USA > Pennsylvania > History of the Fifteenth Pennsylvania volunteer cavalry which was recruited and known as the Anderson cavalry in the rebellion of 1861-1865; > Part 35
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The fight at Carter's Station was over, the rebels retreating from their position during the night and the next day. This was ascertained on October 2d, when Captain Wagner with two of our companies crossed the Watauga and ascertained that they had made a forced march the night before, by way of Bristol, into Virginia. General Gillem was informed of this, but no forward movement was made, although. cannonading was heard from the
GROUP OF FIELD AND STAFF
Adjt. J. C. Reiff Q.M. John W. Johnston Com. Chas. S. Hinchman Maj. A. B. Garner Lt. Col. Chas. M. Betts
Gen. W. J. Palmer Maj. Wm. Wagner
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Second East Tennessee Campaign.
direction of Abingdon, indicating the presence at that place of General Burbridge from Kentucky.
About dusk on October 3d, Colonel Palmer with the Regiment crossed the Watauga, to communicate, if possible, with General Burbridge. Marched nearly all night and bivouacked near Blountsville. At daylight on the 4th a small body of rebels was encountered in the town and routed. Rumors reached us here that Burbridge had been defeated at Abingdon.
We then moved to Kingsport, and on October 5th, Colonel Palmer with seventy-five picked men, well mounted, started to communicate with General Burbridge-the balance of the Regi- ment being under command of Lieutenant-Colonel Lamborn.
At daylight the next morning there was brisk firing heard on the Blountsville road. Lieutenant Kirk, in command of the picket guard on that road, had been attacked. "Boots and saddles" was sounded, and we were "standing to horse," waiting for the com- mand "to mount," when news came that the enemy had been driven back on their main force.
We probably did not all realize it at the time, but our position was certainly a perilous one, and the command was moved to the other side of the Holston River, opposite the town. Parker, of Company D, who had been left on duty in the old camp for a few minutes after the Regiment had left, had a narrow escape from capture, and we could see him as he was being chased at a furious gallop by the advance of the Rebel cavalry. Our com- mand was well posted on the south bank of the river, the line ex- tending through an orchard near a house facing the river, and this part of the line was taken up by Company I. The rebels in con- siderable force soon appeared.
Captain Kramer with a few men was sent to guard a ford a few miles above. He scouted for some distance and returned, reporting that there were 300 rebels at that time in the town.
The fight at Kingsport began about noon and lasted until dark. Many of our boys made narrow escapes in this encounter, but they held their position and kept up the firing with enthusiasm. Wight- man, of Company I, was severely wounded by a shot through the wrist.
Soon after Captain Kramer rejoined us the Regiment moved out on the road to Rogersville, and after a few hours' march
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bivouacked for the night. We were expecting to be pursued by the enemy, and at daylight on the morning of October 7th the march was resumed, still on the Rogersville road. When about seven miles from the town the advance guard was shot at by guerrillas from a house on the roadside. There was no delay in the march, however, and the command kept on to where the roads forked-one road in the direction of Rogersville and the other to McKinney's Ford, on the north fork of the Holston River.
Captain Wagner with two companies took the road to Rogers- ville, and the main column pushed on to the ford. Captain Wagner after marching a few miles was compelled to leave the Rogersville road and rejoin the column, being heavily bush- whacked-the country being very favorable for guerrilla opera- tions.
This movement of Wagner's was a fortunate one for the Regi- ment. When the rebels, under Col. W. C. P. Breckenridge, reached the forks of the road, the question with them was which force to pursue. If we were to be attacked it must be done before we crossed the Holston. The road to Mckinney's Ford was the perpendicular of a triangle, while the road to Rogersville was the hypothenuse. Those who had gone to the ford would probably have crossed before they could be reached, but Wagner, on the longer march, was sure to be caught; so the men with the best horses were sent after the Fifteenth, while the balance of the enemy hastened after Wagner, but failed to see that he had left that road after traveling it for a couple of miles.
As we neared the banks of the Holston, at Mckinney's Mills, and were marching along quietly, a furious attack was made on . the rear guard under Lieutenant White, the extreme rear under Sergeant Reeseman being severely pressed. Major Betts with his orderly John Sherrick hastened to the assistance of the rear guard, and after a hand-to-hand fight drove them off.
The road for some distance before reaching the ford ran along the base of a steep bluff at least fifty feet high and on the river's bank. The advance had reached the ford, when, as we were moving on, Sherrick, of Company G, orderly to Major Betts, hap- pened to look up, and seeing a number of rebels peering down at us from the edge of the bluff, exclaimed, "Major, there they are 110w !" Orders were at once given for Companies I and L, dis-
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mounted, to ascend the bluff, which they did by a narrow road or pathway which led to a house on the summit. The enemy seeing this movement fell back to the edge of a woods on the other side of a corn field in front of the house. Our boys were soon posted, one at the end of each row of corn, and in a few moments the order of the rebel Commander was distinctly heard: "Forward, charge!" and down they came upon us as fast as their horses could carry them. We held our ground as long as possible. Some of our carbines, for some reason or other, missed fire, but enough execution was done to check the charge before we retreated down the bluff and, with torn clothes and many bruises, regained our horses in the road below. Lieutenant Field with about fifteen men mounted in a few minutes reached the summit, and charged the enemy and then returned to the road. A brisk fire was then opened from the bluff on our column as it kept steadily crossing the ford. All this time the rear guard was engaged, the enemy being repulsed and charged. by our boys three or four times. In the charge the rebels made on the bluff, some of them, in their haste, dismounted and slid down, and were taken prisoners by the rear guard. There were a number of the enemy killed and wounded, and two Lieutenants and eight men fell into our hands as. prisoners. Part of the command succeeded in crossing the river at the commencement of the engagement, and kept up a brisk fire from the opposite side, thereby rendering valuable assist- ance to the balance of the column as it crossed over.
The fight at Mckinney's Ford was one of the most picturesque and romantic-if these are the proper terms to use-of any en- gagement in which any portion of the Regiment ever participated.
The conformation of the ground, the nature of the attack, and the repulse after a long pursuit, the fact that our entire command succeeded in crossing the river without the loss of a man-all these make this encounter a most remarkable one, and long to be remembered by those who participated. Our numerical strength was, all told, not more than 225 officers and men.
The command having crossed the river, halted a short time, expecting the enemy to follow. They did not, however, and the march was resumed to Bull's Gap, arriving there at dusk on October 8th.
The Regiment then moved to Russellville, and on the 11th took
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up the march for Knoxville, and on the 15th orders were received to report at Chattanooga, which place was reached by easy marches, the Regiment going into camp on the 22d at Camp Lingle, where we were joined by Colonel Palmer, who had left us with seventy-five men at Kingsport on October 5th.
It may be proper to mention that nothing had been heard of. Colonel Palmer and the seventy-five men with him-certainly up to our return to Bull's Gap-on October 8th, and there was much anxiety in the command on that account.
There were many letters written by our boys to their parents and friends at home at this time. The following is an extract from one of them, written October 8th: "We have heard nothing from Colonel Palmer since he left us except that during the fight at Kingsport a rebel yelled across the river, 'Where is Colonel Palmer? We have gobbled him and his 75 picked men and we'll soon have you.' We think he is safe, however, and will return to the regiment even if he is compelled to go hundreds of miles out of his way to do so. We are anxious about him, for when he has to leave us we realize our loss, and all agree that no man can command us like he can. Be sure and allow nothing to be made public in respect to his whereabouts that might in any way reach the rebel lines."
The Second East Tennessee Campaign was only one of many in which we participated during our nearly three years' service, but taken altogether it was a splendid illustration of those sterling qualities of the true Union soldier-intelligence, endurance, loyalty and bravery which ever characterized the members of the Fif- teenth Pennsylvania Volunteer Cavalry.
SCOUT TO FIND GENERAL BURBRIDGE.
CAPT. CHAS. E. SCHEIDE, COMPANY K, NEW YORK.
T HE ride of Colonel Palmer and his party of seventy-five men through the almost impassable region of southwest Virginia to the west branch of the Big Sandy, in Ken- tucky, and thence to its mouth at Catlettsburg, a distance of 225 miles, was one of the most extraordinary of the many remarkable but almost unknown feats of the Anderson Cavalry.
Colonel Palmer was accompanied by Capts. Wm. F. Colton, Frank Remont and Lieutenants Blight and Ed. C. Smith.
Serg. Geo. W. Spencer, Company D, acted as Sergeant Major of the detachment, and First Serg. John. K. Marshall was the orderly. It was unusual for our First Sergeants to accompany expeditions of this character, as their duties were with their companies ; but the hazardous nature of the trip so appealed to Marshall that when his first application to Major Betts was re- fused, for the above reason, he asked to be reduced to the ranks and then detailed as one of the party, and the chivalric request so touched the Major that he gave his consent, and Marshall got permission to go.
Starting about noon, on the 5th of October, from the camp of the Regiment at the foot of Clinch Mountain, near Kingsport, Tenn., the men, who had an inkling of their hazardous journey from the fact that the Colonel himself accompanied them, shouted a good-by to their Comrades, declaring they were "bound for Richmond," i. e., Libby Prison.
We moved out on the road to Lebanon, Va., in an easterly direction and north of Clinch Mountain. During the after- noon several small parties of rebels were chased by the advance guard, under command of Serg. A. P. Lyon, and one of the enemy was killed and another wounded. As the natives were taken entirely by surprise, a number of good horses were captured, there being no time to conceal them. The party went into camp at nightfall, having marched twenty-five miles, carefully barricading
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the roads front and rear, to prevent surprise. During the night negroes came in, giving the Colonel intelligence of the proximity of the rebel cavalry on all sides, and from them he obtained a tolerable idea of the country around, which enabled him to pro- ceed intelligibly. At daybreak Sergeant Becker, of Company E, with twenty-five men, who were started fifteen minutes before the rest, drove in the rebel pickets about three miles ahead, fell back one mile and joined the column on the road, when they all turned off to the left, and taking across the fields for some dis- tance, entered the Moccasin Valley, which was followed for about ten miles.
Up to this time the Colonel had been without guides, other than negroes-farm hands-whose limited knowledge of the country rendered their services of but little value ; and it being absolutely necessary for his safety, he impressed a citizen named Henderson, who, thinking we were rebels, was trying to escape from his farm. He proved an excellent guide, as he was a loyal Union man and thoroughly acquainted with the country. Henderson accompanied us across Osborn Gap, to the western foot of the Cumberland Mountains in Kentucky, when, despite the urgent remon- strance of Colonel Palmer, who feared his capture, he concluded to return home. The Colonel gave him a horse and some coffee for his wife and bade him good by. No more was heard of him until Colonel Prentice came into our camp, in April, 1865, at Lin- colnton, N. C., under a flag of truce, bearing word from General Sherman that he had made an armistice with Joe Johnston. At luncheon Colonel Prentice informed Colonel Palmer that he had all the roads and trails completely blockaded and ambuscaded that led from our Stone Mountain Camp on the Burbridge expedition ; that it would have been impossible for any of us to escape, but for the obscure Crane's Nest trail we took and that there was but one man (Henderson) who could have guided us by that. He added that they captured him in Kentucky shortly after he had left us, and that he was shot while endeavoring to make his escape.
The march was then resumed with vigor, and at noon we reached Robinson's post-office, where a mail was captured and firearms taken from the postmaster. After a short halt here we moved on, taking the Stone Mountain road in the direction of Guests Station. When within a short distance of that place it was
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ascertained that a small number of Prentice's Brigade of rebel guerrilla cavalry-this Prentice was a son of the editor of the Louisville Journal-were at the Station with three wagonloads of provisions, which our boys were much in need of. Dividing into three squads we made a descent upon the place by different routes, finding no wagons and but few soldiers. One of the enemy was killed, one wounded-Captain Jones-and one captured. A fine horse was also captured here.
Guests Station was a hamlet of three or four houses and a smithy, and seemed to be a considerable coal depot. The command went into camp on an eminence near the station, having marched circuitously during the day thirty-three miles, through a rough country, abounding in beautiful and romantic scenery. The men fed on mutton, being entirely out of rations.
Our pickets were shot at nearly all the night, but in spite of the fact that we were in the midst of a large number of guerrillas, all but our sentinels slept soundly and at daylight were again in the saddle, fresh for a start. By this time Colonel Palmer had become thoroughly acquainted with the extent of the disaster that had overtaken Burbridge's command while in this State, and knowing that Burbridge had certainly retreated into Kentucky, the Colonel determined to leave also, and "not stand upon the order of his going." At daylight on the 7th of October we moved out on the Gladesville road and resumed our perilous jour- ney, a perfect shower of rebel bullets from all the surrounding hills accompanying us.
This move on the Gladesville road was a feint, as Colonel Palmer had no intention to go by that way, knowing he would be ambus- caded. After a short distance, we left a small force to conceal our real movement, and suddenly turning to the right, passed over a small stream and entered a dense forest, called the "Crane's Nest." A miserable narrow road or trace lay through this thicket, which was used by the rebels as a mail route during the war. After some miles of this "trace" and coming out into a back road, which we followed, parallel to the Gladesville road, the advance cap- tured one of Prentice's men, with his lady love, who were jogging along together, on the same horse, enjoying each other's com- pany. This interruption by their Northern cousins was a great surprise. The soldier lover accepted the invitation to accompany
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History of the Fifteenth Pennsylvania Cavalry.
the column, and left his dulcinea, who was given the option to go with us or not, by the roadside. As we moved on, she called after us, unemotionally, "Take good care of him, he is a nice fel- low." The mail road was pursued until afternoon, when a halt was made to kill beef and roast some potatoes at a small cabin and clearing at the eastern foot of the Cumberland Mountains. Colonel Prentice later told Colonel Palmer that he had come up to this cabin with his force just after we had started on, and after following us a while up the Cumberland Mountains, it became so dark that they gave up the pursuit.
After "dining" we pushed on to Osborn's Gap, in the Cum- berland Mountains, but ascertaining that it was thoroughly block- aded, a citizen guide, by the name of Haines, was found, who took us to the mountain-top by a dangerous trail. As it was very dark it was not noticed and no accident occurred. As the com- mand was obliged to ascend the mountain in single file, one of the prisoners, the lover, took advantage of the circumstance and the darkness to slip off his horse and escape down the steep mountain. The noise he made was thought to be that of a displaced rock. The horse was tied to a sapling and in the pitch darkness a third of the command, unaware that there was no rider, were halted also, blocking the road and a large number of the party were lost for several hours. The head of the column arrived on the sum- mit about eleven p.M. and went into camp, when it was discovered that the rear was lost. They had to be sent back for and it was nearly dawn before they arrived at our bivouac. The tempera- ture was at the freezing point and the wind was blowing a hurri- cane, while the men were clad in thin blouses of their summer uniform. The distance marched this day was thirty-two miles. The rebels did not annoy the column long after starting, or follow it very far. The advent of the Andersons among them was undoubtedly a complete surprise, and the enemy were so widely scattered that no considerable number could be collected to offer battle, and thus this gallant party, by the maintenance of the best discipline and rapid marching, went through the ordeal unscathed.
We were now comparatively out of harm's way. After a poor attempt at attaining personal comfort during the night, early on the morning of the 8th commenced the descent of the mountains into the valleys of Kentucky, a distance of three miles.
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Scout to Find General Burbridge.
The inhabitants found at the foot, on either side of the moun- tains, were the most profoundly ignorant and squalidly poor that had yet been met in the South. Indeed, it was a matter of great surprise to the command to find such a low grade of white human nature in the limits of the United States. All the hovels passed were visited by some one of the officers to obtain information- never, however, to find a man about. They were all out in the woods either with Colonel Prentice's command or hiding to es- cape rebel impressment, or, as more usually, to bushwhack us. While "dining" at the cabin above mentioned, one of our officers asked a comely lass, who waited on them, where her father was? "Gone a-sanging," she replied. "Where are your brothers?" "Gone a-sanging." "What do you mean by 'gone a-sanging'?" asked another officer. "Oh, gone after sang.' This caused a profound silence, which only Captain Colton had the temerity at last to break. "What is sang?" inquired the Captain. "Dollar a pound," said the girl in the same nonchalant voice. It appeared that the principal occupation of these people was the gathering of ginseng, which grew in abundance on the mountain-side.
One of General Burbridge's officers on the Salt Works Expedi- tion told Colonel Palmer that their experience was similar. They never found a man at home, but met the crack of a bushwhacker's rifle at nearly every turn in the wooded road. He reined up at a cabin and asked a small boy where his father was? The boy hesi- tated for a while and then said, "I'll go ask mammy," and went inside, closing the door. After a few moments he came out and re- plied briskly, "He's been dead two years."
The route on the 8th lay through a pleasant valley, watered by the western tributaries of the Big Sandy River. After marching thirty miles we encamped at Frazier's distillery. The neighbor- hood teemed with these manufactories of spirituous liquors-a dangerous place in which to encamp soldiers, fatigued with a long and perilous march-they had marched 120 miles in three and a half days, among and over mountains all the way-but greatly to their credit, not a man became intoxicated.
At Frazier's it was ascertained that the rear of General Bur- bridge's command was at Prestonburg, twenty miles distant, and a party of rebels were reported at the mouth of Mud Creek, some five miles away. Colonel Palmer, learning that it was the inten-
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tion of the Union forces to leave Prestonburg at sunrise next morning, sent forward a courier to advise the commanding officer of his approach, and also sent a scouting party to look after the rebels at Mud Creek. The latter party returned at midnight, finding no enemy.
On the 9th of October the command marched leisurely to Pres- tonburg, Ky., a distance of twenty miles, which was reached shortly after three o'clock, and Colonel Palmer reported to Gen- eral Hobson, in command, who had waited a day for him. The troops at this place had just returned from the attempt at Abing- don, Va., and were most thoroughly demoralized. When they started on the expedition into southwest Virginia they were splendidly equipped with all the latest adopted improvements in arms and accouterments. Now they were entirely stripped, in some instances even of necessary clothing, everything cumbering them having been thrown away in their disgraceful rout, and they seemed to be also without organization.
This union of the detachment with the forces they had started from Kingsport to reach, ended our mission, and Colonel Palmer directed his attention to rejoining the Regiment as speedily as possible. The only practicable route was by way of Catlettsburg, Ky., to Cincinnati and Louisville. This was followed, and on the night of the 12th the detachment reached Catlettsburg, at the mouth of the Big Sandy River, a distance of eighty-two miles from Prestonburg. On the morning of the 13th we embarked on the steamer "Telegraph" for Cincinnati, which place was reached on the morning of the 14th. On debarking we immediately became a source of great attraction, as we were the first body of cavalry that had ever entered that city direct from the seat of war. On the night of the 15th of October we left Cincinnati on the steamer "Dumont," and arriving in Louisville, at noon of the 6th, marched to the Government stables and housed our animals. Colonel Palmer afterward made arrangements with the Quartermaster Department to draw a number of fresh horses for the almost dis- mounted Regiment in Tennessee.
RECOLLECTIONS OF THE BURBRIDGE TRIP.
LIEUT. SELDEN L. WILSON, COMPANY I, WASHINGTON, PA.
T HE following are a few incidents of a hard march that seventy-five of us, under Colonel Palmer, made in the fall of 1864, to find General Burbridge. We started from Kingsport, East Tennessee, near the boundary line of Virginia, and marched north through part of that State and Kentucky, and never stopped until we reached the Ohio River, having plenty of excite- ment on the road.
The morning we started I had been on picket all night, but when relieved was ordered to report for scout duty. Fortunately, while on picket the night before, eight or ten fine specimens of poultry wandered into our post, and after being deprived of their plumage, etc., they landed in a large cast-iron kettle, and before daylight were cooked and divided among those on picket. I think my share was two, and they made several splendid lunches.
We started, and it was not long before we came up with some rebels, who showed a disposition to contest our right to proceed, but, with an advance guard in charge of "Pat" Lyon, they did not even check us. They made a stand several times, but always and with the same result except at one time, when Lyon was demanding the surrender of one of them, riding side and side. The rebel had fired several shots at Lyon, and for his own per- sonal safety, after making repeated demands to "surrender," he shot the rebel in the temple, killing him instantly. When the column came up there were quite a number of women and chil- dren gathered around the body, who thought it was terrible we had no time to bury him, but the Colonel told the citizens to do it themselves. We were the first Yankees who had been in that country. For two or three days, while we were driving some rebels in front of us, there were always some annoying us in the rear, and we would go into camp with rebels in sight, both in front and in the rear of us.
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