Ozaukee County's
War History
by Daniel E. McGinley

as extracted from THE PORT WASHINGTON STAR
November 7, 1896



The Ozaukee Rifles
Chapter 19

The Atlanta campaign had shortened the line of the Sixteenth until it did not appear to be larger than one full company, but while we were in camp near the city during September, many of its members who had been absent sick, wounded or on detached service, returned to the regiment, and lengthened its line until it began to look like a battalion once more. While lying in camp that month the boys employed themselves in various ways. Henry Ramsey spent several days in cutting the names, date of death, name of regiment, etc. on head boards which were subsequently placed at the heads of the graves of the members of the Rifles who had fallen at Bald Hill.

On Sept. 29, Hood's army, which had up to that date remained in camp at Lovejoy Station, started on its famous raid to our rear. Jeff Davis had visited that army a few days previous, had made one of his fire-eating speeches to it, and had ordered it to march to Shermanís rear, cut his railroad or line of supplies, and force him to retreat and abandon not only Atlanta, but the whole of Georgia. Sherman soon had definite information in regard to the enemy's plans, and was well pleased with them, as it opened a way for him to make his famous march to the sea, which he had long been contemplating. He gave Hood time to cross the Chattahoochee, and then set his own army in motion in hot pursuit, with the exception of the 20th corps which was left to hold Atlanta.

On Oct. 8, our corps, accompanying the movements of the whole army, crossed the Chattahoochee at the railroad bridge and bivouacked for the night at Smyrna camp ground, near which we had fought on the previous 4th of July. The next day our wagon trains remained in camp while the troops moved out on different roads feeling for the enemy. It was soon discovered that a heavy force of rebel infantry had reached our railroad north of Kenesaw Mt., and by night many miles of road and telegraph line had been destroyed, no trains daring to move north of Kenesaw or south of Allatoona, a station in a mountain pass of that name fifteen miles north of Kenesaw. At Allatoona Sherman had stored over a million of rations, which were guarded by these infantry regiments numbering 890 men, and the Twelfth Wisconsin battery. Thinking that Hood's next objective would be Allatoona, Sherman signaled from a hill near Vining's Station to Kenesaw, and thence over the heads of Hood's legions, orders for Gen. Corse, then at Rome, Ga., to hurry to the aid of the garrison at Allatoona with all available forces. In this message was incorporated the now famous order: ìHold the fort; I am coming!î

Gen. Corse immediately loaded two trains of cars with troops and started for Allatoona, but only the leading train succeeded in reaching that place before the enemy cut the road north of it. Gen. French's division of Hood's Army assaulted the forts at Allatoona several times on the 5th, but Corse with his little force of less than 2,000 men held the post in spite of all the enemy could do. The battle of Allatoona is a part of that war's history, and its defense ranks among the most heroic military achievements of modern times.

Our regiment passed through Allatoona on the day following the battle, and we had a chance to glance over a small but bloody field, which gave evidence of the terrible struggle that had occurred there. The Eighteenth Wisconsin regiment was with Corse in the defense of Allatoona, and both it and the Twelfth battery lost heavily there.

Hood now retreated before Sherman, destroying much of the railroad as he went, but his labor was in vain for Sherman captured several hundred of the rebel troops and put them at work under guards, rebuilding the road which their comrades had torn up, and in a few days trains were running over it again. Going as far north on the railroad as Tunnel Hill, which he reached on the 13th, Hood turned and marched southwest up the Chattooga valley. Our army followed in hot pursuit, capturing a number of prisoners and continued the chase until Hood reached Gadsen, Ala., with his army, when Sherman turned back and encamped in the pleasant and fertile valleys of northwestern Georgia.

Here Sherman received the consent of President Lincoln and Gen. Grant to make his march to the sea. Thomas was sent up to Hansville with a part of the army to watch and fight Hood, while Sherman retained for his novel campaign the Army of the Tennessee, now comprised of two corps, the 15th and 17th (the 16th having been broken up and its divisions assigned to the other two corps of the army), and two corps, the 14th and 20th, of the Army of the Cumberland. The 20th corps was at Atlanta, and thither the other three corps marched.

In his orders making arrangements for the march to the sea, Sherman designated the Army of the Tennessee his Right Wing, Maj. Gen. O. O. Howard commanding, and the 14th and 20th corps were formed into the Army of Georgia and designated the Left Wing, Maj. Gen. W. F. Slocum commanding. These four corps numbered nearly 60,000 men after being thoroughly purged of all unserviceable men. The trains were also overhauled and only the serviceable wagons, mules and horses were retained, all else were sent north. This army was comprised of over 250 regiments and other organizations. These 60,000 men were the representatives of 250,000 who had marched to the front in the organizations of which the army was composed. Their comrades had gone down in battle or had fallen by the wayside, leaving one-fourth of the number to uphold the banner, -- to do the fighting and marching of the future.

And this grand army of 60,000 tried veterans was, strange as it may now seem, principally an army of boys. The old and middle-aged men had, with a few exceptions, given out long ago, and had left the boys -- the frolicsome, troublesome, mischievous boys -- to fight it out. But they were a noble lot of boys. They had been picked by the hand of Providence for the great works they were there to perform. They were boys who could fight or march all day and be ready for frolic in the evening. They were boys who could stand the fatigue of forced marches under a burning sun, through clouds of dust or through pouring rain and mud to the knees, for twelve to fifteen hours at a stretch, planning as they trudged along practical jokes with which to keep their next bivouac in an uproar. Many of them, veterans of three years service, had not reached their 20th birthday; beardless boys wore lieutenantsí and captainsí shoulder-straps, while many leaders of regiments had not reached the 28th year of their age. But they were bright, soldierly, intelligent boys, who were brimming over with patriotism; and what they did not know about campaigning was very little. Each had inherited the experience of three comrades who had fallen by his side. He was ingenious, self-confident, venturesome and hardy, and strode along on the march with a careless, confident air that seemed to say plainer than words, ìWe're going to get there!î When he did not know the army's destination, and knew that ìUncle Billyî was directing the column, he gave himself no trouble about it. On the march to the sea, he was pleased to see that the war was being ìcarried into Africa,î and he swung along with a light heart and elastic step, though often with an empty stomach.

He went into battle with but little concern for his own safety, and his indifference to danger was often surprising. In action he was always at his post; in camp he shared his last hardtack with his comrades; and if a river was to crossed under fire, there never was a dearth of volunteers. He was proud of his strength and skill, and was never sparring of either. He swam rivers, waded through swamps and quagmires, corduroyed roads, lifted cannon and wagons out of seemingly bottomless ruts, and dug trenches under a burning sun or a drenching rain with equal patience and promptness. He marched and fought for days without rations; laid down to sleep on a water-soaked soil in mid-winter, with no protection but a blanket, rose in the morning and after wringing the water out of his blanket and clothes, took his place in the line with a cheery demeanor that was inspiring.

To be sure there were times when his sufferings were almost beyond endurance, that a soldier would forget himself for a moment, and would curse the government, his commanders, his comrades, himself, the roads, the weather, etc. and wish himself anywhere else in the world, but a little rest, a little sunshine, a cup of coffee, or a morsel of good news would make the poor fellow forget his pains and troubles and feel as patriotic as ever.

But there was one thing the brave boy never seemed to think of, if he ever did, and that was that in all this drudgery and exposure he was making great inroads upon his reserve of energy; and that if he escaped the bullets of the foe the day was not far distant when he would feel the effects of his heroic exertions in behalf of his country, in the pains and aches of a disordered system, when he would feel much older than his years, -- all because he then so unsparingly used his magnificent energies. If he ever thought of this, it did not seem to dampen his ardor nor dim the patriotism which led him to throw his life into the balance in behalf of ìOld Gloryî and a reunited country. It is doubtful if that army has ever been equaled in the world's history. Its implicit confidence in its great leader, its self-confidence, and its enthusiasm were almost marvelous, and it is no wonder that it made the remarkable history that it did -- no wonder that it was able to surmount so many great obstacles -- no wonder it was able to perform herculean feats in fighting and in marching that amazed the civilized world.

On Nov. 12, all communications with the north was severed, all machine shops, factories mills and depots in Atlanta were destroyed, and on Nov. 14, the great march began. Some of our school histories tell the children that Sherman burned Atlanta. Nothing is further from the truth. The writer was among the last of Shermanís boys to leave Atlanta on Nov. 15, and knows whereof he writes. Of course, some of the houses near the burning factories and depots were also consumed, but Atlanta was no more destroyed by Sherman than was Milwaukee by the Third Ward fire three years ago.

Shermanís army left Atlanta with fifteen day's rations in its wagon trains, it being the intention to pick up or forage supplies for the remainder of the march. Each of the four corps took different roads and followed routes about ten miles apart. Two men from each company, twenty from each regiment, under the command of a commissioned officer, were detailed to forage supplies for men and animals. The foragers scoured the country for five miles on each side of each column and picked up plenty of food for all until we reached the swampy country near the seacoast. That the highlands of Georgia contained a vast amount of supplies when we started on the march is quite clear, as our army of 60,000 men and some 15,000 horses and mules lived on the forage from that part of the state fully 20 days. The country was teeming with corn, sweet potatoes and pork besides large quantities of other eatables and our troops lived high while they were in it.

The Army of the Tennessee, or Right Wing, traveled in a southeasterly direction on the McDonough road after leaving Atlanta, the 15th corps on the right of the 17th, and Kilpatrick's cavalry still farther to the right. Kilpatrick had the first fight of the campaign at Lovejoy Station, where he found rebels in the old trenches. Dismounting his men and using them as infantry, Kilpatrick carried the works by a gallant assault and sent the Johnies flying southward. The Left Wing took a course a little south of east and followed the Augusta railroad for a long distance after leaving Atlanta, destroying the road and making a feint in the direction of Augusta, Ga., which had the desired effect, for the enemy thinking that our army was making for that city, concentrated their forces there. When about half way to Augusta, the Left Wing left the railroad and struck directly south to Milledgeville, the then capital of Georgia, which place they entered on Nov. 22, driving out the state officers, legislature and a small force of rebel cavalry, and capturing a large amount of Confederate money.

In the meantime, our Right Wing passed through McDonough, the county seat of Henry County on the 16th where we were greeted by crowds of happy colored people, many of whom were delirious with joy at seeing the blue-clad ìyanks,î their deliverers. The troops marched through the town with flying colors, blaring bands and rattling drums, much to the delight of the poor darkies who danced and shouted like beings possessed. That night we reached Jackson, the county seat of Butts county, and on the 18th reached Panter's Factory on the Ocmulgee river. Here two pontoon bridges were soon laid, and that night our corps began to cross soon after dark. The weather, which had been fair since we left Atlanta, now changed, and rain poured down all night. The darkness was dense, and fires had to be built at either ends of the bridges to light the crossing. A high steep bank on the east side of the river made the passage of the stream a very difficult one for the wagon trains, and they were gotten across so slowly that the rear guard did not get over until the 20th.