Ozaukee County's
War History
by Daniel E. McGinley

as extracted from THE PORT WASHINGTON STAR
December 5, 1896



The Ozaukee Rifles
Chapter 23

As soon as the lines were properly dressed, which occupied but a few seconds of time, the brigade moved forward to the assault in the customary two lines of battle, and its skirmish line soon met very obstinate resistance. With flying colors, the brigade swept onward at a quick walk, our old regiment never keeping a better line on parade, and the sight struck terror into the defenders of the works on the hill, who did not await the onset but turned and ran for dear life. When our regiment reached the works, the rebs were seen running through Orangeburg with our skirmishers in hot pursuit. The sight made the boys forget their late experience in the swamp, and the whole brigade broke into a ringing cheer that told their comrades on the farther shore and in the swamp that the day was won. The victory was gained with a very small loss on our side -- in fact it was almost a bloodless one, which made it all the more remarkable and added to the joy of the participants.

The brigade immediately marched into the town, where we found a number of burning buildings, some of the retreating enemy having set fire to stores and warehouse to prevent our securing their contents. But we put out the fire after a few buildings had been destroyed, and then gathered in a goodly supply of eatables, with which the place was well stocked. Among the rest, we captured some of the largest turkeys the writer has ever seen and we had quite a feast that night. The greater part of the next day was spent in thoroughly destroying the railroad, and that evening our division marched some distance along the railroad toward Columbia, the capital of the state.

We now found ourselves on a high sandy plateau where the roads were quite good, and although the weather was very cold, we enjoyed the change from the swampy region. We followed roads running near to parallel with the railroad, which was torn up and crippled as far as Lewisville, thus destroying rail communication between Charleston and the capital, and forcing the evacuation of the former city. On Feb. 15th the head of our column came in sight of Columbia, and the next day the remainder of the corps arrived and encamped on some large, clear plantations opposite the city; which could be seen nearly two miles away, basking in the bright sunlight on the left bank of the broad Congaree. Ah, what emotions filled the hearts of the boys in blue, who had come so far and had fought so many battles to save the country from the plots that had been hatched in that haughty nest of treason! Now that we were in sight of it, and knew that in a few hours the proud capital of the Palmetto state, the birthplace of nullification and secession would be in our possession, it seemed to us as though the day of jubilee was close at hand.

A force of rebel cavalry under Gen. Wade Hampton were in possession of Columbia when we first saw it, and they had some artillery on the bank of the river just below the city, which annoyed our bivouac for a time by throwing shells into it. Finally one of our batteries got into position and soon gave the rebs more shells than they could stand.

The Congaree is formed by the Saluda and Broad rivers, which unite just above the city, and Sherman saw that it would be easier to force a passage of these two rivers above the town, than to try to cross the large stream near or below the city, and that night a part of the 15th corps succeeded in crossing the Saluda three miles above, and on the 17th forced a passage of the Broad river about the same distance above the city, which was immediately evacuated by the rebels.

That night, shortly after dark, the writer was made one of a squad of our boys which was sent into the city with a sergeant from an Ohio regiment, who had been a miller by trade, when orders to find a flour or feed mill. Rations were getting scarce then, and there were a few loads of corn in our division wagon train which the commissary wished to have ground into meal. Our squad reached the city about 7 P.M., an hour or two after the first of our troops had entered the place, and among the first things that attracted our attention was a long street down the center of which was a row of blazing cotton bales, which the enemy had hauled there and fired to prevent their falling into our hands. As we passed down this street, keeping on the side to the windward of the burning cotton, we noticed a number of citizens and soldiers with an old hand engine trying to subdue the flames. We also noticed that the wind was rising and that small pieces of blazing cotton were being carried by it to the frame buildings that bordered the street. Soon a number of buildings were on fire and as they, like a large majority of the edifices of the city, were built of pine they burned rapidly, and the flames spread to other houses. In a very short time, a large number of buildings were in flames, and the fire was beyond the control of the old fire engine and the bucket brigade. As the flames spread, the velocity of the wind increased until by 10 o'clock a gale was blowing that carried burning cotton and firebrands far to leeward, and several blocks were by that time a seething, roaring mass of flames. The widest kind of panic took possession of the citizens, who rushed hither and thither like beings distracted, some trying to save their household effects, some their families, and some caring only for their own welfare.

By 11 o'clock P.M., the conflagration was at its height and the scene was a grand as well as an appalling one. Nearly one half of the beautiful city was a glowing furnace in which the fire demon held full sway, and it then seemed as though nothing but Providence could save a greater part of the town from destruction. Every street leading out of town was filled with crowds of men, women and children, with wagons, drays, carriages of nearly every description loaded with such of their personal belongings as they had time to snatch from their burning houses.

To make matters worse, some of the soldiers who had been put on guard in the city found a large liquor store, and in a short space of time, hundreds of drunken men were howling through the streets, while scores of escaped convicts, liberated by the conflagration, rushed in and out of houses bent on pillage. But our commanders soon discovered the state of affairs and a fresh division of blue coats were hurried into the city from the camps near by, which quickly deployed, and sweeping through the town arrested every drunken or suspicious character and it was not long before as good order as could be expected at such a time was established.

But that was a fearful night in the doomed city, and the flames swept on unimpeded until they burned their way to the city limits and expired from lack of material to devour. The next morning, more than half the population of proud Columbia was homeless and without food, but buildings were soon found to shelter them, and Gen. Sherman gave them a large herd of beef cattle and a large supply of other provisions. The burning of Columbia was afterward charged to Sherman and his army, but there was not a particle of truth in the charge, for the facts are as above stated. As I have said, our squad entered the city at an early hour, before the fire was communicated to the houses from the burning cotton piles, and as we remained in the town all night wide awake, interested spectators, I was in a position to know that the burning cotton, which had been fired by the retreating rebels, was the cause of the great fire.

Our squad found a flour mill the next morning, but it was out of order and we spent part of that day seeing the sights in the ruined city. The old and new capital buildings and the famous palmetto monument in the capital park were objects of great interest to us, especially the latter, which was in the form and color of a palmetto tree. It is built of bronze and stands on a square, hollow base of bronze, which bears the names of the sons of South Carolina who died in the Mexican war.

On Feb. 20th, the march was resumed, the 15th and 17th corps following and destroying the railroad leading north from Columbia until we reached Winnesboro on the 21st, where we met the left wing of our army which had not been to Columbia. The country thereabouts was high and dry and very sandy, and the deep, loose sand on the road made our progress rather slow. We now marched in an easterly direction on the Camden road, and that night, Feb. 22nd, camped on the Revolutionary battle ground of Polar Springs.

On the evening of the 23rd we reached the Catawba river where we stood in a pouring rain until daylight awaiting our turn to cross the pontoon bridge. Without any sleep or rest, we continued to march on the 24th through a drenching rain. The same weather greeted us the next day on which we passed over the old Camden battle field, but we struggled through the mud and water all day only to be drenched by a deluge of rain all night. On the 26th the weather cleared and the roads were a little better. We now found ourselves in the great pitch-pine country where every tree was tapped and where habitations were so scarce that we sometimes traveled fifteen miles without seeing a house. Forage was very scarce here, the products of that section being the turpentine, rosin, tar, etc., made from the pitch or sap of the pine.

Crossing Lynch's Creek we pressed forward through the pine wilderness, which was full of beds of quicksand, and on the evening of the 28th, met with such strong resistance that we deployed in line of battle, and during the night threw up a line of breastworks. The next day, March 1st, our corps remained in camp waiting for the other corps to come up on our left, they having been delayed at the Catawba river which rose so rapidly that it was with much difficulty that the rear of the army succeeded in crossing.

During that day's rest, we witnessed the saddest scene of our military experience. The rebel cavalry commander, Wade Hampton, had ordered his men to put to death every one of Shermanís foragers who might happen to be taken prisoners by them. These orders were obeyed so well that a number of foragers were murdered by the enemy after they were captured, and Sherman ordered his corps commanders to thereafter retaliate by shooting man for man. On the previous day, R. M. Woodruff, a forager from the 30th Ill., of our brigade, was murdered by the enemy and his body was found with a paper pinned to it, upon which was written, ìDeath to all foragers!î So while the troops rested, Gen. Blair made the rebel prisoners in his charge, some 200, draw lots to see which one should die in retaliation for Woodruff's death, giving them the alternative of taking the oath of allegiance to the United States government. The lot fell upon a middle-aged father of a large family, who hailed from the state in which we were. Twelve of Woodruff's comrades were detailed to avenge his death. The twelve guns were secretly loaded by their colonel, who put six ball cartridges and six blank cartridges into them and none of the firing squad knew in which guns the bullets were. The scene at the time of the execution was dramatic and pathetic in the extreme, and strong, hardened veterans were obliged to turn away from the sight to hide their emotions. A grave having been dug, the doomed man was placed near it, standing with his back to a large pine tree, the firing squad facing him from a few paces distant. The prisoner was a remarkably brave, merry man, and requested that his arms be left unpinioned, and that the executioners take pity on a fellow soldier and aim at his heart. All being ready, the officer in command gave the usual orders; at the command ìFireî the twelve rifles cracked as one, and so true was their aim that the six struck the prisoner in the region of the heart and he fell forward -- dead. He was buried where he fell, and a board was placed at the head of his grave bearing his name and regiment, and the following words: ìShot in retaliation for the murder of a forager; by order of Major Gen. W. T. Sherman.î When our army had marched on, the headboard was read by the enemy and no more foragers were murdered.