Preble County, Ohio - Chapter 13: Preble in the War of 1812, 1881

Chapter 13: Preble in the War of 1812

PREBLE county was well represented in the war of 1812, but as the records have been kept very loosely, it is impossible to give the names of all the Preble men who served "a tour of duty." A portion of those given (Captain Sloane's company) were obtained from the adjutant general's office at Columbus, and the companies of James I. Nesbit and Lieutenant Fleming from an old record book in the possession of T. J. Larsh, esq. Beside the roster given, there were full companies or companies made up in part of Preble men, under the command of John Fleming, Joseph C. Hawkins, David E. Hendricks, Lieutenant Black and Captains Ramsey, Rex and Phillips.

''Captain James I. Nesbit, of New Lexington, built a stockade fort seven miles north of New Paris, and was stationed at that place with a small detachment of Preble drafted men, and upon the siege of Fort Meigs, was ordered to that locality. This left the settlements at Eaton and about New Paris and Richmond, Indiana, exposed to Indian depredations from the northwest. The settlers, as a means of safety, built block-houses in many places. One of them was upon the Brookville road south of Robert Miller's residence, then owned by John Hopkins.

'*On Sunday, when many of the settlers had assembled for divine worship, and after the close of a very impressive service, one of the elders proposed to raise a volunteer corps (to be composed of men who were exempt from the draft because of theirage), to guard the frontier against the mauranding bands of savages who had recently killed one man on Whitewater, and two men on Twin creek.

"The proposition met with general approval, and about twenty men volunteered. John Goldsmith was first on the list, and then came Silas Dooley, sr., Moses Dooley, sr., James Crawford, Elihu Hopkins, William Sellers, Elder George Shidler, John Garter,

"Rev. George Shidler was elected captain, and Moses Dooley, lieutenant. They garrisoned Fort Nesbit until relieved by Captain Richard Sloan, of Israel township. Lieutenant Black was stationed at Fort Black with one half of Captain Sloan's company."

CAPTAIN NESBIT'S COMPANY. List of officers and men called out of the Third regiment of the Fifth brigade of the First division of Ohio militia, agreeable to general orders bearing date the fourteenth of April, 1812, as returned by Samuel Ward, adjutant:

Non-Commissioned Officers

Upon the outbreak of the war of 1812 Governor Meigs called out the First division of Ohio militia, the response from which, and from other volunteers, was prompt and decided. Several companies in this command were from Preble county, wholly or in part. We present below as many of their rolls as we have been able to procure from the office of the adjutant general of the State and from private sources. The only roll of Preble county men found in the very meagre records of the State office relating. to the war of 1812 is that of Captain Sloane's company of Ohio militia, attached to the - - battalion, Third regiment, Fifth brigade, First division of Ohio, ordered into. the service of the United States for the protection of their frontiers, October 8, 1812, and stationed at Fort Nesbit, under command of Major General Adams." The expiration of pay upon these rolls is noted at January 7, 1813, four months after the term of enlistment hegan. 'The roster is as

[THE following rosters of companies and parts of companies enlisted from Preble county in the late war, are copied from the records and rolls in the office of the adjutant general of the State, where every courtesy to this end has been extended by the officers in charge. The records of military service of the State contingents in the various wars of our country are, however, notoriously imperfect, especially in the cases of men in the three months' service, and in the Mexican war, and the war of 1812. Indeed, in the last few instances, the copyist has been unable, from the few rolls on file, to - identify a single soldier as a representative of Preble county. And in the immense mass of rolls containing the lists of the late war, it often happens that no means of satisfactorily locating a soldier, or even a.company, presents itself. An entire regiment, representing, perhaps, fifty localities, may appear as enrolled at Camp Dennison, Camp Chase, or other place of rendezvous and organization, without any indication upon the rolls, or elsewhere in the office, of the places or counties to which the men should be credited. Even the excellent work of Mr. Whitelaw Reid, "Ohio in the War," - to which we acknowledge indebtedness for the material of the regimental histories following, is sadly deficient in this particular. Furthermore, it sometimes occurs that names belonging to the State are duplicated in the rolls; so, "Camden," for example, may mean Camden township, Lorain county, and not Camden village in Preble. A man may thus appear upon the Preble county roll of honor, who really belongs to Lorain; or a Preble man may not appear at ail, because his enrollment at **Camden" appears in a position with other Lorain county names, and is presumed to belong to that county. If any names therefore are omitted from this chapter which should appear in it, these facts may account for the omission, as also if any appear in the list which should not be there. The spelling of the rolls - which are sometimes strangely inconsistent with themselves - has been followed in the rosters, and upon it must be laid, in any case, the attainment of that peculiar sort of fame which Byron mentions as "having your name spelt wrong in the Gazette." An earnest effort has been made to present a full and accurate record - an effort which it is believed has been measurably successful. When not otherwise specified, it will always be understood that the service was for three years, or during the war. |

Twentieth Ohio Infantry

The Twentieth Ohio was organized in May, 1861, for the three months' service. Captain John C. Fry, with his company joining the three years' organization, was made colonel of thé regiment in January, 1864. At the time of its re-organization for three years, Colonel Charles Whittlesey of Northern Ohio was put in command. A graduate of West Point, eminent as engineer and geologist, he could well carry forward the defenses of Cincinnati begun by General O. M. Mitchel, and then in progress. During the winter of 1861 - 2 batteries were guarded in the rear of Covington and Newport, and in February of that year the regiment, with the exception of company K, embarked for che Cumberland river. At Fort Donelson, on the evening of February 14th the Twentieth had its first experience of battle. It was placed in reserve at the extreme right, and, after the surrender of the fort, being sent north with prisoners, was scattered all over the land. By the middle of March seven companies had come together, and early in April, at the battle of Pittsburgh Landing, the regiment had its share in the loss of members, and no less in the glory of the victory that closed the day. Lieutenant Colonel Force commanded during the engagement, Colorel Whittlesey being at the head of the brigade. On the sixth of June, 1862, the regiment became a part of the garrison at Bolivar. August 3oth the rebel General Armstrong was held in check with such success that Colonel Force, Major Fry, Captain Kaga, Adjutant Owen, Lieutenants Ayers, Hills and Millick, of the 'Twentieth, were mentioned with especial honor in Colonel Leggett's official report. Having assisted in driving Price from Iuka, the regiment, now a part of Logan's division, marched southward till the capture of Holly Springs, when, facing about, by slow steps January 28th it received a reinforcement, at Memphis, of two hundred men. In February the regiment went to the relief of Porter's fleet, blockaded in Steele's bayou. In May, moving in advance of the Seventeenth corps as it approached Raymond, Mississippi, a loss was sustained of twelve killed and fifty-two wounded. In January, 1864, twothirds of the men present re-enlisted and joined the ccle- brated Meridian expedition. In the spring the regiment went north on veteran furlough, and after thirty days at their homes, rendezvoused at Camp Dennison. In July, before Atlanta, the Twentieth lost forty-four killed, fiftysix wounded, and fifty-four missing. During the engagement instances of personal daring were numberless, and not a few have been recorded as worthy of especial distinction. On the thirty-first of August followed the battle of Jonesborough, and October 5th began the pursuit of Hood. The middle of November saw the regiment with Sherman's army ez route for Savannah. Doing some excellent work at Beaufort, South Carolina, the Twentieth remained in camp until the thirtieth of January, when it started on the Carolina campaign, which ended in Johnston's surrender. Leaving Raleigh May rst, the joyful men marched to Washington by way of Richmond, were at the grand review of the twenty-fourth of May, and on the twenty-fourth of July arrived in Columbus, where they were mustered out of service.

The following named Preble county boys in company B, were mostly or all of them students at Miami university, Oxford, at the outbreak of the war, and joined a company raised at once from the classes of that school, commanded by Captain Ozri Jamison Dodds, then a student at the university from Cincinnati.

Twenty-Second Ohio Infantry

This regiment was one of the offshoots of the appointment of Major General John C. Fremont to the command of the western department. Although its ranks were mainly from the Buckeye State, and officered by Ohio men, its place of organization near St. Louis and Missouri gave it for a time the name of " Missouri Thirteenth." On the twenty-sixth of January, 1862, the regiment received orders to proceed to Cairo, Illinois, and there report to Brigadier General Grant. On its arrival, it was first ordered to Smithland, Kentucky, then toward Fort Henry, from which point an immediate return was ordered. This lengthy march was the regiment's first experience in field service, and, owing to a sudden change of weather from summer to winter, the initiation was very severe. 'The regiment took its first taste of warfare before Fort Donelson, but the surrender of that work occurred without its having any decisive part to perform. Its first action of any account was at the battle of Pittsburgh Landing. During the two days' fight, the regiment lost, in killed and wounded, eightynine officers and men. The brave Lieutenant Colonel St. James fell the first day. Captain Wright was afterward promoted to fill his place, and Captain Wood to the place of Major C. W. Anderson, resigned. Surgeon

On July 7, 1862, the Secretary of War issued an order transferring this regiment to the State of Ohio, where it properly belonged, to be named the *Twentysecond." "The resignation of both superior officers left the regiment, on the sixteenth of September, under the command of Major Wood. While at Trenton, Tennessee, a detachment was successful in capturing the notorious guerrilla chief, Colonel Dawson, who afterward died in the State penitentiary at Alton, Illinois. Following this, we hear of the Twenty-second at Jackson, Corinth, Memphis, Haine's Bluff, Helena, and finally at Little Rock. In February, 1864, one hundred and five officers and men re-enlisted as veterans, and the regiment received eighty-one recruits.

October 26, 1864, orders were received that the regiment should report at Camp Dennison, Ohio, to be mustered out of service. This was completed on the eighteenth of November, after a faithful service of a few days beyond three years.

Commissioned Officers

mainly young and intelligent men. At the beginning it numbered, all told, less than nine hundred men. The Thirty-fifth participated in some of the skirmishes during the siege of Corinth, and was among the first to enter the works at that place. Shortly after commenced the race between Buell and Bragg, the goal being Louisville. In the movement on Bragg, the fight at Perryville, and the pursuit to Crab Orchard, they bore an honorable part. All through the campaign which began at Murfreesborough and closed at Chattanooga, this regiment was in the front of the marching and fighting. In July of 1863, Major Boynton was promoted to fill the place of colonel, left vacant by resignation, and from this time the regiment was under Colonel Boynton's command when he was able for duty. In the two days' fight at Chickamauga, the Thirty-fifth lost just fifty per cent. of those engaged. Scarcely one was taken by the enemy - they were killed or wounded. Colonel Boynton was conspicuous during the whole fight for his gallantry and skill, and the regiment was highly commended in the reports of that action. During the autumn of 1863, the Thirty-fifth lay with other regiments at Chattanooga and engaged in frequent skirmishes before- that place. They were on the front line ` at Mission Ridge. In February, 1864, this regiment was in the first battle of the Atlanta campaign, at Buzzard's Roost. It was with Sherman from the initiation of his Atlanta campaign till the expiration of its term of service, while lying before Atlanta. They were engaged at Dalton, Resaca, Pine Mountain, Kenesaw, Peachtree Creek, and in several other of the fights of that bloody contest. The mustering out occurred in August, 1864, at Chattanooga. During the three years of service, its gallant men could say that they had never been driven from a field. COMPANY E. COMMISSIONED OFFICERS.

Forty-Seventh Ohio Infantry

This regiment was one of the first supplied by the Buckeye State. Its organization was completed at Camp Dennison, August 13, 1861. Thirteen nationalities were represented in it, and Frederick Poschner, jr., a native of Hungary, formerly an officer in the Prussian army, was elected its colonel. General Rosecrans was commanding in West Virginia then, and the Forty-seventh was here made ready for war. September 24, the brigade advanced on Big Sewell mountain, encamping on an opposite peak to the rebel fortifications. While here the soldiers suffered almost beyond description. The heavy and continuous rains swept away bridges and rendered roads impassable, so that the supplies were nearly all cut off. On quarter rations, without clothes and tents, their earlier experiences of warfare were painful in the extreme. On the thirtieth of December, 1862, the regiment embarked on steamers for Louisville and Memphis. Here they became a part of the expedition against Vicksburgh. In the march that ended at Walnut Hills, behind Vicksburgh, May 18, 1863, many prisoners were captured from General Loring's forces. On the nineteenth and again on the twenty-second, Colonel Perry led an impetuous assault on Cemetery Hill. Each time he gained a footing close under the works, and held it for a time. The loss, however, was severe. Soon after the Forty-seventh was dispatched after Johnston's forces. It had a part in the attack and capture of Jackson. Colonel A. C. Perry was made provost marshal, and his regiment destroyed the rebel fortifications and the railroad track about the city. Afterward we hear of

October 21, 1863, the regiment arrived opposite Chattanooga, and three days after the whole army advanced and opened the battle of Chickamauga. Following this battle the Forty-seventh was made a part of the force sent to General Burnside's relief at Knoxville, and on January 30, 1864, joined an expedition against Rome, Georgia. March sixth of the same year, three-fourths of the men re-enlisted, and on the twenty-fifth of April, after a month's furlough, they re-assembled, to a man, at Camp Dennison, and. on-the third of the following month were again in the army at Stevenson, Alabama. In the Atlanta campaign that followed, this regiment bore no inferior part. November rsth saw them off with Sherman's army in its memorable *march to the sea." On Monday, December 13th, the assault on Fort McAllister was made, the Forty-seventh in the advance. At the successful issue, it was found that the colors of this regiment were the first planted upon the fort. On Christmas, Savannah was occupied. Shortly after followed a march through the rebel capital to Washington, which ended in a participation in the grand review.

When the Forty-seventh entered the field, it numbered eight hundred and thirty men; at the end of the Atlanta campaign only one hundred and twenty remained. It was subsequently reinforced by four hundred drafted men and substitutes. It served as a part of the "army of occupation" till August 24th, when the men were paid off and discharged, having served fuur years two months and nine days, and in all the slave States except Texas, Florida and Missouri.

Fiftieth Ohio Infantry

bered an aggregate of nine hundred and sixty-four men, gathered from the State at large. The Fiftieth was assigned to the Thirty-fourth brigade, Tenth division, McCook's corps. On the first of October it moved out of Louisville, and on the eighth went into the battle of Pérryville. In this engagement a loss was sustained of two officers killed and one mortally wounded, and one hundred and sixty-two men killed and wounded.

During the army's advance on Nashville, the regiment was at Lebanon - then the base of supplies. We afterwards hear of it in pursuit of John Morgan, and still farther, in the building of Forts Boyle, Sands, and Mc- Allister. On Christmas day, 1863, it was ordered to Knoxville, Tennessee. The route lay eastward to Somerset, Kentucky, and thence southward, crossing the Cumberland river at Point Isabelle. On the first day of the year 1864, movement began across the mountains. In the severest winter weather, the men dragged the artillery and wagons over the mountains by hand, slept on the frozen ground in rain and snow without shelter, and subsisted on parched corn. Soon atter arriving at Knoxville, it received orders to join General Sherman's army at Kingston, Georgia.

From the twenty-sixth of May until after the siege of Atlanta, the regiment was almost constantly in line of battle. It shared in all the movements of the campaign, and participated in the actions at Pumpkin-vine Creek, Dallas, New Hope Church, Lost Mountain, Pine Mountain, Kenesaw Mountain, Culp's Farm, Nicajack Creek, Chattahoochie River, Howard House, Atlanta, and Jonesborough. During this campaign the ranks of the regiment were sadly thinned. Following the battle of Jonesborough, in pursuit of Hood's army, the regiment passed through Marietta, Kingston, Rome, and at last halted for a few days on the Coosa river, at Cedar Bluffs. On the thirtieth of November it arrived at Franklin, Tennessee. It went into the battle that followed, with two hundred and twenty-five men, and came out with one hundred and twelve. It fell back with the army to Nashville, and in the engagements that occurred there on the fifteenth and sixteenth of December, lost several more of its men. The regiment followed the retreating rebels as far as Columbia, Tennessee, where it was con- ` solidated with the Ninety-ninth infantry, the name of the Fiftieth being retained.

We now hear of the newly consolidated regiment in Clifton, Tennessee, at Fort Fisher, Wilmington, Kingston, Goldsborough, Raleigh, Greensborough, and at last in Salisbury, North Carolina, where it was mustered out on the twenty-sixth of June, 1865. On the seventeenth of July, the regiment reached Camp Dennison, Ohio, where the men were all paid and discharged.

Fifty-Fourth Ohio Infantry

FIFTY-FOURTH OHIO INFANTRY. Recruiting for this regiment began late in the summer of 1861. It was organized at Camp Dennison, where it remained for drill the following fall and winter.

February, with an aggregate number of eight hundred and fifty men. The first engagement was in the battle of Pittsburgh Landing, April 6, 1862. At the end of the two days' fighting a loss was sustained of one hundred and ninety-eight men' killed, wounded and missing.

On the twenty-ninth of April, movement was made upon Corinth, On the morning of the evacuation, the Fifty-fourth was among the first to enter the town. It was afterwards designated to perform provost duty, the commanding officer of the regiment being appointed commandant of the post of Corinth.

During the summer there were several short expeditions. At Chickasaw Bayou, December 28th and 29th, in an assault on the rebel works, there was a loss of twenty men killed and wounded. The first of the year 1863 we hear of the Fifty-fourth in the capture of Arkansas Post.

On the sixth of May the regiment began its march toward Vicksburgh, engaging in the battles of Champion Hills and Big Black Ridge on its way. Ina general assault on the enemy's works, on the nineteenth and twenty-second of June, it met with a loss of fortyseven in killed and wounded men. During the entire siege of Vicksburgh, this regiment was continually employed in skirmishing and fatigue duty, except six days consumed in a march of observation toward Jackson, Mississippi.

It was engaged in the battle of Missionary Ridge, November 26th, and the following day marched to the relief of the garrison at Knoxville, Tennessee.

organization January 22d, and at once started to Ohio on furlough. In April it returned to camp with two hundred recruits, and at once entered on the Atlanta campaign. It participated in.a general engagement at Resaca and Dallas, and in a severe skirmish at New Hope Church. In the general assault upon Kenesaw Mountain, June 27th, there was a loss of twenty-eight killed and wounded, at Nicajack Creek thirteen killed and wounded, and in the battle east of Atlanta, July 21st and 22d, ninety-four killed, wounded and missing.

Moving by way of Richmond, the regiment arrived in Washington city, where it took part in the grand review. In August it was mustered out. The aggregate strength of the regiment at that time was twenty-four officers and two hundred and thirty-one men.

Sixty-Ninth Ohio Infantry

The organization of this regiment took effect early in the year 1862. April 19th it was ordered to report for duty at Nashville, Tennessee, where it arrived five days after.

The first action was with Morgan's men near the town of Gallatin. Here one man was killed. When Bragg's army attempted a flank movement toward Louisville, the Sixty-ninth was left at Nashville as a part of the garrison for the city. On the thirty-first of December, the first day of the battle of Stone River, the-regiment with its brigade was engaged with the enemy, taking position in the advance line of General George H. Thomas' Fourteenth corps. It became involved in the disaster on the right, and was compelled to fight its way back, suffering severely in killed and wounded.

January 2d the Sixty-ninth was in the brilliant but desperate charge across Stone river, in which the rebels were driven back with heavy loss. On June 24, 1863, the Tullahoma campaign began. It was also in the battle of Mission Ridge, and was among the first to reach the top of the mountain. Major J. J. Hanna, then in command, received much commendation for his efficient and brave conduct.

The re-enlistment of the regiment and its succeeding furlough of thirty days but gave new inspiration for work, and on May 14th occurred the engagement with the enemy near Resaca. Between this time and the fight at Jonesborough we read of several engagements and many killed and wounded. This battle caused the evacuation of Atlanta, and the National forces occupied that city.

The regiment participated in the subsequent chase after Hood, after which it returned to Atlanta and joined Sherman's march to the sea. The last battle in which it had a part occurred near Goldsborough, North Carolina, March 19, 1865. Then came the march through Richmond, the grand review at Washington, the transfer at Louisville, and lastly the muster out of service, on the seventeenth of July, 1865.

Seventy-Fifth Ohio Infantry

The organization of this regiment was completed at Camp John McLean, near Cincinnati, December 18, 1861. By the first day of spring a prolonged march in West Virginia fairly initated the men into the hardships of a soldier's life.

they received a spirited attack from the enemy. The Seventy-fifth, being in the advance, stood its ground manfully, and the enemy finally gave way. Shortly after this, in an attempt to guard the stores accumulated at McDowell, a little village at the foot of Bull Pasture mountain, a severe battle occurred with the rebel General Jackson. At the close, so severe was the loss of the enemy, that he reported it as "the bloodiest of the war for the number engaged." No prisoners were taken on either side. The Seventy-fifth gained especial laurels to its name under the immediate eye of General Milroy, who warmly congratulated Colonel McLean on the gallantry of his regiment.

Following a number of engagements which our space wil not permit us to describe, came the relieving of General Fremont, when Major General Pope took command; and the next affair in which the Seventy-fifth . faced the enemy was at Cedar Mountain, Virginia, on the eighth of August, 1862. During the week that followed, there were frequent engagements, and at Freeman's Ford there was a heavy loss.

Jackson finally flanked Pope, got in his rear, burnt his wagon-trains and three trains of cars, and was again attacked by General Pope at Groveton, near the old Bull Run battle-field, August 28, 1862. Fora time the fighting was bloody in the extreme, and the Seventy-fifth lost one hundred and fifteen in killed and wounded. It was observed, as an evidence of the severity of the fire, that ninety shots took effect on the colors of this one regiment, during the battle.

Nothing of importance now occurred in the history of the regiment until the second of May, 1863, at Chancellorsville. The history of that battle is well known. The Eleventh corps, surprised and overwhelmed by the impetuous rebels, fell back in almost complete demoralization. Yet McLean's Ohio brigade, a part of that corps, merited the highest praise for the cool, steady manner in which it received the enemy under the most trying circumstances. In the short space of one-half hour, one hundred and fifty men were killed or wounded.

After this battle, the Seventy-fifth returned to its old camp near Brook's station, when it became a part of the force that confronted the enemy at Gettysburgh, on the first of July, 1863. The regiment was under fire every day of the battle until its termination. Of sixteen officers that went into the engagement, three were killed, seven dangerously or fatally wounded, and four taken prisoners. Of two hundred and ninety-two enlisted men, sixty-hree were killed, one hundred and six wounded, and thirty-four taken prisoners.

On the sixth of August, Colonel McLean, with the Ohio brigade, consisting of the Fifty-fifth, Seventy-third, Seventy-fifth, and Eighty-second infantry regiments, was sent to Charleston, South Carolina, and on the eighteenth went into the trenches on Morris Island. The duty here was severe in the extreme, owing to the intense heat and the impossibility of getting even temporary relief. More men died from disease than were killed by the enemy's shells. - ; and was afterward known as the Seventy-fifth mounted infantry, performing all the duties of a regular cavalry regiment. Immediately after this, we hear of it, broken into sections, being sent in different directions to hinder blockade-running, to bring cattle needed by the National army that had been driven away by their owners, to protect the Unionists from rebel persecutions, and to repel threatened attacks. Frequent skirmishing with the Second Florida cavalry was ended, on the tenth of August, 1864, by General Birney being relieved of his command by General Hatch. The expedition that followed, into the interior of Florida, ended disastrously in the capture of about half the command.

After the fall of Savannah, the Seventy-fifth was sent to Jackson, Florida, to organize a veteran detachment. This was accomplished on the fifteenth of January, 1865. In August, 1865, it retired from service with honor to its members and to their State.

The colonel of this regiment during a large part of its service - Andrew L. Harris, originally captain of company C, from Preble county, now auditor of said county - was specially distinguished for his bravery and efficiency in service, and received particular notice for his daring in leading a desperate charge during the service of the regiment in Florida.

Eighty-First Ohio Infantry

This regiment was raised by Colonel Morton, formerly of the Twentieth Ohio, under orders from General Fremont, as an "Independent rifle regiment," but the organization of that having failed, it was filled up as the Eighty-first Ohio infantry. It rendezvoused at Benton barracks, near St. Louis, in August and September, 1861, and moved to the field during the latter month. It endured much the ensuing winter in pursuit of the enemy and while guarding the North Missouri railroad. In March, 1862, it was moved by steamer to Pittsburgh Landing, and took part in the battle there. In the subsequent action of Corinth, it lost eleven killed, fortyfour wounded, and three missing. Its after career brought it into the campaigns through northern Alabama and Tennessee, and to Atlanta with its bloody battles; the triumphant marches to the sea and through the Carolinas and Virginia to the capital of the nation, where it took part in the grand reviews, and after a brief period of service at Louisville, it was finally mustered out at Camp Dennison, July 21, 1865. It had been re-organized as a veteran regiment in January, 1864. During its service thirty-four of its members were killed on the field, twenty-four died of wounds and one hundred and twenty-one of disease, and one hundred and thirty-six were discharged for disability.

Eighty-Sixth Ohio Infantry

This regiment was recruited originally for the three months' service, and then reorganized for six months' service. 'The former organization was effected in May, 1862, under a special call to repel Jackson, who had defeated Banks, and was threatening to invade the North. It did guard duty at Grafton, Virginia, Parkersburgh, and other points, and moved to Beverly and elsewhere to repel an enemy which did not exist. The regiment was mustered out at Camp- Delaware, at the expiration of its term.

The six months' regiment was raised by a number of officers of the old organization, headed by Major (afterwards Colonel) Lemert, of Bucyrus. It was moved to Zanesville, to join in the pursuit of Morgan, then on his raid through Ohio; but was too late to be of much service. Returning to Camp Tod, it was in August ordered to Kentucky, as a part of the expedition against Cumberland Gap, which was taken by the Federal forces. The Eighty-sixth took possession of and "held the fort," remaining there as a garrison, subsisting scantily off the country, and skirmishing often with guerillas, until its term of service was over, when it returned to Ohio and was mustered out at Cleveland February ro, 1863.

Company

` Wiillam M. Ammerman, Washington Eddy, Robert N. Grayham, James F. Johnston, William A. Kemple, Samuel Moore, Thomas A. Newton, Joseph T. Ramsey, William Wright.

Ninety-Third Ohio Infantry

This regiment was regularly organized at Camp Dayton, near Dayton, during the latter part of the summer of 1862. It numbered, at the beginning, thirty-nine officers and nine hundred and twenty-nine men,

'The Ninety-third moved with the army to Nashville, and, in December, while guarding a forage-train, was attacked by the Rebels, and, in this, its first engagement, it lost one killed and three wounded. Suffering severely in the battle of Stone River, it afterwards encamped for a time south, and then west, of Murfreesborough. Thence it is heard of at Liberty Gap, Hoover's Gap, Tullahoma, Bellefonte, Stevenson, Lookout Mountain, and Chickamauga. At the last place there was some severe skirmishing on the eighteenth of September, and on the following day orders were received to join General 'Thomas, from which time, until the first of October, the Ninety-third acted no unimportant part. in the prolonged contest.

November 23d, a charge upon Orchard Knob ended with a loss of eleven killed and forty-nine wounded. Six men were shot down while carrying the regimental colors, and three days after this time, in an assault on Mission Ridge, came another loss of eight killed and twenty wounded.

The last of November the Ninety-third started for East Tennessee. The campaign of this winter was most severe; at one time the regiment was reduced to four officers and ninety men.

After much time spent in marching and countermarching, on the third of May the regiment started on the Atlanta campaign, with an aggregate of three hundred men. Onthe way they met with numerous encounters, among others the battle of Resaca. It was in reserve at the battle of Jonesborough. The three following months send news of the Ninety-third from Atlanta, Gailsville, Chattanooga, Pulaski, Columbia, Franklin, and Nashville.

During the winter nothing of great importance occurred until the middle of March, when the regiment left for East Tennessee. It went to Bull's Gap, thence to Greenville, where it arrived about the first of May. On the eighth of June the muster-out took place, at Camp Harker, near Nashville. The men proceeded at once to Camp Dennison, Ohio, where they were paid, and received their discharges by the fourteenth of June.

Prior to the muster-out of the regiment, eight officers and two hundred and forty-one men were discharged for disability; four officers and two hundred and four men were accounted for as "died of disease, wounds, and killed in action." The surviving members have an association for preserving the memory of olden times. But no such association is needed to keep fresh the sufferings or the glory of the many engagements in which the brave Ninety-third had a part - the records of Stone River, Chickamauga, Brown's Ferry, Orchard Knob, Mission Ridge, Resaca, Kenesaw, Atlanta, Jonesborough, Franklin, and Nashville, are the records of a nation that has a future, as well as a present and a past.

One Hundred And Twelfth Ohio Volunteer Infantry

The organization of this regiment was not completed. The company to which the following named Preble county soldiers belonged (Captain George Wightman's), was transferred to the Sixty-third Ohio infantry soon after enrollment, and mustered into the service *in the field, in Kentucky," September 13, 1862:

Commissioned Officer

ONE HUNDRED AND NINETY-FIRST OHIO VOLUNTEER INFANTRY. (One Year's Service.) COMPANY D. COMMISSIONED OFFICER. First Lieutenant James H. Stewart. PRIVATES.

Guard

FIFTH INDEPENDENT COMPANY OF SHARP-SHOOTERS. PRIVATES. Ephraim D. Holester, Benjamin F, Watkins. ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY-SIXTH OHIO NATIONAL GUARD. (Hundred Days' Service.)

This regiment was organized at Camp Dennison on the fourth of May, 1864, by the consolidation of the Thirty-fourth regiment with the Eightieth and Eightyfirst battalions Ohio National Guard. The regiment was mustered into the United States service with an aggregate of eight hundred and sixty-four men.

On the twentieth of May, companies A, B, C, D, E, F and H proceeded to Cincinnati, where they performed guard duty, companies G, I and K remaining at Camp Dennison on guard and patrol duty, until Morgan appeared in the vicinity of Cynthiana, Kentucky, when they were sent to Falmouth, in that State. The seven companies remained on duty in Cincinnati until July 18th, when the entire regiment was brought together at Covington and moved to Paris, Kentucky. The regiment was soon ordered to Cumberland, Maryland, to resist the rebel invasion, and, proceeding by way of Cincinnati and Parkersburgh, it reached that place on the thirty-first of July, and went into camp on the hill southeast of the city. On the first of August, at three o'clock, ». M., the regiment moved on the double-quick through the town and out the Baltimore turnpike about three miles, near to Folch's Mills, where it met the enemy under Generals McCausland and Bradley Johnson.

The One Hundred and Fifty-sixth, although exposed to a severe fire of artillery and musketry, maintained itself well, and sustained but slight loss. The engagement began at four o'clock, P. M., and ceased at nine o'clock. The regiment lay on its arms at night, but daylight showed that the enemy had retreated. General Kelley, in a letter to Colonel Marker, complimented the regiment upon the steadiness of its line, and on the accuracy with which it returned the fire of the enemy's sharp-shooters.

After this engagement, the regiment remained on duty at and near Cumberland until the twenty-sixth of August, when it was ordered to Ohio for muster out. It was mustered out at Camp Dennison on the first of September, 1864.

Fifth Ohio Cavalry

The work of raising this regiment was begun early in August, 1861, under the direction of Major General Fremont. The first name, "Second Ohio Cavalry," was changed to "Fifth" by Governor Dennison, upon the removal of General Fremont. From the first of November to the February following, the regiment remained at Camp Dennison, engaged in preparation for active service. On the twenty-sixth of this month, marching orders arrived for Paducah, Kentucky. Although poorly equipped, the orders were joyfully obeyed, and, after reporting to Brigadier General W. T. Sherman at Paducah, it proceeded to Fort Henry, thence to Danville, and finally up the river to Savannah. Previous to the battle of Pittsburgh Landing, the battalion was on numerous scouts, and had several skirmishes with the rebels in the vicinity of Purdy. Early on the morning of the sixth, while the men were preparing breakfast, the rebels began a storm of attack. The cavalry were soon the aim of the enemy's artillery, yet not a man of this raw cavalry regiment, in this the first fight - and that fight Pittsburgh Landing - failed to stand his ground. In fact, the behavior of officers and men throughout this closely-fought and trying battle was highly commended by Generals Grant and Sherman. The Fifth advanced with the army in the slow siege of Corinth. The first and second battalions brought on the battle of Metamora. They fought bravely, capturing many prisoners. The third battle was with General Rosecrans at Corinth, and the command again behaved well. A part of it checked the advance of Van Dorn's ten thousand in the battle of Davis' Mill.

'The conduct of this heroic handful of men shone so brilliantly, in contrast with the shameful surrender of Holly Springs, that it caused General Grant to recount their valor in general order, requesting the whole army tq follow their example, and ordering that the "Fifth Ohio. Cavalry inscribe on its colors, in addition to "Pittsburgh Landing," the name 'Davis' Mill." On the twenty-first of March, the regiment moved from Germantown to Memphis, and again picketed that city. While here, numerous expeditions were made southward against the enemy's cavalry, by which the regiment sustained some heavy losses in killed, wounded, and prisoners. The corruption at Memphis was indescribable, and the men, in spite of discipline, would find ways of reaching thecity. At length orders came, and the command moved toward Camp Davis, Mississippi, where it was joined by the Third battalion, under Major Smith, which had been detached for more than a year. While this battalion was acting independently, it was engaged in forty-seven skirmishes and actions. It captured more than three hundred prisoners, and as many horses and mules. It marched over fifteen hundred miles. In all, the number of killed and captured did not exceed twenty five. Resting but one day after the union of the three battalions, the work of the regiment was entered upon - the protection of Corinth. In anticipation of spending the winter at Camp Davis, a complete camp had been built, when from Major General W. T. Sherman came the order "March at daylight (October 17, 1863) toward Chattanooga." 'There was skirmishing on the twentieth at Cherokee station; the twenty-second, twenty-third and twenty-fourth were likewiise employed. Arriving at.Chattanooga, a part remained there and at Mission Ridge, guarding trains, while a part served upon the field, and followed the retreating rebels as far as Ringgold. After this time this command is heard of at Knoxville and other important points, bearing no small part in the service of suffering and enduring, as well as acting. During the spring of 1864, the regiment effected a veteran organization. July 13th, it reached Cartersville, and remained the rest of the summer, protecting the railroad from the incessant attacks of the rebel cavalry. On the seventh of November, it was transfer- ` red to General Kilpatrick's cavalry division. Here the work of concentration had been going on for some days; but so short was the time allowed that hundreds of men were necessarily organized into a dismounted brigade. The First Ohio squadron, Gaptain Dalzell, was here attached to the Fifth. The cavalry arrived at Atlanta, November 14th, and the following morning commenced the "March to the Sea." The Fifth was in all the operations of the command, many of them arduous and dangerous, until after the fall of Savannah, when it was placed near King's Bridge. On the twenty-eighth of

January, 1865, the command, for the first time, trod the ` "Sacred Soil" of chivalric South Carolina. On the eighth of February, the Third brigade, of which the Fifth was now a part, completely routed General Hagan's brigade of six regiments, capturing five battle-flags and a number of prisoners. After further marching and skirmishing for more than a month, it was temporarily stampeded with its brigade, March roth, in a night attack, by three divisions of the rebels under Wade Hampton, losing seventy-three killed, wounded and missing. It was in the final actions of Sherman's army at Averysborough and Bentonville, and was the first regiment to enter Raleigh, and restore the National flag to the dome of the capitol. After the close of the war, it occupied western North Carolina, preserving the peace in the turbulent districts, until October 30, 1865, when the glorious career of the gallant Fifth ended, and its members resumed their places as citizens of the commonwealth. FIELD AND STAFF.

Besides the service in Ohio regiments and batteries, many Preble county men were in the gunboat service, and others, owing to the proximity to the Indiana State line, entered the service with commands from that State - the Eighteenth, Thirtieth, Thirty-sixth, Fifty-seventh, Sixty-ninth and Eighty-fourth infantry, also the Second and Fourth Indiana cavalry, and the Third, Fourth, Seventh, Eleventh and Nineteenth batteries. The names of this, a certainly respectable part of the Preble. county contingent in the great war, it is not now practicable to obtain.

Besides all these, and those who enlisted from Preble county in the regular army, whose names, like the others, it is not now practicable to obtain; there was also the noble army of

The dangers threatening Cincinnati in.the latter part of the summer 1862, led Governor Tod, (as we shall see more fully hereafter, in the chapter on "the siege of Cincinmati,") to make a general announcement to the men of Ohio, that all who reported with arms in hand would be transported at public expense to that city, and received for the time being, into the service of the State. Telegraphic tenders had already been made to the authorities of that city, of militia, in large numbers, from Preble, Warren, Greene, Butler, Franklin, and other counties; so that thousands stood ready to answer the call without delay. Before daylight of the next morning after the proclamation of the governor, the tread of the advance of the grand army of Buckeye yeomen was heard upon the stony pavements of Cincinnati. As rapidly as possible the thronging hosts arriving were organized into companies and regiments, and sent to the works back of Covington, to the guard stations along the river, or to other posts of duty. The total number . known to have entered this temporary service from the State at large is fifteen thousand seven hundred and sixtysix, which was doubtless exceeded by several hundred, atleast - of which Preble county furnished three hundred and seventy-two. To the peculiarity of dress in many of them, and armament of numbers with light squirrel guns, suggested the happy title of "Squirrel Hunters," for the entire unique contingent, but by whom it was first applied, the historian has failed to learn. The designation has, however, passed honorably into history. The squirrel, amid appropriate scenery, and the squirrel hunter, in fitting costume, and in the act of loading his firearm, appear in good style upon the discharge certificates granted the hunters upon the termination of their services; and a spirited page engraving, in the first volume of Mr. Reid's "Ohio in the War," further illustrates and commemorates their personnel and deeds.

The Hunters were not long needed. Their relief from service began within ten or twelve days after they were called out, and by the middle of September nearly all were relieved and had returned to their homes. On Saturday, the thirteenth of that month, Governor Tod telegraphed to Stanton, Secretary of War:

"The Minute Men, or 'Squirrel Hunters,' responded gloriously to the call for the defense of Cincinnati. Thousands reached the city, and thousands more were ez route for it. The enemy having retired, all have been ordered back. This uprising of the people is the cause of the retreat. You should publicly acknowledge this gallant conduct."

At the next session of the legislature, an act was passed, and approved March 11, 1863, ordering the preparation and issue of formal discharge certificates

"for the patriotic men of the State who responded to the call of the governor, and went to the southern border to repel the invader, and who will be known in history as the 'Squirrel Hunters." These papers, handsomely engraved and printed, and issued to large numbers of those entitled to them; read as follows:

The Squirrel Hunters' Discharge

Our southern border was menaced by the enemies of our Union. David Tod, Governor of Ohio, called on the Minute Men of the State, and the ''Squirrel Hunters" came by thousands to the rescue. You, , were one of them, and this is your Honorable Discharge.

Malcolm Mcdowell

Adj't Gen. of Ohio. MALCOLM MCDOWELL, Major and A. D. C. This was accompanied, in each case, by this ringing letter from the governor, neatly printed for the purpose: THE STATE OF OHIO, EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT, COLUMBUS, March 4, 1863, To Esq., of County, O.:

Resolved by the Senate and House of Represeniuves of the State of Ohio, That the Governor be, and he is hereby authorized and directed to appropriate out of his contingent fund, a sufficient sum to pay for printing and lithographing discharges for the patriotic men of the State, who responded to the call of the Governor, and went to our southern border to repel the invaders, and who will be known in history as the "SQUIRREL HUNTERS."

And in obedience thereto, I do most cheerfully herewith enclose a certificate of your service. But for the gallant services of yourself and the other members of the corps of patriotic "Squirrel Hunters," rendered in September last, Ohio, our dear State, would have been invaded by a band of pirates detérmined to overthrow the best Government on earth, our wives and children: would have been violated and murdered, and our homes plundered.and sacked. Your children, and your children's children, willbe proud to know that you were one of this glorious band.

Preserve the certificate of service andidischarge, herewith enclosed to you as evidence'of this gallantry. The Rebellion is not yet crushed out, and therefore the discharge may not be final; keep the old gun then in order; see that the powder-horn and bullet-pouch are supplied, and caution your patriotic mothers or wives to be at ail times prepared to furnish you a.few days' cooked rations, so that if your services are called for (which may God in his infinite goodness forbid) you may again prove yourselves ''Minute Men" and again protect our loved homes.