USA > New York > Yates County > The military history of Yates County, N.Y. : comprising a record of the services rendered by citizens of this county in the army and navy, from the foundation of the government to the present time > Part 10
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14
The One Hundred and Seventy-ninth, having been organ- ized, was sent into the field by companies from the place of rendezvous at Elmira. Companies A, B, and C went on in April, 1864, and arrived in Baltimore on the 29th of that month. Companies A and C proceeded via New York City, and Company B by the Northern Central Railroad, the three companies meeting in Baltimore. From there they went to Washington and encamped on Arlington Heights, opposite the city. They were here joined about the 1st of May by Companies D and E. Lieutenant-Colonel Franklin B. Doty, also at this time reached the camp and assumed command. From Arlington, about the last of May, they proceeded to White House Landing on the Pamunky River, Va.
Company F, with Major J. Barnet Sloan, left Elmira on
.
106
THE MILITARY HISTORY OF YATES COUNTY.
the 1st of June, and joined the regiment at White House Landing. The One Hundred and Seventy-ninth remained here until June 10th, when it united with the Army of Poto- mac at Cold Harbor, while the battle of that name was going on. The regiment was attached to the First Brigade, Colo- nel Pierce, of the First Division, General Ledlie, of the Nine Corps, commanded by General Burnside. The posi- tion in front of Cold Harbor was evacuated as the army moved down the Peninsula, the One Hundred and Seventy- ninth Regiment being the last to leave the skirmish line. The James River was crossed at Wilson's Landing, and a foreed march was made to the front of Petersburg, where the regiment arrived on the 16th. The Ninth Corps the same evening supported the Second Corps as it advanced on the Confederate position. At 6 o'clock in the afternoon of the following day the Ninth Corps assailed the enemy's works. In this assault the One Hundred and Seventy-ninth lost half its number in killed, wounded, and missing .* Major J. Barnet Sloan, of Yates County, while bravely lead- ing his regiment in the charge, received a mortal wound. Captain Daniel Blatchford, of Company E, was also killed, Lieutenant-Colonel Franklin B. Doty, Captains Robert T. Stewart, of Company B, and William Bird, Jr., of Company D, were wounded. Captain Jolin Barton, of Company C, was promoted to be Major, July 14th, in place of Major Sloan, who died of his wound on the 18th of June.
It will be proper to here give some account of the young and gallant officer last named, who fell while in the service of his country. John Barnet Sloan was born in Penn Yan, January 17, 1839.1 In 1861, while a resident of New York City, he enlisted for two years in the Thirty-first Regiment, N. Y. V., with the rank of First Lieutenant. When the
* As the regiment was going into the fight Corporal John H. Carley, of Company F, was mortally wounded by a shell. He was buried on the battle-field, and funeral services were observed for him in Penn Yan.
t He was married, September 24, 1860, to Miss Mary A. Bradley, a sister of Lieutenant David A. Bradley, of Company F, of the One Hundred and Seventy-ninth Regiment. Their children are Mary Barnet, the wife of Frank E. Wright, of Lewiston, Fergus County, Mont., and Martha E.› wife of the Hon. John D. Waite, of Utica, Fergus County, Mont.
107
THE MILITARY HISTORY OF YATES COUNTY.
Thirty-first was ordered from an island in the harbor of New York to proceed to Washington, some violent characters connected with the regiment refused to go, and it was only by the energy of Lieutenant Sloan and considerable coercion that a mutiny was prevented when they were passing through the city of New York. By this simple occurrence was awakened in the minds of these desperadoes the most deadly hatred and revenge. Soon after their arrival in Washington one of them made a furious assault on the Lieu- tenant. He defended himself and thrust his sword through the body of the ruffian, who died instantly. The companions of the soldier thus justly killed were more than ever in- censed, and two or three days later another of the insur- gents rushed, with musket and bayonet, at Lieutenant Sloan, who, drawing a revolver, shot him dead. The Lieutenant immediately surrendered himself, and asked for an investi- gation. A court-martial was appointed, which, after a pa- tient hearing of three days, acquitted him from all blame. General MeClellan, to whom the verdict of the court had been submitted for approval, asked "to see the young lieu- tenant who had been tried." When Lieutenant Sloan pre- sented himself General McClellan remarked, "Lieutenant, you are acquitted; you were born to be a soldier. I see that you have but one bar upon your shoulder; you are worthy to wear two." The Lieutenant shortly afterwards received, by order of the General, a Captain's commission. His comrades in the company in which he first enlisted, on learning that he was about to be assigned to the command of another company, petitioned that he might remain, and he became their Captain. Shortly after the siege of Yorktown Captain Sloan's company, with others, was sent out to re- connoitre, and became entirely surrounded by the enemy. After making a detour of about ten miles, and being all this while in the most imminent danger, Captain Sloan, with a number of his men, succeeded in reaching the Federal lines, but while approaching they were mistaken for Confederates, and a shell, which, fortunately, failed to explode, fell in their midst. At the battle of Gaines' Mill, Captain Sloan engaged in single combat with a Confederate cavalryman, whom he
108
THE MILITARY HISTORY OF YATES COUNTY.
shot through the head, but not until the trooper had se- verely wounded him in the foot. Although wounded he fought to the close of the day's conflict, and during the next two days in the battles of Savage Station and of Fair Oaks. His foot had now become swollen to such an extent that he could not walk. Our forces were in full retreat, and Captain Sloan was following after on one foot, as best he could, sup- porting himself by a stout stick cut from the White Oak swamp. The Confederates were in plain view, and he would have been taken prisoner had not the Lieutenant-Colonel noticed the peril he was in, and sent him his own horse, with directions to mount and repair to the hospital. Here Cap- tain Sloan's wound first received medical attention. He was then furloughed, and, coming North, was appointed a recruit- ing officer, and for several months acted in that capacity. He afterward returned to his regiment, and was at the storming of the heights of Fredericksburg, where he was again wounded, this time by a minie ball in the leg. The Thirty-first Regiment was mustered out in May, 1863, and Captain Sloan, for meritorious service on the field of battle, received a commission as Major, bearing date and back pay from the previous month of January. Major Sloan, having reenlisted, left Elmira on June 1, 1864, with Company F, of his regiment, the One Hundred and Seventy-ninth. After his departure for the front a large number of the prominent citizens of Yates County, wishing to express their high ap- preciation of Major Sloan's military and soldierly qualities, assembled on June 4th in front of the Benham House, in Penn Yan, to witness the presentation of an elegant sword, pistols, and belt, which had been contributed by them as a testimonial of the esteem and respect which they held to- wards the young and brave Major. Hon. Darius A. Ogden made the presentation speech, and, in behalf of Major Sloan, who was then absent on the field of duty, John D. Wolcott, Esq., the District Attorney of Yates County, responded and passed the beautiful implements of war into the hands of John Sloan, Esq., who was to forward them to his son. The following is the inscription on the sword :
109
THE MILITARY HISTORY OF YATES COUNTY.
Presented to Major John Barnet Sloan, June 4, 1864, as a testimonial of their appreciation of services rendered in defence of our imperiled coun- try, and his energy in raising the 179th Reg't, N. Y. S. V., by
Hon. D. A. OGDEN, Col. H. C. ROBBINS, S. C. CLEVELAND,
WVM. WATTS, F. HOLMES, C. HEWINS,
J. S. JILLETT,
N. R. LONG,
L. O. DUNNING,
WM. T. REMER,
GĘO. H. LAPHAM, F. E. SMITH,
AND OTHERS.
Gen. A. F. WHITAKER, Chairman.
Major Sloan received the published accounts of this meet- ing, but before he received the beautiful and appropriate gifts themselves he fell in battle, June 17th, as before stated. His remains were brought to Penn Yan, and there interred with due honors, the Rev. Frederick Starr, Jr., pastor of the First Presbyterian Church, preaching the funeral discourse .* Post No. 93 of the Grand Army of the Republic at Penn Yan was named in honor of Major Sloan on its organization in 1869.
Company G joined the command July 29, 1864. The ex- plosion of the mine under a portion of the Confederate en- trenchments occurred the next morning. An assault was then made by the Ninth Corps, with the First Division tak -. ing the lead, and the One Hundred and Seventy-ninth lost in killed : Major Barton, Captain Allen T. Farwell of Company F, Captain James H. Day of Company G, and in wounded,
*The funeral of Major Sloan was held on the 27th inst. in the First Presbyterian Church, and was conducted by the following gentlemen, who constituted the committee of arrangements and also acted as pall- bearers: George R. Cornwell, Samuel Stewart Ellsworth, Henry C. Hermans, George N. Hicks, Farley Holmes, George H. Lapham, James D. Morgan, Jr., George F. Morgan, Ovid M. Reddy, Foster S. Roberts, Jolın Shearman, Alexander F. Slaughter, Warren J. Stanton, and Theo- dore F. Wheeler. The funeral procession was arranged in fine order, and led by marshals mounted (Captain E. E. Root, Chief Marshal; Captains C. F. Rudgers and M. H. Lawrence, Jr., Aids.) The Penn Yan Cornet Band came next, playing mournful airs, and in charge of Frederick Poy- neer. The hearse, containing the body, was gracefully shrouded with the American flag, and was drawn by four elegant white horses, closely fol- lowed by the war-horse of the deceased, fully caparisoned, and led by a groom on foot. The military and fire companies, with their regalia, added much to the occasion. The bells liad hardly ceased tolling, when intelligence came to Penn Yan of the fall of another brave officer, Captain Morris Brown, Jr., of the 126th Regiment.
110
THE MILITARY HISTORY OF YATES COUNTY.
Lieutenant B. L. Sexton, of Company D. Fifty enlisted men belonging to the regiment were killed, wounded, and taken prisoners. The One Hundred and Seventy-ninth did constant fighting in the trenches until the 19th of August. During the whole time the men were exposed to the most hair-breadth escapes and harrassing dangers, but the regi- ment escaped with only a few wounded. On the above date it moved around to the Weldon Railroad, which had been taken by the Fifth Corps, and which would have been lost again, had it not been for the timely support of the Ninth Corps. The two corps, now united, attacked the Confeder- ates, and forced them to retreat a considerable distance. In this advance the One Hundred and Seventy-ninth Regi- ment had only three officers and fifty-six men fit for duty, so greatly had both officers and men been exhausted by their duties in the trenches. The loss in the above engagement was small. On August 27th Albert A. Terrill, Captain of Company A, was made Major in place of Major Barton, killed.
Lieutenant-Colonel Doty, who had been wounded and ab- sent in consequence for sixty days, rejoined his command August 23d. Companies H, I, and K reached the regiment at Park's Station in September. On the 30th of that month the One Hundred and Seventy-ninth took part in the en- gagement at Poplar Springs Church, in which Lieutenant James Booker, of Company K, was mortally wounded. The next engagement, in which the losses were very slight, oc- curred October 27th at Hatcher's Run. After this the regi- ment was generally in the trenches until April, 1865, occa- sionally changing from Fort Welch to Fort Davis. The One Hundred and Seventy-ninth Regiment, having now reached its maximum number, Colonel William M. Gregg, about the 1st of October, 1864, was mustered in and took command.
During the first part of December, at the time of the cele- brated raid of the Fifth Corps to the Nottoway River, the Second Division, to which the regiment was attached, was sent out in pursuit, and to give support, if required. It per- formed a forced march of twenty miles and back within
111
THE MILITARY HISTORY OF YATES COUNTY.
twenty-four hours. On the night of April 1, 1865, the One Hundred and Seventy-ninth Regiment alone, by a splendid flank movement, assailed the whole picket line on its brigade front, capturing about four times its number, with only slight losses, and held its position until morning. It then took position on the front line for a general assault on the enemy's works, which were subsequently taken with an overwhelming victory that completely broke up the Confed- erate line of fortifications. Colonel Gregg, in this assault, received a scalp wound from the fragment of a shell, which rendered him senseless for some time and disabled him for one week from commanding. The lamented Lieutenant- Colonel Doty fell, shot through the lungs, and survived only two days. As an officer, a courteous gentleman, a valiant soldier, among the bravest of the brave, he had few equals. Captains Albert A. Pierson, of Company D, and Giles H. Holden, of Company F, and Lieutenants Samuel G. H. Mus- grove, of Company E, and Stephen Compton, of Company A, were wounded, Captain Pierson severely, through the left leg, and the rest slightly.
The One Hundred and Seventy-ninth participated in the pursuit of Lee as far as Burkesville, and after his surrender it returned to City Point, from which place it went by trans- port to Alexandria, and near there encamped. It was mus- tered out at its place of encampment on June 8, 1865, by special order of the War Department. Going by way of Washington, the regiment proceeded to Elmira, which it reached on Sunday morning, the 11th. It was met at the depot by prominent citizens and the committee of arrange- ments and escorted to the William Street Hospital building, where a warm breakfast was served to the members of the command. After breakfast the veterans marched down to- ward the foot of Church Street, and encamped on a vacant lot on the south side, near the stone-ware factory. Here they remained until the 22d and 23d of June, when they re- ceived final pay and discharge.
Inscribed on the banners of the One Hundred and Seventy- ninth are the names of noted battles in which the regiment took a most noble part, namely: "Petersburg, June 17 and
112
THE MILITARY HISTORY OF YATES COUNTY.
July 30, 1864; Weldon Railroad; Popular Springs Church ; Hatcher's Run; and Petersburg, on April 1 and 2, 1865." On account of the great bravery evinced in capturing the enemy's picket line, and in the final assault before Peters- burg, brevets were afterward conferred on several commis- sioned officers of the One Hundred and Seventy-ninth , among these being Colonel William M. Gregg, who was raised to the rank of Brevet Brigadier-General, and Lieuten- ant John T. Andrews, 2d, who was raised to the rank of Brevet-Captain.
The following is the roster of the regimental and line offi- cers at the time of the mustering-out of the One Hundred and Seventy-ninth Regiment: Officers-Colonel, William M. Gregg ;| Lieutenant-Colonel, Albert A. Terrill; Major Giles H. Holden ;} Adjutant, George W. Cook; Quartermaster, Nathaniel P. T. Finch; Surgeon, Joseph W. Robinson; As- sistant-Surgeon, Phineas S. Rose; Chaplain, Edwin A. Taft.
Line Officers .- Company A-Captain, George D. Carpen- ter; First Lieutentant, James A. Farr; Second Lieutenant, Stephen Compton. Company B-Captain, Martin V. Doty ; First Lieutenant, Edward Lounsbury. Company C-Cap- tain, Levi Force; Second Lieutenant, Thomas C. Smith. Company D-Captain, Albert A. Pierson; First Lieutenant, John T. Andrews, 2d; Second Lieutenant, Henry Mapes. Company E-Captain, Samuel G. H. Musgrove; First Lieu- tenant, Charles Carr; Second Lieutenant, James Prevost. Company F-Captain, James Griswold; First Lieutenant, David A. Bradley; Second Lieutenant, Charles F. Hager. Company G-Captain, Henry J. Messing; Second Lieuten- ant, James Lewis. Company H-First Lieutenant, Fitz E. Culver; Second Lieutenant, Henry Spreese. Company I- Captain, Edwin C. Bowen; First Lieutenant, Charles Black- mar; Second Lieutenant, Oscar Jennings. Company K- Captain, Moses M. VanBenscotten ; First Lieutenant, Rob- ert Hooper; Second Lieutenant, William C. Foster.
Muster-in roll of Company F, of the One Hundred and Seventy-ninth Regiment :
Company F .- Allen T. Farwell,* Captain ; David A. Brad- * Killed + Wounded.
113
THE MILITARY HISTORY OF YATES COUNTY.
ley, First Lieutenant; Giles H. Holden,t Second Lieuten- ant; William L. Norton,t Orderly Sergeant; John W. Durham,+ Newton B. Spencer, Edward S. Dunn,t Ser- geants; William B. Larzelere, John H. Carley,* George W. Heck, Albert Bennett,+ Norton B. Sage, Carmi Loveless, Corporals; Privates, James H. Brown,* Eleazer Baldwin, Jr., Amos J. Bonney,§ Daniel R. Bacon,t Josiah C. Baker,t Charles Baker, John Banks, Orlando V. Crans, William T. Clark,; Julius F. Cotton, Francis M. Campfield, Festus Demorest, Tuthill Dense, James Decker,t Thomas Dannaby, John Day, Karl Frederick, Richard Fitzgerald, Daniel Guinea, Abram O. Gray, George W. Green, t An- drew Hurd, Samuel B. Hyatt, Martin Hope, John Hall, Frederick Harris, James A. James,§ David Kennedy, John Kelly, Edwin Knapp, John Kennedy, Lewis R. Little, Wil- liam Lounsbury, Charles Lounsbury, James B. Luce, An- drew McConnell, Michael McCarty, John Martin, John McCann, Barnum J. Northrup," Ezra M. Northrup, Charles C. Owen,t John Oakley, John Post, John Phalen, John Pat- terson, John B. Patrick, Ransom O. Remer, Daniel P. Rig- by, Charles E. Releyea, George M. Releyea, John Riley, Timothy Shaw, Henry C. Schofield, David Shearman, Aaron R. Shearman,* William Stephens, Harrison Sprague, Pat- rick Stapleton, Wilbert Simmons, Michael Shanahan, James Story, Robert Thompson, George Wilson, Robert P. Walker, Daniel Weldon, George Williams, Abel Webb, Martin Wil- kin, George White," Frederick F. Windnagle,* George W. West.
* Killed. ¡ Wounded. # Died. ¿ Deserted.
CHAPTER XI.
The One Hundred and Eighty-eighth and One Hundred and Ninety- fourth Regiments Infantry-Grand Review at Washington at the end of the War.
THE ONE HUNDRED AND EIGHTY-EIGHTH REGIMENT.
T HE One Hundred and Eighty-eighth Regiment of In- fantry commanded at first by Colonel James R. Cham- berlain, was organized at Rochester in the autumn of 1864. Company C, of this regiment, recruited principally in Yates County, was, on the 7th of October, mustered into the ser- vice of the United States for one year. Recruits from this county were also in Companies B, D, E, F, G, and H. The regiment on the 13th left the place of rendezvous for the front and, under command at that time of Major Christopher C. Davison, became part of the Second Brigade of the First Division of the Fifth Corps, commanded by General Warren.
The One Hundred and Eighty-eighth rendered valuable service during the latter part of General Grant's Virginia Campaign. The first engagement in which the regiment took part was at Hatcher's Run (Oct. 27, 1864). Itthen accom- panied the expedition which was sent out to destroy the Weldon Railroad. The expedition moved down the railroad as far as the Meherrin, the Confederates that were encount- ered on the way being driven to Hicksford near the southern boundary of Virginia, while the road was effectually de- stroyed to that point some twenty miles (Dec. 7th to 15th). Hicksford had been fortified, and was strongly held by the enemy, while our troops, having started with but four days' rations, were constrained to hasten their return. No consid- erable loss was suffered, nor (otherwise than in destroying the railroad) inflicted .* On the 6th of February. 1865, the One Hundred and Eighty-eighth participated in a second engagement at Hatcher's Run, which resulted in the perma- nent extension of the Union left to this position.
The American Conflict," Vol. 2.
115
THE MILITARY HISTORY OF YATES COUNTY.
The grand general advance of the army on the enemy's works in front of Petersburg began March 26th. On that day the regiment distinguished itself in the attack on Fort Meigs, and on the 29th in the charge made on the " sawdust fort "* on the Lewis farm. The next day Warren's Corps was sharply assailed on the Boynton Plank Road, and the One Hundred and Eighty-eighth here nobly supported a battery against a charge of the Confederates, and on the 30th aided in completely repulsing the enemy in an engage- ment at Gravelly Run. In the mean time Sheridan had pushed forward a part of his cavalry to Five Forks, and Warren was ordered by Grant to the support of Sheridan, and to act under his orders.
The battle of Five Forks, on the 1st and 2d of April, re- sulted in a complete and decisive victory which the One Hundred and Eighty-eighth Regiment aided grandly in achieving. For some unexplained cause, right in the mo- ment of victory, while Warren was in the front with his shouting troops, Sheridan removed him from the command of the corps and put Griffin in his place.t The entire right of the Confederate position was broken up, and the enemy driven in full retreat toward Dansville. A vigorous pursuit was kept up by the Union Army, and at Deep Creek a con- siderable force of infantry was encountered (April 3d), and ultimately driven by the Fifth Corps. On the morning of the 7th Grant dispatched a note to Lee, asking for the surrender of that part of the Confederate States Army known as the Army of Northern Virginia. Lee replied by asking what terms Grant had to offer on condition of its surrender. After some further correspondence the two great command- ers met in the dwelling of W. McLean, at Appomattox Court House where the arrangements for the surrender of the Confederate Army were completed.#
* The " sawdust fort " was so called from having been erected on the site of a sawmill, where a considerable amount of sawdust yet remained. + Headley's History of the Great Rebellion. Vol. 2.
į It is an interesting circumstance that the articles of surrender were drawn up by a Seneca Indian, General Ely S. Parker, who was a lineal descendant of Red Jacket. A Yates Couuty Soldier formed one of the troop that captured Jefferson Davis in Georgia four weeks later. This soldier was Captain Henry Albert Potter, of the 4th Micliigan Cavalry.
116
THE MILITARY HISTORY OF YATES COUNTY.
After the surrender of Lee the One Hundred and Eighty- eighth Regiment marched to Washington and was mustered out at its place of encampment near that city, July 1st, 1865. The field officers of the regiment at the time of the muster- out were as follows: Colonel, John E. McMahon; Lieuten- ant Colonel, Isaac Doolittle; Major, Christopher C. Davison ; Surgeon, Sprague Paine; First Assistant Surgeon, S. D. Spencer; Second Assistant Surgeon, Charles E. Hill; Chap- lain, Wayne Spicer; Adjutant, Orville Curtis; Quartermas- ter, D. C. Fletcher; Hospital Steward, John E. Wilson.
Muster-in roll of Company C, with Yates County recruits in Companies B, D, E, F, G, and H :
Company B .- Edward F. Jones, First Lieutenant ; Pri- vates, Judson C. Albright,f Thomas V. Brown, Evelyn Crego, Charles Donelly, Wellington Graham, Charles W. Heverly, Joseph R. Potter, Clark Reynolds, Serellow Travis, Samuel Van Dyke, William Walker.
Company C .- Harvey G. Denniston, Captain; Dennis W. Crowley, First Lieutenant; Joseph H. Wernett, Second Lieutenant ; Almond C. Walters, Jesse L. Wheeler, Edward F. Porter, Jolın M. Miller, A. Jackson Terry,+ Sergeants; George H. Waldo, Clark B. Wheeler, Charles F. Grenall, George O. Parker, Charles Beeman, Adelbert Genung, Ethan A. Gustin, William P. Lane, Corporals; Privates, Charles Alexander, George N. Ball,* Byron Brockway, Ed- win Brown, William Burke, Henry R. Bardeen, Rice Bar- ker, John S. Bailey, Chauncey Bacon, John M. Bennett, Burton Barnes, Thomas Boyington,t Amos Cook,* Charles D. Campbell, Albert Comstock, Calvin Comstock, David Camfield, Johnson Coon,t Aaron J. Denniston, Hiram Ellis, + John Everett, Danford Ellsworth,t Theodore D. Gillett, Henry C. Green, Seth P. Gustin, Nelson Hunt,t Byron Hayes, Hiram Howland, Matthew Kennedy, David Kennedy, William S. Kellogg, John C. Lewis, Orrin J. Lewis, Charles T. Lewis, William G. Tears,# Daniel Lenox, Edward P. Lenox, Philip Lawley, John Leffler, Chappel Lito,* Smith McLoud, Willlam Mehan,* (promoted to Ser- geant-Major, and afterward to Second Lieutenant), Delos
* Killed. + Wounded. # Died.
117
THE MILITARY HISTORY OF YATES COUNTY.
Neff, Eli S. Osborne,t George O. Parker, Theodore Put- nam, William G. Price, Timothy Parsons, David J. Par- sons, David W. Parker, Michael Scott, Milton Stryker, Peter J. Strant,t David Q. Stevens, Ira Smith,# Jacob D. Smith, Benjamin Stowe,* Niram B. Squires, Horace Stod- dard, Alonzo Sluyter, Ezra Strope, Adam Shill, Civilian Travis, Zephaniah Travis, Francis F. Wales, Edmund F. Waldo, John J. Watkins, Maurice Wilcox, Chauncey W. Wheeler.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.