On the 26th of August, we returned to our position in the trenches,
where we remained until the latter part of September.
On the 16th, Robert T. Heath and James Hacket joined the Grays.
The casualties in the campaign so far had sadly reduced our ranks. At
the battle of Ream's Station, Capt. Herring, senior officer of the
regiment, was wounded, when Capt. J. A. Sloan, next in rank, took
command of the regiment, and Sergeant Thomas J. Rhodes commanded the
Grays. Our muster-roll on the 31st of August contained sixty names rank
and file. One captain, one sergeant, two corporals, and sixteen
privates were reported for duty. One officer and thirty-five men
absent, wounded, and prisoners; four men on detached service.
On the 18th of September, private Geo. H. Woolen died while a prisoner
of war at Point Lookout, Md. On the 13th, Samuel E. B. Gray was killed
in the trenches before Petersburg, and on the 27th, private Wm. N.
Kirkman. About the same time, Sergeant Daniel McConnell, while lying
sick in the field hospital in rear of our lines, was seriously injured
by a shell passing through the hospital and so near to him as to cause
a paralysis of his limbs, from which he died.
On the night of the 28th of September, Butler, with the corps of Birney
and Ord, crossed to the north side of the James, and moved up the
river, with the view of attacking Fort Harrison, near Chapin's Farm. A
portion of his force made a feint upon the Newmarket road, and while
this engagement was in process, a column moved on the fort and captured
it. This resulted in giving to the enemy a secret lodgment on the north
side of the James, and a position very menacing to Richmond.
On the 20th, we were moved still further to the right; and on the next
day, were engaged in a spirited skirmish near Battery No. 45, on our
advanced lines. Every few days, we were moved still farther to the
right, skirmishing and picketing, until we reached Hatcher's Run, about
the 1st of December.
About daylight, on the morning of the 27th of October, three corps of
the enemy moved towards the Boydton Plank-Road with a view to turn our
right flank and get possession of the Southside railroad, which was
now Lee's principal communication. When they reached the Boydton road,
they found our troops entrenched at every point. Hancock's corps
continued to advance in the direction of Stony Creek, supposing this
to be the termination of our lines, and thereby creating a gap between
his right and the left of the 5th army corps. Mahone's division,
taking advantage of this opening in their lines, assailed Hancock's
right, and drove Gibbons' division some distance back. Meanwhile,
Hampton with his cavalry began to attack his rear. Our brigade was
moved up the creek (Hatcher's Run) as far as Burgess' Mill, and was
placed in position to be ready on the next morning to charge the enemy
from their position on the other side of the creek. The only means of
crossing the stream was a narrow country bridge, which was guarded by
their sharpshooters, and beyond on the hills, about one hundred yards
off, was posted their artillery. The charge was to be made at
daylight; and with this _pleasant_ prospect before us, you may imagine
we passed a _comfortable_ night in anticipation. When morning came,
our sharpshooters were advanced, and found, to our comfort and
delight, that Grant had withdrawn his troops during the night, and
retraced his steps to their intrenchments in front of Petersburg. He
had been completely frustrated, and thus failed in his flank movement.
On the following day we were in position on the left of Hatcher's Run,
and as active operations were considered closed for the winter, we
began to build winter quarters. In a short while we had comfortable
cabins, in which we remained quietly until the 8th of December.
On the 8th of December the 2d army corps, by way of diversion, made a
raid on the Petersburg & Weldon Railroad, and A. P. Hill's corps was
ordered to meet them. On the evening of the 8th we quit our comfortable
quarters, and in the sleet and driving snow, marched until 2 o'clock
a.m. of the 9th, when we bivouacked till morning. We then marched on,
in the bitter cold, to Bellfield, when we found the enemy were
retreating up the Jerusalem Plank-road. From here we were ordered back
to Jarratt's Station to try to intercept them. Just as we reached this
point we encountered a large force of their cavalry. Pegram's artillery
was thrown forward, and our brigade, concealed in the pines, clad with
ice and sleet, was thrown into line as support.
The enemy were not aware of our presence, and charged upon the
artillery. Our skirmishers received the charge. Seeing that the battery
was supported, they began to retreat. We pursued them across the
railroad and pushed forward rapidly for several miles, hoping to
intercept their infantry, but we found the pursuit useless. As darkness
was now upon us, we halted for the night, and next morning resumed our
march for our camp, which we reached, hungry and almost frozen, on the
13th.
Grant behaved himself now tolerably well until Sunday morning, February
5th, when, becoming restless, he began one of his periodical movements,
and succeeded in getting very near our lines before we were aware of
his movements. About the middle of the day Davis' Mississippi brigade,
which was a mile to our left, was marched down to our position and
relieved us. We were then marched up the lines some two miles, where we
crossed our works and formed a line outside of them. We then marched to
the front about one mile, when we turned to the right, and forming line
of battle, began to advance and soon struck the skirmish line of the
enemy, which we drove with our line of battle some distance, until we
came in view of their line posted upon a hill in a field behind
earthworks. We were ordered to charge. We started up the hill, and when
we had gone some distance, and seeing the brigade on our left was not
charging with us, we fell back to the edge of the woods. The enemy now
made a strong demonstration on our right flank, and to prevent this
movement we had to fall back to our reserve line, when a Georgia
brigade took the place of ours. As they were ordered forward a portion
of our regiment, among them the Grays, thinking the order came from our
commanding officer, advanced with this brigade and fought through the
remainder of the day. After dark we were returned to our breastworks,
and when we reached them we found that we had been fighting in front of
our former position, and had been moved two miles up the lines to be
marched back again to fight in the place of other troops who had been
moved into our earth works, and almost directly in front of our camp.
[There are some things past finding out and beyond explanation, but as
the deductions of a citizen soldier are at no time of valuable
consideration, I forbear.]
On the following day we were returned to our quarters, where we enjoyed
quiet and rest until the latter part of March.
While we were in the heat of the battle of the 5th of February, some
few of the new recruits who had recently joined our brigade, not
exactly fancying the shot and shell which were flying around, thought
the rear was a safer place, and suiting the action to the thought,
"dusted." Gen. Lee with several of his staff was seated on horseback in
rear of our lines and in proximity to the battle, awaiting the issue,
when observing these men crossing the works without their guns, in
seeming alarm and haste, he rode toward them, endeavoring to halt and
return them to their command, when one of the "dusters," in grave
alarm, raised his hands and voice in terror, exclaiming: "Great God,
old man, get out of the way, you don't know nothing," continued his
rapid flight too terrified to recognize or obey chieftain or orders.