History of Ontario Co., New York, Part 33

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The Eighteenth New York was the first regiment to enroll in its ranks the foremost company of Ontario. By April 26 a company had been formed, of which Henry Faurot was captain, James H. Morgan first lieutenant, Wm. H. Ellis, Jr., ensign. On May 9, 1861, they set out to rendezvous at Albany, where the regiment was organized to serve two years, and mustered into the United

States service May 17, 1861. The company was designated Company G. On May 27 the regiment, under Colonel Wm. A. Jackson, received marching orders, and in June had encamped at Washington. It left Camp Myers, Alexandria, Virginia, on July 16, to take part in the advance upon Richmond. It was in the advance next day, and a slight skirmish occurred whereby a loss of five wounded was sustained and a like loss inflicted upon the enemy. On the 18th, Centreville was reached, and a brisk skirmish ensued, the advance having the worst of it. On the 21st of July the Eighteenth was held in reserve and was not engaged ; upon the retreat it was made part of the rear-guard, marched all night, and by the close of the month was back in its former camp near Alexandria. The repulse at Bull Run convinced the North that something more than brave hearts was needed by the soldier, and long months passed away, when it grew into a proverb, " All quiet along the Potomac," and the army had become a well-drilled, equipped, and mighty force. An advance was made on Manassas, which the enemy had aban- doned. McClellan then determined upon the advance, via Yorktown, upon Rich- mond, and thither conveyed his troops. The Eighteenth left Alexandria April 18, on board the steamboat " Long Branch," and was landed opposite Yorktown. Bearing their part in the events which transpired in the advance upon Richmond, in the battles following the retreat to James river, the regiment acquitted itself with honor to the State which sent it forth, and on July 4 a report was made of three killed, eight wounded, and eleven missing from Company G. Sick with fever, Captain Faurot led his company at Gaines' Mills, and during the day, being injured by a shell, fell and was taken to the rear. Lieutenant Green was ill, and Lieutenant Ellis took charge of the company in the retreat to Harrison's Land- ing, on the James river. The regiment was mustered out on May 28, 1863, and a large portion of the men again went to the field as new organizations were formed and the peril of their old comrades invoked their aid.

The Twenty-Seventh Regiment was organized at Elmira, to serve for two years. It was mustered into service May 21, 1861. In its first engagement at Bull Run, July 21, 1861, it was under command of Henry W. Slocum. In this engage- ment J. W. Butler, of East Bloomfield, was killed. He was a member of Com- pany G, partly raised in the county of Ontario. In the battle of Gaines' Mills Captain H. S. Hall was wounded, one man killed, sixteen wounded, and three missing. The roll of honor bears the names Bull Run, Gaines' Mills, Seven Days' Battle, Second Bull Run, South Mountain, Antietam, Fredericksburg, and Marye's Heights-a long list this for the first two years of the war. The mus- ter-out took place May 21, 1863.

The Twenty-eighth Regiment, raised at Albany, N. Y., to serve for two years, was mustered into the United States service May 22, 1861. To this regiment, commanded by Colonel Dudley Donnelly, was attached the company of Captain Theodore Fitzgerald, J. J. Whitney, first lieutenant, and Harvey Padelford, ensign of the same. In assigning the companies place, the Ontario company was known as " E." Its men were young and enthusiastic, and of the best material for sol- diers. The regiment was ordered to Washington, where in June it went into camp, and from there was ordered to join General Patterson's division at Mar- tinsburg, Virginia. Many of the men had been school-teachers. The regiment numbered seven hundred and eighty men, was well drilled, and carried the U. S. rifles of 1851. It left Washington July 6, and arrived at Hagerstown on the 7th ; thence it marched to Martinsburg, where foraging occupied the attention of the command, and taught them the lessons by which they were ultimately to profit. Months passed idly, and with the coming of spring expectations of winning dis- tinction in the field were indulged in without realization, until on the 7th of April the Twenty-eighth arrived near Woodstock, Virginia, and went into camp. On the 17th the citizens of Columbia Furnace, a hamlet about eight miles distant, sent a request to Colonel Donnelly, in command of the first brigade, to detach a force for their protection. Captain Fitzgerald with Company E was of the detachment, which consisted of eight companies of infantry, two of cavalry, and a howitser. Next day a party of five out on a scout captured two cavalrymen, and learned that their company was quartered eight miles up the valley, by a church. A guide was procured, and at midnight of the 15th an expedition set out to capture them. Captain Fitzgerald, with thirty men of Company E, took the advance, and, march- ing along a circuitous route a distance of thirteen miles, halted near the church. Half an hour passed, and thirty men of the Fifth Connecticut came up; the remain- der of the force, two hundred strong, did not appear, and the sixty men were formed within forty rods of the church. The rebels were completely surprised, and sur- rendered at discretion. Three officers and fifty-eight privates, with horses, were the fruits of this creditable enterprise. In the afternoon of May 24, orders came to Colonel Donnelly to march his brigade with all haste to Strasburg. Here was learned news of the battle at Front Royal, and a retreat began, leaving much prop- erty behind. Before half the eighteen miles which lie between Strasburg and Winchester had been passed over, the enemy bad attacked the Union rear. Eight miles from Winchester the Twenty-eighth was ordered to the rear to reinforce

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PLATE XXIII.

MRS. EDITH POWELL.

I. M. POWELL.

RES. OF 1. M. POWELL, SOUTH BRISTOL, ONTARIO CO. N. Y.

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PLATE XXIV.

"WILLOW BROOK, SUMMER COTTAGE OF JAMES MG KECHNIE, SENECA POINT, CANANDAIGUA LAKE, N. Y.

RES. OF ALEXANDER Mº KECHNIE ; CANANDAIGUA, N.Y.

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HISTORY OF ONTARIO COUNTY, NEW YORK.

the forces covering the retreat, but did not become engaged. At 11 P.M. the regiment entered Winchester and the men laid upon their arms.

Fighting began early on the 25th. At daylight, a perfect shower of missiles was hurled upon the Union lines. Seven thousand men for four hours checked, and at times repulsed, from two to three times their number. The right wing gave way, and Colonel Donnelly drew back his forces in good order. The Forty- sixth Pennsylvania separated from the First brigade and marched through Wil- liamsport with the Third brigade. The Twenty-eighth New York and Fifth Connecticut kept together, and gallantly withstood a galling fire for hours. The rebel marksmen threw their shot into the retiring ranks, yet few shell exploded and scarcely a man was injured. Colonel Donnelly, by changing the direction of the line of march, obtained temporary exemption from the rebel fire. The regiment marched forty-seven miles and crossed the river at Dam No. 4, eleven miles below Williamsport. Company E had none injured and three missing at the morning report. The men, nowise disheartened, were ready to return again to dispute possession of the Shenandoah. The regiment took part in the battle of Cedar Mountain, August 9, 1862 ; they were engaged at Antietam, and shortly after the engagement under Hooker at Chancellorsville set out on their return home, and were mustered out June 2, 1863. Few of the old veterans of this command but enlisted again to stem the tide of rebel advances.

The Thirty-third Regiment was organised at Elmira, New York, to serve for two years. It was mustered into the service of the United States May 22, 1861. Three companies went from Ontario: one, under Captain John R. Cutler, from Canandaigua, and two from Geneva, respectively commanded by Captain Walker and Captain Waterford. This large proportion of troops from this county gave to the regiment the appellation " Ontario Regiment," and to its soldiers was pre- sented the beautiful banner prepared by the ladies of Canandaigua for that purpose. The oficers at organization were : Robt. F. Taylor, colonel; Calvin Walker, of Geneva, lieutenant colonel; Robt. J. Mann, major; and Chas. T. Sutton, adjutant. July 8, the regiment was en route for Washington. At Camp Granger, near the city, E. Backerstose, of Company H, was accidentally shot. This was the first death in the regiment. The regiment remained to guard Washington, and was not engaged at Bull Run. On July 6, it was brigaded with the Third Vermont and Sixth Maine, under Colonel W. T. Smith. September 15, it was attached to the Third brigade, composed of itself, the Forty-ninth and Seventy-ninth New York, and Forty-seventh Pennsylvania, commanded by Colonel Stevens. Di- visions were formed, and General Smith, promoted from colonel, was placed over this command. The division of Smith advanced upon Vienna on September 29, and a spirited artillery duel was carried on with no casualties, and the force returned to camp. The Thirty-third were embarked on transports March 23, and taken to Old Point Comfort. When the army advanced upon Yorktown, Smith's division was, on April 5, in position in front of Lee's Mills. Here the Thirty-third were thrown forward as skirmishers, and engaged the enemy, and were under fire for fifty-four hours continuously. Closing in upon Yorktown, the regiment labored hard upon earthworks, and when preparing with others to storm the rebel position, tidings came of evacuation. Pursuit of the retiring enemy was immediately begun, and on May 4, Smith's division had reached the rebel works, two miles from Williamsburg. These works consisted of Fort Magruder and a number of earthworks placed at intervals across the peninsula, and occu- pied by the rebel rear-guard. The Union troops lay upon their arms, and at early morning advanced upon the forts. Hooker's force was resisted and repulsed. About noon Hancock was ordered to take his own and the Third brigade to flank the position. The Thirty-third had been halted some eight miles back, and had not begun its advance till 5 P.M., and came up just in time to join in this movement. The columns marched two miles to the right, near York river, then bearing off to the left, crossed King's creek, on the embankment of a dam built to overflow the ground fronting a portion of the rebel lines, and came upon strong works deserted. Near the dam, Companies B, G, and K, of the Thirty- third, were left to guard the forks, and, the force having crossed, Major Platner, in command, marched them into the nearest fort. Hancock, moving half a mile to the left, halted by a deserted redoubt near the rebel position. Lieutenant- Colonel Corning was ordered to occupy this work with Companies A, D, and F, with the colors and the color-guard. The remainder of the regiment was at once deployed as skirmishers, and advanced to the front and right. Two batteries, supported by a brigade, opened upon Fort Magruder with shell. The attack after some time ceased, and all was quiet in this part of the field, while away to the left heavy firing indicated a heavy engagement. Night was approaching, and the men were turning their thoughts to supper and rest, when it was announced that a body of rebel troops were coming up from Williamsburg. The enemy soon deployed his columns in line of battle, and advanced steadily and with apparent confidence. Arrangements were rapidly made for their reception. Hancock ordered his batteries and infantry into position, and the three companies

of the Thirty-third were withdrawn from the redoubt to take their place in line, leaving the colors and their guard in the work. The enemy moved determinedly forward in the face of a continuous fire, and greeted the Union lines with derisive yells. The line wavered, and the artillery began to be withdrawn by the dam; a disastrous retreat seemed inevitable, and the hostile force had come within seventy yards, when Colonel Taylor, fresh from the skirmish line, drew his sword, and gave command to charge. The order was cheerfully repeated by Lieutenant- Colonel Corning, and forward, upon the double-quick, this fragment of a regiment charged to check the advance of two or more brigades. It was the turning-point of the battle. Other regiments joined in the charge, and the astonished rebels broke and ran, while the Union fire pursued them to their works. Advancing over the ground of their advance, full two hundred of the rebels were found lying dead or wounded, and among them a number of their officers. The Thirty- third, although scattered, fought the enemy wherever it found them, whether themselves on the skirmish line or in battle array. The four companies deployed on the left had opened fire as soon as range was obtained, and had slowly fallen back, and the rebel charging column passed through without regarding them. Captain Root, sent forward with a supporting party, found himself surrounded, and, retracing his steps some forty rods, halted to look about him. A party of rebels were seen near by, and upon these his little command opened fire, and compelled their surrender. Captain Root, with twenty-seven men, came in with forty prisoners. As the enemy passed through Company H, several of the men were swept away, and soon a force returning attacked the company, and Captain Drake and a score of his men were captured. The soldierly conduct of all the companies in this action won a personal encomium from General Mcclellan, highly gratifying and fully deserved.

The enemy continued his retreat, followed closely, and on May 9 the regiment advanced fifteen miles. On the following day cast-away arms, clothing, supplies, and other evidences of a hurried retreat were observed strewed all along the road, and the spirits of the men were buoyant of hope in a speedy triumph. Arriving at the White House, on the Pamunkey, the left wing was detailed for picket, and in trying to find the line advanced a mile beyond the cavalry vidette and stam- peded a rebel patrol, who doubtless awoke the rebel camps with tidings of a night movement in force. On May 21, Smith's division was within eleven miles of the rebel capital. Three days later, and a portion of the Thirty-third upon the skir- mish line encountered the enemy at Mechanicsville. Line of battle was formed in their rear, and both sides opening with artillery, they were placed between two fires. A solid shot sped past between Major Platner and Captain Guion as they stood conversing. The enemy had taken advantage of a group of buildings, into which the Union regiments poured a heavy fire, compelling an evacuation with loss. A charge being opportunely made, the enemy fled in disorder, casting aside their knapsacks and blankets as impediments to their escape. It has been affirmed with good reason that had Davidson been ordered forward, and properly supported, Richmond would have been taken. Davidson's brigade are next reported at " Gaines' Farm," on fatigue and picket duty. The battle of Seven Pines was followed by that of Fair Oaks, and bravely the national forces contended for a victory put beyond their grasp. An advance of three miles was made on June 5 by the division, and the Thirty-third was halted by Colonel Taylor within six miles of Richmond, and a thousand yards from the rebel lines. Here they re- mained till June 28, and here the Twentieth New York was attached to the bri- gade. The enemy's sharpshooters kept up a constant fire upon our men, who were busily engaged in constructing works and bridges, the latter destined to a good purpose as a means of escape, when the right wing of the army was assailed by the rebel armies. MoClellan had laid in the swamps of the Chickahominy with one hundred and fifteen thousand men fit for duty until Lee, succeeding Johnson, uniting with the redoubtable Jackson, came down upon the Union right at Mechanicsville. For long hours the men of Ontario regiments battled with desperate valor against overpowering numbers at Gaines' Farm, and when the last shot of myriads had been fired at midnight of June 27, nine thousand Union sol- diers had been killed, wounded, or taken to Richmond. To MoClellan were pre- sented two alternatives-to gather up all his forces and risk all upon a fierce, do- cisive battle, or fall back to the protection of the gunboats upon the James, aban- doning his wounded, blowing up his war material, and burning his immense sup- plies. He decided on the latter, and the retreat began. On the morning of June 28, Colonel Taylor, ordered by General Smith, advanced a portion of the Thirty- third to relieve the picket line, then but forty rods from the enemy ; the remain- der of the regiment, under Acting Adjutant Tyler, meantime made preparations for retreat. Suddenly, with a crash, the rebels opened with a score of cannon, and a shower of shot and shell swept through the camp, riddling tenta, firing sup- plies, and driving all in haste to the breastwork. This earthen rampart was ro- peatedly struck ; shells fell within the trench, and soldiers, at their peril, seized them and flung them over the works, where they exploded harmleesly. For an

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HISTORY OF ONTARIO COUNTY, NEW YORK.

hour the tempest raged unanswered, as our artillery had been withdrawn, and then an ominous silence was broken by the rebel advance upon the picket line. The skirmishers retired slowly, firing steadily, and joined the main body at the breastwork. Now came a second silence as the hostile lines closed in upon the intrenchment, behind which a long line of leveled rifles was held ready for the word of command. With a yell, once heard never forgotten, the enemy came sweeping full upon the works, when a deadly discharge from the Thirty-third smote down the foremost. Another volley, yet another, and the enemy wavered, turned, and took to flight, pursued till beyond range by the same withering fire from the rude defenses. Reformed, the rebels again advanced to encounter a like terrible experience, and once more fell back. Colonel Lamar, of the Eighth Georgia, was seen conspicuous as he incited his men to a third charge. A volley from the works struck him down as a section of Mott's battery, opportunely open- ing an enfilading fire upon them, drove them from the field. In this assault the Seventh and Eighth Georgia lost ninety-one killed, many wounded, and fifty pris- oners, among whom were Colonel Lamar and Lieutenant-Colonel Tower. The Thirty-third lost few, and these mainly in falling back from the picket line. The thousands of Mcclellan, with heavy siege-trains, were in full retreat. The right wing was marching along the west bank of the Chickahominy towards White Oak Swamp; thence the living tide moved on towards its goal-Harrison's Bar. Three nights of vigil for the right wing of the Thirty-third, the last of the three, June 28, being passed upon the picket line to deceive the enemy, while regiment after regiment disappeared in the distance and in the darkness.

Far from support, liable to attack at any moment, the men stood at their posts and longed for the order to withdraw. A heavy fog came opportunely, and shrouded their movements in obscurity. At one A.M. of the 29th, Companies A and F relieved C, D, and I, and a few hours later these companies were with- drawn, and the Thirty-third rejoined the division. At Savage Station an im- mense accumulation of war material was fired. Here was a general hospital, where thousands of sick and wounded had congregated. They were abandoned to the tender mercies of the enemy, while many a brave fellow, ghastly with the suffering of fearful wounds or the inroads of disease, struggled on upon that terrible retreat, and sank down exhausted at the river. Davidson's brigade marched to the rear of the station, and, finding abundance of abandoned cloth- ing, soon drew each for himself a new suit. An attack being made, the brigade returned to the station at a double-quick, and, till an hour after sunset, bore part in the battle into which they immediately entered. A detail, including ten men from the Thirty-third, was sent to bury the dead, and was captured. The march was begun about ten P.M. towards White Oak Swamp, and just before day the brigade reached the bridge. Men were standing, torch in hand, to fire the struc- ture should the enemy appear. An hour of anxious waiting passed by, and then the Thirty-third crossed over, marched over a hill-crest, and halted in line of battle. At eleven the bridge was fired, and soon was 'burning furiously. The Thirty-third soldiers were busy drawing rations, when, unheralded by any warning shot, a heavy fire from a number of batteries planted in the dense wood, at close range, was opened upon the Union position. A partial panic ensued. A regi- ment in front of the Thirty-third stampeded, and the men were brought back into line by officers of the Ontario regiment. General Davidson, sun-struck, re- signed command of the brigade to Colonel Taylor; and Major Platner, com- manding the regiment, being ordered to report to General Hancook, was placed by him in line upon the extreme right, accompanying the order with the remark, " Major, you have the post of honor; hold the position at all hazards, and add new laurels to those already won by the Thirty-third."

The rebel infantry came out upon the farther bank, and both sides opened a heavy and constant fire. Several attempts were made to cross the swamp, and each was received with a pitiless fire, which made success impossible. At 8.30 P.M. the enemy ceased firing, and soon after the division silently withdrew.

General Davidson, by special order, reported Captain C. H. Cole, of Company C, for promotion for distinguished services, as well as Major John S. Platner and James McNair, of Company F.

Pickets had been placed as the troops withdrew, and it was morning before the enemy became aware of the Union withdrawal. The division was now consti- tuted the rear-guard, and held position at the swamp all day. As it set out for the river, tidings came that the enemy under Huger had secured the road in the rear and confidently awaited its coming. To men who had already done so much, this was disheartening news. It was but seven miles direct to the river, but Smith, turning from the road, made a circuit of twenty-two miles, and passed the enemy in safety. Human endurance had reached its limit, and the men, falling asleep on the march, moved along mechanically. An hour before day, Malvern was reached, and gladly an hour's sleep was taken. The Thirty-third was then ordered on picket. Major Platner deployed the line, and each alternate. man was then permitted to sleep. To the rear lay the army in line awaiting attack. A

Vermont brigade slashed the timber between the picket and the line and made a strong abattis, through which, no openings being left, the men relieved at three of the next morning found their way in amid the darkness and obstructions. A few hours' rest were given, and then the regiment was ordered to the front as support to Ayer's battery. The battle of Malvern Hill was fought, and the enemy repulsed with great loes. At two in the afternoon the regiment, having joined the brigade, had reached Harrison's Landing, where were found food and rest.

At this place the Thirty-third assisted to build a heavy work mounting several thirty-two pound cannon. Wells were dug by the various companies, and the healthfulness and comfort of pure water were enjoyed. Soft bread was issued, and the men fared well.

At midnight, July 31, the enemy, from three batteries posted on the high bank of the river, opened a sharp fire upon the camp and shipping, but were soon re- pulsed. Upon the army of General Pope, which had moved southward from Washington, the enemy now concentrated his forces, and Mcclellan was ordered to bring forward his command to his assistance. This was all too tardily done. While preparing for retreat, Hooker led a force to Malvern Hill, which was tem- porarily re-occupied, straw effigies and logs mounted as cannon were placed on the fort, and the immense army was again upon the move. On August 16, Smith's division took its place in a column reaching forty miles,-the rear at Harri- son's Landing, the advance at Williamsburg. The Thirty-third marched on the 17th seventeen miles. Colonel Vegesack, of the Twentieth New York, took command of the brigade, and Lieutenant-Colonel Corning returned to the regi- ment. The march took the men by the old battle-field at Fort Magruder, reviving the stirring events of that locality, and, reaching Fortress Monroe, the regiment was taken on board a steamer and brought to Aquia Creek, thence to Alexandria, where, on August 24, the force went into camp. The rebel generals had assumed the offensive, and were endeavoring to crush the army of General Pope. Cedar Mountain and other battles followed. A hard battle was fought upon the old Manassas ground, while Porter's splendid corps lay within hearing of the musketry and gave no help to the heroic soldiery who fought with unexcelled devotion. The second Bull Run was lost, Pope defeated, personal spite won its barren vic- tory, and homes were made desolate in vain. There are dark pages in the history of the Army of the Potomac here, and the intelligent soldiery, refusing longer to be sacrificed, gave way and centered near the capital. The Thirty-third was em- ployed to stop and return stragglers; relieved, it marched to Centreville, and took place in line to cover the retreat.

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History of Ontario Co., New York, Part 33

Author: Publication date: Publisher: Number of Pages: 391

Author:
Publication date:
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 391