USA > Michigan > Genesee County > History of Genesee county, Michigan. With illustrations and biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 18
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" PRESENTED
to THE OFFICERS AND SOLDIERS
of the EIGHTH REGIMENT, MICHIGAN INFANTRY, by their friends and neighbors of Genesce County."
It was sent by the donors " in token of their high respect for the 8th Regiment, on account of their gallant conduct at the battle of Coosaw," and it arrived at Hilton Ilead on the very day when the men of the 8th were again distiu- guishing themselves at Wilmington Island.
The ceremony of presentation was imposing. At evening parade on the 25th of April the regiment was formed on three sides of a hollow square, of which the fourth side was formed by Gen. Stevens and his staff. The color was in the centre. It was formally presented to the regiment by Gen. Stevens, who, after a few introductory remarks, and reading aloud the letter of the committee at Flint, said :
" SOLDIERS OF MICHIGAN : It is gratifying to know by this letter from your friends that your services are appreciated by them ; and I, who, on the day alluded to, was your com- manding general, feel proud in referring to the occasion which calls forth from your friends at home such an ae- knowledgment. Your bravery and undaunted courage, led on by your gallant colonel in face of the enemy at the battle of Coosaw, deserves, as it has received, the highest commendation.
" This banner comes at a propitious moment. You have added to the reputation already acquired another brilliant achievement. While this flag was consigned as it were to the tender mercies of the deep, and on the very day of its safe arrival at Hilton Head, you were testing the strength of your arms against overwhelming odds of the enemy on Wilmington Island, adding new lustre to your already bril- liant career, and giving new evidence of your intrepidity and bravery. . .
" Unfurl that flag ! Let it float to the breeze ! There, fellow-soldiers, is your banner ! Inseribed upon its ample folds is the motto, ONE COUNTRY, ONE DESTINY ! It is surmounted by the eagle-emblem of strength-and bear- ing on its outstretched wings the prestige of victory. Like the eagle of Napoleon and of ancient Rome, its march is onward and upward. Upon the folds of that banner is the work of fair hands, the daughters of Michigan, your loved ones at home, endeared to you by the tender ties of mother and daughter, sister and friend. That is the flag the gal- lant Jackson bore aloft when he said, 'The Union : it must, it shall be preserved !' It is the flag Washington fought for and sustained. We are following in the footsteps of our brave and heroic ancestors. Let us, like them, while in the
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HISTORY OF GENESEE COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
discharge of our duties as soldiers, and rejoieing in suc- cesses, remember our obligations as Christians. Commit it to the God of Battles. IIis arm will be stretched forth to succor and to save. Here, upon our knees, in the presence of Almighty God, let us invoke His blessing. I call upon you, chaplain. It is fit and proper that it be consecrated with prayer." The chaplain responded in an earnest and eloquent prayer. The colors were received in due form, with drums beating, and arms presented. Then Col. Fenton spoke, thanking the general, and congratulating the officers and men of his regiment. In concluding, he turned towards the flag, as it was held aloft by the tall color-bearer, and said :
" COLOR-BEARER AND COLOR-GUARDS : I know you all, and know you well. That banner in your hands will be proudly borne and bravely defended. And should you fall, you will wrap its folds around you, defending it while life remains. Soldiers, you may well feel proud that you have been honored by your general, in the presentation of that flag. You will stand by it to the last. I feel aud know you will. You have been tried on the soil of both South Carolina and Georgia, and, one and all, you will maintain the character you have acquired, and do honor to the State which has sent you forth." The speech was followed by three-times-three cheers for the colonel, the color, and its donors, and the ceremony (which had been witnessed by a large number of soldiers of other commands and by many citizens of South Carolina) was over.
During the month of May the Sth was engaged on picket duty, and other similar service, on Port Royal Island. On the 2d of June it moved thence to Stone River, S. C., to relieve the 2Sth Massachusetts Regiment, on picket on James Island, where the 8th arrived on the day following its departure from Port Royal. Here it was attached to the 1st Brigade of the 2d Division, under Gen. Stevens ; the brigade being placed under command of Col. Fenton, and Lieut .- Col. Graves succeeding to the command of the regiment.
The battle of James Island (or Secessionville, as it is frequently ealled) was fought on the 16th of June. In it the Sth Michigan took a more prominent part, and suffered more severely, than any other regiment, and its losses here were, taking everything into consideration, more terrible than it sustained on any other field during its long and honorable career. Secessionville, the scene of the battle, was described by Dr. J. C. Willson, surgeon of the Sth Regiment, as " a village composed of a few houses whose owners have seceded from them, situated on a narrow neck of land jutting into the stream on the east side of James Island, skirted by tidal marshes and swamps on either side, and difficult of approach, except from the westward, where is a rebel fort which commands this entranee." The fort was a formidable carthwork, with a parapet nine feet in height, surrounded by a broad ditch seven feet deep, and protected by a broad and almost impenetrable abatis. The neck of dry land over which (alone) it was approachable was barely two hundred yards in width, and every inch of it could be swept at close range by canister from the six heavy guns of the fort and by musketry from its defenders. Aud it was over such ground, and to the assault of such a
work, that the troops of Stevens' division moved forward at four o'clock in the morning of that bloody and eventful 16th of June, 1862.
The attacking column was made up of Col. Fenton's and Col. Leasure's brigades, the former composed of the 8th Michigan, 7th Connecticut, and 28th Massachusetts Regi- ments, and the latter of the 46th and 79th New York, and 100th Pennsylvania, with four batteries of artillery, -- in all three thousand three hundred and thirty-seven men. The following account of the battle was written by the corre- spondent of the New York Tribune, theu at James' Island, and published in that paper immediately after the fight :
" The advanced regiments were the 8th Michigan, the 79th New York, and the 7th Connecticut. There is some confusion as to the order in which these regiments came up to the fort; it seems, however, from the best information within reach, that the glorious but unfortunate Sth Michi- gan was the first there, led by its gallant Lieut .- Col. Graves. The immediate assault npon the fort was not successful, and the cause of its failure, as is usual in such cases, is difficult to determine. . . . It appears, from the statements of some of the officers aud men in these regiments, that about one half-mile from the fort there was a narrow pass through a hedge, and the men were compelled to pass through, a very few abreast, thus delaying their advance. The 8th Michi- gan got through and pushed on with great vigor up to the fort, which they assaulted with a shout. They were met with a murderous fire from the fort in front, and from flank- ing batteries. A few of these brave men overcame all dan- gers and difficulties, and, rushing over the dead bodies of their slaughtered comrades, actually climbed into the fort ; but it was impossible for them to maintain their ground there against the fearful odds which opposed them, the men who should have supported them being delayed in passing through the hedge.
" The 8th was obliged to fall back as the 79th New York came up, led by the brave Col. Morrison, who mounted the walls of the fort and discharged all the barrels of his re- volver in the very faces of the enemy. Wounded in the head, and unsupported, he was obliged to retreat. About as far behind the 79th as that regiment was behind the Sth Michigan came the 7th Connecticut, which made a spas- modie and almost independent effort against the fort, but was obliged to fall back. Thus the brave regiments which were intended to act in concert as the advance went into the fight one at a time, one repulsed and falling back as the other came up, thus creating confusion, and rendering abortive the charge ou the fort at this time.
" A failure like this always disheartens troops. It was just in front of the fort, and in the first charge, that the noble and brave Capt. Church [Company D, of the Sth] fell, pierced through the head with a musket-ball. He was a fine officer, and beloved by his men. I knew and admired his commanding persou and frank and honest bearing. Although suffering from disease, he arose from his bed and led his men to the fatal ditch.
" The Sth Michigan has been most unfortunate. For- ward in every skirmish and battle, always in the advanec, it has lost a considerable number of its officers, and can now scarcely number three hundred men. All these regi-
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EIGHTHI INFANTRY.
ments fought well, and piled their dead around the fort ; but it was a terrible sacrifice, and a vain one.
" The first, as has been said, to reach the fort were the Michigan Sth and New York 79th. This was not the natural order, but the 79th, hearing the cheers of the 8th, ran past the other regiments and joined the 8th as it reached the works. Both regiments suffered terribly from the fire of the enemy as they approached,-the 8th from grape and canister, the 79th from musketry, as the nature of their wounds shows. Badly shattered, and wholly ex- hausted from three-fourths of a mile on the double-quick, many fell powerless on reaching the works; while a few, in sufficiently good condition, mounted the parapet, from which the enemy had been driven by our sharp and effective fire, and called upon the others to follow them.
" At about nine o'clock, which seemed to be the crisis of the battle, and when the generals seemed to be consulting whether they should again advance upon the fort, or retire, the gunboats decided the question by opening a heavy can- nomade in our rear, which, instead of telling upon the rebels, threw their shot and shell into our own rauks. This must have resulted from ignorance on their part as to our precise position, owing to the rapid changes upon the field, and in the intervening timber. The shells fell and burst. in the very midst of our men,-several exploding near the commanding general and his staff. The effect of this unfortunate mistake was an order for the troops to retire, which they did in perfect order, taking position on the old picket-line.'
In the Scottish American newspaper, of New York, there appeared, a few days after the battle, a communication from an officer of the 79th Highlanders, in which the gallantry of the 8th at Secessionville is thus noticed : "I should mention that the 8th Michigan, small in number, but every man a hero, had been repulsed from the fort, with terrible loss, just as we advanced. The Michigan men could not have numbered four hundred when they advanced ; when they retired they had one hundred and ninety killed and wounded. One company alone Jost, I understand, no less than ninety-eight men. The ordeal through which they had passed the 79th were now experiencing. Shot down by unscen enemies, and without having an opportunity of returning the fire with any effect, the men got discouraged, but remained stubbornly on the ground until the order was given to retire,-an order, let me say, which was ouly ren- dered necessary by the shameful fact that, notwithstand- ing the strong force within supporting distance, no support came. The fort was ours had we received assistance, but it is a fact that cannot be gainsaid that every man who fell around its ramparts belonged to the 8th Michigan and the 79th New York,-the two weakest regiments, in point of numbers, in the whole force under command of Gen. Ben- hat."
The 8th regiment went into the fight with a total strength of five hundred and thirty-four officers and men, and its loss in the assault was, according to the surgeon's report, one hundred and forty-seven killed and wounded, and thirty-seven missing; this being more than one-third of the number engaged. The first report of its loss made it some- what greater than this. Gen. Stevens, in his " General 10
Order No. 26," dated James Island, S. C., June 18, 1862, mentioned the heroism of the Sth Michigan as follows :
Parties from the leading regiments of the two brigades, the 8th Michigan and the 79th Highlanders, mounted and were shot down on the parapet, officers and men. These two regiments especially covered themselves with glory, and their fearful casualties show the hot work in which they were engaged. Two-fifths of the 8th Michi- gan and nearly one-quarter of the 79th Highlanders were down, either killed or wounded, and all the remaining regiments had a large number of casualties. In congratulating his comrades on their heroic valor and con- stancy on that terrible field, the commanding general of the division has not words to express his and your grief at the sacrifices that have been made. Our best and truest meu now sleep the sleep that knows no waking. Their dead bodies lie ou the enemy's parapet. Church, Pratt, Cottrill, Guild, Morrow, Horton, Hitchcock, and many other gallant and noble meu we shall see no more."
Among the killed of the Sth Regiment in this action was Capt. S. C. Guild, of Flint, commanding Company A. On the 14th of June he had written a letter to friends in Michigan, in which he said, " I cannot but regret that I am so long delayed from the prosecution of my studies, but this war must first be settled, and the majesty of truth and the constitution vindicated; and if I do nothing more in life, it will be sufficient service that I have been a soldier in this war. Yet it is needless for me to conceal my dis- like of this kind of life, and that my earnest desire is to escape from it the first opportunity. It is entirely dissonant with my feelings, habits, and thoughts, and can never be less than an unpleasant duty ; and yet, as a duty, it is, in a sense, a pleasure to perform it. I have learned much, how- ever, which will serve me in all my future life." Two days later this hero died on the hostile rampart, with his face to the foe.
Col. Fenton was relieved from the command of the bri- gade, at his own request, on the 21st of June. On resum- ing command of the 8th Regiment, he made a very earnest and determined effort to have it relieved for a time from active service, on account of the arduous service it had per- formed and the fearful losses it had sustained. But his answer was, " At present all the regiments in the Depart- ment of the South are needed, and more than needed, in the positions they now occupy."
Gen. Stevens' command evacuated James Island on the 5th of July, the 8th Regiment being the last to leave, as it had been the first in the advance. Moving to Ililton Head, it embarked there July 13th, with the 79th New York, 28th Massachusetts, 7th Connecticut, and other regiments, for Fortress Monroe, where they arrived on the 16th, and landed at Newport News on the following day. They knew they were destined to reinforce the Army of the Po- tomac after its disasters in the seven Days' fight, and they did not like the change, for they preferred to remain in the South, where their laurels had been won. The Sth re- mained three weeks in camp at Newport News, and during this time Col. Fenton left for Michigan to obtain recruits, leaving Lieut .- Col. Graves in charge of the regiment. The command left this camp, August 4th, and, moving to
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HISTORY OF GENESEE COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
the Rappahannock River, took part in the campaign of Gen. Pope, fighting at second Bull Run, August 29th and 30th, and Chantilly, September 1st, losing considerably in both engagements. Soon after, it moved with the 9th Army Corps (to which it had been attached) into Maryland. It fought at South Mountain, September 14th, losing thirteen, wounded ; and was again engaged in the great battle of Antietam, Sep- tember 17th. Early in that day it formed in line, with its brigade, on the right, but about noon, when the battle be- came general, it was ordered to the left, and took possession near the historic Stone Bridge. " A more terrifie fire than we here met with," wrote an officer of the regiment, " it has not been my lot to witness. It equaled, if it did not exceed, that of James Island. At first our men gained ground and drove the enemy half a mile, but the battery that covered our advance and answered to the enemy's in front getting out of ammunition, together with the arrival of a fresh rebel brigade from Harper's Ferry, flanking our position and bringing our meu under a cross-fire, changed the fortunes of the day in their favor, and when night closed upon the scene of carnage the enemy reoccupied the ground wrested from them at such fearful sacrifice in the afternoon." The bridge, however, was not retaken by the enemy, and, although the Union forces had been driven back here on the left, the advantage remained with them on other parts of the field. The battle was not renewed to any extent on the following day, and the enemy, while keeping up the ap- pearance of a strong line in front, retreated from his posi- tion to the Potomac, preparatory to crossing back into Vir- ginia.
The loss of the Sth at Antietam was twenty-seven killed and wounded, -- a loss which appears quite severe when it is remembered that the regiment went into action with con- siderably less than two hundred men, having been reduced not only by its terrible losses in previous battles, but also by discharges ; more than two hundred and fifty men being discharged from the Sth in the year 1862, of whom just one hundred enlisted in the regular army. The places of these were being filled to some extent by recruits, of whom a number joined the regiment the day before Antietam; and it was said of them that, although they had never be- fore heard a hostile gun, they endured the terrible initiation of that day with almost the steadiness of veterans.
For about a month after the battle the regiment re- mained in Maryland, a short time in the vicinity of An- tietam, and a longer time in Pleasant Valley. During this time Col. Fenton returned, and Capt. Ralph Ely was pro- moted to major, rice Watson, resigned. On the 26th of October the 8th marched to Weverton, and thence to Ber- lin, Md., where it crossed the Potomae on pontoons into Virginia. It passed through Lovettsville, Waterford, Slack's Mills, Rectortown, and Salem, to Waterloo, where, on the 11th of November, it received the announcement of Gen. Burnside's promotion to the command of the army. On the 15th it was at Sulphur Springs, and moved thence, by way of Fayetteville and Bealton Station, to a camp about ten miles east of the latter place, where was read the order forming the " right grand division" of the army, by uniting the 2d and 9th Corps, under command of Gen. E. V. Sumner. On the 18th the regiment marched, leading
the brigade, and on the 19th reached Falmouth, opposite Fredericksburg, where the army was rapidly concentrating. Ilere it remained (a part of it acting as provost-guard of the division) until the 12th of December, when it crossed the Rappahannock to Fredericksburg, but was not engaged in the great battle of the 13th. It recrossed on the 15th, and remained at Falmonth until Feb. 13, 1863, when it moved with the 9th Corps (which had been detached from the Army of Potomae) to Newport News, Va., and there camped, evidently waiting orders for a further movement, which the officers and men hoped might take them back to the Department of the South. The regiment remained in camp at Newport News for more than a month, and during this time Col. Fenton resigned, on account of his health having become greatly impaired. Maj. Ely was promoted to lieutenant-colonel, and was then in command of the regi- ment, and Capt. E. W. Lyon, of " G" company, was made major.
On the 20th of March the Sth Regiment, being again under marching orders, embarked at Newport News, on the steamer " Georgia," preparatory to the commencement of the long series of movements and marches in the Southwest which afterwards gave it the name of " the wandering regi- ment of Michigan." It left Newport News on the 21st, arrived at Baltimore on the 22d, and proceeded thence by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad to Parkersburg, W. Va., reaching there on the 24th, and embarking on the steamer " Majestic" for Louisville, Ky., where it arrived at noon on Thursday the 26th. At that time it was brigaded with the 20, 17th, and 20th Michigan Regiments, under Brig .- Gen. Orlando M. Poe (formerly colonel of the 2d), as brigade con- mander; this being the Ist Brigade, Ist Division, 9th Army Corps. This corps (then a part of the Army of the Ohio) had for its immediate mission in Kentucky to observe and hold in check the forces of the guerrilla chief, John Morgan, who, at that time, seemed to be omnipresent in all that re- gion, and whose movements were giving the government no little trouble and alarm.
The 8th moved by railroad from Louisville on the 28th, and proceeded to Lebanon, Ky., and remained stationed there and at Green River Ford, Ky., for some weeks. While the command lay at Lebanon there was issued the first number of a paper entitled The Wolverine, which was announced as " published by members of the 8th Michigan Infantry, and will be issued as often as circumstances will permit." How many numbers of this journal were ever published is not known.
About the 1st of June the 9th Corps, which had been scattered in detachments at various points in Kentucky, was ordered to move to Mississippi to reinforce the army of Gen. Grant, then operating against Vicksburg. The 8th Regiment moved with the corps, going to Cairo, III., by rail, and then, embarking on boats on the Mississippi River, was transported to laynes Bluff, Miss. From there it moved to Milldale, Miss., and remained there and at Flower Dale Church, near Vicksburg, until the operations against that Stronghold ended in its capitulation, July 4th. Then it moved with the corps towards Jackson, Miss., in pursuit of the army of Johnston, who had been hovering in Gen. Grant's rear, attempting to raise the siege of Vicksburg.
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EIGIITH INFANTRY.
In the several engagements which occurred from the 10th to the 16th of July the Sth participated, but suffered little loss; and after the evacuation of Jackson, on the 16th, it returned to its former camp at Milldale, remaining there till August 6th, when it again took boat on the Mississippi and moved north with the corps. It reached Memphis in the night of the 11th, and passed on to Cairo and thence to Cincinnati, where it arrived on the 13th, and, crossing the river, camped at Covington, Ky. From Covington it moved by way of Nicholasville to Crab Orchard, Ky., reaching there August 27th, and remaining there in camp two weeks. On the 10th of September it was again ou the march, and moved by way of Cumberland Gap to Knoxville, Tenn., reaching there on the 26th.
The 8th was slightly engaged with the enemy at Blue Springs, October 10th, and, after considerable marching and countermarching, went into camp, October 29th, at Lenoir Station, where it remained until November 14th. It was then, with its division, ordered to Hough's Ferry, on the Holston River, to check the advance of Longstreet, who was reported moving up from Georgia towards Knoxville. He was found in strong force, and the Union troops retired before him, and, passing back through Lenoir, continued the retreat to Knoxville. Being hard pressed, however, a stand was made at Campbell's Station on the 16th, and a battle ensued, lasting from about one P.M. until dark, and resulting in a loss to the 8th of eleven wounded. During the night the retreat was continued, and the regiment reached Knoxville in the morning of the 17th, after an almost continuous march of two days and three nights, in- cluding a battle of several hours' duration, moving over the worst of roads through mud and rain, and with less than quarter rations.
Then followed the siege of Knoxville by Longstreet, which continued eighteen days, during all which time the 8th occupied the front line of works, and suffered severely for lack of food and sufficient clothing. On Sunday, November 29th, two veteran Georgia brigades belonging to MeLaws' rebel division made a furious assault on Fort Saunders (one of the works in the line of fortifications inclosing Knox- ville), and were repulsed and driven back with a loss of nearly eight hundred men, the Sth Michigan being one of the regiments which received and repelled the assault. In the night of the 4th and 5th of December the enemy with- drew from before Knoxville. In the pursuit which followed the 8th took part, but with no results, and on the 16th it encamped at Blain's Cross-Roads. This proved to be the last camp which it occupied for any considerable length of time in Tennessee. It remained here about three weeks, during which time three hundred of its members re-enlisted as veterans. On the Sth of January, 1864, the veteranized command, under orders to report at Detroit, left its camp, and took the road across the Cumberland Mountains for the railroad at Nicholasville, Ky., nearly two hundred miles distant. It reached that place in ten days, having made an average of nearly twenty miles a day over miserable roads and through the snow and ice of the mountain-passes. It reached Detroit on the 25th, and there received the vete- ran furlough. At the end of the specified time the men reassembled at the rendezvous (the city of Flint , where
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