Regimental History
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650 Thirteenth Regiment New Hampshire Volunteer Infantry. (THREE YEARS.) By S. MILLETT THOMPSON, late Second Lieutenant Thirteenth Regiment New Hampshire Volunteer Infantry, and Historian of tlie Regiment. THIS i-egiment volunteered under the call of Jul}' i, 1862, for 300,000 men. Gathered personally by their officers to be, two companies each were formed in Rockingham, Hillsborough, and Strafford counties; and one each in Grafton, Merrimack, Carroll, and Coos — all coming into Camp Colby, near Concord, between September 11 and 15. The muster-in of the rank and file was completed on September 20, and of the field and stafl", with the exception of Assistant-Surgeon John Sullivan, on September 23. militarj' outfit, including The colors were received on the afternoon of October 5 ; and at the same time a Springfield rifles, muzzle-loading, calibre 58. Space does not admit fairly of extended mention of individuals. This was at first almost wholly a regiment of native Americans and of New Hampshire's representative young men, many of them lineal descendants of the patriots of 1776 who fought in the Revolution. The average age was a little under twenty-five years, average height five feet and eight inches, and the most were of the dark blonde type. Its companies were fellow townsmen, and its members were in almost every trade and calling — many of whom, too, since the war closed, have gained prominent positions, commercial, professional, and in the Legislatures of States and Nation. The detachments, at the front, of its officers and men, upon special and staff duties, because of their intelligence and eflSciency, were very numerous — exceeding that of any regiment near and associated with it in the service. The Thirteenth was at Camp Colby from September 11-15 to 4 a. m. of October 6 ; then moved by rail via Nashua and Worcester to Allyn's Point on the Thames river ; thence by steamer to Jersey City ; thence by rail — cattle cars — via Philadelphia and Baltimore to Washington, arriving there at 9.30 p. m. bivouacking the Capitol of October 8, and upon grounds ; thence at 2.15 p. m. of October 9, marched via Long Bridge to Camp Chase on Arlington Heights, arriving there at 6 p. m., and spending the frosty night upon wet ground and without tents or cover. Here it was assigned to the First Brigade, five regiments, Col. Dexter R. Wright, of Gen. Silas Casey's Provisional Division, known as the Defenses of Washington. At 7 A. M. of October 17 marched to Upton's Hill, and, the distant enemy threatening and noisy, to the outer picket lines beyond Falls Church, returning to Camp Chase on the afternoon of October 19, and there was continuously engaged in drill, intrenching, and guarding Long Bridge and the Potomac shore. Marched, November i, ta Camp Casey, near Fairfax Seminary, arriving at 3 p. m. Here the drill, under regular army officers, was most exacting and continued at long hours in all weathers, while the general labor and duties were very severe. The regiment marched, at 2 p. M. of December i, via Washington, through Maryland to Liverpool Point on the Potomac river, arriving there at 11.30 a. m. of December 6 — a seventy-mile march by 15,000 men. Crossing the river the regiment debarked at Aquia Creek at 8.30 p. m. of December 6 and bivouacked without tents or cover, in deep snow, and in weather below zero, at " Camp Freeze-to-Death." at p. m. of December to Phillips Marched thence' 2 9 House ; arriving there at noon of December 10 was assigned to the First Brigade, six regiments, Col. Rush C. Hawkins: Third Division, Gen. George W. Getty; Ninth Army Corps, Gen. O. B. Wilcox; Right Grand Division, Gen. E. V. Sumner; Army of the Potomac, Gen. Ambrose E. Burnside. regiment was in the battle line on Stafford Heights at 8.30 a. m. The of December 11 ; moved for- ward at 6.20 p. M., crossed the river on the central ponton bridge, and entered the city of Fredericksburg THIRTEENTH REGIMENT NEW HAMPSHIRE VOLUNTEER INFANTRY. 051 at 8 p. M. This (First) was the first entire brigade to enter the city, the Thirteenth being the second reg- iment of it in the column. Remaining in the city until 8 a. m. of December 13, the Thirteenth moved to the river bank for the day, having while here several men wounded by the artillery cross-lire. Federal and Confederate, going on overhead. At 4.30 p. M. of this day, the Thirteenth left the river bank to join in Gen. George W. Getty's night assault, made about 6 p. m., upon the rebel batteries of nine guns — with many more in near support — intrenched on the southwest angle of Marye's Heights. Fronting these batteries, as a deep moat, was the famous sunken road with two stone walls — " a road twenty-five feet wide, sunk four feet deep, and lined with stone walls" — now used by the rebels as a rifle-trench, and manned by riflemen arrayed to fire four ranks deep — several thousand of them, with other thousands within close range. The First Brigade — assaulting alone — almost gained the outer stone bank wall, when they heard the rebel order to tire, in- stantly followed by stream on stream of dazzling rifle and cannon flashes — an impenetrable fire, but high. The First Brigade thus came within less than one hundred feet of this road, its stone walls, and their defenders — a fact proved by the position of the dead of the Thirteenth. The regiment lost forty-two officers and men killed and wounded. After rhore than half an hour the column withdrew to near the city until morning. At dark of December 15 the Thirteenth having been stationed with part of the brigade as rear guard for the army, held the outer picket lines until and during the retreat across the river, and was itself with-drawn at 3.30 a. m. of December 16, and crossed the river at 4 a. m., excepting companies B, C, and H, which still longer held an advanced point. The camp near and north of the Phillips House was now r^occupied. The Thirteenth was engaged in drill, intrenching, and outpost duties, — on December 25 having less than four hundred men lit for duty out of the 1,040 well men who left Concord eighty days before, — until 4.30 r. m. of February 7, 1863, when it moved by rail to Aquia Creek ; thence by steamer to Newport News, debarking there with the Ninth Army Corps at noon of February 9. Gen. George W. Getty's division, 8,000 men, was later hurried over to Suffolk, Va., to re-enforce Gen. John A. Peck, having 9,000 men, the Thirteenth arriving there at 6.30 p. m. of March 13. Soon came on the siege by General Longstreet with a force of 40,000 men — the work of the Thirteenth in it pressed to the utmost from the morning of April 10 to May 4, when Longstreet withdrew. On the after- noon of April 30 camp was moved from Suffolk to Jericho Point, three miles below. Leaving there at 6 a. m. of May 3, the Thirteenth and brigade crossed the Nansemond river over the Providence Church Road bridge, in Suffolk, and under a severe rebel fire gained a position about one mile north of the city. Tm'o brigades crossed with cavalry and artillery. At i p. m., under the direction in person of General Getty, the Thirteenth — less than 500 men — commanded by Lt. Col. George Bowers, and the Eighty-ninth New York of about equal strength, with two other Union regiments one fourth of a mile to their right, dashed at full speed across an open field four hundred yards in width, in a bayonet charge upon the rebel intrench- ments on and near that road, manned by two rebel regiments supported by artillery, routing them, captur- ing some and chasing the rest to a large earthwork nearly a mile farther in the forest. In this most spirited and gallant affair the Thirteenth's loss in the charge was twenty-three officers and men killed and wounded. After dark the Union troops withdrew to the south side of the river. After a few days spent in the Dismal Swamp, the Thirteenth, on May 17, occupied Camp Bowers at Getty's Station, Va., and was there engaged in chopping, intrenching, and picket duty until midnight of embarked for Yorktown, debarked there June 21, when it marched to Portsmouth — three miles — and the Peninsula with tibout at midnight of June 22 and encamped. At 3 a. m. of July i marched up 12,000 troops under Gen. John A. Dix, purposing to destroy bridges and otherwise hinder General Lee's retreat from Gettysburg — and arrived at Littlepage's bridge about 10 a. m. of July 4. Remained there with a expedition began the return few other troops until 9.30 a. m. of July 5, thence as rear guard of the march arrival at at noon of — for the most part a forced march — from 5.30 p. m. of July 5 until White House of teams, to Hampton, crossed to Portsmouth, July 7. Thence at 6 a. m. of July 8, marched, as convoy Blackberry of over 160 and arrived at Camp Bowers at 11 p. m. of July 13. This march— "The Raid" — miles in twelve hot days, reduced half the Thirteenth to the sick list, and caused it heavy losses by deaths and discharges.