Ozaukee County's
War History
by Daniel E. McGinley

as extracted from THE PORT WASHINGTON STAR
June 19, 1897



Co H 24th Wisconsin
Personal Sketches

Charles Klein

One of the sturdy and patriotic German boys of Port Washington who enlisted in Capt. Gustavus Goldsmith's company in 1862, was Charles Klein, then a strong stocky-built young man of 27, who signed his name to the roll on August 15th of that year to serve three years or during the war. It was not without considerable sacrifice that the determination was reached that his adopted country had the best claim on his services. Young Klein was an only son, the prop and stay of aged parents in their declining years, and had been earning good wages at his trade as carpenter. He laid the matter before them and asked their consideration of what he thought his plain duty as an American citizen in the nation's hour of peril. "Go, if you think best," was the reply, and he at once enlisted. As many be imagined the parting from the old folks at home was a sad one, for neither expected to meet him again on earth.

Leaving Port Washington with the rest of the boys, Comrade Klein participated in nearly all of the battles and skirmishes of the war that placed the old Twenty-fourth Wisconsin high up on the list of fighting regiments. He endured the hardships of camp life and duty, the fatigue of forced marches, the unremitting toil in building fortifications, and performed the duties of a private soldier with the same unwavering cheerfulness that has characterized him through life and in all places. At Chattanooga, he was one of the 12 men of his company that reported for duty, the balance all being disabled or sick and for 14 days and nights worked unremittingly on fortifications around that place. He was in 14 battles in which the regiment was engaged, namely: Perryville, Chickamauga, Rocky Face, Resaca, Calhoun, Adairsville, Dallas, Peach Tree Creek, Atlanta, Jonesboro, Lovejoy, Spring Hill, Franklin and Nashville, and escaped without a scratch although as he quaintly puts it, "I got a plenty of holes in my clothes."

Charles Klein was with the regiment from the time it went to the front until the muster-out, was never sick, never had a furlough, and was always on duty. Being once urged by his lieutenant to take a furlough and see his old home, Klein protested that it would be harder to leave home again than it was at first and that the old folks would feel the parting more keenly; besides a furlough would mean about $40 expense, which the thrifty soldier forwarded to his parents instead of spending it for a pleasure trip for himself.

When Capt. Goldsmith was stricken down by a rebel bullet on Chickamauga's bloody field, comrade Klein was hardly three feet away and the bullet whistled by him. The federal troops were being driven back by the advancing confederates at the time, and an orderly of the colonel of the Thirty-sixth, which fought alongside of the Twenty-fourth, seeing Goldsmith fall, caught him up, flung him across the colonel's horse (the colonel having been killed in action) and brought him off the field. Capt. Goldsmith did not die until several days after the battle, and as Klein was an old friend the captain asked for him several times and he finally was allowed to visit the hospital at Nashville and remained at the bedside until the captain died.

Comrade Klein received his discharge at Nashville at the general muster out June 10, 1865, and arrived home June 24 on the Goodrich steamer from Milwaukee, which line gave the boys free transportation home, stamping their discharge papers with the ticket later for the passage. Like thousands of other patriotic citizens our hero at once took up the burden of life and worked at his trade until advancing years compelled him to give it up for lighter work. He is now employed in the Wisconsin Chair Co.'s factory and gives his employers the same faithful service that he did his country. His hair and beard are turning gray and his face and form show the ravages of time, and the result of hardships endured, but he is still hale and sound, and works every day. May he live long to enjoy the liberty and prosperity of the nation he helped to preserve!

Charles Klein was born in Ausbach, Westerwalder, district Coblentz, Germany, July 14, 1836, and received a common school education. When twelve years old, in 1848, he came with his parents to America, settling in the town of Abbott, now town Sherman, Sheboygan county. In 1854 they removed to Port Washington, where young Klein worked at building the old middle pier, and at rebuilding Blake's pier; also worked at other building operations until 1861 when he started to learn the carpenter's trade. He followed this occupation up to the time of his enlistment, and after the war until he entered the chair factory as above stated. He married Mary Josephine Bielfeld on August 9, 1869, and to them have been born one daughter and four sons. The oldest, the daughter, is married and lives in Chicago.

Another regiment in which Ozaukee county was largely and ably represented, was the Twenty-sixth Wisconsin Vol. Infy., the second German regiment recruited in the state.

In the summer of 1862, General Franz Sigel was authorized by President Lincoln to raise a division of twelve regiments of infantry, from among the German population of the loyal states. He sent a request to Gov. Salomon for one full regiment from Wisconsin, and the Governor entrusted the task to Wm. H. Jacobs of Milwaukee. That gentleman went energetically to work, and with the aid of the patriotic Germans of the state, soon had a full regiment recruited and organized at Camp Sigel, Milwaukee. With the exception of a part of Co. G., which had been recruited at West Bend, Washington county and a few individuals in other companies, the whole regiment was composed of men and boys of German birth or German parentage.

On its rolls we find the names of thirty-six men and boys who were either citizens of Ozaukee county before the war, or have been since that period.

In Company A, we find the names of August Bielefeld, Wm. Maetzold, Mich. Moldenhauer, Wm. Mueller, Wm. H. Rintleman, Henry W. Rintleman and Henry Roth, of Cedarburg; Wm. Hausberg, Gottlieb Jaenig, Richard Klett, Wm. Nero, Anton Nolde, Herman Opitz, John Paul and Julius Semisch of Mequon; and John B. Mueller, of Grafton.

In Company B, John Grundke, Chas. Gottschalk and John Erdmann of Cedarburg.

In Company C, Jack Mathias of Belgium; and Moritz Winkler of Port Washington.

In Company D, Hugo Boclo of Cedarburg; Peter Hoffranz of Port Washington; and William Milkie of Saukville.

In Company I, Wm. Baatz, Chas. Beckman, Fred. Krus, John Lau, Henry Luedolph, Fred. Neumeister, and J. Stegeman of Mequon; and Jonn Graff of Fredonia.

In Company K, Ed. Schoenfeld of Port Washington.

As above stated Company G was raised in Washington county. I intend to devote some space to that company later on, but will first pay attention to the regiment in general, and to the services and fate of the members from Ozaukee county. The ten companies were filled principally with recruits from the counties of Milwaukee, Racine, Kenosha, Washington, Fond du Lac, Sheboygan, Manitowoc, Sauk, Jefferson, Dodge and Ozaukee. It was a fine body of men who later proved to be excellent soldiers. Recruiting for this regiment had commenced about the first day of August, and by the 7th of September all of the companies had reported at Camp Sigel with ranks filled to the minimum strength. At Camp Sigel the recruiting was continued until on Sept. 17th, the companies having all been filled to the maximum, the regiment was mustered into the United States service, with an aggregate of 1,040 men on its rolls.

The following was the roster of the field officers of the regiment: Colonel, Wm. H. Jacobs; Lieut. Colonel, Charles Lehman; Major, Philip Horwitz; Adjutant, Philip J. Scholosser; Quartermaster, F.W. Hundhausen; Surgeon, Francis Huebschmann; 1st Asst. Surg. Simon Von der Vaart; 2nd Asst. Surg., Theodore Fricke, Chaplain, Wm. Vette.

Company A, Capt. William George, hailed from Milwaukee; Co. B., Capt. Frederick C. Winkler from Milwaukee; Co. C, Capt. John P. Seemann, from Milwaukee; Co. D, Capt. August Ligousky, from Racine; Co. E, Capt. Anton Kettler from Fond du Lac; Co. F, Capt. Henry Baetz from Manitowoc; Co. G, Capt. Jacob E. Mann from West Bend; Co. H, Capt. Hans Boebel from Sheboygan; Co. I, Capt. Franz Lauda from Milwaukee; and Co. K, Capt. Louis Pelosi from Milwaukee.

A part of the regiment had reached Camp Sigel when on the 2nd and 3rd of September, 1862, the great "Indian Scare" swept over the state, and two companies under Lieut. Col. Lehman were sent out to Cedarburg to protect that village from the savage hordes, who, as reports had it, were sweeping down from the north with torch and scalping knife. The boys had to make a forced march to Cedarburg and did not feel much like engaging in a rough-and-tumble with Indians when they reached their destination; but happily no painted braves made their appearance there or elsewhere in the state, and after a day's rest the soldiers were carted back to Camp Sigel in farm wagons. The next morning one of the daily papers of Milwaukee referred with such levity and sarcasm to "Col. Lehman's campaign against the Indians," that that officer was highly incensed, and marching the two companies down town, it is said he drew them up in battle array in front of the office of the offending newspaper, and going upstairs he personally chastised the editor, thus getting himself into a heap of trouble.

The regiment remained drilling in Camp Sigel until the 6th of October, when it left the state under orders to report at Washington, at which place it arrived on the night of the 12th; and the next day it marched across the Potomac on the famous "Long Bridge" and encamped on Arlington Heights. Here the regiment was supplied with "Wedge" or "A" tents, and was assigned to the Second Brigade, Col. Kryzanowski, Third Division, Gen. Carl Schurz, Eleventh Army Corps, Gen. Franz Sigel. The Eleventh corps being then at Fairfax Court House, the Twenty-sixth marched to that place and joined its brigade on Oct. 15th.

The regiment remained in that vicinity, occupied in drilling, picket duty, etc., until the 2nd of November when it struck its tents and leaving all surplus baggage behind, including the tents, marched through Centreville and bivouacked on the Bull Run battlefield that night. The next day it marched to Thoroughfare Gap. While there, Lieut. John Orth of Co. I, was accidentally wounded while on picket. On Nov. 7th the regiment marched with its division through the Gap to New Baltimore, where it pitched its "shelter" or "dog" tents (which it had drawn when reaching its last bivouac) amidst a driving snow storm, and remained there trying to keep warm until the 9th, when it marched to Gainsville until the 18th, the division again struck its tents and retraced its steps to Centreville, where it remained comfortably encamped until the 10th of December. On that day the Eleventh Corps took up its line of march for Falmouth, opposite Fredericksburg, by way of Dumfries and Stafford Court House, and reached its destination on Dec. 14th. It was too late to participate in Gen. Burn side's ill-advised and unfortunate attack on the heights behind Fredericksburg and witnessed the withdrawal of the defeated army to the north bank of the Rappahannock. The march from Centreville to Falmouth was one of the severest and most trying the Twenty-sixth ever made. Rain and melting snow made the roads almost impassable, and the mud was so deep that it was with much labor and difficulty that the wagons and artillery were dragged through it. Nearly every night the troops were late in reaching camp, and then had to bivouac in snow and mud. To make matters worse rations grew very scarce and the boys suffered very much from hunger, cold and fatigue.

On the 17th of December the corps marched back to Stafford Court House, nine miles in the rear of Falmouth and built winter quarters. But they were not fated to enjoy this camp very long. On the 21st the enemy's cavalry made an attack upon the Union troops at Dumfries, and the division was ordered to hurry to the assistance of its comrades at that place. It was soon on the march, but when a few miles from camp was recalled to it, the danger being past at Dumfries.