Soldier's Letter, Civil War, July 1863 -Battle of Port Hudson

 Chenango Telegraph, Norwich, NY, july 29, 1863

Letter from the 161st NY Regiment - Battle of Port Hudson

Donaldsonville, La., July 15th, 1863

Messrs. Editors:  Two months have passed since I last wrote to you.  My negligence arises from the fact that I have no pen, paper or ink available.  I will now give you a brief account of our movements since.  

Our Regiment and brigade left camp at Baton Rouge on the 13th of May, as we then supposed for a day's march towards Port Hudson, taking with us no baggage except our guns and equipments. Guerson's Ill. cavalry accompanied us.  We marched 19 miles and encamped within 6 miles of Port Hudson.  The next day we moved up and supported the Ill. cavalry who cut the rail road and telegraph leading to Clinton.  We remained in camp until the morning of the 21st when being joined by Gen. Augur with the 1st Brigade of his Division, we marched up in the direction of Port Hudson. 

About 9 o'clock, just as our leading columns were emerging through a piece of woods and into a tract known as "Store Plain", they were opened upon by a rebel battery about 800 yards in advance.  The shells went whizzing thick and fast by us, and bursting closely around.  It was the first music of the kind I have heard, and from the general ducking of heads I presume it was new to most of the regiment.  The column was brought to a halt for a moment and then deployed in line of battle to the right and left.  Our Regiment was on the left of the right wing which placed us near the center of the whole line, and directly in front of the rebel battery. We moved through the woods up to the edge of the clearing and in plain sight of the enemy's batteries  Our own batteries were soon placed in position directly behind us, and were ordered to lie close, in which position we remained about an hour, with the shot and shell of both batteries flying over. The 2d Louisiana deployed to the extreme right, outflanked the enemy and drove them from the field, the firing ceased and we were masters of the position. 

We stacked arms in the center of the field, and in about two hours the battle was renewed, the enemy receiving reinforcements from Port Hudson.  They opened upon us from two sides with 42 pieces of artillery, and at the same time charged upon us and took two pieces of artillery, owing to the cowardice of the 48th Massachusetts who broke and run at the first fire of the enemy. The 49th Mass. also broke and run when ordered to charge.  The 116th N.Y. was then moved forward to the roused.  They charged at the point of the bayonet, drove the rebels from the field, took 100 prisoners, retook the 2 pieces of artillery and closed up the fight.  Gen. Augur was under positive orders to advance no further than the Store Plains, and could not follow up his victory.  The force of the enemy opposed to us was about 3000 infantry, a part of the garrison of Port Hudson.  On the 23d, Gen. Sherman occupied Springfield Landing on the left and Gen. Banks moved down from Bayou Sara to the right, and from that moment the fate of Port Hudson was sealed.  They were completely surrounded.  

On the 26th, preparations were made for a general assault.  Storming parties of 25 men, volunteers from each regiment in our Division to lead the advance.  Such was the zeal which animated the men that 150 of our regiment were anxious for the honor of the position.  Three men only could go from a company.  Chenango was represented by Charles A. Herrick of Columbus, Wm. Wilson of Norwich, and the 1st Sergt. of Co K. Early on the morning of the 27th the ball opened and the troops moved forward.  They had nearly 2 miles to advance through woods and deep ravines running in every possible direction, forming the strongest kind of  fortifications, and every rod of ground was contested by the rebels, and every inch of our advance stubbornly resisted.  On the right and left of us the fight was the most severe.  About 10 A.M. our Brigade moved to the right of our line to take the place of Grover's Division who moved down to assist Weitzel's Brigade, who was hard pressed by the rebels.  Our Brigade occupied the outer lines of the enemy's works, but they were so situated that all the approaches to them from the rear could be raked by the fire of the enemy's cannon from his main works.  To silence these works the storming party moved forward in column along the Bayou Sara road, leading directly into the fort.  600 yards from our Brigade we met about 800 of the enemy who opened fire upon us which we as promptly returned, and charging them, drove them behind their main works. We then deployed as skirmishers, protecting ourselves as well as we could behind logs, and in ravines.  They fired upon us about half an hour with musketry and grape, which we returned with interest.  In an hour we silenced every cannon upon the works, and not a rebel dared to show his head over the parapet.  We were within 50 yards of the main works of the enemy, and expecting and hoping orders to move over the works, but orders soon came from Gen. Banks to permit no more charges, as he had already lost heavily on the right and left, in vain attempts to carry the earthworks.  I shall ever believe that had we been permitted to charge at this time we could have easily carried their works. We had lost but few men out of our storming party, were flushed with success, behind us was one of the best Brigades in the Corps, which had not been engaged in the fight, and was eager to advance. The enemy were demoralized in front of us, which was evidenced from the fact that some dozen of them jumped over the works and gave themselves up.  But all of this was unknown to the Generals in the rear, and we had to content ourselves by occupying the position won, and allow the enemy to reorganize his forces in front, while we lay down, hungry and thirsty, to watch him till morning. We were relieved about 9 o'clock the next morning, having had nothing to eat for the last 24 hours.

The loss on the 27th was estimated at 1000 killed and wounded.  Our lines were advanced and the enemy were everywhere driven behind their works.  The Negro brigade fought manfully and their loss was heavy, but not so bad as represented.  The regiment lost about two hundred.  Our storming party were kept together until the 30th, when our regiment was ordered to the front to support a Massachusetts regiment which occupied the ground taken by us on the 27th. We moved in front and were met by a murderous fire of grape canister and musketry which in a few moments cut down seven out of twenty men in our squad.  The fire was terrible. After lying down about half-an-hour we were withdrawn to the rear where we found the poltroons of the Massachusetts Regiment in a ravine, instead of holding the enemy's works as they might have done.  They had cowardly sneaked back into a ravine and allowed the enemy to [...unreadable...] notified by their retreat.  Our regiment lost up to this time about a dozen men, all from the storming party except one.  

The 114th Regiment arrived about the 1st of June, and I was pleased to see and shake hands with many an old friend from Chenango. The time from the 27th of May to the 14th of June was occupied in bringing up and placing in position heavy gage guns which kept up a constant bombardment.  On the 14th an assault was ordered over the same ground which our storming party passed on the 27th.  The different regiments moved through a ravine nearly parallel with the enemy's fortifications, and to reach the works had to pass over a ridge fully exposed to fire from the entire center of the rebels' line.  The 4th Wisconsin led the advance and scaled the entrenchments. they were not supported.  The balance of the regiments became mixed up in the ravine.  Their officers in leading them on were shot down as fast as they showed themselves. The men in many of the regiments refused to advance.

No orders were given to withdraw, and they remained there from daylight until dark, when they were brought off.  Cases of individual bravery and daring were here enacted, but no concentrated attack was made upon the entrenchments except by the 4th Wisconsin, who were all killed, wounded, or taken prisoners. Many Companies would reach the ditch, but before doing so would be so badly cut up that it would have been madness to proceed farther.  Five companies of the 11th were here engaged, and behaved with admitted bravery, two or three of them getting into the ditch outside of the parapets.  It was here the lamented Col. Smith was mortally wounded while gallantly leading on his men.  It was a complete slaughter pen for us. The enemy could not be seen in front and every one of our men who showed himself was instantly shot. We lost 1000 men on a few acres and the ground to this day is moist with their blood.  

On the 16th, Gen. Banks called for 1000 volunteers to form a forlorn hope to lead a third storming party, evidently not liking the idea of giving up his project of carrying their works by storm.  The men were very reluctant to volunteer after being twice repulsed, and yet about eight hundred men stepped forward. These were formed into two brigades and drilled for the purpose.  Charles Herrick volunteered from our company and Sergeant Calkins and Corporal Walger, of Otselic volunteered from the 114th.  The 114th furnished six volunteers, four of whom were from Brookfield, company G. We occupied a camp on the right near Thompson's creek.  Had but little work to do, excellent water, abundant rations, a good band of music and had a good time of it for three weeks. The post of honor proved to be to us the place of leisure and enjoyment. Banks addressed us on the 1st of July and promised that we should spend the 4th in Port Hudson, but it came and passed and no orders came.  On the 7th we received news of the fall of Vicksburg.  The next day Port Hudson surrendered.  On the morning of the 9th Gen Banks at the head of our storming brigade marched inside the entrenchments with our band playing Yankee Doodle.  The garrison were drawn in one line by which we marched the entire length. The enemy laid down their arms, and our brigade being disbanded, we rejoined our different regiments. 

I found the 161st on board the St. Charles.  We steamed down the river in the evening and the next morning landed at this place.  The enemy were in heavy force in front of us, had attacked the small force here in Fort Butler and were severely repulsed.  On the 12th inst., three regiments of our Brigade moved down the Bayou on the north side while Col Morgan moved along the south. We found the enemy in force in about a mile and drove them about four miles when we encamped. We fared sumptuously on chickens, sweet potatoes, green corn, tomatoes, melons, &c.  At noon of the 13th we were attacked by the enemy in heavy force on both sides of the Bayou, and Col. Morgan commenced a retreat on the south side. This left our left flank exposed, and the enemy poured heavy fire into us from the levee opposite of us, and at the same time a heavy force of mounted men commenced to flank us on the right. The brigade were ordered to fall back, and the 161st covered the retreat. We fell back for five miles fighting all the way, most of the time under a flank fire from under the levee opposite, and a part of the time we were flanked on both sides, the enemy following so closely in our rear.  Our men fought bravely and manfully. Scarcely a man faltered, but moved through a raking fire in almost a dozen  halts, and then would pour into the enemy our fire, check them for several moments, and then slowly move on in line of battle.  Our loss was heavy.  Seventy-three men out of about two hundred and fifty were killed, wounded and missing. The loss in our Company was seven, three killed, two wounded, and two taken prisoners. Sergt. E.W. Thatcher and privates A. Wilcox and Erastus Booth were killed, Sergt. W.R. Sliter and H.E. Storrs wounded, the latter slightly, Wm. Weaver and H. Gridley taken prisoners.  The latter afterwards came in and said he was paroled.  The men and officers in Company K in this, their first real battle, behaved as coolly as regulars, not a man faltered. Captain Tillson was conspicuous throughout the six hours we were under fire for his cool and daring bravery.  No officer or man in the regiment was more exposed than he, and to his vigilant and watchful foresight the men and regiment are much indebted. At one time he observed a strong picket fence to our rear stretching across the line of our march. He obtained leave to send six of his men to tear down the fence which they successfully accomplished. When the regiment arrived at the fence torn down, the enemy poured a shower of bullets into our ranks and we lost many men here.  Had we been compelled to have torn down the fence we must have suffered severely.  At another time we came upon four or five skulkers from a Massachusetts regiment, who had thrown away their arms.  He immediately ordered them into the ranks, and furnished them guns and compelled them to fight but they left at the first opportunity.  Lieut. Ludington proved himself every inch a brave man and good soldier.

The force opposed to us is variously estimated from 8000 to 20,000, under the command of Dick Taylor. We shall clean them out soon. We have heard the glorious news from the north and it gladdens our hearts.  Everywhere we triumph!

Yours Truly, S.E.W.