|
|
The Slagg Family of Wisconsin During the Civil War
By Jon S. Berndt
THE relative peace the new Americans found on the Wisconsin prairie was broken by the emergence of the national turmoil which became the Civil War, or the War of Northern Aggression, as it was often called in the South. After the war was over, it is estimated that over 620,000 of the nations men had been killed on the battlefield or died of disease. Of the two million Union soldiers serving Lincoln's army, roughly 250,000 succombed to disease, while 110,000 lost their lives in brutal conflicts. The Slagg family was deeply affected by the war, both the men who served in blue uniforms, and the families they left at home.
It is our wonderful fortune that Margaret Slagg, Henry's youngest daughter, saved the letters written to her by her brothers serving in the Union army, as did Arnold and Joseph's other siblings. Records obtained from the National Archives, entries in the War of the Rebellion Records, and information from other sources all combine to paint a vivid and captivating picture of those trying years. In the pages that follow is a journal of life in the Slagg family during that period.
In the summer of 1862 it became ever more obvious to President
Lincoln that the war was going to go on longer than anyone had
imagined. It became necessary to increase the size of his army to
deal with the unexpected rebel tenacity. A call was issued for
300,000 men to fight for the Union, and on August 15th, Alexander
Slagg, brother Joseph, and cousin Edward "Ezra" Slagg
signed up in Madison, Wisconsin for a three year tour of duty.
Brother Arnold Slagg, recently married to Hannah Barton in 1860,
also enlisted to complete the enrollment of a company being
formed in Fulton, but which was short of its quota. He walked to
Janesville to join the company, but found it had become complete
and then had to walk home - a distance of roughly 10 miles. Being
patriotic to his land of adoption, he enlisted a second time, but
was rejected because of poor health. Cousin Thomas Slagg, son of
Joseph and Elizabeth (Clark) Slagg, had enlisted in April of 1861
in Company K of the Third Wisconsin Volunteers. On August 30,
1862, Alex, Joseph, Ezra, and the seven
companies of the 23rd Wisconsin
Volunteers were mustered at Camp Randall in Madison, were
paid their $25.00 bounty, and awaited their orders. 
During the time they were awaiting their orders, they became quite proficient at drill and camp duties, the organization being perfected under Colonel Joshua J. Guppey of Portage City. The regiment was attached to the 2nd Brigade, 2nd Division, Army of Kentucky, Dept. of the Ohio, which on September 15th, 1862 left Wisconsin bound for Cincinatti, Ohio, then threatened by the rebel forces under Kirby Smith. They arrived on September 17th, marched through the city, and crossed a pontoon bridge built over the Ohio River. They were then assigned a position in General Green Clay Smith's division, on the extreme left, near Newport, Ky. They performed duty there at Camp Bates until October 8th.
The regiment was reassigned to the 1st Brigade, 1st Division, Army of Kentucky, the Brigade being under the command of Brig. General Stephen G. Burbridge, and on October 8th they departed for Paris, Kentucky. On the 11th they went into camp near Falmouth after marching 40 miles. After a stay of six days they marched to Cynthiana on the 17th. On the 20th they arrived at Paris. During this time it was quite cold in Kentucky, as Alex described it in his letter from Lexington. There were even a few inches of snow on the 26th. During their marches Alex had been put in the rear guard to pick up stragglers. Leaving on the 28th they then marched to Lexington and camped nearby for two days.
The organization of their division for this period was directed as follows:
Under special order No. 173, the organization and posting of the Army of Kentucky as of 23 October, 1862 is as follows:
[Note regarding letters from the field: The letters written by the Slagg ancestors are transcribed as is with no censorship, and no editing, grammar, or spelling corrections. Sometimes various punctuation marks seem to be missing. This may result from the ink having faded from the original copy of a letter, and/or the marks not transferring to the copy they were transcribed from. In any case, no punctuation marks were added where none were seen. Alexander seemed to capitalize words at the beginning of each written line, sometimes repeating the last word of the preceding line. Notice how he improved with each passing letter. Joseph had a similar habit of capitalization. Both men's handwriting displayed an unmistakable style and flair.]
On the 30th the troops set their sights on Nicholasville, the terminus of the Kentucky Central Railroad, arriving there on the 31st. While at Nicholasville, the regiment received high praise from their commanding general regarding their proficiency in drill. On the 11th of November the regiment struck their tents under orders to report to Louisville and arrived on the 15th, marching in very hot weather. They remained in camp at Louisville until the 19th, on which date they boarded troop barges, descending the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers until they landed at Memphis on the 27th. They at once took position in the army destined for the reduction of Vicksburg.
In December of 1862 the regiment participated in Sherman's Yazoo Expedition ( 20 December - 3 January), the Expedition from Milliken's Bend, La. to the Louisiana and Shreveport Railroad (December 25-6), Chickasaw Bayou (December 26-8), and Chickasaw Bluff (December 29).
Back at home, life was proceeding as normally as could be expected; farming and tending to the horses, ailments, church goings-on, and discussions of relocating to various places were all topics for discussion. Sadly though, sometime during 1862, Joseph and Alex's mother Elizabeth died at age 54. She and Henry were married for about 32 years.
Sister Margaret (known as Aunt Maggie to her brother's and sister's offspring) was at the time engaged to a very good man, but felt that her father and brothers needed her and so she broke the engagement. She went on to help raise her nieces and nephews.
In 1862 the Homestead Act was enacted, opening up Native American lands in Nebraska and Kansas - and deeding 160 acres - to anyone willing to inhabit it for five years and make certain improvements upon the land. Nebraska, along with Kansas, had in 1854 decided to allow a vote amongst its residents on whether or not the states would be free states or slave states. They both eventually entered the Union as free states. Henry mentions in a December letter late in 1862 that his brother Joe was thinking about moving to Nebraska, no doubt in response to the Homestead Act.
Various minor squabbles with the Native American population continued to make news, and occassionally a more substantial encounter took place. On August 18th as many as 400 whites were massacred during raids by Santee Sioux on trading posts and settlements in south central Minnesota along the Minnesota River. Twenty-three volunteers from a detachment out of Fort Ridgely were among those killed. During the next two days, Chief Little Crow led assaults on Fort Ridgely itself. Three howitzers effectively cut down the attacking warriors, however, and after losing as many as 100 men, Little Crow called off the attack.
On August 23rd another group of Sioux attacked the village of New Ulm. After a day of bitter fighting with heavy casualties on both sides, the insurgents withdrew. News of events such as this must have weighed heavily on the minds of the Slagg family. With father Henry Slagg by his own admissions physically not well, two of the Slagg brothers at war, mother Elizabeth dead, and the remaining male family members tending to farming and to the very task of survival during the coming winter, Margaret Slagg, at age 20, must have been in a lonely position. In letters written by her brothers serving the Union army, they often tried to cheer Margaret and put aside her fears about who would take care of her, especially after her breakup with her fiance.
Meanwhile, the 23rd regiment was seeing some of it's first real action. On the 21st of December the regiment boarded troop transports and sailed down river, disembarking on the 24th at Milliken's Bend, Louisiana , 25 miles above Vicksburg. The next day the troops marched 25 miles into the interior, destroying several bridges on the Shreveport railroad, tearing up a large portion of the track, burning a large quantity of cotton, and returned without loss to the steamers on the 26th. Sherman's pause to destroy these railroad bridges gave the Confederate army time to gather reinforcements from the Jackson area to defend the bluffs along the Yazoo where Union troops were - correctly - expected to attack from. Unbeknownst to the North, a private telegraph wire had been strung by a planter just north of Vicksburg before hostilities broke out. At about midnight on Christmas Eve at the Vicksburg end of the wire a CSA telegraph operator named Philip Hall received an agitated message from an operator at Lake Providence, 42 miles to the north: "Great God, Phil, eighty-one gunboats have passed here tonight!" The Union's hope for secrecy was thus dashed as they steamed from Memphis to Milliken's Bend.
Major-General W. T. Sherman's Special Order No. 34, commanded actions up the Yazoo River in which the 23rd Wisconsin Volunteers participated.
On the 27th they proceeded down the Mississippi to the Yazoo River, then sailed about ten miles up the Yazoo. At about 8:00 that evening they marched eight miles upriver taking position in the line of battle about three miles from the enemy's fortifications on the northeast of Vicksburg. On the 28th the regiment moved within a mile of the enemy and stayed there until the 1st of January. Although exposed to intense enemy fire the whole time the regiment suffered no casualties. Eventually, the Union army was forced to withdraw due to fog, driving rain, and well-entrenched CSA forces. Due to Sherman's poor performance at Chickasaw Bluffs, Grant ordered McClernand to take command of the troops, and on 4 January Sherman handed over control of the troops without protest. He did, however, recommend an assault on Fort Hindman (Arkansas Post), some 120 miles to the Northwest of Vicksburg, which McClernand readily agreed with. [Fort Hindman was on the first high land on the Arkansas river after leaving the Mississippi. The French had a trading post located there, and a small settlement, possibly as early as 1685. The CSA forces strongly fortified it, calling the main structure Fort Hindman, after the Arkansas general. It was a square structure, bastioned and casemated, with a ditch twenty feet wide and eight feet deep. Fort Hindman was armed with twelve guns.]
On New Years Day, 1863, Union forces withdrew from Chickasaw Bluffs, leaving the campfires burning, and returned to the transports. The next morning they returned to Milliken's Bend, and after staying a short while, began the trek towards Arkansas River, under the immediate command of Admiral David D. Porter, in a flotilla of armed and unarmed gunboats: the U.S.S. Baron de Kalb, Louisville, Signal, Lexington, Rattler, Black Hawk (the command ship), and the Monarch among the boats participating.
I visited Arkansas Post in the mid-1990's. It was late in
the afternoon on that November day when we got there. The misty
spirit of the Arkansas River veiled the sky from view and muted
the more distant trees, making the whole panorama appear as
watercolor painting.
I found out that the
river had devoured the old fort long ago, but we were able to
trace the footsteps of the soldiers. As it was deer season at the
time, the rather eery sound of gunshot in the distance reminded
us of what had happened here, the sharp reports echoing through
the trees. Occasionally we'd see a few deer running for cover.
Though it seemed dead quiet at first (when the hunters were not
firing), if we stood still we could partly sense, partly feel,
partly hear the untold tons of water meandering along its course,
as well as the rustling of the leaves in the surrounding forest.
It seemed as if the nearly subliminal noise came from the heavy
air blanketing the region, at one time both enveloping us and
still giving the impression of great space.
They headed for Montgomery Point, opposite the mouth of the White River. On the 9th the forces proceeded up the White River 15 miles and passed through a canal into the Arkansas River. They reached Notrib's farm, three miles below Fort Hindman, at four o'clock in the afternoon, and preparations for a landing were made. [McClernand's forces outnumbered CSA troops 30,000 to 5,000. General T.J. Churchill, commanding the Fort Hindman garrison, had received orders from Little Rock to "hold on until help should arrive or all were dead".] During the evening of January 10th Union troops arrived and disembarked, subsequently being exposed to enemy fire. The gunboats Lousiville, de Kalb, and Cincinnati moved on the fort slowly, the shelling driving the soldiers back into the fort from their riflepits. That evening the fort was silent, giving the impression of being overwhelmed. But General Sherman, surveying the fort that evening, could hear the rebels at work inside preparing to make another stand when morning came. As he crouched behind a stump in the early morning hours, Sherman (and one might assume Joseph, Alexander, and Ezra Slagg as well) heard a rebel bugler sound what he later called "as pretty a reveille as I ever listened to". At noon on the 11th the land forces were ready for the assault. The gunboats opened fire at one o'clock and soon afterwards some brigades under McClernand were thrown into the assault on the fort, advancing quickly to within 300 yards of the work, and taking protection in the woods and ravines surrounding it. While moving forward to their assigned positions, the 23rd regiment was exposed to unexpected strafing fire from the enemy's riflepits, at which time a change of front was ordered. Companies B, G, and K were thrown out as skirmishers, and several blockhouses were captured; the rebels were driven back into their fort. At three o'clock the fort's guns had been silenced, and with Sherman's right strengthened by regiments including the 23rd Wisconsin, McClernand ordered an assault which was carried out under intense fire. After two hours of fighting, at about 5 P.M., the rebels raised the white flag seeing the charge that had just begun. Sherman ordered a cease fire, and rode forward to receive the surrender. However, the fort's commander, Colonel John Dunnington, insisted on surrendering to Admiral Porter (the Colonel had at one time been a U.S. naval officer). Brigadier General Churchill did not want to surrender at all. Remembering the order he had received earlier, Churchill argued with his subordinates wanting to know by whose authority the white flag had been raised. Sherman approached the group at this time, and encountered one of the Confederate brigade commanders, the fiery Colonel James Deshler of Alabama, who was a former West Point graduate, now in his late twenties. Sherman, wishing to soften the blow of defeat, remarked to Colonel Deshler that he knew a family of Deshlers in his own state and wondered if they were any relation. The Colonel hotly denied any relation at all to anyone north of the Ohio river. Sherman then commenced to give the Colonel "a piece of my mind that he did not relish". The Brigadier General commanding Fort Hindman, Thomas J. Churchill, eventually surrendered unconditionally the entire Confederate garrison, along with 17 cannon, 46,000 rounds of small arms ammunition, several stands of colors, and Confederate reenforcements which marched in during the surrender negotiations. This action was the occasion of congratulatory orders from the Union commanding officers to their troops. The 23rd regiment suffered 38 casualties (4 killed and 34 wounded). They were incredibly lucky, as Brigadier General Stephen Burbridge's brigade, of which the 23rd regiment was one of four comprising it, lost 349 men. Casualties had been high amongst Burbridge's brigade because they led the assault and capture on Fort Hindman. The Federals suffered a total of 1,061 casualties.
Following this "victory", U.S. Grant was still haunted by reservations about McClernand. He thought the expedition to Fort Hindman was a "wild goose chase". It was known to him that General McClernand was disliked by his men, mistrusted by fellow officers, and his motives were thought to be rooted in politics. With the Vicksburg campaign coming together rapidly, Grant was faced with the unsettling reality that the field command would fall upon McClernand's shoulders, as he could find no cause to remove the General from command. Nothing was left for Grant to consider except to assume the command of the troops himself. He set his sights on Young's Point, La.
J. J. Guppey's report to Brig. General Burbridge on the 23rd Wisconsin's actions.
On the 15th of January the Guppey Guards, as the 23rd regiment Company D had come to be known, again embarked upon the steamers and headed for Young's Point, Louisiana near Vicksburg, camping there on the 24th.
While stationed at Young's Point, Louisiana, the effects of malaria of the Yazoo swamps, the exposure at Arkansas Post, and the close confinement on crowded transports became fearfully visible. Extremely virulent diseases broke out amongst the troops. Of 700 men in line of battle in the Yazoo Swamp, 3/4ths were under the surgeons care. During a portion of the time, some companies were without a single officer fit for duty. Sanitary stores were consumed, and the surgeons were without a morsel to whet the appetites of the sick. After two weeks of almost superhuman efforts from a few remaining healthy commanding officers, 200 men reported for duty. It was during this time that Alexander contracted typhoid fever. It is possible that Joseph did not participate in the Cypress Bend and Greenville actions (described in the next paragraph) due to Alex' sickness, or his own. In Joseph's military records there is an entry in the Company Descriptive Book that Joseph participated in the Cypress Bend and Greenville action, but these entries are also lightly lined out.
On the 14th of February the regiment embarked for Greenville, Mississippi, where they arrived the next day. They marched eight miles in heavy rain over almost impassable roads. The enemy not being found, they returned to the transports. Proceeding up river they disembarked on the 18th at Cypress Bend, Arkansas. Early the next morning cavalry scouts reported the enemy nearby, a short distance from the river. The brigade was immediately ordered in pursuit, the 23rd, without knapsacks or blankets, taking the advance. A running fight was kept up for several miles, until the enemy found temporary shelter in a canebrake. After the regiment dislodged the enemy from the tall grass with the help of an Ohio battery, the rebels escaped across a deep bayou using a large ferryboat and a skiff, which was secured on the other side. Although the weather was cold, two of the regiment swam across the stream and retrieved the skiff, by means of which the ferryboat was secured, and the force effected a crossing. Due to the lateness of the hour they were unable to come up with the enemy, and they bivouacked without tents or blankets. The enemy decamped during the night, and the 23rd returned to the transports on the 19th without loss, having captured several prisoners and pieces of artillery. Foraging occupied the following day, and the whole force returned to Greenville on the 22nd. The next day they pursued a rebel force of cavalry and artillery about 16 miles from this place, and captured four prisoners. They re-embarked on the 25th, returning to Young's Point on the 26th.
On March 8th the regiment boarded the transports and returned to Milliken's Bend. After his prolonged illness, Alexander lost his personal battle with typhoid fever; he died in the hospital at Milliken's Bend on March 25th, 1863. Joseph was later in life said to have attributed Alex's death as much to homesickness as to disease. It might be possible that in Alex's last days Joseph was spending at least a little time with him, as he himself became ill and was in the hospital at Milliken's Bend beginning in late April.
Joseph's illness necessitated his transport back home to the post hospital in Madison on August 9th, the order being given from the commanding officer in Vicksburg. Joseph arrived at the hospital on September 17th. Cousin Ezra also came down with a disease, probably dysentery as a complication of typhoid. Ezra was granted leave and was transported to the hospital in Wisconsin on November 30th. Just ten days before Christmas, on December 15th, 1863, Joseph's leave ran out and he was transported to Cairo, Illinois at a cost of $10.03 . The 23rd regiment at that time was performing duty on Matagorda island in Texas, and would return to Louisiana on February 26th, 1864. The first action Joseph would see since Alexander's death in March of 1863 would be the battle of Sabine Cross Roads in Louisiana.
The story of the Battle of Sabine Cross Roads is best told by the commanding officer, Maj Joseph E. Green, in his report.
From a casualty report which followed, the 23rd regiment was found to have sustained 7 killed, 16 wounded, and 41 missing, all from among enlisted men.
Joseph Slagg's daughter Nette recalled a story that may have taken place at Sabine Cross Roads, possibly as they were retreating on April 8th: "Joseph was retreating at one point and felt something hit his foot. He thought he was done for. After pulling off his boot and discovering the mini ball had missed his foot, he put his boot back on and ran some more."
On the 11th of April the regiment arrived at Grand Ecore, where they were employed in guarding prisoners and to labor on fortifications. They did this until the 22nd, when they resumed their retreat. On the 23rd they participated in an action near Cloutierville in which the enemy was driven from his position on the Cane River. They encamped on the 25th on Bayou Rapids, three miles from Alexandria, having marched over 100 miles from Grand Ecore through very difficult terrain. They took part in a skirmish on the 29th there, and then changed position to Middle Bayou on the 7th of May. From here the retreat was continued on May 13th; marching, with little rest, the regiment arrived at Simmsport on the Atchafalaya River on the 17th. Crossing the river, they reached Morganza on the 22nd of May, having marched 175 miles from Alexandria.
They embarked upon the steamers at Morganza on the 24th, and descending the Mississippi, they landed the next day at Baton Rouge where they camped and remained until the 8th of July.
Records show Joseph Slagg was absent from the regiment, at brigade headquarters 20 July 1864. Moving down river they moved to Algiers and camped. On the 26th they again embarked and moved upriver to Morganza where they encamped the next day. While at Morganza they were employed in guard and outpost duty. On the 18th of August the Regiment was transferred to the Third Brigade, Second Division, Nineteenth Army Corps., with Colonel Guppey being placed in charge of the Brigade. Joseph Slagg was detailed guard duty at Brigade Headquarters 20 August 1864. He was stationed there through November 1864.
During the time of Joseph's guard duty at the Morganza headquarters, the rest of the regiment participated in a few skirmishes at Bayou Sara and Jackson, Louisiana. On the 11th of October the regiment embarked on the steamers and proceeded to the mouth of the White River. Joseph was with them at this time, as stated in one of his letters. They went into camp there on the 16th of October.
On the 2nd of November the 23rd moved to Helena via steamer, but Joseph remained at the White River encampment along with the Brigade Quarter Master, three guards, a teamster, two Clerks, and one orderly.
Joseph rejoined his regiment sometime later (his letter of the 22nd of January is written from Helena):
While at Helena the regiment performed garrison duty until the 23rd of February. On that day the regiment embarked under orders to report to New Orleans. They descended the Mississippi until they reached Algiers where they encamped on the 27th. At that time Colonel Guppey was absent from the regiment, serving as commandant of the post at Paducah, Kentucky. Lieutenant Colonel Hill was also absent, presiding at a court-martial hearing in Helena. Major Green was appointed the command of the 23rd regiment. On the 1st of March the regiment marched from Algiers and embarked at Hickox's Landing on Lake Pontchartrain as part of the forces destined for the reduction of defenses of Mobile, Alabama. They landed on the 3rd on Dauphin Island at the mouth of Mobile Bay where they remained in camp until the afternoon of the 17th. At that time the regiment again embarked and proceeded across the bay to Navy Cove on Mobile Point. The following day they marched for Spanish Fort. Rain fell incessantly during a three day period while the regiment marched towards the fort. They reached Fish River on the 24th. On the 26th of March they arrived in the vicinity of Spanish Fort, the siege of which began on the following day. They were occupied in siege duty until the 30th, at which time they moved to Blakely, five miles to the north. At first light on the third of April the regiment arrived at Sibley's Mills, about two miles from Blakely. After a few hours rest they were ordered closer to the enemy. Companies G and I, under the command of Captain Tolford, were deployed as skirmishers. They advanced to within a few hundred yards of the enemy, at which time they were relieved by a division from the Sixteenth Army Corps. Following this the regiment was ordered to encamp in the rear and act in support of the other forces. On the evening of the 5th, the regiment moved in light marching order with other regiments of the brigade to the right of the line in support of troops advancing in case of an attack, which was expected during the night. When no attack came, they were ordered back to camp the next morning.
On the evening of the seventh, two hundred men of the regiment were detailed to erect fortifications for batteries. A portion of the detail was exposed to enemy artillery fire and sustained a loss of one man killed and three slightly wounded (the man killed was from company F, as Joseph states in his letter). Late in the afternoon of the 9th of April, the regiment - with the exception of the two hundred men employed in the riflepits - moved in light marching order to the front, where a line was formed in support of forces which immediately charged and captured the enemy's works. After nightfall the regiment moved back to camp. On the evening of the 11th of April they marched to Stark's Landing on Mobile Bay, where they embarked and on the following day crossed the bay to Magnolia Race Course Wharf, five miles below the city. Here they disembarked in the evening and marched to Mobile. The regiment remained at Mobile, various detachments occasionally were furnished for duties in the city and vicinity. Joseph wrote that he was in town on the 4th of May loading abandoned ammunition.
On the 4th of July, 1865, the regiment was mustered out of service and embarked on the 5th for home. They arrived at Madison on the 16th and received final payment on the 24th.
|
Joseph Slagg (1839 - 1929) ca. 1866 |
Do you have ancestors who fought in the 23rd Regiment Infantry? Would you like to share your research with other descendents of 23rd soldiers? Would you like to participate with others in researching the stories of 23rd soldiers? The circle of 23rd Regimental Infantry Descendents is growing monthly. For more information on how you can participate you are welcome to contact any of the following:
Jon Berndt (the author of
"Revealing Family Ancestry" here on this web site)
Glen Roosevelt
(coordinator for the group)
