USA > Massachusetts > Massachusetts in the war, 1861-1865 Pt. 2 > Part 43
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MASSACHUSETTS IN THE WAR.
Brigadier General Isaac F. Shepard,
A native of South Natiek and a graduate of Harvard College, was for some years identified with the militia organizations in the city of Boston. He served in the Massachusetts Legislature in 1859, but the opening of the war found him in Missouri, where he be- came senior aide on the staff of General Nathaniel Lyon, whom he served faithfully and very acceptably till the latter fell in battle in Angust, 1861. Captain Shepard was then commissioned colonel of the Third Missouri Regiment, succeeding Colonel Franz Sigel pro- moted, and led the organization in various military movements in that part of the country with marked ability. He was commissioned brigadier general of volunteers dating from the 27th of October, 1863, but the commission expired on the 4th of July, 1864. He remained in Missouri, devoting himself to journalism and filling various public offices, being consul to China under four presidents. He then returned to Bellingham in his native state, where he died August 25, 1889.
Brevet Brigadier General Thomas Sherwin, Jr.,
Of Dedham, a graduate of Harvard College in 1860, was com- missioned first lieutenant in the Twenty-second Massachusetts Regiment on the 1st of October, 1861, and was made adjutant before the regiment left for the field. On the death of Colonel Gove and the consequent promotions he was advanced to the rank of major dating from the 24th of June, 1862, and the resignation of Colonel Griswold the following autumn brought him the lieutenant coloneley from the 27th of October. With the latter rank he rejoined the regiment soon after the battle of Antietam, having been wounded and captured at the battle of Gaines Mills and subsequently in Confederate prisons. Hle retained the rank of lieutenant colonel till mustered ont with the regiment at the expiration of its term of service, October 16, 1864; bet during much of that time he was in command of the regiment and sometimes of the brigade, the last three months of his service being as inspector general on the staff of General Griffin, commanding the First Division, Fifth Corps. His brevet of brigadier general of volunteers dated from March 13, 1865, and he also received the brevet of colonel for gallantry at the battle of Peebles Farm.
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GENERAL OFFICERS.
Brevet Brigadier General Augustus B. R. Sprague
Of Worcester was commissioned captain of the Worcester City Guards, Company A, Third Battalion of Rifles, April 17, 1861, and in response to the President's first call for troops entered the mili- tary service of the United States on the 20th of April. Early in July the commander of the battalion, Major Charles Devens, Jr., having been commissioned colonel of the Fifteenth Massachusetts Regiment, Captain Sprague as senior officer commanded the bat- talion till its muster out on the 3d of August. Identifying himself
BREVET BRIG. GEN. A. B. R. SPRAGUE.
at once with the organization of the Twenty-fifth Regiment, he was commissioned its lieutenant colonel on the 9th of September, and at his request a dozen of those who had served with him in the battalion were given commissions in the Twenty-fifth. With this regiment he served till November 11, 1862, participating in its bat- tles and skirmishes and was officially reported for "bravery and efficiency " in the engagements- at Roanoke Island and Newbern. He was then commissioned colonel of the Fifty-first Massachusetts, and by special request of General Foster, commanding the depart-
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ment, Colonel Sprague with his new command returned to the North Carolina field. General Lee having moved north from Richmond, Colonel Sprague's regiment, with others, left Newbern June 24, 1863, for Fortress Monroe, went to White House on the Pamunkey and thence back to Fortress Monroe for transportation to Massachu- setts, its term of service having expired. But on learning that General Lee's army was north of the Potomac, Colonel Sprague at once offered his regiment for further duty, serving from the 1st to the 17th of July at Baltimore, Maryland Hights, and with the Army of the Potomac. Within a month of the muster out of the Fifty- first Regiment, Colonel Sprague was requested by Governor Andrew to raise and command the Fifty-seventh Regiment, but family sick- ness prevented his acceptance of the offer. On the 1st of February, 1864, he was commissioned lientenant colonel of the Second Massa- chusetts Heavy Artillery Regiment, serving in Virginia and North Carolina, commanding the regiment in its field service in the spring of 1865, and was discharged with it at Gallop's Island September 20, 1865, previons to which he was commissioned by Governor An- drew colonel of the regiment. He served three years and nine months, and Congress gave him the brevet rank of brigadier general of volunteers, dating from March 13, 1865, "for gallant and meri- torious service during the war."
Brevet Brigadier General Luther Stephenson, Jr.,
Of Hingham was identified with the state militia previous to the war and accompanied the Fourth Regiment during its three-months' ser- vice as captain of Company I. While on this service he made the first reconnaissance of the war in command of two companies, pre- vious to the battle of Big Bethel. He also served on the first court- martial convened in the volunteer service: Being mustered out July 22, 1861, he soon set about the organization of a company for a longer term of service, and on the 14th of November was mustered as captain of Company A, First Battalion of Massachusetts Infantry, his command becoming part of the garrison at Fort Warren. When the battalion was developed into the Thirty-second Regiment, Cap- tain Stephenson became major, dating from August 13, 1862, and on the 29th of December he was promoted to lieutenant colonel. During the carly history of his regiment he often commanded it, as
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GENERAL OFFICERS.
he did through the campaign under General Pope and the Chancel- lorsville campaign; after which, with the left wing of the regiment he for some time guarded the bridge at Potomac Creek. At Gettys- burg, while in temporary command of the regiment, he was badly wounded by being shot through the face. He was on duty again in
BREVET BRIG. GEN. LUTHER STEPHENSON, JR.
time for the 1864 campaign, and commanded the regiment from the opening of the battles before Spottsylvania to Petersburg, when having been twice slightly wounded and being troubled by his former wounds, he resigned on the 28th of June, 1864. Hle received the brevet of brigadier general of volunteers " for bravery and meri- torious conduct in the campaign against Richmond, Va.," dating from March 13, 1865.
Brevet Brigadier General Hazard Stevens,
The son of Major General Isaac I. Stevens, was born in Rhode Island, and at the age of 12 accompanied his father on an expedition from the Pacific coast to the Missouri river for the making of treaties and exploration of the wilderness, the journey lasting some nine months and covering over 2,000 miles of horseback travel. On one occa-
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MASSACHUSETTS IN THE WAR.
sion, sent on an emergency with dispatches to the Blackfeet Indians, accompanied only by an Indian guide, the youth traveled 150 miles in 303 hours and successfully executed his mission. After three years of similar exciting experiences, he returned East and studied at Chauncy Hall School in Boston, entering Harvard College in 1860. Leaving his books, he enlisted September 6, 1861, in the Sixty-ninth New York Regiment, then serving near Washington, of which his father had been commissioned colonel, and on the 19th
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BREVET BRIG. GEN. HAZARD STEVENS.
was made adjutant. A month later he was promoted to captain and assistant adjutant general of volunteers, participating in the Hilton Head expedition and the subsequent operations on the South Carolina coast. As assistant adjutant general of the First Division, Ninth Corps, he made the campaign under General Pope the following summer, and at the battle of Chantilly, where his honored father was killed, he was twice severely wounded. Recovering in time to share in the Fredericksburg battle on the staff of General Getty, he also participated in the siege of Suffolk, Va., the following spring, '
GENERAL OFFICERS.
winning especial commendation. After a futile attempt to raise a regiment of loyal Virginians, he returned to duty on the staff of General Getty, commanding the Second Division, Sixth Corps, where he served through the Wilderness campaign and till the close of the war, participating in all the remarkable experiences of that organi- zation. He was brevetted lieutenant colonel, colonel and brigadier general of volunteers for gallant services in the campaign from the Wilderness to Petersburg, in the battles in the Shenandoah Valley, and at the capture of Petersburg respectively, the latter dating from April 2, 1865.
Major General Isaac Ingalls Stevens,
A native of North Andover and appointed from Massachusetts to the Military Academy, graduated July 1, 1839, at the head of his
MAJ. GEN. ISAAC I. STEVENS.
class, and was commissioned second lieutenant of Engineers. He was engaged in various engineering duties on the New England coast previous to the Mexican war, in which he took an honorable part, being severely wounded in the capture of the city of Mexico
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MASSACHUSETTS IN THIE WAR.
and receiving the brevets of captain and major-his actual rank at the time being first lieutenant. He was engaged in various duties in New England, Georgia and at Washington till March 16, 1853, when he resigned from the army, being appointed governor of Wash- ington Territory and commissioner of Indian affairs, serving as such with much distinction from 1853 to 1857, and then for four years was delegate from that territory to the United States House of Rep- resentatives. At the outbreak of the rebellion he patriotically offered his sword in the cause of his country, and on the 10th of August assumed command of the Seventy-ninth New York Regiment, whose first colonel had been killed at Bull Run. On the 28th of September he was commissioned brigadier 'general of volunteers, and com- manded a brigade in the Port Royal expedition which sailed in Octo. ber. He rendered valuable service in the Department of the South, being in command of the Union troops engaged at Port Royal Ferry, S. C., on the 1st of January, 1862, and later of a division in the same department, taking part in the actions of Stono River and Secessionville, in June of the same year. Ile was commissioned major general of volunteers July 4, 1862, and in command of his division was transferred to Newport News, where he joined the Ninthi Corps under General Reno, his troops composing the First Division. IIe shared actively in the campaign under General Pope, fighting gallantly at the battle of Manassas or the Second Bull Run, where his horse was killed under him. He withdrew his division from that disastrous field in perfect order, though with a loss of nearly half his command. The day following the battle he was placed in command of the rear guard of the army and took post between Bull Run and Centerville. On the 1st of September, hearing that a force of the enemy was threatening the flank of the army and the only route of retreat, he marched in that direction with his own division, closely followed by Reno's of the same corps, when he suddenly encountered the Confederate skirmishers. His own skirmish line was at once thrown forward, driving back that of the enemy and locating the position of their main force behind a rail fence in the edge of a thick wood. General Stevens at once formed his division in column of assault and moved forward to the attack. Half the distance had been made when a terrible fire from the foe staggered the leading regiments. The general sprang for- ward on foot, grasped the flag of the Seventy-ninth New York Regi-
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GENERAL OFFICERS.
ment, whose color sergeant was wounded, and himself led the charge. His lines went forward bravely, threw down the obstruc- tion and routed the foe temporarily at that point ; but as the fatal fence was reached, General Stevens was struck in the temple by a bullet and fell dead, still grasping the colors of his former regiment. Thus nobly died at the age of 44, while his country sadly needed his services, one of her bravest and ablest soldiers.
Brevet Brigadier General Robert H. Stevenson
Of Boston was the first major of the Twenty-fourth Massachusetts Regiment, being commissioned September 2, 1861, and was pro- moted lieutenant colonel December 28, 1862, having been wounded at the battle of Newbern, N. C., March 14, 1862. ITis duty was such as naturally pertained to his command in the regiment till the 9th of July, 1863, when he was left in command of a detachment of four companies of the regiment on Seabrook Island, where they per- formed very severe and exhausting duty till the 21st, when they re- joined the regiment on Morris Island. Lieutenant Colonel Steven- son was then detailed on duty connected with the raising of troops by draft and otherwise, after which he returned to the regiment and served with it till the 31st of May, 1864, when he resigned his commission. He received the brevet of brigadier general of volun- teers from March 13, 1865.
Brigadier General Thomas G. Stevenson
Of Boston was in the winter of 1860-61 orderly sergeant of the New England Guards, a favorite militia company of Boston. Another company being formed to constitute a battalion under that name. he was chosen captain of one company, and while the command was serving as garrison for Fort Independence in Boston Harbor he was promoted major. The battalion being developed into the Twenty- fourth Regiment Massachusetts Volunteers late in the summer of . 1861, he was commissioned colonel and took his regiment to North Carolina as a portion of the Burnside expedition. A few weeks after . the battle of Newbern, in which he won commendation for his soldierly qualities, Colonel Stevenson was assigned to the command of a brigade in General Foster's division, which he ably held during
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MASSACHUSETTS IN THE WAR.
the remainder of the year, being commissioned brigadier general of volunteers December 26, 1862. He accompanied General Foster to South Carolina in Jannary following, and commanded a brigade in the operations of 1863 against Charleston. He occupied Seabrook Island from the 28th of March to the 9th of July, when his troops were transferred to Morris Island. In April, 1864, he was relieved from duty with the Tenth Corps and reported to General Burnside at Annapolis, where he was placed in command of the First Divis- ien of the Ninth Corps. He fought his division bravely at the bat-
BRIG. GEN. T. G. STEVENSON.
tle of the Wilderness, May 6, when it was under the direction of General Hancock, commanding the Union left, and moved with it to Spottsylvania. On the morning of the 10th of May his division was directed to make a reconnaissance from the Union left toward the Court House, which was most gallantly done, the lines of the Ninth Corps being established close to those of the Confederates . on the Fredericksburg road; but in doing so General Stevenson was killed by a musket shot. In his death an exceptionally brave, high-minded and capable officer was lost to the service. He was buried at Mount Auburn cemetery.
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GENERAL OFFICERS.
Brigadier General Charles P. Stone
Was born at Greenfield and educated at the academies of Western Massachusetts, entering West Point in 1841 and graduating in due course. He remained there as acting assistant professor of ethics till the Mexican war, in which he took part, receiving the brevets of first lieutenant and captain for gallant conduct at Molina del Rey and Chapultepec. From 1851 to 1856 he served on the Pacific coast as chief of ordnance, when he resigned but remained on the Pacific shore till 1860. Hle then came cast and offered his services to the national government in February of the following year, apprehend- ing the approaching outbreak. He was made captain in the regular army, organized and drilled the District of Columbia militia, dis- playing such ability that he was commissioned colonel of the Four- teenth United States Infantry dating from May 14, 1861, and three days later was made brigadier general. He commanded a brigade under General Banks till the 11th of August, when with six regi- ments, a battery of light artillery and a company of cavalry he was ordered to watch the Potomac from Great Falls to Point of Rocks, with head quarters at Poolesville. It was a part of this force, er " Corps of Observation," as it was known, which fought the disas- trous battle of Ball's Bluff. He was arrested by order of the secre- tary of war on the 9th of February, 1862, and confined at Fort Lafayette, New York, till the following August, when without any explanation being given for his long and unjust confinement he was released. This great wrong to a brave and patriotic officer was never explained to him or the public. No charges were ever pre- ferred against General Stone, nor was any attention given to his repeated demands for explanation and trial. He was not assigned to duty till the 9th of May, 1863, when he was ordered to report to General Banks, commanding the Department of the Gulf, where he served through the siege of Port Hudson, being later made chief of staff to General Banks and acting in that capacity till his com- mander was relieved after the Red River campaign, when he resigned, dating from the 4th of April, 1864. In 1869 he became chief of staff to the Khedive of Egypt, and served brilliantly as such for 13 years, making a wonderful metamorphosis of the army of that coun- try, of which he was virtually commander. Returning then to his own country he lived near or at New York till his death in January, 1887, at the age of 64, his remains being buried at West Point.
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MASSACHUSETTS IN THIE WAR.
Major General George C. Strong
Was a graduate of West Point Military Academy in the class of 1857, having been appointed from Western Massachusetts, and was the author of "Cadet Life at West Point." At the opening of the war he was first lieutenant in the Ordnance Department of the United States Army. He served on the staff of General McDowell at Bull Run and of General Fremont late in the summer, and in September, 1861, was invited by General B. F. Butler, to become his chief of staff and assistant adjutant general, with the rank of major. This position he held till the spring of 1863, accompany- ing General Butler to New Orleans, and with him returning to New York after the Department of the Gulf was turned over to General Banks. While in that department Major Strong commanded two expeditions into the interior with much success ; in one to Poncha- toula, La., September 15, 1862, he captured the head-quarters of the Confederate General Jeff Thompson, including his sword and spurs, the former presented to him by friends in Memphis. On the recom- mendation of General Butler, Strong was commissioned brigadier general of volunteers from November 29, 1862. Although broken in health, he found inaction unbearable, and applied for active duty, being assigned to command a brigade under General Gilmore in the operations against Charleston. Landing with his brigade on Morris Island July 10, he led a charge against Fort Wagner next morning, which was repulsed. In the desperate attack of the 18th the post of honor was again given to his brigade, and again he was found leading his troops gallantly to almost certain death. At the para- pet of the hostile works he received a severe wound in the thigh, was carried to the rear and sent to New York; but his enfeebled condition proved fatal and on the 30th he died from lockjaw, and was buried in Greenwood Cemetery. Shortly before his death he was nominated by President Lincoln as major general of volunteers, dat- ing from July 18, 1863, in recognition of his heroism at Wagner.
Major General Edwin Vose Sumner,
Born in 1797 at Boston and educated at the Milton Academy, entered the United States Army as second lieutenant of infantry at the age of 22. He served in the Black Hawk war in 1832 and was commissioned captain of dragoons the following year, serving on the frontier with
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distinction till 1838. IIe was then made instructor in the cavalry school at Carlisle, Pa., but returned to active service in the Mexican war with the rank of major, and won much distinction as a cavalry commander. He was governor of the Territory of New Mexico from 1851 to 1853, and later was engaged in Indian warfare, and was on duty in Kansas during the troubles of 1858. In March. 1861, having been promoted to brigadier general in the regular army, he was sent to relieve General Albert Sydney Johnston in command of the De-
MAJ. GEN. EDWIN V. SUMNER
partment of the Pacific; but the opening of the war of the rebellion called for his return, and he was summoned to a more active field. During the winter of 1861-2 he was placed in command of a division of troops in the defenses of Washington, and in the organi- zation of the Army of the Potomac for the campaign of 1862 he was made commander of the Second Corps of three divisions. With two of his divisions he made a reconnaissance into Virginia in March, pressing the enemy back across the Rappahannock river. One division of his corps accompanied General MeClellan to the Peninsula, and when early in April Sumner followed with the other
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MASSACHUSETTS INN THE WAR.
divisions, he was given the command of the left wing of the army operating against Yorktown, comprising his own corps and the Fourth. When Yorktown was evacuated he commanded the troops which followed the retiring Confederates and fought the sanguinary battle of Williamsburg. His opportune arrival at the head of two divisions upon the battle-field of Fair Oaks in the afternoon of the 31st of May turned the tide of battle in favor of the Union arms; and he was in command at the actions at Peach Orchard, Savage Station and Glendale, and a portion of his troops were engaged at Malvern Hill. His corps was moved to Centerville after the un- fortunate second battle of Bull Run, taking position between that place and Chantilly, but was not in action. On the advance of McClellan into Maryland General Sumner commanded the center of the army, comprising his own corps and the Twelfth under General Mansfield, and these organizations fought well and suffered terribly at Antietam. On the reorganization of the Army of the Potomac under General Burnside, Sumner commanded the right grand divis- ion, composed of the Second and Ninth Corps. With this he reached the Rappahannock opposite Fredericksburg on the 17th of Novem- ber, 1862, but as the ponton bridges for erossing the river had not arrived, and he was not allowed to ford the stream with his com- mand, there was no alternative but to wait-which he did for nearly four weeks before the preparations for the movement across the river were completed. His grand division was the one which led the crossing when the bridges were built on the 11th of December, and it bore the brunt of the ill-starred battle which ensued, suffer- ing a loss of 5,161. The valor displayed by officers and men was of the most heroic sort; but the result of the battle was so un- satisfactory and the feeling among prominent officers of the army so bitter that General Sumner asked to be relieved from his command. This was done by the President on the 25th of January, 1863, and on the 10th of March following he was assigned to command the Department of the Missouri. While on his way to his new post of duty he sickened, dying on the 21st of March, 1863, at Syracuse, N. Y., at the age of 66. General Sumner received the rank of major general of volunteers from July 4, 1862, and a brevet rank of the same grade in the regular army from May 31, 1862. Ile was twice wounded during the Seven Days' battles on the Peninsula, and again at Antietam, though not disabled.
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GENERAL OFFICERS.
Brevet Brigadier General Sylvanus Thayer,
A native of Braintree, graduated at Dartmouth College in 1807, entered the Military Academy at West Point the following year, being appointed from his native state, and 11 months later graduated third in his class, being commissioned second lieutenant in the Corps of Engineers February 23, 1808. During the war of 1812 he was engaged in various capacities and in nearly all the different fields of operation, and for two years after the close of that war was in Europe studying the matter of fortifications. From 1817 to 1833 he was superintendent of the Military Academy, and at the close of his term there was for more than 20 years engaged in works of great interest to his native state, being superintending engineer of the con- struction of Forts Warren, Independence and Winthrop in Boston Harbor. This duty continued till 1843, after which he was for nine years engaged on the sea walls of the same harbor. At the close of this work he received leave of absence on account of ill health, and did not again resume active duty. He held the commission of lieutenant colonel of engineers from July 7, 1838, till the 3d of May, 1863, when he was commissioned colonel, was on the 31st brevetted brigadier general United States Army for long and faith. ful service, and on the 1st of June was retired from the active list, " having been borne on the army register more than 45 years." General Thayer died at South Braintree September 7, 1872.
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