Olustee: February 20, 1864

From Civil War Battles and Battlefields

I have driven past the battlefield of Olustee a number of times on my way to or from my mom's place in Florida, usually in a hurry to get there or get home. We had a few extra days on our last visit. Despite intermittent rain showers, my wife and set out on the short loop trail of the battlefield.

A small battle by any measure, Olustee, fought on February 20, 1864, stands out for several reasons. Though only about 5000 troops were engaged on each side, Federal forces suffered losses of almost 40% . Rebel reinforcements arrived by rail to turn the tide of battle. And according to one battlefield interpretive marker, General Alfred H. Colquitt mounted a heavy cannon on a flatcar. It's steady, deliberate fire wreaked havoc on the Federal infantry.

Finally, as the Federal line disintegrated, Brigadier General Truman Seymour commited a reserve brigade under Colonel James Montgomery including the 54th Massachusetts regiment. The 54th fought a desperate rearguard action and prevented a total rout of Federal forces from the field. Some of these men, as well as other soldiers of the USCT wounded or captured at Olustee, suffered grim fates at the hands of Confederate soldiers in the aftermath of battle.

The state park contains a small museum and self-guided loop trail. The terrain is devoid of any elevation and the entire battle area is covered in tall pine woods carpeted with palmettos. Signage along the trail details the course of the battle. It seems the lopsided results of this fight may be laid squarely at the feet of the Federal commander. Seymour committed his troops piecemeal, and also lost most of his artillery early in the fight.

While the battle derailed Federal efforts in Florida, it's overall impact on the course of the war was negligible. Nevertheless, like so many minor engagements, it provides unique stories of courage, folly, and sacrifice, and has earned a place in our collective memory.

Dade Battlefield

The quiet of the afternoon of December 28, 1835 among the scattered pines and palmettos of central Florida lulled Major Francis Dade and his 107 man detachment of the 4th US Infantry into a false sense of security as they marched along the Fort King Road. Suddenly, the silence erupted in a crash of flame and smoke as hundreds of Seminole warriors rose up and poured a devastating volley into Dade's men.

Major Dade, two of the remaining five officers, and perhaps half of the detachment went down in the first volley. Advance elements fell back on the main column to regroup and offer a coordinated defense. Artillerymen wheeled the columns single six pounder into action and managed to stem the tide of the Seminole advance temporarily.

As the Seminoles regrouped, the last remaining officer, a lieutenant, gathered the survivors within a small, three-sided breastwork of logs and exhorted his men to “do the best we can.” But the odds, already hopeless, were longer now that the ammunition for the six pounder was exhausted. The Seminoles closed in and quickly overwhelmed the small redoubt.

Only three men of Dade's command survived. They faced a grueling journey of perhaps 50 miles back to Fort Brooke, from which there fateful march began only days ago. The massacre of Dade's men inaugurated a seven year struggle known as the Second Seminole War. Sadly, the sacrifice of Dade's soldiers was almost forgotten in the wake of the epic defense of the Alamo, some three months later.

I happened to stumble on this battlefield on the 174th anniversary of the fight, taking the opportunity to see it while visiting my folks in central Florida. A small group of reenactors accompanied by a Junior ROTC color guard and several musicians from a local high school paid solemn tribute to the men of Dade's command. The Dade Battlefield Society, which helps fund the site (now a state park) and sponsors the annual reenactment, ensures that their sacrifice, forgotten for so many years, will live on in our collective memory.

N.B. Realizing this is a Civil War blog, I have included this site in hopes that many of you will find it of interest, and that you share my general interest in American military history. I may include other non-Civil War sites from time to time.

Quick Takes

Despite the lack of activity here, I have managed to read several good books recently. I still need to add or tweak a few apps on the new laptop, and now that the last toy soldier show of the year is over, I am slowly getting back to other interests.

I've been buying books on Sherman's campaign in North Carolina recently. No Such Army Since the Days of Julius Caesar, by Mark A. Smith and Wade Sokolosky, covers the campaign from the seizure of Fayetteville to the battle at Averasboro that set the stage for the larger fight at Bentonville. This is a great book with excellent maps, a critical component for any campaign study. I'll reserve additional comments for a more formal review. For now, I hope you enjoy these short takes on a couple of interesting titles.

Spencer C. Tucker, A Short History of the Civil War at Sea, Scholarly Resources Inc., 2002.

A friend purchased this book for me from Daedalus Books, a local bargain book store. The naval history of the Civil War is one of those aspects of the conflict I need to learn more about. This entertaining introduction covers all major naval actions along the coast as well as the actions of Confederate commerce raiders. But take note, the book is exactly what the title indicates, as there is no coverage of the gunboat battles along the western rivers. If the exploits of Farragut or Semmes interest you at all, and you are looking for a good overview, consider Tucker's book.

Nathaniel Cheaires Hughes, Jr., Bentonville: The Final Battle of Sherman and Johnston, UNC Press, 1996.

I really enjoyed Hughes study of the battle of Belmont, so this book was an easy selection for an introduction to the battle of Bentonville. Hughes provides a quick summary of the campaign and then lays out the often confusing details of the battle with clarity and precision. The main drawback of the book is a lack of detailed maps, but this deficiency is easily remedied using Mark Moore's atlas (his maps are also available online here). This book will serve for most students of the war looking for solid coverage of the Bentonville campaign. For me, while I enjoyed the book, I find it has only whetted my appetite for Mark Bradley's work, which promises more detail and includes Moore's maps within the text itself.

Welcoming a Friend

I've been distressed lately by a number of postings on Civil War related blogs that, in my view, have descended to the level of personal attacks. I guess this is inevitable given the passion still surrounding the war, preservation, and a host of other related issues.

So I am happy to welcome a friend to the blogosphere. Dylan Hyde, a reader of my blog, has started his own blog, Muddy Boots. I met Dylan at the Antietam Anniversary hike in September. His focus, though similar to my own, has a unique flair for local history, aided by his use of the diary of Jacob Engelbrecht, a resident of Frederick during the war. Recent postings include diary entries concerning John Brown's raid on Harper's Ferry.

Welcome, Dylan. I hope you find, as I have, that a great spirit of cameraderie exists among the battlefield enthusiasts in the blogosphere. Happy tromping!

Antietam 147th Anniversary Hike - Part 2

After lunch at the Battleview (why did I order a whole cheesesteak?), I headed to the National Cemetery parking lot for the afternoon portion of the Anniversary Hike. Ranger Brian Baracz covered the fighting at the Middle Bridge and Ranger John Hoptak narrated the attack of the Federal IX Corps.

I have covered the Middle Bridge action in more detail in a previous post. Notable on this visit was the progress made by the battlefield's resident stonemason, who has nearly completed the wall running east from Rodman Avenue about 100 yards from Route 34. You can also see some of his handiwork along the Roulette Lane. This work is key to restoring the battlefield to its 1862 appearance, and it happens one rock at a time.

Moving east along the stone wall, we linked into the new Three Farms Trail that winds along Antietam Creek through the fields and woodlots of the Newcomer, Roulette, and Sherrick Farms. With the opening of this and the Bloody Lane Trail, you can now hike the entire battlefield along a series of linked trails.

As we passed along the creek bottom moving south, the arduous terrain confronting the advance of the IX Corps came into view. Not far from the creek, the terrain rises sharply perhaps 50-60 feet. How any troops could maintain order scaling such heights is beyond comprehension, and so it is no wonder the IX Corps consumed several hours deploying after taking the Rohrbach Bridge. From high ground on the Sherrick Farm, the nature of the terrain to the south is clear – a series of steep ridgelines and deep ravines rising steadily to the west. As John, Keith, and Brian pointed out, the IX Corps not only advanced quite a distance west from the bridge, they also climbed perhaps 400 feet to reach the area of the Ninth New York monument, only a stone’s throw from the Harpers Ferry Road.

We paused on the grounds of the Otto Farm, where John explained the predicament of Ambrose Burnside. Questions remain even today as to the nature of Burnside’s orders and exactly when he received them. McClellan’s two official reports of the action, one written shortly afterward and the other in hindsight, do not agree on either of these points. All of this is overshadowed by the legendary assault of A.P. Hill’s Division, which drove the IX Corps back to its start position after it carried its advance nearly to “the spires of Sharspburg.” While John argues convincingly that Burnside considered his attack a diversion in favor of the attempt to turn Lee’s left, he clearly had an opportunity to turn the tide of battle. I asked John if he thought the IX Corps had enough troops, even after Hill’s arrival, to carry the day on this portion of the field. He did, though his narrative of the action made it clear that more than mere numbers decided the day. Hill’s men were battle-hardened veterans, while some of the men under Burnside’s command had only just learned the manual of arms.

For a detailed discussion of the Final Attack Trail, which we covered on this portion of the hike, see my previous posts here and here. If you have not ventured onto this portion of the battlefield before, I think you will find it well worth the effort. And be sure to pick up Range Keith Snyder’s trail guide in the Visitors Center beforehand. The guides available for Antietam are a handy reference including maps, quotes from the men who fought here, and descriptions of the action for each stop on the trail.

On this final leg of the Anniversary Hike, Keith did not disappoint. One of the more colorful accounts of all Medal of Honor recipients at Antietam concerns a Captain of the Ninth New York, Adolphe Libaire. The Ninth, a zouave regiment attired in short blue jackets, baggy blue pantaloons, and red fezes, advanced under a galling fire. The color guard was shot down. Men who rushed forward to retrieve the colors also fell, and the advance faltered. Captain Libaire, undaunted, raised the colors, turned to his men and shouted “Follow me, damn you,” and led a final rush toward a stone wall that marked the limit of the regiment’s advance on that bloody day.

Later, as the IX Corps retreated under Hill’s devastating counterattack, Frank Whitman and Marcus Haskell both risked their lives to save comrades under fire. As Keith, a soldier himself, so aptly puts it, there is “no greater love” displayed by mankind than that shared between men in the midst of combat.

One final surprise awaited us before we headed home for the day. The owners of the Old Stone Mill (along the current Burnside Bridge Road) opened their home to us and allowed us to explore both the old mill building and the trace of the old Rohrbach Bridge Road that runs through their property. Craig Swain, over at To the Sound of the Guns, covered this part of the hike in detail, so I will commend you to his blog for a description of our visit. Craig also describes the closing moments of the hike, which ended once again in the National Cemetery with a few appropriate remarks that reminded us why we continue to gather on the great battlefields of that long ago war.

PS This post has taken much longer to publish than I anticipated. I hope to resume more regular posts this week when my shiny new laptop arrives from Dell.

Antietam 147th Anniversary - From the Cornfield to the Bloody Lane

We returned to the Cornfield to begin the morning portion of the anniversary hike. The unifying theme of this year’s hike was the Medal of Honor. Ranger Keith Snyder related the stories of men who earned their country’s highest honor on the field of Antietam. Twenty soldiers received the medal for actions at Antietam. Keith also noted the Confederate equivalent award, assignment to a Roll of Honor. Surviving veterans elected one member of each company in a regiment to the Roll. Not al regiments participated, and the Confederacy lacked the resources to produce a physical medal.

As Hooker’s initial assault cleared the Cornfield, Battery B, 4th US Artillery (Campbell) deployed astride the Hagerstown Turnpike. As the Iron Brigade went into action, their commander, John Gibbon, assisted in directing the fire of his old outfit. Jackson ordered his reserves forward. Hood’s Division swept into the Cornfield. The 1st Texas advanced along the western edge, their ranks decimated by a withering fire from the Iron Brigade and Campbell’s Battery to the north and west. A Federal soldier later retrieved their color in the midst of a heap thirteen bodies of the men who died to protect it.

The rest of the Texas Brigade wheeled toward the Hagerstown Turnpike and blazed away. Losses on both sides were terrific. The commander of Battery B went down in the hail of fire. A fifteen year old soldier, Johnny Cook, led his commander to safety, returned, and served on a gun crew during the hottest part of the fight. Another soldier, borrowed from the 23rd New York, found himself the lone survivor of his gun crew. Undaunted, he coolly loaded and fired on his own. Not satisfied, he rejoined his regiment and continued the fight. Both of these soldiers received the Medal of Honor.

On the opposite end of the Cornfield, near the East Woods, Law’s Brigade of Hood’s Division drove the Federals over the fence bordering the north edge of the field. The 2nd Mississippi regiment continued to advance and found themselves in a storm of shot and shell from front and flank. Federal reinforcements poured in and Hood’s Division relinquished their hard won position. The Cornfield had changed hands for the second time that day. The 2nd Mississippi regiment chose one man per company for its Roll of Honor. Keith read the names of each man aloud. Most of them gave their lives at Sharpsburg.

John Hoptak set the scene following the struggle for the Cornfield, when Edwin “Bull” Sumner rode onto the field and led Sedgwick’s Division to disaster in the West Woods. John has a way of evoking sympathy for the scapegoats of the Army of the Potomac at Antietam. Had Sumner been released earlier in the morning as he desired, and with his entire corps, perhaps his assault would have met with more success. John did not absolve Sumner, however, of the chaos wrought by the formation of Sedgwick’s Division in its attack, which he demonstrated physically, organizing our group into three successive lines.

After a short break, we moved on to Bloody Lane. Here again, French’s Division stumbled into the attack in three successive lines. Here we walked in the footsteps of the 5th Maryland Regiment. The sunken road, invisible at first, rises into view as you crest the higher ground in its front. The chilling aspect of rifles rested on fence rails awaiting the soldiers of French’s Division as they marched over this same ground truly comes home as you move in their footsteps. Ranger Brian Baracz, who provides much of the tactical detail at each stop, relates that Colonel Gordon of the 6th Alabama claimed the entire Federal front line fell at the first fire. Brian builds a comprehensive picture of the events of this chaotic battle using carefully selected anecdotes in the words of the soldiers themselves. That French’s units did not disintegrate entirely is a tribute to the bravery of these men and their officers. Keith described the heroism of Lieutenant Charles Tanner of the 1st Delaware, who advanced under the withering fire from the lane in an attempt to save his regiment’s colors from capture. He was wounded in the process, but did save the colors, and received the Medal of Honor for his bravery.

As French’s Division ground to a halt before this withering fire, Richardson’s Division assaulted the Bloody Lane to their left. In front of the Irish Brigade, about 100 yards from the lane, stood a fence that threatened to impede their advance. Private Samuel Wright recklessly exposed himself, tearing down the fence, doubtless saving many lives that may have been sacrificed in crossing the obstacle under fire. The Irish Brigade slugged it out with G.B Anderson’s men at a distance of perhaps 30 yards. In the confusion that ensued among the Confederate defenders of the lane as one officer after another was shot down, a misunderstood command resulted in the withdrawal of Rodes Brigade, and the entire position collapsed. Richardson, while attempting to organize another assault to carry the day, was wounded by an artillery shell before he was able to do so.

Later in the day, the VI Corps arrived to shore up the Federal defenses on this part of the field. Irwin’s Brigade faced the remnants of D.H Hill’s division on the Piper Farm. Why he ordered the 7th Maine regiment forward to attack rebel positions that had resisted much stronger assaults earlier in the day is beyond understanding. Perhaps he was drunk, as Major Thomas Hyde, commander of the 7th Maine, alleged afterward. The Maine men never had a chance, and suffered heavy casualties to no good purpose. But as Keith explained, the bravery and coolness under fire displayed by Major Hyde earned him a citation for the Medal of Honor. Richard Curran, an assistant surgeon in Irwin’s Brigade, also earned the medal on this part of the field, recklessly exposing himself far more than his responsibilities required to aid the wounded left in the wake of Irwin’s disastrous assault order. A sad close to the action on the northern end of the battlefield, and yet heroism and compassion still rise above the folly of this final act at the Bloody Lane in the battle of Antietam.

Morning in the Cornfield

Morning in the Cornfield. A gray dawn. The rain, heavy at first, tapers off to a drizzle. Rain quiets the crowd and adds a somber tone to the scene, already heavy with the memory of sacrifice 147 years ago today. Rangers Keith Snyder, Brian Baracz, and John Hoptak read from diaries, letters, and reports of men who survived this fight, “the very vortex of hell.”

Battery B, John Gibbon’s old outfit, the man who trained the Iron Brigade. Their fire tore through Confederate ranks, knocking dirt, rocks, fence rails, and men about with each discharge of canister. Keith describes this moment in the chaos of battle so you can almost see it.

We move on the fence bordering the northern edge of the Cornfield and move south through the “corn.” A ranger reads from a soldier’s account – “Men I cannot say fell; they were knocked out of ranks by the dozen.” Soldiers of the 12th Massachusetts, which lost 67% of its strength that morning in less time than I will it take to write this post, describe a scene of complete horror. Both sides stand toe to toe, blazing away with equal abandon. When the morning waxes in to afternoon and fighting on this part of the field subsides, over 2000 men lie in the Cornfield and surrounding woods.

Ranger Keith Snyder reminds us we are standing on sacred ground. “If you don’t think so,” he says, know that only two days ago a soldier of New York, whose remains were found in the northwest corner of the Cornfield, departed for Saratoga National Cemetery in his home state, to be buried there with full military honors. This soldier, and so many others like him in his generation and our own, has earned our undying gratitude for laying his life on the altar of freedom. And so we gather today and remember.