History of Cattaraugus County, New York, with Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of Some of Its Prominent Men and Pioneers, Part 26

Author: Franklin Ellis and Eugene Arns Nash
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HISTORY OF CATTARAUGUS COUNTY, NEW YORK.

" mud march" under Burnside, and at its close went into winter quarters at their former camp.

Upon the opening of the spring campaign of 1863, they moved with the strong columns of Hooker, and fought on the red field of Chancellorsville. The loss sustained by the regiment in this battle was reported, immediately after the fight, to be two hundred and eighty-three killed, wounded, and missing. This statement was probably too large, though the 37th was in the thickest of the fight,-where the ter- rific onslaught was made upon the 3d Corps in the second day of the conflict. This battle, which proved to be their last, was the most severe in which they had been engaged.

After the recrossing of the river on the 6th of May, the 37th went into camp at Belle Plain Landing, where they remained until about the 20th of June, 1863, when, their term of service having more than expired, they were trans- ported thence to New York City, and there mustered out of the service, June 22, 1863.

The Cattaraugus companies, on returning home from the field, were received with honors to which they were most fully entitled,-Captain Harmon's company being welcomed at Allegany and Captain Clarke's at Ellicottville, on the 27th of June. To welcome the latter, a cavalcade and pro- cession of carriages (there was then no railroad up Great Valley Creek) went from Ellicottville to meet the brave men of "I" company at Great Valley Station, and escort them to the county-seat. A mile below the village, the welcom- ing column was augmented by a large number of citizens on foot, and together they conducted the heroes of the day to the court-house square, where they were addressed most eloquently by the Hon. David H. Bolles. Two thousand people had gathered to witness the reception of the men from the front, and the enthusiasm of the occasion was great. The leading sentiment of the day was " The 37th Regiment N. Y. Volunteers-Williamsburg-Fair Oaks- Seven Pines-Malvern Hill-Fredericksburg-Chancellors- ville-bloody battle-fields! The 37th (the pets of the fallen Kearney) were there! Welcome home, boys of the 37th ! May the God of battles bless you at your homes ! Your neighbors are proud of you! History will record your deeds and your honors !"

The particulars of the reception of "H" company at Allegany cannot be as fully given, but it was substantially the same,-honor and welcome unstinted to the returning veterans.

THE 64TH REGIMENT.

The 64th Regiment (New York militia) was organized in 1853, and at the breaking out of the Rebellion was in existence, composed as follows :

Colonel, Thomas J. Parker ;

Lieutenant-Colonel, Daniel G. Bingham ; Major, Enos C. Brooks,

Company A, Capt. Corydon C. Rugg

28 men.

B. Timothy A. C. Everett

C, Julius B. Maltbie. 12

D, William B. Battin. 44

E. John S. Belknap. 10

F. James R. Weston.

" Jared H. Parmelee, 36

II, " Daniel D. Gardiner 38

K (artillery), Capt. Samuel W. Johnson ... 50 " L (rifles), Capt. Luke G. Harmon 46 Staff officers 6

" Band. 17

Total of regiment. 447

The officers of this regiment being anxious to enter the service to aid in suppressing the Rebellion, Col. Parker addressed a communication to the adjutant-general of the State, and in due time received the following in reply :

" GENERAL HEADQUARTERS STATE OF NEW YORK, " ADJUTANT-GENERAL'S OFFICE, ALBANY, Aug. 15, 1861. " COL. THOMAS J. PARKER, 64th Regiment, N. Y. S. M.

"SIR,-You are informed, in reply to your letter of the 30th ult., that the 64th Regiment, N. Y. S. M., will be accepted as a portion of the twenty-five thousand men called for by the Governor's proclama- tion of July 25, upon the terms prescribed in General Orders, No. 78, a copy of which is herewith inclosed. The present officers of the regiment, company officers included, may all be retained, provided they are pronounced qualified by the Board of Examiners, as pre- scribed in said order.

"You are hereby authorized to proceed at once to the depot at Elmira with your command, and to enter at once upon the work of recruiting the regiment up to the prescribed standard.

"I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, "D. CAMPBELL, Act. Asst. Gen."

Lieut .- Col. Bingham was at the time absent from the county, and it was arranged between Col. Parker and Maj. Brooks that the former should go to Elmira to make preparations for receiving men, and that the latter should for the time remain in the county to superintend the busi- ness of recruiting the companies to the standard. Pursuant to this arrangement, the colonel, on the 27th of August, proceeded to Elmira, where Gen. Van Valkenburgh assigned to him enlistment quarters at Barrack No. 3.

On the 7th of September one company from Gowanda and one from Randolph, numbering in all about one hundred men, started together from Salamanca for the rendezvous at Elmira, where they were quartered at the barracks. Other companies and detachments soon followed, and recruiting progressed favorably, so that in a little more than two months its numbers were sufficient for mustering. It had become known as the "Cattaraugus Regiment," six of its companies being from this county, constituted as follows :

" A" Company, Capt. Rufus Washburne, 82 officers and men.

" B" Company, Capt. Timothy A. C. Everett, 83 officers and men.

"C" Company, Capt. Julius B. Maltbie, 84 officers and men.

" F" Company, Capt. Wm. B. Battin, 83 officers and men.

"I" Company, Capt. Robert H. Renwick, 82 officers and men.

"K" Company, Capt. William Fancher, 83 officers and men.

Allegany County contributed " D" Company, Capt. Phipps Lake, 83 men ; and "G" Company, Capt. Joshua S. Pittinger, 83 men.

Tioga furnished " H" Company, Capt. Samuel Barstow, 75 men ; and Tompkins County sent " E" Company, Capt. William Glenny, 84 men. Total of regiment, 848 men, as mustered for three years' service at Elmira in November, 1861.

The regiment was organized as the 64th by the promul- gation of the following order :

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"GENERAL HEADQUARTERS STATE OF NEW YORK, " ADJUTANT-GENERAL'S OFFICE, ALBANY, Nov. 13, 1862. " Special Order, No. 483.

"In accordance with General Orders No. 78 from this Department. the several companies forming the command of Col. Thomas J. Parker, now stationed at the Elmira Depot of Volunteers, are hereby organ- ized into a regiment of volunteers to be known and designated as the Sixty-fourth Regiment of New York Volunteers. . . . Col. Parker will report for duty to Brig .- Gen. Van Valkenburgh.

" By order of the Commander-in-Chief.

" THOMAS HILLHOUSE, "Adjutant-General."

In accordance with orders from Gen. Van Valkenburgh, the 64th left Elmira for the front on the 10th of Decem- ber. In the afternoon of that day the regiment received a public presentation of national colors, by the hand of Sen- ator Darling, who, with J. T. Henry, Esq., of Olean, spoke most eloquently upon the occasion, and were loudly ap- plauded. The speech of presentation was replied to by Col. Parker, three cheers were given for the flag and the donors, and then the regiment (which had been formed in a hollow square during the ceremony) re-formed into divis- ions, and took up their line of march to the depot, where two trains of cars were in waiting for their transportation. They were escorted to the depot by Col. Lemon's Porter Guard Cavalry, under command of Maj. Mc Williams. The loading of the cars was attended with no unusual disorder, but everything moved along like clock-work. The train moved away a few minutes after six o'clock, having been delayed at the depot nearly two hours by other trains on the track. When the train finally started they were cheered lustily by the thousands that had assembled to witness their departure.

They arrived in Washington on the morning of the 12th, and went into camp (which was named Camp R. E. Fen- ton) near the Bladensburg toll-gate, northeast of the capi- tol. While at this camp, the regiment was presented with a regimental color, furnished by the Board of Supervisors of Cattaraugus County. It was of blue silk, with the arms of the State of New York painted in the centre, over which were the words, " 64th Reg., N. Y. Vols.," and the words, " Presented by the Board of Supervisors of Cattaraugus County."

Here they received arms, accoutrements, and camp equip- age, and on the 7th of January, 1862, in obedience to orders to that effect from Gen. Silas Casey, broke camp, and marched through Washington, across the Long Bridge, to Alexandria, and thence to Cloud's Mills, where the regi- ment was assigned to Gen. O. O. Howard's Brigade, of Richardson's Division. The regimental camp at this place was named " Camp California," and here they remained in winter quarters, and on camp and picket duty, until March 4, when the brigade was thrown out to Fairfax Court- House. On the 6th the brigade was divided into detach- ments for picket duty. In the evening of the 7th, Major Brooks, with two companies, was advanced about two miles beyond the line, to a cross-roads, where, in the course of this duty, his men killed a scout of the enemy, named Charles Dillon. On his person were found passes from the provost-marshals of Washington and Alexandria and from Gen. G. T. Beauregard. This was the first blood shed by the men of the 64th.

On the 7th of March, Howard's Brigade being relieved by a brigade of Gen. Casey's, the 64th Regiment was then ordered back to Springfield, where it joined the army in its advance upon Manassas ; the regiment being in Richard- son's Division, which then took the lead of Sumner's Corps, went to Manassas. One company, under Capt. Maltbie, advanced with a brigade to the Rappahannock River ; the remainder of the regiment guarded Manassas Junction, where it remained until April 5, 1862, when it returned to Alexandria and took the steamer " Daniel Webster" for the Peninsula, arriving at Fortress Monroe April 6. Here the horses were landed, to proceed up the Peninsula by land, in charge of Maj. Brooks. The regiment then went by the York River to Ship Point, and reported to Gen. Howard, where they remained during the siege of York- town. On the evacuation of that place by the enemy, the 64th joined the pursuing column, and marched up the Peninsula.

After the battle of Williamsburg, May 5, the 64th re- turned to Yorktown, taking transports up the York River to West Point, thence up the Pamunkey River, landing at Eltham, thence marching to Cumberland, Whitehouse, and Cold Harbor. Then commenced a series of fatigue duty in building roads and bridges across the Chickahominy Swamp and River, the men working in the mud and water up to their waists. Many were taken sick by that expos- ure. Saturday, May 31, at about one o'clock P.M., heavy firing was heard at the front, across the river. The 64th were immediately under arms in light marching order, crossed the swamp and river with the brigade and division, arriving on the battle-field of " Fair Oaks" soon after dark. Pickets were thrown out to within speaking distance of the enemy's picket lines, the regiment lying on their arms that night, no order being given above a whisper. Sunday morning, June 1, as soon as daylight appeared, picket-firing commenced. The regiments in Howard's Brigade were formed in line of battle. French's Brigade were thrown to the front to engage the enemy. Heavy firing commenced, and soon a Pennsylvania regiment of French's Brigade came flying back out of the woods, pursued by the enemy. Gen. Richardson said to Gen. Howard, "They must be reinforced immediately." Howard's Brigade was at once in motion, advancing across the railroad into the woods, under a heavy and continuous fire. The 64th marched steadily forward through the thick woods, and when within about eight rods of the enemy, opened fire. The enemy staggered and fell back. The 64th, still advancing, took several prisoners. The enemy's line being reinforced, the fighting continued about two hours, when a bayonet-charge drove them from the field.

During this engagement the officers and men fought with the most determined courage and bravery, being in the hot- test part of the contest, opposed to superior numbers ; ob- serving good order and obeying every command. Numerous instances of distinguished bravery in officers could be men- tioned, but where all behaved so nobly it is difficult to de- termine who did best. The enemy were routed, and left their dead and wounded upon the field. A letter written on the field by Lieut. Henry V. Fuller, on the day following the fight, described it as follows :

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" The 64th has honored old Cattaraugus before our coun- try, but the ranks are terribly thin now. We charged the foe yesterday morning, at seven o'clock, and at 9.35 cheered for a victory over an enemy in rout ! Our brigade is deci- mated. Our regiment has only half the sound men it had yesterday at seven P.M. We fought through a swamp and thick woods, where the foe had every advantage. It was ' giving and taking blows' for more than two hours, but the line bore it steadily. Not a man flinched. I send a list of dead and wounded. There are no missing included, so prob- ably it will increase when it is corrected.

" After a little I will write again, and detail.

" Company A, killed and wounded.

Total.

147

" Col. Bingham is wounded; Capts. Bradley, Renwick, and Glenny severely, the last seriously. Lieuts. Crowley, Darby, and Loomis each in the arm, severely. Lieut. Ken- dall killed. Gen. Howard lost his right arm. His brother (an aid) was also wounded.

" We shall have Fair Oaks inscribed upon our banner.

" Col. Parker commands the brigade, Major Brooks com- manding our regiment.

" Yours,

H. V. F."

The regiment remained at Fair Oaks, engaged in picket duty, until June 26, when they were engaged in the attack of that date, during the progress of which the battle of Mechanicsville was being fought by the Pennsylvania Re- serves, on the extreme right.

During the series of battles which succeeded, known as the " Seven Days' Fight," the 64th was engaged at Gaines' Hill, Savage Station, White Oak Swamp, Glendale, and Malvern Hill; from which last-named field the regiment retired with the army to Harrison's Landing, and remained there until the general evacuation of that position, when they were transferred to the Potomac. On the 29th of August they were encamped at Arlington Heights, and soon after crossed the Potomac at Chain Bridge, through Rock- ville, and Monocacy, Md., arriving at South Mountain in time to participate in the last part of that battle. The next morning they led the advance towards Antietam Creek.

The regiment was here under command of Maj. Brooks (Col. Parker having resigned, and Lieut .- Col. Bingham being absent, sick), and being so much reduced as to num- ber only about two hundred and fifty muskets, they were joined to the 61st New York (Col. Barlow), and the two were moved and manœuvred as one regiment. They were engaged until about noon, and in that time changed front nine times. The loss of the 64th at Antietam was very heavy, and their conduct here was complimented by Gen. McClellan in his report of the battle.

Upon the crossing of the Potomac by the army, in pur- suit of Lee, the 64th moved to Loudoun Heights, Va., where Col. Brooks was mustered as lieutenant-colonel. Here

they continued on picket duty until October 28; then moved east of the mountain, skirmishing at Ashley's Gap ; passed Thoroughfare Gap to Warrenton, remaining there six days, during which time Gen. MeClellan was relieved of the com- mand of the army by General Burnside. From Warrenton they moved rapidly down the Rappahannock, and encamped with the army at Falmouth.

At the opening of the terrific battle of Fredericksburg -Dec. 13-the regiment assisted in laying the pontoon bridges, under a galling fire from the enemy on the south side of the river. In the battle the regiment occupied the right of the whole line, acting with the 61st as at Antie- tam, though the 64th had in the mean time been strength- ened by returns from hospital and other sources. They passed through the town and entered the fight at about eight A.M. The casualties of the day placed Lieut .- Col. Brooks in command of the brigade at about noon, but an hour later he was wounded and taken from the field. The 64th par- ticipated in some of the most severe fighting of that terri- ble day, and their losses were severe. After the engage- ment they re-crossed the river with the other commands, and again camped at Falmouth ; in which vicinity they re- mained on picket duty, etc., during the winter. Concerning the condition of the regiment at this time a clear idea is given by an extract from a letter written at the front, dated Jan. 16, 1863, as follows :

" I have just seen a gentleman from Falmouth,-he was with the 64th, of your county. He gives a sad picture of its condition. It can only muster about two hundred effect- ive men. One company contains only four privates. The regiment has been in eight pitched battles and twelve skir- mishes. And you have a right, more than all, to be proud of it. Their commanding generals say they have never, on any occasion, faltered or flinched, but have faced the leaden hail like old veterans. Let the memory of the fallen braves of that regiment be embalmed in the affections of your people, and their names engraven on tablets as enduring as the hills."

In the first disposition of troops at the battle of Chan- cellorsville, the 64th occupied a position on the extreme left. On the 2d of May they were advanced to the front, and deployed ; the movement being a feint, to draw fire, and ascertain position and strength of the enemy. In this advanced position they remained behind slight and hastily- constructed works, and at midnight received a brisk attack of the enemy, which inflicted a considerable loss ; one com- pany (D) having nine men killed. By a misunderstanding of orders, four companies of the regiment were withdrawn during the latter part of the night, leaving the remainder in position, unaware that the other companies had left. When this was ascertained by those remaining, the com- mand was assumed by Capt. Gunning, who, on being re- lieved by the 27th Connecticut, withdrew, to find and join the other portion. (The Connecticut regiment which re- lieved them was captured entire, in less than a half-hour afterwards.)

In the morning of the 3d, Gen. Howard, commander of the 11th Corps (which had been shattered in the previous evening, through the misconduct of one of its divisions), having formed a new line, sent to Gen. Hancock, asking

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that the 64th and 5th New Hampshire Regiments be sent to his support; and orders to that effect were given by Hancock. As the 64th were marching on this errand, they passed the quarters of their corps commander (Hancock), who, standing at the door in his shirt-sleeves, called out to the men as they passed, "Now, boys, you are going to put backbone into the 11th Corps,-and they need it badly enough !" His answer was a vociferous cheer by the whole regiment. They performed the duty assigned them, of supporting a battery with the 11th, with specific orders to bayonet any of the Teutonic division who might attempt to run away. In this duty they remained until the fight was over, and in the night of the 5th they began the march towards the river, through the rain, which poured in tor- rents. They re-crossed the Rappahannock at United States Ford on the 6th, and returned to their old location, near Falmouth. The loss at Chancellorsville was sixteen killed and twenty-two wounded.

The next campaign of the regiment was that of Gettys- burg, and a brief but most excellent account of this, from the pen of their noble colonel, Daniel G. Bingham (written in hospital near Gettysburg, after the battle), is here given :

"The old 64th has again been baptized in blood and fire, and of all the ordeals which it has been called upon to pass through, in the ten general engagements in which it has taken a part, the last one, of July 2, was the most fiery. The battle of Chancellorsville, and the sick sent away from Falmouth, had reduced the number of men pres- ent within the division from three hundred and forty-two to two hun- dred and eighty-nine (leaving four hundred and forty-five on the rolls), of which thirty-five were detailed as teamsters, commissary clerks, etc., and twenty-five were officers. . . . We marched from Falmouth with two hundred and eight guns, went on to the battle- field with two hundred and two guns, and came out of the battle with a loss of ninety-eight officers and men killed, wounded, and miss- ing. . . . I think it safe to say that no man was taken prisoner unless he was wounded. Hence, I count the missing as wounded and pris- oners. . . .

"The battles of the 2d and 3d of July were the most desperate and san- guinary ever fought by this army. Every man felt that all we had been fighting for during the last two years was staked on this battle . . . The feeling generally, as far as my observation extended, was one of determination to annihilate or be annihilated. From conversations with prisoners, I judge that the same feeling pervaded the rebel army. I have not time to give an extended account of the battle; that has already reached you, I suppose . . . I can only give you a sketch of the doings of that part of the army in which we acted, the old 2d Corps.

"On the morning of July 1 the 2d Corps marched from Union Town, Pa., under a new general. (The address of Gen. Meade on as- suming command, and the farewell address of Gen. Hooker on retiring from the command, having been officially received the evening before.) We halted at Taneytown, and all the arrangements were made to go into camp, when suddenly orders came to pack up and march imme- diately. Intelligence had been received of the encounter between the Ist Corps and the enemy at Gettysburg, in which Gen. Reynolds was killed. Gen. Hancock, who commanded our corps, was immediately ordered to take command in front, and our corps came under the com- mand of Gen. Gibbon. We marched towards Gettysburg, and met the ambulance bearing the body of Gen. Reynolds to the rear. We halted about three miles south of Gettysburg, and formed line crossing the Taneytown Road, our left resting on the mountain, afterwards known to us as ' Round Top.' We were ordered to build breastworks, to do which, for a regiment with one axe and two shovels, was rather tedious. When nearly completed, the work was stopped, the plan was changed : we were to take another position. We then rested quietly till 2.30 A.M., July 2, when we were ordered to pack up quietly and cook some coffee. We marched at 4.10 A.M. about & mile to the front, and at 5.45 formed the division in mass, facing to the east, in a rocky, wooded valley to the east of the Taneytown Road. The attack in the morn-

ing was evidently expected from the right. At 6.10 A.M. the division was marched again out of the woods and across the Taneytown Road, and at 7 A.M. formed in line by brigade in mass, fronting west, in a position about one-half mile southwest of Cemetery Hill. The first gun was firod at 6.10 A.M. In our new position there was skirmishing one-half mile in front in the edge of a wood, and some to the right and front. Cannonading occasionally on the right, in the vicinity of Cemetery Hill, from our guns . . . As the day wore on the skirmish- ing worked farther to the left. Regiments were moved out and re- lieved the skirmishers often, and by 3 P.M. it became the general opinion that if the enemy attacked, it would be on our extreme left.

" At four P.M. artillery opened on our extreme left, near the foot of Round Top, from batteries on both sides of the house. Soon after, cannonading commenced on our right, and from batteries nearly in our front from both sides, and we were in the midst of a great battle. On the left, new batteries opened, the infantry became engaged in heavy force on both sides, and the fighting was terrific. The enemy had been all day moving heavy forces around opposite our left, con- cealed by belts of woodland filled with his skirmishers, and was now hurling his masses against a single point without regard to sacrifice of life, as at Malvern Hill and Chancellorsville. The 3d Corps first met and sustained the shock for nearly an hour. One of our batteries had been dragged high up the mountain among the rocks, and was in a splendid position to check the advancing rebel lines, and also to work against their masses in reserve. The 5th Corps relieved the 3d, and the battle continued without cessation. . . . About 5 P.M. the battle seemed to be working around more to our left. . . . Gen. Hancock had command of two or three corps, and had said that his old 1st Division (ours) should not be put into this battle unless it became absolutely necessary. This was in consideration of its previous losses, having been placed in the fore-front of the battle from Fair Oaks to Chancel- lorsville. We knew very well from this that if that absolute necessity did arise we should see some of the most desperate fighting of the day. At 5.15 P.M. Gen. Hancock rode past us, and ordered up the 1st Di- vision. We moved in mass by brigades nearly a mile to the left and deployed, the left of our division line touching the mountain. By a change of front our brigade came into line faced by the rear rank, which gave us a great advantage in charging over rough ground, fences, and stone walls, and to any but well drilled and disciplined troops would have been disastrous.

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History of Cattaraugus County, New York, with Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of Some of Its Prominent Men and Pioneers, Part 26

Author: Franklin Ellis and Eugene Arns Nash Publication date: Publisher: Number of Pages:

Author: Franklin Ellis and Eugene Arns Nash
Publication date:
Publisher:
Number of Pages: