1864 (Part II)
 
 

JOB BENJAMIN AND THE BATTLE OF ATLANTA

Company C -- 76th Ohio Volunteer Infantry Regiment (Colonel William Burnam Woods) -- 1st Brigade (Colonel Milo Smith, July 15th to August 18th; General Charles Robert Woods, August 19, 1864 to April 2, 1865) -- 1st Division (Brigadier General Charles Robert Woods, July 15th to August 18th; General Peter Joseph Osterhaus, August 19th to September 24th) -- 15th Army Corps (Major General John Alexander Logan, until July 22, 1864; Brigadier General Morgan Lewis Smith, July 22nd to July 27th; General Logan again from July 27th to September 23rd) -- Army of the Tennessee (Major General James Birdseye McPherson, until his death on July 22, 1864; Major General John Logan, July 22nd to July 27th; Major General Oliver Otis Howard, after July 27th).1

        On Sunday, July 17, 1864, as General Sherman's army continued to cross the Chattahoochee River, Confederate President Jefferson Davis, urged by his military advisor General Braxton Bragg (who had commanded the Confederate loss at Chattanooga), decided that a change in leadership was needed. To stop the rebel armies from retreating any further, the President felt that a more aggressive posture was needed against the Yankees. Much to the chagrin of the rebel soldiers and much to the delight of Union General Sherman, Jefferson Davis replaced General Joe Johnston with General John Bell Hood. Hood was less cautious than Johnston, and had a "see the enemy and charge" attitude that Sherman felt would benefit the Union campaign. That is exactly what happened during the final six weeks of the Atlanta Campaign.2
        Coincidentally, July 17th also marked the beginning of the Atlanta Campaign, with all Union armies crossing the Chattahoochee River north of the city. General McPherson's Army of the Tennessee (including the 76th Ohio) was sent the farthest east, in the direction of Stone Mountain. On July 18th, all armies turned southward and crossed Peach Tree Creek. The Army of the Tennessee was now positioned seven miles east of Decatur, Georgia and four miles from Stone Mountain. As they marched astride the railroad, specially trained soldiers broke up and disabled the Confederate railroad.3 By July 20th, the 76th Ohio was in position within four miles of Atlanta.4 The Company C Muster Roll for July/August, 1864 indicated that Job Benjamin was present for duty.5
        Confederate General Hood wasted no time. On July 20th, feeling that the constant defensive maneuvering had "dulled the Confederate soldier's combative spirit," Hood ordered a counterattack against the Army of the Cumberland positioned due north of Atlanta. In what became known as the Battle of Peach Tree Creek, an uncoordinated Confederate offensive was beaten back by Union artillery and musket fire.6
        Undaunted by the loss of some 4,800 men, General Hood planned another attack for July 22nd.7-A  In what would later be known as the Battle of Atlanta, or (as the rebels called it) the Battle of Decatur, Hood's plan would send one Confederate corps, commanded by Lieutenant General William Hardee, on a wide night march to the east to get around the Union's left flank and attack the Federals at daybreak.  Once the Union's left flank began to crumble from Hardee's attack, another rebel corps, commanded by Major General Benjamin Franklin Cheatham, would attack the Union's right wing from the west.  General Hood believed that his double assault would rout the Union army and capture the Federal supply wagons that rebel scouts had found in great numbers parked in and around Decatur.7-B  He believed that his plan, which was similar to "Stonewall" Jackson's masterful plan at Chancellorsville, would prove equally effective.7-C
        It did not. Unlike Jackson's maneuver 14 months earlier, the execution left much to be desired. The night march was late to depart, some units got lost, and when they finally engaged the Federals, they realized that they hadn't gone far enough to outflank them.8 Savage fighting quickly developed between Hardee's rebel forces and Union forces commanded by Major General James McPherson.9 Tragically, McPherson, a highly respected commander and personal friend of General Sherman, accidentally rode into enemy skirmishers while surveying the Union position and was killed.10 Major General John Logan, commander of the 15th Corps, succeeded him as commander of the Army of the Tennessee.11
        Instead of outflanking the Union position, the rebels had emerged directly in front of the "Yates Sharpshooters" of the 64th Illinois.  Armed with Henry repeating rifles, the Illinois soldiers not only thwarted the initial attack, but were eventually able to mount an effective counterattack to reclaim General McPherson's body.12
        At his command post on the eastern edge of Atlanta, General Hood patiently waited for a sign that Hardee's attack has succeeded.  Sometime between 3 and 4 p.m., he finally received word that simultaneous rebel assaults had finally pierced and crumbled the Union's left wing.  Hearing the good news, Hood ordered two rebel corps, commanded by Major Generals Benjamin Franklin Cheatham and Gustavus Woodson Smith, to attack the Union positions along its right wing.13  One of these rebel brigades, commanded by Brigadier General Arthur Middleton Manigault, marched along the Atlanta to Decatur railroad, positioned itself directly in front of the 15th Corps, and attacked.14 Bearing the brunt of this rebel assault was the division of General Morgan Smith who occupied an abandoned line of rifle trenches near the railroad.15 At approximately 4 p.m., Confederate soldiers overran their positions and captured four 20-pound Parrott guns of Battery A of the 1st Illinois Artillery. In the minutes that followed, the rebel soldiers fought to hold their newly acquired gains from behind makeshift barricades of cotton bales and logs.16
        General Logan rallied his Union soldiers to reform their lines, crying "McPherson and revenge, boys . . . McPherson and revenge." 17 The Union counterattack was led by three brigades, one from the 16th Army Corps and two from the 1st Division of the 15th Corps, which included the 76th Ohio. From their positions near the right (northern) flank of the Union lines, the Union troops moved swiftly downhill to turn back the Confederate's recent advances.18
        In his memoirs, General Sherman described the fighting that Job Benjamin's division participated in:

General Charles R. Wood's division of the 15th Corps was on the extreme right of the Army of the Tennessee, between the railroad and the Howard House ... He reported to me in person that the line on his left had been swept back, and that his connection with General Logan on Leggett's Hill was broken. I ordered him to wheel his brigades to the left, to advance in echelon, and to catch the enemy in flank ... [Other Union forces were ordered to] direct a heavy fire over the heads of General Wood's men against the enemy.19
        The 76th Ohio and the 30th Iowa, both from Woods' Division, were the first regiments to drive the enemy from the works, retake their original positions, and recapture the four artillery pieces.20 Once again in Union hands, the guns were fired upon the retreating rebel soldiers.
        Sometime during the fierce fighting late that afternoon, Private Job Benjamin was wounded. The casualty sheet for Job Benjamin lists his injury, but only calls it a slight wound.21 Other records, however, describe his injury as much more serious -- a gunshot wound to the face that apparently blinded him in the right eye. Details of the wound are found in a Surgeon's Certificate, dated September 10, 1888. Apparently examined by a three-member board of surgeons in Carrollton, Missouri on August 1, 1888, Job Benjamin's wound was described as follows:
There is a scar situated one inch above the outer angle of the right eye, indicating the location of the [gunshot wound]. The scar is an inch and a half long ... There is total blindness of the right eye, with some congestion of the conjunctiva and opacity of the cornea 22 ... Claimant's disability is permanent.23
        According to affidavits filed by two fellow soldiers, the injured Job Benjamin was taken to a field hospital in Marietta, Georgia for treatment. One of these soldiers was Isaac N. Preston, a fellow private from Job Benjamin's Company C. Private Preston stated that he was an eyewitness to Job Benjamin's injury, and that he was ordered by the company commander to accompany Private Benjamin to the field hospital.24 The other soldier was 1st Lieutenant Miles Arnold, also from Company C. Lieutenant Arnold was evidently wounded at the Battle of Atlanta as well, for he stated that he was in the same Marietta hospital as Job Benjamin. He also said that he and Job Benjamin had been neighbors for 20 to 25 years before the war and that he was the man who "got [Job] to enlist, knowing him to be a brave man -- one that would not fear to go anywhere, even to the jaws of death." 25 How much of Lieutenant Arnold's kind words were exaggerated to help Job Benjamin acquire a government pension is unknown.
        The Battle of Atlanta on July 22nd proved to be another disappointing defeat for General Hood's Confederate army. Approximately 8,000 men had been lost, compared to only 3,700 lost on the Union side.26 Confederate General William Hardee called the Battle of Atlanta "one of the most desperate and bloody of the war." 27-A
        With McPherson's death and Logan's promotion, Brigadier General Morgan Lewis Smith became commander of the 15th Corps. These promotions lasted for only five days, for on July 27th, Major General Oliver Otis Howard was given command of the Army of the Tennessee and Logan was returned to command of the 15th Corps. These command changes, which caused much bitterness among Union generals, were ordered by General Sherman.27-B
 
 

THE CIVIL WAR FIELD HOSPITAL

        The field hospital that Job Benjamin was taken to in Marietta, Georgia was not unlike others during the war. It has been said that the Civil War was fought at the end of the medical middle ages. Doctors knew absolutely nothing of what caused the diseases that struck huge numbers of soldiers. They knew nothing about germs, proper sanitation, or the role that insects play in spreading disease. Nor did anyone realize the connection between contaminated water and disease.28
        The soft lead 0.57 caliber bullets shot from rifle muskets of the day inflicted wounds that were jagged and nasty. Historian James Robertson, Jr. described the typical treatment given to gunshot wounds:

If the wound was not in the torso or did not involve a fractured bone, treatment was simple. Their wounds were bandaged with a handful of lint, over which was a bandage of cotton; then a canteen of water was placed in the patient's free hand, that he might keep the cloth always wet. In the other hand was a branch with which to wave the flies away.29
        If the wound was more serious, the surgeon would first probe for imbedded bullets, usually with his fingers in the interest of speed. Second, the surgeon utilized a crude form of ligature to stop hemorrhaging. This consisted of applying a loop of thread around the ruptured artery and leaving one end of the thread dangling loosely, to be tended to in the coming days. The third option occupied the surgeon three-fourths of the time at a field hospital -- performing hasty amputations of limbs that were too mangled to repair.30
 
 

ATLANTA RESISTS THE UNION ONSLAUGHT

        By July 25, 1864, the Union armies were in position north and east of Atlanta. Sherman's next objective was to cut Confederate communications and railroad supply lines extending southward from the city of Atlanta.31 In his memoirs, Sherman recalled this strategy:

My plan of action was to move the Army of the Tennessee to the right rapidly and boldly against the railroad below Atlanta, and at the same time to send all the cavalry around by the right and left to make a lodgment on the Macon Road about Jonesboro.32
        On July 26th, Sherman sent three brigades of Union cavalry on a five-day raid to cut the Confederate supply lines. Unfortunately, the raid was unsuccessful, and heavy losses were inflicted upon the Union soldiers by the Confederate cavalry south of the city.33 On July 27th, the Union infantry was on the move. They reached their positions to the west of Atlanta by the following morning.34
        Despite recent setbacks, Confederate General Hood still felt that fighting the Yankees was the best thing for the morale of his army. On Thursday, July 28th, in response to the Union maneuverings, he took the offensive once again and ordered one of his corps to attack the Union army near a meeting house known as Ezra Church.35-A  In a series of disjointed attacks ordered by a Confederate general with limited field experience (Lieutenant General Stephen Lee), the rebel offensive achieved little but self-sacrifice.35-B
        In his official report on the Battle of Ezra Church, Major General John Logan, commanding the 15th Corps, gave special credit to three division commanders, including 1st Division commander Charles R. Woods. Within that division, the soldiers of the 76th Ohio, protected by logs and rails hastily thrown up in front of their lines, repulsed successive rebel charges between 11:30 am. and 3 p.m.36 By the end of fighting at Ezra Church, 1,000 Confederate soldiers lay dead on the field in front of the 15th Corps.37 Despite their loss, the Confederates were successful in preventing the Union army from cutting their vital lifeline to the south.
        Following the Battle of Ezra Church, rebel forces withdrew to the city of Atlanta. In about a week's time, a third of General Hood's forces -- nearly 20,000 men -- had been lost.38 Despite these heavy losses, the city of Atlanta (clearly visible to the unaided eye from Federal positions) steadfastly refused to be captured.39
        However, General Sherman remained optimistic:
The month of August opened hot and sultry, but our position before Atlanta was healthy, with ample supplies of wood, water and provisions.40
        Despite ample supplies, a typical Union camp during the oppressive heat and humidity of summer duty was disgusting by modern standards. Flies, mosquitoes, disease and filth were everywhere. The drinking water was generally muddy, warm and in short supply. Army camps acquired an overbearing stench because of the lack of attention given to garbage pits and latrine procedures. But the Union soldiers by this time were quite accustomed to this, along with homesickness, foul weather, filth, lack of privacy, stem discipline, and general discomfort.41
        The Union army, despite regular successes against the Confederate onslaughts, was still unable to take Atlanta by force. Sherman decided to lay a partial siege to the city and on August 9th, he ordered a bombardment of the city to begin. For seventeen days the bombardment continued, but because supplies could still reach the city from the south, rebel soldiers and Atlanta residents could not be forced to surrender.42 On Saturday, August 13th, the skirmish line in front of the 1st Division was advanced and the 76th Ohio captured 50 rebel prisoners.43
        General Sherman believed that if he sent the lion's share of his army against the railroad south of Atlanta, he could finally break the Confederate hold on Atlanta.44 On Friday, August 26th, the 15th and 17th Corps moved out of their trenches and marched southward along the Montgomery and Atlanta Railroad, destroying the railroad as they advanced toward Jonesboro.45 On the night of August 30th, the 76th Ohio was positioned in a line across the Flint River, just west of Jonesboro.46 That same night, General Hood sent two Confederate corps to defend Jonesboro.47-A  Hood told his two corps commanders -- Generals William Hardee and Stephen Lee -- that they were to attack the Union troops as early the next morning as they could and drive them back across the Flint River west of Jonesboro.47-B  However, a series of frustrating delays slowed the movement of rebel troops overnight and early the next morning, and Confederate forces weren't assembled and in their proper positions until mid-afternoon.47-C  Nearly 20,000 rebel soldiers prepared to attack 12,000 Union soldiers positioned behind fortified lines.47-D
        At 3 p.m. on Wednesday, August 31st, the Battle of Jonesboro began with an onset of Confederate cannon, followed ten minutes later by the advance of skirmishers.48-A  The rebel plan was to begin their attack from the left side of their front and continue it from left to right along the entire battle front.  General Stephen Lee's division, anchoring the right flank of the rebel line, would enter the fray only after the battle was well underway.48-B  Unfortunately for the Confederates, General Lee was a bit overanxious and, believing the sound of skirmishers to be the onset of the main assault, ordered his troops to charge prematurely.48-C
        The Confederates advanced into a death trap.  With deadly accuracy, the veterans of General Logan's 15th Corps slaughtered the advancing southerners.  Historian Albert Castel described it as "less a battle than an execution." 48-D  Without the protection of rifle pits, the 76th Ohio took an active share in the engagement as rebel soldiers desperately charged Union lines and were repulsed.49-A  This final rebel assault failed.  With no hope left of re-establishing the severed rail link that provided Atlanta its southern lifeline to Macon, General Hood ordered most of the Confederate army to evacuate Atlanta and retreat southward toward Macon.  He left behind at Jonesboro only one corps, commanded by General Hardee, "to protect Macon and communications." 49-B
        With Hardee's lone corps at Jonesboro, General Sherman saw an opportunity not only to destroy the railroad south of Atlanta, but annihilate Hardee's rebel corps with his much larger Union force.49-C On the afternoon of September 1st, the Battle of Jonesboro was renewed, this time spearheaded primarily by the Union's 4th and 14th Corps.  Although the ensuing battle allowed the Union fighters to break through a portion of the rebel line and capture back cannons lost in earlier battles, the rebel defenses (strengthened by the naturally defensive terrain) proved strong enough to prevent their own destruction.49-D  When night fell, Hardee's troops withdrew to join Hood's remaining army.49-E
        Late afternoon that same day, the city of Atlanta was evacuated by the Confederates.  Union soldiers entered the town the following day.50
        In addition to the military significance of Atlanta's surrender, its political significance may have been even greater. The fall of Atlanta gave an immense boost to the re-election prospects of Abraham Lincoln and caused serious problems for the Peace Democrats who vowed that the Union could not easily win the war and should therefore negotiate for peace. Lincoln's overwhelming victory over candidate George McClellan in November was in large part because of Sherman's success at Atlanta and General Philip Sheridan's cavalry victories in the Shenandoah Valley.51
 
 

SAMUEL KIRKMAN AND THE BATTLE OF MOBILE BAY

Company K -- 77th Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment (Major John A. Burdett) -- 3rd Brigade (Colonel Frederick William Moore) -- 3rd Division (Brigadier General George Francis McGinnis) -- 19th Army Corps (Major General Joseph Jones Reynolds) -- Army of the Gulf, also known as the Military Division of Western Mississippi (Major General Edward Richard Sprigg Canby).52

        While Job Benjamin was risking life and limb in the Atlanta Campaign, Samuel Kirkman and the 77th Illinois were enjoying a two month respite in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Their army had recently been decimated in the ill-fated Red River Campaign, and on June 11, 1864, the 13th Corps was temporarily discontinued. As a result of this action, the 77th Illinois was transferred to the 3rd Brigade of the 3rd Division of the 19th Army Corps.53 The Company K Muster Roll for May/June, 1864 indicated that Samuel Kirkman was present, and was now detailed to the brigade Quartermaster.54-A  This entry is significant if we are to understand the day to day life of Samuel Kirkman.  Now detailed to the brigade Quartermaster, he would enjoy a less rigorous and dangerous daily life.
        As mentioned earlier in this work, the army Quartermaster is responsible for providing troops with quarters, clothing, and equipment.  As early as March of 1863, in the early days of the Vicksburg campaign, Samuel Kirkman may have expressed interest in working in this capacity for the army.  According to company muster records, he was detailed as assistant to the quartermaster on April 5, 1863.  Subsequent records made during the fall of 1863 reiterate that he had been detailed to the regimental quartermaster on April 5, 1863.  The March/April, 1864 muster roll indicated that these same orders were re-issued on March 15, 1864 by 1st Brigade commander Lieutenant Colonel John Cowen.  The following muster roll record -- that of May/June, 1864 -- indicated that ten days after this, on March 25, 1864, Samuel Kirkman was detailed to the brigade quartermaster, which is responsible for providing quarters, clothing, and equipment for all four regiments that comprised the brigade.54-B
        How this change in duty assignment likely changed Samuel Kirkman's daily life is described by another Union soldier who was similarly assigned to these duties -- Private Charles Willison of the 76th Ohio.  In Private Willison's memoirs, he described his assignment to the Brigadier Quartermaster, which took place on April 23, 1864, just one month before Samuel Kirkman's:

. . . on April 23, I was detached for duty in the brigade quartermaster's department.  This did not suit him [his commanding lieutenant] at all.  He offered me a sergeantcy if I would throw up the position and return to the company, but I had traveled 'foot-back' shouldering a knapsack and gun to my full satisfaction.  The prospect was much more inviting to henceforth go horseback, my 'clothing, camp and garrison equippage' transported, enjoy the privileges of a headquarters attache, and last, but not least, get the scent of battle from afar off.  So, in obedience to the special order hereinbefore quoted, I duly presented myself at brigade headquarters. . . Henceforth I was at liberty to skirt the field of battle and gauge the distance from peril by my fears.  I am willing to confess that I did not often, wilfully, put myself where shot and shell were flying very thickly.  There was no longer any compulsion for me to court such danger, and I wasn't of the nature to dare danger for the fun of it.54-C
        It is not clear whether Samuel Kirkman originally volunteered for either his regimental quartermaster appointment or his subsequent "promotion" to the brigade quartermaster.  More than likely, however, he enjoyed his new responsibilities (and their relative distance from the front line of battle) well enough to continue them until his discharge from the army in July of 1865.54-D
        On Wednesday, July 20, 1864, soldiers of the 77th Illinois boarded the ocean steamer "Tamaulipas" and headed downriver.  The second leg of the trip was aboard the "Alice Vivian," which carried them to Morganza Bend, located midway between Port Hudson and the mouth of the Red River in Louisiana.55-A  On July 28th, soldiers of the regiment exchanged their trusty Enfield musket rifles for Springfield rifles, in preparation for a new military campaign. On July 30th, the regiment left camp and boarded another steamship, the "St. Charles," bound for the Union navy's blockading fleet off Mobile Bay.55-B  William Bentley, who had recently been promoted to 1st Lieutenant of the 77th U.S. Colored Infantry, recalled:
In the immediate vicinity, the rebel gunboats watched vigilantly the movements of our land and naval forces. A crisis was evidently approaching, and all were anxiously awaiting the result of the impending trial of strength and skill.56
        The Union strategy was to first capture Fort Gaines, the strongest remaining Confederate work on the Gulf Coast. After capturing Fort Gaines, the Union armies would then cross the channel and capture Fort Morgan, and finally capture the city of Mobile itself. Major General Gordon Granger commanded the overall Union expedition.57
        In early August, Union troops landed on the western end of Dauphin Island, Alabama. By the evening of August 4, 1864, the 77th Illinois had pushed to within a mile and a half of the enemy fort. Five companies of the 77th Illinois were sent forward to position Union artillery batteries. Samuel Kirkman's Company K and five other companies remained behind.58
        The following day -- Friday, August 5, 1864 -- was the Battle of Mobile Bay. The battle was primarily a naval engagement between a Union force of four ironclads and 14 wooden ships against a Confederate fleet of one ironclad, three wooden ships, and artillery support from three rebel forts. It was during this battle that Union Admiral David Farragut, lashed to the rigging of his flagship, is reported to have spoken the famous line, "damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead." During the Civil War, "torpedo" was the term given to what we now call floating mines.59-A
        William Wiley described the battle from his safe vantage point ashore:
When the fleet came within Fort Morgan the fort opened on them with all their guns and the fleet replying as they moved steadily on. . . The sight was awfully grant to those of us who could view it from a safe distance.  Our land batteries engaged Fort Gaines and dropped shell after shell into the fort from all their guns to keep them from operating against the fleet.  There was a continuous flash of fire and deafening roar from the guns of both fleet and forts and our land batteries and as the sound reverberated over the water it was terrible to hear as well as to behold.59-B
        As Private Wiley described, rebel guns from Fort Gaines were not only directed at the Union navy, but were also turned upon Union land forces. Protected by hastily constructed earthworks, federal guns returned fire as Union skirmishers steadily advanced on the fort.60 After three hours of naval fighting, the Union flotilla had seriously crippled the Confederate ironclad "Tennessee." Once the "Tennessee" surrendered, Mobile Bay belonged to the Union navy.61
        The next day, an unchallenged Union navy combined with federal land forces in a concentrated assault on Fort Gaines. The Confederate fort could endure this onslaught for only one day. On the morning of August 7th, the flag of truce was sent out. Fort Gaines formally surrendered on Monday, August 8th.62
        With Fort Gaines now in Federal hands, the army and navy turned its attention toward its next target, Fort Morgan, located across the bay on the westernmost tip of the Mobile Point peninsula. While the 77th Illinois and one other regiment remained at Fort Gaines, Union forces laid siege to Fort Morgan until it surrendered on Tuesday, August 23, 1864.63
        The 77th Illinois remained on Dauphin Island until August 25th, when it boarded the steamer "J.M. Burr," crossed over to Fort Morgan to pick up other regiments, and proceeded to nearby Cedar Point and Pilot Town. Their brigade now consisted of five regiments: the 77th Illinois, the 23rd Wisconsin, the 67th Indiana, the 96th Ohio, and the 161st New York. However, since dry camp grounds were scarce, the 77th Illinois and two other regiments boarded another steamer, the "Thomas Sparks," on September 9th, crossed into open waters, and returned to their former campground at Morganza Bend.64
        The Company K Muster Roll for July/August, 1864 showed Samuel Kirkman to be absent and, for the third straight report, he was detailed to the Brigade Quartermaster. A Detachment Muster Roll for the same two-month period showed Samuel Kirkman to be present at Morganza, Louisiana and detached by order of his Brigade Commander, Colonel Frederick William Moore.65
 
 

SAMUEL KIRKMAN FINALLY SEES "SOFT DUTY"

After three weeks encamped at Morganza, Louisiana, the 77th Illinois left their camp on Thursday, October 6th, boarded the steamer "Laurel Hill," and left for New Orleans, where they were assigned to guard rebel prisoners captured at Fort Gaines.66-A  Private William Wiley elaborated:

Our duty while there consisted in guarding rebel prisoners who were quartered in an adjoining press and doing guard duty at the Baronne Street Prison and other military prisons, guarding government stores, etc.  The different companies of the regiment were scattered around . . . some in Picayune Press, some in Alabama Press and some on Levee Street. . . We had good comfortable quarters and good rations but our duty was pretty heavy.66-B
        While in New Orleans, Samuel Kirkman and several of his fellow soldiers had 'carte de visite' photographs taken at Leeson's Photographic Gallery.  These small baseball card sized photographs were often exchanged between soldiers or sent home to loved ones.  Samuel Kirkman kept several 'carte de visite' photographs of his fellow soldiers throughout the remainder of his life.  [These photographs are reproduced and described in Appendix B.  An enlargement of the Samuel Kirkman photograph can be found in Appendix C ].
        Lieutenant William Bentley recalled this four month break from the horrors of war:
With light duties to perform, with plenty to eat and good clothes to wear, with the freedom of the city and access to places of instruction and amusement, the winter passed pleasantly away.67
        The Company K Muster Rolls for both September/October and November/December, 1864 each show Samuel Kirkman to be present.68-A  On Christmas Day, 1864, William Wiley described the rare treats that the regiment enjoyed:
. . . our mess No. 3 had a Yankee cook in the person of Dennis Duff and he prepared us a fine dinner of cod fish and beans each day and we thought it [was] extra good.  The good folks at home sent us a box of good things and among other things there was a four gallon jar of gilt edged butter and as we had hardly tasted butter for something over two years.  I think that butter never tasted quite so good to mortal man before or since.  It helped out our sad bread and hardtack wonderfully.68-B

 

JOB BENJAMIN FOLLOWS SHERMAN'S PURSUIT OF HOOD

Company C -- 76th Ohio Volunteer Infantry Regiment (Lieutenant Colonel Willard Warner) -- 1st Brigade (Colonel William Burnam Woods) -- 1st Division (Brigadier General Charles Robert Woods) -- 15th Army Corps (Brigadier General Peter Joseph Osterhaus) - Army of the Tennessee (Major General Oliver Otis Howard)69

        The Confederate army that had once occupied Atlanta now took defensive positions in the mountains near Lafayette, approximately 100 miles north of Atlanta.70 Initially, General Hood hoped that the Union army would attack his rebel forces. That way, his rebel army could exploit their defensive advantage, as they had from the heights of Kennesaw Mountain two and a half months before. But his corps commanders, feeling that the soldiers were not yet fit for battle, convinced General Hood to send his army farther to the north to invade middle Tennessee. Their new objective was the city of Knoxville, Tennessee.71
        On Thursday, September 8, 1864, with Atlanta now in Union hands, the 76th Ohio and its 1st Division moved to East Point, immediately south of Atlanta, and camped there for nearly a month of rest and relaxation.72-A  General Sherman established his headquarters in Atlanta, and he wasted no time in informing the mayor of his intention to expel all residents of Atlanta, assist their transport to places north or south, and then turn the city into a "pure Gibralter" that could be defended by a minimal Union force.72-B
        Private Charles Willison of the 76th Ohio reflected upon Sherman's rationale years later in his memoirs:

Atlanta was laid waste with a relentless and merciless hand.  With foes of the character of the southern people, our fellow countrymen, Sherman recognized that nothing short of absolute impoverishment in man and means could bring about their conquest and the termination of the war.72-C
        On October 4th, the regiment left camp and proceeded northwesterly, in pursuit of General Hood's rebel army, who was now threatening the Union's vulnerable rail supply line from Chattanooga.72-D
        The 76th Ohio, marching with the 1st Division, crossed the Chattahoochee River, marched through Marietta, passed north of Kennesaw Mountain, near Adairsville, through Resaca, and through the Snake Creek Gap.73 The 1st Division led the march of the Army of the Tennessee. On Sunday, October 16th, General C.R. Woods' 1st Division (including the 76th Ohio) skirmished with the enemy at Ship's Gap, where they captured enemy prisoners from the 24th South Carolina regiment.74 Following this skirmish, the 76th Ohio marched through Lafayette, and on October 18th moved south through Summerville and bivouacked. Here the non-veterans were mustered out.75 The Company C Muster Roll for September/October, 1864 showed Job Benjamin to be present for duty.76 He and his fellow soldiers now waited for the next major campaign to begin.
 
 

WILSON BENJAMIN JOINS THE CIVIL WAR

        As previously mentioned, Wilson Benjamin, with a wife and infant son to support, had little reason to join the war. Assuming that Wilson had some contact with his older brother Job, he had learned well enough about the horrors of war through Job's war experiences at Fort Donelson and Shiloh.
        However, recruitment in Illinois and the nation as a whole started to dwindle in late 1862, forcing Abraham Lincoln in March of 1863 to approve the Enrollment Act (often called the Conscription Act) which authorized the first Union military draft.77 However, any man who could pay a $300 "commutation fee" or find a suitable substitute willing to serve in his place, was exempt from the draft.78 This provision gives support to the popular complaint that the Civil War was a "rich man's war and a poor man's fight." 79 Historian Victor Hicken described the situation facing the state of Illinois:

Illinois was able to avoid the application of the draft through the summer of 1863, by establishing credits for Illinois volunteers serving in regiments of neighboring states and tapping hitherto unused segments of the population for volunteers.80
        However, by the fall of 1864, to the regret of most state officials, the draft was finally applied through most parts of Illinois.81
        Wilson Benjamin could avoid the war no more. On Tuesday, September 27, 1864, Wilson Benjamin, the third "soldier of valor" in this story, went to Peoria, Illinois to be mustered into service as a Private in Company D of the 8th Illinois Infantry by Captain Allen. His decision to join the Civil War was probably not voluntary. Records indicate that he was one of many men who entered the war because of the draft. The Muster and Descriptive Roll gave his age as 21, his height as 5 foot, 8 inches tall, with dark hair, dark complexion, and blue eyes. His occupation was given as a farmer.82 Another muster record, which incorrectly states Wilson's age to be 23, gives his term of enlistment as one year.83
        The regiment that Wilson Benjamin joined -- the 8th Illinois Volunteer Infantry -- was one of the first Illinois regiments formed. In fact, it was organized in Springfield on April 25, 1861, just 13 days after Fort Sumter brought the nation into conflict.84 Like Job Benjamin's 76th Ohio, it fought at the Battles of Fort Henry, Fort Donelson and Shiloh. However, unlike the 76th Ohio, the 8th Illinois seemed to receive the brunt of fierce fighting. It fought with General McClernand's 1st Division at Fort Donelson and Shiloh, was positioned near the fiercest fighting at Champion Hill, and participated in the assaults and siege at Vicksburg.85 By 1864, the 8th Illinois had earned a sterling reputation.
 
 

JOB BENJAMIN MARCHES WITH SHERMAN TO THE SEA

        On October 26th, General Sherman realized that General Hood's Confederate army was marching in haste for Tennessee, so he proposed a daring strategy of his own. He would send two army corps to follow Hood, while Sherman's main force of 60,000 men would return to Atlanta. He would then begin an unprecedented southeasterly march toward Savannah, Georgia -- Sherman's famous (or infamous) march to the sea.86 As historian Shelby Foote noted:

Sherman was maybe the first truly modem general. He was the first one to understand that civilians were the backers-up of things and that if you went against civilians, you'd deprive the army of what kept it going.87
        That was General Sherman's full intention. On October 9th, General Sherman telegraphed General Grant in Virginia: "The utter destruction of [Georgia's] roads, houses and people cripple its military resources . . . I can make this march, and make Georgia howl!" 88
        On November 2nd, General Grant gave General Sherman formal permission to "go on as he proposed" on his Campaign to the Sea.89
        With 60,000 fellow soldiers, the 76th Ohio and its 15th Corps began their return march for Atlanta, via the small towns of Little River and Cave Springs.90 Shortly after daybreak on Wednesday, November 16, 1864, General Sherman left behind a mined city of Atlanta and began his unprecedented, and risky, campaign to the sea.91
        It was an immense undertaking. Historian Geoffrey Ward quantified the operation: "62,000 men in blue were on the move in two great columns -- 218 regiments, including 52 from Ohio alone ... Their supply train stretched 25 miles." 92 Despite this impressive train of supplies, the soldiers would largely live off the rich land of the Georgia countryside during the campaign.93
        General Sherman's massive army moved southward out of Atlanta in two diverging paths, so as to confuse the enemy as to their ultimate destination. The right, or southernmost, wing of the army consisted of the 15th and 17th Corps. The left, or northernmost, wing of the army consisted of the 14th and 20th Corps.94 Opposing the Federal advance was a 13,000 man Confederate force consisting of 3,000 members of the Georgia state Militia (commanded by Major General Gustavus Woodson Smith) and a 10,000-man cavalry force (commanded by Brigadier General Joseph Wheeler).95
        The 76th Ohio, along with the 15th and 17th Corps, marched with the right wing or southern column of the Union army, and averaged 15 miles a day.96 Its path followed the railroad southward toward Jonesboro and then turned southeasterly through the towns of McDonough, Indian Springs, Clinton, and Irwintown.97 The 15th Corps crossed the Macon and Augusta Railroad 20 miles east of Macon, and on November 21st, the corps tore up the railroad tracks eastward from the town of Griswoldville (midway between Macon and Gordon).98-A
        Private Charles Willison described the countryside they marched through:
I might say a few words about the character of the country along this line of march.  That between Atlanta and Irwinton is fine, fertile, prosperous appearing, and attractive.  From Irwinton eastward our route was through level pine forests, carpeted with the fallen dry foliage of these trees, so that it was like walking on soft Brussels.  Miles apart in this forest we would occasionally come across a little clearing containing the poverty- stricken habitation of one of the 'poor white trash' of the south.98-B
        At Griswoldville, the 1st Division, including the 76th Ohio, was left behind as a rear guard for the advancing army.98-C
        Far to the north, General Hood's Confederate Army, now invading Tennessee, hoped to draw the attention of Sherman's army. Sherman ignored him. "If Hood goes to the Ohio River," Sherman quipped, "I’ll give him rations. My business is down south." 99
        On November 22nd, the other brigade (2nd Brigade) of the 1st Division, commanded by Brigadier General Charles Walcutt, was vigorously attacked by a unit of the Georgia state militia. Acting with more courage than discretion, the rebel soldiers fought valiantly for several hours before they were forced to withdraw by superior Federal numbers and arms (i.e. the newly introduced Spencer repeating rifle).100
        The 15th Corps (without the 76th Ohio and its division) then marched eastward across the Oconee River to the Ogeechee River and followed the west bank of that river to the mouth of the Cannouchee River and then eastward to Savannah and the sea.101-A  During their march, Union soldiers were never wanting of food, as Private Willison of the 76th Ohio remembered:
. . . it need not be said that we 'fared sumptuously every day.'  There was no lack of smoked hams, fresh pork, turkeys, chickens, sweet potatoes, molasses, honey, etc. -- farm products of all kinds.  Forage abundant and all the conditions so favorable that according to official report the condition of horses and mules with our army was improved at least twenty-five per cent by the time we reached Savannah.101-B
        Throughout this time, Confederate soldiers from the state militia and cavalry units tried unsuccessfully to stop or slow the Union advance.102 But nothing could slow their advance, and the magnitude of destruction and cruelty inflicted upon the residents of Georgia was difficult for even some Union soldiers to justify. One wrote, "The cruelties practiced on this campaign toward the citizens have been enough to blast a more sacred cause than ours. We hardly deserve success." 103 But General Sherman was determined, saying that:
War is cruelty and you cannot refine it ... We cannot change the hearts of these people of the South, but we can make war so terrible and make them so sick of war that generations will pass before they again appeal to it.104
       After only 26 days on the march, Sherman's army reached Savannah, Georgia on Sunday, December 18, 1864.105 Their occupation of the city began three days later.106 During their 425-mile march to the sea, Sherman's army caused approximately 100 million dollars worth of damage.107 The South would never forgive nor forget.
        Sometime between November 21st and December 18th, the 76th Ohio left their rear guard assignment in Griswoldville and followed the remainder of the army to Savannah.  Private Charles Willison remembered that "brigade headquarters were established in the southwest part of the city, but the 76th was encamped about two miles distant on the bank of the Savannah River." 108-A  The last few days of 1864 were uneventful for soldiers of the 76th Ohio. Their long march was over, and their only duty was to perform provost guard duty in Savannah.108-B The Company C Muster Roll for November/December, 1864 showed Job Benjamin to be present.109
 
 

WILSON BENJAMIN ENDURES WINTER CAMP

Company D -- 8th Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment - Brigade unknown -- 1st Division (Brigadier General James Clifford Veatch) -- Reserve Corps, until February 18, 1865; 13th Army Corps (Major General Gordon Granger) -- Army of the Gulf, also known as the Military Division of Western Mississippi (Major General Edward Richard Sprigg Canby).110

        By the time Wilson Benjamin joined the 8th Illinois Volunteer Infantry, the war was winding down and the regiment had fought nearly all of its difficult battles. According to the Adjutant General's Report, the 8th Illinois left their camp at the mouth of the White River in Arkansas on Tuesday, October 18, 1864 and proceeded upriver to Memphis, Tennessee.111 As best I can determine, Wilson Benjamin joined the regiment there on or about October 24, 1864, as stated in the Company D Muster Roll for September/October, 1864. The same form indicated that Wilson Benjamin was present for duty.112
        It is difficult to know what the attitude of the veteran soldiers was to Wilson Benjamin's presence. Some had a strong bias toward the draftees, or "conscripts," as they were known. However, according to Historian Irvin Bell Wiley:

If the conscripts proved themselves worthy men and good soldiers, as they frequently did, they were usually able to overcome prejudice and win full acceptance among their volunteer associates.113
        Almost immediately, Wilson Benjamin began to feel the ill effects of camp life. Records show that from October 31st to November 5th, he suffered from acute diarrhea. From November 28th through the 30th, he suffered from intestinal fever (influenza). He would have several more digestive ailments in the summer and fall of 1865.114
        Wilson Benjamin joined the 8th Illinois at a very quiet time in its regimental history. The 16th Corps, to which the 8th Illinois had been assigned since early 1864, was de-activated on November 7, 1864.115 The regiment would not be called into active duty again until February of 1865, when it was assigned to the 1st Division of the 13th Army Corps -- the same corps as Samuel Kirkman's but a different division.116
        The 8th Illinois camped at Fort Pickering until October 29th, when it was ordered back to the White River encampment. On November 9th, the regiment went to a place called Du Vall's Bluff, remained there until November 28th, and was then ordered back to Memphis. The Company D Muster Roll for November/December, 1864 showed Wilson Benjamin to be present.117 On December 29th, the regiment marched eastward to the little town of Moscow, Tennessee, where Wilson Benjamin spent his first New Year away from home.118
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© 2002 by Bart Benjamin
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1864 (Part II) FOOTNOTES

1.  Johnson and Buel, IV., 287; Boatner, pp. 413, 487, 613, 773-774, 947-948.
2.  MacDonald, p. 161.
3.  Sherman, p. 543.
4.  Reid, p. 442.
5.  from Co. C Muster Roll, from the National Archives.
6.  MacDonald, pp. 163-164.
7-A. MacDonald, p. 164.
7-B.  Castel, pp. 385 and 387.
7-C.  MacDonald, p. 164.
8.  MacDonald, pp. 164-165.
9.  MacDonald, pp. 164-165.
10.  Ward, p. 327.
11.  MacDonald, p. 165.
12.  Hicken, p. 266.
13.  Boatner, p. 29; Castel, pp. 389 and 403-405.
14.  Hicken, pp. 266-267.
15.  Sherman, p. 556.
16.  Boatner, p. 30; MacDonald, pp. 162 and 165.
17.  Ward, p. 327.
18.  MacDonald, p. 162; Reid, p. 442.
19.  Sherman, p. 554.
20.  MacDonald, p. 162; Reid, p. 442.
21.  from Casualty Sheet prepared on May 17, 1880 from the original report of killed, wounded and missing signed by Major General P.J. Osterhaus, from the National Archives.
22.  Conjunctiva is defined as the mucous membrane lining the inner surface of the eyelids and covering the front part of the eyeball. Opacity of the cornea means that the outermost covering of the eye has lost some or all of its normal transparency.
23.  from Surgeon's Certificate, stamped September 10, 1888, from the National Archives.
24.  from Affidavit to Origin of Disability, signed February 12, 1889, from the National Archives.
25.  from Affidavit to Origin of Disability, signed August 27, 1891, from the National Archives.
26.  MacDonald, p. 166.
27-A.  Boatner, p. 30.
27-B.  Boatner, pp. 487 and 773-774.
28.  Wiley, p. 125.
29.  Robertson, Soldiers Blue and Gray, p. 161.
30.  Ibid., pp. 161-162.
31.  Boatner, p. 271; Bowman, p. 172.
32.  Sherman, p. 561.
33.  Hicken, p. 268.
34.  Sherman, p. 561.
35-A.  Bowman, p. 172; Sherman, p. 562.
35-B.  Castel, pp. 426-435.
36.  Sherman, p. 563.
37.  Reid, p. 442.
38.  Ward, p. 327.
39.  Hicken, p. 269.
40.  Sherman, p. 570.
41.  Robertson, Soldiers Blue and Gray, p. 60.
42.  MacDonald, p. 166.
43.  Reid, p. 442.
44.  MacDonald, p. 166.
45.  Sherman, p. 578; Boatner, p. 33.
46.  Reid, p. 442; Boatner, p. 33.
47-A.  Boatner, p. 33.
47-B.  Castel, p. 496.
47-C.  Ibid., pp. 496-499.
47-D.  Ibid., pp. 499 and 502.
48-A.  Ibid., p. 502.
48-B.  Ibid., pp. 500-501.
48-C.  Ibid., p. 502.
48-D.  Ibid.
49-A.  Reid, p. 442.
49-B.  Castel, p. 507 and 509.
49-C.  Boatner, p. 445.
49-D.  Ibid., pp. 511-520.
49-E.  Boatner, p. 33.
50.  Boatner, p. 33; Castel, p. 509.
51.  Jay Luvaas, "The Atlanta Campaign," in The Civil War Battlefield Guide. ed. Frances H. Kennedy (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1990), p. 177; Ward, pp. 332-333.
52.  Bentley, pp. 268, 317-318; Boatner, pp. 118, 364, 532 and 694.
53.  Bentley, p. 317.
54-A.  from Co. K Muster Roll, from the National Archives.
54-B.  from Co. K Muster Roll records, from the National Archives.
54-C.  Willison, pp. 88-89.
54-D.  from Co. K Muster Roll records, from the National Archives.
55-A. Bentley, pp. 317-319; Winschel, pp. 120-121 and 133.
55-B.  Bentley, pp. 317-319.
56.  Ibid., p. 320.
57.  Ibid., p. 29.
58.  Ibid., p. 321.
59-A.  Ward, p. 325.
59-B.  Winschel, p. 125.
60.  Bowman, p. 174.
61.  Ibid., pp. 173-174.
62.  Ibid., p. 174.
63.  Bentley, p. 324.
64.  Ibid., pp. 324-325; Illinois at Vicksburg, page 240.
65.  from Co. K Muster Roll and Detachment Muster Roll, from the National Archives.
66-A.  Bentley, pp. 327-329.
66-B.  Winschel, pp. 134-136.
67.  Bentley, pp. 330-331.
68-A.  from Co. K Muster Roll, from the National Archives.
68-B.  Winschel, p. 136.
69.  Johnson and Buel, IV., 287; Boatner, pp. 413, 487, 613, 830, 890, 947-948.
70.  Sherman, p. 631.
71.  MacDonald, p. 168.
72-A.  Reid, p. 442; MacDonald, p. 168.
72-B.  Castel, p. 548.
72-C.  Willison, p. 100
72-D.  Reid, p. 442; MacDonald, p. 168.
73.  Reid, p. 442.
74.  Sherman, p. 631.
75.  Reid, p. 442.
76.  from Co. C Muster Roll, from the National Archives.
77.  Hicken, p. 4. The Confederate government instituted the first draft of able-bodied men between the ages of 18 and 35 on April 16, 1862.
78.  Ward, p. 242.
79.  Boatner, p. 858.
80.  Hicken, p. 4.
81.  Ibid.
82.  from Muster and Descriptive Roll of Company D, obtained from the Illinois State Archives.
83.  from Muster and Descriptive Roll of a Detachment of Drafted Men and Substitutes Forwarded, dated October 17, 1864, from the National Archives.
84.  Brigadier General J.N. Reece, Adjutant General, Report of the Adjutant General of the State of Illinois (Springfield: Phillips Bros. State Printers, 1900), I, 428.
85.  Reece, I, 428-431.
86.  MacDonald, p. 168.
87.  Ward, "An Interview with Shelby Foote," p. 272.
88.  Sherman, p. 627.
89.  Ibid., p. 641.
90.  Reid, p. 442.
91.  Ward, p. 340.
92.  Ibid.
93.  Bowman, p. 185.
94.  Boatner, p. 509.
95.  Bowman, p. 185; Boatner, pp. 771 and 910.
96.  Reid, p. 442; Sherman, p. 646.
97.  Sherman, p. 654; Reid, pp. 442-443.
98-A.  Sherman, p. 664.
98-B.  Willison, p. 101.
98-C.  Sherman, p. 664.
99.  Ward, p. 345.
100.  Sherman, p. 664; Boatner, pp. 362 and 883-884.
101-A.  Reid, pp. 442-443.
101-B.  Willison, p. 102.
102.  Bowman, pp. 185-190.
103.  Ward, pp. 343-344.
104.  Ibid., pp. 340 and 342.
105.  Reid, p. 443.
106.  Bowman, p. 191.
107.  Ward, p. 344.
108-A.  Willison, p. 104.
108-B.  Reid, p. 443.
109.  from Co. C Muster Roll, from the National Archives.
110.  Boatner, pp. 118, 194-196, 351-352, 364, 868-869.
111.  Reece, p. 431.
112.  from Co. D Muster Roll, from the National Archives.
113.  Wiley, p. 326.
114.  from Pension records, dated January 14, 1904, from the National Archives.
115.  Boatner, pp. 196 and 868-869.
116.  Ibid., pp. 868-869.
117.  Reece, p. 431.
118.  from Co. D Muster Roll, from the National Archives.
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