Getting a Taste of the Music of the Minies: Charging Marye's Heights with the 126th Pennsylvania

Advancing against Marye’s Heights on the afternoon of December 13, 1862, Private J. Archibald McCullough of the 126th Pennsylvania recalled the moment General Humphreys ordered his regiment to charge the Confederate line.

“We were formed in line of battle, as we supposed, to support our battery which was planted and doing good execution on the hill in front,” McCullough wrote. “Soon, however, old General Humphreys rode up to General Tyler, ordering him to charge the works in front and in the meantime an aide from General [Daniel] Butterfield came to General Humphreys saying the works should be carried at all hazards. General Humphreys took off his old hat and waving it said, “I’ll take it sir, without fail.”

“We were immediately ordered to fix bayonets, then came the sound of “attention” from the bugle, the sound which we so much dislike to hear when tired and halted on a march. Soon, this was followed by the call of “forward” when old Humphrey as we call him rode to the front commanding, “Officers to the front, charge bayonet, forward, double quick, march!” Then came the tug of war,” he stated.

          Private McCullough’s account of the Battle of Fredericksburg first appeared in the January 23, 1863, edition of the Mercersburg Journal. I’ve supplemented his account with a few quotes from a letter written by Corporal Peter Cook of the same company which appeared in the same newspaper a week earlier as well as Lt. Col. David Watson Rowe’s regimental history published in 1869.

 

Flag of the 126th Pennsylvania Volunteers courtesy of Pennsylvania Civil War Flags

Camp near Falmouth, Virginia

January 6, 1863

          Your letter of the 8th ultimo came to hand on Saturday morning December 13, 1862, when in line and ready to march across the Rappahannock to take part in the rather unpleasant drama enacted on that memorable day. I was glad to receive it- there was quite a large mail distributed in our regiment on that morning, many boys receiving perhaps their last message and blessing from friends near and dear at home.

          You have no doubt many reports in regard to the part our brigade took in the fight, some no doubt considerably exaggerated. I shall therefore attempt to keep within bounds. By the way the newspapers and official reports are disposed to give us more credit than we would have felt at liberty to claim. The truth is in the noise and confusion of battle, we could form but little idea of the danger we were in or the extent of our casualties, but our thinned ranks after the charge gave sad and unmistakable evidence of its effect on us.

          From the time we crossed the river until we marched to the field, we were exposed to some extent to the fire of the Rebel batteries, their shells whistling over us and frequently bursting in the air or striking a house nearby, but fortunately not injuring anyone, at least in our regiment. After disposing of our knapsacks, which was done by storing them in the drugstore of Williams & Co., we marched to the upper end of town nearest the battlefield and were ordered to rest on our arms to await further orders.

 

“We lay on the hill until about 4 o’clock when General Tyler rode to the head of the column and ordered us forward. We filed down the hill to the river where there was a pontoon bridge thrown across the river into the city. The Rebs opened on us with shells from their batteries on the hill back of the city, but fortunately they shot too high, the shells passing and exploding above us, making a very ugly noise.” ~Corporal Peter M. Cook, Co. C, 126th Pennsylvania

 

          The hour we spent there was one of suspense and anxiety from the terrific roar of artillery and the frequent volleys of musketry. All were able to form a very correct idea of the extent of the undertaking; all were now quite sure of taking part in it and were thus gradually prepared for the work. Yet notwithstanding, when one of those fearful shells with their peculiarly unpleasant music would pass close by, some poor fellow would involuntarily dodge and a general “chuckle” pass around, often bringing off a good joke.

          But finally the order, “Attention! Column, right face, forward, by file right, march!” came from old [General Erastus B.] Tyler and the brigade left the cover of the cross streets and filed out to the fatal field. As we marched out of town many poor fellows who had preceded us lay bleeding and lifeless on the sidewalks and streets, cut down by the sharpshooters. Here we also got a taste of the music of the Minies, although I do not think that our brigade lost any men here; I saw none fall.

Brigadier General Erastus B. Tyler

          After marching fairly out of town and crossing the race, we were marched by the right flank in close column of regiments into a low narrow meadow on the right of the road. Here we halted, protected in front by a crest which rose abruptly, under the cover of which a number of sharpshooters lay, no doubt doing good execution as I saw one fellow lame a horse fully 300 yards distant. Here we thought ourselves for a time pretty safe, but we soon discovered our mistake.

 

“Above this meadow and overshadowing it frowned the Rebel redoubts and batteries. The command was massed in this enclosure, Union and Confederate batteries playing over the heads of the men. Very soon a Rebel officer was observed to advance a section and immediately he opened on the crowded mass beneath. The shell dropped down into the throng and threw the earth and mangled bodies into the air. The men were not in line of battle, could not form in line, and were simply awaiting orders. They could only watch the battery on the height above; watch the flight of the shells into their midst, and shudder at its destruction. It was awful to stand thus and be slaughtered.” ~ Lt. Col. David Watson Rowe, Sketch of the 126th Regiment Pennsylvania Volunteers

 

A battery on our right soon opened a murderous fire on us with shells and round shot; we were at once ordered to lie down. The first shot struck in Co. A of our regiment killing and wounding several men; this was followed by another and another in quick succession. This was the most trying time we had. The boys could not stand it a long time facing certain death with no chance of retaliation, but broke ranks in some confusion seeking shelter under the cover of the hill on the left and a tannery on the right.

Two or three shots were fired after this when we were ordered to fall in, moving back across the road. It was in this meadow that Co. A suffered so severely. There was some difficulty in reforming the brigade here as the different regiments were considerably mixed up. This accounts for the absence of some in the charge. I regret very much that our regiment could not have gone into their first fight under more favorable auspices.

As it was, all did well. It would be hard to decide which company did best. Being a member of Co. C I will of course say nothing about our company except that we were all with the captain and we as a company are not ashamed of him. All are fully satisfied that he possesses the all-important qualification for a soldier, viz: “pluck.” But to return- after we moved from our first position, just when crossing the road, one of our boys (Brewer Cushwa) was wounded and J.T. Dronenburg was struck in the face with a fragment of a shell, inflicting a very slight scratch which bled profusely. It was here also that Lieutenant Fortescue was killed.

After crossing the road, we were formed in line of battle, as we supposed, to support our battery which was planted and doing good execution on the hill in front. Soon, however, old General Andrew Humphreys rode up to General Tyler, ordering him to charge the works in front and in the meantime an aide from General [Daniel] Butterfield [V Corps commander] came to General Humphreys saying the works should be carried at all hazards. General Humphreys took off his old hat and waving it said, “I’ll take it sir, without fail.”

We were immediately ordered to fix bayonets, then came the sound of “attention” from the bugle, the sound which we so much dislike to hear when tired and halted on a march. Soon, this was followed by the call of “forward” when old Humphrey as we call him rode to the front commanding, “Officers to the front, charge bayonet, forward, double quick, march!”

General Andrew A. Humphreys

Then came the tug of war. Our brave little colonel [James G. Elder] raised himself in his stirrups, saying, “Men, remember what you came here for. Remember old Franklin County and the 126th Regiment!” With a mighty cheer, the column pushed forward, no one faltering, and no one knowing what he would have to meet, but each one appearing determined to try and do his duty. On and on we swept through a perfect shower of balls and shells until we reached the board fence behind which a line of battle of our men was formed. [These men were from the 118th Pennsylvania according to Corporal Cook.]

Here our line was broken and we were thrown into some confusion and soon the firing commenced. The 134th Pennsylvania, which led the advanced, opened with the 126th following next, then the 91st [Pennsylvania] and the 129th [Pennsylvania]. The firing was soon taken up by all the regiment and for some minutes there was one continued flash from front and rear. At last, some of the lines were broken and they commenced falling back and there certainly was some little skedaddling done no matter who tries to conceal the fact, but it did not last long.

As soon as the boys got back to the rear of the battery, they rallied, expecting the Rebs to follow but they were satisfied to stay where they were. Soon after reforming, we were ordered back to town. Sergeant Brinkley and Dallas Mowen were both killed in the charge, the latter dying instantly in the front rank falling with his face to the enemy. Sergeant Brinkley walked back to town with some assistance and lived perhaps an hour. We buried him in town.

About 12 o’clock we were again ordered to the front. That was the trying time but most of the boys stood up to the mark like old soldiers. There were two boys in our company who I think are particularly deserving of credit: Sergeant O.H. Anderson and McCampbell, both of whom were sleeping in a stable when the regiment was ordered out the second time. Sergeant Anderson was suffering some from a bruise he received from a spent ball which passed through his overcoat and McCampbell was quite unwell with a very severe cold. But when the boys heard the regiment had moved out to the battlefield, they followed it up, determined to stand up to their comrades.

Lt. Col. David Watson Rowe
126th Pennsylvania

We were ordered up to within 60 yards of the Rebel rifle pits to the left of where we had made the charge. Here we lay for perhaps an hour, fully expecting to lie there until the ball opened in the morning. It is a fact that although expecting to go into the fight at any moment and surrounded by the dead and wounded, many of the boys slept soundly. We were next ordered back to the position we held before the charge where we lay until morning. Then we were ordered back to town and lay all day Sunday and until Monday morning in a graveyard, eating and sleeping among the tombs.

On Monday morning we were ordered out to form a line on the sidewalk in front of the graveyard and under cover of the stone wall spent the day. It was expected the town would be shelled; sometimes the shells came very close but no one in our brigade was injured by them. One burst near some of our boys and a ball struck Corporal J.O. Parker, passing through his pants and inflicting a slight wound, slightly bruising his leg.

After dark, we were ordered back to the graveyard, as we supposed, for the night. But we did not remain long, being soon ordered to fall in and move out upon the street. We supposed we were to go on picket but I think it was only a feint. The Pioneers were ordered to the front to throw up earthworks and place obstructions in the streets. This was done to make a show of resistance and to give us as much time as possible to skedaddle.

Here we remained until about 1 o’clock Tuesday morning, sleeping on our arms. We were then ordered on picket about one and a half or two miles to the left of the town, which was the most exposed position we had during the whole siege. Part of our line was only about 40 yards from the Rebel line. We were ordered to keep a sharp lookout and if attacked to rally to the point attacked and make the strongest possible resistance.

 

“A little after dark we started out on picket and after marching about two miles we came to the outside picket line, which was the most dangerous duty we performed. The men lay flat upon the ground hiding behind anything we could find. If you raised your head a foot above the ground, whack went a ball past your head.” ~Corporal Peter M. Cook, Co. C, 126th Pennsylvania

 

Companies A, B, C, D, and E (the right wing) were on the line while the left [wing] formed the reserve. But fortunately, the Rebels did not discover our movements, the night being dark and wet and although not relieved until the break of day, we succeeded in crossing the river in safety. Our regiment was the last to cross except one company of the 91st Pennsylvania who relieved us and followed close after intending to act as skirmishers. So you see we were not only in the charge but covered the retreat of the whole force, more honor than we expected and I think something new for a new regiment. But I suppose it was granted as a special favor to the “nine-month pets.”

Although our position was not a very enviable or pleasant one whilst in town, yet the thought of turning our backs on a place to occupy which had cost the lives of so many brave boys and without accomplishing anything was truly humiliating. But under the circumstances I suppose it was the best thing that could be done and call it a defeat or what you may, I think we should not feel disposed to “give up the ship” but should “pick our flints and try it again.”

The loss of our regiment in the fight was about 100 in killed, wounded, and missing. [Officially listed as 27 killed, 50 wounded, and 3 missing, total 80] The casualties in Co. C were two killed and four wounded; we had two men missing when we came to camp but they have since been accounted for, one having been sent the hospital sick while the other (G.W. Hendricks) was taken prisoner and paroled. He is now at Annapolis.

General Humphrey reviewed our brigade on New Years’ Day. He complimented the men on their bravery at Fredericksburg and wished them a happy new year. He invited the commissioned officers to call on him in the afternoon when I presume something not included in soldiers’ rations was served up. As I did not have the all-important badge of shoulder straps, I excused myself as best I could and took coffee instead with Mess No. 1. We have been receiving some boxes from home since the holidays. There is an arrangement now made by which we can get all goods expressed to us. Our long-looked-for Testaments have at length come to hand- they are very nice.

Sources:

Letter from Private J. Archibald McCullough, Co. C, 126th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, Mercersburg Journal (Pennsylvania), January 23, 1863, pg. 1

Letter from Corporal Peter McC. Cook, Co. C, 126th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, Mercersburg Journal (Pennsylvania), January 16, 1863, pg. 1

Rowe, David Watson. A Sketch of the 126th Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteers. Chambersburg: Cook and Hays, 1869, pgs. 15-16


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