The 13th Mass., at 2nd Bull Run

There's a new web page up at my website.  The page contains 13th Mass., soldiers' letters and memoirs of their experiences at the 2nd Battle of Bull Run.  I've had some of these materials for a long time, and I always wanted to share them with a wider audience.  This is a milestone for my site.  This is the point in the history of the regiment where many original recruits left, one way or another.  Second Bull Run was the first major engagement for the unit.  Forty men were killed, about 200 wounded.  About five hundred went into the fight.

Here's whats on the page.

An overlong introduction  but there are maps! - apologies ahead of time.  Then the source material.

1. Excerpts from the regimental history by Charles E. Davis, (with pictures & maps!).
2. A short piece on Major Jacob Parker Gould who was the senior regimental officer on the field.
3. Westboro Transcript (hometown newspaper).  A letter from Capt. Hovey, Co. K listing casualties.
4. Sergeant Austin Stearns account of the action.  (with pictures !)  Stearns memoirs have been around since the mid 1970's, so its a well referenced source, but he provides a good overall description of the chaos on the field.
5. Letter of Lt. Charles B. Fox to his father.  (Co's I & K) Fox expresses his discouragement in the conduct of the war, and the difficulty of service.
6. Letter of Lyman Low, Co. B.  Low's long account of the battle was published in the 13th Regt. Association Circulars in 1911, but I don't think many historians have seen it.  The Circulars are over 1,000 pages of material, and the letter does not reference 2nd Bull Run in the title.  He describes the death and wounding of several comrades and the chaos at the stone bridge.
7. Letter of Capt. Joseph Cary, Co. B, of his companies losses in the engagement.  From the Boston Herald. (previously available on the defunct website "Letters of the Civil War.")
8. The Three Ponies of Company B.  A story of the death of Charles Mills, and Albert Curtis, on the battlefield; from the regimental history, followed by a brief (1915) letter of their 3rd comrade, Michael Ayers. (with pictures).
9. Letter of John B. Noyes, Co. B.  Another long descriptive letter from John Noyes describing the campaign, and what he saw on the battlefield. (with pictures and maps!).
10. Letter of George Henry Hill, Co. B.  Un published letter shared with me by a family descendant.  Hill describes the experience of being under fire in the heat of battle. (with picture).
11. Roxbury City Gazette (hometown newspaper).  The regular correspondent for the 13th Mass, from Roxbury describes the companies experiences in the campaign.  (Previously posted on the defunct website, "Letters of the Civil War." )(picture of Lt. Colburn).
12. Two letters of James Ramsey, Co. E.  Shared with me by descendants.  Ramsey was taken prisoner on the battlefield and describes his treatment at the field hospital.  He compares this with the shabby treatment he gets later in Washington, D.C. (picture  of James included).
13. Sam Webster's account of the battle.  Another well known source from the Huntington Library, San Marino, CA. (with pictures).
14. George F. D. Paine's well known story from the 13th Regt. Association Circulars, "How I Left Bull Run Battlefield."  Paine's narrative is so gripping it is quoted on the brigade's historical marker at Manassas National Battlefield Park. (with pictures).
15. Letter of John B. Noyes.  A second letter, written from a hospital, well after the battle, when Noyes was recuperating from wounds received at Antietam.  He criticizes the conduct of several specific 13th Mass officers in the engagement. He was mad ! (pictures of the rascals included).
16. Charles E. Davis, Jr.'s horrific account of his experience in the battle; lying wounded on the field for a week; and then receiving  worse than lousy treatment from one of the surgeons at Carver Hospital in Washington DC.  It goes on from there too...  Davis went on to write the regimental history of the 13th Mass.  (with pictures!)
17. List of men killed during this campaign.

Here's the link:   http://13thmass.org/1862/second_bull_run.html

Looking Forward

     I thought hard for a topic to post in December for the Christmas and New Year’s Holiday, but nothing came to mind.  Last year I posted on Private John B. Noyes’s pleasant holiday experiences in Hancock, Maryland during the winter of 1861-62.   In mid-December fellow blogger and author, James Schmidt, linked to this post from his own blog, which I highly recommend.   http://civilwarmed.blogspot.com/

     A new post referencing Christmas in 1862 would have been pretty grim, considering it followed the disastrous battle of Fredericksburg. 

On that day in 1862, Private Sam Webster of Co. D wrote;

 “Our Christmas Dinner is half broiled beef and hard bread.” 

      That was all he mentioned of Christmas.  Private Noyes, was home in Boston recovering from wounds received at Antietam, so I have no letters from him to reference.  He probably had a happy Christmas.   Warren Freeman of Company A, wrote a letter to his father 'from the field' on Christmas Day, but didn’t mention Christmas at all; 

“I was sick some days before we left Brook’s Station, but marched with the regiment the first day, and on the second day rode in an ambulance on account of the swelling of my lower limbs.  When we arrived at Fredericksburg the sick were put in a barn near the river; here we found some corn-stalks and made our-selves tolerably comfortable on them, with the addition of our blankets; but about midnight, after the battle, we were turned out of the barn into the field, as the barn was wanted for the badly wounded.  We kept our cornstalks, however, and lay on the frozen ground two nights and one day.  The field was covered all over with wounded men groaning and calling for water; some attempted to crawl on their bellies to the river side for a drop of water to relieve their thirst.  In the course of two days, these wounded men were carried away and we were put in the barn again; here we suffered terribly from the cold, as we had no way to warm ourselves.”

 These passages don’t exactly jump out and  say, “MERRY CHRISTMAS !”

     I was still immersed in the battle of 2^nd Bull Run, and didn’t wish to post on that subject for the holiday, so I ended up waiting until January to post something new.

     This year, being the 150^th anniversary of the war, the subject is receiving more attention than usual in different media outlets. I’m hoping the added attention will draw some more interest to my blog and website during these anniversary years.  I’m very excited about posting the latest page to the website, which consists entirely of 13^th Mass. soldiers’ letters and recollections of what they experienced August 30^th, 1862 at the 2^nd Battle of Bull Run;  their first major engagement.  The text for the page is finished, but it will take a short while to add the maps and images which I want to accompany the narrative.  I think of my website as a sort of ‘illustrated history’ of the regiment.  To me at least, finding appropriate pictures and portraits to go with the text is one of the more satisfying tasks in building the website.

     To try and drum up a little bit of interest, here’s a pre-view of what’s coming. 

     Private Lyman Low, Co. B:

"The little knoll or rise of ground opposite our center and right was quickly chosen by a few of our men as a position of advantage, but they speedily retired, for the place proved to be untenable. I believe all were wounded.  I well recollect that Albert Morse was among them, and particularly do I remember the scowl on his face as he fell and viewed his wounds.  At another point I observed Lieut. Thomas J. Little (afterwards captain in the Massachusetts Heavy Artillery) as he suddenly turned to the rear, with hands covering his mouth and chin, from which blood was copiously flowing.  Among the very first to fall was a comrade directly in front of me.  I saw a piece of his scalp drop from the back of his head; he went down in a heap, and as his face came into view it showed that the fatal bullet had entered the center of his forehead. He was bathed in blood, which rose high from his wound, falling back over his face.  I was never able to ascertain who it was, though I have always thought it might have been Fred Williams, who was killed in the battle, and stood beside me when the fighting began."

     Private George F. D. Paine, Co. A:

"Our boys dropped like tenpins before an expert player.  Ten feet to my left the tall sergeant of Company F sank down in a heap, shot squarely through the head. I saw the brain ooze out.  My left hand mate whirled, shot through the shoulder. F. went down with a bullet through the face.  S. was swearing "like mad," shot through the thigh.  A man I did not recognize dropped just in front.  I heard the bullets chug into his body; it seemed half a dozen struck him.  I shall never forget the look on his face as he turned over and died."

From Private Charles E. Davis, Jr. :

"The surgeon who first examined my wounds made them construct a frame over the bed and cover it with gauze, to keep the flies out. The second one, with no particular purpose in view, lifted a corner of the gauze and let in upon me no end of flies, whereupon I called him some kind of a fool and he remonstrated at my use of profanity and gave me a lecture, saying he would see me again on this subject, but took no pains to adjust the gauze or rid me of the flies.  He made no examination of my wounds, nor showed any interest in me until the following morning when he came to announce that I must have my arm taken off in order to save my life.  I told him I would see him damned first before I would submit to such an operation.

     "Very well," said he, "if you won't allow us to do anything to save your life, you had better prepare to die."

     It seems that this man had "experienced" religion and was baptized about six weeks before, the only effect of which was the removal of any solicitude he may have felt, as a physician, in the saving of life.  Perhaps the baptismal water was stale.  I had felt something moving under my shoulders and made complaint, but he said it was nonsense and suggested to the nurse that my mind was giving way.  This made me excited and that seemed to confirm his opinion.  I quieted down and then he was sure I was insane.  In the meantime I could plainly feel the movement under my shoulders.  It is a fearful thing to be thought insane, and each remark you make considered confirmation.  It was a terrible moment to me.  At last I shouted, "For God's sake, will no one lift me up and see."  The man on the next bed called another, and they lifted me into a sitting position, pulled down a sheet and blanket, uncovering a nest of young rats, whereupon the doctor and nurse walked away, showing no interest in the result."

      That's all for now, hope to write more soon.  Best wishes to all for a healthy and prosperous new year.

Charles Roundy Manuscript

     Whether you believe in spirits or not it sometimes seems that the soldiers of the 13^th Mass periodically look in on me.

 

     The U.S. Army Heritage and Education Center [AHEC] in Carlisle, Pennsylvania has in its collection of ‘13^th Mass’ materials ‘Charles Roundy’s hand-written manuscript “Recollections of the Civil War.”  Roundy (Company F) illustrated his stories with charming color illustrations throughout this one of a kind book.  Ten years ago a friend provided me with black and white photocopies of the manuscript made on a visit to Carlisle.  The copies have too much contrast  and don’t do justice to the color illustrations, but it’s still a great resource to have.

     Several memorable scenes from the history of the regiment are vividly described, with a personal flair that captures the emotions of the time.  These include, “How I enlisted,”  “The 4^th Battalion of Rifles of Boston,” “We Leave Fort Independence for the Front,” “The John Brown Bell,” and one of the funniest camp stories I’ve read, “A Secret for 16 Years.”    The secret for 16 years, was a secret for another 8 years with me, for alas, my copy of the manuscript was missing a page - the one with the end to this story.  Not until I was determined to include it on my website, did I contact Carlisle to see if anyone could provide me with the missing page.  They sent the missing page, and they included color scans of some of the prominent illustrations for use on my website! 

     Roundy’s writing is round-a-bout.  It’s folksy, plain spoken, and very entertaining!  “I kept as mum as a Hippopotamus,” he writes in one instance, and at another “This is a longer preliminary than I meant to make when I began this, and ‘tis like the story of the city boy telling his chum about a snake he saw while on a visit to the country.  “he said the snake was all tail but his head.”  My story thus far seems to be all head and but little tail.”

      The larger part of his “Retrospection,” is commentary on military leadership and his participation in General John Pope’s summer campaign of 1862.  “Pope’s retreat” comes up time and again in the manuscript.  General Pope’s blundering, no doubt, left a lasting impression on Charles Roundy.   In June of this year I began building the web page for 13thmass.org that describes Pope’s Retreat, but I didn’t plan to use Roundy’s recollections. 

     I know his manuscript confuses some dates, (which I can verify from other sources), and his musings can ramble.  I discredited its value and found it too confusing to follow.  My planned web page ended with a brief account of the 2^nd battle of Bull Run on August 30^th 1862.  But I think Charles Roundy, Co., F, wherever he is, had other ideas. 

     My web page grew as I familiarized myself with the campaign.  Several stories were added, along with maps and descriptions of complicated military maneuvers.  At the last minute I decided to remove the account of the battle of 2^nd Bull Run and save it for later.  The page would end with accounts of the engagement at Thoroughfare Gap on August 28, 1862. 

     In mid November, after six months of reading, research, study, writing and editing my new page, “Pope’s Retreat,” was ready to post on-line.  I had some technical tasks to finish - format the table of contents, check links, and add links to the site map page, but the content was finally finished - and Charles Roundy’s retrospection wasn’t included.  The week I planned to post the page I received this message:

     “Good Day, I've recently become interested in my boyfriend's family tree which contains members of the Roundy family.  I'm fairly certain that Charles Roundy mentioned numerous times on your website is a direct ancestor.

      I'd be interested in finding out if any of Charles' writings are either in print or if they are on display somewhere?” 

I received a similar request from another person a couple of days earlier.

     I’ve had a copy of Roundy’s manuscript for 10 years.  Some of Roundy’s stories have been posted on my website for the past 2 ½ years.  In all this time I have never had an inquiry about the man or his writings.  But the very week I was planning to post my new web page on Pope’s Retreat, after 6 months of research and writing, I received, not one, but two inquiries, for the Charles Roundy Manuscript.

    Two visitors to my website wanted to know more about Charles and his writings.  This piqued my curiosity, so I pulled out the manuscript, which I hadn’t read in a while, and revisited his accounts of Pope’s Campaign.

     By now, I was very familiar with the events of that two week period in 1862, when General John Pope retreated from the line of the Rapidan River to the line of the Rappahannock River, and then, to Bull Run.  Suddenly Roundy’s descriptions made sense to me.  I understood what he was describing.  I realized its value was in the summary of the campaign rather than as an introduction to the campaign, which is why I had discredited it as a source.  His account was a perfect ‘wrap-up’ of events; so I added it.

     It could just be a coincidence.  Or, was Roundy reaching out across the great divide to give me a nudge or two, to look his way?

     I still think the march he describes and attributes to August the 26^th is more likely the withdrawal of August 18^th, but why argue with him at this point?  After all, he was there, and it doesn’t make his account any less interesting or insightful.

For my readers I end this post with Roundy’s account of General George Lucas Hartsuff’s encounter with company F cook, George Atkinson.  You can find more of his stories at my website, including "A Secret for Sixteen Years."  Site Map - 13thmass.org  Click on the link and scroll down the page to soldiers letters, and look for Roundy.

 General Hartsuff and the Baked Beans

     We had a fine camp – and when General Hartsuff arrived to take command of the Brigade it happened on a Sunday morning that he strolled down the Company Street of Company F.  Just then the air was filled with the fragrance of Yankee Baked Beans.  For our Cook – Atkinson – surnamed “Greasy Cook” was taking them up from the trench where they had been baking all night, and they did smell good.

     The General following his nose and the smell, found a man very busy lifting great Kettles from the trench where they had lain buried up in live coals, and wishing to make himself agreeable he remarked, “Well – but those beans do smell good” – “ Wonder if I could get a taste of them?”

     Atkinson, without looking up replied “not by a damned sight, I am not feeding every damned tramp that comes along.”

     This tickled the General immensely, and he slid away quickly to the Captains tent and doubling up with laughter he told the story.

     Pretty soon the Lieutenant came out and spoke to Atkinson saying, “he felt sorry to lose Atkinson, sorry too that he had done it – sorry for his family – sorry that he was going away and hoped it would be a lesson all his life” etc.

     Atkinson straightened up and said “What in thunder are you talking about? – I’m not going away – wish I was.”

     “Not going away says Morse – well I guess you are, and you are to be sent to the Dry Tortugas* for insulting the General.”

     “What in thunder – I haven’t insulted any General”

     “Yes you have, you insulted General Hartsuff.”

     “General Hartsuff – I never saw General Hartsuff in my life.”

     “Never mind – when he asked you for a taste of your beans you told him that you was’nt feeding every damned tramp that came along did’nt you say so?”

     “Yes. – My God – yes, was that General Hartsuff?  What shall I do,” and down he flopped.

     After enjoying the situation awhile the Lieut. Spoke “Come, Atkinson, better be getting ready, the Dry Tortugas is an awful place, but -”

     “Say – Lieutenant, I did’nt intend to insult the General; and the boys bother me so!  Is’nt there some way that I can get out of this scrape?”

     “Well, I don’t know, – but I would suggest that you take your cleanest – prettiest plate and fill it with beans and some pork – some brown bread, if you have it – wash your face and hands – and go up to the Captains tent and make an humble apology to General Hartsuff and present him the plate of beans – who knows? It may keep you from the Tortugas.”

     Pleased enough – Atkinson set about it, and a more humble man never lived as he begged the General’s pardon, telling of his trials and troubles, etc.

     The General accepted the gift and enjoyed the joke like the good man we afterward found him to be – he shook hands with Atkinson – dispelled the Tortugas fear, and Atkinson went back to his work; - but often spoke of how near he came to a trip to Florida Keys.

*Dry Tortugas, a dreary desolate Convict Station among the Florida Keys.

Pope's Retreat

The new webpage is finally up at 13thmass.org.  The page is long with lots of large pictures so it should scare off any of the few visitors that might be interested in checking it out.

The page covers the history of the "13th Mass" from Aug 9th 1862 - August 28th 1862; from the Battle of Cedar Mountain to the engagement at Thoroughfare Gap. Two days later on August 30th the regiment participated in the 2nd Battle of Bull Run, on Chinn Ridge. I will be devoting an entire page of the website to this subject.

The military situation changed nearly every day during the two week period known as Pope's Retreat. I've added more narration to this page than usual to set the stage for any visitors. There is some repetition in the narration. Events are summarized in the introduction at the top of the page, but repeated in the various page 'sections' in case a visitor jumps around. This way they will still learn what is happening.

It was at times easy to loose sight of the 13th Mass while building the page. I branched out a bit to include bits on the Union Cavalry raid to Verdiersville, the Confederate raid to Catlett's Station, Herman Haupt and the Orange & Alexandria Railroad, and many other topics.

Initially the page went up to August 30th. But I cut out the last section and decided to put it onto the next page. It just seemed like too much.

The new page ends with Charles Roundy's, opinionated reminiscences of Pope's Retreat.  For those of you who believe in spirits,  I think Roundy himself gave me a gentle tap on the shoulder to use this resource - I hadn't planned to use it, except for a short bit, but how I changed my mind is the subject of another blog post.

Here is the link:

http://13thmass.org/1862/popes_retreat.html

Hope you all enjoy it, and with this task at hand completed, I will have more time for regular blog posts !

An Update

This blog is not in full retreat. I still have lots of good stories to tell. I've spent all my spare time the past month, preparing the latest web page for my website, www.13thmass.org. Consequently I haven't posted much here on the blog.

The new page will cover the history of the unit between August 11, 1862, through August 30, 1862; or, "General John Pope's Virginia Campaign." The campaign climaxed with the 2nd Battle of Bull Run which is a milestone event in the history of the regiment. It was the first major engagement in which the men played an active part, after more than a year of hard service. For many it was the last battle. The regiment did not participate in any heroic charges; but merely a delaying action; outnumbered 10 to 1 and surrounded on 3 sides by the enemy. The encounter bought time for General Pope to pull his lines back to high ground which prevented the capture and destruction of his little Army of Virginia.

The previous webpage ended with 13th Mass. accounts of the Battle of Cedar Mountain. The new page starts off the same way.

Because events changed rapidly from day to day during this campaign, the page requires more exposition than any previous page I've built for the site. The primary sources were quickly added and organized chronologically, last June. These include the usual letters, diary excerpts and articles from my collection. The three subjects the soldiers wrote about in general, were the Battle of Cedar Mountain, the three day artillery duel at the Rappahannock River Railroad Bridge, (Hartsuff's Brigade held a lodgement on the south side of the river) and the arrival of 90 new recruits to the regiment on August 18. This was also the day General Pope retreated from the Rapidan River to the Rappahannock River. The soldiers were mostly in the dark about other events; - and there is so much that happened.

During this time General Lee moved his army to Gordonsville and planned to attack and destroy General Pope's force while it was wedged between two rivers. Logistical matters postponed Lee's attack and Pope escaped. It isn't hard to guess what might have happened had Lee attacked as planned.

Colonel Thornton Brodhead's exciting raid to Verdiersville was a first class adventure worth including on the new page. It is mostly remembered as the raid in which Confederate Cavalier J.E.B. Stuart lost his hat. He was surprised by the large troop of Union Cavalry trotting up the road. Stuart fled so quickly he left behind his trademark plumed hat - which became a casualty of the raid. I particularly enjoyed the part of this tale in which General Robert Toombs recalled his Georgia infantry to camp, - moments before 1,000 Union Cavalrymen splashed across the Rapidan River at the very spot the Georgians were ordered to guard.

Also on this page: Pope's Retreat to the Rappahannock; the Artillery duels along the river; Stuart's Raid to Catlett's Station; (he avenged his hat by capturing Gen'l. Pope's dress uniform); General Sigel's ordeal on the 25th at Sulphur Springs; Stonewall Jackson's famous flank march, (50 miles around Pope's lines) and the sacking of Pope's supply base at Manassas Junction. There is the unraveling of the Union high command at this time; the clogged Orange and Alexandria railroad and Herman Haupt's gallant efforts to to keep the lines running. There is a lot more, you get the idea, and all of this is before the battle itself. My primary source for this narrative is John J. Hennessy's masterful book "Return To Bull Run." I wish I could just quote directly from the book, the story is so well told. I'm supplementing this narrative with other sources as always, but its really just a superb account of the campaign. (I discovered General Gordon's account from the 1860's too).

Consequently, it's taken a lot of time to carefully summarize these events within the context of the regiment's experience. I try very hard for accuracy. The military situation changed so much from day to day, I had to re-organize my source material to keep the story moving forward. The men were usually about a week behind in their news. The page page ends with just a short summary of the battle as described in Charles E. Davis' 1893 regimental history. I intend to devote another page entirely to 13th Mass. soldiers accounts of the battle. (That won't take as long).

In preparing this page, I've developed some more sympathy for General John Pope. I think he was a poor field commander for the most part, but he did a lot of things right, and he was under tremendous political pressure, like all the early Union Generals in the war. What if heavy rain had not forced him to call off his planned offensive on August 23rd? His plan was the same as Gen. Lee's; cross the Rappahannock and assault the enemy's right flank and rear. My dislike for him, and for General McClellan, is due to the large number of lives lost in this campaign, in large part because of ego, or professional jealousy. It was the poor foot soldier who paid the price in blood.

I'm almost done with the text of the new web page. A few pictures will be added next, and then I'll upload to the website, hopefully sooner rather than later. And then, perhaps I'll have more time for the blog ! A very tired adieu. Comments are appreciated.

The 13th Regiment Association Circulars

Part I

     I’d like to write a bit about the 13^th Regiment Association and its annual Circular.  The association was formed to facilitate companionship among the veterans that served in the “13^th Mass.”  Officers were elected each year, but the secretary remained the same; Charles E. Davis, Jr. of Company B.  Between the years 1888 and 1922, the association published a pamphlet, or circular, for the membership, announcing the time and place of the annual re-union dinner in Boston.  There are 35 circulars in all.  They are rare, and hard to find, (but more on that later).   Soon, letters, articles and poems began to appear within its pages, - vivid tales of personal war-time adventures. In time the circulars became highly regarded for the history they contained.  Sets of them were requested by librarians at the Library of Congress, and the U.S. War Department. 

 Each Circular included:

• A list of newly elected officers for the coming year;
• Association treasury reports and dues assessments;
• A list of former comrades who had passed away;
• And, a list of attendees at the previous re-union dinner.  

     An article of general interest to the membership would follow the ‘business’ reports.  In number one, (1888) there was a reprint of General James Beaver’s address to the First Corps Survivors at Gettysburg, given the same year.  Number two contained a biography of General George Lucas Hartsuff, the popular commander who lead their brigade in the summer of 1862.   Secretary Davis’ “official history” of the 13^th Regiment actually grew out of a series of narratives he began for the circulars.   

     In Circular #3 Davis re-printed period newspaper clippings that detailed the unit’s departure for the front on July 30^th, 1861.   The narrative continued in the next two issues, appearing in Circulars  nos. 4 & 5.  Between these years the Association’s “History Committee” rejected another writer’s manuscript intended to be the official history, because it was incomplete and un-publishable.  The committee urged Davis to continue his narrative and this became Davis’s well regarded book, “Three Years in the Army; The History of the Thirteenth Regiment, Massachusetts Volunteers.”  Davis’s book did not contain any personal anecdotes of the war, but the Circulars did.

     Morton Tower’s memoir “Escape from Libby Prison” was the first, appearing in Circular #8; 1895.  Tower’s story was written for the Oregon Veteran Association.  When Davis learned of it he requested a copy for publication in the circulars.  In the forward to the article Davis wrote “I am prompted to say that for a long time I have hoped our circulars would be made a vehicle for the publication of similar papers from comrades who can recall incidents of their service worth reading and preserving.”  Tower’s memoir was followed up in Circular #9 with Charles Bingham’s reminiscence “The Story of a Raw Recruit.”  This cleared the path and one or more articles appeared in every circular for the next 25 years. Davis’s wish was fulfilled.   The Circulars are a valuable historical resource that personalizes the history of the war.  They give a glimpse into the lives and experiences of many of the men who comprised the “13^th Mass.” 

     I will post more on the circulars soon.

Lt. William Greenough White, 12th Mass

   
In the bibliography of Robert K. Krick’s Stonewall at Cedar Mountain, I found reference to the memoirs of George Kimball of the 12th Mass. Vols.   The 12th Mass., was in Hartsuff’s brigade during Pope’s Virginia Campaign and at Antietam.  The 12th was  closely associated with the 13th Mass., and Kimball frequently references the 13th regiment in his memoirs.  (I’ll be using the memoirs on my website).

     Kimball’s writings mention several comrades, but the story of Lt. William Greenough White at Antietam is quite compelling.  White was a graduate of the Boston Latin School which still exists.  Here is Kimball’s abridged narrative of the battle of Antietam, focusing on the story of Lt. William Greenough White.

     "The company in which I was serving numbered at this time forty men. We had borne our full share of the hardships and losses of Pope's ill-starred campaign. Our Captain had been killed at Bull Run on the 30th of August. Our First Lieutenant, William Greenough White, a noble fellow, had been stricken down with slow fever early in Pope's campaign. We left him behind when the advance was made up to Cedar Mountain. He would gladly have gone with us, but was too sick, and reluctantly entered the brigade hospital tent. We bade him an affectionate good-by, for we all loved him. The nurses who had charge of him told us afterward what trouble they had to keep him in bed, so great was his desire to leave and to follow on after us. When Lee cut loose from Richmond and turned his whole army upon us we were forced to retire, but we fell back fighting inch by inch. The sound of the guns came nearer and nearer the tent where our Lieutenant lay. After a while he heard it, and his keepers could keep him no longer. He rose like a lion from his lair. Demanding his uniform and sword he left while the other sick ones were being hurriedly loaded into ambulances for transportation to Washington. He started in the direction from which the firing came.  Alone and unassisted he hurried forward. His desire to be with us, his love of country, his manly pride, and the heavy roar of the guns, every moment sounding louder and nearer, nerved him on and gave him unnatural strength. When he came up we gave him a cheer, and he wept like a child, so glad was he to be with us once more.

     We were being whipped, but were constantly ready to fight and to fight again, and the arrival of our Lieutenant gave us fresh courage. We did our best to hold Lee in check till McClellan could get up from the Peninsula to help us. We were sent upon a long march to Thoroughfare Gap to try to keep Longstreet from coming through. Our Lieutenant had been as active as any of us, and we all felt his influence and loved him more than ever. But the poor fellow's strength began to leave him in a few hours after we set out, and finally he fainted and fell in the road. The surgeon took him from us again and sent him to the rear in an ambulance. In a Washington hospital he had a relapse of the fever.
 
     Now that Bull Run and Chantilly and South Mountain had passed into history, and our brave Captain and many of our men were “sleeping the sleep that knows no waking,” we are face to face with the army of Lee upon the soil of Maryland. It is the night before the great ball at Antietam Creek is to open. The moon, which for a number of nights had been lighting our weary way over the mountains and through the forests of the land of the Calverts, has now withdrawn her face. Evidently the heavens have thought it more in keeping with the scene and the time to draw a curtain of clouds over our heads and to shut us up in blackness. Now and then a lurid flash and a screaming shell tell us we are very close to the enemy, while the crash of rifles in front shows that the pickets are already at it.

     We are just lying down for a little sleep, with our rifles beside us and our equipments on—for we are very tired—when an unusual stir and bustle, with hand-shakings and God bless yous, announce the presence of our Lieutenant. He has again broken away from his keepers, but is no more fit to endure the rigors of campaigning than before. His face is pale, his eyes are sunken, his limbs weak, but his soul is on fire. News of an impending battle has taken him from his bed and brought him to us again in spite of the protests of doctors and nurses. We share our rations with him, for he has none, and roll him up in blankets and overcoats, and he sleeps between two comrades as peacefully as a child."

     I skip ahead now in the narrative.  The next morning after watching the earliest of the fight Hartsuff’s brigade is called into battle :

     "…We are now in the famous cornfield. Before proceeding far we strike the enemy's skirmish line and brush it away. As we move forward our brave Lieutenant, tall and as erect as a statue, is a conspicuous figure in the line. He is as cool as he would have been had he been leading his company in review. To us he seems the very embodiment of an ideal soldier. We push our way through the tall corn, which reaches far above our heads and waves as if shaken by the wind. Shells are bursting all about us, and men are falling every moment.  My limbs tremble at every step, for fear has taken a strong hold upon me, and it is only by thinking of the requirements of duty and of the ridicule to which I would be subjected from my comrades should I fail that I am able to keep my place in the ranks. Some men never had this fear in going into battle. I confess I never entered one without it.

      At last we gain the open ground, and are here met by a perfect storm of bullets, while shells and canister fly about us furiously or go screaming over our heads to the rear. Our Lieutenant is struck in one of his feet by a bullet, it is a bad wound, as two of his toes are cut away, but he halts only a moment while we are pulling down a fence. Major Burbank advises him to go to the rear, but he only smiles and says he is “worth a dozen dead men yet” I am holding a rail above my head in both hands, in the act of throwing it behind me, when a piece of shell or a solid shot wrenches it from my grasp with such violence that my arms are benumbed.
We finish leveling the fence and move forward again. The fire has been increasing every moment until now it is indeed terrible. We start up a slight rise, and our Lieutenant follows, limping. Second Lieutenant Orne advises him to go to the rear. He raises himself to his full height and somewhat scornfully replies:  “I shall not leave the company.”

     We gain the crest of the little ridge. Our main line has not yet fired a shot. Being now upon open ground, high enough to afford a view of our surroundings, what a scene is that which opens up about us!  Directly in front, not more than one hundred yards away, is "Stonewall" Jackson's whole division moving toward us. With their saucy battle flags gayly floating above them, these gray-clad heroes present a magnificent spectacle . To their left, in more scattered order, behind fences and rocks and trees, are Hood's men. Farther still in the same direction are Stuart's batteries, pouring a heavy cross fire upon the little knoll upon which we are standing.
We comprehend the situation at a glance and open and receive a storm of leaden missiles. How terrible is the shock and how our men go down!  What screams and groans follow that first volley! Then we load and fire at will as rapidly as we can. Our officers cry, “Give it to them, boys!” and the men take up the cry, too. There is a pandemonium of voices as well as a perfect roar of musketry and a storm of bullets.  Shells are bursting among us, too, continually.  In the wild excitement of battle I forget my fear and think only of killing as many of the foe as I can.  The tall soldier at my side, who had told me on the march that he felt as though he was to be hit in this battle, has already fallen. He lies at my feet with a mortal hurt. His brother drags him back a few paces and then returns to his place in the ranks. A few moments more and my brother, too, is wounded, though not so badly. When I have assisted him to a stump a short distance in the rear he creeps up behind it and tells me to “go back and give it to them.”

       Our ranks are terribly broken now, but the line is kept up and we fight on. Our Second Lieutenant has gone to the rear, his right shoulder being torn from its socket by a piece of shell. Lieut. White remains still.  His eyes glow with the joy of battle, and he seems to be everywhere imparting courage and stimulating the efforts of his men. By-and-by he is struck again. A piece of shell has stripped the flesh from the upper part of one of his arms. The shock is severe enough to throw him to the ground, but he quickly rises again and his voice is heard as before above the din of battle. I look at his face to see if he shows evidences of pain and am met with a cheery smile. By this time our ranks have become fearfully decimated, and the Lieutenant begins moving those who are yet in line up nearer the colors. “Let us die under the flag, boys!” he cries.

      Incidents of the fight are happening every moment. My ramrod is wrenched from my grasp as I am about to return it to its socket after loading. I look for it behind me, and the Lieutenant passes me another, pointing to my own, which lies bent and unfit for use across the face of a dead man. A bullet enters my knapsack just under my left arm while I am taking aim. Another passes through my haversack, which hangs upon my left hip."

  Again, I skip ahead in the narrative :

     "….Still we fight on. The Lieutenant moves what few are left of our company up to the colors. We have some distance to go, for the gaps are wide. The regimental line, such as it is, is reformed. Seven men have fallen while holding the flags. The groans of the dying seem louder and more dreadful every moment.
  A piercing shriek is heard behind us. We look, and find that our brave Lieutenant has been hit again. This time it is a mortal hurt. His hip is shattered and his abdomen torn open in a shocking manner, but his voice is heard high above the din: “Don't mind me; give it to them !”

  Kimball describes in detail his exit from the front-line.  The following two passages are about Lt. White :

       "…As we leave I look about for my brother, but find that he has gone. Of the 40 men of my company who entered the fight but seven remain. Four of us take up Lieutenant White. We place him on a blanket and start for the rear. We have to pick our way among the dead and dying. The groans of the wounded are terrible. It is hard to disregard the appeals for help that come from every quarter. The enemy have been reinforced, and it now seems as if they are bound to annihilate what remains of our brigade.  Shot and shell plow the ground about us and go crashing into the troops that are pressing forward to continue the work which we have so well begun.  It seems almost a miracle that we are not hit, for the air is full of flying fragments of iron and whistling bullets. But we hurry on with our precious burden, anxious to get our poor Lieutenant to a place of safety where the Surgeons can care for his wounds.

     …At last we reach Poffenberger's and lay our dying friend at Surgeon Hayward's feet. The doctor examines his wounds. The Lieutenant talks lightly of his hurts, and with his own hands replaces the torn flesh. This exhibition of heroism is too much even for professional self-control, and the Surgeon turns aside and bursts into tears. We take an affectionate leave of our dear friend, for we must return to the ranks.  He thanks us one by one for the service we have rendered him, and whispers a message to those who love him at home.
  Those who were with him when he died told us he was brave to the last. He died late in the afternoon. One of his lower limbs was very painful just before he breathed his last. An attendant was rubbing it.

   “Does this rubbing do you any good, Lieutenant?”

  “No,” said he, but that cheering does,” for just then our troops had gained an advantage.

     His body was sent home and buried in the family lot at Mount Auburn. The funeral, at St. Paul's Church, was attended by the Independent Corps of Cadets, to which organization he belonged when he joined the Webster Regiment. He was 22 years old and a son of Ferdinand White, a Boston merchant.  He was a Latin School boy, and resigned a desirable position in the office of a prominent State Street banking firm when the war came."