1863 December 26: “There is no war news of importance this week”—But Plenty of Small Items

Following are the smaller items from the December 26, 1863, issues of The Polk County Press: and The Prescott Journal.  The two editors seem to have put their newspapers to bed before Christmas Day and instead will be taking the upcoming week off.

From The Polk County Press:

— There is no war news of importance this week.

— Rebel losses at Knoxville are reported at 5,000; national loss, 1,000.

— The father of Gen. Sigel [Franz Sigel], died in Germany on the 17th of August last.

— A dispatch from Concord states that New Hampshire is rapidly filling up her new quota of troops by volunteering.

— The Monitor Weehawken sunk at anchor inside the Charleston bar on Sunday the 6th inst., carrying down four engineers and twenty-six of the crew.  It is expected she will be raised.

— Our of the fifteen regiment of nine months’ men from Massachusetts who went to the war, there were but 117 killed or died from wounds.

— The Supreme Court of Iowa has decided that the law allowing soldiers to vote is Constitutional and valid.—The seat of Hon. J. B. Grinnel and the election of a large number of the Members of the Iowa Legislature was contingent upon this decision.

— The rebels hold Union officers prisoners at Richmond as follows :—One Brigadier General, 14 Colonels, 23 Lieut. Colonels, 28 Majors, 246 Captains, 264 First Lieutenants, 297 Second Lieutenants.  They will now soon be exchanged.

— It is said that the question of reconstruction will be fearlessly advocated in the rebel Congress now in session at Richmond, and that many of the “last ditch” fellows are inclined to favor it.  The President’s last proclamation will be a good basis for them to work on.

— The Oconto Pioneer says that in the rebel army the Generals Bragg [Braxton Bragg], Polk [Leonidas Polk] and Cheatam [Benjamin F. Cheatham].  To them the hero of Vicksburg has been turning his attention, and the people of the North have about come to the conclusion that he can play at Polk-er, Bragg, and Cheat-em too!

From The Prescott Journal:

Items.

— Recruiting is going on briskly.—Most of the towns in the county are offering extra bounties, and their quotas are nearly full.

— The Reporter says River Falls was honored by a visit from Capt. Maxson [Orrin T. Maxson].  The Capts’ face is well browned by Southern suns, but we will bet he blushed clear through the tan at this exhibition of toadyism.

— Rev. A. B. Peabody was exempted from the draft on account of his age.

— We learn from the State Journal that Col. DILL [Daniel J. Dill] has received orders to remove the 30th Reg. to Camp Washburne [sic], Milwaukee.

— The JOURNAL is the only paper in the St. Croix Valley which published the President’s Message.

— W. H. York [William H. York], of the 20th, is Post Quartermaster at Brownsville, Texas.

— The Hastings Democrat hoists the name of Geo. B. McClellan, as a candidate for the Presidency.  It won’t win.

  From the beginning the President [Abraham Lincoln] has waited for the People.  He has made sure of a solid foundation of popular support before he would take a step forward ;  yet every step forward has been in the right direction.  If the process has seemed slow to the impatience of an impulsive and ardent Radicalism—it is not, as many have thought, because he has been mentally slow to arrive at positive conclusions ;  but because the People were slow to give him a united or preponderating support in carrying out his convictions.

BEECHER ON THE PRESIDENT.—In his Thanksgiving sermon, H. W. Beecher spoke thus of the President :  “We owe a debt of gratitude to God for the Chief Magistrate of our land.  He is wisely and surely pioneering the way to the liberty of this nation.  One man there was whom God’s hand had ordained to break our foreign bondage.  If it were possible to honor more than him another whom God has ordained to break the bondage of a worse oppression in our land, then the second should be greater than the first ;  but joined together, one and inseparable, we shall hereafter hear on jubilees the shouts, “Washington and Lincoln—the fathers.”

1863 September 26: “Polk County Boy” Writes of Enforcing the Draft in Wisconsin

The following letter appeared in the October 3, 1863, issue of The Polk County Press.  It was written on September 26 by “Polk Co. Boy,” someone in Company A (Saint Croix Guards) of the 30th Wisconsin Infantry.

Army Correspondence.

CAMP RANDALL, Sept. 26 1863.

FRIEND SAM.— Not seeing anything in the PRESS from this quarter for sometime, I will write you a few lines thinking they may be interesting to, at least, some of your readers.  There are only four companies of the 30th Regiment now in camp, four companies being at Milwaukee, and two in Missouri.  The health in camp is very good.  Company “A” has been the rounds enforcing the enrolment [sic], and so has nearly all the Regiment.  I heard a good many people ask while I was at home, what we were staying in the State for.  I would repeat to them what I have said before, keep down the spirit of rebellion against the laws and maintain peace, and we will soon leave.

There are places in the State where the civil authorities cannot enforce the laws.  In one town where we were sent to assist the enrolling officer, since we left, a man was fined and sent to jail for kicking a Copperhead who threatened to tear down the Stars and Stripes.  Another Union man was most cruelly beaten and had his leg broken by a Copperhead, for giving some information concerning a deserter, and another was shot because he joined a company of Home Guards.  The Copperhead Justice who fined the Union man shielded the other from justice.

I have seen some questions in letters that I have read that I will answer.  The first one was, “Would Democratic papers be allowed to circulate in camp?”  To this I will answer, yes.  Before every election the “Patriot” is freely circulated and read by all who have the patience to read it.  Another question asked was, “Would the soldiers be allowed to vote the Democratic ticket.”  Most certainly.  The polls are opened and the votes canvassed by the company officers, and there is as much freedom as at a town election.  “Will the Democratic ticket receive  any support from the soldiers in camp?”  I cannot answer this question, but presume there may be a few who are so bound to party that they will vote against their own interests, but the number will be VERY small.  We like the Union ticket very well, composed as it is of earnest and loyal men, the most of whom have served the State and Nation faithfully and honestly for years.  I have never heard any LOYAL man find fault with the men on the Union ticket, and we feel confident of its success and the final triumph of the cause that has called us away from our homes, and hope we can soon return to our duties as citizens, better prepared to appreciate the blessings of peace and the society of friends.

Yours respectfully,
POLK CO. BOY

1863 August 8: Colonel Murphy, Dr. Garlick, the 6th Wisconsin, the 30th Wisconsin, and Other Small News Items

Following are the smaller items from the August 8, 1863, local newspapers.

From The Polk County Press:

The News.

The news of the week is unimportant.  Our armies are on the move and the rebels are being hard pressed in every direction.  The siege of Charleston is progressing favorably [as we have already seen] and the Army of Potomac is advancing on Richmond via Lee’s army.  The chief items of interest will be found elsewhere.

— Col. Murphy [Robert C. Murphy], late of the 8th Wisconsin Volunteers, was in the city yesterday.  President Lincoln [Abraham Lincoln] has assured Col. M. that in his opinion his dismissal from the service by order of Gen. Grant [Ulysses S. Grant] was unjustified by the facts, and it is probable that he will be restored to the service.  The full testimony in the case was a few days since submitted to the Judge Advocate General for final determination.  There can be no doubt among candid men that Col. Murphy has on all occasions discharged his duty as a soldier with fidelity and skill. — Milwaukee News.

— RESIGNED.— Owing to continued ill health, DR. GARLICK¹ has been forced to resign his commission of Assistant Surgeon in the 15th [sic] Wis. Regiment.

Kentucky.

The election in Kentucky took place on the 3d inst.  The returns show large Union majorities set down at 20,000 for the State at large.

So Kentucky which gives 20,000 majority for Union candidates in the third year of the war is one of the States which Mr. Jeff. Davis [Jefferson Davis] claims as de facto de jure² a part of the so called Southern Confederacy is it?  It will be remembered that for the hanging by Burnside [Ambrose E. Burnside] of rebels found recruiting for the rebel armies in Kentucky Davis has issued an order retaliate by the execution of two Union officers on the ground that Kentucky was an integral part of his dominion.

The Kentucky elections is [sic] the answer of that State to the arrogant claim of the rebel tyrant.

Light at Last.

We give the dispatches below to our readers with pleasure.  By them it will be seen that two of the most miserable curses this country ever was aflicted [sic] with have been, or are about to be, sent to their final punishment :

BALTIMORE, Aug.

The Richmond Whig of the 31st has the following :

MONTGOMERY, July 20.— The funeral of the late W. L. Yancey took place this afternoon.

The Enquirer of August 1st says that John B. Floyd is not expected to recover.

— Gen. McClernand [John A. McClernand] having been relieved from the command of the 13th Army Corps and ordered to remain inactive in the State of Illinois, has tendered an unconditional resignation of the office of Major General U. S. Volunteer forces.

— Gov. Salomon [Edward Salomon] appeals to the Federal Government in behalf of our exposed settlements, asking for the total removal of the wandering Indian tribes from Wisconsin.

— It having once been charged

From The Prescott Journal:

— Co.’s B and H, of the 30th, are now in Camp Randall.  Co. A is in Lafayette Co., but will soon return.  Co.’s E and G are also expected to return soon from Lake Superior.

— Gen. Logan [John A. Logan], in a recent speech at Cairo said:

Now we have this accursed rebellion to root out.  It must be rooted out.  I am for using ever means and all means for putting it to an end.  If the people of the North would use the same force Jeff Davis [Jefferson Davis] and his minions use, and were as unanimous as they, for in the South, force of arms compels every man to act as though he sanctioned the rebellion whether he feels inclined or not, the war would be successfully terminated in less than six months.

Every mother’s son who is opposed to the war should be compelled to take up arms either for or against us.  Then there would be no talk of peace here in the North, no talk of resistance, no such men as Vallandigham [Clement L. Vallandigham], no such cowards as those who support all such men, and say these things.

— THOMPSON of the Home League says that if those who have “skedadled” into Canada to avoid the draft could be allowed to vote, they would give the Democracy a unanimous “boost”.

— A DESERVED COMPLIMENT.—The following is the close of the official report of the commanding officer of the 6th Reg., after the battle of Gettysburg.— Our citizens will read it with pride:

Without reflection upon other officers of the line, I feel it due to their conspicuous bravery and good conduct, that I should mention Capt. Rollin P. Converse and Lieut. Chas. P. Hyatt, of Co. B, and Lieut.Gotterman [William Goltermann], of Co. F.

Capt. Converse commanded the party who brought safely from the field, and saved from capture, the gun of the 2d Mo. battery, that had been abandoned to the enemy.

I have the honor to be,
Very Respectfully,
Your ob’t serv’t,
R. R. DAWNS,
Lt. Col. Comd’g 6th Wis Vols.

— A QUERY.— It is well know that Brick Pomeroy [Marcus Mills “Brick” Pomeroy], of the La Crosse Democrat, was expelled by Gen. Prentiss from our lines at Helena, under penalty of being shot as a spy if again found within them.  Now if Brick should be drafted, and could not borrow the $300 or get a substitute, and should be sent to Prentiss’ Division, would he be shot!— We think if he would take along a file of the Democrat for six months past, he could show that he was a good rebel, and might get paroled or exchanged.  No charge, Brick, for the suggestion.

— General Gilmore [sic: Quincy A. Gillmore] is supposed to be one of the most accomplished artillerists in the army.  After he had graduated at West Point he was employed for several years in experiments upon the power of projectiles upon earth, wood and earthworks; and, it is said, took photographs every time a shot was fired.  At Fort Pulaski he brought his skill to actual experience.  Bringing his guns within six hundred yards, he knocked the fort to pieces like a house of cards.

— All colored men enrolled under the present draft are to be separated from white conscripts by Provost Marshals, and consolidated into the nearest colored regiments or companies being organized in the several States.  Instructions to the effect have been sent to the officials of Pennsylvania and Rhode Island.

— FRATERNIZATION.— All accounts agree that the Federal and rebel forces at Port Hudson, immediately upon our occupation of the place, fraternized in the kindest possible manner, apparently forgetting entirely that they had ever been arrayed in hostile columns.  It was precisely thus, also, at Vicksburg,³ at Gettysburg, and on every other field where the men have been brought together in the bush or at the close of conflict.  These persons who are fond of insisting that the people of the South and those of the North can never be reconciled or live together in peace when the war is done and the spirit of rebellion is destroyed, will hardly find in facts like these we have cited a confirmation of their argument.

1.  A little typographical error here — Carmi P. Garlick, from Osceola Mills (now just Osceola) was the 2nd assistant surgeon at this time in the 35th Wisconsin Infantry.  He will not be discharged because of a disability until February 11, 1865.
2.  Two Latin phrases. De facto means “concerning fact” and de jure means “concerning law.” Used together like this it can be translated “in practice and in law.”
3.  Edwin Leavings’ letter of July 4, 1863, confirms this happened at Vicksburg.

1863 August 1: William J. Vincent Named Deputy Provost Marshal for Polk County, and Other News

Following are the smaller items related to the Civil War from the August 1, 1863, issue of The Polk County Press.

DEPUTY PROVOST MARSHAL.— We learn that WM. J. VINCENT, of St. Croix Falls, has been appointed Deputy Provost Marshal in place of H. D. BARRON [who] declined.

— Co. G, 4th Wis., is still at Camp Parapet.¹  They were under marching orders, but were not called upon to move.—Hudson Times.

— The remaining Companies of the 30th Regiment, stationed at Madison, have been ordered to Iowa, to suppress rioters, and others, who are “constitutionally” opposed to the draft.—Hudson Star.

— The quota of soldiers from this State under all the calls, is 42,462.  We have already furnished in volunteers and drafted men 44,326, leaving an excess of 1,854.  The whole quota of this Congressional District is 5,088, and we have furnished 6,238, leaving an excess in favor of this district of 1,150.  If the present call for more troops does not exceed 300,000, no drafting will be needed in this district.—Durand Times.²

— Col. Wagner,³ Receiver of the Land Office at Stillwater [Minn.], during Buchanan’s term of office [James Buchanan], is now a Brigadier General in the rebel army.  Fort Wagner on Morris Island, near Charleston, is named in honor of this little reb.—Hudson Star.

— The St. Paul Press says that it is reported that Little Crow has been abandoned by all his Chiefs, and has fled, leaving them to surrender to our forces under Gen. Sibley [Henry Hastings Sibley].

— Gen. Neal Dow [Neal S. Dow], the father of the Maine Liquor Law, was taken prisoner by the rebels during the siege of Port Hudson, and is now in the Libby Prison at Richmond.

A WISCONSIN MAN THERE.—The Provost Marshal of —th⁴ Congressional District in New York city, at whose office the riot commenced and where drafting boxes and lists were burned and destroyed, was CHARLES E. JENKINS,⁵ formerly of Milwaukee.  He has always been a prominent Democratic politician, was Judge of the County Court of Milwaukee county and at one time a member of our Legislature from that county.  After the Legislative row over the Corruption Bonds, a large number of which passed through his hands, he moved to New York city.

— There have been seventy-six inquests held in New York on the bodies of victims of the late riot.  Of these thirty-eight were natives of Ireland, eleven of New York, nine of Germany, one of Connecticut, one of England, one of Denmark, five were negroes, and eleven were unknown.  Nearly all but the negroes were rioters.

— A Charleston paper, giving an account of the battle of Charleston harbor, says, of the fire from Fort Sumter against our iron-clads:  “An officer who observed the effect of our shots, say they struck and rolled off the sides and decks of the Monitors like so many marbles or pebble stones.”

1.  Company G of the 4th Wisconsin Infantry is the Hudson City Guards—Jerry Flint’s and Frank Harding’s company. Camp Parapet is in Louisiana.
2.  Durand, in Pepin County, was in the same District as Pierce, Saint Croix, and Polk counties.
3.  Thomas M. Wagner (1824-1862)  was a lieutenant colonel in the Confederate Army and Inspector of Artillery. He was killed on July 17, 1862, while inspecting Fort Moultrie in Charleston Harbor. The main fortification on Morris Island was subsequently named for him. Before the Civil War, he served three terms in the South Carolina House, and was in his second term of service in the State Senate at the time of his demise. He was also an executive of the Blue Ridge Railroad in South Carolina and served on the Board of Directors of the Charleston and Savannah Railroad. It seems unlikely that this is the same Thomas Wagner who was the receiver of the Land Office in Stillwater sometime between 1857 and 1861 since he was serving in the South Carolina Legislature at that time.
4.  The actual number was not included by The Polk County Press.
5.  Charles E. Jenkins moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 1848. He was a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly in 1850 and 1851, and judge of the Milwaukee County Court from 1854 to 1856.

1863 May 30: Saint Croix County Has Furnished 65 More Men Than Her Quota

Following are the smaller items from The Prescott Journal of May 30, 1863.

— Col. DILL [Daniel J. Dill] returned home last Thursday evening, to remain for a few days.  We are glad to learn that his health is rapidly improving.

— A Panorama of the War, will be on exhibition at Dunbar’s Hall, this (Friday) evening.¹

— CHAS. E. YOUNG, formerly of the Prescott Transcript, has been in town for a few days.  Charley is living in Chicago, which town he says beats both Prescott and the County Seat.

— Grant [Ulysses S. Grant] has got into the ante-room of Vicksburg.  He will give the rebels the grip in a few days.²

— Gen. POPE [John Pope] went up to St. Paul on Tuesday last, accompanied by several members of his staff.

— Companies E and G of the 30th have gone to Bayfield, on Lake Superior to look after the Indians.

J. S. ELWELL, Esq., formerly a worthy young man and the respectable editor of the Hudson North Star, but latterly, we believe, a teacher in the mission school for contrabands at Port Royal, returned a few days since.  JOE, please call around and relate your experience.

— St. Croix county has furnished 65 men in excess of her quota.

  The authors of the rebellion are fast passing away.  Among the dead are Albert Sydney Johnston, R. S. Garnett,³ Bernard E. Bee,⁴ Felix K. Zollicoffer, Thomas Jonathan (Stonewall) Jackson, Obadiah Jenning [sic] Wise,⁵ Ben McCulloch, Earl Van Dorn, Robert E. Garland,⁶ Lawrence O’Brien [sic] Branch,⁷ Philip St. George Cooke,⁸ and a number of other maijor [sic] generals and brigadier generals who held less prominent position a when the rebellion broke out.

   Col. Grierson [Benjamin H. Grierson] says of that portion of Dixie, which he has lately scoured: “No one can pass through that country without knowing that the Confeneracy [sic] is broken up.  It is a mere shell with nothing in it.”

   The following shows what style of fellows attended the Vallandigham [Clement L. Vallandigham] meeting at Indianapolis:

As the excursion trains were leaving in the evening, these butternuts fired at the houses on the Terra Haute Railroad.  They fired at the Soldier’s Home, filled with disabled and broken-down soldiers.  The bullets fell so thick and fast that those outside of the houses were compelled to take refuge behind the house on the Lafayette road.  They fired upon Camp Carriagton [sic].  Luckily, the soldiers were nearly all absent, and only one person was slightly wounded.  On the Peru, Central, Cincinnati and Belfontaine roads, they fired at the houses, and several persons barely escaped death.— One ball passed between the head of a woman sitting in her front yard, and the head of her little baby, whom she was holding in her arms, just grazing the temple of the child.  By this time, Gen. Hascall had a section of artillery planted near the roads, near the corporation line, and brought the four latter trains to a halt, to be sent back to the depot, where a heavy guard was thrown around each train, and these cowardly rascals were compelled to disgorge about 1,500 pistols, mostly revolvers, and a large number of knives, which were taken possession of by Gen. Hascall.

   Capt. SAM. HARRIMAN, of Co. A, 30th, is something of a wag as well as soldier.  We saw him a few days ago, just as he had returned from an excursion to Polk county, to pay a lot of back taxes.

Said Sam: “The Scriptures contain a great deal of instruction on the subject of taxes.  You remember the man who was invited to a banquet and could not go, because he had just bought the N.E. qr. of Sec. 17, town 24, range 18 west, and must go and look after it and pay the taxes.”

“I always thought,” said Sam., “that the man was a fool, that he did not go and get a warm meal, when asked; but he was right; for if he had waited to eat, the printer would have advertised it, and the treasurer sold it, and 25 per ct. been added, and likely as not the poor fellow “could not have redeemed it, and he would lost it all on a tax deed.”  Sam. thinks taxes are literally a “big thing.”

Notice for Organizing Military Company.

The undersigned having been appointed by Hon. William Howes, County Judge of the County of Pierce pursuant to Section 11 of Chapter 542 of the General Laws of 1863, to organize a Volunteer Company in said Pierce County, I do therefore appoint Wednesday the 3d day of June 1863, at 7 o’clock P.M., as the time for the organization of said Volunteer Company, and all persons signing a call dated April 23d 1863, addressed to the Hon. William Howes, County Judge of Pierce Co, requesting the organization of such said Military Company, are hereby notified to be and appear at the Council Room in the city of Prescott, on said 3d day of June to perfect such said organization.

J. C. BUTTON.

1.  In this context, a “Panorama” was an series of photographs showing the successive stages of the conflict. The example below is a panorama by George N. Barnard of Atlanta Before Being Burnt (1864), from the American Memory website, Library of Congress (digital ID pan 6a00027). You can see the different photographs that were joined together to create the single panoramic image.

“Atlanta Before Being Burnt,” 1864, by George N. Barnard (from the Library of Congress)

2.  Influenza, grippe being the French word for the flu.
3.  Robert Selden Garnett (1819-1861) was a career military officer having graduated from West Point and served in the Mexican War and the Seminole Wars. Following the Battle of Rich Mountain on July 11, 1861, Garnett withdrew his troops under cover of darkness, hoping to escape to northern Virginia. The Federals pursued, and, during fighting at Corrick’s Ford on July 13, Garnett was killed. He was the first general officer to be killed in the War.
4.  Barnard Elliott Bee (1824-1861) was another career military officer who graduated from West Point. Among his postings was one in 1855 to Fort Snelling in Minnesota Territory. He was mortally wounded at the First Battle of Bull Run, another one of the first general officers to be killed in the war. Bee is best known for giving Stonewall Jackson his nickname.
5.  Henry Alexander Wise (1806-1876) was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Virginia (1833-1844), U.S. minister to Brazil (1844-1847), the 33rd governor of Virginia (1856-1860), and a Confederate general. Obadiah Jennings was the father of his first wife, Anne. Henry and Anne’s son, Obadiah Jennings Wise (1831-1862), was a captain in the Richmond (Va.) Light Infantry and was killed at Roanoke Island on February 9, 1862. The younger Wise was no doubt mentioned in this list because of his well-known father.
6.  Samuel Garland (1830-1862) was a grandnephew of U.S. President James Madison.  He was killed in action during the Maryland Campaign while defending Fox’s Gap at the Battle of South Mountain.
7.  Lawrence O’Bryan Branch (1820-1862) trained at Bingham Military Academy in North Carolina and was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from North Carolina (1855-1861). On December 2, 1860, he was appointed President James Buchanan to the position of U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, but declined the appointment. At the Battle of Antietam on September 17, 1862, Branch saved General Robert E. Lee’s right flank from a crushing defeat. Soon after this victory he was killed by a sharpshooter.
8.  Philip St. George Cooke (1809-1895) was a Union general. His son-in-law, however, was Confederate General J.E.B. Stuart. Cooke survived the War, Stuart won’t be killed until 1864.

1863 May 30: Independent Militia Company Organized at Saint Croix Falls

Following are the smaller items from the May 30, 1863, issue of The Polk County Press. We don’t hear much about the Confederate generals in our little local newspapers, but one small paragraph here introduces us to four new ones.

— An independent Militia company was organized at St. Croix Falls, on Saturday last, by election Wm. J. Vincent, Captain; Wm. M. Blanding, 1st Lieut.; Canute Anderson, 2d do [ditto, i.e. Lieut.], Philip Lipsett and John Brawn 1st and 2d Sergeants.  The company numbers over 80 men.¹

— At the meeting of the Military company in this village on Saturday last, the following officers were elected: A. S. Gray, Captain; E. G. Treadwell, 1st Lieutenant; Frank Webb, 2d Lieutenant.  Meeting adjourned until this evening at 7 o’ clock, for the purpose of completing the organization.  The Company now numbers eighty-five men.²

— The Madison Journal says:— We are glad to hear that Col. Dill [Daniel J. Dill], 30th Regiment, has nearly recovered from his indisposition and is able to visit camp again.

— Gov. Salomon [Edward Salomon] and Gen. Gaylord [Augustus Gaylord] have gone South to visit the Wisconsin Regiments in Missouri and on the Mississippi River.

— The iron-clads of the Charleston fleet have all been thoroughly repaired, and the exception on changes in the armament, are again ready for work.

— Stonewall Jackson is certainly dead.  He lost an arm at Chancelorsville [sic], and died from the effect of the amputation.  His loss to the rebels is greater than ten thousand men.

— Stoneman [George Stoneman], when a Lieutenant in California, some years since, on being challenged to do so by a lady friend, ascended the front steps of her residence on horseback, rode into her parlor, turned round and came out, as he said he could, “without even soiling the carpet.”

FROM THE 30th REGIMENT BOYS.— From a letter received from Charles D. Scott, of Captain Harriman’s company [Samuel Harriman, Company A], 30th regiment, we learn that the boys who went from the county are all well, and anxious to be doing something for Uncle Same.  He says ;

“We have organized a Christian Association in the regiment which numbers some 80 members.  We have besides the Chaplain, five ministers, one of who speaks the Norwegian language.  In connection with the association we have a Bible Class, which is quite well attended and interesting.  We have also a Good Templar’s Lodge, which has been in working order a few weeks and has forty-four members.  There are in all some 200 members of the order in the Regiment, and among them quite a number of shoulder straps.     *     *     *     *     *

“Sergt. Dean [James W. Dean] has been sick for some time but is now quite well again.  We have lost but one of our number since we left home, and that was poor Longfellow of company D.  A marble slab marks his place of rest.  May his spirit dwell in Heaven.”

LOSS OF REBEL OFFICERS.— The loss of rebel officers in the late fight at Chancelorsville [sic] was enormous.  The Richmond papers have already published, among their killed and wounded, Lieut. Gen. Jackson [Stonewall Jackson], Brig. Gen. Thomas,³ killed; Gen. A. P. Hill, wounded; Brig. Gen. McGowan,⁴ wounded; Brig. Gen. Nichols [sic],⁵ wounded, leg amputated; Brig. Gen Hoke,⁶ wounded.  Every staff officer of A. P. Hill was either killed, wounded or captured.  Half of Jackson’s staff shared the same fate.

1.  This is not the same militia company that was organized in Osceola.
2.  This is the Osceola Home Guards that we heard about last week.
3.  Edward Lloyd Thomas (1825-1898) was not killed at the Battle of Chancellorsville. When Georgia seceded from the Union in 1861, Thomas became colonel of the 35th Georgia Infantry, which became part of A. P. Hill’s famed “Light Division.” Thomas was slightly wounded at the Battle of Mechanicsville (June 26, 1862). After that he was promoted to brigadier general and given command of Joseph R. Anderson’s brigade for the rest of the war, participating in all the major battles of the Army of Northern Virgina.
4.  Samuel McGowan (1819-1897) was a lawyer before the Civil War, was involved in state politics, and was commended for his gallantry in the Mexican War. In the Civil War, Nicholls participated in the First Battle of Bull Run, the Seven Days Battles, the Second Battle of Bull Run, the Battle of Chancellorsville, and the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House. After Maxcy Gregg was killed at the Battle of Fredericksburg (December 1862), McGowan was promoted to brigadier general and took command of a brigade in A.P. Hill’s famous “Light Division,” which commanded until the end of the War. McGowan was wounded four times, at Cold Harbor, Second Bull Run, Chancellorsville, and Spotsylvania. After the War, McGowan was elected to Congress but refused his seat. He became a leader in the fight against carpetbagger rule in the South Carolina legislature. McGowan was elected an associate justice on the South Carolina supreme court, serving from 1879 to1893.
5.  Francis Redding Tillou Nicholls (1834-1912) graduated from West Point and served in the third Seminole war. He resigned his commission to study law at what is now Tulane University. Nicholls joined the Confederate Army in 1861 and participated in the First Battle of Bull Run. During the Shenandoah Valley Campaign he lost his left arm. In October 1862 Nicholls was promoted to brigadier general. During the Battle of Chancellorsville a shell ripped off Nicholls’ left foot. Disabled and unfit for further field command, he directed the Volunteer and Conscript Bureau until the end of the War. After the War, Nicholls returned to his law practice in New Orleans, became the 28th governor of Louisiana  (1877-1880 and 1888-1892), and chief justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court (1892-1911).
6.  Robert Frederick Hoke (1837-1912) graduated from the Kentucky Military Institute in 1854 and then managed his family’s business interests. When North Carolina seceded from the Union in 1861, Hoke enlisted in the 1st North Carolina Infantry and was commissioned a second lieutenant, but promoted to captain within months. Hoke was commended for “coolness, judgment and efficiency” at the Battle of Big Bethel (June 10, 1861) by General D. H. Hill, and subsequently promoted to major. Next he was appointed as  lieutenant colonel of the 33rd North Carolina Regiment, and cited for gallantry at the Battle of New Bern (March 14, 1862). Hoke was promoted to colonel, and fought at the Second Battle of Bull Run (August 28-30, 1862) and the Battle of Antietam (September 17, 1862). Hoke commanded a brigade at the Battle of Fredericksburg (December 11-15, 1862), and was promoted to brigadier general on January 17, 1863. He was severely wounded defending Marye’s Heights in the Battle of Chancellorsville and was sent home to recuperate, missing the rest of the campaigns for that year. Hoke and his division will play a decisive role in the Confederate victory in the Battle of Cold Harbor in 1864 (May 31-June 12).

1863 April 25: Interesting News Items from the Week

Following are the smaller items from the April 25, 1863, Prescott Journal and Polk County Press.

From The Prescott Journal:

FRIEND LUTE :—As I have had the pleasure recently of spending a few days with the 30th Regiment, at Madison, I wish through your paper, to express my pleasure at witnessing their condition, health, good spirits, proficiency in drill, &c.

You know we have had many various reports about the regiment.  Doubtless at first, they were not so well provided for as they ought to have been, but now, their quarters are comfortable, rations excellent, and health good.  The hospital accommodations are all that could be desired.

The fine appearance of the regiment on dress parade, is sufficient evidence of the skill and faithfulness of the officers.  I came away well pleased with the condition of the regiment, and thankful for the officers and men for the many courtesies received from them.

Yours, &c.,     N. S. DUNBAR.

Prescott, April 24, 1863.

  The  NORTH-WESTERN DEMOCRAT is the name of a new Democratic paper at Hastings; FRANK J. MEAD, Editor and Proprietor.  Frank will get up a spicy paper.  He has belonged to the First Minnesota, and says:

In the Army of the Potomac,  for 18 months, we battled for the Constitution and the Union, and now that we are at home again, surrounded by friends and neighbors,  we give the assurance that we shall not cease to battle for those inheritances of American freedom.

  The official returns from nearly all the counties in the State give Dixon [Luther S. Dixon] 51,678 ; Cothren [Montgomery M. Cothren] 55,527.  The counties yet to hear from will reduce Cothren’s majority in the State to less than 4,000, while Dixon’s majority in the army will not be less than 8,000.

  GEO. W. BENNETT, of Beldenville, member of Co. A, 20th Regiment, returned home this week on a furlough.  He reports the condition of the regiment as excellent, and says that he has not been unwell a day since he entered the service.  He says Quartermaster YORK [William H. York] is an efficient and popular officer.

  We have received a copy of the Report of the Adjutant General of this State.  It is a very interesting document and especially valuable for reference, as it contains a list of the officers and brief history of each regiment which has been raised in the State.

  Rev. A. B. GREEN, Chaplain of the 30th, spoke at the Brick Church last Saturday evening, giving an interesting account of matters connected with the regiment.  The house was well filled.

  We have to announce the sad intelligence of the death of Major HOWARD STANSBURY, of the U. S. A., military agent of the Government for this State.  He died at his boarding house in this city, a little before eight o’clock this morning, of disease of the heart. — For some time previous he had been in feeble health, but continued to attend to his business faithfully until a few days before his death.—State Journal (Madison, Wis.)

THE STATE MILITARY BILL.—The bill which will be found in full in today’s paper passed both Houses of the Legislature and is now a law.  It enrolls all able-bodied men between the ages of 18 and 45.  The exemptions are the same as in the conscription law.  The regiments of minute men, either volunteers or conscription are to be held in readiness to be called into service at any time, to enforce the laws, put down riots, &c.  Company drill of all men fit for duty throughout the State is required six times a year, with a general muster of regimental organizations annually.

From The Polk County Post:

— Another attack on Charleston is confidently perdicted [sic], and the co-operation of Hunter in a rear attack is promised.

— Another rebel privateer has left Greenock, England, and one nearly ready to sail has been seized by the British authorities.

— The list of deserters from the whole army, reported under the President’s proclamation is already thirty-two feet long.

— It is said that New Orleans is seriously threatened by the rebels, and that Gen. BANKS [Nathaniel P. Banks] is busy at work making preparation to defend the city.  If the rebels attack him they will meet with a defeat such as JACKSON¹ gave the British once on a time.

THE ELECTION.—From the best authority we can get, we think Hon. LUTHER S. DIXON is elected by about 5,000 majority, the army vote going almost unanimous for him.  The home figures are very close and the official canvass alone can tell the result.  We think however that Judge DIXON will be elected by a small majority on the home vote.

DIED

MITCHEL [sic].—On Tuesday, April 21st, of Measles, Libbie J., second daughter of Joesph² and Sarah Mitchell, aged 3 years and four months.

To the bereaved mother in her loneliness and the father on the distant battle field, the inhabitants of this village unite in tendering their sincere sympathies.  Little Libbie has only gone before you to that better brighter land.

R. W.

1.  Andrew Jackson at the Battle of New Orleans in the War of 1812.
2.  Libbie’s father, Joseph Mitchell of Osceola, was in the 10th Battery Wisconsin Light Artillery.

1863 March 18: News from the 30th Wisconsin Infantry at Camp Randall

Following are two articles from the March 18, 1863, issue of The Prescott Journal, giving news about the 30th Wisconsin Infantry, which is still at Camp Randall in Madison, Wisconsin.  The author is not named and so we do not know if these are excerpts from one letter or two.

 One of our correspondents in the 30th, thus writes of MEASLES :

Measles, though it be the Camp Randall, adult measles, is an exceedingly unromantic disease.  Brain fever now is an aristocratic ailment.  A man perisheth of the brain fever ;  ’tis well ;  his obituary reads well ;  his friends are grieved ;  they mournfully mention his demise.  “He died of brain fever ;  but measles—faugh !  What consolation has a man who dies of measles ?  None, my boy—nary stiver !  Veni, vidi, vinci.  I have met the measles, and I am theirs.  I am a victim.  My mouth, even now, but faintly distinguisheth the taste, yea, the flavor of egg-nogg from that of poor whiskey.  I resort in all kinds of strategic movements to see.  This object and that object are mixed in woeful confusion.—I’m spelling away at the last French novel Les Miserables, and I appreciate the work.  If Jean Valjean had only had the measles, or withstood ’em bravely, as he did other misfortunes and afflictions, I could worship him.  Cosette never had measles.  Marius Pontmercy never had measles ;  he took Cosette and many thousand francs.  He should have had measles.  The all should have had measles, for they are les miserables.

Our correspondent in the 30th, thus writes :

There is quite a feeling of resentment felt among the soldiers towards the Dirty Ragged, Secesh, Copperhead Democrats in this vicinity—Regiments of them being harbered [sic] in and about Madison.  Vengeance has been sworn against them, and I presume it a sufficient number could pass out some eveing, they would, without hesitation, attend their secret club meetings, to the unprofitable dissatisfaction of the royal circle.

They have gone so far as to offer some of the 30th citizens clothing, in order to induce them to desert.  But they must beware.—There will be a day of retribution when we return, and their own castles shall tumble upon their own heads.

The health of the regiment is much improved, aside from the mumps, (a few cases still existing,) and those that are yet lingering along from the effects of the measles, the men are healthy.  What are well are heartier and healthier than they have ever been.  And while I write the boys are having a grand dance.  Co. A have joined in.  The tables are swung overhead, and every one seems to enjoy himself.  Those dancing the part as lady take off their caps.  I have just had a good waltz and quadrille.

1.  Victor Hugo’s novel Les Misérables was first published in 1862.

1863 February 14: Letter from the 30th Wisconsin Infantry at Camp Randall

The following undated and unattributed letter from a soldier in the 30th Wisconsin Infantry appeared in the February 14, 1863, issue of The Prescott Journal.

LETTER FROM THE 30TH.

[The following letter, though not written for publication, gives so good a description of things in camp, that we publish it entire.]

Until recently all the commissioned officers have had the privilege of passing out and into camp, at their pleasure ;  and they took advantage of this privilege to such an extent—as report has it—that a few days ggo [sic: ago], mistrusting how the plan was working the Col. [Daniel J. Dill] went all over the camp, and not an officer, except those on guard duty, was to be found for several hours.  The consequence of this was an order read on dress parade, giving only three commissioned officers in the regiment the privilege of going out each day.  They now have to stop and show their pass, the same as the rest of us, instead of merely saluting the sentinels, as formerly.  You have no idea how much good it does the boys, when on guard, to stop a pair of shoulder straps.

We have battalion drill in the forenoon, and no one can get a pass till afternoon.  As the parade ground is not large enough to accommodate two regiments at once, the Thirtieth drills in the forenoon and the Twenty-fifth in the afternoon.  Our battalion drill generally lasts from ten o’clock till noon ;  but there has been so much cold weather lately, we have not drilled as much as we ought for our own good.  And I am sorry to say we are not very proficient, considering the time we have been in camp.  In the afternoon we generally have company drill, from two till half past three o’clock.  Besides drilling we have considerable fatigue work to do ;  such as packing wood and cutting it for the Hospital, and other purposes ;  but we do not have to work hard enough to hurt any one.  As far as that is concerned, it is no more than is necessary to keep us healthy.  We have been drilling a little in the skirmish drill, and also in the bayonet exercise, but are not yet perfect in either one.  The parade ground is now in excellent condition to drill on, it being frozen very smooth, and the weather is also as nice as any one could wish.

And now for the particulars in regard to company F :  As you well know, we left P. [Prescott] with upwards of one hundred men who styled themselves the “Tiger Guards.”  And as I look around me now, and compare the present condition of our company with its flourishing condition at that time, and think how short a time we have been gone from home, it reminds me of the saying that “change is stamped upon every thing.”¹  Out of those one hundred and four healthy, hearty men, only about forty are now fit for duty.  One has been transferred to Berdan’s Sharp Shooters, ten have been transferred to company I, two have deserted, and two discharged.  And three have been called away by the Messenger of Death, and are now sleeping their last sleep beneath the cold clods of the valley ;  and the afflicting hand of Providence is still upon us.  Sickness is still in our midst.  Nearly half of the remainder of our company are reported sick, and several of them are in a very bad condition too.  The measles and mumps are the prevailing diseases, but some are afflicted with diseases of a more serious nature than either of these.  There are six or seven more in the company who have been sick nearly ever since we entered camp, and have complaints from which they will never recover as long as they live ;  and what Uncle Sam wants of such men is more than I can tell.  Some of them ought never to have enlisted.  But probably they were anxious to do something to help sustain that government which had so long sheltered them, and hoped to be able to ensure the hardships of a soldier’s life ;  and if they were unable to endure its privations, they supposed they would be sent home, and not kept here to suffer after there was no prospect of their ever being able to do duty.  But getting discharged from Uncle Sam’s service is a trifle harder to do than getting into the service.  If it were not, I fear the army would be sadly diminished in size very soon.  Many would be ready to feign sickness, if by so doing they could get a discharge.  And so it is always the case; the innocent are debarred from enjoying privileges which they might enjoy, if those privileges were not abused by the guilty ;  and it is sometimes difficult to detect the counterfeit from the genuine.  We have so little hospital room here, that afer [sic] filling up every suitable building with the sick, every company has from ten to twenty sick ones in their barracks.  We provide for them here the best we can ;  but with the best of care, it is a poor place for a sick person, amide the noise and confusion which necessarily results from so many men being brought together under one roof, however ample it may be.  But the new hospital now in process of erection, I think will be large enough to accommodate the sick in one regiment at least.  The outside of the building is completed, and they are at work on the inside now.  As I have not yet been inside, I do not know how it is to be arranged.

You have asked in one of your letters how we spend our time here in camp.  I have already accounted to you for a certain portion of each day.  The remainder of the time is spent in various ways, according to the dispositions of the different persons.  Now we are away from home, you know we are dependent on our own skill to do our mending, washing, and so on, unless we prefer to hire it done.  Some employ nearly all the time that can be spared from these duties in playing cards ;  some in playing checkers, and some in reading and writing.  We have a building comfortably fitted up, in which prayer meetings are held every evening, and when the weather is not too cold, services in the open air on the Sabbath, by Chaplain Green.  Report has set several times for us to go, but we are still here, with but very little more prospect of leaving than there was when we first came.

MORE ANON.

1.  From Observations Designed as a Reply to the “Thoughts” of Dr. Maltby, on the Dangers of Circulating the Whole of the Scriptures Among the Lower Orders, by J. W. [John William] Cunningham, A. M. (London: J. Hatchard, 1812): 61. Available digitally on Google Books.
2.  A perusal of the official roster of Company F, 30th Wisconsin Infantry, does not reveal exactly the same numbers as listed in this letter. One private was transferred to the Sharpshooters but another one was transferred simply to “U.S.A.”  Only eight were transferred to Company I of the 30th, all of them on October 23, 1862. No one is officially listed as deserting, probably because the two individuals eventually are returned and serve. Three are discharged for a disability, but perhaps this letter was written before Eli Preble died on January 31, 1863.

• transferred to Company G, 1st U.S. Sharpshooters: Joseph Sleeper, November 24, 1862
• transferred to U.S.A.: James McDonald, February 3, 1863
• 10 transferred to Company I:
  • Frank J. Birkel
  • Joseph Dauser
  • Frank Keriger
  • Nicholas Nopp
  • Joseph Reichert
  • John Schommer
  • Peter M. Simons
  • Leland J. Webb
• 2 discharged:
  • Joseph D. Hilton, December 2, 1862, disability
  • Eli Preble, January 31, 1863, disability
  • Philetus S. Sutton, January 9, 1863, disability
• 3 died:
  • Charles W. Danforth, died January 13, 1863
  • Corwin Gregory, died December 13, 1862
  • John M. Miller, died November 24, 1862.

1862 December 7: A Letter from the Salomon Tigers at Camp Randall

Following is a letter from a member of the Salomon Tigers—Company F of the 30th Wisconsin Infantry—in training at Camp Randall, Madison, Wisconsin.  The letter is signed “A. L. G.,” but we cannot identify a soldier in Company F who would have had those initials!  The letters must stand for something other than a name.

This letter was printed in the December 17, 1862, issue of The Prescott Journal.

 CAMP CORRESPONDENCE.

HEAD QUARTERS CO. F., 30th REG.,
Camp Randall, Dec. 7, 1862.

FRIEND LUTE:—This being Sunday, and our own day as well as the Lord’s, and having just partaken of a hearty breakfast, we are sitting around the stove, comforting ourselves with the thought that this day we will rest.  It is a beautiful morning, such an one as the almanacs would call “clear and cold.”  Thus seated, enjoying the comforts of our little office, which we prize more highly probably for the limited space in which we have to live and move, we allow our minds to wander back to think of kind friends at home.  As I am relieved for the time from military calls, I will write to you.

Until I received your letter of the 1st, we had heard from you only through the columns of your well remembered Family Paper, which is looked for with interest and its items perused with welcome.

One week ago to-day we arrived home (to Camp Randall, which we have learned to call home) from our tour into the rural districts, via Milwaukee, to Washington county, where we were ordered by the Governor to enforce the draft upon the recusant Luxenburgers.¹

On the evening of the 18th, we received orders to prepare four days rations, two days cooked and in haversacks, the other two days to be packed and sent on after us.  You can only imagine with what joy and delight the word was received by the boys, after lying here so long without any great excitement or change in the form of military duty.

Accordingly everything was in order, and at four the next morning the seven companies that were assigned for the trip were on the parade ground and in line, awaiting with eager anticipation the arrival of the Colonel, and the order forward.  We had not long to wait.  Col. Dill himself, as prompt as his orders are decided, soon made his appearance, rode down the line to satisfy himself that all was right, and placed himself at the right of the Battalion.  In a few moments we were on our way, and in due time reached Milwaukee, and wore marched through the city with bayonets fixed to Camp Washburn.

The ladies greeted us with smiles and waved their handkerchiefs as we marched through the streets; and while old men spoke words of cheer, more than one old woman stood in the doorway with tears in her eyes, as the Regiment moved along with measured steps,—showing that the music and the solemn tread of those hundreds of feet brought to her memory thoughts of some one most dear, and for whom a mother’s love and sympathy melted her to tears.

We remained in Camp Washburn three days and nights, during the draft, and on Friday night companies D, and F, aloud guard in the city Court House over the Commissioner’s books and papers, and to be ready for assistance should the city need it in case of disturbance.

On Saturday morning we again started with four days rations for West Bend, where we arrived at sunset the same evening.  This if you remember is the place where commissioner Gilson was compelled to flee for his life and barely escaped falling into the hands of the mob, who sought to compel him to give up his papers or take his life, but by the assistance of Judge Frisby, who had just been drafted, he was enabled to make good his escape to Madison.  Here we expected some difficulty, or fun as the boys termed it, and every one seemed eager that such should be the case.  But I presume the appearance of so many glittering points of steel deterred them from the undertaking.

We remained at West Bend six days, during which time we received the kindest attention from the loyal citizens, who put forth every exertion to make us comfortable.  They bro’t in pies, cakes and sweatmats [sic] of every description during the day, and at night the men came and requested the officers to let the boys go home with them and sleep in a good bed, which not being in accordance with the regulations of course could not be granted.

Friday, the day before we left, was a day long to be remembered in West Bend, as well as by the soldiers.  A dinner was given by the citizens to the soldiers.  The tables were loaded with good things, which, by the aid of  the ladies and sergeants detailed fer [sic] the purpose, were tastefully arranged and well superintended during the entertainment.  In the evening a grand ball was given at Keith’s Hall for the officers, and at the hotel for the non-commissioned officers and privates.

Having orders to march next morning, at three o’clock groups of soldiers and ladies could be seen here and there saying their fond adieus, while many a tear on beauty’s cheek told the sympathy of our fair friends for the defenders of our country’s freedom.

The Salomon Tigers are well worthy of all the praise bestowed upon them.  They are ever ready to perform their duty as soldiers, and endure many camp hardships without a murmur of dissatisfaction.  The company now numbers eighty-six men, capable of doing military duty.  We came into camp with one hundred and one men.  Joseph Sleeper was transferred to the Sharpshooters soon after we came into camp.  Joseph Richert with nine other men were transferred to company I, by which means he received the appointment of 2d sergeant.  Davis and Keister you well know brought disgrace upon themselves by deserting on the 2d of November.  Joseph Hilton is about to receive his discharge on account of disability, induced by his sickness at Prescott.²

It pains me to record the death of our much loved brother solider John M. Miller.  He was a good man and noble soldier, ever ready to do his own duty, and in case one of the guard took sick on his post, he was invariably the first man that volunteered to fill his place.

The company at present is commanded by Lieuts. Meacham and Strong [Edgar A. Meacham and Ezra B. Strong], the captain [Martin A. Driebelbis] being at home on a furlough on account of sickness.  Their kind disposition and gentlemanly behavior, as well as their military discipline, have won the respect and confidence of the men.

There are several in the company sick with colds, but nothing more serious.  One case of small pox was reported in the hospital to-day, which caused some uneasiness in camp for the time, but the companies have all been marched up to the Surgeon’s and been vaccinated.—The case has been moved from the hospital, and efficient steps taken to prevent the disease from spreading.

There is no telling when we will leave here, probably not till after the first January.  We may not leave till spring.  The drafted men have to be drilled and organized, and I presume it is thought a better regiment could be not be found for that purpose.  The men all say this soldering at home don’t suit them, as they enlisted to go South.

You will hear from me again,                                   A. L. G.

1.  “Recusants” were those individuals—usually Roman Catholics—who refused to attend state-sponsored Anglican church services in England and Wales during the 1600s. “A.L.G.” is appropriating the term to apply to the individuals in Wisconsin who were refusing to participate in the state-sponsored draft. Many of the draft protestors were from Luxemburg and Germany. The 30th Wisconsin Infantry had been sent to ensure the draft could be held without further incident, like the one in Ozaukee County.
2.  Joseph Sleeper was from Hartland in Waukesha County.
Joseph Reichert was from Oak Grove in Pierce County; he was transferred to Company I on October 23, along with Frank J. Birkel (Perry), Joseph Dauser (Trimbelle), Frank Keriger (Trimbelle), Nicholas Nopp (Oak Grove), John Schommer (Oak Grove), Peter M. Simons (Oak Grove), and Leland J. Webb (Watertown). Nine men from Company I were transferred into Company F. Company I also traded a lot of men with Company C.
Leander W. Davis and Hezekiah F. Keister, both from Diamond Bluff, are both listed in the official roster as mustering out on September 20, 1865. Perhaps they took an unexcused furlough!
Joseph Hilton, from River Falls, was discharged with a disability on December 2, 1862.