USA > Michigan > Livingston County > History of Livingston County, Michigan, with illustrations and biographical sketches > Part 13
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Then followed the long march northward under a blazing sun, till on the first of July they reached the field of Gettysburg. On the second they were in the thick of the fight, being then in the Fifth Corps. Here they met the Louisiana Tigers, their old enemies of the Chickahominy, with other regi- ments, in one of the few hand-to-hand conflicts of the war. For a time the conflict was of the most deadly description. Colonel Jeffords, the com- mander of the regiment fell dead pierced by half a
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MILITARY RECORD OF LIVINGSTON COUNTY.
dozen bayonets. Several other officers were killed and wounded. Lieutenant-Colonel Lombard as- sumed command and gallantly continued the fight, but the loss of the regiment was very serious. When, on the fourth of July, after the glorious vic- tory of the Union arms was assured, the rolls of the Fourth Michigan were called, it was found that twenty-eight men had been killed, eighty were wounded, and seventy-nine were missing.
After Gettysburg the Fourth participated in the pursuit of the enemy and other movements of the Army of the Potomac, and was encamped during the winter of 1863-64 at Bealton, on the Orange and Alexandria Railroad. Lieutenant-Colonel Lombard was promoted to colonel, dating from the third of July, 1863.
On the thirtieth of April, 1864, the Fourth broke camp, and set out on the great campaign which was only to close with the overthrow of the Rebellion. On the fifth, sixth, and seventh of May the regiment was engaged in the battle of the Wilderness. Though not in the thickest of the fight, it suffered a severe loss on the first-men- tioned day, the gallant and genial Colonel Lom- bard being mortally wounded by a rebel bullet.
On the morning of the eighth of May, the Fourth, with the rest of Griffin's Division, arrived at Laurel Hill, between the Wilderness and Spott- sylvania Court-House. They remained here during the eighth and ninth, exchanging frequent shots with the enemy, but without a heavy battle. On the morning of the tenth of May, while the Fourth was supporting a battery, the enemy made a charge on the guns. The supports remained in the rear, and the first charge was repulsed by the battery alone.
It was seen, however, that another and more de- termined charge was about to be made, and pretty soon the gray lines came rushing forward, sound- ing the well-known rebel yell. The brigade to which the Fourth belonged was ordered to keep quiet till the enemy was within about ten rods. Then, at the sound of the bugle, the Union line ad- vanced rapidly to the battery and delivered a well- directed volley among the advancing Confederates. Scores of the latter fell, killed or wounded, before the deadly blast, but, with redoubled yells, the sur- vivors rushed forward towards the coveted cannon. The Fourth and their comrades stood their ground, and for a few moments a fierce hand-to-hand con- flict raged among the guns and caissons. In some instances, when bayonets were knocked off the rifles were clubbed and shattered on the heads of foemen.
A brief experience of this kind of fighting was sufficient to satisfy the assailants, and very soon
the gray-coats were seen streaming back to the shelter of their rifle-pits. Then a counter-charge was ordered, and with a cheer the Union brigade rushed forward, capturing a large number of pris- oners and taking and holding the first line of the rebel works. This was the signal for a general advance along the Union lines, by which several thousand prisoners were captured. In the brief conflict of the morning the Fourth had twenty men killed and wounded, which was nearly ten per cent. of the number engaged.
The Fourth was in the advanced lines of the Fifth Corps throughout the eleventh, twelfth, thirteenth, and fourteenth days of May, a large part of the time being actively engaged as skirmishers. It also participated in a brisk conflict near Jericho Mills, on the North Anna River. In fact it was at this period engaged in fighting nearly every day and almost all day. On the twenty-ninth, thirtieth, and thirty-first days of May, and the first day of June it was skirmishing south of the Pamunkey River, and on the third of the latter month it took part in the capture of the enemy's works at Beth- esda Church.
Crossing the James River, the regiment arrived in front of Petersburg on the sixteenth of June, and the next day was engaged in a skirmish. Its time expired on the nineteenth of June, and on that very day it took part in a sharp engagement, having eight men killed and wounded. That evening it was relieved from duty and the next day embarked for Washington. It arrived in Detroit on the twenty-sixth of June, and on the thirtieth was mustered out of service.
A hundred and twenty-nine of the men, how- ever, had re-enlisted as veterans, which, with re- cruits who joined after the organization, brought up the number of those whose time had not ex- pired to two hundred and eighty soldiers and three officers. These were assigned to duty with the First Michigan Infantry when the Fourth left the seat of war.
Of the ten hundred and eighty-five gallant offi- cers and men who left Adrian in the Fourth Infantry for the front in June, 1861, there were only two hundred and twenty-three on the rolls at the time of muster out, in addition to the one hundred and twenty-nine re-enlisted veterans. Of those who had been dropped from the rolls nearly two hun- dred had been killed in action or died of wounds. Only about fifty had died of disease during the whole time, but about two hundred and fifty were discharged for disability. The report for 1862 is defective, so that we cannot give the exact numbers. During the last eight months of service only twelve had died of discase, while forty had been killed in
9
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HISTORY OF LIVINGSTON COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
action, showing that the men had become pretty well seasoned to the hardships of camp-life.
THE REORGANIZED FOURTH INFANTRY.
The one hundred and twenty-nine veterans of the old Fourth formed but a small basis for a new regiment, but a determined effort was made to or- ganize one. The veterans were consolidated into two companies, and an order was issued for the enlistment of eight more. A camp was established at Adrian on the twenty-sixth of July, and Lieu- tenant-Colonel Hall, of the old Fourth, was made colonel of the new organization. The work was completed in about two months and a half, and on the fourteenth of October, 1864, the new regiment was mustered into service. A few men from this county were included in the reorganized Fourth.
On the twenty-second of October the regiment left Adrian, proceeding to Decatur, Alabama, which they reached on the twenty-eighth, where their career was at once inaugurated by a battle with the forces of the rebel general Hood, who had al- ready attacked that town. The assailants were re- pulsed, the Fourth having only one man killed and four wounded. It was afterwards sent to Murfrees- boro', where it was kept on picket and guard duty until the middle of January, 1865. It then went to Huntsville, Alabama, where it was assigned to the Third Division, Third Brigade, Fourth Army Corps.
In the latter part of March it was ordered to East Tennessee. It remained there, constantly on the march, about a month, when it returned to Nashville. It stayed at that point until the middle of June, when, with its corps, it was sent to New Orleans. It was then joined by the detachment of the old Fourth Infantry which had previously been on duty with the First. The regiment proceeded to Texas in July.
The fighting was over but the service was severe; owing to the heat, and the scarcity and badness of the water, many died. The regiment was on duty at various points in Texas, mostly at San Antonio and vicinity, until May 26, 1866, when it was mustered out of service at Houston, in that State. On the tenth of June it arrived at Detroit, where it was paid off and disbanded.
OFFICERS AND ENLISTED MEN OF THE OLD AND NEW FOURTH INFANTRY, FROM LIVINGSTON COUNTY .*
Old Fourth-Company K.
Second Lieutenant James Mulloy, enlisted June 20, 1861 ; resigned July 29, 1861.
* Great care has been taken in transcribing these military lists, for this and other regiments, from the rolls in the Adjutant-Gen- eral's office, and in verifying them, when practicable, by surviving members of the regiment to which they have reference. If, not-
Sergeant Jonathan S. Sharp, enlisted June 20, 1861 ; veteran De- cember 29, 1863 ; on detached service.
Corporal Julius D. Smith, enlisted June 20, 1861 ; discharged for disability, July 27, 1861.
Corporal Edgar Noble, enlisted June 20, 1861 ; veteran December 25, 1863; transferred to Company I new 4th Infantry; dis- charged for disability, June 20, 1865.
Corporal Calvin Wilcox, enlisted June 20, 1861; discharged for disability, September 20, 1861.
Privates.
Lorenzo Baryan, enlisted June 20, 1861 ; discharged for disability, March 3, 1862.
Moses W. Becker, enlisted June 20, 1861 ; mustered out at end of service, June 28, 1864.
William Bennett, enlisted June 20, 1861 ; transferred to Battery D, 5th United States Artillery, October 5, 1862.
Henry Boothby, enlisted June 20, 1861 ; discharged for disability, November 14, 1861.
Charles H. Barlow, enlisted June 20, 1861 ; discharged July 21, 1863.
Eastman G. Carpenter, enlisted June 20, 1861 ; veteran December 25, 1863; transferred to Company C, new 4th Infantry ; mustered out at San Antonio, Texas, February 26, 1866.
Harrison P. Cook, enlisted June 20, 1861 ; discharged for disability, July 25, 1862.
Benjamin O. Deming, enlisted June 20, 1861 ; discharged for dis- ability, January 6, 1862.
John J. Dorn, enlisted June 20, 1861 ; died of disease, New York, May, 1862.
Giles G. Doneley, enlisted June 20, 1861 ; transferred to Invalid Corps, January 15, 1864.
William H. Gould, enlisted June 20, 1861; mustered out at end of service, June 25, 1864.
Lewis C. Griswold, enlisted June 20, 1861 ; transferred to Battery D, 5th United States Artillery, October 5, 1862.
Delos M. Haviland, enlisted June 20, 1861 ; killed in battle of Gaines' Mill, June 27, 1862.
Lewis A. Haviland, enlisted June 20, 1861; discharged for dis- ability, January 15, 1863.
Theodore Hodges, enlisted June 20, 1861 ; died of disease at Miner's Hill, Virginia, December 1, 1861.
Ira E. Holt, enlisted June 20, 1861 ; discharged for wounds, Feb- ruary 11, 1863.
Brainard T. Ide, enlisted June 20, 1861; died of disease at Georgetown, District of Columbia, August 23, 1861.
Amasa Lampman, enlisted June 20, 1861 ; discharged for disability, December 14, 1861.
Lawson W. Lampman, enlisted June 20, 1861 ; killed in battle at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, July 2, 1863.
Harlow S. Mann, enlisted June 20, 1861 ; discharged for disability, June 18, 1862.
Barney Rooney, enlisted June 20, 1861 ; discharged for disability, August 18, 1862.
Austin T. Smith, enlisted June 20, 1861 ; died of disease, March 9, 1863.
John Tucker, enlisted June 20, 1861; discharged for disability, August 28, 1862.
Wells Vanzile, enlisted June 26, 1861; transferred to Invalid Corps, July 1, 1863.
Willis E. Waterman, Putnam; enlisted October 22, 1863; killed in battle of Wilderness, Virginia, May 5, 1864.
Company D.
Charles E. Grisson, Hamburg; enlisted June 20, 1861; discharged at Washington, District of Columbia, October 3, 1862, to
withstanding this, they are found (as they doubtless will be, to some extent) incomplete, it should be remembered that it is on account of the neglect of officers whose duty it was to return full and complete rosters to the Adjutant General's office.
67
FIFTH INFANTRY.
accept commission as second lieutenant Company E, 26th Michigan Infantry.
Company I.
Francis M. Lumbard, Green Oak; enlisted March 31, 1864; trans- ferred to Company I, new 4th; sergeant (second lieutenant) ; mustered out as sergeant, October 11, 1865.
Company H.
Henry Dougherty, Putnam ; enlisted September 12, 1864; died of disease at San Antonio, Texas. November 30, 1865.
Daniel Hoyt, Conway ; enlisted September 7, 1864; discharged for disability, May 30, 1865.
James Meehan, Unadilla ; enlisted September 7, 1861 ; transferred to 3d Michigan Infantry.
Adam Smith, Iosco; enlisted September 23, 1864; discharged for disability, May 18, 1865.
Benjamin E. Smith, Unadilla; enlisted August 16, 1864; mustered out at Houston, Texas, May 26, 1866.
Albert Ward, Unadilla; enlisted September 17, 1864; corporal ; mustered out at Houston, Texas, May 26, 1866.
Daniel D. White, Cohoctah ; enlisted September 19, 1864; must- ered out at Houston, Texas, May 26, 1866.
CHAPTER VII.
FIFTH INFANTRY.
Organization of the Fifth at Fort Wayne-The Livingston Volun- teers-Flag Presentation and Departure of the Regiment- Arrival at Washington and Advance into Virginia-Winter Quarters at Camp Michigan-Peninsular Campaign-Battles of Williamsburg, Fair Oaks, and Charles City Cross-Roads- Second Bull Run-Fredericksburg-Death of Lieutenant- Colonel Gilluly-Chancellorsville-Gettysburg - Transfer of the Fifth to New York-Return to the Army of the Potomac- Mine Run-Veteran Re-enlistment and Furlough-Recruits from Livingston County-Return to the Front-The Wilder- ness Campaign-Consolidation of the Third with the Fifth- Spring Campaign of 1865-Close of the War-Muster Out and Return Home.
THE rendezvous of the Fifth Regiment of Michi- gan Infantry during its organization was at Fort Wayne, Detroit, where it lay during the summer of 1861, engaged in drill and the perfection of its discipline, its departure for the theatre of war being delayed on account of the belief which existed until after the disaster at Bull Run that its services would not be required in the field. It then became apparent that more forces would be needed, and the organization of the Fifth was hurried to com- pletion. It was mustered into the United States service for three years by Lieutenant-Colonel E. Backus, United States Army, on the twenty-seventh of August, its strength at that time being about nine hundred officers and enlisted men. The field officers of the regiment were, Colonel, Henry D. Terry; Lieutenant-Colonel, Samuel E. Beach ; Major, John D. Fairbanks.
Livingston County was represented in the Fifth Regiment by one company, distinctively known
and mentioned as the " Livingston Company," and by a number of men in several of the other com- panies. Two years and a half later, at the time of its " veteranization," it received large accessions of recruits from this county.
The Livingston company, designated in the organization as "I" company, was mustered under the following-named commissioned officers, viz .: Captain, John Gilluly ; First Lieutenant, Hudson B. Blackman; Second Lieutenant, Charles H. Dennison. This was the company which has already been mentioned as having been recruited by Captain Gilluly in the last part of April and first part of May. It had, however, experienced some changes in the mean time, some of its early members withdrawing to join other organizations, and their places being supplied by other recruits. The following is the list of non-commissioned officers and privates of this company as appearing on the twentieth of August :
First Sergeant, George W. Rose.
Second Sergeant, F. W. Kimberk.
Third Sergeant, Jabez A. Pond.
Fourth Sergeant, Cyrenus H. Saddler.
Fifth Sergeant, George Dudley.
First Corporal, John Monroe. Second Corporal, William H. Pullen.
Third Corporal, William H. Bigham.
Fourth Corporal, John Gilbert. Fifth Corporal, Willis H. Pratt. Sixth Corporal, Samuel B. Curtis. Seventh Corporal, William Silverwood. Eighth Corporal, John Stevens.
Privates.
Charles McNaughton.
William Tenny.
Stuart A. Boyd.
Charles Wendall.
Henry S. Preston.
Daniel W. Morse.
Henry Butler. Joseph Countryman.
Augustus R. Sewell.
William H. Babcock.
George N. Bashford.
Boyce P. Owen.
Albert Packins.
Edgar Muir.
William Murphy.
Edward Bird.
Clark S. Beal.
Adolphus Winters.
Bernard W. Beal.
Hiram Pentlen.
Edward G. Pursal.
Conrad Srim.
George S. Winegar.
Thomas Fitzgerald.
Warren Hunt.
Henry R. Goodrich. Milton Hitchcock. Volney Miller. Samuel Sutton.
Patrick McCabe.
James Boylan.
George L. Placeway.
James L. Pettibone.
W. H. Bab.
Henry P. Wright.
Paul C. G. Itsell.
Clinton Russell.
Charles Abrams.
Emerson Sowle.
Albertus D. Berry.gle
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HISTORY OF LIVINGSTON COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
Reuben Hodge.
George H. Heille.
Luke Woods.
Frederick Baetcke.
Abraham P. Ackerman.
Phillip W. Hacker. Walter R. Ferguson. Lewis F. Partlon. John A. Grogg. Alfred Johnson. William Cole.
Sylvester Smith. Samuel Wilcox. Robert Mckinley.
Jones Hay.
Wilson A. Fletcher.
Wesley Van Duyn.
William G. Knapp. Levi Townsend.
John Jones.
George D. Sidway. George W. Pentlen. George W. Wells.
James S. Lane.
John Gannon.
Harmon Curtis.
Charles Graham. Alonzo Cushing.
John Gardner. Orson A. Chandler. Lyman Cate.
Andrew J. Yerenton.
Alva W. Scofield.
John S. Bennett.
Charles Bosenbark.
William Brown.
John Pickard ..
George Sawyer.
James McGinn. Henry W. Knaggs. Adelbert Foot.
Lyman H. Willson.
Henry Thompson.
Gains B. Alsaver.
E. A. Bullard.
Andrew J. Fuller.
John Gallatian.
ยท This, however, was before the muster of the regiment, and it is probable that a few of these were omitted in the muster. The list, however, shows who were the volunteers composing the company at that time.
At an early hour in the morning of Wednesday, September 11, 1861, the men of the Fifth Regi- ment broke camp at the Fort Wayne rendezvous, packed their knapsacks, and prepared for depart- ure, which was fixed for the evening of that day. At a little before four o'clock in the afternoon the several companies were marched to the parade- ground of the fort, and there formed in line for the reception of a flag,-the gift of Messrs. F. Buhl, Newland & Co., of Detroit,-which was about to be presented to the regiment. Hundreds of spectators were there, consisting of citizens of Detroit and friends and relatives of the departing soldiers, who had come to say good-by and God- speed. The crowd was kept back by the unceasing labor of guards stationed along the line. As soon as the swaying to and fro of the people in the vain effort of each one to stand in front of the others had ceased, Marshal Whiting, with Mr. Frederick Buhl on one side and Alderman Backus on the other, stepped forward, bearing the flag. Ap- proaching to within a few paces of Colonel Terry, Mr. Backus made a few well-timed remarks on behalf of Mr, Buhl, which were responded to by
Colonel Terry in an appropriate manner. The flag, which was of heavy silk, fringed with gold, and surmounted by a gilded eagle, was handed to Sergeant Asa A. Rouse, of Company E, who had been designated as the color-bearer of the regi- ment. At the conclusion of the ceremony the companies were marched back to their camping- ground for supper, a few final preparations were made, and between seven and eight o'clock the command was marched to the river and embarked for Cleveland, en route for the national capital. A member of Captain Gilluly's company wrote back a descriptive account of the journey of the regi- ment from Detroit to Washington; from which account the following extracts are given :
" We embarked Wednesday evening, September IIth, on the steamer 'Ocean' for Cleveland. Our journey was pleasant, but rapid. As the shrill whistle of the steamer gave the signal for our departure the most intense excitement prevailed, and when she swung around from her moorings cheer after cheer arose from every deck. To the credit or demerit of Company I, that portion where they were situated came down heavy on the chorus for our country and her flag, our homes and the dear ones left behind us, and was returned with the same spirit and enthusiasm by the numerous crowd that thronged the wharves to witness our departure. We arrived at Cleveland about three o'clock in the morning, where we were detained till nine o'clock, when we took the cars for Pitts- burgh. It would naturally be supposed that from the numerous bodies of troops that have passed over this road they would have stilled the ardor of the people along the line, but such is not the case. Their feelings are too deeply enlisted in the present cause to admit of any reaction. As the bell rang to warn us of our departure crowds of people gathered around the cars to bid the Wolverine boys good-by. Nor was Cleveland behind in giving us a warm reception. The whole line, as far as Pittsburgh, was lined with people of all grades, from the aged grandparent to the lisp- ing child, to see us pass. At Atwater we stopped to eat a few hard crackers and some tough beef. Of course, we had whetted our teeth for the task, but imagine our surprise, when the train stopped, to behold the sidewalks lined with barrels, boxes, bags, and baskets filled to overflowing with fruits, pies, cakes, meats, eggs, and, in fact, all that the most delicate palate could crave, waiting for us. Yet the beauty of the whole affair was the manner in which those luxuries were distributed among us. It was not by the brawny hands of a slouch- ing cook, whose presence we had already learned to loathe, but by the soft, white hands of the fair .
Hannibal Sawyer. John Sawyer.
Philo Chubb.
William S. Norris.
Mortimer Smith.
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FIFTH INFANTRY.
maidens of the village, whose generosity we shall ever remember till tough beef and hard crackers are no more. Our repast was soon over, however, and with three hearty cheers for the ladies of At- water, we arrived in Pittsburgh at nine o'clock that evening, where we took supper, changed cars, and resumed our journey for Washington by the way of Harrisburg. We arrived in the latter place between two and three o'clock the next morning. There we were numbered off and stowed away in cattle-cars of the most old and dilapidated kind; in this wretched way we proceeded to Baltimore, where we were again furnished with good coaches. We arrived in Washington on Sunday morning, somewhat fatigued from our long journey. We remained there till night, when we received orders to march,-to what place we did not know. We were soon prepared for the journey, and after a march of some three or four miles we arrived at Meridian Hill, where we learned we were to take up our quarters."
Meridian Hill is in the northwest part of the city of Washington, and at this place the Fifth re- mained until the morning of Wednesday, Septem- ber 18th, just one week from the day of departure from Detroit, when it broke camp and marched down through the city to the arsenal, where the men were furnished with indifferent Springfield muskets. Then the regiment moved across the Long Bridge into Virginia, and out to Arlington, where it bivouacked for the night, and on the fol- lowing day marched about two miles from the river to Hunter's Chapel, where it halted and pitched a camp, which was named Camp Richardson, in honor of Colonel Richardson, to whose brigade (of Heintzelman's division) it had been assigned for duty. On the twenty-second, a part of the regi- ment, including Company I, was placed on picket, some two miles farther to the front. This was their first duty in front of the enemy, and here for the first time the men of the Fifth heard the crack of hostile rifles, and the dread whisperings of pass- ing bullets.
On Saturday, September 28th, six companies of the regiment moved to Munson's Hill, Virginia. The remainder of the regiment immediately after- wards came up and occupied the same position, and to Colonel Terry's command is due the credit of first occupying this position in the front, where an attack was hourly looked for, though none was made. At this place the regiment was without tents, and was engaged constantly on fatigue duty, felling timber, and, with the Thirty-seventh New York, constructing substantial earthworks on the Hill. On the twelfth of October the Fifth moved to Hunter's Creek, two miles south of Alexandria,
and the men were put on similar duty in the con- struction of Fort Lyon.
The regiment remained at Fort Lyon for about two months, and in the early part of December moved about three miles farther down the Poto- mac, to "Camp Michigan," where the men were supplied with Sibley tents, and set about preparing themselves for comparative comfort in winter quarters. The enemy was immediately in front, though not in much force. On the first of Janu- ary, 1862, First Lieutenant Dennison, of Com- pany I, while out in command of a few men on a scouting expedition towards Pohick Church, fell into an ambush, from which a volley was fired, wounding the lieutenant in the face, the ball com- ing out just below and in front of the ear, missing the main artery by only the fraction of an inch. This was one of the first casualties of the kind in the experience of the regiment, but it saw blood- letting enough afterwards. No other member of the party was wounded on this occasion by the enemy's fire.
The regiment was very comfortably quartered during the winter of 1861-62, until the general movement of the Army of the Potomac in March. First came the feint of the army in the direction of Manassas, which was followed immediately by the transportation of the immense host down the Potomac to Fortress Monroe. The Fifth embarked at Alexandria, and moved with the army to the Peninsula, where, on the fourth of April, 1862, it marched with its division towards Yorktown, ar- riving in front of that stronghold on the following day. There it remained through the four weeks' siege of the place, and until Sunday, the fourth of May, when the Union army was electrified by the announcement that the hostile works had been evacuated during the previous night, and that the enemy was retiring towards Richmond. The forces of General McClellan were at once put in motion to pursue, and the Fifth Michigan with its brigade moved from camp, on through the evacu- ated intrenchments at about three o'clock P.M., taking the road towards Williamsburg, but biv- ouacking for the night a short distance beyond Yorktown. At two o'clock in the morning of Monday, the fifth, the men were turned out in the pouring rain to prepare for marching, but the regi- ment did not move until about ten A.M. Then forward over the almost bottomless roads, which were clogged and blockaded by artillery, cavalry, and army wagons, the men of the Fifth pressed on towards the field where the battle had been in progress since the early morning. For hours they struggled on through the mud and rain, and as they approached Williamsburg the thunder of ar-
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