On the 7th of November, Lieut.-Col. John Sloan was ordered to report
for duty, to his regiment at Newberne. Some time in December Col.
George Singletary resigned and Lieut.-Col. John Sloan was elected
colonel of the regiment; Maj. T. C. Singletary was elected
Lieutenant-Colonel, and Lieut. John A. Gilmer, of the Grays--who had
been acting as adjutant of the regiment at Newberne--was elected
Major. The promotion of Lieut. Gilmer made a vacancy in the offices of
our company, and Sergeant John A. Sloan--at the time sergeant-major of
the fort--was elected to fill it.
On the 28th of February, 1862, we were ordered to join our regiment
then encamped at Fort Lane, on the Neuse River, below Newberne, North
Carolina. About mid-day we filed through the sally-port and bade a
long and sad farewell to Fort Macon. We were transported by boat to
Morehead City, and thence by rail to Newberne. We arrived at Fort Lane
late in the evening, and in the pouring rain, marched to our quarters.
Our position in camp was assigned us, and we began to make ourselves
comfortable in our new home. We had much baggage, more than would have
been allowed an entire corps a year afterwards. Every private had a
trunk, and every mess a cooking-stove, to speak nothing of the extras
of the officers. All this portable property we turned over to Gen.
Burnside, later in the season, for want of convenient transportation.
We had scarcely made ourselves snug in our winter quarters when we
learned that a large land and naval force, conjoined under command of
Gen. Burnside, was approaching Newberne. The fleet arrived in Neuse
River on the 12th of March, and the land forces were in our front on
the following day. On the night of the 13th we left our quarters and
moved down the south bank of the Neuse a short distance, where we were
placed in line of battle, in entrenchments which had previously been
constructed under the orders of Gen. L. O. B. Branch, commanding our
forces--our regiment being the extreme left of the lines, and resting
upon the river. The morning of the 14th broke raw and cold, the fog
was so dense that we could not see fifty yards beyond our works. As
soon as it lifted, a skirmish began upon the right of our lines
between the opposing pickets. About the same time the gunboats, which
were creeping slowly up the river, began to shell the woods. Under
cover of this random firing the land forces advanced. Our pickets
along the entire line were rapidly driven in, and the battle of
Newberne began. It is not my purpose here to venture a description of
this engagement or to make any remarks by way of criticism.
After repeated attacks, the right of the Confederate lines gave way,
which exposed our portion of the lines to an enfilade fire; the enemy
took immediate advantage of their success, and were now endeavoring to
turn our flank and get in our rear. We were ordered to fall back a
short distance, and made a stand a few hundred yards to the rear in
the woods. Meanwhile the guns in Fort Lane had been silenced by the
shots from the enemy's fleet; this gave the boats an unobstructed
passage to Newberne. Had they succeeded in reaching Newberne ahead of
us, they would have destroyed the bridges and thus cut off our
retreat, and forced a surrender of our entire command. Under these new
and trying circumstances, a devil-may-care retreat was ordered, with
instructions to reform at the depot in Newberne. We stood not upon the
order of going but "went," rivaling in speed the celerity of the famed
North Carolina militia at the battle of Guilford Court-House.
Before leaving our entrenchments, private S. H. Hunter was struck by a
fragment of shell, which had exploded near us, and killed. This was
the only casualty in our company and the first. Poor Hunter was struck
on the head and rendered unconscious. He was carried from the field
and brought with us to Kinston in an ambulance, but died on the way.
His remains were conveyed under escort to Greensboro. Sergeant Samuel
B. Jordan was captured on the retreat. He was exchanged and paroled
afterwards, but his term of enlistment having expired, he did not
again enlist.
The company, or at least a portion of it, reformed at the depot in
Newberne. From here we continued our retreat unmolested to Kinston,
where we arrived at a late hour in the night.
While at the depot in Newberne a special train was ordered for the
transportation of the sick and wounded. Some few others apparently
healthy and able-bodied, but constitutionally exhausted, sought shelter
on this train. Among these was my _body-guard_ "Bill," who, with
prudential forecast, had secured a berth early in the action and "held
his ground" until the train reached Greensboro. Bill says he simply
went home to inform "mar's" Robert that "mar's" John was safe and
"untouched." He returned in due season and enlisted with me "durin" the
war, was faithful to the end, and is part of our history.
We remained in and around Kinston performing picket duty on the roads
leading toward Newberne until the 22d of March. About the 25th we
changed our camp to "Black-jack," and on the 29th we moved to
Southwest Church.
The muster-roll of our company at this period contained one hundred
and twenty names, but of this number, owing to the measles,
whooping-cough, itch, and other "diseases dire," only seventy-three
were reported for duty.
On the 18th of March, Mike Gretter was detached and appointed brigade
commissary sergeant, in which position he served during the entire
war. On the 1st of April, A. D. Lindsay--a graduate of the sand-bag
department of Fort Macon--was appointed Ordnance Sergeant of our
regiment. About the 20th of April, our 1st Lieutenant, James T.
Morehead, Jr., resigned, to accept the position of captain in the 45th
North Carolina regiment. He was afterwards elected lieutenant-colonel
of the 53d regiment, and after the death of Col. Owens, was promoted
to the colonelcy. Colonel Morehead was wounded at Spottsylvania
Court-House, Gettysburg, and Hares' Hill, at which latter place he was
made a prisoner in a gallant charge of his command, and was held until
after the war.
Private John W. Nelson was detailed as permanent teamster to
regimental quarter-master, some time in April, and acted as such until
the 17th of March, 1863, when he died in the hospital at Charleston,
S. C.
The expiration of the term of enlistment of the twelve months' men was
now near at hand; and to provide measures to levy new troops, and to
hold those already in the field, President Davis was authorized by an
act of Congress "to call out and place in the military service for
three years all white male residents between the ages of 18 and 35
years, and to continue those already in the field until three years
from the date of enlistment, but those under 18 years and over 35 were
to remain 90 days." Under this act our company lost privates R. B.
Jones, W. D. Hanner, W. Hopkins, W. C. Winfree, and W. Burnsides, all
of whom were over 35 years of age. W. Burnsides rejoined us in April,
1863. Private John E. Wharton substituted P. A. Ricks on the 1st of
May, and returned to Guilford, where he raised a company and
re-entered the service as its commandant. Private Ed. Lindsey, who
left us, being under 18 years of age, was made a lieutenant in Capt.
Wharton's company. Ed. was killed in the month of April 1865.
On the 16th of April, the 27th North Carolina regiment reorganized.
Major John R. Cooke, who was at that time chief of artillery on Gen.
Holmes' staff, was elected colonel, R. W. Singletary re-elected
lieutenant-colonel, and John A. Gilmer, Jr., re-elected major. The
regiment was then assigned to Gen. Robert Ransom's Brigade, under
whose command we remained until the 1st of June.
On the 22d of April, our company reorganized as company "B." William
Adams was re-elected captain, John A. Sloan was elected 1st
lieutenant, John H. McKnight 2d lieutenant, and Frank A. Hanner, 2d
lieutenant junior; Benjamin G. Graham was appointed orderly sergeant,
Samuel B. Jordan (still prisoner) 2d sergeant, Thos. J. Sloan, 3d
sergeant, George W. Howlett, 4th sergeant, Will U. Steiner, 5th
sergeant, Ed B. Crowson, 1st corporal, Jed H. Lindsay, Jr., 2d
corporal, John D. Collins, 3d corporal, and Chas. A. Campbell, 4th
corporal. Lieutenant W. P. Wilson declined re-election in the company
to accept the position of adjutant of the regiment, tendered him by
Col. Cooke, which office he filled with much credit to himself and
regiment. He died in Greensboro on March 3d, 1863, after a severe
illness.
From the 4th to the 7th of May, we assisted in tearing up and
destroying the A. & N.C. Railroad from Kinston to Core Creek. We made
up our minds if Burnside pursued us again, he should come slowly, and
on foot.