History of the Forty-second regiment infantry, Massachusetts volunteers, 1862, 1863, 1864

by Charles P. Bosson

[5] Among these stragglers was Private Wilson Curtis, an alias, of Company C, a professional bounty jumper, who had deserted from Readville Camp, a tough customer every way. He was spotted in New York by Lieutenant White, over there for the purpose of picking up stray men from his company, as he was on his way to board the Shetucket. Lieutenant White accosted him, and expected to have a fight before he could get him on board, but Curtis, who at first denied his identity, soon deemed it best to rejoin his company, as White covered him with his pistol besides using an argument on him, the substance of which was, that his life was not worth a cent if he was handed over to the military authorities. Curtis served faithfully with his company to the end.

Perhaps those men who on the night of the third of December were so loud in their denunciations of the colonel and his staff, laying all the blame for the hardships then suffered on those who strove in every way, and used every means within their power, to benefit their condition; perhaps those men, when time had given them a chance to reflect and compare their whole experience with what it was that night, would acknowledge that they were wrong in their snap judgment. If they could have seen the work done that night, and heard the opinions of their officers, they would then have known that the colonel and staff had their welfare and good condition at heart.

Shame on all men who will endeavor to foment a mutiny on the strength of fancied wrong, or incompetency of those in command, on such occasions as the one in point presented. There were men on board the transports that night who should hang their heads in shame.

The regiment was finally distributed as follows:

On the Saxon—Colonel Burrell, Adjutant Davis, Quartermaster Burrell, Surgeon Cummings, Chaplain Sanger, Quartermaster-Sergeant Foster, and Companies D, G and I. On the Quincy—Lieutenant-Colonel Stedman, Sergeant-Major Bosson, Commissary-Sergeant Friend S. Courtney, who had been promoted from a private in Company D, vice Hutchinson, discharged at East New York on account of sickness, Drum-Major Neuert, Assistant-Surgeon Hitchcock, the band, and Companies A, B and F, with fifty men of Company C, Twenty-Eighth Connecticut Volunteers. Upon the Charles Osgood—Companies E and K, and Hospital-Steward Wood. Upon the Shetucket—Major Stiles, Ward-Master Lewis, of Company D, Ordnance-Sergeant Wentworth, Company G, and Companies C and H. A few officers and men were detached for special duty on transports Quinnebaug and Eastern Queen.

The regiment departed South in these transports, leaving behind the enlisted men named in the following table, who straggled from their colors or deserted them while in camp at Readville and East New York, and while embarking for the South: a mere handful ever returned.

There may have been some excuse for the desertion of a few of the younger men. Often a young man, after enlisting, has had such a pressure put upon him by family relations as to cause his desertion. In other cases cowardice was the true reason. While in a camp of instruction, and in no danger, all is well; when marching orders are received and preparations made to reach the seat of war, then weak-hearted young or old men are apt to desert. The greater portion of deserters from the Forty-Second Regiment were professional bounty jumpers under assumed names.

Name.	Rank.	Co.	Date.		Remarks.
William Hoes,	Private.	C.	October	15.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
George Gray,	“	“	“	16.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
William Nickerson,	“	“	“	18.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
John Osborne,	“	“	“	18.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
Henry Phillips,	“	“	“	20.	Deserted from Readville Camp, and also was a deserter from the First Mass.
James Boyd,	“	“	“	20.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
David Coleman,	“	“	“	20.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
Herman Hemming,	“	“	“	28.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
John Single,	“	“	November	2.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
John Gordon,	“	“	“	2.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
Edward Harrison,	“	“	“	15.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
John Isensee,	“	“	“	15.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
Patrick Murphy,	“	“	“	15.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
John Stevens,	“	“	“	17.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
James Haley,	“	“	“	17.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
Hugh Cameron,	“	“	“	29.	Deserted from camp at East New York.
Thomas F. McKenna,	“	“	December	2.	Deserted at Brooklyn, N. Y.
Alexander Campbell,	“	D.	Time not known.		Deserted.
Henry Doyle,	“	“	Time not known.		Deserted.
William H. Ellis,	“	“	December	4.	Deserted at Brooklyn, N. Y.
Michael Hagan,	“	“	Time not known.		Deserted.
John Hathon,	“	“	December	4.	Deserted at Brooklyn, N. Y.
Samuel Holmes,	“	“	“	4.	Deserted at Brooklyn, N. Y.
James Johnson,	“	“	“	4.	Deserted at Brooklyn, N. Y.
James Long,	“	“	“	4.	Deserted at Brooklyn, N. Y.
Trueworthy L. Moulton,	“	“	“	4.	Deserted at Brooklyn, N. Y.
Henry Morrill,	“	“	“	4.	Deserted at Brooklyn, N. Y.
Henry O. Williams,	“	“	Time not known.		Deserted.
Christopher Smith,	“	“	Time not known.		Deserted.
Thomas Burns,	“	“	December	4.	Straggler at Brooklyn, N. Y.; rejoined Feb. 4, 1863.
John Nolan,	“	“	“	4.	Straggler at Brooklyn, N. Y.; rejoined Feb 4, 1863.
Thomas Mathews,	“	“	“	4.	Straggler at Brooklyn, N. Y.; rejoined Feb. 4, 1863.
Patrick Goughan,	“	E.	October	4.	Deserted from Camp Wool, Worcester, Mass.
Samuel E. Lull,	“	G.	“	1.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
William Mullen,	“	“	“	12.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
Robert Cunningham,	“	“	November	10.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
Joseph Reed,	“	“	“	18.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
Henry Bridges,	“	“	December	3.	Deserted at Brooklyn, N.Y.; apprehended at Albany; sent to regiment Dec. 31, by Major I. T. Sprague, 1st Inf., U. S. A., Supt. Recruiting N. Y. Vols., but never joined; deserted again.
James M. Marston,	“	“	“	3.	Deserted at Brooklyn, N. Y.
Joseph V. Colson,	“	“	“	3.	Straggler at Brooklyn, N. Y.; reported himself to the proper officer, and rejoined the regiment Feb. 18, 1863.
Rufus C. Greene,	“	“	“	3.	Straggler, Came to New Orleans on the transport Quinnebaug; rejoined the regiment Feb. 3, 1863.
John Luzardo,	“	“	“	3.	Straggler, Came to New Orleans on the transport Quinnebaug; rejoined the regiment Feb. 3, 1863.
George G. Nichols,	1st Sergeant.	“	“	3.	Straggler, Came to New Orleans on the transport Quinnebaug; rejoined the regiment Feb. 3, 1863.
James L. Vialle,	2d “	“	“	3.	Straggler, Came to New Orleans on the transport Quinnebaug; rejoined the regiment Feb. 3, 1863.
Charles A. Atwell,	4th “	“	“	3.	Straggler, Came to New Orleans on the transport Quinnebaug; rejoined the regiment Feb. 3, 1863.
Edward Bliss,	Private.	H.	September	25.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
John Fitzsimmons,	“	“	“	25.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
John Flanigan,	“	“	“	30.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
William Gorman,	“	“	“	25.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
Joseph W. McLaughlin,	“	“	“	26.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
John Quinn,	“	“	“	30.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
William Thompson,	“	“	“	30.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
Charles Stewart,	“	“	October	1.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
Henry Canivan,	“	“	“	1.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
George Cook,	“	“	“	1.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
Francis Curly,	“	“	“	20.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
Samuel D. Gregory,	“	“	“	1.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
Charles Kenney,	“	“	“	18.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
Timothy Linehan,	“	“	“	18.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
Patrick Maline,	“	“	“	10.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
Patrick McNally,	“	“	“	5.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
John C. Anels,	“	“	November	29.	Deserted from camp at East New York.
Thomas Cahill,	“	“	“	18.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
Joseph H. Gleason,	“	“	“	14.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
John Higgins,	“	“	“	1.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
Florence Crowley,	“	“	“	24.	Deserted from camp at East New York.
John McCarty,	“	“	“	1.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
Dennis O’Connors,	“	“	“	17.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
Thomas H. Ryan,	“	“	“	17.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
Benjamin F. Wilde,	“	“	“	25.	Deserted from camp at East New York.
Hans F. Hansen,	“	“	“	29.	Deserted from camp at East New York.
Alonzo Jones,	“	“	December	4.	Deserted at Brooklyn, N. Y.
James Baxter,	“	I.	September	24.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
Nathan Green,	“	“	“	25.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
James Gorman,	“	“	“	25.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
David Gracy,	“	“	“	25.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
Frederick Ernell,	“	“	November	18.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
John Snier,	“	“	“	18.	Deserted from Readville Camp.
Levi Elmer,	“	“	December	3.	Deserted at Brooklyn, N. Y.
Edward Fisher,	“	K.	“	2.	Straggler at Brooklyn; was sick, and discharged the service March 12, 1863.
George A. Whitney,	“	“	“	2.	Straggler at Brooklyn; was sick, and discharged the service March 5, 1863.
Dennis O’Mara,	“	“	“	3.	Deserted at Brooklyn, N. Y.
Andrew J. Horton,	“	“	“	3.	Straggler at Brooklyn, N. Y.; rejoined the regiment February 3, 1863.

CHAPTER III.
On Board Transports—The Saxon—Quincy—Charles Osgood—Shetucket—Quinnebaug.

“Headquarters” transport Saxon, so called because the colonel with a majority of his staff were on board, was commanded by Captain Lavender, and remained in the harbor until the morning of Friday, December 5th, the men subsisting on crackers and cold water. At eight o’clock she proceeded to sea, the boys giving a round of cheers to a lady upon the ramparts of Fort Columbus, who waved a United States flag as they passed. All arrangements were promptly made for the voyage: cooks detailed to cook rations, and men assigned to bunks below deck.