I spend too much time on ebay, and of late youtube (which is obvious). But it does pay off. I just found this oath for teachers from Kentucky (1864) on ebay, and thought it interesting enough to share:

Teachers Oath

I do Solemly Swear that I will Support the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of Ky and be true and faithful to the commonwealth so long as I remain a citizen thereof. That I recognize the binding obligation of the Constitution of the United States and the duty of every citizen to submit thereto as the Supreme Law of the land, that I will not give aid to the rebellion against the Government of the United States nor give aid to the so call Provincial government Ky either directly or indirectly, so long as I remain a citizen of or reside in Ky and that this Oath is taken by without any mental reservation So Help Me God

Signed by 2 witnesses and dated July 14 1864.

Several things, I have never seen such a document, though it does not surprise me. I see a date of 1864, have to consider the status of Kentucky (a key border state), and the necessity of such an “oath.” I can’t make out the location in Kentucky. Was this type of oath common?  Why was it necessary at this time and at this location? Also, what it’s asking of the teacher tells us something, does it not? Lots of questions here… Looking forward to hopefully some input from you?

John A. Burnham, who was a member of the 33rd Illinois from Normal, provides an interesting account of the Battle of Bayou Cache, also known as “Cotton Plant.” As most of you know, I have written extensively on this battle in both my book, and an article that I have submitted to the Arkansas Historical Quarterly. This particular account popped up just recently on google books.

If you wish to see the background info on the fight, please refer to the above links:

The Normal regiment found itself at Pilot Knob, Mo.,
September 20, 1861. Here and near here its officers and soldiers
were taught many of the important first lessons in soldiery
and military tactics.

Although the Normal contingent formed the nucleus of
the 33rd regiment, yet it contained more than nine hundred
other members who sometimes felt the Normalites were a little
too much inclined to over-rate themselves, and considerable
jealousy was early aroused, disappearing, however, as soon as
it was seen that we were always ready to prove by acts and
not by words that we were in the war for the good of the
cause, and not to promote our own selfish interests. It was
not long before we were proud of our comrades, and our comrades
were proud to be associated with those who had originated
the idea of the schoolmaster’s regiment.

Its first baptism of fire was at Fredericktown, Mo., October
21, 1861, just enough like war to give us a slight zest for
more, not a man killed, not a drop of the Regiment’s blood
spilled, and the victory was important.

In camp at Ironton, Mo., during the winter of 1861 and
1862, our regiment suffered from sickness but gradually improved
itself in military drill, and perfected itself in hard
marching during the following spring and summer.
Colonel Hovey won his promotion on this march, which is
the main reason for the insertion of a brief account of the battle
of Bayou Cache, July 7, 1862.

Our regiment formed a part of the advance guard of General Curtis’ army of 15,000 men, marching thru Missouri and Arkansas on the way to Little Rock. The Rebels, for several days, obstructed our march by felling trees in the roads and in other ways, without giving us fight. On the morning of July 7, four companies of the 33rd regiment, with as many more from the 11th Wisconsin regiment, were reconnoitering in advance, removing the blockades, when we fell into an ambush of Texan rangers.

We were driven back at first with severe loss, although
not until Company A in charge of a smallcannon belonging
to an Indiana battery had resisted a savage attempt to
capture the gun. First Sergeant Edward M. Pike,
a Normal student now living at Chenoa, Ill., aided by one
other man, coupled the cannon by main strength to its foremost
wheels, barely saving it from capture, just as the rebels
were on the point of reaching for the artillery horses’ bridles.
He received a bullet through his cap and for his muscular activity,
daring and bravery, was a few years ago given, by the
Secretary of War, a medal of honor, which is the only medal
granted to a member of the 33rd regiment, to my knowledge.
Captain Potter, in command of our company, was severely
wounded, with several others. Just as we started to the rear
he gave me the command of the company and told me to take
it back to the rear. As a matter of fact the company or something
else was taking me rapidly back to the rear without orders,
and I shall never forget my satisfaction at being under
orders to do what was so remarkably agreeable as was that
retreat, and feeling that of all that rushing throng pushing our
way to the rear amidst the crashing bullets and falling
branches, I was perhaps the only one fortunate enough to be
acting under orders.

Colonel Hovey was in the rear with the main army, but
fortunately was mounted and on his way to join us when he
heard the sound of battle and rode like the wind to our assistance.
He met our retreating forces, about five hundred in all,
and instantly attempted with great success to halt the troops at
a good point for resistance. I shall never forget his courageous
and desperate attempts to rally the troops. I was very near
to his person when some rebel buckshot passed through his
clothing and cut the skin of the upper part of his breast. The
pain was intense as the first sensation was like being shot thru
the lungs. He turned pale and staggered, and just as I was
almost near enuf for assistance, I saw him tear open the clothing
and feel of his wound. In an instant his countenance
brightened as he drew forth his hand containing two or three
buckshot which had merely penetrated the skin. He said immediately, “It is nothing but a flesh wound and some buckshot. I am not hurt,” and immediately proceeded more vigorously than before to arrange the disorganized soldiers for desperate defense. The rally was successful, other troops arrived, the force of Texans was soon driven back and we were grandly victorious.

His descriptions offers some detail that other reports did not provide, though he essentially, as has been the case, follows only the exploits of the 33rd Illinois Regiment at the expense of the 11th. Now, this, of course, is not unusual.

Regardless of fact, each letter sent home to loved ones regarding the death of a comrade, always involved the establishment of associating death with “quick” and “painless,” and “noble” or “heroic.”

This letter written by Melvin B Ross, a lieutenant in Henshaw’s light artillery to James Wheeler notifying him that his son Daniel Wheeler was killed in action. Wheeler, a resident of Freedom Illinois, was one of two members of Henshaw’s light artillery who was killed at the battle of Campbell’s Station, Tennessee on November 16, 1863:

Headquarters
Henshaw’s Battery 2nd Brigade
2nd Division
23d Army Corps
Knoxville , Tenn

Dec. 5th 1863.
James Wheeler Esq.

Dear Sir,
It is with most painful feeling that I sit down to impart to you the sad tidengs that Daniel has fallen. He was instantly killed by the explosion of a shell at the battle of Campbell’s Station Nov 16th. He fell while doing his duty manfully and I can truly say that we have met a loss that every member of this battery feels deeply. He was universally esteemed by both officers and men possessing the confidence of all. We have been besieged here in this place for nineteen days but the rebels left last night. The mailman is at my door now so I have time to write no more. Yours Truly, M.B. Ross.

The assault on Fort Blakely was the last significant battle of the Civil War and that in and of itself makes it an important historical event. However, there is a subplot to the battle that perhaps takes on an even greater importance. Involved in the assault were 5,500 Negro soldiers, the largest such gather at any one time in the Western theater. Not only was it the largest, it was not made up of freedmen, but ex-slaves. These soldiers were brought along not as laborers, but as fighters. Additionally, there were reports of atrocities being committed by the black troops once they entered the fort. One who witnessed the event wrote that the Negroes could not contain their enthusiasm once inside the fort as it “was unbound,” he said, “and they manifested their joy in every conceivable manner.” Yet another white soldier noted that the blacks did not “take a man” and killed all they captured.

Though exaggerations, to be sure, it is interesting that not a lot has been written about this important event and what happened during the confused and volatile minutes after the Fort was taken.

For example, in Joseph Glatthaar’s study of Negro involvement in the Civil War, “Forged in Battle”, he offered only a brief reflection of the racial elements involved. Glatthaar noted pithily that the Negroes “charged without orders” and that after getting inside the fort they acted “similarly” to Nathan B. Forrest’s men at Fort Pillow. (An excellent article about the racial issue at Fort Blakely by Michael W. Fitzgerald titled “Another Kind of Glory: Black Participation and its Consequences in the Campaign for Confederate Mobile,” in the Alabama Review (Oct 2001) must be mentioned as my inspiration to write this. I quoted from it in my book and my treatment of this battle.) Historians have thus far either treated the racial elements involved at Fort Blakely with kid gloves, or have virtually ignored it.

—-

Brig. Gen. John P. Hawkins commanded the Negro division of 5,500 strong. The column consisted of 3 brigades and 9 regiments as follows:

Brig. Gen. William A. Pile commanded First Brigade, made up of the Seventy-third, Eighty-second, and Eighty-sixth U.S. Colored Infantry. Col. Hiram Scofield was in charge of Second Brigade, consisting of the Forty-seventh, Fiftieth, and Fifty-first U.S. Colored Infantry. Finally, Col. Charles W. Drew led the Third Brigade and its three units, the Seventy-sixth, Forty-eighth, and Eighty-sixth U.S. Colored Infantry.

Hawkin’s division was part of Maj. Gen. Frederick Steele’s “Pensacola Column.” As Canby ascended up Fish River into the underbelly of Spanish Fort, Steele’s column had a rough time of it marching from Pensacola to Pollard, Stockton, and then south into Fort Blakely.
The trek was arduous as they faced torrential rain, quicksand, mud, and had to build miles of corduroy roads. “ The heavy rain… rendered the roads almost impassable,” wrote Steele afterwards.

Steele’s multi-racial column throughout the campaign faced the harshest conditions.
Canby took the Thirteenth and Sixteenth corps up the Fish River and invested Spanish Fort. The 11th Wisconsin was among them. Steele headed toward Pollard as a faint to confuse the defenders of Mobile as to his real objective, Fort Blakely.

As Steele left Pollard it was reported that his Negro soldiers “devastated the country, burning houses and stripping the people, women and children, of every means of subsistence.” And if this was not enough to elicit response, it was recorded that the soldiers “often ravished the women.” All of these claims had the desired effect. Upon hearing of the arrival of Steele’s troops, Confederate General St. John Liddell made it known that any Negro soldier captured would be sentenced to death.

It is highly doubtful that the Negro soldiers in Steele’s column behaved in the manner described above. Union generals kept close tabs on the Negros and gave specific orders that were “very strict” in regards to the black soldiers. Foraging was not allowed, and their behavior, by most accounts, was exemplary.

By the time Steele invested Fort Blakely on April 3, 1865, tensions within the fort were high. Before his men knew of Steele’s arrival, Liddell informed them that the enemy they were about to face was “composed principally of negroes,” former slaves. He then stressed the “importance of holding their position to the last, and with the determination never to surrender.” The implication was clear.

As the Negro troops dug in and began to envelop their pray, it was noted that they were “burning with an impulse to do honor to their race.”

The stage was set for not just the last significant land battle of the Civil War, but one with significant racial dimensions that were perhaps not equaled at any other time during the war.

Up next, Part III

On April 9, 1865, Mobile, Ala., was the scene of the last significant fighting of the Civil War. As a primer for my soon to be published book, I will be making a series of posts about the Union’s Mobile Campaign, which the 11th Wisconsin Regiment took part in.

After his successful Vicksburg Campaign in 1863, Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, along with William T. Sherman, wanted to take Mobile, Alabama. The navy also wanted to knock out the port city as it was a hotbed for blockade running.

But events in Mexico would unfortunately turn Lincoln and his administration’s attention further west to Texas. After the fall of Mexico to Napoleon III, and word that the French emperor was considering a possible annexation of Texas, Lincoln deemed Texas to be a priority.

This led to Maj. Gen. Nathaniel P. Banks dismal Red River Expedition in April/May of 1864; a campaign that was doomed to fail. For one, Banks was an overly cautious and plodding general who did not enjoy the trust of his men, as Grant had.

The Red River disaster along with Lieutenant General James Longstreet’s presence in eastern Tennessee, all but killed Grant’s much desired “pincer” move from Mobile and Chattanooga.   Had Grant been able to maneuver an assault from  Chattanooga while Banks attacked at Mobile, the closing in on the South from Tennessee and Alabama might have made Sherman’s “March to the Sea” look like child’s play.

But it was not to be. Instead, after numerous delays and incompetence on the part of Gen. Edward S. Canby (who replaced Banks in Louisiana), Union troops would make their assault on the port city when the war was essentially over.

Canby was indecisive, cautious, and would allow an entire garrison to escape right from under him during his Mobile Campaign.  The result would be a hasty assault on Fort Blakely (to save face) at 5:30 PM on April 9, 1865. An assault that did nothing more than cost the lives of many, and ignite a racial conflict that would haunt Mobile for yeas to come.

Up next Part II…

This tidbit is from William Cope of I Company. William was from Madison, Wisconsin, and enlisted on Oct. 3 , 1861. [Crossed posted at 11th Wisconsin Blog.]

William Cope
July 6th, 1863

[after a night of "sharp firing"]…They came in with a flag of truce to see if we let them serender… but Gen. Grant was not thare so they had to wait til the fourth of July then they came over and made a bargin and Grant gave them till 1 oclock to serender and after that time he would open on them so about 9 oclock the wite flag went up in every fort such a huza thar was on the hole line you seldom here and then they came out and stacked arms the men that we took was thirty and one thousand of stand of arms thirty five thousand… 250 guns all in good order and redy for use wen the rebs serenderd they was living on mule meat and not enough of that our boys cared over lots of crackers to them I tell you they eat them [as] they tasted good…

This is what I know: his name is probably Edward (Bigelow?) and was a member of the Union Civil War Regular Army (13th Army Corps, 4th Division, 2nd Brigade). He wrote this letter to his his mother, Sarah Bigelow, Lakeville, Livingston County, New York. He recorded his location as Carrollton, Louisiana, Sep 19 1863, with original postal cover, postmarked New Orleans LA, Sep 21 1863.

[contents read in-part]

…You have no idea of the pleasure we soldier boys receive from reading letters from those who are near and dear to us at home. Complaints are often made that we do not write often enough, yet the folks at home seem to forget that we are as anxious to har from them as they are from us … I am far down in Dixie in the vicinity of New Orleans. The weather has been hot, very hot for a long time, but night before last the wind shifted into the NW and it has been cool and pleasant since. Last night we almost shivered under a single blanket and a good many complained of cold toes in the morning. The wind is cool today, but the sun shines warm. In fact, the days are bound to be warm in this climate, though the nights are quite cool. We have a good breeze … every day either from the Gulf [of Mexico] or Lake Ponchartrain. Wm. P and I went to the city of New Orleans a few days since and from thence to Lake Ponchartrain, and looked out for the first time a far as the eye could reach on the surface of the salt water. The water is clear, almost as crystal, and anything moving … can be seen for some distance beneath the surface. Some of the boys have seen alligators while there, but [I] did not happen to see any. Such creatures are quite numerous in these parts, especially in the swamps and along the water courses. In N. Orleans almost every shoe store will have an alligator’s hide hanging in the door. They make boots of whem, which are said to be very durable and will never wet through. New Orleans is remarkable for its cleanliness, the streets are kept in the neatest order, more so than any northern city I have ever been in. The inhabitants are a mixed up mess, being German, French, Spanish, Irish, English and all shades of Negroes, as well as some Chinese. You can hear all kinds of languages and see all kinds and classes of people … At the ship landing all kinds of floating craft from a skiff up to a mammoth steamship, a man of war, vessels of different nations are at the wharves, presenting a somewhat novel sight to one who has always lived inland, and far from seaports. I suppose we will not remain here a great while. The most of our Army Corps have left and gone to Brashear City [LA] and I presume we will soon follow … We thought when we first came here we were bound for Mobile, but we now begin to think our destination [is] Texas and we have about made up our minds for a hard old tramp, and I presume we will have a good deal of bushwacking to do, as that seems to be the favorite mode of fighting among the Texans. Anything and anywhere to help put down this wicked rebellion and I hope the day is not far distant when peace will be restored to this unhappy country. I have seen and experienced enough of the horrors of war, but rather than yield or abandon this war for a dishonorable peace, I am willing to experience more for the sake of Country and the maintenance of our free institutions. I hope yet to be spared to see the end of this war and return home and enjoy once again the privileges of society and the pleasures of meeting friends, bothers, sisters, father and mother around the old hearth stone, where I spent my childhood days … I would be glad to see you all and sit down with you all for a social chat and, by way of variety, take a good old fashioned farmer’s dinner … Well, I must bring this letter to a close. This is Saturday evening, tomorrow is the Sabbath. Whether it will be a Sabbath to us I cannot tell … The Captain and I started for church last Sabbath and visited five churches before we found one where the preaching was in English and we could understand … I am well and in good spirits … The health of the camp is tolerable good … I hope to hear from you again soon and the letter will probably find me somewhere in the southern country … [signed] Edward.

A great letter, an interesting letter, and a mystery I need to solve.

There are the following potential soldiers who could have written this letter at this time and from this location:

Bigelow, Edward E., 29th Regiment, Wisconsin Infantry
Bigelow, Edward E., 130th Regiment, Illinois Infantry
Bigelow, Edward E., 77th Regiment, Illinois Infantry

Why no New York regiments? That was strange. As a matter of fact, no “Bigelow” for any New York regiment serving in the 13th Army Corps. So, this means the spelling is incorrect or…. well he did not join a NY regiment. Ugh. The frustration of a Civil War letter rescue operation….

According to what I could find, the 27th Indiana Regiment had the tallest soldier. David C. Van Buskirk of Company F was 6′10.5″ tall and was probably the tallest soldier in the war. (This would be about 7′4″ inches today by comparison.) He was called the ‘Biggest Yankee in the World’ by the Southern press. When captured at Winchester on 25 May, 1862, David went to the infamous Libby Prison in Richmond and attracted the attention of Confederate President Jefferson Davis. He was ultimately paroled on September of 1862. Astonishingly, Company F boasted 35 men over six feet. Incredibly, as tall of a target as David was, he survived the war and was never wounded. (Source: http://www.geocities.com/pentagon/barracks/3627/facts.html)

I have found ample evidence that Cotton stealing, speculating, and confiscating influenced military policy in Arkansas during the summer and fall of 1862. This might lead all the way to Gen. Curtis. It cost soldiers and civilians their lives. It was done because officers, perhaps generals, were making lots of money.

Take note of this (right) section of a newspaper article I found which deals with the Cotton Brigade and its commander, Col. C. E. Hovey (note they call him “Gen.” as he was up for promotion, which is another interesting aspect of this story). The questions I am looking at I have already reviewed here.

I am going to have to spend some serious time looking into Hovey’s financial history, whatever is available to look at. I want to get into the private holdings of Generals Curtis and Steele, as well as a few other officers. I have found enough from the ground up (foot soldiers) discussing rumors, along with documented reports such as the one to the right, that has me convinced that Hovey and others were heavily involved.