USA > New York > History of the Ninth Regiment N.Y.S.M. -- N.G.S.N.Y. (Eighty-third N. Y. Volunteers.) 1845-1888 > Part 16
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169
ATTEMPT TO BAG JACKSON.
1862
From the morning of the 27th until the evening of the 29th, Popes energies were bent towards the capture of Jack- son's command. According to the rules laid down in the books, Jackson had made a movement which placed him in the greatest jeopardy, but " Stonewall " was a rule unto himself, and before Pope could capture, he must first catch him. . Pope certainty expected that, after destroying the stores at Man- assas Junction, Jackson would beat a hasty retreat towards Thoroughfare Gap, to form a junction with Longstreet, and he issued his orders accordingly. McDowell was entrusted with the task of occupying the road between Gainesville and the Gap and heading Jackson off, and also with occupying the Gap to prevent Longstreet from coming through, while Pope, with the balance of his army, should pursue and overtake Jackson.
On the morning of the 27th, the NINTH again made a hur- ried march towards Sulphur Springs, only to march back again, and in the afternoon proceeded in a northeasterly direction, halting for the night at New Baltimore. The roads were in a horrible condition, owing to the late rains, and when the bivouac was reached the men threw themselves down on the damp ground, thoroughly tired out. Shortly after daybreak, on the 28th, the march was continued, and on reaching Gaines- ville the column, consisting of the whole division, struck across the fields in a northwesterly direction, to the village of Haymarket, on the direct road to Thoroughfare Gap. Mean- while Jackson's movements had deceived Pope, for, instead of doing as the Union General had expected, and as he should have done according to the " strategy " of warfare, the Confed- erate Commander led Pope away off towards Centreville, and McDowell was hurriedly recalled to Manassas Junction. Ricketts' division alone was left to occupy the Gap and oppose the advance of forty thousand men under Longstreet.
Leaving their knapsacks at Haymarket, a rapid march was made by the division towards the Gap, upon nearing which, at about three o'clock in the afternoon, the troops were disposed in order of battle : Hartsuff's brigade in column of regiments,
1 70
THE NINTH NEW YORK.
August
the Eleventh Pennsylvania on the first line, the NINTH, second, Tower's and Duryea's brigades followed, with the artillery in the intervals between the brigades. After proceeding a short distance in this way, General D. R. Jones' division of the enemy, who already occupied the Gap, opened an artillery fire upon the division, compelling the cavalry, under Colonel Percy Wyndham, who led the advance, to fall back. The bold front presented by Ricketts' division caused Longstreet's advance to halt, and a portion of his command were sent up to Hopewell Gap during the night, in order to turn Ricketts' right flank. During the artillery fire, which lasted until after dark, the Eleventh Pennsylvania suffered severely. The position of the NINTH favored them greatly, nearly all the shots passing over the heads of the men, and only two were wounded. General Ricketts, finding that he would be unable, with his small force, to protect himself from the flank attack and the enemy in his front at the same time, wisely determined to withdraw, and, soon after dark, the division began to fall back ; the NINTH losing five of its members as prisoners. The knapsacks were recovered at Haymarket, and the march continued until eleven o'clock, when Gainesville was reached and the tired men lay down to rest. Thompson's battery was posted on rising ground, and the guns pointed in the direction from which Longstreet was expected to appear.
The evening of the 28th, about six o'clock, King's division was marching along the Warrenton Pike towards Centreville, ignorant of the fact that Jackson's corps was posted on his left flank, and behind the old railroad grade, when, about mid- way between Gainesville and Groveton, King was attacked by Jackson, and a sharp engagement followed ; King's troops, crossing to the north side of the Pike, drove the enemy for a short distance, and occupied that ground until one o'clock on the morning of 29th, when they fell back towards Manassas Junction. Pope thought Jackson was retreating, and that King's battle was an attempt to bar his retreat.
The morning of the 29th was clear. Ricketts' division marched at daylight. Later in the day it became quite sultry ;
1862
171
THE THUNDER OF BATTLE HEARD.
but with little rest the column pressed on until Bristoe Station was reached, where the wagon train was found and a couple of hours' rest was enjoyed ; after which the troops moved in the direction of Manassas Junction. Late in the afternoon the column halted. Heavy firing had been heard since noon, in the direction of Groveton, and it still continued. At dark the column headed in the direction of Groveton, near which, on the Sudley Springs road north of Warrenton Pike, the troops halted at about ten o'clock. Ricketts' division was posted in the rear of King's (now commanded by Hatch), who had fought the enemy and driven them slightly back. No fires were allowed, the men going into bivouac behind their stack of arms.
During the day a severe battle had been fought by a por- tion of Pope's army with Jackson's command and part of Longstreet's, the advance of whose column reached Groveton about noon, and formed on the right of Jackson. The whole day Pope labored under the impression that the Confederates were retreating, and that Jackson was merely holding the Union army in check until he could successfully form a junc- tion with Longstreet. At the close of the engagement the advantage seemed to rest with the Union forces, and Pope, during the night, prepared his army for the pursuit on the fol- lowing morning.
Longstreet's march to reach Jackson had been a severe one, and the experience of the Confederates was similar to that of the Union army. "The march from the Gap was inde- scribably severe, the weather being exceedingly warm, and water not obtainable except in ditches or stagnant pools on the side of the road ; these were eagerly drained by the half- famished men, with their heat and green, slimy skim, regardless of the animated nature which at other times would have been so revolting to them. * * Corn-fields and gardens in the vicinity of Groveton suffered terribly, no rations having been issued to us for several days previous ; these were our only resources against the ravages of hunger, and the fields around were dotted with half-starved Confederates, who were plucking
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THE NINTH NEW YORK.
August
the daily rations of corn to be distributed, three ears to the man." (History of Seventeenth Virginia, C. S. A.)
On the morning of the 30th, Pope telegraphed Halleck that the battle of Groveton, as he called the engagement of the previous day, was a complete success ; the enemy had been on the defensive throughout and had given ground. The enemy apparently were moving towards the mountains, and as soon as the corps of General Porter should arrive from Manassas, an immediate forward movement would be made.
The enemy's line extended about north and south from Sudley Springs on the left, to a point a mile south of the War- renton Pike on their right. Longstreet's whole force was in position, and the Confederates were preparing to fight the de- cisive battle of the campaign. General Pope, still possessed with the idea that the enemy were meditating a retreat, which was partly confirmed early in the morning by the withdrawal for a short distance of a portion of their line, issued his orders for the pursuit of the enemy; intrusting to General McDowell the conduct of the advance. At a conference of general offi- cers about eight o'clock. however, General Stevens of the Ninth corps, whose command had been engaged with the enemy the day before, and whose pickets reported the enemy still in force in their front, insisted that the enemy had not retreated; whereupon he was ordered to make a reconnoissance in his front, then about a mile north of Warrenton Pike, and opposite the center of Jackson's line. A skirmish line from the Seventy-ninth Highlanders, of his division, soon developed the enemy's position behind the railroad embankment. Never- theless, at noon, General Pope issued the following order :
SPECIAL ORDER No. -
HEADQUARTERS, NEAR GROVETON,
August 30, 1862, 12 M.
The following forces will be immediately thrown forward in pursuit of the enemy and press him vigorously during the whole day. Major-General McDowell is assigned to the command of the pursuit.
Major-General Porter's corps will push forward on the Warrenton turnpike, fol- lowed by the divisions of Brigadier-Generals King and Reynolds.
173
SECOND BATTLE OF BULL RUN.
1862
The division of Brigadier-General Ricketts will pursue the Haymarket road, fol- lowed by the corps of Major-General Heintzelman ; the necessary cavalry will be assigned to these columns by Major-General McDowell, to whom regular and frequent reports will be made.
The General's Headquarters will be somewhere on the Warrenton turnpike. By command of Major-General POPE.
GEO. D. RUGGLES, Colonel and Chief of Staff.
At this time Heintzelman's two divisions, under Hooker and Kearny, were on the right, supported by Ricketts' divi- sion ; two divisions of Porter's corps occupied the center, sup- ported by King's division, under General Hatch ; while Rey- nolds, with the Pennsylvania Reserves, temporarily attached to the Third corps, occupied the left, south of the Warrenton Pike, his left resting near the Henry house. Sigel's corps, and the divisions of Reno and Stevens of the Ninth corps, were held in reserve.
About four o'clock in the afternoon the action began by the advance of Porter's corps, which struck against the left center of Jackson's line. Hatch's division followed, but both commands were repulsed after a portion had crossed the rail- road embankment, and engaged in an almost hand-to-hand en- counter with Jackson's veterans. As the Union troops swept up towards the railroad embankment, they were met by a withering fire of musketry, and were also assailed by volleys of stones thrown by those of the enemy whose ammunition was exhausted. On the extreme right Hooker's and Kear- ny's divisions, supported by Ricketts', succeeded in partially turning the left flank of the enemy, but they were finally re- pulsed. It was about noon when Hartsuff's brigade under Stiles, moved to the right, and, although not actively engaged, performed all the duties .required of it. Its time for action came later in the day.
While these movements were going on north of the Pike, Reynolds had been called on to furnish reinforcements to that part of the Union line, and his flank was greatly weakened in consequence. Longstreet now advanced his troops for the purpose of turning Pope's left flank. At the moment when
FIELD of SECOND BULL RUN AUG.29-30-1862 POSITION ON 30TH
1
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.
A. P. HILL
KEARNY
New Market
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JACKSON'S
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HEADQUARTERS
3
and
Mathews
HENO'S
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19.9.
SPOPE'S
G
STARKE
LAWTON
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HEADQUARTERS
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PORTER
Stone House
FEATHERSTONE
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Pike
Warrenton
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:
PRYOR
REYNOLDS
SIGEL
STILES .BRI
Sudley
2 .
BALD HILL
Chinn
nw
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D.R.JONES
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GROVETON
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RICKETTS 2
2
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TOWER NO:
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KEMPER
Lewis Lane
..... ...... ...
-BUTTERFIELD
AND ( KING) HATCH
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CUTI
PORTEH'S ADVANCE
PRYOR
Branch
MC. LEAN
Young's
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Sudley
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174
THE NINTH NEW YORK.
August
Jackson's line had been pierced, that officer sent to General Lee for help; Longstreet was ordered to furnish it, but just then he had established a position from which his guns could enfilade the left of the Union line, and, instead of sending the men asked for, he opened such a fire upon the unprotected flank of Pope's line that it prevented any further advance against Jackson.
McDowell now realized that, instead of leading an advance against a retreating enemy, he must reverse the order of the day, and act purely on the defensive, for Longstreet's move- ments indicated that he meant to obtain possession of the Warrenton Pike, and thus completely double up the left, and cut off the Union line of retreat by way of the Stone Bridge. Troops were now hurried from the right, among them Hart- suff's and Tower's brigades, accompanied by Hall's and Lep- pien's Maine batteries and a brigade of Reno's division, and sent south of the Pike ; a portion of Sigel's troops, too, were hurried to the threatened point. All interest was now cen- tered on the left of the line, and for an hour or more com- parative quiet reigned on the right.
While Longstreet's movements had been somewhat masked by the woods through which he passed, Reynolds had detected it, but had not force enough to oppose the advance; his re- port of the situation, however, soon brought the troops men- tioned, and others, to that portion of the field. Reynolds' Third brigade had not yet left its position to march to the north of the turnpike, where it had been ordered, when, about five o'clock, Longstreet made a spirited advance with Hood's division, supported by the balance of his corps. Longstreet, in his report, says : "The attacking columns moved steadily forward, driving the enemy from his different positions as rap- idly as he took them. My batteries were thrown forward from point to point following the movements of the general line."
The Union troops, in order to stem the tide of Long- street's movement, had occupied Bald Hill Ridge, and the Henry Hill in its rear. There were scattered detachments of troops between and about those two points, but no continuous
175
DEFENSE OF BALD HILL.
1862
line. Tower's command, his own and the brigade of Hart- suff, and Schenck's division of Sigel's corps, with other troops were sent to Bald Hill, and here occurred some of the most obstinate fighting of the day. The Union troops were forced back, however, the last position maintained on the field being the Henry. Hill, and which was successfully defended until long after darkness had given the rest of the army time to fall back across Bull Run.
We now turn to the fortunes of the NINTH during the day : The regiment left its bivouac shortly after noon, and as the re- serve troops were being constantly moved from one part of the field to another, the position was frequently changed. During the attack by Porter's and Hatch's troops, large numbers of wounded men and many stragglers passed to the rear. The wounded, generally, were cheerful under their afflictions, and constantly urged those troops passing to the front to "pitch in and give 'em hell." Rarely was a word spoken by any of them that would tend to discourage the supports.
About three o'clock in the afternoon the regiment moved into a piece of woods to the rear of the right flank of the army, where the men were ordered to leave their knapsacks-and that was the last the owners' ever saw of them. Muskets were then loaded and the men expected to enter the "smoke of battle" at that point, but instead a hurried march was made down the Sudley Road, across the Warrenton Pike, to a position in rear of Bald Hill. Upon halting, the men began to look round for wood and water ; they had had nothing to eat since morning, except a dry cracker or two, and they wanted some coffee. Before fires could be kindled, however, the command " fall in" was given, and the column hurridly marched to the edge of the woods upon Bald Hill. When line of battle was formed the NINTH was on the left of the brigade, and at this time the extreme left of the line of battle. The men stood within the woods, three or four yards from the cleared field, for some ten or fifteen minutes, before anything appeared in their front ; then a line of men was seen advancing, but whether friends or foes could not be determined. The flag they carried was not
-
176
THE NINTH NEW YORK.
August
recognized. Soon, however, the line was near enough to dis- tinguish the gray uniforms and slouched hats of the enemy. They were permitted to approach within fifty yards before the order to fire was given, and then such a well-directed volley was poured into their ranks that the line halted. Several more deliberate volleys were fired, the enemy returning the fire with spirit, but not attempting to advance further.
It was soon discovered that other bodies of troops were working round to the left and rear of the brigade, while shot and shell were being poured into the woods from batteries in front, and in order to prevent being turned on the left by the greatly superior numbers of the enemy at that point, orders were given to fall back. The movement was quietly and suc- cessfully executed. When the Sudley Road was reached the Twelfth and Fourteenth regulars were found, drawn up in line, and the NINTH, with the rest of the brigade, again faced to the front, and from behind a fence poured several volleys into the ranks of the advancing enemy, who replied with vigor, but did not attempt to charge. But Longstreet's right was gradually enveloping the left of the Union line, and soon both musketry and artillery fire enfiladed this position and necessitated another movement to the rear. A position on the Henry Hill was maintained until after dark, repeated assaults on that point being repulsed by our brave troops. At nine o'clock the force holding the hill began an orderly retreat, crossing Young's Branch and marching, by way of the Stone Bridge, to- wards Centreville, at which place the NINTHI arrived about midnight. After roll-call the men dropped down behind their stacks of muskets, too much exhausted to think of either food or drink.
During the excitement of the battle the men thought little of the terrible losses sustained by the brigade. In the thick of the fight General Tower was severely wounded and obliged to leave the field ; Colonel Webster, of the Twelfth Massachu- setts, had been mortally wounded. Major Rutherford and Lieutenant Isaac C. Huntington, of the NINTHI, were both wounded. The regiment lost in killed twelve, twenty-one
.
177
McDOWELL'S REPORT.
1862
wounded and forty-three prisoners. The killed were: Com- pany A, Alfred Jones, Alexander Mercer, Joseph R. Mitchell, Elias A. Stone and Edward Wheelock ; Company D, William F. Butler and Robert D. Garrison ; Company E, August O. Beauchè : Company F, Joseph H. Blakeney ; Company G, Thomas Kiley and Edward A. Le Barnes ; Company I, Robert L. Riker." The brigade lost six hundred and fifty-seven, of whom two hundred and sixty-five were prisoners.
In the defense of Bald Hill, too, Colonel Koltes, command- ing a brigade of Schenck's division of Sigel's corps, was killed, while General Schenck was severely wounded. A Texas bri- gade of Longstreet's command is reported to have lost nine hundred and fifty-eight in killed, wounded and missing in the assault.
General McDowell, in his report, says: The attack on the Bald Hill Ridge line had been too severe for the troops to hold it long under the hot fire the enemy main- tained upon it. To fight and retreat, and retreat and fight, is a severe test of soldier- ship, and it is an abuse of words to say the men were either demoralized or dis- organized, as has been said. It was a defeat but not a rout ; though we lost the posi- tion, it had been held long enough to aid in protecting the retreat of our men on the right, who, as they came in, either formed behind, or in rear of the line on the north of the Warrenton turnpike. The loss reflects no discredit on those who were engaged there, they only yielded to the overwhelming force of the whole right wing of the enemy's army,
In another report, he further says: The campaign had been short and severe. Seldom had an army been asked to undergo more than the men performed. With scarcely a half day's intermission the corps (3d) was either making forced marches, many times through the night, without food, or were engaged in battle. We had to sepa- rate from our supplies, and generals as well as privates had no food, or only such as could be picked up in the orchards or corn fields along the road. In all this the patience and endurance and general good conduct of the men were admirable.
The Confederates looked upon Pope's " Address " to his army in the same spirit as did many of the Union Soldiers. Colonel Owen, in " The Washington Artillery of New Orleans," says of the battle : "Pope has found 'lines of retreat' and has not seen the 'backs' of Lee, Longstreet, 'Stonewall ' Jack- son and their men."
Rain began to fall during the night, and when Sunday morning dawned the outlook was dreary enough. But although defeated-in this, the first great battle in which the NINTH
178
THE NINTH NEW YORK.
1
September
had been actively engaged-the men were by no means dis- pirited, but were ready to meet the enemy and give a good account of themselves. The division marched about two miles towards Fairfax Court House, where rations were issued, and where the NINTH remained till the following day. Early Monday morning, September ist, Stonewall Jackson's com- mand, preceded by Stuart's cavalry, having crossed Bull Run at Sudley Springs, on Sunday, were marching on the Little River turnpike by way of Chantilly, in an endeavor to strike the Union army in flank as it moved towards Washington, whither it had been ordered by General Halleck. Stuart's advance reached a point within shelling distance of the Warren- ton Pike, and for a short time caused some confusion among the wagon trains, but he was finally driven back. Meanwhile Stevens' division, and one brigade of Reno's, of the Ninth corps, had been sent to intercept Jackson's infantry, and at about five o'clock, struck his skirmish line just as it had passed the hamlet of Chantilly. Owing to the sickness of Reno, General Stevens took command on the field, and, realizing the importance of checking Jackson and thus preventing his cut- ting into the retreating lines of the Union Army, formed his command of less than three thousand men, for an assault ; then he sent back to the Pike-some two miles distant-for help.
Without waiting for reenforcements, however, Stevens ordered his division to move forward, and when within three - hundred yards of the enemy's line of battle, he gave the com- mand to charge ; such was its force and directness that Jack- son's entire corps was compelled to halt and act on the defen- sive. The enemy was checked, two or three brigades driven back in confusion, but the gallant Stevens, while cheering on his men, and holding aloft the flag of the Seventy-ninth New York (Highlanders) -- six of whose color-bearers had already been shot down-was instantly killed.
General Kearny, with Birney's brigade of his division, now appeared on the field, and assumed command, but the enemy made no further attempt to advance. Birney's brigade was
179
BATTLE OF CHANTILLY.
1862
thrown in on the left of the line, and opened so well-directed a 'fire on the enemy in their front that they retired. While riding in advance of the line, and just as darkness was gather- ing over the woods and rendering objects indistinct, Kearny rode into the enemy's lines and was shot. His body was returned the next day under a flag of truce. The body of General Stevens had been carried off the field and tenderly cared for by the Seventy-ninth, whose Colonel he had been the year before.
Longstreet's troops reached the field just as Jackson's men had been driven back. A severe thunder-storm, accompanied by a heavy rain, had burst upon the vicinity just as the action began, and, darkness closing rapidly, the Confederate army halted for the night, believing that a large part of Pope's army was in its front. During the night most of the Union troops were withdrawn from the field: their mission had been accomplished, but Major-Generals Kearny and Stevens, than whom no better or braver soldiers ever drew sword, were added to the list of general officers who had been killed while leading their troops into action.
The NINTH-with the brigade-had followed in support of Kearny's troops, and was drawn up in line of battle as a reserve in case of need, but was not called into action. Dur- ing the progress of the battle the wounded were carried through the line to the hospital in the rear, and the brigade remained on the field till the next morning, ready to repel any assault on that part of the line. The heavy rain, late in the after- noon, had thoroughly soaked the ground, and the hay and straw found in stacks near by was liberally used to keep the men out of the mud and water as they lay on their arms dur- ing the night.
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THE NINTH NEW YORK.
September
LETTERS:
Arlington, Sept. -- , 1862.
We fought at Manassas on Saturday and Thoroughfare Gap on Thursday. Are on the retreat, but think it's done to mislead the rebels. * * * I did not get a scratch, though I could feel the bullets as they whizzed past. I was second man from the colors, and they were completely riddled. * * We lost all our knapsacks and are in a bad fix ; have no clothes or blankets, but what I fought in. I lost all your pictures. * You ought to see me now, you'd swear I was no relation of yours. I have on Government shoes, full of holes, the remnants of a pair of pants tucked in legs of stockings, an apology for a coat, two very dirty shirts, an old cap, and never another thing have I. Some of the boys are barefooted, others bareheaded. Each man carries 100 rounds of cartridges. *
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