A Little Chicanery on the Part of Colonel Hall: The 123rd Illinois at Vaught’s Hill

Sergeant Major Rufus Haughton of the 123rd Illinois may be forgiven for terming the Federal victory during the March 20, 1863, engagement at Vaught Hill's near Milton, Tennessee as "one of the most brilliant achievements of the war." 

    The engagement pitted a small brigade under the command of Colonel Albert S. Hall against several thousand cavalrymen belonging to General John H. Morgan's cavalry command. Hall's troops had some combat experience but it was of the unnerving kind: the brigade, then under the command of General William R. Terrill, had been driven off the field during the opening moments of the Battle of Perryville. The fight at Milton gave the men of the 123rd Illinois a chance to prove themselves. 

    "The battle at Vaught’s Hill on the 20th instant has fully established our right to a place on the list of the fighting regiments of this Department," Sergeant Major Haughton stated. "And although we deeply deplore the loss of the brave and noble Van Buskirk and Privates Thompson and McGahan, killed while in the gallant discharge of their duty, we cannot but feel a proud gratification over the exhibition of desperate courage and manly bravery by the entire regiment."

    Haughton, formerly editor of the Mattoon Gazette, provided the following account of the engagement to the Gazette which published the letter in their March 28, 1863 edition. 

The six month period in early 1863 between the end of the Stones River campaign and the beginning of the Tullahoma campaign was marked by intensive cavalry operations by both the Army of the Cumberland and the Army of Tennessee. The "no-man's land" between the two armies was the scene of countless small scale clashes that sometimes swelled into a large engagement like Vaught's Hill. 


Murfreesboro, Tennessee

 March 22, 1863

 

          The Coles County regiment has had another opportunity to test its fighting qualities and right well did she acquit herself. The battle at Vaught’s Hill on the 20th instant has fully established our right to a place on the list of the fighting regiments of this Department. And although we deeply deplore the loss of the brave and noble Van Buskirk and Privates Thompson and McGahan, killed while in the gallant discharge of their duty, we cannot but feel a proud gratification over the exhibition of desperate courage and manly bravery by the entire regiment.

          On the morning of the 18th instant, the Second Brigade of Reynolds’ Division, composed of the 101st Indiana, 105th Ohio, 80th Illinois, and our regiment, or rather portions of each, with two pieces of Captain Harris’s 19th Indiana Battery, numbering about 1,200 men all under the command of Colonel Albert S. Hall of the 105th Ohio departed Murfreesboro. Colonel Hall has been in command of the brigade since the Battle of Perryville.

          We started on the trip with four days’ rations in search of the guerillas of General John Morgan. Without much incident worthy of notice, we put in the 18th and 19th skirmishing frequently with the enemy and ascertaining, much to our discomfort, about 4 o’clock on the 19th that we were only about three miles from the camp of 13 regiments, Morgan having been reinforced by the notorious ragamuffins under Wheeler who have reputations in these parts “of fighting cusses.” They set a very nice trap for us to “go in and be squeezed,” but we didn’t bite and by marching a few miles after dark we found ourselves comparatively safe.

          Taking an early start in the morning, we continued to lay down distance between the Rebels and ourselves, ascertaining very soon, however, that we were being followed by the pickets or advance guards of the enemy. About 10 o’clock, they began to show themselves in force near a little town called Milton. We afterwards learned that Morgan then halted his column and made them a speech, assuring them that we had only 1,000 fighting men (about the fact) and that he expected the work of our capture by 12 o’clock. He reminded them whenever he led his men in person it had always been a victory and assured them that the seven full regiments of mounted men comprising between 4,000-5,000 men was amply sufficient for easy success.

Colonel Albert S. Hall, 105th Ohio

          When they first made their appearance, our column was halted in a little valley about half a mile from the town and one of Captain Harris’s guns was unlimbered and commenced shelling the woods behind them with terrible effect as we subsequently learned. At the same time, three companies of the 123rd Illinois were thrown back as skirmishers. It soon became evident that they were intending to surround us and also to occupy a hill or considerable elevation in our front. Seeing this, our skirmishers were recalled and the column advanced, the rear protected by the 123rd in line of battle with a line of skirmishers covering our entire front, the whole faced to the rear and retreating slowly and steadily.

          Before we made half the distance to the hill, a heavy force on our right was thrown upon our flank and ordered to charge with the view of capturing a gun which had been punishing them severely. With great bravery and impudence, they rushed forward but at the distance of probably 200 yards, they were astonished by a scathing volley from the 80th Illinois who was secreted in line in a cedar wood. This volley broke their line and caused an indiscriminate retreat. At this volley, 15 privates and two officers were killed dead and not less than 30 or 40 men wounded.

          Having thus checked them, we were enabled to take our positions on the hill before the force on our left were ready for the attack. We had scarcely breathing time, however, when they were discovered having dismounted, four regiments advancing, occupying our front from the center clear around our left. Our skirmishers were “treed” and were ordered to waste no ammunition but reserve their fire until the enemy came up to close range, and they obeyed the command.

Colonel James Monroe
123rd Illinois

          Yet although our men who were comparatively safe literally strewed the ground with their bodies, the enemy continued to advance and succeeded in turning the flank of the 101st Indiana who had been chastising them equally as severely on our left. At this moment, Colonel James Monroe detailed three companies for their assistance by which opportune moment the 101st was enabled to rally. Here ensued a most tremendous clash of musketry and here it was that we sustained almost our entire loss.

          The Rebels, hesitating for a moment, were greeted by an exultant cheer which started them back, their retreat being hastened by the appearance of seven companies of the 80th Illinois who gave them two volleys as a parting salute. After a short lull, a brisk cannonading was inaugurated and kept up for an hour or more between our two 12-pounders and three or four guns of the Rebels, one of which was a splendid 10-pdr Parrott. This injured us not at all, but was terribly destructive on the Rebels who thought thus to hold us in check until they could recover their dead and wounded.

          The battle was summarily closed by a little chicanery on the part of Colonel Hall who ordered a very systemic and general shout or cheer from every pair of lungs in the command to indicate that reinforcements had arrived from Murfreesboro. They showed us their heels immediately. Our loss was six killed and 28 wounded being equally divided between the 101st Indiana and 123rd Illinois. The Rebel prisoners and their surgeons left at the different hospitals acknowledge a loss of over 300 killed and wounded while the Rebel citizens in Milton say that their loss will exceed 500.

          Taking into consideration our small force and the comparative strength of the enemy, as well as the prestige of Morgan’s individual presence (who, by the way, is reported wounded in the arm), this may be considered one of the most brilliant achievements of the war.

Six months later, Sergeant Major Houghton would be killed during first day of the Battle of Chickamauga. Initial reports indicated that he may have been taken prisoner, but six months after the battle, no word had been heard from him and it was decided that he must have been killed and his body buried among the unmarked graves on the field. 


To learn more about the engagement at Vaught’s Hill, please purchase a copy of Kevin McCray’s new study of the engagement entitled Without Bugle or Drum.  

Also, further discussion of Vaught's Hill please check out: 

"Thumping Morgan at Vaught's Hill"

Source:

Letter from Sergeant Major Rufus W. Houghton, 123rd Illinois Volunteer Infantry, Mattoon Gazette (Illinois), March 28, 1863, pg. 2

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