Numbers 75. Report of Colonel Robert McAllister, Eleventh New Jersey Infantry, commanding First Brigade, Fourth Division, of operations My 3-13.

HDQRS. THIRD Brigadier, THIRD DIV., 2nd ARMY CORPS,
August 11, 1864.

MAJOR: In compliance with Special Orders, Numbers 209, dated headquarters Army of the Potomac, August 5, 1864, I have the honor to report the following as being the operations of the First Brigade, Fourth Division, Second Army Corps (which I had the honor to command), in the march from Brandy Station and the battle of the Wilderness, it being the

FIRST EPOCH.

The brigade was composed of nine regiments, viz, the Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, Eight, and Eleventh New Jersey Volunteers, the First and Sixteenth Massachusetts Volunteers, and the Twenty-sixth and One hundred and fifteenth Pennsylvania Volunteers, the division being under command of Brigadier-General Mott.

May 3, received orders to move out of huts late in the day; also, orders to be in readiness to move at 12 o'clock at night.

May 4, at 1 p. m. formed and moved toward Ely's Ford; arrived the at 11 a. m.; detailed Sixth and Eleventh New Jersey Volunteers for ammunition guard; reached Chancellorsville about 3 p. m., and bivouacked for the night.

May 5, resumed the march at 5 a. m. toward Todd's Tavern. On reaching the Brock road received orders to move my brigade up that road and find the junction with the Furnace road. Moved as ordered a short distance, when the order was countermanded and two regiments only allowed to go, the Fifth and Eighth New Jersey Volunteers, under command of Colonel William J. Sewell. A short halt and the brigade moved along the Brock road to a high piece of ground, halted, faced to the front, and built breast-works for about one hour, during which time I ordered out a picket on skirmish line, covering my brigade, under command of Major Moffett, Twenty-sixth Pennsylvania Volunteers, and placed them in person with one of my staff. Returning to the brigade and consulting with General Mott, commanding, thought it advisable to place Colonel Sewell in command of the skirmish line, which I did, with instructions that when we advanced he would advanced and drive in the enemy's skirmish line and move forward until they received the fire from the enemy's line of battle; then lie down, and I would pass over them with my line of battle and attack the enemy. An advance was ordered "by the right of companies to the front;" over the breast-works we went, but the dense thicket of underbrush made it impossible for the troops to keep their proper distance, so that when coming into line of battle, owing to pressure from the Sixth Corps on my right and the Excelsior Brigade on my left, there was not room to form line of battle in two ranks, which caused some little difficulty. We moved forward; the enemy's skirmishers opened on us, when I rode forward in front of line of battle and ordered the skirmish line to advance more rapidly. After moving a short distance the line of battle passed over the skirmish line and commenced firing.