USA > Rhode Island > History of the Fifth Regiment of Rhode Island Heavy Artillery, during three years and a half of service in North Carolina. January 1862-June 1865 > Part 6
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"Major Wright, Captains Eddy and Wheeler, Dr. Potter, the able sur- geon of the battalion, and other officers whom I have not time to men-
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tion particularly, have laid me under lasting obligations by their kind- ness. They found me a stranger in a strange land, and they made me at home amongst them.
"One of the most popular attaches of this battalion is Dr. Frank Diggs, cook and caterer for Dr. Potter's mess, and whose fame is well established in Providence. He certainly can get up a repast in an ene- my's country which would do credit to a culinary artist in the most civ- ilized locality. To him I am indebted, and I here return my thanks for the most excellent repasts I have yet found in this benighted land of se- cession. 'Long may he wave!' and may he return safely to his home to again tickle the palates of his Rhode Island friends.
"Night before last I spent with the battalion, and. during the night there was an alarm from the pickets, the long roll was beaten, and in five minutes' time every soldier was in his place and ready for the attack. But there was none, and after an hour or two the men were dismissed to their quarters, with orders to sleep on their arms, reports having been brought in of the presence of rebel cavalry within a few miles of camp. The promptitude with which they turned out reflects credit upon their officers for the thoroughness of their drill and preparation."
We will let a comrade relate his experience on picket in these lonely woods of North Carolina : " My first tour of picket duty occurred here. I was detailed with one of my comrades as an ad- vance picket about one mile from camp. Our post was situated in a dense pine forest. and it rained nearly all that day and the following night. When the darkness came on it was peculiarly unpleasant and dreary to us. The soldier at such times can draw pretty largely on his imagination, especially if the enemy have been accustomed to visit the locality. Everything appeared to assume a weird and strange appearance. Our imaginations would see in every stump a rebel, and the hogs that run at large through the forests of North Carolina, appeared in the darkness like men coming towards ns. These logs were not like our well fed porkers at the north, con- fined in pens, but were lean and lank, with their owners' marks branded upon them. They were turned out to gather what food they could obtain in the woods."
Another visitor at the headquarters.of the Fifth at Newport City, was no less a personage than Henry M. Stanley. the distinguished African explorer, but at that time a representative of one of the lead- ing New York dailies ..
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At this time the Third brigade consisted of but three and one-half regiments, and the task assigned it was to invest Fort Macon and guard the railroad as far north as Havelock Station against the small bands of Confederate cavalry that infested the country to the west. General Parke therefore asked for an additional regiment. and the Ninth New Jersey Infantry was ordered to join him at Caro- lina City. It reached the camp of the Fifth Battalion at Newport City on the evening of March 30th. A promise had been made to Major Wright that as soon as the bridge was completed the battalion should be relieved and join the brigade. Here was the opportunity of getting the desired relief. and, taking a hand-car, the major was soon in Carolina City explaining the situation. He quickly returned with an order that the Ninth New Jersey should relieve the bat- talion of the duty of guarding the bridge and road. and that the latter should join the brigade without delay. The fourth day of April saw the battalion on the march, and that night it encamped at Carolina City, where the men had a view of Fort Macon, over which floated the rebel ensign.
Immediately south of Cape Lookout the coast trends still more to the southwest for a long distance. Here the strip of sand beach along the ocean is narrower and more broken by inlets, and the sounds are narrower than those further north. Bogue Island. just south of Cape Lookout. is one of these sandy beaches. in local ver- nacular " Banks," about twenty-five miles long. " On these banks there is quite a population for such a forsaken locality. They live by fishing. piloting. and wrecking ; raising a few ponies. hogs. sweet pota- toes, and a little corn. The soil-if it can be called such, -is sand. There is a growth of stunted trees of several varieties. all present- ing the peculiarity of having large branches ou the landward side. and very diminutive ones on the side toward the sea, caused by the prevailing winds, which seem to blow back into the tree every bud that attempts to struggle into life ou the exposed side. To add to the general attractiveness of the " Banks" the sand is blown into duties and hills. which shift as the direction and force of the winds change. Brackish water can be found on the levels at the depth of a few inches by merely scooping out a hole with a tin dipper or pan." On the northeastern extremity of Bogne .. Bank " was Fort Mai-
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con. It was a regular work, mounting sixty-seven guns in all, casemated with stone on the water front, while on the land side the walls were constructed of brick. On this side the guns were mounted en barbette, and defended by the usual ditch, with a glacis which afforded a field for fire against an assaulting column. The garrison had undermined and thrown down the light-house, leveled a number of adjacent buildings, and made every possible preparation
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Fort Macon, N. C.
to give an attacking force the warmest reception in their power to bestow. The fort commanded the entrance to Beaufort and More- head City harbors. These places were on the mainland. The chan- nel would admit vessels drawing seventeen feet of water. Morehead City was the eastern terminus of the Atlantic and North Carolina Railroad, which, as has been stated, crossed the Richmond and Wil- mington line at Goldsboro. The possession of these harbors secured a second and very safe base. by way of the railroad, for New Berne.
The garrison of Fort Macon consisted of about five hundred men, under the command of Colonel White, a brave and resolute officer.
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He had reported to General Branch that he had supplies for sixty days, and that he could and would hold the fort for an indefinite time longer than that. General Parke was then, as he is now, one of the best and most accomplished engineers in our army. To him was assigned the task of reducing the fort by siege, while the navy block- aded it by water. It had been hoped that the Confederate com- mander, when he saw the force brought against him, by land and water, would capitulate. As soon as General Parke reached Caro- lina City, he summoned Colonel White to surrender. The rebel commander declined, and at one time he seriously thought of firing on Beaufort when it was first occupied by our forces. The people there seemed to be about equally divided on the question of loyalty, and welcomed our troops, in many instances with seeming cordiality. It was remarked at the time, as an encouraging fact, that on the Sunday following the occupation of Beaufort, prayers for the Presi- dent of the United States were read in the Episcopal church of the town, and responded to with marked emphasis.
It was the work done by the Fifth Rhode Island in rebuilding the railroad bridge at Newport City which made the siege of Fort Macon possible. At once the guns, ammunition, and other material neces- sary in the investment were brought down from New Berne and Slo- cum's Landing. While the work on the bridge was still going on the preparatory steps of the siege were taken.
The Fifth Battalion crossed on the 6th of April. The investing force on the island then consisted of eight companies of the Fourth Rhode Island; seven companies of the Eighth Connecticut ; the Fifth Rhode Island Battalion ; Company C. First United States Ar- tillery, and Company I, Third New York Artillery.
General Parke found here what General Gilmore afterwards found on Morris and James Islands, near Charleston, long, low ridges of sand, behind which the troops could work almost unmolested by the enemy's fire.
Having established camps for the men, the next thing was to fix sites for the siege batteries, and to do this it was first necessary to drive in the enemy's piekets. This was done on the 11th of April. A press correspondent thus described the operation at the time :
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" Major Wright, in command of the Fifth Rhode Island, with Com- pany G of the Fourth Rhode Island, under the command of Lieutenant Bowen, advanced from their camp early in the morning. and drove in the pickets of the enemy, which have until to-day maintained their po- sition two miles from the fort, on . Bogue Beach.' I crossed over from Beaufort in time to witness the little skirmish which accompanied the movement. The rebel pickets fell back as our line advanced, stopping three times to return our fire. The gunboat State of Georgia fired three or four shells in the direction of the retreating pickets, which materially quickened their movements. The fort replied to these shots, but our gunboat was out of reach, and therefore was not struck. When our forces were within about one mile, a thirty-pounder shell was fired at them, which passed harmlessly over their heads and exploded, doing no harm. The enemy's pickets took shelter within the fort."
Under the date of the 12th, the same writer adds :
"The regular siege operations for the reduction of Fort Macon may date from yesterday morning. The guns in the fort were all manned, the troops were formed in order of battle. and everything made ready for the expected assault. West of the fort, beginning at the distance of about one thousand yards, is a series of sandy ridges. which generally lie north and south. and afford a line of natural breastworks, behind which our advancing forces can find shelter. The gunboats withdrew out of range towards evening. and operations ceased for the night. Dur- ing the night, however, the commander of the fort again threw out his pickets. in order to be sure of what Major Wright might be doing."
The sites for the siege batteries were selected, the work of building them went steadily on, and every preparation was thor- oughly made. When completed they were composed as follows : One of four ten-inch mortars ; one of four eight-inch mortars ; one of three thirty-pounder Parrots, and one containing a twelve-pound rifled Dalghren naval howitzer. In these operations the battalion found itself again placed at a vexatious disadvantage, for it had to take its turn every third day in the work of constructing the batteries and guarding the trenches just the same as one of the full regiments ; and each regiment, when it became its turn for duty, had to march from its camp along the beach some four miles to relieve the regiment which had completed its twenty-fours hours of labor,
A soldier thus speaks of the situation in the trenches at this time : " When our turn came to take our tour of duty in the trenches. we would proceed along the beach. and when we had approached within
£
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range of the guns of the fort, the rebels would send us their compli- ments in the shape of shot and shell. After taking the places assigned us in the trenches, one man was stationed on lookout duty near the top of the rifle-pit, while the others would remain below. When the lookout saw the flash of the rebel guns he would sing out
Lieut. J. M. Wheaton.
' Down ! ' the men taking to the rifle-pit like a woodchuck to its hole. and would remain there until the shot had passed over.
" What a queer sensation comes over one when he hears the noise of a shell just let loose from a gun, the whizzing through the air, and its final explosion and separation into many pieces. It is mighty un- pleasant to say the least, as many an old soldier can testify, as you never can tell where the plaguy thing will drop. or what damage it may do to you before it has completed it- mis-ion."
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The supplies for the whole force were landed from a schooner, an- chored off the camps, in the ocean. They were usually brought off by Lieut. J. M. Wheaton in a whale-boat. manned by a crew from his company, E. They soon became very expert in their exciting and dangerous labor of running their deep-laden boat through the surf and high up the beach, without wetting their cargo of bread, coffee, and sugar. And this valuable service was soon rewarded by the promotion of Lieutenant Wheaton.
In order to give timely notice of any sortie from the fort, which an energetic garrison might now be expected to make to retard the construction of the siege batteries. an advance post was established within about five hundred yards of the fort. on the night of the 20th. The men dug a small rifle-pit. a few yards long, in the sand, and took shelter behind it. The garrison, so long as they regarded it as a mere post, did not pay much attention to it. On the morning of the 22d. a detail from the Fifth Rhode Island of sixteen men, com- manded by Lieut. James Moran. were ordered to relieve the men on duty at this post. At the same time the rebel officers in the fort seemed to have become suspicious of the friendly intention of the squad of men who daily sunned themselves behind their little breast- work of sand. Lieutenant Moran moved up under cover of the. sand ridges to within about 200 yards of the post. From that point there was nothing but a stretch of level beach to be passed over be- fore he reached the cover of the little rifle-pit. With the men at " trail arms" and on the "double-quick," they filed out on the beach to make the rush. when they were greeted with a storm of shell, the enemy opening upon them with every gun bearing on that line of approach to the fort. That " double-quick " became a dead run, and luckily Lieutenant Moran and his men reached their cover be- fore the guns could be fired again. The fire from the fort was now steady and persistent, and the men who had been relieved could only get away by running, one or two at a time. between shots, to the cover of the sand ridges. At the end of an hour the last man had gone, and not a single casualty had occurred. Gradually the rebel gunners obtained a better range. and at one time two shells struck immediately in front of the little breastwork at the same moment, and, exploding, they fairly buried the little Rhode Island squad under
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an avalanche of sand. The only damage was a ruined shoe on one · of the men from a piece of shell. One of the gunners in the fort afterwards said that he watched these shells, and, thinking they had fallen short, he caused the guns to be elevated again. It was an act of thoughtfulness for which Lieutenant Moran heartily thanked him. So severe was this fire that the men could not be relieved until the night of the 24th. During these trying hours these brave men had the pangs of thirst added to the cravings of hunger.
A soldier of this company says : " When we received the order to move forward to occupy this advanced post, I watched my oppor- tunity to run along the beach when the fire from the fort had appar- ently slackened. I started on the double-quick. and when about half way to the post, I saw a solid shot roll by me on the beach. Its force was almost spent, and it seemed like a foot-ball as it passed me. It is needless to say I did not put my foot out to stop it. When I reached the place where Lieutenant Moran was stationed, he directed me to take three men and go several yards in front of our position as an advanced picket. We moved to the place designated, and re- mained there in an almost prone position for forty-eight hours, until relieved. You can imagine that this extended tour of duty somewhat detracted from the romance of war."
An incident occurred during the siege which it may not be inap- propriate to mention. A soldier named James Ballou in Company D, had been detailed as company cook, and it was his privilege to remain in camp attending to his duties while the battalion was in the trenches. For some reason he was relieved from his position as cook, and the next time the company went to the front, he accompa- nied it. He had been in the trenches but a short time when a shell from the enemy came over, and exploded in unpleasant proximity to us. A portion of the shell struck the shoe of Comrade Ballou, pene - trating through and severing the big toe from the foot, and resulted in his discharge from the service a few months later.
On the 23d General Parke reported everything ready to open fire, and General Burnside came down from New Berne to superinten ! the final operations. Up to this time not a shot had been fired from our batteries. Again General Burnside demanded the surrender of the fort, and again the rebel commander refused in the briefest lan-
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guage. On the 24th the gunboats drew in and opened fire ou the fort, and were replied to with the greatest vigor. After this contest had continued about an hour, a gale sprang up, the fleet withdrew out of range, and operations were suspended for that day. The next morning General Parke's land batteries opened on the fort. With the aid of the signal officers, stationed across the channel on the mainland, and who watched the flight and fall of the shells with their glasses. the mortars soon obtained a range so accurate that every one of their shells fell inside of the fort, while the thirty-pounder Parrots swept the ramparts, where the guns were en barbette, with a storm of shot and shell that nothing could withstand. General Foster had once been stationed at Fort Macon as an engineer officer, superin- tending repairs, and he was therefore thoroughly acquainted with all of the construction of it. It had been planned solely with the view of defending the entrance to Beaufort harbor. The walls on the land- ward side were made of brick, and the magazine had been placed in this rear wall. The general made a plan of the fort, and it was given to Captain Morris of the regular army, commanding the siege batteries. Soon after the firing commenced he trained his Parrot guns so as to have his solid shot just graze the crest of the counter- scarp and strike the scarp wall just back of the magazine. At first the enemy replied with great spirit, but it was not long before their zeal abated. and their return fire on the land side grew weaker and weaker. Still Captain Morris kept boring away at the magazine, oc- casionally sending in a shell to see if he had reached it. Before sun- down seventeen of their guns had been dismounted or otherwise disabled. Great breaches had been made in the scarp walls. a crack twelve feet long showed on the inside wall of the magazine, and a shell might pierce it any moment and explode the five tons of powder in it. while the ramparts had been swept clean of men. To longer hold out when there was no possibility of any human succor, was simply a useless waste of human life, and, at the close of the day, a white flag was placed on the walls of Fort Macon,
Very early on the morning of the 26th the Fifth Rhode Island re- lieved the Eighth Connecticut in the trenches. and thus being on duty. as well as nearer to the fort. the honor of being the first troops to enter it and participate in the formal surrender of the rebel garrison
FIFTH RHODE ISLAND HEAVY ARTILLERY. 65
was accorded to our battalion. This was also the most fitting oppor- tunity to present the colors, the right to bear which the battalion had so well and bravely won. Lieut. William W. Douglas volunteered to bring them, and, mounting a horse, he galloped away to camp, and speedily returned to the waiting officers and men. An eye witness thus describes the stirring scenes of that morning :
Capt. Charles Taft.
"From our advanced position with the pickets of the Fifth Rhode Island, we were observant spectators of the negotiations going on be- tween General Burnside and Colonel White. At length the general, accompanied by General Parke and Captains Biggs and King, was des- cried coming from the fort. They walked leisurely down the beach and gave us the glorious news of the final surrender. General Burnside or- dered the Fifth to form in line, and at the command of Major Wright the various companies defiled from their positions and formed upon the
5
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beach, where, after a short review, the general unfurled the new colors of the battalion, just sent from the State of Rhode Island, and bearing the words . ROANOKE,' and ' NEW BERNE,' and handed them to the color sergeants (Sergt. Charles Taft, and Sergt. Amos B. Sherman), who took their places at the head of the column, which was formed in the follow- ing order :
General Burnside, General Parke, Captain Biggs, and Captain King. Major Wright. The Colors. Battalion Fifth Rhode Island Volunteers. Staff. Members of the Press.
" The column, as it moved along the edge of the shore, with the bright, new banners flapping their folds as if in defiance of the rebel flag. which was still floating over the fort, presented a very pleasing sight. Coming to the southerly slope of the fort, the column filed left, and rounding the edge of the greensward, entered the sallyport. Ascending to the ramparts, the battalion marched once around the fort. with their ban- ners still before them. The companies were then assigned to their re- spective places, and the ceremony of taking possession had ended, with the exception of hauling down the rebel flag. This was soon performed. The halyards were loosed, and the bunting came to the ground. It had been made out of the old United States garrison flag of the fort, with the stars withdrawn to suit the number of the revolted States."
Where to get a national flag to raise in place of the rebel flag which had just been lowered, was now a question of some import- ance, how it was obtained an officer who was present must tell :
" When Major Wright, with some other officers assembled at the flag- staff, he asked the Confederate officer who was present if he knew the whereabouts of the usual large United States garrison flag, that should be somewhere in the fort. . The officer did not know. but said he would inquire. He did so, with the result of finding a comparatively new flag, which was forthwith bent to the halyards. By this time . Joe Greene,' a character well known throughout Rhode Island, and even more widely known as a bugler of unsurpassed skill, had entered the fort. He was the leader of the band of the Fourth Rhode Island, and had been on the sick list for some days. He now stood near the group surrounding Gen- eral Burnside, with his hat pulled over his eyes and his shoulders shrugged, a picture of mingled ague and despondeney. Just as they be- gan to raise the flag. General Burnside turned to him and said. . Joe. can't you give us some music?' ' No,' said Joe. 'I'm sick ; too sick to play, and my bugle isn't here.' One of General Burnside's aides had seen
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'Joe' going toward the fort without his bugle, from which he seemed inseparable, and he had the forethought to get and bring it with him to the fort. Taking it out from under his coat, he stepped forward and handed it to Joe. He looked at it, took it, shook it, as all buglers do, blew through it, and just then his eye caught sight of the flag slowly rising to the mast-head, Placing his instrument to his lips, and watching the as- cending flag with kindling eyes, he forgot his illness as he threw his head back, while from his loved bugle there came the stirring strains of the ' Star Spangled Banner,' played as only . Joe Greene' could play it, and as if his very soul was in each martial note. The sweet notes lin- gered among the arched casemates and within the walls as if loth to die away in space, and they touched the heart of every soldier present."
When the rebel flag came down Major Wright placed it under guard, and soon after he saw General Burnside and asked him if the Fifth could retain it. The general assented. Immediately after General Parke came up, and said to Major Wright, in a careless man- ner, " Oh, by the way, major, you may send that rebel flag up to my quarters." " No, I can't do that," replied Major Wright, " I cannot deliver it to any one without General Burnside's order." The next time Major Wright saw General Burnside he proposed to send it home to the General Assembly in General Burnside's name. The general would not permit this to be done, but directed that it should be sent in the name of the Fifth Rhode Island. This was done, and the flag was received by the General Assembly not long after, while it was in session in Newport. Quite a ceremony took place at the time, and in the evening there was a small celebration, during which the flag was brought and attracted much attention. Soon after it disappeared, and despite the most careful search its subsequent fate is unknown. It was the only flag of a surrendered fort ever sent to any legislature during the war.
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