History of Company F, 1st Regiment, R.I. Volunteers, during the Spring and Summer of 1861

Shot and shell were flying in all directions; we had lost a number of men, and the other companies of the regiment had suffered considerable loss. An officer now rode in front of our regiment and gave the order to cease firing, as we were shooting our own troops. The smoke, which had occasioned this, soon lifted in our front, when we discovered a regiment bearing the union flag marching up the hill in our direction. When a short distance from us, they gave us a volley, which we returned at once, when they turned and retreated down the hill. This regiment was the 4th Alabama, and their colonel, Egbert Jones, was carried to our field hospital, mortally wounded. With others of our regiment I went over the field after the firing had ceased, and our conclusion was that they were amply repaid for the cruel and unmanly deception practiced upon us. It was never known who the officer was that gave the order to cease firing; he appeared in front of our lines, mounted, with sword uplifted when he gave the order, which was recognized by our company officers, they mistaking him for an aide-de-camp or staff officer. It was, however, the opinion of many of the regiment at the time that he was a rebel officer.

Soon the firing in our front ceased. Our ammunition was all expended, we having been under fire for nearly four hours, and had driven the enemy from that portion of the field. This position, from which we had forced the enemy to retire, and which we then held, is known as Buck's Hill, and was regarded as a position of much importance for our forces.

The Third Division had now arrived, and were coming up to our support, and a battalion each of Regular infantry and United States Marines now came up and occupied our position, while our brigade was marched back into the woods for a brief rest and for a fresh supply of ammunition. Having stacked our muskets, the roll was called by the 1st sergeant, and men detailed to look after the dead and wounded. George C. Almy, Christopher Barker and myself were detailed to go for water. Taking as many of the men's canteens as we could carry, we wended our way toward a small, one-story gambrel roof farm house, which was being used by our surgeons as a field hospital, near which was a well of water. The grounds about the house were covered with wounded and dying men, and it was almost like fighting, to get a supply of water from that well. We however succeeded in filling a portion of our canteens and returned with them to the company. Almost immediately after our arrival back to where the company were resting, the order was given to "fall in." Heavy firing was now again heard on our right, and our officers informed us that the regiment was to change position. Soon troops began to march past us in great confusion; our regiment marched out upon the road and halted. A body of troops passed us headed for the rear, among them two companies of Regular cavalry, whose principal participation in the day's engagement had been the performance of semi-aide-de-camp duty.

We were by this time satisfied in our minds that our army was retreating. At this juncture our brigade started back on the road along the edge of the woods, and soon reached the Warrenton road leading to the Stone Bridge. Our regiment preserved good order until they had nearly reached the bridge; the enemy had a battery in position to rake the road over which the retreat was being conducted, and on arriving in proximity to the bridge, we found it to be completely blocked with teams; a large army wagon had, in crossing, been struck by a shell and the horses killed. The battery of the 2d Rhode Island Regiment were there, and four of their six guns; after getting one of these over, they dismounted and spiked the remaining three, the men and horses fording the stream. In our regiment it was impossible to preserve order, and ours, like that of the others, became a go-as-you-please march in fording the stream; Governor Sprague strove to halt the regiment and make a stand to beat back the enemy, whereupon Colonel Burnside very promptly informed the Governor, in unmistakable and incontrovertible language, that himself was in command of the 1st Rhode Island Regiment. After crossing, the road branched off to the left, beyond the range of the enemy's fire, and our regiment re-formed and waited until most of the demoralized troops had passed, after which we marched in good order back to our bush camp at Centreville that we had left in the morning, reaching there at 9 P. M., tired, hungry, thirsty and dusty, and many of the regiment wounded. To add to our general discomfort, a drizzling rain had set in, and we were without blankets, having, as before stated, left them on the field, with our haversacks, before going into action. We, however, lay down in our bush huts, expecting to remain until morning; but about midnight we were aroused and ordered to start on the road to Washington. The drizzle had not abated and the night was dark; we had been in a state of continued and unusual activity since 2 o'clock the previous morning, and in addition had been all day without food. Footsore and weary we started on our march of twenty-six miles to Washington, and soon after daylight, Monday, July 22d, reached Long Bridge, where we made a halt and rations were served to us, and at 8 A. M. we crossed over to Washington, and marched across the city to our old home at Camp Sprague. The roll was called, a ration of whiskey was given us, and all turned in for a much needed and well earned rest.

OPINIONS ON THE BATTLE.

Many opinions have been given as to the causes that led to the defeat of the Union army at Bull Run. General Sherman, who commanded a brigade in the battle, said it was the best planned and worst fought battle of the war. It has been said by some writers that the plans of the commanding general were not carried out, and that each of the three division commanders whose forces were actually engaged acted on their own responsibility and were governed by circumstances. It is a fact well known to-day, that the Union army, at or in the vicinity of the battle field, were in numbers quite sufficient to have at least held any and every position that a portion of the army had gained. On a map now in possession of Charles E. Lawton Post, G. A. R. of this city, of Bull Run battlefield, drawn under the direction of Generals McDowell and Beauregard, by order of the War Department, the position of every regiment and brigade of both armies at the commencement of the engagement is defined, and in a note appended to the map it is stated that the engagement was commenced by the Burnside brigade, and it is a historical fact recognized at this time, that the battle was fought and won by the Second Division, commanded by Burnside, General Hunter having been wounded before the troops had been brought into position, supported by no other troops, until noon, when a brigade of the Third Division, which had followed us through the forest road, came to our assistance. From 9.30 A. M. to 1 P. M., these seventeen regiments of infantry and four light batteries, unaided by any other troops, fought and drove the enemy from their position on Buck's Hill; and when the two brigades of Tyler's First Division, commanded by Generals Sherman and Schenck, crossed Bull Run river, over Stone Bridge, at 1.30 P. M., there was not a rebel force of any description on the north side of Warrenton road, west of Stone Bridge. At this time victory was assured for the Union army. At the Stone Bridge was Tyler's entire division, comprising fifteen regiments of infantry and three batteries, the Fourth Division, General Runyon, with seven regiments, Fifth Division, General Miles, eight regiments, and one battery. Of these thirteen thousand men, only two brigades of the First Division crossed the river in the afternoon, and they were engaged only about one hour, namely, in the vicinity of the Henry House, when they were repulsed by the enemy, whose forces were now all concentrated at that point. Rickett's Regular battery (formerly Magruder's stationed at Fort Adams previous to the war) was lost, recaptured, and lost again. These two brigades of the First Division retreated, panic stricken, and our reserve of twelve thousand men, at Stone Bridge, retreated without firing a shot, while our Division, the 2d, was holding the position we had gained in the morning. This was the supreme moment, when a Sheridan or a Warren would have swept the opposing forces from the field, or captured their entire army. Colonel Burnside, seeing the aspect matters had assumed, formed his troops into line and fell back to the Warrenton road, fearing he might be cut off at Stone Bridge. Hunter's Division covered the retreat and were the last troops that crossed the bridge, and was the only Division of the army that occupied its former quarters, as these did, at Centreville that night.

DAY AFTER THE BATTLE.

The day after the battle was a busy one in camp; men were straggling in all day, some of them that we had left among the wounded at the field hospital on our departure the evening previous, who had managed to hobble along on the road, and after a while reached camp. Some of these, owing to the darkness of the night, had taken the wrong road from Fairfax and brought up at Alexandria, whence they set out anew, reaching Long Bridge and the camp some hours later. Among these latter was John Fludder, who did not arrive until Monday afternoon, when he surprised us by bringing with him the regimental flag, which we had supposed to have been lost when the regiment "straggled" at Stone Bridge, as no one could give any information in regard to it. Fludder found it where it had been dropped in the confusion of retreat, and in order to save it tore it from the staff and secreting it about his person, thus brought it in. Samuel Hilton, who had been left on the field for dead, also came straggling in; he had been hit in the temple by a partially spent fragment of a shell and laid out senseless and inanimate, and was afterwards revived by the drizzling rain, as were also quite a number belonging to other regiments.

Company F had its full share of losses in killed and wounded. The first man of the company wounded was John B. Landers, shot through the wrist; then followed John Rogers, shot in the leg, Charles Becherer, color sergeant, wounded in the shoulder, Albert N. Burdick, color corporal, wounded in the arm, John P. Peckham, shot in the head and killed, Andrew P. Bashford, shot in the breast and taken prisoner, Theodore W. King, shot through the groin, mortally wounded, taken prisoner, and afterwards died in Philadelphia, when on his way home, Thomas J. Harrington, shot in the head and killed, Allen Caswell, shot in the stomach, Henry T. Easton, wounded in the arm, Samuel Hilton, wounded as above stated, Bartlett L. Simmons, taken prisoner, Robert Crane, never accounted for, but supposed to have been killed during the retreat.

July 24th, Doctor David King and Alderman James C. Powell, of Newport, arrived in camp. Doctor King obtained a pass through the lines for the purpose of attending his son, wounded as above stated, and who was a prisoner in Richmond. Alderman Powell was deputed by the city government of Newport to look after the sick and wounded of Company F on their way home.

Orders were received, July 24th, to make preparations for return to Rhode Island, as our term of service had expired. Colonel Burnside offered the services of the regiment for a longer time, as it was expected that the rebels would make an attack on Washington; but it was thought our services would not be needed, and preparations for departure were accordingly made. On Thursday, July 25th, we had dress parade for the last time in Washington. After the parade, the 2d Regiment was formed in line directly opposite and facing us, and the men of the two regiments exchanged muskets, each with the man opposite him; the muskets of the Second were old, smooth bore, altered over, while those of the First were the latest improved Springfield rifles. During the evening, we improved the opportunity to visit the camp of the Second, bidding them good bye, and receiving such messages and tokens as they desired to send home to friends.

CHAPTER VI.

We left that city at 2 A. M., July 27th, arriving in New York soon after daylight, where the regiment embarked on board steamers Bay State and State of Maine, for Providence. Each steamer took five companies, ours being on the State of Maine, on board of which we were given a nice breakfast. We steamed out of New York at about 11 A. M., July 27th, the transports proceeding slowly to avoid arriving in Providence at a late hour in the day. At 10.30 P. M. we were off Beaver Tail light; F Company was called and formed on the hurricane deck, Captain Tew arranging with the steamer captain to sail through the inner harbor of Newport. When opposite Fort Greene, a squad of the Newport Artillery fired a salute, which was answered with cheering by F Company, and the blowing of the steamer's whistle. Both steamers proceeded up the bay and anchored, it being the wish to not land before daylight.

At 6 A. M. Sunday, July 28th, landed, and, escorted by the militia of the state, marched through the city to Railroad Hall, Exchange Place, where a substantial breakfast awaited us. After breakfast and speeches by Bishop Clark and others, the regimental companies residing outside of Providence were ordered to their homes, to report again in Providence August 2d.

F Company, escorted by the past members of the Newport Artillery, Colonel Fludder in command, and the Old Guard, both of which companies had that morning come from Providence to receive us, left for Newport on steamer Perry at 11 A. M., arriving at Sayer's Wharf in Newport, at 1 P. M.

On our arrival we found the wharf and streets of the city through which we were to pass crowded with people of all ages and both sexes, as though the whole of Newport had turned out to greet us. Services were omitted by the churches, all evidently regarding it as a duty appropriate to the Sabbath to welcome to their homes those who had gone forth to peril their lives at their country's call. Tears dropped from many eyes, as those were remembered who had left home with us, but would never return.

We marched up Thames street, our sick and wounded in carriages, through Touro street and Bellevue Avenue, to Touro Park, where we were welcomed in addresses by Mayor Cranston and other city officials. On invitation of Mr. William Newton, proprietor of the Atlantic house, we partook of an excellent dinner at that hostelry, after which a short street parade was made to the armory on Clarke street, where we were dismissed, with orders to report again on the 2d of August.

On Friday, August 2d, we reported at the armory and proceeded to Providence; we received our pay and were mustered out of the United States service, by Colonel Loomis, of the 5th United States Infantry. In the afternoon a final parade was made by the entire regiment, but F Company were obliged to leave the line before its conclusion, in order to take the 5 P. M. boat for home.

A few days after the arrival home of the company, a beautiful set of flags was received by Mayor Cranston, a gift from Rhode Islanders residing in California to the color company of the 1st Rhode Island Regiment, and were accompanied by the following explanatory letter:

On Tuesday, October 29th, 1861, a formal presentation of the flags to Company F took place on Touro Park. The company were present in good numbers, and Colonel Burnside was also present by invitation. Mayor Cranston, after reading the correspondence accompanying the flags, remarked as follows:

Colonel Burnside responded. After a few remarks acknowledging the kindness of the patriotic Californians, he turned to the members of Company F and addressed them as follows:

Then turning to the Mayor, he added:

Company F then made a parade through the city, displaying the flags.

At a meeting held by Company F at the armory of the Artillery Company, November 5th, 1861, it was voted to place the flags in charge of three members of Company F, and Corporal Tayer and Privates DeBlois and Terrell were appointed that committee, with instructions to place them in the Newport city hall for safe keeping. It was soon afterwards ascertained that the place allotted to them in the city hall was damp, and it was decided to remove them to a place where they would be better preserved, and could be seen at any time. The place selected was the Artillery Company's armory, where they were suitably mounted, and will doubtless always remain.

Soon after the muster out of F Company, recruiting commenced at once for new regiments from Rhode Island, and of 108 officers and men composing Company F at muster out, 84 re-entered the service either in the army or navy, many of them occupying positions of rank in both branches of the service during the war.

CONCLUSION.

Company F, 1st Rhode Island Regiment, is a thing of the past. Thirty years have come and gone since the enactment of the stirring scenes in which we participated; but those scenes and incidents still exist in the minds and memories of the men composing that company. A large portion of its members have left the city, and many have been carried to that silent camp where they "sleep their last sleep, have fought their last battle; no sound can awake them to glory again." But as each succeeding 17th of April rolls around, the surviving members of the company meet to talk over the incidents of the long ago, tell stories of camp and field, and say a word of those who have left us to return no more; and we shall continue these gatherings at least once a year, until the last man of Company F shall have been mustered out to join those who have gone before.