USA > Ohio > The history of Fuller's Ohio brigade, 1861-1865; its great march, with roster, portraits, battle maps and biographies > Part 28
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On May 18th, the War Department issued special order number 239. ordering a grand review by President Johnston and his cabinet, of all the armies, then near Washington. The review of General Mead's Army of the Potomac was to occur on Tuesday, May 23rd and Sherman's Army of the Tennessee, on Wednesday the 24th. The camps on the south side of the Potomac were not only inconvenient but the grounds assigned the troops. had been so long used for camps that they were foul and unfit. Camps were therefore provided and assigned for the troops on the north side. During the afternoon and night of the 23rd, a large part of the troops of the Fifteenth, Seventeenth, and Twentieth Corps crossed the Long Bridge and bivouacked about the streets of the Capitol. The Fourteenth Corps closed up to the bridge.
May 23rd, the Army of the Potomac which had been the bulwark cf the national Capitol during the war marched in review. The morning of the 24th was extremely beautiful, the weather continued fine all day. and the ground was in good condition for our review. The First Division marched through Alexandria, Virginia, crossed the Long Bridge, over the Potomac River, and proceeded up to and around the Capitol Building. Punctually at nine o'clock, the signal gun was fired and Sherman's Army. whose first commander was General U. S. Grant and which had twice cut the Confederacy in twain, marched in magnificent columns, sixty-five thousand strong, along Pennsylvania Avenue, wheeled to the right at the Treasury Building. then to the left, then passed the reviewing stand, in front of the White House. There stood the President of the United States, Andrew Johnson, the Commanders of the Armies, Grant, Sherman, and other officers, members of the Cabinet and ministers from foreign
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countries. The columns continued along Fourteenth Street and the First Division went into camp at Silver Springs.
The marching men were in perfect order and at quick step moved with military precision, with glistening muskets and with tattered and bullet- ridden flags, they passed in the order of the Fifteenth, Seventeenth, Four- teenth, and Twentieth Corps. Officers of the government and throngs of people watched these sixty-five thousand heroes. who had just completed a march of over two thousand miles in a hostile country. Not a soul in that vast throng left his place. From the upper window of a brick house, Mr. Seward, Secretary of State witnessed the review. He was still bandaged on account of the wounds he received from the assassin.
Buildings throughout the city were covered with flags. The great Capitol Building was draped from dome to base and all public buildings were covered with emblems of mourning. All flags and guidons of the regiments were draped in black, and on the arm of each officer and on the hilt of his sword was tied a piece of crape in memory of President Lincoln, that great, wise, patient, merciful man, renowned throughout the world. Great multitudes of people thronged the streets and housetops to see the pageant and with smiling faces and loud cheers waved their handker- chiefs, or threw bouquets to the marching soldiers and gave a royal wel- come to these heroes.
Sherman, attended by General Howard and his staff took his place at the head of these veterans who had swept across that part of the continent from Kansas to the Mississippi. from Vicksburg to Meridan, to Chatta- nooga, to Atlanta, to Savannah, to Goldsborough, to Richmond, to Wash- ington, four thousand miles. No other conqueror in history had made such a march.
It was the crowning moment of Sherman's life and that of his army. Invited to a place on the left of the President, he stood for seven hours looking upon the men who had contributed to his triumph, and to the perpetuity of the nation. General Sherman says: "When I reached the Treasury Building and looked back, the sight was simply magnificent. The column was compact and the glittering muskets looked like a solid mass of steel, which moved with the regularity of a pendulum. It was in my judgment, the most magnificent army in existence, sixty-five thou- sand men of splendid physique, in good drill, who had just completed a march through a hostile country and who now realized that they were being closely scrutinized by their countrymen and by foreigners. The steadi- ness and firmness of their tread, the careful dress of the guides, the uniform intervals, all eyes directed to the front, the tattered battle flags, their ragged uniforms, all attracted universal attention. Many good people up to this time looked upon our western army as a mob, but the world then saw and recognized that it was an army well organized, well disciplined and there was no wonder that it had swept through the south like a cyclone."
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THE GRAND REVIEW.
Sherman wrote at this time: "The marchi to the sea has been gener. ally regarded as something extraordinary, something anomalous, whereas in fact, I simply moved from Atlanta to Savannah, as one step in the direc- tion of Richmond, a movement that had to be met and defeated, or the war was necessarily at an end. Were I to express my measure of the relative importance of the march to the sea, and of that from Savannah northward, I should place the former at one, and the latter at ten or the maximum.
"Sixty-five thousand men obtained abundant food for about forty days and thirty-five thousand animals were fed for a like period, so as to reach Savannah in splendid flesh and condition with an aggregate loss of one thousand eight hundred and eighty-eight men. Each regiment may sub- scribe on its colors the word 'Savannah.'"
Sherman, it may be said, violated a well-established principle of war by taking the exterior lines and leaving to Lee and Johnston the interior ones. But Lee had learned to for Grant and he dreaded to run the risk of taking any considerable portion of his army to send to Johnston. Thus he let slip the only possible chance of saving the Confederate cause.
Sherman in speaking of Lee said: "His sphere of action was how- ever, local. He never rose to the grand problem which involved a con- tinent and future generations. His Virginia was to him the world. Though familiar with the geography of the interior of the great continent, he stood like a stone wall to defend Virginia against the north, and he did it like a valiant knight as he was. He stood at the front porch battling with the flames, while the kitchen and house were burning, sure in the end to consume the whole. Only twice, at Antietem and Gettysburg did he venture outside on the 'offensive-defensive.' In the first instance he knew personally his antagonist and that a large fraction of his force would be held in reserve, in the last, he assumed the bold 'offensive', was badly beaten by Meade and was forced to retreat back into Virginia. As an aggressive soldier Lee was not a success and in war that is a true and proper test. In defending Virginia and Richmond, he did all that a man could, but to him Virginia seemed Confederacy and he stayed there while the northern armies at the west were gaining the Mississippi, the Tennessee, the Cum- berland, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, yea, the Roanoke, after which his military acumen taught him that future tarrying in Richmond was absolute suicide."
'General Sherman has written of the march to the sea: "Early in January, 1865, having refitted our army at Savannah, and waiting only long enough to fill our wagons, we began a march which for peril, labor. and results will compare with any made by an organized army. The floods of the Savannah, the swamps of the Cambahee, and the Edisto, the high hills and rocks of the Santee, the flat quagmires of the Pee Dee and Cape Fear Rivers, were all passed in midwinter with its floods and rains, in the face of an accumulating enemy and after the battles of Averasboro and Bentonville, we came out of the wilderness to meet comrades at Golds- borough, its renown is the common heritage of us all, its fame will go forward to future generations as the fame of the American soldiers. We join in the universal joy that fills our land because the war is over and our government stands vindicated before the world."
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Maj. Gen. John W. Sprazue and Staff.
Washington, D. G. Max 28th. 1945
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SPRAGUE'SBRIGADECNQUEOHAFDL.
HEADQUARTERS FIRST DIVISION, SEVENTEENTHI ARMY CORPS,
NEAR WASHINGTON, D. C., MAY 28TH, 1865.
Special Order Number 111 :
A General Court Martial is hereby ordered to convene at these head- quarters on the 29th day of May, 1865, at ten o'clock in the morning or as soon thereafter as practicable for the trial of such cases as may be brought before it.
It will sit without regard to hours.
Detail for the Court :
Lieutenant-Colonel William A. Henry. Thirty-fifth New Jersey Infantry.
Major A. L. Howe. Forty-third Ohio Infantry.
Captain Edward S. Donnelly, Eighteenth Missouri Infantry,
Captain Samuel H. Pennington, Thirty-fifth New Jersey Infantry.
Captain Wilham nugnes. Tenth Himois Infantry,
Captain A. R. Robinson. Thirty-ninth Ohio Infantry.
Captain Charles H. Smith, Twenty-seventh Ohio Infantry,
Captain E. B. Fairchild. Thirty-ninth Ohio Infantry.
Captain William Hemstreet. Judge-Advocate of this Division, will act as Judge-Advocate of this Court. No other officers than those named can be assembled without manifest injury to the service.
By order of,
Brigadier-General M. F. FORCE. SAM. K. ADAMS, A. G.
On May 31st. the Thirty-fifth New Jersey Regiment was transferred from the First Division by order. On June 5th. the Twenty-fifth Wis- consin was dropped from the returns of the command, to be mustered out.
By general orders No. 9, of the War Department, dated Washington, D. C., May 29th. 1865. General John M. Sprague was assigned to duty in another field and his official relations with the Second Brigade ended.
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SURVIVORS OF THE BRIGADE AT NATIONAL G. A. R. ENCAMPMENT, "OLEDO. O., 1908. Gen. Fuller's Monument In Background.
CHAPTER XXXII.
ORDER TO GO TO LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY-MUSTER OUT OF THE TWENTY- SEVENTH, THIRTY-NINTH, FORTY-THIRD AND SIXTY-THIRD OHIO
REGIMENTS-RETURN OF THE SOLDIERS TO THEIR HOMES.
The First Division remained in Washington, in camp at Fourteenth Street and Piney Branch until June 5th, when after having been under orders since May 30th, it took passage in box cars at Washington via the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, for Louisville, Kentucky. Having arrived at Parkersburg. Virginia, boats were taken on the Ohio River to Buffing- ton's Island, where the men re-embarked on larger transports. The people hung out their flags all along the route. The banks of the river were alive with multitudes who had gathered there to greet and to honor the victorious soldiers just returning from war. Many members of the Bri- gades passed in sight of their homes, relatives and friends.
Arriving at Louisville on the 10th, camp was made out on the Preston Road, in a beautiful grove where good water and dry ground was obtained.
During the last days of the war, England. France and Spain had joined in setting up an Austrian prince upon the throne in Mexico, in violation of treaties as regards an independent power. England and Spain soon with- . drew from the armed intervention. General Grant sent General Sheridan, by order of May 17th, 1865, with a corps of troops to the Rio Grande to preserve order and secure peace in Texas and Louisiana and to have him where he might aid the Mexicans in expelling the enemies of that Republic. This led to the withdrawal of the French troops from Mexico. It was seen that the empire set up by Maximilian would soon collapse. Mean- while a part of the Army of the Tennessee had been held at Louisville. Kentucky and at other points as auxiliaries, or an army of reserve, in case it was needed to re-enforce Sheridan. By general orders dated Nashville. Tennessee, June 20th, 1865, General George H. Thomas assumed command of the military Division of the Tennessee, embracing the Departments of Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama and Florida. Major-General J. M. Palmer was assigned to command the Department of Kentucky, with headquarters at Louisville.
By orders from the War Department, in General Orders No. 24, dated at Louisville, Kentucky, June 28, 1865. the following named regiments of the First Division, Seventeenth Army Corps were ordered to be at once
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mustered out of the service of the United States: Twenty-seventh Ohio Veteran Volunteer Infantry, Lieutenant-Colonel Isaac N. Gillruth; Thirty- ninth Ohio Veteran Volunteer Infantry, Colonel Daniel Weber ; Forty- third Ohio Veteran Volunteer Infantry, Colonel Horace Park; Sixty-third Ohio Veteran Volunteer Infantry, Major O. L. Jackson; Sixty-fourth Illi- nois Veteran Volunteer Infantry, Lieutenant-Colonel Joseph S. Reynolds : Tenth Illinois Veteran Volunteer Infantry. Lieutenant-Colonel D. Gilles- pie; Eighteenth Missouri Veteran Volunteer Infantry, Colonel Charles S. Sheldon. The Twenty-seventh, Thirty-ninth, Forty-third and Sixty-third Ohio Regiments Veteran Volunteer Infantry, composing General John W. Fuller's original Ohio Brigade were mustered out of the military service of the United States, at Louisville, Kentucky, on July 11th. 9th, 13th and 8th respectively and were sent to Camp Dennison, Ohio, where they were paid and discharged on July 20th, 1865.
Parmalee, the Brigade Bugler, who had never blown retreat, upon the battle field, now sounded the last assembly and the men, now bronzed veterans, gathered in groups and with hands clasped, in the strongest ties of friendship, bade each other farewell.
The brigade had been in miltary service for four years, had partici- pated in forty-two battles and over a hundred skirmishes, had fought and campaigned in ten states, Missouri, Arkansas, Kentucky, Tennessee, Ala- bama, Mississippi, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. and had traveled by railroad and steamboat, a distance of two thousand five hundred and twenty-three miles, and on foot, four thousand five hundred and eighty-one miles, a total of seven thousand, one hundred and four miles. The longest march on foot in one day was in Virginia, forty-five miles, and the next longest, forty-three from Greenfield to Springfield, Missouri.
Every soldier of Fuller's Ohio Brigade esteemed it an honor to be identified with it, because of the splendid material of which it was com- posed. It fulfilled every duty, it performed hazardous service. it encount- ered hardships, it was equal to every emergency, and in winning great victories, secured the highest standard of military merit, which is success. It was part of that patriotic host that fought for the preservation and per- . petuation of the American Union.
The recollections of soldier life do not fade with time. We willingly weave the cypress with the laurel that enshrines the memory of the men of the Old Brigade .. Their valor in action ever conspicuous, will never be forgotten, their last fight has been fought and before many years the last survivor will join his comrades in that eternal camping ground witli a command higher than any they served with here.
305.8 30€
27 TH O.V. V. I.
39TH O.V.V. I.
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63º O.V.V. I.
REGIMENTAL COLORS OF FULLER'S OHIO BRIGADE.
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.
JOHN W. FULLER. Brevet Major General. Commanding Ohio Brigade.
¢ OUR BRIGADE COMMANDER.
BREVET MAJOR-GENERAL JOHN W. FULLER.
BY OSCAR SHEPPARD, 27th Ohio l'eteran Volunteer Infantry.
The service and achievements, whether glorious or otherwise, and the consequent record and reputation of a regiment or an army, depend not alone upon the character and quality of the men in the ranks, but are largely dependent upon whether they have been trained and led by brave and skillful officers. Misbehavior in the presence of the enemy, by an army or by any of its component parts, is seldom due so much to a lack of soldierly qualities in the men composing it, as to the want of one or more
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of those particular qualities and characteristics on the part of their com- mander, so essential to success as a military officer in time of war. I. the commanding officer is justly held responsible by his government for any failure on the part of his command to meet every reasonable require- ment in times of stress, so is the commander entitled to share, in equal measure, in the renown which comes from having performed fully, bravely. and well every duty as soldiers, so that the splendid record of the Ohio Brigade and the honorable place it occupies in the history of our country is due in large measure to the fact that it was the good fortune of that organization to have for its commander a most thorough and accomplished officer,- a commander in whose skill, judgment, and bravery every man and officer in the Brigade had the utmost confidence.
But the repute of a soldier who has performed his whole duty, and performed it well. is too often dealt with by a formal report in which it is stated that he has been "brave," "gallant," or has conducted himself to the "perfect satisfaction of his commanding officer." These cheap and formal words are quickly forgotten and nothing remains. If, however, this volume shall tell, not of the mere conclusion that General Fuller acted his part bravely and well, but of the deeds from which that inference is drawn. the story, however simple, may dwell in the minds of the readers and be told by them to their children. If it shall show his manner of commanding men,-how he dealt with his regiments in camp, on the march, and in the hour of battle, and how he comported himself in times of severest trial. his true nature, with its strength and with its frailties, will have been so far brought to light that I may dispense with striving to portray it, and content myself with speaking of some of the mere outward and visible characteristics which were apparent to those of us in the ranks. across that chasm which separates the private soldier from his regimental or bri- gade commander. and leave it to the reader to ascend by the knowledge of what he did, to the knowledge of what he was.
General John W. Fuller was born in July, 1827 almost in the shadow of the great University of Cambridge in England. His father, who was a Baptist minister, came with his family to the United States in 1833 and for several years thereafter was pastor of Baptist churches at Peters- borough and in Oneida County, New York, and from there he removed to Oglethorpe, Georgia, where he died.
During all of this time the son, John W. Fuller, was attending school at Florence, New York. In 1840 he secured a position as clerk in a book- store in Utica, where for twenty years he continued as clerk and partner in the business. While a resident of Utica he was twice elected Treasurer of the City. He was at the head of the local military organization, which for proficiency in drill and soldierly qualities was distinguished through-
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( ut western New York, where Lieutenant Fuller was recognized as a skillful and accomplished tactician.
In 1851 he married Miss Anna Rathburn, daughter of Dr. Josiah Rathburn, a prominent citizen of Utica, who, with woman's devotion, faithfully guarded and guided the home and her little children while the husband and father was serving his country on the battle-field.
The firm of John W. Fuller & Co., of Utica, deciding to establish, at Toledo, Ohio, a branch publishing house. Lieutenant Fuller removed to that city in the Fall of 1858 and established the business under the firm name of Anderson & Co., and in conjunction with the Utica house, built up an extensive business, in the management of which he was engaged at the beginning of the War of the Rebellion.
His intimate knowledge of military affairs being known is Gonna! Charles W. Hill, he was selected by that officer as his chief of staff and went with him to Virginia, where for many weeks he was constantly en- gaged in drilling and instructing the raw regiments that were pouring to the front, and putting them in shape and condition to meet the enemy. While thus engaged he attracted the attention of officers of the regular army, one of whom, Captain (afterward General) T. J. Cram, wrote to Adjutant-General C. P. Buckingham that there was then at Grafton a young man from Ohio named John W. Fuller who knew more about the drilling of men and about military matters generally than any one else he had met with in the service, and hoped that General Buckingham would recommend him to the Governor of Ohio as a most suitable man for Colonel of the next regiment organized in that State. This recommendation was made, and thus it came about that the 27th Ohio secured this gallant and accomplished soldier for its Colonel.
In July, 1861, after the departure for the front of Colonel Fyffe's 26th Ohio Regiment, there were in Camp Chase some twenty-five or more companies and parts of companies from every part of the State as yet unorganized into regiments. From this two thousand or more men Colonel Fuller selected one thousand and organized the 27th Regiment. By this arrangement many of those who came to the camp at the head of com- panies which they had enlisted and of which they had expected to be cap- tains, accepted positions as lieutenants and even sergeants. Perhaps no regiment from Ohio was composed of men from so many different sec-' tions of the State and although the Colonel was a stranger to all the men and the men were largely strangers to each other, the skill and industry of the Colonel quickly shaped and welded these thousand men into a com- pact and homogeneous body and it so continued through out the war. From the day he took command, squad, platoon, company or battalion drill
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was our daily portion while in camp and the strictest military discipline was at once enjoined and fully enforced. Always scrupulously neat and genteel in his personal appearance and conduct, he required the same, so, far as neatness was possible. on the part of his men. As regimental and brigade commander he was always solicitous for its comfort and welfare. The best uniforms, equipment, and rations obtainable were secured, and he gave to the selection, arrangement, and policing of camps his personal at- tention. He always took and freely expressed great pride in the good ap- pearance and conduct of his command and was often complimented for this by his superior officers. I recall many instances of this. When the regiment reached St. Louis in August, 1861, it was formed on Chouteau Avenue in front of the headquarters of General Fremont, who walked withi Col. Fuller through the ranks. and then in the presence and hearing of 11s all, warmly complimented him on the fine appearance and perfect condition of his regiment.
Two years later, when the Ohio Brigade was on the point of leaving Memphis, Tenn., where for some time it had been the garrison of the city, doing patrol and police duty, the following address was presented to the officers and men of the Brigade by the citizens of that City residing in the vicinity of our camp,-a copy of which, clipped from a Memphis paper of October 2, 1863, is still in my possession.
MEMPHIS, Tenn., Oct. 1, 1863.
"We, the undersigned citizens of Memphis, residing in the vicinity of your camp, beg leave to tender to you and your command our heartfelt gratitude for your uniform courtesy and manly bearing toward us during your sojourn here.
"During that time we have made the personal acquaintance of many of you, both officers and men, for whom we shall ever cherish a most kindly remembrance, and rest assured that wherever you may go, wherever Fate may lead you, you carry with you our kindest regards. You have always, in the language of one of your great generals, 'Evinced a determina- tion to punish disorder and wrong and to encourage honesty, order, and fair dealing, and that kindly sentiment among brothers, and even enemies. which can alone restore peace to us as a people.'
"Officers and soldiers, you are an honor to your cause and the govern- ment you represent. Such men are bound to make friends wherever they go. * * *
* No despoiler of defenseless households will be known . where you and men like you have the care and keeping of the public weal. Again we thank you, and in so doing we feel confident that we reflect the sentiment and feeling of our fellow citizens.
"With our best wishes for your future welfare and the expression of the hope that you may all soon return to the joys and pleasures that await you in your happy homes, we are, dear sirs, yours as much as possible.
"CITIZENS."
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This certificate of soldierly character and conduct, coming as it did from those who regarded us as enemies and invaders, cannot be estimated as "self praise" or as a compliment from those entitled to appropriate a share of it to themselves. Nor were we entitled to it. if at all, because of any innate goodness on the part of the men of the brigade, but because of the lessons in military discipline and self-restraint so diligently taught us by our beloved commander.
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