USA > New York > The Ninth regiment, New York volunteers (Hawkins' zouaves); being a history of the regiment and veteran association from 1860 to 1900 > Part 29
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Ist Corps, 14,856
2d Corps,
18,803
5th Corps, 12,930
6th Corps,
12,300
9th Corps,
13,819
12th Corps,
IO,J 26
Cavalry Division, 4,320
Total, 87,154
"There is a great diversity in the figures of the enemy concerning the actual number of troops they had on this field; some place their number as high as 97,000, others as low as 70,000 troops. The best Confederate writers, however, declare they had about 75,000 men, making a total of 162,000 in the combined armies. The distance from the right to the left of each wing of the army was about four miles as the bird flies, but because of the irreg- ularity of the ground the actual distance was greater.
"The right wing of the Union Army was near Keedysville, General Mcclellan's head- quarters being about a mile south of that place.
*Although only 8, 500 men of this corps were actually engaged.
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The extreme left wing, under command of Gen. A. E. Burnside, was south of what history designates as Burnside's Bridge. General Lee had his headquarters near Sharpsburgh, very near where we are now assembled. Here the two armies met, and General Longstreet sums up the result of this battle when he says: 'At Antietam was split the keystone of the arch on which the Confederate cause rested.'
"Our interests at this hour are associated with the 9th Army Corps, whose dead lie buried in seven States of the South, and whose banners are inscribed with battle after battle, from Roanoke Island to the Fall of Peters- burgh. It was commanded most of the time by the chivalrous Christian gentleman and de- voted soldier, Gen. Ambrose E. Burnside. At Antietam, however, General Cox commanded the 9th Corps, Burnside being in command of the left wing of the army, General Rodman commanded our division, and Colonel Fair- child the brigade that occupied this particular part of the battlefield thirty-four years ago.
"The objective point of the engagement at this part of the field was to drive the enemy from their guns, capture their position, and cause them to retreat across the Potomac; this was the object, and Hawkins' Zouaves were ordered to lead in the charge south of the
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ORATION OF REV. CLARK WRIGHT.
bridge, expecting the troops of the left wing - of the Union Army would be ready to support them in the desperate undertaking. But, sup- ported or not, their duty was to advance, and forward they went.
"Up to this time this continent had not seen a battle like this about to take place, which Horace Greeley characterizes (2d Vol., page 211) as the 'bloodiest day America ever saw.'
"Of the one thousand eight hundred and eighty-two general engagements, battles, or affairs in which at least one regiment was engaged, Colonel Fox states in his book of regimental losses that, while Gettysburg was the greatest, Antietam was the bloodiest, and tells us more men were killed on that one day than any other one day of the war.
"That September morning the sun looked down upon the flower of the best manhood this country had produced, young men from north and south in the bloom of health and strength. The choicest and best material were in both armies-volunteers in the highest sense, be- cause up to this time enlistments were vol- untary, and drafts, force or financial induce- ments to obtain men were comparatively un- known.
"Our comrades of other regiments who per- formed valorous deeds on this field will not
520 NINTH REGIMENT, NEW YORK VOLUNTEERS.
charge us with discourtesy or neglect of their faithful efforts if we turn to the consideration of the work performed and triumph achieved by the regiment whose monument we here ded- icate, the Ninth New York, Hawkins' Zouaves of Hawkins' Brigade (in temporary command of Colonel Fairchild) Rodman's Division, 9th Army Corps.
" Before Fort Sumter had been fired upon the nucleus of this regiment, composed of gentlemen living in the city of New York, had formed an organization, and immediately upon the publication of Abraham Lincoln's first proclamation calling for 75,000 troops in de- fense of the country, Col. Rush C. Hawkins tendered to the Government a regiment that became in after years conspicuous and hon- orably known as 'Hawkins' Zouaves.'
"I will not recount the details of the or- ganization of the regiment, the presentation of colors on the Fifth Avenue by Dr. Gard- ner Spring, of the Presbyterian Church, the departure for the seat of war, the days spent in camp at Newport News and Fortress Monroe, nor relate the story of the battles of Big Bethel, Hatteras, the bayonet charge of Roanoke Island, a similar one at Camden, North Car- olina, nor the story of Plymouth, Winton, Fredericksburgh and Suffolk, and other engage-
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ments through which we passed, but turn - our attention directly to the scenes preceding the battle of Antietam, and the work performed on this field September 17th, 1862. To do this, let us go back a few days before that battle. On the 7th of September, Col. Rush C. Hawkins, to whom we all owe a debt of gratitude, the beloved commander of the reg- iment, transferred the command to the heroic Lieut .- Col. E. A. Kimball, and in obedience to imperative duty, regretfully took his temporary departure. The regiment encamped that night at Meridian Hill, remaining there until three o'clock on the morning of the 9th, when, after a march of twelve miles, it rested near Brook- ville. Starting again, it arrived near Layton- ville at ten o'clock the same night. Next day it was again on the march, passing Damas- cus and Ridgeville, and camping south of the latter place; and, although it rained hard all night the tired men lay down on the ground and slept soundly. On the 12th it passed the town of New Market, meeting only the slight resistance offered by a few shots from the enemies' guns near the Monocacy Ridge. Gen- eral Rodman's division ascended the Ridge and came near the city of Frederick, where they remained all night. The 18th was occu- pied in supporting Rushes' Lancers, who were
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pressing the videttes and rear guard of the enemy. Reaching Jeffersonville, where a cor- dial welcome was accorded the regiment by the inhabitants, it returned the same night to Frederick, which proved a night of uproar and excitement caused by a fire in the town. At three o'clock the next morning up again, like a hound after the prey, arrived at Mid- dletown at ten o'clock the same. morning, where, after eating the little that remained of the rations, pushed on in the direction of the battle of South Mountain, fording a small stream at the foot of South Mountain, and up the precipitous sides of the stony slope, reaching the battlefield of South Mountain about five o'clock, where the regiment was placed to support a battery on the left of the line. After dark the regiment was ordered on picket duty, guarding the extreme left of the army. An incessant firing was kept up be- tween General Reno's command and the enemy. It was here our old friend, whose acquaintance the regiment first formed at Roanoke Island, met his death. An excellent soldier, a devoted patriot, a man of sterling character and noble qualities-the regiment realized we all lost a personal friend in the death of Maj .- Gen. Jesse L. Reno.
" The brunt of the battle of South Mountain
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ORATION OF REV. CLARK WRIGHT.
was fought by the 2nd and 9th Corps, and con- tinued until nine o'clock, when the firing ceased and the quietness was unbroken. Awakening next morning the regiment found there was no breakfast, as the supply train had gone in the wrong direction. After foraging, some green corn was secured in the adjacent fields. Food or no food the boys were in hot pursuit of the enemy, and the hungry regiment pressed forward, crossing Little Antietam Creek near Keedysville, passing Locust Springs, coming to the foot of Red Hill, where, weary and sup- perless, all lay down to rest. Next morning the supply train had not yet arrived, and the regiment was shelled by the enemy just at a time when hard-tack was needed more than hard shells. During the day, however, pro- visions were obtained, and the regiment was directed by General Rodman to take position on the extreme left of the Army of the Poto- mac. A cornfield close to the enemy was that night the scene of the bivouac. Company C was ordered on picket, the balance of the regi- ment getting such rest as circumstances per- mitted before the terrible, eventful scenes of the morrow ; for, as the sequel proved, this was the last camp ground, the last earthly comrade- ship, the last night many of these heroic souls who had marched, toiled, suffered and fought
324 NINTH REGIMENT, NEW YORK VOLUNTEERS.
with us, were to have, e're they yielded their life in defense of Liberty, Union and Truth.
"Let us briefly glance back at the night scene of September 16th, 1862 : Near Antietam creek, amid dense darkness where, because of the immediate proximity of the enemy, absolute silence was a necessity; the quietness inter- rupted only by the bubbling Antietam Creek, that flowed on its way then as now, the other regiments of our brigade, the 89th and 103d New York, also lay quietly at rest. On the opposite banks the enemy were industriously engaged placing. batteries in position. No glimmer of moonlight nor twinkling stars to cheer the eye of those who, lying in the mud of that cornfield, thought of home, mother, and loved ones e're they closed their eyes in sleep, while the sky was veiled by clouds as the Angel of Death was spreading her wings over the camp e're she should take one and another of that quiet host to herself on the morrow.
"Could the mothers of New York have vis- ited this field that night, knowing what the morrow would bring, the heads of the soldiers would not have lain on the ground; they would have taken their boys upon their breasts and pillowed them upon mother's heart; and though we know our mothers cherished us better than their own heart's blood, they would
325
ORATION OF REV. CLARK WRIGHT.
have told each to be faithful in the performance of duty; for our mothers of New York gave their boys to their country and her God, with a realizing sense of the desolateness of heart and loneliness of home that was to follow their great sacrifice in their pilgrimage through life. "God bless the mothers of our sacred dead who gave their boys to die in defense of our country !
"We cannot bring their sons back to life, but we are here to affectionately honor their men- ory and perpetuate their record, while we cherish in loving remembrance the parents who laid their choicest treasures upon the altar of their country.
"With the first gray tint of morning our regiment was awakened by the shells from a six-gun battery on the opposite side of the creek. The shells were falling fast, and here Louis Fuco, of Company F, picked up a twelve- pound fuse shell, that fell under Colonel Kim- ball's horse, and threw it down the embank- ment where it exploded. A change of position
was ordered further to the left, and later our own aggressive battery in charge of our boys of Company K did excellent service, and ultimately succeeded in silencing the early morning disturbers of the peace. Throughout the entire day Company K did efficient ser-
256 NINTH REGIMENT, NEW YORK VOLUNTEERS.
vice and magnificent work wherever they were placed with the battery of the regiment.
"On the extreme right of the Confederate Army, facing our extreme left, General Long- street had concentrated several batteries of artillery, and here, near the cemetery and to the right and left of Sharpsburgh, artillery was placed, whose range extended down the sur- rounding slopes toward Antietam Creek.
" The official record of the War Department of Union and Confederate Armies (Series I, Vol. 19) says : 'It is very evident the critical hour with the Confederate right wing was about 4 o'clock P.M., on the 17th,' which was the time of the final charge.
" General S. D. Lee, Commander-in-Chief of Artillery of Longstreet's Division, says (page 846 of above column) : ‘He had centered his artillery at Sharpsburgh village, and the im- mediate vicinity' and names the following bat- teries present at that point: 'Miller's, Parkes', Moody's, Jordan's, Richardson's, Norman's, Rhett's, Carter's, Squire's, McIntosh's, and Eu- bank's batteries.' These are referred to by General Toombs also, who commanded in- fantry before Sharpsburgh, and others, as doing effective service for the Confederates between 3 and 4 P.M. on the 17th. According to the Confederate reports, the smallest number of
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ORATION OF REV. CLARK WRIGHT.
guns any of these batteries contained was four, most of them had six guns. Supporting this artillery were troops from Georgia, Virginia, North and South Carolina. It would appear as though General R. E. Lee, realizing the critical situation of this part of the battlefield, fixed his headquarters at the village of Sharps- burgh, where this particular locality would be under his immediate supervision. The battle raged during the morning all along the line, but before the enemy could be whipped and made to retreat across the Potomac, this posi- tion must be captured and the enemy driven from their guns.
"General Burnside directed General Rod- man, Commander 3rd Division, 9th Army Corps, to drive the enemy from their position on the west side of Antietam Creek; and our brigade composed of the 89th, 103d, and 9th regiments, all troops of New York, were or- dered to advance upon the enemy. Major Jardine, of our regiment, had been placed tem- porarily in command of the 89th New York, and with the 103d, did valiant service, but be- cause of the rough and uneven nature of the ground, or other reasons, these regiments did not keep alignment with Hawkins' Zouaves in the final charge that drove the enemy from their guns, so that the last bloody charge at
328 NINTH REGIMENT, NEW YORK VOLUNTEERS.
. the stone wall was was made practically alone by the Ninth Regiment. Sometime after two P.M., the regiment forded Antietam Creek, a short distance below the Burnside Bridge, re- ceiving the fire from the enemy on the oppo- site side.
"Sergeant Johnson of our regiment, whose two brothers were killed in this battle, says : ' We were ordered to form line and advance. The hill that stood in our front was the one from which the rebels opened on us in the morning. As we advanced the enemy retreated to a hill beyond. We lay for about half an hour on this hill, all the while receiving the rebel fire.'
"Lieut. M. J. Graham, while gallantly lead- ing his company, lost his leg in this battle. He writes: 'The practice of the rebel artillery- men was wonderful in its accuracy. They dropped shot and shell into our lines repeat- edly. They kept the air filled with missils of of every variety, from schrapnel to railroad iron. The schrapnel and cannister were very much in evidence. I saw one of our men in the hospital afterward - Jas. H. Brainard, of Company D, who had nine wounds in his right arm. I watched solid shot and round shot strike the ground with what sounded like an innocent thud, and bounding over battery and
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park, fly through the tree tops, cutting them off so suddenly it seemed to me they lingered undecided which way to fall. I was lying on my back, watching the shells explode overhead, and speculating how long I could hold up my finger before it would be shot off (for the air seemed full of bullets) when the order was given to advance.' Concerning the charge Lieutenant Graham says:
"' I could see the line of the regiment short- ening as we advanced. We could hear the crash of missiles through the ranks, and, strange as it may seem, the sound brought like a flash to my mind a saying of Lannes' when describ- ing the battle of Austerlitz: " I could hear the bones crash in my division like glass in a hail- storm."'
"This is the testimony and recollection of two of our faithful comrades of the scenes of that eventful day.
"Let us return to our narrative.
"All day long death was reaping a terrible harvest amid these hills and dales, thirty-four years ago. The shells from the enemy's guns, on the early morning of the 17th of September, resulted in the loss of twelve men of the regi- ment, wounded, and before these guns ceased their immediate action upon the regiment, heavy cannonading and long deep rolls of
530 NINTH REGIMENT, NEW YORK VOLUNTEERS.
musketry could be heard all along the line to the right of where our regiment was stationed. showing that the battle was raging with fierce- ness and intensity.
" The key to the situation on the left imme- diately in our front was what was known as 'The Burnside Bridge,' which crossed the Antic- tam. Here the enemy had planted his guns and disposed his regiments to make a determined stand, and it was not until one o'clock in the afternoon that our old friends of the 51st New York, who had fought with us 'at Roanoke Island, assisted by the 51st Pennsylvania, gallantly charged and carried the bridge at the point of the bayonet. Shortly afterward our regiment, as already indicated, was ordered to ford the creek below the bridge and, forming in line on the bluff opposite, drive the enemy from their places of security behind the stone walls and onward toward Sharpsburgh. The crossing was disputed. As our regiment ad- vanced into the water several inen went down before reaching the opposite shore. Between three and four o'clock the enemy retired as the regiment advanced by the right flank along the bluff of the creek for about half a mile to the brow of a hill. At this point our regiment was within about eight hundred yards of the enemy's main body of artillery and infantry.
1
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Up to this time the loss was meager compared with what was about to take place. The steep assent, rough nature of the ground, promptness in the execution of orders, caused the men to be fatigued and out of breath. On arriving at this point the regiment halted to recover breath before making the next charge.
" Here was where the rebel batteries opened a most scathing fire of shot and shell, and although men were falling upon the right hand and left the regiment was as passive and calm as at an evening parade; each soldier seemed to say : 'Come one, come all; these rocks shall fly from their base as soon as I.'
" After a brief time the order came to advance, which was quickly obeyed, moving in line of battle dressing on the colors with as much coolness and accuracy as though upon drill ground. Proceeding about two hundred yards the command 'Double quick, charge!' was given. Flocton, of Company F, with a blast from his bugle that could be heard in Sharps- burgh, echoed the command over the hills, when with a loud huzzah and the cry of 'Zoo! Zoo! Zoo!' peculiar to our regiment, forward went Hawkins' Zouaves into the fiercest fire that could be rained upon a devoted regiment. Thousands of the enemy's troops, consisting of infantry and several batteries of artillery, were
332 NINTH REGIMENT, NEW YORK VOLUNTEERS.
firing upon the regiment with terrible effect, and looking back upon that scene it appears wonderfully miraculous that one soldier es- caped to tell the tale. Here the gallant Cooper fell; one shell killed eight men ; a round shot took off Conway's head; Bussam was cut in twain by a shell; the men fell on top of one another, while bullets, shell, grape-shot and cannister were poured into this devoted band like hail, producing a scene of carnage dreadful to behold. Not a man wavered or faltered ; even the wounded as they fell cheered the regiment onward. One soldier with the whole of his jaw and the lower part of his face shot away, unable to speak, took his fez and waved it above his head, mutely signaling the words he was unable to utter to his comrades, ' Forward.'
"Sergeant Salisbury, with a bullet hole through his breast, from which the blood was spurting, about to fall, encouraged the mem- bers of his company with the words: 'Never mind me, boys, I've only got a little breast-pin -Forward !' The brave impetuous hero of Chapultepec, Lieutenant-Colonel Kimball and Acting-Adjutant Horner, leading the way, on- ward they went; Barnett, Harrison, Childs. Leahey, all were wounded; Graham, Herbert, Burdett, Pannis, Dusenbury, one after the
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ORATION OF REV. CLARK WRIGHT.
other were struck by the enemy's fire ; Searing, Forbes, Dews, Geayer, Watson, Whitney, Sites, Keating, Smith, Russer, Groser, Hol- land, were wounded or killed amid this with- ering fire. Curie, Van Cott, Farrel, Stephens, Lawrence, Judge, Adair, with many others, fell faithfully discharging their duty; and although the line had been broken and the company diminished by the fire of the enemy, these heroic men, worthy sons of the best blood from the City of New York, our comrades, closed up the ranks, and rallied around these same colors, keeping the old flag that they swore to defend, bravely floating to the breeze as they charged down to the gates of death, up the mouth of hell.
" Dear old flag! Companion of many a hotly contested battle; we bring you to-day to the scene of one of your greatest struggles and grandest triumphs. Your tattered rags and mangled staff speak in more eloquent words than human tongue can utter, for you tell us of the encouragement your presence afforded, when tired and thirsty we toiled on the path of duty.
"O! old starry flag, tattered and mangled, have you power to hear? Then listen to-day. The arm that fought for you, the hand that upheld you, the heart that beat for you, the one
534 NINTH REGIMENT, NEW YORK VOLUNTEERS.
that loved you, is dead, buried in the grave, and you come again to Antietam battlefield to manifest affectionate regard for the heroes who lie buried on this battlefield. They loved you, old flag, with a love exceeding that of woman! Weep on, old flag, weep on! The ear of these slumbering heroes will not hear your sob, their eyes do not see your sorrow, mark the tatters of your folds, nor the feeble- ness of old age that has come upon you, dear old flag! Their soul is undisturbed; the chaplet of victory is won; the battle is over ; the warfare is ended ; Jesus Christ, the World's Redeemer, has bent over their clayey ten- ement, and whispered in accents of peace, 'Sleep on now and take your rest.'
" Your faded colors tell us who survive of Bethel, of Hatteras, of Roanoke, Winton, South Mills, Fredericksburgh, Suffolk, and other bat- tles through which you passed. You bring back the faces of those who marched by our side, whom you saw as they fell wounded, bruised, mangled; you heard their dying cry and your stars were the last object their gaze rested upon ere their souls took their flight. But, it may be, the spirits of our dead comrades who fell here in 1862 are with us again to-day at this reunion, and look with joy on these old flags they gave their life
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to defend. Comrades from the spirit world, with all our soul we greet you! Comrades of our boyhood (now immortal), all hail! We welcome you, for we know none have more in- terest or right here than you !
"You remember, time after time, the one who was bearing the flag fell wounded or dead. Myers was the first to go, and then Hankinson, then Van Cott and Adair; then another and another; and hardly had John Fink, of Com- pany F, grasped it, when he fell stricken down in his tracks. Recovering strength, he crawled from under four men who had fallen by the same fire. This old flag was dyed in blood that day. The color-guard died faithfully per- forming their duty. The white stripes turned red and the blood flowed from those who thought more of this starry emblem than of life. One bullet pierced the staff and then buried itself in the forearm of Patterson, but grasping the colors more firmly, he cried, ' Forward !' when another bullet pierced his left eye and he fell with his face to the foe. All honor to the color-guard and the men who sus- tained them upon the right and left in keeping the flag waving. There was no mistake con- cerning these men. Americans were on guard. That morning the Colonel had called Captain Libaire to him, and both knowing they were to
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pass through a fearful ordeal, the Colonel said : ' I will commit this flag to your keeping,' and the magnificent, heroic Libaire replied, 'I will bring it back in safety, or you will never see my face in this world again.' And now the issue was upon Libaire, the enemy was directly in front, their guns and musketry were cutting swaths in the regiment; eight times had the colors fallen to the ground, the eight different men-one after the other-had picked it up, each carrying it but a few steps and then falling wounded or dead, and the flag falling on top of them. It seemed instant death to carry the old flag that day; but the thought of duty was greater than the thought of
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