Williamsburg County, South Carolina - Chapter 29: Williamsburg, C. S. A., 1863, 1923

District officers, as agreed to by the Legislature at its late session, for Williamsburg District in 1863, were : Mag¬ istrates, Samuel W. Maurice and R. G. Ferrell ; Commis¬ sioners of Free Schools, W. G. Gamble, W. P. Nesmith, S. C. McCutchen, D. D. Wilson, and J. A. McCullough; Commissioners of Public Security, Dr. James S. Brockinton, John E. Scott, W. J. Goodivin, J. A. Salters, and J. A. McCullough; Commissioners of Roads, Andrew Jayroe, S. T. Cooper, J. A. Hemingway, W. G. McKnight, J. J. M. Graham, B. P. Brockinton, S. A. Douglas, W. C. Barr, J. D. Singletary, J. E. Fulton, R. J. Eaddy, E. H. Britton, J. E. Scott, D. Z. Martin, J. W. Keels, H. Sauls, John Lequex, Sr., S. McBride Scott, J. P. Mouzon, J. M. Speights, W. R. Rodgers, F. W. Boyd, Edmund Bax¬ ley, W. M. Campbell, W. H. Cockfield, H. G. Gaskins, Reuben Jordan, James Maxwell, J. A. Nixon, G. K. Mc¬ Donald, and W. J. Haselden, Sr. ; Dr. J. F. Brockinton was collector of Confederate War taxes and W. G. Gamble was assessor.

Mr. F. W. Mackusie ran a stage line between George¬ town and Kingstree. He carried the mails. It was said that the road from Kingstree to Georgetown was far better than the old stage road from Gourdins.

The Reverend W. A. Hemingway, post chaplain of the General Hospital of the Fourth Military District, lo¬ cated at Georgetown, asks through the Courier for donations of poultry, eggs, syrup, potatoes, hops, and other things for the hospital. He states the hospital would furnish transportation for anything left at Kings¬ tree with John E. Scott or with J. A. Hemingway at Cooper's Store.

In 1863, Williamsburg soldiers participated in all of the great battles fought between the Confederate and Union armies, and its losses in killed and wounded were heavy. These fell at Chancellorsville, May 24 : killed, Reuben Ard, Oliver Baxley, John J. Brown, Palvey T. Stone, and Wiliam J. Wilson; wounded, E. V. Gaskins, W. L. Graham, E. H. Johnson, William McCallister.

These were wounded at the Rappahannock, May 12 : Lieutenant William Haselden, J. H. Barnes, O. W. Bax¬ ley, E. H. Johnson, A. B. Marsh, J. J- Brown, P. T. Stone, L. Buckles, A. M. Gaskins, S. W, Koon; and these killed, W. J. Wilson, William Brown, R. Ard, and William Duke.

At Missionary Ridge, November 25, were, killed : Har¬ vey Barfield, Jesse Floyd, W. H. Poston; wounded: Louis H. Pipkin, Louis E. Burket; and a large number of men were here captured, some of whom were: M. M. Braveboy, John M. Brown, Eric Cain, John J. Huggins, John McKnight, Harvey Matthews. Pleasant McGhee, and E. C. Osborn.

It is most pathetic to remember that in all these ter¬ rible battles of Chickamauga, Chattanooga, Missionary Ridge, and the others that had preceded them, Williams¬ burg soldiers were equipped only with smooth bore rifles, while their enemies had an abundance of Enfields. How these men went into battle with such fearful odds against them reveals their heroic character. Until after the battle of Franklin, the Tenth Regiment, except Captain Weston's Company A, which he equipped with Enfields out of his own pocket, had only smooth bore rifles with which to fight men armed with the best weapons of the age.

These soldiers of Williamsburg died of disease in 1863 : J. A. Arnett, J. E. Barrineau, W. J. Blakely, T. W Blakely, John W. Calder, A. J. Cook, E. W. Cook, J. T. Cox, J. J. Fillyaw, E. A. Flowers, J. B. Flowers, L. D. Floyd, W. J. Gamble, Andrew P. Flagler, G. W. Graham, A. Gray, J. P. Davis, W. S. Hardick, A. J. Hatchell, Jas¬ per Hatchell, J. N. Hatchell, T. H. Hatchell, M. J. E. Hixon, W. Hodge, G. W. Johnson, A. Jones, M. Jones, J. M. Lacey, A. R. Lee, D. Lee, William C. Lee, J. A. Lee, W. C. Lee, J. W. Lee, J. H. Lee, A. Lynch, J. M. Lynch, Robert Matthews, H. H. Matthews, A. Matthews, M. Matthews, G. W. Matthews, F. Matthews, Pleasant Matthews, R. M. Matthews, J. C. McGee, S. Miles, C. H. Mitchum, S. J. Nettles, N. G. Parker, G. W. Reed, John L. Scott, E. M. Scurry, James Sauls, J. H. Smith, R. Spring, Benjamin Ward, George C. Wheeler, T. H. Wilkes.

It was during the three days fierce fighting at Battery Wagner that Junius E. Scott performed feats of valor for which he was given a commission as lieutenant and presented with a sword by General Hagood. Young Scott had volunteered at sixteen years of age in Captain Colclough's company, but was sent home after a few months on account of the enforcement of the law against receiv¬ ing volunteers under eighteen. He then went to Wofford College until he could again re-enlist, when he joined Cap¬ tain China's Wee Nee Volunteers. At Battery Wagner, young Scott carried messages from Fort Wagner to Fort Gregg during the long drawn out battling. It was for his heroism in these things that he was cited for valor and commissioned. He was again cited for valor in the Virginia campaign of the Twenty-Fifth South Carolina Regiment.

S. I. Montgomery was promoted from Sergeant to Lieu¬ tenant September 19, 1863. After Lieutenant McDonald had been killed, Lieutenant E. R. Lesesne was promoted and Charles Lesesne succeeded him as Lieutenant on Sep-

On the Muster Roll of Company E, Tenth Infantry, of October 31, 1863, Captain Anderson made this simple endorsement : "On the afternoon of the seventeenth, we took up line of march for the field of Chickamauga, in the battle of which the company took part, as is shown from the list of killed and wounded." The Company was then at the foot of Missionary Ridge. After the battle of Chattanooga, this Company had only eleven men fit for duty.

E. S. Sauls was promoted to Second Lieutenant March 13, 1863. Lieutenant W. J. M. Lee succeeded Captain Nettles in command of Company H, Tenth Regiment.

Colonel A. M. Manigault, of the Tenth Infantry, was promoted to Brigadier General in July 1863, and Lieu¬ tenant Colonel James F. Pressley was promoted Colonel and succeeded him as commanding officer of the Tenth. Colonel Pressley commanded the Tenth and the Nine¬ teenth Regiments of South Carolina Infantry at Chicka¬ mauga.

In the fall of 1863, all white males between the ages of eighteen and forty-five years of age "who have furnished substitutes in the Confederate States Army, resident aliens, and others who have avoided conscription by reason of civil employment, contract or engagement" were re¬ quired to report to the military authorities for forming regiments for state service. All men between ages of six¬ teen and eighteen and forty-five and sixty were also re¬ quired to enlist in these regiments to "repel threatened raids of the enemy within this State."

On December 5, 1863, the following members of the Williamsburg Presbyterian Church were dismissed by order of Harmony Presbytery for the purpose of organ¬ izing Union Presbyterian Church : Ann Lifrage, Mary A. Lifrage, W. J. J. Lifrage, C. R. Montgomery, J. S.

Lifrage, J. M, Shaw, Sarah A. Gordon, J. W. Gordon, Margaret P. Frierson, Sargh Frierson, Sarah M. Gordon, Jane M. Salters, Mary E. Salters, John Watson, M. E. Watson, J. A. Salters, M. I. Rodgers, D. E. Gordon, W. B. Gordon, W. F. Rodgers, W. J. Montgomery, Ed¬ ward McDonald, Mary McClary, Hester McDonald, M. E. McClary, Daniel Barrinean, T. M. Lifrage, H. D. Shaw. The following colored persons were also dismissed to join Union Church: Pompey, belonging to W. F. Rod¬ gers; and Peggy Ann, belonging to J. A. Salters.

After these members of the Williamsburg Presbyte¬ rian Church had withdrawn, and among them Elders H. D. Shaw and John A. Salters, S. J. Bradley was the only elder in the Williamsburg Church. About this time, the Reverend D. M. McClure became minister of the Wil¬ liamsburg Church, which he served for two years.