Diary of Lieutenant-Colonel John Beatty: July 29, 1861

Was slightly unwell this morning; but about noon accompanied General Reynolds, Colonel Wagner, Colonel Heffron, and a squad of cavalry, up the valley, and returned somewhat tired, but quite well. Lieutenant-Colonel Owen was also of the party. He is fifty or fifty-five years old, a thin, spare man, of very ordinary personal appearance, but of fine scientific and literary attainments. For some years he was a professor in a Southern military school. He has held the position of State Geologist of Indiana, and is the son of the celebrated Robert J. Owen, who founded the Communist Society at New Harmony, Indiana. Every sprig, leaf, and stem on the route suggested to Colonel Owen something to talk about, and he proved to be a very entertaining companion.

General Reynolds is a graduate of West Point, and has the theory of war completely; but whether he has the broad, practical common sense, more important than book knowledge, time will determine. As yet he is an untried quantity, and, therefore, unknown.

SOURCE: John Beatty, The Citizen-soldier: Or, Memoirs of a Volunteer, p. 35-7

Diary of Lieutenant-Colonel John Beatty: July 30, 1861

About two o'clock P. M., for want of something better to do, I climbed the high mountain in front of our camp. The side is as steep as the roof of a gothic house. By taking hold of bushes and limbs of trees, after a half hour of very hard work, I managed to get to the top, completely exhausted. The outlook was magnificent. Tygart's valley, the river winding through it, and a boundless succession of mountains and ridges, all lay before me. My attention, however, was soon diverted from the landscape to the huckleberries. They were abundant; and now and then I stumbled on patches of delicious raspberries. I remained on the mountain, resting and picking berries, until half-past four. I must be in camp at six to post my pickets, but there was no occasion for haste. So, after a time, I started leisurely down, not the way I had come up, but, as I supposed, down the eastern slope, a way, apparently, not so steep and difficult as the one by which I had ascended. I traveled on, through vines and bushes, over fallen timber, and under great trees, from which I could scarcely obtain a glimpse of the sky, until finally I came to a mountain stream. I expected to find the road, not the stream, and began to be a little uncertain as to my whereabouts. After reflection, I concluded I would be most likely to reach camp by going up the stream, and so started. Trees in many places had fallen across the ravine, and my progress was neither easy nor rapid; but I pushed on as best I could. I never knew so well before what a mountain stream was.

I scrambled over rocks and fallen trees, and through thickets of laurel, until I was completely worn out. Lying down on the rocks, which in high water formed part of the bed of the stream, I took a drink, looked at my watch, and found it was half-past five. My pickets were to be posted at six. Having but a half hour left, I started on. I could see no opening yet. The stream twisted and turned, keeping no one general direction for twenty rods, and hardly for twenty feet. It grew smaller, and as the ravine narrowed the way became more difficult. Six o'clock had now come. I could not see the sun, and only occasionally could get glimpses of the sky. I began to realize that I was lost; but concluded finally that I would climb the mountain again, and ascertain, if I could, in what direction the camp lay. I have had some hard tramps, and have done some hard work, but never labored half so hard in a whole week as I did for one hour in getting up that mountain, pushing through vines, climbing over logs, breaking through brush. Three or four times I lay down out of breath, utterly exhausted, and thought I would proceed no further until morning; but when I thought of my pickets, and reflected that General Reynolds would not excuse a trip so foolish and untimely, I made new efforts and pushed on. Finally I reached the summit of the mountain, but found it not the one from which I had descended. Still higher mountains were around me. The trees and bushes were so dense I could hardly see a rod before It was now seven o'clock, an hour after the time when I should have been in camp. I lay down, determined to remain all night; but my clothing was so thin that I soon became chilly, and so got up and started on again. Once I became entangled in a wilderness of grapevines and briers, and had much difficulty in getting through them. It was now half-past seven, and growing dark; but, fortunately, at this time, I heard a dog bark, a good way off to the right, and, turning in that direction, I came to a cowpath. Which end of it should I take? Either end, I concluded, would be better than to remain where I was; so I worked myself into a dog-trot, wound down around the side of the mountain, and reached the road, a mile and a half south of camp, and went to my quarters fast as my legs could carry me. I found my detail for picket duty waiting and wondering what could so detain the officer of the day.

SOURCE: John Beatty, The Citizen-soldier: Or, Memoirs of a Volunteer, p. 37-9

Diary of 2nd Lieutenant George G. Smith: June 25, 1864

The troops were reviewed by General Reynolds. There were forty-three white Regiments, four colored, one dismounted cavalry, seven batteries of forty guns. The boys caught a cat fish. They said it weighed seventy-five pounds. It looked more like a slaughtered hog than a fish.

SOURCE: Abstracted from George G. Smith, Leaves from a Soldier's Diary, p. 125

Diary of 1st Sergeant John S. Morgan: Friday, January 20, 1865

Reviewed at 12, M, by Genl Reynolds who compliments our Regt. Lt. Sharman, much worse. Capt L— and Lt Rice go to sit up with him Mill 7 mile from town burned by Rebs

SOURCE: “Diary of John S. Morgan, Company G, 33rd Iowa Infantry,” Annals of Iowa, 3rd Series, Vol. 13, No. 8, April 1923, p. 571

Brigadier-General John A. Rawlins to Mary Emeline Hurlburt Rawlins, April 23, 1864

Culpepper C. H., Va., April 23, 1864.

. . . Clear, dry weather. . . .

Burnside's corps commenced moving up from Annapolis today to join this army. The moment it arrives we will be ready for action. Reports from Sherman, Butler and Sigel are all as cheering as we could hope for under the circumstances. The enemy have attacked Plymouth in Butler's Department and been repulsed. This initiatory move of theirs will delay Butler somewhat in his preparations for cooperation with the movements of this army. Sherman and Sigel will both be in readiness without doubt at the appointed time, as will, we trust, General Butler, notwithstanding this attack at Plymouth. In Sherman, Meade and Butler, General Grant has three Generals, all in important commands, whom he can trust. They are all three loyal to their country, friends of the General, and consequently with no ambitions to be gratified that look not to the success of our arms in obedience to and in accordance with his orders and plans.

General Sigel shows a fine disposition, and I have great hopes that he is a much better officer than General Pope gave him credit for being. He is active in his preparations for the part he is to perform in the coming campaign, is subordinate as far as I am able to judge, and has unquestionably the interest of the country at heart.

As yet no official report has been received from General Banks. General Grant has discharged his duty faithfully in this matter by suggestions to the President that Banks be relieved by General J. J. Reynolds in the command of the Gulf Department. What the President will do we don't as yet know. General Banks may be, and I have no doubt is, a splendid man on presentations, but certainly as a soldier he is a failure. The men under his command are to all intents and purposes dead to the service. Private information would indicate that we have retrieved much that we had lost in the Red River affair. I hope this may be true.

The Fort Pillow Massacre is one of the most brutal and horrible acts of fiendishness on record. If it is true as reported, and the Confederate authorities endorse and approve it, I hope the tongue of every Northern person who would speak in justification of them or their cause may cling to the roof of their mouths. This might make dumb many who profess to be my friends, but certainly could not hush to me the sweet voice of the wife I love, for at such acts of cruelty and barbarism her noble and queenly nature will ever revolt.

Reports from the front are that Lee is massing all his cavalry near Fredericksburg with a view to advance against us, which may be true, but I doubt it. . . .

SOURCE: James H. Wilson, The Life of John A. Rawlins, p. 422-3

Diary of Judith W. McGuire: October 8, 1861

At church yesterday; the services interesting; the Communion administered. Rev. Dr. A. delivered an address, perhaps a little too political for the occasion.

The news from Western Virginia not confirmed. Another rumour of a fight on Cheat Mountain, in which General Jackson, with some regiments of Georgians, repulsed the Federal General Reynolds.

SOURCE: Judith W. McGuire, Diary of a Southern Refugee, During the War, p. 67-8