History of Montgomery and Fulton counties, N.Y. : with illustrations and portraits of old pioneers and prominent residents, Part 26

Author: Beers, F.W., & co., New York, pub
Publication date: 1878
Publisher: New York : F.W. Beers & co.
Number of Pages: 664

USA > New York > Fulton County > History of Montgomery and Fulton counties, N.Y. : with illustrations and portraits of old pioneers and prominent residents > Part 26
USA > New York > Montgomery County > History of Montgomery and Fulton counties, N.Y. : with illustrations and portraits of old pioneers and prominent residents > Part 26

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Northampton Pt. Northampton Pt.

by Manheim bridge to the falls at the uplift, and a fourth on Little Sprite creek. That portion of Montgomery county south of the Mohawk, except- ing a few strips near its border, is covered by the Utica slate and the Frankfort rocks, the latter occupying the whole southern half, and the former the space between these rocks and the river. These are the four important masses as to the extent of surface covered, the others occupy- ing.very small areas. The Potsdam sandstone appears upon the primary at Klip hill between the two roads which lead to Johnstown. It is in small patches of one or two layers, being all that remains of a once con- tinuous mass. The Birds-eye limestone is quarried in the town of Mayfield at a point in the old Claus patent. It appears in two insulated hills to the west of Eva's Kill, in the small quarry on the west side of the dam back of Amsterdam village, and at the quarries of Tribes Hill. The rock at these places is thin, and not suitable for heavy work. On the south side of the Mohawk it first appears at Fort Plain. It is there in thick layers, and was quarried for the canal ; also on the opposite side of the river between the turnpike and the railroad, forming the surface rock for many acres of area. North of the river, the birdseye limestone is quar- ried in several places. This rock is also noticed in Garoga creek near the village of Ephratah.

The upper mass of the Black river limestone, of which the birdseye forni- the lower part, embraces most of the grey limestone at Amsterdam village and several quarries along the Mohawk. The Trenton hmestone is but little quarried, being preferred for making lime. This rock is seen in the town of Mayfield, in two places in Broadalhin, to the east of the great Vlaie, at Amsterdam, along the south side of the uplift of the Nose. at the dam in Canajoharie creek, at Fort Plain, and north east of the quarry on the opposite side of the river. The land slopes to the Mohawk on both sides of the river throughout its course in these counties, with the et. ception of the northeastern and northwestern portions, the former inchin- ing to the Sacondaga river, and the latter to the East Canada creek. The country which is occupied with the primary rocks, is yet a wilderness, et. cepting some portions along its outside borders, and others again, where facilities for sawing and getting out timber exist, and it must remain unin- habited until conveniences for transportation are made. It is thickly cos- ered with forest, and contains numerous lakes which are disposed upon if southern and western borders, showing the height of the level land from which the more elevated hills and ridges of the primary region usually rise One of the first prominent points going east along the primary range i- Royal hill. It is one of those high, long, narrow, north and south ranges. which rise abruptly hke Klip hill, and others quite numerous in Sarato; county. It is composed of gneiss, similar to that of Little Falls, and in many parts divided by numerous joints into angular blocks. There was

GEOLOGY OF MONTGOMERY AND FULTON COUNTIES.

nothing extraneous discovered in this hill but a little plumbago and small garnets. This hill forms the west side of Pleasant Valley and extends up to near Garoga lake. The valley is covered with alluvion, but, it is prob- able, was once underlaid by the Utica slate, which may yet exist there, as waterworn fragments of it are numerous at the foot of the high bank below Pleasant Valley village, which could not have come from any point south, no fact of the kind having been observed in the primary region.

The valley of Garoga creek separates Royal hill from Klip hill, the pro- longation of the Noses. From thence the primary mass rises to the east, and near Kingsborongh village, attains considerable elevation. For about six or seven miles, the course of the range of primary rocks is to the north and east and its height uniform, the range appearing as a ridge. Beyond it is broken into rounded or curved masses of different elevations. There is a much greater variety of gneiss at the east than at the west end in that section of the country. About two and a half miles from Kingsborough, the stone has been quarried. It has a striped or ribbony appear- ance, being a well characterized gneiss, and contains numerons small red garnets, which give a brownish color to the rock, the mica being black ; also much green feldspar. Further north there is an abundance of beauti- ful porphyritic gneiss suitable for all purposes to which granite is applied, being but slightly stratified, which would favor its extraction. The hills or mountains, as they are here termed, rise ahont five or six hundred feet above their base, the latter being elevated about eleven hundred . st above the Mohawk, as was ascertained with reference to connecting the waters of the Sacondaga with the Mohawk.

The juncture of the primary and the calciferons sandstone from Royal Hill to Lassellsville consists of rounded elevations, sandy, loamy and clayey, between which the small water-courses of that section pass on their way to the Mohawk. East of the village there are sand hills, and from thence to Royal Hill gravel hills. The country is much broken by rounded and irregular elevations and depressions, showing from Royal Hill to East Canada creek a line of agitated waters resembling the one which extends along Black river to Boonville.

At Pleasant Valley the alluvion is of great thickness, its hills rising to about one hundred feet of elevation, and continues up to Garoga lake. The great mass of the chain of hills east of Garoga creek is of yellow sand, the same kind with that of the primary region. The Vlaie or natural meadow and swamp which extends along the creek of that name to near the Fish House, are the remains of a lake, and show the pre-existent state of that country; the drainage of which happened at successive periods, as is beautifully shown and the extent of the alluvial action also near where the upper and lower roads unite which lead from Cranberry post-office to the river, near the hill or mountain side. There four well defined alluvial banks exist, resembling great steps on the mountain side, which forms a semi-amphitheatre, changing by a curve from a northeast to a south-south- east direction. The upper bank of alluvion rises about a hundred feet above the river; the next below about eighty feet; the third, from thirty to forty feet; and the lowest, from ten to twelve feet. The upper one is of sand; the second, of bluish clay covered with sand; and the two lowest ones of sand and gravel. The Vlaies, or natural meadows, are numerous in many parts of the district, and are the prairies of the West on a small scale. Their soil being composed of fine earth is favorable for grass, the rapid growth of which smothers the germinating trees. This is repre- sented as the primary canse why trees do not exist where grass is rank; the others are but subordinate ones. These natural meadows all show the same origin, having been ponds or lakes receiving the wash of the country which they drained, the finer particles of which being diffused through their waters have, by subsidence, formed their level bottom and their highly productive soil.

Along the borders of the Mohawk, through Montgomery county, there exists a series of parallel upraised masses, extending but a short distance south of the river. These uplifts or npraised masses consist of those rocks and groups whose position is below the Utica slate. They have been raised in places just as if they were composed of a series of parallel blocks under which a force was applied which caused them to pierce the slate and to appear at various heights above the common level of it. The uplifts vary as to length, breadth and height, some traversing the whole extent between the primary region and the river, while others are partial, occupying but limited areas. While some have been raised so high as to exhibit the whole series of rocks from the primary inclusive to the Utica slate, others show only the upper rocks of that series.

The first uplift is that of Flint Hill. The lowest part consists of the calciferous group which extends to Amsterdam village, and disappears under the Black river and Trenton limestones; the whole of which, further west, are lost under the alluvion. This uplift gave rise to quarries at Amsterdam. The second uplift is at Tribes Hill, showing three elevations, the layers which are inclined from east to west, ranging parallel with each other. The first rise consists of the calciferous group, a quarry having been opened in this rock; the second consists of birdseye limestone; and the third, the intermediate mass to that rock and the Trenton limestone, the two forming with the Chazy limestone the Black river limestone group. They all dip west ten degrees sonth, and show the direction of their uplift and the effects of denudation in producing their insulation. Between the Trenton limestone and the river is the intermediate mass. It has been extensively quarried at this place, and on the hill near the village.

The third uplift is by the roadside east of Fonda, and is but partial, the Trenton limestone only appearing.

The fourth uplift is the Noses, which rise in the valley like a huge dyke or mountain barrier, and, except where broken by the river, show a long continuous wall which faces the east and slopes gradually along the river to the west. The Mohawk passes by a gap through the mass, showing on either side a cliff of the calciferons group, which often rises vertically to two hundred feet or more. The gneiss forms the base at the east end. It shows itself in three places on the south side and terminates its range east, rising probably one hundred feet above the river. On the north side of the uplift the calciferons has been uncovered to considerable extent, showing a surface averaging five miles in length from north to sonth. Further north the primary takes its place, showing patches of Potsdam sandstone for about two miles from where it emerges from under the calciferous. For some distance north of the river at the east end of the uplift, alluvion and soil conceal the surface rock, but beyond at many points the Utica slate ap- pears dipping to the east at angles of about thirty degrees, the juncture of the gneiss and slate being covered with soil. The uplift of the Noses can- not be said to terminate along the river short of Palatine church, where the slate appears in the creek at its usual low level when not disturbed. The whole of the uplift is of great interest, exposing a vast mass of rock and the succession of the rocks either going west along the river or south. Quar- ries have been opened in its range at Canajoharie, Palatine Bridge, Fort Plain, etc. The creek at Fort Plain shows that the rocks on both sides have not the same elevation, those on the west side being higher than those on the east.

The fifth uplift extends from Palatine church to near East Canada creek, exhibiting a large surface of the calciferous group. At St. Johnsville the calciferous group forms a high cliff in the rear of the village, extending from Crumb beyond Zimmerman's creek in nearly an east and west direc- tion. It is not the result of the wearing away of all the parts on its south side so as to give passage to the river, for at the foot of the cliff the birds -. eye is seen, but obscurely; next to it at the southeast are the lower layers of the Trenton, and east and north the Utica slate, all within a few rods of each other.

CHAPTER XXV.

MONTGOMERY COUNTY IN THE CIVIL WAR-HISTORY OF THE 115TH NEW YORK VOLUNTEER INFANTRY.

In writing the history of the 115th N. Y. Volunteer Infantry, we record the acts of a noble body of men, whose deeds are already written in blood, and inscribed high up in the roll of Fame. This regiment was raised in the counties of Saratoga, Montgomery, Fulton and Hamilton, and mus- tered into the United States service on the 26th day of August, 1862, by Capt. Edgerton, U. S. A., at Fonda, the place of rendezvous of the regi- ment. The field staff and captains were as follows: Colonel, Simeon Sam- mons; Lieutenant-Colonel, George S. Bacheller; Major, Patrick Henry Cowan; Adjutant, Thomas R. Horton; Quartermaster, Martin McMartin; Surgeon, Richard H. Sutton; Assistant Surgeon, William H. Ingersoll; Chaplain, Sylvester W. Clemons. Captains: Company A, Garret Vander- veer; Company B. John P. Kneeskern; Company C, William H. McKit- trick; Company D, Sidney Lingenfelter; Company E, William H. Shaw; Company F, Walton W. French; Company G, Egbert B. Savage; Company H, Solomon P. Smith; Company I, Ezra L. Walrath; Company K, William

THE HISTORY OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY.

Smith. With the above officers, together with a full complement of lieu- tenants and ten hundred and forty enlisted men, the regiment broke camp at Fonda on the 29th day of August, and was forwarded to the seat of war as soon as possible, arriving at Sandy Hook, Md., on the Baltimore and Ohio R. R., on the ist of Sept., where. the regiment was furnished with arms, but very little ammunition. It then moved on to Harper's Ferry, Va, where it was assigned to guard duty along the Shenandoah Valley K. R., with headquarters at Charlestown, Va.

The regiment performed guard duty faithfully, until a few days before the surrender of Harper's Ferry, when it and others were ordered to con- centrate at that place. On the way to the Ferry James English, a mem- ber of Co. D, was wounded in the hand, by the accidental discharge of a musket, necessitating amputation at the wrist; he was the first man wounded in the regiment. On arriving at, or near Harper's Ferry, the regiment was encamped on Bolivar Heights, in the rear of the village. From this point it performed picket duty, and while so engaged, John Hubbard, of Co. . 1. was wounded by a guerilla. On the 12th, Companies E and \ were or- dered to report to Col. Tom Ford, in command of Maryland Heights, and upon doing so, were ordered to proceed up the Potomac, to the old " John Brown " school-house, and form a skirmish line from the river as far up the mountain as possible, the left resting on the river.

Early the next morning the two companies were ordered b. . to Ford's headquarters, and from there to Elk Ridge, at the Lookout, on the highest peak of the mountain. Here for the first time members of the 115th regi- ment met the enemy in deadly combat. After several hours fighting, and holding their position, the two companies were ordered to evacuate the place, and report to Gen. Miles' headquarters, which they did very reluct- antly, and not until they had received the third order. Company E had one man wounded. About this time Company K moved up, and in a few minutes its captain was carried to the rear, having been wounded in the thigh by a minie-ball. Upon nearing the foot of the mountain, at what was known as Maryland Heights, Companies E and A met the remainder of the regiment, who congratulated them upon their safe return.

The regiment returned to camp on Bolivar Heights. The troops were kept moving to and fro until the morning of the 15th, when General Miles made one of the most cowardly and disgraceful surrenders recorded in the annals of American history. Eleven thousand men, armed and equipped in the best style, with plenty of ammunition, holding one of the most de- fensible positions in the United States, were ignominiously surrendered, instead of aiding to surround Lee's, Longstreet's, Hill's and Jackson's corps where there was no possible way of escape. Thus the Union army was reduced, and eleven thousand as good fighting men as ever shouldered a musket were doomed to bear the taunts of their enemies, at home and abroad, as "Harper's Ferry cowards." But every regiment that was obliged to participate in that farce, and whose honor was sold by the com- manding officer, has, upon bloody fields, won bright laurels, and vindicated its soldierly character. By the good graves of the rebel generals, who had the captured army as an "elephant on their hands," the prisoners were paroled the next day, and allowed to depart in peace, which they did with sorrowing hearts.

The regiment returned to Annapolis, Maryland, and thence went to Chicago, where it went into camp on the Cook county fair ground, which was called "Camp Tyler," after the general in command of the troops around the city. During the stay of the 115th in Chicago its duties were about the same as those of troops in garrison, but the men were allowed rather more liberties than regular soldiers on duty. While at Chicago, the weather being very bad most of the time, and the men not on fatigue duty enough to give them healthy exercise, malarial fever caused the death of quite a number.

About the 20th of November, 1862, the regiment was ordered to pro- ceed to Washington. The capital was reached about the 23d, and at the same time the souliers of the 115th were exchanged and marched over to Arlington Heights. There they were supposed to go into winter quarters, but by the time quarters were built the regiment was ordered out again. and kept in motion between Arlington, Fairfax, Hunter's creek, Alevan- dria and Yorktown, where it embarked on the steamer " Matanzas," Jan- uary 23d, 1863, and arrived at Hilton Head, S. C, Department of the South, about the 26th of January.

Here the regiment was divided into detachments for post, camp and out- post duty. Companies E and D were detailed to garrison Battery Mitchell, an ontpost on Scull creek. Company B was stationed at Saybrook, and

other companies at different points on and around Hilton Head Island, until the 28th of May, when the different detachments were relieved and the regiment was again a unit at Hilton Head. On the 2d of June, Com- panies E and B were, by order of General Chatfield, detailed for special field duty, and went with other troops up May river, S. C., and burned the town of Bluffton. About the 27th of June the regiment was moved to the city of Beaufort, S. C., some twelve miles up Beaufort river, where it went into camp. After remaining here a while and suffering severely from malaria, incident to the dull routine life of the camp, the regiment was again divided into detachments and sent to do outpost and picket duty on Beaufort, Port Royal and other islands adjacent to them.

On the zoth of December, the regiment embarked on transports for the old camp at Hilton Head, where it was attached to Gen. T. Seymour's "ill-starred " Florida expedition. The force left Hilton Head on the 5th of February, 1864, reached Jacksonville on the evening of the 7th, and oc- cupied the city without opposition. During the night of the 8th the expe- dition reached Camp Finnegan, about twelve miles from Jacksonville, cap- turing a battery of six guns, a quantity of small arms, etc., and a large amount of provisions, upon which the boys feasted until next day, when. with well filled haversacks, they moved towards Tallahassee, reaching and occupying Baldwin without opposition, and reaching Barber's Plantation during the night. The next day the troops advanced to Sanderson's Sta- tion, where they burned the railroad depot filled with corn, and several resin and turpentine manufactories, and tore up considerable railroad track, burning ties and other property belonging to the rebels. By order of Gen. Seymour, the army fell back to Barber's Plantation and remained there until the 19th.

During this time the 115th, a part of the 4th Massachusetts cavalry and a section of the 3d R. I. Flying Artillery were ordered to proceed to Cal- lahan, a station on the Fernandina and Cedar Keys railroad, and capture whatever they might find, which was one pony, seven bushels of sweet po tatoes, and one or two Florida hugs, of the kind that need to have know tied in their tails to prevent their getting through cracks. Returning to camp, weary, footsore and hungry, the boys of the 115th were allowed to rest about one day, when the whole command broke camp early on the morning of the 20th, for the disastrous field of Olustee, known by the rebel- as Ocean l'ond.

L'pon arriving on the field the order of battle was formed, with the 115th on the extreme right of the infantry line, and the troops ordered to move forward, which they did with a steadiness that showed the 15,000 rebels that they had work to do. Upon arriving on a rise of ground between where the line was formed and the rebel position, the advancing force re- ceived a murderous fire, at which the colored troops on the extreme left broke very badly The white troops upon the left begin to double up on the 115th, but order was soon restored. AAbout this time the rebels made a charge upon the Union right, which was repulsed by the tisth, who sent the enemy back over their works with heavy luss. The combat continued to rage with fury until the supply of ammunition on both sides gave out. and, night coming on, both parties were willing to call it a drawn battle but Gen. Seymour, by ordering a retreat, gave the rebels to understand that he abandoned the contest. Upon this occasion Gen. Seymour took occasion to publicly compliment the 115th, giving it the honor and praise of saving his little army from total annihilation, and naming it the "Iron- hearted Regiment." The regiment lost over one-half its number in killed. wounded and missing Col. Simmons was wounded in the foot at the com menr ement of the battle. Capt. Vanderveer was mortally wounded, and died in a few days. Lieut. Tompkins and shaffer were killed, besile- many of the best non-commissioned officers and men.

On leaving Cluster the expedition retraced its steps toward Jackson. ville, where the 115th did picket and camp duty until February 9th, when the force embarked on transports for Palatka, Fla., about one hundred miles up the St. John's river from Jacksonville. Here the troops rested. and nothing of interest transpired. On the 14th of April they again em barked on transports for Hilton Head, S. C., making a few hours' stop a. Ineksonville, and arriving at their destination on the evening of the 10th On the 18th the regiment sailed for Gloucester Point, Va., reaching the place on the 21st, and was attached to the roth army corps. On May 4th it was attached to the Army of the James, under Gien. B. F. Butler. Thu army moved up the James river to Bermuda Hundred, and on the 7th ... May the 115th participated and suffered severely in the ill-fated battle ' Chesterfield Heights, Va., losing about eighty in killed, wounded and

BATTLES OF THE 115TH REGIMENT

missing. From this time to the 16th of May the regiment was marching, fighting, picketing, etc. On the morning of that day the disastrous battle of Drury's Bluff was fought. and the 115th regiment again brought into requisition under the immediate supervision of Gen. Adelbert Ames, who complimented it for its bravery and skillful movements, which saved But- ler's army from total rout.

On the 17th the regiment went into camp at Hatcher's Run. From this time it was on picket duty all the time to the 28th, when it marched to City Point, and embarked on board the steamer " De Molay," for White House, Va., landing there on the 31st, at + P. M. The 115th took up the line of march for Cold Harbor, Va., reaching that place June ist, at 3 1-2, P. M., and immediately, with the rest of the Brigade, charged the enemy's works, this regiment capturing two hundred and fifty men with their arms and equipments. Here the regiment was again complimented for bravery by Gen. Devens.

From that time to the 12th, the regiment was under a continuous fire day and night. During the night of the 12th it marched for White House Landing, which place was reached at 6 A. M., of the 13th. Next day the regiment embarked for City Point, landed at Powhattan, on the James. and marched the rest of the way. On the 23d it moved up in front of Petersburgh, Va. From this time the regiment was in the trenches before Petersburgh, to July 29th, when Gen. Turner's division, to which the 115th was attached, moved to the left, to assist Burnside's 9th corps in the ex- plosion of the mine, and charge upon the enemy's works. This occurred at 5 o'clock, on the morning of the 30th of July. Here, again, the 115th displayed its courage and cool bravery by standing as a wall of fire be- tween the advancing Rebels, and the partially demoralized 9th corps, and was again complimented by both Gens. Burnside and Turner.

From Petersburgh the regiment marched to near City Point, and then to Bermuda Hundred, losing several inen by sun stroke, as the weather was extremely hot, and the roads dry and dusty. Up to this time the regiment had been under fire for thirty seven days, and needed rest, which was had at Hatch's farm, until, on the evening of the 13th of August, the regiment broke camp and marched to Deep Bottom, on the north side of the James river, which was reached at 7 o'clock, A. M., on the 14th. That day and the next were occupied in marching and counter- marching. On the 16th the enemy were found strongly posted at Charles City Court House, where fighting began at once and continued until the evening of the 18th, when the 115th was deployed and covered the retreat of the Union forces. In this affair the regiment lost eighty-four killed, wounded and missing.

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History of Montgomery and Fulton counties, N.Y. : with illustrations and portraits of old pioneers and prominent residents, Part 26

Author: Beers, F.W., & co., New York, pub Publication date: 1878 Publisher: New York : F.W. Beers & co. Number of Pages: 664

Author: Beers, F.W., & co., New York, pub
Publication date: 1878
Publisher: New York : F.W. Beers & co.
Number of Pages: 664