previous next

[139]

No. 13.-report of Lieut. Abram H. Ryan, Seventeenth Illinois Infantry, Acting Assistant Adjutamt-General, Third Brigade.

headquarters Third Brigade, First Division Camp near Pittsburg, Tenn., April 14, 1862.
The following is a report of the Third Brigade, First Division, Col. L. F. Ross, Seventeenth Regiment Illinois Infantry, commanding, for the 6th and 7th days of April, 1862:

On the morning of the 6th instant I was sent for by Colonel Rearden, Twenty-ninth Regiment Illinois Volunteer Infantry, commanding brigade. Upon reporting to him he stated that owing to ill-health he was unable to command the brigade. While conversing with him heavy firing was heard in the front and on our left. Colonel Rearden ordered me to report to Colonel Raith, Forty-third Regiment Illinois Volunteer Infantry (next senior officer of the brigade), his condition, and request him to assume command, and then to report to Major-General McClernand the condition of the brigade. These orders were complied with.

On rejoining the brigade it was advanced to the encampment of General Sherman's division. When all was ready for action I rode to the front, near Taylor's battery, and found nothing intervening between us and the enemy except a line of skirmishers and Taylor's battery. While reconnoitering my horse received a ball through the neck, forcing me back to the main line. I reported to Captain Barrett, commanding battery, that his support had left him and, pointing out the position of the brigade, told him to call upon it II hard pressed.

Returning to the brigade I reported to Colonel Raith the condition of affairs, who directed me to find the position of the Second Brigade, which I found on our left and rear, commanded by Colonel Marsh, of the Twentieth Regiment Illinois Volunteer Infantry, and with it Major-General McClernand, supervising its movements. On reporting to him he ordered the Third Brigade to fall back and form on the right of the Second. Returning to the brigade, and not finding Colonel Raith, I gave the necessary orders for the movement. The right of the brigade retained its position, the left falling back in good order, though fighting the enemy step by step. They understood what the movement was for, and executed it accordingly.

Upon reaching the ground that the Second Brigade had occupied we discovered that it had changed its position. We, however, retained the position, hotly pressed by the enemy, till in danger of being flanked on the left, Colonel Raith being engaged in another portion of the field. Seeing no support, 1 gave the necessary orders and fell back, fighting the enemy step by step, and formed on a line with some troops in our rear. Major Schwartz here requested that a portion of the brigade be detached to support his battery. The Seventeenth Illinois Regiment was detailed for that purpose, and remained until the battery limbered up and changed position. A few minutes afterward Colonel Raith fell mortally wounded. He was immediately carried to the rear by four of his own men. I accompanied hIt a short distance to receive orders, &c. When I returned the Twenty-ninth and Forty-ninth Regiments had fallen to the rear, having expended their ammunition. The remainder of the brigade continued the fight until their ammunition gave out likewise, when they were ordered to the rear for a new supply. On gaining the encampment of the First Brigade, First Division, Lieutenant of Taylor's battery, requested a detail of men to assist in working the [140] battery, many of his own men having fallen. I immediately detailed 20 men from the Seventeenth Illinois Regiment and reported them to Captain Barrett, commanding battery. Searching through the encampment of the Eighth Illinois Regiment, I found ammunition and carried it to the brigade, but it proved to be of a wrong caliber. Learning that it could be used by the Eleventh Regiment Illinois Volunteer Infantry, I turned it over to Colonel Ransom, commanding.

After waiting a while, and no ammunition coming up, I fell back to meet the train. As I could do no further good remaining with the train, I rode forward to hurry up ammunition. Meeting with Lieut. C. C. Williams, brigade quartermaster, he gallantly volunteered to bring forward a train, designating a field where to meet the regiments. When I returned I found that the regiments had been separated. Halting the advance, I eventually succeeded in getting the Seventeenth, Forty-third, and Forty-ninth Regiments into line, when Quartermaster Williams returned with an ammunition train, under the direction of Lieutenant Jones, ordnance officer, First Division, who, supplying the men with whatever was necessary, gallantly moved with his train to the front. After getting everything in readiness for action I reported to Lieutenant-Colonel Wood, Seventeenth Illinois Regiment, who commanded the brigade the remainder of the day. For its operations during that time I would refer you to Lieutenant-Colonel Wood and to the report of Colonel Marsh, who commanded the brigade on the 7th instant.

I cannot close this report, general, without referring to some of the officers and men of this brigade. To Colonel Raith, of the Forty-third Illinois Regiment, who fell early in the action, while gallantly and bravely discharging the duties of brigade commander, and in his loss know that our cause has lost one of its best and bravest defenders; but while deploring his loss we cannot but admire the heroism and patriotism always exhibited by him, even to the shedding of his last drop of blood upon the altar of his adopted country for the preservation of its dearly-loved Constitution and laws. To Lieutenant-Colonel Pease, Fortyninth Illinois Regiment, who commanded his regiment during the entire contest with great coolness and discretion. To Capt. Josiah Moore, Company F, Seventeenth Illinois Regiment, who distinguished himself by daring bravery on the battle-field, as did also, with but few exceptions, the whole command. To Brigade Surg. L. D. Kellogg, who merits the thanks of all for his untiring endeavors to alleviate the sufferings of the wounded, remaining in the hospital when all other surgeons fled, seeking no rest till exhausted nature claimed her own. To Secretaries Radford and Bassett, who preserved all books and papers belonging to the various departments of the brigade.

The brigade went into action with an aggregate of about 1,650 men; reported loss, killed, wounded, and missing, 834 men.1 For full particulars see reports of regimental commanders.

Yours, respectfully,

A. H. Ryan, Acting Assistant Adjutant-General. Maj. Gen. John A. Mcclernand.,

1 But see revised statement, p. 100, and division return, p. 123.

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 United States License.

An XML version of this text is available for download, with the additional restriction that you offer Perseus any modifications you make. Perseus provides credit for all accepted changes, storing new additions in a versioning system.

hide Places (automatically extracted)

View a map of the most frequently mentioned places in this document.

hide Display Preferences
Greek Display:
Arabic Display:
View by Default:
Browse Bar: