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History of the 85th Illinois Regiment Illinois Volunteer Infantry by Henry J. Aten |  |
CHAPTER XV
Pages 174-193
June 1864 - July 1864
On Wednesday, the 1st, the Second division moved to the left and joined the
corps in the vicinity of New Hope church. During the night it relieved Hovey’s
division of the Army of the Ohio, and occupied its entrenchments on a branch of
Pumpkin Vine creek. As the Eighty-fifth moved into position, through thick
timber and tangled underbrush, the soldiers of the retiring force cautioned us
to be very careful, as the line was within short rifle range of the enemy, who
had "sharpshooters in the trees." Colonel Dilworth on hearing this statement
said: "Well, we will turkey hunt them in the morning." This grim reply of the
colonel had a good effect on the men, who found the situation fully as ugly as
it had been represented. A line of hills within short range was held by the
entrenched line of the enemy, and dominated our line completely. Our skirmish
line was close in, and every shot fired by the enemy swept our works and the
ground behind them. Several men were wounded close by the works, two of whom,
William Collins and John W. McClaren, of Company H, were wounded by the same
ball.
This ugly fight at short range continued until the 4th, when the brigade was
relieved from the firing line, and moved four miles to the left in a soaking
rain. During the night of the 5th the enemy evacuated his works, and early the
next morning, the brigade having the advance of the corps, moved to Proctor’s
creek, two miles south of Ackworth, on the road from that town to Big Shanty.
Here the Eighty-fifth remained in comparative quiet until the 10th, when it took
part in the advance of the entire army. The advance was made through heavy
woods, with here and there a small clearing; over swollen streams and muddy
roads; with constant skirmishing, and in frequent heavy rain storms. This
continued until the evening of the 13th, when the lines closed down on the
enemy’s lines at Pine mountain. The left of the division now rested on the
Atlantic and Western railway, where it connected with the Sixteenth army corps.
On the bald crest of Pine mountain the enemy had his signal station and a
battery of field artillery. On the 14th a group of rebel officers was seen near
their signal station, evidently observing our lines with their glasses. At the
time General Sherman was near a battery near our right, which he directed to
fire on the group. This battery fired three volleys, and the commotion caused in
the enemy’s ranks showed that the shots had been well aimed. Very soon a message
was taken from the rebel signal station and translated by one of our officers
who had learned the enemy’s "key," which read: "Send an ambulance for General
Polk’s body." From this it was surmised that General Polk had been killed, and
later in the same day this was confirmed by the admissions of prisoners
captured.
General Leonidas Polk was a brother of James K. Polk, the eleventh President of
the United States.*
*Campaigns of the Civil War, by General J. D. Cox, page 98.
He
was graduated at the
West Point Military Academy in the class of 1827, and was appointed second
lieutenant of artillery. He resigned his commission before the end of the year,
studied theology and was ordained as deacon in the Protestant Episcopal church
in 1830. In 1841 he was chosen bishop of Louisiana, holding this position at the
time of his death. He had grown very wealthy at the time of the breaking out of
the war, and was reported to be the owner of seven hundred slaves. Entering the
rebel service in 1861, his military education and prominence in the church
secured for him an important command, probably more important than his talents
and luxurious habits fitted him for filling. At Chickamauga he commanded the
right of the rebel army, but was relieved from command and placed under arrest
from disobedience of orders soon after the battle ended. A few months later he
was relieved from the severe censure put upon him by General Bragg for dilatory
conduct, and at the time he was killed he was in command of one of the three
corps composing the insurgent army in out front. He was a man full of habit;
deliberate in his actions, and had influenced a multitude of his followers in
casting their lot with the enemies of his country. At the time he was killed the
first volley from the battery dispersed his companions on the mountain, but his
bulk and dignity alike forbade hasty retreat, and a shell from the second volley
severed the body of the bishop general of the Confederacy.
From the 14th to the evening of the 18th the advance was continued with sharp
skirmishing at all times, and with frequent hard fights, the division closing
down on the entrenched line of the enemy at Kennesaw mountain
on the latter date.
On the 19th the battle of Culp’s farm was fought by Hooker and Schofield, far to
the right, in which the enemy was defeated with heavy loss. Rain fell every few
hours, and in the intervals between showers the weather was very hot and sultry.
On the 21st General Sherman telegraphed to Washington: "This is the nineteenth
day of rain, and the prospect of clear weather is as far off as ever. The roads
are impassable, and fields and woods become quagmires after a few wagons have
crossed, yet we are at work all the time."
In our front the enemy had an earthwork on top of the mountain, in which were
ten or twelve pieces of artillery, and these guns commanded the entire line of
the division. We threw up a strong line of earthworks for the infantry line and
field works were constructed for our batteries. A stream ran from left to right
across our front and near the base of the mountain. The enemy’s skirmish line
was beyond the stream, and still higher on the mountain side was his main line
of entrenchments. His lines and batteries were all in thick timber except his
guns on the mountain top.
Screened by the dense forest, the enemy found it difficult to get accurate range
of our entrenchments. But during the day if men were seen or a glimpse of a tent
fly was caught through the wind-tossed leaves and branches, his alert gunners
would sweep the spot with shot and shell until it seemed no living thing could
escape. And at night the flickering light from candle or fire would provoke a
shower of shot from the ever-ready batteries of enemy. Near midnight of the
22nd, while Surgeon Wilson, of the 113th Ohio, was dressing the
wounds of one of
his men, assisted by two others, the candle he was using drew the fire of the
rebel battery, when a solid shot carried away a leg from each of the surgeon’s
assistants.*
*Sergeant McAdams' History 113th O. V. I., page 86.
Our earthworks were proof against both shot and shell, and the men,
suffering from the heat and weary of the trench, would select some one to watch
the battery and give notice when it was about to fire. This was entirely
practicable, as the gunners could be seen as they rammed, and in two or three
seconds a shot or shell would follow, screeching and shrieking through the air.
On the signal being given the men would quickly get under cover, while shot and
shell tore through the tree-tops, or striking in front, ricocheted across the
works, to burst or land far in the rear. The exploding shells at times make an
almost constant roar; pieces of jagged iron were thrown in all directions, and
great branches were torn from the trees and fell among the men. And day and
night this trying ordeal continued until the division was relieved for a most
desperate undertaking.
Men get desperately tired and reckless under such conditions, and on the 25th,
when the rebel batteries opened, Sergeant James Leeper, of Company C, was lying
in a shade tree only ten feet from the trench when the danger signal was given,
but he declined to seek cover. An instant later a shell burst directly above
where he was lying, the larger part of which descended in a direct line and
separated his body into two parts.
But in the midst of this deadly work amusing incidents happened now and then.
Brigade, division, and corps headquarters, while in
the rear, were still within the range of that vicious battery on the mountain,
and of course entirely unprotected. Captain Wiseman, assistant adjutant general
on the staff of the first brigade, had occasion to visit corps headquarters one
morning, after the enemy had shelled each headquarters impartially and with
unusual vigor and accuracy. On this occasion Wiseman said: "Around corps
headquarters I found the ground literally covered with limbs torn from the
surrounding trees, and the tents torn by shot and shell. In the midst of this
desolation sat General John M. Palmer, in his shirt sleeves, vigorously fanning
himself, behind the trunk of a large tree whose top had been shot away that
morning. After attending to my business and chatting a moment about the
situation, I turned to leave, when the general called me back and said,
'Adjutant, don’t you wish this cruel war was over?' I replied that it certainly
was an event earnestly desired by all, and by none more than by his command
under present circumstances, and again I turned to leave, when the general said,
'Adjutant, present my compliments to General Morgan, and say to him that these
headquarters will move as soon as darkness will permit.'"
At nine o’clock on Saturday night, the 25th, the Second division was relieved by
Harrow’s division of the Fifteenth corps, and withdrew from the works at the
northwestern slope of Kennesaw, which it had occupied since the 18th. The
withdrawal was made in silence, and every precaution was observed on the march
to prevent the enemy from gaining a knowledge of the movement. The route by
which we retired lay through thick timber, and was crossed by numerous ravines,
which delayed the march, so that the rear of the column arrived at camp about
daylight. The camp selected was at a point in the rear of the right of Stanley’s
division of the Fourth corps.
It was Sunday, and for the first time in weeks the men had an opportunity to
spend a day in the silence of the shady woods. There were no bugle calls that
day, and after a quiet inspection of arms and an issue of extra ammunition, the
time was devoted to undisturbed rest. In the distance an occasional cannon could
be heard, but the camp was out of reach of shot and shell, and beyond the sound
of the rifles on the skirmish line. Few outside the officers knew of the
proposed assault, and the orders received in the evening directing the men to
have breakfast over and to be ready to march at daylight, was by no means so
unusual as to excite or provoke comment. Yet there were rumors floating through
the camp to the effect that Monday would be an eventful day.
The condition of the roads and the long lines of wagon trains necessary to
supply the daily demands of the army made it difficult for General Sherman to
extend his lines further to the right, and he resolved to make a change of
plans. And, while keeping up a show of moving to the right, he ordered columns
to be formed near his center, for the purpose of assaulting the enemy’s
fortifications. The assaulting columns were to move at nine o’clock on Monday
morning, while a general attack all along the lines was ordered for the same
hour as a diversion in favor of the main assault. This assault was to be made
near the road leading from Gilgal church to Marietta.
At eight o’clock on Monday
morning, the 27th, the troops selected for the assaulted were formed in the
following order: The Second brigade, Colonel John G. Mitchell commanding, on the
right. On his left the Third brigade, Colonel Daniel McCook commanding, both of
Davis’ division, in columns of regiments at ten paces interval. On the left of
McCook was Newton’s division of the Fourth corps, with the brigades of Harker
and Wagner, both formed in column of division, left in front. This formation,
although prescribed by General Howard, commanding the Fourth corps, was
unfortunate, in that it separated the brigades of Harker and Wagner from McCook
by a brigade interval, and permitted the enemy, as the columns neared his works,
to enfilade not only McCook’s left, but these brigades as well. The First
brigade, General James D. Morgan commanding, of the Second division, had
occupied our advance line of works early in the morning, while the two remaining
divisions of the Fourteenth corps under General Palmer, the Twentieth corps
under General Hooker, and parts of the Fourth corps commanded by General Howard,
were near at hand, ready and waiting to take advantage of a breach in the
enemy’s line.
All the ground to be passed over was tough and difficult, and the distance to be
traversed before the rebel works would be reached, was about five hundred yards.
The brigade was formed in an open field, which sloped toward the marshy bed of a
small creek lined with trees and matted vines. Near the creek, but on the hither
side, was our main line of works, now occupied by the First brigade. Beyond the
creek lay another field, and on the far side of this were the enemy’s
skirmishers in a line of rifle pits. From his skirmish line to the crest of the
hill, crowned with the enemy’s main works, the ground was thickly covered with
timber, and rose rather abruptly. Directly in front of the brigade was an angle
in the rebel works, and he had posted sixteen pieces of artillery some distance
to the right and left, which would sweep the sides of the angle.
The Third brigade, in column of regiments at ten paces interval, was formed in
the following order: The Eighty-fifth Illinois, Colonel C. J. Dilworth
commanding, One-Hundred Twenty-fifth Illinois, Colonel O. F. Harman commanding;
Eighty-sixth Illinois, Lieutenant Colonel A. L. Fahnestock commanding;
Twenty-second Indiana, Captain W. H. Snodgrass commanding; Fifty-second Ohio,
Lieutenant Colonel C. W. Clancy commanding.
The orders were to make the assault in silence, capture the works and the cheer,
as a signal for the reserves to move forward and beyond us, it being the plan
for them to seize the railroad and cut Johnston’s army in two. The undertaking
was the most difficult and desperate ever assigned to the troops designated for
the assault, but if successful the victory would be greater than any they had
yet gained.
The firing of a single gun near General Thomas' headquarters at nine o’clock was
the signal for all our batteries to open along the main lines for ten miles or
more, and for the storming columns to start. The column of regiments started
promptly on the signal given, moving at quick time to the chorus of three
hundred loud-mouthed cannon, until our works and the creek had been reached and
passed. The tangled vines and marshy creek somewhat broke the formation, but
being a well-drilled brigade good order was at once restored as the line entered
the open beyond the creek. Here a cloud of skirmishers was thrown forward on the
run from the Eighty-fifth, and these skirmishers seized the enemy’s rifle pits,
capturing his skirmishers to a man. Even then the brigade was under a heavy fire
of both musketry and artillery, but the men moved through the field steadily on
the double quick. When the time was reached on the farther side, all ran eagerly
up the hill, which became steeper as we neared the crest. Now the enemy
redoubled his efforts, and his cannon gave forth a continuous roar. The air
seemed full of bullets, while a cross-fire of shot and shell tore diagonally
through our ranks. But the men ran stubbornly on until, within a few feet of the
enemy’s works, the limit of endurance was reached, and out of breath and almost
overcome with the heat, they halted, crouched, and with one accord began firing.
Indeed, the momentum of the column carried a few men over the works, to fall
covered with wounds into the hands of the enemy.
Each regiment in the brigade breasted the storm, and strove to gain the works,
until all had tried and failed. The colors of the Eighty-fifth and of other
regiments were planted on the outer edge of the enemy’s works. It is now known
that Captain Beasely, of the First Rebel Tennessee infantry, lost his life in
attempting to seize the colors of the Fifty-second Ohio. Colonel McCook, while
urging his men on, himself in the lead, fell mortally wounded before the charge
had failed. After McCook fell the voice of Captain Fellows, brigade inspector,
was heard, but his half finished rallying cry was cut short by
a shot, and the
brave captain fell dead within a few feet of the coveted works. The command now
devolved upon Colonel Harmon, who at the instant of giving the command
"Forward!" fell into the arms of his men shot through the heart. Colonel
Dilworth, the next in rank, now assumed command of the brigade, and the command
of the Eighty-fifth devolved upon Major R. G. Rider. Each attempt to push
forward was met with deadly volleys, the ground was thickly strewn with the dead
and dying, and the living, crouched behind their dead comrades, still firing.
When the men realized that they could not carry the works by storm, they fell
back doggedly a few paces at a time, taking advantage of every available
shelter. Very soon, from every stump and tree, a well-sustained and deadly fire
was directed at any head that appeared above the enemy’s works. The deadly aim
of our men, from a line so close that the features of the foe could be
distinguished, composed as it soon was of the crack shots of the brigade, caused
the fire of the enemy to slacken, and finally it almost ceased. In the meantime
the energetic efforts of Colonel Dilworth, supplemented by the efficient
assistance of Major Rider and the officers of the other regiments in the
brigade, straightened out the tangled regiments, which had become somewhat
bunched on the right, and the well-trained men quickly found their proper
places.
The active attack along the line having ceased, and seeing that our fire
completely dominated the rebel works, Colonel Dilworth advised General Davis
that his line rested within forty paces of the enemy’s works, and stated that he
could hold the ground gained. He also requested that entrenching tools be
furnished the command at once. This message fell into the hands of General
Thomas, who appeared to be rather incredulous as to the reported distance
between the lines. After questioning Captain E. L Anderson, brigade adjutant
general, closely in that regard, General Thomas decided that owning to the close
proximity of the brigade to the enemy’s works, entrenching tools could not be
safely sent until night-fall. So in this critical position, while a large
portion of the men kept on firing, the remainder, working with bayonet and tin
cup or spoon and tin plate, managed to throw up a light earth-work sufficient to
protect their prostrate bodies. Here the brigade remained six long days and
nights, for while the offer was made, the men declined to be relieved,
preferring themselves to guard what it had cost so much to gain.
In the evening, after darkness had set in, the enemy made a noise which the men
supposed to be preparations for a countercharge, but it was probably a ruse.
Instantly the men were on their feet, when a volley was fired by the enemy which
killed Captain Charles H. Chatfield, of Company D, and several enlisted men of
the Eighty-fifth. About this time entrenching tools arrived, and a permanent
line of works erected, the flanks of the brigade being slightly retired to meet
the connecting lines on the right and left. And night and day the fight was
continued over the narrow strip of ground, the firing being almost constant, and
the men at all times ready to repel a countercharge, an emergency that might
arise at any moment.
On the 29th a truce was arranged, lasting from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., under which we
were allowed to gather and bury our dead between the lines. Unarmed guards
detailed from each side were stationed in two lines facing inwardly, to prevent
passing of other than the burial party working between. News of the truce soon
spread, and our works were filled with armed men from all the commands in the
vicinity. The rebel works were also crowded with spectators, who gathered from
far and near to witness the unusual spectacle. Generals Cheatham, Terrill and
Maney circulated freely between the lines, although this was in direct violation
of the terms of the truce. Newspapers, coffee and tobacco were exchanged, and
much good-natured chaff and gossip were indulged in among the men. But there
came a time when, for the moment, things began to wear a serious aspect. Some of
the rebels began to gather up the arms lying between the lines, with the
intention of carrying them away. Against this violation of the truce our men
protested, and the situation was becoming ugly, when Colonel Dilworth appeared
upon the scene. He said to the men engaged in dispute, "These guns belong to the
side that finally holds the ground; they have not been captured yet; possibly
they may not be; let them remain where they now are until the fight is ended,
then whoever holds the ground will get the guns." This was a proposition so far
that the men accepted, and the arms remained on the field, until there was no
one to question their ownership.
During the truce we learned that the troops in our front belonged to Cheatham’s
division of Hardee’s corps, under the immediate command of General George Maney.
His command had occupied the works since the 19th, and was composed of the
following regiments: The First, Fourth, Sixth, Ninth, Nineteenth, and Twenty-Seventh
Tennessee,
which were among the oldest regiments in the Confederate service.
When the truce expired a soldier stood on our works and fired a single shot in
the air, then dropped back into the trench. This was the signal agreed upon to
end the truce, and firing was at once resumed along the entire line. It was,
indeed, a strange sight. During the truce all was peace and apparent amity, but
as soon as the last sad service the living can render to the dead had been
performed, both sides resumed their efforts to kill, and maim and cripple.
Standing midway between the works was a large tree with a double trunk, which
was used by us as an outpost, two or three men being stationed behind its ample
body. In broad daylight on the afternoon of the 30th a man in Federal uniform,
mess-pan in hand, climbed deliberately over our works and walked forward as it
intent upon joining his comrades at the outpost. But instead of stopping there
he passed to one side and with several bounds leaped the rebel works. No
one had
time to realize he was a spy until his perilous journey was completed and he
landed in safety among his friends. It was a daring feat, but it well be doubted
if the information gained justified the risk assumed.
It was soon evident that both sides improved the opportunity afforded by the
truce to plan for future defense and aggression. On the night after the truce
the enemy, by the use of ropes, threw over their works a continuous line of
chevaux-de-frise, in front of the Third brigade, and at night from this on
illuminated the space the lines with fire-balls of cotton soaked in turpentine
or tar. On our side it was determined to establish an advance line of some ten
yards higher on the hillside and by daybreak on the 30th this work was
completed. At this point mining was determined on, and with such tools as were
available the work began. But the tools were unsuitable; the work new to the
men, and our progress slow, yet by persistent effort the main entrance was
opened for quite a distance. But fortunately this mine was not destined to be
sprung.
Early on Sunday morning, July 3rd, after an unusual period of quiet, a voice
from the front called out; "Say, Yanks, don’t shoot; I want to come in; they’re
all gone." Of course no one would shoot at the bearer of such good news, and the
"Johnny" quickly crossed over the lighted space. The retreat of the enemy was
not entirely unexpected, and after a hasty examination of the deserter, a line
of skirmishers moved forward and occupied the silent works. The line advanced
with caution at first, fearing some ruse; but the enemy had indeed gone, and the
advance reached Marietta about daylight. The retreat had been made deliberately
and without the loss of material.
The loss of the Third brigade in this assault was two commanders and four
hundred and seventeen officers and men out of some 1,400 taken into the action.
The loss in the Second brigade was three hundred and ninety-four officers and
men – making a total loss in the Second division of eight hundred and eleven in
killed and wounded. The loss in Newton’s division numbered six hundred and
fifty-four killed and wounded, and one brigade commander, General C. G. Harker,
who fell mortally wounded.
In this action we witnessed for the first time the
wonderful possibilities of the
repeating rifle. A few men in the Third brigade had armed themselves at their
own expense with the Henry rifle, a magazine gun, carrying sixteen shots. And it
cannot be doubted that the rapid, accurate fire from these guns was an important
factor in enabling the men to hold and fortify a line so close to the enemy’s
main line of works.
Our gallant commander, Colonel McCook, was taken to his home in Steubenville,
Ohio, where he died on the 17th of July at the early age of thirty years. He
entered the service in May, 1861, as captain of Company H, First Kansas
infantry.*
*Wilder’s Annals of Kansas, page 277.
After serving as staff officer of division for a time he was
commissioned colonel and led the Fifty-second Ohio infantry to the field. At the
organization of the Third brigade, of which his regiment was a part, he was
assigned to command the brigade, which he led with distinguished skill and
courage for two years, to finally fall at its head, in its most desperate and
daring undertaking. The day before his death, this former law partner of General
Sherman and fellow-townsman of Secretary Stanton received from the latter a
brevet of brigadier general. This tardy and miserly recognition of his services
he wrathfully and unceremoniously rejected. So to us, who know him best and
followed him so long, he will always remain Colonel McCook.**
**Captain F. B. James, of the 52nd Ohio, in a paper read before the Loyal Legion of Ohio, entitled "McCook's Brigade at Kennesaw."
During the six days’ fighting at Kennesaw mountain the Eighty-fifth sustained
the following:
CASUALTIES:FIELD AND STAFF:
COMPANY A:
WOUNDED – Adjutant Clark N. Andrus, died July 23rd, and Sergeant Major William S. Allen.
WOUNDED – Corporal Calvin W. Boon, James M. Bradburn, Jr., David Kratzer, and Henry R. Streeter.
COMPANY B:
WOUNDED – Captain James R. Griffith, Sergeant Thornton S. Pierce, Corporal David Sigley, Simon Burkholder, Joseph H. Fitch, and Alvro C. Mintonye
COMPANY C:
KILLED – Sergeant John H. Duvall, Sergeant Henry H. Buck, Sergeant James Leeper, James L. Burnett, and John H. Tomlin.
WOUNDED – Corporal Andrew J. Opdyke, William D. Alkire, Jeremiah Dietrich (Deitrich), Daniel Daughtery, Green B. Lane, George W. Moslander, William H. Neely, and James K Young.
COMPANY D:
KILLED – Captain Charles H. Chatfield
WOUNDED – Isaac Layman, Hugh Morgan, John J. Murphy, William H. Morgan, Oliver W. Parks, Nathaniel S. Rochester, William Rhineders, and John Scholes
COMPANY E:
KILLED – J. C. Miller, and George Waterman
WOUNDED – Captain Pleasant S. Scott, John H. Arnold, Andrew Robinson, and James E. Thomas
COMPANY F:
KILLED – D. A. Brandon, Alexander Hodge, and Matt. Riley
WOUNDED – Captain John Kennedy, James F. Burt, and Barnhart Noblack
COMPANY G:
KILLED – Sergeant W. Irving Shannon, Sergeant Daniel G. Longfellow, Berry Prentice, Horace J. Snodgrass, James Shields, Francis M. Severns, and Corporal John Shores
WOUNDED – Captain Henry S. LaTourrette, First Lieutenant John M. Robertson, Second Lieutenant D. L. Musselman, Sergeant Lewis P. Wright, Corporal Alexander R. Tidrick, Silas Dodge, and Corporal Peter Rever, who fell into the hands of the enemy and died in a rebel prison.
COMPANY H:
KILLED – Sergeant Eli Shields, Corporal Elisha J. Elliot, and John M. Saffer.
WOUNDED – Corporal George H. Wetzel, John D. Fenton, John R. Powell, John A. Thompson, William Severns, and Frederick T. Zellers, who fell inside the enemy’s works and was held in rebel prisons until the close of the war.
COMPANY I:
KILLED – Austin Walker
WOUNDED – Charles G. Matthews and John Watson
COMPANY K:
KILLED – Corporal James Jimmison, and Conrad Nuhn
WOUNDED – Corporal George Hetzeler, George Drake, Henry F. Molenbrink (Mohlenbrink), and Jacob H. Prettyman
Note – Colonel Dilworth filed with his official report, a list giving the names
of the killed and wounded in the Eighty-fifth in the Battle of Kennesaw
Mountain, but this list has been lost, and the list printed here probably does
not contain all the names of the wounded. But in presenting the above, the
writer believes it to be as near complete as can be hoped for at this late day.
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