A History of the city of Newark, New Jersey : embracing practically two and a half centuries, 1666-1913, Volume II, Part 10

Author: Urquhart, Frank J. (Frank John), 1865- 4n; Lewis Historical Publishing Company. 4n
Publication date: 1913
Publisher: New York, N.Y. ; Chicago, Ill. : The Lewis Historical Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 1136


USA > New Jersey > Essex County > Newark > A History of the city of Newark, New Jersey : embracing practically two and a half centuries, 1666-1913, Volume II > Part 10


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COLONEL ADOLPHUS J. JOHNSON-WILLIAMSBURG.


Colonel Adolphus J. Johnson, who led the First Regiment of three months' men from Newark, was scarcely out of that com- mand upon its disbandment than he was given the leadership in the Eighth, being mustered in in mid-September, 1861. He served with it until March 19, when he resigned. He was a consistent and most admirable soldier, and was at the head of the old First Regiment of militia before the outbreak of the war. At the battle of Williamsburg, fought May 5, 1862, the Eighth and the whole Brigade, the Second New Jersey saw severe service. The regiment suffered great hardships for two or three days previous to the battle in getting to the line of intrenchments. Says Atkinson, in his History of Newark:


"Immediately in front of the redoubts, which extended far away to the right and left, the plain was furrowed by winding ravines which were completely covered by the guns of the enemy. * Through the brush the Jerseymen pushed, and soon they came upon the foe. The Eighth occupied the extreme left of the line of battle. A wood in which it was stationed was almost impassable because of broken timber. * * *


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long hours the regiment fought with consummate bravery. ** *


* They were cheered and encouraged by the example and word of their brave colonel, the gallant Johnson. On going into the battle he had some misgivings as to the mettle of a few of his command, and he resolved to shoot the first man who blenched in action. His fears proved groundless; not a man wavered. So close were the men of the Eighth to the enemy that the orders given by the Confederate officers were distinctly heard. 'Again and again and still again,' to quote the words of one who was there, 'six thousand of the enemy's fresh troops were hurled against the New Jersey Brigade of less than three thousand; but each time they were driven back with terrible loss.' Not even when their brave commander fell badly wounded, so that he had to be removed to the rear, did the Eighth show a sign of wavering.


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"The brigade was at last forced to fall back; its ammunition was exhausted. Colonel Johnson was away from his command for four months as a result of his wound. After he left the field, Major Peter M. Ryerson took command, and an hour afterward Ryerson was killed. In his report General Patterson said the con- duct of Captain William A. Henry, Company B, and of Captain John Tuite, of Company C, 'cannot be too highly commended.' The regimental chaplain, the Rev. A. St. John Chambre, was con- stantly under fire, assisting in bearing the wounded to the rear. The day after the Chaplain buried thirty-six officers and men of the regiment, and there were about 150 wounded, many of whom died later. 'The heaviest work of the battle,' wrote Chaplain Chambre, 'was done by the New Jersey Brigade *


* * and the hardest fighting of the brigade was done by the Eighth New Jersey Regi- ment. *


* In my opinion, the day was saved by the New Jersey Brigade.' "


GENERAL WILLIAM H. WARD.


For twenty years before the war William Ward, whose family had for many generations lived in Newark, had been an enthusiastic member of the militia. He went into the field as captain of Company D of the Eighth Regiment, and on July 28, 1862, he received his commission as lieutenant-colonel and became the vir- tual head of the regiment. At the Second Bull Run he was hit almost simultaneously by five bullets, and his left arm had to be amputated. He was confined to his home here in Newark for a year and a half, and for a long time thereafter he was unable to attend to any business. He received the brevet of colonel on March 13, 1865, for gallantry in the field. He was made City Clerk of Newark in 1866 and was appointed Postmaster of Newark by General Grant in 1869. In accordance with a special act of the Legislature, Governor Joel Parker appointed Colonel Ward a brigadier general of militia for long and meritorious service.


BREVET BRIGADIER-GENERAL JOHN RAMSEY.


General Ramsey first served in the Second New Jersey three months' men as a private, and later became a first lieutenant and subsequently captain. He became a captain of the Fifth New Jer- sey on August 17, 1861, and after the battle of Williamsburg was


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promoted major for distinguished gallantry on the field. On October 21, 1862, he became lieutenant-colonel. In April, 1863, he was made colonel of the Eighth New Jersey. He led the command at Gettysburg and was wounded there. Ramsey was brevetted brigadier-general for distinguished service by a special order of President Lincoln in 1864, and on June 5 of that year was assigned to duty as a brigade commander of the Corcoran Legion, the Sec- ond Brigade, Second Division, Second Army Corps. He was wounded in the attack on Petersburg, on the night of June 16, 1864. When he returned to duty he was given the First Brigade, First Division, Second Army Corps. He was wounded five times during the war. He was born in New York City.


BATTERY B-MAJOR A. JUDSON CLARK.


With the Eighth New Jersey, there went out from Newark Battery B, commanded by Captain John E. Beam, with A. Judson Clark second in command. Captain Beam was killed at Malvern Hill. Captain Clark was the battery's head thereafter.


" "Throughout the whole period of the war the battery was prominently engaged in every important battle except that of Antietam, and won a splendid reputation for its fighting and stay- ing qualities. At Chancellorsville Captain Clark was placed in command of the First Division Artillery, Third Army Corps. When the attack on the Eleventh Corps was made by Jackson, Clark's Battery was at Hazel Grove firing on the Furnace road. The enemy came through to the right of Sickles' Corps, and in close pursuit of General O. O. Howard's fleeing troops. The battery was immediately turned around, and began firing to the rear with canister, which enabled General Pleasanton to form his line.


"At Gettysburg Captain Clark was with his battery during all of the terrific firing of the second of July. * * At the close of the day, Colonel Randolph, chief of artillery for the Third Army Corps, was wounded, and Captain Clark was appointed to that post, holding it until just before the battle of Mine Run. At the fight at Ream's Station in front of Petersburg, Captain Clark was slightly wounded by a minie ball, in the forehead. When the terms of service of the three years' members of the battery who had not re-enlisted expired, Captain Clark accompanied them to


' New Jersey Troops in the Gettysburg Campaign, by Samuel Toombs, Company F, Thirteenth New Jersey Volunteers.


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Trenton, where they were mustered out, and immediately after- ward returned to the battery, remaining with it until the close of the war. *


* Captain Clark was especially recommended to the President for promotion by General Sickles for bravery and gallantry at Chancellorsville and Gettysburg, and in 1864 General Hunt, chief of artillery of the Army of the Potomac; General Bir- ney, General Mott and others sent strong letters to the State authorities, urging that the several [five] batteries of the State be given a field officer and recommending Captain Clark for the place * * but for some reason or other this was not complied with. "Captain Clark was brevetted major of United States Volun- teers for gallant and meritorious services in front of Petersburg, by Congress, to date from April 2, 1865. Since the war Major Clark's signal abilities have been recognized by his own people, who have repeatedly appointed him to responsible positions, first as chief of police of the City of Newark."


He was active in the National Guard of the State for many years. He died at his home in this city on July 24, 1913, and at that time it was said of him: "Captain Clark was as modest as he was intrepid, and the soldierly qualities that distinguished him in the army won for him the highest regard in civil life."


Major Clark was chief of the Newark police after the war for several years, receiver of taxes for a time, and later was appointed superintendent of the National Soldiers' Home at Dayton, Ohio, where he remained until within a few weeks of his death. (For list of the officers of Battery B, see Appendix H.)


THE "FIGHTING THIRTEENTH."


Few regiments of volunteers from this or any other State, in the Civil War or any other, have left a brighter record than the old "Fighting Thirteenth." It was raised under the call for troops of July, 1862, when the need for more men was very urgent, when the Confederates were carrying nearly everything before them in the East, and when the men who enlisted knew that soldiering was bound to be grim, grisly business. Thousands throughout the country who had withstood the calls for men up to this time, felt their patriotism stirred to the very depths, and put aside their occupations and placed their names on the roster rolls. A booth


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was set up in Military Park where many a youth went to sign his name to the muster rolls.


The regiment was assembled, equipped and drilled at Camp Frelinghuysen, here in Newark (of which more later on). On Friday, August 28, 1862, a number of the ladies of the South Baptist Church presented the regiment with a flag, the speech of presentation being made by the Rev. Dr. E. M. Levy, pastor of the church, which, as reported by the Daily Advertiser, was as follows:


"'Colonel Carman-In behalf of Miss Landell, it is my agree- able duty to present to your regiment this flag. It is not made for holiday uses, nor to float in the quiet breezes of home. It is intended for the smoke of battle, the rallying object in the hour when you and the enemy shall meet face to face. Woman's hand has wrought it; it remains now for you and your men to follow and defend it. There has always been, in times of national danger, a strong incentive to heroic action. It is found in the participation of the soldier's toils by that sex, whose delicate nature might well shrink from the tempest of war-in their sympathy with the suf- ferings of the brave, and aversion and contempt for the timid and wavering. The women of Sparta carried their jewels into the public treasury and gave up their lovers, husbands and sons to their country, and the narrative of our Revolution is alternately ornamented with female constancy and manly achievement.


" 'Be assured, colonel, female patriotism still survives; and while your regiment is far away from home and loved ones, tender hearts will be praying for your success, and gentle hands will be preparing to wreathe your brows with honor, or strew your graves with flowers.'


"After an allusion to the new era in the history of the war, to be marked with greater energy and boldness, the speaker com- mitted the flag into the keeping of the colonel and the Thirteenth Regiment, as an emblem of our institutions, dear to every patriot. He called upon them to let its past renown stimulate them to deeds of heroism, and concluded by invoking the God of Battles to prosper them as they adhered to the sacred cause of Liberty.


"Colonel Carman received the standard with the following remarks:


" 'Kind Sir-In behalf of my fellow-officers and the soldiers of my command, I receive at your hands this elegant standard, prepared by the ladies of this city. We shall look upon this beautiful flag as no holiday thing, to be borne merely on parade, but shall follow it to the battlefield, fight under it, and if need be die beneath its folds, shedding our blood for the glorious cause in which we


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are engaged. We go forth as Jerseymen, to sustain the honor of our State, which is already noted for the bravery of its soldiers, the noble deeds of its citizens, and, I may add, the beauty and patriotism of its women. Rest assured, sir, that though we may be called upon to endure hardships and privations, the memory of the kind friends at home will ever cheer us and stimulate us to renewed exertions in this sacred cause. Again, sir, I return you my thanks.' "


WHEN THE REGIMENT SKEDADDLED.


The Thirteenth was the first regiment to be assembled in Camp Frelinghuysen. A few days before it left Newark the men were informed that they would be given a day or so leave of absence to see their families and friends. Then, a little later, the order came for no one to leave the camp enclosure, as the regiment would depart in a day or so. The young soldiers were highly displeased. They grumbled and protested, and the officers scenting trouble, placed a double guard around the camp. But the men decided to leave, nevertheless, and off they went, nearly every one of them. As for the members of the guard, they stuck their bayonets in the ground, left their rifles standing there, and decamped with the rest. The next day a general parole was issued, and presently nearly every man was back and ready for the stern business ahead of him.


On the following Sunday morning, the last day of August, the Thirteenth broke camp and marched down Orange street into Broad and thence to Washington, where it was ordered to halt and to rest at ease in Washington Park. The congregation of the Second Presbyterian Church, at Washington and James streets, a number of whose members were in the regiment, was dismissed and mingled among the men, saying the last farewells. On September 17, less than three weeks from leaving Newark, the regiment met its baptism of fire, in the awful conflict at Antietam, one of the most sanguinary of the whole war. Seldom have raw recruits been given a severer test, but the men of the Thirteenth won golden laurels on that day, behaving like seasoned veterans. A few days


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later some of the Thirteenth's dead were lying in state in the Second Church. The Thirteenth's battle list is as follows:


WHERE THE THIRTEENTH FOUGHT.


Antietam, Md., September 17, 1862; Chancellorsville, Va., May 1, 2 and 3, 1863; Gettysburg, Pa., July 2 and 3, 1863; Resaca, Ga., May 14 and 15, 1864; Dallas, Ga. (or Pumpkin Vine Creek), May 25, 1864; Kulp's farm (or Kulp House), June 22, 1864; Nancy's Creek, Ga., July 18, 1864; Peach Tree Creek, Ga., July 20, 1864; Siege of Atlanta, July 22 to September 1, 1864; The March to the Sea and Capture of Savannah, November 5 to December 21, 1864; Averysboro, N. C., March 16, 1865; Bentonville, N. C., March 19, 1865. The regiment's total enlistment was 1,438. It lost by disease, in battle and from wounds, 3 officers, 103 men. (For officers of the Thirteenth see Appendix H.)


COLONEL EZRA A. CARMAN-ANTIETAM.


The "Fighting Thirteenth's" only colonel was Ezra A. Carman, which speaks volumes for his excellence and efficiency, since the command saw much of the hardest kind of service, not only in the East but in the West. On the terrible field of Antietam, where, as already mentioned, the regiment received its baptism by fire, Colonel Carman was sent to the hospital before the day was over, and Lieutenant-Colonel Swords assumed the headship. John Y. Foster, in his "New Jersey and the Rebellion," in telling of the Thirteenth's remarkable achievement on that day, says:


"Moving forward through a cornfield, in line of battle, the command soon reached the Hagerstown road at a point some dis- tance north of the Dunker Church, passing over the fence and into the road in full view of the enemy, who at once opened a pitiless fire. Fortunately our men were somewhat protected by a fence, but they could not long face the withering fire directed against them. Captain Hugh C. Irish [of one of the Paterson companies], while gallantly attempting to cross a second fence, west of the road, at the head of his company, was shot and instantly killed, and a large number of the regiment were speedily placed hors du combat. The enemy, who was protected by ledges of rock, still continuing his fire, the regiment broke, and in confusion fell back a distance of some three or four hundred yards, to the shelter of another strip of woods.


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"Here, after a time, it was re-formed, and after giving three rousing cheers, again advanced as a support to General Green, who had entered the woods (near the Dunker Church), skirting the Hagerstown pike on the west. Entering the woods the command went into position on Green's right, where it remained for some time, the men behaving creditably, and only retiring when assailed by an overwhelming force of the enemy, who, suddenly marching up from a ravine, grounded arms, as if in token of surrender, and then, having by this stratagem caused a cessation of our fire, opened with murderous ferocity on our flank, rendering a retreat inevitable. The entire loss of the regiment was seven killed, seventy wounded (of whom eleven afterward died) and twenty-five missing."


In his report of the battle General George H. Gordon said of the Thirteenth :


"This regiment, for the first time under fire, moved coolly and in an orderly manner toward General Green's position; and I am much gratified to report that the general has spoken to me of their conduct in terms of high commendation. ** * * In this battle, officers and men behaved with most praiseworthy intrepidity and coolness. The Thirteenth New Jersey (Colonel Carman), being new troops, might well stand appalled at such exposure, but they did not flinch in the discharge of their duties. I have no words but praise for their conduct. They fought like veterans and stood shoulder to shoulder with those who had borne the brunt of war on the Peninsula, in the Shenandoah Valley, and from Front Royal to the Rapidan. They were led by those who inspired them with courage, and they followed with a determination to conquer or die." .


Higher praise has seldom been given any regiment after its first battle. Colonel Carman was disabled at Chancellorsville, and at Gettysburg was put in command of a provisional brigade. When the Thirteenth was sent West, he was made president of a military commission which met in Tullahoma, Tenn. On Sherman's March to the Sea, Colonel Carman commanded the brigade to which his regiment was attached. At Savannah Colonel Carman was sent to Nashville on special duty. He was brevetted brigadier-general of volunteers for gallant and meritorious services during the war, to date from March 13, 1865.


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BREVET BRIGADIER-GENERAL FREDERICK H. HARRIS.


General Frederick Halsey Harris was born in Newark, in 1830. His grandfather, Robert Baldwin, was in the field with the Jersey militia in the War of 1812. His father was a Newark architect and builder. The general himself attended Newark Academy when it was located at Broad and Academy streets. He was admitted to the bar in June, 1862, and went out with the Thirteenth the fol- lowing August, he helping to recruit the regiment both in Newark and in Bloomfield. He was captain of Company E, the color com- pany of the regiment. He was in temporary command of the regiment on several occasions, particularly throughout the whole Carolina campaign, when it took part in the battles of Averysboro and Bentonville. The regiment won high praise for its conduct in the last-mentioned engagement. On July 17, 1864, he was pro- moted major and on November 1 of the same year became the regiment's lieutenant-colonel. He was brevetted colonel for gal- lantry, and subsequently received the brevet of brigadier-general of volunteers for gallant services at Bentonville. He became president of the American Insurance Company in 1883.


SURGEON JOHN JAMES HENRY LOVE.


Dr. J. J. H. Love, for many years after the war a well-beloved practitioner of medicine in Montelair, was the Thirteenth's regi- mental surgeon when it went to the front, having previously seen service in the field as a volunteer surgeon, sent out by Governor Olden. In March, 1863, Surgeon Love was assigned to duty as surgeon-in-chief, Third Brigade, First Division, Twelfth Army Corps, and served in that capacity at Gettysburg, and with splendid efficiency. Later he was made surgeon-in-chief of the First Division, Twelfth Corps, and became a member of General A. S. Williams' staff. He resigned from the service while with the army in the West.


CAPTAIN AMBROSE M. MATTHEWS-CHANCELLORSVILLE.


Captain Matthews gave up his business as a hat manufacturer in Orange to join the Second Regiment, but was withdrawn from


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that command at the request of Governor Olden to assist in recruit- ing the Thirteenth. He was a second lieutenant at Antietam, where he was wounded and afterward promoted to first lieutenant for gallantry on that field. A little later he was made captain of Company I. He was wounded at Chancellorsville, where the Thir- teenth fought with splendid steadiness. Captain Matthews' and Captain Ryerson's companies were in a peculiarly exposed position at Gettysburg. The latter was wounded and Captain Matthews received a bullet through his hat. Matthews was again wounded at Resaca, Ga.


During the battle of Chancellorsville John Grimes, then major, was wounded, and the command then devolved upon Captain George A. Beardsley, assisted by Captains Ryerson and Harris. On this field, as on others later, Captain Beardsley displayed high grade efficiency. Of the Thirteenth on this bloody field one writer has said:


"Subsequently, the ammunition of the Second Massachu- setts being exhausted, the Thirteenth New Jersey was advanced to its relief, occupying its position for some two hours, and fighting with the greatest desperation throughout, in the face of a storm of missiles that would have appalled less resolute men. During this time the rebels in front of the regiment were relieved three different times, thus keeping fresh men constantly in line. Many of our men, meanwhile, had exhausted their ammunition, and in some cases were supplied only from the cartridge boxes of the killed, the officers gathering up all within reach, and so enabling them to keep up their fire.


"About eight o'clock, having suffered severely, the regiment was relieved and rejoined its brigade in the rear. The regiment that relieved it soon after gave way, being unable to hold the position which the Jerseymen had successfully maintained against all comers. Among the wounded were: Major Grimes, shot in the thigh; Adjutant T. B. Smith, shot in the arm; Second Lieutenant George G. Whitfield, Company D, who afterwards died; First Lieutenant James F. Layton, Company G; Captain Charles H. Bliven, Company H; Captain Ambrose Matthews, Company I."


ADJUTANT BALDWIN'S DEATH.


One of the most distressing casualties in the annals of the Thirteenth was the death of Acting Adjutant Baldwin the day


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after the battle of Spottsylvania, in the Wilderness campaign. He was sitting in camp writing to his sister, afterwards the wife of the late State Senator A. F. R. Martin. He was struck by a stray ball. He had in his pocket at the time his leave of absence papers to attend his sister's wedding, which was to be a few days later. The bloodstained and unfinished letter was forwarded the bride some time after, together with his leave of absence papers, also bloodstained. Baldwin was a lieutenant, and before enlistment had been editor of the Bergen County Journal at Hackensack. He was a young man of ability and promise.


TWENTY-SIXTH REGIMENT.


The Twenty-sixth Regiment, New Jersey Volunteers, was also made up quite generously of Newarkers. Orange, South Orange, Bloomfield and Caldwell furnished one company each. It was assembled at Camp Frelinghuysen and was mustered in there on September 3, 1862. It was a nine months' regiment. It partici- pated in the following engagements:


Fredericksburg, Va., December 13 and 14, 1862; Fredericks- burg, Va., May 3, 1863; Salem Heights, Va., May 3 and 4, 1863; Franklin's Crossing, Va., June 5, 1863. The regiment had a total of 1,031 officers and men. Its losses from battle, disease and from wounds, one officer, 35 men. (For list of the field and staff officers and of the officers of the companies recruited in Newark, see Appen- dix H.)


COLONEL ANDREW J. MORRISON-FRANKLIN'S CROSSING.


This regiment served for but nine months, but in that short period it met all known vicissitudes of war. Perhaps its most creditable exploit was that of Franklin's Crossing, Virginia, on June 5, 1863, a few days before its term of enlistment expired. Of this, one of its members wrote:


"When the rebels had been shelled out of their position [across the Rappahannock, below Fredericksburg], as we supposed, some boats were launched, and the Twenty-sixth New Jersey and Fifth Vermont were selected to lead the way. At the word of command they leaped into the boats with as much eagerness as men would start for a race; in fact, there was a boat race to see which should


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first reach the opposite shore and rout and seize the enemy. The Twenty-sixth had this honor, reaching the shore first, and with the Fifth Vermont driving the rebels out with a loss of many prisoners. * * Captain S. Uzal Dodd, who commanded the right com- pany, was the first to enter the boat at the head of his company, and in this position received a mortal wound. For purity of char- acter and unswerving patriotism he was without a superior in the regiment."




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