USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Melrose > The Melrose memorial : the annals of Melrose, county of Middlesex, Massachusetts, in the great rebellion of 1861-'65 > Part 2
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92
West, John 285
Westgate, Joseph E.
S7
Wheeler, Gardner
86, 118, 285
Wheeler, George G.
86, 285
Wheeler, Robert 92, 285
.
85
WHITE, CHARLES L.
40, 45, 270
White, George E. .
223
WHITNEY, EDWARD H.
. 17, 270
Whowell, John 285
Whyte, Oliver . 86, 285
WILDE, BENJAMIN F. 60, 141, 270
Wilde, Joseph D. . 85, 282
Wilcox, Daniel W. 43, 120, 282
Wilkinson, William N. . 222
Woodward, David R.
119, 285
White, Alverse L. .
INDEX. xxvii
PAGE.
Woodward, George .
91, 282
WYMAN, GEORGE W.
95, 272
WYMAN, WESTON
. 95, 272
WYMAN, WILLIAM
· 9, 30, 272, 282
Y.
YORK, BENJAMIN F. .
· 79, 187, 202, 272
YORK, JOSIAH R. .
60, 98, 202, 272
YORK, WILLIAM B. .
60, 98, 202, 272
Young, Isaiah A. .
56, 89, 285
II.
INDEX TO REGIMENTS AND BATTERIES.
Second Regiment, Infantry
18
Fourth
9
Fifth
8, 58, 94
Sixth
94
Eighth
.
95
Eleventh 66
45
Twelfth
19
Thirteenth
14
Fifteenth
74
Sixteenth 66
21
Seventeenth
22
Eighteenth
25
Twentieth
26
Twenty-Third
29
Twenty-Fourth
29
Twenty-Sixth
66
30
Thirtieth
30
Thirty-Second
.
31
Thirty-Third
46
Thirty-Eighth
46 .
Thirty-Ninth
60
49
Forty-Second
58
Forty-Third
66
61
Forty-Fourth
.
61
.
26
Twenty-Second Regiment, Infantry
XXViii
INDEX.
PAGE.
Forty-Fifth Regiment, Infantry
63
Forty-Eighth
66
65
Fiftieth
65
Fifty-Fourth
78
Fifty-Sixth
79
Fifty-Ninth
74
Sixtieth
97
Sixty-First
66
98
Seventh Unattached Co., Infantry
97
First Heavy Artillery Regiment
45
Third 66 76
Fourth
78
Second Light Battery
32
Third 66
33
Fourth 66
33
Fifth
34
Ninth
50
Thirteenth " 66
51
First Cavalry Regiment
34
Second
51
Third 66
53
Fifth
243
Ninety-Ninth New York Regiment, Infantry
.
31
III.
INDEX TO BATTLES AND ENGAGEMENTS MENTIONED IN THE TEXT.
Fort Sumter, April 12, 1861 I
Attack at Baltimore, April 19, 1861 8, 145
Big Bethel, June 10, 1861 6S
First Bull Run, July 21, 1861 9, 143
Forts St. Philip and Jackson, April 18-23, 1862 38, 104, 107
Fair Oaks, May 31, June 1, 1862 . 21
Gaines' Farm, June 27, 1862 27, 201
Baton Rouge, Aug. 5, 1862
68, 18I
Cedar Mountain, Aug. 9, 1862 . 18, 68, 139
Thoroughfare Gap, Aug. 28, 1862
151
Groveton, Aug. 29, 1862 . 146, 150, 162
Second Bull Run, Aug. 30, 1862 16, 25, 28, 146, 151, 155, 163
INDEX. xxix
PAGE.
Chantilly, Sept. 1, 1862 146, 150, 162
South Mountain, Sept. 14, 1862
. 152
Antietam, Sept. 17, 1862 . 15, 16, 17, 19, 68, 139, 149, 152, 154, 169 29
Little Washington, Nov. 3, 1862
Fredericksburg, Dec. 13, 1862 169, 239
Kinston, Dec. 14, 1862 63, 64
Galveston, Jan. 1, 1863 58, 60, 196
Sabine Pass, Jan. 21, 1863
195
. Blount's Mills, April 9, 1863 IS4 ·
Bisland, April 13, 1863 174, 179
Chancellorsville, May 2-5, 1863
169
.
Port Hudson, May 27-July 9, 1863, 46, 48, 159, 161, 164, 1.74, 179, 181, 194
Gettysburg, July 1, 2, 3, 1863
· 15, 16, 45, 46, 51, 132, 169, 187, 203
Batchelder's Creek, Feb. 1, 1864 . 25, 17I
Olustee, Feb. 20, 1864
I89
Red River Expedition, March 7- May 20, 1864 53, 18I, 199
Mansfield, or Sabine Cross Roads, April 8, 1864 199
Wilderness, May 5, 6, 1864
. 76, 165, 166
Spottsylvania, May 10-12, 1864
. 74, 76, 138, 140, 162, 166
Bethesda Church, June 2, 3, 1864 28, 140, 169
Cool Arbor, June 1-3, 1864 .
.
187
Mine Explosion, July 30, 1864 .
79
Mobile Bay, Aug. 5, 1864,
100, 102, 231
Deep Bottom, Aug. 15, 1864 30
Opequan, Sept. 19, 1864 53
Cedar Creek, Oct. 19, 1864 45, 49. 177
Fort Fisher, First Attack, Dec. 24, 25, 1864 104, 105, 106, 108
Fort Fisher, Second Attack, Jan. 13, 14, 15, 1865
104. 106, 108
I.
1861.
By our altars, pure and free ; By our laws' deep-rooted tree ; By the past's dread memory ; By our Washington -
By our common kindred tongue, By our hopes - bright, buoyant, young, By the tie of country strong ; We will still be one.
Samuel Gilman.
The first gun that spat its iron insult at Fort Sumter, smote every loyal American full in the face.
Oliver Wendell Holmes.
On the twelfth of April, 1861, the bloody hand of Trea- son was lifted against our Nationality, by the bombard- ment of "Fort Sumter," at Charleston, South Carolina. The " Stars and Stripes," which had hitherto waved aloft so gloriously, and so triumphantly, were now lowered at the impious behests of Slavery, and were trailing in the clust. Great was the surprise, intense the interest, and mighty the indignation which the telegraphic announce- ment of the fact created throughout the length and breadth of our land. By this infamous act every loyal heart was insulted ; and, at the reception of the news, every such heart was thrilled and stirred to its inmost recesses.
I
2
TIIE MELROSE MEMORIAL.
By the insolent assertion of Jefferson Davis, on the 18th of February, 1861,-when the Confederate Government was instituted at Montgomery, Ala., two weeks previous to the inauguration of President Lincoln,1- by the firing upon the "Star of the West" when on its errand of mercy, three months before the assault on "Fort Sum- . ter," - by the boast of the Confederate Secretary of War, L. P. Walker, on the day of the bombardment,2-by the treasonable and rebellious utterances of the Southern press,3- by the seizure of arsenals, forts and other public property, to the amount of many millions of dollars, - by all these acts it became painfully evident that Slavery had determined to break up this Government, or commence a devastating civil war.
"The treasonable menaces, the Ordinances of Seces- sion, the acts of violence and incipient war, which followed the choice of Presidential Electors in 1860, and culmi- nated into flagrant rebellion upon the accession of Abra- ham Lincoln to the Presidency, had attracted the anxious observation of mankind. Never in the history of civiliza- tion had interests so manifold, so transcendent, been involved or threatened by the internal disputes of any nation or people. The industry of thirty millions of
1 " The day of compromise is past, and those who now resist us shall smell Southern gunpowder and feel Southern steel."
2 " No man can tell when the war this day commenced will end ; but I will prophecy that the flag which now flaunts the breeze here, will float over the dome of the old Capitol at Washington before the first of May. Let them try Southern chivalry and test the extent of Southern resources, and it may float eventually over Faneuil Hall in Boston."
3 The Richmond Whig, with others, reiterated the threats of the Secession leaders, saying, "From the mountain tops and valleys to the shore of the sea, there is one wild shout of firm resolve to capture Washington City at all and every human effort."
-
3
OPENING OF THE REBELLION.
human beings, bond and free, the peace, happiness and welfare of every household of our continental Republic, the business of the busiest and richest people under the sun, the strength of Republican Government, the validity of Democratic ideas expressed in civil institutions, the success of Liberty, seemed trembling in the balance, where, poised against each other, were the struggling hope of continued peace, and the dismal presage of civil war. With the fortunes of the American Union were in- volved, by reason of the intimate complexity of all human relations in the social and political organization of modern times, the prosperity, if not the fate of many nations." 1
By the attack upon the heroic band of patriots under Major Anderson, at " Fort Sumter," all hope of a peaceful settlement of the issue was extinguished ; and, by its fall the mighty energy of the North was aroused.
" Like some old organ peal, Solemn and grand, The anthem of Freedom Sweeps through the land."
One purpose seemed to spring into existence instantly, and animate every heart - a determination to maintain our national existence at any and all sacrifices. "Heart throbbed to heart, lip spoke to lip, with a oneness of feel- ing that seemed like a Divine inspiration."
On the instant we saw a "noble and puissant nation rousing herself like a strong man from sleep, and shaking her invincible locks." And, when on the 15th of April, Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States, issued
1 Oration at the Dedication of the " Ladd and Whitney Monument," by Gov. Andrew, at Lowell, June 17, 1865,
4
THE MELROSE MEMORIAL.
his Proclamation,1 convening an extra session of Congress, and calling upon the States for seventy-five thousand troops to defend the capital and public property, the response was truly wonderful and glorious.
"The plough, the loom, the counting-house, the bar, the pulpit, all the avocations of ordinary life were abandoned ; men of all conditions and circumstances flew to arms in response to the call of the nation's Chief Magistrate."2
Munificent offers of money were made to the Govern- ment by city corporations, banking institutions and pri- vate citizens all over the land. The whole loyal North responded in the spirit of "Our Country's Call," by Wil- liam Cullen Bryant.
Lay down the axe, fling by the spade : Leave in its track the toiling plough ; The rifle and the bayonet-blade
For arms like yours were fitter now ; .
And let the hands that ply the pen Quit the light task, and learn to wield The horseman's crooked brand, and rein The charger on the battle-field.
And, thanks to the foresight, thoughtfulness and energy of Governor Andrew, Massachusetts was ready at once to send forward her regiments to defend the flag and save Washington.
The first call upon Massachusetts for troops was by a telegram from Senator Wilson, April 15th, requesting twenty companies of militia to be sent immediately to . Washington, and there mustered into service. Official
1 This Proclamation was received by the Confederate conclave assembled at Montgomery, Ala., with " derisive laughter."
2 History of the Old Sixth Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteers during its three Campaigns ; by John W. Hanson, chaplain.
5
THE SIXTH REGIMENT.
requisition from the Secretary of War came later in the day. Governor Andrew at once issued his orders to the commanders of the Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Eighth Regiments. On the 17th the Sixth Regiment was on its way, and on and before nine o'clock of the next Sunday, the 21st, - six days only after the call was made, -the Governor was enabled to say that "the whole number of regiments demanded from Massachusetts were already either in Washington, or in Fortress Monroe, or on their way to the defence of the capital." And Edward Everett, speaking at Roxbury a few days later, said : "Wide as the summons has gone forth, it has been obeyed with an alacrity and unanimity that knew no parallel in our his- tory ; and the volunteers of Massachusetts have been the first in the field."
To show with what willing obedience and cheerfulness our troops entered the service, it will be necessary only to specify a few facts connected with the Sixth Regiment, which was the "first to offer its services ; first to reach its State's capital ; first to reach the nation's capital ; first to inflict suffering on traitors ; first to attest its sincerity with its blood."
The official call was as follows :
COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS, ADJUTANT GENERAL'S OFFICE, BOSTON, APRIL 15, 1861. Col. Jones : -
Sir, - I am directed by his Excellency the Commander-in- Chief, to order you to muster your regiment on Boston Com- mon, forthwith, in compliance with a requisition made by the President of the United States. The troops are to go to Washington.
By order of his Excellency the Commander-in-Chief.
WILLIAM SCHOULER, Adjutant General.
6
THE MELROSE MEMORIAL.
Telegrams and expresses flew to all parts of the com- mand, notifying members of the regiment, which were scattered over four different counties, - Middlesex, Essex, Suffolk, and Worcester, -and in thirty or more cities and towns. Some of the officers, Colonel Jones among them, rode all night in this duty.
" Up the hill-side, down the glen, Rouse the sleeping citizen : Summon out the might of men !"
"The 'Middlesex villages and farms' then heard the pounding of hoofs and the alarum cry of danger, as in the olden time they had listened to the midnight ride of Paul Revere."
Most of the men assembled on Boston Common carly on the morning of the 16th; the rest within a few hours after. Captain John H. Dike,1 of the Stoneham Company, was aroused by a messenger at two o'clock on the morn- ing of the 16th, and the order given him. After reading it, he said, "Tell the Adjutant General that I shall be at the State House with my full command, by eleven o'clock." Captain Dike was there, with his company at the ap- pointed hour.
Captain Harrison W. Pratt, of Worcester, received the order to join the Sixth Regiment, with his company, late in the afternoon of the 16th, and was in Boston with his full command on the morning of the 17th.
The Major of the Sixth- Benjamin F. Watson, of Law- rence- had but two hours' notice ; but he locked the
1 Severely wounded in the thigh during the passage of the "Sixth " through Baltimore.
7
GOVERNOR ANDREW'S ADDRESS.
door of his law office, leaving a large docket to look out for itself, and important business interests, and for four months saw and knew nothing of them.
A member of one of the companies, living at Concord, said, " when the order came for me to join my company, sir, I was ploughing in the same field in Concord where my grandfather was ploughing when the British fired on the Massachusetts men at Lexington. He did not wait a minute; and I did not, sir."
Many other interesting instances might be mentioned, not only of this, but of all the regiments that then went forth, where lucrative positions and professional pursuits were given up and abandoned cheerfully by our citizens in order that they might go forth and defend their beloved country.
The Sixth Regiment left Boston on the 17th, previous to which it was drawn up in front of the State House, to receive the regimental colors, and Governor Andrew's parting words.
Soldiers, summoned suddenly, without a moment for prepara- tion, we have done all that lay in the power of men to do, - all that rested in the power of your State Government to do, - to prepare the citizen soldiers of Massachusetts for this service. We shall follow you with our benedictions, our benefactions, and prayers. Those whom you leave behind you we shall cherish in our heart of hearts. You carry with you our utmost faith and confidence. We know that you never will return until you can bring the assurances that the utmost duty has been per- formned, which brave and patriotic men can accomplish.
This flag, sir, take and bear with you. It will be an emblem on which all eyes will rest, reminding you always of that which you are bound to hold most dear.
8
THE MELROSE MEMORIAL.
In reply, Col. Jones said :-
Your Excellency, you have given to me this flag, which is the emblem of all that stands before you. It represents my whole command ; and, so help me God, I will never disgrace it.
Two days later, - on the ever memorable 19th of April, - the telegraph flashed the news over the land that the Sixth Massachusetts Regiment was fighting its way through the streets of Baltimore ; that four men had been killed and many more wounded. Still deeper was the shock ! More intense the feeling ! Massachusetts men the first martyrs to this terrible Rebellion ! Massachu- setts blood the first to flow, and on this anniversary of Concord's opening scene in days of yore! The excite- ment increased ; business was neglected ; our Country's wrongs and our Country's danger was the most important and all absorbing topic of conversation.
Like all the cities and towns throughout the loyal North, Melrose realized the excitement and felt the danger as thoroughly as any of them ; but being a small town, and having no military organizations, there was no immediate stir in our streets, - no sound of fife and drum, - nor the hurry and bustle consequent upon the gathering of mili- tary companies, that was experienced in larger communi- ties ; yet its citizens were aroused, and we had several patriotic young men that at once buckled on the armor and moved to the scene of conflict.
Our neighboring town, South Reading, - now Wake- field - possessed a militia company, commanded by Cap- tain John W. Locke, and which belonged to the Fifth Mas- sachusetts Regiment, Colonel Samuel C. Lawrence ; and
9
OUR THREE MONTHS' MEN.
into this company - B- most of our men that went into the field at this time enlisted.
They were as follows : Batchelder, George W.,1
MeKay, Gurdon,2 Smith, Thomas,3
Wyman, William.4
The Fifth Regiment performed its duties well, and was in the first " Battle of Bull Run," July 21, 1861,5 and sus- tained itself in this fiery ordeal with great credit. It returned to Massachusetts immediately after this battle, and was mustered out of the service on the 31st of July. None of our men were wounded.
In the Fourth Regiment, Colonel Abner B. Packard, Melrose had one man, in Co. F, viz :
Morrison, Seth.
This Regiment was stationed at "Fortress Monroe " during its three months' service. It returned to Massa- chusetts, and was mustered out July 22d, 1861.
The whole number of troops sent forward by Massachu- setts, under this demand for three months' men, was three thousand seven hundred and thirty-six (3,736).6 They were in five different regiments ; and of these regiments it has been well said by Adjutant General Schouler, in his Report to the Governor, for 1861 :-
1 Afterwards re-enlisted in the Twenty-Second Regiment, see chap. III.
? Afterwards commissioned 2d Lieutenant in the Twenty-Second Regi- ment, see chap. III.
3 Afterwards re-enlisted in the Fourth Battery, see chap. III.
4 Afterwards re-enlisted in the Twenty-Fourth Regiment, see chap. III.
" Union loss in this battle in killed, wounded and missing, 2,992. Rebels lost about 2,500.
6 Of this number old Middlesex County bore off the palm, sending 882 privates and 57 commissioned officers.
2
IO
THE MELROSE MEMORIAL.
They were the first to respond to the call of the President ; first to march through Baltimore to the defence of the capital ; the first to shed their blood for the maintenance of our govern- ment ; the first to open the new route to Washington by the way of Annapolis ; the first to land on the soil of Virginia and hold possession of the most important fortress in the Union ; the first to make the voyage of the Potomac and approach the Federal city by water, as they had been the first to reach it by land. They upheld the good name of the State during their entire term of service, as well by their good conduct and gentlemanly bearing, as by their courage and devotion to duty in the hour of peril. They proved the sterling worth of our volunteer militia. Their record is one which will ever redound to the honor of Massachusetts, and will be prized among her richest historic treasures. These men have added new splendor to our revolu- tionary annals ; and the brave sons who were shot down in the streets of Baltimore on the 19th of April, have rendered doubly sacred the day when the greensward of Lexington Common was drenched with the blood of their fathers.
Governor Andrew closes his address to the extra session of the Legislature, which was convened on the 14th of May, in the following words : -
But how shall I record the great and sublime uprising of the - people, devoting themselves, their lives, their all ? No creative art has ever woven into song a story more tender in its pathos, or more stirring to the martial blood, than the scenes just enacted, passing before our eyes in the villages and towns of our dear old Commonwealth. Henceforth be silent, ye cavillers at New England thrift, economy, and peaceful toil ! Henceforth let no one dare accuse our Northern sky, our icy winters, or our granite hills ! " Oh, what a glorious morning !" was the exult- ing cry of Samuel Adams, as he, excluded from royal grace, heard the sharp musketry, which, on the dawn of the 19th of April, 1775, announced the beginning of the war of Indepen-
.
II
GOVERNOR ANDREW'S ADDRESS.
dence. The yeomanry who in 1775, on Lexington Common, and on the banks of Concord River, first made that day immor- tal in our annals, have found their lineal representatives in the historic regiment, which, on the 19th of April, 1861, in the streets of Baltimore, baptized our flag anew in heroic blood, when Mas- sachusetts marched once more "in the sacred cause of liberty and the rights of mankind."
II.
1861.
THREE YEARS' MEN.
Northmen, come out !
Forth unto battle with storm and shout !
Freedom calls you once again, To flag and fort and tented plain ; Then come with drum and trump and song,
And raise the war-cry wild and strong :
Northmen, come out !
Charles Godfrey Lelana. Then, in the name of God, and all these rights, Advance your standards, draw your willing swords. Richard III.
On the 3d of May, 1861, President Lincoln issued his second call for troops, which was for volunteers to serve for a period of three years, unless sooner discharged ; and on the same day our Selectmen issued a warrant, calling a Town Meeting, to take place at "Concert Hall," on the evening of May 6th. A very large and enthusiastic meet- ing was accordingly held, at which Mr. Charles F. Esty was chosen Moderator, and the following votes were unan- imously passed.
That the Town of Melrose appropriate the sum of three thousand dollars ($3,000) for the relief of the families of the citizens of Melrose, now absent in the service of the United States, or who may hereafter volunteer into the
I3
OUR FIRST TOWN MEETING.
service of the United States, or the State of Massachu- setts. Also to aid volunteers of the town in their equip- ment, and to give such relief in the premises as the exi- gencies and necessities of each case may require.
'Also that above all other appropriations the sum of fif- teen dollars per month be paid to those persons having families, and the sum of ten dollars per month to those who are single men, during their time of service in the war now pending.
It was also voted, that the Town Treasurer be author- ized to borrow such sums of money as might be wanted from time to time to cover the appropriations then made ; and that the Selectmen - Colonel John H. Clark, and Messrs. William B. Burgess and George M. Fletcher, - constitute a Committee to superintend the disbursements of the money thus appropriated.
A stirring and patriotic speech was made by the Hon. N. B. Bryant, ex-Speaker of the House of Representatives of New Hampshire, then a resident of Melrose.
As Melrose raised no whole company for any regiment, our men, as they enlisted, selected the regiment or bat- tery in which they preferred to serve ; consequently they were much scattered, and entered many different organi- zations before the war was ended.
Our earliest enlistments were in the Second, Twelfth and Thirteenth Massachusetts Regiments of Infantry, mostly in the latter regiment, which was commanded by Colonel Samuel H. Leonard, of Boston.
The nucleus of the Thirteenth Regiment was the Fourth Battalion of Rifles, into which our men enlisted when the President issued his call for seventy-five thousand (75,000) troops, or immediately after the assault upon the Sixth Regiment in Baltimore, April 19th, and which was or-
14
THE MELROSE MEMORIAL.
dered to Fort Independence. As no more troops for a short term were wanted, the Battalion was recruited to a three years' regiment. On a Sunday evening, just before the regiment left for Washington, the fourteen soldiers belonging to Melrose met in the Baptist Church, when the pastor, Rev. James Cooper, presented to each one a Tes- tament, accompanied by an address and prayer. On a fly- leaf of each Testament was written, besides the name, the words "God and our Country."
The roll of our men who enlisted in the Thirteenth Regiment at this time, - and later as recruits, - with items of their military history, is as follows :
THIRTEENTH REGIMENT.1 Co. A.
CORPORAL. JONES, HENRY H. Promoted Corporal April 1, 1863 ; taken prisoner at “ Bat- -
1 The Thirteenth Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Militia was recruited at Fort Independence, Boston Harbor, and left the State for the seat of war July 30, 1861. It was in arduous and faithful service for three years. Most of the stirring scenes in which the "Army of the Potomac " participated were experienced by the Thirteenth. It was in many sharp skirmishes, such as Bolivar, Dam No. 5, etc., and in the following battles : Second Bull Run, South Mountain, Antietam, Fredericksburg, Mine Run, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Wilderness, Spottsylvania, North Anna River, Laurel Hill, Cool Arbor,* and Siege of Petersburg.
.
* This battle is given in Adjutant General Schouler's Reports as both Cold Harbor and Coal Harbor ; but Mr. Benson J. Lossing, in his History of the Civil War, calls it Cool Arbor, and gives the following note : " Cool Arbor derived its name from a tavern, at a de- lightful place of summer resort in the woods, for the Richmond people, even so early as the time of the Revolution. The derivation of the name determines its orthography. It has been erroneously spelled Coal Harbor and Cold Harbor."
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