A Victim of General Judah's Ambitions: With the 80th Indiana at Resaca

Ordered to charge the Rebel works at Resaca in advance of the rest of the army, one Hoosier serving in General Henry Judah’s division recalled the horrors he experienced in that ill-fated charge.

          “Now just think about the dozens of cannons playing on this small squad with solid shot, shells, grape, and canister until the air was thick; solid shots flying through the dead treetops and cutting off the limbs which fell and killed or wounded many men,” Corporal William Bicknell of the 80th Indiana recalled in 1889. “Now while this was going on, just think of the thousands of rifles that were shooting at us as fast as they could load and shoot, almost as thick as any hailstorm you ever witnessed. We faced this storm a distance of about 30-35 rods when we came to a creek with opposite banks so steep we could not get up except by helping one another. This was so slow that the enemy shot us down as fast as we could reach the top.”

          Bicknell soon was struck in the arm by a Minie ball which fractured the bone. Scrambling across a field under enemy fire, he eventually made it to safety before collapsing from loss a blood. A few days later, he came across the author of his sorrows lying in a tent near Resaca Station. “Out from the station a little way was a tent and I heard someone seemingly in distress. I walked out to see what the trouble was in that tent and there I found General Judah dying, as it looked to me, with drunken tremens. I have never heard of him from that day to this. I hope he is in heaven but have my doubts about that,” Bicknell concluded.

          Corporal Bicknell’s account of Resaca first saw publication in the May 17, 1889, edition of the Vincennes Commercial.

 

Brigadier General Henry Judah commanding the Second Division of the 23rd Army Corps rashly ordered his division to charge ahead of the rest of the army at Resaca with disastrous results. Judah's brigade commanders lambasted the West Pointer for his rashness and one soldier called it simply an "insane useless charge ordered by an intoxicated commander." Judah would be relieved from divisional commander shortly thereafter for "incompetency displayed in handling his division" and would never again hold field command. He remained in the Regular Army on garrison duty and died in 1866 in Plattsburgh, New York. 

          About 8 or 9 o’clock p.m. on May 13, 1864, the 23rd Army Corps formed its lines in front of Resaca, Georgia with orders to keep cartridge boxes girded on, stay close to the guns, cook the coffee, get as much rest as possible during the night for on the morrow we must storm the forts of Resaca. Being very tired after two days and one night of hard marching, we felt the need for a good strong cup of coffee and a good sound nap. But well do I remember that most of our comrades sat up all night, talking over things of the past, of our dear homes and loved ones whom, perhaps, we would never meet again, and so the night passed.

          On the morning of May 14, taps was given about 3 o’clock so you see we had a very short night’s rest. Soon we were all up, cooked our coffee, ate our hardtack and bacon, and were in line of battle by 4 a.m. We stood there in line until 8 o 9 o’clock listening to the hard skirmishing and continual booming of the cannons. At about 9 o’clock, we had orders to advance. We took arms and advanced about one and a half miles and then came to a halt. We were now about three-quarters of a mile from Resaca and any further advance would bring on an engagement for our skirmishers were fairly into it by this time.

          The general order was that the whole army would move forward at 1 o’clock, the 23rd Corps fronting the strong works of Resaca with the Second Division in the center, the Second Brigade in front, with my regiment the 80th Indiana in the lead. Brigadier General Henry Judah was in command of our division and unfortunately for the division, he was on a big drunk and not waiting for the hour of the general order to advance, he rushed his division forward about one-half hour ahead of orders. Consequently, about two-thirds of the division was killed or wounded.

          When General Judah ordered his division to advance, we went into a heavy forest of pines. And well do I remember that the undergrowth of pine principally was so thick that we could hardly get through in many places. This continued without about 40 rods of the Resaca forts. At this point, the order to charge was given. We raised the yell and rushed into an open field of newly cleared land with a great many dead trees standing. It must not be forgotten that none of the army was moving except the Second Division of the 23rd Army Corps. I remember the 80th Indiana in front leading on only about 500 men again an enemy well-fortified with nothing to attract their attention but this small squad of soldiers advancing on them.

          Now just think about the dozens of cannons playing on this small squad with solid shot, shells, grape, and canister until the air was thick; solid shots flying through the dead treetops and cutting off the limbs which fell and killed or wounded many men. Now while this was going on, just think of the thousands of rifles that were shooting at us as fast as they could load and shoot, almost as thick as any hailstorm you ever witnessed. We faced this storm a distance of about 30-35 rods when we came to a creek with opposite banks so steep we could not get up except by helping one another. This was so slow that the enemy shot us down as fast as we could reach the top.

          Then we were ordered to halt and lie down. Every man tried to get shelter under the banks and the writer was one to be left out. The water in this creek was from ankle-deep to crotch-deep and almost as cold as ice water. Looking back just a few steps I saw a small log and the boys falling down and putting their heads against this small log, I did so, too. This log lay off the ground about three or four inches. The writer had not lain there long until a Minie ball struck the lower side of the log, glanced under, went through my right forearm, breaking it. I felt the sting but lay still for some time before I knew I was shot.

I began to get sick and faint and made an effort to move then discovered I was wounded with a broken arm and bleeding profusely. I thought to change my position and looking to my left I decided I could get in under the bank with the boys. I rose up at once and walked over that way but one of our captains said, “Bicknell, don’t come here. There’s no room.” I looked to the rear and saw a large log about 200 yards back and made up my mind to go back to it. I reached it only to find it piled to the top with men. I concluded I would go off the field some 20 rods more where I could get shelter and be safe.

It was a desperate resolve to go off the battlefield alone with thousands of men to shoot at me. I could feel the air of Minie balls on both sides of my face almost hitting me. Solid shots fell all around me and before I got over the hill the Rebels raised a yell and I guess every Rebel shot at me and nearly every cannon. They seemed determined to get me but failed. When I reached the turn of the hill where I knew I would be safe, I felt that I was almost given out. It was now about 4 p.m. Looking away down in the woods, I saw what I thought would be a nice place to stop and rest, but I don’t remember ever getting there for at about this time I lost consciousness. The first thing I remembered was some of my comrades putting me on a bier to carry me back to an ambulance to send me to the field hospital, a large barn where the army surgeons and doctors attended to the wants of the suffering as fast as they could. I lay there until about 2 o’clock the next day before my arm had any attention.

Brigadier General Nathaniel C. McLean of Ohio commanded the First Brigade of Judah's division to which the 80th Indiana was assigned during the opening phases of the Atlanta campaign. 

Let us now turn back to the regiment on the morning of the 15th. Our noble and kind-hearted Colonel Alfred Dale Owen came to the field hospital looking after his dead and wounded boys. Well do I remember seeing that noble-hearted man sit down with us and sob aloud like his very heart was broken, telling us that on the night before when he got his regiment out that altogether he only had about 75 men to stack arms. The 80th Indiana went into the battle with about 450 men and came out with 75 to stack arms. Two-thirds of the missing were either dead or wounded.

General Judah was put under attest and was to be court-martialed but I think he died a short time after the battle with delirium tremens. As I remember a few days afterwards, they moved the wounded over to Resaca Station to ship us north. Out from the station a little way was a tent and I heard someone seemingly in distress. I walked out to see what the trouble was in that tent and there I found General Judah dying, as it looked to me, with drunken tremens. I have never heard of him from that day to this. I hope he is in heaven but have my doubts about that.

The wounded were shipped back as far as Louisville, Kentucky where we were put around to the different hospitals for treatment. For the want of attention while being shipped back, my wound took the erysipelas and for two months it looked like a slim chance to save my arm. But it finally got well and is much better than no arm at all.

To read an account of the Confederates that Bicknell and his comrades fought at Resaca, check out "Harvest Time at Resaca with the Orphan Brigade." 

Source:

“Charge at Resaca: The Experience of W.S. Bicknell in that Hard Fight,” Corporal William S. Bicknell, Co. C, 80th Indiana Volunteer Infantry, Vincennes Commercial (Indiana), May 17, 1889, pg. 6

Comments

Post a Comment

Most Popular Posts

Arming the Buckeyes: Longarms of the Ohio Infantry Regiments

Image
     A common question that comes up in conversation about Civil War Buckeye regiments is "What were they armed with?" We are fortunate in that the state of Ohio kept good records of how the regiments were armed when they went into service, this being especially true for those regiments which went into service in 1861 and 1862. The state adjutant general's reports for 1861 and 1862 have been heavily drawn upon to construct this article, as well as consultation with Phil Spaugy who has done extensive research on how Ohio's troops were armed during the war.      Buckeyes carried a fairly wide variety of weapons into the field, and the below article breaks this down into weapons of both domestic manufacture and imported arms. The early days of the war found the state of Ohio practically bereft of longarms; as an example, when the 1st and 2nd Ohio Volunteer Militia left the state in late April 1861, they left unarmed, being armed at Lancaster, Pennsylvania on t...
Read more

Bullets for the Union: Manufacturing Small Arms Ammunition During the Civil War

Image
       Civil War bullets are perhaps the most common item collected from the era; the two armies expended bullets by the millions during the four years’ conflict and spent or deformed bullets of all shapes and sizes have made fascinating and affordable collectibles since the guns went silent in 1865.       I recently acquired a display piece featuring 35 different types of small arms ammunition used during the Civil War, including everything from a small .28 caliber ball up to a .69 caliber three-ring Minie and it triggered some questions: how did the Federal army obtain its small arms ammunition during the war? Where did the lead come from to make the bullets, and where and how was the ammunition manufactured? This post seeks to answer those questions. A typical .58 caliber 3-ring Minie bullet   “Whenever the blasts of war blow in the ears of men who trade in the implements of destruction, they are apt to experience more joy than the true ...
Read more

Dressing the Rebels: How to Dye Butternut Jeans Cloth

Image
     In the early days of the Civil War,  the Southern states found themselves with an abundance of cotton but a shortage of cloth with which to make army uniforms. The trade in cloth prior to the war had largely been to send raw cotton or wool north to New England (or Great Britain) where it was converted into usable cloth; but now that trade was broken and the Southern states were thrown upon their own resources in their efforts to properly clothe the Confederate army.  This collection of Confederate enlisted men's frock coats and shell jackets gives some indication of the variety of shades of butternut worn during the war. All of them are shades of yellow brown, some heavier on the yellow and some heavier on the brown. The blue used around the collar or as rank insignia indicates that the soldier was in the infantry. Surviving Confederate uniforms are considered rather rare and command quite a healthy price in the collecting market. For an in-depth study of h...
Read more

The Wizard of Oz and the Civil War

Image
T he 1939 film The Wizard of Oz has delighted viewers for 85 years and ranks as a personal favorite, especially during the Halloween season. While watching it with the family the other night, I wondered if there were any connections between the film and the Civil War. Not surprisingly, the answer is yes and those connections touch both the blue and the gray.           Interestingly both “witches” in the film not only had Civil War ancestors but had connections with Civil War soldiers from Ohio. Margaret Hamilton, the “Wicked Witch of the West,” was born in Cleveland, Ohio on December 9, 1902, to attorney Walter Jones Hamilton and his wife Mary Jane Adams; Margaret’s grandfather was Judge Edwin Timothy Hamilton. Judge Hamilton had served as a private in Co. D of the 84 th Ohio Infantry during the summer of 1862. The 84 th Ohio, a three months’ regiment, served nearly the whole of its service attached to the Railroad District in western Ma...
Read more

The Vaunted Enfield Rifle Musket

Image
     The English-made Model 1853 .577 caliber Enfield Rifle Musket was widely regarded as the best infantry arm in the world at the outbreak of the Civil War in April 1861. Favorable international press describing its efficiency in the Crimean War and in suppressing the Indian rebellion led to the widespread desire of American infantrymen (both Federal and Confederate) to be armed with these accurate and well-made arms. The lock plate of this well-worn P1853 Enfield rifle musket produced in 1862 shows the typical markings of a British-made weapon that made it through the Federal blockade.  ( Army of Tennessee Relics ) Enfield-pattern weapons were imported into the states by the tens and hundreds of thousands during the war years; one estimate stated that the Federal government purchased 500,000 while the Confederates purchased another 400,000. The Confederate government dispatched Captain Caleb Huse to Europe in April 1861 to purchase weapons and Huse focused on se...
Read more

In front of Atlanta with the 68th Ohio

Image
  The arrow corps badge of the 17th Army Corps was worn by many members of the 68th Ohio in the latter days of the war.       Private Edward A. Bigelow of Co. F of the 68th Ohio Volunteer Infantry wrote this brief account of the Battle of Atlanta just two days afterwards to his father back home in Henry County, Ohio. The regiment formed a part of Colonel Robert K. Scott's three regiment all-Ohio brigade consisting of the 20th, 68th, and 78th regiments, being designated the Second Brigade of the Third Division of Frank Blair's 17th Army Corps. Bigelow's letter originally appeared in the Napoleon Press newspaper and was copied in the Toledo Daily Commercial which was providential as no known copies exist today of the wartime Napoleon Press.  
Read more

Charging Battery Robinett: An Alabama Soldier Recalls the Vicious Fighting at Corinth

Image
W riting 30 years after the Battle of Corinth, James A. McKinstry of the 42 nd Alabama recalled his experiences storming Battery Robinett with Colonel William P. Rogers of the 2 nd Texas and expressed guilt that it was perhaps his action that brought about the colonel’s demise. “On seeing a line of Federals approaching, and before giving the situation a thought, I immediately raised my gun and fired full into the breast of a Federal sergeant, who was in front of the column, and only a short distance from us.  'Twas then that Captain George Foster shouted, "Cease firing, men! cease firing!" and waved his handkerchief, then I realized the true situation. 'Twas too late! That fatal volley had been turned on our little band from the muzzles of 1,500 muskets. I was still standing just as I was when I fired my last shot, and within a few feet of Colonel Rogers, when a Minie ball went crashing through my left hip and turned me half round; another went tearing through my ...
Read more

Cook & Brother of New Orleans

Image
    The lockplate of a New Orleans-made Cook & Brother Enfield rifle produced in 1862 shows the fine craftsmanship that became the hallmark of the maker throughout the Civil War. Note the stars and bars flag at left, an emblem used on C&B's production throughout the war and the Cook & Brother, N.O. 1862 markings. Earlier production weapons at New Orleans had the flag located just above the maker's name while later weapons produced in Athens, Georgia would have a modified flag and Athens on the plate followed by the serial number.        In the spring of 1861, two English-born businessmen, Ferdinand and Francis Cook of New Orleans, perceived the need for the South to have its own domestic production of firearms and  set out to prove "that rifles could made here as well as in Yankee land or in Europe." The brothers  elected to produce copies of the British Model 1853 .577 caliber Enfield rifle as this was considered the benchmark longarm...
Read more

I Want to See a Battle: A Hoosier at Shiloh

Image
W riting in his diary, Private Manius Buchanan of the 29 th Indiana recalled the eagerness with which his regiment marched towards Savannah, Tennessee with the sounds of the battle of Shiloh ringing in their ears.           “The forced march was kept up until 2 p.m. when we were halted until 4 p.m,” he noted. “The rest was really needed, but the continual question is ‘Why are we stopped here?’ The sound of battle increased in volume and anxiety to be up and doing grows more intense. As I am weak from a late sickness, I am urged to fall to the rear; but no, in common with all, I want to see a battle and fear this will be my only chance.” The regiment would go into action the following afternoon, and of the four neighborhood boys who had enlisted together in Co. B, only Buchanan escaped unscathed. One afternoon's exposure to the horrors of battle was all it took to satisfy this Hoosier's desire to see the elephant. “I wanted to see a battl...
Read more

An Interview with Forrest in May 1864

Image
  “The noise of battle is the only music that ravishes the senses of Forrest.” I t was May 1864. Back east, the Army of Northern Virginia and the Army of the Potomac were locked in the deadly dance of the Overland Campaign while in Georgia, General William Tecumseh Sherman's army squared off against General Joseph E. Johnston and the Army of the Tennessee in the campaign for Atlanta.       Based in relatively quiet northern Mississippi, General Nathan Bedford Forrest bided his time waiting for a Federal advance from Memphis. Earlier in the month, General Samuel Sturgis led a brief campaign into Mississippi but Forrest was sure Sturgis would venture out again. In the meantime, he tried to keep his reorganized command intact despite persistent demands from his superiors that he return the absentees and deserters who inflated his ranks (nearly 1,000 in number) to their original commands.      Around this same time,  an old acquaintance from Me...
Read more