Diary of Private Daniel L. Ambrose: Thursday, July 23, 1863

This morning orders are issued for all the troops in and around Corinth to be paraded on the review ground by eight o'clock, A. M., to witness the execution of one Johnson, a deserter from Company A, First Alabama Union Cavalry. At the appointed time all the troops are on the ground and in position. The sun shines intensely hot, and the tramp of infantry and the galloping of horsemen keeps in the wind one dense cloud of smoke. Soon the procession with the unfortunate man appears upon the ground. They march slowly along the division line, the doomed man walking, supported by the Chaplain of the Sixty-sixth Indiana. He has the appearance of a guilty man—guilty of deserting the flag and his comrades. After the procession has passed the line, they march to the place of execution; the deserter is placed upon his coffin in a sitting position. A solemn and impressive prayer is offered by the Chaplain after which he is blindfolded. The executioners take their position, the Provost Marshal gives the command, and the man who so unhappily erred from the path of duty is launched into eternity. May his ignominious death prove a warning to all who might peradventure be tempted to do likewise.

SOURCE: Daniel Leib Ambrose, History of the Seventh Regiment Illinois Volunteer Infantry, p. 180-1

Official Reports of the Campaign in North Alabama and Middle Tennessee, November 14, 1864 — January 23, 1865: No. 180. Report of Col. Benjamin Harrison, Seventieth Indiana Infantry, commanding First Brigade, of operations November 29, 1864—January 12, 1865.

No. 180.

Report of Col. Benjamin Harrison, Seventieth Indiana Infantry, commanding First Brigade,

of operations November 29, 1864--January 12, 1865.

HDQRS. FIRST BRIGADE, PROVISIONAL DIVISION,                      

ARMY OF THE CUMBERLAND, 

Chattanooga, Tenn., January 12, 1865.

In obedience to your instructions, I have the honor to submit the following report of the operations of this brigade from the time of its leaving Chattanooga (November 29) to the present date:

The organization of the brigade, begun about the 20th of November, had been but partially perfected when orders were received on the 29th of November to take the field. The brigade consisted of three battalions, designated, respectively, the First, Second, and Third, each composed, as far as possible, of the officers and men belonging to the corresponding divisions of the Twentieth Army Corps—the First Battalion, with an effective force of 290, was commanded by Captain Halbert, Regiment ———; the Second Battalion, with an effective force of 304, was in command of Major Hoskins, One hundred and twenty-ninth Illinois Volunteers; the Third Battalion was in command of Lieutenant-Colonel McManus, One hundred and second Illinois Volunteers, with an effective force of 406 men; making an aggregate effective force of 1,000 men in the brigade. Quite a large proportion of the men thus designated as effective were, in fact, quite unfit for duty in the field—many were still suffering from wounds received in the Georgia campaign; others were fresh from the hospitals and only partly convalescent from attacks of sickness; while a still larger number were raw recruits, utterly uninstructed and not inured to hardship. The recruits represented almost every European nationality, and very many of them were unable to speak or understand the simplest words of our language.

On the 29th of November, 1864, at 5 p.m., my brigade was placed upon the cars at Chattanooga, and shortly after started in the direction of Nashville. (Before starting, however, my First Battalion, Captain Hulbert, was detached and ordered to report to Colonel Malloy, commanding brigade, Fifteenth Army Corps.) At 10 a.m. the following day we arrived at Cowan Station, where the troops were unloaded and placed in position. At 7 p.m. of the same day orders were received from Brigadier-General Cruft, commanding Provisional Division, Army of the Cumberland, to put the troops again upon the cars, which was accomplished by 10 p.m.

At daylight the following day, December 1, the trains were again started in the direction of Nashville, at which place we arrived about dusk without incident. The troops were unloaded and put in bivouac for the night, and the following morning, December 2, were moved and put in position on a hill near the house of Mr. Rains, my brigade holding the right of the line. This position was intrenched and held until the following day, December 3, when we were ordered to retire our line, and were placed in position at right angles with the Murfreesborough turnpike, facing eastward, my brigade in two lines, still holding the right, which rested upon the premises of Judge J. Trimble. A short line of earth-works was here constructed, protected by abatis and picket work, the Third Battalion occupying the works and the Second being in reserve, except one company, which was placed in rear of J. Trimble's house, to cover our right flank. My command continued to occupy this position, without material change or any important incident, till the 9th day of December, when Captain Hulbert (First Battalion) was ordered to report to me for duty, and was placed in position, on the right of Judge Trimble's house, in a line of works, refused to cover the right flank.

On the evening of the 14th of December orders were received to have the command ready to march at 4 a.m. the following morning, with sixty rounds of ammunition to the man and three days' rations. At the hour named the brigade was in motion, and was conducted to the right and ordered to relieve Kimball's division, of the Fourth Army Corps, by placing a strong skirmish line in the works occupied by that division. This was accomplished shortly after daylight, the right of my line resting on a hill about 300 yards to the right of the Granny White pike, and the left extending well toward Fort Casino. The troops were kept in this position, under arms, during this and the following day while the battle of Nashville was progressing in their front. No demonstration was made upon the line held by us, nor were any of my troops engaged, though the artillery in my line opened somewhat effectively.

On the morning of the 19th the brigade was, in obedience to orders from General Cruft, withdrawn from this position and put in march for Murfreesborough. The weather and roads were of the very worst description, the mud being shoe-top deep, and the rain pouring in torrents upon the knapsacks and blankets gave them an additional weight, which greatly burdened the men, and not a few were left along the roadside, there not being a single ambulance for the entire command. We were encamped about dark at La Vergne, having made a distance of sixteen miles. The next day at 10 o'clock the command was comfortably encamped at Murfreesborough, on a portion of the old battle-field of Stone's River. At 8 a.m. of the following day (December 21) orders were received to put the men upon the cars, and by 10 a.m. the brigade was loaded in box-cars, about sixty men inside and twenty on top of each car. Soon after the cars were loaded the weather turned suddenly and severely cold, accompanied by a piercing wind. Those on top soon found the cold unbearable, and many became so benumbed with cold that it was with great difficulty they could be got off the cars. Added to this cause of suffering and complaint the men were without rations, and none could be procured until we could reach Stevenson. I had great difficulty in keeping the men to their duty, but most of them endured their suffering with as much fortitude as could have been expected. Rations were issued at Stevenson on the evening of the 23d, and, without unloading, the train proceeded on the road toward Huntsville.

December 25 we arrived at Limestone Creek, fifteen miles from Decatur, where the troops were unloaded, and on the morning of the 26th we took up the march for the Tennessee River at the mouth of the creek. On the march this day the troops were compelled to wade a creek three feet deep, and on the following morning were called upon to wade a bayou much deeper and forty-five yards wide. This unusual exposure was endured by the men with even greater cheerfulness than could have been expected, as it was a severe trial of the physical constitution and of the patriotism of the men to require them to wade such streams in midwinter.

On the morning of the 27th of December the Provisional Division had arrived at a point on the north bank of the Tennessee River about two miles above Decatur. About this time the transports bearing the colored troops and the gun-boats came down and landed in fine style on the south bank opposite. After the disembarkation of those troops my brigade was ferried over by the transports and landed on the south side. Soon after landing the enemy opened with a section of artillery and dropped some shells near us, but without damage. When the whole command had crossed we were moved over the mouth of a bayou which completely surrounded the place of landing and put in position on a ridge beyond. Very soon after and while preparing to issue rations received an order to move my brigade forward and form on the right of Colonel Salm's brigade, which was advancing toward Decatur. This order was promptly executed, and having deployed a skirmish line my command advanced in line of battle through a very dense wood and underbrush toward Decatur. While forming the enemy burst a few shells over my lines, but, as it appeared afterward, the enemy on our advance immediately withdrew the artillery and evacuated the place. We moved from Decatur on the eve of the 28th after dark and marched out two miles on the Courtland road, when we encamped. This march, though short, was very trying. The weather was severely cold, the road difficult and muddy, and at our encampment no sufficient amount of wood could be found to make the men comfortable. On the 29th the command marched twelve miles and encamped at Swope's farm.

On the 30th we moved into Courtland and went into camp, and remained there until the evening of January 4, when we took up the return march and arrived at Decatur on the morning of the 6th. Having crossed the river on the pontoon bridge we immediately embarked on the cars for Chattanooga. At midnight same day we were unloaded and put in camp about two miles out from Huntsville, and remained there until noon of the following day, when we were again placed upon the cars and ran as far as Larkinsville, when we were again unloaded, and remained until the evening of the 8th. At 4 p.m. of this day I received verbal orders from Brigadier-General Cruft to proceed with my brigade to Bellefonte Station, ten miles above Larkinsville, to intercept a force of rebel cavalry under General Lyon, reported to be moving in that direction to cross the Tennessee River. I at once put my command on the cars and proceeded toward Bellefonte. In passing I stopped the train at Scottsborough and informed the lieutenant commanding there that the enemy, 800 strong, with one piece of artillery, was moving toward the railroad, and that if he was attacked I would re-enforce him. I arrived at Bellefonte Station just at dusk. The troops were immediately unloaded, and a detachment of fifteen mounted men from the Eleventh Indiana and First Alabama Cavalry (which accompanied me) was sent north on the Winchester road (which crosses the railroad at this point), under the command of Lieut. S. G. Willets, of my staff, to ascertain the direction in which the enemy was moving. Infantry scouts were also dispatched to the town of Bellefonte, one mile and a half south of the railroad, and about one mile from the river, and a patrol started back on the railroad toward Scottsborough to gather the earliest information of the presence of the enemy. While awaiting the report of these parties the troops were put in position near the stockade, one battalion occupying the work. About 12 p.m., and before any report had been received from my scouts, some scattering musketry was heard in the direction of Scottsborough, five miles west on the railroad. The troops were kept in readiness to move whenever the locality of the enemy might be discovered. While thus waiting a train going east stopped at Bellefonte Station, and reported to the sergeant of the guard that Scottsborough had been attacked, and that the lieutenant commanding there desired a re-enforcement of fifty to seventy-five men. I at once sent an order to Captain Titus, who had already started with a patrol of fifty men in that direction, to push rapidly forward, and if possible to throw himself in to the relief of the garrison, and hold the enemy in check until I could re-enforce with the brigade. Shortly afterward another train passed up the road, and they (hailed by me) reported that there was no attack on Scottsborough, that only a few guerrillas had placed some obstructions on the track, and that most of the firing had been done by the guard on the train. This led me to believe that the movement on Scottsborough was only a feint and that the real crossing could yet be attempted at Bellefonte. In a few minutes the musketry firing was renewed at Scottsborough, and was soon followed by five discharges of artillery, after which all firing ceased. The fight certainly did not last more than half an hour. I was now satisfied that the real attack had been made at Scottsborough, and concluded that the garrison of colored troops (fifty-five in number) had been overcome. I felt satisfied that the enemy would not delay long at Scottsborough, but would probably push on at once for some of the ferries on the river. My cavalry returned about this time and brought with them two citizens residing in Maynard's Cove (and one notorious guerrilla), who had seen Lyon's command nine miles from and going toward Scottsborough one hour and a half before sunset, and who estimated his force at 800 cavalry and one light piece of artillery, and that his men said that they intended to attack Scottsborough. I at once started the cavalry through the town of Bellefonte, with directions to keep the road running from that point toward Huntsville parallel to the river, and to feel in to the river at the Bellefonte and McGinn ferries, to ascertain whether the enemy were attempting either of those crossings. At 2 a.m. [9th] I started with my entire force (leaving a garrison of fifty convalescents in the stockade) to follow the road taken by the cavalry. This part of the night was very dark and the mud and water deep, so that our progress was very slow. I halted at daylight at Snodgrass' farm, on Dry Creek, and gave the men time to breakfast while a bridge was built over the stream. Having definitely learned that the enemy had moved southwest from Scottsborough, I concluded that he would not strike the river above Larkin's Landing, but I continued my march parallel to the river toward that landing, feeling in with my cavalry frequently, so as to be certain that the enemy did not slip between me and the river.

About 12 m. this day I received an order from General Cruft directing me to have my command at daylight of the 9th at the Bellefonte Ferry, and stating that Colonel Malloy's brigade would be at Sublett's Landing, two miles and a half below. As I had already ascertained that the enemy had moved farther down the river (a fact not known to the general when the order was written), I deemed it my duty to disregard it and push on down the river. My march was miserably slow, and at 4.30 p.m. I found myself at Squire Hodges' farm, on Rosebury Creek. As my men had been out of rations all day and very much exhausted, I halted for the night and pressed some teams to send back to Scottsborough for rations. In the morning Rosebury Creek was so swollen by rains as to render it impossible to cross with infantry, and having learned that two brigades had already reached Larkin's Landing I did not deem it best to push on by the circuitous route I would be obliged to follow, but concluded to remain where I would be in position to intercept the enemy should he attempt to push his way back into the mountains. Accordingly I lay in camp during the 10th day of January awaiting orders from General Cruft and keeping my cavalry out watching for straggling parties of the enemy. On the morning of the 11th received orders to move my command to the nearest railroad station, and if I could procure transportation to come on to Chattanooga and report to General Steedman. Having succeeded in getting a train from Mr. Bryant, military superintendent railroad, I left Scottsborough about 2 p.m. the 11th instant, and, taking up my small garrison at Bellefonte, arrived at Chattanooga at 3 a.m. the 12th instant, and reported to General Steedman, as ordered.

In concluding I must say that the campaign, though not characterized by much fighting, was one of unusual severity and hardship, and considering the character of the men composing the command, certainly much more was accomplished and endured by it than could in reason have been expected. My officers were utterly without baggage and often without blankets, and several times without rations. They discharged their duties faithfully and cheerfully. The officers of my staff, who, with me, shared all the privations spoken of above, are entitled to my thanks and this public acknowledgment for their energy and intelligence. Two battalion commanders and ten line officers and two of my staff were returned sick during the campaign, While 240 enlisted men were sent back exhausted and sick.

Respectfully submitted.

BENJ. HARRISON, 

Colonel, Commanding.

 Capt. J. A. WRIGHT,

Assistant Adjutant-General.

SOURCE: The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Series I, Volume 45, Part 1 (Serial No. 93), p. 519-24