Category: Military History

D-Day remembered …

D-Day remembered …

By Karen Clem Fritz
Reprinted from the June 5, 1999 issue of ExPRESS

“As our boat touched sand and the ramp went down I became a visitor to hell.”
-Pvt. Charles Neighbor, 29th Division, Omaha Beach

The news the free world had been waiting for at the height of World War II was broadcast at 9:33 a.m. London time, June 6, 1944 while most Americans were sound asleep.

The brief press release said, “Under the command of General Eisenhower Allied naval forces, supported by strong air forces, began landing Allied armies this morning on the northern coast of France.”

The event, which took place 55 years ago tomorrow, became known simply as D-Day.

The invasion of the Normandy coast of France by the Allied Forces which had banded together to defeat Nazi dictator Adolph Hitler remains the largest build-up and movement of soldiers in the history of mankind. It also marked the beginning of the end of Hitler’s brutal five-year grip on Europe.

The German military had long anticipated and prepared for the Allied invasion. Under the direction of Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, a cruel collection of beach obstacles, mine fields and artillery lined the coast of France. “Never in the history of modern warfare had a more powerful or deadly array of defenses been prepared for an invading force,” wrote Cornelius Ryan in his 1959 book The Longest Day.

After many months of meticulous planning and excruciating efforts to keep the massive force, as well as the date and exact location of the planned invasion, a secret from the Germans, “Operation Overlord,” the code name for the invasion, was launched with more than 5,000 ships, 10,000 airplanes and 250,000 service men and women – many of them not yet 20 years old.

Among the troops was a 19-year-old rural Winamac farm boy, Gerald, Rife, who, over his father’s objections, had joined the army 11 months earlier before completing high school.

“Dad was 100 percent against me going to the war,” Rife said, “and he had put in for a farm deferment for me.”

Gerald and Mary Rife were married in January 1946, a month after his discharge from the army. They raised five children, Faye, Gerald “Rob” Jr., Linda, Kim and Karen.

But Rife’s older brother was already helping on the family’s 400-acre farm on a deferment, and Gerald believed that “anyone with any gumption went into the service. I still think so.”

So Rife enlisted in the army in July 1943 and was sent to Fort Bragg in North Carolina where he immediately began training for combat duty as a sniper and machine gunner. He says he knew from the beginning that he was being trained for what everyone in the world knew must eventually come – the invasion. The training was rigorous and often featured sleepless nights.

In February 1944, Rife was sent across the Atlantic Ocean to Wales, and then England for extensive training and practice landings on shore.

Rife recalled that the men in his unit did not know the extent and details of the “whole invasion picture.” They only knew their own assignments.

In the final months before the invasion the build-up of troops, weapons and equipment along the southern coast of England was enormous, and the invasion participants found themselves in a strange world in these restricted areas which were sealed off from the rest of the country under a tight curtain of security.

Congestion in these coastal areas was a major problem, Ryan wrote in his book. “Chow lines were sometimes a quarter of a mile long. There were so many troops that it took some 54,000 men, 4,500 of them newly trained cooks, just to service American installations.

By the end of May, Rife said the troops “knew the time for the invasion was getting close.”

Loading of troops and supplies onto the transports and landing ships began during the last week of May.

“There was much anticipation,” Rife remembered. “Chaplains were constantly visiting the troops. Then they fed us a meal and loaded the boats.”

The U.S. loaded 74,000 soldiers bound for Normandy to secure two code-named beaches, Utah and Omaha. They joined 83,000 men from other Allied forces (mostly British and Canadian) who were to establish themselves on three other beaches farther east along the coast – Gold, Juno and Sword.

Rife said he was a member of a unit of 200 snipers and machine gunners who had trained together, beginning at Fort Bragg. They belonged to the U.S. Army 1st Infantry Division forces. Rife and 29 other members of his unit boarded a transport, LST 355, bound for the “Easy Red” sector of Omaha Beach. “H Hour” would be 6:30 a.m.

“We left just a couple of hours before dawn,” Rife recalled. The invasion had already been postponed a day due to stormy weather in the English Channel, but Rife cannot remember if the weather was still cloudy and rainy. “I’m not sure; I believe so.”

Rife said everyone was quiet during the trip across the Channel. “We had practiced the landing lots of times. We knew we had plenty to do and everything had to be fresh in our minds.”

The Germans had also practiced maneuvers to repel the anticipated invasion. Then during that historic night they were alerted to scattered reports of Allied paratroopers landing in the fields behind the Normandy beaches. Suspicions aroused, they manned their positions along the fortified coast, although most Nazi officers at this point believed that this initial Allied activity was most likely a diversion from the “real” invasion which was expected farther east along the coast at Calais.

Then in early dawn, just before the sea landings, Allied bombs began to fall along the Normandy coast in an attempt to knock out the bunkers housing the gun power above the beaches.

But at Omaha Beach everything went wrong. Scattered cloud cover prevented the 329 bombers assigned to destroy the menacing guns at Omaha from unloading their 13,000 bombs on target. Most fell up to three miles inland. Then special amphibious tanks that were supposed to support the landing troops at Omaha sank in the choppy waters as they were unloaded. Only two of the 29 launched made it to the beach.

So the Americans landing at Omaha faced, without support, the veterans of the Nazi 352nd Infantry Division and their deadly guns aimed at the beach.

Rife said his LST was among the first to approach the shore. “We were 100 yards away at most when the Germans opened fire.”

At this point the invaders’ training came down to “jump, swim, run and crawl to the cliffs,” explains literature from the National D-Day Memorial Foundation.

As were his fellow troopers, Rife was weighed down with weapons and gear. “Our guns were all cosmaline (water-sealed). I carried everything from my SAR (sniper army rifle) down to a .32 automatic and small carbine, plus ammunition and hand grenades.” He also carried his canteen and musette bag with rations. The soldiers’ equipment weighted a minimum of 30 pounds and sometimes one-and-a-half times more, according to Rife.

Fortunately, even with all his heavy equipment, Rife was “tall enough that I didn’t go clear under the water” when he unloaded under German fire from his LST. One of the next things he recalls was that there were “a lot of rocks” under the water to walk around.

Rife had entered a killing zone which would from that day forward be known as Bloody Omaha.

“I was ducking fire the whole time,” Rife continued. He managed to wade through the spray of bullets and find cover in the water behind a rock where he began to shoot back at the Nazis.

He estimated the beach was about 100 feet across, behind which rose a bluff about 25 feet high, lined with hedgerows.

The horror of what Rife saw and experienced through the rest of D-Day on Omaha Beach is a story he has never shared with anyone in the last 55 years – and never expects to.

In response to gentle questions of what happened next, he simply looks down and away, and acute pain visibly spreads across his face. (Rife only agreed to this interview at the request of his youngest daughter who is proud of her father and believes that as much of his story as he is willing to share should be told.)

Pinned down by German gunfire, Rife said he spent the next five or six hours trying to get out of the water. A state of confusion and shock prevailed. Officers were killed and soldiers found themselves alone and separated from their units. They sought refuge behind deadly beach obstacles and contemplated the deadly sprint across the beach to the base of the bluffs. Bodies lay on the beach or floated in the water. Destroyed landing craft and other vehicles littered the shore. At 8:30 a.m., all landing ceased at Omaha.

The cause was feared lost.

But slowly, through sheer courage and determination – and even anger – small groups managed to cross the beach and make their way up the bluffs. At the same time, navy destroyers moved into shallow water, scraping their hulks, and blasted away at the Nazi guns at point-blank range.

“By nightfall, the situation had swung in our favor,” Gen. Omar Bradley, commander of the U.S. first Army later said. “Personal heroism and the U.S. Navy had carried the day. We had by then landed close to 35,000 men and held a sliver of corpse-littered beach five miles long and about one-and-a-half miles deep. To wrest that sliver from the enemy had cost us possibly 25,000 casualties. There was now no thought of giving it back.”

Day blended into night for Rife. He soon realized the benefit of his sleepless basic training at Fort Bragg. Many such days and nights later he arrived in St. Lo, a small French town that he remembered had been “blown to pieces.” There soldiers were reorganized into new units and began their march toward Germany.

Rife’s unit was among the first to arrive in Paris for the liberation of that city. He participated in the Battle of the Bulge. The first Nazi concentration camp he came across was in Belgium. He eventually marched across Germany and met up with the Russian Allies in Czechoslovakia.

But none of these experiences and following battles compared with D-Day. “Nothing else after that even came close,” Rife insisted.

In the 55 years since that day, Rife never slept through a night. He wife, Mary confirmed this. She remembered one night early in their marriage when he awoke from a nightmare and dove under the bed.

To this day, Rife remains haunted by his D-Day memories. “It would be nice to take a pill and forget it all,” he said quietly.

The price the Allies paid at D-Day was brutal. Casualties numbered nearly 10,000. Ninety percent of American casualties were sustained at Omaha Beach. U.S. casualties on D-Day totaled 6,603, including 1,465 dead.

But had the invasion failed, experts believe it would have taken several more years to defeat Hitler and his Nazi armies.

Rife shunned most D-Day reminders, but in his last years he displayed this license plate.

At the end of World War II only 15 soldiers from Rife’s 200-member unit came home. At the time of this interview, he was one of only two still living. For over 50 years, only Rife’s closest family members knew he was a D-Day participant. He doesn’t want to see movies or read books about the invasion, or visit Normandy or meet with other war veterans. He really doesn’t care to be reminded of the invasion.

“The tales of loss and heroism of D-Day are countless as the grains of sand on the Normandy coast,” observes the National D-Day Memorial Foundation.

That’s why on the anniversary of D-Day, it is vital that the rest of the world remembers what Omaha Beach veteran Gerald Rife cannot forget.

 Note: Gerald L. Rife passed away Sept. 13, 2000.

Pulaski County, Indiana Military History [Mexican-American War]

From Counties of White and Pulaski, Indiana, published by Batty, 1883
Mexican-American War 1846 – 1848

So far as can be learned, no man then a resident of Pulaski County served his country in the war with Mexico.  A company was organized at Logansport. Another was organized at Crown Point. Doubtless, each of these companies contained men who, sometime before or after the war, made Pulaski County their abiding place.

The following is as perfect a list as could be procured by the writer of the men who served in the Mexican war, and who have since resided in the county. There may be some mistakes in this list.

    • John P. Liming and his son, Andrew Liming. Andrew Liming, after the War a resident of Van Buren Township, also served in the Civil War.
    • Zemariah Williamson, who died in the service, and whose father secured his land warrant of a quarter-section in Van Buren Township.
    • Peter Lane, who formerly lived near Winamac.
    • Mr. Updegraff.
    • O.H.P. Grover, an early resident of Winamac, who served in the Logansport company in the First Indiana Regiment.
    • Charles Humphrey.
    • J. B. Agnew, a resident of Winamac and one of its most prominent citizens, who lost his leg in a skirmish with Mexican guerrillas.
    • Mr. Phipps.
    • John Hodges.
    • E. P. Potter.
    • Charles Hathaway.
    • G. H. Barnett.
    • Francis H Snyder.

Doubtless, this is but an imperfect list.

It would be interesting to give a more extended account of the military services of each of the above men, but this is impossible, owing to their scattered location.

A Tale From The Battle of Buena Vista

Andrew Liming, yet living on the same farm obtained from the Government in virtue of his military warrant, was in the Third Indiana Regiment and participated in the battle of Buena Vista.

He was a young man then, in the prime of life, and recalls vividly the details of that decisive battle. He denies positively the alleged cowardice of Indiana troops – a stigma that was unwillingly borne by them until wiped out by scores of gallant achievements during the last stupendous war.

He insists that the Second Indiana, which was posted on a plateau about 200 feet high, and on the extreme left of General Taylor’s battle line, did not leave the field until ordered to retreat by the Colonel.

Even then, the momentary disorder into which the men were thrown was wholly due to the fact that they had not been drilled to retreat – an important and vital omission in the military education of a true soldier.

His own regiment, the Third Indiana, was posted to support Washington’s battery, which was so well served that, when Santa Anna endeavored to force the pass in solid column, the storm of shot and shell was so terrific that his swarming legions were sent flying back in full retreat.

Then it was that the Mexican commander flanked to the right and fell upon Taylor’s left, forcing the Second Indiana back across a deep ravine, and gaining the rear of the Government troops.

Another important point insisted upon by Mr. Liming, who was so situated that he could see all the movements of both armies, detracts somewhat from the credit usually accorded Jefferson Davis (ex-President of the Confederacy).

He states that Davis had nothing to do with repelling the charge of the Mexican Lancers after the Government troops had been flanked, except, perhaps, the moral effect which the presence of his men afforded.

The command of Davis was back some four hundred yards from the front, and simply served to support the regiments which forced the Mexicans back across the plateau.

Do Not Forget

The boys who went to Mexico must not be forgotten under the shadow of the last great war [the Civil War]. It was no holiday undertaking to go from the comparatively cold climate of the Northern States to the hot and peculiar climate of Mexico.

The appalling sacrifice of life from disease abundantly attests the peril which the men assumed for the country’s good. Many were left there in lonely, deserted and forgotten graves, and the rugged cactus comes and kisses with its crimson blossoms the silent mounds where they sleep.

The rich flowers of the stately magnolia shed their fragrant perfume around. The long festoons of silvery moss hang pendant above the quiet graves. The rustling wind and the dancing rain pay their passing tribute to the glory of the departed. Over all the strange, bright birds of that sunny clime chant the sad requiem of death.

The boys are gone, but their names are living jewels in the bright casket of memory.

Pulaski County, Indiana Military History [Civil War]: Part 7

From Counties of White and Pulaski, Indiana: Historical and biographical By Weston Arthur Goodspeed, F.A. Battey & Co., 1883. 

Pulaski County’s Role Of Honor

Ninth Infantry

Charles L. Guild, killed at Shiloh, April, 1862 ; John W. Burgett, wounded at Stone River, died of disease, December, 1863; John D. Breckinridge, died of disease, March, 1862; Henry C. Johns, died of disease, January, 1862; William Baldwin, died at Cheat Mountain, November, 1861; Hezekiah Davison, died at Louisville, November, 1862.

Twenty-sixth Infantry

John Carter, died at Donaldsonville, La., August, 1864.

Twenty-ninth Infantry

John C. Cline, died at home, January, 1864; William Coburn, died at Nashville, September, 1864 ; John E. Cox, killed at Stone River, December, 1862; John Daily, died at Chattanooga, July, 1864; James Nicholas, died at Chattanooga; Tristram Pike, died of wounds received at Stone River ; William Phillips, died at Chattanooga, August, 1864; Robert P. Williams, died May, 1865.

Thirty-fifth Infantry

Austin E. Saunders, killed at Stone River, December, 1863.

Forty sixth Infantry

Marshal H. Ager, killed at Champion Hills, May, 1863; John Brown, died at Helena, Ark., November, 1862 ; James H. Buntain, died October, 1862; John K. Benefiel, died at Lexington, Ky., April, 1865 ; W. H. Crist, died at Helena, Ark., November, 1862 ; Daniel Coble, killed at Magnolia Hills, May, 1863; John M. Clark, died at Memphis, August, 1862 ; William Davidson, died at Camp Wickliffe, Ky., January, 1862 ; Samuel Dunn, died at St. Louis, May, 1864 ; James H. Dupoy, drowned at Osceola, Ark., May, 1862; Samuel E. Fisher, killed at Magnolia Hills, May, 1863 ; William Faler, died at home, January, 1865; George Good, died at Memphis, 1862 ; Joseph Garbinson, died in 1862; Jesse Height, died at Helena, Ark., July, 1862; Joseph McFarland, died at New Madrid, Mo., March, 1862; Jacob Oliver, died in prison in Texas, November, 1864 ; George W. Passions, died at Tiptonville, Tenn., April, 1862; Jacob Ruff, Jr., died at Evansville, Ind., May, 1862; James Ryan, drowned at St. Charles, Ark., June, 1862 ; H. F. Soudere, died September, 1864; Allen W. Stephens, died at New Orleans, September, 1863; Martin Shank, died at Helena, Ark., February, 1863; George Updegraff, died at Helena, Ark., September, 1862 ; George Vanmeter died on the Mississippi, February, 1862.

Seventy-third Infantry

Wilbur Doud, died at Nashville, November, 1862.

Eighty-seventh Infantry

Capt. George W. Baker, killed at Chickamauga, September 20. 1863; John W. Aikens, died at Bowling Green, Ky., November, 1862 ; David A. Barnes, died at Lebanon, Ky., November, 1862; Isaac Boles, died at Gallatin, Tenn., January, 1863 ; William Bridgeman, died at Gallatin, February, 1863; Andrew Birch, died Murfreesboro, December, 1862 ; Noah P. Braden, died at Chattanooga, March, 1864; Rufus C. Brown, died at Newbern, N. C., May, 1865 ; John Brown, died at Gallatin, February, 1863; Samuel B. Chamberlain, died at Gallatin, January, 1863; Henry M. Cary, died of wounds at Chattanooga, October, 1863; Cornelius W. Doremus, died at Louisville, Ky., November, 1862; Jesse Elanore, died at Jeffersonville, Ind., July, 1864; Henry Emmensetter, died at Louisville, December, 1862 ; Jacob Evans, killed at Chickamauga, September, 1863 ; Andrew J. Evans, died at Gallatin, January, 1863; John Hodges, died in Danville Prison, Va., March, 1864; George Little, died at Bowling Green, Ky., November, 1862; Richard B. Lining, died at Chattanooga, October, 1863; Jacob Lemasters, died at Chattanooga, January, 1864; Frank T. Lane, died at Chattanooga, October, 1863; Thomas Lemasters, died at home, July 1864; Simeon Myers, died at Louisville, October, 1862 ; John McCarty, died at Louisville, November, 1862; Samuel B. Miller, died at Gallatin, Tenn., December, 1862; John J. Murphey, died at Gallatin, Tenn., January, 1863 ; Charles Emmensetter, died at Gallatin, February, 1863 ; Samuel Sell, died at Nashville, June, 1863; Benjamin F. Whissinger, died at Gallatin, December, 1862; Luther H. Williams, died at Gallatin, December, 1862; William H. Waterhouse, died at Triune, Tenn., March, 1863; Alexander C. Waters, killed at Chickamauga, September, 1863; Andrew P. Williams, died at Gallatin, January, 1863; M. Williamson, killed at Chickamauga, September, 1863; Garvin Ward, died at Gallatin, December, 1862 ; John F. Yagle, died at Chattanooga, October, 1863.

One Hundred and Twenty-eighth Infantry

Jacob Kimble, died at Knoxville, Tenn., August, 1864; Robert Murray, died at Knoxville, June, 1864 ; James W. Stump, died at Chattanooga, July, 1864 ; Nathan A. Swisher, killed at Wise Forks, N. C., March, 1865.

One Hundred and Thirtieth Infantry

Second Lieut. William H. Cone, died of wounds, July, 1864.

One Hundred and Forty-second Infantry

Anthony Seppy, died at Nashville, March, 1865.

One Hundred and Fifty-first Infantry

Jefferson H. Brown, died at Nashville, July, 1865; John W. Nicholas, died at Nashville, June, 1865; Francis M. Poisel, died at Nashville, June, 1865; William H. Smith, died at Nashville, July, 1865.

Twelfth Cavalry

Willis H. Buck, died at Nashville January, 1865; Peter Cooper, died at Grenada, Miss., October, 1865; Osraan Guss, died at Michigan City, January, 1864 ; John Hour, died of wounds at home, 1864; Isaiah Hines, died at Kendallville, Ind., January, 1864; John H. Hoover, died at Memphis, October, 1865; George Hunter, died of wounds at Tallahoma, Tenn., October, 1864; William Marlon, died at Memphis, September, 1865; Stephen Silms, died at Stark’s Landing, Ala., March, 1865.

Pulaski County, Indiana Military History [Civil War]: Part 6

From Counties of White and Pulaski, Indiana: Historical and biographical By Weston Arthur Goodspeed, F.A. Battey & Co., 1883. 

THIS IS CONTINUED FROM THE POST DATED FEBRUARY 15, 2022.

Calls For Troops During The Rebellion

    1. April 15, 1861, 75,000 men for three months.
    2. May 3, 1861, 42,034 men for three years (regular army). (During the summer or early autumn of 1861, six regiments of State troops were put into the field by the energy of Gov. Morton; but when their term of service had expired, they were mustered into the service of the United States. These regiments were from the Twelfth to the Seventeenth inclusive. It was also during the same time that the six months’ regiments, from the Sixth to the Eleventh inclusive, re-organized and entered the three years’ service. For this reason, no further calls were made until July, 1862.)
    3. July 2, 1862, 300,000 men for nine months.
    4. August 4, 1862, 300,000 men for nine months.
    5. June 15, 1863, 100,000 men for six months.
    6. October 17, 1863, 300,000 men for three years.
    7. February 1, 1864, 200,000 men for three years.
    8. March 14, 1864, 200,000 men for three years.
    9. April 23, 1864, 85,000 men (about) for 100 days.
    10. July 18, 1864, 500,000 men for one, two and three years.
    11. December 19, 1864, 300,000 men for three years.

The bounties paid by the Government during the rebellion were as follows: July 22,1761, $100 for three years men; June 25, 1863, $400 to all veterans re-enlisting for three years or the war, to be paid until April 1, 1864; October 24, 1863, $300 to new recruits in old regiments, to be paid until April 1, 1864; July 19, 1864, $100 for recruits for one year, $200 for recruits for two years, and $300 for recruits for three years; November 28, 1864, $300 out of the draft or substitute fund, in addition to the bounty of July 19, 1864, for men enlisting in the First Army Corps (Hancock’s); an act of July 4, 1864, rescinded the payment of the $100 under the act of July 22, 1861, to drafted men and substitutes. Other bounties were paid after the war ended.

An Incident

A short time before the news was received that Lincoln had been assassinated, a man named Myers living at Winamac, announced that through some spiritual manifestation he had learned that such a calamity was to occur, and told to his friends many of the scenes surrounding that lamented incident. No attention was paid to his story until the county was electrified with the news of the attack on the principal heads of the Executive department, and then the story was suddenly brought to public attention and publicity, and at last Myers was arrested.

It was thought at the time that the assassination was the result of the machinations of treasonable secret societies, and while arrests were being made in the East, it was thought probable at Winamac that Myers might have been connected with such societies. His deposition was taken, published and circulated, attracting no little attention from all parts of the Union.

Quite a disturbance occurred at the time of his arrest, but he was soon released.

Sketches Of Regiments

The following sketches of the principal regiments containing men from the county were compiled from the Adjutant General’s reports and are substantially correct:

The Ninth Infantry (three years’ service)

This regiment was re-organized for the three years’ service at La Porte, on the 27th of August, 1861, and was mustered in at the same place September 5, 1861. Soon after it took the field, spending the following winter at Cheat Mountain Summit, or until January 9, 1862.

Prior to this, it fought at Greenbrier, October 3, and at Alleghany December 13. In January, 1862, it moved to Fetterman, but in February was transferred to Gen. Buell’s army, Gen. Nelson’s division.

In March, it fought the second day at Shiloh, thence moved to Corinth, and later pursued the rebels to Booneville. It then moved to Nashville, thence to Bowling Green, thence back to Nashville, thence to Louisville, thence in pursuit of Bragg to the Wild Cat Mountains, thence back to Nashville.

During these movements, it fought at Perryville, Danville and the Wild Cat Mountains. It moved to Murfreesboro, and December 31, 1862, and January 1 and 2, 1863, participated in the battle of Stone River, and afterward moved to Chattanooga.

In September and November, it engaged in the battles of Chickamauga, Lookout Mountain and Mission Ridge, and then moved to Whiteside, Tenn., where, on the 12th of December, 1863, it “veteranized.”

After its veteran furlough, it moved in February to Tennessee. It participated in the Atlanta campaign, fighting at Taylor’s Ridge, Buzzard’s Roost, Dalton, Resacca, Cassville, Dallas, New Hope Church, Kenesaw Mountain, Marietta, Peach Tree Creek, Atlanta, Jonesboro and Lovejoy.

It returned in pursuit of Hood, and fought at Columbia, also on the route to Franklin and at Franklin, one of the hottest engagements of the war.

On the 1st of December, it entered Nashville, and on the 15th participated in the battle there, and afterward pursued Hood as far as Huntsville. Here it remained until the 13th of March, 1865, when it returned to Nashville.

Soon afterward it was transferred to near New Orleans and later to Texas, composing a part of Gen. Sheridan’s army of occupation, until September, 1865, when it was mustered out and returned to Indiana. It was one of Indiana’s best regiments.

The Twentieth Infantry

This regiment was organized at La Fayette in the month of July, 1861, then rendezvoused at Indianapolis, and was mustered in on the 22d of July. It was moved first to near Baltimore, Md., where it did guard duty. In September, it was transferred to Hatteras Inlet, N. C., and soon afterward to Hatteras Bank, where it was attacked by the rebels, October 4, and forced back.

In November, it moved to Fortress Monroe, where it remained until March, 1862, when it removed to Newport News, where it participated in the engagement with the rebel ram, the Merrimac.

In May, it moved to Norfolk, participating in the capture of that city, and then joined the Army of the Potomac. On the 8th of June, it was assigned to Jamison’s brigade, Kearney’s division, Heintzleman’s corps, and took position on the Fair Oaks battle ground. It was actively engaged at “Orchards,” losing 144 men in killed, wounded and missing.

It covered the retreat of the Third Corps in the seven days’ fight, participating in all the engagements, especially at Glendale and Frazier’s Farm, losing heavily.

It moved to Yorktown, thence to Alexandria, thence to the Rappahannock and Manassas Plains, fighting at the latter place and losing Col. Brown.

In September, it fought at Chantilly. Soon after this it enjoyed a rest. In October, it took the field again, and after various movements participated in the bloody battle of Fredericksburg, assisting in saving three Union batteries.

In April, 1863, it was actively engaged at Chancellorsville, capturing at one time the whole of the Twenty-third Georgia. It also established communications between the Third Corps and the remainder of the army, by a brilliant bayonet charge.

On the 2d of July, it fought at Gettysburg, on the extreme left in the Second Brigade of the First Division of Sickles’ corps. It was exposed to a very hot fire from rebels behind a stone wall, losing its Colonel, John Wheeler, and 152 officers and men killed and wounded. It fought on the 3d, and also on the 4th, and then joined the pursuit, fighting the .enemy’s rear at Manassas Gap.

It was sent to New York City to suppress draft riots, and afterward fought at Locust Grove and Mine Run. After “veteranizing,” it fought at Wilderness, Todd’s Tavern, Po River, Spottsylvania, Tollopotamie, Cold Harbor, Deep Bottom, Strawberry Plains and Petersburg, where it lost many men, among whom was Lieut. Col. Meikel.

After its work in the trenches before Petersburg and a few active movements, it fought at Preble’s House and Hatcher’s Run. After this and until the surrender of Gen. Lee, it participated in all the battles on the left, the last being at Clover Hill, April 9, 1865.

It was transferred to Louisville, Ky., where, on the 12th of July, 1865, it was mustered out, and sent north to Indianapolis, receiving a warm welcome all along the route homeward by crowds of grateful people.

The Forty-sixth Infantry

This regiment was organized at Logansport October 4, 1861, and mustered in December 11. It moved to Camp Wicklifle, Ky., remaining there until the 16th of February, 1862, when it marched to Salt River, thence to Paducah. It then went to Commerce, Mo., thence to New Madrid and Island No. 10, fighting at the former place. Near here it erected a battery at night, sustaining for over an hour a heavy fire from five rebel gunboats without being dislodged.

In April, it marched toward Fort Pillow, into which place it moved in, June. It moved to Memphis, thence to St. Charles, where it charged the enemy’s works, driving him out, and capturing a number of prisoners and guns. It drove the enemy back near Crockett’s Bluff.

After various expeditions and reconnaissance, it finally participated in the engagements at Fort Pemberton. It fought at Port Gibson, Champion Hills, losing in killed and wounded at the latter engagement one-fourth of the number engaged.

It was in the trenches before Vicksburg forty-four days. It moved with Gen. Sherman against Jackson, thence came back to Vicksburg, thence was transported first to Natchez, thence to New Orleans. Here it was transferred to the Department of the Gulf under Gen. Banks.

In September, 1863, it started on the Teche expedition toward the Sabine River, and did good service at Grand Coteau.

In December, it returned to New Orleans, and in January, 1864, “veteranized.” It moved on the Red River expedition, and marched 302 miles to Sabine Cross Roads, where, on the 8th of April, it fought at Mansfield, losing 10 killed, 12 wounded and 77 captured. This was the result of a cavalry blunder.

On the next day, the regiment was actively engaged at Pleasant Hill, and then retreated to the Mississippi, where it arrived May 22. It moved to New Orleans, then to Indiana on veteran furlough.

After this it marched to Lexington, Ky., then on an expedition to Saltville, thence to Prestonsburg and Catlettsburg, Ky. It then went into garrison at Lexington, remaining thus until September, 1865, when it marched to Louisville where on the 4th of September, 1865, it was mustered out and sent home. It was an excellent regiment.

The Eighty-seventh Infantry

This regiment was organized at South Bend August 28, 1862, and was mustered into the service at Indianapolis August 31. It moved to Louisville, Ky., and was assigned to Gen. Burbridge’s brigade.

In October, it was transferred to the Third Brigade, Third Division, Fourteenth Army Corps, and then campaigned with Gen. Buell through Kentucky. It was under fire at Springfield, and on the 8th engaged in the battle of Perryville. After various movements, during which the regiment lost six killed and wounded, camp was formed at Mitchellville, Tenn., in November. It also occupied Tunnel Hill, Pilot Knob, Gallatin, and, in January, 1863, encamped at Concord Church near Nashville.

In March, it fought at Chapel Hill. On the 23d of June, it moved with the army on the summer campaign against Tullahoma, being under fire at Hoover’s Gap. It marched to Winchester, thence to Battle Creek. The regiment participated in the fall campaign against Chattanooga. It was in the hottest of the fight at Chickamauga on the 19th and 20th of September, suffering severely, losing more than half the officers and men engaged. Forty were killed, 142 wounded, and eight missing.

Company B, from Pulaski County was cut in pieces. Of the thirty-three men of this company who went into battle, only three escaped without a scratch. Five were killed—Evans, Griffith, Waters, Williamson and Capt. G. W. Baker, leaving the command of the company to, W. W. Agnew, who was one of the three that escaped without a scratch.

The regiment remained in Chattanooga during the siege. In November, it was in the front line in the storming of Mission Ridge, losing in killed and wounded sixteen men. It pursued the enemy as far as Ringgold, Ga.

In February, 1864, it engaged in an expedition against Dalton, and skirmished with the enemy near Buzzard’s Roost, afterward going into camp at Ringgold where it remained until the 7th of May.

In the Atlanta campaign, the regiment fought at Rocky Face, Resaca, Cassville, near Dallas, Kenesaw, Peach Tree Creek and before Atlanta. In the charge at Utoy Creek on the 4th of August, the loss was seventeen killed and wounded.

It fought also at Jonesboro, in September, and then went into camp in Atlanta. In October, it joined in the pursuit of Hood, north. It moved with Sherman to the sea, skirmishing at divers places, and greatly enjoying the easy life at the expense of Southern luxuries.

It also participated in the Carolina campaign, skirmishing at Smithfield and other places. It moved to Raleigh, Richmond, Washington, D. C., where it participated in the grand review of Sherman’s army, and where on the 10th of June, 1865, it was mustered out and sent to Indianapolis.

Of this regiment during the war, 47 were killed, 198 wounded and 214 died of wounds and disease. No better soldiers were in the service.

Pulaski County, Indiana Military History [Civil War]: Part 5

From Counties of White and Pulaski, Indiana: Historical and biographical By Weston Arthur Goodspeed, F.A. Battey & Co., 1883. 

Continued Enlistment

Early in 1864, the enlistment received a new impulse. About two-thirds of a company were furnished for the One Hundred and Twenty-seventh Regiment, and about the same number for the One Hundred and Twenty-eighth. Thus the enlistment went on during the year 1864, quite a great many going out as recruits for the old companies. The One Hundred and Forty-second secured about half a company from the county. Companies A and H of the One Hundred and Fifty-first were almost wholly from Pulaski, the men being mustered in January and February, 1865. About the 15th of April, 1865, the welcome order was received to cease enlisting.

Bounty

In August, 1862, the County Commissioners appropriated out of the county treasury the sum of $25 for the family of each volunteer who would enter the company that was then forming. This was the first county bounty. The second was in December, 1863, when there was ordered paid to each volunteer, under the last call for 300,000 men, the sum of $100. These were the only bounties paid by the Commissioners during the war. Large amounts were paid, however, by townships and localities for volunteers to clear such places from drafts.

The first draft—that of October 6, 1862—has been mentioned. The second occurred in October, 1864, at Michigan City, the system having been changed in May, 1863, from counties to Congressional districts. The conscript officers of the Ninth District were: Commissioner, James B. Belford; Provost Marshal, W. W. Wallace, whose commission was revoked in the following November, and Kline G. Shryock took his place; Daniel Dayton, Surgeon. The names of the assistant conscript officers who were appointed in Pulaski cannot be given.

Early in 1865, the militia of the county had been so reduced by previous enlistments and drafts, that it was perceived that another draft would have to be made to meet the new calls, or rather the call of December 19, 1864, for 300,000 men. Every effort was made to escape the calamity. Heavy local bounties were offered for volunteers, and many responded, and the majority of the townships thus cleared themselves.

A few men, however, were drafted, as will be seen from the following table, made out by the authorities at Indianapolis on the 14th day of April, 1865, at which time all efforts to raise troops were abandoned, Lee having surrendered at Appomattox.

Number Of Men Furnished

It is impossible to give the exact number of men furnished by Pulaski County during the war; but the effort will here be made to give the approximate number.

There had volunteered prior to September 15, 1862, 494 men. As the county more than filled her quotas under subsequent calls, counting the drafts of October, 1862, October, 1864, and March, 1865, about the number of men furnished can be obtained, if the quotas are known.

The calls of June and October, 1863, for a total of 400,000 men would make the quota of Pulaski under the “First Enrollment,” in the next to the last table above, not far from 125 men. The calls of February, March and July, 1864, required 145, 67 and 163 men respectively.

The call of December 19, 1864, the last of the war, required eighty-six men, and under this call there was a deficiency of fourteen, owing to the sudden closing of the rebellion. It was estimated that not less than 100 men left the county to enlist, owing to the fact that heavier bounties were offered elsewhere.

The county then furnished 494, 125, 145, 67, 163, 86 and 100 men, less the deficiency of fourteen under the last call, a total of 1,166 men. This number includes the enlisted, the drafted, the “veteranized” men, and the men who left the county to enlist, and were credited elsewhere.

The following regiments contained Pulaski County men: Ninth, Twelfth, Thirteenth, Fifteenth, Seventeenth, Twentieth, Twenty-sixth, Twenty-ninth, Forty-second, Forty-sixth, Forty-eighth, Sixty-third, Eighty-seventh, One Hundred and Twenty-seventh, One Hundred and Twenty-eighth, One Hundred and Forty-second and One Hundred and Fifty-first.

Only two companies were fully organized in the county. These were Company H of the Forty-sixth, and Company B of the Eighty-seventh. The officers of the first were: Captains, Felix B. Thomas, George Burson, James W. Brown, and James F. Mitchell; First Lieutenants, George Burson, James W. Brown, James F. Mitchell and Martin L. Burson; Second Lieutenants, James W. Brown, J. F. Mitchell, Martin L. Burson and John E. Doyle. The officers of the Second were: Captains, James W. Solders, George W. Baker and William W. Agnew; First Lieutenants, G. W. Baker, W. W. Agnew, William Poole and Richard M. Hathaway; Second Lieutenants, Enoch Benefiel, William Poole and James B. Holmes.

THIS TOPIC WILL BE CONTINUED IN THE NEXT POST, WHICH WILL GO UP ON MARCH 15.

Pulaski County, Indiana Military History [Civil War]: Part 4

From Counties of White and Pulaski, Indiana: Historical and biographical By Weston Arthur Goodspeed, F.A. Battey & Co., 1883. 

Disloyalty

About this time a sentiment in opposition to the war began to be manifested. The editor of the Pulaski County Democrat, a young attorney named Rufus Magee, adopted ultra measures in espousing the cause of his party. His paper had much to do with the feeling in the county hostile to the war. The Knights of the Golden Circle also made their appearance, and added their influence to the general ill-will. I

t was nothing unusual to hear men publicly state that they would not assist, by a solitary dollar, a continuance of the most unjust war. The names, “Copperhead” and “Abolitionist” began to have a sting, and more than one black eye and bloody nose resulted from an injudicious use of them.

Butternut breastpins became fashionable. The “nigger” and all his sympathizers were made the objects of suggestive ridicule. “Secessionist” was the word that was flaunted in the face of many, but nothing good was thereby accomplished. It only served to array, unnecessarily, neighbor against neighbor.

The Democratic Convention of the Ninth Congressional District was held at Winamac on the 7th of August, 1862, on which occasion several thousand people assembled. W. J. Walker, of La Porte, presided; Maj. Gardner and W. J. Gridley were two of the Vice Presidents. The delegates of Pulaski County were H. P. Rowan, W. S. Huddleston, F. B. Thomas, W. C. Barnett, G. E. Wickersham, J. B. Agnew, Samuel Decker, A. Starr and T. H. Keys.

The President of the convention, in his opening remarks, stated that two important subjects were before the citizens present for consideration. To put down the rebels of the South by the bayonet and the Abolitionists of the North by the ballot.

Hon. David Turpie, of White County, was nominated for Congress after an exciting contest. A long series of resolutions was then adopted. The political acts of Schuyler Colfax, then in Congress from the Ninth District (now the Tenth), were severely denounced. The Convention declared that the rebellion must be put down; that no money should be paid out of the public fund to the negroes that had been freed in the District of Columbia; that the established institutions of the South (meaning slavery) should not be interfered with ; that they were in favor of the “Constitution as it is and the Union as it was;” that the doctrines of secession and abolition were alike inconsistent with the Constitution; that all secret organizations which favored a resistance to the execution of the laws should be disbanded; that the soil of Indiana belonged to the white man, and the State Constitutional clause inhibiting free negroes and mulattoes from coming into the State, there to live and compete with the labor of the white man, should be enforced, and that the valor of the Indiana troops in the field was a source of universal pride.

The result of the convention in the county greatly increased the opposition to the war, if any interference with slavery was contemplated. The strong position that secession was inconsistent with the Constitution did much to mollify the ultra Democrats of the county, and encourage enlistments as long as the slavery question was overlooked.

The Draft

As the time that was fixed for the draft approached, it was apparent that the county would not wholly succeed in clearing herself. The draft was announced at first to take place on the 15th of September, 1862; but, at the last moment, the date was postponed to October 6, to give all townships abundant opportunity to free themselves.

This draft was not levied because Indiana was behind with her quota, or because any county was behind; but was ordered to compel some townships in each of the greater number of counties (all but fifteen) to furnish their allotted quotas of men. There were townships in some counties so hostile to the war that, up to the autumn of 1862, scarcely a man had been furnished, and the object of the draft was to compel such localities to come to time, and thus equalize the burden of providing men and means.

All the townships of Pulaski County except three had furnished their quotas. These three were Tippecanoe, Rich Grove and Franklin. On the 15th of September, the date first fixed for the draft, there were due from the first 9, from the second 2, and from the third 5; total 16. Between the 15th of September and the 6th of October, when the draft was levied, how many of the sixteen men required were furnished by volunteering cannot be stated, though doubtless a few.

The Draft Commissioner was J. W. Eldridge; Provost Marshal, R. M. Gill; Surgeon, F. B. Thomas. The draft was conducted in the Odd Fellows building, Maj. Gardner, blindfolded, being the drawer. Considerable feeling in opposition to the draft was manifested, though the proceedings were not interrupted. The facts upon which the draft was based were as follows: Total county militia 957; total volunteers already furnished 494; total volunteers now in the service 467; total exempts 101; total subject to draft 856. The drafted men were taken to Indianapolis, and they who did not furnish substitutes entered the service.

Suppression Of The Democrat

During the year 1863—the darkest for the Union cause while the war continued, owing to the fact that the doom of slavery was publicly announced, and to the further fact that a great many throughout the county were bitterly opposed to a continuation of the war in the interests of an abolition of slavery—the enlistment of volunteers was almost at a standstill.

It was publicly stated that the abolition war must cease, and that no more men ought to be furnished. Public speakers, at home and from abroad, violently attacked the administration, and some of them went so far as to council a resistance to drafts and enlistments.

The Democrat was very bitter and outspoken. It denounced the suspension of the habeas corpus by the President as a most unjust and unwarranted proceeding; declared that Valladigham was a martyr; violently assailed the military order of Gen. Burnside requiring newspapers and public speakers to cease encouraging and counseling a resistance to the war measures of the administration; and even went so far us to attack Gen. Hascall for his connection with an order curtailing the privileges of the public press and the liberty of free speech.

The result of this procedure on the part of the Democrat provoked Gen. Hascall to issue an order suppressing the paper, and requiring its editor to appear before the military authorities at Indianapolis to answer for his rebellious conduct. Satisfactory assurance having been given of better conduct in the future, the editor was permitted to resume the issue of his paper. This was in May (about), 1863.

The feeling in the county at this time was severe and vindictive; but it was seen that the Government was terribly in earnest, and open resistance was avoided. This state of affairs led to a great falling off in the number of men furnished for the service. Various recruiting officers appeared, however, and secured small detachments of volunteers. Several recruits were secured for the old companies already in the field.

Pulaski County, Indiana Military History [Civil War]: Part 3

From Counties of White and Pulaski, Indiana: Historical and biographical By Weston Arthur Goodspeed, F.A. Battey & Co., 1883. 

Three Months Men

Within two weeks after the fall of Sumter, about fifteen men left the county, going to Logansport, and joining the Ninth Regiment, destined for the three months’ service. A squad of about ten of these boys assembled at Winamac, to be taken to Logansport in wagons.

Photo: Civil War Soldiers are served a Thanksgiving meal in November 1861, photo from the Rapid City Journal.

Quite a crowd gathered on the street as the time for their departure drew near. Just before they left, Stephen Bruce addressed them in a short speech, praising them for their loyalty and bravery, adjuring them never to allow the flag to trail in the dust, and promising that they who left families behind need borrow no trouble, as no one would be permitted to starve as long as he continued operating his grist mill.

Away the boys went amid the cheers of their fellow citizens, and the tears and lingering farewells of loving friends. It was but a short time after this that other men began to leave the county for the three months’ service. It has thus been estimated that under the call for 75,000 volunteers, about thirty men entered the service from Pulaski County.

The First Company

As it was thought that the rebellion would be brought to a speedy close by the three months’ men, the further enlistment of volunteers in Pulaski County languished until fall, when Dr. F. B. Thomas was commissioned to raise a company for the three years’ service. The enlistment of men was begun and continued during the months of September and October, 1861.

Volunteers were secured under the stimulus of a big war meeting, where loyal and fiery speeches were made, patriotic airs were sung, and beautiful ladies with bewitching smiles passed round the fatal enlistment roll. The company was quickly raised, and the election of officers resulted as follows: F. B. Thomas, Captain; George Burson, First Lieutenant; James Brown, Second Lieutenant.

The company was mustered in on the 5th of November, and soon afterward was ordered with its regiment, the Forty-sixth, to the front. There was much excitement in the county while this company was being enlisted. Col. G. M. Fitch, of the Forty-sixth, came and spoke at Winamac and other places. Capt. Thomas held meetings at Winamac, Pulaski, Monterey, Francesville, Medaryville and other places, securing at each place a few volunteers for his company. Mr. Burson was also active in all these meetings.

At last, when the company was ready to depart, a splendid dinner was spread out for the boys in Lane’s Hall. Every provision which bountiful stores could supply, and every luxury and convenience which love could suggest, was placed upon the board, and the heavy tables groaned under the weight as if in protest. Ah, it was a feast the boys remembered long afterward, when “hard-tack” and “sowbelly” were ravenously devoured, or when the fare was little better than nothing in the gloomy prison hells which Southern cruelty had devised.

How they gorged themselves, as if a forecast of the future was shadowed before them! Whole turkeys disappeared as if by magic. Pies, cakes, jams, jellies, without limit or number, were speedily put where they would do the most good. At last, the feast was over, good-byes were spoken with pale lips and streaming eyes, but brave hearts, warm kisses and embraces were passionately exchanged for the last time, and all hearts were rent with unspeakable anguish. Slowly the long train pulled out with its human sacrifice. They were gone.

Quite a number of three years’ men, however, had left the county for the war before the departure of the company of Capt. Thomas. These men left the county to enlist, and were credited to where the companies to which they belonged were raised.

When the Ninth Regiment was re-organized in August, 1861, and mustered into the service for three years in September, about one-half of Company D was taken from Pulaski County. Besides these there were a few in other companies, notably G, of the same regiment; and there were in the whole regiment not less than about seventy men from the county.

There were also a few men from Pulaski in the Thirteenth, Fifteenth, Seventeenth and Twentieth Regiments. There were but a few from Pulaski in the last-mentioned regiment when it first took the field; but during the progress of the war many others joined it as recruits. Owing to the fact that the county was comparatively small, and could not furnish many full companies, her men went in small detachments to various regiments, were often credited to other counties where such regiments were raised, and, as no proper record was kept, the facts cannot now be traced.

About one-third of Company A, of the Twenty-sixth Regiment, was from Pulaski. The men were mustered August 30, 1861. One-half of Company C, of the Twenty-ninth, was from Pulaski, the men being mustered in during the months of August, September and October. Besides the company of Capt. Thomas in the Forty-sixth, two other companies had a few men from the county.

During the winter of 1861-62, scarcely anything was done to raise men for the war. This was not due to a lack of proper interest in the struggle, but was because of the cold weather.

Early in the spring, volunteering was revived, and received a fresh impetus, from the fact that the citizens had begun to realize the stupendous character of the war, and were fully determined to do their share in ending it. Men began to leave the county, entering the Forty-eighth, Sixty-third and other regiments. Several recruiting officers from other counties appeared, and steadily drained Pulaski of her best men.

In July and August, 1862, war meetings began to be held in all parts of the county. Schoolhouses, churches and other public buildings were thus used. It was announced that unless the county’s quota was full by the middle of September, a draft would surely take place. This was sufficient to rouse the citizens to their best efforts.

Dr. James W. Selders was authorized to raise a company, and was commissioned Captain. Meetings were held all over the county, and soon his company was full. About twenty-five men joined Company E, organized in Fulton County, and commanded by Capt. Troutman. There were also a few Pulaski men in Company A, and others. All these men entered the Eighty-seventh Regiment.

Pulaski County, Indiana Military History [Civil War]: Part 2

From Counties of White and Pulaski, Indiana: Historical and biographical By Weston Arthur Goodspeed, F.A. Battey & Co., 1883. 

The Rebellion

During the latter part of 1860 and the early part of 1861, the warmest interest of the citizens of the county was centered upon the important political changes that were overshadowing the country. Some felt the coming storm, and accurately predicted the prolonged and dreadful results. Others had no fear that the American people would have the courage and hardihood to spring upon the country a gigantic civil war in the support of any principle likely to be involved.

Photo from Images of America, Pulaski County, Karen Clem Fritz, Arcadia Publishing, 2009. This is of the C.L. Guild Post, Grand Army of the Republic of Medaryville, Memorial Day 1911.

As State after State in the South passed ordinances of secession, all the better citizens of each party were united upon the question of supporting the administration of Mr. Lincoln and upholding the constitution and the laws. As yet the all-important question of slavery had not been seriously considered as to its partial suppression or total obliteration ; and all those bitter sentiments and controversies which were to array one section of the North against the other, almost to the extent of open war, were yet unknown, and the county, as a whole, was united and hopefully tranquil.

The Fall Of Sumter

When the news of the fall of Fort Sumter swept over the country like a flame of fire, the most intense excitement in all places prevailed. The suspense in Pulaski County was bewildering. The first reports depopulated the rural districts, suspended all agricultural and other pursuits, and flooded the towns, telegraph offices and news stations with vast crowds of excited, indignant and determined citizens.

All former political antagonisms were speedily relinquished. Men everywhere forgot their daily employment, and gathered at crossroads and villages to discuss the political situation, denounce the rebellion and encourage one another with hopeful and loyal words.

Every heart was disturbed with direful misgivings. Old men who had passed through the political storms of half a century, who had learned to put their faith in the nobility of the American character, who had seen the Government rise like Neptune from the sea, serene and sublime, until its broad dome shed its protection upon the lowest of God’s creatures, turned away in tears, sick at heart, from the dark, desperate and forbidding aspect.

Many were palsied with sickening fear at the vision of the horrors of civil war, and, regardless of the safety of the Government, turned first to the protection of their loved ones. Still others flew to the doubtful consolation that no sacrifice of life and property could be too great to quell the rebellion at all hazard and maintain intact the Union of the States.

But public sentiment soon recovered from the shock. Men by the thousand, with Spartan hardihood, signified their anxiety to go out to their country’s battles. Mothers tendered their sons; wives their husbands; maidens their lovers; children their parents; parents their children; sisters their brothers—all were intensely eager to show their devotion to their beloved country. And the opportunity was not wanting.

Excitement At Winamac

Within a week after the news was received that Sumter had been surrendered to the rebels, a notice was circulated in Winamac and vicinity that a public meeting would be held at the court house, to consider the state of the country, and to take some action in response to the call of the President for 75,000 militia. Some 400 persons assembled, quite a bevy of ladies being among the number, and the meeting was addressed, first by the Chairman, who, in a brief speech, announced that the object of the call was to arrange matters so that any volunteers asked for could be quickly and easily secured and dispatched with promptness to the field.

Dr. F. B. Thomas was then called out. He spoke at length upon the political issues of the day, declaring that while he had not cast his ballot for the Republican ticket, still he was heartily in favor of supporting the administration of Mr. Lincoln in the “vigorous prosecution” of the war and the immediate crushing of the rebellion. He was loudly cheered at the conclusion of his remarks, and then other speakers followed in rapid succession, amid great excitement and intense loyalty.

Almost all the leading citizens of Winamac were called out, and all were greeted with tumultuous applause. James W. Eldridge delivered an eloquent speech. He was followed by Byron T. Lane, W. C. Barnett, H. P. Rowan, A. I. Gould, W. S. Huddleston, Stephen Bruce and others. The burden of every speech was, that it was the duty of all loyal citizens of any party to cast aside political prejudice, and rally as one man to the support of the Constitution and the Union.

It is stated, however, that there were men present, and quite a number throughout the county, who were conscientious in the belief that the Southern States had the right to leave the Union if they saw proper to do so, and that the constituted authorities had no right to coerce them to remain. They were champions of the doctrine of State Rights—a doctrine that has done more to embitter the North and the South against each other during the preceding half a century than any other cause except slavery.

They believed that the administration was violating the Constitution in levying war to prevent States from leaving the Union. The effect of former Congressional legislation on this question was felt not only in the South, but in all the North. Men who had been bred as far north as the Canada line, believed not only in the sovereignty of the States, but in the “divine institution” of slavery as well. This was the inevitable result of Congressional teaching, where the knee had constantly been bent in abject servility to both doctrines on the floor of the highest law-making power. It was then no wonder that humble citizens in Pulaski County had been so impressed with the horrid heresy that they sincerely believed as John C. Calhoun and Jefferson Davis believed.

At the outset of the war, when it was yet thought that the question of slavery would not be seriously considered, several citizens of the county, believing that the Southern States had the right to leave the Union, quietly opposed a continuation of the struggle. Later, when it was seen that slavery, as well as secession, was doomed, they were outspoken and bitterly energetic in opposing the course of Mr. Lincoln.

At this first meeting above mentioned, no sentiment save loyalty was publicly expressed, but here and there could be seen an ominous shake of the head, and a prophetic warning quietly uttered. J. W. Eldridge, W. J. Gridley and G. T. Wickersham were appointed a committee to prepare resolutions expressive of the sense of the meeting. The resolutions, about ten in number, were adopted after some comment. They embodied, in substance, the burden of the speeches that had been delivered that afternoon, and were thoroughly loyal and determined.

Pulaski County, Indiana Military History [Civil War]: Part 1

From Counties of White and Pulaski, Indiana: Historical and biographical By Weston Arthur Goodspeed, F.A. Battey & Co., 1883. 

Introduction

From the time of the first settlement in Pulaski County until the great rebellion of 1861, with the single exception of the brief but brilliant campaign in the land of the Montezumas, nothing had transpired to disturb the peaceful pursuits of social life and the steady observance of civil liberty and law. Mothers and maidens had never felt the anguish of separation from loved ones at the stern call of a nation at war. Children had grown to manhood without ever seeing a soldier in military dress, and their loving hearts knew nothing of the sad, wild, glorious things which go to make up war, save what they had read, or what they had been told by their grandfathers who had been with Harrison, or perhaps with Washington.

Photograph from Images of America Pulaski County, by Karen Clem Fritz, Arcadia Publishing, 2009. Original photo from Alyce Onken. Francesville veterans of the Civil War, photo believed to be in the early 1900s.

The old militia system which had been so efficient and popular during the old Indian wars on the frontier, and directly after the close of the war of 1812-15, had loosened its hold upon the public mind during a protracted period of profound peace. Prior to the war with Mexico, a more or less nominal organization was effected and carried on in Pulaski County, and annual musters were enjoyed by large and motly crowds, more intent on frolic and roystering than improvement in military discipline. The cities and larger towns of the State were the only places where military drill was appreciated, and where strict discipline and military pride attained a proficiency nearly equal to that which prevailed in the regular army.

An enactment of the State Legislature, in 1831, provided for the enrollment of all able-bodied militia, and the formation of regiments in the various judicial districts; but the law was largely inert, owing to a lack of sufficient interest due to the sense of public security which the peaceful times afforded. In about the year 1842, or early in 1843, however, a militia organization, called the “Winamac Rifle Rangers,” was completed at the county seat, and, on the 15th of April, 1843, an election of officers took place at the house of Eli Brown, with the following result: For Captain, Rufus Brown, 26 votes ;John P. Miller, 8; First Lieutenant, Stephen Bruce, 33; Second Lieutenant, Frederick Klinger, 20; John R. Price, 13; Thomas H. Keys, 1; Ensign, Job J. Holmes, 15; Thomas H. Keys, 6; Luke Hacket, 1. The one receiving the highest number of votes for each office was declared duly elected.

Soon after this, the company met for parade, on which occasion hundreds were present to see the evolutions of the company, and enjoy the sport. But within two or three years the military fire died out, and was not again kindled until the Mexican war, when another organization was partly completed, but soon abandoned.

In 1852, owing to the unsettled state of internal public affairs, the system was again revived by legislative enactment, and each Congressional District was required to thoroughly organize its militia. This law met with general public favor and response. The County Commissioners directed the Auditor to procure from Indianapolis the quota of arms due the county under the law. This was accordingly done, and the arms were distributed to the members of the new company of militia.

For a few years, until the novelty wore off, the militia mustered quite often; but about the year 1857, the arms were returned to the capital of the State, and no other call to arms was made until 1861. After this war, or in 1876, the militia was again organized, and guns were obtained from the State; but in 1879, the system was again abandoned, and the muskets were returned to Indianapolis.

Mexican War

So far as can be learned, no man, then a resident of Pulaski County, served his country in the war with Mexico. A company was organized at Logansport, with Stanislaus LaSalle, Captain; W. L. Brown, First Lieutenant; D. M. Dunn, Second Lieutenant; G. W. Blackmore, Third Lieutenant. Another was organized at Crown Point, with Joseph P. Smith, Captain; William H. Slade, First Lieutenant; Samuel N. Whitcomb, Second Lieutenant.

Doubtless, each of these companies contained men who, some time in the past, made Pulaski County their abiding place. The following is as perfect a list as could be procured by the writer of the men who served in the Mexican war, and who have since resided in the county. There may be some mistakes in this list: John P. Liming and his son, Andrew Liming, the latter now a resident of Van Buren Township, also served in the last great war; Zemariah Williamson, who died in the service, and whose father secured his land warrant of a quarter-section in Van Buren Township; Peter Lane, who formerly lived near Winamac; Mr. Updegraff; O. H. P. Grover, an early resident of Winamac, who served in the Logansport company in the First Indiana Regiment; Charles Humphrey; J. B. Agnew, a resident of Winamac and one of its most prominent citizens, who lost his leg in a skirmish with Mexican guerrillas; Mr. Phipps, John Hodges, E. P. Potter, Charles Hathaway, G. H. Barnett and Francis H, Snyder. Doubtless, this is but an imperfect list. It would be interesting to give a more extended account of the military services of each of the above men, but this is impossible, owing to their scattered location.

Andrew Liming, yet living on the same farm, obtained from the Government in virtue of his military warrant, was in the Third Indiana Regiment, and participated in the battle of Buena Vista. He was a young man then, in the prime of life, and recalls vividly the details of that decisive battle. He denies positively the alleged cowardice of Indiana troops—a stigma that was unwillingly borne by them until wiped out by scores of gallant achievements during the last stupendous war.

He insists that the Second Indiana, which was posted on a plateau about 200 feet high, and on the extreme left of Gen. Taylor’s battle line, did not leave the field until ordered to retreat by the Colonel; and even then the momentary disorder into which the men were thrown was wholly due to the fact that they had not been drilled to retreat—an important and vital omission in the military education of a true soldier.

His own regiment, the Third Indiana, was posted to support Washington’s battery, which was so well served that, when Santa Anna endeavored to force the pass in solid column, the storm of shot and shell was so terrific that his swarming legions were sent flying back in full retreat. Then it was that the Mexican commander flanked to the right and fell upon Taylor’s left, forcing the Second Indiana back across a deep ravine, and gaining the rear of the Government troops.

Another important point insisted upon by Mr. Liming, who was so situated that he could see all the movements of both armies, detracts somewhat from the credit usually accorded Jefferson Davis (ex-President of the Confederacy). He states that Davis had nothing to do with repelling the charge of the Mexican Lancers after the Government troops had been flanked, except, perhaps, the moral effect which the presence of his men afforded. The command of Davis was back some four hundred yards from the front, and simply served to support the regiments which forced the Mexicans back across the plateau.

The boys who went to Mexico must not be forgotten under the shadow of the last great war. It was no holiday undertaking to go from the comparatively cold climate of the Northern States to the hot and peculiar climate of Mexico. The appalling sacrifice of life from disease abundantly attests the peril which the men assumed for the country’s good. Many were left there in lonely, deserted and forgotten graves, and the rugged cactus comes and kisses with its crimson blossoms the silent mounds where they sleep; the rich flowers of the stately magnolia shed their fragrant perfume around; the long festoons of silvery moss hang pendant above the quiet graves; the rustling wind and the dancing rain pay their passing tribute to the glory of the departed; and over all the strange, bright birds of that sunny clime chant the sad requiem of death. The boys are gone, but their names are living jewels in the bright casket of memory.

Indiana In World War I

The Memorial Swinging Bridge was dedicated to persons serving in the military from Pulaski County, but all of those persons also lived in Indiana. The following article was written by Connor McBride, a graduate student of Public History at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis and intern for the Indiana State Historic Records Advisory Board. He received his B.S. in history from Indiana State University in 2015. 

The full article, including citations, can be found HERE.

Since there have been Hoosiers, there have been Hoosiers willing to serve and sacrifice for their nation and its ideals. The state of Indiana is represented in every major United States war since the state’s founding and as of the twentieth century, hundreds of thousands of Hoosiers had served their country proudly. By April of 1917, Indiana had demonstrated their willingness and capability to serve and following the United States’ declaration of war, Hoosiers were ready to step up and answer the call of their nation.

Indiana’s soldiers and civilians quickly mobilized for war. Organizations both public and private adapted to meet the demands of war. Many Indiana companies, such as the Studebaker Corporation, placed their factories “at the disposal of the government.” In the case of Studebaker, they converted half of their plant capacity to the production of military equipment including artillery and supply chassis and wagons. The Eli Lilly Pharmaceutical Company offered $25,000 in funding for medical equipment to form Base Hospital 32, which would be comprised primarily of personnel from Indiana and would treat almost 9,700 patients in France throughout the war. Local newspapers and businesses encouraged the citizenry to purchase war bonds, to conserve supplies, and to otherwise support the war effort. Throughout the state, Hoosiers quickly got to work.

Enlisted Hoosiers went overseas with the first units to land on European soil. Among them, Sergeant Alex Arch of South Bend, Indiana was credited with having fired the first shot of the war for the United States, pulling the lanyard to fire the first American artillery shell towards German lines. As well as the first strike, the first blow was received by Indiana as well. The first three American casualties of the war included young Corporal James Gresham of Evansville, Indiana who died in hand to hand combat while repelling a German trench raid near Bathelemont in France. Hoosiers such as these cemented the state’s legacy as among the first to strike at the enemy and the first to make the ultimate sacrifice for their country.

As the first of the American Expeditionary Forces were arriving in France, the Indiana National Guard was quickly mobilizing. Units from the Indiana and Kentucky National Guards would form the 38th Division and the 84th “Lincoln” Division would be comprised of guard units from Indiana, Kentucky, and Illinois. In addition, the famed 150th artillery regiment, which had gained a fierce reputation in the Civil War under the command of Captain Eli Lilly, was selected as one of the handpicked units to make up the 42nd “Rainbow” Division. This division would see some of the most intense fighting of the war. The 150th Field Artillery, under the capable leadership of Colonel Robert Tyndall, would take part in six major engagements throughout the war. The first day of draft registration, June 05, 1917, passed without incident in Indiana. During that first period, over 260,000 Hoosiers came forward to register. Over 400,000 more had registered by the war’s end.

Throughout the war, Hoosier men and women would time and time again prove their unwavering courage and loyalty to their country in spite of the many faces of adversity. Lieutenant Aaron Fisher of Lyle’s Station, Indiana would become the most highly decorated African American soldier from Indiana during the war for his extraordinary courage and level-headed leadership in the face of overwhelming odds.

Fisher received the Distinguished Service Cross and the French Croix de Guerre for refusing to retreat or surrender even while his unit was vastly outnumbered. Despite being wounded, Fisher continued to direct his troops amidst the chaos until finally reinforcements arrived and the German force was repelled. Lieutenant Samuel Woodfill would become a national hero when he single handedly incapacitated three German machine gun nests and earned the nation’s highest military award, the Medal of Honor as well as military honors from several European nations. While suffering the effects of mustard gas exposure, Woodfill captured three of the gunners and finish off the rest in intense close-quarters combat where he was eventually forced to wield a trench pick as a combat weapon. At home, citizens continued to support the war effort through the Red Cross and Salvation Army, raising funds and sending supplies to the troops entrenched on the other side of the Atlantic. Women filled the jobs left empty by those men that had departed for the front, eager to serve their country. Among them was Opha Johnson of Kokomo who was the first woman to enlist in the Marine Corps. She took over clerical work in the quartermaster department and was promoted to the rank of Sergeant by the war’s end. This names only a few of the many outstanding Hoosiers who contributed to war effort, most of whom would not receive such recognition but who, beyond a doubt, contributed to the nation’s war effort, both overseas and at home.

Over 135,000 Hoosiers would serve their country throughout the war. Of this number, more than 3,000 would make the ultimate sacrifice. The countless number of Hoosier soldiers, nurses, and civilians who were there to proudly serve and sacrifice for their nation, deserve more recognition than they have or could receive. They had demonstrated their commitment to the ideals of the United States and proven that, whenever their nation needed them, the men and women of Indiana would be there to answer to answer the call.

INDIANA DIVISIONS DURING WORLD WAR I
38th Infantry Division

The 38th Division was comprised of the National Guard units from Indiana and Kentucky, and was formed in August of 1917. The division was trained at Camp Shelby, Mississippi and arrived in France in October of 1918. While the unit did not see combat, most of those in the Cyclone Division were transferred as replacements into units fighting on the front line.

42nd (Rainbow) Division

The 42nd Division was comprised of units from 26 states and was activated in August of 1917.   Due to the rush to mobilize as America entered World War I, many individual states vied for the distinction of being the first to send their national guards into Europe. To curb the negative impact of such competition, the 42nd (Rainbow) Division was born of handpicked units from these 26 states and the District of Columbia. This included the 150th Field Artillery Regiment of the Indiana National Guard. The Rainbow Division arrived in France in November of 1917, heading to the front line in March 1918. The Division took part in six major campaigns throughout the war campaigns, spending almost half of a year on the front lines in regular contact with enemy forces.

84th Infantry Division

The 84th Division was often referred to as the “Lincoln” division as it was made up of units from the “Lincoln States”: Kentucky, Illinois, and Indiana. Activated in August of 1917, the Lincoln Division was trained at Camp Taylor in Kentucky and during the war operated near Neuvic in France. Apart from supply service, they were serving as a training formation to train replacements for the Western Front. Before the division saw combat, the war ended with the signing of the armistice on November 11, 1918.