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Vicksburg
Spring 1863. Grant’s forces converge on Vicksburg. Two months later, General Grant and tens of thousands of Union soldiers including Kane County regiments victoriously cut the Confederacy in half. They secured the outcome of the war and the future of America.
On July 4, Confederate Lt. Gen. John Pemberton, surrendered. The Confederate defeat was decisive but the cost was high – an estimated 20,000 deaths according to the American Battlefield Protection Program. The national cemetery in Vicksburg tells the tale, deafening in its silence. Men from all over Kane County were there ( www.rootsweb.com - a genealogy site) . The Mississippi River was the aorta of America’s strength – key to military strategy, commercial shipping, even passenger travel. From the beginning, Confederate forces closed the river, nearly choking northern commercial interests. President Lincoln said early on, according to americancivilwar.com, "See what a lot of land these fellows hold, of which Vicksburg is the key! The war can never be brought to a close until that key is in our pocket.... We can take all the northern ports of the Confederacy, and they can defy us from Vicksburg." He knew what he was talking about: “… as valuable as New Orleans will be to us, Vicksburg will be more so." No options – Grant had to take Vicksburg to reopen Union shipping rights-of-way so the industrial North’s products could reach the marketplace. Grant said in his memoir, “ The campaign of Vicksburg was suggested and developed by circumstances. The elections of 1862 had gone against the prosecution of the war. Voluntary enlistments had nearly ceased, and the draft that had been resorted to was resisted. A defeat or backward movement would have made its execution impossible. A forward movement to a decisive victory was necessary.” Rootsweb notes that Kane County’s 16 th Cavalry unit, mustered in June 1863, enabled that movement. New to the army and war, they were young; patriotic, courageous and committed – like U.S. troops in Iraq. The Seventh Illinois Infantry formed in June too, mentored by the experienced 13 th Illinois (known as hometown regiment of Kane County). According to the Adjutant General’s Report written for General Grant by L. M. Dayton, B. F. Parks of Aurora was Lieutenant Colonel. They distinguished themselves raiding Young's Point across from Vicksburg, forcing rebels out, and burning corn intended for Confederates at Vicksburg. They crossed the Mississippi to Vicksburg, encountering significant losses on the assault on the rebel mine and fort, but went on to help conquer Jackson, Mississippi. The Civil War Archive’s Website indicates this County sent men into battle with the 52 nd Illinois, the 55 th, the 124 th (known as the Excelsior Regiment) and 127 th. The men are memorialized by an domed monument in the Vicksburg National Battlefield Park, and by another dedicated to Kane County. At least one County Veteran was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor. ANDREW E. GOLDSBERY, Private, Company E, 127th Illinois Infantry. Born 9 August 1894 in St. Charles, he enlisted there in May 1863. His citation reads: Gallantry in the charge of the "volunteer storming party,” according to Home of the Heroes.com, Inc. Historian Frederick Dyer reports in his Unit Histories that Colonel William F. Lynch from Elgin said, as the war began, "I am going to the front, to shed the last drop of my blood if need be for the Union." He fought under Sherman with the Renwick Elgin Battery officered by George W. Renwick, Andrew M. Wood Caleb Rich, John Short, Lorin G. Jeffers, Joel H. Wickers, Henry E. Tower, Waldo W. Paine, James N. Boutwell, and William C. Clift. The siege was painful, frightening, intense. Both sides made sacrifices. Townspeople and military lived with the odor of canon fire and artillery, the smell of blood and death and the ungodly sounds of war. Citizens saw their countryside torn up, muddied, burned and strewn with bodies. From ridges they watched, mesmerized by the horrifying panorama. They fled to nearby caves for cover as the battle raged, the quiet pastures seeping gore. They read casualty lists as we do when our soldiers and sailors deploy. Behind the town, from a 300-foot high Union secured bluff, heavy artillery augmented by gravity rained mortar and canon balls on the Confederates. Controlling the river was known by Lincoln and Grant to be a necessity. Troops, Blue and Grey, mired in mud, bugs, and vermin, had little good water. Supplies were short. An eyewitness reported: … Somebody, waiting till dark, slid over the works and cut a steak out of a horse that had been shot. It was cooked at General Vaughn's fire, … but the flesh was coarse and nobody hungered for more. Some of the soldiers did like it and eat it; not to speak of rats and other small deer which the Louisianans, being Frenchmen, were said to prepare in many elegant styles for the table. … half a dozen fellows, men who looked like Mexicans or Indians, cut mule meat at the old depot of the Southern Railroad and jerked it over slow fires to make it handy and lasting. One morning, for trial, I bought a pound of mule meat at this market, and had it served at breakfast for the mess. There was no need to try again. Offcial records, notably those maintained at the battlefield park indicate that disease and lack of medical intervention caused as many deaths as the battle did. As the Coalition found in Baghdad this spring, the way to win was to cut Vicksburg off from the outside. Grant constructed approaches to pierce points along Confederate defenses. Trench to the Confederate works, tunnel under, plant charges of black powder, and blow it all to hell. Simple then to storm the fort, flooding a wave of troops through the holes. Kane County men were an integral part of that strategy. Assistant Adjutant-General Maj. R. R. Townes, and the 124 th Illinois, protected men building earthworks and trenching. He reported, “…I advanced my sharpshooters. A mine was opened at the mouth of the main trench, penetrating the enemy’s Fort Hill, and on the 25 th of June I was ordered to hold my command in readiness to charge and take said Fort Hill as soon as the mine should be sprung, to hold the breach made by the explosion at all hazards, and, if practicable, to charge over and drive the enemy from his works.” At 3:30 pm. the trap was sprung and before 4 o’clock, according to Townes, they were filling the tunnel with artillery fire. But the 124 th was replaced after heavy casualties by division after division. Soldiers fell. Some trapped in the mine pit were killed and maimed by grenades. They fought until guns were too hot to hold. Noise was maddening; fear a living companion, and bravery apparent in every soul there. They held. But withdrew at daylight under orders to secure the area from a remote site, which they did until the surrender on July 4. From October to May, Grant tried repeatedly to secure Vicksburg as is evident in his diaries and memoirs. The fort was not conquered, but the plan to quarantine the city, allowing nothing in and nothing out, was genius. Under Maj. Generals. John A. McClernand,. William T. Sherman, Stephen A. Hurlbut, and James B. McPherson, Kane County’s sons, brothers, fathers and friends were there and were significant. General Grant said, “From October, the troops felt that their long and weary marches, hard fighting, ceaseless watching by night and day in a hot climate, exposure to all sorts of weather, to diseases, and, worst of all, to the gibes of many Northern papers that came to them, saying all their suffering was in vain, Vicksburg would never be taken.” On July 3, Grant and Pemberton met on a hillside within a few hundred feet of the rebel lines. Grant recalled, “Near by stood a stunted oak-tree, which was made historical by the event. It was but a short time before the last vestige of its body, root, and limb had disappeared, the fragments being taken as trophies. Since then the same tree has furnished as many cords of wood, in the shape of trophies, as " The True Cross." After a while Bowen suggested that the Confederate army should be allowed to march out, with the honors of war, carrying their small arms and field artillery. This was promptly and unceremoniously rejected.” They came to terms on the 4 th of July. A witness said, “…at the appointed hour the garrison of Vicksburg marched out of' their works, and formed line in front, stacked arms, and marched back in good order. Our whole army present witnessed this scene without cheering. 31,600 prisoner s were surrendered, together with 172 cannon, about 60,000 muskets, and a large amount of ammunition.”
SIDEBAR
The battlefield at Vickburg is quiet and serene now. Beautifully preserved, it includes 1,325 historic monuments and markers, 20 miles of reconstructed trenches and earthworks, and a 16-mile tour, an antebellum home, 144 cannon, restored Union gunboat-USS Cairo, and the Vicksburg National Cemetery. There is a calmness, a sense of closure and reverence to many who stand upon this hallowed ground. The area, once littered with uniforms, weapons, ammunition and human relics is shrouded now with gardens, greenery, and memorials. The park, established in 1899, encompasses the area of the siege and defense lines around the city, including Grant’s headquarters. In 1990, the Senate authorized expansion to include the operations from April 1862 to July 4, 1863, and the history of Union occupation through Reconstruction. Now, it is 1,800 acres with more monuments than nearly any other battlefield in the world. The names of the soldiers buried at the National Cemetery, established in 1866, were compiled from three volumes of original cemetery ledgers recorded at the time of interment. Park authorities say the handwritten pencil entries are in remarkable condition. You will find the largest number of Civil War interments in the United States. Of 17,000 Union fallen, only 5,000 names are known. The park’s Website is http://www.nps.gov/vick/home.htm Kane County ’s Monument, on the north side of Union Ave., is about .6 miles west of Thayer's Approach (Tour Stop #6). This unit, says rootsweb.com, was attached to Brig. Gen. John M. Thayer's 1 st Division of William T. Sherman & Frederick Steele's XV Army Corps and commanded by Lt. Thomas J. Beebe. Kane County Independent Cavalry Company (13 th Illinois Cavalry, Company H) The Illinois State Memorial is on Union Avenue, milepost 1.8, tour stop #2. It was dedicated on October 26, 1906. The National Park Service notes that it was erected by Culver Construction Company. The design, by W. L. B. Jenney, was sculptured by Charles J. Mulligan. It is made of Stone Mountain (GA.) granite and Georgia white marble. The portico features a one-ton bronze eagle covered in gold leaf. There are forty-seven steps, one for each day of the Siege. Sixty bronze tablets line the interior walls and name 36,325 Illinois soldiers who participated in the Campaign. The monument, 62 feet high, originally cost $194,423.92 paid by the state of Illinois. Greater Chicago area Civil War Roundtables provided restoration funding. ## Gettysburg Gettysburg - the battle and battlegrounds are American cultural icons. Jim Weeks, author of the book Gettysburg: Memory, Market and an American Shrine , cautions care in how much popular history you accept as fact. Take the story of Wheaton’s, Lt. Marcellus E. Jones, 8 th Illinois Cavalry - he snatched a carbine from Sgt. Levi Shafer (of Aurora), and fired the first shot in the battle at Gettysburg, 140 years ago July 2. Thus, Kane County, home to the 8 th Illinois, may have earned a place in history. J. David Petruzzi’s Website, bufordboys.com says Jones later installed a Naperville granite marker outside the town to commemorate his shot. In 1913, marking the 50 th anniversary of Gettysburg, 8 th Illinois veterans gathered at the marker. They were, according to a historic photo: Pvt. LaBrec, Pvt. Henry Wetlanfer, Pvt. Warren E. Pricket, Pvt. James A. Bayard, Pvt. George Huntoon, Pvt. Silas F. Dean, Cpl. Frank M. Ackley, Pvt. Horace O. Dodge, Pvt. Charles Howell, Pvt. John Stoner, Pvt. William H. Chadwick, Pvt. William H. Churchill, Sgt. Levi S. Shafer, and Shafer's wife. Weeks, currently a research fellow at the Lincoln Papers Project in Springfield, IL says, “Today’s picture of Gettysburg is colored by the marketplace. For 140 years, it was tailored for successive generations of consumers to become one of our most sacred places. But through all civilization, iconic sites were a mix of cheap tourism and true reality. Think about the jugglers outside the temples in the Middle Ages.” The question is, did Lt. Jones of Kane County’s 8 th Illinois, fire that shot ? John Y. Simon, Professor of History, Southern Illinois University says, “It doesn’t matter to history. The story has a life of its own – what’s important is most people believe it, so it may as well be true.” Wendy Miller, Collections and Education Director, Wheaton History Center said, “Our stance is just that his papers make the claim. He was a resident of Wheaton and his home still stands here as a law office. An article from Blue and Grey Magazine compared his story to four others with similar claims and determined that Jones would be the most likely.” For Miller, the jury is still out. According to information from the National Park Service visitor’s center, the battle that took place at Gettysburg was unplanned, unstrategized and a tragedy for General Lee’s army. Weeks agrees, saying the Confederate armies felt good, having secured victories over the Union during 1861 and 1862. General Lee decided that invading the north to conquer Union troops on their soil would force a disenchanted administration to rethink this war. And so, in the summer of 1863 war came to rural Gettysburg –south central Pennsylvania - where no one expected to see battle. General Lee’s force was 75,000 headed north to make a stand. At the end of June, he learned that 100,000 Union troops under Maj. General George Meade were on their trail. The 8 th Illinois was part of this Army of the Potomac. Lee ordered brigades out to determine what was going on and others to raid the countryside for supplies. Those divisions met Union troops accidentally northwest of Gettysburg – they engaged and the fighting rapidly escalated. The 8 th, according to Weeks, was part of that first skirmish and helped precipitate the battle. Displays at Gettysburg National Park say both sides sent for reinforcements. Lee’s army came from the west and north – Meade and his men swooped in from the south. A three-day battle slaughtered thousands of men, devastating Lee’s Army sending them broken and disheartened back to Virginia. Strangely, at the same time as this terrible carnage General Grant was ravaging the Confederates in Vicksburg. Rootsweb.com, one of the largest genealogy databases in the country, is used by Linda Sinnock, Archivist - Illinois State Archives; History Professor John Y. Simon, editor of Grants Papers Collection in Carbondale, IL; and Tom Schwartz, Illinois State Historian, to gather facts about civil War military divisions. Rootsweb indicates that the 8 th Illinois formed at Camp Kane, St. Charles - 1,164 strong in September 1861 and was in Meades’ Army of the Potomac during the battle. In October, they had moved to Washington City, saw action at Fredricksburg, captured the colors of the 12th Virginia Cavalry at Monocacy Church, captured 20 prisoners at Barnesville, engaged at Sugarloaf Mountain and captured two guns at Boonesboro, killing and wounding 67, taking 200 prisoners. Records show them at Antietam, Chancelorsville and Manassas. Regimental losses during the war: 250 killed, 116 wounded, 37 missing. Records show only one member of the 8 th fell at Gettysburg - Pvt. David Diffenbaugh, buried in Row A, Grave 4, Illinois section of Gettysburg National Cemetery. Lt. Jones journal, compiled in the late 1800’s, according to Miller, reports that the 8 th’s commander was Maj. John Beveridge an Evanston lawyer prior to the war. After the war, Beveridge was Sheriff of Cook County, elected to the U.S. House of Representatives and then Governor of Illinois. John F. Farnsworth was Colonel of the 8 th. As Confederates approached Gettysburg, the 8th Illinois may have been first to make contact. Miller says Jones’ journal account has him headed to see the sergeant and noticing a cloud of dust on the mountainside. It was rebel soldiers. Jones says he snatched a carbine from his friend, took aim at an officer on a white horse, and fired . Weeks says this largest, bloodiest engagement of the war was over in 72 hours with two-thirds of the Confederates dead and nearly every house, barn and public building filled with wounded. Professor Simon points out each regiment submitted their own detailed mini-history with officers’ rosters, “The National Parks have access to those and they were probably invaluable in compiling information,” says Simon. According to these histories, fifty-one thousand were killed, wounded or captured; fields and homes rampaged, but there was only one civilian casualty. Jennie Wade, visiting her sister’s home adjacent to the battlefield, spent two days baking bread for Union soldiers. On the third day, a bullet pierced the walls as Jennie took bread from the oven. She was killed instantly and laid to rest by the soldiers. As in every battle’s history, there are icons - Seminary Ridge, Cemetery Ridge, Pickett’s Charge, Little Round Top. In 1895, the battlefield was established as a National Military Park. In 1938, Franklin Roosevelt dedicated its monuments as symbols of “Peace Eternal in a Nation United.” Even now, battle sites, trenches and earthworks are being restored. But Weeks says, “We sanitize restorations – can’t include limbs torn from bodies, mounds of dead soldiers. We don’t want to include animal carcasses, mud and cow excrement. So we see what we need to see – the quiet pastoral countryside haunted by numerous accounts of tragedy.” Gettysburg National Park consists of about 6,000 acres with more than 1400 monuments, markers and memorials and a museum project currently underway. Information is available at http://www.gettysburg.com or 717 334 1124. SIDEBAR: The Gettysburg National Battlefield collection includes 38,000 artifacts and 700,000 printed texts, historic photographs and other archival documents. There is a plan in place to build a $95,000 museum and visitor’s center to house, protect, and display this collection. The project is scheduled to break ground in 2004 and see completion in 2007, according to Dan Goldstein of the Gettysburg Museum Foundation. The new building will occupy 47 acres of non-battlefield land and contain a cyclorama and electric map, theater and classrooms, public library and research center, archives, tour center and administrative offices. You may find, among those 38,000 artifacts, most of the equipment that was part of a Union uniform of the day. According to the Buford Boys, Kane County’s 8 th would have been required to wear, when available:
Soldiers were also issued an 1859 Sharps Carbine (54 cal), an 1860 Cavalry saber and scabbard, 1860 Colt revolver (44 cal), a pistol cleaning kit, an A-tent, gauntlets, US Cavalry wool blanket w/US stitched in the middle, and a poncho. There were optional extra shirts, drawers, toothbrush, soap, playing cards, lantern, great coat and jackets, but often the soldiers abandoned these items along the way as they marched long distances and had to defend themselves against the enemy.
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