Leaving the cars at the depot the Third Regiment marched to its camping ground on the east bank of the Neuse River, and near the city of Newbern. Here the regiment was given a hearty welcome by Captain Hart, of the Twenty-third Regiment, Massachusetts Volunteer Militia. This officer had erected tents and put the camp in fine order for the Third Regiment. Colonel Lee, also of the Twenty-seventh, extended greetings. Later on the Third was for a short time attached to his brigade, until transferred to the brigade of Col. J. Jourdan, where it continued during its term of service.

Camp equipage and arms were received in a short time and the regiment was drilled several hours daily. Nearly all the drilling was the manual of arms, battalion and brigade movements. The arms distributed to the Third were not up to the standard. They were said to be Austrian rifle muskets captured from a blockade runner. Great improvements were made on them by the regimental and company armorers; yet the Confederate loss promised little gain to the Union forces, except in the moral force of showing that the regiment had arms and was prepared to use them at close quarters, at least when occasion required. These arms were duly condemned by an inspecting officer and efforts made to exchange them for serviceable ones, but without success.

A variety of duties attested the intelligence and endurance of the regiment as a whole, and of its companies on detached service. October 30th Companies A and B were detached for picket duty at Newport Barracks, where they remained for more than a month, during which time they with a platoon of cavalry and a battery made an expedition to Peltier’s Mills, and for the first time learned the superiority of army shoes on the march in contrast to stylish boots.

Picket duty taught the boys how to find their own beef and pork, and occasionally honey, which abounded in that part of North Carolina. In garrison duty, reconnoissances, engineering work, exhausting marches sometimes with the thermometer ranging over one hundred in the shade and the dust inches deep, and on the field of battle, the skill and bravery of the regiment was well displayed. One company sent to build a bridge over Bachelor’s Creek were so efficient in construction work that they finished their work and returned to camp in two days, notwithstanding it was supposed to take one company a month to accomplish the job. Many of the men of that company were bridge builders before the war.

Thirty men sent to do picket duty at Creek No. 1 held that station for three months, although they were constantly in fear of being surprised, and nearly all the time slept with their muskets beside them.

November 11th our pickets at Deep Gully were attacked and the Third Regiment were under arms all night. November 30th Company I was detailed for duty at Plymouth and Elizabeth City, N. C., where it did garrison duty five months, and suffered special casualties during a siege by the Confederates, losing in killed, wounded, and prisoners nearly thirty men. (See [history of Company I].) At different times nearly every company in the regiment were detailed for picket or special duty. (See Company history.) During the month of December, 1862, the Third Regiment rendered good service in connection with the expedition made by General Foster into the interior of North Carolina, the object being to cut the Confederate means of supplies by the Wilmington and Goldsboro railroad.

The following is a verbatim report of General Foster to the War Department. The accompanying sketch will help the reader to understand the march of the expedition and the battles fought.

[ click here for larger image.]

D.
SKETCH
showing route pursued in the advance to
GOLDSBORO, N. C. in Dec. 1862.