USA > Wisconsin > Fond du Lac County > Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin, past and present, Volume I > Part 19
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In a very few days after the first company was organized under Captain J. V. McCall, within thirty days from the time Governor Randall's proclamation appeared in Fond du Lac county, the following six companies had been or- ganized, officers chosen and their services accepted : Captain Emerson's "North Star Rifles," of Taycheedah ; Captain John McGinnis' "Union Guards," of Fond du Lac : Captain Gage's "Hamilton Guards," of the towns of Osceola, Auburn. Ashford and that vicinity ; Captain E. S. Bragg's "Rifles," of Fond du Lac : Captain Bertine Pinckney's "Rosendale Guards," of Rosendale; Captain O. H. La Grange's "Ripon Rifles," of Ripon: Captain Clark's "Waupun Light Guards," of Waupun, and the "Oakfield Rifles."
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Before this time Company I had begun to have "some experience," and it will be interesting to know what it was and how the members liked it. Many of the boys had been accustomed to fine clothes, luxurious homes and plenty of money, and not a few of them took along well filled trunks. C. K. Pier wrote weekly letters to the Fond du Lac Reporter, signing himself "Trewloc," in one of which he said :
"We have at last received our clothes, which they call uniforms, although one would think to see the company on parade, that the tailor had warranted each uniform to fit the largest man or the smallest boy. The cloth is gray, of various shades; much of it is of poor quality and will not stand hard service. The pants have a black cord down the sides and the coats have brass buttons and stand-up collars. On Monday (May 13), Colonel Starkweather presented the regiment with a remnant of Washington's flag. Yesterday (May 15) we commenced our second course on soldiers' fare. One more, and we will be on regular army rations. The contract has been let to feed us at thirty-nine cents per head. Each man has a metal plate, spoon, knife and fork, which he must take care of himself. About six o'clock, the orderly sergeant calls out, 'Com- pany I, fall in for breakfast,' and, as the call is passed from tent to tent, you take your plate in one hand, knife, fork, cup and spoon in the other, and step into the ranks. But be careful as you step into the eating house that you do not slip down in a pool of coffee. As the boys range themselves along the rough table, the orderly commands, 'Inward face-take seats.' At first, a teacup of mustard, a box of pepper, salt and vinegar, are the only articles in the line of victuals to be seen; but, immediately, a pan filled with slices of bread an inch or more in thickness, another of boiled potatoes, followed by one filled with meat, come in rapid succession. The bread is 'baker's' and good ; the potatoes are good enough, and the meat-well, as to meat and gravy, we won't take any this morning. The waiter fills your cup with coffee, which you sweeten and taste. It is cold, and appears inclined to coagulate. Another waiter appears, and while steam rises in large volumes from his pitcher, cries out, 'Hot cof- fee!' You want some of course, but what is to be done? Your cup is full, you cannot swallow its contents, and there is no dish in which to empty it. You look around and find everybody in the same fix. Finally, a sly one comes to 'about face' and pours his coffee on the ground. In an instant you follow suit, and so do the others. Now it may be understood whence came the pools of coffee on
the ground. * After finishing your meal, should you wish to clear your plate of fragments, you empty them on the table or where you did the cold coffee. You clean your dish with bread, dip it in a large dish of hot water and wipe it with paper."
The boys got their pay about the Ist of June, and their genius was taxed to smuggle "liquid dry goods" into camp, as it was against the rules to be caught with a bottle. On Monday before the First Regiment left Camp Scott at Milwaukee, the death of one Monroe, of Company C. took the spirit nearly all out of the boys. On the 9th of June, they started for the front, and the . journey to Maryland was one continuous ovation. Music, cannon, cheers, ice water, hot coffee, lunches, fruits, papers, pretty girls and shouting men met them at every depot. At one village in Ohio, the people were so enthusiastic as to allow their daughters to board the train and ride with the soldiers until
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the returning train was met. Some of the Fond du Lac boys put up at hotels and were liberal with money received from friends and relatives at home. Their first fighting was at Falling Waters, in Virginia, July 2, 1861. It was a wild, harum-scarum battle, but the boys thought it was a big thing. The First Reg- iment lost one man (not from Fond du Lac county), and C. K. Pier wrote home that he saw two of the enemy stretched dead in a field, while David Bab- cock sent back word that "in the free and rapid distribution of bullets, the rebs had attained a proficiency that was truly astonishing." Afterward, the bat- tle of Falling Waters was a standing joke among the veterans, and is to this day.
The First Regiment was mustered out in August, but was soon reorganized, as most of the boys reenlisted for "three years or the war."
Lyman M. Ward went out from Fond du Lac in the first company of the First Regiment of Wisconsin Volunteers. He was the author of "Dodge the Big Ones."
After serving with the original First, Colonel Ward, as he was familiarly known, helped to organize, and from the beginning to the end, was identified with the Fourteenth Regiment. At Pittsburg Landing, notwithstanding the terrors and disasters of the first day's fight, the Fourteenth absolutely refused to break or run. Their splendid behaviour won for them the title, "Fourteenth Wisconsin Regulars." Three times during the second day they charged and captured a rebel battery and each time for want of proper support were com- pelled to let go their prize. Most every one has heard in one shape or another the story of the officer who told his men they might dodge "the big ones," but few are acquainted with the real incident which gave it origin.
While forming the line for the fourth charge, this regiment drew the con- centrated fire of all the enemy's guns within range. Shell, grape and solid shot swept over and about them with shriek, hiss and roar, which only one who has been there can appreciate. The colonel passed along, cautioning the men to stand steady, assured them that they had that day made their names immortal, to keep their ranks solid, that a man was as apt to dodge in front of a bullet as to avoid it, and that another hour would surely give them the victory. Just then a perfect tornado of iron and lead swept over their heads. Every man and officer involuntarily dodged, when Lieutenant Ed. Ferris said: "But Col- onel. when they shoot a cooking stove right past a man's ear, can't he dodge just a little ?"
"Well, yes," said the Colonel, "if it's a big one. dodge just a little, about as much as I did."
Five minutes later the regiment again went for that battery and never let go of it. As a trophy of that day's service, the government assigned one of the captured guns to the state, and it is now at Madison.
THE DRAFT
There was some excitement in Fond du Lac county when the order for the first draft was promulgated. This was not because of the large number of men to be drawn, for the quotas of most of the towns and wards were pretty nearly full; but because a. local paper had said the government had no right to
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"tear men from their homes to be butchered for the tyrants at Washington," which caused a misapprehension to grow up in some quarters as to what a draft really was. Many expected a squad of armed soldiers would appear at their doors with handcuffs and chains, to take all the male inmates at all haz- ards. When this. misapprehension was corrected, there was less excitement and fewer threats of resistance.
The draft was begun by the sheriff in Fond du Lac county about the Ist of September, 1862. Dr. W. H. Walker was examining surgeon, with his office at Fond du Lac. The Ripon Times gave a graphic account of the appalling number of men who were attacked with fatal maladies during August, while the draft papers were preparing, and the Saturday Reporter, of Fond du Lac, in its issue of September 20, said :
"For one whole week the draft commissioner's and surgeon's office in this city has been crowded with applications for exemption. The sidewalk in front of the stairway in Darling's block has been crowded and the passage crammed full. A large number of certificates have been issued, attesting to the great de- gree of mortality prevailing. No doubt in many cases the applicants were un- fit for military duty and should not be abused for applying there, but so many robust and healthy men have come up that some wag put a sign over the door labeled 'Cowards' Headquarters,' and no doubt, it was with justice to hun- dreds we have seen under it."
M. W. Seely was county commissioner and had an office at Fond du Lac for the purpose of examining the evidence of those who claimed exemption from military service, under Order No. 99 of the War Department. These exemp- tions were granted where men had been convicted of felony, or were members of families with a certain number in the service, or were the necessary sup- port of children or aged and infirm.
Captain E. L. Phillips of Fond du Lac was appointed the Ist of May, 1863, as provost marshal of the fourth district of Wisconsin, in which was the county of Fond du Lac. It was his duty, among others, to superintend the draft. The provost marshal's office for the district was at Fond du Lac. The second draft took place in November, 1863, under Captain Phillips. The number en- rolled in Fond du Lac county as subject to draft was as follows: Alto-class I. 166; class 2, 71 ; Auburn-class 1, 73; class 2, 97; Ashford-class I, 122; class 2, 85 ; Byron-class I, III ; class 2, 88; Calumet-class 1. 64; class 2, 65; Eden --- class 1, 102; class 2, 137; Empire-class 1, 84; class 2, 85 ; Eldorado-class I, 94 ; class 2, 82; Forest-class 1, 85 ; class 2, 86; Fond du Lac town-class I, 109; class 2, 71; Friendship-class 1, 38; class 2. 50; Lamartine-class 1, 88; class 2, 67 ; Marshfield-class 1, 89; class 2, 62; Metomen-class 1, 150; class 2, 85 : Oakfield-class 1, 132; class 2, 59; Osceola-class 1. 74 ; class 2, 53 ; Ri- pon town-class 1, 116; class 2, 55 ; Ripon City-class 1, 251 ; class 2, 129; Ro- sendale-class I, II7; class 2, 84; Springvale-class 1, 126; class 2, 68; Tay- cheedah-class I, IOI ; class 2, 81 ; Waupun-class 1, 128; class 2, 71 ; Waupun. north ward-class 1, 89; class 2, 63 ; first ward of Fond du Lac-class I, 162: class 2, III ; second ward-class 1, 135; class 2, 97 ; third ward-class 1, 102: class 2, 41 ; fourth ward-class 1, 265; class 2. 107; fifth ward-class 1, 58; class 2, 56. These numbers were put into the wheel and the following quota drawn from them ; City of Fond du Lac, 191 ; town of Fond du Lac, 32; Friend-
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ship, 11; Osceola, 21; Eden, 30; Byron, 32; Oakfield, 39; Ashford, 36; Au- burn, 22; Calumet, 19; Marshfield, 27; Taycheedah, 29; Empire, 25; Forest, 25; Lamartine, 26; Springvale, 38; Alto, 50; town and north ward of Wau- pun, 65; city of Ripon, 125; Rosendale, 35; Eldorado, 29; Metomen, 45; total, 942.
This was a large draft. About twenty per cent of those who "drew prizes" when the wheel turned in Amory Hall, at Fond du Lac, presented themselves for duty. After this draft had been ordered and the enrollment begun, the melancholy feelings of men of sound body and middle age who suddenly re- ceived word that their friends in Canada were "very sick-not expected to live," were sorrowful to behold. Twenty who thus suddenly learned of illness among their Canada friends left Fond du Lac in a single night. Thirteen left Waupun on a certain Sunday evening, and about the same number tore them- selves away from Ripon. Canada did not at that time appear to have well ones enough to properly care for the sick and the good men of Fond du Lac could not see them suffer.
In November, 1863, a Draft Association was formed, with headquarters at Fond du Lac. S. D. Stanchfield was president; Edward Beeson, vice presi- dent : Keyes A. Darling, treasurer ; and T. D. Pooles, secretary. Each member paid a certain initiatory fee, and if the fund thus obtained was not sufficient to pay the $300 for each member drafted, a pro-rata assessment sufficient for that purpose was made.
After the November draft had taken place, Provost Marshal Phillips' office was thronged night and day. The substitute business was also good, but more than one-half of those hired or purchased as "subs" decamped for Canada as soon as they secured the $300 bounty, with some additional local bonuses. These "bounty-jumpers" were mostly natives of Canada, who made a business of getting money in the manner mentioned.
The next draft was in October, 1864-the vigor with which recruiting was pushed, making Fond du Lac able to escape a draft in January, 1864, even if it had not been postponed. There was another call March 14, 1864, for 200,- 000 men for the navy, which, with the two previous calls for 300,000 and 200,- 000 men, respectively, swelled the number to 700,000. This made the num- ber to come from Wisconsin large; but Fond du Lac county, as a whole, not only escaped this draft, but in some towns had credits ahead of her quota.
The Fond du Lac Reporter of April 26, 1864, said: "The fourth district -Captain E. L. Phillips, provost marshal-is now ahead, as it has been for a year past, of all other districts in the state in filling the calls made. It has fur- nished also a greater per cent of drafted men for duty and of commutation money than any other district in the state. This, we think, is due almost en- tirely to the able management of affairs at the headquarters of the district. The state does not have three more efficient officers than Captain Phillips, Com- missioner Burchard and Surgeon Carey."
The draft of October, 1864, was made in Spencer Hall, Fond du Lac, on Wednesday, October 5th, for Fond du Lac county, or rather the towns of El- dorado and Auburn. Eden, Osceola and Ashford were behind, but before the draft for the balance of the district was completed had filled their quotas and no draft was had for their benefit. For Auburn 132 names were enrolled as
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HISTORY OF FOND DU LAC COUNTY
liable to draft, of which 74 were drawn. For Eldorado 131 were enrolled and 84 drawn.
On the Saturday succeeding this draft one of the Fond du Lac papers had the following, giving the names of the drafted: "More than one-half of the men drafted in Eldorado on Wednesday have run away."
On Friday, January 27, 1865, a supplemental draft was made for the more delinquent towns of the fourth district, and the town of Eldorado was the only one in Fond du Lac county for which the draft wheel was turned. The de- ficiency was 17 at this draft, but only one man was secured.
The last draft in Fond du Lac county was conducted by General Charles S. Hamilton, who was appointed provost marshal of the fourth district, in place of Captain E. L. Phillips, about the middle of March, 1865. This draft was for only a portion of the county, many towns and wards having their quotas more than full. The draft was for Eldorado, with a deficiency of 60; Forest, with 21 ; Auburn, with 14; Osceola, with 16; Eden, with II; and Ashford, with 7. The marshal thought it necessary to post the law against draft riots in some of these towns. The men drafted this time never saw active service, the war closing soon after.
The first man to shed Wisconsin blood on a southern battlefield in the re- bellion was Lieutenant William A. Matthews, of. Company G, First Wisconsin Volunteers, who was severely wounded at the battle of Falling Waters, in July, 1861, in Virginia. He enlisted at Fond du Lac, his home. The last Wisconsin blood shed was at the capture of Jeff Davis, in Irwin county, Georgia, May 10, 1865, when several men were wounded by volleys fired by a detachment of the Fourth Michigan Cavalry upon a detachment of the First Wisconsin Cavalry.
The Third Regiment was quartered during several weeks at Camp Hamil- ton, in Fond du Lac city. Edward Pier and John W. Carpenter had the con- tract to supply the men with food, which they did for thirty-eight cents apiece per day. The regiment was commanded by Colonel Charles S. Hamilton and consisted of ten full companies, or about eight hundred men. This regiment broke camp at Fond du Lac and left for the front on Friday, July 12, 1861. The ladies gave to nearly every soldier some article of comfort before the regi- ment left Fond du Lac.
Captain Emerson's "North Star Rifles" of Taycheedah left for camp, Mon- day, June 24, 1861, and Captain E. S. Bragg's "Rifles" left July 1, 1861. His company consisted of 120 men. This company was raised by Captain Bragg.
Colonel Edward Daniel's regiment of cavalry was encamped at Ripon, on College Hill, and left for the front late in 1861.
Company A of the Thirty-second Regiment was in camp for a while in 1861, at the fair grounds in Fond du Lac, but soon afterward joined the regi- ment in Camp Bragg, at Oshkosh.
August 21, 1862, the town of Fond du Lac voted to pay $100 for volunteer recruits.
Colonel Edward Colman had a recruiting office over the office of the Bank of the Northwest. Other recruiting offices were opened by Sergeant M. W. Petters and Sergeant Higgins during 1862.
The town of Empire held a war meeting August 22, 1862, and voted $3,000 for bounties to those who would enlist before the draft, which was expected to take place on the Ist of September following.
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The "Fond du Lac Mill Boys" composed a company of one hundred and four men, enlisted by Captain Alexander White, in Fond du Lac, in August, 1862, nearly everyone of whom was a mechanic, machinist or millwright. As Captain White was a splendid machinist and mechanic, being one of the own- ers of the Hiner & White Iron Works, it was said of his company that they could build and equip a railway with cars and locomotives, build a mill, make a rifled cannon, erect a truss bridge, or do anything in the mechanical line, even to making clocks and watches. In this company five Derusha brothers and six of their brothers-in-law enlisted. No company in Fond du Lac ever got such a large number from one family. This company went into camp at Osh- kosh, September 1, 1862.
In October, 1862, nearly one hundred negroes,-men, women and children -arrived in Fond du Lac from northern Alabama, in charge of the chaplain of the Fourteenth Regiment. They were mostly taken as servants in the city of Fond du Lac.
In November, 1862, Roswill M. Sawyer and William A. Dewey were placed upon Brigadier General C. S. Hamilton's staff. General Lyman M. Ward en- listed at Fond du Lac as a private and won all his promotions by gallant con- duct on the field of battle.
Prairie Grove was one of the hottest battles of the war. Captain Strong's company from Ripon was highly complimented for the part it took in that en- gagement.
In December, 1862, Timothy F. Strong, Jr., was promoted to first lieuten- ant of Company H, First Regiment Wisconsin Volunteers.
In the Ripon papers of December, 1862, was a long letter giving a descrip- tion of governing cities in the south by military law, and particularly how Norfolk and Portsmouth, Virginia, were being governed by Major Alvan E. Bovay, who was provost marshal of those cities until the latter part of 1863.
In February. 1863, Kingman Flint, son of Judge Flint, was promoted to sec- ond lieutenant in the regular army. A few months later he died at Pensacola, of black vomit. He was a wonderful man, physically.
In December, 1862, the county board of supervisors passed a resolution to furnish aid after that date to the families of volunteer soldiers. Each per- son so 'aided was required to furnish evidence to the nearest supervisor that he or she was a relative of a volunteer soldier and dependent upon him for sup- port.
In April, 1863. Colonel Bragg sent home the regimental colors, riddled from staff to tassel. A new set of colors had been provided.
General O. H. La Grange, afterward for several years superintendent of the United States mint at San Francisco, enlisted at Ripon and traveled to the final high position from the bottom round of both the military and civil ladders.
The Turners of Fond du Lac raised a company for General Sigel's regi- ment and turned over every dollar in their treasury to pay bounties for new recruits.
Jerome B. Johnson was shot through the groin at Bull Run and lay six days upon the field without food or attendance. He lived and in October, 1862, was able to return to Fond du Lac. However, he was never able to return to his regiment.
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A Mr. Temple of Lamartine, anxious to get into the service of his coun- try as soon as possible, went to the front and enlisted, being assigned to Com- pany D of the Third Regiment. The next day he was shot dead in battle.
In October, 1863, occurred one of the largest funerals in Fond du Lac. It was at the burial of Grier Tallmadge, son of Governor Nathaniel P. Tall- madge, who died at Fortress Monroe in September.
In March, 1863, Edward S, Bragg was promoted to the colonelcy of the Sixth Regiment.
In April, 1863, the ladies of Wedge's Prairie collected fifty barrels of pro- visions and some cash for the soldiers. They then formed themselves into an Aid Society and continued the work of doing for the soldiers.
In April, 1863, the members of Company A, Thirty-second Regiment, sent home to their families, as the surplus saved from three months' pay, the sum of $4,263.
The first work of the Soldiers' Aid Society of the town of Byron, in 1863. was to collect for the boys in blue two loads of food and clothing and $116 in cash. The society afterward did much more in the same direction.
William Frost, of Eden, went to Memphis, where he had one soldier son dead and another fatally ill, in May, 1863, and a few days later the family re- ceived word that he, too, was dead, having been lost overboard while cross- ing the Mississippi.
War speakers were occasionally molested and some of them injured in some portions of the county. At Taycheedah, R. B. Charles was set upon while speaking in favor of the war and the administration, and quite severely in- jured.« While this was going on, his harness was destroyed and his wagon torn to pieces. At Ripon, there were two or three who made demonstrations of disloyalty, but after one of the parties had been led to the mill pond and had the depth of water taken before him, with the understanding that water was considered excellent for treasonable utterances and demonstrations, the balance subsided.
A military company was formed in the southeast towns of the county in June, 1863. with the following officers: Captain, Fred Baldwin; first lieuten- ant, Nicholas Gaffney; second lieutenant, E. C. Coon; first sergeant, E. A. Whitney ; second sergeant, O. P. Howe; third sergeant, E. C. Airhart: fourth sergeant. A. A. Bratt; fifth sergeant, G. N. Hatch.
The "Badger State Guards" were raised by C. K. Pier, of Fond du Lac. in the summer of 1863, with the following officers: Captain, C. K. Pier ; first lieutenant. C. T. Carpenter ; second lieutenant, F. R. St. John ; first sergeant, D. M. Wilson; second sergeant, John Miller; third sergeant, W. R. Allen ; fourth sergeant, John Markle; fifth sergeant, Solon W. Edson. This company went out, after being drilled by Captain Pier, as Company A, Thirty-eighth Regiment, three years. Pier was made colonel of regiment and Carpenter captain of company.
The "Union Guards" were raised at Ripon, with Herman Stempel, cap- tain; W. T. Whiting, first lieutenant ; Lyman B. Everdell, second lieutenant : N. Bowerman, of the Prairie City Record, first sergeant. The company was organized in September. 1863.
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HISTORY OF FOND DU LAC COUNTY
One of the largest funerals ever held in Eden was that of Sergeant Walter S. Rouse, who was buried August 2, 1863.
E. W. Pride recruited fifty men at Ripon for the gunboat service. He also secured a large number in other portions of the county.
In August, 1863, Dr. Walker took from the tongue of F. H. Farr, of Com- pany K, First Regiment, two double teeth, which had been imbedded there about a year previously by a minie ball.
Sergeant Major George W. Driggs, son of J. J. Driggs, of Fond du Lac, was war correspondent for the Madison Patriot.
Colonel C. K. Pier and Joseph Arnold were war correspondents for the Fond du Lac Reporter.
In October. 1863, four small children, whose mother was dead, gathered in Eden as mourners at the funeral of their last relative, Peter B. Miller, their father. of the Nineteenth Regiment. It was a sad sight.
In January, 1864, all there was left of the Fourteenth Regiment returned home, the time of enlistment having expired. The regiment, which contained only 302 privates and 19 officers, was given big receptions at Chicago, Milwau- kee and Fond du Lac. At Milwaukee special mention was made of Michael Mangan, of Fond du Lac, for his conduct at the terrible charge at Gettysburg. Every man in the regiment reenlisted. Speeches were made at Fond du Lac by General C. S. Hamilton and Colonel Lyman N. Ward.
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