History of the city of Columbus, capital of Ohio, Volume II, Part 22

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 22

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The Columbus Society sent to the front large quantities of supplies for the sick and wounded, and also sent its agents to accompany them. Conspicuous among these agents were Doctor S. M. Smith, Doctor Starling Loving and Mr. F. C. Sessions. Without compensation, Mr. Sessions spent the greater part of his time for two years in this relief work, in the course of which he visited Kentucky, Fort Donelson, Pittsburgh Landing, Murfreesboro, Nashville, Antietam and the armies of Fremont and Grant in Virginia. Under direction of the Society a sani- tary committee made frequent inspection of the hospitals and camps around the city to see that they were properly provisioned and policed.

The Ladies' Aid Society was indefatigable in its efforts from the beginning of the war to the end. Its president during the greater part of the time after Mrs. Dennison, was Mrs. W. E. Ide. Among its most active members were Mrs. S. J. Haver, Mrs. George Heyl, Mrs. Lewis Heyl, Miss M. L. Swayne, Mrs. S. M. Smith, Miss Pamelia Sullivant, Mrs. H. C. Noble, Mrs. Harvey Coit, Mrs. Alexander Houston, Mrs. Joseph H. Geiger, Mrs. Isaac Castor, Mrs. James Beebe, Mrs. John S. Hall, Mrs. William G. Deshler, Mrs. Walter Brown, Mrs. E. T. Morgan, Mrs. F. C. Sessions and Mrs. John W. Andrews.

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The disbursements of the Franklin County Relief Fund, as reported to the Governor, were as follows: To September, 1861, 8345.50; 1862, 8997.13; 1863, $11,789.98 ; 1864, 824,535.00 ; 1865, 836, 556.49 ; to April, 1866, 89,294.00.

In Jannary, 1864, the Ohio Senate passed a resolution introduced by Mr. Gunckel looking to the establishment of a State Soldiers' Home. A bill reported by Mr. Gunckel in pursnance of this resolution having passed the Senate, and become a law, a board of trustees was appointed by Governor Anderson, and the Tripler Hospital,4 located near Camp Chase and used for the sick of that camp during the war, was donated to the State for the Home by the National Govern- ment. The board held its first meeting at the hospital October 3, 1865, and organized by electing Surgeon-General Barr president, and L. B. Gunckel secre- tary. The Superintendent of the Home appointed by the board at this meeting was Captain Isaac Brayton, of Newburg; the Resident Surgeon, Dr. J. C. Denise, of Dayton, and the Consulting Surgeon, Doctor Barr, Surgeon-General of Ohio. Doctor Denise had been executive officer at the Tripler Hospital from its opening to its elose. The Home was formally opened October 17, and on that date received fifteen disabled veterans. On the occasion of the opening an address was delivered by Governor Anderson. By November 20 the number of inmates had risen above one hundred. A considerable quantity of public property which had been used at Tod Barracks was donated to the Home by order of the Secretary of War. By March 1, 1866, the number of disabled soldiers at the Home had increased to 190, of whom ten were of African descent. One year later the number of inmates was 250. On March 2, 1866, Doctor C. McDermott was appointed trustee, vice Doctor R. N. Barr, resigned. On March 26, 1867, the State Home was formally tendered to and accepted by the trustees of the National Soldiers' Home, to be used tem- porarily by that institution until its trustees should erect its permanent buildings. In May, 1867, the officers of the Home under its National management, were as follows : Superintendent, Captain E. E. Tracy ; Surgeon, Doctor C. MeDermott ; Chaplain, Rev. Mr. Tolford, succeeded shortly afterward by Rev. Mr. Hill ; Secre- tary and Steward, A. P. Woodruff; Matron, Mrs. E. L. Miller. Expectation was then current that the Home would be permanently located at either White Sulphur Springs, in Delaware County, or at Dayton. It went to Dayton.

The construction of buildings for the United States Arsenal located at Columbus in 1863, as already narrated,' was carried on during the war as rapidly as circumstances would permit. It was supervised by Colonel T. C. Bradford, as- sisted by Joseph O. Sawyer. George W. Bradford receiving and time clerk ; Cap- tain E. Penrose Jones, military storekeeper ; Daniel Barnhart, master mason ; and Colonel Cyrus Reasoner, master carpenter, were also connected with the work. The main arsenal building, 180 feet long, sixty wide and three stories high was built on plans furnished by the Ordnance Department of the National Army and composed exclusively of stone, brick, iron and slate. Officers' quarters, a magazine 30x50 feet, and temporary buildings for the repair and storage of arms were also erected. During the summer of 1865 proposals for a twostory artillery storehouse were invited. The main building and magazine having been by that time com- pleted, the transfer thither of stores from the eastern arsenals began in August.

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HISTORY OF THE CITY OF COLUMBUS.

Ten buildings, in all, were erceted, and were so grouped as to form a square with the commandant's office in the centre. The first commandant at the arsenal was Captain J. W. Todd, who took charge September 3, 1863, and whose successors down to 1869 were as follows: December 3, 1863, Colonel George B. Wright ; February 10, 1864, Captain T. C. Bradford ; July 13, 1869, Major Theodore Edson; July 30, 1869, Captain E. P. Jones : November 19, 1869, Major John McNutt. On November 19, 1875, the arsenal changed its character to that of a United States military post for rendezvous and recruiting as well as equipment, and received the garrison which had ocenpied the barracks at Newport, Kentucky. The Newport garrison was accompanied by its famous military band of fortyfive pieces. The new commandant, who took charge at the time of this change, was Colonel E. C. Mason, who had commanded at Newport. Since this epoch the concerts, dress- parades and reunions at the garrison have contributed much to the social interest of Columbus.

When the General Assembly authorized the sale of the Old Penitentiary lots in 1860, three of them were reserved as a site for a State Arsenal to be erected with the proceeds of the lots sold. For the erection and equipment of the build- ing, the cost of which was forbidden to exceed 814,000, the General Assembly appropriated 86,000 additional to the amount realized from the sale of the Peni- tentiary lots. A further appropriation of $2,500 was made in 1863 for the improvement of the building and its grounds.

On July 3, 1865, while the great volunteer armies of the Republic were rapidly dissolving into the general mass of the people, the City Council of Columbus adopted resolutions extending the hospitalities of the city to General William Tecumseh Sherman. The invitation was accepted, and Mayor J. G. Bull, G. Douty, President of the Council, and Councilman D. Gilmore, L. Donaldson and Jacob Reinhard were appointed a committee to arrange for the reception of the distinguished chieftain. On July 13 General Sherman, who had been sojourn- ing at Lancaster, journeyed thence to Columbus, halting by the way to visit Mr. John S. Rarey, the famous horsetamer, at Groveport. Here the general was intercepted by a part of Governor Brough's military staff and a delegation from the City Council of Columbus. He was also greeted by several hundreds of citi- zens and former soldiers from the neighborhood. When he resumed his journey in the early forenoon, the train bearing him was heavily crowded, and became still more so as it passed from station to station. At Columbus the general alighted amid the welcoming shouts of an immense multitude which awaited him, and was saluted by the firing of artillery. As he was escorted up High Street, . its sidewalks and buildings were densely crowded with people, roses and garlands were showered upon him and thousands of fair admirers signaled their compli- ments with waving handkerchiefs. Alighting at the west entrance of the Capitol he made his way with some difficulty through the enthusiastic throng, which for hours had here awaited him, and proceeded to the Governor's office, from whence, after brief delay, he was conducted to the North Front, and there, in the presence of the people, was formally welcomed to the city by Hon. W. B. Hubbard. Greeted by what is described as "a perfect hurricane of applause," General

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Sherman responded briefly and appropriately. In the course of his remarks occurred the following passages :

I take pride in referring to Ohio as my home, though I have been thrown hither and thither so much that I scarcely know where I belong. I have been a long time separated from you, but still when I return to you I find all the same. There have been changes, of course, but these are entirely superficial. Here the same old flag floats from the Capitol, the same good government secures peace and prosperity, and more than all, the same green fields give forth abundant crops. I recollect when that old flag many years ago floated above the Old Statehouse. Now the Statehouse is gone, but " the flag is still there," and has been carried in triumph by Ohio's sons wherever they have gone. ..

I ean tell you nothing new about the war; can describe no new scenes in our long cam- paigns, for, from Columbus to Portsmouth, from the Ohio River to the Lakes, you will find in every honse and every hamlet a bluecoated boy who marched with Sherman from Tennessee down through Georgia to the sea and who has told the story better than I ean do it, because he saw it inside and outside.

In pursuing his theme General Sherman paid a glowing tribute of praise to the soldiers of Ohio, particularly naming Generals McPherson, Cox and Walcutt. He retired amid great cheering to the rotunda, where he spent some time with the surging thousands who pressed in to take him by the hand. Ilis exchanges of greetings during this episode, particularly with wounded soldiers and little children, were often touching or amusing. At two o'clock P. M. he was banqueted at the Neil Ilouse as the guest of the City Government. About 150 representa- tive citizens were present at the tables. Responses to the toasts proposed were made by General J. D. Cox, Hon. H. C. Noble, J. II. Geiger, and others. In the course of the response to which he was invited, General Sherman again highly complimented the soldiers and military leaders which Ohio had furnished to the war, particularly mentioning Generals Grant, McPherson and Swayne. A por- tion of his remarks personal to himself was thus recorded :

He alluded with feeling to misrepresentations to which he had been subjected ; to dis- torted statements of his views - sometimes, doubtless, from misapprehension and sometimes from motives he did not comprehend. He said that it had been surmised that he had political aspirations. That was a great mistake. He would not accept the office of President were it offered to him today. . . . He would prefer to retain the military position he now holds. He was quite satisfied with the reputation he had gained iu it, and he intended to take care of it.

In the evening, after the banquet, General Sherman attended the opera, where another most enthusiastic welcome awaited him. Attended by General Cox and others, he took his seat in a private box which was decorated with flags and flowers. As soon as he entered the opera house, the great andience which crowded the building broke into prolonged cheering, at the subsiding of which a patriotic medley was played by the Eighteenth Infantry band. Following this, Mr. Howard, of the theatrical troupe then engaged, recited a poem entitled " Sherman's March to the Sca." After the opera General Sherman was serenaded at the Neil but responded merely with thanks. He departed from Columbus early the follow- ing morning for St. Louis.

On September 22, 1865, General Grant was invited to accept the hospitalities of Columbus by a committee of citizens which visited him at Cincinnati for that

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purpose. On Tuesday, October 3, the same committee, Hon. George M. Parsons, chairman, intercepted the train bearing General Grant and party at Xenia, and accompanied him thence to Columbus. At Xenia, London and other stopping points on the way the General was greeted by enthusiastic crowds of people, but resisted all solicitations to address them. He was accompanied by his family and members of his staff. The train arrived at Columbus at noon. The city was dressed with flags, and its streets were crowded with waiting throngs, all eager to see and welcome the great, victorious commander of the Nation's armies. His arrival was announced by the firing of artillery mingled with the shouts of eager and admiring multitudes. From the railway station a procession, comprising Governor Anderson and staff, officers of the city government, military detachments and the Fire Department, escorted the city's guest to the Capitol where, as along the line of march on High Street, he was saluted by the plaudits of the people assembled in many thousands. From the Governor's office, where he remained but a few minutes, he was escorted to a suitable point, and introdneed to "one of the largest crowds ever assembled in Capitol Square." His appearance was a signal for great applause, but he declined to say anything in response except to express his thanks for the compliment. He was then conducted to an appointed station in the rotunda, whither thousands upon thousands eagerly surged to claim the privilege of taking him by the hand. Among the most earnest of these were two thousand children from the public schools.

From the Capitol, after this levee, General Grant was conducted to the Asylum for the Insane, and the Institution for the Deaf and Dumb, for an inspection of these examples of Ohio's public charity. At four o'clock P. M. he was banqueted at the Neil House, where covers had been laid for about two hundred guests. Governor Anderson presided on this occasion. Among the other prominent persons present were Major-General E. O. C. Ord, then commanding the Depart- ment of the Ohio, and Ex-Governor David Tod. At the table brief addresses were delivered by Governors Anderson and Tod, Hon. Samuel Galloway and Joseph H. Geiger. General Grant again declined to attempt anything in the nature of a speech, but gracefully expressed his thanks for the honors and hospitalities bestowed upon him in Columbus. In the evening he attended a theatrical per- formance at the Opera Ilouse, where he was received with prolonged cheering by an audience which packed the building. Abont ten o'clock in the evening he departed by rail for Pittsburgh.

NOTES.

1. Ohio State Journal.

2. An account of this execution will be found in another chapter.

3. Ohio State Journal, January 10, 1866: " We stated some days ago that General Wilcox had been directed by Major-General Ord, commanding the department, to assume command of the District of Ohio. General Wilcox, as Provost Marshal and Chief Mustering Officer of the State, was subject only to orders of the War Department, and could not comply with the request, or direction, and for some days the District remained without a recognized

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commander. Yesterday, in accordance with orders from Department Headquarters, Colonel George A. Woodward, Twentysecond Veteran Reserve Corps, late Post Commandant at Camp Chase, assumed command, with Lieutenant H. M. Jewett as Assistant-Adjutant-Gen- eral. Colonel Wood, of the Fourth Veteran Reserve Regiment (Hancock's Corps), succeeds him as commander of the post at Camp Chase."

4. This hospital took its name from Surgeon C. S. Tripler, Medical Director at Cincin- nati. Its location was about three miles west of Columbus.

5. The grounds comprised 7734 acres, and were bought of Robert E. Neil for $112,377.

CHAPTER XIV.

WAR EXPERIENCES AT COLUMBUS.

BY GENERAL GEORGE B. WRIGHT, LATE QUARTERMASTER-GENERAL OF OHIO.

[George Bohan Wright was born near Granville, Licking County, Ohio, December 11, 1815. His grandfathers, both maternal and paternal, were officers in the War of Indepen- dence. His father was an officer in the war of 1812. His parents emigrated from Massa- chusetts to Ohio in 1808. George B. Wright was the youngest member of the family, com- prising three brothers and two sisters. His earlier education was obtained at the district school and the Granville Academy; he afterwards spent a year at the Western Reserve College and also a year at the Ohio University at Athens. After having studied law and been admitted to the bar at Newark he became interested as attorney and director in the San- dusky, Mansfield & Newark, the Central Ohio, the Steubenville & Indiana, and later the Scioto and the Hocking Valley railways. When the Civil War broke out in 1861 he engaged actively in promoting enlistments for the Seventysixth Ohio Infantry Solicited by Gover- nor Dennison to assist in the organization and equipment of the Ohio troops he became at once engaged in that service at Columbus, where he was appointed Assistant Quartermaster- General of Ohio, and three months later was appointed Chief Quartermaster of the State with the rank of Brigadier-General. Governor Tod recommissioned him to this office, in which he also served for a time as Commissary-General of the State. At later dates be was appointed Colonel of the One Hundred Sixth Ohio Infantry and was detailed on com- mission from President Lincoln as military storekeeper in charge of the Columbus Arsenal. In manufacturing fixed ammunition, shipping the same to the armies in the field, and pur- chasing clothing, equipments and supplies for the Ohio regiments, General Wright expended over three millions of dollars in the Quartermaster's Department alone, and not one of his vonchers was ever questioned. The first soldiers' aid organization for the State, with agencies at Cincinnati, Nashville and other places, was established by him ; he also first introduced the use of transportation tickets at reduced rates for needy soldiers, on a plan afterward adopted by the Government. The "conscientious fund," with which the expense of the draft in Ohio was mostly paid, was collected and disbursed by him. In 1862, he was nominated for Congress by the Republicans of his district, but was defeated. In 1867, by appointment of Governor Cox, he became the first Commissioner of Railways and Tele- graphs for Ohio, to which office he was reappointed by Governor Hayes. While in this position he made a valuable compilation of the laws of Ohio pertaining to railways and tele- graphs. He resigned the office of Railway Commissioner to accept the Vice Presidency of the Atlantic & Great Western Railway Company, of which General George B. Mcclellan was President, with his office in New York City. General Wright had charge of the legal depart- ment of the company and resided at Meadville, Pennsylvania, where the company's general

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offices were located. In 1873, he was appointed receiver of the Indianapolis, Bloomington & Western Railway Company (now the Ohio, Indiana & Western), and thenceforth resided at Indianapolis until 1887, when he returned to Columbus, his present home.]

On April 12, 1861, when the war was inaugurated by the firing on Fort Sumter I was residing at Newark, Ohio, engaged as receiver of the Sandusky, Mansfield & Newark Railroad Company. The excitement there, as everywhere at the North, was intense, and when, three days later, a call for seventyfive thousand volunteers was made by President Lincoln, the fife and drum were heard in the streets, bells were rung, and the people, men, women and children flocked to the Courthouse, which was soon filled to overflowing with an excited and anx- ious audience. A meeting was organized, voluntary patriotic speeches were made, and a resolution was adopted to raise at once a company of volunteers. Leonidas MeDougal, one of the most popular young men of the town, immediately stepped forward and volunteered, offering to lead a company to the field. IIe had had some military education at Annapolis and had been a volunteer in the Mexican War; was at the bombardment of Vera Cruz, and marched with our army into the City of Mexico. He was the first volunteer in the county for the War for the Union. He fell at the battle of Perryville October 8, 1862, at head of his com- pany. He was a brave soldier and his memory is cherished by all who knew him.

As soon as MeDougal volunteered he was joined by others, and on April 19, four days after the call for volunteers, he reported with a full company at Colum- bus. They were attached to the Third Ohio Infantry as Company H. I recall the departure of the company from Newark as one of great interest. The com- pany was drawn up in front of the hall and received a beautiful silk flag pre- sented by the ladies of Newark. The Captain responded in glowing, patriotic words. The company marched away amid the shouts and cheers of citizens and the waving of handkerchiefs and tears of the ladies. I mentioned this as one of many similar instances all over the State indieative of the patriotic feeling and love for the Union prevailing at the North. Every heart was stirred, and more volunteers were offered in three days than Ohio's quota of the seventyfive thousand.

I was well acquainted with Governor Dennison, then Governor of the State, and immediately wrote him tendering my services in any capacity where I could be serviceable. I heard nothing from the Governor until two months later when he telegraphed me to come to Columbus. Although confined to my house and under the care of a physician, I took my doctor's prescription and the first train to Columbus. I reached the Governor's office a little after midnight and found it full of men and officers receiving and executing orders. The Governor welcomed me cordially and said he had sent for me to assist in the Quartermaster-General's Department in the purchase of army supplies for the Ohio soldiers. I told the Governor I was entirely unfitted for such duty, having never had any experience; but if he would send me into the field I would do the best I could. He insisted that very important work was needed in the Quartermaster's Department, and he be-

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lieved I could aid him and the Government more there than anywhere else at that time. He explained the difficulty he had encountered, in the rush of troops to the capital, in providing tents, clothing and other equipments for the soldiers. Thousands had come to the capital eager to get to the field, and the State had not on hand arms, tents or equipments sufficient to supply one regiment. The news- papers of the State were full of criticisms and faultfinding for the management of military matters at Washington and at Columbus.

Accordingly, on the next day, I entered the department and remained there until the close of Governor Tod's term, January 1, 1864. General C. P. Bucking- ham had, only a few days previously, been appointed Adjutant-General of the State, and Columbus Delano Commissary-General. I was handed a commission by General Buckingham as Assistant Commissary of Subsistence, with the rank of captain, and was escorted by him to the office of General Wood, then Quartermaster-General of the State. General Wood assigned me a desk and I at onee began to study the business and duties of the department. The office was full of clerks and General Wood was giving orders in an imperative and earnest manner. I was quite impressed with the importance and responsibility of the work in hand. I found General Wood ready to aid me in obtaining a knowledge of the duties of the office. He assigned me to the duty of contracting and inspect- ing all clothing and equipments for the troops, except ordnance stores and the fabrication of ammunition, which he superintended himself. The office was full of soldiers coming and going constantly, day and night. The office was never closed before midnight, and often was kept open all night. I found the business of the office in a very crude state. Supplies of all kinds had been purchased wherever they could be found and sometimes at extravagant rates and of poor quality. The rush of volunteers to the capital had greatly embarrassed the Governor and overwhelmed the several departments with orders and requisitions which could not be instantly filled, and when they had been filled complete records had not been kept. The State had no clothing, blankets or tents, and the volun- teers as they came in were quartered in the Statehouse and at hotels and boarding- houses.

The defeat of the National army at Bull Run aroused the people of the North and encouraged the rebels. The general feeling in the Northern States was well expressed by Rev. Henry Cox at a campmeeting in Illinois. The news of the battle came while he was preaching, and he closed his sermon with these words : " Brethren, we'd better adjourn this campmeeting and go home and drill."

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History of the city of Columbus, capital of Ohio, Volume II, Part 22

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

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