Chapter 48 - The Gettysburg Campaign

CHAPTER XLVIII

THE GETTYSBURG CAMPAIGN

Our Regiment performed the part of Reserves during the second day’s engagement, giving us ample opportunity to watch the events as they transpired upon that day.

The enemy remained inactive, making no demonstrations until about one o’clock when they opened the battle by attacking General Sickle’s troops, on the right of Cemetery Hill, where was fought one of the most stubbornly contested engagements of the battle, which resulted in driving back the union lines.  General Sickle being severely wounded, making the amputation of a leg necessary.

After which the Rebels attacked the line in our immediate front, but after a spirited resistance, and gallant charge led by General Crawford in command of the Pennsylvania Reserves, the enemy was driven back discomfited.

Failing in this part of the line, they struck our line further to the right, just about dark, and the fight was contin­ued until after dark, during which the Rebels gained a slight advantage, driving part of our line back out of the breastworks, and taking possession of the same.

At this critical moment our regiment was ordered to go to the assistance of the hard pressed line.  We moved diagonally from the left center to the extreme right of our line, through the woods.  As soon as the rebels noticed our movement they opened fire upon us with several Batteries of Artillery, and the shells were sent crashing through the timber of the trees, above us, and all around us, filling our hearts with fear and consternation.  Fortunately the Rebels did nothing more, than to scare us, as their aim was not true.

This was a dark hour for the members of our company.  We all believed that it was Chancellorsville repeated again.  We moved out into the pike, moved down it a distance of about a mile and filed left into a field, and moved on forward towards our old line.  It was rumored that we were to make a flank movement, and never did troops march more willingly upon an errand of conquest than did the gallant old 147^th Regiment and the other Regiments of our Brigade.

After marching about one mile, we were halted and ordered to prime.  This meant business.  We were formed in a line of battle, Colonel Pardee passed along our line and ordered us to stand firm, that the 137^th Regiment N. Y. Vols., of the third Brigade of our Division was trying to retake the works from which they had been driven, and that we were to support them, and that we must hold our position at all hazards.

Soon we heard the gallant New Yorkers advancing.  A Cheer and a volley broke upon our ears at the same time, and our men had regained their works, which they had lost a few hours before.

We were marched up to a stone fence, where we were ordered to rest.  It was here that W.S. Keller went to sleep and dream­ing that he was engaged in a hand-to-hand encounter with the enemy, he struck Capt. Nelson Byers, a severe blow in the face which soon brought the Captain to his feet, he having been asleep too, imagined that he had been struck by a rebel shell.  We remained behind the stone fence until about half-past three o’clock a.m., when we were wakened up, and about faced marched several hundred yards further to the south and front, and on the top of a bluff, we were ordered to put up a line of rail breast-works.  This we soon accomplished, and we congratulated our­selves on our good fortune, when Major Moses Veal of Gen. Geary’s staff came riding up, and ordered us to leave our rail-works and move down over the bluff.

The Col. moved us forward, and we soon moved, over the works and down the bluff, which was a position on Culp’s Hill, on the extreme right of our line.

We found our new position to be a good one, a large number of trees and rocks offered many of us excellent shelter.  But scarcely had we fixed ourselves than General Geary sent an orderly to our Col. ordering him to advance his regiment across the open field immediately in front of our position.  The Colonel, who had by the way been using his eyes, had discovered that the woods in the rear of the open fields in our front con­tained large numbers of Rebels, who were preparing to attack us, thought it prudent to disregard his superior officer, and instead of ordering us to charge across the field called “Attention,” this got us on our feet, his next command was “by the left flank,” forward march,” “Halt.” This took us about twenty feet further North, and on the same line.

Shortly afterwards General Geary sent Capt. Elliot to order Col. Pardee to move his Regiment across the field and deploy it in the woods which skirted the field.  Col. Pardee had not changed his mind, and called “Attention” “By the Right flank, March,” “Halt, lie down.”  This brought us to the same position we occupied before our first move.

In a very short time General Geary came down to us in person, addressing Col. Pardee in an excited manner, he said:

“Col. Pardee, why in the H__l do you not obey instructions?”  The Colonel drew his sword and saluting the General replied:

“General Geary, my men can go where any other Regiment can, but if you will use your field glass you will soon see why I refused to obey your orders.”

General Geary drew up his field glass and dropping it suddenly, turning to Col. Pardee:

“Colonel, remain where you are,” and instantly made tracks up the hill in the rear.

At about half-past 4 o’clock a. m., or less than fifteen minutes after Gen. Geary left us, a Division of Rebels came out of the woods with their arms at a “right-shoulder shift,” making the finest military pageant we ever beheld.  They had formed in the woods came forward in line of battle with colors flying and moving in splendid style.  They advanced bravely and upon discovering our rail works, they fired a volley into them and then advanced upon them in fine style and with that peculiar yell which characterized the Southern troops.

Our Colonel stood behind the colors, commanding the men to ‘keep steady,’ ‘Don’t fire until you hear the command, steady, men.’  On they came until we could see the buttons on their coats, and not a shot had been fired.  At last the moment came.  The Colonel commanded “147^th attention!”—Suddenly there rose a line of Blue coats between the advancing column and the rails taking the rebels completely by surprise. The Colonel gave the command “Fire!”  Instantly five hundred rifles belched forth death and destruction into the ranks of the enemy.  Never did any similar number of men do more effective work, the enemy were not over fifty yards from our line, and the dead and wounded fell like ten pins.  On they came, another volley was sent into them and now they began to waver.  Their officers seeing their critical situation drew their swords, and rushing to the front gallantly rallied the broken and wavering lines and again led them on towards our position, but the men of the noble old 147^th stood as firm as the rocks by they which they were surrounded and pouring another volley into the line of gray, it broke and fell back.

 At this moment the 5^th and 7^th Ohio regiments, crowing like roosters, indicative of the fact that they were in their own barn-yards, charged upon the retreating line, the gallant old 28^th  Pennsylvania Regiment poured a galling right oblique fire into the broken and dismayed ranks of the enemy.  At the same time a battery placed on the Baltimore turnpike having range on the enemy, opened fire upon the woods in which the enemy was reforming.

Owing to the formation of the ground, and the fact that the enemy had fired into the breast-works, our casualties had been very light.  Among the killed up to that time were Serg’t Howeiter, a very worthy young man who had been a student at the Missionary Institute, also Lt. Tourison and Corp. Henry Nice of E Company.

But soon the minnie balls began to whistle around us quite lively.  The rebels had thrown forward a heavy skirmish line and were massing the old “Stonewall” Brigade under the immediate command of the brave and intrepid General Ewell, determined to break our line, which was the extreme right flank of our Army, and the key to Wolf’s hill.

We knew what was coming and prepared for it.  Serg’t Schroyer filled his coffee kettle with cartridges so as to be able to get at them much easier.  Lieutenant Byers picked up a gun so as to be able to assist in repelling the anticipated advance.  George Noacker had taken up a position in advance of the line, whilst on the left of our line C. E. Parks and Jeremiah Moyer occupied a position almost as advanced.

There was a lull in the firing and the excitement having died off, we were disposed to enjoy that dreamy state so familiar to all who have passed thro’ an engagement, and were fast passing to the land of Nod, when suddenly we were aroused by the cries of “there they come!”  Casting our eyes toward the woods, we beheld the enemy advancing to renew the attack.  With­out waiting for the word of command we opened fire upon the compact line, and the result was they were again driven back.

In this melee Corporal Harris Bower of our company received a dangerous wound whilst C. E. Parks had the tip of one of his index finger shot off and the writer had his scalp laid open by a minnie.  When Parks was wounded Jerry Moyer said:

“Cal you wounded,” to which piece of information Cal replied:

“Tell me something I don’t know,” and started back nursing his finger very tenderly. Among the narrow escapes, we would mention James P. Ulrich who had the stock of his gun all shot away between the second and third band, whilst in the act of drawing a bead on a rebel who was in advance of their line.

An incident occurred after the last charge that was witnessed by all the members of our company.  A rebel who had been wounded and was lying as he had fallen, behind a little knoll, about fifty yards from our line.  We could plainly see him raise his arms in loading his rifle, and thinking that he intended to fire upon us, several of the boys fired at him, but owing to his protected position they could not hit him.  We kept watching him to see what he would do, when suddenly we heard the report of his rifle and simultaneously therewith, the rebel stretched himself out dead.  After the battle was over, we visited the spot where he laid and found that he had placed the muzzle of his gun in his mouth and had blowed the top of his head off.  We supposed that he had been a deserted and did not wish to fall into our hands.

To the left of us the contest raged fiercely, the rebels driving our men back and in turn being driven back by our brave Union boys.  We had an excellent opportunity of witnessing the contest and which finally terminated in the success of the blue­-coats who drove the broken lines of the enemy back in dismay and confusion.

Never will we forget the victorious cheer which first started on Wolfe’s hill, announcing the repulse of the desperate and determined assault of our line, made by the flower of Lee’s Army, and which gathered strength as it traveled, until it reached us it had increased in volume until it sounded like the roar of a mighty hurricane, sending dismay to the hearts of the enemy and cheering the hearts of the brave defenders of the Union.

After 10 O’clock, a. m., the rebels made no more attempts in our front, and everything was as quiet as though both armies had thrown down their arms and wrapping themselves in their blankets were peacefully slumbering.  The dread and suspense that we felt made this ominous silence still more oppressive.

Between 12 and 1, the silence was disturbed by this discharge of a piece of artillery from the center, this was answered by shots from the right and left, after which was opened one of the most terrific artillery engagements of this late war.  Fully three hundred guns belched forth death and destruction from their brazen throats.  The very hills upon which they were planted trembled from the effects of the con­cussion, the air was filled with the screeching missiles, which burst through space with lightning rapidity, deafening the ears of those who were lying beneath them, vainly endeavoring to find shelter and protection from the terrible effects of the murder­ous explosives and not infrequently above all this horrid din and confusion could be heard the groans and shrieks of the un­fortunate ones.  During the very hottest part of the cannon­ading a dog came running into where our company was lying and creeping in under an overhanging rock, he remained there until after the artillery duel was over.

J. C. Long made a providential escape by following the pre­monition of the danger which he felt.  His head was resting on a flat stone, the shells were passing over us and around us, when Long said to a comrade, I “don’t feel safe, I am going to change my posish.”

He did so, and but a little while thereafter a shell struck the stone and knocked it into smithereens and would have killed him had he not previously moved his position.