The Stay Near Gordonsville.
The March to Richmond and Journey to Yorktown.
In the Trenches.
Skirmishing and Night Alarms.
Reorganization.
The Retreat from Yorktown.
The Old Lady's Prayer.
Battle of Williamsburg.
The Killed and Wounded.
Forces and Numbers Engaged and Losses.
Retreat up the Peninsula.
Battle of Seven Pines.
Casualties.
Our stay in the vicinity of Gordonsville was of short duration--only
for a few days--for on or about April 1 we set out for Richmond,
distant about seventy-five miles. The route taken lay through the
counties of Louisa, Hanover and Henrico, a low, flat, swampy territory,
and in March and April knee deep in mud. The people along this march
were unaccustomed to seeing large bodies of armed men marching. The
negroes, especially, gazed upon us with seeming astonishment. How long
we were making this march to the capital city is not now recollected,
but as we carried heavy burdens at that day, it is probable we did not
reach Richmond before the 8th or 9th of April.
On the 10th of the month last mentioned, the 7th regiment left Richmond
aboard a steamer on the James River, disembarking at King's Landing,
ten miles from Yorktown, inland, whither we marched the evening of our
debarkation. We took position in and near the trenches for the purpose
of preventing the Federal army from marching up the peninsula. Now and
then a brisk skirmish would occur on some part of the lines, scarcely a
night passing without picket firing and alarms; one of which occurred
during a heavy rainstorm, in which the men stood to their guns
throughout the night and were thoroughly drenched by the rain.
The time for reorganization of the army had arrived, and this was
accomplished quietly on Saturday, April 26, 1862, in the face of the
enemy. Before giving in detail the result of the reorganization, I will
state that a very decided change had taken place among the men as to
their estimates of the character and ability of their officers, field
and company. Many were moved by their dislikes and prejudices,
engendered by contact in their first year's service, against officers
who had endeavored to enforce obedience and strict military discipline,
prompted by no other motive than the good of the service; yet these
acts, done in accordance with military law, and inspired by patriotism,
were often misconstrued by men born freemen, wholly unaccustomed to
having restraints placed upon their personal liberty; such acts, the
exercise of such authority, being regarded by our volunteer citizen
soldiery as tyrannical. Consequently those who had been foremost in
rushing to the country's rescue in the early days of her peril, bravely
leading their men to the forefront of the battle, were displaced, to
the detriment of the service; but patriotic and good men are oftentimes
only human. The organization was, however, effected apparently without
injury to the public service.
Captain James H. French, of my company, was taken sick on the march
from the Rappahannock, and was left in Richmond; consequently he was
not present at the reorganization, and perhaps was not a candidate for
re-election. Had he been present and a candidate, it is more than
probable he would have been again chosen captain without opposition, as
no one could have had any personal grievance against him. He had proven
himself a man of unflinching courage, and as much in this respect could
be said of the other company officers. Save one, Lieutenant Joel
Blackard, all were displaced. Blackard, in the reorganization, was
elected captain; Sergeant R. H. Bane, first lieutenant; Orderly
Sergeant John W. Mullins, second lieutenant; Corporal E. M. Stone,
third lieutenant. The non-commissioned officers elected were: A. L.
Fry, first sergeant; W. H. H. Snidow, second sergeant; William D.
Peters, third sergeant; Joseph C. Shannon, fourth sergeant; this
scribe, fifth sergeant; A. J. Thompson, first corporal; Daniel Bish,
second corporal; George C. Mullins, third corporal, and J. B. Young,
fourth corporal.
Comment as to the choice of the men will not here be made, nor the
character of the new officers, as ample opportunity will be afforded in
these pages to judge their conduct. It suffices to say now that the
company had no cause for regret.
Of the regimental officers, Colonel James L. Kemper was chosen to
succeed himself; Major W. T. Patton was elected lieutenant-colonel;
Adjutant C. C. Flowerree, major; Lieutenant Starke was appointed
adjutant; George S. Tansill, sergeant-major. Dr. C. B. Morton was
regimental surgeon, with Dr. Oliver assistant, and upon the promotion
of Dr. Morton to brigade surgeon, Dr. Oliver became regimental surgeon,
with Dr. Worthington as assistant.
As recollected, Company H, from the District of Columbia, having served
its one year, for which it had enlisted, disbanded shortly after
reorganization.
Lieutenant-Colonel Lewis B. Williams, than whom no braver man wore the
gray, was elected colonel of the 1st Virginia regiment. Prior to the
battles of Bull Run and Manassas, the 7th regiment had been brigaded
with the 24th Virginia and 7th Louisiana, under Colonel J. A. Early.
After these battles, we were commanded by General Ewell. Subsequently,
the 1st, 7th, 11th and 17th Virginia regiments formed General
Longstreet's brigade. On reaching Yorktown, Brigadier-General A. P.
Hill became our brigade commander, General Longstreet having been made
a major-general, to whose division our brigade was attached.
At this juncture we were still at Yorktown, with the enemy bold and
threatening in our front. It was evident, therefore, that a collision
was imminent, either where we were or near by. The order came to move
on Saturday evening, May 3. We were soon on the road, in the mud,
floundering and pushing toward Williamsburg, about twelve miles
distant, reaching there early next morning, after an all night march.
The command halted in front of the grounds of the Eastern Hospital for
the Insane. The enemy, evidently determined we should not get away
without trouble, followed closely, skirmishing briskly with the rear
guard, which was continued throughout the afternoon. Then came the
monotonous standing in line of battle from early dawn till near
midday--a thing that always tries the patience of a soldier. The
booming of artillery, and the rattling of small arms could be
distinctly heard. As we passed over the street leading to William and
Mary College, an elderly lady appeared on her porch, with clasped hands
and eyes lifted heavenward, uttering for us, in simple, pathetic tones,
a prayer to God for the protection of our lives in the coming conflict.
Beyond the College the column filed to the right into an open field,
piled baggage, and then in battle line moved forward into the timber,
receiving as we entered therein a shower of balls at close range,
wounding a number of men. This onslaught was answered by a charge from
us, which broke up the lines of the enemy, consisting in part of New
York regiments, and drove him for more than a half mile through the
woods into a body of fallen timber, in which was encountered a fresh
line of battle. Some doubt at first existed as to who these people
were. This was settled by the unfurling of their flag. At close
quarters, the fight was desperate for more than two hours, in which our
ammunition was expended, when General A. P. Hill ordered a charge with
fixed bayonets, upon which the enemy (New Jersey men) were driven from
the field; for a hand-to-hand charge is something fearful to
contemplate. Being relieved by other troops, Hill's brigade retired to
the line from which it had moved in the charge, from whence we withdrew
during the night, continuing the retreat; for it will be remembered
that the task in hand for us was the holding in check of the enemy--a
force vastly superior to our own. In this day's work I fired 36
charges, by which my shoulder was pounded so that it was for a time
completely disabled. This battle was fought for a safe retreat for our
trains and for the army, and accomplished this purpose. We had beaten
the enemy in our center, and on the right wing, while a portion, two
regiments, of General Early's brigade had been repulsed by General
Hancock's Federal brigade.
The forces engaged were, as stated by General Longstreet: Federals,
12,000; Confederates, 9,000. The casualties: Federal, 2,288;
Confederate, 1,565. This engagement was called the Battle of
Williamsburg, and will be remembered by the survivors whose eyes
may fall upon these lines.
In Hill's brigade the loss was 326, of which 67 were killed, 245
wounded, 14 missing. The 7th Virginia lost 13 killed, 64 wounded,
aggregate 77. In Company D, of the 7th Virginia, the loss was one
killed, 14 wounded, as follows: Killed, William H. Stafford; wounded,
Lieutenant E. M. Stone, and the following men of the line: Allen M.
Bane, Charles W. Peck, Andrew J. Thompson, John A. Hale, John W. East,
Isaac Hare, George Knoll, Anderson Meadows, Demarcus Sarver, William
I. Wilburn, Edward Z. Yager, John Meadows, and the writer--who knows
what it is to have a hot buckshot in his hand. Baldwin L. Hoge had
the belt of his cartridge box severed and cut from the belt; several
of the men had holes shot through their clothing. Sergeant Tapley P.
Mays, of Company D, the ensign of the regiment, who bore the flag
aloft throughout the battle, had the staff severed three times and
the flag pierced by twenty-three balls, Mays escaping unscathed. For
his gallant conduct on this field, he received the thanks of the
commandant of the regiment, and his conduct was made the subject
matter of a complimentary letter to him from the Governor of the
state, promising that he should receive a fine sword for his gallant
conduct.
The mud was deep, the movement slow, and when morning dawned we were
only a few miles from the battlefield, halting occasionally in battle
line in order to hold the enemy in check until our long train of wagons
and artillery could get away. It must not be supposed that because we
were wearied, covered with mud and hungry, that we were dispirited and
gloomy. Such mental conditions could not then well exist among such a
jolly set of fellows, for we had in each company one or more who would
have their amusement, in a joke, a laugh, or a song, especially Bolton
and George Knoll (the Dutchman), who were clownish and full of fun. In
passing along the roads and through the towns and villages, if a
citizen with a high silk hat appeared, these clowns would call out:
"Mister, come out of that hat; I know you are in there, for I see your
feet!" Another would likely call out: "Mister, my bees are swarming;
lend me your hat to hive them in." They sometimes ran across a man with
high top boots. Then it was: "Come out of them boots! I know you are in
them, for I see your head above." Occasionally they were paid back in
their own coin. An old preacher, white-haired, with long white flowing
beard, one day rode into camp, when one of these wags called out:
"Boys, here is old Father Abraham," whereupon the old preacher said:
"Young men, you are mistaken. I am Saul, the son of Kish, searching for
his father's asses, and I have found them." The preacher had won, and
nobody enjoyed the joke better than the fellows who had been beaten at
their own game.
The Chickahominy was crossed by our troops May 9, when we went into
camp at Clark's farm, and later near Howard's Grove, on higher and
dryer ground, with better water. Here inactivity and hot weather
brought on much sickness. It was from this camp that A. L. Sumner of
Company D took "French furlough"--went without leave, to see his
family, was arrested, brought back, courtmartialed, and sentenced
for a term to Castle Thunder, a Confederate prison in Richmond for
Confederate delinquents. On his return he made up for his delinquency.
A. L. Fry, orderly-sergeant, was summoned as a witness against Sumner
at his trial, and was thereby absent at the battle of Frazier's farm.
For several days preceding the 30th day of May, 1862, the weather had
been very sultry, and during the night of that day there broke over the
camp a violent electric storm, accompanied by a heavy downpour of rain,
which flooded the quarters and submerged everything on the ground
within the tents, compelling the men to stand on their feet for hours.
The vivid flashes of electricity, the fearful peals of thunder,
reminded one of the progress of a mighty battle, and was a fitting
precursor of the morrow's bloody day.
At daylight, Saturday, May 31, came the order to march. Although we
knew the enemy was in close proximity to Richmond and extending his
lines closer, with the intention of investing the city, yet we were at
a loss to determine where we were going, as we had not received orders
to be ready to move. Much difficulty was encountered in crossing the
small branches, which had overflowed their banks, but we finally made
our way into the Williamsburg road, learning on the way from parties
coming from the front that a battle was imminent. Hurrying forward at
quickstep, turning to the right from the Williamsburg road, we found
ourselves in line of battle on the edge of a swamp in a wood, where
we remained until about 1 P.M., hearing the boom of cannon, and
indistinctly the rattle of musketry, apparently far to our left. Not
long after the hour mentioned, we were hurried away to the left to
Seven Pines, where we soon found ourselves face to face with the enemy,
in part the Federal division of General Silas Casey, whose earthworks
and camp we carried, including some of his artillery. The forces
engaged, as given by General Longstreet in his "Manassas to
Appomattox," were: Union troops, 18,500; Confederates, 14,600; Union
losses, 5,031; Confederate, 4,798. This engagement was called by the
Confederates the Battle of Seven Pines.
I have not been able to secure my brigade or regimental loss but my
company loss was: A. D. Manning, killed; Sergeant E. R. Walker,
Privates Travis Burton, John W. Hight and Joseph Lewy, wounded. Our
ensign, Mays, acted with his usual gallantry.
The right wing of the Confederate army, under General Longstreet, had
defeated the left wing of the Union army, captured its intrenchments,
guns and camp, and driven it for quite a distance, but the Confederate
left wing had not been so fortunate as the right. In this battle, after
we had broken General Casey's lines, some Union sharpshooters took
cover in the swamp in our front, one of whom at about seventy-five
yards fired at me, the ball grazing my cap.
A short time previous to the Battle of Seven Pines, our
brigadier-general, A. P. Hill, had been made major-general. Colonel
Kemper had been promoted to brigadier-general and was in command of
the brigade during the above-mentioned engagement. General Joseph E.
Johnston, commanding the Confederate army in this battle, was badly
wounded, and General Robert E. Lee was appointed to succeed him in
the command.
We left the battleground, as now recalled, on June 2, returning to
camp, a few days after which the 24th Virginia regiment, which had been
with Early's, then with Garland's brigade, was united with ours--now
composed of the 1st, 7th, 11th, 17th and 24th Virginia regiments.