History of the city of Columbus, capital of Ohio, Volume II, Part 14

Author: Lee, Alfred Emory, 1838-; W. W. Munsell & Co
Publication date: 1892
Publisher: New York and Chicago : Munsell & Co.
Number of Pages: 1196


USA > Ohio > Franklin County > Columbus > History of the city of Columbus, capital of Ohio, Volume II > Part 14


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The March on Richmond Begun - Fairfax Courthouse invested by Federal Troops - Manassas Junction to be avoided - 50,000 Federal Troops Moving - They are to Cut their Way Through to Richmond - General Johnston in Full Retreat -- General Patterson in Close Pursuit.


On July 21 the Bull Run battle was fought, resulting in a disastrous defeat, panic and flight of the national forces. The consternation caused by this calamity


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can hardly now be adequately conceived. The effects it produced in Columbus are reflected in the following passages in the Ohio State Journal :


An immense, surging crowd assembled in front of our office. All expected the enemy would soon be ours and the oppression and gloom of war gave way to sunshine and joy. But at noon eame dispatches announeing disaster, and a most despondent gloom spread over their faces and a pall seemed to settle npon their spirits. But in the evening a feeling of determination and revengeful resistance was aroused such as words cannot describe. " I feel like going myself!" was the exclamation of everyone who spoke.


Until this time the popular impression, encouraged from Washington, had been that the war would be brief. Thousands of Ohio volunteers had been sent back to their homes as we have seen, and ten regiments more than required by the War Department had been retained in service by the Governor on his own re- sponsibility. Mr. Seward had inferentially assured the people that the trouble would be a matter of sixty days. Instead of being inspired to gird themselves for a great struggle, the loyal States bad rather been admonished not to embarrass the National Government with a redundancy of resources. The Bull Run disaster quickly dissipated these delusions. It made plain to the public mind that the act of summoning 75,000 militia for the brief period of three months to suppress such a conspiracy as had been organized was, as Mr. Greeley characterizes it, " a de- plorable error." Just at the time when the nation needed an organized army for prompt and sustained action the term of enlistment of these threemonths men had expired. Yet both government and people were fortunate in gaining, even through disaster, some adequate knowledge of the gigantie task before them. Congress, which was in extra session at the time the Bull Run rout took place, immediately passed bills authorizing the President to accept one million volun- teers. Recruiting had already recommenced under the President's eall of July 1 for 300,000 threeyears men, and in the city of Columbus several new companies both for field and home service were organized.


Among the companies having their origin in the city at or about this time was a socalled Zouave corps, of which the officers were : Captain, H. Park ; First Lieutenant, W. B. Hayden ; Second Lieutenant, H. C. Geary ; Third Lieutenant, Joseph Quinn ; Ensign, Joseph Mellen. These officers were elected May 25. The company adopted the name of Coldstream Zouaves, and a uniform consisting of a red cap, darkblue trousers and a blue jacket trimmed with red. The company formed part of what was known as the Home Guard, but in August offered its services for the field and was assigned to the Fortysixth Ohio Infantry. Its armory was at the corner of High and Gay streets. In October a company called the Coldstream Guards was organized with the following officers : Captain, II. C. Geary ; First Lieutenant, E. M. Upton ; Second Lieutenant, Joseph Mellen. Another Home Guard company, organized in the Fifth Ward, was known as the Columbus Grays. Its Captain was Frederick Beck, its First Lieutenant, Jacob Voglegesang, and its Second Lieutenant, Frederick Beck, Junior. Still another, organized under Captain M. C. Lilley, was ordered to southern Ohio June 20, to guard railway bridges. Its officers, besides Captain Lilley, were: First Lieuten-


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HISTORY OF THE CITY OF COLUMBUS.


ant, James M. Stewart; Second Lieutenant, James M. Comly. The company re- turned from its guard service July 24. A second company of the Vedettes was organized under Captain Thomas Arnold, and a second company of the Fencibles under Captain George C. Crum. A company of Highschool boys was organized as the Columbus Cadets, Captain Theon Thrall ; uniform, scarlet cap and red trowsers. We hear of the Goodale Zouaves, alias Goodale Guard, early in 1862. A company was recruited by Captain C. C. Walcutt for the threemonths service, but after ineffectual efforts to obtain a satisfactory assignment was disbanded. Captain Walcutt was finally appointed an inspector with the rank of major on the staff of Brigadier-General Charles W. Hill, in Western Virginia.


The first prisoner arrested and brought to Columbus for alleged participation in the rebellion was a man said to have been detected in firing a bridge. He arrived June 29, and was lodged in the Stationhouse. The first batch of seces- sionist captives brought from the field was a party of twentythree, mostly " wealthy and influential citizens of Virginia," who had been taken in the Kan- awha Valley as hostages for Union men seized by the Confederates. They arrived, under guard, July 5, and were lodged at Camp Chase, but were released a few days later and returned via Chillicothe and Gallipolis to their homes. On July 16 four arrivals at the camp from Virginia increased the number of captives there to twelve. Twentyeight more, mostly officers, arrived from Virginia August 17. Sixteen Confederate soldiers, captured near Cheat Mountain, were brought in August 30. A squad of fifteen or twenty secessionists, taken in Louis County, Virginia, and fourteen more captured in battle near Summerville, same State, were added to the Camp Chase colony on September 16 and 18, respectively. Fortythree from Kentucky and twelve taken near Cross Lanes, Virginia, arrived " by special train from Cincinnati " October 27. Eight were brought in from the Kanawha Valley November 6, and eleven from Cheat Mountain November 13. The total number at the camp by this time was 278. On December 19 eight more arrived from Romney. The Ohio Statesman of November 6 contained this :


The following distinguished secesh prisoners have by order of General [O. M.] Mitchell been sent from Camp Chase to Fort Lafayette - Colonel B. F. Stanton, Isaac Nelson, Thomas Carten, R. S. Thomas and George Forrester. The rumor is that they concocted well laid plans for an escape from Camp Chase.


Ohio State Journal, February 24:


A large number of rebel prisoners taken at Bloomery Gap, in General Lander's Division, were brought to "Camp Chase Hotel " Friday night. The squad included one colonel, Robert J. Baldwin who was captured by General Lander himself in the assault upon that place; six captains, nine lieutenants, five first sergeants, six other sergeants, five corporals and nineteen privates. They were brought there in charge of Major Armstrong, of the Fifth Ohio. Nine prisoners captured near Fayetteville, Kentucky, by Colonel Scammon, of the Twentythird Ohio, also arrived on Saturday last.


On October 12 Governor Dennison appealed to the county military commit- tees, which had then been appointed throughout the State, for contributions of


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1. IN WARTIME-1861.


clothing and blankets for the Ohio troops then said to be exposed to great hardships in the mountain regions of Western Virginia. The hardships, it was afterwards known, were exaggerated, but the response to the appeal was prompt and liberal. Within the course of a few weeks nearly eight thousand blankets, ten thousand pairs of woolen socks and a proportionate quantity of other artieles were forwarded to Quartermaster-General Wright, at Columbus. The people of the capital con- tributed their full share of these articles.


Pursuant to an order of September 27, by Adjutant-General Buckingham, citizen military committees to cooperate in the enlistment and supply of the vol- unteers were appointed. Ou October 8 the committee for the Twelfth Congressional District was thus announced : J. A. Wilcox, John P. Bruck, George Taylor, John Graham, Moses Seymour and Amos Reese. The Franklin County committee, appointed by that of the district, was as follows : J. H. Riley, James H. Smith, C. N. Olds, Peter Ambos, L. W. Babbitt, of Plain Township; Doctor MeLean, of Lockbourne; and Doctor J. B. Potter, of Canal Winchester. On October 8 Adjutant-General Buckingham announced that in the appointment of lieutenants the county committees would, in future, be consulted. At a later date the com- mittees were requested to nominate all the line officers of the new companies being recruited within their respective districts.


In the earlier part of May a contract was awarded to S. E. Ogden for the supply of rations to the troops at Camp Jackson at the rate of $14.50 per hundred; one hundred rations to consist of 40 pounds of beef, 51 of pork, 112 of flour or bread, ten of rice, six of Java coffee, twelve of sugar, one and a half of tallow candles, four of soap, eight quarts of beans and four quarts of vinegar. Among the contracts for army clothing awarded to Columbus men by Quartermaster- General Wright were these: For blouses and cavalry overcoats to Smith & Comstock ; for shirts to Dwight Stone ; for drawers to J. & T. E. Miller.


Early in August a train of twentyseven cars laden with artillery and ammu- nition for General Fremont's army in Missouri passed Columbus, going west. The delivery of these munitions being desired in the shortest possible time, they were being forwarded from Pittsburgh by the Adams Express, which had charge of the entire train and its freight. Four carloads of Enfield rifles cousigned to Fremont, passed the city August 30. They also were being forwarded by the Adams Company. Forty cases of English rifles, consigned from Liverpool to Governor Dennison, reached Columbus October 5. Thirtyseven cases more arrived October 8, and on the same date the American Express brought one hundred cases of smoothbore muskets which had been rifled by Miles Greenwood, of Cincinnati.


One of the curious episodes of this year was the circulation and general belief of a report that General W. T. Sherman, commanding in Kentucky, was insane. The Ohio Statesman of December 13 said :


The Cincinnati Commercial [with which paper the report originated] states that it has information which it cannot discredit that General W. T. Sherman, late commander of the Kentucky Department, is insane. Symptoms which incited notice during his administration in Kentucky have at length developed


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HISTORY OF THE CITY OF COLUMBUS.


into a decided type. This disarms all censure of his management and all criti- cisms npon his ability, and excites sympathy in their stead.


The Ohio State Journal thus commented :


When General Buell took command of that [Kentucky] Department, it is now becoming evident that the whole situation was actually imperiled and the army comparatively demoralized under the unfortunate management of General Sherman. It consequently devolved on General Buell to reorganize the whole division. Delicacy has doubtless prevented him from making any expose of affairs.


The sequel has abundantly proved that the annals of war have seldom exhibited a more senseless and wicked abuse of the privileges of the press than that which gave origin to this slander.


In summing up the results of Governor Dennison's administration in 1861, Reid's Ohio in the War says:


In spite of difficulties and depression the Adjutant-General was able, at the close of the year, to report fortysix regiments of infantry, four of cavalry and twelve batteries of artillery in the field, with twentytwo more regiments of infan- try and four of cavalry full or nearly full, and thirteen in process of organization. In all, the State had in the three-years service seventyseven thousand eight hundred and fourtyfour men, besides the twentytwo thousand three hundred and eighty men furnished at the first eall for three months.


NOTES.


1. The following statement as to the first enlistments, reported in the Ohio State Journal of August 16, 1891, from Mr. J. Kilbourn Jones, of the Fencibles, may be regarded as authentic :


" As soon as the news of the Sumter affair was received, a number of us who were - anxious to become soldiers spent all our time about the armorv, waiting for the call. We not only remained there all day but staid until late in the evening. Among the most enthusiastic were H. A. Thatcher, A. O. Mitchell and myself. On Monday, the fifteenth, the President's proclamation was officially received. Captain Riley, of the Fencibles, and Captain Thrall of the Vedettes, were both present in the Governor's office at the time wait- ing for orders to begin recruiting. When Governor Dennison received the President's call for troops each captain started for his armory. The Vedettes's armory was on Town Street, while ours was directly opposite the Statehouse, over what is now known as Andrew Dobbie's drygoods store. The stairway was where the Western Union Telegraph Office is located. At the head of the stairs, on the second floor, was a small room used as a business office for the company. We were in the room, and when Captain Riley entered and told us the news I was sitting with a blank already filled out in my hand. I immediately placed my signa- ture to it and handed it to the captain. Mitchell and Thateher did likewise, but I was first ; my name appears in that position on the musterroll. Mitchell's name appears third, under that of Thatcher. J. M. Elliott, the photographer, who was the first man of Vedettes to enlist, once disputed the question of precedence with me, but I convinced him that it would necessarily take longer to go from the Statehouse to the Vedettes's armory than it would to ours."


2. The Senate passed the amendment on the eighteenth, but it was no more heard of. Eight votes were recorded against it - those of Messrs. Buck, Cox, Garfield, Glass, Monroe Morse, Parrish and Smith,


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3. Reid's Ohio in the War says: "It thus came about that when the bewildering mass of military business was precipitated upon him [the Governor] on the fifteenth of April, he met it with a staff in which it seemed as if the capacity of bad selection had been almost exhausted. Some of them had no executive ability ; some had no tact ; one was wholly impractical ; they failed to command the confidence of the gathering volunteers, and at least two of them were the butt of every joker and idle clerk about the Capitol."


4. Volume I, page 29.


5. The principal officers on Governer Dennison's staff at this time were Adjutant- General, H. B. Carrington ; Quartermaster-General, D. L. Wood; Commissary General, George W. Runyan. Some months later the staff was reorganized as follows: Adjutant. General, C. P. Buckingham; Assistant Ajutant-General, Rodney Mason ; Quartermaster- General, George B. Wright; Assistant Quartermaster-General, Anthony B. Bullock ; Com- missary-General, Columbus Delano ; Judge- Advocate-General, C. P. Wolcott ; Surgeon- General. W. L. McMillen ; Aides, Adolphus E. Jones, Martin Welker.


6. Ohio State Journal.


7. The report of the Commissary-General shows that Butler, Donaldson & Comstock furnished 176,223 meals for $29,404.24, and Deshler & Co. 144,846 meals for $24,140.99.


8. Of the arms thus received, says the Quartermaster-General's report, " two thousand only were firstclass percussion muskets, the remainder being old arms of various dates." The report continues : "During the months of May and June repeated calls were made by the Governor upon the Ordnance Department. through General MeClellan, and directly upon the Secretary of War, for further supplies of arms and equipments, both for infantry and cavalry, but none were received until October, when three thousand secondclass altered muskets came to hand. In this emergency it was deemed advisable to try the ex- periment of rifling and otherwise improving the smoothbore muskets. An arrangement was made with Miles Greenwood, of Cincinnati, to execute the necessary alterations at a cost of $1.25 for each musket. In addition he was to affix breech sights to one-twentieth of the entire number at an additional cost of $1.75 each. The experiment was highly successful and a large number otherwise unserviceable arms at this small cost made serviceable and effec- tive weapons. ... Of the thirtythree smoothbore sixpounders under the control of the Quartermaster-General at the beginning of the rebellion, twentyseven have been rehushed, rebored and rifled at a cost of $1,350. . . As many of these guns were without caissons, and as there were no traveling forges or battery wagons attached to our batteries, these, with many other essentials to make them effective, had to be constructed. This work has been mostly done in Columbus at the establishment of Hall, Ayres & Co. at Government cost price. . . Favorable contracts were also made with John S. Hall, Peter Hayden and other parties in the State for necessary supplies of artillery-harness, cavalry and infantry equip- ments and accoutrements."


The report here quoted was made by General George B. Wright, Quartermaster-General, who assumed his official duties on July 1, and discharged them with great efficiency. The period covered by the report includes the greater part of the year 1861. Of the State Labora- tory for the manufacture of fixed ammunition, which was established in the old carshops of Kimball & Ridgway, in Franklinton, General Wright says: "At one period the number of hands employed at the laboratory was 260, more than half of whom were girls and young women." Up to the date of the report-December 15-the establishment had produced over 2,500,000 cartridges for small arms and artillery.


Of a notable contract for cannonballs for the use of a Cleveland battery hastily ordered to Marietta to assist in the defense of the border, we have the following account in one of the Columbus papers: "The Columbus Machine Company received an order on Sunday, about 4 o'clock, for two tons of cannonballs from the State. The patterns had to be made and the workmen gathered up, but notwithstanding all this, at 5 o'clock last evening they succeeded in filling the order and delivering them at the depot. They were for sixpounders, and were


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handed over to Colonel Barnett's artillery from Cleveland, which passed through here last night to some point on the Ohio River."


9. Ohio in the War, Volume I, page 29.


Some days later contracts for three thousand overcoats were awarded to the following Columbus contractors : O'Harra & Co., C. Breyfogle, B. E. Smith, Theodore Comstock, A. A. Stewart and William Miller.


10. The following companies were announced as present in the camp at noon, April 23: Captain Childs's, Dayton ; Captain McDougal's, Licking County ; Captain Marrow's, Colum- bus ; Captain Cummings's, Shelby ; Captain Harris's, Cincinnati ; Captain Walcutt's, Colum- bus ; Captain Johnson's, Piqua; Captain Langston's, Covington ; Captain Snyder's, Col- umbus ; Captain Turney's, Columbus.


The arrivals of companies on April 22 and 23 were thus chronicled, each being entitled by the name of its commanding officer: Rossman's, Hamilton ; Vananda's, Springfield ; Weaver's, Hardin County ; Wallace's, Belmont County ; Gilmore's, Chillicothe ; Andrews's, Knox County ; Banning's, Knox County ; Drury's, Troy ; Coleman's, Troy ; Corwin's, Mad River ; Runkle's, Champaign County ; Lowe's, Greene County ; Harlan's, Clinton County ; Nicholas's, Lima; Nolan's Anderson Guards; Mason's Pickaway Tigers; Miller's Given Guards ; Ashmore's, Bellefontaine; Buell's, Marietta ; McMurchin's, Clermont; Powell's, Delaware ; Crawford's, Delaware ; total 2,888 men.


11. Regulations of the camp were announced by the Adjutant-General April 28. They were in substance as follows : 1. Discharge of firearms within the limits of the camp forbid- den. 2. Violations of this regulation and all cases of intemperance to be reported by com- pany commanders and punished by severe penalties. 3. Disorder in the dininghalls or bar- racks, forcing the lines of sentinels, and similar violations of discipline, to be reported to the camp commandant for condign punishment. 4. Each company to organize its own music, including beats and calls, but music during drillhours to be forbidden. 5. Companies attend- ing church in the city to march without music and of the camp exercises only rollcalls to be permitted on the Sabbath. 6. Visitors to be admitted only at stated times publicly announced, and not at all on Mondays and Tuesdays. 7. Commanders of companies quartered else- where than in the camp to report regularly every morning to the Assistant-Adjutant-Gen- eral. 8. Soldiers in camp to carry no arms except such as are used in the drill, and these only when the drill is in progress. 9. Evening prayers to be offered daily at four P. M. 10. Reli- gious service to be held at eleven A. M. on Sundays, but companies may attend divine service in the city on permission.


12. The committees appointed were : On purchases, Mrs. Dennison, Mrs. W. W. Fell, Mrs. Willard Knight, Mrs. Doctor McMillen ; on donations, Mrs. Henry C. Noble, Mrs. George M. Parsons, Mrs. A. B. Buttles, Mrs. Doctor S. M. Smith, Mrs. J. W. Andrews, Mrs. Baldwin Gwynne, Mrs. W. W. Fell, Mrs. J. William Baldwin, Mrs. Peter Ambos, Miss Kate Myers, Miss Mollie Andrews; on cutting garments, Mrs. Doctor MeCune, Mrs. F. W. Hnrtt, Mrs. Searles, Mrs. Joel Buttles, Mrs. Theodore Comstock, Mrs. Peter Campbell, Mrs. Godfrey Robinson, Mrs. P. Kimball, Mrs. E. E. Shedd, Mrs. Justin Morgan, Mrs. Doctor Fowler, Mrs. Francis D. Gage, Mrs. Doctor Ide, Mrs. Medbery, Mrs. Keys; on distribution, Mrs. Samuel Galloway, Mrs. F. W. Hurtt, Mrs. John Hall.


13. The signatures to this pledge included the names of all the dry- and fancygoods merchants in the city, and nearly all the participants in other branches of business, but complaint was soon made that some who had signed it were not keeping it as they should.


14. This camp was a United States post controlled by the National Government, and not, as was at the time popularly supposed, by the Governor of Ohio. Its administration was much complained of and the Governor was very unjustly blamed on account of it. It was in the department and under the control of General McClellan, under whose direction it was laid out by General Rosecrans.


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15. On May 7 appeared this comment : "Camp Jackson yesterday was a perfect mud- hole. It rained incessantly during the whole day."


16. On June 21 Captain Turney's company was disbanded, the requisite number of men to organize it not having been obtained.


17. Ohio State Journal.


18. Ohio Statesman.


19. The Ohio State Journal of July 6, 1861, remarked significantly : " Quartermaster- General Wright is gaining many friends by the manner he exhibits in awarding contracts. There has not a single case occurred in which the lowest responsible bidder did not get the contract for which he applied."


20. Ohio State Journal.


21. General L. Thomas.


22. Ohio State Journal.


CHAPTER IX.


II. IN WARTIME-1862.


The administration of Governor Tod began January 13, 1862. Of the staff officers of his predecessor he retained Adjutant-General C. P. Buckingham, Quar- ter-master General George B. Wright and Commissary-General Columbus Delano. The remaining staff appointments announced in due course were these : Judge- Advocate-General, Luther Day; Surgeon-General, Gustav C. E. Weber; Aide, Garretson J. Young. Adjutant-General Buckingham remained in office only until April 18, when he retired to take a position in the War Department, and was succeeded by Charles W. Hill. Another change took place in October, when, in lieu of Surgeon-General Weber, who resigned because of impaired health, the Governor appointed Doctor Samuel M. Smith of Columbus.


The year opened rather cheerlessly. The vast volunteer host which had so nobly responded to the various calls of the President had as yet experienced but faintly the inspiration of success. A few minor triumphs had been won, but seri- ous and bloody reverses had been suffered. A huge army lingered inactively on the Potomac while the Confederate flag floated within sight of the National Cap- ital. There were many optimists who still believed the struggle would be brief, or would be evaded by some sort of temporizing compromise, but the signs of the times gave no positive augury of its issue. Hope was mingled with apprehension, confidence with dread.


Thus January passed and February had begun when, scarcely looked for in the gloom of winter, a joyous message thrilled the nation. On February 6, Fort llenry fell, and on the sixteenth Fort Donelson. The effect of these tidings was everywhere electric, nowhere more so than at the capital of Ohio. As the good news "passed from lip to lip," says a contemporary record, " beams of patriotic gladness lighted up every countenance and glowed in every eye. . . . Every- where were groups and knots and crowds of citizens listening as some one read forth the dispatches that narrated the glorious victory." Flags were unfurled from windows and housetops, and cannon mingled with the peal of churchbells their thunderous voices. The General Assembly, unable to fix its attention on business, adjourned and, in joint meeting, resolved itself into a " committee of the whole on the glorious state of the Union." In the evening the Capitol and other public buildings and many private residences were illuminated, bonfires were built and shouting multitudes thronged the streets.




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