Waitt, Ernest Linden, History of the Nineteenth regiment, Massachusetts volunteer infantry , 1861-1865

‘No sir,’ said Mace, ‘the bullet is not made for us yet.’

Almost immediately a body of men suddenly appeared in the woods and fired upon the Nineteenth. Poor Mace was shot through the heart; Colonel Hinks received a bullet through the upper portion of the right thigh and also a severe contusion of the left ankle. Major Howe, who was standing by the side of Colonel Hinks, fell mortally wounded. As Major Howe fell, realizing that his wound was mortal, he said to the soldier who caught him: ‘Tell mother I died a brave man.’

Corporal Peter O'Rourke, of Company E, who was carrying the state flag, fell wounded and called to Corporal Henry K. Martin of his company to ‘Come and take the colors.’

One of the incidents of this engagement was the action of Private Robert W. Putnam,¹ of Company F. He was in the front line and was badly wounded in the left side and shoulder. With the assistance of comrades, he was seated upon a stump, from which he waved the others forward, his cap swinging from the tip of his bayonet. Putnam was taken by the enemy, and, after a march of seven miles, was placed in Libby Prison, where he died on July 13th, 1862, and was buried in an unknown grave.

In his report of the operations of the Nineteenth regiment at Glendale on this day, June 30, Capt. Edmund Rice, then the ranking officer said:

We marched toward the field of action, coming upon it on the double-quick and under fire, the action at its height as we came into position. We were soon ordered forward into the woods, cautioned that a line of our men were in front of us, and we were not to fire. We had advanced about fifty yards, when a heavy volley was fired into our line, supposed by us to be fired by our first line and seeming, through it, to take effect on us. We advanced still farther, under a continuous fire; when suddenly two regiments of the enemy rose from the ground