No. 4.
Battles around Richmond (concluded)--report of Colonel Lane.
headquarters Twenty-Eighth regiment, North Carolina Volunteers, Near Richmond, July 12, 1862.
Brigadier-General L. O'B. Branch, Commanding Fourth Brigade, Light Division:
General — I have the honor to report that on Wednesday, the 25th of June, I left camp with my regiment, numbering four hundred and eighty, and with the balance of your brigade proceeded up the Telegraph road, crossed the Chickahominy on the morning of the 26th, and advanced towards the Meadow bridge. Two of my companies were ordered to Mrs. Crenshaw's bridge to apprise Lieutenant-Colonel Hoke, with a portion of his regiment which was doing picket duty on the south side of the Chickahominy,
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that the way was clear.
We then continued our march towards Mechanicsville.
The fight had commenced on our reaching this place, and we were ordered to support a battery which was firing from the works to the left of the road.
I had one man wounded that evening.
We slept upon the field, and were held as a support again next morning, when the artillery opened upon us and another one of my men was wounded.
As soon as it was ascertained that the enemy had abandoned his position and was in full retreat, we were ordered to follow, and on reaching Cold Harbor, the Seventh North Carolina troops and my regiment were ordered into the woods to the left of the road leading to the battlefield.
The Seventh preceded us, and when I was about to form my regiment on its left, a sharp fire, both of infantry and shells, was opened upon us, causing one of the wings of the Seventh to give way. On asking the cause of this, I was informed by some of the company officers of the Seventh, whose names I do not know, that Colonel Campbell had ordered them to fall back, and as there was a large pond of water in my rear, I led my regiment out of the woods by the left flank, when I met you and was ordered back.
I then marched up the road and wheeled my entire regiment into the same piece af woods.
Colonel Lee followed with his regiment, which he intended posting on my right, but the enemy opened upon him just as he was about to turn the angle of the road, and his right was thrown into confusion.
This caused Companies D, A and I, of the right wing, and Company H, to the left of the colors, in my regiment, to give way. Company D promptly reformed and came into line; the other three companies, I am told, reformed and attached themselves for the remainder of the day to other regiments.
They were not with me. Colonel Campbell's regiment, seven of my companies, Lieutenant Webb, of Company H, and a few rank and file from the three missing companies, engaged the enemy in the woods, and were exposed to a hot fire, when fresh troops came up and relieved us temporarily.
Major James Barbour, General Ewell's Assistant Adjutant General, approached me soon afterwards and requested me to take my command to the support of a portion of his forces, which had advanced into the open field in front of the woods.
My command advanced most gallantly through the woods and into the open field, although exposed to a front and right enfilade infantry fire, and bravely remained there until General George B. Anderson's
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brigade debouched from the woods to our left and charged across the field.
I ordered my men to cease firing when the brigade was nearly in front of us, and, forming on its right, assisted them in clearing the field of the enemy.
At the “advice” of General Anderson, my men being now very much fatigued, I remained with a portion of his brigade in a somewhat sheltered position until nightfall, when I rejoined you. Our loss in this engagement was thirteen killed and seventy-eight wounded.
Sunday evening we recrossed the Chickahominy, and on Monday evening (the 30th) were among the first to engage the enemy.
The whole brigade advanced, driving the foe before us, notwithstanding the character of the ground.
My regiment, in its advance, had to pass through two skirts of wood, containing swampy ground, and an intermediate open field, in which there was a dwelling, surrounded by a yard and garden, all of which, I am told, had been converted into a temporary breastwork by the enemy.
All of my men behaved well in this action, notwithstanding they were exposed to a murderous fire of shell, grape and small arms.
I did not remain with my regiment until the close of the fight, as a flesh wound in the right cheek forced me to leave the field.
Our loss was six killed and fifty wounded.
We were not actively engaged in the Tuesday's fight, though we were ordered out late in the evening and were exposed to a terrific shelling, first in the open field in front of the enemy's guns, and then to the left, in a small piece of woods.
Fortunately we had only one man wounded and none killed.
With only one field officer, three captains, but few lieutenants, and our ranks greatly reduced by sickness, caused by the hardships we had to undergo in our retreat from Hanover Courthouse, we had to contend with the enemy in the recent terrible engagements before Richmond under many disadvantages; but our loss--one hundred and fifty killed and wounded out of an effective force of four hundred eighty, including the ambulance corps, about one-third--will show how nobly the Twenty-eighth behaved in this great struggle for independence.
I would respecfully call your attention to Captain T. James Linebarger, of Company C, and Captain D. A. Parker, of Company D; First Lieutenant N. Clark, of Company E; First Lieutnant E. G. Morrow, of Company G; First Lieutenant W. W. Cloninger, of Company B, and Second Lieutenant Robert D. Rhyne, of Company
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B. All of these officers behaved with great gallantry and bravery.
Sergeant-Major Milton A. Lowe, on the battlefields of the 27th and 30th, more than once proved himself a brave and fearless young defender of Southern rights, and has won the admiration of all who saw him.
Color-Bearer J. P. Little, of Company C, was wounded on the 27th, but was at his post again in a short time.
Respectfully, Brigadier-General L. O'B. Branch, Commanding Fourth Brigade, Light Division:
James H. Lane, Colonel Commanding Twenty-eighth N. C. V.
P. S.--Our entire loss in all the battles before Richmond was subsequently ascertained to be one hundred and seventy-seven (177).
It is due to Company H that I should state that I never had cause to complain of it after the Cold Harbor fight.
In all the battles from that time to the close of the war, it behaved most gallantlly, and always in a manner to reflect credit both upon itself and the brigade to which it belonged.