Showing posts with label 9th IA INF. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 9th IA INF. Show all posts

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Mrs. Margaret D. Drips has been appointed . . .

. . . postmaster at Maquoketa, Jackson county, in this state, in the place of her husband Captain A. W. Drips, who was killed at the battle of Pea Ridge.

– Published in The Davenport Daily Gazette, Davenport, Iowa, Friday Morning, May 16, 1862, p. 2

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

The Late Battle Of Pea Ridge

Lieutenant Colonel Herron, of the Ninth Iowa volunteers, one of the regiments which bore so gallant a part in the actions at Leetown and Elkhorn, in Arkansas, (known officially as the battle of Pea Ridge,) recently arrived in this city, and is occupying a room at the Planters House.  He is in care of Dr. Charles A. Pope, and has promise of as speedy recovery from his wound as possible.  During one of the fiercest contests of the battle, and in which the Ninth had to struggle against a superior force of the enemy, a cannon ball passed entirely through Lieutenant Colonel Herron’s horse, and striking the rider’s right ankle, produced both a fracture and a dislocation.  While thus prostrated on the field, he fell into the hands of the enemy, and on the retreat of their army to Van Buren he was carried thither a prisoner, and exchanged, after two weeks’ detention, for Col. Hebert, of Louisiana, who was among the captives taken by the Union forces.  He was as well treated while in possession of the rebels as their limited means for hospitality and the courtesies of warfare would allow, and met among them several St. Louisans with whom he was acquainted before the breaking out of the war.  He saw or heard of them at the town of Van Buren, on the Arkansas river, four miles from Fort Smith. – It was on Van Buren that the enemy directed their retreat after the fortunes of the contest at Pea Ridge went against them, the columns of the deceased Generals McCulloch and McIntosh, taking the route via Huntsville, and Van Dorn and Price, the road through Bentonville.  They made capital time to Van Buren, and there effected a re-concentration of their defeated and dispirited followers.

Col. Herron Frequently saw and conversed with Gen. Price, and believes him to be rather the best and most sensible of the rebel magnates.  Price was shot through the left arm with a Minie ball.  It entered a few inches below the elbow and cut the bone without causing a complete fracture.  The arm was painful and much swollen, and Dr. France, Price’s Surgeon, had great difficulty in reducing the inflammation.

Gen. Slack received a mortal wound in the battle, and was found on the field by Federal soldiers, and carried to a hospital used temporarily for the treatment of the rebel wounded. – He lived only four hours.

Gens. McCulloch and McIntosh were buried at the same time, at Fort Smith.  An escort of cavalry accompanied their remains to the grave.

Gen. Rains after getting to Van Buren, became insubordinate, under the influence of copious drinks of bad whiskey.  He met. Maj. Gen. Van Dorn on the street, denounced him, and damned him for a coward – laying the loss of the battle wholly to Van Dorn’s account.  The opinion generally expressed by the rebel officers was that Van Dorn had courage enough, but lacked judgment.  He arrived at the confederate camps only the day before the battle, and was received with a grand artillery salute, the thunder of which was heard in the Federal lines.  Learning from the subordinate generals that their combined forces amounted to 40,000 men, he ordered them to move forward early next morning and surround the Federal troops.  The day before Col. Heron was released, Price received a commission from Richmond as Major-General.  This still left Price subordinate to Van Dorn, but he thinks the latter has retired or resigned leaving Price in chief command.

Two thirds of the rebel soldiers were armed with muskets, many of them of the Springfield and Enfield pattern, and having sabre bayonets.  The balance had shot guns and country rifles with usual variety.  A brigade of three regiments of Louisiana troops had good uniforms of gray cloth, but with the remainder of the army uniforms were few except with the officers.  They had forty-five pieces of artillery, many of the guns being superior to those in the Union army, who counted, all told, but forty two pieces.  The mules and wagons comprising the commissary train were better than our own, but in medical stores and hospital appliances they were very deficient.

The rebels generally were much dispirited. – Their officers studiously deceived them as to the extent of the late reverses.  They admitted that Fort Donelson had been lost to them with a garrison of two or three thousand men but they denied that Columbus had been evacuated, or that the Federal troops occupied Nashville.  The news of the naval engagement in Hampton Roads was bulletined throughout their camps on sheets of paper, printed in large type.  They represented that six Government vessels were then destroyed – on of them with the entire crew of five hundred men. –{St. Louis Rep.

– Published in The Burlington Weekly Hawk-Eye, Burlington, Iowa, Saturday, April 5, 1862, p. 2


See Also:

Monday, October 22, 2012

James A. Wade

JAMES A. WADE, one of the enterprising and successful farmers and stock-raisers of Green Bay Township, residing on section 8, was born in Montgomery County, Indiana, February 8, 1844, a son of Isaac and Elinor (Barnhill) Wade, who were natives of Kentucky and Indiana respectively. They reared a family of nine children – W. S., Sarah Elizabeth, James A., Mary Alice, Eliza Jane, John Henry, Martha Ann, Charles Harvey and Nellie Myrtle.  When our subject was two years old his parents came to Iowa, locating in Des Moines County, where the family lived for ten years, coming in 1856 to Clarke County, and settling in Green Bay Township. James A. was reared to manhood on a farm in Clarke County, receiving his education in the common schools of this and Des Moines counties.  In October, 1863, he enlisted in the Ninth Iowa Cavalry, Company H, and was engaged with his regiment in fighting guerrillas and bushwhackers in Missouri and Arkansas, and had many hard-fought skirmishes and battles with those noted rebels. He received an honorable discharge at Davenport, Iowa, when he returned to his home in Clarke County.  Mr. Wade was married March 6, 1870, to Miss Eliza Jane Harbin, a daughter of John and Providence (Gardner) Harbin, her father being a prominent pioneer and wealthy citizen of Clarke County. Mr. and Mrs. Wade have four children – Levina Eleanor, Nellie Myrtle, Archibald Fred and Alfred Leslie. Mr. Wade is engaged in stock-raising, feeding and dealing in stock, in which pursuit he has met with good success. His farm contains 340 acres of choice land under fine cultivation, with good, two-story residence, a fine orchard and commodious out-buildings and large barn.

SOURCE: Biographical and Historical Record of Clarke County, Iowa, Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago, Illinois, 1886 p. 432-3

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

Christopher C. Perdue

CHRISTOPHER C. PERDUE, farmer, section 22 Liberty Township, was born in West Virginia, October 11, 1841, the youngest of ten children. When he was six years old his father died, and at the age of eleven his mother died. He was then practically thrown upon his own resources. August 9, 1862, he enlisted in Company H, Eighty third Regiment. His brother Daniel was in the same company. He was engaged in the third battle of Fort Donelson in February, 1863. In that battle Daniel was shot through the body, and only through the careful nursing of his brother was his recovery made possible. He was honorably discharged July 5, 1865, and returned to Warren County, Illinois, and afterward came to this county. Isaiah, member of the Ninth Iowa, died in Arkansas. Thomas, in Thirty-second Iowa, now lives in Nebraska. Christopher worked on rented land until he purchased his present home in the spring of 1869.  August 29, 1866 he was married to Miss Nancy La Follette, daughter of William La Follette, who settled in Liberty Township in 1855. Both parents are deceased, the mother dying in February, 1868, and the father in February, 1881, aged sixty-one years. Mrs. Perdue was born in Boone County, Indiana, September 21, 1849. Mr. and Mrs. Perdue have nine children James W., Francis M., Ella May, Clarence E., Hattie V., Giles C., Susan A., Martha J. and Mary E., twins. Ella May died at the age of two years. Mr. Perdue commenced here on wild land. He first purchased eighty acres and now owns 185, 120 under cultivation. He has held every position of public trust in the township except justice of the peace. In politics he is identified with the Greenback party.

SOURCE: Biographical and Historical Record of Clarke County, Iowa, Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago, Illinois, 1886 p. 306-7

Sunday, September 23, 2012

The Pea Ridge Battle

Further Details of the Fight.

(Correspondence of the Missouri Democrat.)

PEA RIDGE, Near Sugar Creek, Ark.,
March 9, 1862

During the past three days we have had some terrible fighting against fearful odds.

On Wednesday, Gen. Curtis, commander-in-chief, whose head-quarters was at Camp Halleck, received reliable information that the rebels, under Van Dorn, McIntosh, McCulloch, Price and Pike, were marching on us with a large force of Confederate Rebels and Confederate Indians.  All prisoners taken give the rebel forces from 35,000 to 40,000.  Gen. Curtis then ordered Carr’s division to move from Cross Hollows to Sugar Creek to take a strong position he had previously selected in case of attack.  Col. Carr marched in the night and joined Col. Davis, who had previously taken position before break of day, in good order.

Gen. Sigel, at Bentonville, was also ordered to rejoin Gen. Curtis at the same point.  Gen. Sigel’s rear cut their way through the enemy at the latter place, and kept up the fight for six miles.

The rebels on Friday morning having made a detour from Bentonville, got a heavy force directly on our rear and right, occupying the heights and brush on both sides of the Fayetteville road.  Colonel Carr’s division was sent to dislodge them.  The battle commenced at half-past 10 a. m., and raged eight hours, until darkness put an end to the contest.  They played on us from masked batteries.  At night we occupied a position considerably nearer our camp.  The carnage was dreadful on both sides.

Simultaneously with the action on our right fighting tool place opposite our front near Leetown, between Gen. Davis and another large body of the enemy.  The latter were forced from the field and hastened to form a junction with the rebels on our right.  The numerous instances of gallantry and heroic devotion which occurred, cannot be mentioned in this communication.  The move of the enemy caused a change of our line.  The battle was resumed next morning, (Saturday) about half past six o’clock, our guns opened on the enemy.  Gen. Carr formed in the center, with Davis on the right and Sigel on the left.  The line of battle was a magnificent sight.  The enemy occupied an open wood directly in front, a perfect hive of them.  They also covered a high bluff more to the left where a battery was planted.  They had another battery playing on us from a more central position, and also a battery of twelve rifled pieces on the Fayetteville road.  We opened upon them with five batteries planted at different points along our whole line, the cross fire produced such a tremendous effect as caused the enemy to falter.

Soon after 10 a. m. Gen. Curtis gave the order to advance, and the infantry becoming engaged, poured in such a murderous fire of musketry that the enemy fled from the field in all directions.  The victory was decisive. – Under the eye of Gen. Curtis, Commander-in-Chief, Gen. Sigel followed the flying enemy for several miles.  Col. Bussy with a cavalry force, is in pursuit toward Boston Mountains, after the main body.  We captured five cannon.  It is impossible to give our loss at this time, or any reliable estimate of the enemy’s loss.  We have taken prisoners, Acting Brig. Gen. Herbet, the commander at Cross Hollows; also Colonel Mitchell, adj. Gen. Stone, Col. Price and majors and captains in abundance.

The loss of valuable officers on our side is deeply deplored.  We have four general hospitals established for the relief of the wounded.

The rebel McIntosh is reported dead, and also McCulloch, who was known to be mortally wounded.

Price was wounded in the hand.

Van Dorn got away safe.

Col. Reeves of the rebel Second Missouri, is mortally wounded.

Albert Pike Commands the Indians.

Many of our wounded have been tomahawked and scalped by the Indians, with savage ferocity unbecoming civilized warfare.

I give a list of our casualties in killed and wounded.

Col. Hendricks, 22d Indiana, was killed by Indians.

Liet. Col. Herron was wounded in the foot and taken prisoner.

Maj. Black of the 37th Illinois, wounded in the arm.

Lieut. Col. Fredricks, 59th (late 6th Missouri,) reported mortally wounded.

Gen. Asboth, wounded in arm.

Lieut. Colonel Trimble was wounded in the mouth.

Lieut. Col. Crittenden, Co. K, 3d Iowa cavalry, was severely wounded.

Major Coyle of the 9th Iowa in shoulder.

Lieut. Porcher, Co. H, 4th Iowa, severely wounded in thigh.

Color Sergeant Teal, 4th Iowa, shot in the arm.

Captain Burger, Co. H, 4th Iowa, wounded in head.

Add Pea Ridge to the list of battlegrounds.

All our letters including my dispatches, have been detained several days here – cut off by the enemy.


STILL LATER FROM THE BATTLE-FIELD

(By Dispatch from Rolla.)

ROLLA, Missouri, March 16. – The remains of Colonel Hendricks, of the 29th Indiana, who was killed at the battle of Pea Ridge, Arkansas, arrived here yesterday, accompanied by his brother and two or three other gentlemen, who left the battle-ground on Monday following the battle.

They represent the contest as having been a terrible one.  The rebels fought desperately, using stones in their cannon, when their shot gave out.  Their force is stated at 35,000 including 2,200 Indians under Albert Pike.

As near as can be ascertained, our loss is six hundred killed and 800 to 1,000 wounded.  The rebel surgeons, who came into our lines to dress the wounds of their soldiers, acknowledge the loss of 1,100 killed and from 2,500 to 3,000 wounded.

We took 1,600 prisoners and thirteen pieces of artillery, ten of which were captured by Gen. Sigel’s command and three by Col. Patterson’s brigade.

Two of our cannon, belonging to Davidson’s battery, were taken by the rebels, but were recaptured by our troops.

The rebels were completely whipped, one division under Price fleeing in one direction and the other, under Van Dorn, taking another. – Maj. Hebart of one of the secession regiments, who was taken prisoner, says that Gen. Erost of Camp Jackson notoriety was killed.

– Published in The Burlington Weekly Hawk-Eye, Burlington, Iowa, Saturday, March 22, 1862, p. 4

Wednesday, September 5, 2012

Death Of Capt. Dripps


It is with sorrow we learn that our friend Dripps, of the Maquoketa Excelsior, is among the killed at the battle of Pea Ridge.  The Dubuque Times thus speaks of him:

We are pained to announce the death of Captain Dripps of Company A, 9th Regiment of Iowa volunteers.  He was killed at the battle of Pea Ridge, Arkansas, while gallantly leading his brave men in that terrible fight.  Capt. Dripps was from Maquoketa, Jackson county, where he leaves a family to mourn his loss.  He has been connected with the press of Iowa for several years in Clayton and Jackson counties, and has a wide circle of friends in the State.  He served in the Mexican war, where he showed himself to be a brave soldier; and early sought an opportunity to enlist in the present struggle to protect the oneness of the Union, but failed to get a place until the formation of the 9th regiment commenced.  We well remember how is face beamed with joy when he came into the city and found a letter from Col. Vandever, pledging him a place with his company, in that regiment.  He went into the strife from a sense of duty; maintained from the start, the dignified bearing of the true soldier, and fell in the first great battle in which the regiment was engaged.

Capt. Dripps was a Christian professor, and was, no doubt, prepared for his sudden summons to another world.  To his companion, whom we met at her happy home a few days ago, and to all his friends in Jackson county, we tender our heartfelt sympathies.  He fell in a glorious cause and sleeps in a hero’s grave.

– Published in The Burlington Weekly Hawk-Eye, Burlington, Iowa, Saturday, March 22, 1862, p. 3

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

The Great Battle Of Pea Ridge


Full Particulars of the Three Days’ Fighting.

(Correspondence Cincinnati Times.)

CAMP SIGEL, PEA RIDGE, Benton Co., Ark.,
Monday Evening, March 10.

Before this reaches Cincinnati, you will have learned of the great three days’ battle fought on Pea Ridge, in Benton county, Arkansas, commencing on Thursday morning, the 6th, and closing on Saturday afternoon, the 8th inst., certainly one of the severest engagements during the war, and little, if any, behind the great struggle at Fort Donelson.

This battle, like that up the Cumberland, extended over a great deal of ground, and was characterized by a vast amount of irregular fighting, such as it is impossible to embrace with the eye, and almost impossible to describe in detail.  Such particulars, however, as I can gather amid the tumult and confusion, that attend and follow a battle, I will endeavor to furnish in my usual crude and desultory form.


FEARS FOR OUR TROOPS.

No marvel fears were felt for the safety of our soldiers, notwithstanding the confidence reposed in such officers as Sigel, Carr, Davis, Osterhaus, and others, who had been tested by sever ordeals on the fields.  That their situation was precarious – that the odds were largely against them – and the prospect of their success dim and distant, is evident at a glance.

Our little army seemed rather to consult its ardor than its prudence, and marched steadily on in the face of frowning dangers and formidable opposition.  Our advance reached Fayetteville forty-five miles below the Missouri State line, and still Price retreated.

At Boston mountains the Missouri rebel was joined by Ben. McCulloch, Van Dorn, Albert Pike and his Indians, and McIntosh, who had been made Generalissimo of all the Secession forces in Arkansas, much to the chagrin of Sterling Price, really more deserving of the great dishonor.

At this time Gen. Curtis, hearing of the rebel reinforcements, and knowing their force more than twice his own, had no doubt he would be attacked, or at least have an opportunity for battle in a very few days.  He discovered that the vicinity of Sugar Creek was much better adapted for camping, and he therefore ordered his advance to fall back to the neighborhood of that stream.  Up to this time Price and McIntosh had believed the Federal army at least 50,000 strong; not supposing Curtis and Sigel would have the temerity to enter a thickly settled State, whose every man, woman and child had been reported as hostile, to the last degree, to the odious Yankees.

Hearing of Curtis’ retrograde movement, McIntosh had no doubt that he was retreating in hot haste, anxious to escape from the toils in which he had discovered himself, as it was hoped to late for extrication.  When he learned, too, through one of his spies, the exact number of the Federal troops, he was confident they were flying, and thereafter the only effort was to destroy or capture the Yankee host.


THE FEDERAL ARMY.

Our effective force could not have been more than twelve thousand on the day of the first engagement, and was composed of Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Ohio, and Missouri troops.  The army was divided into three divisions, under the command of Gen. Samuel R. Curtis, a brave and patriotic officer, and was brigaded, as nearly as I learn, in the following manner:


GEN. SIGEL’S DIVISION.

FIRST BRIGADE – COL. GREUSEL.
Thirty-sixth Illinois, Col Greusel.
Twenty-fifth Illinois, Col. Koler.
Forty-fourth Illinois, Col. Knoblesdorf.

SECOND BRIGADE – COL. OSTERHAUS.
Twelfth Missouri, Col. Osterhaus.
Seventeenth Missouri, Col. Hassendeufel.
Second Missouri, Col. Schaeffer.

THIRD BRIGADE – COL. ASBOTH.
Third Missouri, Col. Friala,
Illinois Cavalry, (one battalion,) Captains Jenks and Smith;
Third Iowa Cavalry.


GEN. DAVIS’ DIVISION.

FIRST BRIGADE – COL. BENTON.
Eighth Indiana; Col. Benton;
Eighteenth Indiana, Col. Patterson;
Twenty-second Indiana, Lieut. Col. Hendricks.

SECOND BRIGADE – COL. _____
Fifty-ninth Illinois, Lieut. Col. Fredericks;
Thirty Seventh Missouri, Col. _____
Missouri Cavalry, battalion, Major Bowen;
Second Ohio Battery, Col. Carlin;
First Missouri Light Artillery, one battery.


GEN. CARR’S DIVISION.

FIRST BRIGADE – COL. DODGE.
Fourth Iowa, Lieut. Col. Galighan;
Twenty-fifth Illinois, Col. G. A. Smith;
Twenty-fourth Missouri (Battalion), Major Weston.

SECOND BRIGADE – COL. VANDEVIER.
Ninth Iowa, Lieut. Col. Herron;
Twenty-fifth Missouri, Col. Phelps;
Thirdy Iowa Battery, Capt. Hayden;
First Iowa Battery; Lieut. David.

THIRD BRIGADE – COL. ELLIS.
First Missouri Cavalry, Col. Ellis;
Third Illinois, Lieut. Col. _____
Sixth Missouri (battalion) Major Wright.


THE REBEL ARMY.

The rebel army was composed of nine or ten perhaps twelve thousand Missouri State troops, under Major General Sterling Price; some six or eight regiments of Arkansas, under Gen. Ben McCulloch; five or six regiments of Texans, under Gen. Earl Van Dorn; some three thousand Cherokee, Choctaw, Creek and Seminole Indians, under Col. Albert Pike, all under the command of Major General McIntosh.  In addition to those mentioned, there were two or three regiments of Louisiana troops, and companies of Mississippi and Alabama soldiers, under their respective Captains, Majors and Colonels, whose names are unknown alike to your correspondent and to fame.  The entire rebel force could not have been less than thirty thousand; many persons estimate it still higher.


ARMS OF THE FEDERALISTS AND REBELS.

Our troops were of course generally well armed, while the rebels varied as usual in the style, character and effectiveness of their weapons. – Many of the Confederate arms were excellent, embracing Mini rifles, Enfield muskets, and good United States muskets; but the greater portion were rifles and shot guns, with which Sterling Price once swore he would establish the Southern Confederacy against the opposing world.

The rebels and 82 field pieces, some 20 of which were rifled; while we had but 49; most of them, however, being of superior manufacture to those made in Secessia.


THE FIRST DAY’S FIGHTING.

As I have said, the rebels, before they began the new memorable battle in Benton County, Arkansas, on Thursday morning, March 6th, 1862 were entirely confident of success, and their chief concern only how to destroy or capture our whole force.

Gen. Curtis anticipated an attack from the South, and accordingly had the trains placed on the north, under the protection of Gen. Sigel, with a body of eight hundred men – the principal federal encampments and main lines being to the eastward and near the head on both sides of Sugar Creek.  Meantime, the rebel forces were moving in full strength from Bentonville, whence they had proceeded from Cross Hollows, and with rapid marches were endeavoring to cross the creek, and by placing themselves on the north to cut off our retreat.

An advance of about two thousand cavalry reached the desired point, and made a fierce onslaught on Sigel, hoping to take possession of our large and valuable train.

Sigel proved himself the right man in the right place.  He gallantly met the enemy, and while he repelled their charge, prevented them from seizing upon our wagons.  The brave and accomplished officer seemed ubiquitous.  He rode rapidly here and there; giving orders and observing the point of attack and the situation of the enemy, at the same time cheering and encouraging his troops.

Often he was in the thickest of the fight, and hey he was always cool, calculating, and skillful; exposing himself as a common soldier, and yet preserving the calm judgment and fixed purpose of a Commander-in-Chief.

Sigel’s desire was to keep the communication open between himself and the main camp, and the enemy’s design to cut off this avenue for reinforcements.  They closed round him with tumultuous shouts, and believed they had accomplished their purpose, when Sigel rushed in upon them with his brave followers and compelled them to give way.  Sigel could not relinquish the trains and so he fought on, and exhorted his men to renewed hope and courage by his example.

For two hours the strife went on with great ardor on both sides; but it seemed as if the Federalists would soon be compelled to yield.  There seemed no hope for them.  They must become exhausted, and doubtless they must have done so, had their destiny been in less powerful and expert hands than Sigel’s.

The waves of opposition rolled around Sigel’s band once more, and gain the traitorous shout went up to the sky, and swept like a note of victory along the rising hill.  Many a stout loyal heart doubtless sank when that cry was heard; but Sigel had no thoughts of failure.  He was fighting for his adopted country, and the salvation of his little band, and ordering three companies of his men to charge bayonets the rebel cavalry was dispersed, and the way was open once more.

Still no reinforcements came, and our gallant soldiers appeared contending as a forlorn hope.

About the trains the din of strife rose louder than before, and the rattle of musketry and the booming of cannon awoke the surrounding echoes.

The enemy were losing ground.  They rallied and fell with redoubled force on our heroic band, two hundred of whom had already proved their patriotism with their blood.

The combat was hand to hand.  Horsemen were dismounted, and struggled with the infantry, while the officers were sometimes seen defending themselves against the advancing bayonets of the common soldiers.

A superhuman effort on the part of the enemy, and a third time the Federalists were surrounded.

Firmer and firmer were the rebels closing round the five or six hundred braves, who were evidently going to the wall.

The sun of Hope seemed sinking, though that of Nature was shining clear from out the quiet sky.

Sigel saw the smile of Heaven, only, and would not despond.  His eye flashed, and his form expanded, as the shouts of the enemy rose above the din of the struggle.  Only one way was left.

“Follow me!” thundered Sigel, and his proud steed trampled an approaching rebel under his haughty feet.

A deep, strong, earnest cry from the Unionists, and they met the foe with the rush of determination and the energy of despair.

The Secession line could not endure the shock.  It recoiled, was thrown into confusion, and retired from a position that was immovable as an Alpine rock.

And Sigel was victorious with the sun still beaming clearly out of the quiet sky.

The train was saved.  The first day was won.  The future looked blue with hope as the violets of the early year.


THE SECOND DAY’S BATTLE.

The enemy, during the night and early in the morning, poured in from the Bentonville, road, and gathered in heavy force to our rear, sweeping round to the right, and occupying both sides of the Keetsville road, a position from which it was absolutely necessary to dislodge them, or surrender all hope of success.

Truly, before the second day’s engagement began, the prospect was very dark.

Defeat seems to stare us in the face, and the sole thing possible appeared a struggle to prevent too disastrous a discomfiture.

The way to Missouri was defended by thirty thousand of the enemy; and we had little more than one-third of the number to dispute the perilous passage.  On the south were the Boston mountains.  To the east or west we could not go.  Were we not hemmed in by nature and the enemy?

Could we longer resist?  Could we say we were contending only for victory when the shadows were lengthening and deepening on our hearts?

Gen. Carr’s division was sent by Gen. Curtis to force the enemy from their position, and about ten o’clock in the morning the battle was renewed with increased ardor, and soon the batteries from both sides were replying to each other with death dealing voices.  The main action in the morning was to the right of our encampment, and for seven hours the field was hotly contested.

Gen. Carr made a spirited and heavy charge upon the enemy under McCulloch and Price. – The musket and rifle firing was very sharp, and every few seconds there boom of the batteries burst  across the country, and the iron hail swept down the stream of life, and filled the surging and noisy waves with spectral corpses.

The rebels reeled as we went against them, but their column did not break.  The charge was repeated.  Still the foe stood firm, opening a galling fire from two batteries whose presence had not before been known.  Our troops were thrown into confusion, and three companies of infantry and Col. Ellis’ cavalry were ordered to silence the destructive guns.

Like lightning our men leaped forth prompt to the word, and raged about the rebel batteries as ravenous wolves around a sheep fold.

Everywhere the strife roared; everywhere the smoke crept; everywhere the ground shook.

The sunbeams glanced off from the swords and bayonets; but they ceased to shine for many eyes on that blood stained day.

Carr’s column advanced and fell back and advanced again, and beyond them, up the hill, the cavalry and infantry were struggling to capture the detested guns.  The regiment which protected the batteries met them fairly and freely, and for half an hour, the two combatants were so comingled that they almost failed to recognize one another.

“Our men have the batteries,” was announced and the Federals rent the welkin with their huzzas.

Yes, it was so.

Through the blue curling vapors our men could be seen dragging the guns after them.  Ere they had gone a hundred yards, the rebels were behind them struggling like Hercules for the repossession of the pieces.

Blood streamed anew, and shouts and groans and prayers and curses went up with gigantic forms of smoke into the upper air.

Appropriate incense to waft the elements of battle to the skies.

No noise now.

All as silent as when men are holding their breath for a deadly purpose.  The suspense is awful.  It cannot last.

Do you not hear a thousand hearts beat across the plain?  Anxiety has made the roar of battle almost inaudible, so keenly is the sense upon the rack.

Five thousand throats are roaring with triumph.

Brief triumph.  The batteries are lost.  Our men have been overpowered by numbers.  They retire, and blood marks their progress, and many dead are abandoned.

The recaptured guns are avenging themselves.  Their shot and shell are tearing up the ground, and tearing open brave bosoms, and making history and peopling graves.

The batteries are sought once more.  We win them back with blood.  We are hurrying them off.  The rebels stare like demons out of malignant eyes, and curse through firm-set teeth.

Triumph is about to crown our efforts, when a large force of the enemy, repulsed by General Davis from that section of Pea Ridge known as Leetown, throngs to the rescue.  A dozen combats over the guns, and the contest is still undecided when the darkness gathers, and through the night the enemy are seen bearing off their twice captured, twice recaptured guns.

Nature is no longer an impartial witness.  She draws the curtain, and the camp fires blaze along the road and light up the trees.  Man’s Pandemonium is profaning the holy night.

Midnight comes; and the scattered words of the sentinel are heard; and the Federalists and rebels are sleeping on their arms, dreaming, it may be, of the time when they were friends and brothers, and America had not become one vast military camp.

The stars, too, are keeping watch on the battlements of Heaven.  They challenge no one. – They seem to say to all the weary and worn, “Come hither!  Here is peace!”

Speak, they, or be forever silent, there are many spirits in the air seeking the peace that is not of earth.


THE THIRD DAY’S BATTLE.

At 6 o’clock our guns opened on the enemy, and our fire was returned from 20 pieces.  The firing did little harm.  The enemy’s shot passed over our heads.  Our cause was growing darker.

This day must win or lose the battle.  As yet the fortunes of war incline not to our side.  We have reason to be alarmed, but home and courage are strong counselors, and add strength to weak arms.

Gen. Sigel observes new positions for our operations.  We plant six batteries at different points commanding their principal forces.  A fire of ball is shattering the space with its roar.

The enemy’s list of mortality is swelling. – They do not understand our great advantages.  They turn pale and hesitate to advance.  No time is given them for reflection.  They are seized in their soul’s perplexity, while judgment tosses in fevered sleep.

Our army move forward.

Our entire infantry is engaged.  The rebels meet our dreadful volleys of musketry for a quarter of an hour, and their fire slackens.

Still our batteries are forcing the verdict of the outraged nation into their startled souls.

The cannon answered the musketry – the musketry replies to the cannon.

Every inch of ground appears alive with troops.  Every twig and dry leaf seems ablaze.  The balls are falling like the large drops of a summer shower.  The Pentecost of war is descending.

The rebels can endure no longer the sheet of flame out of which go death and pain in [a] thousand forms.  They have lost their faith in their bad cause and themselves.  They fly, and a roar of victory follows them as the waves of the river the lean and hungry shore.  They turn not back.  Two of their Generals have received their mortal wounds, and the word is: “Save himself who can.”

The Yankees have beaten them, and their star has set over the verdureless ridge of this hard fought field.

The birds twitter over head.  The sun shines warmer and clearer.  The atmosphere of blood is purified by the feeling that it was shed in a sacred cause.

The spring greets the victors, and kisses their burning brows with the same pure lips that call forth the early flowers.  Nature rejoices over the triumph of principle, for Nature is the order and the law.

The rebels are hastening away.  The Federalists pursue the broken columns, and the breezes come wafting the victorious shouts, and the incense of the youthful March, revealing that all is well, and that the future is secure.


THE LOSS ON BOTH SIDES.

Our loss cannot be known at this time, but it must be in the vicinity of 1,700 – 500 killed and some 1,300 wounded, most of them slightly. – Our officers, contrary to the past experience of this war, suffered little, though they exposed themselves recklessly, as Americans always will do on the battle-field.

The rebel loss will never, I presume, be accurately ascertained, as they are lying all over the ridges, in the ravines, among the brush and along the roads.  The casualties among the enemy, however, were far greater than with us, and three thousand, of which nine or ten hundred were in killed, I am confident, would not be an over statement of their loss.  Their officers fell thick and fast in the engagement, and their dead and wounded Majors, Colonels, Captains and Lieutenants, were at least double ours. – The Secession officers were generally brave and dashing, and fought in so praiseworthy a manner as to leave us no regret, so far as courage goes, that they were born upon our own beloved soil.


THE HEROES OF THE FIELD.

It is not possible to mention all who distinguished themselves, or those who did not; for men and officers seemed determined to do all that lay in nerve and limb to shed luster on our arms, and gird the glories of three illustrious days with the laurels the great Julius so ambitiously, but deservedly wore beneath the eagles of eternal Rome.

Under no circumstances, I cannot forbear to mention as I believe Gen. Curtis will, the heroic conduct of Generals Sigel, Carr, Davis and Asboth; Colonels Dodge, Osterhaus, Hendricks, Vandevier, [Greusel], Schaeffer, Benton, Ellis, Herron, and a host of Majors and Captains., in fact, I have heard of no complaint in any quarter.  All shone like heroes in a heroic cause, and were worthy the fame, past and future, of the country deserving ere many months to resume her proud title of the Model Republic.


BENIGHTED CONDITION OF ARKANSAS.

The semi-barbarous condition of Arkansas has become proverbial in this country; and yet no one who has not traveled in the State can have just idea of the ignorance and immorality that prevail there.  If a foreigner were set down in this Patagonia of places, and told that it was one of the component parts of the Great Republic, famous for its school houses, railways and newspapers, he would not believe a story so apparently self-contradictory.

Here in Benton county one sees very few indications of civilization, and it would seem an anomaly if loyalty ever could have flourished on so barren a soil.  The population is not now over eighteen hundred, though it once boasted four thousand, and the dwellings are usually miles apart, and made of logs and mud, presenting a most cheerless and squalid appearance.

No one is at home save women and children, and the old men, and very few of the last, even those of sixty years who were not diseased having been impressed into the rebel army.  The women are only such in name, and their sex, in absence of physiological demonstration, must be taken on faith.  Tall, meager, sallow, with hard features and large bones, they would appear masculine, if they were not attenuated to suggest the possibility of health of strength.  They drink whiskey and smoke as freely as the men, often chew tobacco, and go about swearing in discordant tones and expectorating skillfully, and are as hideous as any Tophetian trollops that the most prolifically depraved mind can imagine.

Very few of the common people – and Heaven knows they are common enough – can read or write; and it is not usual to find but one or two in a township so blessed beyond this kind.  Ignorance and crime are inseparable companions, and it is no wonder vice here assumes many of its lowest and most disgusting forms.  The life led is one of brutalized sense and dissipation, practical amalgamation, gambling and fighting, are the end and aim of Arkansas existence.  Not many of the people have been out of the State (just think of a being that has no idea beyond or above this Boeotia) and they live, if I may employ so inappropriate a verb, and die here, unpenetrated by a ray of beauty, unlifted by a hope of advancement, undeveloped by a thought of change.

Among some of the farmers in this country are men of considerable intelligence, but they are generally from other States.  The true Arkansian knows nothing and learns nothing.  He regards education in every form as a Yankee invention that has a tendency to interfere with the institution of Slavery, which many of the poor whites adore, because they own no negroes.


THE UNION SENTIMENT OF ARKANSAS.

With several of the more intelligent people here, and with some of the prisoners, I have conversed on the subject of the Union sentiment in Arkansas, and they say the people, strange as it may seem, would never have gone with the Confederacy if they had been allowed to determine the question for themselves.

Throughout the entire State men went as emissaries of Secession, and told the people they must go out of the Union, if they did not want to be despoiled of their slaves, and ruled over by the Yankees, who could compel them to perform all menial offices.  Their property, their wives, their homes, their very children would be taken from them; they would exchange positions with their negroes, and the latter be made their masters.

These arguments even the Arkansans could comprehend, and in a few weeks after the diffusion of such nefarious sentiments, the State was thrown into a terrible excitement.  A reaction occurred.  A few thinking Union men enlightened the half crazed community, and told them they were deceived; that Secession would ruin them; that their only safety was in the Union, and that President Lincoln had no disposition and no intention to interfere with any of their constitutional rights.

The advice came too late.  The rebels had by that time gained the power, by seizing all the arms, and thereafter they had full and absolute sway.  They pillaged and destroyed wherever they went, and the people found their worst enemies were at home.  Terror-stricken, they yielded, for they knew their lives were in the hands of the oppressors, and since that period hardly a man has dared to lift his voice against the outrageous tyranny imposed upon the State.  Perhaps the oppressed were wise in their reticence, for the means of forcing eternal silence were not wanting.

Men were often carried off by armed bands, who broke into quiet habitations at unseasonable hours of the night, whipped, tarred and feathered, dragged through horse ponds, and often hanged, or otherwise murdered, because they were charged with infidelity to the South.  Loyalty to the union was the unpardonable offence, and the individual suspected of any such sentiment was liable to assassinations anywhere.  Hundreds of men escaped from the confines of the State, leaving their families and all their property behind, fearing to remain where their lives were not worth a moment’s purchase.  Any scoundrel could make an accusation against an honest citizen that would destroy his life, or drive him an outcast and an exile from his home and all the associations he held dear.

The incidents of personal prowess and daring on the field were numerous, and the narrow escapes from death difficult to believe unless witnessed.  A few examples will not, I opine, be without interest at a time when the public pulse beats from sympathy with little else than war.


PAINFUL FATE OF A BRAVE LIEUTENANT.

A melancholy incident occurred to a Lieutenant (whose name I could not learn) in one of the Iowa companies, that I cannot forbear mentioning.  He had been shot in the leg, and had fallen.  He rose and supported himself upon a stump, cheered his company, whose captain had been killed, to push on to the then important crisis toward the reinforcement of Gen. Carr.

While the Lieutenant was waving his sword, an artillery wagon was driven madly along the road, by the side of which he was standing. – The wheel struck him, threw him to the ground and the heavy carriage passed over his neck, causing instant death.  Poor fellow.  I saw rude men weep over his corpse, and they proved themselves braver and truer for their tears.


MAGNANIMOUS REBEL.

Even Secession cannot crush the noble instincts of the heart.  Even a rebel often has the generous qualities of nature and the lofty instincts of gentlemen.

A case in point:

A Colonel of one of the Louisiana regiments saw a poor private, a Federalist, lying wounded alone by the roadside, and begging for a drink.  The colonel dismounted, and taking the soldier’s canteen, went to the creek and filled it; gave him a drink and placed him in an easier position – all this while our bullets were flying in his immediate vicinity.

I am very sorry I do not know the gallant Colonel’s name.  He never did a nobler act on the battle field.  He has some reason to boast of chivalry, though I doubt if he does so.  If the South comprehended chivalry as he comprehends it, their assumption of a high attributed would not render it a subject of merriment and an object of scorn.


A BRAVE LIEUTENANT-COLONEL.

Lieutenant Colonel Herron, of the Ninth Iowa, was wounded in the battle and taken prisoner, though he lost his liberty through no fault of his, as he seemed determined to die rather than fall into Rebel hands.  He was surrounded by ten or twelve of the enemy, and his surrender demanded in vain.  He killed one and wounded three of the rebels, and was making every resistance with his sword, when his arms were seized and his opposition rendered impossible.  He would have been killed most assuredly, had not a Southern Major saved his life, and shot an Indian dead who was trying to butcher him after his arms were bound with a handkerchief.


ATROCITIES OF THE INDIANS.

The three thousand Cherokee, Choctaw, Creek and Seminole Indians under Col. Albert Pike, a renegade son of Connecticut, committed the greatest atrocities in the field, not only plundering and maiming the dead, but actually murdering and scalping the wounded as they lay helpless and suffering on the ground.  More than one hundred and twenty of our brave men were thus barbarously treated by the savage foe, who had been wrought to a pitch of frenzy by the rebels, through passionate appeals and declarations that the Yankees designed to enslave them, and force them, with chains and whips, to do the vilest drudgery in their aristocratic homes in the North.

Not only did the enemy thus poison their minds, but every day before the savages went into action they received large potations of whisky mixed with gunpowder, which rendered the naturally fierce sons of the forest perfect demons.  Under this extraordinary stimulus they forgot their usual caution, and exposing themselves after the American fashion, were killed in great numbers.  Still they were very formidable, and often attacked the Federalists in the rear, and as they were passing some bend in the road or piece of wooded land, and did much execution.  They yelled and danced and brandished their knives, and acted like crews of madmen; but when they became partially sober, became more prudent, and fought after their time-honored fashion – from behind trees and fallen timber.

When our troops discovered on the second day that the Indians were using the scalping-knife, their rage knew no bounds, and they made sad havoc in the ranks of the red devils; slaying them without mercy whenever and wherever they could reach them.  In one instance the Second Iowa battery which had four of its members scalped obtained the range of a body of four or five hundred of these savages and fired several charges of canister and shell upon them in rapid succession, at a distance of not more than three quarters of a mile.

The effect upon the natives was terrible. – They were cut down like grass, and the dusky demons who were unhurt ran howling from the field, and could not be rallied again that day (Friday) though Col. Albert Pike shot several with his own hand and bawled at them until he was hoarse.  Some ten or twelve of the chiefs were killed, whose names were Pri-chi-i-liko, (Seminole,) Maa-to-wee, (Creek,) Sag-a-hache, (Seminole,) Tar-a-nil-fut, (Cherokee,) No-ir-wampum, (Choctaw,) Yah-ta-min-go, (Chactaw,) Nor-i-mos-ker, (Creek,) Jor-a-tink-tinkel, (Cherokee,) Bo-re-op-o-lee, (Seminole,) and Elk-i-man-to-ros, (Creek.)

Bo-re-op-o-lee, was one of the most renowned of warriors, and though over fifty years of age was athletic and daring to an extraordinary degree, and famed in his tribe alike for his counsels and his prowess.  He had fought with the celebrated Red Jacket in Florida during the Seminole war, and bore upon his person no less than twenty wounds.


THE REBELS SLAUGHTERD BY THEIR SAVAGE ALLIES.

It is said the Indians, in the engagement of Friday, became so excited by the alcohol they had drunk, and the scenes that they witnessed that they turned their weapons upon their own allies, and butchered and scalped the rebels and Federalist with the most charming indifference.  An instance of this is given by one of the prisoners, a member of one of the companies that suffered from what the Southerners believed to be the treachery of the savages.

Four companies of the Arkansas troops belonging to Ben. McCulloch’s Division were marching upon one of the ridges north of Sugar Creek, on Saturday morning, to strengthen the enemy, who were badly pressed by General Sigel.  They soon came in sight of about three hundred Creeks and Choctaws who stood on the brow of an adjacent hill.  When within about one hundred and fifty yards of the savages the latter opened fire on them.  The rebel Major who commanded the battalion cried out to them that they were killing their friends; but the Indians did not heed what he said, and again discharged their pieces.

“The d----d rascals have turned traitors,” cried the Major.  “Upon them, Arkansans and give them no quarter.”

The Southerners needed no second order. – The attacked them with great energy, and for nearly an hour a desperate battle was waged on the Ridge; the Indians fighting with blind fury, and scalping all who fell into their hands, whether living, wounded or dead.  This is described as one of the severest actions of the entire battle, and the Indians, who were finally routed, are said to have lost one hundred and twenty-five killed and wounded.

JUNIUS.

– Published in The Burlington Weekly Hawk-Eye, Burlington, Iowa, Saturday, March 22, 1862, p. 2

Monday, August 6, 2012

Colonel Grenville M. Dodge to Samuel J. Kirkwood, Governor of Iowa, March 10, 1862


PEA RIDGE BATTLE GROUND, March 10th, 1862.

Gov. S. J. Kirkwood: We have fought a hard battle here, lasting two days; the first day's fight was terrible; it was mostly with the Fourth division, composed of Fourth and Ninth Iowa infantry, First and Second Iowa batteries, Thirty-fifth Illinois and Twenty-fifth Missouri. The loss in the division was 600 killed and wounded, mostly among the Iowa troops; they saved the day and made the victory the next morning easy; this division was opposed to Generals Price, Rains and McIntosh, with 15,000 infantry and 18 pieces of artillery. The Fourth division had only some 4,000 engaged, while our other forces were fighting McCullough, and the re-enforcements sent to us went to the First division, but we held the ground, whipped the enemy and Iowa got the glory of the fight. The Fourth Iowa lost 160 out of 548 engaged; Ninth Iowa lost 220 out of 700 engaged; First Iowa battery lost 16 out of 110 engaged, and Third Iowa battery lost 18 out of 140 engaged; they also lost 3 of their pieces. The second day we attacked early in the morning with our entire army, driving everything before us, and the enemy fled in all directions in great confusion, leaving several pieces of artillery, great quantities of small arms and at least 500 prisoners. Gen. Van Dorn attacked with 40,000 infantry and 70 pieces of artillery; we had 12,000, and 50 pieces of artillery. The fighting was terrible, especially among our troops. The Fourth Iowa fought all day steadily, and did not give an inch, although they had at one time concentrated upon them 12 pieces of artillery and six regiments of infantry; our ammunition gave out at night; when we fixed bayonets and charged across the field the enemy did not dare again meet us. It was a trying time for the Fourth; no ammunition and still under a galling fire. Every one gives great credit to the Iowa troops. No man from Iowa flinched. I saw some troops run; one or two parts of regiments came to our support, but fell back at the first fire. In my brigade there was not a field officer except one but was wounded. Lt.-Col. Herron, of Ninth Iowa, in Vandever's brigade, was wounded and taken prisoner. Our Iowa batteries did noble service; mine had two officers wounded in the morning. The Third Iowa cavalry suffered terribly in a charge; had 47 killed. They were put into it by a Dutchman, and out of all military usage. Lt.-Col. Trumbull was severely wounded in the charge. They had very few wounded; a large part of my wounded was from canister and grape; those of the Ninth Iowa from bullets. I was better protected from bullets, though under a hotter fire than any of them. I posted my men behind an open field and made the enemy cross it to reach us. They poured their grape and canister from 12 to 18 guns into us all the time, but could not get them to bear as well as on the Ninth Iowa. I never saw men fight as the Iowa troops did. I have sent a list of the killed and wounded to Adjt. Gen. Baker to have it published. A large number of my wounded will die; several have already, and it is impossible to get any accommodation; many lay on the field all night.

G. M. DODGE,
Colonel Fourth Iowa Infantry.

SOURCES: Samuel H. M. Byers, Iowa In War Times, p. 121

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Important News from Curtis’s Division


CHICAGO, March 13. – Special dispatch to the Evening Journal from St. Louis says:  Private letters received to-day from officers in Curtis’s army, that the rebels in McCulloch’s army are in the rear of the Federal army and another battle is soon expected.  In the late fight at Sugar Creek, the 4th Division stood the brunt of the battle.  The 4th and 9th Iowa, and 1st & 3d Iowa batteries are terribly cut up – 180 out of 400 in the 4th Iowa were killed and wounded.  Every field officer in Dodge’s Brigade were wounded.  Gen. Dodge had three horses killed under him and one wounded.  Capts. Burton and Burman and Lieut. Crittenden were wounded.  Lieut. Jackson was killed.

– Published in The Burlington Weekly Hawk-Eye, Burlington, Iowa, Saturday, March 15, 1862, p. 3

Friday, November 25, 2011

The Twenty-Fifth Iowa Infantry

The companies composing this regiment were made up as follows: Four in Henry, three in Des Moines, two in Washington and one in Louisa. It was organized in September, 1862, with field officers, George A. Stone, colonel; Fabian Brydolph, lieutenant-colonel, and Calvin Taylor, major. It numbered 995 men, and was mustered into the service on the 27th of September, at Mount Pleasant. It was thoroughly drilled before entering the field, and its first service was at Helena, Ark. It was in General Sherman's expedition against Vicksburg in December, and in January, 1863, it was in the battle of Arkansas Post, where it lost sixty men. It was in Grant's campaign against Vicksburg, but did not participate in many of the battles which preceded the siege of that stronghold. It was in the movements against Jackson, and later was sent to reinforce the army at Chattanooga. It took part in this campaign, and at the battle of Ringgold lost twenty-nine men. Colonel Stone was soon after placed in command of a brigade, and Lieutenant-Colonel Palmer succeeded to the command of the regiment. In General Sherman's march to the sea the Twenty-fifth was placed in the Iowa brigade of the Fifteenth corps. This brigade was made up of the Fourth, Ninth, Twenty-fifth and Thirty-first regiments of Iowa infantry, under command of Col. James A. Williamson, of Iowa. This brigade fought at Resaca, Lovejoy Station, Dallas, Kenesaw Mountain, Atlanta, Ezra Church, Jonesboro, and all through that great campaign, with distinguished bravery, the Twenty-fifth losing sixty-seven men in battle. It reached Savannah on the 21st of December, 1864. Here Colonel Stone took command of the Iowa brigade again, and Lieutenant-Colonel Palmer of the regiment. Colonel Stone's command on the morning of the 17th of February forced a passage over the river after a sharp fight, and entered Columbia, the capital of South Carolina, and planted the stars and stripes on the dome of the state house. The city surrendered through its mayor, and forty pieces of artillery were among the arms captured. On the 20th of March the Twenty-fifth had a hard fight at the battle of Bentonville, and lost twenty-seven men. This was its last battle, and it marched with the army to Goldsboro, Raleigh, and after the surrender of Johnston, it went by way of Richmond to Washington. In June the regiment returned to Iowa, and was disbanded at Davenport.

SOURCE, Benjamin F. Gue, Biographies And Portraits Of The Progressive Men Of Iowa, Volume 1, p. 108

Twenty-Fifth Regiment Iowa Volunteer Infantry

The Twenty-fifth Regiment was organized under the proclamation of President Lincoln, bearing date July 2, 1862. The ten companies of which it was composed were ordered into quarters by Governor Kirkwood, on dates ranging from August 2 to September 1, 1862. The place of rendezvous designated in the order of the Governor was Camp McKean, near Mount Pleasant, Iowa, and there, on the 27th of September, 1862, the companies and the field and staff officers of the regiment were mustered into the service of the United States, by Captain George S. Pierce of the United States Army. At the completion of the muster the regiment had an aggregate strength of 972 men, including the field, staff and company officers. There were 23 early additional enlistments, which brought the total number of the regiment to 995, at or about the time it left the State for the field of active military operations [see note 1]. The commander of the regiment, Colonel George A. Stone, had won honor and distinction in his previous service as First Lieutenant of Company F, First Iowa Infantry and, later, as Major of the Fourth Iowa Cavalry. Under the instruction of this very capable and energetic officer, the regiment improved to the utmost the time it remained in rendezvous and, by the time it left the State, had acquired a fair knowledge of the drill and discipline so essential to effective service in the field.

Early in November the regiment proceeded to St. Louis, and thence down the Mississippi River to Helena, Ark., where it went into camp. During its stay at Helena, detachments from the regiment accompanied reconnoitering expeditions to White River and elsewhere, but the record does not show that these expeditions encountered any considerable force of the enemy. The regiment was assigned to the Second Brigade of the First Division, Fifteenth Army Corps, the brigade commanded by General Hovey, and the division by General Steele. On the 22d of December, 1862, the regiment embarked on transports and moved down the Mississippi with the forces under command of General Sherman, and participated in that notable but unsuccessful movement against Vicksburg, by way of Chickasaw Bayou, in which it lost one man killed, seven wounded and two captured or missing [see note 2]. Returning from this expedition, the regiment, with its brigade and division, comprising part of the Fifteenth Army Corps, under command of Major General Sherman, with the Thirteenth Army Corps, commanded by Major General McClernand, moved down the Mississippi River to Arkansas Post. On January 11, 1863, the Twenty-fifth Iowa participated in the battle which resulted in the capture of that rebel stronghold. The conduct of his regiment in the battle is described in the official report of Colonel Stone as follows [see note 3]:


HEADQUARTERS TWENTY-FIFTH IOWA INFANTRY,
CAMP AT ARKANSAS POST, ARK., Jan. 12, 1863.

GENERAL: I herewith hand you the report of the part taken by my regiment in the action yesterday. I was ordered by our brigade commander, General Hovey, to form the regiment in the rear of the Seventy-sixth Ohio, Colonel Woods, the leading regiment, and sustain him in a bayonet charge on the enemy's fortifications. My command, to that effect, was promptly obeyed, and the two regiments, with yells creditable to Indians, started over an open space of ground for some 500 yards, exposed to the grape and canister of a rebel battery, of 6-pounder Parrott guns, and the rifles of five Texas Infantry regiments. The clear space was passed over with some loss and we then had some 200 yards more to make, 100 of which was through abatis and ditches. The Seventy-sixth Ohio had cleared everything but the last 100 yards of open ground that separated it from the breastworks, we following 20 yards in their rear; when the fire was so terrific, and the men so much exhausted, that the first line was compelled to halt, and we then for the first capped our rifles and responded to the enemy's fire, constantly advancing till the last line of defense for us was reached; and, after three hours fighting, the rebel flag was struck and the white one displayed, indicating that the enemy had surrendered. Some 5,000 prisoners, with several batteries, siege guns, and ordnance stores, small arms, etc., are a part of the fruits of this truly great victory. My regiment was complimented by the Texas Colonel in front of us, who remarked he was almost sure they must be Iowa troops. The casualties are as follows [see note 4]: . . . Adjutant S. Kirkwood Clark was wounded severely by a gunshot wound through the left leg, just below the knee. I do but justice when I notice the Adjutant in this report, for his cool and gallant conduct as well in this fight as the one in the vicinity of Vicksburg. He has received and has well earned the praise of the entire regiment. I also must notice Privates Hiram Payne of Company B, and Ben F. Weaver of Company C, who, on account of the Color Sergeant being sick, volunteered for the duty of carrying the colors, and right nobly did they perform it. We were the second regiment in the rebel fortifications.

Very respectfully, General,

GEO. A. STONE, Colonel Commanding.

Adjutant General N. B. Baker, Davenport, Iowa.


Adjutant Clark died from the effect of his wound, and was succeeded by First Lieutenant Samuel W. Snow, of Company E. The regiment returned to the vicinity of Vicksburg, and went into camp near Young's Point for the remainder of the winter. During its first campaign, the Twenty-fifth Iowa had suffered much from sickness, having much the same experience as all new regiments in that respect; but the records show that the fatalities from disease were not as great as in most of the other Iowa regiments which were encamped in the same unhealthy locality. Colonel Stone was noted for the care with which he looked after the health of his men, and provided everything available for their comfort, while exercising strict discipline and requiring them to observe such sanitary regulations as were possible under the conditions in which they were placed during that gloomy winter of 1863. In the meantime, General Grant was making active preparations for the beginning of another aggressive campaign, to commence as soon as the necessary number of troops could be concentrated under his command.

On the 2d of April the Twenty-fifth Iowa, with its brigade and division, started upon the expedition — conducted by General Steele — to Greenville, Miss., and further into the interior of the State. While the object of the expedition was mainly to distract the attention of the enemy from the principal movement of the campaign, it accomplished more than that, by the capture of considerable quantities of supplies which were intended for the use of the rebel army. The division remained in camp near Greenville, from which place detachments were sent into the surrounding country, gathering supplies, until April 24th, when, the purpose of the expedition having been accomplished, it returned to Milliken's Bend. From that place, Colonel Stone, commanding the Twenty-fifth Iowa and the Thirtieth Missouri regiments, marched to Richmond, La., where he remained in camp for a few days, and then marched to Hard Times Landing, where his troops crossed the river on transports to Grand Gulf, arriving there too late, however, to overtake the main portion of the army, which had moved on towards Jackson. Colonel Stone was ordered to proceed with his regiment as escort to a supply train, loaded with rations and ammunition for the army. Upon arriving with the train at Clinton, the regiment rejoined its brigade and division, then marching from Jackson towards Vicksburg. The march was continued. On the 18th of May the regiment joined with the other troops in the investment of Vicksburg, the siege of that rebel stronghold having already begun. In the operations which ensued, the regiment performed its full share of duty. It participated in the arduous and dangerous work of advancing the lines, digging and occupying the trenches, driving the enemy from one advanced position to another, until the troops of the Union army were intrenched in a line close to the frowning forts of the enemy and the main line of heavy works which connected them. The regiment was engaged in the assault upon the enemy's works on the 22d of May, as will be seen from the following extracts from the official reports of its brigade and regimental commanders. In the report of Colonel Charles R. Woods, commanding Second Brigade, First Division, the following reference is made to the Twenty-fifth Iowa:

Owing to the difficulty of moving my brigade, so as to prevent the enemy from seeing our movements, several hours were consumed in reaching our position, and, having reached the rear of the position where the charge was to be made, it was necessary to pass over several pieces of open ground within close range of the enemy's rifle-pits, part of the road being swept by artillery. Fifty or sixty men and officers were killed and wounded in gaining our position. The Twenty-fifth Iowa, Colonel Stone commanding, being in the advance, suffered severely, but as soon as it gained the ravine one wing was thrown forward as skirmishers, and succeeded in a great measure in keeping down the fire of the enemy. . . . The Twenty-fifth Iowa, while deployed as skirmishers, did good execution and lost severely. . . . The officers and men, during all the skirmishes in which they have been engaged, have done their duty well and faithfully, and deserve the highest praise [see note 5].


Colonel Stone, in his official report, says, in part:

A general attack was ordered by our entire line. Our division, occupying the extreme right of our army, was ordered to gain the heights to our left, near the center of our line, and to assist in carrying the fort opposite. In making this movement, I had the advance with my regiment, and kept it until the heights above mentioned were gained. We failed to carry the fort, and at night the entire division was withdrawn to the position each regiment had occupied in the morning. Officers and men of my regiment behaved well, and I shall not particularize by mentioning any, save Private Isaac Mickey of Company F, who, when I called for some one to volunteer to carry an order for me past a line exposed to the enemy's entire line of sharpshooters, responded at once to the call, carried my message, and returned promptly when the order was executed [see note 6].


Captain James D. Spearman, of Company H, was among the severely wounded and was subsequently discharged on account of the disability thus incurred. The number of casualties in the regiment, in the assault on the 22d of May, were as follows: Killed, enlisted men, 5; wounded, 1 officer and 26 enlisted men; captured or missing, 5 enlisted men. Total 37 [see note 7]. The total casualties sustained by the regiment during the entire siege of Vicksburg numbered 65 in killed, wounded and missing. In addition to this number, many were prostrated by sickness, the result of the great hardships, toil and exposure to which they were subjected in that protracted siege.

On the day following the surrender of Vicksburg, the regiment, with its brigade and division, joined the army under command of General Sherman, which promptly marched in pursuit of the rebel army under command of General J. E. Johnston, and, in the short but vigorous campaign which ensued, performed its full share of duty. During the brief siege of Jackson it lost 2 men killed, and 2 wounded [see note 8]. Returning from Jackson, the regiment went into camp on Black River, near the scene of the battle of that name, where it enjoyed a season of well-earned rest. It had now been in. the service but little more than ten months, had lost 134 men killed and wounded in battle, and a much greater number by disease and discharge for disability. If its record had ended with the campaign just closed, it would have taken its place in history as well deserving the gratitude of the people of the State and Nation for the gallant service it had rendered. But it had yet a long and arduous period of service to perform, as will appear in the history of its subsequent operations, ending only with the close of the war.

In the latter part of September, 1863, the Twenty-fifth Iowa, with its brigade and division, moved from its encampment to Vicksburg, and there embarked for Memphis. General Osterhaus had succeeded General Steele as commander of the division. Upon arriving at Memphis, the troops disembarked and at once took up the line of march to Corinth, thence to Iuka and Cherokee Station. At the latter place the enemy was encountered. The following extract from the official report of Colonel Stone will show with what vigor the enemy's skirmishers were attacked, and how persistently the march was continued to Chattanooga, to reinforce the troops which were so soon to become engaged in the tremendous conflicts around that place:

On Sunday evening, October 25th, at Cherokee, our division received marching orders for 4 A. M. next day, and accordingly the division moved at the hour indicated, in the direction of Tuscumbia, in light marching order and in fine fighting condition. The First Brigade, Brigadier General C. R. Woods commanding, had the advance, and ours, the Second Brigade, Colonel James A. Williamson commanding, the rear. General Osterhaus' orders were very imperative and strict concerning the tactical arrangement of battalions, as the enemy, but some three miles in front of us, was composed entirely of cavalry, and was fully our equal in numerical strength. About two miles from camp we met the enemy's skirmishers, and here formed our line of battle, the First Brigade on the right, and the Second on the left, with one of the other divisions of our Corps as reserve. My position was on the extreme left, and, in accordance with orders, I formed a square to repel cavalry, first, however, having covered my front properly with skirmishers. Our skirmishers pushed the enemy so vigorously, and our lines followed so promptly, that after a short resistance the enemy fell back to another position some four miles to the rear, and made another stand. The same disposition was again made by our division, the same sharp, short fighting with the same result, the hasty retreat of the enemy. We continued this skirmishing during the entire day, and renewed it on the 27th, literally fighting them from Cherokee to Tuscumbia. We entered the town at 3 P. M., on the 27th. Sergeant Nehemiah M. Redding, of Company D, was killed while skirmishing on the 26th. I have no other casualties to mention. Officers and men behaved handsomely [see note 9].


The troops continued to press forward by forced marches, and at midnight, on November 23d, had reached a point near the foot of Lookout Mountain. The division under General Osterhaus was temporarily attached to the forces under the command of General Hooker. The Twenty-fifth Iowa was assigned to a position in support of a battery of New York artillery. Colonel Stone's official reports of the part taken by his regiment in the battles which followed in rapid succession, are here given in full:


BRIDGEPORT, ALA., Dec. 19, 1863.

GENERAL: I have the honor to report as follows, of the battle of Lookout Mountain, on the 24th of November, 1863. Our division camped on the 23d of November opposite Lookout Mountain, and near General Hooker's headquarters. At 9 P.M. I received orders to be in fighting trim at daylight next morning, and accordingly, at 5 A. M. of the 24th, I was in line of battle, and received orders to support the First Iowa battery during the day. It was intended that our division should act as reserves, while some of Hooker's division should storm the mountain, but this was partially changed, probably on account of one column being ordered further to the right than was first intended, and our division soon took an active part. At 9:30 A. M. I had orders to go to the front, just under a point of rocks on Lookout Mountain, to support the guns of Battery I, First New York Artillery, then in position, and two of which guns were protected by being hastily casemated. This position I retained during the day, and, on account of the admirable place for defense, and the inability of the enemy to sufficiently depress his guns, I found at dark I had not lost a man. Nothing could exceed the grandeur of this battle, from the point at which we viewed it. Every gun from Raccoon Mountain batteries to those of Moccasin Point was in plain view, and our lines of infantry so close that acquaintances were easily recognized. At 12 M. the grand attack began, and soon the battle smoke hung over and enveloped the mountain like a funeral pall, and the whole battle, like a panorama, passed around and before us. At dark, in accordance with orders from General Osterhaus, I reported, with my regiment, for special duty, to Major General Butterfleld, General Hooker's Chief of Staff, and was ordered by him to a position on the extreme right of the army, to prevent an anticipated attempt of the enemy to turn our flank at that point. I occupied the point indicated, and made a personal reconnaissance of the ground in front of me. The enemy threatened some during the night, but made no attack, and, at daylight next day, in obedience to orders, I reported back, with my command, to the division.

Very respectfully, your obedient servant,

GEORGE A. STONE,
Colonel Commanding Twenty-fifth Iowa.

ADJUTANT GENERAL N. B. BAKER, Davenport, Iowa [see note 10].


BRIDGEPORT, ALA., Dec. 19, 1863.

GENERAL: I respectfully report as follows of the part taken by this regiment in the battle of Mission Ridge on the 25th day of November, 1863. On the morning of the 25th we left Lookout Mountain at 10 o'clock; passed through Chattanooga Valley, and arrived at the front of Mission Ridge at 2 P. M. We had just formed in line of battle for an attack, when the enemy's artillery became so annoying that we commenced to gain distance to the right for a more vulnerable point of attack. A messenger having now arrived with the intelligence that two regiments of rebel cavalry had passed down the mountain for the purpose of turning our left flank, General Osterhaus ordered me to take a position up the valley in the direction of the rebel cavalry, with my own regiment and the Twenty-sixth Iowa. The skirmishing soon became very brisk on the right, with intimations of a general attack on our left. A division of the Fourth Corps now relieved me, and I at once reported back to my division, but had no sooner arrived at my former position than General Osterhaus informed me that the enemy was endeavoring to gain the mountain pass between Chattanooga Valley and Rossville, and that I must gain it first and hold it at all hazards. I proceeded as ordered and held that pass till dark, securing one six-pound gun, one loaded ammunition wagon, and 27 prisoners, (including three Lieutenants,) and a quantity of corn meal and bacon. I am happy to say I have no casualties to report.

Very respectfully, your obedient servant,

GEORGE A. STONE,
Colonel Commanding Twenty-fifth Iowa.

Adjutant General N. B. Baker, Davenport, Iowa [see note 11].


BRIDGEPORT, ALA., Dec. 19, 1863.

GENERAL: I respectfully make the following report of the part taken by my regiment in the battle of Ringgold, or Taylor's Ridge, Ga., on the 27th of November last, with the list of casualties of that day. Our division had the advance that morning, and we had not anticipated the stubborn resistance the enemy would make there, or at least were not wholly prepared for it; or perhaps, better still, both. We approached the hill or mountain by a right flank, perpendicularly to the face of the mountain, and, in order to get into line of battle, had to front and change front forward on first company. Regiments therefore got into line of battle alternately, an evolution that more or less endangered each regiment to loss, without leaving it any means for defense or protection. My position being on the extreme left, I came into line last, and, when formed, found myself in open ground, and in easy range of the enemy above us, protected by abatis and breastworks. The fire here was very annoying, but the men responded so promptly to my command "Forward, double quick," that we cleared the open field and gained the base of the hill, with the loss of but three men. The duty assigned me was this: to gain the crest as best I could and turn the enemy's left flank. The hill up which I had to go was very steep, a valley to my right and left running perpendicularly to the base of the mountain, and above a long range of rocks, barricades, etc. I was there exposed to three fires, namely, direct right, left and oblique. I discovered, by their battle flags, that two regiments confronted me, and, considering the odds about proper for an Iowa regiment, ordered an advance. The enemy had his skirmishers admirably posted and in strong force. The hillside was stubbornly contested, but we pressed steadily forward, and, in an hour from the time we started, had advanced to within seventy-five yards of the crest of the hill and driven the enemy completely off of it to his fortification.

I now occupied a splendid position, and, preparatory for a final charge, had ordered a halt for the men to obtain a few moments' rest. Three regiments of the Twelfth Corps now came up over the ground I had won by fighting, one passing on my right, one through the Thirtieth Iowa, still further to my right, and the remaining one through my line. I attempted to stop this silly maneuver of advancing, where men could barely climb, by a flank, and ordered and entreated the officers to go to my left and advance in line of battle, properly, with their skirmishers well forward. I pointed to them the fire they must meet, from three points, so soon as they passed my line, and reminded them that their men would be shot down like sheep, as marching thus, by a flank, they could not possibly return the fire. All to no purpose, however. An officer of a Pennsylvania regiment said they would show western troops how to storm a hill, and that they were acting under orders, etc. They passed above me, and at once the fire of the enemy ceased, and at a glance I discovered the reason. He saw this column coming up by a flank, and commenced at once to mass a fresh column on its flank. Again I went to the officer, pointed out his situation, showed him where the rebels were massing; but he would listen to nothing, and went forward. A moment of agonizing suspense to me, and the fire opened on them from the three places designated. I never heard a more terrific and incessant fire of musketry. The men stood manfully for a minute — till the next volley was being poured into them — and then, like a flock of frightened sheep, and with exclamations: "We are flanked — they are coming — they are coming," came rushing down upon us, carrying everything before them, like an avalanche, and as far as we could see they were still running shamefully to the rear. I am credibly informed they organized again more than a mile from the scene of this disaster. My men were thrown into temporary confusion, but I at once re-formed in range of the enemy's fire, and, taking the hill at a new point, threatening to flank him in return, again commenced to climb the hill. Our entire brigade was now ordered forward, and this time we gained the hill, and, as regiment after regiment of the Iowa Brigade gained the plateau above us, the rebels, now threatened at every point, fled in confusion, and the battle of Ringgold was over. I lost 29 wounded, none killed, none missing. ... Of 21 officers in the fight, one-third of them were struck. The day following the battle orders were issued reorganizing our division. We are now in the Third Brigade, First Division, Fifteenth Army Corps, Lieutenant Colonel Palmer commanding the regiment, and I commanding the brigade.

Very respectfully, General, your obedient servant,

GEORGE A. STONE,
Colonel Twenty-fifth Iowa Volunteers.

Adjutant General N. B. Baker, Davenport, Iowa [see note 12].


It is always the duty of a commanding officer to take advantage of every opportunity that offers to protect his men from the fire of the enemy in battle. To do this he must carefully study the position of the enemy and, in advancing to the attack, avail himself of the conformation of the ground over which he has to pass, and, if possible, strike the enemy in flank; in short, to execute the movements he is ordered to make with military skill and good judgment, and, while strictly obeying the orders he has received, accomplish the desired results with the smallest possible loss. In the dreadful game of war much depends upon the skill and ability with which the commanding officer handles his troops. While heavy losses cannot always be avoided, it is always a credit to the commanding officer to achieve a victory over the enemy with the loss to his own command reduced to the minimum. Thus, in the series of battles around Chattanooga, in which the Twenty-fifth Iowa participated — Lookout Mountain, Mission Ridge and Ringgold — Colonel Stone's official reports clearly show that he obeyed implicitly every order which he received, and that his regiment accomplished all that was required of it with comparatively small casualties. Colonel Stone and the officers of his regiment had freely exposed themselves to the fire of the enemy, and, as shown in the battle of Ringgold, had suffered more severely, in proportion to their number, than the men under their command. This certainly was greatly to their credit. Both officers and men had fully sustained the high reputation they had previously won for the regiment. It will be noted that, immediately after the battle of Ringgold, Colonel Stone was honored by being placed in command of the brigade to which his regiment was attached, and that Lieutenant Colonel Palmer succeeded him as regimental commander.

After the battle of Ringgold the regiment, with its brigade and division, returned to Chattanooga, and, a few days later, marched to Bridgeport, Ala., where it remained until December 23d, on which date the division was ordered to proceed to Woodville, on the Memphis and Charleston Railroad, at which place it went into winter quarters. Colonel Stone's Brigade was engaged in two expeditions during the winter. The first of these expeditions ended at the town of Lebanon, Ala., at which place and vicinity there were a considerable number of citizens who had remained true to the cause of the Union, many of whom came to Colonel Stone's camp, where they were organized into companies and furnished with arms and ammunition. They subsequently became part of a Union regiment and rendered good service to their country. Upon his return to Woodville, Colonel Stone was ordered to proceed to Cleveland, East Tenn., at which place his command constituted a garrison for the post until early in March, 1864, when the brigade rejoined the division at Woodville, where it remained until the beginning of the great Atlanta campaign, in which it was to take a most conspicuous part.

To give a detailed description of the operations of the Twenty-fifth Iowa during the remainder of its term of service would far exceed the limitation of space to which the compiler of this condensed historical sketch is subjected. He can, therefore, only give the outlines of its splendid service during the Atlanta campaign, its subsequent march to the sea and, from Savannah, through the Carolinas to Washington. The regiment had — prior to the commencement of the campaign — been again placed in a brigade composed exclusively of Iowa troops, as follows: The Fourth, Ninth, Twenty-fifth and Thirty-first regiments of Iowa Infantry. These four regiments remained together until the close of the war and became known throughout the army as the "Iowa Brigade of the Fifteenth Corps." Colonel J. A. Williamson of the Fourth Iowa, by virtue of his seniority in rank, became the commander of the brigade, and Colonel Stone resumed command of the Twenty-fifth Iowa. Colonel Williamson had entered the service with his regiment early in 1861, and had succeeded to the command of the regiment when Colonel Dodge was promoted to the rank of Brigadier General. The brigade, therefore, came under the command of an officer with a distinguished record. He had long been in command of a brigade and had well earned the promotion to the full rank of Brigadier General [see note 13]. The record of the Twenty-fifth Iowa is practically identified with that of the Fourth, Ninth and Thirty-first during the campaigns which ensued to the close of the war. On the 1st of May, 1864, the brigade and division marched from Woodville to join the army at the front. It first met the enemy in fierce conflict at Resaca, Ga. The operations of the brigade in that battle are fully described in the official report of Colonel Williamson, from which the following extract is made:

About 10 o'clock on the 13th instant the brigade was ordered into line of battle immediately on the left of the First Brigade, where it remained for two or three hours, when I received orders to move my brigade forward, which I did, taking the direction and keeping the alignment of the First Brigade until I arrived near the fortified hill from which the enemy kept up a heavy fire of artillery and musketry. At this point I halted, keeping my right aligned with the First Brigade, and advancing my left wing so as to bring them under cover, where I remained until the enemy fell back, when I advanced, with the First Brigade on my right, and took possession of the hill immediately in front of the enemy's fortifications, where I remained, skirmishing until a late hour at night. On the morning of the 14th, commenced skirmishing at daylight, and kept it up all day, suffering considerable loss. Late in the afternoon of the 14th, I was ordered by General Osterhaus to send one regiment to support a battery which was engaging the enemy's fortifications. In obedience to this order, I sent the Twenty-fifth Iowa, Colonel Stone. A little later in the evening I was ordered to send a regiment to support the First Brigade, which was assaulting the enemy's line on my right, and, in obedience thereto, sent the Twenty-fifth Iowa, and moved the Fourth Iowa into position to support the battery. I remained in line of battle during the night of the 14th, skirmishing until a late hour, and again resumed the skirmishing at daylight on the 15th, and continued it through the day and until late at night. At daylight on the 16th, I received an order from General Osterhaus to advance into the town of Resaca, the enemy having evacuated it during the night. I have only to say in conclusion, that there was neither straggling nor cowardice in my command. All were anxious to do their duty [see note 14].


Colonel Williamson reports the casualties in his brigade at Resaca as follows: Killed, 6; wounded, 37; total, 43. Colonel Stone reports the casualties in the Twenty-fifth Iowa: Killed, 3; wounded, 15; total, 18 [see note 15].  It will thus be seen that the regiment sustained a loss of one-half the number killed, and nearly one-half the number wounded, in the four regiments of its brigade at the battle of Resaca.

In his next official report, dated at "Camp, near Lovejoy's Station, September 5, 1864," Colonel Williamson describes the movements and operations of his brigade at length, covering the entire period of the campaign, including its movements prior to the battle of Resaca, in which, however, it did not come into conflict with the enemy. From this report the compiler will endeavor to give a condensed account of the part taken by the Twenty-fifth Iowa in this campaign, — one of the most important and vigorously conducted campaigns of the entire war [see note 16]. A summary of the report shows that, on May 16th, the Twenty-fifth Iowa was on duty as provost guard in the village of Resaca. Between the dates May 17th and 20th, the regiment marched with its brigade from Resaca to Kingston, Ga. Remaining in camp at Kingston for three days, it continued the march to Dallas, and arrived in front of that place on the 26th of May. In the skirmishes and heavier fighting, which ensued and lasted until the 31st of May, the Twenty-fifth Iowa bore a conspicuous part, and again demonstrated fully the bravery and efficiency of its officers and men. During the night of May 28th, Williamson's brigade had built a complete line of defensive works. On the 29th, it occupied and continued to strengthen the works, all the time under the fire of the enemy. Soon after dark on the 29th, the brigade was ordered to leave the works and take a position on the main road, to cover the rear of the corps which was then moving out. As soon as the movement began, the enemy made a vigorous attack, when the Ninth and Twenty-fifth Iowa were ordered back to the original position, where they remained until daylight,, holding the enemy in check, when they were joined by the other two regiments of the brigade, which remained in the works during the 30th and 31st of May, successfully defending them, and delaying the advance of the enemy. At daylight, on June 1st, the brigade was ordered out of the works to another line one mile in the rear, which had been constructed to cover the withdrawal of the corps. When the corps had passed the works, the brigade moved out and acted as rear guard on the march to New Hope Church, the enemy following closely, as far back as Dallas.

The enemy fell back on the night of June 4th, and the brigade continued the march to Ackworth, where it arrived on June 6th, and remained in camp until the 10th, when it again moved forward toward Kenesaw Mountain, and, on June 11th, had reached a position in front of that stronghold of the enemy. During the contest for the possession of Kenesaw Mountain, which lasted for twenty-one days, the endurance and bravery of the officers and men of Williamson's Iowa Brigade was put to the severest test, and the Twenty-fifth fully maintained the record it had made at Vicksburg, while engaged in much the same character of service it had rendered in that great siege. The frowning heights of Kenesaw proved equally as impregnable to direct assault as had the works around Vicksburg. On June 27th a general assault upon the enemy's strong line of works along the face of the mountain was ordered, in which the Twenty-fifth Iowa, with its brigade, participated and suffered considerable loss. The assault was unsuccessful, and the brigade returned to its line of works, from which it kept up an incessant fire upon the enemy's line until the night of July 2d, when the enemy evacuated his line of defenses on Kenesaw Mountain, and began his retreat in the direction of Atlanta. The enemy fell back slowly, stubbornly resisting the advance of the Union army, and there were frequent skirmishes, in which the Twenty-fifth Iowa and the other regiments of its brigade participated.

On July 20th the brigade marched near to Atlanta and built a line of earthworks. On July 21st it again advanced and built another line of works, but had only just completed and occupied the new line when it was ordered — on the morning of July 22d — to move about three-fourths of a mile to the west and occupy a line of works which the rebels had abandoned on the night of the 21st. Then followed the hard-fought battle of July 22d, 1864, in front of Atlanta, the rebels attacking the Union lines in heavy force. In that battle the Twenty-fifth Iowa shared the honors won by its brigade, and suffered its proportion of the loss of 5 killed, 2 missing and 29 wounded. From the 22d to the 29th of July the regiment was actively engaged in the siege operational with its brigade. On July 28th the rebels made another attack in heavy force, ending in their repulse. The heaviest part of this day's fighting was to the right of the position occupied by Williamson's brigade and, consequently, it took only a minor part in the engagement. On July 30th, the brigade moved to the extreme right of the army and occupied that position until August 6th, when it moved one mile to the front and built a new line of works, in which it remained — expecting an assault from the enemy every day — until August 13th, on which date it participated in an attack, made by its brigade and division, on the enemy's skirmish line, making a complete success, and capturing nearly the entire force of the enemy in the rifle pits.

Active demonstrations were continued almost daily against the rebel works until August 18th, and there were some casualties nearly every day in each of the regiments of the brigade. On August 19th the line was again. advanced, the Twenty-fifth and Thirty-first Iowa taking the advance and digging new intrenchments. The advanced line was occupied until August 26th, when Colonel Williamson was ordered to move his brigade further to the right of the army, for the purpose of reaching and destroying the railroad on that side of Atlanta. The brigade started at dark on the 26th and marched all night and until 10 A. M. of the 27th; rested until the morning of the 28th, when the march was resumed and the Montgomery Railroad reached at 11 A. M. The brigade took position on each side of the road, and, while the Fourth and Twenty-fifth Iowa were engaged in building a line of defensive works to guard against a sudden attack of the enemy's cavalry, the Ninth and Thirty-first Iowa were engaged in destroying the railroad. After completing the work, the brigade marched on August 30th to a point one mile north of Jonesborough, where, on August 31st, it again came into conflict with the enemy and, after a severe fight, repulsed the attack, the enemy retiring with heavy loss. On the 2d of September the brigade, with the entire division, was sent in pursuit of the retreating forces of the enemy and, upon coming up with the rebel rear guard, a sharp engagement ensued. On the 3d, 4th and 5th of September the regiment was almost constantly on the skirmish line. On the night of the 5th, the division was ordered to return to Jonesborough and go into camp. Atlanta had fallen, and the victory was complete. The total casualties in the brigade during the campaign were 281, and, of this number, the Twenty-fifth Iowa lost 8 unlisted men killed, 4 officers and 49 enlisted men wounded and 4 enlisted men captured. Total loss in the regiment, 65 [see note 17].  It may be regarded as a singular coincidence that the regiment should have had precisely the same number of casualties in the Vicksburg campaign. At the close of his report Colonel Williamson says:

So closes the record of this memorable campaign. I could not make it more brief and do justice to the regiments of the brigade. The vast amount of labor done by this command, in addition to the marching and fighting, and the cheerfulness and zeal with which it has been performed, is sufficient to encourage the best hopes for the success of our army. The troops have neither hesitated nor murmured at any privation or labor. To the officers and men I owe a debt of gratitude for their prompt and willing obedience to orders.


On the 8th of September the regiment went into fortified camp at East Point, where it remained until the 4th of October, when it joined in the rapid pursuit of the rebel General Hood's army. The pursuit was continued by forced marches until October 16th, when the regiment went into camp on the bank of Little River, Ala., in sight of Lookout Mountain. October 20th, the regiment participated in a skirmish with the rebel General Wheeler's cavalry. On October 26th, the countermarch began and, on the 12th of November, the regiment was again in camp near Atlanta. With only a brief rest, after its long and toilsome march, it joined the army of General Sherman in his famous march to the sea. During this memorable march the Twenty-fifth Iowa performed its full share of duty and, on December 21, 1864, closed the triumphal march at Savannah, where it went into camp and enjoyed a brief period of rest. Colonel Williamson was at this time promoted to the command of a division, and Colonel Stone again succeeded to the command of the brigade, which he continued to command until the close of the next campaign, and the end of the war. Lieutenant Colonel Palmer again succeeded to the command of the regiment, which he also retained until the close of the war. The operations of his brigade, in that last great march through the Carolinas and on to Washington, are fully described in the official report of Colonel Stone, and, for the purpose of showing the part taken by the Twenty-fifth Iowa, in that closing campaign, the following extracts are taken from the report [see note 18]:

In accordance with orders, I respectfully report a summary of the part taken by this command in the campaign just ended. The campaign commenced on the 10th day of January, and ended, with my command, on the 26th day of March, 1865, making the duration two months and sixteen days. On the 10th of January last I had orders to march from our camp near Savannah, Ga., to Fort Thunderbolt. On the 12th of January, I took shipping at Fort Thunderbolt for Beaufort, S. C, with all the regiments of my command, save one, (the Twenty-fifth Iowa,) which was left behind to assist in fetching up the transportation of the division. This regiment reported to me at camp near Beaufort, S. C, on the 14th day of January, 1865. On the 27th day of January, we broke up camp and resumed the march. During the campaign this brigade has had four engagements with the enemy; first at Little Congaree Creek, near Columbia, S. C, on the 15th day of February, 1865. The Second Brigade had the advance that day, and commenced skirmishing with the enemy within two miles of the camp we had left that morning. They drove the enemy without further assistance until near Little Congaree Creek, when, from the nature of the ground, the enemy was enabled to make a stubborn resistance. Here my brigade was ordered up, and went into position on the left of the Second Brigade.


After describing the gallant part taken by the Fourth and Ninth Iowa in the engagement, (the other regiments of the brigade having, in the meantime, been held in reserve,) the report makes reference to the part taken by the Twenty-fifth Iowa, as follows:

The whole division now crossed and formed a line of battle on a plateau about a mile from the creek. I again went into position on the left. Some rebel cavalry skirmishers threatening my front, I moved on them with four companies of the Twenty-fifth Iowa, and we soon drove them back to their main line. . . . My next engagement with the enemy was at the city of Columbia, captured by my command on the 17th day of February, an official account of which, with the casualties, and the number of prisoners, was made to you, under date of the 19th of February.


The report referred to gives a graphic description of the capture of the city, in which each of the regiments of Colonel Stone's brigade bore a gallant part. After describing the preliminary movements which led up to the attack, Colonel Stone says:

Everything being now in readiness, the signal was given, and the assault made by all the regiments at the same time. The result proved no mistake either in planning or the execution. Before the enemy was hardly aware of it we were right into the skirmish pits and scattering them in every direction. The Thirtieth Iowa here captured 23 prisoners. I accompanied this regiment in the charge, and can by personal observation testify to the gallant manner in which they made it. In front of the Island are a number of small bayous running parallel to the river about 20 feet wide and waist deep; few stopped to find logs on which to cross, but plunged in, holding guns and cartridge boxes above the water. The enemy seeing his skirmish line destroyed, and the eagerness with which our success was being followed up, became confused and soon broke, leaving our way open to the city. . . . When within a mile of the city, a carriage was discovered approaching, flying a flag of truce. It proved to contain Mr. Goodwin, Mayor of Columbia, and the city aldermen, who came to offer terms of capitulation. After some words had passed, they unconditionally surrendered to me the city of Columbia. . . . Proceeding to the State House with Captain Pratt, I planted the first United States flag on that building. To Iowa alone is credit to be given for capturing the capital of the State that has been disloyal since the days of John C. Calhoun, and the contemplated Capital of the Confederacy, as none but Iowa troops were engaged.

I did not meet the enemy again in any force till the 20th instant, on our march that day from our camp near Cox's bridge on the Neuse River toward Bentonville. The Second Brigade, Colonel Catterson, had the advance that day, and skirmished freely with the enemy, driving him easily until we had arrived within about three miles of Bentonville. The enemy here became stubborn, and threatened an attack on the Second Brigade. I was ordered up and went into position on Colonel Catterson's left. We now advanced our line of battle of two brigades about half a mile, and put up works. About 3 o'clock P. M., I was directed by Brevet Major General Woods, commanding the division, and also by Major General Logan, commanding the corps, to take three regiments, and, if possible, clear the road in our front, and open communication with the Fourteenth Corps, now fighting apparently about a mile from us on our left front. I placed the Twenty-fifth Iowa, Lieutenant Colonel Palmer commanding, (which regiment I had ordered out about an hour before as skirmishers,) to take the advance, and directed the Thirtieth Iowa, Lieutenant Colonel Roberts commanding, and the Thirty-first Iowa, Lieutenant Colonel Jenkins commanding, to follow as a reserve. The Twenty-fifth Iowa was deployed as skirmishers, with their colors in the road I was going to clear, and my first movement with the regiment was to change direction to the right. This movement was made steadily until about three-fourths of the regiment had crossed the road, when our proximity to the rebels on my left and in the road caused very severe skirmishing. Two regiments of the Second Division now came up on my left rear, (I think the Sixth Missouri and Thirtieth Ohio,) one of them, the Sixth Missouri, deployed as skirmishers. I made arrangements with the officer commanding the last mentioned regiment to join the two regiments with mine, and, at a given signal, the Twenty-fifth Iowa and Sixth Missouri should make a charge. The charge proved entirely successful, although at a severe loss in the Twenty-fifth Iowa. We drove the enemy's skirmishers, composed of Hoke's division from the Virginia army, back to their works across the swamp, clearing the road, and opening communication with the Fourteenth Corps. The officers and men of the Twenty-fifth Iowa behaved handsomely and fought desperately. Lieutenant Colonel Palmer, commanding the regiment, and Captain Allen, acting Major, (who lost his right leg in the engagement,) deserve notice for exposing themselves freely, and for the gallant manner in which they cheered their men forward. At night I retired to a new line, and my place was occupied by other troops. . . .


On the 21st instant I had orders to erect a new line of works on the skirmish line, and at 10 o'clock P. M. I moved three regiments to the front line, the Fourth Iowa on the right, connecting on the left of the First Brigade, Brevet Brigadier General Woods commanding; the Thirtieth Iowa in the center; and the Ninth Iowa on the left. The Twenty-fifth Iowa and Thirty-first Iowa were in the rear, held in reserve. We put up a temporary line of works under fire of the enemy, and at 2 o'clock I received orders to charge the enemy's skirmish line, 150 yards in my front, in good skirmish pits. We captured the pits with but slight loss, but the enemy evinced so much determination to regain them that the fighting became very sharp. The enemy's main line of battle, behind good works, was by actual measurement but 100 yards from these skirmish pits, and he fired from the works by volley. At three different times they followed up the fire by volley by an assault on my skirmishers. Their men swarmed over the works and charged gallantly, but I had reinforced the line until I had nearly a line of battle, and our incessant firing prevented him from charging as a perfect organization, and every charge was repulsed. The order came to me so positively, from Generals Howard and Logan, to hold the ground I had already gained, that I should have done so, or ruined the brigade. At night I relieved the skirmishers' line with the Thirty-first Iowa, Lieutenant Colonel Jenkins commanding. Colonel Jenkins managed the new line admirably. It rained a good deal during the night, but his men worked faithfully, and he put up quite a strong line of works so near the enemy that the conversation had to be carried on in whispers. Captain Teale of the Fourth Iowa deserves special notice for his gallantry in holding the most exposed and dangerous part of the line. I regret to announce this gallant young officer was severely wounded in the leg. Lieutenant Colonel Nichols and Major Anderson, of the Fourth Iowa, deserve mention for voluntarily going on the skirmish line when there was some wavering manifested. Captain Bowman, of my staff, also exposed himself freely and deserves notice. I mention these officers from personal observation, as twice during the day I deemed it my duty to go on the skirmish line myself. The other officers on the skirmish lines, Captain Inman, Ninth Iowa, Lieutenant Shields, Fourth Iowa, Lieutenant Sharp, Ninth Iowa, Lieutenant Reffley, Thirtieth Iowa, are all reported to me to have behaved well and set a good example to their men. The loss in the skirmish line was quite severe. I sent you an official list of casualties the same night, and of the prisoners captured.

On the morning of the 22d, half an hour before day, I rode out to the advanced post, and ordered a patrol forward to feel of the enemy; but it was discovered that he had left during the night. I at once sent word to the General commanding division, and, with a detachment of the Thirty-first Iowa, followed him. Everything indicated a precipitate retreat; a few stragglers were picked up; some of their dead and wounded were found near the roadside uncared for, and quite a number of small arms, haversacks and clothing were found scattered in their deserted camp. Just at sunrise I ran onto their rear guard, composed of cavalry, and my detachment being too small to fight it, I covered the road with a few men to make an effect, and ordered some ten or fifteen men as skirmishers to annoy the enemy until a regiment, the Thirty-first Iowa, which I had just ordered up, should arrive. Very soon after this our entire division moved to Bentonville, where we remained during the day, and, at sundown, we returned to the camp we had left in the morning. The graves of 17 rebel officers in my front indicate that the enemy suffered severely in killed and wounded.

On our march to Goldsboro, on the 23d inst., I had the good fortune to have the post of honor — rear guard for the "Army of the Tennessee." The rear of my command fell upon the Twenty-fifth Iowa. On the 24th inst, I was ordered to remain at the pontoon bridge over the Neuse River, near Goldsboro, to cover the crossing of our corps train, and, on the 26th inst., I rejoined the division in camp near Goldsboro. During the campaign just closed, this brigade has been in four engagements with the following loss: Killed, 7; wounded, 64 ; missing, 12. We have captured, and turned over to the provost marshal, 145 prisoners of war. In taking Columbia, S. C, we captured 43 pieces of artillery, about 5,000 stand of arms, immense quantities of ammunition and ordnance stores, and released 40 officers confined there. We have marched 485 miles, built 15,037 yards of corduroy roads, and destroyed 3 miles of railroad. The brigade is in excellent health and spirits, but very ragged. My thanks' are due to all my staff officers, Captain John N. Bell, Twenty-fifth Iowa, A. A. Q. General; Lieutenant Samuel W. Snow, Twenty-fifth Iowa, A. A. A. General; Captain A. Bowman, Ninth Iowa; Lieutenant Baron H. Crane, Twenty-fifth Iowa; Lieutenant D. Rorick, Thirty-first Iowa — now in the hands of the enemy — and J. W. Gilman, Thirty-first Iowa, A. A. Q. M., for the zeal and earnestness with which they have discharged their whole duty in the campaign just ended [see note19].


As will be seen from Colonel Stone's report, his regiment and brigade took a most conspicuous part in the battle of Bentonville, which was the last general engagement of the closing campaign of the war. The Iowa regiments composing his brigade had been assigned to the duty of holding a position of vital importance in that battle, and, under the immediate orders and direction of two of the most distinguished officers of the Union Army, they nobly performed their duty and upheld the honor and credit of their State, whose soldiers had won distinction in all the hardest fought battles of the war.

From Goldsboro, the Twenty-fifth Iowa moved, with its brigade and division, to Raleigh, and thence, after the surrender of the rebel General Johnston and his army, to Washington, D. C. On the 24th of May, 1865, the regiment, with its brigade; under command of its gallant leader, Brevet Brigadier General George A. Stone, participated in that greatest military pageant of modern times — the grand review at Washington. It then went into camp near Washington, and was there mustered out of the service of the United States on the 6th day of June, 1865. Soon after being mustered out, the regiment was provided with transportation to Davenport, Iowa, where it was formally disbanded, and the officers and men departed for their homes, there to resume and discharge their duty as citizens, with the same fidelity they had shown while serving their country as soldiers. Among all the splendid regiments from Iowa, which had marched and fought under the folds of the dear old flag, none reflected greater honor upon the State than its Twenty-fifth Infantry. None rendered more important or effective service.

The compiler extends an old soldier's cordial greeting to the surviving members of the Twenty-fifth Iowa Infantry. He has endeavored to perpetuate the memory of the men who composed the regiment and were its history makers. Their personal record of service will be found in the roster which follows this sketch. It is made up from the official reports and returns contained in the military archives of the State and of the War Department in Washington, and is only a transcript of what is found there recorded. It does not and cannot be made to show the details of the service they performed or what they endured and suffered. Many of those who served during the entire term of the regiment, and who may have been engaged in every battle in which it participated, but who were so fortunate as to have been saved from death, or serious injury from wounds or disease, have only the record of continuous service. They were mustered in with the regiment and mustered out with it, and were, therefore, completely identified with its history. But few of the officers or men received special mention for acts of gallantry, but all are frequently commended in the official reports for having bravely performed their duty. Some errors and omissions may appear in these personal records; some names may not have been correctly spelled, and, in some cases, injustice may have been done in the making up of the original records and perpetuated in the transcript. While such errors, if found, are greatly to be regretted, they were unavoidable, and it is hoped and believed that, in the main, the records will be found correct [see note 20].


SUMMARY OF CASUALTIES.

Total Enrollment 1136
Killed 39
Wounded 187
Died of wounds 24
Died of disease 201
Discharged for wounds, disease or other causes 164
Buried in National Cemeteries 104
Captured 18
Transferred 71


[Note 1.]  Report of Adjutant General of Iowa, 1863, Vol. 1, page VIII, and the Original Roster of the Regiment, Vol. 1, pages 884 to 917 inclusive.

[Note 2.]  War of the Rebellion Official Records, Series 1, Vol. 17, Part 1, page 625, Chickasaw Bayou.

[Note 3.]  Report of Adjutant General of Iowa, 1864, pages 473, 4.

[Note 4]  War of the Rebellion Official Records, Series 1, Vol. 17, Part 1, page 718. Casualties of the Twenty-fifth Iowa at Arkansas Post: Killed, enlisted men 10; wounded, officers 5, enlisted men 41. Total 56. The names of the killed and wounded included in Colonel Stone's report of this battle will be found noted in the subjoined revised Roster of the Regiment, together with the names of the killed and wounded, and those who died from wounds or disease, during the entire term of its service.

[Note 5.]  War of the Rebellion Official Records, Series 1, Vol. 24, Part 2, pages 251, 2.

[Note 6.]  Report of Adjutant General of Iowa, 1864, pages 474, 5.

[Note 7.]  War of the Rebellion Official Records, Series 1, Vol. 24, Part 2, page 162.

[Note 8.]  War of the Rebellion Official Records, Series 1, Vol. 24, Part 2, page 548. Return of casualties in siege of Jackson, Miss.

[Note 9.]  Report of Adjutant General of Iowa, 1864, page 475.

[Note 10.]  Report of Adjutant General of Iowa, 1864,. page 476.

[Note 11.]  Report of Adjutant General of Iowa, 1864, page 477.

[Note 12.]  Report of Adjutant General of Iowa, 1864, pages 477, 8.

[Note 13.]  Colonel Williamson was promoted to the rank of Brigadier General by brevet Dec. 19, 1864, and brevetted Major General United States Volunteers Jan. 13, 1865.

[Note 14.]  War of the Rebellion Official Records, Series 1, Vol. 38, Part 3, page 151.

[Note 15.]  Report of Adjutant General of Iowa, 1865, Vol. 2, page 1164.

[Note 16.]  War of the Rebellion Official Records, Serie's 1, Vol. 38, Part 3, pages 152 to 159 inclusive. Report of Colonel J. A. Williamson, Brigade Commander.

[Note 17.]  War of the Rebellion Official Records, Series 1, Vol. 38, Part 3, page 113. Official reports of casualties in Atlanta Campaign.

[Note 18.]  Report of Adjutant General of Iowa, 1866, pages 423 to 426 inclusive.

[Note 19.]  The brevet rank of Brigadier General United States Volunteers was conferred upon Colonel George A. Stone, Twenty-fifth Iowa Infantry, March 13, 1865. Report of Adjutant General of Iowa, 1867, Vol. 1, page 159.

[Note 20.]  Lieutenant Colonel David J. Palmer, surviving commander of the Twenty-fifth Iowa, informed the compiler of this sketch that the name of Charles W. Payne, of Company B, should have appeared in the report of Colonel Stone as the soldier of Company B who was one of the Color Bearers of the regiment in the battle of Arkansas Post; and that Hiram Payne, who was a member of Company A, and who died at Vicksburg, August 25, 1865, was not one of the Color Bearers at Arkansas Post. The rosters of the two companies confirm this statement, showing that Hiram Payne was a Private in Company A, and that Charles W. Payne was the only soldier of that name in Company B, but the compiler could not change the name, as it appeared in the report and was, therefore, official.

SOURCE: Roster & Record of Iowa Soldiers During the War of the Rebellion, Volume 3, p. 903-17