James Wall Scully had been serving as a Sergeant in K Battery, U.S. Light Artillery when war broke out in 1861. Stationed in Texas, he and his comrades were relocated to Union held territory in Florida when the Lone Star State seceded. In September 1861 Scully’s five year term of enlistment expired. While in the regulars he had served in the same unit as West Pointer Alvan Gillem, who with the rank of Captain was appointed Chief Quartermaster for the Army of the Ohio. The two men had become friends, and the Irishman decided to accompany Gillem in a civilian capacity, serving as his chief clerk. Gillem was eager to gain command of one of the volunteer regiments, and Scully was almost certainly promised a commission should he achieve this aim. Thus it was that they arrived in Kentucky in November 1861.

In January 1862 Confederate Brigadier-General Felix Zollicoffer (also referred to as ‘Zolly’ in the letters) who commanded Crittenden’s 1st Brigade moved his troops from guarding the Cumberland Gap further into Kentucky, pushing the majority of his men north of the Cumberland River. Thomas in turn moved his Union force to attack the Rebels, waiting for Brigadier-General Albin F. Schoepf’s forces to join him. Crittenden arrived on the scene and ordered Zollicoffer to march through the night and attack the Federals before they could concentrate. Battle was joined on the morning of 19th January, but the slowness of the Confederate march meant they had lost the element of surprise. After some initial success Zollicoffer was killed and the Rebel force was eventually routed. On a point of interest, the ‘Colonel McCook’ who Scully refers to in the letters as a ‘particular friend’ was Colonel Robert Latimer McCook, one of the famed family of ‘Fighting McCooks’. He would be killed later in 1862 in Alabama, having been promoted to Brigadier-General. Scully also includes a quote “Seeking the bubble reputation even at the cannon’s mouth” in his account of the battle. This is from Shakespeare’s play ‘As You Like It’, and means an individual who believes in his cause but who is engaged in an ultimately pointless endeavor.

The Battle of Mill Springs, Kentucky, 19th January 1862 (Currier & Ives)

Camp 5 miles from the enemy, Jany. 17th 1862

 My Dear Wife,

We arrived at this place today and will remain around here until the General sees fit to attack “Zolly”. Our pickets are in sight of his. We are confident of Whipping him, as we have more men and better equipped than he. I was this day offered the Captaincy of a company of  the 4th Regiment of Ky. Vols. Gillem advised me to take it, but for once I did not take his advice. I would rather wait for my appointment in the regulars. My health is very good and I can stand the cold much better than expected.

We had an awful march this far over a mud road we were over two weeks coming from Lebanon trying to get the wagons (600) through with unbroken mules. I suppose this wil be the last letter I can send you until after the battle. I hope to be able to send you the account of a glorious victory, old Zolly would retreat now if he had any way of dong so, but with Thomas on one side and Shoepf on the other, and the Cumberland River in his rear he has no alternative but fight or surrender. I think he will fight.

January 18th 1862

We are encamped just 4 miles from Zollicoffer’s works, our pickets are out and had a little skirmish with his last night. There are 6 Brigadiers here tonight, two of them (Shoepf and Carter) are to Bunk with us. I can’t tell when they will make the attack, but everything is ready and we are confident that old Zolly is in a peck of trouble.

 Sunday night, 11 o’clock, Jany. 19th, 1862

Hurah! A great Battle and a Glorious Victory.

 My Beloved Wife,

About 7 o’clock this morning we were roused from our beds by the beating of the “long roll”. Our pickets together with the camp of the 10th Indianas were attacked by the enemy in Full Force. He came out of his fortification with Eight Regiments and surprised us. He thought that we had but 4 regiments and thought he would make a big thing of it, but caught a tarter. The rebels fought like tigers for an hour, during which there was an incessant roar of musketry. The 4th Kentucky, 10th Indiana and 2nd Minnesota Regiments were the first in the fight, as their camps were more convenient to the Battleground, and for 20 minutes it was very doubtfull which side was gaining ground until at length Col. McCook at the head of his Regiment (Germans) charged them with the Bayonette and at the same time Col. Fry of the 4th Kentucky shot Zollicoffer through the heart, killing him instantly, then “Secesh” made a precipitate retreat throwing away everything that would impede their progress. I was in with Capt. Kinsy’s Battery and remained with them during the engagement. Once as I was looking for the General to know where we would take up our position, I had to pass under fire twice. I witnessed the grand charge of the Gallant McCook with his Dutchmen and a more splendid thing I never witnessed. The Colonel was shot in the leg, and as I passed by him, he sang out “Scully, I’m shot in the leg, but I’m good for the day anyhow”, he rode all day without having his wound dressed. He is an Ohioan and a particular friend of mine. I must say, my dear wife, that I often thought of you and the children and that suppose I got killed what would become of you, but Thank God I am well and safe. This evening after dark, the Captain sent me back to the camp, a distance of five miles {I rather think 8} for to lock the safe and to fix the things which in our hurry this morning we had left undone. I found everything all right, and tired as I am after being all day in the saddle, I thought while I had the chance I would write to you this letter. I had to come all the way alone over the battle field and it being partially moonlight I encountered some horrible sights. Piles of dead men Secesh and Union lay strewn all over the road and fields, and their ghastly countenances upturned in the moonlight made me feel a sensation crawl over me, not unlike fear. It was a night I can never forget. How many a brave heart beating with hope left both camps this morning, “Seeking the bubble reputation even at the cannon’s mouth”, but only to fly before noon into the presence of their Maker, but such is war. 

Monday Morning Jany. 20th.  7 o’clock

Dearest,

I fell asleep last night while writing but will try and finish this morning while my breakfast is getting ready. The cannonading has just commenced in the enemy intrenchments so I must hurry up as I want to be out there with the artillery. I will have this sent to the post office at Somersett if I can today and if not I will send the account of this days proceedings also. I know there will be a great many exaggerations about this battle but you may rely on this as being the true account of it as I put in nothing but what I witnessed myself. General Thomas will be highly applauded for the splendid way in which he managed this Battle. For the seven or eight miles we pursued and advanced on the enemy, the line was kept up as uniform as I ever saw a drill. There was the right and left flank and centre all through without a waver, and every regiment and its battery in its proper place, that one would imagine he was at a grand review instead of a terrific battle. All through, the General was as “Cool as a Cucumber”. Capt. Gillem was “man of all work” in the fight. He was sometimes directing the movements of some of the regiments, at another time getting up ammunition and seeing to his train; at another directing the fire of the Batteries, but his chief attention (next to his duties as Q.M.) was directed towards the two Tennessee Regiments, who of course he was most interested in. He brought them up twice leading them himself. We are reinforced this morning by four regiments of Shoepfs brigade from Somersett.

Dearest, I will now close for the present by sending my love to all of you, and several thousand kisses to yourself and the children.

Scully  

Somersett, Ky. Sunday night, Jany. 27th

My own dear Wife,

 … I am sure this battle will settle my commission for me. I have a beautiful horse and saddle which I think I will bring home to you. We captured over a thousand, and the General gave me one. I did not get the pants yet, but as the stage stopped running here on account of the road being so bad, I expect they are at Danville. I have sent for them. I am almost naked since the battle. I put my blouse around a wounded rebel and got my pants torn into shreds in the woods. I am wearing one of Col. Battles of the 15th (Rebel) Tennessee Regiment. which one of the men found in his tent.

 February, 5th 1862

 …I have a splendid saddle (Officers) and two horses, one of them a beauty, he belonged to Lieut. Owens of the rebel Cavalry (Alabama), and cost $600 when bought. I know it from the prisoners. I saved the life of the Lieut.-Colonel we took prisoner (Carter). The Tennesseans were just about shooting him when I rode up and told the first man that would attempt to point his piece at the prisoner that I would shoot him. The General commended me highly for it. I suppose you read all about the battle in the papers, but they can’t give you half an idea of the greatness of it. No person except those that saw it could conceive the amount of property of every description that we captured. I could have got hundreds of dollars worth, but I would not degrade myself by robbing private trunks as all the Vol. officers from Colonels down had done. The only Trophies I have are my horse, saddle, a homemade Bowie knife that would disgrace a Comanche to use it and a Muster Roll of a Tennessee company also a double-barrelled shotgun. I don’t know if ever I can get them home though. I got the pants and like them very much.

 I am your loving Scully.

Further Reading

McCan, Anthony 2002. ‘James Wall Scully- A Kilkenny Soldier in the American Civil War’ in Ferguson, Kenneth (ed.) The Irish Sword: The Journal of the Military History Society of Ireland, Vol. 23, No.91, Summer 2002, pp. 141- 154

Civil War Trust Mill Springs Page

Mill Springs Battlefield Association

Colonel Michael Magevney Jr., 154th (Senior) Tennessee Infantry Regiment

Michael Magevney was born around the year 1835 in Co. Fermanagh. He was a schoolteacher in Ireland and emigrated to the United States in 1854, settling in Memphis Tennessee. He was perhaps influenced in his choice of location by his uncle, Eugene Magevney, who had become a well known teacher in that city having himself settled there in the 1830s. Prior to the war Michael had worked as a book-keeper, marrying Ellen Murphy. He was involved in the volunteer militia before the war, and on 14th May 1861 became a Captain in the 154th (Senior) Tennessee Infantry on that units organisation. He commanded the regiment’s largely Irish Company C, ‘The Jackson Guards’. The 154th Tennessee had an unusual history in that it had originally been the 154th Tennessee Militia Regiment, with its origins in 1842. They retained this number when they mustered into service at the outbreak of war. As it had a significantly longer history than those Tennessee regiments with lower numbers, it was granted permission to include  ’senior’ in its title to distinguish itself from them. (1)

The regiment had 802 men under arms at Fort Wright in July 1861. They first tasted action at the Battle of Belmont, Missouri on 7th November of that year where they lost one man killed and 12 wounded. At the Battle of Shiloh in April 1862 both Colonel Preston Smith and Lieutenant-Colonel Marcus J. Wright were wounded as the regiment lost 25 men dead, 163 wounded and 11 missing. The injuries to the senior commanders resulted in Magevney’s promotion to Lieutenant-Colonel. He rose to command the regiment following the death of Colonel Edward Fitzgerald at Richmond, Kentucky on 30th August 1862 when the 154th were serving under Corkman Patrick Ronayne Cleburne. Lieutenant-Colonel Magevney led what was by late 1862 a battalion of  245 men into the Battle of Murfreesboro, seeing action on 30th and 31st December 1862. They lost 14 killed, 83 wounded and 3 missing during the fight. By 1st March 1863 what was left of his regiment was consolidated with the 13th Tennessee, becoming the 13th/154th Tennessee with Colonel Vaughan of the 13th assuming command. Magevney commanded the post of Okolona, Mississippi with the rank of Colonel in 1863, and by the time of the Atlanta Campaign in 1864 he was leading the 13th/154th. During this period the regiment saw heavy fighting at locations such as the Dead Angle at Kennesaw Mountain. The Irishman rose to temporary brigade command for the period from 10th July 1864 to 31st August 1864. He was wounded in the Battle of Franklin, Tennessee on 30th November 1864, and was captured at the disastrous Battle of Nashville on 16th December 1864. (2)

Michael Magevney Jr. was held as a prisoner at Johnson’s Island, Ohio for the remainder of the war, eventually being released on 22nd May 1865. He returned to Memphis where he became a merchant, and although he became initially successful and wealthy he lost his fortune, perhaps a result of the alcoholism which was given as his cause of death on 21st September 1883. He was buried at Elmwood Cemetery in Memphis but was re interred at Calvary Cemetery in the same city in 1887. His obituary remarked that he was ‘a man of remarkable coolness and courage…of extensive reading, fine culture, and delicate sensibilities.’ (3)

(1) Allardice 2008: 249, Brady 1986: 26, O’Brien 2007: 127, Turley 1886: 596-597, Civil War Centennial Commission of Tennessee 1964: 308-309; (2) Civil War Centennial Commission of Tennessee 1964:308-309, OR Series 1, Volume 20: 748-749, OR Series 4, Volume 2: 964, Civil War Centennial Commission of Tennessee 1964:310, Allardice 2008: 249;  (3) Allardice 2008:249;

References

Allardice, Bruce S. 2008. Confederate Colonels: A Biographical Register

Brady, Joe. 1986. ‘The Irish Community in Antebellum Memphis’ in West Tennessee Historical Society Papers, Volume 40, pp. 24- 44

O’Brien, Sean Michael 2007. Irish Americans in the Confederate Army

Turley, Thomas B. 1886. ‘One Hundred and Fifty-Fourth Tennessee Infantry’ in Lindsley, John Berrien (ed.) The Military Annals of Tennessee: Confederate

Civil War Centennial Commission of Tennessee 1964. Tennesseans in the Civil War. Part 1.

Official Records Series 1, Volume 20, Part 1, Chapter 32. Report of Lieutenant-Colonel Michael Magevney Jr., One Hundred and Fifty Fourth Tennessee Infantry, Senior Regiment

Official Records Series 4, Volume 2. Report of Volunteer and Conscript Bureau for month of October 1863

The Battle of Belmont as depicted in Frank Leslie's 1896 'Famous Leaders and Battle Scenes of the Civil War' (University of South Florida)

The 2nd Tennessee Infantry had been organised by Joseph Knox Walker in Memphis, Tennessee the previous May. Walker was the nephew of former United States President James K. Polk and had served as his private secretary in the White House. The regiment consisted almost entirely of Memphis Irishmen, and its 750 soldiers were often called the ‘Irish Regiment’. Knox Walker’s affinity with the Irish was explained by his daughter Sally: ‘Memphis had a large Irish population; my father was their friend and counselor; in politics they followed his lead. So great was his influence with them, and their love for him, that Father Grace presented him with a pew for life in St. Patrick’s Church, now the cathedral, though my father was an Episcopalian. The Irish had followed my father in politics and now they followed him in war.’ By the time of Belmont the 2nd had already earned a reputation for being a bit on the wild side. This is typified by an incident remembered by William Stevenson, who briefly served in the unit, on the lengths the men would go to obtain alcohol. On one occasion, as the Colonel walked past one of the Irishmen’s tents, he saw the man raise his gun to his lips and proceed to take a long swig from the barrel.  Knox Walker asked, ‘Pat, what have you got in your gun, whiskey?’. The Irishman was quick to respond; ‘Colonel, I was looking into the barrel of my gun to see whether she was clean.’ The Colonel walked on, remarking how it was curious that the man’s eyes appeared to be located in his mouth. (1)

The Irishmen had arrived in Columbus by 24th October, and Knox Walker assumed a brigade command. In the late morning of the 7th November, as the battle seemed to be going badly for the Confederates, Brigadier-General Benjamin F. Cheatham ordered the regiment aboard the steamers Prince and Harry W.R. Hill to be ferried across to the fight. They managed to cross without becoming engaged by Federal gunboats, but were greeted by chaotic scenes as they landed. Men crowded the river bank as they sought escape from the Union advance, which had smashed the Confederate line and swept across Camp Johnston.  Total defeat appeared only minutes away, and large numbers of men were in imminent danger of capture. Despite the seemingly desperate situation, the 2nd needed little incentive to fight. They had been told before they crossed that sick men from the 12th Tennessee, which contained a number of Irishmen, had been bayoneted where they lay as the Union troops overran the camp. (2)

Brigadier-General Gideon Pillow was then in command of the Confederate troops on the west bank of the river. He ordered Knox Walker to advance his regiment to meet the enemy and buy time so that the disorganised men on the riverbank could be reformed.  Forming line of battle, the Irishmen plunged forward against the advancing Federal forces. The Union troops were not expecting an attack from fresh troops; as the Irishmen charged into the open field they checked the enemy’s advance, and it took Grant’s men some time to recover. Lieutenant James Walker, Colonel Knox Walker’s nephew, took over command of Company I when his Captain fell wounded. Now he was himself struck by a bullet in the hip, with the ball penetrating through to his intestines. He leaned against a log and continued to give orders for the next twenty minutes, shouting to Lieutenant John Dangan, ‘Fight Daugues, fight or die! Don’t let my men be taken prisoners’ before losing consciousness for the final time. Despite such heroics the 2nd were eventually forced back to the river, taking heavy casualties as they did so. They kept up their fire from this position, moving by the flank along the riverbank.

Map of the Battle of Belmont by Julius Bien & Co.

As the fight raged on the men tried to remain lighthearted. Captain Saffarans of the regiment had waded into the Mississippi early in the battle in an effort to escape the enemy’s fire, when one of the Irishmen shouted after him ‘Captain, dear, are ye off for Memphis? If ye are tell the ould woman the last ye saw ov me I was fighting, while ye were runnin’ away.’ Another Irishman, who was nicknamed ‘Dublin Tricks’, forgot to bite off the end of his cartridge before he rammed it home, so his rifle would not go off. He kept loading the gun with the same result. In an effort to remedy the situation, he pricked some priming into the tube. Predictably things did not end well and ‘both he and the gun went off’. As the men around him laughed, Dublin Tricks retorted ‘Hould, asy with your laffin’ boys; there is sivin more loads in her yit.’ Meanwhile another Irishman in the regiment gave his comrades some sage advice, quipping: ‘Illivate your guns a little lower boys, and ye’ll do more execution.’ (3)

The counterattack of the 2nd Tennessee had not been in vain. Pillow had an opportunity to reorganise his men and more troops were now crossing the river from Columbus. Grant’s troops had themselves become disorganised in their moment of victory, and now with Cheatham ashore with further reinforcements the Union regiments were forced into a general retreat. The 2nd joined in the advance. Seeing the colors of the 7th Iowa, Private David Vollmer of Company K declared that he was going to capture them or die in the attempt. The Federals had not finished fighting though. As the Confederates pressed on with their charge and broke cover, Captain J. Welby Armstrong, who commanded Company G, the ‘Sons of Erin’, disintegrated as he was struck by a shell. Vollmer and his friend Sergeant Dennis Lynch surged forward towards the 7th’s colors, with Vollmer bayoneting his opponent and seizing the flag. No sooner had he accomplished his goal than he and Lynch fell dead, struck by a volley of musketry. (4)

Despite the heavy fighting Ulysses S. Grant and his men were eventually forced back to their landing point at Hunter’s Farm, where they re-embarked and set off back for Cairo. The first major battle in the Western Theater had ended. Although the carnage had been worse than anything any of the men had previously experienced, the war would show them all too quickly that worse was to come. The Memphis Irishmen of the 2nd Tennessee lost 18 men killed, 63 wounded and 33 missing during the battle. It had been a bad day for the Irish of Memphis with the largely Irish 21st Tennessee also taking heavy casualties. These two units, which first fought together on the field at Belmont, would be consolidated in 1862 to form the 5th Confederate Infantry, a regiment which served in Corkman Major-General Patrick Cleburne’s Division. The few survivors would not see their last battle until March 1865, when they would be amongst the final remnants of the Army of Tennessee engaged at Bentonville, North Carolina. C.W. Frazer, who would write a brief history of the 5th Confederate after the war, recalled the performance of the 2nd and 21st Tennessee at Belmont. He remarked: ‘I well remember their dash and courage on that occasion, when with inferior guns, and unused to war or arms, they bore themselves as veterans, which can be accounted for only by their nationality, my observation being that Irishmen take to this as readily “as ducks to water”.’ (5)

(1) Cheairs Hughes Jr. 1991: 122-123, Civil War Centennial Commission of Tennessee 1964: 174, Stevenson 1862: 46; (2) Civil War Centennial Commission of Tennessee 1964: 174, Cheairs Hughes Jr. 1991: 122, Stevenson 1862: 68; (3) Official Records: 326, Stevenson 1862: 70-71, Cheairs Hughes Jr. 1991: 123; (4) Cheairs Hughes Jr. 1991: 144; (5) Cheairs Hughes Jr. 1991: 185, Frazer 1886: 146;

*One of two regiments designated the 2nd Tennessee Infantry, and not to be confused with the Nashville unit organised by William B. Bate.

References & Further Reading

Cheairs Hughes Jr., Nathaniel 1991. The Battle of Belmont: Grant Strikes South

Civil War Centennial Commission of Tennessee 1964. Tennesseans in the Civil War. Part 1.

Frazer, C.W. 1886. ‘Fifth Confederate’ in Lindsley, John Berrien (ed.) The Military Annals of Tennessee: Confederate

Stevenson, William G. 1862. Thirteen Months in the Rebel Army

Official Records Series 1, Volume 3, Chapter 10. Reports of Brig. Gen. Gideon J. Pillow, C.S. Army, Commanding First Division

Columbus-Belmont State Park

General Rosecrans rallies the Union troops at Stones River; Kurz and Allison 1891 (Image via Wikipedia)

The 272 men of the 35^th Indiana seemed to be spending most of the Battle of Stones River out of harms way. The fighting had been ongoing since 31^st December, when a Confederate force had smashed into the Union army’s right flank, almost winning a stunning victory for the Rebels. The Irishmen were positioned on the Army of the Cumberland’s left, and their only involvement on the 31^st was to help stem the flow of fugitives from the Confederate onslaught and fight off some enemy cavalry. The 1^st January also passed with little action, although there was some sharp skirmishing that night. The third day of battle found the 35^th placed with their brigade on the east side of Stones River, where they were positioned on a strategic hill commanding McFadden’s Ford. As the day wore on it looked like they would once again escape heavy fighting. Then, around 4 p.m., with only 44 minutes of daylight remaining on the 2^nd January 1863, the men of Major-General John C. Breckinridge’s Confederate division surged forward to the attack. Outgunned and outnumbered, the Indiana Irish were in for the fight of their lives.

As the regiment’s skirmishers fell back they described an ‘immense force’ of Rebels advancing en echelon towards their position. Colonel Bernard Mullen, commander of the 35th, promptly ordered his men to lie down and fix bayonets. The 51^st Ohio and 8^th Kentucky regiments to the Hoosier’s right were engaged first, and it was not long before the Confederates were almost on top of the 35^th’s position. The Irish calmly let them advance to within 30 or 40 paces of their line before they rose with a cheer and delivered a devastating volley into the right flank of the Rebels. The Confederate line seemed to stagger, and before it could recover Mullen and his men had reloaded and were firing again. The attackers fell in droves. Despite their initial shock, the Confederate’s responded, and the 35^th began to suffer from artillery fire, particularly solid shot which ploughed through the left of their line. The two sides hammered away at each other from close range for some twenty minutes, but Mullen was aware that the sheer weight of enemy numbers would force him to retreat without support from the second line. He went to the 99^th Ohio positioned behind the Irishmen to request their assistance and attempt a bayonet charge, but they would not come forward to the 35^th’s support. Instead the 99th fell back to the main Federal positions on the west side of the river.

As the bloody exchange continued the entire brigade line was now at risk of collapse; the 79^th Indiana to the Irishmen’s left were also heavily engaged and the 51^st Ohio and 8^th Kentucky to their right were being forced back. Colonel Mullen takes up the story: ‘At the end of forty-three minutes of a desperate and unequal contest, I found the enemy completely around my flanks. To prevent a useless destruction of life, or entire capture of my regiment, I gave the order to retire. I was obliged to repeat it, and even then the brave fellows complied reluctantly-many refused, and they were either killed or captured.’

Part of the ground through which the Confederates attacked on 2nd January 1863 (Photo: Angela Gallagher)

The 35^th fell back to the river some 400 yards to the rear, where Mullen rallied the men. Despite the initial Confederate success, the assault was an ill-advised one due to the nature of the terrain. Breckenridge had been aware of this before the attack, but had been forced to proceed with it on the express orders of General Bragg. Having already sustained heavy casualties as a result of the resistance of the 35^th and their comrades, they had taken the hill which was their objective. Now they not only faced fresh Union regiments, but no less than 45 artillery pieces arranged hub to hub by Captain John Mendenhall on the river’s west bank to fire into their exposed position (1). The maelstrom of shot and shell which ensued devastated the Confederate attack. The reformed remnants of the 35^th contributed to this fire and together with their comrades surged forward with a cheer in pursuit of the retreating Rebels. Along with men of the 51^st Ohio the Irishmen succeeded in capturing one of the Confederate batteries.

Mullen was full of praise for his men after the fight: ‘I feel obliged to call attention to the splendid conduct of my adjutant, John Scully. His escape was a miracle, freely exposing himself, and cheering the men throughout the action to deeds of valor. Serg. Major Robert Stockdale fought desperately, but coolly; he deserves particular mention, not only for his conduct on this field, but for the faithful and cheerful manner he has ever performed his duties. To Dr. Averdick, my surgeon, I must acknowledge valuable services; brave and defiant on the field, he is kind and attentive in the hospital wards. Quartermaster Igoe was on the field, attentive to the wounded, using every effort to have them carefully transported to the rear. By 10 o’clock that night not a wounded man of the Thirty-fifth could be found on the field. To Father Cooney, our chaplain, too much praise cannot be given. Indifferent as to himself, he was deeply solicitous for the temporal comfort and spiritual welfare of us all. On the field he was cool and indifferent to danger, and in the name of the regiment I thank him for his kindness and laborious attention to the dead and dying.’ The regiment left 22 men dead on the field and 115 men wounded, captured or missing, testament to the savage nature of the fighting. Mullen was asked to ascertain if any individuals were conspicuous in their gallantry or if any had disgraced themselves through cowardice. In his report he states that he asked for a list of names from each of the Company commanders, but received but one response, that all in the regiment were ‘a body of heroes.’

The Army of Tennessee retreated from Stones River on the night of 3^rd January, and the Union had won the field. The campaign for Middle Tennessee was not over, but an important step had been taken. Soon the Union would be able to look beyond Tennessee and towards Atlanta and the Deep South. There was to be much hard fighting ahead however, and the Irishmen of the 35^th Indiana would be in the thick of it throughout.

(1)   Cozzens 1991:191

References & Further Reading

Official Records  20 (Part 1). Report of Colonel Bernard F. Mullen, Thirty-Fifth Indiana Infantry

Cozzens, Peter 1991. No Better Place to Die: The Battle of Stones River

McDonough, James Lee 1980. Stones River: Bloody Winter in Tennessee

Civil War Preservation Trust Stones River Page

Stones River National Battlefield

For more on the 35th’s Chaplain Father Cooney see:

Schmidt, James M. 2010. Notre Dame and the Civil War: Marching Onward to Victory and the Notre Dame in the Civil War Blog

Major-General Patrick Ronayne Cleburne

The Confederate assault against the Union centre at the Battle of Gettysburg, ‘Pickett’s Charge’, has become the iconic symbol of a desperate but futile Southern effort to break their enemy’s line. However, the Confederate assault by the Army of Tennessee at Franklin was both larger and bloodier. The heaviest of the fighting took place in a period of two hours, with the general engagement lasting some five hours. When the battle ended, at least 8,500 Union and Confederate soldiers were casualties (3). The unimaginable carnage effectively destroyed the Army of Tennessee; apart from the colossal casualties experienced amongst the rank and file, no less than six Confederate Generals were killed or mortally wounded. Amongst them was Corkman Patrick Cleburne, the most highly regarded Division commander in the army and the highest ranking Irishman in the Confederacy.

But what of Cleburne’s final moments? Captain Buck, who was absent from Franklin due to wounds received at Jonesboro in September 1864, was eager to ascertain the particulars of Cleburne’s death in so far as was possible. He corresponded with members of the Army of Tennessee present at Franklin and also collected as much published information as he could relating to his old commander’s demise. The results of his research were published as part of his 1908 book Cleburne and his Command. His correspondence with Brigadier-General Govan added further detail with regard to Cleburne’s movements:

‘After receiving his final orders we were directed to advance, which was about 2 o’clock in the afternoon. We had to advance across an old open common, subjected to the heavy fire of the Federal forces. We met the enemy in a short space of time and carried the first line commanded by General Wagner [this force had foolishly been holding a position well in advance of the main Union line]. When that line was broken, General Cleburne’s object seemed to be to run into the rear line with the fleeing Federal’s from Wagner’s division. About that time General Cleburne’s horse was killed. His courier brought him another, and as he was in the act of mounting, this horse was killed. He then disappeared in the smoke of battle, and that was the last time I ever saw him alive. I spoke to his aide-de-camp, Mangum, and told him I was sure the General would be killed, as I did not see how he could escape with his life under such terrific fire, and as he never again appeared in the lines, confirmed my opinion that he was dead’ (4).

Cleburne Park, Franklin, Tennessee. The site where Patrick Cleburne was killed, exceptional efforts led to the restoration of this part of the battlefield, formerly the site of a Pizza Hut

General Govan had also corresponded with Captain Dinkins for an article in the New Orleans Picayune where he added further detail to Cleburne’s experience at Franklin. When Cleburne’s first horse was killed under him Govan was nearby, and he noted that the mortally wounded animal’s momentum carried the horse and rider nearly to the ditch on the outside of the Federal entrenchments. The second horse was struck by a cannonball from the direction of the Cotton Gin while Cleburne was in the act of mounting. At this point the Irishman moved forward towards the enemy works on foot, waving his cap and encouraging his men to advance. According to Govan Cleburne’s body was eventually found some twenty yards from where he had last seen him. Another officer to comment on Cleburne’s whereabouts was C.W. Frazer who had served in Cleburne’s Division up to the Battle of Murfreesboro, and who wrote a history of the 5th Confederate Regiment after the war. This unit was principally made up of Irishmen from Memphis, and Frazer maintained that the General sought out the Regiment at Franklin, ‘charged in with it, and died with it’ (5).

The following morning the death of Patrick Cleburne was confirmed. Mr. John McQuade of Vicksburg, Mississippi takes up the story: ‘I and two others were the first to discover his dead body at early dawn the next morning. He was about 40 or 50 yards from the works. He lay flat upon his back as if asleep, his military cap partly over his eyes. He had on a new gray uniform, the coat of the sack or blouse pattern. It was unbuttoned and open; the lower part of his vest was unbuttoned and open. He wore a white linen shirt, which was stained with blood on the front part of the left side, or just left of the abdomen. This was the only sign of a wound I saw on him, and I believe it is the only one he had received. I have always been inclined to think that feeling the end was near, he had thus laid himself down to die, or that his body had been carried there during the night. He was in his sock feet, his boots having been stolen. His watch, sword belt and other valuables were all gone, his body having been robbed during the night’ (6). McQuade approached an ambulance picking up wounded men and dead officers under the charge of Reverend Thomas Markham. Cleburne’s body was placed beside that of Brigadier-General John Adams and taken to the McGavock residence at the nearby Carnton Plantation. There Generals Cleburne, Adams, Strahl and Granbury would lie side by side on the porch prior to their burial. Earlier in the year Cleburne had become engaged to Susan Tarleton of Mobile, Alabama. On 5th December 1864 Susan was walking in the garden in Mobile where she and Patrick had become engaged. A boy on the street selling papers shouted out the days headline ‘Reports from Tennessee! Cleburne and other Generals killed’. She promptly fainted (7).

Major-General Patrick Ronanyne Cleburne was initially interred at Rose Hill near Franklin. His body was moved to St. John’s Church, Ashwood, Tennessee thereafter; Cleburne had passed the cemetery a few days earlier during the advance into Tennessee and had remarked that it was ‘almost worth dying for, to be buried in such a beautiful spot’ (8). In 1870 he would be moved once again, this time returning to his adopted State in Arkansas, where he remains in Maple Hill Cemetery, Helena.

The impact of the death of Major-General Patrick Cleburne was keenly felt. No less a personage than Robert E. Lee described him as ‘A meteor shining from a clouded sky’. The memory of the Irishman remains strong in the United States today. He has had locations named for him in Alabama, Arkansas and Texas, a Confederate Cemetery named after him in Georgia, been the subject of a number of books, has had a society set up in his honour, a statue erected at the scene of perhaps his greatest victory in Ringgold, Georgia, and a park created at the scene of his death in Franklin. In stark contrast, he remains virtually unheard of in his native country, a situation which it is hoped can be altered in the not too distant future.

(1) Buck 1959: 290-1; (2) Ibid: 282-3; (3) Jacobsen 2006: 440; (4) Buck 1959: 291; (5) Frazer 1886: 151; (6) Buck 1959: 292; (7) Joslyn 2000:184; (8) Buck 1959: 280

References & Further Reading

Buck, Irving Ashby 1959 (First Published 1908). Cleburne and His Command and Hay, Thomas Robson Pat Cleburne: Stonewall Jackson of the West

Frazer, C.W. 1886. ‘Fifth Confederate’ in Lindsley, John Berrien (ed.) The Military Annals of Tennessee

Jacobsen, Eric A. 2006. For Cause and For Country: A Study of the Affair at Spring Hill and the Battle of Franklin

Joslyn, Mauriel Phillips 2000. ‘Epilogue’ in Joslyn, Mauriel Phillips (ed.) A Meteor Shining Brightly: Essays on Major General Patrick R. Cleburne

Battle of Franklin Blog

Civil War Preservation Trust Patrick Cleburne Page

Franklin’s Charge

Save the Franklin Battlefield

The Patrick Cleburne Society

The Battle of Lookout Mountain, Kurz & Allison lithograph 1889 (Image via Wikipedia)

Amongst Whitaker’s Brigade were the 168 officers and men of the 35th Indiana Infantry. The unit was also known as the ’1st Irish Regiment’ and was under the command of Irish-American Colonel Bernard F. Mullen. Many of the men would still have worn their distinctive green kepis that they had been issued with to distinguish them as an Irish unit in 1861. The task facing the Irish Hoosier’s was not lost on Colonel Mullen. Having crossed the creek and formed line of battle on the centre-right of the Brigade’s first line he began to realise the challenges he faced: ‘Now for the first time I understood our business to be to sweep the Lookout Valley and carry the enemy’s works on the mountain by storm. The route across the spurs of the mountain was exceedingly rough, deep gorges, rugged ascents, and sharp projecting rocks rendering the march toilsome and tedious’.

The Craven's House, Lookout Mountain, where the 35th Indiana were heavily engaged (Image via Wikimedia Commons)

The Irishmen set off and eventually found themselves advancing along a ledge known as the ‘bench’ which skirted the mountain about two-thirds of the way to the summit. They marched through the mist for almost three miles behind a New York Brigade under Colonel David Ireland, whose troops along with other units cleared much of the western bench of Confederates, before rounding the point of the mountain and stalling at a Rebel position located at a homestead known as the Craven’s House.  As the fighting intensified, the moment of action had arrived for Whitaker’s Brigade and the 35th Indiana. They had been subjected to sporadic fire from skirmishers and Confederate sharpshooters on the summit during their long march, and now the opportunity had come for them to fully engage the enemy. After 1pm Whitaker’s Brigade reached Ireland’s positions at the Craven’s House and yard. After pausing momentarily, Colonel Mullen sent his men in shouting ‘Up bullies with a cheer! Charge at a run! Steady! Steady! Thirty- fifth!’. The troops roared ‘Faugh-a-ballagh!’ (Clear the Way) and sprang forward (2). Mullen ordered the charge as he felt he could not preserve an ordered line under the severe enemy fire. The men entered the first set of enemy works successfully without firing a shot. After a short pause they charged once again and secured the Confederate’s second line. The Irishmen captured a number of prisoner’s and secured two piece’s of enemy artillery, with the latter being turned over to the 40th Ohio (3). General Whitaker then instructed the Irish to hold what they had gained; Mullen ordered Sergeant Jim Somers, the Regimental Color Bearer, to plant the flag on the enemy works. The 41st Ohio passed through the 35th Indiana’s line to keep up the pressure on the Confederates.

The summit of Lookout Mountain in 1864; the difficult terrain is apparent

The foggy conditions on the mountain now reduced visibility to almost nothing, and both sides settled down to trading shots in the mist. As evening approached the 35th again moved forward to the front, relieving troops who had run out of ammunition. The Irishmen in turn expended their ammunition in firing at the invisible foe, and another unit moved up to replace them and hold the line. Their fighting completed for the day, Mullen and his men settled down for the night on the ground they had won.

The Confederates had no wish to renew the fight the next morning, as their position had now become untenable. They pulled their troops out during the night. The following morning the flag of the 8th Kentucky, part of the same Brigade as the 35th, flew from the summit of Lookout Mountain. The Irishmen went on that day to assist in the assault on the main Confederate positions on Missionary Ridge, which completed the defeat of the Army of Tennessee, and opened the door for an advance towards Atlanta.

The 35th Indiana’s part in the ‘Battle Above the Clouds’ was a significant one. They escaped with relatively few losses (they suffered 10 men wounded during the Chattanooga battles), though Captain James Fitzwilliams of Company G was shot through the arm and Private James Kearns of Company A was shot through the lungs. Mullen singled out Major Dufficy, Adjutant Gallagher, First Lieutenant John Maloney and Sergeant-Major John Powers for their conduct during the attack.

(1) Cozzens 1996: 168; (2) Ibid 1996: 184; (3) Ibid 1996: 186

References & Further Reading

Cozzens, Peter 1996. The Shipwreck of Their Hopes: The Battles for Chattanooga

Spruill, Matt & Forbes, Lowell 2003. Storming the Heights: A Guide to the Battle of Chattanooga

Official Records 31, Pt. 2. Report of Brigadier-General Walter C. Whitaker, U.S. Army, commanding Second Brigade

Official Records 31, Pt. 2. Report of Colonel Bernard F. Mullen, Thirty-Fifth Indiana Infantry

Battles for Chattanooga Museum

Chickamauga & Chattanooga National Military Park

Civil War Preservation Trust: Chattanooga

Indiana War Memorial (The 35th Indiana National Flag is preserved here)

General James Birdseye McPherson (Image via Wikipedia)

The ninety-one men of the Fifth Confederate had started their day early. Their march around their enemy’s flank had taken place during the night, but the difficult terrain they encountered meant it was afternoon before they could attack, finding the gap between McPherson’s two Corps. Captain Richard Beard was amongst them, and describes the scene as the Union General suddenly appeared: ‘He was certainly surprised to find himself suddenly face to face with our line. My own company and possibly others had reached the road when he discovered that he was within a few feet of where we stood. I was on the very verge of the road, and McPherson checked his horse for a second just opposite where I stood. I could have touched him with the point of my sword. Not a word was spoken. I threw up my sword to him as a signal to surrender. He checked his horse slightly, raised his hat as if he were saluting a lady, wheeled his horse’s head to the right, and dashed off to the rear in a full gallop.’

Among the group of Fifth Confederate soldiers who witnessed the incident was one of Beard’s Company, Corporal Robert Coleman. Captain Beard noted that he was as gallant a young soldier as he had ever seen on a battlefield, but very excitable. He describes what happened next: ‘Corporal Coleman, who was standing near me, fired on him, whether some one ordered fire I do not remember. It was his bullet that brought Gen. McPherson down. He was shot as he was passing under the thick branches of a tree, and as he was bending over his horse’s neck, either to avoid coming in contact with the limbs or, more probably, to escape the death dealing bullets that he knew were sure to follow him. A number of shots were also fired at his retreating staff. I ran up immediately to where the dead General lay, just as he had fallen, upon his knees and face. There was not a quiver of his body to be seen, not a sign of life perceptible. The fatal bullet had done its work well……When I got up to the body of the dead General I found a man lying on his back near him, who, if at all hurt, was but slightly wounded. I noticed only a slight spot of blood on his cheek. Pointing to the dead man, I asked him: “Who is this lying here?” He answered, with tears in his eyes : “Sir, it is Gen. McPherson. You have killed the best man in our army.”

Corporal Robert Coleman, Fifth Confederate Infantry: the man who shot General McPherson

The Fifth Confederate’s good fortune in encountering the isolated General would not last, however. As they pressed on with their attack, they succeeded in assaulting and lodging in the enemy’s works, but the difficult ground meant the attack was uncoordinated and many of the men were isolated. A determined Union counterattack took place in which 10 officers and 36 men were captured along with the regimental colors, the latter becoming the prize of the Fifteenth Michigan Infantry. The Fifth Confederate was a broken force. They participated in another attack later in the day in which they could furnish only twenty-two men. Captain Richard Beard was not among them; the by now captured officer instead found himself describing the circumstances of General McPherson’s death to one of the dead commander’s staff.

The actions of July 22nd were Beard’s last of the war, but they were certainly memorable. Writing in 1903, he was able to state: ‘This is the last tragedy that I took part in during the war, and it is as vividly and as distinctly photographed on my memory as if it all had occurred yesterday.’ The fateful day saw not only the death of General McPherson but also the virtual destruction of the Fifth Confederate Regiment. The Rebel attempts to drive back Sherman’s men failed, and Atlanta would fall on the 2nd September. The Fifth would remain with the Army of Tennessee until the bitter end in 1865. James Birdseye McPherson would be the only Union army commander killed during the American Civil War.

References & Further Reading

Beard, R. 1903.  ‘Incident’s of General McPherson’s Death: Account Given By Captain Beard’ in Confederate Veteran

Castel, A. 1992. Decision in the West: The Atlanta Campaign of 1864

Frazer, C.W. 1886. ‘Fifth Confederate’ in Lindsley, John Berrien (ed.) The Military Annals of Tennessee

Warner, Ezra J. 1964. Generals in Blue

Official Records 38, Pt. 3. Report of Captain Aaron A. Cox, Fifth Confederate Infantry, Polk’s brigade, of Operations July 20-22

Official Records 38, Pt. 3. Report of Lieutenant Colonel Frederick S. Hutchinson, Fifteenth Michigan Infantry, of Operations May 6- August 3

Major Person, 5th Confederate Regiment, Roll of Honour, Chickamauga

The 3rd-5th were commanded by Colonel James A. Smith (the majority of regimental officers were non-Irish) and formed part of Polk’s Brigade, Cleburne’s Division of Hill’s Corps at Chickamauga. Cleburne’s troops did not see their first action of the battle until sundown of the first day, when they were ordered to the army’s right with instructions to attack the Federal positions in the vicinity of the Winfrey Field. Colonel Smith takes up the story: ‘The regiment entered the action first on the 19th with the brigade about sundown, passing over the Sixth and Seventh Arkansas Regiments, of Liddell’s brigade, which were lying down. We had proceeded but a short distance to the front when the enemy opened fire on our sharpshooters. They were immediately withdrawn. The enemy’s artillery opened destructive fire on our advancing lines, which together with fire from infantry behind temporary works, stopped us for a short time. The right of the brigade, however, meeting with less resistance, pushed on, and getting on his flank he soon retired in  confusion, leaving a 12-pounder James gun and a caisson, having set another on fire. I was here directed by Lieutenant-General Hill to halt my regiment, as it had, by directing itself on Wood’s brigade, become somewhat detached from the remainder of the brigade. This ended the contest for the night, most of the fighting having been done since dark.’ The regiment lost 25 men in the fight, mainly with slight wounds.

Captain Beard, 5th Confederate Regiment, Killed in Action, Chickamauga

The Irishmen faced a tougher challenge on the second day of the battle. They would have to attack well fortified Federal positions, now located around the Kelly Field. In the process they would face a withering fire. Colonel Smith continues: When the attack was renewed [in the late morning] we met the enemy at his works, which were located on the crest of a rise that commanded the space in front of it. The strife at this point was fearful. Such showers of grape, canister, and small-arms I have never before witnessed. We remained here until our supply of ammunition was exhausted without losing or gaining ground. Through the misapprehension of an order, or from some other cause unknown to me, the right of my regiment gave way, and it was with some difficulty that order was restored and the line re-established. Failing as we did to drive the enemy from his position, and our ammunition being exhausted, we were ordered by Brigadier-General Polk to fall back.’ The unit’s losses were heavy, and included Captain W.J. Morris, who was mortally wounded while leading a charge; he was struck by grapeshot in the lungs and died on the field. Lieutenant Ragan also had his leg shattered during the attack (Frazer 1886: 150).

Captain Frazer, 5th Confederate Regiment

The Irish were not finished though, and a final attack was launched 4-500 yards to the right of their original position at around 4pm that evening. According to Colonel Smith the Federal resistance was ‘for long, as obstinate as in the morning; but we finally proved too much for him, and he took refuge behind his second line of works, about 200 yards to the rear of his first. He made but a short stand here and then fled in confusion across the open field in rear, leaving many prisoners in our hands.’ This was where the regiment took their heaviest losses, with Captain George Moore killed by a cannonball and Captain James Beard mortally wounded. Speaking of Beard, his fellow officer C.W. Frazer remarked how he often remembered him singing his favourite tune, ‘It matters little now, Lorena’ (Frazer 1886: 150).

The Federal retreat was final, and the Confederate Army of Tennessee had won its first major victory in the West. However, the 3^rd-5^th Confederate and their Division had paid a heavy price. In the two days of fighting at Chickamauga, Cleburne lost 204 men killed, 1,539 wounded and 6 missing.

Corporal Robert Coleman, 5th Confederate Regiment, Roll of Honour, Chickamauga

Lieutenant-General Daniel Harvey Hill complimented the regiment after the battle for its service, and later related a story of an encounter he had at Chickamauga: ‘One of Helm’s* wounded men had been overlooked, and was lying alone in the woods, his head partly supported by a tree. He was shockingly injured….I said to him “My poor fellow, you are badly hurt. What regiment do you belong to?” He replied: “The Fifth Confederit, and a dommed good regiment it is.” The answer, though almost ludicrous, touched me as illustrating the esprit de corps of the soldier- his pride in and his affection for his command.’ (Hill 1888: 659-660).  The men from the 3^rd-5^th that were named in the roll of honour, indicating conspicuous gallantry and good conduct during the battle, were as follows:

Major R. J. Person.

Captain James H. Beard, Co. E.

Captain George Moore, Co. H.

Sergt. John Callahan, Co. A.

Sergt. William McNamara, Co. B.

Sergt. Walter Laracy, Co. D.

Sergt. T. F. Brennan, Co. E.

Sergt. Edward Doyle, Co. F.

Sergt. George Cook, Co. G.

Corpl. R. H. Coleman, Co. H.

Private Frederick Taffe, Co. B.

Private Jack Wright, Co. E.

Sergt. E. L. Moore, Co. F.

*Hill mistakenly relates that this Irishman was part of Helm’s Brigade, but he clearly served with the Fifth Confederate Regiment of Polk’s Brigade.

References & Further Reading

Cozzens, Peter 1996. This Terrible Sound: The Battle of Chickamauga

Frazer, C.W. 1886. ‘Fifth Confederate’ in Lindsley, John Berrien (ed.) The Military Annals of Tennessee

Hill, Daniel Harvey 1888. Chickamauga- The Great Battle of the West in Battles and Leaders of the Civil War Volume III

Official Records 30, Pt. 2.  Report of Colonel J. A. Smith, Fifth Confederate Infantry, commanding Third and Fifth Confederate Infantry

Official Records 30, Pt. 2. The Chickamauga Campaign Roll of Honour: Third and Fifth Confederate Infantry

Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park

HALE AND STRONG AT ONE HUNDRED AND TWO

Sixty odd years ago Dr. John D. Smith, the founder of Henderson, Tenn., took his crop of cotton to Memphis on a Hatchie River boat. One of the deck hands was a red headed Irishman, a cheerful, tireless worker, already approaching middle age. Dr. Smith was so impressed with this man’s capability that he engaged him to return with him and help on his farm. Tommy Campbell, or “Uncle Tommy,” as he was soon called, became a member of the Smith family and one of its strongest adherents.

In 1861 Tommy Campbell enlisted with the 2d Tennessee Infantry, Col. J. Knox Walker, and later the 5th Confederate Regiment. In 1862 he was discharged at Tupelo, Miss., as over age. A year later he joined Captain May’s company, Bell’s Brigade, Forrest’s Cavalry. In 1864 he was wounded in a fight at Athens, Ala. The wound was on top of his head, and “Uncle Tommy” was gratified that he was so low, for if otherwise the bullet would have struck him in the head.

After the war he returned to Tennessee, and that State had no better nor more zealous citizen than the little red headed Irishman who seems to have found the fountain of youth.

In early September of this year Judge G. W. Smith, of Fresno, Cal., who was the youngest son of Dr. John Smith, came back to Henderson to visit the scenes of his boyhood, and “Uncle Tommy Campbell” came from his home in Pinson to see him, hale and hearty, little the worse for the summers and winters of one hundred and two years. The old gentleman and the silver haired judge, whom he regards as a boy, spent happy days together in recalling incidents of the Judge’s youth. This old man was reported in health late in September.

from Confederate Veteran Volume XVII, October 1909, 523