Four Years With the Iron Brigade

by Lance Herdegen

  Shermans Army marched & went through the evolutions just as well as we did. The Corps was much larger than ours, mostly four Divisions, yellow flag represents the 4th Division. The flag of the 15th Corps is verry remarkable one. The badge on it is the catdridge box & the two words written in a circle over it, forty rounds. It called forth many remarks from the dense crowd. All day long they could be clapping of hands, cheering heard. About 4 P.M. the column ceased to pass for all had gone passed & the crowd began to disperse.

  I now turn my face towards the Capitol to go & view it awhile. I wend my way up through the crowd. At last I reach the foot of the hill the Capital is situated upon. I pause to rest for I am verry much fatigued from standing all day. After a pause of a few minutes I climb the steep ascent & enter the capitol from the north & wandered in it an hour or two & seeing too many different thing of Beauty to Describe or even name them here. Twas a grand sight & among the grandest were the Pictures. The Building is Magnificent but not entirely finished. But workmen are at work all the time on it. I want about a week to explore it to my satisfaction. It is all built of large blocks of Marble. Tis splendid. Tired, I sit down on the steps at north entrance to rest a few minutes then to go down on to the street & take the street cars for the Bridge which is reached in due course of time, but with having to wait often for the streets to get clear. At last reach the Bridge, tired & almost sick. Come on across without hinderance & feeling sick, I am a long time getting to Camp having to rest often. Reach camp & sick enough too. Rather like the Billious fever.

  May 28, 1865

  And fine day. Had inspection in forenoon. Had preaching at 6 P.M. by the chaplain from Massachusetts, he being on a visit to the Army & gave our chaplain a call. Preached a good Sermon, great rumors about going home but nobody knows when.

  May 29, 1865

  And fine day. I am on guard today as Sergt of the Guard. Have the regular guard mounting, putting on style now & we do it too. Evrything about the camps goes on nicely except there is a good deal of whiskey drank & our Captain, I am sorry to say, does his full share of it.

  May 30, 1865

  And fine day & I am relieved at the usual hour 9 A.M. and feel quite sick too & get worse through the day. I have a hard fever from 10 A.M. till 5 P.M. when the fever leaves me & I feel better. I sent for the Doctor once but he was not there & but come about 5 P.M.

  May 31, 1865

  And fine day. And feel some fever today but not so much. I am getting better of it. I am excused from duty. They had dress parade. The men in the regt whose term of service expires prior to the 1st of October (there is 4 drafted men in our Co among them) have went up to be mustered out of the service.

  Great rumors concerning going home & all’s on tip-toe & excitement all the time. Many betting that we will go by the 9th of June.

  The Presidents Proclamation is published today concerning the Rebels. In fact is an amnesty Proclamation to include such & such & so & so &c &c &c. I got a letter from Mother & Sarah today.

  June 1, 1865

  And fine day. I feel pretty well today. But have to take medicine yet. I am excused from duty. I wrote a letter to Lu today. Sergt [Bruce] Bryan247 has got a furlough of ten days to go to Philadelphia & started this morning. Many rumors about going home but no orders to go yet. The troop feel gay. They have torchlight processions & many such things that can be made with candles or powder. They are verry noisy till midnight evry night. All expects to go home first.

  June 2, 1865

  I feel a good deal better today. Dress parade & guard mounting is all the moves that are made, no drill. Troops going home all the time. Those that were mustered out of our Co & Regt are awaiting transportation to go home. I wrote a letter to Mother today, also one to Sarah. Mother is verry anxious to have me come home. Gen. [Henry] Morrow took the Brigade out today & made them a speech. Told them what to do & told them to behave themselves as well when citizens as when Soldiers &c.

  June 4, 1865

  Nothing unusual today. Many rumors about going this & that place &c. Nothing definite. Troops going home evry day by thousands. I commenced a good job today. It is taking the Military history of evry man in the Company or that ever was in the Company & what became of him &c. Sergt Bryan has returned from his furlough. He has been no farther than Washington. And all he got the furlough for was to get his pay. He had to try twice for the furlough & had to or did lie the biggest kind. Lied as I wouldnt have done for forty. Such men always get their reward in due season.

  June 5, 1865

  And fine day & the Order has come at last to send us to Louisville, Ky to report to Gen Logan [Union General John A. Logan] & we expect to go in a week or so. And what we will then do is hard to tell. Some say we are to be mustered out there & others say we & a lot more Wis Regts are to be consolidated & many such rumors.

  June 6, 1865

  A fine day & I am quite sick again. Had a verry bad diarhear last night & it holds on today. I am excused today by the Doctor. Feel verry poorly.

  June 7, 1865

  And fine day & the same as yesterday except that those men that were mustered out have gone home. The extra duty men are being returned to the Regt & everything is be made ready for the move for we are to go to Louisville beyond Preadventure.

  June 8, 1865

  And rainy some today. I feel a great deal better today. I finish my history of the Co today. That is what the Discriptive Book says about each man. It was considerable of a job.

  June 9, 1865

  And fine day & nothing done not even dress parade. I wrote a letter to Mother today. We are going to loose some more of the Regt for there has an order come to discharge all men that have been in confederate Prisons & that will take some 60 or 70 men in our Regt. I feel better today again & think I will get along now.

  June 10, 1865

  And rainy day. Showry, nothing new transpires today except the Order putting off the time of our starting till the latter part of next week. Oh yes, we drew a lot of Sanitary clothing today. I got none of it for there was too many that had more brass in their face for begging than I & some got a complete new suit, that is drawers, shirts, socks & Suspenders. & in the evening drew a fine large mess of cucumber pickles & some potatoes all from the Sanitary Co.

  I forgot to tell you there is only 2 of us tenting togather that is myself & B. Hay din [Benjamin Hay den]. The other two put them up a tent & I was verry glad too for one of them, Sergt Bryan is such a profane & immoral man. I dislike to tent with him. He is acting Orderly still & I guess will be promoted to it soon as the Orderly is discharged. & he may have it too for I wouldnt have the truble for the extra $4.00 a months & I am not fit for an Orderly in this company for I am just the contrary in disposition to most of them, for they are profane Gamblers, that is the officers & most of the noncommission’d too & I am the reverse.

  June 11, 1865

  And fine day. We have the Sunday morning inspection at the usual hour, 11 A.M. and we are ordered out on parade ground without arms to hear preaching from the Massachusetts chaplain. The same one that preached 2 week since. The boys or most of them were vexed at having to go out so, & they wouldnt sing so he had to do it all. Which made it rather dry. But he gave us a good sermon & many that were vexed were not sorry for attending. I tell you, it is no use to try to conceal the fact hat this Regt is verry wicked, yea debased. I am sorry to have to chronicle it so but truth must come. There would have been a verry small congregation if they hadnt been ordered out. I must give the colonel credit for so doing & hope he will continue so to do. I wrote a letter to Mother today & told her to be patient about me coming home. For I now thought I would not be home before the 4th of July and perhaps not then. I hav’nt so high hopes of coming home at so early a day & at one time. I got a State Journal today. It is a welcome visitor now when I have time to peruse it.

  June 12, 1865

  And fine day & nothing of importance transpires. Have the regular guard mounting & dress parade style but no work. Th
e 6th Corps has been behaving themselves bad this last day or two. They have been rallying on evrything that is eatable in the sutler shops &c and now we have to have a patrol day & night to protect our Division Sutlers & commissaries &c. I have not heard of our corps taking part in any such buisness. We, the corps, is verry orderly. There is rumors now that Logans men or some of his veterans have mutinied & burnt part of Louisville & that he telegraphed to the War Dept that he didnt want them to send anymore Veterans there. But this I think is all Bash. I hope we will go.

  June 13, 1865

  And Showery most of the day but cleared off late in the evening. Nothing done today, all’s quiet. Many vague rumors afloat. 700 of the 91st N.Y. H. Art. started home this morning. They came under the last order for mustering out troops, they belonged to Brigade but do not now they having been consolidated with the 147th N.Y., that is the Veterans of both Regts. Have wrote a letter to Minnie Lander in answer to one I received some 2 months since. I received a letter from Lu today bringing the good news of her doing well &c. And I received a neat Pocket Diary from Lu also, this I sent for to have it here by the time this one was full. I have guessed it exceedingly well.

  June 14, 1865

  And Showery today & nothing transpired today. Those men that were to be discharged have not been. The Order has been countermanded much to their Chagrin. I would of been happy indeed to see them go for I think it is due them considering how they have suffered while in Prison. There is another rumor that we are going to start on Friday next, but no one knows where to, some say to the state & some say to Louisville. Let that be as it may, I would be glad to start to some place. I want to get home so as to start in some kind of buisness & be at home where I can live better & enjoy myself better. There is no place like home, let it be ever so humble. I know my Dear Mother would be as happy as myself to have me at home.

  [Ed. Note: The following Florence Percy poem, “EMPTY-HANDED,” was clipped from a newspaper and placed in the pocket at back of diary.]

  Sitting here with forehead bowed,

  Feeling but my heart’s dull aching,

  I can hear the fierce and loud

  Tumult of the jostling crowd

  Following—never overtaking—

  Hear the thousand hurrying feet,

  With their restless beat and beat—

  Life’s strong surges, rolling, breaking

  Over many a storm-wrecked fleet,

  Many a hope that knows no waking.

  All my voyaging is o’er,

  All my fair ships wrecked or stranded,

  And I wait upon the shore,

  Empty-handed.

  Far a way a river laves

  Mossy rocks with tender sighing,

  And a patient pine-tree waves

  O’er two unforgotten graves;

  Toward the spot where thou art lying,

  Oh, my love, my life’s lost saint,

  With a wordless, wild complaint

  It is my soul forever crying!

  Oh, my child! my heart grows faint

  Calling thee, with grief undying!

  Love, and faith, and hope are flown—

  All my spirits need demanded,

  And I sit here all alone,

  Empty-handed

  Volumes 15

  Home and a Mother’s Kiss

  June 15, 1865 to July 16, 1865

  [Discharged July 13, 1865]

  Sergt William R Ray

  Co. F, 7th Regt, WisVet Vol. Inft

  A Resident of Cassville, Grant Co Wisconsin

  Enlisted August 19th / 61

  Reenlisted Dec 28th /63

  Was wounded at Gainesville, Va, Aug 28 /62

  and at Gettysburg, Penn July 1 st /63 and at Wilderness, Va, May 5th /64

  In Camp on Arlington Heights Va

  June 15, 1865

  And fine Day & we lay in camp today & late in the evening we draw enough rations to make up 8 day & be ready to march at 4 A.M. in the morning. We were called and after Tattoo & formed line to let Lieut Steward [James Stewart], commandant of Battery B, 4th US Regular Artillery propose Enlisting into the Battery to us. But I think he didnt get 1 recruit for the Battery & here the Col told us we start for the west in the morning. March to Washington & there take the cars. I & another man from another tent get the big kettle & boil all our meat togather.

  June 16, 1865

  And fine day. & we march at 5 A.M. & go to Washington where we find the cars ready & some of the Brigade loading on. There is 10 Regts in the Brigade and five Different states Viz. Wisconsin, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio & Minnesota & a good deal of speculation as to where we go. Some say we will go right on through & not turn off at the relay house on to the Baltimore & Ohio R.R. which will take us west. At 11 A.M. we get aboard the cars & start, being the last train out except the Baggage train which we left behind. When we get to Relay house we turn on the Baltimore & Ohio R.R. & come on through a hilly & mountainous country. The road running up a good mill stream which is well used for Manufacturing Purposes. Dark comes on & I & Ben fix for sleep. We are on top of a box car, a verry good place & lay down.

  June 17, 1865

  A fine morning. Just daybreak & still among hills & by the side of the Potomac River. About sunrise we come to Harpers Ferry. Here we see the Shanandok [Shenandoah] which makes a confluence with the Potomac and right between the two, on the point is the Village of perhaps a 100 inhabitants & many burned buildings & debris of all sorts. Most all the Government property is a pile of ruins.

  We follow up the Potomac a ways then turn of into the country leaving the river to the right. But strike it again in an hour or 2 & follow on all day. Road verry crooked & through many deep cuts & most of the way the hills & bluffs have been cut down to make road. On the opposite side of the river is the Chespeak & Ohio canal which is in use. There is a great contrast between the speed of the canal boats & the train. All the way we find no towns of importance except Martinsburg, Va & Cumberland, M.D. Here we were furnished good coffee by the sanitary Com. When we go on, stopping & different watering stations & passing most of the other small stations with out stopping. They are numerous but no buisness at most of them. Poor farming country. But splendid water powers all along the rivers & creeks. We go slow all the time waiting on switches for as high as 10 trains to pass us sometimes.

  The road is a good one. Near night we have to wait a long time for there has a train run off the track ahead of us. We being near the river, many of the boys go in swimming. At last we start, run slow and Ben & I got to bed again same as last night.

  June 18, 1865

  Awake to see a fine morning & along the river still & Big Mountains. River getting small, getting pretty well up to the head of river. . . . Worn out with fatigue I lie down & cover up for tis cold enough for 2 blankets.

  June 19, 1865

  Awake this morning to find us going down the mountain. Pretty well down, quite large streams & more improvements along the road & the towns look neater & Brisker. Through some 23 Tunnels today. Many Bridges and get along fine.

  June 20, 1865

  We lay around camp till noon when we get dinner & right away the order comes to fall in which we do & march through the town to the Boats & get aboard without delay & start of down the Majestic Ohio. Boat not crowded, things O.K. Parkersburg is a dirty place but apparently a Buisness place. Not more than 2000 Inhabitants I should think. I watch & gaze on the hills, fields, meadows &c with delight.

  June 22, 1865

  And fine day. All is well & we see more towns, stopping at none till we come to the city of Cincinnati. Here we stop & the Col vouched for our good conduct to the Gen & allowed us to go into the city free. The Boat would stay 15 minutes & perhaps ½ hour & it stayed the latter. & we started on down the river, not land again till we get to Louisville. All the Boys but one or two come on Board, none left of our Co. Some companies left. But 3 noncommissioned of our camp, the Orderly Sergt & another sergt & Corpl., but they got on the next boat & come o
n.

  June 23, 1865

  Awoke this morning to find us still going & within 10 miles of Louisville. Soon reach it & land & go ashore & are marched into a street in the shade to await the other troops coming ashore & some that have not arrived. Here we lay till noon & then ordered to the other side of the river to go into camp & some go out to the boats they came off but we go up to the ferry Boat & go aboard and cross to the town opposite to the city (Jeffersonville I believe). Here we go ashore & march up the river from the town 2 miles & go into camp on the Bank of the river, a verry nice Place for a camp. & as soon as the arms is stacked, the boys break for the river & are soon Bathing. But I didnt indulge for I was too warm & the march from town almost played me out. Twas so warm & my head is so easily hurt by the heat & it is getting worse. I am getting almost afraid of the sun as I was of Rebel Bullets and it was one of them that causes me the pain when my Blood gets warmed up a little. By Breaking my skull.