Best Soldier in Bragg’s Army: Alfred Jackson Worsham of the 41st Mississippi

Comparisons of who was the best soldier in either army during the Civil War have long served as conversational fodder for many an armchair historian, but Captain James Kincannon of the 41st Mississippi staked such a claim for one of his soldiers, Alfred J. Worsham.

Worsham as he was called was hardly an imposing physical specimen: “He was box-ankled, knock-kneed, angular, and disjointed all over. He could not stand up straight and was never in line in the company’s formation during the entire term of his service. His energy was wonderful, his will indomitable, his courage superb, and his powers of endurance supernatural. He was never on the sick list, was always at roll call, never shirked any duty, and did more extra service than all the rest of the brigade put together. He was never idle, slept but little, and was always ready to volunteer for any hazardous work that was wanted. He was truly a wonderful man and seemed to have been made purposely for the place which he filled in the army.”

Captain Kincannon’s description of this extraordinary character first saw print in the May 20, 1905, edition of the Macon Beacon; just a few months later Kincannon died at the age of 77 years old.

 

We'll never know whether this soldier was Alfred Jackson Worsham of the 41st Mississippi but the "Victory or Death" slogan seems like it would have fit this extraordinary character. 

          The best soldier that ever buckled on the armor of a holy cause was Alfred Jackson Worsham of Co. D, 41st Mississippi Infantry. This is saying a heap for a single soldier, for every man of that glorious band of heroes was a true and loyal soldier and did his duty well and nobly. But “Worsham” as he was known all through the brigade to which the 41st Mississippi was attached, did a great deal more than his duty.

          He was a man of unique character and was endowed with a physical constitution that was as tough as a post oak and with a mental organism and general personality that was sui generis. There was never but one Worsham. Without intending it, he could do more things to attract the attention of everybody in reach of his performances than any man who ever lived. He was entirely original in everything and had as many peculiarities as were ever compressed in mortal form.

He was not large of stature and his limbs seemed to have been articulated by Dame Nature when she was in a dreamy mood. In putting all his parts together, Nature seemed to be trying to create a masculine curio and she certainly succeeded. He was box-ankled, knock-kneed, angular, and disjointed all over. He could not stand up straight and was never in line in the company’s formation during the entire term of his service.

His energy was wonderful, his will indomitable, his courage superb, and his powers of endurance supernatural. He was never on the sick list, was always at roll call, never shirked any duty, and did more extra service than all the rest of the brigade put together. He was never idle, slept but little, and was always ready to volunteer for any hazardous work that was wanted. He was truly a wonderful man and seemed to have been made purposely for the place which he filled in the army. From the day the company was organized, Worsham became the “pack horse” of it and during every day of his service he carried a load that would have made any other man either desert of commit suicide. But he carried it by choice and never dreamed of adopting either of these alternatives to escape it.

From the outset, Worsham was chosen as the “head of his mess.” This meant he was chief cook and bottle washer. Joe Stokes, John Hodges, Joe Rogers, John Menees, Jimmy Jones, John L. Jones, Joe Nuckles, and Worsham made up the mess. Over it Worsham presided from the beginning and through all its changes of members, he held his place to the entire satisfaction of all. He drew the rations, cooked and washed the dishes of the boys, all of which they let him do willingly because he liked the job.

When the regiment was formed in April 1862, Worsham was “promoted” to the place of company “commissary” which he accepted but held on to his place as head of the mess. He liked the place and kept it until he was disabled and had to leave the army. As company commissary, he was always at his post and never failed to get his full share of the best that was to be had. There was never a complaint against him and nobody every tried to oust him.

In addition to these important positions, Worsham became the barber, first for the company and then for the regiment. He was so successful in this place that the brigade adopted him and finally the division. Many of the higher ranking officers patronized him and he became famous throughout the army as a barber. He kept his scissors and razors sharp and his brush and soap always clean. In this place he did much good and filled a great need in the army. In addition to these places, he became a kind of sutler and carried tobacco for sale. As quartermaster, I allowed him to put his tobacco in John Stewart’s wagon and hauled it for him. Sometimes he had as much as 100 pounds. He always had a plug or two in his knapsack for sale. He also carried a camp stool and his barber’s outfit and was always ready to shave a customer night or day.

I remember that at Camp Moccasin opposite Chattanooga when Bragg’s army was starting on the Kentucky campaign, the 41st Mississippi was brigaded with the 25th Louisiana. In that regiment were the “Tigers,” a company made up of stevedores and wharf rats from New Orleans. They nearly stole our regiment out of cooking utensils. Worsham carried the skillet and frying pan of his mess about him and slept with them near him to keep the Tigers from getting them. With his blanket across his shoulder, his camp stool, canteen, haversack, and frying pan, he looked more like a camel than a man.

          In battle Worsham was conspicuously alert and daring. He never quailed under the most terrific fire. At Perryville, he fired 72 shots and his gun became so hot that he could not load it. In trying to do so, he pushed the ramrod deep in the palm of his hand. He did not mind the pain but kept on fighting. When we had fallen back to Knoxville, he brought me a certificate written in red ink covering a whole page of foolscap paper, narrating his exploits in the battle and asked me to sign it. I declined to do so on the ground that such a certificate would be invidious. He then carried it to Lieutenant [Robert E.V.] Yates who declined on the same plea. One of the boys asked Worsham what he wanted with it. “I want to have it framed and hung up in my home so that my boy can see it, and when some coward who went after water and did not come back till after the battle was over says his father did not do his full duty in that fight, he can point to it and tell him that he is a liar,” Worsham replied. This closed the interview.

The 41st Mississippi, part of General James Chalmers all-Mississippi brigade, took part in the first assault on the Federal position at the Round Forest on the morning of December 31, 1862. Worsham sustained the wound that ended his war that morning. 

          At the Battle of Murfreesboro, Worsham’s left arm between the elbow and the wrist was broken by a Minie ball. The bone pierced its way through the flesh and showed through the skin. Bragg retreated from his position the next night. It was raining heavily and we had to find our way through pitchy darkness. My train had been cut in two by another at a crossing of two roads and everything was in confusion. I was giving orders trying to get out of the disorder.

To my great surprise, I heard Worsham calling me. He recognized my voice and I knew his. He came close to the side of my horse and told me his condition. I could only see the outline of his form. I made him get into one of the wagons and carried him on to Shelbyville which place we reached at daylight the next morning. Captain [William Baldwin] Augustus will recall this terrible night and how we, drenched with rain, awakened an old Negro and his wife and jumped into their bed for a little nap.

When I could do so, I examined Worsham’s arm which he had bound up with an old piece of tent cloth. I tried to get him to go to the hospital but he would not do so. He prevailed upon me to get Dr. [John S.] Cain, the surgeon, to send him home which he did. He never had anything done for his wound but doctored it himself. It got well but was useless thereafter and he was never fit for service again.

Worsham was an enigma. In his dealings with men, he was brusque, suspicious, and wary. He had but few friends but to these he was loyal and devoted. I chanced to be one of these and always found him true as steel. There is much more I could write of this strange genius. I regarded him as the best soldier in Bragg’s army. If Stonewall Jackson and Forrest had 100,000 men like him, the Confederacy would have gained its independence. I know nothing of Worsham’s posterity. If any of them should read this, they would do me a favor if they would write to me.

J.K.


To read another account of Chalmers' brigade at Murfreesboro, please check out "Old Blucher Thompson Charges the Round Forest" or the Battle of Stones River page to access the more than 100+ blog posts I've written about the campaign. And be sure to pick up a copy of my award-winning campaign study Hell by the Acre available now through Savas Beatie. 

Source:

War Reminiscences by Captain James Kincannon, Co. D, 41st Mississippi Infantry, Macon Beacon (Mississippi), May 20, 1905, pg. 2

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 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

Arming the Union: Federal Contract Model 1861 Springfield Rifle Muskets

Image
A t the outset of the Civil War, the Federal government ran into a serious issue when the Confederacy occupied Harper’s Ferry, Virginia, the home of one of the nation’s two armories, and carted the gun making equipment off to Richmond, Virginia. This left just the Springfield Armory in Springfield, Massachusetts as the sole government-operated entity to produce longarms for the Union army.           But it quickly became apparent that production at Springfield would have to be supplemented, so the War Department pursued two tracks to increase the weapons supply. Agents were dispatched to Europe to purchase suitable weapons from England, France, Austria, Belgium, and Prussia. Over time, these agents acquired hundreds of thousands of European arms of different designs and origins that equipped Federal regiments in the first years of the war.           In the meantime, operations at the Springfiel...
Read more

Cotton Burning on the Levee: A Civilian Witnesses the Federal Seizure of New Orleans

Image
F or one Ohio-born resident of New Orleans, the arrival of Admiral David Farragut’s fleet on April 25, 1862, marked a day of liberation. “Yesterday about half past 1 o’clock, the cry was raised that the Yankees were upon us,” wrote Louis M. Beyers in a letter to his mother. “I started toward the levee where the Federal vessels were said to be lying. Reaching the river, what a sight breaks upon my view. The steamboat William Morrison was one mass of flames. All the shipping was sending forth the most dense black smoke. The Mississippi , a ram which was nearly finished and which, if completed, would have demolished the whole fleet in one hour, floating slowly by with the smoke issuing from every opening and several other important like vessels in various parts of the river, all showing that the torch has been applied to them.” “Together with the thunder which came peal after peal gave a scene of the utmost grandeur. There proudly floating in the smoke and rain were the glorious old ...
Read more

With the U.S. Christian Commission at Gettysburg

Image
U pon arriving at Gettysburg on Friday, July 10, 1863 with a U.S. Christian Commission delegation from Philadelphia, Reverend W.D. Siegfried’s first task was to escort a mother to find her son’s grave on the battlefield. “We had some little idea of the locality of it given by a comrade of the fallen soldier,” he noted. “After traveling on foot over the battlefield some 6 miles, we came upon a cluster of graves of men from the 72 nd Pennsylvania regiment which suffered terribly. The undaunted mother stood weeping while I read the names of those buried there, marked on rough boards placed at the head of the grave. At last, the name of her son met my eye. I could scarcely pronounce it. But when she heard it- oh, what an expression of grief!” Reverend Siegfried would spend the rest of the day assisting at the 11 th Corps hospital and recorded his impressions of aftermath of Gettysburg in this extraordinary letter which first appeared in the July 18, 1863, edition of the Zanesville Da...
Read more

Death at the Edge of the Cedars: An Account from the 29th Mississippi

Image
F iling this one under the category of "I wish I had this when I wrote Hell by the Acre ..."       Writing nearly 50 years after the Battle of Stones River, Private Edward A. Smith of Co. A, 29th Mississippi recalled the intensity of the fighting as his regiment approached the northern end of the cedar forest around midday on December 31, 1862.       "Our brigade  had driven the Federals slowly but steadily through what is known in the history of the battle as the cedar grove. When the Federals reached the back side, they found a field 500 yards wife which, with the leaden hail we were throwing at them, they knew it was death to cross. Their officers got them halted and they turned on us with the fierceness of a lion at bay.  They had no idea of going further and we had an idea that they must go further and there we stood 125 yards apart belching death at each other with all our might. In the meantime, Lieutenant Wilkins called my attent...
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

Hallowed So Much My Throat was Sore: Victory Atop Missionary Ridge with the 2nd Ohio

Image
P ositioned on the far right of the Union assault on Missionary Ridge, Private William Van Horne of the 2nd Ohio described the elation of victory as the men of his brigade overwhelmed the Confederate line with but slight loss.     " I do not think that I ever heard as much noise in my life as there was that night," Van Horne wrote to his parents. "We cheered every general and everybody else. I do not believe I felt in better spirits that I ever did before and hallowed so much that my throat was sore and I believe everyone else’s was the same. Our regiment only lost one or two men wounded. I do not know how so many of us escaped for the bullets were flying so thick that you could almost see them. There was almost no end of shells flying all around us but striking very few."     During the Chattanooga campaign, the 2nd Ohio was Under General William P. Carlin's command of the First Brigade, First Division, 14th Army Corps. Following the losses at Chickamauga, the ...
Read more