History of Sussex and Warren counties, New Jersey, with Illustration and Biographical Sketches of its Prominent Men and Pioneers, Part 20

Author: Snell, James P; Clayton, W. W. (W. Woodford)
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Philadelphia : Everts & Peck
Number of Pages: 1140

USA > New Jersey > Sussex County > History of Sussex and Warren counties, New Jersey, with Illustration and Biographical Sketches of its Prominent Men and Pioneers > Part 20
USA > New Jersey > Warren County > History of Sussex and Warren counties, New Jersey, with Illustration and Biographical Sketches of its Prominent Men and Pioneers > Part 20

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

Nearly every man, however, enlisted subsequently, when calls were mundo for more troupes. He went out In the Twenty-second Now York tolatitry as a private aud sorved the time of his command. .

SUSSEX AND WARREN COUNTIES, NEW JERSEY.

A call was made on the ladies of New Jersey to raise ten thousand dollars to purchase ten thousand rubber blankets for the soldiers. The ladies of War- ren did at least one-tenth of this patriotic work.

II .- FIRST REGIMENT, COMPANY D.

Company D of the First New Jersey Infantry was raised in Phillipsburg, Warren Co., and vicinity. The regiment of which it was a part was fully organized, equipped, and officered by May 18, 1861, and on the 21st was duly mustered into the United States service at Trenton for three years. It left for the seat of war, June 28, 1861, with a full complement of men, numbering, including officers and privates, ten hun- dred and thirty-four. By the latter part of 1863, Company D had become so thinned as not to be able to muster its requisite number of men, and its place was supplied, Jan. 30, 1864, by a full new company sent on from Trenton. Others, when their time ex- pired, re-enlisted in the field, and those who did not and whose time had expired were mustered out of the service. Some of the men whose term of service did not expire with that of the regiment were as- signed temporarily to duty with the Fourth and Fif- teenth Regiments, but were subsequently consolidated as Companies A, B, and C of the First Battalion, and were mustered out with that organization at Hall's Hill, Va., June 29, 1865.

The regiment was commanded successively by Col. William R. Montgomery, promoted to brigadier-gen- eral May 17, 1861; Col. Alfred T. A. Torbert, pro- moted to brigadier-general of United States volun- teers Nov. 29, 1862, to brevet major-general Sept. 9, 1864; and by Col. Mark W. Collett, transferred from the Third Regiment as lieutenant-colonel, and be- came colonel upon the promotion of Col. Torbert. Col. Collett was killed in action at Fredericksburg, May 3, 1863. The regiment constituted one of the four regiments of the First Brigade of New Jersey Volunteers, and was attached to Gen. Runyon's divi- sion of reserve militia at the battle of Bull Run, July 21, 1861. It was subsequently organized with Kearney's brigade, Franklin's division ; afterwards with the First Brigade, First Division, First Army Corps, then with the First Brigade, First Division, Sixth Army Corps, and at the close of the war was assigned to the Provisional Corps of the Army of the Potomac. It partieipated in all the principal battles of the war in Virginia, Maryland, and Penn- sylvania, and was present at Lee's surrender at Appo- mattox, April 9, 1865 .*

Its original lieutenant-colonel was Robert McAllis- ter, of Oxford Furnace, Warren Co. He raised a company upon the first call for three years' men, and reported at Trenton carly in May, 1861, and on the 21st of that month was appointed lieutenant-colonel of the First Regiment. He was subsequently (1862)

colonel of the Eleventh Regiment, and later received the honors of brevet rank as brigadier general for "gallant and distinguished services at Boydton Plank Road," and as major-general "for meritorious services during the war." He shared in the first battle of the war, and participated in the last. His remarkable coolness and intrepidity won the commendation of his superiors. He was mustered out June 6, 1865.

William Henry, Jr. (of Oxford), the lieutenant- colonel of this regiment, enlisted May 21, 1861, and was the first adjutant, dating from May 31, 1861. He was subsequently promoted successively to the rank of major, lieutenant-colonel, and colonel. He was wounded a number of times, reported killed at Second Bull Run, but came in the next day limping, and had the pleasure of reading his own obituary. This regi- ment (and the Second and Third) was mustered into service on the 21st of May ; their time, consequently, expired May 21, 1864. Their long service had made them veterans, and they had arranged to return home on the expiration of their service, but this occurring in the midst of the thirty days' fights in the Wilder- ness, they were asked to remain and see the campaign ended, which they did, remaining in line of battle until June 4, 1864, and out of twenty-seven line- officers in this regiment, including Col. Henry, who were sound on the 21st of May, all but three were killed or wounded; and from over three hundred men engaged in the long fight but one hundred and sixty- one came back to Trenton with Col. Henry, he him- self receiving the most serious wound of his life the last hour of the 4th of June.

III .- THE SECOND REGIMENT (THREE YEARS).

The honors won by the famous "Second" are due in part to Sussex County, she furnishing not only . some of its best fighting material, but some of its bravest commanders on "field and staff." Company B, representing Sussex County, was organized in May, 1861, and officered by Henry O. Ryerson, Captain ; John T. Whitehead, First Lieutenant ; Jacob HI. Hoff- man, Second Lieutenant. Capt. Ryerson, when pro- moted major, Jan. 20, 1862, was succeeded by John A. Wildrick. Maj. Ryerson became lieutenant-colo- nel of the Second, July 1, 1862, and subsequently was promoted to be colonel of the Twenty-third Regi- ment. Capt. Wildrick also received promotion and honors in the Twenty-eighth Regiment, becoming the lieutenant-colonel of that command Feb. 11, 1863. A roster of the Sussex County members of Company B will be found in another chapter. In this connection will be given a brief sketch of the regiment in which this company so faithfully served.

Along with the First, Third, and Fourth Regiments, the Second constituted the "First New Jersey Bri- gade." This command reached Washington June 29, 1861. It immediately entered upon the active duties of the campaign, and at the battle of Bull Run, amid all the panic and tumult, its members performed

* See roster of Company D, Socond Regiment, in Chapter XV.

SUSSEX AND WARREN COUNTIES IN THE WAR OF THE REBELLION.

the work assigned them without a tremor of unsteadi- ness.

At Gaines' Mill, on June 27, 1862, where it was en- gaged at the most difficult and dangerous parts of the field, the officers and men alike bravely stood their ground amid a most galling fire from the enemy. At one time four companies (D, HI, I, and K) of the Second were exposed to the full force of the rebel on- set, but with serried ranks and without any support they fought till nightfall. The loss was fifteen killed, forty-eight wounded, and forty-one missing, among the number being Col. Tucker, killed, and Maj. Ryer- son, wounded and taken prisoner.

In the fight at Manassas Junction, Aug. 27, 1862, the regiment did valiantly and suffered terribly, its loss being eight killed, thirty-nine wounded, thirty- one missing, and forty-five taken prisoners. Among the officers wounded was Capt. Wiklriek, of Company B (Sussex County). Gen. Taylor fell in this engage- ment, shot through the leg .*

At Crampton's Gap (Sept. 14, 1862) the Second was in the line of battle, which " dashingly met and drove the enemy," carried the heights, and won a victory. But fifty-five of its brave members went down in this charge, although its heroism, and that of the brigade with which it fought, were recorded in "general orders" by the brigade commander, Col. A. T. A. Tor- bert, in which he said, "Your advance in line of battle under a galling artillery fire and final bayonet charge was a feat seldom if ever surpassed. The heights you took show plainly what determined and well-disciplined soldiers can do."

The Second Regiment, with its brigade, remained in Maryland until Oet. 2, 1862, when, after much toil- some marching, it encamped at Stafford Court-house. It there remained until it joined in the movement against Fredericksburg, in which it participated, and then went into winter quarters. In the ensuing cam- paigns of 1863 -- at Salem Church, where the regiment was in the skirmish-line; in the fighting about Chan- cellorsville, where it lost forty-nine in killed, wounded, and missing; its forced march to Gettysburg and en- gagement on the pieket-line ; and through the battles of the "Wilderness," in which its losses were heavyt -it fully sustained its previously-earned reputation for conspicuous bravery. In the charge to retake the "Galt House," Lieut .- Col. Wilbecke, of the Second, was killed.

Its time having expired on May 29, 1864, theregiment left the front and returned to Trenton for muster out. The regiment numbered on its return to New Jersey only three hundred and fifteen officers and enlisted men. It had left the State, in June, 1861, with n full complement of men,-ten hundred and forty-four strong. The major part of the survivors of the old Second were mustered out Jone 21, 1864; the re-

maining portion-those whose term of service did not expire with the regiment, and those who had re- enlisted in the fieldl for " three years or the war"- were temporarily assigned to duty with the Fifteenth Regiment. Dec. 20, 1864, they were consolidated into what was known as Company A, Second Battalion, and so remained until the early part of 1865, when the Second Regiment was reorganized and fully con- pleted by the forwarding of recruits, drafted men, etc. It was still in the First Brigade, but its history, until near the close of 1864, was that of the Fifteenth Regiment, with which it was merged, and with whose brave soldiers it fought on several hotly-contested fields. The battles in which it figured after its re- organization were Hlateher's Run, Fort Steedman, Petersburg, Sailor's Creek, Farmville; then came the surrender at Appomattox, April 9, 1865, and the end of the war. On the 24th of May it began its march northward. It was mustered out July 11, 1865, at Ilall's Hill, Va. ; thence proceeded to Trenton, N. J., where it was disbanded.

IV .- THE THIRD REGIMENT (THREE YEARS).

Capt. James G. Fitts recruited a company in New- ton, in April, 1861, under the call for three months' troops. Inside of one hour seventy-two of the men signed the roll on Newton Green. This was the first company raised in Sussex County for the war of the Rebellion. The three months' call being filled, the company was not mustered into the service. Most of these men, however, enlisted for three years in the company subsequently raised, organized, and known as Company D, Third Regiment New Jersey Volun- teers. There were in this company at its organization nine men from Warren, nine from Morris, five from Essex, one each from Orange and Hunterdon, two from Camden, and six from other points ; the remainder were residents of Sussex County, and their names may be found in a succeeding chapter.

Company E, Capt. Edward L. Campbell, was raised in Warren County, part of them being three months' men, recruited by Capt. Campbell immediately after the first call of President Lincoln, but not then mus- tered into the service. The enptain of this company, First Lieut. William P. Robeson, Jr., Second Lieut. Thomas P. Edwards, Com. Sergt. Nelson S. Easton (promoted to second lieutenant July 18, 1862 , Corp. Nehemiah Tunis (promoted to first sergeant ), Sergt. Abraham MI. Salmon, and a number of privates, were from Belvidere.

The Third Regiment, of which these companies were a component part, was organized by May 18, 1861, and on the Ith of June was mustered into the service of the United States for three years. June 28, 1861, with a full complement of men, it left the State for the seat of war, and was one of the four regiments composing what was generally known as the " First Brigade New Jersey Volunteers." It was first attached to Gen. Runyon's division of reserves

. He died at Alexandria, four or Ave days after the fight, from the effects of the amputation of his wounded limb.

t Ninety-three killed, wounded, and mining.

SUSSEX AND WARREN COUNTIES, NEW JERSEY.

(militia), then to the First Brigade (Kearney's). of Franklin's division, afterwards to the First Brigade, First Division, First Army Corps, later to the Sixth Corps, and at the close of the war was assigned to what was known as the Provisional Corps, Army of the Potomac.

Company D participated in most of the engage- ments in which the regiment took part .* It was at Bull Run, "and aided materially in arresting the retreat of our forces on that fateful day." The Third Regiment was one of the first of the New Jersey com- mands to suffer loss from the bullets of the enemy ; this was August 29th, near Cloud's Mills, when it was ambuscaded and lost six men, two of whom were killed. Eight companies of the Third were the first to reach and take possession of the rebel works at Manas- sas Junction. June 27, 1862, at Gaines' Farm, Va., . it did some splendid fighting. "It was ordered into the woods to relieve Newton's brigade, which was sorely pressed by the enemy. At this point the woods, some four hundred yards in front of our line of battle, swarmed with rebels, who fought with the greatest desperation, handling their artillery especially in the most effective manner, and doing fearful execution on our ranks. The gallant Third, however, bravely stood its ground, opening a galling fire on the enemy, and remaining in the woods until the close of the action." Three times the rebels were driven from the woods, but as often rallied ; and if success did not crown the issue of this fight, it was no fault of the " Jersey Bri- gade" nor any question of the valor of the Third. George W. Taylor, brigadier-general. commanding the First Brigade, in his official report of this battle, says,-

" This was the first of my regiments engaged. . . . They were all this time under a galling fire, often a cross-fire, but maintained their ground until near sun- set, when the whole line fell back. They had at this time expended (a large majority of the men) their last cartridge, sixty rounds to the man. . .. With their comrades falling around, they stood up like a wall of iron, losing over one-third of their numher, and gave not an inch of ground until their ammunition was ex- pended and the retrograde movement became gen- eral."

How valiant were the services of the Third in the

Wilderness campaign may be conceived from its se- vere losses, the figures showing twenty-one killed, one hundred and two wounded, and thirty-three missing, a total of one hundred and fifty-six, of which Com- pany D sustained its full share.

From this time until the expiration of its term of service, in June, 1864, the regiment did not en- gage the enemy (excepting the battle of Cold Har- bor, June 1 and 3, 1864), only in desultory fight- ing, skirmishing, etc., and on the 3d of June left the front en route for New Jersey. It arrived at Trenton on the 7th. The men who there re-enlisted, with those whose term was not expired, were transferred to the Fifteenth Regiment, but Dec. 17, 1864, they were consolidated into what was known as Company A, Third Battalion, and were mustered out with that organization, June 29, 1865.

V .- THE SEVENTH REGIMENT.

This command, in which Sussex was represented hy one full company (I), and Warren by Co. E, Capt. Henry E. Cooper, was raised in the summer of 1861. At the urgent request of the general government that the regiment be sent to the seat of war at once, seven companies were dispatched to Washing- ton, September 19th, and on the 20th reported for duty at the capital. The other three companies early in October joined the regiment at that place. Early in December the regiment reported to Gen. Hooker, near Budd's Ferry, Md .; and were brigaded, the Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth New Jersey Regiments being designated the Third Brigade in his division, although popularly known in this State as the "Second New Jersey Brigade."

Its first important engagement was the battle of Williamsburg, May 5, 1862. The position of the enemy was one of great strength, with Fort Magru- der in the centre, flanked on either side, as far as eye could reach, with a cordon of redoubts, and further strengthened by innumerable rifle-pits and a vast stretch of tangled abatis. Their cannon swept the whole undulating plain in front of the redoubts. "The Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth were sent into a woods to the left of the road, in front of a line of field-works. The rain was falling in torrents, and the men stood half-leg deep in mire and water. Steadily advancing through the underbrush, the gallant regi- ments soon came upon the enemy's forces, and at once opened a vigorous fire. Here, for three hours, the conflict raged with desperate fury. The fire of the enemy was pitilessly destructive, and did not slacken for a moment. But the brave fellows into whose faces it was poured stood firmly and unflinch- ingly,-sometimes, indeed, pushed back a little space, but as surely hurling the rebels, bleeding and shat- tered, to their works. . . . At last the enemy, driven to desperation (and reinforced), rushed forward in overwhelming numbers, pouring a terrific fire into our whole line. Then, at last, that brave line wa-

* The reports of the adjutant-general of the State of New Jersey show that this reginient took part in the following battles: In 1861, Bull Run und Munson's Hill. In 1862, West Point, Gaines' Farm, Charles City Cross-Roads, Malvern Ilill, Manassas, Chantilly, and Fred- ericksburg, all on Virginia soil, und Crampton's Pass and Antietam, in Maryland. The year 1863 opened with Fredericksburg (May 3), and followed with Salem Heights, Va., Gettysburg, Pa., Fairfield, Pu., Wil- liamsport, Md., Funktown, Md., Rappahannock Station, Va., and Mine Run, Va. The engagements of 1864-Wilderness, Spottsylvania, Spott- eylvania Court-house, North and South Anna River, Hanover Court- honse, Tolopotomy Creek, Cold Harbor, Weldon Railroad, Snicker's Gap, Strasburg, Winchester, Charlestown, Opequan, Fisher's Hill, New Market, Mount Jackson, Cedar Creek, and Middletown-were all lu Vir- ginia. In 1865, Hatcher's Run, Fort Steedman, capture of Petersburg, Sailor's Creek, Farmville, and Lee's surrender (April 9), likewise all occurred in Virginta.

SUSSEX AND WARREN COUNTIES IN THE WAR OF THE REBELLION.

vered. Their ammunition exhausted, their muskets rusted by the drenching rain, their ranks terribly thinned, exhausted by want of food and a difficult march, these heroes of the day, before this last over- whelming onset, fell slowly back. But not defeated. They hehl the enemy in check, frustrating every at- tempt to flank our position, and so saved the division, which but for this stubborn resistance would have been swept in disaster from the field." The rebel works were finally carried and victory was ours, but purchased at great cost of life in all the regiments engaged. The casualties of the Seventh were twenty- seven killed, eighty-six wounded, and ten missing, among the wounded being the commanding officer of the regiment, Lieut .- Col. Carman. In the official re- port of Maj. Francis Price, Jr. (who assumed com- mand of the Seventh after Lieut .- Col. Carman was shot), he says, " All behaved gallantly, . . . but I cannot but notice the coolness and bravery of Capt. HI. C. Bartlett (Company C), Capt. L. D. Simmes (Company 1), Capt. James M. Brown (Company K), Lieuts. Witherell (Company F), Thompson : Company A), Hart (Company E), and Harrison (Company C), Sergt. Crane (Company C), Sergt. Mallory , Company C), Acting Color-Sergt. Onslow (Company F), and Private John Taylor, who all displayed unflinching courage, coupled with remarkable coolness, under the heavy tire to which they were exposed." At Fair Oaks and White Oak Swamp the Seventh behaved as admirably as at Williamsburg. At Chancellorsville it captured five stand of colors and over three hun- dred prisoners. Louis R. Franeine had now become colonel, and Francis Price, Jr., lieutenant-colonel, of the regiment.

Gettysburg occurred soon after, and in its tempest of battle-hail the Seventh lost one hundred and four- teen officers and men, Cols. Francine and Price being among those who received serious wounds.

At Spottsylvania Court-house the Seventh, with its brigade (now known as the Third Brigade of the Third Division), charged upon Ewell's corps with "a thundering cheer," surprising and overwhelming the rebels in their trenches, capturing thirty guns and three thousand prisoners. Capt. Crane, of the Seventh, with a squad of men, succeeded not only in capturing a gun, but in manning it and turning its fire on the enemy, who showed a disposition to advance. Capt. Evans lost his life while thus en- gaged,

Feb. 5, 1865, the Seventh again did valiant service in the line of battle at the Tucker House, near Hatcher's Run. All the regiments of Mc Allister's brigade (in which was the Seventh) nobly stood their ground, but two regiments of Gen. Smyth's divi- sion, stationed on their left, gave way, leaving a gap through which the enemy might pass, enabling them to assail our troops upon the dank and from the rear, and thus endanger the Federal position. Me Allister, seeing the danger, directed the Seventh New Jersey,

near the left of his line, to form at a different angle, and in a position from which it could oblique its fire. The enemy, thus assailed by a terrible cross-fire, re- coiled, but, after a short hull, massing his columns heavily, again dashed forward, only to be repulsed. Soon as the night closed in the rebel general Mahone, with his famous " fighting division," made a rush for the gap in our lines, but again the assailing columns were rolled back, and victory crowned the Union arms. In this engagement the New Jersey brigade kept at bay three full rebel divisions. In the official reports of the commanding general the Seventh was conspicuously mentioned for its part in this affair, as it was in many subsequent ones, until the close of the campaign, April 9th, when it was officially an- nounced that Lee had surrendered.

In the spring of 1862, Company B was disbanded and its men transferred to the different companies of the regiment. About the same time an independent company, commanded by Capt. E. G. Sloat, was as- signed to the Seventh, and became Company B. Those of the original members of the regiment who did not re-enlist were mustered out Oct. 7, 1864. The final discharge of the Seventh occurred June 4, 1865, at Washington, D. C.

The record of the Seventh is a brilliant one, and its history must occupy a prominent place in the annals of Hooker's division and of the Second and Third Corps, covering as it does nearly all the move- ments and battles of the Army of the Potomac.

VI .- THE NINTH REGIMENT.

In this command Warren and Sussex Counties were both honorably represented, the former by Company II, commanded, at the time of its muster into service, by Capt. Joseph J. Henry, of Oxford, who was not only the first volunteer from that township in the great civil war, but the first officer from the State of New Jersey to fall in battle; the latter county by nearly one-half of Company E.

This regiment was raised in the fall of 1861 as a twelve-company rifle corps; it remained at Camp Olden, Trenton, until the 4th of December, when it proceeded to Washington, and at once began an active participation in the movements and battles of the Virginia campaign. During the Burnside expedi- tion, Col. Allen and Dr. Weller, the surgeon, were drowned at Hatteras Inlet, Jan. 15, 1862, but Lieut .- Col. Heckman, of Phillipsburg, Adjt. Zabriskie, and some others, being expert swimmers, escaped. Lieut .- Col. Heckman then assumed command of the regi- ment.

The first engagement was that of Roanoke Island, where at the outset Capt. J. J. Henry, of Company 11, and Isaac V. D. Blackwell, of Company F, were killed, and t'orp. John Lorance and Private John Bural, of Company K, were severely wounded. Pri- vate AAustin AArmstrong, of Company II (of Hope), was the first volunteer of the company (and it is

SUSSEX AND WARREN COUNTIES, NEW JERSEY.

thought the first in the regiment); he was the second man shot in this engagement, a ball striking him in the forehead and killing him instantly. Few cases of greater individual bravery are recorded than that of Corp. Lorance, of Carpenter's Landing, N. J. (See Foster's "New Jersey and the Rebellion," p. 210.) For its bravery in this action the Ninth Regiment was ordered by Gen. Burnside to have the words " Roanoke Island, Feb. 8, 1862," emblazoned on its banner .*

The regiment performed nobly in the battles of Newbern, Young's Cross-Roads, at Tarborough, Kins- ton, before Petersburg, and in all the achievements of the army in Virginia and North Carolina, in which it participated, fully sustained the honor of their State.

Col. Charles A. Heckman, of Warren County, was born in Easton, Pa., in 1822, served in the Mexican war, and in 1861 served for three months in the First Pennsylvania Regiment, then returned to Phillips- burg. Soon after, he was made major of the Ninth Regiment New Jersey Volunteers, and was promoted to colonel of the same, later to the rank of brigadier- general, and subsequently received a major-general's brevet. Gen. Heckman "became conspicuous as a soldier of the highest accomplishments. Insensible to fear, he was always at the head of his columns. His voice is singularly loud and sonorous, and in the noise of battle his commands pierced the tumult like the blast of a trumpet."

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History of Sussex and Warren counties, New Jersey, with Illustration and Biographical Sketches of its Prominent Men and Pioneers, Part 20

Author: Snell, James P; Clayton, W. W. (W. Woodford) Publication date: 1881 Publisher: Philadelphia : Everts & Peck Number of Pages: 1140

Author: Snell, James P; Clayton, W. W. (W. Woodford)
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Philadelphia : Everts & Peck
Number of Pages: 1140