Monday, April 7, 1862
Company A was among the companies sent out as skirmishers in the reconnaissance, and was under temporary command of Lieutenant Charles Whittier due to the sickness of Captain Harry Tremlett. Private Oliver Stanton Bates was among the skirmishers in the reconnaissance. Although he did not leave a personal record of the account, he was undoubtedly grateful that the regiment escaped without casualties.1
References:
1George A. Bruce, The Twentieth Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry 1861 - 1865 (Cambridge, Massachusetts: The Riverside Press, 1906), 82-83.
Showing posts with label Charles Whittier. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Charles Whittier. Show all posts
Saturday, April 7, 2012
Saturday, December 3, 2011
Regimental Matters - Resignations
Tuesday, December 3, 1861
Captain Caspar Crowninshield of Company D resigned from the regiment to accept a commission as captain in the First Massachusetts Cavalry, much to the regret of his fellow officers. First Lieutenant Norwood P. Hallowell was promoted to captain in his place. Second Lieutenant Charles Whittier was promoted to First Lieutenant, and new recruit Henry Ropes, scheduled to join on December 31, was commissioned Second Lieutenant.1
References:
1George A. Bruce, The Twentieth Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry 1861 - 1865 (Cambridge, Massachusetts: The Riverside Press, 1906), 72.
Captain Caspar Crowninshield of Company D resigned from the regiment to accept a commission as captain in the First Massachusetts Cavalry, much to the regret of his fellow officers. First Lieutenant Norwood P. Hallowell was promoted to captain in his place. Second Lieutenant Charles Whittier was promoted to First Lieutenant, and new recruit Henry Ropes, scheduled to join on December 31, was commissioned Second Lieutenant.1
References:
1George A. Bruce, The Twentieth Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry 1861 - 1865 (Cambridge, Massachusetts: The Riverside Press, 1906), 72.
Sunday, October 23, 2011
Oliver's Story - Ball's Bluff
Tuesday, October 22, 1861
Private Oliver Stanton Bates of Company A escaped injury and capture at the Battle of Ball's Bluff. His name does not appear on the casualty list for Ball's Bluff in the Twentieth Massachusetts Regimental History and his military records do not include a casualty sheet for wounding. In this episode he proved to be extremely resilient, as Company A reported the third highest casualties by company for the regiment, totaling 31 killed, wounded, or captured. Only the flank Companies D and H reported higher casualties at 37 and 32 respectively.1
It is unclear from the records whether Oliver swam across the Potomac River or made the passage by boat. He owed his survival in large part to the resourcefulness of company commanders Henry Tremlett and Charles Whittier of Company A and William "Frank" Bartlett and Henry Abbott of Company I, who plotted an escape route along the river bank and remained until all the enlisted men made it safely across the river.2
References:
1 Compiled service record, Oliver S. Bates, Pvt., Co. A, 20th Massachusetts Infantry; Carded Records, Volunteer Organizations, Civil War; Records of the Adjutant General's Office, 1780s-1917, Record Group 94; National Archives, Washington, D.C.; George A. Bruce, The Twentieth Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry 1861 - 1865 (Cambridge, Massachusetts: The Riverside Press, 1906), 59-61.
2 Richard F. Miller, Harvard's Civil War: A History of the Twentieth Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry (Lebanon, New Hampshire: University Press of New England, 2005), 77; Francis Winthrop Palfrey, Memoir of William Francis Bartlett (Boston, Massachusetts: Houghton, Osgood and Company, 1878), 26-29.
Private Oliver Stanton Bates of Company A escaped injury and capture at the Battle of Ball's Bluff. His name does not appear on the casualty list for Ball's Bluff in the Twentieth Massachusetts Regimental History and his military records do not include a casualty sheet for wounding. In this episode he proved to be extremely resilient, as Company A reported the third highest casualties by company for the regiment, totaling 31 killed, wounded, or captured. Only the flank Companies D and H reported higher casualties at 37 and 32 respectively.1
It is unclear from the records whether Oliver swam across the Potomac River or made the passage by boat. He owed his survival in large part to the resourcefulness of company commanders Henry Tremlett and Charles Whittier of Company A and William "Frank" Bartlett and Henry Abbott of Company I, who plotted an escape route along the river bank and remained until all the enlisted men made it safely across the river.2
References:
1 Compiled service record, Oliver S. Bates, Pvt., Co. A, 20th Massachusetts Infantry; Carded Records, Volunteer Organizations, Civil War; Records of the Adjutant General's Office, 1780s-1917, Record Group 94; National Archives, Washington, D.C.; George A. Bruce, The Twentieth Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry 1861 - 1865 (Cambridge, Massachusetts: The Riverside Press, 1906), 59-61.
2 Richard F. Miller, Harvard's Civil War: A History of the Twentieth Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry (Lebanon, New Hampshire: University Press of New England, 2005), 77; Francis Winthrop Palfrey, Memoir of William Francis Bartlett (Boston, Massachusetts: Houghton, Osgood and Company, 1878), 26-29.
Saturday, October 22, 2011
Letters from the Front - Henry Abbott
Tuesday, October 22, 1861
Lieutenant Henry Abbott penned another letter to his father, explaining the horrific events at Ball’s Bluff in greater detail. Selected excerpts are presented below:
Abbott noted that Company A suffered heavy casualties during the battle. He observed, "Tremlett's company got the worst of it…" Abbott recounted his escape down the river bank with Captains Bartlett and Tremlett and Lieutenant Whittier and men from their respective companies, Companies I and A. The officers sent enlisted men across the river by fives in a boat, with the officers leaving last. He followed this observation with an expectation of reprisal: “The little midnight adventure of ours has started the whole thing: now we shall have our revenge...”
He concluded his letter optimistically, praising the endurance of the soldiers under heavy fire: “The good of the action is this. It shows the pluck of our men. They followed their commanders admirably, except in the last charge that we made…”1
References:
1Robert Garth Scott, editor, Fallen Leaves: The Civil War Letters of Major Henry Livermore Abbott (Kent, Ohio: The Kent State University Press, 1991), 60-66.
Lieutenant Henry Abbott penned another letter to his father, explaining the horrific events at Ball’s Bluff in greater detail. Selected excerpts are presented below:
The fight was made up of charges. You would see our capts. rush out in front & cry forward & their companies would follow them at full speed under a tremendous fire till they were obliged to fall back. And this was repeated over & over during the 4 hours fight…
The general [Baker] was killed ... & Col. Lee ordered a retreat... we all started down the bank, every body knowing, however, that there was no chance of an escape. The col. ordered a surrender & had a white flag raised but the rebels fired upon us & we were obliged to retreat to the river's edge, the rebels pouring down a murderous fire…
Abbott noted that Company A suffered heavy casualties during the battle. He observed, "Tremlett's company got the worst of it…" Abbott recounted his escape down the river bank with Captains Bartlett and Tremlett and Lieutenant Whittier and men from their respective companies, Companies I and A. The officers sent enlisted men across the river by fives in a boat, with the officers leaving last. He followed this observation with an expectation of reprisal: “The little midnight adventure of ours has started the whole thing: now we shall have our revenge...”
He concluded his letter optimistically, praising the endurance of the soldiers under heavy fire: “The good of the action is this. It shows the pluck of our men. They followed their commanders admirably, except in the last charge that we made…”1
References:
1Robert Garth Scott, editor, Fallen Leaves: The Civil War Letters of Major Henry Livermore Abbott (Kent, Ohio: The Kent State University Press, 1991), 60-66.
Friday, October 21, 2011
A Bond Forged under Fire
Monday, October 21, 1861
Under the intense fire of battle and the grueling retreat the officers and enlisted men formed a bond of mutual respect and preservation. The officers behaved nobly, sacrificing their safety for the sake of the enlisted men. Colonel W. Raymond Lee, the commander of the regiment, followed this principle to his own detriment. During the retreat Captain William Bartlett of Company I found Colonel Lee sitting behind a tree. He refused to leave, saying that he would not leave his men, and felt that it was nobler to surrender to save the men from slaughter. Captain Bartlett and Adjutant Peirson each took one of Colonel Lee's arms and led him down the path to the riverbank to escape immediate capture or death. Colonel Lee refused to cross the river and abandon his wounded regiment, but encouraged and accompanied by other officers he sought a means of transport downriver near Smart's Mill, where he was captured by the Confederates.
At the riverbank Captains Bartlett and Tremlett and Lieutenants Abbott and Whittier took charge among their commands, Company I and A respectively, encouraging those men who were able to swim across the river while the officers covered their escape. Most of the men made it across to safety, and led by Captain Bartlett, the officers and remaining enlisted men raced along the riverbank towards Smart's Mill, the same route that Colonel Lee followed earlier. Captain Tremlett paid a man near Smart's Mill five dollars for a partially sunken skiff. Captain Bartlett directed the men across the river by fives. All the officers remained on the riverbank until every enlisted men was safely across the river except for Lieutenant Whittier, who was sent over to direct landings on the opposite shore.1
References:
1Richard F. Miller, Harvard's Civil War: A History of the Twentieth Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry (Lebanon, New Hampshire: University Press of New England, 2005), 75-80; Francis Winthrop Palfrey, Memoir of William Francis Bartlett (Boston, Massachusetts: Houghton, Osgood and Company, 1878), 26-29.
Under the intense fire of battle and the grueling retreat the officers and enlisted men formed a bond of mutual respect and preservation. The officers behaved nobly, sacrificing their safety for the sake of the enlisted men. Colonel W. Raymond Lee, the commander of the regiment, followed this principle to his own detriment. During the retreat Captain William Bartlett of Company I found Colonel Lee sitting behind a tree. He refused to leave, saying that he would not leave his men, and felt that it was nobler to surrender to save the men from slaughter. Captain Bartlett and Adjutant Peirson each took one of Colonel Lee's arms and led him down the path to the riverbank to escape immediate capture or death. Colonel Lee refused to cross the river and abandon his wounded regiment, but encouraged and accompanied by other officers he sought a means of transport downriver near Smart's Mill, where he was captured by the Confederates.
At the riverbank Captains Bartlett and Tremlett and Lieutenants Abbott and Whittier took charge among their commands, Company I and A respectively, encouraging those men who were able to swim across the river while the officers covered their escape. Most of the men made it across to safety, and led by Captain Bartlett, the officers and remaining enlisted men raced along the riverbank towards Smart's Mill, the same route that Colonel Lee followed earlier. Captain Tremlett paid a man near Smart's Mill five dollars for a partially sunken skiff. Captain Bartlett directed the men across the river by fives. All the officers remained on the riverbank until every enlisted men was safely across the river except for Lieutenant Whittier, who was sent over to direct landings on the opposite shore.1
References:
1Richard F. Miller, Harvard's Civil War: A History of the Twentieth Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry (Lebanon, New Hampshire: University Press of New England, 2005), 75-80; Francis Winthrop Palfrey, Memoir of William Francis Bartlett (Boston, Massachusetts: Houghton, Osgood and Company, 1878), 26-29.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)