Last Fight for the Round Forest at Stones River

The last shots of the Battle of Stones River took place on the evening of Saturday, January 3, 1863, when portions of Colonel John Beatty’s and General James Spears’ Federal brigades launched an assault on Confederate positions in the Round Forest held by the 39th Alabama and 1st Louisiana Regulars of Colonel John Coltart’s brigade.

          It was a wet, miserable evening; it had rained incessantly all day and the men of both armies, exhausted by several days of the most intense combat yet seen in the western theater, were hardly in shape for a fight. Among those who shouldered his musket for this last engagement was Sergeant Henry Breidenthal of Co. A, 3rd Ohio Volunteer Infantry.

          Breidenthal drew the unlucky assignment of being in the “forlorn hope,” a group of men tasked with advancing 50-100 yards ahead of the regiment during the attack; their presence would prompt the Confederates to open fire, thus exposing their positions in the gathering darkness. “When within a short distance of the woods, the Rebel advance opened on us,” he wrote. “We returned it, fell down, loaded our pieces, waited until the regiment got within supporting distance, then got up, fired, and made for the trees yelling like Indians and loading as we ran.” 

Sergeant Breidenthal’s full account of this chaotic close to the Battle of Stones River first saw publication in the January 24, 1863, edition of the Ohio State Journal published in Columbus, Ohio. It was Breidenthal’s second letter describing the battle, a previous missive covering the campaign through the fighting on December 31st.

 

The six guns of Battery H of the 5th U.S. Light Artillery provided support to the final Federal attack at Stones River on the evening of January 3, 1863. One of those opening shots mortally wounded Lieutenant Colonel Frederick Farrar of the 1st Louisiana Regulars who had just rejoined the regiment that afternoon; Farrar's demise combined with the sudden appearance of the Federals precipitated a quick collapse of the Confederate hold on the Round Forest. 

Camp near Murfreesboro, Tennessee

January 12, 1863

Saturday, January 3rd: This morning early, our brigade was moved on the left center where each regiment threw out 30 skirmishers in advance to protect the sappers and miners who were busily engaged throwing up breastworks and rifle pits. We advanced our skirmishers to within rifle range of the Rebels and then we went to popping away at each other for an hour or two quite lively. We lost one of our men killed, Courtright of Co. I.

          About 10 a.m., we were relieved by another brigade which had arrived that morning. [General James Spears’ provisional brigade] The rain still poured down. After we got back to our old position, Colonel John Beatty, seeing we had no wood, generously gave us an old house which afforded him comfortable quarters and shared with us the storm- all honor to him. We soon razed it to the ground and very soon afterwards we had good fires all around us. I saw but little of interest during the day except, I might mention, the sending out of a flag of truce with an ambulance which caused some interest and much speculation in regard to its object. That remains a mystery to us yet. 

    [Sergeant Isaac Wark of the 1st Louisiana Regulars said this was a "Yankee trick. We were in a small strip of woods about halfway between our lines and the enemy's on picket duty. And the Yank, wishing to ascertain our positions, sent over a flag of truce to recover the body of some officer that had been killed the day before. In the ambulance that accompanied the flag was an artillery officer taking sightings as we afterwards learned to our sorrow. For as soon as the flag reached their lines they commenced shelling us at a terrible rate."] 

          In the evening, the 88th Indiana and the 3rd Ohio of our brigade (the 17th with Colonel Beatty commanding) and some Tennessee regiments were selected to carry the enemy’s breastworks, situated in a small strip of woods resting immediately on the Murfreesboro Pike something near midway between ours and the enemy’s lines.

Colonel John Beatty, 3rd O.V.I.

          After the woods had been shelled by our batteries [Battery H, 5th U.S.], we were ordered forward, the 3rd Ohio with her right resting on or near the Pike. From each company was selected five men as a ‘forlorn hope’ to go 50 or 100 yards in the advance of the regiment. One poor soul, who I never saw refuse his rations, asked to be excused as he did not think he was active enough. He forgot that he was not required to run. We formed in line in front of the column and ordered forward by Colonel Beatty’s encouraging command, ‘Forward, advance like men!’ We started but had not gotten but a few rods when I noticed a fellow from another company skulk out and start for the pile of rails. Curiosity prompted me to see who it was; I saw, and marked him.

          When within a short distance of the woods, the Rebel advance opened on us. We returned it, fell down, loaded our pieces, waited until the regiment got within supporting distance, then got up, fired, and made for the trees yelling like Indians and loading as we ran. We succeeded in securing the line of the Rebel works which consisted of hewn logs to the height of 2-1/2 to 4 feet, affording us a tolerably good protection from the enemy who was entrenched behind a similar one about 100 yards in front of us. 

    [Sergeant Isaac Wark provided this perspective. "During the shelling, a heavy line of battle advanced on us and was not discovered until within about 30 feet of us. Those that were able got up and dusted, or in military parlance, fell back to the regiments that were supporting us. When they saw us coming back, their immediately broke and ran back to the breastworks which, along with what was left of ours, held the enemy in check until the 9th and 41st Mississippi advanced when we drove the Yanks back to their breastworks."]

The 88th Indiana was on our left and some distance behind, engaged with the enemy on their front while the Tennessee regiment was firing into them. We continued our firing for about an hour when we ran out of ammunition. We sent for some, but failed to get it. We were compelled to fall back, the Rebels doing the same. Our regiment lost several killed and wounded; the loss in Co. A was C.T. Palmer wounded.

I wish to notice one little tragi-comedy that grew out of this little affair and I am done. After we arrived at the breastworks, it appears that one of our men (I withhold his name out of respect for the feelings of his wife) had become so terror-stricken as not to be able to reload his rifle which he had discharged up in the air and had fallen prone upon his back. Some of the boys thought him dead, but upon examining this, found him half alive. Captain Swayne, learning this, took his gun from him and gave it to one who needed one.

A short time after this, this lump of clay with no heart in it and more than half dead was seen to crawl away and that was the last that seen of him for several days. We supposed that he had received a shot while retreating for the next morning we received intelligence that a person answering his description had been found and buried. Some of us even went to the trouble to exhume said person but it proved to be an honest soldier. We then accounted him as among the missing. But when we got here and all was safe, who should make their appearance but said person in company with several other kindred skulks.

The 3rd Ohio marched over this field towards the camera during their nighttime assault on the Round Forest on January 3, 1863. In the distance on the right is Stones River National Cemetery while the Nashville Pike runs across the center of the picture. The 3rd Ohio marched with the right flank brushing along the pike as described by Sergeant Breidenthal. 

I have seen the face of sheep-killing dogs, but I never saw anything so expressive of conscious meanness or cowardice as their countenance exhibited to us on their return from the ‘wars.’ Sir, if there is one thing upon God’s green earth more deserving than another the loathing and sovereign contempt of mankind, that object most decidedly is a craven-spirited, perjured wretch who has been base enough to forsake their colors and comrades in battle. They should every one of them be drummed out of camp after having been branded for their infamy by having placed upon their cowardly heads, not that time-honored article of household furniture the ladies’ night cap (for I, as does every soldier, enter a solemn protest against the prostitution of that useful article to so dishonorable a purpose as being a badge of cowardice), the device of a crawfish, it being a truthful representation of the fighting qualities of those whom Shakespeare knew so well when he wrote that “He who fights and runs away, will live to fight another day.”

We returned to camp and spent a miserable night, the rain pouring down in torrents all night and raining the fires out. In the morning [Sunday, January 4], details were made from the different regiments to bury the dead; others were detailed to make a reconnaissance of the enemy. Some of our troops went into and took possession of the town. We crossed over [Stones River] on Monday and are now encamped within sight of the place. Everything has subsided and quiet reigns supreme and we can rest from our labors for the time being.

Sources:

Letter from Sergeant Henry Breidenthal, Co. A, 3rd Ohio Volunteer Infantry, Ohio State Journal (Ohio), January 24, 1863, pg. 2

Letter from Sergeant Isaac F. Wark, Co. E, 1st Louisiana Regular Infantry, Regimental Files, Stones River National Battlefield Park


To learn more about the Stones River campaign, be sure to check out my new book "Hell by the Acre: A Narrative History of the Stones River Campaign" available now from Savas Beatie.

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