USA > Michigan > St Joseph County > History of St. Joseph county, Michigan, with illustrations descriptive of its scenery, palatial residences, public buildings, fine blocks, and important manufactories > Part 20
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" On May 5, 1864, the 7th was engaged, under Major S. W. Curtis, at the Wilderness, and from thence to Petersburg was engaged in all the battles and skirmishes which distinguished that great campaign. Its services were arduous and most gallantly performed from the time it arrived at Peters- burg, July 15, to October 26, when at Hatcher's Run, in the hottest of the fight, the 7th, only eighty-five strong, took twenty officers and four hundred and eighty men prisoners, and Sergeant Alonzo Smith (afterwards first-lieu- tenant), captured the colors of the 26th North Carolina infantry, for which he was presented a medal of honor by the Secretary of War.
"'Through some misunderstanding, the 7th was left on the line after the Union forces were withdrawn, and remained in that condition until the morning of the 28th, when Colonel Lapointe, then in command, finding his
regiment had been left alone on the field, formed his men and explained to them their perilous situation, telling them to stand by him and they could find their way out. They commenced at once their dangerous undertaking, marching twelve miles through the country held by the enemy, gallantly fighting their way at almost every step, pursued and harassed constantly by cavalry threatening to cut them off, but they arrived safely within the Union lines at sundown of the same day. General Hancock, their corps com- mander, complimented the regiment highly on the occasion, and character- ized the undertaking as one of the most praiseworthy and daring of the war. The regiment participated in the closing battles of the war, doing most ex- cellent service and maintaining its high standard won on many hard-fought fields. The total losses of the regiment during its entire service were one hundred and seventy men and eleven officers killed and died of wounds, and one hundred and fifty men and four officers died of disease. Company K was the St. Joseph company in the 7th."
THE ELEVENTH INFANTRY.
The 11th Michigan was pre-eminently a St. Joseph county organization, it being recruited at White Pigeon, and its ranks principally filled by citi- zens of St. Joseph county, the several townships sending six hundred and ten men and officers into the field under its colors. The staff officers at its organization, and during the whole of its long and honorable service were nearly all St. Joseph men, and there were four full companies recruited in the county, as follows: A, Captain David Oakes, Jr., Nottawa, who died at Murfreesboro; C, Captain Calvin C. Hood, Sturgis ; D, Captain Benjamin G. Bennett, Burr Oak, promoted to major, and killed at Missionary Ridge; E, Captain Henry N. Spencer, Lockport, resigned, and Lieutenant Thomas Flynn promoted to vacancy, and killed at Stone River, and Second-Lieu- tenant Charles W. Newberry, of Burr Oaks, promoted to captaincy, and killed at Chickamauga. Besides these companies, Company G, officered by Captain Moase and Lieutenant Comstock of Branch county, had over fifty men from St. Joseph county in its ranks, and Company F, commanded lat- terly by Captain Myron C. Benedict of Leonidas, had nearly as many more. Company I had a squad of about fifteen, recruited by Lieutenant Henry S. Platt, of Sturgis.
The great and important battles of Stone River and Chickamauga will always be referred to by the 11th as among the most desperate in which it was engaged during its gallant career, and in which it was most eminently distinguished, and lost heavily. Few regiments on those fields were harder pressed or defended themselves more heroically, and the surviving members of the regiment refer to their services on these occasions with justifiable pride.
At Stone River the regiment, commanded by Colonel William L. Stoughton, of Sturgis, was hotly engaged during the entire battle, being in Negley's division of Thomas' corps, which, on December 31, held the ground near the centre of the Union lines, where it received and checked the onset of the rebel forces, which came sweeping on in column of divisions, after having driven the corps of McCook from its position, and is acknowledged to have been one of the fiercest assaults of the day, in which the enemy was dreadfully punished. The 11th Michigan, with the 19th Illinois, charged in advance, and drove back an entire rebel division; and after the retrograde movement of their own division, these regiments made another dash to the front, driving the enemy. In the engagement the 11th lost thirty-two killed, seventy-nine wounded, and twenty-nine missing. The gallant commander, Colonel Stoughton, thus writes officially of the part taken by his regiment in the engagement:
"On the morning of the 31st of December, 1862, heavy firing was heard to our right and front, and apparently rapidly approaching the position occupied by the 2d brigade. The regiment was immediately formed and marched to the brow of the hill, near brigade headquarters. The skirmish- ing soon after indicated the approach of the enemy to the right of this posi- tion, and my regiment was formed in line of battle, under cover of a ledge of rocks about one hundred yards in this direction. The skirmishing con- tinued with much spirit for nearly an hour, when a heavy roar of musketry and artillery announced that the principal attack of the enemy was being made on our left and rear. I immediately gave orders to change front on first company, which was promptly executed under a heavy fire, and the regiment advanced in line of battle to the crest of the hill from which Shoult's battery had first been driven, and poured a well-directed and effect- ive fire into the advancing columns of the enemy. The firing continued with spirit and energy until orders came to retire. The fire of the enemy was apparently concentrated upon this point, and was terriffic. Men and officers fell on every side. The regiment fell back about eighty yards, was
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HISTORY OF ST. JOSEPH COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
again formed, and then delivered its fire upon the enemy as he advanced over the hill, then retiring to the cover of the cedar woods in our rear. Here some confusion was at first manifest. A large number of regiments had fallen back to this place for shelter, and the enemy's infantry and artil- lery opened upon us from all sides, except from the left towards Murfrees- boro pike. Order, however, was promptly restored by our division and brigade commanders, and my regiment, with others, moved slowly to the rear, keeping up a steady fire upon the enemy. When nearer the cleared field to the right of the Murfreesboro pike, the regiment was rallied, and held the ground for twenty or thirty minutes; it was then marched about half way across the open field, when orders came to charge back into the cedars. My regiment promptly obeyed my orders, rallied on the colors, and charged into the woods with great gallantry, checking the enemy by the sudden and impetuous attack. After delivering one volley, orders came to retire, and the regiment fell back in good order to the left of Murfreesboro pike. Here closed the active operations of that day.
"On the 2d of January we were again called into action. In the after- noon of that day we were posted, as a reserve, in an open field in the rear of our batteries, on the right of the left wing of our army. Between three and four o'clock the enemy made a heavy attack with artillery and infantry on our front. My command was kept lying upon the ground,.protected by a slight hill, for about half an hour.
" At the expiration of this time the enemy had driven back our forces on the opposite side of the river, one regiment crossing in great disorder and rushing through our ranks. As soon as the enemy came within range, my regiment, with the others of this brigade, rose up, delivered its fire and charged across the river. In passing the river my line of battle was neces- sarily broken, and I led the regiment forward to a fence on a rise of ground, and re-formed the line. Here the firing continued for some time until the enemy was driven from his cover and retreated through the woods. My regi- ment was then promptly advanced to the edge of the woods, and continued to fire upon the enemy as he fled in disorder across the open field in front to his line of entrenchments. At this time the ammunition was nearly ex- hausted, and my regiment, with the others in advance, formed in line of battle, threw out skirmishers, and held our position until recalled across the river. The 11th was among the first to cross Stone river, and assisted in capturing four pieces of artillery abandoned by the enemy in his flight.
" I cannot speak too highly of the conduct of the troops under my com- mand. They fought with the bravery and coolness of veterans, and obeyed my commands under the hottest fire with the precision of the parade-ground. The officers of my command behaved with great gallantry and firmness. Where all nobly discharged their duty, it would, perhaps, be unjust to dis- criminate. Lieutenants Wilson and Flynn were killed while gallantly leading their companies. Major Smith and Lieutenants Hall, Briggs and Howard were wounded, the two former severely, and Lieutenant Hall is a prisoner."
At Chickamauga the regiment, in command of Lieutenant-Colonel Melvin Mudge, was then in the brigade of Colonel Stoughton, being the 2d brigade, 2d division, 14th corps. This brigade constituted part of the command of General Thomas, and on the last day of that sanguinary conflict held one of the most important points on his line of defence against a largely superior force-the regiment fighting most persistently, successfully repelling charge after charge of the enemy, losing seven killed (including Captain Charles W. Newberry, of Burr Oak ), seventy-six wounded and twenty-three missing- and was one of the last regiments to retire from the field in the darkness of that fearful night when the army fell back. Next morning Colonel Stoughton took up a position in front of Rossville, covering the approach to the battle-field, and held it during that day, and in the night fell back on Chattanooga, covering the rear of the retiring army. In the movement Colonel Stoughton drew off his artillery by hand to escape the notice of the enemy. He remained on his picket-line until past four A. M., when, hearing the enemy stirring, he successfully withdrew his pickets, and made a forced march to Chattanooga without the loss of a man, thus most successfully accomplishing a very dangerous and important duty, for which he was after- wards complimented personally by General Thomas.
After the battle of Mission Ridge, in November, 1863, where the regi- ment, under command of Major B. G. Bennett, participated in the decisive charge, losing its gallant commander and thirty-nine in killed and wounded, the 11th, being in the 2d brigade, 1st division, 14th corps, moved forward on the Atlanta campaign, engaging creditably in all of the important battles.
On July 4, following, it took part in the successful charge on the enemy's works near Marietta, losing thirteen in killed and wounded, including among the severely wounded Colonel Stoughton, who lost a leg, and Lieu-
tenant Myron Benedict of Company F, who lost his right arm. The regiment was engaged at Peach Tree Creek July 20, with a loss of eleven killed and wounded, and on August 7 it was in the charge on the enemy's works in front of Atlanta, losing Lieutenant Edward Catlin and fifteen men killed and wounded. The period for which the regiment enlisted having expired, it was ordered to Chattanooga, August 27. The rebel general Wheeler being then engaged in making a raid into Tennessee, the regiment, immedi- ately after its arrival at Chattanooga on the 30th, was ordered to join the column in pursuit, and marched to Murfreesboro, and thence to Huntsville, Alabama, but without meeting the enemy. It returned to Chattanooga September 13. Leaving here two commissioned officers and one hundred and fifty men, (veterans and recruits whose terms had not expired,) the regi- ment started for Michigan on the 18th, arriving at Sturgis on the 25th. On the 30th it was mustered out of the service. Its total losses in the service were five officers and eighty-eight men killed or died of wounds, and two officers and one hundred and eighty-five men died of disease.
The original roster of the regiment, including the line officers of the St. Joseph companies, was as follows :
Colonel, William J. May, of White Pigeon, who resigned April 1, 1862. Lieutenant-Colonel, William L. Stoughton, Sturgis.
Major, Benjamin F. Doughty, Sturgis, resigned August 18, 1862. Surgeon, Dr. William N. Elliott, White Pigeon.
Assistant-Surgeon, Nelson I. Packard, Sturgis. Chaplain, Holmes A. Pattison, Colon. Quartermaster, Addison T. Drake, Sturgis.
Adjutant, Samuel Chadwick, Lockport.
. Sergeant-Major, James M. Whallen, Burr Oak. Quartermaster's Sergeant, John Underwood, White Pigeon. Commissary-Sergeant, Elva F. Peirce, Nottawa. Captain Company A, David Oakes, Jr., Nottawa. First Lieutenant Company A, Christian Haight, Leonidas. Second Lieutenant Company A, Aaron B. Sturgis, Sturgis. Captain Company C, Calvin C. Hood, Sturgis. First Lieutenant Company C, Mathias M. Faulkner, Sturgis.
Second Lieutenant Company C, Loren H. Howard, Fawn River. Captain Company D, Benjamin G. Bennett, Burr Oak. First Lieutenant Company D, John R. Keeler, Burr Oak.
Captain Company E, Henry N. Spencer, Lockport. First Lieutenant Company E, Thomas Flynn, Lockport.
Second Lieutenant Company E, Charles W. Newberry, Burr Oak. Captain Company G, Charles Moase, Branch county.
Second Lieutenant Company G, Silas G. Comstock, Branch county. Second Lieutenant Company I, Henry S. Platt; Sturgis.
THE THIRTEENTH INFANTRY.
The daring bravery of the 13th Infantry, raised and organized by Colonel Charles E. Stuart, of Kalamazoo, is attested by its persistent fighting and splendid achievements on many fields. It participated in the bloody engage- ments at Stone River, December 30 and 31, and January 1, 2, and 3, going into action with two hundred and twenty-four muskets; and losing out of this number twenty-five killed or died of wounds, sixty-two wounded, and eight missing. At Chickamauga, the noble regiment, under command of Colonel J. B. Culver, displayed again its brilliant fighting qualities in the- efficient service rendered on the 18th of September, and the 19th also, when it rejoined its brigade and division some distance to the left of Lee and Gor- don's mills, executing the movement under a heavy fire of the enemy, on the double-quick, with the mercury above ninety. Soon after the regiment charged in a handsome and gallant manner, checking the onset of the rebels, who were forcing back a part of the brigade; in which charge it lost heavily. The regiment went into the engagement with two hundred and seventeen men and officers, and lost fourteen killed, sixty-eight wounded, (of whom eleven died), and twenty-five missing. It joined Sherman's forces in the famous "march to the sea," and moved with them through the Caro- linas, and was engaged with the enemy at Catawba river, South Carolina, February 29, 1864, at Averysboro, North Carolina, March 16, and at Benton- ville, on the 19th, where it fought the enemy the entire day, sustaining a loss of one hundred and ten killed, wounded and missing, and among the killed was the commanding officer, Colonel W. G. Eaton. It participated in the grand review at Washington. Captain William McLaughlin, of Sturgis, and Captain Norman H. Hoisington, of Fabius, held commands in the 13th. Its total losses in the service were four officers and seventy-four men killed or died of wounds, and two officers and two hundred and sixty-six men died of disease.
7
56
HISTORY OF ST. JOSEPH COUNTY, MICHIGAN.
THE FIFTEENTH INFANTRY.
The 15th, in command of Colonel J. M. Oliver, by whom it was organized, first met the enemy at Shiloh, on the 6th and 7th of April, 1862. Arriving there only the day before the battle, it the next morning became hotly en- gaged, and was thus early initiated into the sad realities of war, and at a great sacrifice, losing in the engagements of both days two officers and thirty-one men killed, and one officer and sixty-three men wounded, and seven missing. The regiment was with Halleck before Corinth, and also with Rosecrans, when his position at the same place was assaulted by Price and his command, October, 1862. At that time the regiment, under command of Lieutenant- Colonel McDermott, held the outpost at Chewalla, on the Memphis and Charleston railroad, about ten miles from Corinth, where it met and checked the advance of Price, and most signally made its mark as a most reliable and brave regiment. On the morning of the 1st of October the pickets of the 15th were driven in, the regiment holding the enemy in check during the day ; and in the evening was reinforced by the 14th Wisconsin and a section of a twelve-pound battery, the whole force being under command of Colonel Oliver, of the 15th Michigan. The command fought during the 2d and 3d against overwhelming numbers, contesting every inch of ground, but falling back gradually upon Corinth,-several times being completely flanked and obliged to return on the double-quick, with the enemy on both flanks. It is claimed that the admirable disposition made by Colonel Oliver of his force, and the steadiness and gallantry of the men engaged, delayed an army of forty thousand men (or thereabout) at least twenty-four hours in making their main and final attack upon Corinth, thus enabling General Rosecrans to make the disposition of his forces which most successfully secured the repulse of the enemy, and compelled him to make a most disastrous retreat. The regiment was at Vicksburg in June, 1863, and participated in the ad- vance on Jackson, leading at the crossing of the Big Black river on the 6th of July. It veteranized and participated in the Georgia campaign in 1864, taking part in the engagements that occurred during the movement on Re- saca. On the 21st of July, the 15th, under command of Lieutenant-Colonel F. S. Hutchinson, eminently distinguished itself, rendering most gallant and valuable service.
Early on the morning of that day the enemy attacked, in flank and rear, the 17th corps, which was on the left of the 15th corps, driving it back with much loss. About one o'clock the 15th Michigan was ordered to fill a gap on the extreme left of its corps, about one mile distant from the posi- tion it then occupied. The regiment moved on the double-quick, and upon coming into line near the position indicated, found it in possession of the enemy ; it, however, moved gallantly forward in line, striking the enemy on the flank, driving him from his position, taking seventeen officers and one hundred and sixty-seven men as prisoners, and capturing the colors of the 5th Confederate Infantry, and also the colors of the 17th and 18th Texas, and suffering a loss of four killed and six wounded. This was the advance of two rebel divisions which were massed in a wood but a short dis- tance in the rear. The promptitude with which the movement was executed by the 15th deterred the remainder of the rebel force from making a for- ward movement, and thus prevented the enemy from breaking the Union lines, and probably averted disaster from that part of the field.
The regiment participated in the campaign before Atlanta, and marched with Sherman to Savannah, maintaining its glorious record to the last. Its losses during the war foot up seventy-five officers and men killed or died of wounds, and one hundred and thirty-two died of disease. Captain John A. Waterman, of Burr Oak, commanded a company in the 15th, recruited largely from St. Joseph county.
THE NINETEENTH INFANTRY.
The 19th was organized by Colonel Henry C. Gilbert, who was killed at Resaca while leading his regiment upon a rebel battery. There were two full companies from St. Joseph county in its ranks : D, Captain Hazen W. Brown, and afterwards commanded by Captain Frank D. Baldwin, who also was promoted to the lieutenant-colonelcy of the regiment ; and Company E, Captain John J. Baker, who was also the lieutenant-colonel of the regiment when discharged-Lieutenant David J. Easton of the same company holding the commission and rank of major at his discharge. The last two were Sturgis men, and the former of Constantine. The 19th won great celebrity in many important battles and campaigns, but in none more prominently than the following:
On the 5th of March, 1863, the 4th brigade of General Baird's division of the army of Kentucky, composed of the 33d and 85th Indiana, 22d Wisconsin, and 19th Michigan, numbering in all about one thousand five hundred and eighty-seven men, strengthened by two hundred of the 124th Ohio, with de-
tachments of three regiments of cavalry about six hundred strong, and one battery of six guns, met the enemy in force at Thompson's station, Tennessee, and at the point where the railroad joins the pike the rebels opened fire upon the Union forces, who were under the command of Colonel Coburn, and who immediately formed his line and ordered a section of the battery to occupy a hill on the left of the pike, sending the 19th Michigan and 22d Wisconsin to support it. The 33d and 85th Indiana, with the other guns of the battery, took position on a hill on the right. The enemy had two batteries on a range of hills three quarters of a mile in front, and south of the position of the Union troops. The 33d and 85th Indiana made a demonstration on the left of the enemy to draw him out or charge his batteries according to cir- cumstances. This was commenced and continued under a most galling fire from the enemy's batteries. Upon reaching the station the skirmishers un- masked two whole brigades of dismounted rebel cavalry posted behind stone walls and other defenses.
It being impossible to advance farther under the incessant and severe fire, the regiments were ordered to retire to their former position on the hill, sup- ported by two companies of cavalry, but for some reason or other the cavalry did not accompany them. No sooner had the two regiments commenced to fall back than they were pursued by two regiments, one from Arkansas and one from Texas, both firing rapid volleys into the retiring ranks, which were at the same time under fire from the rebel batteries. As soon as they reached the hill, the Indiana regiments faced about and drove the enemy in turn in double-quick, killing Colonel Earle, of Arkansas. The enemy again rallied and charged desperately, but were driven back. It then became evident that Colonel Coburn had encountered the entire cavalry of Bragg's army, commanded by General Van Dorn, about eighteen thousand strong, in six brigades, under the command of Generals Forrest, Wheeler, French, Arm- strong, Jackson, Martin, and Crosby. The rebels then advanced upon the left, where were posted the 19th Michigan and 22d Wisconsin. These regi- ments opened fire upon the enemy, and held him in check for about twenty minutes.
At the time the left was first attacked, that portion of the battery there stationed hurriedly left that part of the field without orders, leaving the two regiments without artillery to assist them in repelling the enemy then charg- ing desperately. At the same time Lieutenant-Colonel Bloodgood, of the 22d Wisconsin, with three companies of that regiment, left the field without orders, moving off by the left flank and joining the retreating cavalry and artillery. Forrest, checked in his advance, made a circuit with his whole force beyond the ground occupied by Coburn, to the east, with the intention to turn his left flank. The 19th and 22d were then moved on the west side of the pike, leaving the 33d and 85th to protect the hill on its south face. The four regiments had scarcely formed line, lying behind the crest of the hill, when Armstrong's brigade charged from the east, and the Texans from the south, when a severe contest ensued, and the fighting became terrific. Three times the enemy charged gallantly up the hill from the east, and thrice were they forced back.
In one of their charges the 19th Michigan captured the colors of the 4th Mississippi, and four prisoners. The fighting was close and desperate. The enemy, having gained possession of the hill on the east of the road, were hurling grape and canister into the ranks like hail, and the battle raged fu- riously. But it was a hopeless struggle ; defeat was only a question of time. The ammunition was getting short, and Forrest getting between them and Franklin, who was advancing from the north. A new line was formed, by Coburn's force facing north, to meet the new line of advance. Forrest was met and held in check until the last round of ammunition was fired. The gallant and brave little band then fixed bayonets to charge and break the enemy's lines and escape ; but just as they were about to charge, it was dis- covered that the enemy had still another line in reserve, and a battery be- gan to open and take a new position. Escape was hopeless, and to avoid useless loss of life the command surrendered, having lost one hundred and thirteen in killed and wounded. Colonel Gilbert had his horse shot under him in the early part of the engagement, and behaved most gallantly. When he offered his sword to the Confederate commander, the latter de- clined to receive it, saying " that an officer who was so brave in battle, and commanded so gallant a regiment, deserved to retain his arms."
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