USA > Ohio > Ashland County > History of Ashland County, Ohio > Part 26
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 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84 | Part 85 | Part 86 | Part 87 | Part 88 | Part 89 | Part 90 | Part 91 | Part 92 | Part 93 | Part 94 | Part 95 | Part 96 | Part 97 | Part 98 | Part 99 | Part 100 | Part 101
On Sunday, April 14, Major Anderson and his men were conveyed from the fort to the Baltic, a vessel lying outside the bar. They were taken on board and the vessel proceeded to New York, where the old flag that had but a few days
208
HISTORY OF ASHLAND COUNTY
before floated over Fort Sumter, was saluted by all the forts of the New York harbor.
The fall of. Fort Sumter aroused the North. "Sumter has fallen," was the tocsin of war. President Lincoln, with that prompitude for which he was noted, seized the tide of patriotism at the flow and issued his call for seventy-five thousand troops, to "aid in suppressing the rebellion against the laws of the United States, and to maintain the honor, the integrity and the existence of our National Republic, and to redress wrongs already long enough endured."
The call was promptly answered and amid flying flags, waving handker- chiefs and beating drums, the whole North seemed to be marching to war. Men left their homes with tears and prayers to fight for their country and its flag.
Ashland county furnished a company for this first-call service, which became Company B, of the Sixteenth Ohio Infantry. John S. Fulton was captain of the company. He was promoted to lieutenant colonel, and was succeeded as captain by Thomas J. Kenney, then a young and promising lawyer of Ashland.
The first troops to arrive at Washington were four companies of ununiform- ed and unarmed Pennsylvanians, who expected to find uniforms, arms and equipments at the capitol. Stones were thrown at them as they passed through Baltimore. Upon their arrival at Washington they were given quarters in the hall of the house of representatives. With one of the companies was a colored attendant called Nick Biddle, named, perchance, for the once-famous financier -- Nicholas Biddle. This colored attendant had been struck on the head at Balti- more; had tied a handkerchief over the wound, and then drew his cap down tightly over that. At Washington he removed cap and bandage and the blood ran down from the wound and dripped upon the marble floor of the rotunda of the capitol. The first blood of the civil war.
On Saturday morning, May 25, they left Columbus for Bellaire where they arrived in the evening. On Sunday an incident occurred worthy of note. Dan Rice's show boat came along the river with band playing and some of the boys thought the boat was the advance of the rebel.
Early on Monday morning, May 27, the Sixteenth crossed the Ohio river on the Brown Dick, and has the distinction of being the first regiment that crossed the river into Dixie.
The Sixteenth advanced along the Baltimore and Ohio railroad to the Burnt Bridges, near Mannington, where the first halt was made. The next advance was to Grafton, then to Phillipi, where it participated in the first battle of the war.
The batallion of the Sixteenth of which Captain Kenney's company was a part, returned to Grafton, then advanced to Rowlesburg, to Cheat Mountain, to the Red House, and to Oakland. At the expiration of their term of service the boys returned home after having participated in all the stirring service and hard marches of that West Virginia campaign and were mustered out of service August 18.
Picture the event of the "boys" leaving Bellville for the war. Roll back the forty-one years which have intervened between then and now and look at the scene as though it was present before you today. Main street is lined on either side with people, tearful and silent. Men, women and children have come
CENTER ST. ASHLAND, O
CENTER STREET, ASHLAND
HIGHLAND AVE. ASHLAND
HIGHLAND AVENUE, ASHLAND
209
HISTORY OF ASHLAND COUNTY
out to see their sons and brothers leave. The hurrahs are hushed. The martial music and the tramp of the marching troops smite the silence with strokes of pain. The company boards the cars, the bell rings, the steam shrieks and the train moves on. The "boys" have gone to war.
Three months and more go by and the scene changes. People are again on the street, but now it is to welcome the "boys" home. But it is difficult to write of soldiers returning to their homes. The pen, rarely failing when it depicts sorrow, often falters at the threshold of joy. Sorrow is so real, there is relief in its cry. But joy is so subtle and spiritual, its finest essence is but seldom im- prisoned in words.
The war continues and another scene is witnessed at Bellville. A squad of soldiers is seen marching with reversed arms. There is a hearse with nodding plumes and there is a coffin wrapped in the American flag. There are carriages filled with sorrowing friends. And there are many citizens in line following the mortal remains of an old friend to the cemetery.
There have been thousands of similar scenes for Ohio alone had eleven thousand two hundred and twenty-seven soldiers killed in battle during the Civil war. The bodies of many were brought home for burial, while six thousand five hundred and sixty-three were left dead on the field of battle.
There were also thirteen thousand three hundred and fifty-four Ohio soldiers who died of disease and wounds during their service, making the list of Ohio's dead, twenty-four thousand eight hundred and one. This does not include any who died after having been discharged from the service.
Ohio's quota under President Lincoln's call for seventy-five thousand men was ten thousand one hundred and fifty-three, and within the week over thirty regiments were offered-six companies of which were from Richland county. The number of men accepted by the state under that call was twelve thousand three hundred and fifty-seven.
The Sixteenth was the first regiment that crossed the Ohio river and entered the so-called Southern Confederacy. The Sixteenth did guard duty along the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad for two hundred miles, repaired and rebuilt the bridges wrecked and burned by the rebels; it did a great deal of hard marching, and was in the fight at Phillipi -- the first battle of the war. It was in that try- ing march from Thornton to Phillipi, through the terrible storm, the night before the battle. General Lew Wallace, then colonel of an Indiana regiment, who has since attained world-wide fame as the author of "Ben Hur" was with us on that memorable march, when the lightning flashed along and athwart the mountain tops and the thunder roared through the valleys and reverberated among the hills, and the rain poured in incessant torrents upon the boys in blue as we marched along unknown roads to-we knew not what.
After that the Sixteenth was encamped at Rowlesburg, one of the most romantic places along the picturesque Baltimore and Ohio. Later the regiment under General Hill marched to the summit of Cheat Mountain to intercept Garnett's retreating forces from Laurel Hill. At Carrick's Ford the rebel general. Garnett, was killed while endeavoring to rally his men.
The Sixteenth pursued the retreating rebel army to the Red House and beyond; they later went into camp at Oakland, Maryland, from which place they
210
HISTORY OF ASHLAND COUNTY
returned to Ohio and were discharged, having more than completed their term of enlistment.
Limit will not permit of details, or even of naming other companies orga- nized later and for longer terms of service, except to state that Richland county throughout the above conflict did her duty nobly and that many of her sons won distinction in the field, as others had, and have since, on the forum and in legislative halls.
It would be an honor to write the name of each private soldier, for their deeds are recorded in the blood of battle and are emblazoned in glory. But "they need no encomium, for their patriotism will be remembered and cherished after official titles are forgotten.
Many Richland county boys who then went forth to war never returned. Some were killed on southern battlefields and were buried where they fell; some died in hospitals, others in rebel prisons. The bodies of a few were brought. home and interred in our local cemeteries and their graves are annually decorated in the May time.
The Duke of Wellington said : "Take my word for it, if you had seen but one day of war, you would pray that you might never see another." . Those who have seen the carnage of war on the battlefield, will concur in that saying.
What events have transpired, what characters have passed off the stage of action since the war! The majority of our Ashland county boys who so patrioti- cally went forth in defense of liberty and union-one and inseparable-have since answered the final roll call,
"And we'll find them camped in meadows where the waters stilly flow, Where the sward is soft and verdant and the flowers of heaven grow."
President Lincoln was barely permitted to see the end of the struggle. General Grant, who was wont to move upon the enemy's works immediately, with intent to fight it out on that line if it took all summer, now sleeps at Riverside. Sheridan, who made that wonderful ride to victory, has since taken another ride on a pale horse through the valley of shadows. Sherman, who marched his valiant army from Atlanta to the sea, has gone up the hills of immortality. But none of these could have achieved such greatness and fame but for the valor and heroism of the private soldiers.
General George B. McClellan, on May 14, was commissioned major general of volunteers, and assigned to the command of the department of Ohio, com- prising Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and West Virginia. His first move was against Colonel Potterfield, who, with a force of confederates, was stationed at Grafton, West Virginia, under orders from General Lee to muster volunteers at that place.
On May 27, Union troops, led by the Sixteenth Ohio Infantry, crossed the Ohio river at Bellaire, and proceeded along the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, and upon their advance, the rebel force abandoned Grafton and retreated to Phillipi, the county seat of Barbour county, twenty-two miles south of Grafton.
On June 2, General Morris and Colonel Kelley held a conference at Grafton and arranged for a movement on Phillipi. The plan was for simultaneous movement of two columns by different routes, one from Grafton, via Thornton, under Colonel Kelley ; the other from Webster, under Colonel Dumont.
Colonel Kelley's division consisted of the First Virginia, a portion of the
211
HISTORY OF ASHLAND COUNTY
Sixteenth Ohio, under Colonel Irvine, and the Ninth Indiana under Colonel Milroy. Colonel Kelley's column went by rail to Thornton, then marched south twenty-two miles to Phillipi. The latter part of the march was made in the night, through a furious storm and drenching rain. .
Colonel Dumont's column left the railroad at Webster, and had twelve miles to march to Phillipi. This division consisted of the eight companies of the Seventh Indiana, four companies of the Sixth Indiana under Colonel Crittenden, four companies of the Fourteenth Ohio under Colonel Steedman, and a battery of Barnett's artillery, under command of Lieutenant Colonel $. B. Sturges. Colonel F. W. Lander, of General Mcclellan's staff, was with Colonel Dumont's division.
At early dawn on the morning of June 3, the artillery fired on the town. The first two rounds were of canister. The third was a six pound solid shot, and was aimed at a stable in the cavalry camp. In the stable, Mr. Hanger and a number of other confederate cavalrymen were sleeping, and on coming out at the alarm, Mr. Hanger was struck by this ball, nearly tearing off his left leg below the knee. The ball had struck the ground, ricocheted, and then hit the side of the door, and then struck Mr. Hanger, as stated above. The ball is now in his possession.
After being wounded, Mr. Hanger managed to climb the ladder and take refuge in the hay loft, where he was found after the fight was over by H. A. Thomas, then a member of Company B, Sixteenth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, now a resident of Mansfield. Mr. Thomas saw a trail of blood, and following it up the ladder, found Mr. Hanger lying in the mow, seemingly nearly dead from the loss of blood.
The late Dr. J. D. Robison, of Wooster, the surgeon of the Sixteenth Ohio Infantry, was called, who, upon examination, found it necessary to amputate the limb above the knee. Dr. Robison was assisted in performing the operation by Dr. Thorborne, and the amputation was so well done that Mr. Hanger-then only eighteen years old-was able to get around on crutches in about a month. In August he was sent to Columbus as a prisoner of war; was afterwards ex- changed and returned to his home in Virginia. He soon tired of using crutches and made for himself an artificial limb-the first wooden leg worn by a con- federate soldier. He soon had similar work to do for others, and at the close of the war, he got an order from the state of Virginia to make artificial limbs for all her maimed soldiers. In time he removed his plant from Richmond to Washington, where he now resides.
The battle of Phillipi resulted in the rout of Colonel Potterfield and his men, who retreated towards Beverly. They were pursued for some distance, and in a running fight, several were killed and wounded.
While leading his men, Colonel Kelley was shot in the breast, producing an almost fatal wound. He was shot by Assistant Quartermaster Limms, of Potterfield's staff. Among the prisoners taken was Colonel W. J. Willey, upon whose person were found important military papers, one of which was an order to destroy bridges of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad.
The secession flag that floated over Phillipi was captured by the Seventh
212
HISTORY OF ASHLAND COUNTY
Indiana, and in its stead was flung to the breeze the flag presented by the ladies of Aurora, Indiana, to that regiment upon its departure to the front.
And the Star Spangled Banner waved in triumph over the captured town.
SIXTY-FIFTH REGIMENT, OHIO VOLUNTEER INFANTRY.
The Sixty-fifth was a part of the brigade raised at Mansfield by Hon. John Sherman, and organized at Camp Buckingham, and mustered into service December 1, 1861. Its term of service was three years. The regiment was commanded by Colonel Charles G. Harker. Part of a company from Ashland county entered the Sixty-fifth under the following officers :
COMMISSIONED OFFICERS.
Captain, Orlow Smith; first lieutenant, Charles Gregg; second lieutenant, Charles O. Tannehill.
Company G was mustered into the United States service at Camp Bucking- ham, Mansfield, Ohio, November 25, 1865, and discharged at Victoria, Texas, November 30, 1865.
The mortality list was not included in the roll, and, hence, cannot appear here. It is certain, however, that the company performed arduous duty in the far South, and was considerably diminished by disease and death before its discharge.
Captain Orlow Smith was promoted to lieutenant colonel, October 10, 1865, and to colonel, November 24, 1865.
The Sixty-fifth was employed some months, in 1862, in Kentucky, repairing and guarding roads, then marched into Tennessee to Columbia, and thence to Savannah, Georgia, and from thence to Pittsburg Landing, and participated in that battle. It next moved to Corinth, and was at the seige, and returned to Louisville, Kentucky. It was ordered to march toward Stone River, and was in the battle of December 29, 1862. In June, 1863, it was ordered to Chattanooga, and participated in that battle. The Sixty-fifth passed on to Mission Ridge, and took part in that engagement. Then came the Atlanta campaign-the affair at Lookout Mountain, Resaca, Dallas, Marietta, Kenesaw, Peachtree Creek, and Jonesborough, in which the Sixty-fifth took a part. On the 29th of November, it was in the battle of Springfield; on the 30th, in the battle of Franklin, and afterwards, in the battle of Nashville. In June, 1865, the regiment was ordered to Texas, and remained at San Antonio until December, and was ordered to Camp Chase, Ohio, where it was mustered out January 2, 1866. The Sixty-fifth came out of service scarred veterans.
The Sixty-fifth was a part of the noted Sherman brigade.
THE EIGHTY-SECOND REGIMENT, OHIO VOLUNTEER INFANTRY.
The Eighty-second was recruited in Ashland, Logan, Marion, Union and Richland counties, for three years. It was commanded by Colonel James Cant-
213
HISTORY OF ASHLAND COUNTY
well, who was killed in the second battle of Manassas. The regiment was mustered into service December 31, 1861, and contained nine hundred and sixty- eight men. Ashland county had one company, K. Its officers were :
COMMISSIONED OFFICERS.
Captain, David S. Sampsell, resigned July 30, 1862; captain, Francis S. Jacobs, resigned; first lieutenant, John S. Fulton, died April 30, 1862; first lieutenant, Francis S. Jacobs, promoted to captain; first lieutenant, John A. McClusky, resigned; first lieutenant, James J. Beer, killed May 3, 1863; first lieutenant, Warren Wasson, resigned; first lieutenant, George W. Youngblood, mustered out; second lieutenant, Francis S. Jacobs, promoted first lieutenant; second lieutenant; James J. Beer, promoted first lieutenant; second lieutenant, Warren Wasson, promoted first lieutenant; second lieutenant, George W. Youngblod, promoted first lieutenant.
Company K. was mustered out at Louisville, Kentucky, July 24, 1865. We are unable to make out the mortality list from the roll; but by reference to the regimental service, which follows, it will be seen that company K performed arduous duty, and that its ranks were greatly thinned by disease and the casualties of war.
THE EIGHTY-SECOND REGIMENT.
In January, 1862, the Eighty-second was ordered from Kenton, Ohio, its place of rendezvous, to West Virginia, and went into camp near the village of Fetterman, for instruction and drill. In the spring the regiment, in the brigade of General Robert Schenck, was sent to various points in pursuit of guerillas, after which it was ordered to go to the aid of General Milroy, near McDowell. The Confederate forces were attacked by Generals Schenck and Milroy near Bull Pasture mountain, and compelled them to retreat. The Eighty-second then joined General John C. Fremont, and passed by rapid marches through Petersburg, when the battle of Strasburgh occurred, and the enemy again re- treated under Stonewall Jackson. The column passed on to Cross Keys, where a running fight ensued, Jackson crossed the Shenandoah, destroying the bridge and marched leisurely away, having scattered the forces of General Shields. The tardiness of Fremont in the pursuit of Jackson, practically ended his military career. Severe campaigning followed. The troops returned to Middletown, and General Siegel took command of the division. The Eighty-
second was transferred to an independent brigade, commanded by General Milroy. On the 7th of August Siegel's corps moved to Culpeper; and on the 9th toward Cedar Mountain, where a battle was going on. Milroy moved to the front to relieve exhausted troops; and on the night of the 10th, the enemy re- treated. The Eighty-second destroyed Waterloo bridge, and skirmished con- tinually for ten days. The second battle of Manassas took place, and Colonel Cantwell, in leading a charge, was killed. The Eighty-second was much ex- posed and suffered severely in the battle. The National forces were finally
214
HISTORY OF ASHLAND COUNTY
compelled to withdraw to Centerville. In September the Eighty-second moved to Fort de Kalb, Siegel's headquarters. On the 25th it advanced to Fairfax Court House and the campaign closed with the attempt to capture the heights of Fredericksburgh. The Eighty-second was transported to the division of General Schurz, and by him designated as a batallion of sharpshooters. In April, 1863, the Eleventh corps moved on the Chancellorsville campaign, crossing the Rappa- hannock, at Kelley's Ford, and the Rapidan, at Ely's Mills; and on the 30th arrived within three miles of the battle ground. The battle opened May 2, and the Eighty-second and others deployed with fixed bayonets, and fell back to the rifle-pits. The Eighty-second held its position; but regiment after regiment was pressed back under the terrible charge of the forces of Stonewall Jackson, and it finally fell back. It took a new position, having but one hundred and
thirty-four men with the colors.
Here Captain James J. Beer, a gallant young
officer from Ashland county, fell. After the battle, the remaining members of the Eighty-second returned to its old camp near Stafford. In June, the Gettysburgh campaign commenced. The Eighty-second participated in that
arduous campaign. It was ordered to move over the plain to assail, with its brigade, the Confederate works. In the attempt it lost twenty of its remaining men. The gaps were promptly filled, and the Eighty-second advanced within seventy-five yards of the Confederate lines. It went into the battle with twenty- two commissioned officers, and two hundred and thirty-six privates, and of these, nineteen officers and one hundred and forty-seven men were killed, wounded or captured. The balance of the regiment brought the colors, tattered and torn by shot and shell, safely from the field. The ranks of the Eighty-second were so thinned by disease and battle that when General Sherman reached Goldsboro it was consolidated with the Sixty-first Ohio.
EIGHTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT, OHIO VOLUNTEER INFANTRY.
The Eighty-seventh rendezvoused at Camp Chase in June, 1862, and was a ,three months organization. It was commanded by Colonel Henry B. Banning. A short time after its organization, it was ordered to Baltimore and placed under the command of Major General Wool, commander of the post. Upon the arrival of the regiment in Baltimore it was assigned to a camp north of the city. The Ashland company in this regiment was officered by :
Captain, Henry H. Otis; first lieutenant, William H. Johnston; second lieutenant, James A. Landis.
THE ONE HUNDRED AND SECOND REGIMENT.
The One Hundred and Second enlisted under the call of July 1, 1862, for three hundred thousand men. It was recruited from Ashland, Holmes, Richland and Wayne counties, and was commanded by Colonel William Given. It was
organized at Camp Mansfield, on the 18th of August, 1862. Ashland county furnished two full companies. The officers were :
215
HISTORY OF ASHLAND COUNTY
COMPANY B.
COMMISSIONED OFFICERS.
Captain, John McNaull, resigned December 20, 1862; first lieutenant, Joseph R. Folwell, promoted captain December 20, 1862, and discharged; first lieutenant, William A. Beer, of Company K, promoted captain in 1864; second lieutenant, Holiday Ames, promoted first lieutenant December 20, 1862; second lieutenant, John T. Robert, promoted second lieutenant December 20, 1862.
COMPANY K.
COMMISSIONED OFFICERS.
Captain, John M. Sloan; first lieutenant, Willam A. Beer; second lieuten- ant, Jerome Potter.
The One Hundred and Second was ordered to Kentucky, and mustered into service at Covington, September 6, 1862. It was ordered to Louisville, and went into the trenches to defend that city. In October, it marched to Shelbyville, Franklin, and Perryville, and thence to Crab Orchard; thence to Bowling Green. From thence it was ordered to Clarksville, Tennessee, for
drill and camp duty.
In September, 1863, it returned to Shelbyville, to aid
It in repelling the invasion of General Wheeler, of the Confederate army. returned to Nashville, and went into winter quarters. In April, 1864, the One Hundred and Second marched to Tullahoma, and thence to Bellefonte,
Alabama. Here it was ordered to patrol the Tennessee river, from Stevenson to Seven Mile island, a distance of fifty miles. On this line it erected twelve blockhouses and one fort. The regiment was frequently assailed by guerillas, and suffered considerably from exposure and sickness. Shortly after the com- pletion of its fort and other works, General Forrest, of the Confederate army, made a dash upon the One Hundred and Second with his cavalry, and captured a portion of its men under Colonel Elliott, near Athens, after a severe fight. Six months afterward the prisoners were paroled and placed on board the ill-fated Sultana, at Vicksburgh, and eighty-one men of the One Hundred and Second were lost. On the twenty-fourth of October, General Hood, of the Confederate forces, attacked the garrison at Decatur, Alabama, in which the remaining com- panies of the One Hundred and Second were on duty, and were conspicuous in the fight. After the evacuation of Decatur, the One Hundred and Second con- tinued in active duty in Tennessee until June 30, 1865, when it was mustered out at Nashville; returned to Camp Chase, Ohio, and was paid and discharged July 8, 1865. The regiment was noted for its prompt obedience of orders, and gallantry in the face of the enemy.
THE ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTIETH REGIMENT, OHIO VOLUNTEER INFANTRY.
This regiment was organized at Camp Mansfield, under the call for three hundred thousand men, in August, 1862. The regiment was recruited from
216
HISTORY OF ASHLAND COUNTY
Ashland, Holmes, Richland, and Wayne counties, and contained nine hundred and forty-nine men. It was commanded by Colonel Daniel French. Ashland county furnished two full companies.
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.