Fifth Regiment Iowa Volunteer Infantry

The ten companies assigned to this regiment were ordered into quarters by Governor Kirkwood on dates ranging from June 24 to July 3, 1861. The designated rendezvous was Burlington, Iowa. There, the companies were mustered into the service of the United States on July 15, 16 and 17, 1861, by Lieut. Alexander Chambers, United States Army.

The names of its first Field and Staff Officers, together with their personal record of service, will be found at the head of the subjoined roster, Which includes all the names and records of those who at any time belonged to the regiment. This roster is arranged in alphabetical form by companies, as shown in the index. It is made up from the records of the Adjutant General's office of the State of Iowa, and of the War Department in Washington, D. C. Whatever errors or omissions may be discovered are chargeable to the failure of officers to make required reports and returns, and possibly, in some instances, to carelessness on the part of those who made the original entries. It is not claimed for those who have had charge of making up this revised roster that they were infallible and made no mistakes, but the compiler of this sketch believes that great care has been exercised in transcribing the records, and that mistakes and errors which may exist have been reduced to the minimum.

The regiment was ordered into active service very soon after it was mustered. Colonel Worthington states, in his first official report, that he had received orders from General Pope to proceed to Keokuk and be in readiness to repel a threatened invasion of Iowa by a force of rebels then approaching the State line. The order was received at Burlington August 2d, and the Fifth and Sixth Regiments at once proceeded to Keokuk, where they received arms and ammunition, and marched into the State of Missouri to meet the enemy. Upon the approach of the Union troops, the rebel force promptly retreated, and being mounted, the Iowa troops did not succeed in overtaking them. The regiment was ordered to return to Keokuk, and on August 11, 1861, it embarked and was conveyed to St. Louis by steamboat.

For a short time it was in quarters at Jefferson Barracks, and from that place proceeded to Jefferson City, the capital of Missouri, where it was stationed from August 18 to September 1, 1861. From that date, during the remainder of the year 1861, and until April 28, 1862, the operations of the regiment covered a wide extent of territory in the states of Missouri, Kentucky, Arkansas and Tennessee, but its principal service was in Missouri, in which State it marched and counter-marched for long distances, and performed most important and arduous service, as shown by the official reports of its commanding officers. While no considerable bodies of the enemy were encountered, the difficult and annoying character of this service can best be understood when the deplorable conditions, then existing in the State of Missouri, are described. The citizens were divided in sentiment and action, as to upholding the cause of the Union, or its enemies. Bands of rebels were constantly forming, and had to be dispersed or driven out of the State. It was the paramount duty of the officers in command of the Union forces to protect the Union citizens against the depredations of their rebel neighbors. The functions of the civil authorities were almost entirely suspended, and the administration of martial law devolved upon the officers in command of the Union soldiers. This very important duty was performed so faithfully that the sentiment of loyalty to the Union in Missouri constantly grew stronger, and prevented the rebel element from gaining the ascendancy. To this result the Fifth Iowa Infantry contributed its full share. Its surviving members will bear testimony to the fact, that while its subsequent service involved great hardship, heavy loss in battle, and the exercise of all the fortitude and bravery of which they were capable, yet they preferred that kind of service to that of keeping down rebellion in the State of Missouri. From the 28th of April to the 30th of May, 1862, the regiment was on the march, and in camp at different points between Hamburg Landing, Tenn. and Corinth, Miss.

On the 22d of May, while the regiment was encamped at Farmington, Colonel Worthington was killed by a picket of the Union Army. The Colonel was acting as Division Officer of the Day, and in making inspection of the lines, during the night, he was mistaken for an enemy, which resulted in his death, which was officially announced as follows:


HEADQUARTERS, ARMY OF THE MISSISSIPPI,
NEAR FARMINGTON, May 22, 1862.

GENERAL ORDERS, NO. 53.

The General commanding announces with deep regret the death of Colonel W. H. Worthington, Fifth Iowa Infantry Volunteers. He was killed by an unfortunate accident at three o'clock this morning, while in the discharge of his duty as General Officer of the Day. In the death of Colonel Worthington, this army has sustained a serious loss, and his place in the regiment will be difficult to fill. Prompt, gallant, and patriotic, a brilliant career in the military profession was before him. The hand of God has stricken him down in the midst of his usefulness, and while discharging his duty as a soldier in the face of the enemy. Sad as is his fate, he has lived long enough to be mourned by his country, and to have his memory cherished by the army with which he served. The officers of his division will wear the usual badge of mourning for thirty days.

By order of Major General Pope.

SPEED BUTLER, A. A. G.


On May 30, 1862, General Beauregard evacuated Corinth and the Fifth Iowa participated in the pursuit of the rebel army until the pursuit was abandoned. The regiment then went into camp about two miles from Booneville, Miss., where it remained from the 4th to the 11th of June, when it returned toward Corinth and went into camp near that place, and remained there until June 27th, when it was ordered to Holly Springs, Miss., but after proceeding to a point near Ripley was ordered to Rienzi, Miss., where it remained in camp until July 10th, on which date it returned to its old camp near Corinth. There it remained until August 5th and on that date changed its camp to Jacinto where it remained until September 18th, when it broke camp and marched to Iuka, where, on the 19th of September, 1862, it participated in a hard fought battle. Its loss in killed and wounded was nearly fifty per cent of its number engaged, and the record of its conduct there will compare favorably with that of any regiment upon any battlefield of the war. The compiler of this sketch feels that it is due to the regiment to quote the entire official report of its commander in this first battle in which it was engaged:


HEADQUARTERS FIFTH IOWA INFANTRY,
CAMP ON IUKA ROAD, Sept. 21, 1862.

Lieut. Martin, A. A. A. G., First Brigade, Third Division, Army of the Mississippi.

SIR: I have the honor to submit the following report of the part taken in the engagement near Iuka, by the Fifth Iowa Infantry, on the 19th inst.

We left camp six miles from Jacinto, early on the morning of the 19th inst., leading the column of the Third Division, and soon came on to the enemy's pickets, posted on the road. Three companies of my regiment were ordered forward as skirmishers, and then succeeded in driving the enemy from their position, and continued to drive them from one point to another, which they contested for more than six miles, killing three and wounding a number, when these companies were relieved by the Twenty-sixth Missouri Infantry. Our loss was one Sergeant severely wounded. The skirmishers soon came on to the main force of the enemy, in a strong position, and received a volley from one or more regiments. My regiment was ordered into line on the right of the Eleventh Ohio Battery. I was soon informed that a large force was moving on my right, which compelled me to change front, and I had just got into position on the crest of a hill, when the enemy in strong force (two brigades, I learn, under Generals Green and Martin) made their appearance in front, and poured a terrific musketry fire on my line, which was promptly returned. The firing continued for about half an hour, when I found the enemy was pressing my left, near the battery, it having been silenced, and I ordered a charge, which was executed in the most gallant manner, every officer and man moving forward, cheering, in almost perfect line. The enemy gave way before us, and we poured a most deadly fire into them causing them to retreat over the hill. But they soon returned with renewed vigor, on my front and left, shouting, and were received with a steady fire from the gallant boys of my regiment, holding their position under the most terrific fire possible. I again gave the command forward, and the enemy were again driven over the hill, but not until they had come so near as to boldly reach out for the colors of my regiment, they showing the stars and stripes, and saying "Don't fire at us, we are your friends."

At this juncture, the left wing was suffering terribly from a cross fire, coming from the left of the battery, nearly every officer being killed or wounded, and four companies of the Twenty-sixth Missouri came up to its support, and nobly assisted in holding the ground, until I found the ammunition was exhausted, when I ordered my regiment to retire by the right flank to a field about one hundred yards distant, which was done in good order, where it was reformed in line of battle under a galling fire, at which time the Eleventh Missouri Infantry advanced in line of battle, and my regiment retired by the right of companies to the rear, passing the Tenth Missouri Infantry, which was advancing. I then took a position near the road, under the direction of an Aid-de-Camp, where I distributed ammunition to my men, and remained until morning, the firing having ceased for the night. The casualties in my regiment were seven commissioned officers killed, and eight wounded and thirty-four enlisted men killed, and one hundred and sixty-eight wounded, out of four hundred and eighty-two who went into battle. In commanding my regiment before the enemy, I was nobly assisted by Lieutenant Colonel Sampson, on the right, Adjutant Patterson, acting Major, on the left, and Lieutenant W. S. Marshall, acting Adjutant, all of whom behaved most gallantly, repeating my commands and steadying and cheering on my brave boys through the engagement. The long list of killed and wounded of both officers and men, is ample proof how nobly and well they stood at their posts. High praise is due to all. A grateful country will reward them for their deeds and daring.*

Very respectfully, your obedient servant,

C. L. MATTHIES,
Colonel Commanding Fifth Iowa Infantry.


That the battle of Iuka was one of the most fiercely contested of the entire war is conceded. When it is considered that this regiment had never before met the enemy in strong force, that its officers and men found themselves confronted with a greatly superior force of the enemy, led by brave and skillful officers, that the fighting was at close range, and that all the conditions were such as to put to the severest test the bravery, skill and fortitude of veterans, who had been engaged in many previous battles, the fact was at once established, that here was an Iowa regiment that could be depended upon to do its whole duty in battle. Its subsequent history was a complete verification of this statement. It not only never suffered defeat itself, but, to quote from a truthful statement of one of its officers, "It had the good fortune never to be in a campaign, or battle, in which the Union Army was defeated. In every department in which it served, success crowned the Union arms. First it was with Fremont, when he drove Price out of Missouri; with Pope when he opened the Mississippi to Fort Pillow, with Halleck when he captured Corinth, with Grant when he captured Vicksburg, and afterwards when he defeated Bragg at Mission Ridge, and with Sherman when he drove the rebels from Chattanooga to Atlanta."

After the battle of Iuka, the regiment returned to its old camp near Jacinto and remained there until October 1st, when it marched to Corinth, Miss.

In the battle of Corinth, October 3d and 4th, the regiment was constantly on duty, and ready for action, but the following extracts from Colonel Matthies' report will show that while every order was promptly obeyed, and the regiment performed its full duty, the different positions to which it was assigned were fortunately such as did not subject it to loss. Colonel Matthies says:

In obedience to orders, we left camp about 3 o'clock the morning of the 3d with three days' rations in haversacks, and marched with the brigade to a point about half a mile north of Corinth, and were immediately ordered into line of battle. I had just placed my regiment in position, when, by order of General Hamilton, we moved to the Pittsburg road and took a position within the intrenchments, to prevent a surprise in that direction. Two companies were detached to support a section of a Missouri battery on the Farmington road, and two companies to support a section of the same battery east of the Pittsburg road. After strengthening- our position with abatis, we remained until 2 o'clock on the morning of the 4th, when, by order of General Buford, I moved my regiment toward town to rejoin the brigade, and took a position in line of battle, fronting north on the left of the Eleventh Ohio Battery. Here we remained until about 10 o'clock, when the brigade was ordered forward, to prevent a flank movement which was being attempted by the enemy.

My regiment advanced by the right of the Eleventh Ohio Battery, and then advanced in line of battle, opening fire upon the enemy who at once retreated. Subsequently we took two other positions, when, by order of General Hamilton, we returned to our former position in line of battle north of town. Here we remained until the following morning, when, by order of General Hamilton, we moved with the brigade in pursuit of the retreating enemy on the Chewalla road, and encamped that night about eight miles from Corinth.


It will thus be seen that, by the fortune of war, this gallant regiment, having passed through one hard fought battle in which nearly one-half of its officers and men were killed or wounded, and where it acquitted itself with the greatest honor, was a few days later held in readiness to participate in another great battle, where other regiments suffered frightful losses, while it held important positions but did not become actively engaged. On both occasions it conducted itself with equal honor. The veteran soldier who has passed through many battles will recall, as among his most trying experiences, those in which the command to which he belonged was held in reserve, while other commands were engaged in the thickest of the conflict. To stand calmly waiting for the order to go into action is just as severe a test of courage as to obey the order when it comes. It was therefore no reflection upon the bravery of the gallant Colonel Matthies, or his regiment, when he said at the close of his official report, "It gives me pleasure to report that not a single casualty occurred in my regiment during the battle of Corinth, nor during the pursuit of the enemy."

The following congratulatory letter from the grand old War Governor Kirkwood was read on parade, the day it was received, and the ringing cheers which followed showed how deeply it was appreciated:


EXECUTIVE OFFICE, IOWA CITY, IOWA, Nov. 19, 1862.

COLONEL: Convey to your gallant regiment the thanks of this department, and of the whole State, for their heroic courage and intrepid bravery at Iuka on the 19th of September last, and at Corinth. Such signal valor and determined resistance to the foe, merits, as it has received, the praise of the whole State, and attests the loyalty and devotion to the Union of the citizens of Iowa. Accept for yourself personally my best wishes for your prosperity.

Your obedient servant,

SAMUEL J. KIRKWOOD,
Governor of Iowa.

Col. C. L. Matthies, Fifth Iowa Infantry, Corinth, Miss.


The following letter from the division commander was also read to the regiment, the officers and men again giving emphatic expression to their appreciation:


NEW YORK, Oct. 27, 1862.

Col. C. L. Matthies, Fifth Iowa Infantry.

MY DEAR COLONEL: In sending to me the report of the brilliant conduct of the Fifth Iowa at Iuka, September 19, 1862, you have given me a very great pleasure. When I read the newspaper accounts of the battles in the vicinity of Corinth, though still sick, my heart thrilled with pride and satisfaction at the splendid conduct of the regiments composing my old division, especially that of the Fifth Iowa and Twenty-sixth Missouri. To show you how the Fifth Iowa has become a household word with us: My youngest boy, a prattler of four years of age, when asked to what company and regiment he belongs, says, "Company 'A', Fifth Iowa, Papa's pet regiment."

I am under orders from Washington, and though I may not again have the honor to have your regiment among those under my command, I shall always point to its conduct as an evidence of the character of the troops from Iowa, and how kindly they have responded to, and conferred honor upon, those who have diligently endeavored to look after their welfare, discipline and instruction which I think I may claim a share in having done. Feeling that their honor is my honor, I shall watch their future career with the same interest as when they were a part of my command. With my compliments and kind remembrances to all, believe me, very truly your friend,

SCHUYLER HAMILTON,
Major General Volunteers, U. S. A.


Failing to overtake the retreating rebel army, the regiment returned to Corinth on the 10th of October, and remained there until the 2d of November. Under the limitations prescribed in the act providing for brief historical sketches of the Iowa regiments, the compiler of this sketch regrets that he can not devote the space necessary to show in detail the service performed by the Fifth Iowa Infantry, during the remainder of its term. From the date of the departure of the regiment from Corinth, November 2, 1862, to the 18th day of September, 1864, when the remnant of the enlisted men and six of its officers were transferred to the Fifth Iowa Cavalry, with which regiment they served to the close of the war, a condensed history is here given, as shown by the report of Col. J. Banbury, made in response to the request of Gen. N. B. Baker, Adjutant General of Iowa.**

From Corinth, the regiment marched to Grand Junction, Tenn., where it joined General Grant's central Mississippi expedition, during which it stopped at the following named places: Davis Mills, Tenn., from the 7th to 17th of November; Moscow, Tenn., from the 18th to 28th of November; Lumpkin's Mills, Miss., November 29th to December 2d; Oxford, Miss., December 4th to 12th; on Yocona Creek, December 12th to 21st. From the Yocona returned to Lumpkin's Mills, arriving on the 24th and remaining until the 26th of December, when it was ordered to Memphis, Tenn., where it arrived on the 29th, and remained until the 31st of December. From January 2 to 31, 1863, it was stationed at Germantown, Tenn. From Germantown it returned to Memphis, and was in camp near that city from the 1st of February to the 2d of March. Leaving Memphis it proceeded down the Mississippi river, to a point near Grand Lake, Ark., where it remained from the 4th to the 7th of March. From there it returned up the river to a point opposite to the mouth of the Yazoo Pass, and was there stationed from the 8th to the 22d of March. From there it accompanied the Yazoo Pass expedition, through the Pass, down the Cold Water and Tallahatchie rivers, to near the latter's confluence with the Sun Flower river, where it remained from the 2d to the 5th of April, when it was ordered to return up the river, and on the 8th of April arrived at its old camp, opposite the mouth of the Pass, remaining until the 13th. It then proceeded down the Mississippi river, and on the 15th arrived at Milliken's Bend, where it was stationed until the 25th. On the 25th of April it started on General Grant's campaign around Vicksburg, during which it was at the following named places: Perkin's Landing, La., April 29th; Hard Times, April 30th; crossed the Mississippi river to Bruinsburg, Miss., May 1st; at Port Gibson, Miss., on the 2d; at Raymond on the 12th, Clinton on the 13th, Jackson on the 14th, Champion Hill on the 16th, and Big Black river on the 18th; in the rear of Vicksburg from May 19th to June 22d, at Messinger's Ford from the 23d day of June to the 6th of July; at the railroad bridge across the Big Black river from July 6th to 13th; at Champion Hill, July 17th to 22d, and again at Black river bridge July 22d to July 24th, and returned to Vicksburg on the 24th, where it remained until September 12th. Left Vicksburg September 12th, moving up the river arrived at Helena, Ark., on the 15th, and remained in camp near that place until the 29th, when it again proceeded up the river, and on the 30th landed at Memphis, where it remained in camp until October 3d. From Memphis it was transported by railroad to Glendale, Miss., where it was stationed from the 5th to the 9th of October. From the 9th to the 19th, it was stationed at different points on the Memphis and Charleston railroad, between Burnsville and Iuka, Miss.; from the 19th to the 21st at Iuka, from the 23rd to 29th at Dixon's Station, Ala., fifteen miles from Iuka. Leaving the latter place on October 29th, it marched from thence to Chattanooga, Tenn., arriving at a point on the opposite side of the river from that place, on November 20th. It remained near the same place until the 24th, when it crossed the Tennessee river, participated in the battle of Mission Ridge on the 24th and 25th, pursued the enemy on the 26th and 27th, and returned to its old camp on the west bank of the Tennessee river on the 28th, where it remained until December 3d, 1863, when it was ordered to Bridgeport, Tenn. It was stationed at Bridgeport from the 5th to the 22d of December, when it was ordered to Larkinsville, Ala., where it was stationed from the 26th of December to the 7th of January, 1864. Leaving Larkinsville, January 7th, it was next stationed at Huntsville, Ala., from January 9 to April 1, 1864, at which time it started for Iowa on veteran furlough. It arrived at Davenport, Iowa, on the 7th and was furloughed on the 8th day of April. Rendezvoused at the same place on the 7th day of May, and started for the front on the 9th. It arrived at Decatur, Ala., on the 14th and remained there until the 17th. From the 18th to the 31st, it was stationed at different points on the railroad between Decatur and Huntsville, Ala. On the 1st of June it returned to Decatur and remained until the 15th, when it was ordered to Huntsville, where it was stationed from the 16th to the 22d of June. On the 23d, it left Huntsville for Kingston, Ga., arriving at the latter place on the 28th of June. It remained in and near that place until September 18th, when the remaining enlisted men of the regiment, having been transferred, by order of the War Department, to the Fifth Cavalry, left to join that regiment stationed at Long Pond, Ga.

The non-veteran portion of the regiment — those who did not re-enlist at the expiration of their original term of three years — had been mustered out of the service on the 30th day of July, 1864, at Kingston, Ga. Those who reenlisted as veterans were transferred as companies G and I to the Fifth Iowa Cavalry regiment, with which they served to the close of the war, and were mustered out of the service at Nashville, Tenn., on the 11th day of August, 1865, and disbanded at Clinton, Iowa. From the time the regiment took the field, in the summer of 1861, to the close of its three years' term of service, and with its re-enlisted veterans to the close of the war, it was at the front in all the great campaigns in Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia. It participated in the battles of Iuka, Corinth, Jackson, Champion Hill, Port Gibson, Raymond, Black River Bridge, Missionary Ridge, and in the sieges of New Madrid, Corinth and Vicksburg and in the Yazoo Pass, and many other expeditions. In addition to the above splendid record of service, there were numerous minor affairs in which the regiment — or detachments from it — was engaged, and from which it suffered loss in killed and wounded. The subjoined summary of casualties shows a greater percentage of mortality from killed in battle than the average from same cause among the Iowa regiments during the War of the Rebellion, while the percentage of mortality from disease is less than the average, and the number discharged for disability resulting from both wounds and disease is about the general average from such causes.

Upon the whole its record stands in the very front rank of Iowa's splendid regiments. The survivors of the regiment and their posterity may peruse with just pride the history of its service. Every patriotic son and daughter of the State will cherish the memory of the men Who fought and died in its ranks, and do honor to those who fought with them, and still live to enjoy the glorious results achieved. When the last survivor of this gallant regiment shall have passed from earth, may the record here set down be an inspiration to the young men of Iowa, should they ever be called upon to emulate the brave deeds of the Volunteer soldiers of this Commonwealth in the great War of the Rebellion, from 1861 to 1865.


SUMMARY OF CASUALTIES.

Total Enrollment 1067
Killed 65
Wounded 299
Died of disease 91
Died of wounds 29
Discharged for wounds, disease and other causes 243
Buried in National Cemeteries 83
Captured 103
Transferred 50

* See Adjutant General's report, Volume 2, 1863, page 807.
** Adjutant General's Report, Vol. 2, 1865; pages 1046-8.


SOURCE: Roster & Record of Iowa Soldiers During the War of the Rebellion, Volume 1, p. 675-81

From the 2d Iowa Cavalry

ABOARD STEAMER CITY OF ALTON,
Mississippi River, April 13th.

EDITOR GAZETTE:– Yesterday at noon the 2d cavalry received orders to be ready to march to the river to take transports for Memphis. The Infantry and artillery had been striking tents, moving post and going aboard all day during a drenching rain. The 1st battalion moved to the river at 7 o’clock, but owing to the rush it was 2 o’clock this morning before all were aboard. This is a large, fine boat. Had Jeff. Thompson captured her last February, he would have had quite a prize. Besides the 1st Battalion, with 300 horses, the 10th Iowa and the 26 Missouri regiments, infantry, are aboard. – We are very much crowded.

At 7 o’clock we cast loose, and with banners streaming and the band playing, we headed for “Dixie.” The Emilie and Choteau are close in our wake; the day is clear, bright and beautiful. We soon passed Tiptonville, the appearance of which was familiar to some of us. Old “Mississipp” is on a “big high,” and like some individuals when in a similar condition, has a general spreading tendency, and without any regard to natural limits or moral propriety, exhibits a great overflowing tendency, and encroaches largely on surrounding territory.

As we pass swiftly along, feeling perfectly secure, the gun boats and a fleet ahead, about 4 P. M. we see our steamers rounded to and lining for a mile the Tennessee shore. As there is no “sight” for sandbars, it must be something ashore that gives us a hint to lay to. Twenty-seven large steamers line the shore, all boats of the largest class – J. D. Perry, Memphis, G. W. Graham, Hannibal City, Emma, &c. Seven gun and several mortar boats and two of the frisky little tugs are also in sight. The boats are crowded to their utmost. It is truly a magnificent fleet, with a respectable army afloat – a scene never before witnessed on the Father of Waters. The tug and gun boats are reconnoitering, and we will know more to-morrow.

MONDAY EVE, 14TH. – All was quiet during the night. As the shore was overflowed where the boats landed, they cast off this afternoon and crossed over and down two miles, landing at a large plantation on the Arkansas side. The owner ran off, leaving only an old negro man and woman, but some 300 head of stock. Though it would, under such circumstances, not be secure in time of peace, it will be protected and remain safe from harm. Strange it is that Secesh are so ignorant and slow to learn.

We are fifty miles above Memphis, and less than five miles below Fort Wright. From where we lay the river runs east then west. The fort is in Tennessee. Our mortar boats have taken position two miles below us on this shore. About noon they opened fire, throwing their shell over the point of land (about a mile) and across the river into their works. The point is heavily timbered, and we can see nothing of the river below nor the fort from this shore. Our gunboat a the end of the bend can see the effect or range of the shot. The mortars lay into shore and as the ponderous shells mount the air we can see the treetops that interpose shattered into fragments, and scattered to the winds. The rebels responded but once, – faintly – as they can do nothing at the range.

A reconnoitering party this afternoon brought in a secesh officer captured in the woods. He was the best dressed officer I have yet seen, and looked like a gentleman. He had an extensive pink musquito bar around his hat and covering his shoulders, giving him a gay appearance. Weather is very warm, and musquitoes, as I write, are buzzing about in a manner not agreeable. All is quiet, and I await the morrow. I received here to-night the GAZETTE of the 12th. Tuesday morning – I have the opportunity and mail.

DIFF.

– Published in The Davenport Daily Gazette, Davenport, Iowa, Tuesday Morning, April 22, 1862, p. 2

COLONEL ALEXANDER CHAMBERS

SIXTEENTH INFANTRY.

Alexander Chambers is thirty-two years of age, and a native of the State of New York. I know little more of his history prior to his entering the volunteer service except that he was a lieutenant of the 18th Regular Infantry, and a resident of Owatonna, Minnesota. After the war broke out, and before he was made colonel, he served as a mustering officer of Iowa troops. He was the United States mustering officer of the following Iowa regiments: the 1st, 2d and 4th Cavalry; and the 1st, 2d, 3d, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 10th, 11th, 13th and 14th Infantry. Though not an Iowa man, his military services certainly go to the credit of the State. He was commissioned Colonel of the I6th Iowa, in February, 1862, and served with this rank till the winter of 1863-4, when he left the volunteer service and returned to his former position as captain in the 18th Regular Infantry; for he had been promoted to a captaincy, in the summer of 1861.

Colonel Chambers' first engagement, which was also the first of his regiment, was Shiloh. In that action he was slightly wounded. The position of his regiment in the first day's battle was on the right of the l5th Iowa, and the part it sustained sufficiently appears in the sketch of General H. T. Reid. In the closing paragraph of an official statement concerning this engagement, Colonel Chambers says:

"The field officers were particularly cool under a destructive fire, and rendered great assistance. The horses of all the field and staff officers were killed or wounded, evidently showing an intention on the part of the enemy to pick off the most prominent officers. Captains Ruehl and Zettler, both gallant men, were killed or mortally wounded, and 1st Lieutenant Frank N. Doyle, a brave and efficient officer, was also killed. The loss during Sunday's fight was two officers and sixteen non-commissioned officers and privates killed, and nine officers and twenty-four non-commissioned officers and privates wounded, and fifteen non-commissioned officers and privates missing."

Among the wounded officers, were Captains A. Palmer, E. S. Fraser, and E. M. Newcomb; and Lieutenants Lewis Bunde, J. H. Lucas, G. H. Holcomb, and Henry Meyer. It was reported that the regiment did not conduct itself with credit, but its losses tell a different story. The conduct of Lieutenant-Colonel A. H. Sanders was especially gallant, as it ever after was, in the face of the enemy.

It is elsewhere stated that immediately after the battle of Shiloh or Pittsburg Landing, the Iowa Brigade was organized, and that the organization was preserved till the close of General Sherman's campaign through the Carolinas, in the spring of 1865. The 16th Iowa was the junior regiment of this brigade, and much relating to its history will be found in the sketches of Generals Crocker, Reid, Belknap and Hedrick, and Colonels Hall and Shane. But the 16th has a chapter in its history, not to be found in those of the other regiments of its brigade. It fought Price at Iuka; was conspicuous upon the field, and suffered terribly in killed and wounded. Next to the 5th Iowa Infantry, it lost more heavily than any other regiment on that bloody field.

"For some ten days or more before the final move of the rebel army under General Price, eastward from the Mobile and Ohio Railroad, it was evident that an attack upon Corinth was contemplated, or some change to be made in the location of that army. This caused great vigilance to be necessary, on the part of our cavalry, especially that to the southern front, under Colonel Mizner. The labor of watching and occasional skirmishing was most satisfactorily performed, and almost every move of the enemy was known as soon as commenced. About the 11th of September, Price left the railroad — the infantry and artillery probably moving from Baldwin, and the cavalry from the roads north of Baldwin, toward Bay Springs. At the latter place, a halt of a few days seemed to have been made; likely, for the purpose of collecting stores and reconnoitering our eastern flank. On the 13th of September, the enemy's cavalry made their appearance near Iuka, and were repulsed by the small garrison under Colonel Murphy of the 8th Wisconsin Infantry, still left there to cover the removal of stores, not yet brought into Corinth. The enemy appeared again in increased force on the same day, and, having cut the railroad between there and Burnsville, Colonel Murphy thought it prudent to retire to save his force."

How the 16th Iowa became separated from its brigade and fought with Rosecrans at Iuka happened thus: When Colonel Murphy was attacked by the enemy, he sent back for reinforcements: Colonel Crocker was directed to send a regiment to his support. The 16th Iowa was ordered forward, and thus formed a junction with General Rosecrans. In speaking of the part the 16th and other regiments of his command bore at Iuka, General Rosecrans says:

"The 16th Iowa, amid the roar of battle, the rush of wounded artillery-horses, the charges of a rebel brigade, and a storm of grape, canister and musketry, stood like a rock, holding the centre, while the glorious 5th Iowa, under the brave and distinguished Matthies, sustained by Boomer, with his noble little 26th Missouri, bore the thrice-repeated charges and cross-fires of the rebel left and centre, with a valor and determination, seldom equaled, and never excelled by the most veteran soldiery."

So far as I can learn, the killed and wounded of the 16th Iowa at Iuka numbered about sixty-five. Colonel Chambers was wounded and obliged to turn his command over to Lieutenant-Colonel Sanders. Lieutenant and Adjutant George Lawrence, a gallant young officer, was killed. Captain A. Palmer and Lieutenant J. H. Lucas of Company C, were both wounded, as they had also been at Shiloh. Lieutenants Alcorn and Williams were also wounded, both severely. Iuka was the 16th Iowa's second engagement, and their courage and intrepidity, on that field, was a triumphant answer to all insinuations of former ungallant conduct. They were the heroes of their brigade, and when they marched back to re-join it they were looked on with admiration, and received the eager gratulations of their sister regiments.

Next in the history of the regiment is the battle of Corinth, a full account of which Has been given elsewhere; It lost its commanding officer at Iuka, and suffered the same misfortune at Corinth. Lieutenant-Colonel Sanders was severely wounded in the thigh, in the afternoon of the first day's fight. Of this gallant officer's conduct, Colonel, afterward General Crocker says:

"Lieutenant-Colonel Add. H. Sanders, who commanded the 16th, is entitled to great praise. He rode along the line of his regiment, amid the storm of bullets, encouraging his brave boys, who had so lately suffered at Iuka, to remember their duty, and, although severely wounded, remained with his regiment until it marched off the field."

Major William Purcell succeeded Colonel Sanders in the command of the regiment. Its loss in the engagement I have been unable to learn, but, next to the 15th Iowa, it suffered more severely than any other regiment of its brigade. Major Purcell was slightly wounded, but not so severely as to compel him to leave the field. Captain C. W. Williams was taken prisoner. Color-Sergeant Samuel Duffin, and Color-Corporals McElhaney, Eighmey and Karn are mentioned for their gallant conduct on the field.

The pursuit of the defeated and dispirited rebel army to the Hatchie, and the return to Corinth; the march to the Yockona late that same Fall; the trip down the Mississippi to Young's Point, and the operations around Vicksburg; the march to Mechanicsville, up the Yazoo; the expedition to Jackson, and the escape of Johnson; the raid to Monroe, Louisiana, and, later, that to Meridian, Mississippi; the long and tedious march from Clifton on the Tennessee, to North-western Georgia, In the Spring of 1864, and the operations of the Iowa Brigade on the memorable Atlanta Campaign, will be found in the sketches of those officers and regiments, whose histories they help to make up. The 16th Iowa Infantry took part in all these operations.

It has already been stated that Colonel Chambers resigned his commission in the winter of 1863-4. Subsequently to that date, the 16th Iowa has been commanded by that excellent officer, Lieutenant-Colonel Sanders. Indeed, for many months prior to the resignation of the former officer, Colonel Sanders commanded his regiment; for, on the departure of General Crocker to assume command of the 7th Division, of his corps, Colonel Chambers succeeded him in the command of the Iowa Brigade.

I pass now to the most interesting and exciting chapter in the history of the 16th Iowa — a chapter which, could I write it as it was made, would equal any passage in war-literature. Certainly no regiment in all Sherman's grand army of "ninety-eight thousand nine hundred and ninety-seven men" can furnish an instance of greater and more distinguishing valor, than that of which I write.

How Sherman, having crossed the Chattahoochie, threw his army by a grand right-wheel around Atlanta, with the Army of the Tennessee — Blair, Logan and Dodge — on the left, I have written elsewhere. In the sketch of General Belknap, I have also given an account of the enemy's opening attack, which, for suddenness and desperation, would have done credit to the best marshals of France. The 22d of July, and the assault on Sherman's left, are the day and the battle of which I speak. The 16th Iowa "was posted upon the left of the 11th Iowa, and in the immediate front of the 13th Iowa, the 15th Iowa being upon the left and upon a prolongation of the line of the 13th, the brigade being the left of the 4th Division, which held the left wing of the Army of the Tennessee." The 16th Iowa, therefore, held the extreme left and front of Sherman's victorious legions — a post of honor deserving double honor, on account of its gallant defense. "Companies B and G, under the respective commands of Captain Henry Lefeldt and Lieutenant Timm, were deployed as skirmishers in front, connecting on the right with the skirmishers of the 11th Iowa, and on the left with those of the l5th." This position had been taken up, and these dispositions had been made, (earthworks in front of each regiment having been in the meantime constructed) on the previous afternoon. And it is proper to state in this connection that the left of the Army of the Tennessee had not joined in the general advance made by Sherman's army on the morning of the 22d.

As elsewhere stated, the ground occupied by the Iowa Brigade was open, with the exception of being covered with under-brush; but, immediately after taking up the position, the 11th, 15th, and 16th Iowa had "policed" in their front, from thirty to fifty yards. No enemy could pass that line under cover, and to come within it was almost certain death. The skirmish line was posted in the thicket beyond.

Just before noon of the day in question, General Giles A. Smith, in person, had directed Colonel Sanders to have his regiment ready to fall in at a minute's notice, adding, "you must hold your works to the last, as the safety of the division may depend on the delay occasioned the enemy at this point." This was the last order received by Colonel Sanders from his superior that day. Already the reign of ominous silence, which commonly precedes great battles, portended the approaching conflict, and, hardly had General Smith rode back to his head-quarters, when the roar of musketry along the skirmish line signaled the advance of the enemy. It was sharp and spiteful, and told the brave boys, who sprung for their guns and the trenches, that a desperate struggle was at hand. Instantly the skirmishers, with anxious faces, made their appearance, and came running back to the works. They were sent back by Colonel Sanders, but had scarcely entered the thicket, when they were fired on and again driven back. The enemy were coming in heavy line of battle, and closely on the heels of their own skirmishers, while the 16th Iowa, crouched in their trenches and, with their muskets pointed toward the threatened point, awaited their approach. "When you fire, fire low, but don't fire a gun till you receive my command, no matter how near they come," were the orders of Colonel Sanders, and they were strictly obeyed. Then followed a moment of anxious, protracted suspense and then the opening battle.

The enemy advanced their line boldly into the clearing in front of the Sixteenth's works, and, with bayonets fixed and their pieces at a charge, began raising their accustomed shout, when Colonel Sanders gave the order to fire — first to the rear rank, and then to the front. " The response was a terrific and deadly volley from one rank, followed immediately by another, and then a continuous, rapid firing, as fast as eager, experienced soldiers could load and discharge their guns. The result of our fire was terrible. The enemy's line seemed to crumble to the earth; for even those not killed or wounded fell to the ground for protection. Another heavy line of the enemy advanced, and was repulsed in the same terrible manner. Officers and men worked enthusiastically, and guns became so heated that they could not be handled, the powder flashing from them as the cartridges were dropped in. The officers prepared the cartridges for the men, and helped them load their guns. More splendid firing, or more effectual in its results, was never before witnessed in the army." I have taken the above from Colonel Sander's report; for, should I make the same statement myself, it would pass for fiction.

Simultaneously with the attack on the 16th, the 11th and 15th Iowa were charged in their works. The left of the 15th had no protection, and, as the enemy came swinging round to its rear, it had no alternative but to draw out of its works and retire. The 11th Iowa was dislodged in like manner. But just before this occurred, the enemy in front of the 16th (the 2d and 8th Arkansas and two companies of Texan troops) put up the white flag and surrendered as prisoners of war. When they arrived in Colonel Sanders' rear, he found that he had two prisoners for every man in his ranks. But there were other prisoners to the left, or men whom Captain Smith claimed as prisoners, but who refused to throw down their arms. Learning this, Colonel Sanders hurried down to the left, and began disarming them himself, but he had taken the guns of only two, when he was surrounded by a rebel squad, who demanded: "Surrender, Sir, and we won't hurt you." Startled by such a demand, he turned and looked about him. For the first time he now saw that the works of the 13th and 15th Iowa in his rear were in the possession of the enemy. Believing that he had held his works "to the last," and hoping that he might break away and escape with his regiment to the rear of the 11th Iowa, he sprung away, and, with the exclamation — "I am not talking of surrender now," hurried back to his command. The rebels stared in wonder and none fired at him except a rebel captain, who instantly after was shot dead by Captain Lucas of the 16th Iowa.

On reaching the right of his regiment, the last hope fled; for the works of the 11th Iowa were already in possession of the enemy. The regiment was thus surrounded, and had no choice but to surrender or be butchered. The 16th Iowa was the sixth Iowa regiment to be captured nearly entire. "The regiment numbered, on the morning of the twenty-second, four hundred and twenty-five effective men: of these, a fatigue detail of three officers and eighty men was made in the morning, most of whom were captured afterward, while fighting in front of field-works near by."

During the Atlanta Campaign, or rather up to the 23d of July, the 16th Iowa lost in killed, wounded and captured, three hundred and sixty-eight men. Of these, twenty were killed, and one hundred and six wounded. Private Charles M. Stark was the first man of the regiment killed. He was shot through the head on the 14th of June, and while on picket near Big Shanty, Georgia. From the 14th of June to the 22d of July following, hardly a day passed without adding one or more to the regiment's list of casualties; and to show the character of warfare in which the regiment engaged, it may be stated that, of the twenty killed, nine at least were shot through the neck or head. Quarter-master-Sergeant John W. Drury was the only man killed by a shell, and Corporal James Huntington, the only one killed by a solid shot. Lieutenant George H. Holcomb was one of the killed, and among the wounded were Captains Hugh Skillings and Peter Miller, and Lieutenants Thomas A. Burke and Samuel Duffin: the latter afterward died of his wounds.

The greater part of the enlisted men of the 16th Iowa, who were captured on the 22d of July, were exchanged in September, 1864; but the officers were held until the following Winter and Spring. The regiment has closed the interesting portion of its history in the siege of Atlanta, and in the Savannah and Carolina Campaigns, all of which operations have been fully detailed.

I am told Colonel Chambers is a trim, black-haired, black eyed gentleman, with the airs and deportment of a regular army officer. He was a severe disciplinarian, and, by reputation, ranked well with the Iowa Colonels. After the fall of Vicksburg, he was appointed by the President a brigadier-general; but the appointment failed confirmation in the Senate. His status defeated him; he was neither an Iowa nor a Minnesota man. Iowa would indorse his appointment, provided he was credited to Minnesota, and Minnesota, vice versa. He is the only Iowa officer who was killed by having too many friends.

SOURCE: Addison A. Stuart, Iowa Colonels and Regiments, p. 303-12

COLONEL PARIS PERRIN HENDERSON

THIRD COLONEL, TENTH INFANTRY.

Paris P. Henderson was born at Liberty, Union county, Indiana, on the 3d day of January, 1825. He was educated at the Common Schools of his native town, where he resided till he reached his eighteenth year. At eighteen, he learned the tanner's and currier's trade in Vermillion county, Illinois. He settled in Warren county, Iowa, in the fall of 1847, and two years later was appointed organizing-sheriff of that county. In August, 1851, he was elected County Judge of his county, which office he held for three consecutive terms. In the fall of 1859, he was elected to the State Senate, and was the Senator of Warren county at the outbreak of the war.

In September, 1861, Mr. Henderson was commissioned captain of Company G, 10th Iowa Infantry, which he had enlisted in Warren county. On the 27th of January, 1863, he was promoted to the lieutenant-colonelcy, and, on the 18th of the following August, to the colonelcy of the 10th Iowa Infantry. On the arrival of General Sherman at Savannah, in his grand march from Atlanta to the sea, Colonel Henderson resigned his commission, having served three years and nearly three months. The military history of Colonel Henderson reflects on him much credit: it is the same as that of his regiment; for, from the time of his entering the service until the date of his leaving it, he was present with it. Even during the greater part of the time of his lieutenant-colonelcy, he commanded it; for Colonel Small was sick and absent.

Early in September, 1863, the 10th Iowa Infantry, which was then in camp at Vicksburg, left with its division for the purpose of reinforcing General Steele, then marching on Little Rock; but, news coming of the fall of Little Rock on the arrival of the division at Helena, it remained in camp at that place, awaiting transports in which to return to Vicksburg. In the meantime, General Sherman's old Corps had been ordered to report at Chattanooga. The march from Memphis commenced about the middle of October. Why, I do not know, but for some reason the 7th Division of the 17th Corps was separated from its command, and ordered to join General Sherman in this march. There were many other troops, who for a long time had done little, and who, in fairness, should have been selected for this arduous campaign. It was supposed by the division that the mettle of which it had shown itself possessed, on so many battle-fields, had determined the commanding general in this choice; for General Grant was once reported to have said: — "One knows just what he can do with that division." In justice to the veteran troops of this command, these facts should be stated; for they should receive the credit due to their gallant services. And here, although not in strict keeping with my plan, I yield to what I know would be the earnest wish of the regiment whose history I am recording, and append the names of the regiments which constituted this noble command. In the First Brigade were the 4th Minnesota, the 48th and 59th Indiana, the 18th Wisconsin, and the 63d Illinois. In the Second Brigade were the 10th Missouri, the 17th Iowa, the 56th Illinois, and the 80th Ohio. In the 3d Brigade were the 5th and 10th Iowa, the 26th Missouri, and the 93d Illinois. In our great National struggle there has been no more worthy or potent representative from the great North West than the 7th Division, 17th Army Corps.

Moving up the river from Helena to Memphis, the 10th Iowa left that city early in October, and proceeded by rail as far as Glendale, Mississippi, nine miles east of Corinth. From that point the regiment marched to Chattanooga, by way of Dixon's Station; Chickasaw Landing, on the Tennessee River; Florence, Alabama, Rogersville, Prospect Station, on the Nashville and Decatur Railroad; Fayetteville, Winchester, Decherd and Bridgeport. The Tennessee River, at Chickasaw Landing, was crossed on the night of the 30th of October, and, in the evening of the 19th of November, the 10th Iowa, with its division, arrived under Lookout Mountain. The night of the 30th of October, 1863, was stormy and dismal, which not only rendered the crossing of the Tennessee disagreeable, but soured the tempers of all. General –––, in command of the division, superintended the crossing of his troops, and, like every one else, was irritable. On one occasion, while his boat was approaching the south bank of the river, the detail on shore had left their post, and no one chanced to be at hand but a lieutenant, the son of a Congressman. The hawser being thrown ashore and no one there to receive it, General ––– cried out, "Take hold of that rope, sir." "I am a lieutenant, and the son of Congressman –––." " Don't care a d—n, take hold of that rope." But the lieutenant was relieved by the detail, who at that instant came up.

I have said that the 10th Iowa, with its division, arrived at the foot of Lookout Mountain in the evening of the 19th of November. The head of the division arrived in Lookout Valley just before night-fall, and no sooner was it seen by the enemy, than he commenced displaying his signal-lights. Bragg knew that General Grant was receiving reinforcements, but the number he could not tell, for darkness intervened soon after the head of the column came in view. Before day-light the next morning, the division was marched across the Tennessee River, and behind some hills, out of view of the enemy. It was said that this was one of the plans which General Grant had adopted to puzzle and mislead the enemy; and it may be correct history. It was even said that General Grant would, in the night-time, march troops from the north bank of the river under Lookout Mountain, and, after day-light the next morning, march them back to their former position. But, however this may be, it is certain that Bragg was, by some means, thrown from his reckoning; for he attributed to General Grant, at Chattanooga, a much larger army than he had.

From the 20th of November until the 23d, the 10th Iowa, with its brigade and division, rested in camp behind the hills above mentioned, but at mid-night of the last named date marched down to the river to effect a crossing. The crossing was to be made in pontoons, and just below the mouth of South Chickamauga Creek. The pontoon-boats had already been launched in the North Chickamauga, so that all was in readiness. The brigade of General Giles A. Smyth, numbering about eighteen hundred men, led the advance. Embarking on the pontoon-boats, they floated quietly down into the Tennessee, and then made rapidly for the opposite shore; and so quiet and systematic were their movements that they surprised and captured the entire picket-guard of the enemy but one. By day-light in the morning, nearly three entire divisions of Sherman's command had reached the south bank safely, and were behind intrenchments nearly a mile and a half in length. These successes insured victory to General Grant at Chattanooga; for he could now swing round on the enemy's right and rear, and force him to abandon his boasted impregnable position.

In the fighting which followed, the 5th, the 10th, and the 17th Iowa regiments took a conspicuous part, though neither of these regiments met the enemy till the 25th instant. Nor did the 6th Iowa, which was the only other Iowa regiment that crossed the Tennessee with Sherman, meet the enemy before that time. In a south-westerly direction from where the crossing was effected, and about four miles distant, was the long range of irregular and precipitous hills, known as Mission Ridge; and to wrest these from the possession of the enemy, was the object of General Sherman's crossing the river. At about three o'clock in the afternoon of the 24th instant, the 10th Iowa, with its brigade and division, (the whole command drawn up in column by division) marched down through the timber and wet bottom-lands that intervened between the place of crossing and Mission Ridge, to assault and capture a high hill in the northern portion of the ridge. The movement was made, and the hill gained without a casualty; for, not having been fortified, it was abandoned by the enemy. But on the next hill beyond, which was about half a mile distant, were the enemy in large force, and strongly fortified; and against this position were the attacks of the 7th Division directed the next day. Retiring from the hill just occupied by its division, the 10th Iowa bivouacked the night of the 24th in the woods near the Chattanooga and Knoxville Railroad; but there was little sleep for the regiment, for it was during that night that General Hooker was driving the enemy from Lookout Mountain; and such an incessant and appalling fire of musketry was hardly ever heard before in the night-time. It raged from sun-down until near day-light the next morning. Thus far every thing had worked favorably, and "on the night of the 24th our forces maintained an unbroken line, with open communications, from the north end of Lookout Mountain, through Chattanooga Valley, to the north end of Mission Ridge." General Bragg was now defeated; and to save his army, his baggage, stores and artillery, was with him the important question. The point against which the attacks of the 5th, 6th, 10th and 17th Iowa regiments, with their respective commands, were directed on the 25th instant, covered and protected Bragg's line of communications to the rear; and hence it was that the fighting at that point was of the most desperate character; for, that hill lost, and Bragg would have lost nearly every thing.

The 10th Iowa, with its brigade, was ordered up to reinforce General Ewing's command at eleven o'clock in the morning. Moving west across the railroad already alluded to, it marched out across an open field, and down into low ground, which was covered with under-brush. Next, it was faced to the south, which brought it fronting the hill in question, and for the possession of which, General Sherman was now struggling. Thus far, the entire brigade had lost but two men; but now orders came for an advance — first to the White House, (which was already in flames) and then to the top of the hill. In the advance to the White House, the artillery-firing of the enemy was most frightful. Their position on the hill, or succession of hills, was semi-circular, and, at different points along their line, were some forty pieces of artillery in battery, the range of which was short and accurate. They used solid shot, shell, canister and grape; and, altogether, it was the most terrific artillery-fire the 10th Iowa ever passed under in the open field. It was also the most terrific artillery-fire the 5th and 17th Iowa ever passed under. To this day, I can not recall that hour, without feeling in sympathy with the old Latin poet: "Steteruntque comoe et vox faucibus hoesit."

On the hill-top, the 10th held the left of the brigade, and fought with its accustomed gallantry; but the numbers of the enemy, with their strong position, could not be overcome, and a retreat had to be ordered soon after General Matthies, its brigade commander, was wounded. The engagements of Champion's Hill and Mission Ridge are regarded by the 10th Iowa, as among their hardest battles.

From the 25th of November, 1863, until the following May, the histories of the 10th and 17th Iowa regiments are similar. The 10th marched to Graysville, Georgia, in pursuit of Bragg's forces, and then, returning, was ordered to Huntsville, Alabama, where it remained until the following May. It was then sent to Decatur, Alabama, the junction of the Nashville and Decatur with the Memphis and Charleston Railroad. While at Huntsville, the regiment had re-enlisted as veterans; but it did not receive its veteran furlough until the following June.

While stationed at Decatur, the 10th Iowa, under Lieutenant-Colonel McCalla, with some one hundred and thirty men of the 9th Ohio Cavalry, had a little affair with the rebel forces of General Forest, on the south side of the Tennessee River; but I omit details, for their recital could give no additional lustre to the already brilliant record of the regiment.

The 10th Iowa Infantry returned to the front late in July, 1864, and arrived at Kingston, Georgia, on the 1st of August. Here it remained on guard-duty along the railroad, until the time of Wheeler's celebrated cavalry raid on General Sherman's rear line of communications, when it joined the command which was organized to make pursuit. The expedition was out about twenty days, and marched, during that time, more than five hundred miles. But their fleet-footed adversary could not be brought to a stand, and, after pursuing him through East and Middle Tennessee and Northern Alabama, they finally came up with him just as his rear-guard was crossing the Tennessee River at Florence. Soon after, followed the flank movement of General Hood, after which, the 10th Iowa moved with General Sherman on his memorable march to Savannah. Its last campaign was from Savannah to Raleigh, and that will probably be its last in the war; for the veteran army of Northern Virginia has now surrendered.

Colonel Henderson is about six feet in hight, and well formed. He has a pleasant face, and an easy, winning address. No one can know him but to like him. The Colonel was a brave and efficient officer, and popular with his regiment; but he was too kind and conceding, I am told, for an excellent disciplinarian.

Henderson was one of the Iowa colonels who would do justice to a subordinate, without an express or implied consideration. He never bartered his honor to enhance his chances for promotion.

SOURCE: Addison A Stuart, Iowa Colonels and Regiments, p. 227-34

COLONEL WILLIAM E. SMALL

SECOND COLONEL, TENTH INFANTRY.

William E. Small, the successor of Nicholas Perczel to the colonelcy of the 10th Iowa Infantry, is a native of the State of Maine. At the time of entering the service, in September, 1861, he was a resident of Iowa City, and a practicing lawyer. He was commissioned lieutenant-colonel of the 10th Iowa Infantry, the 10th of September, 1861; and with this rank served till the second of November, 1862, when, Colonel Perczel resigning, he was promoted to the colonelcy of the regiment.

During his colonelcy, as also from the time of its organization, the 10th Iowa Infantry has a proud and interesting history. From the second of November, 1862, till after the fall of Vicksburg, the time of Colonel Small's discharge, this regiment was always at the front; and, if there was any fighting to be done, like the other Iowa regiments of the 7th Division, 17th Army Corps, the 10th was sure to have part in it.

Late in November, 1862, the 10th Iowa joined its division in the march of General Grant down the Mobile and Ohio Railroad. Passing through Abbeville and Oxford, it had reached a point as far south as the Yockona River, when, the line of communications being cut, it was ordered to return. On the 26th of December, it marched with its division from near Lumpkin's Mills, Mississippi, to Memphis, having in charge a provision-train of six hundred and twenty-five wagons; and this was one of the most vexing and fatiguing marches the regiment ever made. It was the coldest part of the Southern Winter, and the trip was made without baggage, or only such as the men could carry on their persons. A cold, sleety rain was falling almost constantly, and the red, clayey mud, the dirtiest and daubiest in the world, was half-knee deep. Hanging on their flanks and rear was a band of guerrillas, ready to pick up the stragglers, and to fire into the train whenever occasion offered. Usually, men are merry on the march; but, without rest by day or sleep at night, there was little merriment here. For so short a one, this is regarded the hardest march the old 7th Division ever made.

After this march was completed, the balance of the winter of 1862-3 the 10th Iowa passed on the Memphis and Charleston Railroad; but, in the opening Spring, moved down the Mississippi to Helena. Prior to the 22d of March following, the operations of the division are detailed elsewhere; and the history of the division is the same as that of this regiment. On the evening of the last named date, the 10th Iowa sailed into the mouth of the Yazoo Pass, which opens into the Mississippi on its east side, and eight miles below Helena, This was a most wonderful expedition, and, had it not been a military movement, would have been romantic. For the labor and skill employed in opening this pass, and in clearing it of obstructions, General Grant was chiefly indebted to Iowa troops under General Washburn. For more than a week, the 24th, 28th, and 33d Iowa regiments were kept half-leg deep in mud and water, hauling out the timber, which the enemy had felled for purposes of obstruction.

The object of the Yazoo Pass Expedition was a flank movement on Vicksburg, but it ended, as it begun, in strategy. This was one of the forty-three plans, which General Grant had pocketed for the reduction of Vicksburg. The story Is as follows, but I do not vouch for its truth: A Federal soldier was captured on the Deer Creek raid, and taken before a rebel officer, when the following colloquy occurred: "What in the devil is Grant in here for? what does he expect to do?" "To take Vicksburg," was the soldier's reply. "Well, hasn't the old fool tried this ditching and flanking five times already?" "Yes," said the soldier, "but he has got thirty-seven more plans in his pocket."

From the mouth of this pass to Moon Lake, (so named from its crescent shape) the distance is five miles, and was passed over without much trouble; but, for forty miles after leaving Moon Lake, it was literally a boat-ride in the forest; for the stream was so winding that its course could rarely be seen more than forty yards in advance. It seemed to have no outlet; and gigantic trees, on every hand, challenged an advance. Small stern-wheel boats could only be used, and even these were found to be unwieldy. The force of the current which put in from the swollen waters of the Mississippi was prodigious; and the danger was in going too fast. Until the boats reached the Cold Water, their engines had to be kept reversed; and so it happened that this was called by the soldiers " the back-water expedition." Even with all the care that was used, the boats were stripped of every thing that was fancy, and of much that was substantial. Not a smokestack in the whole fleet was able to weather the storm; and whole state-rooms were raked off by projecting limbs, into whose ugly embrace the boats would rush, in spite of the pilots and engineers; and, I may add, in spite of from twenty to fifty soldiers, aligned on the decks and armed with long poles.

But in spite of all these dangers, the expedition did not lack amusement; for instance: a tall, awkward fellow, (he did not belong to the 10th) while standing on the hurricane deck of the Lady Pike, was watching a large sycamore limb, which a spar of the boat was pushing aside. He was wondering if it would not break; when just then it slipped by the spar, and, taking him across the face, knocked him several feet, and came near dropping him into the stream. He carried a "stiff upper-lip," if not a brave heart, till the expedition returned. History may, if it will, omit to mention this expedition; for it has furnished itself a record that will be read many years hence. On the trees, at nearly every bend in this stream, the name of some soldier is literally " recorded on high," and nearly every regiment in Quimby's and Ross' Divisions is thus represented. For nearly every boat of the fleet was caught at some one of these bends, and before it could be released the enterprising soldiers would carve their names on pieces of broken cracker-boxes, and nail these to the limbs. When the expedition returned, the water in the pass had fallen many feet, leaving these inscriptions high in the air; and there they still hang.

There was one feature of this expedition, which, though interesting, lacked amusement; though it was experienced only on the Tallahatchie River and the lower waters of the Cold Water. The banks of these streams are covered, mostly, with timber and thick under-brush, forming fine places of concealment for guerrillas. We were in the enemy's country and, acquainted with their chivalric mode of warfare, were looking for it to be put in practice; yet, when the first guerrilla gun was fired, it was all unexpected. Standing on the hurricane-deck, you would see in the brush near a fallen log, or the trunk of a standing tree, a blue circling puff of smoke, and then hear the pat or sharp whistle of a bullet. The report of the gun would follow, when all hands would dodge. In spite of the anticipation of seeing the thing repeated, the men would laugh at their folly, and remark, "that shows what a little noise will do."

On the 6th of April, the last of the fleet arrived above Fort Pemberton, at the junction of the Tallahatchie and Yallabusha Rivers; and a fight was expected the day after; but either General Grant had accomplished all he expected to in this direction, or had learned he could accomplish nothing, and the entire fleet was ordered to return. The last boat, in a damaged condition, arrived at the Sand Bar below Helena, at noon on the 12th of April; and, should one return from Hades, he could be little more surprised at his safe arrival on terra firma, than were many who sailed on the celebrated Yazoo Pass Expedition.

In this connection, I desire to speak of a good man, who rendered important services on this expedition, and who afterwards died at Fort Sumner, New Mexico. Captain Robert Lusby of the 10th Iowa, and, at the time of his death, adjutant-general to General Crocker, was a noble man and officer.

Next in the history of the 10th Iowa, is the final Vicksburg Campaign. During this celebrated march, the details of which are given elsewhere, the regiment met the enemy at the battles of Jackson, and Champion's Hill. In the last of these engagements, it greatly distinguished itself, and suffered severely, as also did the regiments of the 3d Brigade, commanded by the gallant little Boomer. The 5th and 10th Iowa, the 26th Missouri and 93d Illinois, deserve a proud place in the history of our civil war. On the 19th of May, the 10th Iowa arrived before the rebel works, in rear of Vicksburg; and, from that day till the 4th of July following, the day of General Grant's triumphal entry into the city, did its full share of duty. With its brigade, it joined in the memorable charge of the 22d of May; and, under General McClernand, to whom the brigade had been ordered to report, was preparing to assault the right of the enemy's works, when Colonel Boomer fell, shot through the head. He was killed at sun-down, and near the crest of a hill within two hundred yards of the enemy's line. Colonel Boomer was a native of Massachusetts, and a brave and gallant officer. The confusion, incident to the loss of the brigade commander, created some delay, and, before an advance was made, orders were received to withdraw to a position behind the second line of hills. On the 24th of May, the 3d Brigade reported back to its division, whose position in the line was to the left of the centre, and about half a mile south of the rebel Fort Hill; and here the 10th Iowa remained till the surrender of Vicksburg.

Immediately after the fall of Vicksburg, the brigade of General Matthies, to which the 10th Iowa was attached, (for after the death of Boomer he had been transferred to this command) joined the command of General Sherman, in the pursuit of the rebel forces under General Johnson. The brigade arrived before Jackson on the evening of the 14th of July, having marched from Clinton; but had hardly stacked arms, when orders were received to march back to Clinton, to anticipate the rebel General Jackson in his cavalry-raid upon Sherman's train. General Matthies arrived in Clinton late that night, and just in time to meet and repulse one brigade of Jackson's cavalry, the only rebel troops sent to that point. For this gallant affair, the 10th Iowa, with the balance of the troops of the brigade, was handsomely complimented by General Sherman.

The principal portion of the time covered by these operations, Colonel Small was absent from his regiment: indeed, he was never with it much, and, if I am rightly informed, was never present in an engagement. His military record is not in keeping with that of his gallant regiment. He was a fine drillmaster, which was his chief merit as a soldier.

In person, Colonel Small is below the medium. He has a nervous temperament, a pale, sickly countenance, and a feeble constitution. In his manners, I am told, he is dignified and sedate.

SOURCE: Addison A. Stuart, Iowa Colonels and Regiments, p. 221-6

COLONEL JABEZ BANBURY

THIRD COLONEL, FIFTH INFANTRY.

Jabez Banbury is a native of England, and was born in the year 1831; but, removing to this country when quite young, he became, long since, thoroughly Americanized. He is a man of limited education, and by trade a mechanic.

At the time of entering the service, he had some experience in military matters; for he had been a member of an independent military company in Marshalltown. At that time I am informed, he gave proof of military taste and talent. He enlisted in the United States volunteer service in June, 1861, and assisted in raising a company for the war, which was afterwards assigned to the 5th Iowa Infantry, and designated Company D. Of this company, he was elected 1st lieutenant, and, with this rank, entered the field. He was promoted to the captaincy of his company in February, 1862; was made major of his regiment, on the 14th of the following July, and, on the promotion of Colonel Matthies to brigadier-general, was commissioned colonel. At the time his regiment was transferred to the 5th Iowa Cavalry in August, 1864, he was mustered out of the service, and returned to his home in Marshalltown.

General Matthies left his regiment at Milliken's Bend, Louisiana, just before it started on its march to the rear of Vicksburg. From that time till the fall of that city, the 5th Iowa was commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel E. S. Sampson. From the fall of Vicksburg, up to the time Colonel Banbury was mustered out of the service, the regiment was under his command, if we except a few months when he was in command of a brigade. The 5th Iowa is proud of its record, and it may also be proud of its commanding officers; for they were all most excellent men.

The march to the Yockona, and thence back to Memphis; the trip down the Mississippi to Grand Lake, and thence back to Helena; and the wild expedition down the Yazoo Pass, all belong to the history of the 5th Iowa Infantry. An account of these I have given in the sketches of other officers and regiments, as I also have of the march from Milliken's Bend round to the rear of Vicksburg. Of the battles fought during the last named march, the 5th Iowa was engaged in two — Jackson and Champion's Hill. The regiment also engaged the enemy in two skirmishes—the first on the hills north of Bayou Pierre, and the second in the rugged country north of Big Black River. In the last, the regiment constituted a portion of the force under Colonel Boomer of the 26th Missouri, who was sent out on a reconnoissance some five miles in the direction of Vicksburg. The 5th Iowa led the advance of its corps from Raymond to Clinton, and marched with its division, which led the advance, from Clinton to Jackson. In the battle of Jackson, the regiment did not suffer severely. Its position was to the left of the 17th Iowa, and so far to the north that it overlapped the right of the enemy's line. Its loss was four men wounded.

The part which the 5th Iowa took in the battle of Champion's Hill, or Baker's Creek, was most brilliant and sanguinary. This battle, which came off on the 16th of May, 1863, "was fought mainly by Horey's Division of McClernand's Corps, and Logan's and Quimby's Divisions (the latter commanded by Brigadier-General M. M. Crocker) of McPherson's Corps; and in it the Iowa troops were consequently largely represented. On the evening of the 15th instant, General Grant made his head-quarters at Clinton. Early on the following morning, two employees on the Jackson and Vicksburg Railroad were brought to him, who represented that, on the previous night, they had passed through General Pemberton's army. They also represented that Pemberton had marched out from Vicksburg with a force consisting of about eighty regiments, with ten batteries of artillery, the entire command numbering about twenty-five thousand men. The object of Pemberton was, to come up with and attack General Grant in rear, before he should be able to overcome General Johnson at Jackson; and it had been before reported by prisoners that, on General Johnson's arrival at Jackson in the evening of the 13th instant, he had sent peremptory orders to Pemberton to make this movement. The evidence was conclusive to General Grant that a great battle was near at hand; and he therefore ordered a rapid concentration of his troops, even sending back to Jackson for General Sherman's Corps, which had been left behind to destroy the railroads and rebel government property. This done, he mounted his horse and rode rapidly to the front. In the march from Jackson back in the direction of Vicksburg, the divisions of Logan and Crocker (excepting the 2d brigade) reached a point some five miles west of Clinton; and were, therefore, only about seven miles east of Champion's Hill, and not far distant from General Hovey, who, with his division, was in the extreme advance. The next morning, the 16th of May, the troops of Hovey's Division left their camp at Bolton's Station, and moved in the direction of Champion's Hill, three and a half miles distant. These troops were the first to meet the enemy. The engagement was just opening as the 5th Iowa, with its brigade, came up.

"The enemy had taken up a very strong position on a narrow ridge, his left resting on the hight where the road makes a sharp turn to the left approaching Vicksburg. The top of the ridge, and the precipitous hill-side to the left of the road, are covered by a dense forest and under-growth. To the right of the road, the timber extends a short distance down the hill, and then opens into cultivated fields on a gentle slope, and into a valley, extending for a considerable distance. On the road and into the wooded ravine and hill-side, Hovey's Division was disposed for the attack."

But Logan and Crocker fought on the right of the road, having come into line in the above named open fields. Logan's Division held the extreme right, and next to his was Crocker's; and now the fighting opened in earnest. The rebel, as compared with the Federal force, was more than two to one; for Pemberton had not less than twenty-eight thousand men; whereas the divisions of Hovey, Crocker and Logan would not number thirteen thousand. Confident of success with his superior numbers, the enemy massed heavily on the right of Hovey's Division, which was near the road, and forced it back. His left they also flanked, and soon after forced back his whole line. The 3rd Brigade, to which the 5th Iowa was attached, held the left of Crocker's Division, and, seeing Hovey's right driven in, and their own left flank threatened, they faced to the left, and double-quicked down to the road to meet the enemy and check their further advance. The 93d Illinois was the extreme left regiment of the brigade, and, next to that, was the 5th Iowa: a portion of the 93d crossed the road, so that the 5th was but a few paces distant from it. And right here the fighting was most obstinate and sanguinary. The trees, living, though insensible witnesses to this terrible contest, stand there still, bearing on their shattered branches and lacerated trunks, thrilling evidence of these hours of bloody strife. From one tree near the road-side, more than five hundred bullets were afterward extracted; and it was not three feet through.

In that immediate vicinity, the 5th Iowa with its brigade, maintained its position in the unequal conflict for more than an hour and a. half, and, during the last half hour, it had no ammunition, or only such as could be taken from the cartridge-boxes of the dead and wounded. In the meantime, the enemy at this point had been reinforced, and were being led on with the promise of certain victory. To withstand longer such odds and desperation was impossible, and the gallant 3d Brigade began to break, retiring over the hill in its rear, and back into the open fields. McClernand, with the balance of his corps, was momentarily expected, and was now looked for with the greatest anxiety; but relief came from another and unexpected quarter. Just then two regiments of the 2d Brigade, which had been left the night before at Clinton, as a sort of body-guard to General Grant, came in view, down the road, at double-quick. The 17th Iowa was in the advance, and was closely followed by the 10th Missouri; and both regiments did not number more than five hundred and fifty men. In the instant that these troops were seen by Colonel Putnam of the 93d Illinois, he came riding back at full run, without his hat, and his brown, wavy hair streaming in the wind, shouting to Colonel Hillis, of the 17th: "For God's sake, Colonel, hurry up—we can not stand another minute;" and the fields to the right, which were filled with the affrighted and fleeing stragglers, were proof of what he said. With the handful of reinforcements thus brought up, the scale of battle was turned; and, before McClernand had arrived, the enemy were hastening in total rout back in the direction of Vicksburg.

To show the determination and valor with which the 5th Iowa and its brigade fought, I will give one instance, which came under my own observation. On arriving at the top of the hill from which our lines had been driven, I noticed a noble young boy lying near the road. He was shot through both legs, and was unable to stand; but he had his musket in his hands, and was loading and firing on the advancing enemy. We were now under a galling fire, and I saw no more of the brave boy till the enemy were driven from the field. On returning afterward to look for the dead and wounded of my company, I saw him lying in the same spot, but he was dead. I do not know his name or his regiment; but he must have belonged to the 5th Iowa, or the 93d Illinois.

The 5th Iowa, in this engagement, lost nineteen killed and seventy-five wounded, out of an aggregate of three hundred and fifty officers and men. There were many individual instances of gallantry; but I am able to mention only the names of Captains Tait, Lee and Pickerell.

The same night of the battle, the 5th Iowa marched two miles in the direction of Vicksburg; and the next night camped on the Big Black. On the 19th instant, the regiment with its brigade arrived in rear of Vicksburg; and, from that time until the fall of the city, its history is the same as that of the 10th Iowa, and the other regiments of its brigade. I might add that, from the fall of Vicksburg up to the winter of 1864, its history is the same as that of its brigade. Early in September, 1863, the 5th Iowa left with its division for the purpose of joining the army of General Steele in Arkansas; but, on arriving at Helena, learned that no reinforcements were needed in that quarter. From Helena it moved up the river to Memphis, and from that point marched across the country with General Sherman to Chattanooga, where with its brigade it took a distinguished part in the engagement of the 25th of November. On the night of the 24th instant, the regiment stood picket near the Chattanooga and Knoxville Railroad, just where it passes the north point of Mission Ridge; and the next day, at noon, joined its brigade and moved out through the open fields as elsewhere described, to engage the enemy. After arriving at the White House, which was near the base of the hill for which General Sherman was fighting, the chief portion of the regiment was deployed as skirmishers to the right and front of its brigade, and remained thus deployed till a retreat was ordered. The total loss of the 5th Iowa in this engagement was one hundred and six; but the greater portion of these were captured in the sudden left flank movement of the enemy. Two commissioned officers were wounded, and eight captured; among the latter were Major Marshall and Adjutant Byers.

Subsequently to Grant's victory at Chattanooga, there is little in the history of the 5th Iowa Infantry of striking interest. It joined its division in the pursuit of Bragg, as far as Graysville, Georgia, and then returned to Chattanooga. After going into several temporary camps along the road, it finally reached Huntsville, Alabama, where it passed the following Winter. In April, it came North on veteran furlough; returned to the field early in May; served for a short time on the Huntsville and Decatur Railroad, and was then ordered to Kingston, Georgia. On the 8th of August, 1864, the veterans of the regiment, by special order of the -War Department, No. 262, were transferred to the 5th Iowa Cavalry, and assigned as Companies G and I, under the following officers: Captain Albert G. Ellis, 1st Lieutenant Jeremiah M. Lembocker, and Second Lieutenant William S. Peck, of Company G; Captain William G. M'Elrae, 1st Lieutenant Robert A. McKee, and 2d Lieutenant John Q. A. Campbell, of Company I.

At Mission Ridge Colonel Banbury showed great courage, riding constantly under the heavy artillery - and musketry - fire of the enemy. The same night of the engagement, he was assigned to the command of his brigade; for General Matthies, the brigade commander, had been wounded as I have already stated. There is one other item in the colonel's military history, which I should not omit to mention. At the battle of Corinth, October 3d and 4th, 1862, he commanded the 17th

Iowa Infantry; and led it in the charge in which the regiment captured the colors of the 40th Mississippi, and between one and two hundred prisoners.

Although I served in the same division with Colonel Banbury for many months, I never saw him to know him; but I am told by good authority that "he is reticent in manners, intelligent though not educated, honest, upright, and thoroughly reliable." As a soldier, he ranked among the best officers of his division; and, had he possessed sufficient impudence, would doubtless have been promoted to a brigadier-general.

SOURCE: Stuart, A. A., Iowa Colonels and Regiments, p. 139-46

BRIGADIER-GENERAL C. L. MATTHIES

SECOND COLONEL, FIFTH INFANTRY.

Charles Leopold Matthies was the first man in the State of Iowa, and in the United States, to tender a military company to the Government, to aid in crushing the rebellion. The tender was made by letter through Governor Kirkwood, on the 9th day of January, 1861. The general can not be prouder of the distinction which this act has secured him, than is the State of Iowa.

General Matthies is a Prussian by birth, and was born in Bromberg, on the 31st day of May, 1824. When sixteen years of age, his father, an affluent fanner, sent him to the University at Halle, where he received a thorough military education. On leaving that University, he returned home; and, from that time till he reached his twentieth year, he labored on his father's farm. At the age of twenty, he entered the Prussian army; and, in 1847, served in the campaign against the Insurrectionists, (the Poles) under General Miroslawski. In 1848, he resigned the commission which he had won by his good conduct, and a few months later emigrated to America, arriving in New York in the spring of 1849. In the latter part of the same year, he came to Iowa, and settled in Burlington, where, engaging in mercantile pursuits, he has made his home ever since.

General Matthies entered the volunteer service, as captain of Company D, 1st Iowa Infantry — that noble regiment which, by its heroism at Wilson's Creek, established the military prowess of the State. He was not present in that engagement; for, in the latter part of July, he received notice of his promotion to the lieutenant-colonelcy of the 5th Iowa, and at once left to report to that regiment. After the death of Colonel Worthington, he was promoted to the colonelcy. He shared with his regiment the fatigues and hardships of the Missouri campaigns; was with it at Island No. 10, and during the siege of Corinth; and yet, prior to the battle of Iuka, his name was hardly known outside of his own brigade. It was his courage and gallantry in that sanguinary battle that made him distinguished in his army corps, and earned for him the commission of a brigadier-general.

After the evacuation of Corinth, the 5th Iowa, under Colonel Matthies, joined in the pursuit of Beauregard to Boonville, and returned thence to Clear Springs, near Corinth. Late in June, it marched to Ripley with its division; returned immediately to Rienzi, and, on the 10th of July, marched back to Clear Springs. From Clear Springs it changed camp to Jacinto, and, from that point, marched against Price at Iuka, in the evening of the 18th of September, 1862. With the exception of the last, the regiment met the enemy in none of these movements.

General Rosecrans, by incautiously pushing his advance too far, precipitated the battle of Iuka on the afternoon of the 19th of September, when, in accordance with pre-arranged plans, it should have been fought on the morning of the 20th. General Grant first arranged to fight the battle as early as the morning of the 19th instant; and, with that understanding, the forces of Ord moved out from Corinth in the afternoon of the 17th, and the evening of the next day came up with, and drove in the enemy's pickets. But at that hour the chief part of Rosecrans' command was still at Jacinto, and the time for making the attack was changed. General Price, divining Grant's plan of concentration, hurried out from Iuka in the afternoon of the 19th, and threw his entire army against Rosecrans, hoping to overwhelm him before Ord could come up; and thus it happened that Rosecrans fought alone the heedless battle of Iuka. There is another version of this affair, which, judging by the authority from which I receive it, is doubtless the correct one: that Rosecrans, ambitious, and desirous of superseding General Grant, moved up against Price for the express purpose of bringing on a battle and winning glory, well knowing at the time that he was disobeying orders. Any other general, except the magnanimous Grant, would have at once relieved him and put him in arrest.

The 5th Iowa under Matthies, together with the 10th, 16th and 17th Iowa, the 10th Missouri and 80th Ohio, were among the troops in the van of Rosecrans' forces, and were the first to encounter the enemy. The struggle which ensued was protracted and desperate in the extreme; indeed, for courage and endurance it has few parallels. No pen can do more than credit to the 5th Iowa Infantry for its heroism in this terrible engagement. During the fore part of the day, while en route from Jacinto to Iuka, this regiment led the advance of the 3d Division, and, for more than six miles, continued to drive back the enemy, who, in small force, made repeated stands. When the enemy were finally met in force some three miles southwest of Iuka, the 5th Iowa was one of the first regiments in line of battle; and, from that time until it fired its last cartridge, it maintained its position. Its list of casualties is proof of its gallantry. It lost in killed, wounded and missing, from an aggregate of four hundred and eighty-two that went into the fight, two hundred and seventeen men. Fifteen commissioned officers were killed and wounded; and, of the enlisted men, thirty-four were killed, and one hundred and sixty-eight wounded. Lieutenants Lafayette Shawl and E. M. Holcomb were killed, and Captains John Albaugh and Joel Brown, and Lieutenants R. F. Patterson, J. W. Casad, A. L. Mateer, A. Ellis, J. E. Page, Benjamin Jarvis, A. B. Lewis, S. S. Sample, J. E. Pangborn, W. C. Huber and W. H. Colton were wounded. Lieutenant Mateer died of his wounds soon after the battle. Among those mentioned for special gallantry were Lieutenant-Colonel Sampson, and Lieutenant and Acting-Major Patterson, and Lieutenant Marshall. Nearly all were equally deserving of mention.

The 5th was General S. Hamilton's pet regiment; and, after the battle, Colonel Matthies enclosed to him his official report, to which he received the following reply:

"NEW York, October 27th, 1862. " Colonel, C. L. Matthies, 5th Iowa Infantry:

"My Dear Colonel: In sending to me the report of the brilliant conduct of the 5th Iowa at Iuka, September 19th, 1862, you have given me a very great pleasure, as well as paid me a great compliment. When I read the newspaper accounts of battles in the vicinity of Corinth, though still sick, my heart thrilled with pride and satisfaction at the splendid conduct of the regiments composing my old division, especially that of the 5th Iowa and 26th Missouri.

"To show you how well understood it is, the 5th Iowa has become a household word with us, and my youngest boy, a prattler of four years of age, when asked what company he belongs to, says, (and he breakfasts in his knapsack) 'Company A, Fifth Iowa—papa's pet regiment.'

"I am under orders from Washington, and though I may not again have the honor to number the 5th Iowa among those under my command, I shall always point to its conduct, as an evidence of the character of the troops from that State, and how kindly they respond to, and confer honor upon those who have diligently endeavored to look after their welfare, discipline, and instruction, which I honestly think I may claim a share in having done. Feeling, Colonel, that their honor is my honor, I shall watch their future career with the same interest I watched over them when a part of my command. Write my compliments and kind remembrances to all. Believe me, very truly your friend,

"SCHUYLER HAMILTON, "Major-General Volunteers, U. S. A"

The 5th Iowa Infantry next engaged the enemy at Corinth- October 3d and 4th, 1862; and, from that date until the 24th of April, 1863, the time of Colonel Matthies' promotion to brigadier-general, its history is the same as that of the 10th and, I might add, that of the 17th Iowa; for these three regiments served in the same division.

After receiving, in April, 1863, a brigadier's commission, General Matthies was ordered to report to General McPherson, who assigned him to the command of the 7th Division, 17th Army Corps; but this order being soon after recalled, he was given command of the 3d Brigade, 3d Division, 15th Army Corps, which he commanded, under General Sherman, from Grand Gulf to Jackson and thence to the rear of Vicksburg. He continued in command of this brigade until the death of Colonel Boomer, of the 26th Missouri, when he was sent back to his old army corps, and given command of the 3d Brigade, of the 7th Division. On leaving the command of General Sherman, that officer honored him with an autograph letter, in which he complimented him highly for his efficient services. His new command was composed of the following troops: the 5th and 10th Iowa, the 26th Missouri and 93d Illinois—four as gallant regiments as ever met the enemy in battle. In the latter part of January, 1864, he was given command of a temporary division, made up of different regiments of the 15th Army Corps, with which he marched to East Tennessee, to aid in driving back Longstreet, who was then threatening Knoxville. Returning from this expedition, he was assigned to an important command, with head-quarters at Decatur, Alabama. He had charge of the Nashville and Decatur Railroad as far north as Linnville, and of the Memphis and Charleston Railroad as far east as Huntsville. He removed his head-quarters to Decatur, on the 1st of May, 1864, and at once began fortifying that place. The works which he erected were of the most imposing character;—so formidable that General Hood, in his flanking tour north, did not essay their capture. In the latter part of May, 1864, the general tendered his resignation, which was reluctantly accepted.

I should not close this sketch without stating briefly the distinguished part General Matthies sustained in the operations around Chattanooga, in November, 1863. General Bragg was defeated in the evening of the 24th, and his only hope, on the morning of the 25th, was to save his baggage, stores and artillery. The point on Mission Ridge that commanded the road over which these must pass was on Grant's extreme left, and, during the entire day of the 25th, the divisions of Ewing, John E. Smith, Morgan L. Smith and Jefferson C. Davis had sharp and sanguinary fighting for its possession; but it had been so strongly fortified, and Bragg had massed his troops there to such an extent that, all efforts on the part of General Sherman were fruitless. There was no harder fighting done on any portion of Mission Ridge or Lookout Mountain, than was done on this point; and acts of individual gallantry, on the part of the Union troops, were numerous. Colonel Holden Putnam of the 93d Illinois, although not an Iowa man, deserves special mention; and nothing can give the Iowa troops, who fought with him on Mission Ridge and at Champion's Hill, more pleasure than to meet his name on these pages. His was the first regiment of General Matthies' Brigade to scale the hill from the White House and assault the enemy in their strong works. His command was instantly repulsed; but, undaunted, he rallied his men, and, seizing the colors, dashed on to the top of the hill in spite of all remonstrances. He was shot dead instantly, through the head. The 26th Missouri soon followed the 93d Illinois, and then the 5th and 10th Iowa, with General Matthies in person; and still the enemy, rejoicing in the strength of their numbers and position, maintained their ground. The 2d Brigade of the same division now came up; but in a few moments after the enemy, emerging in strong force from the railroad tunnel near by, and with their movements concealed by dense brush, suddenly made their appearance in rear of the right flank, when a retreat was ordered. The command was, "For God's sake, get out of this!" It was on that hill-top that General Matthies was wounded; and it was that wound, together with the exposures and hardships of the previous campaign, that broke down his health, in consequence of which he tendered his resignation. He was an excellent officer, and had a reputation for promptness and trustworthiness that but few enjoyed in his division.

General Matthies is a little above the medium in size, with a full breast and heavy shoulders. He has mild, gray eyes, and a round, full, good-natured face. To look at him, you would not take him for a foreigner; but he no sooner speaks than he betrays his nativity. He has never been able to master the accent of our language. He is one of those men whom to know is to like. His sanguine temperament, and earnest, open-hearted disposition enables him, in his happy moods, to talk and laugh with extreme good nature, and, in his less happy ones, to hate and berate his enemies most intensely. He was always on kind and familiar terms with every soldier of his command, and his familiarity in no way interfered with his discipline. The soldiers loved "old Dutchie," he was so good and brave.

I can not take leave of General Matthies without relating the following: When the division of John E. Smith was in camp back of Memphis, late in February, 1863, the general chanced one day to be general officer of the day. At about seven o'clock in the morning of the day in question, a captain, whose 2d lieutenant had deserted to the enemy the night before, and whose 1st lieutenant was enjoying himself in the city, arrived on the picket-line to relieve the old picket-guard. The captain left his reserve in charge of a sergeant, while he went to distribute the first relief at the different posts, and give proper instructions. In his absence, the officer of the day made his appearance. Having at some point stole his way through the lines, he came riding down the road at full speed, and was on the reserve before the sergeant could get his men in line to receive him. The general, who was dressed in a common soldier's overcoat, and without any scarf or other insignia of his office, began administering a rebuke for negligence; but was quickly cut short by the sergeant, who replied, "How did I know who you was? you haven't got any scarf on; I thought it was a soldier just coming in from foraging." "Well, well," said the general, "I know; but — you must be on the watch for guerrillas."

SOURCE: Stuart, A. A., Iowa Colonels and Regiments, p. 131-8