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tJKHHCK   KUKDKUICK    DICK. 


THE 


F.ightySixth  Regiment. 


I  NDI/\IN/\ 


VOLUNTEER  INFANTRY. 


A  NARRATIVE  OF  ITS  SERVICES 


IN  THE 


CIVIL  WAR  OF  1861-1865. 


Written  by  a  Committee  consisting  of  James  A.  Barnes, 
James  I^.  Carnahan  and  Thomas  H.  B.  McCain. 


CRAWFORDSVILLE,  IND.: 
The  Journal  Company,  Printers, 

1895. 


TO  THE  VOLUNTEERS 

ol'^  THE 

Il(ill■l•^ -SIXTH  INDIANA  REGIMENT, 

ri'ON  WHOSE 

VAI.oK.  1  IDKMTY.  CONSTANCY  AND  TRIUMPH, 

AROSE 

THE  STANK  A  III)  ol'  KKEE  (iOVERNMENT  AND  UNIVERSAL  LIBERTY, 

AND  TO  THEIR 

^i.\>  \M>  ii\n.iiTi:i;s.  tiieik  wives,  sisters  and  mothers, 

THIS  VOLUME 

IS  AIIECTIONATELY  DEDICATED, 

IN  THE  HOPE 

THAT  IT  MAY   KKMAIN  A  TESTI  MONIAL  TO  THEIR  HEROIC  ENDURANCE, 

I'ATKIOTIC  SACKII'ICES,  AND  A  TRIBUTE  TO  THEIR 

IIAI.!,()Wi;U  MEMORY. 


l^OSfAZ 


CONTENTS. 


Introductory i 

CHAPTER  I. 

BURSTING  OF  THE  STORM  CLOUD. 

The  Secession  of  the  Southern  States — Firing  on  Sumter — President 
Lincoln's  Proclamation— Governor  Morton's  Call  for  Six  Regi- 
ments—The President's  Call  for  Three  Years'  Men— The  Re- 
sponse of  Indiana 3 

CHAPTER  II. 

THE  ORGANIZATION. 

The  Eighty-sixth  Recruited  in  Response  to  the  Call  for  300,000  More 
— The  Material  Furnished  by  the  Eighth  Congressional  District 
^Rendezvoused  at  Camp  Tippecanoe — Line,  Field  and  Staff 
Officers 15 

CHAPTER  III. 

THE  INITIATION. 

Camp  Tippecanoe — Its  Fine  Location— Hard  Beds — Trials  for  Hoosier 
Stomachs — Edible  Blankets — Electing  Officers — Physical  Exam- 
inations— First  Efforts  at  Drill — Raiding  the  Sutler 21 

CHAPTER  IV. 

CAMP  CARRINGTON. 

From  LaFayette  to  Indianapolis — Camp  Carrington— The  Eighty- 
sixth  Mustered  In— The  Blue  Uniform  Donned— Camp  Equipage 
Drawn— The  First  "Hard  Tack'"— Furnished  With  Arms  and 
Equipments — An  Irishman  on  Guai'd — One  Month's  Pay — Orders 
to  March 30 

CHAPTER  V. 

"GRUMBLE  HILL." 

From  Indianapolis  to  Cincinnati — Breakfast  at  Fifth  Street  Market — 
Across  the  Rivet — Covington — Ludlow — Camp  Mitchell — New- 
port—The First  Bivouac— Camp  Wallace — "Grumble  Hill" — 
Company  H  on  Picket — Wallowing  in  the  Ditches 37 


jy  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

CHAPTER  VI. 

DOWN  THE  OHIO. 

The  "Forest  Hose"  and  the  "  Dunloith"— The  Beautiful  Scenery- 
How  the  Hoys  W  hi  led  Away  the  Time— Land  at  Jefferson  viUe— 
Cami)  Gilbert-Cross  the  River  to  Louisville— A  Tedious  Night 
March— Arrival  of  Bueirs  Army— The  Clamor  Against  Buell— 
The  Eighty-sixth's  Assignment— General  Nelson  Killed 4ij 

CHAPTER  VII. 

IN  PURSUIT  OF  BRAGG. 

A  Real  March— Its  Trials  and  Its  Lessons— Bardstown— The  Dusty 
Limestone  Pikes  of  Kentucky— River  Water— Parched  Corn- 
Raw  Goose— Springfield— On  to  Perryville— The  Detour  for 
Water— A  Forced  Night  March 53 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

PERRYVILLE. 

The  Battle— The  Field  and  the  Dead— "The  Gilded  Puddle  Which 
Beasts  Would  Cough  At'"— The  Onward  March— Bivouac  in 
Fodder  Houses— On  the  Skirmish  Line  All  Day— A  Reconnois- 
sance-Danville— Stanford— Thundering  at  the  Rebel  Rear — 
Crab  Orchard— Mt.  Vernon— A  Broken  Country— "  Hungry 
Hollow." 62 

CHAPTER  IX. 

THE  WILD  CAT  HILLS. 

A  Hough  Country— A  Toe  Shot  Off— Buell  Denounced — Turned 
Hack  — Buell  Removed — Rosecrans  Assigned  to  the  Command — 
Somerset — A  Deep  Snowfall — Apple  Jack — Columbia — Overcoats 
and  Dress  Coats  Drawn — Stolen  Cheese — Glasgow 72 

CHAPTER  X. 

SILVER  SPRINGS  AND  RURAL  HILL. 

A  Forty  Days'  March  Reviewed — Death  of  William  Rose  and  Arch- 
ibald Coats— A  March  to  Itural  Hill— Skirmish  With  John  Mor- 
gan's Men— In  Camp  Near  Nashville— Detail  of  Twenty  Men  for 
the  Pioneer  Corps— Drill  and  Picket  Duty 83 

CHAPTER  XI. 

THE  BATTLE  OF  STONE'S  RIVER. 

The  Army  of  the  Cumberland— Its  Organization— The  Eighty-sixth's 
AKsignnn-nt-  Moving  Out  From  Nashville— Its  Position— Plan 
of  the  Hattle-C'olonel  Hamilton  Relieved— The  Movement  on 
the  Ivcft  Suspended— The  Regiment  Ordered  to  the  Right— In 
the  Vortex  of  Death— List  of  the  Regiment's  Killed  and  Mor- 
tally W«)unded— The  Second  Day's  Fight— Bragg  Lost  and  Rose- 
crans Won 93 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  V 

CHAPTER  XII. 

WITHIN  CONFEDERATE  LINES. 

A  Trip  Through  Dixie — From  Murfreesboro  to  Chattanooga — To 
Atlanta  and  Montgomery — From  There  to  Richmond — In  Libby 
Prison — How  the  Days  Were  Spent — Released  on  Parole  and 
Finally  Exchanged 117 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

STONE'S  RIVER  TO  CHICKAMAUGA. 

Six  Months  at  Murfreesboro — Camp  Life — How  the  Time  Was  Em- 
ployed— The  Long  Stay  An  Absolute  Necessity — The  Eighty- 
sixth  Receives  Really  Its  First  Military  Instruction — Punish- 
ment of  a  Deserter — A  Piece  of  Somber  Romance — Other  Inci- 
dents—March to  McMinnville 122 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

THE  CHICKAMAUGA  CAMPAIGN. 

General  Rosecrans  Moves  from  Murfreesboro — Bragg  is  Driven 
from  Tullahoma  Over  the  Mountains  and  Out  of  Tennessee — A 
Most  Skillful  and  Almost  Bloodless  Movement— The  Eighty- 
sixth  Leaves  McMinnville — With  the  Brigade  It  Makes  a  Forced 
March — Down  the  Sequatchie  Valley — Crosses  the  Tennessee — 
Rejoins  the  Division  Near  Ringgold — A  Series  of  Confederate 
Blunders — A  Narrow  Escape  for  the  Union  Army — Playing  for 
Position 146 

CHAPTER  XV. 

THE  BATTLE  OF  CHICKAMAUGA. 

The  Opening  Ball — The  Eighty-sixth  in  at  the  Beginning — Dick's 
Brigade  in  Support  of  Wilder — Important  Points  on  the  Field 
Described — Position  of  Rosecrans'  Troops — Waiting  in  Suspense 
—The  Orders  Arrive — The  Regiment  Goes  In — A  Vivid  Por- 
trayal of  the  First  Day's  Contest — The  Lines  Reformed  for  the 
Second  Day — The  Bloody  Contest  Rages  With  Unabated  Fury — 
The  Various  Movements  of  the  Regiment,  Brigade  and  Division 
— The  Charges  at  the  Kelly  and  Poe  Fields — The  Break  in  the 
Lines — Longstreet  in  the  Charge — On  Snodgrass  Hill  and  Har- 
ker  Hill — Steedman's  Troops  Come  Up — Confederates  Gain  Pos- 
session of  the  LaFayette  Road  on  the  Left — Final  Repulse  of 
Longstreet  at  Snodgrass  Hill — Withdrawal  of  Union  Troops — 
Strength  of  the  Ai^mies  and  Losses  at  Chickamauga — Estimates 
of  the  Battle  by  Confederate  Officers — Indiana  at  Chickamauga.  170 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

BELEAGUERED  IN  CHATTANOOGA. 

The  Objective  Point  of  the  Campaign  Held — Arrival  of  the  Eighty- 
sixth  from  Chickamauga — lilntei'ed  Upon  Its  Duties  to  Defend 
the  Town — The  Scarcity  of  Supplies — The  Sufferings  Endured 
by  the  Men — Starvation  Staring  Them  in  the  Face — Provisions 
Brought  Over  the  Mountains  from  Bridgeport — Foraging — Con- 


vi  THK  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

Bolldatlon  of  the  Twentieth  and  Twenty-first  Corps— The  Fourth 
Corps  Kormod— (Jeneriil  Koseorans  Relieved— General  Thomas 
AsMimes  Coinmaiid  Arrival  of  General  Grant— The  Eleventh 
and  Twelfth  Corps  Battle  of  Wauhatchie— The  Army  of  the 
Tenn.'ssee  Arrives -Preparations  for  the  Approaching  Battle- 
Did  (Jenoral  Itosecrans  Contemplate  at  Any  Time  the  Evacua- 
tion of  Chuttanootja':' 210 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

TIIK  BATTLE  OF  CHATTANOOGA. 

A  Groat  Battle  With  a  Picturesque  Setting— An  Unlocked  for  Crisi^ 
Pri'»'i|)itates  It  -Wood  Makes  a  Reconnoissance— Ground  Gained, 
Hold,  and  Fortilied  Hooker's  Battle  on  Lookout  Mountain — 
Sherman  at  the  North  End  of  Missionary  Ridge— Thomas 
Ordered  to  Take  Fii-st  Line  of  Enemy's  Works  at  Foot  of  Ridge 
and  Make  a  Diversion  in  Favoi-  of  Sherman — The  Order 
Promptly  Obeyed— The  Lines  Captured  in  Hurricane  Style — The 
Unordered  Assault  on  Missionary  Ridge — A  Private's  Victory — 
A  Battle  Fought  More  Successfully  Than  Planned,  But  Not  as 
IMarniL-d  A  Victory  that  Astounded  Grant  in  the  Manner  of  Its 
Coming  as  Much  as  It  Did  Bragg  in  Its  Results — General  Cist's 
Account-  Fullerton's  Version — Bragg  and  Bate's  Statements — 
Captain  Reiily's  Account  of  the  Assault — Taylor's  Brilliant 
Description  of  the  Battle 230 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 

ON  TO  KNOXVILLE. 

Aftvr  tho  Battle  the  Rescue— Through  Mud  and  Through  Stream- 
Over  Hill  and  Down  Dale— The  Fourth  Corps  Marched  to  Suc- 
cor the  Army  of  the  Ohio  and  the  Gallant  Burnside— An  Atten- 
uat4'd  Diet  Parched  Corn  and  Government  Bacon — An  Exciting 
Though  .\niusing  Incident— The  Ai-rival  at  Knoxville— A  ''Sick 
Flour  "  Experience 283 

CHAPTER  XIX. 
KNOXVILLE  AND  BEYOND. 
Blain'H  Cross  Roa<ls     House  Mountain— Lye  Hominy— Parched  Corn 
A  Bleak  December    (iaunt  Hunger,  Rags  and  Icy  Winter  Go 
Hand  and  Hand-  Christmas  Thoughts     That  Cold  New  Years— 
A    .Mail   From    Honm     Strawberry   I'lains— To    Dandridge   and 
Back— A  Second  \'alley  Forge 297 

CHAPTER  XX. 

EAST  TENNESSEE. 

The  nivoua«'  in  the  Snow-Back  to  Maryville-A  Laughable  Inci- 
di'nt-(,..ncral  Willich  in  Temporary  Command  of  the  Division 
—Again  <in  the  .Mov.. -.Smoky  Hollow— At  Knoxville-On  to 
MorrisU.wn-Biu-k  to  New  Market -Again  at  Morristown- 
Strawberrv  Plains -OjT  to  Kutledge-Tlu!  ('linch  Mountains-A 
Scout  ngK.>ci>,.diUon-Bo„„a  for  Chattanooga-The  Campaign 
Lndod— At  McDonald's  Station 313 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  Vll 

CHAPTER  XXI. 

SHERMAN'S  CAMPAIGN  IN  GEORGIA. 
General  Howard  in  Command  of  the  Fourth  Corjjs — The  Eleventh  and 
Twelfth  Corps  Consolidated  and  Designated  the  Twentieth — 
Sherman's  Preparation  for  the  Atlanta  Campaign — The  Import- 
ance of  the  Grand  Movement — Tunnel  Hill — Rocky  Face  Ridge — 
Dalton— The  Battle  of  Resaca 329 

CHAPTER  XXII. 
RESACA  TO  PICKETT'S  MILLS. 
Across  the  Oostanaula — Calhoun — Adairsville — Oothcaloga  Valley 
— Kingston — Cassville — A  Three  Days' Rest — Across  the  Etowah 
— Where  the  Diffei'ent  Commands  Crossed — A  Wild  Wilderness 
— Burnt  Hick  .ry — New  Hope  Church — The  Battle  of  Pickett's 
Mills — The  Eighty-sixth's  Part  in  this  Engagement — Colonel 
Dick  Wounded — The  Regiment's  Loss 349 

CHAPTER  XXIII. 
PICKETT'S  MILLS  TO  KENESAW. 
The  Eighty-sixth  on  the  Skirmish  Line— Constant  Fighting— Rainy 
and  Hot  Weather — A  Perfect  Hell  Hole— Pine  Mountain— Lost 
Mountain— Kenesaw  Mountain— General  Polk  Killed  on  Pine 
Mountain— Captain  L.  V.  Ream  Wounded — Luke  Cronkhite 
Fatally  Wounded— The  Assault  on  June  27 —A  Frightful  Loss  of 
Life— Kenesaw  Mountain  x\bandoned  by  the  Enemy — A  Forward 
Movement 369 

CHAPTER  XXIV. 

KENESAW  TO  PEACH  TREE  CREEK. 
The  Fourth  of  .July— How  it  Was  Celebrated— Smyrna  Camp  Ground 
— Mclvor's  Station— McRae's  Hill — Chattahoochee  River — 
Pace's  Ferry — Powers'  Ferry — Across  the  Chattahoochee —Down 
the  River-^Over  to  Buck  Head— The  Battle  of  Peach  Tree 
Creek 400 

CHAPTER  XXV. 

PEACH  TREE  CREEK  TO  LOVEJOY'S  STATION. 
Closing  in  On  Atlanta— Clear  Creek— A  Hot  Time— The  Eighty- 
sixth  in  Front  of  the  Gate  City— The  Battle  of  the  22d  of  July 
^Skirmishing  and  Making  Demonstrations — The  Battle  of  Ezra 
Church — The  Great  Move  Around  Atlanta— Destroying  Rail- 
roads-Hood's Flight  From  Atlanta— His  Stores  Destroyed  and 
Magazines  Blown  Up— The  Battle  of  J onesboro— The  Battle  of 
Lovejoy's  Station— Sherman  Withdraws  to  Atlanta  — The  Losses 
of  the  Campaign— Congratulations  From  President  Lincoln. .. .  420 

CHAPTER  XXVI. 

REST  IN  CAMP— AFTER  HOOD. 
In  Camp  Near  Atlanta— Three  Weeks  of  Daily  Routine  Duties — A 
Bold  Movement  by  Hood— Sherman's  Army  In  Pursuit— The 
Eighty-sixth  Again  on  March — Smyrna  Camp  Ground — Pine 
Mountain — The  Signals  Between  Sherman  and  Corse— The  Fight 
at  Allatoona  Pass— Kenesaw  Mountain — Cartersville  and  Kings- 
ton—Calhoun — Rome— Resaca— Snake    Creek    Gap— Chattooga 


yjij  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

Valley— Frosh  Pork  and  Sweet  Potatoes— Summerville -Gayles- 
vlllo.  Alaluiinu-The  Fourth  Corps  Bids  a  Silent  Farewell  to 
Coneral  SluM-nuin-Sherraan's  Letter  to  the  Eighty-sixth 445 

CHAPTER  XXVII. 

THE  TABLES  TURNED. 
IIo«k1  Marchintr  North— A  Race  for  the  Lead- Wood's  Division  Gets 
ThtMv  Fii-st  Klk  River  and  "  Tlie  Ii-ii^hman's  Pontoons"— Hood 
Aftor  Sfholiold  and  Thoinas-Puhiski— Columbia— Duck  River 
— Sprin;j  Hill,  or  Running  the  Gauntlet— The  Battle  of  Franklin 
—Fort  (irunger— Thomas'  Army  Organization  and  Strength 4(34 

CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

THE  BATTLE  OF  NASHVILLE. 
Two  Days'  Hard  Figliting-The  Plan  of  the  Battle— Montgomery 
Hill  Captured  bv  the  Fourth  Corps -The  Second  Days'  Battle— 
Overton's  Hill  Assaulted  — "The  Colored  Troops  Fought  Nobly" 
—The  Ciallant  Second  Brigade  Repulsed  with  Heavy  Loss  — Col- 
onel Post  Wounded— The  Third  Brigade  Assaults  and  Captures 
Overton's  Hill— Union  Su'eccss— Hood  Makes  a  Hasty  Flight— 
Pui>uit  of  the  Enemy- A  Frightful  ]\Iarch— In  Camp  at  Hunts- 
ville— General  Wood's  Congratulatory  Order 4S6 

CHAPTER  XXIX. 

THE  CLOSING  YEAR. -1865. 
In  Winter  (Quarters  at  Huntsville,  Alabama — A  Three  Days' Scout — 
l^iving  on  the  Fat  of  the  Land— Trip  to  Nashville  and  Return — 
Up  tlie  Tennessee  River— To  East  Tennessee  by  Rail — The  Last 
Days  of  the  Rebellion  — Richmond  Evacuated— Lee  Surrenders — 
Great  .loy  at  the  Sui)i)osed  Ajiproach  of  The  White  Winged 
Angi'l  of  Peace— Treason  Dies  Hard— In  the  Death  Struggle  Its 
Infernal  Spirit  Finds  a  Willing  Tool  to  Do  a  Hellish  Deed — 
I'resident  Lincoln  Assassinated— A  Gloomy.  Joyless  Day— The 
Heart  of  America  Wounded  — Return  to  Nashville— Johnston 
Surrenders- The  Dawn  of  Peace— Grand  Review— "Mustered 
Out"— Return  to  Hoosierdom— Dislninded— The  Boys  Return  to 
Their  Homes 518 

CHAPTER  XXX. 
THE  TWO  COLONELS. 
Georjjo  Frederick  Dick— A  Sketch  of  His  Early  Life -Captain  of  a 
lioy'H  Military  (^cunpany  in  Cincinnati— His  Fire  Company— In 
Hu«in«?s.H— Answers  the  First  Call  of  the  President— A  Captain 
in  the  Twentieth  Indiana— His  Services  in  That  Regiment— 
.Made  Lie\itenant  Colonel  in  the  Eighty-sixth— His  Career  with 
That  K4'giment  to  the  Close  of  the  War— Orville  S.  Hamilton— 
A  Brave  Man.  hut  Wanting  in  Military  CJenius-A  Bit  of  Secret 
HiHtory  Never  Before  Told  or  Written— A  Tribute  to  His  Mem- 

"•"y 545 

IloHter  of  Officers 5-0 

Il«»«t<'r  of  Enlistod  Men r,-^ 

Kitrhty -sixth's  Roll  of  Honor []  59(5 

Apjwndix mo 


INTRODUCTORY. 


In  the  presentation  of  the  history  of  the  Eighty-Sixth 
Regiment,  Indiana  Volunteers,  tlie  authors  seek  not  their 
own  glorification.  The  work  of  writing  the  part  taken  by 
this  regiment  is  undertaken  at  the  request  of  the  members 
of  the  regiment  who  survived  the  hardships  and  dangers  of 
the  years  from  1862-1865  in  active  campaign  life.  The 
desire  of  these  comrades  is  to  i)i'eserve  for  their  children, 
the  history  of  the  service  they  rendered  to  the  Nation  in  the 
daj^s  of  her  peril,  and  that  the  name  and  deeds  of  their  reg- 
iment may  not  be  entirely  forgotten. 

It  is  not  intended  to  write  a  history  of  the  entire  war  of 
the   Rebellion,  but  in  narrating  the  manner  by  which  this 
regiment  was   organized,   and  then  formed   a    part    of   the 
great    Union    Army,    or  Federal    Army    as  it    was   called 
by  the  people    of  the   South,  and  then  in   chronicling  the 
deeds    of  the    men    of  the  Eighty-Sixth,  it  will  be   neces- 
sary to  write  to  some  extent  of  the  opening  year  of  the  war, 
and  of  the  events  of  the  years  that  folloAved.     We  must  write 
i  somewhat  of  the  organization  of   the   entire   Army  of  the 
I  Union,  and  briefly  recount  the  necessity  for  the  formation  of 
the  Eighty-Sixth  Regiment,  Indiana  Volunteers. 
I         After  writing    of  the   formation  and   muster- in   of   the 
i  regiment,  it  will  be  necessary  to  relate  something  of  the  gen- 
'.  eral  history  of  the  campaigns  in  which  it  participated,  and 
the  battles  in  w^hich  it  bore  an  important  and  conspicuous 
part.     The  surviving  members  of  this  regiment  feel  a  just 
and  honorable  pride  in  the  military  record  of  this  special 
body  of  troops  in  which  they  performed  their  service,  and 


2  TIIF,   KKiHTV-SIXTII   REGIMENT, 

thoy  have  no  loss  pride  in  the  ^lorious  achievements  of 
ovory  ro/Ljinient  and  battery  that  was  mustered  into  the 
Unil<Hl  Stat«'s  service,  and  entering  the  field  bore  its  part  in 
tli»'  sujjpression  of  tlie  rebellion  and  the  preservation  of  the 
American  Kcpublic.  It  is  felt  that  each  and  all,  officers  and 
enlisted  men.  have  "a  vested  right"  in  the  great  glory  and 
renown  that  so  justly  belongs  to  all. 

Notwithstanding  the  fact  that  the  wonderful  achieve- 
ments of  the  American  citizen  soldiery  merits  the  highest 
encomiums  from  all  and  for  all,  yet  we  as  Indiana  men  will 
certainly  be  pardoned  if  we  should  in  this  work,  claim  for 
the  liuliuna  soldier,  and  for  those  particularly  who  were 
active  participants  in  the  campaigns  and  battles  of  the  war 
through  which  we  passed,  as  much  valor,  and  as  many  thor- 
oughly soldierly  qualities,  included  in  the  terms  bravery, 
courage,  daring  and  prowess,  on  the  battle-field,  as  can  be  ] 
shown  by  any  other  State  that  took  part  in  that  deadly 
struggle  from  18(31-1865  inclusive. 

On  every  battle-field  during  the  entire  war  for  the  pres- 
r-rvation  of  the  Union,  Indiana  regiments  and  Indiana  bat-  j 
teries  were  found,  and  the  banners  borne  by  her  sons  were  | 
ever  in  the  thickest  and  hottest  of  the  fray. 

The  i)ages  which  follow  will  be  simply  a  recital  of  the  i 
part  which  the  Eighty-Sixth  Regiment,  Indiana  Volunteers,  ' 
l)erf<)rme(l  in  th(;  great  drama  on  the  theater  of  the  most ' 
l)lo(Kly  war  of  modern  times.  It  will  not  be  claimed  thatj 
this  regiment  did  more  than  any  other  similar  body  of  menj 
in  the  field,  but  the  aim  is  to  give  a  plain,  unvarnished  story 
of  the  niarclies.  the  l)ivouacs,  the  skirmishes,  the  battles  of  , 
this  organization,  and  nvount  its  hardships,  its  exposures, 
its  i)rivati(Mis  and   its  severe  trials,— this  and  nothing  more! 

James  A.  Barnes, 
James  R.  Carnahan, 
Thomas  H.  B.  McCain. 


HISTORY  OF  THE  EIGHTY- SIXTH  REGIMENT. 


CHAPTER  I. 
BURSTING  OF  THE  STORM  CLOUD. 

The  Secession  of  the  Southern  States— Firing  on  Sumter— President  Lincoln's 
Proclamation— Governor  Morton's  Call  for  Six  Regiments— The  President's 
Call  for  Three  Years'  Men— The  Response  of  Indiana. 

During  the  winter  of  1860-'61  seven  of  the  Southern 
States  undertook  to  secede  from  the  Union,  and  destroy  the 
National  Government.  Soon  other  States  in  the  South 
joined  in  the  movement  and  attempted  to  set  up  an  indepen- 
dent government.  The  arms  and  treasure  of  the  United 
States  were  taken  possession  of,  and  finally  Fort  Sumter, 
near  Charleston,  South  Carolina,  was  fired  upon,  and  the 
garrison,  after  a  stubborn  fight,  was  compelled  to  surrender. 
This  firing  upon  the  United  States  flag  and  upon  United 
States  soil  was  the  open  declaration  of  war  against  and  upon 
the  Government,  and  this  was  to  be  met.  Abraham  Lincoln, 
the  President,  at  once  issued  his  proclamation  for  volun- 
teers, as  follows: 

PROCLAMATION. 

Whereas,  The  laws  of  the  United  States  have  been  for  some  time 
past,  and  now  ai-e,  opposed,  and  the  execution  thereof  obstructed,  in  the 
States  of  South  Carolina,  Georgia,  Alabama,  Florida,  Mississippi, 
Louisiana  and  Texas,  by  combinations  too  powerful  to  be  suppressed  by 
the  ordinary  course  of  judicial  proceedings,  or  by  the  power  vested  in 
the  marshal  by  law: 


4  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

Now  therefore,  I,  Abraham  I^iiicoln,  President  of  the  United  States, 
In  vlrtiu*  of  the  power  vested  in  me  by  the  constitution  and  the  laws, 
havo  thought  fit  to  call  forth,  and  hereby  do  call  forth,  the  militia  of 
the  several  States  of  the  Union,  to  the  agj^regate  number  of  seventy-five 
thou»*and,  in  order  to  supi)ress  said  combinations,  and  to  cause  the  laws 
U»  l)o  duly  executed.  The  details  for  this  object  will  be  immediately 
eomnainieated  to  the  State  authorities  through  the  War  Department. 

I  api>eal  to  all  loyal  citizens  to  favor,  facilitate,  and  aid  this  effort  to 
maintain  the  honor,  the  integrity,  and  the  existence  of  our  National 
Union  and  the  i)r-osi)ei-ity  of  i)opular  government,  and  to  redress  wrongs 
alrcatly  long  endured. 

I  deem  it  jjropei'  to  say  that  the  first  service  assigned  to  the  forces 
hereby  called  foi-tli  will  i)robably  be  to  repossess  the  forts,  places  and 
projK-rty  which  have  ))een  seized  from  the  Union ;  and  in  every  event 
the  utmost  care  will  Ix;  observed,  consistently  with  the  objects  afore- 
said, to  avoid  any  devastation,  any  destruction  of,  or  interference  with 
proi)erty,  or  any  disturbance  of  peaceful  citizens,  in  any  part  of  tin- 
count  ry. 

And  I  hereby  command  the  persons  composing  the  combinations 
aforesaid,  to  disixirse.  and  to  retire  peaceably  to  their  respective  abodes 
within  twenty  days  from  this  date. 

Heiifving  that  the  present  condition  of  public  affairs  presents  an 
extraordinary  oeca-sion,  I  do  hereby,  in  virtue  of  the  power  vested  in  me 
by  the  constitution,  convene  both  Houses  of  Congress.  Senators  and 
Ilepresontatives  are  therefore  summoned  to  be  at  their  respective  cham- 
bers, at  twelve  o'clock,  noon,  on  Thursday,  the  fourth  day  of  July  next, 
then  and  there  to  consider  and  determine  such  measures  as,  in  their 
wisdom,  the  public  safety  and  interest  may  seem  to  demand. 

In  Witness  Wliereof,  I  have  hereunto  set  my  hand  and  caused  the 
»eal  of  the  United  States  to  ho  affixed.  Done  at  the  City  of  Washing- 
ton, this  fifteenth  day  of  April,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  one  thousand 
eight  hundred  and  sixty-one,  and  of  the  independence  of  the  United 
States  the  eighty-fifth. 

^''••'^•1  Abraham  Lincoln. 

Signed: 

liy  the  I 'resident, 

William  II.  Seward,  Secretary  of  State. 

Followinn;  iinmodiiitely  upon  tlie  call  of  President 
Lincoln  for  75,000  troops  for  the  three  months'  service. 
(iovernor  Morton  i.ssued  a  prochiniation  under  date  of  April 
16,  1801.  as  follows: 

Whkkka.s.  An  armed  rebellion  has  been  organized  in  certain  States 
o  this  L«,„n.  having  for  its  jnirpose  the  overthrow  of  the  government 
of  the  Lmted  States; 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  5 

And  Whereas,  The  authors  and  movers  in  this  rebellion  have 
seized,  by  violence,  various  forts  and  arsenals  belonging  to  the  United 
States,  and  otherwise  plundered  the  Government  of  large  amounts  of 
money  and  valuable  property; 

And  Whereas,  Port  Sumter,  a  fortress  belonging  to  the  United 
States,  the  exclusive  possession  and  jurisdiction  over  which  was  vested 
in  the  General  Government  by  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States, 
has  been  besieged  by  a  large  army  and  assaulted  by  a  destructive  can- 
nonade and  reduced  to  submission,  and  the  National  flag  hauled  down 
and  dishonoi'ed; 

And  Whereas,  The  President  of  the  United  States,  in  the  exercise 
of  the  power  vested  in  him  by  the  Federal  Constitution,  has  called  upon 
the  several  States  remaining  true  to  their  allegience,  to  aid  him  in  the 
enforcement  of  the  laws,  the  recovery  of  the  National  jiroperty,  and  the 
maintenance  of  the  rightful  authority  of  the  United  States: 

Now,  therefore,  I,  Oliver  P.  Morton,  Governor  of  the  State  of  Indi- 
ana, call  upon  the  loyal  and  patriotic  men  of  this  State,  to  the  number 
of  six  regiments,  to  organize  themselves  into  military  companies,  and 
forthwith  to  report  the  same  to  the  Adjutant  General,  in  order  that 
they  may  be  speedily  mustered  into  the  service  of  the  United  States. 
The  details  of  the  organization  are  set  forth  in  the  instructions  of 
the  Adjutant  General,  herewith  published. 

Oliver  P.  Morton,  Governor. 

Lewis  Wallace,  Adjutant  General. 
Indianapolis,  April  16,  1861. 

These  two  proclamations  were  each  the  first  by  the  Chief 
Executive  of  the  United  States,  and  the  Chief  Executive  of 
the  State  of  Indiana,  announcing  or  declaring  war,  the  cause 
thereof,  and  calling  for  troops.  These  first  calls  by  Presi- 
dent Lincoln  and  Governor  Morton  in  April,  1861,  had 
scarcely  been  flashed  over  the  wires  until  the  State  had  more 
than  filled  her  quota,  and  her  regiments  were  hurrying  from 
peaceful  homes  into  fields  that  were  to  be  made  far  more  glor- 
ious by  their  deeds  of  valor,  than  any  battle-field  of  the  old 
world  where  the  wars  had  been  waged  for  conquest  or  hate, 
at  the  command  of  a  despot,  and  by  soldiers  of  fortune  or 
force.  From  North  to  South,  from  East  to  West  within  her 
borders  the  sons  of  Indiana  responded  to  the  call.  They  came 
from  the  stores  and  counting  rooms,  from  the  colleges  and 
country  school  houses,  from  village,  town  -and  city,  from 
shop  and  farm,  leaving  all  and  every  j)rospect  of  future  com- 
fort for  the  hardships,  danger  and  death  that  awaited  them 


0  TIIR  Kir.HTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

in  thoir  lu-w  lives  as  soldiers.  There  was  then  no  thought 
of  honor  and  ^'N>ry.  no  towering  ambition  to  be  gratified,  no 
pniniise  or  1i()1m\  of  great  pecuniary  reward,— there  was 
only  the  one  great  moving  and  impelling  cause.  Patriotism, 
i\i>  pure,  as  earnest,  as  high  and  as  noble  as  ever  influenced 
men  to  act.  The  life  of  the  Nation  was  threatened,  the 
Ropublic  was  in  peril;  it  must  be  saved.  This  thought,  and 
this  alon<»  brought  nuMi  from  their  peaceful  homes,  and  into 
the  tent«'(l  field.  Of  all  of  the  States  of  the  Union,  Indiana 
had  had  for  a  score  of  years  prior  to  the  breaking  out  of  the 
civil  war.  le.ss  of  the  military  spirit  than  any  other  State  of 
the  Republic.  It  was  wholly  devoted  to  peaceful  pursuits.  Its 
mercantile,  mechanical  and  agricultural  affairs  engrossed 
alnK)sf  the  entire  attention  of  her  people.  There  was  in 
April.  1S()1,  not  to  exceed  a  half  dozen  of  what  might  be 
tcrnnHl  (>ven  fairly  respectable  military  companies  in  the 
Stat<>;  then^  was  not  even  a  professed  battalion  or  regimen- 
tal organization  anywhere  within  our  borders.  Outside  of  a 
very  few  men  who  had  seen  some  little  military  service  in  the 
Moxicati  war,  which  had  closed  some  thirteen  years  prior  to 
the  rebellion,  it  is  safe  to  say  that  we  had  not  three  hundred 
men  in  tlie  entire  State  that  had  ever  stood  in  military  ranks, 
or  had  ever  had  a  single  drill  in  the  manual  of  arms,  and 
certain  it  was  that  there  were  not  ten  men,  who  even  in  the 
.so-called  military  bodies  prior  to  1861,  who  had  ever  had  a 
commission  or  rank,  higher  than  that  of  Captain,  and  none 
who  had  in  any  rank  commanded  a  battalion  or  a  regiment. 
The  lawyer,  the  preacher,  the  business  man.  the  mechanic 
and  the  farmer  entered  the  new  life,  as  soldiers,  with  all  the 
zeal  and  mental  application  the  necessities  of  the  day  and 
the  occasion  demanded.  With  the  same  haste  with  which 
the  companies  were  recruited  and  mustered  into  the  service, 
the  companies  were  assigned  to  regiments.  These  were  as 
siM^iHliJy  eqnip])ed.  and  without  any  delay  for  preparatory 
drill  were  i)ut  on  board  the  cars,  not  even  waiting  for  pas- 
sonffor  coaches,  but  loaded  into  box  cars  and  cattle  cars,  and 
were  sent  to  the  front  to  engage  in  active  campaign  life. 
'^'^ " '^^■'^•'^  no  oi)portunity  to  test  the  qualifications  of  the 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  7 

men  who  were  commissioned  as  field  officers  and  placed  at 
the  head  of  the  various  regiments,  and  there  was  no  pretense 
that  the  company  officers  were  in  any  respect  informed  as  to 
their  duties,  but  they  were  commissioned  and  told  that  they 
"had  it  all  to  learn."  Fortunately  the  men  who  were  com- 
missioned as  field  officers  of  each  of  the  six  regiments  organ- 
ized under  the  first  call,  proved  by  their  gallantry  and  faithful 
service  that  they  had  been  well  chosen.  In  the  calls  of  1862, 
we  had  some  of  the  officers  of  the  first  regiments  of  1861 
transferred  to  the  new  regiments  and  they  brought  with  them 
such  experience  as  they  had  gained  during  a  year's  service. 
Looking  back  over  the  period  of  the  war,  and  the  years  that 
"tried  men's  souls, "  the  years  when  under  military  disci- 
pline, and  the  storms  of  battle,  in  which  youths  speedily  devel- 
oped into  strong  and  thoughtful  men  under  the  responsibili- 
ties that  were  laid  upon  them,  and  when  we  compare  the  sol- 
diers of  other  States  with  those  from  Indiana,  our  State  and 
our  officers  and  soldiers,  lose  nothing  by  that  comparison. 
In  relation  to  the  efficiency  of  Indiana  officers  in  the  Army, 
Governor  Morton  late  in  the  war,  (1865),  in  his  message  to 
the  Legislature  said : 

"  The  duty  of  appointing  officers  to  command  our  regiments  is  full 
of  responsibility  and  embarrassment.  I  have  commissioned  many  whom 
I  did  not  know,  and  for  whose  fitness  I  was  compelled  to  rely  entirely 
upon  the  opinion  of  others.  But  it  affords  me  gratification  to  state  that 
the  Indiana  officers,  as  a  body,  have  been  found  equal  to  those  of  any 
other  State  ;  that  they  have,  upon  every  battle-field,  sustained  the  great 
cause,  and  shed  lustre  upon  the  flag  under  which  they  fought.  Many 
have  been  appointed  to  high  commands,  in  which  they  have  acquitted 
themselves  with  the  greatest  honor  and  ability,  and  very  many  have 
nobly  laid  down  their  lives  in  battle  for  their  country."' 

At  the  breaking  out  of  the  war.  the  United  States  was 
unable  to  furnish  the  uniforms  and  equipments  necessary 
for  an  army  of  75,000  soldiers  so  suddenly  called  into  active 
service.  There  must  needs  be  arms  and  ammunition  of  all 
kinds  and  for  all  branches  of  the  service.  These  were  the 
first  essentials,  and  to  the  manufacture  of  these  the  Govern- 
ment was  compelled  to  turn  all  its  force  and  power  to  the 
neglect  of  uniforms  and  the  distinctive  badges  that  indicated 


9  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

th.'  siM'u'v  :iii<l  not  tho  citizen.  Under  the  circumstances, 
tlu'n'f<»n'.  it  hfcaiiH'  necessary  for  the  State  to  provide  uni- 
forms for  the  troops  organized  within  her  borders.  Some  of 
the  regiments  were  uniformed  before  they  left  the  State, 
others  went  into  the  field  without  their  uniforms,  and  the 
imiforms  were  made  and  sent  to  them.  There  were,  how- 
ever, no  individual  measures  taken  for  uniforms— the  soldier 
took  what  was  handed  him  and  '-swapped  around"  until  he 
got  .something  which  was  calh^l  '"a  tit"  that  he  could  wear. 
Tho  writer  remembers  well  the  great  variety  of  uniforms 
that  were  woi'n  l)y  the  first  year's  troops,  each  State  hav- 
ing a  uniform  in  many  respects  differing  from  those  worn  by 
the  trt)ops  from  other  States. 

Ka<'h  branch  of  business  pertaining  to  the  army  or  mili 
tary  life  was  crowded  to  the  utmost.  Speaking  of  the  activ 
ity  that  prevailed  in  every  military  department  of  the  State, 
Cleneral  Terrell  says:  "Indeed  every  dejiartment  was  taxed 
to  the  utmost;  tlie  duties  were  novel,  and  the  officers  assigned 
to  di.schai'ge  them  inexperienced  and  unskilled;  yet  better 
sup])lies  were  not  furnished  at  any  subsequent  period  dur- 
the  war,  or  at  so  cheap  a  rate." 

The  si)irit  ol"  ])atriotism  then  pervaded  all  classes.  It 
was  in  tlu'  man  who  had  goods  to  sell,  and  the  man  who 
mauufactui-ed  them,  as  well  as  in  the  men  who  volunteered 
to  <l()  military  service.  The  leading,  moving  and  guiding 
spirit  iu  all  uiatters  pertaining  to  the  war,in  so  far  astheState 
of  Indiaua  was  concerned,  was  the  then  Governor,  Oliver  P. 
Morton.  It  was  jiis  iniiid  and  genius  that  directed  in  the 
organization  of  the  Indiana  troops  for  the  first  call.  It  was 
he  wiio  iiilluenced  and  directed  the  legislation  that  was  nec- 
essary to  jilace  Indiana  abreast  of  the  other  loyal  States  in 
tho.s<.  matters  that  were  then  vital  to  the  best  interests  of 
the  Nation.  Wliat  is  here  said  of  Governor  Morton  at  the 
breaking  otit  of  the  war.  is  equally  true  of  him  during  all 
the  years  of  war  through  which  the  Nation  passed  until 
IM'ace  was  again  dechinHl  and  our  boys  came  marching  home. 

Nf)  work  foi-  liim  was  loo  arduous,  no  labor  too  great  for 
him  to  under! ak<'  in  the  cause  of  the  Union,  or  for  the  men 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  9 

who  had  left  their  homes  as  members  of  any  body  of  Indiana 
soldiers.  Whether  at  home  discharging  the  duties  as  Gov- 
ernor, or  absent  looking  after  the  financial  interests  of  the 
State— the  Indiana  soldier  and  his  welfare  were  ever  upper- 
most in  his  mind.  His  activity  in  all  matters  pertaining  to 
the  war  was  most  fully  illustrated  in  his  recommendations  to 
the  legislature  which  he  had  convened  in  special  session. 
The  legislature  met  in  extra  session  on  the  24th  of  April, 
1861,  and  the  Governor  in  his  message,  after  reviewing  the 
situation  in  which  the  General  Government  was  then  placed, 
and  after  recounting  what  Indiana  had  already  done  and  was 
trying  to  do,  said: 

"In  view  of  all  the  facts,  it  becomes  tlie  imperative  duty  of  Indiana 
to  make  suitable  preparations  for  the  contest,  by  providing  ample  sup- 
plies of  men  and  money  to  insure  the  protection  of  the  State  and  Gen- 
eral Government  in  the  prosecution  of  the  war  to  a  speedy  and  successful 
termination.  I  therefore  recommend  that  one  million  of  dollars  be 
appropriated  for  the  purchase  of  arms  and  munitions  of  war,  and  for  the 
organization  of  such  portion  of  the  militia  as  may  be  deemed  necessary 
for  the  emergency:  that  a  militia  system  be  devised  and  enacted,  look- 
ing chiefly  to  volunteers,  which  shall  insure  the  greatest  protection  to 
the  State,  and  unity  and  efficiency  of  the  force  to  be  employed." 

The  legislature  at  once  authorized  a  war  loan  of  two  mil- 
lions of  dollars,  and  appropriated  for  general  military  pur- 
poses one  million  dollars;  for  the  purchase  of  arms  five  hun- 
dred thousand  dollars;  and  for  expense  of  organizing  and 
supporting  the  militia  of  the  State  for  two  years  one  hun- 
dred thousand  dollars. 

So  strong  a  hold  did  Governor  Morton  have  upon  the 
legislature  and  the  people  of  the  State  in  these  first  days  of 
the  great  civil  war,  that  men  of  all  political  parties  accepted 
him  as  the  leader,  and  the  State  at  once  took  a  higher 
and  stronger  position  with  the  other  loyal  States  than  it 
had  ever  previously  had,  and  all  because  of  the  policy 
that  was  then  adopted  concerning  the  w^ar. 

The  "Three  Months'  Men,"  as  the  men  were  called  who 
composed  the  regiments  numbered  from  six  to  eleven  inclu- 
sive, that  had  been  organized  under  President  Lincoln's  call 
of  April  15,  1861,  had  all  been  sent  to  the  front  immediately 


10  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

aft-er  thoir  (n-^anization  and  were  testing  the  hardships  of 
(•aini»  ami  ticld.  It  was  but  just  to  the  men  who  responded 
to  this  first  call  to  say,  that  although  there  was  not  so  much 
ti^'hting  crowded  into  their  term  of  service  as  there  w^as  later 
on  in  the  same  jx'riod  of  time,  yet  during  their  service  was  had 
much  of  hardship  and  danger.  The  term  of  service  of  the 
men  unih'r  this  tirst  call  had  not  been  concluded  wdien  Pres- 
ident Lincohi  issued  his  second  call  for  troops,  the  second 
call  iK'ing  for  a  three  years'  term  of  service.  The  Presi- 
dent and  ids  Cabinet  and  the  members  of  Congress  had  now 
come  to  a  full  realization  of  the  fact  that  the  war  would 
"not  down."  at  the  bidding,  but  that  it  was  to  be  a  cam- 
paign tlie  end  of  which  was  unknown,  and  that  it  was  to  be 
of  .some  considerable  duration,  none  doubted. 

On  May  3,  1861,  the  President  issued  another  call  for 
tr()o})s  to  servo  for  three  years.  This  second  call  was  for 
42.0;}4  volunteers,  and  increased  the  regular  army  by  the 
addition  of  eight  regiments  of  infantry,  one  regiment  of  cav- 
alry, and  one  regiment  of  artillery,  making  an  aggregate  < 
increa.se  of  the  regular  army  of  22,714  officers  and  enlisted 
men.  The  navy  was  also  increased  by  the  addition  of  18,000 
.se.mien.  making  a  total  for  volunteer  and  regular  armies 
and  the  navy  of  82,748. 

The  six  regiments  organized  under  the  first  call 
returned  lionie  at  the  end  of  their  term  of  service  and  found 
that  during  their  absence  in  the  field  the  enlistments  had 
been  so  nipid  that  the  entire  quota  had  been  filled  under 
the  second  call.  Each  of  the  first  six  regiments  re-enlisted, 
and  before  another  call  was  issued  by  the  President  they 
had  all  l)een  accepted  by  the  War  Department,  and  were 
mustered  in.  and  had  again  left  the  State  and  gone  to  the 
front. 

As  each  nioiiih  pass(>d  by.  the  war  assumed  greater 
and  great.'r  i>r()p()rtions.  The  enlisting  in  Indiana  did 
not  stop.  On  .Inly  i,  1801,  only  two  months  later, 
anotlier  call  was  made  for  500,000  men.  Under  this  call 
Ind iana  furnished :  Two  r(>giinents  of  Infantry,  tw^elve  months' 
Hervice;  Forty-seven  regiments  of  Infantry,  three  years'  ser- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  11 

vice:  Four  companies  of  Infantry, three  years'  service;  Three 
regiments  of  Cavalry, three  years'  service;  Eighteen  batteries 
of  iVrtillery,  three  years'  service.  On  October  2,  1861, 
Governor  Morton  issued  another  proclamation,  in  which 
he  called  ujDon  "all  men  capable  of  bearing  arms,  and 
who  can  leave  their  homes,  to  cast  aside  their  ordinary 
pursuits,  and  enroll  themselves  in  the  ranks  of  the 
army."  He  appealed  to  the  citizens  with  all  his  fervid  elo- 
quence. He  said:  "Let  Indiana  set  the  glorious  example 
of  doing  her  whole  duty,  and  show  to  the  world  how^  much 
can  be  accomplished  by  the  brave  and  loyal  people  of  a  sin- 
gle State. ' "  He  urged  the  farmer  to  ' '  leave  his  plow,  the 
merchant  his  store,  the  mechanic  his  workshop,  the  banker 
his  exchange,  and  the  professional  man  his  offtce,  and  devote 
themselves  to  their  country."  Under  these  calls  at  the 
close  of  the  year  1861.  Indiana  had  mustered  into  the  ser- 
vice regiments  numbered  from  Six  to  Fifty-nine  inclusive, 
and  eleven  batteries  of  light  artillery — and  still  the  calls  for 
troops  from  Indiana  and  the  other  loyal  States  continued. 
Other  States  as  well  as  Indiana  were  enlisting,  mustering-in, 
and  sending  their  troops  into  the  war. 

On  January  24,  1862,  Governor  Morton  issued  another 
call  under  a  call  to  him  by  the  General  Government,  for  five 
more  regiments,  and  says:  "Let  this  cal],  which  I  trust  is 
the  last  I  shall  have  to  make  during  the  war,  be  responded 
to  with  the  same  zeal  and  alacrity  as  the  former  ones  have 
been. "  The  call  was  answered  and  the  five  regiments  were 
organized. 

Through  the  year  1861  and  into  the  first  part  of  Janu- 
ary, 1862,  however,  as  they  who  passed  through  the  subse- 
quent years  of  the  war  to  its  close  now  see  it,  there  was  with 
the  exception  of  a  few  battles,  but  little  of  the  severity  of 
actual  warfare.  The  summer  and  autumn  of  1861  was 
chiefly  spent  by  both  armies  in  drilling  and  preparation  for 
those  severe  conflicts  and  hardships  that  came  later  on  in 
the  service.  The  winter  of  1861-"62  brought  with  it  the 
cold  and  storms  of  rain  and  snow  and  sleet,  and  the  suffer- 
ings of  the  men  unused  to  army  or  out  door  life  were  terri- 


12  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

blo  in  llio  pxtromo.  The  battles  of  Fort  Donelson  and 
Pittsburg'  Laiidin«;  in  the  West,  in  which  so  many  of  our' 
liuiiana  troops  were  engaged,  and  the  severe  work  of  the 
Army  of  tlie  Potomiic,  began  to  make  the  men  who  were  yet 
at  home  realize,  to  some  extent,  that  there  was  war  in  this 
country,  and  that  war  meant  bloodshed,  wounds  and  death. 
For  every  death,  however,  there  was  someone  who  wished 
to  avenge  that  death,  and  each  death  seemed  to  bring  a 
greater  realization  of  the  actual  value  of  the  Republic,  and 
of  the  imiKH'tance  of  its  presei'vation. 

The  early  part  of  1862  had  been  marked  by  victories  for 
our  army  lx)th  on  the  Potomac  and  Western  fields,  but  the 
severity  of  the  winter  and  the  loss  from  disease,  and  from 
wounds  and  deaths  on  the  battle  field,  had  very  largely  re- 
duced the  effective  force  of  the  Union  Army,  so  that  when 
the  early  summer  of  1862  came,  and  it  was  necessary  to  push 
the  war  with  more  vigor,  it  w-as  discovered  that  more  men 
must  be  ])ut  into  the  field.  This  now  brings  the  reader  to 
the  period  at  which  the  Eighty-Sixth  Regiment  of  Indiana 
and  other  regiments  were  called  into  the  service  of  the  United 
States.  The  special  cause  which  brought  about  the  Presi- 
dent's i)roclamation  of  July  1,  1862,  calling  for  300,000  troops 
is  most  fully  explained  in  the  petition  that  was  presented  to 
him.  the  President,  by  the  Governors  of  eighteen  of  the 
loyal  States,  of  which  the  following,  is  an  authenticated  copy 
from  the  files  in  the  War  Department  at  Washington. 

THE  PETITION, 
.hine.  28.  1«H2.— The  undersigned,  Govcrnoi-s  of  States  of  the  Union, 
impressed  with  the  belief  that  the  citizens  of  the  States  which  they 
resiKTtively  represent  are  of  one  accord  in  the  hearty  desire  that  the 
recent  successes  of  the  Federal  arms  may  be  followed  uj)  by  measures 
which  must  insin-o  the  speedy  restoration  of  the  Union  ;  and  believing 
that,  in  view  of  the  present  state  of  the  important  military  movements 
now  in  progress,  and  the  reduced  condition  of  our  effective  forces  in 
the.  field,  resulting  from  the  usual  and  unavoidable  casualties  of  the  ser- 
vice, that  the  lime  has  arrived  for  prompt  and  vigorous  measures  to  be 
adopUKl  by  the  people  in  support  of  the  great  interests  committed  to 
your  charge,  wo  resi)ectfully  request,  if  it  meets  with  your  entire  ap- 
proval, that  you  at  once  call  upon  the  several  States  for  such  number  of 
men  a»  may  be  required  to  fill  up  all  military  organizations  now  in  the 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  13 

field,  and  add  to  the  armies  heretofore  organized  such  additional  num- 
ber of  men  as  may,  in  your  judgment,  be  necessary  to  garrison  and  hold 
all  of  the  numerous  cities  and  military  positions  that  have  been  cap- 
tured by  our  armies,  and  to  speedily  crush  the  rebellion  that  still  exists 
in  several  of  the  Southern  States,  thus  practically  restoring  to  the  civ- 
ilized world  our  great  and  good  government.  All  believe  that  the 
decisive  moment  is  near  at  hand,  and  to  that  end  the  people  of  the 
United  States  are  desirous  to  aid  promptly  in  furnishing  all  re-inforce- 
ments  that  you  may  deem  needful  to  sustain  the  government. 

Israel  Washburn,  jr.,  Governor  of  Maine. 
H.  S.  Berry,  Governor  of  New  Hampshire. 
Fred'k  Holbrook,  Governor  of  Vermont. 
Wm.  a.  Buckingham,  Governor  of  Connecticut. 
E.  D.  Morgan,  Governor  of  New  York. 
Chas.  S.  Olden,  Governor  of  New  Jersey. 
A.  G.  Curtin,  Governor  of  Pennsylvania. 
A.  W.  Bradford,  Governor  of  Mai'yland. 
P.  H.  Pierpont,  Governor  of  Vii-ginia. 
Austin  Blair,  Governor  of  Michigan. 
J.  B.  Temple,  President  Military  Board  of  Kentucky. 
Andrew  Johnson,  Governor  of  Tennessee. 
H.  R.  Gamble,  Governor  of  Missouri. 
O.  P.  Morton,  Governor  of  Indiana. 
David  Todd,  Governor  of  Ohio. 
Alex.  Ramsey,  Governor  of  Minnesota. 
Richard  Yates,  Governor  of  Illinois. 
Edward  Salomon,  Governor  of  Wisconsin. 
The  President. 

President  Lincoln  did  not  need  very  much  urging,  nor 
did  he  deem  it  necessary  for  him  to  tals:e  a  very  great  deal 
of  time  to  consider  tlie  subject  matter  of  tlie  petition  of  these 
Governors,  for  on  tlie  third  day  after  the  date  of  the  petition, 
he  responded  thereto  as  follows: 

Executive  Mansion,  Washington,  July  1,  1862.— Gentlemen— 
Fully  concurring  in  the  wisdom  of  the  views  expressed  to  me  in  so  patri- 
otic a  manner  by  you,  in  the  communication  of  the  28th  day  of  June,  I 
have  decided  to  call  into  the  service  an  additional  force  of  three  hun- 
dred thousand  men.     I  suggest  and  recommend  that  the  troops  should 

be  chiefly  of  infantry.     The  quota  of  your  State  would  be .    I  trust 

that  they  may  be  enrolled  without  delay,  so  as  to  bring  this  unnecessary 
and  injurious  civil  war  to  a  speedy  and  satisfactory  conclusion.  An  order 


14  THF.  EICillTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

Hxinp  the  (juotas  of  the  re&i)ective  States  will  be  issued  by  the  War 

IK'partinent  tomorrow. 

Abraham  Lincoln. 

The  COVKRNOltS  of  Maine,  New  Hampshire,  Vermont,  Connecti- 
ciit,  Ni'W  York,  New  Jersey,  Pennsylvania,  Maryland,  Virginia,  Michi- 
jfan,  Tfnnes.see,  Missouri,  Indiana,  Ohio,  Minnesota,  Illinois,  Wisconsin, 
and  the  Tresidont  of  the  Militai-y  Board  of  Kentucky. 

Abraham  Lincoln. 

In  \ho  U<!;hi  of  subsequent  events,  it  seems  very  strange 
that  men  \vho  were  .so  prominent  in  the  affairs  of  State,  both 
in  tlie  National  and  State  governments,  after  the  war  had 
been  in  jn'ogress  over  a  year  should  not  have  realized  the 
magnitude  of  tlie  struggle,  wiiich  at  the  end  of  nearly  four- 
teen mouths,  had  only  really  begun.  The  events  that  had 
transpired  between  April.  1861,  and  the  last  days  of  June 
and  th«'  Istday  of  July,  1802,  wdien  these  Governors  addressed 
thf  President,  and  he  penned  his  response  thereto,  were  but 
tlie  prologue  to  the  great  drama  that  was  to  be  enacted  on  a 
stage  that  embraced  half  the  States  of  the  Union,  and  before 
which  the  people  of  the  whole  civilized  w^orld  with  bated 
breath,  were  the  spectators.  At  the  time  of  which  we  now 
write  no  decisive  blow  liad  been  struck.  True  there  had 
b«'('n  much  loss  of  blood  and  treasure  and  life,  great,  venj 
ynnt,  it  then  seemed  to  a  people  that  was  accustomed  only  to 
lieaceful  pursuits,  but  the  South  w^as  in  arms,  their  hopes 
w.T«'  high  in  the  anticipation  and  belief  that  it  could  and 
would  be  ablii  to  set  up  a  government  independent  of  the 
Union.  Tiie.se  Governors  were  doubtless  sincere  when  they 
expres.sed  the  belit^f  that  the  "  recent  successes  of  the  Fed- 
eral arms"  could  be  followed  to  "a  speedy  restoration  of  the 
Union,"  and  that  it  might  be  an  easy  matter  "to  speedily 
crush  the  rebellion  that  still  exists  in  several  of  the  Southern 
States." 

President  Lincoln  evidently  realized  more  fully  the  mag- 
nitud..  of  tlie  work  before  him,  than  did  these  Governors. 
This  is  made  apparent  by  the  fact  that  he  made  his  call  of 
July  1.  1H(32.  f.,r  ;j()0,000  men.  The  force  to  be  enrolled 
under  this  call  was  to  be  within  itself  a  great  army.  Nor  in 
the  gathering  of  this  great  army  was  the  President  to  be 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  15 

disappointed  in  the  wish  he  expressed  in  his  reply  to  the 
Governors,  when  he  v/rote,  "I  trust  that  there  may  be  en- 
rolled without  delay" — although  the  "satisfactory  conclu- 
sion" of  the  civil  war,  was  long  postponed.  Before  the  war 
closed  Indiana  alone  had  furnished  208,367  men.  Of  this 
number  there  were  killed,  or  died  of  disease  24,416. 


CHAPTER  II. 


THE  ORGANIZATION. 

The  Eighty-Sixth  Recruited  in  Response  to  the  Call  for  300,000  More— The  Mater- 
ial Furnished  by  the  Eighth  Congressional  District— Rendezvoused  at  Camp 
Tippecanoe— Line,  Field  and  Staff  OfBcers. 

Under  the  call  of  the  President,  July  1,  1862,  and  the 
orders  from  the  War  Department,  the  quota  for  the  State  of 
Indiana  was  Twenty-one  Thousand,  Two  Hundred  and  Fifty, 
(21,250)  to  serve  three  years  or  during  the  war.  Imme- 
diately after  this  call  Governor  Morton  took  active  measures 
looking  to  the  filling  of  Indiana's  quota  at  the  earliest  possi- 
ble moment.  On  July  7,  1862,  the  following  proclamation 
was  addressed  to  the  people  of  the  State: 

To  the  People  of  Indiana  : 

The  large  number  of  troops  required  to  garrison  and  hold  the  great 
extent  of  territory  which  has  been  wrested  from  the  possession  of  the 
rebels  by  the  many  and  distinguished  victories  that  have  attended  the 
Union  arms,  enables  the  rebels  to  greatly  outnumber  our  forces  now  in 
the  vicinity  of  Richmond.  The  greater  part  of  the  rebel  army  has  been 
concentrated  at  Richmond — their  last  stronghold — for  a  final  and  des- 
perate struggle  ;  and  the  army  of  the  Union — while  fighting  with  a  gal- 
lantry hardly  equaled,  and  never  surpassed,  in  the  annals  of  warfare — 
has,  by  overwhelming  numbers,  been  compelled  to  make  a  short  and 
temporary  retreat. 

The  President,  in  the  exercise  of  the  powers  vested  in  him  by  the 
Constitution  and  Laws  of  the  United  States,  has  called  for  300,000  men, 


18  THK  EIGHTY-SIXTH  SEGIMENT, 

a  force  dooinL'd  entirely  atloquate  to  the  crushing  out  of  the  rebellion 
and  the  restoration  of  i)eaco  and  tl>e  Union  of  the  States. 

Ajfain  I  call  upon  the  loyal  and  patriotic  men  of  Indiana  to  come 
forward  and  stipjyly  the  quota  due  from  our  State.  Up  to  this  hour, 
Indiuiui  occupies  a  most  exalted  jjosition  connected  with  the  war.  Her 
trotips  have  Wen  in  almost  every  battle,  and  have  behaved  with  uniform 
and  distin«,'uished  gallanti-y.  Never  before  has  the  State  held  so  proud 
a  place  in  the  opinion  of  the  world,  and  it  should  be  by  the  prayer  and 
effort  of  evei-y  loyal  citizen  that  she  may  not  now  falter,  and  that  noth- 
intj  may  hereafter  occur  to  detract  from  her  well-earned  honors.  But 
while  we  are  justly  proud  of  the  high  rank  to  which  Indiana  has 
attained,  we  should  never  forget  that  our  allegiance  and  highest  duty 
are  due  to  the  Nation,  of  which  Indiana  is  a  part ;  that  in  struggling  for 
National  (lovernment,  we  are  contending  for  our  National  existence, 
honor,  and  all  that  is  dear  to  freemen,  and  that  in  this  struggle  we  must 
auccaeii,  at  vh ah  rcr  cotit ;  that  it  is  the  duty  of  every  State  to  furnish, 
j)romptly,  her  full  proportion  of  the  military  force  called  for  by  the 
President,  and  that  in  doing  so,  she  has  no  right  to  dictate  the  terms  of 
his  military  policy  or  prescribe  conditions  precedent  upon  which  such 
force  shall  be  furnished.  To  do  so,  would  be  to  recognize  the  odious 
doi-trine  of  State  Rights,  as  it  has  been  taught  by  rebel  politicians  for 
many  years,  and  wliicli  is  but  another  name  for  secession  and  the  cause 
of  all  our  woe. 

I,  therefore,  call  upon  every  man,  whatever  may  be  his  rank  and 
condition  in  life,  to  put  aside  his  business  and  come  to  the  rescue  of  his 
country.  Upon  every  man,  individually,  let  me  urge  the  solemn  truth, 
that  whatever  may  be  his  condition  or  business,  he  has  no  duty  or  busi- 
ness half  so  imjKn-tant  to  himself  and  family  as  the  speedy  and  effectual 
suppression  of  the  rebellion. 

Those  who  fi-om  age  and  infirmity  cannot  enter  the  army,  can  do 
much  to  stimulate  others ;  and  I  want  every  man  to  feel  especially  called 
upon  to  exert  himself,  and  by  public  and  i)rivate  exhortation,  and  by 
every  legitimate  influence,  to  encourage  the  immediate  filling  up  of  the 
new  regiments.  And  to  the  women  of  Indiana,  whose  hearts  are  so  full  of 
love  of  home  and  country,  and  who  by  their  labors  and  contributions, 
have  done  so  much  to  relieve  the  sick  and  wounded  soldiers,  let  me 
e»i>ecially  appeal.  Emulate  the  virtues  of  the  Roman  matron— urge  your 
8onH,husl)ands,  and  brothers  to  the  field.  Your  intluence  is  all-pervading 
and  ix)werful.  And  to  the  maiden,  let  me  say,  beware  of  that  lover  who, 
full  of  liealth  and  vigor,  lingers  at  home  in  inglorious  ease  when  his 
country  calls  for  him  to  arms. 

*  *  ******* 

Tents,  uniform,  arms,  artillery,  and  equipments  of  every  kind,  will 
be  furnished   at  the   various  camps  as  fast  as  required.     Commanders  of 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEEKS.  17 

the  camps    will   be   promptly  appointed,    and   every   facility   afforded 
for  recruiting'  and  providing  for  the  troops. 

The  period  of  enlistment  will  be  for  "three  years  or  during  the 
war,"  and  the  terms  and  mode  of  organization  will  be  pointed  out  in 
order  to  be  issued  in  a  day  or  two  by  the  Adjutant  General. 

Oli\ter  p.  Morton,  Governor  of  Indiana. 
Executive  Department,  Indianapolis,  July  7,  1862. 

The  first  regiments  organized  under  this  proclamation 
were  formed  and  had  gone  into  the  field  by  the  close  of  the 
month,  July,  when  immediately,  the  second  assignment  under 
the  call  was  made,  and  by  the  close  of  the  first  week  of 
August,  1862,  the  camps  in  each  of  the  several  districts 
were  again  alive  with  men,  and  the  work  of  organization  of 
new  regiments  was  being  carried  on  with  as  much  zeal  as  at 
any  previous  time  since  the  breaking  out  of  the  war. 

Indiana  in  this  call  did  as  she  had  done  in  all  of  the 
previous  calls,  she  voluntarily  furnished  more  than  her 
quota.  Under  the  call  of  July  1,  1862,  she  furnished:  One 
regiment  of  Infantry,  twelve  months'  service;  Thirty  regi- 
ments of  Infantry,  three  years'  service;  Six  companies  of 
Infantry,  three  years'  service;  Two  regiments  Cavalry,  three 
years'  service;  Nine  batteries  of  Artillery,  three  years' 
service.  Each  of  these  regiments  had  their  full  complement 
of  men — 1000  each. 

The  Eighty-Sixth  Regiment  was  one  of  the  regiments 
called  for  from  the  Eighth  Congressional  District,  at  that 
time  composed  of  the  counties  of  Tippecanoe,  Carroll, 
Clinton,  Boone,  Montgomery,  Fountain  and  Warren,  and 
the  camp,  or  rendezvous;  was  located  on  the  hills 
just  south  of  and  adjoining  the  city  of  Lafayette.  It 
was  an  excellent  position  for  a  camp  and  gave  to  the  new 
recruit  a  very  pleasant  first  experience  in  soldier  life.  The 
camp  was  high  and  dry — overlooking  the  Wabash  river  and 
valley — in  plain  view  of  the  various  railroads,  and  the 
stir  and  bustle  incident  to  the  arrival  of  recruits  by  the  rail- 
roads, the  activity  and  novelty  of  tlie  situation  all  tended  to 
keep  up  the  enthusiasm  and  spirit  of  the  newly  made  sol- 
diers.    The  month  had  not  passed  away  until  each  of  the  ten 


jg  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

companies  of  the  regiment  was  in  "Camp  Tippecanoe,"  for 
so  the  camp  was  named. 

Company  A  was  recruited  in  Boone  county  with  Aaron 
Frazoo  as  Captain,  George  W.  Smith  First  Lieutenant,  and 
RolxM-t  A.  Williamson  Second  Lieutenant. 

Company  B  was  recruited  in  Carroll  county  with  Francis 
.1.  MattU'r  as  Captain,  John  S.  Armitage  First  Lieutenant, 
and  Jeremiah  Haugh  Second  Lieutenant. 

Com])any  C  was  recruited  in  Fountain  county  with  Jacob 
C.  Dick  as  Cai)tain,  William  Burr  First  Lieutenant,  and  Oli- 
ver Boord  as  Second  Lieutenant. 

Comi)any  D  was  recruited  in  Warren  county  with  Lewis 
Stevens  as  Captain,  Jackson  Hickson  First  Lieutenant,  and 
Harris  J.  Gass  Second  Lieutenant. 

Company  E  was  recruited  in  Warren  county  with  Philip 
Gcmmer  as  Cai)tain,  George  Kitchens  First  Lieutenant,  and 
John  R.  Moore  Second  Lieutenant. 

Company  F  was  recruited  in  Boone  county  with  William 
S.  Sims  us  Captain,  Jacob  Palmer  First  Lieutenant,  and  Rob - 
ci't  \V.  Coolman  Second  Lieutenant. 

Company  G  was  recruited  in  Clinton  county  with  John 
Seager  as  Cai)tain,  Samuel  Douglass  First  Lieutenant,  and 
Nel.son  R.  Smith  Second  Lieutenant. 

Company  H  was  recruited  in  Clinton  county  with  Milton 
Bell  as  Captain,  James  B.  Newton  First  Lieutenant,  and 
Uriah  Thomas  Second  Lieutenant. 

Company  1  was  recruited  in  Tippecanoe,  Clinton,  Boone, 
and  Montgomery  counties  with  William  C.  Lambert  as  Cap- 
tain. John  CJillilund  First  Lieutenant,  and  James  T.  Doster 
Second  Tjiciilvnant. 

Comi)any  K  was  recruited  in  Montgomery  county  with 
William  M.  Southard  as  Captain,  William  H.  Lynn  First 
Li«'iitrMiant,  and  John  M.  Yount  Second  Lieutenant. 

()rvil](;S.  Hamilton,  of  Lebanon,  was  commissioned  as 
the  tir.st  Colonel  on  September  6,  1862. 

Dixon  Fh-ming,  of  Warren  county,  was  commissioned  as 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  19 

Lieutenant  Colonel  September  6,  1862,  but  declined  the  com- 
mission October  21,  1862,  without  having  been  mustered  into 
the  service. 

Jasper  M.   Dresser,  of  Lafayette,  was   commissioned  as 
Major  September  6,  1862. 

Carson  P.  Rodman,  of  Lebanon,  was  commissioned  as 
Adjutant  on  August  18,  1862,  prior  to  the  muster-in  of  the 
regiment. 

Kersey  Bateman,  of  Attica,  was  commissioned  as  Quar- 
termaster August  12,  1862,  prior  to  the  muster-in  of  the  reg- 
iment. 

Rev.  William  S.  Harker,  of  Frankfort,  was  commissioned 
as  Chaplain  September  7,  1862. 

James  S.  Elliott,  M.  D.,  of  Thorntown,  was  commis- 
sioned as  Surgeon  September  6,  1862. 

Joseph  Jones,  M.  D.,  of  Williamsport,  was  commissioned 
as  Assistant  Surgeon  August  14,  1862,  prior  to  the  muster-in 
in  of  the  regiment. 

Allen  M.  Walton,  M.  D.,  of  LaFayette,  was  commis- 
sioned as  Assistant  Surgeon  September  6,  1862. 

Such  was  the  organization  of  the  regiment  as  to  the 
Company  officers  and  as  to  the  Field  and  Staff  officers  at  the 
time  it  moved  to  Indianapolis  to  be  armed  and  equipped  for 
active  service.  On  the  first  of  September  the  regiment  was 
oixlered  to  Camp  Carrington,  Indianapolis,  and  remained 
there  for  one  week.  The  date  of  the  muster-in  of  the  regi- 
ment as  such  was  September  4,  1862,  and  the  mustering  offi- 
cer was  Col.  J.  S.  Simonson,  of  the  regular  army.  The 
change  of  scene  from  Camp  Tippecanooto  Camp  Carrington 
was  very  great  to  most  of  the  men,  and  officers  as  well. 
The  majority  of  the  regiment  saw  here  for  the  first  time 
soldiers  in  full  uniform  and  equipments  and  the  moving  of 
troops  as  they  left  their  camps  and  inarched  out  in  full  cam- 
paign outfit,  with  bands  playing  and  colors  flying  starting 
for  "the  front."  The  air  they  breathed  was  full  of  martial 
strains,  and  every  breeze  bore  to  their  ears  the  sounds  in- 
cident to  camp  life.  Sentries  paced  their  beats,  and  received 
ttieir  instructions  in  regard  to  guard  duties. 


20  TIIK  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

Tho  full  luid  complete  roster  of  the  regiment  is  pub- 
lisluHl  with  this  history,  and  contains  briefly  a  record  of^all 
c'liau^'cs  that  wore  made  of  the  officers  both  of  the  field  and 
stairrand  of  the  line,  as  well  as  the  record  of  the  enlisted 

llMMl. 

It  may  not  be  amiss  in  this  connection  to  state  that  all 
of  the  Field  and  Staif,  excepting  Assistant  Surgeon  Jones, 
that  were  mustered  in  with  the  original  organization  retired 
before  the  hardest  part  of  the  service  of  the  regiment  was 
reached.  Assistant  Surgeon  Walton  was  severely  wounded 
at  C'hickamauga  and  died  from  the  w^ounds  there  received. 
Ho  was  a  good  and  faithful  officer,  kind  and  sympathetic  in 
his  disix)sition,  and  under  all  circumstances  a  gentlemen. 

Of  tlie  orginal  Captains  at  the  organization  six  resigned, 
two  were  dismissed  by  court  martial,  tw^o  were  promoted, 
one  was  mustered  out  with  the  regiment  with  same  rank,  and 
one,  William  M.  Southard,  of  Company  K,  was  killed  in  the 
storming  of  Missionary  Ridge,  November  25,  1863.  Of  Cap- 
tain Southard  it  can  be  truthfully  said,  no  man  was  ever  a 
nioro  dovotcnl  friend  than  he,  and  as  an  officer  he  looked 
scrupulously  after  the  interests  of  his  men.  His  death  was 
such  as  any  soldier  living  might  wish  for  if  fate  decreed  to 
liiin  to  die.  He  died  in  the  midst  of  the  charge  on  Mission- 
ai-y  Ividge  when  the  regiment  had  almost  reached  the  sum- 
mit, and  victory  was  just  within  its  grasp.  The  shots  had  come 
thick  and  fast,  the  struggle  had  been  a  hard  one,  the  troops 
won;  pushing  through  the  leaden  storm,  cheered  on  by  the 
voices  of  their  officers.  Captain  Southard  was  doing  his  full 
duty  wiien  the  .soldier's  summons  came,  and  with  a  cheer  to 
his  mon,  and  with  a  breath  of  love  on  his  lips  to  her  who 
had  borne  him,  in  the  midst  of  that  terrible  shock  of  battle, 
as  he  recoived  the  death  wound  and  wiiile  falling  he 
siK)kt>  the  word  "Mother,"  and  his  soul  went  out  to  the 
(iod  of  battles,  and  battles  for  him  were  forever  ended. 

Of  tlu;  original  First  and  Second  Lieutenants  at  the 
organ i/cati(in  oiglit  were  promoted;  eight  resigned;  tw^o  were 
<li.smiss(Hl;  one.  Second  Lieutenant  James  T.  Doster,  of  Com- 
pany I.  died;  and  one,  First  Lieutenant  George  W.  Smith,  of 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  21 

Company  A,  was  killed  in  the   first  day's   engagement   at 
Stone's  River,  December  31,  1862. 


CHAPTER  III. 
THE  INITIATION. 


Camp  Tippecanoe— Its  Fine  Location—Hard  Beds— Trials  for  Hoosier  Stomaclis 
—Edible  Blankets— Electing  Officers- Physical  Examinations— First  Efforts 
at  Drill— Raiding  the  Sutler. 

The  separation  of  friends  was  much  the  same  in  all  places 
and  at  all  times  for  the  soldier  when  called  to  duty  in  the 
field  during  our  late  war.  There  was  always  a  strong  prob- 
ability that  this  separation  was  final.  This  probability  of 
never  again  meeting  these  friends  embittered  the  parting 
more  than  one  can  tell,  and  whatever  the  sense  of  duty  of 
offering  one's  service  to  his  torn,  distracted,  and  bleeding 
country  all  were  loth  to  separate  from  those  whom  they 
held  dearest — dearer  than  life  itself— when  that  separation 
was  quite  possibly  for  all  time.  .•  No  one  feeling  the  ties  of 
kinship,  the  love  for  wife  and  children,  for  brothers  and  sis- 
ters, or  love  and  reverence  for  parents,  or  that  tender  emo- 
tion of  the  lover  for  his  sweet-heart  will  deny  that  it  was  to 
him  a  most  severe  and  terrible  trial,  and  cost  him  many  a 
pang  and  prolonged  heartache. 

On  entering  Camp  Tippecanoe  each  man  was  wide  awake 
to  take  observations  concerning  his  new  life.  The  high  roll- 
ing ground  and  its  superior  drainage  made  it  a  splendid  loca- 
tion for  a  military  camp.  The  sheds  used  for  sleeping  pur- 
poses were  mere  temporary  structures,  built  of  undressed 
boards  from  the  saw  mill.  The  camp  in  general  was  very 
scantily  furnished  with  the  most  necessary  articles  for  con- 
venience or  comfort.  The  bunks  were  not  even  supplied 
with  straw. 


22  TllK    KH;1ITY-SIXTH    REGIMENT, 

S(niu>  of  llu>  sctMiiiii^'  hardsliips  which  will  be  here 
r."lat»'(l  probably  the  more  staid  and  dig-iiitied  historians 
would  scarcudy  pause  to  notice,  much  less  to  chronicle, 
but  lh<\v  arc  told  that  our  children  may  learn  and 
know  of  thcni.  They  were  trivial  ones,  no  doubt,  yet  life  is 
nia<l<'  up  of  little  things,  and  subsistence  is  one  of  the  indis- 
pensable lhini,''s  in  existence,  and  quite  as  necessary  to  the 
newly  recruited  soldier  as  to  any  other  class,  for  next  to  an 
infant  the  average  raw-recruit  is  among  the  most  helpless  of 
beings.  It  is  reasonable  to  believe  that  the  conditions 
which  aiH'  here  delineated  had  no  little  elfect  in  undermin- 
ing and  ruining  the  health  of  many  who,  under  more  favor- 
al)le  cii-onnstances,  might  have  made  fairly  serviceable  sol- 
iliers.  Tlie  utter  repulsion  of  food  caused  by  these  condi- 
tions so  far  weakened  digestion  in  many  a  sturdy  lad  as  to  sow 
tlie  seeds  of  disease,  for  the  elements  of  weakness  caused 
by  the  repugnance  to  food  ultunately  produced  camp- 
diarrhtea,  and  probably  still  more  frequently  caused  that 
condition  of  mind  known  as  nostalgia,  or  home-sickness, 
wiiicli  of  all  things  most  completely  destroyed  the  usefulness 
of  a  man  as  a  soldier  while  still  leaving  him  in  possession  of 
a  fair  portion  of  his  faculties  and  physical  powers.  But  it 
fre(iuently  went  much  farther  than  this;  it  robbed  him  of 
strengtli  and  made  him  a  physical  wreck,  and  it  often  so  com- 
pletely unnerved  him  mentally  that  he  would  cry  like  a 
child  at  tli(>  bare  mention  of  home  or  friends.  This  condi- 
tion of  iMuly  and  mind  was  frequently  brought  about  by  the 
great  shock  to  the  system  of  the  young  men  when  they  had 
to  endure  unexpected  hardships  and  extremely  nauseating 
rations,  as  at  Camp  Tippecanoe,  where  it  was  expected 
everything  in  tlie  line  of  eatables  to  be  both  clean  and  palata- 
ble. This  statement  of  the  origin  of  disease  and  home-sick- 
ness may  seem,  to  the  inexperienced,  to  be  a  strong  one  and 
rather  far  fetched,  but  having  witnessed  the  deep  di.sgust 
and  utter  loathing  of  food  by,  at  least,  apparently  healthy 
young  men  immediately  almost  upon  arriving  in  camp,  it  is 
U.Iieved  this  statement  is  not  overdrawn.  Most  of  the  old 
soldiers  who  reiul  this  can  bear  witness  that  the  picture  here 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  23 

given  is  not  too  highly  colored  nor  stated  in  too  strong 
terms.  The  trials  which  are  imposed  on  one  changing  from 
a  civil  life  to  that  of  a  soldier  are  not,  and  cannot  be  appre- 
ciated by  any  one  who  has  never  made  the  change  and  who 
never  experienced  the  privations  incident  thereto. 

Going  into  camp  at  LaFayette,  so  near  home  and  friends, 
surrounded  by  all  things  necessary  to  make  one  comfortable 
and  cheerful  many  did  not  consider  it  as  soldiering  but 
rather  as  picnicing.  Here  all  were  to  have  a  good  time  when 
once  they  got  inured  to  camp  life.  It  was  to  be  a  joyous 
prelude  to  the  more  arduous  duties  of  the  campaigning  that 
was  to  come  when  they  were  thoroughly  drilled  and  fitted  for 
the  field  of  action.  And  so  it  was  in  many  respects,  a  very 
good  time  if  all  could  have  accepted  it  as  such,  although 
there  were  some  bitter  doses.  Many  thought  they  would 
live  fine,  drill  a  little  for  exercise  and  that  the  change  would 
be  so  little  that  in  all  essential  things  it  would  not  be  unlike 
home  life. 

The  realizations  of  these  astounding  changes  at  once 
aroused  the  perceptive  faculties  to  great  activity.  It  set 
thoughts  afoot — a  running,  as  it  were,  and  the  boys  pondered 
much  upon  their  situation  and  wondered  what  would  come 
next.  They  reasoned  in  regard  to  future  developments  that 
if  there  was  such  a  marked  difference  between  their  concep- 
tion of  camp-life  and  camp-life  as  found  here  under  the  most 
favorable  circumstances,  what  bewildering  and  astounding 
changes  in  camp-life  and  campaigning  would  be  presented 
when  once  ushered  into  the  field  of  active  duties  in  the 
enemy's  country.  There  where  the  real  rather  than  the 
imaginary  trials  are  met  face  to  face,  where  hardships,  pri- 
vations, and  suffering  from  the  vicissitudes  of  heat  and  cold 
are  extremely  oppressive,  where  death  stalks  by  his  side  and 
and  that  continually  there  and  there  only  can  be  witnessed 
the  great  trials  of  the  soldier,  and  there  only  can  his  heroism 
and  the  extent  of  his  offering  on  the  altar  of  his  country  be 
understood  and  fully  appreciated.  These  thoughts  came 
with  great  force  and  suggested  the  thought:  What  next? 
True  they  had  volunteered  in  the  service  at  the  call  of  their 


34  TMF,  KKiHTV-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

coniitiv  with  tho  determination  to  do  their  fullduty.  It  was 
howi'vcr.  never  supposed  that  it  would  add  to  the  danger  of 
pn>l)al)le  doatli  by  a  rebel  bullet,  the  pangs  of  starvation  in 
u  country  so  overflowing  with  all  the  necessaries  of  life  as 
in  the  Northwestern  States,  and  in  a  country  so  traversed 
and  intorsocled  by  railroads  as- both  the  North  and  the  South 
furnisliing  such  ample  means  for  transportation  of  these 
necessaries.  Thoii'  minds  became  greatly  excited  and  the 
more  they  gave  wing  to  their  imagination  the  more  excited 
they  became.  They  could  not  unravel  the  mystery  of  the 
future,  or  tear  aside  the  veil  which  hid  from  view  coming 
events.  It  was  well  they  could  not.  They  had  but  to  do 
their  duty  and  bide  their  time. 

In  referring  to  the  hardships  of  diet  in  Camp  Tipi^eca- 
noe  it  is  not  meant  to  insinuate  that  the  Commissary  of  Sub- 
sistence of  the  camp  failed  to  do  his  full  duty  in  furnishing 
rations.  All  certainly  had  plenty  to  eat,  indeed,  much  that 
none  wanted,  and  yet  ate  it — reluctantly  it  is  true,  but  ate 
it  all  the  same.  There  was  plenty  of  bread  and  meat  and  an 
abundance  of  good  water.  The  bread  was  fairly  good  baker's 
bread.  The  meat  was  excellent.  Wliat  then  was  the  trouble, 
may  be  asked.  But  the  difliculty  of  mastication  and  degluti- 
tion were  not  directly  referable  to  the  quality  of  the  bread 
or  meat,  or  any  of  the  solid  foods  issued,  nor  were  they 
occasioned  by  the  quality  of  the  drinks  pure  and  simple. 
The  malignant  imp  that  presided  over  the  appetite  and  almost 
defeated  tlu;  plan  of  subsistence  was  not  in  any  of  these  arti- 
cles originally,  but  it  was  oyer  and  in  all  of  these  before  they 
were  finally  and  fully  prepared  for  the  palate.  It  ruled  in 
camp  everywhere— that  is  in  Camp  Tippecanoe.  To  be  more 
exj.licit,  tlu'  dilTcrent  companies  of  the  Eighty-sixth  upon 
their  arrival  in  camp  hax;l  issued  to  them  a  lot  of  coarse  white 
hairy  blankets,  the  like  of  which  had  never  been  seen  before 
or  siricc.  Tliey  could  hardly  be  called  woolen,  but  were  com- 
lK)se(l  of  coarscj  stilf  hairs  which  were  ever  ready  upon  a 
toucli  to  desert  thcur  place  in  the  original  fabric  and  cling 
with  wo.i,l<.rfnl  tenacity  to  the  place  of  their  adoption  as  des- 
ignated by  the  accidental  touch.     In  these  blankets  the  boys 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  25 

stood  guard  at  night.  They  threw  them  around  their  should- 
ers in  the  chill  of  cool  evenings  ;  they  slept  in  their  bunks 
wrapped  in  them,  and  consequently  they  were  literally  cov- 
ered from  head  to  foot  with  these  foul,  unsightly  hairs. 
Like  the  effects  of  original  sin  they  were  ever  present. 
Clothing  was  covered  with  them  ;  nose,  eyes,  mouth,  and 
ears  were  filled  with  them.  An  hundred  ,Esaus  spat  and  sput- 
tered from  morning  until  night,  and  from  night  until  morn- 
ing again  to  free  their  mouths  of  these  persistent  abomina- 
tions, and  they  came  far  short  of  success.  There  were  few  or 
no  vessels  yet  provided  which  could  be  used  for  transferring 
the  rations  from  the  regimental  commissary  department  to 
the  company  quarters.  Therefore  these  blankets  came  read- 
ily into  use ;  for  rations  we  had  to  have.  Thus  at  a  very 
early  date  there  was  a  very  general  and  liberal  admixture  of 
these  blanket  hairs  with  all  rations  drawn  to  be  used  by  the 
companies.  But  there  was  never  a  hair  missed.  The  crop 
was  an  unfailing  one,  and  there  was  always  on  hand  an 
abundant  supply.  By  this  double  use  of  the  blankets  the 
hairs  were  generously  and  even  copiously  distributed  every- 
where; no  place  or  person  was  slighted.  The  bunks  were 
full  of  them  ;  the  rude  tables  were  festooned  with  them  ;  the 
bread  was  dressed  and  robed  with  them ;  the  meat  was  duly 
apparaled  with  the  fashionable  garb  of  the  day  and  conse- 
quently was  well  covered  with  coarse  white  hairs.  They  in- 
vaded the  sugar;  tin  plates  were  ornamented  and  embellished 
in  various  designs  by  these  long,  stiff,  tickling,  unwelcome 
nauseating  hairs.  Tin  coffee-cups  were  likewise  wreathed 
and  fringed  in  fantastic  dressings  with  them.  In  short,  not  a 
drinking  or  cooking  utensil  or  vessel  of  any  kind  could  be 
found  about  the  company  quarters  of  that  camp  but  what 
was  fully  decorated  with  these  white  robed  conquerors. 
With  a  persistence  that  seemed  born  of  intelligence  they 
were  ever  present — conquering  time  and  s^Dace  and  the 
palates  of  hundreds  of  sturdy  lads  and  strong  men,  showing 
no  favors  to  any.  Yet  they  taught  a  good  lesson :  they  were 
like  true  soldiers  always  at  the  front  and  every  ready  toper- 
form  their  full  duty.     The  boys  were  at  first  disgusted,  then 


2fl  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

an^M-y.  then  l)()lli  1 1 is^Misted  and  angry,  then  disgusted, angry, 
and  sick,  lor  tlu'  gorge  of  every  man  did  not  fail  to  rise  in 
ivbellioM  against  siicli  treatment,  as  every  well-fed,  well- 
treated,  and  cultivated  stomach  should  do.  Yet  this  or  a 
similar  c.\i)cri('ncc  may  have  in  one  sense  been  necessary 
and  hcnclicial  in  i)roving  the  boys'  stomachs  and  preparing 
tlicin  for  that  wliicli  was  to  come,  for  although  these  consti- 
lulcd  their  last  and  only  ration  of  edible  blankets  they  suf- 
n-rcd  many  hardships  and  sore  trials  of  the  stomach  and  pal- 
ate (hiring  their  term  of  service.  This  was,  however,  their 
woi-st  and  most  trying  experience  of  the  palate  while  they 
n'inained  in  camp  at  LaFayette. 

After  their  arrival  in  camp  the  boys  were  called  up  for 
oxaniination  and  acceptance  or  rejection  by  the  examining 
surgeons.  This  was  soon  completed.  Some  few  were  re- 
jected wlio  were  really  very  anxious  to  go  to  the  front  and 
.serve  their  country.  The  physical  defects  on  account  of 
which  th(\y  were  rejected  were  not  in  most  cases  marked  ones 
so  as  to  be  noticeable  by  non-professionals,  and  the  rejected 
ones  were  much  crest-fallen  because  of  their  rejection,  and 
declared  that  they  were  better  men  physically,  that  they 
were  healthier,  stronger,  and  more  capable  of  enduring 
fatigue,  exjjosure,  and  every  mai*n(?r  of  hardships  than  others 
of  their  comrades  who  were  accepted.  Some  few  even  went 
so  far  as  to  make  a  request  of  the  surgeons  to  accept  them 
and  again  failed.  The  surgeons  were  the  autocrats  of  the 
occasion  and  their  decision  was  tiiuil.  But  generally  the  boys 
of  the  Eiglity-sixtli  were  a  robust  and  sturdy  lot  of  Hoosiers 
— compo.sed  of  young  men  accustomed  to  physical  exercise 
and  U)  lalx)r  eillier  upon  the  farm  or  at  some  trade,  mostly  of 
tine  form  and  tine  fibre  and  of  as  good  nerve  and  muscle  as 
tlie  Western  country  could  produce.  Therefore  a  slight  ex- 
amination was  sufficient  to  satisfy  the  surgeons  that  they 
w«>re  good  for  iwiy  ordinary  or  reasonable  service  of  camp 
or  ti(,'ld  witli  proper  care,  training  and  handling  to  inure 
and  ivccustxjm  them  to  the  diet,  duties,  and  habits  of  a  sol- 
dier's life. 

Soon  after  the  men  were  accei)ted  by  the  examining  sur- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  27 

geons  they  were  called  out  iipou  the  drill  ground  to  go 
through  the  form  of  the  election  of  officers.  It  was  but  a 
mere  form  as  the  whole  thing  was  set  uid,  cut  and  dried,  as 
is  said  in  politics.  Of  course  there  were  some  who  were  disap- 
pointed, but  with  a  commendable  spirit  of  patriotism  there 
was  but  little  grumbling.  Some  of  the  best  men  in  the  dif- 
ferent companies  were  undoubtedly  defrauded  of  their  rights 
and  had  to  receive  orders  from  those  who  were  in  every  way 
their  inferiors  as  soldiers  and  as  men.  But  in  no  particular 
did  these  defrauded  ones  show  their  superior  qualities  both 
as  men  and  as  soldiers  more  markedly  than  by  their  orderly 
conduct  and  quiet  submission,  and  their  prompt  obedience  to 
all  orders  and  their  readiness  for  every  duty. 

After  being  passed  by  the  surgeons  as  being  physically 
capable  and  suitable  for  the  service  in  the  army  of  the 
United  States,  and  the  farce  of  the  election  of  company  offiers 
was  gone  through,  the  boys  were  ordered  to  drill  so 
many  hours  each  day.  No  time  was  to  be  lost.  There  was 
an  urgent  demand  for  more  troops  in  the  field,  and  it  was 
necessary  that  they  should  be  given  as  much  drill  as  they 
could  well  perform  and  thus  be  speedily  prepared  to  go  to 
the  front.  It  was  then  very  necessary  and  everyway  desir- 
able that  the  regiment  should  be  well  drilled  at  the  earliest 
possible  date.  Accordingly  daily  drill  was  the  order.  Here 
again  was  trouble,  not  of  so  serious  a  character,  it  is  true,  as 
to  cause  the  loss  of  life  or  directly  to  destroy  health,  yet 
quite  enough  to  frequently  cause  vexations  and  very  trying 
disputes  between  the  men  in  ranks  being  drilled  and  the  drill- 
masters.  The  yoking  together  of  unequal  s  always  causes 
an  extra  expenditure  of  force.  Here  there  were  many  un- 
equals  with  varying  degrees  of  inequalities  of  form,  strength, 
motion  and  constitution — the  most  diversified  inequalities  of 
both  the  muscular  system  and  of  the  brain  and  nervous  sys- 
tem. From  these  arose  multiplied  jars  and  aggravations  and 
as  a  natural  consequence  a  great  waste  of  muscular  force 
and  a  rapid  and  an  immense  expenditure  of  nervous  energy. 
These  expenditures  of  the  natural  forces  of  the  body  at  such 
a  rapid   rate,   at   a  time   when   already  greatly  over-taxed 


28  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

caused  ium-vous  irritation  and  "the  wear  and  tear"  which 
makes  a  ^'ood  humor  impossible.  In  these  drills  there  was 
tliis  yokiu^'.  II(U-o  was  the  quick,  nervous,  rapid  mover 
whoso  niontal  muke-up  was  of  the  same  nature  as  his  physi- 
cal constitution,  and  who  took  in  the  i)oints  of  drill  as  read- 
ily as  jrivcu.  matched  with  the  slow  and  even  sluggish  in  body 
and  mind —whose  physical  nature  was  but  the  counterpart 
of  his  UHMital  constitution  and  whom  it  required  weeks  and 
months  to  learn  to  "catch  step."  The  long  gangling  youth 
of  immense  bone,  great  stride,  and  deliberate  tread  was  to 
1)(>  drilled  alongside  of  theshortof  stature,  quick  of  step,  and 
short  of  reach.  The  rapidity  of  stride  of  the  one  had  to  be 
checked  and  his  step  lengthened,  the  step  of  the  other  had  to 
be  fiuickened  and  his  reach  shortened,  things  to  the  uniniti-- 
ated.  the  untrained,  difficult  to  perform.  The  various  nat- 
ural gaits  of  a  thousand  men  confirmed  by  the  unrestricted 
habit  of  years  was  no  easy  matter  to  break  uji  and  change 
to  the  regular,  time-keeping,  cadenced  tread  of  the  trained 
veteran  soldier.  It  was  making  a  machine  of  the  liberty 
loving  son  of  toil  who  had  known  no  master  and  whose 
motions  had  been  free  and  unrestricted  as  the  air  he  breathed, 
yet  this  very  breaking  up  and  training  to  time-keeping  tread 
had  to  l)e  done  or  there  was  an  end  to  drill,  and  consequently 
of  all  hopes  of  that  regularity  and  precision  required  in  the 
execution  of  all  military  evolutions.  The  importance  of 
l\ee))ing  step  can  scarcely  be  overestimated  in  an  attempt  to 
march  a  regiment  in  line  of  battle,  or,  in  fact,  any  military 
maneuver  or  evolution  requiring  regularity  of  movement 
and  ])r(K'ision  of  action.  Its  importance  is  never  fully  appre- 
ciated by  the  civilian  or  new  recruit.  So  it  was  with  the 
Kighty-sixth  in  Cam])  Tippecanoe.  Drill  duties  were  a  severe 
trial  of  ])atience.  The  short,  brief  word  of  command  deliv- 
ered in  tones  of  authority  by, the  drill-master  grated  harshly 
on  the  young  American  ear  that  had  not  been  accustomed  to 
1k'  so  ordered  by  man,  and  who  still  thought  this  to  be  a 
"free  country"  and  themselves  "freemen"  as  many  of  them 
<'xi)n'ss«>d  it.  Not  unfrequently  there  would  be  a  brief  and 
forcible  exi>ostulation  uttered  in  reply  to  some  command  em- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  29 

phasized  by  an  explosive  adjective  in  an  irritated  tone  of 
voice  and  a  threat  to  get  even  with  the  drill-master  in  the 
no  distant  future.  There  were  many  complaints  made,  de- 
murs were  entered,  and  protests  tiled,  but  all  came  to  naught 
so  far  as  action  was  concerned.  Drill  progressed  much  the 
same  as  though  no  complaints  had  been  made.  The  cry  by 
loud  voiced  sergeants  and  corporals  drilling  squads  here  and 
there  could  be  heard  at  all  times  of  the  day.  ' '  Left,  left, 
left,  left.  "  "Catch  step  ;"  "  Guide  right ;"  Left,  left,  left,  un- 
til it  became  monotonous  and  irksome  in  the  extreme.  Still 
the  drill  had  to  go  on  and  did  go  on.  But  then  it  is  aston- 
ishing how  soon  a  raw  recruit  will  tire  of  drill.  He  will 
imagine  that  he  is  worn  out  and  broken  down  with  drilling 
before  he  has  learned  its  first  principles.  The  Eighty-sixth 
were  raw  recruits  ;  yes,  an  awkward  squad. 

No  events  transpired  in  camp  at  LaFayette  that  were  of 
particular  importance  in  the  military  history  of  the  regi- 
ment. In  fact  the  organization  here  was  but  the  chrysalis  of 
what  was  afterwards  the  regiment — merely  in  a  state  of 
pupilage.  However  on  Sunday  night  a  depredation  was 
committed  which  caused  a  Hurry  of  excitement  to  run  through 
camp  the  following  morning.  This  was  very  distinctly  and 
positively  not  military.  On  the  morning  spoken  of  it  was 
discovered  that  the  sutler's  tent  was  laid  low.  His  tent  and 
goods  gave  the  only  evidence  that  a  cyclone  had  struck  the 
camp.  The  whole  matter  was  easily  explained.  The  Hoos- 
iers  were  getting  ready  for  a  campaign  and  had  tried  their 
hands  on  the  sutler's  tent  and  goods.  The  establishment 
gave  evidence  of  their  prowess.  It  was  evidently  of  pillage 
and  had  been  well  executed.  The  man  attending  to  the  stock 
of  goods  had  gone  to  town  during  the  night.  Some  of  the  vig- 
ilant, riotous  spirits  of  camp  had  observed  this  and  soon  col- 
lected from  the  quarters  others  equally  bold  and  turbulent 
as  themselves  to  complete  the  work  contemplated.  Who  or- 
ganized the  raid  or  led  the  raiders  is  not  known  positively, 
but  certain  it  is,  that  the  work  was  artistically  done  ;  for  if 
ever  a  sutler's  tent  was  stretched  Hat  and  his  goods  strewn 
to  the  four  winds  surely  here  was  the  time  and  place.      The 


30  'I'HH  KIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

loss  must  have  boon  considerable.  No  special  effort  was 
iiKuU'  to  ai)pi-«'lu'nd  the  perpetrators  of  this  outrage.  They 
certainly  would  not  have  been  hard  to  find  had  there  been 
any  well  directed  etTort.  The  Eighty-sixth  like  most  regi- 
ments had  a  few  men  who  were  ever  ready  for  deeds  of  vio- 
lence, and  some  of  these,  at  least,  were  cool  and  unflinching 
in  tlie  face  of  greatest  danger,  and  attested  their  courage 
and  their  true  soldierly  qualities  at  the  head  of  charging 
columns  even  with  their  lives.  One  of  the  leading  spirits  of 
the  raid  on  t  he  sutler  was  a  member  of  Company  H.  He  was 
on*'  of  the  bravest  men  in  the  regiment  and  finally  gave  his 
life  on  the  field  of  battle. 


CHAPTER   IV. 
CAMP  CARRINGTON. 

Kntm  LaFsiyctto  to  IiHli;ui:ip(ilis— C:imp  Carrinston— Tlic  Eishty-sixth  Mustered 
In -The  Hlmr  llnifoini  Donned— ('ami)  Equipage  Drawn— The  First  "Uard 
Tiick"-  Furnislied  With  Arms  and  Kiiuipnients— An  Irishman  on  Guard— One 
Mont  It's  I'ay— Orders  to  March. 

The  stay  at  Camp  Tippecanoe  was  short.  The  regiment 
was  ordered  to  Indianapolis  by  rail.  The  trip  was  soon  made 
and  uneventful  save  an  accident  happened  by  which  one  of 
llie  iii(>n  was  pretty  severely  injured  at  Thorntown.  The 
train  made  a  bi-i(>f  stop  here  and  as  it  started  up  the  man  by 
.some  means  was  hurt,  though  not  seriously.  How  like  light- 
ning from  the  fi-ont  where  he  was  hurt,  the  word  ran  along 
d<.wn  the  train  to  the  rear,  and  what  a  flush  of  excitement  it 
(treated  until  th(>  minds  of  those  who  had  friends  and  broth- 
ers there  were  (|uieted  l)y  learning  that  it  was  not  one  of 
tlieir  friends.  Tliis  man  was  the  first  one  to  receive  an  in- 
jury of  any  kind  in  the  regiment.  The  remaining  distance 
wius  speedily  covered  without  noteworthy  incident.  Tlie  reg- 
iiui'iit  disembarked  on  the  site  whicli  was  then   known  as 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  31 

"Camp  Murphy,  "  and  afterwards  became  famous  as  "Camp 
Carrington.  "*  But  the  change  from  Camp  Tippecanoe 
to  Camp  Carrington  was  no  improvement,  so  far  as  the  camp 
was  concerned,  and  those  who  had  a  high  sense  of  the  pro- 
prieties of  life  or  even  a  particle  of  modesty  were  greatly 
shocked  to  be  so  situated.  There  was  no  privacy  whatever, 
and  the  younger  members  of  the  regiment  and  the  naturally 
sensitive  ones  found  great  trials  facing  them  at  this  place. 
Here  new  discoveries  relative  to  a  soldier's  life  were  made 
daily.  The  men  were  placed  under  new  restrictions,  the 
samp-guards  being  under  more  stringent  orders  about  per- 
mitting persons  to  go  and  come.  The  military  rules  and 
Drders  were  gradually  tightening  their  relentless  grip  and 
bhe  free  young  American  was  being  petrified,  as  it  were,  into 
bhe  veteran  campaigner,  and  he  felt  it  keenly.  Still  there 
was  little  murmuring  except  by  a  few  tough  ones  who 
wanted  to  go  on  a  continuous  jamboree. 

At  this  camp  on  the  4th  day  of  September,  1862,  the 
Eighty-sixth  was  mustered  into  the  United  States  service- 
born  into  actual  military  service  from  which  there  was  no  re- 
treat. The  mustering  officer  was  Colonel  J.  S.  Simonson,  of  the 
regular  army.  The  Eighty-sixth  were  now  Uncle  Sam's 
boys  in  truth  and  in  fact  and  it  was  his  duty  to  provide  for 
them.  They  at  once  began  receiving  supplies  of  all  kinds  to 
prepare  and  fit  them  for  service  in  the  field.  They  donned 
the  blue,  with  blouse,  pantaloons,  and  forage  cap.  They  re- 
3eived  tents,  haversacks,  canteens,  cooking  utensils,  guns 
and  accouterments,  and  all  the  equipments  belonging  to  the 
fall  fledged  infantryman.  Here  they  were  very  quietly  made 
acquainted  with  a  noted  character  of  the  war — the  Union 
soldier's  abomination  and  yet  one  of  his  best  friends — the 
"hard  tack,  "or  in  other  words  the  array  cracker.  The  first 
liard  tack  received  came  in  barrels  and  were  marked  "sea 


*Tliis  Ciiriip  li;i(l  previously  l)oon  dcsisiiiitcd  us  "Oiiuip  Cliiis  Milk-r,"  but 
upon  tlu>  arrival  of  the  Ei<?l)ty-sixt.h  it  was  known  as  "Camp  Murphy."  It  was 
soon  aftfrwards  chansi'd  to  "Camp  CarriiiRton"  vvliich  name  It  rt-taiiu'd  until  the 
:;lose  of  the  war.  To  avoid  confusion  in  the  minds  of  the  reader  it  shall  be  re- 
ferred to  as  "Camp  Carrington." 


32  THE  EIOIITY-SIXTII  RRCIMKNT, 

l.iscuit. •'  Many  of  Uio  boys  shouted  for  joy  actually expect- 
iiiir  to  s.M«  nice  soda  biscuits  roll  out  of  the  barrel  when  the 
lu>;uls  wcro  knoclvod  in.  Alas!  for  human  expectations  and 
liuinaii  h()iH\s.  Those  first  hard  tack  were  "as  dry  as  the 
rt'iiiiiiiHlcr  l)iscuit  alior  a  voyage"  and  as  hard  as  a  deal 
lK)ar(l.  Hut  tor,  cream  and  X)ie  were  no  more  to  be  had  save 
some  oxccrablo  dried  apple  ]iies  which  "hawkers"  occasion- 
ally dispostnl  of  in  camp.  Those  good  things  of  the  jmlate 
wore  no  more  to  bo  thought  of  than  was  a  sweet  restful 
niglit  's  sloop  in  one  of  mother's  feather  beds. 

Tilt"  aruis  furnish(>(l  were  the  Enfield  rifte,  a  first  class 
l)ioco  for  that  day,  a  roally  good  serviceable  gun,  not  easily 
got  out  of    order,   and  one   which   the    regiment   retained 
throughout  its  term  of  service.     As  soon  as  the  arms  and 
accoutormonts   were   received  at  the  arsenal   and  the  men 
niarchod  back  to  camp,  came  the  examination  of  the  implements 
of  warfare.     It  was  an  inspection  more  extensive,  more  rigid  j 
and  thorough   than  any  inspector   ever  gave   them  subse- 
(pu'iitly.     There  arose  at  once  a  discussion  of  the  merits  of 
the  gun  which  was  continued  so  long  as  there  was  one  who  | 
was  not   fully  satisfied.     Nothing  thus  far  had  created  so  | 
much  interest  in  camp  as  these  instruments  of  death.     The   « 
motives  that  had  actuated  the  men  and  caused  their  enlist-   | 
mont  now  seemed  apparent.     With  some,  these  guns  were  to 
1:m!    the    agents  in  their  hands    to    help    save    the    Nation 
from  destruction,  with  others  idea  of  punishment  was  more 
ju'edominant  and  thoy  wore  to  be  the  instruments  of  terror  to 
traitors  iind  nibols,  and  with  others  they  were  to  aid  in  help- 
ing free  the  negroes,  and  to  a  still  fewer  in  number  they 
woro   to  bo    simply  appliances  of  destruction  of   their  fel- 
low man  and  to  <'nablo  tluur  possessors  to  plunder  and  pill- 
ago.     Fortunately  the  latter  class  was  very  few  in  number 
and  woro  usmUly  condomiKnl  und  somewhat  held  in  check  by 
thoir  comriulos. 

The  various  parts  of  the  gun  each  man  carefully  exam- 
inod  for  liimsolf,  and  thus  ho  made  himself  thoroughly  ac- 
(juaintod  with  it  in  all  t-ho  d(»ta,ils  ofnts  ])arts  and  their  work- 
ings. From  li))  ol  l)ayonot  to  butt  of  stock  no  portion  or  part 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  33 

escaped  the  closest  scrutiny  and  examination.  Perhaps  as  a 
rule  the  bayonet  came  first  in  the  investigation,  and  from  tip 
of  blade  to  bridge  of  socket  no  part  escaped  the  examination 
— nothing  was  missed  by  the  newly  fledged  soldier.  The 
blade,  socket,  stud-mortise  of  socket,  and  clasp  were  all  scan- 
ned closely  and  fully  comprehended  before  this  part  of  the 
arm  was  laid  aside  and  another  taken  up.  It  is  unnecessary 
to  relate  the  details  of  this  searching  inspection  and  exami- 
nation of  the  arm,  but  -from  muzzle  to  butt,  lock,  stock, 
and  barrel,  band  and  band-spring,  sling  and  sling- 
swivel,  trigger  and  trigger-guard,  ram-rod  and  its  groove 
were  all  thoroughly  examined  and  their  relations  and  func- 
tions noted.  Of  the  appendages  of  the  gun  the  wiper,  the 
ball-screw,  the  screw-driver,  the  spring-vise,  and  the  tom- 
pion,  all  were  sx^eedily  passed  under  the  scrutinizing  gaze  of 
a  thousand  Hoosier  eyes  and  their  fitness  for  the  purpose 
for  which  they  were  intended  fu^lly  discussed,  as  were  the 
cartridge-box  and  its  magazines,  its  straps  and  plates,  and 
hooks  for  fastening  belt.  So  the  whole  paraphernalia  of 
the  newly  fledged  soldier  was  critically  examined. 

Again  orders  for  drill  had  been  promulgated  and  some 
feeble  attempts  were  made  in  this  direction.  Now  that  they 
had  their  arms  the  boys  felt  that  they  ought  to  be  put 
through  the  manual  of  arms,  and  then  company  and  battalion 
drill  as  soon  as  possible.  A  little  drilling  was  done,  but  it 
was  very  little  as  all  were  too  busy  drawing  sujjplies  and 
getting  ready  for  the  front.  So  the  time  ran  on  at  Camp 
Carriugton. 

A  little  incident  occurred  at  this  camp  before  the  men 
had  drawn  arms.  It  shows  the  mettle  of  the  Hoosier  boys 
and  that  they  intended  to  do  what  they  believed  to  be  their 
duty.  The  camp-guard  had  been  established  and  strict 
orders  given  to  the  guards  to  allow  no  one  to  cross  the 
guard-line  except  at  the  gates  with  properly  signed  passes. 
Of  course  the  raw  recrait  thought  this  order  meant  just 
what  it  said,  and  accordingly  supposed  that  no  one  was  to  be 
allowed  to  pass  in  or  out  over  the  line,  be  he  a  private  or 
Major -General,  not  knowing  that  field  officers  were  by  mill- 


34  THK   F.KiHTV-SIXTII  REGIMENT, 

t:iry  rules  excepted.  Well,  General  Carrington  was  riding 
round  on  a  tour  of  inspection  and  thought  to  ride  into  the 
camp  of  the  Eighty-sixth.  He  rode  up  to  the  guard-line  and 
naturally  supposed  that  the  guard  had  been  properly 
instructed  and  knew  snfficiontly  of  military  matters  to  admit 
him.  But  he  had  struclc  the  wrong  man.  Attempting  to 
cross,  the  guard  halted  him,  but  he  rode  up  quite  near  to  the 
guard  and  informed  him  who  he  was,  and  that  on  account  of 
iiis  rank  he  was  entitled  to  pass— to  enter  camp  at  will  not- 
withstanding the  instructions  fi'om  the  Colonel  to  allow  no 
one  to  pass  in  or  out.  But  no,  the  guard  was  firm  and  insist- 
ed he  could  not  pass  into  camp  over  his  beat.  The  General 
became  impatient  and  attempted  to  ride  forward  into  camp 
regardless  of  the  guard's  threatening  attitude  and  warnings 
to  keep  otf.  Now,  came  the  fun.  The  guard  quite  as  deter- 
mined as  the  General  seized  the  bridle-rein  of  the  General's 
hoi-se,  reined  him  back  upon  his  haunches  and  struck  the 
General  himself  a  heavy  blow  on  the  left  arm  and  shoulder 
with  a  stout  cudgel  with  which  the  guards  were  then  armed. 
The  General  now  thoroughly  aroused  spurred  his  charger 
furiously  forward,  causing  him  to  break  away  from  the  guard 
and  so  rode  into  camp.  This  little  episode  was  witnessed  b}^ 
many  of  the  boys  who  scarcely  knew  what  to  make  of  it. 
The  General  himself  was  very  much  excited,  asked  the  com- 
pany to  which  the  soldier  belonged,  his  name,  and  sought 
his  Captain  and  then  Colonel  Hamilton.  All  expected  to 
liear  him  severely  denounced  and  perhaps  ordered  a  severe 
punishment  for  his  gross  blunder.  But  on  the  contrary  the 
General  commended  him  highly  for  his  great  firmness  in 
doing  that  which  ho  believed  to  be  his  duty  and  recommended 
that  he  b('  ])romotedto  corporal  immediately  if  there  was  a 
vaeancy,  and  if  not  as  soon  as  a  vacancy  occurred. 

Hen;  too  after  being  mustered  into  Uncle  Sam's  family 
the  men  received  one  month's  pay,  thirteen  dollars,  and  one- 
fourth  of  their  promised  bounty,  twenty-five  dollars.  Most 
of  this  money  was  sent  home  by  a  majority  of  the  boys  for 
the  use  of  their  families,  their  wives  and  children,  or  their 
parents  and  younger  brothers  and  sisters,  or  to  be  kept  for 


1506642 

INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  35 

them  until  they  should  return  home.  There  were  a  few 
however,  on  the  other  hand  who  were  reckless  and  not  dis- 
posed to  look  ahead  who  retained  their  money  and  squan- 
dered it  in  gambling  and  drink.  Others  spent  it  in  supposed 
luxuries.  They  soon  had  neither  money  or  anything  to  show 
for  it,  and  by  their  indulgence  had  in  a  measure  unfitted 
themselves  for  the  performance  of  the  duties  of  a  soldier  in 
the  field.  Thus  the  few  days  at  Indianapolis  soon  wore 
away.  Some  were  preparing  themselves  to  be  serviceable 
soldiers,  others  were  laying  the  foundation  for  a  hospital 
career  from  the  first.  A  few  spasmodic  attempts  at  drill 
were  made,  but  the  constant  hurry  and  rush  upon  the  part  of 
officers  to  make  out  requisitions  and  to  receive  and  distribute 
necessary  supplies  prevented  anything  like  systematic  in- 
struction. All  felt  the  great  need  of  this  training,  but  there 
was  so  little  time  for  it,  that  the  instruction  they  did  receive 
was  of  small  practical  value.  The  men  greatly  needed  to  be 
made  familiar  with  the  manual  of  arms,  the  company  and 
battalion  drill.  The  latter  was  not  attempted  so  short  had 
been  the  regiment's  stay  in  camp.  Therefore  the  Eighty - 
sixth  practically  knew  nothing  of  drill  when  it  was  called  to 
go  to  the  front. 

Almost  daily  now  trains  would  go  by  bearing  ' '  the  boys 
in  blue ' '  from  camps  in  other  parts  of  the  State  and  from 
other  States  to  the  front.  Cheers  from  the  train  for  the 
camp  would  make  the  welkin  ring,  and  answering  cheers  from 
the  camp  would  resound  again  and  again.  These  outbui'sts 
of  enthusiasm  told  how  thoroughly  the  Northern  heart  was 
aroused.  How  the  grand  and  true  spirit  of  patriotism  had,  at 
last,  by  its  fervor  welded  and  made  as  one  mighty  brother- 
hood this  people  and  bound  them  in  indissoluble  bonds  for 
country,  home  and  loved  ones.  Each  succeeding  train-load 
of  passing  blue-coats  had  a  tendency  to  make  the  boys  grow 
impatient  to  go  forward  to  meet  the  enemy.  They  knew  too 
that  they  should  soon  follow  their  comrades  gone  before. 
There  was  a  demand  for  more  troops  for  the  field.  General 
Braxton  Bragg  had  skillfully  turned  thefiank  of  Buell's  com- 
mand in  the  vicinity  of  Bridgeport,  Alabama,  and  was  now 


3(1  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

marchin*?  rapidly  on  the  most  direct  route  for  Louisville, 
K.Mituck-y.  with  liis  main  force,  while  another  portion  of  his 
coniinaiul  under  the  noted  General  Kirby  Smith  was  advauc- 
infr  upon  and  threatening  Covington,  Kentucky,  and  Cincin- 
nati. Oliio.  High  hopes  of  the  South  centered  on  this  raid. 
Bragg  intended  to  carry  the  war  this  side  the  Ohio.  The 
Nortlieru  States  were  to  be  the  theater  of  war  instead  of  the 
Sunny  South.  There  was  a  perfect  furore  of  excitement  in 
and  around  Cincinnati,  and,  in  fact,  all  over  the  Northern 
States.  Buell  was  denounced  as  a  traitor  to  the  cause  he  pre- 
tend«^d  to  serve.  He  was  accused  of  being  in  league  with  the 
enemy,  and  of  every  conceivable  weakness  and  folly.  There 
was  certainly  no  truth  in  any  of  these  charges  beyond  possi- 
bly that  of  extreme  caution  and  indecision  similar  in  degree 
and  kind  to  that  of  McClellan  in  the  East.  But  there  was  a 
truth  on  the  other  side  which  was  overlooked  by  the  Union  j 
army  and  the  people  of  the  North  in  general.  Bragg  was  in 
fact  a  much  more  able  commander  than  the  people  of  the 
North  gave  him  credit.  The  truth  was  Bragg  had  played 
liis  i)art  thu.s  far  with  consummate  skill  i\nd  judgment,  and 
had  in  his  favor,  which  greatly  promoted  success,  the  friend- 
liness and  sympathy  of  a  large  majority  of  the  people  of  the 
country  through  which  his  army  was  passing.  These  ad- 
vantages permitted  Bragg  to  avoid  all  engagements,  and,  no 
doubt,  gave  rise  to  the  charges  against  Buell  by  those  who 
were  unfriendly  towards  him. 

Th(^  great  excitement  in  the  North,  and  especially  of  the 
Northwestern  States,  caused  the  people  to  urge  and  boldly 
demand  that  the  threatened  cities  be  made  secure — that  suf- 
ficient troops  be  at  once  sent  forward  to  defend  and  protect 
them  from  the  approaching  enemy.  The  excitement  at  Cin- 
cinnati  was  truly  at  fever  heat  and  great  demands  were  made 
by  lier  people  upon  the  government  for  aid,  while  the  citi- 
zens turned  out  almost  enmasse  to  defend  their  homes  from 
the  would-be  invaders.  General  H.  G.  Wright  was  in  com- 
mand of  the  department,  and  General  Lew  Wallace  was  in 
command  of  Cincinnati  and  Covington,  and  the  troops  in  the 
trenches  defending  them.     General  Heth,  of  Kirby  Smith's  i 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  37 

command,  took  position  a  few  miles  south  of  Covington  on 
the  Gth  of  September.  This  increased  the  excitement  in 
tliat  locality  as  a  matter  of  course.  But  this  was  the  farthest 
point  north  that  any  considerable  force  of  that  command 
reached. 

This  was  the  situation  in  Kentucky  when  on  Saturday, 
September  6,  the  Eighty-sixth  received  orders  to  be  ready 
to  move  at  a  moment's  notice.  Soon  a  second  order  was  re- 
ceived to  move  on  the  following  day,  Sunday,  September  7. 
All  was  excitement  now.  The  crisis  of  meeting  the  enemy 
seemed  undoubtedly  to  be  at  hand.  » 


CHAPTER  V. 
GRUMBLE  HILL." 


From  Tndiauapolis  to  Cincinnati— Breakfast  at  Fiftli  Street  Market^Across  the 
River— Covington— Ludlow— Camp  Mitchell— Newport— The  First  Bivouac- 
Camp  Wallace—"  Grumble  Hill"— Company  H  On  Picket— Wallowins  in  the 
Ditches. 

After  breakfast  Sunday  morning,  September  7,  Sibley 
tents  were  struck  and  everything  packed,  ready  at  the  tap  of 
the  drum  to  depart  for  the  front.  But  the  train  was  not  yet 
ready.  The  day  was  consumed  in  waiting  until  5  o'clock 
when  the  train  rolled  out  for  Cincinnati  over  the  I.,  C.  and  L. 
Railway.  It  proved  to  be  a  very  "slow  coach, "  and  many  of 
the  boys  whenever  it  stopped  would  jump  off  and  run  to  ad- 
jacent orchards  and  lay  in  a  supply  of  apples.  Such  boyish 
pranks  as  these  were  performed  as  long  as  daylight  lasted. 
Thus  time  and  train  trundled  on  together  until  night,  when 
the  boys  became  more  quiet,  for  up  to  this  time  they  had 
been  in  a  hilarious  mood,  singing,  shouting,  and  having  a 
boisterous  time  generally.  Some  of  the  more  staid  members 
of  the  regiment  tried  to  sleep  after  night  came,  but  the  at- 
tempt was  vain.  After  a  long  tedious  ride  about  4  o'clock 
Monday  morning,  September  8,  the  command  was  landed  at 


38  THE  EIO MTV-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

('iiiciiuiiili.  Tiiml)lin,ir  out  of  the  cars  more  than  half-asleep 
the  boys  immediately  dropped  down  upon  the  platform  of 
tlu'  doiK)t  for  "forty  winks"  of  sleep. 

\V«>ai-y  with  the  night's  ride  the  boys  slept  late,  but  at 
Ifii.irtii  they  were  aroused  and  began  to  move  about.  They 
w»'iit  in  s([iKids  to  tlie  river  and  performed  their  morning  ab- 
hitions  and  returned  to  the  station.  The  regiment  here  in  a 
fjreat  city  was  at  a  loss  to  know  what  to  do  for  breakfast. 
Tlu'rc  was  no  fuel  provided  and  many  of  the  men  were  timid 
and  did  not  know  how  to  look  foi-  it.  Later  on  the  most  timid 
man  in  the  regiment  would  easily  have  found  an  abundance. 
So  th«>y  .stood  round  the  depot  not  knowing  what  to  do.  Fin- 
ally, however,  after  long  waiting  the  command  came,  "fall 
in, "  "  shoulder  arms, "  "  right  face, "  "  forward  march, ' '  and 
they  began  a  slow  straggling  march  eastward,  filed  left  up 
Vine  street,  climbed  the  hill  and  finally  reached  Fifth  street 
Market  House  where  the  good  people  of  the  city  had  pro- 
vided for  them  a  good  meal.  After  breakfast  the  regiment 
was  marched  down  the  street  in  the  direction  of  the  river  to 
a  hotel,  and  were  there  addressed  by  Brigadier-General  Mah- 
lon  D.  Manson.  who  was  then  a  paroled  prisoner,  having 
been  cai)turt'd  at  Kichmond,  Kentucky,  August  30.  After  the 
speaking  the  regiment  continued  its  march  to  the  rivei-. 
crossed  to  Covington,  Kentucky,  on  a  pontoon  bridge  and 
proceeded  dcnvn  the  river.  Passing  through  Ludlow,  a  mile 
or  more,  it  bore  off  to  the  left  and  camped.  The  day  was 
wai-nj  and  tln^  loads  were  heavy.  The  men  had  been  on  their 
fi'i'l  almost  the  whole  day  and  were  entirely  inexperienced  in 
marching,  and  many  of  them  found  it  exceedingly  tiresome, 
in  fact,  many  fell  behind  the  regiment  on  this,  its  first  march. 
These  stragglers  were  greatly  fatigued  and  much  chagrined 
at  the  thought  of  not  being  able  to  keep  up,  but  they  mostly 
came  in  before  dark.  The  camp  here  was  designated  as 
CanipMilrlM'll.  The  regiment  now  barely  had  a  taste  of 
niardiing,  but  many,  at  least,  were  fully  satisfied  that  when 
it  was  undertaken  in  earnest  that  there  was  not  one  bit  of 
ainii.siMnent  about  it— not,  at  least,  for  raw  troops.  The  teams 
were  .so(M.  on  haii.l  and  tents  were  put  up.     After  supper,  the 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  39 

events  of  the  day  were  discussed  until  "taps,"  when  all  re- 
tired hoping  for  a  good  night's  rest.  Not  long  after  lying 
down  an  alarm  was  given  and  the  regiment  was  called  out  as 
was  supposed  to  give  battle.  After  standing  to  arms  for 
some  time,  and  neither  seeing  or  hearing  anything  indicat- 
ing the  approach  of  the  enemy,  the  regiment  was  permitted 
to  break  ranks  and  again  retire. 

The  following  morning  was  quite  cool  but  otherwise 
pleasant.  There  was  a  number  of  the  regiment  reported  sick 
this  morning.  Marching  in  the  heat  of  the  day,  heavily 
loaded,  and  then  lying  at  night  upon  the  cold,  damp  ground 
produced  internal  congestions.  The  changes  in  food  and 
drink  caused  many  to  suffer  with  camp  diarrhoea,  accom- 
panied in  some  cases  with  considerable  fever. 

Orders  were  received  to  march  before  noon.  The  regi- 
ment was  soon  on  the  road,  leaving  behind  the  tents  and  the 
sick.  Crossing  Licking  river  the  command  passed  to  the 
southeast  of  Newport,  and  having  marched  some  six  or  seven 
miles  was  halted  in  an  open  field,  where  it  remained  until  the 
following  day.  The  boys  were  now  being  initiated  into  the 
duties  and  mysteries  of  marching,  camping,  camjDaigning, 
and  of  the  bivouac.  Tuesday  and  Tuesday  night,  September 
9,  the  Eighty-sixth  experienced  its  first  true  bivouac  with 
nauglit  but  the  sky  and  stars  above.  The  next  morning  was 
pleasant  and  the  men  lounged  around  the  bivouac  fires  dis- 
cussing the  probability  of  a  battle  at  this  place  until  about 
10  o'clock,  when  the  regiment  recrossed  the  river  back  into 
Covington  and  took  position  on  a  high  hill  just  south  of  the 
town  and  about  a  half  mile  from  it.  This  was  designated  as 
Camp  Wallace.  Here  the  boys  were  far  from  being  pleased 
with  their  environment  and  much  grumbling  was  indulged  in 
in  the  ranks.  These  complaints  became  so  numerous  and 
vigorous  that  the  place  came  to  be  known  as  "Grumble 
Hill. "  Again  the  wagons  failed  to  arrive  with  the  tents  and 
the  regiment  indulged  itself  with  another  bivouac.  This 
hill  was  already  intrenched,  therefore  the  Eighty-sixth 
formed  its  line  just  inside  the  works  and  so  bivouacked  to  be 
ready  to  "  fall"  into  the  ditch  and  defend  the  hill  to  the  last 


40  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

ill  case  of  ;m  attack'.  Reports  were  flying  still  thick  and  fast 
of  tlu'  (Mu'iuy's  api)roacli  with  intention  of  making  an  attack 
uiK)ii  llic  place.  Nerves  were  consecpiently  on  a  constant 
strain.  On  the  morning  after  the  regiment's  arrival  at  this 
camp  on  "Clrumble  Hill"  it  began  raining  and  the  trenches 
were  very  muddy.  Notwithstanding  the  rain  and  the  mud, 
every  hour  or  so  an  alarm  would  be  given  that  the  enemy 
was  apin'oacliiiig  and  the  men  would  be  ordered  into  the 
ditches,  there  to  wallow  in  the  mud.  But  Kirby  Smith  had 
MO  intention  of  au  attack,  and  was  even  at  that  time  with- 
drawing his  forces.  The  nerves  of  all  were  in  a  state  of  ex- 
treme tension,  and  this  with  the  real  hardships  of  loss  of 
sleep  and  waUowing  in  the  mud  was  extremely  wearing  on 
the  constitutions  of  the  men.  Even  after  nightfall  the  camp 
would  be  alarmed  by  the  command  "Fall  in,  Eighty -sixth.  " 
Tlu>  enemy  is  almost  upon  us.  "  At  once  the  regiment  would 
rush  into  tlie  muddy  trenches.  If  men  were  ever  justifiable 
in  indulging  in  profane  remarks  here  was  the  occasion  on 
"Grumble  Hill."  Some  nights  they  would  be  allowed 
scarcely  any  sleep,  so  busy  were  they  falling  in  and  out  of 
the  ditch.  Tlius  the  men  were  nearly  worn  out  with  drag- 
ging uj)  and  down  and  watching  for  the  iron-hearted  enemy 
who  was  every  coming  in  a  "tiger-footed  rage"  to  tear  them 
to  pieces  and  devour  them  bodily. 

Ijook'ing  back  now  at  these  trials  in  the  light  of  experi- 
enc<\  all  of  this  constant  worry  and  annoyance  was  a  great 
injury  to  tlie  men  of  the  Eighty -sixth.  This  no  doubt,  sent 
many  a  man  to  the  hospital,  not  a  few  of  whom  secured  dis- 
chai-ges  and  thus  weakened  the  organization  in  point  of  num- 
bei-s,  and  greatly  discouraged  others  that  remained,  and  in 
tluit  way  did  harm  to  the  spirit  of  the  regiment  that  required 
time  to  fully  overcome. 

On  tlie  llith  inst.  the  tents  came  up.  Thenceforward 
what  little  time  tliere  was  for  sleep  on  "Grumble  Hill"  was 
with  a  little  better  protection  from  wind  and  rain  and  the 
<-hill  of  the  night  air.  The  regiment  had  b'een  here  at  or 
near  Covington  live  nights  without  tents  and  this  was  felt 
to  be  (luite   a  hardship.     Later  on  little  would  have  been 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  41 

thought  of  such  deprivations.  By  whose  orders  the  men  were 
thus  bedeviled  no  one  will  probably  ever  know,  but  through 
ignorance  or  spite  or  some  other  equally  culpable  motive  the 
regiment  was  most  shamefully  managed  and  mistreated. 
Some  time  during  the  14th  it  was  announced  that  the  regiment 
was  under  marching  orders.  A  great  shout  went  up  from  the 
overjoyed  Hoosiers  who  were  besides  themselves  almost  at 
the  prospect  of  getting  away  from  ' '  Grumble  Hill. 

On  the  morning  of  the  16th  of  September,  Company  H, 
Captain  Milton  Bell  in  command,  was  detailed  to  do  jjicket 
duty  for  the  regiment.  Let  the  dairy  of  a  member  of  that 
company  tell  how  that  duty  was  performed  and  how  some  of 
the  company  were  employed:  "The  company  (H)  received 
orders  to  go  out  as  pickets.  We  went  out  about  three  miles 
on  the  pike  and  stopped  for  the  reserve  or  company  head- 
quarters at  a  tine  house  from  which  an  'old  secesh'  had  been 
taken  and  left  everything  that  we  wanted  to  use.  Our  men 
were  soon  placed  upon  the  line.  The  Second-Lieutenant, 
Uriah  Thomas,  took  a  squad  of  thirteen  men  and  started  on 
a  little  scout  on  our  own  responsibility.  The  men  stripped 
themselves  of  all  necessary  luggage  that  they  'might  be  in 
the  best  possible  trim  for  making  good  time  if  by  chance 
they  should  come  across  too  strong  a  squad  of  the  enemy. 
Pressing  forward  at  a  good  pace  we  soon  covered  some  four 
miles  from  our  reserve  station  and  came  to  a  suitable  place 
to  get  our  dinners.  We  had  a  good  dinner  and  all  the  apples 
and  peaches  we  could  eat,  as  well  as  all  the  milk  we  could 
drink,  something  we  had  not  had  since  leaving  home.  After 
scouting  around  over  the  noigliborhood  for  some  time, 
always  keeping  a  sharp  lookout  for  the  enemy,  we  concluded 
to  lay  in  a  supply  of  something  nice  to  eat  and  then  return  to 
the  post  of  our  duty.  So  we  killed  a  nice  shoat  and  secured 
a  number  of  chickens  and  returned  to  the  picket  station. 
Up  to  this  time  everything  had  gone  along  pleasantly  enough 
without  the  appearance  of  an  enemy.  About  dark  we  feasted 
on  "hard  tack,"  fresh  pork  and  chicken.  Soon  after  this 
our  relief  went  upon  the  line  to  do  sentinel  duty.  Reported 
attempts  of  "bushwhackers"  firing  upon  the  sentinels  here 


42  THE  KIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

ultor  ihirk  wtMc  iiuulc  known  to  us  and  all  were  duly  warned 
to  keep  a  sharp  lookout  for  their  own  personal  safety  as  well 
lus  the  «,'cMUM-al  jrood.  It  was  a  wide-awake  picket  line  that 
niglU.  Tlio  countorsif^n  was  "Blue  Ridge."  Some  time  be- 
fore our  "trick"  was  out  one  of  the  sentinels  heard,  as  he 
clainicd,  some  one  snap  a  cap  immediately  in  his  front. 
Taking  it  for  granted  tluit  it  was  a  "bushwhacker"  making 
an  atlemitl  u\Hm  liis  life,  he  tired  on  him  without  hesitation. 
Tlio  next  sentinel  being  as  he  supposed  somewhat  more  ex- 
posed tlian  tlie  one  that  tired,  and  more  likely  to  fall  a  victim 
to  the  "bushwhacker's"  tire,  left  his  post  and  came  down  the 
line  with  speed  of  a  quarter  horse,  making  the  brush  crack 
as  lie  came  tearing  along.  Fearing  that  the  other  sentinels 
would  mistake  him  for  the  enemy  and  so  sacrifice  him  to 
their  fears  he  yelled  at  every  jump  "Blue  Ridge,"  "Blue 
Ridge,"  "Blue  Ridge,"  until  the  woods  rang  with  his  un- 
earthly cry.  He  made  good  time  to  the  reserve  station, 
where  with  almost  breatlil(>ss  haste  he  related  his  very  nar- 
row escape.  It  was  laughable  in  the  extreme  to  others,  but 
a  fearful  reality  with  the  frightened  sentinel.  The  sentinel 
who  tired  stood  fast  and  nothing  more  was  heard.  Some  of 
the  boys  were  wholly  incredulous  and  did  not  believe  the 
statements  of  the  sentinel  who  tired — did  not  believe  that  he 
had  heard  any  one  or  anything,  and  questioned  him  very 
closely  as  to  the  place  where  he  heard  the  noise.  Early  next 
morning  they  sallied  forth  to  prove  there  had  been  no  one 
there,  and  that  the  sentinel  had  tii-ed  for  "buncombe."  But 
upon  going  to  the  spot  desigiuited,  to  their  great  surprise, 
a  gun  was  found  which  satisfied  all  but  a  few  obstinately 
incredulous  ones.  It  was  now  pretty  generally  accepted  that 
a  genuine  attempt  at  "bushwhacking"  had  actually  been 
made,  but  the  prompt  tiring  of  the  sentinel  had  frightened 
th«>  would-be  assassin  and  he  had  left  in  haste.  Now,  too,  the 
timid  comrade  who  is  somewliat  given  to  boasting  cannot 
say  a  word  in  his  braggtKlocio  style  without  being  called 
down  with  'Blue  Ridge,'  'Blue  Ridge' much  to  his  discom- 
forture.  H(.f()rc  the  company  was  relieved  another  squad  of 
the  hoys  went  outside  the  lines  and  killed  a  nice  calf  and 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  43 

brought  it  to  the  reserve.  Thus  the  company  was  for  the 
time  being  pretty  well  provided  with  good  meat.  About  10 
o'clock  a.  m.  on  the  17th,  we  were  relieved  by  another  com- 
pany of  the  Eighty-sixth  and  H  company  returned  to  the 
camp  on  the  hill."  It  might  be  said  here  in  closing  this  ac- 
count that  the  sentinel  who  so  promptly  fired  upon  the  ' '  bush- 
whacker" afterwards  became  the  regiment's  most  expert 
forager,  in  fact,  it  never  saw  his  equal.  He  was,  however,  cap- 
tured by  the  enemy  near  Rural  Hill,  Tennessee,  paroled  and 
never  returned  to  the  regiment,  and  was  afterwards  reported 
as  a  deserter.  The  timid  sentinel  on  the  contrary,  notwith- 
standing the  great  trial  to  his  nerves,  remained  in  the  service 
and  finally  fell  a  victim  to  the  enemy's  shot  in  the  fateful 
trenches  around  Atlanta  toward  the  last  of  July,  1864. 

The  Eighty-sixth  now  considered  itself  capable  of  per- 
forming every  duty  known  to  veterans.  The  boys  had 
marched  ;  they  had  bivouacked  ;  they  had  laid  in  the  trenches 
all  night ;  they  had  been  on  j^icket ;  they  had  performed  every 
duty  of  a  soldier  except  meet  the  enemy  in  actual  battle  and 
they  were  ready  for  that.  Were  they  not  soldiers?  The 
company  had  scarcely  reached  camp  when  the  tomfoolery  of 
ordering  the  regiment  into  the  trenches  was  begun  again. 
All  now  knew  there  was  no  armed  enemy  of  any  con- 
siderable number  within  miles,  yet  the  men  were  com- 
pelled to  wallow  in  the  ditches  as  though  the  enemy  was  in 
sight.  This  treatment  of  the  regiment  was  certainly  a  mon- 
umental piece  of  stupidity,  and  can  only  be  accounted  for  on 
that  score.  It  seemed  to  be  a  malicious  and  studied  piece  of 
cruelty.  It  was  the  fate  of  this  regiment  for  some  months 
after  its  entrance  into  the  field  to  suifer  unnecessarily  the 
most  outrageous  treatment,  neglect  and  exposure. 

On  the  19th  of  September  the  regiment  received  march- 
ing orders  which  caused  a  ripple  of  excitement  in  the  ranks. 
To  a  man  all  were  anxious  to  leave  the  camp  on  the  hill 
where  the  men  had  been  so  miserable  and  "had  to  drink 
river  water."  On  the  following  day  the  orders  were  more 
specific.  They  were  to  have  three  days'  cooked  rations  in 
their  haversacks  and  be  ready  to  inarch  at  a  moment's  notice. 


44  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

This  was  something  definite.  All  went  to  work  with  a  will, 
some  to  cook,  some  to  strike  tents,  and  others  to  packing  up 
all  baggage  that  should  go  on  the  w^agons.  All  was  hum 
and  biistlc^  jest  and  jollity,  at  the  thought  of  departing  for- 
ever from  "Grumble  Hill."  Everything  was  in  readiness 
for  llie  trip  by  noon,  and  the  old  hill,  destitute  of  num- 
berless white  tents,  lay  bleak  and  bare.  The  men  of  the 
KiglilV-sixth  only  waited  for  the  word  of  command  to  set 
forward  on  their  journey  wherever  it  might  lead. 

The  men  lounged  about  the  tires  chatting  without  note- 
worthy incident,  until  late  in  the  afternoon  when  a  sensational 
scene  was  enacted.  A  member  of  Company  D,  Bartley  Scan- 
Ian,  who  was  guarding  some  baggage  had  jiartaken  of  too 
much  Kentucky  whisky,  and  it  proved  to  be  of  the  fighting 
icinil.  Thereupon  he  became  furious  and  threatened  to  shoot 
a  number  of  officers,  and  did  actually  snap  two  caps  at  them. 
He  fixed  his  bayonet  and  capered  around  at  a  lively  rate. 
Taking  a  defensive  position  near  the  baggage  he  swore  by 
all  the  saints  in  the  calendar  that  he  would  prod  the  first  man 
or  officer  that  came  within  his  reach.  It  was  lively,  and  then 
it  was  .something  entirely  new  and  refreshing  in  camp  and 
very  naturally  created  quite  a  good  deal  of  excitement.  The 
Colonel  came  up  at  length  and  disarmed  him  and  quieted  the 
commotion.  For  his  unsoldierJy  conduct  he  was  "bucked 
and  gagged."  This  was  the  first  case  of  "bucking"  in  the 
regiment.  Scanlan  afterw^ard  made  a  good  soldier  except  his 
liking  for  "insanity  dro])S.  " 

The  regiment  remained  on  the  hill  the  entire  day  until 
tlu'dusk  of  the  evening,  when  at  last  came  the  command, 
"Attention,  Battalion.  Take  arms.  Shoulder  arms.  Right 
■face.  Forward  march.  File  left;"  and  the  boys  turned  their 
})jicks  on  "Grumble  Hill"  to  see  it  no  more  during  their  term 
of  service;.  The  regiment  marched  through  Covington  direct 
to  the  boat  landing  and  shipped  aboard  two  steamboats,  the 
"  Forest  Rose"'  and  the  "  Dunleith"  for  Louisville,  Kentucky, 

"Down  till'  river,  down  tlio  river, 
Down  tjiu  Oliio." 


CHAPTER  VI. 
DOWN  THE  OHIO. 

The  "Forest  Rose"  and  the  "  Dunleith  "—Tlie  Beautiful  Scenery— How  the  Boys 
Whiled  Away  the  Time— Land  at  JetTersonville- Camp  Gilbert— Cross  the 
River  to  Louisville — A  Tedious  Night  March— Arrival  of  Buell's  Army— The 
Clamor  Against  Buell— The  Eighty-Sixth's  Assignment— General  Nelson 
Killed. 

On  the  morning  of  Sunday,  September  27,  about  6 
o'clock,  the  "Forest  Rose  "  and  the  "Dunleith"  backed  out 
from  then-  landing-,  swung  round  into  the  channel  and 
steamed  out  down  the  river.  Two  other  boats  carried  an 
Ohio  regiment  down  at  the  same  time,  the  four  boats  fre- 
quently being  in  full  view  of  each  other  in  the  stretches  of 
the  river  and  making  a  very  beautiful  sight  to  behold.  As 
the  magnificent  boats  steamed  down  stream  that  beautiful 
September  morning,  the  men  were  relieved  of  all  thought  of 
camp  duty  and  were  consequently  once  more  comparatively 
at  ease.  The  atmosphere  was  delightfully  invigorating  and 
the  sun  shone  brightly.  It  was  a  lovely  day.  The  speed  of 
the  boat  was  not  great  as  the  river  was  quite  low  and  care  in 
navigating  it  was  necessary.  There  were  multiplied  beau- 
ties of  nature  upon  the  right  and  upon  the  left.  The  rugged 
hills  upon  either  hand  forming  the  river's  bluffs  and  the 
beautiful  stream  glided  gently  and  peacefully  between  on  to 
old  ocean's  briny  deep.  The  hills  from  foot  to  rugged  crest 
were  variegated  by  the  shade  of  wood  and  the  many  colored 
leaves  of  hickory,  beach,  oak,  and  the  maple  blushing  with 
the  early  autumn  tints,  added  their  beauties  to  the  scene. 
The  liglit  of  the  open  fields  varied  according  to  the  crops 
which  they  bore,  from  the  rich  green  of  the  unripe  corn  to 
the  golden  stubble  of  harvested  wheat,  all  encircled  by  ser- 


J,;  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

pent  ill*'  ItMu-os  and  llioro  in  turn  draped  with  trailing  vine 
and  scouted  slirub.  Occasionally  there  was  a  break  in  the 
liiM'  of  hills  upon  the  banks  and  then  the  landscape  broad- 
cuf'd.  showintr  a  fine  stretch  of  country  for  the  labors  of  the 
p.-ac't'iil  jtursuils  of  the  husbandmen.  These  glimpses  and 
views  of  |)oi-tious  of  our  grand  country  that  seemed  so  pros- 
perous and  ha])py,  and  possessed  of  so  many  advantages 
ovei-  all  other  countries  of  soil  and  climate,  as  well  as  in  her 
hiws  and  institutions,  were  food  for  reflection  which  led,  no 
(loul)t.  to  many  and  diverse  thoughts  among  the  thousand 
meu  of  the  Eight-sixth  floating  down  the  broad  and  beauti- 
ful Oliio.  The  people  on  the  river's  banks,  especially  upon 
th«'  Ohio  and  Indiana  bank,  waved  their  God's  speed  with 
many  a  glad  hearty  shout.  Upon  the  Kentucky  shore  many 
cheered  but  was  not  so  universal  or  so  uniformly  hearty  in 
manner  as  upon  the  other  bank. 

The  occuijants  themselves  of  the  boats  were  variously 
employed.  As  in  every  other  situation  in  life  the  idler  was 
found  "upon  deck"  here.  He  .scarcely  seemed  to  note  the 
beauties  of  nature  of  either  land  or  stream,  or  to  have  a 
thought  of  home,  friends,  kindred,  or  the  enemy  to  be  met 
in  the  future.  Others  were  busily  engaged  writing  home  to 
friends  oi-  loved  ones  to  acquaint  them  of  their  change  of 
location  and  the  prospect  of  campaigning  in  other  fields  and 
the  tliousand  and  one  things  which  soldiers  always  had  to 
tell.  Some  w(M-e  viewing  the  rainbow  in  the  spray  from 
the  great  stei-n -wheel  of  the  boat  as  it  dashed  round  and 
round  and  churned  the  dark  waters  of  the  river  into  a  fine 
mi.st  in  whicli  Hie  beautiful  bow  of  lieaven  could  be  plainly 
seen  in  a  ininature  form.  Others  sat  upon  the  bow  of  the 
l)oat,  as  it  plowed  its  way  through  the  waters  down  stream 
looking  ahead  as  if  they  were  eager  to  press  forward  and 
mei.t  the  enemy.  Some  of  the  younger  members  of  the  reg- 
iment were  chatting  cheerily  together;  some  of  the  older 
ones  were  conversing  in  a  more  sober  and  sedate  manner 
l>rohably  of  weighticn-  home  matters,  the  importance  of 
which  they  could  not  wholly  divest  their  minds.  Some 
others  were  playing  cards  for  amusement,  euchre  and  seven- 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  4*7 

up  being  the  games.  Still  others  were  throwing  the  cards 
for  money — gambling.  Draw  poker  was  the  favorite  game, 
although  others  were  indulged  in  for  money.  There  were 
those  who  had  been  in  the  whirl-pool  of  the  gambling  circle 
and  whose  passion  was  not  quenched  but  only  defeated  for  a 
time  by  the  loss  of  all  their  money.  These  went  about  from 
group  to  group  looking  so  forlorn  and  disconsolate,  so  woe- 
begone, that  one  might  easily  have  supposed  that  they  had 
just  returned  from  the  burial  of  their  last  and  their  dearest 
earthly  friend.  The  more  lucky  were  all  smiles.  They 
went  round  jingling  the  money  of  their  disconsolate  com- 
rades, grinning  and  boasting  of  their  luck  and  superior 
shrewdness.  Thus  the  Sabbath  day  and  the  boats  sped  on. 
A  number  of  times  the  boats  were  aground  and  two  or  three 
times  they  were  backed  off  with  considerable  difficulty. 

Arrriving  at  Louisville  the  boats  remained  at  the  land- 
ing during  the  night  but  swung  round  about  6  o'clock  the 
next  morning  and  crossed  the  river.  Once  more  the  Eighty- 
sixth  landed  on  Hoosier  soil.  The  regiment  reached  its 
camping  place  about  9:30  a.  m.  and  at  once  proceeded  to  pre- 
pare breakfast.  The  camp  was  pitched  to  the  east  of  Jeffer- 
sonville  and  was  designated  Camp  Gilbert.  Immediately 
after  breakfast  many,  if  not  all  the  boys,  went  down  to  the 
river  and  took  a  bath,  removing  the  last  vestige  of  the  hated 
"Grumble  Hill.''  The  wagons  with  the  tents  not  arriving 
on  the  22nd,  the  regiment  bivouacked  that  night.  On  the 
morning  of  the  23rd  the  cleaning  up  business  was  continued. 
Tents  arrived  and  were  put  up  in  the  forenoon.  Directly 
after  dinner  the  regiment  was  ordered  out  for  battalion  drill. 
It  was  nothing  more  than  a  feeble  attempt  as  yet,  but  little 
instruction  in  squad  and  company  drill  had  been  given  and 
almost  none  in  the  manual  of  arms.  Sometime  during  the 
evening  after  returning  to  camp  orders  were  received  to 
march.  This  created  a  hum  of  excitement.  New  troops 
always  become  more  or  less  excited  on  receiving  such 
orders.  Steps  were  immediately  taken  to  be  in  readiness. 
Rations  were  cooked,  "traps  "  of  all  kinds  were  packed  up, 
but  the  orders  for  the  march  seemed  to  hang-  lire.     Not  until 


48  TlIK   KIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 


()  «• 


•lock-  at  nii^^lit  was  the  order  given  to  "fall  in."     The 
rogiiiMMit   llu'ii   iiiai'ched  to  the  river  and  crossed  on  a  ferry- 

lM>a1. 

'Pile  Eighty-sixtli  now  left  Indiana  soil  to  return  no  more 
until  it  came  back  victorious  and  with  banners  flying  at  the 
close  of  the  war.  But,  alas!  many  who  then  crossed  the 
river  came  not  back,  and  "sleep  the  sleep  that  knows  no 
waking"  on  the  other  side.  After  reaching  the  Louisville 
side  the  regiment  marched  west  and  south  with  many 
lialts  aiul  changes  of  direction  as  though  it  was  being  led 
by  some  one  who  was  undecided  or  did  not  know  where 
t/O  go.  It  was  a  long  tedious  night  march.  The  men 
were  tdl  very  tired  and  exhausted  by  the  loss  of  sleep  and 
marching.  The  regiment  finally  halted  about  4  o'clock  a. 
m.  in  the  southwest  suburbs  of  the  city.  But  the  trip  down 
the  river,  the  bivouac  in 'the  cold  night  air,  battalion  drill, 
and  the  night  march,  had  their  eifect  upon  the  unseasoned 
men  and  the  regimental  surgeons  woke  up  on  the  morning  of 
the  L*4th  of  September  to  find  themselves  the  proprietors  of 
quite  an  extensive  practice.  Soon  the  boys  began  skirmish- 
ing for  extras  in  the  line  of  eatables.  Some  few  succeeded. 
more  met  with  inditferent  success,  and  a  larger  number  made 
a  flat  failure,  but  they  all  gained  experience  and  strength  for 
another  occasion.  Camp-guard  soon  had  to  be  established 
in  order  to  hold  the  regiment  together  as  the  boys  were  rap- 
idly scattering  on  these  foraging  expeditions.  On  the  night 
of  the  Snth  of  September,  John  W.  Fisher,  of  Company  H. , 
accidcMitally  sliot  himself  through  the  hand  while  standing 
(;amp  guard.  The  wound  was  quite  a  severe  one  and  neces- 
sitated tlie  removal  of  an  entire  finger.  This  was  the  first 
accidental  shooting  in  the  regiment,  although  later  a  number 
were  wounded  this  way.  Grave  doubts  existed  whether  all 
were  purely  accidental. 

In  the  forenoon  of  the  2Gth  the  regiment  received  orders 
to  march  instanter.  It  marched  north,  it  marched  east,  it 
marr-liod  south,  it  marched  west  and  came  to  the  place  of 
starting.  It  was  now  evident  to  all  that  somebody  did  not 
know  what  was  wanted.     To  make  the  best  of  it  the  Eighty- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  49 

sixth  unloaded,  intending  to  stay  until  it  was  found 
where  it  belonged.  However,  about  4  o'clock  p.  m.  the  reg- 
iment was  again  ordered  into  line,  and  at  once  marched 
down  into  the  city.  The  marching  had  all  been  done  in  a 
hesitating,  undecided  manner,  with  checks  and  halts  and 
consultations  as  though  the  Colonel  might  be  lost.  This 
childish  manner  of  proceeding  had  delayed  it  so  much  that 
night  came  on  long  before  the  regiment  reached  Fifth 
street  where  it  bivouacked  for  the  night.  Heated  by  the 
marching  the  men  lay  down  without  supper  on  the  cold 
ground  and  tried  to  sleep.  They  arose  in  the  morning  with 
teeth  chattering,  and  chilled  to  the  bone.  For  the  chill  the 
sovereign  remedy  was  a  good  strong  cup  of  hot  coffee.  As  a 
stimulant  old  government  Rio  or  Java  was  certainly  very 
reliable  on  such  occasions.  The  coifee  was  soon  made — boil- 
ing hot  and  breakfast  well  on  the  way.  Then  came  the  ag- 
gravating command,  "Fall  in,  Eighty-sixth."  For  the  space 
of  five  minutes  the  air  around  that  bivouac  was  blue,  and  bore 
a  strong  sulphurous  smell,  mingled  with  a  faint  aroma  of  good 
strong  coffee.  No  one  was  chilly  now.  Hoosier  blood  was 
hot,  and  the  coffee  was  still  hotter — scalding  hot,  but  none 
could  afford  to  lose  that  precious  beverage.  So  down  it  went, 
hissing  hot,  and  there  weren't  less  than  five  hundred  scalded 
throats  in  the  regiment  that  day.  This  time  the  regiment 
made  an  advance,  moving  about  a  half  mile  due  south  where 
it  was  halted.    There  breakfast  was  prepared  and  eaten. 

After  breakfast  the  orders  were  to  lay  off  camp.  The 
tents  arrived  about  10  o'clock  and  were  pitched  in  regulation 
order.  This  was  the  27th.  Later  in  the  day  it  set  in  rain- 
ing, and  as  it  was  very  dark  and  gloomy  and  the  constant 
down  pouring  of  water  the  boys  thought  themselves  quite 
fortunate  to  have  their  tents.  On  this  day  Buell's  veteran 
army  arrived.  Now  for  the  first  time  the  boys  began  to 
realize  how  troops  on  the  march  -and  actively  campaigning 
appeared.  The  lack  of  neatness  was  truly  a  great  surprise. 
They  were  really  an  army  of  unwashed  tatterdemalions,  but 
it  must  not  be  inferred  from  this  that  collectively,  at  least, 
they  were  unknown  to  fame.     Of  all  slouchy,  slovenly  look- 


60  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

ing:.  inud-be^rim<xl,  illy  clad  humau  beings  these  veteran 
li-ooi)s  of  Buoll's  old  command  wore  unmatched.  The  Eighty- 
sixth  was  now  about  to  be  initiated  into  the  third  degree  of 
the  mysteries  of  a  soldier's  life.  How  difficult  they  had 
often  found  it  to  secure  enough  water  to  boil  their  little  i)ot 
of  colYoe,  not  to  think  of  bathing  hands  and  face  or  the  per- 
son, could  not  be  realized.  This  knowledge,  however,  was 
soon  to  come.  The  Eighty-sixth  had  not  yet  come  to  appre- 
ciate the  full  force  and  inlluonce  of  a  long  and  trying  march, 
wliere  the  one  great  object  of  the  general  commanding  is  to 
be  on  time,  and  which  the  private  soldier,  inspired  by  that 
essential  csjiirt  de  rorp.s,  is  made  to  feel  the  one  object  of  all 
his  endeavors  is  to  be  in  ranks,  ever  present,  ready  for  the 
forward  march  or  any  duty  to  which  he  may  be  assigned. 
These  veterans  did  not  scarcely  seem  to  notice,  much  less  to 
care,  for  the  condition  of  their  clothing,  their  chief  topic  of 
conversation,  their  pride  and  boast,  being  the  long  and  rapid 
march  they  had  made — out-footing  Bragg 's  veterans  and 
securing  the  prize  of  the  march — the  city  of  Louisville.  One 
or  two  of  these  "unlicked  cubs"  remarked,  "Your  clothing 
will  not  look  so  bright  or  be  so  clean  by  the  time  you  have 
made  a  long  hard  march  after  the  enemy  as  we  have  just 
done,"  and  they  were  quite  right. 

It  was  observed  that  these  veterans  had  plenty  of  rations 
— onions,  potatoes,  and  vegetables — which  the  Eighty-sixth 
did  not  get.  What  did  this  mean?  Were  the  raw  troops  to  be 
starved  in  order  to  feed  these  dirty,  greasy  veterans  of 
Buell's  army?  Was  the  Commissary  Department  discrimi- 
nating in  their  favor?  It  certainly  looked  like  it.  Well,  they 
deserved  all  the  favors  they  received.  But  many  a  member 
of  the  Eighty-sixth  then  and  there  resolved  that  from  that 
day  henceforth,  if  the  Commissary  Department  did  not 
furnish  him  with  provisions,  he  would  find  a  supply  for 
himself,  if  possible,  and  he  generally  made  a  good  effort 
to  fulfill  the  I'osolution.  It  was  only  under  the  most  unfav- 
orable and  dillicult  circumstances  that  any  failed,  but  of 
course  they  often  did  fail,  for  the  simple  reason  there  was 
uotliing   to   forage.     Few  regiments  in   The   Army   of  the 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  51 

Ohio,  or  as  it  was  afterwards  known  The  Army  of  the  Cum- 
berland, were  better  independent  foragers  than  the  Eighty- 
sixth  Indiana.  On  the  night  of  the  27th  the  boys  tried  their 
hands,  when  a  beef  not  issued  by  the  Commissary  came  into 
camp.  Where  it  came  from  few  knew,  but  it  found  its  way 
inside  the  guards  and  no  arrests  were  made.  On  the  morn- 
ing of  the  28th  reveille  was  sounded  at  3  o'clock,  and  the 
regiment  was  called  into  line  and  stood  to  arms  until  day- 
light. Then  came  drill  until  dinner,  and  in  the  afternoon 
drill  again.     So  passed  the  days  at  Louisville. 

There  were  many  rumors  floating  through  camp  in  re- 
gard to  the  movements  of  the  enemy.  Sometimes  they  had 
Bragg  advancing  in  full  force  upon  the  city,  then  again  they 
would  have  him  in  full  retreat — precipitately  retiring  from 
Buell's  overwhelming  numbers.  The  rapidity  with  which  a 
camp  rumor  will  traverse  a  cordon  of  camps  encircling  a  city 
is  something  marvelous,  but  no  more  so  than  the  innumer- 
able forms  in  which  it  will  manifest  itself.  Equally  marvel- 
ous is  the  facility  with  which  troops  and  armies  are  handled, 
and  the  philosophy  of  "the  grand  strategy  of  war"  as  ex- 
pounded by  the  rank  and  file.  These  rumors  and  grape- 
vines" are  a  source  of  much  annoyance  to  new  troops.  But 
the  old  soldier  takes  things  as  they  come,  not  allowing  any- 
thing to  disturb  him  or  affect  the  equanimity  of  his  nerves. 
Experience  has  taught  him  better,  has  schooled  him  for  his 
own  advantage.  It  is  in  the  field  of  active  service  that  real 
soldiers  are  made. 

At  Louisville  the  clamor  against  General  Buell  became 
so  formidable  that  he  was  removed  from  the  command  of 
this  army,  and  General  George  H.  Thomas  appointed  to  suc- 
ceed him.  But  Thomas  declined  the  promotion,  generously 
refusing  to  displace  his  friend,  and  hesitating  to  assume  the 
responsibility  of  commanding  such  an  army,  magnanimously 
requested  the  reinstatement  of  General  Buell  to  the  com- 
mand, which  was  accordingly  done.  The  army  was  hastily 
reorganized  and  the  new  troops  incorporated  with  the  old. 
The  army  was  organized  into  three  army  corps,  the  First, 
Second,  and  Third,  commanded  respectively  by  General  A. 


52  THE  EICIITY-SIXTII   REGIMENT, 

McD.  McCook.  General  Thomas  L.  Crittenden,  and  General 
C.  C.  CJilbert.     (Jen.  Henry  M.  Cist  in  the  History  of  The 
Army  of  the  Cumberland,  (then  the  Army  of  the  Ohio),  de- 
nominates these  divisions  as  army  corps.     In  the  official  pro- 
j,M-amme  of  the  twentieth  annual  re-union  of  The  Army  of 
the  Cumberland  they  are  so  called.     General  Buell  himself, 
in  his  official  report  of  the  campaign  in  pursuit  of  Bragg, 
speaks  of  them  as  army  corps.     Many  historians,  however, 
designate  them  simply  as  grand  divisions.     Their  designa- 
tion as  corps,  however,  w^as  only  on  the  authority  of  the  com - 
maiKl«M-  of  the  army,  and  not  therefore  correct,  but  merely 
used  as  a  matter  of  convenience,  as  by  an  act  of  Congress, 
approved  July  17,  1862,  the  President  alone  had  the  author- 
ity   to  establish   and  organize    army  corps.       As    General 
Fremont  was  given  command  of  the  First  Army  Corps  in 
the  Mountain  Department  August  12,   1862,  it  seems  plain 
that  these  divisions  of  Buell's  army  were  not  authoritatively 
designated.     The  new  troops  that  had  been  rushed  into  the 
field  for  the  defense  of  Cincinnati,  Covington,  and  Louis- 
ville, were  now  distributed  among  and  incorporated  with  the 
veterans  of  Buell's  army,  a  regiment  or  two  in  each  brigade 
of  old  troops.     Thus  the  danger  of  having  a  command  en- 
tirely of  raw  troops  w^as  avoided.     The  Eighty-sixth  was 
placed  in  the  Second  Corps,  w^ith  General  T.  L.  Crittenden 
in  command;  the  Fifth  Division,   with  General  H.  P.  Van- 
Cleve  in  command;  and  the  Fourteenth  Brigade,  with  Col- 
onel P.  B.  Hawk'ins,  of  the  Eleventh  Kentucky,  in  command. 
On  the  29th  of  September  the  fatal  quarrel  between  Gen- 
eral William   Nelson   and  General  Jeff  C.  Davis  occurred  at 
Nei.son's  ilcadcpiarters   at  the   Gait    House    in    Louisville. 
Davis  was  unarmed,  but  quickly  borrowed  a  pistol  and  shot 
Nelson  through  the  lungs  causing  his  death  in  a  very  short 
time.     Nelson  was  regarded  as  an  able  and  efficient  division 
commander,  but  over-bearing  and  tyrannical  to  subordinates, 
and   was  very  much  disliked  by  the  rank  and  file  of  the  old 
army  whore  he  was  well  known.     General  Davis  was  tried 
by  a  court  martial  which  wholly  exonerated  him  from  all 
blame  in  the  sad  transaction.     On  the  30th  of  September,  an 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  53 

advance  was  made  by  some  detachments  of  the  army,  prob- 
ably as  a  reconnoisance,  to  learn  the  position  and  strength  of 
the  enemy's  forces,  and  to  prepare  for  the  general  advance 
soon  to  be  made. 


CHAPTER  VII. 
IN  PURSUIT  OP  BRAGG. 

A  Real  March— Its  Trials  and  Its  Lessons— Bardstown— The.  Dusty  Limestone 
Pikes  of  Kentucky — Itiver  Water— Parched  Corn — Raw  Goose— Springfield — 
On  to  Perry ville— The  Detour  for  Water— A  Forced  Night  March. 

As  before  stated  the  grand  divisions  of  the  army  serv- 
ing in  the  Department  of  the  Ohio  under  General  Buell  were 
never  authoritatively  designated  army  corps  and  given  num- 
bers by  the  President,  who  alone  had  the  authority  to  form 
and  number  corps,  but  as  they  were  so  called  in  that  army 
and  in  many  histories  of  Buell 's  campaign  after  Bragg,  to 
avoid  confusion,  and  as  a  matter  of  convenience  in  designat- 
ing these  commands  they  shall  be  here  spoken  of  as  corps. 
Practically  the  organizations  were  the  same  as  army  corps, 
and  therefore  there  is  no  great  violence  done  the  military 
history  of  that  army  in  so  calling  them. 

At  3  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  October  1,  1862,  the 
drums  beat  reveille  for  the  Eighty-sixth.  The  regiment  was 
promptly  formed  on  the  color  line  of  the  camp  and  there 
stood  to  arms  until  daylight.  The  regiment  drilled  during 
the  forenoon  as  usual,  and  did  not  have  the  slightest  sus- 
picion of  having  to  march  that  afternoon;  in  fact,  the  rank 
and  file  did  not  expect  to  advance  with  the  army  at  this 
time  until  the  order  was  received.  They  did  not  consider 
themselves  sufficiently  drilled  to  go  to  the  front  and  face  the 
enemy.  They  were  not  consulted  in  regard  to  the  matter, 
and  in  a  very  short  time  the  regunent  was  strung  out  upon 


:,4  THE  EIOHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

tlM>  Burclstowii  pike,  and  .t,^oing  at  a  good  roimd  pace  with 
knapsacks  about  as  large  as  "the  hump"  on  an  ordinary 
canu'l's  back.  Thoy  were  not,  however,  so  well  adjusted  as 
a  camel's  hump.  Tlioir  enormous  size  and  poor  adjustment 
made  trouble  for  nuiny  a  poor  fellow.  But  notwithstanding 
tlie  men  were  raw,  awkward,  and  heavily  burdened  the  hot 
pace  was  kei)t  up.  The  old  soldiers  guyed  the  tenderfoots 
unmercifully  and  this  aroused  their  ire.  They  struggled 
manfully  to  nuiintain  the  high  rate  of  speed,  but  it  was  at  a 
fearful  cost.  Many  could  not  keep  the  pace  and  fell  behind. 
Every  few  minutes  some  one  of  the  thousand  men  would  be- 
come painfully  conscious  of  the  faulty  adjustment  of  his 
enormous  load  and  would  drop  out  of  ranks,  halt  by  the 
rojulside,  unsling  his  knapsack  and  begin  to  rearrange  his 
"l)ack. "  That  the  pace  was  too  rapid  and  the  harness  was 
too  galling  was  soon  quite  apparent  from  the  muttered 
curses  and  the  rapid  thinning  of  the  regiment  by  the  men  fall- 
ing out.  Some  fell  out,  unslnng  knapsacks  and  threw  out 
such  articles  as  they  thought  they  could  best  dispense  with, 
repacked,  and  tramped  on  after  the  rapidly  disappearing  col- 
umn, hoping  to  be  able  to  maintain  their  place  in  ranks  after 
this  sacritice.  Others  still  more  determined  not  to  fall  be- 
hind the  regiment  on  the  first  half  day's  march,  even  if  it 
r('<|uired  a  greater  sacrifice  at  their  hands,  unslung  their  huge 
knapsacks  and  Hung  them  with  curses,  but  without  other  cer- 
emony, to  the  side  of  the  road,  and  trudged  hurriedly  on 
aftoi-  tho  rogiment.  Many  old  soldiers  badgered  theboys  over 
the  loads  they  were  carrying.  It  was  a  hard  march  even  for 
the  veterans  who  had  raced  with  Bragg  and  his  legions. 
For  the  members  of  the  Eighty-sixth  and  of  all  new  reg- 
iments it  was  a  killing  march.  Nor  was  the  question 
of  baggage  the  only  one  which  gave  the  boys  trouble. 
Tlioy  knew  nothing  of  the  manner  in  which  they  should 
tako  care  of  their  rations  while  marching,  and  their  great 
and  prolonged  exertion  gave  them  ravenous  appetites, 
and  when  out  a  day  or  two  they  ate  most  voraciously, 
and  gn>at  ly  to  their  own  detriment.  But  another  effect  soon 
manifested   itself— th(>y  soon  found  themselves  destitute  of 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  55 

anything    to   eat,   consequently  they  were  in  a  short  time 
suffering  from  the  other  extreme. 

Wlien  they  halted  to  bivouac  the  first  evening  out  from 
Louisville  they  were  terribly  tired  one  and  all.  Naturally 
enough  most  of  the  men  sat  down  to  rest  before  gathering 
their  supplies  of  fuel  and  water.  They  were  not  long  in 
discovering  that  this  waiting  was  a  great  mistake  for  more 
reasons  than  one.  Wood  for  fuel  soon  became  a  scarce  article 
in  their  immediate  neighborhood  on  account  of  the  great  con- 
sumption of  fence  rails  by  the  old  soldiers.  Here  was  a  forc- 
ible illustration  of  the  principle  of  supply  and  demand.  In 
this  vicinity  there  was  a  moderate  supply  of  rails,  but  there 
was  an  exorbitant  demand  for  immediate  use.  The  hardy 
veterans  pushed  their  demands  vigorously.  They  had  plenty, 
the  raw  recruits  had  none.  Water  would  be  the  same  if  the 
supply  was  not  abundant.  A  scaracity  of  the  latter  article 
often  causes  intense  suffering  and  it  was  to  be  greatly  dreaded. 
Then,  too,  if  they  waited  to  rest  after  a  long,  hard  march  be- 
fore laying  in  the  necessary  supplies,  they  found  themselves 
so  stiff  and  sore  and  drawn,  that  it  seemed  impossible  to  pro- 
ceed in  search  for  the  needed  articles.  Every  joint,  tendon, 
and  muscle  was  inflexible,  and  the  slightest  movement  sent 
the  cold  chills  alternately  up  and  down  their  spines  and 
caused  such  excruciating  pains  it  was  almost  impossible  to 
restrain  outcries.  Most  of  the  men  felt  like  it  would  be  im- 
possible for  them  to  march  on  the  following  day.  All  speed- 
ily learned  this  lesson:  To  lay  in  all  needed  supplies  with  the 
utmost  alacrity  immediately  upon  arrival  in  camp.  Many 
would  get  over  anxious  to  be  ahead,  and  thus  frequently  got 
themselves  laughed  at  arid  guyed.  On  occasions  of  halts 
made  toward  evening  these  over-zealous  fellows  would  drop 
on  to  a  fence  corner,  pile  the  rails  and  guard  them  while  the 
column  went  tramping  on  to  pastures  new  to  the  great  dis- 
gust of  the  rail-guarding  comrade.  Thus  were  the  wits  of 
the  raw  recruit  sharpened  daily.  Time,  circumstances,  and 
the  old  soldiers  proved  to  be  good  teachers  and  they  taught 
many  lessons  in  rapid  succession,  and  what  made  the  lessons 


.r,r,  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

moro  offective  was  the  dear  price  paid  for  most  of  the  in- 
struction. 

So  the  days  passed.  On  the  night  of  the  4th  of  October, 
Crittenden's  corps  arrived  in  the  vicinity  of  Bardstown,  Van- 
Clovo'sdivision  bivouackingin  sight  of  the  town.  Early  on  the 
morning  of  the  5th  it  was  again  on  the  road,  passing  through 
Bardstown,  and  pressing  on  after  Bragg's  army.  The  day's 
duties  were  a  mere  repetition  of  those  of  the  preceding  day — 
tramp,  tramp,  tramp,  over  hills  and  across  hollows,  and  on 
what  seemed  an  endless  stretch  of  road,  a  smooth  white  lime- 
stone pike,  from  which  arose  a  suffocating  dust.  -  The  regi- 
ment and  brigade  went  into  bivouac  after  midnight  that 
night  on  the  banks  of  a  branch  of  Salt  River.  Here  was  an 
abundance  of  water,  and  the  boys  were  exceedingly  glad  to 
get  the  much  despised  "river  water,"  but  they  were  scarce 
of  rations.  Some  messes  in  the  regiment  had  nothing  but 
parched  corn  and  coffee  for  breakfast  on  the  morning  of  the 
6th.  Tlie  men  of  the  Eighty-sixth  had  not  yet  become 
thoroughly  broken  to  the  harness  nor  fully  alive  to  the 
necessity  of  husbanding  their  allowance  of  rations,  and  they 
now  began  to  realize  the  exertion  and  toil,  the  hunger 
and  thirst  and  actual  hardships  of  inarching.  Some  in  the 
ranks  were  grumbling  at  our  lack  of  rations,  but  it  is  pre- 
sumed it  was  more  their  fault  than  that  of  the  Commissary 
Department. 

On  the  evening  of  the  6th  the  brigade  bivouacked  near 
Springfield.  The  men  of  the  Eighty-sixth  were  hungry, 
tired,  leg  weary  and  foot-sore,  shoulder  tired  and  tender  with 
knapsack,  gun,  and  cartridge-box,  and  not  in  the  best  of 
sjiirits  or  liumor.  Just  across  the  road  from  the  bivouac  was 
a  splendid  looking  patch  of  Irish  potatoes,  a  most  tempting 
bait  for  hungry  men.  The  clash  and  clatter  of  bayonets 
caused  in  stacking  arms  had  hardly  ceased  before  the  men 
were  seen  climbing  the  fence  into  that  patch;  for  although 
not  in  very  good  spirits  or  in  the  humor  for  cheerful  and  en- 
livening conversation,  most  of  them  had  sufficient  life  and 
energy  to  dig  potatoes.  They  went  to  digging  as  though 
their  lives  depended  upon  getting  the  task  done  before  the 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  57 

next  regiment  came  along.  They  were  making  fine  headway 
when  Captain  Francis  B.  Mattler,  of  Company  B,  took  it  upon 
himself  to  cross  over  to  the  jDatch  and  order  the  diggers  out. 
His  august  presence  was  not  appreciated  at  this  particular 
time  and  his  ofiiciousness  came  near  involving  him  in  a  ser- 
ious difticulty.  A  very  tired  and  hungry  man  is  not  usually 
the  best  natured  under  the  most  favorable  circumstances. 
There  was  in  this  case  special  reasons  for  irritation.  Many 
of  the  men  had  already  learned  to  detest  the  Captain  for  his 
extreme  ofticiousness  and  petty,  tyrannical  conduct  on  nu- 
merous occasions,  and  they  were  therefore  ready  to  settle  this 
matter,  and  with  it  the  old  accounts,  and  pay  spot  cash  for 
all  they  owed  him  on  the  margins  of  previous  deals.  So 
when  he  climbed  the  fence  and  ordei'ed  them  to  stop  digging 
the  potatoes  and  get  out  it  did  not  take  them  long  to  be 
ready  for  business,  and  some  of  them  ' '  proposed  to  move 
immediately  upon  his  works"  if  he  did  not  get  out  himself  in 
a  greater  hurry  than  he  had  entered.  It  seemed  j)robable 
that  the  doughty  Captain  would  have  to  take  ignominously  to 
flight  to  save  himself.  But  further  trouble  was  averted  by 
the  Colonel  ordering  -a  Captain  of  another  company  to  quell 
the  disturbance,  which  was  done  on  the  part  of  the  detailed 
Captain  in  a  quiet  and  judicious  manner  without  difficulty, 
although  some  of  the  boys,  to  use  camp  slang,  "cussed  a 
streak. ' '  But  they  were  too  hungry  and  determined  to  yield 
the  potatoes  they  had  already  secured  and  so  brought  them 
safely  to  camp.  The  Eighty-sixth  was  a  hungry  body  of 
men  that  evening  and  everybody  was  on  the  lookout  for 
something  to  eat.  One  man  tired,  sick,  and  very  hungry  had 
the  good  fortune  to  come  into  possession  of  a  piece  of  raw 
goose  about  half  picked,  but  it  was  not  raw  very  long.  It 
was  soon  both  thoroughly  "picked"  and  well  done.  Placing 
it  on  the  end  of  his  ram -rod  he  held  it  over  a  'camp  fire  and 
thus  broiled  it  slightly  and  proceeded  to  devour  it.  It  was  a 
tough  i^iece  of  goose  and  he  did  not  attempt  to  cut  it,  but 
tore  it  with  his  teeth  as  a  dog  tears  the  meat  from  a  bone. 
The  blood  was  dripping  from  it  and  ran  down  from  the  cor- 
ners of  his  mouth  and  dropped  off  his  chin.     In  the  extremes 


r^  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

of  huii.ixfr  man  becomes  a  mere  animal.  This  description  of 
hunger  may  seem  to  the  uninitiated  and  delicate  stomach  a 
rather  "tough  case,"  yet  this  piece  of  more  than  half  raw 
goose  was  to  him  a  most  delicious  morsel.  No  delicacy  now 
done  in  the  best  style  of  the  most  skillful  rA(/ could  compare 
witli  it  in  savoriness.  Doubtless,  however,  it  was  not  so 
much  the  quality  of  the  goose  as  the  man's  vigorous  appe- 
tite tliat  gave  it  its  seeming  richness  of  flavor.  A  slight 
break-fast  consisting  of  coifee,  parched  corn  and  in  some  cases 
a  little  government  bacon,  no  dinner,  and  a  day's  hard  march- 
ing is  a  combination  not  conducive  to  amusement,  good 
humor,  or  pleasant  memories  of  the  newly  enlisted  soldier, 
but  it  is  a  most  wonderful  appetizer  for  all  those  who  have 
sutticient  stamina  to  take  the  full  course.  This  was  the  sit- 
uation of  the  Eighty-sixth  on  the  evening  of  October  6  at 
Spriugtield,  Kentucky. 

Rations  were  issued  to  the  regiment  at  this  bivouac  and 
they  came  most  opportunely.  The  members  of  the  Eighty- 
sixth  were  now  making  rapid  progress  in  the  lessons  which 
exj)erience  alone  could  teach  regarding  the  life  of  a  soldier, 
and  consequently  were,  in  racing  parlance,  rapidly  rounding 
into  form.  The  camping  grounds  at  Sxmngtield  were  in  a 
meadow,  and  the  men  thus  secured  a  good  rest  for  their 
weary  limbs  and  sore  feet,  many  of  the  latter  being  blistered 
tioni  lieel  to  toe,  and  greatly  needed  the  time  on  the  soft, 
spi-ingy  turf  instead  of  the  hard  limestone  pike  to  render 
tliein  again  tit  for  duty.  The  most  of  the  regiment  were 
greatly  refreshed  and  strengthened  by  the  next  day  when  it 
resumed  its  line  of  march,  which  was  about  11  o'clock.  It 
was  well  that  the  men  had  had  a  good  rest,  and  they  felt 
somewhat  recuperated  in  feet,  limbs,  and  strength  of  body, 
for  this  (lay's  march,  the  7th,  proved  to  be  one  of  the  hard- 
est of  all  in  pursuit  of  Bragg. 

Buell's  command  was  now  advancing  u])<)a  Bragg  at 
Perryville  on  three  different  roads.  McCook  on  the  left  was 
approaching  tlie  place  on  the  old  Maxville  road.  Gilbert  in 
the  center,  traveling  on  the  direct  road  from  Springfield  to 
Pen-yville.  had  the  shortest  route  and  of  course  arrived  in 


w 

INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  59 

the  immediate  vicinity  of  the  enemy  first.  Crittenden's  corps 
moved  on  the  right  iiank  and  somewhat  apart  from  the  cen- 
ter. This  corps  was  accompanied  by  General  George  H. 
Thomas,  Buell's  second  in  command,  and  in  fact,  the  corps 
was  practically  commanded  by  Thomas  while  absent  from 
the  presence  of  the  commanding  general.  The  colnmn 
marched  briskly  forward,  the  men  feeling  much  refreshed. 
But  a  hardship  confronted  them  of  a  graver  nature  than  any 
they  had  yet  met — the  extreme  scarcity  of  water.  The  col- 
umn proceeded  at  a  good  telling  pace,  wdiile  stragglers 
ranged  the  country  along  the  roadside  hunting  for  water. 
When  the  place  designated  as  a  camp  for  Crittenden's  com- 
mand was  reached  there  w^as  still  no  water  to  be  found.  Here 
was  a  dilemma.  The  men  w^ere  already  tired  and  suffering 
with  great  thirst.  The  army  was  concentrating  in  the  face 
of  the  enemy.  One  corps,  a  very  important  grand  division 
of  the  forces  at  hand,  being  ordered  to  march  on  a  certain 
route  and  bivouac  at  a  designated  x)lace  in  order  that  it 
might  be  able  to  reach  the  enemy's  front  at  a  specified  time, 
was  unable  to  obey  orders  for  the  reason  of  a  lack  of  water. 
Military  law  is  said  to  be  absolute.  The  concentration  of  an 
army  in  the  face  of  an  enemy  is  a  military  duty  which  re- 
quires the  greatest  skill  and  caution.  It  also  requires  care- 
ful and  exact  obedience  of  the  commanding  general  by  his 
subordinates.  It  is  a  military  maxim  that  in  the  presence  of 
an  enemy  all  troops  should  be  kept  well  in  hand,  while  on  the 
march  and  in  easy  supporting  distance  at  all  times,  thus  en- 
abling each  part  of  the  army  to  sujiport  and  sustain  the 
other  as  the  exigencies  of  the  occasion  may  demand.  The 
commanding  general  should  know  the  route  of  each  column, 
its  hour  of  marching,  its  rate  of  speed,  its  bivouac,  when 
reached,  condition  of  troops,  and  should  as  near  as  possible 
see  the  end  from  the  beginning.  But  here  the  subordinate 
commander  was  met  by  a  condition  more  imperative  than 
military  law  itself.  It  was  a  demand  on  the  physical  nature 
of  the  men  which  could  not  be  denied.  Water  they  must 
have.  To  obey  the  order  to  the  letter  would  be  to  defeat  its 
object.     By  seeming  disobedience  alone  could  the  spirit  of 


60  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

the  oiclor  be  carried  out.  There  was  but  one  right  thing  to, 
do — a  wide  detour  for  water  must  bo  made  which  would  ne- 
cessitate a  forced  night  march  under  the  most  trying  circum- 
stances, and  detach  the  command  from  the  rest  of  the  army 
varying  wide  from  its  intended  line  of  march.  The  men  had 
already  marched  hard.  The  sun  blazed  down  with  fervent 
heat,  and  the  white  hot  pike  shone  back  in  their  faces  and 
almost  blistered  them.  It  felt  like  a  furnace  under  their 
feet.  The  tread  of  many  thousand  feet  raised  from  the 
heated  and  powdered  limestone  of  the  pike  a  fine  dust  that 
settled  upon  all  exposed  surfaces  of  the  person  and  pene- 
trated the  clothing,  the  nose,  ears  and  mouth  and  seemed  to 
absorb  every  particle  of  moisture  of  the  body.  The  heat 
and  the  great  exertion  made  the  men  extremely  thirsty,  but 
this  heated  limestone  dust  trebled  and  quadrupled  the  suf- 
fering in  this  particular.  However  there  was  but  one  solu- 
tion of  the  problem.  General  Thomas  was  equal  to  the  oc- 
casion and  ordered  the  column  forward.  Night  came  but 
the  men  toiled  on  and  on,  sleepy,  tired,  footsore  and  hungry. 
Far  into  the  night  the  steady  regular  tread  of  the  column  was 
heard  on  the  pike  winding  over  the  hills.  Silently  for  a  long 
time  they  proceeded,  bearing  up  bravely  with  unabated 
vigor.  Then  came  mutterings  and  questioning  of  the  need 
of  such  marching,  then  lagging,  irregular,  tottering  foot- 
falls. All  were  tired  and  some  were  sleeping.  No  water  had 
been  seen  since  leaving  Springfield.  Men  ranged  the  hills 
and  hollows  along  the  roadside  in  search  of  it.  They  ques- 
tioned the  natives  where  a  drink  could  be  procured,  only  to 
receive  an  equivocal  answer.  But  the  questioning  and  quest 
were  alik'e,  vain.  Water  was  not  to  be  had.  The  men  were 
well-nigh  famished,  in  fact  they  became  almost  frantic.  They 
could  scarcely  articulate.  The  topic  of  conversation  was 
without  exception  of  the  one  thing  on  all  minds  water,  water, 
water.  When  and  where  can  water  be  procured?  There  was 
but  one  sufficient  reason  now  to  carry  the  column  forward. 
Tho  men  liad  become  convinced  that  the  object  of  their  de- 
sires could  only  be  reached  by  going  forward— that  some- 
where  aliead  was  water,  and  that  this  was  the  reason  for 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  61 

this  terrible  and  determined  onward  push.  The  march  was 
continued  until  between  1  and  2  o'clock  in  the  morning  of 
October  8,  when  the  head  of  the  column  reached  the  bed 
of  what  had  been  a  running  stream  of  water,  but  which  now 
only  held  here  and  there  pools  of  the  precious  stuff.  This 
was  known  as  Rolling  Pork  of  Salt  River.  A  mad  rush  was 
at  once  made  for  the  pools  and  men  drank  their  fill.  After 
filling  their  own  canteens  they  emptied  them  at  one  draught, 
refilled  them  and  partially  emptied  a  second  time.  The  army 
canteen  held  three  pints.  This  is  given  as  a  simple  illustra- 
tion of  the  great  thirst  suffered  by  the  men  of  Crittenden's 
corps  on  their  forced  march  on  the  night  of  the  7th  of  Octo- 
ber, 1862. 

The  brigade  bivouacked  on  the  bluff  of  the  river.  It  was 
exceedingly  rocky  and  rough,  and  on  this  rugged  hill  they 
made  their  beds.  Not  half  the  regiment  came  to  the  bivouac 
with  the  marching  column.  Some  came  in  soon  after  the 
regiment  halted,  and  they  kept  coming  singly,  and  in  squads, 
until  after  sunrise,  when  the  regiment  was  again  pretty  well 
reformed.  This  night's  march  and  the  following  day  was 
perhaps  the  Eighty-sixth's  greatest  trials  for  the  want  of 
water  during  its  entire  term  of  service.  Gilbert's  corps  also 
suffered  for  the  same  cause,  but  succeeded  in  securing  pos- 
session of  some  filthy  pools  in  the  bed  of  a  stream  near  Perry- 
ville  on  the  evening  of  the  7th,  and  held  them,  although  the 
enemy  made  an  attempt  to  drive  them  off.  But  bad  water 
was  greatly  to  be  preferred  to  no  water.  The  hard  march 
and  the  deprivation  of  water  or  its  excessive  ingestion 
caused  a  large  number  of  the  regiment  to  be  reported  on  the 
sick  list  on  the  morning  before  the  march  was  resumed. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 
PERRYVILLE. 

Till-  H;iltle— Tlio  Field  :iii(l  tlu"  Dead-  "The  Gilded  Puddle  Which  Beasts  Would 
Coufih  At"— The  Onward  March— Bivouac  io  Fodder  Houses— On  the  Skir- 
mish Line  All  Day— A  Keconnoisance- Danville— Stanford — Thundering  at 
the  Uehel  Rear- Crab  Orchard— Mt.  Vernon— A  Broken  Country— "  Hungry 
Hollow." 

The  morning  of  the  8tli  o})ened  up  delightfully  pleasant 
so  far  as  the  weather  was  concerned.  It  was  as  bright  as  an 
October  morning  could  be.  Yet  it  was  not  a  cheei'ful  pros- 
]>ect.  Tht;  rocky  hill  glistened  in  the  golden  sunlight,  bare 
and  ban-en,  without  a  spot  of  green  to  enliven  and  brighten 
its  gray  slopes  and  crest.  The  extreme  drought  had  dried 
up  the  grasses  and  all  that  was  to  be  seen  was  the  gray 
glistening  rocks.  The  men  lounged  about  the  place  of  their 
bivouac  for  sometime  before  the  bugles  and  drums  began  to 
sound  the  warning  notes  that  they  must  proceed  at  once  on 
their  way.  The  regiment  filed  out  of  camp,  crossed  the 
river-bed  and  went  forward  at  a  rapid  pace.'  Everything  in- 
dicated an  emergency  at  hand  and  the  greatest  haste.  Cer- 
tainly ti'oiil)le  was  expected  aliead.  Dusty  and  hot  the  men 
soon  became  greatly  heated  and  very  thirsty.  Scrambling 
and  ((iiari-els  occurred  at  every  place_  where  there  was  the 
least  indication  of  finding  water.  Even  "the  gilded  puddle  "  J 
was  fought  for  with  the  same  vehemence  as  would  have  been 
for  the  tinest  spring.  Wherever  there  was  a  little  mud  pud- 
dle there  was  a  jostling,  contentious  throng  seeking  to  till 
canteens  and  to  slalce  their  thirst.  Tlie  suffering  for  water  , 
was  almo.st  as  great  as  the  previous  night.  After  covering  : 
some  eight  miles  the  command  was  halted  and  ordered  to 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  63 

pile  knapsacks.  With  the  knapsacks  of  each  company  a 
guard  was  left  and  the  regiment  hurried  forward  to  take  a 
position  upon  the  field.  The  command  pressed  on  until  near 
where  the  line  was  forming.  Then  it  was  halted  and 
formed,  and  ordered  to  "  forward  into  line."  Soon  Hawkins' 
brigade,  VanCleve's  division,  had  completed  its  part  of  the 
general  allignment  with  Gilbert's  and  McCook's  corps,  the 
corps  taking  position  as  it  had  advanced,  that  is  McCook 
upon  the  left,  Gilbert  in  the  center,  and  -Crittenden  on  the 
right.  Having  completed  the  allignment  the  command 
awaited  the  attack  of  the  enemy.  But  it  waited  in  vain. 
This  was  just  what  General  Bragg  desired.  The  delay 
caused  by  closing  up  the  column  of  General  Buell's  army 
and  form  it  in  battle  array  and  then  waiting  to  be  attacked 
served  his  jDurpose  and  gave  him  another  twenty-four  hours, 
the  time  needed,  to  withdraw  his  wagon  train  and  clear  the 
roads  and  yet  have  sufftcient  time  to  draw  otf  his  troops  from 
Buell's  front  without  being  forced  to  fight  a  general  battle 
which  might  have  proved  disastrous.  His  attempt  to  sur- 
prise and  crush  McCook  was  a  partial  success  as  to  the  sur- 
prise, but  wholly  a  failure  as  to  the  annihilation.  Bragg 
had  no  intention  or  desire  to  meet  the  whole  army  which  was 
now  in  his  immediate'  front,  ready  and  anxious  for  battle. 
The  long  lines  of  blue  coats  could  be  seen  far  to  the  left  and 
some  distance  to  the  right.  The  lines  extended  from  the 
Lebanon  pike  on  the  right  to  and  across  the  Maxville  pike 
on  the  left.  This  line  was  distant  on  the  right  from  Perry- 
ville  some  two  or  three  miles,  the  left  and  center  being 
nearer  the  town.  The  center,  Gilbert's  corps,  was  lying 
across  the  Springfield  pike,  while  McCook's  extended  from 
Gilbert's  left  some  distance  across  the  old  Maxville  road,  ap- 
proaching but  not  reaching  the  Chaplin  River.  This  was 
the  day  on  which  the  battle  of  Perry  ville  or  Chaplin  Hills 
was  fought  by  the  left  and  center  of  Buell's  army,  the  brunt 
of  the  battle  falling  upon  the  division  of  Rousseau  of 
McCook's  corps. 

McCook  held  his  position  well,   considering  the  great 
numbers  against  him.     The  battle  was  hotly  contested  until 


(14  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

iiii:lit.  Tli(>  Ei.nlily-sixtli  was  in  line  ready  for  battle  about 
1  oCloclc  i».  111.,  and  confidently  expected  to  be  ordered  for- 
ward. Jiut  it  simply  waited  in  line  for  the  enemy  to  make 
th*'  atlaclc.  The  iv.i^-imont  lay  thus  in  line  all  day  except 
wliile  engaged  in  tlirowing  down  a  fence  in  its  immediate 
front.  Batt('i-i»'s  came  galloping  up  to  the  line  and  wheeled 
into  position.  Hithei-  and  you  staff  officers  might  be  seen 
galloping  in  hot  haste  with  orders  for  the  different  parts  of 
the  line.  "The  rumble  and  roar"  of  battle  on  the  left  could 
be  distinctly  heard.  As  the  various  batteries  rushed  into 
liiic  here  and  there  a  man  would  be  injured.  What  mattered 
ity  This  was  war.  What  w^as  the  cracked  head  or  broken 
thigh  of  one  man  in  comparison  to  the  lives  of  hundreds  per- 
haps that  might  be  saved  by  the  battery  being  in  position  on 
time.  The  business  in  war  is  to  injure,  disable,  maim,  crip- 
ple, kill.  The  regiment  was  now  getting  a  glimpse  of  the 
dreadful,  crushing  power  of  war  and  how^  it  ground  individ- 
luils  to  nothing  under  its  iron  wheels.  That  some  such 
thoughts  were  entering  the  minds  of  the  men  could  be  plainly 
seen  by  looking  down  the  line.  The  firm  set  jaw,  the  de- 
termined look  of  the  eye  and  face  of  the  courageous,  and  the 
wild,  startled  look  on  the  face  of  the  more  timid,  revealed 
their  thoughts  and  full  appreciation  of  the  situation  as  they 
lay  there  listening  to  the  thunders  of  the  battle  and  watch- 
ing for  a  long  line  of  "gray backs"  to  come  charging  upon 
them.  But  the  regiment  only  waited,  that  w^as  all.  Had 
Crittenden's  and  Gilbert's  corps  been  hurled  forw^ard  upon 
Bragg's  forces  with  the  impetuosity  that  the  enemy  had  at- 
tacked McCook,  much  might  have  been  accomplished,  if  not 
])ra('tically  destroying  Bragg's  army  as  Thomas  afterward 
(h'stroycd  Hood's  at  Nashville.  Such  a  movement  might,  at 
least,  have  saved  our  army's  losses  at  Stone's  River,  for  a 
cru.shing  defeat  here  would  have  so  w^eakened  Bragg  that  he 
could  not  and  would  not  have  dared  to  make  a  stand  at  Mur- 
freeslxji'o. 

Being  the  rawest  K'ind  of  campaigners  and  hearing  the 
Ixjoin  of  tile  guns  till  nightfall  on  the  left  the  men  remained 
in  line  and  laid  upon  their  arms  at  night.     The  Eighty-sixth 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  65 

having  left  their  knapsacks,  they  had  no  blankets  and  slept 
upon  the  field  with  mother  earth  for  their  couch,  wrapped  in 
darkness  and  slieltered  -by  the  heavens.  The  night  grew 
cool  and  they  were  pretty  thoroughly  chilled  by  morning's 
dawn.  After  a  hasty  breakfast  of  coffee,  fat  pork  and  "hard 
tack' '  they  felt  warmed  and  much  better.  About  6  o  'clock  a. 
m.  they  moved  out  in  line  oX  battle,  marching  in  this  way 
through  brush,  briars,  weed  patches,  over  fences,  through 
door-yards,  gardens  and  almost  everything  else.  Holding 
the  even  tenor  of  their  way  they  swept  on  trampling  under 
foot  everything  that  came  in  their  path,  but  no  armed  foe 
appeared.  The  regiment  covered  what  seemed  about  four 
miles,  but  it  was  probably  two,  and  came  to  a  fine  pasture 
where  the  command  was  halted.  Here  dinner  was  had  and 
the  men  secured  a  much  needed  rest.  Their  hardships  in 
the  last  few  days  and  nights  had  been  very  severe,  still  they 
were  true  blue  and  were  ready  for  any  duty.  Shortly  after 
dinner  the  command  was  again  set  in  motion,  and  marched  in 
column  through  the  now  historic  town  of  Perryville,  Ken- 
tucky. 

A  short  distance  from  town  the  regiment  bivouacked  in 
a  nice  pasture  near  a  spring  of  fine  water,  the  spring  being 
in  a  cave.  All  enjoyed  this  good  pure  water.  The  men 
soon  supplied  themselves  with  rails  and  straw  to  add  to  the 
comfort  of  their  bivouac.  Here  the  members  of  the  regi- 
ment visited  almost  in  a  body  the  battle-field  and  looked  for 
the  first  time  on  the  shattered  and  mangled  remains  of  the 
dead.  Some  few  in  the  regiment  had  seen  service  in  the 
Mexican  war,  and  a  few  had  seen  service  in  other  regiments 
during  the  present  war.  To  all  others  the  dreadful,  shocking 
sights  of  the  battle-field  were  a  new,  and  to  most,  a  sad  ex- 
perience. 

Bragg  had  now  made  good  his  escape  from  the  immed- 
iate vicinity  of  Perryville.  For  allowing  him  to  thus  es- 
cape Buell  was  severely  condemned.  All  the  old  charges  of 
incompetency,  traitor,  and  communicating  with  the  enemy, 
were  revived  and  sounded  over  the  land.  Pew  knew  the 
difficulties  under  which  Buell  labored.     Historians  of  to-day 


,;()  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

will  (leal  more  justly  with  his  name  and  service.  The  winter 
of  ISi).'),  thirty -three  years  later,  Congress  recognizing  his 
ability  and  patriotism  placed  him  on  the  retired  list  of  the 
army.  The  St.  Louis  Globe- Democrat  says  of  this:  "The 
House  has  done  the  right  thing  in  placing  Don  Carlos  Buell 
on  the  retired  list  of  the  army  as  Brigadier-General.  Gen- 
eral Buell  commanded  one  of  the  great  armies  with  decided 
ability  for  nearly  a  year,  and  was  relieved  through  a  singular 
bit  of  luck.  A  part  of  his  army  fought  a  battle  without  his 
knowledge  and  against  his  instructions.  The  commander 
was  undone  by  the  fault  of  his  subordinates,  and  the  extra- 
ordinary fact  that  no  one  rode  a  few  miles  to  let  him  know 
that  a  heavy  battle  was  in  progress  at  Perry  ville. ' '  Com- 
menting on  the  above  the  Chicago  Inter- Ocean  says:  "The 
battle  of  Perryville  was  made  the  pretext  of  carrying  out  a 
decision  arrived  at  weeks  before.  But  after  all  has  been 
said  that  can  be  said,  all  parties  to  the  controversy  concede 
that  Buell  was  a  good  soldier;  that  he  handled  the  Army  of 
the  Ohio,  afterwards  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland,  admir- 
ably, and  that  under  his  command  it  became  one  of  the  best 
disciplined  and  most  efficient  military  organizations  in  the 
field.  The  action  of  the  House  is  to  be  commended. "  Such, 
however,  was  not  the  opinion  in  Buell's  ow^n  army  at  the 
time  of,  and  immediately  following,  the  battle  of  Perryville. 
Notwithstanding  Bragg  had  escaped  here,  it  seemed  to 
be  the  general  opinion  of  general  officers  that  he  w^ould  make 
a  stand  farther  on,  perhaps  in  the  neighborhood  of  Danville  or 
Harrodsburg.  It  seemed  they  could  not  divest  their  minds 
of  the  idea  that  Bragg  was  in  Kentucky  to  fight  rather  than 
to  gather  up  supplies  and  encourage  the  Kentuckians  to  en- 
list in  the  Southern  army.  Therefore  the  following  morning 
the  whole  army  i)ressed  forward  on  all  available  roads,  Crit- 
tenden's corps  marching  out  on  the  road  to  Danville.  It  was 
a  rough,  stony  road,  and  there  was  scarcely  a  man  in  the 
regiment  whose  feet  were  not  more  or  less  worn  out,  sore, 
or  tJMuler.  The  command  covered  some  eight  or  ten  miles 
before  halting  for  the  night.  The  bivouac  was  located  in  a 
beautiful  woods  pasture,  well  cleared  of  all  underbrush,  and 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  67 

finely  set  with  blue-grass.  Although  tired  and  sore,  the  boys 
went  to  work  immediately  to  provide  necessaries  for  their 
comfort  during  the  night.  The  fodder  in  an  adjoining  corn 
field  could  be  seen  moving  in  almost  every  direction — a  fair 
share  of  it  finding  its  way  to  the  Eighty-sixth.  Soon  the 
entire  regiment  had  provided  itself  with  snug  fodder  houses 
for  protection  against  rain  and  storm.  A  plentiful  supply  of 
rails  was  had  and  all  seemed  peaceful  and  quiet,  and  the 
men  really  did  enjoy  a  very  comfortable  night.  Next  morn- 
ing when  breakfast  was  just  ready  an  alarm  was  given. 
The  pickets  had  been  fired  upon  and  the  command  was,  "Pall 
in.  Eighty-sixth."  The  regiment  was  instantly  formed  and 
went  forward  at  once.  The  prospect  for  that  meal  was  for- 
ever destroyed.  After  a  few  minutes'  waiting  two  companies 
were  detailed  and  sent  out  as  skirmishers.  One  company  was 
deployed  upon  the  line,  and  advancing  some  distance  was 
ordered  to  lie  dow^n,  and  there  through  the  entire  day  these 
skirmishers  lay  waiting,  watching,  expecting  the  enemy  to 
attacli:;  this  too  without  breakfast,  or  a  mouthful  to  eat,  or 
any  relief  wdiatever  from  their  position.  This  would  have 
been  considered  pretty  tough  service  even  by  veterans,  but 
then  they  would  have  known  how^  to  take  advantage  of  the 
situation  and  helped  themselves  by  sending  details  back  to 
the  bivouac  for  food  and  drink.  A  short  time  after  dark  the 
regiment  and  the  companies  on  the  line,  were  relieved  and 
returned  to  the  bivouac.  Supper  and  breakfast  were  eaten, 
both  at  the  same  time.  The  boys  were  decidedly  small  in 
the  circle  of  their  belts  after  an  eighteen  hour  fast,  and  they 
did  ample  justice  to  their  meager  commissary  stores.  Look- 
ing over  the  history  of  that  Kentucky  campaign  after  Bragg 
one  cannot  keep  from  laughing  at  the  awkwardness  and 
feeble  manner  in  w^hich  the  men  took  care  of  themselves,  yet 
candor  compels  it  to  be  said  that  it  was  an  outrage  and  a 
shame  that  they  were  not  better  treated  and  cared  for  by 
those  in  command. 

The  following  morning  the  drum  beat  reveille  at  peep  of 
day,  and  the  men  arose  promptly,  not  intending  to  miss  an- 
other breakfast  if  they  could  possibly  avoid  it  by  their  own 


,,>,  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

t'xortions  and  al:icrit.y.  The  meal  was  speedily  prepared  and 
as  (luirkly  dispatched.  Shortly  after  the  morning  meal 
Hawkins'  brigade  was  ordered  out  on  a  reconnoissance  to 
(l»'t«M-niine  the  location  of  the  enemy.  After  having  pro- 
<'»'«'d('(l  some  three  or  four  miles  there  were  strong  indica- 
tions of  a  considerable  force.  The  brigade  was  at  once 
lialted  and  formed  in  line  of  battle  and  there  waited  expect- 
ing an  attack.  But  the  enemy  failed  to  put  in  an  appear- 
ance. The  regiment  bivouacked  for  the  night  on  the  same 
ground.  Again  the  regiment  built  fodder  houses  and  sup- 
plied itself  with  rails.  The  men  were  in  a  great  bustle  get- 
ting supper  and  in  high  glee  over  the  prospect  for  a  good 
time  that  night,  when  orders  came  to  move  at  once  and  re- 
join tlie  command.  The  good  humor  was  soon  dispelled  and 
something  different  prevailed.  The  men  thought  orders 
were  given  at  the  most  unreasonable  hours.  One  time  they 
would  be  cheated  out  of  their  breakfast,  at  another  of  their 
supper.  But  the  exposed  position  without  adequate  sup- 
port, and  the  separation  from  the  division,  were  good  military 
i-easons  for  tlie  brigade's  recall.  The  brigade  marched  at 
once  carrying  pumpkins,  chickens,  and  various  other  sup- 
plies. 

These  daily  experiences  were  making  soldiers  of  some 
very  fast,  and  invalids  of  others  just  as  rapidly,  and  actually 
killing  many  others.  The  sick  list  of  the  regiment  was  being 
greatly  and  very  rapidly  augmented.  The  regimental  sur- 
geons found  themselves  with  more  patients  than  they  could 
proiwrly  attend  to,  and  the  poor  fellows  suffered  much,  both 
li-oMi  the  inability  of  the  surgeons  to  get  round  and  for  the 
want  of  medical  supplies. 

Tlie  army  was  now  in  the  world  famous  blue-grass  re- 
gion of  Kentucky  where  there  Avas  plenty,  and  it  is  hardly 
necessary  to  say  that  the  boys  did  not  depend  solely  upon 
the  regimental  commissary  for  subsistence,  but  drew  from 
the  abundance;  of  the  country  in  a  very  liberal  manner,  sup- 
plying themselves  with  beef,  veal,  pork,  chickens,  turkeys, 
lK)tat()«'.s  and  all  things  necessary  to  refresh  and  strengthen. 
No  one   mess   had   all  of   these  eatables,  but  the  different 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  69 

messes  of  the  regiment  were  provided  with  some  of  these 
various  articles.  When  in  camp,  or  whenever  a  halt  was 
called  when  on  the  march,  some  of  the  best  foragers  would 
be  skirting  the  column's  line  of  march  picking  up  supplies. 

On  the  morning  of  the  13th  the  march  was  resumed  and 
having  covered  about  six  miles,  the  command  arrived  at 
Danville.  Bivouacking  at  the  edge  of  town  in  a  fine  woods 
pasture  belonging  to  the  farm  of  General  Boyle  very  strict 
orders  were  received  against  foraging,  even  the  taking  of 
fence-rails.  Cord-wood  was  issued  to  the  Eighty-sixth  for 
fuel.  The  regiment  arrived  here  early  in  the  day  and  were 
quite  comfortably  situated  and  were  made  exceedingly  glad 
by  the  reception  of  a  large  mail  from  friends  in  the  North. 
Singing  and  shouting  took  the  place  of  grumbling  and  mut- 
terings  of  discontent.  The  early  halt  and  bivouac  gave  all 
who  were  well  a  good  rest,  and  an  opportunity  for  the  men 
to  do  many  little  things  for  themselves  which  they  could  not 
find  time  to  do  when  marching  from  early  morning  until  late 
at  night,  or  spending  the  same  long  hours  on  the  skirmish 
line.  Clothing  was  repaired,  and  the  straps  of  the  cart- 
ridge-box, knapsacks  and  haversacks  were  adjusted.  These 
are  small  things,  but  they  are  straws  on  the  camel's 
back  and  they  are  essential  to  the  soldier's  comfort  when 
on  the  march.  ^ 

The  regiment  was  now  considerably  reduced  in  numbers. 
Some  were  behind,  foot-sore  and  worn  out,  many  w^ere  sick, 
and  a  few  had  deserted.  This  march  had  tried  the  mettle  of 
the  men  as  well  as  their  physical  stamina.  Some  still  with 
the  regiment  were  injured  in  health  and  broken  in  spirits  and 
constitutions,  but  had  managed  by  great  perseverance  and 
will  i)ower  to  maintain  their  places  in  ranks.  It  was  only  the 
strong,  muscular  ones  of  iron  constitutions  and  indomitable 
pluck,  genuine  Saxon  grit,  tliat  had  been  able  to  maintain 
their  places  in  ranks  at  all  times  and  endure  the  great  hard- 
ships up  to  this  point  in  the  march  without  injury  to  them- 
selves. From  the  day  they  left  Louisville  there  had  been  a 
terrible  strain  on  the  men  of  the  regiment,  and  it  is  really 
wonderful  that  so  many  came  through  it  all.     Raw  as  the 


70  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

men  \v«M-o,  they  kept  pace  with  the  veterans  of  Buell's  army, 
inured  to  all  kinds  of  service  and  exposure,  and  as  a  regi- 
iiHMil  W  was  ever  ready  for  the  line  of  battle,  for  the  skir- 
mish line,  or  whatever  duty  it  was  called  upon  to  jierform, 
allliouirh  the  men  scarcely  knew  more  of  drill  than  to 
'•shoulder  arms  "or  "  right  face." 

The  command,  or  VanCleve's  division  at  least,  had 
almost  twenty-four  hours  rest  at  Danville  and  were  much 
beuetitted  by  it.  On  the  morning  of  the  14th  after  breakfast- 
ing on  some  of  the  best  that  the  blue-grass  region  afforded, 
the  division  left  Danville  continuing  the  pursuit  of  Bragg 's 
army.  General  Wood's  division  having  preceded  it  during 
the  night  on  the  Stanford  road.  The  day  was  quite  warm, 
but  the  division  pushed  on  to  Stanford.  Before  arriving 
there,  however,  the  boom  of  cannon  could  be  heard.  Gener- 
al Wood's  division  had  run  up  against  the  rear  of  the  enemy 
and  was  pounding  away  at  him  in  a  vigorous  manner.  To 
judge  by  the  thunderous  roar  of  the  artillery  there  was  a 
battle  on  hand.  A  strong  rear  guard  had  been  posted  to  de- 
lay the  advance  of  Buell's  column.  They  showed  a  strong 
disposition  to  maintain  the  ground  and  to  fight  if  too  closely 
encroached  upon,  but  General  Wood  finally  succeeded  in 
])utting  them  to  flight  and  continued  the  pursuit.  They  had 
served  their  purpose.  They  delayed  the  column  and  gave 
General  Bragg  more  time  to  get  his  supplies  out  of  the  way. 
As  Wood  continued  right  on  after  the  enemy,  VanCleve's 
division  had  nothing  to  do  but  to  follow  to  within  a  few 
miles  of  Crab  Orchard.  But  it  was  not  to  be  anight  of  rest. 
The  men  of  the  Eighty-sixth  weary,  sore,  and  asleep  as 
though  dead,  were  aroused,  and  ordered  to  push  on.  It  was 
about  1 1  o'clock  at  night  when  the  column  tramped  on  in  the 
darkness  after  the  fleet-footed  foe.  Bragg  was  well  away 
now  and  cared  little  for  his  pursuers.  The  topography  of 
llie  country  had  greatly  changed.  The  fine  rolMng  land 
lik<>  that  arouiul  Danville  had  disappeared,  and  instead,  it  was 
a  broU'cn,  semi-barren  region  that  furnished  but  little  prov- 
ender for  the  free-handed  .foragers.  There  were  hills  and 
hollows,  and  ravines  and  gullies,  and  these  constituted  the 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  71 

country.  Forage  for  the  horses  and  mules  was  scarce. 
There  were  fewer  chickens,  turkeys,  ducks  and  geese,  hogs 
and  sheep,  consequently  the  men  had  to  depend  for 
subsistence  almost  entirely  upon  the  rations  issued  from 
the  commissary  department.  The  pikes  had  disappeared. 
In  one  sense  this  was  an  advantage,  but  in  other  respects 
it  was  much  harder  than  marching  on  the  pikes.  Now 
there  were  dirt  roads,  the  best  of  all  roads  for  marching 
when  good,  and  clear  of  obstructions,  and  when  soft  enough 
to  be  spongy  and  springy  under  the  feet.  But  these  roads 
were  gravelly  and  rocky.  The  marching  was  uphill  and 
down  hill,  up  ravines  and  down  hollows,  through  gorges  and 
winding  round  hillsides.  This  manner  of  marching  to  al- 
ready worn  out  men  was  very  exhausting.  It  was  only  the 
invincible  Hoosier  pluck  that  carried  nine  out  of  ten 
through.  The  bad  quality  of  the  water  here  caused  many  to 
suffer  severely  with  camp  diarrhoea  and  the  regimental  sur- 
geons were  kept  busy. 

The  wagon  trains  were  left  at  Stanford,  only  the  ambu- 
lances accompanying  the  troops.  But  the  column  x^ushed 
forward  on  through  Crab  Orchard  and  Mt.  Vernon, 
pressed  close  on  the  heels  of  Bragg 's  retiring  forces, 
thundering  at  the  rear-guard  almost  continuously.  Rations 
were  exhausted  by  the  raw  troops,  but  what  mattered  it  so 
the  rebels  were  driven  out?  A  few  miles  beyond  Mt.  Ver- 
non a  deep  ravine  or  gorge  through  which  the  road  passed 
was  filled  with  trees  felled  from  the  hillsides  into  the  road, 
thus  effectually  blockading  it.  The  regiment  had  bivouacked 
the  previous  night  between  this  point  and  Mt.  Vernon,  and 
when  it  was  found  that  this  gorge  was  blockaded  it  was 
ordered  to  return  to  the  bivouac  of  the  i)i"evious  night,  al- 
though a  very  undesirable  place  for  a  camp.  The  road  passed 
through  a  deep  ravine  with  steep  hills  rising  on  each  side. 
There  was  scarcely  a  place  on  all  the  hillsides  where  a  good 
bed  could  be  made,  yet  the  whole  regiment  was  compelled  to 
' '  bunk"  here.  The  scarcity  of  rations  here  both  nights  caused 
the  boys  to  give  the  place  the  name  of  ' '  Hungry  Hollow, ' ' 
and  it  was  worthy  of  the  name,  as  many  an  old  soldier  will 


72  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

roiiKMiibor  it  well  until  his  dying  day.  Rations  almost  wholly 
<;()n(\  nothing'  to  forage  in  this  wild,  hilly  country,  bad  water 
ami  a  steep  hillside  so  steep  that  the  men  had  to  sleep  astrad- 
d\o  of  a  sapling,  doubled  round  a  stump  or  rock,  or  lie  on 
tho  uphill  side  of  a  log  to  keep  from  rolling  or  sliding  down. 
All  those  did  not  have  a  tendency  to  endear  the  place  to  any, 
although  it  will  ever  have  a  place  in  memory.  No  doubt, 
the  younger  generations  may  laugh  at  those  things  as  mat- 
ters of  the  veterans'  perverted  imagination,  but  a  few  weeks' 
canii)aigning  in  the  mountainous  regions  of  Kentucky  will 
satisfy  the  most  skeptical,  and  they  will  quickly  avow  "the 
half  has  not  been  told." 


CHAPTER    IX. 
THE  WILD  CAT  HILLS. 

four  Grnpos— BucU  Doiiduncocl— Turned  Back— BueU  Removed— Roseorans  As- 
sipiu'd  to  tli(>  ('oinniand— S(3nierset— A  Det'i)  Snowfall— Apple  Jack — Columbia 
-Ovcri-oats  and  Dress  Coats  Drawn— Stolen  Clieese— Glasgow. 

The  fuUowing  morning  the  road  having  been  cleared  of 
all  obstructions,  Crittenden's  corps  pushed  on  after  the  rebel 
forces  to  what  was  known  as  the  "Wild  Cat  Hills"  in  the 
vicinity  of  Rockcastle  river.  This  was  an  extremely  wild 
and  broken  country,  each  section  getting  rougher  than  the 
l)i-oceding  as  the  mountains  were  approached.  The  hills  pre- 
s('ntetl  numy  strange  sights  to  the  Hoosier  eyes,  accustomed 
to  look  only  upon  the  flat  country  of  the  Wabash  Valley. 
Th<>  hills  rose  almost  to  mountain  height.  There  were  wild 
dells  and  picturesque  cliffs,  ravines,  gorges,  abrupt  and  pre- 
cipitous descents,  among  all  of  which  the  road  wound  it 
•serpentine  way.  Here  were  many  immense  boulders  and 
smaller  brolcen  and  fragmentary  rocks  in  piles  as  if  the 
hiiuniKT  of  ( i()(l  liad  smitten  mountains  of  stone  and  shivered 
and  crushed  them   into  loose  lying  fragments.     Porageable 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  73 

things,  of  course,  were  not  to  be  found  in  this  thinly  settled 
section,  consequently  the  stock  of  provender  daily  grew  more 
and  more  attenuated. 

Here  on  these  Wild  Cat  Hills  occurred  an  incident  to 
which  new  regiments  are  subject,  and  which  sometimes  rob 
them  of  many  a  good  soldier.  Elijah  Wellman,  of  Company 
H,  carelessly  handling  his  gun  shot  a  toe  oif .  This  gave  the 
Surgeon  a  chance  to  show  his  skill  in  another  manner  than 
in  issuing  quinine  and  Dovers  powders.  After  the  amputa- 
tion was  completed  and  the  patient  came  out  from  the  influ- 
ence of  the  chloroform  he  became  very  sick  and  vomited  a 
great  deal.  This  unfortunate  accident  ended  Wellman's  ser- 
vice with  the  regiment. 

There  was  at  this  time  much  discontent  and  grumbling 
among  the  troops  which  was  most  generally  directed  at  Gen- 
eral Buell.  In  fact,  the  feeling  here  against  him  grew 
stronger  than  ever,  the  fault  finders  holding  him  responsible 
for  the  escape  of  the  rebel  army,  for  the  lack  of  rations,  and 
for  the  hard  and  laborious  march  without  af)parent  success 
in  forcing  the  enemy  to  give  battle  after  leaving  Perryville. 
The  rank  and  file  of  the  army  from  Ohio,  Indiana,  Illinois 
and  Iowa  were  particularly  bitter  and  outsjjoken. 

After  lounging  a  day  or  two  among  the  rocks  of  the 
Wild  Cat  Hills  while  the  cavalry  pursued  the  retreating  en- 
emy as  far  as  Barboursville  and  Manchester,  the  column 
about  faced  and  returned  to  the  neighborhood  of  Mt.  Ver- 
non, From  here  the  sick,  and  those  greatly  enfeebled,  and 
the  wounded,  were  sent  back  to  hospitals  in  the  rear,  while 
the  army  went  toiling  across  the  country  toward  Nashville.  It 
was  not  a  cheerful  thought  to  have  in  one's  mind  of  another 
long  march  over  a  rough  broken  country,  but  the  army  must 
reach  the  vicinity  of  Nashville  before  the  enemy's  forces 
get  in  striking  distance,  and  therefore  there  must  be  no  extra 
delays. 

On  the  morning  of  the  24th  of  October,  by  General 
Order  No.  168,  War  Department,  General  Buell  was  re- 
moved and  Major  General  W.  S.  Rosecrans  assigned  to  the 
command.     By  the  same  order,  the  Department  of  the  Cum- 


74  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

berliind  was  re-created.  It  also  designated  the  troops  as  the 
Fourteenth  Army  Corps,  which  soon  afterwards,  by  general 
and  ix>pular  consent  gave  place  to  the  more  appropriate 
name  of  Army  of  the  Cumberland,  as  originally  borne  under 
Generals  Anderson  and  Sherman. 

On  the  24th,  taking  the  road  to  Somerset,  the  regiment 
marched  somewhat  more  leisurely.  It  covered  some  eight 
or  nine  miles  and  bivouacked  near  a  fine  pond  of  water,  and 
was  decidedly  more  comfortable  than  on  the  Wild  Cat  Hills, 
although  it  was  not  good  ground  for  a  bivouac.  The  follow- 
ing morning  reveille  was  sounded  at  4  o'clock,  and  all  was 
bustle  and  hurry  until  breakfast  was  prepared  and  eaten. 
But  then  the  hurry  was  over  and  VanCleve  waited  for  an- 
other division  to  take  the  advance.  The  troops  lounged  here 
and  there  until  about  10  o'clock  and  then  filed  out  upon  the 
road,  winding  over  the  country,  making  good  time,  and  reach- 
ing Somerset  about  4  o'clock.  It  was  now  raining  and  a 
most  unpromising  evening.  The  command  passed  beyond 
the  town  about  a  mile  and  bivouacked.  But  for  some  reason 
the  Eighty-sixth  had  great  trouble  to  find  its  place.  Colonel 
Hamilton  lost  his  temper  entirely  and  threatened  to  demol- 
ish the  veteran  regiments  who  were  guying  the  Eighty-sixth 
atx>ut  being  "lost  in  the  wilderness"  like  the  children  of 
Israel.  It  was  rather  too  pointed  to  the  Colonel.  It  jiassed 
here  and  there  through  the  grounds  of  the  other  regiments 
and  somewhat  disturbed  them.  Much  bad  feeling  was  en- 
gendered, but  at  length  about  dark  he  found  the  place  as- 
signed him.  There  was  not  a  llattering  prospect  for  much 
needed  rest,  but  the  men  slept  soundly  until  towards  morn- 
ing—about 3  o'clock— when  they  were  wakened  by  the  limbs 
from  the  trees  ilalling  all  around.  There  was  a  continual 
snapping  and  crashing  of  limbs.  They  would  break  off  from 
the  trees  with  snapping  and  cracking  sound,  and  in  a  second 
or  so  would  come  crashing  upon  the  earth.  On  looking  about 
them  they  immediately  perceived  the  cause.  They  discov- 
ered that  some  five  or  six  inches  of  snow  had  fallen  in  the 
night  and  being  wet  and  heavy  was  breaking  the  limbs  from 
the  trees.     The  various  bunks  of  the  regiment  w^as  buried  in 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  75 

"  the  beautiful.  "  Several  men  in  the  regiment  were  more 
or  less  injured  by  the  falling  limbs.  It  was  quite  dangerous 
and  notwithstanding  they  were  tired,  the  entire  regiment 
now  arose  and  built  fires  and  watched  for  falling  timber  not 
daring  to  lie  down.  Not  a  man  in  the  regiment  had  a  tent, 
consequently  all  were  covered  with  snow  and  their  blankets 
were  wringing  wet.  Rails  were  carried  a  good  half  mile  or 
more,  fires  were  built  and  blankets  strung  up  near  them  to 
dry.  Breakfast  was  prepared  and  eaten  and  every  prepara- 
tion was  made  to  be  ready  to  march,  but  word  came  that  the 
regiment  would  remain  in  camp,  and  then  the  work  of  the 
day  was  commenced  in  earnest.  Axes  were  procured  and 
hundreds  of  strong  men  went  to  work,  felling  great  trees  on 
every  hand  until  the  forest  rang.  The  crash  of  the  falling 
trees  was  mingled  with  the  shouts  and  laughter  of  the  busy 
laborers.  Trees  were  felled  and  cut  into  logs.  These  were 
rolled  into  great  heaps  and  fired.  The  brush  was  cut  and 
piled  in  heaps,  and  thus  the  work  proceeded  in  all  parts  of 
the  camp.  Here  and  there  were  parties  of  workers  chop- 
ping, others  rolling  and  piling  the  logs  together,  and  still 
others  gathering  and  piling  the  brush  and  building  fires,  un- 
til the  camp  ground  looked  like  a  great  clearing  up  of  lands 
in  a  timbered  country  more  than  a  military  bivouac.  Some 
built  brush  houses,  or  sheds,  to  protect  themselves  from  the 
storm,  and  made  fires  immediately  in  front  of  these  primitive 
structures,  and  were  soon  reasonably  comfortable,  even  with 
the  ground  covered  with  snow.  Fortunately  the  Eighty- 
sixth  was  bivouacked  in  a  large  woods  pasture  from  which 
the  under  brush  had  been  cleared.  This  with  the  felled  timber 
made  it  a  very  good  and  comfortable  place.  During  the 
night  the  regiment  had  sheltered  under  the  trees,  and  now 
these  same  trees  cut  down  furnished  the  men  fuel  and 
shelter.  The  members  of  the  Eighty-sixth  were  not  slow 
by  this  time  to  take  advantage  of  any  circumstance  which 
would  contribute  to  their  comfort  in  camp.  But  here  great 
inclemency  of  the  weather  caught  them  unawares,  and  the 
severe  exposure  rapidly  increased  the  number  of  sick  among 
those  already  greatly  exhausted  and  worn  out  by  the  long 


76  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

continued  marching,  and  its  many  privations  and  extreme 
hardsliips.  Accordingly  the  regimental  surgeons  established 
a  temporary  hospital  in  the  town  of  Somerset,  and  some  fif- 
teen or  twenty  of  the  worst  cases  were  conveyed  there,  that 
they  might  have  better  attention  and  care  while  the  com- 
mand remained  here.  But  this  was  not  long.  It  remained 
over  the  i'Oth  and  27th  of  October,  recruiting  strength 
and  waiting  for  the  roads  to  dry  up.  On  the  morning  of  the 
2Hth  a  member  of  Comj)any  K,  Alexander  Jester,  died  at  the 
hospital  in  Somerset.  He  was  buried  by  the  hospital  force. 
The  march  for  Nashville  was  resumed.  The  roads  were  bad 
and  but  little  progress  was  made.  The  command  bivouacked 
near  a  stream  known  as  Fishing  Creek.  Here  Laban  Lau- 
don.  or  Company  C,  died,  and  was  buried  by  the  side  of  the 
road.  Thus  were  the  ranks  of  our  noble  regiment  being 
thinned.  Few  comrades  remember  these  patriots  who  gave 
up  their  lives  for  the  cause  as  truly  as  those  who  died  upon 
the  field.  They  were  too  much  burdened  and  hurried  in  the 
onward  push  to  give  much  heed  to  a  dying  comrade.  Who 
can  locate  their  graves?  No  flowers  for  them  on  Memorial 
Day,  yet  who  will  say  that  they  shall  not  receive  their  re- 
ward? 

From  Somerset  the  column  marched  to  Columbia,  reach- 
ing there  on  the  31st.  There  was  nothing  occurred 
on  this  part  of  the  march  out  of  the  usual  routine,  with 
the  single  exception  that  perhaps  the  supply  of  "apple- 
jack "  was  rather  more  abundant  than  heretofore,  and  those 
who  wished  to  lay  in  a  supj^ly  had  a  little  more  leisure  to 
look  for  it,  consequently  those  disposed  to  imbibe  freely 
were  sometime  slow  about  reaching  camp  and  were  often  in- 
clined to  be  boisterous  when  they  did  reach  it.  Others  were 
"too  full  for  utterance"  and  navigation,  and  tarried  by  the 
way-side  until  the  mighty  influence  of  the  "jack"  had  abated 
its  control.  Then  tliey  came  to  camp  soberly  and  demurely. 
Poor  fellows,  they  looked  badly  enough,  and  no  doubt  they 
felt  even  worse  than  they  looked. 

The  following  morning  after  reaching  Columbia,  Novem- 
Ix'r  1.  clothing  was  issued  to  the  Eighty-sixth,  and  the  poor 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  77 

simpletons,  nearly  to  a  man,  drew  overcoats  and  dress-coats, 
and  many  of  them  other  articles  of  clothing.  The  men  al- 
ready had  a  sufficient  load  to  carry.  These  coats  and  articles 
of  clothing  greatly  increased  their  burdens.  The  men  had 
perhaps  thrown  away  since  leaving  Louisville  fully  one  half  of 
their  baggage,  and  now  were  again  loaded  to  the  guards — 
fully  as  heavy  as  when  leaving  that  city  to  take  their  first 
march.  But  experience  is  an  excellent  master.  On  November 
1  the  regiment  left  Columbia,  marching  out  about  8  o'clock. 
The  morning  was  quite  cool  and  the  men  generally  put  on  their 
dress -coats  and  overcoats,  thinking  that  the  easiest  way  to 
carry  them.  The  command  was  hurried  forward  at  a  rapid 
pace.  As  the  day  advanced  the  heat  increased  until  it  became 
quite  warm.  Bundled  as  the  men  were  they  soon  felt  them- 
selves sweating  at  every  pore,  but  no  time  was  given  to 
change  coats  or  to  re-adjust  loads.  It  was  certainly  very 
hard  marching.  Many  gave  out  and  fell  behind  the  regiment 
before  noon,  but  no  halt  was  called.  Still  pressing  on  with 
unabated  speed  the  number  in  ranks  grew  less  and  less. 
Some  few  straggled  to  be  sure,  who  were  not  exhausted, 
but  when  the  regiment  was  finally  halted  for  the  night's 
bivouac,  about  3  o'clock,  there  were  only  one  hundred  and 
forty  men  in  ranks  to  stack  arms.  At  first  the  Colonel 
looked  at  the  regiment  as  it  "dressed  up"  in  line  before 
stacking  arms  in  blank  amazement.  Then  he  became  angry, 
growing  hotter  and  hotter  until  he  was  in  a  terrible  rage. 
He  charged  on  to  the  company  officers,  but  soon  saw  that 
was  utterly  useless.  Then  he  charged  back  upon  the  incom- 
ing stragglers,  swearing  that  he  would  arrest  and  punish 
every  man  of  the  Eighty-sixth  that  was  behind  when  the  halt 
was  called.  He  immediately  ordered  the  arrest  of  those  just 
coming  in  and  placed  a  guard  to  halt  and  arrest  all  who  came 
later.  The  stragglers  were  collected  under  a  large  tree 
in  an  oj)en  space  just  to  the  rear  of  the  regimental  line  where 
all  could  see  and  hear.  And  here  the  Colonel  continued  to 
swear  at  them  and  tell  them  what  terrible  punishment  was 
in  store  for  them,  what  kind  of  soldiers  they  were,  and  how 
little  they  deserved  the  name.     It  was  a  perfect  volley  of 


78  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

epithets  and  abusive  terms,  and  long  continued.  It  was  fun 
for  the  boys  wiio  came  in  on  time,  and  for  some  who  were 
in  the  arrested  squad,  but  judging  by  appearances  it  was 
quite  a  serious  matter  for  others.  Some  were  greatly  crest- 
fallen at  the  thought  of  being  under  arrest.  Others  took  it 
quite  phiIo.sophically.  Most  of  them  knew  Colonel  Hamilton 
to  be  a  hot-headed  but  kindly  natured  man  who  would  relent, 
and  practically,  at  least,  take  it  all  back  as  soon  as  his  anger 
cooled  oil.  He  soon  had  a  good  two  hundred  under  and 
around  that  tree,  and  would  gallop  his  charger  in  a  furious 
manner  almost  upon  every  new  arrival.  He  fumed  and  fret- 
ted, he  chafed  and  frothed,  and  swore  what  terrible  things 
he  intended  to  do.  One  would  have  supposed  he  would  have 
every  man  of  them  shot  at  sunrise  the  next  morning.  At 
length  liis  anger  began  to  cool  and  he  saw  the  folly  of  his 
rage  and  the  utter  foolishness  of  his  conduct.  He  then  gave 
\\\)  in  disgust  and  ordered  the  men  to  go  to  their  respective 
companies,  but  threatened  the  direst  punishment  upon  any  of 
them  if  he  ever  again  caught  them  straggling.  The  tirade 
of  the  Colonel  against  the  boys  occasioned  much  merriment 
for  those  who  were  calmly  watching  the  circus  at  a  safe  dis- 
tance. The  affair  was  known  as  "the  arrest  of  the  persim- 
mon knockers,"  or  the  "the  organization  of  the  Eighty- 
seventh  Regiment  by  Colonel  Hamilton."  We  believe  the 
latter  designation  was  given  it  by  Ike  Wetherall,  of  Com- 
pany K,  one  of  the  captured  late  arrivals  and  one  of  the 
noi.sest  men  in  the  regiment.  This  diversion  came  in  good 
time.  It  was  needed,  and  it  somewhat  revived  the  men,  al- 
though they  were  very  tired  and  sore.  The  march  had  been 
a  hard  one  and  the  men  had  appetites  like  sharks.  Conse- 
quently rations  vanished  with  unexampled  rapidity. 

It  will  not  be  out  of  place  here  to  relate  an  incident  of 
the  night.  One  of  the  boys  who  had  a  little  money  and  very 
little  rations,  went  to  a  sutler  near  by  and  bought  fifty  cents' 
worth  of  cheese.  But  being  of  a  provident  disposition  the 
mess  did  not  eat  it  that  night  for  supper,  intending  to  save  it 
for  the  morrow  when  their  wants  would  be  still  greater,  their 
hunger  more  urgent  and  imperative.     It  was  packed  away 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  79 

nicely  in  a  haversack  and  the  haversack  placed  in  a  stack  of 
guns  standing  quite  near  the  mess's  sleejjing  place,  in  fact, 
their  "shake  down"  being  spread  against  one  side  bt  the 
"stack."  But  alas  !  when  the  cheese  was  sought  by  eager 
and  hungry  messmates  the  following  morning  not  a  crumb  of 
it  could  be  found.  It  had  been  spirited  away.  Its  disappear- 
ance was  complete.  Search  was  made  without  success.  It 
was  a  mystery.  Who  got  the  cheese  was  the  question.  The 
poacher,  Packer,  was  accused  of  the  theft  but  strenuously  de- 
nied it.  He  swore  he  would  have  been  glad  to  have  eaten 
it  but  did  not  have  that  pleasure.  The  search  and  all 
hope  of  ever  finding  the  thief  were  given  up.  But  of 
this,  as  of  almost  all  things  of  its  class  sooner  or  later  the 
old  saying  "murder  will  out, "  came  true.  Some  eight  years 
afterward  the  man  who  got  the  cheese,  who  was  wholly  un- 
suspected and  might  have  remained  so,  took  too  much  "in- 
sanity drops"  and  straightway  divulged  his  secret  of  the 
theft.  He  pleaded  destitution  of  both  rations  and  money, 
extreme  hunger  and  inabilitj'^  to  procure  anything  by  begging 
from  comrades  almost  as  destitute  as  himself,  in  extenuation 
of  his  pilfering.  He  was  freely  forgiven,  and  all  who  were 
still  living  of  the  mess  took  a  hearty  laugh  over  it  and  the 
events  of  the  day,  November  1,  1862,  when  Colonel  Hamilton 
frightened  the  "persimmon  knockers"  so  badly. 

On  the  following  morning  the  stragglers  being  fully  and 
duly  restored,  they  all  marched  out  together  about  9  o'clock, 
singing  with  spirit  "John  Brown's  body  lies  mouldering  in 
in  the  tomb."  They  stepped  of  at  a  lively  rate,  making 
good  time  in  much  better  shape  than  they  had  done  the  pre- 
vious day.  They  covered  some  seventeen  or  eighteen  miles 
by  dark  and  bivouacked  in  the  woods  alongside  the  road. 
The  next  morning  they  were  on  the  road  by  6  o'clock  and 
marched  steadily,  reaching  Glasgow,  passed  through  the 
town  and  bivouacked  about  1  o'clock  in  a  beautiful  meadow 
or  pasture  lying  in  the  bottom  lands  of  quite  a  nice  stream 
known  as  a  branch  of  the  Big  Barren  River. 

Here  the  boys  who  had  an  inclination  to  forage  on  their 
own  hook  had  fair  opportunities  to  lay  in  temporary  sup- 


80  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

plios.  The  Ei.£:hty-sixtli  on  such  occasions  acted  on  the 
principle  that  "opportunities  are  like  e^^gs  and  must  be 
hatched  while  fresh."  The  chickens,  turkeys,  pigs  and 
slu'cp  came  into  cam])  in  goodly  numbers.  Camp-kettles  were 
in  great  demand,  and  when  procured  were  usually  well  filled 
and  kept  so  almost  day  and  night.  Active  foraging  for  eat- 
ables continued  while  the  command  remained  here.  The 
country  alTorded  an  abundance.  At  this  place  again  a  num- 
ber of  the  regiment  had  become  sick  or  so  completely  ex- 
hausted as  to  require  that  they  be  sent  back  to  hospitals  to 
recuperate,  as  the  number  greatly  exceeded  the  capacity  of 
the  regimental  ambulances  to  convey  them  with  the  column 
as  it  pushed  ahead.  They  were  sent  from  here  mostly  to 
Cave  City,  the  nearest  railroad  point,  and  from  there  on 
to  Bowling  Green  and  Louisville. 

On  the  morning  of  the  5th  of  November,  the  column  re- 
sumed its  march.  The  men  were  somewhat  refreshed  and 
strengthened  by  the  rest  and  "  the  fat  of  the  land."  It  was 
now  the  Fourteenth  Army  Corps,  Department  of  the  Cumber- 
land, and  General  Rosecrans  was  in  command.  Passing 
through  Glasgow  the  column  bore  off  to  the  southwest  on 
the  Scottsville  and  Gallatin  road,  and  covering  some  sixteen 
or  seventeen  miles,  bivouacked  about  3  o'clock  in  the  woods 
near  the  road.  A  little  rain  fell  in  the  evening,  but  not 
enough  to  lay  the  dust.  The  foraging  was  continued  while 
on  the  march,  but  not  with  the  same  effect  as  wdien  in  camp. 
The  supply  of  chickens  brought  to  the  evening's  bivouac 
was  limited.  On  the  following  morning  the  orders  Avere  to 
march  at  0  o'clock,  but  it  was  near  10  o'clock  wdien  the  regi- 
ment tiled  out  upon  the  road.  The  command  covered  some 
fourtfien  or  fifteen  miles  during  the  day's  march,  passing 
through  Scottsville  and  a  mile  beyond,  and  bivouacked  in  a 
pcrft'ct  thicket  of  underbrush.  The  roads  were  good  except 
Ix'ing  very  dusty.  Again  this  evening  there  w^as  a  light 
sprinkle  of  rain,  after  which  it  turned  cooler.  The  boys 
divided  very  liberally  with  the  citizens  of  the  country  through 
which  the  army  passed,  and  brought  to  camp  chickens,  pigs 
and  dried  fruit.     The  enterprising  "pot-hound"  was  a  prime 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  81 

necessity  to  raw  troops  on  a  long  march.  The  following 
morning  was  quite  cool.  This  made  it  disagreeable  and  the 
men  hovered  round  the  bivouac  fires.  About  10  o'clock  the 
tramp  was  resumed.  The  weather  remained  cold  and  damp, 
snow  falling  more  or  less  throughout  the  day.  The  distance 
made  was  not  great,  but  it  was  a  very  uncomfortable  day's 
march.  The  night  was  cold  and  the  men  felt  the  full  force 
of  the  disagreeable  weather.  The  following  morning  reveille 
was  sounded  about  3  o  'clock.  The  regiment  arose  promi^tly , 
breakfasted  at  4:30  and  resumed  its  line  of  march  for  Gallatin 
about  6:30,  where  it  arrived  after  a  hard  march  at  3  o'clock 
in  the  afternoon,  having  traveled  some  eighteen  or  twenty 
miles.  It  pressed  on  still  farther  to  within  about  one  mile 
of  the  Cumberland  River.  In  this  day's  march  it  was  esti- 
mated by  different  ones  that  the  command  had-marched  from 
twenty-two  to  twenty-five  miles.  As  there  was  no  halt  called 
for  dinner  few,  if  any  of  the  regiment,  had  eaten  anything  during 
the  day  more  than  a  few  bites  as  they  plodded  along  the  road. 
There  was  therefore  great  demand  for  rations  and  not  many 
rations  to  be  had.  After  a  good  night's  rest  the  men  learned 
that  they  would  not  move  as  there  was  no  bridge  on  which 
to  cross  the  Cumberland  river.  A  detail  was  made  from  the 
Eighty -sixth  to  aid  in  its  construction.  Until  this  detail  re- 
turned there  was  no  probability  that  the  command  would 
march.  This  was  a  pointer  for  the  free-handed  foragers 
and  they  might  have  been  seen  making  good  time  for  "green 
fields  and  pastures  new."  On  every  hill-top  one  or  more 
blue-coats  could  be  seen  scenting  the  game,  and  that,  too,  at 
an  early  hour.  Nor  did  they  come  back  empty  handed.  The 
bridge  detail  returned  about  9  p.  m.  and  reported  the  bridge 
ready  for  crossing.  The  orders  for  the  following  morning 
were  to  march  at  6:30  o'clock,  but  Hawkins'  brigade  did  not 
start  until  7  o'clock.  The  command  marched  directly  to  and 
crossed  the  Cumberland  river  on  the  new  bridge.  After 
crossing  the  river,  the  brigade  proceeded  on  the  road  run- 
ning nearly  due  south  until  it  readied  the  Lebanon  and  Nash- 
ville pike.  At  this  point  it  turned  west  toward  Nashville 
and  marched  a  few  miles  and  halted  for  the  night  in  a  fine 


go  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

pasture  near  a  beautiful  stream  of  water.  The  command 
niarclied  during  this  day  probable  twelve  or  fifteen  miles. 
Tlii.s  place  was  known  as  Silver  Springs. 

Tlio  men  of  the  regiment  were  delighted  with  the 
place  as  a  camping  ground,  and  the  prospect  of  remaining 
liere  long  enough  for  a  good  rest  seemed  fairly  good. 
There  was  a  fine  sward,  a  i)lentiful  supply  of  pure  water, 
and  an  abundance  of  rails  conveniently  near  for  all 
necessary  purposes,  both  for  cooking  and  heating. 
Such  a  fine  place  for  camping  it  had  not  been  the  men's 
fortune  often  to  see.  There  were  also  certain  signs 
discovered  which  denoted  that  there  might  be  found 
in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  camp  a  goodly  supply  of  ducks, 
geese,  chickens,  pigs,  and  sheep,  and  it  was  almost  certain 
that  the  demand  would  be  quite  equal  to  the  supply.  Fear- 
ing the  supply  would  soon  be  exhausted,  the  Eighty-sixth 
sent  out  some  strong  foraging  parties  the  first  night.  The 
officers  of  the  regiment  did  not  do  this,  but  the  men  with 
muskets  did.  They  were  efiicient  and  energetic  and  served 
their  respective  messes  and  companies  well  and  faithfully. 
They  brought  to  camp  in  abundance,  turkeys,  chickens,  pigs, 
cured  meat,  dried  fruits,  and  sweet  potatoes.  Even  the  next 
day  the  fowls  could  be  heard  on  all  sides  in  the  camp  of  the 
Eighty-sixth,  and  -the  old  soldiers  of  the  brigade  began  to 
"  let  up  "  on  guying  the  boys  about  their  inability  to  look 
out  for  themselves  in  the  way  of  foraging.  The  11th  of 
November,  the  next  day  after  arriving  at  this  camp,  w^as 
clear,  cool  and  fine.  There  were  no  orders  to  march  and 
this  was  cheering  news.  The  weary,  foot-sore  men  were 
greatly  pleased  with  the  prospect  of  getting  additional  rest. 


CHAPTER   X. 
SILVER  SPRINGS  AND  RURAL  HILL. 

A  Forty  Days'  March  Reviewed— Death  of  William  Eose  and  Archibald  Coats— A 
March  to  Rural  Hill— Skirmish  With  John  Morgan's  Men— In  Uamp  Near 
Nashville— Detail  of  Twenty  Men  for  the  Pioneer  Corps— Drill  and  Picket 
Duty. 

The  Eighty-sixth  had  been  on  the  march  for  forty  days, 
and  a  part  of  the  time  day  and  night.  Raw,  soft,  and  un- 
drilled  as  the  men  were,  they  had  been  placed  in  a  brigade 
and  division  of  veteran  troops,  hardened  campaigners,  ac- 
customed to  marching  and  inured  to  all  the  duties  of  the 
field  and  a  soldier's  life,  and  they  were  expected  to,  and  did, 
perform  their  full  share  of  duty  with  these  troops.  It  was 
a  terribly  rough  introduction,  but  there  was  no  helj)  for  it, 
and  all  the  Eighty-sixth  could  do  was  to  perform  the  duty  or 
die.  Many  indeed  had  fallen  by  the  way-side — literally 
marched  to  death.  Others  had  sickened  and  died,  the 
principal  factors  causing  the  sickness  being  exposure,  pri- 
vations and  the  exhausting  labor  of  marching.  Still  others 
sick  and  exhausted,  unable  to  keep  pace  with  Buell's  column 
as  it  pushed  on  after  Bragg,  were  sent  to  the  hospitals  in 
the  rear,  here  and  there  over  the  country,  to  regain  their 
health  for  future  campaigns.  But  many  of  these  never  again 
"took  arms"  with  their  former  comrades.  They  were  too 
much  broken  in  health  to  return  to  duty  in  the  ranks.  Per- 
haps the  pursuit  of  Bragg 's  army  by  that  of  Buell's,  taken  as 
a  whole,  was  the  hardest  and  most  trying  march  any  Union 
army  was  forced  to  endure  during  the  entire  war.  The  army 
was  not  then  supplied  with  the  light  and  convenient  shelter 
tents  which  it  afterwards  carried.  The  bulk  and  unhandi- 
ness of  the  Sibleys  made  them  no  better  than  no  tents,  for 


84  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

either  the  wagons  were  never  up  with  them,  or  the  men  were 
too  tired  to  handle  them  at  night  when  they  reached  camp. 
Tiicrofore,  they  slept  constantly  without  tents,  exposed  to 
the  night  air,  in  good  and  bad  weather,  in  rain  and  in  snow, 
and  felt  the  full  force  of  all  the  changes  of  weather.  The 
great  exertion  during  the  day  heated  their  bodies  and  the 
cool  nights  chilled  and  stiffened  their  joints  and  bound  their 
muscles.  These  things  with  the  inexperience  and  the  ex- 
treme scarcity  of  water,  together  with  the  very  bad  quality 
of  most  of  it  that  could  be  procured,  rendered  the  march  a 
continual  struggle  for  existence,  an  epoch  in  one's  life  to  be 
remembered.  It  was  a  very  common,  almost  daily,  occur- 
rence to  find 

— "  tlie  silflt'fl  puddle 
Wliicli  beasts  would  cougli  at," 

the  only  supply  of  water  to  furnish  drink  and  from  which 
to  procure  enough  to  make  a  pot  of  coffee.  Those  of  deli- 
cate, nervous  systems  and  dainty  stomachs,  with  a  thought 
of  home,  its  healthy  food  and  drink,  and  even  delicacies, 
would  sicken  at  the  sight  of  a  putrefying  mule  half  sub- 
merged in  the  pond  of  water  where  they  were  compelled  to 
get  their  supply.  The  thought  of  a  good,  cool  drink  from 
the  pure  water  of  the  well  at  home  would  cause  them  to 
turn  with  unutterable  disgust  from  this  festering  filth  with 
its  green  scum.  Such  men  were  already  more  than  half 
beaten  without  the  suspicion  of  the  smell  of  gun  powder. 
Others,  however,  of  firmer  fibre,  stauncher  mold,  and  iron 
nerve,  and  a  resolution  that  would  never  say  "hold, 
enough,"  parted  the  thick  green  scum,  filled  the  canteen, 
shut  their  eyes  and  drank  deeply  of  the  water  as  it  washed 
l)ack  and  over  the  festering  animal  matter,  set  in  motion  as 
it  was  by  the  dipping  of  many  canteens.  Such  material 
makes  invincible  soldiers,  as  near,  at  least,  as  human  beings 
can  be  called  invincible.  Of  such  material  was  the  Army  of 
th«'  Cumljerland  composed.  Father  Abraham  at  Washing- 
ton had  no  better,  truer,  soldiers  than  those  of  this  old  army 
aftor  the  chaff  was  winnowed  out  of  it.  All  the  Eighty- 
sixtli  now  lacked  to  complete  the  test  was  the  baptism  of 
fire— the  battle's  storm  and  hail  to  finish  in  every  particular 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  85 

its  initiation.  In  looking  back  over  this  trip  through  Ken- 
tucky after  Bragg 's  army  it  is  with  horror  that  one  thinks 
of  the  abominable  character  of  the  drinking  water,  the 
scant  rations  and  the  general  treatment  the  men  received. 
It  is  a  wonder  that  so  many  endured  it  and  survived. 

Many,  who  by  indomitable  pluck  and  perseverance,  came 
through  the  march  in  pursuit  of  Bragg  had  the  seeds  of  dis- 
ease sown  in  them  which  afterwards  developed  and  bore 
fruit,  and  from  the  eifects  of  which  they  never  will  be  free 
until  they  shall  have  paid  the  last  debt  of  nature  and  reaped 
the  reward  of  their  manliness  and  patriotism.  The  extent 
of  their  sacrifices  is  little  known  or  appreciated  in  this  life. 

All  were  greatly  rejoiced  at  the  j)rospect  of  a  breathing 
spell  and  an  opportunity  to  recuperate  after  the  late  rough 
service  they  had  undergone.  On  the  night  of  the  11th  of 
November,  here  at  this  camp  William  Rose,  of  Company 
B,  died.  He  was  buried  on  the  12th.  On  the  13th,  Archi- 
bald Coats,  of  Company  D,  died,  and  was  buried  the  same 
day.  The  deaths  of  these  two  men  so  soon  after  our  long 
march  show  how  desperately  the  men  sometimes  struggled 
to  do  what  they  considered  their  duty.  Up  to  within  a  very 
few  days  of  their  death  they  had,  shoulder  to  shoulder, 
tramped  the  weary  miles  through  Kentucky  with  their  com- 
rades, literally  wearing  their  lives  away.  Yet  when  a  halt 
was  called  and  the  relaxation  came  which  follows  protracted 
effort,  they  gave  up  and  passed  away  to  that  peaceful  land, 
where  the  clash  of  steel,  and  the  tread  of  armed  squadrons 
do  not  disturb.  This  march  had  been  to  the  Eighty-sixth  an 
expensive  one.  The  deaths  and  the  many  sent  back  sick, 
had  reduced  the  regiment  to  about  one-half  its  original 
strength. 

On  the  14th  of  November  the  Eighty-sixth  was  ordered  to 
prepare  for  general  inspection.  Then  came  the  hurry  and 
bustle  of  cleaning  arms  and  equipments,  bathing  the  person 
and  washing  the  clothing.  Besides  these  things  the  men 
were  instructed  for  some  time  in  company  drill.  On  the  morn- 
ing of  the  15th  they  received  orders  to  arrange  camp  in  reg- 
ular system.     This  greatly  cheered  the   boys.     It  caused  a 


HC,  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

great  deal  of  work,  however,  to  take  down  and  change  all 
tlioso  heavy  Sibley  tents,  but  they  they  supposed  they  had  a 
very  good  assurance  that  they  would  remain  here  for  some 
time,  and  all  therefore  worked  willingly.  But  scarcely  was 
the  vamp  laid  off  and  the  tents  arranged  and  put  up  in  regu- 
hition  style  when  orders  were  received  to  march.  Some 
rather  caustic  "benedictions"  were  pronounced  in  a  very  en- 
ergetic manner  upon  the  officers  for  this  extra  work,  and  the 
order  to  march  following  so  close  upon  it.  The  order  was 
received  about  11  o'clock  a.  m.  Tents  were  struck  at  once, 
]Kickod  and  placed  in  the  wagons.  AH  other  "traps"  were 
done  up  and  put  on  the  wagons  or  arranged  for  the  soldier's 
own  "pack,"  and  the  regiment  was  in  line  ready  to  march 
by  noon. 

At  this  camp  at  Silver  Springs  on  the  night  of  Novem- 
ber 12,  was  the  first  time  the  regiment  slept  in  tents  after 
leaving  Louisville,  October  1.  For  more  than  forty  days  the 
men  had  marched  and  bivouacked — had  laid  upon  the  ground 
in  fair  and  in  foul  weather  with  naught  but  their  blankets, 
darkness,  and  the  starry  heavens  to  cover  them,  save  occas- 
ionally when  sleeping  in  the  friendly  cover  of  some  leafy 
bower  of  the  forest.  This  march  was  an  instructive  exper- 
ience. Its  lessons  were  forceful  and  not  to  be  denied  atten- 
tion. They  asserted  themselves.  Here  is  an  example:  Often 
in  the  still  hours  of  the  chilly  night,  one  might  hear  the 
shriek  of  some  youth,  as  he  suddenly  awakened  from  slum- 
ber, to  the  realization  that  he  was  sulfering  excruciating  tor- 
tures, writhing  in  pain  with  numerous  extra  "kinks"  in  his 
k«gs  forcing  him  to  make  these  outcries.  What  does  it  mean? 
It  means  that  he  had  overtaxed  his  strength,  his  muscles,  in 
endeavoring  to  keep  pace  with  the  advancing  column.  Bur- 
dened beyond  his  strength  and  years,  with  knapsack,  haver- 
sack, canteen,  and  gun  and  cartridge-box,  he  had  labored 
with  every  muscle  throughout  the  day  to  keep  his  place  in 
ranks.  He  had  obeyed  the  laws  and  orders  of  man,  but 
broivcii  tiie  laws  of  nature,  and  he  was  now  paying  the  pen- 
alty. All  day  long  the  muscles  of  his  lower  limbs  unceas- 
ingly had  contracted  and  relaxed  alternately.     They  were 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  87 

still  keeping  up  the  play,  but  now  the  action  was  of  a  spas- 
modic character.  In  short,  the  overtaxed  muscles,  of  his 
legs  were  cramping  as  though  they  would  pull  themselves 
loose  from  their  attachments,  and  in  his  agony  he  cries  out 
and  calls  on  some  comrade  to  rub  him  until  the  attack  of 
cramp  passes  and  he  can  again  lie  down  to  sleep.  Some 
times  this  is  repeated  many  times  during  a  single  night,  and 
no  one  who  has  never  suifered  such  attacks  can  estimate  the 
torment  of  them.  Short  the  attacks  may  be,  but  terrible  in 
their  punishment  of  the  victim  who  has  broken  an  inexor- 
able law. 

The  regiment  was  drawn  up  in  line  ready  to  march  at 
the  hour  of  12.  Hawkins'  brigade  was  the  only  troops  mov- 
ing. There  was  not  therefore  a  very  large  force  on  the 
march.  Covering  some  seven  or  eight  miles  the  command 
bivouacked  in  a  very  pretty  place  in  a  fine  woods  pasture  in 
the  immediate  neighborhood  of  Rural  Hill,  Wilson  county, 
Tennessee,  and  supposed  to  be  in  the  vicinity  of  the  enemy. 
Accordingly  the  brigade  was  ordered  to  sleep  on  its  arms. 
Shortly  after  "taps"  picket  firing  occurred,  and  the  command 
was  immediately  called  ' '  to  arms, ' '  and  stood  in  line  for  a 
short  time.  At  5:30  a.  m.  the  command  was  again  called  up 
and  stood  to  arms  until  daylight. 

During  the  forenoon  some  prisoners  were  captured  and 
brought  into  camp.  Three  rebel  cavalrymen  were  brought 
in  by  the  Eighty-sixth.  It  was  evident  that  the  enemy  was 
watching  closely  and  would  attack  if  a  favorable  opportun- 
ity oifered.  Company  H  was  xDut  on  the  picket  line  with 
orders  to  keep  a  sharp  watch  for  the  enemy.  Lieutenant 
Jeremiah  Haugh,  of  Company  B,  went  outside  of  the  picket 
lines  and  was  doing  a  little  independent  scouting  when  he 
was  chased  by  the  enemy's  cavalry  and  had  a  close  call  to 
escape.  The  "Johnnie  Rebs"  finding  that  the  blue  coats 
would  not  halt  at  their  commands  opened  fire  upon  him.  A 
running  fire  is  seldom  an  effective  one,  yet  Haugh  received  a 
severe  wound  through  the  left  shoulder,  but  he  wavered  not 
in  his  retreat,  running  a  good  race  and  made  his  escape  sure. 
His  wound  was  severe  but  not  dangerous.     The  weather  was 


88  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

dark  and  jErloomy,  raining  or  misting  all  day.  Besides  the 
advJMitiii-o  of  Lieutenant  Haiigh  the  regiment  lost  another 
adventurous  spirit,  company  H's  champion  forager  and  "pot- 
hound, "  John  Miller.  He  went  out  on  one  of  his  p)redatory 
excur.sions  and  failed  to  return.  He  was  captured  and 
paroled,  but  he  never  again  returned  to  the  regiment  or  com- 
pany. He  went  home  and  when  reported  as  a  deserter  and 
il  iH'came  too  hot  in  Indiana  he  went  still  further  away. 
Evidently  he  had  seen  enough  of  Morgan's  men.  Some  time 
before  he  had  captm'ed  a  donkey  with  which  he  made  his 
foraging  trips.  Presumably  on  this  occasion  the  donkey  was 
not  swift  enough  when  ladened  with  turkeys  and  chickens  to 
outrun  Morgan's  cavalry,  and  he  had  therefore  been  cap- 
tured with  a  donkey  load  of  pillage  in  his  possession.  See- 
ing him  to  be  a  genuine  pilferer,  they  had  doubtless  threat- 
ened to  take  his  life  if  ever  again  caught,  and  had  so  fright - 
enod  liim  that  when  released  he  at  once  started  for  home, 
and  probably  promised  to  do  so,  if  they  would  but  spare  his 
life. 

On  the  morning  of  the  17th  of  November,  Company  E, 
Captain  Phillip  Gemmer,  relieved  Company  H  from  picket 
duty,  and  received  the  orders  to  keep  the  strictest  watch  for 
the  expected  enemy.  All  day  the  command  watched  and 
waited.  There  were  some  indications  of  an  attack,  but  none 
was  made.  On  the  morning  of  the  18th,  just  after  daylight, 
while  the  command  was  busy  prej)aring  breakfast,  the 
pickets  began  a  brisk  firing  that  indicated  an  attack.  The 
brigade  was  under  arms  immediately.  The  enemy's  calvary 
lia<l  made  a  bold  dash  on  the  picket  line,  had  broken  it  and 
r(xle  it  down  and  came  right  on  in  gallant  style  for  the  brig- 
ade camp,  doubtless  expecting  to  take  it  by  surprise,  stam- 
pede it,  and  capture  the  entire  command.  But  "the  wisest 
plans  o'  mice  and  men  gang  aftaglee. "  It  was  the  unex- 
pected that  happened  to  them  and  they  met  a  great  sur- 
prise. 

During  tlic  night  of  the  17th,  the  Eighth  Kentucky  had 
come  in  with  the  supply  train.  This  regiment  bivouacked 
one  hundred  or  one  hundred  and  fifty  yards  to  the  left  in  a 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  89 

little  ravine,  where  there  was  a  spring  and  every  convenience 
for  a  concealed  bivouac.  It  was  out  of  sight  of  the  ap- 
proaching rebels,  and  was  not  seen  by  them  until  it  opened 
fire  on  the  charging  squadrons.  This  Kentucky  regiment 
was  armed  with  Colt's  revolving  rifles  and  the  men  delivered 
their  five  shots  in  the  face  of  the  enemy  before  the  latter 
was  hardly  aware  of  the  difficulty  that  lay  in  his  way.  The 
enemy  as  soon  as  he  saw  that  he  was  foiled,  wheeled  about, 
and  galloped  back  badly  demoralized  and  in  far  greater 
haste  than  he  came.  This  handsome  repulse  by  the  newly 
arrived  regiment  saved  Hawkins'  brigade  from  a  savage  at- 
tack in  the  flank  where  it  was  least  expected.  Five  of  the 
enemy  lay  dead  in  front  of  the  gallant  band  that  had  met 
their  dash  in  such  a  cool  determined  manner.  How  many 
were  wounded  is  not  known,  but  it  was  quite  evident  that  it 
was  too  hot  a  place  for  the  rebel  cavalrymen  to  tarry  long. 
They  did  not  wait  upon  the  order  of  their  going,  but  went  at 
once,  and  that  very  quickly.  After  this  dash  by  the  enemy 
and  its  signal  repulse  he  opened  up  with  his  artillery.  One, 
shot,  an  unexploded  shell,  struck  about  thirty  paces  in  front 
of  the  center  of  the  Eighty-sixth.  A  number  went  whiz- 
zing and  screaming  over  it,  but  did  no  damage  whatever. 
The  battery  replied  to  his  fire  with  interest  and  a  fine  show 
of  artillery  practice  was  made  for  a  time,  but  the  enemy 
soon  again  found  it  too  hot  and  limbered  to  the  rear,  leaving 
the  field  to  the  despised  ' '  yanks. ' '  It  was  said  by  one  of 
the  staff  officers,  who  was  looking  with  a  field  glass,  that 
Swallow's  battery  dismounted  one  of  the  enemy's  guns  and 
this  closed  the  battle.  This  was  the  first  fire  to  which  the 
Eighty-sixth  as  a  regiment  was  exposed,  and  the  men  showed 
genuine  Hoosier  grit  and  staying  qualities.  In  short,  it  was 
there  to  stay  until  ordered  away. 

General  T.  L.  Crittenden  at  8:30  o'clock  on  the  evening 
of  November  18,  sent  the  following  report  of  the  Rural 
Hill  affair  to  Colonel  J.  P.  Garesche,  Chief  of  Staff: 

Colonel:  The  company  of  cavalry  I  sent  to  look  after  the  brigade 
at  Rural  Hill  have  returned,  and  report  that  the  cannonading  of  which 
I  sent  you  notice  in  my  note  of  this  date,  at  8:45  a.  m.,\vas  at  Rural  Hill; 


90  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

that  the  brifxade  there  was  attacked  by  Morgan's  cavalry,  who  dis- 
mounted after  their  first  charge  and  fought  as  infantry,  with  artillery; 
that  the  light  histed  about  two  and  one-half  hours,  but  with  very  slight 
result.  Wo  had  no  men  killed  or  wounded,  but  four  of  the  Thirteenth 
Ohio  were  taken  prisoners.  The  enemy  had  four  killed  that  were  left 
dead  on  the  field,  and  the  men  buried  while  the  cavalry  were  there  ;  the 
number  wounded  unknown. 

No  more  lighting  occurred  at  tiiis  place,  although  great 
care  was  exercised  not  to  be  caught  napping  by  the  wily 
enemy.  This  was  the  regiment's  introduction  to  General 
Jolin  Morgan,  who  afterwards  became  so  noted  as  a  cavalry 
commander  and  a  warrior  on  the  side  of  the  Confederacy. 
While  he  had  been  kept  at  bay,  and  Hawkins'  brigade  had 
not  been  shaken  in  the  least,  its  position  was  considered 
rather  more  hazardous  than  it  should  be  without  a  better 
prospect  of  gaining  by  it  some  signal  advantage  over  the 
enemy,  therefore  on  the  19th  of  November  the  brigade  was 
ordered  back  from  its  advanced  and  exposed  jiosition.  It 
was  while  at  Rural  Hill  on  the  17th  that  Lieutenant  Colonel 
George  F.  Dick  joined  the  regiment.  He  had  been  Major  in 
the  Twentieth  and  had  already  been  through  twelve  battles, 
and  his  coolness  under  fire  had  created  a  most  favorable  im- 
pression, and  inspired  the  men  with  great  confidence. 

The  morning  of  the  19th  was  rainy,  w^hich  rendered 
marching  disagreeable.  Bivouacked  at  night  near  the 
Nashville  and  Murfreesboro  pike  some  four  or  five  miles 
out  from  the  former  place.  On  the  20th  tents  were  put  up 
and  the  regiment  remained  at  camp.  On  the  21st  it  had 
niarcliing  orders,  and  moved  out  about  2  o'clock,  but  did  not 
go  far  until  it  was  ordered  back  and  pitched  tents  on  the 
same  ground  which  it  occupied  on  the  previous  night.  On 
the  2;kl  the  regiment  was  inspected.  On  the  24th  a  heavy 
detail  was  sent  out  with  the  teams  to  collect  forage.  The 
detail  was  busily  employed  and  collected  forage  for  the  men 
as  well  as  the  horses  and  mules.  On  the  26th  the  regiment 
marched  to  within  one  and  a  half  miles  of  Nashville  and 
camped.  The  weather  was  now  quite  cool.  On  the  28th  the 
regiment  moved  out  toward  Murfreesboro  and  camped  in 
one  of  the  worst  briar  patches  in  the  State  of  Tennessee  not 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  91 

very  far  from  the  Asylum  for  the  Insane.  Lieutenant 
Thomas,  of  Company  H,  who  had  been  absent  without  leave, 
returned  to  the  company  on  this  day.  On  the  1st  of  Decem- 
ber the  regiment  was  out  for  picket,  started  and  were  ordered 
back  for  review.  After  being  reviewed  the  whole  regiment 
went  on  picket  and  was  not  relieved  until  about  8  o'clock  on 
the  evening  of  the  2nd.  On  the  3d  the  day  was  spent  in 
company  drill  in  the  forenoon,  general  inspection  at  2  o'clock 
and  dress  parade  at  4:30.  On  the  4th  in  the  evening  the  reg- 
iment went  on  picket  again.  It  was  now  quite  cold  and  win- 
try. It  snowed  a  little  in  the  evening.  The  next  forenoon 
quite  a  snow  fell  and  the  next  day  it  froze  quite  hard,  but 
the  regiment  was  sent  out  with  the  teams  to  collect  forage. 
On  the  7th  it  received  marching  orders.  On  the  8th  the 
whole  brigade  was  sent  out  on  picket.  On  the  9th  returned 
to  camp  and  received  orders  to  get  ready  to  march.  The 
10th  the  command  moved  back  about  three  miles  toward 
Nashville.  In  the  afternoon  of  the  11th  the  regiment  being 
out  on  battalion  drill  an  alarm  was  given.  Those  in  camp 
were  formed  and  marched  out  until  the  drill  ground  was 
reached,  when  the  whole  regiment  went  about  four  miles  and 
finding  no  enemy  or  disturbance  requiring  its  attention,  re- 
turned to  camp.  On  the  14th  the  regiment  was  sent  out 
with  a  forage  train.  On  the  15th  it  was  again  on  picket 
during  a  great  rain  storm. 

On  the  17th  a  detachment  of  twenty  men  from  the 
Eighty-sixth  left  the  regiment  to  become  a  part  of  the  pio- 
neer corps.  They  formed  a  part  of  Company  I,  Third  Bat- 
talion Pioneer  Corps,  and  never  again  served  with  the  regi- 
ment. There  should  have  been  twenty,  but  owing  to  sick- 
ness some  few"  of  the  detachment  never  reported.  The  detail 
included  a  commissioned  ofiicer — a  Lieutenant  who  should 
have  a  good  knowledge  of  civil  engineering.  Second  Lieu- 
tenant James  T.  Doster,  of  Company  I,  a  civil  engineer  of 
much  experience,  was  the  oflicer  selected.  Lieutenant  Doster 
was  a  gallant,  courteous,  and  accomplished  gentleman,  and 
as  events  subsequently  proved  and  at  that  time  were  mani- 
fest, he  should  have  been  Captain  of  his  company.     He  first 


92  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

enlisted  in  the  Tenth  Indiana  and  was  with  his  regiment  in 
the  battle  of  Mills  Springs,  where  he  was  severely  wounded 
in  the  foot  and  from  which  disability  he  was  discharged. 
Recovering  from  this  disability,  as  he  supposed,  he  enlisted 
in  the  Eighty-sixth  and  was  made  Second  Lieutenant  of  Com- 
pany I.  Lieutenant  Doster  died  from  the  effects  of  his  Mills 
Springs  wound  December  19.  1868. 

On  the  morning  of  December  12  at  about  1  o'clock  the 
regiment  was  ordered  out  and  marched  perhaps  five  miles 
east  of  its  encampment.  There  it  was  met  at  the  picket 
station  by  about  1,500  paroled  prisoners  who  had  been  cap- 
tured by  the  rebel  General  Morgan  at  Hartsville  on  the  7th. 
It  was  a  most  disgraceful  surrender  on  the  part  of  Colonel  A. 
B.  Moore,  of  the  One  Hundred  and  Fourth  Illinois,  who  had 
command  at  that  post.  These  men  had  been  taken  to  Mur- 
freesboro.  stripped  of  their  blankets  and  overcoats,  and  then 
marched  up  to  the  Union  lines  to  be  paroled.  The  Eighty - 
sixth  escorted  these  men  to  Nashville,  arriving  there  about 
daylight.  It  then  returned  to  camp,  reaching  there  at  11 
o'clock,  having  made  a  march  of  probably  twenty  miles. 

In  the  above  villainous  manner  was  the  Eighty-sixth 
"cat-hauled''  from  place  to  place  in  good  or  bad  weather, 
with  or  without  cause,  moving  frequently  to  satisfy  the 
whim  of  some  red  tape  upstart,  who  simply  wished  to  show 
his  authority.  However  the  regiment  remained  in  this  im- 
mediate neighborhood  in  various  camps  and  performing  the 
several  duties  of  foraging,  scouting,  picket  and  drill, 
until  the  army  moved  forward  to  attack  Bragg 's  army  at 
Murfreesboro  on  the  26th  of  the  month.  The  weather  had 
now  become  quite  cool,  and  the  men  who  were  not  warmly 
clad,  and  few  were,  suffered  from  the  inclement  weather.  It 
would  i-aiii  and  snow  alternately,  and  then  perhaps  be  warm 
a  day,  rendering  it  still  more  disagreeable  when  it  again 
turned  cold.  On  the  6th  of  December  the  regiment  received 
its  first  supply  of  ponchos,  or  rubber  blankets,  after  which  time 
the  men  were  somewhat  better  protected  from  wind  and  rain 
when  doing  guard  and  picket  duty,  or  milking  the  farmers' 
cows  as  they  came  up  and  around  the  picket  station.  Rubber 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  93 

blankets  like  beans,  bacon,   and  coffee  came  -to  be  a  prime 
necessity  for  the  private  soldier  doing  duty  at  the  front. 


CHAPTER  XI. 
THE  BATTLE  OP  STONE'S  RIVER. 

The  Army  of  the  Cumberland— Its  Organizatiou— The  Eighty-sixth's  Assignment 
—Moving  Out  From  Nashville— Its  Position— Plan  of  the  Battle— Colonel 
Hamilton  Believed— The  Movement  on  the  Left  Suspended— The  Kegiment 
Ordered  to  the  Kight— In  the  Vortex  of  Death— List  of  the  Regiment's  Killed 
and  Mortally  Wounded— The  Second  Day's  Fight— Bragg  Lost  and  Rosecrans 
Won. 

On  the  26th  of  December,  1862,  the  Army  of  the  Cumber- 
land, General  W.  S.  Rosecrans  in  command,  moved  from  its 
camp  near  Nashville  against  General  Braxton  Bragg,  the 
commander  of  the  Confederate  forces,  who  had  taken  up  a 
strong  position  on  Stone's  River,  near  Murfreesboro,  a  point 
thirty  miles  southeast.  General  Rosecrans  had  been  placed 
in  command  of  this  army,  then  known  and  designated  as  the 
Fourteenth  Army  Corps,  Department  of  the  Cumberland,  on 
the  24th  of  October.  For  the  sake  of  convenience  but  with- 
out authority  from  the  War  Department,  as  has  been  stated 
in  a  previous  chapter.  General  Buell,  whom  General  Rose- 
crans succeeded,  had  divided  the  Army  of  the  Ohio  into 
three  corps  and  designated  them  as  the  First,  Second  and 
Third.  The  divisions  and  brigades  were  numbered  consecu- 
tively without  reference  to  the  corps  to  which  they  were  as- 
signed. The  First  corps  was  placed  in  command  of  General 
A.  McD.  McCook,  with  the  Second,  Third  and  Tenth  divis- 
ions; the  Second  corps  under  General  Thomas  L.  Crittenden, 
with  the  Fourth,  Fifth  and  Sixth  divisions;  and  the  Third 
corps  under  General  C.  C.  Gilbert  with  the  First,  Ninth  and 
Eleventh  divisions.  It  was  by  this  rearrangement  of  the 
army  that  the  Eighty-sixth  regiment  received  its  first  organ- 
ization assignment.  It  was  placed  in  the  Second  corps  under 


94  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

General  Crittenden,  in  the  Fifth  division,  with  General  Hora- 
tio P.  VanClove  in  command,  and  in  the  Fourteenth  brigade 
commanded  by  Colonel  Pierce  B.  Hawkins,  of  the  Eleventh 
Kentucky  regiment.  The  Fourteenth  brigade  was  composed 
of  the  Thirteenth  Ohio,  the  Eleventh  and  Twenty-sixth  Ken- 
tucky, and  the  Forty-fourth  and  Eighty-sixth  Indiana,  and 
the  Seventh  Indiana  battery.  November  5  the  three  grand 
divisions  of  the  army,  hitherto  known  as  the  First,  Second 
and  Third  corps,  were  by  orders  designated  as  the  "Right 
Wing,"  the  "Center  "  and  the  "Left  Wing."  On  November 
18  the  Fifty-ninth  Ohio  which  was  in  the  Eleventh  brigade, 
Fifth  division,  exchanged  places  with  the  Eleventh  Ken- 
tucky, and  Colonel  James  P.  Fyffe,  of  the  Fifty-ninth,  suc- 
ceeded Colonel  Hawkins  in  command  of  the  Fourteenth 
brigade.  November  22  the  Twenty -sixth  Kentucky  was  sent 
to  Bowling  Green,  leaving  the  Fourteenth  brigade  with  but 
four  regiments.  General  George  H.  Thomas,  who  up  to 
November  5  had  been  second  in  command  of  the  entire  army, 
was  assigned  to  command  the  "Center,"  General  A.  McD. 
McCook  the  "Right  Wing,"  and  General  Thomas  L.  Crit- 
tenden the  "Left  Wing."  December  19  a  change  was  made 
in  numbering  the  divisions  and  brigades.  The  consecutive 
numbering  was  di.scontinued.  Divisions  were  numbered,  be- 
ginning with  the  First  in  each  corps  or  grand  division,  and 
brigades  in  the  same  manner,  beginning  with  the  First  in 
each  division,  and  numbered  from  right  to  left.  Flags  of 
various  designs  were  used  to  designate  the  different  head- 
quarters. 

Thus  on  the  26th  of  December  the  Eighty-sixth  was 
in  the  Second  brigade,  Colonel  J.  P.  Fyffe,  command- 
ing, the  Third  division,  General  H.  P.  VanCleve  in  com- 
mand, and  the  "Left  Wing  "  of  the  Fourteenth  Army  Corps, 
Department  of  the  Cumberland,  with  General  T.  L.  Critten- 
den in  command.  The  officers  in  command  of  the  regiments 
com])osing  the  brigade  were  Colonel  W.  C.  Williams,  of  the 
Forty-fourtli  Indiana,  Colonel  O.  S.  Hamilton,  of  the  Eighty- 
sixth  Indiana,  Colonel  J.  G.  Hawkins,  of  the  Thirteenth  Ohio, 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  95 

Lieutenant  Colonel  William  Howard,  of  the  Fifty-ninth  Ohio, 
and  Captain  G.  R.  Swallow,  of  the  Seventh  Indiana  Battery. 

On  December  24,  General  Crittenden  with  Generals 
Thomas  and  McCook  received  a  circular  from  General  Rose- 
crans  directing  that  ample  provisions  be  made  for  prompt 
and  rapid  communication  between  theirs  and  his  headquar- 
ters. Staff  officers  were  to  provide  themselves  with  paper 
and  writing  materials,  and  orderlies  and  couriers  should  be 
at  close  distance,  not  more  than  a  half  a  mile  apart,  and 
within  sight  of  each  other.  This  the  General  considered  of 
vital  importance  to  a  combined  movement.  On  the 
same  day  a  general  order  was  issued  that  the  army 
should  move  at  daylight  on  the  25th — Christmas— 
but  this  was  countermanded  on  account  of  the 
lack  of  forage  on  the  "Left  Wing. "  The  order  was  renewed 
on  the  25th  for  a  general  movement  on  the  26th.  The  quiet 
of  Christmas  was  therefore  disturbed  by  the  bustle  and  con- 
fusion incident  to  such  an  important  move  as  all  felt  this  one 
to  be.  Three  days'  rations  were  to  be  drawn  and  placed  in 
haversacks,  while  two  days'  more  were  to  be  carried  in  the 
wagons.  Twenty  wagons  were  assigned  to  each  grand  di- 
vision loaded  with  forage  and  provisions.  All  ammunition 
wagons,  ambulances  and  hospital  stores  were  to  accompany 
the  army.  The  sick  were  to  be  sent  to  the  hospitals,  and 
the  Sibley  tents,  and  all  camp  equipage  and  unnecessary 
baggage  to  be  packed  and  sent  back  under  the  guard  of  of- 
ficers and  men  unable  to  march  to  the  front  and  parked  in- 
side the  fortifications  at  Nashville.  The  boys  were  all  busy, 
in  addition  to  their  other  duties,  in  writing  letters  to  friends 
at  home.  That  was  a  heavy  mail  that  started  North  the 
next  day. 

A  pleasant  little  incident  occurred  in  the  Fifty -ninth 
Ohio  on  Christmas  evening  which  the  Eighty -sixth  was  in- 
vited to  witness.  The  citizens  of  Clermont,  Ohio,  had  sent 
that  regiment  new  colors.  On  their  folds  were  inscribed 
"Shiloh, "  "Corinth,"  "Ivy  Creek,"  "Perryville"  and 
"Crab  Orchard,"  the  battles  in  which  the  Fifty-ninth  had 
participated.     The  presentation   speech  was  delivered   by 


96  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

Colonel  Fyffe.  Remarks  of  a  patriotic  character  were  made 
by  Colonel  O.  S.  Hamilton,  Captain  C.  F.  Sheaff,  and  Cap- 
tain W.  C.  Lambert.  Music  was  furnished  by  the  Second 
brigade  band  and  patriotic  songs  were  sung  by  the  men. 

The  morning  of  the  26th,  so  big  with  fate,  dawned 
gloomily.  The  clouds  hung  like  a  pall  over  the  wintry  land- 
scape. Great  drifts  of  slowly  moving  mist  lay  along  the  val- 
leys, while  the  rain  came  down  in  torrents,  that  gathered  in 
pools  in  the  roads,  or  ran  in  streams  along  the  gullies.  The 
reveille,  as  it  rolled  from  camp  to  camp  from  the  drums  and 
bugles  of  more  than  a  hundred  regiments  that  covered  the 
fields  and  hillsides,  had  a  muffled  sound  in  the  murky  atmos- 
phere. Every  officer  and  man  was  busy.  At  the  appointed 
hour  the  "assembly"  was  heard.  The  Eighty-sixth  was 
quickly  formed.  The  bugles  sounded  "forward,"  and  the 
brigades,  and  divisions,  and  corps,  with  swinging  step  filed 
out  upon  the  roads.  McCook  led  the  right,  Thomas  the  cen- 
ter and  Crittenden  the  left.  Although  the  Second  brigade 
started  at  8  o'clock,  yet  it  was  one  of  those  jerky,  exasper- 
ating marches,  so  that  it  did  not  get  fairly  started  until  2 
o'clock.  The  rain  continued  to  pour,  and  the  men  huddled 
down  under  their  ponchos  like  drenched  chickens.  The 
enemy  was  encountered  at  once  and  the  occasional  cannon 
shot  or  a  sputtering  dropping  of  musketry  by  the  skirm- 
ishers of  the  First  and  Second  divisions,  which  were  in  front, 
were  evidences  that  the  rebel  nests  were  being  stirred.  All 
day  long  the  steady  columns  toiled  over  the  broken  country 
and  at  night  bivouacked  in  the  wet  fields.  Such  conveni- 
ences as  shelter  tents  had  not  then  been  introduced,  and  the 
men  were  placed  on  their  own  resources  to  improvise  pro- 
tection from  the  storm  during  the  night.  The  Eighty-sixth 
camped  in  some  woods  where  there  was  much  cedar.  Their 
evergreen  branches  were  brought  into  use  both  for  shelter 
and  beds  and  the  night  was  passed  in  comparative  comfort. 

The  next  day,  Saturday,  the  27th,  dawned  like  the  one 
lx*fore.  The  heavy  clouds  hung  low  and  the  rain  continued 
to  pour  all  day  long.  The  brigade  marched  perhaps  two 
hundred  yards  when  it  came  to  a  halt,  started  again,  and 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  97 

again  halted,  and  marched  and  halted  alternately.  At  night- 
fall the  command  was  but  a  short  distance  from  where  it  started 
in  the  morning.  Slowly  the  columns  felt  their  way  on,  pre- 
ceded by  heavy  lines  of  skirmishers,  driving  the  sullen  and 
stubborn  enemy  before  them.  The  Second  brigade  of  the 
Second  division,  and  the  First  and  Second  brigades  of  Van- 
Cleve's  division,  were  diverged  from  the  main  column  of  the 
corps  and  sent  down  the  Jefferson  pike,  a  road  running 
directly  east  from  the  Murfreesboro  pike  beyond  LaVergne. 
Late  at  night  the  advance  reached  Stewart's  Creek  and 
charged  the  rear  guard  of  the  enemy,  thus  saving  the  bridge, 
performing  the  work  it  was  sent  to  do.  The  Eighty-sixtli 
was  kept  on  the  move  until  2  o'clock  in  the  morning,  although 
but  six  miles  had  been  made,  when  it  bivouacked  for  the  re- 
mainder of  the  night,  utililizing  corn  blades  for  beds  which 
the  boys  found  in  a  barn  near  by.  How  these  blades  had 
escaped  the  eagle  eye  of  the  cavalrymen  ]of  both  armies  is 
to  this  day  an  unsolved  mystery. 

Sunday,  the  28th,  the  troops  generally  rested.  The 
Second  brigade  moved  from  its  camp  to  the  south  about  a 
half  a  mile,  and  formed  in  line  of  battle  near  to  and  west  of 
Smyrna  church,  where  it  remained  all  day.  In  the  evening 
the  regiment  with  the  brigade  returned  to  their  camping 
ground  of  the  night  previous,  but  the  corn  blades  had  turned 
up  missing. 

No  movement  was  made  by  the  regiment  on  Monday,  the 
29th,  until  1  o'clock,  when  the  three  brigades  crossed  the 
bridge  which  they  had  saved,  turned  south,  and  rejoined  the 
main  body  of  their  command  on  the  Murfreesboro  pike. 
General  Crittenden  with  his  three  divisions  advanced  that 
evening  to  within  three  miles  of  Murfreesboro,  and  bivou- 
acked in  order  of  battle  not  more  than  700  yards  from  the 
enemy's  entrenchments.  The  camp  of  the  Eighty-sixth  was 
between  the  railroad  and  the  pike  in  a  cotton  field,  and  on 
ground  now  used  as  a  National  cemetery  where  more  than 
six  thousand  Union  soldiers  have  "spread  their  silent  tents." 
General  Palmer,  who  commanded  the  Second  division,  and 
was  in   the   advance,  repox'ted  that  he  was  within  sight  of 


9S  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

Murfrcesboro,  aud  that  the  enemy  was  in  full  flight.  Gen- 
eral Rosecrans  immediately  sent  an  order  to  General  Critten- 
den to  move  a  division  into  the  town.  Colonel  Harker's 
brigade  of  Palmer's  division,  was  accordingly  sent  across 
Stone's  River — the  stream  being  almost  everywhere  fordable 
— and  drove  a  rebel  regiment  back  upon  the  main  body  in 
some  confusion.  Some  prisoners  were  captured  who  re- 
ported that  Breckinridge's  entire  division  was  there  present. 
General  Crittenden  wisely  took  the  responsibility  of  sus- 
pending the  order  until  General  Rosecrans  could  be  further 
communicated  with.  The  commanding  general  was  con- 
vinced that  a  mistake  had  been  made  and  Barker  was  with- 
drawn without  serious  loss. 

That  night  it  rained  heavily,  drenching  the  soldiers  to 
their  skins.  The  following  day,  the  30th,  was  dark,  gloomy 
and  depressing,  and  was  spent  in  anxious  suspense  as  the 
men  stood  shivering  in  their  lines.  All  day  the  Eighty-sixth 
waited,  the  boys  securing  as  best  they  could  their  guns  from 
the  pccasional  showers  that  fell,  and  many  can  recall  the 
spectacle  of  their  muskets  as  they  stood,  butts  up,  with 
fixed  bayonets  forced  into  the  soft  soil — an  ominous  crop 
sprang  in  a  single  night  from  fallow-fields,  awaiting  the 
quick -coming  harvest  of  Death.  The  orders  were  to  be 
ready  at  a  moment's  notice.  The  lines  were  forming.  Bat- 
teries were  being  placed  in  position.  Dark  columns  stood 
noiseless  in  the  rain.  Hospitals  were  established  in  the 
rear,  and  the  musicians  and  other  non-combatants  were  de- 
tailed to  bear  the  stretchers  and  attend  the  ambulances. 
Medical  stores  were  unpacked  and  countless  rolls  of  band- 
ages placed  at  hand  for  use.  Provision  trains  were  brought 
up  and  rations  issued.  Bodies  of  horse  galloped  over  the 
heavy  fields.  Staff"  otticoi-  and  orderlies  from  General  Rose- 
crans' headquarters,  near  where  the  Eighty-sixth  stood  in 
line,  dashed  away  in  different  directions.  The  scattering 
fire  of  musketry  which  came  up  from  the  cedar  woods  far 
to  the  right,  now  swelling  into  full  volleys,  the  heavy  boom 
of  cannon  in  front,  the  bearing  back  of  wounded  officers  and 
men  on  stretchers,    and  the  certainty  of  a  great  battle  at 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  99 

hand,  combined  to  make  all  serious  and  thoughtful.  The 
Eighty-sixth  remained  in  its  designated  position,  calmly 
awaiting  the  storm  which  was  to  burst  on  the  following  day. 

The  army  now  stood  with  its  left  resting  on  Stone's 
River,  and  its  right  stretching  off  into  the  country  as  far  as 
the  Franklin  pike,  making  a  line  three  miles  long.  The 
country  is  undulating,  much  of  it  cleared  but  broken  by 
rocky  ridges  overgrown  with  close  cedar  thickets.  Besides, 
there  were  forests  of  oak  and  other  deciduous  trees.  Per- 
allel  to  the  Union  lines,  and  distant  half  a  mile,  lay  Bragg's 
army,  its  right  resting  on  the  east  side  of  the  river,  while 
the  main  body  was  on  the  west  side.  The  night  of  the  30th 
set  in  with  a  keen,  north  wind,  with  heavy,  threatening 
clouds.  After  dark  an  ammunition  wagon  was  brought  up 
and  each  man  was  supplied  with  sixty  rounds  of  cartridges, 
after  which  such  sleep  and  rest  as  were  j)ossible  under  the 
circumstances,  were  taken.  The  men  slejit  on  their  arms. 
Each  had  his  musket  beside  him  ready  to  leap  out  at  the 
slightest  alarm.     It  was  a  weary  night  for  the  Eighty-sixth. 

Daylight  of  the  31st  found  the  men  standing  to  arms. 
There  was  no  blast  of  bugle  or  clatter  of  drum  for  reveille. 
A  hasty  breakfast  of  coffee,  hardtack  and  bacon  was  pre- 
pared and  quickly  eaten.  Their  morning  service  consisted 
in  listening  to  the  Adjutant  read  General  Rosecrans'  "Grace 
of  God  "  battle  order.  Prom  out  the  raw  mists  that  for  a 
time  hung  over  the  field  came  resonant  cheers  as  the  stirring 
words  were  read  to  regiment,  detachment  and  battery.  The 
General  came  riding  by  and  in  encouraging  words  said: 
"Boys,  stand  like  men.  Pire  low,  and  make  every  shot 
count. " 

Just  here  an  unpleasant  incident  occurred,  and  as  it  is  a 
leaf  in  the  history  of  the  regiment  it  is  proper  that  it  should 
be  mentioned.  Colonel  O.  S.  Hamilton,  who  had  command 
of  the  regiment,  a  courageous-  but  inexperienced  officer,  was 
ordered  by  General  VanCleve,*  the  division  commander,  to 


*It  is  the  recollection  of  some  of  the  men  that  this  order  was  given  by  Colonel 
Fyffe,  the  brigade  commander;  others  that  it  was  General  VanCleve. 


100  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

perform  certain  evolutions.  After  several  attempts  Colonel 
Hamilton  signally  failed,  whereupon  he  was  relieved  of  his 
sword  and  his  command.  The  command  of  the  regiment  was 
at  once  turned  over  to  Lieutenat  Colonel  George  F.  Dick,  a 
skillful,  experienced  and  well  trained  officer  who  had  served 
both  as  Cai)tain  and  as  Major  in  the  Twentieth  Indiana 
regiment,  and  came  to  the  Eighty-sixth  with  his  com- 
mission on  the  17th  of  November.  The  action  of  Gen- 
eral VanCleve  was  wholly  a  surprise  to  both  Hamilton 
and  Dick,  but  a  step  that  met  the  approval  of  the 
subordinate  officers  and  the  men  of  the  regiment.  In 
justice  to  Colonel  Hamilton  and  to  his  memory  it  should 
be  stated  that  this  unfortunate  episode  was  entirely 
due  to  his  inexperience,  and  was  no  reflection  on  his  courage 
or  bravery.  As  an  officer  he  was  heroic,  intrepid  and  fear- 
less, but  was  entirely  without  military  knowledge  either  nat- 
ural or  acquired.  He  was  bold  to  recklessness  as  he  exhib- 
ited by  his  subsequent  actions.  Mortifying  as  this  must 
have  been  to  a  man  of  his  proud  spirit  he  nevertheless  asked, 
and  was  granted,  permission  to  accompany  the  regiment  into 
the  approaching  engagement  in  a  subordinate  capacity. 
Most  valiantly  did  he  carry  himself  throughout.  Colonel 
PyfTe,  in  his  report  of  the  battle,  generously  makes  special 
mention  of  him,  and  says  Colonel  Hamilton,  although  unac- 
quainted with  military  matters,  was  present  throughout  as- 
sisting all  in  his  powers.  This  affair,  however,  greatly  hum- 
iliated and  chagrined  him  and  he  soon  relinquished  command 
of  the  regiment.  He  returned  to  his  home  at  Lebanon  where 
he  died  a  few  years  ago  a  disappointed  and  broken-hearted 
man. 

It  was  this  ground  that  General  Bragg  had  deliberately 
chosen  whereon  to  stand  and  fight.  General  Rosecrans  had 
planned  that  General  McCook,  who  commanded  the  "Right 
Wing"  .should  occupy  the  most  advantageous  position  possi- 
ble, and  fight  to  hold  it.  General  Thomas  was  to  open  with 
skii-iiiishing,  and  engage  the  enemy's  center.  General  Crit- 
t(Mulen.  of  the  "Left  Wing"  was  to  cross  General  Van- 
Cleve's  division  over  the  river  at  a  place  known  as  the  lower 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  101 

ford,  covered  and  supported  by  the  sappers  and  miners,  and 
to  advance  on  Breckinridge  who  commanded  the  enemy's 
left,  the  only  rebel  division  on  that  side  of  the  river.  Gen- 
eral Wood's  division  was  to  follow  General  VanCleve  by 
brigade,  and  cross  at  the  upper  ford.  Wood  was  to  take  posi- 
tion on  VanCleve 's  right,  and  the  two  divisions,  supported  by 
Palmer,  were  to  fall  with  overwhelming  force  in  front  and 
flank,  crush  Breckinridge,  sweep  through  Murfreesboro,  and 
gain  the  rear  of  the  enemy's  center  and  left,  push  him  oif  his 
natural  line  of  retreat,  and  thus  destroy  his  entire  army. 
The  plan  was  a  skillful  one,  but  Bragg,  however,  had  already 
decided  to  fight  his  own  battle  and  not  the  one  Rosecrans  had 
planned.  He  had  a  similar  one  of  his  own,  by  which  he 
hoped  to  double  up  his  adversary's  right  by  a  secret  concen- 
tration of  a  heavy  force  against  it.  To  this  end  he  had 
massed  heavily  on  his  left  where  Hardee  was  in  command, 
with  orders  to  attack  McCook  at  daylight.  Bragg  struck 
he  first  blow. 

According  to  the  plans  of  General  Rosecrans,  McCook, 
however  strongly  assailed,  was  to  hold  his  position 
for  three  hours,  and  to  recede — if  attacked  in  overwhelming 
force — very  slowly,  and  to  fight  desperately,  which  he  had 
undertaken  to  do.  Bragg 's  order  was,  that  at  day -break  the 
whole  line,  beginning  at  the  extreme  left,  with  Hardee's 
corps,  and  followed  by  Polk's,  should  move  forward  on  Mc- 
Cook's  extreme  right,  and  bear  it  back,  crumbling  it  in  the 
retreat,  till  Rosecrans'  army  should  stand  with  its  rear  to  the 
river.  In  double  lines,  the  rebel  hosts  came  on,  swift  and  terri- 
ble as  in-rolling  billows.  General  Johnson  who  commanded 
a  division  in  McCook 's  corps  on  the  extreme  right,  and  who 
was  wholly  unprepared  for  the  sudden  onset,  was  crushed 
with  a  single  blow,  the  enemy  sweeping  over  his  batteries 
with  wild  hurrahs.  Jeff  C.  Davis's  division  was  next  hurled 
back  over  the  field.  Like  a  swift  succeeding  wave  the  last 
division  of  the  "  Right  Wing, "  Sheridan's,  was  struck  with 
the  same  desperation.  Sheridan  fought  with  equal  persist- 
ence and  determination.  The  slaughter  was  horrible.  Three 
times  did  the  determined  enemy  advance,  and  as  often  was 


102  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

compelled  to  fall  back.  Finally  Sheridan's  ammunition  gave 
out,  and  he,  too.  was  compelled  to  fall  back,  leaving  nine  guns, 
which  he  could  not  get  through  the  dense  cedar  thickets,  in 
the  hands  of  the  rebels.  The  "Right  Wing"  was  now  all 
gone,  and  the  onset  that  had  borne  it  backward  fell  with  un- 
broken fury  on  the  "Center."  General  Rousseau,  whocom- 
numdod  a  division  of  reserves,  was  ordered  up  to  the  sup- 
port of  the  right  "Center  "  which  was  then  in  peril. 

The  movement,  according  to  General  Rosecrans'  original 
plan,  had  begun  on  the  "Left"  by  General  VanCleve.  Colonel 
Sam  Beatty's  First  brigade.  Colonel  S.  W.  Price's  Third 
brigade,  and  Captain  G.  R.  Swallow's  Seventh  Indiana  bat- 
tery, had  moved  across  the  river  and  formed  in  line.  Colonel 
J.  P.  Fyffe's  Second  brigade  had  just  reached  the  river,  and 
was  in  the  act  of  crossing,  when  an  order  flew  to  VanCleve 
to  suspend  the  movement,  leave  one  brigade  at  the  river, 
send  another  with  a  battery  on  double  quick  time  to  the  rear 
to  save  the  wagon  train  which  had  been  attacked  by  Wheel- 
er's cavalry,  and  another  to  the  support  of  the  right.  Col- 
onel Price  was  left  at  the  river.  Colonel  Beatty  was  sent  on 
double  quick  to  assist  General  Rousseau,  who  by  this  time 
was  hotly  engaged.  Colonel  Fyffe's  brigade  with  Captain 
Swallow's  battery  were  sent  to  the  rear  in  hot  haste.  Knap- 
sacks, blankets,  overcoats  and  even  canteens  were  scattered 
to  the  winds  on  the  way.  After  tramping  on  a  hop,  skip  and 
jump  gait  for  about  a  mile  in  pell  mell  order  the  brigade 
came  out  into  an  open  field,  formed  in  line  of  battle  perpen- 
dicular to  the  road,  on  the  left.  The  rebel  cavalry  had  cap- 
tured the  train,  but  the  corn  field  was  soft  and  their  progress 
was  slow.  A  few  shots  from  Swallow^ 's  battery  sent  Wheeler 
flying  over  the  fields  and  the  train  was  recaptured'.  At  this 
point  Colonel  Fyffe  received  an  order  from  General  VanCleve 
to  join  the  First  brigade  which  had  taken  position  on  the 
right  of  General  Rousseau.  Back  the  brigade  started  on 
double  quick.  The  fugitives  by  this  time  had  darkened  the 
fields,  and  the  panic  stricken  trains  had  blocked  the  roads. 
On  the  brigade  went  through  wild  confusion  and  demoral- 
ized stragglers.     The  cedar  thickets  were  ablaze  with  musk- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  103 

etry,  the  earth  was  black  with  broken  battalions,  among 
which  artillery  wagons  were  plunging,  and  the  chaos  and 
wreck  of  a  seemingly  lost  battle-field  were  to  be  seen  in  evi- 
dence everywhere.  Into  that  vortex  of  death  the  Eighty- 
sixth  went. 

The  brigade  was  formed  in  two  lines,  the  Forty-fourth 
Indiana  and  the  Fifty-ninth  Ohio  in  front,  and  the  Thirteenth 
Ohio  and  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  in  support.  The  four 
regiments  advanced  through  the  tangled  cedar  thicket  as 
best  they  could.  There  was  but  little  undergrowth,  but  the 
whole  surface  was  a  continuous  ledge  of  outcropping  rock 
on  which  only  the  hardy  cedar  could  find  foothold  and  sus- 
tenance. In  their  immediate  front  there  was  a  lull.  They 
emerged  from  the  thicket  into  an  open  field  of  sedge.  The 
occasional  musket  shots  which  came  across  that  field  were 
but  the  advance  messengers  of  the  impending  storm.  The 
lines  advanced,  halted  and  laid  down.  They  advanced  again 
and  again  until  the  skirt  of  the  wood  was  reached.  The 
front  line  had  advanced  some  distance  in  the  wood  while  the 
second  was  at  the  fence.  Every  nerve  was  at  its  highest 
tension.  The  ball  opened.  Then  it  was  work,  desperate 
and  furious.  The  enemy  came  up  in  magnificent  order,  four 
lines  deep,  and  his  opening  fire  was  like  the  opening  jaws  of 
hell.  It  had  been  discovered  that  the  brigade  had  been  sent 
beyond  supporting  columns.  It  was  a  duel  to  death,  but  the 
murderous  flanking  fire  was  more  than  human  flesh  and 
blood  could  withstand,  and  the  brigade,  rent  and  distorted, 
reeled  and  fell  back.  It  was  a  scene  appalling  in  its  atrocity 
and  was  enough  to  daunt  the  stoutest  heart.  The  two  color 
bearers  of  the  Eighty -sixth  were  shot  down  and  its  colors  left 
on  the  field.*  At  every  step  men  fell  like  wheat  before  the 
sickle.  The  Eighty-sixth  lost  more  than  half  its  force.  The 
enemy  had  swept  everything  before  him  thus  far  and  doubt- 
less felt  that  with  renewed  effort  the  successful  issue  of  the 


*  Tlie  colors  fell  into  the  hands  of  Sergent  John  F.  Lovin.  Company  B,  Third 
Confederate  regiment,  which  was  iu  Woods'  brigade,  of  Cleburne's  division,  Har- 
dee's corps. 


104  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

battle  was  within  his  grasp.  Emerging  from  the  woods  with 
yell  after  yell,  tiring  as  he  came,  the  enemy  rushed  forward 
in  the  attempt  to  cross  the  open  field  and  drive  back  a  new 
line,  of  which  the  remnants  of  the  torn  and  bleeding  Second 
brigade  foi-med  a  part,  and  which  stood  in  the  way  to  final 
victory. 

That  the  brigade  was  without  support  on  the  right  was 
a  bhiiid(M-  for  wliich  in  the  confusion  and  excitement  of  the 
rapid  and  varying  movements  perhaps  no  one  particularly 
should  be  censured.  General  VanCleve,  in  his  report  says 
that  he  had  information  from  General  Rosecrans  that  Gen- 
eral Rousseau,  on  his  left  was  driving  the  enemy.  This  in- 
formation was  accompanied  with  an  order  to  press  him  hard. 
It  was  in  compliance  with  these  orders  that  the  First  and 
Second  brigades  were  ordered  to  advance.  Colonel  Fyffe, 
in  his  report,  says  he  had  assurances  that  Colonel  Harker, 
wlio  commanded  a  brigade  in  Wood's  division,  would  support 
his  right.  Fylfe  then  says:  "The  division  began  advancing 
down  the  slope  of  the  cedar  ridge  south  of  the  road,  passing 
Colonel  Barker's  on  my  right,  beyond  the  foot  of  the  slope. 
After  passing  his  brigade,  which  did  not  move,  my  right 
liank  became  exposed,  with  strong  indications  of  a  heavy 
force  approaching  in  front,  extending  beyond  my  right 
flank.  As  we  continued  advancing,  I  sent  three  different 
messengers  by  my  aides,  calling  Colonel  Harker's  attention 
to  my  exposed  flank,  and  at  length  reported  in  per- 
son to  General  VanCleve.  While  doing  this  the  Sixty-fifth 
Ohio,  which,  it  ajipeared,  had  been  lying  down  at  the  edge 
of  the  field,  rose  to  their  feet  where  a  force  was  needed. 
Supposing  it  would  remain  there,  I  passed  back  to  my  posi- 
tion, to  see  the  Sixty-fifth  march  by  the  right  flank  back  to 
Colonel  Harker's  left."  Major  H.  N.  Whitebeck,  of  the 
Sixly-tiflh  Ohio,  *  says  his  regiment  marched  by  the  right 

*  'l  ">"/  l'«  stilted  horp  Uiiit  tlio  Sixty-fifth  Oliio  is  the  resimentof  which  Liou- 
tonjMit  (  oloiH'l  Hinm.-m.  liic  :mthnr  nf  tliat  most  popTiiar  and  widely  read  lM)nl<. 
<  orpnral  M  KIcLrtraiid  Ills  j'ard."  wasaiiicmlxT.  Colcincl  Uiiimaiia;i  llial  tiiiir 
was  a  Mfiilciiaiil  lii  Coiiipaiiy  K.  and  is  niciit  loiicd  liy  ("nlotiid  llail.ci.  liis  Ini.'-adc 
.•onmiaiKlcr.  for  ronspicuous  -allanliy  on  1  he  sUirinisli  lim>.  In  llic  o.-caiis  <ir 
war  iMfraiiirc  that  liavc  llondcd  th,.  .•ouiiliy  since  tliosc  mcnioiahlc  days  tlic 
stalcitiYtil  is  ventured  that  none  eciuals  in  popidarily  t  liat  liooU  of  7(M)  padres.  It. 
s  popjihir  I.ecause  it  so  vividly  portrays  tlie  actualities  and  the  every-day  life  of 
a  nulllon  volunteers. 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  105 

flank  to  the  sujtport  of  the  Sixth  Ohio  battery.  It  must  have 
been  that  movement  to  which  Colonel  Fyffe  refers  when  he 
saw  the  Sixty-fifth  march  away  by  the  right  flank.  Colonel 
Harker  says:  "While  this  movement  was  being  executed,  a 
staff  officer  from  the  command  on  my  left  (Fyffe 's)  reported 
a  strong  force  of  the  enemy  in  his  front.  I  replied  thay  my 
right  was  in  danger,  and  that  a  strong  force  and  battery 
were  in  front.  "  Colonel  Fyffe's  statement  that  he  appealed 
to  Colonel  Harker  for  support  is  thus  confirmed  by  Harker 
himself,  but  it  seems  his  own  command  was  in  a  most  pre- 
carious situation.  Fyffe's  brigade  was  in  advance  of  Bar- 
ker's a  considerable  distance,  thrown  out  upon  assurances 
and  in  the  belief  that  it  would  have  sufficient  support.  When 
Colonel  Fyffe  discovered  that  he  was  not  to  have  the  prom- 
ised support,  he  sent  Lieutenant  Temple,  of  his  staff,  to 
Lieutenant  Colonel  Dick  with  orders  to  wheel  the  Eighty- 
sixth  to  the  right,  and  place  it  in  the  woods  to  secure  his 
flank.  "  Before  the  order  reached  him, "  continues  Colonel 
Fyffe,  "the  enemy  appeared  coming  through  the  woods." 
The  brigade  fell  back,  but  in  the  recession  its  distance  to  the 
rear  was  as  much  too  great  as  was  its  distance  to  the  front, 
and  in  turn  Harker's  left  flank  became  exposed.  With, his 
right  threatened,  and  his  left  already  turned,  Harker's  brig- 
ade receded.  As  before  stated  a  new  line  was  formed  in  the 
cedar  thicket,  a  stand  was  made  and  the  ground  hotly  con- 
tested, and  the  enemy  driven  back  across  the  field. 

As  the  sun  sank  to  rest  that  31st  of  December  his  last 
look  fell  on  a  ghastly  spectacle.  The  earth,  torn,  trampled 
and  red,  lay  piled  with  thousands — some  still  and  calm,  as  if 
in  sleep,  others  mangled  and  blown  into  fragments,  while 
bleeding  arms  and  legs,  without  owners,  lay  scattered  on 
every  side.  Dead  horses  and  shattered  gun  carriages  helped 
to  swell  the  frightful  wreck,  over  which  darkness,  in  mercy, 
drew  its  pall. 

But  the  cessation  of  the  battle  and  the  coming  of  night 
did  not  release  the  Eighty-sixth  and  its  colleagues  of  the 
brigade  and  division  from  their  position.  They  were  no 
longer  required  to  lie  prone  on  the  cold,  bare  ground,   but 


106  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

were  compelled  to  stand  without  fire,  with  a  hoar  frost  falling, 
until  the  coming  of  the  new  year,  when  they  w^ere  allowed 
to  fall  back  about  a  half  a  mile  where  fires  were  built  from  a 
convenient  cedar  fence  and  where  they  lay  till  morning. 

Four  months  before  the  Eighty-sixth  had  entered  the 
field  with  a  thousand  men.  Disability,  disease  and  death  had 
decimated  its  ranks  until  that  morning  it  numbered  368,  in- 
chiding  oificers.  The  aggregate  loss  on  that  bloody  day  was 
194,  ten  more  than  half.  When  the  roll  was  called  on  New 
Year's  morning,  1863,  but  one  hundred  and  seventy -four 
officers  and  men  answered  to  their  names. 

In  the  list  of  dead  on  the  field  were  the  following  heroic 
names: 

Company  A. — First  Lieutenant  George  W.  Smith, 
"  "  — Thomas  S.  Hester, 

"  —Robert  W.  Myers, 
"  " — Richard  A.  Stowers, 

"         B. — Lewis  Heintz, 
"  "  — George  E.  Armor, 

"  —Richard  C.  Crowell, 
"  —Anthony  M.  Saxon, 
C— Edward  Blanchfill, 
" —William  J.  Boord, 
"  "  — Derrick  V.  Labaw. 

"  —William  H.  H.  Martin, 
"  "  — Ben j  amin  Trullinger, 

D.— William  Lamb, 
"  " — Jackson  Jacobs, 

"— Nathan  C.  Pringle, 
"         E. — Abram  Fisher, 
"  "  — James  H.  Clinton, 

" — William  B.  Fleming, 
F.— John  M.  Wilson, 
"  —William  C.  Stogdill, 
"  — Robert  H.  Creamer, 
" —Henry  W.  Davis, 
" —Edwin  P.  Stephenson. 
"— James  O.  Tolin, 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  107 

Company  F. — James  M.  Wilkins, 
"         G. — James  Cambridge, 

"  —William  T.  Whitesell, 
H.— Timothy  S.  Roush, 
K.— Martin  L.  Williams— 30. 

The  following  are  the  names  of  those  who  were  mortally 
wounded : 

Company  A.-^FloydN.  Worrell, 
"  "  — John  A.  Feeley, 

B. — John  A.  Cozad, 
D.— Charles  W.  B.  Gilger, 
"  "  — J  amis  Guest, 

"  "  ■ — John  A.  Johnson, 

"  F. — George  Baldwin, 

" —John  C.  Beard, 
H.— LeviLidy, 
I.— John  H.  Stook, 
"  K. — Bartholomew  Green — 12. 

Lieutenant  Colonel  Dick  reported  thirty-three  enlisted 
men  killed.  This  included  those  who  died  of  wounds  the 
following  day.  Others  died  from  the  same  cause  after  his 
report  had  been  submitted,  so  that  it  would  make  of  killed 
and  mortally  wounded  a  total  of  41.  The  wounded  numbered 
54,  many  of  whom  were  afterwards  discharged.  Five  officers 
were  wounded,  though  none  seriously.  Ninety-nine  men  and 
two  officers  were  captured. 

Lieutenant  Colonel  Dick,  who  had  command  of  the  regi- 
ment, thus  speaks  of  this  part  of  the  battle  in  his  report  to 
Colonel  James  P.  Fyffe: 

"My  command  arrived  in  front  of  Murfreesboro  at  8  p.  m.,  Decem- 
ber 30,  1862.  On  the  following  morning-  the  regiment  numbered  368, 
rank  and  file.  About  noon  of  December  31,  with  the  brigade,  wo  were 
marched  in  line  of  battle  across  the  Nashville  turnpike,  about  one-half 
mile  south,  across  an  open  field  to  the  skirt  of  a  heavy  woods,  in  which 
the  enemy  lay  concealed  in  heavy  force.  My  regiment  was  on  the  ex- 
treme right  of  the  brigade.  We  were  halted  behind  a  fence  at  the 
edge  of  the  woods,  to  await  the  arrival  of  troops  to  come  up  to  support 
us  on  the  right,  who  failed  to  come.     Our  right  was  totally  exposed  to 


108  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

the  enemy,  who  immediately  attacked  us  in  ovei* whelming  numbers  in 
front,  our  right  flank  extending  around  partially  to  the  rear  of  our 
right  wing.  Our  regiment  fought  bravely  until  their  ranks  were  being 
rapidly  cut  down  and  thinned,  when  we  fell  back  to  the  turnpike  road, 
where  a  portion  of  them  again  rallied  with  portions  of  other  regiments 
of  the  brigade,  and  drove  the  enemy  back.  Our  loss  in  this  engagement 
was  as  follows:  Commissioned  officers  killed,  1;  wounded,  5;  missing,  '2,\ 
enlisted  men  killed,  33;  wounded,  54;  missing,  ?J9.  Total  number  of  ofH- 
cers  killed,  wounded  and  missing,  8;  enlisted  men  killed,  wounded  and 
missing,  18H.  Aggregate,  194.  Both  color  bearers  were  shot  down  and 
the  colors  left  on  the  field." 

Major  Dwiglit  Jarvis,  who  commanded  the  Thirteenth 
Ohio  of  tlie  Second  brigade,  in  his  report  to  Colonel  Fyffe, 
says: 

"On  Wednesday  at  8  a.  m.,  our  regiment,  under  command  of  Col- 
onel Joseph  G.  Hawkins,  was  ordered  in  from  outpost  duty,  and  took  our 
place  in  line.  Soon  after,  we  started  for  the  south  side  of  Stone's  River, 
but  got  but  a  short  distance  when,  by  your  orders,  we  countermarched 
at  double-quick  a  distance  of  about  one  mile,  to  a  corn-field  on  the  right 
of  the  Murfreesboro  road,  to  repel  an  attack  of  cavalry  upon  our  train. 
Our  lines  were  here  formed,  my  regiment  occupying  the  right  of  the 
Second  brigade.  The  enemy  being  driven  from  the  field  by  our  cavalry 
and  artillery,  my  regiment  was  not  engaged,  and  about  10  o'clock  under 
your  dii-ections,  took  a  position  in  the  woods  south  of  the  corn-field. 
My  regiment  was  now  ordered  to  cover  the  Fifty-ninth  Oliio,  which  with 
the  Forty-foiu"th  Indiana,  formed  the  first  line  of  attack,  my  regiment 
with  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  on  its  right,  forming  the  second  line.  In 
consequence  of  the  unevenness  of  the  ground  and  the  density  of  the 
thicket,  it  was  difficult  to  keep  our  lines  properly,  but,  on  emerging 
from  the  woods  (cedar  bi-akes)  into  the  open  field  beyond  we  advanced 
regularly  to  the  edge  of  the  next  woods.  The  first  line  having  advanced 
some  twenty  yards  into  the  woods,  my  regiment  was  ordered  to  lie  down. 
Now  it  became  evident  that  the  enemy  was  attempting  to  outflank  us 
upon  the  right;  and  this  was  reported  to  you,  but  just  at  that  moment 
our  lirst  line  was  attacked,  and  it  was  compelled  to  fall  back  in  some 
disorder  and  over  oui'  men,  who  were  lying  close  to  the  fence.  At  this 
moment  our  gallant  Colonel  fell,  mortally  wounded,  while  encouraging 
the  men  to  keep  cool  and  fire  low;  and  the  command  devolved  upon  my- 
self. I  held  the  position  until  the  enemy  completely  outflanked  us,  and 
was  tlK^n  compelled  to  fall  back  in  disorder  to  the  line  of  reserves,  where 
I  rallied  my  command,  and  this  time  drove  the  enemy  back,  they  being 
now  in  the  open  Held,  while  we  had  the  advantage  of  the  cover  of  the 
woods.  We  inflicted  considerable  loss  upon  them  in  killed  and  wounded, 
besides  capturing  some  thirty  prisoners.     My  loss  in  the  engagement 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  109 

was  quite  severe,  Colonel  J.  G.  Hawkins  and  Second  Lieutenant  J.  C. 
Whittaker  being-  killed;  tog-ether  with  twenty-seven  enlisted  men. 
Captain  E.  M.  Mast,  Lieutenants  John  Murphy,  John  E.  Ray,  S.  C. 
Gould,  John  Pox  (since  died),  and  Thomas  J.  Stone  were  wounded,  and 
sixty-eight  enlisted  men,  besides  thirty-nine  missing-."' 

Lieutenant  Colonel  William  Howard,  who  commanded 
the  Fifty-ninth  Ohio,  in  his  report  to  Colonel  Fyffe,  says: 

"On  the  morning-  of  that  day  (December  31)  my  command  was 
formed  at  4  o'clock  in  accordance  with  previous  orders,  and  with  the 
balance  of  the  brigade,  started  at  8  o'clock  to  take  position  on  the  left, 
when  we  received  orders  to  march  immediately  to  defend  the  wagon  train 
against  the  attack  of  the  enemy,  which  was  done  with  promptness,  and 
they  were  driven  back  with  loss,  and  the  whole  train  was  saved.  We 
then  received  orders  to  march  back  and  take  position  on  the  right  of 
Colonel  Beatty's  command,  in  front,  as  our  forces  were  hard  pressed  at 
that  point,  in  line  of  battle,  and  moved  forward  to  attack  the  enemy  ; 
and  after  moving  across  the  woods  we  came  into  an  open  field,  which  we 
moved  rapidly  across  until  we  reached  the  woods,  and  my  skirmishers 
soon  discovered  the  enemy  in  heavy  force  and  in  strong  position  in 
front,  and  fired  upon  him  and  fell  back  to  the  line,  which  I  immediately 
ordered  forward  and  made  the  attack  ;  and  after  firing  upon  them  sev- 
ei'al  rounds,  and  holding  them  in  check  for  some  time,  we  were  forced 
back  by  superior  numbers  about  twenty  paces,  when,  by  the  prompt  as- 
sistance of  my  officers,  we  succeeded  in  rallying  the  regiment  and  took 
position  behind  a  fence,  and  then  poured  volley  after  volley  into  the  ad- 
vancing ranks  of  the  enemy,  and  held  them  in  check  until  Major 
Frambes,  upon  the  right,  informed  me  that  we  were  being  flanked  upon 
that  wing  and  that  the  balance  of  the  brigade  was  falling  back  when  I 
gave  the  order  to  fall  back,  inclining  to  the  right  in  a  skirt  of  woods, 
and  thereby  protecting  to  a  great  extent,  a  flanking  fire  also.  My 
officers  again  coming-  promptly  to  my  assistance,  we  succeeded  in  rally- 
ing again,  and  moved  to  the  right,  through  the  woods  in  front  of  the 
enemy,  and  by  a  well  directed  fire  checked  his  onward  movement,  and 
held  him  in  that  position,  when  we  moved  forward  and  drove  the  enemy 
from  the  field  with  great  slaughter  and  in  complete  disoi-der.  *  *  We 
held  our  position  until  darkness  closed  the  controversy  of  the  day." 

Lieutenant  Colonel  Simon  C.  Aldrich,  who  commanded 
the  Forty-fourth  Indiana,  reported  to  Colonel  Fylfe  as 
follows  : 

"  We  went  into  the  field  on  December  31,  1862,  with31G  men,  officers 
included.  We  took  our  position,  by  your  oi^der,  in  brigade  on  the  right, 
and  marched  in  line  of  battle  through  an  open  field  south  of  the  pike. 
In  passing  through  this  field  we  discovered  the  enemy  making  a  flank 


110  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

movement  on  our  right,  in  a  wood  bordering  upon  the  field.  Intelli- 
gence was  conveyed  to  you,  and,  as  I  understand,  by  you  to  our  division 
commander.  We  made  a  stand  at  the  edge  of  the  wood  in  our  front,  but 
were  soon  ordered  to  advance,  which  we  did.  After  entering  the  woods 
our  skirmishers  were  ordered  in,  as  the  line  of  the  enemy  was  in  sight. 
We  still  advanced  to  within,  as  near  as  I  could  judge,  one  hundred  yards 
of  their  line,  and  opened  fire.  They  replied  and  advanced  their  line;  at 
the  same  time  the  flanking  force  opened  a  galling  cross  fire  upon  us. 
We  held  the  position  as  long  as  we  could  do  so  without  sacrificing  our 
whole  regiment;  we  then  fell  back  to  our  battery  and  formed  line  of  bat- 
tle. We  were  ordered  by  General  VanCleve  to  remain  here  until 
farther  orders.  We  soon  had  orders  from  you  to  join  the  brigade  at  the 
right,  which  we  did.  Here  we  formed  a  new  line,  and  remained  until 
some  time  in  the  night,  when  we  were  ordered  to  march  to  the  left 
again,  where  we  remained  through  the  night.  1  must  here  mention 
that  at  the  first  rally  at  the  rail  fence  was  the  last  seen  of  Colonel  Wil- 
liams. I  suppose  him  to  be  taken  prisoner.  Our  loss  as  it  stands  now 
is,  19  killed,  5G  wounded,  and  25  missing." 

These  are  the  reports  of  the  four  regimental  commanders. 
The  history  of  one  regiment  is  the  history  of  the  four. 
There  is  no  disagreement  in  the  different  reports  but  each 
makes  his  report  from  a  different  point  of  view.  It  will  be 
seen  from  the  reports  of  Major  Jarvis  and  Lieutenant  Col- 
onel Aldrich  that  the  Forty-fourth  Indiana  and  the  Fifty- 
ninth  Ohio  were  in  the  front  line  and  were  supported  by  the 
Eighty-sixth  Indiana  and  the  Thirteenth  Ohio  when  the 
brigade  was  thrown  into  that  seething  cauldron  of  death.  It 
was  a  blunder,  but  perhaps  unavoidable,  due  largely  to  the 
demoralized  and  panic  stricken  "Right  Wing  "which  had 
been  driven  back  with  frightful  loss.  The  recession  of  the 
divisions  of  the  right  had  exposed  the  flank  of  the  "Center  " 
to  which  VanCleve 's  division  had  gone  to  support,  and  with 
the  commanders  of  nearly  all  grades  calling  for  assistance 
the  wonder  is  that  the  error  was  not  more  grievous  and  the 
results  more  disastrous. 

After  recounting  the  movements  of  the  brigade  when  the 
order  was  received  countermanding  the  movement  across 
Stone's  River,  and  double-quicking  to  the  rear  to  save  the 
train,  Colonel  James  P.  Fyffe,  who  commanded  the  Second 
brigade,  says  in  his  report: 

"  At  this  point  an  order  was  received  from  General  VanCleve  to  re- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  Ill 

turn  to  the  Third  division,  and  form  on  the  right  of  the  First  brigade 
in  two  lines  to  support  it;  that  Colonel  Harker  would  support  my  right. 
The  order  was  immediately  complied  with;  the  division  began  advanc- 
ing down  the  slojje  of  the  cedar  ridge  south  of  the  road,  passing  Colonel 
Harker's  on  my  right,  beyond  the  foot  of  the  slope.  After  passing  his 
brigade,  which  did  not  move,  my  right  flank  became  exposed,  with 
strong  indications  of  a  heavy  force  approaching  in  front,  extending  be- 
yond my  right  flank.  As  we  continued  advancing,  I  sent  three  different 
messengers  (messages)  by  my  aides,  calling  Colonel  Harker's  attention 
to  my  exposed  flank,  and  at  length  reported  in  person  to  General  Van- 
Cleve.  While  doing  this  the  Sixty-fifth  Ohio,  which,  it  appeared,  had 
been  lying  down  at  the  edge  of  the  field,  rose  to  their  feet  in  the  place 
where  a  force  was  needed.  Supposing  it  would  i^emain  there,  I  passed 
back  again  to  my  position,  to  see  the  Sixty-fifth  march  by  the  right 
flank  back  to  Colonel  Harker's  left.  The  firing  in  front  of  my  first  line, 
composed  of  the  Fifty-ninth  Ohio  and  Forty-fourth  Indiana,  was  getting 
to  be  heavy,  and  the  skirmishers,  running  in,  reported  a  heavy  force 
advancing  through  the  woods,  outflanking  my  right.  Lieutenant  Tem- 
ple, of  my  staff,  was  sent  at  once  to  Lieutenant  Colonel  Dick  with  orders 
to  wheel  his  regiment  to  the  right,  and  place  it  in  the  woods  to  secure 
my  flank.  Before  the  order  reached  him  the  enemy  appeared  coming 
through  the  woods." 


At  a  meeting  of  the  corps  commanders  at  headquarters 
during  Wednesday  night  it  was  decided  to  fight  the  battle 
out  on  this  line.  It  is  said  that  General  Crittenden  asked 
permission  to  cross  the  river  with  the  "Left  Wing"  and  fight 
the  enemy  as  originally  contemplated.  All  acknowledged 
that  the  prospect  looked  gloomy.  The  enemy  held  two- 
thirds  of  the  battle-field,  and  had  in  his  hands  one-fifth  of 
Rosecrans'  artillery.  About  seven  thousand  men,  one-sixth 
of  the  whole  army,  had  disappeared  from  the  field,  and  were 
among  the  killed,  wounded  and  captured.  It  was  believed 
that  the  enemy  would  renew  the  attack  in  the  morning. 
General  Rosecrans,  finding  that  he  had  ammunition  enough, 
made  up  his  mind  to  fight  it  on  that  very  spot.  It  was  a  clear, 
cold  December  night,  but,  after  midnight,  the  heavens  be- 
came overcast,  and  the  bitter  rain  came  pitilessly  down  on 
the  weary  ranks,  and  on  the  dead  and  wounded  that  bur- 


112  THE  EIGHT Y-SIXTII  REGIMENT, 

dened  the  field.  Having  decided  to  make  the  stand  the  com- 
manding general  began  a  disposition  of  his  troops.  General 
VanCleve  had  been  wounded,  and  Colonel  Sam  Beatty,  of  the 
First  brigcide,  assumed  command  of  the  Third  division.  On 
New  Year's  morning  the  entire  Division  crossed  the  rivei* 
and  took  position  in  line  of  battle  according  to  the  original 
plan.  The  Third  brigade.  Colonel  S.  W.  Price,  held  the 
right;  the  Second  brigade.  Colonel  J.  P.  Fyffe,  the  left;  the 
First  brigade,  now  commanded  by  Colonel  B.  C.  Grider, 
stationed  in  supi)ort  of  the  center.  The  Forty-fourth  Indi- 
ana and  the  Thirteenth  Ohio  were  placed  on  the  front  line, 
and  the  Fifty-ninth  Ohio  and  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  on 
the  second.  Thus  the  forces  rested  during  the  day  with  con- 
siderable picket  firing  in  front,  and  artillery  duels  at  inter- 
vaLs,  whereby  some  casualties  occurred,  but  there  was  noth- 
ing like  a  serious  attack.  The  question  of  rations  became  a 
serious  matter,  and  as  many  of  the  men  had  had  nothing 
since  the  morning  before,  they  did  not  hesitate  to  sample  a 
horse  or  mule  steak  from  the  animals  which  had  been  killed 
in  battle.  The  more  frugal,  those  who  held  on  to  their  haver- 
sacks, notwithstanding  their  store  was  scant,  were  not  re- 
duced to  this  extremity.  At  night  the  men  lay  down  on 
their  arms  again,  without  removing  their  shoes  or  even  un- 
clasping their  cartridge  belts,  ready  to  leap  out  at  the  slight- 
est alarm. 

Friday  morning,  January  2,  was  devoid  of  special  inci- 
dent, save  a  most  tei-rilic  artillery  duel  far  to  the  right.  The 
firing  on  the  skirmish  line  began  early  and  continued  lively 
throughout  the  morning.  Shortly  after  noon  it  became  evi- 
dent that  an  attack  was  imminent.  Colonel  Fyffe  then 
ord«M-ed  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  and  the  Thirteenth  Ohio 
iiilo  the  front  line,  deflecting  the  Eighty-sixth  back,  and 
Ijhicing  it  1m 'hind  a  fence  to  be  ready  to  sweep  an  open  field 
in  front.  At  8  o'clock  the  skirmishers  reported  that  the 
enemy  was  thrcnving  down  fences,  as  if  making  ready  to 
chai-ge.  At  4  o'clock  a  double  line  of  rebel  skirmishes  was 
seen  to  advance  from  the  woods  in  front  of  Breckinridge's 
position  and  move  across   the   fields.      Behind  them  came 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  113 

heavy  colamns  of  infantry,  and  it  became  evident  that  the 
rebel  right  wing  was  bearing  down  on  the  ah'eady  decimated 
ranks  of  tlie  Third  division.  They  passed  the  open  cotton 
fields,  in  three  heavy  lines  of  battle,  the  first  column,  in 
three  ranks,  six  men  deep — the  second  supporting  the  first 
— and  the  reserve  column  last.  Three  batteries  accom- 
panied this  imposing  mass,  as  it  came  down  in  splendid 
order.  They  came  on  with  steady  step  and  even  front,  and 
then,  like  a  swollen  torrent,  flung  themselves  forward  against 
Price's  brigade.  Their  strength  was  overwhelming.  In  a 
few  minutes  the  brigade  gave  way,  and  the  reserve  consist- 
ing of  three  regiments  of  the  First  brigade,  the  Nineteenth 
Ohio,  and  the  Ninth  and  Eleventh  Kentucky,  were  then  sent 
up  and  fought  gallantly.  But  the  three  regiments  were  too 
weak  and  fell  back,  fighting  to  the  river,  Fyffe's  brigade, 
to  the  left,  was  not  attacked  directly  in  front,  but  the  reces- 
sion of  the  right  brigade  forced  it  to  yield  position.  The 
enemy,  however,  received  a  heavy  flank  and  oblique  fire 
from  the  Eighty-sixth  and  Forty-fourth  Indiana  and  the  Thir- 
teenth Ohio.  But  General  Rosecrans  was  prepared  for  this 
movement.  He  hastily  massed  fifty-eight  cannon  on  an  emi- 
nence on  the  west  side  of  the  river,  where  they  could  enfilade 
the  successive  columns  as  they  advanced.  Their  opening 
roar  was  terrific,  and  the  crash  of  the  iron  storm,  through 
the  thick-set  ranks,  was  overwhelming.  It  was  madness  to 
face  it,  yet  the  rebel  columns  closed  up  and  pressed  on  ;  but, 
as  they  came  within  close  range  of  musketry,  their  line 
seemed  to  shrivel  in  the  fire  that  met  it.  They  had  now  got 
so  near  that  the  men  could  be  seen  to  topple  over  separately, 
before  the  volleys.  A  third  and  last  time,  they  staggered 
forward,  the  foremost  ranks  reaching  to  the  water's  edge. 
But  here  they  stopped — it  was  like  charging  down  the  red 
mouth  of  a  volcano.  Their  broken  and  discomfited  columns 
turned  back  on  their  path,  closely  pursued  by  the  Third  di- 
vision which  had  rallied,  together  with  the  First  and  Second 
divisions  of  Crittenden's  corps  and  the  fresh  troops  from 
the  "Right  "and  "Center."  They  chased  the  flying  foe 
for  a  half  mile,  cheering  as  they  charged.     Darkness  ended 


114  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

the  fight,  and  the  Eighty-sixth  with  its  brigade  and  division 
camped  on  the  field. 

Lieutenant  Colonel  Charles  D.  Bailey,  of  the  Ninth  Ken- 
tucky, in  some  recollections  of  this  famous  battle  printed  in 
the  Cincinnati  Commercial  Gazette,  of  January  6,  1889,  after 
giving  a  vivid  account  of  the  part  taken  by  the  First  brig- 
ade, composed  of  the  Ninth  and  Eleventh  Kentucky,  the 
Nineteenth  Ohio,  and  the  Seventy-ninth  Indiana,  makes  some 
comments  which  will  be  read  with  interest.  Colonel  Bailey 
at  that  time  was  the  Adjutant  of  the  Ninth  and  will  be  re- 
membered as  a  most  handsome  and  gallant  officer,  and  as 
courteous  as  he  was  brave.     He  writes: 

"  From  the  beginning  of  the  enemy's  advance  until  his  sliattered 
columns  regained  the  cover  of  the  woods  from  which  they  had  emerged 
covered  a  period  of  forty-five  minutes — a  segment  of  time  crowded  with 
all  that  goes  to  constitute  war  in  its  most  terrible  aspect.  In  that  brief 
space  some  three  thousand  men  were  killed  and  wounded,  Breckinridge 
losing  two  thousand  and  the  Union  army  about  half  that  number. 
There  was  some  criticism  at  the  time  of  the  battle,  the  spirit  of  which 
has  been  somewhat  crystalized  in  history,  that  VanCleve's  division  did 
not  make  the  resistance  it  should  against  Breckinridge's  onslaught. 
While  losses  are  not  an  infallible  indication  of  the  fierceness  of  a  fight 
or  the  bravery  of  those  engaged,  they  do  show  the  degree  of  exposure, 
and  judged  by  this  test  VanCleve's  division  at  least  did  not  give  ground 
before  it  was  vigorously  assailed.  Its  loss  in  the  series  of  engagements 
aggregated  1,530,  an  average  of  a  fraction  over  117  to  each  of  its  regi- 
ments. *  *  The  division  was  simply  run  over  by  an  overwhelming 
force  specially  organized  for  that  object,  and  the  redeeming  feature  was 
the  gallant  advance  and  desperate  resistance  of  the  three  reserve  regi- 
ments, and  the  fact  that  they  did  advance  and  make  the  fight  they  did  was 
no  inconsiderable  factor  in  the  ultimate  defeat  of  the  rebel  plan.  *  *  In 
many  respects  the  assault  of  Breckinridge  on  that  day  bore  a  striking 
resemblance  to  the  famous  charge  of  Pickett  at  Gettysburg,  six  months 
and  one  day  later,  and  with  the  possible  exception  of  numbers  engaged 
and  the  stake  at  issue,  is  as  much  entitled  to  National  recognition  as 
the  later  event.  Like  Pickett's,  the  failure  of  Breckinridge  was  fatal 
to  the  assaulting  army,  witli  whom  in  each  case  the  first  day's  successes 
had  been  of  a  nature  to  promise  great  results.  Like  Lee,  Bragg  with- 
drew after  tliis  bloody  repulse,  and  what  uj)  to  that  moment  had  been  a 
drawn  battle  with  the  odds  in  favor  of  the  Confederates,  by  the  result  of 
this  one  movement  became  a  Union  victory." 

Lieutenant  Colonel  George  F.  Dick  in  his  report  of  the 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  115 

movement  of  the  regiment  on  the  1st  and  2d  days  of  Janu- 
ary, says: 

"On  the  following  morning-,  (January  1),  we  wei'e  marched  some 
mile  and  a  half  across  Stone's  River  to  the  front,  and  placed  in  line  of 
battle  early  in  the  day,  where  we  skirmished  with  the  enemy  all  day, 
lying  on  our  ai^ms  at  night.  The  next  day  we  occupied  the  same  ground, 
skirmishing  with  the  enemy  till  3  p.  m.,  when  the  enemy  in  vast  num- 
bers attacked  the  right  of  our  line,  composed  of  the  First  and  Third 
brigades  of  our  division,  which  maintained  the  ground,  fighting  obsti- 
nately for  some  time,  when  they  were  forced  to  yield  to  superior  num- 
bers, and  fell  back,  when  our  regiment  fell  back  to  the  high  piece  of 
ground,  near  a  house  on  the  hill,  some  hundred  rods  to  the  rear,  where 
we  again  made  a  stand,  again  rallied  with  other  troops,  and  drove  the 
enemy  from  the  field,  retaking  and  holding  our  former  position." 

The  reports  of  Lieutenant  Colonel  Aldrich,  of  the  Forty- 
fourth  Indiana,  of  Major  Dwight  Jarvis,  of  the  Thirteenth 
Ohio,  and  of  Lieutenant  Colonel  William  Howard,  of  the 
Fifty-ninth  Ohio,  are  substantially  the  same  and  concur  with 
the  report  of  Lieutenant  Colonel  Dick.  Colonel  Fyffe,  the 
brigade  commander,  makes  special  mention  of  a  number  of 
officers  and  men  for  their  conspicuous  commendable  conduct 
throughout  the  trying  ordeal  of  the  many  days'  fighting. 
Among  those  of  the  Eighty-sixth  were  Colonel  O.  S.  Hamil- 
ton, heretofore  alluded  to,  Lieutenant  Colonel  George  F. 
Dick,  Major  J.  M.  Dresser,  wounded  in  the  first  day's  en- 
gagement, E.  D.  Thomas,  who  was  an  orderly  on  his  staff, 
and  color  bearers  Benjamin  Trullinger  and  Nathan  Coffen- 
berry,  who  were  both  shot  down,  the  first  killed  instantly 
and  the  latter  mortally  wounded  in  the  fight  of  the  first  day. 

In  his  report  to  the  War  Department  General  Rosecrans 
says  that  he  fought  the  battle  of  Stone's  River  with  the  fol- 
lowing forces:  Infantry,  37,977;  artillery,  2,223;  cavalry, 
3,200.  Total,  43,400.  His  losses  were  as  follows:  Officers 
killed,  100;  enlisted  men  killed,  1,630;  officers  wounded,  405; 
enlisted  men  wounded,  7,397;  officers  captured,  44;  enlisted 
men  captured,  3,673.  Showing  an  aggregate  loss  of  13,- 
249.  He  thinks  the  enemy  had  15  per  cent,  advantage  in  his 
choice  of  ground  and  knowledge  of  the  country,  and  he  es- 
timates Bragg's  strength  at  62,720  men.      On  the  contrary 


lie  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

General  Bragg  reported  to  the  Confederate  War  Department 
that  his  aggregate  effective  strength  was  37,712,  including 
infantry,  artillery  and  cavalry.  If  this  be  correct,  and  there 
is  no  reason  to  doubt  it,  the  two  opposing  armies  in  point  of 
numbers  were  pretty  equally  matched.  He  reports  his 
losses  as  follows:  Officers  killed,  123;  enlisted  men  killed, 
1,171;  officers  wounded,  659;  enlisted  men  wounded,  7,286; 
officers  captured,  46;  enlisted  men  captured,  981.  Showing 
an  aggregate  loss  of  10,266.  Bragg  estimated  Rosecrans' 
strength  to  be  70,000  men.  He  also  estimates  Rosecrans'  killed 
at  3,000,  his  wounded  at  16,000  and  claimed  to  have  captured 
6,273  prisoners,  making  a  total  loss  of  25,273.  All  of  which 
goes  to  show  that  in  a  guessing  contest  it  is  not  safe  to  rely 
on  the  estimates  of  the  adversary.  Wild  as  Rosecrans  was 
of  the  strength  and  losses  of  Bragg,  he  is  still  nearer  the 
mark  than  Bragg  was  in  estimating  the  strength  and  losses 
of  Rosecrans.  It  is  but  fair  to  say  that  the  Union  losses 
were  greater  than  the  Confederate  losses.  Bragg's  loss  was 
the  greater  in  killed  and  wounded,  while  Rosecrans'  loss  was 
the  greater  in  missing  or  captured.  Rosecrans'  army  was  so 
disabled  that  it  could  not  make  an  effective  pursuit.  But 
this  does  not  change  the  facts  of  history  that  the  battle  of 
Stone's  River,  was  lost  by  Bragg  and  won  by  Rosecrans. 

By  changing  his  plan  of  battle  from  the  offensive  to  the 
defensive  Rosecrans  held  Bragg's  at  first  victorious  columns 
in  check,  and  actually  turned  defeat  into  victory;  and  if  he 
did  not,  like  Alexander  enter  Babylon,  "  the  oldest  seat  of 
earthly  empire,"  he  did  with  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland, 
enter  Murfreesboro,  and  what  was  left  of  the  Eighty-sixth 
Indiana  regiment  was  a  part  of  that  victorious  army.  Who 
among  those  that  participated  in  the  stirring  scenes  of  that 
battle  have  forgotten  the  story?  Oh,  what  a  story  it  is! 
There  is  no  orator's  tongue  that  can  tell  it,  no  painter's 
iH'ush  that  can  depict  it,  a  story  of  devotion  to  country  and 
to  liberty,  to  law  and  to  order,  that  shall  go  down  in  history 
side  by  side  with  the  heroic  deeds  of  ancient  and  modern 
times.  In  song  and  story,  and  marble  tablet,  in  statues  of 
brass  and  bronze,  the  story  of  Stone's  River  will  be  told  for 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  117 

all  the  ages,  for  Liberty  will  not  forget  her  children  until 
Liberty  herself  shall  die. 


CHAPTER  XII. 
WITHIN  CONFEDERATE  LINES. 

A  Trip  Through  Dixie— From  Murfreesboro  to  Chattanooga— To  Atlanta  and 
Montgomery— From  There  to  Richmond— In  Libby  Prison— How  the  Days 
Were  Spent — Released  on  Parole  and  Finally  Exchanged. 

As  has  been  stated  the  Eighty-sixth  had  ninety-nine 
men  captured  on  the  31st  day  of  December,  the  first  day's 
battle  of  Stone's  River.  They  were  taken  in  squads  of  from 
two  to  a  half  a  dozen  while  in  the  effort  to  rejoin  the  main 
body  of  the  regiment  which  had  fallen  back  from  that  fate- 
ful fence.  The  well  formed  columns  of  the  enemy  had 
passed  over  them  and  they  were  generally  taken  in  charge 
by  stragglers,  who  no  doubt  claimed  great  glory  for  captur- 
ing prisoners  already  within  their  lines.  In  charge  of  of- 
ficers and  guards  the  prisoners  were  marched  through  the 
battle-field  over  which  the  "Right  Wing"  had  been  driven. 
And  what  a  field  it  was!  The  ploughed  and  trampled  earth, 
the  shattered  trees,  the  fields  and  woods  strewn  with  dead 
horses,  broken  artillery  wagons,  and  dead  and  dying  men, 
looked  as  if  all  the  forces  of  earth  and  heaven  and  hell  had 
been  striving  for  mastery  in  the  fearful  wreck.  By  the  time 
they  reached  the  Franklin  pike  several  hundred  had  been 
collected,  and  they  were  started  on  double  quick  in  the  direc- 
tion of  Murfreesboro.  When  they  reached  the  Stone's 
River  crossing  they  were  granted  a  breathing  spell,  but  were 
soon  again  on  the  way,  though  at  a  more  moderate  gait. 
Upon  arriving  at  the  city  they  were  placed  in  the  court  house 
yard  which  was  then  enclosed  with  a  stone  fence.  Prisoners 
continued  to  arrive  until  nightfall,  and  it  was  not  until  the 


llg  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

excitement  of  the  day  began  to  subside  did  they  realize  their 
lonclinoss.  That  night  was  spent  in  the  court  house  yard 
wWh  noithor  tire  nor  food,  and  having  been  relieved  of 
lK)nches,  blankets  and  overcoats  by  rebel  officers  who  had 
headquarters  in  the  court  house,  there  was  much  suffering 
both  from  cold  and  hunger. 

Morning  came  and  they  were  transferred  to  an  old  mill 
in  the  southern  part  of  the  city,  where  they  remained  dur- 
ing the  day,  which  was  New  Years,  1863.  That  long  cold 
day  was  one  of  extreme  distress.  At  sunset,  the  prisoners 
were  marched  through  town  and  quartered  in  an  old  school 
house  lot  where  for  the  first  time  since  their  capture  they 
were  permitted  to  have  fire.  Several  barrels  of  flour  were 
rolled  in  and  divided  among  the  men,  each  man  receiving 
about  a  pint.  Lucky  were  the  men  who  had  cups  or  vessels 
of  any  kind  to  store  it.  Water  was  furnished,  and  a  dough 
was  made  on  any  kind  of  a  board  that  could  be  picked  up 
regardless  of  its  cleanliness  or  uncleanliness.  This  soft 
mass  was  wound  around  sticks  and  held  before  the  fire  to 
bake.  It  required  no  appetizer  to  dispose  of  that  half-baked 
paste,  but  like  Oliver  Twist,  they  wanted  more.  While  the 
fire  contributed  somewhat  to  the  comfort  of  the  prisoners, 
yet  the  night  spent  here  was  one  of  sleepless  unrest. 

Next  morning,  January  1,  they  were  placed  aboard  plat- 
form cars  headed  in  the  direction  of  Chattanooga.  The 
weather  was  cold,  and  being  without  blankets  or  overcoats, 
the  ride  was  anything  but  pleasant,  in  fact  was  one  of  abso- 
lute discomfort.  The  train  reached  Chattanooga  about  2 
o'clock  in  the  morning.  In  the  meantime  rain  had  com- 
menced falling  which  but  added  to  the  discomforts  of  travel- 
ing on  a  gravel  train.  The  prisoners  were  marched  to  the 
banks  of  the  Tennessee  river  under  the  shadow  of  Lookout 
Mountain,  afterwards  the  scene  of  historic  interest.  They 
wandered  around  in  the  dark  and  the  rain  until  daylight,  when 
axes  were  furnished,  and  it  was  not  long  until  bright  fires 
blazed  up  from  the  logs  cut  from  trees  which  stood  on  the 
ground,  around  which  the  men  huddled  awaiting  promised 
and  expected  rations,  during   the  entire  day.     Just  as  the 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  .  11 

chickens  were  going  to  roost — there  were  none  there,  how- 
ever— wagons,  with  unsifted  corn  meal  and  sugar,  drove  up, 
and  these  two  articles  were  distributed.  A  load  of  spiders — 
old-fashioned  pot  metal  skillets — were  thrown  off,  and  in  a 
driving  rain  the  men  prepared  the  corn  meal  for  use.  Before 
the  baking  was  done  orders  were  received  to  march  immed- 
iately. Confederate  orders,  like  Federal  orders,  were  not  at 
all  times  promptly  executed,  so  it  was  not  until  3  o'clock  in 
the  morning  when  the  lines  were  formed  and  the  prisoners 
under  guard  started  for  the  Atlanta  depot.  This  time  they 
were  placed  aboard  box  cars.  The  cars  were  of  the  most 
miserable  description,  for  freight  and  cattle.  The  men  were 
packed  so  close  that  they  could  neither  sit  nor  stand  with 
any  comfort.  They  slept  somewhat  after  the  style  of  sar- 
dines in  a  box,  though  not  so  soundly.  With  fifty  or  sixty 
human  beings  crowded  into  so  small  a  space,  carpeted  as  the 
cars  were,  the  atmosphere  soon  became  stifling.  By  the  time 
the  train  reached  Atlanta,  138  miles  south  of  Chattanooga, 
which  was  the  evening  of  the  next  day,  those  cars  had  all 
the  appearance  of  having  passed  through  the  cedar  thickets 
at  Stone's  River.  At  Atlanta  the  prisoners  bivouacked  in  an 
open  lot,  and  each  man  received  a  small  loaf  of  light  bread. 
From  Atlanta  they  were  taken  to  West  Point,  and  from 
there  to  Montgomery,  Alabama,  172  miles  southwest.  With- 
out so  much  as  changing  cars  the  engine  was  hooked  on  to 
the  rear  end  of  the  train  and  started  back.  Arriving  at  At- 
lanta a  camp  was  established  two  miles  from  the  city.  The 
men  were  divided  into  companies  of  ninety,  and  an  orderly 
sergeant  -appointed  for  each  company.  Surgeons  passed 
through  the  camp  looking  after  the  sick,  prescribing  for 
some  and  sending  others  to  the  hospital.  The  stay  here, 
however,  was  short,  as  orders  came  to  march.  At  nightfall 
the  men  fell  in  line  and  marched  to  the  depot  where  cattle 
trains  were  in  waiting  to  take  them,  they  knew  not  where. 

Daylight  on  the  morning  of  January  11,  found  them  at 
Dalton,  one  hundred  miles  north  of  Atlanta.  At  this  point 
the  road  forks,  one  line  leading  to  Chattanooga  and  the  other 
through  East  Tennessee  to  Richmond.     Over  which  the  men 


120  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

would  be  sent  was  the  question  of  the  hour.  Wlien  the  train 
pulled  out  over  the  East  Tennessee  and  Virginia  railroad  all 
knew^  that  their  destination  was  determined.  Sunday,  Jan- 
uary 11,  was  passed  in  Knoxville.  Here  as  well  as  all 
along  through  East  Tennessee  the  loyalty  of  the  people  was 
plainly  evident,  as  w^as  shown  in  numerous  instances.  On 
the  lilth  the  train  bearing  the  prisoners  reached  the  Wau- 
tauga  river  where  the  bridge  had  been  burned  by  Colonel 
Carter  a  few  weeks  before.  Colonel  Carter  commanded  a  force 
of  Union  cavalry  and  had  made  a  raid  through  East  Tennes- 
see destroying  the  bridges  over  the  Wautauga  and  Holstein 
rivers.  This  was  a  part  of  the  plan  of  General  Rosecrans 
to  prevent  re-enforcements  for  Bragg  from  Richmond.  At  the 
"Wautauga  the  prisoners  disembarked,  waded  the  river  and 
marched  nine  miles,  the  distance  between  the  two  rivers. 
After  w^ading  the  cold  waters  of  the  Holstein,  nearly  up  to 
their  necks,  and  waiting  perhaps  two  hours  a  train  pulled  in 
to  carry  the  men  "on  to  Richmond. " 

On  the  morning  of  January  16,  the  train  arrived  at  the 
capital  of  the  Confederate  States.  The  prisoners  w^ere 
marched  across  James  river,  up  through  the  city,  amid  the 
taunts  and  jeers  of  the  throngs  that  lined  the  sidewalks. 
Finally  they  stood  outside  the  walls  of  the  well  known  ware- 
house used  in  times  of  peace  by  Libby  &  Son,  whose  sign 
was  still  suspended  above  the  door,  and  gave  a  name  to  this 
prison  which  will  endure  for  generations.  They  were  as- 
signed to  one  of  the  rooms  in  this  large  building  w^here  w^ere 
confined  several  thousand,  though  they  had  free  access  to  all 
the  rooms.  The  windows  were  secured  by  iron  bars,  such 
as  adorn  prison  cells.  The  building  w^as  surrounded  by  sen- 
tinels, whose  beats  were  on  the  pavement  below.  No  one 
was  allowed  to  put  his  head  close  enough  to  the  bars  to  look 
down  on  the  street,  under  penalty  of  being  shot.  The 
rations  issued  to  the  men  consisted  of  the  half  of  a  very 
small  loaf  of  light  bread,  and  a  small  piece  of  tainted  meat 
from  cow  or  horse  or  mule,  nobody  knew  which,  on  one  day 
and  the  broth  from  this  meat,  thickened  with  rice  and  some 
times  with  beans,  the  next  day.     This,  once  a  day,  consti- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  121 

tuted  the  rations  while  in  Libby  prison.  What  they  lacked 
in  quantity  was  made  up  in  strength,  the  rice  and  bean  bugs 
being  abundantly  able  to  sustain  life.  Here  the  prisoners 
became  intimately  acquainted  with  a  friend  which  stuck 
closer  than  a  brother.  Twice  or  oftener  each  day  he  helped 
them  by  his  presence  to  while  away  a  portion  of  the  long 
dreary  hours,  and  they  even  took  off  their  clothing  to  catch 
sight  of  him.  The  time  was  spent  day  after  day  in  such 
diversions  as  usually  engage  soldiers  in  camp.  Many  whiled 
the  hours  in  repining,  and  every  day  some  one  or  more  were 
transferred  to  the  hospital,  located  elsewhere,  many  of  whom 
died.  Old  letters  from  home  were  read  and  reread.  Scraps 
of  newsi^apers  and  stray  leaves  from  old  books  were  perused 
until  worn  out.  The  roll  was  called  twice  a  day  by  a  ser- 
geant who  was  attended  by  a  strong  guard  well  armed.  And 
thus  the  days  passed.  Prayer  meetings  were  held  every  day, 
and  the  fervent  invocations  that  were  offered  doubtless 
proved  effectual.  At  8  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  January 
29,  all  except  commissioned  officers  filed  out  of  Libby  prison 
for  the  Petersburg  depot  not  knowing  whither  they  were 
bound.  When  the  train  started  in  the  direction  of  City 
Point  from  Petersburg  all  knew  that  their  prison  days  were 
numbered.  At  City  Point  they  were  paroled.  Flags  of  truce 
boats  were  in  waiting.  They  were  taken  down  the  James 
and  up  the  Chesapeake  to  Annapolis  where  a  parole  camp 
had  been  established.  They  remained  at  this  camp  six  weeks, 
when  they  were  transferred  to  Camp  Chase,  near  Columbus, 
Ohio,  traveling  by  boats  to  Baltimore  and  thence  over  the 
Pennsylvania  railroad.  After  a  sta*y  of  two  weeks  here  they 
were  sent  to  Indianapolis  and  assigned  quarters  at  Camp 
Carrington,  Avhere  seven  months  before  they  had  been  mus- 
tered in  and  then  known  as  Camp  Murphy.  An  eight  days' 
furlough  was  granted  the  men  to  go  to  their  homes. 

Thus  terminated  the  prison  experience  of  the  men  who 
were  captured  at  Stone's  River,  an  experience  brief  and  mild 
compared  with  the  months  of  sufferings  endured  by  those 
who  were  in  captivity  afterwards,  but  an  experience  fraught 
with  extreme  hunger,  pinching  cold  and  almost  unendurable 


122  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

hardships.  The  story  of  rebel  prison  pens  is  one  which 
every  true  lover  of  his  country  might  well  wish  were  never 
written,  but  it  is  a  part  of  human  history,  and  as  nearly  a 
hundred  men  of  the  Eighty-sixth  had  a  slight  personal  ex- 
perience it  is  here  given.  Those  who  survived  and  were  not 
physically  disabled  by  the  cruelties  of  which  they  were  vic- 
tims were  duly  exchanged,  and  by  the  30th  of  May  had  all 
rejoined  their  regiment,  and  shared  in  its  marches  and  bivou- 
acs, its  skirmishes  and  battles,  until  its  muster-out  more  than 
two  years  later. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 
STONE'S   RIVER   TO    CHICKAMAUGA. 

six  Months  at  Murfrccsboro— Ciimp  Life— How  The  Time  Was  Employed— The  Long 
Stay  An  Absolute  Necessity— The  Eighty-sixth  Receives  Really  Its  First 
Military  Instruction— Punishment  of  a  Deserter— A  Piece  of  Somber  Romance 
—Other  Incidents— March  to  McMinnville. 

On  the  night  of  January  3,  1863,  General  Bragg  evacu- 
ated Murfreesboro.  He  commenced  the  movement  stealthily 
at  11  o'clock,  gathering  up  his  men  and  guns  so  cautiously 
that  it  was  not  known  that  he  was  gone  until  broad  day-light 
next  morning.  He  was  in  Shelby  ville,  thirty  miles  away,  by 
noon  on  Sunday,  the  4th.  The  facts  are  that  General  Rose- 
crans'  army  was  not  in  a  condition  to  make  an  effective  pur- 
suit. While  the  battle  resulted  in  a  victory  for  the  Union 
army,  it  was  a  victory  dearly  bought.  General  Rosecrans 
had  lost,  in  killed  and  wounded,  nearly  nine  thousand  men, 
besides  over  three  thousand  prisoners,  nearly  a  third  of  his 
effective  strength.  He  had  lost,  in  addition,  fifty  pieces  of 
artillery,  and  over  five  hundred  and  fifty  artillery  horses,  so 
that  farther  pursuit  was  not  only  inadvisable  but  impossible. 
Bragg  retired  so  hastily  as  to  leave  2,600  of  his  sick  and 
wounded  with  200  medical  and  other  attendants.     In  fact, 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  123 

General  Rosecrans  found  the  town  full  of  wounded  soldiers 
of  both  armies  who  were  greatly  suffering  for  medical  atten- 
tion and  the  necessary  comforts.  Hosj^ital  appliances  were 
furnished  the  Confederate  surgeons  so  that  they  could  prop- 
erly care  for  their  wounded  men,  while  of  course  his  own 
wounded  and  sick  were  not  neglected. 

The  army  now  settled  down  into  camp  life  to  recuperate 
and  prepare  for  future  operations.  The  Eighty-sixth  with 
its  brigade  were  assigned  to  a  position  on  the  Maney  place, 
north  of  the  town  and  east  of  the  Lebanon  turnpike.  The 
ranks  of  the  regiment  had  been  decimated  to  such  an  extent 
that  it  presented  all  the  appearance  of  a  mere  squad.  While 
the  loss  of  the  entire  army  had  been  only  about  one-third, 
the  loss  of  the  Eighty-sixth  had  been  more  than  one-half, 
thirteen  per  cent,  of  which  had  been  killed  and  mortally 
wounded,  fifteen  per  cent,  wounded  so  seriously  as  to  dis- 
able them  for  duty,  and  twenty-seven  per  cent,  had  fallen 
into  the  hands  of  the  enemy,  leaving  but  forty-five  per  cent, 
of  those  who  had  responded  at  roll  call  but  five  days  before. 
It  was  indeed  a  time  for  sadness  and  discouragement.  But 
the  remnant  of  the  regiment  bravely  set  to  work.  The 
camp  was  arranged  according  to  regulations,  and  men  and 
officers  entered  upon  their  duties  in  all  their  diversified 
forms — building  fortifications,  scouting,  foraging,  escorting 
trains,  picketing  and  drilling. 

The  life  of  a  soldier  in  time  of  war  presents  two  especial 
characteristics,  and  each  of  these  is  an  extreme.  The 
soldier  is  either  in  the  midst  of  change  and  excitement  in 
which  every  power  of  mind  and  body  is  brought  into  the 
most  active  play  possible,  or  his  life  is  one  of  the  most  ut- 
terly monotonous.  True,  during  what  is  termed  inactive  life 
there  is  a  regular  routine  of  roll  calls,  guard  mounts,  and 
drills  that  serve  to  prevent  complete  stagnation,  but  these 
become  devoid  of  interest  or  pleasure  to  the  very  large 
majority.  Camp  life  becomes  a  weariness  and  a  burden  in  a 
very  short  time.  The  soldier  who  has  tasted  of  the  excite- 
ment of  a  campaign,  and  the  pursuit  of  a  foe,  where  danger 
is  present  all  the  time,   even  though  ho  may  not  like  the 


J  24  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

severe  work  of   the    battle-field,  will  soon  complain  of  the 
dullness  and  routine  of  the  every  day  duties  of  a  regulation 

camp. 

The  Eighty-sixth  from  the  time  it  left  Indianapolis  on 
the  previous  7th  of  September,  up  until  its  entry  into  Mur- 
freesboro,  the  first  days  in  January,  1863,  had  known  nothing 
of  the  monotonous  side  of  the  soldier's  life.  True,  it  was  in 
camj)  a  few  days  at  Nashville  before  starting  on  the  Stone's 
River  campaign,  but  during  those  few  days  the  time  was 
fully  occupied  in  the  preparations  that  were  going  on  most 
energetically  for  entering  upon  that  important  movement. 
The  first  real  and  complete  experience  of  camp  life  that  was 
had  by  the  regiment,  and  in  fact  the  only  one  that  it  had 
during  its  entire  service,  was  the  six  months  in  camp  at 
Murfreesboro.  The  time  here  was,  however,  well  spent, 
and  the  fruits  of  the  work  done  were  of  incalculable  benefit 
not  only  to  the  Eighty-sixth,  but  to  the  entire  army.  It 
could  not  have  been  possible,  for  any  army  to  have  been 
brought  together  with  the  same  number  of  men  as  were  then 
in  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland  where  there  was  so  little 
knowledge  of  drill,  of  guard  or  picket  duty,  as  then  existed 
in  that  army. 

Beginning  with  the  commanders  of  regiments  and  from 
those  down  to  the  privates  in  the  ranks,  there  were  but  few 
who  knew  anything  of  these  duties.  No  one  realized  the  sit- 
uation in  this  respect  more  thoroughly  than  did  Major  Gen- 
eral Rosecrans.  Immediately  upon  the  establishment  of  the 
camps  in  and  about  Murfreesboro,  the  most  stringent  orders 
were  issued  by  the  general  commanding  in  regard  to  daily 
duties.  After  breakfast,  which  was  per  force  an  early  one,  there 
was  the  policing  of  the  camp,  then  guard  mount,  and  after  that 
the  formation  of  the  picket  details,  and  going  on  picket. 
Being  near  the  enemy  the  picket  details  were  heavy  and  fre- 
quent. After  the  guards  and  pickets  were  disposed  of  came 
the  drill  call,  in  the  forenoon,  for  the  company.  Each  com- 
pany was  formed  and  moved  out  to  the  extensive  adjacent 
drill  ground  under  command  of  the  company  officers.  It  was 
an  animating  sight  to  see  each  company  of  the  several  regi- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  125 

ments  of  the  brigade  to  which  this  regiment  was  attached, 
out  for  the  two  hours'  drill.  The  regimental  commanders 
were  also  on  the  field  to  see  that  there  was  no  shirking  on 
the  part  of  either  the  men  or  their  offtcers.  The  novelty- 
soon  wore  off,  however,  and  the  drills  had  altogether  too 
much  method  in  them  to  be  amusing.  Moreover,  many  of 
The  company  officers  took  great  delight  in  the  drill,  and  by 
their  enthusiasm  brought  their  men  to  take  an  interest  and  a 
pride  in  the  work.  Cold  or  hot  the  day,  the  drills  were  warm, 
and  persistent. 

A  rest  was  had  at  noon  for  a  soldier's  dinner.  The 
afternoons  of  four  days  of  the  week  were  devoted  to  regi- 
mental drill  and  two  days  of  the  week  to  brigade  drill.  In 
connection  with  these  drills  for  the  purpose  of  making  the 
officers  more  efficient,  and  at  the  same  time  of  ridding  the 
service  of  men  who  had  no  mental  adaptability  to  the  jirac- 
tical  work  of  military  tactics,  and  yet  held  commissions, 
General  Rosecrans  established  a  military  commission  before 
which  officers  received  a  forceful  invitation  to  appear.  It 
did  not  take  officers  long  to  realize  that  they  must  be  pre- 
pared to  meet  this  commission  and  i:)ass  the  examination,  or 
they  would  have  to  retire  from  the  service.  Even  in  this 
matter,  however,  human  nature  was  brought  out  very  thor- 
oughly. There  were  men  holding  commissions  not  in 
the  Eighty-sixth  alone,  who  never  seemed  to  realize  the 
honor  that  properly  belonged  to  the  commission  in  the 
armies  of  the  United  States,  when  that  commission  was 
worthily  and  intelligently  held.  This  class  of  men,  with- 
out pride  either  for  themselves  or  their  commands,  or  too 
lazy  to  study  when  ordered  before  the  board,  ignominiously 
failed,  and  the  service  was  soon  rid  of  them.  Some  there 
were  who  had  pride  in  their  commissions,  prized  the  position, 
and  worked,  though  they  could  not  put  the  principles  laid 
down  in  the  tactics  into  actual  practice.  There  was  one  offi- 
cer who  was  an  absolute  failure  on  the  drill  ground,  but 
when  ordered  before  the  board,  passed  a  most  wonderfully 
satisfactory  examination  in  answering  the  questions.     He  had 


126  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

absolutely  committed  his  tactics  to  memory,  from  beginning 

to  end. 

Another  order  was  issued  to  the  infantry  regiments  con- 
cerning drills.  It  was  this:  A  detail  of  ten  men,  one  from 
each  company  of  the  infantry  regiments,  were  ordered  to  re- 
port to  some  special  battery  of  artillery,  for  drill  in  artillery 
tactics,  and  after  the  first  ten  had  remained  for  a  certain 
length  of  time  they  were  returned  to  their  regiments,  and 
another  detail  of  the  same  number  was  sent.  These  artillery 
details  were  continued  during  the  time  of  the  Murfreesboro 
camp,  and  it  proved  of  immense  benefit  to  the  entire  army  in 
subsequent  campaigns.  On  more  than  one  battle-field  when 
the  numbers  on  the  guns  of  a  battery  were  too  greatly  dimin- 
ished to  remain  in  action,  men  stepped  out  of  infantry  regi- 
ments and  manned  the  guns  almost  as  effectively  as  if  they 
had  been  originally  mustered  as  artillerymen,  and  thus  bj'- 
their  efficiency  in  that  branch  of  the  service,  saved,  in  manj'^ 
instances,  the  guns  and  the  day. 

Those  who  got  their  instructions  through  General  Rose- 
crans  orders  for  picket  duty,  and  put  those  instructions  into 
active  practice  on  the  outposts  during  the  cold  and  stormy 
nights  in  January,  February  and  March,  1863,  have  doubt- 
less remembered,  and  will  remember  to  the  day  of  their 
death,  just  exactly  how  that  particular  portion  of  a  soldier's 
duty  should  be  performed.  There  was  possibly  sufficient 
danger  surrounding  the  troops  to  make  them  reasonably 
alert,  but  in  addition  to  this  there  was  no  telling  when  the 
•'Grand  Rounds"  would  touch  the  line,  and  then  woe  be  to 
the  officer  who  was  not  fully  awake  and  alive  to  his  duty, 
and  grief  to  the  non-commissioned  officer  or  private  who  did 
not  respond  ])roniptly  when  the  call  to  "fall-in"  was  given. 
Rosecrans,  or  some  member  of  his  staff",  was  apt  to  come  on 
the  line  at  any  time  of  the  day  or  night.  On  such  occasions 
officers  and  men  who  were  conscientiously  trying  to  perform 
their  duties,  even  though  they  might  make  mistakes,  re- 
ceived nothing  but  kind  treatment,  and  plain  straightforward 
instructions  from  the  General;  but  the  instructions  would  not 
be  given  the  second  time  without  being  preceded  or  followed 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  127 

with  a  rebuke.  The  duty  of  the  pickets,  and  all  the  minute- 
ness of  detail  were  as  completely  put  into  daily  and  nightly 
practice  as  they  were  afterward  on  the  field  of  Chickamauga, 
or  during  the  siege  of  Chattanooga  or  on  the  Atlanta  campaign. 

Murfreesboro  was  decidedly  and  emphatically  a  camp  of 
instruction.  Sunday  there  was  no  company,  or  battalion,  or 
brigade  drill,  but  there  was  the  Sunday  morning  inspection, 
the  guard  mountings  in  the  morning,  guard  duty  and  the 
dress  parade  in  the  evening,  as  on  week  days.  For  those  who 
were  not  on  guard  duty,  Sunday  was  spent  in  a  general 
cleaning  up,  a  kind  of  washing  and  scrubbing  day,  and  when 
that  was  over,  there  were  letters  to  write  to  those  who  had 
been  left  at  home. 

The  monotony  of  this  daily  routine  of  camp  was  occa- 
sionally broken  by  the  regiment  being  ordered  out  on  a 
foraging  expedition  that  was  always  much  enjoyed.  On 
those  foraging  expeditions  everything  that  could  be  eaten 
by  man,  horse  or  mule,  was  brought  in.  There  was  not  much, 
however,  excepting  corn,  or  horse  or  mule  feed,  that  re- 
mained on  the  wagons  when  they  were  turned  over  to  head- 
quarters on  the  return.  There  was,  however,  always  a  great 
deal  more  cooking  in  camp  for  a  day  or  two  after  such  an  ex- 
pedition than  there  was  immediately  preceding  it.  There 
was  on  such  occasions  an  odor  of  fried  chicken,  and  fresh 
pork,  and  yams,  and  fresh  potatoes,  and  some  of  the  messes 
could  be  seen  indulging  in  such  delicacies  as  honey  and  pre- 
served fruits,  which  were  not  furnished  on  requisition  by 
the  Quartermaster  or  Commissary  sergeants.  By  this  time, 
however,  in  the  war  period,  officers  had  learned  to  heed  the 
advice  said  to  have  been  given  by  St.  Paul,  to  "eat  what  was 
set  before  you  asking  no  questions,"  for  certain  it  was  the 
men  for  the  most  part  saw  to  it  that  their  officers  were  sup- 
plied as  well  as  themselves.  On  these  forage  expeditions 
there  was  not  unfrequently  a  tilt  with  the  rebel  cavalry  or 
with  a  band  of  guerillas  that  would  furnish  enough  danger 
and  excitement  to  fully  satisfy  for  the  time  being,  any  who 
had  a  special  craving  for  that  kind  of  excitement. 

The  camp  at  Murfreesboro  was  a  reasonably  healthy 


128  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH    REGIMENT, 

camp  and  would  have  been  more  so  had  all  the  officers  and 
men  realized  from  the  outset  the  necessity  of  cleanliness  in 
person  and  clothing  and  quarters.  More  than  fifty  per  cent, 
of  the  sickness  at  Murfreesboro  was  caused  by  disregard  of 
sanitary  measures  in  the  early  part  of  the  encampment. 
These  methods  for  the  preservation  of  health  had  to  be  taught 
just  as  the  tactics  and  guard  duty  were  taught.  To  the 
credit  of  the  Eighty-sixth  regiment,  be  it  said,  it  did  learn, 
though  some  of  the  companies  were  longer  in  grasxoing  the 
situation  than  others.  Human  nature  is  in  evidence  in  the 
army,  as  well  as  in  civil  life.  Mankind  learns,  by  and  by, 
but  often,  too  often,  many  lives  are  lost  before  the  knowl- 
edge is  gained. 

This  army  at  the  time  of  entering  Murfreesboro  had 
not  been  formed  into  Army  Corps,  although  it  was  divided 
into  three  grand  divisions.  On  January  9,  1863,  by  virtue  of 
General  Order,  No.  9,  War  Department,  the  troops  of  the 
Army  of  the  Cumberland  were  organized  into  Army  Corps, 
which  were  numbered  the  Fourteenth,  Twentieth  and  Twen- 
ty-first. Major  General  George  H.  Thomas  was  assigned  to 
the  command  of  the  Fourteenth  corps,  formerly  the  "Cen- 
ter;" Major  General  A.  McD.  McCook  was  assigned  to  the 
Twentieth  corps,  which  had  been  the  "Right  Wing;"  and 
Major  General  Thomas  L.  Crittenden  was  assigned  to  the 
command  of  the  Twenty-first  corps,  previously  the  "Left 
Wing." 

On  going  into  position  about  Murfreesboro,  General 
Rosecrans  placed  the  Fourteenth  corps  in  the  center  of  the 
army  and  fixed  its  lines  and  camp  across  and  betw^een  the 
Woodbury,  Bradyville,  Manchester  and  Shelbyville  turn- 
pikes; the  Twentieth  corps  its  left  joining  the  right  of  the 
Fourteenth  corps  at  the  Shelbyville  road  and  extending 
in  a  continous  lipe  across  the  Salem  pike  to  the  right  until 
it  had  reached  Stone's  River;  Crittenden,  with  the  Twenty- 
first  corps,  joined  his  right  upon  the  left  of  the  Fourteenth 
corps  and  extending  to  the  left  so  as  to  cover  the  Liberty 
and  Lebanon  turnpikes  resting  his  left  at  Stone's  River. 
Thus  posted,   with  the  right  and  left  resting  at  the  river 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  129 

above  and  below  the  town,  and  extending  in  a  semi-circle,  it 
was  protected  from  any  attack  of  Bragg 's  forces  whether 
from  the  east,  south  or  west. 

It  should  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  time  was  midwinter, 
and  that  the  army  had  to  endure  during  the  months  of  Jan- 
uary and  February  such  terrible  storms  of  rain  and  snow 
that  it  was  impossible  for  a  campaign  of  any  extent  to  be 
made.  The  roads,  too,  away  from  the  turnpikes,  were  im- 
passable, and  even  the  turnpikes  over  which  the  supplies 
had  to  be  brought  from  Nashville,  were  torn  up  and  broken 
to  such  an  extent  by  army  wagons  and  the  artillery,  that  it 
was  only  by  the  severest  effort  that  light  loads  of  supplies 
could  be  brought  up.  Another  fact  to  be  recorded  here,  is 
that  the  base  of  supplies  for  General  Rosecrans'  army  was 
Nashville,  and  that  the  only  railroad  between  that  city  and 
Murfreesboro  had  been  torn  up  by  Bragg 's  army  on  its  re- 
treat, the  bridges  had  all  been  burned,  and  that,  therefore, 
wagons  were  the  only  vehicles  whereby  the  army  could  be 
supplied  with  subsistence,  ammunition  or  clothing.  The  sup- 
plies thus  brought  for  such  an  army,  even  only  the  distance 
intervening  between  these  two  cities,  was  meager  indeed, 
until  later  on  the  general  government  had  caused  the  rail- 
road to  be  rebuilt. 

It  was  therefore  a  matter  of  necessity  under  all  these 
circumstances  that  the  army  should  remain  in  camp,  at  least 
a  sufficient  length  of  time  to  rebuild  the  road,  and  to  estab- 
lish at  Murfreesboro  a  depot  of  supplies  from  which  to  draw 
when  an  advance  should  be  made.  An  improved  condition 
of  the  roads,  and  sufficient  supplies  for  the  men  and  animals, 
as  well  as  ammunition,  were  vital  matters  to  be  considered  in 
the  decision  as  to  an  advance. 

Owing  therefore  to  the  enforced  stay  at  Murfreesboro, 
and  in  order  to  guard  against  the  contingency  of  an  attack 
in  force  by  Bragg,  General  Rosecrans  began  at  once  to 
strengthen  his  position  against  any  possibility  of  disaster. 
He  first,  as  nearly  as  possible,  relieved  the  army  of  the  care 
of  the  sick  and  wounded  by  sending  them  back  to  Nashville 
and  northward.     Those  who  were  too  sick,  or  too  severely 


130  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

wounded,  to  be  moved,  were  placed  in  hospitals,  which  he 
had  established  in  unoccupied  buildings  in  the  town.  The 
work  of  fortifying  his  position  was  also  entered  upon  with- 
out delay  and  with  great  vigor.  The  most  thorough  and 
complete  line  of  forts  were  planned  and  built.  Earthworks 
were  thrown  up  covering  almost  the  entire  front  of  the 
army,  and  all  were  so  thoroughly  constructed  during  the  oc- 
cupation of  Murfreesboro  that  it  would  have  been  impossible 
for  an  army  to  have  taken  it  by  a  direct  assault.  Murfrees- 
boro became  under  tlie  direction  of  Rosecrans,  and  by  the 
Avork  of  the  army,  an  impr(ignable  fortress,  which  served 
during  the  remainder  of  the  war  as  a  valuable  position. 

In  the  construction  of  these  works  the  Eighty- sixth  had 
but  little  to  do,  save  and  except  in  the  performance  of  guard 
and  picket  duty  for  those  who  performed  the  labor.  The 
work  that  was  there  done,  however,  was  of  much  value  to  all 
the  regiments,  in  that  it  gave  a  general  idea  as  to  the  con- 
struction of  earthworks,  which  they  afterwards  utilized,  es- 
pecially during  the  siege  of  Chattanooga  and  upon  the  At- 
lanta campaign.  The  importance  of  building  the  fortifica- 
tions M^as  made  sufficiently  apparent  to  the  men  by  reported 
or  rumored  advances  of  the  enemy,  and  by  occasional  raids 
that  were  being  made  around  Rosecrans'  army  by  Wheeler's 
and  Morgan's  Confederate  cavalry.  Brigades  of  the  Union 
army  were  sent  out  from  time  to  time  on  reconnoissances,  and 
each  time  came  in  contact  with  portions  of  Bragg 's  army 
which  were  sufficiently  strong  to  show  that  there  was  great 
confidence  in  their  strength  and  position.  The  portion  of 
the  country  in  front  of  the  Twenty-first  corps,  however,  ap- 
peared to  be  free  from  any  Confederate  force,  except  small 
detachments  of  cavalry  which  were  met  on  some  of  the  for- 
aging expeditions. 

For  more  than  eight  months  after  the  army  was  formed 
into  corps  the  Eighty-sixth  was  in  the  Twenty-first  army 
corps,  the  brigade  and  division  remaining  unchanged.  The 
corps,  division  and  brigade  commanders  were  the  same  as 
before,  excejjt  that  Colonel  James  P.  Fyffe,  who  commanded 
the  Second  brigade,  on  account  of  failing  health,  obtained  a 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  131 

leave  of  absence.  The  command  of  the  brigade  then  de- 
volved upon  the  senior  officer,  which  was  Colonel  George  F. 
Dick,  of  the  Eighty -sixth,  who  retained  it  until  the  army  was 
reorganized  at  Chattanooga  during  the  following  November. 

Colonel  Dick  having  been  assigned  to  the  command  of 
the  brigade,  Lieutenant  Colonel  J.  M.  Dresser,  who  had  been 
promoted  from  Major,  should  have  taken  charge  of  the  regi- 
ment, but  at  the  battle  on  the  31st  of  December  Lieutenant 
Colonel,  then  Major,  Dresser,  was  wounded  in  both  legs,  had 
two  ribs  fractured  and  his  shoulder  dislocated  by  the  fall  of 
his  horse.  This  disability  rendered  him  unfit  for  active  ser- 
vice, when  on  June  2  he  resigned  his  commission.  Captain 
J.  C.  Dick,  of  Company  C,  who  had  been  promoted  to  Major, 
then  assumed  command  of  the  regiment,  and  soon  thereafter 
received  his  commission  as  Lieutenant  Colonel.  At  the  same 
time  Captain  Philip  Gemmer,  of  Company  E,  received  a  com- 
mission as  Major,  but  for  some  cause  was  not  mu.stered  until 
the  following  April. 

Surgeon  J.  S.  Elliott  having  resigned  on  September  26, 
Assistant  Surgeon  Joseph  Jones  was  promoted  to  the  va- 
cancy on  November  15.  Flavins  J.  VanVoris,  a  private  of 
Company  I,  a  thoroughly  educated  and  well  read  young 
physician,  was  on  December  2,  commissioned  as  one  of  the 
Assistant  Surgeons,  the  medical  staff  then  being  Jones, 
Walton  and  VanVoris. 

Adjutant  C.  P.  Rodman  on  May  29  was  promoted  to  the 
Captaincy  of  Company  H,  and  E.  D.  Thomas,  a  private  in 
Company  E,  succeeded  to  the  vacancy,  and  served  as  such 
until  the  regiment  was  mustered  out. 

Kersey  Bateman  served  as  Quartermaster  until  Sep- 
tember 2,  1863,  when  he  resigned.  Robert  Underwood  suc- 
ceeded Bateman  as  Quartermaster. 

The  changes  in  the  line  officers  during  the  spring,  sum- 
mer and  fall  of  1863  had  nearly  been  as  great  proportionately 
as  among  the  field  and  staff.  Several  of  the  officers  had  in- 
curred disabilities  from  the  hardships  they  had  undergone 
and  were  compelled  to  resign.  In  addition  to  Captain  John 
Seager,  of  Company  G,  and  Lieutenant  William  H.  Lynn,  of 


132  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

Company  K,  who  had  resigned  in  November  and  December, 
there  occurred  during  the  first  two  months  of  the  new  year 
the  resignations  of  Captain  Milton  Bell,  of  Company  H, 
First  Lieutenant  Jacob  Palmer,  of  Company  F,  and  Second 
Lieutenant  Oliver  Boord,  of  Company  C.  In  May  Chaplain 
W.  S.  Barker,  and  First  Lieutenant  Jackson  Hickson,  of 
Company  D,  resigned,  the  latter  on  account  of  wounds  re- 
ceived at  Stone's  River,  as  did  Lieutenant  Uriah  Thomas,  of 
Company  B,  in  June,  First  Lieutenant  Samuel  Douglass, 
of  Company  G,  and  Second  Lieutenant  William  J.  Ness,  of 
Company  B,  in  July.  These  officers  all  quitted  the  service 
honorably  and  with  the  regrets  of  their  comrades,  both  of- 
ficers and  men. 

During  the  earlier  months  of  1863,  especially  January 
and  February,  the  official  mortality  throughout  the  army 
was  great.  Shoulder  straps  fell  like  the  leaves  of  autumn 
after  a  hoar  frost.  General  Rosecrans  made  use  of  every 
means  to  promote  efficiency.  Be  was  lavish  of  praise  to  the 
meritorious,  and  utterly  ruthless  toward  the  undeserving. 
By  General  Orders,  No.  30,  dated  February  24,  he  dishonor- 
ably dismissed  fifty-two  officers  of  all  grades  from  Colonel 
down  to  Second  Lieutenant,  for  various  offenses,  such  as 
absence  without  leave,  cowardice  in  the  face  of  the  enemy, 
drunkenness,  disobedience  of  orders,  gross  neglect  of  duty, 
incompetency  and  other  peccadillos  detrimental  to  military 
discipline,  two  of  whom  were  from  the  Eighty-sixth,  Colonel 
O.  S.  Bamilton,  and  First  Lieutenant  John  S.  Armitage,  of 
Company  B,  the  former  for  incompetency,  and  the  latter  for 
abandoning  his  company  in  the  face  of  the  enemy.  The 
fault  for  which  Colonel  Bamilton  was  publicly  disgraced 
was  expiated  in  the  front  line  at  Stone's  River,  and  though 
his  own  officers  and  men  could  not  refuse  their  admiration 
for  his  heroic  conduct,  yet  General  Rosecrans  was  inexor- 
able. In  July  Captain  Nelson  R.  Smith,  of  Company  G,  was 
cashiered  by  order  of  court  martial  on  a  charge  of  drunken- 
ness, while  Captain  William  C.  Lambert,  of  Company  I,  met 
a  like  fate  by  a  similar  process,  on  a  charge  of  cowardice. 
First  Lieutenant  John  Gilliland,  of  Company  I,  was  arrested 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  133 

and  tried  by  court  martial,  charged  with  being  a  deserter 
from  the  Fifty -first  Illinois  regiment. 

The  story  of  Lieutenant  Gilliland  has  in  it  all  the  ele- 
ments of  somber  romance  and  is  of  thrilling  interest.  He 
was  born  in  the  northeastern  part  of  Montgomery  county, 
Indiana,  where  he  grew  to  manhood  with  absolutely  no  edu- 
cation. Though  he  could  neither  read  nor  write,  yet  he  was 
a  magnificent  specimen  of  the  physical  man,  naturally  intel- 
ligent, industrious  and  of  kindly  temper.  It  so  happened 
that  in  1861  business  took  him  to  Illinois,  and  to  the  town  in 
which  the  Fifty-first  regiment  of  that  State  was  being  organ- 
ized. Being  an  intensely  loyal  man  he  enlisted.  The  Fifty- 
first  went  at  once  to  the  front,  and  Gilliland  saw  active  ser- 
vice in  the  first  year  of  the  war,  proving  himself  a  brave 
and  tru^  soldier.  In  1862  he  was  allowed  to  come  home  on  a 
furlough.  While  home  the  Eighty-sixth  was  organizing  at 
LaFayette.  Gilliland  went  up  to  that  city  with  the  boys 
from  his  neighborhood,  and  having  some  knowledge  of  drill 
his  services  were  called  into  requisition.  Not  knowing  the 
enormity  of  the  offense  of  desertion  he  made  the  proposition 
to  the  members  of  Company  I  that  if  they  would  elect  him 
First  Lieutenant  he  would  enlist  with  them.  Ignorant  of  the 
fact  that  he  was  still  in  the  service  they  accepted  his  propo- 
sition. As  First  Lieutenant  of  Company  I  he  commanded  the 
respect  of  his  men  and  the  confidence  of  his  superior  officers. 
His  ability  and  bravery  were  repeatedly  demonstrated,  and 
but  for  his  illiteracy  would  have  made  an  officer  of  marked 
distinction.  All  went  well  with  him  until  the  battle  of  Stone 's 
River.  Just  before  this  memorable  engagement  Captain 
Lambert,  of  the  same  company,  was  taken  sick  quite  sud- 
denly and  was  unable  to  enter  the  action.  The  command  of 
the  company,  therefore,  devolved  upon  Gilliland  and  he  led 
the  men  through  the  battle  with  distinguished  bravery.  Just 
here  Gilliland  made  a  great  mistake.  After  the  battle  he 
very  foolishly  preferred  charges  of  cowardice  against  Lam- 
bert, alleging  that  he  had  feigned  illness  in  order  to  avoid 
the  dangers  of  shot  and  shell.  If  Gilliland  had  not  been  liv- 
ing in  a  glass  house  himself  his  action  might  have  been  rea- 


i:U  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

sonable,  but  as  it  was  it  proved  his  ruin.  Captain  Lambert, 
Avlio  was  cognizant  of  Gilliland's  military  record,  promptly 
retaliated  by  preferring  charges  of  desertion  against  his 
accuser.  He  was  placed  in  arrest,  and  tried  by  court  mar- 
tial at  Chattanooga  during  the  latter  part  of  1863.  In  the 
meantime  Gilliland  was  permitted  to  march  in  the  rear  of  the 
regiment  nominally  under  guard.  The  President  of  the  court 
was  Lieutenant  Colonel  Brown,  of  the  Sixty-fourth  Ohio. 
The  court  arraigned  "Private  John  I.  Gilliland,  Company  E, 
Pifty-lirst  Illinois  Volunteers, "  on  two  charges,  the  first  of 
which  was  desertion,  and  the  second  was  violation  of  the  22d 
Article  of  War  in  that  he  enlisted  and  accepted  a  commission 
in  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  Infantry,  he  being  at  the  time  a 
deserter  from  the  Fifty-first  Illinois  Infantry.  To  the  charges 
and  specifications  Gilliland  pleaded  "  not  guilty. "  The  find- 
ing of  the  court  was  in  both  charges  and  in  all  the  specifica- 
tions, "guilty."  Then  followed  this  aw^ful  sentence:  "And 
the  court  does  therefore  sentence  him,  Private  John  I.  Gil- 
liland, Company  E,  Fifty-first  Illinois  Volunteers,  'to  be 
shot  to  death  with  musketry  at  such  time  and  place  as  the 
Commanding  General  may  direct,  two-thirds  of  the  court 
concurring  therein. ' ' '  Before  the  finding  of  the  court  martial 
could  be  promulgated  it  must  necessarily  be  transmitted  to 
the  War  Department  for  approval  or  modification.  June  4, 
1864,  more  than  a  year  after  he  had  been  arrested  and  eight 
months  after  he  had  been  arraigned,  the  Secretary  of  War 
modified  the  sentence,  upon  the  recommendation  of  his  com- 
manding officer  to  executive  clemency,  on  account  of  his 
good  conduct  in  battle,  so  as  to  restore  him  to  duty  in  Com- 
pany E,  Fifty-first  Illinois  Volunteers.  Finally,  the  order 
reached  the  Eighty -sixth  while  the  army  was  in  Northern 
Georgia.  Gilliland  did  not  wait  to  hear  the  modification  of 
the  sentence.  There  being  no  strict  watch  over  him  he  ex- 
perienced little  difficulty  in  escaping  from  the  army  that 
very  night.  From  that  time  on  nothing  was  heard  from  him 
by  his  comrades-in-arms  or  by  his  family  for  more  than  a 
riuarter  of  a  century.  One  summer  evening,  along  about 
1890,  many  years   after  the   war  had  passed  into   history, 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  135 

Tilghman  Bailey,  of  Company  I,  was  standing  in  front  of  his 
farm  house,  a  few  miles  from  Clark's  Hill,  and  watching  his 
cattle  feeding  in  the  adjoining  fields.  As  he  rested  there 
content  with  his  prosperity,  he  was  approached  by  an  old, 
decrepit,  stooping  and  travel-stained  stranger,  who  was  evi- 
dently suffering  from  consumption.  He  was  poorly  clad, 
but  when  he  spoke,  addressing  to  Bailey  some  common-place 
remark,  his  voice  and  something  in  his  manner  brought  up  a 
flood  of  half -forgotten  recollections.  Sometime,  somewhere 
he  had  seen  this  strange  man  before.  Conversation  was 
continued  on  timely  topics,  and  suddenly  to  Bailey  as  they 
talked,  came  the  identity  of  the  man,  causing  him  to  exclaim 
involuntarily:  "Isn't  your  name  John  Gilliland?"  The  old 
man's  face  lighted  up  at  the  recognition.  Bailey,  of  course 
bade  him  stay  and  he  shared  with  him  the  hospitalities  of  his 
home.  Here  the  story  of  the  wanderer  was  told.  When  he 
left  the  regiment  he  made  for  the  mountains,  away  from  the 
railroad  and  from  any  thoroughfare.  Stopping  at  the  house 
of  an  old  mountaineer  he  told  him  his  true  story.  The  rustic 
of  the  forest  and  hills  gave  him  shelter  and  assured  him  that 
he  should  be  protected  from  both  armies.  And  there  he  re- 
mained for  twenty-live  years.  At  last,  overtaken  by  ill 
health  and  becoming  weary  of  his  voluntary  exile,  and  stirred 
by  the  recollections  of  his  youth  and  the  memories  of  kindred 
and  friends,  he  ventured  a  visit  to  his  old  home,  hoping  that 
he  would,  unmolested,  be  permitted  to  die  in  the  land  of  his 
birth.  The  fruition  of  his  hopes  were  realized,  for  in  less 
than  a  year  afterward  John  Gilliland  was  "honorably  dis- 
charged" by  the  Great  Commander.  Verily,  truth  is  some- 
times stranger  than  fiction. 

Promotions  followed  these  vacancies  thus  created.  In 
Company  A,  Second  Lieutenant  R.  A.  Williamson  was  made 
First  Lieutenant  in  place  of  George  W.  Smith  killed  at 
Stone's  River,  and  Orderly  Sergeant  Perry  T.  Gorham  was 
made  Second  Lieutenant.  Second  Lieutenant  Jeremiah 
Haugh  succeeded  John  S.  Armitage  as  First  Lieutenant  of 
Company  B,  and  Orderly  Sergeant  Matthew  Mclnerney  was 
made   Second   Lieutenant.      James  Gregory,    a  private  of 


136  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

Company  I,  was  promoted  to  the  Captaincy  of  Company  C. 
and  Ser|:reant  T.  F.  Brant  was  made  Second  Lieutenant.  In 
Company  D,  Second  Lieutenant  H.  J.  Gass  was  promoted  to 
First  Lieutenant,  and  Sergeant  J.  G.  DeTurk  to  Second 
Lieutenant.  Second  Lieutenant  J.  R.  Moore  was  promoted 
to  First  Lieutenant  in  Company  E,  and  private  Mahlon  J. 
Haines  to  Second  Lieutenant.  In  Company  F,  Second  Lieu- 
tenant R.  W.  Coolman  was  promoted  to  First  Lieutenant  and 
Sergeant  Wilson  H.  Laymon  to  Second  Lieutenant.  Ser- 
geant L.  V.  Ream  was  first  made  Second  Lieutenant  and 
afterwards  Captain  of  Company  G,  and  Sergeant  L.  G. 
Cowdrey,  First  Lieutenant.  Orderly  Sergeant  J.  R.  Carna- 
han  was  promoted  to  Second  Lieutenant  of  Company  K,  and 
advanced  to  Captain  of  Company  I.  Second  Lieutenant 
John  M.  Yount  was  promoted  to  First  Lieutenant  of  Com- 
pany K.  These  are  substantially  all  the  changes  made  in 
the  roster  of  the  officers  during  1863.  Subsequent  resigna- 
tions and  promotions  will  be  given  in  their  appropriate 
place. 

It  had  been  months  since  a  good  portion  of  the  army  had 
been  paid,  and  General  Rosecrans  became  quite  urgent  in 
his  appeals  to  Washington  requesting  that  a  paymaster  be 
sent  to  each  brigade,  at  least  one  to  each  division,  to  remain 
in  the  field  and  attend  to  preparing  the  rolls  and  the  pay- 
ment of  troops.  The  correspondence  is  spicy.  In  one  of 
his  letters  to  Secretary  Stanton  he  wrote:  "I  have  no  hesi- 
tation in  saying  that  it  is  time  the  public  service  ceased  to 
suffer  from  such  whimsical  or  worse  management.  There  is 
a  screw  loose  somewhere.  My  army  ought  to  be  paid  off 
while  the  roads  are  bad."  He  estimated  that  it  would  re- 
quire $1,700,000,  and  as  the  money  was  in  Washington  he 
could  not  see  why  it  could  not  be  used.  He  brought  the  pay- 
masters and  the  money,  and  the  troops  were  paid  w^hile  the 
army  lay  at  Murfreesboro. 

Governor  Morton,  ever  watchful  of  the  interests  of  Indi- 
ana soldiers,  had  devised  what  is  known  as  the  allotment 
system,  by  which  his  men  could  send  their  money  home  in 
safety.     The  plan  was  in  all  respects  similar  to  bank  drafts 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  137 

except  that  the  men  signed  the  allotment  rolls  which  showed 
the  name  of  the  soldier,  the  amount,  and  the  person  to  whom 
sent,  with  post  office  address.  The  bill  giving-  the  plan  legal 
recognition  was  introduced  by  Senator  Henry  S.  Lane,  but 
by  an  oversight  it  carried  with  it  no  appropriation  to  put  it 
in  operation.  The  Governor,  always  equal  to  the  occasion, 
furnished  from  his  military  contingent  fund  the  means  to 
defray  the  expenses.  Rev.  T.  A.  Goodwin  was  appointed 
Allotment  Commissioner  from  Indiana,  and  the  Eighty-sixth, 
as  well  as  all  other  Indiana  regiments,  availed  themselves  of 
this  plan  to  send  their  money  to  their  families.  The  system 
gradually  extended  to  other  States  until  it  was  generally 
adopted  throughout  the  army. 

A  conspicuous  feature  of  the  Second  brigade  was  its 
band.  Its  music  was  always  inspiring.  Morning,  noon  and 
night  it  made  the  camp  reverberate  with  its  lofty,  patriotic 
and  soul-stirring  strains,  and  the  encore  of  cheers  which 
followed  made  the  welkin  ring.  The  band  had  seen 
service  until  its  instruments  needed  to  be  rejDlaced  with  new. 
About  the  tirst  of  April  a  movement  was  set  on  foot  to  raise 
money  for  this  purpose.  Captain  Sims  circulated  a  sub- 
scription paper  through  the  Eighty-sixth  and  received  a  do- 
nation of  5^66.50,  the  other  regiments  of  the  brigade  contrib- 
uting their  share.  The  new  instruments  were  procured  and 
carried  until  the  band  was  mustered  out. 

Shelter  tents  supplanted  the  cumbersome  Sibleys  dur- 
ing April,  the  order  being  issued  on  the  12th.  Wall  tents 
were  allowed  field,  staff,  quartermaster,  hospital  and  line 
officers,  but  shelter  tents  were  issued  to  the  men.  This  tent 
is  simply  a  piece  of  stout  cotton  cloth  about  two  yards 
square,  with  buttons  and  buttonholes  that  they  could  be  at- 
tached to  each  other.  Two,  three  and  sometimes  four  men 
could  thus  join  as  bunkmates.  The  usual  number  was  three, 
as  then  the  third  piece  was  used  in  closing  one  end  of  the 
complete  tent.  These  pieces  of  cloth,  buttoned  together, 
were  thrown  across  a  x^ole  resting  on  two  forks  set  in  upright 
position,  and  the  bottoms  fastened  by  pegs  to  the  ground, 
thus  forming  a  kennel  similar  in  form  and  size  to  what  print- 


13S  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

crs  would  call  a  small  cap  A.  The  boys  christened  them 
"])up  t(Mits. "  and  it  was  by  this  name  they  were  generally 
and  popularly  known.  Each  man  was  required  to  carry  his 
own  tent.  There  was  thus  no  waiting  for  the  wagon  that 
never  came,  and  the  further  assurance  that  each  night  he 
could  lie  down  with  some  protection  from  either  rain  or  snow 
or  wind.  The  wagon  train  w^as  in  this  way  greatly  reduced, 
which  is  an  important  consideration  in  the  movement  of  a 
large  army. 

In  accordance  with  the  proclamation  of  the  President, 
Thursday,  April  30,  was  observed  in  the  army  as  a  day  of 
fasting,  humiliation  and  prayer.  At  least  this  was  the  gen- 
eral orders  issued,  wiiich  General  Rosecrans  couched  in 
language  most  reverent  and  appropriate.  The  Eighty-sixth 
being  then  without  a  Chaplain,  and  the  only  other  ofdcer 
who  was  a  minister  being  in  arrest  on  a  charge  of  cowardice, 
no  religious  service  was  held  in  the  regiment,  and  the  men 
were  compelled  to  rely  an  the  more  fortunate  commands  for 
spiritual  instruction  and  edification. 

On  February  22,  1862,  the  War  Department  had  issued 
an  order  that  there  shall  be  inscribed  on  the  colors  of  all  reg- 
iments the  names  of  the  battles  in  which  they  had  borne  a 
meritorious  part.  In  accordance  with  this  order  General 
Rosecrans  on  February  19,  1863,  directed  that  the  name 
"Stone's  River"  should  be  inscribed  on  the  national  colors 
of  each  regiment  that  was  engaged  in  the  battle  in  front  of 
Murfroesboro.  This  was  the  first  time  that  the  colors  of  the 
Eighty-sixth  were  entitled  to  such  distinction.  The  regiment 
liaving  lost  its  colors,  by  the  death  of  their  bearer  on  the 
field  while  in  retreat  on  that  fateful  31st  of  December,  a 
second  stand  was  presented  on  June  15  by  the  patriotic  citi- 
zens of  B'ountain  and  Warren  counties.  They  were  brought 
from  Indiana  by  Joseph  Poole,  of  Attica,  and  in  a  neat  address 
by  him  were  formally  presented.  Colonel  Dick,  in  a  brief 
and  fitting  response,  accepted  the  precious  gift.  These  colors 
lx)re  the  appropriate  inscription,  and  were  afterwards  car- 
ried through  the  sanguinary  battles  of  Chickamauga  and 
Missionary  Ridge.      At  the  latter  engagement  they  were 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  139 

riddled  with  musketry,  receiving-  no  less  than  eighty-six 
shots  through  their  folds,  an  emblematic  number.  They  now 
rest  secure  in  the  State  House  at  Indianapolis. 

Desertions  from  the  army  had  grown  to  alarming  pro- 
portions. When  caught  the  deserters  were  usually  given  a 
trial,  and  a  light  sentence  imposed.  They  were  seldom  exe- 
cuted, and  even  when  a  court  martial  imposed  a  sentence  of 
death  the  kind  hearted  President  would  interpose  with  a  par- 
don. The  most  usual  sentence  was  that  the  deserter  should 
return  to  the  army  and  serve  out  all  of  his  original  time  of 
enlistment  which  had  not  been  served,  without  pay.  In  the 
most  flagrant  cases  it  was  different.  An  instance  of  this 
kind  occurred  in  the  Ninth  Kentucky.  A  soldier  named 
Minnick  had  deserted  for  the  third  time.  With  each  recur- 
rence he  was  caught  and  returned  to  the  regiment.  The  last 
time,  he  was  tried  by  a  court  martial  and  sentenced  to  be 
shot.  This  occasion  the  President  declined  to  interpose. 
The  execution  of  Minnick  took  place  on  the  16th  of  June, 
about  a  mile  north  of  the  encampment  of  the  Eighty-sixth. 
A  detail  of  one  man  from  each  company  of  the  Eighty-sixth 
was  made  to  do  the  shooting.  The  convicted  soldier  was 
placed  in  an  ambulance,  seated  on  his  coffin,  a  rough  box, 
and  taken  to  the  place  of  execution,  accompanied  by  the  en- 
tire Twenty-first  corps.  When  the  corps  arrived  at  the 
chosen  place  it  was  formed  into  a  hollow  square,  with  the 
fourth  side  left  open,  to  witness  the  sad  affair.  It  was  used 
on  this  occasion  for  an  imposing  display,  and  to  intimidate 
and  prevent  other  soldiers  from  committing  a  like  crime.  The 
scene  was  one  full  of  awe,  never  to  be  forgotten  by  those  who 
took  part.  All  who  witnessed  it  seemed  to  feel  the  solemn 
presence  of  death.  The  coffin  was  placed  in  the  open  part  of 
the  square.  Minnick  took  a  seat  on  the  rough  casket.  The  Ad- 
jutant General  in  a  clear  but  tremulous  voice  read  the  find- 
ing of  the  court  martial  to  the  troops.  When  the  Adjutant 
finished  reading,  the  guards,  detailed  to  do  the  firing,  were 
ordered  forward,  and  their  muskets,  which  had  been  loaded 
by  other  soldiers,  were  handed  to  them.  Half  of  them  con- 
tained blank  cartridges,   so  that  none  of  them  knew  whose 


140  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

shot  killed  the  prisoner.  The  condemned  soldier  was  blind- 
folded, and  the  final  order:  "  Ready— Aim— Fire!  was  given 
and  the  doomed  man  fell  over  dead.  The  troops  then  formed 
company  front  and  marched  in  review  by  the  coffin  to  view 
the  body  of  their  late  comrade.  This  w^as  the  only  execution 
that  the  Eighty-sixth  was  ever  called  out  to  witness. 

The  first  grand  review  in  which  the  Eighty-sixth  took 
part,  and  the  first  that  it  had  ever  seen,  was  held  early  in 
June  while  the  army  lay  at  Murfreesboro.  It  was  only  how- 
ever a  review  of  the  Twenty-first  corps.  There  had  been 
much  preparation  for  this  review  by  all  the  troops  of  that 
corps,  and  the  officers  and  men  of  the  Eighty -sixth  became 
much  enthused  over  the  matter,  and  all,  both  officers  and 
men,  put  forth  every  effort  to  fit  themselves  to  pass  a  credit- 
able inspection,  and  to  be  so  thoroughly  prepared  that  no 
mistake  should  occur  when  jiassing  in  review.  The  regi- 
ment was  especially  fortunate  in  having  an  officer,  who  by 
reason  of  his  experience  with  the  Army  of  the  Potomac  and 
from  careful  study,  was  thoroughly  competent  to  instruct  as 
to  the  ceremonies.  Colonel  Dick  after  the  inspection  and 
review  were  over,  seemed  to  be  very  well  satisfied  with  the 
manner  in  which  the  Eighty-sixth  had  discharged  its  duty 
and  the  manner  in  which  it  had  deported  itself. 

As  the  Spring  months  wore  away  there  began  a  clamor 
from  Washington  and  by  politicians  at  home  for  an  advance  of 
Rosecrans'  army.  General  Halleck.  who  had  been  placed  in 
command  of  all  the  Union  armies,  with  his  headquarters  at 
Washington,  also  commenced  to  urge  an  advance,  the  objec- 
tive point  to  be  reached  being  Chattanooga,  which  was 
deemed  the  key  to  the  central  and  southern  portion  of  the 
so  called  Confederacy.  President  Lincoln  also  dispatched 
General  Rosecrans  urging  him  '  •  if  consistent  under  all  the 
circumstances  "to  push  forward.  The  reason  urged  for  this 
advance,  was  to  prevent  Bragg  from  sending  reinforcements 
to  General  Johnston's  army  in  Mississippi,  against  which 
General  Grant  was  then  moving.  To  all  of  these  urgent  de- 
mands, General  Rosecrans  replied  that  he  would  proceed 
provided  they  would  send  him  sufficient  reinforcements  so 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  141 

that  he  could  move  forward,  but  at  the  same  time  have  suf- 
ficient force  to  protect  his  lines  over  which  his  supplies 
must  of  necessity  be  brought.  The  Confederate  cavalry 
greatly  outnumbered  that  of  Rosecrans,  and  cavalry  was 
needed  to  meet  the  cavalry  of  the  enemy.  He  then  urged 
that  he  be  supplied  with  saddles  and  bridles  wherewith  to 
mount  some  of  his  infantry.  To  all  of  these  requests  he  re- 
ceived no  favorable  response.  No  one  outside  of  the  Army 
of  the  Cumberland  seemed  to  realize  the  necessity  of  the 
army,  that  was  being  urged  to  push  down  into  the  heart  of 
the  enemy's  country,  over  mountains  and  deep  rivers,  being 
supplied  with  sufficient  force  and  properly  equipped  to  meet 
the  enemy  on  ground  of  his  own  choosing. 

Finally  General  Rosecrans  on  June  8,  decided  to  submit 
the  case  to  his  generals,  and  he  sent  out  to  them  the  fol- 
lowing letter  through  his  Assistant  Adjutant  General,  Colo- 
nel C.  Goddard,  marked  "confidential."  This  letter  was 
sent  to  Generals  Brannan,  Crittenden,  Davis,  Granger,  John- 
son, McCook,  Mitchell,  Negley,  Palmer,  Reynolds,  Rousseau, 
Sheridan,  Stanley,   Thomas,   Turchin,  VanCleve  and  Wood: 

General:— In  view  of  our  present  military  position,  the  General 
commanding  desires  you  to  answer,  in  writing,  according  to  the  best  of 
your  judgment,  the  following  questions,  giving  your  reasons  therefor: 

1.  From  the  fullest  information  in  your  possession,  do  you  think  the 
enemy  in  front  of  us  has  been  so  materially  weakened  by  detachments  to 
Johnston  or  elsewhere, that  this  army  could  advance  on  him  at  this  time, 
with  strong  reasonable  chances  of  fighting  a  great  and  successful  battleV 

2.  Do  you  think  an  advance  of  our  army  at  present  likely  to  jjrevent 
additional  reinforcements  being  sent  out  against  General  Grant  by  the 
enemy  in  our  front? 

3.  Do  you  think  an  immediate  advance  of  our  army  advisable? 
He  desires  you  to  reply  to-night. 

To  this  communication  everyone  of  these  generals  an- 
swered in  substance  that  he  deemed  it  unwise  under  the  ex- 
isting condition  of  affairs  to  begin  a  forward  movement,  un- 
less the  army  could  be  reinforced  and  supplied  in  accordance 
with  the  requests  of  General  Rosecrans.  All  stated  that 
from  the  best  information  they  could  gather,  General  Bragg 
was  not  sending  away  any  of  his  troops  and  that  his  army 


142  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

was  intact.  Major  General  Thomas,  who  to-day  is  believed 
to  bo  one  of  the  very  best  of  all  of  the  Union  generals,  ad- 
vised very  strongly  against  it.  General  James  A  Garfield, 
then  chief  of  staff,  was  the  only  one  who  advised  an  ad- 
vance. General  Rosecrans,  however,  on  the  23d  day  of 
June,  decided  to  move.  The  camps  were  soon  alive  with 
the  preparations.  Everyone  almost,  outside  of  the  few  who 
were  fully  cognizant  of  the  exact  situation  of  affairs,  was  re- 
joiced at  the  prospect  of  breaking  the  monotony  of  camp 
life  for  the  excitement  of  a  campaign.  The  Fourteenth  and 
Twentieth  corps,  and  the  First  and  Second  divisions  of  the 
Twenty-tirst,  were  at  once  put  under  marching  orders,  while 
General  VanCleve,  commanding  the  Third  division  of  the 
Twenty-first  Corps,  this  being  the  division  to  which  the 
Eighty-sixth  was  assigned,  received  the  following  order, 
signed  by  Brigadier  General  J.  A.  Garfield,  Chief  of  Staff, 
dated  June  23,  1863: 

Brigadier  General  H.  P.  VanCleve:  On  the  departure  of  the 
army  you  will  assume  command  of  Fortress  Rosecrans  and  the  town  of 
Murfreesboro  until  relieved  by  Major  General  Gordon  Granger.  You 
will  .so  dispose  the  troops  as  to  protect  the  town.  You  will  see  that  all 
public  propei'ty  is  removed  within  the  fort ;  that  all  wagons  belonging 
to  the  supi)ly  and  baggage  trains  ai-e  brought  inside  the  fortifications 
and  properly  parked  near  Stone's  River.  You  will  also  assume  com- 
mand of  the  hospitals  and  convalescent  camp,  and  issue  such  orders  for 
the  policing  and  government  of  the  camp  and  of  the  town  as  the  nature 
of  the  case  may  require. 

On  the  same  day  the  foregoing  order  was  issued.  Gen- 
eral Gordon  Granger,  with  the  cavalry  and  mounted  in- 
fantry, began  the  movement,  followed  on  the  next  day  by  the 
entire  army  with  the  exception  of  General  VanCleve 's  divis- 
ion. As  soon  as  the  army  had  moved  out,  General  VanCleve 
at  once  disi)osed  his  command  about  the  town,  in  the  forti- 
fications and  defenses,  in  the  best  possible  manner  to  carry 
out  the  purport  and  meaning  of  his  orders. 

In  this  rearrangement  of  the  troops  the  Eighty-sixth 
Indiana  was  moved  from  the  camp  that  it  had  occupied  dur- 
ing all  of  the  time  that  it  had  been  in  Murfreesboro,  and  was 
posted  on  the  opposite  side  of  river  toward  Nashville,  near 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  143 

to  the  Nashville  and  Chattanooga  railroad.  It  was  a  relief 
to  move  even  that  short  distance,  and  at  once  the  men  began 
to  arrange  for  all  the  comforts  that  could  be  had  in  a  camp. 
Their  quiet  was,  however,  very  materially  disturbed  in  a  short 
time,  for  although  they  were  not  marched  out,  they  soon 
learned  of  the  following  order  that  was  received  by  General 
VanCleve,  dated  at  Beech  Grove,  June  27,  and  signed  by 
the  Chief  of  Staff,  General  J.  A.  Garfield: 

General:  The  general  commanding  directs  you  to  put  your  com- 
mand in  readiness  to  move.  Send  forward  two  brigades  immediately, 
witli  a  supply  train  to  follow  this  column,  and  hold  your  remaining  brig- 
ade in  readiness  to  follow  as  soon  as  it  is  i-elieved  by  General  Granger. 
The  Chief  Commissionary  and  Quartermaster  will  send  orders  for  mak- 
ing up  the  train. 

The  order  showed  to  tlie  men  of  the  Second  brigade 
that  they  could  not  expect  to  remain  very  long.  At  once 
there  was  a  great  demand  for  writing  materials,  and  the 
mails  went  out  from  camp  well  loaded  with  letters  homeward 
bound  detailing  as  fully  as  was  known  the  movements  of  the 
army.  This  information,  however,  as  is  well-known  to 
soldiers,  was  very  meager  as  to  exact  details,  but  the  imagina- 
tion and  the  "grape  vine"  had  large  drafts  made  upon 
them.  The  fact  was  that  when  two  of  the  brigades  of  the 
division  moved  out,  the  remaining  one  would  feel  very 
lonely,  and  was  very  anxious  to  be  relieved  that  it  might 
join  the  advancing  columns,  although  it  was  known  that  each 
day  was  developing  the  forces  of  the  enemy  and  that  there 
was  "fighting  out  in  front."  The  final  order  to  move  out 
was  not  received  by  General  VanCleve  for  some  four  or  five 
days  when  he  received  the  following  order,  dated  at  TuUa- 
homa,  July  2,  and  signed  as  usual  by  General  Garfield: 

Brigadier  General  H.  P.  VanCleve: — Your  dispatch  of  yester- 
day is  received.  The  General  commanding  directs  you  to  move,  with 
your  two  brigades,  upon  McMinnville  as  soon  as  possible.  General  Gran- 
ger has  been  ordered  to  relieve  you  of  the  command  of  Murfreesboro. 
You  are  authorized  to  supply  yourself  with  the  necessary  train  from  the 
empty  wagons  I'eturning  to  Murfreeslioro,  if  you  cannot  get  your  own. 
Occupy  McMinnville,  and  look  out  for  Morgan.  You  may  be  able  to  cap- 
ture his  camp  at  Sparta.  Put  the  railroad  in  repair,  so  that  you  may 
supply  your  command  from  here. 


144  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

The  departure  of  VanCleve's  division  from  Murfrees- 
boro  was  not  long  drawn  out,  for  on  July  5,  General  Van- 
Cleve  reported  that  his  entire  division  was  on  the  move  for 
McMinnville.  McMinnville  was  a  little  south  of  east  from 
Murfreesboro,  and  was  to  be  for  the  operations  then  in  pro- 
gress by  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland  the  extreme  left  of  the 
army.  The  self-invited  guests  of  this  small  town  then  on 
their  way,  were  not  the  first  that  had  visited  the  place.  On 
April  L'O,  General  Joseph  J.  Reynolds,  with  a  portion  of  his 
division  of  the  Fourteenth  corps,  had  visited  the  town  with 
four  thousand  infantry,  and  twenty-six  hundred  cavalry. 
This  party  had  destroyed  at  McMinnville  two  mills,  and  cap- 
tured a  large  amount  of  supplies  that  had  been  gathered 
there,  besides  one  hundred  and  eighty  prisoners,  six  hun- 
dred horses  and  mules,  and  retired  to  Murfreesboro. 

McMinnville  was  important  to  the  Confederate  army  as  a 
place  for  gathering  supplies,  and  it  was  for  the  purpose 
of  crippling  Bragg  in  this  matter,  and  to  protect  the  ex- 
treme left  of  General  Rosencrans'  army  that  VanCleve's 
division  was  sent  there. 

The  march  from  Murfreesboro  was  one  of  the  most 
severe  of  any  of  the  marches  ever  taken  by  the  Eighty-sixth. 
The  sun  was  intensely  hot,  the  roads  were  dusty,  and  water 
was  scarce.  Finally  after  reaching  McMinnville  it  proved 
almost  a  veritable  paradise  for  the  brigade.  At  the  time  the 
troops  reached  there,  July  6th  and  7th,  the  fields  were  over- 
run witli  most  delicious  blueberries,  very  much  resembling 
the  blackberry,  but  large  and  sweet.  These  berries  were  in 
great  abundance  for  several  days,  and  they  proved  of  im- 
mense benefit  to  the  men.  During  the  stay  at  McMinnville 
peaches  of  very  fine  quality  were  brought  in  for  sale  by  the 
citizens,  as  well  an  abundance  of  fresh  vegetables.  Sick- 
ness disappeared  from  the  ranks,  and  the  men  came  into  bet- 
health  than  they  had  had  for  months.  The  duty  was  light, 
although  regular  drills  were  resumed.  Soon  two  of  the  brig- 
jules  were  moved  away,  and  the  Second  brigade,  under  com- 
mand of  Colonel  George  F.  Dick,  was  left  as  the  sole  army 
occupant  of  McMinnville. 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  145 

Thus  matters  remained  with  the  Eighty-sixth  mitil  the 
receipt  of  the  following  order  from  headquarters  of  the 
Third  division,  dated  at  Pikeville,  Tenn.,  August  25,  1863, 
addressed  to  Colonel  George  F.  Dick,  commanding  at  Mc- 
Minnville,  and  signed  by  Captain  E.  A.  Otis,  Assistant 
Adjutant  General: 

Colonel:  Your  dispatch  of  the  2^rd  is  i-eceived.  The  General 
wishes  you  to  render  Captain  Stanage  all  the  assistance  in  your  power 
in  getting-  up  supplies.  He  is  much  gi-atified  at  the  disposition  of  your 
forces,  and  the  manner  in  which  you  have  conducted  affairs  in  McMlnn- 
ville. 

As  soon  as  you  are  I'elieved  rejoin  the  division  wherever  it  may  be. 
I  think  a  force  under  General  Spears  is  intended  as  the  permanent  gar- 
rison at  McMinnville.  Colonel  Sullivan,  of  whom  you  speak,  must  be 
detained  until  a  military  court  court  can  be  convened  to  try  him.  We 
will  make  no  more  details  from  you,  but  will  send  an  escort  from  here 
with  each  train.  Send  back  by  Colonel  Wood  all  convalescents  for  First 
and  Third  brigades. 

By  this  time  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland  had  pushed 
its  lines  southward,  driving  General  Bragg  before  it,  until 
it  had  reached  the  Tennessee  river,  and  was  crossing  over 
and  taking  up  the  pursuit  south  of  that  stream.  On  August 
30,  General  Rosecrans,  then  at  Stevenson,  Alabama, 
ordered  General  VanCleve  with  his  division  to  close  down 
on  him  at  Stevenson.  This  was  the  order  that  started  the 
entire  Third  division  of  the  Twenty-first  corps  on  its  way 
to  join  the  main  army  where  it  merged  into  the  column  that 
moved  down  and  into  the  Chickamauga  campaign,  which  will 
be  the  subject  of  the  next  chapter.  The  departure  from 
McMinnville  September  3,  marked  the  beginning  of  the 
Chickamauga  campaign. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 
THE  CHICKAMAUGA  CAMPAIGN. 

Geuenil  Rosccrans'  Moves  from  Murfreesboro— Brags  is  Driven  from  Tullahoma 
Over  the  Mountains  and  Out  of  Tennessee— A  Most  Skillful  and  Almost 
Hloodless  Movement— Tlie  Eighty-sixth  Leaves  McMinnville— With  the  Brig- 
ade It  Makes  a  Foreed  March— Down  the  Se(|uatehie  Valley— Crosses  the 
Tennessee— Rejoins  the  Division  Near  Ringgold— A  Series  of  Confederate 
Blunders— A  Narrow  Escape  for  the  Union  Army— Playing  for  Position. 

Intervening  between  the  battles  of  Stone's  River  and 
Chickaraauga  in  the  Department  of  the  Cumberland  was 
what  was,  and  is,  known  as  the  Tullahoma  campaign.  In 
this  campaign  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  took  no  part,  save 
and  except  in  guarding  the  left  flank  of  the  army  at  McMinn- 
ville.  To  get  a  proper  conception  of  the  Chattanooga  cam- 
paign which  includes  the  battle  of  Chickamauga,  it  will  be 
necessary  to  briefly  write  of  the  Tullahoma  campaign.  As 
shown  in  the  preceding  chapter,  General  Rosecrans,  against 
his  own  judgment  and  that  of  the  Generals  of  the  Army  of 
the  Cumberland,  decided  in  obedience  to  the  demands  of 
President  Lincoln,  and  General  Halleck,  then  in  command 
of  all  of  the  Union  armies,  to  move  out  of  Murfreesboro  and 
attack  General  Bragg.  This  was  in  June,  1863.  General 
Bragg  with  his  portion  of  the  Confederate  army  was  then 
occupying  a  strong  portion,  north  of  Duck  River,  in  Ten- 
nes.see.  His  infantry  front  extended  from  Shelbyville  to 
Wartrace.  On  his  extreme  right  his  cavalry  rested  at  Mc- 
Minnville.  His  left,  with  cavalry,  was  at  Spring  Hill  and 
Columbia. 

Chattanooga  was  his  base,  while  Tullahoma  was  his 
chief  depot  of  supplies.  The  front  of  the  Confederate  army 
was  for  the  most  part  well  protected  with  abatis.     To  add  to 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  147 

the  strength  of  his  position  protected  by  earthworks  and  the 
abatis,  were  the  natural  fortifications  provided  by  the  moun- 
tain ranges,  and  by  reason  of  the  fact  that  he  held  all  of  the 
passes  through  the  mountains,  which  required  but  a  very 
small  portion  of  his  effective  force,  he  was  able  to  concen- 
trate the  remainder  of  his  army  at  any  desired  point,  without 
materially  affecting  his  main  line.  The  position  of  General 
Bragg,  as  can  well  be  understood,  was  therefore  a  remark- 
ably strong  one,  both  by  nature  and  by  tlie  work  of  his 
army.  To  advance  througli  this  country  successfully  was 
no  small  task,  and  it  is  not  to  be  wondered  at,  that  General 
Rosecrans  and  his  generals  hesitated  to  undertake  so  arduous 
and  dangerous  campaign  when  it  is  understood  that  his  army 
was  even  smaller  than  that  of  his  opponent.  Had  he,  Rose- 
crans, an  army  in  jioint  of  numbers  large  enough  to  safely 
and  successfully  face  General  Bragg  and  hold  his  entire  force 
in  place,  and  then  a  sufficient  force  in  addition,  whereby  he 
could  flanlv  the  army  of  the  enemy,  and  thus  compel  Bragg 
to  abandon  his  works  and  either  fight  in  an  open  field  or  re- 
treat, the  campaign  could  then  have  been  made  with  a  rea- 
sonable degree  of  assurance.  To  undertake  the  campaign 
as  General  Rosecrans  was  compelled  to  make  it,  was  to 
enter  upon  an  undertaking  with  all  of  the  chances  for  defeat. 
To  the  credit  of  General  Rosecrans  and  the  Army  of  the 
Cumberland,  it  can  be  truthfully  said,  no  other  army  of  the 
United  States  ever  had  to  contend  against  so  many  odds,  and 
no  other  army  ever  wrought  such  wonders  of  prowess  and 
success  as  did  this  army. 

With  General  Bragg 's  position  so  well  chosen  for  defense, 
General  Rosecrans  had  a  right  to  believe  that  he  would  meet 
with  the  most  stubborn  resistance.  The  Army  of  the  Cum- 
berland moved  out  from  Murf reesboro  on  June  23,  18G3,  to 
enter  upon  a  series  of  campaigns,  which,  under  the  circum- 
stances, proved  to  be  the  most  wonderful  Ivuown  in  the  annals 
of  warfare.  Only  seven  miles  from  Murfreesboro  the  cav- 
alry of  the  enemy  were  encountered,  and  after  driving  them 
through  Hoover's  Gap,  a  defile  through  hills  three  miles  in 
length,  the  infantry  was  met  in  strong  force.     Such  was  the 


14S  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

impetuosity  of  the  Union  attack  that  everything  was  swept 
before  it. 

The  plan  of  General  Rosecrans,  so  auspiciously  .begun, 
was  to  avoid  as  nearly  as  possible  the  heavy  intrenchments 
of  General  Bragg,  and  turn  his  flank,  thus  forcing  him  to 
give  battle  on  open  ground,  or  to  abandon  that  portion  of 
Tennessee  altogether  and  retreat,  and  once  upon  the  retreat 
the  advantage  would  be  with  the  Union  army.  The  attack 
on  Hoover's  Gap  was  the  first  move  and  the  success  of  the 
Union  army  made  it  possible  for  General  Rosecrans  to  con- 
centrate his  whole  army  against  the  enemy's  left.  It  re- 
quired two  days  by  the  rapid  movements  of  General  George 
H.  Thomas,  aided  by  the  mounted  infantry  and  cavalry,  and 
the  concentration  of  the  corps  of  Generals  McCook  and  Crit- 
tenden, to  compel  General  Bragg  to  abandon  his  first  line  of 
entrenchments.  Then  through  rain  and  mud  General  Rose- 
crans pushed  the  enemy  back  toward  the  Tennessee  River. 
On  June  29,  General  Bragg  was  at  Tullahoma,  and  the  Army 
of  the  Cumberland  was  concentrated  only  two  miles  distant, 
and  expected  to  attack  on  the  following  morning.  On  the 
morning  of  June  30,  it  was  learned  that  Bragg  had  decided 
to  decline  a  battle  and  had  again  fallen  back,  abandoning 
Tullahoma.  The  further  pursuit  of  the  enemy  was  delayed 
by  swollen  streams,  the  bridges  having  been  destroyed  by 
General  Bragg  in  his  retreat.  Thus  ended  one  of  the  short- 
est camjiaigns,  and  one  of  the  greatest  up  to  that  time  in  its 
results,  of  any  of  the  campaigns  of  the  war.  The  close  of 
the  Tullahoma  campaign  left  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland 
in  complete  possession  of  Middle  Tennessee. 

General  Bragg  in  his  retreat  crossed  the  Cumberland 
mountains  and  established  his  headquarters  at  Chattanooga. 
Bragg  nearly,  or  quite,  a  year  before  had  moved  around  the 
Union  armies,  had  crossed  Tennessee  and  Kentucky,  and  had 
been  again  driven  back  from  one  line  to  another  yet  farther 
in  his  rear,  time  after  time,  until  now  with  the  close  of  the 
Tullahoma  campaign  was  seen  the  final  and  decisive  failure 
of  the  Confederate  army  to  hold  any  of  the  territory  between 
the  Tennessee  and  Ohio  rivers. 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  149 

Immediately  upon  the  close  of  the  Tullahoma  campaign 
began  the  preparations  for  the  greatest  of  all  the  campaigns 
of  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland,  unaided  and  alone,  the  Chat- 
tanooga or  Chickamauga  campaign.  The  greatest  because  it 
was  entered  upon  under  what  seemed  almost  insurmountable 
difficulties,  and  with  more  serious  obstacles  before  it  than 
any  army  of  modern  days  had  been  called  upon  to  meet  and 
overcome;  the  greatest  because  at  its  conclusion  in  order  to 
maintain  the  territory  sought  to  be  acquired  and  which  in 
fact  it  did  acquire,  it  was  forced  against  great  odds,  to  fight 
one  of  the  most  severe  and  bloody  battles  of  the  war,  and 
then  at  the  close  of  the  battle  and  of  the  campaign,  it  held 
the  gateway  to  the  ^outh  and  center  of  the  Confederacy. 
The  preparation  for  the  Chickamauga  campaign  included  the 
repairing  of  the  wagon  roads  and  railroads,  the  building  of 
bridges  over  the  route  by  which  it  had  come  to  Tullahoma 
to  bring  forward  a  sufficient  amount  of  supplies  for  the 
maintenance  of  the  army,  and  ammunition  of  all  kinds  to  be 
used  in  the  campaign.  Immediately  upon  the  close  of  the 
Tullahoma  campaign,  General  Halleck  again  began  to  press 
General  Rosecrans  to  cross  the  Tennessee  river  and  push 
the  war  on  the  south  of  that  river.  He,  Halleck,  far  re- 
moved from  the  field  of  operations,  never  once  seemed  to 
realize  that  the  railroads  had  to  be  repaired,  that  supplies 
must  be  procured,  and  when  notified  that  in  addition  to  these 
very  essential  matters,  troops  should  be  forwarded  to  rein- 
force his  army  so  that  the  flanks  might  be  guarded,  and  that 
the  line  of  communication  with  the  base  of  supplies  could  be 
protected,  he  absolutely  ignored  the  requests  of  General 
Rosecrans.  With  General  Halleck  it  was  an  order  to  "make 
bricks  without  straw,"  or  in  other  words  to  make  a  cam- 
paign which  necessarily  included  the  fighting  of  battles 
without  adequate  supplies  of  subsistence,  ammunition  and 
men.  He  was  not  willing  to  listen  to  statements  of  General 
Rosecrans,  or  of  the  officers  of  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland, 
in  regard  to  the  situation  which  they,  being  on  the  ground, 
knew  beyond  all  peradventure,  and  on  August  5,  1863,  issued 


lf,0  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

poreniptory  orders  for  General  Rosecrans  to  advance,  as 
follows: 

'•The  ordcivs  for  the  advance  of  your  anny  and  that  its  progress  be 
reported  daily,  are  peremptory.  H.  W.  Hallkck." 

It  was  an  absolute  imi)ossibility  to  move  until  the  middle 
of  Au.ijust,  and  at  that  time  General  Rosecrans  had  done  all 
ill  his  power  to  repair  the  roads  and  put  his  army  in  condi- 
tion to  move,  but  in  so  far  as  sending  him  any  reinforce- 
ments either  of  cavalry  or  infantry,  not  one  thing  had  been 
done  by  General  Hallcck.  In  the  attempt  to  shield  General 
Halleck  in  thus  forcing  the  army  to  move  without  reinforce- 
ment's, it  has  been  urged  by  some  that  there  were  no  troops 
that  were  available  and  for  that  reason  the  request  of  Gen- 
eral Rosecrans  could  not  be  granted.  But  was  this  true?  A 
brief  statement  will  answer  this  pretended  reason.  General 
Grant  at  Vicksburg  on  the  4th  of  July,  only  a  month  pre- 
vious to  General  Halleck's  peremptory  orders,  had  with  80,- 
(100  troops  under  his  command  captured  or  destroyed  Pem- 
berton's  Confederate  army.  There  was  then  no  armed  force 
in  front  of  General  Grant,  nothing  required  that  he  should 
hold  that  immense  army  at  Vicksburg,  or  in  that  department, 
if  any  of  his  trooi:)S  were  needed  elsewhere.  He  could  easily 
have  spared  f]0,000  men  and  the  Government  could  easily 
have  made  the  Chattanooga  campaign  an  assured  success 
from  its  beginning,  if  immediately  after  the  surrender  of 
Vicksburg  a  sufficient  number  of  those  troops  had  been 
transferred  to  General  Rosecrans.  The  truth  of  this  state- 
ment was  verified  two  months  later  when  General  Grant 
came  to  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland  besieged  in  Chatta- 
nooga and  brought  with  him  the  Army  of  the  Tennessee 
undoi-  Sherman,  and  in  addition  thereto  had  the  Eleventh 
and  Twelfth  corps  sent  to  him  from  the  Army  of  the  Po- 
tomac. 

It  is  well  for  the  reader  to  note  some  difficulties  that  sur- 
rounded General  Rosecrans  and  his  army  in  making  a  further 
move  lo  the  south,  and  it  should  not  be  forgotten  that  each 
one  of  these  difficulties  was  a  positive  danger  to  the  Army  of 
the  Cumberland.     The  Army  of  the  Cumberland  was  now  in 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  151 

a  country  that  had  been  for  months  the  forage  grounds  of 
the  Confederate  army.  There  were  no  supplies  of  any  kind 
left  for  the  men  under  General  Rosecrans.  The  forage  for 
the  horses  and  mules  had  all  been  consumed  by  General 
Bragg 's  army  and  it  was  as  yet  too  early  in  the  season  for 
corn  or  grain  of  that  year's  crop  to  be  ripe  enough  to  use. 
Both  men  and  animals  must  be  fed  if  the  army  ad- 
vanced; they  could  not  subsist  upon  the  country.  How 
was  it  to  be  done?  There  was  but  one  way,  and  that 
was  to  bring  the  supplies  to  the  army  over  the 
route  by  which  it  had  come.  To  bring  supplies  by 
the  river  route  to  Bridgeport  and  then  furnish  the  army 
was  impossible,  both  because  of  the  length  of  time  required, 
and  at  that  season  of  the  year  the  stage  of  the  water  would 
not  permit  the  larger  boats  to  pass  up  the  river.  The  only 
remaining  route  was  a  single  line  of  railway.  The  actual 
base  of  supplies  was  at  Louisville,  although  there  were  sup- 
plies at  Nashville  as  an  intermediate  base,  but  the  depot  at 
Nashville  depended  upon  Louisville  for  its  supply.  The  ab- 
solute dependence  for  rations  was  therefore  upon  Louisville. 
The  distance  from  Louisville  to  Nashville  is  185  miles, 
and  the  distance  from  Nashville  to  Chattanooga,  the  objec- 
tive point,  is  161  miles,  being  a  total  distance  of  346  miles. 
The  entire  line  of  railway  over  which  rations  for  the  men, 
and  grain  for  the  animals  must  needs  be  brought  was  through 
a  country  friendly  to  the  Confederate  army.  The  road 
crossed  many  streams  spanned  by  bridges  of  greater  or  lesser 
length,  or  passed  through  mountain  passes  where  dangers 
lurked  both  by  day  and  night.  As  a  matter  of  fact  almost 
every  mile  of  the  346  from  Louisville  to  Chattanooga  had 
to  be  guarded  from  raids  by  the  Confederate  cavalry  or  by 
bands  of  guerrillas  that  masqueraded  during  the  daylight  as 
inoffensive  citizens.  Already  General  Rosecrans  had  been 
compelled  to  leave  a  large  portion  of  his  army  along  this  line 
of  railway  to  guard  against  the  burning  of  bridges,  or  the 
tearing  up  of  the  tracks  and  destruction  of  trains  in  the 
mountain  detiles.     It  was  for  the  purj^ose  of  relieving  this 


152  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

large  force  iliat  was  tlion  oimi-ding-  the  road  that  General 
Rosecraiis  had  asked  ior  additional  troops. 

He  hiul  asked  for  cavalry  also,  that  he  might  prevent  the 
Confederate  cavalry  from  passing  around  to  his  rear  and  de- 
stroying the  line  of  communications.  Notwithstanding  the 
fact  that  all  of  these  conditions  that  then  surrounded,  har- 
rassed  and  endangered  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland,  were 
fully  presented  to  General  Halleck,  they  were  absolutely  ig- 
nored, and  even  the  earnest  request  for  equipments  with 
which  to  mount  5,000  infantry  in  order  to  destroy  or  prevent 
the  enemy's  cavalry  from  making  its  raids,  were  passed  by 
in  silence,  if  not  contempt.  Every  day's  advance  placed  the 
Union  army  in  greater  peril  unless  the  requests  were  granted. 

But  aside  from  the  question  of  a  failure  of  supplies  as 
stated,  there  was  yet  a  greater  danger  that  was  not  at  all  to 
be  forgotten.  The  Army  of  the  Potomac  was  lying  quiet 
and  Lee's  Army  of  Northern  Virginia  was  in  no  imminent 
danger  of  attack.  General  Lee  and  the  Confederate  War 
Department  was  in  such  position  that  they  could  transfer 
whatever  number  of  troops  might  be  desired  to  reinforce  Gen- 
eral Bragg  and  leave  him  free  to  send  his  entire  cavalry  force 
along  the  line  of  the  railroad  to  General  Rosecrans'  rear, 
and  so  thoroughly  and  absolutely  destroy  the  railroad  that 
neither  supplies  nor  reinforcements  could  come  forward  to 
the  Array  of  the  Cumberland. 

If  it  was  "All  quiet  on  the  Potomac,"  the  same  condi- 
tions prevailed  in  all  of  the  other  departments,  and  men  and 
guns  and  supplies  and  assistance  of  any  or  all  kinds  could 
be  sent  to  aid  General  Bragg  in  the  absolute  destruction  of 
the  army.  Subsequent  events  showed  that  this  was  exactly 
the  plan  that  was  adopted  by  the  Southern  government. 

Under  the  peremptory  orders  of  August  5,  given  by 
General  Halleck,  there  was  no  course  left  open  to  General 
Rosecrans,  and  he  was  compelled  with  his  army  to  brave  all 
the  dangers  that  surrounded  the  way.  There  was  only  one 
tiling  that  was  left  open  to  the  judgment  of  General  Rose- 
crans, and  that  was  the  planning  of  the  campaign.  "Chat- 
tanooga must  be  taken,"  was  the  order  from  Washington. 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  153 

The  place  was  altogether  important  to  both  armies,  important 
to  the  Confederates  because  it  was  the  key  to  our  advance 
further  South,  and  if  for  once  it  should  be  securely  in  our  hands 
it  would  deprive  them  of  the  rich  products  of  Tennessee,  on 
which  they  had  relied  for  the  maintenauce  of  their  army. 
It  was  important  to  the  general  government  in  that  it  had 
been  made  by  nature  a  remarkably  strong  position  from 
which  to  carry  on  operations  toward  every  direction  in  the 
South.  To  reach  Chattanooga  the  Cumberland  range  must 
be  crossed  and  every  foot  of  the  ground  must  be  con- 
tested if  a  direct  attack  was  to  be  made  to  reach  the 
goal.  Stubborn  fighting  with  a  continuous  loss  of  men 
from  start  to  finish  could  most  assuredly  be  expected, 
if  such  a  campaign  was  to  be  inaugurated.  With  Gen- 
eral Rosecrans'  army  about  equal  in  point  of  numbers 
with  that  of  General  Bragg,  it  was  assuming  a  fearful  risk 
to  divide  his  army  and  undertake  a  flank  movement.  The 
danger  in  dividing  tlu;  army  for  a  flank  movement  was,  that 
once  it  was  divided  for  such  a  system  of  strategy,  then  Gen- 
eral Bragg  with  his  army  intact  might  fall  upon  any  one  por- 
tion of  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland  and  destroy  it  before 
the  remaining  portions  could  come  to  its  support,  and  so  in 
turn  destroy  each  part.  This  plan  of  campaign  notwith- 
standing the  perilous  conditions  that  surrounded  it  was  the 
only  possible  hope  for  ultimate  success.  Having  determined 
upon  his  line  of  action,  on  the  16th  of  August,  General  Rose- 
crans commenced  the  movement  across  the  Cumberland 
mountains.  Two  divisions  of  the  Twenty -first  corps  march- 
ing by  different  routes  crossed  the  mountains  into  the  Se- 
quatchie valley.  Two  brigades  of  VanCleve's  division  of  the 
Twenty-first  corps  moved  to  Pikeville,  the  other  brigade, 
to  which  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  was  attached,  was  yet  at 
McMinnville. 

Hazen's  brigade  of  Palmer's  division  and  Wagner's 
brigade  of  Wood's  division  of  the  Twenty -first  corps  were 
sent  over  Walden's  Ridge  into  the  valley  of  the  Tennessee, 
and  Wilder's  brigade  of  mounted  infantry,  together  with 
Lilly's  Eighteenth  Indiana  battery,  joined  Hazen  and  Wagner. 


154  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH    REGIMENT, 

Whilo  tlipse  three  bi-igades  were  pushing  their  way  over  the 
mountains  and  into  the  valley,  Minty's  Union  cavalry 
were  driving  before  them  the  remnant  of  the  rebel  cavalry 
that  was  yet  on  the  west  side  of  the  Tennessee  river.  Hav- 
ing freed  the  west  side  of  the  river  from  the  enemy,  Minty 
and  his  cavalry  created  the  impression  on  the  minds  of  the 
Confederates  that  Rosecrans  was  receiving  larger  reinforce- 
ments, as  they,  Minty's  men,  rode  up  and  down  the  river  for 
a  distance  of  thirty  miles.  These  demonstrations  also  pre- 
vented General  Bragg  from  sending  troops  to  ascertain  the 
actual  situation  of  affairs.  In  the  meantime  the  troops  of 
Hazen,  Wagner  and  Wilder  had  reached  the  valley  and  could 
be  scon  by  Bragg 's  army  from  its  position  across  the  river  at 
Chattanooga.  Every  prominent  point  and  ridge  overlook- 
ing Chattanooga  was  filled  with  tents,  unoccupied  'tis  true, 
and  at  night  camp  fires  were  built  for  miles.  At  morning 
bugles  sounded  reveille  from  every  hill  toj^,  and  at  night  tat- 
too was  blown  for  the  imaginary  hosts  of  the  Union  army 
overlooking  Chattanooga.  Lilly's  battery  was  multiplied 
into  many  batteries  as  it  appeared  from  out  the  woods,  and 
disappeared  soon  after  with  its  infantry  supports  to  appear 
again  in  another  place.  From  the  movements  of  what  seemed 
such  large  bodies  of  men  General  Bragg  was  entirely  de- 
ceived as  to  the  intentions  of  General  Rosecrans.  Believing 
that  the  attack  was  to  come  from  above  and  opposite  Chatta- 
nooga, General  Bragg  did  just  what  General  Rosecrans  had 
wished  for,  he,  Bragg,  withdrew  the  last  infantry  brigade 
tliat  was  watching  the  river  below  Chattanooga,  and  thus 
gave  General  Rosecrans  the  opportunity  to  cross  the  river 
with  his  army.  The  river  now  being  clear,  Rosecrans  at 
once  began  his  movement  southward,  and  around  Bragg's 
right  to  threaten  his  communications,  and  thereby  force  him 
to  abandon  his  strong  position  in  the  mountain  country  and 
evacuate  Chattanoga. 

Let  us  now  brielly  examine  the  topography  of  the  coun- 
try over  and  through  which  the  Fourteenth  corps  under  Gen- 
oral  Thomas,  and  the  Twentieth  corps  under  General  Mc- 
Cook,  must  pass  in  order  to  carry  out  the  plans  of  the  cam- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  155 

pai£:n.  On  the  east  side  of  the  Tennessee  river  and  parallel 
to  it  are  Sand  and  Raccoon  mountains,  with  the  northern  point 
of  Sand  mountain  abutting  on  the  river  opposite  Walden's 
Ridge.  East  of  these  two  mountain  ranges,  rising  boldly  for 
2.400  feet  above  the  sea  level,  is  the  rocky  and  precipitous 
wall  of  Lookout  Mountain,  leaving  between  its  perpendicular 
northern  point  and  the  Tennessee  river  a  narrow  way  cut 
from  the  solid  rock,  leaving  between  that  towering  wall  of 
rock  and  the  water's  edge  barely  space  wide  enough  for  the 
railroad  trains  to  find  their  way  around  the  point  of  the  moun- 
tain and  into  Chattanooga,  about  two  miles  distant.  Extend- 
ing southward  from  the  river  at  this  point  the  Lookout  range 
extends  for  forty-five  miles  to  what  is  known  as  Pigeon  moun- 
tains. Between  these  mountains,  Lookout  and  Pigeon,  is 
McLemorc's  Cove.  Prom  McLemorc's  Cove  starts  another 
range  of  lofty  hills  and  mountains  north  to  east,  known  as 
Missionary  Ridge.  Beyond  the  east  of  all  these  ranges  is 
Chattanooga  creek  or  river,  passing  through  McLemore's 
Cove  and  so  llowing  in  a  deep  and  murky  stream  to  the 
northward,  until  having  united  all  its  branches,  it  empties 
itself  into  the  Tennessee  about  five  miles  above  Chattanooga. 
Between  all  of  these  mountain  ranges  and  General  Rose- 
crans  army  flowed  the  deep  waters  of  the  Tennessee  river 
which  must  be  crossed  before  the  flank  movements  could  be 
begun.  At  various  crossings  of  this  river  it  was  but  reason- 
able to  expect  to  meet  some  portions  of  the  Confederate 
army.  On  August  29,  General  Rosecrans  had  pushed  an  ad- 
vance column  across  the  river  at  a  point  called  Caperton's, 
had  captured  tlie  rebel  pickets,  put  down  his  pontoons,  and 
began  the  work  of  sending  over  the  army.  Crittenden  was 
now  concentrating  all  of  his  Twenty -first  corps,  at  the  Ten- 
nessee river,  and  by  Se})tember  4,  had  all  of  his  pontoons 
in  the  river  at  Shell  Mound  and  his  troops  were  passing  over, 
the  last  to  cross  being  VanClevc's  which,  with  -the  ex- 
ception of  Dick's  brigade,  had  all  crossed  by  the  7th. 

The  Union  army  was  then  in  the  following  positions: 
The  Twenty -first  corps,  Crittenden,  on  the  left,  advancing  by 
way  of  Whitesides  toward  Chattanooga  to  cross  the  mountain 


J 56  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

ranjres  near  the  river.  The  Fourteenth  corps,  Thomas,  had 
pushed  forward  in  the  center  moving  southward,  and  on  the 
morning:  of  September  3  was  with  his  advance  over  Lookout 
mountain,  twenty-six  miles  south  of  Chattanooga.  The 
Twentieth  corps,  McCook,  was  on  the  right,  and  had  moved 
yet  farther  south  in  the  vicinity  of  Alpine  and  McLemore's 
Cove,  forty-six  miles  south  of  Chattanooga.  The  cavalry 
was  on  the  extreme  right.  Never  was  an  army  compelled  to 
place  itself  in  so  perilous  a  position  as  was  that  into  which 
the  Army  of  the  Cumberland  was  forced  from  the  9th  of  Sep- 
tember until  the  morning  of  the  19th  of  that  month,  and  as 
subsequent  events  showed,  had  the  order  of  General  Bragg 
to  his  cor})s  commanders  been  obeyed,  the  probabilities  are 
that  our  Union  army  would  have  been  utterly  destroyed, 
corps  after  corps,  while  in  this  scattered  position. 

Having  seen  the  disposition  of  the  troops  of  General 
Rosecrans  we  will  now  look  to  the  movements  of  General 
Bragg  and  his  army.  Bragg  had  found  himself  being  rapidly 
hemmed  in  at  Chattanooga,  with  a  prospect  of  having  all  of 
his  communications  cut  off.  Wilder 's  mounted  brigade  with 
Spencer  repeating  rifles,  and  Lilly's  Eighteenth  Indiana  bat- 
tery, were  on  the  w^est  bank  of  the  Tennessee  river  opposite 
Chattanooga,  and  were  then  throwing  shells  into  the  town. 
There  was  nothing  left  for  General  Bragg  to  do  but  to  move 
out,  and  fall  back  southward  toward  Rome  and  Lafayette, 
Georgia,  until  he  could  meet  the  reinforcements  he  was  daily 
expecting  from  the  Confederate  army  of  Northern  Virginia, 
Buckncr's  corps  from  East  Tennessee  which  was  then  within 
supporting  distance  and  Johnston's  army  then  on  its  way  to 
join  him  and  then  to  fall  upon  General  Rosecrans'  scattered 
army  before  it  could  bo  united  and  destroy  it  piece  meal.  There- 
fore on  the  night  of  September  8,  he  evacuated  Chattanooga. 
On  the  afternoon  of  September  9,  Wilder 's  brigade  crossed 
the  river  and  took  possession  of  Chattanooga.  Could  it  have 
been  possible  at  this  time  for  General  Rosecrans  to  have 
united  his  army  at  Chattanooga  there  then  would  have  been 
closed  tlic  most  skillfully  planned  and  most  daringly  exe- 
cuted campaign  of  the  war.     In  only  about  three  weeks  time 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  157 

General  Rosecrans  had  repeated  the  Tullahoma  campaign 
though  a  campaign  by  far  vaster  in  its  scope  and  results.  It 
was  a  campaign  beset  by  difficulties  and  dangers  that  at  the 
outset  seemed  to  be  all  bat  insurmountable,  and  yet  it  had  been 
accomplished,  with  Chattanooga  in  his  possession,  and  lip  to 
that  point  of  time  could  have  been  termed  almost  a  bloodless 
campaign,  for  it  had  been  accomplished  with  the  loss  of  only 
about  a  hundred  men. 

Upon  retiring  from  Chattanooga  General  Bragg,  as  was 
afterward  learned,  sent  two  of  his  corps,  Polk's  and 
Hill's,  to  LaPayette  by  way  of  Lee  &  Gordon's  Mills. 
Two  other  corps.  Walker's  and  Buckner's,  were  sent  by 
way  of  Gainesville,  near  to  LaPayette,  while  his  other 
forces  moved  by  way  of  Ringgold.  Cleburne's  division, 
one  of  the  strongest  and  best  fighting  divisions  of  his  army, 
was  thrown  forward  to  try  to  occupy  the  gaps  in  Pigeon 
mountain.  General  Bragg  established  his  headquarters  at 
Lee  &  Gordon's  Mills,  with  Hindman's  division. 

In  order  to  preserve  the  record  of  the  Eighty-sixth  Indi- 
ana, it  will  be  necessary  to  return  to  the  regiment  with  its 
brigade  at  McMinnville.  The  monotony  of  camp  life  for  an 
army  in  the  field  is  broken  always  to  a  certain  extent  by  the 
rumors  that  are  set  afloat  from  some  indefinable  source,  in 
regard  to  what  is  or  is  not  to  be  done  by  the  army.  These 
rumors  often  have  some  foundation  in  fact  and  serve  to  give 
interest  and  zest  to  soldier  life.  Situated  as  was  the  regi- 
ment and  brigade  at  McMinnville,  on  the  extreme  left  of  the 
army,  it  was  not  possible  for  anyone,  not  even  the  brigade 
commander,  to  receive  any  very  reliable  information,  beyond 
the  fact  that  important  operations  of  the  entire  army  were 
contemplated,  and  such  action  could  be  none  other  than  a 
forward  movement  which  meant  a  battle  in  the  very  near 
future.  Of  one  thing  all  had  more  or  less  reliable  informa- 
tion, and  that  was  that  the  Second  brigade.  Third  division, 
Twenty-first  corps,  would  soon  be  relieved,  and  would  then 
rejoin  its  division  and  corps,  but  when  it  would  be  relieved, 
or  where  it  would  rejoin  its  division  and  corps  no  one  knew. 
This  uncertainty  and  unrest  continued  through  the  entire 


158  THE  ETOIITY-SIXTII  REOIMENT, 

montli  of  August,  and  the  last  day  of  the  month  had  closed 
and  no  orders  had  been  received  for  the  movement. 

On  September  3,  the  headquarters  of  the  Third  division, 
Twenty-first  corps,  were  at  Jasper,  Tennessee,  and  on  that 
day  General  VanCleve,  by  his  Adjutant  General,  Captain  E. 
A.  Otis,  issued  the  following  special  orders.  No.  202: 

By  dii-ection  of  the  General  comraantlinaf  the  Twenty-first  Arraj 
Corps,  this  command  will  move  to  and  across  tlie  Tennessee  river  at  Shell 
Mound  as  soon  as  the  way  is  open,  of  which  notice  will  hereafter  be 
given.  The  troops  will  be  supplied  with  three  days'  rations  in  haver- 
sacks, commencing  with  tomorrow  morning.     *    *    *    * 

Under  this  order  Colonel  Dick's  brigade  moved  out  from 
McMinnville  to  join  the  division  and  cross  the  Tennessee 
river  and  bear  its  part  in  the  Chattanooga-Chickamauga 
campaign  then  fairly  opened.  That  afternoon,  September  3, 
at  2  o'clock,  the  brigade  left  its  comfortable  and  home-like  en- 
campment at  McMinnville,  marched  twelve  miles,  and 
bivouacked.  The  next  morning,  the  4th,  it  started  earl3^ 
during  the  forenoon  ascended  the  Cumberland  mountain, 
and  at  nightfall  encamped  on  its  summit.  September  5  the 
brigade  moved  out  at  0  o'clock,  descended  the  mountain  dur- 
ing the  day,  and  at  night  bivouacked  near  Dunlap  in  the 
Sequatchie  valley.  September  6  the  brigade  started  at  4 
o'clock  and  nuirched  down  the  valley  all  day,  and  encamped 
near  a  big  spring.  On  reaching  Jasper,  September  7,  Col- 
onel Dick  received  an  order  from  General  VanCleve  to 
change  his  line  of  nuirch,  and  instead  of  going  to  and 
crossing  the  river  at  Sliell  Mound,  as  first  ordered,  that  he 
should  march  to  and  cross  the  river  at  Bridgeport.  In 
obedience  to  this  order  the  route  was  changed  and  the 
brigade  passed  on  through  Jasper,  crossing  Battle  Creek 
and  reached  Bridgeport  and  crossed  the  Tennessee 
river  on  the  evening  of  Sei)tember  7,  going  into  bivouac 
on  the  east  side  of  the  river  about  9  o'clock,  at  night, 
having  marched  during  the  day  twenty-two  miles.  At 
5  o'clock  the  next  morning  the  brigade  again  moved  out, 
and  marched  that  day  to  Whitesides,  a  distance  of  fourteen 
miles. 

Of  the  advance  from  Whitesides  by  the  Second  brigade, 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  159 

Third  division,  Twenty-first  corps,  Colonel  George  P.  Dick, 
in  his  report  of  the  battle  of  Chickamauga,  says: 

"On  September  9,  a  march  of  sixteen  miles  on  the  Trenton  road 
brought  me  within  ten  miles  of  Chattanooga.  On  the  10th,  I  crossed  the 
Lookout  Mountain  after  a  considerable  delay,  occasioned  by  the  difficulty 
of  getting  a  large  supply  train  which  was  moving  in  front  of  my  column, 
over  the  road.  At  the  Widow  Gillespie's,  I  halted  until  by  brigade 
train  should  come  up  for  the  purpose  of  complying  with  the  order  for 
the  reduction  of  baggage.  This  caused  a  delay  until  4  p.  m.,  when  I 
again  moved  forward,  reaching  Rossville  at  sunset.  Here  a  courier 
came  in,  reporting  that  about  sixty  rebel  cavalry  had  attacked  General 
Wood's  supply  train  about  two  miles  ahead.  I  immediately  ordered  the 
Thirteenth  Ohio,  Fifty-ninth  Ohio,  and  Forty-fourth  Indiana  regiments, 
with  a  section  of  the  Third  Wisconsin  battery,  on  the  double  quick,  to 
drive  back  the  raiders,  leaving  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  as  a  guard  to 
my  own  train.  After  double  quicking  a  little  more  than  two  miles,  the 
Fifty-ninth  Ohio,  being  in  front,  came  up  to  the  train,  when  the  enemy 
withdrew.  The  road  being  now  clear,  I  moved  my  column  forward,  and 
at  11  p.  m.  I  came  up  to  General  Wood's  encampment  on  Chickamauga 
creek,  where  I  bivouacked  for  the  night. 

At  5  o'clock  next  morning  I  was  ordered  forward  to  rejoin  the  divis- 
ion, which  order  I  complied  with,  arriving  at  division  headquarters,  five 
miles  from  Ringgold,  Georgia,  at  about  7  a.  m.,  when  I  reported  to 
Brigadier-General  VanCleve.  At  9  a.  m.  I  moved  with  the  division  in 
the  direction  of  Ringgold.  Marching  with  the  division,  I  went  vvith  it 
into  camp  on  Dogwood  creek,  two  and  a  half  miles  south  of  Ringgold  on 
the  Dal  ton  road." 

The  march  from  the  time  this  brigade  left  McMiunville 
until  it  rejoined  the  division  near  Ringgold,  as  shown  by 
the  above  itinerary  and  Colonel  Dick's  report,  was  a 
forced  march  all  the  way  for  eight  days.  The  men 
of  the  regiment  were  in  excellent  spirits;  they  had 
had  a  rest  of  two  months,  during  which  time  they 
had  had  an  opportunity  to  procure  fruit  and  fresh 
vegetables,  and  the  health  of  the  men  had  been  restored,  and 
never  in  all  its  history  had  the  regiment  been  in  better  con- 
dition physically.  The  road  over  which  they  came  was  dry 
and  dusty,  much  of  the  route  was  through  one  of  the  most 
delightful  portions  of  Tennessee,  and  the  sun  was  hot  during 
the  day,  but  it  was  a  "  forward  movement, "  and  couriers  that 
were  met  enroute  gave  most  encouraging  reports  of  the  ad- 
vance of  the  main  army.     Thus  was  the  weariness  of  the 


160  THE  EIOIITY-SIXTII  REGIMENT, 

march,  the  boat  and  the  dust,  offset  by  the  cheerine:  news, 
and  no  complaints  of  hardships  were  heard.  When  the  brig- 
ade crossed  the  river  at  Bridgeport  on  September  7,  it  was 
believed  by  all  that  an  engagement  was  imminent  and  the 
sound  of  battle  was  expected.  On  the  9th,  however,  news  of 
the  evacuation  of  Chattanooga  was  received,  and  it  was  then 
believed  by  most  of  the  command  that  a  halt  would  be  made 
at  Chattanooga,  as  it  was  generally  understood  that  that  city 
was  the  objective  point,  and  that  now  being  in  the  hands  of 
General  Rosecrans,  therefore  the  campaign  would  be  ended. 
This  delusion  was  soon  dispelled  when  the  orders  were  re- 
ceived to  press  on  and  join  the  remainder  of  the  command 
then  in  pursuit  of  Bragg's  army.  The  march  in  pursuit  of 
Bragg  was  entered  upon  with  hearty  good  will,  and  as  the 
Eighty-sixth  moved  over  the  railroad  around  the  point  of  old 
Lookout  and  caught  sight  of  the  stars  and  stripes  floating 
over  the  captured  city  of  Chattanooga  a  shout  went  up  from 
the  men  that  was  taken  up  and  echoed  from  Lookout  to 
Missionary  Ridge.  Catching  just  a  glimpse  of  the  city  as 
the  head  of  the  column  crossed  the  creek  at  the  foot  of  the 
mountain,  the  brigade  hastened  on  up  Lookout  Valley  to  the 
southward  toward  Rossville,  the  men  little  dreaming  of  the 
terrible  ordeal  through  which  they  were  destined  to  pass 
within  the  following  ten  days. 

Having  now  united  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  and  the 
brigade  to  which  it  was  attached  with  the  division,  it  is  im- 
portant as  a  matter  of  history  to  be  preserved  by  the  regi- 
ment and  its  friends,  that  the  immediate  organization  of  the 
Twenty-first  army  corps  should  here  be  given.  This  corps, 
because  of  its  magnificent  record  at  Chickamauga,  has  won  a 
place  in  the  hearts  of  all  those  who  were  connected  with  the 
Army  of  the  Cumberland.  Whether  fighting  as  a  complete 
corps,  or  taken  by  detachments  and  sent  to  the  support  of 
other  portions  of  the  army,  the  officers  and  men  who  com- 
posed it  showed  that  gallantry  and  those  soldierly  qualities 
that  make  the  American  citizen  soldier  superior  to  any  other 
soldier  of  the  world.  The  following  roster  of  the  Twenty- 
first  army   corps  at  Chickamauga  will  doubtless   bring  to 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  161 

mind  many  incidents  and  scenes  which  have  been  covered  up 
in  the  minds  of  the  comrades  by  the  dust  of  years  that  have 
passed,  or  been  driven  from  memory,  or  pushed  into  the 
background  by  the  press  of  business  and  the  struggle  to 
"get  on  in  the  world, "  since  the  soldier  of  1861-1865  has  be- 
come again  the  citizen: 

TWENTY-FIRST    ARMY    CORPS    AT    CHICKAMAUGA. 
Major  Genei-al  Thomas  L.  Crittenden,  Commanding. 

First  Division. 
Brigadier  General  Thomas  J.  Wood,  Commanding. 
First  Briqadc. 
Colonel  George  P.  Buell,  Commanding. 
One  Hundreth  Illinois.  Tliirteenth  Michigan. 

Fifty-eighth  Indiana.  Twenty-sixth  Ohio. 

Eighth  Indiana  Battery. 
Second  Brigade. 
Brigadier  General  George  D.  Wagner,  Commanding. 
Stationed  at  Chattanooga  and  not  engaged  at  Chickamauga. 

Tliird  Brigade. 

Colonel  Charles  G.  Harker,  Commanding. 

Third  Kentucky.  Sixty-fifth  Ohio. 

Sixty-fourth  Ohio.  One  Hundred  and  Twenty-fifth  Ohio. 

Sixth  Ohio  Battery. 

Second  Division. 
Major  General  John  M.  Palmer,  Commanding. 

First  Brigade. 
Brigadier  General  Charles  Cruft,  Commanding. 
Thirty-first  Indiana.  Second  Kentucky. 

First  Kentucky.  Ninetieth  Ohio. 

First  Ohio  Light,  Battery  B. 
Second  Brigade. 
Brigadier  Genei^al  William  B.  Hazen,  Commanding. 
Ninth  Indiana.  Forty-first  Ohio. 

Sixth  Kentucky.  One    Hundred    and    Twenty-fourth 

Ohio. 
First  Ohio  Light,  Battery  F. 
Third  Brigade. 
Colonel  William  Grose,  Commanding. 
Eighty-fourth  Illinois.  Twenty-third  Kentucky. 

Thirty-sixth  Indiana.  Twenty-fourth  Ohio. 

Fourth  United  States  Artillery,  Battery  H. 
Fourth  United  States  Artillery,  Battery  M. 


162  the  eighty-sixth  regiment, 

Third  Division. 
Bi-igadicr  General  Horatio  P.  VanCleve,  Commanding. 
First  Brigade. 
Brigadier  Genei-al  Samuel  Beatty,  Commanding. 
Seventy-ninth  Indiana.  Seventeenth  Kentucky. 

Ninth  Kentucky.  Nineteenth  Ohio. 

Seventh  Indiana  Battery. 
Second  Brigade. 
Colonel  George  F.  Dick,  Commanding. 
Forty-fourth  Indiana.  Thirteenth  Ohio. 

Eighty-sixtli  Indiana.  Fifty-ninth  Ohio. 

Twenty-sixth  Pennsylvania  Battery. 
'Third  Brigade. 
Colonel  Sidney  M.  Barnes,  Commanding. 
Thirth-liftli  Indiana.  Twenty-first  Kentucky. 

Eighth  Kentucky.  Fifty-first  Ohio. 

Ninty-ninth  Ohio.  Third  Wisconsin  Battery. 

The  entire  movements  of  General  Bragg  after  leaving 
Chattanooga  and  his  designs  were  shrouded  in  mystery  in  so 
far  as  General  Rosecrans  was  able  to  discover.  Of  course  it 
was  all  made  manifest  later  on,  and  the  rebel  army  was  found 
to  have  been  posted  as  stated  in  the  foregoing  portion  of  this 
chapter.  After  the  division  of  General  VanCleve  was  united 
then  was  begun  the  same  tactics  that  had  been  pursued  by 
the  Twenty-first  army  corps  in  the  valley  opposite  Chatta- 
nooga before  Bragg  evacuated  the  i)lace.  It  was  to  be  a  sys- 
tem of  strategy  for  the  purpose  of  deceiving  and  misleading 
General  Bragg,  if  possible,  as  to  the  situation  and  condition 
of  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland.  It  was  now  a  matter  of 
vital  importance  to  General  Rosecrans  that  no  general  en- 
gagement should  be  brought  on  until  his  army  could  be  again 
united.  Although  the  pursuit  of  the  Confederate  army  was 
entered  upon  by  the  troops  of  the  Twenty-first  corps  with  a 
most  commendable  degree  of  enthusiasm,  no  one,  not  even  the 
commanding  general,  realized  the  perilous  situation  in  which 
it  was  being  placed.  The  true  condition  of  affairs  was,  how- 
ever, soon  made  manifest  to  General  Rosecrans  and  at  least 
to  all  of  the  general  ofticers,  whether  it  was  to  the  rank  and 
file  or  not. 

On  September  12,  the  Twenty -first  corps  marched  from 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  163 

Ringgold  and  bivouacked  near  to  and  about  Lee  &  Gordon's 
Mills.  On  the  night  of  September  9,  General  Bragg  had 
ordered  General  Hindman,  then  at  Lee  &  Gordon's  Mills,  to 
inarch  to  Davis'  cross  roads,  and  there  to  make  a  junction 
with  General  Cleburne's  forces,  and  both  were  to  attack  Neg- 
ley's  division  of  General  Thomas'  corps  then  advancing  from 
Stevens'  Gap  toward  LaFayette,  where,  it  was  afterward 
learned,  General  Bragg  had  concentrated  his  army,  and  where 
he  was  then  receiving  large  reinforcements  from  Virginia 
and  Mississippi.  These  orders  were  not  obeyed,  but  had 
they  been  executed  promptly,  Negley's  division,  isolated  as 
it  was,  would  have  been,  in  all  probability,  utterly  destroyed. 
General  Hill,  who  should  have  had  the  immediate  command 
of  the  two  divisions  that  were  to  have  attacked  General  Neg- 
ley,  reported  to  General  Bragg  that  the  mountain  gaps 
through  which  he  would  have  to  pass  were  so  obstructed 
with  felled  timber  that  he  could  not  get  through  in  less 
than  twenty-four  hours.  By  the  time  the  twenty -four  hours 
had  passed.  General  Baird,  commanding  the  First  division 
of  Thomas'  corps,  had  joined  General  Negley,  and  thus 
Negley  was  placed  on  nearer  an  equal  footing  with  the  col- 
umn that  was  to  have  made  the  attack.  Again  on  September 
10,  General  Bragg  issued  the  order  to  make  the  attack,  send- 
ing forward  tw^o  additional  divisions  of  the  Confederate  army 
as  reinforcements.  Again  there  w^as  the  delay  of  a  day  in 
the  execution  of  General  Bragg 's  orders,  and  in  that  time 
the  other  two  divisions  of  General  Thomas'  corps  had  joined 
Negley  and  Baird,  and  with  them  General  Thomas  in  person, 
and  the  center  of  our  army  was  secure  for  the  time  being. 
These  events  now  bring  the  reader  to  the  day  on  which  Crit- 
•tenden's  corps,  falling  back  from  Ringgold,  had  concentrated 
at  Lee  &  Gordon's  Mills.  Thomas,  with  the  Fourteenth 
corps,  and  McCook,  with  the  Twentieth  corps,  were  from 
twenty  to  forty  miles  away,  with  mountain  ranges  and  al- 
most impassable  roads  separating  them  from  Crittenden's 
!  corps.  The  Twenty-first  corps,  Crittenden's,  was  then  en- 
tirely isolated  from  all  support  and  absolutely  powerless  to 
withstand  a  combined  attack  from  General  Bragg 's  army,  if 


164  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

that  officer  should  determine  to  concentrate  his  forces  and 
make  the  attack.  And  this  was  exactly  the  movement  that 
was  then  contemplated  by  General  Bragg. 

On  September  12,  General  Bragg  with  his  headquarters 
at  LaPayette,  Georgia,  at  6  p.  m.,  issued  the  following  order 
to  Lieutenant  General  Polk: 

General: — I  enclose  you  a  dispatch  from  General  Pegram.  This 
presents  you  a  fine  opportunity  of  striking  Crittenden  in  detail,  and  I 
hope  you  will  avail  yourself  of  it  at  daylight  to-morrow.  This  division 
crushed  and  the  others  are  yours.  We  can  then  turn  again  on  the  force 
in  the  Cove.  Wheeler's  cavalry  will  move  on  Wilder  so  as  to  cover  your 
right.     I  shall  be  delighted  to  hear  of  your  success. 

On  that  evening,  however,  after  receiving  the  orders 
General  Polk  notified  General  Bragg  that  additional  troops 
should  be  sent  to  him.     He  said: 

"  I  am  clearly  of  the  opinion  that  you  should  send  me  additional 
forces,  so  as  to  make  failure  impossible,  and  great  success  here  would  be 
of  incalculable  benefit  to  our  cause." 

The  entire  day  passed  and  General  Polk  awaited  for  re- 
inforcements, and  at  the  close  of  the  day  the  entire  corps  of 
Crittenden  had  united.  At  night,  on  September  12,  General 
Bragg  again  writes  General  Polk: 

"  Your  position  seems  to  be  a  strong  one  for  defense,  but  I  hope  will 
not  be  held  unless  the  enemy  attacks  early.  We  must  force  him  to  fight 
at  the  earliest  moment,  and  before  his  combination  can  be  carried  out. 
******  However,  to  avoid  all  danger,  I  shall  put  Buckner  in  mo- 
tion in  the  morning  and  run  the  risk  here.  You  must  not  delay  attack 
for  his  arrival,  or  another  golden  opportunity  may  be  lost  by  the  with- 
drawal of  our  game.  *  *  *  *  Action,  prompt  and  decided,  is  all  that 
can  save  us." 

On  the  very  day  that  this  attack  was  ordered  to  be  made 
by  General  Bragg  on  Crittenden,  September  13,  General 
Crittenden,  after  placing  his  corps  in  position,  ordered  Gen-* 
eral  VanCleve,  with  General  Beatty's  brigade,  supported  by 
Colonel  Dick's  brigade,  to  make  a  reconnoissance  beyond  Lee 
&  Gordon's  Mills  on  the  Lafayette  road.  At  the  same  time 
Wilder's  brigade  of  mounted  infantry,  with  General  Cruft's 
brigade  as  support,  was  ordered  to  reconnoitre  to  the  left 
through  Pea  Vine  valley.  The  same  day  the  Fourth  United 
States  cavalry  reported  to  General  Crittenden  for  duty,  and 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  165 

he  ordered  them  to  reconnoitre  the  road  toward  McLemore's 
Cove. 

General  VanCleve  moved  out  in  obedience  to  his  orders, 
crossing  Chickamaiiga  creek  and  advancing  for  three  miles 
toward  LaFayette.  This  reconnoissance  developed  the  fact 
the  enemy  was  in  front  in  some  considerable  force,  but  from 
General  VanCleve 's  report  it  is  evident  that  he  went  back  to 
his  position  at  Lee  &  Gordon's  Mills  in  blissful  ignorance  of 
the  exact  situation  in  his  front  that  day.  In  his  report  to 
General  Crittenden  after  the  battle  of  Chickamauga,  in  de- 
tailing his  movements  for  each  day  from  the  4th  to  the  21st 
of  September,  he  says: 

"  On  the  13th,  by  your  order,I  made  a  reconnoisance  with  my  division 
three  miles  toward  LaFayette.  We  met  the  rebel  cavalry  immediately 
after  passing  our  picket  line,  and  with  sharp  skirmishing  drove  them 
back.  Two  privates  of  the  Nineteenth  Ohio  were  mortally  wounded  by 
a  solid  shot.  Captain  Drury,  Chief  of  Artillery,  and  Lieutenant  Clark, 
Company  G,  Seventy-ninth  Indiana  Volunteers,  were  seriously  wounded. 
The  loss  of  the  enemy  is  unknown." 

At  the  end  of  the  three  miles  advance  General  VanCleve 
halted  and  rested  his  command,  giving  the  men  an  o^opor- 
tunity  to  eat  a  lunch  before  he  started  on  the  return.  Not 
one  of  the  officers  or  men  either  of  Dick's  brigade,  or  of 
Beatty's  brigade,  as  they  ate  their  hardtack  that  Sunday 
noon  of  September  13,  18G3,  imagined  for  one  instant  that 
only  one  mile  farther  on  the  greater  part  of  Bragg 's  army 
were  waiting  for  what  they  supposed  Crittenden's  advance 
to  fall  into  their  hands.  Had  General  Polk  obeyed  the 
orders  of  his  chief,  which  were  to  fall  upon  Crittenden  that 
morning,  he  would  have  caught  General  VanCleve  all  un- 
prepared for  the  discovery  of  so  much  force,  soon  after  he, 
VanCleve,  had  crossed  the  Chickamauga,  and  the  two  brig- 
ades would  have  been  Utterly  overrun  and  annihilated.  The 
same  condition  of  affairs  confronted  Wilder's  brigade  that 
day.  Had  Wilder  but  pushed  forward  on  his  reconnoissance 
one  mile  further  than  where  he  halted  and  turned  back,  he 
would  have  struck  the  solid  right  wing  of  Bragg 's  army. 
The  greater  the  examination  of  the  history  of  the  battle  of 
Chickamauga  one  makes,  the  more  it  is  apparent  that  Chicka- 


166  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

mau^a  was  full  of  blunders,  and  failures  on  the  part  of  the 
Confederate  army,  and  of  escapes  for  the  Union  army.  The 
failure  of  Hindman  and  Cleburne  to  strike  Negley,  was  a 
blunder  on  their  part,  and  an  escape  for  Thomas'  corps. 
The  failure  of  Polk  with  his  overwhelming  force  to  strike 
Crittenden  on  the  morning  of  September  13  with  VanCleve's 
division  on  the  east  bank  of  the  Chickamauga,  and  Wilder 's 
brigade  with  their  breech  loading  Spencer  rifles  out  of  reach 
on  the  left,  with  the  cavalry  towards  McLemore's  Cove,  and 
the  remainder  of  the  corps  all  unconscious  of  its  danger,  was 
the  greatest  blunder  and  mistake  of  the  Confederates,  and 
the  crowning  escape  not  only  of  Crittenden's  corjis,  but  in 
its  final  results,  as  we  shall  see  a  little  further  on,  the  almost 
miraculous  escape  of  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland  as  well. 
General  Polk's  timidity  and  the  lack  of  enforcing  orders  by 
General  Bragg  on  Sunday,  September  13,  was  the  pivot  on 
which  absolute  defeat  and  ruin  to  General  Rosecrans  turned 
to  an  ultimate  victory  in  the  holding  of  Chattanooga. 

Bragg  after  the  failure  of  Polk  on  Sunday,  resolved  upon 
another  line  of  action  dift'ei'iug  only  in  the  manner  of  its  exe- 
cution, from  the  one  he  had  mapped  out  in  his  orders  to  Gen- 
eral Polk  when  he  ordered  Mm  to  fall  upon  Crittenden's 
corps.  His  new  plan  was  fully  developed  in  his  orders 
which  were  issued  to  his  army  a  few  days  later.  In  this  new 
plan  he  proposed  to  move  down  on  the  east  side  of  the 
Chickamauga  and  cross  the  stream  between  Chattanooga  and 
Lee  &  Gordon's  Mills,  destroy  General  Crittenden's  corps, 
then  to  follow  up  his  victory  and  attack  General  Thomas  and 
destroy  or  scatter  his  command  in  the  mountains,  thus  leav- 
ing General  McCook  with  his  corps,  utterly  powerless,  away 
from  supplies,  away  from  all  hope  of  assistance  and  at  the 
mercy  of  the  Confederate  army,  with  Chattanooga  again  in 
his  grasp  whenever  at  his  leisure  he  might  see  fit  to  take  it, 
and  with  the  way  once  more  open  for  a  triumi^hant  march 
northward.  The  plan  was  an  excellent  one,  and  it  does 
seem  now  in  the  light  of  all  the  facts,  as  if  there  was  no  pos- 
sible hindrance  to  its  successful  accomplishment.  By  inter- 
posing his  array  between  Chattanooga  and  Crittenden's  left, 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  167 

Bragg  would  be  in  no  danger  of  being  caught  between  the 
Twenty-first  corps  and  the  Fourteenth  and  Twentieth  cor^^s, 
which  might  come  up  before  the  Twenty-first  was  disposed 
of.  But  here  again  came  another  blunder  of  General  Bragg. 
He  was  too  slow,  and  allowed  four  days  to  pass  before  he 
issued  his  final  orders  for  the  advance  of  his  army.  Gen- 
eral Rosecrans,  in  the  meantime,  had  gained  information 
that  Bragg  was  in  receipt  of  a  large  reinforcement,  and  that 
General  Longstreet,  with  his  famous  corps  of  the  Army  of 
Northern  Virginia  was  enroute  also  to  further  strengthen 
General  Bragg.  General  Rosecrans  also  had  received  such 
information  as  led  him  to  believe  that  General  Bragg  was 
concentrating  towards  the  Union  left.  At  once  he,  Rose- 
crans, undertook  to  concentrate  the  Army  of  the  Cumber- 
land on  Crittenden's  corps.  General  Rosecrans  in  his  re- 
port covering  the  date  of  September  12,  says: 

"Thus  it  was  ascertained  that  the  enemy  was  concentrating:  all  his 
forces,  both  infantry  and  cavalry,  behind  Pigeon  Mountain,  in  the  vicin- 
ity of  LaFayette,  while  the  corps  of  this  army  were  at  Gordon's  Mills, 
Bailey's  cross-roads,  at  the  foot  of  Stevens'  Gap,  and  at  Alpine,  a  dis- 
tance of  forty  miles  from  flank  to  flank,  by  the  nearest  practical  roads, 
and  fifty-seven  miles  by  the  route  subsequently  taken  by  the  Twentieth 
army  corps.  It  had  already  been  ascertained  that  the  main  body  of 
Johnston's  army  had  joined  Bragg,  and  accumulation  of  evidence 
showed  that  the  troops  from  Virginia  had  reached  Atlanta  on  the  first 
of  the  month,  and  that  reinforcements  were  expected  to  arrive  soon 
from  that  quarter.  It  was  now  a  matter  of  life  and  death  to  effect  the 
concentration  of  the  army." 

The  plan  adopted  by  General  Rosecrans  for  the  concen; 
tration  of  his  army  was  for  General  McCook  with  his  corps 
to  join  General  Thomas  at  McLemore's  Cove,  then  to  move 
General  Thomas  to  the  left  permitting  General  McCook  to 
take  the  place  of  General  Thomas,  and  then  by  forced 
marches  to  move  both  of  their  corps  to  the  rear  of  and  to  the 
left  of  General  Crittenden's  corps.  Thus  in  the  formation 
as  was  then  contemplated  and  as  was  afterward  carried  out 
leaving  General  Crittenden's  corps  so  that  it  would  become 
the  right  wing  of  the  army  instead  of  the  left.  While  these 
preparations  for  consolidating  the  army  were  in  progress, 
the  troops  of  Crittenden's  corjjs  were  kept  busy  in  making 


168  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

reconnoissances,  and  by  moving  about  were  making  a  show 
of  strength.  On  the  night  of  September  12,  at  midniglit. 
General  McCook  received  his  order  to  join  General  Thomas 
at  McLemore's  Cove,  and  he  at  once  commenced  a  move- 
ment which  required  him  five  days  to  execute,  reaching  his 
position  with  General  Thomas  on  the  17th.  Five  long,  anx- 
ious and  dangerous  days  for  the  small  body  of  the  army 
along  Chickamauga  creek.  Five  days  in  which  at  any  time 
Bragg  might  have  destroyed  Crittenden  and  have  thrown  his 
whole  force  against  Thomas  and  destroyed  him  before 
McCook  could  get  up.  As  soon  as  McCook  had  joined 
Thomas  the  movement  to  the  left  began  and  on  the  night  of 
the  17th  these  two  corps  had  pushed  well  on  toward  Crit- 
tenden. 

On  the  night  of  the  17th,  General  Bragg  issued  his 
orders  for  the  movement  of  his  corps  and  for  the  opening  of 
the  battle,  and  it  was  intended  that  the  movements  named 
in  the  order  should  all  be  made  so  that  Bragg  should  open 
the  battle  by  6  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  the  18th.  The 
orders  as  issued  by  General  Bragg,  dated  at  Leet's  Tan 
Yard,  September  18,  1863,  read  as  follows  : 

1.  Johnson's  column,  (Hood's),  on  crossing,at  or  near  Reed's  bridge, 
will  turn  to  the  left  by  the  most  practicable  route,  and  sweep  up  the 
Chickamauga  toward  Lee  &  Gordon's  Mills. 

2.  Walker,  crossing  at  Alexander  bridge,  will  unite  in  this  move — 
and  i)ush  vigorously  on  the  enemy's  flank  and  rear  in  the  same  direction. 

3.  Buckner,  crossing  at  Thedford's  ford,  will  join  in  the  movement 
to  the  left,  and  press  the  enemy  up  the  stream  from  Polk's  front  at  Lee 
&  Goi-don's  Mills. 

4.  Polk  will  press  his  forces  to  the  front  of  Lee  &  Gordon's  Mills, 
and  if  met  by  too  much  resistance  to  cross,  will  bear  to  the  right  and 
cross  at  Dalton's  ford,  or  at  Thedford's,  as  may  be  necessary,  and  join  in 
the  attack  wherever  the  enemy  may  be. 

5.  Hill  will  cover  our  left  flank  fi-om  an  advance  of  the  enemy  from 
the  Cove,  and  by  pressing  the  cavalry  in  his  front,  ascertain  if  the  en- 
emy is  reinfoi-cing  at  Leo  &  Gordon's  Mills,  in  which  event  he  will  at- 
tack them  in  flank. 

().  Wheeler's  cavalry  will  hold  the  gaps  in  Pigeon  Mountain  and 
covei-  our  rear  and  left,  and  bring  up  stragglers. 

7.     All  teams,  etc.,  not  with  troops,  shall  go  toward  Ringgold  and 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  169 

Dalton,  beyond  Taylor's  Ridge.     All  cooking  .shall  be  done  at  the  trains. 
Rations  when  cooked  will  be  forwarded  to  the  troops. 

8.     The  above  movements  wnl  be  executed  with  the  utmost  prompt- 
ness, vigor  and  persistence. 

Between  General  Brao'g  and  General  Crittenden  run  the 
deep  and  muddy  waters  of  the  Chickamauga,  with  banks  that 
were  steep,  and  the  crossings,  difficult  for  artillery  and  ammu- 
nition trains,  were  narrow  and  poor.  To  make  these  crossings 
the  more  difficult,  each  one  was  guarded  by  a  strong  detach- 
ment from  Wilder's  mounted  infantry  and  Minty's  cavalry, 
each  detachment  being  supported  or  assisted  with  artillery. 
This  was  a  force  not  counted  upon  by  General  Hood  in  his 
calculation.  Beside  this  his  command  did  not  get  under  way 
early  in  the  morning,  and  it  was  after  noon  of  that  day  be- 
fore the  advance  of  the  different  corps  approached  their 
points  of  crossing,  and  when  these  were  reached  they  found 
a  sufficient  force  to  dispute  their  passage  and  the  crossing 
was  not  effected  until  late  in  the  evening,  too  late  to  carry 
out  the  plans  as  laid  down  in  General  Bragg 's  order.  Only  a 
part  of  Bragg's  army  got  across  that  evening  and  the  Union 
troops  were  constantly  on  the  guard. 


CHAPTER  XV. 
THE  BATTLE  OF  CHICKAMAUGA. 

TlioOpcnins  ISiill— Tlie  EiKlity-si.xth  in  at  tlie  BcKinninn;— Dick's  Brifjado  in  Sup- 
portof  Wilder— Inipmtant  Points  on  tiie  Field  Described— Position  of  Kose- 
craiis'  Troops— Wait  ins  in  Suspense— Tlie  Orders  Arrive— The  Regiment  goes 
in  A  Vivid  Portrayal  of  the  First  Day's  Contest^The  Lines  Reformed  for 
the  Second  Day— The  Bloody  Contest  Rages  Witli  Unabated  Fury— The  Va- 
rious ISlovements  of  the  Regiment,  Brigade  and  Division— The  Charges  at 
the  K'(>lly  arid  Poe  Fields— The  Break  in  the  Lines— Longstreet  in  tlie  Charge- 
On  Snodgrass  Hill  and  Marker  Hill— Steadman's  Troops  Come  Up— Confed- 
erates Gain  Possession  of  the  LaFayette  Road  on  the  Left— Final  Repulse  of 
Longstreet  at  Snodgrass  Hill— Witlidrawal  of  Union  Troops— Strength  of  the 
Armies  and  Losses  at  Chickamauga— Estimates  of  the  Battle  l)y  Confederate 
Officers— Indiana  at  Chickamauga. 

On  September  18,  Dick's  brigade  lay  durinj?  the  forenoon 
at  Crawfish  Springs,  two  miles  west  and  south,  by  the  wagon 
road,  from  Lee  &  Gordon's  Mills.  The  horses  stood  hitched 
to  the  artillery  for  any  emergency.  The  troops  had  just 
finished  their  noon  meal  and  were  sitting  about  w^aiting  for 
the  next  move,  when  from  the  north  came  the  report  of  ar- 
tillery announcing  the  opening  of  the  battle  at  Alexander's 
bridge  and  Reed's  bridge.  The  troops  w^ere  now  fully 
aroused  as  they  began  to  thoroughly  realize  that  the 
battle  was  opening.  For  several  days  it  had  been  expected, 
but  no  one  realized  the  severity  with  which  the  contest  was 
to  rage  for  the  next  two  days  after  these  opening  shots.  The 
brigade  did  not  have  long  for  speculation  or  conjecture  upon 
the  opening  of  the  engagement,  before  there  came  an  order 
to  Colonel  Dick  to  push  forward  his  brigade  as  rapidly  as 
possible  to  the  support  of  General  Thomas  J.  Wood,  who 
was  then  threatened  by  General  Polk's  advance  at  Lee  & 
Gordon's  Mills.  There  was  no  delay  in  getting  off  after  the 
order  was  received,  and  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  with  the 
other  regiments  of  the  brigade,  reached  the  position  on  the 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  171 

left  of  Wood  in  time  to  see  the  first  of  the  wounded  cavahy 
and  mounted  infantry  coining  in  from  Wilder  and  Minty's 
command.  Until  the  sun  went  down  on  the  afternoon  of  the 
18th  of  September,  the  fight  was  between  the  cavalry  and 
mounted  infantry  of  Rosecraus,  and  the  head  of  the  columns 
of  Bragg.  The  day,  however,  was  practically  lost  to  Bragg, 
in  so  far  as  the  speedy  and  successful  execution  of  his  plans 
were  concerned. 

The  soldiers  who  took  part  in  the  battle  of  Chickamauga 
and  who  have  not  visited  Chickamauga  since  the  battle,  may 
have  forgotten  to  a  certain  extent  the  roads  and  locations 
that  were  prominent  in  that  battle,  and  the  reader  of  this 
sketch  who  has  not  been  on  the  battle-field  should  know  of 
the  different  positions  as  they  are  named  as  important  points 
in  the  battle. 

The  Chattanooga  &  LaPayette  road,  spoken  of  during 
the  battle  as  the  LaPayette  road,  is  a  wagon  road  leading  a 
little  east  of  south  from  Chattanooga  to  Rossville,  a  distance 
of  four  miles,  where  it  passes  through  Missionary  Ridge 
by  what  is  known  as  Rossville  Gap.  Near  Rossville  and  a 
very  little  to  the  north,  is  the  boundary  line  between  Tenn- 
essee and  Georgia.  The  LaPayette  road,  after  passing 
through  Rossville  Gap  runs  southeast  for  near  two  miles, 
and  then  runs  due  south  through  or  near  the  center  of  the 
battle-field  to  Lee  &  Gordon's  Mills,  eight  miles  and  a  half 
from  Rossville  and  twelve  and  a  half  miles  from  Chattanooga, 
and  thirteen  miles  yet  further  south  of  Lee  &  Gordon's  Mills 
is  LaPayette.  Along  the  line  of  this  LaPayette  road  are  for 
the  most  part  the  important  positions  where  the  battle  raged 
on  September  19th  and  20th.  As  the  battle  opened  our  right 
lay  at  Lee  &  Gordon's  Mills,  and  to  the  east  side  of  the  LaPay- 
ette road,  faced  east,  and  as  all  of  the  movements  of  the  bat- 
tle were  to  our  left,  or  northward,  the  points  will  be  named 
beginning  at  Lee  &  Gordon's  Mills  and  going  to  our  left, 
north  toward  Chattanooga  on  this  road.  Pirst  is  Viniard's, 
one  mile  and  a  half  north  of  the  mill,  Brotherton's,  a  mile 
and  a  small  fraction  north  of  Viniard's;  Foe's,  a  quarter  of  a 
mile  north  of  Brotherton's;  Kelly's,  three-fourths  of  a  mile 


172  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

north  of  Poe's;  McDaniers,  four-fifths  of  a  mile  north  of 
Kelly's;  Cloud's,  a  half  mile  north  of  McDaniel's.  With  these 
l)oints  borne  in  mind  it  will  not  be  difficult  to  locate  in  the 
mind  the  position  to  the  east  or  west  of  the  LaFayette  road. 
Tlio  Widow  Glenn's  is  almost  directly  west  of  Viniard's, 
abouth  three-quarters  of  a  mile.  Dyer's  is  west  of  the  Broth- 
erton  house  about  a  half  mile;  Snodgrass  Hill  is  northwest  of 
the  Kelly  field  about  a  mile.  North  of  Snodgrass  Hill  a  half 
mile  is  Harker's  Hill,  a  ridge  running  in  a  northeasterly  di- 
rection toward  the  LaFayette  road.  On  the  east  side  of  the 
LaFayette  road  is  Jay's  mill,  about  two  and  an  eighth  miles 
southeast  from  McDaniel's;  Reed's  bridge,  two  and  half 
miles  southeast  from  McDaniel's;  Alexander's  bridge,  a  lit- 
tle south  of  east  of  Viniard's  two  and  three-quarter  miles; 
the  Brock  field  east  of  Brotherton's  a  mile.  Intermediate  be- 
tween the  houses  named  here  are  the  fields  and  woods  belong- 
ing to  the  parties  indicated  by  the  names  given. 

As  stated,  the  forces  of  Wilder  held  at  bay  the  advance 
of  General  Walker  at  Alexander's  bridge  until  about  dark 
when  Wilder  fell  back  toward  the  LaFayette  road,  and  halted 
on  the  east  line  of  the  Viniard  farm.  Here  he  jjosted  his  troops 
in  the  best  manner  possible  to  i)revent  the  rebel  force  from 
reaching  the  LaFayette  road  and  cutting  off  the  line  between 
Crittenden  and  Chattanooga.  The  enemy,  however,  ad- 
vanced in  such  force  as  to  endanger  Wilder "s  position,  when 
he  called  upon  General  Crittenden  for  assistance.  Colonel 
Dick's  brigade  being  the  nearest  to  Wilder  it  was  ordered 
forward  and  directed  to  form  on  Wilder 's  right.  This  was 
done  by  placing  the  Forty-fourth  Indiana  and  the  Fifty- 
ninth  Ohio  regiments  on  the  line,  while  the  Eighty-sixth  In- 
diana and  the  Thirteenth  Ohio  were  held  in  reserve.  Dur- 
ing the  night  a  very  determined  effort,  as  it  seemed,  was 
begun  to  force  back  our  lines  and  gain  the  LaFay- 
ette road,  but  the  resistance  was  so  hot,  and  the  rebels  not 
being  able  to  ascertain  the  length  or  strength  of  our  lines 
because  of  the  darkness,  after  some  severe  firing,  relin- 
quished the  movement  and  fell  back  out  of  range  and  thus 
rested  for  the  night. 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.     .  173 

Returning  now  to  the  movements  of  the  Fourteenth  and 
Twentieth  corps,  we  find  Thomas  and  McCook  had  kept 
quiet  during  the  day  of  the  18th  but  as  soon  as  night  had 
come  these  two  corps  at  once  started  from  Pond  S  luring  to 
push  through  with  all  possible  dispatched  to  reach  Critten- 
den's left  and  interpose  their  lines  between  the  right  of 
Bragg 's  army  and  the  route  to  Chattanooga.  Upon  reach- 
ing Crawfish  Springs,  Negley's  division  was  turned  to  the 
southeast  to  Glass'  mill  to  watch  the  flank  and  prevent  any 
surprise  from  that  direction,  and  Thomas  with  the  other  three 
of  his  divisions  pressed  on  through  the  darkness  northward 
past  the  Widow  Glenn's,  leaving  the  Lafayette  road  to  his 
right  and  finally  turning  east,  striking  that  road  at  the 
Kelly  farm.  From  that  point  General  Brannan's  division 
moved  eastward  to  Jay's  mill  and  at  daylight  was  in  line 
ready  for  the  battle  that  was  soon  to  open.  Before  the 
dawn  had  fully  come  General  Thomas  had  his  forces  all  in 
position  on  the  left  of  Crittenden,  while  McCook  was  at 
Crawfish  Springs  ready  to  fall  into  line  wherever  he  should 
be  most  needed.  The  18th  of  September  had  passed  and 
with  it  all  prospect  for  General  Bragg  to  destroy  Critten- 
den's corps.  With  it  had  gone  the  victory  that  he  had  seen 
within  his  grasp  when  he  issued  his  orders  on  the  17th.  By 
his  delays  and  tardiness  in  moving  he  had  lost  all 
chance  to  pass  around  the  left  of  the  Union  army  and  inter- 
pose between  it  and  Chattanooga.  The  dawn  of  the  19th 
was  to  be  a  surprise  for  General  Bragg  even  greater  than  he 
had  anticipated  giving  to  General  Crittenden.  Prior  to  this 
time  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland  had  shown  its  prowess  in 
fighting  as  an  advancing  and  aggressive  army.  It  was  now 
to  fight  on  the  defensive,  and  it  was  ready  to  show,  and  did 
show,  that  its  courage  and  staying  qualities  were  even 
greater  than  any  of  its  former  daring  and  deeds  of  valor. 

Let  us  examine  the  position  of  the  troops  of  General 
Rosecrans  on  the  morning  of  September  19th  before  the 
opening  of  the  battle.  Crittenden's  corps  still  occupied  the 
left  of  the  line  extending  from  Lee  &  Gordon's  Mills  north- 
ward.    Wilder 's  brigade  of  mounted  infantry  and  Colonel 


174  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

Dick's  brigade  had  just  before  daylight  been  withdrawn 
from  tho  oast  side  of  the  Viniard  farm,  east  of  the  LaFay- 
otto  road,  and  Wilder 's  brigade  was  now  formed  in  line  of 
battle  on  the  ridge  in  the  edge  of  the  woods  on  the 
W(^st  side  of  the  Viniard  farm,  west  of  the  LaPayette 
road.  This  brigade  at  that  time  formed  the  extreme 
riglit  of  the  army.  Thomas,  however,  was  moving  into 
])()siti()n  on  the  north,  and  he  soon  had  his  three 
divisions  across  the  LaFayette  road  extending  in  a 
northeasterly  line  to  Jay's  mill,  facing  southward.  At  this 
time  there  was  a  gap  in  our  lines  between  the  left  of  Critten- 
den and  the  right  of  Wilder.  McCook's  corps,  the  Twentieth, 
was  at  Crawfish  Springs,  awaiting  orders,  yet  within  easy 
reach  of  any  position  that  might  need  his  troops.  General 
Steadman  with  his  reserve  corps  was  at  Rossville.  Fortune 
and  misfortune  were  with  General  Rosecrans'  army  that 
morning.  Fortune,  in  that  our  army  was  altogether,  and 
that  General  Bragg  was  resting  in  the  full  belief  that  Rose- 
crans' forces  were  yet  in  the  same  position  that  they  were 
on  the  morning  of  the  18th,  with  Crittenden  isolated  and  alone 
at  Lee  &  Gordon's  Mills,  and  Tliomas  and  Granger  many 
miles  distant  on  the  right.  All  of  this  was  fortunate  for  the 
Union  army,  but  it  was  unfortunate  that  Rosecrans  did  not 
know  that  the  rebel  army  was  that  morning  well  nigh  all 
across  on  the  west  side  of  the  Chickamauga.  Brannan's  di- 
vision in  position  near  Jay's  mill,  on  the  extreme  left  of  our 
line,  met  Forest's  cavalry  about  7:30  a.  m.,  and  at  once  the 
battle  of  the  1i)tli  opened.  One  after  another  of  the  brigades 
extending  toward  the  right  took  up  the  battle  and  the  rush 
and  i-oar  of  the  contest  extended  toward  the  right  from  Jay's 
mill  on  past  Thomas'  corps  to  Crittenden's,  while  Negley's 
division  ;it  Glass'  mill,  nearly  nine  miles  away  from  our  left, 
was  engaged  with  the  enemy.  But  what  of  Dick's  brigade 
and  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana? 

As  before  stated  this  brigade  just  before  daylight  had 
been  relieved  from  duty  with  Wilder 's  brigade  and  moved  to 
the  rear  a  short  distance,  and  toward  Lee  &  Gordon's  Mills, 
into  an  open  field  there  to  prepare  breakfast,  and  to  get  such 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  175 

rest  as  might  be  possible,  until  such  time  as  the  services  of 
the  regiment  and  brigade  might  be  needed. 

The  sun  had  scarcely  appeared  above  the  tops  of  the 
trees  until  the  opening  fire  of  the  battle  was  heard  away  on 
its  left.  In  a  short  time  another  shot,  sounding  as  if  one  army 
or  the  other  was  feeling  its  way.  The  distance  was  too  great 
to  hear  any  sounds  of  musketry,  but  the  artillery  shots  soon 
provoked  answering  shots,  as  if  both  armies  were  fully 
set  in  battle  array  before  the  opening  gun  was  fired,  for  the 
firing  seemed  to  run  along  the  entire  front  in  a  very  brief 
space  of  time.  Now  the  firing  on  the  left  grows  stronger, 
and  between  the  artillery  shots  one  catches  the  sound  of 
musketry.  Stronger  and  stronger  grows  the  contest,  and 
nearer,  too,  for  there  breaks  upon  the  ear  one  continuous 
roar  of  artillery  from  the  left,  sweeping  onward  as  the  min- 
utes sped,  while  volley  after  volley  of  musketry  tells  that 
the  two  armies  have  come  together  in  the  first  charges  of 
the  battle. 

The  contest  gathers  in  strength  as  on  it  comes  sweeping 
down  on  to  the  lines  in  front  of  where  Dick's  brigade  waited, 
sweeping  on  to  the  right  until  it  becomes  one  commingled 
roar  of  artillery  and  rattle  of  musketry,  dying  away  in  the 
dull  and  sullen  thunder  of  Negley's  guns  on  the  farther- 
most right. 

The  men  of  the  Eighty-sixth  can  see  none  of  the  lines 
that  are  engaged,  but  from  the  sound  of  the  battle  it  is  be- 
lieved by  all  that  the  Union  army  is  holding  its  position 
against  the  furious  charges  that  are  being  made  upon  it. 

A  lull  for  a  few  moments  comes  in  the  deadly  contest, 
and  only  a  few  scattering  shots  are  heard  along  the  line. 
Looking  now  to  the  front  of  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  through 
an  opening  in  the  trees,  may  be  seen,  crossing  a  ridge,  the 
inarching  columns  of  the  enemy  as  he  moves  toward  the 
left  of  our  army,  massing  his  forces  against  the  troops  of 
Thomas,  x3reparatory  to  the  terrible  work  of  that  Saturday 
afternoon  along  the  line  at  Viniard's,  at  Brotherton's,  in  the 
Brock  field,  and  at  Poe's,  in  the  desiderate  struggle  to  turn 
the  left  and  get  between  Rosecrans  and  Chattanooga.     The 


176  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

lessening  of  the  storm,  however,  is  but  brief,  for  again  the 
sound  of  the  contest  begins  to  gather,  and  grows  rapidly  in 
strength.  It  came  on  like  the  blasts  of  a  tornado,  sounding 
louder  and  louder,  stronger  and  yet  stronger  it  rages,  until  it 
bui'sts  upon  the  listener  in  a  great  rush  and  roar  of  terrible 
sound,  before  which  those  who  hear  and  are  not  a  part  of  it, 
stand  in  awe,  and,  looking  each  the  other  in  the  face,  dare  not 
speak. 

Ov^er  on  the  right  it  again  broke  forth,  and  with  renewed 
strength  rolled  on  down  the  lines,  growing  fiercer  and  fiercer, 
and  louder  and  louder,  as  additional  forces  were  brought  into 
the  contest,  until  it  reached  the  extreme  left  in  a  crashing,  I 
tumultuous  sound,  when  backward  it  would  sweep  to  the  j 
right,  only  again  to  go  rolling,  and  jarring  and  thundering 
in  its  fury  as  backward  and  forward  it  swept,  that  fearful 
storm  of  war.  It  was  as  when  broad  ocean  is  lashed  to  fury 
by  the  tempest,  when  great  rolling  waves  come  chasing  one 
the  other  in  their  mighty  rage,  until  they  strike  with  deaf- 
ening roar  the  solid  walls  of  rock  on  the  shore,  only  to  be 
broken  [ind  di'iven  back  upon  other  incoming  waves  as  strong,  , 
or  stronger  than  they  had  been.  So  came  to  the  ears  of  those  ' 
waiting  troops,  the  sound  of  that  mighty  tempest  of  war — 
volley  after  volley  of  musketry  rolling  in  waves  of  dreadful 
sound,  one  upon  the  other,  to  which  was  added  the  deep 
sounding  of  the  artillery,  like  heavy  thunders  peal  through 
the  rushing  roar  of  the  tempest,  making  the  ground  under 
foot  tremble  with  the  fearful  shocks  as  they  came  and  went, 
each  more  terrible  than  the  former.  It  was  evident  to 
those  who  listened  that  the  enemy  with  his  mighty  and  super- 
ior numbers  was  making  most  desperate  efforts  to  over- 
whelm and  break  the  Union  lines. 

Through  that  forenoon— and  it  seemed  almost  as  though 
its  hours  would  never  pass — the  Eighty-sixth  and  its  brigade 
waited  outside  that  contest,  and  heard  that  fearful,  that  ter- 
rible death  dealing  tornado  as  it  raged  in  front  and  all  about 
them,  and  could  see  the  constantly  moving  columns  of  the 
enemy's  infantry  with  tlying  flags,  and  could  see  battery 
after  battery  as  they  moved  before  them  like  a  great  pano- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  177 

[•ama  unfolding  in  the  opening  on  the  ridge  to  which  refer- 
ence has  been  made. 

Dick's  brigade  had  been  sent  back,  as  stated,  to  rest 
ifter  a  night  on  duty,  but  rest  there  was  none.  The  guns  of 
:he  infantry  stood  stacked  in  line,  and  the  battery  of  six 
^uns,  attached  to  the  bi'igade,  stood  just  in  rear  of  the 
roops,  with  all  the  horses  hitched  to  guns  and  caissons 
I'eady  to  move  at  any  instant.  Now  and  then  a  stray  shot 
3r  shell  would  fly  over  the  heads  of  these  men  and  strike  in 
]he  ground  or  burst  in  the  air,  to  their  rear. 

The  men  grew  restless,  that  restlessness  that  comes  to 
nen  in  that  most  trying  of  all  times  in  the  life  of  a  soldier, 
vvhen  he  hears  the  battle  raging  with  all  the  might  of  the 
furies  about  him,  when  now  and  then  he  can  catch  the  sound 
Df  the  distant  shouts  that  tell  all  too  plainly  that  the  charge 
s  on,  and  can  hear  the  first  shot  that  begins  that  rattling, 
iearing,  shrieking  sound  of  the  volleys  of  musketry,  and  of 
:he  shot,  and  shell  and  canister  of  the  artillery  that  drowns 
in  its  fury  the  shouts  and  cheers  of  the  charging  lines,  and 
bhat  tells  to  the  experienced  soldier  that  the  charge  is  met 
by  determined  and  heroic  troops,  and  that  great  gaps  are 
jeing  torn  in  the  lines — that  men  and  comrades  are  being 
born  and  mangled  and  killed. 

In  such  moments  and  under  such  circumstances  as  these, 
strong  men  pale,  and  the  body  grows  hot  and  weak,  and  the 
iieart  of  the  bravest  almost  ceases  to  beat;  then  it  is  that  the 
tiearer  realizes  to  the  fullest  extent  that  war  is  terrible. 

The  men  are  hungry,  but  they  cannot  eat;  they  are  tired 
md  worn,  but  they  cannot  rest,  the  limbs  and  feet  ache, 
Mid  they  cannot  sit  down;  they  lie  prone  upon  the  ground, 
3ut  in  that  position  the  sound  of  the  battle  is  intensi- 
fied, and  they  rise  up;  speak  to  them  if  you  will,  and  they 
mswer  you  as  if  in  a  dream;  they  laugh,  but  it  is  a  laugh 
that  has  no  joy  in  it.  The  infantry  stay  close  to  their  gun 
Stacks;  the  artillerymen,  drivers  and  gunners,  stand  near  to 
their  posts  of  duty,  in  a  terrible,  fearful  state  of  unrest. 
That  body  of  men  who  thus  stood  almost  unnerved  on  that 
September  day  were  not  lacking  in  true  soldierly  qualities. 


178  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

Their  bravery  had  been  tested  on  other  fields.  They 
had  passed  through  the  ordeal  at  Donelson,  at  Shiloh, 
at  Perry ville,  at  Stone's  River.  There  they  had  met 
the  enemy  in  the  hottest  and  fiercest  of  the  battle  with  all 
the  bravery  and  firmness  of  the  Roman,  and  again  when  the 
time  shall  come  for  them  under  orders  to  take  their  place  in 
the  charging  line,  or  in  position  with  their  comrades  to  re- 
ceive the  enemy's  assault,  they  will  not  be  found  wanting. 
Thus  hour  after  hour  was  passed  by  these  waiting  troops  in 
a  dreadful  state  of  anxiety  and  suspense.  There  were  no 
tidings  from  the  front.  They  only  knew  that  the^battle  was 
fearful,  terrible.  Noontime  came  and  passed,  and  still  the 
battle  raged  with  undiminished  fury,  and  this  brigade  still 
waited  orders  to  move.  Another  hour  beyond  midday  had 
passed,  and  the  second  was  drawing  toward  its  close,  when 
suddenly  from  out  the  woods  to  the  front  and  left  of  Diclv's 
brigade  onto  the  open  field,  dashed  an  officer,  his  horse  urgod 
to  its  greatest  speed  toward  the  expectant  troops.  The  mou 
see  him  coming,  and  in  an  instant  a  new  life  has  taken  pos- 
session of  them.  "There  comes  orders, "  are  the  words  tliat 
pass  from  lip  to  lip  along  that  line.  Without  commands  tlif 
lines  are  reformed  behind  the  gun  stacks,  ready  for  the  com- 
mand, "  Take  arms. "  The  cannoneers  stand  at  their  posts 
ready  to  mount  limber  chest  and  caisson.  The  drivers  ' '  stand 
to  horse,"  and  with  hand  on  rein  and  toe  in  stirrup,  for  dc 
tails  of  the  drill  are  forgotten  in  the  feverish  anxiety  for  the 
command  to  "mount"  and  away.  How  quick,  how  great  the 
change  at  the  prospect  of  freedom  from  the  suspense  of  the 
day.  The  eye  has  lighted  up,  the  arm  has  again  grown 
strong,  and  the  nerves  are  once  more  steady.  All  is  now 
eagerness  for  the  work  that  must  be  before  them.  Every 
head  is  bent  forward  to  catch,  if  possible,  the  first  news  from 
the  front,  and  to  hear  the  orders  that  are  to  be  given.  All 
are  thoroughly  aroused ;  there  will  soon  be  no  more  suspense. 
It  is  to  be  action  for  Dick's  brigade  on  until  the  close  of  the 
battle.  Nearer  and  nearer  comes  the  rider.  Now  could  be 
distinguished  his  features,  and  one  could  see  the  fearful  earn- 
estness that  was  written  on  every  line  of  his  face.    He  leaned 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  179 

forward  as  he  rode,  in  such  haste  he  was.  The  horse  he  rode 
had  caug'ht  the  spirit  of  the  -rider,  and  horse  and  rider 
by  their  every  movement  made,  told  to  the  experienced 
soldiers  to  whom  they  were  hastening  that  there  was  to  be 
work  for  them,  that  the  urgency  was  great,  and  that  the 
peril  was  imminent. 

How  much  there  is  of  life,  of  the  soldier's  life  in  time  of 
war,  that  cannot  be  painted  on  canvas  or  described  in  words. 
It  is  the  inexpressible  i)art,  that  something  in  the  face,  in 
the  eye,  in  the  swaying  of  the  body,  the  gesture  of  the  hand, 
and  the  officer,  the  soldier,  reads  in  those  movements  and 
appearances  the  very  facts,  terrible  in  detail,  that  are  after- 
wards put  into  words.  No  one  who  has  seen  the  life  of  the 
iSoldier  in  actual  warfare  but  has  just  seen  such  occasions 
and  just  such  faces.  Such  was  the  face,  and  such  the  move- 
ment of  that  staff  officer  that  afternoon  of  September  19,  1863. 
He  had  not  spoken  a  word,  there  had  been  no  uplifting  of  the 
hand  as  he  rode  across  that  field,  but  that  indescribable  ap- 
pearance spoke  for  him.  Every  soldier  as  he  saw  him,  read 
that  face  and  form  as  though  from  an  open  book,  yes,  and 
read  in  all  its  awful,  dreadful  meaning  that  his  comrades 
were  in  deepest  peril,  and  that  help  must  be  borne  quickly, 
or  all  hope  would  be  gone,  and  thus  reading,  every  man  was 
ready  to  do  his  full  duty.  Not  long  delayed  were  -the  orders, 
and  as  he  approaches,  this  officer  is  met  by  Colonel  Dick,  as 
anxious  to  receive  the  orders  as  he  is  to  give  them.  The 
command  comes  in  quick,  sharp  words:  "The  General  pre- 
sents his  compliments  and  directs  that  you  move  your  brig- 
ade at  once  to  the  support  of  General  Beatty.  Take  the  road, 
moving  by  the  flank  to  the  right,  double  quick.  I  am  to 
direct  you, ' '  and  then  he  added  so  those  who  stood  near  heard 
the  words,  "Our  men  are  hard  pressed."  The  last  sentence 
was  all  that  was  said  in  words  as  to  the  condition  of  our 
troops,  but  it  was  enough,  and  those  who  heard  knew  they 
had  read  aright  before  he  had  spoken. 

Scarce  had  the  orders  been  received  by  Colonel  Dick, 
when  the  command,  "Take — Arms!"  was  heard  along  the 
iline,   and  the  artillery  bugle  sounded  for  cannoneers   and 


180  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

drivers,  "Mount."  It  scarcely  took  the  time  required  to 
tell  it  for  the  brigade  to  get  in  motion  moving  out  of  the 
field  and  onto  the  road.  The  artillery  took  the  beaten  road, 
the  infantry  alongside.  It  was  a  grand  scene  as  the  men 
moved  quickly  into  place,  closing  up  the  column  and  waiting 
but  a  moment  for  the  command  to  move. 

The  guns  of  the  infantry  are  at  right  shoulder,  and 
all  have  grown  eager  for  the  order,  "Forward."  The 
bugle  sounds  the  first  note  of  the  command.  Now  look 
along  that  column;  the  men  are  leaning  forward  for  the 
start;  the  drivers  on  the  artillery  teams  tighten  the  rein 
in  the  left  hand,  and,  with  the  whip  in  the  uplifted  right 
arm,  rise  in  their  stirrups;  and  as  the  last  note  of  the 
bugle  is  sounded,  the  crack  of  the  whips  of  thirty-six 
drivers  over  the  backs  of  as  many  horses,  and  the 
stroke  of  the  spurs,  sends  that  battery  of  six  guns  and  its 
caissons  rattling  and  bounding  over  that  road,  while  the  in- 
fantry alongside  are  straining  every  nerve  as  they  hasten  to 
the  relief  of  the  comrades  so  hard  pressed.  The  spirits  of 
the  men  grow  higher  and  higher  with  each  moment  of  the 
advance.  The  rattling  of  the  artillery  and  the  hoof  beats  of 
the  horses  add  to  the  excitement  of  the  onward  rush,  infantry 
and  artillery  thus  side  by  side  vieing  each  with  the  other 
which  shall  best  do  his  part.  Now,  as  they  come  nearer,  the 
storm  of  the  battle  seems  to  grow  greater  and  greater.  On 
and  yet  on  they  press,  until  reaching  the  designated  point, 
the  artillery  is  turned  off  to  the  left  on  to  a  ridge,  and  go 
into  position  along  its  crest,  while  the  lines  of  the  infantry 
are  being  formed  to  the  right  of  the  road  over  which  they 
have  just  been  hurrying.  The  brigade  lines  are  scarcely 
formed,  and  the  command  to  move  forward  given,  when  the 
lines  which  are  in  the  advance  are  broken  by  a  terrific  charge 
of  the  enemy,  and  are  driven  back  in  confusion  onto  our 
line — friend  and  foe  so  intermingled  that  a  shot  cannot  be 
fired  without  inflicting  as  much  injury  on  our  men  as  upon 
the  enemy. 

The  artillery,  on  the  crest  of  the  ridge  back  of  the  brig- 
ade, have  unlimbered  and  gone  into  action,  and  its  shells  are 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  181 

now  flying  overhead  into  tlie  woods,  where  the  enemy's  lines 
had  been.  Confusion  seems  to  have  taken  jjossession  of  our 
lines,  and,  to  add  to  it,  the  lines  to  the  right  have  been 
broken  and  the  enemy  is  sweeping  past  our  flank.  The  order 
is  given  to  fall  back  on  line  with  the  artillery.  Out  of  the 
wood,  under  the  fire  of  the  cannon,  the  men  hasten.  Now 
on  the  crest  of  that  ridge,  without  works  of  any  kind  to 
shelter  them,  the  troops  are  again  hastily  formed,  and  none 
too  soon.  Down  the  gentle  sloop  of  that  ridge,  and  away  to 
the  right  and  left  and  front  stretches  an  open  field,  without 
tree  or  shrub  to  break  the  force  of  the  balls.  In  front,  and 
at  the  edge  of  the  field,  two  hundred  yards  away,  runs  the 
road  parallel  with  our  lines;  beyond  the  road  the  heavy  tim- 
ber where  the  Confederate  lines  are  formed,  and  well  pro- 
tected in  their  preparations  for  their  charge.  Scarce  had 
the  lines  been  formed  when  the  sharp  crack  of  the  rifles 
along  our  front,  and  the  whistling  of  the  balls  over  our 
heads,  gave  us  warning  that  the  advance  of  the  enemy  had 
begun,  and  in  an  instant  the  shouts  of  the  skirmishers  are 
drowned  by  the  shout  that  goes  up  from  the  charging  col- 
umn as  it  starts  down  in  the  woods.  The  men  are  ready. 
The  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  is  on  the  left  of  the  brigade,  the 
Seventh  Indiana  battery — six  guns — is  on  the  right  of  the 
regiment;  Battery  M,  Fourth  United  States  artillery,  is  on 
its  left.  The  gunners  and  every  man  of  those  two  batteries 
are  at  their  posts  of  duty,  the  tightly  drawn  lines  in  their 
faces  showing  their  purpose  there  to  stand  for  duty  or  die. 
To  the  right  of  the  Seventh  Indiana  battery  was  the  Forty- 
fourth  Indiana  and  beyond  this  to  the  right  is  the  remainder 
of  the  brigade  with  its  battery.  Ofticers  pass  the  familiar 
command  of  caution  along  the  line — "Steady,  men,  steady." 
The  shout  of  the  charging  foe  comes  rapidly  on;  now  they 
burst  out  of  the  woods  and  onto  the  road.  As  if  touched  by 
an  electric  cord,  so  quick  and  so  in  unison  was  it,  the  rifles 
leap  to  the  shoulder  along  the  ridge  where  wave  the  stars 
and  stripes.  Now  the  enemy  is  in  plain  view  along  the  road 
covering  the  entire  front;  you  can  see  them,  as  with  cap 
visors  drawn  well  down  over  their  eyes,   the  gun  at  the 


182  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

charge,  with  short,  shrill  shout  they  come,  and  the  colors  of 
Joliiison's  division  of  Longstreet's  corps  can  be  seen,  fiushod 
■with  victory,  confronting  us.  The  men  on  the  ridge  recog 
nized  the  gallantry  of  their  charging  foe,  and  their 
pride  is  touched  as  well.  All  this  is  but  the  work  of 
an  instant,  when,  just  as  that  long  line  of  gray  has 
crossed  the  road,  quick  and  sharp  rings  out  along  tho 
line  the  command  "  Ready ^ — Fire!"  It  seems  to  come  to 
infantry  and  artillery  at  the  same  instant,  and  out  from 
the  rifles  of  the  men  and  the  mouths  of  those  cannons 
leap  the  death-dealing  bullet  and  canister;  again  and  again, 
with  almost  lightning  rapidity,  they  pour  in  their  deadly, 
merciless  fire,  until  along  that  entire  ridge  it  has  become 
almost  one  continuous  volley,  one  sheet  of  flame.  Now 'that 
corps  that  had  known  little  of  defeat  begins  to  waver;  their 
men  had  fallen  thick  and  fast  about  them.  Again  and  yet 
again  the  volleys  are  poured  into  them,  and  the  artillery  on 
our  right  and  left  have  not  ceased  their  deadly  work.  No 
troops  can  long  withstand  such  fire;  their  lines  waver, 
another  volley  and  they  are  broken  and  now  fall  back  in  con- 
fusion. The  charge  was  not  long  in  point  of  time,  but  was 
terrible  in  its  results  to  the  foe. 

Along  the  entire  line  to  the  right  and  left  the  battle 
raged  with  increased  fury.  We  are  now  on  the  defensive; 
and  all  can  judge  that  the  lull  in  front  is  only  the  stillness 
that  forebodes  the  more  terrible  storm  that  is  to  come.  A 
few  logs  and  rails  are  hastily  gathered  together  to  form  a 
slight  breastwork.  Soon  the  scattering  shots  that  began  to 
fall  about  us,  like  the  first  heavy  drops  of  the  -rain  storm, 
gave  warning  that  the  foe  was  again  moving  to  the  attack. 
Again  we  are  ready,  now  lying  behind  our  hastily-pre- 
pared works.  Again  is  heard  the  shout  as  on  he  comes  with 
more  determination  than  before;  but  with  even  greater  cour- 
age do  our  men  determine  to  hold  their  lines.  The  artil- 
lery is  double  shotted  with  canister.  Again  the  com- 
mand, "Fire!"  and  hotter,  fiercer  than  before  the  battle 
rages  along  our  front.  Shout  is  answered  with  shout,  shot  by 
shot  tenfold,  until  again  the   assailants  break  before  that 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  183 

terrible  death  dealing  fire  and  are  again  forced  back. 
But  why  repeat  further  the  story  of  that  Saturday 
afternoon.  Again  and  again  were  those  charges  repeated 
along  that  line,  only  to  be  hurled  back — broken  than 
and  shattered.  It  did  seem  as  though  our  men  were  more 
human.  The  artillerymen  worked  as  never  before. 
Their  guns — double  shotted— had  scarce  delivered  their 
charges,  when  before  the  gun  could  complete  its  recoil,  it  was 
caught  by  strong  arms,  made  doubly  strong  in  that  fever  heat 
of  battle,  was  again  in  position,  again  double  shotted,  and 
again  fired  into  the  face  of  the  foe.  The  arm  bared,  the 
veins  standing  out  in  great  strong  lines,  the  hat  or  cap  gone 
from  the  head,  the  eyes  starting  almost  from  the  socket,  the 
teeth  set,  the  face  beaded  with  perspiration,  balls  falling  all 
about  them,  those  men  of  the  Seventh  Indiana  battery  and 
Battery  M  seemed  to  be  supernaturally  endowed  with 
strength.  Their  comrades  of  the  infantry  vied  with  them  in 
acts  of  heroism,  and  daring,  and  endurance.  They  shouted  de- 
finance  at  the  foe  with  every  shot ;  with  face  and  hands  be- 
grimed in  the  smoke  and  dust  and  heat  of  the  battle;  with  com- 
rades falling  about  them,  the  survivors  thought  only  of  venge- 
ance. All  the  horses  on  two  of  the  guns  of  the  Seventh  In- 
diana battery  were  shot  down ;  another  charge  is  beginning  ; 
those  two  guns  might  be  lost ;  they  must  be  gotten  back. 
Quick  as  thought  a  company  of  infantry  spring  to  the  guns, 
one  hand  holding  the  rifle,  the  other  on  the  cannon,  and  with 
the  shot  falling  thick  and  fast  in  and  about  them,  drag  the 
guns  over  the  brow  of  the  ridge  and  down  into  the  woods, 
just  in  the  rear  of  our  lines,  and  hasten  back  again  to  take 
their  places  in  lines,  ready  to  meet  the  on-coming  charge. 
An  artilleryman  is  shot  down;  a  man  from  the  infantry  takes 
his  place  and  obeys  orders  as  best  he  can.  When  the  charge 
began  our  men  were  lying  down.  Then,  in  the  midst  of  it, 
so  great  became  the  excitement,  so  intense  the  anxiety,  all 
fear  and  prudence  vanished,  and  the  men  leaped  to  their  feet, 
and  would  fire  and  load,  and  fire  and  load,  in  the  wildest  frenzy 
of  desperation.  They  had  lost  all  ideas  of  danger,  or  the 
strength  of  the  assailant.     It  was  this  absolute  desperation  of 


184  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

the  men  that  held  our  lines.  A  soldier  or  officer  was  wounded  ; 
unless  tlie  wound  was  mortal  or  caused  the  fracture  of  a  limb, . 
they  had  the  wound  tied  or  bandaged  as  best  they  could, 
some  tearing  up  their  blouses  for  bandages,  and  again  took 
tlieir  places  in  the  lines  beside  their  more  fortunate  comrades. 
Each  man  felt  the  terrible  weight  of  responsibility  that 
rested  on  him  personally  for  the  results  that  shall  be  achieved 
that  day.  It  is  this  disregard  of  peril  in  the  moment  of 
greatest  danger,  this  decision,  this  j)urpose  and  grand  cour- 
age that  comes  only  to  the  American  citizen  soldier,  who  vol- 
untarily and  with  unselfish  patriotism  stands  in  defense  of 
l)riiiciple  and  country,  that  make  such  soldiers  as  those  who 
fought  in  those  ranks  that  day.  On  through  the  afternoon 
until  nightfall  did  that  furious  storm  beat  against  and  rage 
about  that  line. 

If  the  storm  of  battle  raged  hotly  around  the  position 
occupied  by  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  and  Dick's  brigade,  it 
was  none  the  less  tierce  along  the  whole  line.  The  entire 
movements  of  the  army  were  from  right  to  left.  This 
was  made  necessary  on  the  part  of  Rosecrans  from  the 
fact  that  General  Bi'agg's  plan  of  battle  was  to  flank  the 
left  of  the  Union  army  and  cut  Rosecrans  off  from  Chat- 
tanooga, and  that  he,  Bragg,  with  his  entire  army  on  the 
flank  of  Rosecrans  could  drive  him  with  the  superior  force 
under  his  command  southward  into  the  rough  and  mountain- 
ous country  toward  McLemore's  Cove,  and  thus  be  able  to 
absolutely  destroy  Rosecrans  and  his  army.  During  the 
afternoon  of  September  19,  while  the  severe  battle  was  rag- 
ing along  the  line  of  Dick's  brigade  and  VanCleve's division, 
further  to  the  right  at  the  Viniard  farm,  the  battle  had  been 
raging  with  all  the  might  of  the  "furies." 

Wilder's  brigade  of  mounted  infantry  had  sent  all  their 
horses  to  the  rear,  and  during  the  entire  forenoon  this  com- 
mand had  firmly  held  its  position  against  the  repeated  assaults 
of  the  foe.  The  noon  hour  of  the  19th  found  the  brigade  at 
the  same  position  which  it  had  taken  at  early  dawn  after  the 
fight  of  Friday  night;  they  had  received  repeated  charges, 
but  each  charging  line  was  driven  back  leaving  the  field  over 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  185 

which  it  had  come  strewn  with  the  dead  and  dying.  About  noon 
of  that  day,  Davis'  division  of  McCook's  corps  had  come 
from  Crawfish  Springs  and  reported  to  General  Rosecrans  at 
the  Widow  Glenn's,  and  were  at  once  ordered  eastward  to 
the  Viuiard  farm  to  aid  in  making  that  portion  of  the  line 
more  secure,  and  was  formed  in  line  of  battle  on  Wilder 's 
right.  Barnes'  brigade,  of  VanCleve  division,  was  moved  to 
the  left  from  Lee  &  Gordon's  Mills,  and  went  into  position 
on  the  right  of  Davis'  division.  Moving  down  over  the 
Viniard  farm  they  crossed  the  LaFayette  road,  moving  east- 
ward. They  had  scarcely  crossed  the  road  when  they  at 
once  became  heavily  engaged  with  the  Confederate  left.  The 
tide  of  battle  swayed  backward  and  forward  over  the  Viniard 
farm.  At  first  the  Union  lines  forced  the  enemy  back  to  the 
east  and  into  the  woods,  and  the  enemy  reforming  and  securing 
reinforcements  in  turn  drove  Union  troops  back  to  the  west, 
capturing  the  Eighth  Indiana  battery,  and  pushed  our  troops 
westward  beyond  the  LaFayette  road  until  the  high  ground 
and  the  sheltering  woods  were  reached,  when  the  lines  were  re- 
formed, and  a  counter  charge  was  made,  and  the  enemy  was 
again  driven  from  the  field  and  the  guns  of  the  Eighth  Indiana 
were  recaptured.  Thus  the  storm  of  battle  swayed  back  and 
forth  until  4  o'clock  in  the  afternoon.  The  loss  on  both  sides 
was  fearful.  There  were  sufficient  forces  of  the  Confederates 
in  reserve  to  refill  the  ranks,  and  in  each  charge  they  brought 
up  their  lines  in  as  strong  numbers  as  at  first.  This  was  not 
the  case  with  the  Union  lines.  -The  three  hours  of  constant 
fighting,  and  fighting  with  desperation  by  both  armies,  was 
telling  with  fearful  effect  upon  the  men  of  Rosecrans'  right. 
There  were  no  fresh  men  with  which  to  fill  their  rapidly 
decreasing  numbers,  and  each  charge  that  was  made  or 
met,  found  a  less  number  to  push  the  attack  or  stem 
the  tide  of  battle.  When  4  o'clock  came  their  lines  were 
well  nigh  exhausted  by  the  fearful  physical  exertion, 
as  well  as  in  loss  of  men.  At  this  hour,  however,  two  brig- 
ades of  Wood's  division  of  the  Twenty-first  corps,  came  up 
on  the  double  quick  from  Lee  &  Gordon's  Mills,  and  placing 
one  brigade  on  the  right  of  Davis'  line,  and  pushing  the  other 


386  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

bohincl  the  lines  it  went  into  action  on  the  left  of  Wilder "s 
Hue,  and  again  the  battle  raged  more  fiercely.  A  little  later 
Sheridan  came  up  with  his  division,  and  from  the  south  of 
the  Viniard  house  to  and  in  front  of  Dick's  brigade  on  to  the 
Brotherton  house  was  one  continuous  line  of  battle,  men 
fighting  to  the  death  until  the  sun  went  down  on  the  bloody 
field. 

The  fighting  by  General  Thomas '  corps  on  the  extreme  left 
of  the  Union  army,  from  the  opening  of  the  battle  in  the  morn- 
ing at  Jay's  mill  and  extending  from  there  until  it  reached 
the  Twenty-first  corps,  was  equally  severe  with  that  which 
has  been  told  herein  concerning  the  battle  at  the  Viniard 
farm  and  on  to  Brotherton 's.  Thomas,  with  his  corps, 
received  from  General  Bragg  the  strongest  blows  that 
it  was  possible  to  give,  in  the  hope  that  he  might 
break  the  line  and  get  the  left  of  the  Union  army 
turned.  But  at  the  close  of  the  day  from  the  left  of 
the  Twenty-first  corps  to  Thomas'  right  but  little  had 
been  gained  by  General  Bragg,  and  the  Union  lines  were 
practically  in  the  position  of  the  opening  of  the  battle.  For 
awhile  after  nightfall  there  was  comparative  quiet,  when 
suddenly  from  the  front  of  the  Brotherton  house,  in  the 
Reed  field,  once  more  the  din  and  rattle  and  roar  of  the  bat- 
tle broke  forth.  This  was  an  attack  in  the  darkness  on 
the  x>i»'i*t  of  the  enemy  to  break  through  our  lines  at  that 
point,  and  it  was  here  that  the  gallant  Colonel  Bald- 
win was  killed.  The  fighting  for  an  hour  was  severe, 
but  the  enemy  was  finally  repulsed.  This  outbreak  having 
ceased  quiet  once  more  reigned,  and  the  men  wearied 
and  worn  with  the  day's  work  and  excitement,  lay  down  on 
the  ground  to  get  such  rest  as  they  might,  not  knowing  at 
what  time  the  storm  might  again  burst  upon  them. 

It  was  a  night  of  pinching  cold,  and  with  but  little  sleep 
from  the  ill  comfort  of  the  situation,  the  men  were  illy  j^re- 
pared  for  the  renewed  tax  that  was  to.  be  made  upon  them 
for  the  day  that  would  soon  dawn.  The  morning  of  the  20th 
came  all  too  soon,  but  as  it  was  Sunday  the  men  questioned 
one  another  as  to  the  probabilities  of  a  battle  on  that  day. 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  187 

It  was  not  strange,  however,  that  the  question  was  asked. 
Never  m  their  own  homes  was  their  a  more  quiet  Sab- 
bath morning  than  the  Sabbath  morning  which  dawned  upon 
the  armies  that  lay  upon  the  bloody  battle-field  of  Chick- 
am  auga.  If  there  had  been  a  faint  hope  that  the 
army  would  rest  on  its  arms  throughout  that  bright  Sabbath 
morning  and  through  the  hours  of  the  day,  it  was  of  short 
duration,  for  soon  the  orders  came  for  a  forward  movement, 
and  when  the  orders  were  given  there  were  no  laggards 
found.  Soldiers  never  obeyed  more  promptly,  nor  with  more 
ready  spirit  than  were  the  orders  obeyed  that  were  given  on 
Sunday  morning,  Sej)tember  20,  1863,  at  Chickamauga. 
The  soldiers  that  moved  out  that  morning,  and  they  who  stood 
in  lines  that  were  not  to  be  changed,  realized  to  the  fullest 
extent  that  when  the  battle  would  open  that  the  contest  would 
at  least  equal  the  bloody  work  of  the  previous  day.  They 
knew  the  foe  that  confronted  them.  They  had  grappled  in  the 
deadly  struggle  on  other  fields,  they  had  met  in  the  charge 
and  counter  charge,  and  each  had  learned  the  courage  and 
stubbornness  of  the  other. 

While  our  portion  of  the  army  had  rested  through  Sat- 
urday night,  this  was  not  true  as  to  other  portions  of  the 
army.  There  had  been  busy  work  going  on  during  the  hours 
of  the  night.  Rosecrans  had  been  rearranging  his  lines,  and 
by  every  means  at  hand  had  sought  to  strengthen  the  weaker 
portions,  and  so  adjust  other  parts  that  they  would  be  the 
better  able  to  withstand  the  fierce  assaults  that  he  well  knew 
would  certainly  be  made  as  soon  as  General  Bragg  could 
put  his  army  in  motion  on  Sunday  morning.  In  the  battle 
of  Saturday,  with  the  exception  of  two  brigades,  every  avail- 
able man  that  General  Rosecrans  had,  was  engaged.  There 
were  only  these  two  brigades,  and  in  addition  thereto  Gen- 
eral Granger's  Reserve  corps,  then  back  at  Rossvillc,  that 
could  by  any  possibility  be  brought  in,  and  it  was  a  doubtful 
I)roposition  as  to  whether  these  could  be  brought  up.  One 
of  these  brigades,  the  First  of  the  First  division  of  the 
Twentieth  corps,  had  been  left  with  the  trains  at  Lookout 
Mountain,  near  Stevens'  Gap.     This  brigade,  on  Sunday  the 


188  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

SOtli,  reached  Crawfish  Springs,  but  was  cut  off  from  its 
corjjs  and  unable  to  reach  the  front,  and  from  Crawfish 
Springs  under  orders  moved  to  Chattanooga.  The  other 
brigade  was  that  of  Brigadier  General  William  H.  Lytle, 
First  brigade.  Third  division.  Twentieth  corps.  This  brig- 
ado  liad  been  left  at  Lee  &  Gordon's  Mills  on-Saturday,  when 
the  portion  of  the-Twenty-first  corps  that  was  then  there  was 
moved  to  the  left  to  Viniard's.  This  brigade  had  been  placed 
in  ix)sitiou  to  guard  the  crossing  of  the  Chickamauga,  and 
there  remained  until  Sunday  morning,  when  it  was  brought 
forward  as  far  as  General  Rosecrans'  headquarters  at  the 
"Widow  Glenn's.  The  reserve  corps  of  Granger  came  up 
during  the  afternoon  of  Sunday.  Thus  it  ajipears  that 
for  the  battle  in  the  forenoon  on  Sunday,  Rosecrans  had  only 
one  fresh  brigade  that  he  could  put  into  the  battle  to  rein- 
force the  men  who  had  fought  so  gallantly  during  the  whole 
of  the  day  before. 

On  the  other  side  it  is  now  definitely  known  that,  al- 
though General  Bragg  had  greatly  outnumbered  General 
Rosecrans  on  Saturday,  yet  on  Sunday  morning  had  ready  to 
to  put  into  the  already  unequal  contest  in  point  of 
numbers,  Hindman's,  Breckenridge's  and  Kershaw's  di- 
visions, and  Grade's,  Kelley's  and  Gist's  brigades.  These 
reinforcements  of  fresh  troops  of  Bragg  were  superior 
in  numbers  to  more  than  any  corps  of  General  Rose- 
crans' army.  If  the  Union  army  had  on  Saturday  waged 
an  unequal  warfare,  it  was  much  more  unequal  on  Sunday. 
Not  only  this,  although  Lieutenant  General  Longstreet's 
troops  got  into,  the  battle  on  Saturday  afternoon,  he 
himself  did  not  come  up  until  after  the  fighting  had 
closed  on  Saturday  night,  and  his  presence  with  his  troops 
of  the  Army  of  Northern  Virginia  gave  additional  power  and 
effect  to  that  portion  of  Bragg 's  army,  if  it  did  not  also 
materially  add  to  the  confidence  of  all  the  remainder  of  the 
Confederate  forces.  Thus  having  noted  the  comparative 
numerical  strength  of  the  two  armies  for  the  renewal  of  the 
struggle  on  Sunday,  September  20,  let  us  take  a  glance  at 
the  position  of  our  lines  before  the  battle  again  opens. 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  189 

The  LaPayette  road  was  to  be  the  line  of  contention  on 
this  day  as  well  as  of  Saturday.  The  forces  of  General 
Rosecrans  were  formed  on  Sunday  morning  thus:  The  troops 
at  the  Viniard  farm  were  moved  west  to  the  range  of  hills 
near  the  Widow  Glenn's,  and  to  these  were  added  Ly tie's 
brigade  which  had  been  brought  up  from  Lee  &  Gordon's 
Mills.  The  line  extended  to  tiie  northeast  and  joined  the 
lines  at  the  rear  of  the  Brotherton  field ;  from  this  the  line 
continued  to  the  northeast  reaching  and  crossing  to  the  east 
side  of  the  LaFayette  road  between  the  Poe  house  and  Kel- 
ly's fields;  from  this  it  ran  east  on  a  line  a  little  south  of  the 
Kelly  field  and  then  turned  north  and  a  little  east  on 
the  east  side  of  the  Kelly  field  and  after  passing 
the  north  line  of  the  Kelly  field  ran  westward  until  it 
reached  and  covered  about  half  of  the  distance  to  the  La- 
Fayette road.  In  the  arrangement  of  his  divisions  General 
Rosecrans  had  placed  Sheridan's  division,  of  the  Twentieth 
corps,  on  the  right  and  in  front  of  the  Widow  Glenn's,  and 
Wilder 's  brigade  with  two  regiments  on  the  right  and  two 
regiments  of  Wilder 's  and  the  Thirty -ninth  Indiana,  also  a 
mounted  infantry  regiment,  on  the  left  of  Sheridan,  on  the 
highest  ground  at  Widow  Glenn's  house,  their  line  extending 
north  and  south  and  facing  east.  Negley's  division  then 
came  next  and  was  in  line  west  of  Brotherton 's.  Brannan's 
division  next  along  the  western  side  of  the  Poe  field  and  ex- 
tending to  the  LaFayette  road,  while  on  the  east  side  of  the 
Lafayette  road  were  Reynolds',  Palmer's,  Johnson's  and 
Baird's  divisions,  in  the  order  named.  The  three  divisions 
of  Davis,  Wood  and  VauCleve  were  in  the  rear  of  the  center 
awaiting  orders,  and  ready  to  take  position  wherever  the 
exigencies  of  the  occasion  might  demand.  The  division  of 
Wood  was  soon  placed  in  the  line  on  the  right  of  Brannon, 
while  Davis'  division  was  put  into  position  on  the  right  of 
Wood,  and  toward  10  o'clock  VanCleve  was  sent  to  the  sup- 
port of  Thomas. 

The  rebel  line  overlapped  the  Union  lines  both  on  the 
right  and  left  and  was  formed  as  follows:  Beginning  on  his 
right  was  Forest's  cavalry,  two  divisions,  extending  beyond 


190  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

the  Union  left  and  east  of  it;  Breckenridge,  Cleburne  and 
Stewart  with  their  commands  were  on  the  east  and  south 
lines  of  the  Kelly  field,  and  along  the  east  line  of  the  Poe 
field;  Walker  with  two  divisions  was  supporting  Brecken- 
ridge, and  Cheatham,  with  five  brigades,  was  in  reserve 
behind  Cleburne;  General  Bushrod  Johnson,  in  line,  was 
east  of  the  Brotherton  house  with  the  two  divisions  of  Law 
and  Kershaw  immediately  in  his  rear  in  column  of  divisions; 
then  on  the  left  of  Bushrod  Johnson  was  Hindman  and  yet 
on  his  loft  w^as  Preston  on  the  east  and  south  of  the  Viniard 
farm.  A  glance  at  the  forces  as  thus  placed  in  battle  array 
shows  the  immense  superiority  of  numbers  under  Bragg 's 
connnand  over  those  of  General  Rosecrans,  and  it  is  to  be 
further  considered  as  an  advantage  in  favor  of  Bragg 's  army 
that  it  had  the  inner  arch  of  the  circle,  the  shorter  line,  and 
consequently  easier  for  the  handling  and  disi)Osition  of 
troops.  Along  almost  the  entire  front  of  Rosecrans  it  is 
seen  they  had  their  divisions  in  columns,  w^hile  Rosecrans 
had  only  a  single  line. 

Sunday  at  Chickamauga  w^is  marked  for  General  Bragg 
with  another  blunder  by  somebody,  and  furnished  another 
escape  or  deliverance  for  the  left  of  the  Union  army.  Bragg 
had  issued  his  orders  for  an  assault  at  daylight  upon  the  ex- 
treme left  of  Rosecrans  lines,  and  this  assault  was  to  be  f  ollow^ed 
successively  from  his  left  to  right.  Bragg  had  divided  his 
army  into  wings,  the  right  and  left.  General  Polk  was  as- 
signed to  the  comnumd  of  the  right  wing  and  General  Long- 
street  to  the  command  of  the  left  wing.  The  orders  for  the 
attack  at  daylight  were  to  General  Polk,  and  under  the  orders 
given  General  Longstreet  was  to  govern  his  conduct  and 
movements  by  those  of  Polk.  General  Bragg  at  daybreak 
took  his  position  near  the  center  of  his  army  and  waited  ex- 
pectantly and  anxiously  for  the  sound  of  Polk's  guns.  Day- 
light came,  but  tlie  battle  did  not  begin.  An  hour  passed  and 
yet  no  sound  of  battle,  another  hour  and  the  silence  was  yet 
unbroken.  The  patience  of  General  Bragg  was  by  this  time 
entirely  exhausted  and  he  rode  in  haste  to  ascertain  the  cause 
of  the  delay,  and  found  to  his  astonishment  that  General  Polk 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  191 

was  not  even  on  the  field,  nor  had  any  preparations  been 
made  by  him  for  the  opening  of  a  battle  that  had  in  it  so 
much  of  moment  for  the  cause  of  the  Confederacy. 

General  Bragg,  in  person,  then  commenced  as  earnestly 
and  as  rapidly  as  possible  to  push  forward  the  preparations 
for  the  attack  which  should  have  been  completed  by  his 
subordinate  before  day  dawned.  While  making  these  prep- 
arations he  found  that  the  left  of  the  Union  army  did  not  ex- 
tend sufficiently  to  protect  the  LaFayette  road.  Here  was 
his  opportunity  for  which  he  had  watched  and  waited  and 
fought  for  from  the  opening  of  the  battle,  and  it  did  seem  as 
if  the  much  coveted  possession  of  that  road  between  Rose- 
crans  and  Chattanooga  was  now  within  his  grasp.  In  this, 
however,  he  was  doomed  to  disappointment,  and  many  lives 
were  to  go  out  before  the  desired  road  would  be  secured,  all 
because  of  the  disobedience  of  orders  by  General  Polk,  and 
the  failure  to  attack  at  daylight.  Dm*ing  Saturday  night 
General  Rosecrans  had  held  a  council  of  war  with  his  Gen- 
erals, and  the  disposition  of  the  forces  was  fully  agreed  upon. 
Thomas  knew  full  well  that  of  all  things  it  was  important 
that  his  left  should  be  secure  beyond  all  peradventure. 
Baird's  division,  then  on  the  extreme  left,  had  thrown  up 
barricades  and  constructed  such  defenses  as  were  possible  dur- 
ing the  night,  but  these  unsupported  on  the  left  would  be  of 
little  use  against  a  repetition  of  the  fierce  assaults  of  the 
preceding  day.     General  Thomas  in  his  report  says: 

"After  my  retui-n  from  Department  headquarters,  about  2  a.  m.,  on 
the  20th,  I  received  a  report  from  General  Baii-d  that  the  left  of  his 
division  did  not  rest  on  the  Reed's  bridge  road,  as  I  had  intended,  and 
that  lie  could  not  reach  it  without  weakening  his  line  too  much.  I  im- 
mediately addressed  a  note  to  the  General  commanding,  requesting  that 
General  Negley  be  sent  me  to  take  position  on  Baird's  left  and  rear,  and 
thus  secure  our  left  from  assault." 

General  Rosecrans  at  once  notified  General  Thomas  that 
General  Negley  would  be  sent  in  accordance  with  the  re- 
quest. At  7  a.  m.  on  that  morning,  Negley  had  not  reported, 
and  General  Thomas  sent  a  staff  officer  to  learn  the  cause  and 
to  hasten  him  forward.  General  Negle^^  was  prevented  from 
going  to  the  i^osition  on  the  left  because  of  the  massing  of 


192  THE  EIGIITY-RIXTII  KEOIMENT, 

the  enemy  in  his  front,  therefore  instead  of  General  Negley, 
with  his  division,  General  John  Beatty,  with  his  brigade,  was 
sent,  and  hurrying  with  all  speed  he  had  just  succeeded  in 
getting  into  position  when  the  assault,  under  General  Bragg's 
direction,  began.  Had  General  Bragg's  orders  been  obeyed, 
and  the  attack  made  at  daylight,  then  our  left  would  have 
been  destroyed,  Bragg  would  have  secured  the  road,  and  the 
result  of  the  Chattanooga  campaign  would  doubtless  have 
been  different.  As  it  was  General  John  Beatty  succeeded  in 
holding  the  position  until  later,  when  additional  troops  ar- 
rived and  thus  our  left  escaped  destruction  and  Chattanooga 
was  saved.  The  attack  on  our  left  was  as  indicated  in  Gen- 
eral Bragg's  orders  to  Polk  and  Longstreet,  the  signal  for 
the  attack  to  sweep  down  and  along  the  entire  line  of  Rose- 
crans  from  flank  to  flank,  and  so  when  the  assault  was  made 
upon  Baird's  troops  on  our  left  the  struggle  of  Saturday  was 
renewed  along  the  whole  line.  The  difference  in  the  open- 
ing of  the  battle  on  Sunday  morning  differed  from  the  open- 
ing on  Saturday  only  in  the  fact  that  it  was  fiercer  at  the 
outset  and  that  it  was  almost  instantaneous  along  the  whole 
line.  On  Saturday  both  armies  had  been  compelled  in  the 
opening  hours  of  the  battle  to  feel  their  way;  they  were  in 
ignorance  of  the  positions  of  each  other,  and  both  were  for 
the  first  time  on  that  field  going  into  position,  but  wiien  they 
did  come  together,  brigade  with  brigade,  or  division  with  di- 
vision; they  came  with  the  fury  of  the  tornado.  On  Sunday 
morning  neither  army  had  to  hunt  for  the  other.  They  had 
been  face  to  face  for  twenty-four  hours,  and  each  knew^  the 
force  and  resistance  of  the  other.  So  in  the  opening  of  the 
battle  on  Sunday  morning  it  was  at  once  a  tempest,  strong 
and  fearful,  that  broke  upon  our  entire  line  without  any 
scattering  raindrops  of  warning. 

When  the  right  of  Bragg's  army  struck  Thomas'  left 
under  Baird  and  Beatty  it  became  at  once  a  struggle  between 
Titans.  The  charge  upon  Baird  and  Beatty  was  by  Breck- 
enridge  and  Cleburne,  and  so  severe  was  their  punishment 
and  fearful  was  their  loss  that  they  were  shattered  and 
driven  back,  and  although  they  outnumbered  and  overlapped 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  193 

our  left,  they  were  not  able  to  push  in  behind  our  troops  and 
turn  them.  The  first  assault  along  our  entire  line  on  Sun- 
day was  a  failure,  but  with  the  strong  reserves  of  Bragg  if 
one  line  failed  and  the  first  charge  was  repulsed  and  his 
troops  were  driven  back,  the  second  line  at  once  took  it  up 
and  followed  repeating  the  charge;  if  the  second  failed,  the 
third  line  took  up  the  charge,  and  from  right  to  left  Rose- 
crans'  men  at  the  outset  not  only  had  their  courage  put  to 
the  severest  test,  but  their  physical  endurance  was  to  be 
tried  to  the  utmost.  At  and  about  the  Kelly  field  charge 
after  charge  was  made  upon  our  lines  and  each  time  was 
repulsed. 

If  one  will  go  to-day  and  stand  upon  the  Kelly  field  and 
will  learn  tlie  situation  as  it  was  on  Sunday,  September  20, 
1H()8,  and  as  an  officer  or  soldier  who  has  passed  through 
some  of  the  severe  battles  of  the  war,  he  can  appreciate  the 
awful  and  terrible  storm  of  war  that  raged  on  the  south  nnd 
east  of  that  field,  it  will  seem  impossible  to  believe  tluit  any 
one  could  have  lived  a  minute  after  the  assault  began.  And 
yet  in  that  Kelly  field  and  along  its  south  and  east  line  tliat 
terrible  storm  of  destruction  and  death  had  most  awful  sway 
from  9  o'clock  of  the  morning  until  5:30  o'clock  in  the  even- 
ing. From  front  and  fianlv  over  that  field  was  sent  the  leaden 
and  iron  hail  as  fast  as  men  could  load  and  fire,  and  fire  and 
lojid.  The  minnie  ball,  and  the  ball  and  shot  of  the  musket, 
solid  shot  and  canister,  and  screaming  shell  went  whistling 
and  screaming  over,  across  and  through  that  small  ai'ca  and 
men  lived  and  fought  and  fought  through  the  the  long,  long 
day.  While  the  fight  was  at  its  strongest  at  the  Kelly  field, 
across  the  Poe  field  the  battle  was  raging  as  strong,  and  men 
were  falling  by  the  hundreds.  The  line  was  closed  up  again 
and  the  survivors,  one  and  all,  in  the  strength  and  endur- 
ance displayed,  fought  as  if  they  might  have  received  the 
strength  and  courage  of  their  fallen  comrades  into  their 
bodies  and  souls  for  the  work  that  was  before  them,  as  the 
young  prophet  received  the  mantle  of  the  ascending 
prophet.     If  the  line  wavered,  a  cheer  from  those  who  were 


194  THE   EICUITY-SIXTII   REGIMENT, 

stand inc:  firm  reassured  the  wavering,  and  again  the  line 
grew  steadfast. 

In  the  midst  of  this  fearful  storm  to  which  the  Eighty- 
sixth  Indiana  had  listened  for  more  than  an  hour,  there  came 
tlio  order  for  it  with  its  brigade  to  move  forward  to  reinforce 
the  line  north  of  the  Poe  house  and  on  the  west  side  of  the 
LaPayette  road.  It  was  not  long  until  the  regiment  was 
within  the  leaden  storm.  The  order  was  given  for  a  charge, 
and  down  and  through  the  scattered  trees  the  regiment  and 
brigade  go  to  their  work.  The  resistance  was  stubborn,  but 
iin])eluous  and  determined  is  the  charge,  comrade  cheering 
comrade  as  onward  they  push  their  way;  men  are  falling 
but  on  and  on  rush  the  lines,  until  at  last  the  enemy's  lines 
are  broken  and  we  follow  in  hot  pursuit  driving  them  back 
until  a  line  of  reinforcements  for  the  enemy  is  reached. 
Again  the  battle  rages  about  us.  With  redoubled  lines  a 
counter  charge  is  made  and  and  the  very  earth  shakes  from 
the  terrible  storm  of  artillery  along  the  entire  lines.  Shells 
are  shrieking  in  the  air  and  bursting  overhead;  great  limbs 
are  torn  from  the  trees  and  fall  with  the  broken  shells  all 
about  the  men  engaged. 

Until  after  10  o'clock  the  Union  troojis  were  preserving 
their  lines  intact  notwithstanding  the  terrible  assaults  that 
were  being  made  upon  them.  Longstreet  with  his  famous 
command  had  made  repeated  charges  drawing  upon  his 
reserves  one  line  after  the  other  as  fast  as  they  could  be 
thrown  into  action.  The  artillery  of  both  armies  were  put- 
ting forth  almost  superhuman  efforts,  those  of  the  Confed- 
erate army  to  demoralize  and  break  or  weaken  the  Union 
lines  before  the  charging  lines  should  reach  Rosecrans' 
troops,  while  on  the  other  side  the  artillery  of  the  Union 
army  were  giving  their  fire  with  shell,  and  shrapnel  and 
canister  as  rapidly  as  the  guns  could  be  loaded  and  fired, 
vieing  with  the  infantry  in  their  efforts  to  repulse  the  on- 
coming lines  of  the  enemy.  All  sense  of  danger  seemed  to 
be  lost,  and  men  and  officers  alike  strove  to  the  utmost 
through  the  terrible  fire  and  carnage.  The  men  for  the 
most  part  were  without  works  of  any  kind  to  protect  them 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  195 

from  the  deluge  of  lead  and  iron  that  was  being  showered 
upon  them.  A  little  after  10  o'clock  there  came  a  lull  on  the 
riglit  of  the  Union  lines,  and  General  Rosecrans,  thinking 
and  believing  that  Bragg  was  again  pursuing  the  tactics  of 
Saturday,  massing  against  Rosecrans'  left,  undertook  to 
change  the  position  of  the  troops  of  his  right  wing 
in  order  to  reinforce  and  strengthen  his  left.  He  ordered 
General  McCook  to  send  two  brigades  of  General  Sheridan's 
division  to  General  Thomas,  with  all  possible  dispatch,  and 
to  send  also  the  Third  brigade  as  soon  as  it  could  be  with- 
drawn from  the  line.  He  also  directed  General  Crittenden 
to  send  two  brigades  of  VanCleve  to  the  support  of  Thomas. 
The  sending  of  the  brigades  of  Sheridan  and  VanCleve  left 
no  sufficient  force  to  withstand  an  assault  of  the  enemy  if 
another  should  be  made  in  force  on  the  Union  right.  To  add 
to  the  misfortunes  that  were  about  to  befall  the  right 
and  center  of  the  Union  lines.  General  Thomas  J.  Wood 
received  a  peremptory  order  to  "close  up  on  Reynolds 
and  support  him."  As  General  Brannan  was  between 
Wood  and  Reynolds,  there  was  no  way  to  obey  the 
order  except  to  withdraw  from  the  line  and  march 
to  the  left  in  rear  of  Brannan.  Wood  obeyed  and  ex- 
ecuted the  order  as  he  received  it,  withdrawing  the  troops 
from  the  line.  It  was  just  at  the  time  that  Longstreet  had 
gathered  his  troops  for  another  onslaught  upon  our  right  that 
Wood,  in  obedience  to  his  orders,  had  moved  out  and  left  a 
wide  gap  in  the  lines.  Longstreet 's  order  was  given  and 
his  hosts  came  pouring  through  this  gap,  striking  our  lines 
in  front,  rear  and  flank.  Rushing  through  the  wide  open 
door  in  our  lines  on  over  the  Brotherton  field  where 
the  fight  had  raged  so  hotly  on  Saturday,  then  turning 
to  the  northwest  through  and  over  the  Dyer  fields,  they 
struck  the  troops  of  Sheridan,  then  on  their  way  to 
reinforce  Thomas  at  Poe  and  Kelly  fields.  The  battle 
was  raging  in  front,  rear  and  flank  on  our  lines  in  the 
Poe  field.  The  troops  could  not  stand  this  very  long.  The 
charges  made  there  in  the  woods  and  in  the  field  were  met 
by  counter  charges,  and  men  fought  face  to  face  and  hand  to 


ion  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

liand.  All  to  ilio  right  of  General  Brannan  were  swept  from 
the  Hold.  The  noon  hour  had  come  and  the  broken  lines  of 
Rosecrans'  rii2:ht,  though  routed  from  their  jjositions,  were 
neither  whipped  nor  dismayed.  Longstreet's  men,  flushed 
with  tlieir  success,  wore  pressing  northward  past  the  Broth - 
orton  liouse  and  over  the  Dyer  field  on  toward  Snodgrass 
Hill,  and  Harkor  Hill.  Men  fought  as  they  fell  back.  Here 
a  iionconnnissioncd  officer  or  private  would  halt,  face  about 
and  comnionco  firing,  calling  on  his  comrades  to  rally  and 
reform  their  lines,  and  from  this  one  man  the  lines  would 
build  out  almost  like  magic  and  a  new  line  would  be  formed. 
A  Captain  or  Lieutenant  would  give  the  commands  to  men 
gathered  from  almost  every  regiment  on  that  portion  of  the 
field  until  he  would  have  under  his  command  as  many  men 
as  would  ordinarily  compose  a  regiment.  Colonel  Morton  C. 
Hunter,  of  the  Eighty-second  Indiana,  had  received  the 
shock  of  the  charge  after  Longstreet  came  through  the  lines, 
hiul  rechai'ged  and  broke  the  enemy's  lines,  but  could  not 
stem  the  oncoming  tide.  He  then  fell  back  fighting  until  he 
reached  Snodgrass  Hill  and  formed  his  line  and  called  upon 
the  scattered  troojis  to  form  on  his  regiment,  and  that 
there  they  would  hold  the  line.  At  once  the  fragments  of 
the  regiments  that  had  been  caught  in  the  break  caused  by 
the  moving  of  Woods'  division  troops  began  as  quickly  as 
possible  to  form,  and  form  they  did.  In  this  line  were  men 
from  every  Indiana  regiment,  along  with  those  from  other 
States.  It  was  not  long  until  regiments  and  brigades  were 
brought  to  tlio  liiu;  tirst  established  by  Colonel  Hunter.  The 
line  extended  westward  over  Snodgrass  Hill  into  Dry  Val- 
ley, and  extending  to  the  east  of  Colonel  Hunter  for  a  few 
rods,  when  it  ran  northward  and  eastward  of  the  Snodgrass 
Hill  and  house  to  what  is  now  called  Barker's  Hill. 

Until  3  o'clock  the  battle  raged  and  surged  about  Snod- 
grass Hill  and  on  to  Barker's  hill.  The  troops  of  Longstreet 
caino  up  over  the  country  in  solid  lines,  and  hurled 
themselves  against  these  hastily  formed  lines,  and  as  often 
as  t  hoy  came  were  they  forced  back,  broken  and  shattered. 
Again  and  again,  and  again  they  came  on  with  the  rush  of 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  197 

the  storm,  and  as  often  did  they  find  themselves  defeated  and 
stricken  down.  After  repeated  efforts  to  break  these  lines, 
Lougstreet,  who  had  bronght  with  him  as  they  boasted,  ' '  the 
Invincibles,"  found  that  his  troops  had  exhausted  their 
strength  and  our  lines  remained  as  firm  as  the  hill  on  which 
they  stood.  Despairing  of  success,  General  Longstreet 
sent  a  staff  officer  to  ^General  Bragg  asking  for  ad- 
ditional troops  from  his  right.  To  this  request  General 
Bragg  responded  that  the  troops  of  his  right  wing  "had 
been  so  badly  beaten  back"  that  they  could  render  him  no 
service.  The  men  of  the  Union  left  were  now  almost  out  of 
ammunition,  but  they  could  not  and  w^ould  not  relinquish 
their  position.  Orders  were  given  that  when  the  last  shot 
was  fired  then  to  fix  bayonets  and  use  the  cold  steel. 

General  Thomas  was  now  in  command  of  the  troops  on 
the  field.  General  Rosecrans  had  started  for  Chattanooga 
to  look  after  the  location  of  the  lines  at  that  point.  If  there 
was  need  of  reinforcements  for  Longstreet  there  was  also 
dire  need  of  reinforcements  for  Thomas  as  he  alone  was  left 
to  direct  and  save  the  Union  army.  These  reinforcements 
came  in  an  unexpected  moment  and  their  coming  saved  the 
field  to  the  Union  army.  General  Gordon  Granger,  on  the 
extreme  left,  at  Rossville  gap,  had  heard  the  constant  roar 
of  the  battle  throughout  the  day,  and  had  waited  and  waited 
for  orders  which  had  not  come.  He  felt  that  his  troops  must 
be  needed  and  without  orders  from  any  one  he  placed  him- 
self at  the  liead  of  his  reserve  corps  and  moved  out  to  the 
sound  of  the  battle's  roar.  He  had  with  him  General  Stead- 
man's  division  and  Colonel  Dan  McCook's  brigade.  Stead- 
man's  division  had  the  advance,  and  w^as  composed  mostly  of 
new  troops,  but  never  w^as  a  body  of  men  more  needed  than 
were  these  of  Steadman.  Longstreet,  after  failing  to  secure 
reinforcements,  had  reformed  his  lines  for  another  assault. 
Longstreet  then  had  for  his  new  assault  three  full  divisions 
and  two  brigades,  that  had  been  with  him  all  day,  and  tak- 
ing part  in  tlie  battle.  He  also  had  here  Preston's  Confederate 
division,  two  brigades  of  which  were  fresh  and  were  then 
brought  into  action  for  the  first  time  during  that  day       Just 


lt(,S  TllK  KKiHTY-SlXTH   REGIMENT, 

as  Loiiijslroot  was  iiialciii',''  his  tiiuil  preparations  for  another 
desperate  assault  Steadman's  troops  came  up  and  passing  by 
General  Tlioinas  were  directed  to  form  on  the  right  of  the 
troops  ah-eady  on  Snodgrass  Hill.  This  they  did  and  had 
just  moved  into  position  when  Longstreet's  charge  again 
began.  Steadman's  men  met  the  charge  with  a  counter 
charge  so  daring  and  so  terrific  in  its  force  that  it  broke 
Longstreet's  left  and  swept  it  off  the  side  of  the  hills  and 
V)aclv,  and  yet  further  back,  brolvcn  and  scattered,  with  the 
dead  and  wounded  covering  the  ground,  and  yet  pursuing 
wrenched  from  Longstreet's  forces  the  hills  where  he  had 
planted  his  artillery  at  Vidito's. 

It  was  a  magnificent  charge  and  the  "  boys  "  of  Stead- 
man's division  "won  their  spurs"  in  that  charge  if  ever 
knight  of  old  by  gallantry  won  his  spurs.  Our  lines  were 
now  reformed  and  strengthened  as  best  they  could  be.  The 
aunnunition  in  the  cartridge  boxes  of  the  men  who  had  fallen 
was  gathered  up  and  distributed,  Steadman's  men  dividing 
their  ammunition  with  those  who  had  none.  The  ammuni- 
tion trains,  by  some  officer's  orders,  no  one  knew  whose,  had 
gone  on  to  Chattanooga.  Tlie  very  fact  that  a  superior 
force  was  before  them  and  that  they  had  so  little  ammuni- 
tion, was  sufficient  of  itself  to  strike  dismay  to  the  hearts  of 
these  Union  troops  on  Snodgrass  Hill.  But  not  so.  The 
Spartans  of  old  had  no  more  courageous  troops  than  were 
these  men,  boys  rather,  who  faced  the  foe  in  the  closing 
hours  of  Sunday,  September  20,  1863,  holding  the  line  that 
was  to  save  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland,  save  Chatta- 
nooga, and  wring  from  defeat  a  victory  so  grand,  so  magnifi- 
criit  that  it  shall  yet  pass  into  history  as  even  greater  than 
ThermopylaD. 

Turning  for  awhile  from  the  magnificent  defense  of  the 
Union  right  in  tlie  closing  hours  of  the  day,  let  the  reader  go 
once  more  to  the  left  where  the  battle  had  opened  in  the  morn- 
ing. Remember  that  in  the  first  charge  at  the  opening  of 
tile  battle  on  Sunday  morning  that  Breckenridge's  troops  were 
unable  Lo  break  the  Union  left.  Agai  n  reforming  the  line  they 
moved  out  for  the  attack,  and  notwithstanding  the  severe  re- 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  199 

pulse  they  had  received,  they  rushed  forward  with  eveii  more 
daring  than  in  the  first,  but  here  again  they  were  met  with 
direct  musketry  in  the  front  and  were  enfiladed  by  a  battery 
of  four  guns  which  poured  canister  into  their  ranks,  and  with 
the  musketry  increasing,  their  men  went  down  like  grass  be- 
fore a  reaper.  It  was  a  fire  in  which  no  troops  could  live, 
and  the  remnant  recoiled  before  the  fearful  storm.  Again 
reforming  and  strengthening  the--  lines,  the  shout  of  the 
charge  was  raised  and  on  they  came  the  third  time  with  de- 
termined purpose  to  break  the  lineV  Nearer  and  nearer  they 
come  with  shout  upon  shout,  their  lines  at  first  closed  up 
and  unwavering,  but  the  Union  troops  answered  the  yells 
with  shouts  of  defiance,  and  once  more  broke  forth  the  rain 
of  lead  and  iron  like  a  deluge;  great  breaches  were  torn  in 
their  lines,  and  officers  and  men  went  down  before  the  pitiless 
storm.  The  men  of  Baird  crowded  behind  their  log  breast- 
works until  there  was  space  for  not  another  man,  and  they 
who  could  not  find  places  loaded  the  guns  and  passed  them 
to  the  men  in  the  front  line.  It  seemed  one  continuous 
stream  of  fire,  one  unbroken  roar  and  rattle  of  artillery  and 
musketry. 

Thus  it  raged  and  stormed  as  if  all  the  furies  were  turned 
loose.  This  charge,  as  the  other  two,  failed  and  the  rem- 
nant of  the  lines  of  Breckenridge  fell  back  into  their  former 
position,  while  the  Union  line  around  the  Kelly  field  still 
held  its  ground.  While  these  charges  of  Breckenridge  had 
failed  to  break  our  lines,  and  although  their  loss  in  officers 
and  men  had  been  most  fearful,  yet  the  charges  had  covered 
another  purpose  that  was  evidently  had  in  contemplation  to 
be  consummated  with  the  breaking  of  our  lines,  and  that  was 
to  sw^eep  around  our  extreme  left  and  get  onto  the  LaPayette 
road.  So  although  they  failed  to  break  the  line  immediately 
in  their  front,  their  lines  were  long  enough  to  sweep  far  be- 
yond our  extreme  left,  and  a  part  of  Helms'  and  all  of  Stov- 
all's  Confederate  brigades  fell  upon  General  John  Beatty's 
brigade  and  doubled  him  back  and  swept  across  the  La- 
Payette road  at  the  McDaniel  house.  At  the  McDaniel 
house  and  just  north  of  it  were  the  Forty-second  and  Eighty- 


200  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

i-ii^hth  liuliaiiH.  aud  these  two  regiments  withstood  the  storm 
till  they  were  absolutely  crowded  off  the  field  west  of  tlic 
LaFayette  road,  when  the  Forty-second  Indiana  aud  the  left 
wiu^^  of  the  Eii^hty-eighth  Indiana  wliich  were  taken  by 
General  Negley  to  McParland's  Gap,  while  the  right  winy 
of  the  Eighty-eiiJ^hth  Indiana  found  their  way,  following-  the 
sound  of  the  guns,  to  Barker's  Hill  and  from  there  to  Snod 
grass  Hill.  Thus  after  so  long  a  struggle,  by  dint  of  super- 
ior numbers  General  Bragg  got  possession  of  the  LaFayette 
road,  but  it  availed  hiin  naught.  His  troops  w^ere  too  broken 
and  shattered  to  follow  up  the  advantage  thus  gained,  and  for 
the  remainder  of  the  day  lay  about  the  Kelly  field  and  dared 
not  make  another  cliarge,  and  did  not  venture  to  move  his  col- 
iims  to  the  left  to  yjress  a  column  toward  Chattanooga.  The 
prize  for  which  he  had  fought  on  the  Union  left  and  for 
which  thousands  of  lives  had  been  given  was  now  "dead 
sea  fruit." 

Turning  again  to  Snodgrass  Hill  may  be  seen  the  last 
desperate  and  unsuccessful  attack  of  that  portion  of  the 
Confederate  army  that  was  so  renowned  for  its  fighting 
qualities.  Longslreot  had  been  beaten  back  in  his  first 
assault  on  Snodgrass  Hill.  He  had  had  almost  a  tri- 
unii»hal  march,  until  he  and  his  troops  struck  this  hill, 
and  there  instead  of  finding  a  broken  and  demoralized 
body  of  troops  he  found  a  wall  of  human  adamant.  He 
determined  about  5  p.  m.  to  make  another  desiderate  effort  to 
capture  or  destroy  this  body  of  soldiers,  for  they  had  proved 
themselves  such.  It  is  needless  to  attempt  to  describe  this 
last  fierce  charge.  The  results  are  given  and  the  reader  can 
judge  by  its  slaughter,  and  the  experienced  soldier  will  know 
full  well  of  its  terrible  and  horrible  nature.  The  rebel 
tr(M^])s  came  on  in  their  charge  until  they  had  almost  reached 
the  summit,  but  on  the  sides  of  that  hill  and  at  its  foot  one 
brigiule  that  entered  upon  the  charge  with  2,003  men,  lost  GUH 
killed  and  wounded.  Another  brigade  out  of  852  men,  lost 
303.  Another  brigade  lost  504,  one  rebel  regiment  out  of  239 
men,  lost  109.  Tliese  figures  form  only  a  part  of  the  loss 
that  was  sustained.     After  this  charge,   it  then  being  after 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  201 

dark,  there  was  no  general  charge  but  the  enemy  pushed  up 
under  cover  of  darkness  near  to  the  brow  of  the  hill. 

At  5:iJ0  p.  m.  the  troojxs  in  the  Kelly  field  were  with- 
drawn and  were  ordered  to  McFarland's  Gaj),  enroute  to  Chat- 
tanooga. Our  troops  on  Snodgrass  Hill  held  their  position 
nntil  after  8  p.  m.,  when  the  tiring  having  ceased  along  the 
entire  line,  General  Thomas  withdrew  from  the  held  and  re- 
joined the  portion  of  the  army  that  had  started  for  Chatta- 
nooga. Thus  closed  a  battle  that  has  not  its  parallel  in  mod- 
ern warfare  when  the  number  of  men  engaged  on  both  sides 
and  the  duration  of  the  engagement  are  considered.  We 
have  said  that  our  troops  were  withdrawn  from  Snodgrass 
Hill  about  S  p.  m.  This  is  true  as  to  all  of  the  troops,  except- 
ing the  Eighty -eighth  Indiana  remained  at  Snodgrass  Hifl 
until  after  daylight  on  Monday  morning,  September  21, 
when  they  marched  to  McFarland's  Gap,  and  then  to  Ross- 
ville  and  joined  the  left  wing  of  the  regiment  and  their  brig- 
ade, and  went  into  position  on  Missonary  Kidge,  and  on 
Monday  night  were  moved  to  Chattanooga.  Captain  W.  M. 
Thompson,  of  this  regiment,  says  that  when  the  Eighty -eighth 
Indiana  left  Snodgrass  Hill  on  Monday  morning  there  was 
not  an  armed  Confederate  in  sight  on  the  field. 

In  the  battle  of  ChickamaugaRosecrans  in  effective  force 
had  almost  55,000  men  in  all  branches  of  the  service.  The 
force  which  General  Bragg  had  at  his  command  as  shown  by 
the  best  and  most  reliable  Confederate  reports  was  81,219. 
The  battle  was  fought  on  ground  of  General  Bragg's  own 
choosing.  In  so  far  as  numbers  were  concerned,  if  the  dis- 
l)arity  in  numbers  counts  for  aught,  it  would  seemasif  Rose- 
crans  was  so  greatly  outnumbered  that  it  would  have  been 
absolutely  suicidal  to  have  attempted  to  withstand  a  force  so 
greatly  superior.  It  should  also  be  taken  into  consideration 
that  General  Bragg  had  with  him  the  very  best  fighters  of 
the  entire  Confederate  army.  With  all  of  these  advantages 
in  favor  of  General  Bragg:  first,  selection  of  the  field;  second, 
superiority  in  numbers;  third,  the  fiower  of  the  Confederate 
army;  yet  with  all  this  for  three  days,  for  we  should  include 
September    18,     General    Rosecrans'   army    withstood    the 


202  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

fiercest  assaults  that  could  possibly  be  made  upon  troops. 
From  the  time  the  battle  oi)oiied  until  its  close  it  was  territic 
ill  the  extreme.  Men  oii  both  sides  fought  with  desijeration 
as  is  shown  by  the  casualties.  The  losses  of  the  Union  army 
at  Chickamauga  on  September  19th  and  20th  were  16.17'J. 
Tlie  loss  of  the  Confederates  on  the  same  days  was  17,804,  a 
total  by  the  two  armies  of  33,983.  The  i)er  cent  of  loss  iu 
many  of  the  divisions  was  far  higher  than  that  of  any  other 
battle  of  modern  times.  Longstreet's  command  lost  44  per 
cent,  and  the  greater  portion  of  their  loss  was  on  Sunday 
afternoon  at  Snodgrass  Hill.  Steadinan's  division  in  the 
charges  and  countercharges  at  Snodgrass  Hill  lost  49  per 
cent,  in  killed  and  wounded.  Brannan  lost  38  per  cent,  and 
take  the  whole  of  Rosecrans'  army  in  this  battle  the  average 
loss  is  almost  33  per  cent.  General  Boynton,  the  historian 
for  the  "Chickamauga  National  Military  Park,"  has  care- 
fully compiled  the  per  centage  of  losses  at  Chickamauga, 
and  he  rejiorts  the  loss  of  Confederates  as  follows:  Bushrod 
Johnson's  division  at  44  per  cent,  Anderson's  brigade  of 
Ilindman's  division  at  30  per  cent,  Bate's  brigade  of  Stew- 
art's division  52  per  cent;  Preston's  division  33  per  cent  and 
Gracie's  brigade  at  35  per  cent,  and  the  losses  by  both  of 
these  two  last  were  all  in  only  a  little  more  than  an  hour's 
time  at  Snodgrass  Hill.  Over  on  the  left  Cheatham's  division 
ranged  from  35  to  50  per  cent  in  the  brigades.  The  loss  in 
Breckenridge's  division  was  33  per  cent.  Cleburne's  loss 
was  43  per  cent.  No  such  charges  were  made  during  the  war 
of  1861-1865  as  were  made  by  the  Confederate  forces  at 
Cliiclvamauga.  The  celebrated  charges  in  other  battles  of 
the  war  consisted  of  but  one  charge  each,  but  in  the  battle  of 
Chickamauga  they  were  repeated  over  and  over  by  the  Con- 
federates, not  by  the  same  troops  each  time  but  by  fresh 
troops  brought  into  them  with  all  of  the  strength  and  force 
of  fresh  soldiers.  If  the  charges  were  made  with  courage 
and  daring,  the  defense  was  even  more  heroic,  for  it  required 
the  highest  type  of  bravery  to  resist  the  oncoming  charge 
of  such  men  as  made  the  assaults  at  Chickamauga.  The 
same  troops  that  made  the  charges  at  Chickamauga  could  not 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  ^  203 

stand  before  the  charge  at  Missionary  Ridge  made  by  the 
same  trooi)s  that  successfully  met  and  repulsed  the  charges 
at  Chickamauga. 

Of  the  fighting  qualities  of  both  armies  General  Hind- 
man  of  the  Confederate  army  has  said: 

"I  have  never  known  Federal  troops  to  fight  so  well.  It  is  just  to 
say,  also,  that  I  never  saw  Confederate  soldiers  fight  better." 

Of  one  of  the  assaults  made  by  the  troops  of  Longstreet, 
and  which  was  repulsed  on  Snodgrass  Hill,  General  Ker- 
shaw said: 

"This  was  one  of  the  heaviest  attacks  of  the  war  on  a  single  line." 

General  Bragg  says  in  his  report  of  the  battle: 
"The  conduct  of  our  troop-s  was  excellent  throughout  the  entire 
contest.  *  *  Our  loss  was  in  proportion  to  the  prolonged  and  obstinate 
struggle.  Two-fifths  of  our  gallant  troops  had  fallen,  and  the  number  of 
general  and  staff  officers  stricken  down  will  best  show  how  those  troops 
were  led." 

Again  he  says: 

"Our  troops  were  led  with  the  greatest  gallantry  and  exhibited 
great  coolness,  bravery  and  heroic  devotion.  In  no  instance  did  they 
fail  when  called  on  to  rally  and  return,  the  charge.  But  though  invari- 
ably di'iving  the  enemy  with  slaughter  at  the  points  assailed,  they  wore 
in  turn  compelled  to  yield." 

Further  he  gives  as  a  reason  for  not  pursuing  the  Army 
of  the  Cumberland,  the  following: 

"  Any  immediate  pursuit  by  our  infantry  and  artillery  would  have 
been  fruitless,  as  it  was  not  deemed  practicable  with  our  weak  and  ex- 
hausted force  to  assail  the  enemy — now  more  than  double  our  numbers, 
behind  entrenchments.  Though  we  had  defeated  him  and  driven  him 
from  the  field  with  heavy  loss  in  men,  arms  and  artillery,  it  had  only 
been  done  by  heavy  sacrifices,  in  repeated,  persistent,  and  most  gallant 
charges." 

General  Bragg  seems  to  have  estimated  the  fighting 
qualities  of  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland  as  its  true  worth  and 
strength,  and  it  is  doubtless  this  quality  which  makes  him  say 
that  the  Union  army  was  "more  than  double  our  numbers." 

General  D.  H.  Hill  in  his  report  of  the  assaults  made  on 

the  extreme  left  of  the  Union  line  on  Sunday  morning  says: 

"The  whole  corps  had  failed  in  its  attack;  Breckenridge  had  been 

compelled  to  fall  back  a  short  distance,  and  Cleburne  still  further  after 

a  heavy  repulse." 

General  Bushrod  A.  Johnson  in  his  report  refers  to  the 


204.  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH    REGIMENT, 

conduct  of  General  Granj^er's  corps  that  reinforced  Thomas 
at  Snod^^rass  Hill: 

"Our  lino  pressed  dctcnniiiudly  forward  for  some  time,  keeping  up 
an  incessant  volley  witii  small  arms.  But  the  enemy  now  evidently  re- 
ceived reinforcements  of  fresh  troops,  which  advanced  with  a  shout  that 
was  heard  aion;^  oui-  lines,  and  we  were  driven  back  to  our  f^uns.  It 
was  subsequently  ascertained  from  prisoners  captured  that  the  reinforce- 
ments were  a  part  of  General  Grangei''s  corps  which  we  fought  the  rest 
of  the  day.  Deas'  brigade  and  the  part  of  Manigault's  next  to  it  fell 
back  to  the  foot  of  the  hill.  Anderson's  fell  back  to  its  first  position, 
and  lltixc  iJinv  J)n'(f<(d<f<,  save  two  regiments  of  Manigault's  next  to  John- 
son's brigade,  did  not  aijuin  enter  the  tiijJit.  *  *  *  The  retreat  on  lit ii^  hill 
was  jurcipitate,  and  ealled  for  all  the  exertions  I  could  command  to  jyrevent 
many  of  the  troops  from  abaiuloning  it.  The  officers,  however,  joined  with 
every  energy  and  zeal  in  the  effort  to  stay  the  retreat,  and  by  appeals, 
commands,  and  phi/sical  efforts,  all  save  a  few  who  presisted  in  skulking 
behind  trees  or  lying  idly  on  the  ground  were  brought  up  to  our  lines  in 
support  of  the  artillery.  Tlic  eneni)/  were  not  whipix'd,  and  the  conjUct  still 
nujed  with,  rari/i)^!  fortune,  liepeatedly  our  men  advanced,  and  were  in  turn  \ 
forced  to  i/iehl  a  portion  of  the  (jromid  theif  had  (jained."' 

The  portion  here  italicised  are  not  italicised  by  General  : 
Johnson,  but  the  words  are  those  of  the  report.  This  report 
of  General  Johnson,  who  was  one  of  Longstreet's  division 
commanders,  is  worthy  of  consideration,  and  speaks  most 
strongly  of  the  bravery  and  fighting  qualities  of  the  small 
band  of  Union  troops  that  so  gallantly  held  Snodgrass  Hill 
on  Sunday  afternoon  "against  allcomers."  It  is  related,  on 
what  authority  it  is  not  known,  that  as  one  of  Longstrect  s 
Virginia  divisions  was  moving  forward  it  passed  through  a 
body  of  Tennessee  troops  that  had  been  so  severely  punished 
in  one  of  the  charges  that  it  had  been  moved  to  the  rear 
to  gather  reinforcements,  and  Longstreet's  men  as  they 
passed  through  shouted,  "Rise  up,  Tennesseeans,  and  sec 
the  Virginians  go  in."  They  went  in,  but  soon  came  back 
repulsed,  broken,  and  fleeing  before  the  terrible  storm  that 
met  them  as  they  went  "in,"  and  as  they  came  Hying  back 
the  Tennessee  men  cried,  "Rise  up,  Tennesseans,  and  sec 
the   VirfjlnianH   come  out.'" 

The  foregoing  quotations  are  sufficient  to  show  the  esti- 
mation in  which  the  leading  Confederate  officers  who  were  I 
at  Chickamauga  placed  upon  the  battle.     The  fact  that  Gen- 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  205 

eral  Bragg,  with  all  of  the  superior  numbers  under  his  com- 
mand could  not,  and  did  not  follow  the  Union  army  oif  the  field 
IS  one  of  the  highest  tributes  that  it  has  been  j)ossible  to 
pay  to  the  gallantry  and  endurance  of  the  Army  of  the  Cum- 
berland. To  those  who  may  visit  the  battle  field  of  Chicka- 
mauga  now  years  after  the  memorable  19th  and  20th  of  Sep- 
tember, 1863,  and  there  fully  understanding  the  situation  of 
the  ground,  the  position  of  the  contending  armies,  and  the 
actual  numbers  engaged  on  each  side,  the  cause  for  wonder 
and  astonishment  ■  is  not  so  much  that  the  Union  army  loft 
the  field  in  the  hands  of  the  Confederates,  but  the  greatest 
surprise  is  that  any  of  the  Union  army  survived.  General 
Alexander  P.  Stewart,  who  commanded  a  division  of  Buck- 
ner's  corjis,  on  Sunday,  and  witnessing  the  terrific  charges 
that  were  made  on  the  Kelly  field, -stood  with  the  writer  look- 
ing over  that  memorable  scene  of  carnage.  The  talk  was  of 
the  tempest  of  war  that  had  raged  on  that  field  thirty-one 
years  before,  when  the  question  was  asked :  General  Stewart, 
when  you  had  the  Union  troops  so  nearly  surrounded  in  this 
field  why  did  you  suffer  one  of  them  to  live  to  get  away  to 
tell  of  the  fight'?  The  General  replied:  "I  have  asked  that 
question  of  myself  many  times,  and  I  can  answer  it  but  one 
way,  that  is,  the  good  Lord  intended  it  just  as  it  was."  The 
answer  of  General  -Stewart  was  made  with  the  utmost  rever- 
ence, for  he  is  a  true  Christian  gentleman.  And  so  after  a 
careful  review  of  the  battle  of  Chickamauga  may  each  one 
say,  in  the  same  spirit  in  which  he  spoke  it,  "The  good 
Lord  intended  it  as  it  was. " 

The  reports  made  by  General  Rosecrans  and  the  Gen- 
erals of  his  army  all  bear  abundant  testimony  to  the  fact  of 
the  wonderful  bravery  of  the  men  and  officers  of  the  Army 
of  the  Cumberland  at  Chickamauga,  and  it  is  not  necessary 
that  their  reports  should  here  be  reproduced.  The  reports  of 
those  who  were  of  the  other  army,  or  enemies  tlten,  bear  tes- 
timony not  to  be  controverted. 

What  of  the  troops  that  held  the  lines  against  such  great 
odds,  and,  in  the  face  of  all  that  pointed  to  complete  disaster 
and  overthrow,  WON?      Yes,  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland 


20G 


THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 


mm  (Did  Jichi  all  that  it  was  ordered  to  take— Ch ATTAIN OOG A \ 
'I'hc  batUo-lield  was  loft /oyiho  hands  of  the  enemy.  Yes,  'tis 
true.  But  it  was  a  battle-tield  to  be  held,  if  it  was  held,  luifh- 
out  a  victory  bein^  won.  They  wlio  claim  to  have  held  the 
iield,  were  so  broken  and  shaltoi-ed  that  they  could  not  and 
dared  not  pursue.  Braii^g  fou.ij^ht  the  battle  of  Chicka- 
mauga,  not  for  Chicle  am  auc:a,  but  his  purpose,  his  plan, 
and  this  battle  in  which  he  says  he  lost  18,000  of  the  best 
troops  of  the  South  was  to  regain  Chattarioo{/a.  It  was  to 
regain  Chattanooga  that  Longstr(;et  was  brought  from  tlie 
Confederate  Army  of  Northern  Virginia,  the  army-  of  Rob- 
ert E.  Lee.  It  w^as  for  the  same  purpose  that  Buckner's 
corps  was  brought  from  East  Tennessee.  It  was  to  wrench 
the  "Key  to  the  South,"  Chattanooga,  from  the  hand  of 
Kosecrans  that  all  the  troops  of  Johnston  joined  Bragg's 
army.  Rosecrans  fought  the  battle  of  Chickamauga  not 
for  dhiekamavga,  but  to  hold.  Chattanooga,  and  Chatta- 
nooga lie  held.  Again  the  question,  what  of  the  troops  that 
loon?    Prom  whence  came  they? 

The  roster  of  Rosecrans'  army  answers  the  question,  and 
every  State  represented  is  worthy  of  mention.  The  troops 
of  each  one  did  all  that  troops  could  do.     Read  the  list: 


STATES. 


Indiana  

Illinois 

Kansas 

Kentucky 

Michi<,ran 

Mimu'sota 

Oiiio 

Pennsylvania 

'J'cniiessee 

Wisconsin  ....... 

Missouri 

U.  S.  Army  (Regulars.) 

Total 


INFANTRY 
REQ'MENTS 


2r3 

28 
1 

VA 
4 
1 


129 


CAVALRY 

reg'ments 


18 


MOUNTED 
INFANTRY 


ARTILL'RY 

batter'es 


35 


TOTAL 

o'g'ni't'ns 


40 

36 

1 

17 

8 

9. 


188 


Against  these  188  organizations,  the  Confederates  had 
259  organizations.     Indiana,  as  appears  from  the  foregoing, 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  207 

was  fully  represented  in  the  battle  of  Chickamauga  as  she 
was  in  all  of  the  battles  of  the  war.  It  is  no  disparagement 
to  the  troops  of  the  other  States  from  which  came  the  Union 
army  to  say  that  the  troops  of  Indiana  did  their  full  share  of 
duty  at  Chickamauga,  and  that  the  gallantry  of  her  sons  was 
not  surpassed  by  that  of  any  other  State  there  represented, 
regardless  of  whether  the  troops  were  from  the  North  or  the 
South,  Union  or  Confederate.  Indiana  was  the  first,  Avith 
her  Seventeenth  and  Seventy-Second  regiments  and  Eigh- 
teenth battery,  to  oppose  the  crossing  ofBragg's  troops  over 
the  Chickamauga  creek  on  Friday,  September  18.  Indiana 
troops,  the  Tenth  and  Seventy-fourth  regiments,  were  the 
first  troops  of  Rosecrans'  army  to  open  the  battle  on  the 
morning  of  September  19.  In  the  corps  of  Granger  that 
met  the  charge  of  Bushrod  R.  Johnson,  with  a  counter 
charge,  and  broke  his  line  and  hurled  them  back  was  the 
Eighty-fourth  Indiana;  the  last  volley  fired  on  Snodgrass 
Hill  was  fired  by  the  Ninth  Indiana  regiment,  and  the  last 
Union  regiment  tO'leave  the  battle-field  was  the  Eighty-eighth 
regiment,  which  marched  away  on  Monday  morning,  Sep- 
tember 20,  from  Snodgrass  Hill.  Indiana's  ''Roll  of  Honor" 
was  written  on  the  field  of  Chickamauga,  at  Reed's  Bridge, 
at  Viniard's,  at  Brotherton's,  at  Poe"s,  at  Kelly's,  at  Mc- 
Daniel's,  in  the  Brock  field,  at  Barker's  Hill,  on  Snod- 
grass Hill,  everywliere  on  Chickamauga,  where  the  bat- 
tle raged  the  fiercest,  and  the  storm  was  most  deadly. 
By  Chickamauga's  muddy  waters,  in  the  glades,  under 
the  pines,  in  the  open  fields,  on  the  highlands,  and 
around  the  fire  begirt  hills,  over  three  thousand  of 
Indiana's  sons  gave  their  blood  and  lives  in  the  de- 
fense of  tlie  Flag  and  for  the  preservation  of  the  Republic. 
Eleven  States  of  the  Union  and  the  regular  army  of  the 
United  States  were  represented  in  the  battle  of  Chicka- 
mauga, and  one-fifth  of  the  loss  in  killed  and  wounded  in 
that  battle  were  from  'Indiana's  -regiments  and  batteries. 
The  reports  on  file  at  the  War  Department  show  that  during 
the  war  of  the  rebellion,  from  the  opening  in  April,  1861,  to 
the   close  of  the  war  in  18G5,  Indiana  lost  24,000  men.     If 


20^  THE  KIGIITY-SIXTII   REGIMENT, 

til  is  l)o  li-uo,  as  it  doubtless  is,  then  Indiana  lost  at  Chicka- 
inaui^M  from  noon  of  Soptomboi'  18  to  the  going  down  of 
the  sun  on  Snodgrass  Hill,  on  Sunday,  September  20,  one- 
eighth  of  Indiana's  entire  loss  during  the  entire  war.  What 
a  niagniticHMit  record  this  is  for  the  gallantry  of  the  Indiana 
troops!  Their  work  was  well  done.  They  won  for  Indiana 
an  honorable,  a  glorious  name  and  i)lace  for  bravery  in  the 
galaxy  of  States,  and  the  men  of  Indiana  for  all  time  to 
come  may  point  with  ])ride  to  the  gallantry  and  bravery  of 
the  Indiana  troops  at  Chickamauga. 

What  of  the  withdrawal  of  the  Union  army  from  Chicka- 
mauga':' By  the  Confederate  reports  it  was  said  that  the 
army  of  Rosecrans  "was  routed,"  that  it  went  from  the 
firld  in  confusion  and  utterly  demoralized.  Look  at  the 
facts,  and  let  the  reader  judge.  As  shown,  the  left  of  Rose- 
crans' army  was  in  and  about  the  Kelly  field  on  Sunday  and 
until  5:30  o'clock  in  the  afternoon.  The  Confederate  army 
had  swept  around  the  extreme  left  and  reached  the  LaFay- 
ette  road  at  McDaniel's  and  held  that  road  so  that  the  Union 
army  when  it  moved  ofl"  from  the  Kelly  field  moved  west  to 
McFarland's  Gap.  The  Confederate  forces  about  the  Kelly 
field  did  not  follow  them  as  regiment  after  regiment  marched 
out. 

The  last  of  the  Union  troops  to  leave  the  battle-field  of 
Chickamauga  were  those  at  Snodgrass  Hill.  The  storm  that 
had  raged  about  that  hill  throughout  that  entire  afternoon, 
had  sp(uit  its  force  in  the  vain  attempt  to  destroy  those  who 
had  so  gallantly  andnheroically  made  their  lodgement  there. 
Tho  t(>mpest  had  ceased,  the  guns  were  all  hushed,  when  at 
H:;{0  o'clock  these  troops  moved  off  the  hill,  down  across  the 
fields  and  to  and  through  McParland's  Gap.  What  next  is 
secmV  When  the  sun  on  the  morning  of  the  21st  of  Septem 
berrose,  there  on  the  hills  of  Missionary  Ridge  from  McPar- 
land's Gap  and  Rossville  northward  were  found  once  morc^ 
the  same  men,  who  under  Thomas  had  held  the  lines  on  Sun- 
day afternoon.  The  same  men  who  had  hurled  defiance  into 
the  faces  of  the  charging  columns  of  Longstreet  with  his  left 
wing  of  Bragg  army  at  the  going  down  of  the  sun,  awaited 


INDIANA    VOLUNTEERS.  209 

in  line  the  coming  of  the  same  foe  when  the  sun  again 
lighted  the  eastern  liorizon  in  another  line  within  easy 
reach.  The  remainder  of  Rosecrans'  army  marched  into 
Chattanooga,  established  its  lines,  and  awaited  the  coming  of 
the  enemy. 

Finally  Thomas  and  his  undaunted  troops  came  marching 
in  with  banners  flying  and  music  waking  the  echoes,  and 
pitched  their  camp  in  and  about  Chattanooga.  Once  more  the 
Array  of  the  Cumberland  was  united  in  the  city  for  which 
the  campaign  was  begun  and  ended,  and  there  waited  for  the 
attack  to  be  renewed  by  General  Bragg.  The  attack 
was  never  made.  The  men  of  the  Army  of  the  Cum- 
berland were  never  lahipped.  They  moved  off  the  field  of 
Chickamauga  with  their  ranks  unbroken,  and  in  their  new 
lines  were  ready  for  the  fray.  The  attack  was  not  again  re- 
ceived from  the  army  of  Bi-agg,  but  after  two  months  of  seige 
the  same  Army  of  tlie  Cumberland  that  received  the  attack  at 
Chickamauga,  made  the  attack  that  swept  the  army  of  Gen- 
eral Bragg  in  confusion  and  dismay  from  Missionary  Ridge, 
&,nd  on  down  beyond  Chiclvamauga's  battle  scarred  field,  in 
November,  1863.  It  was  the  same  army  that  opened  the 
battles  about  Chattanooga,  that  stormed  the  heights  of 
Missionary  Ridge,  broke  through  the  lines  and  opened  the 
way  for  the  reinforcements  brought  by  Sherman,  which  had 
finally  been  sent  to  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland,  so  that  they 
might  maintain  their  foothold  at  the  north  end  of  Missionary 
Ridge,  and  establish  their  colors  on  the  Union  left  on  the 
memorable  25th  day  of  November,  18G3.  To  the  glory  of  In- 
diana it  may  said  to  her  sons  was  the  credit  given  of  leading 
the  charge  that  broke  the  center  on  Missionary  Ridge.  To 
the  Eighty-sixth  regiment  of  Indiana,  and  to  her  associate 
regiment,  the  Seventy-ninth  Indiana,  is  due  the  credit  of 
leading  in  that  wonderful  charge,  a  charge  which  had  it 
been  made  by  the  army  of  any  European  power  would  have 
brought  medals  of  honor  to  every  man  of  the  rank  and  file, 
and  titles  and  knighting  to  every  General  in  command. 

Thus  has  been  given  the  part  that  this,  tlic  Eighty-sixth 
Indiana,  bore  in  one  of  the  severest  battles  of  modern  war- 


210  THE  EIGIITY-SIXTII  REGIMENT, 

fare,  in  many  respects  the  severest.  The  members  of  the  reg- 
iment who  yet  survive  may  glory  in  the  part  they  bore  on 
that  deadly  field.  The  children  of  all  of  the  members  of  the 
regiment,  of  the  members  living  and  of  those  who  are  dead, 
will  never  have  cause  for  feelings  other  than  of  honest  prido 
that  they  whose  names  they  bear,  were  with  those  who  fought 
at  Chickamauga.  The  joy  of  to-day  comes  to  the  survivors  in 
that  the  war  in  which  they  participated  has  passed,  and  Peace 
shall  ever  reign  within  this  land.  He  who  shall  visit  Chick- 
amauga in  the  future  may  read  in  enduring  bronze  and  firm- 
est granite  the  deeds  of  valor  of  the  men  of  the  North;  and 
the  sons  of  the  South,  may  see  the  pride  and  glory  of  the 
Nation  in  that  now  all  cause  for  strife  has  passed,  and  that 
only  deeds  of  bravery  are  remembered  where  once  ran  the 
red  tide  of  battle. 

The  roar  of  the  battle  on  the  field  of  Chickamauga  is 
hushed  and  in  its  stead  from  the  leafy  bowers  and  beside  the 
quiet  stream  is  to  rise  for  all  future  time  the  anthem  of 
peace.  The  men  who  died  on  this  field  did  not  shed  their 
blood  in  vain.  The  cause  for  which  they  of  the  Union  army 
fought  was  triumphant,  and  Chickamauga  was  the  beginning 
of  the  end  of  the  years  of  strife. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 
BELEAGUERED  IN  CHATTANOOGA. 

Tlic  (Hijcclivo  I'oint^of  the  r:inip;ii.-;ii  TTold— Arrival  of  tliP  Eighty-sixth  from 
<'liicli;iinn.u.i;:i— Entered  Upon  its  Duties  to  Defend  tlie  Town— Tlio  Scarcity  of 
Siiijpli(!s— Tho  yutreiin^'s  Endured  l)y  \\\v.  Men— Starvation  Starini;;  them  in 
thc!  Face- Trovisions  Kroufiht.  Over  tlie  Mountains  from  RridKcport--Fora.<;- 
iiiK— Consolidation  of  the  Twentieth  and  Twenty-first  Corps— The  Fourth 
Corps  Formod— General  Rosecrans  Relieved— General  Tliotuas  Assumes  Com- 
mand—Arrival  of  General  Grant— The  Eleventh  and  Twelfth  Corps— Battle 
of  Wauhatcliie— The  Army  of  the  Tennessee  Arrives— Preparations  for  the 
Approaching  Battle— Did  General  Rosecrans  Contemplate  at  Any  Time  the 
Evacuat.ion  of  Chattanoof^a? 

As  shown  in  the  preceding  chai)ter,  after  the  battle  of 
Chickamauga,  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland  held  the  objec- 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  211 

tive  point  of  the  campaign — Chattanooga — and  was  therefore 
successful  and  victorious.  The  resolute  men  under  General 
Rosecrans  were  determined  to  hold  fast  to  the  prize  now  in 
their  possession.  No  one  questioned  the  ability  of  General 
Rosecraus  to  hold  it  against  a  direct  assault  by  any  force  of 
the  enemy.  Here  the  troops  which  had  formed  the  right 
wing  at  Chickamauga  formed  the  center  and  left  wing  in 
Chattanooga,  and  would  have  been  found  as  firm  as  their 
comrades  of  the  left  wing  were  on  the  memorable  "  Snod- 
grass  Hill."     They  proved  this  later. 

The  Second  brigade  of  the  Third  division,  Twenty-first 
army  corps.  Colonel  George  P.  Dick,  of  the  Eighty-sixth, 
commanding,  reached  the  immediate  neighborhood  of  Chat- 
tanooga from  the  battle-field  of  Chickamauga  on  the  21st  of 
September,  and  did  guard  duty  that  evening.  On  the  22nd 
the  Eighty-sixth  was  placed  as  a  reserve  for  the  skirmish 
line,  the  line  itself  being  formed  by  the  Fifteenth  Indiana, 
the  brigade's  position  being  to  the  northeast  of  the  hill  where 
Port  Wood  was  afterward  located,  and  not  far  from  Citico 
creek.  Here  the  Eighty-sixth  constructed  a  temporary  line 
of  breastworks  and  prepared  to  support  the  line  in  case  it 
was  attacked.  The  regiment  was  at  this  juncture  under  the' 
command  of  Captain  Aaron  Prazee,  of  Company  A,  Lieuten- 
ant Colonel  J.  C.  Dick  having  been  wounded  in  the  battle  of 
Chickamauga.  There  was  more  or  less  skirmishing  and  some 
artillery  firing  as  the  enemy  approached  the  town.  At  dusk 
a  portion  of  the  Eighty-sixth  was  placed  upon  the  line.  The 
men  were  instructed  to  keep  the  closest  watch  upon  the  en- 
emy. It  was  not  then  known  even  by  those  high  in  com- 
mand how  badly  the  different  organizations  had  been  broken 
up  at  Chickamauga  by  their  repeated  desperate  attempts  to 
win.  About  9  o'clock  quite  a  lively  fire  sprang  up  on  the 
Eighty-sixth's  part  of  the  line,  and  on  the  brigade  line  im- 
mediately to  its  right,  on  account  of  a  supposed  attempt  of 
the  enemy  to  steal  up  by  stealth.  The  nervous  tension  was 
great,  and  the  men  did  not  wait  to  see  a  rebel  approaching  to 
shoot,  but  fired.  The  line  held  its  ground  firmly  and  the  fir- 
ing soon  died  away.     The  enemy  fired  a  few  return  shots, 


212  THE  EICIITY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

but  tliorc  was  roally  no  evidence  of  an  attempt  to  advance. 
The  fact  was  Bragg,  as  well  as  his  men,  had  about  all  the 
fighting  thoy  cared  to  enjoy  for  some  time,  and  were  in  no 
liurry  to  rusli  upon  their  old  antagonists. 

The  first  detail  of  the  Eighty-sixth  placed  upon  the  line 
as  skirmishers  remained  from  dusk  on  the  22nd  until  3  a.  m. 
on  the  2;5rd,  a  long  and  very  trying  vigil.  The  day.had  been 
warm,  and  the  approaching  enemy  had  made  the  situation 
one  of  gr(\at  danger.  The  night  was  frosty,  making  a  change 
of  many  degrees  from  the  heat  of  the  day.  The  men  lay 
upon  the  ground  to  escape  the  enemy's  fire  and  felt  the  full 
U)V('(i  of  the  frosty  atmosphere.  The  chilly  ground  rapidly 
conducted  the  heat  from  their  thinly  clad  bodies  and  the 
frosty  air  chilled  them  to  the  bone.  It  was  a  night  long  to 
be  remembered.  Those  upon  the  line  were  relieved  at  3  a. 
m.  and  returned  to  the  reserve,  but  little  more  comfort  was 
to  be  found  there  as  no  lire  was  permitted,  and  the  men  had 
but  few  blankets.  At  9  a.  m.  they  returned  to  the  line  and 
had  a  brisk  little  brush  with  the  enemy  as  he  pushed  his 
lines  cautiously  up.  The  Eighty -sixth  maintained  its  ground 
and  stood  tlie  enemy  off  by  a  sharp  and  well  directed  fire. 
He  returned  the  fire  in  a  sullen,  determined  manner,  as 
though  out  of  liumor.  He  did  not  push  up  with  that  vim, 
that,  aggressive  dashing  manner  so  characteristic  when  con- 
luUmt  of  winning.  So  the  contest  was  kept  up  by  the  Eighty- 
sixth  until  3  o'clock  p.  m.  on  the  23rd,  when  it  was  relieved 
and  marched  back  inside  the  intrenched  lines  which  were  rap- 
idly assuming  foruiidal)le  shape. 

The  town  is  situated  in  a  bend  of  the  Tennessee  river 
which  liere  winds  its  w^ay  through  the  mountains.  Coming 
from  the  north  until  within  a  mile,  the  river  changes  its  course 
and  fiows  nearly  west,  curving  slightly  northward  as  it  passes 
the  town.  Then  the  curve  increases  and  it  flows  a  little  east 
of  south  with  a  high  point — Cameron  Hill — between  it  and 
the  town.  It  continues  this  direction  for  probably  two  miles 
and  tlien  curves  to  the  southwest  for  the  distance  of  a  half 
mile  and  sti-ikes  the  rocky  base  of  the  mighty  Lookout,  and 
again  changes  for  another  half  mile,  this  time  to  the  north- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  213 

west,  and  then  again  nearly  clue  north  until  opposite  the 
town  again  turns  in  a  northwest  direction  and  divides  into 
two  branches  to  encompass  Williams'  Island.  Opposite 
Lookout  Mountain  its  curves  form  Moccasin  Point.  At  the 
bend  east  of  the  town  Citico  creek  empties  its  waters  from 
the  base  of  Missionary  Ridge.  At  a  point  nearly  due  north  of 
the  palisades  on  Lookout,  Chattanooga  creek  empties  its 
waters  from  the  south  part  of  Chattanooga  Valley.  Nearly 
a  half  mile  west  of  the  mouth  of  Citico  creek  is  the  head  of 
an  island  known  as  Chattanooga  island.  A  little  more  than 
a  half  mile  above  the  mouth  of  Chattanooga  creek  is  another 
small  island.  Starting  from  a  point  opposite  the  lower  third 
of  the  lower  island  the  main  intrenchments  followed  a  line, 
curving  outward  slightly,  to  a  point  on  the  bank  of  the  river 
a  little  east  of  the  head  of  Chattanooga  island.  The  Eighty- 
sixth  was  assigned  a  camping  place  on  this  line  a  little  north 
of  the  East  Tennessee  and  Virginia  railroad  some  three  or 
four  hundred  yards  perhaps  from  the  river,  on  a  slight  ele- 
vation where  the  government  cemetery  was  first  placed. 

Now  began  the  siege  of  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland 
cooped  up  in  Chattanooga  by  the  Confederate  forces  under 
General  Bragg.  The  intrenchments  were  strengthened  day 
by  day,  forts  were  constructed  and  every  preparation  made 
to  hold  the  town.  To  complete  all  these  required  great 
labor,  and  with  the  heavy  picket  duty,  the  men  were  kept 
constantly  engaged.  The  line  of  the  Union  pickets  covering 
the  front  of  the  works  extended  from  the  mouth  of  Citico 
creek  on  the  left  to  the  mouth  of  Chattanooga  creek  on  the 
right.  Within  the  main  line  of  intrenchments,  high  points 
of  ground  were  fortified.  About  two  hundred  yards  to  the 
right  of  the  camp  of  the  Eighty -sixth  and  a  little  more  ad- 
vanced was  constructed  a  strong  fort  known  in  history  as 
Port  Wood,  named  in  honor  of  Brigadier  General  T.  J. 
Wood. 

Each  morning  the  troops  were  called  before  daylight  and 
"stood  to  arms"  in  the  trenches.  On  account  of  some  picket 
firing  the  troops,  on  the  left  at  least,  were  called  into  the 
trenches  twice  during  the  night  of  the  24th,  and  were  called 


214  Till;:  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

lip  I'or  tli«'  day  on  the  luornin.n- ol"  the  L'5Ui  at  4  o'clock.  On 
tlie  follownife'  day  the  cause  of  the  night's  skirmishing  was 
h'anu'd.  During  the  day  of  the  24th  the  skirmish  line  to  the 
right  had  been  advanced.  When  night  came  on  and  shielded 
the  enemy  from  the  fire  of  the  Union  batteries  he  advanced 
in  some  force  and  drove  the  Union  trooj^s  back  upon  their 
old  lines.  However,  on  the  morning  of  the  25th,  the  artillery 
opciu'd  a  red-hot  fire  upon  the  enemy's  outposts.  The  Union 
skifuiishers  were  ordered  forward  and  speedily  drove  him 
buck,  and  occu})ied  their  line  of  the  previous  evening,  which 
was  ever  afterwards  maintained.  During  the  2^th  there  was 
much  heavy  cannonading  around  the  lines,  accompanied  by 
lively  skirmishing.  The  enemy  had  not  yet  settled  into  lines 
satisfactory,  which  very  naturally  caused  some  irritation. 

All  through  the  first  month  of  the  seige  the  troops  were 
called  out  frequently  during  the  night  into  the  trenches  to  be 
ready  to  repel  the  threatened  attacks.  These  calls  at  night 
with  heavy  skirmish  duties,  fatigue  duty,  short  rations,  thinly 
clad,  and  illy  supi)lied  with  blankets  for  the  cold  frosty  nights, 
made  the  service  at  this  time  anything  but  play.  The  army 
had  stored  its  winter  wearing  apparel  and  blankets,  and  was 
therefore  poorly  prepared  to  endure  bad  weather.  Ivatious 
daily  grew  more  scarce  and  the  mules  grew  weaker,  thous- 
ands dying  from  overwork  and  starvation.  The  long  trii)S 
over  the  rough  mountain  roads  compelled  them  to  perform 
extraordinary  labors.  The  army  mule  should  be  voted  a 
badge  of  honor  for  services  rendered. 

Day  by  day  the  men  came  to  understand  the  situation 
and  to  see  with  a  clearer  vision  the  difficulties  of  their  envi- 
ronment. In  front  was  a  superior  force  of  an  inveterate  en- 
emy cijnnnanded  by  a  skillful  General.  In  rear  a  large  river, 
and  beyond  were  rugged  mountains  and  a  stretch  of  country 
over  which  all  supplies  must  be  hauled  a  distance  of  sixty 
m  i  les.  Could  the  end  be  seen  ?  It  looked  black,  though  there 
were  f(>w  but  were  confident  that  in  the  final  round  up  the 
Union  army  would  come  off  victorious. 

On  the  rel>el  skirmish  line  at  the  east  side  of  a  small  field, 
across  wliich  the  Second  brigiule  skirmish  line  extended,  was 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  215 

a  log  cabin,  in  which  there  was  daily  posted  a  rebel  sharp- 
shooter that  made  good  use  of  his  opportunities.  A  picket 
detail  was  his  special  delight,  and  many  a  picket  marching 
out  to  duty  was  disabled  by  his  unerring  rifle.  And  a  soldier 
going  outside  of  the  intrenchments  for  any  purpose  was  a 
fair  mark.  Next  to  a  picket  detail  he  seemed  to  delight  in 
having  a  crack  at  soldiers  going  out  for  wood.  But  wood 
was  necessary,  even  if  it  took  blood.  At  length  the  timber 
was  all  cleared  away,  much  of  it  having  been  cut  and  carried 
to  camp  on  the  boys'  backs  after  night.  The  sharp-shooter 
wounded  a  number  of  the  Eighty-sixth  when  going  out  to 
the  skirmish  line.  To  fire  at  the  cabin  was  useless,  and  he 
was  left  undisturbed.  Once  or  twice  a  gun  from  Fort  Wood 
was  turned  upon  the  cabin  and  a  few  shots  would  quiet  him 
for  a  time,  but  he  soon  resumed  his  vocation.  On  the  30th 
of  September,  some  members  of  the  Eighty-sixth  were  on 
duty  on  the  skirmish  tine.  Two  or  three  of  them,  tired  of 
sharp-shooting,  crept  out  along  the  bank  of  Citico  creek  to  a 
concealed  place  and  gave  him  a  few  shots  that  annoyed  him. 
He  at  once  stopped  shooting  and  began  swearing.  For  a 
time  now  it  was  a  war  of  words  instead  of  bullets,  and  it  was 
difficult  to  decide  which  side  was  the  more  fluent  and  vicious. 
The  Eighty-sixth  boys  returned  to  the  reserve  and  the 
heathen  rebel  rested  from  his  labors.  They  came  off  the 
line  at  3  a.  m.,  returned  to  the  reserve  and  tried  to  sleep. 
They  had  just  got  soundly  asleep  when  a  heavy  shower  came 
up  suddenly,  and  when  they  awoke  they  were  in  water  up  to 
their  necks — lying  down,  of  course.  This  little  incident  gives 
one  some  idea  of  the  trials  of  a  soldier's  life.  It  was  useless 
of  course  to  try  to  sleep  on  the  ground  in  such  a  deluge  of 
rain. 

On  the  night  of  October  1  it  continued  to  rain,  accom- 
panied by  a  wind  storm,  blowing  down  tents  and  scattering 
numerous  necessary  articles  in  various  directions.  Many 
tents  blew  down  a  second  time.  Add  this  to  all  other 
things  which  the  men  endured  at  Chattanooga — hunger, 
fatigue,  dangers  aud  trying  vigils — x^i'^ved  to  be  an  exhaust- 
ing strain  upon  the  whole  physical  system.     Many  finally 


jk;  the  eighty-sixth  regiment, 

broke  down  wlio  scvmiiii^iy  bore  it  luii-ly  well  at  the  time. 
Is  it  lo  be  wondered  that  the  health  oi  so  many  soldiers  was 
injured  while  in  the  service?  It  is  marvelous  that  so  many 
endured  it  and  still  live. 

On  October  2  a  member  of  Company  D  was  shot  throiii?h 
the  arm  by  the  cabin  sharpshooter  as  he  was  going  out  on 
skirmish  line.  It  was  a  severe  and  painful  wound,  although 
not  necessarily  dangerous.  On  this  day,  too.  General  Rose- 
crans  issued  an  order  to  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland,  of 
which  the  following  is  an  extract: 

"  Ai'iny  of  the  Cuml)erland:  Yoii  have  made  a  graud  and  successful 
eanii)ai{in ;  you  have  driven  the  rebels  from  Middle  Tennessee.  You 
crossed  a  great  mountain  range,  placed  yourselves  on  the  banks  of  a 
broad  river,  crossed  it  in  the  face  of  a  powerful  opposing  army,  and 
crossed  two  great  mountain  ranges  at  the  only  practicable  passes,  some 
forty  miles  between  extremes.  You  concentrated- in  the  face  of  superior 
numbers;  fought  the  combined  armies  of  Bragg,  which  you  drove  from 
Shelby  ville  to  Tullahoma,  of  Johnston's  army  from  Mississippi,  and  the 
tried  veterans  of  Longstreet's  cor-ps,  and  foi'  two  days  held  them  at  bay, 
giving  tliem  blow  for  blow  with  heavy  interest.  *  *  *  *  You  have 
accoin]>lisiied  the  great  work  of  the  campaign;  you  hold  the  key  of  East 
Tennessee,  of  North  Georgia,  and  of  the  enemy's  mines  of  coal  and 
nitre.'' 

This  is  only  an  extract  but  it  relates  the  fact  that  the 
Army  of  the  Cumberland  in  the  late  contest  had  much 
more  than  Bragg "s  army  with  which  to  contend.  In  a  letter 
written  by  General  Halleck  dated  at  Washington,  D.  C,  Oc- 
tober 20,  1863,  to  General  Grant,  that  officer  says: 

"It  is  now  ascertained  that  the  greater  part  of  the  prisoners  pa- 
ntlled  by  you  at  Vicksburg,  and  l^anks  at  Port  Hudson,  were  illegally 
and  imi)roperly  declared  exchanged,  and  forced  into  the  ranks  to  swell 
tlie  rebel  numbers  at  Chickamauga." 

In  short.  General  Grant  had  made  a  very  serious  mis- 
take in  paroling  Pemberton's  army  and  the  Army  of  the 
Cumlx'i-land  and  its  great  leader  had  to  suffer  for  Grant's 
error. 

On  October  3,  Dr.  A.  M.  Walton,  Assistant  Surgeon  of 
the  Eighty-sixth  was  sent  into  Chattanooga  from  Chicka- 
mauga, having  been  severely  wounded  in  both  feet  by  the 
a^icideutid  discharge  of  a  gun.  When  our  forces  fell  back 
from  that  terrible  ticld.  Dr.  Walton  courageously  and  nobly 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  217 

volunteered  to  remain  with  the  wounded  and  minister   to 
their  wants.     Nobly  did  he  fulfill  the  task  he  had  assijjcned 
himself,  but  alas!  he  too  was  soon  numbered  with  the  suffer- 
t     ing  patriots  and  required  the  attentions  of  a  brother  surgeon. 

(The  siege  dragged  on.  To  relate  one-half  tlie  incidents 
of  camp  and  skirmish  line  would  be  impossible.  To  say  the 
least  the  condition  of  affairs  was  pressing  and  very  interest- 
ing.  At  length  the  rebel  cavalry,  under  their  great  leader, 
Wheeler,  made  things  lively  in  the  rear.  He  captured  a 
large  supply  train  in  the  Sequatchie  Valley  and  almost  de- 
stroyed it.  The  enemy  patrolled  the  river  bank  for  miles 
below  Lookout,  down  to  and  around  ' '  the  Suck, ' '  a  bend  of 
the  river  around  the  north  end  of  Raccoon  mountain,  between 
that  mountain  on  the  south  and  Waldeu's  Ridge  on  the  north. 
The  best  road  left  open  to  Rosecrans'  trains  wound  around 
along  the  north  bank  of  the  river,  being  cut  into  the  terminal 
cliffs  of  Walden's  Ridge  as  they  jutted  up  close  to  the  bank 
of  the  river.  The  enemy's  pickets  patrolling  the  river  bank 
acted  as  sharpshooters  at  "the  Suck"  where  the  trains  were 
forced  near  them  and  killed  many  mules,  drivers,  and  train 
guards.  They  maintained  constant  watch  and  tire,  and  ren- 
dered the  road  so  dangerous  that  it  had  to  be  abandoned,  the 
trains  going  over  Walden's  Ridge  further  north.  This 
necessitated  many  more  miles  of  travel,  and  far  more  difficult 
mountain  roads  to  be  used,  to  convey  the  hard  tack  and  bacon 
to  the  famishing  soldiers  in  the  beleaguered  town.  The 
longer  trii)S  and  more  difficult  roads  required  greater  time, 
when  time  was  an  element  of  much  importance.  Tlie  mules 
on  account  of  their  extraordinary  exertion  and  lack  of  forage 
were  daily  growing  more  feeble  and  less  able  to  work.  While 
they  were  growing  weaker  aud  fewer  in  number,  for  they 
died  and  were  killed  by  the  hundreds,  their  labors  were  grow- 
ing greater  and  more  urgent.  The  bad  weather  set  in  and 
added  deep  mud  to  the  rough  and  execrable  mountain 
roads.  Daily,  rations  grew  scarcer,  until,  as  the  boys  jocosely 
renuirked,  it  was  only  river  water  with  a  very  faint  suspicion 
of  coffee  about  it.  It  looked  gloomy  indeed — disheartening 
in  the  extreme — but  General  Rosecrans  with  i2:reat  courage 


218  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH    REGIMENT, 

fou«?ht  the  elements  and  the  difficulties  of  his  environment 
with  tlio  same  fortitude  that  he  contended  with  the  rebel 
forces,  and  tlie  iron-hearted  Army  of  the  Cumberland  was  as 
tirni  as  llu^  palisades  of  the  lofty  Lookout,  and  cheered  their 
connnandci-  lustily  whenever  he  rode  along-  the  lines.  Some 
tinu's  unlookod  for  misfortunes  came.  After  a  heavy  fall  of 
rain  the  enemy  up  the  river  sent  down  rafts  at  night  to  break 
tlu>  pontoon  bridges  at  the  town.  They  succeeded  in  this  a 
niunber  of  times  until  at  length  a  watch  was  placed  on  the 
head  of  Chattanooga  Island,  and  the  river  was  patrolled.  The 
logs  were  just  what  General  Rosecrans  and  his  Chief  Engi- 
neer, General  W.  F.  Smith,  wanted  to  make  lumber,  with 
which  to  build  more  bridges. 

On  October  3  one  day's  rations  of  hard  tack  were  drawn, 
and  on  the  night  of  the  4th  the  enemy  succeeded  in  breaking 
the  pontoon  bridge  with  a  raft  of  logs  which  interfered  with 
the  much  needed  supplies.  On  the  5th  details  from  the  Eighty- 
sixth  Indiana  and  the  Fifty-ninth  Ohio  were  made  for  the 
skirmish  line  for  the  brigade.  Captain  C.  P.  Rodman,  of  the 
Eighty-sixth,  was  the  officer  of  the  day. 

About  10  o'clock  a.  m.  the  enemy  opened  with  his  artil- 
lery all  around  the  lines  and  made  it  quite  uncomfortable. 
The  reserves  of  the  First  and  Second  brigades  received  a  full 
share  of  the  enemy's  attention.  The  tire  was  kept  up  the 
entire  day.  It  is  a  day  embalmed  in  the  memory  of  hun- 
driKls,  rendered  thus  memorable  by  the  continued  booming 
of  batteries  all  day  long. 

On  the  afternoon  of  the  7th  the  Eighty-sixth  received 
orders  to  be  ready  to  start  on  foraging  duty  at  a  moment's 
notice.  Lieutenant  Colonel  J.  C.  Dick,  then  in  command  of 
the  regiment,  sent  word  that  his  command  could  not  go  on 
account  of  not  having  any  rations.  The  information  was 
returned  that  rations  w^ould  be  provided.  The  following 
morning  at  9  o'clock  the  Eighty-sixth  was  ordered  to  "fall 
in  "  and  it  marched  through  town  and  across  the  river  where 
rations  were  issued.  The  guards  of  the  trains  were  veterans 
from  the  ranks  of  the  besieged  army.  They  knew  the  situa- 
tion.     They  did  not  sec  anything  wrong  in  famishing  men 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  ^19 

supplying  themselves.  The  expedition  proved  to  be  forag- 
ing duty  beyond  a  doubt;  for  if  ever  a  regiment  of  Hoosiers 
had  the  stomachs  to  forage  it  was  on  coming  out  of  Chatta- 
nooga after  what  appeared  to  be  a  three  weeks'  fast.  The 
purpose  of  the  expedition  was  to  secure  corn  and  corn-fodder 
as  forage  for  the  mules  and  horses,  but  it  also  gave  the 
Eighty-sixth,  acting  as  guards,  an  excellent  opportunity  to 
turn  the  occasion  to  good  account  for  themselves.  The 
duties  of  the  trij)  were  many  and  various,  such  as  loading 
wagons,  catching  chickens,  ducks  and  pigs,  standing  guard 
and  doing  picket  duty  when  the  place  of  bivouac  was  reached 
at  night.  On  the  afternoon  of  the  9th,  having  reached  a 
point  some  thirty  or  forty  miles  northeast  of  Chattanooga 
about  thirty  of  the  wagons  were  loaded  with  forage.  Besides 
securing  forage  for  the  animals,  the  boys  caught  the 
chickens,  geese  and  turkeys  of  the  mountaineers,  killed 
their  hogs,  cattle  and  sheep,  went  into  the  houses  and  ate 
the  biscuits  on  the  table,  carried  off  their  bee-hives,  and  des- 
troyed quite  as  much  in  getting  what  they  may  have  needed 
as  they  themselves  consumed.  Looking  back  at  this  time 
upon  this  conduct  one  cannot  but  pronounce  it  a  brutal 
destruction  and  waste.  The  ^Dassions  of  the  soldiers  had 
been  aroused  to  their  highest  pitch  by  their  suffering  while 
besieged  in  Chattanooga,  and  they  stopped  not  to  think  of 
the  suffering  they  might  inflict  on  innocent  non-combatants. 
The  foraging  was  continued  during  a  part  of  the  10th  when  the 
train  and  guards  started  on  their  return  trip  and  reached 
camp  between  3  and  4  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  on  the  11th. 
Arriving  in  camp,  the  regiment  learned  of  General  Rose- 
crans'  order  consolidating  the  Twentieth  and  Twenty -first 
corps  into  one  corps,  and  designating  it  the  Fourth  army 
corps,  to  be  commanded  by  Major  General  Gordon  Granger. 
This  order  was  issued  on  the  9th  of  October,  and  was  in 
compliance  with  the  President  Lincoln's  order  which  had  been 
promulgated  September  28.  The  actual  change  of  the  troops, 
however,  did  not  take  place  until  October  20.  The  organiza- 
tion was  to  be  as  follows: 


220  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

ORGANIZATION  OF  FOURTH  CORPS. 
Major  (Icncral  Goi-don  Granger,  Commanding. 

FiusT  Division. 

Major  General  David  S.  Stanley,  Commanding. 

Fir.sl  Jiriijdde. 

Brigadier  Charles  Cruft,  Commanding. 

Second  Brigade. 

Brigadier  General  W.  C.  Whittaker,  Commanding. 

IMrd  Briqadc. 

Colonel  William  Grose,  Commanding. 

Second  Division. 
Major  General  Philip  H.  Sheridan,  Commanding 

Fird  Brigade. 

Brigadier  General  J.  B.  Steadman,  Commanding. 

Second  Brigeide. 

Brigadier  General  George  D.  Wagner,  Commanding. 

Third  Brigade. 

Colonel  Charles  G.  Harker,  Commanding. 

Third  Division. 
Bi'igadier  General  Thomas  J.  Wood,  Commanding. 

First  Brigade. 

Bi'igadier  General  August  Willich,  Commanding. 

Second  Brigade. 

Brigadier  General  William  B.  Hazen,  Commanding. 

Third  Brigade. 
Brigadier  General  Samuel  Beatty,  Commanding. 
Seventy-ninth  Indiana.  Thirteenth  Ohio. 

Eighty-sixth  Indiana.  Nineteenth  Ohio. 

Nintli  Kentucky.  Fifty-ninth  Ohio. 

Suventeenth  Kentucky.  Forty-fourth  Indiana. 

This  l)ri<,';ide,  accordini<^  to  "Victor's  History  of  the 
Relj('llioii,"  ctimeto  bcknownas  "Beatty 's  Fighting  Brigade." 

The  Forty-fourth  Indiana  was,  however,  soon  after  this 
<h>tach«^d  to  do  post  duty  in  Chattanooga.  It  tooli  no  part  in 
tlu!  battle  of  Missionary  Ridge,  and  was  never  again  with  the 
brigade.  Doubtless  this  organization  was  a  stronger  one 
than  to  liave  the  trooi)s  divided  up  in  two  corps  and  so  many 
divisions  and  brigades.  It  gave  its  corps  line  of  battle  more 
coliesion,  more  solidity  and  weight,  and  was  therefore  safely 
welded  into  one  compact  organization  to  meet  the  hard  knocks 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  221 

it  was  SO  soon  to  endure,  yet  all  were  loth  to  see  the  old 
corps  dispersed, as  the  mist  of  the  morning,  into  nothingness. 
But  the  men  soon  forgot  their  regret  for  the  old  in  their  pride 
for  the  new. 

The  Eighty-sixth  was  glad  indeed  to  welcome  its  Col- 
onel back  to  his  legitimate  command  and  was  proud  to  obey 
his  every  order  with  soldierly  promptness.  The  division 
and  brigade  commanders  were  known  to  be  able,  soldierly 
leaders.  General  Wood  had  drawn  condemnation  upon  him- 
self by  his  conduct  at  Chickamauga,  but  the  error,  if  error  it 
was,  was  not  on  account  of  his  lack  of  courage  or  want  of 
ability.  General  Beatty  was  brave  to  a  fault  and  an  able 
brigade  commander,  but  was  generally  credited  with  being 
overhasty  in  volunteering  his  brigade  for  dangerous  duties. 

Rations  were  drawn  on  the  12th  what  purported  to  be 
for  three  days.  On  the  13th  the  men  were  eating  parched 
corn,  so  scant  was  the  supply  drawn  the  day  before.  On  the 
13th  a  heavy  detail  from  the  Eighty-sixth  worked  on  the  en- 
trenchments in  a  drenching  rain  during  the  forenoon  which 
was  most  disagreeable  as  it  was  quite  cold.  The  rain  con- 
tinued during  the  afternoon  and  the  following  night.  Again 
on  the  14th  parched  corn  did  duty  as  bread.  The  rain  con- 
tinued to  fall  in  heavy  showers  during  the  night  of  the  14th 
and  the  day  of  the  15th.  With  such  heavy  continued  rains 
what  must  have  been  the  condition  of  the  mountain  roads 
over  which  long  trains  of  army  wagons  continued  to  pass 
and  re-pass  between  Bridgeport  and  Chattonooga  in  their 
superhuman  efforts  to  supply  an  army  of  45,000  men  with 
subsistence  and  the  munitions  of  war?  One  may  imagine, 
but  can  a  person  who  never  saw  roads  thus  traveled  compre- 
hend their  condition?  One  historian,  W.  O.  Blake,  author 
of  the  "Great  American  Rebellion,"  sj^eaking  of  the  desper- 
ate condition  of  the  beleagued  town  and  army  says:  "All 
supplies  for  the  army  at  Chattanooga  had  to  be  hauled  over 
one  line  of  railroad  to  Bridgeport,  and  from  there  by  pack 
mules  to  Chattanooga."  This  statement  is  liable  to  create 
an  erroneous  impression  as  it  gives  one  the  idea  that  rations 
and  supplies  were  conveyed  only  by  pack  mules  and  that  no 


222  THE  EIGHT Y-SIXTII  REGIMENT, 

supplies  were  hauled  over  the  mountains.  Doubtless  Rose- 
crans  made  use  of  pack  mules  as  lie  used  every  means  in  his 
power,  but  there  was  scarcely  a  day  when  there  was  not  a 
train  on  the  way  going  from,  or  coming  to,  Chattanooga, 
with  or  for  supplies.  The  fact  that  he  used  i^ack  mules 
shows  his  invincible  resolution  to  hold  on  to  the  place  to  the 
last.  He  made  a  glorious  fight  and  few  could  have  done 
better.  But  with  all  of  the  exertion  made  to  keep  the  army 
supplied,  the  amount  of  rations  received  gradually  grew 
k'ss.  So  many  mules  had  been  killed  by  the  rebel  sharp- 
shooters, so  many  had  died  of  starvation  and  over-work,  and 
now  the  roads  were  cut  up  so  badly  it  seemed  that  fate  was 
against  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland.  Appearances  indi- 
cated that  they  must,  if  help  did  not  come  soon,  yield  the 
town  or  starve.     But  they  held  on. 

On  the  evening  of  the  19th  of  October,  General  Rose- 
crans  received  by  telegram  an  order  relieving  him  of  the 
command  of  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland,  and  transferring 
it  to  General  Thomas.  On  the  20th,  General  Thomas  issued 
General  Order,  No.  243,  assuming  command.  The  following 
extract  formed  one  paragraph  of  these  orders: 

"  In  assuming'  the  control  of  this  army,  so  long  and  so  ably  com- 
manded ])y  Major  General  Rosecrans,  the  imdersigned  confidently  relies 
upon  the  hearty  co-operation  of  every  officer  and  soldier  of  the  Array  of 
tlie  Cumbei-land,  to  enable  him  to  perform  the  arduous  duties  devolved 
upon  him." 

General  Grant  reached  Chattanooga  on  the  23d  and 
assumed  command  in  person,  and  to  read  his  "Memoirs"  one 
would  tliink  there  was  no  scarcity  of  rations,  feed,  or  other 
necessary  supi)lies  a  few  days  after  his  arrival.  He  says: 
"In  five  days  from  my  arrival  in  Chattanooga  the  way  was 
oi)en  to  Bridgeport,  and,  witli  aid  of  steamers  and  Hooker's 
teams,  in  a  week  the  troops  were  receiving  full  rations."" 
But  this  statement  is  not  exactly  in  harmony  with  the  facts. 
The  greatest  suiTering  of  the  Eighty-sixth  on  account  of 
scant  rations  while  in  Chattanooga  occurred  from  the  20th  of 
October  to  the  9th  of  November.  A  member  of  the  regiment 
who  kept  a  dairy  has  this  record  for  the  20t,h:  "The  boys 
are    all    out    of    rations    and    swearing    about     starving." 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  223 

In  the  record  for  the  25th  it  is  found  that  he  was  on 
picket  and  this  note  is  made:  "I  only  had  one  cracker 
for  dinner."  On  the  26th  he  wrote:  '"We  ate  our  last  cracker 
for  dinner.  We  drew  about  a  tinful,  supposed  to  be  a  pint, 
of  flour  for  a  day's  rations  of  bread-stuff.  The  boys  are  all 
grumbling  about  the  scarcity  of  rations.  This  is  a  little  the 
shortest  rations  we  have  yet  drawn. "  In  the  record  for  the 
27th  he  made  this  note:  "We  had  to  do  without  any  dinner 
as  we  could  not  get  anything  to  eat.  The  boys  are  furious 
about  the  rations,  as  most  of  them  have  had  nothing  to  eat 
since  breakfast,  all  day.  Toward  evening  we  drew  a  little 
beef."  After  this  record  was  made,  somewhat  later  in  the 
evening,  other  rations  came,  and  this  man's  journal  says: 
"We  received  three  crackers  and  one  pound  of  flour  as  a 
ration  for  two  men  for  one  day.  We  also  drew  a  few  grains 
of  cofl'ee. "  On  the  1st  of  November  the  regiment  was  again 
almost  destitute  of  rations,  most  of  the  men  doing  without 
any  dinner.  Late  in  the  evening  one-half  of  a  cracker  was 
issued  to  two  men.  On  November  2  this  is  the  record: 
' '  Brother  and  I  ate  a  half  a  cracker  and  a  little  bacon  for 
breakfast.  The  boys  are  grumbling  a  good  deal  to-day  about 
rations.  We  drew  a  little  beef  this  forenoon  and  had  that  for 
dinner.  Late  in  the  evening  we  drew,  what  purported  to  be, 
one  day's  rations  of  hard  tack  to  do  us  four  meals."  On 
On  November  5:  "We  drew  six  small  crackers  to  the  man  to 
do  one  day  and  a  half. "  These  are  facts — a  correct  account 
of  the  actual  rations  drawn,  noted  at  the  time,  by  the  mem- 
bers of  the  Eighty-sixth.  Nor  is  it  believed  that  the  Eighty- 
sixth  sufl'ered  for  the  want  of  rations  more  than  other  regi- 
ments of  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland.  The  assertion  is  here 
made  that  no  regiment  within  the  lines  of  the  beleaguered 
town  at  any  time  during  the  siege  ever  received  full  rations 
of  even  three  articles  of  the  ration  list.  Those  who  bore  the 
hardships,  served  in  the  trenches,  and  were  exposed  to  the 
dangers  of  the  siege,  half-starved,  were  as  determined  to 
hold  the  place  as  was  General  Grant. 

Of  the  conduct  of  the  men  much  might  be  said  to  show 
how  some  suffered  much  more  than  others.     Some  were  im- 


224  THE  EIOIITY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

])r()vi(loiil,  even  reckless,  in  reii:ard  to  their  rations.  Some  of 
these  iini)rovidont  soldiers  have  been  known  to  eat  at  one 
meal  all  the  hard  tack  that  was  issued  to  do  three  days,  and 
de[)end  upon  the  charity  of  comrades  for  the  rest  of  the  time. 
Others  naturally  abstemious  and  frugal  divided  the  rations 
received  so  as  to  have  a  little  left  when  the  time  expired,  only 
ate  so  much  set  apart  for  a  meal.  But  even  the  latter  class 
would  occasionally  exhaust  their  carefully  hoarded  supply. 

On  OctolxM-  '20,  the  troops  which  had  been  changed  from 
oiK^  command  to  another,  moved  their  camps  to  their  respec- 
tive new  commands.  Troops  were  changing  and  moving  in 
all  directions,  esi)ecially  the  troops  composing  the  old  Twen- 
tieth and  Twenty-tirst  army  corps.  Luckily  for  the  Eighty- 
sixth  it  (lid  not  have  to  move. 

From  this  time  until  the  battle  of  Wauhatchie  daily  there 
was  some  slcirmish  firing,  some  sharpshootiug  from  tiie 
cabin  front,  and  more  or  less  artillery  firing,  but  nothing  of 
a  decided  or  very  destructive  nature.  Occasionally  the  guns 
on  Lookout  would  drop  a  few  shell's  into  the  town  or  camps, 
but,  more  frequently  they  went  screaming  on  over  the  river 
to  the  north. 

During  the  127th,  batteries  on  Moccasin  Point  maintained 
a  brisk  fire  on  Lookout  during  most  of  the  day,  and  the  rebel 
gunners  replied  with  spirit.  The  cannonading  was  contin- 
ued even  more  fiercely  on  the  28th  than  on  the  preceding  day. 
A  i)out  midnight  it  again  broke  out  fiercely  and  aroused  the 
cam]).  The  men  turned  out  to  learn  where  the  battle  raged. 
There  was  no  doul)t  of  tliere  being  a  musketry  battle  also,  for 
it  could  be  i)lainly  heard.  It  was  a  rapid,  continuous  crack- 
ling fii-e  as  when  lines  of  battle  were  engaged.  The  rebel 
guns  fi-om  Lookout  boomed  with  unwonted  vigor  and  rapid- 
ity. It  was  undoubtedly  a  battle  of  coijsiderable  magnitude 
and  hotly  waged.  Subsequently  it  was  learned  that  the  rebels 
ha<l  attacked  the  troops  under  Hooker,  Geary's  division  of 
the  Twelfth  corps,  and  the  Eleventh  corps,  commanded  by 
Howai-d.  There  were  really  two  battles  fought  on  this 
night.,  and  in  both  the  Union  troops  were  victorious.  Long 
street's  troops  were  the   attacking  forces  on  the  part  of  the 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  225 

rebels.  It  is  known  in  history  as  the  battle  of  Wauhatchie. 
The  rebels  were  beaten  at  all  points  and  Hooker's  forces 
gained  some  advantage  in  ground  during  the  battle. 

About  the  1st  of  November  there  was  a  change  made  in 
the  manner  of  sending  out  pickets.  Heretofore  it  had  been 
by  details.  Now  it  was  changed  to  regiments.  On  the 
morning  of  the  5th,  at  5  o'clock,  the  Eighty-sixth  went  on 
picket  immediately  in  its  front.  There  was  nothing  of 
especial  interest  transpired  on  the  skirmish  line,  but  there 
was  a  great  deal  of  especially  active  cannonading  around  the 
lines.  On  this  day,  too,  the  pontoon  bridge  was  broken  so 
the  men  were  deprived  of  their  much  needed  rations.  The 
regiment  returned  to  camp  from  the  skirmish  line  at  5  o'clock 
a.  m.  on  the  3d.  During  the  night  of  the  2d  the  regiment 
was  ordered  into  the  trenches  and  kept  there  a  long  time,  an 
attack  being  expected.  The  artillery  maintained  an  occa- 
sional fire  throughout  the  night. 

About  the  6th  or  7th  it  was  reported  in  camp  that  Gen- 
eral Beatty,  the  brigade  commander,  had  offered  to  Colonel 
Dick  the  position  of  Provost  Marshal  of  Chattanooga,  with 
the  Eighty -sixth  as  provost  guards.  Rather  a  nice  place  in 
comparison  with  field  duties;  but  the  Colonel  declined  with 
thanks,  preferring  to  keep  the  regiment  in  the  front  where 
the  more  arduous  and  dangerous  duties  were  to  be  performed. 
The  position  was  eventually  given  to  the  Forty-fourth  Indi- 
ana, Lieutenant  Colonel  Simeon  C.  Aldrich  commanding. 
The  Forty-fourth  was  never  afterwards  with  the  brigade. 

On  the  8th  the  regiment  was  again  on  duty  on  the  picket 
line.  The  wind  blew  a  stiif  breeze  and  it  was  quite  cold, 
making  it  very  disagreeable.  Rations  were  brought  out  to 
the  reserve  station  and  distributed.  Many  of  the  boys  were 
so  hungry  that  they  ate  the  whole  day's  rations  for  supper. 
Drew  rations  on  the  9th  and  received  a  more  liberal  allow- 
ance than  at  any  time  since  the  siege  began.  By  this  time 
everything  within  the  xoicket  line  that  could  be  used  for  fuel 
had  been  consumed,  even  to  the  stumps.  All  were  cleaned 
up  to  the  sentinels  on  the  lines.  On  the  11th  Colonel  Dick 
had  men   begin  to  build  a  barge  with  which  to  bring  wood 


226  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

across  the  river.  By  the  13th  it  was  completed  and  put  to  use. 
On  the  15th  the  regiment  was  again  on  picket  and  the  sentinel 
posts  were  within  eighty  or  one  hundred  yards  of  the  sentinels 
to  the  enemy 's  line,  but  they  were  peaceably  inclined.  Long- 
street  had  now  gone  to  attack  General  Burnside  at  Knox- 
ville,  and  even  the  i^rivates  knew  their  weakness  and  had  no 
desire  to  stir  up  a  hornet's  nest  prematurely.  It  would  come 
soon  enough.  The  regiment  returned  to  camp  on  the  morn- 
ing of  the  IGth  and  found  that  some  soulless  wretch  had 
stolen  its  wood.  A  heavy  detail  was  made  from  the  regi- 
ment that  day  for  fatigue  duty  on  Fort  Beatty. 

Colonel  Dick  since  his  return  to  the  regiment  had  been 
having  dress  parade  each  evening  when  the  weather  was 
suitable.  On  -the  18th  there  was  quite  a  lively  time  on  the 
skirmish  line  for  half  or  three-quarters  of  an  hour.  The 
Union  line  was  advanced.  That  of  course  brought  on  the 
fray.  The  enemy  seemed  very  much  disinclined  to  allow  it 
the  privilege  of  advancing,  but  after  a  hot  bout  he  appeared 
reconciled.  A  number  of  prisoners  were  captured  from  the 
enemy  in  the  skirmish.  Of  course  there  was  the  daily  can- 
nonading and  skirmishing,  but  little  attention  was  paid  any 
more  to  the  ordinary  firing.  On  the  19th  the  Eighty-sixth 
was  paid  off,  the  men  receiving  four  months'  wages. 

On  the  20th  the  regiment  was  ordered  into  ranks  by  com- 
panies and  marched  out  of  camp  to  fire  the  loads  out  of  the 
guns  and  put  them  in  good  order.  Orders  were  received  to 
be  ready  to  move  the  following  morning  with  two  days' 
cooking  rations,  exclusive  of  breakfast,  and  forty  rounds  of 
ammunition  in  cartridge  boxes  and  sixty  rounds  in  pocket. 
Such  marching  orders  with  an  enemy  in  arms  length  meant 
tight.  An  order  was  also  promulgated  consolidating,  for  the 
present,  regiments  that  had  been  greatly  decimated  in  num- 
bers, presumably  to  give  the  lines  more  cohesion  and  weight 
in  an  attack.  The  Seventy-ninth  Indiana  and  the  Eighty - 
sixth  were  consolidated  under  this  order.  The  advance  was  to 
be  made  on  the  morning  of  the  21st,  Saturday.  But  it  rained 
the  whole  night  of  the  20th,  and  Sherman  was  not  ready,  con- 
sequently the  proposed  movement  was  postponed.     On  the 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  227 

evening  of  the  21st  the  Eighty-sixth  received  orders  to  be 
ready  for  picket  at  5 :30  the  next  morning,  Sunday. 

On  the  22d  the  regiment  was  on  the  picket-line  promptly 
at  the  appointed  time.  Everything  was  reasonably  quiet 
until  about  9  o'clock  a.  m.,  when  the  batteries  in  Fort  Wood 
opened  fire  on  Missionary  Ridge.  Rebel  infantry  could  be 
seen  marching  down  the  crest  of  the  ridge  to  the  north,  and 
it  is  presumed  it  was  at  this  column  that  the  fire  of  Fort 
Wood  was  directed.  The  guns  of  the  enemy  did  not  reply  to 
the  fire  here,  but  opened  with  the  guns  on  the  point  of  Look- 
out. Both  the  Federal  and  Confederate  batteries  ceased  fir- 
ing about  11:30  a.  m.  The  Eighty -sixth's  sentinels  were  but 
a  short  distance  from  the  rebel  sentinels.  A  Sergeant  in 
Company  E,  together  with  one  or  two  comrades,  went  out  be- 
tween the  lines  and  exchanged  a  paper  with  a  rebel  sentinel. 
When  Colonel  Dick  heard  of  it  he  was  quite  indignant,  and 
reproved  the  Sergeant  and  those  with  him  in  most  emphatic 
terms. 

General  T.  J.  Wood,  the  division  commander,  came  out 
to  the  reserve  station  of  the  picket  line  and  took  observa- 
tions of  the  enemy  with  his  field  glass,  and  made  some  in- 
quiries of  the  Colonel  relative  to  indications  of  a  move  by  the 
enemy.  Rebel  officers  could  be  seen  watching  the  firing 
from  Fort  Wood  with  their  glasses,  coming  quite  out  to  their 
line  of  sentinels.  It  seemed  evident  that  things  were  keyed 
to  the  point  of  an  explosion  and  it  might  be  expected  at  any 
moment. 

Again  orders  were  received  to  have  two  days'  cooked 
rations  and  one  hundred  rounds  of  ammunition,  and  be  ready 
to  move  the  next  morning.  About  8  o'clock  p.  m.  the  two 
days'  uncooked  rations  were  received  at  the  station.  By  this 
time  everything  was  quiet  except  a  working  party  that  was 
bridging  Citico  creek  a  little  to  the  left  of  the  reserve.  They 
were  hammering  and  pounding  at  a  lively  rate.  Sherman's 
forces  were  said  now  to  be  up  and  in  position,  ready  to  cross 
the  Tennessee  river  just  below  the  mouth  of  South  Chicka- 
mauga  creek. 

The  night  of  the  22d  was  a  lovely  one,  clear  and  cool, 


228  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

but  it  was  not  a  pleasant  duty  to  perform  a  midnight  vigil. 
During  that  evening  the  order  for  the  advance  in  the  morn- 
ing was  countermanded  on  account  of  General  Sherman  not 
being  ready  to  effect  a  crossing.  The  Eighty-sixth  was  re- 
lieved on  the  morning  of  the  23d  by  the  Nineteenth  Ohio, 
Colonel  Manderson  commanding.  The  regiment  returned  at 
once  to  camp  and  breakfasted,  expecting  to  enjoy  a  day  of 
rest. 

Tlie  Army  of  the  Cumberland  was  now  on  the  eve  of  its 
release  from  a  long  siege  of  two  months  at  Chattanooga. 
Concerning  the  question  as  to  whether  General  Rosecrans 
intended  at  any  time  before  he  was  relieved  from  command 
of  the  army  to  abandon  the  position  there  has  been  much 
controver.sy.  Without  desiring  to  enter  this  field  the  authors 
of  this  volume  believe  that  General  Rosecrans  had  no  such 
intention,  neither  had  his  successor,  General  Thomas.  The 
men  composing  this  army  had  caught  the  spirit  of  their 
General,  and  although  the  situation  was  a  trying  one  before 
the  means  of  subsistence  were  fully  provided  and  relief 
came,  yet  the  men  slackened  not  their  grip  on  the  prize  j)ur- 
chased  with  the  blood  of  their  comrades  and  their  own  suf- 
fermg,  nor  gave  one  inch  of  ground  after  their  position  had 
been  taken.  Neither  officers  nor  men  for  a  moment  ever 
wavered  in  their  firm  resolve  to  hold  the  town. 

It  is  therefore  believed  that  General  Grant  was  griev- 
ously mistaken  when,  in  speaking  of  his  arrival  at  Chatta- 
nooga to  take  command,  in  an  article  published  in  the  Century 
for  November,  1885,  and  afterwards  in  his  "Memoirs,"  says: 
"During  the  evening  most  of  the  general  officers  called  to 
pay  their  respects  and  to  talk  about  the  condition  of  affairs. 
Thoy  pointed  out  on  the  map  the  line,  marked  with  a  red  or 
a  blue  pencil,  which  Rosecrans  had  contemplated  falling 
back  upon. ' ' 

On  the  contrary  Brigadier  General  Henry  M.  Cist,  Assist- 
ant General  on  General  Rosecrans'  staff,  and  afterwards 
holding  the  same  position  on  the  staff  of  General  Thomas,  in 
his  "History  of  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland,"  published  in 
1882,  three  years  prior  to  the  appearance  of  General  Grant's 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  229 

Century  article,  says:  "However,  not  for  an  instant  was  the 
idea  entertained  of  abandoning  the  town,  to  say  nothing  of 
the  extreme  hazard  of  attempting  that,  in  the  face  of  the 
strong  force  of  the  enemy  on  our  front.  Tlie  Army  of  the 
Cumberland  had  won  Chattanooga  and  there  they  proposed 
remaining. " 

Speaking  of  this  statement  of  General  Grant  in  an  article 
in  the  North  American  Revieiu  for  December,  1885,  General 
Rosecrans  says:  "No  officer  of  the  Army  of  the  Cumber- 
land ever  told  him  that  I  contemplated  falling  back. ' '  Again 
he  says:  "The  next  thing  after  getting  Chattanooga  was  to 
keep  it."  General  Thomas  gives  support  to  these  state- 
ments in  the  first  paragraph  of  his  rei)ort  of  the  operations 
opening  the  new  and  shorter  supply  line  by  saying:  "In  pur- 
suance of  the  plan  of  General  Rosecrans,  the  execution  of 
which  had  been  deferred  until  General  Hooker's  transi)orta- 
tion  could  be  got."  This  statement  of  General  Thomas' 
shows  that  instead  of  Rosecrans'  contemplating  retreat  he 
was  planning  to  hold  the  town,  planning  to  have  the  means 
to  make  his  resistance  effectual.  General  Rosecrans  gives 
quite  fully  in  his  article  the  plans  and  preparations  by  him 
for  supplying  the  army  in  the  beleaguered  town,  showing 
conclusively  that  he  had  no  thought  of  evacuating  or  yield- 
ing up  the  place  to  the  enemy,  but  on  the  contrary  he  meant 
to  hold  it  to  the  last.  Besides  the  proofs  found  in  the  records 
which  go  to  show  that  Rosecrans  never  intended  to  give  up 
the  place,  the  contemplation  of  such  an  imj^ortant  movement 
under  the  then  existing  circumstances  and  conditions  could 
not  have  been  kept  secret,  but  would  have  found  its  way  to 
the  ranks  in  a  thousand  ways,  and  would  have  been  quite 
freely  discussed  in  the  camps.  But  in  this  case  the  reports 
in  camp  were  all  against  the  evacuation.  The  sentiment  of 
the  rank  and  file  was  against  it,  and  so  strong  that  it  would 
have  been  a  difficult  matter  to  have  withdrawn  the  army. 
They  might  have  taken  things  in  their  own  hands,  as  they 
did  a  little  later  under  Grant  at  Missionary  Ridge,  and  held 
the  town  even  against  orders.  They  had,  however,  no 
occasion  to  discuss  this  phase  of  the  situation,  as  it  was  the 


230  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

common  talk  of  the  camps  everyivhere  that  Rosecrans  had 
said,  and  no  soldier  of  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland  doubted 
it,  tluit  he  would  fight  them  to  the  last  and  hold  the  town  at 
all  hazards. 

Much  more  evidence  could  be  given,  but  this  is  sufficient 
to  show  that  General  Rosecrans  had  at  no  time  entertained 
the  idea  for  a  moment  of  abandoning  Chattanooga,  and  that 
he  had  not  lost  confidence  in  the  courage  or  fighting  qualities 
of  the  army  which  he  commanded,  nor  had  the  troops  lost 
confidence  in  their  General.  Had  General  Rosecrans  received 
the  support  from  Washington  at  Chickamauga  that  was 
given  to  General  Grant  two  months  later  the  battles  around 
Chattanooga  would  not  have  had  a  j^lace  in  history. 


CHAPTER  XVn. 
THE  BATTLE  OF  CHATTANOOGA. 

A  Great  Battle  With  a  Picturesque  Setting— An  Unlooked  for  Crisis  Precipitates 
It — Wood  Makes  a  Reconnoissance— Ground  Gained,  Held,  and  Fortified- 
Hooker's  Battle  on  Lookout  Mountain— Sherman  at  the  North  End  of  Mis- 
sionary Ridf::e— Tlionias  Ordered  to  Take  First  Line  of  Enemy's  Works  at 
Foot  of  Uidse  and  Make  a  Diversion  in  Favor  of  Slierman— The  Order  Prompt- 
ly Obeyed— The  Lines  Captured  in  Hurricane  Style— The  Unordered  Assault 
on  Missionary  Ridge— A  Privates'  Victory— A  Battle  Fouglit  More  Success- 
fully Than  Planned,  But  Not  as  Planned— A  Victory  That  Astounded  Grant 
in  the  Manner  of  its  ComiiiK  as  Much  as  it  Did  BrasK  i'l  its  Results— General 
Cist's  Account— Fullerton's  Version— BraRg  and  Bate's  Statements— Captain 
Reilly's  Account  of  tlie  Assault— Taylor's  Brilliant  Description  of  tlie  Battle. 

The  great  strategical  importance  of  Chattanooga  made 
it  "the  key  to  the  situation"  of  all  the  country  lying  to  the 
southward  of  it.  But  the  battle  was  looked  forward  to  with 
the  utmost  anxiety,  not  only  for  its  direct  effect  on  the  affairs 
in  its  own  department,  but  on  account  of  the  fact  that  on  the 
result  of  the  contest  at  Chattanooga  probably  hung  the  fate 
of  Knoxville  and  the  Army  of  the  Ohio  under  Burnside.  Had 
Chattanooga  and  Knoxville  been  retaken  by  the  rebels,  the 
Union  cause  must  have  received  a  staggering  blow,  and  one 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  231 

from  which  it  is  exceedingly  doubtful  if  the  government 
would  have  been  able  to  recover.  Years  have  not  diminished 
the  importance  of  this  battle  in  the  eyes  of  the  student  of 
history.  The  battle  of  Missionary  Ridge  and  Lookout  Moun- 
tain was  one  of  the  decisive  battles  of  the  War  of  the  Rebel- 
lion. 

In  the  striking  features  of  its  peculiarly  grand  and 
picturesque  setting  it  probably  excels  that  of  any  battle-field 
of  the  civil  war.  There  are  the  surrounding  mountains  in  all 
their  beauty  and  rugged  grandeur.  There  stand  Lookout's 
tall  peak  overlooking  the  neighboring  mountains  and  ridges 
as  a  guardian  watches  over  his  charge.  There  is  Walden's 
Ridge  north  of  the  river,  and  its  continuation,  Raccoon 
Mountain  across  the  river  south.  On  the  east  is  Missionary 
Ridge,  low  walling  the  valley,  while  in  the  valley  between 
Lookout  and  Missionary  Ridge  lies  Chattanooga.  The 
Tennessee  river  sweeps  grandly  on  in  elegant  curves 
through  the  valley,  and  on  its  broad  surface  is  mirrored  the 
beauties  of  hill  and  valley,  of  mountain  and  plain.  These 
rock-rimmed  mountains  with  their  subordinate  hills  and  the 
valley  constitute  a  mighty  amphitheater  wonderfully  beau- 
tiful and  grand,  from  Nature's  own  hand. 

The  brilliant  and  daring  charge  of  General  Hooker's 
troops  on  Lookout  Mountain,  was  the  successful  opening  of 
the  battle  that  was  to  relieve  the  Union  army  from  the  siege 
of  the  two  preceding  months,  and  open  the  way  to  the 
further  South.  Sherman's  battle  at  the  north  end  of  Mis- 
sionary Ridge  and  the  assault  by  the  Army  of  the  Cumber- 
land upon  the  rebel  left-center  on  the  Ridge  constituted  the 
real  battle  of  Chattanooga.  General  Grant  gave  his  per- 
sonal attention  to  the  attack  made  upon  the  Ridge  and 
selected  his  most  trusted  lieutenants  to  lead  or  direct. 

During  the  night  of  the  22d  of  November  or  early  in 
the  morning  of  the  23d  some  rebel  deserters  came  into  the 
Union  lines  and  reported  General  Bragg  withdrawing,  or 
about  to  withdraw,  from  in  front  of  Chattanooga.  If  this 
were  true  it  was  an  unexpected  turn  of  aifairs  and  developed 
a  crisis  at  once.     General  Bragg,  satisfied  now  that  he  could 


232  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

not  starve  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland  to  evacuate  Chatta- 
noofra,  miirht  withdraw  from  its  immediate  front  and  detach 
a  sufficient  force  to  completely  invest  and  overwhelm  Gen- 
eral Burnside  at  Knoxville.  This  crisis,  to  be  met  promptly, 
necessitated  a  change  of  the  plan  of  the  approaching  battle 
and  forced  an  immediate  advance  on  the  part  of  the  Union 
forces.  The  safety  of  Knoxville  and  Burnside 's  army 
required  that  this  should  be  done.  To  be  deceived  now  as  to 
the  purposes  and  plans  of  the  enemy  might  be  fatal. 

General  T.  J.  Wood  was  General  Officer  of  the  Day  and 
at  3:30  a.  m.  reported  to  Major  Fullerton,  Assistant  Adjut- 
ant General,  the  incoming  of  the  deserters  and  their  state- 
ments, as  follows: 

Major  :  I  have  the  honoi*  to  forward  you  the  following  information 
obtained  from  two  deserters  who  came  inside  the  lines  of  this  division 
after  12  this  a.  m.  These  men  state  the  rebel  army  is  retreating.  Say 
the  troops  which  passed  over  the  ridge  yesterday  were  going  to  Chicka- 
niauga  Station.  They  say  the  rumor  in  camps  was  yesterday,  that  by 
this  evening  there  would  be  nothing  but  their  pickets  loft.  Say  their 
vfagon  trains  had  been  ordered  in,  (they  had  been  kept  to  the  rear  for 
forage  purposes.)  They  fully  corroborate  the  statement  of  prisoners 
received  yesterday  morning  as  to  their  artillery  having  all  left.  I  send 
the  prisoners  to  corps  provost  mai'shal  herewith." 

General  Grant  at  once  sent  the  following  to  General 
Thomas: 

General:  The  truth  or  falsity  of  the  deserters  who  came  in  last 
night,  stating  that  Bragg  had  fallen  l)ack,  should  be  ascertained  at 
once.  If  he  is  really  falling  back,  Sherman  can  commence  at  once  lay- 
ing his  pontoon  trains,  and  we  can  save  a  day. 

Therefore  at  11  o'clock  a.  m.  on  the  23d  of  November, 
1863,  Major-General  Gordon  Granger,  commanding  Fourth 
corps,  received  the  following  from  General  Thomas'  Chief 
of  Staff,  Major-General  J.  J.  Reynolds:  » 

The  General  commanding  the  department  directs  that  you  throw 
one  division  of  the  P'ourth  corps  forward  in  the  direction  of  Orchard 
Knob,  and  hold  a  second  division  in  supporting  distance,  to  disclose  the 
position  of  the  enemy,  if  he  still  remains  in  the  vicinity  of  his  old  camp. 
Howard's  and  Baird's  commands  will  be  ready  to  co-operate  if  needed. 

Upon  receipt  of  the  above  General  Granger  at  12  m. 
sent  to  General  Wood  the  following: 

Brigadier-General  Wood  with  his  division  will,  as  soon  as  possible. 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  233 

carry  out  the  foregoing  instruction,  and  will  be  supported  by  General 
Sheridan's  division,  to  be  posted  along  near  the  line  of  railroad,  its  right 
resting  about  midway  between  Moore's  road  and  the  Brush  Knob  in 
front  of  Lunette  Palmer. 

General  Sheridan  in  his  report  of  the  part  taken  by  his 
division  in  front  of  Chattanooga  on  the  23d,  says: 

"About  12  m.  of  the  23d,  I  was  notified  by  Majoi"-General  Granger 
that  General  Wood  would  make  a  reconnoissance  to  an  elevated  point  on 
his  (Wood's)  front,  know^n  as  Orchard  Knob,  and  I  was  directed  to  sup- 
port him  with  my  division  and  j^revent  his  right  flank  being  turned  by 
an  advance  of  the  enemy  on  Moore's  road  and  from  the  direction  of 
Rossville." 

The  exact  words  of  these  orders  and  Sheridan's  report 
are  given  in  order  to  show  beyond  doubt  or  cavil  that  Wood's 
division,  of  which  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  was  a  part,  ivas 
the  one  division  that  made  the  reconnoissance  and  actually 
opened  the  great  battle  of  Chattanooga. 

Prom  the  above  orders  of  Generals  Grant,  Thomas  and 
Granger  it  will  be  seen  that  the  immediate  cause  which 
brought  on  the  battle  of  Chattanooga  at  the  time  it  occurred 
was  the  rejwrt  of  the  rebel  deserters,  that  General  Bragg 
was  falling  back.  These  deserters  came  in  through  the 
picket  line  of  the  Third  division,  Fourth  corps,  and  it  was 
right  and  eminently  proper  that  this  division  should  verify 
the  statements  of  these  deserters,  which  had  been  sent  to 
headquarters  by  its  commander.  Therefore  immediately 
after  dinner  on  the  23d  came  the  order  "Fall  in!"  "Fall  in!" 
The  order,  peremptory  in  tone,  was  repeated  down  the  line, 
and  was  f)romptly  obeyed  by  the  Eighty-sixth.  The  regi- 
ment was  speedily  formed  and  marched  at  once  with  Colonel 
George  F.  Dick  at  its  head  outside  of  the  intrenchments. 
Other  regiments  soon  joined,  and  ere  long  Beatty's  brigade 
was  duly  formed  and  waited  for  the  other  brigades.  The 
formation  and  alignment  of  Willich's  and  Hazen's  brigades 
were  soon  com^^Ieted,  Willich's  on  the  left  and  Hazen  on  the 
right.  Beatty's  brigade  was  formed  to  the  left  rear  of  Wil: 
lich  's  command  and  was  formed  ' '  in  double  column  en 
viassc,"  so  it  might  readily  be  deployed  and  face  the  front  or 
to  the  left  and  thus  protect  Willich's  left  flank.     The  Eighty- 


234  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

sixth  and  Seventy-ninth  Indiana  were  consolidated  for  the 
occasion  and  formed,  as  one  regiment,  the  front  of  Beatty's 
brigade.  Other  regiments  of  the  brigade  were  consolidated 
in  a  similar  manner.  The  Eighty-sixth  formed  the  left  bat- 
talion and  was  consequently  on  the  extreme  left  of  Wood's 
division,  tlie  force  making  the  reconnoissance,  and  liable  to 
attack  in  flank. 

For  two  months  the  army  had  been  besieged  in  Chatta- 
nooga. The  time  was  now  near  at  hand  for  raising  the  siege. 
General  Wood,  with  his  division,  was  to  make  a  reconnois- 
sance to  determine  whether  or  not  Bragg's  army  was  present 
in  full  force,  or  develop  the  fact  if,  as  reported  by  the  de- 
serters, he  was  stealthily  withdrawing.  This  reconnoissance 
became  really  the  initiative  step  of  the  great  battle.  As  has 
been  shown  the  honor  of  the  advance  lies  wholly  with  Wood's 
division,  and  whatever  honor  attaches  to  other  divisions  in 
tliis  day's  engagement  it  is  solely  that  of  supporting  the  Third 
division. 

The  general  plan  of  attack  was  as  follows:  A  division 
of  Sherman's  troops  was  to  be  sent  to  Trenton  up  Lookout 
valley,  to  threaten  the  enemy's  left  flank.  Under  cover  of 
this  movement,  Sherman's  main  body  of  the  Fifteenth  corps 
was  to  march  up  by  Hooker's  lines,  then  in  Lookout  valley, 
cross  the  river  at  the  Brown's  ferry  bridge,  mostly  at  night, 
thence  into  a  concealed  camp  on  the  north  side  of  the  river, 
opposite  South  Chickamauga  creek.  For  this  movement 
Sherman  was  to  be  further  strengthened  by  Davis'  division 
of  Thomas'  army.  One  division  was  to  go  to  a  stream  on  the 
north  side  of  the  river  known  as  North  Chickamauga  creek. 
About  one  hundred  and  twenty  pontoons  were  to  be  taken, 
under  cover  of  the  hills  and  woods,  and  launched  into  the 
North  Chickamauga.  These  were  to  be  filled  with  men,  and 
floated  out  into  the  Tennessee  and  down  the  river  until  oppo- 
site the  South  Chickamauga,  about  three  miles  below,  effect 
a  landing  on  the  bank  of  the  enemy's  side,  and  throw  uj) 
works.  The  remainder  of  the  command  was  to  cross  in  the 
same  boats.  Bridges  were  to  be  thrown  across  the  Tennes- 
see and  South  Chickamauga,  then  cross  the  artillery,  and 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  235 

move  at  once  to  seize  a  foothold  on  the  north  end  of  Mission- 
ary Ridge,  taking  up  a  line  facing  the  (memy's  right  flank, 
near  the  railroad  tunnel.  Howard's  corps,  of  Hooker's  com- 
mand, was  to  be  held  in  reserve  on  the  peninsula  between 
the  bridges  of  Brown's  ferry  and  Chattanooga,  in  order  to 
act  with  Sherman  or  Thomas,  as  the  exigencies  of  the 
battle  might  determine.  Subsequently  he  was  directed 
to  cross  into  the  town,  and  fill  the  gap  between  Hooker's 
proposed  position  and  the  main  body  of  the  Army 
of  the  Cumberland.  Hooker,  with  the  remainder  of  his  force, 
was  to  hold  his  position  in  Lookout  valley  and  threaten  the 
enemy's  left.  Thomas,  with  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland, 
was  to  co-operate  with  Sherman.  He  was  to  concentrate  his 
troops  in  Chattanooga  valley,  on  his  left  flank.  As  soon  as 
possible  he  was  to  form  a  junction  with  Sherman. 

According  to  this  plan  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland  was 
to  be  used  merely  to  make  a  "demonstration, "  and  was  to  be 
an  idle  spectator  in  the  real  work  of  routing  Bragg's  army. 

This  statement  of  the  original  plan  is  supported  by 
General  Thomas,  the  heroic  commander  of  the  Army  of  the 
Cumberland,  who,  in  his  report  of  the  three  days'  battle 
around  Chattanooga,  says: 

"The  plan  of  operations  was  written  out  substantially  as  follows: 
Sherman,  with  the  Fifteenth  corps,  strengthened  with  one  division  from 
my  command,  was  to  effect  a  crossing  of  the  Tennessee  river  just  below 
the  mouth  of  the  South  Chickamauga,  on  Saturday,  November  21,  at 
daylight;  his  crossing  to  be  protected  by  artillery  planted  on  the  heights 
on  the  north  bank  of  the  river.  After  crossing  his  force,  he  was  to 
carry  the  heights  of  Missionary  Ridge  from  their  northern  extremity  to 
about  the  railroad  tunnel  before  the  enemy  could  concentrate  a  force 
against  him.  I  was  to  co-opei'ate  with  Sherman  by  concentrating  my 
troops  in  Chattanooga  valley,  on  my  left  Hank,  leaving  only  the  neces- 
sary force  to  defend  the  fortifications  on  the  right  and  center,  with  a 
movable  column  of  one  division  in  readiness  to  move  whenever  ordered. 
This  division  was  to  show  itself  as  threatening  as  possible  on  the  most 
practicable  line  for  making  an  attack  up  the  valley.  I  was  then  to  effect 
a  junction  with  Sherman,  making  my  advance  fvovi  the  left,  loell  toioard  the 
north  end  of  irissionai-y  liidge,  and  moving  as  near  simultaneously  with  Sher- 
man as  possible.  The  junction  once  formed  and  the  Ridge  carried,  com- 
munications would  be  at  once  established  between  the  two  armies  by 
roads  running  on  the  south  bank  of  the  river.     Further  movements  to 


2af)  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

depend  on  those  of  the  enemy.  Lookout  valley  was  to  be  held  by 
Geary's  division  of  the  Twelfth  corps,  and  the  two  brigades  of  the 
Fourth  corps  ordered  to  co-operate  with  him  ;  the  whole  under  the  com- 
iiuiiid  of  Major  General  Hooker." 

This  socms  to  be  conclusive  as  to  the  plan  of  the  battle, 
but  General  Thomas  in  the  same  report  says  further: 

"  It  will  be  perceived  from  the  above  report  that  the  original  plan 
of  operations  was  somewhat  modijkd  to  meet  and  take  the  best  advant- 
age of  emergencies,  which  necessitated  material  modifications  of  that 
])/<(».  It  is  believed,  however,  thai  the  original  plan,  had  it  been  carried  out, 
could  not  jjossibly  have  led  to  more  succcssf  id  results.''^ 

General  Granger  gives,  -in-  his  report  of  the  battle,  sub- 
stantially the  same  ' '  original  plan  ' '  as  General  Thomas. 
Brigadier  General  T.  J.  Wood  in  his  report  says: 

"The  original  plan  of  operations  was  briefly  this:  The  force  of 
Major  General  Sherman  was  to  cross  the  Tennessee  river  at  the  mouth 
of  South  Chickamauga  creek,  ascend  the  northeastern  flank  of  Mission- 
ary liidge — which  here  juts  against  the  river — sweep  along  the  Kidge 
and  take  the  enemy's  intrenchments,  both  at  its  base  and  on  its  crest,  in 
flank  and  reserve. 

Two  divisions  of  the  Fourth  army  corps,  General  Sheridan's  and  my 
own,  were  to  cross  Citico  creek  near  its  mouth  just  above  Chattanooga, 
move  up  the  peninsula  enclosed  between  the  creek  and  the  Tennessee 
river,  form  a  junction  with  the  right  flank  of  General  Sherman's  force, 
swing  to  the  right  and  sweep  along  the  lower  slope  and  the  base  of  Mis- 
sionary Ridge.  The  remaining  force  in  Chattanooga  was  to  maJie  a  dem- 
on.siration  against  the  eneyni/s  uwJcs  directly  in  front  of  Chattanooga,  while  at 
the  same  time  looking  out  for  the  safety  of  the  town  against  a  counter- 
attack. The  force  in  Lookout  Valley— General  Hooker's— was  to 
threaten  Lookout  Mountain. 

It  was  conceded  that  a  direct  front  attack  of  the  enemy's  works  on 
Missionary  Ridge  could  not  be  made  with  a  reasonable  prospect  of  suc- 
cess; or  if  such  an  attack  should  be  successful,  it  could  only  be  so  at  a 
great  and  unnecessary  cost  of  life. 

The  original  plan  of  battle  now  being  impressed  on  the 
mind  and  thoroughly  understood,  let  the  reader  turn  his 
attention  to  the  different  movements  and  see  how  well  it  was 
carried  into  execution.  It  will  be  seen  that  the  battle  was 
not  fought  as  originally  planned. 

A  little  after  2  o'clock  p.  m.  the  final  preparations  were 
completed,  the  order  "Forward,"  was  given,  and  the 
lines  moved  out.  The  musketry  opened  at  once,  not  the 
musketry  of  lines  of  battle  firing  volleys,  but  the  brisk,  rapid 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  237 

firing  of  strong  skirmish  lines  earnestly  and  determinedly  at 
work.  The  Union  skirmishers  pressed  steadily  and  resolutely 
forward  as  the  lines  advanced.  The  line  of  battle  moving 
quickly  forward  after  the  skirmishers,  acted  as  a  strong  sup- 
port for  them,  and  the  enemy  gave  ground.  But  all  did  not 
get  back,  as  quite  a  number  of  the  picket  reserve  in  front  of 
Willich's  brigade  were  captured.  After  passing  the  old 
picket  line  the  line  of  battle  encountered  many  obstructions 
in  its  forward  march,  but  nevertheless  it  pressed  steadily  on 
until  Orchard  Knob  and  a  low  rocky  ridge  lying  to  the  south 
of  the  Knob,  were  approached.  These  were  the  objective 
points  of  the  reconnoissance  which  had  been  fortified,  and 
would  have  been  diflicult  of  capture  if  they  had  been  fully 
manned.  A  dash  that  Willich's  brigade  gallantly  made,  car- 
ried Orchard  Knob,  and  a  similar  onset  by  Hazen's  brigade, 
made  simultaneously  with  that  of  Willich,  carried  the  ridge 
to  the  south  of  the  Knob.  Willich  and  Hazen  having  per- 
fected their  alignment  after  capturing  the  enemy's  works  on 
the  Knob  and  the  ridge,  the  Eighty-sixth  and  Seventy-ninth 
were  deployed  into  line  on  the  left  of  Willich's  brigade  with 
the  left  of  the  two  regiments  shari:)ly  refused.  The  move- 
ment was  a  complete  success.  No  troops  could  have  done 
better.  General  Wood,  certainly  a  very  competent  judge  of 
military  matters  and  of  the  evolutions  and  movements  of 
troops,  says  of  this  day's  battle: 

"Then  at  the  bugle  signal,  the  magnificent  array,  in  exact  lines 
and  serried  columns,  moved  forward.  It  scarcely  ever  falls  to  the  lot  of 
man  to  witness  so  grand  a  military  display.  Evei'y  cii'cumstance  that 
could  heighten  the  interest  of,  or  impart  dramatic  effect  to,  the  scene 
was  present.  On  the  ramparts  of  Fort  Wood  were  gathered  officers  of 
high  rank,  covered  with  honors  gathered  on  other  fields.  There  were 
also  officers  distinguished  for  scientific  attainments  and  rare  administra- 
tive ability.  Troops  in  line  and  column  checkered  the  broad  plain  of 
Chattanooga.  In  front,  plainly  to  be  seen,  was  the  enemy  so  soon  to  be 
encountered  in  deadly  conflict.  My  division  seemed  to  drink  in  the  in- 
spiration of  the  scene,  and  when  the  '  advance'  was  sounded  moved  foi'- 
ward  in  the  perfect  order  of  a  holiday  parade.  It  has  been  my  good 
fortune  to  witness  on  the  Champ  de  Mars  and  on  Longchamps,  reviews 
of  all  arms  of  the  French  service,  under  the  eye  of  the  most  remarkable 
man  of  the  present  generation.  I  once  saw  a  review,  followed  by  a  mock 
battle  of  the  finest  troops  El  Re  Galantuomo.    The  pageant  was  held  on 


238  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

tho  plains  of  Milan,  the  queen  city  of  Lombardy,  and  the  troops  in  the 
sham  conllict  were  commanded  by  two  of  the  most  distinguished  officers 
of  the  Piodmontese  service,  Cialdini  and  another,  whose  name  I  cannot 
now  recall.  In  none  of  these  displays  did  I  ever  see  anything  to  exceed 
the  soldierly  bearing  and  steadiness  of  my  division,  exhibited  in  the  ad- 
vance of  Monday  afternoon,  the  2:3d.  There  was  certainly  one  striking 
difference  in  the  circumstances  of  these  grand  displays.  The  French 
and  Italian  parados  wore  peaceful  pageants;  ours  involved  the  exigencies 
of  stern  war;  certainly  an  immense  difference. 

I  should  do  injustice  to  the  brave  men  who  then  moved  forward  to 
the  conflict  in  such  perfect  order  were  I  to  omit  to  recoi-d  that  not  one 
straggler  lagged  behind  to  sully  the  magnificence  and  perfectness  of  the 
grand  battle  array." 

General  Granger  says  of  the  movement: 

"  The  ti-oops  moved  into  line  and  position  with  such  regularity  and 
precision  as  to  present  the  appearance  of  a  formation  for  review  or 
parade,  and  the  enemy's  pickets,  but  a  few  hundred  feet  off,  were  ap- 
parently awaiting  a  display  or  military  pageant  when  our  skirmish  line 
advanced  and  opened  fire." 

Later  in  the  evening  General  Granger  reported  the  suc- 
cess of  the  movement  to  General  George  H.  Thomas,  the  De- 
partment Commander,  and  explained  the  position  of  Gen- 
eral Wood's  division.  In  return  he  was  ordered  to  hold 
firmly  the  ground  gained  and  was  complimented  on  the  suc- 
cess of  the  action. 

During  the  evening  there  was  constant  skirmishing,  and 
the  enemy  opened  with  his  batteries  from  Missionary  Ridge, 
but  did  not  do  more  than  make  a  great  noise,  cut  some  limbs 
from  the  trees  overhead  and  render  the  position  uncomfort- 
able and  life  insecure.  As  the  Eighty-sixth  was  on  the  left 
of  the  division,  and  the  left  was  sharply  refused,  the  fire  of 
the  enemy's  batteries  on  the  ridge  enfiladed  the  regimental 
line.  At  dark  the  men  were  ordered  to  lie  down  with  ac- 
couterments  on  and  guns  at  hand.  About  11  o'clock  p.  m. 
they  were  called  up,  furnished  spades,  shovels,  picks,  and 
axes  and  ordered  to  fortify  the  line  as  speedily  as  possible. 
General  Howard  says  General  Grant  gave  the  orders  to  fort- 
ify as  soon  as  he  saw  the  movement  was  a  success.  General 
Howard  says:  "On  November  23,  18G3,  Grant  began  his  at- 
tack against  Bragg,  by  a  reconnoissance  in  force.  Bragg's 
men  at  first  thought  the  operation  was  one  of  Grant's  re- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  239 

views.  Quietly  smoking  a  cigar,  Grant  watched  the  advance, 
and  did  not  speak  until  Bragg 's  outpost.  Orchard  Knob,  was 
in  our  hands,  then  he  said  emphatically,  "Intrench  them, 
and  send  up  support. ' '  The  order,  however,  did  not  reach 
Beatty's  brigade  until  about  11  o'clock,  sometime  after  the 
men  had  been  asleep.  The  regiment  was  divided  into  divis- 
ions of  two  companies  each,  in  order  to  better  facilitate  the 
work  of  intrenching.  Everybody  worked  with  a  hearty  good 
will.  There  were  no  laggards,  and  in  a  little  more  than  two 
hours'  time  good  heavy  timbers  were  cut  down  and  carried 
up  and  a  strong  barricade  built;  a  trench  was  dug  behind 
this  and  the  dirt  thus  i)rocured  banked  up  on  the  enemy's 
side  of  the  newly  erected  barricade,  thus  completing  a  strong 
line  of  intrenchments.  Again  the  men  were  permitted  "to 
lie  upon  their  arms"  and  secure  such  rest  as  they  could  under 
the  circumstances. 

At  4  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  the  24th  the  entire  divis- 
ion was  ordered  up.  The  Eighty-sixth  and  Seventy-ninth 
stood  in  line,  in  the  ditch,  ready  for  the  enemy  should  he 
choose  to  advance.  This  position,  "standing  to  arms,"  was 
maintained  until  after  daylight,  which  for  men  thinly  clad 
and  who  had  worked  hard  for  two  hours  or  more  late  at 
night  with  insufticient  sleep,  was  a  very  trying  duty.  Picket 
firing  began  as  soon  as  it  was  light  enough  for  the  opposing 
lines  to  see  each  other.  About  9:30  a.  m.  the  enemy  opened 
a  strong  fire  with  his  artillery  from  Missionary  Ridge.  For 
an  hour  the  cannonading  was  very  severe.  Little  or  no 
damage  was  done  to  life  or  limb,  but  the  location  was  exceed- 
ingly uncomfortable.  Bridge's  battery,  on  Orchard  Knob, 
consisting  of  four  3j  inch  Rodman  guns  and  two  Napoleons, 
as  well  as  the  batteries  in  Port  "Wood  and  at  other  points 
returned  the  enemy's  fire,  but  with  what  effect  was  not 
known. 

During  the  forenoon  the  low  hung  clouds  drifted  over 
Lookout  Mountain  into  Chattanooga  valley  until  the  moun- 
tain could  not  be  distinctly  seen,  and  about  12  m.  the  rain 
began  to  fall.  Near  the  hour  of  noon  the  sound  of  battle 
was  borne  across  the  valley  from  the  heights  of  Lookout 


240  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

Mountain.  The  ball  was  rolling.  "Fighting  Joe  "  Hooker 
was  in  command  of  the  Union  forces  there  and  was  evidently- 
maintaining  his  reputation  made  in  the  East.  By  reason  of 
the  rain  and  dense  mist  the  mountain  on  which  the  battling 
hosts  were  contending  was  completely  shut  out  from  view, 
but  the  roar  of  the  artillery  and  rattle  of  musketry  told  of 
the  struggle  then  being  waged  to  those  who  lay  in  the  valley 
behind  tlie  works  and  listened,  watched,  and  waited.  Gen- 
eral Grant  did  not  contem])late  an  advance  on  Lookout 
Mountain,  but  merely  the  holding  of  Lookout  valley.  Gen- 
eral Thomas  accordingly  had  ordered  Hooker  to  remain  in 
Lookout  valley  and  content  himself  with  making  demonstra- 
tions against  the  enemy  then  on  the  mountain.  Hooker, 
however,  ever  ambitious  and  enterprising,  was  not  content  to 
be  still  and  allow  others  to  do  all  the  fighting.  In  a  letter 
to  Secretary  Chase  he  said:  "Things  began  to  look  squally 
for  me.  I  said  to  Butterfield  that  it  was  cut  and  dried  for 
me  to  be  a  spectator  to  the  fight,  but  thought  that  I  would 
have  a  toe  in  the  stirrup  somehow  before  it  was  over. ' '  And 
he  did.  Hooker  asked  General  Thomas  that  he  be  permitted 
to  engage  the  enemy,  and  fortune  favoring  him,  permission 
was  granted.  By  the  heavy  rains,  the  Tennessee  river  had 
risen  very  high,  the  bridge  at  Brown's  ferry  was  broken,  and 
Osterhaus'  division  of  the  Fifteenth  corps — Sherman's — 
could  not  cross  and  reach  Sherman  as  had  been  contem- 
plated. General  Thomas  in  his  report  concerning  the 
attack  by  General  Hooker  said: 

"Therefore  it  was  determined  that  General  Hooker  should  take 
Osterhaus'  division,  which  was  still  in  Lookout  valley,  and  Geary's 
division,  Whittaker's  and  Grose's  brigades,  of  the  Fii'st  division  of  the 
l-'ourth  corps,  under  Brigadier  General  Cruft,  and  make  a  strong  dem- 
onstration on  the  western  slope  of  Lookout  Mountain,  for  the  purpose  of 
attracting  the  enemy's  attention  in  that  direction  and  thus  withdrawing 
liim  from  Sherman  while  crossing  the  river  at  tlie  mouth  of  South 
Ghickamauga.  General  Hooker  was  instructed  that  in  making  this 
demonstration,  if  ho  discovered  the  position  and  strength  of  the  enemy 
would  justify  him  in  attempting  to  carry  the  point  of  the  mountain  to 

do  80." 

General  Hooker  therefore  having  received  orders  from 
General  Thomas,  at  once  found  that  he  would  be  justified  in 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  241 

making  the  attempt  to  carry  Lookout,  and  so  the  battle  of 
Lookout  mountain  was  fought.  The  battle  of  Lookout  and 
Missionary  Ridge  together,  constituted  the  great  battle  of 

'  Chattanooga. 

While  the  men  of  Wood's  division  lay  in  their  trenches 
on  the  24t]i  of  November  listening  to  the  boom  of  Hooker's 
guns  and  the  rattle  of  his  musketry,  and  the  answering  guns 
of  the  enemy,  they  knew  full  well  that  their  time  would  soon 
come,  and  that  they  would  have  an  important  part  in  the  bat- 
tle which  was  now  fully  opened,  and  they  were  ready.  The 
Army  of  the  Cumberland  was  determined  to  take  its 'revenge 
on  Bragg's  army  for  bloody  Chickamauga.  Still  Hooker  kept 
pounding  away   at  the  Gibraltar.     Numerous  and  exagger- 

I  ated  reports  of  his  success  traveled  round  the  lines.  Wood's 
division  could  judge  that  Hooker  was  gaining  ground,  as  the 
advancing  roar  of  battle  indicated  as  much,  but  at  what  cost 

I  his  advantage  was  gained  was  unknown.  Orders  had  been 
given  to  Wood's  division  to  be  ready  to  move  at  a  moment's 
notice,  and  yet  no  order  to  move  came.  Therefore,  the  enemy 
in  their  front  and  Hooker's  noisy  battle  alone  attracted  their 
attention.  There  seemed  to  be  no  movement  on  the  part  of 
the  enemy  toward  Lookout,  no  sign  of  a  disposition  to  lend 
assistance  to  the  forces  on  the  mountain  opposing  Hooker. 
During  the  afternoon  of  the  24th,  the  Seventy-ninth  and 
Eighty-sixth  Indiana  were  exposed  to  a  very  heavy  artillery 
fire  from  the  Ridge,  and  again  the  batteries  from  Orchard 
Knob  and  other  points  returned  the  fire  with  spirit  and  gave 
the  enemy  shot  for  shot  twice  told.  This  was  the  red  blast 
of  war  indeed — the  wild  mad  game  of  battle  once  more  for 
this  army. 

The  fighting  on  Lookout  Mountain  continued  far  into 
the  night, 

"  The  waves 
Of  the  mysterinus  fleatli-rivor  moiuiorl; 
Tlie  trump,  tlie  shout,  tlie  fearful  thuiider-roiir 
Of  red-briNitlied  ciinnon,  iuid  tlie  WJiiHiig  cry 
Of  myriiid  victims,  filled  the  air." 

The  sound  of  the  battle  from  time  to  time  would  die  away 
until  nothing  could  be  heard  but  a  desultory  skirmish  fire, 


242  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

Uion  suddenly  it  would  burst  forth  again,  a  perfect  tempest 
of  iniiskotry,  accompanied  by  the  boom  of  cannon.  This  con- 
tinued until  near  midnight,  when  silence  and  the  mist  reigned 
over  all. 

After  dark  the  Eighty-sixth,  together  with  the  entire 
division,  drew  two  days'  rations  of  hard-tack,  bacon,  sugar 
and  coffee. 

The  night  of  November  24  was  not  promising,  and  it  more 
than  fulfilled  the  unfavorable  weather  signs.  As  the  night 
advanced  it  grew  extremely  chilly,  and  the  soldiery  unpre- 
pared for  cold  weather  suffered  much.  Many  were  forced 
to  rise  at  1  or  2  o'clock,  build  fires  and  thaw  out  their  be- 
numbed extremities.  On  account  of  the  cold  it  was  a  night 
of  extreme  discomfort  and  suffering. 

It  was  now  the  2r)th  of  November,  historic  day.  The 
Eighty-sixth  was  up  betimes.  Colonel  Dick  at  no  time 
allowed  it  to  be  napping  when  duty  called  for  watchfulness. 
The  orders  of  the  previous  day,  to  be  ready  to  move  at  a 
moment's  notice,  were  again  published. 

During  the  night  of  November  24,  the  enemy  had  with- 
drawn from  Lookout  Mountain  and  from  Chattanooga  valley, 
and  on  the  morning  of  the  25th  was  massing  his  entire  force 
on  Missionary  Ridge.  During  the  night  of  the  24th  Sher- 
man had  succeeded  in  (grossing  all  of  his  army  over  the  river, 
had  captured  the  Confederate  outposts,  and  had  secured  a  firm 
footing  at  the  north  end  of  Missionary  Ridge  near  the  rail- 
road tunnel.  Early  in  the  morning  of  the  25th,  Sherman 
opened  the  battle  and  the  sounds  of  the  conflict  were  borne 
to  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland  as  it  lay  awaiting  its  final 
orders  to  move.  Throughout  the  hours  of  the  forenoon  the 
troops  of  the  Fourth  and  Fourteenth  corps  listened  to  the 
di)i  and  roar  of  Sherman's  army  as  the  battle  grew  stronger 
and  sti-onger  from  the  addition  of  new  troops  to  the  contest. 
From  where  Thomas'  troops  lay  the  reinforcements  that 
were  being  sent  by  General  Bragg  against  Sherman  could  be 
seen  as  they  hurried  along  the  crest  of  Missionary  Ridge  to 
the  assistance  of  their  Confederate  comrades.  As  the  morn- 
ing wore  on   the   impatience  and  anxiety  of  the   Army  of 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  243 

the  Cumberland  grew  stronger  and  stronger.  The  Army  of 
the  Cumberland  could  not  move,  however,  until  Hooker  could 
bring  his  troojis  across  the  valley  and  his  line  could  be  joined 
with  Thomas'  right.  The  rebels  when  they  moved  from 
Lookout  had  destroyed  the  bridges  across  the  creek,  and 
these  had  'to  be  rebuilt  before  Hooker  could  cross.  This 
was  done  as  speedily  as  possible,  and  by  3  o'clock  of  the  25th 
Hooker  was  in  position.  At  this  time  Sherman  was  holding 
his  position  by  stubborn  fighting,  but  was  unable  to  make  any 
headway,  as  the  enemy  had  massed  too  heavily  against  him, 
and  the  fighting  at  the  north  end  of  the  Ridge  was  most  in- 
tense. The  brave  Hardee,  with  Cleburne,  Cheatham  and 
Stevenson's  divisions  were  on  the  right  of  the  Confederate 
lines  in  front  of  Sherman,  and  wherever  Hardee  was,  there 
was  sure  to  be  a  vigorous  defense  or  a  fierce  attack.  Reso- 
lute of  purpose,  with  splendid  soldiers,  he  could  be  depended 
on  to  hold  his  ground  to  the  last.  But  Sherman,  with  the 
gallant  Fifteenth  corps,  was  equal  to  the  emergency,  and 
was  holding  his  ground  and  fighting  stubbornly  to  hold  his 
position.  The  battle  on  the  Union  left — the  rebel  rights 
grew  hotter,  fiercer,  deadlier.  The  rattle  of  mu.sketry  was 
unceasing  and  frightful. 

During  all  the  forenoon  and  on  into  the  afternoon  the 
troops  in  front  of  the  Army  of  tlie  Cumberland  had  kept  up 
an  incessant  and  terrific  fire.  The  enemy's  skirmishers, 
almost  equal  to  a  line  of  battle  in  strength,  had  poured  out  a 
most  frightful  volume  of  musketry,  while  the  batteries  along 
the  summit  of  Missionary  Ridge  kept  up  a  vigorous  cannon- 
ading. The  casualties  in  this  portion  of  the  Union  line  were, 
however,  not  very  great  when  considered  with  relation  to 
the  amount  of  firing  that  was  done  by  the  enemy. 

General  Howard,  with  tlie  Eleventh  corps,  now  came  into 
line  on  the  left  of  the  Fourth  corps,  but  moved  off  to  the 
support  of  Sherman,  and  Baird's  'division  of  the  Fourteenth 
corps  moved  in  and  took  Howard's  place.  It  did  not,  how- 
ever, remain  long;  it  too  moved  off  to  the  left  to  the  support 
of  Sherman,  and  the  left  of  the  Fourth  corps  was  uncov- 
ered.     The  shifting  of  so  many  troops  to  the  left  showed 


244  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

that  lliat  point  was  Grant's  objective,  and  that  he  desired  to 
carry  the  nortli  end  of  the  Ridge  before  he  made  the  attack 
upon  the  rebel  left  with  Hooker's  forces.  All  orders  show 
that  he  desired  Sherman  to  carry  the  Ridge  as  far  south  as 
the  tunnel  before  the  combined  attack  should  be  made. 

Slierman's  battle  grew  more  severe  as  the  afternoon 
drew  on.  By  12:45  p.  m.  it  had  grown  so  hot  that  Sherman 
dispatched  Grant:  "Where  is  Thomas.''"  Thomas  himself 
replied  from  Orchard  Knob  at  1  o'clock  p.  m.  "I  am  here; 
my  right  is  closing  in  from  Lookout  Mountain  toward  Mis- 
sionary Ridge. "  Now,  artillery,  cavalry,  and  infantry  could 
all  be  seen  passing  on  the  crest  to  supx^ort  and  assist  Hardee 
and  engage  Sherman's  forces.  These  heavy  re-enforcements 
for  Bragg 's  right  indicated  that  he  had  divined  Grant's  plan 
of  battle,  of  capturing  the  north  end  of  the  Ridge,  and  sweep- 
ing down  its  crest  to  the  south  with  troops  which  were  to  be 
supi)orted  upon  both  flanks. 

Sherman  was  meeting  severer  opposition  than  had  been 
anticipated,  and  the  time  had  now  come  for  earnest  work  on 
the  part  of  tlie  Union  right  and  center  in  order  to  relieve 
him  and  hold  what  had  already  been  acquired.  To  do  this  it 
was  necessary  to  throw  forward  the  center  and  right  so  that 
Bragg  would  not  be  able  to  send  forward  any  further  re -en- 
forcements, and  if  possible  force  him  to  withdraw  some  of 
his  troops  from  Sherman's  front  in  order  to  protect  his  lines 
on  Missionary  Ridge.  The  Fourth  corps  was  selected  as  the 
first  to  make  "the  demonstration  on  the  enemy's  works." 
By  this  demonstration  it  was  intended  that  the  Fourth  corps 
should  cai^ture  the  enemy's  picket  or  skirmish  line  and  take 
and  occupy  Bragg's  line  of  works  at  the  foot  of  the  Ridge. 
To  that  end  the  orders  were  issued  to  the  division  com- 
manders to  move  their  troops  outside  their  works,  reform 
their  lines,  and  that  six  guns  from  Orchard  Knob  fired  in 
quick  succession  should  be  the  signal  for  the  attack.  By 
this  order  it  was  not  intended  or  expected  to  pass  beyond 
the  first  line  of  the  enemy's  works,  and  they  were  at  the  foot 
of  the  Ridge. 

The  order  was  communicated  to  each  of  the  brigade  com- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  245 

manders,  and,  they  at  once  put  their  commands  in  motion, 
crossed  their  works,  reformed  their  lines,  and  awaited  the 
signal  from  Orchard  Knob.  Each  brigade  was  formed  in 
two  lines.  The  Third  brigade  of  Wood's  division,  of  which 
the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  was  a  part,  was  formed  with  the 
Seventy-ninth  and  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  in  the  first,  or 
charging  line,  and  the  Thirteenth  and  Fifty-ninth  Ohio,  the 
Nineteenth  Ohio  and  the  Seventeenth  Kentucky  in  the  second 
line  as  supports.  The  Ninth  Kentucky .  held  the  skirmish 
line,  but  some  distance  to  the  left  of  the  brigade  front.  * 

While  awaiting  for  the  signal  for  the  charge  it  may  be 
\vell  to  look  at  the  situation  as  it  then  confronted  the  front 
or  charging  line.  The  line  of  works  at  the  foot  of  the  Ridge 
was  known  to  be  very  strong  and  most  favorably  situated 
for  defense,  as  a  sweeping  fire  of  musketry  could  cover  every 
foot  of  ground  in  its  immediate  front  for  several  hundred 
yards.  All  along  the  foot  of  the  Ridge  there  was  open 
ground  in  wiiich  was  left  no  shelter  from  the  fire  of  the 
batteries  on  the  Ridge,  or  from  the  fire  of  the  infantry  in  the 
strong  line  of  intrenchments  at  its  foot.  In  fact,  at  the  time 
the  order  was  delivered  it  looked  to  be  a  fair  chance  for  just* 
such  a  slaughter  of  the  Union  troops  as  w^as  afterwards  made 
of  the  Confederates  at  Franklin.  Hooker  quotes  Grant  as 
saying  he  had  nothing  to  do  with  the  battle  of  Missionary 
Ridge,  and  it  does  seem,  when  the  events  are  taken  into  consid- 
eration about  to  be  related,  as  though  he  had  little  to  do  with 
the  formation,  shaping  and  working  out  of  the  crowning 
event  of  the  day,  his  work  simply  being  an  act  of  "touching 
the  button"  and  setting  the  machinery  in  motion.  The 
troops  worked  out  a  victory  in  ways  altogether  different 
from  that  which  he  had  expected. 


*  General  Be:itty  in  a  letter  written  U^  the  Cinciniiai  i  Comriu^rclal.  Fehruary  4. 
1876,  says:  "  My  briiraile  was  formed  as  follows:  S(>venly-iHutli  and  iKii^Iity-sixth 
Indlanii.  on  the  riicht;  TliiM-eenth  and  Flfly-nhith  Ohio  in  the  center,  a'lid  the 
Ninth  Iventiicky  on  the  left ;  the  Ninetecnt  iToiiio  :iiid  tlie  Sevenleentli  Ki'iitucl^y 
in  reserv(\  Tlie  .Sevenfy-ninth  and  Eii;hl  y-slxl  li  liidiiina  were  t  lie  lirst^  icLclnients 
to  sain  the  crest  of  the  Kldm<."  ("olonel  iM'i^d  K'ncMer  in  :i.  letter  tot  hesanit^  paper 
Marcli20,  1S7C,  says:  "Heutty's  brigade  was  formed  as  follows:  Tlie  Ninlli  Ken- 
tucky held  the  skirinlsli  line,  l)nt  some  dist:inceto  the  left- of  tht>  l)riu^-ide  front; 
the  (irst  line  was  composed  of  the  Sevetit  y-iiint  li  and  Kiirhty-slxth  Indiana:  the 
second  line,  of  tlie  Nlnetcentli  Ohio  and  tlie  Seventeenth  Iveulucky;  the  third 
line,  of  the  Thirteenth  Ohio  and  Fifty-uiuth  Ohio." 


246  'I'llK    lOlGHTY-SlXTH    REGIMENT, 

Finally  at  3:40  p.  m.  everything  was  believed  to  be  j)rop- 
erly  arranired  and  in  order,  every  emergency  likely  to  arise 
carefully  provided  for.  But  it  is  the  unexpected  that  hap- 
pens in  battle  as  elsewhere.  All  things  being  in  readiness 
and  expectation  standing  as  tip-toe,  boom!  boom!  boom!  went 
the  great  guns  from  the  crest  of  Orchard  Knob,  and  roared 
and  thundered  out  the  signal  that  all  might  hear.  From 
where  stood  the  ranks  of  the  Eighty-sixth  could  be  plainly 
seen  the  flame  and  smoke  shoot  from  the  mouths  of  the  guns 
as  if  they  would  blow  with  their  mighty  breaths  of  flame  the 
enemy  from  the  Ridge.  "One!"  vSpoke  an  iron  throat  of 
Bridges'  battery,  and  with  the  sound  each  man  grasped  his 
gun  with  a  firm  grasp,  and  stood  with  contracted  muscles 
and  compressed  lips.  "Two!"  "Three!"  "Four!"  "Five!" 
"Six!"  Hardly  had  the  last  gun  sent  its  messenger 
of  death  as  a  herald  of  the  attack  when  the  troops — Wil- 
lich's — on  Orchard  Knob  leaped  up,  out  and  over  their  works, 
and  started  for  the  enemy.  They  had  not  yet  cleared  their 
parapet  when  in  trumpet  tones  Colonels  Knefler  and  Dick 
gave  the  command,  "B"'or ward,  march!"  and  the  men  of  the 
two  regiments,  the  Eighty-sixth  and  Seventy-ninth  Indiana, 
at  the  same  instant  sprang  forward  with  a  cheer  on  that 
charge  that  ended  in  the  most  brilliant  victory  in  the  annals 
of  war.  And  now  the  battle  for  the  Army  of  the  Cumber- 
land was  again  begun.  Now  was  the  time  for  action — heroic 
action.  Once  fairly  in  motion  the  tremor  of  the  muscles  was 
over — was  a  thing  of  the  past. 

The  Eighty-sixth  and  Seventy-ninth  Indiana  had  a  nar- 
row strip  of  open  woods  through  which  to  pass  before  coming 
to  the  opening  in  the  immediate  front  of  the  enemy's  works  at 
tiie  foot  of  the  Kidgc.  Through  this  strip  of  standing  tim- 
ber the  men  pressed  forward  in  as  good  line  as  was  possible. 
However,  as  they  drew  near  the  farther  side  of  this  woods, 
which  was  rather  more  open,  the  men  formed  into  a  better 
lino,  and  so  the  two  regiments  came  out  Into  the  ox)en  ground 
in  a  fairly  good  line  of  battle.  As  they  cleared  this  timber 
they  came  into  a  full  and  perfect  view  of  the  enemy's  works 
at  the  foot  of  the  Ridge,  as  well  as  those  on  its  crest,  and 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  247 

about  eight  or  nine  hundred  yards  distant  from  the  former, 
the  objective  point  of  the  attack.  The  sight  of  the  enemy  in 
his  intrenchments  seemed  to  act  as  an  electrifier.  The  yell 
was  given  over  and  over  again  as  away  went  the  two  regi- 
ments on  the  full  run  for  the  enemy,  determined  to  have  that 
line  of  works  at  all  hazards.  Whether  either  Colonel  Knefler 
or  Colonel  Dick  gave  the  order  to  "double-quick,"  or 
' '  charge  bayonet, ' '  on  clearing  the  woods,  no  one  can  say, 
but  it  is  presumed  they  did.  At  any  rate  the  general  shout 
of  the  line  was  suflicient  to  set  every  man  going  at  his  very 
best  i^ace.  As  the  Union  line  cleared  the  standing  timber 
and  came  out  into  the  open  ground  the  long  line  of  Confed- 
erate batteries  on  the  crest  of  tiie  Ridge  opened  a  terrific 
fire.  There  were  Dent's,  Cobb's,  Mebane's,  and  Slocomb's 
batteries,  and  others,  vomiting  death  and  destruction  upon  the 
valley.  The  boom  of  the  many  guns,  the  shriek  of  flying 
shells,  the  roar  of  their  explosions,  the  whir  of  the  flying 
fragments  were  positively  appalling.  The  Union  batteries 
on  Orchard  Knob,  Fort  Wood,  and  other  points  added  their 
volcanic  roar  to  the  unearthly  noise  of  the  rebel  batteries. 
The  men  who  cast  their  eyes  to  the  front,  and  then  to  the 
right,  and  then  up  the  valley  along  the  Union  line  and  over 
the  ground  where  it  was  advancing,  could  see  in  front  a  bat- 
tery worked  with  fiery  energy,  and  on  the  crest  to  the  right 
a  long  line  of  rebel  batteries  with  drifting  clouds  of  sulphur- 
ous smoke  above  them.  Here,  there,  everywhere  the  burst- 
ings shells  and  the  smoke  drifting  lazily  off  could  be  seen. 
Some  few  burst  on  the  ground,  others  five,  ten,  twenty, 
thirty,  fifty,  and  some  few  perhaps  a  hmidred  feet  or  more  in 
the  air  above.  Some  burst  far  in  front,  others  overhead  far  to 
the  rear  toward  the  reserve.  It  was  truly  a  grand  and  mag- 
nificent sight.  It  was  a  scene  to  be  witnessed  but  once  in  a  life- 
time, and  no  one  cares  to  look  upon  its  like  again  under  sim- 
ilar circumstances.  There  in  front  rose  the  great  Ridge  as  a 
natural  barrier,  and  on  its  crest  the  long  row  of  rebel  guns. 
Here  below  a  long  thin  lino  of  Union  "blue-coats,"  a  line  of 
battle  to  be  swallowed  up,  as  it  seemed,  in  the  volcanic  erup- 
tion, rushing  grandly  and  heroically  on  in  the  very  face  of 


248  'rHK   EIGHT Y-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

dentil,  and  above  the  heads  of  those  heroic  men  the  curling 
smoke  from  hundreds  of  exploding-  shells,  which  they  ai)i)ar- 
ently  did  not  notice  more  than  the  drifting  down  of  thistles 
blown  by  idle  winds  of  autumn.  All  this  was  grand  and 
heroic,  but  this  was  not  the  battle.  The  two  regiments 
passed  resolutely  and  fearlessly  forward — on  toward  the 
goal.  All  along  the  valley  to  the  right,  following  the  lead  of 
these  two  sui)erb  regiments,  the  blue  line  swept  steadily  and 
grandly  on,  no  faltering,  no  hesitation,  but  ever  forward. 

Colonel  Kuefler,  in  his  account  of  the  assault, says  "at 
proper  distance  the  line  was  halted  an  instant,  firing  a 
thundering  volley,  and,  upon  command  to  charge,  rushed 
forward,  defying  the  hostile  fire. "  That  line  halted!  When, 
where,  by  whom?  Not  a  halt  was  made,  not  a  check  to  its 
pi-ogress  occurred,  not  a  gun  was  fired  by  the  charging  col- 
umn of  Beatty's  brigade  until  after  the  capture  of  the  first 
line  of  works  at  the  foot  of  the  Ridge.  The  two  regiments 
forming  the  front  of  this  brigade  went  true  to  their  orders 
direct  for  the  main  line  at  the  foot  of  the  Ridge  without  halt 
or  hesitation.  But  a  glance  at  this  rapidly  shifting  pano- 
rama of  a  great  and  real  battle  scene  was  all  that  one  in  that 
rushing  battle  line  had  time  to  take,  and  hurried  on  to  the 
capture  of  the  first  line  of  works  at  the  foot  of  the  Ridge,  the 
objective  point  of  the  assault.  The  Eighty-sixth  and  Seven- 
ty-ninth rushed  forward  through  the  .tire  and  shot,  and  onto 
and  over  this  line  of  intrenchments.  So  strong  was  this 
rusli  upon  the  enemy  that  he  became  panic  stricken  and 
abandoned  them,  and  all  who  escaped  capture  lied  pre- 
cipitately uj)  the  rugged  mountain  side.  The  Union  cheers 
of  victory  and  exultation  added  to  his  fright  and  hastened 
his  llight,  as  he  hurried  r^ipidly  toward  the  works  on 
the  crest  of  the  Ridge.  The  men  of  the  Union  line  arrived 
at  those  works  almost  oxliausted  in  the  effort  made  to 
roach  the  lino  in  as  short  time  as  possible.  Those  who 
reached  this  line  first,  most  of  them,  made  a  brief  halt  until 
some  otliers  began  to  arrive,  for  it  must  be  understood 
whore  a  line  of  men  start  out  on  a  run  some  will  be  left,  and 
consequently  the  line  will  become  more  or  less  disordered  at 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  249 

the  finish  in  an  advance  of  eight  hundred  or  nine  hundred 
yards  at  tlie  liighest  rate  of  speed  that  each  was  capable  of 
attaining. 

By  this  time  the  rebel  gunners,  and  they  were  vet- 
erans, had  recovered  from  the  frenzy  of  their  first  excite- 
ment caused  by  the  sudden  discovery  of  the  audacious  move- 
ment against  their  first  line  of  intrenchments  directly 
beneath  them.  The  tremor  of  their  muscles  had  given  place 
to  steely  steadiness  and  they  settled  down  to  soldierly  work, 
as  their  fire  now  clearly  proved.  They  were  carefully  de- 
pressing their  guns  with  perfect  range  and  were  accurately 
delivering  with  terrific  effect  a  plunging  fire  of  shot  and 
shell  which  no  troops  on  earth  could  face  and  remain 
quiet  and  inactive  in  line.  It  was  but  as  the  twinkling  of  an 
eye  until  the  victors  at  this  line  of  works  saw  and  realized 
the  situation.  Even  before  half  their  comrades  reached  the 
works  the  leaders  of  the  line  saw  that  no  safe  lodgment  for  a 
line  of  battle  could  be  made  here.  No  thought  of  retreat  was 
entertained.  It  was  not  so  ordered.  Every  fiery  blast  of  the 
batteries  on  the  Ridge  made  their  old  line  of  intrenchments 
at  its  foot  quake  and  tremble.  The  command,  "Forward!" 
"Forward!"  was  given  and  repeated.  The  command  was 
received  by  the  two  regiments  with  a  shout  as  if  victory  was 
already  won.  Granger's  message,  "Take  the  Ridge  if  you 
can!"  passed  along  the  bleeding  line,  but  it  was  already 
advancing.  Tlwn  began  the  real  battle  of  Chattanooga,  the 
.storniliig  and  captuve  of  the  heights  of  Misxlonanj  Ridge!  At 
once  the  privates  and  officers  of  the  Eighty-sixth  and 
Seventy-ninth  Indiana,  inaugurated  a  movement  that  was  to 
result  in  a  grander  victory  than  Gi'ant  had  ever  dreamed  of 
even  in  his  brightest  dream  of  victories.  The  Army  of 
the  Cimiberland  was  to  show  here  its  magnificent  fighting 
qualities.  Even  now  its  advance,  the  Eighty-sixth  and 
Seventy-ninth  Indiana,  were  ahead  of  Grant's  orders  and 
expectations.  In  fact  neither  Generals  Grant  nor  Thomas 
intended  it. 

From  this  point  and  upward  the  two  regiments,  like 
mountain  goats,  were  advancing  up  the  rugged  face  of  a  ridge 


2't()  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

four  hundred  feet  high,  exposed  to  a  volcanic  fire  of  the 
enemy  iutrenched  on  its  summit.  In  the  movement  up 
the  Ridge  the  gallant  Colonels  Kncller  and  Dick,  quick  to 
sec  its  supreme  importance,  gave  it  the  imjietus  of  their  com- 
mands and  example  and  encouraged  the  brave  men  every 
step  of  the  way  up  the  steep  acclivity.  Instead  of  a  mere 
"diversion"  in  favor  of  Sherman  it  was  to  be  the  culminat- 
ing and  deciding  event  of  this  great  three  days'  battle. 
Wood's  division  of  the  Fourth  corps  opened  the  battle  on  the 
l';{d,  and  now  the  victorious  assault  of  Wood's  and  Sheridan's 
divisions  of  that  corps,  with  two  divisions  of  the  Fourteenth 
corps — the  Army  of  the  Cumberland  still — decided  the 
battle  in  a  marvelously  wonderful  manner  greatly  to  the  sur- 
prise of  General  Grant. 

This  was  truly  the  hurly  burly  of  battle  when  "fearful 
scouring  doth  choke  the  air  with  dust  and  laden  it  with 
death."  Onward,  and  yet  onward,  and  upward,  and  yet 
higher,  pressed  that  charging  line,  through  the  enemy's 
pitiless  tire.  The  two  regiments  pressed  undauntedly  up  the 
ridge.  There  was  no  halting,  only  to  breathe  and  rest,  for 
the  climbing  was  extremely  fatiguing.  Only  the  hardiest 
could  proceed  steadily  on  even  at  a  slow  pace  without  halt- 
ing to  rest.  As  the  two  regiments  advanced  the  enemy's 
fire  grew  hotter,  fiercer,  deadlier.  Shot,  shell,  shrajinel,  and 
as  the  disordered  line  drew  nearer  the  crest,  grape  and  canis- 
ter were  poured  into  the  ranks  of  those  faithful  men  at  an 
appalling  rate.  Beatty's  brigade,  of  which  these  regiments 
formed  the  front  line,  had  struck  the  Ridge  at  a  place  where 
there  was  a  more  prominent  elevation — Signal  Hill — and 
from  where  a  point  i)rojected  to  the  west  from  the  general 
line  of  the  Ridge.  This  confornuition  of  the  Ridge  at  the 
l)lace  of  ascent  of  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  gave  the  enemy's 
artillery  to  the  right  and  left,  as  well  as  the  battery  on  the 
elevation  itself,  a  better  sweep  to  the  approaches  to  the 
heights,  and  a  cross-fire  upon  the  assaulting  forces  now  com- 
ing uj),  which  oppoi-tunity  they  did  not  fail  to  improve.  As 
th(>  two  regiments  were  so  far  in  advance  of  the  lines  on  the 
right  and  left  they  invited  the  fire  of  the  whole  of  the  enemy's 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  251 

line  within  striking  distance.  But  as  this  line  climbed  the 
Ridge,  the  infantry  on  the  crest  ox^ened  a  hot  and  malicious 
tire  of  musketry  upon  the  two  Indiana  regiments.  Now  the 
deadly  zip,  zip,  zip,  of  the  minnie  balls  added  their  minor  but 
more  fearful  strain  to  the  heavier  notes  of  the  batteries,  and 
the  latter  apparently  redoubled  their  fierce  activity.  The 
men  of  the  Eighty-sixth  and  Seventy-ninth  were  now  almost 
exhausted,  and  were  creeping  slowly  up  the  Ridge  turning 
to  practical  account  trees,  logs,  stumjis,  and  rocks  as  cover, 
returned  the  fire  in  a  most  valorous  and  effective  manner, 
constantly  encouraged  in  the  advance  by  the  oflicers  of  both 
regiments.  Many  were  killed  on  both  sides.  As  the  two 
regiments  approached  nearer  the  enemy's  works  the  battle 
grew  if  possible,  fiercer.  The  mettle  of  both  armies  were 
here  to  be  thoroughly  tested.  The  enemy  was  stubborn,  and 
tenaciously  held  his  ground — clinging  to  his  works,  rallied 
by  officers  of  high  rank  who  exhorted  the  men  to  stand  firm 
and  hold  their  position. 

As  the  assaulting  line  still  crept  nearer  and  nearer  the 
works  on  the  crest,  occasionally  the  "swish"'  of  a  ram-rod, 
fired  by  some  of  the  more  excitable,  added  another  variation 
to  the  already  tumultuous  roar  of  battle — to  the  shriek  of 
shot  and  shell,  the  rattle  of  grape  and  canister  and  the  zip  of 
the  minnie  ballon  the  rough  and  stony  mountain  side.  The 
two  regiments  had  kept  well  together  as  one  regiment,  and 
were  far  in  advance  of  the  rest  of  the  line.  They  were  now 
full  nine-tenths  of  the  way  up  the  Ridge  on  the  breast  of 
Signal  Hill  and  laid  down  there,  waited  and  rested.  To  push 
on  at  this  stage  appeared  suicidal  for  this  mere  handful  of 
men,  if  they  had  not  already  got  themselves  into  a  veritable 
death-trap. 

The  men  were  out  of  breath  and  almost  completely  ex- 
hausted. Only  the  strongest  had  been  able  to  keep  pace  with 
the  colors  of  the  two  regiments  up  the  mountain.  Some  in- 
deed were  in  advance  of  the  standards,  for  it  was  endurance 
that  was  required  to  keep  to  the  front,  and  in  a  run  of  nine 
hundred  yards  at  toi^  speed,  and  then  climbing  a  mountain 
slo]3e  four  or  five  hundred  yards  at  an  angle  of  forty-five  de- 


252  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

grcGs  iiccoutercd  as  an  infantry  soldier,  only  the  hardiest, 
sound  in  limb,  heart  and  lun^s  can  endure  to  the  end.  It  was 
no  child's  play  to  climb  the  mountain,  but  to  climb  it  after  a 
lonj,'  charge  and  in  the  face  of  a  courageous . enemy  was 
heroic. 

It  lias  already  been  said  that  these  two  regiments,  rank, 
file  and  Hold,  were  responsible  for  the  attack  made  upon  the 
Ridge  itself,  and  were  far  in  advance  of  all  other  regiments 
on  the  mountain  side.  This  is  a  fact  which  cannot  be  suc- 
cessfully called  in  question.  General  Sheridan  in  his  report 
of  what  he  saw  when  at  the  first  line  of  works  captured  at 
the  foot  of  the  Ridge,  says:  "Looking  to  the  left  I  saw  a 
single  regiment  far  over  in  Wood's  line  dash  up  the  hill  and 
lay  down  below  the  crest.  General  Hazen's  men  also  com- 
menced the  ascent."  Now  that  which  General  Sheridan 
calls  one  regiment  was  really  two  regiments,  the  Eighty- 
sixth  and  Seventy-ninth  Indiana  consolidated  as  a  single 
regiment,  and  as  his  words  indicate,  we're  far  ahead  of  all 
other  troops  in  the  assault  upon  the  intrenchments  on  the 
crest  of  the  Ridge.  These  regiments  were  but  a  handful  of 
men  to  meet  the  strong  line  of  Bragg 's  men  behind  their  in- 
trenchments, but  nevertheless  they  held  their  ground,  clung 
to  the  brow  of  Signal  Hill,  and  with  their  Hags  flying  defi- 
antly in  the  breeze.  Notwithstanding  they  were  few  in 
numbers  yet  the  enemy  did  not  dare  to  come  out  of  his  in- 
trenchments and  attack.  The  lines  at  the  foot  of  the  Ridge 
had  looked  with  wonder  and  surprise  at  the  two  regiments 
toiling  toward  the  summit,  until  finally  they  together  with 
theii-  supports  were  ordered  forward  to  join  that  small 
assaulting  column  which  is  now  immediately  vmder  the  guns 
of  the  enemy  almost  at  the  very  summit  of  the  Ridge,  ^ut 
all  tilings  must  have  an  end,  and  now  the  line  of  regiments 
comphHing  tlie  division's  battle  line  have  almost  joined  these 
two  regim(Mits  that  have  so  gallantly  led  the  van.  Looking 
to  the  right  and  down  the  slope  of  the  Ridge  could  be  seen 
the  long  line,  scattered  somewhat  and  broken  in  places  by 
the  enemy's  fire,  pushing  and  fighting  its  way  up  the  Ridge, 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  253 

their  regimental  standards  and  the  stars  and   stripes   held 
aloft  and  floating  in  the  breeze — 

"  The  flags  of  war  like  storm  birds  fly. 
The  charging  trumpets  blow." 

As  this  line  of  brave  "blue-coats,"  undaunted,  unap- 
palled  by  what  they  have  witnessed,  api^roached  the  brow 
of  the  Ridge  the  battle  roar  increased,  and  fighting  was  in- 
tensely furious  and  desperate  along  the  entire  line.  Tliis 
2oas  the  Battle  of  Chattanooga — the  Assault  of  Missionary  Ridge! 

But  as  the  whole  battle  front  of  the  division  approached 
the  brow  of  the  Ridge,  followed  by  the  supports.  Colonels 
Dick  and  Knefler  gathered  their  men  for  another  desperate 
attack,  determined  to  win  the  victory  which  they  had  striven 
so  hard  to  gain  and  gave  the  command,  "Fix — bayonets!" 
They  w^ere  soon  ready  and  when  the  order,  "Charge — bay- 
onets!" was  given,  the  brave  men  of  these  two  regiments 
went  forward  with  a  rush.  Oh!  It  w^as  a  thrilling  sight! 
Shot  and  shell  w^ere  doing  their  murderous  work.  Nothing 
short  of  annihilation  could  stop  those  noble  battalions. 
Higher,  and  still  higher,  they  crept,  until  at  last,  just  as  the 
sun  was  sinking  in  the  west,  they  reached  the  summit,  and 
then  as  the  gathered  billow  thunders  and  foams  along  and 
over  the  sunken  ledges  of  the  sea,  they,  w^ith  one  wild  shout 
and  burst,  swejjt  over  those  deadly  batteries.  The  Confeder- 
ates saw  and  heard  the  preparation  of  the  two  regiments  for 
the  final  dash  and  when  it  came  they  stood  their  ground, 
fighting  desperately  and  hand  to  hand,  but  the  assault  was 
too  grandly  ferocious,  and  they  broke  and  lied  down  the 
opposite  declivity  of  the  mountain,  utterly  dismayed 
and  panic  stricken.  As  these  two  regiments  swept  over 
the  works  and  on,  they  were  followed  closely  by  the 
battle  line  of  Willich's  brigade,  and  those  fighting  to  the 
right  and  left  soon  had  Signal  Hill  and  the  Ridge  for  some 
distant  to  the  right  of  it,  cleared.  Thus  was  a  foot-hold  on 
the  mountain  gained.  Thus  was  the  Ridge  and  battle  won 
as  never  battle  before  was  won.  The  next  moment  cheer 
after  cheer  went  up  all  along  the  smoking  crest,  and  rolled 
down  the  crimson  steep,  till  to  the  right  and  left  and  far  be- 


254  TITF.  Eir.IITY-SIXTII  KEGIMENT, 

low,  llio  air  trembled  with  glad  echoes.  Missionary  Ridge 
was  no  Coneral's  battle.  It  was  the  battle  of  the  soldiers 
tliem.selves,  who  went,  like  an  unchained  whirlwind,  without 
command,  up  to  the  crest,  and  to  what,  up  to  that  time,  was 
the  most  complete  victory  of  the  war.  "It  was  a  glorious 
victory." 

At  4:30  p.  m.  Assistant  Secretary  of  War  Dana  tele- 
graphed Secretary  of  War  Stanton  as  follows: 

C  lory  to  God.  The  day  is  decisively  ours.  Missionary  Ridge  has 
just  been  cai-ried  by  a  magnificent  charge  of  Thomas's  troops,  and  I'ebels 
routed. 

The  point  of  the  Ridge  projecting  to  the  west,  which  was 
mounted  by  the  Eighty-sixth  and  Seventy-nmth,  was  one  nat- 
urally aPfording  a  vei-y  strong  position  for  the  enemy,  easily 
defended  and  ditticult  to  climb,  and  therefore  the  exploit  of 
these  regiments  leading  the  entire  battle  line  is  the  more 
notable.  On  account  of  its  elevation  it  was  used  as  a  signal 
station  by  the  enemy  during  his  occupancy.  It  was  beyond 
all  fair  question  the  first  point  of  the  ridge  carried. 

To  the  Eighty-sixth  and  Seventy-ninth  Indiaiia,  there- 
fore, belongs  the  honor  of  being  the  first  regiments  on  the 
Ridge.  What  member  of  the  Eighty-sixth  regiment  was  the 
first  to  go  over  the  enemy's  works  cannot  be  told.  The  honor 
is  not  so  much  in  being  first  as  in  the  brave  endeavor.  When 
all  were  striving  so  nobly  and  where  everything  was  in  such 
a  turmoil  and  excitement  it  is  not  easy,  nay,  it  is  almost  impos- 
sible to  decide  positively  who  has  the  honor  to  be  the  first.  It 
was  an  honor  to  have  been  even  the  hindmost.  Let  every 
member  of  the  Eighty-sixth  who  scaled  the  mountain  that 
afternoon  share  alike  in  the  honor,  and  "let  them  all  go  to 
glory  together."  Jefferson  McClelland,  of  Company  H,  fell 
within  a  i-od  of  the  enemy's  works  on  the  crest  of  the  Ridge — 
shot  dead  by  a  musket  ball  through  the  chest  when  charging 
on  the  line  while  fully  manned.  He  had  led  all  in  the  up- 
ward rush  for  the  last  line  of  works  as  he  had  done  from  the 
first  start  at  the  line  at  the  foot  of  the  Ridge.  He  paid  the 
penalty  of  his  daring  courage  with  his  life.  W.  W.  Barnes 
received  a  severe  contused  wound  of  the  thigh  by  a  grape- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  255 

shot  or  a  rock  set  flying  by  a  plunging  shot  or  shell  which 
was  not  reported.     Sergeant  Stephen  Cronkite,  of  Company 
E,  color-bearer,  carried  the  colors  bravely  and  nobly  forward 
until  near  the  summit  of  the  Ridge,  when  he  fell  seriously 
wounded.     Then  the  brave  Thomas  J.  Graves,  Sergeant  of 
Company  D,  seized  the  flag  and  mounted  the  Ridge  and  gal- 
lantly marching  to  the  left  led  the  attaciv  upon  the  advanc- 
ing   Confederate   reinforcements   until   he,  too,  was    badly 
wounded.     It  was  here  that  Sergeant  Myron  H.  Belknap,  of 
Company  I,  received  an  ugly  gun  shot  wound  through  the 
shoulder.      Captain  William  M.  Southard  gave  up  his  life 
when  near  the  crest,  and  not  ten  feet  away  that  brave  little 
soldier,  Paris  H.  Peterson,  of  Company  I,  breathed  his  last 
breath.    But  the  brave  deeds  of  all  on  that  memorable  Novem- 
ber afternoon  cannot  be  recorded.     Colonel  Dick  reported  five 
enlisted   men  killed  and    thirty-eight  wounded,  one  officer 
killed  and  two  wounded,  a  total  of  forty-six.     The  loss  of  the 
Seventy-ninth  was  twenty-eight  enlisted  men  wounded. 
The  following  is  a  list  of  the  killed: 
Company  K. — Captain  William  M.  Southard, 
E.  —Henry  C.  Cronkhite, 
"  — Milton  Gallimore, 
H.— Jefferson  McClelland, 
I.  — Paris  H.  Peterson. 
' '  — Jeptha  Custer — 6. 
The  following  is  a  list  of  the  mortally  wounded: 
Company  B. — Frederick  Lunenburg, 
" —Charles  Waters, 
''  C. — Jacob  Cooper,  color  guard, 

"  D. — James  Ruloson, 

F.— Eli  A.  Tipton, 
" —Oliver  Wood, 
"  I.  — Absalom  Huffman — 7. 

The  following  is  a  list  of  the  severely  wounded: 
Company  A. — John  Harding, 

"  • '  — James  E.  Padgett, 

"  C. — James  H.  Brown, 

"  "  — Uriah  Stevenson, 


2-)f,  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

Company   D.— Thomas  J.  Graves, 
E.— Harmon  M.  Billinc^s, 
"  "  — Stoplion  Cronkliite, 

F. — John  Kent, 
H.— William  W.  Barnes, 
"  I. — Myron  H.  Belknai:>, 

"  "  — Jacob  D.  Bazzle, 

K.— B.  F.  Snyder— 12. 
The  following  is  a  list  of  the  slightly  wounded: 
Lieutenant  Colonel  Jacob  C.  Dick, 
Company   A. — Wilson  DeMoss, 
"— R.  W.  Stoops, 
"  B. — Lieutenant  Jerre  Haugh, 

"  C. — James  S.  Butcher, 

"  D. — Bartley  Scanlou, 

"  "  — John  Solomon, 

E.— Samuel  Cloyd, 
"  '* — Levi  A.  Cronkhite, 

G.— Jeffrey  O.  Cutts, 
"  "— B.  F.  Paxton, 

"—George  W.  Tull, 
*•  "—Allen  Devoll, 

H.— William  F.  Adams, 
"  —William  H.  Trulock, 
"  I. — Thomas  Decker, 

"  K. — Tilghman  A.  Howard, 

* '  "  — J ames  Harrington, 

"  " —Morris  Welch, 

«<  " — William  Sanders, 

"  " — James  Williams — 21. 

The  loss  of  the  Eighty-sixth  greatly  exceeded  that  of 
any  other  regiment  of  Beatty's  brigade,  and  was  nearly 
double  that  of  the  Seventy-ninth,  its  companion  regiment. 
The  only  reasonable  explanation  of  the  small  loss  of  these 
two  regiments  is  that  they  went  quickly  up  the  Ridge  from 
the  first  line  of  works  at  its  foot  and  thus  gained  the  cover 
and  protection  from  the  enemy's  terrible  fire  by  the  steep- 
ness of  the  western  slope. 


INDIANA    VOLUNTEERS.  257 

It  will  thus  be  seen  that  the  plan  of  battle,  as  given  in  the 
preceding-  pages  of  this  chapter,  was  not  carried  out  as  orig- 
inally intended  by  General  Grant.  The  order  given  by  Gen- 
eral Granger,  the  commander  of  the  Fourth  corps,  "Take 
the  Ridge  if  you  can, ' '  and  sent  to  Wood  and  then  to  Sher- 
idan, was  not  given  until  the  Eighty-sixth  and  Seventy-ninth, 
cheered  on  by  their  officers,  had  climbed  almost  to  the  very 
top  of  the  Ridge,  and  as  Sheridan  said  "lay  down  below  the 
crest,"  and  held  on  by  their  teeth,  nails  and  eye-lashes.  Then 
and  then  only  was  the  thought  of  the  possibility  of  captur- 
ing the  Ridge  by  a  direct  front  assault  conceived  by  the  gen- 
eral officers.  Then  were  the  supports  and  reserve  ordered 
up,  and  the  attack  made  by  the  whole  line  that  made  the  as- 
sault upon  the  first  line  of  works  at  the  foot  of  the  Ridge. 

General  Grant  did  not  order  or  expect  the  assault  to  be 
made  upon  the  Ridge  at  that  time,  or  in  the  manner  in  which 
it  was  made,  but  simply  an  attack  upon  "the  first  line  of 
works  at  the  foot  of  the  Ridge  as  a  diversion  in  favor  of  tSher- 
maii  lulio  was  hard  pressed. ' ' 

General  Wood's  report  shows  that  the  intended  attack 
upon  the  Ridge  was  quite  a  different  thing  from  the  one  that 
was  actually  mj,ide,  the  one  benig  a  Hank  attack,  while  the 
other  was  a  direct  front  attack  upon  the  enemy's  chosen 
position  and  fortifications.  General  Grant  says  of  the  troops 
and  the  assault:  "Without  awaiting  further  orders  or  stop- 
ping to  reform,  our  troops  went  to  the  second  line  of  works; 
over  that  and  on  for  the  crest,  thus  effectually  carrying  out 
my  orders  of  the  18th  for  the  battle,  and  of  the  24th  for  this 
charge. "  General  Grant  here  refers  to  an  order  issued  while 
under  a  mistaken  idea  of  the  situation  of  the  armies.  In  that 
order  it  is  stated  that  Thomas  will  either  "carry  the  rilie-pits 
and  Ridge,  or  move  to  the  left  as  the  presence  of  the  enemy 
may  require."  The  order  was  conditional,  and  the  condi- 
tions wei'e  not  at  all  what  they  were  thought  to  be,  for  in  the 
opening  sentence  General  Grant  says:  "General  Sherman 
carried  Missionary  Ridge  as  far  as  the  tunnel  with  only  slight 
skirmishing.  "  This  conditional  order  for  attacking  the  Ridge 
was  given  under  the  sup^josition  that  Sherman's  attack  had 


258  THE  EIGIITY-SIXTII  REGIMENT, 

been  successful  and  would  continue  to  bo  so,  mid  that  in  fact 
there  would  bo  little  for  Thomas'  force  to  do.  It  is  cer- 
tainly plain  that  there  was  a  diaiujc  in  the  plav.  of  the  battle. 
General  Grant  did  not  expect  a  direct  assault  by  the  cen- 
ter. The  evidence  of  this  is  complete  and  convincing.  Gen- 
eral Henry  M.  Cist,  on  this  i^oint  says: 

Then,  when  Sherman  had  been  fighting  foi-  nearly  two  days,  and 
liad  failed  to  make  the  headway  Grant's  plan  contemplated,  the  plan 
underwent  another  modification.  On  the  25th,  Grant  ordered  Tliomas 
to  move  out  his  troops  from  the  center,  to  make  anotlier  "  demonstration" 
in  Sherman's  behalf,  so  he  could  take  the  tunnel  in  accordance  with  the 
original  plan.  Thomas  was  ordered  to  take  the  first  line  of  rifle-pits 
and  hold  his  command  there,  while  Bragg  was  expected  to  draw  olT  part 
of  his  troops  from  Sherman's  front  and  strengthen  his  line  in  front  of 
the  demonstration.  Thomas'  ordei's  to  his  corps  and  division  Generals 
were  given  in  accordance  with  Grant's  instructions,  and  as  the  orders 
reached  the  hri(j(«h  and  regimental  commanders,  the  movement  was  only 
to  be  a  "demonstration."'  When  tlic  troops  reached  the  rebel  line,  cap- 
tured it,  and  then  found  themselves  under  the  fire  from  the  enemy's  lines 
on  the  hoi  gilts  above,  witlimU  orders,  and  even  against  orders,  the  soldiers 
of  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland  pressed  up  the  face  of  the  Kidge  under 
the  deadly  musketry  fire  that  greeted  them,  with  cannon  in  front  of 
them,  to  the  right  and  left,  raking  with  converging  fire,  and  won  for 
General  Grant  the  battle  of  Missionary  Ridge,  driving  Bragg  away  fi-om 
Sherman's  front,  and  thus  enabling  him  to  take  the  tunnel  as  ordered. 
Whenever  the  victory  of  Missionary  Ridge  shall  be  narrated  on  his- 
tory's i)age,  this  gallant  charge  of  the  brave  men  of  Wood's  and  Sher- 
idan's divisions,  with  those  of  Baird  and  Johnson  on  their  left  and  right, 
will  always  be  a  prominent  feature  of  the  engagement  as  told  in  the 
coming  years,  and  will  be  the  last  to  lose  its  glory  and  renown. 

No  wonder  that  General  Grant  failed  to  appreciate  this  movement 
at  the  time,  not  understanding  the  troops  who  had  it  in  charge.  When 
he  found  these  commands  ascending  the  Ridge  to  capture  it,  when  he 
ordered  a  "  demonsti-ation"  to  be  made  to  the  foot  of  the  hill  and  there 
wait,  he  turned  sharply  to  General  Thomas  and  asked,  "By  whose  orders 
are  those  troops  going  up  the  hill':'"  General  Thomas  taking  in  the 
situation  at  once,  suggested  that  it  was  probably  by  their  own.  Gen- 
oral  Grant  remarked  that  "  it  was  all  right  if  it  turned  out  all  right," 
and  added,  "if  not,  someone  would  suffer."  But  it  turned  out  "all  right," 
and  General  Grant  in  his  official  report  compliments  the  troops  for  fol- 
lowing closely  the  retreating  enemy  without  further  orders. 

General  Cist  relates  these  things  from  personal  knowl- 
edge. As  a  member  of  Gonoi-al  Thomas'  staff  he  was  pres- 
ent on  Orchard  Knob  when  the  orders  were  issued,  in  fact, 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  259 

they  were  issued  through  him,  and  being  present  he  heard 
the  above  quoted  remarks  of  General  Grant.  General  Jo- 
seph S.  Pullerton,  of  General  Granger's  staif,  having 
described  the  capture  of  the  line  of  works  at  the  foot  of  the 
Ridge,  says: 

The  order  of  the  Commanding  General  now  had  been  fully  and 
most  successfully  carried  out.  But  it  did  not  go  far  enough  to  satify 
these  brave  men,  who  thought  the  time  had  come  to  finish  the  battle 
of  Chickamauga.  There  was  a  halt  of  but  a  few  minutes  to  take  breath 
and  to  re-form  lines;  then,  with  a  sudden  impulse,  and  without  orders, 
all  started  up  the  Ridge.  Officers,  catching  their  spirit,  first  followed, 
then  led.  There  was  no  thought  of  supports  or  of  protecting  flanks, 
though  the  enemy's  line  could  be  seen,  stretching  on  either  side. 

As  soon  as  this  movement  was  seen  from  Orchard  Knob,  Grant 
quickly  turned  to  Thomas,  who  stood  by  his  side,  and  T  heard  him  say 
angrily:  "  Thomas,  who  ordered  those  men  up  the  Ridge?"  Thomas  re- 
plied, in  his  usual  slow,  quiet  manner:  "  I  don't  know;  I  did  not."  Then, 
addressing  General  Gordon  Granger,  he  said,  "  Did  you  order  them  up, 
(J  ranger?  "  "  No,"  said  Granger;  "  they  started  up  without  orders.  WJicn 
Ihosr  f( U(nns.  get  started  all  hell  can't  stop  thcm.'^  General  Grant  said  some- 
thing to  the  etl'ect  that  somebody  would  suffer  if  it  did  not  turn  out  well, 
and  then,  turning,  stoically  watched  the  Ridge.  He  gave  no  further 
orders. 

As  soon  as  Granger  had  replied  to  Thomas,  he  turned  to  me,  his 
chief-of-statt',  and  said:  "Ride  at  once  to  Wood,  and  then  to  Sheridan, 
and  ask  them,  if  they  ordered  their  men  up  the  Ridge,  and  tell  them,  if 
they  can  take  it  to  push  ahead."  As  I  was  mounting,  Granger  added: 
"  It  is  hot  over  there,  and  you  may  not  get  through.  I  shall  send  Cap- 
tain Avery  to  Sheridan,  and  other  officers  after  both  of  you."  As  fast  as 
luy  horse  could  carry  me,  I  rode  first  to  General  Wood,  and  delivered 
tlie  message.  "  I  didn't  order  them  up,"  said  Wood;  "  they  started  up  on 
their  own  account,  and  they  are  going  up,  too!  Tell  Granger,  if  we  ai^e 
supported  we  will  take  and  hold  the  Ridge!" 

General  O.  O.  Howard  confirms  these  statements  as  to 
Grant's  remark  to  Thomas.     He  says: 

The  nearest  he  came  to  chiding  anybody  was  when  Thomas'  sol- 
diers went  forward  from  the  base  of  the  Ridge  to  the  bristling  crest 
without  orders,  when  he  remarked:  "Well,  somebody  will  suffer  if 
tlvey  don't  stay  there."  They  did  stay  there  and  went  beyond  the  cap- 
tured summit. 

Of  all  the  officers  on  Orchard  Knob,  General  Gordon 
Granger  alone  has  the  honor  of  ordering,  "Take  the  Ridge 
if  you  can. ' '     Of  course  it  is  understood  that  the   division 


2CiO  THE  EiailTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

commanders  accompanied  their  troops.  Charles  A.  Dana. 
Assistant  Secretary  of  War  was  present  on  Orchard  Knob 
durini?  llio  day,  and  in  his  report  of  the  assault  to  Hon.  E. 
M.  Stanton,  Secretary  of  War,  says: 

Tho  storming-  of  the  Ridj^'c  by  our  troops  was  one  of  the  greatest 
miracles  in  military  history.  No  man  who  climbed  the  ascent  by  any  of 
the  roads  that  wind  along:  its  front  can  believe  that  18,000  men  were 
moved  up  its  broken  and  crumbling'  face  unless  it  was  his  fortune  to 
witness  the  deed.  It  seems  as  awful  as  a  visible  interposition  of  (iod. 
Neither  Grant  nor  Thomas  intended  it.  Their  orders  were  to  carry  the 
rille-pits  along  the  base  of  the  Ridg-e  and  capture  their  occupants,  but 
when  this  was  accomplished  the  unaccountable  spirit  of  the  troops  bore 
them  bodily  up  those  impracticable  steeps,  over  the  bristling-  rifle-pits 
on  the  crest  and  thirty  cannon  enfilading  dvery  gully.  The  orders  to 
storm  appears  to  have  been  given  simultaneously  to  Generals  Sheridan 
and  Wood,  because  the  men  were  not  be  held  back,  dangerous  as  the 
attempt  ai)peai'ed  to  military  prudence.  Beside^?,  the  Generals  had 
cauglit  the  inspiration  of  the  men,  and  were  ready  themselves  to  under- 
take impossibilities. 

This  is  clear  as  to  Grant's  order  at  the  time  of  the  assanlt. 
As  to  the  judgment  of  the  practicability  of  an  assault  on 
Missionary  Ridge,  Dana  had  dispatched  November  8,  1863: 

Reconnoisance  of  Citico  Creek  and  head  of  Missionary  Ridge  made 
yesterday  by  Thomas,  Smith  and  Brannan,  from  the  heights  oi)])osite  on 
the  north  of  the  Tennessee,  pi-oved  Smith's  plan  of  attack  impractic- 
able. The  creek  and  country  are  wrongly  laid  down  on  our  maps,  and  no 
operation  for  the  seizure  of  Missionary  Ridge  can  be  undertaken  with 
tlie  force  which  Thomas  can  now  command  for  the  purpose. 

General  Granger  in  his  report  says: 

General  Sherman  was  unable  to  make  any  progress  in  moving 
along  tho  Ridge  during  the  day,  as  the  enemy  had  massed  in  his  front; 
therefore,  in  oi-der  to  i-elieve  him,  I  was  ordered  to  make  a  demonstra- 
tion upim  the  works  of  the  enemy  directly  in  my  front,  at  the  base  of 
Missionary  Ridge. 

After  describing  tho  capture  of  the  first  line  at  the  base 
of  the  Ridge,  General  (J! ranger  goes  on  to  say: 

My  orders  had  now  been  fully  and  successfully  carried  out,  but  not 
enough  had  been  done  to  satisfy  the  brave  ti-oops  who  had  aecromplished 
so  much.  Although  the  batteries  on  the  Ridge,  at  short  range,  by 
direct  and  enfilading  fire,  were  still  pouring  down  upon  them  a  shower 
of  iron  and  the  musketry  fi-om  the  hillside  was  thinning  their  ranks, 
th.-y  dashed  over  the  bi-eastworks,  through  the  i-ille-pits,  and  started  up 
the  Ridge.     Tlwij  slartcd  wHkoiU  orders.  *  *  Eagerly  they  rushed  forward 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  261 

to  a  danger  which  the  bravest,  marching  under  orders,  might  tremble. 
Officers  caught  the  enthusiasm  of  the  men,  and  the  men  were  in  turn  cheered 
by  the  otticei-s.  *  *  At  several  points  along  the  line  my  troops  were 
ascending  the  hill  and  gaining  positions  less  exposed  to  the  enemy's 
artillery  fire,  though  more  exposed  to  the  fire  of  his  musketry.  Seeing 
this,  I  sent  my  Assistant  Adjutant  General  to  inquire,  first  of  General 
Wood  and  then  of  General  Sheridan,  whctlier  the  troops  had  been 
ordered  up  the  Kidge  by  them,  and  to  instruct  them  to  take  the  Ilidge 
if  possible.  In  reply  to  this.  General  Wood  told  him  that  the  men  had 
started  up  without  orders,  and  that  he  could  take  it  if  he  could  be 
supported. 

It  will  be  observed  that  orders  were  sent  to  Wood  first. 
Why  was  this?  Simply  because  his  advance  was  farther  up 
the  Ridge.  They  had  started  up  first  and  they  kejjt  ahead. 
According  to  both  Granger  and  Pullerton  the  order,  "Take 
the  Ridge  if  you  can, "  was  sent  first  to  Wood  and  then  to 
Sheridan.  General  Wood,  stout-hearted  Wood,  "the  iron- 
gray  e  teran, "  says: 

As  the  day  progressed  the  interest  which  attracted  every  eye  and 
absorbed  every  feeling  was  that  involved  in  the  attempt  of  General 
Sherman's  command  to  effect  a  lodgment  on  Missionary  Ridge  near  the 
tunnel.  Severer  opposition  than  had  been  expected  was  evidently  being 
met  with.  To  lessen  the  opposition  General  Sherman  was  encountering, 
it  was  detei'mined  that  a  movement  should  be  made  against  the  rebel 
center.  I  was  ordered  to  advance  and  carry  the  enemy's  intrenctimcnts 
at  the  base  of  Missionary  Ridge  and  hold  them.  *  *  When  the  first 
line  of  intrenchments  was  carried,  the  goal  for  which  we  had  started 
was  won.  Our  orders  carried  us  no  farther.  We  had  been  instructed  to 
carry  the  line  of  intrenchments  at  the  base  of  the  Ridge  emd  there  halt.  But 
the  enthusiasm  and  impetuosity  of  the  troops  wei'e  such  that  those  who 
first  reached  the  intrenchments  at  the  base  of  the  Ridge  bounded  over 
them,  and  pressed  on  up  the  ascent  after  the  flying  enemy.  Moreover, 
the  intrenchments  were  no  protection  against  the  enemy's  ai-tillery  on 
the  Ridge.  To  remain  would  be  destruction — to  return  would  be  both 
expensive  in  life  and  disgraceful.  Officers  and  men  all  seemed  impressed 
with  this  truth.  In  addition,  the  examjjle  of  those  who  commenced  to 
ascend  the  Ridge  so  soon  as  the  intrenchments  were  carried  was  con- 
tagious. Without  waiting  for  an  order  the  vast  mass  pressed  forward 
in  the  race  for  glory,  each  man  anxious  to  be  the  first  on  the  summit. 
The  enemy's  artillery  and  musketry  could  not  check  the  impetuous  as- 
sault. The  troops  did  not  halt  to  fire.  To  have  done  so  would  have 
been  ruinous.  Little  was  left  to  the  commander  of  the  troops  than  to 
cheer  on  the  foremost — to  encourage  the  weaker  of  limb,  and  to  sustain 
the  very  few  who  seemed  to  be  faint  hearted. 


I2(i2  THK   EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMKNT, 

To  till'  c'toriKil  honor  of  tlic  troops,  it  should  bo  recorded  that  the 
hv','-};ards  were,  indeed,  few  in  num])er.  Tlie  interval  which  elapsed  be- 
tween the  carryinj;^  of  the  intrenchments  at  the  base  of  the  Kidge  and 
the  crowning  of  the  summit  must  luive  been  one  of  intense  and  painful 
anxiety  to  all  wlio  wer-o  not  participants  in  the  assault.  The  ascent  of 
Missionary  Ridge  was  indeed  an  effort  to  try  the  strongest  limbs  and  the 
stoutest  hearts.  But  suspense  and  anxiety  were  not  of  long  duration. 
Upward  steadily  went  the  standard  of  the  Union — borne  onward  by 
sti'ong  arms,  upheld  by  brave  hearts — and  soon  it  was  seen  flying  on  the 
crest  of  Missionary  liidge.  Loud  indeed  were  the  shouts  with  which  this 
spectacle  was  received. 

This  evidence  is  conclusive  and  proves  beyond  cavil  that 
General  Grant  did  not  intend  that  the  assault  should  be 
directed  a<?ainst  the  Ridge  itself.  Dana  in  a  dispatch  to  Stan- 
ton, sent  November  23,  1863,  at  8  p.  m.  says:  "  Nothing  shows 
decisively  whether  enemy  will  fight  or  lly.  Grant  thinks  lat- 
ter; other  judicious  officers  think  former."  On  the  24th  at, 
7:30  p.  m.  in  a  disi)atch  Dana  says:  "If  Bragg  does  not  with- 
draw the  remainder  of  his  troops  we  shall  probably  have  a 
decisive  battle."  Sherman  was  now  in  position  and  Grant 
exi)ected  him  to  fight  the  battle  if  Bragg  did  not  withdraw, 
but  with  Sherman  threatening  his  line  of  communications 
Grant  evidently  expected  the  rebel  forces  to  be  withdrawn 
in  accordance  with  the  report  of  the  deserters  on  the  23d. 
On  the  2r)th,  at  7:30  a.  m.  Dana,  who  was  in  constant  com 
munication  with  Grant,  even  when  not  present  with  him  in 
person,  dispatched  Stanton:  "No  firing  affront.  This  makes 
it  pretty  certain  Bragg  retreated."  At  9  a.  m.,  however,  he 
dispatclied  again:  "Bragg  evacuated  Lookout  Mountain  last 
night  and  our  troops  occupy  it,  but  he  still  holds  to  his  ritie- 
pits  along  base  Missionary  Ridge."  Once  again  before  the 
attack  Dana  dispatched  to  Stanton  on  that  memorable 
November  day.  At  1  p.  m.  he  wired:  "In  our  front  here 
rebel  riile-pits  are  fully  manned,  preventing  Thomas  gain- 
ing tlio  Ridge."  These  messages  show  two  things:  First, 
tluit  it  was  confidently  believed  and  expected  by  Grant, 
Dana,  and  others  during  the  24th,  that  on  the  following 
night  Bragg  would  evacuate  his  position  and  works  on  Mis- 
sionary Ridge  in  front  of  Chattanooga.  In  the  last  message 
it  is  very  plainly  hinted  that  the  Ridge  was  too  strong  to  be 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  263 

gained  by  an  assault,  and  it  cannot  be  reasonably  doubted 
that  both  ideas  were  based  upon  expressed  judgments  of 
Grant.  The  last  one,  at  least,  by  a  tacit  acknowledgement 
that  Bragg 's  position  was  too  strong  to  be  assaulted. 

M.  C.  Meigs,  Quartermaster  General  of  the  army,  in  a 
dispatch  to  Secretary  Stanton  says:  "General  Grant  pro- 
ceeded to  the  summit,  and  then  only  did  we  know  its  height, ' ' 
conceding  that  the  difficulties  of  mounting  the  Ridge  were 
greater  than  he  and  other  general  officers  had  supposed,  al- 
though before  the  assault  was  made  they  were  considered  to 
be  insurmountable. 

The  honor  of  the  assault  lies  clearly  with  the  rank  and 
file  who  conceived  the  idea  under  a  storm  of  iron  hail,  and  to 
i  the  general  officers  who  first  observed  what  their  gallant 
men  would  do  and  encourage  them  in  their  brave  endeavors 
:  by  ordering   up  their   supports  and   reserves.     The  honor 
'  belongs  distinctly  to  the  two  divisions  of  the  Fourth  corps, 
i  Generals  Wood   and   Sheridan.     The   troops  of  these   two 
i  divisions  led  all  others  in  their  magnificently  conducted  as- 
j  sault.     Of  these  two  divisions  it  will  be  conclusively  shown 
•  that  Wood   led  Sheridan.     Sheridan's  remark  when  at  the 
i  first  line  of  works  at  the  foot  of  the  Ridge  as  much  as  con- 
cedes Wood's  claim.     That  remark  was:   "Looking  to  the 
1  left  I  saw  a  single  regiment  far  over  in  Wood's  line  dash  up 
i  the  hill  and  lay  down  below  the  crest.     General  Hazen's  men 
■  also   commenced  the  ascent."     Wagner's  brigade,  of  Shcr- 
I  idan's  division,  had  been  recalled  and  his  division  lay  on  the 
I  foot  of  the  Ridge,  while  the  advance  of  Beatty's  brigade  of 
I  Wood's  division,  the  Seventy-ninth  and  Eighty-sixth  Indiana, 
I  had  almost  crested  the  Ridge.     Captain  Reilley,  of  the  Tenth 
Kentucky,  which  was  in  Baird's  division  of  the  Fourteenth 
corps,  certainly  an  unbiased  witness,  supports   this  claim. 
The  claim  is  further  strengthened  by  the  testimony  of  Con- 
federate officers.     They  were  on  the  Ridge  carefully  watch- 
ing the  advance  and  their  own  line  of  defense.     Generals 
Bate  and  Bragg,  who  were  present  until  after  their  lines 
\  were  broken  on  the  north  of  Bragg's  headquarters,  both  tes- 
tify that  their  lines  were  first  broken  in  that  part  held  by  Pat- 


264  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

toil  Aiuleison's  division,  whereas  Sheridan,  and  those  who 
uphold  his  claim,  state  that  the  Confederate  lines  were  tirst 
broken  south  of  Bragg's  headquarters,  a  point  far  to  the 
right— Federal  right— of  that  given  by  Generals  Bate  and 
Bragg.  General  Bate's  division,  of  Breckenridge's  corps,  of 
Bragg's  army,  occupied  the  crest  of  the  Ridge  some  distance 
north  and  south  of  Bragg's  headquarters.  It  would,  there- 
fore, be  in  the  line  of  Bate's  duty  to  have  this  part  of  the 
line  under  the  closest  observation.  He  was  reputed  to  be  a 
courageous,  careful,  and  skillful  division  commander.  From 
his  more  favorable  position  to  view  the  entire  field  he  would  be 
tlie  better  able  to  know  exactly  where  the  Confederate  line  was 
first  broken  and  the  Ridge  carried  than  any  Union  officer  en- 
gaged in  the  assault.  Besides  General  Bragg  agreed  with 
the  statement  of  Bate.  Sheridan  necessarily  had  his  atten- 
tion engaged  and  probably  very  closely  confined  to  his  divis- 
ion in  directing  its  attack  and  upward  progress.  Sheridan 
says  it  w^as  the  right  of  his  division  that  first  mounted  to  the 
crest  of  the  Ridge,  and  that  it  was  south  of  Bragg's  head- 
quarters. This  is  probably  true  of  his  division,  but  Bate, 
sui)ported  by  the  testimony  of  Bragg,  says  the  Confederate 
line  was  first  broken  some  distance  to  the  north  of  Bragg's 
headquarters,  in  the  line  of  Patton  Anderson's  division,  and 
this  seems  to  agree  exactly  with  the  statements  of  Wood, 
Beatty,  Reilly  and  others,  and  is  therefore  true.  Wood's 
division  was  on  the  left — north — of  Sheridan's,  but  Bate's 
line  was  more  extended  than  Sheridan's  and  overlapped  it 
and  covered  a  part  of  Wood's  front.  By  this  formation 
Wood's  brigades  attacked,  in  their  assault,  the  troops  of  the 
two  divisions.  Wood's  right  brigades  fought  Bate's  troops, 
with  the  possible  exception  of  the  left  of  Willich's  brigade 
front,  while  Beatty's,  the  left  brigade,  fought  Patton  Ander- 
son's left  on  Signal  Hill,  "beyond  the  dein-ession  north  of 
Bragg's  headquarters,  where  a  section  of  artillery  of  Dent's 
battery  had  been  firing  and  was  then  located."  If  duo 
notice  is  taken  of  General  Bate's  words  it  will  satisfy  any 
reasonable  person  that  the  first  break  was  at  the  point  where 
the  two  regiments,  the  Eighty-sixth  and  Seventy-ninth  In- 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  265 

diana,  mounted  the  Ridge,  aud  referred  to  by  General  Bate. 
Here  are  General  Bate's  own  words: 

"In  a  few  moments  I  yaw  a  Hag-  waving  at  the  point  in  the  line  of 
General  Anderson's  division,  beyond  the  depression  in  the  Ridge,  where 
a  section  of  artillery  of.  Dent's  battery  had  been  firing  and  was  now 
located.  I  thought  it  a  Confederate  Hag,  but  on  near  approach  and  more 
minute  inspection  I  soon  detected  the  United  States  colors.  The  line  in 
my  front  had  recoiled  a  second  time,  but  was  rallied  and  was  advancing 
up  the  hill  in  such  numbers  ag  to  forbid  the  displacing  of  any  of  my  com- 
mand. I  was  ordered  by  General  Bragg  to  withdraw  a  portion  of  my 
command  and  dislodge  him  if  possible;  but  upon  suggesting  that  I  was 
without  reserve,  and  the  danger  of  withdrawing  when  so  hard  pressed 
on  the  front,  which  would  necessarily  cause  a  gap  in  my  line,  he  directed 
m6  to  take  such  as  could  be  best  spared.  I  at  once  took  the  command 
under  Major  Weaver,  which  had  come  from  the  ditches  and  were 
aligned  across  the  Crutchfield  road,  it  being  disengaged,  and  moved  it 
at  a  double-quick  some  five  or  six  hundred  yards  to  the  elevation  on  the 
right  and  rear  of  where  the  enemy  had  formed  near  his  Hag.  I  was  un- 
able, notwithstanding  the  assistance  of  Major  Weaver,  to  get  his  com- 
mand farther,  and  could  only  form  it  on  the  hill  at  right  angles  to  my 
line,  protecting  my  Hank,  and  seek  to  dislodge  him  by  a  well-directed 
fire  or  hold  him  in  check  until  the  repulsed  brigade  in  Anderson's  line 
could  be  rallied  and  retake  their  lost  ground.  Having  made  this  dispo- 
sition and  opened  fire,  I  left  Lieutenant  Blanchard,  of  my  start',  to  report 
the  result  and  returned  to  my  line,  which  was  being  dangerously  pressed. 
It  was  but  a  few  moments  until  the  second  and  third  flags  were  on  the 
Ividge  near  the  same  spot,  and  the  enemy  in  such  numbers  as  to  drive 
away  the  command  under  Major  Weaver.  This  command,  upon  the  ad- 
vance of  the  enemy,  broke  and  i-etired  in  disorder.  The  enemy  turned 
our  guns  upon  us  and  opened  a  fire  of  musketry  from  our  right  and  rear. 
This  advantage  gained  caused  my  right  to  give  back. 

In  seeking  to  rally  the  right  I  did  not  see  the  exact  time  when  the 
Hag  went  up  at  the  left  of  General  Bragg's  headquarters,  but  refer  to 
the  reports  of  Brigadier  General  Pinley." 

Finley's  reports  and  the  rejwrts  of  others  referred  to 
could  not  be  found,  as  they  are  not  given  in  "The  Rebellion 
Records,"  but  presume  that  they  correspond  with  the  re- 
ports of  Bate  and  Bragg.     General  Bragg  says : 

"About  3:30  p.  m.  the  immense  force  in  the  front  of  our  left  and 
center  advanced  in  three  linos,  preceded  by  heavy  skirmishers.  Our 
battei-ies  opened  with  fine  effect,  and  much  confusion  was  produced 
before  they  reached  musket-range.  In  a  short  time  the  roar  of  mus- 
ketry became  very  heavy,  and  it  was  soon  apparent  the  enemy  had  been 
repulsed  in  my  immediate  front.     While  riding  along  the  crest  congrat- 


2()fi  TIIK   lOIOIlTY-SIXTIl    REGIMENT, 

uliitiii^;  tlio  troops,  intelligence  reached  me  that  our  lino  was  broken  on 
my  right,  and  the  enemy  had  crowned  the  Ridge.  Assistance  was 
promptly  des])atched  to  that  point  under  Brigadier  Gcnci-al  Bate,  who 
had  so  successfully  maintained  the  ground  in  my  front,  and  I  proceeded 
to  the  rear  of  the  broken  line  to  rally  our  retiring  troojjs  and  return 
tliem  to  the  crest  to  di'ivc  the  enemy  back.  General  Bate  found  the 
disaster  so  great  that  his  small  force  could  not  repair  it. 

About  this  time  I  learned  that  our  extreme  left  had  also  given  way, 
and  that  my  position  was  almost  surrounded.  Bate  was  immediately 
directed  to  form  a  second  line  in  the  rear,  where,  by  the  efforts  of  my 
staff  a  nucleus  of  stragglers  had  been  formed  upon  which  to  rally. 
Lieutenant  (ieneral  Hardee,  leaving  Major  General  Cleburne  in  com- 
mand on  the  extreme  right,  moved  toward  the  left  when  he  heard  the 
firing  in  that  direction.  He  reached  the  right  of  Anderson's  division 
just  in  time  to  find  it  had. nearly  all  fallen  back,  commencing  on  the 
left,  where  the  enemy  had  first  crowned  the  Ridge.  By  a  prompt  and 
judicious  movement  he  threw  a  portion  of  Cheatham's  division  directly 
across  the  Ridge  facing  the  enemy,  who  was  moving  a  strong  foi"ce  im- 
mediately on  his  loft  flank.  *  *  All  to  the  left,  however,  except  a  por- 
tion of  Bate's  division  was  entirely  routed  and  in  rapid  liight,  nearly 
all  the  ai-tillery  having  been  shamefully  abandoned  by  its  infantry  sup- 
port. *  *  Tlic  position  was  one  wlddi  ouyht  to  kave  been  Jiekl  hij  a  line  of 
skinnislurs  ayainsl  aiii/  assauUiny  column.'''' 

Tlii.s  is  quoted  from  General  Bragg's  report  of  the  bat- 
tle, aud  is  directly  to  the  point  as  to  where  his  line  was./zy.s^ 
brohni.  It  corroborates  Bate's  statement  on  this  point.  It 
also  sliows  why  General  Wood  used  sound  military  sense  by 
not  rushin<^  on  over  the  Ridge  into  the  valley  in  pursuit  of 
the  retreating  enemy  and  exposing  his  left  flank  to  Hardee's 
attack.  It  also  shows  the  extreme  daring  courage  of  the 
rank  and  tile  in  presuming  to  attack,  without  orders,  a  strong 
battle  line  intrenched  in  a  position  "which  ought  to  have 
been  held  by  a  line  of  skirmishers  against  any  assaulting 
column.  "  All  this  is  submitted  as  evidence  that  the  Eighty- 
sixth  and  Seventy -ninth  Indiana,  led  by  Colonels  Fred 
Kneiler  and  George  F.  Dick,  first  mounted  to  the  volcanic 
crest  of  Missionary  Ridge  on  the  L\5th  of  November,  1863. 

General  Willich  claimed  his  brigade  was  first  upon  the 
Ridge,  but  says  the  flag  of  the  Eighty-sixth  was  among  the 
first  of  the  flags  upon  the  crest. 

C;encral  Turchin,  of  Baird's  division,  also  claimed  that 
his  brigade  was  first  to  mount  to  the  crest  of  the  i-idge.    The 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  267 

statement  of  Hugh  L(^slie,  a  member  of  Company  A,  Fifty- 
ninth  Ohio,  of  Turchin's  brigade,  who  was  in  the  ranks  that 
day  and  witnessed  the  magnificent  assault  of  the  two  lead- 
ing regiments  of  Beatty's  brigade  controverts  his  claim. 
He  was  not  blinded  by  an  ambition  that  would  rob  his  com- 
rades in  arms  of  their  just  won  honors.  Here  is  his  state- 
ment made  in  a  letter  written  to  J.  A.  Barnes  and  dated  at 
Hillsboro,  Ohio,  September  12,  1893: 

I  belonged  to  the  First  brigade,  Third  division,  Fourteentli  corps. 
I  siiid  then  g,nd  I  say  now  that  the  first  flag  tliat  I  saw  at  tlie  rebel 
works  was  an  Indiana  flag,  a  bright  new  flag,  and  according  to  the  de- 
scription that  I  gave  you  we  concluded  that  it  was  your  flag.  *  *  It  was 
after  we  had  taken  the  rebel  works  that  we  went  over  to  the  left  to  help 
scatter  a  rebel  line  that  had  formed  after  they  wore  driven  out.  We 
had  no  officers  there  to  give  any  commands  at  that  time — the  boys 
fought  that  battle  on  their  own  account.  *  *  If  this  was  your  flag  I  am 
very  glad  to  testify  to  the  facts  for  they  were  brave  boys  and  true,  as 
were  all  the  Indiana  boys  that  I  had  the  honor  of  knowing.  *  *  I  have 
stated  the  plain  facts  and  can  testify  to  them  all. 

This  letter  was  not  quite  clear  as  to  the  exact  location  of 
this  flag  Comrade  Leslie  had  seen  first  at  the  rebel  works, 
hence  the  second  one,  which  is  dated  at  Hillsboro,  Ohio, 
October  4,  1893: 

I  received  your  letter  of  the  lJ4th.  *  *  You  want  me  to  make  a  clear 
statement  of  the  case  which  I  can  do  just  as  well.  The  flag  that  I  saw 
was  on  the  immediate  right  of  Turchin's  brigade,  and  I  believe  now  was 
the  flag  of  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana. 

Comrade  Leslie  speaks  only  of  the  Eighty-sixth,  but,  of 
course,  it  is  understood  that  the  two  regiments  acted  together 
as  one  regiment. 

Some  years  afterward  in  a  letter  to  Lieutenant  Colonel 
Bailey,  of  the  Ninth  Kentucky,  Colonel  Dick  writes: 

We  remained  on  the  Ridge  all  the  next  day,  our  guns  stacked  just 
where  we  entered  "the  works.  During  the  day — the  2()th — many  staflf 
and  General  officers  came  along  the  Kidge  to  look  over  the  conquered 
ground,  and  I  will  not  thought  to  be  claiming  anything  above  any  other 
regiment,  if  I  state  that  they  halted  at  my  tlag,  and  remarked:  "  Here 
is  the  nqw  flag  that  went  in  first."  And  the  place  where  the  rebel  line 
was  first  broken  was  an  object  of  interest  all  day.  These  things  I  claim 
for  Beatty's  brigade.  The  facts  are  very  prominent  before  my  mind 
that  our  brigade  went  up  in  its  own  front  against  a  big  opposition,  cap- 
tured troops  in  front  of  the  brigade  on  the  left,  fought  hard  along  the 


268  TIIK   EIGHTY-SIXTH    UKGIMENT, 

Ilidfic  to  tlie  noi-tli    until   llio  butUe  emled,   and   saw  no  ti-oop.s   in  our 
front  except  the  enemy  lit  any  time. 

General  Beatty  speukinj^  of  the  assault  says: 

The  advance  of  my  bri^^ade  was  the  Seventy-ninth  Indiana,  Colonel 
Fred  Knellcr,  and  the  Kif-hty-sixth  Indiana,  Colonel  (ioorge  F.  Dick. 
These  regiments  advanced  with  spirit  and  drove  the  enemy  from  his 
rille-pits  and  works  at  the  foot  of  the  Ridge. 

The  fire  of  the  enemy  was  so  hot  here,  and  enfilading  us  so  com- 
pletely, that  Colonel  Kneller,  commanding  the  two  regiments,  was  not 
ordered  to  halt,  and  pushed  on  up  the  hill.  This  rendered  it  necessary 
to  supjiort  them  with  other  troops,  and,  being  unable  to  obtain  commun- 
ication with  General  Wood,  I  immediately  ordered  forward  the  Thir- 
teenth Ohio,  Colonel  Jarvis,  and  the  Fifty-ninth  Ohio,  Majoi-  Vanosdol, 
to  their  assistance.  Most  gallantly  did  these  regiments  spring  to  their 
work,  and  step  by  step,  exposed  to  the  terrific  fire  of  batteries  on  the 
right,  left,  and  front,  did  they  ascend  the  steep  liill. 

Hoping  to  obtain  a  firm  footing  on  the  Ridge,  I  ordered  forwai-d  the 
remaining  two  regiments  of  my  brigade.  Seventeenth  Kentucky,  Colonel 
Stout,  and  the  Nineteenth  Ohio,  Colonel  Charles  F.  Manderson,  to  sup- 
port those  already  sent  forward,  and  soon  after  received  tlie  order  from 
General  Granger  to  send  forward  all  my  troops. 

These  two  regiments  advanced  in  splendid  order.  By  the  time  they 
were  half  way  up  the  Ridge  the  four  regiments  in  advance  had  gained 
the  crest  and  occupied  the  rebel  works,  having  successfully,  at  the  sec- 
ond atteni])t,  charged  the  enemy  from  them  and  planted  their  colors  on 
the  summit  of  Missionary  Ridge.  The  colors  of  four  regiments  of  my 
brigade,  vi/,:  Seventy-ninth  Indiana,  Eighty-sixth  Indiana,  Thirteenth 
Ohio,  Fifty-ninth  Ohio,  were  almost  simultaneously  planted  on  the 
enemy's  woi-ks.  At  nearly  the  same  time  the  colors  of  a  regiment  of 
General  Willich's  brigade  were  established  on  tlie  works  by  its  Colonel. 
General  Beatty  further  says: 

In  recounting  the  operations  of  my  command  in  the  advance  of  the 
lines  on  the  2.'5d,  and  the  charging  of  Missionary  Ridge  on  the  25th,  T 
have  to  compliment  Colonel  Fred  Kneller,  Colonel  George  F.  Dick,  Col- 
onel Alexander  M.  Stout,  Colonel  Dwight  Jarvis,  Colonel  George  H. 
Cram,  Colonel  Charles  F.  Manderson,  and  Major  Robert  J.  Vadosdol  for 
the  discipline  and  efficiency  of  their  troops,  and  uppn  the  gallant  style 
with  which  each  vied  with  others  in  doing  their  utmost  to  secure  a 
victory  to  our  arms,  llie  advance  of  the  Seventy-ninth  and  Elyhti/sixth  Jn- 
diana  was  stromjly  resisted  by  the  enemy,  hut  led  by  their  gallant  coninuuiders, 
and  supported  by  the  advance  of  the  Thirteenth  and  Fifty-ninth  Ohio 
regiments  in  sjjlendid  stylo,  succeeded  in  first  planting  the  natio)uU  Jlag  on 
Oic  rebel  tvorks  on  the  summit  of  Missionary  liUhje. 

In  this  last  statement  General  Beatty  makes  amends  to 
the  Seventy-ninth  and  Eighty-sixth  for  his  former  statement 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  269 

that  "the  colors  of  four  regiments  of  my  brigade,  viz:  Sev- 
enty-ninth Indiana,  Eighty-sixth  Indiana,  Thirteenth  Ohio, 
Fifty -ninth  Ohio,  were  ahnost  simultaneously  planted  on  the 
enemy 's  works. ' '  In  this  last  he  states  that  ' '  the  Seventy- 
ninth  and  Eighty -sixth, ' '  supported  by  the  other  regiments, 
'^ first  succeeded  in  planting  the  national  flag  on  the  rebel 
works  on  the  summit  of  Missionary  Ridge. ' '  This  was 
exactly  the  situation. 

Colonel  Knefler's  report  is  as  follows: 

Nothing'  occurred  Tuesday,  the  24th,  or  Wednesday,  the  25th,  until 
ahout  3  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  at  which  time  I  was  ordered  hy  General 
Beatty  to  advance  with  my  command  hcyond  our  works  and  form  on  the 
left  of  the  front  line  of  General  Willich,  to  advance  and  take  the  rifle- 
pits  of  the  rebels  in  our  front.  The  rebels  upon  our  approach  abandoned 
their  rifle-pits,  which  were  occupied  by  our  forces.  Not  having  re- 
ceived any  order  to  remain  in  the  rebel  works,  I  ordered  my  command 
to  advance  upon  the  moimtain  side  in  our  front.  Crossing  the  open 
space  beyond  the  woi'ks  we  met  a  terrific  fire,  enfilading  my  command  in 
all  directions.  The  fire  of  the  rebels  becoming  very  severe,  and  their 
infanti-y  in  front,  who  were  retreating  before  us,  halting  occasionally 
and  firing  upon  us,  I  perceived  that  the  safety  of  my  command  required 
it  to  get  the  protection  of  the  mountain  side  to  be  enabled  to  take 
shelter  among  the  trees  and  rocks.  I  urged  a  rapid  advance,  and  with 
the  hearty  co-operation  of  the  officers  of  both  regiments  the  whole  line 
was  carried  forward  in  the  best  order  possible,  on  almost  inaccessible 
ground.  Here  protected  by  the  steepness  of  the  mountain,  the  men  were 
enabled  to  make  good  their  foot-hold,  and  reply  to  the  rebel  musketry, 
which  was  very  galling,  and  almost  surrounding  us.  We  advanced 
steadily  step  by  step.  When  near  the  top  ray  attention  was  called  by 
C'aptain  Howe  to  the  fact  that  our  adrancc  upon  the  mo}intain  isolated  i(s 
from  llie  rest  of  the  line  with  whidi  we  advanced  upon  the  enemy^s  rijle-pits; 
there  roas  no  support  on  the  rkjht  or  left,  and  on  looking  back  perceived  our 
forces occ%qvjin(j  the  rebel  work  below;  to  retrace  our  steps  would  have  been 
inevitable  destruction  to  the  entire  command.  The  resolve  to  advance 
and  hold  every  inch  of  ground  until  supported  was  our  only  safety.  The 
line  advanced  firmly,  taking  advantage  of  every  obstacle,  under  a  most 
furious  fire  of  artillery  and  small  arms,  the  enemy  rolling  lighted  shells 
among  my  men  and  throwing  rocks  upon  our  heads;  but  the  ground  was 
held  and  contested  with  the  utmost  determination.  The  rebels  did  not 
succeed  in  forcing  us  back  one  stop.  We  remained  in  oui-  position,  our 
flags  and  the  enemy's  almost  touching,  keej^ing  up  a  heavy  fire,  until 
support  came  on  the  right  and  left,  advancing  up  the  mountain.  At 
last  orders  were  given  to  fix  bayonets,  and  to  charge  them;  once 
the    effort    failed,    but   advancing  again   succeeded,    and   gained   the 


270  THE   EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

cnoiny's  works,  which  were  covered  with  dead  and  wounded,  and 
full  of  rebels,  who  made  haste  to, fling  away  their  guns  and  to  get  to  our 
rear.  As  my  men  swarmed  upon  the  crest  the  rebels  made  anoth(M' 
stand,  commanded,  as  ascei'tained,  by  the  rebel  General  Hardee,  but 
their  resistanc!e  was  very  feeble;  they  were  quickly  broken,  and  fled  in  I 
the  greatest  confusion.  Here  a  battlc-llag  was  captured;  I  i-egret  to  say 
it  was  torn  to  shreds  by  the  men  in  their  eagerness  to  secure  mementoes. 
After  pursuing  the  rebels,  and  the  capture  of  many  pieces  of  artillery 
and  numerous  prisoners,  the  command  bivouacked  upon  the  crest  of 
Missionary  Ridge.  *  *  I  beg  leave  to  call  the  attention  of  the  gen- 
eral to  the  following  officers  whose  conduct  deserves  special  mention: 
Captains  Ilanna,  Jordan,  and  Howe,  Adjutant  Ritter,  Lieutenants  ' 
Mount  and  Burns  of  the  Seventy-ninth  Indiana  Volunteers;  Captain 
Sims,  Gregoi-y,  and  Carnahan,  Lieutenants  Mclnerny  andLaymon,  of  the 
Eighty-sixth  Indiana  Volunteers. 

I  cannot  close  this  without  making  my  acknowledgments  and  thank- 
ing Colonel  George  F.  Dick,  of  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  Volunteers,  for 
the  vcrij  vdlitnhk  ((ssistdnce  rendered  me  in  commanding  the  two  regiments 
while  consolidated  during  the  battle  and  from  the  time  we  left  oui- 
camps. 

The  following  is  Colonel  George  F.  Dick's  report: 
Sir: — I  have  the  honor  to  submit  the  following  ae  a  report  of  my 
regiment  in  the  late  engagement  near  Chattanooga,  on  the  23d  of  No- 
vember: 

According  to  orders  received  from  headquarters,  I  moved  out  my 
regiment,  which,  according  to  previous  arrangements,  had  been  consol- 
idated with  the  Seventy-ninth  Indiana  Volunteei's,  Colonel  Fred  Knefler 
commanding.  My  regiment  formed  the  left  wing  of  the  battalion,  and 
we  moved  in  front  of  Fort  Wood,  where  with  the  brigade,  we  formed  in 
double  column  in  mass.  Wo  then  moved  on  the  enemy  and  halted  when 
about  one  mile  east  of  the  fort,  where  we  were  ordered  to  deploy  in  line 
of  battle.  We  lay  in  this  position  till  dark,  nothing  occui-ring  in  our 
front  with  the  exception  of  picket  liring,  when  we  were  ordered  to 
move  to  the  right  a  short  distance.  We  bivouacked  until  about  1 1  p.  m., 
when  orders  were  received  to  dig  ritle-pits  and  construct  an  abatis  in 
fi-ont  by  felling  the  dense  timber. 

The  24th  we  lay  in  the  same  position  awaiting  further  orders. 
On  the  25th,  at  3:30  o'clock,  we  received  orders  to  move  forward, 
which  we  did,  and  halted  outside  the  abatis,  and  formed  in  line  with  and 
to  the  left  of  CJeneral  Willich.  Orders  were  given  to  foi-wardon  double- 
quick  and  charge  the  enemy's  breastworks  at  the  base  of  Missionary 
Ridge.  Wo  double-cpiicked  about  one  mile,  driving  the  enemy  before 
us  in  confusion,  and  took  possession  of  his  works,  during  the  whole  of 
which  time  we  were  under  a  most  deadly  fire  from  his  guns  on  the 
Ridge.     It  was  here  that  Major  Jacob  C.  Dick  and  Lieutenant  Jen-y 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  271 

Hangh,  commanding  Company  B,  received  wounds  which  disabled  them 
to  lead  their  men  farther.  The  pursuit  was  continued,  and  when  at  the 
foot  of  the  Ridge  we  had  to  face  volleys  of  musketry  from  the  enemy. 
We  chai-ged  the  hill  through  this  hail,  which  was  poured  into  our  ranks 
from  rifle-pits  at  the  summit  of  the  mountain,  which  was  about  1,200 
feet  in  height,  and  the  ascent  at  about  an  angle  of  50  degrees.  When 
about  two-thirds  of  the  way  up,  the  brave  and  much  loved  Captain 
Southard,  Company  K,  was  instantly  killed  while  gallantly  leading  and 
cheering  his  men.  When  within  about  fifty  feet  of  the  enemy's  works 
our  men,  being  so  nearly  exhausted,  halted  behind  stumps  and  trees  to 
rest.  Again  we  started,  following  the  colors,  which  were  nobly  borne 
aloft  by  the  color-bearer  Sergeant  Stephen  Cronkite,  Company  E.  This 
gallant  soldier  deserves  much  honor  for  his  bravery  in  beai-ing  the  un- 
furled Stars  and  Stripes  up  these  steep  and  rocky  heights,  and  in  the 
face  of  a  most  bitter  fire.  When  within  fifteen  feet  of  the  enemy's  works 
he  fell  wounded  and  was  unable  to  go  farthei'.  They  were  taken  up  by 
Sergeant  Thomas  J.  Graves,  Company  D,  who  gallantly  carried  them 
over  the  works  and  pursued  the  confused  and  retreating  enemy. 

Here  might  be  mentioned  that  some  of  the  men  wei-e  in  advance  of 
the  colors.  Private  John  Clawson,  Company  C,  has  the  proud  honor  of 
being  the  first  man  inside  the  works  in  our  front  on  the  heights  of  Mis- 
sionary Ridge.  A  portion  of  the  regiment  continued  the  pursuit,  fol- 
lowing the  retreating  enemy  pouring  deadly  volleys  into  his  confused 
and  scattered  ranks.  When  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  to  the  left  of  the 
point  where  we  reached  the  summit,  the  enemy  made  a  stubborn  resist- 
ance behind  a  second  line  of  breastworks.  Here  Sergeant  Thomas  J. 
Graves,  who  was  gallantly  waving  the  colors,  fell  dangerously  wounded. 
They  were  taken  up  by  Captain  William  S.  Sims,  who  almost  at  the 
same  time  captured  the  Major  of  the  Forty-second  Alabama.  However, 
we  succeeded  in  driving  the  enemy.  Another  portion  of  the  regiment 
charged  directly  over  the  Ridge,  and  with  others  of  the  brigade  cap- 
tured and  brought  to  the  top,  by  hand,  two  pieces  of  artillery.  We 
bivouacked  on  the  Ridge  for  the  night. 

On  the  26th,  we  lay  on  the  Ridge  awaiting  further  orders.  At  8  p. 
m.  orders  were  I'eceived  to  return  to  camp  near  Chattanooga,  which 
were  complied  with,  arriving  here  about  10  o'clock. 

Of  my  regiment,  I  am  proud  to  say,  that  both  officers  and  men 
behaved  well.  Much  honor  and  credit  is  due  them.  The  officers  in  par- 
ticular displayed  that  courage  and  bravery  that  should  characterize 
every  true  soldier.  I  might  especially  mention,  as  these  came  under 
my  immediate  observation,  and  without  any  disparagement  to  others, 
the  names  of  Captains  Sims,  Gemmer,  (Gregory,  and  C^arnahan,  and 
Lieutenants  Mclnerny  and  Laymon,  as  doing  much  in  leading  their  men 
to  victory. 

Of  our  companions  in  arras,  the  Seventy-ninth  Indiana  Volunteers, 


272  THE  EIGHT Y-SIXTII  REGIMENT, 

T  can  pay  them  no  hif^her  compliment  than  to  say  they  fought  with 
their  usual  f,'-allanti'y  and  bravery. 

The  colors  on  whose  folds  were  inscribed,  "  Presented  to  the  Eighty- 
sixth  Indiana  Volunteers  by  the  ladies  of  Boone  county,"  *  received 
eighty-eight  musket  shots  and  two  in  the  staff,  one  of  which  severed  it. 

Herewith  I  send  you  a  rebel  battle-flag,  captured  while  ascending 
the  hill. 

While  it  is  out  of  place,  and  I  feel  a  delicacy  in  presuming  to  dictate 
as  a  junioi- otiicer,  yet  I  must  say  that  Colonel  Fred  Knefler,  Seventy- 
ninth  Indiana  Volunteers,  well  deserves  and  richly  merits  a  commission 
as  a])rigadier  general,  for  his  gallantry  displayed  in  charging  and  tak- 
ing Missionary  llidge. 

The  regiment  went  into  the  engagement  with  two  hundred  and 
thirty-six  men  and  nineteen  officers.  Herewith  I  send  you  a  list  of  the 
casualties. 

As  has  been  stated  before  the  loss  of  the  Eighty-sixth 
in  the  assault  upon  the  Ridge  was  greater  than  that  of  any 
other  regiment  in  Beatty's  brigade,  and  nearly  double  that  of 
its  coini:)anion  regiment,  the  Seventy-ninth.  In  fact,  accord- 
ing to  the  records  that  regiment  did  not  lose  a  man  killed 
and  only  twenty-eight  wounded,  but  the  mention  of  this 
small  loss  must  not  be  understood  as  an  attempt  to  detract 
from  that  regiment's  gallantry.  It  was  occasioned  by  its 
less  exposed  position.  The  other  two  brigades  of  Wood's 
division  lost  more  heavily  than  did  Beatty's  brigade.  There 
were  two  very  plain  reasons  for  this.  The  brigades  were 
larger — had  a  greater  number  of  men  exposed  to  the  enemy's 
fire  and  they  were  a  longer  time  getting  well  up  the  Ridge, 
and  therefore  a  longer  time  in  securing  the  protection  of  its 
steepness.  The  loss  of  Hazen's  brigade  was  the  greatest  of 
any  brigade  engaged  in  the  battle  before  Chattanooga  or  on 
Loolcout  Mountain.  This  must  in  part,  at  least,  be  accounted 
loi-  by  the  withdrawal  of  Wagner's  brigade — the  left  brigade 
of  Sh(M'idan's  division — after  it  began  the  ascent  of  the 
Ridge,  tlius  leaving  Hazen's  right  unprotected  and  exposed, 
and  tlio  enemy  on  his  right  unengaged  and  free  to  attack 
liim.  Yet  the  official  tabulated  list  of  casualties  is  a  little 
misleading  as  to  the  loss  of  regiments  and  brigades  in  the 


♦  For  a  history  of  tlie  colors  of  the  Eic:hty-sixtli  rt'siiment  see  Appendix  to  tliis 
vol  u  mo. 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  273 

assault  proper  as  it  includes  the  losses  of  three  days'  fight- 
ing-, viz:  the  loss  of  the  advance  and  attack  upon  Orchard 
Knob,  and  also  the  loss  by  skirmishing  on  the  23d,  24th  and 
25th,  as  well  as  that  of  the  assault  upon  the  Ridge.  The  loss 
of  the  Eighty-sixth  as  rei^orted  is  confined  strictly  to  the 
killed  and  wounded  of  the  assault  proper.  To  include  all 
the  loss  of  the  Eighty-sixth  of  the  three  days'  battle  it  would 
be  fifty,  and  perhaps  more.  But  as  rejiorted  the  loss  was 
nearly  twenty  per  cent,  of  the  number  engaged.  This  loss 
in  less  than  one  hour's  fighthig  indicates  hot  work  and  close 
quarters  where  the  work  could  be  made  effective.  But  it 
still  remains  a  marvelous,  miraculous  affair  to  all  who 
labored  up  the  Ridge  through  that  volcanic  down  ])Our  of 
shot,  shell,  shrapnel,  grape  and  canister,  and  musket  balls, 
that  many,  very  many  more  were  not  killed  and  maimed  for 
life  whenever  they  think  of  the  red  current  of  war  that 
swept  down  the  steep  declivity,  through  their  ranks  and 
over  their  heads,  literally  raking  the  mountain  slope  from 
crest  to  foot.  As  Taylor  well  says,  ' '  The  story  of  the  battle 
of  Missionary  Ridge  is  struck  with  immortality."  But  he 
says,  "Let  the  leader  of  the  Fourth  corps  bear  it  company." 
Shall  it  not  rather  in  justice  be  said,  let  the  leaders,  the 
I  Eighty-sixth  and  Seventy-ninth  Indiana,  bear  it  company,  as 
'  they  were  the  first  to  conceive  and  first  to  put  in  execution 
I  the  thought  of  trying  to  capture  the  Ridge — the  real  origi- 
nators of  that  memorable  assault.  Let  history  be  just  even 
though  it  be  towards  the  men  in  the  ranks  and  humble 
subalterns. 

As  material  results,  and  as  revealing  how  thoroughly 
the  enemy  was  beaten  and  demoralized  by  the  successful  as- 
sault on  Missionary  Ridge,  Captain  T.  G.  Baylor,  Chief  of 
Ordinance  of  the  Department  of  the  Cumberland,  gives  the 
following  summary  of  the  captures  of  ordinance  and  ordinance 
stores:  Field  guns  and  howitzers,  40;  field  carriages,  38; 
caissons,  26;  battery  wagons  and  forges,  5;  rounds  of  artil- 
lery ammunition,  2,236;  stands  of  small  arms,  6,175,  besides 
!  infantry    accouterments   without    end.      General   Brannan, 


274  THE  EICiHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

Chief  of  Artillery,  Army  of  the  Cumberland,  in  his  report 
gives  the  following  credits: 

By  General  Davis'  division,  at  Chickamauga  Station  .  .  24-pounders  2 
By  General  (Joary's  division  on  Lookout  Mountain  .  .  .  field  jiieces  2 
By  General  Osterhaus' division  on  Missionary  Ridge  .  .  .  field  pieces  1 
By  General  Wood's  division  on  Missionary  liidgo  .  .  .  .  field  i)ieces  12 
By  General  Sheridan's  division  on  Missionary  Ridge  .    .    .  field  pieces      0 

By  Genei-al  Johnson's  division  at  Graysville field  i)ieees      4 

By  General  Baird's  division  on  Missionary  Ridge  ....  field  pieces  1 
Claimed  by  Generals  Baird  and  Wood  Missionary  Ridge  field  pieces  (J 
Claimed  by  Genei"als  Wood  and  Sheridan  Missionary 

Ridge field  pieces      6 

It  will  be  seen  from  this  report  that  Wood's  division  is 
far  ahead  in  the  number  of  captured  cannon  turned  into  the 
jH'oper  authorities.  Of  Wood's  capture,  Beatty 's  brigade  lays 
claim  to  eight  guns,  two  of  which  were  brought  in  by  the 
Eighty -sixth  Indiana.  Besides  this,  Wood's  division  cap- 
tured seven  regimental  colors,  2,050  stands  of  arms,  and  over 
2,000  prisoners.  Among  the  prisoners  were  officers  of  all 
grfides,  Captain  W.  S.  Sims,  of  the  Eighty-sixth,  capturing 
on  top  of  tlio  Ridge,  Major  W.  P.  Fergus,  of  the  Forty-sec- 
ond Alabama.  As  to  how  this  was  done  Colonel  Dick,  in  a 
letter  afterward,  says:  "The  advance  troops  of  our  brigade 
turned  quickly  to  the  left,  with  my  flag  in  front  in  command 
of  Captain  Sims.  They  soon  came  against  a  redoubt  manned 
by  the  Forty-second  Alabama,  the  commander  of  which  saw 
our  flag  coming,  and  told  his  men  to  lie  still  and  they  would 
sally  out  and  capture  it  when  it  came  near.  Sims  told  his 
men  that  they  must  take  that  rebel  flag.  The  commander  of 
the  Alabama  regiment  called  to  his  men  to  leap  over  the 
works  after  him,  but  they  arose  and  leaped  out  on  the  other 
side,  leaving  their  commander  to  fall  into  our  hands;  and  he 
did  fall,  hurting  his  face  on  the  rocks,  at  Sims'  feet,  who  lit- 
erally got  on  top  of  him  and  held  him  down.  He  took  sup- 
per with  us  that  night  and  told  us  all  that  I  have  described 
above."  Bragg's  loss  was  about  3,100  in  killed  and  wounded, 
and  nearly  7,000  prisoners.  Of  the  latter  239  were  commis- 
siojiod  officers. 

The  casualties  reported  in  the  Union  army,  in  the  series 
of  struggles  which  ended  in  the  victory  at  Missionary  Ridge, 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  275 

were  753  killed,  4,722  wounded,  and  349  missing,  making  an 
aggregate  of  5,824.  Of  this  total  the  Army  of  the  Tennessee 
lost  1,695,  and  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland  4,129,  of  which 
the  Fourth  corps  lost  2,527,  the  Eleventh  corps  330,  the 
Twelfth  corps  341,  and  the  Fourteenth  corps  931. 

The  heroic  conduct  of  the  Seventy-ninth  and  Eighty - 
sixth  Indiana  on  Missionary  Ridge  was  witnessed  by  Cai3- 
tain  Reilly,  of  the  Tenth  Kentucky.  He  penned  a  vivid  ac- 
count of  what  he  saw  for  the  Louisville  Journal,  which  ap- 
peared in  that  paper  directly  after  the  battle.  It  will  be  re- 
membered that  the  Tenth  Kentucky  was  in  Baird's  division, 
and  therefore  he  was  not  interested  in  the  Seventy-ninth  or 
Eighty-sixth.  His  statements  may  therefore  be  accepted  as 
unbiased.     The  following  is  Captain's  Reilly 's  letter: 

"The  summit  of  Missionary  Ridge  is  one  thousand  feet 
above  the  Tennessee  river  and  towers  aloft  in  grandeur,  a 
fitting  monument  to  commemorate  the  great  victory  achieved 
by  our  national  arms  on  the  memorable  25th  of  November. 
On  that  day  the  Star  Spangled  Banner  could  be  discerned 
slowly  scaling  the  steep  and  rugged  ascent,  riveting  the 
gaze  of  thousands  of  anxious  spectators  in  the  line  of  battle 
below.  It  seemed  that  the  Eighty-sixth  and  Seventy-ninth 
Indiana  had  failed  to  receive  orders  to  halt  when  it  was 
given  to  the  line  of  battle.  Onward  they  moved  as  it  were 
into  the  jaws  of  death.  The  terrible  sus])ense  of  their  brave 
comrades  was  only  equaled  by  the  great  Napoleon  when  he 
stood  on  the  summit  of  a  ridge  at  Waterloo  gazing  between 
hope  and  despair  at  the  last  grand  charge  of  his  Old  Guard 
until  they  were  lost  sight  of  in  the  clouds  of  smoke  of  the 
enemy's  cannon.  Step  by  step  they  ascended  until  within 
fifty  yards  of  tlie  bristling  bayonets  of  the  rebel  rifles  when 
they  received  the  order  to  lie  down.  The  rebels  opened  on 
them  and  volley  after  volley  was  poured  into  their  ranks, 
midst  the  wild  and  enthusiastic  shouts  of  the  rebels,  and  de- 
fiant waving  of  the  Stars  and  Bars — said  to  have  been  done 
by  Bragg  in  person.  Springing  to  their  feet  with  the  energy 
of  desperation  the  glorious  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  leads  the 
grand  charge  to  victory  or  death,  followed  by  the  Seventy- 


27U  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

ninth  Indiana,  and  onward  they  pushed  their  columns 
through  a  shower  of  bullets  that  rattled  like  hail  and  were 
lost  to  view  in  the  smoke  of  battle.  A  death  stillness  per- 
vaded the  line  of  battle  below  for  a  few  moments,  when  the 
anxious  inquiry  j)assed  along  the  lines,  'Is  our  flag  still 
there?  '  It  seemed  like  hoping  against  hope  to  expect  that 
the  two  regiments  had  mot  any  other  fate  than  instant  anni- 
hilation; every  minute  seemed  a  month  for  half  an  hour,  at 
the  end  of  which  time  the  smoke  had  disappeared  and  our 
glorious  flag  greeted  the  anxious  spectators,  floating  in 
triumph  over  the  rebel  works.  It  was  the  war-worn  banner 
of  the  immortal  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  which  was  held  until 
re-iuforccmcnts  came  and  secured  the  position  gained  by  the 
most  daring  and  terrible  charge  that  history  ever  recorded. 
The  flag  of  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  that  sealed  this  victory 
received  in  its  folds  eighty-six  shots,  emblematic  of  the  regi- 
ment it  so  gallantly  led  through  the  ranks  of  death  to  a 
crowning  victory.  The  stafC  was  broken  by  a  ball,  but  it 
still  waves  over  one  of  the  most  gallant  regiments  that  ever 
entered  the  field  of  battle.  The  answer  on  that  memorable 
night  to  ten  thousand  inquiries  infused  a  new  spirit  in  the 
army  as  it  responded  along  the  line,  '  Yes,  our  flag  is  still 
there.'  Forty  thousand  spectators  who  witnessed  the  bril- 
liant scene  and  asked  the  question  while  held  in  fearful  sus- 
pense, will  ask  it  as  often  as  returning  memory  brings  to 
mind  the  grand  charge  of  the  two  gallant  regiments  on  Mis- 
sionary Ridge.  Who  will  commemorate  this  great  achieve- 
ment and  the  thrilling  incidents  associated  with  it,  in  poetry? 
The  subject  is  eminently  worthy  of  our  best  poets  and  could 
be  embodied  in  a  National  anthem  that  would  inspire  all 
patriotic  hearts  with  renewed  devotion  to  the  glorious  flag 
of  our  country." 

Cai)tain  Reilly  has  one  error  in  his  account.  He  says 
llie  flag  of  the  Eighty-sixth  received  eighty-six  balls  in  its 
folds.  There  were  eighty-eight  bullet  holes  in  the  flag  itself, 
one  struck  the  spear-head  above  the  flag  and  a  grape-shot 
cut  tlic  staff  off  below  the  flag,  making  in  all  ninety  balls 
that  struck  the  flag  and  statt". 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  211 

Perhaps  the  finest  general  description  of  the  assault  by 
the  Fourth  corps  on  Missionary  Ridge  was  written  by  B.  P. 
Taylor,  the  poet.  He  makes  the  mistake  of  crediting  Gen- 
eral Grant  with  conceiving  the  idea  of  the  assault  upon  the 
Ridge.  Dr.  L.  B.  Brockett,  in  his  work,  "Camp,  Battle- 
field, and  Hospital,"  says,  introducing  Taylor's  descrip- 
tion: "The  bold  and  rapid  movement,  by  which,  while 
marshaled,  as  the  enemy  supposed,  for  dress-parade,  the 
Army  of  the  Cumberland  swept  across  the  plain  and  captured 
Orchard  Knob;  that  succession  of  fierce  and  persistent  strug- 
gles in  which  Sherman  wrestled  for  the  capture  of  Tunnel 
Hill,  and  by  which  he  drew  to  that  point  so  large  a  portion 
of  Bragg 's  troops;  and  last  and  most  glorious  of  all  that  fiery 
ascent  of  Missionary  Ridge,  in  wdiich  that  noble  Fourth  corps 
marched  and  climbed  for  a  long  hour  through  a  furnace  of 
fiame,  and  after  struggling  up  an  ascent  so  steep  that  to 
climb  it  unopposed  would  take  the  stoutest  energies,  swept 
their  enemies  from  its  summit,  and  over  all  the  broad  vista 
disclosed  from  its  summit,  saw  only  a  flying  and  utterly 
routed  foe.  Many  writers  have  attempted  to  describe,  and 
with  varying  success,  this  brilliant  feat  of  arms,  but  none 
have  succeeded  so  admirably  as  Mr.  B.  F.  Taylor,  of  the  Chi- 
cago Journal,  himself  an  eye-witness  of  it.  We  give  a  portion 
of  his  description  which  is  as  truthful  as  it  is  glowing.  Mr. 
Taylor  writes: 

"The  brief  November  afternoon  was  half  gone;  it  was  yet 
thundering  on  the  left;  along  the  center  all  was  still.  At 
that  very  hour  a  fierce  assault  was  made  upon  the  enemy's 
left  near  Rossville  four  miles  down  toward  the  old  field  of 
Chickamauga.  They  carried  the  Ridge;  Missionary  Ridge 
seems  everywhere — they  strewed  its  summit  with  rebel  dead; 
they  held  it.  And  thus  the  tips  of  the  Federal  army 's  wide- 
spread wings  flapped  grandly.  But  had  not  swooped;  the 
gray  quarry  yet  perched  upon  Missionary  Ridge;  the  rebel 
army  was  terribly  battered  at  the  edges,  but  there  full  in 
our  front  it  grimly  waited,  biding  out  its  time.  H  the  horns 
of  the  rebel  crescent  could  not  be  doubled  crush ingly  to- 
gether, in  a  shapeless  mass,  possibly  it  might  be  sundered  at 


27S  THK  EIGHTY-SIXTH    RECilMENT, 

its  center,  and  tumbled  in  fragments  over  the  other  side  of 
Missionary  Ridge.  Sherman  was  halted  upon  the  left; 
Hooker  was  hard  in  Chattanooga  valley;  the  Fourth  corps, 
that  rounded  out  our  center,  grew  impatient  of  restraint;  the 
day  was  waning;  but  little  time  remained  to  complete  the 
commanding  General's  grand  design;  Gordon  Granger's  hour 
had  come;  his  work  was  full  before  him. 

"And  what  a  work  that  was  to  make  a  weak  man  falter 
and  a  brave  man  think!  One  and  a  half  miles  to  traverse, 
with  narrow  fringes  of  woods,  rough  valleys,  sweeps  of 
open  field,  rocky  acclivities,  to  the  base  of  the  Ridge,  and  no 
foot  in  all  the  breadth  withdrawn  from  rebel  sight;  no  foot 
that  could  not  be  XDlayed  upon  by  rebel  cannon,  like  a  piano 
keys,  under  Thalberg's  stormy  lingers.  The  base  attained, 
what  then'?  A  heavy  rebel  work.  That  work  carried,  and 
what  then'?  A  hill,  struggling  up  out  of  the  valley,  four 
hundred  feet,  rained  on  by  bullets,  swept  by  shot  and  shell; 
another  line  of  works,  and  then,  up  like  a  Gothic  roof  rough 
with  rocks,  a  wreck  with  fallen  trees,  four  hundred  more; 
another  ring  of  lire  and  iron,  and  then  the  crest,  and  then 
the  enemy, 

"To  dream  of  such  a  journey  would  be  madness;  to  devise 
it  a  thing  incredible;  to  do  it  a  deed  impossible.  *  *  The 
story  of  the  battle  of  Missionary  Ridge  is  struck  with  immor- 
tality already;  let  the  leader  of  the  Fourth  corjDs  bear  it  com- 
pany. 

"That  the  center  yet  lies  along  its  silent  line  is  still  true; 
in  live  minutes  it  will  be  the  wildest  fiction.  Lotus  take  that 
little  bj-ealh  of  grace  for  just  one  glance  at  the  surroundings, 
since  we  shall  have  neither  heart  nor  eyes  for  it  again.  Did 
ever  battle  have  so  vast  a  cloud  of  witnesses'?  The  hive 
shaped  hills  have  swarmed.  Clustered  like  bees,  blackening 
the  housetops,  lining  the  fortifications,  over  yonder  acr<),sii 
the  theater,  in  the  seats  with  the  Catilines,  everywhere,  are  a 
hundred  thousand  beholders.  Their  souls  are  in  their  eyes. 
Not  a  murmur  can  you  hear.  It  is  the  most  solemn  congre- 
gation that  ever  stood  up  in  the  presence  of  the  God  of  bat- 
tles.    I  think  of  Bunker  Hill  as  I  stand  here;  of  the  thousands 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  279 

who  witnessed  the  immortal  struggle;  and  fancy  there  is  a 
parallel.  I  think,  too,  that  the  chair  of  every  man  of  them 
will  stand  vacant  against  the  wall  to-morrow,  and  that  around 
the  fireside  they  must  give  thanks  without  him  if  they  can. 

"Generals  Grant,  Thomas,  and  Granger  conferred,  an 
order  was  given,  and  in  an  instant  the  Knob  was  cleared 
like  a  ship's  deck  for  action.  At  twenty  minutes  of  four, 
Granger  stood  upon  the  parapet;  the  bugle  sw^ung  idle  at  the 
bugler's  side,  the  warbling  fife  and  the  grumbling  drum  un- 
heard— there  was  to  be  louder  talk — six  guns,  at  intervals  of 
two  seconds,  the  signal  to  advance.  Strong  and  steady  his 
voice  rang  out:  'Number  one,  fire!  Number  two,  fire!  Number 
three,  fire!'  it  seemed  to  me  the  tolling  of  the  clock  of  des- 
tiny— and  when  at  'Number  six,  fire!'  the  roar  throbbed  out 
with  a  flash,  you  should  have  seen  the  dead  line  that  had 
been  lying  behind  the  works  all  day,  all  night,  all  day  again, 
come  to  resurrection  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye — leap  like  a 
blade  from  its  scabbard,  and  sweep  with  a  two  mile  stroke 
toward  the  Ridge. 

"From  divisions  to  brigades,  from  brigades  to  regi- 
ments, the  orders  ran.  A  minute,  and  the  skirmishers 
deploy;  a  minute,  and  the  first  great  drops  begin  to  patter 
along  the  line;  a  minute,  and  the  musketry  is  in  full  play, 
like  the  crackling  whips  of  a  hemlock  fire;  men  go  down, 
here  and  there,  before  your  eyes;  the  wind  lifts  the  smoke 
and  drifts  it  away  over  the  top  of  the  Ridge;  every  thing  is 
too  distinct;  it  is  fairly  palpable:  you  can  touch  it  with  your 
hand.  The  divisions  of  Wood  and  Sheridan  are  wading 
breast  deep  in  the  valley  of  death. 

' '  I  never  can  tell  you  what  it  was  like.  They  pushed 
out  leaving  nothing  behind  them.  There  was  no  reservation 
in  that  battle.  On  moves  the  line  of  the  skirmishers,  like  a 
heavy  frown,  and  after  it,  at  quick  time,  the  splendid  col- 
umns. At  right  of  us,  and  left  of  us,  and  front  of  us,  you 
can  see  the  bayonets  glitter  in  the  sun.  *  * 

"And  so  through  the  fringe  of  w^oods  went  the  line. 
Now,  out  into  the  open  ground  they  burst  at  the  double- 
quick.     Shall  I  call  it  a  Sabbath  day's  journey,  or  a  long  one 


280  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

and  a  half  mile?  To  mc,  that  watched,  it  seemed  as  etern- 
ity, and  yet  they  made  it  in  thirty  minutes.  The  tempest 
that  now  brolve  upon  their  heads  was  terrible.  The  enemy's 
tire  burst  out  of  the  rifle-pits  from  base  to  summit  of  Mis 
sionary  Ridge;  five  rebel  batteries  of  Parrots  and  Napoleons 
opened  along  the  crest.  Grape  and  canister  and  shot  and 
shell  sowed  the  ground  with  rugged  iron,  and  garnished  it 
with  the  w^ounded  and  the  dead.  But  steady  and  strong,  oui- 
columns  move  on. 

"  Hy  huiivcus!  It  was  a  splendid  sijilit  to  sue. 
For  oiw  who  had  no  friend,  iiobrotlior  tliere." 

But  to  all  loyal  hearts,  alas!  and  thank  God,  those  men  were 
friend  and  brother,  both  in  one. 

■X-  *  *  -X-  -X-  -X-  -X-  «■  * 

"And  all  the  while  our  lines  were  moving  on;  they  had 
burned  through  the  woods  and  swept  over  the  rough  and 
rolling  ground  like  a  prarie  fire.  Never  halting,  never 
faltering,  they  charged  up  to  the  first  rifle-pits  with  a  cheer, 
forked  out  the  rebels  with  their  bayonets,  and  lay  there 
panting  for  breath.  If  the  thunder  of  guns  had  been  terri- 
ble it  was  now  growing  sublime;  it  was  like  the  footfall  of 
God  on  the  ledges  of  cloud.  Our  forts  and  batteries  still 
thrust  out  their  mighty  arms  across  the  valley;  the  rebel 
guns  that  lined  the  arc  of  the  crest  full  in  our  front,  opened 
like  a  fan  of  Lucifer  and  converged  their  fire  down  upon 
Baird,  and  Wood,  and  Sheridan.  It  was  rifles  and  musketry; 
it  was  grape  and  canister,  it  was  shell  and  shrapnel.  Mis- 
sionary Kidge  was  volcanic;  a  thousand  torrents  of  red 
poured  over  its  brink  and  rushed  together  to  its  base.  And 
our  men  were  there  halting  for  breath!  And  still  the  sub- 
lime diapason  rolls  on,  echoes  that  that  never  waked  before, 
roared  out  from  height  to  height,  and  called  from  the  far 
ranges  of  Walden's  Kidgo  to  Lookout.  As  for  Missionary 
Ridge,  it  had  jarred  to  such  music  before;  it  was  the  "sound- 
ing board"  of  Chickamauga;  it  was  behind  us  then;  it 
frowns  and  flashes  in  our  faces  to-day;  the  old  Army 
of  the  Cumberland  was  there;  it  breasted  the  storm  till 
the  storm  was  spent,  and  left  the  ground  it  held;  the  old 
Ai-niy  of  the  Cumberland  is  hero!     It  shall  roll  up  the  Ridge 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  281 

like  a  surge  to  its  summit,  and  sweep  triumphaut  down  the 
oilier  side.  Believ^e  me,  that  memory  and  hope  may  have 
made  the  heart  of  many  a  blue-coat  beat  like  a  drum. 
'Beat,'  did  I  say?  The  feverish  heat  of  hattle  beats  on; 
fifty  eight  guns  a  minute,  by  the  watch,  is  the  rate  of  its  ter- 
rible throbbing.  That  hill,  if  you  climb  it,  will  appal  you. 
Furrowed  like  a  summer-fallow,  bullets  as  if  an  oak  had  shed 
them;  trees  clipped  and  shorn,  leaf  and  limb,  as  with  the  knife 
of  some  heroic  gardener  pruning  back  for  richer  fruit.  How 
you  attain  the  summit  weary  and  breathless,  I  w^ait  to  hear; 

how  thcij  went  up  in  the  teeth  of  the  storm  no  man  can  tell. 
****** 

"But  our  gallant  legions  are  out  in  the  storm;  they  have 
carried  the  works  at  the  base  of  the  Ridge;  they  have  fallen 
like  leaves  in  winter  weather.  Blow%  dumb  bugles!  Sound 
the  recall!  'Take  the  rifle-pits, '  w^as  the  order;  and  it  is  as 
empty  of  rebels  as  the  tomb  of  the  prophets.  Shall  they 
turn  their  backs  to  the  blastV  Shall  they  sit  down  under  the 
eves  of  the  dripping  iron?  Or  shall  they  climb  to  the  cloud 
of  death  above  them,  and  pluck  out  its  lightning  as  they 
woukl  straw^s  from  a  sheaf  of  wheat?  But  the  order  was 
not  given.  And  now  the  arc  of  fire  on  the  crest  grows  fiercer 
and  longer.  The  reconnoissance  of  Monday  had  failed  to  de- 
velop the  heavy  metal  of  the  enemy.  The  dull  fringe  of  the 
hill  kindles  with  the  flash  of  great  guns.  I  count  the  fleeces 
of  white  smoke  that  dot  the  Ridge,  as  battery  after  battery 
oi)ens  upon  our  line,  until  from  the  ends  of  the  growing  arc 
they  sweep  down  upon  it  in  mighty  Xs  of  fire.  I  count  till 
that  devil's  girdle  numbers  thirteen  batteries,  and  my  heart 
cries  out,  'Great  God,  when  shall  the  end  be?'  There  is  a 
poem  I  learned  in  childhood,  and  so  did  you:  it  is  Campbell's 
'Hohenlinden. '  One  line  I  never  knew  the  meaning  of  until 
I  read  it  written  along  that  hill!  It  has  lighted  up  the  whole 
poem  for  me  with  the  glow  of  battle  forever: 

And  loudor  lluiii  the  bolts  of  heaven, 
Far  flashed  tlie  red  arlillerv. 

"At  this  moment,  General  Granger's  aides  are  dashing 
out  with  an  order;  they  radiate  over  the  field,  to  the  left, 
right,    and  front;   'Take  the  Ridge  if  you  can' — 'Take  the 


282  TIIK  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

Ridge  if  you  can" — and  so  it  went  along  the  line.  Bnt  the 
adrdiirc  had  alrcddi/  set  forth  loithout  it.  Stout-hearted  Wood, 
the  iron-gray  veteran,  is  rallying  on  his  men. 

"And  now  you  have  one  of  the  most  startling  episodes 
of  the  war;  I  cannot  remember  it  in  words;  dictionaries  are 
beggarly  things.  But  I  inaij  tell  you  they  did  not  storm  that 
mountain  as  you  think.  They  dash  out  a  little-way,  and  then 
slacken;  they  creep  up,  hand  over  hand,  loading  and  firing, 
and  wavering  and  halting,  from  the  first  line  of  works  to  the 
second;  they  burst  into  a  charge  with  a  cheer,  and  go  over  it. 
Sheets  of  Ihune  baptize  them;  plunging  shot  tear  away  com- 
rades on  the  left  and  right;  it  is  no  longer  shoulder  to  shoul- 
der; it  is  God  for  us  all!  Under  tree  trunks,  among  rocks, 
stumbling  over  the  dead,  struggling  with  the  living,  facing 
the  stctuly  fire  of  eight  thousand  infantry  poured  down  upon 
their  heads  as  if  it  were  the  old  historic  curse  from  heaven, 
they  wrestle  with  the  Ridge.  Ten,  fifteen,  twenty  minutes 
go  by  like  a  reluctant  century.  The  batteries  roll  like  a 
dream;  between  the  second  and  last  lines  of  rebel  works  is 
the  torrid  zone  of  the  battle;  the  hill  sways  u])  like  a^wall  be- 
fore them  at  an  angle  of  forty-five  degrees,  but  our  brave 
mountaineers  are  climbing  steadily  on — up — upward  still! 
You  may  think  it  strange,  but  I  would  not  have  recalled  them 
if  I  covdd.  They  would  have  lifted  you,  as  they  did  me,  in 
full  view  of  the  heroic  grandeur;  they  seemed  to  be  simrniug 
the  dull  earth  undei-  their  feet,  and  going  up  to  do  Homeric 
battle  with  the  greater  gods. 

What  colors  were  first  upon  the  mountain  battlement  I 
dare  not  try  to  say;  bright  honor  itself  may  be  proud  to  bear 
— nay,  proud  to  follow  the  hindmost.  Foot  by  foot  they  had 
fought  uj)  the  steep,  slippery  with  much  blood;  let  them 
go  U)  glory  togetlier.  But  this  I  can  declare:  the  Seven- 
ty-ninth and  Eighty-sixth  Indiana,  of  Wood's  division,  fairly 
ran  over  the  rifle-pits,  and  left  their  whole  line  in  the  rear, 
and  their  breathless  color  bearers  led  the  way.  A  minute 
and  they  were  all  there,  fluttering  along  the  Ridge  from  left 
to  right.  The  rebel  hordes  rolled  off  to  the  north,  rolled  off 
to  the  east,  like  the  clouds  of  a  worn  out  storm. 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  283 

'•These  three  days'  work  brought  Tennessee  to  resur- 
rection; set  the  flag,  that  fairest  blossom  in  all  the  flowery 
world,  to  blooming  in  its  native  soil  once  more. 

"It  made  that  fleeting  November  afternoon  imperish- 
able. Than  the  assault  upon  Missionary  Kidge,  I  know  of 
nothing  more  gallant  in  the  annals  of  the  war.  Let  it  rank 
foremost  with  the  storming  of  Fort  Scharnitz  and  Alma,  that 
covered  the   French  arms  with  undying  fame. 

-X-  -X-  -X-  *  *  -X-  * 

Let  the  struggle  be  known  as  the  battle  of  Missionary 
Ridge,  and  when,  in  calmer  days,  men  make  pilgrimage,  and 
women  smile  again  among  the  mountains  of  the  Cumberland, 
they  will  need  no  guide.  Rust  will  have  eaten  the  guns;  the 
graves  of  the  heroes  will  have  subsided  like  waves;  weary  of 
their  troubling,  the  soldier  and  his  leader  will  have  lain 
down  together;  but  there  embossed  upon  the  globe,  Mission- 
ary Ridge  will  stand  its  litting  monument  forever. " 


CHAPTER   XVIII. 
ON  TO  KNOXVILLE. 

After  the  Battle  the  Rescue— Throu^Mi  Mud  and  TlirouRh  Stream— Over  Hill  and 
Down  Dale— The  Fourth  Corps  Marched  to  Succor  the  Army  of  the  Ohio  aud 
the  Gallant  Burnside— An  Attenuated  Diet— Parched  Corn  and  Government 
Bacon— An  Exciting  Though  Amusing  Incident— The  Arrival  at  Knoxville— 
A  "Sick  Flour"  Experience. 

Immediately  after  the  successful  assault  on  Missionary 
Ridge,  the  Fourth  corps,  commanded  by  Major  General  Gor- 
don Granger,  was  ordered  by  General  Grant  to  march  at 
once  to  the  relief  of  General  A.  E.  Burnside  and  the 
Army  of  the  Ohio,  besieged  at  Knoxville  by  Lieutenant 
General  James  B.  Longstreet,  then  the  Confederate's  most 
skillful  and  daring  battle  chief.  Lee  had  called  Longstreet 
his  "  old  war  horse,  "  as  Longstreet  himself  records.  After 
a  rainy  night,  on  the  morning  of  the  28th  of  November  the 


284  TH13  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

bugles  of  the  Fourth  corps  sound cd  the  reveille  at  4  o'clock. 
The  rei,nmeiit  formed  by  companies,  answered  roll-call,  pre- 
pared and  ate  breakfast,  and  was  ready  for  the  march.  The 
orders  were  to  march  at  6  a.  m.,  but  it  continued  to  rain  and 
the  order  to  move  was  not  given  until  2  p.  m.  The  Eighty - 
sixth  was  soon  ready.  The  regiment  was  ordered  into  line 
and  stacked  arms,  after  which  the  men  lounged  about  the  old 
cam])  and  discussed  the  probable  course  of  the  march,  the 
time  it  would  require  to  reach  Knoxville,  the  general  results 
and  the  thousand  and  one  things  that  soldiers  are  always 
discussing  when  time  and  opportunity  for  discussion  are 
given.  However,  about  4:30  p.  m.  the  word  was  given  to 
"Forward  march,"  and  the  regiment  was  enroute  for  Knox- 
ville and  the  relief  of  Burnside. 

Although  late  in  starting,  it  was  not  too  late.  The  men 
were  heavily  laden  with  rations,  ammunition,  blankets, 
and  tents,  and  all  the  paraphernalia  of  the  infantry  soldier. 
The  roads  were  execrable  and  the  marching  was  weari- 
some. It  was  a  forced  march,  as  the  object  was  to  suc- 
cor and  relieve  the  besieged  army  at  Knoxville.  The  first 
evening  the  command  covered  four  miles  and  bivouacked 
after  dark.  The  Eighty-sixth,  however,  did  not  have  the 
})leasurc  of  sharing  the  bivouac  with  the  command,  it  being 
detailed  for  picket.  Performing  picket  duty  while  on  a 
march  is  what  might  be  considered  doing  double  duty,  but 
then  it  was  one  of  the  "diversions"  in  the  life  of  soldiers. 
The  evening  was  pleasant  but  as  the  night  advanced  it 
became  quite  cold  and  all  who  were  at  all  exposed  were  j 
thoroughly  chilled. 

Sunday  morning,  November  2d,  the  regiment  was  up  by 
4  o'clock,  and  after  a  hasty  meal  was  soon  ready  for  another  i 
day's  tiresome  dragging  through  the  mud.  Resumed  the 
march  about  daylight,  but  little  progress  was  made  because  of 
so  many  halts.  About  noon  the  command  halted  for  dinner. 
Tlie  march  was  resumed  at  1  o'clock,  and  shortly  afterward 
crossed  the  South  Chickamauga  creek.  The  pace  ,was  still 
moderate  and  continued  so  until  about  one  hour  before  sun- 
down, when  it  was  quickened,  and  the  regiment  marched  rap- 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  285 

idly  forward.  The  roads  were  muddy,  b^^t  mud  was  not  to 
be  considered.  Nothin^^  was  to  be  thouecht  of  only  to  attain 
the  highest  rate  of  speed  possible  and  maintain  it.  The  reg- 
iment went  splashing  along  through  the  mud  like  so  many 
wild  horses,  wading  streams  knee-deep  and  deeper,  stopjiing 
for  no  obstacle,  halting  for  no  rest  it  pressed  forward  until 
the  sweat  ran  from  every  jyove,  notwithstanding  the  night 
was  cold.  This  rate  of  speed  was  maintained  until  9  o'clock, 
when  the  command  arrived  at  Harrison,  twelve  miles  from 
Chattanooga,  and  bivouacked.  The  men  were  wet  to  their 
trunks  by  plunging  into  mud  holes  and  wading  streams. 
Their  bodies  were  heated  and  damp  with  perspiration  from 
their  great  exertion,  and  these  unfavorable  conditions  caused 
them  to  suffer  intensely  from  the  cold  as  soon  as  the  halt 
was  called.  In  fact,  they  were  nearly  frozen  before  fires 
could  be  started  to  warm  and  dry  their  clothing.  But  finally 
the  fires  burned  brightly  and  the  coffee  boiled.  After  supper 
the  fortunate  ones  sat  round  the  bivouac  fires,  and  parched 
corn  and  ate  it  for  an  hour  or  so  before  retiring  in  order  to 
economize  their  scant  supply  of  rations. 

On  the  following  morning  the  bugles  sounded  reveille  at 
4  o'clock,  and  the  regiment's  bivouac  was  soon  lit  up  by  the 
bright  fires,  and  dark  forms  could  be  seen  flitting  here  and 
there  preparing  the  morning  meal  for  the  various  messes. 
The  morning  was  clear  and  cold.  The  column  set  forward  at 
the  appointed  time.  The  whole  force  went  forward  with  all 
the  speed  possible,  and  it  was  maintained  until  the  endur- 
ance of  all  was  taxed  to  the  uttermost.  Many  fell  behind 
their  comrades.  Excellent  time  was  made.  An  occasional 
halt  was  allowed  for  a  brief  rest,  else  the  speed  could  not 
have  been  so  long  maintained  over  such  roads.  A  brief  halt 
at  noon  for  dinner  revived  and  refreshed  many  who  would 
otlierwise  have  been  unable  to  keep  their  place  in  the  column. 
Bad  as  the  roads  were  General  Wood's  division  covered 
twenty-four  miles  during  the  day.  All  were  tired,  stiff,  and 
sore  when  camp  was  reached.  To  add  to  the  exhaustion  of 
the  men,  rails  for  fuel  had  to  be  carried  a  long  distance. 
Weary  as  they  were  some  of  tlie  boys  had  the  pluck  to  gather 


286  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

in  and  brinj?  to  camp  some  provender  found  by  the  wayside. 
It  was  needed  as  they  journeyed  on  their  pilgrimage. 

On  the  following  morning,  December  1,  it  was  expected 
to  resume  the  march  early,  but  having  to  cross  the  Hiwassee 
river  on  a  boat,  Wood's  division,  at  least  Beatty's  brigade, 
was  delayed.  The  boys  remained  about  the  bivouac  fires 
whiling  away  the  time  by  parching  corn.  The  command  at 
this  camp  drew  that  which  purported  to  be  three  days' 
rations  of  hard  bread,  sugar  and  coffee,  but  the  allowance 
was  very  scant.  The  rest  given  by  this  waiting  would  have 
been  most  gratefully  accepted  had  the  men  not  known  that 
they  would  have  to  pay  for  it  with  the  most  painful  and 
weary  leg  service.  The  command  crossed  the  Hiwassee  on 
a  boat  called  the  "Paint Rock"  between  6  and  9  o'clock  p.  m., 
and  got  to  camp  at  9:30,  bivouacking  a  mile  from  the  river 
in  a  thicket  of  brush. 

On  the  morning  of  December  2,  the  command  resumed 
its  line  of  march  at  daylight,  and  pressed  forward  as  rapidly 
as  the  condition  of  the  roads  would  permit.  The  roads  were 
heavy  and  the  marching  extremely  slavish.  The  men  became 
greatly  exhausted,  many  falling  behind.  A  half  hour  halt  at 
noon  for  dinner  refreshed  tlie  men  and  the  column  pushed 
ahead,  passing  through  Decatur,  the  county-seat  of  Meigs 
county,  and  bivouacked,  having  marched  seventeen  miles. 
The  men  were  aware  of  the  object  of  the  march  and  the  lit- 
tle murmuring  indulged  was  not  proportionate  to  the  hard- 
ships endured. 

Reveille  was  sounded  at  4  o'clock  the  following  morning. 
The  "thin  clear  notes"  of  the  last  bugle  sounded  to  waken 
the  weary  soldiery  had  not  ceased  their  echoing  when  the 
flames  of  fires  began  to  leap,  fiicker,  and  play  and  throw 
backward  from  them  the  gloom  of  night.  Fires  speedily 
si)rang  up,  and  the  moving  torches  carried  to  kindle  other 
more  distant  fires  revealed  the  muffled  forms  of  the  more 
drowsy  comrades,  the  stacked  arms,  the  cooking  utensils, 
and  the  many  wild,  strange  scenes  which  are  common  to  the 
bivouac  of  a  campaigning  force.  A  bivouac  is  bizarre  at  best, 
but  that  of  a  command  on  a  forced  march  is  of  the  rudest 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  287 

and  most  grotesque  form.  Such  was  this  morning's  bivouac. 
Many  of  the  boys  weary  and  sleepy  as  only  soldiers  can  get, 
after  hurling  some  fierce  denunciation  at  the  "blasted 
bugler, "  slept  again  after  reveille.  But  they  had  as  little 
time  for  sleeping  as  others  had  for  noting  the  beauty,  and 
the  picturesqueness  of  their  surroundings.  The  morning 
meal  was  to  be  prepared  and  eaten;  cooking  utensils  were  to 
be  packed  for  marching;  blankets  were  to  be  rolled  up;  in 
short,  all  those  things  which  are  so  necessary  to  the  soldier 
when  in  camp  and  so  cumbersome  to  him  in  ranks,  were  to 
be  arranged  that  they  might  least  feel  the  burden.  These 
things  emphasized  themselves  on  this  march  as  it  was  not 
one  where  "the  column  dragged  its  slow  length  along,"  but 
a  rushing  one  to  succor  and  to  save  comrades  in  extremest 
peril.  The  command  was  led  by  the  grandest  of  all  raiders, 
the  gallant  and  matchless  Sherman,  who  marched  with  un- 
approachable celerity,  and  struck,  with  unerring  aim,  blows 
that  went  home  to  the  heart  of  the  Confederacy.  Therefore, 
it  was  neccessary  to  start  in  the  morning  of  every  day's 
march  in  the  best  possible  trim.  But  the  command  was  soon 
ready,  and  just  at  sun-rise  the  Eighty-sixth  filed  out  from  its 
bivouac  on  to  the  road.  The  column  set  forward  at  once, 
halting  only  for  brief  rests  every  three  or  four  miles  until 
1:30  p.  m.  when,  upon  reaching  Pond  Spring,  "thirty  min- 
utes for  dinner"  was  announced.  The  meal  consisted  of  the 
conventional  hard  tack,  of  which  the  supply  was  almost  ex- 
hausted, bacon  and  coifee.  At  2  o'clock  the  tramp  was  re- 
sumed at  the  same  rapid  gait  as  before.  On  that  afternoon's 
mai'ch  the  men  were  informed  by  the  officers  that  they  would 
not  draw  any  more  rations  until  they  reached  Knoxville — not 
very  encouraging  information  to  a  hungry  set  of  men.  About 
this  time  the  command  turned  from  its  easterly  line  of  inarch 
and  bore  off  nearly  due  south,  crossing  a  low  mountainous 
ridge  into  a  fine  open  valley.  Covering  three  or  four  miles 
after  crossing  the  ridge  it  came  to  a  nice  little  town  called 
Sweetwater,  situated  in  the  valley  which  is  known  by  the 
same  name.  Wood's  division  passed  beyond  the  town  one 
mile  and  bivouacked  on  a  slight  elevation  of  gi'ouud   in  an 


288  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

open  field  with  a  higher  wooded  hill  to  the  southeast  and 
three  hundred  yards  distant.  The  regiment  and  most  of  the 
brigade  stacked  arms  in  line  with  this  rise  of  ground,  and  its 
line  of  battle  facing  southeast. 

With  the  alacrity  which  the  necessity  of  fleeting  oppor- 
tunity imposes  on  the  slothful  and  inspires  in  the  more  ener- 
getic, the  men  quickly  had  a  snug  pile  of  rails  and  were 
busily  engaged  in  preparing  to  make  themselves  as  comfort- 
able for  the  night  as  a  limited  "commissary  department" 
would  permit.  It  was  at  this  Sweetwater  camp  thtit  a  thrill- 
ing and  exciting  incident  occurred  which  all  who  were  with 
the  regiment  on  that  march  will  remember.  The  principal 
actors  were  W.  W.  Barnes  and  John  D.  Packer,  of  Company 
H.  The  announcement  that  no  more  rations  would  be  issued 
until  Knoxville  was  reached  induced  these  two  soldiers  to 
sally  out  of  camp  on  an  independent  foraging  expedition 
before  the  picket  line  was  established. 

Packer  was  an  original  character,  the  like  of  which  is 
seldom  seen  actively  engaged  in  the  exercise  of  all  of  his 
fully  developed  powers  in  the  respectable  walks  of  civil  life. 
In  i)erson  he  was  tall  and  well  ])roportioned.  He  was  young, 
active  and  apparently  tireless,  generally  good  humored  but 
sometimes  irritable,  venting  his  ill-humor  on  his  comrades. 
A  natural  straggler  and  forager  when  on  the  march,  he  re- 
fused to  be  confined  to  the  ranks,  always  looking  for  and 
scenting  plunder.  He  w^ould  pillage  on  the  left  flank  in  the 
morning  and  bestow  his  plunder  upon  his  comrades  at  the 
noon-halt  with  unrivaled  prodigality.  He  would  renew  his 
ravages  in  the  afternoon  on  the  right  flank  despoiling  lar- 
ders, sacking  smoke-houses,  and  devastating  barn-yards  and 
poultry  roosts,  bribing  messmates  to  carry  the  spoils  to  camp 
by  the  prospect  of  a  feast,  but  guarding  and  hoarding  the 
loot  when  it  once  reached  the  bivouac  with  a  miser's  care 
and  crabbedness,  for  he  had  a  soldier's  stomach  and  appetite. 
He  had  fairly  earned  his  various  titles  of  "pot-hound,  "  "  jay- 
hawl\(>r,  "  "  poacher,  "  and  "bummer."  As  a  vigorous  uni- 
versal "in  gatherer  of  provender"  he  would  have  taken 
rank  with  General  Dan  Macauley's  famous  "  pirooter  "  in  his 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  289 

palmiest  days.  A  lark  in  the  morning-,  a  hawk  at  noon,  and 
an  owl  at  night.  He  could  double  discount  skunk,  weasel, 
and  fox  combined  in  catching  chickens.  He  would  filch 
from  the  dignified  country  gentleman,  or  his  old  decrepit 
African  "mamma"  with  equal  indiiference.  In  the  very 
wantonness  of  this  "pirooting"  spirit,  he  would  steathily 
abstract  the  choicest  viands  from  the  table  of  the  most  beau- 
tiful and  refined  lady,  who,  out  of  the  goodness  of  her  heart 
and  in  the  most  gracious  manner,  had  bestowed  upon  him 
enough  of  excellent  food  to  satisfy  hunger  for  days  all  of 
which  he  would  receive  with  the  greatest  humility  and  even 
servility,  or  he  would  rob  the  half  naked,  poorly  fed  pick- 
aninny of  its  coarest  corn-dodger  and  its  greasiest  "sop" 
with  a  nonchalance  of  manner  and  buffoonery  of  action 
which  both  astonished  the  beholder  and  forced  him  to  laugh, 
in  spite  of  his  better  nature,  at  the  ridiculous  conduct.  Such 
was  his  indifference  that  it  was  often  a  question  whether  it 
arose  from  a  heart  devoid  of  sympathy  or  from  a  lack  of 
intelligence. 

In  a  very  few  minutes  after  reaching  the  place  of  bivouac 
they  were  ready.  Barnes  took  nothing  but  a  large  butcher 
knife  and  Packer  his  gun  and  a  few  cartridges  in  his  pocket. 
Not  thinking  of  the  hard  march  they  had  made,  but  antici- 
pating the  nice  piece  of  fresh  Tennessee  pork  they  would 
bring  back  to  camp,  they  sallied  forth  in  high  hopes.  Glanc- 
ing up  at  the  sun  to  calculate  the  time  at  their  disposal  they 
sped  away  at  a  rapid  pace.  Barnes  with  his  quick,  strong, 
sweeping  stride  in  the  lead,  followed  by  Packer  with  his  gun 
on  his  shoulder  and  with  a  quick,  jerking  step  and  his  hat 
cocked  over  his  eyes.  "You  may  go  ahead  now,  pardner, 
but  I'm  chief  of  this  expedition,  all  the  same,  and  don't  you 
forget, "  and  so  he  swaggered  on.  They  had  passed  out  into 
a  lane  that  ran  along  the  right  of  the  regiment  as  it  lay  in 
bivouac,  and  were  rapidly  nearing  the  woods  on  the  hillside, 
when  a  shot  was  heard,  and  some  one  remarked:  "Why,  the 
boys  soon  found  a  hog.  "  Barnes,  too,  at  this  time  remarked 
to  Packer,  "We'll  have  to  hurry  up,  John,  some  one  is  ahead 
of  us, "  and  they  pressed  forward  with  still  greater  alacrity. 


290  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

Somebody  7vas  ahead  of  them,  sure  enough,  but  they  were 
not  hunting  hogs.  The  boys  were  now  drawing  quite  near 
the  woods  and  were  somewhat  startled  to  hear  the  challenge 
thundered  close  to  them  in  rather  more  than  ordinary  mili- 
tary sternness,  " Halt,  you  blank  Yankee  blank  of  blank," 
and  with  the  word  two  mounted  rebel  cavalrymen  rode  down 
the  hill,  out  of  the  woods,  almost  upon  the  boys,  and  opened 
a  brisk  fire  upon  them  from  their  revolvers  and  car- 
bines. It  looked  like  certain  death  for  both  of  the  blue-coats 
right  in  the  face  of  the  whole  division.  Pop,  pop,  went  their 
revolvers,  szip,  szip,  came  the  balls.  Barnes  had  no  gun  and 
consequently  at  that  distance  had  no  means  of  either  attack 
or  defense,  and,  of  course  limbered  to  the  rear  at  once  at  a 
more  rapid  pace  than  he  had  gone  forward.  Pop,  pop,  went 
the  carbines.  He  came  down  the  lane  as  he  had  gone  out  in 
the  advance  of  the  column  of  two.  Pop,  pop,  went  the  car- 
bines, szip,  szip,  came  the  balls.  The  boys  came  flying  down 
the  lane.  Pop,  pop,  went  •  the  carbines,  szip,  szip,  came  the 
the  balls  in  close  proximity  to  their  ears,  and  tired  legs  could 
not  carry  them  half  fast  enough.  The  balls  hissed  spitefully 
and  unpleasantly  near  the  boys  as  they  came  rushing  down 
the  lane.  Packer  kept  Barnes  close  company  for  perhaps 
half  the  distance  to  the  bivouac,  then  taking  shelter  in  a  fence 
corner  returned  the  bushwhackers'  fire.  Not  knowing  but 
that  these  daring  fellows  were  the  skirmishers  or  scouts  of  a 
strong  cavalry  force  near  at  hand,  Colonel  Dick  ordered  the 
regiment  to  stand  to  arms,  and  at  the  same  time  ordered  a 
company  to  be  thrown  forward  and  deployed  as  skirmishers. 
The  company  at  once  opened  fire  on  the  valorous  enemy  to 
develop  his  strength.  But  it  proved  to  be  just  two  adven- 
turous spirits  who  saw  their  chance  to  have  a  crack  at  a 
"Yank."  The  skirmishers  pressing  rapidly  forward  suc- 
ceeded in  killing  one  of  their  horses,  and  as  a  troph3^  brought 
in  the  saddle;  but  the  men  made  good  their  escape  by  doub- 
ling on  the  remaining  horse. 

The  two  would-be  foragers  came  safely  to  the  bivouac. 
It  was  really  a  close  call  for  both  of  them,  yet  it  served  as 
matter  for  quite  a  good  deal  of  good  humored  raillery  among 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  291 

the  comrades  for  some  days.  Soon  the  report  came  back 
from  the  skirmish  line  that  no  enemy  was  in  sight  and  the 
regiment  again  broke  ranks  and  proceeded  with  the  prepara- 
tions for  the  night's  bivouac.  The  menu  was  exceedingly 
scant.  There  was  no  savory  smell  of  fresh  pork,  only  a  very 
small  supply  of  hard  tack,  parched  corn,  and  coffee. 

Reveille  was  sounded  next  morning,  the  4th,  at  the 
usual  hour,  4  o'clock,  and  the  Eighty-sixth  filed  out  upon  the 
road  in  the  advance  of  the  brigade  at  sunrise.  The  column 
started  out  on  the  road  to  Loudon.  Details  of  foragers  were 
made  from  all  the  regiments  to  secure  supplies  of  provisions. 
The  Eighty -sixth's  foragers  having  to  travel  over  the  same 
ground  passed  over  by  the  foragers  of  the  two  brigades  in 
advance  had  but  little  success  in  getting  supplies  without 
traveling  great  distances  on  the  flank,  which  at  the  rate  of 
speed  the  column  was  moving  they  could  not  easily  do.  This 
placed  them  at  a  great  disadvantage  and  the  men  were  con- 
sequently extremely  scarce  of  anything  to  eat.  Still  the 
foragers,  detailed  and  independent,  came  not  to  camp  en- 
tirely empty  handed.  A  noon  halt  was  made  for  dinner  and 
the  march  then  continued.  The  brigade  bivouacked  between 
3  and  4  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  the  Eighty-sixth  being  de- 
tailed for  picket. 

Notwithstanding  the  boys  had  been  notified  that  they 
would  not  receive  any  more  rations  until  they  reached  Knox- 
ville,  on  the  morning  of  the  5th  an  issue  was  made  to  the 
command.  The  allowance  was  very  scant  and  required  more 
care  and  time  to  divide  and  distribute  than  if  the  supply  had 
been  more  plentiful.  About  7  o'clock  a.  m.  the  march  was 
resumed.  Arriving  at  the  Little  Tennessee  river  there  was 
delay  on  account  of  the  bridge  being  broken.  The  command 
remained  here  until  about  noon  and  got  dinner  before  cross- 
ing the  river.  The  crossing  was  made  at  Morgantown.  The 
column  was  rushed  forward  as  though  it  was  going  all  the 
way  that  afternoon — almost  on  the  run  with  very  few  rests. 
The  command  was  strung  out  upon  the  road  and  badly  scat- 
tered. This  pace  was  maintained  for  hours.  The  men  who 
got  behind  their  commands  knew  it  was  impossible  to  catch 


292  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

up  and  therefore  took  things  easy.  Many  of  them  beo^an 
foraging,  raking  in  without  mercy  everything  edible.  The 
command  bivouacked  about  10  o'clock  p.  m.  The  men  who 
had  kept  their  places  in  the  ranks  were  almost  completely 
exhausted.  Leg  weary  and  footsore  many  threw  themselves 
down  to  sleep  without  awaiting  to  prepare  their  usual  cup  of 
coffee.  It  was  a  desperate  jjush  and  the  men  would  hav(^ 
been  more  than  human  if  they  had  uttered  no  protest  against 
the  unexampled  exertions  they  had  been  required  to  make 
on  this  occasion.  It  fell  with  particular  force  upon  the 
Eighty-sixth  on  account  of  its  vigil  while  on  picket  the  pre- 
vious night.  The  distance  marched  that  day  was  eighteen 
miles. 

On  the  following  morning  reveille  was  sounded  at  4 
(/clock  and  the  regiment  breakfasted  almost  entirely  on  for- 
age provisions,  save  good  old  government  coffee.  Its  place 
could  not  be  supplied  by  any  article  which  could  be  foraged, 
though  the  men  were  compelled  to  use  it  sj)aringly  on  ac- 
count of  its  scarcity.  The  command  resumed  the  route  step 
about  daylight  and  speedily  covered  three  miles  and  arrived 
at  Maryville,  the  county  seat  of  Blount  county.  Here  the 
command  rested  for  a  short  time.  A  part  of  Sherman's 
troops,  of  the  Army  of  the  Tennessee,  were  here  also.  After 
leaving  Maryville  the  regiment  proceeded  at  a  rapid  pace 
and  reeled  off  about  five  miles  without  a  halt.  Passing 
through  a  small  place  called  Springfield  it  reached  a  stream 
known  as  Little  river.  Here  the  men  were  informed  that 
they  would  remain  an  hour  or  two  and  possibly  all  night. 

During  the  afternoon  Hour  was  issued  to  the  regiment — 
about  a  tablesjioonful  and  a  half  to  the  man.  But  to  encour- 
age the  men  they  were  informed  that  both  flour  and  meat 
would  be  issued  some  time  during  the  night.  About  sun- 
down a  few  potatoes  were  issued,  and  so  far  as  they  went, 
were  very  acceptable.  The  day  had  been  fine  and  was  quite 
comfortable  and  agreeable  in  that  respect,  but  as  the  men 
coukl  not  live  on  fine  weather  it  did  not  satisfy  or  compensate 
them  for  their  lack  of  rations.  The  command  was  getting 
farther  and  farther  from  its  base  of  supplies,  and  consequently 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  293 

the  diflficulty  of  supplying  it  with  rations  greatly  increased. 
The  single  line  of  railroad  to  Chattanooga  was  barely  suffi- 
cient to  supply  the  troops  there  and  along  the  line.  Now,  if 
the  Army  of  the  Ohio  and  the  Fourth  corps  had  to  be  sup- 
plied from  thei'e  and  depend  upon  one  or  two  small  boats  to  con- 
vey the  supplies  up  the  river  to  Knox vi  lie  with  what  their 
small  wagon  train  could  haul  over  such  villainous  roads,  the 
outlook  for  the  winter  was  not  particularly  bright.  Conse- 
quently the  troops  must,  under  the  circumstances  and  condi- 
tions, often  be  destitute,  or  live  off  the  country.  The  lat- 
ter alternative  was  far  from  encouraging,  as  the  rebel  army 
had  already  pretty  effectually  collected  the  surplus  for  its 
subsistence.  This  rendered  the  situation  more  alarming  than 
it  otherwise  would  have  been.  The  command  bivouacked 
here  on  the  night  of  the  6th. 

On  the  morning  of  the  7th  reveille  was  sounded  at  4 
o'clock,  and  the  orders  were  to  march  at  7  a.  m. ,  but  the  Eighty- 
sixth  with  the  Third  brigade  did  not  start  until  8:30.  They 
marched  about  a  mile  and  came  to  the  place  of  crossing  Lit- 
tle river,  and  were  delayed  for  some  time.  The  place  of 
crossing  was  at  Rockford,  a  small  village  ten  miles  from 
Knoxville.  When  the  brigade  was  across  the  stream  the  col- 
umn marched  at  a  rapid  rate,  at  least,  wherever  the  roads 
would  permit  a  show  of  speed,  but  as  the  roads  were  muddy 
and  the  country  broken  and  hilly,  great  speed  was  out  of  the 
question.  Dragging  through  the  mud  up  and  down  hill  was 
very  tiresome,  and  as  many  were  destitute  of  bread,  and  no 
halts  were  called  which  would  enable  them  to  bake,  they  be- 
came weak  and  exhausted.  The  halts  were  few  and  brief, 
and  there  was  a  very  tired  and  an  extremely  hungry  com- 
mand when  the  Third  brigade  of  Wood's  division  bivouacked 
on  the  evening  of  the  6th  of  December^ — about  sundown  in  the 
edge  of  a  strip  of  timber  not  far  from  the  Holston  river,  two 
miles  south  of  the  city  of  Knoxville.  The  goal  was  reached. 
The  prize  was  won.  The  city  was  saved  and  the  imperiled 
army  succored.  Gen.  Longstreet  on  hearing  of  the  advance 
of  the  forces  of  Sherman  assaulted  Burnside's  works — Fort 
Sanders — attempting  to  overpower  him  before  the  rescuing 


294  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

column  could  get  within  striking  distance.  The  assault  was 
made  just  at  daybreak  on  the  morning  of  the  29th  of  Novem- 
ber, and  was  of  the  most  determined  and  desperate  character, 
but  was  liandsomely  repulsed.  Longstreet  lingered  a  few 
days  about  the  city's  works  and  drew  away  on  the  4th  of 
December,  retiring  toward  Virginia. 

The  steady  tramp  of  Sherman's  column  was  inexorable 
as  fate,  and  Longstreet,  cool  and  daring  as  he  was,  knew  it 
was  worse  than  useless  to  face  and  contend  with  both  Sher- 
and  Burnside.  He  gave  up  the  struggle,  but  for  the  Fourth 
corps  it  was  only  fairly  begun.  It  was  true  the  forced  march 
for  the  rescue  was  over.  Success  had  crowned  the  effort 
after  much  suffering.  But  now  Sherman  was  to  return  to 
his  own  department,  while  Wood's  and  Sheridan's  divisions, 
of  the  Fourth  corps,  were  to  remain  in  the  Department  of  the 
Ohio,  and  render  Burnside 's  success  secure  from  future  at- 
tacks. The  late  perilous  situation  of  his  army  had  been  too 
great  for  those  in  authority  to  be  willing  to  again  expose  it 
to  the  risks  of  such  a  siege.  Therefore,  two  divisions  of  the 
Fourth  corps  were  left  as  reinforcements  for  the  Army  of  the 
Ohio  upon  the  request  of  General  Burnside. 

The  Fourth  corps  was  to  remain  in  East  Tennessee — in 
the  Department  of  the  Ohio,  and  endure  the  hardships  of  that 
isolated  command.  And  most  of  the  rank  and  lile  always  con- 
tended that  Wood's  division  suffered  more  than  the  Army  of 
the  Ohio;  that  being  only  detached  troops  they  did  not  have 
the  favors  extended  to  them  from  the  commissary  depart- 
ment which  the  troops  of  the  department  received.  Be  that 
as  it  may,  it  is  certain  that  all  suffered  great  hardships  and 
endured  the  most  severe  privations.  Perhaps  the  suffering 
of  the  troops  in  East  Tennessee  during  the  winter  of  1863-64 
was  the  most  severe  of  any  general  body  of  troops  of  the 
Union  army  during  the  war,  not  even  excepting  the  siege  of 
Chattanooga.  But  the  men  had  no  thought  of  these  great 
trials  in  store  for  them  on  their  arrival  at  the  bivouac  on  the 
bank  of  Holston  river  opposite  Knoxville. 

At  this  camp  opposite  Knoxville,  the  Eighty-sixth  made 
its  first  batch  of  liapjacks  out  of  that  abominable  stuff  known 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  295 

in  East  Tennessee  as  "sick  flour.  "  It  would  be  futile  to  at- 
tempt to  describe  the  sensations  one  experiences  from  eat- 
ing it.  Ipecacuanha,  or  lobelia,  is  not  more  sickening.  The 
suffering  one  endures  from  it  is  of  the  depressing  and  nau- 
seating character  with  various  extras  thrown  in.  The  regi- 
ment had  a  good  supply  of  rails  and  only  lacked  in  rations 
to  be  reasonably  comfortable  when  the  first  supply  of  this 
flour  was  procured.  The  men  were  delighted  and  expected 
to  live  well  so  long  as  the  flour  lasted.  All  were  soon  busily 
engaged  baking  flapjacks,  and  there  was  not  a  great  deal  of 
ceremony  wasted  until  they  were  disposed  of,  for  the  time 
being  at  least,  but  it  did  not  prove  to  be  the  final  disposition. 
Soon  the  fun  began,  if  fun  it  may  be  called.  First  the  saliva 
began  to  flow,  then  the  stomach  began  to  have  its  misgiv- 
ings, then  rebellion  and  tumult  became  evident  and  the  poor 
weakened  stomacli  insisted  on  throwing  off  the  vile  mixture. 
It  was  soon  very  evident  that  these  stomachs  did  not  pro- 
pose to  be  imposed  upon  in  any  such  a  manner.  Their  func- 
tion was  to  digest  food  and  this  was  no  food,  but  a  poison. 
In  fact,  many  of  the  boys  imagined  that  some  rebel  fiend  had 
actually  attempted  to  poison  them  by  poisoning  the  flour, 
and  concluded  that  in  his  efforts  to  poison  a  whole  army  he 
had  mixed  the  poison  with  so  much  flour  that  it  was  so 
divided  up  until  each  one  only  got  enough  to  sicken  and  dis- 
quiet him  instead  of  enough  to  kill  as  was  intended.  But  it 
certainly  would  have  been  laughable  to  a  person  not  inter- 
ested to  have  watched  one  who  had  eaten  heartily  of  these 
flapjacks.  First,  he  would  be  a  little  uneasy  and  restless. 
If  sitting  by  the  fire  he  would  change  his  position  frequently, 
probably  get  up  and  stand  by  the  fire,  turning  a  few  times 
this  way  or  that  as  if  he  were  undecided  as  to  the  position 
he  wished  to  assume  for  comfort  But  the  decision  was  soon 
made.  He  would  battle  against  fate  and  strive  at  first  to 
control  the  internal  commotion  and  put  the  rebellion  down. 
That  was  what  he  had  enlisted  for.  But  the  tenacious, 
stringy  saliva  would  soon  begin  to  flow  in  unmistakable 
ropes  from  the  unwilling  mouth.  The  sufferer  would  turn 
deathly  pale,   take  a  few  quick  steps  away  from  the  camp- 


296  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

five — ci  sudden  upheaval  from  the  stomach,  a  volcanic  erup- 
tion, minus  the  fire,  and  the  climax  was  reached.  It  was  a 
topsy-turvy,  side  splitting  effort  made  to  empty  the  stomach, 
and  it  was  usually  quite  effectual.  It  was  to  the  hungry 
soldiery  a  calamity.  They  were  lanker  than  hounds  and 
there  lay  their  flapjacks  on  the  ground  with  no  other  provis- 
ions in  sight  except  this  same  "sick  flour. " 

There  were  a  few  men  with  cast  iron  stomachs  who  did 
not  at  first  get  sick,  and  these  guyed,  in  a  most  unmerciful 
manner,  those  who  complained  of  this  sickening  stuff.  These 
cast  iron  fellows  accused  the  sick  ones  of  making  gluttons  of 
themselves,  averring  that  their  sickness  was  not  on  account 
of  the  bad  qualities  of  the  flour  but  owing  solely  to  their  ex- 
cessive-indulgence, and  it  was  therefore  merely  a  just  punish- 
ment which  they  richly  deserved.  However,  sooner  or 
later  even  these  cast  iron  fellows  had  to  succumb  to  its 
overpowering  qualities  and  acknowledge  the  jDotency  of  its 
debilitating  influence.  Sometimes  it  did  not  vomit,  but  sick- 
ened, and  caused  an  obstinate  and  debilitating  diarrhoea  that 
had  a  strong  tendency  to  assume  the  form  of  dysentery.  It 
produced  the  severe  headache  which  usually  accompanies  in- 
digestion and  also  the  general  malaise.  Of  course  as  one 
might  suppose  the  symptoms  of  an  acute  attack  of  indiges- 
tion were  present  and  even  exaggerated.  But  the  men  were 
not  long  in  learning  the  nature  of  their  ailment.  Yet  when 
they  came  to  know  its  nature  very  well,  as  an  old  and  fa- 
miliar acquaintance,  a  thing  indigenous  to  this  locality,  while 
they  remained  in  this  department  they  were  often  compelled 
to  use  it,  notwithstanding  they  knew  at  the  time  they  w^ere 
ingesting  pain  and  sickness,  and  perhaps  untold  misery.  It 
is  probable  that  this  "sick  flour"  was  responsible  for  the 
loss  of  more  than  one  life  to  the  Union  cause.  Frequently, 
however,  it  w^as  Hobson's  choice,  that  or  nothing,  and  sick- 
ness although  painful  and  extremely  annoying  w^as  prefer- 
able to  starvation.  So  the  men  ate  to  live,  although  they 
were  sick  unto  death  always  after  eating  it.  This  was  a  case 
equal  to  eating  the  first  army  blanket  at  Camp  Tippecanoe. 
"Sick  flour  "  was  not  only  an  unsubstantial  diet,  but  a  most 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  297 

distressing  one.  There  was  no  way  of  testing  the  flour  but 
by  eating  it.  It  was  indeed  a  sore  and  heavy  trial  to  weary, 
hungry  men. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 
KNOXVILLE  AND  BEYOND. 

Blain's  Cross  Roads— House  Mountain— Lye  Hominy— Parched  Corn— A  Bleak 
December— Gaunt  Hunger,  Rags  and  Icy  Winter  Go  Hand  and  Hand— Clirlst- 
mas  Thoughts— That  Cold  Xew  Years— A  Mail  From  Home— Strawberry 
riains— To  Dandridge  and  Back— A  Second  Valley  Forge. 

The  Eighty-sixth  remained  in  camp  near  Knoxville  until 
the  16th  of  December,  performing  the  various  duties  incident 
to  camp-life.  The  supply  of  rations  continued  extremely 
meager.  Meat  principally  consisted  of  mutton,  but  occasion- 
ally the  boys  had  a  little  poor  beef.  For  bread-stuff  some- 
times they  had  a  little  meal,  and  it  was  very  little,  and  oc- 
casionally they  had  the  "sick  flour, "  The  price  of  all  kinds 
of  provisions  was  very  high.  A  very  dark  and  poor  quality 
of  sorghum  molasses  was  readily  sold  at  25  cents  a  pint  or 
i|2per  gallon.  There  was  no  grumbling  at  prices  when  any- 
thing to  eat  could  be  purchased.  The  men  were  frequently 
out  of  bread,  and  then  they  would  forage  corn,  and  parched 
and  ate  it  to  appease  hunger.  In  fact,  parched  corn  was 
about  one-half  of  the  Eighty-sixth's  living  during  the  entire 
winter.  On  the  14th  appearances  indicated  that  the  regi- 
ment would  remain  at  this  camp  for  some  time,  and  the  men, 
therefore,  set  about  to  make  themselves  more  comfortable. 
Huts  sprang  up  everywhere,  covered  with  shelter  tents. 
From  a  brick  kiln  near  by  bricks  were  procured  to  construct 
chimneys,  and  the  camp  of  the  Eighty-sixth  at  once  swarmed 
with  carriers  of  brick,  mixers  of  mortar,  and  brick-layers. 
The  walls  and  the  chimneys  grew  apace  and  it  soon  looked 
like  a  city  springing  up  as  if  by  magic.     Although  it  was 


298  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

hard  work,  yet  all  exerted  themselves  as  faithfully  as  bea- 
vers. The  work  was  continued  on  the  15th.  Hard  work  and 
scant  rations  did  not  harmonize  well  together.  It  was  on  this 
day  that  Captain  C.  P.  Rodman  made  glad  the  hearts  of  Com- 
pany H  by  buying  a  dressed  hog  of  an  old  Tennessee  farmer 
who  was  taking  it  to  the  city  for  sale,  paying  at  the  rate  of 
12  cents  per  pound.  The  work  on  the  shanties  was  pushed 
forward  with  great  vigor  The  toilers  were  weary  and  their 
labors  were  almost  completed  when  orders  were  received  for 
the  command  to  march  immediately.  The  afternoon  was  at 
least  half  gone.  The  regiment  was  soon  ready,  fell  into  line, 
stacked  arms  and  waited  further  orders.  About  sun-dowu 
word  was  received  that  it  would  remain  in  its  present  camp 
over  night.  This  gave  the  men  one  night  in  their  log-houses 
with  brick  chimneys  which  they  had  labored  so  hard  to  build. 
It  seemed  the  fate  of  the  private  soldiers  that  if  they  under- 
took any  improvements  for  their  own  comforts,  just  about  the 
time  they  neared  completion  and  the  men  almost  exhausted 
with  their  toil,  the  orders  would  come  to  march. 

On  the  following  morning,  the  16th.  reveille  was  sounded 
at  4  o'clock.  The  regiment  was  up  promj^tly,  breakfasted 
and  packed  up  ready  for  the  tramp.  Before  marching  the 
men  drew  ammunition  to  complete  sixty  rounds.  The  Eighty- 
sixth  tiled  out  at  6  o'clock  a.  m.  and  took  its  course  toward 
the  Holston.  The  command  was  delayed  at  the  river  waiting 
for  other  troops  to  cross.  After  crossing  it  marched  through 
the  city,  turning  eastonits  streets,  and  proceeded  up  along  the 
general  course  of  the  Holston  river.  The  march  was  steadily 
maintained,  few  stops  for  rest  being  made.  After  noon  a 
halt  for  dinner  was  called,  but  the  tramp  was  soon  resumed 
and  at  a  rapid  pace.  Rumors  in  ranks  were  current  of  fight- 
ing at  the  front  farther  up  the  country  than  the  day's  march. 
These  rumors  were  various  and  conflicting,  so  little  depend- 
ence could  be  placed  in  them.  The  Third  brigade  bivouacked 
about  sun-down  on  a  hill  somewhere  near  half-way  between 
Strawberry  Plains  and  House  Mountain.  The  day's  inarch 
was  a  hard  one,  covering,  as  General  Wood  said,  about 
twenty -one  and  a  half  miles,   and  this,  too,  over  very  muddy 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  299 

and  heavy  roads.  The  camp  was  in  the  timber,  consequently 
fuel  was  plenty  and  the  boys  soon  had  good  fires.  This 
camp  was  sometimes  denominated  Camp  on  Flat  Creek,  and 
sometimes  Camp  near  Blain's  Cross  Roads,  or  near  House 
Mountain.  It  was  two  or  three  miles  from  the  mountain, 
and  about  two  miles  from  the  Cross  Roads. 

At  this  camp  the  regiment  remained  until  the  14th  of 
the  following  January.  Life  here  was  one  continual  round 
of  duty  and  struggle  for  subsistence,  and  in  procuring  fuel 
to  make  fires  to  keep  from  freezing.  The  first  night  here 
the  men  slept  without  tents  and  a  terrific  rainstorm  drenched 
everybody  from  head  to  foot.  It  turned  cold  and  all  were 
nearly  frozen  before  morning.  Thus  the  changes  and  vicis- 
situdes of  inclement  weather  were  added  to  the  suffering 
from  hunger,  testing  the  fortitude  of  the  most  resolute.  At 
this  camp  was  one  of  their  hardest  times  for  rations  of  the 
regiment's  entire  term  of  service.  Directly  after  its  arrival 
the  rations  were  exhausted  and  the  men  had  nothing  but 
parched  corn,  and  not  enough  of  that  at  times.  Lye  hominy 
was  made  by  boiling  the  corn  and  the  ashes  together  in  a 
camp-kettle.  After  the  supply  of  hominy  failed,  the  men 
had  more  "  sick  flour."  Then  a  mixture  of  flour  and  meal,  a 
half-pound  to  the  man  as  a  daily  ration,  presumably  mixed 
by  the  commissary  with  the  hope  that  the  meal  would  pre- 
vent the  flour  from  making  them  sick.  Gradually  rations 
grew  more  scare  and  the  men  had  in  a  great  measure  to  de- 
pend upon  themselves.  Many  of  the  regiment,  almost  every 
mess,  went  to  the  Holston  river,  obtained  boats,  crossed  the 
stream  with  ice  running  dangerously  thick,  and  went  miles 
beyond,  procured  corn  and  carried  it  on  their  backs,  re- 
crossed,  and  returned  to  camp  that  they  and  their  comrades 
should  not  suffer  the  pangs  of  starvation.  Sometimes  a  lit- 
tle meat  could  be  foraged,  but  it  was  rare.  The  beef  issued 
was  of  the  poorest  conceivable  quality.  General  Jacob  D. 
Cox  in  his  history  of  the  Atlanta  Campaign,  speaking  of  the 
destitution  of  the  army  in  East  Tennessee  during  the  winter 
of  1863-64,  says:  "The  country  was  stripped  bare,  and  dur- 
ing the  month  of  January  the  cattle  that  were  turned  over  to 


300  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

the  troops  for  beef  were  so  poor  they  could  hardly  stand  up. 
It  is  literally  true  that  it  was  the  custom  of  the  commissa- 
ries to  drive  the  cattle  over  a  little  ditch  in  the  field  where 
they  were  corralled,  and  those  only  were  killed  w^hich  could 
not  get  over,  their  weakness  proving  that  it  would  not  do  to 
keep  them  longer,  whilst  the  others  might  last  for  future 
use.  Indian  corn  was  ground  up,  cob  and  all.  for  bread. 
Bran  and  shorts  were  diligently  hunted  and  used  for  the 
same  purpose.  The  country  was  scoured  for  subsistence 
stores."  This  statement  would  show  the  destitution  of  the 
army  to  have  been  extreme,  but  the  actual  condition  was 
even  worse  than  this  portrayal  would  indicate.  Of  the  beef 
cattle  of  the  division  many  w^ere  killed  that  were  so  poor  that 
they  had  to  be  lifted  up  to  be  knocked  down.  Strange  and 
improbable  as  this  statement  may  seem  to  those  unaccus- 
tomed to  army  life,  yet  it  is  a  fact,  and  one  not  hard  to  ex- 
plain. These  cattle  had  to  be  driven  on  foot  with  the  army 
and  as  the  country  was  almost  stripped  of  all  kinds  of  forage 
for  the  horses  and  mules,  the  cattle  ate  only  that  which  they 
could  pick  by  grazing  and  brow^sing,  and  in  the  cold  and 
storm  of  an  extremely  inclement  winter,  one  can  easily  com- 
prehend how  poor  and  weak  they  would  become.  The 
butchers  always  killed  the  poorest,  as  they  were  no  longer 
able  to  move  and  keej)  pace  with  the  column  in  case  the  com- 
mand had  to  march.  The  stronger  ones  were  saved,  as  Gen- 
eral Cox  says,  for  future  use.  They  would  probably  be  suf- 
ficiently strong  to  move  with  the  troops  if  not  hurried.  The 
l)oorest  would  get  down  and  were  unable  by  their  own 
strength  to  get  up.  After  they  had  lain  there  any  length  of 
time  it  would  be  necessary,  for  obvious  reasons,  to  move 
them  before  butchering.  Consequently  the  butchers  w^ould 
help  them  up,  move  them  off  to  a  more  desirable  place,  knock 
them  down  and  dress  them.  How  w^ould  the  fastidious  pal 
ate  of  to-day  like  such  beef?  The  meat  was  so  poor  and 
gluey  that  had  a  piece  of  it  been  thrown  against  a  brick-w^all 
or  a  beech  tree  it  certainly  would  have  adhered  to  it.  But 
mark  now  the  destitution  of  the  men.  Often  would  soldiers 
gladly  pay  one  dollar  a  piece  for  the  head  of  such  a  beef. 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  301 

Sometimes  they  would  get  the  head  and  the  melt  for  one  dol- 
lar, but  usually  only  the  head.  The  head  would  be  cleaned, 
the  eyes  taken  out  and  then  the  whole  head  boiled  in  a  camp- 
kettle,  and  the  bones  picked  clean  of  every  fibre  of  meat. 
Thus  did  the  Eighty-sixth  subsist,  suffer  and  endure,  almost 
without  a  murmur,  during  this  dreadful  winter.  Sometimes 
indeed  the  men  did  not  have  even  the  poor  beef's  head  to 
pick,  or  corn  to  parch.  Once  while  the  men  were  out  of  meat 
the  Holston  river  ran  so  high  and  full  of  ice  that  none 
ventured  to  cross  its  angry  flood,  and  corn  could  not  be 
procured  on  their  own  side  of  the  river.  Once  or  twice 
while  here  at  this  camp  the  regiment  drew  some  musty, 
worm-eaten  hard  tack  that  was  almost  as  villainous  as  the 
bread  made  from  the  "sick  flour."  The  risk  of  losing  the 
bread  was  too  great  to  attempt  to  pick  the  worms  out  of  it 
until  broken  in  the  coffee.  The  worms  that  were  freed  from 
the  cracker  by  the  softening  effect  of  the  hot  coffee  would 
swim  on  the  top.  They  were  scooped  out  with  spoons  and 
then  blindly  gulped  down. 

With  scarcity  of  rations  there  was  another  trouble  almost 
equally  serious  during  the  cold  weather;  namely,  the  lack  of 
clothing.  Many  a  poor  boy  could  be  seen  with  his  pantaloons 
worn  out  at  the  knees,  and  no  under-garments,  his  blouse  in 
rags,  his  gray  army  shirt  in  tatters,  socks  with  neither  heels 
nor  toes,  and  shoes  almost  gone.  In  such  weather  to  which 
the  men  were  exposed  and  thus  wretchedly  clad  the  suffering 
was  great.  Many  slept  on  the  ground  with  only  their  ponchos 
to  protect  them  from  its  dampness  and  cold,  while  for  cover- 
ing they  had  but  a  single  woolen  blanket.  It  is  extremely 
doubtful  if  the  suftering  of  the  patriotic  army  of  Washing- 
ton at  Valley  Forge  could  have  exceeded  the  sufferings  of  the 
Fourth  army  corps  during  the  winter  spent  in  East  Tennes- 
see! Those  desperate  trials  made  things  look  gloomy.  It 
either  looked  like  the  government  at  Washington  was  poverty 
stricken  or  was  criminally  negligent.  Yet  the  men  bore  up, 
knowing  that  the  cold  weather  could  not  last  long.  Nor  did 
they  then  as  now  so  fully  apjDreciate  the  tremendous  respon- 
sibilities resting  upon  President  Lincoln  and  his  cabinet  in 


302  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

their  efforts  to  crush  the  great  rebellion,  nor  the  almost  in- 
surmountable difificulties  that  had  to  be  met  and  overcome  on 
every  side  to  get  supplies,  and,  at  the  same  time,  lay  up  stores 
at  the  base  and  sub-base  for  the  ensuing  campaign,  the  lat- 
ter being  almost  equally  necessary  to  that  of  subsistence 
during  the  winter.  But  parched  corn  seldom  failed  entirely, 
although  it  frequently  ran  low,  and  it  general  required  her- 
culean exertions  to  procure  corn  after  the  little  army  had  re- 
mained here  two  weeks,  and  had  used  the  corn  in  the  imme- 
diate vicinity.  Picket  duty  was  particularly  heavy  here,  so 
that  the  men  rarely  had  more  than  two  days'  rest  off  the  line 
at  a  time.  Between  picketing,  foraging,  and  x^rocuring  fuel 
they  were  kept  quite  busy.  No  doubt  there  would  have  been 
much  more  discontent  and  grumbling  among  the  troops,  if 
there  had  been  more  idleness.  But  the  morale  of  the  Fourth 
army  corps  was  almost  perfect,  as  was  proven  on  all  occa- 
sions during  the  winter  and  during  the  cainj)aign  the  follow- 
ing summer  with  Sherman  to  Atlanta. 

About  2  o'clock  p.  m.,  December  24,  the  Eighty-sixth 
received  orders  to  be  ready  for  picket  at  3  o'clock.  By  4 
o'clock  the  men  of  the  regiment  were  on  duty  on  the  picket 
line.  Such  was  their  promptness  under  the  most  discourag 
ing  and  trying  circumstances.  Colonel  Dick,  the  very  soul 
of  promptness  himself,  never  tolerated  any  dilly-dallying 
when  the  time  came  for  the  performance  of  duy,  and  the  reg- 
iment had  learned  to  act  without  a  second  command.  No  dif- 
ference what  difficulties  confronted  it,  its  every  duty  was 
performed  with  promptness  and  alacrity  suited  to  the  occa- 
sion. But  once  arrived  at  the  picket-station  the  men  had  to 
supply  themselves  with  fuel  at  the  station  and  at  the  out- 
posts, as  the  extreme  cold  made  fires  an  imperative  neces- 
sity. The  chilly  winds  of  that  "bleak  December  day"  went 
to  the  marrow  through  their  rags.  Labor,  poorly  clad,  cold 
and  hunger,  with  the  vigils  of  guard  duty,  made  the  situation 
an  extremely  trying  one.  This  Christmas  eve  brought  no 
gayeties  for  the  men  of  the  Eighty-sixth.  How  many  poor 
fellows  on  this  occasion  longed  for  the  pleasures  at  home,  the 
greeting  and  smiles  of  loved  ones,  the  tender  caresses  of 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  303 

parents,  of  brothers  and  sisters,  the  kind  good  nights,  each 
face  beaming  with  the  anticipated  joys  of  the  morrow's  glad 
surprises  for  the  dear  one  gathered  round  the  hearth-stone 
of  the  far  away  but  ever  dear  Northern  home,  where  at  their 
mother's  knee  long  ago  they  learned  the  lessons  of  love  and 
duty,  as  she  plied  the  nimble  needle  and  made  "old  clothes 
look  maist  as  weal's  the  new,"  to  give  to  each  other  tokens 
of  pure  affection  on  the  annual  return  of  this  day.  But  alas  I 
the  cruel  breath  of  war  blew  over  the  land  and  separation 
from  home,  kindred,  and  friends  became  a  duty  not  to  be 
shirked — a  call  not  to  be  denied,  however  bitter  the  anguish 
of  the  separation.  The  former  joys  of  the  day's  annual  re- 
turn were  not  now  to  be  enjoyed,  and  the  thoughts  of  those 
bygone  days  and  their  happiness,  brought  only  pain  and  dis- 
tress. The  brave  sentinel,  as  he  paces  his  lonely  beat,  may 
think  of  the  King  of  Kings  and  Lord  of  Lords,  the  Prince  of 
Peace,  of  His  goodness  and  mercy,  but  this  does  not  wholly 
assuage  his  grief  at  the  cruel  disappointments  he  is  made  to 
feel  just  at  this  time,  w^hen  his  hard  life  seems  to  be  crushing 
every  particle  of  joyousuess  out  of  his  nature.  But  the  true 
soldier,  after  thinking  over  these  things,  the  thought  comes 
to  him:  it  is  for  country,  for  home  and  kindred,  that  I  am  bat- 
tling. What  infinite  good  may  be  reaped  from  the  harvest  of 
the  seed  of  self-abnegation  sown  by  the  fearless  hand  of  a 
true  man,  and  dashing  a  tear  from  his  young,  clear,  manly 
eye  he  straightens  himself  up  and  looks  the  conquei'or  that 
he  is.  He  has  conquered  self — a  prime  element  to  a  perfect 
soldier.  He  now  paces  his  beat  with  the  steadiness  of  tread 
and  the  martial  air  of  a  veteran  of  years  of  training.  He  has 
put  all  else  behind  him  but  the  cause  he  has  espoused.  He 
has  in  this  solitary  manner  renewed  and  reaffirmed  his  cov- 
enant in  his  innermost  soul  to  stand  by  and  support  his  com- 
rades, uphold  the  "colors,"  and  reaftirmed  his  allegiance  to 
the  cause  of  country,  duty  and  the  right.  The  sacrificial 
offering  is  now  complete.  None  may  know  the  sacrifices  of  a 
soldier's  life  who  have  not  abode  for  a  time  upon  the  tented 
field,  and  been  exposed  to  the  extremes  of  winter's  cold  and 
summer's  heat,  and  met  the  desperate  foe  upon  the  ensau- 


304  THE  EIGHTV-SIXTII    REGIMENT, 

guined  plain  where  the  embattled  hosts  have  striven  in  charge 
and  counter-charge.  Nor  is  it  supposed,  that  now  with  so 
many  years  intervening,  that  one  in  a  thousand  of  the  vet- 
erans of  "62  and  '65  can  fully  recall  all  the  terrible  vicissi- 
tudes of  those  break,  chilly  days  of  that  cheerless  Decem- 
ber time.  Much  has  been  forgotten  of  the  anguish  suffered 
from  the  pinching  cold,  the  pangs  of  semi-starvation  and  of 
exhausting  labors  to  procure  fuel  and  food.  It  is  only  when 
a  number  of  "the  boys"  congregate  and  hold  communion  in 
the  spirit  of  old  times  that  suggestion  plays  it  full  part,  that 
an  approach  in  imagination  to  the  reality  of  those  dreadful 
times  can  be  made.  This  was  one  of  the  darkest  periods  of 
the  regiment's  service — about  the  holidays — at  the  close  of 
1863  and  the  incoming  of  1864.  The  gloom  that  hung  over 
the  regiment  immediately  after  the  battle  of  Stone's  River, 
where  it  was  almost  annihilated,  may  only  be  allowed  to  have 
been  greater  than  that  at  the  camp  at  Blain's  Cross  Roads. 
But  the  men  bore  up  better  at  the  latter  place.  They  seemed 
to  be  actuated  by  the  motive 

"  As  Clirist  died  to  make  men  holy 
Let  us  die  to  make  men  free." 

This  may  not  have  been  the  sentiment  of  every  private 
soldier  and  officer  of  the  Eighty-sixth,  but  it  was  what  they 
were  virtually  offering  to  do  by  serving  in  the  army  at  that 
time.  Many  claimed  that  they  only  fought  to  maintain  the 
country's  unity  and  the  constitution  as  it  was,  but  President 
Lincoln  has  said,  with  that  prescience  for  which  he  was  so  re- 
markable: "  This  country  cannot  endure  part  slave  and  part 
free."  It  was  for  the  freedom  of  the  slaves  they  fought, 
thus  making  possible  the  unity  of  the  country ^ — all  free.  It 
is  doubtful  if  such  thoughts  entered  the  minds  of  many  of 
the  rank  and  file  of  the  Eighty-sixth  on  Christmas  morning, 
1863,  when  first  aroused  from  their  slumbers.  The  condi- 
tions and  circumstances  of  their  environment  claimed  most 
of  their  thoughts  rather  than  the  wider  field  relative  to  the 
general  purposes  and  causes  of  the  war.  That  environment 
was  not  a  joyous  one.  No  glad  shouting  of  merry  children, 
no  cheerful  greetings  and  the  wishing  for  each  other  "A 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  305 

Merry  Christmas."  The  spiritual  barometer  was  too  low 
for  this.  But  the  stern  command  of  officers  broke  the  slum- 
bers, for  they  had  slept  soandly  even  if  it  was  Christmas 
morning.  Their  commands  were :  ' '  Prepare  to  go  on  out- 
post, ' '  and,  ' '  Prepare  to  go  on  the  line  immediately. ' '  This 
was  the  Christmas  greetings.  And  in  the  gray  of  the  cold 
bleak  morning  the  Eighty -sixth  went  on  the  line  and  gazed 
upon  the  rugged  heights  of  House  Mountain  as  the  darkness 
disappeared.  The  Christmas  dinner  of  1863,  for  the  most 
part  in  the  Eighty-sixth,  consisted  of  a  small  piece  of  corn 
bread  made  of  unsifted  meal,  mixed  with  water  and  a  very 
little  salt,  and  baked  or  fried  in  the  irrepressive  army  fry- 
ing-pan, and  a  small  bit  of  third  or  fourth  grade  army  bacon. 
It  is  hardly  necessary  to  say  that  it  was  not  a  banquet  or  a 
feast.  Turkey,  cranberry -sauce,  or  scalloped  oysters  could 
not  be  indulged  in. 

The  regiment  was  relieved  about  4  o'clock,  by  the  Nine- 
teenth Ohio,  Colonel  Manderson,  and  at  once  marched  back 
to  cami3.      But  the  labors  for  the  day  were  not  ended.      The 
Colonel  had  determined  to  move  the  place  of  camping  and 
the  only  suitable  place  found  was  almost  an  impenetrable 
thicket  of  brush.     It  was  at  no  time  an  inviting  place  for  a 
camp,  but  at  this  time  just  coming  off  of  picket,  the  boys  re- 
garded this  change  as  a  particular  hardship.      Camp  was 
tinally  arranged  and  tents  put  up.     Tired  and  worn  out  with 
guard  vigils  and  labor,   all  felt  the  need  of  rest  and  sleep. 
The  meager  suppers  of  corn  bread  and  bacon  were  soon  dis- 
patched and  immediately  after  tattoo  the  cam^D  of  the  Eighty- 
sixth  was  silent  as  a  city  of  the  dead.      The  flicker  of  the 
I  camp-tires  alone  redeemed  it  from  the  gloom  of  night.      But 
I  alas!  for  weary  mortality.      Some  picket  firing  occurred  and 
i  the  regiment  was  ordered  into  line  of  battle,  and  stood  there 
j  in  the  cold  for  two  long  hours.      Tired,   sleepy,   and  half 
frozen  those  two  hours  seemed  an  eternity.     There  being  no 
[  other  indications  of  an  attack  the  men  were  at  length  per- 
mitted to  break  ranks  and  lie  down.     Tliis  was  Christmas 
I  for  the  Eighty-sixth. 

Never  will  it  be  forgotten  by  the  members  of  the  Eighty- 


306  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

sixth  SO  long  as  life  and  memory  shall  last.  After  being 
permitted  to  retire  to  rest  the  men  slept  undisturbed  for 
some  time  when  one  of  the  tents  of  Company  H  caught  fire. 
This  aroused  the  inmates  who  at  once  raised  an  alarm  which 
awakened  others  of  the  company  and  regiment.  The  spirit 
of  Christmas,  of  fun  and  frolic,  took  hold  of  all  for  a  sliort 
time,  and  the  camp  of  the  Eighty-sixth  became  a  perfect  bed- 
lam beyond  all  description.  Cat-calls,  yells  and  camp  slang 
made  it  an  uproarious  time  for  the  space  of  fifteen  or  twenty 
minutes  when  nature  again  asserted  herself  and  all  returned 
to  bed  to  secure  the  much  needed  rest. 

The  men  were  again  out  of  rations  and  drew  for  bread- 
stuff on  the  26th  a  miserable  lot  of  flour.  It  was  alive  with 
worms,  and  it  is  quite  safe  to  say  that  the  picking  of  worms  out 
of  that  flour  was  the  business  of  at  least  one  man  in  eacli 
mess  of  the  entire  regiment  until  all  were  tired.  The  flour 
proved  to  be  not  only  wormy  but  "sick  "  and  was  an  abomi- 
tion  to  any  half  civilized  stomach.  The  filthy  pools  of  stag- 
nant, green-scummed  and  rank  water  of  Kentucky,  in  which 
decaying  mules  festered  and  rotted  in  the  sunshine,  were  not 
more  trying  to  the  stomach  than  this  despicable,  maggotty, 
' '  sick  flour, ' '  loaded  with  other  nauseating  and  poisonous  qual- 
ities, which  every  soldier  well  knew  were  quite  .sufficient  to 
make  him  a  fit  subject  for  the  hospital. 

After  foregoing  the  pleasure  of  a  mail  for  nearly  a  month 
the  Eighty-sixth  received  a  large  one  on  the  29th  of  Decem- 
ber. Many  hearts  were  made  glad  by  the  perusal  of  missives 
from  the  dear  ones  at  home.  "When  it  was  announced  that 
the  mail  had  arrived  the  entire  regiment  took  on  a  new  life. 
How  welcome  was  a  letter  from  home  to  the  soldier,  and  how 
sad  he  felt  when  those  at  home  neglected  to  write.  The  dif- 
ferences on  the  countenances  of  those  who  received  and  those 
who  did  not  were  particularly  noted  on  the  arrival  of  this 
mail,  so  long  had  it  been  since  one  had  been  received.  The 
features  of  the  one  lit  up  with  pleasure,  as  he  perused 
the  epistle  in  his  hand — doubtless  the  letter  of  some  dear 
wife  or  mother,  or  may  be  sweetheart — and  as  he  read  it,  a 
smile  of  joy  illumined  his  weather-beaten  face.     This  was 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  307 

happiness.  It  was  an  oasis  on  the  desert  of  his  rough  life  of 
danger  and  suffering.  With  the  other  the  opposite  effect 
was  observed;  as  soon  as  the  word  "none"  had  passed  the 
lip  of  the  regimental  postmaster  the  look  of  anxiety  faded 
away,  and  an  appearance  of  extreme  sorrow  could  be  seen 
plainly  stamped  on  his  features,  while  a  feeling  of  envy  at 
his  more  fortunate  comrades  was  plainly  apparent.  This 
was  unhappiness. ,  The  song  of  hope  that  had  illumined  his 
heart  when  he  inquired  if  there  was  any  letter  for  him  had 
died  away,  and  a  feeling  of  loneliness  and  regret  of  the  neg- 
lect of  those  at  home  took  possession  of  him.  Happj'  were 
they  who  had  homes  and  loved  ones  to  hear  from  I 

Next  to  the  scarcity  of  rations  the  hardships  incident  to 
being  poorly  clad  during  the  extreme  cold  weather  were 
most  severely  felt.  It  was  often  so  cold  that  when  attempt- 
ing to  write  letters  or  make  entries  in  diaries  the  ink  would 
freeze  on  the  pens.  It  would  often  be  necessary  to  heat  the 
pen  and  write  as  rapidly  as  possible  until  it  cooled  oft".  An- 
other plan  was  to  sit  near  the  camp-fire,  which  was  usually 
a  veritable  log-heap,  and  roast  one 's-self  while  writing,  plac- 
ing the  ink  bottle  in  the  hot  ashes.  The  men  would  sit  up 
late  at  night  roasting  themselves  around  the  fires — roasting 
one  side  while  the  other  was  almost  frozen.  A  few  brief 
hours'  exposure  to  cold  in  civil  life  is  sometimes  thought  to 
be  quite  a  hardship,  but  when  it  comes  to  suffering  from 
morning  until  night,  and  from  night  until  morning,  day  in 
and  day  out,  week  in  and  week  out.  the  suffering  is  real  and 
almost  unendurable,  and  one  returns  to  the  child's  philosophy 
and  wonders  "where  all  the  cold  comes  from."  Ljing 
down  at  night  somewhat  warmed,  at  least  partially  thawed 
out,  by  the  great  fires  in  front  of  his  tent,  the  soldier  would 
sleep  soundly  for  a  time.  At  length  the  fire  would  burn  low 
and  the  cold  would  begin  to  assert.  Then  he  would  awaken 
with  benumbed  and  aching  toes,  stirring  up  the  fire  lie  would 
"thaw  out"  his  pedal  appendages  and  return  to  his  couch  of 
leaves,  straw  or  the  cold  ground,  curl  up  "spoon"  fashion 
with  his  buukmate  for  another  brief  nap.  Thus  did  the 
soldiers  sleep  and  rest.      This  is  not  the  histoiy  of  sieges  or 


308  THE  EIGHTV-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

gory  fields  of  glory,  or  even  important  military  movements, 
but  it  was  the  actual  life  of  the  Eighty-sixth  while  at  Blain's 
Cross  Roads. 

General  Cox  in  his  history  of  the  Atlanta  Campaign, 
speaking  of  the  incoming  year  1864,  says:  "The  new  year 
opened  with  a  furious  gale  and  icy  storm,  which  came  as  a 
cyclone  from  the  northwest,  reducing  the  temperature  sud- 
denly below  zero.  The  half-naked  soldiers  hovered  around 
their  camp-fires,  some  without  coats,  some  without  panta- 
loons, some  with  tattered  blankets  tied  like  petticoats  about 
their  waists. "  This  is  a  fair  statement  so  far  as  it  goes  as  to 
the  ill  condition  of  the  clothing  of  the  troops,  but  it  is  in  part 
misleading.  The  account  is  only  half  told.  The  soldiers 
could  not  "hover  around  the  camp-fires  "  until  the  camji- 
fires  were  built.  Wood  had  to  be  chopped  and  carried  up, 
and  the  chopper  and  carriers,  although  half -naked,  could  not 
hover  about  the  fire.  Provisions  had  to  be  secured  and  the 
foragers  could  not  "hover  about  the  fire,"  nor  the  lone 
picket  far  away  from  the  fire  on  the  bare  bleak  hillside  with 
his  faithful  Enfield  ever  in  hand— he  most  of  all  suftered  in 
this  terrific  blizzard.  The  like  was  never  before  known  in 
Tennessee.  It  was  indeed  a  pitiable  time  -for  the  men  in 
ranks.  New  Year's  day,  1864,  is  yet  known  all  over  the 
Northwest  as  "the  cold  New  Years.  " 

As  early  as  December  14,  Dr.  W.  W.  Blair,  Medical 
Director  of  the  Third  division,  Fourth  corps,  made  a  per- 
sonal inspection  of  the  men  in  this  command.  He  reported 
to  General  Wood  that  he  found  them  exceedingly  destitute 
of  clothing.  He  said  that  the  entire  outfit  of  many  soldiers 
consisted  of  a  blouse,  worn  as  a  shirt,  a  pair  of  pants  well 
worn,  a  pair  of  shoes,  and  in  some  instances  not  even  those, 
an  oil  or  woolen  blanket,  and  a  hat  or  cap.  As  one  of  the 
results  of  this  exposure,  he  found  the  men  attacked  with 
rheumatism,  with  diarrhoea,  and  with  fever  of  a  typhoid  char- 
acter. General  Wood  thereupon  addressed  a  communication 
to  General  Granger,  commanding  the  Fourth  corps,  enclos- 
ing Surgeon  Blair's  report,  who  referred  it  to  the  command- 
ing general  of  the  department  with  his  approval  endorsed.. 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  309 

General  Wood  in  the  course  of  his  communication  said:  "It  is 
very  evident  from  Surgeon  Blair's  report  that,  if  the  com- 
mand be  left  much  longer  in  its  present  exposed,  unpro- 
tected, and  unprovided  condition,  the  ordinary  military  com- 
manders will  be  relieved  soon  of  further  care  of  very  many 
of  the  men,  as  they  will  have  been  placed  by  Generals  Rheu- 
matism, Diarrhoea,  Pneumonia,  and  Typhoid  Fever  beyond 
the  reach  of  further  human  care.  The  Second  and  Third 
divisions  have  not  been  supplied  with  clothing  since  the 
march  from  Middle  Tennessee  in  August  last.  After  fight- 
ing a  great  battle,  we  were  hurried  off  to  the  relief  of  the 
beleaguered  garrison  at  Knoxville.  We  came  cheerfully  and 
with  alacrity,  not  only  as  a  matter  of  duty,  but  as  a  work  of 
love.  But  the  siege  having  been  raised,  and  it  being  appar- 
ent that  further  active  operations  in  this  field  for  some  time 
to  come  are  impossible,  w^e  ask  now  that  immediate  and 
effective  measures  be  taken  to  supply  our  wants.  "  General 
Wood  went  on  to  say  that  the  men  were  not  only  destitute  of 
clothing,  but  men  and  officers  were  suffering  for  want  of  suf- 
ficient protection  in  tents.  He  thought  the  only  effectual 
remedy  was  to  be  permitted  to  return  to  Chattanooga  where 
the  officers  and  men  had  left  their  baggage  and  shelter.  But 
the  appeals  of  Generals  Wood  and  Granger  were  in  vain, 
and  the  two  divisions  of  the  Fourth  corps  remained  in  East 
Tennessee  during  the  entire  winter.  Deplorable  as  was  the 
condition  of  the  command  in  the  middle  of  December  it  be- 
came lamentably  wretched  as  the  days  wore  on. 

On  January  13,  orders  were  received  that  the  command 
would  march  on  the  following  morning  at  7  o'clock.  The 
work  of  preparation  commenced  at  once.  The  corn  bread 
had  to  be  baked  that  the  men  might  have  bread  while  on  the 
march.  In  this  way  they  came  to  more  fully  appreciate  the 
hard  tack  which  was  at  first  so  bitterly  denounced.  It  re- 
quired no  baking  or  preparation  when  other  duties  required 
their  attention,  but  like  the  true  soldier  in  ranks  it  was 
always  ready  at  a  moment's  notice.  The  "general  call'' 
w^as  sounded  by  the  brigade  bugler  about  6:30  a.  m.  on  the 
morning  of  the  14th,  and  the  Third  brigade  filed  out  upon  the 


:\\0  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

road  to  Strawberry  Plains  at  7  o'clock.  It  crossed  the  Hol- 
ston  river  at  the  Plains  and  proceeded  in  a  southeasterly 
direction.  The  weather  was  warmer  than  the  first  few  days 
of  the  month  and  the  roads  had  thawed  out  and  were  exceed- 
ingly muddy,  consequently  all  who  were  on  foot  were  very 
much  fatigued  before  the  night's  bivouac  was  reached.  The 
command  covered  fourteen  or  fifteen  miles,  notwithstanding 
the  very  bad  condition  of  the  roads  and  the  delay  caused  in 
crossing  the  river.  On  the  morning  of  the  15th  there  was 
but  little  to  eat  in  the  camp  of  the  Eighty-sixth,  except  mut- 
ton and  parched  corn.  These  articles  with  a  little  coffee 
made  the  meal  for  about  one-half  of  the  regiment.  Many 
had  less,  and  a  few  fortunate  foragers,  perhaps  had  more. 
The  column  resumed  the  march  about  7  o'clock,  the  Eighty - 
sixth  having  the  advance  of  the  brigade.  After  covering 
eight  miles  with  one  brief  halt  for  a  rest,  the  brigade  arrived 
within  about  a  mile  of  the  town  of  Dandridge  and  bivouacked 
in  the  woods  along  side  the  road.  The  advance  guards  had 
driven  the  enemy  out  of  the  town.  Dandridge  is  the  county- 
seat  of  Jefferson  county,  located  on  the  French  Broad  river, 
thirty-two  miles  east  of  Knoxville.  Before  the  breaking  out 
of  the  war  it  contained  about  1,500  inhabitants. 

Foragers  were  detailed  and  sent  out  immediately  to  pro- 
cure provisions,  as  the  regiment  was  almost  destitute.  The 
foragers  brought  in  fresh  pork,  chickens,  geese,  ducks,  corn 
and  whatever  would  sustain  life.  The  products  of  the  coun- 
try were  not  plentiful  and  some  ventursome  expeditions  were 
made,  especially  as  it  was  known  that  the  enemy  was  hover- 
ing near.  On  the  16th  many  of  the  boys  had  sallied  forth  in 
every  direction  to  replenish  their  stores,  when  cannonading 
opened  in  the  direction  of  camp  which  brought  them  in  at  a 
lively  speed.  The  progress  they  made  did  the  command  full 
credit,  as  it  was  then  known  as  ' '  Wood 's  Greyhounds. ' '  Mus- 
ketry became  quite  lively,  and  the  men  fully  expected  to  be 
ordered  out  upon  the  battle  line.  Just  after  noon  the  regi- 
ment was  ordered  into  line  and  held  in  readiness  for  attack 
or  defense  at  a  moment's  notice.  The  fighting  continued 
throughout  the  afternoon  and  far   into   the  night,  but  the 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  311 

Eighty-sixth  was  not  needed.     Late  in  the  evening  a  small 
supply  of  clothing  was  issued  to  the  most  needy. 

On  the  morning  of  the  17th  the  regiment  was  ordered 
into  line  of  battle  very  early  and  held  thus  for  some  time  as 
a  precautionary  measure,  but  as  there  were  no  indications  of 
an  advance  by  the  enemy  the  men  were  permitted  at  length 
to  break  ranks  and  get  breakfast.  Early  in  the  forenoon 
the  regiment  received  orders  for  picket  duty,  but  in  a  short 
time  this  was  varied  to  orders  to  be  ready  to  march  at  a 
moment's  notice.  Everything  was  packed  in  short  time. 
The  men  remained  at  the  bivouac,  lounged  about  the  camp- 
tires  and  discussed  the  situation  of  affairs  here  and  the  prob- 
ability of  a  battle  being  fought  at  this  time.  No  attack  was 
made  until  about  3  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  when  cannonad- 
ing and  musketry  fire  both  opened  up  in  a  brisk  manner. 
The  men  momentarily  expected  to  be  called  upon  to  go  and 
repel  the  attack,  but  no  call  came  until  about  dusk.  The 
regiment  marched  out  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  from  camp 
and  there  held  in  readiness  for  two  hours,  waiting  the  devel- 
opment of  the  enemy's  plan  of  operations.  It  then  marched 
back  to  its  bivouac.  Orders  were  given  to  march.  The  men 
sat  round  the  camp-tires  chatting,  a  few  falling  asleep  in  a 
half-reclining  posture  against  stumps,  trees,  or  xiiles  of  wood. 
Others  threw  themselves  upon  the  ground  and  slept  soundly, 
while  many  did  not  shut  their  eyes.  About  3  o'clock  on  the 
morning  of  the  18th  the  men  were  ordered  to  "fall  in."  The 
regiment  took  arms  at  once  and  marched  slowly  out  in  the 
direction  of  Strawberry  Plains.  The  night  was  cold,  the 
ground  was  frozen,  and  in  many  places  the  road  was  icy. 
Here  on  the  ic}^  road  the  men  would  slip  and  slide  and  some- 
times fall  heavily  to  the  ground,  stuggle  to  their  feet  and 
tramp  on.  Soon  after  starting  the  men  were  compelled  to 
wade  a  stream  of  water  half-leg  deep  with  the  water  at  the 
freezing  point.  This  did  not  add  to  their  comfort  or  good 
humor,  but  there  was  no  time  then  to  build  bridges  and  the 
Irishman's  pontoons  were  always  at  hand.  But  the  column 
pressed  on.  No  stop  was  made  until  after  daylight,  when  a 
brief  halt  was  called  and  the  command  breakfasted.      It  was 


312  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

a  scant  meal  for  most  of  the  rank  and  file  of  the  Eighty-sixth. 
Some  had  corn  bread  and  beef,  some  had  corn  bread  and 
mutton,  some  had  bread  and  chicken,  and  others  had  chicken 
without  bread,  some  had  bread  but  no  meat,  and  still  others 
had  only  a  little  parched  corn.  The  spirits  of  the  men  were 
not  the  best,  yet  they  were  not  despondent  and  they  kept  up 
well,  considering  the  situation.  The  rest,  the  meal,  and 
daylight  reanimated  the  command  somewhat,  and  the  march 
was  resumed  in  better  humor  than  when  the  halt  was 
ordered.  The  men  were  now  relieved  of  the  frozen,  icy  con- 
dition of  the  road,  but  the  mud  and  water  occasioned  by  the 
thawing  was  about  as  bad  as  the  slippery  condition  of  the 
road  when  frozen.  It  soon  began  to  rain  which  down  x^our 
continued  nearly  all  day.  The  men,  therefore,  only  escaped 
from  one  evil  of  the  road  to  find  themselves  confronted  by 
another  quite  as  bad,  if  not  worse.  The  mud  grew  deeper 
and  deeper,  and  every  step  taken  was  in  mud  up  to  shoe- 
mouth.  It  was  utterly  useless  to  try  to  go  round  it,  or  avoid 
it  in  any  way.  Therefore  the  men  went  ' '  like  dumb  driven 
cattle  "  straight  forward,  turning  neither  to  the  right  nor  to 
the  left,  for  the  mud  was  everywhere.  The  day's  march  was 
a  desperate  one,  considering  the  condition  of  the  roads.  The 
command  reached  Strawberry  Plains  a  little  after  dark,  hav- 
ing covered  during  the  day's  mai-ch,  as  estimated,  about 
twenty-six  miles,  and  that,  too,  over  the  very  worst  of  roads. 
Having  reached  their  bivouac,  the  men  had  to  carry  rails  a 
long  distance — a  good  half  mile — procure  water,  build  fires 
and  get  supper  before  resting  for  the  night.  It  is  doubtful 
if  even  those  who  participated  in  this  march  can  at  this  late 
day  fully  comprehend  their  extreme  fatigue  and  weariness, 
and  the  soreness  of  their  muscles,  when  they  had  cooled  off 
after  the  march  was  over.  The  frugal  meal  dispatched,  the 
men  made  down  their  beds  for  the  night.  It  had  again 
turned  cold,  and  it  was  quite  windy  and  disagreeable  and 
threatened  a  storm.  They  turned  in  early  "to  sleep,  per- 
chance to  dream ' '  of  home  and  its  comforts  and  its  happiness. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

EAST   TENNESSEE. 

The  Bivouac  in  the  Snow— Bade  to  Blaryville— xV  Laugliable  Incident— General 
Willich  in  Temporary  Command  of  the  Division— Again  on  the  Move— Smoky 
Hollow— At  Knoxville— On  to  Morristown— Back  to  New  IMarlvet— Again  at 
Morristown— Strawberry  Plains— Off  to  Kutledge— The  Clinch  Mountains— A 
Scouting  Expedition  —Bound  for  Chattanooga— The  Campaign  Ended— At  Mc- 
Donald Station. 

The  morning  of  the  19th  dawned,  but  it  was  a  rude 
awakening  for  the  soldier,  tired  in  every  limb  and  muscle, 
stiff  in  every  joint  and  lank  as  a  fox-hound  after  a  long  chase. 
The  men  had  slept  soundly,  and  not  a  gun  or  bugle  note  dis- 
turbed their  repose.  It  was  a  January  morning  long  to  be  re- 
membered by  the  Eighty-sixth.  There  lay  the  command  on 
open  ground  and  covered  with  snow  five  or  six  inches  deep! 
The  words  of  Margaret  J.  Preston  came  vividly  to  mind: 

"  Halt- the  march  is  over, 

Day  is  almost  gone; 
Loose  the  cumbrous  knapsack, 

Drop  the  heavy  gun. 
Chilled  and  wet  and  weary. 

Wander  to  and  fro. 
Seeking  wood  to  kindle 

Fires  amidst  the  snow. 

"  Round  the  bright  blaze  gather. 

Heed  not  sleet  or  cold ; 
Ye  are  Spartan  soldiers. 

Stout  and  brave  and  bold." 

The  various  bunks  lay  around  over  the  ground  like  so 
many  logs  rolled  together  and  buried  in  the  snow.  No 
sign  of  lif(;  revealed  itself  for  some  time.  First  one,  and 
then  another,  would  gently  lift  the  blanket  covering  his 
head  and  stretch  his  neck  out  like  a  turtle  from  under  his 
shell,  take  a  brief  observation  of  the  appearance  of  things, 


314  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

utter  some  exclamation  of  surprise,  and  quickly  withdraw  his 
astonished  countenance  from  sight.  Carefully  tucking  the 
blanket  around  his  head,  to  keep  the  snow^  from  tumbling 
about  his  ears,  he  meditates.  But  there  w^as  work  to  be  done. 
More  rails  had  to  be  procured  for  fuel,  and  it  w^as  a  particu- 
larly unpleasant  task  for  weary  soldiers  to  turn  out  into  the 
snow  and  trudge  a  half  mile  or  more.  But  difficulties  never 
vanish  by  trying  to  evade  them.  They  must  be  met  and 
overcome.  Finally  all  were  up  and  at  work.  Here,  too,  was 
an  occasion  where  work  was  a  benefit  to  the  laborer  in  and 
of  itself,  not  that  he  particularly  needed  the  exercise  for  the 
sake  of  exercise,  but  the  work  was  highly  beneficial  both  for 
the  physical  w^ell-being  of  the  soldier  and  for  the  morale  of 
of  the  command.  At  the  first  look  to  the  half-rested,  half- 
starved,  poorly  clad,  sore-legged  soldier  it  was  a  gloomy 
morning  indeed^ — a  disheartening  prospect  that  well-nigh 
overmastered  him.  Under  such  depressing  conditions  and 
circumstances  the  renewal  of  work  is  the  great  panacea — 
the  one  great  safeguard,  the  surest  cure,  and  so  it  proved 
with  the  Eighty-sixth.  When  the  effort  was  made  to  meet 
the  difficulties,  great  as  they  appeared  to  be  at  first,  it  was 
soon  seen  that  they  were  not  insurmountable,  and  as  the 
blood  began  to  flow  more  freely  from  exertions  put  forth, 
the  spiritual  barometer  began  to  indicate  fair  weather,  figura- 
tively speaking,  and  the  gloom  began  to  disappear.  The 
morning  meal  over,  the  next  task  was  to  dry  the  blankets,  put 
tents  and  haversacks  in  order  to  be  ready  to  march.  Al- 
though the  tents  were  not  pitched  they  were  used  for  a  cov- 
ering. Blankets  held  the  more  moisture  and  were  the  first 
to  receive  attention.  Fires  were  built  and  the  blankets 
stretched  upright  on  the  muskets  as  near  them  as  possible. 
By  the  time  the  men  were  ordered  to  "fall  in,"'  which  was 
between  11  and  12  o'clock,  they  had  their  blankets  and  tents 
pretty  well  dried.  The  regiment  crossed  the  Holston  river 
after  .some  delay,  and  marched  about  four  miles  from  the 
river  toward  Knoxville  and  bivouacked.  The  afternoon  was 
cold  and  windy,  being  very  disagreeable,  and  the  indications 
betokened  a  stormy  and  unpleasant  night.    The  men,  therefore, 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  315 

busied  themselves  in  making  preparations  for  the  night. 
Sheds,  bowers,  lean-tos,  and.  in  fact,  all  kinds  of  temporary 
makeshifts  for  protection  from  the  piercing  wind  and  the 
coming  night's  cold,  were  erected.  A  little  flour  and  meal  in 
lieu  of  bread,  and  a  very  scant  rations  of  coffee,  sugar,  and 
salt  were  issued  at  this  place.  A  mail  in  the  evening  glad- 
dened the  hearts  of  many. 

On  the  following  day,  January  20,  the  weather  moder- 
ated and  was  quite  i^leasant  as  the  day  advanced.  The  troops 
lay  round  the  bivouac  all  day  until  about  one  hour  before 
sun -set,  when  the  '"general  call"  was  sounded  by  the  brig- 
age  bugler.  The  command  was  soon  marching  "route-step " 
in  the  direction  of  Knoxville.  The  roads  were  muddy  and 
the  marching  heavy  and  slavish  which  made  the  progress 
slow.  The  command-  covered  four  or  five  miles  and  bivou- 
acked about  8  o'clock  in  a  thick  woods  alongside  of  the  road. 
Rails  were  procured  for  fuel  and  supper  prepared.  It  was 
both  late  and  light  of  necessity.  On  the  following  morning, 
the  21st.  reveille  was  sounded  at  5  o'clock  and  the  men  were 
soon  busily  engaged  in  baking  '•  flapjacks  "  or  corn  bread 
for  the  day's  rations.  These  constituted  a  very  poor  substi- 
tute for  hard  tack  when  on  the  march.  The  command 
marched  out  a  little  after  sunrise  in  the  direction  of  Knox- 
ville. passed  through  the  city,  crossed  the  Holston  river,  and 
went  about  tw^o  miles  beyond  and  bivouacked.  On  the  22d, 
the  regiment  remained  in  bivouac.  General  John  G.  Foster, 
at  this  time  in  command  of  the  Department  of  the  Ohio, 
passed  the  camp  on  the  22d,  doubtlessly,  looking  out  a  loca- 
tion for  the  brigade  and  division.  Some  teams  were  sent 
foraging  during  the  day,  and  in  the  evening  orders  were 
received  to  be  ready  to  march  at  8  o'clock  the  next  morning. 
It  was  also  "  grapevined  "  through  camp  that  the  enemy  was 
advancing  and  was  within  four  or  five  miles.  It  was  not 
believed. 

Saturday.  Januarj-  23,  the  bugles  sounded  reveille  at  6 
o'clock.  Soon  all  was  bustle  and  hurry.  The  march  was 
resumed  at  the  hour  appointed.  The  command  covered 
about  two  miles  and  was  halted.     A  small  supply  of  cloth- 


316  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

ing  was  here  issued  to  the  Eighty-sixth.  Many  were  in 
great  need,  and  were  very  glad  to  get  it,  as  all  had  been  more 
or  less  destitute  ever  since  being  cooped  up  in  Chattanooga 
by  Bragg.  The  needy  were  now  only  partially  supplied. 
Many  were  greatly  disappointed  in  not  receiving  the  much 
needed  articles.  The  march  was  resumed  as  soon  as  the 
clothing  was  distributed.  However,  the  march  was  not  at  a 
rapid  rate  and  the  regiment  was  frequently  halted  for  rests. 
When  Little  river  was  reached  the  command  was  delayed 
for  some  time  as  it  had  to  cross  in  single  file. 

A  laughable  accident  occurred  here.  The  command 
crossed  just  above  a  mill-dam  on  two  hewed  logs,  the  ends 
of  which  were  chained  together  in  the  middle  of  the  stream. 
Avhile  the  other  ends  were  safely  anchored  to  the  banks.  Of 
course  the  force  of  the  current  carried  the  ends  of  the  logs 
in  the  stream  down  with  it  so  there  was  an  angle  formed  in 
the  middle  of  the  stream  where  the  w^ater  w^as  quite  deep, 
the  logs  lying  almost  at  right  angles  with  one  another.  Con- 
sequently the  distance  to  be  traveled  in  crossing  was 
increased  and  the  progress  delayed.  Besides  the  logs  lay  in 
the  water  and  every  step  taken  gave  them  more  or  less 
motion  and  rendered  them  not  a  perfectly  sure  and  stable 
footing  to  one  inclined  to  be  timid.  The  majority  of  the 
Eighty-sixth  were  becoming  impatient  at  the  long  delay  and 
hurried  across  as  rapidly  as  possible  when  their  turns  came 
— most  of  them  at  a  brisk  trot.  When  Company  H"s  turn 
came  all  were  in  a  hurry  but  one  man,  Leander  W.  Friend, 
known  the  regiment  over  as  "China,"  on  account  of  his 
being  so  fat  and  "chuffy."  As  a  natural  consequence  of  his 
superabundance  of  adipose  tissue  he  was  as  clumsy  as  a 
bear.  When  his  turn  came,  and  he  was  among  the  first,  he 
passed  along  very  slowly  and  deliberately,  notwithstanding 
the  calls  of  comrades  to  hurry.  His  best  pace  was  decidedly 
slow  and  he  was  afraid  of  tumbling  into  the  water  and  being 
drowned.  Just  behind  him  was  a  comrade  of  the  exact 
opposite  i^hysical  make.  John  Worden  was  one  of  the  quick- 
est, most  active,  nervous  men  in  all  the  regiment.  Whatever 
he  did.  he  did  with  all  his  might  and  with  lightning  like 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  317 

rapidity.  "China"  waddled  along  like  a  fat  pig,  "Worden 
dancing  along  behind  him  on  nettles,  as  it  were,  at  his  delay, 
until  they  reached  the  angle  made  by  the  logs  in  the  middle 
of  the  stream.  Here  Worden's  impatience  would  brook  no 
further  delay  without  an  extra  effort  on  his  part,  so  he  made 
a  spring  to  get  ahead  of  "  China"  as  he  turned  from  one  log- 
to  the  other.  But  the  second  log  being  somewhat  broader 
than  the  first  one  gave  "China"  more  confidence  and  he 
quickened  his  pace  and  reached  the  point  of  Worden's  land- 
ing a  second  too  soon  for  the  latter  who  only  succeeded  in 
striking  his  more  bulky  and  weighty  comrade  and  bounding 
back  into  the  water.  He  went  down  like  a  shot  up  to  his 
neck.  With  knapsack,  haversack,  gun  and  cartridge-box  he 
was  pretty  heavily  handicapped  for  a  struggle  in  the  water, 
but  caught  hold  of  the  log  quick  as  a  flash  and  thus  saved 
himself  until  the  clumsy  ••China"  very  deliberately  stooped 
over  and  pulled  his  agile  comrade  out  of  his  ludicrous  pre- 
dicament amid  the  shouts  of  laughter  of  all  those  who  wit- 
nessed it. 

The  Eighty-sixth  proceeded  about  two  miles  beyond  the 
river,  and  bivouacked  for  the  night  on  the  side  of  a  hill  near 
one  of  its  old  camping  places  as  it  marched  up  to  Knoxville 
from  Chattanooga.  The  bivouac  was  located  near  a  grist 
mill  and  the  traffic  between  the  boys  and  the  miller  was 
quick  brisk  for  a  time.  Many  had  carried  a  supply  of  corn 
all  day,  others  most  of  the  day,  in  fact,  wherever  and  when- 
ever it  could  be  foraged  a  supply  was  laid  in,  and  now  the 
supply  on  hand  was  traded  for  meal.  Orders  were  received 
in  the  evening  that  the  command  would  march  at  7:30  the 
following  morning. 

On  the  morning  of  the  24th  the  column  resumed  the  march 
at  the  appointed  hour.  The  pace  was  moderate,  with  fre- 
quent rests,  until  about  10  o'clock  a.  m.,  when  the  out-skirts 
of  Mary  ville  were  reached.  Here  it  halted,  closed  up  in  mass, 
and  General  Willich,  then  temporarily  in  command  of  the 
division,  made  a  short  speech  in  his  broken  English.  He 
said  that  the  Third  division.  Fourth  army  cori)s,  was  here 
alone,  and  that  it  would  be  compelled  to  depend  upon  itself. 


318  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

He  further  said  that  there  should  not  be  any  foraghig  or 
scouting,  except  when  ordered.  Free  and  independent  ex- 
cursions for  any  purpose  must  not  be  thought  of  for  fear  of 
capture  by  the  enemy's  cavalry  that  was  continually  scour- 
ing the  country  and  picking  off  prowlers  who  ventured  away 
from  their  commands.  His  blunt,  out-spoken  manner,  and 
the  peculiar  way  he  had  of  putting  things  created  much  mer- 
riment and  he  was  greeted  with  shouts  and  laughter.  This 
speech  of  the  General's  greatly  amused  everybody,  and  put 
the  rank  and  file  in  great  good  humor.  His  kinds  words  en- 
deared -him  to  the  men,  and  then  he  had  shown  himself  so 
considerate  of  them  in  his  manner  directing  and  conducting 
the  march  that  all  were  fully  convinced  that  he  would  do  the 
very  best  he  could  for  them  on  all  occasions. 

The  brigades  were  assigned  their  positions  by  General 
Willich,  and  the  regiments  took  their  respective  positions 
according  to  the  order  of  the  day's  march.  Immediately 
after  dinner  the  Eighty-sixth  began  work  upon  quarters  to 
make  themselves  comfortable.  All  were  busy  and  more  or 
less  successful,  so  in  a  comparatively  short  time  the  men 
were  comfortably  cantoned.  Most  of  the  bunks  of  the  regi- 
ment built  shanties  and  covered  them  with  their  shelter 
tents,  and  constructed  fire-places  of  clay  and  rock  with 
"stick  and  mud"  chimneys.  This  work,  however,  created 
extra  keen  appetities,  and  as  rations  were  decidedly  short 
many  imagined  that  it  was  absolutely  necessary  that  they 
disregard  one  of  General  Willich 's  positive  commands.  Cat- 
tle, hogs,  chickens,  turkeys,  geese,  ducks,  corn-pone,  corn 
and  potatoes  did  not  come  amiss,  but  there  was  not  a  great 
amount  of  any  these  productions  in  the  country.  Corn  was 
the  most  plentiful,  and  with  this  the  men  generally  supplied 
themselves.  This  w^as  grated  into  meal  and  made  into 
bread  without  sifting.  The  forms  of  making  bread  were 
numerous.  Hoe-cake  baked  on  a  board  before  the  fire,  grid- 
dle cake,  ash  cake,  dodger,  and  corn-pone,  were  all  attempted 
to  give  variety  to  the  bill-of-fare,  and  according  to  the  con- 
veniences of  the  culinary  department.  Occasionally  the  men 
would  draw  a  ration  of  beef  "dried  on  hoof"  from  the  com- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  319 

missary  department,  but  this  was  rare.  Sometimes  a  pie 
could  be  bought.  The  price  for  an  ordinary  Tennessee  pie 
at  this  time  was  thirty  cents. 

The  regiment's  military  functions  consisted  of  picket 
duty,  which  was  quite  heavy,  and  details  for  foraging.  When 
not  on  duty  the  men  employed  their  time,  at  first,  in  fixing 
up  and  improving  the  camp,  cutting  down  and  leveling  up 
the  floors  of  their  shanties,  ditching  them  and  making  their 
temporary  homes  more  comfortable.  They  made  stools, 
bunks,  tables,  and  many  other  little  conveniences,  so  at  the 
end  of  a  couple  of  weeks  they  were  quite  comfortably  situ- 
ated. After  the  camp  was  established,  a  ball  ground  was 
laid  off,  and  daily,  when  the  weather  was  favorable,  those 
not  on  duty  took  exercise  by  playing  a  few  games  of  ' '  town 
ball."  Later  on,  while  here,  a  violin  was  procured,  and, 
when  the  evenings  were  fine,  dancing  was  engaged  in.  Of 
course,  it  was  a  veritable  '"stag  dance."  However,  it  was 
entered  into  with  great  gusto  and  thoroughly  enjoyed.  Not- 
withstanding all  this,  the  health  of  the  regiment  remained 
reasonably  good.  Of  course  some  of  the  weaker  ones  broke 
down  during  this  time,  and  others  felt  the  effects  of  the  win- 
ter's hardships  later. 

About  the  last  of  January  the  other  regiments  of  the 
brigade  went  on  a  scout,  and  it  fell  on  the  Eighty-sixth  to  do 
the  picketing  for  the  entire  brigade.  This  made  extra  duty 
which  kept  the  men  quite  busy  for  some  days.  But  the  pick- 
eting was  not  particularly  disagreeable  here,"  excepting  in 
bad  weather.  Yet  this  duty  is  always  unpleasant  in  inclem- 
ent weather.  About  the  4th  of  February,  the  non- veterans 
of  the  Thirteenth  Ohio,  and  those  of  the  Fifty-ninth  Ohio, 
came  to  the  Eighty-sixth  to  remain  with  it  for  duty  while 
those  who  re-enlisted  went  home  on  their  veteran  furloughs. 
Those  of  the  Thirteenth  had  some  hard  cases  among  them, 
and  occasionally  made  trouble  for  the  company  officers  in 
which  they  were  placed. 

Along  about  this  time,  too,  the  rumors  of  the  enemy's 
advance,  of  cavalry  fighting  at  Seveirville  and  to  the  south  of 
Maryville,  about  theChilhowee  mountains,  began  to  make  the 


320  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

rounds  of  the  camp,  and  the  reports  were  constantly  chang- 
ing from  the  report  of  light  skirmishing  to  that  of  severe 
lighting,  and  from  that  again  back  to  unimportant  skirmish- 
ing. On  the  7th  of  February  a  cavalry  guard  conducted  a 
small  squad  of  rebel  prisoners  by  the  camp  of  the  Eighty - 
sixtli  in  the  direction  of  Knoxville,  which  confirmed,  to  a 
certain  extent,  the  report  of  some  skirmishing,  at  least. 
About  this  time,  too,  orders  were  given  which  were  a  little 
more  strict  concerning  absence  from  camp  and  for  a  closei- 
watch  by  the  pickets.  On  the  10th  orders  seemed  to  point  to 
an  expected  attack.  The  cavalry  videttes,  out  perhaps  five 
miles,  were  fired  upon,  and  a  camp  rumor  grew  in  jjropor- 
tion,  the  "grapevine"  worked  the  more  rapidly.  On  the 
12th  the  regiment  received  the  stores  which  they  had  packed 
and  sent  back  early  in  the  fall.  With  these  goods  were  the 
overcoats  of  almost  every  private  in  the  regiment.  While 
near  Blain's  Cross  Roads  the  men  sorely  needed  their  over- 
coats, but  their  wants  did  not  furnish  transportation.  As 
badly  as  the  men  needed  clothing,  provisions  were  equally  as 
great  a  necessity,  and  the  wagon  trains  had  not  been  able  to 
half  supply  the  demand. 

On  February  13,  a  number  of  disheartened  Confederates 
came  in  and  gave  themselves  up,  saying  they  had  enough  of 
war  and  fighting,  and  wished  to  abandon  the  cause  of  the 
Confederacy.  They  were  taken  care  of  and  sent  to  Knox- 
ville to  take  the  oath.  Generals  Wood  and  Willich  were 
both  now  at  home  on  leaves  of  absence,  and  the  command  of 
the  division  devolved  on  General  Beatty,  and  that  of  the 
brigade  on  Colonel  Dick.  It  had  been  raining  quite  hard  and 
had  made  the  roads  very  muddy,  when  on  the  night  of  the 
15th  of  February  the  men  were  aroused  by  the  officers  and 
told  to  rise  immediately,  as  orders  had  been  received  to  march 
at  once.  They  arose  promptly,  struck  tents,  and  packed  up. 
This  was  about  11  o'clock  at  night.  At  2  o'clock  a.  m.  on  the 
IGth,  the  regiment  filed  out  upon  the  road  toward  Knoxville, 
in  mud  shoe-mouth  deep.  The  marching  was  slavish  and  the 
progress  slow.  Little  river  was  not  crossed  until  afternoon. 
Pushing  ahead  rapidly  for  some  time  good  speed  was  made. 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  321 

The  command  was  then  halted  to  allow  the  wagon  train  to 
take  the  advance.  Once  more  the  men  plunged  into  the  mud 
and  water  and  forged  ahead  as  rapidly  as  possible,  but  it  was 
slow  work.  However,  the  command  did  not  halt  for  bivouac 
until  within  about  three-fourths  of  a  mile  of  the  pontoon 
bridge  crossing  the  river  ^at  Knoxville.  The  camping  place 
was  reached  about  11  o'clock  at  night.  The  regiment  biv- 
ouacked in  a  ravine  that  ran  down  to  the  Holston  river.  The 
night  was  cold,  only  a  few  limbs  could  be  found,  although  in 
the  woods.  This  was  one  of  the  most  uncomfortable 
bivouacs  which  the  regiment  had  yet  occupied.  The  location 
was  .not  so  bad,  so  much  as  the  inclement  weather  rendered 
it  disagreeable.  On  the  following  morning  the  men  arose 
promptly  at  reveille,  which  was  sounded  at  daybreak.  It 
was  disagreeably  cold  and  the  wind  whirled  in  gusts  in  every 
direction,  and  yet  there  was  no  possible  chance  to  escape 
from  its  terrors  unless  the  men  left  the  camp  and  took  their 
chances  of  freezing.  The  men  were  hungry,  cold,  and 
smoked  almost  blind,  and  the  place  in  rememberance  of  their 
misery  was  denominated  "Smoky  Hollow."  It  might  have 
been  very  properly  called  "  Cold- Windy-Starvation-Hollow, " 
to  commemorate  the  trinity  of  the  sufferings  which  the  men 
endured.  The  regiment  remained  here  from  about  11  o'clock 
on  the  night  of  the  16th  and  until  about  1  o'clock  on  the 
afternoon  of  the  18th  of  February.  There  was  not  a  decent 
looking  pair  of  eyes  in  the  entire  regiment  when  it  marched 
out.  Had  there  been  a  requisition  made  for  a  regiment  of 
mourners  the  Eighty-sixth  should  have  furnished  the  detail. 
It  could  have  filled  the  bill  to  perfection. 

The  command  crossed  the  river,  passed  through  the  city 
and  about  one  mile  beyond  and  west  of  the  town,  bivouacking 
on  the  site  of  an  old  camp  of  a  part  of  the  Nintli  army  corps. 
Here  it  lounged  in  bivouac  for  several  days  without  any 
special  duty  to  perform.  On  the  20th  the  regiment  was 
ordered  out  for  general  inspection  by  Major  Comstock,  Gen- 
eral Grant's  Inspector  General.  On  the  22d  it  drew  two 
months'  pay  which  came  very  acceptable.  On  this  day,  too, 
most  of  the  men  of  the  regiment  went  to  work  on  their  own 


322  THK  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

motion  to  build  quarters.  They  worked  hard  the  22d  and 
23d,  and  most  of  them  had  just  finished  and  moved  into  very 
comfortable  huts  on  the  evening  of  the  23d,  when  orders 
were  received  for  fatigue  duty  which  was  soon  changed  to 
march  in  the  morning.  On  the  morning  of  the  24th  the  regi- 
ment resumed  its  wanderings.  Passing  through  the  city 
and  along  up  the  Holston  it  made  good  time  and  halted  for 
the  night  about  one  hour  before  sunset.  Remained  at  this 
bivouac  two  days  and  a  half  and  marched  up  to  Strawberry 
Plains,  crossed  the  river  and  bivouacked  within  a  quarter  of 
a  mile  of  the  ferry,  having  crossed  the  river  in  boats. 

The  next  day,  February  28,  at  12  o'clock  noon,  the  regi- 
ment started  for  New  Market,  east  on  the  railroad.  After 
marching  about  two  miles  it  halted  for  a  rest.  Here  the 
Eighty-sixth  first  saw  the  new  Department  Commander,  re- 
cently the  Commander  of  the  Army  of  the  United  States,  Major 
General  John  M.  Schofield.  Arriving  at  New  Market  and 
passing  through  town  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  the  Third 
brigade  bivouacked,  and  received  orders  to  be  ready  .  to 
resume  the  march  at  5  o'clock  the  following  morning. 

The  march  was  resumed  promptly  at  the  hour  appointed, 
but  the  inarching  was  not  so  pleasant  on  account  of  a  heavy 
fall  of  rain  during  the  night.  About  10  o'clock  when  halted 
alongside  the  road  for  a  rest,  General  Schofield  and  staff 
came  riding  down  the  road.  The  brigade  arrived  at  Morris- 
town  about  4  o'clock  and  the  Eighty-sixth  had  the  good  for- 
tune to  occupy  some  very  good  "shanties"  built  by  troops 
belonging  to  the  division  of  the  rebel  General  Johnson, 
which  was  learned  by  inscriptions  on  the  walls.  The  com- 
mand had  covered  eighteen  miles  over  muddy  roads,  and  the 
men  were  tired;  they  considered  themselves  fortunate  to 
get  to  shelter  in  the  rebel  huts  even  at  the  risk  of  accumu- 
lating a  supply  of  "graybacks.  "  A  soaking  rain  fell  during 
the  night,  drenching  everything  that  was  not  under  roof. 
Reveille  was  sounded  at  4  o'clock  and  the  regiment  was  up 
and  ready  for  any  emergency.  The  rain  continued  to  fall 
most  of  the  time  during  the  forenoon  and  the  Eighty-sixth 
remained  housed.     Rations  of  hard  tack,  poor  beef,  sugar 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  323 

and  coffee  were  drawn.  In  the  evening  of  March  1,  orders 
were  received  that  reveille  would  be  sounded  at  4  o'clock. 
Strict  orders  were  given  against  straggling  or  scouting 
independently.  The  regiment  was  astir  at  reveille  and  at  5 
a.  m.  filed  out  upon  the  road  and  took  the  back  track  to  New 
Market.  The  march  was  pretty  steadily  maintained  with 
occasional  rests,  however,  and  arrived  at  camp  near  New 
Market  at  3  o'clock  p.  m.  Here  strict  orders  were  received 
to  remain  in  camp,  as  the  command  was  liable  to  march  at  any 
time  during  the  night.  The  rank  and  file  knew  nothing  of 
the  cause  of  these  moves — this  marching  and  counter-march- 
ing, but  it  kept  them  alert.  The  regiment  remained  at  New 
Market  until  the  12th,  a  scarcity  of  rations  existing  most  of 
the  time,  many  of  the  boys  spending  their  extra  cash  in 
town  'for  something  to  eat.  It  was  at  this  camp  that  Cap- 
tain James  Gregory,  of  Company  C,  sent  in  his  resignation 
on  account  of  ill  health.  George  Storms,  of  Company  I,  and 
John  M.  Cast,  who  had  been  to  Indiana  on  recruiting  ser- 
vice, returned  to  the  regiment  while  in  camp  at  New  Mar- 
ket. While  at  New  Market  the  regiment  had  but  little  duty 
to  perform.  It  had  light  details  for  picket,  and  prepare  for 
inspection  on  Sunday. 

On  B^'riday,  March  11,  orders  were  received  to  marcli  on 
the  following  morning  at  8  o'clock.  The  bugles  sounded 
reveille  at  -1  o'clock.  The  men  breakfasted  and  were  ready 
in  good  time,  although  the  march  was  resumed  at  6:30  a.  m. 
instead  of  8  o'clock.  Passing  through  New  Market  the  com- 
mand took  the  road  to  Morristown  again.  The  march  was 
continued  until  2  o'clock  p.  m.,  when  the  regiment  bivouacked 
in  a  thick  brushy  woods  near  Panther  Springs,  four  miles 
west  of  Morristown.  Orders  to  march  at  5  o'clock  the  next 
morning.  Reveille  at  4  o'clock,  and  the  regiment  was  at 
once  awake  and  busy  preparing  for  the  march.  But  there 
was  no  rush,  and  the  command  lay  round  the  bivouac  fires 
until  sunrise,  marched  out  for  Morristown  and  arrived  there 
between  8  and  9  o'clock.  The  Eighty -sixth  was  again  so 
fortunate  as  to  be  camped  in  the  rebel  "shanties."  The 
regiment   was  ordered   on   picket,   and   went   out   about    10 


324  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

o'clock  a.  m.  At  2  o'clock  p.  m.  five  companies  were  relieved 
and  ordered  to  return  to  camp.  There  were  rumors  of  fight- 
ing, and  strict  orders  were  given  forbidding  the  men  to  leave 
camp  under  any  circumstances.  The  fire  of  the  skirmishers 
could  be  plainly  heard  during  the  afternoon  and  evening. 
The  weather  was  raw  and  cold,  a  strong  wind  was  blowing 
the  entire  day,  making  it  very  disagreeable,  and  the  rebel 
"  shanties"  were  a  great  convenience.  This  was  on  the  14th 
of  March.  It  was  on  this  day  that  Lieutenant  Yount,  of  Com- 
pany K,  sent  in  his  resignation.  In  the  morning  of  the  17th, 
orders  were  received  to  march  at  5:30  a.  m..  Vacated  the 
huts  and  marched  through  town  to  the  southeast  a  half-mile 
and  camped.  There  the  regiment  was  called  upon  to  furnish 
aheavy  detail  for  picket.  On  the  morning  of  the  18th  orders 
to  march  again.  The  picket  detail  was  in  charge  of  Captain 
William  S.  Sims,  of  Company  F.  When  the  detail  reached 
cam 23  the  regiment  had  already  set  out  upon  the  march,  and  did 
not  succeed  in  rejoining  its  command  until  Mossy  Creek  was 
reached.  No  halt,  however,  was  made,  the  command  pressing 
on  to  New  Market,  where  it  arrived  at  noon.  This  was  a 
tremendous  rush  for  burdened  troops — eighteen  miles  for  the 
command  in  six  hours,  and  about  twenty  miles  for  the  picket 
detail  under  Captain  Sims  in  the  same  length  of  time.  This 
was  perhaps  the  most  rapid  marching  for  the  time  and  dis- 
tance the  regiment  ever  made.  And  there  was  nothing 
known  to  the  rank  and  file  which  seemed  to  indicate  that 
there  was  the  least  need  of  such  forced  marching.  -In  fact, 
as  the  regiment  remained  here  the  rest  of  the  day  was  pretty 
good  evidence  that  no  such  an  effort  was  at  all  necessary. 

On  the  morning  of  the  19th  the  bugles  sounded  reveille 
at  4  o'clock.  At  5:30  the  march  was  resumed.  Passed 
through  New  Market  to  the  west,  taking  the  road  to  Straw- 
berry Plains.  The  pace  this  morning  was  moderate  and  fre- 
quent rests  were  made.  Crossed  the  river  at  the  Plains 
about  noon,  and  proceeded  about  three-quarters  of  a  mile 
farther  and  bivouacked.  Here  the  men  had  another  half  day 
to  rest  and  recuperate,  and  have  a  good  time  discussing  their 
probable  destination.     The  next  morning  they  were  not  dis- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  325 

turbed,  and  the  men  of  the  Eighty-sixth  slept  quietly  until 
daybreak  and  breakfasted  at  their  leisure  on  hard  tack, 
bacon  and  coffee.  The  "general  call"  was  sounded  about  9 
o'clock,  and  marched  about  noon,  that  is  two  brigades, 
Hazen's  and  Beatty's,  passing  the  old  camp  at  Flat  Creek, 
leaving  House  mountain  to  the  left  and  then  behind,  going 
up  the  valley  toward  Rutledge,  the  county-seat  of  Grainger 
county.  Having  covered  eight  or  nine  miles,  the  command 
bivouacked  this  time  in  an  open  field.  On  the  21st  reveille 
was  sounded  at  4  o'clock.  With  skirmishers  in  front  and 
Hankers  on  either  side  of  the  line  of  march  the  two  brigades 
proceeded  up  the  valley.  Clinch  mountains  were  on  the  left 
and  the  Holston  river  on  the  right.  The  pace  was  not  rapid, 
but  sufticiently  well  maintained  to  make  fair  progress.  The 
command  reached  Rutledge  about  the  hour  of  noon.  The 
luck  of  the  Eighty-sixth  did  not  desert  it,  and  the  regiment 
was  sent  on  picket.  All  reliefs  not  on  the  line  were  called 
up  at  4  o'clock,  and  after  a  hasty  breakfast  the  regiment 
stood  to  arms  until  daylight,  and  was  then  permitted  to  break 
ranks.  The  regiment  was  relieved  about  11  o'clock,  and 
marched  at  once  to  its  camp-ground.  This  was  on  the  22d 
of  March,  and  during  the  forenoon  quite  a  snow  fell.  The 
command  only  remained  here  until  the  24th,  when  it  marched 
back  down  the  valley  opposite  a  gap  in  Clinch  mountain 
known  as  Powder  Spring  Gap. 

From  there  on  the  26th  the  Eighty-sixth  went  on  a  scout- 
ing expedition  over  the  mountain.  Marching  over  hills  and 
through  hollows  the  regiment  at  length  reached  the  foot  of 
Ihe  mountain  and  began  the  ascent.  It  was  toilsome  march- 
ing, winding  around  over  the  mountainous  roads,  still  ever 
creeping  higher,  higher,  as  the  gap  is  comparatively  but  a 
slight  notch  out  of  the  great  ridge.  However,  there  was 
some  compensation  for  this  laborious  marching,  for^as  the 
men  went  up  the  mountain  they  could  look  back  far  over  a 
magnificent  stretch  of  coulitry.  Away  to  the  east  and  south- 
east lay  a  country  sufficiently  broken  to  show  the  ridge  and 
small  valleys,  presenting  a  beautiful  landscape.  It  was  a 
grand  and  inspiring  view.     Going  down  the  mountain  on  the 


326  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

opposite  side  a  like  stretch  of  country  was  to  be  seen  to  the 
north  and  northwest,  the  eye  almost  reaching  to  Cumber- 
land Gap.  After  crossing  the  mountain  a  lively  pace  was 
struck  up  the  valley  almost  parallel  with  ridge.  Bivouacked 
a  little  before  dark  in  an  open  field.  Strong  pickets  were 
put  out  as  the  country  was  reported  to  be  infested  with 
"bushwhackers."  No  attack  was  made  on  any  of  the  pick- 
ets, although  some  of  the  sentinels  seemed  to  think  there 
were  prowlers  around  camp  during  the  night.  The  march 
was  resumed  on  the  morning  of  the  27th  up  the  valley,  fol- 
lowing a  road  which  ran  near  the  foot  of  Clinch  mountain, 
but  which  at  length  left  the  mountain  and  bore  off  to  the 
north.  A  "bushwhacker"'  was  captured  before  noon  by  a 
detachment  of  Union  calvalry.  As  he  attempted  to  shoot 
one  of  the  cavalry  officers,  after  having  been  taken  a  pris- 
oner, he  was  promptly  shot  down  and  left  lying  in  the  road. 
The  climate  of  the  valley,  especially  in  this  immediate  local- 
ity, was  supposed  to  be  very  unhealthy  for  single  blue-coats, 
or  even  small  squads  absent  from  their  command,  therefore 
the  ducks,  geese,  chickens,  pigs  and  lambs  were  safe.  A 
halt  was  called  at  noon.  After  a  brief  rest  the  regiment 
started  on  its  return  trip.  The  march  was  made  in  the  same 
rapid  manner  as  that  of  the  forenoon,  and  it  bivouacked  on 
the  same  ground  of  the  previous  night.  When  the  regiment 
started  on  its  return  a  company  was  sent  up  on  the  movmtain 
to  patrol  it  for  bushwhackers.  The  company  captured  three 
suspicious  characters  supposed  to  belong  to  that  class. 
Mountain  "rangers"  skulking  away  from  the  blue-coats  were 
looked  upon  as  dangerous,  particularly  in  this  ]-egion  where 
it  was  l^nown  so  many  found  hiding  places.  The  regiment 
reached  its  place  of  camping  about  4:30.  A  few  squads  ven- 
tured out  a  short  distance  from  camp  on  indei)endent  forag- 
ing excursions  and  gathered  in  small  quantities  of  corn  pone 
and  such  other  articles  as  were  easily  collected,  but  no  exten- 
sive trips  were  attempted  as  they  evidently  would  have  been 
attended  with  great  danger.  When  almost  ready  to  resume 
the  tramp  down  the  valley  Company  E  was  detailed  to  go 
over  on  the  mountain,  deploy  and  scour  the  mountain  from 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  327 

this  point  to  the  gap.  The  march  was  resumed  at  a  moder- 
ate rate  in  order  not  to  get  too  far  in  advance  of  the  company 
on  the  mountain  whose  progress  was  necessarily  slow.  Oc- 
casionally some  one  would  loosen  a  huge  boulder  and  it 
would  come  thundering  down  the  mountain  side  with  the 
force  of  many  cannon  balls  crushing  everything  before  it. 
Company  E  rejoined  the  regiment  on  the  mountain  in  the 
gap.  Marching  steadily  the  regiment  reached  its  camp 
safely  at  noon  on  the  28th.  Remained  here  some  days 
watching  for  the  enemy  in  force,  and  for  "bushwhackers"  in 
particular,  but  with  no  great  success. 

On  the  3d  of  April  Hazen's  Second  brigade  came  in  from 
a  two  or  three  days'  scout.  On  the  evening  of  the  5th  orders 
were  received  to  march  at  6  o'clock  the  following  morning. 
The  scouting  and  watching  had  been  done  to  clear  as  thor- 
oughly as  possible  East  Tennessee  of  the  enemy,  and  now 
the  veterans  were  to  join  Sherman  and  Thomas,  leaving  a 
few  regiments  of  veteran  infantry  and  cavalry  and  the  hun- 
dred days"  men  to  look  after  and  protect  the  country  in  the 
rear,  while  the  division  was  to  go  to  the  front  to  try  conclu- 
sions with  wily  Joe  Johnston's  army.  Johnston  was  perhaps 
the  wariest  and  most  skillful  and  able  of  all  the  Confeder- 
acy's generals.  He  was,  too,  when  occasion  demanded  a 
daring  fighter,  a  really  capable  battle-chief. 

On  the  morning  of  the  6th  of  April,  the  regiment 
marched  at  6  o'clock  and  bivouacked  at  night  near  Straw- 
berry Plains.  The  next  day  the  command  covered  about 
twenty  miles,  passing  through  Knoxville  and  some  distance 
beyond  on  the  road  to  Loudon.  At  this  bivouac  a  heavy 
rain  fell,  and  the  command  lay  by  for  a  half-day.  Then 
pressing  on  it  passed  through  Concord  and  Lenoir's  and 
reached  the  river  opposite  Loudon  about  8  o'clock  a.  m.  on 
the  10th.  As  the  command  could  not  cross  it  marched  back 
about  a  half  mile  and  bivouacked  until  the  following  morn- 
ing when  between  9  and  10  o'clock  it  crossed  on  a  boat,  tlie 
"Kingston,"'  and  remained  in  camp  here  untill  the  lilth.  On 
morning  of  the  13th  the  tramp  was  resumed  at  5  o'clock. 
Passed    through    Philadelphia    and    marching    moderately 


328  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

reached  the  town  of  Sweetwater  about  noon,  and  bivouacked 
for  the  night  one  mile  beyond  the  town.  On  the  morning  of 
the  14th  the  bugles  sounding  reveille  for  the  various  brig- 
ades and  regiments  awoke  the  echoes  of  the  hill  and  dale  at 
4  o'clock,  "murdering  sleep,"  and  the  men  arose  promptly, 
"bayonetted"  their  coffee  and  prepared  a  soldier's  meal 
with  a  soldier's  alacrity.  But  the  hurry  was  entirely  unnec- 
essary as  the  Eighty-sixth  being  in  the  rear  did  not  march 
until  9  o'clock.  That  day  the  regiment  passed  through 
Mouse  Creek  Station  and  arrived  within  one  mile  of  Athens 
and  camped  in  a  pine  grove.  On  the  15th  reveille  was 
sounded  at  4  o'clock.  Some  one  writing  of  the  late  war  and 
speaking  of  reveille  calls  it  "the  morning's  repetend  "  and 
speaks  of  its  "repetitional  notes. "  It  would  seem  to  be  true 
to  the  tired  soldier,  and  when  sleepy  to  the  last  degree  after 
a  long  and  wearisome  march  were  seldom  more  aggravated 
than  when  awakened,  it  seemed  immediately  after  closing 
their  eyes  in  sleep,  by  these  "repetitional  notes"  of  the 
bugle  so  often  sounded  under  the  same  circumstances, 
always  to  awaken  them,  to  disturb  their  slumbers  if  they 
were  asleep,  to  call  them  to  renewed  labors  of  toilsome 
marching,  was  it  any  wonder  that  tired  humanity  sometimes 
swore  at  the  bugler  and  wished  him  in  Halifax.  On  the  15th 
the  march  was  resumed  at  5:30  a.  m.  Passing  through 
Athens  the  command  took  the  road  to  Charleston.  After 
passing  through  Riceville,  Calhoun  was  reached  at  1  o'clock, 
crossed  the  Hiwassee  river  on  pontoons  and  arrived  at 
Charleston  before  it  was  late,  near  which  place  the  regiment 
turned  in  for  the  night.  On  the  16th  the  regiment  was  on 
the  march  at  5:30  a.  m.  going  toward  Cleveland,  but  the  gait 
was  moderate  with  frequent  rests.  The  Eighty-sixth  reached 
Cleveland  at  2  o'clock.  At  the  outskirts  of  the  town  the 
regiment  was  ordered  to  "fix  bayonets."  It  was  thrown 
into  columns  of  divisions  and  marched  through  in  fine  style 
with  colors  flying  and  keeping  step  to  the  music  of  the 
Union.  The  command  covered  eighteen  or  nineteen  miles  on 
this  day.  On  the  following  morning  the  men  slept  undis- 
turbed.    The  morning's    "repetend"   had   failed   to   repeat 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  329 

and  the  "  repetitional  notes  "  themselves  seemed  to  be  sleep- 
in£i\  at  hist.  It  was  rcfreshmg,  indeed,  once  more  to  sleep 
undisturbed.  The  regiment  was  now  in  camp  near  McDon- 
ald Station,  between  Chattanooga  and  Cleveland. 

And  now  the  Eighty-sixth's  campaign  to  Knoxville  and 
East  Tennessee  for  the  relief  of  the  Army  of  the  Ohio  was 
ended.  It  had  returned  to  the  vicinity  of  Chattanooga  and 
rejoined  the  forces  of  the  old  Army  of  the  Cumberland,  after 
a  long,  dark  winter  of  hardships,  hunger,  and  sutfering,  such 
as  had  never  been  experienced  in  its  own  department,  not 
even  while  beleaguered  in  Chattanooga. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 
SHERMAN'S  CAMPAIGN  IN  GEORGIA. 

rrtMu'ial  Howard  in  Command  of  the  Fourth  Corps— Tlie  Eleventli  and  Twclftli  Corps 
Consolidated  and  Designated  tlio  Twentieth— Sherman's  Preparation  for  the 
Atlanta  Campaign— Tlie  Importance  of  the  Grand  Movement— Tunnel  Hill— 
Ivoclcy  Face  Kidge- Dalton— The  Hattle  of  Resacca. 

On  the  10th  of  April  General  Gordon  Granger  had  been 
relieved  of  the  command  of  the  Fourth  army  corps,  and  had 
been  succeeded  by  General  O.  O.  Howard.  At  the  same 
time  the  Eleventh  corps,  which  up  to  that  time  had  been 
commanded  by  General  Howard,  was  consolidated  with  the 
Twelfth  corps,  and  the  designation  changed  to  that  of  the 
Twentieth,  with  General  Joseph  Hooker  in  command.  The 
Army  of  the  Cumberland  was  now  composed  of  the  Fourth, 
Fourteenth,  and  Twentieth  corps.  While  at  McDonald 
Station  making  preparations  for  the  Atlanta  campaign  some 
changes  were  made  in  the  commanders  of  the  Fourth  corps 
divisions.  General  D.  S.  Stanley  was  jilaced  in  command  of 
the  First  division,  GeneralJohn  Newton  of  the  Second,  while 
General  T.  J.  Wood  retained  the  command  of  the  Third.  No 
changes  were  made  in  the  brigade  commanders  of  the  Third 
division,  of  which  the  Eighty-sixth  formed  a  part. 


330  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

CJcneral  W.  T.  Sherman,  who  had  succGeded  General 
Grant  in  the  command  of  the  Military  Division  of  the  Miss- 
issippi, had  concentrated  an  army  of  nearly  a  hundred  thou- 
sand men  in  the  vicinity  of  Chattanooga,  having  for  his 
chief  objectives,  the  destruction  of  the  Confederate  army 
under  General  Joseph  E.  Johnston,  then  at  Dalton,  in  north- 
ern Georgia,  and  the  capture  of  the  city  of  Atlanta.  General 
Sherman's  forces  were  composed  as  follows:  Army  of  the 
Cumberland,  General  George  H.  Thomas  in  command,  with 
60,773  men;  Army  of  the  Tennessee,  General  J.  B.  McPher- 
son  in  command,  with  24.465  men:  Army  of  the  Ohio,  with 
General  J.  M.  Schofield  in  command,  with  13,559  men;  mak- 
ing a  grand  aggregate  of  troops  of  98,797.  and  of  guns,  254. 
General  Johnston's  army  was  composed  of  about  55,000  men. 
It  was  arranged  in  three  corps,  commanded  respectively  by 
Generals  W.  J.  Hardee,  J.  B.  Hood,  and  Leonidas  Polk. 

In  importance  of  grand  movements,  continued  skirmish- 
ing and  close  every  day  lighting  from  constant  contact  with 
the  enemy,  in  numbers  of  momentous  battles  fought,  and  in 
practical  lessons  in  the  great  school  of  war  for  both  ofticers 
and  privates,  the  Atlanta  Campaign  was  incomparably  the 
greatest  of  the  campaigns  in  which  the  Eighty-sixth  partici- 
pated. Nor  is  it  in  any  sense  intended  to  speak  disparage- 
ingly  of  its  former  campaigns  and  battles,  as  the  regiment 
was  engaged  in  three  of  the  greatest  battles  of  the  war, 
namely.  Stone's  River,  Chickamauga.  and  the  battle  of  Chat- 
tanooga. But  as  the  Atlanta  Campaign  was  its  most  remark- 
able campaign,  so  the  regimental  experience  partook  of  its 
thrilling  nature.  It  is  not  putting  it  too  strongly  to  say  that 
it  was  the  greatest  campaign  of  the  war.  It  is  true  the  forces 
of  Grant  and  Lee  in  the  East  greatly  outnumbered  those  of 
Johnston  and  Sherman  in  the  West,  but  they  were  not  han- 
dled with  tlie  same  masterful  skill  as  were  the  western  forces. 
Nor  did  Grant's  successes  of  '64  have  the  same  determining 
effect  upon  the  close  of  the  war  as  did  those  of  Sherman. 
Johnston's  masterly  retreat,  covering  every  point  of  his 
route  .so  completely  as  he  fell  back,  is  universally  recognized 
as  a  remarkable  feat  in  all  the  world's  history  of  military 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  ^31 

affairs,  having  few  parallels  in  the  history  of  retreats,  and 
probably  there  has  been  none  more  skillfully  conducted.  A 
competent  military  critic  who  took  an  active  part  in  the  cam- 
paign says  of  it:  "General  Johnston,  however,  as  he  aban- 
doned his  entrenched  positions,  conducted  his  retreat,  in  my 
judgment,  in  a  prudent  and  consummate  manner,  both  in 
strategy  and  tactics.  All  positions  chosen  for  making  a 
stand  were  selected  with  the  utmost  sagacity  and  skill,  and 
his  defenses  were  thrown  up  and  strengthened  with  the 
exercise  of  marvelous  ingenuity  and  judgment.  *  *  In 
fact,  it  was  the  cleanest  and  best  conducted  retreat,  as  was 
remarked  by  every  one,  which  we  had  seen  or  read  of." 

That  General  Sherman,  acting  on  the  offensive  which 
put  him  at  a  great  disadvantage,  was  able  to  overcome  John- 
ston's force,  skillfully  as  it  was  handled,  the  difficulties  of  a 
mountainous  country,  a  long  line  of  communications,  strongly 
fortified  positions  on  ground  easily  defensive — naturally 
almost  impregnable — all  this,  too,  in  the  short  space  of  four 
months,  must  ever  place  him  head  and  shoulders  above  all 
of  his  contemporaries  as  a  master  of  the  science  and  art  of 
war. 

To  have  taken  lessons  of  war  in  this  grand  school  under 
two  such  masters  as  General  Johnston  and  General  Sherman, 
assisted  by  Hardee,  Hood,  Polk,  and  Pat  Cleburne,  on  the  one 
side,  and  by  Thomas,  McPherson,  Hooker,  Logan,  and  Sclio- 
field  on  the  other,  is  no  small  honor,  and  the  Eighty-sixth 
was  in  it  from  start  to  finish,  and  with  credit  to  itself  and 
the  State  of  Indiana. 

As  stated  at  the  close  of  the  previous  chapter,  Wood's 
division  arrived  at  the  camp  near  McDonald  Station  on  Sat- 
urday, April  16.  On  Sunday  the  men  were  ])ermitted  to  rest 
undisturbed,  except  they  were  required  to  ap]>ear  in  line  for 
inspection.  Lieutenant  Kibler,  the  Brigade  Inspector,  per- 
functorily passed  up  and  down  the  lines  and  the  men  were 
soon  dismissed.  On  the  19th  the  regiment  marched  a  short 
distance  to  a  new  camp  ground,  which  was  found  to  be  ii 
wild  woods  with  a  dense  growth  of  underbrush.  The  ground 
was  soon  cleared  and  the  tents  eroded.      Again  came  the 


332  .  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

details  for  fatigue  and  jiicket  duty  at  regular  times,  and 
after  a  few  days,  drill — recruit,  company  and  battalion.  The 
buglers  were  again  busy  sounding  the  calls  for  reveille,  sick, 
picket,  fatigue,  meals,  retreat,  tattoo  and  taps,  so  that  the 
time  of  the  men  was  pretty  well  occupied.  Still  the  duties 
were  not  exhausting  and  the  men  received  a  sufficient  su])ply 
of  good  rations,  so  with  few  exceptions  they  were  in  excel- 
lent health.  There  were,  however,  a  number  in  the  regiment 
who  were  so  completely  worn  out  and  broken  down  by  the 
winter's  hardships  that  they  had  to  be  sent  to  the  hospital, 
some  of  whom  died  shortly  after  leaving  the  regiment.  No 
doubt  they  were  literally  frozen  and  starved  to  death, 
although  not  dying  immediately  on  experiencing  these  hard- 
ships. Besides  the  above  mentioned  duties  the'  men  were 
ordered  to  engage  at  target  practice.  This  led  them  to  think 
that  they  were  likely  to  have  some  shooting  to  do  in  the  near 
future  which  would  mean  something,  and  they  entered  upon 
the  performance  of  the  new  duty  with  great  zeal. 

On  the  29tli  of  April  the  Fourth  army  corps  was  reviewed 
by  the  new  Corps  Commander,  Major  General  O.  O.  Howard  I 
— the  Havelock  of  the  army.  He  complimented  his  com- 
mand highly  and  the  mem  returned  to  camp  in  fine  spirits. 
Dress  parade  was  held  almost  every  evening,  and  the  army 
was  being  put  in  the  best  possible  condition  for  the  coming 
campaign.  On  the  1st  of  May  at  dress  parade  a  general 
order  was  read  to  the  regiment,  informing  the  men  that  the 
army  would  move  soon  and  directing  that  all  extra  baggage 
should  be  packed  and  sent  to  Bridgeport.  On  the  3d  the 
sick  who  were  unable  to  march  were  sent  to  the  rear.  The 
impedlmeiita  were  reduced  to  a  minumum  and  orders  were 
received  to  march  at  12  o'clock. 

The  command  marched  out  in  a  southwesterly  direction, 
covering  about  seven  miles,  and  bivouacking  in  a  line  pine 
grove.  On  the  4th  it  filed  out  upon  the  road  at  6  a.  m., 
reveille  having  been  sounded  at  4  o'clock.  The  roads  were 
dry  and  dusty.  The  gait  was  moderate  and  frequent  halts 
were  made,  probably  for  the  purpose  of  reconnoitering  lest 
the  enemy  should  lie  in  concealment.     The  army  was  now 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  333 

ipproaching  the  outposts  of  a  large  force  of  the  enemy  and 
t  was  necessary  that  every  precaution  should  be  taken.  The 
Tennessee  and  Georgia  state  line  was  crossed  about  9  o'clock. 
I!ontinuing  the  march  until  1  p.  m.  the  division  bivouacked 
lear  Catoosa  Springs,  and  to  complete  the  programme  as  on 
'ormer  occasions,  the  Eighty-sixth  went  on  picket.  The 
ine  of  sentinels  was  soon  established.  The  enemy's  pickets 
,vere  in  plain  view.  It  was  soon  to  be  known  as  a  skirmish 
ine,  one,  too,  which  with  the  movable  column,  was  to  last 
or  months  as  it  advanced  further  and  further  into  the  heart 
)f  the  Confederacy. 

General  Jacob  U.  Cox,  in  his  history  of  the  campaign, 
peaking  of  the  movements  of  the  army  and  the  concentra- 
ion  of  troops  upon  Dalton,  or  rather  upon  Rocky  Face 
Ridge,  says:  "On  the  4th  of  May,  Scholield,  marching  out 
)f  East  Tennessee  by  way  of  Cleveland  and  the  old  Federal 
Road,  had  crossed  the  Georgia  line  and  reached  Red  Clay, 
massing  by  a  part  of  the  Fourth  corps,  which  immediately 
iook  up  its  march  and  moved  to  Catoosa  Springs,  while  the 
est  of  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland  advanced  to  the  imme- 
liate  neighborhood  of  Ringgold,  and  the  Army  of  the  Tennes- 
see came  close  up  on  their  right  at  Lee  &  Gordon's  Mills. 
Sherman  himself,  was  at  the  center  with  Thomas,  and  the 
whole  army  was  well  in  hand,  the  extreme  distance  from 
McPherson  to  Schofield  being  about  sixteen  miles,  in  a  line 
learly  at  right  angles  to  the  road  from  Chattanooga  to  Dal- 
on,  Thomas,  whose  force  was  nearly  equal  to  Johnston's, 
3eing  somewhat  advanced  beyond  the  wings. ' '  The  Fourth 
3orps  was  on  the  left  of  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland  and 
lext  to  the  Army  of  the  Ohio,  which  was  on  the  extreme  left 
3f  the  infantry  line  of  Sherman's  grand  army. 

On  the  morning  of  the  5th  of  May  the  Eighty-sixth  was 
3n  duty  on  the  picket  line  near  Catoosa  Springs,  Georgia. 
Those  members  of  the  regiment  who  were  on  the  line  as  sen- 
tinels at  the  time  when  the  picket  relief  came,  witnessed  the 
opening  of  the  campaign  on  the  part  of  the  Fourtli  corps. 
The  advance  of  the  picket  or  skirmish  line  was  the  first  step. 
Hazen's  brigade  line  was  first  advanced.     A  few  shots  were 


334  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT,  \ 

fired, -but  a  slight  resistance  was  offered,  the  enemy  falling 
back  quickly  on  the  approach  of  the  line  of  blue-coats.  The 
Eighty-sixth  was  relieved  by  the  Seventy-ninth  Indiana,  Col- 
onel Fred  Knefler.  The  men  of  the  Seventy-ninth  were  no 
sooner  distributed  upon  the  line  than  they,  too,  were  ordered 
forward.  The  advance  was  handsomely  made,  with  only  a 
show  of -disputing  the  way,  from  the  enemy's  skirmishers. , 
Immediately  after  the  advance  of  the  skirmishers  the  detail 
returned  from  the  line  of  the  reserve  station  and  the  regi- 
ment marched  back  to  camp.  The  regiment  remained  here! 
the  rest  of  the  day  and  the  next  day.  Many  of  the  boys  vis-i 
ited  the  Springs  and  drank  of  the  water  without  asking-leave, 
and  looked  through  the  hotel  now  deserted. 

Reveille  was  sounded  promptly  by  the  buglers  of  the 
Third  brigade  at  3:30  on  the  morning  of  the  7th  of  May. 
The  two  years'  field  service  at  the  front  had  taught  the  men 
that  these  orders  meant  business.  There  were  no  laggards, 
that  morning  in  the  Eighty-sixth.  The  regiment  marched] 
out  at  6  a.  m.,  the  hour's  delay  being  occasioned  by  another 
division  having  the  advance.  The  progress  made  was  slow 
on  account  of  the  proximity  of  the  enemy. 

The  season's  entertainments  were  now  opened.  General 
Sherman  had  invited  the  boys  to  "a  game  of  j)unch"  with 
"bayonet  trimmings"  and  "flash"  accompaniments,  and' 
they  could  not  well  refuse  so  polite  and  cordial  an  invitationl 
from  such  an  urbane,  courteous  gentleman.  The  festival 
was  now  to  begin — the  ball  was  opened,  at  least  the  music- 
ians were  tuning  their  instruments  to  furnish  the  music.  But 
it  was  the  festival  of  death,  the  harvest  of  carnage,  on  the 
field  of  battle.  The  crackling  fire  of  the  skirmishers  as  they 
pressed  forward  upon  the  enemy  could  be  plainly  heard 
directly  after  the  Eighty-sixth  left  camp,  and  grew  in  vol- 
ume as  it  advanced.  It  became  quite  warm  work  as  the 
forces  pressed  steadily  forward,  and  as  they  approached  Tun- 
nel Hill  it  grew  hotter  and  hotter,  threatening  a  battle.  The 
lines  were  formed  ready  for  the  contest.  Here  and  there 
were  seen  a  few  great  red  drops  spattered  on  the  dry  leaves 
of  the  forest.     They  were  like  the  few  scattering  raindrops 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  335 

that  precede  the  fast  approaching  thunder  storm  of  a  sum- 
mer afternoon.  But  this  was  to  be  a  thunder  storm  of  a  dif- 
ferent character — a  storm  that  was-  to  be  as  terrific  as  the 
fiercest  of  the  elemental  storms,  and  it  was  to  continue  four 
long  months,  a  storm  whose  raindrops  were  blood,  whose 
hailstones  were  minie  balls,  shot  shell  and  shrajDnel,  wliose 
lightnings  were  flashes  from  the  cannon's  throat,  whose 
thunders  were  the  roar  of  batteries  contending  for  the  mas- 
tery; yet,  into  this  fierce,  pelting,  destroying  storm  of 
human  ingenuity,  the  Eighty -sixth  resolutely  pushed  wiili 
bated  breath. 

As  Tunnel  Hill  was  approached.  Union  batteries  opened 
upon  the  enemy  from  various  points,  and  the  skirmishers 
pressed  courageously  on  and  soon  cleared  the  town  and 
mounted  the  hill  through  which  the  railroad  tunnel  is  made, 
and  which  gives  the  name  both  to  the  hill  and  the  little  town 
situated  at  the  foot  of  its  western  slope.  The  hill  itself  is  a 
low  mountainous  ridge  extending  nearly  due  north  and  south, 
and  lying  about  one  and  a  half  miles  to  the  west  of  a  com- 
panion ridge  which,  however,  is  much  higher  and  is  known 
as  Rocky  Pace  Ridge.  The  low  valley  between  these  ridges 
was  mostly  wooded  to  the  north,  but  opened  by  farms  more 
to  the  south.  The  western  slope  of  Rocky  Face  was  heavily 
wooded  throughout  its  length.  The  valley  is  almost  unbroken 
by  hills.  Tunnel  Hill  is  low  in  comparison  with  Rocky  Face 
Ridge,  which  mounts  to  the  height  of  eighteen  hundred  feet 
above  sea  level,  and  is  crested  with  precipitous  faces  of 
quartz  rock,  making  it  insurmountable  except  where  a  lew 
narrow  clefts  of  the  rock  can  be  found.  It  was,  however, 
practically  impregnable.  This  ridge  is  broken  by  a  deep 
gorge  for  the  passage  of  Mill  creek.  Two  miles  and  a  half 
south  of  the  tunnel  is  Tunnel  Hill.  The  mountain  south  of 
the  gorge  still  maintains  its  broken  nature  and  rock}^  faces, 
and  is  called  by  the  various  names  of  Rocky  Face  Ridge, 
Buzzard  Roost  mountain,  Chattooga  and  Chattogata  moun- 
tains. Mill  creek  rises  by  two  branches,  one  in  Snake  Creek 
Gap  between  Horn  mountain  and  Buzzard  Roost  mountain. 
and  the  other  to  the  west  of  Horn  mountain.  These  brandies 


336  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

unite  at  a  point  in  the  valley  nearly  west  of  Dag  Gap,  four 
miles  south  of  Mill  Creek  Gap,  thence  running  nearly  due 
north  until  it  reaches  the  gap  and  winds  its  devious  course 
through  the  gap  and  among  the  hills  until  it  reaches  the 
Cooyehullee,  a  tributary  of  the  Connasauga.  The  ends  of 
these  mountains,  jutting  upon  tliis  stream  and  forming  the 
gorge,  were  known  as  Buzzard  Roost,  and  the  gap  itself  was 
commonly  known  as  Buzzard  Roost  Gap.  The  mountain  to 
the  north  of  the  gap  is  more  rugged  and  broken  than  that  to 
the  south.  The  rocky  palisades  are  higher  and  more  diffi- 
cult to  scale.  The  mountain  south  of  Mill  Creek  Gap  is 
broken  by  two  slight  passes  known  as  Ray's  or  Mill  Gap, 
and  Dug  Gap,  Ray's  Gap  being  directly  west  of  Dalton. 
But  they  were  securely  guarded.  Upon  Rocky  Pace  Ridge, 
north  and  south  of  the  gap,  were  posted  the  forces  of  John- 
ston's army.  His  line  of  intrenchments  only  extended  about 
two  miles  on  the  crest  of  the  ridge  north  of  the  gap,  then 
turned  due  east,  and  crossed  Crow  Creek  Valley,  and  thus 
securely  protected  his  right  liank.  Any  force  which  General 
Sherman  should  detach  to  turn  Johnston's  right  flank  in  this 
position  would  have  to  make  a  wide  detour  to  round  the 
north  end  of  the  mountain.  It  would  be  entirely  separate, 
from  the  balance  of  the  army,  out  of  supporting  distance, 
and  would  find  itself  confronting  an  almost  impregnable  line 
of  breastworks.  Thus  Dalton  was  held  securely  on  the 
north  and  west;  for  the  ridge  was  a  veritable  rocky  fortress, 
impregnable  in  front,  and  made  apparently  so  on  the  flanks. 
It  did  look  as  though  there  was  little  hope  of  success  when 
opposed  by  such  barriers  and  such  forces  directed  by  such 
consummate  skill,  but  General  Sherman  was  alert  to  every 
movement. 

The  skirmishers  having  captured  Tunnel  Hill  and 
pressed  on  across  the  valley  to  the  foot  of  Rocky  Face 
Ridge  the  columns  of  the  Fourth  corps  mounted  the  hill. 
The  Third  brigade  passed  to  the  left,  and  the  Eighty-sixth 
bivouacked  in  a  dense  thicket  on  the  crest  in  full  view  of  the 
rocky  fortress  across  the  valley.  In  front,  and  a  little  to  the 
right,  a  rebel  signal  station  on  the  crest  of  Rocky  Face  was 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  337 

busily  engaged  in  sending-  orders  or  reports.  The  artillery 
to  the  right  sent  over  a  few  rounds  of  shot  and  shell  by  way 
of  introduction,  and  to  get  an  exact  idea  of  the  distance  from 
crest  to  crest.  Troops  continued  to  arrive  and  take  their 
respective  positions  to  right  and  left,  showing  that  it  was 
indeed  a  grand  movement— ^a  movement  in  force  which  evi- 
dently meant  hot  work  for  all. 

As  night  approached,  the  magnitude  of  the  assembled 
hosts  might  be  more  nearly  comprehended.  Upon  the  rocky 
fortress  were  the  mighty  battalions  of  the  enemy.  But 
Sherman's  army  had  come  to  stay,  the  summer,  at  least.  It 
was  a  night  never  to  be  forgotten.  The  camp-fires  were 
blazing  for  miles  to  right  and  to  left,  here  for  the  blue,  there 
for  the  gray.  Along  the  crest  of  Tunnel  Hill,  on  the  hill- 
tops, in  the  valley,  up  the  mountain  side,  everywhere,  save 
beyond  the  enemy's  lines,  the  blue-coats swai'med,  and  every- 
where their  camp-tires  flamed  and  leaped  up  as  with  joj^  in 
the  clear  cool  air  of  the  May  evening.  But  high  over  all 
might  be  seen  the  great  fires  of  the  rebel  host  on  the  oppos- 
ing mountain's  top,  perhaps  two  thousand  feet  high.  There 
the  fires  flamed  up  and  threw  a  lurid  glare  around,  almost 
dispelling  the  deepening  shades  of  night.  And  there,  too, 
around  these  fires  loomed  up  against  the  dark  sky  beyond 
the  long  lank  forms  of  the  Southern  soldiers  as  if  only  giants 
trod  the  distant  mountain's  crest. 

The  Union  army  alone  numbered  nearly  one  hundred 
thousand  men  and  such  a  multitude  is  of  itself  a  grand  and 
memorable  sight.  But  here  in  addition  to  the  vast  multi- 
tudes were  the  grand  wagon  trains  that  brought  the  provis- 
ions and  the  munitions  of  war;  innumerable  ambulances  to 
carry  away  the  sick  and  the  wounded,  and  there  were  great 
parks  of  artillery,  the  bull-dogs  of  war,  ready  to  tear  and 
destroy.  Everywhere  could  be  heard  the  neighing  steed, 
the  blare  of  trumpet,  the  soul  stirring  drum,  and  the  ear 
piercing  fife.  In  short,  "here  was  all  quality,  pride,  pomp, 
and  circumstances  of  glorious  war,"  added  to  the  grand  nat- 
ural scenery  of  the  place.  The  countless  camp-fires  gave 
the  strong  contrast  of  light  to  the  deepening  slnuk\<;  of  night 


338  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

and  made  it  inconceivably  grand  and  striking.  It  was  a 
sight  to  compare  with  the  grandest  in  nature  in  strong 
impressiveness.  A  falling  avalanche,  a  storm  at  sea,  a  full 
flowing  Niagara,  might  awaken  kindred  emotions  to  those 
which  many  experienced  on  beholding  these  vast  armies 
swarming  over  hill,  valley,  and  mountain,  in  the  wild  wood 
and  on  open  plain,  in-  the  light  of  their  camp-fires  ready  for 
the  grapx)le  which  was  to  decide  a  nation's  life  or  a  nation's 
destruction. 

In  their  mountain  fastness,  fortified  and  protected  by  all 
the  arts  known  to  the  military  scientist,  and  directed  and  led 
by  their  most  astute  commander,  the  enemy  awaited  the 
attack.  General  Johnston  was  noted  for  his  skill  and  cau- 
tion. A  veritable  Fabius,  he  never  sacrificed  a  man  or  a 
position  save  in  the  direst  necessity.  He  made  no  rash 
attacks,  but  sought  to  tempt  and  lure  his  adversary  to  make 
the  advances  and  to  attack  his  well  chosen  positions.  Cour- 
ageous and  watchful,  he  was  always  ready  to  strike  a 
counter-blow.  This  was  the  situation  on  the  night  of  the 
7th  of  May,  1864,  when  the  two  mighty  armies  lay,  one  upon 
Tunnel  Hill,  and  the  other  upon  Rocky  Face  Ridge. 

On  the  morning  of  the  8th  of  May  reveille  was  sounded 
at  3 :30.  The  regiment  was  soon  astir  in  its  leafy  covert,  and 
breakfasted  at  an  early  hour  on  a  soldier's  fare,  after  which 
everything  was  speedily  made  ready  for  the  performance  of 
any  duty.  The  day  was  Sunday,  but  the  tireless  leader's 
orders  were  to  press  the  enemy  at  all  points,  presumably 
with  the  hope  that  by  chance  a  weak  point  in  his  seemingly 
impregnable  position  might  be  found.  At  9  o'clock  a.  m.  the 
Eighty-sixth  with  the  Third  brigade,  Third  division.  Fourth 
corps,  filed  out  from  its  bivouac  in  the  thicket.  Reaching 
open  ground,  Colonel  Dick  gave  the  command,  ' '  Double 
column  on  the  center  by  divisions  at  half  distance — march." 
The  command  was  executed  at  once.  Thus  formed  the  regi- 
ment closed  up  on  the  front  line  of  battle  to  support  it.  These 
movements,  together  with  those  of  other  troops,  were  per- 
formed in  full  view  of  the  enemy  on  the  crest  of  the  ridge, 
on  the  top  of  which  they  seemed  to  swarm  like  bees.     But 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  339 

little  time  was  given  those  in  the  ranks  for  taking  observa- 
tions, as  the  regiment  pressed  forward,  keeping  well  up  in 
the  line  of  battle.  The  line  of  battle  itself  keeping  close  up 
to  a  strong  skirmish  line  that  pressed  resolutely  forward. 
The  skirmishers  were  apparently  in  bad  humor  and  sent 
spiteful  messengers  from  line  to  line.  The  rebel  line  was 
watchful  and  allowed  no  chance  to  escaj)e  without  annoying 
the  blue-coats  by  its  lire.  The  line  of  battle  was  pushed 
ahead  and  the  Eighty-sixth,  under  the  watchful  eye  of  Col- 
onel Dick,  kept  well  up  to  its  support  in  every  move.  The 
advance  was  very  slow,  but  was  continued,  the  line  .shifting 
back  and  forth,  a  strong  effort  being  made  to  maintain  a  cor- 
rect alignment  which  was  extremely  difficult.  Thus  the  day 
rattled  on  and  on.  About  3  o'clock  having  worked  its  way 
well  upon  the  side  of  the  mountain,  the  line  of  battle  made  a 
dash  for  the  enemy.  A  hot  fire  was  opened  at  once.  The 
Eighty-sixth  was  ordered  to  lie  down.  This  had  been 
repeated  a  number  of  times  during  the  day,  but  this  proved 
to  be  hotter  than  those  gone  before.  The  batteries  in  the 
rear  kept  up  almost  a  continuous  fire  upon  the  ridge  and 
more  especially  upon  the  gap,  so  the  din  of  battle  roared  the 
whole  day  through.  Cox,  in  speaking  of  this  day's  contest, 
says:  "At  the  center,  Wood's  division  of  the  Fourth,  Davis' 
of  the  Fourteenth  and  Butterfield's  of  the  Twentieth  corps, 
pushed  back  the  enemy  into  the  mouth  of  the  gap. "  As  tlie 
evening  drew  on,  the  fire  of  the  contending  skirmisli  lines 
slackened  somewhat  and  the  wearied  soldiers  reversed  their 
bayonets,  turning  them  upon  their  coffee  in  tincups,  pro- 
cured water  and  prepared  a  soldier's  meal,  and  slej^t  for  the 
night. 

On  the  morning  of  the  9th,  after  a  hasty  niorniug  meal, 
the  Eighty-sixth  was  ordered  about  6  o'clock  to  n^lieve  the 
regiment  on  the  front  line.  It  was  ordered  to  advance  im- 
mediately upon  taking  the  position  held  by  the  regiment  on 
the  line.  The  Eighty-sixth  went  forward  steadily  as  could 
be  done  over  the  rocky  mountain  slope,  maintaining  its  bat- 
tle-line fairly  well  until  within  a  rod  or  so  of  the  skirmishers 
on  the  line,  where  being  exposed  to  a  hot  fire  it  was  ordered 


340  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

to  lie  down.  The  enemy's  skirmishers  showed  themselves 
to  be  excellent  marksmen.  The  accuracy  of  their  aim  ren- 
dered it  absolutely  necessary  to  move  with  extreme  caution. 
Sometimes  the  enemy  would  loosen  a  huge  bowlder  from  the 
mountain's  side  near  the  top  and  give  it  a  start  when  it 
would  come  thundering  down  with  force  enough  to  crush  an 
elephant.  But  the  men  were  on  the  alert  and  careful  to 
make  way  for  them  and  allow  them  an  unobstructed  descent. 
Although  the  men  graciously  gave  the  bowlders  the  right- 
of-way,  they  were  none  the  less  anxious  to  give  their  senders 
something  else.  Occasionally  a  fatally  wounded  man  would 
utter  a  fearfully  startling  cry  and  sink  to  the  ground,  a  vic- 
tim on  the  altar  of  his  country.  Cox  in  his  account  of  this 
day,  says:  "During  Monday,  the  9th,  Thomas  and  Schofield 
pressed  Johnston's  front  at  all  points.  The  divisions  of 
Hooker's,  Palmer's,  and  Howard's  corps  in  front  of  Buzzard 
Roost  were  engaged,  and  whilst  there  was  no  combined  and 
determined  assault  of  the  Confederate  lines  in  form,  the 
attack  was  kept  up  with  well  supported  skirmish  lines,  and 
Sherman's  purpose  of  keeping  his  opponent  fully  occupied 
was  well  carried  out."  This  is  a  fair,  although  brief  state- 
ment of  the  fighting  of  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland  on  the 
9th.  But  to  make  as  great  impression  on  the  enemy  as  pos- 
sible, a  massing  of  forces  in  front  of  the  gap  was  ordered  in 
the  afternoon.  About  4  o'clock  the  Eighty-sixth  with  the 
Third  brigade  was  ordered  to  move  by  the  right  flank  down 
upon  the  gap,  or  rather  to  close  down  upon  the  forces  in  its 
immediate  front.  The  movement  was  executed  in  a  very 
deliberate  manner,  exposing  the  brigade  to  a  galling  fire 
from  the  enemy's  sharpshooters  on  the  crest  of  the  ridge. 
There  was,  however,  no  flinching  and  the  men  stood  in  ranks, 
or  closed  up  the  line,  fronted,  lying  down  when  ordered,  as 
deliberately  as  when  in  camp,  maintaining  their  positions  in 
ranks  that  they  might  be  ready  at  any  instant  to  repel  an 
assault.  Thus  the  brigade  made  its  way  slowly  to  the  left 
front  of  the  gap,  the  movements,  indicating  an  intention  of 
assaulting  the  gap,  and  the  enemy  seemed  to  be  of  this 
opinion.     Here  the  fire  of  the  enemy  grew  hotter  and  he 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  341 

seemed  to  be  determined  to  kill  all  of  the  Yankees  in 
sight.  The  Eighty-sixth  was  exposed  and  lost  a  number 
wounded.  With  Hoosier  stubbornness  it  held  its  position 
without  returning  a  shot,  until  near  sundown  when  the  regi- 
ment received  orders  to  return  to  its  former  position.  After 
supper  the  Eighty-sixth  received  orders  to  go  on  the  skir- 
mish line.  In  a  short  time  the  regiment  reached  the  reserve 
station  and  the  men  were  promptly  placed  upon  the  line. 
The  line  was  a  strong  one  and  a  brisk  fire  was  kept  up. 
During  the  night  the  tiring  was  not  so  brisk,  yet  it  was  suf- 
ficiently so  to  keep  the  resxiective  lines  of  skirmishers 
apprised  of  the  jDresence  of  the  other.  When  daylight  came 
again  the  firing  quickened  and  a  sharp  outlook  was  necessary. 
The  rocks  and  trees  were  fairly  hugged,  as  the  enemy's 
skirmishers  had  such  perfect  range  that  it  was  unsafe  to 
show  one's  head.  James  Sipes,  of  Company  A,  had  his 
cheek  severely  grained  by  a  musket  ball,  tearing  the  skin 
sufficiently  to  make  it  extremely  painful.  This  enraged 
Sipes  and  he  swore  vengeance  on  the  whole  "gray back" 
tribe.  He  allowed  no  chance  of  a  shot  to  escape  him  and 
doubtless  made  the  fellows  up  the  mountain  lie  low  for  he 
was  furious.  The  reserve  station  was  but  little  better  than 
the  skirmish  line,  as  the  bullets  rattled  on  trees  and  rocks 
around  the  station  continually,  and  it  seemed  a  miracle  that 
so  many  escaped  destruction.  Just  after  dark  the  Eighty- 
sixtli  wa's  relieved  from  the  skirmish  line  by  the  Seventy- 
ninth  Indiana,  Colonel  Fred  Kneller  in  command.  Colonel 
Dick  promptly  led  the  regiment  to  its  position  with  the  brig- 
ade near  the  foot  of  the  ridge  where  it  bivouacked  foi-  the 
night. 

On  the  morning  of  the  11th,  the  fire  of  the  enemy  was 
very  annoying  and  exasjieratiug,  being  animated,  well  main- 
tained and  accurate.  A  little  after  8  o'clock  the  command 
retired  somewhat  to  the  left  rear  and  was  less  exposed.  Tlie 
skirmish  lines,  however,  continued  a  lively  fire  throughout 
the  day,  there  being  a  number  wounded.  During  the  after- 
noon the  division  received  orders  to  retire  to  Tunnel  Hill 
immediately  after  dark.     Sherman  was  preparing  to  place 


342  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

his  arm 3^  in  front  of  Resaca  where  McPherson  had  already 
preceded  him.  At  the  axipointed  hour  Wood's  division  tooli 
position  on  Tunnel  Hill  and  bivouacked  there,  feeling  safe, 
as  it  was  a  good  mile  from  the  nearest  enemy. 

On  the  morning  of  the  12th  the  regiment  was  up  by  day- 
light. During  the  early  morning  the  men  had  nothing  to  do 
but  to  look  at  the  Twenty -third  army  corps  as  it  marched  to 
the  right,  the  Fourth  corps  having  preceded  it  to  join  Mc- 
Pherson before  Resaca.  Wood's  division  remained  in  bivouac 
on  Tunnel  Hill  until  1  o'clock,  when  it  was  marched  to  the 
left  into  the  valley  to  the  support  of  Newton's  division  of  the 
Fourth  corps.  The  Eighty-sixth  occupied  a  position  quite 
near  the  front  line  for  some  time,  but  at  length  the  whole 
division  was  again  moved,  this  time  to  the  left  rear  of  New- 
ton's position.  Here  it  was  ordered  to  entrench,  which  was 
done  by  piling  up  rails  and  digging  a  trench,  throwing  the 
dirt  to  the  front  of  the  barricade.  Wood's  division  thus  in- 
trenched occupied  the  extreme  left  of  the  infantry  line  at 
Rocky  Face  Ridge.  But  still  to  Wood's  left  the  cavalry  of 
the  two  armies  was  doing  some  sharp  fighting  and  an  attack 
was  expected,  as  Wheeler  outnumbered  the  Union  cavalry, 
and  showed  an  ugly  front.  But  it  was  not  all  fair  sailing  for 
the  enemy.  He  had  all  the  lighting  he  cared  for,  as  his 
leader  had  been  out-generaled  at  all  points.  By  the  night  of 
the  12th  Johnston  was  glad  to  let  go  of  Dalton  and  his  strong- 
hold on  Rocky  Face  Ridge  and  Buzzard  Roost  (Mill  Creek) 
Gap.  He  therefore  abandoned  all  of  his  fortifications  and 
his  impregnable  position  to  save  his  line  of  communication 
and  retreat,  and  retired  hastily  to  Resaca  to  face  Sherman 
there.  The  Fourth  corps  was  after  him  early  on  the  morn- 
ing of  the  13th,  the  cavalry  pressing  on  at  full  speed,  fol- 
lowed by  the  infantry.  The  corps  rounded  the  north  end  of 
Rocky  Face  Ridge  and  passed  near  the  mountain  down 
Crow  Valley  and  crossed  the  enemy 's  line  of  intrenchments, 
which  were  very  strong,  and  soon  came  to  a  general  camp. 
Near  this  camp  were  seen  eighteen  or  twenty  posts  and  as 
many  graves.  They  were  said  to  have  been  used  to  which  de- 
serters were  tied  to  be  shot.     Twenty  men  were  said  to  have 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  343 

been  executed  here  at  one  time  by  the  order  of  General  Braxton 
Bragg  during  the  winter  or  spring.  In  the  camp  itself  were 
many  "stocks"'  used  for  punishing  more  trifling  offenses. 
These  were  the  first  of  the  instruments  of  punishment  the 
Eighty-sixth  had  ever  seen,  and  many  had  no  idea  for  what 
purposes  they  were  intended  to  be  used.  General  Willich 
said  to  a  crowd  that  was  examining  the  ' '  stocks, ' '  '  'Phoy s,  you 
don't  know  what  ees  the  greatest  buuishment  to  these  poor 
devils.  Dey  can't  scratch  when  de  lice  bites  'em."  This 
was  received  with  a  shout  of  laughter  and  the  General  rode 
on.  As  the  regiment  left  the  camp  it  bore  off  to  the  left  and 
turned  down  Crow  Valley  proper  and  marched  straight  for 
Dalton,  where  Wood's  division  arrived  about  noon. 

There  was  every  evidence  of  haste  on  the  part  of  the 
absconding  enemy.  Many  had  thrown  away  their  knapsacks 
and  all  extra  baggage  in  their  hurry  to  flee  from  their  pur- 
suers. The  command  proceeded  at  a  good  round  pace  about 
five  miles  farther  and  halted  for  supper.  Shortly  after  sun- 
down it  resumed  its  line  of  march,  but  at  a  much  slower 
speed  than  before.  The  enemy's  cavalry  were  now  in  front 
and  showing  a  bold  front,  fighting  over  every  inch  of  ground 
and  obstructing  the  roads.  Still  General  Howard  forced  his 
column  forward  several  miles  to  the  neighborhood  of  Tilton, 
six  or  seven  miles  distant  from  Resaca.  Here  the  rebel  cav- 
alry made  a  determined  stand,  and  reinforced  by  some  infant- 
ry under  the  command  of  General  John  C.  Brown,  showed  a 
disposition  to  bring  on  an  engagement.  This  was  about 
9  o'clock  at  night.  The  country,  as  well  as  the  force 
of  the  enemy,  being  unknown  to  General  Howard,  he 
deemed  itjjrudent  to  wait  until  daylight  before  attempting  to 
force  his  way  farther.  Therefore,  the  command  slept  on  its 
arms,  but  the  enemy  had  enough  to  do  to  defend  his  own 
ground.  The  command  was  promjitly  astir  at  daybreak,  but 
did  not  march  until  about  9  o'clock.  After  marching  four 
or  five  miles  the  command  was  halted,  the  officers  probably 
reconnoitering  in  the  meantime.  At  length,  the  rest  of  the 
division  was  in  position  and  -the  Third  brigade  was  massed 
and  held  in  reserve  ready  to  go  wherever  needed.     The  com- 


34-4  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

mand  was  now  before  the  enemy's  works  at  Resaca,  where 
he  again  stood  at  bay  as  though  it  was  "the  last  ditch  " 

Sherman's  army  was  once  more  concentrated  upon  the 
enemy,  and  this  time  he  was  less  favorably  situated,  although 
here  he  was  quite  strongly  posted.  The  general  alignment 
of  the  Union  forces,  moving  to  the  attack  of  Johnston  in  his 
intrenchments  around  Resaca,  was  completed  about  noon  on 
the  14th.  The  fighting  was  almost  continuous  and  at  times 
the  ground  was  fiercely  contested.  Johnston  evidently  felt 
very  sore  that  he  had  been  so  easily  maneuvered  out  of  Dal- 
ton  and  the  impregnable  position  in  its  front,  and  wished  to 
inflict  a  crippling  blow  at  this  point  if  possible,  and  Was 
fighting  with  courage  and  determination  to  win  the  lost 
ground. 

McPherson  was  on  the  right,  then  Thomas  with  Pal- 
mer's Fourteenth  and  Hooker's  corps,  in  the  order  named, 
from  the  right,  then  came  Schofield  with  the  Twenty-third 
corps,  with  Howard's  Fourth  corps  about  one  mile  north  of 
Schofield 's  left  flank.  Cox,  in  his  history  of  the  campaign 
giving  the  account  of  this  day's  doings,  says:  "Newton's 
and  Wood's  divisions  of  the  Fourth  corps  inarched  to  their 
support — Cox's  division.  The  enemy  fell  back  and  estab- 
lished a  new  line  several  hundred  yards  further  in  the  rear. 
Wood  formed  upon  Cox's  left,  and  Stanley's  division  was  in 
echelon  still  beyond  Wood's  flank.  "  Victor,  in  his  voluminous 
history  of  the  Southern  Rebellion,  speaking  of  the  Fourth 
corps,  says:  "The  Fourth  corps,  under  command  of  Major 
General  Howard,  the  'one-armed  veteran,'  as  he  is  styled  in 
the  corps,  played  a  very  conspicuous  part  in  the  tragedy  of 
war  enacted  on  the  14th.  All  the  corps,  with  the  exception 
of  Beatty's  fighting  brigade,  for  which  room  could  not  be 
found — as  the  circle  was  gradually  compressed  as  it  advanced 
— was  engaged  and  covered  itself  with  glory.  Wood's  divis- 
ion was  ordered  into  position  on  the  right  of  General  Stan- 
ley, just  before  noon,  and  was  soon  hotly  engaged  with 
Hazen  and  Willich's  brigades  driving  the  enemy.  For  some 
time  a  destructive  infantry  and  artillery  fire  w^as  kept  up, 
and  soon  his  main  line  advanced  in  great  strength  upon  the 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  345 

enemy  which  fled,  at  his  approach,  to  his  rifle-pits.  The 
energetic  Wood  soon  dislodged  him  and  compelled  him  to 
seek  shelter  under  cover  of  their  breastworks,  from  which 
he  was  driven  later  in  the  day. ' ' 

The  battle  had  been  waged  the  whole  day  with  great 
vigor.  The  red  tide  of  war  had  ebbed  and  flowed  from  point 
around  the  lines  as  the  struggle  raged  on.  Sometimes  the 
Confederates  were  successful,  but  usually  the  strong  current 
of  blue-coats  overwhelmed  the  chivalry  of  the  Southhmd  and 
swept  everything  clean  before  them.  The  resolute  North- 
men were  not  to  be  denied  their  demands  as  they  crowded 
forward  and  enforced  them  with  ball  and  bayonet.  Far  into 
the  night  might  be  heard  the  occasional  outburst  of  sharp 
rattling  musketry,  as  the  hope  of  advantage  induced  one  or 
the  other  side  to  strike  out  expecting  to  secure  some  strong 
foot-hold,  and  thus  strengthen  their  side  and  increase  their 
chance  of  ultimate  success.  Although  the  fighting  was 
stubborn,  and  inch  by  inch  over  every  foot  of  ground 
wrested  from  the  enemy  by  the  Union  forces  there  seemed 
to  be  a  decided  balance  in  their  favor.  The  troops  were  in 
correspondingly  good  spirits,  notwithstanding  their  onerous 
duties  and  great  dangers.  Cheers,  good  and  strong,  fre- 
quently went  the  rounds  of  the  Union  lines  and  testified  to 
the  enemy  of  the  pefect  morale  of  Sherman's  forces. 

On  the  morning  of  the  loth  the  desultory  picket  firing 
of  the  skirmish-line  began  to  quicken  between  5  and  6  o'clock. 
This  continued  to  increase  in  volume  and  fierceness  through- 
out the  morning,  but  nothing  more  than  a  determined  skir- 
mish battle  occurred  until  near  the  hour  of  10  a.  m.  The 
brunt  of  the  battle  was  expected  to  fall  upon  the  extreme 
left  of- the  Union  forces,  and  so  it  proved.  Hooker  here  con- 
fronted the  impetuous  Hood,  who  knew  only  to  fight  and  who 
was  a  fair  match  for  "fighting  Joe"  for  down-right  desperate 
fighting  qualities.  The  attack  of  Butterfield's  division  of 
Hooker's  corps,  on  Stevenson's  division  of  Hood's  corps,  was 
successful,  but  not  completely  so.  Stevenson  was  driven 
back  and  lost  a  battery  that  had  been  run  forward  into  a  com- 
manding position,  but  was  so  exposed  that  Hooker's  men  were 


346  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

not  able  to  take  possession  of  it,  the  guns  remaining  between 
the  battle  lines  until  night.  But  this  attack  of  Hooker's 
showed  Johnston  the  exposed  condition  of  his  right,  and 
Hood  received  orders  to  retake  the  lost  ground.  In  the  mean- 
time Sherman  had  withdrawn  two  divisions  of  Schofield's 
corps  from  the  line  in  the  center,  and  ordered  them  to  take 
position  on  Hooker's  left,  thus  extending  his  left  and  so  over- 
lap Johnston's  right.  Johnston  had  also  ordered  Polk  to 
attack  McPherson.  Polk  moved  to  the  onset,  and  was  beaten 
before  Hood's  forces  arrived,  whereupon  Johnston  counter- 
manded the  order  to  Hood,  but  this  command  failed  to 
reach  Stewart,  who  was  to  make  the  attack,  but  was  received 
by  Stevenson  who  was  to  act  as  his  support.  Consequently, 
Stewart  charging  upon  Hooker's  forces  without  proper  sup- 
port was  roughly  handled  and  driven  back  with  heavy  loss. 
This  attack  of  Stewart's  was  made  about  4  o'clock  in  the 
afternoon.  At  this  time  Beatty's  brigade  was  ordered  under 
arms  and  momentarily  expected  to  be  ordered  into  the  battle 
on  the  left,  but  was  uot  needed.  Beaten  at  all  points,  with 
great  loss,  the  enemy  was  disheartened  and  began  to  feel  that 
he  was  overmatched.  On  the  left  he  had  been  driven  pell-  , 
mell  into  his  works  and  an  advantageous  position  secured  by 
Hooker,  while  on  the  right  McPherson  had  been  equally  suc- 
cessful, and  had  gained  a  position  on  the  extreme  right  near 
the  Oostanaula  river,  from  which  point  his  artillery  com- 
manded very  effectually  the  railroad  and  wagon  bridges  over 
the  river.  Besides  Sherman  had  crossed  Sweeny's  division 
of  the  Sixteenth  corps  at  Turner's  or  Lay's  Perry,  while  Gar- 
rard's cavalry  threatened  Johnston's  line  of  communications 
at  Calhoun,  further  south.  Johnston  at  once  determined  to 
evacuate.  Accordingly  on  the  night  of  the  15th  he  retired 
south  of  the  river  to  a  point  near  Calhoun,  on  the  railroad. 
He  effectually  destroyed  both  bridges,  however,  before  leav- 
ing the  river,  and  thus  delayed  Sherman's  crossing.  He 
left  a  lot  of  supplies  and  a  four  gun  battery  in  the  intrench- 
ments  which  he  was  unable  to  move. 

On  the  morning  of  the  16th  Sherman's  forces  were  early 
in  pursuit  and  pressed   on   into  the  town  of  Resaca  at  an 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  347 

early  hour.  The  battle-field  around  Resaca  bore  evidence  of 
the  great  struggle  that  had  taken  place.  Thickets  of  brush, 
even  great  saplings,  were  literally  mown  down  by  the  storm 
of  musket  balls,  shot,  shell,  grape  and  canister.  The  Union 
loss  was  heavy,  but  so  was  the  enemy's.  He  had  been  badly 
beaten  at  all  points,  and  had  been  compelled  to  give  up 
another  strong  position  and  abandon  supplies  which  he  so 
much  needed.  This  was  very  discouraging  to  Johnston's 
forces,  while  it  greatly  encouraged  the  Union  troops.  The 
Third  brigade  moved  up  near  the  town  and  bivouacked  to 
await  the  building  of  a  bridge  or  the  putting  down  of  pon- 
toons to  cross  the  river.  Quito  a  large  quantity  of  corn  meal 
was  captured  and  the  Eighty-sixth  got  its  full  share,  and 
therefore  feasted  on  corn  cakes  for  dinner,  having  a  better 
relish  for  them  than  during  the  preceding  winter  in  East 
Tennessee.  Immediately  after  noon  troops  began  crossing 
the  river  on  a  pontoon  bridge  just  below  the  burned  railroad 
bridge,  the  Fourth  corps  leading  the  advance,  the  Fourteenth 
corps  crossing  immediately  after  the  Fourth.  It  was  slow 
work  and  Hooker  was  ordered  to  march  out  upon  the  New- 
town road  and  cross  the  Oostanaula  in  the  southward  bend 
of  the  river  near  the  junction  of  the  Connasauga  and  Coosa- 
wattee.  Schofield  was  to  cross  the  Connasauga  at  Fite's 
Ferry  or  Echota,  then  cross  the  Coosawattee  at  McClurc's. 
McPherson  crossed  his  command  at  Lay's  or  Turner's  Ferry, 
where  Sweeny  had  crossed  to  turn  Johnston's  flank.  Thus  once 
more  the  whole  army  was  abreast  ready  to  meet  the  enemy. 
The  attack  ui)on  Resaca  was  simply  a  couiinuation  of  the 
attack  upon  Dalton  and  Rocky  Face  Ridge,  and  had  taught 
the  Confederate  officers  a  dear  lesson  in  the  art  of  war;  for 
while  Jeff  Davis,  Beauregard,  and  a  few  others  of  the  South- 
ern leaders  and  the  Southern  press  were  continually  llatter- 
tering  the  troops  of  the  South  and  disparaging  those  of  the 
North,  and  sneering  at  the  ability  of  the  Union  commanders. 
General  Johnston  more  justly  estimated  the  soldierly  qual- 
ities of  the  rank  and  file,  and  judged  more  correctly  of  tlie 
transcendant  ability  of  their  matchless  leader,  General  Slier- 
man.     He  had  been  furnished  much  new  evidence  on  wliich 


348  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

to  base  his  judgment.     He,  therefore,  left  no  stone  unturnod 
that  would  ward  off  a  blow  or  "obstruct  his  opponent's  path- 
way and  delay  his  progress.     He  well  knew  that  it  was  to  be 
a  battle  to  the  death,  and  that   with  Sherman's  matchless 
generalship  and  fertility  "of  resources,  sustained  by  the  indom  - 
itable  firmness  and  fortitude  of  the  soldiers  of  the  North 
west,   he  was  a  foeman  worthy  of  the  steel  of  the  choicest 
legions  of  any  nation's  forces  directed  by  their  best  military! 
genius.      He  knew,  too,  that  Sherman  and   his  -lieutenants I 
would  push  every  advantage  gained  to  the  last,  leaving  him  i 
no  hope  of  escape,  except  by  the  most  ceaseless   vigilanro 
and  untiring  and  persistent  eft'ort.     Therefore,  Johnston  bu  i  1 1 
works,  fortifying,  at  every  defensible  point,  and  invited  t]i(> 
attack  of  the  Union  forces,  for  while  acknowledging  Shoi' 
man's  ability  and  skill,  he  also  regarded  him  as  "audacious 
and  enterprising. "     Thus  it  was  that  Sherman  came  to  be 
confronted  by  breastworks  upon    almost  every   mile  of  his 
route  to  Atlanta.     Only  in  this  way  was  it  possible  for  John- 
ston to  place  his  command  upon  a  footing  of  equality  with 
Sherman's   incomparable   legions   as   they    marched  trium 
phantly  and  resistlessly  onward  into  the  very  heart  of  tln' 
Confederacy.     Never,    no  not   even  at  Vicksburg,  had  tin' 
enemy  been  so  staggered  and  beaten.     If  constantly  assaulted 
in  works  of  the  strength  which  his  troops  built,  the  equaliza- 
tion of  the  two  armies  would  soon  be  brought  about  when  the 
advantage  would  be  wholly  upon  Johnston's  side;  for  whiln 
his  friends  and  supplies  were  all  round  him  and  ever  at  hand 
to  aid  and  assist  him,   Sherman  was  surrounded  by  enemies 
ready  to  injure  and  betray  him,  and  his  friends  and  supplies 
were  far  away.     It  required  long  and  tedious  transportation 
to  bring  them  to  hand  ready  for  use.     But  Johnston  made 
the  most  of  his  opportunities,  and  though  maneuvered  out  of 
the  impregnable  position  at  Dalton,  beaten  and  out-llanked  at 
Resaca,    and  forced  to  leave   the   place,  he  only  gave   the 
ground  he  was  compelled  to  yield  and  hold  on  to  Calhoun  aa 
though  he  meant  to  give  battle  to  retain  its  possession. 


CHAPTER    XXII. 
RESACA  TO  PICKETT'S  MILLS. 

Across  tlie  Oostanaula— Calhoun— Adairsville—Oothcaloga  Valley— Kingston— 
Cassville— A  Three  Days'  Rest— Across  the  Etowah— Where  the  Different 
Commands  Crossed— A  Wild  Wilderness— Burnt  Hickory— New  Hope  Church 
—The  Battle  of  Pickett's  Mills— The  Eighty-sixth's  Part  in  this  Engagement- 
Colonel  Dick  Wounded— The  Regiment's  Loss. 

Wood's  division  having  crossed  the  Oostanaula  river  on 
the  afternoon  of  the  16th,  pressed  on  in  pursuit  of  the  enemy, 
and  having  covered  three  or  four  miles  was  halted  and 
pickets  detailed.  But  the  progress  was  slow  as  the  army 
was  now  divided,  and  it  was  not  deemed  prudent  to  get  too 
far  from  support.  The  skirmishers  in  front  could  be  plainly 
heard  as  they  took  up  their  duties  when  their  line  came  upon 
that  of  the  enemy.  It  was  sharp  and  determined,  Johnston 
no  doubt  holding  this  place  to  gain  time.  It  is  now  well 
known  that  Johnston  decided  to  make  a  stand  in  the  lower 

I 

part  of  the  Oothcaloga  Valley  near  Calhoun,  but  upon  look- 
ing over  the  ground  carefully  and  more  fully  considering  all 
points,  he  decided  the  valley  too  wide  in  which  for  him  to  give 
battle,  and  determined  to  retire  farther  up  the  valley  where 
he  was  informed  by  his  engineers  that  a  line  quite  defensive 
might  be  found  a  mile  or  two  north  of  the  town  of  Adairs- 
Iville.  A  strong  rear  guard  was  left  in  the  vicinity  of  Cal- 
houn to  make  a  show  of  giving  battle,  and  thus  delay  the 
'advance  of  Sherman's  forces,  and  thereby  give  more  time  for 
fortifying  and  preparing  for  the  expected   contest  farther 

;SOUth. 

On  the  morning  of  the  17th  of  May,  the  Eighty- sixth 
drew  rations.  Having  filled  their  haversacks  full  of  hard 
itack,    bacon,    sugar,    coffee   and  salt,   the  men   were  ready 


350  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

for  duty.  The  regiment  resumed  the  advance.  Wood's 
division  took  the  raih'oad  as  its  line  of  march,  with  Hazen's 
brigade  in  front,  while  Newton's  division  was  on  a  wagon 
road  to  the  left  or  east  of  the  railroad.  The  progress  was 
slow  oil  account  of  the  resistance  of  the  enemy.  Still  Hazen 
pushed  ahead  with  his  characteristic  energy.  The  skirmish- 
ing was  lively,  although  great  caution  had  to  be  used.  About 
9  a.  m.  the  Eighty -sixth  passed  through  Calhoun,  a  town  of 
perhaps  350  or  400  inhabitants,  and  the  county  seat  of  Gor- 
don county.  Here  Hazen  had  had  a  sharp  fight  with  the 
rear  guard  of  the  enemy,  he  having  built  a  strong  barricade 
and  maintained  a  bold  front  for  some  time,  but  he  pressed 
him  so  hotly  he  gave  ground,  retiring,  however,  in  good 
order.  As  the  Third  brigade  advanced  the  skirmishing  in 
front  and  on  the  Hanks  continued  at  a  brisk  rate,  showing 
the  enemy  to  be  in  force  in  its  front  as  well  as  Newton's  on 
the  left,  and  McPherson's  on  the  right.  About  2  o'clock  Wood 
and  Hazen  had  pushed  the  column  on  the  railroad  so  ener- 
getically forward  that  the  division  trains,  following  on  the 
wagon  road  almost  parallel  with  the  railroad,  were  abreast  of 
Newton's  division  skirmishers,  which  were  mistaken  for  that 
of  the  enemy  and  were  fired  into.  This  caused  considerable 
excitement  and  some  confusion  and  delay.  But  Hazen 
pressed  on  and  about  4  o'clocli  in  the  afternoon  came  up 
against  a  strong  line  of  the  enemy  well  posted,  which  mani- 
fested a  disposition  to  give  battle.  The  skirmishers  had  a 
hot  time  of  it.  The  shells  flew  thicli  and  fast  over  and  about 
the  Eighty-sixth  as  it  advanced,  but  it  moved  steadily  and 
quietly  forward  and  took  the  position  assigned.  Tlie  furious 
galloping  of  staff-officers,  aides  and  orderlies,  here  and  there, 
betokened  the  rapid  transit  of  orders,  and  the  intended 
speedy  concentration  of  troops  for  the  purpose  of  giving  the 
enemy  battle  should  he  be  so  disposed,  as  his  present  attitude 
indicated. 

It  seems  strange  that  so  many  errors  are  made  in  writ- 
ing the  history  of  this  campaign,  by  those,  too,  who  were 
active  participators  in  its  momentous  movements  and  battles. 
General  Cox,  in  speaking  of  the  advance  on  the  17th,  says: 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  ^351 

"Sherman  was  now  with  Newton's  division  in  advance,  and 
had  a  narrow  escape  from  shots  of  the  enemy's  artillery  as 
he  was  reconnoitering,  the  grouj)  about  him  having  attracted 
their  fire. "  The  statement  in  regard  to  the  incident  of  Gen- 
eral Sherman's  being  exposed  to  the  enemy's  fire  is  no  doubt 
true,  but  it  is  misleading  as  one  would  infer  from  it  that 
Newton  had  the  advance  of  the  corps,  and  he  alone  was 
exposed  to  the  enemy's  fire,  whereas  throughout  almost  the 
entire  day  Wood's  division  on  the  railroad  was  leading  that 
of  New^ton  on  a  parallel  wagon  road  in  pursuit  of  the  enemy, 
and  was  constantly  skirmishing  with  him.  But  even  Gen- 
eral Sherman,  in  his  "  Memoirs, "  lends  credibility  to  the 
statement  of  Newton's  being  in  advance  by  the  following 
tatement  of  the  same  incident:  "  On  the  17th  toward  even- 
ing, the  head  of  Thomas'  column,  Newton's  division,  encoun- 
tered the  rear-guard  of  Johnston's  army  near  Adairsville.  I 
was  near  the  head  of  the  column  at  that  time,  trying  to  get  a 
view  of  the  position  of  the  enemy  from  an  elevation  in  an 
3pen  field.  My  party  attracted  the  fire  of  a  battery;  a  shell 
passed  through  the  group  of  staff-officers  and  burst  just 
beyond  which  scattered  us  promptly.  "  Notwithstanding  the 
seeming  contradiction  of  General  Cox  and  General  Sherman, 
General  O.  O.  Howard,  himself  then  commanding  the  Fourth 
army  corps,  and  an  officer  who  usually  knew  the  order  of 
marching  of  his  men,  their  order  and  lines  in  or  out  of  bat- 
tle, in  his  report,  says:  "The  enemy's  custom  is  when 
[•etreating,  to  form  his  rear-guard  of  cavalry,  with  a  battery 
Dr  section  of  artillery,  sometimes  strengthened  by  infantry. 
During  this  day's  march  the  resistance  was  unusually  great. 
He  formed  three  lines,  some  half  or  three-quarters  of 
I  mile  ajjart,  and  barricaded  with  rails,  seeking  the  cover  of 
:he  woods  with  open  fields  in  his  front.  As  soon  as  we  suc- 
ceeded in  driving  the  first  line  it  passed  to  the  rear  of  the 
.bird,  and  in  some  new  and  favorable  iiosition  made  another 
ine.  However  as  we  moved  in  two  columns,  we  were 
mabled  to  make  considerable  progress.  The  resistance 
ncreased  as  we  approached  Adairsville.  General  Newton 
jontinued  to  deploy  regiments  as  skirmishers  until  he  hatl  a 

i 


352  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

large  brigade  engaged.  General  Wood  abreast  of  Mm  also 
skirmished  Jieavily.  About  4  p.  m.  it  was  found  we  had  come 
upon  the  enemy's  infantry  in  considerable  force.  Prepara- 
tions were  made  immediately  to  assault  and  carry  the  posi- 
tion, if  possible;  but  it  required  time  to  bring  up  the  troops 
and  get  them  in  readiness.  General  Thomas  not  deeming  it 
best,  on  account  of  the  nearness  of  nigiit  to  make  a  formal 
attack,  the  movement  already  set  on  foot  was  postponed. 
Yet  a  real  engagement  was  going  on,  since  both  parties  con- 
tinued to  re-enforce  their  skirmish  lines  until  they  were  tan- 
tamount to  a  line  of  battle.  The  enemy  opened  upon  our 
column  with  artillery,  to  which  our  batteries  replied  witli 
spirit.     During  tlie  niglit  the  enemy  withdrew. ' ' 

Every  indication  on  the  evening  of  the  17th  appeared  to 
point  to  the  offering  of  battle  by  General  Johnston  on  that 
evening  or  the  following  day.  Therefore,  Sherman  ordered 
McPherson,  who  was  somewhat  extended  on  the  right,  to 
close  upon  Thomas  and  prepare  to  give  battle,  should  the 
enemy  stand  his  ground.  Sherman  was  very  anxious,  at  this 
stage  of  the  campaign,  to  bring  on  a  general  engagement  in 
this  comparatively  open  country,  before  Johnston  should 
reach  the  mountains  of  Allatoona  and  the  rough  and  broken 
country  along  the  Etowah  river.  Johnston  contemplated 
giving  battle,  seeking  to  secure  a  good  position  with  his 
flanliis  protected  by  high  and  broken  ground,  so  that  Sher- 
man's numbers  would  be  of  little  advantage,  and  then  stand 
his  ground,  give  battle  and  cripple  Sherman  until  their 
forces  would  be  equalized.  But  "finding  that  the  bread tli  of 
the  Oothcaloga  Valley  exceeded  so  much  the  front  of  his 
army,  properly  formed  for  battle  that  he  could  obtain  no 
advantage  of  ground,  ordered  the  troops  to  march  for  Cass- 
ville. ' '  So  the  expected  battle  between  these  two  grand 
armies  was,  at  least,  postponed,  although  the  following  day 
and  for  two  or  three  days,  Sherman  expected  Johnston  to 
make  a  decided  stand. 

On  the  morning  of  the  18th  the  Eighty-sixth  led  tlie  col- 
umn of  Wood's  division,  marching  as  before  on  the  railroad. 
Colonel  Dick  kept  the  regiment  well  up  to  the  skirmishers  as 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  353 

tliey  advanced.  Startino-  at  6  o'clock  a.  m.  Adairsville  was 
soon  reached,  as  Johnston  once  more  had  deemed  it  prudent 
to  withdraw.  At  Adairsville  the  command  was  halted.  There 
seemed  to  be  a  hurrying  forward  of  troops,  and  frequent  con- 
sultations of  corps  and  army  commanders,  which  indicated 
very  important  movements  on  hand  and  a  probable  engage- 
ment. Generals  Logan,  McPherson,  Thomas,  Howard,  and 
Sherman  were  all  at  Adairsville  some  time  during  the  day  to 
talk  over  the  situation.  It  turned  out  afterward  the  cause  of 
all  this  consultation  and  worry  arose  from  the  doubt  existing 
in  the  minds  of  these  Generals  as  to  the  route  taken  by  Gen- 
eral Johnston  with  his  main  force.  Therefore,  great  caution 
was  necessary  not  to  fall  into  a  trap  which  might  be  laid  by 
the  wily  foeman.  Reports  from  the  advanced  guards,  con- 
sultations, and  the  various  means  of  information  used  by  gen- 
erals of  armies  to  learn  the  exact  situation  of  the  enemy,  were 
made,  while  the'  Fourth  corps  lay  here  waiting  for  McPher- 
son to  pass  his  command  through  to  other  roads  on  the  right, 
having  been  called  in  from  the  roads  upon  which  they  were 
marching  when  a  battle  seemed  imminent.  These  roads,  too, 
carried  him  farther  aw^ay  from  the  rest  of  the  command. 
Hooker,  too,  with  the  Twentieth  corps,  had  been  concen- 
trated here  in  the  vicinity  of  Adairsville.  He  now  passed  to 
the  left  and  took  the  direct  road  to  Cassville.  The  Fourth 
corps  followed  the  line  of  the  imilroads,  marching  on  a  wagon 
road  just  east  of  the  railroad,  this  road  leading  to  Kingston. 
The  Eighty-sixth  resumed  the  march  about  2  o'clock  p.  m. 
Great  caution  was  now  deemed  necessary  in  the  advance. 
The  regiment  kept  close  to  the  skirmishers  as  they  contin- 
ued to  move.  Near  sundown  the  enemy's  rear  guard  was 
struck,  well  posted  and  in  force.  A  lively  skirmish  at  once 
ensued.  The  skirmishing,  before  going  into  bivouac,  seemed 
a  regular  evening  entertainment — a  sun-set  festivity  wliich 
could  not  be  dispensed  with.  The  Eighty-sixth  bivouacked 
on  a  high  hill  close  to  the  skirmish  line.  From  this  high 
hill  a  good  view  of  the  surrounding  country  could  be  secured 
for  some  miles.  Wood  was  now  within  about  three  miles  of 
Kingston.    Hooker  was  on  his  immediate  left,  with  Schotield 


354  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH    REGIMENT, 

still  to  the  left  of  Hooker,  McPherson  with  the  Army  of  the 
Tennessee  being  to  the  right,  all  being  ready  for  battle. 

Many  historians  record  the  capture  of  Kingston  as  tak- 
ing place  on  the  18th  of  the  month  by  the  Fourth  corps,  but 
this  is  evidently  a  mistake.  The  Eighty-sixth  was  in  advance 
of  Wood's  division,  which  division  was  on  the  direct  road 
f rom  Adairsville  to  Kingston,  and  skirmished  with  the  enemy 
in  the  evening  of  the  18th,  bivouacking  as  before  stated,  in 
the  face  of  the  enemy  two  or  three  miles  to  the  north  of 
Kingston,  a  thing  wholly  improbable  if  any  part  of  the  corps 
had  secured  possession  of  the  town.  On  the  morning  of  the 
19th  the  column  resumed  its  onward  inarch  about  6  o'clock, 
feeling  its  way  until  it  became  evident  that  the  enemy  had 
continued  his  retreat  farther  south.  However,  there  was 
some  skirmishing  as  the  town  of  Kingston  was  reached.  As 
the  advance  guard  drove  the  enemy  the  command  marched 
forward  at  a  more  lively  i)ace,  and  the  Eighty-sixth  reached 
Kingston,  the  point  of  junction  of  the  Rome  railroad  with 
the  main  line  from  Chattanooga  to  Atlanta,  about  noon.  The 
day  was  exceedingly  hot  and  the  troops  felt  the  effects  of 
the  great  heat  and  their  rapid  marching.  However,  just  east 
of  the  town  they  were  given  a  good  rest  and  permitted  to  get 
dinner.  Wood's  division  remained  here  until  about  2  o'clock 
p.  m.  By  this  time  General  Sherman  had  completed  his 
plans,  given  his  orders,  and  had  the  various  columns  in  motion 
on  their  proper  routes  to  concentrate  upon  Johnston's  posi- 
tion. It  was  understood  that  the  Southern  forces  were  con- 
centrated at  Cassville,  five  miles  to  the  east  of  Kingston,  and 
there  awaited  to  give  battle,  having  reached  ' '  the  last  ditch ' ' 
again.  Howard  and  Wood  were  equal  to  any  in  energy  and 
push.  Passing  to  the  left,  to  the  southeast  of  Kingston  per- 
haps a  mile,  the  command  struck  the  enemy's  skirmishers. 
But  they  were  no  raw  recruits  and  they  struck  back  quite 
effectively.  They  were  borne  back  by  weight  of  numbers. 
They  maintained  their  ground  with  great  stubbornness,  only 
yielding  when  forced  to  do  so.  Beatty's  brigade,  and  in  fact 
the  whole  army,  was  at  once  formed  in  the  order  of  battle 
and  moved  forward  as  if  to  the  attack.     The  Eighty-sixth 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  355 

closed  down  upon  the  skirmish  line,  and  it  in  turn  pressed  the 
enemy  vigorously,  driving  him  back  inch  by  inch.  Now  the 
battle  between  very  strong  skirmish  lines  began  in  dead 
earnest.  The  enemy  was  in  bad  humor  and  spiteful;  the 
Union  boys  were  exultant  and  determined,  and  so  the  battle 
raged.  Just  as  dark  came,  a  determined  push  was  made  and 
the  enemy  crowded  back  some  distance.  The  enemy  fell  back 
with  such  stubbornness  that  it  seemed  certain  a  night  battle 
would  be  fought.  The  Eighty-sixth,  close  to  the  skirmish 
line  and  fully  exposed  to  the  enemy's  lire,  was  ordered  to 
lie  down,  and  the  order  was  most  cheerfully  obeyed.  The 
battle  was  fiercely  contested  for  some  time  after  dark,  but  at 
length  the  fire  slackened  and  then  died  out.  The  main  line 
was  not  permitted  to  rest.  Without  any  supper  the  men 
were  ordered  to  intrench.  They  were  soon  busily  engaged, 
and  ere  the  morning's  dawn  lit  up  the  east  they  had  a  sub- 
stantial line  of  breastworks.  But  it  was  at  a  great  cost — 
loss  of  sleep  and  great  exertion  after  a  day's  marching  and 
the  the  nerve  strain  incident  to  battle. 

A  rebel  authority  speaking  of  this  day's  fighting,  calls 
the  first  contest  of  the  day,  the  "Battle  of  Kingston,"  and  the 
second  one,  the  "Battle  of  Cassville.  "  He  says  of  the  first 
skirmishing:  Heavy  skirmishing  between  Howard's  Federal 
and  Hardee's  Confederate  troops  on  the  southeast  side  of 
town,  Kingston,  in  the  morning.  The  Confederates  retired 
toward  Cassville;  but  before  noon  a  sharp  fight  occurred 
near  an  old  mill  by  the  railroad,  about  a  cou])le  of  miles  east 
of  Kingston,  during  which  was  considerable  artillery  fii-ing 
on  the  part  of  the  Federals."  Of  the  battle  in  the  evening, 
known  as  the  "Battle  of  Cassville, "  the  same  writer  says: 
"Heavy  cannonading  from  the  opposing  batteries,  and 
obstinate  fighting  between  the  lines  of  the  two  armies." 
General  Sherman  says:  "Thomas'  head  of  column  whicli  had 
followed  the  country  roads  along  side  of  tlie  railroad,  was 
about  four  miles  east  of  Kingston,  towards  CassviUe,  when, 
about  noon  I  got  a  message  from  him  that  he  had  found  the 
enemy,  drawn  up  in  line  of  battle,  on  some  extensive  open 
ground  about  half  way  between  Kingston  and  Cassville.  and 


35G  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

that  appearances  indicated  a  willingness  and  a  preparation 
for  battle.  Hurriedly  sending  orders  to  McPlierson  to  re- 
sume the  march,  to  hasten  forward  by  roads  leading  to  the 
south  of  Kingston,  so  as  to  leave  for  Thomas'  troops  and 
trains  the  use  of  the  main  road,  and  to  come  up  on  his  right, 
I  rode  forward  rapidly  over  some  rough  gravel  hills,  and 
about  six  miles  from  Kingston  found  Thomas,  with  his  troops 
deployed;  but  he  reported  that  the  enemy  had  fallen  back  in 
echelon  of  divisions,  steadily  and  in  superb  order  into  Cass- 
ville." 

Johnston  had  now  been  beaten  back  some  forty  or  fifty 
miles,  and  it  was  having  a  bad  effect  on  the  morale  of  his 
troops,  and  he  determined  to  make  a  stand.  He  had  done 
this  several  times,  but  strong  reasons  had  forced  him  each 
time  to  give  it  up  and  fall  back.  But  now  he  intended  mak- 
ing a  stand  just  south  of  Cassville  where  his  troops  took  a 
strong  position  which  he  says,  "That  I  remember  as  the 
best  that  I  saw  occupied  during  the  war.  "  But  once  again 
he  was  doomed  to  disappointment,  for  owing  to  objections 
urged  by  both  Hood  and  Polk  to  making  a  decisive  stand  at  this 
point,  Johnston  once  more  decided  to  withdraw.  Conse- 
quently when  it  was  expected  that  he  would  give  battle  on 
the  morning  of  the  20th,  he  was  not  to  be  found.  He  had 
"hopped  the  twig"  and  "gone  glimmering  to  the  "misty 
mountain  top."  The  Eighty-sixth  was  relieved  from  the 
front  line  early  on  the  morning  of  the  20th,  but  as  the  enemy 
had  again  retreated,  it  made  but  little  difference.  On  this 
day  the  Nineteenth  Ohio  rejoined  the  brigade,  having  been 
on  detached  duty  guarding  trains  since  leaving  McDonald 
Station. 

A  part  of  the  Twenty-third  corps  pushed  on  after  the 
retreating  enemy  and  drove  the  rear  guard  out  of  Carters- 
ville.  He  continued  his  retreat,  crossing  the  Etowah  river 
and  burned  the  railroad  and  wagon  road  bridges.  Johnston 
had  taken  up  a  strong  position  with  his  center  at  Allatoona 
Pass.  The  mountains  to  the  left  and  right  of  the  Pass  ren- 
dered his  position  a  very  strong  one,  easily  defended  and 
almost  impossible  to  attack  successfully  in  front.      Prepara- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  357 

tions  were  immediately  begun  for  a  movement  to  the  right 
liank  to  turn  the  position  now  occupied  by  Jolmston's  forces. 
On  the  21st  and  22d  tlie  Union  forces  rested  from  their 
labors.  But  the  excessive  heat  prevented  them  from  recu- 
perating as  much  as  they  would  have  done  under  more  favor- 
able circumstances.  On  the  22d  the  divisions'  commissaries 
issued  three  days'  rations  to  the  troops,  while  they  received 
twenty  days'  rations  from  the  General  Commissary  of  the 
Army.  Preparations  were  completed  on  this  day  for  the 
next  move. 

Many  rumors,  reports,  and  "grapevine  telegrams"  were 
going  the  rounds  of  the  bivouac  of  the  troops  in  regard 
to  the  next  move  the  army  w^as  to  make.  It  was  well-known 
that  it  would  be  arduous  duty  whatever  it  Avas.  Johnston's 
army  was  the  chief  object  of  attention,  and  it  now  held  an 
impregnable  position  across  the  Etowah  river.  It  was 
impossible  to  cross  in  his  immediate  front  and  attack  with 
success,  consequently  a  flank  movement  was  the  only  hope, 
and  had  to  be  made  to  secure  a  foot-hold  on  the  far  side  of 
the  river.  Sherman  says:  "I  made  orders  on  the  20th  to  get 
ready  for  the  march  to  begin  on  the  23d.  The  Army  of  the 
Cumberland  was  ordered  to  march  for  Dallas  by  Euharlee 
and  Stilesboro;  Davis'  division  then  in  Rome  by  Van  Wert; 
the  Army  of  the  Ohio  to  keep  on  the  left  of  Thomas,  by  a 
place  called  Burnt  Hickory;  and  the  Army  of  the  Tennessee 
to  march  for  a  position  a  little  to  the  south,  so  as  to  be  on  the 
right  of  the  general  army,  when  grouped  about  Dalhis. " 
These  orders  were  issued  on  the  22d,  but  they  were  not  fol- 
lowed out  strictly  as  subsequent  events  proved.  On  llie  23d 
General  Beatty  was  compelled  to  relinquish  the  connnand  of 
the  brigade  on  account  of  serious  illness,  when  the  command 
was  devolved  upon  Colonel  Fred  Knefler,  of  the  Seventy - 
ninth  Indiana. 

In  the  meantime  the  soldiers  were  taking  their  ease. 
resting  up,  repairing  clothing  and  haversacks,  bathing  in  the 
streams  and  getting  themselves  in  the  best  possible  shape 
for  the  coming  struggle,  which  all  felt  sure  was  close  at 
hand.     On  the  23d  the  army  was  in  motion.     The  Eighty- 


358  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

sixth  was  ready,  but  had  to  wait  for  orders.  The  Twentieth 
corps  passed  its  bivouac  going  to  the  right.  Wood's  division 
moved  out  about  1  o'clock  p.  m.,  marcliing  to  the  southwest 
and  crossed  the  Etowah  river -at  Gillem's  bridge,  together 
with  the  entire  Fourth  corps.  The  Fourteenth  corps,  except 
the  Second  division  wliich  crossed  at  Rome,  crossed  at  Island 
Ford,  a  few  miles  down  the  river,  while  the  Twentieth  corps 
crossed  at  Milam's  bridge,  a  few  miles  above,  on  pontoons, 
the  bridge  having  been  burned.  The  Twenty-third  corps 
crossed  at  the  same  place,  following  Hooker's  corps.  The 
Army  of  the  Tenessee  crossed  at  Wooley's  bridge  below  the 
Fourteenth  corps. 

The  army  was  now  in  a  country  almost  a  wilderness 
wild,  with  but  few  roads,  and  those  mere  wagon  ways  cut 
through  the  forest.  There  was  doubtless  some  uncertainty 
in  regard  to  the  route,  as  the  command  halted  frequently  and 
waited  long.  The  march  was  continued  after  night,  and 
Wood's  division  lay  for  some  hours  in  the  road  near  its  place 
of  bivouac.  It  was  so  late  at  night  the  command  quietly 
lay  down  without  preparing  supper,  even  though  the  men 
were  very  hungry.  General  Sherman  says:  "The  several 
columns  followed  generally  the  valley  of  the  Euharlee,  a 
tributary  coming  into  the  Etowah  from  the  south,  and  grad- 
ually crossed  over  a  ridge  of  mountains,  parts  of  which  had 
once  been  worked  over  for  gold,  and  were  consequently  full 
of  paths  and  unused  wagon  roads  or  tracks."  The  roads, 
many  of  them  w^ere  in  fact,  mere  paths,  unused,  in  a  wilder- 
ness of  woods,  and  it  became  quite  bewildering  probably  to 
follow  the  intended  route. 

On  the  morning  of  the  24th  the  march  was  resumed 
about  9  o'clock.  The  pace  was  at  first  slow%  but  was  grad- 
ually accelerated.  At  noon  the  command  came  to  a  still  more 
broken  section  of  country,  probably  the  mountains  referred 
to  by  General  Sherman,  with  rougher,  poorer  roads  and  more 
tangled  and  wilder  woods,  a  veritable  wilderness.  After  a 
short  halt  for  dinner  about  1  o'clock,  the  march  was  contin- 
ued at  a  slow  pace  until  near  sundown.  It  threatened  rain, 
and  the  night  was  far  from  promising,  and  the  men  were 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  359 

soon  busily  engaged  preparing  their  evening  meal  and  shel- 
ter from  the  threatening  storm. 

On  the  morning  of  the  25th,  after  a  night  of  rain,  the 
men  lay  around  their  bivouac  until  about  10  o'clock,  when 
they  again  resumed  the  march  into  the  enemy's  country. 
The  march  was  slow  and  halting.  It  seems  that  from  Burnt 
Hickory  the  Fourth  and  Fourteenth  corps  made  a  detour  to 
the  right,  having  to  feel  their  way  over  unused  country 
roads  and  mining  tracks  and  trails.  It  w^as  the  intention 
that  they  should  strike  the  VanWert  and  Dallas  road  some 
distance  out  from  the  latter  place.  But  Hooker's  coming  in 
contact  with  the  enemy,  unexpectedly  changed  this  part  of 
the  plan;  for  w^henever  Hooker  got  a  chance  to  strike  the 
enemy  he  struck  right  out  straight  from  the  shoulder  and 
followed  it  up  as  he  did  on  this  occasion,  as  will  be  seen 
later.  The  country  through  which  the  corps  passed  must 
have  been  the  wildest  of  the  wild  country  in  Paulding  county, 
Georgia.  Only  at  long  distances  was  the  merest  semblance 
of  a  house  seen.  The  tracks  followed  as  roads  wound  around 
in  and  out  of  gulleys,  over  and  around  rocky  hills,  and  through 
thickets  as  dense  as  the  thickets  of  Chickamauga.  The  com- 
mand probably  had  not  covered  a  great  many  miles  from  the 
previous  night's  bivouac,  when  it  was  halted  and  lay  in  the 
road  waiting.  It  lay  here  until  3  o'clock  p.  m.  It  then  re- 
sumed the  march  through  tangled  woods  and  over  a  perfect 
labyrinth  of  winding  paths  and  trails  and  meandering  streams. 

When  passing  one  of  the  few  cabins  of  this  wilderness 
one  of  the  Eighty-sixth  boys  claims  to  have  heard  the  fol- 
lowing from  the  woman  residing  there:  She  said  the  "Yan- 
kees" couldn't  fool  her,  she  knew  Sherman  was  "flanking" 
again.  Upon  being  pressed  to  tell  how  she  knew  what  Sher- 
man was  doing,  she  said  they  "couldn't  fool  her,"  she  knew 
he  was  "flanking''  because  she  had  seen  "his  flanking 
machines"  go  by  just  a  few  minutes  before,  referring  to  a 
battery  of  artillery  that  had  just  passed  the  cabin.  The  fact 
of  the  matter  was,  that  the  whole  great  army  was  just  at  this 
time  converted  into  a  "great  flanking  machine,"  and  this 
ignorant  Georgia  woman  was  not  far  wrong  in  her  statement 


360  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

that  she  saw  Sherman's  "flanking  machines"  go  by.  She 
doubtless  saw  a  very  essential  part  of  it,  and  one,  too,  that 
was  to  do  some  very  effective  work  at  an  early  day. 

While  still  in  this  dense  forest  and  about  6  o'clock  in  the 
evening,  musketry  firing  was  heard  on  the  left  front  some 
distance  ahead.  Hooker  had  run  on  to  the  enemy — Hood's 
corps — and  at  once  attacked  him  with  his  usual  impetuosity. 
He  fought  on  this  occasion  as  if  it  was  necessary  to  beat  the 
whole  rebel  army  at  once  before  other  corps  could  come  up 
and  aid  him  and  win  part  of  the  glory.  The  enemy  was  evi- 
dently in  force  and  on  the  alert.  The  sharp  rattle  of  mus- 
ketry was  sufficient  evidence  of  a  hard  battle  being  fought. 
The  command  moved  forward  with  more  rapidity.  About  8 
o'clock  it  began  raining,  and  the  thunders  of  heaven,  joined 
to  those  of  battle,  made  the  wilderness  and  hills  roar  again 
and  again.  The  rain  made  the  roads  slipj^ery,  and  up-hill 
and  down-hill,  marching  was  very  tiresome  and  slow.  How- 
ard had  orders  to  reinforce  Hooker,  and  his  corps  pressed  on, 
stopping  at  no  obstacle,  through  the  darkness  over  horrible 
roads,  drenched  to  the  bone  by  the  deluge  of  water.  Cox 
says:  "The  night  was  utterly  black  in  its  darkness  and 
storm."  About  10  o'clock,  wading  a  stream  knee  deep,  the 
regiment  came  to  the  point  where  the  real  battle  began,  and 
soon  after  to  the  immediate  neighborhood  of  Hooker's  corps. 
He  had  continued  his  attack  after  nightfall  and  had  fought 
the  enemy  valiantly,  but  he  was  too  strongly  intrenched 
to  be  successfully  assaulted.  Hooker  had  driven  him  some 
distance,  but  had  lost  heavily  and  had  failed  to  drive  him 
from  his  fortified  position  at  New  Hope  Church,  the  key  to 
the  point  attacked.  As  the  regiment  passed  along  the  road 
over  the  battle-field  the  wounded  lay  in  the  woods  alongside 
the  road  on  the  damp  ground.  Their  pale  faces  could  be 
seen  by  the  light  of  the  fires  that  had  been  built  by  camp- 
followers,  giving  the  men  a  glimpse  of  the  after  scenes  of 
battle  which  are  even  more  heartrending  than  those  of  the 
battle  itself  which  are  usually  witnessed  under  great  excite- 
ment and  pass  almost  instantly  from  view. 

Wood's  division  wound  its  way  slowly  along  the  tortuous 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  361 

road  among  the  wounded  to  its  position  to  the  left  of  New- 
ton's division,  which  had  arrived  early  in  the  evening,  and 
formed  on  Hooker's  left.  Wood's  division,  however,  did  not 
form  a  line  that  night  with  Newton  and  Hooker,  but  biv- 
ouacked to  the  left  of  the  former,  somewhat  refused.  Worn  out 
with  their  long  and  laborious  march  and  want  of  sleep,  the 
men  were  almost  used  up  and  speedily  sank,  supperless, 
upon  the  damp  earth  to  rest  and  sleep  until  morning.  The 
bivouac  was  reached  about  11  o'clock.  A  gloomy  night  with 
the  prospect  of  a  red  day  on  the  morrow,  and  foi-  many  days. 
Of  this  night  a  rebel  author  says:  "The  night,  which  came 
on,  was  very  dark,  with  heavy  rains;  and  there  was  much 
confusion  in  both  armies,  as  they  were  endeavoring  to 
assume  position,  facing  each  other,  among  the  thickly- 
wooded  hills,  and  each  industriously  working,  though  in 
darkness,  to  strengthen  its  ground  against  any  sudden 
assault  by  its  enemy. "  General  Sherman  says,  of  his  night's 
rest  and  preparations  for  the  next  day:  "I  slept  on  the 
ground  without  cover,  alongside  of  a  log,  got  a  little  sleeji, 
resolved  at  daylight  to  renew  the  battle,  and  to  make  a  lodg- 
ment on  the  Dallas  and  Allatoona  road  if  possible,  but  the 
morning  revealed  a  strong  line  of  intrenchmeuts  facing  us, 
with  a  heavy  force  of  infantry  and  guns.  The  battle  was 
renewed  and  without  success.''  When  a  general  of  a  great 
army  undergoes  such  hardships,  it  can  be  imagined  what  the 
life  of  a  private  soldier  was  only  by  those  who  have  partici- 
pated in  such  a  tremendous  campaign  as  this. 

The  Eighty-sixth  was  up  early  and  ready  for  business,  for 
Colonel  Dick  never  permitted  it  to  be  beliind.  The  men  lay, 
however,  quietly  at  their  bivouac  until  8  or  U  o'clock.  They 
were  then  ordered  under  arms  and  moved  out  close  to  the 
skirmish  line.  The  lines  were  formed  as  though  a  general 
attack  was  to  be  made  upon  the  enemy's  position.  The 
skirmishing  was  sharp  all  along  the  line,  and  the  spiteful 
hiss  of  the  musket  balls  was  extremely  annoying.  The  mus- 
ketry fire  at  times  assumed  the  magnitude  of  a  battle,  rolling 
as  a  great  wave  of  sound  from  one  end  of  the  line  to  the 
other,  and   back   again,    as   this,    or   that  part  of   the   line 


362  THE   EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

renewed  the  struggle.  About  noon  there  was  a  general 
advance  of  the  line  of  the  Fourth  corps  and  the  musketry 
fire  grew  quite  severe,  and  was  steadily  maintained  for  some- 
time. The  enemy's  batteries,  too,  opened  a  hot  fire,  but 
owing  to  the  density  of  the  timber  and  the  heavy  growth  of 
underbrush  they  w^ere  unable  to  deliver  a  very  effective  tire, 
although  it  w^as  sufficiently  accurate  to  make  it  very  annoy- 
ing. This  move  of  the  Fourth  corps  served  the  double  pur- 
pose of  completing  the  alignment  of  the  forces  and  of  devel- 
oping pretty  accurately  the  position  of  the  enemy,  enabling 
the  oiticers  to  locate  his  line  and  the  position  of  his  batteries. 
Late  in  the  evening  Wood's  division  withdrew  from  its 
advanced  position,  drew^  three  days'  rations  to  do  four, 
and  bivouacked  for  the  night.  These  were  "days  of  danger 
and  nights  of  waking,"  as  frequently  the  jiicket  firing  was 
sharp  and  of  such  volume  as  to  betoken  an  attack,  which 
caused  the  division  to  be  called  into  line  and  held  in  readi- 
iness  until  the  firing  subsided. 

Save  one  or  two  wakings  caused  by  the  booming  of  ex- 
ploding shells  near,  from  the  rebel  batteries,  the  Eighty -sixth 
slept  soundly  on  the  night  of  the  26th,  and  it  was  well.  Good 
rest  is  conducive  to  steadiness  of  nerve  and  the-Eighty-sixth, 
and  all  of  Wood's  division,  needed  all  of  its  fortitude  on  the 
27th,  as  will  be  seen  further  on.  , 

A  rebel  author  writing  of  this  day's  doings,  the  27th, 
around  the  lines,  says :  '  'A  determined  attack  by  the  Federals, 
under  cover  of  a  furious  artillery  fire,  upon  Clayton's  and 
Baker's  brigades  of  Stew^art's  division,  behind  breastworks 
they  had  thrown  up  on  the  battle-field  of  May  25.  The  Fed- 
erals were  repulsed  with  considerable  loss.  The  fire  of  solid 
shot,  shell,  grape  and  cannister,  from  the  Federal  battery  of 
Parrott  guns  continued  all  the  morning  and  from  4  p.  m.  till 
nearly  dark  with  terrific  effect.  The  Confederate  works  were 
riddled  and  their  loss  was  severe.  They  finally  practically 
silenced  the  battery  by  sharp-shooters  detailed  for  that  pur- 
pose by  General  Baker."  This  author  admits  the  severe 
treatment  of  the  enemy  in  the  neighborhood  of  NeAV  Hope 
Church.     Yet  he  manages  to  weave  in  his  admission  two  or 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEKRS.  363 

three  false  statements  which  make  the  whole  very  mislead- 
ing. First,  he  speaks  of  the  rebels  as  being  behind  works 
which  they  had  "built  on  the  battle-field  of  New  Hope 
Church,"  as  though  they  had  not  had  works  to  fight  behind 
on  the  25th.  "They  succeeded  in  silencing  the  battery,  and 
the  Federals  were  repulsed  with  considerable  loss,''  says 
this  writer.  Now,  the  fact  is,  it  was  only  a  strong  demon- 
stration, made  to  attract  attention  and  deceive  the  Confed- 
erates from  the  real  purpose  of  the  Federals  which  was  to  be 
an  attack  far  to  the  BYxleral  left  and  was  intended  to  be  a 
decisive  blow. 

On  the  27th  the  Eighty-sixth  was  astir  by  the  time  it 
was  light,  and  was  soon  ready  for  the  duties  of  the  day. 
About  9  a.  m.  Colonel  Dick  gave  the  order  "Fall  in."  The 
men  were  in  line  in  an  instant.  Then  came  the  order,  ' '  Take, 
arms,"  "Shoulder,  arms."  Moving  by  the  left  flank  the 
regiment  passed  to  the  rear  of  the  Twenty-third  army  corps. 
After  the  column  was  uncovered  to  the  left  of  the  Army  of 
the  Ohio,  and  was  liable  to  be  attacked,  it  proceeded  very 
slowly  and  cautiously.  The  front  was  covered  by  a  strong 
line  of  flankers.  After  passing  well  to  the  left  of  the 
Twenty -third  corps,  once  or  twice  the  command  "fronted" 
and  advanced  in  battle  array,  the  flankers  acting  as  skirm- 
ishers, but  finding  the  enemy  in  front  in  force  and  well 
intrenched  it  would  withdraw  and  continue  its  march  to  {ho 
left.  As  the  object  was  to  turn  the  enemy's  right  flank  the 
command  was  to  work  its  way  to  the  extreme  right  of  the 
enemy,  then  attack  with  vigor.  The  attack  was  to  be  made 
by  Wood's  division  of  the  Fourth  corps,  and  was  to  be  sup- 
ported by  Johnson's  division  of  the  Fourteenth  corps,  on  the 
left,  and  by  McLean's  brigade  of  the  Second  division  of  the 
Twenty-third  corps,  on,  the  right  It  will  readily  be  seen 
that  the  object  of  Newton's  and  Stanley's  attack  in  the  vicin- 
ity of  New  Hope  Church  was  a  mere  demonstration  to  attract 
attention  to  their  front,  and  create  the  impression  that  an 
assault  was  contemplated  in  that  locality  and  thus  jirevent  a 
concentration  of  large  masses  of  troops  against  Wood's  and 
Johnson's  divisions,  which  were  detached  from  the  nuiin  army 


364  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

and  were  in  danger  of  being  repulsed  and  overwhelmed 
before  assistance  could  reach  them.  This  tedious  process 
was  continued  until  6  o'clock  in  the  evening,  when  g.  point 
was  reached  where  it  was  thought  the  line  over-lapped  that 
of  the  enemy,  and  where  the  attack  was  to  be  made.  A  rebel 
cavalry  picket  was  captured  here,  and  this  perhaps  led  Gen- 
erals Howard  and  Wood  to  suppose  there  was  nothing  in  their 
immediate  front  but  cavalry.  But  if  so  they  were  sadly  mis- 
taken as  subsequent  events  will  fully  show.  As  soon  after 
the  capture  of  the  rebel  cavalryman  as  an  alignment  of  the 
troops  could  be  completed,  the  assault  was  ordered.  Hazen's 
Second  brigade  led  the  charge,  then  Willich's  or  Gibson's 
First  brigade,  then  Beatty's  Third  brigade. 

The  Eighty-sixth  was  placed  upon  the  extreme  right  of 
the  division,  and  was  not  in  the  assaulting  column  proper. 
But  it  was  advanced  close  up  to  the  enemy's  intrenchments — • 
a  narrow  open  field  intervening  between  its  position  and  the 
enemy's  works — in  the  edge  of  a  woods  in  plain  view  of  the 
batteries  of  the  enemy.  He  had  full  and  fair  play  and  it  is 
needless  to  say  that  he  did  not  idle  any  time  aw^ay,  but  kept 
his  guns  in  a  perfect  blaze.  The  Eighty-sixth  was  thus 
exposed  to  a  most  terrific  fire  of  artillery  during  the  whole 
time  the  battle  raged  on  the  left.  As  the  Eighty-sixth 
threatened  the  enemy's  line  and  his  batteries,  by  its  prox- 
imity, it  drew  his  fire  which  should  otherwise  been  turned 
against  the  storming  column.  Thus  it  shielded  and  protected 
the  troops  that  made  the  assault  and  saved  them  from  des- 
truction, as  they  would  literally  have  been  cut  to  pieces. 
As  it  was  they  were  quite  severely  handled.  The  rattle  of 
musketry  was  terrific,  but  the  troops  with  dauntless  courage 
fought  their  way  to  within  a  few  feet  of  the  breastworks,  and 
came  well-nigh  being  victorious,  and  probably  would  have 
won,  had  not  timely  reinforcements  come  to  the  aid  of  tlie 
sorely  pressed  defenders.  The  lines  of  attack  were  subject 
to  a  terrific  cross-fire  of  musketry  and  suffered  heavily. 
Beaten  back  they  rallied  and  renewed  the  assault  time  and 
again,  but  it  was  futile.  The  enemy  was  too  well  intrenched. 
Pat  Cleburne,  the  most  daring  fighter  of  Johnston's  army, 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  3G5 

was  there  with  the  llower  of  the  South,  and  they  fought  as 
brave  men  fight. 

While  the  battle  raged  on  the  left,  the  Eighty-sixth  lay 
under  a  sharp  musketry  fire,  and  the  most  terrific  cannonad- 
ing Avhich  the  regiment  ever  experienced,  and  that,  too, 
without  lifting  a  hand  in  self-defense.  A  number  of  batteries 
concentrated  their  fire  upon  the  regiment.  Shells  shrieked 
and  burst  all  around,  solid  shot  tore  the  limbs  from  trees 
overhead,  which  fell  with  a  crash  threatening  to  crush  the 
men,  and  added  to  the  horrid  din,  grape-shot  and  canister 
rattled  like  hail  about  and  whipped  the  underbrush  and 
shrubs  like  a  hurricane,  but  the  Eighty-sixth  never  flinched. 
The  men  had  stood  the  fire  about  as  long  without  doing  any- 
thing as  Hoosier  patience  cared  to  do.  The  cries  and  groans 
of  the  wounded  added  to  the  unpleasant  features  of  the  ter- 
rible situation.  In  the  midst  of  a  particularly  fierce  blast  of 
the  enemy's  batteries  the  word  ran  along  the  line  of  the 
regiment  that  Colonel  Dick  had  been  killed.  This  was  veiy 
disheartening  to  the  boys  for  he  was  greatly  loved  and 
trusted  as  a  commander.  Fortunately  this  proved  to  be  a 
mistake,  but  he  was  very  badly  wounded,  and  had  to  be 
carried  from  the  field,  severely  and  dangerously  wounded  by 
an  exploding  shell,  his  life  probably  being  saved  b}'  his 
saber,  which  broke  the  force  of  the  stroke  of  the  flying 
fragment.  His  steel  saber-scabbard  was  shattered  by  the 
terrible  blow.  Still  the  battle  raged  and  it  was  still  un- 
decided, and  had  General  Johnson,  with  his  division,  done 
his  full  duty,  success  might  have  crowned  the  elforts. 

Far  into  the  night  it  was  continued  between  the  lines  of 
Ibattle.  But  at  length  the  order  was  given  to  withdraw  from 
'the  immediate  front  of  the  enemy's  work.  General  Willich's, 
or  Gibson's,  brigade  bugler  sounded  the  "recall.  "  This  was 
the  signal  for  the  enemy  to  attack  in  return,  and  he  swarmed 
over  the  works  and  made  a  fierce  onset,  expecting  to  create 
3;  panic  and  stampede  the  entire  command,  but  not  .so.  How- 
ard, Wood,  Hazen,  Beatty,  Gibson  were  all  upon  th»'  gi-ound 
land  were  men  of  unflinching  courage  and  nerve,  and  soon 
had  their  troops  well  in  hand.     The  enemy,  however,  sue- 


3()G  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

ceeded  in  capturing  some  wounded  and  a  number  of  men  who 
had  taken  refuge  in  a  ravine  immediately  in  front  of  Cle- 
burne's works.  Wood  soon  had  his  division  in  good  shape, 
and  was  ready  to  give  the  enemy  a  warm  reception  if  he  at- 
tempted to  push  out  beyond  the  immediate  front  of  his 
works  whose  protecting  cover  would  not  be  so  easily 
reached.  In  Cox's  account  of  this  battle  he  says:  "When 
the  preparations  were  completed,  and  the  troops  had  rested 
a  few- minutes,  the  order  to  advance  to  the  attack  was  given. 
Hazen  led  boldly  forward,  and  the  enemy's  skirmishers  were 
quickly  driven  within  the  works,  which  he  promptly  assaulted. 
His  left  seemed  still  to  outflank  the  position  and  it  pushed 
forward  confident  of  success.  The  movement  of  Johnston's 
division  still  farther  to  the  left  brought  it  near  to  Pickett's 
Mill,  on  a  tributarry  of  Pumpkin  Vine  creek,  and  the  leading 
brigade — Scribner's — receiving  a  fire  in  flank  from  across  the 
stream,  halted  and  faced  in  that  direction.  Through  some 
mistake  McLean's  movement  on  the  right  did  not  result  as 
expected,  and  Wood's  column  was  assailed  with  a  furious 
cross-fire  of  artillery  and  musketry  in  front  and  on  both  j 
flanks.  Wood  was  forced  to  retire,  which  he  did  deliberately, 
and  halted  upon  a  ridge  a  little  in  rear  and  on  the  right; 
Johnson  connected  with  him,  continuing  the  line,  with  the 
left  curving  backward  and  making  a  strong  refused  flank  in 
the  direction  of  the  mill  and  the  creek.  *  *  This  affair 
was  a  costly  one,  for  Howard  reported  a  total  loss  of  about  fif- 
teen hundred.  The  ground  gained  was  nevertheless  very 
valuable,  for  it  enabled  the  whole  left  wing  to  swing  forward 
so  far  as  to  cover  and  conceal  the  extension  of  Sherman's  line 
toward  the  Ackworth  road,  and  protect  the  Alatoona  road 
upon  which  his  cavalry  were  operating.  *  *  Had  John- 
son noticed  that  he  was  first  attacked  in  flank  by  cavalry 
only,  and  pushed  Scribner's  brigade  straight  on  in  support 
of  Hazen,  whilst  he  took  care  of  the  horsemen  and  another 
brigade  of  his  division,  the  determined  attack  of  the  Fourth 
corps  men  would  probably  have  been  successful.  The  ground, 
however,  was  a  dense  wood  broken  into  ravines,  where  noth- 
ing could  be  seen,  and  where  embarrassments  were  scarcely 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  3G7 

less  than  in  a  night  attack.  Under  the  circumstances  the  won- 
der is,  not  that  the  attack  failed,  it  is  rather  that  Howard  was 
able  to  loitlidraw  in  order,  carrying  off  his  ivounded;  and  that  he 
did  so  proves  the  magnificent  steadiness  and  courage  of  his  officers 
and  )nen.'''  So  writes  General  Jacob  D.  Cox,  one  among  the 
bravest  and  best  division  commanders  in  all  Sherman's  grand 
army,  and  it  is  no  mean  compliment  to  the  troops  of  Wood's 
division. 

While  the  Eighty-sixth  was  not  in  the  assault  i)roper, 
perhaps  no  regiment  in  the  entire  division  was  situated  in  so 
trying  a  position.  For  it  is  a  well  known  fact  to  all  exper- 
ienced soldiers  that  to  hold  troops  under  a  withering  and  de- 
structive fire,  without  a  return  of  the  fire  or  any  action  what- 
ever on  their  part,  is  of  all  the  duties  of  a  soldier  the  most 
trying  and  difficult,  and  is  at  all  times  the  severest  test  of  the 
steadiness  and  nerve  of  soldiers.  That  the  Eighty-si.xth 
maintained  its  ground  in  this  exposed  position  without  a 
quiver  is  sufficient  to  stamp  it,  in  rank  and  file,  as  one  com- 
posed of  unflinching  soldiers.  Much  depended  upon  its 
holding  this  ground,  for  had  it  given  way  the  enemy  could 
have  turned  Wood's  right  flank  and  probably  cut  oft"  botli 
Wood  and  Johnson  from  the  rest  of  the  army,  and  either 
capture  or  destroy  them  before  reinforcements  could  have 
reached  them  through  the  tangled  woods. 

One  rebel  account  of  this  battle  characterizes  it  as  "a 
bloody  struggle  between  Cleburne's  division  and  Shei-man's 
left,  the  Fourth  corps. "  Another  and  more  extended  account 
is  as  follows:  "Late  in  the  afternoon  of  the  27th,  a  bloody 
struggle  ensued  between  Cleburne's  division  of  Hardee's 
corps,  aided  by  a  portion  of  Wheeler's  dismounted  cavalry, 
and  the  Fourth  army  corps  of  Federals,  under  command  of 
General  Howard,  in  columns  six  lines  deep,  near  Pickett's 
Mill  and  the  road  leading  from  Burnt  Hickory.  The  latter 
assailed  the  Confederates  with  great  courage,  and  pressed 
forward  with  fortitude  under  fire,  which  will  ever  be  remem- 
bered with  admiration  by  those  who  met  them.  The  two 
lines  were  at  one  time  within  twenty  paces  of  each  other; 
but,   at   length,   the  Federals  were  compelled  to  give  way 


Siji  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

before  the  terrific  storm  of  bullets;  and  fled  for  refuge  to  a 
ravine  near  by.  About  10  o'clock  that  night,  ascertaining 
that  many  of  the  Federals  troops  were  in  the  ravine  before 
them,  the  Confederates  charged  and  drove  them  out,  taking 
some  232  prisoners.  The  scene  of  the  struggle  was  in  a 
dense  woods,  with  thick  undergrowth,  broken  by  hills  and 
ravines,  where  nothing  could  be  observed  at  a  distance,  and 
where  neither  side  could  see  what  was  going  on,  except  at 
the  immediate  point  of  conflict.  The  acknowledged  loss  of 
the  Federals  in  this  combat  was  about  1,500  men." 

General  Johnston  records  the  following  touching  inci- 
dent of  the  fight:  "When  the  United  States  troops  paused  in 
their  advance,  within  fifteen  paces  of  the  Texan  front  rank, 
one  of  their  color-bearers  planted  his  colors  eight  or  ten  feet 
in  front  of  his  regiment,  and  was  instantly  shot  dead;  a  sol- 
dier sprang  forward  to  his  place,  and  fell  also,  as  he  grasped 
the  color-staff;  a  second  and  a  third  followed  successively, 
and  each  received  death  as  speedily  as  his  predecessors;  a 
fourth,  however,  seized  and  bore  back  the  object  of  soldierly 
devotion. " 

These  rebel  accounts  err  in  this:  They  state  that  the 
battle  was  between  Cleburne's  division,  assisted  by  a  portion 
of  Wheeler's  cavalry  and  the  B'ourth  corps.  Now%  the  fact 
was,  the  battle  on  the  part  of  the  Union  troops  was  fought 
wholly  by  Wood's  division  of  the  Fourth  corps,  except  a  few 
volleys  fired  by  some  regiments  of  Scribner's  brigade  of 
Johnson's  division  of  the  Fourteenth  corps,  there  being  but 
these  two  divisions  of  Union  troops  on  the  battle-field.  Had 
Johnson  pushed  Scribner  on  and  supported  Hazen's  left,  as 
pointed  out  by  Cox,  there  would  have  been  a  fair  chance  of 
success  for  the  gallant  boys  of  Wood's  division  that  fought 
so  nobly.  Johnson  was  severely  condemned  at  the  time  for 
not  doing  his  duty.  Still  it  was  a  critical  position,  and  one 
which  with  strange  ground  to  travel  over  was  liable  to 
deceive  the  most  careful,  and  it  was  a  position,  too,  which 
if  one  was  taken  in  flank  by  a  sufficient  force,  would  render 
disastrous  defeat  certain.  Therefore,  there  is  some  excuse 
for  General  Johnson's  failure  to  perform  the  full  measure  of  j 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  369 

his  duty  promptly  as  he  might  have  done  under  other  cir- 
cumstances. 

This  battle  was  a  notable  one,  and  is  known  as  the  bat- 
tle of  Pickett's  Mills,  being  fought  near  a  mill  of  that  name, 
on  a  branch  of  Pumpkin  Vine  creek.  It  is  sometimes  called 
the  battle  of  Burnt  Hickory,  or  Pumpkin  Vine  Creek.  The 
battle-field  is  in  Paulding  county,  Georgia,  about  eight  miles 
from  Ackworth  on  the  Western  and  Atlantic  Railway,  nearly 
due  west  from  Kenesaw  mountain,  and  distant  about  ten 
miles  from  the  latter  point. 

About  twenty  of  the  Eighty-sixth  were  seriously 
wounded  in  this  engagement,  though  none  proved  mortal. 
Besides  the  loss  in  numbers,  the  regiment  felt  most  keenly 
the  absence  of  Colonel  George  P.  Dick.  The  men  needed 
now  his  careful  attention  and  long  experience  to  keep  the 
regiment  in  its  then  excellent  condition.  The  Third  brigade 
lost  301  officers  and  men,  and  the  Third  division  lost  1,457. 
Of  all  the  hard  fighting  during  this  long  and  eventful  cam- 
paign, perhaps  no  division  of  the  whole  army  lost  so  many 
men  in  so  short  a  time  as  did  Wood's  division  on  this  occa- 
sion—the 27th  of  May,  1864— with  the  possible  exception  of 
Newton's  Second  division  of  the  Fourth  army  corps  on  the 
27th  of  June,  in  the  grand  assault  upon  Kenesaw  mountain. 


CHAPTER  XXni. 
PICKETT'S    MILLS    TO    KENESAW. 

|The  Eighty-sixth  on  the  Skirmish  Line— Constant  Fijilitlnj,'-- Kainy  !in(i  Hot 
Weather— A  Perfect  Hell  Hole— Pine  Mountain— Lost  Mountain— Keucsaw 
Mountain— General  Polk  Killed  on  Pine  Mountain— Captain  L.  V.  Ream 
Wounded— Luke  Cronkhite  Fatally  Wounded-The  Assault  on  June  27— A 
Frightful  Loss  of  Life- Kenesaw  Mountain  Abandoned  by  the  Enemy— A 
Forward  Movement. 

Wood's  division  remained  in  this  position  until  tlie  Gth  of 
June,  varying  it  slightly  by  changes  in  the  lines.  Constant 
skirmishing  was  kept  up  the  whole  time.     On  the  night  of 


370  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

the  battle  of  Pickett's  Mills,  May  27,  a  heavy  detail  for  the 
skirmish  line  was  made  from  the  Eighty -sixth,  under  com- 
mand of  Lieutenant  D.  H.  Olive,  of  Company  H.  On  account 
of  the  darkness  of  the  night  and  the  denseness  of  the  woods, 
the  line  was  most  difficult  to  establish,  especially  as  the 
enemy  was  in  close  proximity.  A  member  of  Company  H 
was  posted  fifty  yards  in  front  of  the  skirmish  line  proper. 
The  enemy  sallied  out  to  the  left  and  drove  in  the  line  in  his 
front.  He  then  moved  to  his  left,  and  had  not  the  lone  skir- 
misher beat  a  hasty  retreat  he  would  have  been  captured. 
The  withdrawal  of  Wood's  division  had  misled  the  enemy. 
He  supposed  that  the  Union  troops  had  been  comjDletely 
routed  and  that  they  would  be  an  easy  prey  for  capture,  but 
he  was  met  with  a  firm  resistance  and  soon  retired  behind 
his  fortified  lines. 

The  two  divisions.  Wood's  and  Johnson's,  had  now 
thrown  up  temporary  breastworks  for  their  defense  and  felt 
comparatively  secure,  although  separated  by  some  distance 
from  the  main  army.  The  skirmish  line,  however,  had  no 
such  protection,  and  was  constantly  under  fire  and  on  a  great 
nervous  strain  throughout  the  night.  During  the  28th  an 
alignment  of  the  troops  was  completed  and  works  ordered  to 
be  built.  This  was  done,  and  the  detached  left  was  placed  in 
connection  with  the  rest  of  the  army,  and  the  extension  of  the 
battle  line  toward  the  railroad  was  permanently  secured. 
The  lines  of  the  intrenchments  were  generally  pushed  well  up  • 
to  those  of  the  enemy,  so  that  the  skirmishers  could  not  be 
thrown  very  far  forward  of  the  works,  in  many  places  not 
being  more  than  a  rod  or  so  in  advance  of  the  main  line  of 
breastworks.  The  proximity  of  the  lines  caused  a  continual 
fire  to  be  kept  up  between  the  skirmish  lines  and  enforced  a 
pretty  general  observance  of  orders  to  remain  near  the 
works.  Sometimes,  in  fact,  an  occasional  fire  was  kept  up 
from  the  two  lines  of  works  without  intervening  lines  of 
skirmishers.  On  the  evening  of  the  28th  a  hot  fire  was  main- 
tained for  sometime  by  the  batteries  with  Beatty's  brigade. 
Colonel  Fred  Knefler  in  command,  and  the  skirmish  fire  grew 
in  violence  and  spitefulness.     Its  vigor  was  owing  to  a  des- 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  371 

perate  charge  made  by  the  enemy  upon  the  right  wing  of  the 
army — the  brunt  of  the  battle  falling  upon  Logan's  command, 
of  McPherson's  army  of  the  Tennessee.  The  skirmishing 
all  round  the  long  skirmish  line  of  the  whole  army  was  brisk 
and  intensely  earnest  as  if  it  were  only  a  prelude  to  a  more 
desperate  struggle,  and  this  was  kept  up  until  after  night- 
fall, in  fact,  more  or  less  all  night.  The  enemy  had  been 
beaten  on  the  right  and  roughly  handled,  and  no  doubt  feared 
a  counter  charge,  and  sought,  by  showing  a  bold  front,  to 
ward  off  any  assault  at  this  time. 

Early  on  the  morning  of  the  29th,  the  report  ran  along 
the  brigade  line  of  battle  that  three  companies  of  the  Nine- 
teenth Ohio  had  been  captured  by  the  enemy  during  the  night, 
and  that  the  enemy  was  expected  to  show  an  aggressive  spirit 
and  probably  make  an  assault.  The  first  part  of  the  report, 
in  regard  to  the  capture,  proved  to  be  false,  but  the  enemy 
certainly  did  show  a  very  active  animosity  throughout  the 
day.  His  skirmishers  were  industrious,  and  actively  main- 
tained an  incessant  fire  during  the  forenoon.  In  the  after- 
noon his  batteries  took  up  the  gauge  of  battle  and  right 
valiantly  maintained  their  cause  for  some  hours  by  raining 
shot  and  shell  upon  the  Union  lines,  the  good  breastworks 
alone  saving  the  men  from  destruction.  Toward  evening 
the  enemy's  belligerent  aggressiveness  assumed  a  serious 
character.  A  line  of  attack  was  started  for  the  Union  works. 
The  storming  lines  pressed  gallantly  forward,  but  met  with 
many  obstacles  in  their  pathway.  The  skirmish  line  made  a 
heroic  resistance,  while  the  artillery  delivered  such  a  territic 
and  destructive  fire  upon  them  that  they  failed  to  reach  the 
range  of  the  fire  of  the  line  of  battle,  at  least,  in  the  Eighty - 
sixth 's  front.  About  11  o  'clock  at  night  the  enemy  made  another 
attempt  and  the  whole  skirmish  line  of  the  Union  forces  was 
ablaze;  batteries  on  both  sides  opened  up  and  the  roar  of  bat- 
tle was  deafening.  It  was  all  of  the  noise  and  magnificent 
display  of  a  terrific  night  battle  without  its  more  dreadful 
realities,  for  the  enemy  finding  Union  men  everywhere  ready 
and  willing  to  receive  him,  he  speedily  withdrew.  These  con- 
stant alarms  and  frequent  attacks  necessitated  almost  con- 


372  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH    REGIMENT, 

stant  vigils  on  the  part  of  the  Union  troops,  and  was  very 
wearing  and  exhausting  on  them.  Perhaps  at  Dallas,  New 
Hope,  and  Pickett's  Mills,  there  was  more  spirited  fighting 
than  at  any  place  defended  by  Johnston  on  this  great  and 
memorable  campaign,  and  there  was  no  point  where  there 
was  not  much  determined  fighting,  from  Rocky  Pace  Ridge 
to  Atlanta,  where  the  two  opposing  armies  came  in  contact; 
and  the  Eighty-sixth  was  nearly  all  the  time  on  the  front 
line  here,  "jammed"  up  against  the  fighting  center  of  Joe 
Johnston's  army. 

The  30th  was  but  a  repetition  of  the  29th — constant 
skirmishing  with  advances  by  the  rebel  lines.  About  dark 
the  Eighty-sixth  was  ordered  into  line  and  stacked  arms. 
The  men  were  then  permitted  to  break  ranks  and  rest  at  will, 
but  were  ordered  to  remain  near  their  guns.  Evidently  the 
officers  expected  a  repetition  of  the  programme  on  the  part 
of  the  enemy  of  the  two  previous  nights.  On  the  slightest 
indication  of  a  move  by  the  enemy  the  firing  became  brisk, 
so  that  there  was  an  almost  continual  rattle  of  musketry 
until  12  o'clock  at  night.  After  a  hasty  breakfast,  on  the 
morning  of  May  31,  the  regiment  was  ordered  into  line. 
Moving  promptly  it  advanced  some  distance  in  front  of  its 
former  position.  The  alignment  was  completed  quickly, 
when  the  men  were  ordered  to  fortify  with  all  possible  dis- 
patch. The  work  was  scarcely  begun,  when  the  enemy 
threw  a  strong  line  forward  to  reconnoiter.  The  firing  at 
once  became  furious  all  round  the  lines.  The  enemy  made 
several  vigorous  and  determined  charges  in  front  and  to  the 
right.  At  different  points  on  the  line  the  enemy  came  well 
up  to  the  main  line  of  breastworks  before  he  was  repulsed 
and  driven  back.  On  the  line  of  the  Third  brigade  the  Sev- 
enteenth Kentucky  was  at  this  time  doing  skirmish  duty,  and 
there  were  no  better  skirmishers  in  all  Sherman's  army. 
Here  the  Seventeenth  was  in  its  element,  and  it  maintained 
the  contest  with  greatly  superior  numbers  with  Spartan 
courage,  and  finally  compelled  the  enemy  to  retire.  Still 
he  was  determined  and  fought  with  courage  for  every  possi- 
ble advantage,  and  would  only  yield  inch  by  inch  when  forced 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  373 

to  do  SO.  In  the  afternoon  of  the  31st,  three  pieces  or  artil- 
lery were  dragged  through  the  thick  woods  and  placed  in 
position  on  the  brigade  line  and  opened  fire  upon  the  enemy. 
From  this  time  forward  it  was  quite  evident  that  the  enemy 
would  take  as  well  as  give. 

In  the  afternoon  of  June  1,  the  Eighty -sixth  received 
orders  to  arrange  camp  in  regular  order.  This,  the  boys 
knew,  was  folly,  and  many  of  them  expressed  their  opinion 
in  regard  to  the  order  quite  freely.  Sherman  was  working 
to  the  left  as  rapidly  as  possible  to  reach  the  railroad,  which 
was  so  necessary  to  assure  him,  at  all  times,  a  sufficient 
quantity  of  all  needed  supplies,  and  all  felt  it  to  be  nonsense 
to  fix  up  camp  in  regulation  order.  On  this  day  Hooker's 
corps  withdrew  from  its  line  of  intrenchments,  being  relieved 
by  McPherson,  and  moved  to  the  left  of  the  army.  The 
usual,  skirmishing  was  indulged  in  throughout  the  day.  The 
next  day.  June  2,  was  hot,  and  showery  in  the  afternoon, 
the  rain  falling  in  torrents.  Heavy  cannonading  was  heard 
to  the  left,  indicating  the  progress  of  the  left  wing  as  it 
neared  the  goal  of  the  present  struggle.  Allatoona  Pass  and 
the  railroad  north  of  Ackworth.  In  the  evening  of  the  i2d,  tlie 
Eighty-sixth  was  sent  out  upon  the  skirmish  line.  The 
usual  brisk  fire  was  maintained.  The  regiment  was  relieved 
by  the  Nineteenth  Ohio,  Colonel  Manderson  in  charge,  about 
6  o'clock  p.  m.,  June  3.  Three-quarter  rations  of  hard  tack, 
sugar  and  coffee,  and  one-quarter  rations  of  pickled  pork 
were  issued  to  the  men  after  they  reached  camp. 

On  Saturday  morning,  June  4,  the  command  moved  early, 
going  to  the  right  some  distance  and  relieving  General  Jeff 
C.  Davis'  division  of  the  Fourteenth  corps.  The  intrench- 
ments occupied  by  the  Eighty-sixth  here  were  within  about 
two  hundred  yards  of  the  enemy's  outer  works,  and  there 
were  only  about  two  rods  of  open  timber  in  front,  the  rest  of 
the  distance  being  an  open  field.  The  enemy  was  in  the 
edge  of  the  woods  on  the  farther  side  of  the  opening.  This 
gave  him  almost  a  clear  sweep,  and  the  position  was  a'crit- 
.  ical  one.  The  enemy  already  had  the  range  perfectly,  and 
whenever  a  man  showed  his  head  above  the  works  a  minie 


374  THE  EIC4HTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

ball  hissed  spitefully  and  dangerously  near.  In  the  after- 
noon the  enemy  opened  upon  the  Eighty -sixth's  position  with 
artillery,  and  as  it  was  at  short  range,  he  made  the  shot  and 
shell  crash  in  the  timber  overhead  in  an  awful  manner,  and 
finished  up  by  sweeping  the  deck  with  a  rattling  charge  of 
grape-shot  that  tore  the  underbrush  to  the  rear  of  the  works 
like  a  cyclone.  Scarcely  had  this  fire  ceased  when  a  line  of 
attack  was  started  for  the  Avorks,  a  little  to  the  right  of  the 
position  of  the  Eighty-sixth.  With  the  rebel  yell  echoing 
from  wood  to  wood  and  reverberating  from  hill  to  hill,  on  it 
came,  but  it  was  soon  met  with  such  a  blaze  of  fire  from  the 
Union  breastworks  that  the  line  quickly  retreated,  and 
sought  the  shelter  of  its  works.  The  enemy's  loss  doubt- 
less was  light,  as  he  stood  fire  so  short  a  time. 
The  Eighty-sixth,  however,  was  alert  and  was  not 
to  be  caught  napping.  At  dark  the  regiment  was 
ordered  to  strengthen  its  works.  The  entire  regiment 
worked  until  midnight,  making  its  parapet  shot  proof,  and 
then  the  men  retired  for  sleep  and  rest.  When  daylight 
dawned,  many  expected  the  enemy  to  be  gone,  but  the  sharp 
"ping"  of  the  minie  ball  warned  the  men  not  to  be  reckless. 
However,  about  7  o'clock  the  enemy  fell  back  quietly,  the 
main  force  doubtless  having  withdrawn  during  the  night, 
leaving  only  a  strong  skirmish  line  to  cover  the  movement. 
It  was  not  to  be  supposed  that  he  had  gone  far.  A  number 
of  the  Eighty-sixth  visited  the  enemy's  lines  of  intrench- 
ments  and  found  them  very  strong.  Here  on  this  line  for 
about  eleven  days  had  been  some  of  the  severest  attacks  dur- 
ing this  eventful  campaign,  particularly  those  made  by 
Hooker  on  the  25th  and  Wood  on  the  27th.  General  Sher- 
man speaking  of  these  battles  says:  "This  point,  'New 
Hope,'  was  the  accidental  intersection  of  the  road  leading 
from  Allatoona  to  Dallas  with  that  from  Van  Wert  to  Mari- 
etta, and  from  the  bloody  fighting  there  for  the  next  week 
was  called  by  the  soldiers  'Hell  Hole'; "  and  this  is  about  as 
good  a  description  in  brief  as  can  be  given  of  it.  It  was  hot 
enough  for  almost  anything,  both  in  the  way  of  fighting  and 
the  weather.     Thus  another  decisive  step  in  the  campaign 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  375 

had  been  taken.  The  progress  had  been  steady  and  consid- 
ering obstacles,  rapid.  The  enemy  had  as  yet  been  unable 
to  stay  Sherman's  onward  march.  Here  at  New  Hope  and 
Dallas  he  had  caused  the  most  trouble  and  delay,  but  now  he 
had  been  compelled  to  take  another  backward  step,  and  the 
Union  army,  as  a  matter  of  course,  was  rejoicing  and  ready 
to  go  forward. 

The  Eighty-sixth  with  the  Third  brigade  remained  in 
their  position  behind  their  intrenchments  until  about  sunrise 
on  the  6th  of  June,  when  they  marched  out  toward  the  rail- 
road in  which  direction  the  whole  army  was  gradually  mov- 
ing. The  day  was  excessively  hot  and  the  air  sultry  and 
oi^pressive.  The  command  covered  five  or  six  miles,  and 
bivouacked  in  the  edge  of  a  woods  about  2  o'clock  jd.  m. 
The  fire  of  the  skirmish  lines  could  be  heard  sometime  before 
the  place  of  bivouac  was  reached.  It  continued  steadily,  but 
it  was  by  no  means  brisk. 

At  this  bivouac  a  phase  of  camp-life  was  presented 
which  surprised  many  not  a  little.  It  was  a  new  experience, 
but  one  which  was  speedily  comprehended.  Fresh  beef  had 
been  issued  to  the  troops  and  notwithstanding  the  active 
interference  of  the  butchers  and  others  to  protect  it,  scarcely 
was  there  a  piece  given  out  to  the  members  of  the  Eighty- 
sixth  that  was  not  almost  covered  with  "fly  blows."'  Many 
of  the  boys  swore  roundly  at  this  state  of  affairs,  but  it  could 
not  be  helped.  The  meat  was  thoroughly  scraped,  washed, 
and  hustled  into  a  camp-kettle,  covered  with  water,  and 
quickly  placed  on  a  fire  to  cook.  Even  cooked  beef  had  to 
be  carefully  watched  and  protected. 

The  Eighty-sixth  remained  at  its  bivouac  of  the  (3th 
until  the  10th.  The  front  line  was  skirmishing  continually 
with  the  enemy  in  a  mild  sort  of  way,  as  though  it  was  done 
just  to  keep  in  practice.  On  the  8th  the  army  was  reinforced 
by  two  divisions  of  the  Seventeenth  corps  commanded  by 
General  Frank  P.  Blair.  From  the  5th  to  the  9th  of  June 
General  Sherman  was  getting  his  forces  well  over  toward 
the  Western  and  Atlantic  railroad,  changing  base  from 
Kingston  to  Allatoona.     In  this  movement  the  Twenty-third 


376  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

corps,  General  Schofield  commanding,  which  was  on  the  ex- 
treme left,  stood  fast  while  the  rest  of  the  army  passed  to  his 
rear  and  formed  on  his  left.  McPherson  reached  the  rail- 
road in  advance  of  Ackworth  on  the  7th.  Schofield  had  now 
become  the  extreme  right  of  the  army,  McPherson  the  left, 
and  Thomas  with  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland,  the  center. 
The  Fourth  corps  being  the  center  of  Thomas'  army  was 
also  the  center  of  Sherman's.  On  the  9th  Sherman  gave 
orders  to  move  forward  and  feel  for  the  enemy  and  get  into 
position,  being  again  ready  for  more  active  work.  The 
weather  had  been  rainy  since  the  5th,  in  fact,  there  had  been 
more  or  less  rain  ever  since  the  attack  upon  the  enemy's 
position  at  New  Hope  Church  began,  but  now  it  fell  in  still 
greater  quantities.  The  Eighty- sixth  moved  about  a  half 
mile  on  the  10th,  and  about  one  mile  on  the  11th.  Thus 
gradually  working  its  way  to  the  left  to  its  position  in  the 
general  alignment  of  the  whole  great  army.  On  the  12th 
there  was  a  tremendous  fall  of  rain,  especially  in  the  after- 
noon it  came  down  in  torrents.  On  this  day  the  Eighty-sixth 
did  not  move.  There  was  lively  skirmishing  all  day.  Some 
members  of  the  Eighty-sixth  visited  the  Fifth  Indiana  bat- 
tery, and  from  the  position  of  the  battery  viewed  the  enemy's 
works  on  Pine  mountain  and  the  works  extending  to  the 
right.  The  enemy's  position  was  a  strong  one,  and  was  well 
fortified,  and  he  evinced  a  disposition  to  defend  them  to  the 
last  extremity.  There  was  heavy  cannonading  in  the  even- 
ing all  around  the  lines,  the  rebel  batteries  returning 
the  tire  of  the  Union  batteries  with  much  spirit,  mak- 
ing altogether  a  magnificent  display.  During  the  12th 
and  13th  the  Eighty- sixth  was  almost  destitute  of  rations, 
which  was  anything  but  pleasant.  The  rain  descended  al- 
most continually,  which  swelled  the  streams  and  rendered 
transportation  by  means  of  army  wagons  almost  mi  possible, 
as  well  as  delaying  the  intended  movement  of  the  troops. 
There  was,  however,  continual  skirmishing  of  a  mild  charac- 
ter, warming  up  at  times  when  the  batteries  would  try  con- 
clusions. This  took  place  on  the  evening  of  the  13th.  Com- 
mencing on  the  extreme  left  with  McPherson  it  passed  to  the 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  377 

riofht;  the  batteries  and  skirmishers  were  quite  busy  for 
some  time,  but  it  was  sliarpest  and  longest  maintained  on  the 
left  where  McPherson  was  advancing  on  Brush  mountain. 
Sherman  now  had  his  forces  well  up  to  the  enemy's  position 
and  was  in  fighting  distance,  near  enough  to  strike  out  from 
the  shoulder  and  take  his  enemy  between  the  eyes,  which 
might  be  said  to  be  located  upon  Kenesaw  and  Pine  moun- 
tains, from  which  point  Sherman's  every  move  could  be  ob- 
served. 

Johnston's  new  position  was  by  nature  a  very  strong 
one.  and  it  was  skilfully  and  magnilicently  intrenched.  His 
main  line  extended  from  Brush  mountain  on  his  right  to 
Lost  mountain  on  the  left.  The  key  to  this  position  was  the 
double  peaked  mountain,  Kenesaw,  standing  to  the  rear  of 
the  fortilied  line,  now  occupied  and  looming  up  high  over  all 
the  surrounding  mountains  and  country,  rendering  it  a  verit- 
able Gibralter.  In  advance  of  Johnston's  main  line  stood  the 
now  historic  Pine  Top,  or  Pine  mountain.  This  command- 
ing eminence  was  connected  with  the  main  line  by  strong 
intrenchments,  but  did  not  constitute  any  portion  of  them, 
and  was  not  intended  or  expected  to  be  held  as  a  permanent 
l^ositiou.  Johnston's  line  from  Brush  mountain  to  Lost 
mountain  was  perhaps  ten  miles  in  length.  Lost  mountain 
was  a  little  south  of  west  of  Brush  mountain.  Pine  Top  was 
nearly  due  west  of  Brush  mountain,  while  Kenesaw  was 
nearly  due  south  of  the  latter.  The  four  formed  almost  a 
diamond  in  shape,  while  Kenesaw,  Pine  Top  and  Lost 
mountain  stood  so  as  to  form  a  triangle,  the  base,  from  Ken- 
esaw to  Lost,  mountain,  being  the  largest.  The  main  line 
of  intrenchments  being  about  raid-way  between  Pine  Toji  and 
Kenesaw.  This  was  a  grand  position,  skilfully  taken,  and 
held  with  a  masterly  hand,  and  the  enemy  had  be(>n  strongly 
reinforced  and  was  conlident.  These  things  greatly  improved 
the  morale  of  Johnston's  army. 

The  Army  of  the  Cumberland  was  in  the  center.  Its 
corps  was  distributed  from  left  to  right  as  follows:  Palmer's 
Fourteenth  corps,  Howard's  Fourth  corps,  and  Hooker's 
Twentieth  corps.     On  the   14th  Sherman  directed  that  the 


378  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

enemy  should  be  pushed  sharply  at  all  points,  without  a 
direct  assault  upon  his  works,  unless  under  the  most  favor- 
able circumstances.  But  the  lines  closed  down  upon  the 
enemy,  tightening  their  grip,  and  Union  skirmishers  gave 
him  battle  everywhere.  Thomas  steadily  pressed  the  right 
of  the  Fourteenth  corps,  and  the  left  of  the  Fourth  corps 
against  the  lines  of  intrenchment  in  the  re-entrant  angle 
betAveen  Pine  Top  and  the  enemy's  main  line,  resulting  in 
quite  a  battle.  About  noon  the  bugle  at  brigade  head- 
quarters sounded  the  "general  call, "  and  almost  in  an  instant 
the  Eighty-sixth  w^as  in  line  ready  for  battle.  It  moved  to 
the  left  about  a  half  or  three-quarters  of  a  mile,  placing  it  in 
position  on  the  left  front  of  Pine  Top,  and  its  duty  was  to 
support  Willich's  brigade,  now  commanded  by  Colonel  Wil- 
liam H.  Gibson.  This  brigade  gallantly  passed  the  enemy 
at  all  points  in  its  front.  The  skirmish  line  was  reinforced 
until  it  was  about  equal  to  a  line  of  battle,  and  its  fire  was 
fiercely  maintained  until  the  hills  and  valleys  once  again 
echoed  to  the  music,  and  the  dense  woods  were  wrapped  in 
its  stifling  smoke. 

About  6  o'clock  a  number  of  Union  batteries  opened  a 
hot  fire  upon  the  enemy.  General  Sherman  himself  directing 
the  Fifth  Indiana  battery  to  open  on  a  group  of  officers  seen 
on  the  crest  of  Pine  Top,  observing  the  movements  of  the 
Union  troops.*  The  Fifth  was  true  as  steel  and  efficiently 
served  and  soon  dispersed  the  group.  It  proved  to  be  Gen- 
eral Johnston.  General  Hardee,  and  General  Leonidas  Polk. 
The  latter  was  killed  by  an  unexploded  shell,  and  his  loss 
was  keenly  felt  by  the  enemy,  as  he  was  greatly  loved  by  the 
whole  people  of  the  South. 

The  Eighty-sixth  kept  well  up  to  the  First  brigade.  It 
finally  bivouacked  about  7  o'clock  and  the  boys  ate  their  sup- 
per of  hard  tack,  salt  pork,  and  coffee,  amid  the  thunderous 
roar  of  batteries  and  the  finer,  keener,  crackling  fire  of  the 
skirmish  line.  It  had  been  a  busy  and  trying  afternoon  and 
the  prospect  was  for  many,  many  more  busy  afternoons,  and 

*  Authorities  differ  Jis  to  whether  it  was  Sherman  or  Thomas  who  gave  this 
direction.    Lossing  says  it  was  Thomas;  others  say  it  was  Sherman. 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  379 

whole  days  and  weeks  to  follow,  and  the  prospect  was  ful- 
filled to  the  letter.  Every  man  slept  soundly  on  the  rocky 
bed. 

On  the  moi-ning  of  the  15th,  the  bugles  sounded  reveille 
at  daybreak.  The  skirmishers  had  been  busy  the  whole 
night  through  and  had  no  doubt  annoyed  the  enemy  greatly 
by  their  incessant  fire,  while  the  Union  troops  had  rested 
well,  w^hich  rendered  them  fresh  and  active.  Expectation 
was  on  tip-toe.  All  forenoon  the  cannon  boomed  and 
growled  sullenly  at  the  enemy  on  the  left.  The  Fourth 
;  corps  did  not  advance  until  between  1  and  2  o'clock.  Wood's 
division  supporting  Stanley's,  and  ready  to  take  its  place 
upon  the  line  if  opportunity  offered.  The  lines  of  battle 
advanced  some  distance  and  came  upon  the  intrenchments  of 
the  enemy.  Here  the  battle  opened  in  earnest  and  the  Union 
forces  i)ressing  steadily  on,  captured  one  or  two  lines  of 
works  and  secured  possession  of  Pine  mountain,  and  drove 
the  enemy  back  into  his  main  line  of  works,  extending  from 
Brush  mountain  to  Lost  mountain,  the  line  being  perhaps  a 
mile  in  advance  of  Kenesaw  mountain.  The  battle  raged  all 
along  the  line  from  left  to  right — from  Brush  mountain  north 
and  east  of  the  railroad  to  Lost  mountain  on  the  Union 
right.  The  enemy  was  beaten  at  all  points.  General  M.  F. 
Force,  on  the  left,  captured  the  Fortieth  Alabama,  about  3l'0 
strong.  The  Fourth  corps  took  many  prisoners  in  squads  of 
five  to  thirty.  Many  of  the  prisoners  professed  to  be  tired 
of  fighting,  and  of  the  war,  and  stated  that  many  more  still 
in  the  ranks  were  of  the  same  state  of  mind.  The  enemy 
was  kept  closely  engaged  by  the  skirmishers  even,  when  no 
line  of  attack  was  moving  against  him.  Decided  advantage 
had  been  gained  by  the  Union  forces  during  the  day,  and  the 
men  were  encouraged  accordingly.  Schofield,  on  the  extreme 
right,  had  gained  a  foot-hold  beyond  Allatoona  creek  near 
Lost  mountain,  but  he  had  perhaps  done  the  least  fighting  of 
any  army  corjis  during  the  day.  Hooker  had  fought  tlie 
enemy  immediately  on  the  right  of  the  Fourth  corps  witii  his 
usual  impetuosity,  gaining  possession  of  advantageous 
ground.     The  battle  on  the  extreme  left,  fought  by  McPher- 


380  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

son's  men,  is  known  as  the  Battle  of  Noonday's  Creek,  thai 
of  the  Fourth  corps  as  the  Battle  of  Phie  Mountain,  and  that 
of  Hooker's  corj^s  as  the  Battle  of  Gilgal  (or  Golgotha) 
Church. 

The  Eighty -sixth  bivouacked  about  7:30  p.  m.  on  the 
southeastern  slope  of  Pine  mountain.  The  minie  balls  whiz- 
zed at  a  lively  rate  in  front  and  a  little  to  the  left,  and  it 
looked  for  a  time  very  much  as  though  there  might  yet  be  a 
night  battle  thrown  in  to  make  up  good  measure  for  the  day  "s 
duty.  As  it  was  the  Eighty-sixth  ate  its  supper  to  the  rattle 
of  musketry  and  the  roar  of  batteries,  to  the  "ping"  of  the 
minie  ball,  and  the  shriek  of  shot  and  shell.  The  men  were 
tired  and  were  glad  to  sink  anywhere. 

There  was  no  general  movement  by  the  Fourth  corps  on 
the  16th,  and  the  Eighty-sixth  remained  in  bivouac  on  the 
slope  of  Pine  Top.  A  number  of  the  regiment  went  up  to 
the  top  of  the  mountain  where  the  enemy's  evacuated  works 
were,  to  take  a  look  at  the  surrounding  country.  Far  and 
near  the  eye  ranged  over  the  wondrous  country,  made  still 
more  wonderful  by  the  gigantic  labors  of  man  now  contend- 
ing in  a  Titanic  struggle  for  its  mastery.  From  the  summit 
of  the  mountain  there  could  be  seen  a  thickly  wooded  rolling 
country — a  veritable  panorama  of  hill  and  vale,  of  open  field 
and  shaded  wood,  divided  by  deeply  running  streams.  To 
the  left  front  of  Wood's  division  lie  the  trim  peaks  of  the 
mighty  Kenesaw  mountain,  around  whose  base  grim-visaged 
war  was  destined  to  rage  in  his  wildest  and  most  violent 
moods  for  days  and  weeks.  Rugged,  wood  fringed,  seamed 
by  chasm  and  broken  by  rocky  battlements,  nature's  own 
fortresses,  it  loomed  up  eighteen  hundred  feet  above  sea 
level.  It  is  about  three  miles  from  Pine  Top  to  Kenesaw 
mountain.  Slightly  in  advance  of,  and  somewhat  farther  to 
the  right  than  Kenesaw,  to  the  left,  is  the  solitary  peak  of  Lost 
mountain.  Standing  solitary  and  alone  it  loomed  up  over  the 
surrounding  wooded  hills,  a  watchtower  for  Johnston's  ex- 
treme left.  Here  on  the  part  of  the  Union  forces.  General 
Schofield  with  the  Twenty-third  corps,  kept  watch  and  ward. 
The  strong  earthworks  can  be  traced  in  their  course  from 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  381 

jight  to  left  on  the  high  ground  which  forms  the  water-shed 
)etween  Mud  creek  and  Allatona  creek  on  the  right,  and  Mud 
Jreek  and  Noyes'  creek  and  Noonday  creek  on  the  left,  All- 
jtoona  creek  and  Noonday  being  tributaries  of  the  Etowah 
'iver,  while  the  waters  of  Mud  creek  and  Noyes'  creek  find  their 
vay  to  the  Chattahoochee  river,  south  of  Kenesaw  moun- 
ain.  These  streams  play  an  important  part  in  the  great 
!jame  of  war  to  be  played  here.  They  have  determined  the 
ocation  of  Johnston's  line  of  intrenchment. 
'  The  gallant  Fifth  Indiana  battery  shelled  the  enemy  at  a 
'urious  rate,  and  delivered  its  shots  with  great  accuracy. 
\t  the  feet  of  the  visitors,  upon  the  chips,  rocks,  and 
:;tumps,  is  the  blood  of  one  of  the  martyrs  of  the  Southern 
ause.  Here  fell  two  days  before  Lieutenant  General  Leonidas 
Polk,  formerly  Protestant  Episcopal  Bishop  of  the  diocese 
bf  Louisiana.  He  was  killed  by  an  unexploded  shell  from 
bne  of  the  guns  of  this  same  Fifth  Indiana  battery.  General 
lohnston  and  General  Hardee  narrowly  escaped  destruction 
"rom  the  same  shell.  A  thin  veil  of  light  blue  smoke  rose 
i'rom  the  skirmish  line,  enabling  one  to  trace  it  for  miles 
through  wood  as  well  as  open  field,  and  the  rattle  of  mus- 
!.^etry,  mingled  with  the  heavy  detonations  of  the  artillery, 
ndicated  that  the  struggle  was  still  on. 

There  w^as  no  general  attack  or  advance  by  tlie  Union 
iforces  on  the  16th.  Toward  evening,  however,  a  number  of 
Onion  batteries  became  engaged  with  those  of  the  enemy  in 
!i  fierce  artillery  duel.  The  shrieking  of  shot  and  the  burst- 
ng  of  shell  added  to  the  roar  of  the  guns,  and  made  a  verit- 
able pandemonium  that  was  painful  to  the  ear.  This  contest 
oegan  about  5  o'clock  p.  m.  and  was  maintained  for  an  unusual 
length  of  time. 

j  General  Schofield,  with  the  Twenty-third  corps,  had 
gained  a  very  decided  advantage  in  position  on  the  rigiit 
during  the  16th,  which  enabled  him  to  enfilade  a  portion  of 
the  enemy's  main  line  of  intrenchments.  This  rendennl 
Johnston's  left  untenable.  But  with  his  accustomed  fore- 
sight that  General  had  provided  for  this  very  emergency  by 
constructing  for  hisleft  another  line  of  intrenchments.  just 


382  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

east  of  Mud  creek.  This  line  of  works  joined  the  old  line  a1 
a  point  on  a  line  between  Pine  Top  and  the  west  end  oj 
Kenesaw,  not  far  from  east  of  the  head  of  Mud  creek.  Tc 
this  line  Johnston's  left  withdrew  during  the  night  o1 
the  16th. 

General  Sherman  says:  "On  the  17th  and  18th  the  rail 
again  fell  in  torrents,  making  army  movements  impossible, 
but  we  devoted  the  time  to  strengthening  our  positions,  more 
especially  to  the  left  and  center,  with  a  view  gradually  tc 
draw  from  the  left  to  add  to  the  right;  and  we  had  to  hole 
our  lines  on  the  left  extremely  strong,  to  guard  against  { 
sally  from  Kenesaw  against  our  depot  at  Big  Shanty. ' 
General  Sherman  is  here  probably  writing  from  memory, 
without  referring  to  his  notes,  as  this  statement  does  not 
agree  with  other  writers  who  were  on  the  ground  and  made 
notes  of  every  day's  contests.  General  Cox  describes  in  his 
"History  of  the  Atlanta  Campaign"  at  some  length  tlie  move 
ments  of  the  army,  and  the  lighting.  A  rebel  author  says: 
"  Part  of  Howard's  corps,  under  cover  of  a  heavy  cannonade, 
charged  the  Confederate  outer  i-ifle  pits,  and  after  a  close 
fight  succeeded  in  holding  these  and  forcing  the  Confederates 
back  to  their  main  line.  During  the  night  the  Confederates 
made  two  unsuccessful  efforts  to  recapture  the  lost  jDosition." 
This  was  on  June  17.  This  Confederate's  statement  agrees 
very  closely  with  the  facts.  The  contest  was  stubborn,  but 
the  enemy  was  repulsed.  During  the  entire  day  the  Eighty- 
sixth  was  on  the  skirmish  line.  The  little  valley  of  the 
upper  part  of  Mud  creek  resounded  from  morning  until  night 
with  a  sharp  musketry  fire.  The  firing  was  brisk,  but  prob- 
ably not  very  destructive,  as  the  enemy  was  well  protected 
by  rifle  pits.  Shortly  after  dark  the  Eighty-sixth  was 
relieved,  when  it  at  once  returned  to  the  brigade  and  took  its 
position  in  the  front  line,  in  rear  of  the  intrenchments  some 
little  distance.  Soon  after  the  regiment  had  reached  its 
bivouac  the  enemy  charged  upon  Gibson's  brigade  immedi- 
ately upon  the  left.  The  Third  brigade  expected  and  was 
ready  to  go  to  the  assistance  of  its  comrades  of  the  First 
brigade,  but  it  was  not  needed.     The  gallant  First  was  equal 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  383 

to  the  occasion,  and  repelled  the  enemy,  held  all  points,  took 
a  firmer  grip,  and  drove  him  back  into  his  works  and  did  it 
without  assistance.  The  Fourth  corps  was  in  it  from  early 
morn  until  dewey  eye,  and  in  it  every  day.  The  attack  was 
renewed  later  at  night,  but  with  no  better  success  than  the 
former  one.  The  battle  raged  during  the  fore  part  of  the 
night  of  the  17th,  but  the  Fourth  corps'  position,  defended 
by  as  sturdy  a  band  of  soldiers  as  ever  shouldered  a  musket, 
was  impregnable. 

It  rained  in  torrents  during  the  after  part  of  the  night  of 
the  17th  and  during  the  morning  of  the  18th,  swelling  the 
streams  until  they  ran  as  only  mountain  streams  can  run. 
Immediately  after  reveille  the  Eighty-sixth  was  moved  out 
to  the  front  line  of  intrenchments  and  took  position  ready 
for  battle.  The  regiment  breakfasted  in  the  trenches.  Not- 
withstanding the  heavy  fall  of  rain  and  the  swollen  condition 
of  the  streams,  there  was  hard  fighting  around  the  lines  of 
the  Fourth  corps  between  skirmish  lines  almost  equal  to 
lines  of  battle.  The  Fourth  corps  pressed  the  enemy  at  all 
points  on  its  front,  and  especially  on  the  front  of  Newton's 
and  Wood's  divisions.  Cox  says:  ''Howard  threw  forward 
Wood's  and  Newton's  divisions,  whose  strongly  supported 
line  of  skirmishers  were  able  by  a  rush  to  carry  the  line  of 
i;  works  in  their  front,  capturing  about  fifty  prisoners.  Sev- 
ij  eral  counter-charges  were  made  in  the  hope  of  regaining  the 
1  line,  but  were  repulsed. "  A  rebel  author  says  of  the  same 
contest:  "Wood's  and  Newton's  divisions  of  Howard's  corps 
then  made  a  strong  forward  movement  and,  after  an  obsti- 
nate struggle,  by  the  aid  of  artillery  fire,  succeeded  in  cap- 
turing and  holding  a  portion  of  the  outer  works  of  the  Con- 
federate line. "  This  was  a  hot  and  malicious  contest  and 
tried  the  mettle  of  the  men  of  both  sides  that  were  engaged. 
The  advance  threw  the  Eiglity-sixty  considerably  forward  of 
its  former  position.  As  soon  as  the  alignment  was  com- 
pleted the  men  intrenched  themselves  at  once. 

After  this  forward  movement  on  the  pari  of  Ww  riiioii 
forces  the  enemy's  advanced  lines  were  wltlulrawn.  but  he 
held  on  to  his  main  line  of  works:  but  he  was  evicU'iilly  pre- 


384  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

paring  to  retire.  Hooker  and  Schofield  were  swinging 
round  and  closing  in  on  the  enemy's  position.  There  was 
considerable  shifting  of  the  line  back  and  forth  as  it  was 
found  the  alignment  was  not  satisfactory.  Skirmishing  and 
fighting  continued  with  brief  intervals  of  rest.  The  Eighty- 
sixth  moved  to  the  left  some  distance,  but  did  not  remain 
there  long,  moving  to  the  right  somewhat  farther  than 
before,  and  taking  an  exposed  position  on  the  left  bank  of  a 
stream,  probably  an  unimportant  tributary  of  Mud  creek, 
but  now  it  ran  full  and  strong.  The  Eighty-sixth  relieved 
troops  here  that  had  already  intrenched  themselves  in  this 
position.  It  was  an  uncomfortable  position.  The  waters  of 
the  little  stream  came  up  almost  to  the  works  on  the  right 
flank  of  the  regiment.  A  rod  or  so  in  the  rear  of  the  line  of 
works  the  ground  was  low  and  water  was  plentiful,  in  short 
the  men  were  water  and  mud  bound,  yet  this  was  no  pro- 
tection. The  shells  were  dropping  here  and  there,  in 
fact,  all  around  in  a  murderous  manner.  It  looked 
like  the  Eighty-sixth  was  pickled  and  was  now  about  to 
be  put  to  soak.  Some  of  the  incidents  of  the  day  were 
ludicrous  in  the  extreme,  or  would  have  been  if  the  great 
danger  had  not  given  things  a  more  serious  cast.  A  com- 
rade was  hungry  and  thought  something  for  the  inner  man 
would  be  beneficial  to  a  man  in  his  situation.  The  more  he 
thought  about  the  matter  the  sharper  grew  his  appetite.  His 
longings  for  hard  tack  and  old  government  Java  overcame 
his  caution  and  made  him  brave,  and  during  a  moment  when 
the  enemy's  fire  slackened  he  prepared  his  coffee,  procured 
water,  righted  up  a  fire  in  the  rear  of  the  works,  and  placed 
his  coffee-pot  on  to  boil.  Unfortunate  move,  luckless  mo- 
ment, he  had  scarcely  succeeded  in  getting  his  coffee-pot  ad- 
justed on  the  rails,  when  a  shot  came  screaming  and  tipped 
the  rails  and  upset  the  pot  in  the  fire  and  frightened  the 
hungry  soldier  back  to  the  works  where  he  remained  while 
his  coffee  roasted  and  the  spout  was  melted  off"  his  coffee-pot. 
Never  did  a  soldier  lose  a  strong  and  healthy  appetite  more 
suddenly.  Twelve  pound  shells  as  a  diet  did  not  suit  his 
stomach.     Another  comrade,  somewhat  cooler-headed  under 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  385 

most  circumstances,  concluded  he,  too,  would  have  something 
to  eat,  and  accordingly  proceeded,  as  his  comrade  had,  to  pre- 
pare and  place  his  coffee  upon  the  fire,  watching  it,  ready  to 
remove,  as  soon  as  it  was  sufficiently  boiled.  He,  too,  was 
greatly  -discomfited.  The  aroma  of  the  coffee  was  beginning 
to  be  distilled,  when  there  came  a  mighty  shriek,  and  there 
was  a  scattering  of  rails,  coals,  and  ashes.  The  soldier! 
where  was  he?  Two  feet  deep  in  water  in  the  stream  that 
ran  at  the  right  rear  of  the  regiment.  He  was  demoralized 
and  was  only  just  pulling  himself  together  in  the  water,  when 
another  terrific  scream  and  the  plunging  of  a  shell  into  the 
water  immediately  in  his  front,  fairly  immersed  him  with  a 
mighty  upheaval  of  the  water.  He  had  snatched  his  coffee- 
pot from  the  fire  before  the  shell  had  struck  it,  and  it  was 
his  boast  as  long  as  he  lived  that  he  saved  his  coffee  and 
drank  it.  Still  the  shot  and  shell  rained  on  the  men.  Dur- 
ing this  time  a  shell  had  burst  just  in  the  rear  of  the  works 
in  a  hogshead  in  which  rations  had  been  brought  to  the 
i:)lace,  wounding  severely  in  the  hand  Captain  L.  V.  Ream, 
of  Company  G,  and  Thomas  Decker,  of  Company  I.  Ream 
lost  three  fingers.  About  4  o'clock  p.  m.  the  regiment  began 
the  construction  of  flank  covers,  similar  in  construction  to  its 
parapet,  to  protect  the  men  from  the  flank  artillery  fire  of 
the  enemy.  When  these  were  just  completed  the  regiment 
was  ordered  to  move  by  the  left  flank  and  relieve  the  Seven- 
teenth Kentucky.  This  latter  position  was  still  muddier 
than  the  one  which  it  had  just  left.  It  was  without  exagger- 
tion  a  veritable  mud -hole,  and  there  was  nowhere  a  place 
where  one  could  lie  down  without  almost  being  buried  in  the 
mud.  All  soon  began  to  make  preparations  for  the  niglit.  to 
gather  brush,  rails,  or  poles  to  keep  themselves  out  of  the 
mud,  and  thus  the  Eighty-sixth  slept  and  rested  on  the 
night  of  the  18th  of  June,  after  an  arduous  day's  duty.  The 
rebels  designated  the  fighting  of  the  18tli  as  tlie  Battle  of 
Kenesaw  mountain  of  the  18th  of  June. 

The  weather  had  been  very  bad,  very  wet  and  cliaiiging 
frequently  and  suddenly.  It  cannot  bedescribed  bettei-  lliau 
the  Irish  picket's  description  to  his  sweetheart: 


386  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

"  This  southern  climate's  quare  Biddy 

A  quare  aud  beastly  thing, 
Wid  winter  atasint  all  the  year. 

And  summer  in  the  spring. 
Ye  mind  the  hot  place  down  below? 

And  may  ye  never  fear 
I'd  dhraw  comparisons— but  then 

It's  awful  warrum  here." 

The  weather  throughout  most  of  June  was  beastly  in 
the  extreme.  With  this  extreme  heat  and  with  every  creek, 
swamp,  and  lagoon  full  of  water,  and  the  decaying  vegetable 
matter  washed  into  swamps  and  ponds,  it  is  a  wonder  that 
the  Union  forces  did  not  all  die  in  a  heap.  Rations  were 
issued  to  the  Eighty-sixth  in  the  mud  on  the  night  of  the 
18th,  but  were  not  distributed  to  the  men  until  the  following 
morning. 

The  Eighty-sixth,  almost  to  a  man,  was  pretty  thor- 
oughly saturated  with  water  and  bedaubed  with  Georgia  soil 
in  the  shape  of  a  brick-red  mud,  when  daylight  on  the  morn- 
ing of  the  19th  revealed  the  situation.  The  command  moved 
out  after  the  enemy  about  8:30  a.  m.  The  enemy  was  now 
established  in  his  last  line,  of  which  Kenesaw  mountain  was 
the  key.  The  line  extended  over  the  crest  of  the  twin  peaks 
of  the  mountain,  and  then  somewhat  refused,  running  nearly 
due  south  from  the  western  slope  of  the  mountain.  He  had, 
however,  strong  outposts  thrown  well  in  front  to  baffle 
Sherman's  ai3i3roach,  until  he  was  more  securely  intrenched. 
The  country,  with  the  enemy's  perfect  knowledge  of  it,  fav- 
ored him,  and  great  caution  had  to  be  exercised.  The 
Eighty-sixth,  supjjorting  the  front  line,  closed  up  well  on  to 
it,  and  followed  as  it  advanced.  Progress  was  slow,  how- 
ever, and  the  regiment  halted  about  10:30  and  lay  until  2:30 
p.  m.,  the  rain  pouring  down  in  torrents.  At  the  latter  hour 
the  line  resumed  the  advance,  the  batteries  opening  a  terrific 
fire  upon  the  enemy.  The  regiment  closed  up  on  the 
advanced  line  again,  and  the  minie  balls  sang  their  familiar 
songs  about  the  ears  of  the  men  in  a  most  spiteful  way. 
However,  but  little  attention  was  paid  to  his  fire,  but  the 
Union  forces  pressed  him  with  strong  lines  of  skirmishers. 
The  enemy   made  a  stubborn  resistance,   but   was   steadily 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  387 

forced,  baclr,  until  night  came  on  and  made  farther  progress 
impossible.  The  Eighty -sixth  bivouacked  about  7  o'clock  in 
the  evening,  and  received  orders  to  have  reveille  at  3  o'clock 
the  next  morning,  and  to  move  at  4  o  'clock.  The  battle  between 
the  skirmish  lines  still  continued  to  rage  after  nightfall. 
The  regiment's  bivouac  on  the  night  of  the  19th  was  south 
of  w^est  of  the  west  end  of  Kenesaw  mountain.  Reveille  was 
sounded  at  the  appointed  time.  The  rapidity  of  the  firing 
increased  as  day  dawned. 

The  early  morning  was  clear,  but  soon  a  bank  of  clouds 
drifted  above  the  horizon  and  threatened  rain.  The  skir- 
mishing was  quite  active  all  forenoon,  indicating  a  pressure 
that  could  not  last  very  long  without  causing  a  break  of 
some  kind.  Just  before  noon  the  Eighty-sixtli  was  ordered 
to  put  up  tents,  it  being  stated  that  it  would  probably  remain 
here  throughout  the  day.  Yet  the  men  had  scarcely  fin- 
ished their  pickled  pork,  hard  tack  and  coffee  for  dinner, 
when  they  received  orders  to  be  ready  to  move  at  1  o'clock. 

Wood's  division  had  orders  to  relieve  a  part  of  Hooker's 
corps.  It  moved  to  the  right  about  one  mile  and  the  Eighty- 
sixth  was  halted  in  a  small  field  which  had  been  used  as  a 
slaughter  pen.  Here  the  enemy  caught  sight  of  it  and 
opened  with  their  batteries.  He  soon  secured  almost  per- 
fect range.  The  shells  and  solid  shot  ploughed  up  the  earth 
and  flung  the  dirt  wildly  about,  sprinkling  everybody  liber- 
ally. The  offal  of  the  cattle  was  lying  plenteously  around, 
almost  covering  the  ground,  but  the  proximity  of  those 
screaming  shells  indicated  tliat  life  depended  upon  one  get- 
ting close  to  the  ground.  In  an  instant  everybody  went  to 
the  earth.  A  sergeant  of  Company  H,  no  doubt,  mistaking 
a  beef  paunch  for  a  boulder  or  nigger-head,  sought  shelter 
behind  it  from  the  enemy's  fire,  to  the  great  amusement  of 
the  boys.  Everybody  found  it  necessary  to  seek  shelter, 
and  a  darkey  who  was  with  the  regiment,  hid  behind  a  stump. 
He  was  peeping  out  when  a  musket  ball  struck  him  on  the 
side  of  the  head  and  made  a  painful  wound.  He  was  up  in  a 
second  and  went  galloping  around  the  opening  shaking  his 
head  like  a  mad  bull,  until  some  of  the  boys  pulled  liim  down 


388  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

behind  shelter,  made  an  examination  and  assured  him  that 
he  was  not  dangerously  wounded.  He  was  severely  hurt, 
but  he  was  seen  no  more. 

From  this  place  the  Eighty-sixth  moved  a  little  farther 
to  the  fight  and  relieved  a  portion  of  General  Geary's  line 
of  Hooker's  corps.  It  was  now  once  more  on  the  front  line 
of  intrenchments,  facing  the  foe.  Daily  rains  still  occurred 
and  the  streams  ran  full,  and  the  waters  were  muddy  and 
mud  was  plentiful  everywhere.  Being  on  the  front  line,  the 
Eighty-sixth  now  had  to  furnish  skirmishers.  The  fighting 
had  been  sharp  at  points  around  the  lines  during  the  day, 
while  the  skirmishing"  was  brisk  everywhere. 

A  heavy  detail  from  the  Eighty-sixth  was  on  the  skir- 
mish line  the  whole  night  of  the  20th,  and  consequently  the 
regiment  was  not  astir  early  on  the  morning  of  the  21st  when 
not  compelled  to  do  so  by  orders.  All  who  were  in  that 
detail  can  testify  to  the  exhausting  character  of  the  extreme 
vigilance  and  activity  required  of  the  skirmishers  that 
night.  Besides  the  duties  required,  it  rained  the  whole 
night.  General  Sherman  wrote  to  General  Halleck,  Chief  of 
Staff  at  Washington,  on  the  21st:  "This  is  the  nineteenth  day 
of  rain  and  the  prospect  for  fair  weather  is  as  far  oft"  as  ever. 
The  roads  are  impassable;  the  fields  and  woods  become  quag- 
mires after  a  few  wagons  have  crossed  over.  Yet  we  are  at 
work  all  the  time. ' '  There  was  no  hour,  day  or  night,  when 
all  parts  of  the  grand  army  was  at  rest.  Leaving  out  of 
consideration  the  skirmishers  who  slept  neither  day  nor 
night,  there  were  brigades,  regiments,  or  strong  detach- 
ments that  were  at  work  preparing  roads,  building  bridges, 
or  taking  and  fortifying  advanced  positions.  During  the 
forenoon  of  the  21st  Newton's  Second  division  of  the  Fourth 
corps  passed  to  the  rear  of  Wood's  Third  division  and  took 
position  on  the  line  to  Wood's  right. 

The  skirmishing  was  lively  during  the  entire  forenoon 
between  the  Eighty -sixth  skirmishers  and  the  enemy.  Luke 
Cronkite,  of  Company  E,  was  quite  severely  wounded  in  the 
wrist  while  on  the  skirmish  line  that  morning.  It  was  a 
evere    and  extremely  painful  wound,  and   few,  if  any,  ex- 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  389 

pected  it  to  prove  fatal.  But  in  a  few  weeks  word  came  to 
the  regiment  that  he  died  at  Louisville  on  the  9th  of  August. 
The  skirmishing  grew  in  proportions.  Resolute  courage  was 
exhibited  everywhere  upon  the  line  by  both  sides,  and  fight- 
ing grew  fiercer  as  the  day  advanced. 

Just  after  noon  the  firing  all  along  the  line  increased  in 
intensity,  and  as  the  volume  of  musketry  increased  the  thun- 
ders of  batteries  joined  the  music  of  the  minor  keys.  This 
fierce  and  unchanging  music  of  battle  rang  and  roared  its 
fiercest  and  loudest  notes  for  an  hour,  drowning  the  puny 
fire  of  the  skirmish  line  in  sound,  but  it  could  not  interrupt 
the  "  zip"  of  the  musket  balls  that  came  just  as  freely  as  be- 
fore. One  had  to  be  careful  about  exposing  a  head  above 
the  head-log  of  the  parapet. 

About  3  o'clock  p.  m.  on  the  21st,  the  Eighty -sixth  was 
suddenly  ordered  to  "fall  in  with  gun  and  cartridge-box."' 
The  order  was  promptly  obeyed,  and  in  one  minute's  time 
the  regiment  stood  in  line  behind  the  intrenchments,  ready 
for  defensive  or  offensive  duty.  It  proved  to  be  the  latter. 
Speedily  the  order  came  to  "Forward,  march,"  and  over  the 
works  it  went  and  started  for  the  enemy.  Having  advanced 
some  distance  it  came  to  a  rail  fence,  where  the  men  were 
ordered  to  supply  themselves  with  rails  with  which  to  make 
a  barricade.  After  securing  a  supply  of  rails  it  was  again 
ordered  forward.  To  maintain  anything  like  a  respectable 
line  of  battle  was  simply  impossible,  but  the  command  wont 
ahead  like  a  cyclone,  rails  whirling  in  the  aiv,  and  occasion- 
ally a  soldier  would  trip  and  come  tumbling  to  the  ground, 
gun  and  rail  falling  around  him  to  his  utter  confusion,  or 
thumping  an  unfortunate  comrade,  in  his  downfall.  Having 
advanced  some  six  or  seven  hundred  yards  in  front  of  its 
former  position,  the  regiment  was  halted  and  ordered  to  in- 
trench. The  first  thing,  however,  was  to  get  the  regiment 
into  line.  The  men  loaded  with  rails,  their  guns  were  not 
easily  brought  into  a  perfect  alignment,  and  the  Lieutenant 
Colonel,  then  in  command,  almost  lost  his  patience.  It  was 
necessary  for  the  regiment  to  execute  a  partial  right  wheel 
to  perfect  the  alignment.     The  Lieutenant  Colonel  could  not 


390  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

make  himself  heard  sufficiently  to  secure  the  attention  of  the 
whole  regiment.  So  after  fruitless  efforts  to  secure  atten- 
tion, and  failing,  he  became  angry  and  blurted  out,  "Come 
round  here,  left  wing,  and  let  the  right  go  to  h — 11. "  The 
left  came  round  and  the  right  soon  found  its  position,  the 
alignment  was  completed  and  the  work  began.  The  skir- 
mishers in  front  were  having  a  hot  time  and  the  enemy  was 
liable  to  come  swarming  out  of  his  works  and  attack  at  any 
moment.  All,  therefore,  worked  like  beavers.  The  entire 
Fourth  corps  was  engaged  in  this  dash  and  drove  the  enemy 
out  of  a  strong  line  of  rifle-pits,  and  came  close  upon  his  main 
line  of  intrenchments.  During  the  advance  the,  enemy  had 
kept  up  a  savage  fire,  but  a  strong  skirmish  line  in  front 
had  kept  him  well  engaged.  Trees  were  felled,  and  these 
with  the  rails  soon  made  a  respectable  shelter  for  the  mus- 
ketry fire.  A  trench  was  dug  just  back  of  the  barricade  of 
logs,  and  a  strong  embankment  of  earth  was  made  in  its 
front  by  throwing  the  dirt  from  the  trench  over  the  barri- 
cade. While  J.  A.  Barnes  and  Richard  Galbreath  were  at 
work  side -by  side,  a  ball  struck  a  heavy  "thud"  and  Gal- 
breath gave  a  startling  scream.  The  rebel  ball  had  struck 
his  cartridge-box,  passed  through  both  the  upper  and  lower 
chambers  of  the  tin  magazine,  welded  one  of  his  own  balls 
firmly  to  it  and  passed  out,  wounding  him  severely  in  the 
groin.  The  wound  was  serious  but  not  dangerous.  He  was 
carried  to  the  rear  at  once,  and  the  work  went  on  as  though 
nothing  had  happened.  Richard  Elder,  of  Company  H,  was 
hurt  accidentally.  Everything  was  excitement  equal  to  the 
hurly  burly  of  battle,  and  hard  work  for  all  of  the  regiment. 
Each  one  had  a  different  experience,  and  few  had  time  to 
note  anything  except  that  which  happened  in  his  immediate 
presence.  One  man,  exhausted  by  his  great  exertion,  spread 
his  poncho  upon  the  ground  and  threw  himself  down  to  rest. 
After  lying  there  a  few  minutes  he  turned  over  suddenly  and 
then  got  up  still  more  suddenly.  The  reason  for  his  sudden 
rising  was  a  sharp  sting  in  his  right  thigh.  Springing  quickly 
to  his  feet  he  procured  a  stick  and  began  a  search  in  the 
leaves  that  had  blown  on  his  poncho  for  the  intruder.     He 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  391 

soon  found  him  in  the  shape  of  a  small,  brownish  gray  scor- 
pion, three  or  four  inches  in  length.  He  was  quite  indig- 
nant, and  showed  fight  whenever  disturbed,  but  was  quickly 
dispatched  and  the  ground  well  looked  over  for  others  of  his 
kind.  The  sting  was  quite  painful  for  a  time,  but  there  were 
no  other  bad  results  from  it  and  it  was  soon  forgotten. 
Everybody  had  worked  hard  and  was  thoroughly  tired,  yet 
the  success  made  the  men  jubilant  and  rousing  cheer  after 
cheer  went  round  the  Union  lines.  The  right  had  now  swung 
round  until  it  faced  almost  due  east,  and  was  considerably 
south  of  its  mighty  citadel,  the  twin  crest  of  Kenesaw  moun- 
tain. 

This  move  was  briefly  described  by  a  rebel  author  in  this 
way:  "General  Howard's  corps,  strong  massed,  made  a 
rush  through  the  forest  and  carried  a  hill  about  700  yards  in 
advance  of  the  position  gained  the  evening  before.  His 
main  line  was  moved  up  about  500  3^ards,  fortifying  the  posi- 
tion in  the  midst  of  a  terrible  artillery  lire  between  the 
opposing  batteries,  and  seizing  an  intrenched  line  abandoned 
by  the  Confederates.  Hooker's  troops,  who  were  next  to 
How^ard's,  assaulted,  and,  by  flank  movement,  covered  by 
artillery  fire,  occupied  a  prominent  hill,  about  500  yards  in 
front  of  his  old  line,  and  then  connected  his  left  with 
Howard's  right."  Schofield  likewise  was  pushing  his  forces 
forward  on  the  extreme  right,  and  giving  the  enemy  great 
annoyance  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  Kulp  farm,  on  the 
banks  of  Olley's  creek. 

By  this  move  General  Sherman  was  enabled  to  come 
much  nearer  the  enemy  on  the  right,  and  it  also  greatly 
shortened  his  line,  allowing  him  to  extend  the  lines  to  the 
right,  and  thus  compelled  Johnston  to  thin  out  his  lines  to 
keep  pace  with  Sherman's  extension  toward  the  Cliattahoo- 
chee  river.  He  dared  not,  while  in  this  position,  allow 
Sherman  to  secure  a  crossing  of  that  river  or  to  get  upon  the 
railroad  in  his  rear.  To  permit  either  would  have  been  a 
serious,  if  not  a  fatal  mistake. 

On  the  morning  of  the  22d  the  Eighty-sixth  received 
orders  to  strengthen  its  breastworks  by  making  a  stronger 


392  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

parapet.  Therefore,  there  was  more  fatigue  duty  to  per- 
form until  the  parapet  was  shot-proof.  The  skirmishing 
was  quite  animated  throughout  the  day.  On  this  day,  the 
22d,  Hooker's  and  Schofield's  corps  fought  the  battle  of 
Kulp  House  on  the  right,  defeating  the  enemy  in  his  attacks, 
and  inflicting  a  heavy  loss  upon  the  attacking  columns. 
Thus  the  days  before  Kenesaw  wore  away  with  continual 
skirmishing  around  the  lines,  with  an  occasional  attack  on 
exposed  points,  and  daily  duels  between  opposing  batteries. 

On  the  morning  of  the  23d  the  enemy  was  decidedly 
aggressive  on  the  Third  brigade  front  and  kept  up  a  hot  fire 
from  his  skirmish  line.  The  Fifty-ninth  Ohio,  which  was  on 
the  skirmish  line,  lost  one  man,  killed,  early  in  the  morning. 
It  was  relieved  by  the  Seventy-ninth  Indiana,  which  was 
ordered  to  advance.  The  advance  of  the  Seventy -ninth  was 
resisted  with  great  bravery  and  spirit,  but  that  regiment 
pressed  on  undauntedly,  and  the  battle  waged  hotter  and 
hotter.  The  enemy  was  forced  to  fall  back,  but'  he  did  so 
fighting  desperately,  and  almost  at  the  muzzles  of  the  guns 
of  the  Seventy -ninth,  before  he  would  yield  the  much  coveted 
ground.  Before  the  advance  of  the  regiment  began  the 
brigade  was  ordered  into  the  intrenchments  to  protect  the 
troops  from  the  fire.  A  perfect  hail-storm  of  minie  balls 
swept  the  parapet  from  one  end  of  the  regiment  to  the  other. 
The  batteries  opened  a  sharp  and  well  directed  fire  on  the 
enemy  just  as  the  Seventy-ninth  made  its  attack  upon  the 
skirmishers.  The  Seventy-ninth  lost  two  killed  and  fifteen 
wounded.  During  the  afternoon  there  was  brisk  firing  with 
heavy  artillery  firing  on  the  right. 

Rebel  authorities  describe  "  a  vigorous  attack  made  upon 
Hardee's  corps'  position  southwest  of  Kenesaw  mountain" 
on  the  24th  by  Stanley's  and  Newton's  divisions  of  the  Fourth 
corps,  covered  by  a  terrible  artillery  fire.  In  fact  there 
were  daily  contests  of  safticient  magnitude  that  in  the  early 
part  of  the  war  they  would  have  been  heralded  all  over  the 
North  as  great  battles,  and  the  Eighty-sixth,  being  in  the 
front  line  of  intrenchments,  felt  the  effect  of  every  angry 
wave  that  ran  along  the  lines   and   started   up  the   fire  of 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  393 

Bxcited  skirmish  lines.  However,  about  this  time  on  the  line 
of  the  Third  brigade.  Third  division,  Fourth  corps,  there 
began  negotiations  between  skirmishers  for  a  truce  and  the 
niusketry  fire  somewhat  slackened.  The  boys  of  "the  blue 
land  the  gray"  were  taking  the  war  on  their  part  in  their 
own  hands. 

There  was  nothing  of  note  occurred  on  the  25th.  A  hot 
fire  was  kept  up  by  the  skirmishers  of  the  First  brigade,  of 
Wood's  division,  some  distance  to  the  left.  Willich's  old  reg- 
!iment,  the  Thirty-second  Indiana,  was  made  up  principally 
of  Germans,  and  it  had  secured  a  very  decided  advantage 
over  the  enemy  in  "position  w^hen  the  line  of  intrenchments 
was  located.  The  Germans  were  determined  to  maintain 
that  advantage  to  the  uttermost.  This  greatly  enraged  the 
enemy.  When  meeting  between  the  lines  for  social  and 
commercial  purposes  with  the  friendly  enemies  on  the  line 
of  the  Third  brigade,  when  asked  what  the  trouble  was  just 
to  the  left,  the  invariable  Confederate  answer  was:  "Oh!  the 
d — n  dutch  haven't  any  sense.  "  It  amused  the  Union  boys, 
although  through  policy  they  assented  to  their  opinions  to 
keep  on  good  terms  and  continue  the  truce  now  well  estab- 
lished. But  at  heart  the  Union  boys  gloried  in  the  grit  of  the 
Thirty-second,  and  more  than  once  cheered  them  to  the  echo 
:when  an  unusal  fine  display  was  made.  In  fact,  although 
most  of  the  credit  was  given  to  the  Thirty-second,  it 
'b(>longed  to  the  regiments  of  the  brigade  one  and  all;  for 
tliey  all  kept  up  the  fusilade  whenever  ui)on  the  line. 

In  the  forenoon  of  the  25th  the  enemy's  batteries  on  the 
mountain  opened  a  terrific  fire  on  the  Union  batteries  and 
trains,  in  the  valley  below.  It  was  renewed  again  in  the 
evening  and  the  roar  of  batteries  on  mountain  and  plain  was 
terrible  indeed.  Sherman  alone  liad  over  one  hundred  guns 
blazing  away  at  the  mountain.  These  with  the  rebel  artil- 
lery, one  can  easily  imagine  made  an  artillery  battle  of  no 
small  proportions. 

At  this  time  the  corps  of  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland 
were  on  the  line  from  left  to  right  as  follows:  Fourth,  P'our- 
teenth,  and  Twentieth.      On  Sunday.  June  1)6.  was  a  quiet 


394  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

day  for  Kenesaw — a  Sabbath  day,  a  day  of  rest  to  recuperate 
and  refresh  for  the  morrow's  trial. 

About  8  o'clock  on  Monday,  June  27,  the  Eighty-sixth 
with  the  rest  of  Wood's  division,  received  orders  to  "Fall  in 
with  gun  and  cartridge-box,  canteen  and  haversack  "  AH 
knew  what  these  orders  meant.  The  ordeal  of  the  battle 
was  to  be  met.  Some  part  of  the  army  was  to  seek  the 
enemy  on  his  own  chosen  ground,  intrenched  as  he  was. 
Either  Wood's  division  was  to  assault  the  enemy,  or  it  was  to 
support  the  assaulting  column.  The  latter  proved  to  be  the 
case.  The  command  moved  to  the  right  some  distance,  com- 
ing well  up  to  the  left  of  Stanley's  position.  The  assault 
was  to  be  made  by  Newton's  division,  of  the  Fourth  corps, 
and  Jeff  C.  Davis'  division,  of  the  Fourteenth  corps.  The 
front  of  Stanley's  position  had  been  chosen  as  the  point  from 
which  the  charge  should  be  made.  Newton's  lines  were  to 
assault  on  the  left  and  Davis'  farther  to  the  right.  Wood's 
division  was  Newton's  support  on  the  left.  The  Eighty- 
sixth  was  in  the  front  line  of  the  supporting  forces,  and 
occupied  the  works  vacated  by  troops  of  New^ton's  division. 
The  Eighty-sixth  was  ready  at  a  moment's  notice  to  go  for- 
ward and  in  turn  assault  the  enemy's  almost  impregnable' 
position  if  even  there  was  a  show  of  success  of  the  columns 
already  designated  for  that  purpose. 

Just  to  the  rear  of  the  left  of  the  regiment,  in  the  second 
line  of  works,  was  the  Eleventh  Indiana  battery,  consisting 
of  six  guns,  four  being  20-pound  Parrott  guns,  and  two  > 
24-pound  brass  pieces.  The  regiment  had  not  been  long  in 
this  loosition  when  the  battery  opened  a  terrible  fire  on  the 
enemy's  intrenchmeuts,  or  as  it  proved  to  be,  rather  upon 
the  Eighty -sixth.  The  ammunition  furnished  the  battery 
was  worse  than  w^orthless  in  the  present  situation.  Its  shells 
exploded  almost  as  soon  as  they  cleared  the  mouths  of  the 
guns  in  their  flight.  Thus  the  fragments  of  the  shells  were 
thrown  in  and  around  the  Eighty-sixth  in  a  perfect  hail- 
storm of  destruction.  After  one  or  two  rounds  had  been 
fired  and  a  number  of  the  regiment  had  been  w^ounded,  a 
protest  was  sent  to  the  battery  against   continuing   the  fire. 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  39.") 

L  change  was  made  in  the  ammunition  and  the  fire  resumed, 
'his  was  no  better  and  the  shells  burst  within  a  few  rods  of 
le  muzzles  of  the  guns  of  the  battery.  This  made  the 
iighty-sixth  hot,  and  the  men  threatened  to  face  about  and 
harge  the  battery  in  order  to  silence  it,  and  thus  save  them- 
elves.  The  regiment  had,  on  arriving  at  this  position, 
backed  arms,  and  was  awaiting  further  orders  when  the 
attery  opened  fii'e.  The  bursting  shells  had  knocked  down 
tacks  of  guns,  and  hurled  them  about  the  heads  of  men  at  a 
Lirious  rate.  Captain  Carnahan,  of  Company  I,  ordered 
ergeant  Cosby  to  move  to  the  head  of  his  company  while 
hie  Captain  attended  to  some  matter  at  another  point.  They 
ad  scarcely  changed  position  and  Sergeant  Cosby  taken 
is  place  at  the  head  of  the  company,  when  anothci-  volley 
/as  fired  by  the  battery,  and  a  shell  exploding  to  the  rear  of 
bmpany  I,  knocked  a  stack  of  guns  over,  breaking  several 
nd  severely  wounding  the  Sergeant.  He  was  at  once  taken 
0  the  rear.  The  regiment,  now  more  angry  than  ever,  sent 
,  peremptory  order  for  the  battery  to  cease  firing.  It  was 
)romptly  obeyed  this  time,  and  it  probably  saved  trouble 
►etween  the  battery  and  regiment. 

The  assault  was  now^  on  in  all  its  fury.  The  Eighty- 
ixth  took  arms  and  stood  ready  at  a  moment's  notice  to  go 
orward  into  the  sulphurous  pit.  Perhaps  few  assaults  dur- 
Qg  the  entire  war  were  more  terribly  destructive,  consider- 
ng  the  front  exposed  to  the  enemy's  fire;  fcAV  were  more  de- 
erminedly  maintained  and  more  resolutely  met  and  repulsed 
han  this  one.  General  Newton,  immediately  upon  the  right, 
vith  General  Jeft"  C.  Davis,  a  few  hundred  yards  farther 
Lway,  and  General  Schofield,  with  the  Army  of  the  Ohio,  far 
Lway  on  the  right,  while  McPherson's  Army  of  the  Tenues- 
iee,  represented  by  the  gallant  Fifteenth  ^corps.  led  by  the 
)rave  Logan,  made  the  assault  upon  Kenesaw  mountain. 
The  divisions  in  the  various  assaulting  columns  were  all 
jplendid  fighters,  and  all  went  forward  with  the  steadiness 
md  courage  that  characterize  the  disciplined  soldier.  New- 
on's  division,  of  the  Fourth  corps,  perhaps  made  the  most 
iesperate  and  persevering  effort  to  scale  the  enemy 's  works 


1  i 


396  ^  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

of  all  the  lines  of  assault.  But  all  to  no  purpose.  The  rebJ  ^^ 
works  were  practically  impregnable,  and  just  no"\v  were  vei 
itable  volcanoes  at  the  various  points  assaulted,  vomitin 
forth  fire  and  smoke  and  raining  leaden  hail  in  the  face  c 
the  Union  boys.  Hundreds  of  pieces  of  artillery  roare 
around  the  lines  until  the  mountain  and  plain  shook  with  th 
dreadful  detonations.  But  Johnston  held  his  rocky  fortres 
securely.  itt 

Although  the  Union  arms  had  failed  to  carry  the  positio 
of  the  enemy,  the  Confederates  w^ere  forced  to  give  the  a& 
saulting  column  the  credit  of  exhibiting  the  most  intrepi 
courage.  General  Johnston  himself  says  in  his  history:  "A 
several  points  the  eharacteristic  fortitude  of  the  Northwestern  soi 
(tiers  held  them  under  a  elose  and  destrnetive  fire  long  after  rea 
sonethle  hope  of  sueeess  was  e/one.''  General  Sherman  says 
"About  a  mile  to  the  right,  just  below  the  Dallas  road' 
Thomas's  assaulting  column  reached  the  parapet,  when 
Brigadier-General  Daniel  McCook,  my  old  law  partner,  wa 
desjierately  wounded,  from  the  effects  of  which  he  after 
ward  died."'  All  did  nobly,  but  the  Fourth  corps  excelled 
In  proof  of  this  the  loss  of  the  Fourth  corps  in  killed  durin{ 
the  month  of  June  was  nearly  double  that  of  the  Fourteent] 
corps,  although  the  latter  greatly  exceeded  it  in  numbers 
This  is  not  said  for  the  purpose  of  detracting  from  any,  fo 
all  showed  heroic  courage  and  fortitude. 


"The  living  are  brjive  and  noble 
But  the  dead  were  bravest,  of  all 


This  battle  is  said  to  have  presented  a  grand  am 
"imposing  panorama"  to  those  on  Kenesaw  mountain,  wh( 
could  see  all  the  movements  until  the  contestants  wer( 
enveloped  in  the  battle's  smoke.  General  French,  the  Con 
federate  commander  on  the  mountain,  gives  a  lengthy  de 
scription  of  it,  from  which  the  following  is  quoted:  "We  sa 
there,  perhajis,  an  hour,  enjoying  a  bird's  eye  view  of  one  o 
the  most  magnificent  sights  ever  allotted  to  men— to  lodH 
down  upon  an  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  men  arrayed  in  th( 
strife. of  battle,  on  the  plain  below.  As  the  infantry  closec 
in  the  blue  smoke  of  the   musket  marked  out  our  line   foi 


II 


s 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  397 

les,  while  over  it,  rose  in  cumuli-like  clouds  the  white 
loke  of  the  artillery.  Through  the  rifts  of  smoke,  or,  as  it 
IS  wafted  aside  by  the  wind,  we  could  see  the  assault  made 

Cheatham,  and  there  the  struggle  was  hard,  and  there  it 
sted  longest.  So  many  guns  were  trained  on  those  by  our 
le,  and  so  incessant  was  the  roar  of  cannon  and  the  sliarp 
plosion  of  shells,  that  naught  else  could  be  heard.  *  *  The 
ttle  in  its  entirety,  became  a  pageantry  on  a  grand 
ale,  and  barren  of  results,  because  the  attacking  columns 
ire  too  small  in  numbers,  considering  the  charactei-  of  the 
)ops  they  knew  they  would  encounter. ' ' 

The  army  of  the  Tennessee  fared  no  better,  so  far  as  suc- 
ss  was  concerned,  than  the  'Army  of  the  Cumberland,  and 

noon  the  battle  was  over.  The  Eighty -sixth  returned  at 
ce  to  its  position  in  the  trenches.  There  was  a  lull  after 
e  storm,  and  there  was  comparatively  light  skirmishing 
ound  the  lines  during  the  afternoon  and  *fevening.  On  the 
xt  day,  the  28th,  the  boys  of  the  Eighty-sixth  and  tlie 
mfederates  formed  a  "Board  of  Trade"  on  a  small  scale  for 
e  purpose  of  disposing  of  surjilus  coffee  on  the  one  hand 
d  tobacco  upon  the  other.  An  offer  to  "dicker"  coffee  for 
bacco  always  caught  the  "Johnnies"  and  put  them  in  good 
rnior,  if  there  were  no  officers  around.  On  the  other  hand 
bacco  was  in  brisk  demand  in  the  Union  ranks.  When 
ere  was  an  official  about  they  would  signal  not  to  come,  but 

soon  as  he  was  gone,  traffic  would  be  resumed.  They 
emed  to  be  in  excellent  humor  over  their  great  success  in 
pelling  the  assault  the  previous  day.  They  were  quite 
Uling  to  talk  of  the  campaign,  ex])ressing  themselves  freely 

regard  the  probable  success  of  it  on  the  Union  i)art,  and 
lowed  they  had  enough  for  another  killing  yet  in  ranks." 
At  one  of  these  meetings  an  interesting  discussion  arose 
)tween  Wat  Baker,  of  Company  H,  and  a  Confederate, 
augly  ensconced  behind  two  logs  hid  from  view  of  the 
sbel  line,  the  discussion  began.  Baker  was  an  oddity,  over 
X  feet  in  height,  of  a  nervous  disposition,  jerky  in  manner 
id  emphatic  in  speech.  The  discussion,  as  related  by  Baker 
terwards,  ranged   over   the   whole   subject   of  contention 


398  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

between  the  North  and  the  South — slavery  pro  and  con  wa| 
argued,  secession  and  coercion,  and  the  probable  success  c 
the  Northern  armies  finally.  For  nearly  two  hours  thesi 
men  chatted  and  argued  every  phase  of  the  contest  whic 
suggested  itself  to  their  minds.  Baker,  on  his  return  to  thj 
line,  shook  his  head  in  a  most  comical  manner  and  declare 
he  had  almost  converted  one  "Reb"  into  a  "Yank;"  that  h 
had  convinced  him  of  the  utter  folly  of  further  fighting  o 
the  part  of  the  South.  He  admitted  all  was  hopeless  an 
declared  he  intended  to  abandon  the  army  and  the  cans 
upon  the  first  opportunity  to  desert.  Baker,  with  the  fei 
vency  of  speech  of  a  Methodist  revivalist,  urged  that  "  no^ 
was  the  accepted  time."  To  this  the  "Johnnie  "  demurred 
and  pointed  out  that  it  would  be  impossible  for  him  to  escap 
on  tliis  occasion.  Such  an  attempt  would  only  result  in  hi 
certain  destruction  on  account  of  the  nearness  of  their  skiii 
mish  line,  which  was  instructed  to  shoot  down  anyon 
attempting  to  escape  to  the  Union  lines.  He  must  therefor 
wait,  and  he  would  reach  the  desired  end  sooner  or  later 
He  no  doubt  fulfilled  his  ])romise  as  they  came  over  by  ten 
and  fifties  when  opportunity  favored. 

From  this  time  until  the  3d  of  July  the  men  did  littl( 
but  skirmish  duty,  get  up  at  3  o'clock  in  the  morning  am 
stand  to  arms  in  the  the  trenches  until  daylight.  On  th(j 
morning  of  June  30  at  2  o'clock,  the  Eighty -sixth  wa&| 
aroused  and  ordered  into  the  trenches  on  account  of  heavi 
firing  on  the  right.  But  as  everything  soon  became  quiet 
were  permitted  to  lie  down,  but  only  to  be  called  up  again  a 
3  o'clock  to  stand  to  arms  until  daylight.  These  last  days  o 
June  were  excessively  hot.  The  roads  were  rapidly  dryin< 
up  and  the  j^assage  of  troops  and  wagon  trains  could  be  cal, 
culated  with  much  more  certaint3^  This  excessively  ho' 
weather  would  certainly  have  almost  prostrated  the  Unioi 
army  if  it  had  not  been  for  the  delightfully  cool  nights  whicl 
gave  one  some  hours  of  the  sweetest  and  most  refreshing 
sleep  that  ever  fell  to  the  lot  of  man  to  enjoy.  But  lil« 
everything  else  in  this  world  it  had  its  drawbacks — there  waj 
scarcely  enough  of  it.     Tlie  short  nights  did  not  fully  com 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  399 

pensate  for  the  long  and  fiery  ordeal  of  the  day.  Still  the 
health  of  the  Union  army  was  fairly  good.  The  weak  had 
been  weeded  out  by  former  years  of  service  so  that  there 
were  few  in  the  ranks  at  this  time  that  were  not  thoroughly 
seasoned  to  army  life.  General  Sherman  now  had  as  fine  a 
veteran  army  as  ever  trod  the  North  American  continent. 

In  the  evening  of  the  1st  of  July,  the  Eighty-sixth  re- 
ceived orders  to  move,  but  the  order  was  countermanded. 
General  Sherman  was  not  quite  ready  and  the  enemy  fore- 
stalled his  intended  stragetic  move  by  evacuation  before  he 
could  be  ready.  It  is  now  known  that  lie  intended  to  swing 
free  from  his  base  and  move  against  General  Johnston's 
communications.  But  the  Southern  Pabius  was  not  to  be 
caught  napping.  He  saw  surely  enough  his  great  danger, 
hemmed  in  as  he  was  with  a  deep  and  rapid  river  at  his  back, 
and  knew  well  the  matchless  skill  of  his  opponent,  and  the 
courage  and  discipline  of  his  grand  army.  Sherman  was 
daily  expecting  the  evacuation,  and  Avorked  away  to  be 
ready,  if  possible,  to  catch  the  enemy  in  the  move.  But 
Johnston's  preparations  were  completed  first.  On  the  morn- 
ing of  the  M  of  July,  the  troops  were  instructed  to  get  into 
the  trench,  and  when  the  skirmish  line  began  firing  to  shout 
with  all  their  power  of  voice  as  though  they  were  starting  on 
a  charge,  to  assault  his  works.  The  Eighty-sixth  did  its 
best  in  the  shouting  business.  But  the  men  did  not  see  Ken- 
esaw  mountain  crumble  or  the  head-logs  of  their  breastworks 
roll  down.  Kenesaw  was  not  Jericho,  nor  was  Sherman  a 
Joshua.  The  walls  of  Kenesaw  were  not  cast  down  by  the 
blowing  of  trumpets  of  ram's  horns. 

Just  after  dark  on  the  2d,  the  Eighty-sixth  received 
orders  to  strike  'tents.  Down  came  the  tents,  but  quietly. 
Everything  was  soon  in  readiness  to  move  and  the  Eiglity- 
sixth  filed  out,  marching  for  its  new  position.  This  was  a 
general  movement  and  change  of  position  of  nearly  the  whole 
larmy,  and  if  the  enemy  should  become  cognizant  of  it  and 
make  a  direct  attack  while  the  change  was  in  progress  the 
Union  forces  would  be  taken  at  a  great  disadvantage.  There- 
fore, everything  had  to  be  done  with  the  extremest  caution. 


400  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

The  march  was  made  at  a  snail's  pace,  and  in  profound 
silence.  The  Eighty-sixth  reached  its  new  position  about  mid- 
night, and  as  the  men  were  up  again  at  daybreak  they  did 
not  secure  much  sleep  or  rest.  The  morning  meal  of  hard 
tack,  pickled  pork  and  coffee,  was  soon  served.  Again  had  j 
the  Confederate  Fabius  been  forced  to  evacuate,  and  this  time 
a  very  strong  position  held  by  an  increased  force  nearer  his 
base.  Kenesaw  mountain  was,  indeed,  a  veritable  Gibraltar, 
but  it  was  now  in  Sherman's  possession,  and  "the  boys  in 
blue"  and  "the  soul  of  John  Brown"  went  marching  on. 
Every  man  in  the  Union  ranks  was  greatly  elated.  To  be 
forced  to  leave  such  a  position  and  such  intrenchments  must 
have  told  every  Southern  soldier  how  weak  and  utterly  hope- 
less was  the  slave-drivers'  cause  when  pitted  against  the  free 
and  powerful  North.  They  must  "have  read  His  righteous 
sentence"  in  this  evidence  of  their  weakness. 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 
KENESAW  TO  PEACH  TREE  CREEK. 

The  Fourth  of  July— How  it  Was  Celebrated— Smyrna  Camp  Ground— McTs'or's 
Station— McRae's  Hill— Chattahooehee  River— Pace's  Ferry— Powers'  Ferry 
—Across  the  Chattahoochee— Down  the  River— Over  to  Buck  Head— Tlie 
Battle  of  Peach  Tree  Creek. 

The  Eighty-sixth,  with  its  brigade  and  division,  moved 
out  after  the  enemy  about  8  o'clock,  July  3.  Passing  to  the 
right  it  jjassed  its  old  camp  and  works  and  crossed  over  to 
the  enemy's  entrenchments.  They  were  exceedingly  strong 
and  could  be  held  easily  by  determined  men  against  vastly 
superior  numbers.  The  timber  between  the  enemy's  line  of 
works  and  the  Union  line  was  literally  cut  to  pieces  by  tlie 
shot,  shell,  grape,  canister  and  musket  balls,  attesting  the 
desperate  character  of  the  contest  that  had  been  waged  here. 
On  the  Third  brigade  line,  where  a  truce  had  been  entered 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  401 

into,  the  timber  was  not  so  severely  cut  by  the  musketry  fire. 
The  artillery,  however,  had  made  no  truce,  and  generally 
around  the  entire  line  the  witherino-  blast  of  fire  and  leaden 
hail  had  rained  a  destructive  storm. 

Pressing-  on  after  the  enemy  Wood's  division  went  west 
and  south  of  Marietta,  and  crossed  to  the  east  side  of  the 
railroad,  skirmishing-  slightly  with  the  enemy's  rear  guard, 
and  bivouacked  for  the  night,  not  far  from  Ruif' s  Station. 
The  boom  of  cannon  to  the  right  and  some  musketry  indi- 
cated rather  more  than  ordinary  skirmishing.  The  army 
was  now  more  than  120  miles  from  Chattanooga,  and  the 
enemy's  boast  that  he  was  merely  luring  Sherman  and  his 
army  into  the  interior,  in  order  to  destroy  them,  had  not  yet 
been  made  good.  On  the  night  of  the  3d  the  men  slept  undis- 
turbed by  the  light  picket  firing,  and  were  up  bright  and 
early  on  the  morning  of  "the  glorious  Fourth  of  Jul}'." 
They  received  orders  to  be  ready  to  march  at  once — without 
waiting  for  breakfast.  But  the  order  to  "forwarch  march" 
for  some  reason  was  delayed,  and  no  veteran  failed  to  utilize 
the  time  thus  unintentionally  given  him.  The  hard  tack  was 
ready,  and  to  the  experienced,  the  preparation  of  tlie  pickled 
pork  and  colfee  required  but  a  short  time.  This  was  the 
eighty -eighth  anniversary  of  the  Nation's  birth,  and  now 
the  Union  army  was  engag-ed  in  making  good  that  declara- 
tion, and  was  even  declaring  a  more  radical  Independence 
and  a  larger  Liberty.  The  day  was  celebrated,  not  iu  the 
old-fashioned  orthodox  way,  however,  of  picnics,  fire- 
crackers, and  bonfires,  but  by  booming  of  shotted  cannon 
that  sent  the  shrieking  shell,  and  by  the  sharp  rattle  of  mus- 
ketry. Thus  the  Eighty-sixth  celebrated  the  Fourth  and 
renewed  its  allegiance  to  the  basic  i)rinciples  of  the  funda- 
mental law — the  Constitution — which  ouglit  to  g'wo  justice 
to  the  weak  as  well  as  the  powerful. 

During  the  forenoon  both  the  canuoiuiding  and  inusketry 
were  quite  brisk  at  times,  and  indicated  a  strained  situation 
which  was  likely  to  develop  into  a  battle  at  any  time.  The 
Eighty-sixth  drew  three  days'  rations  of  hard  bread,  pick- 
led pork,  sugar,  coffee,  beans  and  soap.     After  dinner  every- 


402  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

thing  was  in  prime  order  for  a  forward  movement,  and  the 
men  generally  were  eager  to  press  on.  At  2:15  p.  m.  the  regi- 
ment and  brigade  filed  out  for  a  forward  move,  but  the  march 
was  a  short  one.  In  an  advance  of  less  than  two  miles  the 
command  ran  plump  up  against  the  enemy  behind  a  strong 
line  of  intrenchments  near  Smyrna  Camp  Ground.  As  the 
enemy's  position  was  approached  the  skirmishers  of  both 
sides  seemed  determined  to  bring  on  an  engagement  by  the 
most  rapid  and  continued  firing,  and  there  was  some  hot 
fighting  on  various  parts  of  tlie  line,  but  no  general  engage- 
ment resulted,  nor  was  any  direct  assault  made  except  on  the 
extreme  right  where  Dodge's  corps  carried  some  rifle-pits  of 
the  enemy.  Wood's  division,  and  especially  Beatty's  brig- 
ade, drew  up  close  to  the  fortified  position  of  the  enemy. 
However,  the  alignment  was  completed  and  a  good  strong 
line  of  intrenchments  constructed.  It  now  seems  probable 
that  had  all  parts  of  the  army  been  equally  prompt  in  closing 
in  on  the  enemy  and  getting  in  to  a  good  position  for  an  at- 
tack, the  enemy  might  have  been  assaulted  successfully  at 
this  point;  and  certainly  to  have  broken  his  lines  here  and 
caused  a  panic  would  have  ruined  Johnston's  entire  army 
and  rendered  it  wholly  incapable  of  making  a  stand  at  At- 
lanta. But  as  it  was  the  command  waited,  drew  a  ration  of 
whisky  and  continued  the  celebration  of  the  Fourth  of  July. 
The  spirits  enlivened  camp  somewhat,  if  tipsy  men  can  be 
said  ever  to  enliven  anything.  Songs  were  sung  and  a  hilar- 
ious good  time  experienced  by  those  who  indulged  in  the 
flowing  bowl.  One  commissioned  officer  of  Company  H, 
heated  by  the  commissary  spirits,  grew  eloquent  and  courage- 
ous, mounted  a  stump  and  proceeded  to  deliver  a  patriotic 
and  fiery  oration,  regardless  of  the  enemy's  spiteful  humor 
and  the  sharp  fire  he  maintained.  This  gallant  and  patriotic 
speech  was  cheered  by  the  boys  to  the  echo,  which  drew 
from  the  enemy  a  perfect  storm  of  musketry  as  though  he 
thought  a  charge  was  on  and  a  death-struggle  at  hand,  and 
so  the  glorious  Fourth  of  July,  1864,  j^assed  for  the  Eighty- 
sixth. 

All  had  sobered  up  by  the  morning  of  the  5th — those 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  403 

who  had  immoderately  indulged — and  many  no  doubt  felt 
the  depression  very  keenly  which  follows  such  excesses. 
But  there  was  work  to  be  done,  and  action  was  a  better  stim- 
ulant than  any  intoxicant.  The  enemy  had  again  evacuated, 
and  soon  orders  came  to  forward  and  to  push  tlie  enemy  at 
all  points  with  all  possible  vigor. 

The  Eighty-sixth  was  on  the  move  by  7  o'clock  a.  m. 
and  was  soon  close  upon  the  heels  of  the  enemy's  rear-guard. 
Johnston's  army  was  now  more  closely  hemmed  in.  His 
works  here,  as  everywhere  on  the  campaign,  were  of  the 
most  formidable  kind.  The  privates  of  the  Confederate 
army  were  becoming  more  disheartened  day  by  day,  and  the 
fall  of  their  late  Gibraltar  was  to  them  a  severe  blow.  The 
brigade  skirmishers  pushed  ahead  with  great  courage  and 
energy  and  brought  in  many  prisoners.  Some  of  these  cer- 
tainly were  not  averse  to  being  captured,  but  there  were 
others  that  fought  valiantly.  Tlie  Third  brigade  liad 
the  advance  of  the  division  and  corps,  and  the  Eighty-sixtli 
had  the  advance  of  the  column,  the  Fifty-ninth  being  on  the 
skirmish  line.  The  Eighty-sixth  kept  well  up  to  the  skir- 
mishers to  support  in  case  it  should  be  necessary.  The 
advance  was  necessarily  slow  with  constant  lighting,  but  the 
men  were  busy  the  whole  day  through.  The  command  fol- 
lowed the  road  on  the  left  of  the  railroad  and  .soon  passed 
Smyrna  Station. 

After  passing  Smyrna  a  short  distance  the  road  bore  off 
nearly  due  east  toward  the  river.  The  Fifty-ninth  gallantly 
pressed  on  after  the  enemy,  the  fighting  increasing  grad- 
ually in  intensity.  The  Eighty- sixth  still  kept  closed  upon 
the  Fifty-ninth.  After  passing  Mclvor's  and  winding 
around  the  base  of  McRae's  Hill  to  the  east,  the  fighting 
grew  still  more  furious.  On  by  Vining's  Station  and  the 
wagon  road,  turning  sharply  toward  the  east  and  the  river, 
revealed  the  situation  of  the  enemy  in  front.  The  Ciiatta- 
hooche  river  was  being  approached.  The  troops  in  front 
were  effecting  a  crossing  and  this  accounted  for  the  enemy's 
determined  resistance.  His  rear-guard  had  been  reinforced 
and  the   Fifty-ninth  was  given   a  red-hot  reception.     The 


404  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

road  on  which  the  command  was  advanchig  was  a  direct  one 
to  Atlanta,  and  crossed  the  Chattahoochee  river  at  Pace's 
Ferry  where  Johnston's  extreme  right  crossed. 

On  the  narrow  neck  of  land  between  McRae's  Hill  and 
Vining's  Station  on  one  side,  and  the  river  on  the  other,  the 
enemy  made  a  determined  stand,  but  General  Wood's  orders 
were  to  advance  and  give  him  battle.  The  advance  was 
slow,  as  the  enemy  was  in  a  desperate  straight  and  fought 
like  demons.  However,  step  by  step,  the  river  and  ferry 
were  approached.  The  time  had  come  for  still  more  decisive 
action.  The  lines  were  formed  and  a  dash  was  made  with  a 
hurrah  and  every  point  was  carried.  The  enemy  broke  and 
fled  precipitately  across  the  pontoon  bridge,  Avhich  he  had  at 
the  ferry,  but  not  all  succeeded  in  crossing,  and  quite  a  num- 
ber were  captured  on  the  bank  of  the  river.  The  pursuit 
was  so  hot  that  the  enemy  was  not  permitted  to  take  up  his 
pontoons.  To  save  himself  he  cut  its  mooring  on  the  west 
bank  of  the  river,  Avhen  it  swung  down  stream,  where  it 
remained  a  bone  of  contention  for  the  skirmish  line.  The 
enemy  held  the  east  bank  at  the  river,  and  a  withering  tire 
was  kept  up  the  rest  of  the  day  across  the  river  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  the  pontoon  boats.  Having  hustled  the  enemy 
across  the  river  in  front,  the  command  was  comparatively  at 
ease.  General  Thomas  and  other  Generals  came  by,  view- 
ing the  situation  and  learning  the  location  of  the  lines. 

This  was  another  triumph  for  General  Sherman  and  his 
army.  The  campaign  had  not  been  a  walk-over,  but  triumph 
had  followed  triumph  for  the  Union  soldiers  from  first  to 
last  at  every  point.  They  were  consequently  very  jubilant 
and  the  enemy  correspondingly  discouraged.  Cheers,  good 
hearty  cheers,,  would  go  ringing,  time  after  time,  around  the 
Union  long  battle  line  that  summer  afternoon,  to  inform  the 
enemy  how  happy  the  boys  were  over  their  long  and  success- 
ful campaign.  In  two  months  of  hard  marching,  skillful 
maneuvering,  and  constant  skirmishing  and  fighting,  Sher- 
man had  beaten  him  back  a  hundred  miles  over  mountain  and 
plain,  through  valleys  and  over  rivers — across  a  stretch  of 
country  the  most  defensible  at  every  turn.      "Old  glory" 


INDJANA   VOLUNTEERS.  405 

floated  to  the  breeze  all  along  the  long  battle-line  here  in  the 
heart  of  Georgia,  and  it  had  come  to  stay,  backed  as  it  was 
by  as  determined  a  host  of  free  men  as  ever  espoused  a  cause 
or  upheld  a  banner. 

The  Eighty-sixth,  with  the  rest  of  "Wood's  division, 
slept  undisturbed  the  night  of  the  5th.  for  the  booming  of 
cannon  broke  not  the  slumbers  of  the  men.  The  Chattahoo- 
chee river  lay  between  them  and  the  foe,  and  they  felt  per- 
fectly secure.  The  tiring  at  the  ferry  was  maintained  dur- 
ing the  night  and  flashed  up  at  daylight  the  next  morning 
into  quite  a  rattle  of  musketry,  and  at  times  the  batteries 
made  hill  and  dale  qual>e  with  the  mighty  roar  of  their  guns 
as  they  joined  the  fusilade  of  the  infantry.  Orders  were 
given  to  the  Eighty-sixth  to  remain  at  the  bivouac,  as  it  was 
thought  probable  that  the  command  would  move  sometime 
during  the  day.  There  was  no  duty  to  perform,  and  there- 
fore the  men  wrote  letters  home  and  lounged  about  and  dis- 
cussed the  situation.  On  the  right,  in  front  of  Baird's divis- 
ion of  the  Fourteenth  army  corps,  and,  in  fact,  in  front  of  the 
rest  of  the  army,  the  enemy  had  a  line  of  exceedingly  strong 
fortifications  on  the  west  or  north  bank  of  the  river,  and  had 
only  fallen  back  into  these  works  and  not  across  the  river  as 
they  had  been  forced  to  do  in  Wood's  immediate  front. 

In  the  evening  of  the  6th  a  heavy  detail  was  made  from 
the  Eighty-sixth  for  skirmish  duty  along  the  bank  of  the 
river  and  at  the  ferry.  The  detail  was  under  the  command 
of  Captain  James  R.  Carnahan,  of  Company  I,  and  relieved  the 
reserve  station  promptly  at  sundown  according  to  orders, 
and  the  out-standing  skirmishers  at  dark.  The  men  had  been 
on  the  line  but  a  short  time  until  a  conversation  arose  be- 
tween the  lines  on  opposite  sides  of  the  river.  This  conver- 
sation was  maintained  for  some  time  and  took  quite  a  wide 
range  of  subjects  for  discussion.  All  firing  soon  stopped  in 
the  vicinity  of  the  ferry,  as  everyone  wanted  to  liear  what 
was  said  on  both  sides.  The  conversation  was  ])rinci pally 
carried  on  by  Orderly  Sergeant  J.  M.  Cast,  of  Company  H. 
on  one  side,  and  by  Captain  Walker,  Ninth  Mississippi,  of 
Pat    Cleburne's   division,    Hardee's   corps,    on    the    other. 


406  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

although  others  on  both  sides  took  a  part.  Many  questions 
were  asked  and  answered  on  both  sides  in  the  best  of  humor. 
After  quite  a  good  deal  of  good  humored  bantering  about 
the  campaign  and  their  enforced  retreat,  the  question  v/as 
asked:  "How  far  are  you  going  to  retreat  before  you  get  to 
the  last  ditch?"  The  answer  came  back  promptly:  "We 
have  the  pontoons  already  on  which  to  cross  the  Gulf,"  and 
more  in  that  strain.  Finally  the  political  issues  of  the  day 
in  the  Northern  States  were  broached.  The  Captain  seemed 
quite  willing  to  talk,  and  to  the  question  of  his  Presidential 
preferences,  for  Lincoln  or  McClellan,  he  gave  a  ready 
answer.  He  said  McClellan  was  a  good  man,  the  friend  of 
the  South,  and  would  suit  the  Southern  people  in  general 
admirably.  He  intimated  that  peace  could  soon  be  estab- 
lished between  the  North  and  South  if  McClellan  were 
elected  President  by  the  Northern  States.  This  is  not  stated 
as  a  fact,  but  given  as  the  expressed  opinion  of  Captain 
Walker,  of  the  Ninth  Mississippi,  at  Pace's  Ferry  on  the 
Chattahoochee  river  the  night  of  the  6th  of  July,  1864. 
However,  he  was  very  politely  informed  by  the  Sergeant 
that  his  choice  did  not  stand  a  ghost  of  a  chance  for  election 
in  the  North,  and  that  he  would  be  doomed  to  disappoint- 
ment if  he  were  building  any  hopes  on  the  election  of  Mc- 
Clellan to  the  presidency.  He  was  informed  that  the  North 
w^ould  stand  nobly  by  Lincoln  and  Johnson.  Gradually  the 
conversation  ended  and  comparative  quiet  reigned  during 
the  rest  of  the  night. 

Just  after  noon  the  whole  regiment  came  out  to  the 
reserve  station  and  a  large  detail  was  placed  upon  the  line, 
extending  it  some  distance  to  the  right.  The  skirmishing 
was  lively,  and  the  enemy  no  doubt  exj^ected  an  attack.  The 
Union  artillery  maintained  a  strong  fire  for  quite  awhile  dur- 
ing the  afternoon.  The  brigade  struck  tents  and  moved 
about  one  mile  to  the  right,  closing  up  and  strengthening  the 
battle-line  in  front  of  the  enemy's  intrenched  line  on  the 
right  bank  of  the  river. 

Immediately  after  dark  a  number  of  Union  batteries 
opened  fire  on  the  enemy  just    across  the  river  at  Pace's 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  407 

Ferry.  It  was  one  of  the  hottest  and  most  terrific  cannonad- 
iiigs  heard  during  the  entire  campaign,  and  the  Eighty-sixth 
was  lying  under  it  all,  the  firing  being  almost  directly  over 
the  reserve  station.  The  boom  of  the  guns,  the  shriek  of 
the  shells,  the  roar  of  their  explosions  and  the  crashing  of 
the  falling  timber  on  the  farther  side  of  the  river  rendered 
it  terrible  indeed.  This  perfect  tornado  of  shot  and  shell 
rained  upon  the  trembling  enemy  for  a  good  long  hour.  It 
was  no  doubt  intended  by  this  fierce  cannonade  to  create  the 
the  impression  that  a  crossing  at  Pace's  Ferry  would  be 
forced,  or,  at  least,  would  be  attempted,  while  perhaps  a 
crossing  would  be  prepared  for  at  another  point. 

The  Eighty-sixth  was  relieved  from  the  skirmish  line 
about  9  o'clock  p.  m.,  the  7th,  and  marched  at  once  to  its  old 
place  of  bivouac.  The  following  morning,  tlie  8th,  it  joined 
the  brigade  some  distance  to  the  right  and  somewhat  more 
advanced  toward  the  enemy's  intrenched  position.  In  the 
afternoon  the  regiment  worked  hard,  fortifying  the  regi- 
mental line,  continuing  the  work  until  late  in  the  evening, 
and  completing  the  brigade's  line  of  intrenchmcnts,  which 
were  quite  strong.  On  the  morning  of  the  'Jth  the  regi- 
ment stood  to  arms  at  daylight,  according  to  orders,  to  be  in 
readiness  in  case  the  enemy  should  attempt  to  make  a  -sortie. 
The  enemy  not  appearing  the  regiment  was  soon  permitted 
to  break  ranks.  The  men  then  breakfasted  on  the  usual  fare 
of  hard  tack,  salt  pork,  and  black  coffee,  and  went  about  tlie 
duties  of  the  day,  and  attending  to  personal  matters.  The 
Third  brigade  had  no  very  special  duty  to  perform,  as  there 
was  no  strong  force  of  the  enemy  in  its  immediate  front. 
Therefore,  the  men  visited  comrades  in  the  various  com- 
mands near  the  Eighty-sixth,  washed  and  mended  clothing, 
cleaned  their  guns  and  accouterments  to  be  ready  for  any- 
thing whenever  a  call  was  made  upon  them.  Although  they 
did  not  consider  themselves  in  front  of  the  enemy,  an  occa- 
sional "stray"  ball  would  bring  down  a  man.  Some  of  the 
Eighty-sixth  boys  while  taking  observations  for  themselves, 
some  distance  in  front  of  the  regiment's  position,  found  a 
member  of  the  Nineteenth  Ohio,  who  had  been  brought  down 


408  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

by  one  of  these  strays,  being  quite  severely  wounded  in  the 
leg.  He  was  carried  to  his  regiment  and  left  in  the  care  of 
his  comrades.  Such  incidents  were  of  daily  and  almost  hourly 
occurrence  somewhere  on  the  long  battle-line. 

In  the  afternoon  of  the  9th  a  number  of  comrades  went 
back  about  one  mile  and  climbed  the  hill  known  as  McRae's 
Hill,  and  took  a  view  of  the  surrounding  country.  The  hill 
lies  to  the  west  of  the  railroad,  which  curves  around  its  base, 
between  it  and  the  river.  Prom  the  summit  of  this  hill  was 
had  a  splendid  view  of  the  country  far  and  near.  In  the 
immediate  front  lay  the  Union  forces  behind  their  intrench- 
ments.  drawn  well  up  to  those  of  the  enemy.  "Men  of  the 
North  and  West"  were  there  watching  and  waiting,  ready 
at  a  moment's  notice  to  pounce  upon  Johnston's  army  at  the 
least  favorable  opportunity  that  gave  them  any  hope  of  suc- 
cess. A  step  farther  on  was  the  red  bank  of  the  rebel 
breastworks,  which  could  be  seen  drawn  from  the  river  just 
above  Howell's  Perry,  a  mile  up  stream  from  the  railroad 
bridge,  across  the  country  in  front  of  the  railroad  crossing 
of  the  river  to  Turner's  Perry,  some  three  miles  distant  from 
Bolton,  at  the  railroad. 

The  salient  of  this  line  of  works  was  a  little  east  of  the 
railroad  and  was  probably  a  little  over  two  miles  distant. 
On  the  extreme  left  of  Johnston's  line,  his  works  ran  close 
up  to  Nickajack  creek  and  nearly  parallel  with  its  east  bank. 
The  line  was  admirably  chosen,  splendidly  fortified,  and 
could  easily  be  defended.  It  was  a  line  hard  to  approach. 
This  was  a  veritable  bulwark  in  Sherman's  pathway  for  an 
onward  march.  Just  behind  the  position  of  the  Confederate 
army  wound  the  river  in  its  course  to  the  gulf.  P\ill  from 
the  many  heavy  rains  it  ran  turbulently  between  the  hills 
and  over  its  rocky  bed.  But  the  vision  lingers  not  here  on 
the  turbulent  water  course,  but  darts  its  way  onward  to  the 
objective  point  of  the  campaign,  the  Gate  City  of  Georgia, 
the  fair  Atlanta.  There  the  white  houses  and  the  glittering 
church  spires  gleaming  in  the  sunlight  could  be  plainly  seen 
at  a  distance  of  eight  miles.  There  were  the  heavy  red 
enbankments  of  earthen  forts  and  their  connecting  intrench- 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  409 

ments  and  fortifications,  whose  coimter-scarps  are  protected 
from  approach  by  abatis  here  and  cJu'vaux-dc-fri.sc  there,  gave 
warning  that  the  great  prize  is  not  to  be  easily  or  lightly 
w^on.  Brave  Southerners  will  defend  it  as  long  as  a  single 
hope  of  success  remains  to  them.  This  fair  city  is  as  the 
apple  of  their  eye.  It  is  the  home  of  beauty  and  refinement, 
where  the  Southern  sentiment  is  cherished  as  life  itself,  and 
the  brave  never  fight  so  valorously  as  under  the  eye  of 
beauty.  Then  the  city's  manufactories  produce  that  which 
is  as  the  life-blood  and  sustenance  of  the  Confederacy.  The 
vision  wanders  away  eastward  to  the  grayish  blue  cone  of 
Stone  mountain,  which  can  be  plainly  seen  some  eighteen 
or  twenty  miles  to  the  southeast.  The  eye  falls  back  over 
wooded  hills  and  farm  openings  of  the  country  lying  north- 
east and  north  of  the  city  of  Atlanta,  and  drained  by  the  now 
historic  Peach  Tree  creek,  Avhose  waters  were  yet  to  be  dyed 
with  the  patriotic  blood  of  thousands  of  the  boys  in  blue. 
Bringing  the  line  of  vision  back  along  near  Buckhead  and 
crossing  the  river  at  Pace's  Ferry,  that  locality  is  scanned. 
Thence  northward,  the  vision  wanders  on  the  east  bank  of 
the  river  and  down  again  to  the  ferry;  thence  nortlnvard  on 
the  west  bank  of  the  river,  the  hills  and  valleys  of  Rotten - 
wood  creek,  on  over  Soap  creek,  by  Powers'  Ferry  and  on 
toward  Phillips"  Ferry  and  Roswell.  It  was  a  clear  bright 
day  and  it  w^as  a  splendid  landscape,  a  glorious  panorama  of 
nature's  varied  w^orks,  of  rivulet,  river,  mountain  and  ]ilain. 
When  McRae's  Hill  came  into  the  possession  of  the 
Union  forces,  there  on  its  side  near  its  top  was  found  thr 
body  of  a  man  suspended  by  a  rope  from  the  limb  of  a  tree. 
He  had  evidently  been  dead  some  days.  No  one  seemed  to 
know  anything  about  him.  Whether  a  suspected  Union  man 
who  suffered  the  vengeance  of  his  neighbors,  a  spy  of  our 
army  executed,  or  some  hot-headed  fire-eater  driven  to  des- 
peration on  account  of  Sherman's  conthuunl  success  and 
approach  to  his  home,  and  who  took  this  plan  of  "shutfliug 
off  the  mortal  coil,  "  none  could  learn.  At  any  rate  the  rebels 
had  not  concerned  themselves  enough  about  him  \o  cut  him 
down  and  bury  him.  and  the  Union  forces  had  not  treated 


410  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

him  any  better,  for  now  four  days  after  the  capture  of  the 
hill,  he  was  left  dangling  in  the  air.  From  papers  found  on 
his  person  it  was  learned  that  his  name  was  D.  B.  Duncan. 
Whether  he  ever  received  burial  or  not,  cannot  be  said.  He 
was  left  as  he  was  found,  hanging  by  the  neck  on  McRae's 
Hill. 

In  the  evening  of  the  9th,  Union  batteries  again  opened 
on  the  enemy's  position  and  for  sometime  maintained  a 
strong  artillery  fire.  This  was  done,  no  doubt,  with  the 
intention  of  feeling  the  enemy.  Cox  says:  "  From  this  hill 
near  Vining's  Station,  Sherman  was  able  to  see,  on  the  9th 
'  a  good  deal  of  flutter  in  the  enemy's  camps, '  and  movement 
of  troops  to  the  eastward,  which  might  mean  either  a  con- 
centration to  attack  the  force  already  over  the  river,  or  prep- 
arations for  taking  a  new  position. ' '  General  Schofield  had 
crossed  Cox's  division  on  the  8th  at  the  mouth  of  Soap  creek, 
at  Phillips'  Ferry,  and  Johnston  at  once  saw  that  his  position 
at  Bolton  was  no  longer  of  importance. 

On  the  morning  of  the  10th  word  came  early  that  the 
enemy  "had  folded  his  tents  and  quietly  stole  away,"  and 
again  the  boisterous  cheers  of  the  rugged  Northmen  went 
ringing  round  the  long  intrenched  lines  for  the  success  that 
had  so  signally  crowned  their  efforts  directed  by  the  match- 
less Sherman.  Another  stage  of  the  campaign  was  com- 
pleted and  the  army  was  yet  in  almost  perfect  shape  and 
condition.  The  regiment  was  insj^ected  by  companies, 
received  orders  to  march,  and  filed  out  from  its  camp  about 
9  o'clock  a.  m.  It  marched  to  the  north,  back  over  McRae's 
Hill  and  on.  The  day  was  exceedingly  hot  and  oppressive 
and  the  progress  of  the  column  was  slow.  About  3  o'clock 
p.  m.  it  began  to  rain  and  came  down  in  torrents.  The  road 
soon  became  slippery  and  the  marching  slavish.  The  men 
were  thoroughly  soaked,  but  they  continued  to  press  on 
until  about  6  o'clock,  and  bivouacked  not  far  from  the  Chat- 
tahoochee river. 

Wood's  division  lay  here  at  this  bivouac  ground  during 
the  11th  and  until  about  noon  of  the  12th,  when  it  marched 
out  down  the  river  for  some  distance  and  crossed  on  a  pon- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  411 

tx3on  bridge  at  Powers'  Ferry.  The  division  proceeded  about 
one  mile  farther,  bearing  off  to  the  right,  and  bivouacked. 
It  had  covered  five  miles  from  the  previous  night's  bivouac. 

On  the  morning  of  the  13th  the  Eighty-sixth  drew  three 
days"  rations  of  hard  tack,  sugar,  coffee,  pickled  pork,  and  a 
ration  of  that  abomination  known  as  "mixed  vegetables." 
A  little  corn  meal  was  issued  for  a  change.  About  8  o'clock 
a.  m.  orders  were  received  to  be  ready  to  move.  At  9  o'clock 
the  command  started  and  marched  to  the  right  front  of  its 
former  position  about  one  mile,  and  here  halted  and  got 
dinner.  After  dinner  the  regiment  was  ordered  to  lay  oif 
camp  in  regular  order,  which  was  soon  done  and  the  pup 
tents  put  up.  After  this  was  completed  the  camp  was  forti- 
fied by  building  a  line  of  intrenchments  along  the  color-line 
of  the  regiment,  connecting  with  those  to  the  left.  The 
works  were  made  good  and  strong  along  the  brow  of  the  hill 
on  which  the  brigade's  alignment  was  made.  On  the  14th  a 
heavy  detail  was  made  from  the  Eighty-sixth  for  picket  or 
skirmish  line.  There  was  no  enemy  to  be  seen  in  front,  but 
as  there  was  more  or  less  firing  on  other  parts  of  the  line  it 
seemed  probable  that  he  was  near.  The  men  did  not,  how- 
ever, relax  their  vigilant  watch. 

By  the  15th  enough  timber  had  been  cut  down  in  front 
to  enable  the  men  to  get  a  glimpse  of  Atlanta.  Rumors  in- 
numerable went  the  rounds  of  camp.  The  "grapevine  tele- 
graph" brought  much  news  of  the  movements  and  intended 
movements  of  troops  of  the  various  armies.  One  of  these  in 
circulation  this  day  was  that  a  strong  reconnoissauce  was  to 
be  made  soon,  probably  the  next  day,  and  that  the  Eighty- 
sixth  would  be  in  it.  These  rumors  often  had  some  founda- 
tion in  fact,  but  were  frequently  distorted  and  greatly  changed 
from  the  actual  moves  intended.  There  was  much  discussion 
amoni?  the  rank  and  file  as  to  Sherman's  probable  course  in 
the  advance  upon  the  city.  The  Eighty-sixth,  or  the  mem- 
bers of  it  with  many  others  of  the  grand  army,  constituted 
for  a  day  or  two,  a  kind  of  Congress  or  House  of  Commons, 
to  discuss  campaign  topics,  as  they  were  suggested  hour  by 
hour  by  the  "grapevine  telegraph."     The  news  from  other 


412  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

portions  of  the  army  was  quite  limited,  and  the  rumors 
served  to  occupy  tlie  thoughts  in  lieu  of  the  genuine  article 
of  news. 

Here  in  the  neighborhood  of  this  camp  there  were  not 
many  farm  openings,  consequently  there  was  not  much  for- 
aging. Pickled  pork  had  been  substituted  early  in  the  cam- 
paign for  the  old  rusty  bacon  on  account  of  it  being  so  much 
more  easily  kept.  The  hot  sun  of  June,  July,  and  August. 
in  this  climate,  would  have  almost  melted  the  bacon  into  a 
greasy  spot  and  left  the  men  without  meat.  Nothwithstand- 
ing  the  extreme  scarcity  of  forage,  occasionally  a  raid  would 
be  made  and  something  secured.  Apples  were  the  most 
plentiful,  and  they  were  by  no  means  abundant,  in  fact,  they 
were  about  the  only  accessible  foragable  article  that  could 
be  secured  at  this  camp.  A  few  of  these  were  brought  to  ] 
the  camp  of  the  Eighty -sixth  by  a  few  hardy,  resolute  for- 
agers. 

At  this  camp  on  the  hill,  on  the  afternoon  of  the  16th 
of  July,  every  heart  in  the  Eighty-sixth  was  made  glad  and  i 
greatly  to  rejoice  by  the  return  of  Colonel  George  F.  Dick', 
who  had  been  absent  since  receiving  his  wound  on  the  mem- 
orable night  of  the  27th  of  May  at  the  battle-field  of  Pickett's 
Mills.  He  was  looking  quite  well.  His  Avound  was  healed, 
but  it  was  still  very  tender  and  caused  him  much  pain  for 
some  time  after  this  when  on  horseback.  However,  ever 
after  his  return  he  was  always  at  the  head  of  the  regiment 
throughout  the  remainder  of  the  campaign  and  the  regiment's 
service.  In  the  evening  of  the  16th  the  Eighty-sixth  re- 
ceived orders  to  be  ready  to  march  at  4  o'clock  the  following 
morning. 

On  the  morning  of  the  17th  the  bugles  sounding  reveille 
awoke  the  echoes  at  3  o'clock.  Some  one  has  said  that  at 
reveille  the  bugle  said : 

Oh,  I  can't  got  'em  up, 

1  can't  get  'em  up. 

I  can't  get  'em  up  in  the  morning. 

No  doubt  the  Aveary  soldiers  often  felt  like  not  getting 
up  after  an  arduous  day's  duty  performed  with  but  a  few 
brief  hours  of  rest  and  sleep,  but  in  the  Eighty -sixth  there 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  413 

were  few  laggards  that  morning.  The  reghnent  was  sjDeed- 
ily  formed,  and  faced  to  the  right  and  marched  down  the  hill 
toward  the  river.  The  brigade  was  all  soon  in  column  and 
proceeded  down  the  river.  It  was  at  first  supposed  by  the 
rank  and  file  that  a  reconnoissance  was  being  made,  but  it 
proved  to  be  something  more.  It  soon  became  known  tliat 
Wood's  division  was  to  force  its  way  down  along  the  banks 
of  the  Chattahoochee  river  and  drive  back  any  force  of  the 
enemy  it  might  find  from  Pace's  Ferry,  and  hold  its  ground 
until  &  pontoon  bridge  could  be  laid  and  troops  crossed  at  that 
point.  After  proceeding  some  distance  the  division  was 
ordered  to  halt  and  "load  without  noise — without  the  rattle 
of  ram-rods.  "  This  was  a  warning  to  keep  quiet  on  account 
of  the  proximity  of  the  enemy.  Continuing  the  march  very 
quietly,  the  Third  brigade  in  advance,  the  vicinity  of  the 
ferry  was  soon  reached.  Here  everything  was  made  ready 
as  quietly  as  possible.  The  lines  were  formed,  and  then  a  dash 
out  from  the  ferrj^  was  made  for  the  enemy  who  were  guard- 
ing the  crossing.  For  a  few  minutes  the  sharp  rattle  of  mus- 
ketry might  have  betokened  a  battle,  but  the  enemy  soon 
hied  himself  away  to  greener  fields  and  pastures  new.  He 
got  away  with  his  old  time  agility,  when  taken  at  a  disadvant- 
age. It  is  not  meant  to  insinuate  that  the  Southern  soldiers 
are  cowards;  far  from  it;  never  did  braver  men  look  foemen 
in  the  face,  but  when  they  did  go  they  went  with  the  fleet  ness 
of  deers.  This  surprise  was  comx^lete.  The  bluff  back  from 
the  river  a  short  distance  on  which  the  enemy  was,  had  con- 
cealed Wood's  division  entirely  from  him,  while  Pahuer's 
men  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  river  were  in  plain  view  and 
could  illy  conceal  their  exultation  at  the  manner  it  had  been 
conducted,  and  how  the  wary  veterans  of  Johnston's  army 
had  been  caught  napping.  General  Wood  congratulated  the 
Third  brigade  on  its  splendid  success,  and  praised  it  highly 
for  the  handsome  manner  in  which  it  had  performed  its  diffi- 
cult task.  After  the  enemy  was  driven  back  some  distance, 
he  returned  to  the  attack  with  renewed  vigor  as  though  he 
had  been  strongly  reinforced,  and  doubtless  had  been.  But 
Wood's  skirmishers  maintained  their  position.    The  front  line 


414  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

of  battle  built  a  strong  line  of  intrenchments  as  a  bridge-j 
head,  and  therefore  was  r(3ady  for  an  attack  if  the  enemy 
chose  to  make  one.  ! 

The  pontoniers  were  at  work  as  soon  as  they  saw  Wood's 
division  would  probably  hold  its  ground  and  the  enemy  was 
well  out  of  the  way.  In  one  hour  and  eight  minutes  aflci 
the  work  was  begun,  the  bridge  began  to  swing  to  and  fio, 
swayed  by  the  cadenced  tread  of  armed  men  marching  hi 
column.  It  was  the  head  of  the  column  of  General  Jeff.  C. 
Davis'  division  of  the  Fourteenth  corps.  This  bridge  build- 
ing was  quick  work.  Johnson's  division,  of  the  Pourteenlli 
corps,  followed  Davis'.  Wood's  division  was  relieved  about 
4  o'clock,  when  it  marched  leisurely  back  to  its  old  campini^ 
ground  up  the  river,  to  take  its  proper  place  upon  the  line 
in  the  advance  to  be  made. 

All  the  heads  of  columns  of  Sherman's  grand  army  h;ul 
now  accomplished  the  difficult  task  of  crossing  the  river  in 
the  face  of  the  enemy  and  was  once  again  ready  to  give| 
Johnston  battle  on  his  own  ground.  The  former  maneuver 
ing,  skirmishing,  and  battles,  as  tine  as  the  one  had  been, ' 
and  as  fierce  and  desperate  as  the  others  were  in  character, 
they  were  in  a  sense  preliminary  and  introductory  to  the 
struggles  and  maneuvering  to  take  place  south  of  the  Chat- 
tahoochee and  around  the  city  of  Atlanta  for  its  ijossession. 
Every  foot  of  ground  was  to  be  stubbornly  contested  from 
the  time  the  skirmish  lines  became  engaged  after  the  Union 
forces  crossed  the  river  until  the  capture  of  Jonesboro,  south 
of  the  city.  Around  Atlanta,  indeed  many  notable  contests 
took  place  where  the  dauntless  courage  of  the  Southern 
soldiers  shed  new  luster  upon  the  red -cross  banner,  but  the 
iron-hearted  men  of  the  North  and  West  ever  met  them  with 
unflinching  firmness  and  courage,  and  day  by  day  gained 
ground  and  fought  them  foot  by  foot  into  their  impregnable 
fortifications.  True,  sometimes  advantages  rested  first  here, 
and  then  there,  but  the  successes  of  the  hardy,  unshrinking 
Northmen  greatly  jn-edominated  over  those  of  their  chivalric 
antagonists,  both  in  number  and  decisiveness.  When  Wood's 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  415 

division  returned  to  its  old  camp  on  the  evening  of  the  17th, 
the  men  knew  their  stay  there  would  be  short. 

On  the  morning  of  the  18th  of  July  the  regimental  bugle 
of  the  Eighty-sixth  sang  its  "waking  notes"  with  tho.se  of 
the  rest  of  the  brigade  at  3  o'clock  a.  m.,  and  the  men  turned 
out  promptly.  The  Eighty-sixth  struck  tents  and  packed 
everything  ready  for  the  onward  march.  At  9  o'clock  it  was 
ordered  into  line  and  stacked  arms.  At  10  o'clock  the  com- 
mand moved  out  on  the  road  for  Atlanta  that  leads  through 
Buckhead.  The  column's  progress  was  slow.  No  doubt 
the  utmost  caution  was  necessary.  The  skirmishing  was 
sufficient  to  show  that  the  enemy  was  alert  and  watching 
every  move.  About  11  o'clock  the  command  halted  for  din- 
ner. The  march  was  continued  in  the  afternoon  in  the  same 
deliberate  manner,  and  the  enemy  still  showed  himself  occa- 
sionally, firing  and  then  retreating.  The  command  biv- 
ouacked about  4:30  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  near  Buckhead, 
a  cross  road,  some  four  or  five  miles  south  of  east  of  Pace's 
Ferry,  due  north  of  the  city  of  Atlanta,  and  distant  from  the 
city  limits  about  five  miles.  Here  the  front  line  threw  up  a 
strong  line  of  intrenchments.  The  command  slept  soundly, 
feeling  secure  and  confident  in  its  ability  to  hold  its  part  of 
the  line  against  any  force.  On  the  following  morning,  the 
19th,  the  bugles  of  the  Third  brigade  broke  the  stillness  at 
3:30  a.  m.  In  a  few  minutes  the  camp  of  the  Eighty-sixth 
was  in  motion,  preparing  the  morning  meal  and  shaping  up 
things  for  a  busy  day.  The  brigade  moved  out  about  5:30 
and  advanced  to  the  skirmish  line,  probably  a  half  mile  or  a 
little  more  in  front  of  its  camping  place.  Here  the  Fifty- 
ninth  Ohio  was  deployed  upon  the  line  as  skirmishers  and 
the  Eighty-sixth  was  to  act  as  its  supi)ort.  As  soon  as  the 
lines  were  properly  formed  the  order  to  press  forward  was 
given  and  every  man  stepped  promjitly  onward.  The  enemy 
was  in  plain  view,  but  with  a  few  shots  he  withdrew  grad- 
ually falling  back  as  the  Fifty-ninth  advanced.  The  Eighty- 
sixth  kept  well  up  in  good  supporting  distance  of  the  Fifty- 
ninth.  The  enemy  retired  for  about  one  mile,  with  but  little 
show  of  resistance.     Coming  to  an  opening  along  a  small 


416  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

creek  he  showed  a  disposition  of  makiiio'  a  stand.  Division 
commanders  had  been  warned  to  be  ready  to  give  battle  any 
moment;  for  it  was  now  known  that  the  Confederate  army 
had  changed  commanders,  that  the  able  and  careful  Johnston 
had  been  relieved,  and  the  liery  Hood  given  the  command 
with  the  hope  that  his  desperate  fighting  qualities  might 
turn  the  tide  against  the  matchless  Sherman  and  his  unriv- 
aled army.  General  Sherman  had  warned  his  subordinates 
of  what  they  might  expect,  and  that  thej^  must  be  on  the 
alert  and  be  ever  ready  to  meet  and  beat  the  impetuous 
Hood.  Therefore,  in  the  approach  of  this  stream,  Peach 
Tree  creek,  the  utmost  caution  was  used.  On  the  farther 
bank  of  the  stream  the  enemy  had  taken  a  strong  position 
and  was  well  fortified  at  the  point  where  the  road  crossed 
the  creek.  At  this  point  the  stream  was  rathei'  difficult  to 
cross,  which  added  strength  to  the  enemy's  position.  As 
soon  as  it  was  apparent  that  the  enemy  was  in  some  force 
and  intended  making  a  stand  and  dispute  the  crossing,  the 
Eighty-sixth's  flankers  on  the  right  were  sw^ung  round  into 
line  with  the  Fifth-ninth  skirmishers,  extending  the  line 
some  distance  down  stream.  As  soon  as  this  movement  was 
completed  the  Union  forces  began  to  get  ready  for  the  strug- 
gle. But  the  enemy  was  well  posted  with  two  pieces  of 
artillery  which  were  well  served,  and  he  therefore  showed  a 
strong  disposition  to  stand  his  ground  and  fight,  at  least 
unless  a  much  greater  force  should  come  against  him.  His 
artillery  maintained  a  brisk  fire  on  the  Fifty-ninth  and 
Eighty-sixth,  but  nevertheless  the  men  still  kept  creeping 
upon  him  and  getting  into  positions  to  command  his  works 
and  artillery.  He  showed  a  bold  front,  and  all  the  indications 
were  for  a  savage  little  fight. 

When  the  flankers  upon  the  right  were  swung  into  line 
with  the  skirmishers  it  brought  them  up  to  a  rail  fence  in 
the  edge  of  the  woods,  just  north  of  an  opening  on  the  north 
bank  of  the  creek,  a  like  opening  being  on  the  opposite  bank. 
As  three  members  of  the  Eighty-sixth  came  up  to  this  fence 
and  began  taking  observations,  a  solitary  Johnnie  was  in 
sight,  a  long  legged  fellow  dressed  in  the  Confederate  gray 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  417 

was  walking  from  west  to  east  across  the  openin.s'  on  the 
south  bank  of  the  stream.  He  passed  along  as  leisurely  as 
though  no  enemy  was  within  miles  of  him.  One  of  the  com- 
rades remarked  that  he  would  quicken  that  "grayback's" 
step  for  him,  and  tired  at  him,  but  there  was  no  visible  effect. 
He  continued  on  his  way  as  if  nothing  had  happened.  Chaf- 
fing the  comrade  about  his  poor  marksmanship,  John  Wilson 
and  J.  A.  Barnes  hastily  .threw  their  Enfields  to  their  shoulders 
and  fired  at  the  lone  wanderer  as  he  was  still  proceeding 
leisurely  on  his  way.  As  they  fired  they  requested  their 
somewhat  chagrined  comrade  to  keep  a  watch.  It  was  quite 
evident  that  he  had  not  been  hurt.  But  never  did  any  one 
witness  a  greater  change  in  the  manner  of  one  who  was  ap- 
parently so  leisurely  walking  out  for  health  or  pleasure,  as 
took  place  in  this  gentleman,  dressed  in  Confederate  gray. 
If  ever  a  racer  proved  his  breeding  by  performance  this  fel- 
low certainly  did.  He  vanished  from  sight  in  the  twinkling 
of  an  eye.  He  turned  neither  to  the  right  nor  to  the  left, 
but  went  straight  to  his  "house  of  refuge,"  the  woods  in  his 
front.  He  had  no  need  to  turn  from  a  straightforward  course, 
for  there  was  not  a  blue-coat  in  all  Georgia  that  could  have 
fired  another  shot  at  him  before  he  was  out  of  sight.  But  he 
had  scarcely  reached  shelter,  when  a  white  puff  of  smoke  was 
seen  and  a  little  later  the  crack  of  guns  was  heard.  Wilson 
and  Barnes  were  still  standing  side  by  side.  The  spiteful 
szip  of  balls  was  heard  all  round  them,  and  one  passed  be- 
tween their  heads  and  shattered  a  small  pine  tree  about  six 
inches  in  diameter  just  behind  them.  They,  too,  took  to  cover 
and  the  fun  began,  and  the  boys  felt  confident  that  the 
Confederates  got  their  share  of  the  lead.  TW  apparent 
courtesies  of  the  day,  at  least,  were  about  even  on  this  pai't 
of  the  line. 

About  noon,  or  a  little  later,  the  fiaukers  were  relieved 
and  joined  the  regiment  at  the  road.  Here  Colonel  Diclc  ami 
the  Lieutenant  Colonel  of  the  Fifty-ninth  had  maneuver«>d 
and  watched,  but  as  yet  had  not  felt  themselves  justiticd  in 
pushing  the  head  of  the  column  too  far  in  advance  and  ui)()n 
this    fortified     position.       But    they    had    been    gradually 


418  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

strengthening  their  position  and  gaining  ground,  inch  by- 
inch,  until  as  the  afternoon  drew  on,  the  enemy's  artillery- 
was  almost  silenced  by  the  sharp  shooting  of  the  Fifty-ninth's 
skirmishers,  and  a  few  volunteers  from  the  Eighty-sixth. 
Wat  Baker,  of  the  Eighty-sixth,  was  quite  a  hero  on  this 
day.  Baker  had  been  termed  a  little  "shaky"  in  a  close 
place  by  his  comrades,  but  to-day  no  man  in  the  regiment 
showed  more  steadiness  of  nerve,  or  more  cool,  determined 
courage,  He  voluntarily  went  forward  to  sharp-shoot  on 
his  own  hook,  and  pressed  forward  right  up  to  the  bank  of 
the  creek,  carried  rails  and  built  himself  a  barricade  a  little 
to  the  right  of  the  road  and  ensconced  himself  therein.  It  is 
but  due  to  say  that  the  Fifty-ninth  and  Eighty-sixth  were 
accessories  to  this  act  of  Baker  by  keeping  a  close  watch 
upon  the  enemy.  Now,  too,  the  fire  of  the  Fifty-ninth  began 
to  increase  so  that  a  veritable  hail-storm  of  lead  swept  the 
parapet  of  its  works.  About  4  o'clock  it  was  understood 
other  columns  were  about  ready  to  cross  and  arrangements 
were  made  to  force  the  crossing  here.  It  was  red-hot  now 
for  a  time,  but  the  skirmishers  of  the  gallant  Fifty-ninth 
held  squarely  to  the  work  and  kept  the  enemy  closely  con- 
fined within  his  intrenchments.  About  5  o'clock  the  enemy 
once  more  manned  his  guns  and  opened  fire.  It  was  at  short 
range  and  the  shells  burst  in  the  faces  of  the  men  and  the 
grape  and  canister-shot  rattled  around  them  like  hail.  But 
the  preparation  for  an  assault  upon  his  works  faltered  not, 
and  Colonel  Dick  was  forming  the  regiment,  that  had  been 
lying  down,  to  make  a  dash  right  in  the  face  of  the  guns  for 
their  capture,  when  heavens,  what  a  racket!  Was  the  enemy 
shooting  fence  rails,  or  what  was  the  matter?  The  rebel 
artillerists  were  broken  up  and  demoralized,  and  in  the  excite- 
ment and  hurry  had  fired  their  rammer — a  fatal  mistake. 
The  unearthly  whiz  and  whirr  attracted  the  attention  of  the 
Union  lines,  and  when  it  was  discovered  what  it  was,  a  shout 
went  up.  No  time  was  taken  in  getting  into  line.  The 
Colonel  shouted,  "Forward,  Eighty-sixth,"  and  it  went 
across  that  creek  with  a  rush,  and  the  whole  kit  of  Confed- 
eoates  took  to  their  heels,  or,  at  least,  all  who  were  not  too 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  419 

badly  frightened  to  run;  for  about  sixty  of  them  remained  in 
their  works,  and  were  captured  with  their  two  pieces  of 
artillery,  among  them  being  a  Lieutenant  Colonel,  several 
Captains  and  First  and  Second  Lieutenants.  Wishing  to 
do  full  justice  to  the  gallant  Fifty -ninth  it  must  be  said  that 
it  was  always  at  the  front,  as  its  position  demanded,  and 
those  on  the  skirmish  line  in  the  race,  having  the  start,  kept 
it.  Both  regiments  acted  in  concert  and  were  justly  proud 
of  their  day's  achievements.  The  prisoners  gave  a  doleful 
story  of  their  day's  trials.  They  said  actually  that  they  had 
not  dared  to  stick  their  heads  above  the  works  only  at  the 
extremest  peril  of  their  lives,  and  a  number  of  dead  bodies  in 
their  trenches  verified  this  statement.  This  was  the  rea.son 
of  their  capture.  A  strong  skirmish  line  with  a  good  sup- 
port pursued  them  for  some  distance,  and  the  rest  of  the 
brigade  took  a  strong  position  on  the  hill  formerly  occupied 
by  the  enemy  and  fortified  it,  facing  in  the  other  direction, 
and  thus  made  the  crossing  of  Peach  Tree  creek  secure. 
Sometime  after  nightfall  the  regiment  was  relieved  and 
returned  to  its  bivouac  ground  of  the  previous  night  at  Buck- 
head,  where  it  arrived  about  11  o'clock  at  night.  It  had  been 
an  arduous  but  a  successful  day's  work. 


CHAPTER  XXV. 
PEACH  TREE  CREEK  TO  LOVEJOY'S  STATION. 

Closing  in  On  Atlanta— Clear  Creek— A  Hot  Time— The  Eighty-sixth  in  Front  of 
the  Gate  City— The  Battle  of  the  22d  of  July— Skirmishing  and  Making  Dem- 
onstrations—The Battle  of  Ezra  Church— The  Great  Move  Around  Atlanta- 
Destroying  Railroads— Hood's  Flight  From  Atlanta— His  Stores  Destroyed 
and  Magazines  Blown  Up— The  Battle  of  Jonesboro— The  Battle  of  Lovejoy's 
Station— Sherman  Withdraws  to  Atlanta— The  Losses  of  the  Campaign— Con- 
gratulations From  President  Lincoln. 

Wood's  division  was  again  in  motion  by  5  o'clock  on  the 
morning  of  tlie  20th,  moving  to  the  left  to  connect  with  Stan- 
ley, who  had  also  moved  to  the  left  to  touch  elbows  with 
Scholield's  command  that  had  closed  up  McPherson's  right, 
the  Fifteenth  corps.     McPherson's  command  was  swinging: 
round  from  Decatur  toward  Atlanta  for  the  final  struggle. 
About  10  o'clock,  having  proceeded  perhaps  four  miles  with 
great  caution.  Wood's  division  was  halted  at  some  intrench- [ 
ments  which  Stanley's  division  had  left  when  moving  to  the 
left.     It  remained  here  quite  a  while,  and  the  regiment  took 
advantage  of  the  time  and  prepared  dinner,  and  was  soon 
again  ready  for  any  duty.     Shortly  after  dinner  the  march 
was  again  resumed,  but  the  progress  was  extremely  slow  as 
the  roads  were  badly  blockaded.     The  country  was  almost 
wholly  covered  with  a  heavy  forest,  and  an  attack  might  be! 
expected  at  any  time.     About  5  o'clock  p.  m.,  the  skirmish- 
ers of  Stanley's  division  became  hotly  engaged  with  those  > 
of  the  enemy  to  such  a  degree  as  to  strongly  threaten  a  bat- 
tle.    A  little  later  Wood's  skirmishers  were  also  engaged 
and  the  skirmish  battle  was  quite  hot.     Wood's  skirmishers; 
pressed   forward    in   a  most  determined  manner  and  drove 
those  of  the   enemy  some  distance  from   where  the  battle 
began.     The  line  of  battle  also  pressed  forward  and  confi- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  421 

deutly  expected  to  meet  the  enemy  in  force,  but  did  not.  Tlie 
alignment  being  completed  the  men  were  ordered  to  fortify 
as  speedily  as  possible.  The  command  remained  here  at 
this  line  for  the  night.  There  had  been  some  heavy  firing 
to  the  right  during  the  afternoon,  in  fact,  the  great  battle  of 
Peach  Tree  Creek  had  been  fought  and  won  by  the  Union 
forces.  Newton's  division,  of  the  Fourth  corps,  about  a  half 
mile  south  of  where  Wood  forced  the  crossing  of  the  creek, 
had  been  first  attacked,  and  afterwards  successively  from  left 
to  right  the  divisions  of  the  Twentieth  corps.  This  battle 
took  place  about  the  same  time  that  Schofield,  with  the 
Twenty-third  corps,  and  Howard,  with  Stanley's  and  Wood's 
divisions,  w^ere  pressing  some  distance  farther  to  the  left. 
The  Eighty-sixth  threw  out  skirmishers  and  rested  quietly 
for  the  night,  feeling  sure  that  the  morning  would  bring 
duties  no  less  arduous  than  those  of  the  preceedlng  days. 
The  Eighty-sixth  was  undisturbed  by  the  skirmishing, 
that  was  a  daily  and  hourly  business.  On  the  morning  of  the 
21st  a  detail  w^as  made  from  the  Eighty-sixth  for  the  skir- 
mish line.  The  men  w^ere  scarcely  upon  the  line  and  the  old 
relief  gone  when  the  order  was  given  to  "Forward."  There 
was  not  a  commissioned  oflicer  upon  this  part  of  the  line. 
The  skirmishers  of  the  Third  brigade,  commanded  by  a  Ser- 
geant, did  not  hesitate,  and  when  the  order  was  given  to 
advance,  these  veterans  went  briskly  forward  througli  woods, 
through  thickets,  over  hills  and  across  hollows.  This  com- 
mand w^as  now  in  the  "breaks"  of  Clear  creek.  Crossing  a 
small  stream  the  line  of  skirmishers  climbed  the  hill  on  the 
rebel  side.  All  this  advance  had  taken  less  time  than  it  has 
taken  to  write  it.  But  during  the  succeeding  four  hours  the 
skirmish  fire  from  both  sides  was  extremely  hot.  As  rapidly 
as  the  skirmishers  could  load  they  would  fire.  Of  course 
they  sought  protection  behind  trees  and  logs,  but  the  manner 
in  which  the  enemy's  skirmishers  peeled  the  bark  from  the 
sheltering  trees  was  a  credit  to  their  marksmanship.  The 
distance  between  the  Union  lines  and  those  of  the  enemy  was 
perhaps  one  or  two  hundred  yards,  and  anywhere  in  the 
neutral  ground  a  man  would  be  doomed  to  certain  death. 


422  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

One  Eighty-sixth  skirmisher  heated  his  gun  so  hot  by  rapid 
firing  that  it  actually  melted  the  soldering  of  the  lower  sight 
and  it  came  off  the  barrel.  More  than  one  gun  was  so  hot 
that  it  would  burn  the  hand  very  quickly  'if  placed  on  the 
lower  part  of  the  barrel.  Another  relief  came  out  about  9 
o'clock  a.  m.,  but  it  was  scarcely  posted  until  the  enemy 
skipped  out,  leaving  the  Union  boys  in  possession  of  his[ 
evacuated  works.  This  line  was  only  an  out-post  and  not  a 
main  line.  The  command  was  soon  ordered  into  line  and 
advanced  in  battle  array,  the  Eighty-sixth  being  in  the  sec- 
ond line.  The  progress  was  slow.  About  2  o'clock  p.  m. 
the  men  had  a  breathing  spell  and  dined.  Later  in  the  after- 
noon, having  closed  up  on  the  enemy,  the  Eighty-sixth  w^as 
ordered  to  stack  arms  and  carry  rails  for  the  front  line  to 
assist  it  building  in  haste  a  line  of  works,  as  an  attack  w^as  ex- 
pected, and  as  it  was  in  an  exposed  position.  A  heavy 
line  of  the  enemy's  skirmishers  was  only  distant  about  three 
hundred  yards  and  was  keeping  up  a  sharp  fire,  and  with  con- 
siderable effect.  The  Eighty-sixth  faced  the  music,  but  it  was 
of  a  most  unpleasant  and  unhealthy  kind.  Every  man  worked 
like  a  Trojan.  Here  fell  Thomas  McCartney,  of  Company 
D,  shot  dead  by  the  enemy's  skirmishers.  There  were  sev- 
eral wounded  -whose  names  can  not  now  be  recalled.  The 
work  being  finally  completed,  and  the  first  line  secure  in  its 
position,  the  Eighty-sixth  withdrew  to  its  bivouac,  and  sup- 
pered  on  hard  tack,  beans,  pickled  pork  and  coffee,  and  slept 
as  though  profound  peace  reigned  over  all.  To  put  it  briefly, 
with  skirmishing,  marching,  and  fatigue  duty  the  men  were 
almost  ' '  done  up. ' '  Rest  and  sleep  were  absolute  neces- 
sities. 

General  McPherson's  Army  of  the  Tennesee  w^as  swing- 
ing round  from  Decatur  and  advancing  on  Atlanta  on  the 
extreme  left — from  the  east.  Hooker  and  Palmer,  on  the 
right — the  latter  on  the  extreme  right — had  also  advanced 
and  the  whole  army  was  once  more  well  up  to  the  enemy's 
works.  In  case  he  retired,  it  would  probably  be  to  take  a 
position  within  the  forts  in  and  around  Atlanta  and  his 
connecting  works,  and  these  were  presumably  stronger  than 

I 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  423 

any  which  yet  had  been  confronted.  Should  the  matchless 
Sherman  fail  to  secure  Atlanta,  his  former  successes,  now 
reckoned  the  greatest  during  this  great  w^ar  uj")  to  this  time, 
would  be  counted  as  nothing,  and  his  star  now  shining  with 
such  splendor  would  undoubtedly  wane.  But  Sherman  was 
not  to  fail.  Aided  by  Thomas,  Howard,  Schofield,  and 
others,  and  all  these  backed  by  the  great  and  splendid  army, 
he  could  not.  It  was  not  so  cast.  This  great  army  of  vet- 
eran soldiers,  the  equal  of  Caesar's  legions  or  the  Grecian 
phalanx,  never  ceased  to  hammer  and  bang,  to  batter,  break 
and  destroy  Hood's  army — an  army  of  the  purest  Southern 
mettle — in  open  field,  in  camp,  on  the  flank,  in  the  center 
and  under  cover  of  the  strongest  intrench ments.  It  was  to 
the  rebel  host  an  ever  present,  gigantic,  sleepless,  devastat- 
ing monster,  implacable  as  fate,  crushing  all  before  it.  or 
going  off  in  a  rollicking,  wild,  tempestuous  mood  around  the 
Confederate  army,  to  smash  its  railroad  connections  and 
obliterate  its  communications.  It  swallowed  with  ravenous 
maw  all  subsistence  within  reach  of  its  ten  thousand  ten- 
tacles, and  trampled  under  foot  and  wallowed  upon  it  with 
utter  recklessness  in  the  spirit  of  destruction  that  which  it 
could  not  otherwise  use.  It  struck  here  and  there  staggering 
blows,  until  Hood  knew  not  what  next  to  expect  or  wliich 
Avay  to  turn;  and  Jeff  Davis,  the  Confederacy's  demi-god, 
was  himself  dumbfounded  and  frightened  into  a  state  of 
nervous  trepidation  almost  beyond  belief,  and,  in  fact,  little 
short  of  actual  collapse.  It  was  plain  to  be  seen  by  all  that 
General  Sherman  and  his  Western  boys  were  at  the  throat 
of  the  Confederacy  and  that  its  days  were  numbered. 

The  morning  of  the  22d  of  July  found  the  members  of 
the  Eighty-sixth,  but  imperfectly  rested  from  the  previous 
day's  labors.  In  fact,  the  labors  for  several  days  previous 
had  been  especially  heavy  and  wearisome.  The  nights  were 
short  and  the  hours  allotted  for  rest  were  insufficient  to  fully 
recover  from  the  exhausting  labors  of  the  day.  The  enemy 
had  again  fallen  back  from  his  works  of  the  previous  even- 
ing. The  command  moved  out  about  7  a.  m.,  advancing  in  a 
cautious  manner.      The  Third  brigade,  of  Wood's  division, 


424  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

proceeded  about  two  miles  in  battle  array  through  woods 
and  fields,  over  hills  and  across  hollows,  stopping  for  noth- 
ing, the  Eighty-sixth  in  the  front  line.  At  length,  crossing 
a  stream — Clear  creek  or  one  of  its  tributaries — the  Eighty - 
sixth  mounted  a  wooded  hill  or  ridge  and  came  into  plain 
view  of  the  enemy's  main  line  of  intrenchments  for  the  de- 
fense of  the  city  of  Atlanta,  distant  about  three-quarters  of 
a  mile,  or  a  little  less,  with  a  strong  line  of  skirmish  pits  less 
than  a  quarter  of  a  mile  away  from  the  Eighty-sixth's  regi- 
mental front.  Colonel  Dick  speedily  gave  orders  to  perfect 
the  regimental  alignment.  The  Colonel's  alignment  of  the 
regiment  was  not  changed,  and  the  men  fortified  their  line  as 
they  were  first  placed  upon  the  ridge.  The  whole  regiment 
w^orked  hard  and  it  soon  had  a  good  strong  line  of  intrench- 
ments. The  rebel  skirmishers  could,  however,  make  it  un- 
pleasantly "hot"  whenever  they  chose  to  do  so,  nor  did  they 
seem  to  be  in  a  very  amiable  mood  while  the  men  were  en- 
gaged in  constructing  their  fortifications,  but  made  the  mus- 
ket balls  fairly  whistle  and  sing.  The  main  line  of  the 
enemy's  intrenchments,  which  was  in  plain  view,  fairly 
swarmed  with  Confederates  who  seemed  to  be  working  very 
industriously  to  complete  or  strengthen  their  works.  By 
11:30  a.  m.  the  men  felt  pretty  securely  intrenched,  with  the 
Twenty-third  army  corps  in  position  and  fortified  on  the  left. 
About  noon  firing  was  heard  on  the  extreme  left  announc- 
ing the  attack  on  Dodge's  Sixteenth  corps  of  McPherson's 
Army  of  the  Tennessee.  It  grew  in  volume  rapidly  as  troops 
farther  to  the  right  became  engaged.  It  is  not  the  intention 
to  attempt  a  description  of  the  great  battle  of  Atlanta  fought 
by  the  gallant  Army  of  the  Tennessee,  contending  almost 
unaided  against  the  rebel  hordes,  nor  how  fell  the  gallant 
McPherson  and  how  the  heroic  Logan  took  up  the  desperate 
chance  of  battle,  and  with  the  courage  a  Ney  and  the  skill 
of  a  Napoleon,  fought  it  out  to  a  successful  and  magnificent  fin- 
ish. Nor  will  it  be  told  how  imperturbable  and  grand  the  great 
Sherman  was  wiien  word  was  brought  him  that  his  loved 
Lieutenant,  McPherson,  had  fallen.  He  was  simply  unap- 
proachably grand  in  this  supreme  ordeal.     Great  in  council. 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  425 

he  was  still  greater  in  the  field  and  in  action,  and  the  greater 
the  occasion  and  the  more  severe  the  trial  the  higher  rose 
and  clearer  shone  the  bright  sun  of  Sherman's  great  military 
genius.  As  was  said  of  him  by  one  of  his  ablest  subordi- 
nates: "His  mind  seemed  never  so  clear,  his  confidence  never 
so  strong,  his  spirit  never  so  inspiring,  and  his  temper  never 
so  amiable  as  in  the  crisis  of  some  fierce  struggle  like  that 
of  the  day  when  McPherson  fell  in  front  of  Atlanta. "' 

The  Eighty-sixth,  with  the  rest  of  the  Army  of  the  Cum- 
berland, received  orders  to  be  ready  to  move.  This  meant 
that  aid  was  to  be  sent  to  the  Army  of  the  Tennessee  if  nec- 
essary. General  Sherman  himself  says:  "  I  remained  near 
the  Howard  House,  receiving  reports  and  sending  orders, 
urging  Generals  Thomas  and  Schofield  to  take  advantage  of 
the  absence  from  their  front  of  so  considerable  a  body  as  was 
evidently  engaged  on  our  left,  and,  if  possible,  to  make  a 
lodgment  in  Atlanta  itself;  but  they  reported  that  the  lines 
to  their  front,  at  all  accessible  points,  were  strong,  by  nature 
and  by  art,  and  were  fully  manned. "  But  the  skirmish  lines 
made  strong  demonstrations  and  threatened  an  attack,  while 
the  line  of  battle  stood  to  arms,  but  it  was  not  deemed  pru- 
dent to  make  more  than  a  strong  demonstration.  Still  the 
movements  evidently  led  the  enemy  to  believe  that  an  attack 
was  contemplated,  as  he  opened  a  hot  fire  all  along  the  Hue. 
The  roar  of  all  his  available  artillery  made  the  noise  of  bat- 
tle scarcely  less  on  this  part  of  the  line  than  that  on  the  line 
of  the  Army  of  the  Tennessee.  The  batteries  replied  giving 
him  shot  for  shot.  The  tide  of  battle  ebbed  and  flowed 
almost  without  ceasing — a  red  and  furious  scourge  upon  both 
armies — until  about  5  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  when  the  ene- 
my, being  thoroughly  beaten,  withdrew  his  shattered  legions 
safely  within  his  strong  line  of  intrenchments.  Hood  had 
again  been  beaten  and  quite  severely  handled  by  a  small  \X)r- 
tion  of  Sherman's  great  army  when  he  had  thought  to  crush 
it  and  beat  it  in  detail,  but  he  had  been  foiled  and  had  lost 
heavily  of  the  flower  of  his  army,  among  whom  was  Major 
General  William  H.  T.  Walker,  killed.  In  the  evening  the 
Eighty-sixth  received  orders  to  sleep  close  to  its  works  and 


426  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

to  be  ready  to  repel  an  attack.  Bat  Hood  had  had  enough 
for  one  day  and  the  men  slept  in  comparative  quiet  that 
night.  On  the  morning  of  the  23d  the  Eighty-sixth  awoke 
considerably  refreshed  from  a  good  all  night  sleep. 

Sherman's  grand  army  was  now  facing  the  immediate 
defenses  of  the  city  of  Atlanta.  Tw^o  great  battles  had  been 
fought  since  crossing  the  Chattahoochee  river  and  the 
enemy  had  been  sev^erely  handled  and  badly  beaten  in  both 
instances — he  being  the  attacking  party.  But  such  desper- 
ate fighting  had  taught  the  whole  Union  army,  from  Sher- 
man down  to  j)rivate,  what  they  might  expect  of  Hood  w^hen- 
ever  he  had  a  hope  of  gaining  ground  by  attacking  in  an 
unlooked  for  direction  with  a  chance  of  surprising  and  crip- 
pling his  enemy.  However,  Hood  and  his  generals  and  pri- 
vates had  also  learned  of  the  stubborn  fighting  qualities  of 
the  men  from  the  West — a  lesson  which  they  did  not  soon 
forget.  On  account  of  the  general  tension  felt  by  both 
armies  the  Eighty-sixth  with  the  rest  of  the  Union  forces 
were  up  on  the  morning  of  the  23d  before  daylight  and 
breakfasted.  Soon  after  sunrise  the  enemy's  batteries 
opened  on  the  position  of  the  Eighty-sixth  in  a  brisk  man- 
ner. The  shot  and  shell  shrieked  and  roared  in  a  way  quite 
complimentary  to  the  accuracy  of  the  rebel  gunners'  aim, 
but  the  men  were  safely  ensconced  behind  good  strong 
breastworks.  It  was  deemed  prudent  to  strengthen  the 
works  and  place  some  artillery  on  the  regimental  line. 
Accordingly  during  the  forenoon  of  the  23d  two  pieces  of 
the  Sixth  Ohio  battery  were  placed  in  position  on  the  line  of 
the  Eighty-sixth's  intrenchments.  They  were  brass  pieces, 
Napolean  12-pounders,  and  splendidly  served.  Again  in  the 
afternoon  the  enemy  opened  a  hot  fire  on  the  Eighty-sixth. 
He  chose  to  direct  his  fire  upon  it  probably  because  it  lay  in 
plain  view.  He  sent  over  shot  and  shell  in  abundance  and 
made  it  quite  unsafe  to  be  out  from  under  cover  of  the  pro- 
tection of  the  w^orks.  One  solid  shot  struck  the  regiment's 
line  of  works  and  completely  shattered  it  where  it  struck. 
A  piece  of  timber  knocked  from  the  log  struck  James  A. 
Shaw  on  the  hip,  wounding  him  severely  so  that  he  died  in 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  427 

about  one  week  afterward.  He  was  just  in  the  act  of  tilling,' 
his  pipe  to  take  a  smoke,  or  reaching  for  some  tobacco  to 
fill  it,  when  he  was  struck.  The  same  shot  struck  a  gun  which 
was  laid  up  against  the  head -log  and  knocked  it  against  the 
head  of  Atkinson  Hill,  bending  it  almost  at  right  angles 
upon  itself  against  his  head.  He  was  quite  severely  hurt  by 
being  bruised,  but  his  wound  did  not  prove  dangerous.  The 
ball  rolled  to  the  foot  of  the  hill  back  of  the  works  and  was 
picked  up  and  brought  back  up  to  the  trench.  The  fire  was 
maintained  some  time,  but  this  was  about  all  the  damage 
done  to  the  Eighty-sixth  that  day.  On  the  24th  the  skir- 
mishing and  artillery  firing  were  repeated  at  intervals 
throughout  the  day.  Generals  Sherman,  Thomas,  Howard, 
and  others  rode  round  the  lines  viewing  and  examining  the 
situation  -of  the  army.  On  this  day,  too,  the  Fifty-ninth 
Ohio  constructed  a  line  of  intrenchments  and  occupied  it  in 
front  of  the  Eighty-sixth  which  somewhat  relieved  it  from 
watching  for  the  enemy,  but  in  no  sense  screened  it  from  his 
fire.  On  the  25th  the  Eighty-sixth  received  an  order  to 
extend  its  line  of  works  on  the  left  well  up  to  the  banks  of  a 
small  stream — a  tributary  of  Clear  creek — which  was  a  few 
rods  to  left  of  the  regiment's  first  line.  The  enemy  made  it 
extremely  hot  for  the  fatigue  party  during  the  entire^  time  it 
was  at  work.  John  Mann,  of  Company  H,  and  Jacob  Hauk, 
of  Company  B,  were  slightly  wounded.  On  the  2(3th  there 
was  the  usual  skirmishing.  On  the  27th,  the  Army  of  the 
Tennessee  was  in  motion  from  the  left  to  take  i)osition  on 
the  extreme  right  under  command  of  General  O.  O.  Howard, 
the  Fourth  corps'  former  commander.  Upon  discovering 
this  movement  the  enemy  opened  a  hot  artillery  fire  all  along 
the  line,  which  was  well  maintained  for  some  time  with  slioi-t 
intervals.  The  Sixth  Ohio  battery,  two  guns  of  which  were 
on  the  line  of  the  Eighty -sixth,  showed  some  fine  practice, 
making  some  splendid  shots  at  the  enemy's  works  in  n^ply. 
As  the  evening  advanced,  however,  the  fire  slackened. 

On  the  morning  of  the  28th  of  July  the  Eighty -sixth  was 
up  betimes.  The  morning  was  pleasant  and  not  so  exces- 
sively hot  as  it  had  been  for  some  days  previous.    The  move- 


428  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

tnent  of  the  Army  of  the  Tennessee  was  continued  on  the 
right.  This  caused  some  irritation  and  the  rebel  skirmishers 
were  in  bad  humor.  In  turn  the  blue  coats  replied  manfully. 
In  the  afternoon  the  rebel  artillery  opened  a  strong  tire. 
Bridges'  Illinois  battery  and  the  Sixth  Ohio  battery  replied 
with  interest.  Later  in  the  day  it  was  learned  the  cause  of 
the  enemy's  irritable  mood.  Hood  had  ordered  an  attack  on 
the  Army  of  the  Tennessee,  which  was  going  into  position 
on  the  right.  One  that  day  the  skirmishers  were  ordered  to 
advance.  Dashing  forward  in  a  most  impetuous  manner 
they  captured  the  enemy's  line  of  pits,  taking  quite  a  num- 
ber of  prisoners  before  they  could  get  out  of  their  pits. 
Others  took  time  by  the  forelock  and  started  a  little  sooner 
and  escaped.  These  the  brave  blue  coats  pursued  right  uj^ 
to  the  enemy's  main  line  of  intrenchments,  when  a  line  of 
battle  was  seen  to  come  over  the  works  and  advance.  The 
Union  skirmishers  fell  back  in  orderly  manner,  showing 
great  coolness  and  steadiness  of  nerve  in  the  face  of  over- 
powering numbers.  Falling  back  some  distance  the  skir- 
mish line  took  up  a  good  position  which  was  intrenched  and 
maintained  as  long  as  the  command  remained  here. 

Howard's  battle  on  the  right  was  known  as  the  battle  of 
Ezra  Church.  The  brunt  of  the  battle  fell  upon  Logan's 
Fifteenth  corps,  but  the  enemy  was  easily  defeated.  Great 
loss  was  inflicted  upon  the  assaulting  forces.  It  is  probable 
that  the  attack  of  the  Union  skirmishers  was  timed  to  act  as 
a  diversion  in  favor  of  the  right.  It  certainly  had  the  effect 
to  create  the  suspicion  in  Hood's  mind  that  his  right  would 
in  turn  be  attacked  by  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland,  as  late 
in  the  afternoon  he  ordered  Hardee  to  leave  his  corps  on  the 
right  and  take  command  of  the  attacking  forces,  while  he, 
Hood,  would  remain  where  he  could  watch  the  right  which 
was  threatened  by  Thomas  with  his  army. 

On  the  29th,  30th  and  31st  there  was  the  usual  cannonad- 
ing and  skirmishing  throughout  the  days  and  nights,  but 
nothing  decisive  occurred.  On  the  1st  of  August  the  Eighty- 
sixth,  with  several  other  regiments  of  the  brigade,  received 
orders  to  be  ready  to  march  at  6:30  a.  m.     They  reported  at 


i 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  429 


division  headquarters  at  7  o'clock  and  received  instructions. 
They  were  to  march  to  left  rear  of  the  divisions  and  corps 
some  distance  and  build  a  line  of  intrenchments,  the  extreme 
left  to  be  sharply  refused,  while  the  right  of  the  newly  con- 
structed line  was  to  connect  with  the  left  of  the  Third  divis- 
ion line  of  intrenchments.  This  was  done  preparatory  to 
moving  Schofield's  Twenty-third  corps  to  the  right  in  the 
endeavors  of  General  Sherman  to  out-flank  Hood  and  reach 
the  Montgomery  and  Atlanta  railroad.  Schofield's  command 
moved  on  the  night  of  the  1st,  leaving  the  Fourth  corps  on 
the  extreme  left  of  the  army,  Wood's  division  being  the  ex- 
treme left  of  the  infantry  line  of  Sherman's  grand  army  in 
front  of  Atlanta.  This  position  it  held  until  the  final  move 
around  Atlanta  was  undertaken.  The  new  line  of  intrench- 
ments was  occupied  by  cavalry  and  mounted  infantry.  On 
the  2d,  during  the  forenoon,  there  was  the  usual  skirmish- 
ing with  some  artillery  firing.  Sherman,  however,  was 
pushing  the  right  vigorously  forward  toward  the  raih'oad. 
In  the  afternoon  the  Eighty-sixth,  with  the  rest  of  the  brigade, 
were  ordered  into  the  ditch  with  gun  and  cartridge-box. 
This  command  was  promptly  executed,  and  in  a  very  few 
minutes  the  skirmish  line  was  ordered  forward.  The  blue- 
coats  went  across  the  open  field  in  their  front  very  leisurely 
and  in  splendid  style  until  within  a  couple  of  hundred  yards 
of  the  enemy's  line  of  rifle-pits,  when  they  received  the 
enemy's  full  fire.  Previous  to  this  there  had  been  a  few 
scattering  shots  fired,  but  now  the  whole  line  of  the  enemy's 
skirmishers  gave  them  a  fiery  blast.  Then  the  advancing 
line  gave  the  yell  and  literally  ran  over  the  enemy,  taking 
the  pits  by  storm  and  capturing  thirty  or  forty  prisoners, the 
others  saving  themselves  by  starting  early.  The  gallant 
manner  in  which  the  line  advanced  and  took  possession  of 
the  enemy's  pits  is  worthy  of  all  commendation  and  praise. 
Company  I,  of  the  Eighty-sixth,  had  one  man  wounded.  Tlu' 
line  was  held  twenty  or  thirty  minutes,  when  a  line  of  battle 
was  seen  to  come  over  the  enemy's  works  and  advance.  The 
skirmishers  fell  back  in  good  order  and  took  up  their  ijosition 
in  the  fortified  line  on  the  hill.     No  further  attack  was  made. 


430  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

From  this  time  on  while  in  front  of  the  city  it 
was  one  round  of  slcirmishing  and  "demonstrating"  against 
the  enemy  with  fierce  artillery  duels  thrown  in  for 
noise.  No  pen  or  pencil  can  describe  or  paint  the  scenes  of 
those  days  to  one  who  was  not  an  eye  witness  of  them  in  a 
manner  to  be  comprehended.  The  trials  undergone  and  the 
dangers  escaped  by  all  who  passed  through  the  fearful  days 
Before  Atlanta  can  never  be  told  in  words. 

On  the  5th  of  August  the  Eighty-sixth,  led  by  Colonel  G. 
F.  Dick,  made  a  demonstration.  Filing  out  over  the  works 
the  regiment  advanced  down  the  hill  in  front,  passed  that  of 
the  Fifty-ninth  Ohio,  and  on  toward  the  enemy.  As  it  passed 
down  the  hill  in  front  of  Fifty-ninth  the  enemy  literally 
shaved  it  with  a  storm  of  balls,  yet  the  regiment  marching 
in  open  order  escaped  with  a  few  slightly  wounded.  One 
comrade  had  his  clothing  cut,  another  some  of  his  accouter- 
ments,  while  a  third  had  his  chin  whiskers  unceremoniously 
clipped  by  a  musket  ball.  Having  crossed  a  small  stream  in 
front  of  the  Fifty-ninth  and  ascending  half  way  up  the  hill 
on  the  other  side,  the  regiment  was  ordered  to  halt  and  lie 
down.  Now,  that  the  men  were  not  in  motion  and  compara- 
tively secure  from  musketry  fire,  the  batteries  oi^ened  at  a 
lively  rate,  dropping  their  shells  uncomfortably  near.  After 
marching  around  for  a  time  the  regiment  returned  to  camp. 

On  the  6th  a  heavy  detail  was  made  from  the  Eighty- 
sixth  for  the  skirmish  line,  and  from  this  time  on  until  the 
close  of  the  seige  the  boys  had  a  full  share  of  the  fun. 

On  the  12th  the  Eighty-sixth  was  again  ordered  out  to 
make  a  demonstration  against  the  enemy.  The  orders  were 
promptly  obeyed  and  with  the  Colonel  at  its  head  the  regi- 
ment marched  over  the  hills.  There  were  no  laggards  in 
ranks  that  afternoon.  The  ravine  was  not  of  itself  a  dis- 
agreeable place  to  lounge  at  ease.  Through  it  ran  a  pleas- 
ant little  brook,  pellucid  and  bright,  that  babbled  merrily 
on  its  way  to  the  Chattahoochee.  But  even  here  the  enemy's 
shells  rendered  it  anything  but  a  desirable  position  to  hold. 
As  soon  as  the  Eighty-sixth  had  taken  its  position  in  the 
ravine  the  skirmishers  were  ordered  to  advance  and  had  a 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  431 

hot,  malicious  time  with  the  Confederates,  trotting  them 
out  of  their  pits  at  a  lively  rate  and  annoying  them  not  a 
little.  The  regiment  was  out  about  thirty  minutes,  but  that 
was  quite  long  enough.  On  the  17th  a  demonstration  was 
made  by  the  Thirteenth  Ohio,  Seventeenth  Kentucky  and  the 
Eighty-sixth  Indiana.  As  long  as  there  was  a  man  of  the 
three  regiments  in  sight  passing  over  the  hill  the  enemy  was 
busily  engaged  in  popping  away  at  him.  The  Thirteenth 
had  one  man  severely  wounded.  They  were  out  only  for  a 
short  time,  when  all  three  regiments  returned  to  their  respect- 
ive camps.  In  a  short  time,  however,  the  Thirteenth  and 
Seventeenth  were  out  again  going  the  rounds  of  the  circuit 
and  drawing  a  sharp  fire  from  the  enemy,  which  fell  upon 
the  camps  as  well  as  the  troops  in  position. 

On  the  18th,  in  the  forenoon,  the  Ninth  Kentucky  made 
a  demonstration,  and  had  two  or  three  men  wounded.  About 
12:30,  the  Seventh  Kentuck}'"  made  a  demonstration  against 
the  enemy,  returning  to  its  camp  in  a  short  time.  There 
were  a  few  hours  of  comparative  quiet — until  about  3  o'clock 
p.  m.,  when  the  Eighty-sixth  was  ordered  out.  The  regi- 
ment marched  out  promptly  led  by  Colonel  Dick  over  the  hill 
toward  the  enemy  to  the  music  of  the  guns  of  the  rebel 
sharpshooters.  In  the  ravine  the  regiment  filed  left  and 
made  a  circuit  of  the  hill  out  of  sight  of  the  enemy,  and  came 
up  from  the  rear,  and  again  marched  out  upon  the  breast  of 
the  hill,  and  then  marched  to  left  in  plain  view  of  the  enemy 
to  create  the  impression  that  our  forces  were  massing  upon 
the  left.  About  2  o'clock  a.  m.  on  the  morning  of  the  19th, 
the  regiment  was  called  oat  and  ordered  to  be  ready  at  3 
o'clock.  The  Eighty-sixth  was  ready  at  the  appointed  time 
and  moved  out  to  the  left.  The  command  moved  to  the  left 
rear  some  two  or  three  miles  and  halted,  waiting  daylight. 
Taking  a  defensible  position,  the  command  breakfasted  at 
sunrise.  Shortly  after  a  strong  detachment  was  sent  out 
on  a  reconnoissance.  This  force  returned  about  10  a.  m., 
and  reported  that  it  found  the  enemy  in  force  some  distance 
in  front  and  skirmished  with  him.  A  few  were  wounded  and 
a  Captain  in  the  Ninetieth  Ohio  was  killed.     Soon  after  the 


432  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

return  of  the  reconnoitering  force  the  command  moved  still 
farther  to  the  left.  Here  the  Eighty-sixth  drew  rations  of 
hard  tack,  coffee  and  sugar  and  some  sanitary  rations  of  dried 
apples  and  onions.  About  3  p.  m.  orders  were  received  to 
return  to  camp,  reaching  there  a  little  before  sun-down,  but 
to  find  the  camp  stripped.  The  troops  from  the  other  regi- 
ments had  come  in  and  carried  off  bunks,  tent-poles  and  all 
movables,  to  their  own  camps  for  their  own  comfort.  This 
excited  the  ire  of  the  boys  of  the  Eighty-sixth,  but  aside 
from  an  irruption  of  profanity,  nothing  was  attempted  to  rec- 
tify the  error.  Immediately  the  skirmish  line  of  the  Third 
brigade  made  a  spirited  demonstration  against  the  enemy, 
attacking  the  rebel  skirmish  line.  No  results  of  special  ad- 
vantage could  be  obtained  by  the  line  of  blue-coats  and  they 
leisurely  returned  to  their  position  in  the  pits.  Again  on  the 
20th  the  Eighty-sixth  was  called  up  at  2  a.  m.,  and  ordered 
to  be  ready  to  move  in  thirty  minutes.  Colonel  Dick  was  at 
the  head  of  the  regiment  in  column  in  good  time  and  marched 
to  the  position  of  the  previous  day.  Remained  here  until 
9:30  a.  m.,  when  it  was  ordered  to  return  to  its  position  in 
the  trenches.  On  the  21st  the  Eighty-sixth  repaired  its  loss 
of  bunks  and  tent-poles.  Many  necessaries  for  camp-life 
had  been  carried  away  and  it  took  a  great  deal  of  work  to 
supply  the  camp  with  those  things  to  make  the  men  reason- 
ably comfortable.  On  this  day  CaiDtain  W.  S.  Sims,  of  Com- 
pany P,  took  leave  of  the  officers  and  men  of  the  regiment, 
having  resigned  on  account  of  continued  serious  illness. 
The  Captain  was  a  brave,  faithful  and  efficient  officer,  and 
he  left  with  the  kindly  wishes  and  to  the  regret  of  the  entire 
regiment. 

It  had  been  the  rumor  in  camp  for  ten  or  twelve  days 
that  General  Sherman  contemplated  placing  one  corps  at  the 
Chattahoochee  river  and  with  the  rest  of  the  army  make  a 
circuit  of  desolation  around  Atlanta,  destroying  Hood's  rail 
way  connections,  and  thus  force  him  to  come  out  and  fight 
for  the  possession  of  the  city  or  evacuate  it.  Of  this  Sher- 
man says:  "On  the  13th  of  August,  I  gave  general  orders 
for  the  Twentieth  corps  to  draw  back  to  the  railroad  bridge 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  433 

at  the  Chattahoochee,  to  protect  our  trains,  hospitals,  spare 
artillery,  and  the  railroad,  depot,  while  the  rest  of  the  army 
should  move  bodily  to  some  point  on  the  Macon  railroad 
below  East  Point.  Circumstances,  however,  prevented  this 
[movement  being  executed  at  once. " 

On  the  evening  of  the  25th  of  August,  after  a  day  of 
rumors  and  flying  reports  of  all  kinds  throughout  the  camps 
and  trenches,  came  the  orders  for  the  contemplated  move- 
[ment  above  referred  to.  The  Eighty-sixth  with  the  rest  of 
the  Fourth  corps  were  ordered  that  as  soon  as  it  was  dark, 
|So  as  not  to  be  seen  by  the  enemy,  to  strike  tents  and  get 
everything  ready.  The  move  was  to  commence  at  8  o'clock 
p.  m.  The  Eighty-sixth  was  ready,  and  Colonel  Dick  only 
awaited  orders  to  set  forward.  But  the  regiment  did  not 
leave  its  breastworks  and  old  camp  until  near  the  hour  of 
!midnight,  when  it  moved  slowly,  silently,  but  steadily  to  the 
right  rear,  halting  just  before  daylight  and  securing  a  little 
rest  and  sleep.  The  command  was  well  in  behind  the  Twen- 
itieth  corps  which  still  held  its  line  of  works,  while  Garrard's 
cavalry  occupied  the  vacated  works.  At  this  place  the  men 
were  ordered  to  fortify  and  began  the  work,  when  they 
ireceived  orders  to  continue  the  march.  The  day  was  excess- 
ively hot  and  many  suffered  greatly  from  the  heat.  In  the 
afternoon  a  shower  of  rain  fell,  rendering  the  roads  slippery 
land  made  marching  very  laborious.  Many  will  long  remem- 
•ber  this  day's  march  and  its  trials.  Near  sundown  the  com- 
mand bivouacked  well  to  the  right  of  the  former  position  of 
|General  Sherman's  great  army. 

[  During  the  night  of  the  26t]i,  the  Twentieth  corps  drew 
jout  of  its  works  and  retired  to  an  intrenched  line  at  the 
(Chattahoochee  river.  On  the  27th  the  command  marched  a 
few  miles  in  the  forenoon,  and  intrenched  its  bivouac  in  the 
afternoon,  an  attack  being  apprehended.  The  enemy's  bat- 
teries maintained  a  brisk  fire  for  sometime,  but  did  no  sor- 
jious  damage.  The  position  of  the  Eighty-sixth  was  on  a 
high  hill  and  it  had  a  splendid  view  of  the  surrounding 
jcountry,  especially  in  front,  which  was  mostly  heavily 
wooded.     The  location  of  their  skirmish  line  could  be  plainly 


434  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

seen  and  farther  away  was  a  great  cloud  of  dust  evidently- 
caused  by  a  body  of  marching  troops. 

The  command  remained  at  this  place  of  bivouac  until 
near  sundown  on  the  evening  of  the  28th,  when  the  bugles  of 
the  brigade  sounded  the  ' '  assembly, ' '  and  the  regiment  soon 
marched  out  guarding  the  supply  train.  In  consequence  of 
this  duty  the  progress  was  very  slow  and  the  marching 
tedious  and  irritating.  The  command  guarding  the  train 
bivouacked  about  midnight  after  a  most  exasperating  night 
march.  The  morning  of  the  29th  was  a  busy  one  for  the 
Eighty-sixth.  The  command  was  aroused  early  and  break- 
fasted soon  after  sun-up.  The  brigade  was  soon  on  the  move 
to  rejoin  the  command  and  had  rations  issued  while  on  the 
road,  a  brief  halt  being  called  for  that  purpose.  Soon  after 
resuming  the  march  General  Thomas'  headquarters  were 
reached,  where  baggage  was  left,  and  started  out  on  quick 
time  to  reach  the  Montgomery  and  Atlanta  railroad,  two 
miles  distant.  Turning  to  the  left  the  command  marched 
about  a  mile  toward  East  Point,  there  stacked  arms,  and  pro- 
ceeded to  the  destruction  of  the  railroad.  This  was  done  by 
prying  up  the  ends  of  the  ties  and  then  enough  men  would 
get  hold  of  the  ends  of  the  ties  and  turn  ties,  iron  rails  and 
all  over  like  a  great  prairie  sod  from  a  huge  x^low.  After 
this  the  rails  were  knocked  loose  from  the  ties,  the  ties  were 
piled  and  burned,  the  rails  placed  upon  the  burning  ties  and 
heated  and  bent  or  twisted,  until  unfit  for  use  until  worked 
over.  In  this  manner  tlie  railroad  was  completely  destroyed. 
The  task  was  completed  and  the  command  started  on  its 
return  to  bivouac  near  headquarters  about  1  o'clock.  There 
the  Eighty-sixth  furnished  a  detail  for  picket.  The  com- 
mand moved  out  on  the  30th  at  6  o'clock  on  the  route  of  the 
previous  day  until  the  railroad  was  crossed,  when  it  then 
turned  to  the  left  and  marched  in  the  direction  of  the  Macon 
and  Atlanta  road.  The  line  of  march  after  crossing  the  rail- 
road was  nearly  directly  east.  Generals  Sherman  and  Thomas 
accompanied  this  column  while  on  the  march.  The  weather 
was  extremely  hot,  which  rendered  marching  difficult. 
There  was  some  heavy  cannonading  on  the  right  where  Gen- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS,  435 

eral  Howard,  with  the  Army  of  the  Tennessee,  was  advanc- 
ing. Skirmishing  in  the  immediate  front  was  light,  but  still 
the  command  had  to  feel  its  way  with  extreme  caution. 
Appearances  were  quite  threatening  at  one  time  during  the 
afternoon;  the  column  was  halted,  and  the  men  ordered  to 
intrench,  but  soon  received  orders  to  "forward.  "  It  pressed 
on  about  oue  and  a  half  miles  and  was  halted  again,  where 
another  line  of  intrenchments  w^as  begun,  but  quit  work  for 
supper  before  very  much  w^as  done.  After  supper  it  moved 
forward  about  a  half  mile  and  bivouacked  for  the  night. 

On  the  morning  of  the  31st  the  command  was  up  early 
and  breakfasted  before  sun-up.  The  boys  were  now  in  a 
section  of  country  where  they  could  gobble  roasting  ears, 
and  consequently  were  living  high  for  campaigners.  The 
artillery  opened  fire  on  a  rebel  train  during  the  morning  and 
made  it  pretty  hot  for  it,  apparently  delivering  a  very  accur- 
ate fire  and  causing  the  Confederates  to  move  out  at  a  lively 
rate.  The  early  part  of  the  day  was  quite  cloudy,  but  warm 
and  sultry,  which  did  not  conduce  to  comfort.  The  command 
moved  out  about  8  o'clock,  but  did  not  go  far  until  an  align- 
ment was  made,  and  the  troops  were  ordered  to  intrench 
themselves.  The  work  had  not  progressed  far  when  they 
were  again  ordered  forward.  The  advance  was  made  stead- 
ily, bearing  somewhat  to  the  left.  The  corps  soon  passed 
through  a  line  of  rebel  intrenchments,  supposed  to  have  been 
recently  abandoned,  and  showing  the  enemy  to  be  in  some 
force  in  the  immediate  front.  The  line  of  march  was  nearly 
parallel  with  the  Montgomery  railroad.  About  noon  the 
command  halted  for  dinner,  still  near  the  railroad.  Later  it 
advanced  about  one  mile,  bearing  to  the  right,  anil  bivouacked 
for  the  night,  the  Eighty-sixth  furnishing  a  heavy  detail  for 
the  picket  or  skirmish  line.  There  was  some  firing  on  tlie 
left  in  the  evening,  Schofield's  corps  having  come  up  witli 
the  enemy.  The  First  and  Second  divisions  of  the  Fourth 
corps  being  upon  the  right,  the  Second  connecting  with  the 
Third  division  and  the  First  to  the  right  of  that.  CJeneral 
Jeff  C.  Davis,  with  the  Fourteenth  army  corps,  was  still  to 
the  right  of  these  two  divisions,  but  moved  off  early  in  the 


436  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

day  to  connect  with  Howard's  Army  of  the  Tennessee.  So 
the  army  became  divided  and  extended  very  much  in  the  face 
of  the  enemy,  who  might,  if  cognizant  of  the  situation,  re- 
peat his  tactics  of  July  with  a  better  chance  of  success  than 
in  his  former  attack,  as  the  two  corps  would  not  constitute  a 
force  numerically  as  strong  as  the  force  before  attacked. 

On  the  morning  of  the  1st  of  September,  Wood's  division 
moved  forward  toward  the  Macon  and  Atlanta  railroad, 
nearly  due  east,  about  8  o'clock.  It  soon  connected  with 
Newton's  Second  division  and  pressed  on  steadily,  but 
slowly.  After  a  halt  of  a  half  hour  at  noon  far  dinner  the 
march  was  continued,  the  Third  brigade  reaching  the  rail- 
road about  2  o'clock  in  the  afternoon.  Stacking  arms,  the 
men  proceeded  to  wreck  the  railroad  in  an  eifective  manner. 
After  that  was  done  the  command  lay  here  for  some  time 
awaiting  orders.  It  then  advanced,  moving  south  along  the 
railroad.  Cannonading  and  heavy  musketry  could  be  heard 
in  front  and  a  little  to  the  right  of  the  railroad,  the  Four- 
teenth corps  having  attacked  the  enemy.  As  the  battle-field 
was  approached  the  pace  was  quickened.  The  command, 
Wood's  division,  was  ordered  to  close  up  and  were  massed 
by  "columns  of  divisions"  well  up  to  the  line  of  battle  on 
the  left  of  the  railroad,  and  there  awaited  further  orders. 
The  enemy  at  once  opened  with  their  batteries  at  quite  a 
lively  rate,  although  his  fire  was  not  very  destructive.  Just 
as  the  division  arrived  the  Fourteenth  army  corps  charged 
the  enemy's  works  a  little  to  the  right  of  the  railroad,  and 
captured  the  salient  angle  of  the  enemy's  line  at  that  point. 
Estes'  brigade  of  Baird's  division  carried  the  salient,  with 
Carlin's  division  upon  his  left,  and  Morgan  upon  his  right. 
These  forces  closing  down  upon  the  forces  contending  with 
Estes'  troops  captured  General  Govan  and  eight  hundred 
and  sixty-five  men.  This  was  the  second  assault  made  here 
by  the  Fourteenth  corps.  The  enemy  fell  back,  formed  a 
new  line,  and  held  it  securely  until  nightfall,  Hardee  show- 
ing good  generalship  and  the  splendid  fighting  qualities  of 
his  men.  The  columns  of  attack  suffered  severely.  The 
enemy  also  suffered  heavily  in  killed  and  wounded,  besides 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  437 

losing  a  great  many  prisoners.  This  was  known  as  the  Bat- 
tle of  Jonesboro'.  Some  time  after  the  heavy  fighting  was 
over  Wood's  division  was  moved  farther  to  the  left  and 
bivouacked  about  10  o'clock  p.  m. 

About  1  o  "clock  on  the  morning  of  September  2,  the  men 
were  aroused  from  a  deep  and  tired  sleep  to  view  the  indica- 
tions to  the  northward.  There  at  a  long  distance  could  be 
seen  the  reflection  of  a  great  light  against  the  sky  as  if  a 
huge  fire  was  present.  It  was  in  the  direction  of  the  city  of 
Atlanta,  but  that  was  all  that  was  known.  It  looked  encour- 
aging as  it  was  known  that  all  the  enemy's  lines  of  railroad 
communication  were  now  in  possession  of  Union  troops.  But 
tired,  as  the  men  were,  they  soon  sought  their  lowly  beds  to 
rest  and  sleep  that  they  might  be  ready  for  the  morrow's 
duties.  About  4  o'clock  the  men  were  again  aroused.  Now 
the  light  was  even  greater  than  before,  and  to  the  great 
light  was  added  the  sound  of  heavy  cannonading  or  reports 
of  the  bursting  of  innumerable  shells.  Had  Atlanta  been 
attacked  by  the  forces  remaining  behind,  or  was  it  being 
evacuated,  was  the  question  upon  every  tongue.  "The  city 
is  on  fire!"  "The  rebels  have  attacked  the  Twentieth  corps 
at  the  river!"  "The  rebels  are  burning  their  immovable 
stores  and  evacuating  the  city!"  and  other  similar  remarks 
according  to  the  ideas  of  the  various  speakers,  could  bo 
heard  here  and  there  all  over  the  bivouac.  The  latter  was 
believed  to  be  the  state  of  affairs  and  the  men  felt  glad  at 
heart  to  think  that  they  were  about  to  be  successful  in  get- 
ting possession  of  this,  the  enemy's  stronghold.  But  the 
men  were  too  tired  to  stay  up  long  and  watch  even  the  burn- 
ing of  the  rebel  munitions  of  war,  as  they  verily  believed  it 
to  be,  when  it  was  not  a  matter  of  compulsion,  and  therefore 
all  were  soon  again  quietly  sleeping.  But  all  were  turned 
out  and  breakfasted  shortly  after  daylight.  Some  light  skir- 
mishing occurred  in  the  early  morning  with  the  enemy's 
rear-guard,  he  having  evacuated  during  the  night. 

The  command  moved  back  near  the  railroad  where  it 
was  shelled  so  lively  the  previous  evening  and  drew  rations 
—three  days'  to  do  four— hard  tack,  bacon,  sugar  and  coffee. 


438  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

The  command  was  then  marched  up  to  the  outskh'ts  of  the 
town  and  again  halted  for  a  time.  The  enemy  in  his  extreme 
haste,  left  many  of  his  dead  unburied,  and  large  nmnbers  of 
his  wounded  behind.  The  march  was  continued  on  to  the 
southward,  still  following  the  retreating  enemy.  Wood's 
division  bore  off  to  the  left  of  the  railroad  somewhat,  but 
continued  the  march  on  a  country  wagon  road  running 
almost  parallel  with  the  railroad.  After  proceeding  some 
five  or  six  miles,  three  companies  of  the  Eighty-sixth  were 
placed  out  to  the  left  as  flankers  for  the  column  in  its 
advance.  The  division  soon  encountered  the  enemy  in  an 
intrenched  position.  A  line  of  battle  was  formed.  Orderlies 
and  staff  officers  dashed  here  and  there,  up  and  down  the 
line,  bearing  orders  and  giving  instructions  to  the  brigade 
commanders  and  commanders  of  regiments.  Everywhere 
were  seen  the  indications  which  betokened  that  an  assault 
was  to  be  made  upon  the  enemy's  position.  The  line  of 
flankers  was  ordered  to  swing  round  as  skirmishers  to  pro- 
tect the  flank  of  the  column  of  the  Third  brigade  in  its 
assault  upon  the  enemy.  The  line  of  battle  advanced  slowly 
until  it  was  believed  to  be  within  proper  distance,  when  the 
yell  was  given  and  a  dash  made  for  the  enemy  and  his  works. 
Then  came  the  tug  of  war.  Knefler's  brigade,  on  the 
extreme  left,  charged  and  carried  the  enemy's  works,  but 
could  not  maintain  its  hold,  as  it  was  subject  to  an  enfilad- 
ing fire  on  both  flanks.  The  attack  was  nobly  sustained 
for  some  time,  the  Confederates  as  bravely  defending  their 
position.  The  advantage  was  upon  the  enemy's  side  and  the 
Union  forces  were,  at  length,  compelled  to  give  ground  and 
retire  with  considerable  loss.  General  T.  J.  Wood,  the 
division  commander,  was  severely  wounded.  Colonel  Man- 
derson,  of  the  Nineteenth  Ohio,  was  dangerously  wounded. 
Captain  Oscar  O.  Miller,  Assistant  Adjutant  General,  of 
the  Third  brigade,  a  noble  officer,  was  killed.  Lieutenant 
Colonel  C.  D.  Bailey,  of  the  Ninth  Kentucky,  was  severely 
wounded.  The  Eighty-sixth  lost  a  number  of  men.  Eli 
Duchemin,  of  Company  P,  was  mortally  w^ounded.  Orderly 
Sergeant  J.  M.  Cast  was  struck  in  the  bottom,  of  the  foot  by 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  439 

a  musket  ball,  causing  him  considerable  pain,  but  only 
inflicting  a  contused  wound,  not  serious.  Thomas  B.  Parks 
received  a  severe  flesh  wound  through  his  shoulder.  The 
ball  inflcting  this  wound  passed  through  his  folded  blanket 
both  in  front  and  behind  his  shoulder,  cutting  thirty-eight 
holes  in  his  blanket  and  a  notch  out  of  one  edge.  This  is 
known  as  the  Battle  of  Lovejoy's  Station. 

The  skirmish  fire  continued  quite  sharp  throughout  the 
evening.  The  enemy  thought  for  once  he  had  the  advantage. 
After  a  supper  of  bacon  and  hard  tack,  the  Eighty-sixth,  and 
the  whole  of  the  army  on  the  front  line,  worked  hard  until 
nearly  midnight  constructing  a  line  of  intrenchments.  Gen- 
eral Sherman  did  not  deem  it  advisable  subsequently  to  press 
the  attack,  as  he  was  led  to  believe  that  Hood  had  halted  to 
cover  his  retreat,  and  then  it  was  too  late  to  intercept  him. 

On  the  3d  the  artillery  was  placed  in  position  on  the  line 
of  the  division  and  kept  up  a  hot  fire  on  the  enemy.  He 
made  up  for  his  lack  of  artillery  by  the  briskness  of  his  skir- 
mish firing  which  was  almost  uninterrupted.  Quite  a  num- 
ber of  the  regiment  was  wounded  here  on  the  3d,  4th  and 
5th.  On  the  4th  James  Williams,  of  Company  K,  was  severely 
wounded  in  the  leg  while  lying  in  his  pup  tent  just  back  of 
the  line  of  works  a  few  paces. 

The  command  remained  here  until  the  night  of  September 
5.  In  the  afternoon  of  that  day  orders  were  received  to 
strike  tents  at  dark.  It  was  of  course  presumed  that  it  woukl 
return  to  Atlanta  and  go  into  camp  for  a  brief  rest  at  least. 
There  was  much  quiet  joy  and  rejoicing  in  ranks,  as  the 
campaign  had  been  one  of  unremitting  toil  and  dangers,  and 
all  thought  they  had  well  earned  a  brief  period  of  reixjsc  for 
recuperation. 

Sergeant  Major  T.  H.  B.  McCain,  who  had  been  a  mem- 
ber of  Company  I,  and  Hugh  Reilly,  of  Company  K.  on  that 
day  received  their  commissions  as  First  Lieutenant  of  their 
respective  companies.  The  documents  had  scarcely  reached 
their  hands  until  they  w^ere  detailed  as  otficers  in  charge  of 
the  skirmish  or  picket  line.  On  them  devolved  the  duty  of 
withdrawing  the  outposts,   which  was  done  about  11  p.  m. 


440  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

after  the  command  had  started  toward  Atlanta.  The  night 
march  of  the  5th  was  one  of  the  hardest  and  most  difficult 
short  marches  the  Eighty-sixth  ever  made.  It  'had  rained 
very  hard  and  the  ground  was  wet  and  very  slippery.  Strict 
silence  was  enjoined  on  getting  ready  to  leave  camp.  The 
regiment  and  column  wound  their  way  over  steep  slippery 
hills  and  hollows  to  the  rear  painfully  slow.  "Curses,  not 
loud  but  deep,"  could  be  occasionally  heard  as  some  soldier 
took  an  extra  vicious  tumble,  rolling  down  an  embankment 
into  a  pool  of  water  or  fell  into  a  wash-out  gully.  These 
headlong  tumbles  were  innumerable  and  beyond  description. 
The  night  was  extremely  dark  and  the  route  wholly  strange. 
therefore  the  men  were  at  the  mercy  of  every  obstacle.  If  a 
man  took  only  a  half  dozen  tumbles  he  did  not  think  himself 
particularly  unfortunate.  The  fountains  of  profanity  flowed 
freely  when  the  men  were  once  out  of  hearing  distance  of  the 
enemy.  But  owing  to  the  peculiarly  trying  conditions  it  is 
to  be  hoped  that  at  that  hour  of  the  night  the  recording  angel 
was  kindly  taking  a  nap,  and-  that  those  deviations  will  not 
be  charged  up  against  the  boys  at  the  final  muster.  Wood's 
division  arrived  at  Jonesboro  about  day-break.  Passing 
through  town  a  short  distance  the  command  was  halted  and 
allowed  to  breakfast.  Skirmishing  was  resumed  as  soon  as 
the  enemy  could  catch  up  with  Sherman's  rear  guard,  which 
was  not  long  after  daylight,  and  continued  throughout  the 
day.  The  command  moved  several  times  during  the  day,  but 
only  a  short  distance  each  time.  Orders  were  received  on 
the  evening  of  the  6th  to  be  ready  to  march  on  the  7th  at 
day-light.  Resuming  the  march  the  following  morning  the 
command  covered  about  eleven  miles,  and  the  Eighty-sixth 
bivouacked  in  a  thick  woods  with  a  dense  growth  of  under- 
brush. Ordered  to  construct  a  line  of  intrenchments  as  a 
precautionary  measure.  There  was  no  indication  of  an 
attack  but  the  enemy  followed  up  and  continued  the  skir- 
mishing with  the  rear  guard. 

On  the  8th  the  Fourth  corps  reached  Atlanta,  passed 
through  the  city  and  witnessed  the  destruction  it  had  assisted 
to  accomplish  in  this  city.     It  was  truly  dreadful  to  behold. 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  441 

The  buildings  were  nearly  all  more  or  less  shattered  by  shot 
and  shell  from  the  Union  artillery,  and  the  frame  buildings 
nearest  the  lines  were  riddled  with  the  musket  balls.  The 
residences,  nearly  all,  had  deep  dug-outs  with  their  doors  or 
openings  all  to  the  "  Sunny  South;"  none  were  opened  for  a 
welcome  to  the  rude  Northmen.  To  the  great  destruction 
which  the  Union  forces  had  inflicted  upon  the  city,  Hood  in 
turn  had  inflicted  quite  as  much  in  destroying  stores  and 
munitions  of  war  which  he  did  not  want  to  fall  into  General 
Sherman's  hands,  so  the  w^reck  was  almost  complete. 

The  losses  of  the  Confederates  during  this  campaign, 
down  to  the  capture  of  Atlanta,  was  estimated  as  follows: 
In  skirmishing  from  Chattanooga  to  Atlanta,  6,000;  Battle 
of  Resaca,  2,500;  Battles  around  Dallas,  3.500;  Battle  of  Ken- 
esaw  Mountain,  1,000;  Battles  of  July  20,  22  and  28,  near 
Atlanta,  22,500;  Other  contests  around  Atlanta,  1,500;  and 
battles  near  Jonesboro,  5,000;  Total,  42,000.  They  lost  more 
than  twenty  generals  officers,  and  nearly  fifty  pieces  of  can- 
non, of  which  eight  were  64-pounders,  and  fully  25,000  small 
arms.  General  Johnston  in  his  report  gave  his  effective 
strength,  infantry,  artillery  and  cavalry  at  51,000.  On  the 
other  hand  General  Hood  in  his  report  says  that  on  the  6th 
day  of  May,  1864,  the  army  lay  near  Dalton  awaiting  the  ad- 
vance of  the  enemy.  "Never  had,"  said  he,  "so  large  a 
Confederate  army  assembled  in  the  West.  Seventy  thousand 
effective  men  were  in  the  easy  direction  of  a  single  comman- 
der, whose  good  fortune  it  was  to  be  able  to  give  successful 
battle  and  redeem  the  losses  of  the  past.  Extraordinary 
methods  had  been  used  to  secure  an  easy  victory.  The 
enemy,  but  little  surpassed  in  numbers,  none  in  organization 
and  discipline,  inferior  in  spirit  and  confidence,  commenced 
his  advance.  The  Confederate  forces,  whose  faces  and  hopes 
were  to  the  North,  almost  simultaneously  commenced  to  re- 
treat. The  army  had  dwindled  day  by  day  to  47,250."  This 
was  up  to  the  18th  of  July  when  he  assumed  command.  He 
says  his  losses  up  to  the  close  of  the  campaign  wore  over 
5,000.  It  must  be  remembered  that  the  Confederate  army 
was  constantly  being  reinforced,  to  say  nothing  of  negroes 


442  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

and  rother  non-combatants  engaged  on  the  fortifications. 
"Effective  strength"  in  Confederate  reports  meant  only  men 
and  officers  in  line,  and  excluded  teamsters  and  all  camp  fol- 
lowers. In  the  Union  reports  it  included  teamsters  and  de- 
tailed men  on  duty  of  whatever  nature.  So  that  General 
Hood  was  correct  when  he  said  Sherman's  army  in  numbers 
"but  little  surpassed"  Johnston's. 

The  losses  of  Sherman's  army  during  the  campaign 
aggregated  35,353.  Of  this  loss  5,165  were  killed,  25,685 
were  wounded,  and  4,513  were  missing  or  captured.  The 
aggregate  loss  in  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland  was  20,990; 
in  the  Army  of  the  Tennessee,  10,394;  and  the  Army  of  the 
Ohio,  3,969.  By  corps  the  losses  were  as  follows:  Fourth, 
7,325;  Fourteenth,  5,941;  Twentieth,  5.941;  Fifteenth,  4,758; 
Sixteenth,  2,377;  Seventeenth,  3,259;  Twenty -third,  3,969. 
Sherman  in  his  ' '  Memoirs' '  notes  the  number  killed  in  the 
Seventeenth  corps  at  1,510,  whereas  it  should  be  422.  As 
that  corps  had  1,038  missing  or  captured  he  included  these 
among  the  killed.  He  reports  the  wounded  at  1,674,  nearly 
equal  the  number  killed.  His  figures  of  losses  in  all  the 
seven  corps  are  widely  at  variance  with  the  official  reports 
as  now  published.  Of  the  losses  in  the  Fourth  corps  Wood's 
division  lost  as  follows:  Killed,  424;  wounded,  2,074;  miss- 
ing, 268;  total,  2,766.  The  Third  brigade  lost  73  killed,  443 
wounded,  63  missing,  a  total  of  579.  The  Eighty-sixth  lost 
2  killed,  and  wounded  54,  some  of  whom  afterwards  died 
from  the  effects,  a  total  of  56. 

In  four  months  General  Sherman  had  accomplished  the 
task  assigned  him  with  a  loss  less  than  that  of  Grant's  in  the 
first  twelve  day's  of  his  memorable  campaign  against  Rich- 
mond. The  men  now  looked  upon  Sherman  as  their  Moses 
who  had  led  them  across  the  Red  Sea  of  Battle  to  the  Con- 
federacy's central  Capital.  He  had  smitten  the  waves  of 
the  rebel  hordes  from  Rocky  Faced  Ridge  to  Lovejoy's  Sta- 
tion with  his  magic  rod  and  they  had  disappeared.  The 
muscadines  were  to  the  men  as  the  grapes  of  the  promised 
land.  The  Union  soldiers  marched  through  Atlanta  feeling 
that  they  were  conquerors,  proud  of  their  toils  and  marches, 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  443 

proud  of  their  past  dangers,  proud  of  their  unexampled  suc- 
<oss  and  triumphs,  and  of  their  great  military  chief  and  his 
subordinates;  proud  of  their  great  and  noble  President  at 
[Washington,  confident  in  his  ability  to  direct  the  ship  of 
! state,  confident  of  his  re-election,  doubly  assured  by  their 
recent  great  successes;  confident  of  a  speedy  and  final 
triumph  of  Union  arms  over  every  field;  confident  of  the 
restoration  of  the  supremacy  of  the  National  Government, 
and  in  the  unity  of  the  Nation.  The  soldiers  of  the  Military 
Division  of  the  Mississippi,  were  in  a  state  of  mind  to  fully 
enjoy  the  prospect  of  a  short  rejjose  after  the  consummation  of 
the  purpose  of  such  an  arduous  campaign.  In  glorious 
spirits,  with  the  elastic  springy  step  of  veterans,  the 
Eighty-sixth  marched  into  camp  on  the  afternoon  of  the  8th 
of  September,  two  and  half  miles  east  of  the  city  of  Atlanta, 
to  rest. 

It  is  not)  inappropriate  to  give  here  the  opinions  of  some 
recognized  great  men  regarding  this  truly  marvelous  cam- 
paign of  General  Sherman  to  Atlanta,  in  which  service  the 
Eighty-sixth  bore  such  an  honorable  part — a  part  equal  to 
that  of  any.  Led  by  the  gallant  Colonel,  George  F.  Dick,  it 
never  faltered  in  the  performance  of  any  duty  assigned  it  on 
that  campaign,  and  is,  therefore,  as  a  regiment,  entitled  to  a 
regiment's  full  share  of  the  glory  of  the  arduous  and  danger- 
ous duties  nobly  performed. 

General  Jacob  D.  Cox,  afterwards  Secretary  of  War,  a 
most  intelligent  and  capable  officer,  says  of  the  campaign: 

"The  campaign  as  a  whole  will  remain  a  most  instructive  example 
of  the  methods  of  warfare  which  may  be  said  to  be  the  natural  outcome 
of  modern  improvement  in  weapons,  and  in  means  of  transportation  and 
communication  when  used  in  a  sparsely  settled  and  very  impracticable 
country." 

General  Grant,  popularly  regarded  as  the  greatest  gen- 
eral of  the  war,  says  in  his  Memoirs: 

"The  campaign  to  Atlanta  was  managed  with  tlir  most  cnnmmmntc 
skill,  the  enemy  being  ilanked  out  of  one  position  after  another  all  the 
way  there.  It  is  true  this  was  not  accomplished  without  a  (fioiJ  deal  nf 
fighting,  rising  to  the  dignity  of  vcr>/  important  battles— noiihov  were  single 
positions  gained  in  a  day." 


444  .  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

Still  stronger  are  these  words: 

"The  campaign  had  lasted  about  four  months  and  was  one  of  the 
most  inemorable  in  history.  There  was  but  little  if  anything  in  the  whole; 
campaign,  now  that  it  is  over,  to  criticize  at  all,  and  nothing  to  criticize 
severely.  It  was  creditable  alike  to  the  general  who  commanded  andj 
the  army  which  had  executed  it." 

Again  General  Grant  said  that  General  Sherman  in  thisj 
campaign  had  ' '  accomplished  the  most  gigantic  undertaking 
given  to  any  general  during  the  war. " 

President  Lincoln  upon  receiving  Sherman's  dispatch, 
"Atlanta  is  ours  and  fairly  won,"  immediately  sent  the  fol-, 
lowing  letter,  dated  at  the  Executive  Mansion,  Washington,; 
D.  C,  Septembers,  1864: 

The  national  thanks  are  r*endered  by  the  President  to  Major  General 
W.  T.  Sherman  and  the  gallant  officers  and  soldiers  of  his  command 
before  Atlanta,  for  distinguished  ability  and  perseverance  displayed  in' 
the  campaign  in  Georgia,  which,  under  Divine  favor,  has  resulted  in  the; 
capture  of  Atlanta.  The  marches,  battles,  sieges,  and  other  military  opera- 
tions, that  have  signcdized  the  campaign,  must  render  it  famous  in  the  annals^ 
of  war,  and  have  entitled  those  who  have  particijnUed  therein  to  the  eipplausei 
and  thanks  of  the  Nation. 

And  thus  closed  the  Atlanta  Campaign,  a  campaign  that 
stands  unsurpassed  in  the  annals  of  history,   and  a  campaign' 
which  stamped  William    Tecumseh  Sherman    as    the  fore- 
most General  of  the  asre. 


CHAPTER    XXVL 
REST  IN  CAMP— AFTER  HOOD. 

In  Camp  Near  Atlanta— Three  Weeks  of  Daily  Routine  Duties— A  Bold  Movement 
by  Hood— Sherman's  Army  In  Pursuit— The  Eiglity-sixth  Again  on  March- 
Smyrna  Camp  Ground— Pine  Mountain— The  Signals  Between  Sliorman  and 
Corse— The  Figlit  at  AUatoona  Pass— Kenesaw  Mountain— Cartersville  and 
Kingston— Calhoun— Rome— Resaca— Snake  Creek  Gap— Chattooga  Valley- 
Fresh  Pork  and  Sweet  Potatoes— Summerville—Gaylesville.  Alabama— The 
Fourth  Corps  Bids  a  Silent  Farewell  to  General  Sherman— Siiei'man's  Letter 
to  the  Eighty-sixth. 

Going  into  camp  at  Atlanta  on  the  8th  of  September,  the 
soldiers  expected  to  rest  and  recuperate  the  reserve  forces 
3f  their  individual  systems,  which  they  imagined  must  be 
ilmost  used  up  after  that  which  they  had  endured  for  tlie 
last  four  months,  and  that,  too,  after  such  a  winter  of  hard- 
ships as  they  had  experienced  in  East  Tennessee.  Tliey 
axpected  to  rest  before  being  called  upon  to  take  part  in 
another  campaign,  but  they  really  found  so  much  to  do, 
inhere  was  very  little  time  to  rest.  Tliere  was  work  to  be 
ione  on  every  hand  and  every  day  of  camp-life  at  Atlanta. 

On  the  9th  the  camp  of  the  Eighty-sixth  was  laid  off  in 
i-ejj-ular  order.  Buildings  were  torn  down  and  tlie  lumber 
ased  in  constructing  new  quarters.  In  many  instances  the 
nen  went  the  distance  of  one  and  two  miles  to  find  an  unoc- 
cupied house,  which  was  razed  to  the  ground  and  the  lumber 
carried  to  camp  on  their  backs.  This  was  as  hard  as  marcli- 
ng,  if  not  so  dangerous  as  lighting  in  battles  and  skirmish- 
ng.  After  the  quarters  were  constructed,  the  camp  had  to 
ooliced  from  one  end  to  the  other,  swept  clean  of  leaves  and 
)ther  trash,  properly  drained,  and  sinks  dug.  Then  came 
picket,  camp-guard  and  fatigue,  and  an  occasional  extra  gen- 
eral cleaning  up  for  inspection.      Next  came  drill— company 


446  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

and  battalion — dress  parade  and  grand  review, — all  of  which 
kept  the  soldier  busy.  It  will  thus  be  seen  that  there  was 
not  much  time  for  rest  and  recuperation. 

The  supply  of  rations  were  not  the  most  bounteous.  It 
is  true  they  were  not  so  scant  as  they  were  when  beleaguered 
in  Chattanooga,  or  while  playing  "freeze  out"  with  Long- 
street  in  East  Tennessee  during  the  winter  of  '63  and  '64, 
but  they  were  necessarily  cut  short.  Still  the  men  had 
enough  to  sustain  life  and  add  to  their  vigor.  The  allow^- 
ance  issued  was  rated  as  from  one-half  to  four-fifths  rations 
of  the  articles  received,  though  but  one-fourth  of  the  articles 
included  in  a  soldier's  ration  were  issued.  Occasionally  the 
men  would  receive  a  few  onions  or  some  dried  fruit  from  the 
Sanitary  Commission. 

On  the  10th  fixing  up  camp  was  continued.  Letters  were' 
written  home  to  those  who  had  been  neglected  during  the 
extremely  busy  fighting  season.  On  Sunday,  the  11th,  thei 
regiment  was  inspected  by  companies,  by  the  company  offi- 
cers. It  also  furnished  on  this  day  a  heavy  detail  for  picket. 
On  the  12th  a  large  detail  was  made  for  fatigue  duty,  to  cut, 
and  clear  away  the  brush  in  front  and  rear  of  the  officers'; 
tents.  On  the  evening  of  the  14th  orders  were  received  to 
prepare  for  general  inspection  on  the  following  day,  but  a 
little  later  it  was  changed  to  be  ready  at  6  a.  m.  the  next  day 
for  foraging. 

The  regiment  was  up  betimes.  Colonel  Dick  reported 
with  the  regiment  in  ranks  at  brigade  headquarters  at  6  a.  m. 
Leaving  headquarters  j^romptly  it  marched  out  a  little  north 
of  east  at  a  very  rapid  pace  some  eight  or  nine  miles  and 
was  halted  to  gather  the  forage.  One  company  was  placed 
on  i^icket  while  the  other  companies  loaded  the  forage  into 
the  wagons.  The  forage  consisted  almost  exclusively  of 
hay,  corn-fodder,  and  corn  for  the  mules  and  horses.  While 
on  this  expedition  William  Elder,  of  Comi^any  H,  and  Thomas 
Shay,  of  Company  B,  ran  the  picket  lines  in  search  of  some- 
thing for  themselves.  Elder  was  picking  beans,  and  Shay, 
spymg  a  sheep,  shot  at  it.  Instead  of  the  sheep  the  ball 
struck  Shay  who  was  beyond.     He  received  a  severe  wound 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  147 

on  the  fleshy  part  of  tlie  inside  of  the  thigh.  He  was  carried 
,  to  a  wagon  and  thereby  managed  to  get  a  ride  to  camp. 
,  Shay  was  a  good  soldier  and  was  mustered  out  with  the 
i  regiment.  Captain  Carson  P.  Rodman,  of  Company  H, 
'  received  on  this  day  his  resignation  accepted,  it  having  been 

sent  in  some  time  before,  and  bade  farewell  to  the  regiment 

on  the  18th. 
\  On  the  IGth  the  fatigue  duty  on  the  camp-ground  was 

I  continued,  and  before  noon  received  an  order  to  prepare  for 
I  general  inspection  at  4  o'clock  p.  m.  Lieutenant  Reid,  the 
1  brigade  inspector,  inspected  the  regiment  by  companies  at 
;  that  hour.  On  the  18th  the  companies  were  inspected  by  the 
;  company  officers.     On  the  19th,  besides  the  regular  picket, 

fatigue,  and  other  duties  the  regular  company  and  battalion 
:  drills  were  added.  In  the  evening  Rev.  Mr.  Delamater,  the 
,  Chaplain  of  the  Seventy-second  Indiana,  preached  to  the  regi- 
;  ment.  From  this  time  on  while  the  regiment  remained  in 
,  camp  here  when  rain  or  other  duties  did  not  prevent,  it  had 
I  daily  company  and  battalion  drills,  and  quite  frequently  dress 
•  parade  thrown  in  as  an  extra.  On  the  21st,  Captain  L.  V. 
1  Ream,  of  Company  G,  who  was  severely  wounded  at  Mud 
\  creek,  between  Kenesaw  and  Lost  mountain,  on  the  18th  of 
\  June,  returned  to  the  regiment. 

There  was  a  world  of  rumors — "grapevine  telegrams" — 

going  the  rounds  relative  to  the  movement  of  troops.  New- 
I  ton's  Second  division,  of  the  Fourth  corps,  had  already  gone 
i  back  to  Chattanooga  for  some  purpose  unknown.  On  the 
I  morning  of  the  27th  orders  were  received  for  grand  review 
I  at  12  o'clock  noon.  Major  General  D.  S.  Stanley,  the  corps 
I  commander,  and  Major  General  George  H.  Thomas  were  pres- 
'  eut,  but  the  latter  took  no  part  in  the  reviewing  exercises. 
I  The  review^  was  over  a  little  before  sun-down.  After  the 
I  regiment  returned  it  drew  rations  of  hard  tack,  sugar,  coffee, 
!  beans,  salt,  vinegar,  soap  and  candles.  On  the  2Hth,  29th 
[  and  30th  the  daily  programme  was  repeated.  It  was  on  the 
I  30th  that  Lieutenant  John  R.  Moore,  of  Company  E,  re- 
\  signed,  because  of  wounds  received  on  the  27th  of  June.  On 
I  the  night  of  the  30th  of  September,  a  terrific  rain  storm  oc- 


448  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

curred,  so  that  on  October  1  there  was  no  [drill.  Not  to  be 
idle  large  squads  repaired  to  the  woods  to  gather  grapes  and 
came  back  loaded  with  muscadines,  "  the  grapes  of  promise, " 
and  the  ordinary  fall  grape  found  in  the  woods.  Rumors 
were  running  like  wild-fire  around  the  circle  of  the  camps  in 
regard  to  the  movements  of  Hood,  but  the  men  could  learn  but 
little  at  this  juncture  of  the  actual  status.  There  was  an  un- 
easy, restless  feeling  exhibited  among  the  men  as  is  usually 
found  when  a  general  movement  is  threatened.  When  troops 
know  just  what  they  may  expect  there  is  more  quiet  and 
steadiness,  but  uncertainty  makes  them  restless  and  impa- 
tient to  know  what  is  to  come.  Now,  therefore,  there  was  a 
constant  hum  and  buzz  of  rumors  and  reports  o'f  coming 
movements.  Many  of  them  were  wild  and  exaggerated  it  is 
true,  and  some  again  marvelously  close  to  that  which  shortly 
took  place  in  regard  to  the  movements  of  General  Sherman's 
army,  showing  that  there  were  some  clear  heads  and  deep 
thinkers  in  the  rank  and  file  of  the  army.  On  October  "2 
there  was  no  drill,  but  a  strong  detail  for  picket  as  usual. 
The  regiment  drew  three  days'  rations  of  hard  tack,  and  five 
of  sugar,  coffee  and  salt,  one  of  bacon  and  some  hominy. 
General  Wood  received  orders  in  the  evening  to  march  the 
following  morning  at  daylight.  He  was  directed  to  take  the 
lead  followed  by  the  First  division,  artillery,  ammunition 
trains,  headquarter  trains,  ten  ambulances  to  each  division 
and  regimental  wagons  in  the  order  named.  He  was  to  march 
through  Atlanta  and  out  Marietta  street.  That  night  there 
was  a  heavy  fall  of  rain,  making  the  road  slippery. 

On  the  morning  of  the  3d  of  October  the  bugles  of  Wood 's 
division  awoke  the  echoes  at  the  early  hour  of  1  o'clock. 
The  men  knew  this  meant  something  of  a  decided  character. 
They  expected  some  lively  times,  some  fighting  or  foot- 
racing, and  very  probably  ample  portions  of  both.  Every- 
thing was  made  ready  for  marching  in  good  time.  The 
pickets  came  in  and  breakfasted,  and  at  daylight  the  regi- 
ment broke  camp  and  marched  back  through  Atlanta,  thence 
along  the  wagon  road  by  the  railroad  to  the  Chattahoochee 
river   at  Bolton,  and  crossed  the    river   near    the   railroad 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  449 

bridge.  The  march  was  continued  at  a  telling  pace  over  bad 
roads  until  near  sun-down,  when  the  command  bivouacked 
near  Smyrna  cam^D  ground  where  the  regiment  had  spent 
the  evening  of  the  4th  of  July  in  its  advance  upon  the  enemy 
after  he  had  evacuated  Kenesaw  mountain.  Again  it  rained 
just  after  the  troops  had  gone  into  bivouac. 

The  rank  and  file  of  the  army  had  by  this  time  learned 
the  true  situation  of  affairs.  Hood  with  his  army  was  in  the 
rear  and  threatening  a  great  deal  of  trouble.  It  was,  there- 
fore, a  matter  of  vital  importance  to  the  Union  army  that 
Hood's  forces  be  kept  off  the  railroad  and  not  be  allowed 
time  to  destroy  too  much  of  it.  Jetf  Davis  and  Hood  had 
made  their  boasts  and  promised  the  Southern  people  that 
Greneral  Sherman  would  be  forced  to  retreat  or  his  ai-iny 
would  starve,  and  this  was  the  move  made  to  accomplish 
their  object. 

After  a  night  of  rain  reveille  was  sounded  at  4  o'clock 
Dn  the  morning  of  the  4th  of  October.  Wood's  division,  how- 
3ver,  did  not  march  immediately.  About  11  o'clock  the 
general  call"  was  sounded  and  at  12,  noon,  it  marched  out 
Dn  the  road  to  Marietta.  The  march  was  conducted  at  a 
rapid  pace  for  such  bad  roads,  and  Marietta  was  reached 
ibout  3  o'clock  p.  m.  The  march  was  continued,  taking  the 
■oad  leading  over  the  western  base  of  Kenesaw  mountain  to 
Grilgal  church,  but  the  command  bivouacked  before  crossing 
the  base  of  the  mountain.  Here  it  was  again  around  the 
Gibraltar  which  the  enemy  had  been  forced  to  give  up  in 
luly.  Kenesaw  mountain  will  live  long  in  history  for  the 
very  many  stubborn  contests  which  took  place  there,  and 
:or  the  many  brave  men  who  sacrificed  life  for  the  cause  they 
Delieved  to  be  right.  General  Stanley  had  been  ordered  to 
nake  a  feint  on  Pine  mountain. 

On  the  5th  reveille  was  sounded  about  daylight  and  tlie 
3ommand  was  at  once  astir.  Hard  tack  had  been  issued  to 
:he  command  in  the  night,  which  was  received  in  the  morn- 
ng.  This  day  is  a  memorable  one  of  this  campaign  and  in 
"act,  of  the  war.  This  was  a  great  war,  the  Atlanta  cam- 
paign one  of  the  greatest  campaigns  of  the  war,  and  this 


450  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

was  one  among  the  great  days  of  this  campaign.  It  was  not 
strictly  the  campaign  to  Atlanta,  but  so  intimately  connected 
with  it,  it  may  almost  be  so  considered.  It  was  on  this  day 
that  the  assault  was  made  upon  the  Federals  under  General 
Corse  and  Colonel  Tourtellotte  at  Allatoona  by  the  rebel 
forces  under  General  French.  It  was  a  desperate  and 
bloody  battle  for  the  numbers  engaged,  and  fought  with  the 
most  resolute  courage  by  the  troops  on  both  sides.  It  was 
not  a  single  dashing  charge,  bravely  repulsed,  but  charo(^ 
after  charge,  stubbornly  fighting  over  every  foot  of  ground . 
driven  back  and  yet  again  returning  to  the  battle  as  if  with 
renewed  hope  and  courage. 

The  signal  dispatches  that  passed  from  and  to  Kenesaw 
mountain  were  as  follows:  Sherman  asked  if  Corse  had 
reached  there.  At  10:35  a.  m.  the  reply  came,  "We  hold 
out.  Corse  is  here."  At  4  p.  m.  Allatoona  was  again  called 
and  at  4:15  the  reply  came,  "We  still  hold  out.  General 
Corse  is  wounded.  Where  is  General  Sherman?"  The  dis- 
patch went  back  to  Allatoona,  "Near  you.  Tell  Allatoona 
hold  on.  General  Sherman  says  he  is  working  hard  for 
you."  General  Sherman  communicated  with  General 
Elliott,  commanding  the  cavalry,  as  follows:  "I  have  heard 
from  Allatoona.  All  right.  Corse  is  there,  but  wounded. 
You  need  not  send  all  of  Garrard's  cavalry,  but  send  a 
squadron.  Let  them  make  a  circuit  and  they  will  find  noth- 
ing there."  On  the  next  day,  October  6,  Allatoona  was 
asked:  "How  is  Corse?  What  news?"  Back  came  this 
spirited  reply  signed  by  General  Corse :  "  I  am  short  a  cheek 
bone  and  one  ear,  but  am  able  to  whip  all  hell  yet.  My 
losses  are  very  heavy.  A  force  moving  from  Stilesboro  on 
Kingston  gives  me  some  anxiety.  Tell  me  where  Sherman 
is."  Back  went  the  reply:  "  Saw  your  battle.  Am  here  all 
right.  Have  sent  you  assistance.  Am  sorry  you  are  hurt. 
General  is  mindful  of  you. " 

There  is  nothing  in  these  signal  dispatches  to  suggest  a 
Sunday  School  song  unless  it  was  Corse's  dispatch  to  Sher- 
man. The  story  that  P.  P.  Bliss  wrote  the  sacred  song, 
"Hold  the  Fort  for  I  Am  Coming,"  founded  on  Sherman's 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  451 

dispatches  to  Corse,  is  about  as  mythical  as  "Sheridan's 
Ride"  by  Buchanan  Read.  Sherman  says  he  reached  the 
top  of  Kenesaw  mountain  about  "8  o'clock  on  the  morning 
of  the  5th  of  October — a  beautiful  day— and  had  a  superb 
view  of  the  vast  panorama  to  the  north  and  west, "  and  from 
tills  point  witnessed  "the  battle  and  could  hear  the  faint 
reverberations  of  cannon."  That  the  day  apd  the  contest  at 
AUatoona  was  a  critical  one  for  Sherman  and  his  army  few 
can  doubt. 

The  Eighty-sixth  had  a  representative  in  the  AUatoona 
fight.  On  the  3d  of  May  B.  F.  Snyder,  of  Company  K,  had 
been  detailed  to  go  to  Bridgeport  in  charge  of  tlie  baggage 
belonging  to  the  regiment,  to  store  it  and  remain  with  it 
until  further  orders.  He  remained  there  until  October  1 
when  he  was  ordered  to  the  front  with  the  baggage.  The 
train  on  which  he  traveled  made  a  perilous  trip,  but  finally 
reached  AUatoona.  General  Corse  reached  there  the  next 
morning  from  Rome  with  a  small  brigade.  The  Confederates 
ate  their  breakfast  on  the  railroad  south  of  the  Pass,  and 
began  business  at  once.  They  captured  a  stockade  with  a 
company  of  an  Illinois  regiment.  Sergeant  Sn3^der  relates 
the  following  incidents  in  connection  with  the  capture  of  the 
stockade : 

"  One  of  the  soldiers  in  the  stockade  did  not  want  to  sur- 
render. Prison  had  no  charms  for  him,  so  when  the  com- 
pany marched  out  he  dropped  flat  on  his  face  and  groaned 
loudly.  One  of  the  Johnnies  looked  back  and  saw  him  and 
said:  'Get  up,  Yank,  get  right  up,  old  fellow?'  Mr.  Yank 
made  no  reply,  but  kept  to  work  groaning.  Going  up  to 
him,  the  rebel  said,  'What's  the  matter?'  'Small  pox.' 
was  the  reply  "Oh,  Lordy, '  said  the  rebel.  'I  don't  want 
nothin' to  do  with  you.'  and  lie  ran  out  of  the  stockade  as 
fast  as  he  could,  leaving  the  cute  Yankee  to  walk  over  to  our 
lines  after  the  enemy  had  passed  on. 

' '  The  losses  in  the  action  at  Altoona  Pass  was  very  In-avy . 
The  Thirty-ninth  Iowa  lost  almost  all  of  their  otficers.  They 
were  stationed  in  the  outer  works,  and  stood  to  their  post 
when  it  seemed  as  if  every  man  must  have  been  positive  of 


452  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

death  before  the  fight  would  be  over.  It  was  hand  to  hand 
a  number  of  times.  A  rebel  seized  the  colors  from  the  color- 
bearer,  but  he  stuck  to  them  and  wouldn't  let  go;  then  the 
rebel  pinned  him  to  the  ground  with  his  bayonet  and  took 
him  prisoner.  The  bayonet  did  not  pass  through  the  flesh, 
but  went  through  his  clothing.  That  night  the  color-bearer 
escaped  and  came  to  our  lines  where  I  w^as  and  told  me  about 
it.  The  rebels  tried  to  burn  a  lot  of  stores,  said  to  be  one 
million  rations,  but  the  attempt  of  a  rebel  lieutenant,  as  he 
stole  up  with  a  torch,  was  discovered  by  a  colored  soldier 
and  he  was  promptly  killed." 

The  Army  of  the  Cumberland  on  this  campaign  after 
Hood  was  commanded  by  Major  General  D.  S.  Stanley,  as 
General  Thomas  had  been  sent  back  to  Nashville  to  prepare 
for  Hood's  coming  should  he  attempt  to  invade  Tennessee, 
as  it  was  believed  he  intended  to  do.  The  Twentieth  corps 
was  left  at  Atlanta.  The  Second  division,  Wagner's,  of  the 
Fourth  corps,  was  at  Chattanooga,  therefore,  there  was  only 
the  Fourteenth  corps  and  the  two  divisions  of  the  Fourth 
corps  here  of  the  old  Army  of  the  Cumberland.  General 
Wood  was  in  command  of  the  Fourth  corps.  The  Third 
division  resumed  its  march  about  7:30  on  the  morning  of  the 
5th  of  October.  The  route  was  the  same  as  on  the  preced- 
ing day  after  leaving  Marietta,  being  over  the  road  from 
that  place  to  Gilgal  church  and  crossing  the  western  base  of 
Kenesaw  mountain.  The  command  must  have  been  crossing 
the  base  of  the  mountain  by  the  time  Sherman  reached  the 
top.  The  march  was  made  in  a  very  slow  and  hesitating 
manner  as  though  the  head  of  the  column  was  feeling  its 
way  very  carefully  and  expecting  to  run  against  the 
enemy  at  any  moment.  General  Sherman  says  in  his 
"Memoirs:"  "From  Kenesaw  I  ordered  the  Twenth-third 
corps,  General  Cox,  to  march  due  west  on  the  Burnt  Hickory, 
and  to  burn  houses  or  piles  of  brush  as  it  progressed,  to  in- 
dicate the  head  of  the  column,  hoping  to  interpose  this  corps 
between  Hood's  main  army  at  Dallas  and  the  detachment 
then  assaulting  Allatoona.  The  rest  of  the  army  was  directed 
straight  for  Allatoona,  northwest,  distant  eighteen  miles. ' ' 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  453 

General  Sherman  is  certainly  in  error  in  this  statement.  As 
before  stated  when  General  Sherman  reached  the  top  of 
Kenesaw  mountain,  Wood's  division  of  the  Fourth  corps  was 
marching  across  its  western  base  enroute  along  the  road  to 
Gilgal  church,  nearly  due  west.  General  Cox  has  shown 
conclusively  that  the  reconnoissance  here  referred  to  by 
General  Sherman  was  not  made  till  later.  This  is  confirmed 
by  Special  Field  Order,  No.  85,  issued  by  General  Sherman 
on  the  6th,  dated  at  Kenesaw  mountain,  as  follows: 

I.  Major  General  Stanley,  Army  of  the  Cumberland,  will  occupy  a 
strong  defensive  position  across  tho  Marietta  and  Burnt  Hickory,  and 
Marietta  and  Dallas  roads,  his  right  near  Pine  Hill,  and  left  behind 
Nose's  [Noyes'l  creek. 

II.  Major  General  Howard,  Army  of  the  Tennessee,  will  join  on 
the  left  of  Stanley,  and  make  a  line  covering  the  Powder  Spring  road; 
and  the  cavalry  on  the  flank,  General  Kilpatrick  will  prevent  any  enemy 
from  reaching  the  railroad  below  Marietta. 

III.  Brigadier  General  Cox,  Army  of  the  Ohio,  will  move  out  on 
the  Burnt  Hickory  road,  via  Pine  Hill,  and  Mount  Olivet  Church,  west, 
until  he  strikes  the  road  by  which  the  enemy  have  moved  on  Allatoona. 
He  will  have  his  column  ready  for  a  fight,  but  not  deployed.  He  will 
park  his  wagons  near  Kenesaw. 

IV.  General  Elliott  will  send  cavalry  lo-dan  to  Big  Shanty,  Ack- 
worth,  and  Allatoona,  and  bring  back  official  reports. 

On  the  march,  after  crossing  the  base  of  the  mountain, 
the  command  came  into  ground  with  which  the  men  wore 
familiar.  It  passed  through  several  lines  of  works  whore  in 
June  and  July  the  enemy  had  been  met  in  battle.  Now  tho 
tables  were  turned  and  he  was  the  aggressor.  Among  the 
many  well  remembered  places  of  those  days  was  the  one  at 
Mud  creek,  where  the  enemy  made  a  most  determined  resist- 
ance on  the  18th  of  June,  and  where  the  regiment  lost  a  num- 
ber of  wounded,  among  them  were  Captain  L.  V.  Koam,  of 
Company  G,  and  Thomas  Decker,  of  Company  I,  by  the  same 
shell.  The  march  was  continued  at  a  slow  i^acc  until  alx)ut 
4:30  p.  m.,  when  the  command  bivouacked  and  was  oi-dorod 
to  construct  a  line  of  works  which  was  done,  but  not  in  tliat 
complete  manner  in  which  it  was  done  during  the  campaign 
when  advancing  upon  Kenesaw  mountain. 

The  command  remained  here  at  this  bivouac  until  the 


454  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

afternoon  of  the  8th.  While  remaining  here  there  was  no 
particular  duty  to  perform  except  picket  duty  and  keep  a 
sharp  watch  for  the  enemy.  The  reconnoissance  in  force 
made  by  the  Twenty-third  corps,  above  referred  to,  was  made 
on  the  7th  of  October  instead  of  the  5th,  as  Sherman  says, 
or  the  6th  as  General  J.  D.  Cox  says,  as  on  the  7th  at  5 :30  p. 
m.  General  Cox  reported  to  General  Sherman:  "The  recon- 
noissance reports  no  rebels  north  of  New  Hope  Church,  and 
the  main  body  went  from  there  this  morning."  General 
Sherman,  in  response  to  Cox,  said:  "Call  in  your  detach- 
ments, and  be  prepared  for  a  march."  The  two  divisions  of 
the  Fourth  corps  moved,  on  the  8th,  eastward  over  near  the 
railroad  just  south  of  Ackworth,  and  no  doubt  the  move  was 
determined  by  information  gained  by  the  reconnoitering  col- 
umn of  the  previous  day,  reaching  the  place  of  bivouac  a  lit- 
tle after  sun-down,  having  marched  six  or  seven  miles.  At 
this  point  the  command  remained  until  the  afternoon  of  the 
10th.  About  3  o'clock  on  that  day  the  "general  call"  was 
sounded,  and  it  filed  out  upon  the  road,  and  passing  through 
Ackworth  took  the  wagon  road  for  Allatoona.  The  march 
was  conducted  at  a  lively  pace  and  reached  the  latter  place 
about  dark.  At  this  point  the  command  took  the  railroad  as 
its  line  of  march  and  pressed  steadily  on,  crossed  the  Etowah 
river  and  marched  about  one  mile  and  bivouacked,  having 
covered  about  ten  or  twelve  miles. 

On  the  11th  reveille  was  sounded  early.  The  command 
breakfasted  and  marched  out  at  daylight.  The  Eighty-sixth 
was  in  advance  of  the  corps.  Reports  said  the  enemy  was 
in  the  neighborhood  of  Rome.  The  command  passed  through 
Cartersville  in  the  early  morning  and  pressed  on  toward 
Kingston.  Major  Generals  Sherman  and  Stanley  accompanied 
the  column  after  it  left  Cartersville  during  a  part  of  the  fore- 
noon's march.  When  near  Kingston  the  corj^s  was  halted 
for  dinner  and  rested  for  one  hour.  Resuming  the  march 
the  command  passed  through  the  town  and  covering  about 
two  miles  beyond,  bivouacked  for  the  night  in  a  woods 
thickly  grown  up  with  underbrush. 

Here   on  the   evening    of    the    Ilth    the   Eighty-sixth 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  455 

received  a  mail  from  the  North — from  home — and  it  was  one 
of  the  most  gladsome  mails  ever  received  by  the  regiment. 
The  mail  brought  "  full  returns"  from  the  draft  which  made 
the  hearts  of  many,  if  not  all,  of  the  veterans  greatly  to 
rejoice;  for  it  was  almost  a  universal  verdict  that  ''tliey  r/of 
the  right  ones  every  time.''  Many  were  the  congratulations, 
handshaking  and  shouting  words  of  joyful  rejoicing  at  the 
final  outcome  of  the  draft  on  the  stay-at-homes.  This  news 
put,  at  least,  the  Eighty-sixth  in  the  height  of  good  humor 
and  fine  spirits,  and  it  is  presumed  it  had  much  the  same 
effect  on  all  veterans  then  in  the  field  doing  active  service. 

On  the  following  morning,  the  12th,  the  weather  was 
cool  and  foggy  and  as  the  brigade  was  in  the  rear  of  the 
corps  and  the  regiment  in  the  rear  of  the  brigade,  it  did  not 
leave  camp  on  the  march  until  about  8  o'clock.  When  first 
upon  the  road  the  speed  w^as  slow  and  the  column  frequently 
halted.  The  progress  made  until  noon,  when  the  command 
was  halted  for  dinner,  was  not  great.  In  the  afternoon  the 
march  was  resumed  in  the  same  slow  manner  until  about 
dark,  when  the  column  started  forward  with  much  more 
speed  than  at  any  time  during  the  day.  The  roads  were 
muddy  from  the  recent  heavy  rains,  there  being  many  pud- 
dles and  deep  mud  holes,  but  the  Eighty -sixth  went  helter 
skelter,  splashing  ahead  like  so  many  loose  horses  or  cattle, 
the  only  object  being  to  get  on.  Cannonading  could  be 
heard  in  the  direction  in  which  the  troops  were  marching, 
but  some  distance  away.  Many  of  the  boys  gave  out,  com- 
pletely exhausted,  by  the  very  hard  marching  over  the  exe- 
crable roads.  This  furious,  plunging  march  was  kept  up 
until  nearly  11  o'clock  at  night  when  the  command  bivou- 
acked not  far  from  Rome.  This  was  a  march  laborious  in 
the  extreme.  The  cannonading  was  a  fight  between  Gar- 
rard's and  the  enemy's  cavalry  left  to  cover  Hood's  route. 
The  fight  took  place  a  few  miles  down  the  Coosa  river  from 
Rome.  Sherman  hoped  to  catch  Hood,  but  he  had  too  much 
the  start.  It  was  now  evident  that  he  did  not  want  to  fight 
Sherman's  veteran  army  but  was  making  a  big  raid. 

The  principal  part  of  General  Sherman's  forces  in  pur- 


456  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

suit  of  Hood  were  now  congregated  near  Rome,  the  ])oint  of 
union  of  the  Oostanaula  and  Etowah  rivers  to  form  the  Coosa 
river.  His  forces  lying  in  between  the  two  former  streams. 
Just  at  this  time  Sherman  did  not  know  where  Hood  was. 
Therefore,  on  the  morning  of  the  13th  he  sent  forces  to 
reconnoiter  down  each  bank  of  the  Coosa  river,  while  other 
troops  of  the  command  remained  quietly  in  bivouac  of  the 
previous  night,  drawing  rations  and  resting,  awaiting  orders. 
During  early  part  of  the  afternoon  General  Sherman  received 
information  that  Hood  with  his  army  had  appeared  before 
Resaca  and  demanded  its  surrender  the  previous  day. 

At  3  p.  m.  the  "general  call"  was  sounded  for  "Wood's 
division  and  at  3:30  it  marched  out  in  a  southeasterly  direc- 
tion, the  division  having  the  advance  of  the  corps.     It  was 
doubtless  now  headed  for  Calhoun.     It  was  another  scramb- 
ling, nimble-footed  march  that  admitted  of  no  delays  and  few 
halts.     The  march  was  continued  until  9  o'clock  p.  m.,  and| 
bivouacked.     This  bivouac  must  have  been  on  Dry  creek,  and  ^ 
almost    west    of  Adairsville.     The  following   morning,  the 
14th,  the  bugles  sounded  reveille  for  the  division  at 4  o'clock. 
and  it  marched  out  for  Calhoun  at  day-break.     A  mile  from 
town  it  crossed  the  Oothcalago  creek  and  reached  the  town 
about  9  o'clock  a.  m.,  and  was  once  again  on  familiar  ground. 
On  to  Resaca  was  the   word.     The  eight  or  nine  miles  the 
men  had  covered  was  as  nothing  and  it  was  only  six  more  to 
Resaca.     Tliis  was  soon  reeled  off  and  the  latter  place  was  1 
reached  before  noon,  pressed  on  two  miles  toward  Tiltonand 
halted  for  dinner.     After  waiting  sometime  the  column  pro- 
ceeded about  one  mile,  and  bivouacked  for  the  night  to  the  ^ 
west  and  south  of  Tilton,  and  near  Cove  City  P.  O. ,  well  up 
on  the  upper  course  of  Camp  creek,  on  the  road  leading  up 
the  creek  through  a  break  in  the  Chattoogata  mountains,  and  ; 
thence  over  Buzzard  Roost  or  Mill  creek  mountains  into  the 
defile  known  as  Snake  Creek  Gap. 

On  the  following  morning,  the  15th,  the  bugles  of 
Beatty's  brigade  sounded  the  "general  call"  about  8  o'clock 
and  the  brigade  marched  out  about  9  a.  m.  Now,  the  pace 
was  moderate  and  the  column  halted  frequently.     The  com- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  457 

mand  abandoned  the  road  soon  aiter  starting  upon  the  march 
and  proceeded  across  the  country,  a  difficult  and  slow  way  of 
inarching,  even  in  an  open  and  level  country.  Light  skir- 
mishing could  be  heard  on  the  left  front,  and  this  was,  no 
doubt,  one  cause  of  the  cautious  advance  and  slow  progress. 
Somewhere  about  10:30  a.  m.  the  column,  which  had  been 
headed  a  little  west  of  north,  was  turned  due  west  to  cross 
the  mountains.  It  had  been  gradually  approaching  the 
mountains  before,  but  now  it  went  straight  at  them,  or  the 
rugged  hills  wdiich  intervened.  About  noon  the  Third  brig- 
ade of  Wood's  divisions  w^as  ordered  to  halt  and  intrench 
while  the  other  two  brigades  and  the  First  division  went  for; 
ward  to  reconnoiter  as  a  matter  of  caution.  The  intrenching 
w^as  promptly  done,  and  having  w^aited  the  required  length 
of  time  the  Third  brigade  abandoned  its  w^orks  and  proceeded 
on  the  march,  and  it  proved  to  be  one  of  extremest  toil.  The 
hills  became  higher  and  more  difficult  to  climb.  Finally  it 
crossed  the  Chattooga  mountains  with  much  labor,  and  the 
command  came  into  a  broken  valley  with  a  little  higher  range 
of  mountains  confronting  it.  After  toiling  up  and  over  the 
Chattooga  mountains  the  men  did  not  wish  for  more  moun- 
tain climbing,  but  here  w^ere  the  Buzzard  Roost  or  Mill  creek 
mountains,  and  they  had  to  be  climbed.  In  this  narrow  val- 
ley, lying  between  these  two  ranges,  night  and  darkness  came 
on,  but  the  command  kept  moving.  Soon  the  men  beheld 
far  on  top  of  the  dark  mountain  a  light  like  a  shining  star 
just  above  the  edge  of  a  vanishing  storm  cloud  of  darkest 
hue,  and  tow^ard  that  light  the  men  directed  their  course. 
It  was  a  beacon  light  placed  there  by  some  friendly  hand  to 
guide  them  over  the  mountain.  It  did  not  seem  so  far  away 
at  first,  but  the  men  toiled  on.  stumbling  over  the  rough, 
rocky  mountain  side,  yet  the  light  did  not  seem  much  nearer. 
It  shone  with  the  same  brightness,  but  that  was  all.  Up  and 
up  they  went,  winding  back  and  forth  to  gain  advantage  of 
the  best  ground  upon  which  to  advance.  No  doubt  it  seemed 
farther  up  that  mountain,  rougher,  more  rocky  on  account  of 
the  night  and  darkness,  than  it  otherwise  would  have  done. 
but  it  did  seem  long  to  complete  the  day's  march.    At  length 


458  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

the  men  filed  by  the  light  they  had  watched  so  long.  It 
proved  to  be  a  huge  fire  built  to  guide  the  command  to  the 
top  of  the  mountain  over  the  best  and  most  accessible  route. 
The  enemy  had  blockaded  the  defile  and  held  it  by  a  strong 
force,  rendering  it  hazardous,  if  not  impossible,  to  force  the 
passage.  General  Sherman  had  sent  General  Stanley  around 
by  Tilton,  then  across  the  country  and  the  mountains,  the 
latter  of  which  it  was  hoped  he  would  be  able  to  cross  in 
time  to  intercept  and  capture  the  forces  guarding  the  defile. 
By  crossing  the  mountains  to  the  north  of  the  blockade  the 
rear  guard  left  to  guard  the  gap  and  delay  Sherman's  advance 
would  be  hemmed  in.  Horn  mountain  on  the  west,  and  Buz- 
zard Roost  mountain  on  the  east,  would  prevent  his  escaping 
upon  either  flank,  while  Stanley  in  his  Jfront,  would  prevent 
his  escape  northward,  and  Howard  on  the  south,  would  catch 
him  if  he  attempted  to  return  by  the  way  he  came  into  the 
gap.  In  short,  if  Stanley  crossed  in  time  there  would  be  no 
escape  unless  he  could  cut  his  way  out  either  through  the 
Fourth  or  Fifteenth  corps,  which  was  not  probable.  But 
here  as  elsewhere  for  Hood,  "discretion  was  the  better  part 
of  valor, "  and  the  enemy  had  taken  his  flight  in  good  time 
and  escaped.  General  Howard's  forces  had  in  turn  taken 
possession  of  the  defile  and  cleared  the  blockade  sufliciently 
to  get  through,  and  had  pressed  on  to  Villanow  on  the  even- 
ing of  the  loth. 

Wood's  division  proceeded  down  the  rugged  mountain 
side  into  the  defile  or  gap  and  bivouacked  on  the  banks  of  a 
gurgling  mountain  stream,  a  branch  of  Mill  creek,  running 
northward  out  of  the  defile.  Here  after  a  hasty  night  meal, 
toil-worn  and  weary,  as  would  be  expected  after  such  a 
march,  the  men  soon  sank  to  rest  and  sleep  on  the  lap  of 
mother  earth,  lulled  by  the  babbling  of  the  little  mountain 
stream.  The  command  was  aroused  by  the  bugles  before 
daylight  the  next  morning,  and  it  was  expected  to  push  rap- 
idly on  after  the  retreating  enemy.  But  there  were  a  num- 
ber of  things  that  delayed  the  marching.  The  road  had  been 
badly  blockaded,  and  this  delayed  the  progress  of  the  troojis 
that  were  in  the  advance.     Finding  that  the  command  would 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  450 

not  march  immediately,  the  commissary  department  issued 
rations.  These  things  delayed  Wood's  division  until  about 
10  o'clock,  when  it  slowly  marched  northward  out  of  the  gap. 
When  clear  of  Horn  mountain  on  the  north,  the  column  turned 
west  iutothe  valley  between  Buzzard  Roost  and  Horn  moun- 
tain on  the  east,  and  Taylor's  Ridge  on  the  west,  following 
Hood  in  his  retreat  to  Villanow  and  LaFayette.  There  had 
been  some  severe  skirmishing  and  the  enemy  had  been  forced 
to  leave  a  number  of  his  wounded  behind. 

Wood's  division  bivouacked  on  the  evening  of  the  16th 
about  4:30  o'clock  in  an  open  field,  and  at  once  sent  out  pick- 
ets. At  this  bivouac  communications  were  established  with 
Chattanooga,  and  there  was  some  talk  that  furloughed  men 
would  be  allowed  to  go  home  from  here,  but  from  some  cause 
they  were  not  permitted  to  go,  although  the  field  hospital  and 
disabled  animals  were  sent  back  to  Chattanooga.  The  com- 
mand remained  here  in  the  neighborhood  of  Villanow  during 
the  17th,  some  forces  being  sent  out  to  reconnoiter  the  enemy 
and  determine  his  exact  location.  It  was  learned  that  he  had 
gone  south.  On  the  morning  of  the  18th  reveille  was  sounded 
at  4  o'clock,  and  the  Third  brigade  marched  out  about  s 
o'clock.  The  column's  progress  was  slow  until  about  IL' 
o'clock,  when  it  crossed  Taylor's  Ridge  into  the  Chattooga 
valley.  After  crossing  the  ridge  the  pace  was  accelerated 
land  the  command  went  forward  with  speed  until  about  2 
o'clock  p.  m..  when  it  was  halted  and  permitted  to  get  din- 
ner. The  command  remained  here  until  4  o'clock,  giving 
the  men  a  good  rest  and  permitting  the  column  to  close  up 
after  crossing  the  mountain. 

The  army  was  now  in  the  fertile  valley  of  tiie  Chattooga 
that  had  an  abundance  of  almost  all  kinds  of  forage,  and  the 
boys  supplied  themselves  plenteously  with  fresh  pork,  mut- 
ton and  sweet  potatoes.  The  cracking  of  the  guns  of  the 
foragers  made  it  sound  like  light  skirmishing  from  4  o'clock 
until  dark.  It  was  from  this  valley  that  General  Sherman 
dispatched  Secretary  Stanton:  "Convey  to  Jeff  Davis  my 
personal  and  official  thanks,  for  abolishing  cotton  and  substi- 
tuting corn  and  sweet  potatoes  in  the  South.     These  facili- 


460  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

tate  our  military  plans  much,  for  food  and  forage  are  abimd! 
ant. " 

The  column  started  forward  at  4  p.  m.,  and  at  a  livelj 
pace  which  was  well  maintained  until  9  o'clock  at  night, 
when  the  Eighty-sixth  biv^ouacked  in  a  corn  field,  and  there 
was  scarcely  a  mess  in  the  regiment  but  Avhat  had  fresh 
meat,  either  pork  or  mutton,  for  supper.  It  was  now,  too,  in 
a  region  that  produced  the  finest  of  sweet  potatoes,  and  al] 
were  supplied  with  these.  All  being  thus  well  supplied  with 
foraged  articles  worked  to  to  the  advantage  of  the  commis-i 
sary  department  and  relieved  it  to  a  considerable  extent. 
The  Chattooga  or  Broomtown  Valley  lies  between  Taylor's 
Ridge  on  the  east,  and  Pigeon  mountain  on  the  west,  and  is 
drained  to  the  southward  by  the  Chattooga  river  and  its 
tributaries,  the  Chattooga  uniting  with  Little  river  before 
emptying  into  the  Coosa.  The  valley  does  not  entend  duej 
north  and  south,  as  the  southern  end  of  Taylor's  ridge  bears] 
off  to  the  west.  Down  the  east  side — at  the  foot  of  Taylor's 
ridge — of  this  valley  the  command  was  now  marching. 

On  the  19th  the  command  remained  at  the  bivouac  until 
1:30  p.  m.  at  which  time  it  continued  its  march  down  the  val- 
ley at  a  good  rate  of  speed,  crossed  the  Chattooga  river  and 
arrived  at  the  town  of  Summerville  about  4:30  o'clock.  Sum- 
merville  was  then  the  county  seat  of  Chattooga  county, 
Georgia,  but  an  insignificant  place.  Wood's  division  passed 
beyond  the  town  about  one  mile  and  bivouacked — the  Eighty- 
sixth  in  an  open  field.  On  the  following  morning  reveille 
was  sounded  at  4:30  o'clock,  but  the  column  did  not  set  for- 
ward on  the  march  until  about  8  o'clock.  The  roads  were 
excellent  and  good  time  was  made,  the  men  reeling  ofl:  the 
miles  in  a  very  spirited  manner.  Foraging  had  been  done 
the  last  few  days  in  such  a  free  handed,  vigorous  manner, 
that  to-day  strict  orders  were  promulgated  against  all  for- 
aging by  individuals  on  their  own  responsibility,  and  the  men 
were  kept  closely  in  ranks,  no  straggling  being  permitted. 
A  halt  was  made  at  noon  for  dinner  after  which  the  tramp 
was  resumed  at  quick  time.  Not  long  after  starting  out  in 
the  afternoon  the  command  passed  over  into  Alabama,  its 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  461 


course  being  still  down  the  valley  of  the  Chattooga  river. 
:ieaching  the  neighborhood  of  Gaylesville,  Cherokee  county, 
\labama,  the  command  bivouacked  about  5  o'clock  in  the 
ivening  in  a  large  farm  opening,  having  covered  on  the  day's 
narch  sixteen  or  eighteen  miles. 

General  Sherman  had  been  in  pursuit  of  Hood  since 
October  3,  at  which  time  he  left  Atlanta  to  protect  his  line  of 
3ommunications.  Acting  on  the  defensive,  his  movements 
aecessarily  depended  npon  those  of  his  adversary  which 
3ften  caused  him  to  labor  at  a  great  disadvantage,  and  quite 
is  often  forced  the  troops  under  him  to  undergo  great  hard- 
ships of  marching.  General  Sherman  had,  however,  while 
acting  on  the  defensive  in  a  manner  which  seemed  undecided, 
aow  about  completed  his  plans,  begun  long  before,  to 
act  on  the  offensive  on  a  grand  scale  in  a  mighty  and  master- 
ful manner  which  would  dumb-found  the  South,  and  with  the 
skillful  assistance  of  the  veteran.  General  Thomas,  bring 
the  war  to  a  close. 

While  the  troops  remained  here  they  subsisted  princi- 
pally on  foraged  articles  secured  from  the  surrounding 
country.  In  order  to  economize  with  rations,  regular  details 
were  made  for  foraging.  Usually  two  men  were  detailed 
from  each  company  to  forage  for  the  regiment,  and  two  to 
forage  for  the  company,  and  as  many  more  to  forage  on 
their  own  responsibility  as  cared  to  undertake  it.  In  this 
way  a  plentiful  supply  of  provender  was  kept  on  hand  while 
in  camp  at  Gaylesville.  On  the  21st  shoes  were  issued  to  the 
Eighty-sixth  and  to  the  entire  command.  On  the  22d  details 
for  the  regiment  and  company  were  sent  out  to  collect  for 
age,  returning  with  sweet  potatoes  and  turnips.  On  the  23d 
a  detail  was  made  from  the  Eighty-sixth  to  go  with  a  train 
to  procure  forage  for  the  mules  and  horses.  The  detail 
made  a  long  march,  going  northward  to  near  the  southern 
extremity  of  Lookout  Mountain  where  General  McCook 
crossed  with  his  corps  previous  to  the  battle  of  Chicka- 
mauga.  Forage  was  not  very  plentiful  here  and  the  detail 
returned  with  no  very  abundant  supply,  after  marching  about 
thirty  miles  on  the  round  trip,  not  reaching  camp  until  about 


462  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

8  o'clock  at  night.  On  the  24th  the  camp  of  the  Eighty- 
sixth  was  laid  off  in  regular  order  as  though  it  might  remain 
here  the  rest  of  the  fall,  and  the  Nineteenth  Ohio  was  detailed 
to  guard  a  supply  train  to  Rome.  Sherman  was  getting 
ready  to  bid  the  Fourth  corps  good-bye. 

On  the  25th  some  of  the  troops  were  paraded  out  for  a 
sham  battle.  It  looked  finely  enough  when  one  knew  it  was 
only  for  show,  but  really  it  had  very  little  the  appearance  of 
an  actual  battle.  It  might  have  been  considered  a  nice  dis- 
play and  exciting  to  those  who  had  never  seen  a  real  red- 
handed  battle.  It  does  not  tingle  the  nerves,  or  send  the 
blood  back  upon  the  heart  as  if  to  overwhelm  it,  like  the 
tumultuous  burst  of  a  genuine  and  momentous  battle  when 
one  is  standing  awaiting  orders  to  be  hurled  right  into  the 
thickest  and  swiftest  of  its  deadly  current  at  any  moment. 
The  sham  can  not  be  made  as  the  real  in  anything,  and  here 
it  probably  appeared  the  farthest  removed  from  it.  It  was 
simply  a  battle  without  injury  or  death — without  the  horrors 
of  the  reality. 

On  the  26th  there  was  a  detail  from  the  Eighty-sixth  for 
forage  duty  as  usual.  The  general  bivouac  of  the  Fourth 
corps  was  comparatively  quiet,  and  there  was  no  particular 
indication  of  an  immediate  move.  General  Sherman  was 
riding  round  viewing  the  camps  and  troops  in  a  quiet,  unos- 
tentatious way.  It  was  his  "good-bye"  to  the  Fourth  corps 
although  the  men  knew  it  not.  It  was  the  last  time  many  of 
the  men  ever  saw  the  Grand  Old  Soldier.  He  then  had 
everything  in  readiness  to  leave  and  march  back  to  Atlanta, 
and  with  a  little  more  hasty  preparation,  start  on  his  wonder- 
ful, matchless  March  to  the  Sea  that  was  to  startle  the 
world.  The  divisions  of  the  Fourth  corps  were  once  more 
united  at  Gaylesville,  but  were  now  about  to  separate  from 
its  companion  corps,  the  Fourteenth  and  Twentieth,  which 
were  to  accompany  General  Sherman  on  his  march. 

Many  of  the  Eighty-sixth  regretted  that  the  Fourth 
corps  was  not  permitted  to  accompany  General  Sherman  on 
his  march  to  the  sea,   and  on  January  6,  1886,  J.  A.  Barnes 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  463 

wrote  the  General  in  which  he  expressed   this  regret.     In 
reply  General  Sherman  said: 

"Of  course  I  hated  to  send  the  Fourth  corps  back  from  Kingston, 
but  the  general  plan  contemplated  General  Thomas  at  Nashville  and  me 
marching  to  Savannah,  Columbia,  Raleigh,  and  Richmond,  with  Hood 
at  liberty  to  attack  either.  I  therefore  had  to  provide  Thomas  with 
enough  men  to  fight  Hood.  All  he  asked  for  in  addition  to  the  troops 
he  had  was  the  Fourth  corps.  After  sending  that  corps  to  make  assur- 
ance doubly  sure,  I  also  sent  the  Twenty-third  corps — Schofield — and 
you  know  the  result.  The  battle  of  Franklin  and  Nashville  were  as  im- 
portant to  the  general  cause  as  the  march  to  the  sea.  Su  you  may  safely 
assume  that  you  performed  a  full  share  in  the  final  camjjaign  which 
ended  the  war."" 

These  words  of  the  great  General  are  to  be  taken  and 
applied  in  the  sense  in  which  they  are  undoubtedly  meant. 
It  is  true  he  is  addressing  an  individual,  but  as  he  could  know 
nothing  of  that  individual's  service  in  the  ranks,  he  evidently 
referi"ed  to  the  command  in  and  with  which  he  served  as  per- 
forming "  a  full  share  in  the  final  campaign  which  ended  tlie 
war."  The  General  evidently  then  meant  his  commendation 
to  apply  first  to  the  army,  to  the  corps,  division  and  brigade, 
as  he  speaks  of  Franklin  and  Nashville,  but  as  he  was  in- 
formed of  the  writer's  regiment,  and  as  he  could  know  from 
the  records  quite  accurately  of  the  honorable  service  of  the 
regiment  as  an  integral  part  of  the  organized  command,  the 
statement  is  justified  that  these  words,  "performed  a  full 
share  in  the  final  campaign  which  ended  the  war, "  apply 
directly  to  the  service  of  the  Eighty-sixth,  and  through  the 
regimental  organization  to  the  individual  soldiers  who  com- 
posed it.  It  is  a  commendation  of  which  any  army,  corps, 
division,  brigade  or  regiment  should  be  proud,  and  th(»  Foiirtli 
corps.  Wood's  division.  Third  brigade  and  Eighty -sixth  Indi- 
ana did  their  "full  share"  and  justly  earned  the  commen- 
dation. 

The  month  of  October,  1864,  was  an  eventful  one  to  the 
Fourth  corps,  and  with  it  the  Eighty-sixth,  which  took  i)art 
in  all  the  duties  that  fell  to  the  lot  of  the  corps  in  general, 
and  not  only  took  part,  but  performed  faitlifully  aud  well  all 
duties  assigned  it.  In  marching  back  over  the  rugged 
mountainous  country   in   the   twelve   or    thirteen    days    of 


464  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH aREGIMENT, 

actual  marching,  that  required  four  months  of  battle  to 
acquire,  was  no  easy  task.  Besides  the  marching,  much 
of'  which  was  at  night,  and  consequently  very  laborious, 
it  will  be  noted  that  the  regiment  jDerformed  many  other 
duties,  such  as  building  intrenchments  and  making 
itself  ready  to  repel  an  attack.  Hood's  campaign  had  been 
well  planned  and  fairly  well,  if  not  brilliantly,  executed,  and 
against  almost  any  other  commander  than  General  Sher- 
man, might  have  been  successful.  But  with  his  genius  to 
direct  his  matchless  legions,  victory  was  snatched  from  the 
reviving  enthusiasm  of  the  Southerners,  and  turned  to  the 
advantage  of  the  cause  which  he  represented,  that  of  the 
country  and  the  Nation,  and  left  Hood  so  bewildered  that  it 
was  some  weeks  before  he  sufficiently  recovered  to  advance 
upon  Thomas'  position  and  forces. 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 
THE  TABLES  TURNED. 

Hood  Marching  North— A  Race  for  the  Lead— Wood's  Division  Gets  There  First— 
Elli  River  and  "  The  Irishman's  Pontoons"— Hood  After  Schoflold  and  Tliomas 
—Pulaski— CoUimljia—Dnck  Rivei — Spring  Hill,  or  Running  the  Gauntlet— 
The  Battle  of  Franklin— Fort  Granger— Thomas'  Army  Organization  and 
Strength. 

As  was  shown  in  the  preceding  chapter  the  Union  army 
was  in  pursuit  of  General  Hood  and  his  army,  ostensibly  chasing 
him  from  the  Western  and  Atlantic  railroad,  the  line  of  its 
communications,  and  of  the  transportation  of  its  supplies,  but  it 
was  also  acting  as  a  column  of  observation  to  discover  Hood's 
intentions  and  plan  of  campaign.  But  he  was  now  going 
farther  north  and  somebody  must  hurry  up  and  get  there 
ahead  of  him.  Who  could  do  it  so  well  as  "Wood's  Grey- 
hounds"? Soon  now  for  a  time,  at  least,  Hood  was  to  be  after 
Schofield's  and  Thomas'  commands.     The  Fourth  corps  was 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  465 

to  be  in  it  from  first  to  last,  from  early  dawn  till  late  at 
night,  of  each  day's  labors.  In  appearance,  at  least,  the 
tables  were  completely  turned,  and  the  rebel  army  was  to  a 
degree  j)aying  the  Union  troops  back  in  their  own  coin,  good 
hard  knocks,  for  the  long,  long  chase  they  had  given  them 
over  the  hills  to  Atlanta,  at  least  so  thought  the  elated 
rebels.  At  any  rate  it  was  to  be  brief,  although  a  memorable 
campaign — a  campaign  of  forced  night  marches,  extremely 
fatiguing  and  trying,  of  wearisome  vigils,  more  exhausting 
and  debilitating  than  the  marching.  All  this  was  to  be 
varied  and  interlarded  with  hot,  spiteful  skirmishing,  fin- 
ished up  and  rounded  out  on  two  occasions,  at  least,  by  des- 
perately fought  battles,  such  as  have  seldom  been  witnessed 
on  this  continent. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  campaign,  after  crossing  the 
Tennessee  river,  it  was  a  kind  of  a  joyful  jubilee,  an  all 
promenade  affair,  for  the  Confederates.  They  reasoned  that 
as  there  was  only  a  handful  of  men  in  their  way,  they  would 
soon  knock  them  on  the  head  and  end  the  business.  But 
after  Franklin  it  was  the  last  desperate,  despairing  struggle 
of  Hood  and  his  army  against  what  seemed  as  the  hand  of 
fate.  It  was  victory  upon  their  part,  or  Hood's  star  as  a 
general  must  set  forever — sink  in  the  gloom  of  repeated 
defeats,  and  the  Confederacy,  their  hope  of  empire,  must 
fade  away.  In  short,  it  was  victory  for,  or  death  to,  the 
Confederacy;  and  if  defeat  it  would  be  an  ignominious  failure 
upon  the  part  of  Hood  who  had  taken  command  with  .so  much 
confidence. 

As  has  been  seen,  towards  the  last  of  October  Sherman's 
army,Avith  the  exception  of  the  Twentieth  corps,  left  to  guard 
Atlanta,  was  at  or  near  Gaylesville,  Alabama,  and  remainetl 
there  several  days  watching  Hood.  General  Sherman  wanted 
to  be  sure  of  Hood's  intentions  in  the  campaign  he  had 
inaugurated,  before  he  took  his  final  leave  of  Thomas  and  the 
forces  left  to  protect  Nashville  and  prevent  Hood's  invasion 
of  the  North.  On  the  26th  Sherman  was  riding  round  among 
the  camps  viewing  the  troops  and  completing  the  arrange- 
ments for  the  campaign  North  as  well  as  those  for  his  great 


466  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  s REGIMENT, 

march  to  the  sea.  On  the  morning  of  the  27th  of  October  the 
Fourth  corps  received  orders  to  march.  Beatty's  brigade,  of 
Wood's  division,  was  to  march  at  8  o'clock  a.  m.,  but  it  did 
not  leave  camp  until  a  half  an  hour  later.  The  Eighty-sixth 
had  not  marched  more  than  a  mile  when  Companies  H  and  K 
were  detailed  to  guard  the  Second  division  supply  train,  and 
had  to  wait  until  about  5  o'clock  p.  m.  before  they  resumed 
the  march.  The  day's  march  was  made  to  the  northeast 
toward  Chattanooga,  and  over  a  rough, mountainous  country, 
a  tiresome  road  to  travel  at  the  best,  and  with  a  soldier's 
load  to  carry,  quite  laborious.  On  the  morning  of  the  28th 
after  a  hasty  breakfast  of  sweet  potatoes,  fresh  pork  and 
coffee,  the  mai'ch  was  resumed  a  little  while  before  sunrise. 
The  regiment  passed  through  Alpine  at  8  o'clock  in  the 
morning.  Marching  at  a  rapid  pace  it  proceeded  on  its  way 
almost  without  a  halt  until  noon,  when  a  stop  was  made  for 
dinner.  The  halt  was  made  at  a  splendid  spring  of  water 
and  the  men  greatly  enjoyed  this  dinner,  the  rest,  and  drink- 
ing the  fine  water.  The  command  remained  here  about  one 
hour,  and  then  resumed  the  march  at  the  same  rapid  pace  as 
before,  resting  only  every  three  or  four  miles.  The  march 
was  continued  until  nearly  8  o'clock  before  the  place  of 
bivouac  was  reached.  This  was  a  long  day's  march  and 
fatigued  the  men  greatly.  The  march  was  resumed  the  fol- 
lowing morning  at  the  same  telling  pace.  Passing  through 
LaFayette,  the  county  seat  of  Walker  county,  Georgia,  the 
command  took  the  direct  road  for  Chattanooga.  It  is  known 
as  the  Chattanooga  and  Rome  road,  and  leads  from  Chatta- 
nooga through  LaFayette  to  Rome,  Georgia.  In  the  day's 
march  it  crossed  the  now  historic  West  Chickamauga  creek 
at  Lee  &  Gordon's  Mills. 

Here  along  this  road  from  Lee  &  Gordon's  Mills  toRoss- 
ville  lies  the  famous  battle-field— the  bloody  Chickamauga — 
where  Bragg 's  army  massed,  found  the  gap  in  the  Union 
line,  divided  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland  and  overpowered 
the  extended  and  weakened  right  wing,  and  then  vainly  bat- 
tered and  beat  itself  to  pieces  on  the  bulwark  that  ' '  the  Rock 
of  Chickamauga"  had  erected  on  Snodgrass  Hill.     This  was 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  467 

the  regiment's  first  glimpse  at  tlie  field  since  the  fateful  days, 
18th,  19th  and  20th  of  September,  1863,  where  ran  the  good 
red  blood  of  the  Union  troops  as -water,  and  the  blood  of  the 
Confederates  flowed  not  less  profusely.  It  was  an  awful 
time  when  the  fiery  hosts  of  Bragg  in  their  most  desperate 
mood  ran  as  to  a  banquet  upon  the  stubborn  battalions  of 
Rosecrans,  who  would  not  yield.  The  timber  of  the  field 
showed  all  too  plainly  of  the  terrific  nature  of  the  encoun- 
ter that  had  taken  place.  The  innumerable  graves  attested 
the  sanguinary  character  of  the  contest — that  it  was  a  battle 
unto  death.  The  road  led  almost  from  one  end  of  the 
battle-field  to  the  other,  and  thus  gave  the  men  an  opportun- 
ity to  see  all  along  the  line  how  these  two  mighty  hosts  in 
the  agony  of  desperation,  had  contended.  This  battle-field 
is  now  a  National  Park,  and  tablets  everywhere  mark  the 
blood-stained  ground  to  commemorate  the  valor  of  each  reg- 
iment, brigade  and  division  engaged. 

Passing  through  Rossville  the  regiment  reached  its  biv- 
ouac near  5  o'clock  p.  m.,  having  marched  about  twenty 
miles  this  day.  On  the  following  morning,  the  30th,  the 
command  resumed  the  march  about  6  o'clock,  going  directly 
to  the  depot  in  Chattanooga.  Here  the  "hospital  reserve" 
of  the  Eighty-sixth,  and  in  fact  of  all  the  regiments  of  the 
division,  flocked  to  see  "  the  fellows  from  the  front."  The 
men  were  soon  put  aboard  the  cars  and  roiled  over  down  the 
river,  around  the  point  of  Lookout  Mountain,  on  down  by 
other  lofty  peaks,  and  over  deep  ravines  at  the  bottom  of 
which  ran  beautiful  mountain  streams.  At  Bridgeport  the 
Tennessee  river  was  crossed,  thence  westward  to  Stevenson, 
Huntsville  and  Decatur.  Eighteen  or  twenty  miles  west  of 
Stevenson  the  railroad  track  had  been  torn  up,  presumably 
by  guerrillas  or  some  band  of  Forrest's  cavalry,  and  the  train 
was  delayed  for  some  time.  The  soldiers  took  advantage  of 
the  delay,  and  while  the  track  was  being  repaired  they  built 
fires,  made  coffee,  fried  bacon  and  ate  supper.  After  consid- 
erable delay  the  onward  run  was  resumed. 

.  An  all  night's  run,  including  delays,  brought  the  train 
to  the  vicinity  of  Athens,  Alabama.     The  command  arrived 


468  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

there  a  little  while  after  daylight,  marched  through  the  town 
southward  and  halted.  Here  it  breakfasted,  received  mail 
and  drew  one  day's  rations  of  hard  bread,  coffee,  sugar,  and 
salt.  Athens  had  been  rather  a  flourishing  Southern  town 
with  comparatively  good  buildings,  but  it  was  now  showing 
the  effects  of  war.  The  command  remained  here  until  just 
after  noon,  when  it  resumed  the  march,  going  nearly  due 
north  in  the  direction  of  Nashville.  On  the  north,  near  town, 
there  were  some  fairly  well  improved  farms  compared  with 
most  of  the  Southern  country.  But  away  from  the  town  the 
farms  well  improved  in  number  grew  small,  until  at  lengtli 
the  country  for  miles  seemed  almost  a  wilderness  of  woods. 
The  column  marched  at  a  rapid  rate,  seldom  halting,  and 
bivouacked  about  7  p.  m. 

On  the  morning  of  the  1st  of  November  the  column  re- 
sumed the  march  about  5  o'clock  and  soon  passed  into  Ten- 
nessee. Having  reached  Elk  river,  Beatty's  brigade  in  ad- 
vance of  the  division,  and  the  Eighty-sixth  in  advance  of  the 
brigade,  no  bridge  was  found  on  which  to  cross.  After  a 
moment's  contemplation  of  the  stream  and  the  situation, 
Colonel  Dick  jocosely  remarked  that  he  guessed  we  would 
have  to  cross  on  the  ' '  Irishman's  pontoons. ' '  The  river  flowed 
in  a  strong  current  about  waist  deep.  The  men,  therefore, 
soon  removed  their  garments  and  waded  the  stream.  It  was 
speedily  done.  The  water  was  quite  cold  and  ran  swiftly,  so 
it  was  no  easy  crossing,  wading  and  holding  one's  gun,  cart- 
ridge-box and  haversack  up  out  of  the  water.  But  the  w^orst 
of  all  was  to  be  in  the  cold  water  so  long.  When  once  across 
some  of  the  boys  set  several  unoccupied  houses  on  fire  by 
which  to  warm  themselves.  This  crossing  was  made  at  a 
small  town  called  Elkton.  But  the  regiment  did  not  tarry 
long  to  warm  by  the  fires  but  marched  on  at  a  very  rapid 
pace.  The  division  was  halted  at  noon  for  dinner.  Rations 
were  not  plentiful  and  some  of  the  boys  did  some  old-time 
artistic  foraging,  getting  in  their  work  in  good  time.  The 
march  was  resumed  and  the  head  of  column  reached  Pulaski 
between  3  and  4  o'clock  p.  m.  Beatty's  brigade  passed 
through  the  town  about  a  half  mile  and  bivouacked.     In  the 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  469 

evening  the  regiment  again  drew  rations:  one  day's  ration 
of  hard  bread,  two  of  coffee,  three  of  sugar  and  salt  and  one 
and  a  half  of  bacon. 

Wood's  division  took  position  here  and  began  fortifying 
as  usual.  Work  was  continued  on  the  fortifications  as  long 
as  it  remained.  The  First  division,  Kimball's,  arrived  at 
Pulaski  on  the  3d.  So  with  fatigue  and  picket  duty  the  men 
were  kept  from  rusting  away  in  idleness.  On  the  10th  the 
officers  of  the  Eighty -sixth  were  paid  oft",  and  on  the  11th  the 
rank  and  file  received  eight  months'  pay,  which  added  greatly 
to  the  good  spirits  of  the  men. 

There  was  nothing  of  importance  occurred  during  the 
first  few  days'  stay  at  Pulaski,  but  along  about  the  15th  or 
16th  of  the  month  the  drafted  men  began  to  come  in.  This 
caused  great  rejoicing  among  the  old  soldiers.  Some  of  the 
drafted  men  seemed  to  take  it  all  right,  while  others  aj^peared 
gloomy  and  unwilling  to  talk  about  their  great  misfortune, 
and  if  they  said  anything  it  was  to  denounce  in  unmeasured 
terms  the  ofticers  of  the  draft.  The  "conscripts"  were  for 
sometime  the  butt  of  the  command,  but  they  were  needed, 
and  a  little  later  some  of  them  did  good  service,  for  which 
they  are  to  have  due  credit. 

Along  about  the  middle  the  month  the  rebel  cavalry 
began  feeling  its  way  out  from  Florence  on  the  advance  and 
to  prepare  the  way  for  Hood's  infantry.  Tlie  rebel  cavalry 
made  demonstrations  toward  Lawrenceburg  and  Waynesboro 
on  the  15th,  but  the  Union  cavalry  was  alert  and  delayed  the 
enemy's  advance,  although  not  nearly  so  strong  in  numbers. 
During  the  time  at  Pulaski  there  were  many  reports  and 
rumors  of  the  movements,  both  of  the  rebel  and  Union 
forces.  About  the  18th  or  20th  "grapevine  telegrams" 
became  numerous,  and  one  said,  "Hood  is  advancing.  "  In 
fact,  Hood's  infantry,  Lee's  corps,  did  advance  alx)ut  ten 
miles  out  from  Florence  on  the  20th,  and  on  the  21st  the 
Avhole  of  his  army,  infantry  and  cavalry,  was  on  the  advance 
toward  Pulaski  or  to  Hank  it,  and  if  possible,  cut  Schofiold 
oif  from  Nashville  and  Thomas. 

On  tlie  21st  of  November  the  Ninth  Regiment,  Kentucky 


470  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

Volunteers,  Colonel  George  H.  Cram,  was  relieved  from  duty 
as  the  regiment's  term  of  service  had  expired.  The  Eighty- 
sixth  regretted  to  see  the  Ninth  go.  It  was  a  good  steady 
regiment  and  could  be  relied  upon.  Thus  Thomas'  forces 
were  being  weakened  daily  by  his  old  and  best  regiments 
going  home,  while  newer  and  less  reliable  regiments  came  in 
to  take  their  place. 

As  the  days  passed  the  talk  of  the  camps  became  more 
and  more  positive  that  Hood  was  advancing.  About  10:30 
on  the  morning  of  the  23d  came  the  orders  to  be  ready  to 
march  at  noon.  The  "general"  was  sounded  by  the  brigade 
bugler  at  12  o'clock.  Tents  were  struck  immediately,  but 
the  order  to  set  forward  was  not  given;  it  was  delayed  pre- 
sumably to  allow  other  troops  to  march  out  first.  The  order 
was  a  timely  one  for  the  command,  but  it  worked  harm  to 
some  non-combatant  camp  followers,  notably  the  sutlers. 
One  of  these  not  being  able  to  secure  transportation  for  his 
goods  when  the  time  came  to  move  piled  his  surplus  and  set 
fire  to  it.  The  boys  soon  discovered  the  situation  and  made 
a  dash  for  the  goods,  and  scattered  the  fire  in  an  instant. 
Some  secured  plug  tobacco,  some  soap,  some  one  thing  and 
some  another. 

Just  at  sunset  the  Third  brigade  filed  out  upon  the  road 
to  Columbia  in  the  direction  of  Nashville,  and  marched  ten 
miles,  and  bivouacked  near  Lynnville.  This  made  it  quite 
late  getting  supper,  so  by  the  time  the  men  were  ready  to 
retire  it  was  about  midnight.  Forrest  was  fighting  hard 
to  get  between  the  command  and  Columbia  on  the  Mt.  Pleas- 
ant and  Columbia  road,  and  the  men  were  called  up  at  1 
o'clock  on  the  morning  of  the  24th  and  hastened  on,  allow- 
ing them  not  more  than  an  hour  for  rest  and  sleep  during  the 
night.  The  march  was  resumed  at  3  o'clock  and  good  time 
was  made,  as  things  were  becoming  critical.  During  the 
forenoon  the  regiment  was  detailed  to  guard  the  wagon  train. 
It  was  quite  plain  now  that  it  was  a  retreat  and  it  appeared 
that  there  was  more  haste  necessary  than  was  shown  in  the 
immediate  front;  that  the  large  amount  of  United  States 
property  was  believed  to  be  in  danger,   and  it  might  be  diffi- 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  471 

cult  to  save  it  from  rebel  clutches.  But  the  "army  wagon, 
the  old  army  wagon"  rolled  on  propelled  by  the  ever  faith- 
ful "mool,"  a  southern  product  that  with  the  "nigger"  was 
ever  loyal  and  true. 

Beatty's  brigade  arrived  at  Columbia  at  noon,  having 
covered  twenty  miles.  The  men  were  ordered,  notwith- 
standing their  long  march,  to  proceed  at  once  to  the  con- 
struction of  a  line  of  breastworks.  They  Avere  well  on  the 
way  to  completion  in  a  short  time,  but  before  they  were 
finished  the  Eighty-sixth  was  detailed  for  picket  duty. 
Another  night  was  to  be  passed  in  vigils.  The  regiment  was 
relieved  the  next  day  about  10  o'clock  by  the  Nineteenth 
Ohio  and  at  once  returned  to  camp.  In  the  afternoon  the 
men  were  ordered  to  construct  an  abatis  and  prepare  to 
defend  this  position.  Skirmishing  was  commenced  a  little 
after  noon,  but  it  was  light,  with  some  cannonading  on  the 
distant  right  during  the  afternoon.  Late  in  the  afternoon 
the  regiment  drew  rations.  Still  later  the  Eighty-sixth  was 
moved  to  the  left  about  three  hundred  yards.  General 
Schofield,  having  found  it  necessary  to  send  some  of  his 
forces  north  of  Duck  river  at  Columbia,  was  forced  to  con- 
tract his  lines,  that  he  might  be  the  better  able  to  hold  them 
against  an  attack.  The  Fourth  corps  was  to  hold  tlie  posi- 
tion south  of  the  river,  that  is  Columbia,  while  tlie  Twenty- 
third  corps  and  the  cavalry  were  to  guard  the  other  cross- 
ings of  the  river  and  protect  the  rear.  This  change  was 
made  on  the  night  of  the  25th.  On  the  26th  there  was  con- 
stant skirmishing  and  more  or  less  artillery  firing  by  both 
the  rebel  and  Union  batteries.  An  attack  was  strongly 
threatened  and  was  coulidently  expected,  but  Hood  declined 
the  contest,  expecting  to  catch  Schofield  at  a  greater  disad- 
vantage. 

The  Seventy-ninth  Indiana  was  on  the  skirmish  line  on 
this  day  for  the  brigade,  and  had  one  man  wounded.  It  was 
a  dreary,  dark  and  cheerless  day,  a  drizzling  rain  falling  the 
entire  time.  The  surroundings  were  no  less  inviting.  The 
command  was  almost  surrounded  by  a  greatly  superior 
force,   and  a  deep  unfordable  river  yet  to  cross,  rendered 


472  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT,        ' 

the  situation  one  of  extreme  peril.  Still  the  men  were  not 
greatly  worried  by  these  unfavorable  conditions.  They  had 
been  besieged  in  Chattanooga  when,  to  them,  affairs  looked 
darker.  They  had  campaigned  under  Rosecrans,  Thomas 
and  Sherman  too  long  to  fret.  Great  confidence  was  felt 
that  General  Scholield  would  find  a  way  out  before  the  last 
gateway  would  be  closed.  In  fact  there  was  no  dismay  in 
the  ranks.  The  men  were  aware  of  the  proximity  of  the  foe 
as  was  shown  by  the  little  straggling  that  was  done  and  the 
compactness  of  the  marching  column. 

It  continued  to  rain  on  the  night  of  the  26th.  The  skir- 
mishing indicated  the  enemy  to  be  aggressive.  The  orders 
had  been  that  the  division  would  move  that  night  across  the 
river,  but  just  after  nightfall  it  was  announced  that  the 
troops  w^ould  remain  in  position,  and  that  the  evacuation 
w^ould  not  take  place  till  the  following  night.  On  the  27th 
it  continued  to  rain  steadily,  and  and  occasional  picket  skir- 
mish broke  the  dull  monotony  of  the  day.  The  men  remained 
quietly  in  their  intrenchments  until  7  p.  m.  when  the  division 
moved  out  slowly,  passed  through  the  town  of  Columbia, 
and  crossed  Duck  river  to  the  north  side  on  pontoons.  The 
The  Third  division  led,  followed  by  the  First  and  Second. 
General  Wood  in  his  report  says  ' '  the  passage  of  the  river 
was  made  about  two  miles  below  the  town."  The  Third 
brigade  marched  about  a  mile  and  a  half  from  the  bridge  and 
bivouacked. 

The  following  morning,  the  28th,  the  men  were  called  at 
4  o'clock.  The  brigade  remained  here  until  8  o'clock,  when 
it  moved  farther  up  the  river,  taking  a  position  on  the  ex- 
treme left  of  the  corps  when  facing  the  enemy.  The  Eighty- 
sixth  was  detailed  for  picket,  the  sentinels  being  stationed  on 
the  bank  of  the  river.  The  regiment  was  not  relieved  until 
noon  of  the  29th.  Early  on  this  morning  Post's  Second  brig- 
ade was  sent  on  a  reconnoissance  up  the  river  to  watch  the 
movement  of  the  enemy,  as  it  was  reported  that  he  was 
crossing  at  a  place  called  Davis'  ford.  As  soon  as  the  Eighty- 
sixth  was  relieved  from  picket  it  was  ordered  to  march  in 
the  direction  of  Post's  brigade  as  support.     In  the  meantime 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  473 

there  was  a  good  deal  of  skirmishing  and  cannonading  in  the 
direction  of  the  pontoon  bridge.  General  Cox,  with  his  divis- 
ion of  the  Twenty-third  corps,  was  holding  that  position, 
although  the  enemy  was  making  a  strong  show  of  attempt- 
ing to  cross  at  that  point.  Cox  had  a  critical  day  of  it.  Had 
the  enemy  succeeded  in  effecting  a  crossing  he  would  have 
had  the  Union  troops  between  the  upper  and  the  nether  mill- 
stone. With  one  corps  already  across  at  Davis'  ford,  five 
miles  above,  and  with  another  at  this  point  he  would  have 
had  the  three  divisions  of  the  Fourth  corps  and  the  two 
divisions  of  the  Twenty-third  corps  as  if  in  a  vise.  Fortu- 
nately for  the  Union  side  Cox's  magnificent  division,  handled 
with  remarkable  skill,  held  its  ground  firmly  and  repelled 
every  attempt  to  force  his  way  over  the  stream.  Cox  with- 
drew his  division  from  its  position  soon  after  dark  and  retired 
to  Spring  Hill,  leaving  the  crossing  covered  by  his  skirmish 
line,  consisting  of  two  companies  of  the  Sixty-third  Indiana, 
supported  by  two  other  regimcDts. 

The  Eighty-sixth  rejoined  the  brigade  soon  after  night- 
fall. There  was  no  moon  and  the  darkness  was  ahnost  im- 
penetrable. Wood's  division  filed  in  after  Cox  and  began  its 
retreat  about  10  o'clock  p.  m.  on  the  29th.  Wood  was  fol- 
lowed by  Kimball's  B'irst  division.  Kimball  had  started 
northward  in  the  morning,  but  had  halted  on  the  hills  .south 
of  Rutherford  creek,  four  miles  north  of  Columbia.  When 
Wood's  division  reached  that  point,  Kimball  followed  with 
his  division.  Until  this  stream  was  crossed  the  progress  was 
very  slow,  exasperatingly  slow.  The  report,  which  had  been 
freely  circulated  during  the  afternoon,  that  a  largo  lx)dy  of 
Confederate  infantry  had  crossed  Duck  river  five  mih\s  above 
Columbia,  had  been  confirmed.  Wagner's  Second  division  of 
the  Fourth  corps,  which  left  Duck  river  early  in  the  morn- 
ing, had  been  fighting  most  of  the  day  at  Spring  Hill.  How- 
ever, Wood's  division  marched  on  undisturbed,  until  w<-ciri- 
ness -became  fatigue,  and  fatigue  exhaustion,  when  the  light 
of  large  camp  tires  broke  upon  the  vision  of  the  men  .some 
distance  in  front,  or  in  the  direction  they  were  marching. 
This,  of  course,  was  supposed  to  be  the  camps  of  the  Union 


474  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

forces,  and  the  troops,  cheered  by  the  prospect  of  securing 
rest  and  sleep,  stepped  briskly  forward.  One  comrade  would 
inform  another  that  he  intended  to  rest  there  whether  the 
regiment  halted  or  not.  But  lo!  what  a  change  came  over 
the  spirit  of  their  dreams!  The  column  was  quietly  halted, 
and  Captain  M.  P.  Bestow,  of  General  Wood's  staff,  rode 
down  the  ranks  and  announced  softly,  "Boys,  this  is  a  rebel 
camp  lying  near  the  road  and  we  must  march  by  it  as  quietly 
as  possible.  Arrange  everything  so  there  will  be  no  noise! "' 
This  confirmed  the  w^orst  reports  and  put  quite  a  new  phase 
on  the  aspect  of  affairs.  Every  soldier  who  heard  Avhat  the 
Captain  said  knew  from  his  earnest  tones  that  he  meant  that 
the  command  was  in  a  most  desperate  situation,  and  if  at- 
tacked in  that  place  a  miracle  of  skill  on  the  part  of  the  com- 
mander, and  nerve  unparalleled  on  the  part  of  the  men,  alono 
could  save  the  two  divisions.  Now  shone  the  soldierly  qual 
ities  of  the  men  of  the  old  Third  division,  and  the  cool,  de- 
termined purpose  and  skill  of  the  "  iron-gray  veteran,  Wood,'' 
their  commander.  Cut  off  from  the  rest  of  the  army,  except 
Cox's  skirmishers  and  their  support,  the  two  divisions  must 
depend  on  themselves  to  form  a  junction  with  the  rest  of  the 
army.  With  Beatty's  Third  brigade  in  advance  the  column 
proceeded.  The  Eighty-sixth  was  in  the  advance  of  the  brig- 
ade. There  never  was  any  dilly  dallying  or  foolishness 
about  Colonel  Dick  if  he  had  a  duty  to  perform.  It  was 
"Forward,  march!"  and  it  was  done.  So  it  was  that  night. 
He  was  ordered  to  send  forward  an  advance-guard.  Adjutant 
Thomas  detailed  Companies  B  and  H,  under  the  command  of 
Captain  Jeremiah  Haugh,  to  perform  that  duty,  and  the 
Captain,  in  quiet,  low  tones,  ordered  the  two  companies 
"forward"  to  run  the  gauntlet  and  try  the  alertness  of  the 
enemy.     Now  was  the  critical  moment. 

"  And  tlie  air  was  so  calm,  and  the  forest  so  dumb. 

That  we  heard  our  heart-beats,  like  taps  of  a  drum— 

"Column!    Forward!" 

Everything  now  was  keyed  to  the  utmost  jntch.  but  the 
regiment  proceeded  steadily,  although  very  quietly,  for- 
ward, and  the  brigade  followed  in  like  manner.  All  passed 
quietly  and  without  notice  by  the  rebels  with  the  exception 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  475 

of  one  regiment.  Temporarily  connected  with  the  Third 
brigade — on  thi.s  retreat  only — was  the  Fortieth  Missouri,  a 
new  regiment  that  had  been  pushed  immediately  to  the  front, 
and  which  the  boys  had  denominated  the  "  Fortieth  Misery, " 
on  account  of  their  extreme  nervousness.  On  such  an  occa- 
sion as  this  the  new  regiment  that  w^ould  pass  without  con- 
siderable trepidation  would  certainly  be  the  exception.  It  is 
said  that  in  marching  by  the  rebel  camps  the  division  actu- 
ally marched  through  the  enemy's  picket  line,  that  it  extend- 
ed across  the  pike,  and  that  a  part  of  the  line  was  cut  off 
and  therefore  feared  to  fire  upon  the  column.  But  at  any 
rate  one  or  two  of  the  pickets  on  the  side  of  the  rebel  camp 
fired  into  the  ' '  Fortieth  Misery "  as  it  passed,  and  such  a 
tumbling  of  raw  recruits,  and  such  a  clatter  of  frying  pans 
and  cooking  utensils,  is  seldom  heard  in  an  army.  Those 
green  levies  were  piled  about  five  deep  in  the  center  of  the 
pike,  and  tried  hard  to  pile  higher  still.  There  was  groan- 
ing and  lamentations  equal  to  a  negro  camp  meeting.  They 
Iliad  lain  down  to  escape  the  enemy's  fire,  having  been  out 
long  enough  to  learn  that  much.  But  this  halted  the  column 
in  the  immediate  rear,  which  was  Major  Snyder,  with  Iho 
veteran  Thirteenth  Ohio.  The  Major  was  a  man  of  quick, 
decisive  action.  He  did  not  care  to  be  delayed  long  liere, 
and  therefore  at  once  rode  quietly  forward  and  aslcod  the 
nature  of  the  trouble.  Upon  learning  the  cause  of  the  halt 
he  saw  that  the  delay  was  far  more  dangerous  than  the  firo. 
and  advised  the  Colonel  to  march  his  men  on  as  speedily  and 
quietly  as  possible,  and  thus  clear  the  road  foi-  the  troops 
behind.  The  Colonel  of  the  Fortieth  hesitated.  It  did  not 
require  but  a  moment  for  the  Major  to  decide,  and  riding 
back  to  the  head  of  his  regiment,  he  ordered  the  Thirteenth 
to  "Forward,  March!"  and  it  literally  walked  over  tho 
"Fortieth  Misery"  and  proceeded  on  its  way.  WIumi  thf 
Missourians  saw,  or  heard,  or  felt,  the  Ohio  troops  passing 
on  undisturbed,  they,  too,  picked  up  courage,  gathered  them- 
selves up  from  that  pile  of  cooking  utensils  and  canteens, 
and  resumed  the  march,  though  very  cautiously.  The  com- 
mand reached  Spring  Hill  at  daylight,  and  was  tliere  halted 


476  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

for  sometime  to  the  right  of  the  pike,  behind  some  rail  barri- 
cades, until  the  trains  drew  well  out  on  the  road  to  Franklin, 
when  it  again  proceeded  on  its  way.  Of  this  passage  of  the 
National  troops  by  the  rebel  bivouacs.  General  J.  D.  Cox,  in 
his  history  of  the  Franklin  and  Nashville  campaign,  says: 
"About  midnight  Hood  was  informed  that  troops  were  pass- 
ing on  the  Columbia  road,  and  sent  Johnson's  division  of 
Lee's  corps  to  extend  Bate's  line  and  stop  the  movement; 
but  the  night  was  dark  and  country  unfamiliar,  and  nothing 
came  of  it,  but  a  slight  occasional  skirmish  while  our  col- 
umns marched  by  in  full  view  of  the  enemy's  camp-fires, 
which  were  burning  less  than  a  half  mile  away." 

While  this  work  was  in  progress  the  First  division  came 
up,  rapidly  passed  through  Spring  Hill,  and  pushed  on 
toward  Franklin.  The  wagon  train  was  now  all  out  upon  the 
road  and  moving  northward.  The  Third  division  then 
moved  out,  marching  east  of  the  road  a  short  distance  and 
parallel  to  it,  as  a  cover  to  the  train.  The  Second  division 
followed  the  Third.  After  leaving  Spring  Hill  the  enemy's 
cavalry,  under  Forest,  made  a  dash  upon  the  train,  dispersed 
a  squad  of  guards,  captured  and  burned  a  number  of  wagons, 
but  was  finally  driven  off,  and  the  train  proceeded.  The 
rebel  cavalry  made  a  second  dash  at  the  train,  but  was  again 
quickly  repulsed  by  two  regiments  of  the  Third  division, 
deployed  as  skirmishers,  aided  by  a  section  of  artillery. 

Wood's  division  reached  the  vicinity  of  Franklin  without 
further  trouble,  only  the  men  were  very  tired.  Beatty's 
brigade  was  halted  for  breakfast  about  a  mile  out  from 
Franklin  at  the  foot  of  a  circle  of  hills  that  encompass  the 
town.  Here  the  men  had  only  fairly  begun  their  frugal  meal, 
when  the  boom  of  Wagner's  batteries  sounded,  in  a  bold 
attempt  to  stay  the  progress  of  Hood's  onward  rushing  bat- 
talions. The  "Fortieth  Misery"  was  on  its  feet  instantly, 
slung  knapsacks  and  tired  as  the  men  were,  they  were  ready 
to  tramp  on  when  the  old  soldiers  checked  them  in  their 
wild  career  by  yells  of  derision.  Wagner's  division,  the  ^ 
Second  of  the  Fourth  corps,  was  acting  as  rear-guard  for  \ 
Schofield's  forces,  and  could  not  long  delay  Hood's  advance. 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  417 

Upon  arriving  at  Franklin  the  two  divisions  of  the 
Twenty-third  corps  had  taken  position  in  the  suburbs  of  the 
village,  with  their  left  resting  on  the  Harpeth  river  above 
the  town  and  their  right  across  and  west  of  the  turnpike. 
Kimball's  First  division,  of  the  Fourth,  corps  was  the  next  to 
arrive  and  it  was  posted  on  the  right  of  the  Twenty-third 
corps,  with  its  right  resting  on  the  river  below  the  town. 
Inirenchments  were  at  once  thrown  ujj  by  the  Twenty-third 
corps  and  Kimball's  division,  of  the  Fourth  corps.  Wood's 
division  was  the  next  to  arrive,  and  the  line  all  being  occu- 
pied, it  "was  ordered  to  cross  the  river,  and  await  orders. 
Wagner's  Second  division,  which  was  marching  in  the  rear, 
was  ordered  to  halt  on  A  range  of  hills  nearly  two  miles 
south  of  the  town  and  deploy  the  command  to  hold  the  enemy 
in  check.  In  the  meantime  the  transportation  of  the  train 
was  being  rapidly  made  across  the  river.  General  Wagner 
reported  the  enemy  in  heavy  force  in  his  front  evidently  pre- 
paring for  an  attack.  He  was  ordered  to  retire  nearer  to  the 
town,  which  he  did,  posting  two  brigades  about  a  third  of  a 
mile  south  of  the  intrenched  position  of  the  Twenty-third 
corps,  the  other  brigade,  Opdycke's,  being  sent  inside  the 
main  works  as  a  reserve.  Wagner's  two  brigades  were 
ordered  to  fall  back  to  the  main  line  upon  the  ap]n-oach  of 
the  enemy  in  force,  which  they  failed  to  do.  The  responsi- 
bility rested  upon  the  division  commander,  who  failed  to 
give  the  order  to  his  two  exposed  brigades. 

After  Wood's  division  crossed  the  river,  rations  were 
drawn,  and  the  Third  brigade  moved  to  the  left  of  Fort 
Granger  to  protect  that  flank  of  the  forces  defending  Frank- 
lin. From  the  brigade's  position  near  the  Fort  tlie  battle 
could  be  witnessed  until  the  smoke  of  the  contest  and  dark- 
ness hid  the  combatants  from  view,  but  the  roar  of  the  bat- 
teries and  the  terrific  musketry  told  quite  well  that  just 
"beyond  the  river"  a  terrible  battle  was  being  waged,  and 
that  many  were  "crossing  over"  the  last  dark  stream  in  tliat 
cloud  of  smoke.  General  Schofield  had  taken  his  position  in 
Fort  Granger,  where  the  ground  was  higher  than  on 
the    south    side    of     the    river,     that    he     might    have    a 


478  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

better  view  of  the  battle-field.  General  Stanley  was 
with  General  Schofield  at  his  headquarters,  and  saw 
the  enemy's  entire  force  forming  for  the  attack,  "and 
yet,"  says  he,  "in  view  of  the  strong  position  we 
held,  and  reasoning  from  the  former  course  of  the  rebels 
during  this  campaign,  nothing  appeared  so  improbable  that 
he  would  make  an  assault."  As  soon  as  the  firing  com- 
menced he  left  General  Schofield  and  rode  to  the  front.  He 
arrived  just  as  Wagner's  two  brigades  came  back  in  disorder 
from  their  exposed  position  in  front  of  the  works.  Stanley 
then  says:  "I  rode  quickly  to  the  left  regiment  of  Opdycke's 
brigade  and  called  to  it  to  charge.  At  the  same  time  I  saw 
Colonel  Opdycke  near  the  center  of  his  line  urging  his  men 
forward.  I  gave  the  Colonel  no  order,  as  I  saw  him  doing 
the  very  thing  to  save  us. "  When  the  men  on  the  line  saw 
Opdycke's  brigade  start  for  the  works  they  began  to  rally. 
Stanley  says  he  heard  the  old  soldiers  call  out,  "Come  on, 
men,  we  can  go  wherever  the  General  can,"  and  making  a 
rush  retook  the  line.  The  struggle  now  became  terrible, 
and  assumed  a  savage  ferocity.  The  enemy,  though  a  fright- 
ful lane  had  been  cut  through  his  ranks,  refused  to  yield  the 
ground  he  had  so  gallantly  won,  and  a  gladiatorial  contest 
followed,  in  which  the  combatants  stood  face  to  face,  thrust- 
ing their  bayonets  into  each  others'  bosoms,  and  with  demoni- 
acal yells,  fought  in  the  deepening  twilight,  more  like  savages 
than  civilized  men.  It  was  just  after  retaking  the  line  that 
General  Stanley's  horse  was  killed.  He  had  no  sooner  re- 
gained his  feet  until  he  received  a  musket  ball  through  the 
back  of  the  neck.  His  wound,  however,  did  not  compel  him 
to  leave  the  field,  and  he  was  furnished  a  remount  by  Gen- 
eral Cox. 

To  show  the  fierceness  of  the  contest,  General  Stanley 
reported  that  one  hundred  loads  of  ammunition,  artillery  and 
musket  cartridges,  were  expended  in  this  short  battle,  in 
about  forty  minutes,  belonging  to  the  ordnance  train  of  the 
Fourth  army  corps.  The  Twenty-third  corps  must  have  ex- 
pended as  much.  The  battle  raged,  but  with  not  such  feroc- 
ity, until  far   in  the   night.      The   hastily    constructed  in- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  479 

trenchments  of  the  Fourth  and  Twenty-third  corps  proved 
to  be  impregnable,  manned  as  they  were  by  brave  men.  The 
enemy's  dead  and  wounded  lay  in  great  heaps  in  front. 
'  Hood  w^as  at  last  compelled  to  give  up  and  retire — to  mourn 
over  the  loss  of  over  six  thousand  men,  and  six  general  offi- 
cers killed,  six  wounded  and  one  captured.  The  Union  loss 
was  tw^enty-three  hundred,  more  than  half  of  w^hich  occurred 
in  the  Second  division  of  the  Fourth  corps,  caused  by  Wag- 
ner's blunder. 

The  Eighty-sixth  did  not  participate  directly  in  this 
engagement,  as  Wood's  division  was,  by  orders,  crossed  over 
to  the  north  side  of  the  Harpeth  river,  but  it  did  the  duty 
assigned  it.  The  division  was  held  in  position  at  the  river 
until  all  troops  and  trains  were  out  of  Franklin.  The  battle 
was  practically  over  by  11  o'clock  p.  m.,  and  Scholield 
ordered  the  withdrawal  of  his  forces.  But  a  fire  broke  out 
in  the  tow^n  whicli  enabled  the  enemy  to  see  plainly  if  an 
attempt  at  evacuation  w^as  begun  at  that  time.  Therefore, 
a  delay  of  one  hour  was  found  necessary,  and  at  12,  midnight, 
the  withdrawal  began.  Wood's  division  remained  in  ix)sition 
until  all  troops  were  clear  of  the  tow^n  and  marching  well 
toward  Brentwood,  then,  after  destroying  the  bridges,  it, 
too,  quietly  marched  out  at  4  o'clock  a.m.,  December  1.  Just 
as  the  division  got  into  column  upon  the  road  the  enemy 
seemed  to  have  discovered  the  withdraw^al,  and  opened  with 
[a  battery  upon  the  pike,  or  tried  to  do  so,  on  which  it  was 
marching  northward  toward  Nashville,  but  no  farther  attempt 
was  made  to  attaclf. 

Ever  since  leaving  Pulaski  on  the  23d  the  nights  luul 
been  nights  of  watching  or  marching.  The  first  night  out 
from  Pulaski  the  regiment  marched  with  less  than  an  hour's 
sleep  during  the  night.  On  reaching  Columbia  the  Eighty - 
sixth  was  placed  on  picket.  This,  therefore,  was  a  night  of 
dgils.  After  this  the  enemy  was  pressing  so  closely  that  it 
required  constant  watchfulness.  On  the  night  of  the  27th  a 
?reat  portion  of  the  night  was  taken  up  in  getting  safely 
)ver  Duck  river  and  getting  to  the  place  of  bivouac.  On  the 
light  of  the  28th  the   Eighty-sixth   was  again  on    picket. 


480  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT,  ! 

There  was  neither  sleep  nor  rest  on  the  night  of  the  29th  as 
the  division  had  marched  from  Duck  river,  the  march  con- 
tinuing all  night,  and  now  another  night's  loss  of  sleep  and 
wearisome  marching. 

On  leaving  the  vicinity  of  Fort  Granger  the  division 
marched  at  a  very  slow  pace,  but  when  once  it  was  well  out 
upon  the  road,  and  the  road  in  front  cleared  of  troops  and 
trains,  the  pace  was  quickened.  "Wood's  Greyhound's" 
showed  their  speed  in  an  astonishing  manner.  Their  East 
Tennesse  sprinting  campaign  and  their  experience  on  the 
Atlanta  campaign  had  been  of  'great  benefit  to  them  and  had 
given  them  remarkable  powers  of  endurance.  The  division 
breakfasted  about  8  o'clock.  At  the  outposts  there  was 
every  indication  that  a  general  retreat  would  be  made.  All 
government  i)roperty  that  could  be  moved  was  being  hur- 
riedly conveyed  back  to  Nashville.  Guards  of  stations  and 
stockades  were  ready  to  take  the  last  train  back  or  were 
marching  on  the  road  to  the  city  limits.  A  general  concen- 
tration of  the  Union  forces  was  being  made  in  Tennessee. 
Hood  was  coming  and  the  final  contest  on  the  red  field  of  | 
war  was  not  yet  at  hand.  Franklin  was  only  the  beginning 
of  the  end  of  the  campaign.  About  three  miles  out  from  the 
city  the  division  was  halted  and  drew  rations;  three  days 
rations  of  sugar  and  coffee,  and  two  of  hard  bread  and  bacon, 
but  it  did  not  bivouac  here.  After  receiving  the  rations  it 
marched  within  two  miles  of  its  outskirts.  The  troops  were 
put  in  order  for  defense  of  the  city  should  Hood  make  an 
immediate  attack.  Thus  after  many  halts  and  delays,  almost 
as  wearisome  as  marching,  the  tired  men  reached  a  place 
where  they  might  hope  to  secure  a  little  rest  and  sleep  after 
undergoing  a  most  trying  and  dangerous  retreat  from 
Pulaski,  commenced  on  the  evening  of  November  23  and  fin- 
ished on  December  1. 

A  copious  shower  of  rain  fell  on  the  night  of  December  1. 
On  the  morning  of  December  2  the  final  and  permanent 
alignment  of  Thomas'  army  was  commenced.  The  Eighty- 
sixth  was  moved  some  two  hundred  yards  from  its  bivouac, 
but  at  length  came  back  to  it  and  were  ordered  to  construct 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  481 

a  line  of  breastworks.  The  line  of  intrenchments  ordered 
were  soon  under  way  to  completion.  General  Stanlej'  hav- 
ing been  disabled  by  a  wound  at  the  battle  of  Franklin,  Gen- 
eral Wood  assumed  command  of  the  corps  and  General 
Beatty  of  the  Third  division.  The  Third  brigade  of  Beatty's 
division  occupied  the  salient  angle  of  Wood's  line,  about 
midway  between  the  Hillsboro  pike  on  the  right,  and  the 
Granny  White  pike  on  the  left.  The  line  of  the  brigade  was 
mostly  to  the  left  of  the  angle  and  faced  to  the  southeast. 
The  Fourth  corps  line  extended  from  at  or  near  the  Granny 
White  pike  on  the  left  to  beyond  the  Hillsboro  pike  on  the 
right.  Nearly  midway,  but  probabl}^  a  little  nearer  the 
Hillsboro  road,  was  the  salient  above  referred  to.  To  the 
right  of  this  angle  the  line  of  intrenchments  extended  nearly 
in  a  northwest  direction.  The  Fourth  corps  connected  on 
the  left  with  their  old  companion  campaigners,  the  Twenty- 
third  corps,  and  on  the  right  with  General  A.  J.  Smitli's 
troops,  a  portion  of  the  Sixteenth  corps. 

It  required  a  great  deal  of  work  to  construct  the  intrench- 
ments. The  rain  had  rendered  tlie  ground  mudd}',  and 
wading  back  and  forth  in  mud  shoe-mouth  deep,  digging  and 
shoveling  in  the  tough  clay  was  work  indeed.  This  position 
of  the  Third  brigade  was  on  what  was  known  as  the  Acklen 
property.  Near  the  angle  of  the  line  of  intrenchments  out- 
side the  works  was  a  large  brick  house  which  would  serve  as 
an  excellent  target  for  the  rebel  artillerists.  It  was.  thei-e- 
fore,  ordered  to  be  torn  down,  which  was  accordingly  done. 
There  was  some  skirmishing  on  this  day  indicating  that 
Hood,  notwithstanding  his  rough  treatment  at  Franklin,  was 
closing  down  upon  Thomas'  forces  around  Nashvillt\ 

On  the  morning  of  the  od  the  Eighty-sixth  had  onU-rs 
to  be  ready  to  march  at  5  o'clock  a.  m.,  but  no  move  was 
made.  The  enemy  continued  to  advance.  The  skirmishing 
was  quite  lively  most  of  the  day,  the  musket  balls  of  tlio 
enemy  whistling  at  a  lively  rate.  The  morning  of  the  4tli 
was  cold  and  disagreeable.  A  detail  was  made  from  the 
Eighty-sixth  for  picket.  The  picket  or  skirmish  line  cov- 
ered the  front  of  the   salient   angle.     The   station  for  the 


I 


482  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

reserve  was  near  the  ruins  of  the  brick  house  which  had  been 
torn  down.  It  was  located  just  to  the  left  of  the  angle  of  the 
line  of  intrenchments.  About  the  ruins,  the  angle  of  the  works, 
and  the  reserve  station,  the  rebel  skirmishers'  balls  made 
music  continually.  A  number  of  men  passing  to  and  fro 
were  wounded  here,  but  none  of  the  pickets.  It  was,  how- 
ever, thought  to  be  so  dangerous  that  it  was  decided  not  to 
send  out  any  reliefs  during  daylight,  but  place  the  second 
relief  immediately  after  dark,  and  the  third  at  12  midnight. 
During  a  part  of  the  afternoon  and  evening  the  Federal  bat- 
teries opened  fire  on  the  enemy's  skirmish  pits  and  thus  kept 
down  his  fire.  Hood's  army  regained  a  healthier  tone,  and 
had  it  not  been  for  the  cold,  inclement  weather,  might  have 
regained,  to  a  considerable  extent,  the  morale  lost  at  Frank- 
lin. But  illy  clad  and  poorly  fed,  the  weather  changeable, 
frequently  quite  cold  and  stormy,  his  soldiers  suffered  much, 
and  kept  their  spirits  low.  In  fact,  both  armies  spent  most 
of  the  time  these  chill  December  days  hovering  about  their 
camp-fires  when  not  on  duty,  or  laboring  to  build  themselves 
more  comfortable  habitations.  On  the  5th  General  Thomas 
was  around  the  lines  viewing  the  position  of  both  armies. 

On  the  6th  Captain  Matthew  Mclnerny  took  command  of 
Company  H.  On  the  8th  about  10  o'clock  a.  m.  the  troops 
were  ordered  into  the  works  to  prepare  to  resist  a  supposed 
assault,  as  the  enemy  had  driven  the  pickets  of  the  First 
division  in  and  showed  a  disposition,  it  was  thought,  to  press 
on  toward  the  works.  About  this  time  the  weather  became 
very  bad.  It  rained  a  great  deal  and  then  -turned  colder, 
and  on  December  9  a  most  terrific  storm  of  sleet  and  rain  fell. 
The  rain  froze  as  it  fell  and  the  whole  country  was  enveloped 
in  a  sheet  of  ice.  It  also  snowed  some.  So  the  day  was  one 
of  the  most  disagreeable  which  the  men  experienced  during 
their  term  of  service.  This  northern  winter  in  a  southern 
clime  started  the  boys  out  anew  to  build  winter  quarters,  but 
as  material  was  extremely  scarce  their  efforts  usually  result- 
ed in  failure,  at  best,  only  a  miserable  "shack"  would  be 
constructed.  This  cold  snap  shut  down  on  the  skirmishing, 
as  it  was  too  disagreeably  cold,  too  cold  for  one  half -frozen 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  483 

wretch  to  try  to  shoot  another  as  nearly  frozen  as  himself. 
It  must  have  been  even  worse  on  Hood's  half -clad  .soldiers 
than  on  the  rugged  northern  boys.  But  one  hardship  the 
Federals  suffered  that  Hood's  men  did  not,  and  that  was  the 
scarcity  of  fuel.  Hood's  army  was  mostly,  if  not  all,  con- 
veniently situated  close  to  timber,  where  they  could  procure 
an  abundance  of  fuel,  while  the  Union  line  of  battle  was 
almost  destitute  of  fuel  from  the  first.  As  the  weather  grew 
colder  the  wants  were  more  urgent,  the  needs  greater,  and 
it  required  a  very  great  deal  of  labor  to  procure  fuel  in  suffi- 
cient quantity  to  keep  from  freezing,  and  carrying  most  of 
the  supply  on  the  backs  to  camp  from  wherever  it  could  be 
found  was  no  easy  task.  This  together  with  the  other  duties 
and  the  inclement  weather  renders  the  siege  of  Na.shville  a 
memorable  one  to  those  who  there  participated  in  the  jier- 
formance  of  the  duties  on  the  front  battle  line  as  did  those  of 
the  Eighty -sixth  Indiana.  As  General  Sherman  said,  "these 
soldiers  performed  an  important  duty  in  the  final  campaign 
that  ended  the  war." 

On  the  10th  it  grew  quite  cold,  so  cold  that  those  who 
were  not  well  clad,  and  a  great  many  were  not,  suffered 
greatly  from  the  cold.  They  hovered  around  their  fires,  or 
worked  half  frozen,  getting  up  a  scant  supply  of  fuel. 
Others,  stirred  to  energetic  action  by  the  pinching  cold,  went 
to  work  to  build  fire-places  and  chimneys  to  their  shanties 
the  better  to  protect  themselves  from  what,  in  their  needy 
circumstances,  seemed  extreme  cold  weather.  This  daj'  there 
was  but  little  skirmishing  but  there  was  an  occasional  can- 
non-shot fired  around  the  lines,  but  the  stinging  cold  ]nin- 
ished  far  more  just  now  than  did  the  enemy.  The  11th  was 
extremely  cold  and  very  windy,  rendering  the  weather 
extremely  disagreeable  and  greatly  increasing  the  suffering. 
The  night  of  the  11th  was  the  coldest  yet  experienced 
during  the  winter.  The  12th  was  a  little  milder  and  the  ico 
began  to  thaw,  and  rejwrts  began  to  travel  the  rounds  of  the 
camps  that  the  army  "would  move  the  next  day" — that  an 
advance  would  be  made  as  soon  as  the  weather  would  per- 
mit.    On  the  13th  a  detail  from  the   Eighty-sixth   was  on 


484  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

picket.  The  weather  had  moderated.  It  thawed  consider- 
ably during  the  day,  making  it  quite  muddy  everywhere 
about  the  Union  battle  line.  There  was  but  little  firing 
around  the  lines  to  denote  the  strained  situation  of  affairs 
that  actually  existed.  Still  there  were  some  indications  that 
Hood  was  not  completely  at  his  ease.  From  the  reserve 
picket  station  the  enemy  could  be  seen  moving  artillery  to 
the  right — his  left — but  as  was  afterwards  learned  Hood 
expected  to  be  attacked  on  his  right  by  Thomas '  left,  and  this 
moving  his  artillery  in  plain  view  may  have  been  with  hope 
of  deceiving  Thomas,  but  if  so  it  failed  signally. 

The  organization  of  the  Fourth  corps  now  was  as  follows: 

FOURTH  ARMY  CORPS, 

Brigadier  General  T.  J.  Wood,  Commanding. 

First  Division, 

Bi'igadier  General  Nathan  Kimball,  Commanding. 

First  Brigade, 

Colonel  Isaac  M.  Kirby,  Commanding. 

Second  Brigade, 

Brigadier  General  Walter  C.  Whitaker,  Commanding. 

Third  Brigade, 

Brigadier  General  William  Grose,  Commanding. 

Second  Division, 

Brigadier  General  Washington  L.  Elliott,  Commanding. 

First  Brigade, 

•         Colonel  Emerson  Opdycke,  Commanding. 

Second  Brigade, 

Colonel  John  Q.  Lane  Commanding. 

Third  Brigade, 
Colonel  Joseph  Conrad,  Commanding. 

Third  Division, 

Brigadier  General  Samuel  Beatty,  Commanding. 

First  Brigade, 

Colonel  Abel  D.  Streight,  Commanding. 

Eighty-ninth  Illinois,  Fifteenth  Ohio, 

Fifty-first  Indiana,  Eighth  Kansas, 

Forty-ninth   Ohio. 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  485 

Second  Brigade, 

(1).     Colonel  Sidney  M.  Post,  Commanding. 

(2).     Lieutenant  Colonel  Robert  L.  Kimberly,  Commanding. 

Fifty-ninth  Illinois,  Seventy-first  Ohio, 

Forty-first  Ohio.  Ninety-third  Ohio, 

One  Hundred  and  Twenty-fourth  Ohio. 

Third  Brigade, 
Colonel  Fred  Knefler,  Commanding. 
Seventy-ninth  Indiana,  Thirteenth  Ohio, 

Eighty-sixth  Indiana,  Nineteenth  Ohio. 

The  strength  of  the  Fourth  corps  is  given  by  the  official 
records  as  follows:  On  November  30,  commissioned  officers. 
766;  enlisted  men,  16.200;  total,  16,966.  On  December  10  it 
was  as  follows:  Commissioned  officers,  686;  enlisted  men, 
14,415;  total,  15,101. 

On  December  10,  the  strength  of  the  Twenty-third  corps 
with  General  Thomas  is  given  as  follows:  Commissioned 
officers,  496;  enlisted  men,  9,781;  total,  10,277. 

The  strength  of  General  A.  J.  Smith's  command — the 
Sixteenth  corps — three  divisions  of  it — is  given  on  the  10th 
of  December  as  follows:  Commissioned  officers,  581;  en- 
listed men,  11,345;  total  11,926. 

It  will  be  seen  by  the  above  that  notwithstanding  its 
hard  service  and  great  loss  in  the  Atlanta  campaign,  the 
Fourth  was  the  strongest  corjis  in  Thomas'  army,  and  the 
one  around  which  he  ranged  his  many  heterogeneous  organ- 
izations for  the  impending  battle  in  defense  of  the  city  of 
Nashville.  The  Fourth  corps  served  the  same  purpose  to 
Thomas'  army  at  Nashville  that  the  Army  of  the  Cumber- 
land did  to  Sherman's  army  on  the  Atlantic  campaign:  it  was 
the  main -stay  and  center  aroand  which  he  constructed  a 
magnificent  army  for  defense  and  attack,  and  one  which  won 
imperishable  glory  on  the  field. 


CHAPTER   XXVIII. 
THE   BATTLE   OF    NASHVILLE. 

Two  Days'  Hard  Fighting— The  Plan  of  the  Battle— Montgomery  Hill  Captured  by 
the  Fourth  Corps— The  Second  Days'  Battle— Overton's  Hill  Assaulted— The 
"The  Colored  Troops  Fought  Nobly  "—The  Gallant  Second  Brigade  Repulsed 
With  Heavy  Loss— Colonel  Post  "Wounded— The  Third  Brigade  Assaults  and 
Captures  Overton's  Hill— Union  Success- Hood  Makes  a  Hasty  Flight— Pur- 
suit of  the  Enemy— A  Frightful  March— In  Camp  at  Huntsville— General 
Wood's  Congratulatory  Order. 

The  14th  of  December  was  comparatively  a  quiet  clay. 
Nothing  of  importance  transpired  on  the  line  to  denote  an 
early  move  or  indicate  an  impending  battle.  There  was 
some  slight  skirmishing,  but  it  was  not  particularly  hot  or 
spiteful,  although  the  weather  had  moderated  and  freed  the 
soldiers  from  its  icy  grasp.  On  the  afternoon  of  the  14th, 
General  Thomas  called  a  meeting  of  the  corps  commanders 
for  consultation  and  having  discussed  the  plan  of  attack 
until  thoroughly  understood  he  issued  Special  Field  Order 
No.  342,  of  which  the  following  is  a  part: 

Paragraph  IV.  As  soon  as  the  state  of  the  weather  will  admit  of 
offensive  operations,  the  troops  will  move  against  the  enemy's  position 
in  the  following  order: 

Major  General  A.  J.  Smith,  commanding  detachment  of  the  Army 
of  the  Tennessee,  after  forming  his  troops  on  and  near  the  Harding  i>ike, 
in  front  of  his  present  position,  will  make  a  vigorous  assault  on  tlie 
enemy's  left. 

Major  General  Wilson,  commanding  the  cavalry  corps.  Military 
Division  of  Mississippi,  with  three  divisions,  will  move  on  and  supjjort 
General  Smith's  right,  assisting,  as  far  as  possible,  in  carrying  the  left 
of  the  enemy's  position,  and  be  in  readiness  to  throw  his  force  upon  the 
enemy  the  moment  a  favorable  opportunity  occurs.  Major  General  Wil- 
son will  also  send  one  division  on  the  Charlotte  pike  to  clear  that  road 
of  the  enemy,  and  observe  in  the  direction  of  Bell's  Landing  to  protect 
our  right  rear  until  the  enemy's  position  is  fairly  turned,  when  it  will 
rejoin  the  main  foi-ce. 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  487 

Brigadier  General  T.  J.  Wood,  commanding  Fourth  army  corps, 
after  leaving  a  strong  skirmish  line  in  his  works  from  Laurens'  Hill  to 
his  extreme  rig-ht,  will  form  the  remainder  of  the  Fourth  coi-ps  on  the 
Hillsboro  pike,  to  support  General  Smith's  left,  and  operate  on  the  left 
and  rear  of  the  enemy's  advanced  i^osition  on  the  Montgomery  Hill. 

Major  General  Schofield,  commanding  the  Twenty-third  army 
corps,  will  replace  Brigadier  General  Kimball's  division  of  the  Fourth 
corps  with  his  troops,  and  occupy  the  trenches  from  Fort  Negley  to 
Laurens'  Hill  with  a  strong  skirmish  line.  He  will  move  with  the 
remainder  of  his  force  in  front  of  the  works  and  co-operate  with  General 
Wood,  protecting  the  latter's  left  flank  against  an  attack  by  the  enemy. 

Major  General  Steedman,  commanding  District  of  the  Etowah,  will 

occupy  the  interior  line  in  the  I'ear  of  his  present  position,  stretching 

from  the  reservoir  on  the  Cumberland  river  to  Fort  Negley,  with  a 

strong  skirmish  line,  and  mass  the  remainder  of  his  force  in  its  present 

position,  to  act  according  to  the  exigencies  which  may  arise  during 

these  operation. 

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  x-  * 

Should  the  weather  i:)ermit,  the  troops  will  be  formed  to  commence 
operations  at  6  a.  m.  on  the  15th,  or  as  soon  thereafter  as  practicable. 

On  the  morning  of  the  15th  General  Thomas  finding  the 
weather  favorable  ordered  the  attack  to  be  made  in  accord- 
ance with  the  plan  promulgated  in  the  Special  Field  Order 
above  quoted.  The  weather  was  even  more  favorable  than  had 
been  apprehended  the  evening  before.  The  formation  of  the 
troops  in  battle  array  was  wholly  concealed  from  the  enemy 
by  a  dense  fog  w^hich  did  not  clear  away  until  near  noon. 
This  gave  General  Thomas  a  great  advantage,  General  Hood 
being  taken  completely  by  surprise,  and  was  not,  therefore, 
ready  for  such  a  "hustling  mill"  as  Thomas  gave  him  from 
the  first  round.  There  was,  however,  considerable  delay  in 
completing  the  alignment,  still  the  fog  veiled  the  movement 
and  shortened  the  vision  of  the  doomed  rebel  army.  But 
there  was  an  important  change  made  in  the  plan  of  the  battle 
as  first  proposed  by  General  Thomas.  Finding  that  General 
Smith  had  not  taken  as  much  distance  to  tlie  right  as  was 
intended,  Thomas  directed  General  Schofield  to  move  his 
command— the  Twenty-third  corps— from  the  position  in 
reserve  to  w^hich  it  had  been  assigned,  over  to  the  right  of 
Ge^eral  Smith,  enabling  the  cavalry  thereby  to  operate  more 
freely  in  the  enemy's  rear.     This  was  rapidly  accomplished 


488  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

by  General  Schofield,  and  his  troops  participated  in  the  clos- 
ing operations  of  the  day.  In  making  the  alignment  the 
Third  brigade,  Third  division,  Fourth  corps,  was  moved 
back  and  forth  many  times  before  the  line  was  finally 
adjusted  according  to  General  Thomas'  wishes.  When  the 
line  was  completed  ready  for  the  advance,  the  Eighty-sixth 
on  the  frontline,  was  almost  directly  in  front  of  the  salient  of 
its  old  line  of  works.  Here  it  was  ordered  to  construct  a 
new  line  of  breastworks,  some  two  hundred  yards  or  more 
in  advance  of  the  old,  but  advanced  upon  the  right  of  the 
line.  The  men  were  ordered  to  "stack  arms"  and  2:0  for- 
ward about  one  hundred  or  one  hundred  and  fifty  yards  in 
front  of  their  own  line  to  a  stone  fence,  tear  this  down  and 
carry  the  stone  thus  procured  back  to  the  battle-line,  and 
there  to  be  used  to  make  the  revetment  of  breastworks.  It 
proved  to  be  an  extremely  dangerous  duty  to  perform.  By 
this  time  the  fog  had  cleared  away.  The  enemy  had  a  strong 
skirmish  line  in  the  regiment's  immediate  front,  and  observ- 
ing what  it  was  doing,  opened  a  brisk  fire  upon  it  which  he 
maintained  as  long  as  he  was  permitted  to  remain  and 
occupy  his  line  of  rifle  pits. 

Right  at  this  point  the  Eighty-sixth  met  one  of  its  most 
trying  ordeals.  To  be  exposed  to  a  galling  fire,  without 
being  permitted  to  resist  or  fire  upon  the  enemy  in  return, 
is  what  puts  the  nerves  of  soldiers  to  their  severest  test. 
This  is  what  the  Eighty-sixth  experienced  here.  It  was 
another  Rocky  Face  Ridge  or  worse.  Clothing  was  repeat- 
edly cut  by  rebel  missiles,  rocks  were  shattered  in  the  very 
grasp  of  men  as  they  carried  them  back  to  the  proper  line, 
but  the  work  went  steadily  on.  There  fell  a  man  severely 
wounded,  here  another.  They  were  removed  by  the  stretcher- 
bearers  and  the  work  proceeded.  The  enemy,  like  so  many 
malignant  hornets,  stung  every  moment  and  persevered  in 
it  with  a  persistence  worthy  of  a  better  cause.  Here  Jesse 
W.  Carter,  of  Comi)any  H,  and  A.  B.  Walker,  of  Company 
K,  were  wounded.  William  W.  Sanders,  of  Company  K, 
was  killed  instantly,  shot  through  the  head.  Colonel  Dick 
was  standing  near  by.     He  ordered  the  stretcher-bearers  to 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  489 

remove  the  body  at  once,  and  the  work  on  the  iutrenchments 
was  not  interrupted.  The  loss  of  the  regiment  here  in  open 
ground  w^hile  subject  to  the  fire  of  this  skirmish  line  was 
some  ten  or  twelve.  Directly  after  this  experience  of  the 
Third  brigade,  the  Second  brigade  of  Beatty's  division,  com- 
manded by  Colonel  Philip  Sidney  Post,  of  the  Fifty-ninth 
Illinois,  assaulted  the  most  advanced  position  of  the  enemy's 
forces  on  Montgomery  Hill.  The  hill  was  swept  from  foot 
to  crest  in  a  most  gallant  manner  and  with  very  small  loss. 
The  hill  was  about  midway  between  Hood's  main  line  of 
works  and  the  salient  of  the  Fourth  corps'  line.  In  point  of 
time  this  movement  had  just  terminated  successfully  when 
General  Thomas  ordered  General  Schofield  to  move  from  his 
position  in  reserve  to  take  his  place  in  the  line  on  General 
Smith's  right.  But  this  success  was  not  enough.  The  fiery 
and  determined  Wood  pressed  his  lines  forward  and  captured 
the  enemy's  main  line.  W.  O.  Blake,  the  historian,  of  this 
last  movement  and  the  first  day's  fight,  says:  "The  P'ourth 
corps  continued  to  advance,  and  carried  the  entire  line  in  its 
front  by  assault,  and  captured  several  pieces  of  artillery, 
about  500  prisoners,  some  stands  of  colors,  and  other 
material.  Just  before  dark  the  command  again  advanced, 
but  night  coming  on  it  bivouacked  before  completing  the 
designed  movement.  The  total  result  of  the  day's  operations 
was  the  capture,  by  the  forces  under  General  Thomas,  of 
sixteen  pieces  of  artillery  and  1.200  prisoners,  besides  .sev- 
eral hundred  stands  of  small  arms  and  about  forty  wagons. 
The  enemy  had  been  forced  back  at  all  i)oints.  with  heavy 
loss,  and  the  Federal  casualties  were  unusually  light.  The 
behavior  of  the  troops  was  unsurpassed  for  steadiness  and 
alacrity  in  every  movement,  and  the  original  plan  of  battle, 
with  but  few  alterations,  strictly  adhered  to." 

After  the  capture  of  the  main  line  of  the  enemy's  works 
there  were  some  indications  of  a  precipitate  retreat  on  the 
part  of  the  enemy,  and  therefore  General  Thomas  ordered 
General  Wood  to  move  his  corps  farther  to  the  left  to  the 
Franklin  pike  and  southward  upon  it.  The  movement  was 
commenced  immediately,  but  night  overtook  the  command 


490  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

before  it  reached  the  Franklin  pike  and  it  bivouacked  as 
before  stated.  In  fact,  the  entire  line  of  battle  of  Thomas' 
army  bivouacked  where  darkness  found  it.  The  men  ate  a 
soldier's  meal  and  sank  to  rest  on  the  damp  earth,  while  their 
commanders  planned  their  work  for  them  and  made  prepara- 
tions for  the  next  day's  battle. 

Of  the  loss  sustained  on  the  15th  the  Fourth  corps  was 
the  greatest,  being  about  350.  Smith's  loss  was  a  little  less 
and  Schofield's  was  about  150,  and  those  of  Steedman's  and 
Wilson's  were  still  less,  being  a  very  small  loss  when  the 
magnitude  of  the  battle  and  the  results  are  considered 

It  had  been  a  day  of  activity,  excitement  and  peril  to 
those  engaged.  The  results  had  been  unexpectedly  great  as 
can  readily  be  seen.  Hood  had  been  driven  from  his  advanced 
position,  then  followed  up  and  forced  from  his  main  fortified 
line  and  compelled,  toward  the  close  of  the  day,  to  fall  back 
and  again  fortify  to  have  any  hope  of  staying  the  conquer- 
ing Union  forces.  Thomas'  troops  had  been  uniformly  suc- 
cessful, capturing  every  position  attacked,  driving  the  Con- 
federates pell  mell  before  them,  killing,  wounding  and  cap- 
turing many,  and  greatly  demoralizing  all  of  them.  So  suc- 
cessful had  the  Union  forces  been  in  the  day's  battle  that 
Hood  himself  saw  certain  disaster  before  him  unless  the 
whole  army  could  be  aroused  to  superhuman  courage  and 
effort,  and  therefore  on  the  morning  of  the  16th  he  gave 
orders  to  his  subordinates  to  prepare  to  retreat  that  even- 
ing. He  hoped  by  the  very  strong  position  taken,  and  the 
good  fortifications  erected,  to  be  able  to  ward  off  Thomas' 
attacks  for  the  day  and  then  march  his  command  away  intact 
under  cover  of  the  darkness  of  the  following  night.  But  it 
was  too  late.  The  powerful,  crushing  blows  of  Thomas  were 
not  to  be  parried  or  stayed.  Hood  had  dallied  with  oppor- 
tunity until  it  was  no  more.  He  could  not  well  retreat  while 
pressed  so  closely  on  every  hand,  and  before  night  of  the 
second  day's  battle  his  army  was  a  disorganized,  disorderly 
mob. 

Reveille  was  sounded  at  4  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  the 
16th  of  December  for  the  Eighty-sixth,  and  in  fact  for  the 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  491 

Third  brigade.  It  was  expected  to  be  a  very  busy  day.  At 
sun-rise  Colonel  George  F.  Dick  gave  the  regiment  the  com- 
mand "Double-column  on  the  center  at  half  distance — 
March!"  and  the  regiment  performed  the  evolution  as  though 
it  was  on  the  parade  ground  instead  of  the  bloody  field  of  bat- 
tle, and  in  a  very  few  moments  the  command  was  ready  for 
the  day's  work.  Marching  eastward  as  the  command  was 
when  night  had  overtaken  it  the  previous  day,  it  soon  crossed 
the  Franklin  pike.  Beatty 's  division,  and  probably  the  whole 
corps,  executed  a  wheel  to  the  right  until  its  line  extended  at 
right  angles  with  the  pike,  and  then  advanced  southward  on 
the  line  of  the  pike,  Beatty 's  division  east,  and  Kimball's 
west,  of  the  pike,  Elliott  in  reserve.  But  General  Wood 
finding  that  there  was  a  division's  space  upon  the  line  be- 
tween Kimball's  right  and  General  A.  J.  Smith's  left,  he 
ordered  General  Elliott's  division  to  forward  into  line.  Thus 
early  in  the  afternoon  of  the  I6th  all  three  divisions  of  the 
Fourth  corps  were  upon  the  front  line  facing  the  enemy. 
The  distance  traveled  by  the  Confederates  from  the  line 
from  which  they  had  been  driven  was  only  sufficient  to  find 
an  easily  defensible  position — no  farther.  Hood  had  not 
found  it  jjracticable  to  get  away  on  the  night  of  the  loth,  but 
had  chosen  an  exceedingly  strong  position  and  built  very 
good  strong  breastworks.  The  position  and  works  appeared 
almost  impregnable.  There  were  several  strong  forts  on  the 
line  that  had  been  previously  constructed  which  added  greatly 
to  the  strength  of  his  otherwise  strong  position.  His  line 
extended  from  Overton's  Hill  on  the  right  of  his  line  east  of 
the  Franklin  pike,  westward  some  distance  beyond  the  ( Jranny 
White  pike,  thence  turning  nearly  due  south  ended  by  a 
sharply  refused  line  of  intrenchments  on  a  high  hill,  that 
since  the  battle,  but  previously  nameless,  has  been  known  as 
Shy's  Hill,  from  the  Colonel  of  the  Confederate  Twentieth 
Tennessee,  who  was  killed  there  in  the  evening  of  the  sec- 
ond day's  battle.  Hood's  line  was  also  sharply  refused  on 
the  crest  of  Overton's  Hill  running  south.  Refusing  the 
ends  of  his  line  made  his  flanks  more  secure  and  more  diffi- 
cult to  flank  or  turn.     The  Union  line  was  facing  the  Confed- 


402  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

erate  line,  the  latter  only  being"  outflanked  upon  the  left  of 
its  line  by  Wilson's  cavalry.  The  Confederate  line  being 
the  interior  line  could  be  more  strongly  manned  with  an 
equal  number  of  men,  and  troops  held  in  reserve  could  re-in- 
force  any  particular  part  of  their  line  much  more  quickly 
and  easily  than  the  Union  troops  could.  Thomas'  superior 
numbers,  however,  allow^ed  him  to  maintain  the  strength  of 
his  line  and  extend  it  equal  to  that  of  Hood's. 

The  advance,  after  crossing  to  the  east  of  the  pike,  had 
brought  the  Union  battle  front  w^ell  up  to  the  enemy's 
intrenched  line,  within  striking  distance.  Now%  however, 
there  was  not  the  same  decisive  action  and  rapidity  of 
advance  as  on  the  previous  day.  The  Union  command  "  had 
run  up  against  a  stump,"  and  wanted  a  little  time  to  consider 
the  situation  before  he  took  further  action.  The  enemy  had 
chosen  a  much  stronger  position  than  the  one  he  had  held  on 
the  morning  of  the  previous  day.  Hood,  loo,  had  his  com- 
mand better  in  hand  for  battle.  There  were  no  outlying 
detachments  to  be  taken  by  surprise  and  in  detail.  The  whole 
army  now  w^as  solidified  into  one  mobile  mass  as  it  were,  a 
strong  battle  line  well  intrenched,  and  with  a  single  purpose 
to  hold  his  position  firmly  until  nightfall,  when  darkness 
would  cover  his  intended  retreat.  Every  man  in  Hood's 
army  facing  the  Union  forces  knew  this  must  be  done  or  cer- 
tain defeat  awaited  them,  and  defeat  meant  rout  and  ruin 
and  such  disaster  as  had  never  yet  befallen  their  flag  in  a 
single  day's  encounter.  Therefore,  if  their  hearts  were  at 
all  in  the  cause  which  they  represented  they  must  fight  to  the 
last,  as  never  men  fought,  or  give  up  hope.  This  was  the  sit- 
uation from  which  there  was  no  escape. 

About  noon  of  the  16th  Steedman's  troops,  consisting  of 
two  brigades  of  colored  soldiers,  joined  Knefler's  brigade  on 
the  left,  and  extended  that  flank  of  the  Union  army.  By 
order  of  General  Thomas,  General  Wood,  the  Fourth  corps 
commander,  also  took  direction  of  these  two  brigades  for 
the  day.  The  skirmish  lines  were  pushed  well  up  to  the 
enemy's  works  and  annoyed  him  greatly  by  maintaining  a 
sharp  fire  upon  his  line,  and  especially  on  his  batteries  on 


I 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  493 


Overton's  Hill.  The  courageous  part  played  by  the  skir- 
mish line  enabled  officers  to  make  a  pretty  careful  reconnois- 
sance  of  the  enemy's  iwsition  and  works,  to  find  if  possible 
where  an  assault  might  be  directed  with  the  best  chance  of 
success  and  the  greatest  results  if  successful.  General 
Thomas  was  with  General  Wood  directly  after  noon,  but  the 
j)osition  of  the  enemy  w^as  so  very  strong  and  so  fully 
manned  that  he  Avould  not  order  an  assault.  In  fact,  after 
passing  on  to  Smith's  command,  and  then  to  Schofield's,  and 
hearing  the  report  of  the  reconnoissances  made  of  the  enemy's 
position  and  strength,  General  Thomas  did  not  order  an 
assault,  but  left  the  corps  commanders  to  decide  that  for 
themselves.  The  "Iron  Gray  Veteran''  of  the  Fourth  corps 
soon  decided  to  make  the  attempt  on  Overton's  Hill,  the 
strongest  point  on  the  enemy's  entire  line,  but  the  one, 
which  if  attained,  would  yield  the  greatest  results  to  the 
Union  cause,  as  it  would  place  in  the  hands  of  the  Federal 
troops  the  main  road  on  which  the  Confederates  must  hope 
to  retreat.  With  their  retreat  cut  off  in  this  direction,  as  it 
w^ould  be  with  Overton's  Hill  captured  before  tlie  rest  of 
their  line  was  broken,  they  must  surrender  or  disperse,  and 
this  would  indeed  be  a  death  blow  to  their  cause. 

Knefler's  Third  brigade,  of  Beatty's  division,  was 
ordered  to  construct  a  line  of  intrenchments  some  hundred 
yards  in  front  of  the  enemy's  works  on  the  hill  and  hold  it, 
and  Post's  Second  brigade  was  ordered  to  assault  tiie  key  to 
the  enemy's  position,  Overton's  Hill,  supported  by  Streight's 
First  brigade.  Thompson's  brigade  of  colored  troops,  of 
Steedman's  command,  supported  by  the  other  brigade.  (Jros- 
venor's,  was  also  ordered  by  General  Wood  to  assault  the 
hill  simultaneously  with  Post's  brigade.  The  lines  of  the 
advance  of  the  two  brigades  converging,  their  Hanks  would 
come  together  at  the  angle  of  the  enemy's  works  on  th»' 
crest  of  the  hill  to  be  assaulted.  This  was  the  strongest 
point,  but  if  attained,  would  place  Hood  at  Thomas'  mercy 
and  therefore  w^orthy  of  an  heroic  effort.  A  heavy  tire  of 
artillery  by  order  of  General  Wood  had  been  concentrated 


\ 


494  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

on  the  enemy's  position  on  the  hill  for  sometime  before  the 
assault  was  made. 

About  3  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  the  columns  of  attack 
were  ordered  forward.  The  troops  advanced  slowly  at  first 
until  nearing  the  enemy's  works.  When  it  was  thought  they 
were  in  striking  distance  they  were  ordered  to  charge 
"double  quick. "  Now,  the  full  manly  voices  of  the  men  of 
the  Northwest  rang  out  in  their  startling,  terrific  yell  of 
defiance,  joined  at  once  by  the  colored  troops  on  their  immed- 
iate left,  and  the  final  rush  was  made.  The  assault  was  made 
in  truly  gallant  style  and  the  attack  was  well  sustained,  but 
they  were  attacking  veterans  of  the.  Confederate  army  who 
had  been  tried  in  the  fire  of  battle  many  times,  and  who 
were  as  brave  as  the  bravest  of  the  heroes  of  Waterloo. 
These  veterans  were  in  a  good  position,  behind  excellent 
works  w^hich  protected  them  effectually  and  rendered  them 
practically  secure.  The  Confederates  were  not  to  be  stam- 
peded by  noise,  and  true  to  their  cause,  they  fought  despei'- 
ately,  never  giving  an  inch  of  ground  or  exposing  them- 
selves unnecessarily  from  the  protecting  cover  of  their  good 
works,  but  maintaining  a  rapid  steady  fire  of  both  musketry 
and  artillery.  Both  columns  of  attack  were  severely 
handled  and  finally  repulsed.  But  before  the  commands 
retired  the  wounded  came  streaming  back  through  the 
Eighty -sixth  and  the  other  regiments  of  Knefler's  brigade. 
This  gave  the  men  to  understand  how  desperate  had  been 
the  attack  and  defense  in  their  immediate  front.  Indeed  the 
Eighty-sixth  well  up  to  the  front  did  not  need  to  see  the 
wounded  to  know  that  it  had  been  a  desperately  fought  bat- 
tle— a  maliciously  hot  engagement.  The  thunders  of  the 
rebel  batteries,  the  dreadful  crash  of  grape  and  canister,  the 
the  spiteful  hiss  of  the  little  bullets  oracularly  communi- 
cated the  fact  that  there  was  red-handed  work  right 
there  in  front — in  arm's  length,  and  in  which  the 
Third  brigade  might  at  any  moment  expect  to  be  in- 
vited to  participate.  The  attack  did  not  last  long.  The 
Union  troops  were  compelled  to  retire  from  the  attack. 
Knefler's  brigade  covered   their  retreat  and  the  attacking 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  495 

columns  withdrew  from  their  advanced  position  with- 
out molestation.  They  had  fought  gallantly,  had  almost 
attained  the  object  -of  the  attack,  mounted  the  rebel 
works,  but  the  lines  of  the  enemy  were  unshaken  and  the  fire 
was  too  hotly  maintained,  and  they  were  forced  reluctantly 
to  yield  ground.  This  was  attributable  to  two  causes:  the 
strong  position,  and  the  enemy,  warned  by  the  maneuvers, 
had  divined  that  the  attack  was  to  be  made  at  this  point 
first,  and  had  been  able  to  reinforce  Overton's  Hill  until  he 
felt  secure  in  point  of  numbers.  He  was,  therefore,  unintimi- 
dated  and  stood  his  ground  resolutely.  The  loss  of  the  Sec- 
ond brigade  was  considerable.  Colonel  Post  himself  being 
among  those  who  were  severely  wounded.  The  colored 
troops  fought  no  less  bravely  than  did  the  Second  brigiuie, 
and  their  loss  was  equally  great,  but  all  was  without  avail. 
Yet  it  showed  conclusively  that  the  "smoked  Yankees" 
could  be  relied  upon. 

General  Wood's  attack  upon  the  point  most  to  be  desired 
had  failed.  It  was  too  strong  a  position  and  too  well  forti- 
fied to  be  swept  by  a  handful  of  men,  when  the  enemy  was 
warned  and  had  time  to  reinforce  the  ordinary  battle  line 
which  held  it.  It  was  a  commanding  position,  both  as  to  the 
battle-field  and  as  to  his  line  of  retreat.  The  enemy  was 
fully  aware  of  this,  and  therefore  determined  to  hold  it  if 
possible.  But  not  in  the  least  disheartened  the  corps  com- 
mander, with  General  Thomas'  consent  and  direction,  made 
preparation  for  a  combined  attack  that  would  at  least  put 
matters  on  a  different  footing,  and  to  a  certain  extent  rob 
the  enemy  of  the  advantage  he  seemed  to  possess  after  tlie 
repulse  of  Post's  and  Thompson's  brigades.  The  left  of  the 
enemy's  line  had  been  extended  until  it  was  very  thin  and 
weak,  and  he  beheld  with  great  dismay  the  pn^iiaration  for 
assaulting  his  position.  The  otficer  in  comniand  calU'd  for 
reinforcements  in  all  haste,  but  then  at  other  points  he  was 
in  but  little  better  shape  to  spare  men  and  resist  an  attack, 
as  he  had  been  roughly  handled  all  round  the  line  during  the 
day,  although  no  direct  assault  had  been  made  except  on 
Overton's  Hill,  at  least,  by  the  infantry.     But  the  batteries 


496  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

had  knocked  his  works  right  and  left,  and  the  skirmishers 
had  crept  near  his  works  in  many  places,  and  maintained  a 
hot  and  commanding  fire.  All  soldiers  who  have  campaigned 
in  really  great  campaigns  know  how  trying  it  is  on  one's 
nerves  to  be  set  up  as  a  mark  for  sharp-shooters  for  ten  or 
twelve  hours  at  a  time.  This  was  the  situation  of  the  Con- 
federates at  many  points  on  their  line  late  in  the  afternoon 
of  the  16th. 

But  Wood's  gallant  attack,  unaided,  failed,  and  some- 
thing else  must  be  attempted.  The  attack  upon  Hood's 
position  began  with  General  -Schofield's  command  on  the 
Union  right,  and  ran  along  the  blue-coated  line  from  right  to 
left  like  a  wave  along  the  shore.  Knefler's  brigade  was  still 
at  work  on  its  line  of  intrenchments  when  the  wave  of  action 
reached  it.  "Forward,"  was  the  word  that  rang  from  the 
lips  of  Colonel  Dick.  This  was  the  regiment's  only  prepar- 
ation for  the  assault.  The  Eighty -sixth  and,  in  fact,  the 
Third  brigade,  were  to  attack  directly  in  their  front,  on 
Overton's  Hill,  where  the  brave  brigade  of  the  gallant  Col- 
onel Post  had  made  its  attack  and  failed.  Now  began  a 
charge  in  some  respects  almost  equal  to  the  wonderful  assault 
on  Missionary  Ridge.  Colonel  Dick,  always  a  prompt  and 
energetic  commander,  threw  the  whole  of  his  soldierly  spirit 
into  his  every  command,  as  if  it  were  a  forlorn  hope.  His 
subordinates  seconded  his  efforts  with  equal  spirit  and  reso- 
lution, and  thus  the  regiment  was  sent  ahead  for  the  enemy's 
works  under  a  full  head  of  steam.  There  was  no  time  to 
"fall  in"  and  "form  a  line."  All  that  could  be  done  was  to 
grab  one's  gun  and  rush  to  the  front.  Not  a  moment  was 
lost,  and  the  men  went  forward  at  a  full  run,  no  halting,  no 
hesitating,  no  seeking  shelter  behind  stumps  or  trees,  but 
right  on  for  the  works  and  the  enemy.  Cheers  far  to  the 
right  indicated  that  there,  too,  Union  men  were  pressing  the 
enemy,  and  that  he  would  have  work  all  along  the  line,  and 
could  not  mass  at  any  particular  point.  For  this  reason,  if 
for  no  other,  they  would  have  a  better  chance  to  win  what 
seemed  to  be  an  impregnable  position.  Could  this  point  be 
carried,  even  thenV     Could  this  hill  be  captured,  this  strong- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  497 

hold,  the  citadel  of  the  enemy's  position?  If  it  could  be 
done,  complete  success  was  assured.  On  the  run,  over  the 
ground  of  the  previous  assault,  the  regiment  passed  heaps  of 
the  slain,  both  white  and  black,  but  the  men  had  little  time 
to  note  the  horrors  of  the  battle-field  now,  although  a  glance 
was  sufficient  to  show  that  it  had  been  ^a  fearful  slaughter 
for  so  brief  a  time.  On  the  regiment  went,  still  at  a  run  for 
the  works  and  their  occupants.  The  tire  of  the  enemy  was 
not  as  severe  as  had  been  expected,  and  the  men  literally 
ran  over  the  works  and  many  Confederates. 

"As  ye  dance  with  tlie  damsels  to  viol  and  flute. 

So  we  skipped  over  breastworks  and  flocked  in  pursull," 

Capturing  the  fort,  guns  and  prisoners,  and  kept  right 
on  scarcely  stopping  to  notice  what  was  captured,  but  almost 
treading  on  the  heels  of  the  fleeing  fugitives.  Colonel  Dick 
in  his  report  says :  "At  the  point  where  my  regiment  gained 
the  enemy's  work  he  had  left  in  good  condition  four  jiiecc^s  of 
artillery,  over  which  I  placed  a  guard.  Here  also  the  regi- 
ment captured  fifty-five  enlisted  men  and  three  commissioned 
officers."  Captain  Mclnerny  went  to  the  rear  with  a  squad 
of  some  fifty  odd  prisoners,  while  the  regiment  continued 
the  pursuit  of  the  enemy  still  east  of  the  Franklin  pike. 
Only  those  who  were  in  first-rate  racing  condition  could  keep 
the  pace  set  after  the  enemy,  and  many  fell  behind  the  regi- 
ment from  sheer  inability  to  maintain  the  high  rate  of  speed 
for  so  long  a  time  and  distance.  The  Eighty-sixth  in  the 
very  front  of  all  the  army  raced  on  after  the  Meet- footed  Con- 
federates until  the  darkness  of  night  fell.  When  finally 
halted  the  Eighty-sixth  was  withinfifty  yards  of  quite  a  large 
number  of  demoralized  rebels,  who  by  their  officers  liad  l)«>en 
brought  to  a  stand.  There  were  a  number  of  t(\ims  and  a 
battery,  but  all  were  fearfully  shaken  up,  and  it  was  only  V)y 
the  most  strenuous  exertions  that  the  officers  could  hold  tluMu 
here  from  one  minute  to  another.  The  Eighty-sixth  had 
raced  on  after  the  enemy  with  such  headlong  impetuosity 
that  there  was  only  a  handful  of  the  regiment  presiuit  wiuui 
the  halt  was  called,  the  others  having  fallen  beliind  from 
sheer  exhaustion.     Had  the  enemy  had  the  nerve  he  might 


498  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

have  turned  and  captured  the  enth'e  squad,  as  he  probably 
had  ten  times  the  numbers.  But  of  course  the  Confederates 
were  so  frightened  that  they  thought  of  nothing  but  to  try 
and  escape. 

Just  beyond  where  the  Eighty-sixth  was  halted  was  a 
little  swale,  thickly  grown  up  with  underbrush,  and  just  the 
other  side  of  the  swale  was  the  demoralized  enemy,  with  a 
battery  and  some  teams.  They  could  not  be  seen,  but  the 
teamsters  shouting  and  swearing  at  their  teams,  and  the  offi- 
cers giving  commands  and  trying  hard  to  bring  the  men 
under  control,  could  be  heard.  The  battery  fired  one  or  two 
rounds  and  then  hastily  retreated.  The  men  had  been  halted 
here  in  their  mad  flight,  and  undoubtedly  a  strong  attempt 
was  made  to  organize  a  rear-guard  to  cover  the  retreat. 
Every  few  moments  some  of  the  men  would  break  away  for 
the  rear,  and  then  a  general  breaking  up  of  the  ranks  would 
occur.  The  officers  tried  to  rally  them  and  called  them  cow- 
ards and  swore  horribly,  threatening  to  shoot  the  very  next 
one  who  made  the  attempt  to  retreat  without  orders.  A  num- 
ber of  the  Eighty-sixth  wanted  to  continue  the  pursuit — to 
push  on  over  the  swale  and  attack  this  squad  and  try  at  least 
for  their  capture,  but  the  officers,  probably  under  positive 
orders  to  halt,  did  not  deem  it  prudent  to  push  ahead  farther 
with  so  few  men,  not  knowing  exactly  what  was  in  their 
immediate  front.  The  rebel  artillerist,  as  stated,  braced  up 
sufficiently  to  lire  one  or  two  rounds,  then  retired  still  farther 
south.  There  was  every  evidence  of  extreme  demoralization 
on  the  part  of  the  enemy:  teamsters  were  shouting  at  their 
teams,  wagonmasters  were  giving  their  orders  in  stentorian 
tones,  officers  were  cursing  their  men  as  cowards  and  pol- 
troons of  the  meanest  kind  and  lowest  grade.  The  men  in 
turn  were  vociferating  that  they  would  face  the  enemy  as 
long  as  the  officers,  but  that  they  were  greatly  outnumbered 
and  overpowered,  and  that  further  resistance  here  was 
wholly  useless.  But  during  all  this  talk,  some  of  the  men, 
impatient  of  restraint,  would  breakaway  and  occasion  another 
outbreak  of  profanity  on  the  part  of  the  officers.  The  officers 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  41)9 

were  evidently  very  greatly  excited,  and  probably  almost  as 
badly  frightened  as  the  poor  privates. 

The  Fourth  corps  was  far  in  advance  in  the  pursuit  of 
all  other  infantry,  in  fact,  up  with  the  cavalry  at  this  time, 
and  General  Wood  probably  deemed  it  unwise  to  push  on 
farther  during  the  night,  and  so  ordered  the  command  to 
halt.  Had  the  men  been  allowed  to  run  on  and  attack  the 
enemy,  as  some  of  them,  at  least,  wanted  to  do,  quite  a  large 
number  of  prisoners  might  have  been  secured,  together  with 
artillery  and  wagons,  as  the  enemy  was  badly  demoralized. 
There  were  not  over  twenty-five  or  thirty  of  the  Eighty- 
sixth  present  when  this  swale  was  first  reached,  but  they 
were  all  soldiers  and  ready  for  the  work  before  tliem. 
Others  speedily  came  up,  and  they  continued  to  arrive,  until 
a  good  force  was  on  hand,  and  in  a  very  short  time  the  entire 
regiment  was  there  and  ready  to  go  forward  if  the  command 
should  be  given.  By  this  time  the  Confederates  had  entirely 
withdrawn.  One  by  one  they  went  at  first,  until  their  otficers 
saw  it  was  the  sheerest  folly  to  try  to  hold  them,  when  they 
all  scampered,  rejoiced  in  being  allowed  to  get  away  so 
easily. 

It  is  a  fact,  accepted  by  all  who  have  written  upon  the 
details  of  the  battle  of  Nashville,  that  Wood's  Fourth  corps 
led  in  the  pursuit  of  the  enemy  on  the  evening  of  the  second 
day's  battle,  and  bivouacked  for  the  night  far  in  advance  of 
all  other  infantry  commands  of  General  Thomas'  army.  It 
is  equally  certain  that  the  men  of  Colonel  Knefler's  brigiule, 
of  Beatty's  Third  division,  led  those  of  the  Fourth  corps,  and 
of  these  the  Eighty-sixth  were  in  the  front  line,  and  were 
abreast  of  the  leaders.  This  much  is  due  the  Eighty-sixth. 
Colonel  Dick  and  his  subordinate  officers.  Neither  Colonels 
Knefler  nor  Dick  ever  permitted  their  men  to  hang  back  when 
there  was  work  to  be  done,  and  on  this  day  as  at  Missionary 
Ridge,  the  men  had  no  disposition  to  loiter  by  the  wayside, 
but  crowded  to  the  front  with  the  greatest  spirit  and  courage, 
aye  rushed  gleefully  forward  as  if  invited  to  a  banquet  where 
only  friends  were  to  be  met,  and  where  unclouded  joy  and 


500  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

unrestrained  pleasure  were  to  be  found  and  quaffed  as  the 
soul's  most  inspiring  draught. 

It  was  a  great  day  of  battle  and  this  its  most  notable 
assault — the  climax,  in  fact,  of  the  two  day's  battle.  The  bat- 
tle of  Nashville  was  one  of  the  most  decisive  victories  of  the 
war,  in  which  many  hard  knocks  were  given  and  received, 
before  the  end  came,  but  which  came  quickly  and  surely  in 
the  dusk  of  the  evening  when  the  final  grand  assault  was 
made  by  the  Union  forces.  From  one  end  of  Hood's  intrench- 
ments  to  the  other  the  blue  lines  of  the  advancing  columns  of 
the  Federal  troops  could  be  seen  charging  upon  the  enemy 
with  the  most  daring  impetuosity.  There  was,  therefore,  at 
this  stage  of  the  game  no  time,  chance,  or  opportunity  to 
reinforce  this  or  that  part  of  the  appalled  Confederate  bat- 
tle-line. The  forces,  marshaled  as  they  were,  must  meet  the 
shock  of  the  onward,  rushing  battalions,  or  suffer  defeat  and 
utter  rout.  There  was  no  escape  from  this  dread  alternative. 
The  one  swinging,  crushing  blow  that  was  to  decide  the  bat- 
tle was  delivered  with  the  full  force  of  Thomas'  combined 
divisions,  and  came  too  soon,  after  the  repulse  of  the  smaller 
attacking  column  on  the  left,  to  permit  a  re-adjustment  of 
Hood's  forces.  This  combined  attack  changed  the  status  of 
affairs  from  that  of  the  previous  assault,  by  Post's  brigade 
and  Steedman's  colored  troops,  and  crowned  the  last  attack 
with  a  glorious  success.  Few  as  they  had  been  in  the  former 
attack,  the  Union  troops  had  fought  the  enemy  to  the  verge 
of  victory,  and  that,  too,  over  magnificently  constructed 
breastworks  on  the  enemy's  own  well  chosen  ground.  The 
Eighty-sixth  might  well  have  said 

"  We  have  seen  the  caiiuoii. 
When  it  hath  blown  his  ranks  into  tlie  air. 
And  lilce  the  devil,  from  liis  very  arm 
Pufl'd  his  own  brother." 

The  fire  of  the  contending  batteries  was  terribly  fierce 
and  the  slaughter  great  during  the  brief  half  hour  the  assault 
was  maintained,  yet  the  Third  brigade  was  unappalled  and 
rushed  to  the  fray  when  ordered  to  charge  into  the  fiery 
girdle — the  flaming  crater  on  the  crest  of  Overton's  Hill — 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  501 

the  Eighty-sixth  leading  and  her  companion  regiments  fol- 
lowing with  equal  enthusiasm,  spirit,  and  courage. 

It  has  been  said  that  "a  victory,  is  twice  itself  when 
the  achiever  brings  home  full  numbers,  "and  this  is  prob- 
ably as  nearly  applicable  to  Thomas'  victory  at  Nashville  as 
any  general  battle  fought  during  the  war,  if  it  is  taken  into 
consideration  that  his  forces  were  the  attacking  ones,  but  it 
is  still  more  applicable  to  the  assault  of  Colonel  Knefler's 
brigade  which  was  led  by  Colonel  George  F.  Dick  and  his 
regiment,  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  Volunteer  Infantry. 
Again  had  the  Eighty-sixth  and  Seventy-ninth  Indiana  and 
the  Nineteenth  and  Thirteenth  Ohio  earned  for  themselves 
the  right  to  be  termed  "  rasli,  Incoimderatejiery  voluntaries/' 
by  their  daring  courage  and  the  impetuosity  of  their  assault 
upon  the  rebel  works  on  Overton's  Hill,  where  before  their 
very  eyes  so  many  of  their  comrades  had  been  slain  and  the 
remainder  of  the  attacking  force  had  been  apparently  so 
easily  repulsed. 

Said  a  captured  Brigadier  General,  in  speaking  of  this 
charge:  '"Why,  Sir,  it  was  the  most  wonderful  thing  I  ever 
witnessed.  I  saw  you  were  coming  and  held  my  tire — a  full 
brigade,  too — until  they  were  in  close  range,  could  almost 
see  the  whites  of  their  eyes,  and  then  poured  my  volley  right 
into  their  faces.  I  supposed,  of  course,  that  when  the  smoke 
lifted,  your  line  would  be  broken  and  your  men  gone.  But 
it  is  surprising,  Sir,  it  never  even  staggered  them.  Why, 
they  did  not  come  forward  on  a  run.  But  right  along,  cool 
as  fate,  your  line  swung  up  the  hill,  and  your  men  walked 
right  up  to  and  over  my  works  and  around  my  brigade,  before 
we  knew  that  they  were  upon  us.  It  was  astonishing.  Sir. 
such  lighting. " 

The  various  regiments  of  the  brigade  sustained  tiie  n'p- 
utations  they  had  won  at  Stone's  River.  Chickamanga.  Mis- 
sionary Ridge  and  all  through  the  Atlanta  campaign,  by 
winning  in  the  most  brilliant  and  gallant  manner  this  strong- 
hold of  Hood's  position  in  a  few  brief  minutes,  and  with  com- 
paratively small  loss.  Of  the  number  of  prisoners  and  small 
arms  captured  by  the  Eighty-sixth  or  Knetler's  brigade.  Col- 


502  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

onel  Knefler  reported  158  prisoners  and  9  guns,  Beatty's 
Third  division  captured  721  prisoners,  and  13  field  pieces. 
Tlie  Fourth  corps  captured  1,968  prisoners  and  25  guns, 
besides  many  thousands  of  small  arms,  and  regimental  colors 
of  which  no  account  could  be  taken.  All  this  was  accom- 
plished with  a  loss  of  but  750  men  killed  and  wounded  of  the 
entire  corps. 

Of  the  many  incidents  of  the  battle  worthy  of  being 
chronicled  it  would  be  difficult  to  make  a  selection  for  these 
pages.  The  courage  of  the  men  were  at  the  highest  pitch, 
and  all  gave  evidence  of  their  determination  to  capture  the 
enemy's  works  and  win  the  day  if  indomitable  courage  and 
audacity  could  do  it.  Never  was  the  regiment  or  brigade 
more  perfectly  in  unison,  more  thoroughly  combined  by  a 
dogged,  inflexible  purpose  than  they  were  on  this  day  united 
instantaneously,  on  the  word  of  command  to  "Forward,"  by 
the  resolution  to  capture  Overton's  Hill  and  end  the  day's 
battle.  The  officers  of  the  Eighty-sixth  were  all  aglow  with 
the  spirit  of  battle  and  nobly  sustained  and  encouraged  the 
men  to  press  forward  and  on  to  still  greater  achievements  of 
valor  and  heroism.  To  these  let  all  praise  be  given,  but  let 
us  not  mar  the  memory  of  the  occasion  by  trying  to  put  one 
above  the  other, — officers  and  men  were  in  the  grand  rush 
simply  unmatched  and  matchless  soldiers.  Could  more  be 
said? 

One  incident  occurred  in  the  Eighty-sixth,  but  was  no 
part  of  it,  which  is  worthy  of  recital  because  it  shows  to 
some  extent  the  depth  of  the  heroism  of  the  colored  soldier. 
It  has  become  a  trite  saying,  "The  colored  troops  fought 
nobly,"  more  frequently  quoted  in  a  spirit  of  levity  than  out 
of  admiration  for  their  heroic  courage.  No  one  who  wit- 
nessed the  first  assault  on  Overton's  Hill,  will  ever  question 
the  true  courage  of  the  down  trodden  colored  man.  When 
Post's  brigade,  of  Beatty's  division,  and  Thompson's  brigade 
of  colored  troops,  were  repulsed  a  number  of  the  latter  held 
their  ground  well  up  to  the  enemy's  works,  not  retiring  when 
the  columns  of  assault  retired.  Here  they  remained  until 
the  onset  of  Knefler 's  brigade.     They  joined  the  leaders  of 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  503 

the  storming  column  and  went  over  the  works  with  the  spirit 
and  resolution  of  veterans.  One  of  these  was  so  elated  by 
the  final,  but  what,  no  doubt,  seemed  to  him  long  delayed, 
success,  of  the  Union  troops  that  he  jumped  upon  a  piece  of 
artillery  and  stroked  it  with  his  hand  as  he  might  have  done 
a  favorite  horse  or  dog,  patting  and  petting  it  as  though  it 
were  a  thing  of  sense  and  intelligence.  Of  course  he  was  an 
ignorant,  unlearned  colored  man,  but  he  knew  the  victory 
was  gained.  At  first  he  and  his  comrades  had  been  beaten. 
Many  of  them  lay  just  over  the  works — dead.  He,  however, 
was  unwilling  to  acknowledge  it  was  a  defeat.  He  waited 
and  watched  for  assistance  to  accomplish  the  work.  But 
these  grim  monsters — these  bull-dogs  of  war  roared  on, 
belched  forth  death  and  destruction,  and  it  seemed  that  no 
body  of  men  could  stand  before  them  and  live,  much  less 
capture  the  works.  But  with  the  spirit  of  a  true  hero  he 
persevered  in  waiting  and  watching  until  hope  was  almost 
gone.  His  intrepidity  was  to  have  its  own  proper  reward — 
victory.  A  handful  of  men  came  over  their  partly  con- 
structed works  and  started  for  those  blazing  cannon.  He 
Avaits.  They  come  abreast  of  his  cover,  still  on  the  run.  He 
is  unlearned  in  books  and  scholastic  training,  but  he  is  a  close 
observer  and  has  been  a  student  of  nature  and  the  human 
countenance  all  his  life,  and  now  he  reads  in  every  linea- 
ment of  the  rugged  faces  of  these  men  that  they  mean  to 
capture  these  works,  that  hill,  cannon,  and  all  else  that  do 
not  run  away  from  them.  It  was  enough.  He  joins  the  pro- 
cession, and  rushing  among  the  Eighty-sixth  he  goes  over 
the  works  with  a  leap  and  a  shout.  The  enemy  flees.  The 
works  are  taken.  The  hill  is  captured.  The  guns  are 
silenced.  He  is  satisfied  and  looks  no  farther.  This  to  him 
was  the  complete  victory— the  end  of  the  battle,  and  ho  was 
as  happy  as  the  laurel  crowned  hero  in  the  greatest  triumpli. 
He  himself  was  a  hero  as  was  many  of  his  comra<:les  on  that 
dreadful  day  on  the  bloody  slopes  of  Overton's  Hill.  All 
honor  to  the  colored  soldiers  although  in  their  magnificently 
sustained  charge  they  failed,  and  equal  honor  is  due  to  the 
Second  brigade. 


504  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

The  battle  of  Nashville  was  one  of  the  great  decisive 
battles  of  the  war.  There  can  be  little  doubt  that  it  created 
a  greater  depression  in  the  hearts  of  the  people  of  the  South 
than  any  single  battle  fought  prior  to  that  time.  The  battle 
of  Franklin  had  cast  a  cloud  of  gloom  over  many  Southern 
homes  for  the  loss  of  their  loved  ones  who  fell  there,  but  it 
was  a  personal  sorrow  rather  than  one  of  the  whole  people, 
as  their  army  still  advanced  farther  north,  and  many  retained 
a  hope  that  the  intrepid  Hood  with  his  brave  army  would  do 
even  more  than  he  had  promised,  and  proceed  on  north  until 
the  Ohio  river  was  crossed  and  the  Northern  States  success- 
fully invaded.  This  would  call  large  reinforcements  from 
Grant's  army  before  Richmond  and  relieve  Lee,  and  possibly 
create  such  an  impression  in  Europe  as  to  lead  to  the  recog- 
nition of  the  Confederacy  by  foreign  powers.  But  now  after 
the  battle  of  Nashville  hope  was  gone,  and  to  the  personal 
sorrow  of  the  individuals  for  the  loved  and  lost,  were  added 
the  sorrow  and  gloom  and  depression  of  spirits  of  a  disap- 
pointed people  that  had  held  high  hopes  for  the  near  future 
of  this  so  called  government. 

The  Nashville  papers,  which  were  received  the  next  day 
while  in  pursuit  of  the  enemy,  stated  that  Thomas  had  cap- 
tured about  5,000  prisoners  and  more  than  30  pieces  of  artil- 
lery. According  to  later  accounts  this  is  too  high  as  to  the 
number  of  prisoners  taken.  To  be  brief  as  to  the  captures 
made  from  the  enemy  during  these  two  day's  battle,  they 
were  as  follows:  Prisoners,  4,462,  and  53  pieces  of  artil- 
lery and  thousands  of  small  arms.  General  J.  D.  Cox  says 
in  his  history  of  the  battle  that  "Thomas'  return  of  prison- 
ers captured,  and  deserters  received  during  November  and 
December,  show  the  number  to  be  over  thirteen  thousand; 
besides  these  he  reports  the  capture  of  seventy-two  cannons 
and  three  thousand  muskets.  " 

At  6  o'clock  that  evening,  from  his  headquarters  eight 
miles  south  of  Nashville,  General  Thomas  dispatched  Presi- 
dent Lincoln  and  Secretary  Stanton,  from  which  the  follow- 
ing extract  is  made. 

"Thisai'iBy  thanks  you  for  your  approbation  of  its  conduct  yaster- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  505 

day.  and  assures  you  that  it  is  not  misplaced.  I  have  the  honor  to  report 
that  the  enemy  has  been  pressed  at  all  points  to-day  on  his  line  of  retreat 
to  the  Brentwood  Hills.  *  Brigadier  General  Wood's  troops  on  the 
Franklin  pike  took  up  the  assault,  capturing-  the  enemy's  intrenchments, 
and  in  his  retreat  also  capturing  eight  pieces  of  artillery,  something 
over  600  pi'isoners,  and  drove  the  enemy  within  one  mile  of  the  Brent- 
wood Hill  Pass." 

The  Eighty-sixth  bivouacked  in  the  edge  of  the  swale 
before  mentioned  wliere  the  pursuit  of  tlie  enemy  ended  on 
the  evening  of  the  16th.  The  men  were  in  fine  spirits.  They 
had  by  their  valor,  with  their  companions  in  arms,  sent  the 
braggart  Hood  whirling  southward.  It  is  true  a  portion  of 
this  same  army  had  been  beaten  almost,  if  not  quite,  as  badly 
at  Missionary  Ridge,  but  not  all  of  it  was  so  routed.  At  the 
latter  battle  that  portion  of  the  rebel  army  opposed  to  the 
Fourth  and  Fourteenth  corps,  had  been  perhaps  nearly  as 
badly  beaten  from  what  they  thought  an  impregnable  posi- 
tion, and  that,  too,  in  a  very  unexpected  manner,  but  Har- 
dee's magnificent  corps,  the  flower  of  Bragg's  army  on  the 
rebel  right,  opposed  to  Sherman's  forces,  were  not  so  beaten, 
and,  in  fact,  had  held  their  ground  until  nightfall  and  then 
withdrew  in  good  order,  and  w^ith  their  organization  intact 
and  perfect  morale,  as  was  evidenced  by  the  battle  they  gave 
General  Hooker's  command  the  following  day  at  Ringgold. 
Not  so  here  at  Nashville.  Every  command,  every  regiment, 
in  the  rebel  intrenchments  opposed  to  the  Federal  troops 
w^ere  utterly  routed,  and  either  captured  or  chased  like  the 
wild  deer  of  the  forest,  from  their  posts  and  breastworks. 
The  rank  and  file  of  the  Union  troops  knew  this  and  ai)prc- 
ciated  their  victory.  They  knew  what  it  all  meant,  atid  were 
correspondingly  jubilant.  The  Union  loss  had  becMi  exceed- 
ingly small  for  the  result  attained,  and  this  also  made  the 
Federals  feel  happy.  Therefore,  around  the  Union  bivouac 
fires  that  burned  brightly  on  the  night  of  December  IC.  \>^M, 
near  Brentwood  Hill  Pass,  there  gathered  cheerful,  happy 
groups  of  men  who  chatted  in  a  lively,  gleeful  manner,  and 
discussed  the  exploitsof  the  day's  battle  and  its  happy  term- 
ination. This  lively  conversation  was  kept  up  during  the 
time  of  preparation  and  disposal  of  the  evening  meal.    There 


506  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

was  no  ill-humor  there.  The  boys  almost  hugged  one  another 
in  the  excess  of  their  joyous  good  humor.  It  was  a  happy 
bivouac.  The  officers  and  men  commingled  in  a  free  and 
easy  manner.     It  was  a  grand  victory. 

The  evening  meal  was  speedily  disposed  of  by  the 
hungry  men,  the  "shake  downs"  were  spread  here  and  there 
upon  ''the  lap  of  mother  earth"  for  the  night's  rest,  and  the 
weary  men  were  soon  in  the  land  of  pleasant  dreams. 
Shortly  after  the  men  had  gone  to  rest,  torrents  of  rain  began 
to  fall  and  the  drowsy  soldiers  were  soon  wallowing  in 
water.  Wearied  and  sleepy  as  they  were,  the  water  drove 
them  from  their  beds  upon  the  earth  to  perch  like  so  many 
fowls  at  roost,  here  or  there,  on  stumps,  logs,  or  limbs,  or 
anything,  or  anywhere,  to  get  up  out  of  the  water  and  shield 
themselves  from  the  rain.  Consequently  the  night's  sleep 
and  rest  were  almost  wholly  lost. 

Reveille  was  sounded  for  the  Eighty-sixth  and  the  Third 
brigade  at  4:30  a.  m.  on  the  17th.  The  preparation  of  the 
morning  meal  and  iis  disposal,  the  drying  of  blankets  and 
pup  tents,  required  the  greatest  dispatch  that  the  men  might 
be  ready  when  the  order  was  given  to  march. 

About  8  o'clock  the  regiment  was  formed  and  received 
the  order  from  Colonel  Dick  to  "Double  column  on  the  cen- 
ter at  half  distance — march,"  and  thus  it  advanced  through 
forest  and  field  until  well  up  to  Brentwood  Hill  Pass. 
Marching  in  this  way  was  tiresome.  Besides  the  manner  of 
marching,  the  warm  and  super-abundant  rains,  had  rendered 
the  ground  very  soft,  especially  in  the  cultivated  fields,  and 
consequently  the  footing  was  bad  and  the  progress  slow.  A 
certain  amount  of  caution  was  necessary,  as  it  was  thought 
possibly  that  the  enemy  might  have  rallied  sufficiently  dur- 
ing the  night  to  attempt  to  make  a  stand  at  Brentwood  Hill 
Pass,  at  least,  to  delay  pursuit.  But  he  had  been  too 
severely  beaten  and  was  too  badly  demoralized  to  think  of 
risking  any  of  his  forces  by  attempting  to  make  a  stand  at 
■that  point.  Having  found  no  armed  enemy  at  the  Pass  the 
regiment  was  permitted  to  march  upon  the  road  in  the  ordi- 
nary route  step.     Shortly  after  it  had  reached  the  pike  some 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  507 

four  hundred  and  fifty  rebels  and  their  officers  passed  the 
Third  brigade  going  now  for  sure  to  Nashville.  Wilson's 
cavalry,  Knipe's  division,  had  captured  them  at  Hollow  Tree 
Gap,  four  miles  north  of  Franklin.  So  many  prisoners  had 
been  taken  and  more  still  comiug  in  was  quite  cheering  and 
all  felt  that  Hood's  army  would  not  be  in  the  way  very  long. 

Kuefler's  brigade,  of  Beatty's  division,  arrived  at  the 
north  bank  of  the  Harpeth  river  about  4  o'clock  on  the  17th 
and  bivouacked  for  the  night  not  far  from  Port  Granger,  and 
during  the  evening  drew  rations  for  three  days.  Wood  was 
as  expeditious  as  any  one  could  have  been  with  infantry  in 
getting  to  Franklin,  but  Wilson's  cavalry  beat  him  there. 
They  had  driven  the  frightened  enemy  from  the  town,  and 
had  taken  about  2,000  wounded  in  the  Confederate  hosi)itals, 
200  of  which  were  Federals.  The  enemy  was  getting  away 
with  the  greatest  precipitancy  and  had  no  time  to  furnish 
transportation  for  the  wounded.  It  was  as  much  as  tlic  able- 
bodied  could  do  to  get  away  with  sufficient  speed  to  save 
themselves  from  capture,  and  all  seemed  pretty  thoroughly 
frightened  at  this  stage  of  the  game.  The  recent  heavy  rains 
had  swollen  the  streams,  already  full,  to  an  unusual  degree, 
and  the  roads  -were  abominable.  It  was  manifestly  out  of 
the  question  for  the  troops  to  make  rapid  progress  in  the 
pursuit.  General  Cox  says:  "Hood's  retreat  from  Nash- 
ville to  the  Tennessee  and  Thomas'  pursuit  were  almost 
equally  laborious  for  their  armies,  though  very  ditfei-cnt  in 
their  effects  u^ion  the  spirits  of  the  troops.  Th(>  roads  were 
in  horrible  condition,  even  those  whicli  had  hvvu  niacachini 
ized  being  almost  impassable.  The  ordinary  country  roads 
were  much  worse,  and,  after  passing  Pulaski,  till  the  Ten- 
nessee was  reached,  the  wreck  of  wagons  ami  tlic  carcasses 
of  animals  filled  the  way. 

On  the  morning  of  the  IMh  reveille  was  .sonndcd  at  4:;}0 
and  about  8  o'clock  Knefler's  brigade  filed  out  from  itsphiceof 
bivouac,  crossed  the  Ha]-])eth  river,  and  marclied  once  more 
through  the  town  of  Franklin.  But  this  time  the  Union 
troops  were  the  pursuers,  not  the  pursued.  Following  Hood's 
footsteps  they  took  the  Columbia  pike.  The  evidences  of  the 


» 


508  •  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

desperate  repulse  the  rebel  army  had  met  here  were  to  be 
seen.  Upon  the  immediate  right  and  left  of  where  the  pike 
passed  through  the  Federal  breastworks,  the  most  desperate 
fighting  of  the  battle  of  Franklin  occurred.  Here  the  enemy, 
by  General  Wagner's  error,  succeeded  in  taking  a  portion  of 
the  works.  In  some  respects  it  was  the  most  desperate 
battle  of  the  war.  Just  outside  the  intrenchments  the  very 
great  number  of  graves  told  how  great  the  slaughter  of  the 
Confederates  had  been.  These  brave  Southerners  had 
crowded  close  upon  the  works  and  almost  fell  in  heaps 
around  the  lines  of  the  Union  army's  intrenchments.  Near 
the  pike,  on  the  east  side,  was  where  the  desperate  and 
aggrieved  Cleburn  tried  to  gain,  for  the  complaining  Hood, 
the  battle,  by  the  most  indomitable  courage.  A  little  farther 
on  to  the  east  was  the  place  where  with  equal  impetuous 
courage  Brigadier  General  John  Adams  lost  his  life  in  a  most 
daring  assault  upon  the  works  in  a  vain  attempt  to  break  the 
Union  line,  his  horse  falling  astride  of  the  Federal  parapet, 
while  he  himself,  by  the  momentum  of  his  rush  upon  the 
works,  was  pitched  headlong  into  the  Union  ranks  mortally 
wounded. 

Having  passed  beyond  the  town  of  Franklin  one  mile  a 
halt  was  called  and  the  troops  were  permitted  to  rest,  when 
they  were  not  tired.  The  cavalry  was  in  the  advance  and 
had  run  up  against  some  barricades  defended  by  the  rear 
guard  of  the  enemy.  It  required  some  time  to  make  the 
proper  disposition  of  the  troops  for  the  attack,  but  when  it 
was  once  made  they  carried  the  barricades  in  whirlwind 
fashion,  dispersing  the  enemy  and  capturing  a  number  of  the 
defenders  of  the  works.  The  onward  march  of  the  infantry 
was  at  once  resumed  and  was  continued  steadily,  the  column 
passing  through  Spring  Hill  and  some  distance  beyond,  biv- 
ouacking at  dark.  During  the  night  of  the  18th  there  was  a 
terrific  rain  storm.  The  down  pour  of  water  was  wonderful, 
all  low  grounds  were  flooded,  and  the  soldiery  and  their  par- 
aphernalia were  thoroughly  soaked.  The  march  was 
resumed  on  the  morning  of  the  19th.  Generals  Wood  and 
Wilson  acting  most  promptly  and  energetically  on  Thomas' 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  509 

instructions  to  press  the  enemy.     The   rain  continued  to  fall 
but  it  grew  much  colder  during  the  day.     About  11  o'clock 
a.  m.  Rutherford's  creek  was  reached.     The  rebels  in  their 
retreat  had   destroyed   the  bridge,    and  as    the    creek  was 
greatly  swollen  it  was  impossible  to  cross  it  until  some  kind 
of  bridge   could  be  constructed.     The  command  bivouacked 
and  work  on  a  bridge  was  speedily  commenced.     A  cold  rain 
fell  during  the  night,  rendering  the  work  on  the   bridge  to 
proceed  very   slowly.     It   also  made   the   soldiers"  bivouac 
anything  but  a  haven  of  rest  and  comfort.     A  day  was  most 
unpleasantly   spent  at  this  place,  as  it  grew  colder  toward 
morning  and  froze  considerably.     About  1  o'clock  p.  m.  on 
the  20th  the  bridge  was  completed,  at  least,  it  was  ready  for 
footmen,  and  the  command  marched  out  for  Columbia.     The 
Confederates  had  made  good  their  escape  across  Duck  river 
which  was  also  impassable,   as  they  allowed  no  bridges  to 
remain  in   their  rear.     A   cold  rain   continued  to  fall   and 
the    wind    rose,    forming    a    combination   that  thoroughly 
chilled  one  to  the  bone,  and  it  was  a  first  rate  producer  of 
neuralgias   and  rheumatisms.      Is   it  to  be  wondered  that 
so  anany    old   soldiers    in    after    years   complain  of  suffer- 
ing with  rheumatism  -and  nervous  troublesy     The  Fourth 
corps  followed  close  upon  the  heels  of  the  cavalry  down  to 
Duck    river   opposite   the   town    of  Columbia.      The   river 
was  running  wild,  now  a  mighty  stream,  wholly  impassable 
without  a  good  bridge.     It  could  not  be  crossed  until  i)on- 
toons  could  be  brought  up  from  the   rear.     The  command 
bivouacked  near  the  river  and  the  men  made  preparations  to 
try  to  secure  as  much  comfort  out  of  the  situation  as  was 
possible.     They  began  once  more  to  do  some  artistic  work 
for  the  benefit  of  their  commissary.     They  were  growing 
tired  of  the  exclusive  diet  of  hard  tack  and  bacon,  and  as 
"variety  is  the  spice  of  life, "  they  thought  a  change  of  diet 
would  be  relished  by  themselves  and  comrades  as  well  as 
conducive   to   their   well-being.     Hard   marching  over   bad 
roads,  building  bridges,  standing  picket  day  and  night,  in 
sun  and  in  rain,  in  sleet  and  in  snow,  either  broke  one  down 
speedily  or  gave  him  a  robust  appetite.     The  gobble  of  a 


510  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

turkey,  the  cackle  of  a  lien,  or  the  squeal  of  a  pig,  was  sure 
to  call  out  a  strong  detachment  of  the  boys  to  search  for  the 
offender  against  the  peace  and  quiet  of  the  bivouac.  And 
there  was  seldom  any  escape  from  the  experts  sent  out  on 
such  occasions.  The  activity  of  the  men  was  also  forced  to 
exercise  itself  in  procuring  fuel.  Fires  were  an  absolute 
necessity  to  keep  one  from  freezing,  to  say  nothing  of  their 
needs  for  cooking  purposes.  A  light  snow  fell  on  the  night 
of  the  20th,  and  taking  this  as  a  warning  that  winter  was  not 
over,  the  bivouac  of  the  Eighty-sixth  was  a  busy  one 
throughout  the  day  of  the  21st,  laying  in  supplies  of  straw 
for  bedding,  eatables,  and  fuel.  The  day  was  a  painful  one 
to  those  not  exceptionably  well  clad  or  very  robust,  and  the 
cold  grew  more  penetrating  and  disagreeable  as  the  darkness 
of  night  approached.  This  bivouac  on  the  banks  of  Duck 
river  will  long  be  remembered  by  the  hardy  men,  officers 
and  privates,  of  the  Fourth  corps  who  during  this  pursuit 
and  winter  campaign  endured  almost  the  hardships  and 
XDrivations  of  the  Revolutionary  fathers  at  Valley  Forge. 

It  was  not  until  darkness  had  fallen  on  the  night  of  the 
22d  that  the  bridge  was  completed  ready  for  the  troops  to 
cross  Duck  river.  Soon  after  dark  the  men  of  Knefler's 
brigade  took  up  their  burdens  for  a  night  march  uncom- 
plaingly,  and  tramped  off  for  the  river  which  was  crossed  in 
in  due  time,  but  not  in  haste,  as  the  darkness  was  almost 
impenetrable,  rendering  progress  tediously  slow.  Passing 
through  Columbia  and  probably  a  mile  beyond,  the  brigade 
bivouacked.  The  Eighty-sixth  was  called  upon  to  furnish 
pickets  for  the  brigade,  and  sent  out  a  heavy  detail  for  that 
duty.  It  was  no  light  or  easy  task  to  perform  picket  duty  at 
this  time.  The  enemy  was  in  front,  and  although  retreat- 
ing, he  might  turn  and  attack  at  any  time.  The  cold  was 
stinging  one's  fingers  until  the  trusty  Enfield  could  scarcely 
be  held,  but  the  duty  was  imperative  and  had  to  be  per- 
formed. The  pickets  returned  to  the  bivouac  of  the  regi- 
ment at  1  o'clock  on  the  25th,  the  command  being  under 
orders  to  march,  but  for  some  reason  it  did  not  set  for- 
ward until  sundown.     The  column  proceeded  in  the  direc- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  511 

tion  of  Palaski  and  covered  some  four  or  five  miles  in  the 
darkness  of  night  and  again  bivouacked. 

The  Fourth  corps  was  now  for  a  short  time  the  leaders, 
even  of  the  cavalry  in  the  pursuit  of  the  enemy  on  the  Pulaski 
road.  On  the  morning  of  the  24th,  however,  the  cavalry 
passed  to  the  front  again  and  pressed  on  after  Hood's  disor- 
ganized army.  Now,  however,  the  dare-devil  Forrest  had 
rejoined  Hood's  shattered  column  and  assumed  command  of 
the  rear-guard,  in  fact,  reorganized  a  new  rear-guard  mucli 
more  efficient  than  the  one  that  acted  up  to  this  point.  Witli 
Walthall's  infantry  command,  and  three  other  brigades  of 
infantry,  those  which  were  the  least  broken  and  dispirited, 
and  his  own  superb  cavalry  command  Forrest  combined  an 
efficient  force  for  defensive  resistance,  and  throwing  all  the 
fiery  energy  of  his  nature  into  the  command  of  this  little 
army,  he  sought  by  every  possible  means  known  to  military 
art,  to  stay  the  jjrogress  of  the  Union  troops,  but  in  vain. 
Still  with  this  force,  and  favored  by  the  inclement  weather, 
the  horrible  state  of  the  roads,  and  the  delays  to  Wilson 's 
cavalry  and  the  Fourth  corps  caused  by  the  swollen  streams, 
he  probably  saved  the  remnant  of  Hood's  frightened  army 
from  capture  before  reaching  the  banks  of  the  Tennessee 
river.  About  11  o'clock  a.  m.  the  command  resumed  tlu^ 
march  forward,  reached  Lynnville  midway  between  Columbia 
and  Pulaski  before  night,  and  passing  probably  a  mile  beyond 
that  place,  bivouacked  in  a  woods  near  the  road.  For  Christ- 
mas eve  the  men  suppered  on  the  usual  bill  of  fare  of  a 
soldier. 

On  Christmas  morning  the  march  was  resumed  at  11:30 
o'clock.  Christmas  was  to  be  celebrated  by  a  grand  rush 
after  Hood's  retreating  column.  The  halts  were  brief,  the 
column  pressing  steadily  forward  with  a  determination  not 
hitherto  evinced,  or  the  conditions  heretofore  had  rendered 
impracticable.  The  road  was  very  muddy  from  the  place  of 
the  night's  bivouac  to  Pulaski.  Knefler's  brigade  reached 
the  latter  place  about  2:30  p.  m.  on  Christmas  day,  after  an 
absence  a  few  days  over  a  month.  A  halt  was  made  here 
and  the  troops  took  advantage  of  the  occasion  and  dined. 


512  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

The  march  was  soon  resumed.     The  cavalry  had  come  to  the 
enemy's  rear-guard.     Forrest  made  a  stout  resistance  at  all 
points.     The  infantry  was  hurried  forward  as  rapidly  as  the 
abominable  condition  of  the  roads  would   permit  to  assist 
Wilson  and  participate  in  the  attack,  but  the  enemy  usually 
skurried  off  before  it  arrived.     He  was  hard  pressed  by  Wil- 
son, and  had   destroyed  large  quantities  of  ammunition  in 
order  to  lighten  the  loads  of  his  wagons.     He  also  doubled 
the  teams  and  spared  no  effort  that  nothing  might  impede 
his  rapid   progress.     For   some   miles   beyond   Pulaski  the 
road  was  literally  strewn  with  the  remnants  of  the  destroyed 
cartridges.     From  Pulaski  Hood's  column  had  borne  off  to 
the  southwest  toward  Florence,  Alabama.      From  that  town 
the  roads  were  almost  impassable.     Passing  over   the  red 
clay  hills,   the   rebel  troops   had  cut  them  up  and  worked 
them  into  a  mire,    which  greatly  impeded  Wilson  \s  move- 
ments in  pursuit.     Wilson's  cavalry  passing  over  them  made 
them  still  worse  for  the  passage  of  the  Fourth  corps,  and,  in 
fact,  they  were  rendered  almost  impracticable.     The  roads 
were  bad  before  reaching  Pulaski  and  the  clay  hills,  but  they 
were  as  nothing  as  compared  to  the  roads  south  and  Avest  of 
that  place.     They  were,  at  best,  but  the  poorest  of  country 
roads,  but  now  worked  by  the  passage  of  so  many  troops 
and  wagons  into  a  veritable  quagmire.     Both   Wilson  and 
Wood  had  to  leave  a  portion  of  their  artillery  behind  and 
double  the  teams  on  those  pieces  that  were  taken  along,  and 
even  then  the  advance  was  slow.     The  command  bivouacked 
about  dark  Christmas  evening  after  having  covered  fifteen 
or  sixteen  miles,  about  half  of  it  being  over  these  villainous 
roads.     It  need  scarcely  be  related  that  the  men  were  greatly 
wearied  and  foot-sore  when  the  placeof  bivouac  was  reached, 
and  this  was   Christmas  for   1864.     It  was  a  cold,  dreary, 
cheerless  time. 

It  was  a  land  of  desolation  and  dreariness.  The  Christ- 
mas chimes  were  those  that  rang  out  from  the  dread  can- 
non's throat  and  not  from  merry  bells.  Christmas  for  the 
Eighty-sixth  had  always  been  fraught  with  hardships.  The 
first  one,  the  dreadful  battle  at  Stone's  River  was  impend- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  513 

ing;  the  second  one  it  was  a  little  more  than  half  starving  in 
East  Tenn(;ssee;  and  now  it  was  enduring  a  dreadful  march, 
after  the  great  battle  of  Nashville.  Christmas  had  brought 
no  happy  greetings,  yet  the  men  were  not  gloomy.  ''A 
shade  of  sadness, ' '  no  doubt  clouded  the  brows  of  many 
as  they  thought  of  home  and  its  endearments,  and  the 
bright  hajjpy  times  enjoyed  there,  but  it  soon  passed  away 
and  the  men  were  cheery  and  anything  but  despondent.  In 
fact,  the  Union  army  was  in  fine  spirits  for  Christmas, 
because  the  men  knew  theirs  to  be  much  better  and  more 
cheering  than  Hood's  and  that  of  his  army.  One  could 
almost  quote  the  Southern  stanza  in  the  spirit  of  the  author: 

'•  wild  bells  that  shake  the  midnight  air 

With  those  dear  tones  that  custom  loves, 
You  wake  no  sounds  of  laughter  here, 

Nor  mirth  lu  all  our  silent  groves; 
On  one  broad  waste,  by  hill  or  flood. 

Of  ravaged  lands  your  music  falls. 
And  where  the  happy  homestead  stood 

The  stars  look  down  on  roofless  walls." 

On  the  26th  orders  were  received  to  march,  but  the  com- 
mand to  set  forward  was  not  given.  Rations  were  getting 
exceedingly  scarce,  but  the  supply  train  after  a  great  effort 
and  prodigious  labors  succeeded  in  getting  up,  and  in  the 
afternoon  drew  three  days'  rations  to  do  five.  Near  night 
word  came  that  the  regiment  would  remain  for  the  night. 

On  the  27th  at  8  o'clock  the  onward  march  was  resumed, 
but  Hood  was  well  out  of  Wilson's  and  Wood's  reach  and 
completed  the  crossing  of  the  Tennessee  river  with  his  army 
on  the  evening  of  that  day.  But  Wood  pushed  ahead.  The 
roads  were  in  the  worst  possible  condition.  The  tough  clay 
through  which  the  men  were  compelled  to  trudge  precluded 
the  possibility  of  their  making  rapid  progress,  and  many  of 
the  men  became  so  exhausted  they  were  unable  to  keep  pace 
with  the  column  and  consequently  there  was  much  strag- 
gling. Having  marched  ten  or  twelve  miles  the  command 
was  halted  and  at  length  bivouacked  at  this  point.  Every- 
body who  had  marched  afoot  was  thoroughly  exhausted  and 
worn  out,  more  greatly  wearied  than  they  had  often  been  in 
a  march  of  twenty  or  thirty  miles  upon  good  roads.     Yet 


514  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

tired  as  all  were  the  camp  or  bivouac  duties,  inexorable  in 
their  requirements,  rested  upon  all  alike  and  had  to  be  per- 
formed. The  weather  on  this  day  was  warm  and  pleasant, 
being  a  marked  change  from  the  few  preceding  days. 

On  the  28th  the  tiresome  tramp  was  resumed  at  8  o'clock 
a.  m.  The  day's  march  was  laborious  in  the  extreme.  The 
roads  were  of  the  same  villainous  character.  Knefler's  brig- 
age  bivouacked  on  a  hill  in  the  woods  not  far  from  Lexing- 
ton, Alabama,  some  twenty  miles  distant  from  Florence, 
where  Hood  was  supposed  to  have  crossed  the  Tennessee 
river.  In  point  of  fact,  however,  Hood  crossed  the  Tennes- 
see river  at  Bainbridge.  Here  ended  the  pursuit  of  Hood 's 
demoralized  array  by  the  Fourth  army  corps,  and  it  would 
probably  have  been  just  as  well  if  Wood's  command  had  been 
halted  at  Pulaski,  as  nothing  was  accomplished,  so  far  as 
advantage  over  Hood's  retreating  army  was  concerned,  by 
the  slavish  march  from  Pulaski  south.  The  other  infantry 
commands  had  been  halted.  Smith's  at  Pulaski,  and  Scho- 
field's  Twenty-third  corps  at  Columbia,  the  really  hard  work 
and  service  being  put  upon  the  Fourth  corps. 

On  the  morning  of  the  29th  the  "general  call"  was 
sounded,  and  preparation  was  made  for  marching,  but  after 
waiting  some  time  the  word  came  that  the  command  would 
not  move  on  this  day.  Then  commenced,  at  once,  other 
preparations,  those  which  would  conduce  to  the  j^hysical 
comfort.  Some  got  up  wood,  others  went  foraging,  while 
others  carried  up  corn  fodder  with  which  to  make  shelters, 
or  put  up  tents,  and  some  "poor  unfortunates"  went  on 
picket.  Thus  all  had  work  to  do  and  were  busily  engaged 
most  of  the  day.  The  command  remained  here  during  the 
30th,  and  on  the  night  of  that  day  there  was  a  severe  storm. 
First  there  was  quite  a  rainfall,  then  it  turned  colder  and 
finished  up  with  a  snow  storm  which  almost  entitled  it  to 
take  rank  as  a  northern  "blizzard" — several  inches  of  snow 
being  on  the  ground  on  the  morning  of  the  31st.  The  effec- 
tive strength  of  the  regiment  at  this  time  was  190;  an 
average  of  19  men  to  each  company. 

Reveille  was   sounded   at  4   o'clock.     The  march   was 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  515 

resumed  about  7  o'clock  a.  m.  but  this  time  it  was  iu  an  east- 
ward direction,  toward  Athens  and  Hunts ville.  The  snow 
made  the  situation  anything  but  pleasant.  It  made  the  roads 
muddy  and  slippery.  A  fair  day's  march  was  made  and  the 
bivouac  of  the  Eighty-sixth  was  located  on  a  high  hill  in  a 
wood  of  large  trees.  Rails  were  conveniently  near  and  the 
men  had  the  comforting  influence  of  good  fires.  And  so 
passed  away  the  year  1864  for  the  Eighty-sixth. 

On  the  following  day,  the  first  day  of  the  year,  1865, 
reveille  was  sounded  about  4  o'clock  and  the  troops  made 
ready  for  marching,  but  did  not  move  until  about  2  o'clock 
p.  m.  The  command  then  marched  about  one  and  a  half 
miles  and  bivouacked  on  another  very  high  hill  in  the 
woods.  It  remained  here  the  2d.  There  was  a  detail  made 
for  foraging,  as  well  as  an  order  for  roll-call,  something  the 
Eighty-sixth  was  not  accustomed  to  when  on  the  march 
unless  it  was  a  general  order  to  prevent  straggling.  The 
foraged  meat  was  issued  to  the  troops  as  rations.  The  com- 
mand rested  at  the  bivouac  until  about  11:30  a.  m.  on  the  3cl, 
when  the  column  set  forward  at  12  noon.  Soon  crossed  Elk 
river  and  took  the  road  to  Athens.  The  march  was  made  at 
a  lively  pace  considering  the  condition  of  the  roads.  The 
command  covered  about  eleven  miles  and  bivouacked  about 
8  p.  m.  at  Athens.  Some  of  the  Thirteenth  Ohio  boys  got 
very  angry  at  the  brigade  commander.  Colonel  Knetler.  and 
in  the  darkness  of  the  night  called  him  all  .sorts  of  names. 
This  they  would  not  dared  to  have  done  in  daylight,  as  the 
Colonel  was  a  strict  disciplinarian. 

Reveille  on  the  4th  was  sounded  at  ')  a.  m.  and  the  col- 
umn marched  at  7:30,  passed  through  Athens  and  took  the 
road  to  Huntsville.  The  march  was  made  at  a  good  telling 
pace  and  the  place  of  bivouac  reached  about  4  o'clock.  Rails 
were  plenty  and  the  men  had  a  comfortable  night.  The  fol- 
lowing day,  the  5th,  two  day's  rations  were  drawn  in  the 
early  morning,  and  resumed  the  tramp  at  H  o'clock  a.  ni. 
Knefler's  brigade  reached  Huntsville  at  10:30  a.  m.,  niardietl 
through  town  to  the  south,  rested  for  some  two  liours.  wait- 
ing  for   a  camp   to  be  selected.     At  lengtli  the  march  was 


516  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

resumed,  the  column  marching  south  toward  the  Tennessee 
river.  After  having  proceeded  about  five  miles  from  Hunts- 
ville,  about  half  way  to  the  river,  camp  was  pitched  about  4 
o'clock  p.  m. 

General  Wood  now  issued  his  congratulatory  order  to 
the  troops  under  his  command.  It  was  dated  Headquarters 
Fourth  Army  Corps,  Huntsville,  Alabama,  January  6,  1865, 
and  reads  as  follows: 

To  the  Officers  and  Soldiers  of  the  Fourth  Army  Corps: 

You  have  received  the  commendations  of  his  Excellency,  the  Presi- 
dent of  the  United  States,  for  your  glorious  deeds  in  the  various  conflicts 
around  Nashville  on  the  15th  and  16th  ult.  You  have  received  the  com- 
mendations of  the  Commanding  General  of  the  forces  engaged  in  those 
conflicts,  not  only  for  your  splendid  achievements  on  the  field  of  battle, 
but  for  your  cheerful  endurance  of  privations  and  hardships,  in  the  most 
inclement  weather,  during  the  long  and  vigorous  pui'suit  which  followed 
the  rout  of  the  enemy  in  the  vicinity  of  Nashville. 

As  your  actual  commander  on  the  field  and  in  the  i^ursuit  I  desire  to 
add  my  commendation  to  the  high  encomiums  you  have  already  received, 
and  to  tender  you  my  grateful  thanks  for  your  soldierly  conduct,  both  on 
the  field  of  battle  and  in  the  trying  pursuit. 

Without'  faltering  at  the  command  of  your  officers  you  repeatedly 
assaulted  the  enemy's  strongly  intrenched  positions  and  drove  him  from 
them  in  confusion  and  dismay.  When  he  was  utterly  routed  and  no 
longer  durst  confront  you  in  battle,  you  at  once  commenced  the  most 
vigorous  pursuit.  Continued  it  more  than  a  hundred  miles  at  the  most 
inclement  season  of  the  year,  over  the  most  miserable  roads  and  across 
deep  and  difficult  streams,  which  were  passed  by  your  labors  alone,  and 
until  the  enemy  was  driven  in  utter  disorganization  across  the  Tennes- 
see river. 

The  substantial  fruits  of  these  glorious  deeds  were  twenty- foui- 
pieces  of  artillei'y,  five  caissons,  several  stands  of  colors,  many  thousand 
stands  of  small  arms  and  two  thousand,  four  hundred  and  sixty-six 
prisoners.  Such  noble  service  entitles  you  to  lasting  gratitude  of  the 
Nation.  Fortunately  this  great  success  was  achieved  with  compara- 
tively slight  loss  to  the  corps;  seven  hundred  and  fifty  killed  and  wounded 
will  cover  the  entire  casualties  of  the  corps  in  the  two  days'  conflict. 

To  the  friends  of  the  gallant  dead  and  to  the  wounded — and  I  am 
sure  you  will  join  me  in  this  tribute  of  comradeship — I  ofl'er  my  sincere  ... 
sympathy  and  condolence. 

When  General  Wood  issued  this  order  full  and  accurate 
reports  of  the  killed  and  wounded  had  not,  probably,  been 
made  out,  and  he,  as   subsequent  reports  show,  underesti- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  517 

mated  the  loss  of  the  corps.  Yet  it  did  not  greatly  exceed 
his  figures,  falling  a  little  under  one  thousand,  which  was 
quite  small  considering  the  magnitude  of  the  battle  for  two 
full  days  and  the  greatness  of  the  results,  and  more  than  a 
hundred  miles  pursuit  in  such  very  inclement  w^eather — one 
of  the  stormiest  times  ever  witnessed  in  the  South. 

It  may  be  very  positively  asserted  that  no  campaign  of 
the  magnitude  of  the  Franklin  and  Nashville  campaign  was 
so  actively  prosecuted  during  the  war  in  such  severe 
weather.  The  hardships,  privations  and  suifering  of  the 
men  have  been  in  reality  but  slightly  touched  upon.  The 
horrible  conditions  of  the  roads  over  which  the  pursuit  was 
conducted  after  the  battle  of  Nashville,  the  scarcity  of 
rations,  the  cold  inclement  weather,  have  been  briefly  stated, 
but  the  suffering  of  the  men  cannot  be  put  upon  jiaper.  The 
anguish  of  the  thinly  clad  soldiers  from  the  cold  when  on 
the  march,  in  bivouac,  and  w^orst  of  all  on  the  picket  post 
and  on  sentinel  duty,  cannot  be  expressed  in  any  manner  to 
convey  an  adequate  and  just  conception  of  what  these  men 
did  actually  experience  and  suffer.  To  appreciate  correctly 
these  things  they  must  have  been  endured,  or  at  least  wit- 
nessed. When  felt  in  their  full  force  they  are  remembered, 
at  least,  as  hardships  and  privations,  although  the  impres- 
sions of  the  sharpness  of  the  pangs  of  jiain  ma}'  somewhat 
have  lost  their  distinctiveness  in  the  long  time  now  passed 
since  the  suffering  was  endured.  Nor  is  the  Union  soldier 
who  went  through  the  Franklin  and  Nashville  campaign 
from  Pulaski  to  Nashville  and  back  again,  and  on  to  Lexing- 
ton, Alabama,  likely  to  have  his  experience  and  suffering 
overdrawm  or  painted  in  too  strong  colors  by  any  statements 
made  relative  to  the  hardships  endured,  nor  is  he  at  all 
likely  to  have  over-praise  showered  ujoon  him  for  services  to 
his  suffering  and  bleeding  country  in  those  bleak  December 
days.  Let  the  heroic  Thomas  have  the  full  measure  of  just 
praise  for  planning  and  conducting  the  great  battle  fought 
under  his  direction;  let  Schotield,  Stanley.  Smitli.  Wilson. 
Wood  and  Cox,  and  all  officers  have  due  praise  for  services 
rendered  during  the  campaign,  but  let  it  also  be  remembered 


518  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

that  the  men  of  Thomas'  army  really  fought  the  battles  of 
Spring  Hill,  Franklin,  and  Nashville.  They  did  the  skir- 
mishing that  led  np  to  these  battles,  and  performed  the 
great  labors  of  the  retreat,  the  battles,  and  the  pursuit,  and 
to  these  let  full  credit  be  rendered.     It  is  their  due. 


CHAPTER   XXIX. 
THE  CLOSING  YEAR.— 1865. 

In  Winter  Quarters  at  Huntsvllle,  Alabama— A  Three  Days'  Scout— Living  on  the 
Fat  of  the  Land— Trip  to  Nashville  and  Return— LTp  the  Tennessee  River— To 
East  Tennessee  by  Rail— The  Last  Days  of  tlie  Rebellion— Richmond  Evacu- 
ated—Lee Surrenders— Great  Joy  at  the  Supposed  Approach  of  The  White 
Winged  Angel  of  Peace— Treason  Dies  Hard— In  the  Death  Struggle  Its 
Infernal  Spirit  Finds  a  Willing  Tool  to  Do  a  Hellish  Deed— President  Lincoln 
Assassinated— A  Gloomy,  Joyless  Day— The  Heart  of  America  Wounded- 
Return  to  Nashville— Johnston  Surrenders— The  Dawn  of  Peace— Grand 
Review— "Mustered  Out"— Return  to  Hoosierdom— Disbanded— The  Boys 
Return  to  Their  Homes. 

The  days  of  battle  for  the  Eighty-sixth  were  now  forever 
passed.  Henceforth  the  rappel,  or  the  bugle's  warning 
voice,  were  heard  only  as  the  mimicry  of  the  red-handed  days 
of  times  gone  by.  The  stern  commands,  shouted  amidst  the 
rattle  of  fire-arms  or  the  clash  of  bayonets,  were  to  be  heard 
no  more.  The  slogan  of  the  fiery  Southrons  was  no  more  to 
be  answered  by  the  war-whoop  of  the  iron-hearted  men  of 
the  Eighty-sixth  as  they  ranged  themselves  in  serried  col- 
umns with  their  companion  regiments,  and  formed  divisions, 
pouring  fearlessly  forw^ard  into  the  smoke,  and  blaze,  and 
roar  of  battle.  They  were  ready  for  this  duty,  but  the  erst- 
while valiant  foe  had  disappeared,  like  snow  before  a  sum- 
mer's sun.  The  evening's  bivouac  was  no  more  to  be 
startled  by  the  singing  of  the  spiteful  minie  ball,  or  the  ter- 
rible "  where-is-ye"  of  the  shrieking  shell.  The  roar  of 
batteries  was  no  more  to  tell  of  the  massed  columns' 
onslaught  on  the  enemy  in  ambush,  or  his  fortified  lines,  but 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  519 

only  the  holiday  show  and  imitation  of  battle  and  the  des- 
truction of  so  much  gunpowder.  Henceforth,  scouting, 
drilling,  picket,  brigade  guard,  train  guarding,  fatigue  duty, 
and  marching  were  to  be  the  duties  in  the  performance  of 
which  the  Eighty-sixth  should  participate.  Many  times  the 
duties  were  heavy,  of  a  very  trying  character,  and  required 
great  effort  to  accomplish,  yet  thej'-  were  not  so  bad  or  so 
unpleasant  as  when  skirmishing  and  fighting  were  so  abund- 
antly mingled  with  everything  which  this  regiment  had  to 
do.  The  Eighty-sixth  had  broken  its  lances  on  the  visor  of 
its  opponents  with  credit  to  itself  and  had  earned  its  right 
to  retire  with  honor,  but  more  than  this,  it  had  won  on  the 
foughten  field.  There  could  be  no  question  of  its  fighting 
qualities,  its  fortitude  under  the  most  trying  circumstances; 
in  fact,  it  had  shown  the  highest  soldierly  qualities  in  camp, 
on  the  march,  in  skirmishes  almost  innumerable,  in  battles 
many,  and  in  two  great  and  important  sieges  where  the 
Union  forces  were  on  the  defensive,  and  many  of  them  where 
they  were  the  attacking  force.  They  had  therefore  had  a 
wide  field  of  action  in  which  to  thoroughly  test  their  quali- 
ties, and  in  none  of  these  had  the  men  of  the  Eighty-sixth 
failed. 

On  the  6th  of  Januar3%  the  next  day  after  reaching 
Huntsville,  camp  was  laid  off  in  regular  order.  The  Eighty- 
sixth  had  a  fine  place  for  camp  on  a  hill  sloping  beautifully 
to  the  south,  and  thus  with  sunshine  full  upon  it  made  it  dry 
and  a  pleasant  place  for  winter  camping.  On  the  following 
day,  however,  an  order  was  received  to  change  the  location. 
There  was  some  murmuring  at  first  by  the  men  who  feared 
that  they  would  be  moved  away  from  the  hill.  The  regi- 
ment only  moved  about  one  hundred  yards  and  again  located. 
It  still  remained  on  the  hill  and  the  camp  was  again  laid  off 
in  accordance  with  plans  laid  down  in  the  army  regulations— 
everything  to  the  scribe  or  line.  Here  the  men  were  ordered 
to  construct  winter  quarters — to  build  huts  or  shanties  with 
the  side  walls  not  less  than  five  feet  high.  Everybo<ly  of 
course  went  to  w^ork  as  best  they  could,  but  the  work  pro- 
gressed but  slowlv  on  account  of  the  lack  of  proper  tools 


520  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

with  which  to  do  the  work.  Trees  had  to  be  cut  down  and 
cut  in  proper  lengths,  then  split  and  carried  by  the  men  to 
the  place  where  the  huts  were  to  be  erected.  It  was  very 
laborious  work,  as  the  timber  was  green  and  of  a  very  heavy 
kind.  After  the  logs  were  notched  and  put  up,  the  cracks 
between  the  logs  had  to  be  "chinked,"  mortar  mixed  and 
the  "chinking"  thoroughly  daubed  or  -plastered  to  keep  out 
the  cold  winds.  This  was  disagreeable  work  as  may  be  sur- 
mised. '  When  the  walls  were  completed  the  country  was 
scoured  for  boards  with  which  to  construct  bunks.  Then  the 
fire-places  and  chimneys  had  to  be  constructed.  For  the  first 
of  these  rock  was  necessary  and  had  to  be  carried  up,  some- 
times quite  a  distance,  requiring  much  labor.  After  the  fire- 
place was  made,  the  "mud  and  stick"  chimney  was  to  be 
built  to  top  it  out. 

On  Sunday  evening,  January  8,  cannonading  could  be 
heard  down  the  Tennessee  river  in  a  southwesterly  direc- 
tion, but  what  it  meant  was  never  learned,  though  it  was 
believed  that  it  was  the  gun-boats  firing  upon  guerrillas  or 
rebel  cavalry.  The  weather  was  quite  cold  on  the  8th,  a 
winter  day  indeed.  The  construction  of  winter  huts,  doing 
picket  duty,  and  standing  brigade  guard  gave  the  boys 
plenty  of  exercise.  On  the  9th  there  was  an  exceedingly 
heavy  rainfall.  By  the  12th  the  shanties  for  the  Eighty - 
sixth  were  completed  and  all  were  snugly  housed  and 
comfortable. 

On  Saturday  the  14th,  Colonel  Dick  was  ordered  to  take 
his  own  regiment  and  two  others  and  go  on  a  scout.  He 
marched  his  detachment  to  Huntsville  and  placed  the  mon 
aboard  the  cars  after  dark,  but  the  train  did  not  start  for 
some  time.  The  train  conveyed  the  detachment  eastward  as 
far  as  Brownsboro',  where  it  disembarked  and  bivouacked  for 
the  rest  of  the  morning,  the  place  of  bivouac  not  being 
reached  until  about  2  o'clock  a.  m.  on  the  loth.  After  a 
brief  rest  the  detachment  was  aroused  and  breakfasted,  and 
the  march  resumed.  The  scouting  now  commenced.  A 
detail  was  sent  ahead  as  an  advanced  guard  to  the  town  of 
Maysville,   some  two  miles  or  more  out  from  Brownsboro'. 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  521 

Reaching  that  point  the  detail  was  stationed  as  pickets  in 
the  streets  of  the  town  to  await  the  arrival  of  the  scouting? 
force. 

After  a  brief  halt  at  Maysville  the  detachment  resumed 
its  line  of  march  It  was  in  a  section  of  country  infested 
with  bushwackers  or  guerrillas,  those  partisan  soldiers 
that  strike  unexpected  blows  in  the  darkness  of  night,  or 
pounce  upon  the  unsuspecting  straggler  and  shoot  him  down 
as  though  he  were  a  highwayman.  In  the  guise  of  peace- 
able citizens  they  watch  every  maneuver  and  move  of  the 
Union  troops,  and  gather  together,  upon  signals  prearranged, 
and  capture  or  kill  small  parties,  attack  wagon  trains  when 
moving  without  sufficient  guards,  obstruct  or  tear  up  the 
railroad  track,  destroy  culverts  or  bridges  by  burning  or 
other  means,  shoot  into  passing  railroad  trains,  and  use 
every  means  in  their  power  to  annoy,  worry  and  injure  the 
Union  forces.  These  in  this  district  were  particularly 
malevolent  and  devilish.  The  trains  from  Stevenson  to 
Huntsville  had  been  fired  into  many  times,  and  now  no  train 
dared  to  go  over  the  road  without  a  strong  guard.  It  was 
supposed  that  the  purpose  of  this  scout  was  by  marching  a 
sufficient  force  to  be  entirely  safe  through  their  neighbor- 
hood, threaten  their  homes  if  their  murderous  practices  were 
kept  up,  or  so  inconvenience  them  that  they  would  desist  or 
intimidate  them  so  they  would  leave  this  section,  going 
south  where  they  could  not  interfere  with  the  railroad  with- 
out making  long  and  dangerous  trips. 

The  boys  of  the  detachment  were  under  no  strict  orders 
against  foraging,  but  were  duly  warned  to  beware  of  bush- 
wiiackers,  and  not  to  be  caught  napping  by  the  cunninguess 
of  the  enemy.  The  march  was  nearly  due  north  from  Mays- 
ville to  New  Market,  distance  from  Brownsboro"  ten  or  twelve 
miles.  The  line  of  march  was  almost  parallel  witli  Moun- 
tain creek,  a  tributary  of  Flint  river,  and  between  the  tribu- 
taries of  Flint  river  and  those  of  Paint  Rock  river  tiie  guer- 
rillas were  particularly  bold  and  daring,  and  consequently 
very  troublesome.  The  march  was  made  in  a  very  deliberate. 
quiet  manner,  as  there  was  but  little  hope  of  catching  any  of 


522  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

these  partisan  warriors  in  their  own  country  among  all  their 
friends.  But  the  manner  in  which  the  march  was  conducted 
gave  the  boys  who  were  so  disposed  a  fine  opportunity  to 
forage,  nor  were  they  slow  to  take  advantage  of  it  for  that 
purpose.  The  immediate  section  of  country  had  not,  recently 
at  least,  been  overrun  by  troops  and  cleaned  up,  therefore, 
it  furnished  rather  a  rich  picking  of  eatables.  The  bivouac 
near  New  Market  was  reached  about  3  o'clock  p.  m.  The 
day's  march  had  been  a  gay  time  for  those  disposed  to  for- 
age. They  brought  in  meat,  molasses,  meal  and  apples.  All 
through  the  day's  march  bushwhackers  were  heard  of,  but 
they  were  all  the  time  just  a  little  further  up  country  or  over 
eastward  toward  the  mountain. 

On  the  following  morning  the  scout  was  continued  by 
marching  back  into  town  and  turning  off  to  the  eastward. 
The  pace  was  not  rapid  enough  to  catch  well  mounted  guer- 
rillas, but  it  was  sufficiently  slow  to  give  the  boys  a  splendid 
chance  to  continue  their  foraging,  as  they  at  no  time  had  to 
go  far  from  the  road  to  secure  an  ample  supply.  It  was  truly 
astonishing  to  see  how^  willing  men  were  to  make  pack  mules 
of  themselves.  Of  something  that  would  tickle  the  palate 
they  would  nearly  alw^ays  think  themselves  able  to  carry  a 
little  more.  About  noon  the  detachment  passed  quite  near  a 
house  in  the  yard  of  which  there  were  a  number  of  beehives. 
The  day  w^as  warm  and  the  bees  were  out  in  goodly  num- 
bers, but  this  made  no  difference  to  the  honey  hungry  sol- 
diers. A  rush  was  made  for  them  by  all  who  were  not  afraid. 
The  attack  was  made  in  every  conceivable  way.  One  would 
turn  the  hive  down  and  break  out  a  piece  of  comb  and  go  on 
his  way  rejoicing,  another  would  rush  uj^  to  the  hive,  kick  it 
over,  knock  the  cap  off  the  stand  and  rush  out  fighting  bees 
and  yell  at  the  top  of  his  voice  to  the  great  amusement  of 
those  w^ho  had  remained  in  ranks.  But  they  got  the  honey, 
that  w^as  the  purpose  of  the  raid.  The  jjlace  of  bivouac  was 
reached  about  2  o'clock  in  the  afternoon.  The  merry  for- 
agers brought  into  camp  with  them  an  ample  sui:)ply  of  flour, 
honey,  coim  bread,  ham,  eggs  and  dried  fruit.  Nearly  every- 
thing, in  fact,  that  this  part  of  the  country  produced  in  the 


INDIANA  VOLUNTKERS.  523 

line  of  eatables  was  represented  in  tlic  foi-agers' combined 
commissary.  Everyone  in  the  command  liad  plenty  to  eat, 
and  a  greater  variety  of  edibles  than  at  any  time  almost  dur- 
ing- their  term  of  service. 

During  the  afternoon  a  squad  under  command  of  Cap- 
tain Jeremiah  Haugh,  of  Company  B,  visited  the  house  of  an 
old  rebel  not  very  far  from  the  bivouac  where,  it  was 
reported,  there  were  quite  a  number  of  government  shoes 
stored  that  had  been  captured  from  a  train  by  guerrillas  or 
the  enemy's  cavalry.  While  the  shoes  were  not  found,  yet 
the  squad  discovered  almost  everything  else.  A  corpse  was 
at  the  house,  said  to  have  been  that  of  a  Union  man.  Golden 
or  Goldman  by  name,  who  had  been  killed  by  the  bush- 
whackers on  a  mountainous  ridge  not  far  away.  And  it  was 
generally  believed  by  the  people  in  the  neighborhood  that 
this  Union  man  had  been  killed  by  a  member  of  the  family 
where  the  body  now  lay.  It  was  generally  remarked  by 
those  who  knew  the  people  and  their  animosities,  that  the 
body  was  secured  and  taken  to  the  house  as  a  protection 
when  it  was  learned  that  the  scouting  force  would  probably 
come  into  this  neighborhood.  It  did  not,  however,  wholly 
shield  them,  as  will  be  seen.  There  was  no  one  at  the  house 
but  women,  which  was  a  suspicious  circumstance,  as  the  men 
of  the  family  were  known  to  be  in  this  locality.  The  women 
said  that  their  family  was  the  dead  man's  best  and  truest 
friend,  and  were  wholly  at  a  loss  to  know  why  anyone  should 
have  killed  him,  as  it  was  not  known  that  he  had  a  personal 
enemy  in  the  world.  They  confirmed  the  report  that  he  was 
a  Union  man  and  acknowledged  that  their  own  ."sympa- 
thies were  with  the  South,  thus  giving  some  siiow  of  rea.son 
for  believing  the  neighborhood  reports  that  the  male  mem- 
bers of  the  family  may  have  been  the  guilty  ones,  or,  at  least. 
the  instigators  of  the  crime.  Captain  Haugh  and  a  few  of 
the  boys  went  into  the  house  to  look  at  the  cori)se.  and  to  bo 
sure  there  was  no  one  in  hiding  there,  but  a  majority  of  the 
party  remained  outside  looking  for  what  they  could  tind  and 
to,  be^sure  that  no  band  of  bushwhackers  was  near.  The 
smoke-house  was  most  carefully    searched    but    no  sign  of 


524  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

bacon  was  found.  Only  one  old  "'gobbler"' of  the  poultry 
line  was  visible.  It  began  to  look  like  a  brief  hunt  and  a 
short  haul.  But  the  hunt  was  not  given  over.  An  amus- 
ing feature  was  the  conduct  of  a  young  woman  who  remained 
in  the  yard  to  watch  the  boys,  no  doubt,  and  report  whatever 
mischief  they  got  into.  It  was  little  the  boys  cared,  how- 
ever. They  kept  smelling  around  for  some  meat.  At  length 
in  an  old  out-house,  buried  in  a  pile  of  ashes  they  found  it. 
All  had  looked  in  there,  but  seeing  only  the  ashes,  which 
were  well  tramped  down,  and  had  the  appearance  of  having 
been  there  for  years,  carried  their  investigation  no  farther 
in  that  direction.  By  and  by,  how^ever,  one,  more  inquisi- 
tive than  his  comrades,  or  reasoning  to  a  more  correct  con- 
clusion, determined  to  push  his  interrogation  of  that  ash  heap 
to  a  final  and  definite  result,  and  so  began  prodding  in  the 
pile  with  his  bayonet.  This  soon  settled  the  question,  for  in 
a  moment  he  fished  up  a  nicely  cured  ham.  The  signal 
was  at  once  given  announcing  this  discovery.  A  general 
assault  w^as  made  on  the  old  out-house,  the  particular  jDoint 
of  attack  being  the  ash  heap.  The  meat  w^as  quickly  dug  up 
and  carried  off  at  a  lively  rate.  There  was  a  sudden  rustling 
of  calico,  a  whipping  of  skirts  on  the  back  door 
cheek  of  the  house,  and  the  young  lady  had  disappeared 
from  view.  But  it  was  only  for  a  brief  time.  She  had  gone 
into  the  house  to  inform  her  mother  of  the  great  catas- 
trophe which  had  befallen  their  commissary  department. 
The  old  lady  came  out  of  the  house  with  a  shriek  and  a  groan, 
followed  by  the  girl,  and  the  Captain  coming  along  at  his 
leisure.  The  woman  remonstrated  in  a  vehement  manner 
with  the  Captain  against  his  allowing  the  boys  to  thus  rob 
her,  and  he  warned  the  boys  in  a  very  calm  and  mild  tone  of 
voice  not  to  "  take  more  than  one  apiece.  "  In  a  second  after 
the  Captain  had  laid  this  injunction  on  the  boys,  a  soldier 
more  hardy  than  the  rest  popped  out  of  the  door  right 
between  the  old  lady  and  the  Captain  lugging  a  iiam  in  each 
hand.  The  woman  thought  surely  the  Captain  w^ould  stop 
this  audacious  fellow  who  w^as  disobeying  the  order  almost 
at  every  moment  of  his  promulgation,   and  therefore  cried 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  525 

out,  "There  g-oes  one  with  two.  There  goes  one  with  two." 
But  the  Captain  was  wholly  oblivious  of  the  woman's 
cries,  and  was  occupied  looking  only  to  see  how  effectually 
the  boys  were  fishing  the  hams  out  of  the  ashes.  It  is 
scarcely  necessary  to  state  that  the  messes  represented  on 
this  foray,  and,  in  fact,  the  w^hole  scouting  force,  feasted  glo- 
riously that  evening.  The  bill  of  fare  called  for  hard  tack, 
corn-pone,  molasses,  honey,  dried  fruit,  ham,  eggs,  and  good 
old  government  Java.  One  man  actually  so  over-fed  himself 
that  he  never  recovered  from  it,  going  to  the  hospital  directly 
upon  the  return  of  the  regiment  to  its  quarters  and  dying 
soon  thereafter. 

On  the  morning  of  the  17th  all  were  up  and  stirring  in 
good  time,  and  breakfasted  on  biscuit,  honey,  molasses,  dried 
peaches,  ham,  and  coffee.  Certainly  a  royal  feast  for  .sol- 
diers who  had  been  actively  campaigning  at  the  fi-ont  for 
more  than  two  years.  The  detachment  resumed  its  line  of 
march  to  return  to  camp  about  8  o'clock,  passed  through 
Maysville  without  any  noteworthy  incident  and  reached  a 
point  near  Brownsboro, '  and  halted  for  dinner.  Although  it 
had  passed  through  a  country  undoubtedly  thickly  Infested 
with  some  of  the  most  daring  guerrillas  in  the  entire  South, 
none  had  been  found.  They  had  had  due  notice  and  warning, 
and  had  kept  well  out  of  the  way,  not  daring  to  face  .so  largi' 
a  force  as  was  on  the  scout.  Parties  of  fifteen  or  twenty 
were  as  large  as  they  ever  dared  to  collect,  and  seldom  so 
large  as  that,  usually  not  to  exceed  four  or  tive,  and  more 
frequently  only  two  or  three. 

The  old  soldiers  were  good  carriers,  and,  tlu'n'f()r(%  still 
had  an  abundance  of  the  fat  of  the  laud,  and  again  foastetl. 
Resuming  the  march  soon  after  the  meal  in  a  very  little 
while  crossed  Mountain  creek,  a  tributary  of  Flint  river. 
Almost  immediately  after  crossing  the  stream  an  onlor  wits 
promulgated  to  cease  foraging,  which  was  duly  obeyed.  Th«' 
march  w^as  continued  until  4:30  p.  m..  at  which  time  the  com- 
mand bivouacked  for  the  night.  On  the  following  morn  nig 
the  march  was  resumed  about  8  o'clock.  Before  reaching 
Huntsville   the  men   were  ordered  to  conceal  their  foraged 


526  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

edibles.  Teams  and  wagons  had  been  pressed  in  to  haul  the 
foraged  meat,  so  into  these  wagons  were  placed  all 
bulky  foraged  articles  and  covered  up.  Then  the  march  was 
continued.  Reached  town  about  10:30  and  camp  about  12:30. 
The  arrival  gladdened  the  hearts  of  the  boys  who  had,  for 
various  reasons,  been  compelled  to  remain  in  camp.  They, 
too,  now  had  a  feast  such  as  they  had  not  had  since  leaving 
the  parental  roof  and  table. 

In  the  afternoon  of  the  18th  the  Eighty-sixth  drew  cloth- 
ing. It  was  badly  needed;  almost  every  man  in  the  regiment 
was  scantily  clad,  some  being  compelled  to  remain  in  camp 
from  the  scout  for  want  of  clothing.  For  a  few  days  now 
the  Eighty-sixth  did  nothing  but  do  picket  duty,  stand  bri- 
gade guard,  get  up  fuel  to  keep  warm  and  feast  on  the  good 
things  which  were  brought  into  camp  from  the  scout. 

On  the  24th  drilling  commenced,  and  thereafter,  except 
on  Sunday,  unless  otherwise  employed  and  the  weather  being 
suitable,  the  men  were  drilled  one  hour  company  drill  in  the 
forenoon,  and  about  one  and  half  hours  battalion  drill  by  the 
Colonel  in  the  afternoon.  Colonel  Dick  did  not  mean  to 
allow  his  men  to  become  soft  and  worthless  for  want  of  exer- 
cise. Sometimes,  however,  itwas  varied  by  the  whole  brigade 
being  called  out  and  being  given  a  brigade  drill.  Besides  the 
drilling  on  fine  evenings  the  regiment  was  called  out  for  dress 
parade. 

On  January  31  reveille  at  6  o'clock  and  roll  call  as  usual. 
After  the  moi'ning  meal  "sick  call"  and  "guard  mount- 
ing." Then  there  was  one  hour  of  company  drill.  While 
eating  dinner  a  few  minutes  after  12  o'clock,  without  a 
moment's  warning  the  "general  call"  was  sounded.  It 
startled  the  troops  somewhat  from  their  pleasant  dreams. 
In  a  very  brief  time  the  meal  was  disposed  of  and  everything 
packed  up  ready  for  tramping.  The  shanties  on  which  the 
men  had  bestowed  so  much  labor,  now  looked  deserted. 
Although  the  call  was  sounded  a  few  minutes  of  noon  the 
order  to  set  forward  on  the  march  was  delayed  until  almost 
night,  when  Beatty's  division  marched  to  town  and  got 
aboard  the  cars.     The  train,  however,  for  some  reason  was 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  527 

delayed  and  did  not  start  until  about  10  o'clock  p.  m.  At  this 
time  the  train  rolled  out  eastward  toward  Chattanooga, 
reached  Stevenson  about  daybreak  the  next  morning,  Feb- 
ruary 1.  The  troops  breakfasted  here  and  then  the  train 
X3roceeded  on  its  way,  taking  the  road  to  Nashville,  which 
point  w^as  reached  about  10  o'clock  that  night.  The  next 
forenoon  the  command  was  moved  out  from  the  depot  and 
bivouacked  near  its  old  camping  place,  occupied  just  before 
the  battle  of  Nashville.  The  command  remained  here  until 
February  6,  when  it  was  again  ordered  aboard  the  cars  and 
returned  to  Huntsville  where  it  arrived  about  4  p.  m.  Feb- 
ruary 7.  Disembarked  and  marched  back  to  the  old  quarters, 
w^hich  were  reached  just  at  nightfall.  All  were  in  fine 
spirits  at  the  prospect  of  camping  once  again  in  their  good 
comfortable  quarters — veritable  houses.  But  alas!  many 
were  left  out  in  the  cold.  Some  wretch  had  set  fire  to  and 
burned  down  several  shanties,  and  therefore  these  unfor- 
tunates had  to  lay  out  that  night  on  the  cold  ground 
while  others  slept  in  good  bunks.  Besides  it  now  required 
greater  labor  to  procure  timber  and  construct  a  hut  than  it 
did  before,  as  trees  w^ere  not  so  conveniently  near.  But  they 
were  rebuilt. 

Brigade-guard  was  established  on  the  9th.  On  the  IjIIi 
company  and  battalion  drills  W'Cre  resumed  and  dress  parade 
in  the  evening.  On  the  evening  of  February  17  orders  were 
received  to  go  on  another  scouting  expedition.  It  was  to  be 
a  force  of  three  regiments  and  Colonel  Dick  was  to  have 
command.  This  force  started  on  the  march  about  b:30  p.  in. 
on  the  17th.  marched  south  to  Whitesburg.  on  theTonnosseo 
river,  w^here  it  arrived  about  11  o'clock  and  bivouacked  for 
a  short  time,  getting  about  two  hours  rest  and  sUm'}).  Thf 
men  were  then  ordered  up  to  get  aboard  two  gun-boats,  the 
Stone's  River  and  Sherman.  The  boats  steamed  out  up  the 
river,  conveying  the  detachment  twenty-five  miles  wlien  it 
disembarked  at  Fearn's  Ferry,  on  the  south  bank  about  8 
o'clock  a.  m.  on  the  18th.  The  detachment  was  then  nuiirlied 
to  Warrenton,  a  small  town  some  five  miles  from  the  place 
of  disembarkment.     Here  the  detachment  was  allowed  to  get 


528  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

breakfast  and  have  a  good  rest.  From  here  it  was  marched 
in  a  circuitous  route  to  Guntersville,  the  shire  town  of  Mar- 
shall county,  Alabama,  and  almost  directly  east  of  War- 
renton,  and  ten  miles  above  the  ferry.  In  the  march  east- 
ward through  the  country  the  detachment  ran  on  to  a  squad 
of  rebel  cavalrymen  or  guerrillas,  or  bushwhackers,  or  cut- 
throats, which  ever  they  were,  but  they  hastily  skeedad- 
dled,  and  that  with  so  much  speed  there  was  little  oppor- 
tunity to  get  a  shot  at  them.  This  part  of  the  country  was 
also  thickly  infested  with  this  class  of  lawless  men,  and  woe 
to  the  Union  man  or  isolated  Federal  soldier  whom  they  j 
caught.  But  infantry  could  do  little  against  them  as  they  ' 
were  generally  well  mounted  and  thoroughly  acquainted 
with  every  foot  of  the  country  over  which  they  operated  and 
would,  if  pressed,  at  once  disperse  to  meet  at  some  other 
point.  Some  of  the  boys  of  the  Eighty-sixth  had  found  it  so 
agreeable  to  their  natures,  and  had  experienced  so  much 
enjoyment  in  foraging  the  good  things  of  the  land  while  out 
on  the  former  scout,  thought  they  would  have  an  equally 
enjoyable  time  on  this  occasion,  and  therefore  started  out  to 
raid  a  few  smoke  houses,  but  were  promptly  checked  by  the 
Colonel.  They  thought  to  evade  him  and  get  their  booty  at 
any  rate,  but  were  promptly  detected  and  called  in  somewhat 
crest-fallen.  This  made  the  boys  hot,  and  there  was  some 
grumbling  in  ranks  over  the  matter.  The  boys  argued  that 
the  people  here  were  just  as  great  rebels  as  those  on  the 
other  side  of  the  river  where  they  had  been  allowed  to  for- 
age so  freely.  But  the  Colonel  was  firm  and  they  were 
forced  to  obey  orders.  In  fact,  it  was  here  a  necessary  order, 
and  was  much  better  for  the  boys  than  to  be  shot  down  by 
bushwhackers  or  to  be  captured  and  carried  off  to  South- 
ern prisons.  The  command  reached  Guntersville  about  3 
o'clock  p.  m.  The  town  is  situated  on  the  south  bank  of  the 
Tennessee  river,  on  the  great  horse-shoe  bend  at  the  most 
southern  point  reached  by  the  river.  Took  boats  for  Whites-  i 
burg,  reaching  that  place  about  6:30  p.  m.,  having  made 
much  better  time  than  in  going  uj)  the  river.     From  Whites- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  f,-2\) 

burg,  a  distance  of  five  miles,    it  marched  to  camp  wliicli 
made  it  late  getting  to  bunk. 

From  this  time  on  the  regiment  had  no  more  hard  service 
or  scouting  while  it  remained  in  camp  in  the  vicinity  of 
Huntsville.  The  duties  consisted  of  fatigue,  policing  the 
quarters  and  hauling  away  the  refuse  from  camp,  patrolling 
the  surrounding  country  to  catch  men  ranging  away  from 
camp,  and  to  intimidate  and  keep  away  guerriHas,  picket, 
brigade  guard,  and  drilling. 

On  the  15th  of  March  marching  orders  were  received. 
Tents  were  struck  and  every  preparation  made  to  leave. 
The  order,  however,  to  set  forward  did  not  come.  On  the 
following  day,  however,  the  order  came  and  the  command 
left  its  very  comfortable  quarters  for  good,  no  moi-e  to  gam- 
bol in  the  sunshine  on  the  hill-side  like  school -boys  in  the 
May -day  of  life.  Winter  quarters  were  a  thing  of  the  past. 
The  start  was  made  at  6  a.  m.  Reached  town  in  good  time, 
and  the  Third  brigade  got  aboard  the  cars  about  9  o'clock 
and  rolled  out  for  Stevenson,  which  place  was  reached  about 
3  o'clock  p.  m.  The  government  freight  trains,  it  will  be 
understood,  made  but  slow  time  anywhere,  but  here  in  this 
part  of  the  country  which  was  overrun  with  bushwhackers, 
great  caution  was  necessary.  The  command  took  advantage 
of  the  stop  at  Stevenson  and  dined.  The  run  was  then  con- 
tinued throughout  the  night,  but  with  many  stops  and  dohiys. 
Daylight  found  the  command  east  of  Cleveland  and  still  run- 
ning. The  train  on  which  the  Eighty-sixth  was  being  trans- 
ported reached  Loudon,  on  the  Tennessee  river,  about  1> 
o'clock  a.  m.  on  the  17th.  Here  there  was  a  long  delay. 
Some  of  the  boys  wandered  down  in  town  and  were  arrested 
by  the  post-guards  and  put  in  the  guard-house.  This  caused 
trouble  at  once,  and  some  of  the  more  excitable  of  the  old 
soldiers  flew  to  the  cars  and  got  their  guns  preparatory  to 
making  an  attack  on  the  post-guards.  The  officers  of  the 
guards  deployed  their  men,  forming  a  skirmish  line  between 
the  train  and  the  town.  The  old  soldiers  were  jeering  and 
hooting  at  the  "feather-bed  soldiers"  and  working  them- 
selves into  a  greater  passion  all  the  time.     There  seemed  to 


530  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

be  quite  a  fair  prospect  for  a  battle.  But  fortunately  General 
Thomas  came  along  in  his  car  and  the  trouble  was  averted. 
It  was  settled  at  once  at  the  word  of  the  chief  without  blood- 
shed. The  boys  who  had  been  arrested  were  returned  to  the 
regiment  somewhat  crest-fallen,  although  free  once  more. 
Left  Loudon  about  2  o'clock  and  arrived  at  Knoxville  at  10 
p.  m.  The  train  and  troops  remained  at  Knoxville  until  12 
o'clock  noon  the  next  day,  the  18th,  and  were  then  moved 
on  eastward  to  Strawberry  Plains,  and  then  to  New  Market, 
where  the  troops  were  disembarked  and  bivouacked  about  9 
o'clock  p.  m.,  having  been  aboard  the  cars  three  days  and 
two  nights.  Most,  if  not  all  of  the  men  were  heartily  glad 
to  get  off  the  cars  and  were  quite  willing  to  try  a  little  mod- 
erate marching  rather  than  to  be  penned  up  in  box-cars  and 
shipped  about  the  country  like  so  many  hogs  or  cattle. 

At  New  Market  drilling  was  resumed,  picket  duty  had 
to  be  performed,  and  then  the  camp  had  to  be  cleaned  and 
fixed  up.  This  kept  the  men  pretty  busily  engaged  for  some 
days.  But  when  not  employed  otherwise  the  boys  would 
make  up  a  game  of  ball  and  have  a  "high  old  time"  at  that 
amusement.  It  seemed  that  they  could  not  be  quiet  any 
more  for  any  great  length  of  time — activity  had  become  a 
kind  of  second  nature  to  them.  The  weather  was  very 
changeable  while  the  command  remained  at  New  Market. 
Sunshine,  cloud  and  rain,  wind  and  cold,  were  strangely  and 
variously  mingled  from  day  to  day.  On  the  26th  corps  head- 
quarters were  moved  to  Morristown,  eighteen  miles  farther 
east.  This  served  as  a  notice  to  the  men  that  they  might 
expect  to  move  on  soon. 

On  the  morning  of  the  29th  the  command  was  called  up 
at  2  o'clock  to  pack  up  extra  baggage  to  send  it  back  to  be 
stored.  The  orders  were  to  march  at  5  a.  m.  The  column 
started  forward  at  5 :30  a.  m. ,  and  covered  about  fourteen  miles 
and  bivouacked.  A  heavy  rain  fell  during  the  night.  The 
next  morning  the  march  was  resumed  at  6  a.  m.,  passing 
through  Morristown  and  Russellville  the  command  bivou- 
acked about  1:30  p.  m.  after  marching  twelve  or  thirteen 
miles.     During  the  night  of  the  30th  there  was  another  down 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  531 

pour  of  rain  which  rendered  the  roads  still  worse  than  they 
had  hitherto  been.  The  tramp  was  resumed  at  6  a.  m. ,  and 
covering  five  or  six  miles  Bull's  Gap  was  reached.  Here  the 
command  was  halted  and  bivouacked. 

On  Monday  morning,  April  2,  1865,  at  Bull's  Gap.  East 
Tennessee,  the  news  was  received  by  a  telegram  from  Gen- 
eral Grant  that  Richmond  and  Petersburg  had  been  evacu- 
ated by  the  enemy  and  taken  jjossession  of  by  Union  troops. 
This  was  gloriously  good  news  and  everybody  was  jubilant. 
All  now  felt  confident  that  as  the  Capital  of  the  Confederacy 
had  been  taken  the  days  of  the  Confederate  States  were 
numbered,  that  the  life  of  the  Confederacy  itself  was  of  a 
few  days  and  full  of  trouble,  and  then  to  be  no  more  forever. 
The  Union  forces  from  every  direction  were  evidently  con- 
centrating in  the  direction  of  Richmond,  or  rather  in  tlie 
direction  of  Lee's  army  now.  The  Fourth  corps  was  march- 
ing eastward  to  head  him  should  he  try  to  come  this  way. 
Sherman  with  his  grand  army,  "  sixty  thousand  strong,  "  was 
marching  northward  and  closing  down  toward  Richmond, 
and  Lee  saw  plainly  enough  that  if  Sherman  arrived  with 
his  conquering  army  that  he  would  be  cooped  up  in  Rich- 
mond and  Petersburg  and  starved,  and  therefore  forced  to 
surrender.  His  only  hope  then  was  to  escape  from  the 
clutches  of  Grant's  army  and  join  Johnston,  and  thus  com- 
bined try  and  crush  Sherman.  But  Sheridan  by  his  dashing 
generalship  headed  Lee  oif  from  Johnston  and  now  the 
Fourth  corps  was  to  be  thrown  across  his  pathway. 

On  the  morning  of  the  4th  of  April  reveille  was  sounded 
at  4:30  and  Knetler's  brigade  filed  out  upon  the  road  at  7.  A 
lively  pace  was  at  once  set,  and  the  cohimn  went  forward 
rapidly  and  steadily  and  passed  the  First  and  Second  divi- 
sions, w^hich  had  hitherto  been  in  the  advance  of  the  Third 
division  in  East  Tennessee.  Another  dispatch  was  read  to 
the  troops  while  on  the  road,  confirming  the  evacuation  of 
Richmond  and  Petersburg,  which  greatly  elated  tiie]K)ysaud 
they  stepped  along  at  a  lively  rate,  talking  of  the  })rosiiect 
of  going  home  soon.  A  halt  was  made  at  noon  for  dinner, 
and  then  again  marched  away  at  the  same  lively  rate  and 


532  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

bivouacked  at  Greenville,  the  home  of  Andy  Johnson,  about 
5  o'clock,  after  having  marched  about  twenty  miles. 

The  command  remained  until  about  noon  the  next  day, 
April  5,  at  which  time  Beatty's  division  resumed  its  east- 
ward march  and  bivouacked  that  evening  near  Raytown,  and 
the  Eighty-sixth  was  sent  out  on  picket.  The  following 
morning  reveille  was  sounded  at  4:30  and  the  column  filed 
out  upon  the  road  to  continue  its  eastward  tramp  at  6.  The 
road  led  over  a  broken,  hilly  country.  The  day  was  warm 
which  rendered  marching  anything  but  an  easy  task.  The 
column  passed  through  Leesburg  and  on,  arriving  at  Jones- 
boro  about  3  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  where  the  troops  biv- 
ouacked. The  Eighty-sixth  did  not  pitch  its  camp  or  bivouac 
with  the  rest  of  the  brigade,  but  in  the  edge  of  the  town. 

The  Eighty-sixth  arrived  at  Jonesboro'  on  the  6th  of 
April.  On  the  10th  a  dispatch  came  bearing  the  pleasing 
information  of  the  surrender  of  Lee's  army  to  General  Grant 
on  the  previous  day.  This  was  great  good  news  over  which 
all  rejoiced.  On  the  next  day  another  dispatch  was  received 
confirming  the  dispatch  of  the  previous  day  and  giving  a  few 
more  of  the  particulars  of  the  surrender.  A  dispatch  was 
also  read  stating  that  General  Sherman  had  captured  a  por- 
tion of  Johnston's  forces  in  North  Carolina.  On  Wednesday 
the  12th  a  dispatch  was  received  stating  that  Johnston  was 
retreating  before  Sherman,  and  also  saying  that  Forrest  and 
Roddy  had  been  captured,  or,  at  least,  that  they  had  sur- 
rendered. This  indeed  began  to  look  like  the  closing  up  of 
the  business  of  the  Southern  Confederacy  and  the  approach 
of  the  White  Winged  Angel  of  Peace,  and  therefore  all 
rejoiced.  On  the  13th  came  another  dispatch  confirming  the 
surrender  of  Forrest  and  Roddy,  and  also  one  announcing 
the  capture  of  Lynchburg,  Virginia.  Almost  daily  now 
there  came  telegrams  of  the  surrender  of  portions  of  the 
rebel  army  indicating  that  in  truth  and  in  fact  the  boastful 
Confederates  were  falling  and  tumbling  over  one  another  in 
their  undignified  haste  to  climb  out  of  the  "  Last  Ditch. " 
All  the  late  events  of  the  war  pointed  to  the  early  restora- 
tion of  the  supremacy  of  the  United  States  government  over 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  533 

its  broad  domain,  and  peace  over  all.  Again  the  torn  and 
distracted  country  would  be  at  rest  and  bask  in  the  sunlight 
of  peace  as  in  the  halcyon  days  of  yore,  and  her  eagles  would 
once  again  bathe  their  blood  stained  talons  in  the  .still  waters 
that  flow  by  the  shores  of  amity  and  concord.  On  the  15th 
a  dispatch  came  saying  that  General  Lee  had  advised  all 
rebel  ofticers  to  surrender  their  commands  to  the  nearest 
United  States  forces. 

Such  was  the  condition  of  affairs  when  the  lightning- 
like  stroke  of  assassination  stunned  the  American  people. 
On  Sunday,  April  16.  the  Eighty-sixth  was  inspected  by 
Captain  Walker,  Brigade  Inspector  for  the  Third  brigade, 
and  everything  was  dragging  along  in  the  usual  hum-drum 
channels  of  camp-life.  But  in  the  evening  a  dispatch  came 
bringing  the  shocking  news  that  President  Lincoln  had  been 
assassinated.  This  fell  like  a  pall.  It  caused  universal  sor- 
row in  the  arm3^  for  no  one  in  all  the  land  came  so  near  the 
hearts  of  the  soldiers  as  Mr.  Lincoln.  They  had  never  seen 
him,  but  his  kind  words  had  come  to  them  and  touched  in 
their  hearts  a  sympathetic  cord.  His  character  and  great- 
ness has  been  analyzed  as  follows  by  one  of  America's  great- 
est orators : 

"Lincoln  was  not  a  type.  He  stands  alone— no  ances- 
tors, no  fellows,  and  no  successors.  He  had  the  advantage 
of  living  in  a  new  country,  of  social  equality,  of  personal 
freedom,  of  seeing  in  the  horizon  of  his  future  the  star  of 
hope.  He  preserved  his  individuality  and  his  self-respect. 
He  knew  and  mingled  with  men  of  every  kind;  and,  after  all. 
men  are  the  best  books.  He  became  acquainted  with  the 
ambitions  and  hopes  of  the  heart,  and  the  means  usfd  to 
accomplish  the  ends,  the  .springs  of  action  and  tli.^  sp.nls  of 
thought. 

'•Lincoln  never  finished  his  education.  To  the  night  of 
his  death  he  was  a  pupil,  a  learner,  and  inquirer,  a  seeker 
after  knowledge.  You  have  no  idea  how  many  men  are 
spoiled  by  what  is  called  an  education.  For  thf  most  part, 
colleges  are  places  where  pebbles  are  polished  and  iliainonds 
are  dimmed. 


53i  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

"Lincoln  was  a  many  sided  man,  acquainted  with  smiles 
and  tears,  complex  in  brain,  single  in  heart,  direct  as  light; 
and  his  words  candid  as  mirrors,  gave  the  perfect  image  of 
his  thoughts.  He  was  never  afraid  to  ask — never  too  digni- 
fied to  admit  that  he  did  not  know.  No  man  had  keener  wit 
or  kinder  humor.  He  was  not  solemn.  Solemnity  is  a  mask 
worn  by  ignorance  and  hypocrisy — it  is  the  preface,  pro- 
logue, and  index  to  the  cunning  or  the  stupid.  He  was  nat- 
ural in  his  life  and  thought — master  of  the  story  teller's  art, 
in  illustration  apt,  in  application  perfect,  liberal  in  speech, 
shocking  Pharisees  and  prudes,  using  any  word  that  wit 
could  disinfect. 

"Lincoln  was  an  immense  i:)ersonality — firm  but  not 
obstinate.  Obstinacy  is  egotism — firmness, heroism.  He  influ- 
enced others  without  effort,  unconsciously;  and  they  submit- 
ted to  him  as  men  submit  to  nature,  unconsciously.  He  was 
severe  with  himself,  and  for  that  reason  lenient  to  others.  He 
appeared  to  apologize  for  being  kfader  than  his  fellows.  He 
did  merciful  things  as  stealthily  as  others  committed  crimes. 
Almost  ashamed  of  tenderness,  he  said  and  did  the  noblest 
words  and  deeds  with  that  charming  confusion — that  awk- 
wardness— that  is  the  perfect  grace  of  modesty.  As  a  noble 
man,  wishing  to  pay  a  small  deft  to  a  poor  neighbor,  reluct- 
antly offers  a  hundred-dollar  bill  and  ask  for  change  for  fear 
that  he  may  be  suspected  either  of  making  a  display  of 
wealth  or  a  pretense  of  payment,  so  Lincoln  hesitated  to 
show  his  wealth  of  goodness,  even  to  the  best  he  knew\ 

"A  great  man  stooping,  not  wishing  to  make  his  fellows 
feel  that  they  were  small  or  mean. 

"He  knew  others,  because  perfectly  acquainted  with  him- 
self. He  cared  nothing  for  place,  but  everything  for  prin- 
ciple, nothing  for  money,  but  everything  for  independence. 
Where  no  principle  was  involved,  easily  swayed— willing  to 
go  slowly  if  in  the  right  direction — sometimes  willing  to  stop, 
but  he  w^ould  not  go  back,  and  he  would  not  go  wrong.  He 
was  willing  to  wait.  He  knew  that  the  event  was  not  wait- 
ing, and  that  fate  was  not  the  fool  of  chance.  He  knew  slav- 
ery had  defenders,  but  no  defense,  and  that  they  who  attack 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  535 

the  rig'ht  must  wound  themselves.  He  was  neither  tyrant 
nor  slave.  He  neither  knelt  nor  .scorned.  With  him,  men 
were  neither  great  nor  small — they  were  right  or  wrong. 
Through  manners,  clothes,  titles,  rags,  and  race,  he  saw  the 
real — that  which  is.  Beyond  accident,  policy,  compromise, 
and  war,  he  saw  the  end.  He  was  patient  as  Destiny,  whose 
undecipherable  hieroglyphs  M'ere  so  deeply  graven  on  his 
sad  and  tragic  face. 

' '  Nothing  discloses  real  character  like  the  use  of  power. 
It  is  easy  for  the  weak  to  be  gentle.  Most  people  can  bear 
adversity.  But  if  you  wish  to  know  what  a  man  really  is, 
give  him  power.  This  is  the  supreme  test.  It  is  the  glory 
of  Lincoln  that,  having  almost  absolute  power,  he  never 
abused  it.  except  upon  the  side  of  mercy. 

"  Wealth  could  not  purchase,  power  could  not  awe.  this 
this  divine,  this  loving  man.  He  knew  no  fear  except  the 
fear  of  dying  wrong.  Hating  slavery,  pitying  the  master — 
seeking  to.  conquer,  not  persons,  but  prejudices — he  was  the 
embodiment  of  the  self-denial,  the  courage,  the  hope,  and 
the  nobility  of  a  nation.  He  spoke,  not  to  inflame,  not  to 
upbraid,  but  to  convince.  He  raised  his  hands,  not  to  strike. 
but  in  benediction.  He  longed  to  pardon.  He  loved  to  see 
the  pearls  of  joy  on  the  cheeks  of  a  wife  whose  husband  ho 
had  rescued  from  death. 

"Lincoln  was  the  grandest  figure  of  the  fiercest  civil 
war.     He  is  the  gentlest  memory  of  our  workl. " 

The  soldiers  of  the  army  of  the  Union  although  uiuiblo 
thus  to  analyze  and  point  out  the  elements  of  greatness  in 
the  character  of  their  beloved  leader  felt  in  their  hearts  his 
greatness  and  his  goodness— the  influence  of  his  mighty 
intellect  and  his  great  heart,  and  loved  him  as  man  lias  .sel- 
dom or  never  been  loved  by  the  rude  soldiery  and  the  com- 
mon people  of  any  country.  It  was  a  dark  day  for  tlie  army 
when  it  knew  that  Lincoln  was  no  more— foully  murdered  by 
the  hand  of  an  assassin.  The  men  felt  that  a  loading  light 
had  been  put  out  and  henceforth,  during  the  rest  of  this  war. 
they  must  grope  on  without  its  beneficent  and  cheering  ray. 
Sad  and  sorrowful  were  the  camps.     Even  the  joyful  news 


536  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

of  the  great  victories  recently  won  could  not  dispel  the 
gloom  the  death  of  Lincoln  caused.  Time  alone  could  heal 
the  wound.  An  eloquent  writer  says  of  the  death  of  Abra- 
ham Lincoln: 

"Foreign  nations,  too,  joined  in  the  general  grief.  Of 
all  the  rare  and  wonderful  revelations  of  human  emotion 
elicited  by  the  march  of  great  events,  during  the  last  four 
years,  that  with  which  the  sentient  Avorld  quivered  in 
response  to  the  outrage  perpetrated  upon  the  American  peo- 
ple, on  the  14th  of  April,  was  the  most  marvelous.  The 
blow  which  murdered  Abraham  Lincoln  not  only  wounded 
the  heart  of  the  Western  Continent,  but  stirred  humanity  to 
its  profoundest  depths  throughout  the  civilized  world — not 
with  sympathy  merely  for  the  peculiarly  bereaved  nation, 
but  with  the  rage  and  anguish  of  a  personal  wrong  and  loss." 

If  then  people  of  foreign  countries  felt  so  keenly  the 
death  of  this  truly  great  man  how  must  his  children,  the 
Union  soldiers,  have  suffered  when  they  knew  of  their  loss. 
Pen  cannot  describe  it  or  tongue  tell  of  the  deep  heart- 
aches felt  by  thousands  of  soldier  patriots  when  they  heard 
of  his  taking  off. 

On  the  19th  of  April  General  Tillson  's  command  arrived 
at  Jonesboro  and  the  command  was  relieved.  On  the  20th 
at  10  o'cloclc  orders  were  received  to  march  at  noon.  At  the 
appointed  time  the  division  tiled  out  upon  the  road,  march- 
ing westward.  It  was  the  same  old  rapid  pace  as  aforetime 
when  going  to  meet  the  enemy,  and  steadily  maintained. 
The  command  bivouacked  about  6  o'clock  p.  m.  There 
seemed  to  be  some  haste  about  this  move.  On  the  21st 
reveille  was  sounded  at  3:30  a.  m.  and  the  command  started 
out  upon  the  road  at  5:30.  The  pace  was  a  speedy  one,  few 
halts  being  made.  The  command  passed  through  Green- 
ville and  perhaps  five  miles  west  and  bivouacked  for  the 
night.  On  the  next  morning  reveille  was  sounded  at  3 
o'clock.  The  Eighty-sixth  had  the  advance  and  was  on  the 
road  marching  at  5  a.  m.  Passing  through  Midway  without 
halt  the  column  pressed  on  and  reached  Bull's  Gap  about 
noon  and   bivouacked.     Here  rumors  flew  from   bivouac  to 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  537 

bivouac  with  almost  lightnin"'  speed.  These  were  various 
and  varied.  The  war  was  practically  over — the  men  of  "62 
were  to  be  mustered  out  and  sent  home.  Much  excitement 
consequently  j^revailed.  The  command  remained  here  at 
Bull's  Gap  during  the  day  of  the  2Pk1.  Were  ordered  aboard 
the  cars  at  midnight,  and  the  train  rolled  westward  at  1 
o'clock  on  the  morning  of  the  24th,  but  only  proceeded  about 
seven  miles,  lay  until  after  daylight,  and  then  ran  to  Knox- 
ville  by  3  p.  m.  The  train  remained  on  the  side  track  at 
Knoxville  until  about  3  p.  m.  on  the  2oth,  when  it  again 
pulled  out,  westward  bound.  Reached  Chattanooga  at  3  p. 
m.  and  remained  until  5.  Only  running  a  part  of  the  night 
daylight  found  the  train  about  eight  miles  northwest  of  Ste- 
venson. Alabama.  During  Wednesday.  the26tli,  the  train  made 
slow  progress  and  reached  Murfreesborough  about  ^^  ]).  m. 
and  finally  disembarked  a  few  miles  out  from  Nashville 
about  1  o'clock  a.  m.  on  the  27th.  After  breakfast  Knef- 
ler"s  brigade  marched  about  two  or  two  and  a  half  miles  in  a 
northerly  direction  to  a  camping  place  which  was  linally 
located  about  10:30,  and  camp  laid  off  in  in  regular  order. 

At  this  camp  the  Eighty-sixth  spent  the  rest  of  its  time 
in  the  service  of  Uncle  Sam  until  duly  mustered  out— drill- 
ing, being  inspected  or  reviewed,  performing  picket  duty, 
but  in  a  very  easy  slip-shod  manner,  as  the  officers  and  men 
well  knew  that  there  was  now  no  armed  enemy  near  to 
molest  or  make  them  afraid.  The  drilling  and  inspecting 
was  probably  done  to  prepare  the  men  for  tlie  tinal  (Irand 
Review,  as  it  seemed  now  quite  certain  that  the  days  of  cam- 
paigning and  fighting  for  the  Eighty -sixtli  win-e  forevtM* 
past. 

On  the  29th  of  April  came  the  word  of  the  .surrender  of 
Johnston's  army  to  General  Sherman,  as  had  b«'en  e.\peet»Hl 
for  some  days.  This  was  the  climax  of  the  collap.se  of  the 
Confederacy,  and  it  was  simply  impo.ssible  now  for  the  South 
ever  again  to  collect  and  organize  an  army  to  do  battle  for 
the  cause  of  secession.  It  was  thoroughly  routed  and  beaten, 
and  it  recognized  and  acknowledged  the  fact.  The  order  for 
the  Southern  soldiers  is  final  and  it  is:  -'Ground  arms!"  Let 


538  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

it  be  said  for  them  that  they  were  brave,  but  they  were  beaten 
in  fort  and  in  field. 

Now  the  Eighty-sixth  had  itsregular  Sunday  inspection, 
company  drill  of  week  days,  and  dress  parade  on  fine  even- 
ings. On  Friday,  May  5,  there  was  company  drill  in  the 
forenoon,  and  brigade  review  in  the  afternoon.  The  follow- 
ing day  the  men  were  notified  to  prepare  for  Grand  Review, 
to  take  place  on  Monday,  the  8th.  On  Sunday,  the  7th,  there 
was  company  inspection  in  the  forenoon  and  brigade  review 
in  the  afternoon.  It  rained  Sunday  night  and  nearly  all  day 
Monday,  therefore  the  Grand  Review  was  postponed.  Tues- 
day morning  was  clear  and  fine  and  the  orders  were  for  the 
Review.  The  Eighty-sixth  started  for  the  review  grounds 
about  7  o'clock  a.  m.  The  lines  were  fully  established  about 
10  o'clock.  It  then  waited  for  the  reviewing  officer.  General 
George  H.  Thomas.  After  being  reviewed  in  line  General 
Thomas  took  his  place  upon  the  stand,  the  line  was  broken 
into  columns  of  divisions  and  thus  marched  by  the  stand. 
This  completed  the  review  and  the  regiment  was  marched  at 
once  to  camp.  There  were  about  15,000  men  in  line  march- 
ing in  review,  and  it  made  a  splendid  pageant.  General 
Thomas  profusely  complimented  the  Fourth  corps  on  its  sol- 
dierly bearing.  It  was  certainly  a  fine  exhibition  of  a  mili- 
tary parade,  precision  of  military  movements  and  evolutions. 

Major  General  George  H.  Thomas  on  May  10  issued 
General  Orders  No.  30,  in  which  he  congratulated  the  Fourth 
army  corps  as  follows: 

The  Ganeral  commanding  the  Department  tak  js  pride  in  conveying 
to  the  Fourth  army  corps  the  expression  of  his  admiration,  excited  by 
their  brilliant  and  martial  display  at  the  review  of  yesterday. 

As  the  battalions  of  your  magnificent  corps  swept  successively 
before  the  eye,  the  coldest  heart  must  have  warmed  with  interest  in 
contemplation  of  those  men,  who  had  passed  through  the  varied  and 
shifting  scenes  of  this  great,  modern  tragedy,  who  had  stemmed  with 
unyielding  breasts  the  rebel  tide  threatening  to  engulph  the  land-marks 
of  Freedom:  and  who,  bearing  on  their  bronzed  and  furrowed  brows  the 
ennobling  marks  of  the  years  of  hardship,  suffering  and  privation,  under- 
gone in  defense  of  freedom  and  the  integrity  of  the  Union,  could  still 
preserve  the  light  step  and  wear  the  cheerful  expression  of  youth. 

Though  you)'  gay  and  broidered  banners,  wrought  by  dear  hands 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  539 

far  away,  were  all  shi-ed  and  wai--worn,  were  tlicy  not  blazoned  on  every 
stripe  with  word.s  of  o^lory— Shiloh,  Spring  Hill.  Stone's  River.  Chicka- 
maug-a,  Atlanta.  Franklin.  Nashville,  and  many  other  glorious  names, 
too  numerous  to  be  mentioned  in  an  order  like  this. 

By  your  pi-owess  and  fortitude  you  have  ably  done  your  part  in 
restoring  the  golden  boon  of  peace  and  order  to  your  once  distracted  but 
now  grateful  country,  and  your  Commander  is  at  length  enabled  to  give 
you  a  season  of  well  earned  rest. 

But  soldiers,  while  we  exult  at  our  victories,  let  us  not  be  forgetful 
of  those  brave,  devoted  hearts  which,  pressing  in  advance,  throbbed 
their  last  amid  the  smoke  and  din  of  battle;  nor  withhold  our  sympathy 
for  the  afflicted  wife,  child,  and  mother,  consigned,  far  off  at  iiorae,  to 
lasting,  cruel  grief. 

After  this,  the  final  Grand  Review,  there  was  no  drill- 
int^  for  the  Eighty-sixth.  The  men  were  through  with  that 
drudgery,  for  it  became  a  drudgery  when  they  never  again 
expected  to  be  called  out  upon  the  field  of  battle.  Hence- 
forth only  picket,  guard  duty,  and  inspection  was  to  be  their 
work  while  they  remained  here. 

On  Sunday,  May  14.  a  disi)atch  wa.s  received 
announcing  the  capture  of  the  arch  traitor,  Jeff  Davis. 
This  w^as  another  point  made,  which  in  the  ranks  of 
the  Union  army  caused  universal  joy,  for  he  was  looked 
upon  as  the  head  and  front  of  the  offenders  of  those  who 
had  tried  to  disrupt  the  country.  By  many  Union  sol- 
diers he  was  regarded  as  the  devil  turned  loose  ujkju  the 
earth.  Had  many  organizations  captured  him.  since  the 
assassination  of  the  beloved  Lincoln,  they  would  have  taken 
summary  vengeance.  But  fortunately  for  Davis,  and  per- 
haps for  the  credit  of  the  whole  country,  he  fell  into  hands 
more  humane  and  merciful. 

On  Saturday,  June  1],  the  officers  of  the  regiment  began 
making  the  "Muster  Out"  rolls.  It  was  now  an  estal)li.shed 
fact  that  the  Eighty-sixth  was  to  be  "mustered  out"  v»'ry 
soon  and  sent  home.  This  was  cheering  news  and  the  lx)ys 
were  in  great  glee.  All  felt  that  it  wa.s  a  good  and  svitticient 
reason  for  rejoicing,  and  fun  and  frolic  was  largely  indulg.nl 
in.  On  the  4th  and  oth  the  work  on  the  rolls  was  i)nsjie(l. 
being  completed  on  the  latter  day. 

Major  General  Thomas  J.  Wood,  tlie  commander  of  the 


540  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

Fourth  army  corps,  through  his  Adjutant  General,  Captain 
M.  P.  Bestow,  issued  General  Order  No.  47,  dated  near 
Nashville,  Tennessee,  June  6,  1865,  which  was  in  the  nature 
of  a  farewell  to  the  Eighty-sixth.  The  same  order  was 
issued  to  the  Seventy-ninth.     The  following  is  the  order: 

To  the  Officers  and  Soldiers  of  the  Eight i/sixth  Indiana  ^^oluntcers: 

The  order  from  the  War  Department  directing  the  muster  out  of 
troops  whose  terms  of  service  expire  befoi'e  a  certain  date,  will  soon 
terminate  the  official  relation  which  has  so  long  existed  between  us.  I 
contemplate  the  approaching  separation  wdth  feelings  of  sadness,  and  I 
cannot  allow  it  to  take  place  without  expressing  my  warmest  thanks 
and  sincere  gratitude  for  the  noble  conduct  which  you  have  ever  dis- 
played while  under  my  command.  Participation  in  common  dangers, 
and  in  privations  and  hardships,  has  united  us  in  the  bonds  of  indissolu- 
ble friendship.  I  will  ever  cherish  as  among  the  brightest  passages  of 
my  life  the  memory  of  our  past  association.  You  have  done  your  duty 
as  good  soldiers  and  patriots,  engaged  from  the  highest  motives,  in  the 
noblest  of  causes.  You  can  now  retui-n  to  your  homes  with  the  happy 
reflection  that  the  mission  which  called  you  into  the  Held,  namely,  the 
suppression  of  the  armed  resistance  of  treason  and  rebellion  to  the  gov- 
ernment, has  been  fully,  nobly  and  honorably  accomplished.  Noble 
soldiers,  your  work  is  finished,  now  rest  from  your  labors.  Each  one  of 
you  will  carry  home  with  you  my  highest  estepm  and  kindest  wishes  for 
your  future  welfare.  May  happiness,  prosperity,  health  and  success 
wait  on  you  throughout  the  i-emainder  of  your  lives. 

May  your  future  be  as  happy  as  your  railitar-y  life  has  been  glor- 
iousl  To  each  one  of  you,  individually,  and  all,  collectively,  I  bid  a  kind. 
a  friendly  good-bye. 

May  (iod  bless  you  I 

In  the  afternoon,  o/i  the  lifh  (la;/  of  Ji/iic.  ISf>.'>.  f/ic  F/kjIiIij- 
aixtJi  Ber/hiietit,  huJiana  Voltmtecr  Iiifaritry.  lai.s  Mustered  Out 
of  the  United  States  Service,  bij  Captain,  Fhilip  Ileefij.  of  tlie 
Nmeteenth  Regiment.  Ohio  Veterein  Volunteer  hifaitnj.  Jlltister- 
iiif/  Officer  for  the  T/iird  Dicisiou.  Fourth  Ann;/  Corps.  Arnnj  (f 
the  Cumberland. 

On  Wednesday  the  7th,  Colonel  George  P.  Dick  went  to 
the  city  of  Nashville  to  make  arrangements  for  procuring 
transportation  home  for  the  regiment.  He  went  again  on 
Thursday,  the  8th,  and  returned  before  noon  reporting 
everything  all  right,  and  that  the  start  would  be  m  ade  that  af  tei-- 
noon.  At  12  o'clock  noon,  the  regiment  broke  camp  and 
marched  to  the  city,  got  aboard  the  cars  about  5  o'clock  p.  m., 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  541 

crossed  the  Cumberland  river  and  left  Edgefield  at  6  p.  m.  The 
train  reached  Louisville,  Kentucky,  at  5  a.  m.  on  the  9tli. 
The  regiment  crossed  the  Ohio  river  and  landed  on  Hoosier 
soil  at  11  a.  m.  All  were  in  great  good  humor  and  as  the 
companies  filed  out  upon  the  Indiana  bank  olf  the  ferry  boat 
they  cheered  lustily.  They  were  nearing  home  aud  were 
heartily  glad.  Glad  that  the  war  was  over,  that  ihe  rebel- 
lion was  crushed,  and  that  they  had  lived  to  see  the  Govern- 
ment triumph  in  its  great  struggle,  and  to  see  the  dawn  of 
peace.  They  took  a  train  at  Jeifersonville  for  Indianajwlis 
which  place  was  reached  about  6  o'clock  p.  m.  on  the  9th. 
The  regiment  marched  directly  to  the  Soldiers'  Home  where 
a  good  supper  was  provided.  The  following  morning  the 
regiment  marched  to  the  State  House  and  were  there  i)ub- 
licly  thanked  by  Governor  Oliver  P.  Morton  in  behalf  of  tlie 
State.  General  George  D.  Wagner  replied  for  Colonel  Dick 
in  behalf  of  the  regiment,  and  the  regimental  stand  of  colors 
was  placed  in  the  archives  of  the  State.  Soon  after  the  con- 
clusion of  these  ceremonies  the  Colonel  marched  the  regi- 
ment to  the  arsenal  where  it  turned  into  the  United  States 
authorities  its  guns  and  accouterments.  Many  of  the  men 
turned  in  the  same  gun  that  they  had  drawn  there  three  years 
before.  After  thus  disposing  of  their  fighting  equipments 
the  men  were  marched  directly  to  Camp  Carrington  almost 
on  the  identical  spot  of  ground  on  which  they  were  camped 
when  mustered  into  the  United  States  service  by  Colonel  .1. 
S.  Simonson  September  4,  1862.  The  11th  was  Sunday  and 
therefore  nothing  was  done.  The  boys  took  the  day  ea.sy. 
They  were  waiting  to  receive  their  pay. 

The  Eighty-sixth  entered  the  field  with  3H  commissione<l 
olficers  and  917  enlisted  men.  During  the  latter  part  of  1HI>4 
it  received  41  recruits,  making  a  total  of  999.  Two  commis- 
sioned olficers  were  killed  and  one  died  from  the  effects  of 
wounds.  Among  the  enlisted  men  238  were  killed  and  dietl 
from  disease  and  wounds,  48  men  deserted  from  its  ranks. 
67  were  transferred  to  the  Veteran  Reserve  Corjis.  KMo  the 
Engineer  Corps,  and  5  to  the  Mississippi  Marine  Brigade. 
There  were  mustered  out  with  the  regiment  302  men.   the 


542  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

remainder  having  been  discharged  on  account  of  wounds 
and  other  disabilities.  The  recruits  were  transferred  to  the 
Fifty-first  Indiana  regiment.  Of  tlie  Indiana  regiments  that 
served  only  three  years,  the  Sixty-ninth  lost  from  all  causes 
by  death  the  largest  per  cent,  of  enlisted  men,  the  Ninty- 
third  the  next  largest  per  cent,  and  the  Eighty-sixth  the 
third  largest  per  cent. 

The  regiment  had  two  Colonels,  four  Lieutenant  Colo- 
nels, three  Majors,  two  Adjutants,  two  Quartermasters,  two 
Chaplains,  two  Surgeons,  three  Assistant  Surgeons,  twenty- 
three  Captains,  thirty-one  First  Lieutenants,  twenty-eight 
Second  Lieutenants.  Of  these  thirty-nine  were  original 
appointments,  and  sixty-three  were  promotions.  The  total 
number  of  commissioned  officers  was  one  hundred  and  two. 

The  service  of  the  Eighty- sixth  Indiana  must  speak  for 
itself.  It  will  ever  I'emain  an  honorable  page  of  history  in 
the  Great  War  of  the  Rebellion.  Its  hardships  and  priva- 
tions, its  marches,  skirmishes,  battles  and  sieges,  were  some 
of  the  most  notable  of  the  war.  What  it  endured  in  the 
great  march  in  pursuit  of  Bragg  was  certainly  not  excelled 
by  any,  and  was  only  equaled  by  its  new  companion  regi- 
ments. The  forty-one  of  its  dead  left  on  the  bloody  field  of 
Stone's  River  attests  its  baptismal  fire.  Its  three  days  by 
Chickamauga's  crimson  waters  and  through  all  that  san- 
guinary struggle  have  been  told  in  words.  Yet  these  but 
faintly  paint  the  picture.  Nothing  in  the  history  of  the 
entire  war  takes  rank  with  the  assault  of  the  Eighty-sixth 
and  Seventy-ninth  on  Missionary  Ridge  for  indomitable,  dar- 
ing courage  and  fortitude,  lying  just  outside  of  the  enemy's 
works,  only  a  ramrod's  length,  and  fighting  the  enemy  with- 
out giving  an  inch  until  the  reserves  approached.  The  siege 
in  Chattanooga,  followed  by  the  bitter  cold  winter  and  semi- 
starvation  on  the  bleak  hills  in  East  Tennessee  were  truly 
trying  events  and  endured  like  Spartan  heroes.  Then  fol- 
lowed the  ever  memorable  Atlanta  campaign  with  its 
marches,  skirmishes,  battles  and  sieges,  and  great  tactical 
movements,  and  then  in  turn  followed  by  the  race  after 
Hood,  terminating  in  the  glorious  battle  of  Nashville.     The 


i 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  543 

assault  on  Overton's  Hill  by  Knefler's  brigade,  the  Eighty - 
sixth  in  the  advance,  was  almost  as  heroic  as  the  assault  on 
Missionary  Ridge,  and  would  have  been  fully  as  much  so,  if 
the  enemy  had  had  the  courage  to  stay  and  fight.  The  his- 
tory of  no  organization  from  the  State  of  Indiana,  or  any 
State,  can  probably  furnish  evidence  of  greater  fortitude 
than  was  exhibited  by  the  Third  brigade,  Third  division, 
Fourth  army  corps,  of  which  the  Eighty-sixtli  Indiuiui 
formed  an  honorable  part. 

The  glowing  memories  of  Stone's  River,  Chickamauga, 
Missionary  Ridge,  Dandridge,  Rocky  Face  Ridge,  Resaca, 
Adairsville,  Kingston,  Cassville,  New  Hope  Church,  Pick- 
ett's Mills,  Kenesaw  Mountain,  Smyrna  Camp  Ground,  Chat- 
tahoochee River,  Peach  Tree  Creek,  Atlanta,  Jonesboro, 
Lovejoy's  Station,  Columbia,  Spring  Hill,  Franklin  and 
Nashville  will  ever  fill  the  hearts  and  minds  of  every  mem- 
ber of  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  with  pardonable  pride. 

When  the  heroic  citizen  soldiers  were  remanded  to  the 
duties  of  civil  life,  the  Eighty-sixth  Regiment,  Indiana  Vol- 
unteers, passed  from  organic  existence,  to  live  in  history, 
matched  by  many  but  surpassed  by  none.  Many  who 
went  out  with  the  regiment  did  not  return.  They  were  left 
on  the  hills  and  by  the  streams  of  the  South.  Their  heroic 
deeds  and  last  resting  places  will  often  be  brought  to  mind 
in  fond  remembrance. 

"  By  fairy  hands  tlieir  knell  is  lunj;; 
By  forms  unseen  tlieir  dirge  is  sung; 
There  Honor  comes,  a  pilgrim  gray, 
To  bless  the  turf  that  wraps  their  day." 

And  as  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  disappeared  so  melted 
away  the  grand  regiments  of  all  the  States,  an  army  strong 
enough  to  conquer  a  hemisphere.  The  heroic  organizations 
merged  into  the  mass  of  the  people  and  were  seen  no  more. 
The  deeds  of  this  grand  army  had  filled  the  civilized  world, 
and  European  statesmen  looked  on  in  wonder.  It  was  one 
of  the  grandest  armies  that  ever  bore  on  its  bayonet  points 
the  destines  of  a  king  or  nation— a  consolidation  and  embod- 
iment of  power  seldom  witnessed;  and  yet,  while  the  gaze  of 
the  world  was  fixed  upon  it,  it  disappeared  like  a  vision,  and 


544  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

when  one  looked  for  it  he  saw  only  peaceful  citizens  engaged 
in  their  usual  occupations.  The  veterans  of  the  rank  and 
file,  whose  battle  shout  had  rung  over  scores  of  bloody  fields, 
could  only  be  found  now  by  name  as  one,  bent  over  his  saw 
and  plane,  another  swung  his  scythe  in  the  harvest  field,  or 
plied  his  humble  toil  along  the  streets.  It  was  a  marvelous 
sight,  the  grandest  the  world  ever  saw.  It  had  been  the 
people's  war — the  people  had  carried  it  on,  and  having  fin- 
ished their  own  work,  quietly  laid  aside  the  instruments  with 
which  they  had  accomplished  it,  and  again  took  up  those  of 
peaceful  industry.  Never  did  a  government  on  earth  exhibit 
such  stability,  and  assert  its  superiority  over  all  other  forms, 
as  did  this  Republican  Government  of  ours,  in  the  way  its 
armies  disappeared  when  the  struggle  was  over. 

On  the  12th  of  June,  1865,  the  men  were  paid  and  the 
Eighty-sixth  disbanded.  Good-byes  were  said  and  the  boys 
started  for  their  several  homes.  That  separation  was  not 
without  sadness.  There  are  few  ties  on  earth  that  are  as  strong 
as  those  that  bind  the  hearts  of  men  who  so  long  marched, 
and  fought  and  suffered  together.  The  Eighty-sixth  Indiana 
was  now  a  meuiory!  That  was  all.  But  if  only  a  memory  it 
will  last  as  long  as  a  single  member  of  that  organization  sur- 
vives. 

We've  been  teutiiig-  to-night  on  the  old  camp  ground,— 

Thinkhig  of  days  gone  by; 
Of  the  loved  and  the  true  who  left  their  homes 

And  the  tear  that  said,  "Good-byel" 


v 

^^B 

^^^^^B 

Ik  ■ 

k-.                  ^HHH 

# 

r 

GEORGE   FREDERICK    DICK. 


CHAPTER  XXX. 
THE  TWO  COLONELS. 

George  Frederick  Dick— A  Sketch  of  His  Early  Life— Captain  of  a  Boy's  Military 
Company  in  Cincinnati— His  Fire  Company— In  Business— Answers  the  First 
Call  of  the  President— A  Captain  in  the  Twentieth  Indiana- His  Services  In 
That  Regiment— Made  Lieutenant  Colonel  in  the  F.ighty-Sixth— Ills  Career 
With  That  Regiment  to  the  Close  of  the  War— Orville  S.  Hamilton— .\  Brave 
Man,  but  Wanting  in  Military  Genius— A  Bit  of  Secret  History  Never  Before 
Told  or  Written— .\  Tribute  to  His  Memory. 

GEORGE  FREDERICK  DICK. 

The  man  and  officer,  who,  by  his  mihtary  .skill,  by  hi.s 
firmness  and  courage  made  of  the  Eighty-Sixth  an  organiza- 
tion of  which  they  who  still  live,  are  so  justly  proud,  camo 
to  the  regiment  near  the  close  of  the  Kentucky  campaign  in 
the  early  winter  of  1862-1863.  This  officer  was  Lieutenant 
Colonel  George  Frederick  Dick,  destined  soon  thereafter  to 
be  the  Colonel.  He  joined  the  regiment  at  Rural  Hill,  Ten- 
nessee, on  the  night  of  November  17,  186-.  This  was  the 
officer  who  w^as  in  all  of  the  subsequent  history  of  the  regi- 
ment, whether  in  camp  or  on  the  field,  in  the  trenchf^s.  or  in 
the  storming  of  the  enemy's  w^orks,  who  was  to  be  tlie  cen- 
tral figure.  He  it  was  who  was  to  make,  by  strict  discipline 
and  thorough  drill,  a  body  of  soldiers  out  of  the  raw  material 
then  organized  into  what  was  called  a  regiment. 

Colonel  Dick,  for  such  soon  became  his  title,  came  to  the 
regiment  unheralded.  He  came  as  an  utter  stranger  to  ail 
but  a  very  few,  and  the  regiment  as  such,  had  never  even 
heard  his  name.  There  had  been  rumors  that  a  Lieutenant 
Colonel  had  been  commissioned,  but  who  he  was.  or  when  he 
w^as  to  report  for  duty,  was  unknown.  The  few  who  had 
known  him,  prior  to  the  war,  had  known  him  only  as  a  quiet 


546  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

citizen,  and  as  a  man  earnestly  devoted  to  the  care  of  his 
mercantile  pursuits.  All  soon  knew  him  thoroughly  as  an 
officer,  and  quickly  respected  and  admired  him  for  his  genu- 
ine soldierly  qualities.  Never  in  the  habit  of  talking  of  him- 
self, nor  of  exploiting  his  deeds,  Colonel  Dick  was,  and  is, 
known  to  the  members  of  the  Eighty-sixth  only  in  his  identi- 
fication with  the  history  of  the  regiment  subsequent  to  the 
time  of  joining  it. 

He  was  not  a  man  who  had  many  intimate  associates. 
His  nature  was  too  quiet  and  modest  to  attract  the  crowd, 
but  those  who  thoroughly  knew  him,  and  back  of  his  quiet 
demeanor  learned  the  sterling  qualities  of  his  heart  and 
head,  were  linked  to  him  as  with  hooks  of  steel.  In  form 
and  physique,  he  impressed  the  men  at  once  as  one  on  whom 
they  could  rely,  and  more  and  more,  under  the  shock  of  bat- 
tle, on  the  march  and  in  camp  or  bivouac,  did  this  impres- 
sion of  his  worth  as  a  soldier,  and  his  ability  as  an  officer, 
grow  upon  officers  and  men.  After  he  assumed  command  of 
the  regiment  it  was  not  long  until  officers  and  men  alike 
learned  that  a  master  hand  held  the  sword. 

To  portray  the  exact  condition  of  the  regiment  at  the 
time  Colonel  Dick  came  to  it,  both  as  to  its  condition  from  a 
sanitary  point,  and  as  to  discipline  and  knowledge  of  the 
duties  of  soldiers,  but  little  need  be  said.  It  is  a  sufficient  to 
say  that  from  the  moment  that  he  took  command  on  the 
battle-field  of  Stone's  River  there  was  a  change  for  the  bet- 
ter. New  life  was  infused,  new  hopes  were  inspired,  and  an 
ambition  took  complete  hold  of  all  to  do  something,  to  be 
something,  to  make  a  record  as  soldiers,  that  had  not  before 
existed  with  the  great  mass  of  the  officers  and  men.  Some, 
too,  there  were  of  the  officers  who  found  that  they  were  not 
fitted  to  be  soldiers  in  the  highest  and  best  sense  of  the 
word,  and  these  retired.  As  the  fact  has  been  recorded  that 
Colonel  Dick  came  into  the  actual  command  of  the  regiment 
at  Stone's  River  on  the  morning  that  the  battle  opened,  let 
the  reader  now  go  backward  in  his  career,  and  learn  of  his 
early  life. 

George  Frederick  Dick  was  born  at  Tiffin,  Seneca  county, 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  54T 

Ohio,  February  22,  1829.  He  was  of  German  parentage,  but 
from  his  childhood  and  into  his  manhood  was,  as  he  will 
remain  to  the  close  of  his  life,  intensely  American  in  all  his 
thoughts  and  actions.  When  but  two  years  old  his  parents 
moved  from  Tiffin  to  Cincinnati.  Here  he  grew  into  man- 
hood. The  education  he  received  was  such  as  was  to  be 
gained  from  the  public  schools  in  Cincinnati  during  his  early 
boyhood.  Although  not  what  is  termed  an  educated  man, 
he  has  ever  been  a  reader  of  the  best  authors  when  the  time 
could  be  taken  from  business  hours,  has  always  been  a  close 
observer  of  men,  and  has  at  all  times  kept  himself  thoroughly 
informed  as  to  current  events.  In  his  boyhood  he  was  an 
enthusiast  on  military  matters,  taking  a  deep  interest  in  the 
military  organizations  then  existing  in  the  city  of  Cincinnati. 
With  his  boy  associates  he  was  regarded  as  a  leader,  and  his 
opinions  on  military  affairs  were  law  to  them. 

When  he  was  in  his  sixteenth  year,  a  juvenile  military 
company  was  organized,  known  as  the  Cincinnati  Cadets,  and 
Fred  Dick,  as  he  was  then  called,  was  chosen  as  the  Captain. 
He  at  once  accepted  the  jiosition  and  assumed  the  responsi- 
bilities. Faithfully  he  discharged  the  duties  of  Captain,  and 
he  was  fully  as  willing  to  perform  his  appointed  share  of  the 
hard  work  incident  thereto,  as  he  was  to  bear  the  iionors  of 
the  position.  Those  wiio  have  known  Colonel  Dick  in  his 
maturer  years,  after  he  had  put  aside  the  mimic  soldier,  and 
had  had  the  responsibilities  of  the  actual  .soldier  and  officer, 
can  easily  imagine  the  firmness  and  thoroughness  with  which 
he  handled  the  Cincinnati  Cadets.  Those  who  have  seen 
him  in  the  actual  charge  and  shock  of  battle,  and  liave  seen 
the  firmness  with  which  his  teeth  were  shut  up(Mi  eachotlier. 
and  have  heard  his  clear,  sharp  and  commanding  voice  ring 
out  in  the  supreme  moment,  can  well  imagine  the  young  Cap- 
tain as  he  appeared  at  the  front  of  his  miniature  .soldiers, 
and  can  well  understand  why  the  Cadets  made  so  tine  u 
record  as  "play  soldiers,"  why  many  of  them  made  in  later 
years  such  magnificent  records  during  the  four  years  of  war. 
where  balls  as  well  as  powder  were  used,  and  actually  fought 
and  died  on  the  field.     In  all  that  pertained  to  his  early  mili- 


548  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

tary  company,  and  kindred  organizations  he  took  the  deep- 
est interest,  little  dreaming,  save  as  a  boy  may  dream,  that 
he  was  taking  the  primary  lessons  that  were  in  after  years 
to  make  him  a  thorough  military  man,  and  to  give  him  as 
excellent  a  record  as  was  won  by  any  officer  during  the  war 
occupying  a  similar  position.  As  he  himself  has  said,  "This 
little  experience  proved  very  useful  to  me  in  after  years 
when  I  assumed  the  active  duties  of  a  soldier,  in  actual  and 
not  mimic  warfare. " 

In  whatever  position  he  found  himself  among  organized 
bodies  of  men,  he  was  chosen  by  his  associates  as  the  chief 
or  commander.  The  fire  companies  at  the  time  he  was  resid- 
ing in  Cincinnati,  after  he  had  grown  out  of  boyhood  and 
into  his  young  and  vigorous  manhood,  were  independent,  or 
volunteer  companies.  These  were  composed  of  a  class  of 
young  men  who  hesitated  at  nothing  when  duty  pointed  the 
way.  They  were  ready  to  fight  the  fire  fiend  either  singly, 
or  to  brave  the  greatest  dangers  in  company  with  their  asso- 
ciates, whenever  life  or  property  was  to  be  saved  from  death 
or  destruction.  In  one  of  these  fire  companies  George  F. 
Dick,  as  soon  as  he  was  of  sufficient  age,  found  himself  as  a 
member.'  Never  reckless,  always  discreet,  yet  never  under 
the  most  trying  circumstances  hesitating  or  faltering,  he  was 
soon  chosen  as  the  Captain.  Here  again,  as  when  CajDtain 
of  the  Cadets,  he  enforced  the  most  stringent  discipline,  and 
through  his  management  Dick's  Fire  Company  was  one  of 
the  best  of  its  day  in  Cincinnati.  Not  only  was  the  drill  of 
the  Cadets,  and  the  fire  company  of  use  to  him  in  future 
years,  but  it  was  in  these  organizations  that  he  first  began  to 
study  human  nature.  After  all,  this  knowledge  of  men,  read- 
ing their  characters  individually  and  when  brought  together 
in  large  bodies,  when  combined  with  military  skill,  is  one  of 
the  very  chiefest  things  tending  to  success  in  a  military  com- 
mander. Colonel  Dick  had  this  knowledge  of  men  to  a 
remarkable  degree  in  his  career  as  an  army  officer.  He 
seemed  to  be  able  to  read  every  officer  and  man  of  his  regi- 
ment as  one  would  read  an  open  book.  There  was  not  an 
officer  or  private  who  came  under  his  command  who  did  not 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  540 

instinctively  feel  that  Colonel  Dick  knew  exactly  his  make- 
up. This  was  especially  true  at  the  storming  of  Mission- 
ary Ridge,  where  every  man  from  right  to  left  of  the  regi- 
ment felt  more  than  words  can  tell  it,  that  Colonel  Dick  was 
watching  his  every  movement  in  that,  the  most  brilliant 
charge  ever  made  by  soldiers  of  any  land  or  in  any  war. 

After  arriving  at  that  age  which  required  that  he  should 
turn  his  attention  to  the  practical  affairs  of  life,  he  entered 
business  in  Cincinnati  as  a  tobacconist,  and  remained  in 
that  city  in  the  tobacco  trade  until  1855,  when  he  removed  to 
Attica.  Indiana,  and  there  again  went  into  the  same  busine.ss, 
and  so  continued  until  the  breaking  out  of  the  war  in  1861. 

At  the  first  call  for  troops  by  President  Lincoln  in  April. 
1861,  roused  by  his  patriotic  impulses,  he  at  once  closed  u]) 
his  business  affairs  to  answer  the  call.  While  he  was  "put- 
ting his  house  in  order"  for  the  great  conflict,  he  was  at  the 
same  time,  in  company  with  others,  engaged  in  the  forma- 
tion of  a  company  for  the  first  three  months'  service.  The 
company  was  speedily  raised  and  George  F.  Dick  was  unani- 
mously chosen  as  Captain.  As  rapidly  as  this  first  company 
of  Captain  Dick  had  been  organized,  the  rush  to  arms  had 
been  so  great  and  so  rapid  that  upon  tendering  their  service.s 
to  Governor  Morton,  there  was  no  place  for  them,  and  their 
offer  was  rejected.  However  much  the  disappointment  at 
being  unable  to  be  among  the  first  75,000  Union  troops,  tlu' 
organization  held  together,  waiting  for  the  first  oi>portunity 
that  might  be  presented,  to  be  mustered. 

These  enthusiastic  and  patriotic  citizens  did  not  iiavp  to 
wait  very  long,  for  on  May  3,  1861,  the  President  i.ssuetl  his 
second  call  and  assigned  the  quota  to  each  State.  In  filling 
the  qtiota  for  Indiana  a  camp  was  opened  at  Lafayette,  and 
here  were  gathered  the  companies  that  were  to  contribute  a 
regiment,  and  were  in  July  mustered  into  the  service  as  the 
Twentieth  Indiana  Volunteers,  for  three  years'  .service. 
Captain  George  F.  Dick's  company  was  mustered  in  as  Com- 
pany D,  and  he  was  commissioned  and  mustered  as  its  first 
Captain  July  22,  1861.  The  Twentieth  Indiana  was  almost 
immediately  ordered  to  the  front  and  left  Indianapolis  on 


550  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

August  2,  1861,  going  to  Maryland,  near  Baltimore,  where  it 
was  placed  on  duty  guarding  the  Northern  Central  railroad, 
a  branch  of  the  Pennsylvania  road,  which  was  such  an 
important  factor  to  the  Army  of  the  Potomac  during  the 
war.  The  duty  of  'guarding  a  railroad  was  of  very  short 
duration,  however,  for  in  September,  1861,  the  regiment  was 
moved  to  Hatteras  Inlet,  North  Carolina,  and  soon-after  land- 
ing was  sent  to  the  north  end  of  Hatteras  Bank,  forty  miles 
away  from  the  fortifications,  and  from  supports  of  any  kind. 
At  this  place  began  the  active  military  work  of  Captain  Dick. 
Here  the  regiment  was  attacked  by  a  much  larger  force,  and 
had  a  severe  fight,  and  although  greatly  outnumbered  it 
maintained  its  position  until  it  received  orders  to  fall  back, 
when  it  returned  to  the  fortifications.  The  regiment  was 
then  sent  to  Newport  News  where  it  participated  in  the 
engagement  between  the  Merrimac,  Cumberland  and  Con- 
gress, March  8,  1862.  On  the  10th  of  May  this  regiment 
participated  in  the  capture  of  Norfolk,  Virginia,  after  which 
it  was  ordered  to  join  the  Army  of  the  Potomac,  on  the  Pe- 
ninsula. On  June  8,  1862,  the  Twentieth  Indiana  was  assigned 
to  Jamieson's  brigade,  Kearney's  division,  Heintzleman's 
corps,  and  took  an  active  part  in  the  battle  of  Pair  Oaks. 
On  the  25th  of  June,  1862,  it  was  engaged  at  the  battle  of 
the  Orchards,  sustaining  a  loss  of  14-4  officers  and  men  in 
killed,  wounded  and  missing.  The  regiment  covered  the 
retreat  of  the  Third  army  corps  in  the  celebrated  Seven  Days' 
Fight,  participating  in  all  the  battles  of  that  campaign,  its 
loss  being  heavy. 

The  Twentieth  regiment  formed  a  portion  of  the  flank 
of  the  Army  of  the  Potomac  during  its  march  across  the 
Peninsula  to  Yorktown.  It  was  moved  to  Alexandria,  and 
was  engaged  in  the  fights  along  the  Rappahannock,  and  in 
the  battle  of  Manassas  Plains,  where  its  loss  was  great,  the 
Colonel,  William  L.  Brown,  being  among  the  killed.  On 
September  1,  1862,  the  regiment  was  severely  engaged  in 
the  battle  of  Chantilly. 

This  much  of  the  service  of  the  Twentieth  Indiana  has 
been  given  for  the  reason  that  its  history  until  October,  1862, 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  551 

was  in  part  made  by  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  Captain 
George  P.  Dick,  and  his  company  being  constantly  on  duty 
with  the  regiment.  He  was  not,  however  the  captain  of  the 
company  during  all  of  the  time.  On  August  30,  186:^,  he  was 
commissioned  as  Major  and  was  present  and  served  in  that 
capacity  until  October  23,  1862,  at  which  time  he  was  com- 
missioned as  Lieutenant  Colonel  of  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana. 
It  has  been  shown  by  the  action  of  the  Twentieth  Indi- 
ana, that  Colonel  George  F.  Dick  came  to  this  regiment  with 
a  record  of  which  any  soldier  might  well  feel  proud.  Indi- 
ana had  many  gallant  regiments.  All,  as  the  opportunity 
offered,  proved  themselves  worthy  the  State  and  worthy 
the  Nation,  but  neither  Indiana  nor  any  other  State  had  a 
better  fighting  regiment  than  was  the  Twentieth  Indiana 
from  its  first  entry  on  the  battle-field  until  it  was  finally 
mustered  out  at  the  expiration  of  the  war.  The  Eighty - 
sixth  has  felt  especially  proud  of  the  Twentieth  and  its  grand 
record  because  it  gave  to  it  an  officer  who  led  it  into  a  record 
that  for  service,  hard  work,  brilliant  fighting  and  magnifi- 
cent victories  will  compare  with  any  regiment  that  served 
during  the  war.      It  is  to  this  officer  that  the  credit  is  due. 

^October  21,  1862,  George  F.  Dick  was  commissioned  as 
Lieutenant  Colonel  of  the  Eighty-sixth  regiment,  was  mus- 
tered on  November  1  following,  and  joined  his  command 
soon  after.  He,  an  officer  thoroughly  conversant  with  the 
duties  of  a  soldier,  must  have  felt  heartsick  when  he  found 
a  regiment  without  drill,  without  discipline,  without  any- 
thing that  could  be  called  military,  save  and  except  the  fact 
that  it  had  been  mustered  into  the  service  of  the  United 
Stated.  If,  however,  he  felt  wholly  disappointed  and  dis- 
couraged, the  officers  and  men  were  most  thoroughly  pleased 
at  his  coming.  True,  he  was  then  only  the  second  officer. 
but  it  was  a  great  relief  and  assurance  to  have  one  man  at 
the  head  of  the  regiment,  who  was  an  officer.  comiK'tent  to 
command. 

No  State  secrets  are  being  divulged,  when  tlie  fact  is 
stated  that  no  one  knew  so  fully  as  Colonel  Dick  the  immense 
responsibility  he  assumed  and  the  great  burden    th:.i    was 


552  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

placed  upon  his  shoulders,  when  he  surrendered  his  commis- 
sion as  Major  of  the  Twentieth,  to  accept  the  commission  as 
Lieutenant  Colonel  of  the  Eighty-sixth.  To  those  most  con- 
versant with  the  facts  it  is  well  known  by  subsequent  events 
that  had  he  remained  with  the  Twentieth  the  honors  that 
would  have  come  to  him  would  have  been  as  great,  if  not 
greater  than  those  attained  with  the  Eighty-sixth  and  the 
Army  of  the  Cumberland.  It  was  good  fortune  to  this  regi- 
ment that  he  did  just  as  he  did. 

On  January  14,  1863,  George  F.  Dick  was  commissioned 
by  Governor  Morton  as  Colonel  of  the  regiment,  and  was 
mustered  as  such  February  9,  1863.  His  conduct  at  the  bat- 
tle of  Stone's  River  has  been  fully  detailed  in  the  chapter 
devoted  to  that  battle  and  it  is  not  necessary  to  repeat  it 
here.  Up  to  the  time  of  entering  Murfreesboro,  after  the 
battle,  the  regiment  had  had  no  instructions  that  amounted 
to  anything  like  a  thorough  regimental  drill,  for  two  reasons: 
The  first  was  that  there  had  been  no  oflficer  in  command  com- 
petent, and  the  second  was  that  from  the  date  of  its  organi- 
zation until  it  entered  Murfreesboro  and  settled  down  in 
camp,  it  had  been  so  continuously  on  the  move,  that  such 
training  was  impossible.  Yet  the  regiment  had  been  in 
proximity  to  the  battle  of  Perry ville,  and  there  had  been  no 
day  after  Perryville  until  the  last  of  December,  1862,  when 
it  was  not  expected  that  it  would  be  brought  into  an  engage- 
ment. Then  came  the  terrible  battle  of  Stone's  River,  where 
the  regiment,  although  undrilled,  and  undisciplined  in  every 
way,  was  taken  through  that  engagement  and  won  the  enco- 
miums of  the  brigade  and  division  commanders  for  its  gallant 
conduct.  That  this  is  true,  is  due  to  the  courage  and  mili- 
tary skill  of  the  commander  of  the  regiment  through  that 
fearful  "baptism  of  fire."  True  it  was,  as  heretofore  stated, 
that  the  loss  at  the  battle  of  Stone's  River  by  this  regiment 
was  appalling,  but  it  is  due  to  Colonel  Dick  to  say  that  no 
one  could  have  handled  a  regiment  of  raw  troops  better,  and 
few  could  have  done  so  well. 

It  is  not  stating  the  condition  of  affairs  too  strongly 
when  it  is  said  that  a  great  portion  of  the  Army  of  the  Cum- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  553 

berland  was  simply  armed  men.  They  were  not  soldiers. 
They  had  had  no  opportunity  for  drill,  nothing?  api)roachin«; 
careful  instructions  had  been  given,  and  no  discipline  had 
been  enforced.  Well  it  was  for  the  Army  of  the  Cumber- 
land that  the  time  had  arrived  when  all  of  these  things  could 
be  imparted.  What  were  then  termed  the  "old  regiments." 
the  regiments  that  were,  organized  in  1861.  were  but  very 
little  better  in  point  of  drill,  discipline  and  camp  and  picket 
duty  than  were  the  regiments  that  came  into  the  service  under 
the  same  call  with  the  Eighty-sixth,  and  were  through  the  bat- 
tle of  Stone's  River  getting  their  first  experience  on  a  bloody 
field.  Of  the  drill  and  discipline  which  came  so  opportunely 
at  Murfreesboro  mention  has  been  made  in  relating  the  ex- 
periences of  the  regiment  during  the  six  months'  camping  in 
and  about  that  town.  This  is  said  here  in  connection  with 
what  has  been  written  of  Colonel  Dick,  no  regiment  in  the 
camps  of  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland  had  a  more  efficient 
drill-master  than  was  he.  For  more  than  a  year  he  had  been 
in  an  army  that  had  had  for  its  commander  one  of  the  best 
organizers  and  tacticians  ever  produced  by  the  American 
army.  Drill  and  discipline  were  especial  essentials  with 
the  Army  of  the  Potomac,  with  which  Colonel  Dick  had  .seen 
service.  It  was  the  drill  and  discipline  of  that  army  under 
McClellan  that  made  it  so  effective  under  other.s  wlio  wore 
commanders  and  fighters.  Colonel  Dick  was  a  tactician,  and 
a  drill-master  who  could  impart  the  knowledge  he  had 
acquired  to  others,  and  when  the  time  came  undfu-  hijn  for 
theregi^ment  to  go  into  active  campaigns,  no  other  rcginiont 
was  better  prepared  for  the  conflict. 

Before  moving  from  Murfreesboro.  July  .").  isC):;.  Colonel 
Dick  had  been  assigned  to  the  command  of  the  Second  brig- 
ade. Third  Division.  Twenty-first  army  corps,  and  rotaintxl 
command  thereof  until  after  the  organization  of  the  Army  of 
the  Cumberland  while  at  Chattanooga,  after  the  battle  of 
Chickamauga. 

Colonel  Dick  was  a  good  regimental  commander,  and  he 
was  equally  "at  home"  in  the  position  of  brigade  comman- 
der.    Every  detail  necessary  to  the  management  and  efTec- 


554  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

tiveness  of  the  brigade  was  scrupulously  observed.  At  the 
battle  of  Chickamauga  he  and  his  brigade  were  the  very  first 
infantry  ordered  out  when  the  Confederate  forces  made  their 
first  appearance  on  September  18,  1863,  in  front  of  General 
Thomas  J.  Wood,  near  Lee  &  Gordon's  Mills.  On  the  night 
of  that  day  it  was  the  wise  and  soldierly  work  of  Colonel 
Dick  with  his  brigade,  that  in  the  night  fight  on  the  east  side 
of  the  Viniard  farm,  that  prevented  the  Confederates  from 
passing  around  the  right  of  General  Wilder's  brigade,  and 
defeated  the  plans  by  which  the  rebel  General,  Bragg,  ex- 
pected to  gain  possession  of  the  LaFayette  road,  cut  Rose- 
crans*  army  in  two,  shut  him  out  from  Chattanooga,  and 
destroy  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland  by  detail  before  that 
army  could  be  reunited.  General  Wilder  says  of  the  situation 
that  night,  that  had  it  not  been  for  timely  assistance  ren- 
dered by  Colonel  Dick  on  that  night,  the  plans  of  General 
Bragg  might  have  succeeded  and  all  would  have  been  lost. 
Through  the  battle  that  raged  again  on  the  19th  and  20th  at 
Chickamauga,  Colonel  Dick  with  his  brigade  bore  a  conspic- 
uous part.  General  VanCleve,  who  commanded  the  division 
to  which  Colonel  Dick's  brigade  was  attached,  in  his  report 
on  the  battle  of  Chickamauga,  especially  commends  him  to 
special  notice  for  good  conduct  during  this  battle. 

After  the  battle  of  Chickamauga,  the  Eighty-sixth  with 
the  Army  of  the  Cumberland,  was  besieged  in  Chattanooga. 
During  all  of  this  siege  Colonel  Dick  was  with  the  regiment 
sharing  the  hardships  and  dangers  of  that  siege.  His  larder 
was  as  illy  suj^plied  as  that  of  any  private,  but  each  day  he  was 
through  the  camp  cheering  and  encouraging  all  to  endure 
their  hardships  like  good  soldiers.  On  the  picket  line  he 
bore  his  part  when  duty  called,  never  shrinking  from  any 
service  that  was  demanded.  When  the  time  came  to  move 
out  of  the  works  and  attack  the  enemy  there  was  not  a  regi- 
ment that  received  that  order  that  formed  more  quickly  than 
did  the  Eighty-sixth. 

On  the  memorable  25th  day  of  November,  1863,  when  the 
Army  of  the  Cumberland  showed  such  an  example  of  bravery 
and  soldierly  bearing   as  never  had  been  surpassed   in  the 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  555 

world's  auuals.  Colonel  Dick  was  found  passing;  up  and 
down  his  lines  after  they  had  been  formed  for  that  wonder- 
ful charge,  encouraging  his  men.  Those  who  saw  him  that 
day  as  the  trooj^s  waited  for  the  signal  of  six  guns  from 
Orchard  Knob  will  never  forget  the  quiet  manner  of  the 
Colonel,  nor  will  it  be  forgotten  how  firm  and  clear  came  the 
words  of  his  commands  when  the  signal  was  given.  It  was 
a  '"supreme  moment'"  for  the  regiment  as  it  stood  in  line 
that  afternoon  to  the  left  of  Orchard  Knob.  It  was  a  terrible 
ordeal  through  which  officers  and  men  were  passing. 

The  morning  of  November  25,  1863,  had  opened  with  the 
guns  of  Sherman  over  on  the  left  where  he  had  made  a  cross- 
ing of  the  river,  and  was  then  charging  the  enemy  with  all 
the  terrible  rattle  and  roar  of  battle  in  the  attempt  to  turn 
Bragg \s  right  and  force  him  back  off  Missionary  Ridge, 
Hooker  on  the  right  had  forced  the  enemy  off  Lookout  moun- 
tain, and  the  din  of  his  guns  told  the  Army  of  the  Cumber- 
land as  plainly  as  words  that  he  was  being  forced  back  by 
the  right  of  the  Union  army  across  the  valley  towards  Ross- 
ville  Gap,  and  that  the  crescent  at  the  opening  of  the  battle 
on  the  23d  and  24th  was  giving  place  to  a  straight  line. 
Now  along  the  entire  front,  from  Hooker  on  the  right  down 
through  the  valley  until  Sherman  at  the  river  was  n^ached. 
came  the  rattle  and  din  of  the  skirmish  lines  of  both  ariui<'s. 
until,  at  times,  it  seemed  almost  like  volleys  from  compact 
lines  of  battle.  So  the  storm  raged,  from  dawn  \intil  thr 
lines  of  battle  of  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland  had  been 
changed  from  behind  their  works  to  the  front  of  them  pre- 
paratory to  the  charge  that  was  to  be  made  over  tlip  line  of 
rifle  pits  thick  set  on  the  narrow  plain,  and  on.  and  on  to 
where  V 

This  was  the  question  that  every  officer  and  man  u.sktKl 
himself  as  he  stood  in  that  new  line  of  battle:  and  as  the 
question  found  its  place  in  his  mind  he  looked  and  listened. 
and  as  he  listened  the  din  of  the  skirmishers  ceased,  and 
there  settled  down  on  friend  and  foe  that  awful,  that  fearful 
silence  that  precedes  the  terrible  storm  and  tornado.  As 
the  men  realized  the  stillness  and  looked,  they  almost  iumv.mI 


556  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

for  the  noise  once  more  that  they  might  not  be  able  to  look 
— for  looking — in  the  deathly  stillness,  what  did  they  of  the 
long  lines  of  blue  see?  They  saw  in  their  immediate  front 
the  most  formidable  line  of  skirmish  pits,  that  they  had  ever 
seen,  and  each  pit  was  filled  with  armed  men.  Looking 
beyond  a  little  further  at  the  foot  of  the  ridge  was  a  line  of 
earth  works,  thick  set  with  men,  men  who  it  was  well  known 
were  fully  alive  to  the  importance  of  holding  their  position. 
The  eye  then  mounting  upward  saw  at  the  summit  of  the 
Ridge,  eight  hundred  feet  higher,  the  final  line  of  battle, 
thick  set  with  artillery.  It  took  but  an  instant,  the  rapid 
glance  of  the  eye,  to  take  in  all  this  scene  and  to  realize  the 
fearful  task  to  be  performed  in  obeying  the  orders  that  had 
been  received.  Both  armies  were  for  a  moment  dazed  by  the 
spectacle  that  met  their  vision.  As  far  as  the  eye  could 
reach,  up  and  down  that  valley,  could  be  seen  two  great 
armies  standing  face  to  face  in  battle  array.  As  the  men  of 
both  sides  caught  the  view  each  seemed  for  the  mstant  to  be 
paralyzed.  The  eyes  of  the  men  of  the  Union  army  had,  in 
a  swift  glance,  swept  the  plain  and  hill  side,  resting  but  an 
instant  upon  the  battle  lines  bristling  with  armed  men  and 
cannon  at  the  crest,  then  a  glance  toward  Orchard  Knob 
from  which  was  to  come  the  signal  of  six  guns  for  the  charge, 
the  head  dropped  forward,  and  the  stillness  of  death  reigned 
over  that  portion  of  the  field.  Each  man  fully  conscious  of 
the  fact,  that  when  that  signal  should  be  given  and  the 
instant  the  charge  should  begin  hundreds  upon  hundreds 
would  fall,  to  fill  the  soldiers'  grave. 

In  this  supreme  moment  and  as  the  men  stood  with 
heads  bowed,  and  faces  blanched  in  the  presence  of  the 
gathering  storm  of  death.  Colonel  Dick  passed  along  the 
line  of  his  regiment  as  fully  alive  to  the  terrible  situation 
that  then  existed  as  any  ofticer  or  man  in  that  front  line  of 
battle,  nay  more  fully  aware  of  this  than  any  of  them,  and 
although  his  face  was  pale  through  the  tan  of  hard  service, 
his  voice  never  faltered,  and  the  tones  came  as  clear  and 
distinct  as  though  upon  dress  parade,  as  he  gave  the  final 
instructions  or  spoke  a  word  of  cheer,  and  urged  a  faithful 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  5ii7 

discharge  of  duty,  and  here  and  there  he  grasped  the  hand 
of  an  officer  and  the  hands  clasped  tightly  in  a  friendship 
that  is  born  only  of  the  battle-field,  but  no  word  was  slacken, 
only  a  clasp  of  the  hand,  a  look  into  the  eyes,  and  the  hands 
were  loosed,  but  to  the  day  of  death  will  that  touch  remain. 
To  the  right  of  the  Eighty-sixth  stood  the  Seventy -nintli 
Indiana  Regiment,  the  two  regiments  being  consolidated, 
and  forming  the  front  or  charging  line  of  the  brigade,  both 
regiments  as  consolidated  being  under  the  command  of  Col- 
onel Fred  Knefler  of  the  Seventy -ninth,  he  being  the  senior 
officer,  and  therefore  entitled  to  the  position,  but  Colonel 
Dick  had  the  immediate  command  of  the  Eighty-sixth. 
These  two  regiments  stood  at  an  order  waiting  for  the  signal, 
and  yet  almost  unconscious  of  all  that  surrounded  them.  The 
period  of  waiting  was  not  of  long  duration  as  counted  by  tlie 
minutes  of  the  clock,  but  to  those  who  had  the  care  and 
responsibility  of  commands,  whether  of  company  or  regi- 
ment, the  minutes  seemed  to  have  grown  into  hours,  so  ter- 
rible was  the  suspense  in  connection  with  the  full  realization 
of  the  fury  of  that  storm  of  battle  that  was  soon  to  break. 
Now  comes  the  first  shot  of  the  six  guns  that  are  to  be  the 
signal  for  the  charge,  and  with  the  sound  of  that  gun  that 
long  line  of  men  in  blue  were  aroused  like  one  who  is  startled 
out  of  a  dream.  All  eyes  were  turned  toward  and  over  tlie 
plain  and  from  the  foot  of  the  Ridge  to  the  battle  line  at  its 
summit.  As  the  third  and  remaining  shots  of  the  signal 
rang  in  quick  succession,  as  quickly  were  the  men  nerved 
for  that  charge  which  shall  go  down  into  history  as  the  most' 
brilliant  charge  of  ancient  or  modern  warfare.  Wlu-n  the 
final  shot  of  the  signal  was  to  have  come  the  men  liad  caught 
the  cadence  of  the  shots,  and  although  the  primer  exj^lmled 
the  gun  was  not  discharged,  but  at  that  instant  the  voico  of 
Colonel  Dick  rang  out  clear  and  strong  in  the  beginning  of 
the  command,  but  he  had  only  pronounced  the  word  •'For- 
ward," when  the  remainder  of  the  command  was  lost  in  the 
shouts  of  the  men  as  they  started  on  the  run  for  the  enemy's 
works.  Then  as  that  shout  went  up  there  came  from  the 
line  in  the  plain,  the  line  at  the  foot  of  the  Ridge  and  down 


558  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

from  that  topmost  line  on  the  crest  of  the  Ridge,  which  had 
been  so  quiet,  the  concentrated  fire,  of  musketry  and  artil- 
lery, the  pent  up  flood-gates  of  death  thrown  wide  open. 
Men  fell  about  wounded,  mangled  and  killed.  Great  gaps 
were  made  in  the  lines,  yet  onward,  with  cheer  upon  cheer, 
went  the  charging  column,  Colonels  Dick  and  Knefler,  each 
cheering  and  encouraging  the  men,  as  onward  they  pushed 
through  the  storm  of  leaden  hail. 

The  men  of  the  two  regiments  vied  each  with  the  other 
which  should  first  reach  the  works  of  the  enemy,  as  side  by 
side  they  crossed  the  works  in  the  plain  and  again  at  the 
foot  of  the  Ridge.  There  was  no  halt  but  renewing,  their 
cheers,  onward  and  upward  they  started  for  the  line  of 
works  at  the  tojj.  On  and  on,  upward  and  yet  higher,  offi- 
cers and  men,  each  and  all  cheering  and  repeating  the  com- 
mands of  the  Colonels,  "Forward!  Forward!"  until  at  last 
close  up  to  the  works,  under  the  guns  of  the  foe,  these  two 
regiments  alone,  far  in  advance  of  the  lines  to  the  right  and 
left,  the  only  portion  of  that  long  line  that  had  started  in  the 
charge,  that  had  not  been  compelled  to  halt  or  turn  back, 
now  halted,  and  laid  down  to  gather  strength  and  recover 
breath  for  the  final  and  desperate  contest  for  possession  of 
the  last  line  of  works.  These  men,  lying  close  under  the 
guns  of  the  Confederates,  coukl  only  send  a  quick  glance 
down  the  way  by  which  they  had  climbed  through  a  storm 
of  death  to  where  they  then  lay,  and  in  that  quick  glance 
they  caught  a  glimpse  of  the  lines  of  the  reserves  that  were 
coming  over  the  plain,  and  could  see  the  troops  of  the  right 
and  left  of  their  line,  fighting  their  way  on  up  toward  their 
places  on  the  right  and  left  of  the  Seventy-ninth  and  Eighty- 
sixth  Indiana. 

By  the  time  these  advancing  lines  were  in  supporting 
distance  the  two  Indiana  regiments  that  had  outstrijjped 
their  comrades,  became  restless  lest  they  should  have  the 
credit  they  had  thus  fai*  earned,  taken  by  some  other,  and 
that  they  should  not  continue  to  lead  to  the  finish.  Once 
more  the  command  rang  out  to  the  Seventy-ninth  and  Eighty- 
sixth,     "Fix,   bayonets!    Forward!  Charge,  bayonets!"  and 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  559 

almost  as  quickly  as  the  command  was  given,  the  men  were 
on  their  feet  and  did  not  again  halt  or  look  back  until  the 
works  were  reached  and  gained,  and  the  stars  and  stripes  of 
these  two  Indiana  regiments,  riddled  and  torn  by  shot  and 
shell,  were  planted  on  the  enemy's  works,  and  the  enemj-  in 
their  front  was  fleeing  from  the  field.  The  lines  on  the  right 
and  left  pressed  on  in  their  positions  close  after  the  regiments 
of  Knefler  and  Dick,  and  the  orders  given  before  the  troops 
moved  ont  from  their  works  were  obeyed,  and  the  victory 
was  won. 

Brigadier  General  Samuel  Beatty  in  his  report  of  the 
battle  of  Missionary  Ridge,  in  speaking  of  the  regiment 
among  others,  says  of  the  Commander: 

In  recounting  the  operations  of  my  command  in  the  advancing  of  the 
lines  of  the  23d,  and  the  charging  of  Missionary  Ridge  on  the  2oth,  I 
have  to  compliment  Colonel  Fred  Knefler,  Colonel  George  F.  Dick  •  • 
*  for  the  discipline  and  efficiency  of  their  troops,  and  for  the  gallant 
style  with  which  each  vied  with  the  other  in  doing  their  utmost  to 
secure  a  victory  to  our  arms.  The  advance  of  the  Seventy-ninth  and 
Eighty-sixth  Indiana  was  strongly  resisted  by  the  enemy,  but  led  by 
their  gallant  Commanders,  and  supported  by  the  advance  of  the  Thir- 
teenth and^Fifty-niuth  Ohio  regiments  in  splendid  style,  succeeded  in 
first  planting  the  National  flag  on  the  rebel  works  at  the  summit  of 
Missionary  Ridge." 

Colonel  Knefler,  in  his  report  of  the  battle.  Missionary 
Ridge,  says: 

"I  cannot  close  this  without  making  my  acknowledgements  and 
thanking  Colonel  George  F.  Dick,  of  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  Volun- 
teers, for  the  valuable  assistance  rendered  me  in  commanding  the  two 
regiments  while  consolidated  during  the  battle  and  from  the  time  wo 
left  our  camp." 

The  foregoing  has  been  written  in  connection  with  tlie 
sketch  of  Colonel  Dick,  because  under  his  command  at  thi.s 
battle,  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  enrolled  its  name  in  the 
annals  of  the  Nation  in  letters  of  glory  and  liglit  tliat  shall 
never  grow  dim.  In  this  battle  more  than  all  others,  this 
regiment  glories  and  is  justly  proud.  It  was  one  of  tlie  five 
decisive  battles  of  the  greatest  war  of  modern  times.  In  this 
great  battle,  in  the  most  magnificent  and  brilliant  charge  in 
all  the  world's  history,  this  regiment  was  in  the  front  line, 


560  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 

and  with  the  Seventy -ninth,  led  the  charge  of  the  grandest 
army  of  citizen  soldiers  that  was  ever  brought  together.  It 
led  on  that  day,  in  the  sight  of  all  there  gathered,  to  a  vic- 
tory that  could  not  be  disputed,  and  it  led  wath  a  gallantry 
that  could  not  be  gainsaid  or  doubted.  It  wrote  its  record 
that  day  for  all  time  before  the  eyes  and  in  sight  of  the 
heroes  of  the  Nineteenth  Century. 

For  another  reason  has  so  much  been  said  of  the  battle 
of  Missionary  Ridge.  The  men  of  this  regiment  might  have 
been  returned  home  at  the  close  of  the  war,  as  they  did,  but 
they  might  have  come  home  without  the  honor  that  now 
clusters  about  the  name  of  this  regiment  for  having  led  in 
the  charge  on  Missionary  Ridge  had  it  not  been  for  the  per- 
sonal interest  that  Colonel  George  F.  Dick  took  in  building 
up  its  name  in  those  matters  which  bring  honor  and  renown, 
and  which  make  every  man  w'ho  ever  marched  after  its  drum 
beat,  or  with  its  flag,  feel  proud  of  the  fact,  and  count  it  as 
an  honorable  distinction.  Had  it  not  been  for  the  earnest 
stand  taken  by  Colonel  Dick,  and  his  most  strenuous,  but 
respectful  opposition, this  regiment  would  have  been  assigned 
to  duty  as  provost  guards.  Had  this  been  done,  although  it 
might  have  been  a  life  of  great  ease  as  compared  with  the 
service  that  was  rendered,  yet  it  would  have  been  an  inglor- 
ious soldier  record  after  it  was  all  over,  and  every  man  would 
have  regretted  it  so  long  as  life  remained.  Colonel  Dick 
believed,  and  rightly,  that  the  place  for  this  regiment  was  in 
the  front,  and  he  complimented  every  officer  and  member  of 
the  regiment  when  he  gave  it  credit  for  being  a  fighting  reg- 
iment, and  insisted  that  it  be  permitted  to  remain  in  active 
work  with  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland. 

It  is  not  the  purpose  of  the  authors  of  this  book  to  go 
into  full  details  of  each  battle  in  which  the  regiment  was 
commanded  by  Colonel  Dick,  and  shall  only  cursorily  men- 
tion the  facts.  After  the  battle  of  Missionary  Ridge  Colonel 
Dick  was  with  and  in  command  of  his  regiment  through  all 
the  long  and  tedious  marches  which  followed,  from  Chatta- 
nooga to  Kuoxville  to  the  relief  of  Burnside  then  besieged 
by  Longstreet,   and  then  to  Strawberry  Plains,    and  Dan- 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  561 

dridge  and  back  again  to  Strawberry  Plains,  thence  to  Mary- 
ville,  and  from  there  again  back  over  the  same  route  to  New 
Market,  Greenville  and  so  through  that  entire  winter  of 
hard  marching  and  hard  service,  until  in  the  latter  part  of 
April  1804,  the  regiment  and  corps  rejoined  the  army  near 
Cleveland,  Tennessee,  preparatory  to  entering  upon  the 
Atlanta  campaign.  During  all  of  the  hardships  of  the  East 
Tennessee  campaign,  through  snow,  and  ice,  and  mud.  and 
rain,  Colonel  Dick  shared  with  the  men  of  his  command 
their  trials,  privations  and  hardships. 

Entering  upon  the  Atlanta  camiDaign  on  May  7,  1&G4,  he 
was  always  ready  for  duty,  and  was  with  his  regiment  day 
and  night  until  on  the  27th  of  May,  1864,  in  the  battle  of 
Pickett's  Mills,  Georgia,  he  received  a  severe  llesh  wound  in 
the  hip  from  a  piece  of  shell,  and  was  carried  to  the  hosj)ilal. 
A  leave  of  absence  was  granted  him  for  thirty  days  and  at 
the  close  of  the  period,  although  yet  suffering  from  the 
wound,  he  was  again  at  the  head  of  his  regiment  for  duty. 

On  through  the  Atlanta  campaign  to  its  close  he  was 
present  every  day  taking  his  part  in  every  engagement. 
Back  through  Georgia  and  Alabama  into  Tennessee,  when 
the  Confederate  General  Hood  moved  around  the  flank  of 
Sherman's  army — in  the  battles  of  Columbia.  Spring  Hill, 
and  Franklin,  and  again  at  the  glorious  battle  of  Na.shville. 
taking  part  in  the  overthrow,  and  annihilation  of  Hood's 
army,  his  voice  was  heard  in  command  of  the  regiment. 

From  Nashville  to  Huntsville,  Alabama,  in  the  pursuit 
of  the  broken  and  scattered  remnant  of  the  Conftnlerate 
army,  he  rejoiced  with  his  command  in  the  final  destruction 
of  an  army  before  which  the  regiment  had  stood  in  battle 
array,  and  had  fought  on  every  field  from  the  Ohio  river  to 
Lovejoy's.  Georgia,  covering  a  period  of  over  two  years. 
Then  again  into  East  Tennessee  from  Huntsville  with  the 
Fourth  army  corps,  ready  to  co-operate  with  Grant's  army. 
in  the  final  issues  of  the  war. 

During  all  of  this  time,  let  it  be  said  to  the  credit  of  the 
Eighty-sixth  Indiana  regiment,  its  Colonel  had  never  been 
rebuked  for  failure  to  perform  his  duty,  but  on  the  contrary, 


562  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

had  been  complimented  by  his  superior  officers  for  his  faith- 
fulness and  efficiency.  Not  only  Colonel  Dick,  but  the  regi- 
ment, and  each  company  and  member  of  the  regiment, 
shared  in  the  honor  that  was  given  to  him.  Honoring  him, 
was  and  is  honoring  the  regiment.  Let  the  comrades  of  the 
Eighty-sixth  Indiana  look  back  over  each  and  every  event  in 
the  regiment  from  the  time  that  Colonel  George  P.  Dick 
took  command,  until  the  day  the  regiment  was  mustered  out 
at  the  close  of  the  war,  and  there  is  not  one  single  incident, 
great  or  small,  connected  with  his  commandership  for  which 
any  member  of  the  regiment  need  blush  or  apologize.  On 
the  contrary  all  may  justly  feel  proud  that  they  were  mem- 
bers of  a  regiment  under  such  leadership.  On  March  13, 
1865,  in  recognition  of  his  services,  he  was  brevetted  a  Brig- 
adier General  by  Congress. 

Thus  far  mention  has  been  made  of  Colonel  Dick  as  a 
military  man,  and  commander  only.  A  few  words  of  him  as 
a  man  and  a  citizen,  and  the  pleasant  duty  is  done.  If  Col- 
onel Dick  was  a  thorough  and  efficient  officer  in  the  field,  he 
was  at  the  same  time  a  conscientious  and  upright  man.  Now 
and  then  charges  were  made  against  other  officers,  that 
whether  true  in  the  whole  or  in  part,  did  not  bring  credit  to 
those  officers,  either  as  officers  or  men.  But  during  his 
whole  term  of  service  there  was  never  anything  discreditable 
charged  against  him.  There  was  never  by  himself  or  on  the 
part  of  any  connected  with  his  headquarters  at  any  time  or 
place,  any  intoxication  or  excess.  He  was  always  the 
courteous  gentleman,  as  well  as  the  thorough  officer. 

At  the  close  of  the  war,  wearing  not  only  the  honors  of 
a  Colonel,  but  of  Brevet  Brigadier  General,  he  laid  aside  his 
sword  and  took  up  the  peaceful  pursuits  of  a  private  citizen. 
Much  to  the  regret  of  his  friends  and  comrades  of  Indiana, 
he  removed  his  residence  to  Bloomington,  Illinois,  and  has 
resided  there  ever  since.  In  April.  1873,  he  was  appointed 
Postmaster  of  Bloomington  by  President  Grant,  and  held 
the  j)osition  by  reappointment  for  twelve  years,  or  three  full 
terms.  During  all  of  these-  twelve  years  in  office  his  record 
for  the  faithful  performance  of  duty  was,   as  it  had  been  in 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  563 

the  army,  beyond  all  possibility  of  censure,   complete  and 
thorough. 

After  retiring  from  the  position  of  Postmaster  he  engaged 
in  business  pursuits,  and  has  been  honored  and  respected  by 
all  who  have  known  him.  He  has  been,  since  the  formation 
of  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  Regimental  Association,  the 
President  of  the  Association,  and  has  shown  his  love  and 
api3reciation  for  his  former  comj^anions  in  arms  by  being 
present  at  each  and  every  annual  meeting. 

If  any  one  could  possibly  have  a  doubt  as  to  the  warm 
attachment  that  is  felt  for  Colonel  Dick  by  survivors  of  the 
regiment,  it  would  need  but  a  glance  into  one  of  the  reunions 
of  the  regiment  to  have  such  doubt  removed. 

Colonel  Dick's  domestic  relations  were  none  tlie  less 
happy  than  the  ties  that  existed  between  him  and  his  njili- 
tary  family.  He  was  married  July  14,  1853,  to  Miss  Anna 
Mayers,  atlCincinnati,  a  woman  of  superior  Christian  virtues, 
and  whose  life  abounded  in  deeds  of  kindness,  charity  and 
affection.  To  them  nine  children  were  born,  eight  of  whom 
died  in  infancy.  Mrs.  Dick  died  November  30,  187b.  In  all 
his  bereavements  Colonel  Dick  was  the  same  true  man  and 
bore  them  in  quiet  resignation.  In  more  recent  years  he  was 
married  to  Mrs.  Emma  Kimball,  and  the  afternoon  of  his  life 
is  being  spent  in  that  rest  which  comes  to  the  deserving. 

The  years  are  creeping  on  toward  old  age,  but  the  lieart 
of  Colonel  Dick  beats  as  strongly  as  ever  in  love  for  the  men 
of  his  command  who  followed  the  flag  in  its  campaigns  and 
battles,  and  his  sympathies  will  ever  flow  to  those  who  boar 
the  scars  won  in  honorable  warfare,  and  with  each  Memorial 
day,  bright,  yet  sad,  with  its  garlands  of  roses,  he  remem- 
bers those  whose  life  went  out  under  the  folds  of  the  flag 
that  the  Nation  might  live. 

In  the  long  list  of  those  faithful  soldiers  of  the  Nation 
in  her  hour  of  peril,  none  deserve  a  higher  place  than 
George  Frederick  Dick,  Colonel  Eighty-sixth  Indiana 
Regiment. 


^g^  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

ORVILLE  S.  HAMILTON. 

In  the  opening  chapters  of  this  history,  in  the  account  of 
the   organization,  the   fact  was   mentioned  that  Or  vile  b 
Hamilton  was  commissioned  as  Colonel.     Those  who  had  had 
practical  experience  in  the  army,  doing  actual  service,  were 
not  long  in  learning  that  there  were  offtcers  and  there  were 
officers      Much  has  been  said  by  political  demagogues  m  deris- 
ion and  attempted  defamation  of  officers  of  the  army,  yet  to 
all  who  were  good  soldiers  this  vituperation  has  mjured  the 
speaker  rather  than  the  parties  sought  to  be  injured.    There 
were  those,  however,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  who  were  commis- 
sioned as  officers  and  sent  to  the  field,  who,  for  various  rea- 
sons should  never  have  been  selected  for  the  positions  which 
they  were  not  able  to  fill.     It  does  not  necessarily  follow 
that  these  were  bad  men,  nor  that  they  were  not  sincerely 
patriotic.     In  many  instances  they  lacked  simply  the  ability 
to  learn  military  principles  and  failed  utterly  to  master  the 
drill,  or  were  unable  to  impart  their  knowledge  to  those 

under  them.  _  t  i.    i 

Every  experienced  soldier,  whether  officer  or  enlisted 
man     will   very    readily  concede  that  wherever  he  met    a. 
company  he  could  readily  tell  by  the  appearance  of  the  organ- 
ization whether  or  not  it  was  well  officered.     True,  it  was 
and  ever  will  be,  that  no  one  could  be  an  officer  without  men, 
and  it  was  equally  true  that  no  men  could  be  good,  reliable 
soldiers  without  thoroughly  competent  and  reliable  company 
officers.     The  men   by   their  numbers  gave  the  officer  the 
opportunity  to  receive  his  commission,  but  the  officer  made 
the  thoroughly  efficient  soldier.       Take  men  in  the  mass, 
undrilled  and  undisciplined,  and  mankind,  whether  m  bodies 
of  a  hundred  or  of  thousands,  are  not  dissimilar  m  the  quali- 
ties  necessary  for  good  soldiers.     Companies  did  effective 
work  and  won  the  name  of  brave  soldiers  because  of  this 
training  and  for  the  reason  they  had  confidence  in  the  man 
or  men  who  commanded  them.     If  this  proposition  be  true 
in  regard  to  the  company,  then  it  is  true  in  more  than  a  ten 
fold  ratio  when  applied  to  the  regiment.     In  all  the  history 
of  the  war  the  instance  can  scarcely  be  found  where  the 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  565 

enlisted  man,  if  he  was  a  good  soldier,  found  fault  or  com- 
plained of  discipline  or  drill  when  he  knew  that  his  comman- 
der was  competent  on  the  drill  ground,  and  brave,  watchful 
and  intelligent  as  to  his  duties  when  on  the  field  in  action. 
It  was  necessary,  however,  that  all  of  these  soldierly  quali- 
ties, courage,  firmness,  and  military  knowledge  should  be 
combined  in  the  man  to  make  the  officer.  It  did  not  take 
even  the  unpracticed  eye  of  the  newly  organized  Eighty - 
sixth  Indiana  very  long  to  realize  that,  although  a  commis- 
sion as  Colonel  had  been  issued  to  a  man  for  that  otlice. 
there  was  in  fact  no  Colonel.  There  was  a  nominal  comman- 
der only. 

The  story  of  the  displacement  of  Colonel  Hamilton  in 
command  of  the  regiment  has  never  been  told  or  printed. 
The  special  matters  that  led  to  the  relievement  of  Colonel 
Hamilton  at  Stone's  River  and  placing  Colonel  Dick  in  com- 
mand were'  then  unknown  and  unsuspected  by  either.  It  is 
not  believed  that  Colonel  Hamilton  up  to  the  day  of  his 
death  knew  of  the  manner  in  which  it  was  brought  about. 
There  w^ere  a  number  of  line  officers  present  that  morning 
who  were  not  taken  by  surprise  when  the  change  came. 
There  are  but  a  very  few  of  the  number  alive  to-day  who 
were  in  the  secret,  but  the  time  that  has  elapsed  since  that 
memorable  day  has  removed  the  pledge  of  absolute  secrecy 
then  given  from  the  lips  of  the  few  who  remain.  Tliero  was 
no  mutiny,  nor  conspiracy  to  do  a  wrong,  but  the  Ix'liof  that 
the  time  to  demand  a  change  in  the  commandorshii)  of  the 
regiment  had  crystalized  into  quiet  action  on  the  part  of 
quite  a  number  of  the  officers.  Every  officer  was  fully  con- 
vinced that  a  great  battle  was  at  hand.  Bragg  had  boon 
driven  down  from  the  Ohio  river  through  Kentucky  ami  into 
Tennessee,  and  had  taken  his  position  on  ground  of  his  own 
choosing  to  give  Rosecrans  battle.  It  did  not  require  a 
great  military  genius,  to  realize  this  fact,  and  that  the  batth^ 
would  be  hotly  contested.  Colonel  Hamilton  could  not  handle 
the  regment.  It  was  believed  that  Colonel  Dick  could.  The 
name  of  the  regiment  and  the  lives  of  the  men  were  at  stake. 
But  little  was  knowm  of  the  articles  of  war.  although  all 


566  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

realized  that  care  must  be  taken.  The  phm  was  arranged 
secretly.  It  was  decided  to  go  to  General  VanCleve,  who 
was  then  commanding  the  division  of  which  the  regiment 
formed  a  part,  lay  the  facts  before  him,  ask  him  to  remove 
Colonel  Hamilton  in  some  way,  and  place  Colonel  Dick  in 
command.  In  conformity  with  these  plans,  before  daylight 
of  the  morning  of  the  opening  of  the  battle  these  officers 
quietly  assembled  just  outside  of  the  bivouac  of  the  regiment, 
and  started  for  General  VanCleve 's  headquarters  not  far  dis- 
tant. On  the  way,  for  some  reason  best  known  to  the  older 
heads,  the  youngest  officer  in  years  and  as  an  officer,  was 
selected  to  present  the  case  to  the  General.  On  arrival  at 
the  General's  tent  it  was  found  that  he  was  already  up  and 
dressed  for  the  duties  of  the  day.  The  sentinel  at  the  head- 
quarters challenged  as  they  approached.  The  countersign 
was  given,  and  as  they  reached  the  tent  the  old  General 
stepped  out,  and  in  his  kindly  manner  asked  the  cause  of  the 
visitation.  The  officer  selected  to  speak  stepped  forward 
and  began  his  statement,  but  he  only  succeeded  in  uttering 
the  first  sentence  which  sufficiently  disclosed  the  purport  of 
the  visit,  when  he  interrupted  and  stopped  any  further 
words  by  saying,  "Not  another  word,  gentlemen,  not  another 
.word.  You  certainly  do  not  realize  the  dangerous  position 
in  which  you  are  placing  yourselves.  Go  back  to  your  regi- 
ment, go  at  once."  Crest  fallen  and  sick  at  heart  these 
officers  started  to  return.  After  they  had  gone  but  a  few 
steps  an  orderly  came  hurrying  up  and  said  the  General 
wished  to  see  the  spokesman  of  the  party.  This  officer  on 
returning  was  told  by  the  General  that  he  would  look  after 
the  interest  of  the  regiment,  that  all  would  turn  out  for  the 
best,  and  that  he  would  be  along  the  line  at  daylight.  At 
daybreak  the  entire  army  was  formed  in  line  of  battle,  and  so 
stood  in  line  until  after  daylight,  when  it  was  discovered  that 
General  VanCleve,  with  his  Assistant  Adjutant  General,  were 
coming  down  the  line  and  stopping  at  the  different  regiments 
when  some  command  would  be  given,  the  movement  executed 
and  then  resume  its  position  in  line  as  before.  As  it  came  nearer 
it  could  be  better  understood.    The  Colonel  of  each  regiment 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  567 

as  he  was  reached  was  directed  to  give  some  certain  com- 
mand, this  command  being  changed.  The  explanation  of  the 
movement  was  required  to  be  given  before  the  men  were 
permitted  to  attempt  the  execution.  General  VanCleave 
and  the  brigade  commander,  Colonel  Fyffe,  finally  reached 
the  Eighty -sixth  Indiana,  when  he  stated  to  Colonel  Hamil- 
ton that  he  was  testing  his  regiment  so  that  he  might  be 
satisfied  that  the  officers  and  men  could  change  their  forma- 
tion, if  it  should  be  necessary,  in  action.  He  then  said: 
"Colonel,  you  will  'Change  front  forward  on  first  company.' 
Give  the  commands.  But  before  your  regiment  undertakes 
to  execute  the  movement  explain  it  fully  so  that  there  can 
be  no  mistake.  Now  give  the  command:  '  Change  front  for- 
ward on  firpt  company. '  Give  the  instructions  as  I  have 
directed. "  Colonel  Hamilton  gave  the  command  as  directed, 
but  there  he  stopped.  Then  was  heard  the  voice  of  the  old 
General:  "Instruct  your  regiment,  Colonel.  They  are  new 
men.  Instruct  them.  Colonel."  Again  the  Colonel  gave 
the  command,  "Change  front  forward  on  first  company." 
And  again  he  stopped  more  confused  than  before.  Again 
came  the  words  of  the  General,  "Instruct  your  men;  instruct 
your  men.  "  The  third  time  the  Colonel  gave  the  command. 
but  this  time  he  was  excited  and  confused  beyond  measure. 
and  the  sharp  tones  struck  his  ears:  "Colonel,  you  must 
obey  my  orders;  instruct  your  men  how  to  execute  the  move- 
ment." The  Colonel  broke  down  completely,  called  in  a  con- 
fused and  utterly  dazed  manner  for  the  Lieutenant  Colonel. 
and  unbuckling  his  sword  belt  turned  on  his  horse,  gave  the 
sword  to  the  Assistant  Adjutant  General,  dismounted,  and 
the  command  of  the  regiment  then  by  order  of  tlie  General 
devolved  upon  the  then  Lieutenant  Colonel  Dick. 

In  what  has  been  said  of  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana  regi- 
ment and  its  first  Colonel,  all  intention  to  cast  any  reflection 
upon  the  bravery  or  honesty  of  purpose  of  Colonel  Orville 
S.  Hamilton  is  most  emphatically  disavowed.  No  one  who 
knew  Colonel  Hamilton  ever  doubted  either  his  bravery  or 
his  earnest  desire  to  do  all  within  his  power,  both  as  a  man 
and  an  officer,  to  make  his  regiment  all  that  it  should  have 


568  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

been.  More  than  this,  the  writer,  from  personal  intercourse 
with  him,  was  led  to  believe,  and  now  believes,  that  Colonel 
Hamilton  was  of  that  proud  disposition  that  led  him  to  wish 
for  the  very  highest  position  for  the  regiment  that  it  was 
possible  for  any  body  of  troops  to  attain.  The  only  trouble 
with  him  was  that  there  was  no  military  genius  of  any  kind 
in  his  make-up.  He  was  a  man  of  good  strong  mind,  and 
reputed  to  be  a  good  lawyer,  but  not  one  particle  of  that 
strength  of  mind  was  in  a  military  direction.  His  mind  and 
memory  were  sufficiently  strong  to  memorize  the  tactics,  but 
he  could  not  understand  why  a  military  command  was  given 
in  a  set  form,  nor  could  he  realize  that  there  was  a  reason 
for  every  movement  in  the  tactics,  and  therefore  could  not 
put  any  of  his  memorized  tactics  into  practical  use.  He  could 
give  a  command  which  he  received,  but  could  not  call  from 
the  store  house  of  his  memory  the  manner  of  executing  the 
command  when  given  so  as  to  make  the  manner  of  its  execu- 
tion understood  by  the  new  officers  of  his  regiment  so  that 
they  could  execute,  or  cause  to  be  executed,  the  movement 
for  which  the  command  had  been  given.  As  has  been  stated, 
Colonel  Hamilton  was  a  brave  man,  and  all  soldiers  agree 
that  bravery  in  an  officer  in  the  face  of  the  enemy  covers  a 
multitude  of  short  comings.  At  the  battle  of  Perryville, 
alone  in  command  of  his  regiment,  in  so  far  as  the  other  field 
officers  of  the  regiment  were  concerned,  himself  a  new  officer 
wholly  without  experience,  and  with  a  regiment  in  which 
both  officers  and  men  as  a  whole,  were  equally  ignorant  of 
their  duties,  and  the  manner  in  wiiich  those  duties  were  to 
be  performed,  yet  he  never  for  an  instant  faltered  in  his 
efforts  to  do  all  he  could,  and  for  the  sake  of  his  regiment 
did  not  hesitate  to  ask  assistance,  even  from  one  who  did  not 
hold  a  commission,  in  the  formation  of  his  line  of  battle,  and 
then  waited  as  calmly  as  the  most  perfect  tactician  and  vet- 
eran, for  the  "shock  of  battle"  which  all  believed  was  to  come. 
Afterward  at  the  battle  of  Stone's  River,  when  he  had 
been  relieved  from  the  command  of  his  regiment,  not  because 
of  any  violation  of  orders,  nor  yet  because  of  any  attempt  to 
shirk  his  duty,   for  he  was  in  his  place  ready  to  do  to  the 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  560 

extent  of  his  ability,  but  relieved  because  he  could  not  by 
reason  of  his  non  military  mind  apply  military  principles  to 
the  absolute  needs  of  the  occasion.  But  when  relieved  and 
entirely  free  to  withdraw  from  the  terrible  battle  that  was 
then  opening,  and  which  so  soon  afterward  struck  his  regi- 
ment with  such  terrible  and  deadly  effect,  instead  of  leaving 
the  field,  dismounted  from  his  horse,  sent  the  horse  to  the 
rear,  and  then  securing  a  gun  and  cartridge  box  took  a  i)laco 
with  the  men  of  his  regiment  and  remained  through  the 
whole  of  the  battle  doing  duty  in  the  ranks  as  though  he 
were  an  enlisted  man.  It  is  due  to  the  honor  of  Colonel 
Hamilton,  it  is  due  to  the  honor  and  magnificent  record  of 
the  Eighty-sixth  Regiment  of  Indiana  in  the  War  of  the 
Rebellion,  t*hat  the  bravenj  of  Colonel  Orville  S.  Hamilton 
should  be  chronicled  with  the  history  of  the  regiment.  The 
fault  should  not  be  laid  at  his  door  that  he  was  not  a  military 
man  by  nature,  and  he  should  not  be  censured  becau.se  ho 
could  not  become  a  military  commander.  The  days  of  our 
battles  are  over,  many,  very  many  of  our  comrades  sleep  the 
soldiers'  sleep  on  the  fields  they  helped  to  make  glorious, 
many  more  of  them  have  answered  the  "last  roll  call"  since 
"white  winged  peace"  has  come  to  our  land,  and  wo  who 
write,  and  they  who  shall  read  that  which  is  written,  should 
ever  give  the  credit  which  is  due  to  every  soldier  who  stood 
with  us  in  those  troublous  and  stormy  days.  Colonel 
Hamilton  sleeps  peacefully  now  in 

—"that  low  procii  ti-nl 

Wliose  curtain  never  outward  swlnjfs." 

And  let  us  all  say,  as  we  can  truthfully  say.  ho  was  a  brair. 
courageous,  and  patriotic  man. 


COMRADES  KNOWN  IN  MARCHES  MANY 


Comrades  known  in  marches  many 
Comrades  tried  in  dangers  many, 
Comrades  bound  by  memories  many, 

Brothers  ever  let  us  be. 
Wounds  or  sickness  may  divide  us. 
Marching  orders  may  divide  us, 
But  whatever  fate  betide  us. 

Brothers  of  tlie  lieart  are  we. 

Comrades  known  by  faith  the  clearest, 
Tried  M^hen  death  was  near  and  nearest. 
Bound  we  are  by  ties  the  dearest. 

Brothers  evermore  to  be. 
And,  if  spared,  and  growing  older, 
Shoulder  still  in  line  with  shoulder. 
And  with  hearts  no  thrill  the  colder. 

Brothers  ever  we  shall  be. 

By  commui:iion  of  the  banner — 
Crimson,  white,  and  starry  banner — 
By  the  baptism  of  the  banner, 

Children  of  one  church  are  we. 
Creed  nor  faction  can  divide  us, 
Race  nor  language  can  divide  us; 
Still  whatever  fate  betide  us, 

Children  of  the  Flag  are  we. 

Charles  G.  Halpine. 


ROSTE  R 

\ 


Officers  and  Enlisted  Men 


EIQHTY=SIXTH  INDIANA. 


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EIQHTY=SIXTH  REGIHENT. 

THREE  YEARS'  SERVICE. 


EEGIMEN^TAL  NON-COMMISSIONED  STAFF. 


Name  and  Rank. 


Sergeant  Major. 

Olive,  David  H 

McCain,  Tlios.  H.  B  . 
Adair,  Irwin  M 

Q.  M.  Sergeant. 
Spilman.  Kobort  B.. 
SatLT,  Aaron  II 

Commissary  Sergeant 
Underwood,  Robert. 
Hixon,  Walter  B 

Prmcipal  Musicians. 

Bennett,  John  S 

Hammell,  Nathan ... 


Residence. 


Lebanon 

Thorutown  

Thorntown  

CrawfordsA'ille 
Mt.  Pleasant... 

Oxford 

Williamsport . 

Prairie  Edge... 
Stockwell 


Date  of 
Muster. 


Sept.  7,'62 
Nov.  4,'63 
Sept.  3, '64 


Sept.  4,  '62 
Sept.  1,  '64 


Sept.  4,  '62 
Aug.  1,  '64 


Sept.  4, '62 
Sept.  4,  '62 


Rem.\rks. 


Promoted  First  Lleuteiiiint  Co.  H. 
Promoted  First  Lieutenant  Co.  1. 
Mustered  out  with  Regiment. 


Promoted  Captain  Co.  K. 
Mustered  out  with  Keglniont. 

Promoted  Quartermaster. 
Mustered  out  with  Hcginn'nl. 


Mustered  out  with  lieglment. 
Mustered  out  with  Keglmont. 


ENLISTED  MEN  OF  COMPANY  A. 


Name  and  Rank. 


First  Sej-ycant. 
Sttith,  George  W 

Sergeants. 

Gorham,  Perry  T 

Clark,  Henry 

Kelso,  William 

Myers,  Robert  W... 

Cormn-als. 
Coombs,  William  E  . 

Abnoy,  Rilen  T 

llainilton,  Thomas  A 
]l;ii(lesty,   Vinson  II 
Hi'sUt.  "Thomas  S 
W(,n-,.U.   Floyd  X 
Hysuiiu-.  Sti'ijlicn  (' 
Myers,  Daniel 


Residence. 


Northern  Depot 


Indianapolis 

Northern  Depot 

Thorntown 

Kirks  X  Koads 


Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Lelianon 

Reese's  Mills... 

Eliza  ville 

White  Lick 

Lebanon    

Kirks  X  Roads. 


Date  of 

Muster 

1862. 


Aug.  1 

Aug.  1 
Aug.  1 
Aug.  1 
Aug.  1 

Aug.  1 
Aug.  1 
Aug.  1 
Aug.  1 
Aug.  1 
Aug.  1 
Aug.  1 
Aug.  1 


Remarks. 


Discharged  Jan.  2.  't>3. 


Promoted  Second  l-loutennnf. 
Died  at  Bowling  Green.  Ky..  Ov^"-  6.  62. 
Promoted  First  Lieutenant. 
Killed  at  Stone  s  Ulver  Dec.  31,   bi 

Died  at  Nashville,  Tonn..  I>cc.  29.  '62. 
Discharged  .Mine  11,  TlI. 
Discharged  .Inn.-  2.  T.a  I  «». 

Died  .It  Murfree>l)oro.  Tenn..  April  i 
Died  .Ian.  1.  'tiS:  woiin.l- 
Died  .Ian.  12.  't".3:  woir 
Died   at    Murfrf«'sl«>r 
'Mustered  out  .lune  •■.  ■ 


578 


THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 


Name  and  Rank. 


Musicians. 

Groves,  John  O 

IDuchiman,  Wm.  O.. 

Wagoner. 
Jones,  William 


Privates. 

Abney,  Manson  0 

Allen,  William 

Berry,  William  J 

Blevins,  William 

Boyd,  William 

Campbell,  Charles  H 
Campbell,  Oliver  N. 

Canbe,  Joseph  F 

Cave,  Alonzo 

Carrol,  Alonzo  B 

Colbert,  Jesse 

Coombs,  George  W... 
Creamer,  Marion  F... 

Demoss,  Wilson 

Dinsmore,  James  F.. 

Dinsmore,  John 

Dinsmore,  Oliver  J.. 
Dinsmore,  William  F 
Edwards,  John  H... 

Elder,   Eli 

Evans,  Ellas 

Fancher,  John  W ... 

Feeley,  John  A 

Garrett,  John 

Haller,  Levi  P 

Hammond,  A.  B 

Hardinp;,  John 
Hardin,tr,  Thomas  J 
Harmon,  K^licrt  J 
Harris,  William  II 
Harpool.MarcellusH 
Hayiu's,  lU'rmonD.. 
H('(l.i;k'.  .Icu'miah  ... 

Hedge,  William 

Higgins,   George  H. 
Holeman.   Aaron. 
Howard,  Addison  L.. 

Hoover,  Milton. 

Hysong,  Aaron  H. . 

Hysong,  John  A 

Jester,  Elcana 

Jester,  Jacob 

Jolly,  Thomas  J 

Kelly,  Elijah 

Ketring,  Abraham. 

Leach,  Willis  

Lewi.s,  Rt'Tijaniin  H 
Lindsey,  (ieorge  V. 
Martin,  William  F 
McCormick,  John  N 
McCoy,  George  W... 

McKinsey,  Jacob 

Moore.  Jacob  S 

Mount,  George  N 

Mount,  John  H 

Owings,  Ephraim 

Padgett.  Henry 

Padgett,  .lames  E 
Padgett,  .Ferciiiiah 
Padgett.  William.  ,  . 

Powell,  P>ilmuiid 

Powell,  John  M 

Pritchard,  Joseph.... 


Residence. 


Lawrence  

Northern  Depot 


Lebanon. 


Aug.  1. 
Aug.  1- 


Elizaville 

Fayette 

Lebanon 

Boxley 

Lebanon 

Elizaville 

Elizaville 

Thorn  town... 
Clarks  Hill... 

Elizaville 

Northern  Depot 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Thorntown... 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Thorntown... 

Elizaville 

Northern  Depot 

Elizaville 

Elizaville  

Reese's  Mills.... 

Lebanon 

Kirks  X  Roads 
Kirks  X  Roads 

Zionsville  ..  

Kirks  X  Roads 


Kirks  X  Roads 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Zionsville 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Westfield 

Westfleld 

Elizaville 

Thorntown 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Berlin 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Elizaville 

Reese's  Mills. .. 
Kirks  X  Roads 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Kirks  X  Roads 

Elizaville 

Elizaville 

Klizaville 

Elizaville 

Elizaville 

Elizaville 

Kirks  X  Roads. 


Date  of 

Muster 
1862. 


Au2 


Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 


Remarks. 


Mustered  out  ,Tune  6,  '65. 

Died  at  Nashville,  Tenn.,  Jan.  25,  '63. 


Discharged  April  21,  '63. 


Mustered  out  .Tune  6,  65. 

Traiisfcired  to  V.  R.  O.  Sept.  1,  '63. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Died  at  Murfreesboro,Tenn.,Jan.5,'63. 

Died  al   Louisville.  Ky.,  Nov.  26,  '62. 

Mustered  out  ,Iune  6,  '65. 

Died  at  Bdwliiig  Green,  Ky..  Jan.  3, '63. 

Died  at  Ch-veland,  O.,  F(>1).22.'63. 

INlusterc'd  out  .1  uiie('>,'(j5.  [ton. Nov. 6, '63 

Deserted  Sept.  20. '63;  diefl,  CampMor- 

Must eii^l  out  June  1  3,  '65. 

Must  eicd  out  June  6,  65.  ['63. 

Died  at  Murfreesboro,  Tenn.,  April  16, 

Mustered  out  June  13,  '65. 

Died  at  New  Albany,  Ind.,  Feb.  15,  '63. 

Discharged  July  15,  '63. 

Died  at  Indianapolis,  Oct.  15,  '64. 

Died  Dec.  7.  '63:  wounds. 

Died  at  Annapolis,  Md.,  Feb.  11,  '63. 

Discharged  May  1,  '63;  wounds. 

Deserted;  mustered  out  June  20,  '65. 

Mustered  out  May  30.  '65. 

Died  Jan.  18.  '63;  wounds. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Died  at  Cave  City,  Ky.,  Dec.  1,  '62. 

Dischained  July  23,  '63. 

Discharged  Nov.  12. '63;  wounds. 

Died  at  Nashville,  Tenn.,  Mar.  12,  '63. 

Discliargetl  Jan.  2,  '63. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Deserted  Sept.  19,  '63. 

Discharged  by  civil  authority. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 


Transferred  to  V.  R.  C.  — 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 


-,  '6^. 


['63. 
.  Feb.  2, 


Transferred  to  Miss.  Mar.  Bri 
Deserted  from  hospital. 
Died  at  Cincinnati,  O.,  Jan.  5,  '63. 
Mustered  out  .Tune  6,  '65. 
Dischar<-red  Mar.  21.  '65;  disability. 
Discharged  Jau.3(),'63;  accid.  wounds. 
Died  at  Nashville,  Tenn.,  Jan.  18,  '63; 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Discharged  Dec.  7,'63;  wounds,  [home. 
Discharged  May  13.  '64.    Died  on  way 
DiscliargtHl  Jan.  2.  '63. 
Transferred  to  V.  li.  C,  Dec.  1,  '63. 
Discharged  Jan.  9,  '63;  wounds. 
Mustered  out  .lunc  6,  '65. 
Mustered  out-  May  15,  '65. 
TUscharired  April  1,  '63;  wounds. 
Discharncd  Oct.  12,  '64. 
Dischaiucd  Jan.  2,  '63.  [30,  '65. 

Tiansfeircd  V.U.  C;  must'd  out  June 
Dischar-ed  Dec.  10,  '63. 
Died  at  Nashville  Tenn.,  Sept.  25,  '64. 
Discharged  Oct.  23,  '63. 
Discharged  Dec.  31,  '62. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65, 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS. 


579 


Name  and  Rank. 


Residence. 


Reichard,  Franklin. ' 

Ross,  James  L 

Sinirlt>ton.  William.   ; 

Sipes.  .James i 

Smith.  Hiram 

Smitli.  John 
Stoops.  Benjamin  F 
Stoops.  Robert  \\ 
Stowers.  Ricliard  A 
Thaver.  Daniel 
Tliompson.Samnel  II 
Trout.  Abraham  J. 
AVells,  William  B  .. 
White,  Henry 

Wiley.  George  W 

Wiley.  William  D 

Wilh'arm.  Augustus 
Wright,  Benjamin  F 

Recruits. 
Brown.  James  M 
Brown,  Roljert  S 

Green.  Joseph  W 

Griffin.  Thomas  J... 
Martin.  Cornelius  H 

Purtell,  Patrick  

Whittaker,  Alex.  M . 


Date  of 

Muster 

1862. 


Kirks  X  Roads 

Jamestown 

Kirks  X  Roads 

Jamestown 

Lebanon ' 

Lebanon I 

Lawrence 

Lawrence   

Kirks  X  Roads 

Lt'banon  

Kirks  X  Roads. 

\\'liitestowu 

Zioiisville 

Whitestown 

Thorntown 

Thorntown 
XorthernDepot 
Xorthern  Depot 
\ 

Tliorntown 

Thorntown 

Lebanon 

Thorntown'. 

West  Lebanon  . 


Aug.  1.. 
Aug.  1  . 
Aug.  1.. 
Aug.  1.. 
Aug.  1. 
Aug.  1. 
Aug.  1.. 
lAug.  1. 
Aug.  1 
Aug.  1 
Aug.  1 
Aug.  1. 
Aug.  1 
Aug.  1 
Aug.  1 
AuiT.  1 
Auir.  1 
Aug.  1 


Thorntown.. 


Remarks. 


Died  at  Nashville.  Tenn.,  Feb.  4.  '63. 
Deserted  from  hospital. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65,  as  Corporal. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65.  1'64. 

Died  in  Andersoiiville  prison.  Mar.  17, 
Transferred  to  V.  U.  ('..  July  29.  '64. 
Died  at  Chattaii()oga.Tenn.,Nov.20'C3. 
Mustered  out  .June  6.  *05. 
Ivilled  at  Stone's  River.  Dec.  31.  '62. 
Mustered  out  .lune  0.  'CS.  [geant. 

Mustered  out  June  6.  'Oj.  as  First  Ser- 
Traiisf.rred  to  V.  R.  C.  May  3(i.  '64. 
Died  at  Nashville.  Tenn.,  Jim.  '22.  '63. 
Discharged  Oct.  23.  '6-J. 
Discharired  Mar.  1,  '04:  wounds. 
Mustered  out  June  6.  '65.  as  Serfteant. 
Died  near  MurfreeslH)ro,  April  14,  '63. 
Discharged  Oct.  '2.'»,  '62. 


Jan.  4, 
Mar.  9. 
Mar.  9. 
Dec.30 
Mar.  9. 
Oct.  5. 
J  an.  4, 


Transferred  51st  Rcg't..  June  &. '65. 

Deserted  March  — ,  '64.  ,   ,o. 

Transferred  51st  Rep't.,  June  5.  65 
Trans.  V.  R.  V. :  must'd  out  Nov.  11,  66. 
Mustered  out  May  13.  '65. 
Deserted  March  — ,  '64. 


ENLISTED  MEN  OF  COMPANY  B. 


Name  and  Rank. 


First  Sergeant. 
Mclnerny,  Matthew 

Sergeants. 

Gist,  Newton  H 

Reed.  James 

Heintz.  Lewis 

Smiley,  William  L.... 


Cnrpnrals. 
Crowell.  James  M 
Penny.  Henry  W... 
Spitznagle,  Frank  H 
Onandler,  Robert 
Watters,  Charles. 
Bullock,  John  N... 

Houk,  David 

York,  Samuel 


Residence. 


Delphi 


Delphi     . 
Delphi  .. 
Delphi 
Pittsbur? 


Date  of 

Muster. 
1862. 


July  15.. 


July  15 
July  15 
July  15 
July  15.. 


Lockport July  la 

Pittsburg July  1j 

Delphi -Tuly  1;^ 

Lockport- July  Jo 

Buck  Creek Inly  la 

Delphi  

Lockport 

Prince  William 


Musiciatis. 
Edgerly.  James  H 
Beaver,  Henry 


Wagoner. 
Stevenson,  James  C 

Privates. 
Armer.  George  E 
Armstrong.  James  F 
Ashba,  Benjamin  A 

Ashba.  Jonathan 

Baker,  John 


July  15 
Uily  15 
July  15 


I'ittsburg. ... 
Monticello 


PrinceWilliam 


Delphi  

PrinceWilliam 
PrinceWilliam 
PrinceWilliam 
Delphi 


July  20 
July  20 


July  20 


July  20 
July  '20 
July  20 
July  20. 
July  20_ 


Remarks. 


Promoted  Second  Lieutenant. 

Mustered  out  June  6.  '65,  a.s  privftlo. 
Discharged  Feb    Ij- ''-3.  , 

Killed  atStones  Klver.  Dec.  31     6-. 
Deserted;  mustered  out  May  11,    6j. 

Died  .at  Nashville.  Tenn..  Dec.  '22.  'O'J. 
Mustered  out  June  6.  Y..V  '»-  Pr'.v"'"- 
Oeseited:  mustered  out  May  1»>.   i'o. 
>histered  (ml  Jiiiir  <•.   ••.>• 
Died  Dec.  1.  'i-'l;  wi>unds. 
Promoted  First  IJeutenant. 
Deserted  March  1.  t'J-         .„      ,        „ 
Transrerredto  U..^.Vet.and  Endlnocr.. 

Discharged  March  "25,  '63. 
Mustered  out  J  une  t>,  «>j. 


Deserted  Oct.  18,  '6'2. 

Killed  at  Stone's  River  pre    SV  •«?. 
Muslere<iout  •«'"•'/,•••'•,' 
Died  at  Nasl.vl    e  Oct.  ^ 

Transfdto  V.  K.  C.,:.mu~  " 

Musfd  out  June  o,  Oo.  as  .u...  ..v  >.-  t». 


580 


THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 


Name  and  Rank. 


Residence. 


Date  of 

Muster. 

1862. 


Remarks. 


Bealer,  Christian 

Bierman,  Christian.. 

Blue.  John 

Bowen,  George  W 

Bundy,  Benjamin 

Casad,  Jolin  A 

Chittick,  Jasper 

Chittick,  Andrew  J.. 

Clark,  Hiram 

Clifford,  Con 

Condon,  Garrett 

Copstick,  John  M 

Crow,  Thomas 

Crowell,  Richard  C... 

Davis,  Albert 

Denman,  Joseph 

Dittmer,  Frederick.. 

Donahoe,  John 

Eisley,  Barney 

Farrier,  Robert 

Felthoff,  Henry 

German,  John  S 

German,  Southey  K.. 

Green,  John  

Grider,  John  M 

Haiffe,  Joseph 

Hart,  James  J 

Hartsman,  Henry... 

Hauk,  Jacob 

Hauk,  George  H 

Hoover,  Joseph 

Huntley,  James  H... 
Kekkefoet,  Albert... 

Kough,  Richard 

Lunenburg,  Fred'r'k 

Magee,  John 

Marshall,  Humphrey 

Miller,  Frederick 

Misner,  Usual 

Morton,  Harrison  P.. 
McMahon,  Patrick  .. 
McQuilleu,  William. 

Ohime,  John 

Oliver,  Lemuel  W 

Ratliff,  Salathiel 

Ratliff,  John 

Ratliff,  Lewis  C 

Rogers,  George 

Rose,  William 

Rose,  Benjamin  F 

Saxon,  Anthony  M... 

Saylor,  Wilson 

Scott,  Elias 

Sharp,  James  W.  P.. 

Shay,  Thomas 

Spies,  Matthias 

Starne,  Levi  M 

Stoner,  Abraham 

Stoner,  Cyrus 

Swartz,  Samuel 

Thirtyacre,  John 

Tucker,  Abraham. 
Tubberty,  Thomas 
Turner,  John  W... 

Welsh,  John 

Whitcher,  John  T 

White,  John 

Wolford,  Henry 

Woster,  John  . 

York,  Andrew  J 


Delphi 

Delphi 

Delphi 

Delphi 

Delphi 

Pittsburg 

Prince  William. 
Prince  William. 

Delphi 

Delphi 

Delphi 

PrinceWilliam. 

Delphi 

Lockport 

Delphi 

Delphi 

Delphi 

Delphi 

Delphi 

Camden 

PrinceWilliam. 

Lockport 

Lockport 

Delphi 

Pittsburg 

Delphi 

Delphi 

LaFayette 

Cleveland,  O... 

Lockport 

Colfax 

PrinceWilliam. 

Delphi 

LaFayette 

Delphi 

N.  Y.  City 

Rockfleld 

Delphi. 

PrinceWilliam.. 

Delphi 

Delphi 

Rockfleld 

LaFayette 

Pittsburg 

PrinceWilliam.. 
PrinceWilliam.. 
PrinceWilliam.. 

Idaville 

LaFayette 

Transitville 

Rockfleld 

PrinceWilliam.. 
PrinceWilliam.. 

LaFayette 

Crawt'oi'dsville. 

Princt'Williani 

PrinceWilliam.. 

Delphi 

Kockfield 

PiinceWilliam. 

Delphi    

Kcicktield 

LaFayette 

I'itlsliurg 

Delphi 

I'itt.sliurg 

Delplii 

Ki-ancisville 

liockfield 

PrinceWilliam.. 


July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
July 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 

!\Ug. 

Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 


20 

20 

20 

20 

20 

20 

20 

20 

20 

20 

20 

20 

25 

25 

25 

25 

25 

25 

25 

25 

25 

25 

25 

25 

25 

25 

25 

25 

25 

25 

25 

25 

25 

25 

25 

25 

25. 

26. 

26. 

26. 

26. 

26. 

26. 

27. 

27. 

27. 

27. 

27. 

27. 

27. 

27, 

27. 

27. 

27. 

2 

2 

2.. 

2.. 

2 

2.'. 

2 

2 

2.'. 

2.. 

2  . 

2.. 

2.. 

2.. 

2.. 

2.. 


Deserted  April  15,  '63. 

Died  at  Richmond,  Va..  Dec.  6,  '63. 

Mustered  out  June  6.  '65. 

Discharged  March  13,  '63. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Died  at  Nashville,  Jan.  21, '63 ;  wounds. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Died  at  Murfreesboro,  Feb.  11.  '63. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65,  as  Corporal. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Died  at  Chattanooga,  Oct.  28,  '63. 
Killed  at  Stones  liiver.  Dec.  31,  '62. 
Died  at  Murfreesboro,  Feb,  9,  '63. 
Deserted  April  15,  '63. 
Mustered  out  June  6.  '65,  as  Sergeant. 
Discliarged  March  17,  '63. 
Mustered  out  June  6.  '63. 
Discharged  May  6,  '63. 
Transferred  to  V".  R.  C.  Jan.  4.  '65. 
Died  at  Nashville,  Feb.  16,  '63. 
Died  at  Chattanooga,  Nov.  4,  '63. 
Deserted  Dec.  31,  '63. 
Deserted  Oct.  6,  '62. 
Died  at  Murfreesboro.  Feb.  9.  '63. 
Mustered  out  Jtme  6,  '65. 
Mustered  out  June  12,  '65. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 


Supposed  to  be  dead. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Transferred  to  V.  R.  C.  March  17.  '64. 

Died  at  Chattanooga,  Nov.  26,  '63. 

Discharged  May  15,  '65. 

Mustereil  out  June  6,  '65. 

Discharged  March  12.  '63. 

Died  at  Louisville,  Ky.,  Dec.  29,  '62. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Transferred  to  V.  R.  C.  Jan.  27,  '65. 

Mustered  out  May  17.  '65. 

Discliarged  Oct.  15,  '62, 

Died  ill  Danville  Prison,  Va.,Dec.  6, '63. 

Mustered  out  June  7,  '65. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

['62. 
Died  at  Silver  Springs.  Tonn.,  Nov.  11. 
Killed  at  Keuesaw  Mt..  June  2H,  '64. 
Killed  at  Stone's  River,  Dec.  31,  '62. 
Died  at  Stone's  River,  Nov.  20,  '63. 
Died  at  Bowling  Green,  Nov.  15,  '62. 
Mustered  out  June  17,  '65. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Discharged  Oct.  23. '62.  ['65. 

Transf'd  V.  K.  C  ;  must'd  out  June  29, 
Dischaiu-ed  March  12,  '63. 
Transferred  to  V.  R.  C.  Aug.  1,  '63. 
Discharge  Nov.  4,  '62.  [29,  '65. 

Transf'd  toV.R.C. ;  mustered  out  June 
Mustered  out  June  6.  '65,  as  Sergeant. 
Missimrat  Franklin.  Tenn.. Nov. 28,'64. 
Discliarged  Marcli  17,  '63.  [geant. 

Mustered  out.luiie  6,  '65,  as  First  Ser- 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 


Mustered  out  June  6,  '65,  as  Corporal. 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS. 
ENLISTED  MEN  OF  COMPANY  C. 


581 


Name  and  Bank. 


First  Sergeant. 
Dick,  vSolomon  L 

Sergeants. 
Brant,  Theodore  F.. 

Mills,  John  L 

Tnrman,  Wilson  L ... 
Johnson  Ebenezer 

Corporals. 

Kiff.  Newton  W 

Oofflni;.  William  I 

Grant.  John  A 

He.ii'lin,  J  ames 

Poole,  Ric-hard  F 

Odell,  Tlionias  A 

Cooper,  Jacob 

Haller,  JohnE 

Musicians. 

Swarts,  Eli.. 

Patterson,  Charles... 

Wagoner. 
Swarts.  Daniel 

Privates. 

Bethel,  John 

Bishop,  Charles 

Blanchfill,  Edward.. 

Boord,  \Villiaui  J 

Boszor,  Fiancis  J 

Brewer,  Jolm  W 

Briney,  Maik  B 

Brown,  .lohn  D 

Brown,  James  H 

Butcher,  James  S 

Clawson,  John 

Clawson,  Garrett 

Coffenberry,  N.  L 

Conner,  Charles 

Cox,  John  W .. 

Crane,  Abner  J 

Crane,  Ira  J 

Crook,  Francis  M 

Dindot,  William  T 

Dixon  Georiie 

Ellis.  William 

Gott,  John  W  

Hall,  .lames  

Hall,  .lei'eniiah  

llarlin.  William  W 

Ilarbert,  .lohn 

Hawkins,  Van  Bnren 
Haxton,  CInirles  W 
Ha,xtt)n.  .lert'niiah 

Ilirsch,  Woolf 

Hoffman,  John  H 

Hofiue.  Andi'cw  J 

Hoshower,  Aaron 

Idle.  Moses  V 

Jack,  Aaron  B 

Jackson,  James  H 

Jones,  John 

Kil  pat  rick,  Robert  B 
Labiiw,  David  L. 
Labaw,  Derrick  V 


Residence. 


Williamsport 


\ttica 

Attica 

Attica 

Attica 

Attica 

Portland 

Attica 

Attica 

Attica  ..\ 

West  Point ... 

Attica 

Attica 

Attica 

St.  Louis,  Mo 


Attica 


Attica 

Attica 

Attica 

Chambersburj 

Attica 

Attica 

Attica 

rndependence 

Buell 

Williamsport . 

Rob  Roy 

Rob  Roy 

Indept'iidence 
Rob  Roy 
Independence 
Chamliei'slmr; 
Chaiiibei-shur,! 

Rob  Roy 

Attica 

Attica 

Attica 

Attica 

Attica 

Rob  Roy 

Kob  Koy 

Attica, 

Chunibei-sbnr; 
New  .Mhany 
Xew  Albany  . 

Attica 

Attica 

Attica 

Williamsport 

Attica 

Attica 

Rob  Roy 

Attica 

LaFayette 

Rob  Roy 

Rob  Roy 


Date  of 

Muster. 

1862. 


Xu>'.  13 


A  us. 

13    . 

A  us,'. 

13 

Aus 

13. 

Aug. 

13.  . 

Aug. 

13. 

Aug. 

13 

Aug. 

13 

Aug. 

13 

Aug. 

13 

Aug. 

13. 

Aug. 

13 

Aug. 

13. 

Aug. 

13... 

Aug. 

13.  . 

Aug.  13 


13 
13 
13 
13 
13 
13 
13 
13 
13 
13 


13 
13 
13 


Au? 

Aug. 

Aug. 

Aug. 

Aufi 

Auf; 

Auf] 

Aufi 

Auf; 

Aufi 

Aug.  13 

Aug.  13 

Aug.  13 

Au!.'.  13 

Aug. 

.\  ng. 

Aug. 

Aug.  13 

.  Aug.  13 
..  Aug.  13 

.  Aug.  13 
..  Aug.  13 
.  Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Atn:.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Au"z.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug. 

.  Aug. 

.  Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug.  13 

.  Aug.  13. 


13 
13 
13 
13 


Remarks. 


Discharged  Dec.  30,  '0'2. 


Pj'omoted  Second  Lieutenant. 
Discharged  Dec   5.  'tVi.  ('05. 

Transf'd  to  V.  R.C.;  niusfdoutJuly  1, 
Discharged  Nov.  !3().  "02. 


Discharged  Dec.  5,  '62. 

Discharired  Sept.  1,  '(i3. 

Discharged  I  .•!..  I'J.  •(13. 

Lost  on  Sultana,  April  27,  "05. 

Disrhargiil  De<-.  17,  '02. 

I'ldnioted  Captain. 

Died,  wounds  rec"d  at  Mission  KUIki', 

Mustered  out  June  0,  '('.5. 


Transferred  to  V.  U.  C.Jan.  14,  '04. 
Mustered  out  June  G.  '05. 


Discharged  Jan.  5,  '03. 


Discharged  Feb.  13.  '03. 

.Mustt-red  out  June  0,  '0.'). 

Killed  at  Stone's  Klver,  Dec.  31.  '02. 

Died  near  MurfreeslM)n),  May  9,  "63. 

Mustei'ed  out  .lune  f..  "Oj. 

Discliar-ed  I'.'l..  11. 'to. 

Died  al  Nashville,  Jan.  1'2.  '03.        ('03 

Transfd  to  V.  U.C.  niusfd  out  June  3o 

Died  at  Nashvllh-.  Tenn..  .Mar.  27.   O.'j, 

Mustered  out  ,lune  0.  'tl.'i. 

Died  al  Murfreeslioro.  .May  .'),  'ilo. 

l)is<harged.wi>nndNrei''(ISt<me''»Ulver 

Mnsteri'tl  out  .lune  t..  '05. 

Deserted  Oct.  1 '^.  '02. 

Discharg.d  Felr.  4,  ■03. 

Died  al  Nashville.  Tenn..  Jan.  12. 

Mustered  out  Jun<'  30.   O.*. 

Deserted  March  2.'>.  '03. 

Lost  on  Sidlana,  .\  prll  27.  'Oo. 

l)is<-liarg.tl»)ct.  1.-). '0.3.  '•';' 

Died  in  Barren  County,  Ky..  > 

Mustered  out  June  0.   i).'!. 

Transfd  to  V.U  C.:niustd  ."><  i 

Transferred  l<>  MKs.  Mat 

Died  at  MurfreeslMiro.  M^i. 

Died  al  Nashville,  Tenn..  .!  _       ^ 

Transfd  to  K.nglneerCorii-. A lu    ..  '•♦• 

Mustered  out  June  •"•.  'i>'>.  !i->  «  <'r|».>rul. 

Traiisf.rre.l  t.i  V.  K.  C  :  wikuuK 

Dietl  In  And.Tsonvllle  Prl>»4»n. 

Mustered  out  JuiieO,   05. 


•13. 


B.«iFlr. 


DlscharcedO.-t.  1.').  02 
Discliari:e<l  Dec.  lo.   "'J.^ 
Muslen-d  out  June  0.  '»>.». 
Mustered  out  .Iiinr  0.  •».». 
Discharged  A  111.-.  J'.    03 
Died  at  Murfree>lH.ro.  April  4.  03 
Killed  tit  Slono  'sKlvor.  Dec.  81.  oi 


582 


THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH   REGIMENT, 


Name  and  Rank. 


Lamborn,  Elwood 

Landon,  Labon 

Landon.  David 

Laiidoii,  Jonathan 
Landon,  l-^rancis  M  . 
Landers. Nathaniel  B 

Low,  Samuel 

Marquis.  William  H. 
Martin,  Wm.  H.  H 

McCabe,  Shepherd 

McLean,  Francis  E... 
McLean.  Henry  H 
Meek.  Tlionias 
Millai'd,  Harrison 
Morehouse,  Hartson 

Morgan,  Joseph 

Norton,  Asa 

Odell,  Alfreds 

Phipps.  John  W 

Pugh,  George 

Remster,  Pliiueas 

Reedy,  John 

Reynolds,  Marcellus 
Roberts,  William  H.. 

Roily,  John 

Runkle,   William 

Schoolcraft,  John 

Sentman,  Amos  S 

Shafer,  Jacob 

Shelly,  Philip 

Shields,  William 

Shroyer,  David 

Sylvester,  Cyrus  O  ... 
Simmerman,  Jos.  W.. 
Simmerman,  M.  V.. 

Slack.  John 

Stephenson,  Uriah  .. 

Switzer,  John 

TruUinger.Benjam'n 
Warrick,  George  C  .. 

Wilson,  Martin 

Young,  William 


Recruits. 
Myers,  Albert.. 
Tyler,  Cidney.. 


Residence. 


Attica 

Attica 

Attica 

Attica 

Portland 

Attica 

Rob  Roy 

Chambersburg 

LaFayette 

Covington 

Newtown 

Attica 

Chambersburg 

Rob  Roy 

Porthmd  . 

West  Point 
W  illiiiuisport 

Rob  Roy 

Portland 

Attica 

Attica 

Odell 

LaFayette 

Attica 


Covington 

Independence 

Portland 

Attica 

Attica 

Attica 

Williamsport  . 
Willianisijort  .. 
Portland 


Portland 

Attica 

Portland 

Attica 

Attica 


Homer. 


Date  of 

Muster. 

1862. 


Aug.  13 
Aug  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Aug.  13 
Ang.  13 
Aug.  13 


Dec  21, '63 
Dec.  21, '63 


Remarks. 


Transferi'ed  to  Engineers  Corps. 

Died  at  Fisliinix  Creek,  Ky.,  Oct.27,'64. 

Died  at  Louisville.  Ky.,  Nov.  17,  '62. 

Discharucd  March  4. ''03. 

Musteicd  out  May  30.  '65. 

Died  at  Nashville.  Tenn.,  Jan.  18,  '63. 

Mustered  out  June  6.  '65. 

Discharged  Jan.  26.  '63. 

Killed  at  Stone's  River,  Dec.  31,  62. 

Mustered  out  June  17,  '65. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Died  at  C!olumbia.  Ky.,  Nov.  2,  '62. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  65. 


Died  at  Nashville,  Tenn.,  Feb.  14,  '63. 

Discliiiincd  April  5,  '63. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65,  as  Sergeant. 

Died  at  Murfreesboro.  Mar.  29.  '63. 

Died  in  Fountain  co.,  Ind.,  Sept.  12,'62. 

Discharged  Oct.  15,  '62. 

Supi)ose(l  to  have  been  lost  on  Sultana. 

Di-scharged  Feb.  7,  '63. 

Supposed  to  have  been  lost  on  Sultana. 

Discharged 

Discharged  Feb  17,  '63. 

Deserted  Oct.  18,  '62. 

Mustered  out  June  7,  '65. 

Died  Jan.  23,  '63. 

Transferred  to  V.  R.  C,  July  27,  64. 

Promoted  First  Lieutenant. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  65. 

Supposed  to  have  been  lost  on  Sultana. 

Discharged.  [30,  '65. 

Transf'd  to  V.  R.  C;  mustered  out  June 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Killed  at  Stone's  River,  Dec.  31,  '62. 

Mustered  out  June  17,  '65. 

Mustered  out  June  12,  '65. 

Transf'd  to  Engin'r  Corps,  July  20,  '65. 


Transf'd  to  51st  Regiment,  June  5, '65. 
Mustered  out  July  2,  '65. 


ENLISTED   MEN    OF    COMPANY    D. 


Name  and  Rank. 


First  Sergeant. 
Gilger,  Charles  ,W.  B 

Sergeants. 

Stephens,  Reason 

Jacobs,  Jackson 

Crabb,  Vintson 

Graves,  Thomas  J 

Corporals. 

Vail,  William  F 

High,  Anson 

Sigler,  William 


Residence. 


Warren  county 


Warren  county 
Warren  county 
Warren  county 
Warren  county 


Warren  county 
Warren  county 
Warren  county 


Date  of 

Muster. 

1862. 


Aug.  10 

Aug.  12 
Aug.  10 
Aug.  10 
Aug.  12 

Aug.  30 
Aug.  10 
Aug.    9.. 


Rem.\kks. 


Died  at  Nashville.  Jan.  14, '63; wounds. 


Discharged  Feb.  18.  '63.  [wounds. 

Died  at  Stone's  River.  Jan.  1,  '63; 
Discharged  March  26,  '63.  [Sergeant. 
Dischaiged  July  19,  '64;  wounds;  First 


Transferred  to  V.  R  C. .  '64. 

Died  in  Richmond  Prison,  Jan.  18, '63. 
Transferred  to  V.  R.  C,  Aug.  1,  '63. 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS. 


583 


Name  and  Eank. 


Lamb,  Jacob 

Good.  Samuel  S 

Pye,  William 

Brier,  Henry  H 

Harris,  Benjamin  .... 

Musicians. 
Freeman.  George  W 
Brady,  Elias 

Wagoner. 
Thompson,  C.  B 

Private^:. 

Adams.  Samuel 

Ale.  Henry.  .  

Alexander,  Jolin  R.. 

Anderson,  James 

Anderson,  Perry  B  . 

Baldis,  John 

Beaver,  John 

Bennett,  Authur  E.. 

Boots,  John  R 

Borders.  Spencer  [J] 

Borih'rs.  .Fohn  Mc 

Callon.  William  T 

Calton.  Morjian  M. 

Carry,  John  E  

Carpenter,  Ben.i.  O. 

Case.  Marvin  T 

( ";istle.  Levi 

Cleclvner,  .Tosepli 

Click.  James 

Coiits.  Archibald 

Colli).  Vii-uil  A 

ColVell.  William  S.. 
DcTurk.  Joshua  G 
l>inuiiick.  Doctor  J.. 

I'osti'i'.  David 

I'dstei'.  .Tolm  B 

lM)s1er.  John  E 
I'rccman.  Tiiomas  J 

Cciiird.  Josliua 

(iillispie,  Stephen    . 

(Graves,  Irvin  T 

Gray.  C'harles  W 
Guest,  .Tames 
Hanks.  Wallace  B  . 

Hiiys,  Henry 

Hciidricks,  Israel 

Hickman.  N;itliaii  . 
Hickman.  William  . 

Hitikle.  John   

Tlixsoii.  Waller  B 

H(.<l<ly.  Charles  R... 

K'clU'y.  Allen 

Kilijcore,  Irvin  A 

Krise.  John    

Lamb.  William 

McWherter.  liobert 
McCartney.  Tlios.  J 

Mosier.  Harvey 

Milkins.  David 

Mucle.  John    

Nern.  Miirt  in 

Ni.xson.  William  W  . 
Os-lesby.  William  .. 
Prinsle.  Xallian  0  .. 

Richards.  John 

Romine,  Rolandus... 
Eulosou,  James  E 


Residence. 


Date  of 

Muster. 
1862. 


Warren  county  Aug.  10 
Warren  county  Aug.  12 
Warren  county  Aug.  10 
Warren  county  Aug.  9. 
Warren  county  Aug.  10.. 


Warren  county 
Warren  county 


W^arren  county 


Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
IWarren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Wari'eii 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 


county 
ctninty 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
C()unty 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
(•(Uinly 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
i-ouiity 
county 
county 
ccuuity 
county 
county 


Aug 
Aua 


12 

10.. 


Aug.  14 


Aug. 

10 

Aug. 

15 

Aug. 

10 

Aug. 

14 

Aug. 

9 

Aug. 

30 

.Aug. 

31 

.\ug. 

30 

Aug. 

12 

Aug. 

9 

Aug. 

9 

Aug. 

10  . 

.Vug. 

Ui 

Aug. 

12 

A  ug. 

10 

Aug. 

10 

•Vug. 

30 

Aug. 

12 

.\ug. 

lo 

.\  ug. 

lit 

.Aug. 

12 

Aug. 

10 

Aug. 

12 

Aug. 

14. 

.Aug. 

14 

Aug. 

14 

.\ug. 

14 

.Aug. 

12 

Aug. 

lo 

Aug. 

14 

Aug. 

12 

.Sug. 

10 

.Aug. 

10 

.\ug. 

;) 

Au'.'. 

30 

A  ug. 

12 

.Vug. 

12 

Aug. 

12 

Aug. 

\-i 

Vuir. 

10 

Aug. 

15 

.Vug. 

9 

Aug. 

If) 

Vug. 

11 

Aug. 

9 

Aug. 

30 

Aug. 

•2» 

Aug. 

14 

Aug. 

12 

Aug. 

15 

.Vug. 

15 

Aug. 

lo 

Aug. 

12 

Aug. 

12 

Aug. 

lO 

Aug. 

10 

Aug. 

31 

Remarks. 


Discharged  Jan.  4.  '05;  wounds. 

Died  at  Nashville.  Teiin..  Kelt.  17.  T.a. 

Died  at  Perryville.  Ky.,  (Jet.  2m,  ■(•,•_». 

Deserted  Jan.  3,  (13. 

Transferred  to  V.  K.  C,  Aug.  1,  "03. 


Deserted  Dec.  31,  '02. 

Died  at  Chattonooga,  Dec.  11,  '03. 


Discharged  March  17.  •03. 


Discharged  Aug.  4.  '03. 

Mustered  out  June  (i,  '00,  as  Corixirnl. 

Mustered  out  June  0,  'G5,  a.s  .''iTgeuiit, 

Mustered  out  June  <•,  '05. 
Died  at  Annapolis.  .Md.,  Feb.  Kt. '63. 
Deserted  Oct.  2n.  '02. 
Mustered  out  .lune  t>,  '05.  [29.  "fiS. 

Transf  (1  to  \'.  1{.  C. ;  niust'd  out  Juiu< 
Discharged  .Ian.  2.5,  '03. 
Discharged  Aug.  27.  "03.  [20.  '05. 

must °<l  out  Juno 


Transfd  to  V.  Ft.' 

Slustered  out  .lune  fi,  'I'i5. 

Mustered  nut  .lune  0.  '05,  us  S«Tif«'iilit. 

Mustered  out  .Iiini'  >>.  '0.5.  as  Flr-.t  St- 

Discharged  .Manh  3ii.  '•".3.  (gemil. 

Mustered  out  .lune  2.  '••.5.  as  S«Tgeniit. 

Oisch.-irired  Fel>.  !).  't".3. 

Died  at  SIlvcrSprlngs.Ky..  Nov   1  ' 

Discharired  .Ian.  3.  03. 

Desert  I'd  Oct.  2M.  'tVi. 

Promoted  Second  Ueutenaiit. 

Mustered  out  June  0.  '1.5. 


Died  at  Bowllngtireen.Ky  .Nn'f  1*.  J^^. 
Died  at  Nashville.  Ten n.  I    "  '  ' 

."Clustered  i>ut  JiiiieO,  '*'<■• 

Dischan-MMl  Frb. '^H. '03. 

Died  at  Na>li vllle.  Jan.  ■-'<•.  oaiwouneU. 

Died  at  Na>livllle.  Tenn..  Kelt.  M.   <«S. 

DUcharL'cd  Frli.  2s.  't.:V 

Mustered  out  .luii.«..    '••'. 

Died  at  Na>ln  lllc  T.tin  .  Miir   .•««>-   t-3. 

Mustered  iiiit  .Inn.-  "■.  ''■• 

Transferred  I-'  V.  K  C  .  M^ir    1 

Musfil  out  .lun.'  '..  '<  •'.  UN  t  .'I. 

Mn>»lere<l  out  June  i>.  '••.'•.  uh  «  ..i  ,- 

i)lscliarg.d.lan.  It.  •'•3. 

Tiansf<lt..  V.K.C.  AUK   \''^,,    ,  . 

Died  at  Niishvllle.  Tenn     ^'    '  '  ^ 

Killed  at  St. .lie's  Itlver.  I' 

Dieil  at  Nashville.  Jan.  1  • 

Killed  Jit   P.a.-h  Tre.-  (  r.  •  -.  ■    -^    -- 

Tr.in>f<ll.'Kni;lMeerCi»ri»Jui>  If*.  «.4. 

Dis.'li;iru'ed  .Vug.  2.  '••3. 

Deserted  Oct.'JN,  '(.J. 

Mustered  out  June  fi.  T.,'..  ,.     .. 

Died  at  Murfn-estH'—   ^  "^'  '"         '^ 

Klll.-.l  at  St.ine's  I; 

Died  In  Andersonv 

Mustered  out  ••>!»".'        ,.    ^  >."     .  l 

Died  of  w'Us reed  Mi*.  K-.Nu*.  -**.  ^^- 


584 


THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 


Name  and  Rank. 


Residence. 


Date  of 

Muster. 

1862. 


Remarks. 


Scanlon,  Hartley 

Shaw,  Daniel 

Shew,  Cornelius  C 

Smith,  Isaiah 

Smith,  Thomas  W 

Smith,  Samuel 

Solomon,  John 

Stevens,  Joseph  W... 

Stevens,  David  L 

Steffee,  Henry 

Story,  Thomas  E 

Stutzel.  Lewis 

Sullivan,  John 

Sullivan,  Charles 

Sweeney,  Lisander. 
Thomas,   Edmond...- 

Vanover,  Samuel 

Volz,  Jacob 

Wajisoner,  Samuel.. 

Waggoner.  John  J 

Whitesel,  James  M.. 
Wilkison,  Gideon 

Recruits. 
Alexander.  Samuel . 

Boyer,  Landis 

Crabb,  Joseph 

Orabb,  Washington. 

Egan,  James 

Hodge.  Willis . 

Ingersoll.  Charles  W 

Rock.   Samuel  F 

Sheets.  Frederick 

Sellers.  Isaac 

Wallace,  Clinton 

Wallace.  Green 

Waugli,  James    

Waugh,  Van  S 

Whiteliead., James 


Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 


Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 
Warren 


county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
couiit\ 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
couiil  y 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 


county 
county 
county 
count  y 
C(.uinty 
('(Uinty 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 
county 


Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug.' 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 


20.. 

12.. 

10.. 

9... 

9... 

12.. 

11.. 

20.. 

11.. 

10.. 

30 

12.. 

14. 

14.. 

14. 

9  .. 

19. 

12.. 

10.. 

12 

12 

16.. 


:\lar.24 
Mar.  24 
Nov.  30 
Nov. 30 
April  9, 
Jan.  1. 
Mar.  5, 
Xov.30, 
Jan.  1, 
Jau.  1. 
Mar.  24. 
Mar.24. 
Mar. 24. 
Mar.  3, 
Mar.  1, 


Mustered  out  Juno  6,  '65. 
Discharged  Jan.  4.  '65. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  65. 


1,  '63. 


Transferred  to  V.  R.  C.  Aug 

Discharged  March  1.  '63. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Transfcri  cd  to  V.  R.  C.  Jan.  5,  '65. 

Discliaigcd  March  20,  '63. 

Mustered  out  June  6.  '65.  as  Cor])oral. 

Transf'd  to  Fnu-ineerCorps.Julyl8,-(i4. 

Died  at  New  Alliany.  Ind.,  Jan.  14.  "(;3. 

Deserted  Nov.  27.  '62. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Died  at  Nashville,  Tenn..  Mar.  6,    (.:.. 

Deserted  Feb.  20.  '63. 

Mustered  out  June  6.  '65. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65,  as  Corpora  I. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

TransfeiTcil  to  V.  R.  C,  '64. 

Discharged  April  7.  '63. 

Missing  at  Chickamauga,  Sept.  19,  '63. 


Died  at  Indianapolis  April  7.  '64. 
Transf'd  to  51st  Regiment,  June  5, "65. 


Died  at  home.  Nov.  8.  '64. 

Died  at  Williamsport,Ind.,Oct.  8, 

Transf'd  to  51st  Regiment,  June 


64 
5,'65. 


ENLISTED    MEN    OF    C03IPANY    E. 


Name  and  Rank. 


First  Sergeant. 
Billings,  Harmon  M. 

Sergeatit.'i. 
Anderson,  I'cti'rW 
Cronkhite.   Stephen 
Fisher.  Abram 
Rosebraugh,  Norman 

Corporals. 

Shipps,  John  M 

Kiser,  John  W 

Cronkhite,  Hosea 

Anderson,  William.. 

Kellett,  John 

Helms,  Francis  M... 
Goodwin,  James  S 

Musicians. 
Woodward.  James  H 
Wolf,  William 


Residence. 


West  Lebanon. 


Marslifield  

Mai'shtield 
West    J>el(anon 
Marslifield 

Marslifield  

Marslifield 

Marslifield 

Marshfleld 

Marslifield 

Marshfield 

West  Lebanon 


Williamsport . 
Williamsport . 


Date  of 
Muster. 

1862. 


Sept.  4 

Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 

Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 

Sept.  4 
Sept,  4 


Remarks. 


Promoted  Captain. 


Mustered  out  June  6,  '65.  [geant. 

Mustered  out  .luiie  6,  '65.  as  First  Ser= 
Killed  at  Stone's  Kiver,  Dec.  31,  '62. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 


Died  :it  TMurfreesboro.  Feb.  3.  '63. 
Transf'd  to  Engineer  Corps  Aug.  7, '64. 
Mustei'i'd  out  . I  line  6.  '05,  as  Sergeant. 
Died  at  Nashville.  Tenn.,  Jan.  15,  '63. 
Mustered  out  ,Iune  6,  '65,  as  private. 
Transf'd  to  \'.  K  C.:  must'd  out  June 
Mustered  out  J  une  6,  '65.  [30,  '65. 


Discharged  Dec.  4,  '63.  for  promotion- 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS. 


585 


Name  and  Rank. 


Wagoner. 
linger,  George.. 


Privates. 
Anderson,  Joseph  V 
Balnbridge.  John 
Barkshire, Edward  U 
Bartk'tt,  Thonia.s  .) 
Bris^rs,  Joscpli  ( ' 
Brown,  William  W 
Bush.  William  K 
Buell,  Alexander  W 

Butler,  Henry  M 

Caldwell,  John  N 

Uarithers,  George  .. 

Clinton,  Jaines  H 

Cloyd,  .Sanuu'l  F 
Crawford,  William  M 
Crawf(jr(;l,  Janii's  S 
Crawfortl,  John  1 1 
ICroiikhite.  Levi  A 
Cronkliite.  Luke 
Cronkliiti',  Henry  ( ' 
Crow,  William  H  .     . 

Denioss,  .Job 

Dowler.  Robert  C 

Duncan,  William 

Elwfll,  Oeoi'^-e  O 

Evans,  Oliver  .M. 
Fleming,  William  B 
Fleslu'r,   Ih'iii'y   B 
Gallamore,  Mariiin 
Galamoi'e,   Milt(jn  . 
Gaskins,  William  F 
Gilison,  Campbell.. 

GriiH-r,  Peter 

Grincr,  l^obert 

Haines,  Mahlon  J 

Hall,  William  J 

Harjjer,  David  D 

Halton,  Francis  M 
Henderson,  Benj.  H 
Hendricks,  John  D 

Hiuh,  Tilman  H 

Hiiiii,  William 

Himchin,  Daniel....... 

Hunter.  William  C. 

Johnson,  .James  D 

Johnson,  John  A 

Johnson,  Solomon    . 

Kiser,  Joe  H      

Kiser'.   Alexander 
Kiser.  William  W 

I.<iKlii  v,  SolomiHi  

Lockwoixl,  Wm  W 

Low, John 

McCoughtry,  Fr.  W.. 
MrNelt,  Jasper 
MrNett,  Newton      . 
Mdriison,  William  11 

N'ail.  Henson  T 

I'alierson,  Lewis 

I'aiiii,  Paul 

I'nwi'll.  John 

Ivansom,  Reuben  W. 

KoilLcers,  William 

Uosehraugh,  Sanuu'l 
■^ali^liury,    Cyrus 
Mmjjsou,  Ele'azer  C 

Simpson.  Allen 

Smart,  John  D 


Residence. 


West3  Lebanon. 


Independence 
West  Lel)anon 

Marshtield  

West  Lebanon 
West  [..ebanon 
West  Leliation 
Willianisport  . 
Williamsport  , 
Williamsi)ort 
West  l^ehanon 
West  L.'banon 
West  Li'banon 
West  Lebanon 
West  Lelianon 
West  Li'banon 
West    Lelianon 

.Marshfield  

Marslifield  

Marshlield  

Wil  li.amsport  .. 

State  Line 

Williamsport  .. 

State  Line 

Williamsport  .. 

Stale  Line     

West  Lebanon. 
West  Ijclianon. 
West  Lebanon 
West    Lebanon. 

Marslifield  

Marshlield  

State  Line 

State  l>ine 

Indianapolis.... 
West  Lebanon 
West  Lebanon. 
West   liclianon. 

Marshtield     

West  Leb.iMOn. 
West    Lebanon 

.Marshlield  

State  Line 


Date  of 

Muster 
1862. 


Sept.  4. 


Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 

ept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 

■pt. 


West  Lebanon. 

.^Llrsblield  

West    Lebanon 
West    l-eb,iiion. 

.Marshlield  

.Marshlield  

West    Lebanon 

Peru 

West  Lebanon 
West  Lebanon 

Attica 

.Mtii'a 

West  Lebanon. 

Maislifield  

Williamsport  .. 

Marslifield  

.Marshlield  

Williamsiiort  ... 

Marshtield  

.MaishHeld 

West   Lel)anon 

Marslifield 

Marshtield 

Marshfield 


Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
?ept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 


RE.MARK9. 


Discharged  March  24,  '03. 

Discharged  Feb.  12,  *C3. 
Died  at  Bowling  Green, Ky., Nov. 15.*62. 
Died  at  Nashville,  Tenn.,  Jan.  24,  "63. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  'C5. 

Discharged  Marcli  20,  '03. 

Died  at  I)anville,  Ky.,  Nov.  2,  "02. 

Mustered  out  .June  (>,  "05. 

Died  at  Naslivilie,  Tenn.,  Jan.  26.  '03. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  "60. 

Killed  at  Stone's  River  Dec.  31,  '02. 
Discharged  .May  10,  'lij. 
Died  at  Canij)  Ih-nlson,  O.,  Dec.  6,  '62. 
Missing  at   Stone's  lilver,  Dv<-.  31,  "02. 
Died  at  Silver  Springs,  Tenn.,  Ni>v,  13. 
Mustered  out  .luneli,   tlo.  ['02. 

Died  at  I.,oiiisville.  .Viig.'J, '04;woiiiid.s. 
Killed  at  Mission  KIdge  Nov.  2,'i,  '03. 
Died  at   lyouisville,  Ky.,  June  ll.  'u:\ 
Discharired  March  11.  '03. 
Discharged  Feb.  1  I,  '03. 
Discharged  .hine20,  '<;3. 
Discharged  Marcli  H.  '03, 
Died  at  .Nashville,  Tenn..  Jan.  '20.  "03. 
Killed  at  Stone's  Klver  Dec.  31,  'f,2. 
Mustert'd  out  ,lune  0. '05,  as  llospltiil 
Discharged  Dec.  11,  '02.  (Steward. 

Killed   at  .Mission  Kldp-,  Nov.  2.'>. '03. 
Mustered  out  ,lune  6.  O.'i, 
Discharged  Feb.  20,  '03. 
Died  at  Nashville,  Tenn..  Miiroh  1,'G5. 
Discharged  March  in.  '03. 
I'ldiiioiiil  I'irst  Lieutenant. 
Oischaiged  De.-.  11,  'i,:\. 
.Mustered  out  June  0.  '05, 

Died  at  Naslivilie.  Tenn.,  Jan.  11.  '63. 

Mustered  out  June  0,  '()5. 

Missing  at  ClilckumauKa  Sept.  20,  '03. 

Deserted  from  iiospitsil  July  l.'*,  '64, 
Died  at  Nashville,  Tenn.,  Feb.  4. '»13. 
Died  at  Nashville,  Tenn.,  .Ian.  14.  '63. 
|)ie(i  ,lan.  M,  'i(3;  wounds  reci'lviHl  at 
Discharged  Feb.  13,  '03  |.xioni>'»  UlviT, 
.Mustered  out  June  6.  05. 


Died  at  Kno.xvlllo.  Tenn.,  Jan,  23.  '64. 
Transferred  to  V.  It  ('.  Jan.  lo. '65. 
Trtmsfd  to  EntrlneerCorn?!  Au|t,16.'64. 
Discharged  .March  13.  '03. 
.Mustered  out  .Inne  t>.  '05,  lui  Corporal. 
Mustered  out  Juno  6,  '65. 


Discharged  June  4.   03. 

.Missing  !it  Chlckamauira  Sept.  20.  "68. 

Discharged  .Inly  23.  '04. 

Discharged  June  3<».  'O:*. 

Mustered  out  ,lune  0.  '05. 

Died  at  Gallatin,  Tenn..  Jan.  15.  '6S. 

Discharged  Jan.  24.  '1.3. 

Mustered  out  .lune  •'.,  '1.5. 

Disiharged   Feb  3.  '03. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  "65. 


i 


586 


THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 


Name  and  Rank. 


Residence. 


Date  of 

Muster 

1862. 


Remarks. 


Smith,  Thomas  J 

Snodgrass,  Josepli  H 

Starry,  Daniel  L 

Starry,  Nicholas  H... 

Swank,  James  C 

Swank,  Watson  C 

Thomas,  Erasmus  D 
Wagner,  Frederick... 
Wheeler,  John  B.  — 
White,  Cornelius  V... 

White,  William  H 

Wilson,  John 

Wolf,  George 

Woodard,  Harrison  H 

Recruit. 
Hasler,  George  W 


Marshfield 

West  Lebanon.. 

Marshfield 

Marshfield 

West  Lebanon 
Williamsport  ... 
Williamsport  ... 

Marshfield 

Williamsport  ... 

Marshfield 

Marshfield 

Williamsport  ... 
Sullivan  county 
Williamsport ... 


Marshfield 


Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 


Apr.15,'64 


Trans'd  to  Engineer  Corps  Aug.  7,  '64. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Transfered  to  Signal  Corps  Oct.22,  '63. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Died  Oct.  30,  '62. 

Promoted  Adjutant.  [30, '65. 

Transf'd  toV.  R.  C;  must'd  out  June 

Discharged  Jan.  7,  '63. 

Mustered  out  Aug.  26,  '65. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65 

Died  at  Louisville,  Ky..  Nov.  15,  '62. 

Discharged  July  15,  '63.  ['63. 

Died  at  Murfreesboro,  Tenu.,  May  14,, 


Transf'd  to  51st  Regiment,  June  5,  '65. 


ENLISTED    MEN    OF    COMPANY    P. 


Name  and  Rank. 


First  Sergeant. 
Wilson,  John  M 

Sergeants. 

Olive,  David  H 

Howard,  .James  A 

Nichols,  William  A... 
Cameron,  David  D  ... 

Corporals. 
Endicott.  William  C. 

Black,  John  D 

Stephens,  William  H 
Stogdell,  William  C 
Robinson,  James  P... 

Nichols,  Henry  M 

Van  Eaton,  Erastus.. 

Musicians. 

Sullivan,  John 

Miller,  Mark  D 

Wagoner. 
Chaffee,  Benjamin 

Privates. 

Baldwin,  George 

Beard,  John  C  

Beard,  iMilloii 
Bradsliaw,  Strplien  S 

Brown,  ■Jolin  \V 

Burk,  John  .1 

Byroad,  David 

Byroad,  Peter 

Byroad,  William 

CaldwcU,  Andrew  J-. 
Clienoweth,  Joseph  . 

Clark,  Alfred  D 

Clark,  Joel  N  

Clark,  John  H 

Craner,  Thomas  J 

Creamer,  Robert  H... 


Residence. 


Lebanon Aug.  11 


Lebanon..-. 
Lebanon... 
Zionsville  . 
Northfleld. 


Lebanon 

Tliorntown.. 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Northfield... 
Lebanon 


Jefferson . 
Lebanon. - 


Tliorntown 


Lebanon 

Zionsville  ... 
Wliitcstown. 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Northfield... 
NortliHeld  ... 

Dublin 

Leljanon 

Lebanon 


Date  of 
Muster. 

1862. 


Aug.  11. 

Aug.  11. 

Aug.  11. 

Aug.  11. 


Auis 

Aug 

Aug 

Aug 

Aug 

Aug.  11.. 

Aug.  11.. 


11. 
11. 
11. 
11. 
11.. 


Aug.  11. 
Aug.  11. 


Aug.  II. 


Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 


Remarks. 


Killed  at  Stone's  River  Dec.  31,  '62. 


Promoted  First  Lieutenant  Co.  H. 
Killed  at  ChickamaugaSept.  20,  '63 
Transferred  to  V.  R.  C.  Jan.  10,  '65. 
Died  at  Nashville,  Tenn.,  Jan.  21,  '63 


Mustered  out  June  12.  '65. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65,  as  private. 
Discharged  April  16,  '63;  wounds. 
Killed  at  Stone's  River  Dec.  31,  '62. 
Died  Nov.  27,  '63;  wounds. 
Promoted  First  Lieutenant. 
Transferred  to  Engineer  Corps. 


Mustered  out  .Tune  6,  '65. 


Discharged  Feb.  4,  '63. 


Died  Jail.  15,  '63;  wounds. 

Died  .Jan.  18,  '63;  wounds. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Mustered  out  June  5,  65. 

Died  at  Louisville,  Ky.,  Nov.  18,  '62. 

Supjiosed  to  have  Ikhmi  drowned. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Died  at  Atlanta,  Ga.,  Oct.  5,  "64. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

DiedatMurfreesboro,Tenn,Mayl8,'63 

Deserted  Nov.  16,  '62. 

Deserted  Nov.  6,  '62. 

Mustei'ed  Dili,  .luiie  6,  '65. 

Died  :i1   Howling  (ireen.Ky., Dec.  2, '62' 

Killed  at  Stone's  River,  Dec.  31,  '62, 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS. 


58: 


Name  and  Rank. 


Cunning-ham,  Isaac 
Cunnlnsham,   Sylv'r 

Davis,  Henry  W 

Davis,  Morgan 

Dennis,  Andrew 

Doughty,  Allen  H 

Downing,  James  A 
Duchemin,  Daniel  T 

Ducliemin,  Eli  D 

Elliott,  Samuel 

Floyd,  .Jacob 

Franklin,  John  L 

Gill,  James,  E 

Green,  Robert  W 

Hard  wick,  .lolin  S 

Hayes,  Patrick 

Hendricks,  Mark  D. 
Hickson,  James  W... 

Honon,  John 

Ingram,  Thomas 

Inlow,  James 

Kelly,  John  S 

Kent,  John 

Kersey,  Stephen' J 

Lane,  Edward  A.  J. 
Lane,  Jeremiah        . 
Lane,  William  H 
Lasley.  Aaron 
Laymon,  Wilson  H 
Martin,  James  A 
Martin,  William  II 

McCoy,  Martin  M 

Miller.  John 

Miller,  Sylvanus  S 
Nichols, "Benjamin  I'" 
O'Leary,  Patrick 
Opencliain.  Johnson 
Saunders,  .himes  W 
Slagle,  Benjamin 
Smith.  Andrew  J  — 

Smith.  Isaac  H 

Smith,  John 

Smith,  John  R 

Smith.  Sidney  M 

Stephenson.  Edwin  I' 

Stork,  (jeorge . 

Thomas.  John  E 

Thornton.  Robert  B 
Tipton,  Eli  A 

Tipton,  John  G 

Tolen,  James  O 
Vantuyle.  Jerome  B 

Walter,  Horace 

Warren,  Marion  M 

Warren,  Seth  C 

Washburn,  C.  S.  R 
Wilkins,  James  M 

Willard,  Henry  H 

Worley,  Enoch  R 

Worley,  John  W 

Welsh,  John  

Wilson,  Joshua  F 

Wood,  Oliver 

Recruit. 
Tipton,  Wiufield  S . 


Residence. 


Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Lelianon 

Mt'chanicsburg 
Elniira,  X.  Y.... 

Lebanon 

Northfield 

Northfield 

Lebanon 

Zionsville 

Lcl)an(in 

Northfield 

Lebanon 

Thorn  town 

Danville ^ 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Li'banon  

Thorntown 

Lebanon 

Zionsville 

Zioiisville 

Zionsville 

Northtield 

Ci  awfordsville 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

Lebanon 

[jeljiinon  

Nurthfield 

Lclianoii 

I.ebaiion 

Lebanon 

Lel)anon 

Lebanon  

Li'l)anon  

Lebiinon       

Frankfort 

Norlhtield 

Lebanon 

K'e()kiil<,  Iowa 

Thoi'ntowii 

Fr-ankfort 

Xorllitield  

Jiebanoii  

DanvilU'   

Thoi'ntown 

Whitestown 

Thorntown 

Thorntown 

Boxley 

Colfax 

Covington 

Northtield 

Northfield 

Frankfort 

Lel)anon  

Northfield 


Northfield 


Date  of 

Muster. 

1862. 


Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Vug 
Aug. 
\ug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
\ug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 

rVug. 
\Ug. 

Aug. 
Aug. 
\ng. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
\ug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
\ug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 


Remarks. 


Discharged  July  30.  "03. 
Deserted  Nov.  i"..  '(lU. 
Killed  at  Stone's  Ulver,  Dec.  31.  'C,± 
.Mustered  mil  .(uiie  <i,  'dj. 
Died    at  Ciitrip  Cli.ise.  ()..  .March  4.  '00. 
Transferred  to  V.  B.  ('.,  Jan.  'in.  'I'lO. 
I)iscli;il'ged  I'rl).  2.  'Co.  ['Co. 

Traiisf'dio  V.K.C.;musl*d  out  .May  19, 
Died  :it  Cli;itlanooga.  Oct.'J-J,  *U4. 
DisclKirged  .Mav  •-'7.  •«3. 
Died  ;it  Indianapolis.  De.-.  17.  'iV2. 
Died  ;il  .Murfreesboro.Tenii..Juiie.HT.3. 
Disch.ngfd  .June  f,.  '03.  l'«'.3. 

Died  at   .M  urf  ree.sltoro,  Tenn.,  !•  eh. 'JJ. 
I»iscli:irged  Sept.  '_'l,  'tU. 
.Mustei-ed  out  .luiietj,  't>5. 
Deserted  Feb.  1,  'OS. 
Mustered  out  .luiie  (i,  '05.  iiH  StTirt'anl. 
Trarisfdlo  V.  U.  C.:niust'doul  .\«-    ! 
Discharged   Feb.  '24.  'r.3. 
.  Mustered  out  .lune  ti.  '•"i.'i. 
Died  at  Clial  taiiooga,  Tenn.,   .Vj;:..   ;. 
Mustered  out  .lune  0.  '((,"<. 
Dischiirged  April  'J.  '03. 
Traiisferre<l  to  V.  U.  ('..  Sept.  '2.  '03. 
Disciiarged  April  <i.  '0.3. 
Died   at    II  iiiitsville.  Ala..  Feb.  17. '05. 
Mustered  out  .lune  13,  T.-'i. 
I'ronioted  Second    Lieutenant. 
.Mustei-cd  nut  .luneti.  ■t"i.'>. 
Descried  De.-.  31.  '0'_'. 
Died  at  Madi-oii.  hid..  Fel).  l<t.  '05. 
I)i<<l  In  Ciiirip.   Dec.  10.  '•'.'_•. 
Dis.-hiirged  Dec.  11.  'i;3. 
Die<l  at   Na>liville.   Tenn..  Feb.  4. '03. 
Deserted  Oct.  1.  'OJ. 
Discharged  .Mari'li  'Js.  '03. 
Transferred   t.>  V.  U.  C..  April  'JH.  '03. 
Mustered  out  .1  uni- •'.,  i'.5.  as  CoriMiral. 
Supposi'd  to  lie  (lead. 
.Muslereil  out  .luiieO.  'tlS. 

Died  at  Nashville.  Tenn  .  June  M. 'OS. 
Died  at  Nashville.  Tenn..  I>»v.  U>. '•••.•. 
Killed  :il  Stom  S  Klvrr.  Dtv.  31.  '62. 
Mustered  out  Aug.  '.I. '05. 
.Mustered  out  .lune  0,  '05. 

Died  Nov.  '27.  'OiS:  wound.H. 
Dis.-harged  Dec.  5.   f.^.  ..    .^. 

Killed  at  Sloiii'  Klver.  !>«•<'.  31.  0*2. 
Mustered  out  .lime  i"-.  "05.  «<•  Corpural. 
Deserted  .Vug.  31.  '01. 
Died  alColutiibl.i.  Kv..  Nov.  II. '04. 
Transf'il  to  MNslsslppI  Marbu-  Hrtrndr 
Mlisleied  out  .linn-  <•.  "••5. 
Supposed  lohavf  Imtii  kll'' 
Deserted  Nov.  Jo.   <>2. 
.Muistered   out    .lune    O,    i-.i    :«•.  i  ir-.i 
Mustered  out  June  ".  ^y*'^- 

Transferred  to  V.  It.  C.  .laii    "    ""  • 
Died  l)»'c.  '-'">.  '03:  wouniU. 


Jan.  1.  '04 


Transfd  toOist  KeKlmonlJunoS. 'fii. 


588 


the  eighty-sixth  regiment, 
'enlisted  men  op  company  G. 


Name  and  Eank. 


First  Sergeant. 
Ream,  Littleton  V. 


Residence. 


Michigan  town 


Aug.  7. 


Sergeants. 

Hesser,  Tlieodore Frankfort 

Crawford,  Isaac  L Pickard's  Mills. 


Douglass,  John  A.. 
Snyder,  John 


Corporals. 

Reed,  Robert  P 

Cain,  Francis  M 

Luddington,  Harv^ey 

Weddle,  Jacob 

Stotter,  Howard 

Reed,  William  D 

Elliott,  Jesse 

Reed,  John 


Frankfort'. 
Frankfort . 


Jefferson 

Frankfort 

MicliiLrantown 
Mi<'lnuantowu 

Frankfort 

Micliiii:anto\vn  . 

l-'raiikfort 

.Jetfersoii 


Musicians. 
Aughe,  Joseph  W. 
Slpes,  James 


Wagoner. 
Norrls,  George  W. 


Privates. 
Alexander,  Abraham 

Ale.xander,  James 

Alexander,  Alfred.. 
Alexander,  William. 
Allen,  Benjamin  W  .. 
Anderson,  James  W. 

Bolt.  LeviG 

Bolt,  William  J 

Bowers,  William 

Blackburn, Joseph  B 

Brobst,  Nathan 

Boyer,  Charles  F... 

Boyer,  James 

Brafford,  Jacob  B.. 

Bundy,  Miles  M 

Burns,  Joseph  J 

Cambridge,  James 

Cook.  Robert 

Cook,  George  W 

Cook,  Jesse 

Collins.  Silas  T 

Collins,  George  M. 
Cowdry,  Loren  G... 

Cutts,  Jeffrey  O 

Devoll,  Allen 

Devorse,  Josiah 

Douglass,  Martin  .. 
Duskey,  jehiel  C 

Devolt.  Thomas 

Edwards,  William  II 
Edwards,  Ephriam  T 

Elliott,  Francis  M 

Elliott,  John  C 

Fisher,  Josephus 

Fisher.  George  M 

Godby,  William  W. 

Gentry,  Wyatt  A 

Grover,  John  C 

Grover,  James  M 

Gue,  Francis  A 

Gue,  Peter  L 


Frankfort., 
Frankfort.. 


Michigan  town 


Pickard's  Mills 
Pickard's  Mills 
Pickard's  Mills 
Pickard's  Mills 

Frankfort 

Coop(M'ston,  Ills 

Fi-aiikfoi-t  -- 

Frankfort 

Clinton  county 

Berlin  

Frankfort 

Pickard's  Mills 
Pickard's  Mills 

Jefferson 

Berlin 

Burnside 

Michigantown 

Frankfort 

Frankfort,. 

Frankfort 

IMckard's  Mills 
Pickard's  Mills 
.Micliif,Mnton .... 

Frankfort 

Frankfort 

Michigantown 

Franlvfort 

IMckanl's  Mills 

I'rankfort 

Hurt^ct 's  Corn'r 
Micliiiiantown  . 

Frankfort 

Michigantown  . 

Berlin  

Berlin  

Berlin  

Frankfort 

Mii'liigantown  . 

Frankfort 

Michigantown  .. 
Michigantown .. 


Date  of 

Muster. 

1862. 


Aug.  3... 

Aug.  7... 

Aug.  5 ... 

Aug.  10.. 


Aug.  15.. 

Aug.  16.. 

Aug.  10.. 

Aug.  7  ... 

Aug.  5... 

Aug.  1-2.. 

Aug.  15.. 

Aug.  12.. 


Aug.  10.. 
Aug.  10.. 


Aug.  10.. 


Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 


7..., 

7... 

7... 

7... 

15 

5... 

15 

15 

10. 

9  .. 

9.. 

7... 

9.. 

4... 

7... 

5... 

9... 

15.. 

15.. 

15.. 

7  ... 

7  ... 
10. 
15.. 

8.  . 
15.. 
16.. 

9.  . 

8  ... 
10.. 
10.. 
15. 
15.. 
7  ... 


Promoted  Second  Lieutenant. 


Promoted  First  Lieutenant,  [wounds. 
Discharged  Jan.  — ,  '63;  accidental 
Transf 'dV.R.C.  ;must'd  outJune30,'65. 
Must'd  out  June  6, '65,  as  1st  Sergeant. 


Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 
Transferred  to  V.  R.  C.  Sept.  7,  '63. 
Mustered  out  June  7,  '65. 
Transferred  to  V.  R.  C.  Oct.  14,  '63. 
Mustered  out  June  14,  '65  as  private. 
Died   at   Jeffersonville   July  15,  '64; 
Died  atLouisvilleNov.  25,'62'  [wounds. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 


Remarks. 


Deserted  Oct.  12,  '62. 
Mustered  out  June  6, 


'65. 


Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 


Discharged  Feb.  16,  '63. 

Died  at  Nashville,  Tenu.,  Jan.  23,  '63. 

Discharged  May  6,  '63. 

Discharged  Oct.  17,  '63. 

Died  at  Nashville  Feb.  28,  '63. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Discliarged  April  11,  '63. 

Died  at  Louisville  Jan.  27,  '64. 

Died  at  Chattanooga  Nov.  6,  '63. 

.Musteied  out  June  6,  '65;  Corporal. 

.Mustered  out  June  14,  '65. 

Died  at  Nashville  Feb.  10,  '63. 

Discharged  April  18.  '63. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Deserted  from  hospital  Nov.  12,  '62, 

Mustered  out  June  13,  '65. 

Killed  at  Stone's  River  Dec.  31,  '62. 

Discharged  Nov.  23,  '62. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Transf 'd  V.  R.  C.  Dec.  12,  '63;  wounds. 
Mustered  out  June  6.  '65. 
Promoted  First  Lieutenant. 
Discharged  Dec.  9,  '64;  wounds. 
Transf'd  V.  R.  C;  must'd  out  July  24, 
Deserted  Oct.  6,  '62.  [65. 

Mustered  out  June  6.  '65,  as  Corporal. 
Dischariied  May  15,  '63. 
Deserted   Aug.  25.  '62;  disch'd   April 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65.  [24,  '64. 

Discharged  Jan.  27,  '63. 
Died  at  Nashville  Nov.  26,  '62. 
Dieii  at  Murfreesboro  Feb.  19,  '63. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65,  as  Corporal. 
Mustered  out  June  6, '65  as  Sergeant. 
Transf'd  to  Signal  Corps  June  3,  '63. 
Mustered  out.7une6,  '65,  as  Corporal. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS. 


5«t) 


Name  and  Eank. 


Healy,  Matthew... 
Hesser,  Jacob  A... 

Hunt,  James  L 

Jackson,  Ninevah 

Kins.  John  W 

Kirkpatrick,  Andr'w 
Knickerbocker,  H... 

Ky^er.  James  

Layton,  Irviu  R 

Lowrina:,  Nathaniel 

Macy,  Marcus  M 

Maltbie,  Joshua 

Maltble,  Jacob 

Moore,  AlonzoS.  W.. 

Neaves.  Hanlel 

Norris,  Gi'ors-e  H 

Paxson.  Beiiiamin  F 

Plckard  Alliert 

Plckartl.  I'oiter 

Price,  Zachariah 

Reed,  James 

Rathfon,  Jonas  H... 
Raymond,  Harlan... 

Reed,  Robert 

Reed.  Joseph  G 

Roush,  John  J 

Scott,  John  O 

Sharp,  Georjre  P 

Shaw,  James  L 

Skldmore.  Solomon. 

Tull,  George  W 

Urp,  Allen 

West.  John     

Willis,  Loauder 

Williams,  .lames  T. 

Wiles.  Joseph  H 

Whiteman,  A.  W 

Whitsell,  William  T 

Wills,  Israel 

Zook,  George 


Recniits. 
Alexander,  John  T... 
Ashley,  Charles  W 
Bechdol,  Andrew  F 

Bechdol,  John 

Booher,  John  W 

Carter,  David  B 

Carter,  Nathaniel  R 
Cowdrey,  Joseph  A.. 

Edwards,  Alfred 

Minick.  Justus 

Nichols,  Marshall  F. 
Ransopher,  Levi  S... 
Wyant,  Wesley  C 


Residence. 


Frankfort 

Frankfort 

Michigantown 
Pickard's  Mills 
Clinton  county 

Russiaville 

Frankfort 

Jefferson  

Michigantown 
Pickard's  Mills 

Thorntown 

Michigantown 

Ladoga 

Michigantown 
Clinton  county 

Frankfort 

Mortonsville 

Pickard's  Mills. 
Pickai'd'sMills- 
Pickard's. Mills.. 
Pickard's  .Mills 

Russiaville 

Burget's  Corn'r 

Jefferson 

Michigantown  . 

Frankfort 

Berlin  

Michigantown .. 

Frankfort 

Frankfort    

Pickard's  Mills. 
Pickard's. Mil  Is.. 

Frankfort 

Kokomo 

Michigantown 
Pickard's  Mills 
Michigantown 
Jefferson 
Pickard's  Mills 
Frankfort 


Pickard's  Mills. 

Colfax 

Walton    

Walton 

Walton 

.Mortonsville  ... 
Mortonsville. . 

Walton 

Michigantown 

Walton 

Walton  

Mortonsville. .. 
Colfax 


Date  of 

Muster. 
1862. 


Aug.  10 
Aug.  9.. 
Aug.  5  .. 
Aug.  7.. 
Aug.  15 
Aug.  10 
Aug.  7.. 
Aug.  14 
Aug.  6.. 
Aug.  10 
Aug.  6.. 
Au^.  6.. 
Aug.  12 
Aug.  12 
Aug.  9.. 
Aug.  10 
Aug.  10 
Aug.  7  .. 
Aug.  7  .. 
Aug.  3 
.\ug.  7  .. 
Aug.  10 
Aug.  18 
Aug.  15 
Aug.  15. 
Aug.  13. 
Aug.  9. 
Aug.  9.. 
Aug.  17 
Aug.  14 
Aug.  7.. 
Aug.  7.. 
Aug.  7.. 
Aug.  4.. 
Aug.  6  . 
Aug.  9. 
Aug.  10 
Aug.  9  . 
Aug.  7 
Aug.  16. 


Feb 
Fob. 
Fob. 
Fob. 
Mar. 
Feb 
Fob. 
Mar. 
Feb. 
Mar. 
Feb. 
Fob. 
Feb. 


RE.MARKS. 


Mustered  out  Juno  6.  'f.5. 

Discharged  Fob.  2H,  T.3. 

Died  at  L.uiisville.  Ky..   Doo.  22.  '62. 

Discharind  May  ll,'tJ3. 

Supn()>o(i  t(i  ho  dead. 

Died  at  .Mt.  Vornon,  Ky.,  Nov.  2.  '6Z 

Transferred  to  V.  B.C.,  Sept.  29.  '03. 

.Mustered  out  Juno  7.  '65. 

Discharged  .\ug.  17,   64. 

Discliargod  .\pril  21,  'i".3. 

Mustered  out  .luiio  •>.  '>>■>. 

Mustered  out  Juno  6,  't'i5,  as  Corporal. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Mustered  out  Sept.  5,  '65. 

Mustered  out  ,luno  6,  '65,  lis  Corporal. 

Transferred  to  V.  K.  C.  Feb.  15.  '65. 

Discharged  April  11,  '63. 

Discharged  July  21.  "63. 

Discliargod  Soot  — .  '1.2. 

Deserted;  discharged  .Vprll  24,  '64. 

Mustered  out  Juno  I'l.  '6j. 

Transferred  to  V.  U.  ('.,  Aug.  1.  "63. 

Discharsiod  May  11.  'f.3. 

Mustered  out  .luno  t).  '65,  us  SorRonnt, 

Di-schargodSopl.  25.  '63. 

.Mustered  out  ,luno  i>,  '65. 

Discharged  Doc.  2.  '63. 

Discharged  Sept.  H,  63. 

Mustered  out  .Juno  6.  '65. 

Transfd  to  V.  K.  (".,  March  17.  '64. 

Mustered  out  June  14.  '65. 

Died  at  Loulsvill.>,  Kv..  Juno  2h,  63. 
Discharged  May  If,.  (,3.  [65. 

Transfd  V.U.C.:  discliargod  .Miircli  11. 
Discharged  April  22,  '63. 
Killed  at  Stone's  lUvor,  l)o<'.  31.   62. 
Died  at  Cliattan<>ogH.TiMU>.,Nov.  6.'6S. 
Discharged  April  lo.  '63. 


Transfori 


out  May  IH.  "65. 

od  to  51st  llog'l.  Juno  .').  "rt.J 


Transferred  to  V.  U.  C..  Jiin.  16.  'fift. 
Transferred  to  51st  Keu't,  Juno  ft.  'oft. 


Died  at  Indlnnaix>lls  April  So.  '64. 
Transferred  to  51»t  Kok'I,  June  5.    M 


ENLISTED    MEN    OF    CO.MPANV    II. 


Name  and  Rank. 


First  Sergeant. 
Douglass,  Isaac  W. 


Sergeants. 
Paris,  Thomas  M iMichigautowu 


Residence. 


Michigantown 


Date  of 

Muster. 

1862. 


Aug.  4 


Remarks. 


Discharged  Jan.  13.  '63. 


Aug.  4        Died  at  Nashville.  Trnn..  J»d.  1.  "63. 


590 


THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 


Name  and  Rank. 


Lynch.  John M 

Dou^hiss,  William  E 
Roush,  Timothy  H 

Cfn-poraJs. 

Nees,  William  J 

Paxton,  Benjamin  W 
Hobson,  William  P.. 

Barnes.  David  R 

Pence,  David  P 

Trulock,  William  H 
Gallagher.  Fielding- 
Cast.  John  M 

Musicians. 
Mellenger,  William  A 
Packer,  John  D 

Wagoner. 
McQuade,  David 

Privates. 
Ashpaueh,  William.. 

Bacon,  Joel  M 

Baker,  Alonzo 

Baker,  George  W 

Barnes.  James  A 

Barnes.  William  W. 
Boyce,  Allen  W 
Brammell.  Janu's  W 
Burgett.  William  M 

Cambridge.  John 

Carney,  Michael 

Carter.  Jesse  W 

Cash.  John 

Cassman.  Ethan  H 
t'assman. Theodore  L 

Colson.  William 

Cox,  Perry 

Crane,  David 

Elder,  Richard 

Elder,  John 

Fisher,  John  W 

Friend,  Paul  I 

Friend,  Leander  W 
Galbreath,  Richai'd 

Goff,  Amos,  Sr 

Goff,  Amos  Jr, 

Grose,  Jefferson 

Gum,  Harrison  N 

Hill.  Atkinson 

Holler,  Noah  

Jackson,   Henry 

Jenkins,  Howard 

Johnson,  Claiborne 

Kemper,  Samuel 

Kimball,  Andrew 

Leach,  Calvin  F 

London,  Alexander. 

Leidv,  Levi 

Manii,  John  W 

Mr  Ad.-nns,  William  F 
Mi'(  'aniish,  George  W 

BlcDanicl.  John 

McClelland.Jetf'rson 

Miller,  John  A 

Michaels,  Isaac 

Morrison,   Hiram 

ISlorrison.  James  M.. 

Orr.  Matthew  E 

Ostler,  Jacob 

Packer,  Charles 


Dal 

e  of 

Residence. 

Muster. 

1862. 

Middle  Fork 

Aug. 

12 

Michigantown .. 

Aug. 

12  . 

Geetingsville  ... 

Aug. 

12 

Middle  Fork...  .- 

Aug. 

22... 

Mortonville 

Aug. 

22..... 

Hurgefs  Corn'r 

Aug. 

12  ... 

Michiu-iintown  . 

Aug. 

14.  .. 

{■'i-ankfort 

Aug. 

14... 

Uossville  

Aug. 

02 

.Mic-liiuantown  .. 

Auff. 

22 

Frankfort 

Aug. 

22 

Rossville 

Aug. 

22 

Mulberry 

Aug. 

14 

Michigantown . 

Aug. 

14.  . 

Burget's  Corn'r 

Aug. 

14... 

Burget's  Corn'r 

Aug. 

14... 

Berlin 

Aug. 
Aug. 
A  US. 

14 

11. 
11. 

Berlin 

Michigantown . 

Michigantown 

Aug. 

11 

.Michigantown 

An--. 

13 

Micliiuantown 

Auu-. 

13 

Uui-urt's  Coi-u'r 

\U'J. 

13 

.\licliii.Miitt)wii 

.\nir. 

10... 

Kossville 

\UL^ 

15  .. 

Mortonville 

An-. 

15.. 

Hurgcl's  Corner 

Aug. 

15 

.\1  ii-liiu;int()\vn 

Au'j. 

12 

.M  icliiuantowii 

Aug. 

12 

.Middle  l-'ork 

Aug. 

12... 

.Micli!i:;ni1own 

.\u>r. 

1(1. 

Fraiikfoft 

Aug. 

10. 

Middle  Fork 

An-. 

16.. 

Middle  Fork 

Aus. 

16.. 

Kossville 

Aug. 

Antr- 

16.. 

17.. 

Moi-tonsville  .. 

Morloiisvillc 

An.j-. 

17. 

Michiiiantowii 

Aug. 

17.. 

Micliit;;into\vii 

An-. 

14. 

MichiuMutown 

.\u-. 

13 

Hurucfs  Corn'i' 

.\ug. 

13 

Kui-nsidc 

Aug. 

10 

.Michiuantown  . 

,\n-. 

14 

Kossville 

Au-. 

Au-. 

14. 
14 

Miclii^antown  . 

.Micliiuantown 

An-. 

IS.. 

I'rankfort 

Au-. 

l,s.. 

Kossville 

Aug 

15.. 

Burnside 

Aug. 

14.. 

Burget's  Corn'r 

Aug. 

13 

Bur  set's  Corn'r 

Aug. 

17 

Berlin 

Aug. 

12... 

Michigantown  .. 

Aug. 

12.. 

Middle  Fork 

Aug. 

12..- 

Kossville 

Aug. 
Aug. 

20 

Burget's  Corn'r 

21 

Ruiget's  Corn'r 

Aug. 

21 

Micliiuaiilown  .. 

Aug. 

20 

M  icliin'iintown  .. 

An-. 

20 

MiddU'  Fork 

Aug 

18 

Frankfort 

Auir. 

15... 

Buryel's  Corn'r 

Aug. 

15... 

Michigantown  . 

Aug. 

15 

Mulberry 

Aug. 

12 

Remarks. 


Discharged  Oct.  30,  '62. 

Discharged  March  28,  '63. 

Killed  at  Stone's  River,  Dec.  31,  '62. 


Promoted  Second  Lieutenant. 

Died  at  Huntsville,  Ala.,  Jan.  31,  '65. 

Transfericd  V.  K.  C.  Aug.  1,  '63. 

Died  at  lioiiie  May  1,  '64. 

Discharged  Feb.  8.  '63. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65.,  as  private. 

Discharged  May  28,  '63. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65,  as  1st  S  erg't 


Mustered  out  May  17.  '65. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Discharged  May  8,  '65. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 
Died  at  Nashville.  Tenn..  Dec.  29,  '62. 
Transferred  to  V.  R.  C.  Jan.  10,  '65. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65,  as  Sergeant. 
Transferred  V.  R.  C,  Aug.  '63. 
Died  at  BowlingGreen,Ky.,Feb.  24,  '63. 
.Mustered  out  June  6.  '65. 

Discharged  Jan.  3,  '63. 

.Mustered  out  June  6,  '65,  as  Corporal. 

Discharged  March  9,  '68. 

Died  at  Louisville  Dec.  8,  '62. 

Mustered  out  June  17,  '65. 

Died  at  Nashville,  Tenn..  Feb.  16,  '63. 

Transferred  V.  R.  C,  Nov.  1,  '63. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Mustered  out  June  6.  '65,  as  Corporal. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 


Discharged  Nov.  22, '62. 

Discliaiged  April  7,  '63. 

Deserted  Feb.  1,  '63. 

Died  at  Knoxville,  Tenn.,  March  2,'64. 

Musteied  out  June  6,  '65. 

Deserted  Oct    15,  '62. 

Died  at  Nashville,  Tenn.,  March  8,  '63. 

Mustered  out  .June  6,  '65. 

Died  at  Chattanooga  March  31,  '64. 

Tiansfd  to.")  1st  Keg't  to  make  up  lost 

Discharged  Oct.  28.  '62.  [time. 

.Mu^teretl  out  June  6.  '65.  as  Sergeant. 

Dischar-ed  .Ian.  31.  '63. 

Died  at  Nashville.  Jan.  9.  '63;  wounds. 

.Mustt'red  out  June  6,  '65. 

Discharged  May  6.  '63. 

Deserted  Nov.  1,  '63. 

Killed  at  Mission  Ridge,  Nov.  25,  '63. 

Deserted  Nov.  5.  '63. 

Discli;ii'-ed  Aug.  24.  '63. 

Died  at  Gallatin.  Tenn.,  Feb.  16.  '63. 

Died  at  Knoxville.  Tenn..  Oct.  27, '64. 

Discharged  July  19.  '63;  wounds. 

Mustered  out  June  6.  '65,  as  Corporal. 

Died  at  Bull's  Gap,  Tenn.,  April  6^  '^4. 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS. 


591 


Name  and  Rank. 


Residence. 


Parks,  Thomas  B 

Parker,  Luke 

Petrio.  Henry 

Price.  David  F 
Redwine.  .lames  (' 

Rodiiers,  .John 

Rollins.  Henry 

Rousli,  Sebastian 

Rowe.  Jesse j 

Rude,  Angus 

Ryan,  .Tames  P [ 

Shaw,  .Tamos  N 
Smith,  .Tames  .T 
Snod^i'ass,  Samuel 
Stroup,  JepT'ia 
Stroup,  Williani 
Swisher,  Maiiasseh 
Thompson.  James  W 
Thar)),  ISIalilon  E 
Thorn,  I'eter  (' 
Ticeii,  Moses  B 
Ticen,  Francis  M 
Townsend, Henry  S.L 
Uns-ei',  Thomas 
Wakfley.t'orydon  W 
Wellman,  T>:iijali 
West.  William. - 
Whiteman,  James  INl 
Whiteman,Wm.  PI.IT 
Wilson,  Jethro 

Wilson,  John  W 

Wordon,  .lolin 


Recndt. 
Elder,  William.. 


Ross\Mlle 

Miehigaritown 
IMichiiiantown 

Fi'.-inkfort  

Middle  Fork  ... 
Middle  Fork 
BuTi^et's  Corn' 
Geet  in'4sville 
Burjiet's  Corn' 
Burset's  Corn' 

Berlin  

Bnrsef  s  Corn' 
:\Iiciiigantown 

Hei'lin  

Kui'set's  Corn' 
Hur'.;et's  Corn' 

iKirkland.. 

Middle  Fork... 

Kossville 

Michinantown 
Middle  Fork  .. 
Middle  Fork  -. 
Middle  IVirk... 
:\IiddleFork  .. 
Michigantown 

lierlin    

I'rankfort 

Middle  Fork... 
Middle  Fork... 

liossville 

Burget's  Corn 
Burget's  Corn 


Date  of 

Muster. 
1862. 


AufT. 
!\ug. 
Au^'. 
Auf?. 
Aui?. 
Au^'. 
Auu.-. 
Aim-. 
XwA. 
Aufj. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
(Vug. 
(Vug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug, 


Middle  Fork. 


14... 

14... 

14  . 

14  . 

14 

17 

'2() 

•20 

21 

17 

22 

22  '^ 

r>o 

Uj 

12 

12 

12 

12 

16 

10 

14 

18.. 

19 

19.. 

14. 

14. 

15 

18. 

18. 

19.. 

20.. 

19.. 


Remarks. 


Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 


DischarLred  Oct.  17,  "63. 
Deserted  O.-t.  Hi,  'tVJ. 
.Mustered  mit  .luiie  6,  'ti5. 
)ie(l  at  Nashville  Julv --'6.  "63. 
Musteieil  out  .lutie  <>,  f>3. 
Discharged  April  3.  "63.  [30.  G5. 

Transf'd  to  V.  U.  ('.;  inusfd  ouiJunu 
Died    at    Louisvilli-.  Ky..  .Vprll  U, '••3. 
Died  at  Kin'rst<.ii.(;a..Aug.l.).  •r.4:w'ils. 
Deserted  In  faci>  of  enemy,l)er.31,  •«2. 
Transferred  to  V.  K.  C,  Jan.  l^>.  '•"4. 
Died  at  Louisville.  Ivy.,  Dec.  9,  T/i. 
Died  at  Ml.    Vernon,   Ky.,    Nov.  1.   tJ2. 
Died  at  Indianapolis  June  11,  '•>■».  _ 
Transf'd  to  F.ir^'ineer  Corps  Aug-  7.  M. 
Discliarired  .Ian.  3,  'f>3. 
Mustered  out  .lune  I.. 'i>.). 
Died  at  Nashville,  Tenn.,  Jan.  17.   03. 

Dlsclnirged  I ■  ^0   r.-2. 

Died  at  Nashville.  1  •■nn..  Jim.  24.   03. 
Died  at  Cliatl  anooga  Jan.  '-M,  •>4. 
DischarL'ed  June  HI,  "t.S. 
Dischariied  May  4,  '63. 
Discharged  May  '-'1,  't'S. 
Mustered  out  .lune  6.  'i>Ty,  us  (  oriH.rnl. 
Mustered  out  .lune  •'•.  ■<••'>•. ^,  , 

Died  at  Nashville.  Jan.  9. 'OS;  wouud-i. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  "65. 


Jan.  6,  '64  Trtinsfd  to  51st  Regiment,  Joik 


ENLISTED  MEN  OF  COMI'ANV   I. 


Name  and  Rank. 


,        First  Sergeant. 
■*   Belknap,  Myron  H.. 

Seroeaiits. 
Heaton,  John  O 
Compton,  Benjamin 
Rhinehart.  Allen 
Cosby,  John  W 


Frankfort . 


Corporals. 
Belknap. Leonldas  II 

Welsh,  .lesse 

Wells.  Wesley  E 

Storms.  George 

McCain,  Thos.  H.  B 

Mohler.  Henry 

BratTord.  James  M 
Huffman,  Absalom... 

•  Musicians. 
Ilammell.  Nathan  .. 
Moore,  James 


Residence. 


LaFayette... 
Thorntown  .. 
uks  Mill 
Stockwell  ... 


Frankfort... 
Thorntown.. 

Stockwell 

Stockwell... 
Thorntown. 
Kossville  .... 
JelTerson 
Clark's  Hill 


Stockwell 
Stockwell 


Date  of 
Muster. 

1862. 


Sept.  4 


Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 


Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 
Sept.  4 


Sept.  4 
Sept.  4. 


Kkmaiiks. 


I)lsch'dApr.l9.'64;w'd-*m'"«J.Ml!».R'tU- 

Transf'.l  to  V.  «-.,<; •..?];"*'•'»  "^^^^^l 
Dlscharued  Autf.  J^.  /;•♦  l"* 

Dlschark'ed  March  .•,  •••'• 
Mustered  out  May  •.'•■.    '••'•  .«M'rlv»to. 

Discharged  .\prll  19.  'M. 

&:r::;l.'r" '""'liSor«r.n.. 

Died  Dec.  Ji'. 

Pled  Deo.  U-.  ' ^ 

Transferred  to  V.  B.  I  ^  JWJ.  14.  t>3. 


592 


THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 


Name  and  Rank. 


Wagoner. 
Cartmill,  William 

Privates. 

Adair,  Irwin  M 

Bailey,  Silas 

Bailey,  Tishlman  ... 

Bazzlc,  Jacob  D 

Boyer,  John 

Busl).  John 

Campbell,  Samuel... 

Cartmill,  Jacob 

Chizzum,  George  W 

Cones,  Francis  M 

Conrad,  William  H.. 

Cosby,  Thomas 

Crick,  John  F 

Custer,  Jeptha 

Dame,  Andrew 

Darrouffh,  James  A 

Davis,  James  H 

Decker,  Jacob 

Decker,  Thomas 

Deford,  William 

Doster,  John 

Dukes,  Jacob 

Fleming,  Jacob 

Gant,  JelTerson 

Gant,  Henry  B 

Gibson,  William 

Gregory.  James 

Grimes,  Wesley 

Harmon,  Henry. 

Hayden,  James  B... 

Helm,  Samuel 

Horney,  Daniel 

Huffman,  George T.. 

Irons,  John  B 

Lane,  John 

Lane,  Samuel 

Lukens,  Joseph 

Lytle,  Benjamin  F.. 

Lytle,  Edward 

Lytle,  James  A 

Menaugh,  James  ^. 

Michael,  John 

Michael,  William 

Mikesell,  John  W 

Mitchell,  Robert 

North,  Zachariah 

Parker,  John  T 

Parker,  Jonathan. .. 

Parvis,  George 

Patton,  George 

Peterson,  Paris  H... 

Pitman,  William 

Rash,  Andrew 

Rash,  Lorin 

Rash,  Perry 

Sheets,  Joseph 

Skaggs,  Silas  N 

Slane,  Lane 

Snavely,  Jacob 

Stack  house,  Samuel 

Starkcy,  Daniel 

Stinson,  H(>iiry 

Stook.  John  11 

Sutton,  James  H 

Switzer,  William  B.. 
Timmons,  Andrew  .. 
Van  Vorhis,  F.J 


Residence. 


Stockwell 


Thorntown 

Clark's  Hill 

OlaTk'sHill 

Colfax 

Linden  

Colfax 

Stockwell 

Stockwell 

Stockwell 

Thorntown 

Darlington 

Stockwell    

Clark's  Hill    . 
Shaiinondale..  . 

Colfax 

Thorntown 

Rossville 

Wyandotte 

Wyandotte 

Colfax 

Colfax 

Colfax 

Stockwell 

Clark's  Hill 

Clark's  Hill 

Thorntown 

LaFayette 

Stockwell  

Stockwell 

Stockwell  -• 

Stockwell  

Stockwell    

Darlington 

Darlington 

Colfax  

Colfax 

Stockwell 

Thorntown 

Thorntown 

Thorntown 

Colfax .  . 

Linden  

Linden 

Thorntown 

Clark's  Hill 

Stockwell 

Mulberry 

Mulberry 

Stoi-kwell  

Stockwell  

Clark's  Hill 

Thorntown 

Clark's  Hill 

Crawfordsville 
Crawfordsville 

Wyandotte 

Stockwell 

Lebanon  

Thorntown 

Whitestown 

Clark's  Hill 

Clark's  Hill 

Clark's  Hill 

Jefferson 

Clark's  Hill 

Clark's  Hill 

Zionsville 


Date  of 
Muster. 

1862. 


Sept.  4. 


Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Si'i)t. 
Si'pt. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 

M'pt. 

Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 
Sept. 


Remarks. 


Died  Feb.  10,  '63. 


Mustered  out  June  6,  '65,  as  Sergeant 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65.  [Major. 


Discharged  March  19,  '63. 
Discharged  Jan.  3,  '65.  [10,  '63. 

Died   at  Murfreesboro,   Tenn,   March 
Mustered  out  May  25,  '65. 
Discharged  Jan.  23,  '63. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 
Discharged  Jan.  8,  '63. 
Transferred  to  V.  R.  C,  Jan.  14,  '63. 
Killed  at  Mission  Ridge,  Nov.  25, '63. 
Missing  at  Chickamauga,  Sept.  20,  '63. 
Mustered  out  June  6  '65. 
Died  Jan.  18,  '63. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65,  as  Corporal. 
Died  Jan    11,  '63. 

Transferred  to  V.  R.  C,  Jan.  14,  '63. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 
Transferred  to  V.  It.  C,  April  3,  '65. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 
Discharged  Jan.  25,  '63;  wounds. 
Discharged  Jan.  15,  '63. 
Promoted  Captain  Co.  C. 
Died  Dec.  26.  '62.  f'65. 

Transf 'd  to  V.R.C.  ;must'd  outJune  30, 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Discharged  Dec.  20,  '63. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65,  as  Corporal. 
Died  ;it  Louisville.  Ky.,  Jan.  7,  '63. 
Discharged  July  10,  '63.     [July  25,  '64 
Transf'd  to  U.  S.  Vet.  U.  S.  Engineers, 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 
I)isch;irged  Feb.  13,  '63. 
Discliaiiri'd  Sept.  25,  '63. 
Mu.stered  out  Aug.  24,  '65. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65,  as  Sergeant. 
.Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 
Discharged  June  18,  '63. 
Discharged  June  25,  '64. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 
Died  at  Louisville,  Ky.,  Dec.  11,  '62. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 
Transferred  to  V.  R.  C,  Jan.  14.  '63. 
Discharged  Dec.  1,  '64;  wounds. 
Kilh'd  ;it   Mission  Ridge,  Nov.  25,  '63. 
Discharged  .Ian.  3,  '63. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 
Mustered  out  June  28, '65.  ' 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65,  as  Corporal. 
Transferred  to  V  R.  C,  Dec  12,  '64. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Discharged  March  5,  '63. 
Discharged  June  29,  '63. 
Discharged  Feb.  1,  '63. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 
Died  Jan.  18,  '63;  wounds. 
Mustered  out  June  6.  '65. 
Transferred  to  V.  R.  C,  Jan.  16,  '64. 
Deserted  Nov,  8,  '62. 
Promoted  to  Asst.  Surgeon  Dec.  6,  '62^ 


i 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS. 


503 


Name  and  Rank. 

Residence. 

Date  of 

Muster. 

1862. 

Remarks. 

Vise,  William  I 

Waddell.  Campbell.  . 

Watkins.  Enoch 

Williams,  Robert 

Recruits. 

Frankfort 

Stockwell 

Colfax 

Clark's  Hill  

Sept.  4 

Sept.  4 
Sept.  4  .    . 
Sept.  4 

Nov.14,'65 
Nov.14,'65 

Died  atNashville.Teim.. March  13. 
Mustered  out  .luiie  t'l,  Tio. 
Discharjred  Marcli  31,  '63. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '05. 

Transfered  to  51st  Regt.,  June5, 
Transferred  to  51st  Keg't.  Jan.  5. 

'63. 

Edder,  William 

Kokomo 

•65. 

ENLISTED  MEN  OF  COMPANY  K. 


Name  and  Rank. 


First  Serjeant. 
Carnahan,  James  R 

Sergeants. 
Ristine.  Harley  G 
Holloway,  Georse  W 
Snyder.  'Benjamin  F 
Carter,  Jesse 


Residence. 


Dayton 


Crawfordsville 
Crawfordsville 
Crawfordsville 
LaFayette 


Corpni'als. 
Blair.  Jolin  W..  .Tr      iCrawfonl 
Spilman.   Hobrrt  B      ( 'r;i\vf(ir(lsville 

Barton.  William iCrawfunlsville 

Safer,  Aaron  H |Mt.  Pleasant 


McClelland.  Alfred  J 

Ensle,  Jolin  B 

Underwood,  Robert 

Musicians. 

Naylor,  Charles 

Bennett,  John  S 


Wngnner. 
Vanhook,  Andrew  J 

Privates. 
Alliiaiids.  George 
Baldwin.  William  J . 

Ball.  Oliver 

Beard.  Thomas  J  — 

Bone,  Joseph  S 

Bone.  William  H 

Burk.  Georfje  W 

Carroll,  Joseph  S 

Carter,  Edwin  R 

Curtis,  John 

Dice.  William  A 

Edwards.  James  G.. 

Ensle.  Talton 

Farley.  William 

Ferfieson.  .lohn 

Fersjeson.  Isaac  W. ... 

Forlies.  William  J 

Galey,  William  L 

Gallowaj^.  George 

Green.  .Tames 

Green.  Bartholmew. 
Griffith.  Thomas  B... 

Gwinji.  John  W 

Hall.  Henry  C 

Harrington,  JamesA 


Crawfordsville 
Crawfi>rdsville 
Oxford 


Crawfordsville 
Prairie  Edge 


Crawfordsville 


Crawfordsville 
Crawfordsville 
Crawfordsville 
Crawfordsville 

LaFayette 

LaFayette 

Crawfordsville 

Crawfordsville 

Brookston 

Crawfordsville 

Crawfordsville 

Crawfordsville 

Crawfordsville 

Crawfordsville 

Crawfordsville 

Crawforflsville 

Crawfordsville 

Crawfordsville 

Crawfordsville 

Crawfordsville 

Crawfordsville 

Crawfordsville 

Crawfordsville 

Crawfordsville 

Crawfordsville 


Date  of 
Muster 

1862. 


Remarks. 


Aug. 

11 

Aug. 

17 

.\ug. 

12 

Aug. 

25 

Aug. 

11. 

Aug. 

11 

Aug. 

15 

Aug. 

20 

Aug. 

11   .. 

-Vug. 

15 

Aug. 

23 

Aug. 

oo 

Aug. 

20 

Aug. 

18 

Aug. 

16 

Aug. 

18 

Aug. 

18 

Aug. 

O.I 

Aug. 

20 

Aug. 

20 

Aug. 

23 

.Aug. 

25 

Ami' 

25 

Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
I  Aug. 
I  Aug. 


Promoted  Second  Lieutenant. 


Discharged  Feb   13,  '63. 

Deserted  Jan   2o,  63 

.Mustired  out  June  6,  '6.5.  as  Sergeant. 

Discharged  April  25,  '64;  w>Minds. 


Discharged  F.b.  3.  '63. 

Promoted  Captain. 

Deserted  Nov.  20.  '62. 

.Must'dout.Iunc6.'65.asy.M.SiTgeaMt. 

Discliargiil  Jan.  14,  '63. 

.Mustered  out  .lune  6.  't".5. 

I'roDioti'd  l^»uarterniaster. 


Died  at  Bowling  Gn-en.Ky  .Nov.  1.   •.•_•. 
.Musfdout.May  25.'65.asPrlii  .MuhIcIhii 

Transferred. to  V.  K.  C.  Sept.  1,  63, 


Discharged  May  12.63. 
.Mustered  t>ut  June  6,  "ti.S. 

Discliarged  Jan.  14. '63. 
.Mustered  out  ,Iune  6.  "flS. 


Dlscharired  Dec  29. -fi.l. 
.Mustered  out  June  ••.  ■•••'•. 
iDi'serted  fron.  .Mst  Ueir't 
i. Mustered  out  .lune  <•.  '••■'>. 
iDlscharged  Jan.  lo.  ••S. 
jDischaru'e.l  Dec.  31.  '64. 
Sent  to  penitent  lurv  by  cIvU  iiulhorliy 
LMustere<lout  Junet«.  »>•'>.    lf«»rhl»rmn)r. 

IDlscharged  Feb.  "26.  T.a 

lMustere<l  out  June  '      • 

Died  at  Indluniilx)!!- 

Transf  t<i  thel'.tt  hi    -  •     ' 

Died  Jan. '.•.■t.3:wouii..^ •',■.,''    '^ 

Mustered  out  June  il.    •••>.  tUUvr. 

Discliarged  Jan.  14.  "•'•S. 
Discharge*!  Jan.  13.  'h3. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  65. 


594 


THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 


Name  and  Rank. 


Harris,  Alexander 

Harris,  Peter 

Howard. Tilghman  A 
Jester.  Alexander.  . 

Kelly,  .John  [1st] 

Kelly,  John  [2d] 

Larue,  Garrett 

Lawson,  Branson   H 

Linn,  Josepli  R 

Long,  Samuel  K 

Lynch,  Patrick 

Lytle,  William  F 

Moore,  John  D 

Moore.  Harvey  H.  M 

Murray,  Hiram  M 

Osborn,   Warren 

Oxley,  Joseph  H 

Pattison,  Joseph  C... 

Peed,   Henry 

Peed,  Oliver  H 

Pickerill,  James  L... 

Potts,  Elisha 

Prine,  James  M 

Reilly,  Hugh 

Sanders,  William  W 

Slattery,  John 

Smith,    Charles 

Smith,  Elisha 

Swank,  Wilson 

Swank,  James  R 

Swank.  John 

Swindler,  Henry  H ... 

Thomas,  James  R 

Thompson,  John  M. 
Urmston,JonathanT 

Vanliorn.  John  S 

Wain s( ■o1 1.  E I  i as 

Waiii.scott.  I'lancisM 
Walker,  Samuel  M... 

Walker,  Adam  H 

Walker,  Albert  B 

Ward,  Dennis 

Ward.  William  W 

Watson,  .lames 

Wetherald.  Isaac  B.. 

Welch,  Morris 

Whitled.  William 

Willey,   Foster  O 

Williams,  , lames 

Williaiiis.  Martin  L... 
Wisoiig,  William  M ... 
Wisong,  Francis  M... 


Residence. 


f'rawfoi'dsvil 

('ra\vf()f<lsvll 

rrawl'ordsvil 

LaFayette  . .. 

Crawt'ordsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfoi'dsvil 

Crawl'oi'dsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

LaFayette 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

LaFayette    .. 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfoi-tlsvil 

Crawfoi'dsvil 

Crawfords\il 

Crawfoi'dsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfcu'dsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfoi'dsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfoi'dsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfoi'dsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfoi'dsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfoi'dsvil 

Crawfoi'ds\-il 

Crawfordsvil 

Crawfordsvil 


Date  of 
Muster. 

1862. 


Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug, 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug, 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 
Aug. 


Remarks. 


Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Discharged  Oct.  14,  '63. 

Must'd  out  June  G,  '65, as  1st  Sergeant. 

Died  at  Somerset,  Ky.,  Oct.  28,  '63. 

.Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

.Mustered  out  June  6,  '65.  as  Corporal. 

Transf'd  to  EngineersCorpsAug.7,  '64. 

Musrered  out  June  6,  '65. 

.Mustered out  June  6,  '65,  as  Sergeant. 

Discharged  Jan.  15.  '65. 

Transf'd  to  the  lOthU.S.  Infantry  Dec 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65.     [Dec.  4,  '6'2. 

Transferred  to  V.  R.  C.  Jan.  lu,  '65. 

.Mustered  out  June  6,  '65  as  Corporal. 

Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Died  at  Danville.  Ky.,  Dec.  25,  '62. 

Discliarged  March  7.  '63;  wounds. 

Killed  at  Hrownsboro,  Ala.,  by  R.K.  ac- 

Must'd  outJune6,'65.rcidentJan.23,65. 

Discharged  Feb.  27,  '63. 
Discharged  Dec   13.  '64. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 
Promoted  First  Lieutenant. 
Killed  at  .Nashville  Dec.  15,  '94. 
.Mustered  out  .luiie  6,  '65. 
Discharged  March  9,  '63. 
Died  at  Chattanooga,  Feb.  4,  '65. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 

Discharged  April  27,  '63. 
Transferred  to  V.  R.  C.  Sept.  2,  '63. 
.Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 
Discharged  Feb.  5,  '63. 
Died  Oct.  21,  '63;  wounds. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65,  as  Corporal. 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65. 


Transf'd  to  V.R.C.;  must'd  out  July  7, 
Mustered  out  June  6,  '65.  ["65. 


Transf'd  to  V.  R.  C;  must'd  out  June 
Discharged  July  10.  '63.  [30,  '65. 

Died  at  Xashville,  Tenn.,  Jan.  29,  '63. 
Mustered  out  May  17,  '65. 
Killed  at  Stone's  River  Dec.  31,  '62. 
Died   at   Nashville,  Tenn,  Dec.  27, '62. 
Mustered  out  June  28,  '65. 


THE  CANTEEN. 


There  are  bonds  of  all  sorts  in  this  workl  of  ours, 
Fetters  of  friendship  and  ties  of  llowers, 

And  true  lovers"  knots  I  ween; 
The  girl  and  the  hoy  are  bound  by  a  kiss, 
But  there's  never  a  bond,  old  friend,  like  this — 

We  have  drunk  from  the  same  canteen. 

It  was  sometimes  water  and  sometimes  milk, 
And  sometimes  applejack,  line  as  silk. 

But  whatever  the  tipple  has  been. 
We  shared  it  together  in  bane  or  bliss. 
And  I  warm  to  you,  friend,  when  I  think  of  this— 

We  have  drunk  from  the  same  canteen. 

The  rich  and  the  great  sit  down  to  dine. 

And  they  quaff  to  each  other  in  spai'kling  wine. 

From  glasses  of  crystal  and  green; 
But  I  guess  in  their  potations  they  miss 
The  wai-mth  of  regard  to  be  found  in  this — 

We  have  drunk  from  the  same  canteen. 

We  have  shared  our  blankets  and  tents  together. 
And  have  marched  and  fought  in  all  kinds  of  weather, 

And  hungry  and  full  have  we  been: 
Had  days  of  battle  and  days  of  rest, 
But  this  memory  I  cling  to  and  love  the  best— 

We  have  drunk  from  the  same  canteen. 

For  when  wounded  I  lay  on  the  outer  slope. 
With  my  blood  flowing  fast,  and  with  little  hope 

Upon  which  my  faint  spirit  could  lean, 
Oh,  then,  I  remember,  you  crawled  to  my  sfde, 
And  bleeding  so  fast  it  seemed  both  nui.st  have  died. 

We  drunk  from  the  some  canteen. 

M1LF.S  O'HKIKLY 


THE  EIGHTY=SIXTH'S  ROLL  OF  HONOR. 


OFFICERS  AND  ENLISTED  MEN  WHO  LOST  THEIR  LIVES   IN   THE   SERVICEi 
DURING  THE  WAR  OF  THE  REBELLION. 


Name. 

Rank. 

Co. 

Cause. 

Place. 

Date  of 
Death. 

Southard  William  M 

Captain . 

First  Lieut'nt 
Second  Lieut.. 
Private 

K 

A 

I 

B 

B 

D 

E 

G 

G 

A 

A 

B 

C 

c 
c 
c 
c 

D 
D 
E 
E 
E 
E 
F 
F 
F 
F 
F 
G 
G 
G 
H 
H 
H 
I 
A 
A 
A 
A 
A 
B 
B 
B 
B 
B 
C 
C 
0 
D 

Killed      

Mission  Ridge 

Stone's  River 

Colfax  

Nov.25,'63 

Smith,  George  W 

Killed 

Disease 

Dec.  31, '62 
Dec.  19, '63 

Armer,  George  E 

Ashba,   Benjamin  A 
Alexander,  Samuel 

Killed 

Stone's  River 

Nashville 

Dec.  31, '62 

Private 

Private 

Corporal 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private    .   .. 

Wounds 

Oct.     1,'63 

Disease 

Indianapolis 

April  7, '64 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Wounds 

Disease. 

Disease 

Killed 

Killed 

Nashville 

Jan.  23, '63 

Allen,  Benjamin  W.  . 

Blevins.  \\  illiam 

Boyd.  William 

Bieriiiiin,  Christian. 

Nashville 

Murfreesboro 

Louisville,  Ky 

Richmond,  Va 

Stone's  River 

Stone's  River 

Murfreesboro 

Nashville  .  .   . 

Feb.  28,'63 
Jan.    5,'63 
Nov.26,'62 
Dec.    6, '63 

Blani'hfiil.  Edward... 
Boord,  William  J 

Private  .   

Private  

Dec.  31, '62 
Dec.  31. '62 

Private 

May    9, '63 
Jan.  12,'63 

Brown,  .lohn   D 

Private 

Disease 

Disease 

Nashville 

Chattanooga 

Annapolis,  Md 

Bowling  Green.. 

Nashville 

Danville,  Ky 

Nashville 

Nashville 

Nashville  .. 

Mar.''?, '65 

Musician 

Private 

Dec.  11, '63 

Beaver,  .Tohn 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Wounds 

Wounds 

Feb.  1(),'63 

BninV)ridge,  John 

Private 

Nov.15,'62 

Barkshiie.Edwardll 

Bush,  William  F 

Butler,  Henry  M 

Baldwin,   George 

Beard,  John  C     

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Jan.  •24.'63 
Nov.   2,'62 
Jan.  26, '63 
Jan.  15,'63 

Private 

Private .' 

Jan,  18, '63 

Brown,  Jolin  W 

Louisville,  Ky 

Nov.18,'62 

Byroad,  Peter 

Bolt,  William  J 

Private 

Private 

Disease 

Atlanta,  Ga 

Oct.    5. '64 

Louisville,  Ky 

Chattanooga 

Nashville 

Nashville 

Bowling  Green... 
At  home 

Jan.  27, '64 

Bowers,  William 

Boyer,  Charles  F 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Nov.   6, '63 
Feb.  10,'63 
Dec.  29,'62 

Brammell,  James  W 

Private 

Feb.  24,'63 

Barus,  David  R  .   .. 

Corporal 

Corporal  

Sergeant 

Corporal 

Private 

Private 

May    1,'64 
Dec.  20,'62 

Brafford,  James  M.. 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Dist'ase 

Bowling  Green... 

Nashville 

Bowling  Greon... 

Cleveland,  O 

Murfreesboro 

Nashville  

Murfreesboro 

Cliattanooga 

Stone's  River 

Nashville 

Mission   Ridge 

Murfreesboro 

Nashville 

Silver  Springs 

Dec.    6, '62 

Coombs,  William 

Canipb(>ll.  Oliver  N 
Canbe,  Joseph  F 

Dec.29,'62 
Jan.    3. '63 
Feb.  22,' 63 

Private 

Disejise 

Woutids 

Disease 

Wounds 

Killed 

Disease 

Wounds 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Apr.  16,'63 

Casad,   .John   A 

Private 

Jan.  21, '63 

Feb.  11, '63 

Crow,  Thomas 

Private 

Oct.  28, '63 

Crowell,  Richard  0 

Private 

Dec.  31, '62 

Crowell,  James  M 

Cooper.  .lacob 

Corporal 

Corporal 

Private 

Dec.22,'62 

Clawson,  Garrett 

May    5,'6?- 

Crane,  Ira  .1 

Jan.  12,'63 

Coats,  Archibald 

Private 

Nov.18,'62 

INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS. 

597 

Name. 

Rank. 

Co. 

Cause. 

Place. 

Date  of 
Death, 

Clinton,  James  H 

Crawford,  William  M 
Crawford,  John  H 
Cronlchite,  Luke 
Cronkhite,  Henry 

Crow,  William   H 

Cameron,  David   B 
Chenowetli,  Joseph. 

Craner,  Thomas  J 

Creamer,  Robert  11 
Camljridge.  .1  ami's 
Cassman,  Ethan  A 

Colson,    William  

Cartmill.  Jacolj 

Custer.  Jeptha 

Cartmill,  William  . 
Duchemin, William  O 
Dinsmore,  James  F 
Dinsmore,  Oliver  J... 

Davis,  Albert 

Di.xon.  George.. 

Davis,  Henry  W 

Dennis,  Andrew .. 

Duchemin.  EliD 

Davis.  James  H 

Deford.  William 

Edwards,  John  H. 

E\aiis,  Oliver  M 

P^lliott,  Jesse. 

Elliott,  John  C 

Private 

Private 

Private 

E 
E 
E 
E 
E 
E 
F 
F 
F 
F 
G 
H 
H 

1 

I 

A 

A 

A 

B 

C 

F 

F 

F 

I 

I 

A 

E 

G 

G 

A 

D 

E 

E 

F 

F 

G 

B 

B 

C 

D 

D 

1) 

D 

E 

E 

1'^ 

H 

1 

K 

K 

A 

A 

A 

A 

A 

B 

B 

B 

V 

C 

C 

c 

D 
1) 
1) 
E 
E 
F 
G 
1 

Killed 

Disease 

Disease 

Wounds 

Killed 

Disease 

Stone's  River 
Camp  Denison 
Silver  Snrinj:s 
Louisville.  Ky 
Mission    Kidge 
Louisville,  Ky 
Nashville 
Murfreeshoro 
Bowling  (ireen 
Stone's  Kiver 
Stone's  Kiver 
Louisville,  Ky 
Nashville 
Murfreeshoro 
Mission  Kidge 

Dec.  31,'CJ 
Dec.  tJ.'tJi 
\ov.l3,'tJJ 
Aug.  y,(J4 
.Nov. 'JO, '03 

I'rivate 

I'rivate 

Private 

Sergeant 

Private 

Disease 

Jan  ■'!  'ii'^ 

Disease 

Disease  .. 

-May  1H,'63 
l»ec     •'  'ty 

I'rivate 

Private.  

Private 

Piivate 

Private 

I'rivate 

Private 

Wagoner 

Musician 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private 

I'rivate 

Private 

Private 

Killed 

Killed 

Disease 

l)ee.31.«_» 
Dec-.  31.0J 
Dei-      H  '0-' 

Disease 

Disease 

Killed 

Disease 

Fell.  Ui:02 
.Mar.ln.'M3 
Nov.-J0.'f.3 
Feb   lo  '0:i 

Disease 

Nashville 

New  Albany 
Indianapolis 
Murfreeshoro 
Stmr.   Sultana 
Ston<''s  Kiver 
Camp  Chase 
Chattanooga 

.Ian.  26  '03 

Disease 

Disease 

Feb.  lO.'tiS 
Oct    10  '04 

Disease 

leh.     i).'f.3 

Explosion 

Killed 

.\pr. 'J7.'tJ5 
Dec.  31."t)-J 

Disease 

Wounds 

.Mar.  4. •6.0 
Get.  •J-J,'f.4 

Jan.  lM,-f,3 

Disease  

Jan.  1  l.'OS 

Annapolis,  Md 

Nashville 

Louisville 

Nashville 

Nashville 

Bowling   Green 

Stone's   Kiver 

Stone's   Kiver 

Indianapolis 

Murfri-eslioro 

Murfreeshoro 

Nashville 

Chattanooga 

Barren  oo.,  Ky 

Nashville 

Nashville 

Nashville  . 

Nashville 

Nashville 

Mi.ssion  Kidge 

.MurfreeslH)ro 

Nashville 

Nashville 

Indianapolis 

Stoiu-'s  Kiver 

.MurfreeslMiro 

Murfreeshoro 

.MurfreeslMiro 

Cave  City.  Ky 

Nashvilh- 

Stone's  Kiver 

Murfreeshoro 

Stmr.  Sultana 

MurfreeslKtrii 

Nashville 

AndiTsonvllle 

Richmond,  \  : 

Nashville 

Nashville 

Nashville 

Nashville 

Chlckamauga 

Louisville 

Mission  Kidge 

Feb.  ll.'tV3 

.Ian.  2n,"ti3 

Corporal 

Disease 

.Nov.-_'.'i,'«-J 
Nov.-_'»l.''-J 

Feeley,  John   A 

Fieeman,  Thomas  J 

Private 

I'rivate 

,lan.  lN,'»",3 

Disease 

Killed 

Nov.lH.'il-J 
I)ec.31,'f.-J 

Fleming,  William  B. 

Floyd.  Jacob 

Franklin,  John  L 

Fisher,   Josephus 

Gi'rnian.  John  S 

German,  Southy  K. 
Golt.  Jolin  W. 

Private 

Private 

Killed 

De.-.  31.'»r.' 

Disease 

D.-c.  17.T,-J 
Jun.    M,-f.3 

I'rivate 

Private 

I'rivate  

Disease 

Feb.  I'.t.T.S 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Wounds 

Feh.i:..  •tl3 
Nov.   4.'»'.3 

Private 

Nov.l'.'.'t.J 

Gilger,  Charles  W.  B 

Good.  Samuel  S 

Gerard,  Joshua 

Sergeant 

Corporal 

Private 

Jan.  14.t,3 
Feb,  IT.'t.a 

Disease 

Wounds 

F.-b.  I..T.3 
.lan.Ji.."il3 

Giiner,   Peter   

Gallamore,   Milton  . 

Green,  Robert  W 

Gum,  Harrison  N 

Grimes,  Wesley 

Galloway.  George 

Gieen.  Bartholomew 
Hardesty.  Vinson    H 

Hester.   Thomas 

Hysong.  f^tephen  C 

Haller,  Levi  P  

Harding,  Thomas  J . 

I'rivate 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Corporal 

Corporal 

Corporal 

I'rivate 

Private 

Disease 

Killed 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Wounds 

Disease 

Wounds 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Killed  

l)isea.se 

E.xplosion 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Oisease 

Disease 

Killed  

Mar.  1,<j:. 
Nov.-_'6.-<.3 
Feb.-.".','r.3 
Mar.  •-•.•1.4 
I)e.-.  •-'i;.«4 
Sept.  r>.'l".'J 
Jan.  ;t.'«l3 
April  •.!.  '.3 
.Ian,  I.«3 
Mar.lJ.'"3 
IHc.  l.t..' 
Mur.r-'.'.;i 
|ie.-.31.  <1J 

Haitt'e,   Josei)h 

Huntley,  James  H 

Heglin,   James  

Harbert,  John 

Hawkins,  VanBuren 

Hotfman,  John  H 

HIltIi,  Anson 

Hanks,  Wallace  B... 

Hickman,  Nathan 

Henderson, Benj.  H 
Huntei-.  \\illiam   (' 
Howard.  James  A 

Private 

Private 

Corporal 

Private 

Private 

Private  

K«-b.    'J."<.3 

.\|>r.  •-'".«& 
May  .3n.  0,3 
Jan.JH.*63 

Corporal 

Private 

Private 

Sergeant 

1 

Disease 

Ij,, - 

Huft'man,  Absalom.. 

Corporal 

lA-C.  lo,  ii<i 

598 


THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 


Name. 

Rank. 

Co. 

Cause. 

Place. 

Date  of 
Death. 

Private 

Sergeant 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private  

A 
D 
E 
E 
H 
H 
K 
A 
D 
F 
G 
G 
B 
C 

c 
c 
c 

c 

D 
E 

P 
H 
I 
A 
B 
C 
V 

c 

D 

D 

F 

F 

H 

H 

H 

F 

G 

1 

Iv 

B 

D 

K 

A 

C 

D 

D 

H 

H 

H 

I 

I 

K 

A 

B 

B 

(; 

C 

c 

c 

D 
1) 
E 
F 
G 
H 
H 
H 
A 
A 
A 
B 

Disease 

Wounds 

Disease 

Wounds 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Cincinnati,  O 

Stone's  River 

Nasliville 

Stone's  River 

Nashville 

Jan.    5, '63 

Jacobs.  .lackson 

Johnson,  .James  D 

Johnson  John  A 

Jackson,  Henry 

Johnson,  Clayborn... 

Jester,  Alexander 

Ketring,  Abraham... 

Krise.  John 

Kelly    John  S 

Jan.    1,'63 
Jan.l4.'t53 
Jan.    8. '63 
Mar.   8, '63 

Chattanooga 

Somerset,  Ky 

Nashville 

Nashville 

Chattanooga 

Mt.  Vernon 

Mar.31,'64 

Private 

Oct.  28, '62 
Jan.  18.'63 

Private 

Private 

Mar.22,'63 
April  1,'6.'> 

Kirkpatrick,  Andrew 

King.  John  W 

Lunenburg.  I'^reder'k 

Labaw,  David  L 

Labaw.  Derrick  V 

Landon,  Labon 

Landon,  David 

Landers, Nathaniel  B 

Lamb,  William 

Llghty.  Solomon 

Lane,  William  H 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private...  

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private    

Nov.  2,'63 

Wounds 

Disease 

Killed 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Killed 

Disease 

Disease 

Wounds 

Disease 

Killed 

Disease 

Killed     

Disease 

Disease 

Wounds 

Chattanooga  

MurfreesliDro 

Stone's  iviver 

Fishing  Creek 

Louisville 

Nashville 

Stone's  River 

Ivnoxville 

Huntsville 

Nasliville 

Louisville 

Stone's  River 

Louisville 

Stone's  River 

Columbia 

Nashville 

Nashville 

N()v.26,'6'3 
April  4.'63 
Dec.  31, '62 
Oct.  27, '62 
Nov.17,'62 
Jan.  18,'63 
Dec.  31, '62 
Jan.  23, '64 

Private 

Private 

Feb.  17,'65 
Jan.    9,'63 

Private 

Jan.    7, '63 

Myers,  Roljert  W 

Misner,  Usual 

Martin   WilliamH  H 

Sergeant 

Private 

Private 

Dec.  31, '62 
Dec.  29,'62 
Dec.  31, '62 

McLean,  Henry  H    . 

Morgan,  Joseph 

McWherter,  Robert 
McCartney, ThomasJ 

McCoy.  Martin  M 

Miller  .lolm 

Private 

Nov.   2, '62 
Feb.  14,'63 

Private 

Jan.  14.'63 

Killed      

PeachTree  Creek 
Madison,  Ind 

Mission  Ridge 

Julv22.'64 

Disease 

Disease 

Killed   

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Feb.  1(),'65 

Private  

Dec.  16, '62 

McClelland.Jeffers'n 

Morrison,   Hiram 

Morrison,  J  ames  M 
Nichols,  Benjamin  F 
Nichols,   Marshall  F 

Private 

Private 

i^rivate.. 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Nov. 25, '63 
Feb.  16,'63 

Ivnoxville 

Nashville 

Oct.  27. '64 
Feb.   4, '63 

Indianapolis 

Madison,   Ind 

Bowling  Green  .. 

Danville,  Va 

Murfreesboro 

Daiivi  le.  Va 

Nashville 

Murfreesboro 

Stohe's  River 

Perryville 

Apr.3(J,'64 
June,     '65 

Musician 

Private  

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Wounds 

Disease 

Killed 

Nov.   1.'62 

DtH-.    6, '63 

Oglesby.  William 

Osborn,  Warren 

Padgetl.  William 

Pugh,   (ieorge 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private.  - 

Mar.22.'63 
Dec.25,'62 
Sep.  25,'64 
Mar. 29, '6:5 
Dec.  31. '62 

Pye  'Nvilliam 

Corporal 

Sergeant 

Corporal 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Disease 

Killed 

Disease 

Killed 

Disease 

Disease 

Killed 

Killed  

I)isease 

Disi'ase 

Disease 

Disease 

Wounds 

Oct.  28,'62 

Paris.  Thomas  M 

Paxton,  Benjamin  W 

Niishville 

Huntsville 

Bull's  Gap 

Mission  Ridge 

Louisville 

Jan.    1,'63 
Jun.31,'65 
Apr.    6,'63 

Nov.25,'63 

Parker    John  T 

Dec.  11. '62 

Pattison.  Joseph  C. 
Riechard,  Franklin. 
Rose,  William 

Private  

Brownsboro 

Nashville 

Silver  Springs 

Kenesaw     

Jan.  23. '65 

Private 

I'rivate 

Private . 

Pi'ivate 

Feb.    4.'63 
Nov.  11, '62 

Rose,  Benjamin  F 

Jun.28,'64 

Fountain  co 

Sep.  12.'62 

Reynolds,  Marcellus 

Private . 

Memphis 

Memphis 

Memphis 

Mission  Ridge 

Anderson  ville 

Gallatin 

Apr.29.'63 
Apr.25.'65 

Runkle,  William  

Ruloson,  James  A 

Private 

Private 

Api.25.'65 
Nov.26,'63 
Sep.  25,'64 

Rosebrough,  Samuel 
Robinson,  .lames  F. 
Reed    ^V'illiam  D 

Jan.  15,'63 

Corporal 

Corporal 

Sergeant 

Private 

Wounds 

Mission  Ridge 

Jeffersonville 

Stone's  River 

Nashville 

Nov.27.'62 
Julyl5,'64 

Rousli,  Tinioth  S 

Killed  

Killed 

Dec.  31, '62 
July26,'63 

Ryan,  James  P 

Smith,  Hiram 

];)isease 

Disease 

Disease 

Killed    

Apr.  14,'63 

Private 

Anderson  ville 

Chattanooga 

Stone's  River 

Stone's  River 

Mar.17,'64 

Stoops,  Benjamin  F. 
Stowers,  Richard  A 

Private 

Nov.20,'"3 
Dec.  31. '62 

Saxon,  Anthony  M... 

Private 

Killed 

Dec.31,'62 

INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS. 


599 


Name. 


Saylor.  Wilson 

Scott.  Elias 

Shields,  William 

Simnu'riiiaii,  i\I.  V 

Stultzcl.  l>fwis 

Swet'iu'v.  Jjisaiuler 
Sheets.  Vrcdcrick 

Sellers.  Is;iai-       -- 

Shipi)s.  .lohii  M 
Swank,    Watson  C 
Stogdell.  William  O 
Smith,  Andrew  ,1 
Smith,  .John  K 
Smith,  Sidney  M 
Stephenson.  Edwin  I* 

Shaw.  .Joseph  H 

Stroup.  .leptha 

Stroup,   William 

Swisher,  INlanasseh... 

Stook,  John   H 

Sanders,  Williams  W 

Smith,  Elisha 

Trullinf^ei'.  Henj 

Taylor,  Sidney 

Tipton,  Eli  A 

Tolen,  James  O 

Tieen,  Moses  B 

Townsend,HenryS.  L 

linger,  Tliomas 

Urmston, Jonathan  T 

Vise,  William  I 

Worrell,  Floyd  N 

Wells,  William  B 

Wilharm,  Augustus. 

Watters.  Charles 

Wilson,  John 

Woodaid.  ■  H  arrison  H 

Wilson,  Jolm  M 

Warren,  Marion   M... 
Wilkens,  .lames  M 

Wood.  Oliver 

Willis.  J>eander 

Whitesell,  William  T 

Wills,   Israel 

Wilson,  Jethro 

Willey,  Foster  O    

Williams,  .Martin   L. 

Wisonir,  Martin  M 

Anderson,  William.  . 


Private 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Piivate 

I'rivate 

Corporal 

I'l'ivate 

Corporal 

I'livate 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private. 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Private 

Corporal 

Private 

Private 

Corporal 

I'rivate 

Private 

1st  Sergeant 

Private 

Pi'ivate 

Private 

I'rivate 

Private 

Private 

I'rivate 

I'l'ivate 

I'rivate 

I'rivate 

I'rivate 


Co. 

Cause. 

Place. 

Date  of 
Death. 

B 

Disease 

Xov.20 

'•11 

li 

Disease 

Bowling  (ireeii 

Nov.  15. 

'•VJ 

C 

Disease 

Nashville 

Mar.-_'3, 

•»i3 

V 

Drowned 

Stnir.   Sultana 

Apr.'_>7, 

■•■•.'•» 

D 

Disease 

New  Alhany 

Jan.  U 

(I.'J 

1) 

Disease 

Nashville 

Mar.  «. 

'•!.'> 

1) 

Disease 

At  home 

Williaiiisport 

Murfreesljoro 

Nov.   M, 
Oct.    H. 
Fell.    3, 

'(14 

1) 

Disease 

)'i4 

E 

Disease 

•r.3 

E 

Disease 

Oot.  3n. 

'•I-,' 

F 

Killed 

Stone's  River 

Dec.  31. 

JUII.     H. 

•f.» 

F 

F 

Disease 

Nashville       .. 

•r,3 

F 

Disease 

Nashville 

Dee.  lo. 

'•"•".i 

1<^ 

Killed 

Stone's  Ulver 
Kingston,  (ia 
Louisville,   Ky 
Mt.  Vernon 
Iiidianaixills 

Dee.  31. 
.Vug.L'j. 
Dee.    'J. 
Nov.    1. 
Juii.  11 

'»■.» 

H 

Wounds 

•114 

11 

Disease 

■|»'» 

H 

Disease  

'»".•• 

11 

Disease 

•  ■.4 

1 

Wounds 

Stone's  Kiver 

.Ian.  iH. 

1.3 

K 

Killed 

Nashvilli'. 

Dee.  i:,. 

1.4 

K 

Disease 

C'liattanoogH 

Feb.    4. 

'Wo 

(; 

Killed 

Stone's  Klver 

Dec.  31. 

N(iv.27. 

'«•» 

C 

1'' 

Wounds 

Mission  liiilge 

•f,3 

1'' 

Killed  

Stone's  Kiver 

Dee.  31. 

■•)'J 

11 

Disi-ase 

Nashvlllr 

Jan.  17. 

'»i3 

11 

Dist'ase 

Nashville 

Jaii.'-'4. 

'•'.3 

11 

Disi-ase 

Ch.'ittanooga 

.Ian.  ■_'•♦. 

1.4 

K- 

Wounds 

Cli.it  tanooga 

•  let.  '.'l. 

'1.3 

1 

Disease 

Nashville 

Mar.l.'l. 

■1.3 

A 

WouikU 

Nashville 

.Ian.  IJ. 

t.3 

A 

Wounds 

Nashville 

.Ian.  •-'.'. 

1.3 

A 

Disease 

.Murfreeshoro 

Apr.  14. 

1.3 

B 

Wounds 

Chattanooga 

Dee.    1. 

tia 

E 

Disease  

Louisville.  Ky 

Nov  l.'i. 

•I'J 

E 
1' 
I' 
1' 
1-' 

Disease 

Killed 

Disease 

Killed 

Wounds    

Murfreestxiro 
Stone's  Kiver 
Coliiiiihia 
Stone's   Klver 
Mission    KIdge 

G 

Disease 

Louisville.  Ky 

G 
G 
H 

Killed 

Disease 

Wounds 

Stone's   Klvi  - 

Cliattanoo„- 

Nilslivllle 

K' 

Disease 

Naslivllle 

K' 

Killed 

Stone's  Kl\  ■ 

K 

Disease 

Naslivllle 

E 

Disease 

Nashville 

' 

APPENDIX. 


THE  COLORS  OF  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  INDIANA. 

As  a  part  of  the  equipments  of  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana 
when  it  was  mustered  into  the  service  of  the  United  States 
it  drew  a  stand  of  colors,  issued  by  the  Governor  of  the 
State.  This  stand  of  colors  consisted  of  two  silk  flags.  One 
was  the  regulation  stars  and  stripes,  and  the  other  a  plain 
blue,  sometimes  and  usually  called  the  banner.  The  color- 
bearers  held  the  rank  of  Sergeant,  and  it  was  considered  a 
position  of  high  honor.  A  color-guard  was  detailed  from 
each  company  who  marched  with  the  colors  in  the  center  of 
the  regiment,  whose  duty  it  was  to  defend  them  in  battle. 
When  the  regiment  was  thrown  into  the  vortex  at  Stone's 
River  in  falling  back  its  color-bearers  were  both  shot  down, 
and  the  colors  left  on  the  field.  The  regiment  was  then 
without  colors  of  its  own. 

On  the  15th  of  June,  1863,  while  in  camp  at  Murfrees- 
boro  the  regiment  was  made  the  recipient  of  a  beautiful  silk 
banner,  the  donors  being  the  patriotic  citizens  of  Warren 
county,  a  county  that  had  furnished  two  companies  in  the 
regimental  organization.  The  banner  was  brought  from 
Indiana  by  William  Crow,  of  West  Lebanon,  and  mainly 
through  whom  the  money_  was  obtained  with  which  to  make 
the  purchase.  Joseph  Poole,  of  Attica,  was  present,  and 
was  selected  by  Mr.  Crow  to  make  the  presentation  speech. 
His  speech  was  warm-hearted,  loyal  and  full  of  jDatriotic 
sentiment,  and  sank  deep  into  the  heart  of  every  member  of 
the  Eighty-sixth.     Colonel  Dick  spoke  in  response  and  said: 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  (JOl 

"My  Honored  Sir:— Iu  behalf  of  theEic?hty-sixtli  Indi- 
ana   Regiment  I  return  my   grateful  ackuowledguieuls  to 
our  kinds  friends  at  home  for  this  noble  present.      It  is  a 
beautiful  present.     In  the  name  of  the  Eighty-sixth  I  accept 
this  banner.     Tell  our  friends  when  you  return  home  the 
army  is  loyal.     It  is  in  the  field  for  a  high  and  noble  i)urpose. 
The  life  blood  of  our  nation  hangs  upon  the  virtue  of  the 
American  people.     Are  the  American  people  true  to  their 
destiny — equal  to  the  issue?     The  country  bequeathed  to  us 
by  our  forefathers  is  dearer  to  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland 
than  all  other  earthly  ties.     Life  is  nothing,  treasure  is  noth- 
ing, in  the  great  struggle;  what  are  all  other  considerations 
to  a  country  saved?     This  war  will  end.      An  offended  Deity 
will  have  emptied  his  vials  of  wrath  upon  this  nation  and  be 
satisfied.     Peace  will  come  in  the  natural  order  of  things. 
Hardships,  troubles  and  trials,  carnage  and  blood — all  these 
lay  in  the  path  of  the  soldier,  and  over  them  he  has  to  walk 
before  peace  comes.     Peace  will  never  come  until  conquoretl 
by  the  indomitable  power  of  loyal  arms.     *    *    Until  peace 
is  made  this  noble  banner  shall  float  over  the  Eiglity-.sixth. 
Around  it  we  will  rally  like  the  Spartan  band  of  hrothi'rs. 
This  day,  here,  we  pledge  our  lives,  our  sacred  honor  for  itti 
protection.     It  will  be  returned  to  our  friends  at  lionie, soiled, 
worn,  torn,  riddled  and  battle-slained,  it  may  b«',  but  this,  in 
the  name  of  the  regiment,  I  promi.se:  this  beautiful  banner 
shall  never   be   dishonored.     Again,   in    the    name    of  the 
Eighty-sixth,  I  thank  you  for  this  kind  present.     We  thank 
the  generous  donors  for  this  noble  gift,  and  thank  you.  sir, 
for  the  kind  words  you  have  been  pleased  to  express. ' 
Turning  to  the  color-guard  Colonel  Dick  said: 
"This  day  I  present  to  you  this  banner.      It  is  a  goniT- 
ous,  noble  gift  from  your  friends  at  homo.      Will  you  honor 
that  present?     Will  you,  wherever  you  go.  love  and  protwt 
that  banner?     Will  you  uphold  it  daring  this  righteous  war? 
Knowing  you  so  well  I  need  not  ask  this  of  you.  Come  wool, 
come  woe,    come   life,    come  death,    bo   soldiors   and  nion. 
Trust  in  God  and  a  good  cause.     In  carrying,  kooping.  i^ro- 
tecting  this  beautiful  banner  a  higher  power  will  protect  you. 


602  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

Receive  it,  cling  to  it  as  the  mariner  clings  to  his  compass, 
cling  to  it  until  the  last  earthly  hope  expires.  Love  it,  and 
protect  it,  and  as  you  do  this  you  will  be  rewarded  by  men 
and  angels. " 

After  the  color-guards  had  again  taken  their  places  in 
line,  the  regiment  gave  three  long,  loud  and  hearty  cheers 
in  approval  of  all  the  Colonel  had  said,  and  an  exjDression  of 
thanks  to  the  friends  who  made  the  offering. 

While  the  Eighty-sixth  lay  in  camp  at  McMinnville, 
Tennessee,  during  the  months  of  July  and  August,  1863,  the 
ladies  of  Boone  county  procured  and  sent  to  Captain  William 
S.  Sims,  and  by  him  to  be  presented  to  the  regiment,  in  their 
behalf,  a  beautiful  silk  American  flag.  On  the  2d  day  of 
September,  the  eve  of  the  departure  of  the  regiment  to 
engage  in  the  Chickamauga  campaign,  this  flag  was  formally 
presented  by  Captain  Sims,  as  follows: 

Soldiers  op  the  Eighty-sixth  Regiment: — Having 
been  called  upon  by  the  ladies  and  citizens  of  Boone  county, 
to  perform  a  duty  of  no  ordinary  magnitude,  to  that  of  pre- 
senting to  you  a  flag,  bearing  upon  its  folds  the  stars  and 
stripes,  together  with  the  inscription,  "Presented  to  the 
86th  Regiment,  Indiana  Volunteers."  Having  learned  that 
you  were  without  a  regimental  flag,  you  having  lost  yours  at 
Stone's  River,  where  you  won  for  yourselves  imperishable 
honors  in  that  dreadful  struggle,  they  have  sent  you  this 
flag.  It  will  be  chronicled  in  history  for  children  unborn  to 
read  of  your  deeds  of  daring  at  Stone's  River  where  you  lost 
your  colors.  On  behalf  of  the  citizens  of  Boone  county,  and 
especially  the  ladies,  I  tender  you  this  beautiful  flag,  the 
emblem  of  American  Independence,  the  banner  of  Liberty, 
which  our  fathers  first  unfurled  with  full  determination  that 
it  shall  be  respected  abroad  and  revered  at  home.  Take  it 
and  bear  it  on  to  victory.  Let  your  watchword  be,  ' '  Victory 
or  we  perish. ' '  When  the  din  of  battle  shall  surround  you 
and  the  conflict  grows  hot,  you  need  only  give  one  glance  at 
this  flag,  to  know  and  remember  that  you  have  the  prayers 
of  all  the  good  and  loyal,  who  will  continue  to  sing — 

"  May  the  Star  Spangled  Banner  continue  to  wave, 
O'er  the  land  of  the  free  and  the  home  of  the  brave." 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  603 

Colonel  George  F.  Dick  received  the  flag  and  gracefully 
replied  to  the  address  of  Captain  Sims.     In  part  he  said: 

"Honored  Sir:— In  accepting  for  the  Eigiity-sixtli 
Regiment  this  beautiful  emblem  of  our  nationality  I  desire 
to  return  to  the  ladies  and  citizens  of  Boone  county,  who  have 
thus  kindly  remembered  them  our  most  grateful  acknowl- 
edgments for  this  appropriate  and  elegant  present.  During 
the  twelve  months  that  this  regiment  has  been  in  the  service 
of  our  common  country,  it  has  been  constantly  in  the  tield 
and  at  the  front.  During  the  march,  in  the  camp,  and  upon 
the  hotly  contested  battle-field,  all  the  powers  of  endurance 
and  all  the  manly  courage  of  the  olficers  and  men  of  tho 
Eighty-sixth  have  been  severely  tested.  That  such  has  been 
their  deportment  under  all  the  trying  circumstances  in  which 
th(;y  have  been  placed,  as  to  command  the  admiration  of 
their  friends  at  home,  and  to  elicit  from  them  such  beautiful 
testimonials  as  that  with  which  they  are  this  day  honored,  is 
to  them  the  proudest  solace  of  their  hearts.  Th»^  heart  of 
every  member  of  this  command  swells  with  gratitude  to  the 
donors  of  these  beautiful  colors,  for  the  unmistakable  testi- 
mony of  their  appreciation  of  their  services  in  behalf  of  the 
noblest  government  God  ever  gave  man.  " 

Turning  to  the  color-bearers  Colonel  Dick  saiil: 

"  Color-Bearers : — This  beautiful  Hag  has  been  pre- 
sented to  our  regiment  by  the  ladies  and  citizens  of  Boone 
county,  in  consideration  of  the  services  rendered  by  us  in  aid 
to  crush  the  rebellion,  and  more  particularly,  for  your  con- 
duct during  the  hard  fought  battle  of  Stone's  River.  To  you 
we  entrust  it.  In  honoring,  protecting,  carrying  and  main- 
taining this  flag,  you  guard  and  sustain  the  reputation,  the 
fame,  the  glory  of  our  regiment.  Take,  then,  this  Hag.  the 
emblem  of  our  glorious  nationality.  Carry  it  amid  the 
noise  and  din  of  the  bloody  strife.  Welcome  death  UMiouth 
its  glorious  folds.  Sink  to  your  last  happy  rest  with  itji 
folds  for  a  winding  sheet;  but  let  not  the  touch  of  tho  traitor 
mar  its  beauty  or  its  glory.  Fair  ladies  will  then  welconie 
you  with   smiles,  aged   patriots  will  greet  you  with   their 


g04  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

blessings,  and  generations  yet  unborn  will  teach  their  chil- 
dren to  lisp  your  praise." 

And  the  banner  presented  by  the  patriotic  citizens  of 
Warren  county,  and  the  flag  given  by  the  ladies  and  citizens 
of  Boone  county  were  the  colors  that  waved  over  the  Eighty- 
sixth  on  Chickamauga's  crimsoned  field  and  around  which  its 
heroic  men  rallied  and  brought  them  off  unstained  and  unsul- 
lied. It  was  this  banner  and  this  flag  that  led  the  way  to  the 
embattled  heights  of  Missionary  Ridge  and  which  the  Eighty- 
sixth  followed  to  the  crest,  the  first  upon  the  Ridge.  It  was 
this  banner  and  this  flag  that  won  for  the  heroic  men  of  the 
Eighty- sixth  imperishable  renown  and  added  new  luster  to 
the  American  arms.  It  was  this  flag,  "the  fairest  blossom 
in  all  the  flowery  kingdom,"  that  received  through  its  folds 
on  that  glorious  day  eighty-eight  musket  shots  and  two 
through  its  staff.  Let  the  regiment  and  its  colors  go  to 
glory  together. 

On  the  30th  of  April,  1864,  the  regimental  stand  of  colors 
which  had  been  carried  up  Missionary  Ridge  and  literally  shot 
to  pieces  in  the  hands  of  the  color-bearers  were  sent  to 
Governor  Oliver  P.  Morton  to  be  placed  in  the  State  Library 
for  preservation. 

These  colors  being  now  unserviceable  the  Eighty-sixth 
was  kindly  and  patriotically  remembered  by  its  friends  in 
Clinton  county,  that  county  being  represented  by  two  full 
companies  and  a  part  of  a  third  company.     These  liberty- 
loving  people  through  Sergeant  John  M.  Cast,  of  Company 
H,  sent  to  their  boys,  both  a  banner  and  a  national  flag,  the 
m'aterial  of  which  was  of  beautiful  silk.     The  banner  bore 
the  inscription,  "Eighty-sixth  Regiment,  Indiana  Volunteers.  ; 
Presented  by  Clinton  County. ' '     The  flag  was  the  regulation  ; 
stars  and  stripes.      No  data  can  be  found  to  show  that  these  : 
colors  were  ever  presented  to  the  regiment  in  a  formal  man- 
ner, but  that  they  were  accepted  is  attested  by  the  fact  that  1 
they  were  carried  through  all  the  battles  and  skirmishes  of ! 
the  Atlanta  campaign,  through  the  campaigns  of  Franklin  | 
and  Nashville,  and  were  the  colors  which  waved  over  the 
Eighty-sixth  when  it  closed  its  glorious  career.      Faded  and 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  60o 

worn,  and  with  not  a  star  dimmed  nor  a  stripe  sullied  they 
were  placed  in  the  hands  of  Governor  Morton  on  the  10th 
day  of  June,  1865,  by  him  to  be  deposited  in  the  State  Capi- 
tol for  permanent  safe  keeping?  where  they  now  rest  secure, 
among  the  other  flags  and  banners  of  Indiana's  gallant 
regiments. 

Of  the  colors  of  the  Eighty -sixth  regiment  deposited  in 
the  State  Library,  Adjutant  General  Terrell,  in  his  Reports, 
says: 

"  National  Flag;  silk;  badly  worn  and  stained;  inscribed  '  I'resontod 
to  the  Eighty-sixth  Regiment,  Indiana  Volunteers,  by  the  citizens 
Boone  County;'  staff  broken  lower  half  gone." 

"National  Flag;  silk;  faded,  worn  and  torn;  no   inscription:   staff 


"Regimental  Flag;  blue  silk;  worn  torn  and  faded;  inscribed  '86th 
Regiment  Indiana  Volunteers.,'  'Presented  by  Clinton  County;'  coat-of- 
arms  all  gone  but  head  of  eagle;  staff  good.*' 

On  the  Fourth  of  July,  1866,  the  scarred  battle-tlags 
borne  by  the  Indiana  regiments  and  batteries  during  the  war 
were  formally  presented  to  Governor  Morton  for  jwrmanent 
preservation  in  the  State  capitol.  The  i)resentation  address 
was  delivered  by  Major  General  Lew  Wallace,  in  the  course 
of  which,  in  speaking  of  the  honorable  name  that  Indiana 
had  acquired  and  the  many  diiferent  engagcnuMits  in  which 
Indiana  regiments  were  "first"  said:  The  first  to  show  their 
stars  from  the  embattled  crest  of  Mis.%ionary  Ridge,  were 
those  of  the  Seventy-ninth  and  Eighty-sixth  Indiana." 

The  members  of  the  Eighty-sixth  therefore  feel  a  par 
donable  pride  in  the  history  of  their  colors.  Is  it  to  be  won- 
dered that  they  love  and  pi-ize  the  flagy  They  feel,  having 
offered  their  lives  in  its  defense,  that  it  is  the  .symbol  of  pro- 
gress, of  political  and  religious  freedom.  As  their  fathers 
left  it  as  a  precious  legacy  to  them,  so  they  feel  that  tliey 
have  iQft  one  of  no  less  value  to  their  children. 


THE  FOURTH  CORPS— A  LETTER  FROM  GENERAL 
O.  O.  HOWARD. 

The  original  Fourth  army  corps  was  organized  March 
13,  1862,  with  General  E.  D.  Keyes  in  command,  and  was  a 
part  of  the  Army  of  the  Potomac.  Its  divisions  became 
divided,  and  the  corps  was  officially  discontinued  in  August, 
1862.  On  October  9.  1863,  the  new  Fourth  corps  was  organ- 
ized by  the  consolidation  of  the  Twentieth  and  Twenty-first. 
This  corps  was  composed  of  fighting  regiments.  Of  the  regi- 
ments in  the  Western  armies,  take  the  ones  that  sustained 
the  greatest  losses  in  battle,  and  it  will  be  found  that  more 
of  them  were  in  the  Fourth  corps  than  in  any  other.  This 
statement  is  made  upon  the  authority  of  William  F.  Fox,  in 
his  "Regimental  Losses  in  the  American  Civil  War."  The 
command  was  first  given  to  General  Gordon  Granger,  the 
man  who  marched  his  division  to  Chickamaugawith  no  other 
orders  or  direction  than  "the  sound  of  the  enemy's  cannon.  " 
The  three  divisions  of  this  new  corps  were  placed  under  the 
commands  of  Generals  Palmer,  Sheridan  and  Wood.  Soon 
after  its  organization  the  corps  went  into  the  action  of  Mis- 
sionary Ridge,  where  it  distinguished  itself  by  its  brilliant  and 
successful  charge  up  the  heights.  During  the  following 
winter  the  corps  marched  to  the  relief  of  Knoxville,  a  cam- 
paign memorable  for  the  suffering,  hunger  and  hardships 
endured  by  the  men.  In  April,  1864,  General  O.  O.  Howard 
was  placed  in  command  of  the  corps,  and  in  May  moved  on 
the  Atlanta  campaign,  with  Generals  Stanley,  Newton  and 
Wood  in  command  of  the  divisions.  Before  the  close  of  the 
campaign  General  Howard  was  assigned  to  the  command  of 
the  Army  of  the  Mississippi,  and  General  Stanley  placed  in 
command  of  the  corps,  with  Generals  Kimball,  Wagner  and 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  607 

Wood  in  command  of  the  divisions.  After  the  evacuation  of 
Atlanta  the  corps  marched  northward'  in  pursuit  of  Hood. 
At  the  battle  of  Franklin  General  Stanley  was  severely 
wounded,  and  General  Thomas  J.  Wood  succeeded  to  his 
place.  General  Wood  had  served  with  honor  in  the  aniii«'s 
of  the  Ohio  and  the  Cumberland  from  the  conimencenient  of 
the  war.  He  commanded  the  Fourth  corps  in  its  last  battle 
— its  last  victory,  at  Nashville.  His  division  f^enerals  in  that 
engagement  were  Kimball,  Elliott  and  Beatty. 

The  distinguishing  badge  of  the  Fourth  corps  was  an 
equilateral  triangle.  The  colors,  red,  wliitc  and  blue,  indi- 
cated the  divisions — first,  second  and  third  resi)ectively — as. 
a  red  triangle,  First  division:  a  white  triangle,  Second  divis- 
ion; a  blue  triangle,  the  Third  division.  The  badges  were 
worn  by  every  soldier  and  marked  the  tents  and  waL'ons  of 
the  corps. 

The  Eighty-sixth  ever  had  a  warm  admiration  for  Gen- 
eral O.  O.  Howard.  This  prompted  one  of  the  members  of 
the  committee  on  Regimental  History  to  write  that  distin- 
guished officer.     In  reply  General  Howard  sent  the  following 

letter : 

Headquarters  Departmet  of  the  Kast,  I 
Governor's  Island,  New  York.  1 

/.  A.  Barnes,  Late  Private  Compawj  JL  Ei(ilit>/-si-fllt  Imliawi  Volunteer  In- 
fantry, Perrysrllk,  Indi(()i<i. 

My  Dear  Sir:—!  have  had  sucli  o.xtraets  a.s  wo  can  find  «-<uut«rnlnjr 
your  regiment,  the  Eighty-si.vth  Indiana,  made  as  a  >li<rht  r.«o<.nl  of  wjr- 
vice.  The  B'ourth  corps,  of  which  this  re^Muient  forms  a  part,  always 
dwells  in  my  recollection  as  a  grand  whole.  Its  thr.«o  «livision(«.  Stan- 
ley's, Newton's,  and  Thomas  John  Wood's  were  linely  orj^anlzed  and  aH 
well  cared  for  as  any  divisions  in  the  army.  Certainly  with.)ut  the  lo««t 
exaggeration  the  Fourth  corps  bore  the  noblest  part  in  all  tho  cam- 
paio-n.  Its  duty  was  a  bloody  one.  most  ai-duous.  al way.n  dostnuMl  to  ham- 
mer away  at  the  center  of  opposition,  with  very  liltU-  op|Hirli.nity  f<.r 
brilliant  fighting,  and  almost  none  for  indeiuMidenl  acti.ui,  till  Franklin. 
Cheerful,  hearty,  brave,  strong,  self-contidont,  it  gave  to  it«  offlcors  m 
most  loyal  and  effective  service. 

Hoping  that  the  extracts  may  suit  you  and  that  tho  hlK'hty-».ixth 
Indiana  may  bo  appreciated  by  our  children  and  child.x»n'«  chiUlron  for 


608  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

the  part  it  bore  in  saving  our  common  country  from  division  and  utter 
ruin.  I  remain  Your  Veteran  Comrade, 

O.  O.  Howard, 
Major  General  U.  S.  Army. 

The  extracts  referred  to  by  General  Howard  are  taken 
from  the  reports  of  General  Beatty  and  Colonel  George  F. 
Dick  of  the  assault  upon  Missionary  Ridge  and  will  explain 
themselves.  They  will  be  found  on  pages  269  and  270  of 
this  volume. 


THE  STORMING  OF  MISSIONARY  RIDGE. 

An  animated  discussion  has  been  going  on  for  years 
among  soldiers  of  all  grades,  especially  among  those  of  the 
Fourth  and  Fourteenth  army  corps,  as  to  which  regiment  or 
regiments  first  reached  the  summit  of  Missionary  Ridge  on 
that  memorable  25th  of  November,  1863.  The  authors  of 
this  volume  have  set  forth  the  claim,  which  at  first  no  person 
disputed,  that  the  two  regiments  which  first  gained  the 
crest  of  the  Ridge  were  the  Eighty- sixth  and  Seventy -ninth 
Indiana.  The  claim  has  been  fully  substantiated  by  conclu- 
sive corroborative  evidence,  not  only  by  officers  and  soldiers 
on  both  sides,  but  by  disinterested  eye-witnesses  of  the  bat- 
tle. On  page  265  reference  is  given  to  the  reports  of  Gen- 
erals Bate  and  Bragg,  and  quotations  made  therefrom,  to 
show  where  their  lines  were  first  broken.  General  Bate 
says  it  was  in  the  line  of  General Patton  Anderson's  division 
where  a  section  of  Dent's  battery  was  located.  This  is  cor- 
roborated by  General  Bragg.  Since  those  pages  were 
printed  the  authors  have  been  able  to  secure  a  statement 
from  Captain  Dent,  the  officer  in  command  of  the  battery 
whose  guns  were  captured  by  these  two  regiments.  Captain 
Dent  was  present  at  the  dedication  of  Cliickamauga  Park,, 
and  visited  Missionary  Ridge,  the  scene  of  the  assault.  On 
the   ground   where  his  battery  was  captured  he  made  the 


INDIANA   VOLUNTEERS.  600 

statement  which  follows  to  W.  H.  Montgomery,  the  Guardian 
Tennessee  Division  Chickamauga  and  Chattanoof,'a  National 
Military  Park.  Mr.  Montgomery  has  kindly  forward. -d  th.' 
Captain's  statement  which  is  here  given: 

"He  had  two  guns  on  top  of  the  hill  south  of  wiiat  is 
called  Shallow  Ford  Road,  and  four  guns  north  of  the  road. 
The  four  guns  north  of  the  road  enfiladed  the  lines  of  Wood 's 
division  (left)  at  the  assault  of  Missionary  Ridge  near  the 
top  of  ridge.  The  two  guns  south  of  road  could  not  be  u.sed 
in  front  of  the  left  of  Wood's  division  after  the  lines  got 
under  cover  of  ridge.  They  were  used  to  rake  the  front  of 
the  four  guns  north  when  the  lines  of  Wood  were  near  the 
top  or  in  exposed  places.  He  did  great  execution  with  the 
four  guns.  One  instance  near  the  top.  He  struck  a  troe 
and  knocked  it  down  and  as  it  rolled  down  the  hill  it  caught 
a  man  and  turned  him  up  in  the  air.  When  he  saw  this  and 
it  did  not  create  a  panic  he  knew  nothing  would  i)n'vent  the 
lines  from  going  to  the  top.  When  his  two  guns  wore  caj)- 
tured  he  turned  on  them  but  could  not  keep  them  from  com- 
ing down  on  his  four  guns.  His  only  way  to  ('.scajM'  was 
down  the  road  and  ho  was  cut  off  this  way.  So  he  aban- 
doned all  but  the  gun  on  the  north  (or  farthest  away).  Ho 
tried  to  run  this  gun  straight  down  the  liill,  but  ran  on  a 
stump  and  while  the  men  were  trying  to  lift  the  gun  ov»t 
his  horses  were  shot  and  he  lost  this  gun  al.so.  This  battory 
was  on  the  left  of  Wood's  division." 

Mr.  Montgomery  accompanied  the  statcmi-nl  witli  a 
rough  sketch  or  drawing  showing  the  exact  positions  of  tho 
guns  of  this  battery  which  it  is  to  be  regret t«Ml  cannot  »jo 
used.  The  ground  referred  to,  is  that  which  is  aocepttnl  by 
the  Commission  as  the  point  where  Wood's  loft— tho  Kijfhty- 
sixth  and  Seventy-ninth  Indiana  -wont  up  tho  Ridgo.  D^Mit  's 
statement,  with  Bate's,  Bragg's  and  others,  and  the  lo<-ation 
by  the  Commission,  fixes  the  seal  upm  those  two  ropimonts 
as  the  first  to  mount  the  crest  of  the  Ridge  on  that  Volcanic 
Day,  November  25,  ISOM. 

The  following  extracts  from  General   Boynton's  book, 


610  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

"The  Chickamauga  National  Military  Park,  *'  will  be  of  inter- 
est to  every  member  of  the  Eighty-sixth  regiment,  and  for 
that  reason  they  are  here  inserted: 

"The  declaration  was  current  at  the  time  of  the  battle, 
and  has  been  persistently  maintained  in  various  histories 
since,  that  the  successful  storming  of  Missionary  Ridge  by 
General  Thomas'  corps  was  made  possible  because  General 
Sherman's  attack  at  the  north  end  of  the  Ridge  had  drawn 
large  forces  from  Thomas'  front,  and  so  enabled  him  to  break 
through.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  not  a  soldier  or  a  gun  left  the 
Confederate  center  to  go  to  their  right  after  Sherman'' s  assault 
began.  The  movements  on  the  Ridge  which  led  to  this  belief 
were  those  of  the  troops  which  had  abandoned  Lookout  and 
were  on  their  way  to  the  Confederate  right.  Most  of  these 
reached  their  destination  by  9  a.  m.  The  exact  ojyposite  is  true, 
that  soon  after  Gen.  Thomas  moved  against  the  Confederate 
center,  that  is,  about  an  hour  before  sunset.  Brown's,  Cum- 
ming's,  and  Maney's  brigades  were  dispatched  by  General 
Cleburne  from  Tunnel  Hill  to  the  assistance  of  the  forces 
opposing  Thomas,  Cleburne  himself  accomi^anying  them. 
Brown's  brigade  reached  Cheatham's  line  before  the  close  of 
the  action,  and,  supported  by  Cumming's,  participated  in  the 
effort  to  check  Baird  's  northward  advance  along  the  crest  of 

the  Ridge."     Page  294. 

****** 

"  The  advance  on  Orchard  Knob,  the  attack  on  Lookout 
Mountain,  and  Hooker's  movement  on  Rossville  Gap,  were 
not  contemplated  in  General  Grant's  orders  for  battle.  The 
key  movement  of  that  plan  was  the  occupation  of  the  north 
end  of  Missionary  Ridge  to  the  Tunnel  by  General  Sherman 
before  the  enemy  could  concentrate  there.  At  3  o'clock  the 
attack  at  that  point  had  failed,  and  General  Grant,  then  on 
Orchard  Knob,  his  headquarters  during  the  day,  ordered  a 
demonstration  at  the  center  against  the  enemy's  works  at  the 
foot  of  the  Ridge,  to  relieve  the  pressure  upon  General 
Sherman.  General  Thomas,  commanding  the  Army  of  the 
Cumberland,  and  General  Gordon  Granger,  commanding  the 
Fourth  corps,  also  had  their  headquarters  on  Orchard  Knob. 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  611 

*     *     *    Baird,  who  had  been  ordered  to  Sherman  and  had 

joined  him  at  the  Tunnel,  was  just  retuniin<,'  to  the  contcr 

when  the  order  for   the   demonstration   agaiust   the  Kidgo 

was  given,  and  quickly  formed  as  the  left  of  the  advance. " 

Page  132. 

*  *  *  *  ♦  » 

' '  The  first  troops  on  the  crest  appear  to  have  been  those 
in  Thomas  J.  Wood's  division.  "     Pago  134. 

"Contrary  to  prevailing  impressions,    no   Confederate 

troops  left  the  front  of  the   Army   of  the  Cumberland  to 

oppose   General  Sherman,   after  the   battle  of  Tunnel  Hill 

opened.     It  is  true,  instead,  that  troops  left  SluM-n)an's  front 

soon  after  the  movement  of  General  Thomas'  line  be^an." 

Page  216  and  218. 

****** 

"Wood's  right  crowned  the  Ridge  about  the  crossing?  of 
the  Bird's  Mill  Roiid.' '—noi/iif'ni.  Wood's  loft  mountcnl  tho 
Ridge  on  the  knoll— and  on  its  northern  sIoih'— jn-'^t  south  of 
the  Shallow  Ford  Road  where  a  section  of  Dent's  battery 
was  located,  as  he  himself  states.  Tlio  Conimi.ssioners  of 
the  Park  have  properly  located  both  Wood's  loft  antl  Donl's 
battery.     This  point  was  known  in  Beatty's  brigade  lus  H\g- 

nal  Hill. 

***•♦• 

Headquarters  Third  Division,  Fourth  .\hmv  <"«;«i*s.  ' 
Chattanooga,  Tknn..  Nov.  i!.ih,  ihiu.     s 

Officers  and  Soldiers  of  the  Third  Division.  Fourth  .\iuiy 
Corps-Army  of  the  Cumberland:-A  Glorious  Victory,  umlor  tho 
providence  of  God,  has  crowned  our  arms.  In  prcHluclnif  this  grtml 
result,  your  valor  has  been  most  si;rnHlly  displayed. 

Ordered  on  Monday  aftei-n.mn  to  make  a  rci-onnol«8anco  of  lUo 
enemy's  position,  you  converted  a  rec<.nnois.«anc..  into  a  Mil».t«ntW 
attack,  most  gallantly  carryin-  a  position  stronjr  by  n«U.n>  .ml 
intrenched.  But  your  crownin-  fjlory  ^ns  aehievrd  on  ^^  •;>"';• '^ 
afternoon.  You  were  ordered  to  carry  tho  lino  of  mtrj^nrhmont.  .t  the 
foot  of  Missionary  Ridge,  for  the  pur,>oso  of  n.ak.nu'  «  .Uvon.lon  In  f.ror 
of  our  troops  engaged  on  the  left.  This  you  did  but  you  won.  not  con- 
tent to  stop  at  the  base  of  the  Ridge.  Your  onthuMa^m  bore  >ou  on  In 
splendid  style,  carrying  the  rifle  pits  which  crowned  tho  •'"™'»'*-^P; 
turing  many  pieces  of  artillery,  small  arms  and  prl^.ncm.  Tho  coomj 
began  to  i-etire  in  disorder. 


612  THE  EIGHTY-SIXTH  REGIMENT, 

Your  achievement  in  carrying  the  rugged,  fortified  heights  of  Mis- 
sionai'y  Ridge,  displayed  a  gallantry  and  steadiness  under  fire,  and  pro- 
duced results  unparalelled  in  the  annals  of  warfare. 

Your  conduct  was  witnessed  by  many  officers  distinguished  on  other 
battle-fields.  Their  admiration  and  appreciation  of  your  services  are 
unbounded. 

I  return  you  my  most  heartfelt  thanks. 

Thomas  J.  Wood, 
Brigadier  General  Volunteers  Commanding. 


GENERAL  T.  J.  WOOD  TO  GOVERNOR  MORTON. 

Headquarters  Third  Division  Fourth  Army  Corps,  I 
Camp  Near  Nashville,  June  9,  1865.     'j 
To  His  Excellency  Governor  O.  P.  Morton: 

Sir: — Yesterday  two  noble  and  gallant  regiments,  tried  defenders 
and  victors  of  the  Union,  the  Seventy-ninth  Indiana,  Brevet  Brigadier 
General  Fred  Knefler,  commanding,  and  the  Eighty-sixth  Indiana,  Bre- 
vet Brigadier  General  George  F.  Dick,  commanding,  and  late  of  my 
division,  started  to  their  homes  in  Indiana.  The  noble,  generous, 
thorough,  self-sacrificing  patriotism  evinced  by  the  gallant  people  of 
Indiana  throughout  the  whole  of  this  war,  is  her  earnest  of  the  recep- 
tion that  awaits  these  wai'-woi-n  defenders  of  the  Union,  on  their  arrival 
in  their  beloved  State.  I  know  I  need  not  ask  anything  on  this  score, 
but  I  feel  it  to  be  my  duty,  as  it  certainly  is  my  pleasure,  to  inform  you, 
as  the  representative  head  of  the  State,  how  well  these  regiments  have 
performed  their  duty,  and  how  worthy  they  are  of  the  admiration  and 
gratitude  of  their  fellow-citizens  of  Indiana. 

On  every  battle-field  these  noble  regiments  have  been  in  the  front  of 
the  conflict,  where  death  and  danger  were  thickest.  On  the  march  and 
in  camp  they  have  been  faithful,  intelligent,  obedient  soldiers.  Their 
conduct  in  all  situations  has  shed  luster  on  themselves,  their  State  and 
their  country.  Ever  faithful,  their  services  have  been  productive  of  the 
greatest  good  to  our  beloved  government  and  country.  "Dead  on  the 
field  of  honor,"  their  gallant  soldiers  have  been  offered  as  a  tribute  to 
the  cause  of  free  government  and  the  perpetuity  of  the  Union,  on  every 
battle-field  on  which  the  old  Army  of  the  Ohio  and  the  Army  of  the 
Cumberland  have  adorned  the  histoi-y  of  the  country  with  noble  deeds. 
Such  noble  and  valuable  services  entitle  the  Seventy-ninth  and  Eighty- 
sixth  Indiana  to  be  greeted  by  the  admiring  and  grateful  fellow-citizens 
with  the  swelling  notes  of  "See,  the  conquering  heroes  come." 


INDIANA  VOLUNTEERS.  013 

With  the  kindest  regards  to  you,  personally,  and  with  the  warmest 
wishes  for  the  prosperity  of  the  people  of  the  noble  State  over  which 
you  have  the  honor  to  preside,  I  am,  my  dear  Governor,  Your  fr-iend  and 
obedient  servant,  Thomas  J.  Wood, 

Major  General  of  Volunteor«, 


AN  ENGLISHMAN'S  IDEA. 

[From  the  Chattanooga  Times.] 

General  Fullerton,  who  was  General  Gordon  Granp:or's 
chief  of  staff  in  the  battle,  was  talkiiif?  to  an  Eii<rli.sh  j,'on- 
eral  in  England  just  after  the  war,  and  tindin<,'  that  the  Eng- 
lishman knew  very  little  about  most  of  our  battles,  si)oke  to 
him  of  Chickamauga  as  the  longest  battle  of  modern  history. 
twenty  hours  long,  as  compared  witli  the  eight  hours  of 
Waterloo,  and  even  the  eight  hours  of  Gettysburg;  gave  him 
the  unprecedented  percentage  of  casualties,  and  wound  up 
by  telling  him  that  30,000  men  had  been  killed  and  woundiHl 
in  the  battle,  which,  he  said,  was  more  than  had  boon  kilhni 
and  wounded  in  the  British  army  in  a  century.  WatcrhK)  and 
the  Crimea  included.  This  made  the  English  general  gasp 
out  the  only  explanation  that  occurred  to  him  in  the  form  of 
the  question,  "Did  you  kill  the  pri.soners?" 


ARMY  RATIONS  FOR  ONE  HUNDKED  MEN. 

The  army  rations  for  one  hundred  men  consists  of  the 
following:  Pork,  75  pounds,  or  bacon  75  ix)unds;  flour,  llL'i 
pounds,  or  75  pounds  jnlot  bread  and  l"^")  iH)unds  in  tho  field; 
beans,  8  quarts;  rice,  10  iwunds;  cotToe,  0  iK)unds;  sugar.  V2 
pounds;  vinegar,  4  quarts;  caudles.  U  ix)unds;  soaj).  4 
pounds;  salt,  2  quarts. 


ERRATA. 


Page 45,  line  1,  "27th"  should  read  21st. 

Page  101,  line  3,  "left"  should  read  right. 

Page  120,  lines  11  and  16,  "Holstein"  should  read  Holston. 

Page  132,  line  10,  "William  J.  Ness"  should  read  William 
J.  Nees. 

Page  155,  line  3,  "Sand  mountain"  should  read  Raccoon 
mountain. 

Page  155,  line  18,  "Chattanooga  creek"  should  read 
Chickamauga  creek. 

Page  160,  line  21,  "Lookout  valley"  should  read  Chatta- 
nooga valley. 

Page  174,  line  21,  "Granger"  should  read  McCook. 

Page  207,  line  21,  "20th"  should  read  21st. 

Page  225,  line  7,  "5th"  should  read  1st. 

Page  225,  line  14,  "3d"  should  read  2d. 

Page  267,  lines  1  and  2,  "  Fifty -ninth  Ohio"  should  read 
Eighty-ninth  Ohio. 

Page  293,  line  32,  "6th  of  December"  should  read  7th  of 
December. 

Page  342,  line  8,  "Fourth"  should  read  Fourteenth. 

Page  378,  line  15.  "passed"  should  read  pressed. 

Page  431,  line  17,  "Seventh  Kentucky"  should  read 
Seventeenth  Kentucky. 

Page  446,  line  38,  "Shay"  should  read  Elder. 

Page  456,  line  13,  "southeasterly"  should  read  north- 
easterly. 


9^