The Annals of the Civil War Written by Leading Participants North and South
Alexander Kelly McClure, Ed.

[294] sight which was to carry the detachment to New York, General Brown ordered me, without delay, to get all the troops at Forts Hamilton, Lafayette, Richmond, and at Sandy Hook, in readiness to move at a moment's notice, while he proceeded to the city to provide transportation for them. This first detail of troops sent to New York consisted of one platoon of Company H, Twelfth United States Infantry, from Fort Richmond, and Lieutenant Wood, Ninth United States Infantry, with his company (fifty-four strong), from Fort Lafayette--the whole under the command of Captain Walter S. Franklin. These troops were ordered by General Brown, upon landing, to report to Colonel Nugent at the corner of Broadway and Leonard street; and as that officer was found to be at the Seventh avenue arsenal, they were dispatched without delay to that point. Captain Franklin, on arriving at the arsenal, found everything already in the state of confusion that prevailed there during the whole period of the disturbances. Nobody seemed to know who was in command-militia staff officers were displaying great activity in a purposeless way; and excepting a single sentry at the front entrance, there was literally no guard established over the building. A detachment of marines arriving from the Brooklyn Navy Yard, Captain Franklin used them to clear away the noisy crowd that had congregated in the avenue and established a line of sentries along the four streets by which that post was approached.

In the meanwhile, after ordering the remainder of the regular troops in the harbor to be in readiness, and making provision to replace them with volunteers, I occupied myself at Fort Hamilton in an effort to improvise for the occasion a section of light artillery, which I knew would be valuable in street fighting. The two batteries, on their departure a few days previous, had carried with them every trained horse and driver, and all the equipments at the post. There remained, however, two guns, brass six-pounders, which had belonged to Bragg's celebrated battery in the Mexican war, and which, having been condemned, had for several years past performed ornamental service on Governor's Island, and, more lately, had been utilized for drill instruction by the batteries of the Fifth Artillery. A couple of hours' effort enabled me to rig together a harness for the post quartermaster's horses, a wheel and a lead team to each piece. The quartermaster's teamsters supplied the drivers, and a sufficient number of volunteers were detailed to serve as cannoneers. This motley battery was completed by my assigning the drum major of the Fifth Artillery as chief of one of the pieces, and the commissary sergeant as the chief of the other, and placing a volunteer officer of