elwell was discharged for disability on the 20th of September. Two days later, the original term of enlistment of the regiment being about to expire, those who had not re-enlisted were ordered to Massachusetts, where they were mustered out October 13. It was at first intended to consolidate the recruits and re-enlisted men into a battalion of three companies, and orders to that effect were issued by General Harland, command- ing the brigade, but this was afterward countermanded and the organization of ten companies continued, retaining the regimental name. Lieutenant Colonel Raymond commanded, his staff com- prising Surgeon Samuel C. Whittier of Boston, Quartermaster Henry B. Peirce of Abington, and the chaplain ; the line officers consisted of two captains and four first lieutenants.
The autumn and winter passed quietly, the Twenty-third not being called into active service ; but it met a more dreaded foe in the
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yellow fever which prevailed at Newbern during the fall. At least 14 members of the regiment, and perhaps more, died from the dis- ease. The approach of Sherman's army through the Carolinas, and the opening of lines of communication from Morehead City via Newbern and Kinston to Goldsboro, called the troops in that vicin- ity into the field early in March, 1865, for the final operations of the war. On the 7th, Palmer's division marched toward Kinston, and that evening found the Twenty-third in position at the extreme right of the Union line of battle, the enemy in strong force having been encountered three miles from Kinston. The regiment was separated from the rest of the line by a swamp, and when tlie left was broken and forced back by the fierce Confederate attack on the 8tlı, Colonel Raymond failed for some time to receive the order to retire and maintained his position, being reinforced by a battalion of the Second Massachusetts Heavy Artillery, though his command was greatly outnumbered. After the line had been re established the regiment moved to the left and then back to its former position, rendering valuable assistance in repulsing the repeated attacks by the enemy, and after the latter were finally defeated marched into Kinston where it was detailed to guard the railroad bridge over the Neuse. Its loss in the battle was three killed and ten wounded of the regiment proper, and about an equal number from detachments serving with it.
It remained on duty at Kinston till the 2d of May, when it was ordered to Newbern to take charge of Camp Distribution, relieving a small force of the Twenty-seventh Massachusetts, and a few days later, the camp being practically broken up, was transferred to New- bern as provost guard, Colonel Raymond being provost marshal. This line of duty continued till the 15th of June, when the final muster rolls were made, and on the 25th the regiment was mustered out of the United States service by Captain J. D. Parker. It went the same day by rail to Morehead City and took the steamer General Meigs to New York, thence by steamer to New Haven and by rail to Boston, where it arrived June 29. It went into camp at Readville till the 12th of July, when the members were paid and discharged.
THE TWENTY-FOURTH REGIMENT.
T HE Twenty-fourth Regiment was known as the New England Guards Regiment, from the fact of its having been consider- ably an outgrowth of the Fourth or New England Guards Battalion of the state militia, which furnished most of the officers of the regiment, its Major Stevenson naturally being made the com- manding officer of the new organization. The rendezvous was at Camp Massasoit, Readville, where the recruits were mustered from time to time, beginning early in September, 1861. The line officers were commissioned September 2, the field and staff two or three days sooner. The officers were from Boston except when otherwise designated in the following roster :-
. Colonel, Thomas G. Stevenson ; lieutenant colonel, Francis A. Osborn ; major, Robert H. Stevenson; surgeon, Samuel A. Green ; assistant surgeon, Hall Curtis; chaplain, W. R. G. Mellen of Glouces- ter; adjutant, John F. Anderson; quartermaster, William Vincent Hutchings of Gloucester; sergeant major, Frank W. Loring; quarter- master sergeant, James Thompson; commissary sergeant, Parmenas E. Wheeler; hospital steward, John HI. McGregor; leader of band, Patrick S. Gilmore.
Company A-Captain, William F. Redding of East Boston; first lieutenant, James II. Turner of Medford; second lieutenant, Horatio D. Jarves.
Company B-Captain, George F. Austin; first lieutenant, George W. Gardner, both of Salem; second lieutenant, Deming Jarves, Jr.
Company C-Captain, William Pratt ; first lieutenant, James B. Bell of Cambridge; second lieutenant, Nathaniel S. Barstow.
Company D-Captain, John T. Prince, Jr. ; first lieutenant, John N. Partridge; second lieutenant, Thomas M. Sweet.
Company E-Captain, Charles II. Hooper; first lieutenant, Charles A. Folsom; second lieutenant, Daniel T. Sargent.
Company F-Captain, Robert F. Clark; first lieutenant, Charles B. Amory of Jamaica Plain; second lieutenant, John C. Jones, Jr., of Jamaica Plain.
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MASSACHUSETTS IN THE WAR.
Company G- Captain, Edward C. Richardson ; first lieutenant Albert Ordway of Dorchester; second lieutenant, James M. Barnard.
Company HI-Captain, John Daland ; first lieutenant, James B. Nichols, both of Salem; second lieutenant, Charles G. Ward of Grafton. Company I-Captain, J. Lewis Stackpole of Cambridge; first lieu- tenant, James A. Perkins; second lieutenant, William L. Horton.
Company K-Captain, J. Crosby Maker; first lieutenant, Mason A. Rea; second lieutenant, Thomas F. Edmands.
The regiment remained in camp till the 9th of December, when it set forth under directions to report to General Burnside at An- napolis. On reaching that city it was attached to the First Brigade, commanded by General J. G. Foster, for whom its camp was named. The other regiments of the brigade were the Twenty-third, Twenty- fifth and Twenty-Seventh Massachusetts and Tenth Connecticut. It remained at Camp Foster till the 6th of January, 1862, when it went on board transports and on the 9th sailed with the rest of the expedition under General Burnside. The Twenty-fourth ex- perienced its full share of suffering from the storms which de- layed the expedition at Hatteras Inlet, where it was exposed from the 13th of January till the 5th of February. It became necessary to land part of the regiment so that the vessel could be got over the "swash " at the Inlet, and uncomfortable as was the position of those on board, the detachment on shore fared even worse. Soon after their landing a gale arose which continued for six days, de- molishing tents, drenching and chilling the men and exposing them to many dangers, as well as causing great suffering for the want of food. The soldiers being once more aboard and the fleet within the sound, sail was made for Roanoke Island, where they landed and a battle was fought on the morning of the 8th. The steamer Admiral having the Twenty-fourth aboard got aground on the afternoon of the 7th so that it was necessary next morning to transfer the regi- ment to the steamers Union and Eagle for landing-Company C having been detailed for service on the gun-boat Vidette, where it remained during the battle. The main body of the regiment, through the accident to its transport, was thus unable to reach the scene of the action till just before the capture of the Confederate works. Colonel Stevenson with seven companies had hurried for- ward on landing without waiting for two companies under Lieuten- ant Colonel Osborn on the Eagle, and after the capture was ordered by General Foster to take the advance in pursuit of the enemy
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THE TWENTY-FOURTII REGIMENT.
toward their camp at the north end of the island. General Foster accompanied the regiment, and on nearing the camp was met by a flag of truce asking a suspension of hostilities. Unconditional sur- render was demanded and Major Stevenson was sent forward to bring back the answer. The Confederates agreeing to capitulate, two companies were detached to scour the shore and pick up fugi- tives attempting to escape, while the remaining companies pushed directly forward to receive the surrender, which was duly made to Colonel Stevenson. The detailed companies also brought in about 170 prisoners captured from boats and in the woods. The force under Lieutenant Colonel Osborn, after assisting during the day in bringing up ammunition from the landing, joined the main body in the evening.
The regiment remained on the island till the 11th of March, a detachment of three companies going on an eventless expedition to Columbia, N. C., on the 8th and 9th of that month. It then went aboard the transports Guide and Vedette and joined the movement against Newbern. Ascending the Neuse river to Slocum's Creek, a landing was made there on the morning of the 13th, and the ad- vance toward Newbern, 18 miles distant, was at once begun. On reaching the railroad the Twenty-fourth took the lead and pressed forward till near the hostile works, five or six miles from the city, when with four companies thrown forward on picket the regiment halted for the night. A rain-storm which prevailed not only made the roads very difficult but sadly interfered with the usefulness of the muskets of the command when the engagement opened next morning. The Confederate cavalry appearing with daylight, they were fired upon and the advance of the Union troops immediately began. On coming in sight of the intrenchments, Colonel Stevenson formed his regiment on the right of the road in line of battle, took position in the edge of the clearing facing the works and opened fire. This continued for some two hours, the line holding its posi- tion without shrinking, though under a heavy fire from the front and an artillery fire from the flank. Then an advance was ordered and the regiment was soon inside the works which the Confederates had practically abandoned at the Federal approach. The loss of the Twenty-fourth had been ten killed and 45 wounded. On gaining the works Company B was detailed as a garrison, the rest of the regiment pushing on to the Trent river, across which it was ferried,
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MASSACHUSETTS IN THE WAR.
taking possession of the Confederate camp on the Fair Grounds near the city, which was rechristened Camp Lee, in honor of Lieu- tenant Colonel Lee of Governor Andrew's staff.
Four companies made a reconnaissance toward Beaufort on the 18th, and the following day the regiment sailed for Little Washing- ton, reaching there on the 20th, when three companies landed and took possession of the town, raising the Stars and Stripes over the court-house. The return to Newbern was made on the 22d, and three days later six companies set out on an expedition up the Neuse, which was rendered fruitless by the difficult navigation. During most of the month of April the regiment was stationed five or six miles from the city on the Neuse road as an outpost, and after re- turning to the old camp one company was sent on the 1st of May to Little Washington, where an attempt was being made to organize a regiment of loyal North Carolinians. This company was rein- forced by two others on the 12th, and the balance of the regiment followed on the 3d of June, reaching the town at night of the 4th. A force of Confederates under Colonel Singletary was threatening the town by way of the Greenville road, and on the morning of the 5th Lieutenant Colonel Osborn with eight companies of his regi- ment, one of the Third New York Cavalry and a section of artillery set out to deliver an attack before the enemy should be aware of the reinforcements having arrived at Washington. Singletary's force was found at Tranter's Creek, some nine miles out, advantage- ously posted on the other side of the stream with the bridge torn up. The Union infantry and artillery were at once brought into action, taking a position at short range of the almost unseen enemy, and within half an hour, though the location of the Twenty-fourth was unfavorable for efficient firing, the Confederates had been driven from their position. The regiment returned to its quarters at Washington that evening, having lost in the operations of the day six killed and six wounded.
Previous to this, a reorganization had been made of the troops in the Department of North Carolina, by which General Foster became commander of a division, known as the First, composed of two bri- gades of three regiments cach. The Second Brigade, commanded by Colonel Stevenson, consisted of his own regiment, with the Tenth Connecticut and Twenty-seventh Massachusetts. The Twenty-fourth remained at Washington till the close of the month, when they were
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THIE TWENTY-FOURTH REGIMENT.
ordered back to Newbern, arriving there on the 30th, but an intended advance into the interior was abandoned on account of the disaster to the Army of the Potomac on the Peninsula, by which General Burnside with a large part of his command was summoned to another field of operation. On the 8th of July Companies B and D were ordered back to Washington, remaining there till the 12th of October, when they returned to Newbern, having taken part in the defense of Washington on the 6th, losing one man killed and five wounded, but repulsing the enemy. Meanwhile the main body of the regiment, seven companies, accompanied by artillery, the whole under command of Colonel Stevenson, proceeded on the 13th of August by seven light draft steamers to Bogue Inlet, where two salt works of some importance were destroyed, without casualty on the part of the expedition.
The regiment was again ordered to Little Washington on the 30th of October, where a force was gathering for an expedition inland, and on the morning of the 2d of November the column started across country toward Williamston on the Roanoke river. There was some sharp skirmishing toward evening, and more during the night, in which the Twenty-fourth had one man killed, but the advance was not seriously delayed. Williamston was reached next day, and on the 4th the deserted works below Hamilton, some miles further up the river, were entered. The column then turned across country toward Tarboro on the Tar river, making one day's march, after which it countermarched back over the route as far as Williamston, going thence to Plymouth, near the mouth of the Roanoke, where the Twenty-fourth took transportation for Newbern, arriving there on the 11th. Companies C and H had remained on picket duty near Newbern during the absence of the rest of the regiment, and on the night of the 11th Company H, stationed at Batchelder's Creek, were attacked, the outposts driven in and one man killed and one wounded. But the determined resistance of the reserve resulted in the retreat of the attacking force, and on the 15th the post was strengthened by the addition of the eight companies of the Twenty- fourth recently returned from Washington. A reconnaissance was made across the creek a few days later, driving the enemy's out- posts across Core creek, beyond which no event of moment occurred till the Goldsboro expedition.
Many regiments of nine-months' troops had now arrived in the
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MASSACHUSETTS IN THE WAR.
department, and the brigades were enlarged and reorganized, so that Stevenson's at the time of the expedition consisted in addition to the Twenty-fourth of the Eighth and Forty-fourth Massachusetts, Fifth Rhode Island and Tenth Connecticut. The Goldsboro ex- pedition started on the morning of the 11th of December, and so far as the part taken in it by the Twenty-fourth is concerned it will be necessary only to record that it fought the battle of Kinston on the 14th, the regiment being in support of Belger's Battery, not actively engaged and suffering no casualties. It was ordered in pursuit of the retreating Confederates, but that was soon relinquished and the march contined. At Whitehall on the 16th an engagement was fought across the river, the regiment again in support of the battery, having one man killed and several wounded, most of the latter slightly. At Goldsboro next day, though there was some serious fighting, the Twenty-fourth were not engaged, and the rail- road bridge there having been destroyed, the column started for home, reaching the camps about Newbern on the evening of the 20th, having on that day made a march of 30 miles.
A portion of the North Carolina force was now selected for ope- rations looking to the reduction of the city of Charleston, S. C., under direction of General David Hunter, commanding the Depart- ment of the South, and among the regiments selected was the Twenty-fourth, which was kept in a state of readiness till January 22, 1863. Then the long-awaited orders came, eight companies were at once hurried aboard cars and set off for Morehead City, where next day they were embarked for the new destination. The detached companies arrived on the 26th, and three days later the fleet sailed. Six companies on the steamer Guide reached Port Royal on the 31st, and the four companies aboard the schooner Highlander arrived on the 3d of February, landing six days later on St. Helena Island. The regiment remained encamped on the island without incident of note till near the close of March. There were numerous changes in the composition of brigades and other commands during this time. The March report shows the regiment to have been a part of the Second Brigade, First Division, Detachment Eighteenth Army Corps ; brigaded with it were the Tenth Connecticut, Fifty-second and One Hundred and Fourth Pennsylvania, the acting brigadier being Colonel W. W. H. Davis of the last named regiment. Gen- eral Orris S. Ferry commanded the division. Colonel Stevenson
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