Today in History:

204 Series I Volume XLV-I Serial 93 - Franklin - Nashville Part I

Page 204 KY., SW. VA., TENN., MISS., ALA., AND N. GA. Chapter LVII.

about 400 yards, where we were halted and ordered by you to throw up works, which we did. At this point I had 1 officer and 1 man killed by a solid shot, First Lieutenant Hugh A. Hedger, commanding Company I (a brave and gallant young officer), and C. B. Thompson, private, Company I. At about 4 p. m., in obedience to your instructions, I got my regiment ready for a charge upon the enemy's works, which were about 600 yards off across a cornfield. A few minutes after the Forty-fifth jumped their works with a yell (the signal for my moving) and away we went; every man, it seemed, tried to get the lead. In about three minutes from the time of leaving our works we entered the rebel works, the rebels-what we did not capture-flying in every direction before us. My colors were the first planted upon the four guns captured by the brigade, though the Ninety-sixth Illinois and Forty-fifth Ohio deserve as much credit each for the capture as my regiment. Just in rear of the works I halted my regiment and reformed them, and then moved forward, by your instructions, in pursuit of the rebels, but failed to get up with them before dark, when we went into bivouac.

My officers and men acted with great coolness and bravery, as they have always heretofore done while engaged with the enemy. In the charge I lost 3 men slightly wounded, Corpl. W. S. McMeekin, Company E; J. N. Owens, private Company C, and D. N. Morton, private, Company F. The reason why I had so few men hurt was because the rebels fired almost entirely above us.

I cannot close my report without mentioning the gallantry with which the Forty-fifth Ohio and Ninety-sixth Illinois moved in the charge; they are both excellent regiments. In the pursuit of Hood's army so far my regiment has not been engaged.

Very respectfully, your obedient servant,

JAS. C. EVANS,

Lieutenant-Colonel, Commanding Regiment.

Captain H. F. TEMPLE,

Actg. Asst. Adjt. General, 2nd Brigadier, 1st Div., 4th Army Corps.


Numbers 26. Report of Lieutenant Colonel George W. Northup, Twenty-third Kentucky Infantry, of operations December 15-16, 1864.


HEADQUARTERS TWENTY-THIRD KENTUCKY INFANTRY,
In the Field, Tenn., December 18, 1864.

CAPTAIN: I have the honor to report the following as the operations of my command during the late engagements in front of Nashville:

My regiment moved from its camp near Nashville on the morning of the 15th instant, at 8 a. m., following the Fifty-first Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and reached the Hillsborough pike at 9 a. m. We remained here nearly an hour, when we again moved and went into position in front of the works. Here we remained for a short time, when we advanced to the front and halted behind Battery G, First Ohio Light Artillery. It will be useless for me to attempt to give the different movements of the regiment on the 15th, as we were almost constantly in motion, and suffice it to say that we bivouacked for the night near the Granny White pike. On the morning of the 16th we moved at daylight and formed a line on the left of Granny White pike and parallel with it, the Twenty-third on the left of the second line. I remained here for a short time,


Page 204 KY., SW. VA., TENN., MISS., ALA., AND N. GA. Chapter LVII.