Note: I’m trying to get the last couple of 1862 letters out this month, so I can start 2008 with 1863 letters. In this installment, Bates goes fishing and makes some plans for settling down. His aversion for African-Americans continues, and remains unexplained.

Harrisons Landing Va,
July 24th 1862
Dear Parents,

I received a letter from Johnson last night and am glad to hear you are doing well. The Union will not find many fighting supporters among you, if they are all like the “blow-hards” Johnson writes about. I forget what your opinion of a nigger is, but suppose a white man is just as good in your eyes if he only behaves himself. I don’t know where my aversion to a nigger comes from, but its of no use for me to try to think of them with the “brotherly regard” H.Gy. recommends. I can’t do it. They don’t look right.

I have been speculating the past two weeks in good old fashioned style. I think the fashion is about as old as the world for Christ found the greater part of his Apostles following the same business big Fishing; I got a net in an old fish house on the bank of the river, and, with five other men, fixed a boat. And went to work. We make six hauls a day, each man having his haul and he whose haul it is has the choice of ground to haul over. You would hardly believe the quantity of fish we catch all of which we find a market for without leaving the river in this way. I have made $17 a day and generally average from $10 to $12. I was offered $100 for the whole fixins, and think I shall sell out, as my stay in the land is uncertain. I might be off for Richmond tomorrow, not very likely, though.

The Pay-master is around, and has humored us with a look at his Benevolent countenance, and the tender of certain paper acknowledgements of the pecuniary indebtedness of the U.S. called “green-backs” Union-plasters. Toad-skins Treasury-notes, which I need not say, were accepted. I have now on hand so much money that I think I shall send some by Adams Express, yes, I will tomorrow. I will sell my net and remit the proceeds to you to-morrow. I want you to look around and see if there is a good chance to invest a few hundred dollars in real estate, for the genius of speculation is on me, and I think I shall make $500 more before my time is up. If you know of a House and land, that is worth about $1000.00 let me know about it, and if you think it a good bargain, engage it I will try to pay for it. To-morrow I shall send by Adams Express Co to this Address

Mr Isaac Bates
Oakville
Litchfield County
Conn.

the sum of ($335) three hundred and thirty five dollars. Two hundred and fifty you will please to invest or lay up for me, the rest you can appropriate. I am in good, or rather, in the very best of health and hope this finds you as well.

I remain affcty
Charles E. Bates

I hadn’t planned to post today, but Sarah over at Ten Roads has a great account of a snowball fight between regiments during the Civil War posted in honor of the first snowfall where she is. It’s a great account, take a minute to check it out.

So there I was, wandering internet used book sites this weekend minding my own business, when I stumbled across what may be another quality Civil War reference. I was the Alibris site when I discovered the Cavalry Journal/ Armor Cumulative Indices, 1898-1968.

This work should be a comprehensive index of all of the articles published in the Cavalry Journal (aka Journal of the US cavalry Association) and Armor Magazine during the years mentioned in the title. The reason I find it exciting is that the Cavalry Journal was the professional journal for cavalry during this entire period. Many articles were published by veterans after the Civil War. Among the more well known in my particular field are “With The Reserve Brigade” by Moses Harris.

Given the number of Regular cavalry officers who remained in the army following the war and went on to achieve significant rank, I would imagine there are other articles which will also offer greater insight into mounted operations during the war.

I may be overestimating its significance, but given how little I’ve seen of such a reference I think there will be new ground to be unearthed perusing this work. Time will tell, and for less than $20 it is certainly worth a look.

Brian Downey had a great entry on Delos B. Sackett over at Behind Antietam on the Web on Tuesday. As always, Brian’s post added that little something extra that makes the reader remember the post and the person.

As I was reading the entry, I noticed that Sackett was an Assistant Instructor of Cavalry Tactics at West Point from 1850-1855. I was curious about which future cavalry leaders he might have influenced, so I pulled out the trusty Cullum files and checked to see who went through the academy during this period who later became a cavalry officer.

The list includes six cavalry leaders who reached brevet Major General. Eugene A. Carr, Kenner Garrard and David S. Stanley for those interested in the western theater; August Kautz, David McM. Gregg and William W. Averell for those eastern theater afficionados among us. Among other significant leaders listed at this time (the classes were mandatory) was one Philip H. Sheridan.

It’s of course impossible to gauge Sackett’s influence on which branch the cadets under his tutelage chose during the period that he was at West Point, but I thought it interesting.

As I was blog-surfing recently, I noticed a link on Ted Savas’ new blog, A Publisher’s Perspective. The link said “Civil War Regiments.” Given my interest in the cavalry, I was naturally intrigued and clicked the link.

To my surprise and delight, it was not a link to regimental histories. Instead it links one to a website where back issues of the now-defunct “Civil War Regiments: A Journal of the American Civil War.” As described on the website:

“Civil War Regiments (CWR) was a quarterly publication created in late 1991 to fill a conspicuous gap in Civil War literature. Although several excellent publications are available, only CWR offered exclusively military coverage of the war (all theaters, all branches, Federal and Confederate) in a lengthy, documented and non-partisan format. Each issue is a book, not a stapled magazine. Each book includes original articles on all aspects of the war, including strategy, tactics, logistics, unit histories, leadership and command issues, and much more. Each book includes original maps and numerous photos and illustrations.

“CWR offers lengthy essays of substance. Reach beyond the glossy photos, short articles and cut-and-paste history. CWR is fresh, original scholarship on topics you will not see covered elsewhere, coupled with the best maps and book reviews in the business. Each book is printed on acid-free 50-lb. paper, and the covers are laminated gloss color stock for long, durable use, with a printed spine for easy library shelf reference.

“Unfortunately, when the underlying book business was sold in 2001, CWR was left without a home and publication ended with Volume Seven, No. 1. These collector’s issues are selling out fast, several issues are already sold out, and many more are in short supply.”

Among the various titles on the back issues site are issues on Gettysburg, the Red River Campaign, Chickamauga & Chattanooga, and others. The articles’ authors include many experts in their respective fields, as well as some I was unfamiliar with. The journal looks like an excellent product, and one or more back issues will likely be of interest to readers of this blog. I highly recommend a visit.

Okay, I’m back after the long weekend relaxed, recharged and ready to get back to work. The projects continue to bubble up (something we referred to as mission-creep in my former line of work), but I thought I’d revisit one of the ongoing ones that has expanded far beyond the short term status where it originated.

The study of the escape of the cavalry from Harpers Ferry continues. Each time I think I’m nearly finished, more material pops up. Brian Downey was kind enough to send along Allan Tischler’s book on the expedition, which I’m still working my way through. It is a very well-researched book, but the way it’s laid out makes it very difficult to work through. Virtually every version of the story is examined, with various errors and cases of plagiarism identified in each. Unfortunately, the method of examination doesn’t lead to a coherent narrative of what did happen, making the work more of a critical bibliography than a history. A very good reference book, in any case. Thanks again, Brian.

Don Enderton was also kind enough to forward copies of his father’s personally published The Private Journal of Abraham J. Warner, which should provide some interesting insights and information as well. This is a primary source that I hadn’t been able to locate anywhere else, so Don’s generosity is greatly appreciated. I’m really looking forward to reading it.

So much research, so little time….

Editor’s note: In which we discover Bates’ feelings for a certain New York Times correspondent’s coverage of the battles of Malvern Hill and White Oak Swamp. He also provides an account of the battle of Gaines Mill. I’ll be checking over the weekend on his allegations of flight by the 6th Pennsylvania Cavalry, as I don’t recall reading of it before. All of the parentheticals save the occasional (sic) were included in the original text.

Harrisons Landing Va.
July 10th 1862
Dear Parents,

I have not written to you for a few days back because I thought you would get all the news in the papers, but if all the papers give the same description of our late fights here, don’t believe anything you read about us. I enclose a few pieces of the “New York Times” July 8th, as sample of the way they will make a mountain of a mole-hill. It seems the correspondent was only with one division, and trusted to guesswork for the details of the rest of the Army. He says, “The great mass of the Army were not apprised until (sic) midnight of Friday of the intention of Genl McClellan to change his base from the York to the James rivers.” Here is mistake No. 1. True the intrenchments (sic) were not evacuated but the “great mass of the Army” were ready for a move long before, but I don’t think the Genl took the trouble to inform the Army what his plans of movement were. He then goes on to say “It commenced to move at 4 Oclock just before the sun” when it was raining in the morning and the sun didn’t appear till late in the forenoon. He speaks of the awful destruction of the Government stores and thinks three millions will hardly cover the loss. I think I could pay for all the property destroyed with one million and have many left after.

He then, after describing the battles of Allans farm, and Savage Station, gets the hype about the wounded left at Savage’s. Now nearly all were removed from there and I doubt secesh got as many hundred as he says thousands. The next piece of absurdity is the description of the battle of Nelsons farm, he seems to think Genl Richardson was commander in chief and had the whole battle to himself nearly. But McClellan himself formed the line of battle and was on the field at “Nelson’s Farm,” or White Oak Swamp, more properly, until he had to go to Haxall’s Landing and look after affairs there leaving Genl Sumner in command at White Oak. The battle of Malvern Hills was fought on the same day, (Monday) and was not the tremendous affair described, on the whole, none of the descriptions are correct, and I think the special correspondent got his news from hearsay, perhaps from the Lieut. Charles Draper, who brought reinforcements to Heintzelman “through a murderous fire,” preferring to keep at a safe distance during the fight, a course followed by a great many of our gallant volunteers who were more interested in looking for the Gunboats or for a pontoon-bridge than in looking for their regiments from this time. I was not on the field where “fights were won” until the battle of “Malvern Hills,” but this was Monday instead of Tuesday, and didn’t commence untill half past four in the afternoon. Instead of the rebs marching up by divisions they stuck to the woods like some of our own volunteers and fighting was all done by artillery. Our Captain picked enough stragglers to form two full regiments and asked permission to take them to the front and give them some fighting to do. He acted as Brigadier General of them himself and supported a battery in good style but didn’t get a chance to do any fighting. The whole squadron were kept busy picking up stragglers or recruiting for McIntyre’s Brigade, as we called it.

I slept soundly on Tuesday on Malvern Hills and wasn’t troubled with the rain which the correspondent says came down in his description of camp on James river.

In conclusion his summary of killed, wounded and missing is one of the biggest lies ever published. I thought at first our loss would be from 12 to 15,000 but now I am positive it is not over 12,000 in all.

While I am in the humor I will write what I know about the affair commencing with Thursday afternoon when I wrote my last letter in Camp Lincoln. I believe I had hardly got the letter in the post-office when the firing commenced on the right. This was McCall’s Division in action, and they stood their ground so well that they were driven out of their camps, and would have been driven off the peninsula but for Porter’s Division which retook the lost ground and held it. That evening Genl McClellan sent word to Porter “to make a stubborn resistance and fall back to the Chickahominy next day.” The answer received was this —

“I can keep the enemy in check and spare part of my force if you want.” Upon this McClellan rode over to Porter’s and I suppose explained to him what he wanted done. At any rate all the waggons (sic) and property with Porter’s and McCall’s Divisions were immediately sent to the west side of the Chickahominy leaving only troops the other side. Ambulances were also sent for the wounded but most of them stopped to cook breakfast for the drivers and feed the horses so they were late in getting up to the battlefield and about three hundred wounded were left in consequence. The firing commenced at daylight Friday, but I went to sleep after breakfast, being up all night, and when I woke up about 10 Oclock it was as quiet as you please. We packed up everything, and at two Oclock headquarters was moved to Savages Station. Our squadron however was employed in collecting stragglers and sending them back to their regiments for the action had commenced again, and hundreds of runaways were coming across the Chickahominy with stories of their regiments being “cut to pieces.” About one Oclock Porter sent for reinforcements saying he had only a “handful of regulars left.”

“Send the regulars into it and I will let you have reinforcements in two hours,” was the reply. Accordingly the regulars (Sykes brigade) were put to work, and they drove a force that had driven four brigades of our troops, in spite of all the secesh could do; the Fifth New York was also in this brigade. They are men. About five Oclock reinforcements came up and relieved the regulars, and then the secesh took their turn at driving. A battery of ours supported by the 5th Cavalry 7 companies 1st Cavalry 4 companies regulars, and the gallant Colonel Rush’s regiment of Pennsylvania lancers came in danger of being taken when Genl Cooke commanding the cavalry ordered a Charge. The 5th started followed by the 1st, but the Gallant Colonel Rush’s Lancers charged the wrong way and broke a brigade of Infantry in their flight in most ludicrous style. Some of them never stopped running until they got across the Chickahominy. The 5th however saved the battery but failed to do much execution among the secesh. Our troops now commenced to retreat in a hurry, and but for the timely arrival of Meagher’s brigade with some other troops the grand army would have been put to flight. They however checked the enemy until night and withdrew to the west side of the Chickahominy. An assault was also made on the right of our intrenchments (sic) at sundown but it was no use knocking.

In the evening Genl Porter had a talk with Little Mac again, at the beginning of which Mac grasped Porter by the hand and asked him “Well what do you think of your ‘handful of regulars’ now.” (truth)

Send me some postage stamping. I am well.
Affect.
Charles E. Bates

Some of you may have noticed a few new additions on the blogroll to the left of my homepage. I’ve done a bit of editing lately, and there will be more to come over the holidays as a few of the listed blogs appear to have petered out. There are two new additions that have proven very interesting to me so far.

The first is publisher Ted Savas’ A Publisher’s Perspective. This is of course not a Civil War specific site, but his first view posts have been very interesting and his publishing house has brought us several great Civil War books in recent years.

The second is Wig-Wags, a blog by Rene Tyree, who is currently a graduate student and started a blog to help her keep her research organized. Although only a few posts old, her entries to date have been both interesting and well thought out.

Welcome to the blogosphere, both of you.

I’ve seen cavalry moving in “light marching order” mentioned many times in the course of my research, but not too many descriptions of what this actually entailed. I think the following excerpt by James Larson of the 4th US Cavalry does so rather well.

“Hence the order from the brigade commander was always to move in “light marching order,” which meant that no trooper should carry anything on his horse except what was actually necessary. This order the men of the 4th U.S. Cavalry always carried out more strictly than was really intended by Minty. When stripped for such a march it would be difficult to find an overcoat or extra blanket or clothing of any kind in the regiment. Each man carried only the clothing he wore and, as protection against the rain, only his poncho, which was strapped on the pommel of his saddle. Under the saddle were either two saddle blankets or a saddle blanket and a bed blanket, which served as bed for the trooper whenever time and the condition of the weather would allow him to spread a bad at all, but as no tents or anything to make shelter with was carried, the making of beds depended entirely upon the weather.

“For use in the mess for cooking, a couple of light frying pans were carried in turns by the members, and perhaps also a couple of half gallon tin cups for cooking chickens, ham or coffee, and each man had his little tin cup and knife and fork in the saddle. In the “nose bag” we carried our extra provisions, such as coffee, sugar, salt and whatever we had of bread and meat, so that we were to some extent independent of the pack-mules. We could never rely on them being on hand when wanted. Sometimes we did not see them for several days.

“That was our style in “light marching order” and the style we marched in most of the time during the war. It was very pleasant in fine dry weather, but our condition in rainy and bad weather can easily be imagined. Making the load for our horses lighter was done so as to facilitate our movements, so that we could march quickly without worrying the horses too much.” (Sergeant Larson, 4th Cav., pg 167)

In context, Larson is describing maneuvers trying to bring Confederate raiding parties under Forrest to bay after the battle of Stones River, so this order might be a bit lighter than some others.

One of the things I find interesting as an amateur historian is how history changes over time according to one’s perspective. Related to this is how events and facts are ‘spun’ over time until the original event bears little or no resemblance to its ‘history.’

I found an excellent example of this last night. I was reading through one of the initial printings of the Army Lineage Series, published by the Office of the Chief of Military History in 1969. I was reading one of the volumes on Armor-Cavalry, and naturally enough turned to the entry for the 6th Cavalry. Much to my surprise, I discovered the following quote pertaining to the unit’s history:

“At Fairfield the unit engaged two enemy brigades of cavalry, completely neutralizing them and saving the supply trains of the Army, but in the process was literally cut to pieces.” (pg 157)

I found this very interesting in an official unit history, as it is a good bit different from what I’ve read in various accounts of the engagement. The unit was engaged at Fairfield, and from all accounts it was definitely cut to pieces. There was a supply train involved, although it was a Confederate train that the unit was sent to intercept by Brigadier General Merritt and not the supply trains of the Union Army. They were only engaged with one brigade, “Grumble” Jones’ Laurel Brigade. Not that one brigade wasn’t enough, since that put the odds against the 6th at roughly 4 to 1. Given that Jones reported only 58 total casualties for the encounter, his brigade only appears to have been neutralized in that they spent much of the rest of the day rounding up the more than 200 members of the 6th US who were captured.

I don’t post this as an attempt to tarnish the reputation of the 6th Cavalry or what they were able to accomplish at Fairfield, but simply as an illustration of how perception changes and legend grows over time. To this day Fairfield is considered one of the premier engagements in the regiment’s long history. Similarly, this is not intended as a jab at the Office of the Chief of Military History, which does a lot of great work.

For those interested in more information on the battle, I highly recommend JD Petruzzi’s excellent article in the July 2007 issue of America’s civil War magazine and Paul M. Shevchuk’s article “Cut to Pieces” from February 1985 which is available from USAMHI.