USA > Massachusetts > Hampden County > Our county and its people : A history of Hampden County, Massachusetts. Volume 1 > Part 19
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The Twelfth Battery Light Artillery .- Sixteen enlisted men.
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The Thirteenth Battery Light Artillery .- Nine enlisted men.
The Fourteenth Battery Light Artillery .- Nine enlisted men.
The Fifteenth Battery Light Artillery .- Nine enlisted men. The First Heavy Artillery-Twenty-nine enlisted men.
The Second Heavy Artillery .- Captain, Ira B. Sampson of . Springfield ; first lieutenant, Samuel R. Bingham of Westfield ; first lieutenant, Joseph F. Field of Westfield; first lieutenant, Alfred H. Kinsley of Springfield ; first lieutenant, Horace L. Clark of Springfield; 282 enlisted men.
The Fourth Heavy Artillery .- Eight enlisted men.
The First Battalion Heavy Artillery .- Thirty-nine enlisted men.
The Twenty-ninth Unattached Company Heavy Artillery .- Twenty-two enlisted men.
The First Cavalry .- Surgeon, James Holland of Westfield ; assistant surgeon, Oscar C. DeWolf of Chester; assistant sur- geon, Albert R. Rice of Springfield ; chaplain, George W. Gor- ham of Holyoke ; captain, Myron C. Pratt of Holyoke ; first lieu- tenant, Alton E. Phillips of Chicopee; second lieutenant, Hor- ace M. Butler of Springfield ; second lieutenant, George Howe of Springfield ; second lieutenant, George B. Davis of Springfield ; quartermaster-sergeant, Vashni H. Pease of Springfield; hos- pital steward, Henry B. Bates of Chicopee; hospital steward, Curtis E. Munn of Westfield; chief bugler, Timothy J. Powell of Blandford ; sergeant-farrier, Benjamin W. Norris of Spring- field ; 270 enlisted men.
The Second Cavalry .- Surgeon, Oscar C. DeWolf of Ches- ter ; surgeon, Elbridge M. Johnson of Agawam ; fifty-one enlisted men.
The Third Cavalry .- First lieutenant, Henry S. Adams of Chicopee ; second lieutenant, Duett C. Clark of Westfield ; thirty- two enlisted men.
The Fourth Cavalry .- Second lieutenant, Henry M. Phil- lips of Springfield ; ninety-seven enlisted men.
The Fifth Cavalry .- Thirty-four enlisted men.
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The Veteran Reserve Corps .- Eighty-eight enlisted men. The Regular Army .- Thirty-two enlisted men.
Other State Organizations .- Thirty-five enlisted men. (Nearly all from the eastern towns of the county, for the First District of Columbia Infantry.)
In addition to the above, thirteen other Massachusetts com- mands had on their rolls one or more men each from Hampden county, so that it will be seen that eighty Massachusetts organ- izations had representatives from the county. This does not take into account the very large number of those enlisting into the troops of other states of which no returns were made to the Massachusetts authorities. Could the number of these be even approximately estimated it would measurably swell the already highly creditable total.
One fact which will strike even the casual reader is the very low proportion of commissions issued to officers from Hampden county. This fact may be partially explained by the small rep- resentation of the county in the state militia at the outbreak of the war. Other factors which must be taken into account are the strong political and local pressure brought upon the governor for the commissioning of ambitious aspirants in every portion of the state and from without the confines of the commonwealth. It is not to be supposed that the Hampden soldiers were indiffer- ent to the honor embodied in commissions ; but the entire history of the war period shows first of all an intense patriotic devotion, which was willing to waive and sacrifice deserved recognition, rather than that the imperilled government of the nation should fail to receive the fullest measure of material support. That there was no lack of material for efficient commanders within the limits of the county is shown by the admirable average main- tained by those who received commissions. Among the general officers in the national service during the war period there were many whom Hampden county might justly claim as her direct representatives, and whose service was well worth having, as will be seen from the following very brief sketches.
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GENERAL OFFICERS
Brevet Major-General James Barnes of Springfield gradu- ated at the military academy, West Point, in the class of 1829. He passed a year there as assistant instructor, took part in the Black Hawk expedition of 1832, and during the nullification con- troversy soon after was stationed in Charleston harbor. He then returned to West Point as assistant instructor, resigning after three years' service. He became noted as civil engineer and a builder of railroads, and was engaged in large business enter- prises when the war broke out. But nothing could stand be- tween him and the service of his country in its hour of need, and on the 26th of July, 1861, he was commissioned colonel of the Eighteenth Massachusetts infantry. He commanded his regi- ment with great ability till after the close of the Peninsular cam- paign, when he succeeded to the command of Martindale's brig- ade of the Fifth corps, and, dating from November 29, 1862, was promoted to brigadier-general of volunteers. He commanded this brigade during the Antietam, Fredericksburg and Chancel- lorsville campaigns, and at Gettysburg had risen to command the First division, Fifth corps. Leading his forces to the relief of Sickles' corps near the close of the second day's fighting, he was wounded and did not again return to active duty in the field. He was assigned to the command of the defenses of Nor- folk, Va., then of St. Mary's district, and finally of the encamp- ment of confederate prisoners at Point Lookout, Md., where he remained until the close of the war, receiving his brevet rank of major-general of volunteers to date from March 13, 1865. He remained in commission till January 15, 1866, when he was mus- tered out and returned to his home, but never regained his health, dying there on the 12th of February, 1869.
Brevet Brigadier-General Robert E. Clary, a native of Springfield, was appointed from Massachusetts to the military academy at West Point in 1823, graduating July 1, 1828, when he was commissioned a second lieutenant. He served in various portions of the country, rising in rank, until the opening of the rebellion found him a
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staff major and chief quartermaster of the department of Utah. His service was principally in the quartermaster's department, and he was chief quartermaster of the department of West Vir- ginia from November, 1861, to July, 1862, then of the army of Virginia under General Pope, then of the department of the Northwest to the 20th of March, 1863. He then served in the quartermaster-general's office at Washington till August 24, 1864, when he was placed in charge of the Memphis depot, where he remained till the close of the war. He was commissioned lieutenant-colonel in the regular line April 15, 1864, colonel July 29, 1866, and was retired February 22, 1869, being over sixty- two years of age. He was brevetted brigadier-general from the 13th of March, 1865, on account of faithful and meritorious ser- vices during the rebellion.
Brigadier-General William Dwight was born at Springfield in 1831, entered a military school at West Point, N. Y., at the age of 15, and afterward studied at the military academy there, which he left before graduation to enter manufacturing business. When the war broke out, being then at Philadelphia, he offered his services to the government, and May 14, 1861, was commis- sioned as a captain in the Fourteenth U. S. infantry. On the organization of the Seventieth New York infantry, Col. Daniel E. Sickles, Captain Dwight was commissioned as second in com- mand, and on the promotion of Sickles to brigadier was commis- sioned as colonel. He led his regiment with great gallantry at the battle of Williamsburg, May 6, 1862, where he received three wounds, being disabled and made prisoner, but was left in hos- pital on parole. After exchange and recovery he was made brigadier-general of volunteers from November 29, 1862, and soon afterward joined the forces of General Banks in Louisiana. He commanded a brigade of the Nineteenth corps in the opera- tions against Port Hudson, and served on the commission to set- tle the terms of surrender. At the Red River campaign of the succeeding spring he was made chief of staff to General Banks. Accompanying that portion of his corps sent north in the sum- mer of 1864, he commanded the First division during its opera- tions in the Shenandoah valley, continuing in the service until
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January 15, 1866, when he was mustered out after almost five years of highly honorable service.
Brevet Major-General Oliver Edwards of Springfield en- tered the service as adjutant of the Tenth infantry, but was soon detailed as senior aide on the staff of Gen. Darius N. Couch, com- manding the division, in which capacity he served with distinc- tion till early August, 1862, when he was commissioned major and directed to organize the Thirty-seventh infantry, of which he was made colonel. He made of his regiment one of the best disciplined and most effective in the army of the Potomac. On the 9th of May, 1864, he took command of his brigade, which he led with distinction till July 6, 1864, when it was consolidated with another brigade, of which he was made commander. With this force he fought at Fort Stevens and the Opequan in the campaign against General Early. At the latter battle he com- manded the First division, Sixth corps, after the death of Gen- eral Russell and the wounding of General Upton, and in recog- nition of his services on that occasion he was made post com- mandant at Winchester, with his brigade and some other troops as garrison. This position he retained for some time after the return of the Sixth corps to the army of the Potomac, and was offered by General Sheridan the position of provost marshal- general on his staff; but Edwards preferred the command of his old brigade, to which, at his special request, he was returned in February, 1865. In the assault of April 2, 1865, on the lines at Petersburg, his brigade took an important part, being the first to break through the confederate works, and the next morning he received from the mayor of Petersberg the surrender of the city, very soon after its evacuation by General Lee. For his services at this time he received the commission of brigadier-general of volunteers, to date from May 19, having been brevetted for his gallantry at Opequan, and in the sharp fight at Sailor's Creek, April 6, he won the brevet of major-general. He remained in the service until January 15, 1866, when he was honorably dis- charged.
Major-General Erasmus Darwin Keyes was a native of Brimfield, where he was born in 1810, was appointed from Maine
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to the military academy at West Point, from which he graduated in 1832. His service up to the outbreak of the rebellion had been varied, and at that time he was military secretary for Gen- eral Scott. He was commissioned colonel of the Eleventh U. S. infantry, May 14, 1861, three days later was made brigadier- general of volunteers, and was for a time engaged at Boston and New York in the duties of raising, equipping and forwarding troops. He returned to Washington, however, in time to com- mand a brigade at the battle of Bull Run, July 21, 1861. In the organization of the army of the Potomac for the campaign of 1862 he was made commander of the Fourth corps, and was com- missioned major-general of volunteers from the 5th of May. He shared in the operations against Yorktown, and after the battle of Williamsburg led the advance up the Peninsula. It was upon his corps that the weight of the confederate attack fell at the battle of Fair Oaks, May 31, and for his gallant part in that action he received the brevet of brigadier-general in the regular army. On the withdrawal of the army of the Potomac from the Peninsula, General Keyes was left in command at Yorktown, and in the temporary absence of General Dix was in command of the department of Virginia. In July, 1863, he was placed on the board for retiring army officers, where he served until May 6, 1864, when he resigned his commissions and returned to civil life.
Brevet Brigadier-General Ralph W. Kirkham was born at Springfield, graduated at West Point in the class of 1842, and was commissioned second lieutenant of the Second U. S. infantry. He served as adjutant of that regiment during the war with Mexico, being brevetted first lieutenant and captain for gallant conduct, and was wounded at the battle of Molino del Rey. In the interval between the Mexican war and the rebellion he served at various posts as assistant adjutant-general or quartermaster, and in the spring of 1861 was stationed at Fort Walla Walla in Washington territory with the rank of captain. He was chief quartermaster of the department of the Pacific from August 31, 1861, to June, 1865, and of the department of California from that time onward. He received the commission of major Feb- ruary 26, 1863, and dating from March 13, 1865, brevets of lieu-
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Brevet Brigadier-General Horace C. Lee Colonel Twenty-Seventh Massachusetts Infantry Volunteers
OUR COUNTY AND ITS PEOPLE
tenant-colonel, colonel, and brigadier-general, "for faithful and meritorious services in the quartermaster's department during the rebellion." He resigned his commission February 11, 1870.
Brevet Brigadier-General Horace C. Lee was city clerk and treasurer of Springfield at the opening of the war, and had sev- eral years before risen to the rank of colonel and acting brigadier in the state militia. In August, 1861, he was offered the lieuten- ant-colonelcy of the Twenty-first infantry, then being organized, and on going to Boston to accept the offer was given permission to raise one of the five regiments just authorized. He organized the Twenty-seventh infantry, which he ably commanded until July 4, 1862, when he took command of the brigade, leading it in the Trenton, Tarboro and Goldsboro expeditions, and winning praise for the able handling of his troops in repulsing General Clingman's attack at the latter engagement. He was recom- mended by General Foster for promotion to the rank of brigadier- general of volunteers, but the commission was not issued on ac- count of the large number already given to Massachusetts officers. When General Burnside left North Carolina to take command of the army of the Potomac, Colonel Lee was appointed provost marshal-general of North Carolina, and later of the department of Virginia and North Carolina, and acted in that capacity until the office was abolished by General Butler in January, 1864. He then served upon commissions and courts-martial till the opening of the campaign in May following, when he resumed command of his regiment, leading it at Walthal Junction, Arrowfield Church and Drewry's Bluff. In the latter engagement he was made prisoner with a large portion of his command, and was confined at Libby Prison and at Macon, Ga. From the latter place he was removed June 10, and with many other union officers was placed under the fire of the federal batteries at Charleston, S. C. Being exchanged August 2, 1864, he went north on a month's furlough, but returned to Fortress Munroe in time to intercept his regiment, then under orders for North Carolina, and procured the return to Massachusetts of those whose time was about to expire. He was mustered out with them, September 27, 1864, and for meritorious service received a well-deserved brevet of
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brigadier-general of volunteers, dating from March 13, 1865. He served four years in the Boston custom house, and twelve years as postmaster of Springfield, dying June 22, 1884, soon after vacating the latter office.
THE SOLDIER'S REST
From the earliest days of the great contest the non-military population of the county-men for any reason unable to enter military service, women, and even children-were earnest and zealous in their ministrations in behalf of the soldiers. Here as elsewhere throughout the country this devotion manifested itself in countless ways-in the preparation of comforts and conven- iences for the soldiers as they left their homes for temporary encampments, and as these were quitted in turn for the more active duties of the service; in loving messages and cheering words, mingled with material remembrances, sent to the absent ones ; in ministrations to the sick, the wounded, and the needy, as the tide of war rolled on and filled the country with unfortu- nates. To the people of Hampden county, and especially of Springfield and its vicinity, the work of the latter class grew in importance and in volume with the passing months. The geo- graphical situation of the city was such that most of the return- ing soldiers from Vermont, New Hampshire, central and western Massachusetts, with not a few from northern New York, from the eastern portion of Massachusetts and from Maine, went through by train, frequently stopping for hours within the city limits.
The summer of 1863 witnessed the return from service of the nine-months' regiments, many of their members suffering from disease or wounds, and following the great battles of that year, especially those of Chancellorsville and Gettysburg, the number of wounded and otherwise disabled was immensely increased. A commission of young men had been organized in the city in 1862, for the purpose of sending supplies and assistance to the front. It was officered by F. A. Brewer as president, Charles Marsh as secretary, and Henry S. Lee as treasurer, associated with whom were numbers of others, equally devoted and earnest. In doing the work for which the organization was effected they had ren-
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dered valuable service to the nation and to their friends ; but they now realized that a broader and grander service was demanded of them in their own city. At all hours of the day and night sick and wounded soldiers were passing through, often sadly in need of refreshment, care, and nursing, for which there were no ade- quate facilities. To realize was to act, and early in August, 1863, a small wooden building had been secured and fitted up on Railroad street, close to the union depot. This was very appro- priately named "The Soldiers' Rest," and for nine or ten months it served admirably the purpose for which it was intended. But the terrible campaigns of 1864 filled all the hospitals of the country to overflowing, and a vastly increased number were sent into New England. To meet the demand thus created, a larger building was erected, permanent attendants were secured, and a hospital department, well equipped in every way, was provided. Up to November, 1864, 9,243 soldiers had been cared for. There was no slackening in the demands made upon the Rest, but the raising of the necessary funds to carry on the work had become a serious problem. The gift of a quantity of produce from some Vermont farmers, however, suggested the idea of a fair at the Springfield city hall. This was planned on a broad scale by a strong committee of the leading men and women of the city, with the wife of Gen. James Barnes as president. It was held during four days of the week, beginning Monday, December 19, 1864, and proved successful beyond the most sanguine expectations. Governor Andrew and staff were present the second evening, and enthusiasm ran high during the entire period. When the final footings were made, it was shown that the net proceeds reached the handsome total of about $19,000, and this by judicious invest- ment yielded in interest and profit upward of $11,000 more. Not all of the credit for this magnificent showing should, however, be given to Springfield. Other communities co-operated, and nearly all of the towns of the county were represented at the fair and in the work of the Rest, in some degree.
The unexpectedly generous result of the undertaking pro- vided ample funds for continuing the work of the Soldiers' Rest, which was carried on with unabated zeal during the remainder of
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the war period-fortunately but a few months-and until the disbandment of the union armies, and the return of the soldiers to their homes. When the building was no longer required for its original purposes, it was sold and removed to Loring street in the same city, where quite appropriately it was adapted as a church building for one of the religious societies of colored peo- ple, and was thus occupied for thirty years. Meantime, through the agency of a permanent organization, the balance of the fund was employed for the relief of needy soldiers and their dependent ones, until the organization of E. K. Wilcox Post of the Grand Army of the Republic, by which that class of work was taken up and carried on. Up to this time it appeared that not less than 17,000 persons had been ministered to, with a total expenditure of over $80,000.
A considerable sum still remaining in the hands of the trus- tees, it was decided to invest the same in a "soldiers' lot" of gen- erous size in the Springfield cemetery, and to mark the spot by an appropriate monument. For the latter purpose the war depart- ment made a donation of condemned brass cannon, but a very satisfactory monument being purchased complete, the cannon were used as an additional decoration for the lot, which is now filled to almost its full capacity with the graves of those whom, as the years have rolled on, it has given a welcome and appropriate place of sepulture.
Thus was admirably shown by the people of Hampden coun- ty, primarily their intense patriotic devotion, which did not shrink from any necessary sacrifice of personal service or of financial contribution, that "the government established by the fathers" should not be overthrown ; and secondarily that sympa- thy and tenderness of heart which was ready to make supplemen- tal sacrifices, with an equal heroism and an equal devotion, in order that so far as possible the horrors of war might be miti- gated, the needy and the suffering be tenderly cared for, and, when the march of life was ended, appropriate burial be insured. Thus was the full measure of patriotic purpose, of unswerving fidelity, of tireless consecration, given by these people, the memory of whose noble deeds shall ever be cherished as a precious heritage.
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CHAPTER XVI
EDUCATION IN HAMPDEN COUNTY
BY JAMES CARRUTHERS GREENOUGH, LL. D.
The word education is used to denote two things-an end to be gained and the means to gain it. Education, as an end, has been defined, the realization of ideal manhood. Education, as a means, includes all that tends to promote that end. Physical environment and social environment are means of education as well as the specific means employed in schools.
Hampden county, extending from the heights of the Appala- chian system on the west, across the broad valley of the Connecti- cut to the central highlands of the State on the east, includes almost every variety of scenery furnishing varied conditions of educational culture.
The dwellers among the hills on the west and on the east, from the times of the early settlers, have been a sturdy yeomanry of marked individuality, accustomed to reach conclusions by their own thought, and to hold them tenaciously, as men are accus- tomed to hold that which is their own. Gaining their livelihood by felling the forests and working their hillside farms, their con- tact with nature under typical conditions of New England life tended to make them typical New England men-men patient and truthful in thought, courageous in action, and ever respon- sive to moral ideals. Those reared in the country homes of the county have maintained from generation to generation the sturdy virtues of their ancestors, while many making homes elsewhere have sustained by their thought and energy the worthy enter- prises of other communities.
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The broad Connecticut valley dividing the county, with allu- vial meadows bordered by extensive plains, gives opportunity for easy communication. In this section the manufacturing and allied interests seem destined more and more to eclipse the agri- cultural, though the meadows of the Connecticut are far famed for their productiveness and are justly styled the garden of New England. The dominating center of this valley section is the rapidly growing city of Springfield. The superior public schools and other educational advantages render this city peculiarly attractive as a place of residence, though some prefer for a home the younger city, Chicopee, or the outlying villages of Long- meadow, West Springfield, and Agawam. The public schools of Springfield maintain a standard of excellence to which all other schools in the valley aspire.
The sons and daughters of hill-town farmers have readily availed themselves of the opportunities of the valley schools, and no students have more merited distinction in our higher insti- tutions, whether in the academies, or later, in the high schools and in the State Normal school at Westfield. The recent laws of the state have made the high schools of larger communities avail- able to pupils from towns too small to maintain secondary schools of high grade. Those in every part of the county may now advance from the primary school, through all the grades of the public schools to college or other higher institutions with well nigh equal freedom.
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