USA > Ohio > Four years in the saddle. History of the First Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Cavalry. War of the Rebellion, 1861-1865 > Part 30
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The forward movement of the Fourteenth Army Corps (or Army of the Cumberland) from Nashville, Tenn., under the com- mand of Major-General W. S. Rosecrans, commenced on Friday, December 26, 1862. Shortly after daylight the writer carried the order to Major-General L. H. Rosseau to advance his division. General Thomas moved his column of over thirteen thousand men on the Franklin Pike. The country over which the army was marching afforded great advantages to the enemy; a small force could retard the advance of superior numbers - consid- erable tracts of cultivated lands occurred at intervals on either side of the pike between Nashville and Murfreesboro, the inter- vening spaces were heavily wooded and interspersed with dense cedar thickets, which formed formidable barriers to the march of an aggressive army. Negley's division of Thomas' command bivouacked near Nolensville, to which point he had pushed in support of General Davis, who had uncovered the enemy. The following day the column moved to the east, over rugged roads, to connect General Crittenden's right near Stewartsboro, on the Murfreesboro Pike. The heavy rains made the by-roads almost impassable, and in consequence the movements were necessarily slow and fatiguing. Headquarters were pitched near the pike for the night, and on the following day, Sunday, Rouseau's division was struggling through the mud from Nolens- ville toward the Murfreesboro Pike, to take the proper position in the column. The army laid quietly in bivouac during Sunday. On Monday morning, before daylight, the General and staff and part of the escort moved out on the pike, leaving the writer and the rest of the escort to bring forward headquarters, which were established that night on the north side of Overalls Creek near the pike and a short distance in rear of the lines. Tuesday, the thirtieth, dawned drearily; it had rained heavily during the night and many of the troops had lain all night in the mud without shelter or fires. We joined the General on the field in the immediate rear of the center. He was standing by a small fire, surrounded by part of his staff and escort, intently listening to the heavy skirmishing in the cedars to his right. A drizzling rain was falling and the air was cold and crisp. The fire of the skirmishers, constantly increasing, interspersed with the boom- ing of cannon at short intervals, formed an almost perfect imi- tation of thousands of axe-men engaged in felling the trees in the forest. The General mounted, rode forward and into the cedars, where Negley had fought his way into position, Rouseau being held in reserve. The center was posted slightly in advance, Crittenden to the left and McCook on the right. The enemy was strongly posted in the timber in our front and intrenched to the left. The General (Pap Thomas) commanding the center
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established temporary headquarters for the night in a small cabin in the woods near the pike, and a short distance in rear of the second line of battle. On the following and never-to-be- forgotten morning, December 31, long before daylight, the army was awake and alert, waiting for the opening of the battle. We did not have long to wait until the disastrous attack of Hardee on the right of our line commenced. Everything being in readiness the General, with part of the escort and staff, rode to the front. McCook failed to hold Hardee, and his shattered columns were rapidly driven back upon the center. The General halted at the edge of a belt of timber, on the right and left of the pike, took his field glass and eagerly scanned the lines. While in this position, in column of fours, the General, with staff and escort in plain view, made a conspicuous mark for the enemy, and in very short order a battery in our front sent in their compliments in the shape of a twelve-pound solid shot, which struck the hard pike just in front of the General, rico- chetted and passed over our heads and again struck the ground and bounded to the rear, smashing a stump in its way before it stopped. The next moment a battery on the left front of us sent a shell which passed over our heads and fell among a body of infantrymen, who were lying down in the woods to our right; the shell exploded as it struck and quite a number of men were killed and wounded. The General ordered Lieutenant Barker to move the escort off the pike and out of range of the cross-fire of the batteries. I happened to be in the first fours and as the shell had passed uncomfortably close I was quick to obey the command "Fours left!" I had just uncovered the man in rear of me, when the second shot came from the left - it proved to be a six-pound solid shot - and struck Ful- ton Gitteau full in the left breast and tore a hole through him almost large enough to run an arm through. The poor fellow fell out of his saddle on the hard pike, gave a convulsive shudder, and was dead. We were formed in rear of a battery to the left and the body of our comrade was picked up and tenderly carried to the rear. We now moved forward to the right and into the cedars, where Negley and Sheridan were heavily engaged. They made heroic efforts to stem the tide and were steadily pressed back. Sheridan's division being out of ammunition was forced out of the cedars by the rebels on the double quick, firing as they ran. The General and part of the staff and escort were just to the left and partly in range of the fire of this rushing body of the enemy with their fierce vells of triumph. General Rosseau, who was at this time, with. his staff and escort, close by General Thomas, was ordered by him to move his division into the cedars to aid Sheridan and Negley. His division was in reserve just at the edge of the cedars and it took only a few moments' time for the leading
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regiments to enter the woods. I will always remember this as one of the most inspiring sights I witnessed during my term of service. After a lapse of over thirty years I have forgotten the name and number of the regiment in advance, of that mag- nificent body of "boys" who came rushing on, in column, with arms at "right shoulder shift," on the double quick, as calmly as if on parade, never halting or wavering. Like an enormous (living) wedge they forced themselves between our struggling and sorely pressed columns and the exultant foe; came to a front and delivered a murderous fire at short range, which for a short time checked them, but were finally forced to slowly recede, and a new line was formed. I remember the Ninety- fourth Ohio Volunteer Infantry was a part of that splendid divi- sion, and the survivors no doubt recollect the frantic wild tur- keys that were so paralyzed with fright, that some of them were easily caught. While this disaster occurred in the cedars, the rebel cavalry was busy in our rear. An orderly rode up to General Thomas and informed him that their cavalry was then capturing and burning our trains. Sergeant Woodall, myself and four men were ordered by the General to go to the rear and remove headquarters, which were still beyond Overalls Creek. The detail was quickly made and we rode at a gallop out of that uncomfortably "hot place." We soon reached the open fields about one-half mile to the rear, where we were hailed by a Second Kentucky cavalryman, a mere boy in fact, and badly demoralized, who informed us that the rebel cavalry had possession of our wagon train on the pike only a short distance ahead of us and were in plain view. As they were between us and where we intended to go, we thought it policy to await further developments. We could see them taking our ambu- lances, prisoners, etc., across the field to their left rear. Whilst watching them, a number of rebel cavalry prisoners were brought up to where we halted. They were captured with our blue over- coats on their backs, a fact that Sergeant Woodall soon noticed and ordered one of them, in no very polite terms, to take off the coat and hand it to him. The Johnnie complied without a word. While this was going on I noticed the Fourth U. S. Cavalry emerging from the woods to our left rear; they marched in column and when within a short distance from the rebel line came to a front and made a magnificent charge and recaptured our ambulances and prisoners. I noticed also one of the reg- ulars overhauling a Johnnie and when within a few paces from him he killed him with a shot from his revolver. I saw when he tumbled off his horse that a large bundle of "Uncle Sam's" blankets also dropped to the ground. Being in need of a blanket, I rode over and selected a nice, clean and new one, which he evidently took from one of our poor boys a few moments before. The way being cleared we rapidly rode to the rear and soon
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came upon the scene of murder and pillage. The poor negro teamsters were shot in their tracks like dogs; the mules were killed while yet hitched to the wagons, and the finest artillery horses I ever saw shared a like fate, while all along the pike to Overalls Creek the stiff and blue coated forms of our com- rades were stretched, still in death. Further on to the rear our train of over two hundred wagons, with contents, were burned, nothing being left but the irons. We crossed the creek and just beyond found a line of infantry, the Tenth Ohio, stopping stragglers from going to the rear. We found headquarters safe, removed them, and rejoined the General and staff at the front.
The day's fighting closed leaving us masters of at least part of our original ground, and new lines were advantageously formed. A night conference was held at the headquarters of General Rosecrans, at which it was determined, in the language of the General, "to fight or die right here." The troops lay down upon their arms that night, many of them where they fought. It was a cold and dreary night, no fires being permitted at the front, and many of the troops had no rations, while others were more fortunate. The desperation of hunger compelled some to carve the steaks from Colonel Starkweather's black horse, who had been killed in battle. This I saw while riding along the pike. During the night it rained, and when daylight came everywhere were masses of mud. The day following, the desperate attempt of Breckenridge to turn our left took place; but the fifty-eight pieces of artillery massed hurling shot, shell, grape, case and cannister, together with the heroic efforts of our infantry, proved too much for even veteran troops to with- stand, and in a very short time were completely repulsed.
More or less fighting took place on the second and third of January, and on the fourth General Thomas advanced into Murfreesboro. As none of the rebel dead had been buried, in the fallow field to the right and in front of Hell's Half Acre, where Hazen fought, I saw the fearful effect of the iron and leaden hail from our side, together with the sad scenes witnessed during the battle, will never be effaced from memory as long as life lasts.
JOHN S. DOLLINGER, Late Sergeant-Major First Ohio Veteran Volunteer Cavalry, and formerly on Escort Duty at Major-General Geo. H. Thomas' Headquarters.
Horses and Horse Racing.
In the cavalry service horse racing was the great sport. and the First Ohio was no exception to the rule. When we were in camp for any length of time, and the service was not too hard, the lovers of that sport would improvise a track on some straight stretch of road, or across some old fields or pas-
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tures, and the "sprinters" would be put in training under the care of some experienced horsemen and jockeys, of which there were a number in the regiment. In a cavalry regiment of nearly a thousand horses there were, as would be expected, some pretty good flyers, and the horse fanciers were always looking out to pick up a fast one, now and then, through the country, and fre- quently got a Kentucky or Tennessee thoroughbred from the far-famed blue grass region.
Very often races were made with horses of other regiments and the betting would be heavy and the excitement run high. In the spring of 1863 the regiment was in camp at Lavergne, Tennessee, for some time, and a very good track was made near the camp, where scrub races were of daily occurrence, with now and then a race by the fast ones. A part of the regiment was in camp at Stewart's Creek, and an Indiana infantry regi- ment was also in camp there. The Quartermaster of that regi- ment was quite a sport and a race was arranged between his best horse and Captain Conn's sorrel horse, named "Billy But- ton." A half mile track was made across a big clover field at quite a considerable expense and all the preliminaries were arranged by Sergeant Frank Allen, of Company K, who was the acknowledged authority on all such matters, and the best jockey in the regiment. He gave a great deal of attention to the preparation of the track, saw that Button had the best of care, gave him daily canters, and when the time for the race arrived Button was in the "pink of condition." It was a beau- tiful May day and the whole garrison turned out to see the race, including Chaplain and Sutler. The stake, I think, was two hundred and fifty dollars, and there were many side bets from five dollars up to fifty. Sergeant Allen rode Button and won the race, but it was a close one. The Indiana boys were not satisfied and another race was soon arranged, but before the day arrived, we were ordered to the front at Murfreesboro, and the race was declared off and never was run. This was perhaps the most exciting race ever had in the regiment and is well remembered by every soldier who was in the regiment at that time.
The boys would work all kinds of schemes to learn the speed of each others horses without testing them together, and one instance of this kind comes to mind in Company K. The Orderly Sergeant, Sergeant Lucas, and Sergeant Kilgore, each had a pretty fast horse, but they had never been tested together, and as Lucas was anxious to make a match with one of the others, Kilgore and the Orderly decided that without giving Lucas the "tip" they would try the speed of their two horses, and then get up a race with the winner. So one Sunday morning after inspection they mounted their horses and rode ont of camp leis- urely and innocently for a little exercise, and were soon followed
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by a few of their friends who had been given the "tip." Going out on the Somerset road from Lebanon, Ky., a couple of miles, they came to a long, pretty stretch of sandy road in the best of condition, four hundred yards were soon measured off, the horses were stripped and went over the track under the whip. The Orderly's horse came in a few necks ahead, and the boys all mounted and rode back to camp, looking as innocent as if they had been out in the country to church, and in a few days a match was made between Lucas' horse "Dandy" and "Billy." Lucas lost the race and his money as well, and he never under- stood just how it was.
Among the boys that "talked horse" and were always ready to make a match and keep a fast horse or two was Captain Conn, Kirkendall, Curry, Erwin, Frank Allen, Adjutant Neil, Ser- geant Lucas, Sergeant Kilgore, Lieutenant High, Lee Tway, Lieutenant Roush, Geo. Geiger, of Company M, and many others. After 1863 there was but little racing, as the regiment was on the campaign all the time, and were never in camp more than a day or two in succession.
There were a great many superb horsemen in the regiment who could pick up a hat or saber from the ground without dis- mounting, and being every day in the saddle and a great deal of the time in a rough country, jumping logs, fences and ditches, it was very seldom a cavalryman was unhorsed, especially after two years in the saddle, as they were more at home there than dismounted. Horse and rider would become very much attached to each other and were inseparable. Although thousands of horses of different regiments would be tied to their picket ropes in adjoining camps, and many of them would break their halters or they would become unloosed, yet but few horses would wander away from their own company, they were so attached to each other; and it was a rare thing to hear of a horse being lost. Many.of the horses knew a number of the bugle calls, and when the "Stable" or "Water call" was sounded they would whinney and would respond to the "Forward" or "Halt" without being urged or spoken to by the rider. Horses seemed to know when we were getting ready for a fight, even before the firing com- . menced, and especially when we were advancing slowly and carefully through the woods or fields. When the skirmishers were throwing down the fences, the ears of the horses would be erect and rolling nervously about and looking cautiously on either side, as if they "snuffed the battle afar off." At the first crack of a carbine on the skirmish line, although it might be far to the front, every horse was nerved up, sniffing the air. They would soon become accustomed to the firing, but the sing- ing or whizzing of the balls would make them snort and jump.
No doubt, many of the boys can remember just what color and just what kind of a horse the officers and each man of his
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company rode, as well as he can remember the men themselves, for the horses and men were companions and we always identify them together. The writer, and no doubt many other members of the regiment, can remember the horses of almost every officer in the regiment, but I will only give those of some of the field and staff, as it may bring back some pleasant recollections to all of the boys as they go back in memory to our early campaigns.
Colonel Ransom rode a dark dun or clay bank with white tail; Colonel Smith a fine black and roan; Colonel Millikin an elegant high-stepping bay, named Archer; Colonel Laughlin a bay; Colonel Cupp an iron gray; Colonel Writer a bay; Colonel Eggleston a large dark bay and iron gray; Major Scott a large brown; Major Dennison a fine black; Major Frankenberger a sorrel; Surgeon Canaan a black; Major Moore a black. Many horses were killed and wounded in action, and taking one com- pany as a criterion, in which the losses in horses have been carefully verified, it is safe to say that the losses in killed and wounded were equal to that of the men in the First Ohio.
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Colored Men in the Regiment.
There were a great many colored men in the regiment, officers' servants, who were very faithful, and no doubt some of them are well remembered by the boys. Colonel T. C. H. Smith took into the service a colored man by the name of Harry, and it must be borne in mind that a colored man in the service never had but one name. An old colored fellow by the name of "Uncle Dick," interrogated regarding this matter, said: "There was so many darkies before de wah dat de could not afford to gib dem but one name"; and as he was good authority, his state- ment was never questioned. Harry was a firm believer in the rabbit's foot and all kinds of hoodoo business, and anything that might transpire out of the ordinary, Harry would say, "Dat was a mighty bad sign," and Scotty and the other wags around headquarters kept him up at a high tension all the time. Harry always swore by "de Kunnel," and when Colonel Smith left the regiment Harry went with him. Uncle Dick, of Company M, · was another well-known character. He lived in Tennessee and was not a farm hand, but had always worked about his mas- ter's house and was a very tidy old darkey and an excellent cook. He could make excellent biscuit, and when we could get any flour, Uncle Dick would hustle around and get an oven from some Old Dinah and the biscuit or pig pot-pie would be forth- coming. He could neither read nor write, but he was an unus- ually smart old man, and when on the march in the night, if the stars were shining, he could tell the hour of the night and never failed. He could always tell the points of the compass, which was very important at times when the advance would be
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uncertain about the roads. Ples, of Company D, Captain Kir- kendall's boy, was another faithful colored fellow and well re- membered. He served through to the end of the war, and Captain Kirkendall brought him home to Ohio, and he now lives near Columbus and is doing well.
A soldier of the First who was with the regiment during the last two years of the war that did not know "Brick," of Company K, did not know much about the colored men of the regiment. "Brick," like "Topsy," "jest growed up in Old Ten- nessee," and Lieutenant Curry picked him up in 1863. Brick was a great character, about sixteen or seventeen years of age, black as the ace of spades, and a typical plantation darky. He had been raised on the back of a mule, and was a good rider, and sat in the saddle as if he had grown there. He knew noth- ing about cooking and his chief value was as a forager for both man and beast, and when he started out for forage, if there was any in the country, Brick came in loaded. When the regi- ment went around Atlanta on the Kilpatrick Raid, Brick was along as usual, and when we were ordered to cut our way out, Brick was impressed by the company officers with the import- ance of bringing the company pack mules out, as all of the com- pany officers' rations for the expedition was carried by the mule. Brick and another colored boy had the mule in charge, and while one led the other was to apply a long hickory stick to the mule vigorously. Before the start was made both darkies were admon- ished that in the event they did not bring the mule out safely, two darkies would dangle from a limb of the nearest tree.
The distance from the start to the rebel lines was eight or ten hundred yards, and when we had covered about half the distance, Brick dashed up to and through the center of Company K under the spur, with his eyes bulged out as large as two saucers, and that was the last of the mule and rations. No doubt the mule was abandoned soon after the start, and when it was learned by the officers that the rations were all gone, they were very much out of humor and their wrath was poured out on the heads of Brick and Henry in language more forcible than elegant. Brick served until the end of the war and came to Ohio with Lieutenant Reece. He only remained for a year or two and then returned to the old plantation in Tennessee.
Captain Woodlief had a colored boy by the name of Henry who was quite a musical genius. He was a beautiful whistler and would entertain the boys often in the summer evenings with not only the old plantation melodies, but mocking bird imitations and all kinds of bird songs. He would make a couple of reeds out of cane stalks and these he would place between his lips and play beautifully, something like a piccalo.
Lietenant Roush, of Company H, got a colored man at Cleve- land, Tenn., at the time of the battle of Missionary Ridge, by
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the name of Billy Barber. Before the close of the war he enlisted in a colored regiment and served until the end of the war. Billy was a faithful fellow and swore by the First Ohio at all times and thought they were the wildest riders in the service. He now lives in Columbus, Ohio, and if any fellow is spoiling for a fight, he can be accommodated by hunting Billy up and commence saying something derogatory of the service of the First Ohio. There were many other good and faithful colored men who saw long service in the regiment, whose names cannot be re- called. Colored men became very much attached to soldiers and officers of the commands to which they belonged and would take all kinds of chances of being killed by the rebels in forag- ing for both officers and horses. They were a part of the army and were always true to the Union soldiers in giving informa- tion that was of benefit to our army. They looked upon the Yankees as their saviors, and the first soldier they would see wearing the blue uniform they would leave their old masters, home and family, although the surroundings would be of the most pleasant, and follow the boys in blue if they were permitted to do so. It was a common occurrence for these old gray headed men to come into camp during the night, travelling perhaps many miles through the pine woods, to give information as to the movements of the rebels, when they knew full well if they were detected their lives would be in jeopardy. But they took the chances, and often their information would be of the most vital importance to our army. They were always true to the Union soldiers, and how many of them were fed and cared for by these faithful colored people when they had made their escape from rebel prisons and were trying to make their way through to our lines! Many a soldier's life was saved by their good work, and every good soldier has a warm place in his heart for the faithful old slaves of the South.
Old Shady. - 1
When Companies E and K were stationed at Courtland, Ala., in July, 1862, and before President Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation had been issued, I remember of hearing for the first time, sung by the plantation negroes, the song "Old Shady."
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