The 48th/150th: Thirty Days' Veteran Furlough: Back Home In Old Schuylkill County

150 years ago today, the people of Pottsville and of the nearby towns, townships, and coal patches turned out by the thousands to welcome home the re-enlisted veterans of the 48th Pennsylvania Infantry. After more than two years of war, these soldiers were back home, looking forward to the next thirty days in their homes, with the families and their friends, sleeping in warm beds and enjoying good, hearty meals. . .Tears were shed, warm embraces were given, and enthusiastic cheers rent the air, 150 years ago when the 48th arrived back home to start their thirty-days' furlough.

1854 View of Pottsville, Pennsylvania

February 3, 1864, was a Wednesday and early that morning, General James Nagle--the man who had raised and originally commanded the regiment, announced that the soldiers of the 48th would arrive in Pottsville that afternoon, as they were heading home on a train specially arranged for them that morning in Harrisburg. As soon as Nagle made the announcement, "Every preparation was at once made by the citizens to give the Regiment a hearty welcome home," reported Miners' Journal editor Francis Wallace. "Private residences were decorated with large streamers of red, white, and blue, while flags, large and small, were displayed everywhere throughout the borough." A parade was planned and, all along the planned route, "were displayed the names of the battles in which the Regiment had participated," while suspended across Mahantango Street were three large medallions bearing the names "Burnside," "Nagle," and "Sigfried," "under whom the regiment had served with distinguished honor."



 

A Train Pulls Away From Mt. Carbon Station,
(The Mansion House and Sharp Mountain Can Be Seen In Background)

At long last, at 3:30 that afternoon, the train arrived at Mt. Carbon station, coming to a halt amid a thunderous cheer and applause from the thousands gathered. The men no doubt strained their necks looking for their loved ones as they stepped off the trains. Stretching their legs and eager to get back home, the regiment was drawn up in line in order in front of the Mansion House in Mt. Carbon to receive a "beautiful stand of colors" prepared especially for them by the women of Pottsville. As Wallace described the flag: "The standard was made of heavy blue silk, with the State arms of Pennsylvania on one side, and the arms of the United States on the reverse, both of which were surrounded by scrolls containing the names of the following battles in which the Regiment had been engaged: Bull Run, Chantilly, Antietam, Fredericksburg. The guidons were four in number, a small American flag, and three, red, white and blue made of stout twilled silk. On each was inscribed: '48th P.V.'

Congressman James H. Campbell was there and presented the regiment with the flags, and gave the soldiers an encouraging and inspiring welcome home:

Representative James H. Campbell Welcomed Home The 48th With A Stirring Speech

Officers and Soldiers of the Forty-Eighth Pennsylvania!
I have been honored by the ladies of Pottsville, your sisters, wives, and mothers, with the pleasing duty of presenting this flag, guidons, and markers, as their testimonial to and appreciation of your patriotism, bravery, and devotion to the cause of the Union.
You bring with you tattered flags from glorious battle-fields--flags rent in conflict, but of stainless honor. The ladies of Pottsville beg leave to place by the side of these, this beautiful flag, the work of their fair hands.
Where the white horses romp in the azure field, you see inscribed Chantilly, Antietam, South Mountain, and East Tennessee, one and all recalling memories of heroic deeds that will live while time endures.
The fair donors have watched with sympathetic bosoms your trials, bravery, and suffering--the deadly struggle, the sufferings in hospitals, on the weary march and by the dreamless bivouac, all heroically borne by you. While they have shed tears for the gallant dead, they come today, with words of welcome and smiles of gratitude, to greet their returning brothers and husbands.
Soldiers, you have registered a vow in Heaven that the old flag shall fly in all its original splendor over every inch of territory the Nation ever possessed--and that too, over free territory. A few years since it was loved and respected everywhere,--for it was everywhere, by glacial pinnacles, and under the suns of the tropics--in the marts of the old world, and the wilderness of the new. It must now be shorn of its glory.
Soldiers, you carry peace on the points of your bayonets and true diplomacy in your cartridge boxes. We can have no true, lasting or honorable peace until the rebels submit to the laws of the country. We ask no more of them; we will submit to no less.
We bid you a hearty, earnest, warm-hearted welcome to this good old county of Schuylkill, a welcome made doubly endearing in that the ladies bid me, in their name, emphasize it with this glorious banner of liberty."

Following Representative Campbell's remarks, the 48th gave three cheers and the crowd again broke into applause. Colonel Joshua Sigfriend thanked the ladies of Pottsville for the flag and promised that they would be brought back in honor, or not brought back at all.

It was then time to commence the parade. At its head rode General Nagle and other officers, followed by a battalion of wounded soldiers and then the Pottsville band. Then marched the returning soldiers of the 48th Pennsylvania, followed by "Honorably Discharged and Convalescent Soldiers" under the command of former Major James Wren. Finally, there came the soldiers of the 7th PA Cavalry as well as the 1st New York Artillery (which had been earlier summoned to the coal regions to keep an eye on draft resistance and labor unrest in the coal mines).

General James Nagle Helped To Welcome Home
The Soldiers of his Old Command, The 48th PA

"The veterans were greeted all along the route by cheers and the waving of handkerchiefs," wrote Oliver Bosbyshell. "The streets were filled with thousands of people. A more animated spectacle has been rarely witnessed in Pottsville."

The parade ended at the Union Hotel where Reverend Koons delivered a prayer and John Bannan, a leading citizen, delivered yet another welcome-home address. Sigfried once more responded, "thanking the citizens for their kind reception, and telling them of the spirit which animated the men in re-enlisting, expressing a hope that the command would return to the field recruited to its full strength."

At last, it was time for dinner and the soldiers of the 48th enjoyed a fine meal prepared by the women of Pottsville. . .after that, the regiment was dismissed. . .and for the men, it was time to go home. Many walked to their homes in Pottsville; many others--those from Tamaqua, Minersville, St. Clair, Orwigsburg, Cressona, Port Clinton, and all the other near and distant towns--had to now either catch another train ride, ride home by carriage, or, for many, simply walk.

After two-and-a-half years of service, in North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Kentucky and east Tennessee, the veteran soldiers of the 48th Pennsylvania who had agreed to serve three more years were back home. . .at least for thirty days.

The 48th PA First Stepped Off The Train Here at the Mansion House in Mt. Carbon. . .
Today, the site of the Pottsville Pizzeria

The 48th/150th: Thirty Days' Veteran Furlough: Part Two: From Lexington to Harrisburg

150 years ago, during the final week of January and into the first week of February, the soldiers of the 48th Pennsylvania--at least those who had re-enlisted for another three-year term of service--were finally on their way home, looking forward to a thirty-day furlough. And as the regiment headed east on various trains from Kentucky, through Ohio, and into Pennsylvania, the city of Pottsville was eagerly anticipating its arrival, determined to give the "boys" a great reception home.

After spending a few days catching up with their old Lexington friends, the soldiers of the 48th boarded train cars of the Kentucky Central Railroad and, at 12:00 noon on January 25, 1864, steamed toward Covington, where it arrived twelve hours later.

Sadly and tragically, during the trip Private Patrick M. Brown of Company F, was killed during an accident on the rails near Paris, Kentucky. Oliver Bosbyshell stated that he "was knocked off the top of one of the care, thrown under the train and killed," but Joseph Gould remembered it differently. The trains had stopped at Paris for the engine to take on water. Brown was attempting to cross the track by crawling under the cars when the train once more started. Regardless of how it happened, the 38-year-old private and native of Ireland who had survived the fall campaign in East Tennessee, died as a result. As Bosbyshell recalled years later: "This cast quite a gloom over the otherwise enjoyable journey."

Soldiers Cross A Pontoon Bridge Connecting Covington, KY, with Cincinnati, OH

The regiment spend nearly a week in Covington but on Sunday, January 31, the regiment crossed the river into Cincinnati and, at 6:30 p.m., in the midst of a heavy rain and, after having just been paid, they boarded yet another train "and the start for home began in earnest." The next stop was Columbus, Ohio, where they changed cars. That night, the regiment reached Pittsburgh. Even though the regiment did not arrive until 10:00 p.m., a committee of well-meaning and patriotic citizens were there to greet them and to escort the regiment to the Volunteer Refreshment Saloon where they were treated to a "fine supper." "That made us feel good," said Gould, "and we tendered thanks to the good people of Pittsburg for the manner in which they evidenced their appreciation of our services."


The Pennsylvania capital was at least reached at 5:00 p.m. on February 2 and the next morning, the regiment would be heading back home. . . .

A Train Arrives at the Harrisburg, PA, Train Station

As the soldiers of the 48th hopped from train to train and endured the bumpy journey back home--looking forward to thirty days spent with their families and old friends--the people of Pottsville were getting ready to welcome them. As explained in the Miners' Journal:

"When the 48th arrives home it will experience a hearty reception. The regiment enjoys the distinguished honor of being the first in the [Ninth] corps to re-enlist as veterans for an additional three years' service. [The 21st Massachusetts was actually the first to do so]. In all cases, when three-fourths of the men re-enlist they will be entitled to a furlough of some thirty days and the regular bounty. 
Colonel Sigfried, Lieutenant-Colonel Pleasants, Dr. Blackwood and the other veteran officers who have passed through all the trying scenes of the siege of Knoxville, and the exhausting toils and dangers of the defense of Holston [River] and the retreat from the river, the action at Campbell's Station, at Greenville and the repulse of Longstreet after he retired in the direction of Virginia, continue with the men, to their great delight. It is to be hoped that this veteran body will speedily be raised up to the standard of a full regiment. It is all important that young recruits should be associated with men who know their duty, and who, in circumstances of danger or want, know how to face danger without fear, and to make the best of difficulties.
The inhabitants of Pottsville recently procured a magnificent and costly flag for the 48th, having a list of the engagements inscribed on it through which the men have passed. In addition to the long lost with which the flag is covered, Gen. Burnside, who is idolized by the regiment, has authorized the addition of the words "East Tennessee," a phrase which covers a wonderful amount of cold, hunger, danger and suffering."


At last, after a long journey, the 48th Pennsylvania arrived back in Pottsville at 3:30 on the afternoon of February 3, 1864. The reception they received will be covered in a future post. . .

The 48th/150th: Thirty Days' Veteran's Furlough. . .First Stop: Lexington!

150 years ago. . .

The 316 soldiers of the 48th Pennsylvania who had decided to re-enlist for another three-year term of service were eagerly looking forward to a visit home. For most of these men, they had not seen their loved ones and their Schuylkill County homes since the late summer of 1861. More than two years had passed since then, and these miners, clerks, laborers, canal workers, and students had seen all the horrors the Civil War had to offer. Too many of their friends and comrades--and in some cases, fathers, sons, and brothers--had already given their lives, and now lay under the sandy soil of North Carolina, or in an unmarked pit near Manassas, Virginia, or near the bloody fields of battle at Antietam, Fredericksburg, Campbell's Station, and Knoxville. The men had tramped and steamed and rode the rails for thousands of miles already, and now those 316 soldiers were looking forward to yet another trip: first by foot, back toward Lexington, Kentucky, then by rail to Harrisburg and back, finally, to Pottsville. Their decision to re-enlist had earned them a thirty-day furlough. . .and, 150 years ago, they were setting off, eager to see their families once more.

"[T]here was great rejoicing amongst the veterans," said Oliver Bosbyshell when the orders arrived to head back home.  Their journey back to Schuylkill County began at 9:00 a.m. on January 13, 1864, when the soldiers "started on the long march back over the mountains to Lexington." Along the way, the regiment paused briefly at the headquarters of Brigadier General Robert Potter, their divisional commander, and were "greatly gratified at the speech" Potter made. With a spring in their step that had been missing for quite some time, the men covered 17 miles that day. Another 18 miles were covered the following day--January 14--with the soldiers arriving within a few miles of Cumberland Gap. Up and over the mountain they continued on January 15. On this date, the regiment was turned over to Major Joseph Gilmour while Colonel Joshua Sigfried, Lieutenant-Colonel Henry Pleasants, and Captain Oliver Bosbyshell rode on ahead, toward Lexington, with the intention of securing much needed supplies to be ready for when the regiment arrived. Bosbyshell, for example, made it all the way to Cincinnati where he was able to secure 160 new uniform coats to replace some of more tattered ones among the command.

Wartime Image of the Cumberland Gap
[From the collections of the Kentucky Historical Society]

Finally, on Saturday, January 23, the men arrived in Lexington, the city that had hosted them so kindly and so generously the year before when the 48th was detailed there as provost marshals. "The return to the 'old stamping ground' was like a homecoming, and very happy and enjoyable were the two days spent in renewing the friendships engendered by five months' provost duty." Joseph Gould recorded that when the regiment entered town, "the entire population turned out to meet us, as, with fife and drum, we marched out to our old camp-ground, where, before dismissing the regiment, Colonel Sigfried stated that he was going to place no restrictions on the men, trusting that every man would guard, as sacred, the good name we bore in Lexington. All he asked," concluded Gould, "was that enough men would remain in camp to guard the arms and regimental property."

The soldiers caught up with some old Kentucky friends and acquaintances and remained there until January 25, preparing for the next leg of their journey home. "That the people [of Lexington] enjoyed our coming goes without saying, as every evidence was given us of their delight, and that we were glad to be there was made manifest by the manner in which we enjoyed ourselves, especially as the 'freedom of the town' was extended to us," wrote regimental historian Gould.

Meanwhile, hundreds of miles away in Pottsville, the people rejoiced at the news that their husbands, sons, and brothers in the 48th PA were heading home. . .if only for 30 days. An elaborate ceremony was being prepared to welcome the boys back home.

The 48th/150th: Reenlistment

            By the turn of the New Year, 1864, the veteran soldiers of the 48^th Pennsylvania Infantry had witnessed more than their fair share of hardship, misery, and bloodshed. Over the past two-and-a-half years, the men had campaigned, fought, and bled in North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Kentucky, and Tennessee, traversing thousands of miles and burying their friends in five different states. Of the 1,010 men who marched off to war with the 48^th in the late summer/early fall of 1861, fewer than four hundred remained; the others had been discharged, either because of sickness or wounds, succumbed to disease, or fallen on the field of battle at such places as 2^nd Bull Run, Antietam, Fredericksburg, Campbell’s Station, and Knoxville.

            The turn of the New Year, 1864, found the veteran soldiers of the 48^th PA in their winter camps near Blaine’s Cross Roads in Eastern Tennessee, a winter encampment the soldiers likened to Valley Forge. It was cold, it was snowy, and the soldiers suffered from a poor diet with provisions being scant. Another Christmas had come and gone and the men longed for their families and loved ones, hundreds of miles away in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania.

            When these soldiers enlisted in the late summer of 1861, their term of service was for “three years or the course of the war,” whichever came first. For those who took the Oath in 1861, this enlistment was due to expire in either late September or early October, 1864. The men longed for home and they had witnessed more than two years of terrible hardship and horrific bloodshed. . .but the task was yet unfinished; the rebellion had yet to be crushed and the nation had yet to be reunited.

            The primary topic of conversation among the men during that winter of ’63-’64 in East Tennessee was whether they would sign up for another three-year of service; whether they would re-enlist. The government realized so many of its veteran troops were scheduled to go home in 1864, so they offered a number of incentives if the men reenlisted to serve another three-year term: a $300 bounty, a 30-day furlough, and the honorary title of “Veteran.” Plus, with unit pride being so important to the men, if three-quarters of the regiment re-enlisted, they would be able to maintain their regimental designation; if not, those who did sign up to serve another three years would be distributed to other regiments in the field.

            For some of the soldiers of the 48^th, these incentives were not enough. There were other things more important—like their homes and families—and they had already put in enough service, they felt. But, for whatever their reasons or the motivations, on January 1, 1864, 316 soldiers—well more than 75%--of the 48^th Pennsylvania decided to re-enlist; to serve until the end, to see the war through to its end.  They were the second regiment in the entire 9^th Corps to do so—the 21^st Massachusetts beat them to the punch and were the first to reenlist. For the Massachusetts and Pennsylvania boys, this meant a 30-day furlough. The Bay Staters left first, leaving East Tennessee on January 7. Those who re-upped in the 48^th Pennsylvania would have to wait another week—they were scheduled to march away from East Tennessee (for good, as it turned out) on January 13, heading first back to Kentucky and from there, by rail to Pittsburg, Harrisburg, before finally arriving back home in Pottsville for their well-deserved and much-needed 30-day furlough.

 

Among those who elected to serve another three-year term of service were. . . .

 

 

Samuel Beddall, Company E

Elias Britton, Company A

Daniel Donne, Company G

Lewis Eveland, Company A

Joseph Hoskings, Company F

James May, Company E

Henry H. Price, Company A

 

The 48th/150th: "Christmas Has Passed, And A Very Dull One It Was For Me:" Lt. Pollock's Letter Home

One-hundred-and-fifty years ago this past Thursday--on December 26, 1863--and from the 48th's winter quarters near Blaine's Crossroads, Tennessee, Lieutenant Curtis Pollock, at that time commanding Company G, penned the following letter to his mother in Pottsville. The weather was cold, raw, and snowy as the veteran soldiers of the regiment endured yet another winter in uniform, and observed yet another Christmas hundreds of miles away from their families and from their homes. They knew that their original terms of enlistment were to due to expire the following year--in either September or October 1864. With the end of the war still nowhere in sight, however, and fearing the loss of so many of seasoned, veteran troops--like the men of the 48th--the government began to offer incentives to those who re-enlisted for another three years. As Pollock writes here, the topic of re-enlistment was the "all absorbing topic" that winter in Tennessee. When he wrote this letter on December 26, it is apparent that the reaction of the men to the idea of re-enlisting was lukewarm, at best. As it eventually turned out, however, in early January 1864--and as will be covered in a future post--more than 3/4 (75%) of the soldiers of the 48th did choose to reenlist.

 

Lt. Curtis Clay Pollock, Company G.
Sadly, Christmas 1863 would be his last Christmas on earth; he died six months later, in late June 1864, as a result of wounds received at Petersburg.

 

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Camp near Blane’s Cross Roads Tenn.

Dec. 26, 1863

Dear Ma

     I am kept very busy at present making out Muster Rolls and a great many other papers that a Company Commander has to bother himself with.  Christmas has passed, and a very dull one it was for me. The day before Christmas we were out and made a reconissance but the Rebs. had just left.  I have never felt so tired as I did that night when we got back to camp.  There has been a great deal of talk of the 9^th Corps leaving Tennessee, since Burnside has left us, but now that has given way to the all absorbing topic, “reinlistment.” They are trying to get our Regt. to reinlist, but with the exception of a few of the Companies they do not succede very well.  There are only two men in G. who are willing to reinlist.  I heard this evening that there were one hundred and sixty four in the whole Regt.  The Government offers all those who reinlist thirty days furlough and the bounty.  If three fourths of the Regt. enlist they will allow them to go home in a body, and those who refuse are to be put in other Regt’s and companies to do duty until their term of service expires.  I have no idea what we will do here now.  The Rebels have evidently left this immediate vicinity but whether we are to follow them up or remain here I do not know.  As soon as I get through all the writing I have now on hand I will copy my diary and send it to you.  It has been raining nearly all day and as we have nothing but the shelter tents to do everything in, I have not gotten through much work.  I received my valise as a Christmas present and it is the only one I have rec’d. It has been all this time on the way from Camp Nelson here.  I picked up a young contraband the other day. He run away from the Rebs. when they evacuated before Knoxville.  He says his “Massa” is a private and had him with him to carry his knapsack and other drudgery.  He calls himself “Dick.” He tells some wonderful stories about what the Rebs do, but I think he has a rather strong imagination.

I am quite anxious to get that letter that came to Pottsville for me for I imagine there is a photograph in it.  Did you ever get any of those pictures of Reilly and myself.  I should very much like to have one.  I suppose by this time Mary has arrived again at home and I need not ask if she has enjoyed herself.  How is Marge and Charley getting along.  I heard something about a young man being seen with a young lady and after that she could not be found.  How is it?

                           With much love to all I remain

                                           Your affec Son

                                                         C.C.P.

Santa Claus Handing Out Gifts To Union Troops, by Thomas Nast and Published in Harper's Weekly on January 3, 1863. This was one of Nast's very first depictions of Santa Claus and still today, 150 years later, Nast's renderings/depiction of his imagined Santa Claus remains as the most widely recognized.

The 48th/150th: "The Condition Of The Men Was Deplorable In The Extreme:" The 48th's "Valley Forge" Winter. . .

150 years ago, as the campaign against Longstreet's men drew to a close, the ragged, footsore and cold veteran soldiers of the 48th Pennsylvania endured what was a miserable winter encamped in the mountains of East Tennessee. Snow fell heavily that winter, with ice covering the ground, and temperatures seldom rising above freezing. The men had spent the winter of '61-'62 encamped along the sandy shores of Hatteras, North Carolina; the next winter--that of '62-'63--found them recovering from the shock of Fredericksburg at their camps near Falmouth, but it was this winter encampment, that of '63-'64, that the soldiers would never forget and one they would refer to as their own Valley Forge.

Edwin Forbes sketch of a Civil War Soldier in Winter Camp. . .
(Library of Congress)

Many years after the war, Sergeant William Wells of Company F left a vivid account of what the soldiers experienced that frigid winter of '63-'64 and how they did their best simply to stay warm and get something to eat:

William Wells, Company F, 48th PA

During the encampment of the 48th at Blaine's Crossroads, in East Tennessee, from December 7th, 1863, to January 13th, 1864, the condition of the men was deplorable in the extreme. Probably no troops of the Union Army, during the entire war--prisoners of war excepted--suffered so much from lack of supplies as did those of the Burnside forces during that dreary winter in that barren, mountainous region. The cause of this in no way reflected upon the War Department nor any of its officers, the conditions surrounding the situation being alone responsible. Being over two hundred miles from the base of supplies at Hickman Bridge, Kentucky, it was utterly impossible for the Commissary and Quartermaster's Departments to procure anything like adequate supplies of food or clothing for the Army of East Tennessee, as almost the entire distance lay over a succession of mountain, steep, high and rocky, as the Wild Cats, the Cumberland, the Clinch, and intervening ranges, besides rivers and mountain streams. The roads during the summer were bad enough, but almost impassable for teams in winter. To add to the difficulty, forage for the miles, from start to finish--except a few days' supply at the start--was unobtainable, both armies having devastated the country for many miles, so that the finish they scarcely had strength enough to move their loaded wagons. At places on the Clinch mountains the descent was so steep that they only way to get the wagons down was by use of ropes coiled about the trees.  Besides this method of obtaining supplies, the otherwise useless teams were sometimes sent out into the surrounding country on foraging expeditions, under strong guard, returning to camp, perhaps empty, or with a small supply of corn-on-the-cob so ancient that, to reduce the corn to an edible condition, the boys were kept busy. At any time, day or night, an old coffee mill or other improvised grinder might be heard grinding away. Two ears of corn, or eight ounces of flour, generally constituted a day's rations. Occasionally when a drove of cattle, sleek and fat at the start, but fatless on their arrival in camp, made their appearance, they were soon slaughtered and we had a little fresh meat. A little hard tack and "salt horse" now and then, varied the diet, and sometimes the memory of yesterday's meal must suffice. Most of the men at the close of this arduous campaign, in that wintry camp, the cold north wind sweeping around them, were tentless, blanketless, many without overcoats, and but few had any change of underclothing.

For shelter, two heavy logs, placed slightly apart, gave support for fence rails, which, inclining forward, served as a support for a thick covering of pine boughs, of which the woods gave a plentiful supply. Underneath this shelter additional pine boughs served for a bedding. To keep warm at night, heavy logs were laid in front of the shelter to form the fire-bed, which was kept burning by one comrade while the others slept. Thus the time passed, while the camp and picket guard "kept up their dreary rounds." To-day it seems like a dream, yet what a stern reality!

The lack of proper clothing, for want of a change, was a source of much annoyance to the men; but there was no remedy, as soap in that camp was almost an unknown commodity. Many tried, covered only with a thin blouse, to wash their shirt in the mountain streams, using clay as a substitute for soap, but with poor results. As "Cleanliness is next to Godliness," they succeeded but poorly in living up to the adage.

Their feet were in but little better condition than their bodies and stomachs, for many a foot was but poorly clad, some wrapped in rags. Raw beef-hides, when obtainable, cut into moccasin form and tied with strips of the same, or string, covered many a foot to keep it from the biting cold or frozen ground. Yet but few complained, complaint being useless, no betterment in sight. Never did men bear greater hardships in camp life than did the troops in East Tennessee in the winter of 1863-1864. Hungry, half-clad, shelterless and footsore, they bore all uncomplainingly for the land they loved so well and the flag they followed."  
 

Harper's Weekly