xt71zc7rng4p https://exploreuk.uky.edu/dips/xt71zc7rng4p/data/mets.xml United States. Army. Massachusetts Infantry Regiment, 36th (1862-1865); BURRAGE, HENRY S.? 1884  books b92e513536th2009 English Rockwell and Churchill : Boston, Ma. Contact the Special Collections Research Center for information regarding rights and use of this collection. United States --History --Civil War, 1861-1865 --Regimental histories History of the Thirty-sixth regiment Massachusetts volunteers. 1862-1865. By a committee of the regiment. text History of the Thirty-sixth regiment Massachusetts volunteers. 1862-1865. By a committee of the regiment. 1884 2009 true xt71zc7rng4p section xt71zc7rng4p 
    
    
    
    
    
    
   HISTORY

of the

THIRTY-SIXTH REGIMENT

MASSACHUSETTS VOLTJNTEEES.

1862-1865.

^ COMMITTEE OF TEE JiEGIMEJTT.

BOSTON:

PRESS  OF  ROCKWELL  AND CHURCHILL.

39  arch street.

1884.

ai3745 
    
    
   ins

6416 
   to

of the

THIRTY-SIXTH MASSACHUSETTS VOLUNTEERS

THIS RECORD OF A COMMON EXPERIENCE is

AFFE C TIONA TEL i IWS CRIB ED.

\ 
    
   Ah, never shall the land forget

How gushed the life-blood of her brave,    

Gushed, warm with hope and courage yet,    Upon the soil they sought to save.

Now all is calm, and fresh, and still;

Alone the chirp of flitting bird, And talk of children on the hill,

And bell of wandering Jcine, are heard.

No solemn host goes trailing by,

The black-mouthed gun and stag'ring wain;

Men start not at the battle-cry; Oh, be it never heard again!

    William Cullen Bryant. 
    
   P BEFACE.

Not long after the close of the war a plan was proposed, by some of the officers of the regiment, for the preparation of a history of the Thirty-sixth Eegiment of Massachusetts Volunteers; but the plan was not carried into execution. At the regimental reunions, in subsequent years, parts of such a history were read by Comrades White, Eanlett, and Hodg-kins, and the desire for a complete history of the regiment, which found expression on these occasions, was so strong that, at the reunion of the regiment at Worcester, in September, 1876, a committee, consisting of Comrades White, Eanlett, Burrage, and Hodgkins, was appointed to procure materials for a history of the regiment.

Some progress was made by the committee in the performance of the work thus assigned to them; but it was not so great as they, or their comrades of the Thirty-sixth, desired. At the reunion, September 2, 1879, the matter was again considered, and it was finally voted, "that Comrades White, Eanlett, Hodgkins, Burrage, and Noyes, be chosen a committee to have charge of the compiling, revising, and printing the history of the regiment, to be ready for delivery at our next reunion; and that the committee have power to procure any help they may need."

vii 
   viii

PREFACE.

Many difficulties were encountered in the progress of the work, and it was found that it would be impossible to prepare, within the limit of time prescribed, such a history as would be worthy of the regiment. The different members of the committee, amid the activities of busy lives, could give to the work only such intervals of leisure as they could find amid their daily tasks. At the annual reunions of 1880,1881, and 1882,   testing the patience of their comrades who had entrusted to them this important task,    they were compelled to report progress only. In September, 1883,    the last reunion,     however, they were able to say that the work was already in press, and would be ready for delivery in the course of a few weeks.

In the table of contents will be found the names of the authors of the different chapters. The work of Comrades White, Eanlett, Olin, and Noyes, entitles them to the hearty thanks of all their companions in arms. Especially, however, are such thanks due to Comrade W. H. Hodgkins, not only for his own contribution to the history, but also for his careful attention to the innumerable details which the preparation of such a work required. Indeed, without his unwearied endeavors in gathering materials, securing the cooperation of others, and attending to the business of publication, the history would not so soon, and might never, have been completed.

To the writer of these lines was assigned the editorial supervision of the work. From the materials placed in his hands he arranged the history of the regiment as it now appears. Two proofs of the entire work have passed under his eye, and in this part of his task he has had the invaluable assistance of Major Hodgkins. The history, of course, is not free from errors of statement; and it will doubtless be 
   PREFACE.

ix

found that there are omissions which the writers of the different chapters, as well as their comrades, will deeply deplore. Yet, with all its imperfections, this volume is believed to be substantially a faithful history of the part which the regiment had in the great conflict for the preservation of the National Union, which was waged during the years 1862-1865; and, as such, it is certainly a history of which all those who participated in it may well be proud.

H. S. B.

Portland, Me., Sept. 26, 1883. 
    
   CONTENTS.

CHAPTER I. Page Organization of the Regiment.   Alonzo A. White .      . 1-10

CHAPTER II.

To the Front.   Alonzo A. White..... 11-18

CHAPTER III.

In Virginia.     Alonzo A. White...... 19-36

CHAPTER IV.

The Kentdckt Campaign.     S. Alonzo Ranlett   .      .      . 37-48

CHAPTER V.

In the Rear of Vicksburg.     S. Alonzo Ranlett      .      . 49-57

CHAPTER VI.

The Movement on Jackson.     S. Alonzo Ranlett      .      . 58-72

CHAPTER VII.

The Return to Kentucky.     S. Alonzo Ranlett       .      . 73-78 CHAPTER VIII.

In East Tennessee.     S. Alonzo Ranlett     .... 79-87

CHAPTER IX.

The Retreat from Lenoir's and the Battle of Campbell's Station.     Henry S. Bcrbage      .... 88-100 
   xii CONTENTS.

CHAPTER X. Paoe

The Siege of Knoxville.    Henry S. Bdrrage   .      .      . 101-122

CHAPTER XI.

Subsequent Operations in East Tennessee.    Henry S. Bur-

rage    .     .......... 128-184

CHAPTER XII.

Reorganization.   William H. Hodgkins     .... 135-145 CHAPTER XIII.

In the Wilderness.     William H. Hodgkins      .      .      . 146-159 CHAPTER XIV.

At Sfottstlvania.    William H. Hodgkins .... 160-177

CHAPTER XV.

On the North Anna and the Pamunkey.   William H.

Hodgkins.......... 178-187

CHAPTER XVI.

At Cold Harbor.     William H. Hodgkins   .... 188-200 CHAPTER XVII.

The Movement on Petersburg.     William H. Hodgkins   . 201-215

CHAPTER XVIII.

In the Trenches.     William H. Hodgkins   .... 216-222

CHAPTER XIX.

Diary of the Siege.   William H. Hodgkins     .      .      . 223-232 CHAPTER XX.

The Mine Affair.     William H. Hodgkins .... 233-241 CHAPTER XXI.

The Siege continued.   William H. Hodgkins    .     .     . 242-252 
   CONTENTS. xiii

CHAPTER XXII. Page In the Pines.   Edmund W. Noyes..... 253-257

CHAPTER XXIII. The Action at Pegram Farm.   Edmund W. Notes   .      . 258-2G5

CHAPTER XXIV. Again in the Trenches.     Edmund W. Noyes      .      .      . 266-275

CHAPTER XXV.

In Winter Quarters.   William H. Hodgkins    .      .      . 276-281

CHAPTER XXVI. The Final Assault at Petersburg.     William M. Olin    . 282-291

CHAPTER XXVII.     Closing Scenes.     William H. Hodgkins     .... 292-311

CHAPTER XXVIII. Conclusion.   William H. Hodgkins.....312-315

Roster and Record of the Thirty-Sixth Regiment op Massachusetts Volunteers, Compiled and Corrected by William H. Hodgkins....... 316

Recapitulation.......... 885

Names op Members op the Regiment who died in Rebel

'Prisons.......    386

Narrative op Israel H. Smith...... 387

Index............ 391 
    
   THIRTY-SIXTH REGIMENT,

MASSACHUSETTS VOLUNTEERS.

CHAPTEE I.

organization of the regiment.

Early in July, 1862, when the war of the rebellion had been in progress a little more than a year, President Lincoln issued an order for three hundred thousand volunteers, to serve three years, or during the war. It was a time of sore discouragement and general depression throughout the loyal States. Our army in Virginia, under General McClellan, during a seven days' fight near the Chickahominy, had met with such reverses that it had been compelled to " make a change of base," and fall back to the James river, near Harrison's Landing. Nobly, however, and cheerfully, did the people of the North respond to the President's call for reinforcements.   On every hand was heard the chorus :    

"We're coming, Father Abraham, three hundred thousand more."

Massachusetts was not behind her sister States in raising her quota, which was fifteen thousand men. In a general order, dated July 7, 1862, Governor Andrew announced the call which had been made upon him by the President, stated the number of men which every city and town would be required to furnish, and closed with these words :   "The gov- 
   2

THIRTY-SIXTH REGIMENT.

July,

ernment demands new regiments, and our brave men who have so nobly upheld the honor of Massachusetts call loudly from the battle-fields of the South to their brethren at home to come forward at once and fill their decimated ranks, and take the places of the brave men who have fallen and suffered in the cause of the Union and of American Constitutional Liberty." Like the blast of a trumpet this order stirred the hearts of the people in all parts of the state, and cities and towns vied with each other, in patriotic endeavors to hurry forward the work of enlistment.

A subsequent order, dated July 16, 1862, containing instructions relative to the new recruitment, designated Camp John E. Wool, at the city of Worcester, as the general rendezvous for the counties of Berkshire, Franklin, Hampden, Hampshire, and Worcester. Colonel George H. Ward, of the Fifteenth Massachusetts Volunteers, who had lost a leg at the battle of Ball's Bluff, and was now at home on account of disability, was placed in command of the camp.

The order of July 7th contained this announcement: " The new regiments now partly formed, and to be formed, are the Thirty-second, Thirty-third, Thirty-fourth, Thirty-fifth, Thirty-sixth, and Thirty-seventh. To complete these regiments to the maximum standard, the Thirty-second regiment requires 300 men; the Thhty-third, 650 men; the Thirty-fourth, 800 men; and the Thirty-fifth, 850 men." It was accordingly ordered that recruiting for the Thirty-sixth and Thirty-seventh regiments should not commence until the four first named were filled. The order, however, was not strictly observed.

The first detachment for the Thirty-sixth entered Camp Wool August 1st, and was a part of the quota of the town of Fitchburg. This detachment consisted of sixty-four men, under the command of Captain T. L. Barker. Recruits for the regiment had been received at Camp Wool previous to August 1st; but this was the first organized company in camp, and, in the organization of the regiment, it was assigned to the right of

 
   1862.

ORGANIZATION OF THE REGIMENT.

the line, and known as Company A. As early as August 6th this company had its minimum number of recruits; and, in a few days, others, from Fitchburg, Leominster, and adjacent towns, raised the number to the maximum.

Company B, Captain John B. Norton, was recruited in Charlestown during the month of July. It was at first intended that this company should be attached to the Thirty-fourth Regiment as a flank company, and the officers at first received commissions in that regiment; but the requisite authority for such a company could not be obtained at the War Department, and the company was transferred to the Thirty-sixth, and the officers re-commissioned. For a time, very naturally, it was a disappointment to the members of this company that they could not remain in the Thirty-fourth ; but of the survivors there is, doubtless, not one who is not satisfied that the record of the company was made with the Thirty-sixth.

Recruiting for Company C was commenced in the city of Worcester, August 8th, and on the 12th the company was full. Eight days after, under the command of Captain Arthur A. Goodell, the company entered Camp Wool. No other company in the regiment was raised in so brief a space of time.

Company D was recruited principally in the towns of Templeton and Winchendon. The first detachment entered Camp Wool, August 4, under the command of Captain Amos Buffum, of Baldwinville, late second lieutenant in the Twenty-fifth Massachusetts Volunteers. In a few days the ranks of this company were full.

The men of Company E were recruited from the towns of Palmer, Monson, and the western towns of Worcester County. The first detachment entered Camp Wool, August 10th, under the command of First Lieutenant R. M. Cross. Captain S. C. Warriner, who had been discharged from the Tenth Massachusetts Volunteers, in order to accept a captain's commission in the Thirty-sixth, arrived in camp about the

I 
   4

THIRTY-SIXTH REGIMENT.

August,

20th of Ausrast, and assumed command of the company, and completed its organization.

Company F was formed principally of recruits from Milford and vicinity, with a detachment from Sutton. The first detachment arrived at Camp Wool August 10th, under the command of Second Lieutenant A. S. Tuttle. He remained in command of the company until September 17, when Captain William F. Draper, promoted from first lieutenant in the Twenty-fifth Massachusetts Volunteers, joined the regiment then in the field, and assumed command of the company.

Company G was organized from unassigned recruits, representing the eastern towns of Worcester County. S. Henry Bailey, of Northboro', was commissioned captain of the company August 22d.

Company H was formed by adding to the quotas of Gardner and Orange the unassigned recruits then in camp; and Christopher Sawyer, of Templeton, who had entered Camp Wool as first sergeant of Company D, was commissioned captain of this company August 22d.

Company I was recruited in Berlin, Marlboro', Upton, Uxbridge, and adjoining towns, and entered Camp Wool in the early part of August, under the command of Captain Christopher Hastings, of Berlin. The company was filled to the maximum a few days after entering camp. Indeed, Captain Hastings recruited men enough nearly to fill two companies.

Company K, like G and H, was formed of unassigned recruits from the various towns whose quotas reported at Camp Wool. James B. Smith, late first lieutenant in the Twenty-fifth Massachusetts Volunteers, was commissioned captain of the company.

On the 27th of August these ten companies, constituting the Thirty-sixth Massachusetts Volunteers, having completed their organization, were mustered into the United States service, for three years, unless sooner discharged. 
   1862.

ORGANIZATION OF THE REGIMENT.

5

The field, staff, and line officers were not mustered into the service until September 2d, the day the regiment left Camp Wool for the scat of war. Indeed, for the most part, the field officers were not appointed until after the mustering in of the regiment.

Lieutenant-Colonel John W. Kimball, of Fitchburg, then serving in the Fifteenth Regiment,     a true and accomplished officer,     was commissioned colonel of the Thirty-sixth, August 11th, and application was made by Governor Andrew for his discharge from the Fifteenth, in order to accept promotion. But, in the critical state of affairs at that time, it was not deemed advisable by the authorities at Washington to grant the governor's request. Consequently, on the 22d of August, Major Henry Bowman, of the Thirty-fourth regiment, then at Camp Casey, on Arlington Heights, was promoted to the colonelcy of the Thirty-sixth ; and, receiving his discharge from the Thirty-fourth, he at once joined his command at Camp Wool.

Captain John B. Norton, of Charlestown, who entered Camp Wool as captain of Company B, was commissioned lieutenant-colonel, August 28th, and on the same day, James H. Barker, of Milford, was commissioned major.

James P. Prince, of Lynn, was commissioned surgeon, with Warren Tyler, of North Brookfield, and Albert H. Bryant, of Natick, as assistant-surgeons. Rev. Charles T. Canfield, of Worcester, was commissioned chaplain, and F. B. Rice, also of Worcester, as first lieutenant and quartermaster. An adjutant was not appointed until a later date.

The regiment was now nearly ready for the field. Most of the men had been burned into camp, with the promise of a few days' furlough before leaving the State. Many of them had left their business affairs unsettled and their families unprovided for. But all applications for furlough were denied by the United States officer at Boston, who was in charge of mustered regiments. Colonel Ward endeavored to secure a furlough for the men ; but his efforts proved unavail- 
   6

THIRTY-SIXTH REGIMENT.

August,

ing. Colonel Bowman, on joining the regiment, and learning the condition of affairs, renewed these efforts, stating his unwillingness to leave the State until the pledge which had been given to the men had, in a measure at least, been redeemed.

On Saturday, August 30th, Colonel Bowman received orders to have the Thirty-sixth Regiment ready to leave for "Washington as early as September 2d. At the same time he was given permission to grant to his men furloughs for twenty-four hours, one-half of the regiment only to be absent from camp at the same time. This order was not received by Colonel Bowman until late Saturday afternoon. Accordingly, furloughs were granted first of all to those men whose homes were at the greatest distance from the camp. These were to return Monday morning, when the rest of the men would receive their furloughs. This second half of the regiment, by some mysterious process, became very small Saturday evening and on Sunday. The sentinels paced their beats, but in some instances so absorbed in their duties as seemingly to have lost the sense both of sight and hearing.

A sergeant, with a comrade, making the rounds of his guard late on one of these nights, found a faithful son of Erin walking his beat with soldier-like precision. As they approached he promptly challenged : " Who goes there ?" and was as quickly answered, "Friend, with the countersign." As they approached to give the countersign, the sergeant asked, in confiding tones, " Could any one get out here ? " The sentinel, as confidingly, asked, " Would ye bring a little whiskey ? Be jabbers a pint of whiskey might make a man both blind and dafe!" He then turned his back, and marched away.

But while it was a great disappointment to the men to lose the few days' furlough which had been promised to them, and especially to those who had important business interests that demanded attention, leading in some cases to a seeming disregard of discipline, yet all of the companies were in camp 
   1862. ORGANIZATION OF THE REGIMENT.

7

on Tuesday morning. At an early hour on that day the company commanders drew arms (Enfield rifles) and equipments for their men, and these were at once distributed among them. All was bustle and confusion throughout the camp. Few of the men had had any experience as soldiers, and the selection and adjustment of their arms and equipments, as well as the brief space of time allotted for these and other preparations for moving, made it look still more difficult and annoying.

Late in the forenoon the regimental line was formed, and a beautiful national flag was presented to the regiment by Honorable P. Emory Aldrich, Mayor of Worcester. In presenting the flag the Mayor said :    

"Colonel Bowman,     Your friends, and the friends of your command in this city, have procured this beautiful banner, and requested me to present it to you as the worthy commander of the Thirty-sixth Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteers for the war. It will be seen that its azure fold is studded with the full constellation of stars, representing the undivided Union, and that not one of the original stripes is omitted or erased, showing that, however much your friends may deplore the present unhappy condition of our distracted and bleeding country, they still firmly believe that, when the clouds of war that now lower upon us shall have passed away, these stars will again shine as from a clear and cloudless sky with none of their ancient lustre lost or obscured. And permit me to say that this flag, still unchanged and radiant, signifies, in the truest and highest sense, the kind of service expected of you and this noble regiment you are about to lead from this comparatively peaceful camp of preparation to the stern and heroic duties of the field; that you are to aid, by force of arms, in restoring the Union, which traitors have temporarily impaired, and in reestablishing the supremacy of the constitution and laws over every portion of territory lying within the acknowledged boundaries of the Union, from the great 
   8

THIRTY-SIXTH REGIMENT.

August,

lakes to the gulf, and from the Atlantic to the Pacific oceans, so that, when you and your brave comrades return, as we trust you will, with this flag, soiled and rent it may be by the smoke and leaden hail of battle,1 you shall bring it back, not as the sign of a shattered constitution, and dissevered Union, but as the proud. emblem of a reunited and indivisible republic, and then it shall continue to be known and honored throughout the civilized world, and everywhere become a free and safe passport to all men of every race who have the right to claim protection beneath its ample folds.

"In delivering this proud ensign of our nationality into your hands, your friends know they are entrusting it to one who is not only familiar with the ordinary duties of the soldier, but to one who has been tried and not found wanting amidst the perils and carnage of the battle-field, and who has suffered what is more intolerable to every true soldier than any dangers of field or camp, and that is captivity and confinement for weary months in the loathsome prisons of the enemy; and now, after protracted and vexatious delays, you have but recently been relieved from your parole, so that you can, without dishonor, enter again the military service of your country; and, having availed yourself of the earliest opportunity to return to avenge your own and your country's wrongs, may a propitious Providence and all good influences attend you, and protect you, and your command in every hour of trial and danger.

"Yours is the fourth regiment which has been organized within this enclosure, which may now very properly be called our Campus Martins, and the fifth that has gone out from our city within the last twelve months. The Fifteenth, beginning its brilliant career at Ball's Bluff,   where, indeed, it encountered a repulse for which neither its officers nor men were responsible,     has with signal gallantry fought its way over

1 " Soiled and rent," its staff shattered, this flag-, which was carried by the regiment throughout its entire period of service, is now preserved in the State House, in Boston, with the flags of the Massachusetts regiments. > 
   1862.

ORGANIZATION OF THE REGIMENT.

9

many a bloody field to a high position on the roll of fame. And the Twenty-first and Twenty-fifth, being with each other in the performance of patriotic duty, and in the memorable race for military renown, have made Roanoke and Newberne, and other fields, wherein they have exhibited the highest qualities of the soldier, ever memorable both to friend and foe. And it is not altogether improbable that the Thirty-fourth, which took up its line of march but a few days since from this camp, under the accomplished Wells,1 may have already found itself involved in the smoke of its first battle, and taking its first lesson in the art of war. And scarcely will your regiment have left our presence, before another will encamp within the limits of the city. And we bid you tell our brethren in the field that thus shall regiment after regiment, in endless succession, be sent to their aid until this accursed rebellion is utterly extinguished.

" The lateness of the hour, the necessity of your moving at once, admonish me that I should omit a portion of what I had proposed to say on this occasion; but this is of little account, and I would not delay your march for a single moment to listen to any poor words of mine. Words in this hour are simply air. Action     instant, resistless, heroic action     is the only thing that can avail us in this perilous crisis. And I can only add that, while you and these brave men who are to follow you, will do your full duty in upholding and restoring the authority of the constitution and its laws, you can never fail in loyalty, and the great idea of liberty which now inspires the hearts and nerves the hands of all the loyal men of the land; and that, when you have marched through rebel districts, none but loyal and free men shall be found. And now accept this standard, proffered by friendly hands, and let it be borne in your regiment as the emblem of liberty and law. And should you or any of those, your comrades in arms, fall in its defence, your memories shall be held in grateful remem-

1 Colonel Wells was killed near Cedar Creek, Va., Oct. 13, 1864. 
   10

THIRTY-SIXTH REGIMENT.

August,

brance, and history will preserve their names among those of heroes and martyrs who have died to defend or consecrate a great and noble cause. Remember that the life is longest which best answers life's great end, and that to die upon the battle-field in defence of the liberties of mankind is the most cherished road to immortality."

The band played the " Star-Spangled Banner," and Colonel Bowman responded in patriotic terms."

The several companies of the regiment then marched to Agricultural Hall,     a large building on the camp ground,     where a bountiful collation had been provided by the friends of the regiment. Then followed the filling of haversacks, the packing of knapsacks, and all were soon in readiness for the order to move. 
   1862.

TO THE FRONT.

11

CHAPTER II.

to the front.

There was no delay. At noon, Tuesday, September 2d, the assembly was sounded, the line was formed, and the Thirty-sixth, with a large number of the friends of the regiment, who had come to say a long and perhaps a last farewell, left Camp Wool amid the cheers of a great throng of people assembled along the line of march to witness the departure of the regiment, and moved up Highland street, through Main street, to the Common. There cars were in waiting. These were soon filled, the horses and baggage were taken aboard, the last'farewells were spoken, and, about two o'clock, followed by the loud cheers of the multitude, and the waving of adieus, the long train drew out of the station, and hurried toward Boston. On the arrival of the regiment in Boston the line was again formed, and the Thirty-sixth, receiving a brilliant ovation from the citizens, marched through Washington street, down State street to Battery wharf, where the steamer "Merrimac," a new and large ocean steamer, was in readiness to receive us. One-half of the steamer had been assigned to the Twentieth Maine, Colonel Adelbert Ames, and his regiment was already on board, having arrived from Portland earlier in the day. In the crowded condition of the steamer there was, necessarily, some delay in getting the companies into the places to which they were assigned, and also in transferring the horses and baggage ; and it was not until late in the evening that the embarkation was accomplished ; then the steamer dropped out into the stream. Early the next morning, September 3d, the " Merrimac " 
   12

TEIRTY-S1XTE REGIMENT. September;

left her anchorage and steamed down the harbor into the

bay. .

We soon learned that our destination was Alexandria, Va. The voyage throughout was a pleasant one, and the men of the two regiments mingled in friendly companionship. On the second"day out, on the quarter-deck, some of the men of Company B gave an exhibition, consisting of singing, declamations, etc., which was greatly enjoyed by a large and enthusiastic audience. Friday noon we reached the capes of the Chesapeake, had a glimpse of Fortress Monroe, and, moving up the bay, many of us looked upon the " sacred soil" for the first time; the steamer entered the Potomac river about ten o'clock in the evening, and shortly after midnight came to anchor. At five o'clock Saturday morning we again were under way, and had a most delightful sail up the Potomac, with both shores in full view. At length we passed Mt. Vernon, once the home and now the grave of Washington, and soon after, about noon, we were at the wharf in Alexandria.

Here Ave learned that the Thirty-fourth Massachusetts, which left Worcester August 15th, was doing guard duty and building fortifications near Alexandria. The Twentieth Maine was landed, but we remained on the steamer during the night. The next morning, Sunday, September 7th, we were transferred to the steamer " City of Norwich," in which we proceeded up the river to Washington, and landed not far from the Navy Yard.

Lee, in the last days of August, had defeated Pope within sound of the capitol, and was nowr pushing his victorious columns northward with the purpose of carrying the war into the Union States. The forces under General McClellan, who was again in command of the army, were also moving northward, but through Maryland, in order to intercept Lee's columns and give him battle. We encamped near the capitol until September 9th, when, having been assigned to General Burnside's command, the Ninth Corps, we left Washington, 
   1862.

TO THE FRONT.

13

and marched to Leesboro'. But Burnside was no longer there, and several days were lost in obtaining further orders. September 12th the regiment left Leesboro' at an early hour, and marched about twelve miles, to Brookville, near which we went into camp on a beautiful grassy slope belonging to the estate of Plon. John Hall, formerly of the United States Post-Office Department. Near us was the camp of the First Bhode Island Cavalry.

On Sunday, September 14th, we held our first religious service in the field, and the chaplain preached. On that day the distant sound of artillery was heard, and we knew that, somewhere beyond us, the two armies had again met. It was the day of the battle of South Mountain, in which General Burnside, it will be remembered, gained an important battle, carrying the mountain pass which Lee had directed his forces to hold " at every hazard."

On Monday, September 15th, Colonel Bowman received from a mounted orderly a note written in pencil, which purported to be an order from General McClellan, signed " R. B. Marcy, Chief of Staff," directing all troops on the road to hurry forward as rapidly as possible. Colonel Bowman doubted the genuineness of this hasty scrawl, and the more so on account of the appearance of suspicious persons about the camp the night before. Not knowing the result of the battle of the previous day, and afraid that an attempt might be made to capture his regiment in its isolated position, he decided not to move his command until he received further instructions or had better information concerning the state of affairs at the front. THis delay undoubtedly prevented our participation in the battle of Antietam, which was fought September 17th. On that day, having learned that the road was open, we left Brookville, and, moving forward rapidly, we encamped at night about three miles beyond the village of Damascus. On the following day we marched through Unity, Monrovia, Newmarket, and Frederick, and encamped about a mile beyond the latter place.   During the day, while 
   14

THIRTY-SIXTH REGIMENT. September,

on the march, we passed the men of Colonel Miles' command at Harper's Ferry, who, on the 15th, were surrendered to Stonewall Jackson and paroled,     in all, five or six regiments, containing about five thousand men. They were now on their way to Annapolis. It was not a pleasant sight to see so many of our soldiers going to the rear; but they cheered us with reports of the battle on the 17th, in which our army was victorious.

September 19th we resumed the march about ten o'clock in the forenoon, crossed the Catoctin mountains to Middle-town, enjoying the magnificent prospect at the summit, and encamped beyond the town at the place where, on the Sunday before, General McClellan and General Burnside had their head-quarters during the battle of South Mountain.

On the following day we crossed South Mountain. Here and there by the roadside were newly-made graves,     in one place we counted twenty-six,     and the tree