42nd New York Memorial at Gettysburg (Photo:Piotrus)

First Corps Hospital at Gettysburg, PA., July 4, 1863

My Dear O’Mahony,

I am sitting by Denis’ bedside. He has had his leg amputated above the ancle; otherwise, he is in excellent health and spirits, and no further danger is to be apprehended. For myself, I am alright, which, all things considered, I think rather strange. Of the 42d, O’Shea (2) and Fitzharris (3) are seriously hurt. Capt. Rorty (4) is dead. The only thing of him that remains is a letter upon the business of our Brotherhood from the Engineer Corps, which has been handed to me by our Colonel. I have to inform you that Rorty’s death is as severe a loss as Ireland has had for a long time. He surpassed everything in the Army of the Potomac on the 3d inst. He commanded his battery in the most extraordinary brilliant manner. While under a converging fire of one hundred guns from the enemy, and when every other gun was abandoned or disabled, one gun was served unflinchingly by his own hands. In fine, no words can express what he deserves. I do not speak from hearsay. My regiment happened to be the infantry support of his battery, and was placed twenty paces from it, in the rear.

Col. Huston (5), of the 82d (2d N.Y.S.M.), another Irishman of the true stamp, has like wise been killed. But, as I have said, it is impossible to enumerate all, having but a few moments to spare. I would also wish to tell you my views of the battle and how it went generally. Some other chance may soon offer.

Ever fraternally yours,

P.J. Downing.

John O’Mahony, Head Centre of the Fenian movement in the United States (Image via Wikipedia)

These were just the first Fenians known to have died during the battle- over the coming days it would become clear that many more had been lost. This was in part a symptom of the degree to which many Irish units such as the Irish Brigade and 69th Pennsylvania had been engaged, and the ferocity of the fighting in general. Downing was himself a Fenian recruiter; the fact that he chose to write to the head of the Brotherhood so soon after the fighting is an indication of how passionately he believed in that cause.

(1) Patrick J. Downing, 42nd New York. Rose to rank of Major before muster out with regiment on 13th July 1864. (See Kane 2002: 121)

(2) Captain William O’Shea of Bantry, Co. Cork, 42nd New York. Killed in Action at Spotsylvania, 12th May 1864. (See Kane 2002: 136)

(3) Second Lieutenant Morris Fitzharris, 42nd New York. Mustered out with regiment on 13th July 1864. (See Kane 2002: 121)

(4) Captain James McKay Rorty of Donegal Town, Co. Donegal, Commanding Battery B, First New York Light Artillery. Recording Secretary, Potomac Circle of the Fenian Brotherhood. (See Kane 2002:136-7)

(5) James Francis Xavier Huston, born in Ireland. Received a fatal gunshot wound to the head and leg on 2nd July. (See Hunt 2002: 153)

References

Hunt, Roger D. 2003. Colonels in Blue: Union Army Colonels of the Civil War, New York

Kane, Michael H. 2002. ‘American Soldiers in Ireland, 1865-67′ in The Irish Sword: The Journal of the Military History Society of Ireland, Vol. 23, No. 91, pp. 103-140

New York Irish-American 7th July 1863: Death of Capt. McK. Rorty- Letter from Capt. Downing 42d N.Y.V. (Tammany Regt)

New York A.G. 1902. Annual Report of the Adjutant-General of the State of New York for the Year 1901

Colonel Michael Kerwin, 13th Pennsylvania Cavalry, in later life

In April 1861 Michael Kerwin enlisted as a private in the largely Irish 24th Pennsylvania Regiment, where he quickly rose to First Sergeant in Company H. The three-month regiment formed part of Tyrone native General Robert Patterson’s force which advanced into Virginia early in the war. The forward Union movement presented Kerwin with a first opportunity to demonstrate his mettle. He volunteered to precede the army across the Potomac River, and infiltrate the Rebel lines to ascertain the force that lay ahead. Disguising himself, the Irishman successfully passed through Confederate camps around Martinsburg, returning to his own lines with an estimate of enemy numbers and dispositions. Kerwin would not remain in the ranks for long. (2)

Following the expiration of his service with the 24th Pennsylvania, Kerwin began his long association with the cavalry arm. He became the Captain of Company B, 13th Pennsylvania Cavalry dating from 27th March 1862. Again promotion came quickly for him, and he became the unit’s Major on 20th October of the same year. Perhaps the regiments most notable action took place on 12th October 1863 at White Sulphur Springs, Virginia, when the 13th was part of a picket force that attempted to hold off a large enemy advance. Severely outnumbered, the horsemen kept fighting against the odds for some 6 hours, during which time they sustained significant losses. (3)

Michael Kerwin became the Colonel of the 13th Pennsylvania Cavalry dating from 22nd April 1864. The regiment formed part of General Sheridan’s command in the Army of the Potomac during the Overland Campaign. The Wexford native was sporadically called on to take acting command of the 2nd Brigade, 2nd Division of the Cavalry Corps, holding the post for a number of days in August, October and November 1864 and February 1865. In the latter month his command was pulled from in front of Petersburg and dispatched to Wilmington, North Carolina, in order to meet up with General Sherman’s army which was then marching through Georgia. They rendezvoused with Sherman’s troops at Fayetteville, where Kerwin took command of the 3rd Brigade, 3rd Division of Kilpatrick’s cavalry. He remained in charge at Fayetteville until the close of the conflict, when he returned to Philadelphia and was mustered out on 14th July 1865. (4)

Michael Kerwin’s martial career did not end with the close of the Civil War. He was a noted Fenian, and following his discharge he immediately travelled to Ireland, commissioned by John O’Mahony to James Stephens who was the Chief Organiser of the Irish Republican Brotherhood. Intending to assist in an armed struggle to gain Irish independence, Kerwin was arrested and detained in prison by the British for a number of months before being returned to the United States, where he remained active in the Irish movement. After the war he married the widow of another Fenian and American Civil War veteran, Colonel Denis Burke of the 88th New York Infantry, Irish Brigade. (5)

The Wexford native worked in a number of varied posts following his return to the United States. Moving from Philadelphia to New York in 1870, he became Collector of Internal Revenue for the Second District of the city, and later served as the Police Commissioner. He subsequently acted as the Pension Agent for New York, a position he took over from Franz Siegel. He established the Irish nationalist paper the New York Tablet which he owned with David Power Conyngham, historian of the Irish Brigade. Michael Kerwin lived until the age of 74, passing away on 20th June 1912 at his home at 487 West 145th Street, New York. The New York Times listed his cause of death as ‘senile infirmities’. He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia in Section 3, Lot 2169. (6)

(1) Bates 1875: 764, Hunt 2007, 95; (2) Bates 1875: 765; (3) Bates 1875: 765, Hunt 2007, 95; (4) Hunt 2007, 95; Bates 1875: 766; (5) Denieffe 1906: 283, Hunt 2007, 95; (6) New York Times Obituary, Hunt 2007: 95, Denieffe 1906: 283, Kohl 1994: xxiii-xxiv;

References & Further Reading

Bates, Samuel P. 1875. Martial Deeds of Pennsylvania

Conyngham, David Power (edited by Lawrence Kohl) 1994. The Irish Brigade and its Campaigns

Denieffe, Joseph 1906. A Personal Narrative of the Irish Revolutionary Brotherhood

Hand, Harold 2000. One Good Regiment: The Thirteenth Pennsylvania Cavalry (117th Pennsylvania Volunteer Regiment) 1861-1865

Hunt, Roger D. 2007. Colonels in Blue: The Mid-Atlantic States

New York Times 21st June 1912: Gen. Michael Kerwin Dead

The Donegal man had been captured on 12th October 1863 in Jefferson, Virginia, during the action that would earn him the Medal of Honor. In December 1863 he found himself in the Pemberton prison in Richmond, Virginia. Located opposite the notorious Libby prison in the Confederate capital, the Pemberton building was a large former tobacco warehouse that was thirty feet wide and ninety feet deep, with three floors. During Dougherty’s time there it accommodated some 700 Federal prisoners.  The Irishman recorded the harsh conditions of life as a prisoner of war, although by his own admission ‘no one can form an idea of what suffering there is here, and no pen can describe the hardships we have to endure.’ (1)

Michael Dougherty kept a prison diary during his confinement to pass the time. On 1st December 1863 he recorded that his room contained 300 men, kept in a space of 30 by 90 feet, lying all over the floor. They were treated ‘more like hogs then men’ and they were packed so tightly that it was impossible to move around. To pass the time the half-naked soldiers spent much of the day catching lice, with mealtime offering the only distraction. The rations they received were often paltry- on the 9th December the men received only two biscuits and four ounces of pork each. As conditions worsened a large proportion of the prisoners began falling ill, and were removed to hospital. The 12th December was Dougherty’s two month anniversary as a prisoner, and he already estimated his weight loss at 25 pounds. Those who became sick could not lift themselves from the floor in the cramped conditions, and risked the additional injury of being trampled by other inmates. (2)

Michael Dougherty, 13th Pennsylvania Cavalry, in later life

On the 20th December the Confederate Quartermaster called the prisoners together, telling the men that boxes had arrived for some of them. A month previously, on 23rd November, the 19 year old Donegal man had written to his mother in Bristol, Pennsylvania, asking her to send him a Christmas present with some ‘shirts and notions’ in it. Now was the time Michael would find out if his mother had been successful. All the men remained silent and expectant as the names of those lucky few who were to receive boxes was read out. At last, Michael’s name was called; the Irishman recorded in his diary: ‘Oh! how glad I was when I heard that name!’ (3)

Delighted, the young man went to receive his parcel, which was being checked by the guards. One of the Confederates decided to keep a book for himself, ‘The Collegians of Ireland’ but Dougherty said nothing, as that would guarantee that all of the contents would be confiscated. Afterwards, the unfortunate men who had not received any packages crowded around to see what treats the Irishman had received. His mother had sent him a large sweet cake, tea, coffee and sugar, salt, pepper, ham, beef tongues, writing paper and envelopes, two pairs of drawers and shirts and some stockings. According to the cavalryman this Christmas present was ‘more appreciated than any I ever received.’ (4)

Some of the men’s packages were stolen that night, but luckily Michael’s remained safe. Prisoners from his company took turns in keeping watch on his prized possession. On the 21st December he shared some of his tea with the sick men around him, while wishing he had enough for everyone to enjoy. Luxury came at a price, however. In his emaciated state Michael ate too much, and by the 23rd December he had become sick as a result. That night, Webb and Gallagher, fellow prisoners from the 13th Pennsylvania, kept watch on Michael’s box. On Christmas Eve the Donegal man was sufficiently well recovered to stand sentry over it himself, accompanied by another comrade named Culberson. Starving prisoners attempting to steal any food they could get their hands on made such precautions necessary. (5)

Eventually Christmas Day arrived. Michael Dougherty recorded the day in his diary:

Christmas Day, 1863, and still in the Confederacy. Thinking of our friends at home, enjoying themselves, and condition we are in. The most barbarous country would hardly treat a prisoner thus. One of my regiment died last night. It was a relief to a great deal of suffering. There was a hole under his arm large enough to put your fist in. Rations two biscuits, half a loaf of corn dodger and two spoonfuls of molasses, for our Christmas present, but I will attend to my box to-day. The Richmond papers state that the stench from the prison is endangering the health and the lives of all in the City, and it would be well to remove those “Lincoln hirelings” to where scant fare and cold weather would reduce them in number; consequently we will be removed to Bell Isle. (6)

Michael Dougherty and his comrades were removed to Belle Isle prison, and would later be taken to the most notorious camp operated during the American Civil War- Andersonville. The Irishman was so ill in Christmas 1864 that he could not record his thoughts in his diary, as he was close to death and confined to the camp hospital. Miraculously he survived, and the hardy trooper would get the opportunity to spend Christmas 1865 with his family and loved ones in Pennsylvania. Unfortunately, many of his comrades who crowded around his parcel in Richmond that December night in 1863 were not so fortunate; for many, that miserable winter in Pemberton was to be their last.

(1) Dougherty 1908: 9, 14; (2) Dougherty 1908: 14-17; (3) Dougherty 1908: 11, 18-19; (4) Dougherty 1908:18-19; (5) Dougherty 1908: 19; (6) Dougherty 1908: 20;

References

Dougherty, Michael (edited by James T. Navary) 2009. The Prison Diary of Michael Dougherty: Union Survivor of Two Years Confinement in Confederate Prisons (1st Edition 1908)

The Clump of Trees at Gettysburg with the 69th Pennsylvania Monument at the Stone Wall in front (Brief History of the 69th)

24 years previously such a scene would have been unimaginable to the men of both sides. The 69th Pennsylvania and their comrades had arrived on the field at Gettysburg on the evening of the first days fighting, 1st July. Shortly after sunrise on the morning of the 2nd the 258 men of the regiment took position in the centre of the Union line on Cemetery Ridge. They were placed ‘a little below the crest on the decline facing the enemy and behind a low stone wall, the right resting within about thirty paces of what is now designated as the “Bloody Angle,” the left extending about the same distance below, or south of a clump of trees of umbrella shape’. This clump of trees was soon to become perhaps the most famous natural landmark in the Civil War, as it became the objective point for ‘Pickett’s Charge’. That advance was a still a day away, however. The Irishmen’s position was attacked on the evening of 2nd July, when a Rebel brigade was driven back with great loss by the combined weight of infantry and artillery fire, though not without casualties among the Irishmen. (2)

Survivors of the 69th Pennsylvania at their old position in Gettysburg in 1887 (Brief History of the 69th)

Aside from picket firing, all was relatively quiet on the 69th’s front on the morning of 3rd July. Then, around 1pm, a single Confederate artillery piece discharged across the battlefield. Suddenly all hell broke loose as volley after volley of Rebel artillery arced between the lines, with over 150 guns concentrated on Cemetery Ridge. The Irishmen lay flat on the ground behind their stone wall to escape the blasts. The air filled with the ‘whirring, shrieking, hissing sounds of  the solid shot and the bursting shell… striking the ground in front and ricochetting over us, to be imbedded in some object to the rear; others strike the wall, scattering the stones around.’ After over an hour the barrage finally lifted, but now the men faced a new threat. Out in front, somewhere between 12-15,000 Confederates in divisions under the command of James Pettigrew, George Pickett and Isaac Trimble began their purposeful advance towards Union lines and the 69th Pennsylvania’s position. (3)

Confederate Veterans of Pickett’s Charge shake hands across the Stone Wall with Veterans of the 69th in 1887 (Brief History of the 69th)

The Rebels took heavy artillery fire as they advanced in two lines towards their objective. Colonel Dennis O’Kane was in command of the 69th that day, and he ordered his men to hold their fire until they could see the whites of their enemies eyes. He reminded them that they were fighting on Pennsylvania soil, telling the men ‘let your work this day be for victory or to the death’. By now the Confederates had crossed the Emmitsburg Pike in front, where they obliqued to the left, continuing to advance through a storm of fire. The 69th waited until the Rebels were only 30 paces from their position before firing a devastating volley into their ranks. Still the enemy came on. The Irishmen’s position was overlapped on their right, and men of Confederate Brigadier-General Lewis Armistead’s brigade sought to exploit this gap. Companies I, A and F of the 69th were ordered to change front to face this threat. The latter two companies executed the move, but the commander of Company F, Captain George Thompson, had fallen before the instruction could be given- his men stayed at the wall. This created a gap through which the Confederate’s poured, and which threatened the entire regiment. Company F was consumed by Rebel attackers, and almost all of their number were forced to surrender. (4)

Colonel Dennis O’Kane, 69th Pennsylvania, Mortally Wounded at Gettysburg, July 3rd 1863

Fighting became hand to hand as the desperate struggle intensified, with men used their weapons as clubs. Hugh Bradley of Company D went down, his skull crushed by a Rebel musket. Corporal McKeever of the 69th admitted that ‘we thought we were all gone’. Robert Whittick of Company C described how ‘a fellow was taken in with me and I knocked him over and took him prisoner, and took him in over the stone wall. We were fighting both sides on the front and rear of us at that time.’  For a moment it seemed the men would be forced to give up their position, but eventually the Confederates began to pull back. Armistead had fallen mortally wounded to the 69th’s right, and the entire Confederate advance had been enfiladed on both the left and right flanks, dooming it to failure. The Irishmen had held on. In time the charge would become legendary, and would retrospectively be termed the ‘High-water mark of the Confederacy’ in the war. (5)

Lieutenant-Colonel Martin Tschudy, 69th Pennsylvania, killed at Gettysburg July 3rd 1863

The cost the 69th paid for participating in this historic struggle was severe. Colonel O’Kane fell mortally wounded, and Lieutenant-Colonel Martin Tschudy went down while rallying the right. Four line officers were killed, six wounded and two captured. 39 of the other ranks were killed, with 80 wounded and 16 made prisoners. (6)

69th veteran Anthony McDermott in A Brief History of the 69th Regiment Pennsylvania Veteran Volunteers documents those of his comrades who fell at Gettysburg. They are:

Field and Staff: Colonel Dennis O’Kane (July 3), Lieutenant-Colonel Martin Tschudy (July 3)

Company A: Corporal William Donovan (July 3), Corporal F.J. McGovern (July 3), Private Frederick Beavenstead (of wounds received July 2), Private John Harvey Jr. (July 3), Private Robert Morrison (July 3), Private Patrick O’Brien (July 3), Private William O’Brien (of wounded received July 3)

Company B: Sergeant Jas. F. Shea (July 3), Private Timothy Gallagher (July 2), Private Andrew McGuckin (July 3), Private Jas. O’Neill (July 3)

Company C: Sergeant William Coogan (of wounds received July 3), Private Jas. McNulty (of wounds received July 2)

Company D: Sergeant James McCabe (July 3), Sergeant Jerry Gallagher (July 3), Sergeant James Hand (July 3), Corporal Patrick Kearney (July 3), Corporal James McCann (July 3), Private Hugh Bradley (July 3), Private Chas. Jenkins (July 3), Private John McWilliams (July 3)

Company F: Captain George C. Thompson (July 3), Corporal Thomas Henry (of wounds received July 3), Private Neal McCaffery (July 3), Corporal Henry Thomas (of wounds received July 3)

Company G: Second Lieutenant Michael Mullin (July 3), Sergeant Hugh Kelly (July 3), Sergeant John O’Connor (July 3), Corporal John Wogan (July 3), Private James Clay (July 3), Private James Coyle (July 3), Private Samuel Fike (July 3), Private James McIntire (July 3), Private Richard McErlane (July 3), Private James Rice (July 3)

Company H: Second Lieutenant Charles F. Kelly (July 3), Sergeant Jerry Boyle (July 3), Private John Cassidy (July 3), Private John Hurley (July 2), Private Daniel Miles (of wounds received July 3)

Company I: Captain Michael Duffy (July 2), Private John F. Boyle (July 3), Private Thomas C. Diver (July 3), Private Edward Head (July 3), Private Francis Kelly (of wounds received July 3), Private Michael Logan (July 3), Private Chris Rohlfing (July 3), Private Henry Souders (July 3)

Company K: Private Frank P. Gleason (of wounds received July 3), Private John Harrington (July 3), Private Patrick O’Conner (July 3), Private James H. Todd (July 2)

The 69th Pennsylvania Monument at Gettysburg as it appears today (Photo by Jen Goellnitz http://www.goellnitz.org)

(1) McDermott 1889: 53;  (2) McDermott 1889: 28, 29, 33; (3) McDermott 1889: 29, 30, Bicheno 2001: 167; (4) McDermott 1889: 31; (5) McDermott 1889: 32, Boyle 1996: 289; (6) McDermott 1889: 33;

References & Further Reading

Bicheno, Hugh 2001. Gettysburg

Boyle, Frank 1996. A Party of Mad Fellows: The Story of the Irish Regiments in the Army of the Potomac

Ernsberger, Don 2006. At the Wall: The 69th Pennsylvania at Gettysburg

McDermott, Anthony W. 1889. A Brief History of the 69th Regiment Pennsylvania Veteran Volunteers 

Civil War Trust Gettysburg Page

Gettysburg National Military Park

Private William Haberlin, Independent Battery B, Pennsylvania Light Artillery (Library of Congress)

There are very few details available on Haberlin’s life and service. However, the image is accompanied by a hand-written note, which gives us a glimpse at the personality and motivations of the man in the portrait. It reads as follows:

Now to the field again I’ll go,

for the union to defend,

Untill Jeff Davis is made to know,

His Kingdom is about to end.

And now if I would not live,

To hear freemen shout for joy,

This miniature to you I give,

In memory of a soldier boy.

William P. Haberlin.

Aside from the Irishman’s efforts at poetry, the note also tells us something of his motivation for continuing in service. Along with many of his comrades he had reenlisted as a Veteran Volunteer when his initial two year term expired. Haberlin was fighting to preserve the Union and to end slavery. It is tempting to speculate that he may have written the note while on veteran furlough in the winter of 1863-64, before passing on the ambrotype to a loved one. (1)

Private William Haberlin's note which accompanied his ambrotype portrait (Library of Congress)

(1) Bates 1871: 859, 862

References

Bates, Samuel P. 1871. History of Pennsylvania Volunteers 1861-5. Volume 5.

Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Online Catalog

The bayonet charge of the 69th Pennsylvania at Glendale, as portrayed in McDermott's 'Brief History' of the Regiment

The 69th Pennsylvania had its genesis in the pre-war Second Regiment, Philadelphia County Militia, a largely Irish unit. The militiamen recruited additional numbers and under the command of Welshman Colonel Joshua T. Owen of Philadelphia, mustered into service for three months as the 24th Regiment Pennsylvania Volunteers on 15th April 1861. On the expiration of their term, the regiment was reorganised for a period of three years, mustering into service dating from 19th August 1861. They were initially designated the 2nd California, but before long became the 69th Pennsylvania, the name under which they would fight in the Army of the Potomac. The 69th Pennsylvania would never achieve the fame that was enjoyed by their namesakes in the 69th New York, the first regiment of the Irish Brigade. Despite this, they quickly earned a fighting reputation that was the equal of any of the units under Meagher’s command. (2)

The Battle of Glendale was fought as one of Seven Days’ Battles during Major-General George B. McClellan’s Peninsula Campaign. On 30th June the Army of the Potomac was on the retreat, as McClellan attempted to redeploy his forces from around the Chickahominy River southwards to the James River. Confederate General Robert E. Lee planned to smash portions of his Army of Northern Virginia through the Army of the Potomac at Glendale while McClellan’s forces were still on the march, with the aim of splitting the Union force in two. George McCall’s Pennsylvania Reserves were now facing this onslaught, and elements of his force were about to collapse under its weight.

Colonel Owen’s Irishmen were positioned in a ravine at the base of a hill, where they formed line of battle. To their front two Union batteries under the command of Captain Otto Diederichs and Captain John Knieriem were engaged, and the soldiers of the 69th lay down to avoid enemy artillery fire. As McCall’s men succumbed to the pressure of the attack they began streaming to the rear, dashing past the Union batteries which were also forced to retreat, abandoning some of their guns. The broken regiments passed through the lines of the 69th, who now knew they had nothing to their front but victorious Rebel troops. The Confederates were on the heels of the routed men, and made attempts to turn the abandoned artillery pieces on the Irishmen’s line. The 69th laid down a galling fire to prevent this, and decided that it was necessary to retake the cannon. 69th veteran Anthony W. McDermott takes up the story: ‘…taking advantage of the position that the rise of ground gave to us, the regiment instinctively jumped to their feet and advancing in wedge shape, charged up the hill with a cheer, met the enemy at close quarters, drove them from the captured guns and hurled them back on their supporting lines, changing what had been but a short time before seemed to be a disastrous defeat to a glorious victory.’ (3)

The Civil War Trails / Civil War Trust marker describing the charge of the 69th Pennsylvania at Glendale (Photo by Rob Shenk http://www.robertshenk.com)

The bayonet charge of the 69th Pennsylvania in combination with heavy fire from a number of other regiments helped to force back the Confederate attack. Brigadier-General Hooker noted that as the enemy gave way ‘the Sixty-ninth Pennsylvania Regiment, heroically led by Owen, advanced in the open field on their flank with almost reckless daring.’ Hooker’s gratitude for the actions of the 69th is made clear in his after action report, in which he thanked Colonel Owen by expressing a ‘high appreciation of his services, and my acknowledgements to his chief for having tendered me so gallant a regiment.’ According to McDermott, Hooker approached the 69th on the field and told them that they had made the ‘first successful bayonet charge of the war, and saved the Army of the Potomac from probable disaster.’ The 69th’s brigade commander Brigadier-General Burns was equally impressed with the Irishmen’s performance: ‘Colonel Owen, Sixty-ninth Pennsylvania Volunteers, unsupported, pursued the victorious rebels back over the ground through which they were passing and crowned the crest of the hill where McCall had lost his artillery. Gallant Sixty-ninth! The line followed this noble example, and McCall’s position was held and the enemy discomfited.’ (4)

The 69th Pennsylvania had begun to build the reputation they would enjoy throughout the war, and future actions by the Irishmen, perhaps most notably at Gettysburg, would add to their laurels. However, their success at Glendale came at a price. 13 men of the regiment were listed as killed, with 36 wounded and 5 missing. McDermott lists 8 of the fallen in his Brief History of the 69th Regiment Pennsylvania Veteran Volunteers. They are as follows:

Company B: Corporal Arthur McFadden, Private John Gallagher, Private Charles Ledger

Company C: Sergeant Bernard Waters, Corporal William Toner

Company H: Private James Devin, Private Tim McNamara

Company I: Private William Gartman

In 2010, 148 years after the Battle of Glendale, the bayonet charge of the Irishmen was honoured by the 69th Pennsylvania ‘Irish Volunteer’ Civil War Reenactors Organisation, which sponsored a historical marker that was placed on a portion of the battlefield acquired by the Civil War Trust. (5)

(1) Official Records Series 1, Volume 11 (Part 2): 111, McDermott 1889: 15; (2) McDermott 1889: 5-7, Boyle 1996: 75- 76; (3) McDermott 1889: 14-15; (4) Official Records Series 1, Volume 11 (Part 2): 111, 112, McDermott 1889: 15; Official Records Series 1, Volume 11 (Part 2): 92; (5) McDermott 1889: 15-16, 89-97;

References & Further Reading

Boyle, Frank 1996. A Party of Mad Fellows: The Story of the Irish Regiments in the Army of the Potomac

Ernsberger, Don 2004 (2 Vols.). Paddy Owen’s Regulars: A History of the 69th Pennsylvania “Irish Volunteers”

McDermott, Anthony W. 1889. A Brief History of the 69th Regiment Pennsylvania Veteran Volunteers

Official Records Series 1, Volume 11 (Part 2), Chapter 23. Report of Brig. Gen. William W. Burns, U.S. Army, commanding Second Brigade, of engagement at Peach Orchard, or Allen’s Farm, and battles of Savage Station, Glendale, or Nelson’s Farm (Frazier’s Farm), and Malvern Hill

Official Records Series 1, Volume 11 (Part 2), Chapter 23. Report of Brig. Gen. Joseph Hooker, U.S. Army, commanding Second Division, of the engagement at Oak Grove, or King’s School-House, and battles of Glendale, or Nelson’s Farm (Frazier’s Farm), with resulting correspondence, and Malvern Hill

69th Pennsylvania ‘Irish Volunteer’ Civil War Reenactors Organisation

Civil War Trust Battle of Glendale Page

Michael Dougherty in later life

Michael Dougherty was born on 10th May 1844 in Falcarragh, Co. Donegal, emigrating to the United States in 1859. At the age of 18 he decided to enlist, and on the 8th August 1862 he mustered into the 13th Pennsylvania Cavalry for three years service. It is no surprise that Dougherty chose this unit to serve in, as it had a distinct Irish character; indeed it had initially been intended to serve as a squadron with the Irish Brigade. The unit was to be known as the ‘Irish Dragoons’ when it was formed by James A. Gallagher of Philadelphia in September 1861. Further authority was received to increase its size beyond that of a squadron, and it became the 117th Regiment (13th Cavalry) with Gallagher becoming its first Colonel. (2)

The capture that led to Dougherty’s 1864 diary entry was not his first taste of life in Confederate prison. On 26th February 1863 his regiment was based in the Shenandoah Valley at Winchester, Virginia, when they were ordered to engage what appeared to be some Confederate foragers. They secured a number of the enemy and drove the remainder into the camp of the 11th Virginia at Woodstock, some twenty miles away from their base. With their horses exhausted they turned for home, but as they approached Fisher’s Hill they were engaged by a body of Rebels, who were positioned on both of their flanks. After a fight which lasted for half an hour the 13th Pennsylvania had lost 108 men killed, wounded and captured. The Donegal man was among the latter, and he was taken to Libby Prison in Richmond. Dougherty was exchanged on 26th May 1863 and was able to rejoin his comrades at Winchester; his first experience as a guest of the Confederacy had been mercifully brief. (3)

As 1863 continued the Irishman was quickly becoming a veteran, and he was engaged in his first major battle at Second Winchester that June. During the fighting Dougherty was responsible for carrying dispatches, a role he executed so well that he was presented with a gold medal for bravery by Co. Wexford native Colonel Michael Kerwin. Kerwin had succeeded to command of the 13th Pennsylvania shortly after the battle, replacing Colonel Gallagher. Following Second Winchester the regiment became part of the Army of the Potomac, joining the 2nd Brigade of Brigadier-General David McMurtrie Gregg’s 2nd Division. On 12th October of that year the 13th Pennsylvania was on picket duty at Jefferson, Virginia, on the south side of the Rappahannock opposite Sulphur Springs. At about 6 o’clock that morning the Confederates attacked their positions, driving in the unit’s pickets. Heavy skirmishing continued throughout the day, and the 4th Pennsylvania Cavalry moved up to support their comrades from the Keystone State. During this fighting the young Donegal native once again showed his worth when he dashed across an open field at the head of some men from his company, forcing the Confederates to abandon one of their positions in an unoccupied house. Michael and his comrades then took possession of the building themselves, and fought off repeated attacks against it for a number of hours. The Rebels were not finished, however, and that afternoon they attacked the cavalrymen’s positions with increased force. By 5 o’clock the 13th and 4th had been driven back, but many men were cut off and could not escape across the river. The 13th Pennsylvania lost 163 men killed, wounded and captured, the vast majority being forced to surrender. Once again Private Michael Dougherty found himself a prisoner, and this time it would be for the remainder of the war. (4)

Andersonville on 17th August 1864. Dougherty’s diary for that day records: ‘No prisoners left here today or yesterday. Alfred Friend, Co. F, 12th N.Y.C., has just informed me that he is the only man alive out of 53 of his regiment.’

From 12th October 1863 to 12th April 1865 Dougherty was to spend his time in Confederate prisons. Throughout this time he kept a diary charting his experiences in prisons such as Libby, Pemberton and Belle Isle in and around Richmond, with a recurring theme being the constant hope and endless rumours regarding prisoner exchange. On 8th February 1864 he boarded a train away from Richmond with 600 others, but it was not for the purpose of his release. The train travelled south to Georgia and arrived at its destination, Camp Sumter, on the 15th February. This was a new prison, and it would soon be known by another name, one that still conjures images of death, suffering and cruelty- Andersonville. Of the 45,000 Union prisoners held there during the 14 months of its existence, 13,000 of them would never leave. (5)

Michael tried to occupy himself by visiting the different parts of the camp and recording any events in his diary. It is a stark record of the human misery he and others experienced during his time in the exposed 26 1/2 acre compound. Unsurprisingly, the main topics include new prisoners, the deaths of comrades, and rations:

18th April 1864: About five hundred more prisoners came in to-day from Cahaba, Alabama. Bernard Tolen, Co. D, died to-day.

15th May 1864: We can see wagons haul away bodies from the dead-house, like so much dirt; as many as twenty bodies piled on one wagon. Upwards of fifteen hundred men have died since we came here.

20th July 1864: One hundred and thirty prisoners died yesterday; it is so hot we are almost roasted. There were 127 of my regiment captured the day I was, and of that number eighty-one have since died, and the rest are more dead than alive; exposure and long confinement is doing its work among us.

Dougherty makes reference to an interesting incident from an Irish perspective on the 13th November 1864: All the Irish who could walk were called to the gate this afternoon by a Col. McNeill of the 10th Tennessee (rebel) regiment, to see if any of them would take the oath to join the rebel service. Not an Irishman enlisted, but two Yankees did, one from Connecticut and the other from a New York regiment; so you see the Irish are the most loyal. The following day Dougherty added: Webb called on me to-day; we had a talk over the excitement caused by the appeal to the Irish; he says McNeill is no true Irishman or he would not try to degrade Ireland and her people by making such a proposition. The 10th Tennessee had been formed of Irishmen from Nashville in 1861, and ‘Col. McNeill’ was in fact Colonel John G. O’Neill. The remnants of the unit surrendered with the Army of Tennessee in 1865 following its defeat at the Battle of Bentonville, North Carolina. (6)

The ‘Sultana’ ablaze in the Mississippi following the explosion of one of her boilers

Michael Dougherty’s visit to the Andersonville hospital in late 1864 should have been fatal, but he somehow managed to survive. Incredibly, having experienced the American Civil War and the worst prison conditions in the nation’s history his tribulations were still not at an end. On 23rd April 1865 at Vicksburg, Mississippi, he boarded a ship called the ‘Sultana’ along with between 2,200 and 2,400 others, many also former Andersonville prisoners. They were steaming up the Mississippi for St. Louis, Missouri, and had arrived in Memphis, Tennessee on 26th April. Early in the morning of 27th April one of the boilers on the vessel exploded, enveloping the boat in flames. Some 1,800 of the passengers lost their lives, in what remains the worst maritime disaster in United States history. (7)

The Irishman had again beaten the odds and survived. He returned to Bristol, Pennsylvania and his mother and sisters on 27th June 1865. He would go on to marry Rose Magee with whom he had 12 children. In the post war years he worked at the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia and served as a Bristol Council Member between 1880 and 1882, as well as being an active member of the Ancient Order of Hibernians. Michael Dougherty was awarded the Medal of Honor on 23rd January 1897 for his actions on the day of his capture on 12th October 1863. His citation read: ‘At the head of a detachment of his company dashed across an open field, exposed to a deadly fire from the enemy, and succeeded in dislodging them from an unoccupied house, which he and his comrades defended for several hours against repeated attacks, thus preventing the enemy from flanking the position of the Union forces.’ The Falcarragh native published his prison diary in 1908, providing an invaluable insight into the terrible conditions experienced by Union troops in Andersonville. Having survived such trials in early life, Michael Dougherty went on to live well into his 80s. He died on 19th February 1930, and is buried in Saint Marks Roman Catholic Churchyard in Bristol, Pennsylvania. (8)

(1) Dougherty 1908: 66; (2) AOH Bristol, Bates 1870: 1267 & 1306, Taylor 1913: 172; (3)  Dougherty 1908: (i)- (ii), 1; (4) Taylor 1913: 172, Bates 1870: 1269, Dougherty 1908: 72; (5) Dougherty 1908: 1-28, Andersonville National Park Service Website; (6) Dougherty 1908: 40, 43, 54, 65;  (7) Dougherty 1908: 68-71; (8) Dougherty 1908: 71, AOH Bristol, Medal of Honor Society, Broadwater 2007: 64-65;

References & Further Reading

Bates, Samuel Penniman 1870. History of Pennsylvania Volunteers 1861-5 Volume 3

Broadwater, Robert P. 2007. Civil War Medal of Honor Recipients: A Complete Illustrated Record

Dougherty, Michael (edited by James T. Navary) 2009. The Prison Diary of Michael Dougherty: Union Survivor of Two Years Confinement in Confederate Prisons (1st Edition 1908)

Hand, Harold 2000. One Good Regiment: The Thirteenth Pennsylvania Cavalry (117th Pennsylvania Volunteer Regiment) 1861-1865

Taylor, Frank Hamilton 1913. Philadelphia in the Civil War 1861- 1865

Ancient Order of Hibernians Division No. 1 Bristol, Pennsylvania: Michael Dougherty Page

Andersonville National Park Service Website

President Abraham Lincoln- the man who secured Private Hugh McLaughlin his pay in 1864 (Image via Wikipedia)

American Civil War soldiers would often have to go months without receiving their pay, a state of affairs they could do little about while away at the front. The 26th December 1895 issue of The National Tribune relates the story of one Irishman who took extraordinary steps to secure what he was owed. Finding himself in Washington following rehabilitation, and low on funds, his attempts to get his backpay fell on deaf ears. Deciding not to take no for answer, he marched straight out of the Army Paymaster’s office and set off for Pennsylvania Avenue. He had resolved to take his grievance to the one man he felt could resolve the situation; President Abraham Lincoln.

LINCOLN’S KINDNESS

W.C. Reiff, Eddy, N.M., sends a story of an Irish soldier’s visit to Lincoln. He says: “Hugh McLaughlin, a genial and brave Irishman hailing from Boston, after having served a three months’ term in the 69th N.Y., and being also wounded in the First Bull Run battle, later on found his way into my company and regiment. Hugh was several times wounded while with us, which, as a matter of course, compelled his going North to hospitals.

“An acquired desire to spree at times caused Mac, or Hughey, as we called him, to leave the different hospitals and have what he considered a ‘good time’ of it before going to the front. One day, in 1864, Hugh brought up in Washington City and applied to a certain Army Paymaster whose office was, I understood, opposite the Treasury Department. He asked for his pay, but the Dispenser of Greenbacks said he could not accommodate him on account of his hospital record. Hughey volunteered the information that he would have his pay even if he had to see President Lincoln about it. He turned his back upon the Paymaster’s office and started for the White House. Right here I must add by the way of explanation that our Hughey was a polite and intelligent man when free from drink, and not at all forward. Just now he was not exactly himself.

“Upon reaching the main entrance of the White House, there was an attempt made by the white-gloved sentry at the door to prevent his entry. Hughey just pushed this guardian of the National Chief aside and stepped into the home of the President, and soon found himself in the presence of that good man and his wife.

“The President was seated at a table, writing. Hughey made his errand known at once with the eloquence of a Burke. The soldiers’ best and truest friend listened attentively, and so did his companion. They asked Hughey a good many questions about his long army service and his home. Then the President took up a pen and wrote a few lines to the Paymaster. He instructed Hugh to take the note to him and get his pay. When Hugh got the funds he sent them almost all to his wife and family in Boston.”

The story was related to the paper by a W.C. Reiff of Eddy, New Mexico. A review of the Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System identifies a 1st Sergeant William C. Reiff in Company H of the 91st Pennsylvania Infantry, a unit which served in the Army of the Potomac from 1862 through to the end of the war. Sure enough, also found on the rolls of the 91st Pennsylvania, and in the very same Company as Reiff, is Private Hugh McLaughlin, the man who went to the White House to ask President Lincoln for his pay. 

References

The National Tribune Online

Civil War Soldiers & Sailors System

Confederate Dead at the Stone Wall, Marye's Heights, Fredericksburg. Although taken in 1863, it was this same wall that was the object of the 116th Pennsylvania attack on 13th December 1862.

The 116th Pennsylvania had not been in a major battle before; Fredericksburg was to prove a merciless introduction. As the attack of French’s Division petered out, the 116th and the rest of Hancock’s Division were ordered into the meat grinder. All the men placed a sprig of green boxwood in their caps, to identify them as members of Meagher’s Irish Brigade. The regiment marched down towards Liberty Town near the junction of George Street and Hanover Street, where they and the rest of the Brigade paused to await the advance (2). While stationary they began to take their first serious casualties.  A shell impacted amongst the ranks of the 88th New York, causing a staggering 18 casualties. Soon after, the first deadly projectile thundered into the ranks of the Pennsylvanians. Four men were killed, amongst them Sergeant John Marley. His head was shorn off, his lifeless and headless body dropping to its knees, musket still in hand. The 116th’s commander, Colonel Dennis Heenan, also took a wound in the hand (3). As the shells rained in Private William McCarter of the 116th remembered that he and the other men began to involuntarily duck, paying ‘due respect in the way of a low bow or curtsy, having no desire whatever to make a closer acquaintance with the flying messenger or to interrupt him in his course‘(4). The order for the men to advance seemed to take an eternity as they stood and endured the fire from the Confederate batteries. At last it came. Lieutenant-Colonel St. Clair A. Mulholland shouted out the words everyone hoped to hear: ‘Attention! Shoulder arms, forward, double-quick. Now, men, steady, and do your duty. March’ (5).

The 116th Pennsylvania emerged in column of fours into the open space beyond the town and saw the scale of what faced them. A raging inferno of fire was concentrated on the fields in front. They had to first negotiate a canal before advancing against Marye’s Heights across an open, exposed plain towards Confederate positions bristling with artillery. In addition, the base of the Heights was defended by troops sheltering behind a stone wall, a position which would soon become infamous. Confederate artilleryman Edward Porter Alexander boasted that ‘a chicken could not live on that field when we open on it’.

The canal was the first obstacle to face the 116th. The bridge which had traversed it had been largely shot away, so some men plunged into the water while others tried to negotiate the surviving fragments of the original span. Casualties continued to mount, amongst them Lieutenant Robert Montgomery of Company I who fell mortally wounded into the stream. A slight rise beyond the water allowed the Pennsylvanian’s to take momentary cover and form line of battle. They initially found themselves on the extreme left of the Irish Brigade line as they advanced towards the Rebel positions. Just as they moved out they sustained yet another casualty among their officers; Lieutenant Seneca G. Willauer was hit by a shell that tore all the flesh from his thigh, exposing the bone. Incredibly, he went to his Colonel, remarking: ‘do you think that I should go on with my company or go to the hospital?’. The regiment pressed on once more: ‘Right shoulder, shift arms, battalion forward, guide centre, march’ (6).

Lieutenant Robert T. McGuire, 116th Pennsylvania Infantry. Wounded at Fredericksburg, he died of his wounds some years later.

A series of fields lay between the Brigade and the enemy behind the stone wall. As St. Clair A. Mulholland described it, the men ‘advanced into an arc of fire….fire in front, on the right and left. Shells came directly and obliquely, and dropped down from above. Shells enfiladed the lines, burst in front, in rear, above and behind; shells everywhere. A torrent of shells; a blizzard of shot, shell and fire’ (7). When the 116th had finally closed to within some 50 yards of the stone wall, they were greeted with a stomach churning sight. Private McCarter remembered: ‘Cobb’s solid brigade of Rebel infantry, said to have been 2,400 strong, suddenly sprang up from behind it. They had been entirely concealed from our view until that moment. The Rebs poured volley after volley into our faces, at once stopping our further progress…It was simply madness to advance as far as we did and an utter impossibility to go further (8). Officers and men were falling like skittles. Lieutenant Garret Nowlan of Company C took a bullet in the thigh. Major Bardwell was also wounded, and Lieutenant Bob McGuire and Captain John O’Neill both fell with balls through their lungs. The Orderly Sergeant of Company H wheeled around to stare at Lieutenant Francis Quinlan, blood pouring from a hole in his forehead all over the young officer’s face. Huge gaps were torn in the 116th line as they withstood the incredible fire. Colonel Heenan was wounded again and carried from the field. Lieutenant-Colonel Mulholland was hit. No officer seemed to escape the murderous fire. Private McCarter stayed in position and had discharged six or seven shots when his turn came. He had begun to ram home his cartridge when ‘a bullet struck me in the uplifted arm, close up to the shoulder. The limb dropped powerless at my side. I knew something serious had happened to me.’ Color Sergeant William Tyrell fell to one knee when his other leg was shattered, but continued to defiantly wave the flag. He was hit a further five times and fell with the broken flagstaff. Finally the order came to retire, and Lieutenant Quinlan dashed forward to rescue the colors from the death grip of Tyrell (9).

Lieutenant Christian Foltz, 116th Pennsylvania. Killed while trying to assist his wounded friend William McCarter near the Stone Wall.

As the retreat began, Lieutenant Foltz looked to help his friend William McCarter from the field: ‘Bill, we’ve got to get. Are you badly hurt? I wish to God I could get you out of here.’. Foltz then grabbed McCarter’s musket and took aim, saying to him ‘Bill, I see the bastard that laid you there. I’ll fetch him.’ McCarter remembered: ‘he knelt down on the ground with his left knee, placed the butt end of the musket upon his shoulder, and took deliberate aim at something in the direction of the stone wall. I watched him closely. Before he pulled the trigger the musket fell out of his grasp. He nervously raised his hand to his brow and then fell to the earth a bleeding corpse, pierced through the head by a rebel bullet. His face was towards me, revealing the fatal wound immediately above the left eye. The profound sorrow that I then experienced no tongue or pen could describe’ (10).

Though the 116th Pennsylvania and the Irish Brigade retreated they did not quit the field, and further waves of Union infantry passed over them to dash themselves into pieces against the stone wall. Wounded men were forced to spend all night on the field where they had fallen. The assault at Marye’s Heights on the Confederate left had been seen as a necessity to give the Federal attack on the Confederate right a chance at success. The tactic did not work, and the Army of the Potomac was forced into a retreat. What the attack did achieve was the wholesale destruction of thousands of lives; the Irish Brigade was decimated and would never again recover its pre-Fredericksburg strength. Irish opinion would begin to turn against the war as a result of the terrible casualties inflicted upon it. William Dehaven, William McCarter and St. Clair A. Mulholland all survived the maelstrom at Fredericksburg and the war. However, the horrors they witnessed that December afternoon must surely have never been far from their thoughts for the remainder of their lives.

Winfield Scott Hancock paid tribute to the 116th Pennsylvania in his report on Fredericksburg. He noted that the ‘regiment suffered heavily, and, although comparatively young in the service, behaved handsomely. This regiment marched on the field with 17 commissioned officers and 230 enlisted men. Its loss was 12 officers wounded and 77 men killed, wounded, and missing. The fourth officer in command during the battle brought the regiment off the field, the others being disabled.’ (11)

St. Clair A. Mulholland lists the following men of the regiment in the Roll of Honor as having been killed or who died of wounds received at Fredericksburg:

Officers: Lieutenant Robert Montgomery, Lieutenant Christian Foltz, Lieutenant Robert T. McGuire

Company B: Private John Rodgers

Company C: Sergeant Franklin B. Missimer, Sergeant Elhanan W. Price, Sergeant Thomas M. Rowland, Corporal William E. Martin, Corporal Samuel J. Willauer, Private George W. Biddle, Private William Cawler, Private William Gallagher, Private A.S. Hendricks, Private Glenn Harrison, Private Aaron J. Landis, Private A. Landenberger

Company D: Sergeant Andrew E. Ker

Company F: Private John Baxter

Company G: Sergeant John C. Marley, Private William Hare, Private James Kelly, Private John Walls

Company H: Sergeant John Farley, Corporal Horace Greenleaf, Corporal James Slavin, Private Daniel McCarty

Company I: Sergeant George Cole, Corporal Alexander Downey, Private William Gaw, Private Barthol W. Johnston, Private Samuel McClune, Private Albert J. Van Dien, Private John Winchester

Company K: Sergeant Daniel Root, Corporal Joseph Hudson, Private John Burns, Private Peter Finegan, Private Thomas Wilson

(1) Mulholland 1903: 43; (2) O’Reilly 2003: 301; (3) Mulholland 1903: 45; (4) McCarter 2003: 172; (5) Ibid: 174; (6) Mulholland 1903: 47; (7) Ibid: 46; (8) McCarter 2003: 178; (9) Mulholland 1903: 48-50, McCarter 1903: 179; (10) McCarter 2003: 182; (11) Hancock OR

References & Further Reading

Conyngham, David Power (edited by Lawrence Kohl) 1994. The Irish Brigade and its Campaigns (1st Edition 1867)

Gallagher, Gary W. (ed.) 1995. The Fredericksburg Campaign: Decision on the Rappahannock

McCarter, William (edited by Kevin E. O’Brien) 2003. My Life in the Irish Brigade: The Civil War Memoirs of Private William McCarter, 116th Pennsylvania Infantry

Mulholland, St. Clair A. (edited by Lawrence Kohl) 1996. The Story of the 116th Regiment: Pennsylvania Volunteers in the War of Rebellion (1st Edition 1903)

O’Reilly, Francis Augustin 2003. The Fredericksburg Campaign: Winter War on the Rappahannock

Official Records 11. Report of Brigadier General  Winfield S. Hancock, U.S. Army, commanding First Division

Civil War Preservation Trust Fredericksburg Page

Fredericksburg & Spotsylvania National Military Park

Father Corby Statue (Image via Wikipedia)

A recent post told the story of Father Corby’s absolution of the Irish Brigade at Gettysburg in 1863. A statue of the chaplain was erected at the battlefield on the 29th October 1910, and will soon celebrate its 100th birthday. To commemorate the occasion the Father William Corby Division of the Ancient Order of Hibernians, based in Fairfax Station, Virginia, are planning to visit the monument on the 29th October 2010. The event will take place at 1pm and will involve a color guard presenting the colors to the statue, as well as some music and a talk about Father Corby. Details of the event are available here.