Chapter XI: The Phalanx in Virginia (3)

"'The loss in the four colored regiments is about three
hundred. The Seventh U. S. C. T. on the first day, carried,
with fixed bayonets, a line of rifle-pits, and carried it
without a shot, but with a loss of 35. It was one of the
most stirring and gallant affairs I have ever known'.

"It began to rain in the afternoon and continued during the
night and until nearly noon of the following day, 20th.
During the afternoon of the 20th, orders were received to
send all sick to the rear and be ready to withdraw quietly
at dark. The movement began at 7 P. M., both the Second and
Tenth Corps participating--the Second Corps and the cavalry
returning to the Petersburg line, and the Tenth to the
Bermuda Hundred front. The night was dark and the roads
muddy, and after various delays the pontoons were crossed;
and at 2 A. M., the regiment went into camp near the spot it
occupied the first night after its arrival in Virginia.

"An amusing incident occurred when we halted, after crossing
the river. When the fires were lighted our line presented
the appearance of a checker-board--alternate black and white
men. The latter belonged to the Second Corps, and having
straggled from their commands, and belonging to regiments
with the same numbers, had fallen into our solid ranks by
mistake. Their astonishment and our amusement were about
equal. Capt. Walker, having been asked if his men were all
present, replied: 'Yes, and about twenty recruits.'

"Thus ended a very hard week's work, during which the
regiment was almost constantly under fire; marching,
counter-marching, supporting a battery here or strengthening
the line there--duties which required almost constant
wakefulness and watchfulness. The losses of the brigade
footed up some two hundred and fifty.

"This movement, which had begun on the 12th by the
withdrawal of the Second Corps, Gen. Hancock, and Gregg's
cavalry division, from the Petersburg front to the north
bank of the James, to act in conjunction with the Tenth
Corps in an attempt to turn the left of the rebel line,
proved as abortive as the similar attempt made by the same
corps in the latter part of June; Gen. Lee, in both
instances, seeming to have received timely information of
our plans to enable him to transfer re-enforcements from the
Petersburg to the Richmond front. The Union losses during
the movement have been estimated at five thousand.

"Sunday, the 21st, was a day of rest. The men put up shelter
tents and made themselves as comfortable as circumstances
would allow. Gen. Birney resumed command of the brigade and
Col. Shaw returned to the regiment. About 6 P. M. orders
came to be ready to move during the night with one day's
rations. Moved out of camp at 2 A. M., 22nd, and reported at
Maj.-Gen. Birney's headquarters, where, after remaining a
short time, the regiment returned to camp. About 8 P. M.
orders were received to pack everything, and at 5 the
regiment marched to the front and went into the trenches
near Battery Walker, (No. 7), relieving a regiment of
hundred-days' men, whose time had expired.

"The 23d passed quietly. Tents were pitched, and in the
evening a dress-parade was held. Lieut. Mack returned to
duty from absent sick.

"Line was formed at dawn on the 24th, and again about
noon--rapid picket-firing in each instance rendering an
attack probable.

"About daybreak on the 25th, the enemy attacked toward the
left, drove in our pickets--Capts. Weld and Thayer in
command--but were checked before reaching the main line. The
regiment was placed in support of Battery England (No. 5).
Two men were wounded.

"Some changes in the division here took place--the
Twenty-ninth Connecticut was transferred to another brigade,
and the Tenth U. S. C. T. to ours, and Col. Duncan was
placed in command.

"About noon (25th) packed up everything, crossed the
Appomattox, and after a fatiguing march through the heat and
dust, reached the Petersburg front a little before sunset
and halted for orders. Soon after dark moved to the left in
a heavy rain squall, and lay down on a hillside as reserve
to the troops in the trenches. At 11 P. M. ordered to report
to Gen. Terry. Marched back a mile and reported. Another
mile's march in another direction brought the regiment,
about 1 A. M., to its position, where it lay down in the
woods, again as a reserve. A rattling fire of musketry was
kept up all night.

"On the 26th, a camp was selected and had been partially
cleared up, when orders were received for the regiment to go
into the trenches. Reported at brigade headquarters at
sunset, and soon afterward, through the mud and darkness,
the men silently felt their way into the trenches, which the
rain had reduced to the condition of a quagmire. It was a
slow process, and 10 o'clock came before all were in their
places.

"During the following day (27th,) the parapet was raised and
paths made through the muddier portions of the trenches.
Soon after dark a furious cannonade began which lasted for
several hours, and afforded to the spectators on both sides
a brilliant pyrotechnic display.

"Just after daybreak on the 28th, the enemy opened a heavy
musketry fire which lasted until after sunrise. He did not
leave his works, however, and our men remained stationary. A
man of Company B, while watching for a shot through a
section of stove-pipe, which he had improvised into a
port-hole, was struck and killed by a sharpshooter's bullet.

"Soon after midnight on the 28th-29th, the regiment moved
out of the trenches, and after daylight marched a quarter of
a mile to the right and rear and went into camp in a
cornfield. The men were at once put to work constructing
bomb-proofs, as the position was within sight and range of
the enemy's line. This occupied the entire day.

"Brig.-Gen. Birney's arrangement of the brigade did not seem
to have given satisfaction to higher authority, and it was
broken up, and the old brigade--Seventh, Eighth, Ninth U. S.
C. T., and Twenty-ninth Connecticut--were again united, with
Col. Shaw in command.

"From this time until the 24th of September, the Seventh and
Eighth alternated with the Ninth and Twenty-ninth for duty
in the trenches--two days in and two out; and on the 'off'
days furnishing details of officers and men for fatigue
purposes, in constructing new works and strengthening old
ones. The main lines at this point were scarcely over a
hundred yards apart, while from the advanced posts a stone
could almost be thrown into the enemy's works, and it was
considered the most disagreeable portion of the line.

"During the evening of the 4th of September, there was a
grand salute along the whole line, in honor of the fall of
Atlanta. At every battery the men stood at the guns, and
when the monster mortar--"The Petersburg Express"--gave the
expected signal, every lanyard was pulled. The effect was
exceedingly grand.

"At 9 o'clock on the morning of the 5th, the regiment met
with an irreparable loss in the death of Capt. A. R. Walker.
Capt. Walker, who was at the time in the trenches, had
raised his head above the parapet to observe the enemy's
movements, when he was struck in the head by a bullet, and
fell without speaking against the parapet. He was carried
back and laid upon the ground in rear of the trench, but all
efforts failed to elicit any token of recognition. He
breathed for a few moments and life was extinct. His body
was sent to the rear the same afternoon under charge of
Lieut. Teeple, upon whom the command of his company
devolved, who made the necessary arrangements for having it
embalmed and forwarded to his friends at Caledonia, New
York.

* * * *

"On the 14th Col. Howell, who was commanding the division in
the absence of Gen. Birney, who was absent sick, died of
injuries received from a fall from his horse, and the
command of the division devolved upon Col. Pond. Col. Howell
was highly esteemed, and was a thorough gentleman and a good
officer.

"On the 17th, Sergt. Wilson, Company F, color-sergeant, was
reduced to the ranks for cowardice, and Sergt. Griffin,
Company B, appointed in his place.

"On the 21st, Capt. Thayer resigned.

"On the 22d, Gen. Birney returned and resumed command of the
brigade; the division having been temporarily broken up by
the withdrawal of troops, and Col. Shaw returned to the
regiment.

"On the 23d, companies B and C were detailed to garrison
Fort Steadman.

"On the evening of the 24th, the regiment was relieved from
duty in the trenches by the Sixty-ninth New York, and moving
about two miles to the rear, went into camp with the
remainder of the brigade--some four miles from City Point.
Here regular drills and parades were resumed.

"At 3 P. M. on the 28th, camp was broken, and an hour later
the brigade followed the two divisions of the corps on the
road toward Bermuda Hundred. A tedious night-march followed,
during which the north side of the James was reached by way
of Broadway and Jones' landings. After an hour or two of
rest on the morning of the 29th, the brigade moved forward
as a support to the First Division (Paine's), the First
Brigade of which, under Col. Duncan, charged and carried the
enemy's works on Signal-Hill, on the New Market road, beyond
the line of works taken by the Seventh and Ninth on the 14th
of August.[32] [See foot-note next page.] * * * The
Eighteenth Corps at the same time charged and carried Fort
Harrison and a long line of rebel works. Soon after noon,
while the brigade, which had been moving by the flank down
the New Market road, had halted in the road, orders came to
form column of regiments, faced to the left, in the woods.
Scarcely had this been done when Gen. Wm. Birney, commanding
brigade, rode up to the right of the column and ordered the
Seventh to move off by the right flank. As it was crossing
the Mill road, Col. Shaw reached the head of the line and
received from him the order to "form on the right by file
into line, and charge and take the work that is firing," and
adding, "if that work is taken when you reach it, push right
on and take the next _before Gen. Foster can get there_." In
the meantime the Ninth had charged a work on the right and
had been repulsed, and the commanding officer of the Eighth
had been ordered to send four companies deployed as
skirmishers to take the work to the left, but when Major
Wagner found how strong it was he halted his line and
remained in advance as skirmishers. As the regiment was
forming for the charge, behind the crest of a knoll, Capt.
Bailey, Gen. Birney's Adjutant-General, rode up to Col. Shaw
with the order to send four companies deployed as
skirmishers to 'attack and take the work that is firing.'
Col. Shaw replied that he had orders to charge it with his
regiment, to which Capt. Bailey answered, 'well, _now_ the
General directs you to send four companies, deployed as
skirmishers, to take the work.' Lieut.-Col. Haskell, being
absent on leave, and Maj. Mayer sick, companies C, D, G and
K were placed under command of Capt. Weiss, who, when he
received the order to charge, replied, 'what! take a fort
with a skirmish line?' and then added, 'I will try, but it
can't be done.' What followed can best be described by
quoting his own words:

"Captain Weiss says: 'I at once, about 1 P. M., ordered the
four companies on the right of the regiment, C, D, G and K,
twenty-five or thirty paces to the front, where a slight
depression in the ground secured them from the eyes, if not
the projectiles, of the enemy. After being deployed by the
flank on the right of the second company from the right, the
command advanced in ordinary quick step against the
objective point. Emerging from the swale into view, it
became at once the target for a seemingly redoubled fire,
not only from the fort in front, but also from the one on
_its_ right. The fire of the latter had been reported
silenced, but instead, from its position to the left
oblique, it proved even more destructive than that of the
one in front.

"'Both forts were most advantageously situated for defense,
at the extremity of a plain, variously estimated at from 500
to 700 yards wide, whose dead level surface afforded at no
point shelter from view or shot to an assailing party. The
forts were connected by a curtain of rifle-pits containing a
re-entrant angle, thus providing for a reciprocal enfilading
fire in case either was attacked.

"'The nature of the ground and the small altitude of the
ordnance above the level of the plain also made the fire in
the nature of a ricochet.

"'As the party advanced the enemy's shell and schrapnel were
exchanged for grape and cannister, followed soon by a lively
rattle of musketry. When within range of the latter, and
after having traversed about three-fourths of the distance,
the order to charge was given and obeyed with an alacrity
that seemed to make the execution almost precede the order.
For a moment, judging from the slacking of their fire, the
enemy seemed to be affected by a panicky astonishment, but
soon recovering, they opened again with cannister and
musketry, which, at the shorter range, tore through the
ranks with deadlier effect. Capt. Smith and Lieut. Prime,
both of Company G, here fell grievously wounded, while forty
or fifty enlisted-men dotted the plain with their prostrate
forms.

"'In a few minutes the ditch of the fort was reached. It was
some six or seven feet deep and ten or twelve wide, the
excavated material sufficing for the embankments of the
fort. Some 120 men and officers precipitated themselves into
it, many losing their lives at its very edge. After a short
breathing spell men were helped up the exterior of the
parapet on the shoulders of others; fifty or sixty being
thus disposed an attempt was made to storm the fort. At the
signal nearly all rose, but the enemy, lying securely
sheltered behind the interior slope, the muzzles of their
guns almost touching the storming party, received the latter
with a crushing fire, sending many into the ditch below shot
through the brain or breast. Several other attempts were
made with like result, till at last forty or fifty of the
assailants were writhing in the ditch or resting forever.

"'The defense having been obviously re-enforced meanwhile
from other points not so directly attacked, and having armed
the gunners with muskets, it was considered impolitic to
attempt another storm with the now greatly reduced force on
hand, especially as the cessation of the artillery fire of
the fort was considered a sufficient hint to the commander
of the Union forces that the attacking party had come to
close quarters and were proper subjects for re-enforcements.
No signs, however, of the latter appearing, it was decided
to surrender, especially as the rebels had now commenced to
roll lighted shells among the stormers, against which there
was no defense, thus inviting demoralization. Seven
officers, Capts. Weiss and McCarty, Lieuts. Sherman, Mack,
Spinney, Ferguson and Eler, and from seventy to eighty
enlisted-men, delivered up their arms to an enemy gallant
enough to have fought for a better cause.

"'Many, in mounting the parapet, could not help taking a
last mournful look on their dead comrades in the ditch,
whose soldierly qualities had endeared them to their best
affections; and many, without for a moment selfishly looking
at their own dark future, were oppressed with inexpressible
sadness when reflecting on the immensity of the sacrifice
and the deplorableness of the result. It was a time for
manly tears.'

"Lieut. Spinney gives the following account of the charge
against Fort Gilmer:

"'The charge was made in quick time, in open order of about
three paces, until we could plainly see the enemy; then the
order was given by Capt. Weiss to 'double-quick,' which was
promptly obeyed, the line preserving its order as upon
drill. Upon arriving at the ditch there was no wavering, but
every man jumped into the trap from which but one man
returned that day (George W. Washington, Company D.)

"'Upon looking about us after getting into the ditch we
found there was but one face where the enemy could not touch
us, so all the survivors rallied at that face. Then
commenced a scene which will always be very fresh in my
memory.

"'Capt. Weiss gave orders to raise men upon the parapet,
which was done by two men assisting one to climb. Capt.
Weiss, having from thirty to forty men up, attempted to gain
the inside of the fort, but he with all of his storming
party were knocked back, either killed or wounded, into the
ditch. A second attempt was made with the same result,
Lieut. Ferguson being wounded by a bullet across the top of
his head. A third attempt was made with no better success.

"'The enemy during this time had been rolling shell upon us,
and calling upon us to surrender, which was answered by some
of the men in the words, 'we will show you how to
surrender,' at the same time rising and firing into the
fort. One of these men I remember to have been Perry
Wallace, Company D.

"'Upon a consultation of the officers who were in the ditch,
it was decided to surrender what was left of the command. I
was still upon the face of the parapet, when Lieut. Sherman
passed me a handkerchief which I raised upon the point of my
sword. But the rebels, fearing it was only done to gain a
foothold, would not take notice of it, but called upon me to
come in, which I did, and met with a warm reception at their
hands, being plucked of all they could lay hands upon. An
adjutant of an Alabama regiment coming up, ordered his men
to return to me what they had taken, but this was not done,
however. I stated that our men had disarmed themselves and
were ready to give up the hopeless struggle. Still they
would not believe me, but made me mount the parapet first,
when they had the courage to do so themselves, when the
remnant of the four companies marched into the fort.

"'The march to Richmond was one continued insult from the
troops that were hurrying to the front; one man being
determined to kill Capt. Weiss, whom he thought was not
humble enough. The female portion of the inhabitants were
also very insolent.

"'Upon arriving at Libby Prison the officer in charge asked
the commander of our guard if the 'niggers' would fight. His
answer was, 'by G--d! if you had been there you would have
thought so. They marched up just as if they were on drill,
not firing a shot.'

"'After being lodged in Libby, Salisbury and Danville
prisons, we were returned to Richmond about February 17th,
paroled on the 21st, and reached our lines on the 22d.'

"An article in the New York _Herald_ of November 4th, 1864,
copied from a rebel newspaper, arguing for the arming of
slaves, has in it the following passage:

"'But A. B. says that negroes will not fight. We have before
us a letter from a distinguished general (we wish we were at
liberty to use his name and influence) who says 'Fort Gilmer
proved the other day that they would fight. They raised each
other on the parapet to be shot as they appeared above.'

"The officer referred to was understood to be Gen. Lee.

"After the four companies had disappeared in the ditch of
the fort, Capt. Pratt, with Company F, was ordered to move
forward as near the work as he could get and keep down its
fire and cover their retreat. Capt. Smith and Lieut. Prime
came back, both severely wounded. Later in the day companies
A, B, E and I, under Capt. Spaulding, moved to the left and
relieved the four companies of the Eighth, who were out of
ammunition. Co. F lost two men killed and twenty-three
wounded, and the four companies under Capt. Spaulding had
eleven men killed and wounded. Lieut. Teeple, commanding
Company I, was wounded in the arm, but remained in command
of his company during the day.

"Four companies annihilated, 70 killed, 110 wounded and 129
missing tells the story of Fort Gilmer.

"The regiment, or what was left of it, remained at the front
until 9 o'clock P. M., when the wounded were gathered
together and it moved half a mile to the rear and slept on
its arms.

"This day proved the most unfortunate one in the history of
the regiment. The storming of a strong field-work, whose
garrison was on the alert, with a thin skirmish line without
supports, resulted as could easily have been foreseen.
First, the Ninth was sent unsupported to charge a work to
the left of Fort Gilmer, across an open field where its line
was enfiladed by the enemy's fire, and was repulsed; then
four companies of the Eighth, as skirmishers, were sent
against the same work, with no better success, and after
this bitter experience, four companies of the Seventh were
sent to their destruction on an errand equally hopeless. Had
the brigade been sent together, instead of its three
regiments in detail, the rebel line would have been carried
and the road to Richmond opened to us. This is no
conjecture. The testimony of a rebel staff-officer on duty
at Fort Gilmer, and that of our own officers who were
captured, fully substantiate the statement.

"About noon on the following day, the 30th, the regiment
moved a mile to the left and went into the rifle-pits to the
left of Fort Harrison. Soon after, the rebel Maj.-Gen.
Field, who had commanded the Ft. Gilmer line the day
previous, made a determined assault on Fort Harrison from
one side, while Hoke's division attacked on the other; but
the attack was not made simultaneously and was repulsed with
heavy loss. While this charge was being made, Col. Shaw was
struck on the head by a rifle bullet, but was uninjured. The
next morning the rebels opened their batteries on our line.
During the cannonade, Lieut. Bjornmark was wounded in the
foot by the fragment of a shell.

"The following is the report of Capt. Weiss to the
commanding officer of the regiment, announcing his arrival
in Richmond:

"'LIBBY PRISON, RICHMOND, VA., September 30, 1864.

"'_Sir_:--I respectfully inform you that the following
officers of the Seventh U. S. C. T. are here, prisoners:
Capts. Weiss and McCarty, Lieuts. Mack, Sherman, Eler,
Ferguson and Spinney. Lieut. Ferguson and myself are wounded
in the head, but doing well.

"'Please inform our friends of the above, and oblige,

"'Yours, on the part of my associates,

"'JULIUS A. WEISS,

"'_Capt. Seventh U. S. C. T._"

"On the 5th of October, the regiment was relieved from duty
in the trenches by the Eight, and moving a short distance to
the rear, went into camp near division headquarters.

"On the 6th, Gen. Birney divided the regiments of his
command into two brigades. The First Brigade, composed of
the Seventh, Ninth and One Hundred and Twenty-seventh, was
placed under command of Col. Voris, of the Sixty-seventh
Ohio, although each regiment had a colonel serving with it;
and the Second, composed of the Eighth, Twenty-ninth and
Forty-fifth, under Lieut.-Col. Armstrong, of the Ninth.
Capt. Rice returned from sick-leave the same day and was
assigned to the command of Company A, his own company (K)
having disappeared in the _melee_ of the 29th of September.

"During the forenoon of the 7th, the enemy attacked in force
on the right, driving in Kautz's cavalry and capturing
Elder's battery of the First United States Artillery, but
was checked and driven back by the First Division of the
Tenth Corps. The regiment was moved to the right, and after
changing positions several times, went into the trenches
near the New Market road.

"On the afternoon of the 12th, orders came for the regiment
to be ready to move in light marching order, and later it
moved out about half of a mile to the front and right, and
deployed two companies as skirmishers. Shortly after dark it
was withdrawn to the position it held earlier in the day. A
cold rain was falling, and as the men were without
overcoats, they suffered considerably.

"About 3 o'clock on the morning of the 13th, our own
division (Third), together with the First, moved out of camp
and marched to the right until it reached the Darbytown
road. Here it formed line, and advancing through the thick
undergrowth finally lay down in front of the enemy's works
to await developments. At 10 o'clock the First Division,
which, with the cavalry, had gone to the right, charged the
enemy's line, but failed to break it and had to withdraw
with considerable loss. About noon the regiment relieved the
Eighth on the skirmish line. Capt. Dickey, of the Eighth,
was killed during the movement. Here it remained until about
4 o'clock, when, the remainder of the division having been
withdrawn, it fell back covering the movement of the corps
and returned to its old camp on the New Market road. * * *

"The regiment remained in camp until the 26th, furnishing in
the meantime a large picket detail, together with details
for fatigue, employed in the construction of earthworks,
abattis, etc. On this date Col. Voris was relieved from
command of the brigade by Col. Shaw, Lieut.-Col. Haskell
taking command of the regiment.

"On the evening of this day orders were received for the
regiment to be ready to move on the following morning, with
three days' cooked rations, and in light marching order. At
5 A. M. we moved out of camp and took the road toward the
right. The Eighteenth, as well as our own corps, was in
motion. The orders were for the Tenth Corps to threaten the
enemy's line near the Darbytown road, while the Eighteenth
moving by the rear to the right, was to strike their left
flank. If they weakened their line in its front, the Tenth
Corps was to advance. The whole movement being made to cover
the advance of the Army of the Potomoc against the rebel
lines covering Hatcher's run and the Boydtown plank-road.

"Marching about two miles to the right we struck the
Darbytown road, when line of battle was formed to the left,
and moved forward through the woods, and, in places, almost
impassable undergrowth--the Seventh having the left of the
division as well of the line. Our ears were soon greeted
with the scattering fire of our skirmish line, interspersed
by the crashing of an occasional shell through the
tree-tops. After an advance of half a mile the division
halted to await the result of the attack on the right. The
irregular skirmish fire soon swelled out into long, heavy
volleys, deepened by the hoarser notes of the artillery.
From 8 A. M. until 8 P. M. we lay and listened to this
concert of diabolical sounds, momentarily expecting the
order would be passed along the line to advance. About 11 A.
M. it began to rain, which continued until far into the
night. At 8 P. M. we fell back out of the woods, behind an
old line of rebel rifle-pits, and bivouacked for the night
near Kell's House.

"At 3 o'clock the following morning we were ordered in to
relieve the Twenty-ninth on the picket-line. The clouds had
cleared away and the air was keen and cold. We felt our way
through the dense, dripping undergrowth to the musical
accompaniment of rebel bullets singing above our heads. By
daybreak we were in position along the edge of a belt of
woods, something less than a quarter of a mile from the
rebel works. Their skirmishers kept up a lively fire all
through the forenoon, and as a consequence we lost some
thirty odd men, killed and wounded, from their fire. About 3
P. M. orders were given to fall back, but through some
misunderstanding, the two companies holding the extreme left
of the line failed to receive the order, and held their
ground until their retreat was nearly cut off by the rebel
advance, when they fell back without orders, meeting on
their way the remainder of the brigade coming to their
rescue. The same evening the troops returned to their camps.

"Here ended our fighting for the fall. * * *

"On the 28th, Gen. Birney returned and relieved Gen. Hawley
in command of the division, which he had held during the
absence of the former in Philadelphia, where he had gone
about the 21st to attend the funeral of his brother,
Maj.-Gen. D. B. Birney. Col. Shaw was placed permanently in
command of the First Brigade, and Col. Wright, Tenth U. S.
C. T., of the Second.

"About the 30th, a general order was received from Gen.
Butler thanking Capt. Weiss and the officers under him for
their gallant conduct on the 29th, and saying that their
absence in prison alone prevented their promotion.

"On the 1st of November, the division was reviewed by Gen.
Birney, and the proclamation of the Governor of Maryland,
announcing the adoption of the constitutional amendment
abolishing slavery in that State, was read to the command.
This paper, which conveyed to the men the knowledge that
their wives and children were no longer slaves, produced an
effect more easily imagined than described.

* * * *

"On the 5th, Capt. Cheney and Lieut. Teeple, with companies
H and I, were detached from the regiment to garrison Fort
'No. 3,' at Spring Hill--a work on the right flank of the
Army of the James--where they remained until the 6th of
December.

"On the 1st of December, the reorganization of the Tenth and
Eighteenth Corps was determined upon. The white troops of
the two corps were consolidated and formed the
Twenty-fourth Corps, under Gen. Foster; and the colored
troops of the Ninth, Tenth and Eighteenth Corps, with other
colored troops not assigned, formed the Twenty-fifth Corps,
under Gen. Weitzel. Its three divisions were commanded by
Gens. Wild, Birney and Paine, respectively. The First
Brigade of Birney's division was made up of the Seventh, One
Hundred and Ninth, One Hundred and Sixteenth and One hundred
and Seventeenth, under Col. Shaw. The Forty-first
Forty-fifth and One Hundred and Twenty-seventh had at
different times been attached to the brigade--_to learn our
ways_, as they said at headquarters. Eventually, however,
the One Hundred and Fifteenth was substituted for the One
Hundred and Seventeenth in the brigade.

"On the 4th, a general re-assignment of positions was made.
The Seventh moved from the New Market road to Fort Burnham
(Harrison), which was garrisoned by the First Brigade. The
Second Brigade, under Doubleday, was on our right, and the
Third on our left. The Second Brigade joined the
Twenty-fourth Corps, near the New Market road, and Paine's
division was on our left and extended to the river. The
other division was in reserve to the rear. The Seventh was
under command of Lieut.-Col. Pratt, and so remained during
the remainder of our stay in Virginia."

The prolonged but decisive struggle began to draw near. General Grant had pushed the troops nearer and closer, at every opportunity, to the beleaguered cities, until they were well-nigh completely invested. General Sherman's splendid victories influenced the veteran corps lying before these places, and filled them with the spirit of sure success. The intrepid commander, having reached North Carolina, visited Grant at the latter's headquarters at City Point, where he also found President Lincoln, and received their congratulations for his successful march to the sea, which achievement had not been surpassed by any of the undertakings of either Hannibal or Bonaparte in point of daring and strategy. An important conference then took place, and on the 28th of March Sherman returned to his command.

Grant throughout the winter had been preparing for the spring campaign. The Phalanx regiments heretofore in the 9th, 10th and 18th Corps had been consolidated, and formed the 25th Corps, under the command of Major-General Godfrey Weitzel, who at New Orleans refused to command negro troops. The Corps was divided into three divisions, with Brigadier-Generals Wilde, Birney and Paine as commanders. Major-General Ord had succeeded to the command of the Army of the James, then numbering about 28,000 effective men, and was to take part with three divisions of his command in the onward movement to commence on the 29th of March, while Weitzel was to command the remainder of the troops north of the James and at Bermuda Hundreds.

Lee, as though he had knowledge of Grant's intention and meant to frustrate his plans by taking the initiative, attacked the 9th Corps at Fort Steadman on the 25th, with signal success. He was finally repulsed, however, and Grant began moving the Union troops. On the morning of the 29th, General Birney with the 2nd Division of the 25th Corps was near Hatcher's Run, with General Ord's command. The division consisted of three brigades of Phalanx Infantry, commanded by Colonels James Shaw, Jr., Ulysses Doubleday and William W. Woodward. A brigade of artillery commanded by Captain Louis L. Langdon was attached to the Corps; but, owing to the country being wooded, it was of little use, and most of it was left on the north side with General Weitzel.

On the same day Sheridan reached Dinwiddie, and the next morning he encountered the confederates near the Court House. Here were W. H. F. Lee's Cavalry, Picket's and Bushrod Johnson's divisions of Infantry, and Wise's brigade. Sheridan made the attack. His men, on account of the marshy ground, had to dismount. The confederates fought desperately, but Sheridan's men contested every inch of ground, and at night fell back to Dinwiddie Court House and bivouacked. The 5th Corps came up during the night to attack the confederates in the rear; but at daylight it was found that they had fallen back to Five Forks. Here was found the cavalry of W. H. F. Lee and Fitzhugh Lee, with Ross', Picket's, Wise's and Johnson's divisions of infantry. On the morning of the 1st of April, Sheridan advanced the 5th Corps toward Five Forks. That afternoon it fell upon Picket's rear, and now began the decisive battle. The roar was deafening. Night was coming on, and Sheridan was anxious to carry out Grant's order and "end the matter if possible to do so." He gave the order, "Charge bayonets!" In five minutes Picket's outer line was in possession of the federals. Crawford's division struck them in the flank, and, with McKenzie's brigade, routed and sent the confederates flying. The 5th Corps rallied and captured the enemy's entire force in their front. General Sheridan says in report:

A Phalanx guard refusing to allow General U. S. Grant to pass by the commissary store-house till he had thrown away his cigar.]

"The enemy were driven from their strong line of works,
completely routed, the Fifth Corps doubling up their left
flank in confusion, and the cavalry of General Merritt
dashing on to the White Oak Road, capturing their artillery,
turning it upon them, and riding into their broken ranks, so
demoralized them that they made no serious stand after their
line was carried, but took flight in disorder."

The writer well remembers the eagerness of the Phalanx brigade of Colonel Shaw, composed of the 109th, 116th and 7th Regiments, as they waited orders near Hatcher's Run. The sound of distant guns fell upon their ears; Colonel Shaw was impatient; all seemed to feel the end was near, and wanted to lend a hand in the consummation. Oh, what suspense! The brigade lay upon their arms in a state of great agitation, all that night, waiting for orders to advance upon the foe. Who can tell the thoughts of those brave black soldiers as thus they lay upon the rumbling earth. Fathers, mothers, sisters, wives and children, yet slaves, behind the enemy's guns: precious property they are, and guarded like dearest treasure and even life itself, by an army of slave-holders--Lee's men, who, with the desperation of demons, vainly attempted to check the advance of the men of the North, who, with their lives, defended the Union. The black brigade wanted to strike one more blow for freedom--for the freedom of their wives and children--to make one more charge, and the confederate banner should go down; one more charge, and the light of Liberty's stars should blazon over the ramparts of the confederate forts. At length, with the dawning of day, came the order; then the black brigade went forward, but to find the enemy gone and their works deserted.

The confederate lines were broken, and Sheridan's troopers, McKenzie and Merritt, with their cavalry, although it was night, had followed up the fleeing foe, capturing them by thousands. The brigade pushed on along the captured works. The federal batteries, from every mound and hill, were showering shot and shell into the enemy's inner works; while the gleaming bayonets of the thousands of infantry could be seen as far as the eye could reach, their proud banners kissing the stifling air, and the bugles sounding the "forward march," leaving in their rear smoking camps and blazing dwellings. What a Sunday morning was that, with its thunders of terrific war, instead of the mellow chimes of church bells and the repose of peace.

It was late in the afternoon, and huge, black clouds of smoke rolled up out of the city of Petersburg, and then a loud report, told that the confederates had evacuated it. Away to the left, the huzzas of Colonel Doubleday's Phalanx brigade (2nd) were heard. Now came a race to reach the city, between the 7th and 8th Phalanx regiments. No matter which was first, they were among the troops which took possession of the city, and gladdened the hearts of the negro population, as they marched through the streets singing their battle song:

"We will hang Jeff Davis on a sour apple-tree as we go marching on."

It was a glorious victory, bringing freedom to thousands of slaves, though it cost as many lives and millions of treasure. It was the beginning of the end. The confederates deserted their army by thousands. The South Side Railroad was in the hands of the federals, and starvation threatened the enemy. Lee, says a historian, was no longer himself: he rode wildly through his camps hither, and thither, trying to save his shattered and routed soldiers from annihilation.

The defeat at Five Forks settled the fate of the Army of North Virginia. Grant had almost the entire federal army actively engaged; he stopped the exchange of prisoners, invited President Lincoln, then at City Point, to come out and see the army advance, which he did. He met Grant in the city of Petersburg, amid the exultations of the troops and the joyous demonstrations of the negro population. General Lee made no stop at Richmond; he had informed Jefferson Davis that he must give up the city. The latter, with his aids and all the money he could collect,--not the confederate paper, but the gold of the United States,--stampeded.

General Weitzel, with Kautz's division of the 24th Corps and Thomas' and Ashborne's division of the 25th Corps, on the north side of the James river, lay quietly upon their arms during the fight on the south side. Grant kept Weitzel informed as to the results of the attack, and warned him to be on the alert and take every advantage offered, to press the confederates. General Longstreet's forces had been in Weitzel's front, but were partly withdrawn to defend Petersburg; therefore the latter kept unceasing vigil upon the fortifications before him.

Sunday evening the bands were ordered out to play, and it was late into the night when their melodious strains ceased to float through the air. It was a night long to be remembered, the hearts of the black soldiers of the 25th Corps, gladdened by the reports of the victories of the troops before Petersburg, were jubilant, and with vigilant watch each looked for morning. They were impatient for the light, and ere it dawned they were ready for the onset which they believed must come with it. The enemy whom they supposed were preparing to give them battle, was silently stealing away to the enchanting strains of the Federal musicians. It was near the morning hours when a sudden report startled the sleeping soldiers; an explosion, another, and yet another followed in rapid succession.

General Weitzel soon became satisfied that the enemy was moving, the continuous sound of distant cannonading away to the south, told that the combat still raged. From the signal tower bright lights were discernable at Richmond. The city appeared to be on fire; a confederate picket was captured, but he knew nothing; he had got astray from his comrades and command. A deserter came in with intelligence that the city was being evacuated, and half an hour later a negro drove into camp and gave information that the enemy was flying.

The ground in front was thickly set with torpedoes, and the troops dared not move. Day came and Colonel Draper's black brigade of the 25th Corps went forward. The road was lumbered with all manner and sort of military gear and munitions of war. Keeping clear of the red flags which marked the torpedoes, the troops pushed on; they soon reached the defences of the city to find them untenanted; the negro had told the truth and the Phalanx brigade entered the city welcomed by thousands of happy kinsfolks. Badeau says:

"The sun was an hour up, when suddenly there rose in the
streets the cry of 'Yankees! Yankees!' and the mass of
plunderers and rioters, cursing, screaming, trampling on
each other, alarmed by an enemy not yet in sight, madly
strove to extricate themselves and make an opening for the
troops. Soon about forty men of the Fourth Massachusetts
Cavalry rode into the crowd, and, trotting straight to the
public square, planted their guidons on the Capitol.
Lieutenant De Peyster, of Weitzel's staff, a New Yorker
eighteen years of age, was the first to raise the national
colors, and then, in the morning light of the 3d of April,
the flag of the United States once more floated over
Richmond.

"The command of Weitzel followed--a long blue line--with
gun-barrels gleaming, and bands playing 'Hail Columbia' and
'John Brown's Soul Goes Marching On.' One regiment was
black.[33] The magistrates formally surrendered the city to
Weitzel at the Capitol, which stands on a hill in the centre
of the town, and overlooks the whole country for miles. The
national commander at once set about restoring order and
extinguishing the flames. Guards were established,
plundering was stopped, the negroes were organized into a
fire corps, and by night the force of the conflagration was
subdued, the rioting was at an end, and the conquered city
was rescued by the efforts of its captors from the evils
which its own authorities had allowed, and its own
population had perpetrated."

Abraham Lincoln riding through Richmond, April 4th, 1865, after the evacuation of the city by the Confederates.]

Lee and his famishing host were fleeing towards Danville, hotly pursued by the Federal Army. Resting there until the 5th they resumed the march, fighting and running, until, at Appomattox they gave up and surrendered. Major Alexandria S. Johnson of the 116th Phalanx Regiment thus relates the story in part which the Phalanx brigade took in the memorable movement of the two armies to Appomattox. He says:

"As a participant in these events I will speak merely of
what came under my own observation. The One Hundred and
Sixteenth (colored) Infantry, in which I commanded a
company, belonged to the Third Brigade, Second Division of
the Twenty-fifth Army Corps, and during the winter of
1864-65 held the lines on Chapin's farm, the left resting on
Fort Burnham. The division was commanded by Major-General
Birney. The winter was passed in endeavoring to get the
troops in as high a state of discipline as possible by
constant drill and watchful training. When the spring opened
we had the satisfaction of feeling that they were the equal,
as soldiers, of most of the white troops. They were a
contented body, being well fed and clothed, and they took
delight in their various duties. The news of the capture of
Savannah by Sherman and the defeat of Hood at Nashville had
a cheering effect upon the whole command, and we looked
forward with confidence that the end was drawing near.

"On the night of the 26th of March our division silently
left the lines on Chapin's farm, and marching to the rear
some three miles went into bivouac. On the night of the 27th
we crossed the James on muffled pontoons, and after a weary
march arrived at Hatcher's Run at daybreak of the 28th.
Crossing the original lines of breastworks we built new
breastworks some two hundred yards in advance and bivouacked
in the pine woods awaiting events. Sheridan at this time was
operating on the Confederate right flank. The news of his
decisive victory at Five Forks and of the complete turning
of the enemy's flank was the immediate cause of a verbal
order, given to company commanders by our colonel on the
afternoon of April 1st, to advance on the lines in our front
at dawn on the following day. That night the Union artillery
opened along the whole line. Hissing and bursting shells
from Appomattox river to Hatcher's Run filled in a scene
never to be forgotten by those who witnessed it. It was as
if demons incarnate were holding a jubilee. As far as the
eye could reach there was one blaze of fiery shot. The world
has seldom seen its like. Where our brigade was to operate
was a dense wilderness of pines with matted underbrush, but
in the morning it looked as though a sirocco had kissed it.

"With the dawn of day the brigade was in line of battle. Not
a breath of air was stirring. A misty vapor shed its gloom
and hung like a pall among the tree-tops. The silk covers
were taken from our flags, but their folds hung lazily along
the staff when the command, 'Forward! guide centre! march!'
was given. At first slashed timber and brush obstructed our
way, but as the obstruction began to cease an obstacle in
the shape of a long line of abattis met our gaze. The dusky
line broke through the abattis, however, as if the stakes
had been so many reeds, and charged over the breastworks and
into the Confederate camp. The rush must have been a
surprise, as the enemy offered little resistance. In front
of one of the tents a Federal sergeant (white) lay dead, his
right arm extended to the full length, and firmly clenched
in his hand was a piece of fancy soap. A bullet had entered
his forehead, the blood from the wound was trickling down
his face, but the hue of health was still on his cheek. How
he came to be there is to me a mystery, as that part of the
line was forced by colored troops. Swinging by the right
flank we kept our way along the Boydton road. A Confederate
light battery in position alongside of a cottage, which
stood in a hollow, shelled the column as it advanced, and so
accurate had the gunners got the range that almost every
shell did damage. A couple of shells burst together above my
company. The flash blinded me for a few seconds. I heard a
scream of pain and just then was ordered to lie down. Not
twenty yards from me was a wounded soldier. His leg was
shattered badly. He prayed and sang hymns alternately, but
his voice gradually grew weaker until it ended in death. One
of our batteries was brought into position, and engaging the
Confederate battery, the latter was silenced, when the
column again resumed the march, arriving in front of
Petersburg about noon.

"It was the intention of General Birney to carry by assault
the main fort which commanded the city, and he deployed the
division in line of battle for that purpose, but General
Ord, coming up in time, ordered him to retire his division
out of range and await further orders. We went into bivouac
for the night, and at early dawn of the 3d we entered the
city, the Confederates having evacuated the forts during the
night. The field music played "John Brown's Body," and a
tiny Union flag in the hands of a girl of ten years waved us
a welcome. Resting an hour in the city the division started
in pursuit of the Confederates. For a mile or two outside of
the city the road was strewn with plug tobacco. Blood could
be seen also at intervals in patches along the road. We
bivouacked some fifteen miles from the city. A few of our
officers took supper in a house close to our camping ground.
Our fare was "corn pone," scraps of bacon, sorghum molasses,
and a solution of something called coffee, for which we each
gave our host, a middle-aged Virginian, one dollar. The
colored troops being encamped on his farm his indignation
was stirred and he exclaimed, while the tears trickled down
his cheeks, 'Poor old Virginia! poor old Virginia! that I
should have lived to see this day!'

"At dawn of the 4th the column resumed the pursuit. It is
needless for me to tell in detail how our cavalry destroyed
and burned over five hundred Confederate wagons on the 5th
and 6th, and how Ewell's command was defeated and captured
at Sailor's creek on the 6th. Our brigade having arrived at
Farmville on the afternoon of the 6th and encamped for the
night, some of the citizens poured forth pitiful tales to
our officers. They told how our cavalry had entered their
houses and ripped open their feather beds, how the rude
troopers had broken open bureaus and chests in search of
valuables, and how they had carried away with them what they
could find. Nothing of interest took place until the 8th,
which was noted for the forced march made by the brigade,
starting at daybreak and going into bivouac at twelve
midnight. The morning of the 9th broke calm and serene. It
was a lovely morning, the sun had not yet gotten above the
horizon when the brigade was on the march again, but it went
only a short distance when it was halted. To the right of
the road, in a clearing, was a portion of the Twenty-fourth
Corps, with arms stacked and the men cooking breakfast.
Sides of bacon at intervals hung from their bayonets.
Although the woods were full of our cavalry and three
divisions of our infantry were in close proximity, all was
as quiet as a Sabbath morning. One of our batteries, some
six hundred yards to the right, broke the stillness by
fitfully throwing a shell once in a while, but to a
looker-on all seemed inaction. Such was the situation at
Appomattox at sunrise on the morning of the 9th.

"Our brigade, after resting some thirty minutes, resumed the
march. It soon filed to the right. In a few minutes the
command was given--'Right shoulder, shift arms! double
quick, march!' Onward we went, the objective point being the
Lynchburg pike. Dismounted cavalry retreating from the front
broke through the column, saying as they passed us, 'Give it
to them, boys! they are too many for us!' In a few minutes
the head of the column reached the pike, when it halted and
faced to the front. The command--'Unsling knapsacks!'--was
given, and then we knew we were stripping for a fight.
Skirmishers were deployed on our front, and as we advanced
the Confederate skirmishers retired before us. After
advancing some eight hundred yards the brigade was ordered
to halt and form in line of battle. It formed into column of
companies. Some eight hundred yards away was the Army of
Northern Virginia, with its three lines of battle awaiting
us.