Very respectfully, your obedient servant, E. H. POWERS, Lieutenant-Colonel Fifty-fifth Regiment Ohio Volunteer fantry, Commanding. November twenty-second, where it remained un- division, during which time the regiment accomtil November twenty-fourth, then marched in panied a foraging expedition which went out the direction of Savannah via Louisville and under command of Colonel Dustin, then in comMillen. Arrived outside the defences of Sa-mand of this division. A detailed report of that vannah on the tenth day of December, 1864, expedition will be made by Major Pardee, who where it remained building and occupying breast- was in command of the regiment at that time, works until December twenty-first, when (the and during the time of my absence. On the city having been evacuated) it went into camp fifth November, the regiment moved with the about three quarters of a mile north-west of the division out of camp about two miles on the city of Savannah, Georgia. McDonough road, and encamped for the night, and on the following day was ordered back with the division and occupied its old camp. On the tenth November, I returned and assumed command of the regiment, which remained in camp until the fifteenth, when, at half-past seven A. M., it moved out on to the Decatur road with the left wing, army of Georgia, to take part in the campaign which has just terminated in the capture of Savannah. During the recent march, this regiment obtained from the country, upon estimation, as follows: Meat of various kinds, eleven thousand nine hundred pounds; flour, one thousand pounds; sweet potatoes, three hundred bushels; corn-meal, five hundred pounds, besides other vegetables of various kinds, of which I have no data upon which to estimate the amounts. The regiment (aside from two companies, which were detached with the train) captured, mules, The march was continued the first twenty-four eight; cattle, ten. From the companies de- hours with only a halt for dinner at Decatur. tached at the train, were detailed men whose On the third day we reached Social Circle, where special duties were to make captures of horses the brigade was directed to destroy the railroad, and mules, and the result of their labors in that and the regiment assisted in destroying it for some direction, will probably be obtained from Lieu-six miles; working from ten A.M. till dark, and tenant Tabor, Brigade Assistant Quartermaster, then rejoined the division ten miles in advance. under whose direction they operated. The casu- On the fourth day we reached Madison, where the alties in the regiment during the march from regiment destroyed the switch-track and some Atlanta were three men missing. two miles of the main road; working from nine A.M. till noon. The fifth day we reached Edenton; the seventh day, Milledgeville, where we reIn-mained in camp, resting one day. On the twen HEADQUARTERS TWENTIETH REGIMENT, CONNECTICUT Captain C. H. Young, Acting Assistant Adju- ty-sixth November we reached Sandersville, and the following day arrived at Davisboro; the twenty-ninth, we passed through Louisville, and on the second December encamped at night near Birdsville. December third, crossed the railroad near Millen, and on the eighth, passed through Springfield. On the tenth we encamped in line of battle within four miles of Savannah; the In obedience to requirements of circular from eleventh, we moved forward nearly a mile immebrigade headquarters, of date the twenty-third diately in front of the works of the enemy, and instant, I have the honor to submit the follow-built rifle-pits, where we remained under the fire ing report of the operations of this regiment of the artillery of the enemy till the morning of since the date of my last report made soon after the twenty-first, when, in conjunction with the the occupation of Atlanta, on the sixth of Sep- corps, we entered the city of Savannah without opposition, the enemy having evacuated it on the previous night. Only one casualty occurred in the regiment while in front of the city. Lieutenant Henry Lewis, of company K, was severely wounded in the leg. Eight enlisted men fell out on the march on the first night, and have not since joined the regiment. When we left Atlanta, company F, of this regiment, under command of Captain Tarr, was detailed to report to Captain Sackett, Acting Commissary Subsistence of this brigade, and was engaged in foraging under his directions till we reached the works in front of Savannah, when it was relieved and rejoined the regiment. Parties were detailed daily under the charge of a commissioned officer to forage for the regiment, and in this way the officers and men obtained nearly all the supplies required, including the rations in the hands of the men when leaving LIEUTENANT-COLONEL BUCKINGHAM'S REPORT. tember: From this date to the fifth of November, the regiment remained in camp south of Atlanta, near the line of rebel works, and from the third of October to the last-named date, furnished nearly one half of the effective force of the regiment for fatigue and picket-duty; the fatigue-party having been engaged in building a new line of works about the city. On the fourteenth of September, two hundred and fifty men, with a proper proportion of officers and non-commissioned officers, all under the charge of Captain Ezra Sprague, were sent to accompany Colonel La Due, Assistant Quartermaster of the corps, on a foraging expedition, and succeeded in loading offe hundred and twenty-five wagons, having been absent two days. From the twenty-fourth of September to the tenth of November, I was absent from the regiment in command of the Third brigade of this Atlanta. The regiment has drawn during the campaign, as follows, namely: Six days' rations of salt meat, twelve of bread, twenty-one and a half of coffee, eleven of sugar, and eleven of salt. Thirty-five horses and mules were cap-gades do not report any subsistence stores taken tured and turned over to the Brigade Quarter- while at Atlanta, Georgia. L. G. STUART. master during the march. Captain and Commissary Subsistence, Volunteers. tachments sent out from regiments, but is the actual or approximate amount which was received by the brigade commissaries, and by them issued to the troops. The commissaries of bri The following is a list of casualties since the date of last report: Commissioned officers killed, none; commissioned officer wounded, one-total, one; enlisted men killed, none; enlisted men wounded, none; enlisted men missing, nine-aggregate, ten. I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, PHILO B. BUCKINGHAM, Lieutenant-Colonel Twentieth Connecticut Volunteer Infantry, Commanding Regiment. CAPTAIN STUART'S REPORT. OFFICE OF THE COMMISSARY OF SUBSISTENCE, THIRD DIVISION, TWENTIETH ARMY CORPS, SAVANNAH, GEORGIA, December 27, 1864. Captain Speed, Assistant Adjutant-General : SIR: I have the honor to submit the following statement of amount of subsistence stores with which we started from Atlanta: The division started from Atlanta with thirteen days' rations of hard bread, and about twenty days' rations of sugar and coffee, and about fifty days' rations of salt. On hand, when division arrived at Savannah, about twenty-five days' rations of salt. The period from the time of our starting from Atlanta to our arrival at Savannah, should be recorded from November fifteenth to December twentieth, 1861, the latter date being that on which we issued the first rations. Since the twentieth instant we have received and issued about three days' rations. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, Captain and Commissary Subsistence, Volunteers. Thirty-eight thousand pounds of fresh pork, two thousand pounds of bacon, seven hundred head of cattle, seven hundred and seventy-five head of sheep, three thousand pounds of poultry, thirteen thousand pounds of corn-meal, five thousand three hundred pounds of flour, twelve thousand pounds of rice, eleven thousand four hundred and fifty bushels sweet potatoes, five thousand five hundred pounds of sugar, six hundred pounds of salt, one thousand nine hundred and twenty gallons sorghum syrup, five hundred pounds of honey. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, L. G. STUART, Captain and Commissary Subsistence, Volunteers. P. S.-This report does not include the subsistence taken by straggling parties, or by de CAPTAIN LACEY'S REPORTS. OFFICE ASSISTANT QUARTERMASTER, THIRD DIVISION, TWENTIETH CORPS, SAVANNAH, GA., Dec. 26, 1864. CAPTAIN: I have the honor to submit the following report of forage received from various expeditions while at Atlanta, Georgia: COMMANDS. Division Quartermaster, Total,.. CORN, (lbs.) 69,600 3,920 91,580 18,480 29,720 270,861 No animals were captured. : Horses. REMARKS. Animals Capt'd Forage Seized or received as 84 8 86 21 112 Mules. on March. Pounds Corn. 70 90,408 €0,740 38 32 60,000 65 51,000 20,000 Pounds Fodder. 317 348,197 150,000 The animals of this division were abundantly supplied with forage obtained from the country during the march. The average condition of the transportation on leaving Atlanta was considered serviceable, although many of the animals were The amount of captured animals being put in the poor and weak, and unfit for a long campaign. place of the unserviceable ones, rendered my transportation on arriving at Savannah in excel lent condition. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, Estimated at Captain and Assistant Quartermaster Captain JOHN SPEED, REPORTS OF THE ARTILLERY BRIGADE. HEADQUARTERS ARTILLERY BRIGADE, TWENTIETH CORPS, Lieutenant-Colonel H. W. Perkins, Assistant Captain Winegar opened fire on them when about (2500) two thousand five hundred yards distant, to which the gunboats replied, using guns of heavy calibre. Captain Winegar succeeded in disabling the transport-steamer Resolute, compelling her to surrender. He then directed his At-fire to the others, which soon turned back, and although several shots were seen to strike the lower one, they continued up the river and out of sight. With the rest of the corps the batteries entered the city of Atlanta on the (2d) second day of September, and were placed in the vacated works of the enemy on the east and south sides of the town, where they remained until about the twelfth instant, when they were withdrawn and camped together in the north-western part of the city. instant, two gunboats and a steam transport made their appearance above Captain Winegar's position, coming down the river. On the same day, Captain Sloan fired a few shots at a steamer crossing the river below him, and also a few shots into the city. On the sixteenth, one section of battery I, First New-York artillery, crossed the river to Argyle Island, and exchanged a few shots with a section of the enemy's on the Carolina shore. During the night of the nineteenth, this section crossed to the Carolina shore with a brigade of infantry, under command of Colonel Carman. A few rounds were fired at small bodies of the enemy during the twentieth. About three P.M., a gunboat came up from the city, and opened on the right of this force on the Carolina shore. Captain Sloan was directed to open on her from his position, and soon compelled her to withdraw. During the nights of the eighteenth, nineteenth, and twentieth, three field-works were constructed for heavy guns-one near the river, and two in front of the centre of General Geary's line. The last two were on the skirmish-line, and being within so short range of the enemy's musketry and artillery, the work could only be done during the night. Quite a number of casualties occurred among the working parties, the enemy having correct range with their artillery, and using it freely at all times of the night. Works were also made for the light batteries, it being the intention to place them all on the line, and open simultaneously previous to an assault. (4) Four of the (6) six thirty-pounder Parrott guns were placed in the works during the night of the twentieth, and the other two were being put in, when it was found that the enemy had evacuated in our front, much to the chagrin of some of the artillery officers, who desired to test the accuracy and efficiency of these guns. On reaching the city, the twenty-first instant, about ten A.M., the ram Savannah was discovered near the Carolina shore. Captain Sloan's battery, being in advance, took position on the lower end of Bay street, and opened fire on her. Some excellent shots were made, though with guns of that calibre (three-inch) it is not probable much damage was done to an iron-clad, as she was reported to be. About half-past four P.M., Captain De Grass's battery of twenty-pounder Parrott guns took position and opened on her, firing with great accuracy. The thirty-pounder Parrott guns arriv ing about sunset, also opened on her, but being so late in the day, with what effect could not be ascertained. It was intended that if she remained in sight to open again on her early the next morning, but during the night she was blown up. Owing to the little use required of the artillery, there were no casualties in engagements. Captain Gary and two men of battery C, First Ohio artillery, were captured on the twelfth instant on Hutchinson's Island, where they had gone to seek forage. One enlisted man of battery E, Pennsylvania artillery, died of disease on the march near Madison. The admirable policy of having (8) eight horses on a carriage for a long march over bad roads was clearly demonstrated on this campaign. The batteries subsisted mainly on the country during the march, securing principally their own supplies and forage. An exact account of the supplies and forage obtained cannot be given, but as near as can be 1 42-pdr carronade ascertained is as follows: 3 6-pdr 2 6-pdr POSITION. Right Cen. Ga. R.R. do. do. do. do. do. do. On Railroad. Left of Cen. Ga. R.R. 200 yards from the main dirt road, right. do. do. do. On the main dirt road. Unserviceable In an advanced brass Do. except 1 iron Unserviceable 64 Amount obtained from expeditions sent out from Atlanta: (46,000) Forty-six thousand pounds of corn, (3000) three thousand pounds 1 32-pdr smooth-bore fresh meat, (50) fifty bushels sweet potatoes. Amount obtained on the march from Atlanta to Savannah: (130,000) One hundred and thirty thousand pounds of corn, (20,000) twenty thou-142-pdr carronade 1 24-pdr smooth-bore sand pounds of rice-fodder, (10,000) ten thou1 24-pdr sand pounds fresh meat, (500) five hundred 1 32-pdr Blakely pounds of flour, (500) five hundred bushels sweet potatoes. Making in the aggregate: (176,000) One hundred and seventy-six thousand pounds of corn, (20,000) twenty thousand pounds of rice-fodder, (13,000) thirteen thousand pounds of fresh meat, (500) five hundred pounds of flour, (550) five hundred and fifty bushels sweet potatoes. Animals captured: (40) Forty horses, (100) one hundred mules. Also, (100,000) one hundred thousand pounds of cotton destroyed. 1 6-pdr rifled 3 32-pdr smooth-bore 2 10-inch columbiads 1 32-pdr rifled gun 3 6-pdr rifled 4 82-pdr The following amount of ordnance stores were destroyed at Milledgeville by Lieutenant herd, ordnance officer artillery brigade Twenti- 8 32-pdr smooth-bores eth corps: Three thousand five hundred rounds fixed ammunition for six-pounder and twelvepounder guns, twenty thousand rounds infantry ammunition, two boxes Sharp's primers, two thousand pounds of powder. The number of guns found abandoned by the enemy in their works in front of the Twentieth corps line, extending from the Savannah River to the railroad, and from Fort Brown to Fort Jackson and Lawton battery on the Carolina side, beside those on the gunboats and ram destroyed, is (89) eighty-nine, a list of which I send herewith. Beside these, a large number of light and heavy gun-carriages, caissons, battery-wagons, forges. Also a large amount of ammunition was left here by the enemy. Respectfully submitted. J. A. REYNOLDS. 1 32-pdr rifled 5 32-pdr rifled guns 3 6-pdr rifled guns 66 64 66 On right of R.R. do. do. do. On left of R.R. At the Town Arsenal. do. do. do. Water-battery opposite Fort Jack son. do. do. do. do. do. do. Lawton battery on Carolina shore, opposite Fort Jackson. do, do, do. do. do. do. do. do. do. Fort Brown. 3 (three) 42-pounder carronades. 3 (three) 10-inch mortars. 13 (thirteen) 8-inch columbiads. 7 (seven) 10-inch 64 1 (one) 12-pounder smooth-bore. 89 Respectfully submitted. Serviceable, 76 occupied both by the enemy's artillery and infantry. One section of my battery under Lieutenant Scott was immediately thrown forward and put in position, with a range of about one thousand two hundred yards. The troops of the First division, Twentieth corps, were immediately deployed, and scattered the enemy without the use of artillery. On the morning of the eleventh day of December, Major J. A. Reynolds again directed me to move my battery on the Savannah River, with the Twenty-second Wisconsin infantry as support, it being reported that the enemy's gunboats had made their appearance. On the morning of the twelfth day of December, about eight o'clock, the enemy's gunboats made their apTwen-pearance, which afterward proved to be the Macon, armed with four sixty-four-pounder rifleguns and two thirty-two pounder howitzers, also the gunboat Samson, armed with two thirtytwo pounder howitzers, with their tender, (Resolute,) a small steamer. After an engagement of about three quarters of an hour, from two thousand four hundred to two thousand seven hundred yards, they were forced to retire up the river leaving their tender behind disabled, together with her officers and crew, numbering about thirty, our expenditure of ammunition being one hundred and thirty-eight rounds. J. A. REYNOLDS, CAPTAIN WINEGAR'S REPORTS. Lieutenant W. H. Mickle, Acting Assistant On the morning of the fifteenth day of November Atlanta was evacuated by the Federal forces, my battery moving with the troops of the Twentieth corps in the direction of Savannah. When within about twelve miles from Savannah, on the afternoon of December ninth, we encountered two small redoubts on the Augusta dirt-road, On the morning of December sixteenth, one section, under Lieutenant Scott, was thrown over the river on Argyle Island, and immediately intrench |
Get this book in print
0 Reviews Reviews aren't verified, but Google checks for and removes fake content when it's identified Write review |