Particulars of the Battle
(Special Correspondence of the Baltimore American:)
FORTRESS MONROE, Feb. 13.
The steamer Stars and Stripes came in at noon to-day with a flag at her mainmast and stern, bearing all the evidence of bringing glorious tidings direct from the Burnside expedition, and as the boat reached the wharf those who landed were soon surrounded with eager inquiries of the result of the expedition, and the following questions were propounded and quickly answered.
Q. – What’s the result of the expedition?
A. – We have cleaned the rebels out of the island and captured and burnt most of their fleet – taking three thousand prisoners.
Q. – How many were killed on the Federal side?
A. – About forty.
Q. – How many wound?
A. – The number of wounded was not definitely ascertained when we left but one hundred and fifty was considered a large estimate.
Q. – How about Gen. Wise?
A. – He is reported to have been carried off from Nag’s Head towards Norfolk, but Commodore Goldsborough had started up Currituck Sound towards Norfolk with a gunboat and several armed cutters in the endeavor to overtake him. The anxiety to capture him was very great.
Q. – What became of his son Capt. O. Jennings Wise, of the Richmond Blues?
A. – He was slightly wounded on the field at the head of his battalion, and was endeavoring to escape in a boat with some others, when he was hailed to surrender, but refusing to do so was fired upon and mortally wounded. They then surrendered, and he was taken prisoner and died next morning from the effect of three bullet wounds.
Q. – How many of the rebels were killed and wounded in the engagement?
A. – Their killed and wounded are not very heavy, for the reason that they broke and ran as soon as our men captured their main battery at the point of the bayonet. This was done by Hawkins’ Zouaves and the Twenty-first Massachusetts, who made a brilliant charge directly in the face of their guns, driving the whole garrison out of the intrenchments [sic] in the centre of the island. The number of rebels killed was estimated at about sixty, and the wounded at two hundred.
Q. – How many prisoners were taken?
A. – We have taken nearly three thousand prisoners, who will probably arrive at New York on Friday or Saturday, on the steamers Spaulding and George Peabody.
Q. – When did the fight commence?
A. – We commenced with a reconnaissance by the gunboats on Friday afternoon, shelling the lower end of the island, partly silencing the guns at that point. Night closing in, we ceased firing until Saturday morning, when the bombardment was recommenced, and about ten thousand troops landed on the southern end of the island.
Q. – After the landing was effected, what became of the gunboats?
A. – They steamed up the channel alongside of the island, and drove the rebels from them into their intrenched camp at the upper end of the island. The army having landed, about seven thousand of them marched in three divisions towards the centre of the island to attack the main body. As they approached the earthworks of the enemy, they were found to have several guns in position to cover the approaches. When within a mile of their batteries the rebels opened fire and the Federal troops fell on their faces, allowing the balls to pass over them. They continued thus to approach the batteries for a mile with but slight loss, and finally, when close enough, charged the earthworks at a double-quick, first firing a volley and then rushing with charged bayonets over the intrenchments. As the Federal troops entered they abandoned their guns and ran out at the other side, towards the upper end of the island. They had put a poor fight, and ran at Bull Run speed as soon as they were brought to close quarters.
Q. – Did any portion of these troops exhibit bravery?
A. – A battalion in charge of their principal guns, the Richmond Blues, showed some bravery; but the balance fled without scarcely firing a gun, so soon as the intrenchments were stormed.
Q. – What became of the gunboats?
A. – As soon as the landing was safely effected Com. Goldsborough steamed up the channel firing at all the rebel troops that were in sight, and driving them out of the earthworks commanding the channel.
Q. – Did the rebel gunboats make any fight?
A. – Very little. When Com. Goldsborough’s fleet appeared at the upper end of the island they turned and fled, and were hotly pursued towards Elizabeth City. So soon as overtaken armed cutters were sent to board them, and some severe fighting is said to have taken place on the rebel decks. They were nearly all of them captured, and most of them burned, the victors continuing on their pursuit to prevent any of them escaping. Three or four were captured and retained, and the balance burned. The crews of most of them made their escape to the shore by swimming, without even an attempt at resistance.
Q. – Was Elizabeth City burned?
A. – There was an earthwork defending the approach to Elizabeth City, which was feebly worked from some time, doing little or no damage. So soon as the gunboats got the range of it and commenced dropping their shells in and around it, the military abandoned it, and soon after the flames burs out in the lower part of the city. A flag of truce from the citizens was then sent out to Commodore Goldsborough, asking him to send a force on shore to extinguish the fire, which they stated had been kindled by the retreating soldiers. Their request was respectfully declined; as they had come neither to burn or destroy, nor to commit any outrage on private rights, and must hold those responsible who committed the outrage. Not more than one-third of the city was burned.
Q. – How many troops were on the island?
A. – When we first commenced the attack on Friday night the whole number did not exceed three thousand, but during Friday night and Saturday morning two thousand from Norfolk were landed, making the whole force about 4,500.
Q. – How many of them escaped?
A. – It is supposed that nearly twelve hundred escaped to the mainland in schooners. – They effected their escape by means of an obstruction in the channel, which prevented our gunboats from approaching the upper end of the island within range of them. All their energies seemed to be devoted to the effecting of an escape. If the gunboats could have passed the obstruction and have got within range of the point from which they were embarking, not a man would have escaped.
Q. – Of the three thousand prisoners captured, are there many Carolinians and Virginians?
A. – Yes, nearly all from these two States. – There were several battalions from Richmond, and parts of regiments from North Carolina, but the majority of the troops were picked men from the Virginia regiments. The McCullough Rangers are From Louisiana, under the command of Lieutenant Hazelett, supposed to be Robert Hazlett, of Baltimore. A regiment of six hundred men from North Carolina reached the island on Saturday morning, and had scarcely got landed before they were run down by the stampede, and the boats seized by the fleeing rebels from the entrenched camp, who left them as prisoners in our hands. They arrived just in time to be captured.
Q. – What kind of arms had the rebels?
A. – The whole island was strewn with arms of every description; flint-lock muskets, double barrel shot-guns, and all descriptions of rifles, and good, bad and indifferent bowie-knives, rusty swords, flint-lock horse pistols, and Sharp’s and Colt rifles. At least a cart load of powder horns had been gathered up with shout pouches to match.
Q. – Did any of the Federal gunboats receive any injury or where any of them lost?
A. – The only shot that took effect on any of the gunboats was a round shot that entered the bow of the gunboat Seymour, doing no damage that cannot be repaired in an hour. Another boat had a portion of her rigging cut away. – The Hetzel had six men killed by the explosion of a riffle gun, and two or three wounded.
Q. – Was there any hand-to-hand fighting among the gunboats?
A. – Only in the case of the Federal gunboat Ceres, Capt. McDermaid, who ran up along side the rebel flag-ship Sea Bird, of Commodore Lynch, and drove the enemy before them on his own deck. Com. Lynch succeeded in making his escape by jumping overboard and wading to the shore with most of his officers.
Q. – Did any of the rebel gunboats escape?
A. – Yes, two of them ran into the canal, on learning which Com. Goldsborough landed a force and destroyed the gate of the canal, letting the water out. They were reported to be aground in consequence.
Q. – How many gunboats went up to Elizabeth City?
A. – There were fifteen of our gunboats in the fleet that started for Elizabeth City on Sunday. Most of the enemy’s gunboats were now ashore and abandoned, and we fired several of them. Three were captured, and one is now in the Federal service.
Q. – Were any of our officers killed?
A. – Yes, Colonel Russell, of the Tenth Connecticut Regiment, was killed, and Lieut. Col. Viguer de Monteil of the D’Epineuil Zouaves, who was a volunteer, were killed, no other officer was killed above the rank of Lieutenant.
Q. – How many officers are among the prisoners?
A. – We have about fifteen Colonels, Lieutenant Colonels and Majors, and fifty or sixty Captains and Lieutenants.
Q. – Were all the military in the fight?
A. – No. The Eighty-ninth New York, the Eighth and Ninth Connecticut, the Sixth New Hampshire, and the forty-eighth Pennsylvania were left at Hatteras.
Q. – How many guns were captured?
A. – Forty-two large guns, and about a dozen field pieces. There were also captured about 4,000 stands of arms of all descriptions.
Q. – How many field pieces were landed by Gen. Burnside?
A. – Five or six, principally field howitzers. They were landed on the edge of a marsh, and the men were compelled to drag them for about one hundred yards through the water up to their breasts. They were finally served, and did good execution in covering the approach of the storming parties.
Q. – How was the weather during the fight?
A. – It was dull and cloudy on Friday evening, when the works were first shelled by the gunboats, and on Saturday the rain fell steadily all day without any intermission. The men landed at daylight on Saturday morning, and it was about 11 o’clock when the action commenced. At first it assumed somewhat the character of a brush fight, until the rebels were driven to the centre of the island and the artillery was brought into requisition. The island is about twelve miles long, and the landing was effected on the mainland said, about four miles from the lower end. At their earthworks in the centre there were some fine barracks and storehouses, the latter of which with all their contents were burnt by shells from the gunboats. The main camp was at the upper end of the island, where there were fine barracks and an abundance of the necessaries and comforts of camp life. Owing to the destruction of the storehouses, food was very scarce on the island, and, had it not been for the abundance of pigs running about, there would have been much suffering on Sunday and Monday.
Q. – What was done with the prisoners?
A. – They were allowed to continue in possession of their camp and barracks, whilst the Federal soldiers, both officers and men, roughed it as best they could on the damp earth. – The prisoners were, however, when the Stars and Stripes left, being conducted to the lower end of the island to be embarked for New York.
Q. – Had the navy or army the most credit in the capture of the army?
A. – Both acted admirably throughout, though both evinced too much headlong impetuosity. The island was undoubtedly taken by the land forces, and the rebel batteries in the centre of the island, behind which they made a stand, could not be reached by the shells from the gunboats. In making the advance to these earthworks the Federal troops had to pass through the deep marshes, sometimes up to their armpits. All seemed inspired with a determination to take the island, despite all contingencies.
Q. – There was no faltering among our men?
A. – Not in the least. The whole work could have been done with less loss of life had it not been for the impetuosity of the men, who could not be controlled by their officers. The navy did all that was required of it in covering the landing and silencing of the shore batteries, and ultimately disposing of the rebel fleet. It may, therefore, be regarded as a joint victory of the army and navy.
– Published in The Burlington Weekly Hawk-Eye, Burlington, Iowa, Saturday, February 22, 1862, p. 2
