MAJOR-GENERAL GRENVILLE M. DODGE

FIRST COLONEL, FOURTH INFANTRY.

Grenville Mellen Dodge is a native of Massachusetts, and was born at Danvers, Essex county, on the 12th day of April, 1832. His father, Sylvanus Dodge, was, prior to 1844, a provision dealer; but subsequently, and up to the time of his removal West, was Postmaster of the town of Danvers. Grenville remained with his father till he was sixteen years of age, having prior to that time been afforded only a limited common school education; for his father's business had been such as to require much of his son's assistance. At the age of sixteen, he was sent to the Academy at Durham, New Hampshire, then to that of Newbury; Vermont, and in 1850 was entered a student of Norwich Military University, at that time under the superintendence of the late Captain Alden Patridge. Here he completed his education, which was thoroughly practical, scientific and military.

In 1851, he left Norwich, and, coming West, lived for a time in Peoria, Illinois, where he obtained a situation in an Engineer Corps on the Rock Island Railroad. His skill as an engineer, with his remarkable judgment and great ability to control men, soon discovering themselves, he was entrusted with the survey of this road to Peoria. On the completion of this survey, he came to Iowa, and was for several years in the employ of the Mississippi and Missouri River Railroad Company, during which time he projected surveys from the Mississippi River to the Missouri, and up the valley of the Platte. As a civil engineer, young Dodge was very successful.

In May, 1854, he was married to Miss Annie Brown, of Peoria, Illinois, and for a short time resided in Iowa City. In the fall of the same year, he removed to Nebraska, where, in connection with his father and brother, he remained nearly a year, taking up claims on the Elkhorn River. At that day, this section of Nebraska was the extreme limit of the frontier settlements, and of easy access to the hostile tribes of Indians, who, in the latter part of 1855, commenced their hostilities against the white settlers. In consequence of these troubles, G. M. Dodge returned to Iowa, and settled in Council Bluffs; where, engaging in the banking business, he continued to reside till the beginning of the war.

The excitement produced at Council Bluffs by the first news of the firing on Fort Sumter had hardly subsided, before General Dodge was recruiting a company for the service. Having filled his company, he reported, early in the spring of 1861, to Governor S. J. Kirkwood, who, after learning what he had done, was so much pleased with him that he clothed him with proper authority, and sent him to Washington in quest of arms and munitions of war for the State. The promptness with which he discharged the duties of his commission attracted the notice of the War Department, and he was offered a commission in the regular army; but this honor he declined, for he preferred to serve his own State. On his return from Washington, he was commissioned colonel of the 4th Iowa Infantry, his commission dating the 17th of June, 1861.

In less than two weeks after his regiment was organized, and before he had been assigned to duty, he marched against Poindexter, drove him from Northern Missouri, and returned to Council Bluffs. On the 13th of August following, he reported at St. Louis, Missouri, for duty; and was ordered to Rolla, to which place he at once proceeded. In the following October, he was made Commandant of the Post. On the first of November, 1861, he led an expedition to Huston and Salem; and met and defeated the enemy at both places. In December, he was quite severely wounded, but in what manner I am unadvised. On recovering from this wound, he was assigned by General Curtis (then organizing his army for an advance on Price) to the command of a brigade. With this command he led the advance against Springfield, on the morning of the 13th of February, 1862.

Company E, of the 4th Iowa Infantry, one of the regiments of Colonel Dodge's Brigade, being deployed as skirmishers under Lieutenant Stitt and ordered forward, never halted until it had taken possession of the city. Company H, Captain D. A. Craig, of the 17th Iowa, performed a similar feat at Jackson, Mississippi, the 14th of May, 1863. At Springfield, the entree and occupation of the city was attended with much sport. After the company had routed the enemy, who were principally stragglers, and made their captures of prisoners, horses &c., they broke for the city saloons and bakeries; and when General Curtis, accompanied by his staff and body-guard, came riding through to the public square, there he found them, feasting on beer and ginger-bread—their first spoils of war.

The object of General Curtis' campaign was not simply the capture of Springfield: it was the defeat of General Price's army; and accordingly, on the morning of the fourteenth, the Army of the South West started in pursuit of the enemy. In this pursuit, Colonel Dodge's command met and engaged the enemy at Cane Creek, Sugar Creek, and Blackburn's Mill: in the last of these engagements, the rebels were led by the notorious Gates. These encounters took place on the 14th, 17th, and 27th of February, 1862, respectively.

How Van Dorn, uniting with Price after that general's flight from Missouri, marched on General Curtis at Pea Ridge has been already given, as has also the desperate fighting that occurred on the right, between Carr's Division and the rebel forces.

At day-light on the morning of the 7th, the troops of Carr's Division were put hurriedly under arms, and marched northward. None but Carr and his brigade commanders knew the object of the movement; for it was supposed the enemy would make their attack from the south and south-west. But no time was given for breakfast, and all knew there must be danger from an unexpected quarter. Colonel Dodge, having marched his brigade a mile or more, turned eastward, along what was known as the White River road. Companies E and K, of the 4th Iowa, constituted the van-guard, they being followed by one section of the 1st Iowa Battery. Suddenly the sharp barking of musketry was heard. Dodge had come upon the enemy's cavalry, reconnoitering for the advance of their infantry; but this force was soon dispersed, and pursued through the timber and past the rough and rocky hills, beyond and around which was Cross Timber Hollows. Dodge took up his position on these hills, with the enemy beyond in the fallen timber. Colonel Vandever, with his brigade, was to the left on the Springfield road; and there the severe fighting first began. Vandever's line was soon broken, and forced back, and Dodge had no alternative but to retire. In the meantime, the enemy were moving round Dodge's right. Gaining the ground out of the fallen timber, they swung round to the south, and, the first intimation he had of their approach, they were moving in heavy masses through open country to pass his right, and cut him off. Promptly changing position "by the right flank, file left," the colonel threw his handful of troops along an old fence, with timber on his right and left, and an open field in his front; in the latter, the enemy were forming for a charge. At this alarming juncture, he had only two regiments—the 4th Iowa and 35th Illinois. The enemy outnumbered him nearly ten to one; and, in addition, they were supported by artillery. Concealing his men behind the fence, Colonel Dodge awaited their approach. After a vigorous cannonading, their infantry came sweeping across the field in magnificent style and with a hideous yell, expecting little opposition; but they were met with a deadly fire and driven back. The charge was renewed several times, and each time repulsed. Nor could they force Colonel Dodge from his position, till they began moving columns past his right and left flank. It was the fighting of the 4th Iowa and 35th Illinois, in this position, that so challenged the admiration of General Van Dorn, and other rebel officers.

The services of Colonel Dodge at Pea Ridge ranked those of every other brigade commander: there were none to dispute with him this honor. He was here a second time wounded, and soon after sent to St. Louis, in charge of the surgeon of the 3d Iowa cavalry.

The important services of Colonel Dodge were now recognized by the Government; and he was, on the 31st of March, 1862, made a brigadier-general. Early in June of the same year, he was made Post Commandant of Columbus, Kentucky, and, on the 28th of the same month, was assigned to the command of the Central Division, Army of the Tennessee, with head-quarters at Trenton. On the 30th of the following October, he assumed command of the District of Corinth; and the magnificent works, erected for the defense of that place, were planned and constructed under his personal supervision. From October, 1862, till the 8th of July, 1863, when by order of General Hurlbut he assumed command of the left wing of the 16th Army Corps, General Dodge was engaged repeatedly with the enemy under Forrest, Van Dorn, Chalmers, Ruggles and Ferguson; and, in every engagement and expedition, he was successful. In addition to his other labors in the summer of 1863, he organized five regiments of colored troops, and several companies of heavy artillery, also colored troops.

In the fall of 1863, General Dodge was transferred, with his command, from Corinth to Pulaski, Tennessee. He left his old field of operations late in October, following on with the rear of Sherman's army, then en route for Chattanooga, but a history of these movements I have given elsewhere. Establishing his head-quarters at Pulaski, he began opening the Nashville and Decatur Railroad, and by Spring had the task nearly completed.

General Dodge most distinguished himself in the Atlanta campaign. The troops of his command were the same that he had commanded on garrison- and railroad-duty. Among them were three Iowa regiments—the 2d, 7th and 39th. He joined General Sherman at Chattanooga, early in May, and soon marched out to Dalton, General Johnson's boasted stronghold. Through nearly this entire campaign he held the right of Sherman's army; but the details of his services on this march will be more fully given in the sketches of the Iowa regiments of his command. For his gallant and important services in this campaign, he was made a major-general, and there are few officers who have more richly earned the rank.

The general was wounded for the third time, before Atlanta. It happened thus: the morning in question he went out to the trenches of the skirmish line, sporting a new hat, trimmed with a brilliantly polished bugle. If I am rightly informed, some important movement was on hand, in which he was to take part, and, prior to moving, he exposed his head at one of the loop-holes under the head-log, to make observations. The sun, which was shining brightly, reflected on the bugle of his hat, making a fine target for the enemy's sharp-shooters. The rebel's aim was so accurate that the ball struck near the bugle, and, going through the general's hat, passed round under the scalp. It did not prove fatal, though for several weeks it disabled him for service. This accident occurred early in August, after which he came North, and never after returned to his old command.

On recovering from his wound, he was first placed in command at Vicksburg, Mississippi; but, in a short time after, succeeded General Rosecrans in Missouri. He is still in command of that department, with head-quarters at St. Louis.

During the present war, no officer, whether of the regular or volunteer service, has made a better record than Major-General Dodge. One officer from our State has made a more brilliant one—General Corse; but that general's services are in no manner to be compared with those of General Dodge. His duties have been varied, and in many instances have involved the greatest responsibility and complexity; but he has met with uniform success in every department of his labors, and has never been relieved from a command unless it was by orders assigning him to another and more important one. His worth has been appreciated by General Grant, who, on more than one occasion, has tendered him high compliments. During operations around Vicksburg, General Dodge was in command at Corinth, one hundred and fifty miles removed from the former city; and yet General Grant stated officially, I am credibly informed, that there was no officer of Dodge's rank in his army to whom he was more indebted for his success in capturing the stronghold.

In person, General Dodge is a small man, weighing only about one hundred and thirty pounds. I never saw him but once, which was in the summer of 1862, as I was passing through Trenton, Tennessee, at that time the general's headquarters. He was standing upon the depot platform, and was in conversation with Lieutenant W. S. Burke, of the 17th Iowa. From the lieutenant I afterwards learned that this was the gallant, distinguished General Dodge, and I confess I was surprised. He is slightly stooping in the shoulders, and, at first sight, does not look like the man he is. He has a fine eye, though, which, after seeing his shoulder-straps, was the first thing that attracted my attention.

But he has the following distinguishing traits of character, for without them he could never have accomplished what he has. He has an iron will, a mind rich in expedients, and a perseverance that is active and untiring: these traits, with promptness of action, and a judgment remarkably matured for a man of his years, have conspired to make him in fact, as he is in rank, one of the best officers of our army. If Iowa has been honored by her troops in the field, she has been equally honored by her general officers; and in this respect she is indebted to no one more than to General Dodge.

SOURCE: Stuart, A. A., Iowa Colonels and Regiments, p. 109-16

COLONEL JAMES BAIRD WEAVER

FIFTH COLONEL, SECOND INFANTRY.

James B. Weaver was the fifth colonel of the 2d Iowa Infantry. He is a native of the city of Dayton, Ohio, where he was born on the 12th of June, 1833, and a son of Abram Weaver, Esq., formerly a county officer and politician of Davis county. He accompanied his father's family from Ohio to Michigan, and thence to Iowa, where he arrived in 1843. In the year following, he settled in Davis county, where he has since resided.

Colonel Weaver's early education was limited — only such as the West, at that early day, afforded. At the age of nineteen, he began the study of law, which he pursued for two years in Bloomfield, and then, with the late lamented Colonel James Baker, entered the Cincinnati Law School. Leaving that University in the spring of 1856, he returned to Iowa; and, from that date until the commencement of the war, practiced his profession in Bloomfield, Davis county. Soon after establishing himself in practice, he was married to Miss Clara Vinson, a lady of intelligence and worth.

Colonel Weaver entered the service, as first lieutenant of Company G, 2d Iowa Infantry, and with that rank fought at the battles of Fort Donelson and Shiloh. He was made major of his regiment, vice N. W. Mills promoted to lieutenant-colonel, and, after the death of Colonels Baker and Mills, was promoted to the colonelcy. His commission as major was received the day before the first day's fight at Corinth, and that of colonel, in the latter part of the same month.

If we except the part taken by the 2d Iowa Infantry in the early part of General Sherman's campaign against Atlanta, the history of the regiment, while under the command of Colonel -Weaver, has in it little of general interest. From the fall of 1862 to the fall of 1863, it was stationed on garrison-duty at and near Corinth, Mississippi; and, if we except the few expeditions in which it took part during this time, the routine of its camp-life was only occasionally broken by droll camp-scenes and incidents.

In garrison-duty, the day begins something as follows:— awakened in the morning by the braying of mules, the impudent clatter of drums, and the shrill whistle of fifes, the soldiers hurry on their clothes and assemble on the company parade grounds for "roll-call." But there is always some delinquent: some lazy fellow throws back his blanket and, sitting upright, rubs his eyes and yawns lustily. He begins to wonder if he will have to "police" to-day, or stand picket, or — what he will have to do, when the command "fall in" is sounded, and instantly the trumpet-voice of the orderly begins calling, "Buckmaster;" "Bunner;" "Brown;" "Brooks;" — he hurries on his pants and out into line, but only in time to find his name passed, and himself checked as absent from "roll-call." The day begins badly; for the thing he most dreaded is now upon him — he is the first on the list of those detailed for "policing," and he curses his ill luck.

Next follows the morning ablutions and toilet, and then breakfast. The 2d Iowa at Corinth were gentlemen; for, in those days, they had black men for their cooks, their "hewers of wood and drawers of water." The soldiers chatted and laughed, while their servants fried the bacon, and made the coffee. "Guard-mounting," "company-drill," "dinner-call," and "retreat," followed each other, until finally "tattoo" closed the day. Generally, the history of one day was repeated in that following.

Of all the troops sent out from Iowa, there has been no regiment, where the enlisted men have maintained Bo much independence in their relations with their officers, as have those of the 2d Iowa, — none, where the members would endure less of style in their field- and line-officers. In every other respect, the discipline of the regiment was most commendable. In the summer of 1863, while the 2d Iowa was stationed with its brigade at Corinth, General T. W. Sweeney, (afterwards dismissed in disgrace from the service for threatening to shoot General Dodge, and a surgeon) issued an order, embracing the following points: — 1st. There must be no familiarity between enlisted men and their officers. 2d. If any enlisted man have any business with the commanding officer of his company, he must transact it through the orderly-sergeant. The orderly-sergeant, on entering his officer's tent, must remove his hat, and taking the position of a soldier, make known his business. He must never seat himself, or talk about other matters than those relating to the business in question; and, that being attended to, he must leave promptly, and with the proper salute. Violations of the order were to be reported by company-officers, and all offenders severely punished.

This was a new article in the regiment's code of discipline, to which it would not yield submission. But Colonel Weaver, always anxious to comply with orders, added one of his own; and, with a rhetorical flourish, held his company-officers responsible for all infringements of the former. Both were read to his regiment on dress-parade, and were greeted with three groans. One stormy night not long after, when the colonel was in bed, a shot was fired through his quarters, the ball passing within four or five inches of his person. For some reason or other, no more was said about the obnoxious order, and the men visited the tents of their company-officers as usual.

After Vicksburg had fallen, and Port Hudson, and the Mississippi had been opened from its mouth to its sources, there was little need for the magnificent army of General Grant, in its old field of operations. On the west side of the Mississippi, the power of the Confederacy was inconsiderable: its chief strength lay on the east side of the river. Rosecrans successfully engaged Bragg at Murfreesboro, and forced him back across the tail of the Cumberland Mountains, to and beyond Chattanooga. Then, himself defeated, he was beaten back to Chattanooga, and there beseiged. After the fall of Vicksburg, therefore, Chattanooga became the chief point of interest, in military operations in the South West. General Grant's victory at Vicksburg was the consummation of success in that quarter, and he therefore planned immediate relief for the Army of the Cumberland, at Chattanooga.

In order to open and protect new lines of communication between Nashville and Chattanooga, and to render that one already open more secure, Corinth was to be evacuated, a large extent of the Memphis and Charleston Railroad abandoned, and General Dodge's command ordered across the country to the Nashville and Decatur Railroad. Hence it was that the 2d Iowa, with its brigade and division, was transferred from Corinth to the line of the above named road. General Dodge's command left Corinth and crossed the Tennessee, at Eastport, with the rear of General Sherman's Corps, then on its way to Chattanooga.

The 2d Iowa marched directly to Pulaski, Tennessee, where were established the head-quarters of the regiment. Pulaski was also General Dodge's head-quarters. Colonel Weaver was made commandant of the post, and held the position during the following winter, and until just before the expiration of his term of service. The services of the 2d Iowa were, in the meantime, the same as those of other troops, stationed on rail road guard-duty. The regiment however, marched on no expeditions, and was, at no time, attacked by the enemy. It was at Pulaski that the 2d re-enlisted, and from that point left for Iowa on veteran-furlough.

Soon after its return from Iowa, the 2d Iowa, with the balance of Dodge's command, took the field. Leaving the non-veterans at Pulaski, the regiment, in the latter part of March, 1864, marched to the front, by way of Elkton, Huntsville and Bridgeport. It had been so long stationed in camp that the news of its assignment to the front was hailed with much satisfaction, and demonstrations of joy, along the line of march, such as song-singing and the like, were frequent. The Elk river was to be crossed at Elkton, and there was no bridge and no boats; but that was no obstacle; for the regiment, and indeed the whole brigade, stripping off all but their shirts, waded the stream, amid shouting and laughter. There are always some wags in every regiment, and at such times as these, they crack their jokes and make much sport.

On arriving at Huntsville, General Sweeney's Division, (the 2d) to which was attached the 2d Iowa, was joined by that of General Veatch. These troops constituted General G. M. Dodge's command—the celebrated left wing of the 16th Army Corps. They proceeded from Huntsville to Chattanooga, and from Chattanooga, over the battle-ground of Chickamauga, on to Dalton.

At Dalton, General Johnson was strongly intrenched, with the finest rebel army ever mustered in the South West; and so confident was he of his strength that he had boasted he would march on Chattanooga, and, having driven the Federal forces from that place, would move on and capture Nashville. But Dalton was to fall with but little bloodshed. General McPherson, moving through Snake Creek Gap, gained Johnson's left flank, and compelled him to evacuate his strong works and fall back to Resaca. In this flank movement, the first in General Sherman's "flanking campaign," the 2d Iowa took part. Soon after, Colonel Weaver was mustered out of the service, and returned to his home in Bloomfield. His three year's term expired on the 28th of May, 1864. From that time to the present, the 2d Iowa Infantry has been commanded by Colonel Noel B. Howard.

Colonel Weaver is one of the handsomest of the Iowa colonels. He has a symmetrical, well-developed person, which, with his dignified address, intelligent countenance, and dark-blue eyes, makes him interesting and pleasing. He is too small for a great man, and yet, with his dignity and self-assurance, he impresses a stranger favorably.

Intellectually, he is rather brilliant; I am told he is a graceful and interesting public speaker. His worst fault is an affectation in delivery.

He has some vanity, and was proud of his position as colonel of the 2d Iowa. For instance: just after being commissioned a lieutenant, it is said he returned to Bloomfield and attended church in full uniform, sporting the whole regulation outfit. "From his walk," said an officer of his regiment, " you could tell that he was colonel of the 2d Iowa."

He was a good and brave officer, and there are few who were as cool as he in battle. At Shiloh, while the 2d and 7th Iowa were running that terrible gauntlet, on the afternoon of the first day's fight, Captain Moore, of company G, was shot through both legs and disabled. Lieutenant Weaver stopped, picked him up, and bore him from the field. Under the circumstances, not one man in five thousand would have imitated his example. He is a member of the Methodist Church, and is one of the few officers who abstained from the use of liquor in the service.

SOURCE: Stuart, A. A., Iowa Colonels and Regiments, p. 71-76

Iowa Items

The Hawkeye states that the Mississippi river is rising with a rapidity never known to the oldest inhabitant. The old Father of Waters in assisting the Federal Government in squelching out the rebellion. The Lower Mississippi is threatened with inundations of several characters “respectively.”

Lieutenant Colonel Gallighan of the 4th Iowa Infantry has resigned his commission and gone home.

Brigadier General Dodge, and Col. Bussey were in St. Louis on the 4th.

There were 7,575 letters sent from the Tipton Post-Office during the last quarter.

Three bridges have been swept away on the Skunk river in Story and adjacent counties.

Mr. Lindsey Lewis and Miss Rebecca Elizabeth Ward of Hamilton county, were married the other day in a sled, in a storm, out on the prairie! The Story county Advertiser gives us the above gratifying intelligence.

At a meeting held in a school house in Greenfield, [Adair] county, it was resolved that the effort on the part of the Federal Government to put down the rebellion is “unconstitutional.” Iowa traitors are not all dead yet!

– Published in the Daily State Register, Des Moines, Iowa, Friday, April 11, 1862

Letter From T. A. Trent

Sgt. Co. D. 39th Iowa, Corinth, April 11.

Mr. Caverly:– It being rainy this evening I will pass the time by telling you some of the doings of the Corinth braves.

On the 7th of this month word was given out by Gen. Dodge, - who, by the way is beloved by all the troops here – that we would celebrate that day, it being the anniversary of the battle of Shilo [sic].

We raised a fine pole about 100 feet high for the flag, and all the troops were ordered to parade for a review at one o’clock, P.M.

The troops were up to time, and when the old flag was thrown to the breeze, the shouts of the Boys were scarcely less loud than the roar of the artillery. The Band then [struck] up the Star Spangled Banner, and if [ever] I felt like fighting it was then.

The next thing was a prayer by the Chaplain, after which Col. (acting Brigadier General) Bane, who lost his arm at the battle of Shiloh, gave us a stirring, patriotic speech. – He encouraged the soldiers and rebuked the copperheads in scathing terms. At the conclusion the Band again played, and the boys cheered with a will. The review then commenced led off by the 10th Missouri cavalry, well armed and [equipped], and going through the exercises as well as infantry.

The infantry also came up in fine style, as did the artillery that brought up the rear. – It was near night when the exercises were through, and as I left for my tent, I felt proud that I was an American soldier, fighting for a government like ours.

Company D are doing well as could be expected under the circumstances, having [built] them nice split log huts, neatly covered with boards; the Captain’s being sided and roofed with clapboards. We have plenty of provisions. If we could have the smiles of our wives and mothers to great our comings and to cook us a clean bite, I believe we could enjoy ourselves for a while.

Health of the Company is good with a few exceptions, and the spirits of both officers and men, high, with the best of feelings between each other. I am detached from the Company and belong to a Pioneer Corps, but am with them often.

Hoping that God will help the right, and enable us to whip in every fight and to attend to the copperheads at home, when we return, I bid you a good night.

Yours,

T. A. Trent

– Published in The Union Sentinel, Osceola, Iowa, Saturday, May 2, 1863