USA > Massachusetts > Massachusetts in the war, 1861-1865 Pt. 2 > Part 8
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The movement to the south of the James river began on the 12th, and the day previous Lieutenant Colonel Montague returned to duty, relieving Lieutenant Colonel Harlow; but he was obliged to return to hospital and the command of the regiment for some weeks de- volved on Captain J. A. Loomis. The lines in front of Petersburg were reached on the evening of the 17th, and the next day the Thirty-seventh shared in the battle, losing four men killed and several wounded. By this time the term of service of the other regiments of the brigade had expired, and all had departed for home, the re-enlisted veterans and the recruits remaining to com- plete their terms of service-those of the Second Rhode Island being formed into a battalion and those of the Seventh and Tenth Massachusetts continuing with the Thirty-seventh, at first as de-
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THE THIRTY-SEVENTII REGIMENT.
tachments but three months later being distributed among the dif- ferent companies .of the regiment. The brigade, therefore, for a time consisted only of the Thirty-seventh and the attachments-a total of scarcely 500 men and officers.
During the days which followed there was almost incessant skir- mishing and exposure; on the 22d the brigade took position on the extreme left of the Sixth Corps, which had been established along the Jerusalem Plank road, remaining there till the 29th, when the corps marched to Reams Station to the relief of General Wilson's cavalry,-a trying but bloodless expedition, from which they re- turned on the 2d of July. On the 6th the brigade was discontinued and a new one formed, under Colonel Edwards, consisting of the remains of his former command, with the Fifth Wisconsin, Twenty- third, Forty-ninth, Eighty-second and One Hundred and Nineteenth Pennsylvania Regiments. This was made the Third Brigade, First Division, Sixth Corps, and members of the regiment who had sue- cessively worn the blue and the white Greek crosses now donned the red as their distinguished badge.
Three days later the First and Second Divisions of the corps were ordered to Washington to meet the Maryland raid of General Early, -the Third Division having been already sent on by way of Balti- more and defeated at the battle of the Monocacy. The Thirty- seventh took transport to Washington, which was reached about noon of the 12th. Marching at once to Fort Stevens, some part was had that afternoon in the engagement with Early's advance, and next morning the pursuit of his retreating forces was taken up. The day following the regiment was armed with the Spencer re- peating rifles, being the first in the Sixth Corps to receive that then remarkable weapon. On the 18th the enemy was overtaken at Snicker's Ferry on the Shenandoah river, and an attack by a divis- ion of the Eighth Corps was repulsed. Details from the Thirty- seventh went on picket along the river after the fight, and in the picket fire of the next day proved the power of the new weapons.
On the morning of the 20th the regiment led the crossing of the river, only to find that Early had retreated, and that night General Wright started with his corps for the defenses of Washington, to which he made a sharp march; but he had scarcely arrived there when further intelligence caused him to march toward Harper's Ferry on the 26th. That point being reached by great exertion-
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MASSACHUSETTS IN THE WAR.
the severely hot weather being intensified by a drought which had prevailed since the first of June-the corps was united with Crook's command a few miles beyond,-which had scarcely been done when the intelligence of MeCausland's raid drew from General Halleck at Washington an order for their immediate return to Frederick, which was obeyed though causing great suffering to the men.
In that vicinity the regiment remained till the 6th of August, when, General Sheridan having been put in command of the de- partment, the corps was ordered across the Potomac to more active operations. The result was a parallel race up the Shenandoah Valley by the two armies, Early finally taking post in a strong position near Cedar Creek. After a few days of skirmishing Sheri- dan decided to fall back to his former position near Charlestown; Early promptly followed. In these maneuverings the Thirty- seventh had its full share of hardships and exposure, and on the morning of the 21st it rendered notable service in repelling an at- tack by the enemy on the skirmish line. An alarm being sounded the regiment was ordered to the front, deployed along a sunken road, and made so strong a resistance with the Spencer rifle that the Confederates withdrew and did not renew the attempt on that part of the Union Line. The loss of the regiment was five killed and 15 wounded.
Following this experience no event of moment occurred until the battle of the Opequan, in which the Thirty-seventh rendered excellent service and won high commendation. At the opening of the battle Russell's Division, of which it formed a part, was in reserve; but when, after the first advance of the Federal troops, their line was broken at the junction of the Sixth and Nineteenth Corps, the re- serves were brought into action. Colonel Edwards, with quick military intuition, had carly ordered the Thirty-seventh to the right, where it occupied a ravine in front of Stevens's Fifth Maine Bat- tery. A Confederate brigade was soon discovered making for the battery and Lieutenant Colonel Montague quickly prepared his com- mand for a vigorous counter-charge. This was successfully exe- cuted, the Spencer rifles sweeping everything before them, the colors of the Second Virginia Regiment and many prisoners being capt- ured. The pursuit was kept up for half a mile, and a halt made far in advance of any other Union troops, near a rebel battery, which was soon silenced and driven away by the sharp firing of a
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THE THIRTY-SEVENTII REGIMENT.
detachment from the regiment. While bringing up troops to the support of this position General David A. Russell was killed. The regiment had by a change of direction been entirely separated from the rest of the brigade, and fought for some time as an independent command, making another dash to the front and cutting off the line of retreat in use by some of the Confederates as their lines were crumbled further to the right, and being led far forward by the gallant General Upton, who was severely wounded while galloping with the colors of the regiment toward the enemy. Although out of ammunition and far in advance of their supports, the Thirty- seventh still held on with the bayonet till other troops were ordered forward with cartridges, when they joined in the final decisive charge. The loss was heavy; out of 296 enlisted men taken into action, 15 were killed and seven officers and 72 men wounded, among the fatally hurt being First Lieutenant Charles S. Bardwell of Whately.
For his services that day Colonel Edwards received the brevet of brigadier general and was made commander of the post at Win- chester, the Thirty-seventh forming the provost guard, in which enviable but well-carned position they remained till the frost and storms of winter and the practical dispersion of Early's command put an end to military operations in the Valley. Major Moody hav- ing been discharged July 26 for disability, Captain Rufus P. Lincoln succeeded to the office. On the 13th of December the Thirty-seventh took cars for the Army of the Potomac, in front of Petersburg, by way of Washington, being the last regiment of the Sixth Corps to depart ; three days later they rejoined the brigade-at the time commanded by General Isaac C. Bassett, going into camp in the vicinity of Fort Wadsworth on the Weldon Railroad.
During the winter no events of great importance transpired, but there was an incessant round of dangerous and disagreeable duties. The regiment formed part of a supporting force sent out on the 5th of February, 1865, to operate against the enemy's right flank at HIatcher's Run, and for two days there was skirmishing and fortifying during one of the severest storms of winter; when, with the loss of a few men wounded and the rest nearly frozen, the com- mand returned to camp. Lieutenant Colonel Montagne resigned on the 3d of March, Major Lincoln and Captain Mason W. Tyler were each advanced a grade, the command of the regiment being taken by the latter, the former being absent on staff duty.
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MASSACHUSETTS IN THE WAR.
The assault on Fort Stedman on the morning of March 25, 1865, called the Thirty-seventh with other troops of the Sixth Corps toward the scene, but when it was found that their services would not be needed in repelling the assault, General Wright made a counter attack on the Confederate works in front of Fort Fisher, capturing the intrenched picket line, in holding which against re- peated efforts for its recapture the Thirty-seventh rendered import- ant service. Among the few wounded that day was Major Tyler, and the commander of the regiment from that date till the sur- render of General Lee was Captain Hopkins.
In the attack on the defenses of Petersburg, in the morning of April 2, the skirmish line was composed of 75 picked men and vol- unteers from the regiment under Captain John C. Robinson, formed alternately with the brigade pioneers commanded by Lieutenant David M. Donaldson, armed only with axes for cutting through the abatis, while the rest of the command was in the front line of the assaulting column. The line of battle reached the abatis almost as soon as the pioneers, sweeping through and over it, the objective of the Thirty-seventh being a three-gun fort. This with a stand of colors was captured after a sharp struggle, the loss of the regi- ment being three killed and 32 wounded. Other important service was rendered during the day, including the silencing of a battery by a detail of two companies in the afternoon.
That evening when the Union lines halted near Petersburg Gen- eral Edwards was made officer of the day, and his skirmishers were largely from the Thirty-seventh. Before daylight next morning he advanced with them to the city, the evacuation of which by Gen- eral Lee had just been completed, and received from the officials a formal surrender. The Thirty-seventh Regiment alone of the Sixth Corps entered the city to preserve order till it could be garrisoned by the Ninth Corps, and then the pursuit of the retreating Confed- erates was taken up. Within 75 hours over 70 miles were marched, and on the afternoon of the 6th, after making several miles on the double-quick, the regiment took an important part in the severe en- gagement at Sailor's Creek which resulted in the destruction of Lee's rear guard under General Ewell.
At the opening of the engagement the division-commanded by General Wheaton-advanced up a broken and bush-covered slope till it encountered the Confederate line, when a heavy fire at short
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THIE THIRTY-SEVENTII REGIMENT.
range was received and the Union troops, with the exception of the Thirty-seventh, fell back. That organization stood its ground, and aided by the Spencer rifle drove out the forces in its front and pur- sued them some distance. It then dispersed another body moving past its flank, when it was almost at the same moment attacked from the rear by General Custis Lee's Brigade and a terribly ob- stinate contest at close quarters followed. Finally the assailants were driven back into a ravine from which they had emerged to the attack and forced to surrender, General Custis Lee and more than their own number being captured by the Thirty-seventh. The loss of the regiment was nine killed and 31 wounded out of some 200 taken into action. Captain Hopkins, who had received the brevet of major for his part in the fall of Petersburg, was now brevetted lieutenant colonel.
This was the last engagement in which the regiment took part. It followed Lee to Appomattox, retraced its steps to Burkesville where it remained for ten days, thence went to Danville, where the news of General Johnston's surrender was received, and passed the carly part of May guarding the Southside Railroad. The Sixth Corps was reviewed in Richmond May 24, marching thence to Hall's Hill, a few miles across the Potomac from Washington, and on the 8th of June was reviewed in the national capital, the Thirty-seventh under Major Tyler having 300 members present.
The re-enlisted men and some of the officers were transferred to the Twentieth Massachusetts Regiment on the 21st of June, while the remainder of the regiment was mustered out of the United States service. Next morning it set out for home, going by way of New York, Hudson, Pittsfield, Springfield and Boston to the camp at Readville, whence on the 2d of July, having been paid and discharged by the state, the veteran band bade adieu to soldier life.
THE THIRTY-EIGHTH REGIMENT.
T HE Thirty-eighth Regiment was recruited from various towns near Boston and in Plymouth county. Companies A, B and F gathered at Camp Day in North Cambridge, while the other seven companies rendezvoused at Camp Stanton, Lynnfield, under command of Major D. K. Wardwell. The latter were mus- tered August 20-22, 1862, while the Cambridge companies were sworn in by detachments at various times during July and August, a few recruits being added later. The roster of officers at the time the regiment left Massachusetts follows :-
Colonel, Timothy Ingraham of New Bedford; lieutenant colonel, David K. Wardwell of Boston; major, William L. Rodman of New Bedford; surgeon, Samuel C. Hartwell of Southbridge; assistant sur- geons, Edwin F. Ward of Enfield and George F. Thompson of Belcher- town; adjutant, Frank W. Loring of Boston; quartermaster, Elijah Swift of Falmouth; sergeant major, Timothy Ingraham, Jr., of New Bedford; quartermaster sergeant, William A. Richardson of Newton; commissary sergeant, Israel B. Nelson of Cambridge; hospital stew- ard, Amasa D. Ward of Worcester; principal musicians, Charles Mon- roe of Cambridge and Albert T. Finney of Plymouth.
Company A, Cambridgeport-Captain, James P. Richardson; first lieutenant, Arthur Hodges; second lieutenant, William HI. Jewell.
Company B, East Cambridge-Captain, J. Henry Wyman ; first lieutenant, Frank N. Scott; second lieutenant, George H. Bennett.
Company C, Abington-Captain, Charles F. Allen; first lieutenant, Timothy Reed; second lieutenant, Francis A. Nash.
Company D-First lieutenant, Cephas Washburn of Kingston; second lieutenant, Albert Mason of Plymouth.
Company E, Lynn-Captain John E. Smith; first lieutenant, Eben Parsons, Jr .; second lieutenant, Vivian K. Spear.
Company F, Cambridge-Captain, Taylor P. Rundlett; first lieu- tenant, Joseph A. Hildreth; second lieutenant, Edward C. Dyke.
Company G, Plymouth-Captain, Charles C. Doten; second lieu- tenant, George B. Russell.
Company H-Captain, Thomas R. Rodman of New Bedford; first lieutenant, Julius M. Lathrop of Dedham; second lieutenant, Charles C. Howland of Boston.
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THE THIRTY-EIGIITII REGIMENT.
Company I-Captain, James HI. Wade of Boston; first lieutenant, Osgood W. Waitt of Malden.
Company K-Captain, James H. Slade; first lieutenant, Samuel Gault, both of Boston; second lieutenant, George T. Martin of Melrose.
The vacant line offices were filled by promotions dating from November 1, Lieutenant Reed becoming captain of Company D, Sergeant Major Ingraham advancing to second lieutenant and being succeeded by Frederick Holmes of Plymouth.
Marching orders came for the 26th of August, when the Lyn- field companies formed regimental line, having been fully equipped and armed with the Enfield rifle, went by rail to Boston and took cars for New London via Worcester, under command of Lieutenant Colonel Wardwell. The other companies also came to Boston, but not till the main body had left the city, when they took a special train and overtook the others at New London. From there the command went to Jersey City by steamer, thence to Philadelphia by two trains, enjoying the hospitality of the Quaker City and about midnight setting out for Baltimore. The Monumental City was reached the next forenoon, and after dinner at the Union Relief Rooms the regiment marched to Camp Belger in Druid Hill Park. There a day or two later the Cambridge companies were armed and equipped, and on the 3d of September Colonel Ingraham arrived and assumed command; as both he and the second in command were experienced soldiers the regiment made rapid progress in drill and discipline. On the 9th the Thirty-eighth were ordered to take a position on the Liberty or Frederick road, some seven miles from Baltimore, near the village of Powhattan, to guard against attack on the city by General Lee's Confederate army, then in the state. That place was reached late in the evening, and next day Camp Cram was laid out and occupied, the regiment remaining there some five weeks, and a brass-band being organized from musicians in the command.
Marching orders were received on the 11th of October, and next day the regiment returned to Baltimore and took cars for Chambers- burg, being called out' on account of the raid of Stuart's cavalry around the rear of Mcclellan's army; but the train had hardly started when it was called back, the troops debarked and were quartered in convenient buildings during the night. Next morning the Thirty-eight marched to a pleasant location on the southwest
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MASSACHUSETTS IN THE WAR.
outskirts of the city, designated as Camp Emory, where they were attached to one of the brigades of General Emory's command. This position was occupied till November 9, Colonel Ingraham acting as brigadier much of the time. By this time the first severe snow- storm had occurred, and the order which came on that day to em- bark on ocean transports was welcomed by the men. On the 10th the regiment was taken down Chesapeake Bay in small craft and transferred to the Baltic, General Emory's flag-ship, sailing to Hampton Roads where the vessel anchored. With brief trips ashore for musket practice and drill, the regiment remained on shipboard till the 8th of December. During this time Lieutenant Colonel Wardwell resigned, dating from December 3; Major Rod- man and Captain Richardson being advanced in due order.
The fleet bearing the division began to weigh anchor in the morn- ing of the 8th, and that afternoon the Baltic sailed, in the rear of the squadron. Ship Island was reached on the 13th, en route to New Orleans; but as the Baltic was of too heavy draft to enter the Mississippi river, the Thirty-eighth debarked and waited on the un- inviting spot for the return of some of the lighter craft. Christ- mas passed, and it was not till the 28th that the Northern Light appeared to take the regiment on its way. It sailed the 30th, reached New Orleans the following day, and on New Year's day went up the river to Carrollton, where the regiment went ashore. Some changes in the assignment of regiments to brigades occurred at first but the Thirty-eighth soon became part of the Third Brigade, Third Division, Nineteenth Corps, the other regiments of the bri- gade being the Thirty-first and Fifty-third Massachusetts, One Hun- dred and Fifty-sixth and One Hundred and Seventy-fifth New York. Colonel Gooding of the Thirty-first commanded the brigade and General Emory the division. Colonel Ingraham was about this time appointed to the command of the First Brigade, same division, and did not return to the regiment for duty.
The regiment took part in its first expedition February 11, 1863, when it went aboard the steamer Morning Light and ascended the river to Plaquemine, where a landing was made and the troops waited till the 19th, anticipating an expedition up the Bayou Pla- quemine. A reconnaissance showing that the stream was thoroughly obstructed, the regiment re-embarked on the transport and returned to Camp Kearny, where it remained till the 6th of March, the men
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THIE THIRTY-EIGHTII REGIMENT.
suffering much from disease. Camp was broken during a heavy rain storm, and at noon of the 7th the command embarked on the St. Mary's, reaching Baton Rouge next morning and being quar- tered in the theater. After reviews and other preparations, line was formed late in the afternoon of the 13th and the Thirty-eighth joined the force demonstrating against Port Hudson in conjunction with the attempt of Admiral Farragut to run the batteries with a portion of his fleet. The column moved slowly till midnight, and resumed the march next day ; but on the morning of the 15th information was received that the naval purpose had been accom- plished. After some marching back and forth in the mud, the regiment returned to Baton Rouge on the 20th, encamping in a magnolia grove for a few days, then moving to a swampy locality on the Perkins road where it remained till the 1st of April.
Going by transport to Algiers, opposite New Orleans, the regi- ment encamped till the 9th, when it took cars to Brashear City, joining an expedition which was being organized to drive away the Confederate force threatening New Orleans and the vicinity, strik - ing thence to the Red river and clearing the way for the intended operations against Port Hudson. The regiment at once crossed the Atchafalaya river to Berwick City, where it encamped till the 11th, when the movement of the column began. The enemy's outposts were encountered some miles in front of Fort Bisland on the 12th, and were pressed back near to their works, when the skirmishing ended for the day. The brigade took position in front of the enemy early the following day, and about noon the Thirty-eight relieved the 'Thirty-first on the skirmish line, advancing close to the enemy's batteries and doing good service with their rifles, though suffering from the return fire. Their ammunition being exhausted, they were relieved and withdrew a short distance, having lost six killed and 29 wounded ; among the former Captain Samuel Gault of Company A.
The morning of the 14th found the Confederate works deserted, and pursuit was at once made, in the hope of capturing the entire force; but General Taylor had evaded the troops under General Grover, and the movement of the Union column continued till the Red river was reached. With one day's rest while a bridge was being built over Vermilion Bayou, the regiment marched till the afternoon of the 20th, when it halted at Opelousas, remaining there till the 5th of May when it set out for Alexandria, which it entered
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MASSACHUSETTS IN THE WAR.
with flags flying and bands playing, the town having already been taken possession of by United States naval forces.
The regiment remained in camp near that place till the 15th, when marching orders came, and soon after daybreak the road was taken, three days' marching bringing the command to Simmsport on the Atchafalaya. The troops were ferried across that river on the 19th, and two days later set forth for Port Hudson, reaching the Mississippi at Morganza Bend on the afternoon of the 22d. Transports were there waiting, on which the soldiers were taken to Bayou Sara, landing some ten miles above Port Hudson. A heavy storm just as the troops landed made the subsequent marching very difficult, but during the 23d the division reached its assigned position in front of the stronghold, completing the investment. After resting a day, the Thirty-eighth were detached to Sandy Creek, on the right, to support a battery, and several of the com- pany were deployed as skirmishers, exchanging shots with the foe across the creek and having two men killed and two wounded.
Remaining in that vicinity till the morning of the 27th, when the general assault was to be made upon the Confederate works, the regiment started to rejoin its brigade, but before reaching it was directed by General Paine to support Duryea's Battery. This it did till about 10 o'clock, when it joined in the assault, advancing by the flank owing to the difficult nature of the ground, and was within four or five hundred feet of the intrenchments when the column was ordered to halt and lie down, obtaining such cover as was possible from the fierce fire of the enemy. Unable to advance or retreat, the regiment remained there during the rest of the day, returning the Confederate fire with some effect and suffering com- paratively few casualties, the total loss being but three killed and 14 wounded. That loss however, included the gallant commander of the regiment, Lieutenant Colonel Rodman, who on rising to give an order was instantly killed by a sharp-shooter, the command de- volving upon Captain Wyman. Major Richardson, absent from ill- ness, returned on the 30th, and was promoted to fill the vacancy.
During the truce of the following day the regiment remained at the front, and for 24 hours after the resumption of hostilities, when it was relieved and went back into the woods for a brief rest. But after one day's respite the Thirty-eight moved back to their old position in the ravine, facing the intrenchments, where they re-
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