USA > New York > Saratoga County > Our county and its people : a descriptive and biographical record of Saratoga County, New York > Part 25
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then returned home ; May 12, 1841, married Hannah Bosworth of West Hartland, Conn., and in the fall of that year became principal of the Jonesville academy, remaining nearly twenty years. He then removed to Brattleboro, Vt., where he became superintendent of public instruction. In 1863 he removed to Saratoga Springs, where he spent the remainder of his life. There he became president of the board of education and took an active part in the founding of the present public school system of that village. He was actively interested in the building of the M. E. church there. In the first general conference of the M. E. church which admitted lay delegates (in 1872) Prof. Wilson was one of the two lay delegates representing the Troy conference.
1 After an existence of thirty years this society died out in the fall of 1871, when a Methodist Episcopal society was organized, and the church property passed into its hands. Henry T. Tre- vett and John Shanley were the first trustees, and Rev. Julius Stewart the first pastor. This so- ciety, too, finally died out.
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of Ballston Spa secretary. Calvin Wheeler, A. J. Chadsey, Judiah Ells- worth, Increase Hoyt and John A. Corey were made a committee to draft a constitution and by-laws. The first officers of the society, chosen at that meeting, were:
President, Howell Gardiner, Greenfield; first vice-president, Calvin Wheeler, Provi- dence; second vice-president, Jacob Denton, Saratoga Springs; treasurer, Hiram E. Howard, Milton; corresponding secretary, Archibald Smith, Ballston Spa; recording secretary, John A. Corey, Saratoga Springs; executive committee, Isaac Curtis, Stephen Merchant, Ballston; John Low, Henry Ostrom, Charlton; Abijah Peck, jr., Henry Palmer, Clifton Park; David Rogers, Edward Edwards, Corinth; E. M. Day, Amos Hunt, Day; Samuel Batcheller, Ira Beecher, Edinburgh; Jesse H. Mead, Jeremiah Whitlock, Galway; Joseph Daniels, Henry Lincoln, Greenfield; Charles Stewart, Harmon Rockwell, Hadley; N. G. Philo, Stephen R. Smith, Halfmoon ; John Tallmadge, Seneca Hall, Malta; Seth Whalen, George B. Powell, Milton; Thomas S. Mott, G. P. Reynolds, Moreau; Walter Doty, Coles Golden, Northumber- land; William V. Clark, Seymour St. John, Providence; Henry D. Chapman, William Wilcox, Saratoga; P. H. Cowen, John H. Beech, Saratoga Springs; Lewis Smith, Yates Lansing, Stillwater; John Knickerbacker, John Cramer 2d, Waterford; John Morris, Duncan McGregor, Wilton.
For the first two or three years the annual fairs of the society were held at Ballston Spa, when the society located at Saratoga Springs. The grounds and buildings thereon were sold in 1870, and in the fol- lowing year the society leased the grounds known as Glen Mitchell, where the fairs were held for many years. In 1865 the New York State Agricultural society held a fair at Glen Mitchell, the Saratoga County society giving no exhibit that year. In the fall of 1882, largely through the efforts of Col. F. D. Curtis of Charlton, the fair was located permanently at Ballston Spa, where it has since been held annually. The present grounds were purchased in 1890. The presidents of the society have been :
1842, Howell Gardiner; 1843, Elisha Curtis; 1844, Joseph Daniels; 1845, David Rogers; 1846, Henry D. Chapman; 1847, Samuel Cheever; 1848, Samuel Young ; 1849, Jesse H. Mead; 1850, Seth Whalen; 1851, Lewis E. Smith; 1854, William Wil- cox; 1855, Seneca Daniels; 1856, Chauncey Boughton; 1857, Nathaniel Mann; 1858, Oscar Granger; 1859, Isaac Frink; 1860, William Wilcox; 1861, Joseph Baucus; 1862, Sherman Batcheller; 1863, Samuel J. Mott; 1864, Edward Edwards; 1865, Chauncey Boughton; 1866-1867, Isaiah Fuller; 1868, Frank D. Curtis; 1869, De Witt C. Hoyt; 1870, John Titcomb; 1871-1872, John P. Conkling; 1873, William Lape; 1874, Henry C. Holmes; 1875, Joseph B. Enos; 1876, A. B. Baucus; 1877, Charles Leland; 1878-1879, Benjamin F. Judson; 1880-1881, Seymour Gilbert; 1882-1885, Frank D. Curtis; 1886, George West; 1887, William J. Parkinson; 1888, William A. Collamer; 1889-1895, William C. Tallmadge; 1896, George C. Valentine; 1897-1898, Henry C. Dater.
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We have endeavored to trace, in this and preceding chapters, the development of various communities of the county along the various lines of commerce and industry, of education, of religious growth, etc., up to the year 1861, when the country was plunged into the horrors of its terrible Civil war. The hardships wrought by this war, the scarcity of money, the interruption of commerce and the high prices demanded, of necessity, for the various commodities necessary to the operation of manufacturing plants, as well as to actual existence, ren- dered the maintenance of many industries unprofitable, and Saratoga county suffered as did all other sections of the country. Before pro- ceeding with the story of the modern development of the county, we shall endeavor to describe, accurately if not with eloquence, the part which the inhabitants of Saratoga county played in the great, awful drama of war from 1861 to 1865.
CHAPTER XII.
Participation of Saratoga County in the War of the Rebellion-The Seventy- Seventh and Thirtieth Regiments of Infantry and Their Career During the War- Morgan H. Chrysler's Second Veteran Cavalry-The One Hundred and Fifteenth -Other Regiments in which Inhabitants of the County Fought -- Officers of the Seventy-Seventh and Thirtieth, with Promotions, Discharges, Resignations and Deaths-Names of the Men from Saratoga County Who Fought in the War, and the Towns Which Furnished Them.
SEVENTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT.
In recording the history of the participation of the inhabitants of Saratoga county in the great Civil war, or the war of the Rebellion, it is unnecessary to go into the details of that tremendous crisis in our nation's career. All know of the causes leading up to that memorable struggle. After the defeat at the first battle of Bull Run, the North was greatly humiliated, while the South was correspondingly elated. The rebels had established their government, with Richmond as their capital and Jefferson Davis as their president. The first two calls for volunteers had been met promptly by the loyal States. Anticipating a further demand for reinforcements for the army in the field, Hon. James B. McKean of Saratoga Springs, then representing his congress-
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ional district (the Fifteenth, now the Twenty-second) in the House of Representatives, on August 21, 1861, issued a circular letter to his constituents. It was also published in the Daily Saratogian, of Sara- toga Springs, and afterward reprinted in many other papers through- out Saratoga and adjoining counties. The letter read as follows:
FELLOW CITIZENS OF THE FIFTEENTH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT:
'Traitors in arms seek to overthrow our constitution and to seize our capitol. Let us go and help to defend them. Who will despond because we lost the battle of Bull Run? Our fathers lost the battle at Bunker Hill, but it taught them how to gain the victory at Bemus Heights.
Let us learn wisdom from disaster, and send overwhelming numbers into the field. Let farmers, mechanics, merchants, and all classes -- for the liberties of all are at stake-aid in organizing companies.
I will cheerfully assist in procuring the necessary papers. Do not misunderstand me. I am not asking for an office at your hands. If you who have most at stake will go, I will willingly go with you as a private soldier.
Let us organize a Bemus Heights Battalion, and vie with each other in serving our country, thus showing we are inspirited by the holy memories of the Revolution - ary battle fields upon and near which we are living.
Saratoga Springs, Aug, 21, 1861.
JAS. B. MCKEAN.
The effect of this call to arms was electrical. The response was in- stantaneous and general, not only throughout every town in Saratoga county, but from adjoining counties. Recruiting stations were opened in many places. Everywhere enthusiasm abounded. From the office of the adjutant general at Albany orders were issued establishing a branch depot and recruiting station at Saratoga Springs, and directing that all companies being organized for the new regiment should ren- dezvous there preparatory to being mustered into the service of the United States government. The county fair grounds east of the vil- lage were selected as a camping ground and soon put in readiness for the new troops. The place was named Camp Schuyler, in honor of the gallant General Philip Schuyler of Revolutionary fame. So general and so rapid was the response to the call of Mr. Mckean, that by Octo- ber 1 over six hundred men, divided into seven companies, had enlisted and encamped at this rendezvous. These companies elected officers as follows :
Saratoga Springs company .- Captain, Benjamin F. Judson ; first lieutenant, L. M. Wheeler.
Ballston Spa company .- Captain, C. C. Hill; first lieutenant, N. P. Hammond.
Wilton company .- Captain, Winsor B. French ; first lieutenant, John Carr.
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Northumberland company-Captain, Calvin Rice ; first lieutenant, James Terhune. Greenfield company .- Captain, Lewis Wood; first lieutenant, William B. Carpenter. Charlton company .-- Captain, A. F. Beach ; first lieutenant, N. H. Brown. Westport company-Captain, R. W. Arnold; first lieutenant, William Douglas.
After October 1 the following companies entered camp: The Water- ford company, in command of Jesse White; the Stillwater and Half- moon company, in command of John C. Green; the Clifton Park com- pany, in command of J. B. Andrews; the Edinburgh and Providence company, in command of John J. Cameron; the Keeseville company, in command of Wendell Lansing; the Greenwich company, in com- mand of Henry R. Stone, and the Gloversville company, in command of N. S. Babcock.
Several of these little commands not being full organizations, the companies from Waterford, Stillwater, Halfmoon, Clifton Park, Edin- burgh and Providence were soon afterward consolidated into one com- pany, which elected J. B. Andrews captain, Jesse White first lieutenant and John J. Cameron second lieutenant, John C. Green of Mechanic- ville having been compelled to return home on account of ill health. The companies from Keeseville and Greenwich also consolidated, choos- ing Wendell Lansing captain and Jacob F. Haywood, first lieutenant. Gloversville sent a complete company. Soon after going into camp the officers secured quarters at Congress Hall, where they studied mil- itary tactics and received instructions in the manual of arms, sword practice and army regulations, until the regiment was ready to go south. Every day recruits were added to the ranks, and the company organizations were finally completed.
Several changes in officers were made. Winsor B. French, who had entered camp as captain of the Wilton company, holding the rank of fourth captain, resigned at the request of Colonel Mckean and be- came adjutant on the latter's staff, with the rank of first lieutenant. On account of age and ill health Wendell Lansing resigned as captain of the company recruited from Keeseville and Greenwich, and Frank Nor- ton of Greenwich was chosen to succeed him. James Terhune, first lieutenant of the Northumberland company, resigned and was succeeded by George S. Orr. Each company by this time having full ranks, the organization was completed and the captains drew by lot their places in line, as follows:
Company A .- Captain, Read W. Arnold; first lieutenant, William Douglas; sec- ond lieutenant, James H. Farnsworth; all of Westport, Essex county.
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THE SEVENTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT.
Company B .- Captain, Clement C. Hill; first lieutenant, Noble P. Hammond ; second lieutenant, Stephen S. Horton; all of Ballston Spa.
Company C .- Captain, Benjamin F. Judson; first lieutenant, Luther M. Wheeler ; second lieutenant, John Patterson ; all of Saratoga Springs.
Company D .-- Captain, John Carr; adjutant and first lieutenant, Winsor B. French ; second lieutenant, Chester H. Fodow; all of Wilton.
Company E .- Captain, Lewis Wood, Greenfield ; first lieutenant, William B. Car- penter, Providence; second lieutenant, Halsey Bowe, Saratoga.
Company F .- Captain, Judson B. Andrews, Mechanicville; first lieutenant, Jesse White, Waterford; second lieutenant, John J. Cameron, Saratoga.
Company G .- Captain, Calvin Rice, Northumberland; first lieutenant, George S. Orr, Gansevoort; second lieutenant and quartermaster, Lucius E. Shurtleff, Galway. Company H .- Captain, Albert F. Beach, Charlton; first lieutenant, N. Hollister Brown, Charlton; second lieutenant, George D. Storey, Malta.
Company I .- Captain, Franklin Norton, Greenwich; first lieutenant, Jacob F. Haywood, Keeseville; second lieutenant, Martin Lennon, Keeseville.
Company K .- Captain, Nathan S, Babcock; first lieutenant, John W. McGregor ; second lieutenant, Philander A. Cobb; all of Gloversville.
The following field and staff officers were then appointed :
Colonel, James B. McKean, Saratoga Springs; lieutenant colonol, Joseph C. Hen- derson, Albany; major, Selden Hetzel, Albany; surgeon, John L. Perry, M. D., Saratoga Springs; assistant surgeon, George T. Stevens, M. D., Westport; chaplain, David Tully, Ballston Spa; adjutant, Winsor B. French, Wilton; quartermaster, Lucius E. Shurtleff, Galway.
These officers were all duly commissioned by Governor E. D. Mor- gan and, with the enlisted men, on November 23, 1861, mustered into the service of the United States for the whole period of the war. Five days later the regiment, which had been given the number of seventy- seven,1 marched out of camp and started on the journey to Washington. On account of sickness and absence on furloughs a few men in each company were not able to leave with the regiment. First Lieutenant Noble P. Hammond of Company B was left at Camp Schuyler and a few days later left for the front in charge of those whose departure had been delayed by these circumstances.
The Seventy Seventh Regiment proceeded to Albany over the line of the Rensselaer and Saratoga railroad, passing through Ballston Spa,
1 The Seventy-seventh Regiment was also popularly known as "the Bemus Heights battalion," a name which had been given to it while in process of organization by James B. Mckean. The numerical strength of the regiment when fully organized at Camp Schuyler was as follows : Total strength, eight hundred and sixty-four men, divided as follows: Field and staff, eight ; Company A, eighty-seven; Company B, ninety-four; Company C, eighty-one; Company D, eighty-three ; Company E, eighty-three ; Company F, eighty-five; Company G, eighty-eight : Company H, eighty-three ; Company I, eighty-two; Company K, ninety. These figures include the officers, three to each company.
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Mechanicville and Waterford. All along the route of travel the regi- ment received a continued ovation. At Albany the journey was con- tinued to New York by boat down the Hudson river. In the metrop- olis a number of people who formerly resided in Saratoga county banqueted the soldiers, and presented to the regiment a handsome banner and guidons. One side of the banner contained a representa- tion of an engagement in which soldiers of the Revolution, led by Washington, were fighting under the old flag with thirteen stripes and the Union Jack. On the other side was pictured Burgoyne's surrender under the new flag, the Stars and Stripes, which was first unfurled in battle at Bemus Heights.
December 1, 1861, the Seventy-seventh Regiment arrived at the na- tional capital and went into camp at Meridian Hill, about two miles north of the city. Here it remained until February 15, 1862, when it crossed the Potomac and joined the Third Brigade of the Second Divi- sion, at Camp Griffin. The regiment remained a part of this brigade and division until the close of the war. This brigade also included the Thirty-third and Forty-ninth New York and the Seventh Maine Regi- ments, and was in command of General Davidson. The division was in command of General William Farrar Smith, popularly known as " Old Baldy." From here, on March 8, the division proceeded to Manassas. No enemy being found there, it was decided to proceed by way of Fortress Monroe and the Peninsula against Richmond. Moving down the river, the Seventy-seventh debarked at Hampton, a small village west of the fort. On the 26th of the month a reconnaissance in force was ordered,1 but there was no engagement with the enemy until April 4. On that day the Confederates were found entrenched at Lee's Mills, about three miles west of Yorktown, their earthwork extending across the peninsula, about seven miles. In the first skirmish Private Frank Jeffords of Company C was killed, the first death in battle in the Sev- enty-seventh Regiment. The regiment remained in this locality about
1 Dr. George T. Stevens of Westport, who was assistant surgeon on Colonel Mckean's staff, writing at the close of the war of the movements of the regiment, said: "In this advance or re- connaissance of the whole army the qualities of the individual soldiers composing it were brought out in bold relief. During the months we had been in winter quarters many officers and men had established marvelous reputations for bravery and hardihood, merely by constantly herald- ing their own heroism. But from this time these doughty heroes went back. Officers suddenly found cause for resigning, and enlisted men managed to get sent to the rear, and never showed their faces at the front again. On the contrary, some who were really invalids insisted on drag- ging themselves along the column, fearful that an engagement might take place in which they would not participate. A sifting process was thus commenced throughout the whole division, and, to its honor, the poltroons were very soon sifted out; and from that time forth Smith's Division never afforded a comfortable resting place for men of doubtful courage."
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THE SEVENTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT.
a month, and during this time many deaths from fever occurred. May 3 and 4 the enemy retreated to Williamsburgh, whither the Union forces followed them, engaged them in a long and severe battle, and drove them from the field. During this fight, however, the Seventy- seventh was not called into action.
May 15 the army advanced to White House, on the Pamunkey river, where part of it was reorganized, the Second Division becoming a part of the Sixth Corps of the Army of the Potomac. May 23 the regiment reached Mechanicsville, a small village within sight of Richmond. This place was defended by the Seventh and Eighth Georgia Regiments and a battery. The latter opened fire, which was quickly returned. Soon Colonel Mckean was ordered to charge the village with his regiment. As soon as the order was given the men of the Seventy-seventh rushed forward with a yell, charging furiously and noisily down the little hill. The rebel infantry, well nigh paralyzed by the onslaught, fired one volley and fled precipitately, as did the rebel battery.1
Until June 5 our army remained in this vicinity, principally in the captured village. June 5 it was ordered to Golden's Farm, on the south bank of the Chickahominy. Then did the regiment realize that it would not then, at least, participate in the advance upon Richmond. For about three weeks the regiment lay at this point, little of moment occurring until Colonel Mckean, broken down by illness, was obliged to leave the regiment. Other officers and a large number of enlisted men also fell victims to swamp fevers and other great hardships, and the ranks of the Seventy-seventh were greatly depleted.
In the lull that followed the battle of Fair Oaks or Seven Pines, May 31 and June 1, in which McClellan succeeded in driving the Confeder- ates back, though he did not achieve a decisive victory, he formed the design of changing his base of supplies from the White House, on the Pamunkey, to some suitable point on the James river. The movement was one of the utmost hazard, and before it was fairly begun General Robert E. Lee, who on June 3 had succeeded General Joseph E. John- ston as commander-in-chief of the Confederate army, the latter having been severely wounded in the battle of Fair Oaks, on June 25 swooped down on the right wing of the Union army at Oak Grove, and a hard- fought battle ensued without decisive results. On the next day an- other desperate engagement occurred at Mechanicsville, and this time
1 This engagement was a part of the general movement of the Army of the Potomac against the rebel capital.
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the northern forces won the field. The result of this great fight was heralded as a great victory for the Union army, and the joy of the victorious forces knew no bounds. Everybody believed that the cap- ture of Richmond was but a matter of a few hours-that the onward march of the victors would be irresistible.
But the hope was not fulfilled. On the following morning the brave Confederate leader renewed the struggle at Gaines's Mill, winning a victory. On the 28th there was but little fighting. Meantime the Seventy-seventh had been told to prepare quietly to retreat on a moment's notice, preparing the way by destroying all but the necessities and the most valuable effects of the soldiers, and leaving the tents standing.
About three o'clock on the morning of Sunday, June 29, the entire Second Division quietly marched to Savage's Station, where on that day they assisted in the repulse of the rebel forces. All that night they marched toward White Oak Swamp, which was reached at day- break of the 30th. After a brief respite the rebels opened a terrific artillery fire upon the division, throwing it into the utmost confusion. Before its batteries could return the fire with any appreciable effect, the horses were killed and most of the cannon rendered useless. The whole division was thrown into a panic, and at once retreated, led by the Seventy-seventh Regiment. This battle is known as that of Frazier's Farm or Glendale.
On that night the Second Division, with the rest of the army, reached Malvern Hill, just south of the great White Oak Swamp, on the north bank of the James, twelve miles below Richmond. Although this posi- tion was protected by the Federal gunboats in the river, General Lee determined to carry the place by storm. Accordingly, on the morning of July 1 the whole Confederate army rushed forward to the assault. The Sixth Corps held the right of line, and was not actually engaged. All day long the furious struggle for the possession of the high grounds continued. Not until nine o'clock at night did Lee's shattered columns fall back exhausted. For seven days the terrific din of battle had been heard almost without cessation. No such dreadful scenes had ever be- fore been enacted on the American continent!
This practically ended the campaign. The Federal army had lost more than 15,000 men, and the Confederate losses had been still heavier. The capture of Richmond, the great object for which the expedition had been undertaken, seemed further off than ever, and all the moral effect of a great victory remained with the exultant South. July 2, the
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THE SEVENTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT.
day following the battle of Malvern Hill, General Mcclellan retired with his army to Harrison's Landing, a few miles down the river.
The Seventy-seventh Regiment had suffered terribly from battle and the ravages of disease. It went to the Peninsula with nearly a thou - sand men, but by the middle of June but a quarter of that number were in condition for active service. Many had been killed in battle, others had died of fever, and others lay desperately ill or wounded. Yet the losses in battle had been the least considerable, though the regiment had always been in close proximity to the enemy. Colonel McKean, stricken with typhoid fever, had been removed to Washington and thence to his home at Saratoga Springs, to the profound regret of himself and the officers and men of his regiment.1 Soon after a de- plorable accident occurred. Second Lieutenant Halsey Bowe of Com- pany D, one of the most popular young men in the regiment, had returned to the camp July 18, after an absence of several weeks, fully restored to health. The following day, while in a tent conversing with several other officers, he was fatally wounded by an accidental shot from a pistol. He died in Philadelphia August 16.
Besides the forced retirement of Colonel Mckean, several other changes occurred among the officers of the regiment about this time. Among them Lieut .- Col. Joseph C. Henderson resigned June 19, and Quatermaster Lucius Shurtleff resigned June 21. Maj. Selden Hetzel had been dismissed by order of the secretary of war, May 15. Surgeon John L. Perry had also resigned, February 1. Chaplain David Tully resigned July 8.2 Winsor B. French of Wilton, who had entered the regiment as captain of the Wilton company, but who, at the solicitation of Colonel McKean, had resigned to become adjutant on his staff, with the rank of lieutenant, was promoted to major June 1 and to lieutenant- colonel July 18.
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