Twentieth century history of Altoona and Blair County, Pennsylvania, and representative citizens, Part 32

Author: Sell, Jesse C 1872-
Publication date: 1911
Publisher: Chicago, Richmond-Arnold Publishing
Number of Pages: 1036

USA > Pennsylvania > Blair County > Altoona > Twentieth century history of Altoona and Blair County, Pennsylvania, and representative citizens > Part 32

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Parts of eighteen or more regiments were raised in Blair county during the war. These were the Third, Fourteenth, Fifty-third, Sev- enty-sixth, Seventy-seventh, Eighty-fourth, One Hundred and Tenth, One Hundred and Twenty-fifth, One Hundred and Ninety-sec- ond, Two Hundred and Second, Two Hundred

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and Fifth, One Hundred and Fifty-second and One Hundred and Ninety-first regiments of in- fantry, the Ninth, Twelfth, Thirteenth, Nine- teenth and Twenty-second cavalry and the First Artillery. Individuals from the county also enlisted in other regiments, while not a few took service in the navy. The story of the soldiers of the county is almost the story of the war. They proved their valor in almost every battle of the war, and a number of them suffered untold agonies at Andersonville and Libby.

Within a few hours from the time when the call of the president and Governor Curtin were flashed westward over the telegraph wires, men from Blair county were preparing to march to the defense of the capital, and within three days six companies were on their way to the general rendezvous at Harrisburg. A few days later another company went for- ward to the state capital to join the rank's of their country's defenders. Following in de- tail are given the services of these regiments, beginning with the Third:

THIRD REGIMENT.

The six companies embraced in the first con- tribution by Blair county of men for the national armies had previously existed as inde- pendent organizations, and they became incor- porated with the Third Regiment of Pennsyl- vania in the three months' service. The com- panies were designated in the regimental or- ganization and commanded as follows: Com- pany A, of Hollidaysburg, Captain John R. McFarlane, of Hollidaysburg; first lieutenant, John McKeage; second lieutenant, Thomas McFarlane. Company B, of Altoona, captain, Henry Wayne, killed at Pocotaligo, S. C .; first lieutenant, Joseph W. Gardner; second lieu- tenant, John M. Clarke. Company C, of Wil- liamsburg, captain, William L. Neff ; first lieu- tenant, Jacob C. Yingling; second lieutenant, Robert Johnson. Company D, of Tyrone, cap- tain, James Bell; first lieutenant, William B. Darlington, second lieutenant, Francis M. Bell. Company E, of Altoona, captain, Jacob Sczink ; first lieutenant, Richard J. Crozier; second

lieutenant, Frederick Shillinger. Company H, of Hollidaysburg, captain, Alexander M. Lloyd; first lieutenant, Christian N. Snyder; second lieutenant, Stephen C. Potts. All these six companies were mustered into the service on the 20th day of April, 1861, which was also the date of the organization of the Third regiment, of which these companies formed the principal part.

The rendezvous of the Third regiment was Camp Curin, at Harrisburg, that historic camp being first occupied and used as such by Com- pany G, of Johnstown, of the Third, on the morning of April 18, 1861. The organization and muster of the regiment was effected here, on the 20th of the same month, its field and staff officers being : Colonel, Francis P. Minier, of Hollidaysburg; lieutenant-colonel, John M. Rower, of Johnstown; major, Oliver M. Irvine, of Pittsburg; adjutant, James C. Noon; quartermaster, Jacob M. Campbell; surgeon, R. S. M. Jackson. On the evening of the day of muster the regiment received marching orders, and immediately departed from Harrisburg by railroad for Baltimore, but did not reach that city, being stopped at Cockeysville, Md., by the destruction of a bridge a little further on, also at that point receiving orders from Gen. Scott to halt at Cockeysville and not attempt the passage through Baltimore, which had been made at the cost of bloodshed by the Sixth Massachusetts regiment on the 19th. On receipt of these orders the Third encamped near Cockeysville, and remained there until the 22nd, when it re- turned to York, Pa., reaching there in the morning of the 23rd and remaining there four days, during which time the officers and men of the regiment were recipients of the most liberal hospitality from the citizens of the town. On the 27th the Third moved from York to Chambersburg, where it was assigned to duty in the second division, second brigade, com- manded by Brigadier General George C. Wyn- koop, the other regiments composing the brigade being the first and second regiments of Pennsylvania. The regimental camp about three miles from the town, and named Camp

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Chambers. At this camp the Third remained until the 7th of June, when it moved with its brigade by railroad to Hagerstown, they thence marched immediately to Funkstown, at which place orders were expected to march on Har- per's Ferry, Va., where there was a consider- able body of the enemy's forces in position, commanded by Gen. Joseph E. Johnston. The expected orders, however, were not received, and the regiment remained at this camp, quietly engaged in drill and other routine duty, for more than three weeks, and on the first of July moved with Keim's division to Williams- port, Md., on the left bank of the Potomac. On the 2nd it crossed the river to the "sacred soil" of Virginia, and advanced with the troops to Martinsburg, in that state, arriving there on the 3rd. The camp of the regiment was made near that town, to the northward; but after a short stay at this place the Third was ordered back to Williamsport, as a guard to the depot of supplies which had been estab- lished at that point for the use of the forces of General Patterson at Martinsburg and neighboring points in Virginia. On this duty, and in the guarding of communications with Williamsport, the regiment remained until after the expiration of its enlistment, when, on the 16th of July it was ordered to Harrisburg. Moving by way of Hagerstown, Md., it reached the capital of Pennsylvania on the fol- lowing day, and there, on the 29th of July, 1861, was mustered out of service. Most of the men afterwards re-enlisted.

FOURTEENTH REGIMENT.

In the Fourteenth regiment, three months' service, were two Blair county companies. One, designated as Company I, was recruited at Martinsburg and vicinity, and its commis- sioned officers were : Captain, Alexander Bobb; first lieutenant, J. C. Saunders; second lieutenant, John H. Typher. The other com- pany, H, was recruited largely in the town- ships, and its commissioned officers were : Cap- tain, Thomas Holland, first lieutenant, William McGraw; second lieutenant, Samuel A. An- drews.

The regiment was organized at Camp Curtin in the latter part of April, 1861, under the fol- lowing named field officers: John W. Johns- ton, colonel; Richard McMichael, lieutenant colonel; Charles N. Watts, major. It was mustered into the United States service as a regiment April 30th. On the 9th of May it was moved from Camp Curtin to the fair grounds at Lancaster, and there remained until the 3rd of June, when it moved to a camp about five miles from Chambersburg, and was there assigned to the fifth brigade, commanded by Gen. James S. Negley, of the second divi- sion, commanded by Gen. William H. Keim.

After a stay of -about two weeks at the camp near Chambersburg, the regiment moved to Hagerstown, Md., and thence on the 20th to a camp near Sharpsburg. At this point it re- mained until the 2nd of July, when it moved with the column under Gen. Patterson across the Potomac into Virginia, and on the 3rd, having encountered Ashby's confederate cav- alry on the march on the previous day, arrived at Martinsburg, where it remained on provost and other duty until the 15th of July, when it moved with the forces of Gen. Patterson to Bunker Hill, Va., upon a report that the enemy was in force at that place. No enemy was found, however, but only his deserted camp, and on the 18th the regiment marched to Charlestown, Va., and on the 21st, to Har- per's Ferry, where two days later, the news was received of the great disaster at Bull Run. This ended the Virginia campaign, and soon afterwards, the term of service of the Four- teenth having nearly expired, it crossed the Potomac, marched to Hagerstown, thence to Carlisle, where after a stay of eleven days it was mustered out and disbanded on the 7th of August.

FIFTY-THIRD REGIMENT.

The fifty-third regiment, of which Col. John R. Brooke, of Montgomery county, was the first commanding officer, was organized at Camp Curtin in September and October, 1861, being composed of companies re- cruited in Montgomery, Chester, Blair,

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Huntingdon, Clearfield, Center, Carbon, Union, Luzerne, Potter, Westmoreland, Northumberland and Juniata counties. The men recruited in Blair and Huntingdon counties formed company C, and the com- missioned officers were as follows: Cap- tains John H. Wintrode and Henry J. Smith; first lieutenants, Robert McNamara Samuel M. Royer, D. S. Fouse and Andrew J. Merrett; second lieutenant, John Mc- Laughlin.

Moving from Harrisburg, November 7, 1861, the regiment proceeded to Washing- ton, D. C., whence on the 27th of the same month, it crossed the Potomac and went into camp near Alexandria, Va., which be- came its winter headquarters. In March, 1862, it moved forward with the Army of the Potomac in the fruitless advance on Manassas, and from that march returned to Alexandria, where it was assigned to the Third brigade of Richardson's division of the Second corps, commanded by General Edwin V. Sumner.

About the first of April the regiment with its corps was transported by water to the Virginia peninsula, and moved with the Army of the Potomac to the line in front of Yorktown. The enemy evacuated that place on the night of the third of May, and on the following day the army moved on in pursuit, arriving the same night at Wil- liamsburg, where a bloody battle was fought on the fifth. On the sixth the Forty-third returned to Yorktown and remained five days, then moved by steamer up the York river to West Point, marching thence to the line occupied by the army along the Chicka- hominy. Crossing that stream on the night of the thirty-first of May, it took part in the battle at Seven Pines on the following day, losing nearly 100 men in killed, wounded

and missing, and showing through the con- flict a steadiness and bravery that elicited the commendation of the division and corps commanders. On the twenty-seventh of June, when the right wing of the army was closed in deadly conflict with the enemy at

Gaines' mill, the Fifty-third, being a part of the left wing, was posted on the York river railroad, on the other side of the Chicka- hominy ; but late in the afternoon, when the battle had turned against the Union forces under General Porter, this regiment with its division was thrown across the river to their succor, and entering the fiery arena, helped to hold the victorious Confederates in check until the friendly darkness came on, and then amid the shades of night all re- crossed to the south side of the stream, de- stroying the bridges behind them. Then followed the seven days' fight, the Fifty- third with its division covering the retreat and being hotly engaged with the pursuing enemy at Peach orchard and at Savage sta- tion. The regiment was not closely en- gaged in the tremendous fight at Malvern hill, although under fire for several hours. It assisted in covering the retreat of Mc- Clellan's army to Harrison's landing, where it remained until the sixteenth of August, when it was ordered to reinforce General Pope, who was being overwhelmed on the Rappahannock. It did not arrive in time to take part in the second Bull Run battle, though within hearing distance while on the march towards Centreville, where it arrived the following day. It was at once placed in position to cover the retreat of the defeated Army of Virginia to the Potomac, and hav- ing done this with the usual steadiness and gallantry, it moved across the river to a po- sition northwest of Washington, September 3rd, and a few days later was again on the march in the campaign of South Mountain and Antietam. In the first of these two en- gagements it took no part, being held in re- serve. It reached Antietam creek on the sixteenth, and in the great battle of the seventeenth was engaged early in the day, holding position on the extreme right of the division, charging the enemy and driving him from his strong position in its front, and holding the ground against all attempts of the Confederates to reoccupy it. Later in the day the regiment was posted in support

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of a battery, and was under an exceedingly heavy fire for many hours. Its loss at An- tietam was twenty-eight killed and woun- ded.

In the campaign of Fredericksburg, the Fifty-third crossed the Rappahannock on the twelfth of December, driving the enemy's light forces from the bank of the river and occupied a part of the town. Early in the day of the great battle the regiment with its brigade formed in line of battle along the south border of the town, and after a halt of nearly two hours in that position, all the while under a terrible fire from the enemy's batteries, advanced at double-quick towards the famed stone wall that barred the way to the acclivity of Marye's heights. Here, as at other points along the line, the rocky barricade proved impregnable to the Union assault, but the Third brigade charged up to within twenty-five rods of it, and held its position there in the face of a fire as de- structive as any that was ever poured into an advancing column, and through all the remaining hours of the day held it against repeated attacks of the enemy until night closed in on the scene of carnage, and then, and not till then, they retired from the ad- vanced line and made their cheerless bivouac in the town. The Fifty-third lost in this en- gagement 156 killed and wounded, which was considerably more than half the effective strength when it entered the fight.

In the spring campaign of 1863, the regi- ment moved from its camp at Falmouth on the twenty-eighth of April, crossed the Rap- pahannock, and marched to Chancellors- ville, where it took part in the great battle during the three days of its continuance, suffering considerable loss. At the battle of Gettysburg three companies of the regi- ment were absent on detached duty, and only 125 men participated in that great battle, out of which number it suffered a loss of seventy-three killed and wounded.

From this time to the close of the war the Blair county men in Company C partici- pated. in all the campaigns and battles in

which the regiment was engaged. Among the battles in which the company was prom- inently engaged were Rappahannock sta- tion, Bristoe station, Mine Run, Wilderness, Po river, Spottsylvania courthouse, Cold Harbor, Petersburg, Ream's station, Boyd- ton plank road, Five forks, Deep creek, and at Appomattox court house at Lee's sur- render. Shortly after this the company, with other troops, returned by way of Washington to Harrisburg, from whence the men returned to their homes and to the pursuits of civil life.

THE SIXTY-SECOND REGIMENT.

The Sixty-second regiment, of which Col. Samuel W. Black was the first commanding officer, was raised in the month of July, 1861, under authority given on the fourth of that month to Colonel Black by the secre- tary of war. The authority was afterwards extended, allowing the regiment to include twelve full companies, of which seven were recruited in Allegheny county, two in Clar- ion and one in each of the counties of Arm- strong, Jefferson and Blair. The company from Blair, which was the first full com- pany that left the county to enter the three years' service, was designated as M com- pany of the regiment, Captain Richard J. Crozier. The rendezvous of the regiment was at Pittsburg, but soon after its organi- zation it moved to Harrisburg, where it re- mained in camp several weeks, thence pro- ceeding to Washington, where it received equipments and arms, and on the eleventh of September crossed the Potomac to Vir- ginia, encamping at Fort Corceran, and was assigned to Gen. Fitz-John Porter's divi- sion.

In the spring of 1862 the Sixty-second moved with the Army of the Potomac to Yorktown and participated in the Peninsula campaign, taking part in the battles of Han- over court house, Mechanicsville,, Gaines' mill, the Seven Days' fight and Malvern hill. At the battle of Gaines' mill Colonel Black was killed and the command of the

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regiment devolved upon Lieut .- Col. J. Bow- man Sweitzer, who was taken prisoner on the following day and sent to Richmond. The entire loss of the Sixty-second in these battles was 298 killed, wounded and miss- ing.

The regiment was next engaged with the army of General Pope in the vicinity of Manassas, but took no part in the second battle of Bull Run, being held in reserve with General Porter's corps. After that battle and defeat, it retired with its division to Centreville and thence to Minor's hill, near Washington, reaching there Septem- ber 4. In the Antietam campaign, the Sixty- second was present on that famous field, but was not closely engaged, its division and corps being held in reserve, though it was for hours posted in support of batteries and under a heavy artillery fire. The regi- ment shortly afterwards engaged in a recon- noitering expedition into Virginia, where it had a spirited fight with a large force of the enemy.

In the reorganization of the army which fol- lowed the appointment of Gen. A. E. Burnside to succeed General McClellan in the chief com- mand, the brigade of which the Sixty-second was a part (the Second) was under the com- mand of Col. Sweitzer, the division under Gen. Griffin, and the corps (Fifth) under General Butterfield, the Fifth and Third corps together forming the Center Grand division, under com- mand of "Fighting Joe" Hooker.

In the great battle of Fredericksburg, Dec. 13, 1862, the Second brigade crossed the Rap- pahannock at noon of that day, and marched through the streets of the town under a terrific fire of artillery, and deflecting to the right moved past a brick-kiln to and across the rail- road to the front of the enemy's almost im- pregnable position on Marye Heights. There it was met by a fire as destructive as was ever hurled in the face of an assaulting column. The right of the line gave way, but the Second brigade moved steadily forward through the infernal fire to a point within ten rods of the stone wall which sheltered the enemy. To ad- while doing so its advance was checked by the

vance beyond that point was impossible, but the men lay down in mud and water, a position so exposed that a man could hardly rise to his feet and live a minute afterwards, and re- mained there until Sunday evening, December 14th, when they returned under cover of dark- ness to the town, and subsequently occupied its old camp on the north side of the Rappahan- nock. The loss of the regiment in the battle of Fredericksburg was seventy killed and wounded.

In the spring campaign of 1863 the Sixty- second left its winter quarters on the 27th of April and moved with its corps, the Fifth under General Meade to and across the Rap- pahannock, where it tooks a conspicuous part in the great battle of Chancellorsville. After the disastrous termination of that battle it was the last regiment to cross the swollen Rappa- hannock, from which it marched back to its previous camp at Falmouth, where it remained until about the middle of June, being employed at picket duty and in observing the movement of the enemy.

About the middle of June the regiment marched northward with the army on the cam- paign that culminated in the battle of Gettys- burg. It arrived with the Fifth corps on that historic field at daylight on the morning of the 2nd of July, having been slightly engaged with the enemy at Middleburg, and the men having suffered terribly from the heat, dust and fatigue of the long march. The corps was first placed in position in the rear of Cemetery hill, where it remained awaiting orders during the greater part of the day. It was finally or- dered in to support Sickles' corps, which was hard pressed and in danger of being forced back in disorder. The position of the Second brigade was in front of Little Round Top. The Sixty-second occupied the left of the brigade line-an exposed position-which the enemy attempted to flank, but failing in this, made a vigorous attack, which was repulsed, but the Second brigade was withdrawn to a new line behind a wheat field, across which it soon afterwards charged, under a terrible fire, but

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giving way of a brigade, which was pursued by a heavy force of the enemy, who came on with a rush and yell, and gained the flank and rear of the charging Second brigade, which was thus placed in an extremely perilous posi- tion, and was extricated only by the unsur- passed bravery and steadiness of the officers and men, who retired slowly, but fighting over all the ground, until they gained a position of comparative security at the base of Little Round Top the enemy in the mean time having been checked and driven by a brigade of the Pennsylvania reserves. During the night the men built a rough stone wall, connecting the slopes of the two Round Tops, and this rude defense was held by the Sixty-second, which was not again closely engaged in the battle. Its losses at Gettysburg were heavy, reducing its strength to less than 100 men. Among the mortally wounded in this battle was Lieut. Patrick Morris of Company M.

During the ensuing winter the regiment re- ceived many recruits from Pennsylvania and on the opening of the spring campaign of 1864 moved with its corps to the Rapidan and took part in all the engagement beginning at the Wilderness and ending at Petersburg. On the 3rd of July, 1864, the ten original companies of the Sixty-second regiment were mustered out of the service, their term of enlistment ex- piring and the two remaining companies, L and M, were transferred to the Ninety-first Pennsylvania regiment, and remained with it until the expiration of their term of service, and were mustered out on the 8th of August. All told, the Blair county Company M, partici- pated in twenty battles.

THE SEVENTY-SIXTH REGIMENT.

The Seventy-sixth regiment was raised in the fall of 1861, and organized at Camp Cameron, Harrisburg, under the following- named field officers, viz .: Colonel, John M. Power; lieutenant-colonel, D. H. Wallace; and major, Oliver M. Irvine, of Blair county. Two companies of the regiment were raised in Blair county, viz. : Companies C and F.

The first captain of Company C was John

W. Hicks, who was promoted to major, May I, 1863. He was succeeded by Alfred Hicks, who was previously second and first lieutenant. He was mustered out Nov. 24, 1864, at ex- piration of term, and was succeeded by John McNevin. The first lientenant was George S. Hower, who died at Hilton Head, S. C., Sept. 2, 1862, and Joseph Harlin. The second lieu- tenants were Joseph D. Huch, Philip N. Hicks, Sr., and Benjamin White. Michael Poet, one of the present members of the Altoona school board, was one of the corporals.

Company F had five captains during its service, viz .: Henry Wayne, killed at Poco- taligo, S. C., Oct. 22, 1862; Joseph R. Find- ley, T. L. McGlathery, killed at Fort Fisher, N. C., Jan. 15, 1865, James H. McDivit and William Blanck, Jr., George H. Gwinn was first lieutenant and Joseph W. Cannon and John Hubert, second lieutenants.

The regiment left Harrisburg on the 19th of November, 1861, and proceeded to Fortress Monroe, and thence by ocean transports to South Carolina, to join the expeditionary forces which had previously gone forward to Beaufort, in that state, under command of Gen. T. W. Sherman. From then until May, 1864, the regiment was engaged in the operations along the coast. It participated in the battle of Pocotaligo, where Captain Wayne was killed and in the assault on Fort Wagner, sustain- ing here a loss of fifty-two killed and 135 wounded, among the latter Major John W. Hicks of Blair county, who had succeeded Major Irvine, who resigned.

In the spring of 1864 the regiment was transported to Virginia, and there attached to the Army of the James under Gen. B. F. Butler, at Bermuda Hundred. It participated in an action on the Weldon railroad, the destruction of which was the object of the expedition, losing sixty-one in killed, wounded and miss- ing. On the 27th of May, the regiment, with its division, the Second, of the Tenth corps, joined the Army of the Potomac at White House Landing, and joined in the battle of Cold Harbor, where it sustained a heavy loss. It subsequently rejoined the Army of the James

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and after spending some time in the destruction of railroads, again joined the Army of the Potomac and was at the mine explosion, July 30th, and suffered considerable loss. From the 13th to the 17th of August it was daily under fire at Deep Bottom and vicinity. From that time until in November it was constantly engaged in fighting and skirmishing. In De- cember, 1864, the regiment accompanied Gen- eral Butler's disastrous expedition against Fort Fisher, and it formed part of the new expedition sent out for the same purpose in January under General Terry. It participated in the assault and lost heavily, Captain Mc- Glathery of Company F being among the slain. The regimental colors, carried by Cor- poral Albert Sanders, of Company C, was torn and shredded by shells and canister until a mere fragment remained on the staff.

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Twentieth century history of Altoona and Blair County, Pennsylvania, and representative citizens, Part 32

Author: Sell, Jesse C 1872- Publication date: 1911 Publisher: Chicago, Richmond-Arnold Publishing Number of Pages: 1036

Author: Sell, Jesse C 1872-
Publication date: 1911
Publisher: Chicago, Richmond-Arnold Publishing
Number of Pages: 1036