From Fort Henry to Corinth

by M. F. Force

The Seventy-seventh Ohio, of Hildebrand's brigade, was ordered the evening before to go out to See's, Sunday morning, and reinforce the picket reserve stationed there, and was up early Sunday morning. General Buckland, having slept little in the night, rose early. While at breakfast he received word that the pickets were heavily attacked, and were falling back toward camp. He at once had the long-roll sounded, and his brigade formed on the color-line. He rode over to General Sherman's headquarters, a few hundred yards off, and reported the facts. Meanwhile, the brigades of Hildebrand and McDowell formed on their respective color-lines. The division was formed—Taylor's battery on a rising ground in front of Shiloh Church; Hildebrand's brigade to its left, the Seventy-seventh Ohio being next to the battery, and four guns of Waterhouse's battery placed between the Fifty-seventh and Fifty-third Ohio—the Fifty-third detached and forming the extreme left. The other two guns of Waterhouse's battery were advanced to the front beyond Oak Creek. Buckland's brigade formed to the right of Taylor's battery, and McDowell's still farther to the right, on the bluffs of Oak Creek, near its junction with Owl Creek, and separated from Buckland by a lateral ravine which opened into Oak Creek. Behr's battery was with McDowell. One of its guns, with two companies of infantry, was stationed still farther to the right, commanding the bridges over Oak Creek and Owl Creek, immediately above their junction.

The advanced section of Waterhouse's battery fell back before an approaching skirmish line and took position with the battery. General Sherman rode to the front of the Fifty-third, to the edge of a ravine, the continuation or source of Oak Creek, and saw, through the forest beyond, Johnston's lines sweeping across his front toward his left. At the same time, General Johnston was, a few hundred yards off, on the other side of the ravine, putting General Hindman with one of his brigades into position for attack. Hindman's skirmishers opened fire and killed Sherman's orderly. Sherman's brigades advanced to the sloping of the ravine of Oak Creek; Sherman had already sent word to General McClernand asking for support to his left; to General Prentiss, giving him notice that the enemy was in force in front; and to General Hurlbut, asking him to support Prentiss.

The first line of Johnston's army, commanded by General Hardee, opened, widening the intervals between brigades as it advanced. The two brigades commanded by General Hindman, having less rough ground to traverse, outstripped General Cleburne. Hindman's own brigade, commanded by Colonel Shaver, inclining to the right, struck Prentiss' right. General Hindman in person, with Wood's brigade, came to the front of the Fifty-third Ohio. General Johnston, having put it in position, rode back to Cleburne and moved his brigade to Buckland's front. The battle opened. The Fifty-third Ohio, detached by the position of its camp from the rest of Hildebrand's brigade, being off to the left and farther to the front, was first engaged. According to the report of Lieutenant-Colonel Fulton, the advancing line of Wood's brigade having twice recoiled before the fire of the regiment, Colonel Appler cried out to his men to fall back and save themselves. The regiment retired in confusion behind McClernand's Third Brigade, which had come up in support; but, soon rallied by the Lieutenant-Colonel and Adjutant Dawes, it returned to the front to the bank of the stream. The colonel reappeared and again ordered a retreat. The regiment was now fatally broken. Adjutant Dawes, however, rallied two companies and attached them to the Seventeenth Illinois, of McClernand's Third Brigade, while a considerable detachment joined the Seventy-seventh Ohio, then commanded by Major Fearing. In the afternoon, Lieutenant-Colonel Fulton, with the greater part of the regiment reunited, acted as support to Bouton's battery.

General Patton Anderson, with his brigade, and Captain Hodgson's battery of the Washington Artillery, pressed forward from Johnston's second line, commanded by General Bragg, into the gap between Hindman and Cleburne. Posting his battery on high ground, he advanced his brigade down into the wet and bushy valley of Oak Creek, and charged up the slope. Taylor's battery and the Fifty-seventh and Seventy-seventh Ohio instantly drove him back. His regiments, not discouraged, charged singly, and when broken, charged by battalion, but could not withstand the fire, and as often fell back. General Johnston, who had passed on toward his right, dispatched two brigades, Russell's and Johnson's, from the third line, commanded by General Polk, to aid the assault. General Beauregard moved them to his right, beyond Hindman, to attack McClernand.

Meanwhile, Cleburne, forming the extreme left of Hardee's line, with his brigade of six regiments and two batteries engaged Buckland. The valley of Oak Creek is there wider, deeper, and boggy. The slope, crowned by Buckland's brigade, was steep and bushy. A bend in its course gave some companies of the Seventieth Ohio an enfilading fire. Cleburne's regiments, tangled in the morass, struggled with uneven front up the wooded ascent, only to be driven back by Buckland's steady fire. Reforming, they charged again, to meet another repulse. The regiments, broken, disordered, and commingled, persisted in the vain endeavor, only to encounter heavier losses. The Sixth Mississippi lost 300 killed and wounded out of a total of 425. More than one-third of the brigade were killed and wounded. Pond's brigade, of Bragg's corps, came up in support, but paused on the wooded bank, and did not attempt to cross this valley of death.

McClernand's other brigades, which were to the left of the Third, after some very sharp fighting, fell back. The long line of Wood's brigade then largely outreached Colonel Raith's left flank. Raith refused his left regiments. Wood's brigade wheeled to their left, confronting Raith's new line. Waterhouse's battery, being taken on the flank, was limbering up to withdraw, when Major Taylor ordered it into action again. Raith's regiments gave way. Wood's brigade charged on Waterhouse's battery, capturing three of its guns. Captain Waterhouse and two lieutenants being wounded, Lieutenant Fitch, by order of Major Taylor, retired to the river with the two pieces that were saved sound. The Fifty-seventh and Seventy-seventh Ohio being now assailed on the flank by Wood's advance, fell back in disorder. Anderson's brigade then gathered itself up, emerged from the wet borders of the creek, and gained the plateau in front of Hildebrand's camps. Buckland's rear was now commanded by a hostile battery and threatened by Wood's brigade. General Sherman at ten o'clock ordered his division to take position to the rear along the Purdy road. Barrett's battery, moving back by the Corinth road, came into position with McClernand's division in its second position. McDowell's brigade had not yet been engaged, and to get into the new position merely shifted his line to the left along the road. Buckland moved back through his camp in order, his wagons carrying off his dead and wounded and such baggage as they could hold. The greater part of the Seventy-seventh Ohio, commanded by Major Fearing, together with some companies of the Fifty-seventh, held by Lieutenant-Colonel Rice, and some companies of the Fifty-third, represented Hildebrand's brigade. Colonel Hildebrand finding his command so reduced, served part of the day on McClernand's staff, but returned to General Sherman in the evening. Colonel Crafts Wright, commanding the Thirteenth Missouri in W.H.L. Wallace's division, was ordered in the morning to take a designated position on the Purdy road. This brought him on the left of General Sherman's new line. The remnant of Hildebrand's brigade formed on Wright's left and operated with him.

Meanwhile General Grant, at breakfast at Savannah, nine miles below Pittsburg Landing by river, but six miles in an air-line, heard the firing. He at once sent an order to General Nelson to march his division up the river to opposite Pittsburg; and, not aware that General Buell had arrived the previous evening, sent a letter out to meet him, advising him of the order given to Nelson and explaining the reason for not waiting in person for his arrival. Steaming up the river, he stopped at Crump's Landing at eight o'clock and directed Lewis Wallace to hold his division in readiness to move. Arrived at Pittsburg Landing, Colonel Pride, of his staff, at once organized ammunition trains, which were busy all day supplying the troops at the front. The Twenty-third Missouri, just arrived by boat, he hurried out to reinforce Prentiss. The Fifteenth Iowa, just arrived, and the Sixteenth, sent by Prentiss to the landing for ammunition, he directed to form line, arrest the tide of stragglers from the front, and organize them to return. Riding to the front, he found General Sherman a little before ten o'clock in his hottest engagement, still holding the enemy at bay in front of his camp; told him that Wallace would come up from Crump's Landing; sent word to Wallace to move; to Nelson, to hasten his movements; returned to the landing, dispatched the two Iowa regiments to reinforce McClernand, and proceeded to visit the other divisions in the field.

The loaded wagons of McDowell's brigade, hurrying to the rear along the Purdy road, interfered with the formation of Sherman's new line. Behr's battery, galloping to the position assigned to it—the centre of the line—added to the difficulty. This battery was hardly in position and under fire before Captain Behr was killed, and the men abandoned their guns, fleeing from the field with the caissons. The line so disordered and broken was hard pressed by the enemy, and Sherman selected another line of defence, to his left and rear, connecting with McClernand's right. McDowell, nearly cut off by the enemy's pressing through the gap left by Behr's men, brought the remaining gun of this battery from its position near the bridge, and by a rapid fire pressed back the advance. His regiments became separated while struggling through dense thickets to the new position. The Fortieth Illinois found itself marching by the flank, with a deep ravine along its left, and a confederate regiment marching in parallel course not far to its right. Thus cut off, the Fortieth formed with its rear to the ravine, with a desperate effort drove its dangerous companion out of the way, and, pushing through the timber, came into a valley in rear of McClernand.

Not all the force engaged in the two hours' fight in front of Sherman's camp followed him to his new position. Cleburne had difficulty in reforming his shattered command. The remnant of the Sixth Mississippi marched to the rear under command of the senior surviving captain, disabled for further service. The fragment of the Twenty-Third Tennessee remaining near Cleburne was sent to the rear to hunt up the portions that had broken from it in the contest. Cleburne, proceeding for his other regiments, was stopped by General Hardee about noon, and directed to collect and bring into action the stragglers who were thronging in the captured camps. With the aid of cavalry he gathered up an unorganized multitude; but, finding he could do nothing with them, he resumed the search for his remaining regiments. About two o'clock he found the Fifth and Twenty-fourth Tennessee and Fifteenth Arkansas "halted under the brow of an abrupt hill." The Second Tennessee had moved to the rear, and did not rejoin the brigade during the battle. Cleburne was not again severely engaged during the day. Colonel Pond kept his brigade, in pursuance of General Bragg's order, watching the crossings of Owl Creek.

But the brigades of Anderson and Wood pressed on. Trabue's heavy brigade of five regiments, two battalions and two batteries, had been detached from the reserve at Beauregard's request for reinforcements, and sent by Johnston to his extreme left. Skirting Owl Creek, he came in full force upon Sherman's right flank, at half-past twelve o'clock. McDowell's two remaining regiments, the Sixth Iowa and Forty-sixth Ohio, were quickly moved to confront Trabue. The Forty-sixth Ohio was more alert in movement, and opened a hot fire before Trabue was completely deployed and in position. A steady combat through the timber and underbrush, and across the ravines, lasted an hour and a half. The Sixth Iowa lost 51 killed and 120 wounded; the Forty-sixth Ohio, losing fewer killed, but more wounded—34 killed, 150 wounded, and 52 taken prisoners—was quite shattered, and took no further part in the battle. Colonel Trabue's estimate of the character of the fighting at this point appears from his statement that his command in this encounter killed and wounded four or five hundred of the Forty-Sixth Ohio alone. It appears also from his report, which has never been officially published, but which is printed in the "History of the First Kentucky Brigade," that, of the 844 casualties in the brigade in the two days' battle, 534 were in the four regiments engaged in this encounter. Sherman readjusted his line, resting his right on a deep ravine running to Owl Creek, and keeping his left in connection with McClernand. Trabue was reinforced by General A.P. Stewart and part of his brigade, and a part of Anderson's brigade which had been resting in a ravine in the rear. The struggle lasted with varying intensity and alternate success.