128 



HISTORY OF STEUBEN COUNTY, NEW YORK. 



Company K. — Captain, Wilbur F. Tuttle ; First Lieu- 

 tenant, George E. Whiton ; Second Lieutenant, Joseph A. 

 Frisbie. 



Companies A and B were organized in Schuyler County ; 

 Companies C, I, and K in Chemung County; Companies 

 D, E, F, G, and H in Steuben County. 



Feb. 12, 1863, the regiment moved from Miner's Hill to 

 Arlington Heights. At this time Col. Hathaway and Lieut.- 

 Col. Beecher resigned their respective positions. Maj. 

 Dininny was promoted to the colonelcy. Capt. Wm. K. 

 Logic, Company E, was advanced to be lieutenant-colonel, 

 and Capt. E. L. Patrick, Company I, to be major. April 

 15 the division broke camp, and was sent to Suffolk, Ya., 

 to the department then commanded by ex-Governor John A. 

 Dix. That vicinity was soon relieved of the presence of the 

 enemy, and the regiment was not engaged in any general 

 battle. May 3 it was ordered back, via Fortress Monroe, 

 to West Point, up York River, at the confluence of the 

 Mattapony and Pamunkey Rivers. 



Gen. Gordon now assumed command of the division, 

 numbering eight thousand men, consisting of infantry, 

 cavalry, and artillery. The regiment tarried three weeks, 

 and engaged in building rifle-pits and fortifications until the 

 command was suddenly ordered back to Yorktown. While 

 here Col. Dininny resigned his commission, and Lieut.- 

 Col. Logic was promoted to the vacant place, Maj. Patrick 

 to the lieutenant-colonelcy, and Capt. Chas. W. Clauharty, 

 Company A, senior captain, whose just rights had been 

 hitherto ignored, was advanced to the majorship. On the 

 9th of June the regiment took up the march to Williams- 

 burg. The weather on this march was exceedingly hot and 

 dry, and the men suffered extremely from excessive heat 

 and thirst. June 11 the march was resumed, reachino; 

 Diascund Bridge June 13, where it remained, far in advance 

 of the rest "of the troops, in a low, marshy, and unhealthy 

 locality, and the duty was constant, onerous, and harassing. 

 At this point the regiment had its first brush with the 

 enemy, David McCann (Capt. McDowell's company) being 

 the first victim to the rebel bullets. 



On June 26 the regiment resumed its march to White 

 House Landing, and joined Gen. Dix's whole command, 

 numbering some thirty thousand, on an expedition towards 

 Richmond, — which should have been captured at that time, 

 while Gen. Lee and very nearly his entire armies were 

 invading Maryland and Southern Pennsylvania. Gordon's 

 Division advanced as far as Bottom Bridge, only twelve or 

 fifteen miles from Richmond, skirmishing frequently and 

 getting a healthy practical experience of shot and shell. 

 Engagements were frequent between the pickets, but no 

 general battle took place until the 8th of July, when orders 

 were received to abandon the expedition, and the troops 

 were transferred to the Army of the Potomac. For four 

 or five months the bill of fare served up partook of so much 

 sameness that the regiment suffered extremely in general 

 health. Their staple diet, as well as luxuries, consisted of 

 hard-tack, bacon, and coffee, served up ad infinitum^ with 

 no ringing of the changes. July 8 it took up the line of 

 march to Williamsburg. The severity of the Peninsular 

 campaign was now apparent in the hard marches made, 

 which were the immediate causes of more sickness and 



death in the 141st than was subsequently experienced. 

 Rain fell in torrents for days ; and in one day twenty-seven 

 miles were gained through mud and rain, to find a watery 

 couch at night. The weather was so hot that the men's 

 feet were scalded in their wet shoes and stockings. Hun- 

 dreds went into Yorktown barefooted and feet blistering 

 sore ; but there could be no delay, — it was laid out to cap- 

 ture Lee in Maryland. The regiment left the place by 

 transport, and proceeded direct to Frederick City, Md., 

 ariving there July 14. The same night the whole Confed- 

 erate army made a safe retreat across the Potomac. Gor- 

 don's Division was now disbanded and the troops trans- 

 ferred to the 11th and 12th Corps. 



The 141st was consigned to the 2d Brigade, 3d Division, 

 11th Corps; Gen. Howard commanding the corps, Carl 

 Schurz the division, and Col. Krzyzanowski the brigade. 

 The regiment joined the corps at Berlin, Md , after three 

 days' march from Frederick City. July 19 it crossed the 

 Potomac, and arrived at Warrington Junction the 25th. 

 It remained in this locality for some time, marching, coun- 

 termarching, changing camp, and drilling until September 

 24, when the order came to move. The 11th and 12th 

 Corps, under the command of Gens. Howard and Slocum, 

 both under the command of Maj. -Gen. Joe Hooker, were 

 transferred to the Army of the Cumberland, then in Ten- 

 nessee. The regiment arrived at Bridgeport, Ala., October 

 2, and went into camp on the banks of the Tennessee River, 

 having traveled in eight days about fourteen hundred miles. 

 Rosecrans was then shut up in Chattanooga on short ra- 

 tions, — transportation being fifty miles around by wagons, 

 while by the railroad through Chattanooga Valley it was 

 only twenty-eight miles, — the enemy holding the road and 

 threatening beleaguered Chattanooga from the heights of 

 Lookout Mountain. The gallant Hooker took the job to 

 open this valley, which was accomplished in just forty-eight 

 hours, ending with the famous moonlight " Battle of Wau- 

 hatchie" on the night of October 28. This opened the 

 railroad nearly to Chattanooga, and the Army of the Cum- 

 berland '' dubbed" Hooker's men as " Cracker Boys," as it 

 had not seen but one cracker per day for a month, until 

 Hooker's men supplied their haversacks from their own. 

 The 141st took part in the above action, which was fought 

 on our side entirely by Eastern troops. 



Wauhatchie is about five miles from Chattanooga, at the 

 base of Lookout Mountain. The regiment participated in 

 the glorious battle of Lookout Mountain, or the ^' Battle 

 above the Clouds," where Hooker and the 11th and 12th 

 Corps won immortal glory. 



In the mean time Gen. Grant had taken command at Chat- 

 tanooga. After the pursuit of the enemy for two days, the 

 11th and 15th Corps were headed for Knoxviile, where 

 Longstreet was making a threatening siege ; but upon the 

 approach of Sherman and Howard with their brave troops, 

 he beat a hasty retreat over the Virginia line for safety. 

 This ended the march in that direction, and the regiment 

 returned to its old camp at the base of Lookout Mountain, 

 having in twenty-four days marched in mud and rain about 

 three hundred miles. It remained in winter quarters until 

 Jan. 24, 1864, when the 2d Brigade was ordered to Shell 

 Mound, twenty-two miles from Chattanooga and six from 



