SIEGE OF PETERSBURGH. MUSTER OUT.
Early on the morning of the fourteenth the regiment crossed the James by
means of a steam ferry boat and spent the day near the south bank. There
was trouble somewhere in the quartermaster's department, and no rations
could be procured on that day. On the next day orders were issued for an
immediate advance; still no rations, and the hungry men started out on
the hot and dusty march of some twenty miles breakfastless and with
empty haversacks. But a hungry soldier is greatly given to
reconnoissances on private account, he has an interrogation point in
each eye as well as one in his empty stomach. Every hill and ravine is
explored, the productions of the country, animal and vegetable, are
inventoried, and poor indeed must be the section that fails to yield
something to the hungry searcher. Chickens, most carefully concealed in
the darkest cellars by the anxious owners, are unearthed by these
patient seekers, pigs and cows driven far away to the most sequestered
valleys are brought to light; bacon and hams turn up in the most
unexpected places, and on the whole, the soldier on a march fares not
badly when left to his own devices for a day or so. Thus our sharp
shooters managed to sustain life, and at dark went into bivouac in front
of the rebel defenses of Petersburgh.
The Eighteenth Corps, under Gen. Smith, had preceded the Second, and had
had heavy fighting on the afternoon of this day; they had captured and
now held important works in the line of rebel defenses. Darkness and an
inadequate force had prevented them from following up their advantages,
and thus the first of the series of terrible battles about Petersburgh
had ended.
At daylight on the morning of the sixteenth the Union artillery opened a
brisk cannonade on the now reenforced enemy. During the forenoon the
sharp shooters lay quietly behind the crest of a slight elevation in
support of a battery thus engaged. At about noon they were deployed and
advanced against the rebel pickets with orders to drive them into their
main line and also to remove certain fences and other obstructions so as
to leave the way clear for an assault by the entire corps at a later
hour. The advance was spirited, and after a determined resistance the
rebels were driven from their advanced rifle pits, the skirmishers
following them closely, while the reserve companies leveled the fence in
the rear.
At six o'clock P. M. the Second Corps, supported by two brigades of the
Eighteenth on the right, and two of the Ninth on the left, advanced to
the attack, and after severe fighting, in which the corps suffered a
heavy loss in officers and men, they succeeded in capturing three redans
in the rebel line of works, together with the connecting breastworks,
and in driving the enemy back along their whole front.
Darkness put an end to the advance, but several times during the night
the rebels attempted to regain their lost works, and were each time
repulsed with loss. In this charge Caspar B. Kent of Co. F was killed on
the field. Co. F moved during the night to a position further to the
left, and farther to the front than any point reached by the Union
troops during the day, and were made happy by an issue of rations, the
first they had received since leaving the lines of Cold Harbor. A fresh
supply of ammunition was also received by them, of which they stood in
great need, they having very nearly exhausted the supply with which they
went into the fight. The rebels in their front were active during the
night and a good deal of random firing took place, but of course with
little result so far as execution went. Morning, however, showed a new
line of rifle pits thrown up during the night, not over fifty yards in
front of the sharp shooters who had by no means spent the night in sleep
themselves, but in making such preparations for defense as they could
with such poor tools as bayonets, tin plates and cups. They had been
sufficient, however, and daylight found them fairly well covered from
the fire of the enemy's infantry, and with a zigzag, or covered way, by
means of which a careful man could pass to the rear with comparatively
little danger. Co. F held this advanced line alone, and the day which
dawned on them lying in this position was destined to be one of the most
active and arduous, and the one to be best remembered by the men
present, of any during their entire term of service. No sooner did the
light appear than sharp shooting began on both sides, and was steadily
kept up during the day. The lines were so close that the utmost care was
required to obtain a satisfactory shot without an exposure which was
almost certainly fatal. Nevertheless, the gallant men of the Vermont
company managed to use up the one hundred rounds of cartridges with
which they were supplied long before the day was over. Capt. Merriman,
foreseeing this, had directed Sergt. Cassius Peck to procure a fresh
supply.
It was a service of grave danger, but taking two haversacks the sergeant
succeeded in safely passing twice over the dangerous ground and thus
enabled the company to hold its threatened lines. Many men in the
company fired as many as two hundred rounds on this day, and at its
close the rifles were so choked with dirt and dust, and so heated with
the rapid and continuous firing, as to be almost unserviceable.
The company suffered a severe loss at this place by the death of
Corporal Charles B. Mead, who was shot through the head and instantly
killed. Corporal Mead was one of the recruits who joined in the autumn
of 1862, and had been constantly with the company and constantly on duty
ever since, except while recovering from a former wound received at
Gettysburgh. He was one of two brothers who enlisted at the same time,
the other, Carlos E. Mead, having been himself wounded. He was a young
man of rare promise, and his early death brought sadness, not only to
his comrades in the field, but to a large circle of friends at home. He
had kept a daily record of events in the form of a diary during his
entire period of service, to which the writer of these lines has had
access, and from which he has obtained valuable information and
assistance in his work.
Henry E. Barnum was also mortally wounded, and died on the fourteenth of
the following month, while John Quinlan received a severe wound.
Quinlan, however, recovered and served his enlistment to the close of
the war. Sergt.-Major Jacobs, formerly of Co. G, who served with Co. F
on this day, was also mortally wounded.
The company was relieved at night and retired to the rear for a well
earned rest, to be engaged the next day in the sharp engagement around
the Hare house. Their position here, however, was less exposed and their
service less arduous. The Hare house had but lately been vacated by its
former occupants, a wealthy and influential Virginia family, who had
left so suddenly as to have abandoned nearly everything that the house
contained. The windows of the basement opened full on the rebel works
and rifle pits, the latter within point bank range, and here the sharp
shooters, seated at ease in the fine mahogany chairs of the late owner,
took careful aim at his friends in his own garden. They boiled their
coffee, and cooked their rashers of pork, on his cooking range, over
fires started and fed with articles taken from his elegant apartments,
not, it is to be feared, originally intended for fuel, and ate them on
his dining table. There was, however, no vandalism, no wanton
destruction of property for the mere sake of destruction in all this.
The house and its contents were doomed in any event, and the slight
havoc worked by the sharp shooters only anticipated by a few hours what
must come in a more complete form later. The shooting here was at very
short range, and correspondingly accurate. As an Alabama rifleman, who
was taken prisoner, remarked, "It was only necessary to hold up your
hand to get a furlough, and you were lucky if you could get to the rear
without an extension."
Silas Giddings was wounded here. Giddings had been a friend and
schoolmate of the Meads, and had enlisted at the same time. Thus of the
three friends two were severely wounded and one was dead. During the day
Birney's Division had made an assault on the main rebel line to the left
of the Hare house which had been repulsed with severe loss. The wounded
were left on the field, some of them close under the enemy's works. They
lay in plain sight during the hours of daylight, but it was impossible
to help them. When darkness came on, however, Capt. Merriman, slinging
half a dozen canteens over his shoulder, crept out onto the field and
spent half the night in caring for the poor fellows whose sufferings
during the day had so touched his sympathies. The 19th, 20th and 21st of
June were spent at this place, sharp shooting constantly going on. On
the twentieth Corporal Edward Lyman received a wound of which he died on
the twenty-fifth. Corporal Lyman was one of the original members of the
company; was promoted corporal on the 15th of August, 1863, and had long
been a member of the color guard of the regiment, having been selected
for that position for his distinguished courage and coolness on many
fields. Some times during these days a temporary truce would be agreed
upon between the opposing pickets, generally for the purpose of boiling
coffee or preparing food. Half an hour perhaps would be the limit of
time agreed upon; but whatever it was, the truce was scrupulously
observed. When some one called "time," however, it behooved every man to
take cover instantly.
Upon one occasion a rebel rifleman was slow to respond to the
warning--in fact he appeared to think himself out of sight; while all
others hurried to their posts he alone sat quietly blowing his hot
coffee and munching his hard-tack. It so happened, however, that he was
in plain sight of a sharp shooter less bloodthirsty than some others,
who thought it only fair to give him one more warning, therefore he
called out, "I say, Johnny, time is up, get into your hole." "All
right," responded the cool rebel still blowing away at his hot cup.
"Just hold that cup still," said the sharp shooter, "and I will show you
whether it is all right or not." By this time the fellow began to
suspect that he was indeed visible, and holding his cup still for an
instant while he looked up, he afforded the Union marksman the
opportunity he was waiting for. A rapid sight and the sharp's bullet
knocked the coffee cup far out of its owner's reach and left it in such
a condition that it could never serve a useful purpose again. The
surprised rebel made haste to get under cover, pursued by the laughter
and jeers of his own comrades as well as those of the sharp shooters.
Thus men played practical jokes on each other at one moment, and the
next were seeking to do each other mortal harm.
The various assaults having failed to force the enemy from any
considerable portion of the defenses of Petersburgh, it was determined
by the federal commanders to extend again to the left, with the intent
to cut off, one by one, the avenues by which supplies might be brought
to the enemy from the South; and on the twenty-first the Second Corps,
now under Gen. Birney (Gen. Hancock being disabled by the reopening of
an old wound), in company with the Fifth and Sixth Corps, moved to the
left and took up a position with its right on the Jerusalem plank road.
The Sixth Corps, which was to have prolonged the line to the left, not
arriving in position as early as was expected, the enemy took instant
advantage of the opportunity and, penetrating to the rear of the exposed
left of the Second Corps, commenced a furious attack. Thus surprised,
the entire left division gave way in disorder and retreated towards the
right, thus uncovering the left of Mott's Division, which was next in
line, which in its turn was thrown into confusion. The sharp shooters,
who had been skirmishing in advance of the left, had, of course, no
option; they were compelled to retire with their supports or submit to
capture. They fell back slowly and in good order, however, gradually
working themselves into a position to partially check the advancing
rebels and afford a scanty space of time in which the disordered mass
might rally and reform. In this movement they were gallantly supported
by the Fifth Michigan volunteers by whose assistance they were, at last,
enabled to bring the rebels to a halt; not, however, until they had
captured some seventeen hundred men and four guns from the corps. The
company again suffered heavy loss in this affair.
Barney Leddy and Peter Lafflin were killed on the field; Watson P.
Morgan was wounded and taken prisoner; Sergt. Grover was badly wounded
by a rifle ball through the thigh, and David Clark received a severe
wound. Morgan was a young but able and gallant soldier; he had
previously been wounded at Kelly's ford, but returned to his company to
be again wounded, and to experience the additional misfortune of being
made a prisoner. He was exchanged soon after, but subsequently died from
the effect of his wound. Sergt. Grover had also previously been wounded
at Gettysburgh, where he had been promoted for gallantry and good
conduct. Clark recovered to reenlist upon the expiration of his term of
service, and served to the close of the war. Of the forty-seven men who
had been with the company since it crossed the Rapidan only ten were
left for duty--thirty-five had been killed or wounded, and two had been
captured unwounded. From this time to the 26th of July the company were
employed, with short intervals for rest, on the picket line, here and
there as occasion demanded their services, but without important
incident. Active operations having now continued so long in this
particular quarter as to afford room for hope that the rebels might be
caught napping on the north bank of the James, Gen. Grant determined to
send a large force in that direction to co-operate with the Army of the
James, hoping to take the enemy by surprise and, by a sudden dash,
perhaps to capture the capitol of the Confederacy before its real
defenders could get information of the danger. With this view he
detached the Second Corps and two divisions of cavalry to attempt it.
The troops marched at one o'clock on the afternoon of the twenty-sixth,
and at two o'clock on the morning of the twenty-seventh the corps
crossed the James by a ponton bridge at Jones' Landing. Passing rapidly
to the north, in rear of the lines held by the Tenth Corps (belonging to
the Army of the James), the troops faced to the west and were soon
confronting the enemy in position. The sharp shooters were deployed and
advanced in skirmishing order across an open and level tract of land
known locally as "Strawberry Plains."
The advancing line was heavily supported and drove the enemy steadily
until they were forced back into their works, when, with a grand dash,
sharp shooters, supports and all in one rushing mass, swept up to and
over the rebel works, capturing in the charge four guns and some seven
hundred prisoners. Notwithstanding this success, the enemy were found to
have been so heavily reenforced by troops from the Petersburgh
lines--who could be transferred by railroad, while the Union forces were
compelled to march--that the full object of the movement could not be
attained. The captured works were held, however, while the cavalry,
moving still further north, destroyed the railroads and bridges north of
the city, and returned to the vicinity of Deep Bottom, where the corps
returned by a night march to their former position in front of
Petersburgh, resting for a few hours by the way on the field of their
battle of the 18th of July. The regiment lay in camp until the 12th of
August, engaged in the usual routine of picket duly and sharp shooting,
but without unusually hard service. Indeed, what would once have been
called by them active employment was now enjoyed as a season of grateful
repose, so constantly had they been engaged in bloody battle since
crossing the Rapidan. On the 12th of August the bugle sounded the
general once more, and with knapsacks packed, blankets strapped,
haversacks and cartridge boxes filled, the one hundred and sixty men who
now represented what had once been the First Regiment of United States
Sharp Shooters, marched with their division towards City Point.
Rumors were rife as to their destination--some said Washington; some
said a southern seaport, while some maintained that the objective point
was Chicago, where they were wanted to maintain order during the coming
democratic convention. At City Point they were embarked on steam
transports and headed down the river. The wisest guessers were now
really puzzled, and the prophet who foretold Chicago had as many chances
in his favor as any of his fellows. A few miles down the river, and the
fleet of laden steamers came to an anchor, and lay quiet for some hours.
The rest, cleanliness, and cool, refreshing breezes from the river, were
very grateful to the tired soldiers so long accustomed to the dirt and
dust of the rifle pits.
Soon after dark the anchors were got up and the heads of the steamers
turned again up stream. Now all was plain, another secret movement was
planned, and at daylight on the morning of the fourteenth the troops
landed at the scene of their crossing on the 26th of July at Deep
Bottom.
Moving out toward the enemy severe skirmishing took place, but no
engagement of a general character occurred on that day. On the fifteenth
they were detached from the Second, and ordered to the Tenth Corps, now
commanded by their former division commander, Gen. Birney, and at his
especial request. Moving out at the head of the column they found
themselves in the early afternoon the extreme right of the army, and in
front of the enemy at a little stream known as Deep Run, or Four Mile
creek. Deploying under the personal direction of Gen. Birney they
advanced toward a wooded ridge on which they found the rebel skirmishers
in force, and evidently determined to stay. In the language of Capt.
Merriman, who must be accepted as authority, "It was the hardest
skirmish line to start that Co. F ever struck." But Co. F was rarely
refused when it demanded a right of way and was opposed by nothing but a
skirmish line; and on this occasion, as on many former ones, their
steady pressure and cool firing prevailed at last, and after more than
an hour the rebels yielded the ground. On the sixteenth more severe
fighting took place with serious loss to the regiment, but Co. F escaped
without loss--in fact there was hardly enough left of the company to
lose. Col. Craig, commanding the brigade to which they were attached,
was killed, and Capt. Andrews of Co. E, Capt. Aschmann of Co. A. and
Lieut. Tyler of Co. I were wounded. Thus this movement ended, as had the
former one, with no decisive result so far as the participants could
see. A few guns had been captured, a few rebels killed, and a
corresponding loss had been suffered by the federals; but who could tell
what important effect on the great field of action, extending from the
Mississippi to the Atlantic, this apparently abortive movement was
intended to have?
The men were beginning to understand that marches and battles were not
always for immediate effect at the point of contact; and so they marched
and fought as they were ordered; winning if they could, and accepting
defeat if they must, but with a growing confidence that the end was
near.
On the seventeenth they rejoined their proper corps and marched again
toward the James, leaving Lieut. Kinsman in charge of a party who, under
a flag of truce, was caring for the wounded.
The corps recrossed the James on the night of the nineteenth and resumed
a place in the lines of Petersburgh, relieving the Fifth Corps who moved
to the left to try to seize and hold the Weldon railroad, the attempt on
which had been abandoned since the battle on the Jerusalem plank road on
the 22d of July. On the twentieth, companies C and A, whose term of
service had expired, were discharged. In Co. C only five, and in Co. A.
only eleven of the original members were left to be mustered out. The
terrible exposures of three years of fighting had done their perfect
work on them, and the little band who answered to the roll call on that
day had little resemblance to the sturdy line that had raised their
hands as they took the oath only three years before. The regiment was on
the eve of dissolution, since other companies were soon to reach the end
of their enlistment and might soon be expected to leave the service.
Indeed, the company whose history we have followed so long, would be
entitled to its discharge on the 12th of September, now only
twenty-three days off.
The departure of Co. A was made more sad from the fact that they took
with them their wounded captain, who had lost a leg in the battle at
Deep Run on the fifteenth. Capt. Aschmann had been with the company from
its organization, and had participated with distinguished gallantry in
all the battles in which it had been engaged, escaping without a wound,
only to lose his leg in the last fight, and only five days before he
would be entitled to his honorable discharge. It seemed a hard fate. In
Co. F great excitement existed in consequence of the near approach of
the time when they, also, might honorably doff the green uniforms which
had so long been worn as a distinctive mark of their organization, and
turn their faces homeward, once more to become sober citizens in the
peaceful and prosperous North--that North which they had fought so long
and so hard to preserve in its peace and prosperity. Many and frequent
were the discussions around the camp fire as to whether it was better to
leave the service or to reenlist. It was now plain that the days of the
rebellion were numbered, and that the end was at hand. It was evident
to these veterans, however, that a few more desperate battles must be
fought before the end was finally reached. They ardently desired to be
present at the final surrender and share the triumph they had suffered
so much to assure. On the other hand they as ardently longed to resume
their places in those home circles which they had left to take up arms,
only that the country and the flag, which they so honored and loved,
might be preserved to their children, and their children's children,
forever. They felt that they had done all that duty required of them,
that they had honorably served their term, and that they might safely
leave it to those who had entered the service later to finish the work
which they had so far completed. They felt, also, that they should leave
behind them an honorable record, on which no stain rested, and second to
that of no body of men in the army.
There were left of the original one hundred and three men who had been
mustered into the United States service only twenty-five present and
absent. Of these, six, namely, David Clark, Jas. H. Guthrie, Sam'l J.
Williams, Stephen B. Flanders, John Kanaan and Lewis J. Allen, had
reenlisted. The remainder, nineteen in number, as follows, elected to
take their honorable discharge:
C. D. Merriman,
Spafford A. Wright,
Curtiss P. Kimberly,
W. C. Kent,
Eugene Payne,
Cassius Peck,
Fitz Green Halleck,
H. E. Kinsman,
Edwin E. Robinson,
Wm. McKeever,
Almon D. Griffin,
E. F. Stevens,
Watson N. Sprague,
Jas. M. Thompson,
Thos. H. Turnbull,
W. W. Cutting,
David O. Daggett,
Geo. H. Ellis,
H. B. Wilder.
Of these, nine only were present with the company to be mustered out.
The remaining six were absent, sick or wounded, or on detached service.
The few remaining days were destined, however, to be full of excitement
and danger. It seemed to the men that their division commander, aware of
the fact that he was soon to lose them, was determined to use them to
the best advantage while he had them. They were kept constantly engaged
during the hours of daylight, skirmishing and engaged in the rifle pits.
On the 21st of August they drove the rebels from a rifle pit in their
front, capturing forty prisoners, just four times as many as there were
men in their own ranks. From this date until September 10th they were
engaged every day on the picket line. On that day, with other companies,
they were ordered to occupy what had been, by consent, neutral ground
surrounding a well from which both parties had drawn water, and where
rebel and Unionist often met unarmed and exchanged gossip. It seemed a
pity to spoil so friendly an arrangement, but orders must be obeyed, and
soon after daylight the sharp shooters dashed out of their lines and
occupied the ground which they proceeded to fortify, capturing
eighty-five surprised, but not on the whole displeased, rebels.
The enemy did not relish being deprived of the opportunity of getting
water from this place, and on that day and the next made repeated
effort to repossess it, but without avail. Carlos E. Mead received his
second wound in repulsing one of these attempts. At last the day arrived
when they might claim to have fulfilled on their part the engagement
which they had entered into with Uncle Sam three years before, and on
the thirteenth the men present took their final discharge and bade
farewell to all the "Pomp and circumstance of glorious war." They were
destined, however, to have one more opportunity to show their skill even
on this last day of their service, for even while they were preparing
for their leave taking a sharp exchange of shots took place, in which
the departing Vermonters paid their last compliments to the enemy whom
they had so often fought, and during which A. W. Bemis, a recruit of
1862, was wounded. At last all was over; reluctantly turning in their
trusty rifles, to which they had become attached by long companionship
in many scenes of danger and death, they answered to the last roll call
and, bidding an affectionate adieu to their comrades who were to remain,
they turned their faces toward City Point and home.
The small remnant of the company kept up an organization under Sergt.
Cunningham, and was heavily engaged on the 27th of October in the battle
of Burgess Mill, which resulted from Grant's attempt on the South Side
railroad. The few men left fought with their accustomed gallantry,
losing Daniel E. Bessie and Charles Danforth, killed in action, and
Volney W. Jencks and Jay S. Percy, wounded and left on the field.
The little squad, now reduced to almost nothing, were again engaged on
the 1st of November, when they suffered the loss of still another
comrade, Friend Weeks, who was mortally wounded and died on the
seventeenth of the same month. On the 23d of December the few men left
of the once strong and gallant company were transferred to Co. E of the
Second Sharp Shooters, and Co. F ceased to exist as an organization.
With Co. E the men so transferred participated in the affair at
Hatcher's Run on the 15th of December, and at other points along the
line. On the 25th of February, 1865, the consolidated battalion of sharp
shooters being reduced to a mere skeleton, was broken up and its members
transferred to other regiments, the Vermonters being assigned to Co. G,
Fourth Vermont Volunteers, with which company they served until the
close of the war.
On the 16th of February, the division commander, Gen. De Trobriand,
under whom they had served for nearly two years, and who knew them
better, probably, than any general officer of the army, issued the
following complimentary order:
HEADQUARTERS 3D DIV. 2D ARMY CORPS,
February 16, 1865.
GENERAL ORDER NO. 12.
The United States Sharp Shooters, including the first and
second consolidated battalions, being about to be broken up
as a distinct organization in compliance with orders from
the War Department, the brigadier-general commanding the
division will not take leave of them without acknowledging
their good and efficient service during about three years in
the field. The United States Sharp Shooters leave behind
them a glorious record in the Army of the Potomac since the
first operations against Yorktown in 1862 up to Hatcher's
Run, and few are the battles or engagements where they did
not make their mark. The brigadier-general commanding, who
had them under his command during most of the campaigns of
1863 and 1864, would be the last to forget their brave deeds
during that period, and he feels assured that in the
different organizations to which they may belong severally,
officers and men will show themselves worthy of their old
reputation; with them the past will answer for the future.
By command of Brig.-Gen. R. De Trobriand.
W. K. DRIVER, _A. A. G._
It was a handsome compliment on the part of the commander, well deserved
and heartily bestowed. The history of Co. F would not be complete, or do
justice to the memories of the brave men who died in its ranks, or to
the gallant few yet living, without a record of the names of those who
so freely shed their blood, in the conflict for the Union.
In all thirty-two of its members died of wounds received in action, of
whom twenty-one were killed on the field while eleven died in the
hospital from the effects of their wounds. Their names are as follows:
A. H. Cooper,
Jay S. Percy,
E. M. Hosmer,
W. J. Domag,
Jacob Lacoy,
Joseph Hagan,
Thos. H. Brown,
Caspar B. Kent,
Barney Leddy,
Dan'l E. Bessie,
W. F. Dawson,
Jas. A. Read,
M. W. Wilson,
Alvin Babcock,
Edw'd Lyman,
Watson P. Morgan,
Volney W. Jencks,
Pat'k Murray,
David W. French,
Edw'd Trask,
E. A. Giddings,
Henry Mattocks,
Jos. Bickford,
Chas. B. Mead,
Peter Lafflin,
Chas. Danforth,
B. W. Jordan,
A. C. Cross,
Jno. Bowen,
Henry E. Barnum,
Friend Weeks,
William Wells.
The wounded who recovered and again reported for duty number forty-five.
The names are given here as second in honorable recollection only to
those who died on the field. The list will be found to contain the names
of several who were subsequently killed, or died of wounds received on
other fields:
C. M. Jordan,
Wm. McKeever,
Spafford A. Wright,
Dustin K. Bareau,
Edward Lyman,
J. E. Chase,
John Quinlan,
L. D. Grover (twice),
A. W. Bemis,
Sam'l Williams,
C. W. Peck,
Benjamin Billings,
C. W. Seaton,
W. C. Kent,
Brigham Buswell,
W. H. Blake,
Barney Leddy,
E. M. Hosmer,
Jno. Monahan,
Chas. B. Mead,
Watson P. Morgan,
A. J. Cross,
Jno. C. Page,
M. Cunningham (twice),
H. E. Kinsman,
Henry Mattocks,
Amos A. Smith,
Almon D. Griffin (twice),
Silas Giddings,
David Clark,
Carlos E. Mead (twice),
Geo. Woolly,
Lewis J. Allen,
E. H. Himes,
Jacob S. Bailey (twice),
H. J. Peck,
Ai Brown,
S. M. Butler,
Edward Trask,
Martin C. Laffie,
W. H. Leach,
Edw'd Jackson,
Fitz Greene Halleck,
Eugene Payne,
Sherod Brown.
Thus out of a total of one hundred and seventy-seven men, including all
recruits actually mustered into the United States service (for it must
be remembered that thirteen of the one hundred and sixteen men who were
mustered by the state mustering officer at Randolph, and charged against
the company on the rolls, were discharged at Washington to reduce the
number to the legal requirement of one hundred and three officers and
men), thirty-two, or more than eighteen per cent, died of wounds; while
the killed and wounded taken together number seventy-seven, or
forty-three and one-half per cent of the whole.
The record shows the severe and dangerous nature of the service
performed by these men, and on it they may safely rest, certain that a
grateful country will honor their memories, even as it does those of
their comrades who fought in the ranks of other and larger
organizations.
CONCLUSION.
"You can have ten descriptions of a battle, or plans of a campaign,
sooner than one glimpse at the unthought of details of a soldier's
life."
The history of Co. F is finished, and is far from satisfactory to the
writer. Originally undertaken for the purpose of supplying the Hon. G.
G. Benedict, State Military Historian, with material for such a brief
record as he could afford room for in his history of the Vermont troops
in the war of the rebellion, it has grown far beyond what was intended
at the outset, and far beyond what would be proper for him to publish in
such a work as he is charged with. It should have been undertaken by
some other person than myself; by some one more intimately and longer
acquainted with the company in the field: by some one whose personal
recollection of the detail of its daily doings is more exact than mine
can possibly be; for the history of so small a portion of a great army
as a company is, should be a personal history of the men who composed
it. The record of a company is mainly made up of the every day scenes
and every day gossip about its company kitchen and its company street.
With these matters the writer does not profess to be, or to have been,
familiar.
The work has, therefore, become more of a description of campaigns and
of battles, and more a history of the regiment to which it was attached,
I fear, than of the company. Such as it is, however, its preparation has
been a labor of love, and it is published with the earnest hope that it
may serve at least to keep warm in the hearts of the survivors the
memories of those who marched with them in 1861, and whose graves mark
every battle field whereon the Army of the Potomac fought.
WM. Y. W. R.
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| Transcriber's Note: |
| |
| Inconsistent hyphenation and spelling in the |
| original document have been preserved. |
| |
| = sign denotes bold type |
| |
| Typographical errors corrected in the text: |
| |
| All instances of Spottsylvania changed |
| to Spotsylvania |
| All instances of Rapahannock changed |
| to Rappahannock |
| Page 3 lands changed to land's |
| Page 4 taget changed to target |
| Page 9 augered changed to augured |
| Page 10 oganized changed to organized |
| Page 13 or changed to on |
| Page 15 blocade changed to blockade |
| Page 20 leggins changed to leggings |
| Page 21 complmentary changed to complimentary |
| Page 31 navagable changed to navigable |
| Page 33 suplemented changed to supplemented |
| Page 34 relieveing changed to relieving |
| Page 40 consumate changed to consummate |
| Page 45 intesely changed to intensely |
| Page 53 canonade changed to cannonade |
| Page 57 hesitatation changed to hesitation |
| Page 59 Seargent changed to Sergeant |
| Page 78 removed word "in" before "converted" |
| Page 81 at changed to an |
| Page 101 Hasting changed to Hastings |
| Page 106 Fredricksburgh changed to Fredericksburgh |
| Page 107 usul changed to usual |
| Page 107 occurence changed to ccurrence |
| Page 120 randon changed to random |
| Page 121 irresistable changed to irresistible |
| Page 142 SPOTTSYLVANIA changed to SPOTSYLVANIA |
| Page 144 amry changed to army |
| Page 148 Hayes changed to Hays |
| Page 149 necessarially changed to necessarily |
| Page 155 levie changed to levy |
| Page 162 veterns changed to veterans |
| Page 164 handfull changed to handful |
| Page 167 tweny changed to twenty |
| Page 171 Totopotomy changed to Totopotomy |
| Page 172 indispensible changed to indispensable |
| Page 174 Totopotamy changed to Totopotomy |
| Page 175 arogant changed to arrogant |
| Page 176 renpered changed to rendered |
| Page 182 SEIGE changed to SIEGE |
| Page 190 Jeausalem changed to Jerusalem |
| Page 202 Wooley changed to Woolly |
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