Today in History:

339 Series I Volume XXXVIII-III Serial 74 - The Atlanta Campaign Part III

Page 339 Chapter L. REPORTS, ETC.-ARMY OF THE TENNESSEE.

mortally wounded, 11 enlisted men wounded, and 1 taken prisoner. From this date until the 26th we were engaged in skirmishing with the enemy and building works, during which time we lost 5 men, 1 of whom was killed. On the evening of the 26th we, in common with the brigade, started on the march for the front of Jonesborough, at which place we arrived on the evening of the 30th, and bivouacked for the night. Next morning were put in reserve, with five companies on skirmish line, under command of Captain Bowers. At 2 p. m. the enemy advanced in assaulting column, and broke our skirmish line to the left, and commenced filing up a ravine, which lay to the rear of our skirmish line, and the skirmishers were compelled to fall back upon the remaining part of the regiment still in reserve. Soon as it had become known to the general commanding brigade that the enemy were checked, he sent me orders that I should advance my skirmishers again as soon as I deemed it practicable. I immediately ordered the detail to advance, when a sharp conflict ensued, resulting in the capture of 1 colonel, 1 major, 3 lieutenants, and 25 enlisted men, besides a number of wounded, all, I believe, members of a Kentucky rebel regiment.

On the morning at 3 o'clock I received orders to advance my regiment as skirmishers, and, if possible, capture the enemy's works. At 4.20 a. m., my command having been previously deployed, I had the "Forward" sounded. The regiment advanced upon the enemy's outposts, and drove him in upon his main works. We continued the advance, the left of the line being in a dense wilderness, when the enemy opened three guns, which were intrenched and masked by the density of the forest, throwing grape. It also here was discovered that the enemy's line lay diagonally, and my line made a full left half-wheel, and advanced up to which ten paces of his intrenchments; but here we were checked, and so far outnumbered that we were forced to retire to our formed line, with a loss of 2 killed and 8 wounded. We again retired to our formed position in reserve. The next morning (the enemy having evacuated our front) I was ordered to follow the One hundred and third Illinois Infantry. At about 12 m. I was ordered to deploy the regiment as skirmishers and advance upon the enemy's outposts, something over a mile distant, where he was strongly fortified behind branches of timber, with hastily constructed earth-works. The line was put in motion and advanced, at first slowly, until it came under a heavy fire, when I pushed it forward on double-quick time, but from the nature of the ground, being in part a dense forest, and cut by ravines very difficult to cross, the advance was necessarily slow until we had crossed the last ravine and branch. When our line was perfected I again ordered a charge, and our men advanced upon the enemy's works, delivering to them a very severe fire and capturing about 20 prisoners. Then, finding that our line did not fully conform to the enemy's main lines, I swung around our right and advanced to within 150 yards of their main lines, but did not deem it prudent to remain there, as we were without protection from the main lines of the enemy, with a large space open upon our left. I then ordered the command to fall back to the position afterward occupied by the division, and moved part of the regiment by the left flank to protect the left of the line. The gallant One hundred and third Illinois Infantry, having been deployed in rear of our center, advanced in this position until we came under the fire of the enemy in the immediate front of their works, when they advanced with us very gallantly. The odds against us


Page 339 Chapter L. REPORTS, ETC.-ARMY OF THE TENNESSEE.