Showing posts with label 28th IA INF. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 28th IA INF. Show all posts

Friday, March 24, 2017

Diary of 1st Lieutenant John S. Morgan: Wednesday, June 7, 1865

On duty as officer of guard A. M. cos D. G. F & A. of 33d & 4 cos of 28th get off. P. M. balance of 33d off. I left on board with detail to guard & transfer Regt property. Sea rough Bellevedeere in

SOURCE: “Diary of John S. Morgan, Company G, 33rd Iowa Infantry,” Annals of Iowa, 3rd Series, Vol. 13, No. 8, April 1923, p. 605

Diary of 1st Lieutenant John S. Morgan: Friday, June 9, 1865

Sea calmer, schooner alongside 1. co of 28th embark, and over about ½ Regt Baggaged & ½ detail goes over, P. M. The Lighter comes alongside & takes the balance of 28th except a small detail. Morgoritter arrives at 12, M. About 2 P. M. a schooner is towed alongside, our orders to load everything on her. get the horses. Regt stores & part of Com stores aboard, 3 P. M. the lighter brings out 50 passengers 15 ladies amongst them. The Hudson arrives with troops, sky cloudy & capt talks much of danger of a norther

SOURCE: “Diary of John S. Morgan, Company G, 33rd Iowa Infantry,” Annals of Iowa, 3rd Series, Vol. 13, No. 8, April 1923, p. 605

Friday, July 8, 2016

Diary of 4th Sergeant John S. Morgan: Thursday, April 9, 1863

In camp on side hill above Helena. 5th and 28th Iowa ordered down the river.

SOURCE: “Diary of John S. Morgan, Company G, 33rd Iowa Infantry,” Annals of Iowa, 3rd Series, Vol. 13, No. 7, January 1923, p. 487

Monday, December 19, 2011

The Twenty-Eighth Iowa Infantry

The Twenty-eighth was made up of companies raised in the counties of Benton, Iowa, Tama, Poweshiek, Johnson and Jasper, in August and September, 1862. At the time it went into camp at Iowa City it numbered 956 men. The field officers were, colonel, William E. Miller; lieutenant-colonel, John Connell: major, H. B. Lynch. Early in November it embarked for Helena, Ark., where it remained most of the time until January 11, 1863, when it joined General Gorman's expedition up the White river. The weather was very severe, and the men suffered greatly from exposure and sickness, resulting in many deaths. Returning to Helena, the regiment went into rude winter quarters, where disease ravaged the camps and death and misery reigned everywhere. With clothing worn out, clad in rags, living in rude huts, without pay, or any of the ordinary comforts of life, it was a winter of wretchedness and despair never forgotten. On the 14th of February General Washburn left Helena with a large force to remove the obstructions from Yazoo Pass. Great trees had been felled across the river, and the men worked here in the swamps and water, dragging with cables the obstructions from the pass. Soon after the return to camp Colonel Miller resigned, and was succeeded by Colonel Connell, and Capt. B. W. Wilson was promoted to lieutenant-colonel. On the 11th of April the Twenty-eighth, then brigaded with the Twenty-fourth Iowa, and other regiments started on the Vicksburg campaign. It was first under fire at the battle of Port Gibson, and fought bravely, losing seventeen men. At the battle of Champion Hill, on the 16th, the officers and men fought like veterans. General Hovey says: "Of the Twenty-fourth and Twenty-eighth Iowa — in what language shall I speak? Scarcely more than six months in the service, and yet no troops ever showed more bravery or fought with more valor." The Twenty-eighth in this battle lost 100 men in killed and wounded. It was in the siege of Vicksburg, and after its surrender was sent to assist in the Jackson campaign. Major Lynch resigned and was succeeded by Capt. John Meyer.

In September the regiment was sent to western Louisiana and was with General Franklin's army on its march to Opelousas in November.

In March it was sent to join General Banks in the disastrous Red river expedition. It fought well at Sabine Cross Roads, where Colonel Connell was severely wounded and taken prisoner; in the absence of higher officers Capt. Thos. Dillin took command. When the army, in its retreat, reached Grand Ecore, Lieutenant-Colonel Wilson joined his regiment, bringing a number of recruits.

In June the regiment was lying at Carrollton where Colonel Connell, who had been exchanged, rejoined his command, having lost an arm at the time of his capture. In July, 1864, the regiment embarked for Alexandria, Va., which place it reached on the 2d of August. Soon after it was sent with the Twenty-second and Twenty-fourth Iowa to join Sheridan's army in the Shenandoah Valley.

At the battle of Winchester it was heavily engaged and lost ninety men. On the 22d it was in the battle of Fisher's Hill, where it captured a battery with small loss.

At the battle of Cedar Creek the Twenty-eighth did valiant service. Overborne, in the early part of the day by the furious onset of the enemy, the regiment made a vigorous resistance and Lieutenant-Colonel Wilson was borne from the field severely wounded. Major Meyer took command and soon, the tide of battle turning; the confederates were driven with heavy loss, the Iowa regiments joining in the pursuit. The Twenty-eighth lost nearly a hundred men in killed, wounded and prisoners.

In January, 1865, it was sent to Savannah and joined Schofield, and remained in Georgia until late in June, when it was mustered out of the service, numbering about 500. It reached Davenport in August, where it was disbanded.

SOURCE, Benjamin F. Gue, Biographies And Portraits Of The Progressive Men Of Iowa, Volume 1, p. 110-1

Sunday, November 20, 2011

The Twenty-Second Iowa Infantry.

Seven companies of this regiment were raised in Johnson county, one in Jasper, one in Monroe and one in Wapello. It was mustered into service at Iowa City on the 9th of September, 1862. Its first field officers were Wm. M. Stone, colonel; John A. Garrett, lieutenant-colonel; Harvey Graham, major. The regiment was first sent to Rolla, Mo., where it did garrison duty for about four months. In March, 1863, it was sent to Grant's army to take part in the Vicksburg campaign, and was in the First brigade of the Fourteenth division of the Thirteenth army corps, under General McClernand.

At the battle of Port Gibson, Colonel Stone commanded the brigade, and Major Atherton led the Twenty-second regiment, which lost twenty men. At the battles of Champion Hill and Black River Bridge the loss of the Twenty-second was light. Having driven Pemberton's army behind the fortifications of Vicksburg, General Grant determined to assault the works on the 22d of May. Early in the morning the artillery from the fleet and all of the guns in position in the rear opened on the enemy's works and kept up a heavy fire until l0 o'clock. Then the bugles sounded the charge and the assaulting columns moved forward with fixed bayonets. They were met by a terrible fire of musketry all along the lines. Still the troops pressed on and fell before the deadly fire by hundreds. It was impossible to face the terrible volleys which smote the advancing columns. They sought such shelter as they could find and returned the fire, but could not dislodge the enemy.

The Twenty-second led the charge made by the brigade under General Lawler, and a few men, led by Sergeant Griffith scaled the enemy's defenses, entered the fort and captured some prisoners. But most of them were killed or captured; Sergeant Griffith and David Trine alone escaped. Lieutenant-Colonel Graham and several men were captured in the ditch, and the assault was ended.

The loss of the regiment was 164. There were sixteen Iowa regiments engaged in this battle, the Fourth, Fifth, Eighth, Ninth, Tenth, Twelfth, Seventeenth, Twenty-first, Twenty-second, Twenty-fourth, Twenty-fifth, Twenty-sixth, Twenty-eighth, Thirtieth, Thirty-first and Thirty-fifth, and the First and Second Iowa batteries.

Before the end of the siege, which followed the assault, Iowa had thirty regiments in Grant's army, which won this greatest victory of the war.

In this campaign the confederacy lost, in killed and wounded, 10,000 men, and in prisoners, 37,000, fifteen general officers, arms and munitions for an army of 60,000, and an immense amount of property, with the strongest fortified city in the limits of the confederacy, opening the navigation of the greatest river of the continent.

No soldiers in this great campaign surpassed those of Iowa. The First Iowa brigade led the advance at Port Gibson; the Seventeenth surpassed all others at Jackson; the Twenty-fourth and Twenty-eighth won immortal honors at Champion Hill; the Twenty-first and Twenty-third covered themselves with glory at Black River Bridge, while the Twenty-second alone, at the assault on Vicksburg, entered the confederate defenses. Colonel Stone resigned soon after the surrender of Vicksburg, having been nominated for governor by the Iowa republicans. The Twenty-second regiment was sent to Texas in November, where it was employed several months, Lieutenant-Colonel Graham having been promoted to colonel, Major White promoted to lieutenant-colonel, and Captain Gearkee, major. In July, 1864, it was transferred to Virginia, and in August became a part of General Sheridan's army and took part in the battle of Winchester. It made a most gallant fight in that great battle and did its full share in winning a glorious victory. Its losses were heavy and among them were several of its bravest officers: 109 were killed, wounded and captured. At the battles of Fisher's Hill and Cedar Creek the Twenty-second was engaged and met with losses. These were its last battles, and on the 3d of August, 1865, it was disbanded at Davenport, after having traveled more than 13,000 miles and served in nearly all of the southern states.

SOURCE, Benjamin F. Gue, Biographies And Portraits Of The Progressive Men Of Iowa, Volume 1, p. 106-7

Friday, August 13, 2010

Andrew J. Myers

MYERS, A. J. — Farmer and stock-raiser, Sec. 10. P. O. West Pilot. Was born June 26, 1843, in Knox county, Ohio. When six years of age he moved with his parents to this State and settled in Mahaska county where he lived three years. He then moved to Poweshiek county, Iowa, where he lived until the breaking out of the war, and then enlisted in the Thirteenth Iowa infantry, company I, in 1861, and served until March. 1862, and was discharged on account of ill health. He again enlisted in August, 1862, in company C, Twenty-Eighth Iowa infantry, and served until the end of the war. He was in the battles of Port Gibson, Raymond, and Champion's Hill, where he was wounded and laid up for one year. He was mustered out in August, 1865, and he returned to Poweshiek county. He came to this county in 1866. He was married in 1866 to Mrs. Catharine Coover and by this union have five children: Perry C., Emery E., Drusilla C. George W. and Jessie L. Mr. Myers has been township clerk for four years, and is elected for the two ensuing years. He is a man who takes a warm interest in the welfare of the county. He now owns a fine farm of 80 acres.

SOURCE: Union Historical Company, The History Of Iowa County, Iowa (1881), p. 689

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Twenty-Second Regiment Iowa Volunteer Infantry

The Twenty-second Regiment of Iowa Infantry Volunteers was composed of ten companies, seven of which were organized in Johnson County, and one each in the counties of Jasper, Monroe and Wapello. The records in the office of the Adjutant General of Iowa show that the companies were ordered into quarters by the Governor, on dates ranging from June 16 to August 30, 1862. The rendezvous designated in the order was Camp Pope, near Iowa City, and there, on the 7th, 9th and 10th days of September, 1862, they were mustered into the service of the United States, by Captain H. B. Hendershott, of the Regular Army [see note 1]. Major William M. Stone, of the Third Regiment Iowa Infantry, who had served with that regiment from the commencement of the war, and was wounded in the first general engagement in which it participated, and who had commanded the regiment at the battle of Shiloh, an officer in every way well qualified to assume the duties of regimental commander, was commissioned Colonel of the Twenty-second Regiment, on the 21st of May, 1862, by Governor Kirkwood, and, with his characteristic energy, proceeded to organize the regiment, when the companies which had been assigned to it had reported at the rendezvous. The regiment was fortunate in securing the services of this able and experienced soldier as its first commander [see note 2]. Upon the completion of the muster rolls, the regiment showed an aggregate strength of 952 enlisted men and officers, but early additional enlistments brought the number up to 1,008, about the maximum strength of an infantry regiment, including Field and Staff officers. There was but a short interval between the date of the muster in of the last company and the completion of the organization of his regiment until Colonel Stone received orders to take the field.

On the evening of September 14, 1862, the regiment left its camp at Iowa City and was conveyed by rail to Davenport, where it embarked on steamer and proceeded to St. Louis, where it arrived on the 18th, marched to Benton Barracks, was assigned to quarters, and was there thoroughly equipped for active service. On the 22d of September the regiment was ordered to Rolla, Mo., to which place it was conveyed by rail, and, arriving there on the 23d, went into camp about two miles from the town. It was subsequently assigned to duty at the post of Rolla, and was engaged in guarding commissary stores and the railroad and in escorting supply trains to the Army of Southeast Missouri, until the 27th of January, 1863, on which date it received orders to join the army under General Davidson, at West Plains, Mo. After a march of five days it reached its destination, and was assigned to the Second Brigade, Second Division, Army of Southeast Missouri. The brigade consisted of the Twenty-first, Twenty-second and Twenty-third Regiments of Iowa Infantry, and was under command of Colonel Stone of the Twenty-second.

On the 9th of February, 1863, the regiment with its brigade took up the line of march towards Iron Mountain, arriving there on February 26th. This long march through a mountainous region, at an inclement season of the year, with insufficient rations, was a severe test of the fortitude of the men, but they endured the hardships and privations to which they were subjected without complaint, and demonstrated their capacity to withstand such exposure and suffering to the fullest extent. The army remained encamped at Iron Mountain until March 9th, upon which date orders were received to join the army under command of General Grant, in the great Vicksburg campaign. In compliance with orders, the troops took up the line of march for St. Genevieve, Mo., on the Mississippi River, which place was reached on the 12th of March. Transportation was not secured until March 22d, upon which date the regiment embarked on the transport "Black Hawk," and was conveyed down the river to Milliken's Bend, where it arrived and disembarked on the 27th, and went into camp. The other troops of the Army of Southeast Missouri reached Milliken's Bend by the 1st of April. In the reorganization of the troops, which then took place, the Twenty-second Iowa was assigned to the Second Brigade, of the Fourteenth Division, Thirteenth Army Corps. The other regiments assigned to the brigade were the Twenty-first and Twenty-third Iowa, and the Eleventh Wisconsin Infantry. Colonel C. L. Harris of the latter regiment, being the senior officer, was assigned to the command of the brigade; Brigadier General Eugene A. Carr was in command of the division and Major General John A. McClernand was the corps commander. The Army of Southeast Missouri had thus been merged into the Army of the Tennessee.

On the morning of April 12th, the Twenty-second Iowa, with its brigade, received orders to march to Richmond, La., and, having driven a small body of the enemy's cavalry from that place, marched to Carthage, thence to Perkins’ Landing, and there went into camp to await the arrival of the rest of the division and corps. On the evening of April 27th, the Thirteenth Army Corps embarked on transports, and, on the morning of the 28th, proceeded down the river to Hard Times Landing, opposite the mouth of Black River and near Grand Gulf, where the enemy had erected fortifications and powerful water batteries on a bluff commanding the entrance to the river. On the morning of the 29th, the fleet, headed by the gunboat "Benton," moved down and engaged the rebel batteries. After a terrible bombardment, lasting several hours, during which several of the rebel guns were dismounted, the plan was abandoned. Having failed in the movement which seemed to have been intended for a combined attack by the land and naval forces upon this impregnable position of the enemy, the Thirteenth Army Corps was ordered to move from Hard Times Landing to a point on the river three miles below Grand Gulf, and there go into bivouac until morning. During the night the fleet of transports and gunboats, which had successfully run the blockade at Vicksburg, passed the rebel batteries.

On the morning of April 30th, the Thirteenth Army Corps embarked on transports and gunboats and proceeded down the river, landing, about 3 P. M., sixteen miles below Grand Gulf, at the village of Bruinsburg. At 4 P. M. the army marched in the direction of Port Gibson. The Twenty-second Iowa, with its brigade, formed the extreme advance of the army. Colonel Harris not being able to proceed with the troops on account of illness, the command of the brigade devolved upon Colonel Stone of the Twenty-second Iowa. At 1 o'clock A. M„ May 1st, the advanced guard, composed of one company of the Twenty-first Iowa, was suddenly fired upon by the enemy's pickets, about three miles from Port Gibson. The official report of Major Atherton, who was in command of the Twenty-second Iowa, describes the movements and conduct of the regiment in the preliminary engagement on the night of April 30th, and in the battle of Port Gibson on May 1, 1863, and is here quoted, as follows [see note 3]:


CAMP NEAR ROCKY SPRINGS, MISS., May 7, 1863.

COLONEL WILLIAM M. STONE,

SIR: I herewith report to you the action of the Twenty-second Iowa in the battle before Port Gibson, Miss., on the 1st inst. You having been called upon to command the Second Brigade, to which we were attached, the command of the regiment devolved upon me. On the evening of the 30th ultimo, on our march toward Port Gibson, Miss., after our advanced guard became engaged with the enemy, I received an order from you to hurry my regiment forward and form it in line on the left of our artillery, then hotly engaged with the rebel batteries. This order was promptly obeyed, and the men came up quickly and in good order, forming at the point designated. We were then under the enemy's fire, yet my men manifested great coolness and self-possession. We remained in line for two hours in support of the batteries, until the battle ceased for the night, and we lay down upon our arms, but not to sleep, as we were in momentary expectation of a renewal of the combat. Soon after sunrise we were again in line and under the enemy's fire, in support of our batteries, until near 10 o'clock, when we were led forward to charge on the rebel lines. This movement was executed with alacrity by my regiment. Not a man faltered or fell back. Our fire was delivered upon the enemy with great deliberation and accuracy, and when their lines were broken and they driven in rout from the field, we were among the first to occupy their field. In the long and hotly contested fight of the afternoon, my regiment was all the time in the face of the enemy and under his severest fire. Three times we were ordered against the rebel infantry and under the range of his batteries. Each time we drove them from the field. Late in the afternoon, by your order, we charged up the hill in conjunction with the Twenty-first Iowa, and on the left of General Burbridge's brigade, against the enemy's lines, there strongly posted in almost impenetrable timber and underbrush. Though unable, from the character of the ground and the raking fire of the enemy's batteries, to reach the extreme summit of the hill, we reached the point to which I was ordered, and remained there, receiving and returning the enemy's fire, until about sundown, when, by your order, we returned to our former position, and remained on the field until the firing had entirely ceased and quiet reigned along our whole line.

Throughout this series of engagements the officers and men of my regiment behaved with great coolness and gallantry. I found them always ready and eager to obey the order to move on the enemy. So well did the entire command acquit themselves. I cannot, without seeming invidiousness, enter into particulars. It is sufficient to say that they acted nobly, and well sustained the honors already earned by Iowa soldiers. Great care was taken to shelter our men from the enemy's fire, which the unevenness of the ground enabled us to do with comparative success, yet the loss in this regiment being greater, with but one exception, than any other regiment in the brigade, shows clearly where we were during this long and hotly contested engagement, and that my men did not shrink from their duty. Too much praise cannot be awarded to our surgeons, White and Peabody. Their department was conducted with skill and ability. Their attention to the wounded was truly commendable and will doubtless long be remembered by these unfortunates. The following is a list of the killed and wounded [see note 4]. Several not enumerated were very slightly wounded, but continued on the field until the close of the fight.

Very respectfully,

J. B. ATHERTON,
Major Commanding Regiment.


The official report of the commander of the brigade, Colonel W. M. Stone of the Twenty-second Iowa, describes with minute particularity the movements and conduct of his command. He especially commends the conduct of Colonel Merrill of the Twenty-first Iowa, Major Atherton of the Twenty-second Iowa, Lieutenant Colonel Glasgow of the Twenty-third Iowa, Lieutenant Colonel Wood of the Eleventh Wisconsin, and Captain Griffiths of the First Iowa Battery, and adds this further commendation: "Their associate officers, too, are entitled to great credit, as all of them, so far as I have been able to learn, performed their duties nobly. To the dauntless and heroic men of the ranks, and the line officers, all honor is due. Never did brave men endure more with less murmuring than they, during these thirty consecutive hours of hard marching and severe fighting, and, when the history of the war is fully written, they will be remembered among the bravest defenders of the Republic." [See note 5.]

The official report of General Carr, the division commander, speaks in the highest terms of the conduct of Colonel Stone and the officers and men of his brigade, and gives the following summary of losses: "The loss of the First Brigade was: Killed, 28; wounded, 134; that of the Second Brigade was: Killed, 13; wounded, 88. Total in the division, 263." [See note 6.]

Early on the morning of the second day of May, the army marched in pursuit of the enemy. At Bayou Pierre, the Second Brigade was ordered to halt for the purpose of rebuilding a bridge, which had been destroyed by the enemy the night previous. The bridge was completed and the march resumed on the evening of May 4th. Colonel Stone had been relieved of the command of the brigade by General M. K. Lawler, and had resumed command of his regiment. On May 13th, the Second Brigade arrived at Mississippi Springs, where it was ordered to remain as guard for the transportation train of the division until the 16th, on which date it returned to Raymond and rejoined the division and corps, which then marched towards Edwards' Station, and arrived in the vicinity of Champion's Hill while the battle which was fought there was in progress. General Carr's Division was held in reserve until just at the close of the battle, when it was ordered forward to pursue the retreating enemy and endeavor to cut off the retreat. The pursuit was continued to Edwards' Station, which was reached at 10 P. M., and a train of commissary and ordnance stores and other supplies of the rebel army was captured, together with over 200 prisoners. It was no fault of the Twenty-second Iowa and the other troops of their brigade and division that they did not have a larger share of the fighting at Champion's Hill. They stood waiting for the order to go into action during the progress of the battle, but the order was not given until the enemy was in full retreat and it was too late to successfully execute the flanking movement by which it was hoped to intercept the retreat and prevent the escape of the enemy. Had the order been given sooner, that result might have been accomplished, and the Twenty-second Iowa and the troops with which it was associated would have had a more conspicuous record in the battle of Champion's Hill, and a greater loss would have been inflicted upon the rebel army.

At daylight, on the morning of May 17th, the regiment with its brigade resumed the pursuit of the enemy. General Carr's Division now led the advance. The march was conducted with great vigor and, at 10 A. M., the enemy's pickets were encountered about two miles from their fortifications on Black River. Space will not permit a detailed description of the battle which ensued or the conditions which confronted the troops making the attack. Suffice it to say that, when the pickets of the enemy had been driven in and their position developed, it became evident that their defeat could only be accomplished after a desperate struggle. Having reconnoitered the position and determined upon the most accessible point of attack, the Thirteenth Corps moved forward, with General Carr's Division in advance. Skirmishing was renewed and continued for several hours. General Lawler, whose brigade occupied the extreme right, discovered that by moving his brigade under cover of the river bank a charge on the enemy's works from that point might be successfully made. He therefore ordered his brigade to charge and, if possible, carry the works. The Twenty-third Iowa, led by the gallant Colonel Kinsman, was in the van, followed by the Twenty-first Iowa and the Eleventh Wisconsin; while the Twenty-second Iowa, on the extreme right of the brigade, was ordered to move down the river bank against the enemy's left, which rested on the river. The order was most gallantly executed. In less than twenty minutes after the order to charge was given, the main line of the enemy's works had been captured. In his official report General Lawler gives a carefully detailed account of the movements and conduct of the different regiments composing his brigade. In its position upon the extreme right, the Twenty-second Iowa, while rendering most important service, did not come under the direct fire of the enemy and, therefore, escaped with the least loss of any of the regiments of the brigade. It implicitly obeyed the orders it received, however, and acquitted itself with perfect honor in the battle of Big Black River Bridge. The following brief extracts from General Lawler's report will serve to show his appreciation of the conduct of the regiment during the battle [see note 7]:

. . . The Twenty-second Iowa — which had in the meantime crossed the field and taken position on the river bank, on the right of the Eleventh Wisconsin — were ordered to move out into the field and act as a reserve force. . . . The rebels broke and fled before the Twenty-second Iowa, and fell an easy prey into the hands of the Eleventh Wisconsin. Those of the rebels who were not captured hastened to make good their retreat over the bridge. As the result of this successful charge, we may with justice claim that it gave our army entire possession of the enemy's extended lines of works, and with them their field artillery (18 pieces in all), a large quantity of ammunition, thousands of small arms, and 3,000 prisoners. . . Colonel William M. Stone, Twenty-second Iowa Volunteers, though suffering severely from disease, was present on the field, sharing its dangers, and has my thanks for the promptness with which he moved his command against the left of the enemy's works.


General Lawler gives the number of killed and wounded in his brigade as follows: Killed, 27; wounded, 194; total, 221; while the total loss of the division was 246 and that of the Thirteenth Army Corps 279, thus showing that Lawler's Brigade sustained the heaviest loss and did most of the fighting in that battle [see note 8]. The Twenty-first and Twenty-third Iowa lost 184 of the 221 killed and wounded in the Second Brigade, those two regiments leading the charge, while the Twenty-second Iowa and Eleventh Wisconsin, being held in reserve, did not participate in the severest part of the battle.

The Thirteenth Corps went into camp on the battlefield until a floating bridge could be constructed to replace the bridge destroyed by the enemy. On the evening of the 18th, the bridge having been completed, the corps crossed the river and took up the line of march towards Vicksburg, the enemy having retreated to that place, where, behind heavy fortifications, they awaited the attack of General Grant's army. The march was continued all night and the following day until noon, when the advanced line of the enemy's works was reached and the troops came under the fire of their heavy guns. Firing was kept up by the contending batteries and, at 2 P. M., the infantry was ordered to move forward. After several hours’ skirmishing, the Thirteenth Corps succeeded in gaining an advanced position within 500 yards of the enemy's works, covered from their fire by a range of hills. The Twenty-second Iowa had one man severely wounded during this advance. The position taken by General Carr's Division was on the range of hills in the vicinity of the Jackson Railroad. Lawler’s Brigade occupied the left, with the right of the Twenty-second Iowa resting on the railroad. During the whole of the night of May 20th, the regiment was engaged in throwing up fortifications and, on the morning of the 21st, two twenty-pound Napoleon guns of the Sixteenth Ohio Battery were placed in position on the brow of the hill and opened a vigorous fire on the enemy's works. Their fire dismounted one of the enemy's heavy guns, but the rebel artillery remained silent, probably for the purpose of saving its ammunition for the anticipated assault. Throughout the day the regiment occupied the works, constructed during the previous night, and kept up a brisk fire in response to that of the enemy's sharpshooters, but, owing to the inaccuracy of the enemy's aim and the great distance, the total casualties in the regiment, resulting from this first day's practice in the rifle pits, were two men severely wounded.

On the evening of May 21st, Colonel Stone received General Grant's order for a general assault on the enemy's lines at 10 A. M. on the 22d, and the officers were notified to have their men in readiness for the movement, which it became necessary to make under cover of the night in order to reach the position midway between the two lines, from which the assault was to be made. In the stillness of midnight the Twenty-second Iowa led the advance of the brigade, moved over the brow of the hill and passed quietly down the deep ravine, into which the enemy had felled trees which formed an obstruction difficult to overcome. With great caution the regiment made its way over this obstruction and, after several hours, succeeded in reaching the desired position, without having attracted the attention of the enemy's pickets, posted but twenty yards distant. The day was dawning when the position was gained, and the men were ordered to lie down and rest upon the hillside until the appointed hour should arrive. At 9:30 A. M. the brigade was formed in lines of battalions, the Twenty-second Iowa in advance, followed by the Twenty-first Iowa and Eleventh Wisconsin. At 10 A. M. Captain Bluford Wilson, of General Lawler's Staff, arrived and directed Colonel Stone to advance. In a moment more, with the battle-cry "Remember Kinsman!" (Colonel of the Twenty-third Iowa, killed at Black River), and the command "Forward!" given by Colonel Stone, the regiment leaped over the hill to the charge. The enemy were on the alert and, as our colors rose above the crest of the hill, a thousand bayonets glistened in the sunlight above the parapet at Fort Beauregard.

The strong work against which the main attack was directed covered about half an acre of ground, the walls being about fifteen feet high, surrounded by a ditch ten feet wide. A line of rifle pits connected it with others of the same kind, each of which was so arranged as to enfilade the approach to the other. The regiment succeeded in reaching — under a concentrated fire of grape and musketry — an almost impenetrable abatis, forty yards from the works, where it became necessary to reform the line, the men having become separated in crossing the obstructions. They promptly rallied to the flag and were again led to the charge. Colonel Stone was here wounded, while gallantly directing the charge, and was compelled to leave the field. Lieutenant Colonel Graham then assumed command and, with a few officers and about fifty men, succeeded in reaching the ditch surrounding the fort, but, having no scaling ladders, they were unable to enter the works. Sergeant Joseph E. Griffith, with some fifteen or twenty men, succeeded — by raising one another up the wall — in gaining an entrance and capturing a number of prisoners, but the fire from the enemy's rifle pits in rear of the fort, and the lack of reinforcements coming to their aid, rendered the place untenable. Sergeant Griffith and David Trine, of Company I, were the only survivors of this daring exploit [see note 9]. The assault had proved a failure. The troops did not leave the field, however. Believing that reinforcements would be sent to their aid, the gallant officers and men of the Twenty-first and Twenty-second Iowa and the Eleventh Wisconsin remained on the field, receiving and returning the fire of the enemy until, their ammunition becoming exhausted, they were compelled to withdraw. The regiment had suffered very heavy loss. Captain James Robertson of Company I, and Lieutenant Matthew A. Robb of Company D, were killed at the head of their companies. Lieutenant Colonel Harvey Graham and several others were taken prisoners in the ditch at the fort, while gallantly endeavoring to aid the brave men who had gained an entrance. Captain John H. Gearkee and Lieutenant John Remic, of Company B, and Lieutenant L. F. Mullins of Company C, fell severely wounded at the post of honor at the head of their companies. Every officer and man of the regiment might justly have had special mention for the brave manner in which he performed his duty in that desperate and hopeless struggle. They obeyed orders — the highest duty of soldiers — without questioning the wisdom or unwisdom of the officers high in command, who had sent them against this strong position of the enemy and failed to reinforce them at the critical moment when they had gained a lodgment upon the works of the enemy and, with a sufficient force sent to their assistance, might have carried and held them. It was the last attempt to capture Vicksburg by direct assault, and, from that day to the time of surrender, the safer and wiser plan of a regular siege was adopted. The loss of the Twenty-second Iowa in this charge was 27 killed, 118 wounded and 19 captured. Total loss 164 [see note 10]. This was the heaviest loss sustained by any regiment of the Thirteenth Army Corps in the disastrous assault, as shown by the official returns. The total loss of the corps was 1,275, while that of Carr's Division was 710, and of Lawler's Brigade 368 [see note 11].

Colonel Stone having been wounded and Lieutenant Colonel Graham captured during the assault, the command of the regiment devolved upon Major Atherton, who wrote the official report of the engagement [see note 12]. His report differs in some respects from those of other officers, notably that of Captain C. N. Lee [see note 13], also that of General Lawler [see note 14], the Brigade Commander, and that of Adjutant Pryce, in his history of the regiment [see note 15]. ♦ The compiler has heretofore referred to these conflicting reports and cannot attempt to reconcile them. In the main they are in accord as to the essential fact, that the conduct of the officers and men of the regiment in that desperate charge was worthy of as high praise as was ever accorded to soldiers upon any battlefield of the war, in either of the contending armies. Had the history of the Twenty-second Iowa ended upon that day, that regiment would still stand high upon the roll of fame, as among the bravest and best that the State of Iowa sent into the field.

The regiment had now become fearfully reduced in numbers, but the brave officers and men who survived, and were able for duty, performed their full share of service in the trenches until the surrender of the rebel stronghold on the 4th of July, 1863. They suffered all the hardships and exposure incident to that protracted siege, but, during the remainder of its progress, the casualties of the regiment were light, as compared with its heavy loss on the 22d of May. The losses of the regiment in battle, on the skirmish line and in the siege had, up to July 4, 1863, aggregated 189, while less than ten months had expired since it took the field.

On the morning of July 5th, the regiment took up the line of march with the troops under General Sherman, moving against the rebel army under General Johnston. The regiment started on this march with less than 150 officers and men fit for duty, but, during all the operations of its brigade and division, while the rebel army was being driven towards Jackson and during the siege of that place — which ended with the evacuation of the enemy on July 16th — it performed its full share of duty, always acquitting itself with credit. Colonel Stone, having partially recovered from his wounds, rejoined his regiment while the siege of Jackson was in progress, and was placed in command of the Second Brigade. After the army had taken possession of the city, the Second Brigade was ordered to destroy a portion of the Mississippi Central Railroad. Having accomplished that duty, it returned to Vicksburg, arriving there on the 24th of July, and going into camp in the city. Here Colonel Stone (having been nominated for Governor of Iowa) tendered his resignation and took final leave of the army, carrying with him the love and respect of his comrades in arms. The officers and men of the regiment regretted the loss of their noble commander, under whom they had won renown, but they rejoiced to know that he was to become the Governor of their State, in recognition of his splendid service as a soldier and of his ability to render equally good service as the Chief Executive of the Commonwealth of Iowa.

On the 31st of July, General Carr, who had successfully commanded the division, relinquished the command, on account of impaired health, and General Benton was appointed his successor, while Colonel Harris, of the Eleventh Wisconsin, again assumed command of the brigade as the successor of Colonel Stone. The brigade became a part of the First Division of the Thirteenth Army Corps, commanded by Major General Ord, as the successor of Major General McClernand. On the 13th of August the regiment embarked on the transport "Baltic," and moved down the river to Carrollton, eight miles above New Orleans, and went into camp there. Preparations were being made for another campaign. The troops were soon ordered to New Orleans, where all surplus baggage was stored in order that the troops might be relieved of everything that would prevent celerity in marching, and, after being reviewed by Generals Grant and Banks, the whole command embarked on transports and proceeded to Algiers. Landing there, the troops were conveyed by rail to Bayou Beoff, where they arrived on September 5th, and remained until the 11th, when they marched to Brashear City, on Berwick Bay. On September 25th the troops crossed the bay and went into camp near the ruins of the town of Berwick. On the 2d of October the army took up its line of march, passing through Iberia, Franklin and St. Martinsville, and arriving at Vermillionville on October 10th. The enemy, consisting of a heavy force under General Dick Taylor, was first encountered near Iberia. They rapidly retreated and were pursued to Opelousas, at which point it was expected they would make a determined stand and that a general engagement would take place; but, the enemy continuing to retreat, the expedition was abandoned, with no more important result than temporarily driving the enemy out of that part of the country south of Bayou Teche and extending from Berwick to Opelousas. During this campaign the Twenty-second Iowa participated in several skirmishes, but sustained only slight losses. On the 10th of November the regiment, with the other troops, had returned to Berwick.

The First Division, now under command of General Washburn, was ordered to proceed to Texas, and, on November 17th, the Twenty-second Iowa crossed Berwick Bay, reaching Algiers the next day. Five companies, under command of Colonel Graham, embarked on the steamer "T. A. Scott," while the balance of the regiment, under command of Major White, remained at Algiers, awaiting transportation. On the 20th, the steamer, conveying the five companies, proceeded down the river and crossed the bar into the Gulf of Mexico and, after a stormy and perilous voyage, arrived at the mouth of the Rio Grande, off Brazos Santiago, Texas. Here an attempt was made to land a portion of the troops at Point Isabel. The ship drawing too much water to cross the bar, five companies of the Eleventh Wisconsin were landed in small boats, but, during the undertaking — a somewhat hazardous one — a storm arose and the ship was compelled to put to sea again, leaving that portion of the troops landed at Point Isabel. On the evening of November 27th the ship arrived off Mustang Island, seventy miles from Matagorda Bay, and, the storm having somewhat abated, succeeded in landing the troops safely. On the 29th the regiment proceeded with the expedition against Fort Esperanza, commanding the entrance to Matagorda Bay, crossed St. Joseph's and Matagorda Islands, and arrived at the fort December 1st. The enemy had blown up their magazines and abandoned the fort the night previous. The troops went into camp near the Port of Saluria, and on the next day crossed Pass Cavallo, at the entrance of the bay, and went into camp on the peninsula, at De Crou's Point. The regiment was there joined by Major White, with the left wing. The regiment remained at that place until January 3, 1864, when, with the other troops of the brigade and division, they embarked on transports and proceeded to Indianola. The town was occupied by a force of the enemy, which fled upon the approach of the Union troops. The troops were quartered in houses at Indianola about three weeks, when the Second Brigade was ordered to Old Indianola, where it went into winter quarters. While at the latter place the First and Second Brigades were consolidated and formed the First Brigade of the First Division, the former commanded by General Fitz Henry Warren, and the latter successively by Generals Washburn, Dana and Benton.

During the winter the officers and men were comfortably situated, enjoyed excellent health, and the regiment rapidly improved in discipline and military efficiency. The enemy appeared several times near the town, but only in small reconnoitering parties, which were generally easily driven off by a detachment of mounted infantry of twenty-five men organized for that purpose from the different regiments of the brigade. On one occasion they encountered a full company of rebel cavalry, supposed to belong to "Wall's Legion," and formerly known as "Texan Rangers." A desperate fight took place about fifteen miles in the interior. The enemy numbered about one hundred men, but the little band of Union soldiers fought bravely. They were finally compelled to surrender. The following members of the Twenty-second Iowa belonging to the detachment were captured: John Fleming and Wm. Bechtel, Company A; Philip Huzer, Company D; Gabriel Hoffman, Company H; Karl Bedner, Company K; and William Franklin, Company F. On the 13th of March the troops evacuated the town and returned to Matagorda Island. All other troops of the Thirteenth Army Corps having left the island, the First Division, under General Dana, was assigned to the defenses of the coast at this point. Colonel Graham was ordered to proceed to Iowa on recruiting service at this time and, Major White having been granted leave of absence, Major Houston of the Twenty-third Iowa was temporarily assigned to the command of the Twenty-second Iowa.

On the 21st of April the regiment embarked on steamers "Planter" and "Matamoras" and proceeded on an expedition, under command of General Warren in person, to Port Lavacca, a distance of seventy miles from the mouth of the bay and thirty miles above Indianola; the object of the expedition being to obtain lumber for the completion of the forts and other works on the island. Upon the approach of the steamers, the rebel troops stationed at Port Lavacca — consisting of one company of cavalry — fled to the interior. The regiment disembarked and Lieutenant Jones, with Company A, as advance guard, took possession of the place. The steamers were loaded with lumber and the main object of the expedition was accomplished. General Warren, having been advised that the rebel cavalry company had returned to the vicinity of the town, ordered Major Houston to proceed with a detachment of the Twenty-second Iowa and, if possible, surround and capture the rebel force. The Major succeeded in getting into the rear of the enemy, and in the skirmish which ensued one rebel was killed and several were wounded, but, being mounted, the rest of the company escaped. The regiment then embarked and returned to the island.

On the 27th of April the Thirteenth Army Corps was ordered to report to General Banks, as reinforcements to the army under that officer, then engaged in the famous and ill-fated Red River Expedition. The left wing of the Twenty-second Iowa, commanded by Captain Gearkee, embarked on the 27th, and the right wing, commanded by Major White, followed on the 29th, arriving at New Orleans on May 1st. On the evening of May 4th, the left wing of the regiment, Captain Cree commanding, embarked with the Twenty-third Iowa, and, accompanied by General Fitz Henry Warren and his staff, proceeded up Red River, arriving at Fort De Russy on May 6th, but the enemy having obstructed the navigation of the river below Alexandria, the boats could proceed no further. They then returned to the mouth of Red River, where the troops landed and went into camp. On the 15th of May, a fleet of transports arrived and the troops again embarked and proceeded to Simsport on the Atchafalaya River, to join the troops of General Banks' expedition, who were marching from Alexandria to that point. On May 16th, the Thirteenth, Seventeenth and Nineteenth Corps arrived at Simsport and crossed the river on transports. All the troops then took up the line of march for Morganza, where they arrived on the 22d of May, and where the detachment of the Twenty-second Iowa, under command of Captain Cree, remained in camp until the 9th of June, when the captain received orders to report, with his detachment, to Colonel Graham at Baton Rouge, La., where the regiment was reunited on June 10, 1864.

The Thirteenth Army Corps having been temporarily discontinued by the War Department, the Twenty-second Iowa was ordered to report to General Reynolds at New Orleans, was conveyed to that place on July 6th and went into camp at Algiers. The regiment was there assigned to the Second Brigade of the Second Division, Nineteenth Army Corps, composed of the One-hundred-thirty-first and One-hundred-fifty-ninth New York, Thirteenth Connecticut, Third Massachusetts Cavalry, Twenty-second Iowa and Eleventh Indiana. The brigade was commanded by Colonel E. L, Molineaux, of the One-hundred-fifty-ninth New York. The Nineteenth Corps, as reorganized, comprised three divisions. The first, General Dwight's, was composed of eastern troops exclusively; the second, General Grover's, had five western regiments and the remainder were eastern troops; the third, General Lawler's, was composed entirely of western troops. The first and second divisions having been ordered to report to Washington, D. C, the Twenty-second Iowa, with the One-hundred-thirty-first and One-hundred-fifty-ninth New York, embarked, on the 17th of July, on the steamer "Cahawba," and arrived at Fortress Monroe on the 24th, after a voyage void of incident. On the 25th the ship proceeded up the James River to Bermuda Hundreds Landing, where the troops disembarked and, after marching seven miles, joined the forces under General Butler. These three regiments were separated from the division to which they had been assigned, the other portion of it having gone direct to Washington. They were temporarily attached to General Terry's division of General Birny's corps and placed on duty in the trenches, extending across the peninsula from the James River to Appomattox, occupying a portion of the line in General Butler's front until July 31st, when orders were received to report at Washington. The troops marched to Bermuda Hundreds Landing, where they embarked on transports, proceeded down the river to Fortress Monroe and from there up the Potomac to Washington, where they arrived on August 1st and disembarked.

On August 2d the three regiments marched to Tennallytown, D. C, at the outer defenses of the city, and went into camp on the heights of Georgetown, overlooking the city. There they were joined by a portion of their division, and on August 14th again took up the line of march to join the troops under command of General Sheridan, then operating in the vicinity of Cedar Creek and Strasburg in the Shenandoah Valley. The march was continued through Dranesville, Leesburg and Hamilton, over the Kitoctan Mountains, through Snickers Gap in the Blue Ridge, and, wading the Shenandoah River at the foot of the mountain at midnight, the troops arrived at Berryville, ten miles from Winchester, Va., at daylight on the morning of August 18th. Here they met the forces of General Sheridan on their retreat down the valley, pursued by the rebel General Early's army. The Twenty-second Iowa and the other troops of its brigade and division were ordered to join the retreat on the Berryville and Harper's Ferry road. Summit Point, four miles from Charlestown, was reached at midnight. Here the troops remained for two days. The enemy threatening a flank movement, the army again fell back to Halltown, the Twenty-second Iowa forming the rear guard. On the morning of August 21st, the army took a position on a range of hills, its left resting on the Potomac and its right extending to near the foot of the Blue Ridge. The Twenty-second Iowa occupied a position near the center of the line, about one mile south of Halltown. From the date last mentioned, both armies continued to maneuver for position, the Twenty-second Iowa and the troops with which it was associated performing their full share in the different movements, in which there was more or less skirmishing, until the 18th of September, when the army received orders to be ready to march at a moment's notice. All surplus baggage was loaded and sent to the rear and the troops were left with nothing that would in the least encumber them, either upon the march or in battle.

At 2 A. M., September 19, 1864, the army took up its line of march on the road leading to Winchester. Arriving at the Opequon soon after daylight, and the road passing through a narrow defile, the Nineteenth Corps was obliged to halt until the Sixth Corps passed. In the meantime the advance, composed entirely of cavalry, had become engaged with the enemy and had succeeded in driving in their pickets. At 9 A. M. the Tenth Corps arrived upon the ground and formed in line of battle about one mile from the Opequon, on a range of hills facing the enemy. During the time that the formation of the line was in progress, the enemy opened vigorously with artillery, but were soon silenced and quiet was restored along the lines, as if to prepare for the terrible contest which was soon to follow. The enemy was found to be strongly posted in a belt of heavy timber, with their line extending across the Winchester road. During a short reconnaissance to ascertain the enemy's position, the troops were allowed to rest. In a few moments the command "Forward!" rang along the line, and the army moved forward to the attack. The Twenty-second Iowa occupied the left of the brigade, which formed the extreme left of the Nineteenth Corps. The ground over which the regiment had to pass was an open field, extending to the enemy's works, a distance of about one mile. The enemy, being in open view, observed our movements and opened a concentrated fire from their artillery on our advancing column until it had reached to within six hundred yards, when they opened with grape and canister. The regiment then moved forward on the double quick, meeting a heavy fire of musketry, and reached a point within one hundred yards of their line, posted behind a stone fence in the woods. Under the destructive fire the line began to waver, but the men were rallied and fought for nearly an hour in the open field against the enemy protected by their works. The troops of the Sixth Corps — which joined immediately on the left of the Twenty-second Iowa — gave way, and General Grover, finding that his troops would be flanked on the left, gave orders to fall back, which was done in good order. The enemy, inspired by their partial success, raised a yell and charged in pursuit. The line was again rallied and, in turn, charged the enemy, driving them back over the field and through the timber. The enemy retreated in confusion until they reached the range of hills near Winchester, when they rallied and attempted to make a stand; but the rebel troops had become demoralized and could not be held in line. They again broke and fell back in confusion, leaving the Union Army in undisputed possession of the field at sundown. In this desperate battle the Twenty-Second Iowa had fought in the open in the most exposed and dangerous position, while the greater part of the Union troops advanced under cover of the woods. When the line fell back, the regiment promptly obeyed the order to halt and, in turn, charged the advancing and exultant rebels and turned apparent defeat into victory. The official report states that the regiment never fought better [see note 16]. Not a man faltered or fell back, although it required the highest degree of courage to charge over that open space, for a long distance, and all the time under a heavy fire; and, again, when ordered to fall back, to promptly obey the order to turn and charge the enemy, and thus achieve a splendid victory.

The Twenty-second Iowa had nobly maintained the honor of its State and had won the, high regard of the Eastern troops, by whose side they fought at the battle of Winchester. Colonel Graham commanded the regiment, and directed its movements with the same bravery and ability he had exhibited upon the battlefields where his regiment had fought with the western armies. He was ably assisted by the gallant Lieutenant Colonel White and Major Gearkee. Those especially mentioned in the official reports were: “Captain D. J. Davis of Company A, and Captain B. D. Parks of Company E; who were instantly killed at the head of their companies. Their conduct was heroic, and they died at the post of honor. Sergeant Major George A. Remley, as noble as he was brave, was pierced with three balls and fell dead. Lieutenant Colonel E. G. White was slightly wounded in the face by the explosion of a shell. Lieutenant James A. Boarts was severely wounded in the head by a minie ball, and has since died. Lieutenants Jones of Company A, and Hull of Company K, were both captured. Lieutenant Colonel White, Major Gearkee, Captains Mullins, Humphrey, Cree, Clark, Shockey, Hartly and Morsman, and Lieutenants Turnbull, Davis, Needham, Messenger and Chandler, are all entitled to great praise for their gallantry throughout the battle in encouraging and rallying the men to the colors. Surgeon Shrader was on the field during the engagement and was indefatigable in his exertions to care for the wounded. Hospital Steward Ealy, Quartermaster Sterling and Commissary Sergeant Brown rendered efficient service in carrying off the wounded and conducting the ambulances to different parts of the field, and can not be too highly commended. The total loss of the regiment in this battle was 109 killed, wounded and missing. A list of the casualties is annexed to the report." [See note 17.]

On the night of the 19th of September, the regiment, with the rest of the army, bivouacked on the battlefield near Winchester. On the morning of the 20th, the army again took up its line of march in pursuit of the enemy. On the 22d, the rebel army made a stand at the strong position of Fisher's Hill, and General. Sheridan at once made preparations for an attack. At 12 o'clock the Twenty-second and Twenty-eighth Iowa were ordered to advance and carry a line of rifle pits on the heights, occupied by the skirmishers of the enemy. The charge was executed in fine style, and the skirmishers were compelled to abandon the rifle pits and retire into their main works. At 4 o'clock P.M. orders were received to assault the fortified position of the enemy. The Twenty-second and Twenty-eighth Iowa and the One-hundred-twenty-eighth New York, occupying the advance line as skirmishers on the extreme left of the army, charged up the rocky and precipitous ground and drove the enemy in their front from the works. Owing to the irregularity of the ground, the loss of the regiment in this charge was but four men wounded. In the pursuit, which was kept up until the following morning at 4 o'clock, the Twenty-second Iowa, with the Eleventh Indiana, occupied the extreme advance of the army and marched, deployed as skirmishers, for a distance of fifteen miles from Fisher's Hill, capturing hundreds of prisoners. During this night march, while engaged in a skirmish with the rear guard of the enemy, Paul Miller, of the non-commissioned staff of the regiment, was severely wounded. The pursuit was continued through Harrisonburg to Mount Crawford, when it was abandoned and the army returned to Harrisonburg and went into camp, remaining there until the 6th of October, on which date it returned to Cedar Creek and began the construction of a line of fortifications in a semi-circle on a range of hills north of the creek.

The movements of the enemy, from the 13th to the 18th of October, indicated that the rebel generals were again contemplating an attack upon General Sheridan's fortified position. Skirmishing with reconnoitering parties of the rebel army frequently occurred and, on the night of October 18th, General Mollineaux, in command of the brigade to which the Twenty-second Iowa was attached, received orders to make a reconnaissance in force to ascertain the strength and develop the lines of the enemy; but, at 5 o'clock on the morning of the 19th, when the brigade was just starting upon its march, the enemy suddenly attacked the extreme left flank, taking the Eighth Army Corps completely by surprise, driving it from its works and, in a short time, succeeding in getting into the rear of the Sixth and Nineteenth Corps. This bold and brilliant movement of the rebel commander threatened the complete defeat of General Sheridan's army. At the commencement of the attack, the Twenty-second Iowa was detached from its brigade and proceeded on the double-quick to the support of a battery which was threatened with capture. Before the regiment could reach the guns, they were captured by the enemy, and it was compelled to fall back before the advancing force, but, in doing so, retained its organization and rallied four times alone, each time checking the advance of the enemy.

The army retreated gradually for three miles in the direction of Winchester, when, General Sheridan arriving upon the field in person, the troops were reformed, and hurried preparations were made to retrieve the disaster of the morning. The presence of General Sheridan proved an inspiration to the officers and men of his army; "And the wave of retreat checked its course there, because the sight of the Master compelled it to pause." General Sheridan rode along the lines and ordered the troops to halt, reform and attack the enemy, still advancing and flushed with victory. The western troops were formed together in one line, and the intrepid courage with which they fought was an important factor in retrieving the fortune of the day and converting what had seemed certain defeat into an overwhelming victory. The enemy made a gallant and stubborn resistance, but were gradually forced back to the line of breast-works which they had thrown up in the morning to provide against a reverse, but they were soon driven from that line and continued their retreat, followed closely by the forces of General Sheridan. Thousands of prisoners and a great portion of the trains and artillery of the rebel army were captured. The rebel army had met with a crushing defeat.

The loss of the Twenty-second Iowa in the battle of Cedar Creek was heavier than that which it sustained at Winchester, in proportion to the number engaged. Its loss was 77 in killed, wounded and missing [see note 18]. From the commencement to the close of the battle the regiment was constantly engaged. In this, its last battle, as in the first and all those in which it was engaged during its long period of service, the regiment maintained its high record. It remained on duty with its brigade and division until early in January, 1865. The carefully kept record of Captain Samuel D. Pryce shows that, from the time the regiment was organized to the close of the Shenandoah campaign, it had traveled by land and water over 8,000 miles, participated in eight general engagements, two sieges and numerous skirmishes, and five great campaigns, in the states of Missouri, Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas and Virginia.

Early in January, 1865, the Nineteenth Army Corps — of which the Twenty-second Iowa was still a part — was ordered to proceed to Baltimore, Md. Here the troops were quartered in barracks until January 11th, upon which date they embarked on transports and were conveyed to Savannah, Ga., where they arrived on January 20th and went into camp near that city, where they remained until March 13, 1865, on which date the Twenty-second Iowa — with other troop s— was sent to Morehead City, N. C. There the regiment was assigned to a brigade consisting of the Twenty-second, Twenty-fourth and Twenty-eighth Iowa, the One-hundred-thirty-first, and One-hundred-fifty-ninth New York and Thirteenth Connecticut. This was the First Brigade, First Division of the Nineteenth Army Corps. There had been a number of different assignments of these troops from the time they were first brought together at New Orleans and sailed for Fortress Monroe, but, in the main, they had served together in the concluding campaigns of the war, and Colonel Mollineaux, the first commander of the brigade, was still in command but was now a Brigadier General.

On the 10th of May, 1865, the brigade began the march to Augusta, Ga., where it arrived on the 19th, and the three eastern regiments went into camp there, while the three western regiments crossed the Savannah River and encamped near the town of Hamburg, S. C, where they remained until the 6th of June, when they were ordered to return to Savannah. They began the return march (the last long march they would be required to make) on June 20th, and reached Savannah on the 25th, where they again went into camp. The records in the office of the Adjutant General of Iowa show that the Twenty-second Regiment was mustered out of the service at Savannah, Georgia, July 25, 1865, and that the regiment was subsequently disbanded at Davenport, Iowa [see note 19].

At the conclusion of his supplement to the history of the regiment, Adjutant Pryce states that the muster rolls and final discharge papers were completed on July 20th, and that the troops were mustered out of the service by Captain George E. Moulton of the Thirtieth Maine Volunteer Infantry, and gives the date as July 20th. He also states that, on the morning of July 22d, the Iowa troops marched through the city and embarked, and that they reached Baltimore, via Fortress Monroe, on the 25th, where they were quartered at the "Soldiers' Home," and the next morning departed for Davenport, Iowa, where they arrived on the 27th, remaining there until August 3, 1865, on which date they received their final pay and discharge from the service.

In conclusion, the compiler submits this condensed history of the regiment, together with the roster and personal record of its officers and enlisted men, all of which have been gleaned from official sources, in the hope and belief that, in the years to come, those who can trace their lineage to the soldiers who marched and fought under the colors of the Twenty-second Regiment of Iowa Infantry Volunteers will proudly point to the glorious record of their ancestors, who went forth to battle in the days which tried men's souls, and left to their posterity the precious legacy of their patriotic service to their country.


SUMMARY OF CASUALTIES.

Total Enrollment 1084
Killed 60
Wounded 267
Died of wounds 55
Died of disease 128
Discharged for wounds, disease and other causes 187
Buried in National Cemeteries 78
Captured 79
Transferred 42


[Note 1.] Report of Adjutant General of Iowa, 1863, Vol. 1, pages 782 to 816 inclusive; Original Roster of the Regiment.

[Note 2.] Colonel Stone was commissioned Brevet Brigadier General of Volunteers September 17, 1862. He subsequently served two terms (four years) as Governor of Iowa, 1864-1868.

[Note 3.] Report of Adjutant General of Iowa, 1864, pages 470, 1.

[Note 4.] See subjoined Roster, in which the names of all killed and wounded appear, together with all casualties, opposite the names recorded there.

[Note 5.] Report of Adjutant General of Iowa, 1864, page 543.

[Note 6.] Report of Adjutant General of Iowa, 1864, page 545.

[Note 7.] War of the Rebellion Official Records, Series 1, Vol. 24, pages 137, 8.

[Note 8.] War of the Rebellion Official Records, Series 1, Vol. 24, page 130.

[Note 9.] Report of Adjutant General of Iowa, 1865, Vol. 2, page 1130. Also, Supplemental Statement of Adjutant Pryce.

[Note 10.] Tabulated Returns of Casualties, War of the Rebellion Official Records, Series 1, Vol. 24, Part 2, page 161.

[Note 11.] The report of the Adjutant General of Iowa, 1865, Vol. 2, pages 1124 to 1141, inclusive, contains the history of the Twenty-second Iowa Infantry, written by the Adjutant of the regiment, Samuel D. Pryce. The compiler has quoted and will continue to quote freely from that history, in this condensed historical sketch, and here wishes to acknowledge his obligations to the author. There are some discrepancies between the statements made by the Adjutant and the official reports of the commanders of the regiment, with reference to losses, and, in a few instances, to other matters; but, as the keeper of the regimental records, the statements of the Adjutant may justly be regarded as officially correct. A supplementary statement, including a reference to the heroic act of Sergeant Griffith and those other brave men who entered the fort with him, has been made by Adjutant Pryce, and is now on file as a part of the official record of the Twenty-second Iowa, in the office of the Adjutant General. The compiler has, therefore, felt authorized to quote from this supplementary statement that portion which gives the names of the men who were engaged in the heroic exploit referred to, in order that they may have the credit to which they are entitled: ". . . . Among those who entered the fort were, Sergeants Joseph E. Griffith and N. C. Messenger, David Trine, W. H. Needham, Munson L. Clemmons, Alvin Drummond, Ezra S. Anderson, Hugh Sinclair, Lieutenant Mathew A. Robb, John A. Robb, Samuel Lloyd, William Griffin, William P. Marvin, Hezekiah Drummond, John Hale, David Jordon, Allen Cloud, Abner Bernard, and Richard Arthur. One officer and eleven enlisted men were killed inside the Confederate works or on the parapet, to-wit: Lieutenant M. A. Robb, William Griffin, John Hale, David Jordon, Ezra S. Anderson, Abner Bernard, Richard Arthur, Alvin Drummond, Hezekiah Drummond, John A. Robb, William P. Marvin and Samuel Lloyd. Lieutenant Robb was killed on the parapet, and fell back into the ditch. David Jordon was shot on the top of the parapet in the act of planting the colors. He fell with one hand upon the flagstaff. Two officers and ten enlisted men were wounded upon the parapet and fell back into the ditch. . . .”

Adjutant Pryce, in the supplemental statement referred to, gives the average loss in killed and wounded of the regiment at 85 per cent of the number engaged. The official reports put the average loss at a little over 80 per cent. The Adjutant further states that at the time the official report was made, the losses had not been accurately obtained, which would account for the discrepancy.

[Note 12.] Report of Adjutant General of Iowa, 1864, page 472.

[Note 13.] War of the Rebellion Official Records, Series 1, Part 2, Vol. 24, page 243.

[Note 14.] War of the Rebellion Official Records, Series 1- Part 2, Vol. 24, pages 140 to 142 inclusive.

[Note 15.] Report of Adjutant General of Iowa, 1865, Vol. 2, page 1180.

[Note 16.] Report of Adjutant General of Iowa, 1865, Vol. 2, page 1137.

[Note 17.] See subjoined Roster, in which all casualties are noted.

[Note 18.] See subjoined Roster.

[Note 19.] Report of Adjutant General of Iowa, 1867, Vol. 1, page 151. Report of Adjutant General of Iowa, 1866, page XVI.


SOURCE: Roster & Record of Iowa Soldiers During the War of the Rebellion, Volume 3, p. 559-73

Friday, February 19, 2010

Tenth Regiment Iowa Volunteer Infantry

The Tenth regiment was ordered into quarters by the Governor in the latter part ol August, 1861. Nine full companies had assembled at the designated rendezvous by the 6th of September, and were mustered into the service of the United States by Capt. Alexander Chambers, United States Army, at Camp Fremont, near Iowa City, on the 6th and 7th days of September, 1861. The date of the completed muster of the tenth company (K) appears in the official record as October 11th, which would indicate that the company was not filled to the maximum until after the regiment had taken the field.

The names of its field and staff and company officers at organization will be found in the subjoined roster, and the subsequent changes, on account of death, promotion, resignation, or from whatever cause, will be found in the alphabetically arranged roster which follows, with the personal record of service opposite the name of each officer and enlisted man. These records have been compiled from the official reports of the Adjutant General of Iowa, supplemented by those on file in the War Department at Washington, in so far as access could be obtained to those records. It is more than possible that, with all the care that has been taken to make these records accurate, some errors have been made. When the magnitude of the work and the length of time which has transpired since the close of the war are taken into consideration, it will not be a matter for surprise —however much it is to be regretted — that all the mistakes as well as omissions revealed by these old records could not be discovered and corrected. It is believed that, in the main, these paragraphs will be found to properly represent the facts, briefly stated, connected with the personal service of each soldier of the regiment.

September 24, 1861, the regiment embarked on board transports at Davenport, for St. Louis, arriving there on the 27th. Here it received its arms, uniforms and camp equipments, and on October 1st was ordered to Cape Girardeau to aid in fortifying that place against a threatened attack of the enemy. From Cape Girardeau, the regiment engaged in an expedition which resulted in the dispersion of a rebel force under the command of Gen. Jeff Thompson. November 12th it was ordered to Bird's Point, and from that place engaged in several expeditions, in one of which — near Charleston — it had a sharp encounter with the enemy, resulting in a loss to the Tenth Iowa of 8 killed and 16 wounded [see note 1]. The regiment suffered greatly while at Bird's Point from sickness, the prevailing and most fatal malady being measles, the aggregate loss from November 12, 1861, to March 4, 1862, being 96 by death and by discharge on account of disease. It will thus be seen that in less than six months the regiment had suffered a loss of 120 men in killed and wounded and by death and discharge because of sickness. It was repeating the experience of the Iowa regiments which had preceded it, in the loss of a large number who could not withstand the hard conditions to which they were subjected by the change from the comforts of their home life to the hardships and exposure of the camp and the march during a winter campaign.

Early in March, 1862, the regiment was ordered to New Madrid, Mo., where it participated in the operations that led up to the evacuation of that place by the enemy; and a detachment from the Tenth Iowa, under Major McCalla, was first to enter the rebel works. It also assisted in the capture of Island No. 10, and in the pursuit of the enemy to Tiptonville, where 5,000 of the enemy and a large quantity of military supplies were captured. Following this brilliant achievement, the Tenth Iowa, now a part of the Union Army of the Mississippi, embarked on board transports and, in conjunction with the federal gunboats, made a demonstration against the rebel Fort Wright; but the army was abruptly recalled, just as these operations were fairly under way, to re-inforce the Army of the Tennessee, in its operations against the rebel stronghold at Corinth, Miss., and, proceeding up the Mississippi, Ohio and Tennessee rivers, the transports landed the troops at Hamburg, Tenn., from which point they marched to Corinth, and became part of the investing force in the siege which followed.

In the operations around Corinth, the regiment acquitted itself with great credit and received the warm commendation of its experienced commander, Colonel Perczel, for its gallant conduct in the skirmish with the enemy, May 26, 1862. Corinth was evacuated May 30, 1862, and the Tenth Iowa participated In the pursuit of the enemy until ordered to return, when it went into camp on Clear Creek, near Corinth, on June 15th, where it remained until June 29th, when it was sent on an expedition to Ripley, forty miles distant, and returned to its camp on Clear Creek, July 6th, where it remained until July 29th, when it marched to Jacinto and went into camp near that place, where it remained until September 18th. On that date, the rebel army under Generals Price and Van Dorn was in possession of Iuka, within striking distance of our camp, and General Rosecrans moved his troops (of which the Tenth Iowa formed a part) on the 19th of September, towards Iuka, and on the evening of that day the enemy met him, and the battle of Iuka began.

The Tenth Iowa occupied a most fortunate position in this battle, which enabled it to inflict heavy loss upon the enemy with but slight loss to itself. The manner in which the regiment was handled reflected great credit upon its commander. The following extract from the report of Colonel Perczel will show the great skill with which he executed the orders of his brigade commander, General Sullivan:

Agreeably to your orders, I advanced on September 19th about 5 P. M. with my regiment and a section of the Twelfth Wisconsin Battery, under Lieutenant Immell. After a short survey of our line of battle, I took position with seven companies, a cheval [see note 2] on the Iuka road, about a quarter of a mile ahead of our left wing. I sent three companies to the right into a dense wood; then I put my two pieces into position, and threw a few shells in an oblique direction, where I discovered the rebel lines. My three companies in the woods reported a full brigade of rebels advancing on our left wing, on which I withdrew them, and, leaving only one company for the observation of the enemy, I changed front perpendicular to our line of battle on the Iuka road. I planted my two pieces anew, and thus obtained a dominating flanking position. Being on a ridge, I could watch the enemy's movements, who had to cross a broken open field In order to attack our forces. They soon emerged from the woods, opened a heavy Are, and advanced on our lines. Their fire was returned, and I too opened with musketry and canister. The rebels wavered, fell back a little, but were soon rallied and advanced again, nothing daunted by our fire, which made great havoc in their ranks. They followed our left wing Into the woods, and for a short time there was no enemy In our sight; but suddenly a full regiment marched out from the woods on their side, offering their right flank to my fire, with the evident Intention to advance to the support of their forces already engaged. I opened instantly with canister and musketry, on which they fell back to the woods. • • • They attempted twice to advance but were driven back each time. We had the advantage of the ground. Our fire told fearfully upon them, while we suffered next to nothing. Their fire, up a steep hill, had been altogether too high. • • • Night coming on, I drew a little closer to our main body; but on the report of Company I, which I left to observe the enemy's movements, that a new body of rebels was advancing, I advanced again with three companies. As we approached, the enemy opened upon us, but owing to the darkness, and again to their up-hill firing, not a man was hurt. We returned the fire with great execution, as we found on the morning of the 20th the ground strewn with the bodies of their dead. • • •


At the close of his report, the Colonel thanks his officers and men for the promptness with which they executed his orders, and says, "The Tenth Iowa have proved themselves good soldiers." He further says, "I have to mention efficient services and assistance of our brave Major N. McCalla, and of my Adjutant, Wm. Manning, and also the able and brave manner in which Lieutenant Immell handled his two pieces of artillery."

The entire loss of the regiment in this battle was but 7 men wounded. It is but seldom that such effective service is performed in battle with such slight loss. In all the battles in which it was subsequently engaged, the Tenth Iowa was never so fortunate as to escape with so small a loss in proportion to the magnitude of the engagement and the number of the regiment engaged. Major General Rosecrans, who was the chief in command, says In his official report: “The Tenth Iowa, under Colonel Perczel, deserves honorable mention for covering our left flank from the assault of the Texas Legion."

Brig. Gen. C. S. Hamilton says, "An attempt to turn the left flank of my division by a heavy force of the enemy, moving up the open field and ravine on my left, was most signally repulsed by Colonel Perczel with the Tenth Iowa and a section of Immell's battery. So bravely was this attempt repulsed that the enemy made no more attempts in that direction."

Brig. Gen. J. C. Sullivan, who commanded the brigade to which the Tenth Iowa was attached, says, "The Tenth Iowa, with a section of the Twelfth Wisconsin Battery, was ordered to hold a road leading to our left and rear. The regiment held the position assigned them, and drove back a brigade of rebels which was advancing to take possession of the road. Colonel Perczel gallantly held his position, and by his determined stand led the enemy to believe we were in strong force at that point, and to desist from their attack." The commendations of these generals show that the service of the Tenth Iowa was most important, and that it was fully appreciated.

The next experience of the regiment under fire was in the battle of Corinth, on the 3d and 4th days of October, 1862. The position to which the Tenth Iowa was assigned on the first day of the battle was again a fortunate one, as will be seen by the following extract from the official report of its commanding officer, Major Nathaniel McCalla. After describing the position occupied — a shallow cut on the line of the Memphis & Charleston Railroad — he says:

While In this position the fire from their batteries was kept up, raking the ground, and would have done immense damage but for the fact that at this point where the line was formed on the track, there was a cut which formed a good shelter, their balls passing over our heads, many of them lodging In the opposite bank, so closely had they raked the ground. Seeing an attempt on the part of the enemy to move forward one of their batteries to a point on the railroad to our right, from which they could open upon us an enfilading fire, I ordered the regiment to file Into the dense woods in our rear by the left flank, having cleared the track In time to avoid a raking fire. I again formed a line of battle, and marched to the rear, under the incessant fire of their battery, whose firing had now become too high to do much damage.


The Major conducted his regiment through the woods to the left until he reached the main road leading directly to the front. On this road the enemy's pickets were discovered, and the regiment was immediately deployed as skirmishers, but the enemy did not advance, and the Tenth Iowa remained in line until morning. On the morning of the 4th, in obedience to orders, Major McCalla moved his regiment to a new position to the left and rear of the line he had occupied during the night, and went into line of battle in support of the Sixth Wisconsin Battery. Of the conduct of the regiment in the second day's battle Major McCalla reports as follows:

At about 10 A. M., the firing of the skirmishers In front of us became rapid, and the advancing columns of the enemy soon drove them back; but they rallied to a point directly in front of our line, and until they had retired to our rear, I could not order my regiment to fire; but as soon as the space In front was cleared I gave the order to commence firing, which was kept up with spirit, but without very materially checking the advance of the enemy, who approached us in overwhelming numbers. My men had fired from 15 to 20 rounds, when I perceived that numbers of the enemy were passing around the right and getting in the rear of my line, and also that the battery on my left had been silenced and taken, and the enemy pressing forward to the left of us. I ordered the regiment to fall back, which it did in good order, to a distance of about seventy-five yards, when I made a halt, facing about and again opening fire; but being unable to retain this position. I again ordered the regiment back under cover of the Twelfth Wisconsin, and Powell's batteries. Passing to the rear in line of battle, I halted at a position immediately between these batteries. I then marched forward and occupied the same ground from which we had retired, during the remainder of the battle. The casualties in the regiment were 6 men wounded on the first day, and one commissioned officer [see note 3] and 30 men wounded and 3 killed on the second day.


Major McCalla makes special mention of Capt. N. A. Holson, Acting Lieutenant Colonel, and Capt. Jackson Orr, Acting Major, also Wm. Manning, Adjutant, commending these officers for their assistance to him and for their coolness and courage. He also states that the line officers, without an exception, deported themselves with the greatest gallantry.

The brigade commander, General Sullivan, in his official report, says: "The Tenth Iowa sustained the brunt of the first attack of the enemy, until the regiment on their left gave way, and their flank was exposed, when they slowly fell back fighting."

After the battle of Corinth, the regiment had a short period of rest in camp, but, on November 1st, it was again on the move, participating in expeditions to Grand Junction, Davis Mills, Holly Springs and Moscow. It did not encounter the enemy in any of these movements.

From Moscow, the regiment marched with the army under General Grant down the line of the Mississippi Central Railroad. The objective point of the expedition was Vicksburg, but the capture of Holly Springs by the skillfully executed cavalry raid of the rebel General Van Dorn, and the destruction of the vast stores of supplies which General Grant had accumulated at that point, compelled the abandonment of the expedition and the prompt retreat of the Union army. It became necessary to at once dispatch a train of several hundred wagons to Memphis for supplies, and the Tenth Iowa was one of the regiments selected to guard this immense train over the long road to Memphis and back to meet the retreating army which had become reduced almost to the starving point, before the train met them upon its return with the needed supplies. After performing this important service, the regiment remained for one month in camp at White's Station, and then moved to Memphis, where, on the 4th of March, 1863, it embarked and proceeded down the river, to enter actively upon the greatest campaign thus far attempted during the war. The compiler of this sketch realizes with regret that the limitation of space to which he is restricted will not permit him to go into particularity of detail in describing the operations of the Tenth Iowa Infantry in this great campaign, or in those which followed, down to the close of the war. To do so would require a volume, instead of the few pages which follow.

The regiment accompanied the hazardous expedition through the tortuous windings of the Yazoo Pass, over two hundred miles from the Mississippi, and returned to Helena on the 9th of April, 1863. It now belonged to the Third Brigade of the Seventh Division of General McPherson's Seventeenth Army Corps, with which it participated in the brilliant series of battles at Port Gibson, Raymond, Jackson, Champion Hills and in that sanguinary charge upon the enemy's works at Vicksburg on the 22d of May. In all of these engagements the regiment displayed the same valor and prompt obedience to orders which it had shown in all its preceding encounters with the enemy, but its splendid achievement and heavy loss at Champion Hills on the 16th of May, 1863, is considered by many of the survivors as not only by far the most notable record the regiment made during the Vicksburg campaign but of the entire war. In that hard fought battle the division to which the Tenth Iowa belonged was commanded by the gallant General M. M. Crocker of Iowa [see note 4]. The regiment here stood its ground in an open stand up fight, taking and returning the fire of the enemy at close range until its last round of ammunition was exhausted. On no part of the battlefield was the fighting so severe, persistent or protracted. Iowa was conspicuous in this battle, five of her regiments — the Fifth, Tenth, Seventeenth, Twenty-fourth and Twenty-eighth — being engaged, and all acquitting themselves with great credit. The Tenth lost nearly one-half of its number engaged. Of its officers, Capt. Stephen W. Poage, Lieut. James H. Terry and Lieut, Isaac H. Brown, were killed on the field, and Capt. Robert Lusby, Capt. Nathan A. Holson, Capt. Albert Head, Lieut. John W. Wright, Lieut. A. L. Swallow, Lieut. Elbert J. Kuhn, Lieut. George Gregory and Lieut. William P. Meekins, were wounded. The total loss of the regiment in this battle was 158, 34 killed and 124 wounded.

On the 19th of May the regiment had reached the position to which it was assigned in the rear of Vicksburg, and became part of the investing force in the siege. The regiment participated in the charge on the 22d of May and lost 3 killed and 24 wounded. Here the gallant Captain Head was again severely wounded. The regiment remained on duty, in the trenches as sharpshooters, supporting batteries, and performing its full part in the siege operations until June 22nd, when It was transferred, with its brigade, to the defensive line on Black River to guard against the possible attempt of the rebel General Johnston to raise the siege by attacking the besieging force in the rear.

The regiment remained upon this important duty until after the surrender of Vicksburg, July 4, 1863, when it was immediately sent in pursuit of Johnston's army, which had been withdrawn to the defensive works around Jackson, against which the army under General Sherman promptly began siege operations, which ended on July 16th, upon the evacuation of Jackson by the forces under Johnston, and their retreat into the interior of Mississippi. Thus ended the Vicksburg campaign, with such satisfactory results for the Union army, and such disastrous results for the enemy. The victory had been won, however, at a tremendous cost. On both sides many thousands had been killed and wounded, and thousands more were to share their fate before the final triumph of the Union arms. On the 19th of July the Tenth Iowa returned to Vicksburg, and from there proceeded to Helena, Ark., with its division, where it remained until the last of September, when it was ordered to proceed to Memphis, there to unite with the Fifteenth Army Corps under Maj. Gen. Wm. T. Sherman, and to march across the country to Chattanooga, there to re-inforce the Army of the Cumberland and to deal another crushing blow to the enemies of the Union.

On the 17th of October the long and toilsome march was begun. For thirty-two days the army under Sherman pressed forward and, on the 19th of November, arrived at Chattanooga. There the great struggle was renewed around Lookout Mountain and Missionary Ridge. The Tenth Iowa participated in the storming of Missionary Ridge, November 25th, and performed its full share in that memorable contest, in which it seemed impossible that human valor could accomplish the task of scaling those formidable heights. The loss of the regiment in this engagement was 11 killed, 35 wounded and 6 captured, out of 250 engaged.

After this battle the Tenth Iowa was moved to Bridgeport, thence to Larkinsville, Ala., and thence to Huntsville, where it went into camp January 9, 1864. Here, in the beginning of February, the requisite number to retain the regimental organization re-enlisted as veterans and were mustered into the service on March 30, 1864.

No better test of patriotism could have been shown by these brave and devoted men. They knew what war meant, had experienced its hardships, privations and horrors on the march and on the battlefield. They longed most earnestly to return to home and loved ones and yet, so long as the supreme object, for which they had first enlisted remained to be accomplished, they were willing to still forego the comforts of home and all its dear associations. To thousands of these brave and true men, who subsequently died in battle or from sickness, the high resolve to serve their country to the end was typical of that most sublime feeling that ever dominated the action of a human being — the feeling of total self-abnegation.

On April 30th the regiment was ordered to Decatur, Ala. During its stay there it was engaged in fortifying the place and, by way of diversion from such hard labor, had occasional skirmishes with the enemy's cavalry. On the 15th of June, the re-enlisted men of the regiment received the long-looked-for and very welcome order to proceed to Iowa on veteran furlough. After a most enjoyable visit of thirty days at their homes, they returned to the field and rejoined their comrades at Kingston, Ga., on the 1st of August. The reunited regiment now took part in various expeditions directed mainly against the rebel General Wheeler's large cavalry force which, by skillful maneuvering, managed to avoid coming in contact with the Union troops, while Inflicting considerable damage by tearing up railroad track and capturing supplies. The regiment returned from the last of these expeditions on the 15th of September, and again went into camp at Kingston. In the meantime, the Union cavalry force had been increased sufficiently to drive the rebel General Wheeler across the Tennessee river, and to relieve the infantry from the duty of guarding the railroad.

On the 28th of September, 1864, the non-veterans (those who had not reenlisted) were mustered out of the service and departed for their homes in Iowa. It must be said here that these men who had honorably and faithfully fulfilled the terms of their full period of service, and who did not feel that it was their duty to make the further sacrifice of remaining to the close of the war, were entitled to the gratitude of every loyal citizen. They were honorably discharged and returned to their homes to receive the commendations of their neighbors and friends for their long period of service and sacrifice. Many of them were broken in health, many bore upon their persons the scars of wounds received in battle, and all had earned the high regard and cordial welcome which was everywhere extended to them upon their return.

Early in October the Tenth Iowa Veteran Infantry received about 150 recruits, a number a little more than equal to that of the non-veterans mustered out. On the 3d of October the regiment moved from Kingston to Cartersville, and thence to Atlanta, where General Sherman had concentrated his army, preparatory to beginning his march to Savannah.

The story of that great march through the State of Georgia, "from Atlanta to the Sea," has been immortalized in song, and has its place in history as one of the most remarkable military expeditions ever undertaken, or accomplished. The Tenth Iowa, as a part of the Third Division of the Fifteenth Army Corps, participated actively in this great march, and in the reduction of the enemy's works around Savannah, the capture of Fort McAllister, the opening of communication with the federal fleet in the harbor, and the occupation of the city, on the 21st day of December, 1864, after which the regiment went into camp a short distance from the city and remained there until January 9, 1865. On the last named date, the concluding campaign of the war began. The regiment with its brigade and division crossed the river and entered the State of South Carolina, and began the long and toilsome march towards the North.

For nearly three months the march was continued, under the most difficult conditions; sometimes over almost impassable roads, wading through swamps, crossing swollen streams, through almost Incessant rains, and frequent skirmishes with the enemy, now rendered desperate by the certainty that their last line of resistance must soon be overcome. At last, after marching nearly five hundred miles, the Fifteenth Corps entered Goldsboro, N. C, on the 22d day of March, 1865, and went into camp for a season of rest and recuperation. Up to this time the troops had been compelled to subsist mainly upon such supplies as could be obtained from the country through which they passed, and which had often been found deficient, both in quantity and quality. Here, however, supplies were obtained in abundance from the seaboard, and the soldiers improved rapidly in health and strength.

The regiment left Goldsboro on the 7th of April. Their next halting place was at Raleigh, N. C, where they witnessed the capitulation of the rebel army under General Johnston and the removal of the last organized resistance to the Union army in its victorious march to Petersburg and Richmond, and on to Washington. Arrived at Washington, the regiment participated in the grand review, and afterwards returned to its camp near the city, where it remained until early In June, when it was ordered to Louisville, Ky., where it remained until the latter part of June, when it was ordered to proceed to Little Rock, Ark., where it arrived early In July. Here it remained until August 15, 1865, on which date it was mustered out of the service, and proceeded to Davenport, Iowa, where it was disbanded, and the men were sent to their homes.

The record of the Tenth Iowa Infantry is absolutely without blemish. In Its long and arduous service in ten of the states that were in rebellion against the Government, its many battles, its weary marches, its patient endurance of hardships, its implicit obedience to orders — in all that goes to make up a history of service well and faithfully performed, the regiment stands in the front rank of Iowa's splendid military organizations. No man who served in its ranks and contributed to its good record could leave a more glorious heritage to his posterity. The State of Iowa has honored itself in making provision for the permanent preservation in its archives of the military history of the men who fought for the maintenance of the Union in the great War of the Rebellion. So long as patriotism is honored among men will these records be perused by the loyal sons and daughters of the heroic men who gave their services to their country in her time of greatest need.


SUMMARY OF CASUALTIES.

Total enrollment 1319
Killed 63
Wounded 277
Died of wounds 35
Died of disease 135
Discharged for disease, wounds or other causes 288
Buried in National Cemeteries 60
Captured 17
Transferred 49


[Note 1.] Report of Lieut. Col. Wm. E. Small, Page 844, Vol. 2, Adjutant General of Iowa, 1863. Also Page 185 — 1866 Report.

[Note 2.] "A cheval." Placed so as to command two roads, or the space between two sides.

[Note 3.] Capt. Albert Head of Company F, wounded severely in the forehead.

[Note 4.] General Crocker entered the service as Captain of Company D, Second Infantry: was promoted to Major of that regiment, was the first Colonel of the Thirteenth Iowa Infantry, and was later promoted to Brigadier General of Volunteers.


SOURCE: Roster & Record of Iowa Soldiers During the War of the Rebellion, Volume 2, p. 145-52