Family stories of the War

[littlecanoe]

Over the Years I've enjoyed the stories of family experience concerning the war.  History books are much to sterile in helping understand the conflict and the complexity of subject matter involved.  When the human element of personal experience is added the issue comes alive for me!  With that in mind, this may have been done already, please consider contributing stories of what your family experienced through this conflict, whether northern or southern.   I'll be away from the computer for a few days but plan on adding a couple stories of my own.

Much thanks,
lc

[The Hermit]

What follows was taken from notes found in old family records.
  Alfred Turcott, age 18 years, enlisted Dec. 22, 1861, to serve 3 years, in the 94^th N.Y. Voluntary Infantry, mustered in as a private, CO. H, on Feb. 13, 1862. Transferred to CO. E, March 10, 1863 at Fredericksburg, VA. . Discharged for wounds 11/5/1863, as "Tarcott".
(He participated in many bloody battles until the Battle of Fredericksburg on April15, 1863. He received a wound, which cost him his leg, and much suffering until the time of his death.
So fierce was the fighting at the time of his injury that it was many hours before medical assistance was rendered. Alfred had his lower leg shattered by a shell and fell beside the body of a color bearer. He seized the staff and held aloft the Stares and Stripes until the flag was shot away. A field sergeant arrived and amputated his leg below the knee.
He was removed to the general hospital where another amputation was made above the knee, and later a third portion of his leg was removed before he was sent home.
One time during the war, Alfred had occasion to jump across a ditch, and in doing so he recognized a familiarity about the face of a man and called out his brothers name. The brothers immediately established their relationship.) (Credit Leigh Ann Hardy)
 
I have more about his personal life in my records, but this sheds some light about the horrors of the action in the Civil War.
 I give a respectfull salute to all the brave men from the North AND the South.
 
The Hermit

[littlecanoe]

Well, I came back to this post 3.5 months later! 

An abbreviated family story.
GG Grandfather Calvin served in the 7th KY Volunteer Cavalry.
They saw action in KY? TN and GA and may have pushed west after Hood's retreat.
I don't remember all of the details.
He was in the "hospital"2 different times and his Pension papers indicate that he suffered from diarrhea.
When Hood was retreating after the battle of Atlanta the 7th, or companies of the 7th were stationed at Dalton, GA with a Regiment? of Black soldiers.  They were surrounded and asked to surrender.  The commanding officer refused and a second request was sent with the information that Hood commanded a much superior force and that a battle would result in overwhelming defeat and death.  Dalton was surrendered and my GGGF was made prisoner of war.

They were marched over the mountains to Lafayette (pronounced La-FAY-et in GA).  All that was any value to the Confederate troops had been stripped from them.  They were held there a few days. The Confederate detachment guarding them then left to catch up with Hoods army allowing them to matriculate back into the ranks in Chattanooga.

lc

[Sourdough]

I have one to relate.  This is from my Mothers Side of the family.:

My Great-Great Grandfather Wyatt Williams was a trader.  He traded in Tobacco, Horses, and Slaves.  He and his brother also ran a Sawmill where they cut lumber from the virgin forest of Middle Tennessee,  The Brother would saw lumber, sell what he could locally, and oversaw the construction of Flat Bottom River Boats.  Wyatt would travel the country side buying Tobacco, Molasses, and furs.  Every two years in the spring to catch the spring runnoff in the Cumberland river, he would take the boats, along with a crew, mostly made up of slaves.  The boats would travel down the Cumberland, to the Ohio.  Down the Ohio, to the Mississippi, then down to New Orleans.  There Wyatt would sell his goods, dismantle the boats and sell the lumber.  Buy some horses and ride the Natches Trace back to Nashville then on to Carthage. 

Well just prior to the War Wyatt knew bad times were coming.  He got the biggest load he could pull together.  He took all the family slaves along on the boats.  When he got to New Orleans he sold everything and hurried back to Carthage.  He only took gold in his trades. 

Upon ariving home the war had started.  He left the gold with the family and went off to fight.  Later on a troop of Yankee calvery came into the community.  Someone told the troopers that the Williams had a lot of gold, so the troopers paid a visit to the Williams farm.  Young Pony Williams was home studying to be a doctor.  When the troopers came up Pony went and got his Papa's gold.  It was kept in saddlebags, but he was trapped inside the house.  The soldiers came in and started inspecting the home.  One of Pony's older sisters was wearing a dress with the large hoops in it.  She was a rather tall and large woman, and Pony being a small man was able to hide under her skirts.  Not being a good looker the troops paid little attention to her.  The woman quietly and slowly made her way through the house and out onto the front porch.  She went to the edge of the porch and stood looking out over the community down below.  (The house was up on a hill overlooking the town of what is present day Difficult, Tennessee.)  (I've been to that house many times)  When no one was looking Pony slipped out and ran to the family cemetery.  There was a fresh grave out there, so Pony hid the saddlebags in the soft earth of the grave.  Once the Soldiers left Pony moved the Gold to a more secure hiding place.

Knowing if any of the gold was used, someone in the community would let it be known, Pony told no one where Papa's gold was hidden.  Later when Pony left home to help care for the Troops, he told his Mama where he had hid the gold.  She left it where it was till Papa came home.  Having that gold was the means the Williams family was able to hold onto their farm after the war when all the Skalawags and Carpetbaggers came down looking to take a fortune where they could.

My Grandmother told me how the Williams Men refused to take an oath of allegence to the United States of America.  Therefore they were never allowed to vote in any of the elections.To their dying day both my Grandparents refused to vote, and hated Yankees.

[Hiwall]

My great grandfather Henry L Morrison was in Co. G 8th Texas Inf. Most of his service was drilling and protecting East Tx. He did participate in the Galveston expedition and was in the Red River Brigade where they fought in the battle of Mansfield, La.
The family story as told to my Mother and then to me(My mother was born in 1914) was that they were sent in relief of Vicksburg. After marching across the state of La. they arrived on the western bank of the Miss. river and observed the Union flag flying. The Commander ordered them to fire on a flat boat of freed slaves and make haste for the Tx. border. He said there shoes wore out and they left bloody tracks across N La. There the company was absorbed into the 12th Texas Inf. where he served till being discharged. In 1914 he was at the 50th reunion of the battle of Vicksburg and also attended the dedication of the park. He drew a pension till his death