indiana units at the battle of franklin - a visual presentation

Why am I interested in IN at Franklin?

• Personal connection, relatives in

the 120th, 63rd and 80th Indiana

regiments.

• Interest in the Union left flank

• Interest in McGavock Cemetery

• Lived in southern Indiana for many

years, education from IN.

Compiled by Kraig McNutt, September 2007, [email protected]

Indiana Regiments that fought at FranklinStanley‟s 4th Corps

First Division - Kimball‟s

1st Brigade Kirby - 31st* and 81st*

2nd Brigade Whittaker - 35th

3rd Brigade Grouse - 9th*, 30th*, 36th*, 84th*

Second Division – Wagner

2nd Brigade - 40th*, 57th*

Third Division – Wood (not engaged)

1st Brigade – 51st

3rd Brigade – 79th and 86th

* Indicates Jacobson mentions

Cox‟s 24th Corps

Second Division - Ruger

2nd Brigade – 80th* and 129th*

Third Division – Reilly

2nd Brigade – Casement‟s 65th*, 124th*

3rd Brigade – Stiles‟s 63rd*, 120th* and 128th*

Wilson‟s 4th U.S. Cavalry Corps

Fifth Division – Hatch

1st Brigade – 11th Indiana*

Sixth Division – Johnson

2nd Brigade – 6th Indiana

* Indicates Jacobson mentions

Guarding fords

91st and 123rd Indiana – leaving Strickland‟s Brigade*

Summary of the 18 Indiana units at Franklin: Nine in Stanley‟s 4th Corps; Seven in Cox‟s 24th Corps; Two in Wilson‟s 4th Cav Corps

Indiana Regiments at Franklin

Loring‟s Division

Scott‟s Brigade

27th, 35th, 49th, 55th, 57th

Alabama and 12th Louisiana

Featherston‟s Brigade

1st, 3rd, 22nd, 31st, 33rd, 40th

Miss., 1st Miss., Battalion

CSA regiments Stiles‟s brigade faced at Franklin

Stiles was supported by Ft. Granger and McNutt Hill guns


Isaac C. Clark, a musician for the 63rd Indiana Infantry

[fought alongside the 120th], wrote the following account

in his diary:

“We marched all night. Arrived at Franklin, Tenn. in the morning. Here we

halted, and built a line of works, and we thought (as the rebels seemed

anxious for a fight) that we would try our hand on them at this place, so we

made all necessary preparations. We had cannon placed along our line of

works, about 50 yards apart, besides a number of well fortified forts,

containing several pieces of artillery. At 4 o‟clock p.m., the enemy came,

they drove in our pickets and made a desperate charge upon our works,

but were driven back with a great slaughter, however this did not satisfy

them, and they came again and again until they had made as much as 8

or 10 different charges upon our works. They took a portion of our works

at one time, but they were immediately retaken by our men; they fought

with a desperation worthy of a better cause. The battle lasted 7 hours; we

retreated at 11 p.m. The enemy loss was reported at 8 or 10 thousand.

Our regt., had helped build a great many lines of works during the war, but

this was the first time that they had the privilege of fighting behind works

during a general engagement.”

Source: “Reminiscences of an Old 63rd, Ind., Soldier” By Isaac C. Clark Covington, Ind., Nov. 27, 1875

Strategic-advantage of Stiles‟s Brigade?

Israel Newton Stiles


Loring‟s Division

Scott‟s Brigade

27th, 35th, 49th, 55th, 57th

Alabama and 12th Louisiana

Featherston‟s Brigade

1st, 3rd, 22nd, 31st, 33rd, 40th

Miss., 1st Miss., Battalion

CSA boys known buried at McGavock due to

engagement with Stiles‟s Hoosier boys?

Scott’s Brigade - 15

Featherston’s Brigade – 68

31st MS lost the most, with 21 known buried;

also the most of any regiment under

Stewart‟s Corps.

35 MS regiments engaged at Franklin:

highest KIAs were 8th (26), 31st (21) and

4th (20).

At least 83 CSAs killed assaulting Stiles‟s

Brigade are buried at McGavock.


Description of accounts of battlefield engagement at Franklin

The 40th Mississippi, the William‟s brothers

The Railroad Cut by the 120th Indiana

Devastation wrought by the Union artillery upon the Rebels

George Estes, Co A, 14th MS writes about the expected battle

Regarding the action the Mississippi boys saw

William Candace Thompson, 6th MS, writes of the action

Adam Weaver, 104th Ohio, writes as the battle takes place

Indiana boys capture the 33rd MS Flag

Col. Isaac R. Sherwood, 111th Ohio, wrote of Franklin later in life


Description of accounts of engagement of Stiles‟s Brigade

The 40th Mississippi, the William‟s brothers

The William‟s Brothers of Co. C. 40th Mississippi. Lt. Joseph

Green English Williams, age 24, and brother Lt. Enoch

Henderson Williams, age 27.

“Joseph and Enoch . . . Each disappeared into the smoke of

battle and they were later found locked in each other‟s

embrace. Joseph had lost an arm and Enoch had been shot in

the stomach. Each had died holding the other‟s wound, trying

to staunch the flow of blood.”Jacobson, p. 313 (CHA)

“Shells from Fort Granger plunged to the earth, like fireballs

from the sky, dealing death and miser. The 35th Alabama from

Scott‟s Brigade suffered terribly. When the battle was over the

regiment tallied some 150 killed and wounded, nearly one-half

of its effective force. In Company B alone, out of twenty-one

men who went into the battle, four were killed and thirteen were

wounded. . . . .

As Scott (Gen. Scott of Georgia) worked his men through the

Osage orange brush, a shell detonated nearby and he was

thrown to the ground . . . (Scott) was carefully carried to the

rear.” Jacobson, p. 320.


The Railroad Cut by the 120th IndianaDescription of accounts of engagement of Stiles‟s Brigade

“The combat degenerated into utter brutality. In

desperation some of Scott’s and Featherston’s troops

attempted the impossible. The Osage orange abatis ended

near the railroad where the tracks and cut ran along the

Harpeth River. There the 120th Indiana held the extreme

Federal left flank, but the regiment was unable to butt

directly up against the river because of the railroad cut.

When some of the Rebels got close enough to see this,

they pushed into the cut just south of the Union line.

Perhaps they thought some of the scathing fire might be

avoided by diving into the railroad cut, or that the enemy

flank could be turned in. Regardless, the decision was a

tragic one.

The 120th Indiana, commanded by Col. Allen W. Prather,

held its ground and poured a torrent of fire into the rail cut.

Israel Stiles and the Indiana troops deserved „great praise

for the heroic manner‟ with which they executed their duty.”

Jacobson, p. 321.



Devastation wrought by the Union artillery upon the Rebels

“Above the din Confederate officers could be heard screaming to

their men, “Press to the right!” Reacting almost instinctively were

the artillerists to the rear. Capt. Alexander Marshall’s guns of

Battery G, 1st Ohio Light Artillery enfiladed the cut with their fire.

Marshall said he found the Rebels moving forward „in strong force‟

and „on their hands and knees.‟ His 3-inch pieces pumped canister

and case shot down on top of the Southerners, blowing many of

them to pieces. At the same time, two of the Napoleans from Lt.

Samuel Canby’s Battery M, 4th U.S. Artillery were moved closer

to the railroad. There they „swept the railroad and river-bank‟ and

decimated the enemy ranks. The destruction wrought by these two

batteries, ten guns altogether, is difficult to comprehend. At the

conclusion of the battle they had fired a total of 1,141 rounds, 796

from the rifled guns and 444 from the Napoleans.”

Jacobson, p. 321-22

Post-war photo of Col. Allen

W. Prather, 120th Indiana


George Estes, Co A, 14th MS writes

about the expected battleThe 14th was part of Adams‟s Brigade, Loring‟s Division

“Our division was in the right of the Pike and on the top of a

high ridge from where we could see all the movements of the

enemy. The blue coats were busy fixing for us. We could see

them by the thousands, shoveling dirt, cutting brush and

bushes and making all kind of traps for us to march against. I

was very much in hopes they would run again, but they kept

on digging and seemed to be burying themselves behind their

breastworks. I kept feeling more and more anxious about the

kind of reception they were going to give us. We lay in full

view of them till nearly sundown. Oh! What a day of

suspense, and mortal fear. I could hardly content myself with

standing or sitting for I fully realized the fact that many of us

who were now alive and full of fond anticipation would in a

very short time „be laid low by the shells and shots of a

relentless foe,‟ and my anticipations were fully realized.” -The Civil War Years Revealed Through Letters, Diaries & Memoirs.

Warwick, p. 189.

Estes survived the battle. Ten of Estes‟s fellow 14th MS are

buried at McGavock. Color Bearer Andrew S. Payne of the 14th Mississippi

cut this emblem away from the rest of the flag when the

14th surrendered at Ft. Donelson and sewed the patch

into the interior lining of his coat to keep it from falling

into Federal hands. When Payne and his fellow

comrades were paroled in October 1862 he returned

the shield to his regiment.


Regarding the action the Mississippi boys saw . . .

“Stiles‟ and Casement‟s men found a thick hedge of Osage about fifteen

yards south of their position, an almost perfect natural abatis. They went to

work cutting some of it down and using the refuse to extend its reach

farther west until most of their front was covered by the prickly limbs. Along

the line the boys topped the earthen walls with head logs for added

protection. . . . Only a fool would attack such a position of strength.”- Patrick Brennan, The Battle of Franklin, North & South magazine, January 2005, Vol. 8., No.1: page

32.

“Near the Harpeth River, Major General William Loring’s troops could

begin to see the looming Federal line protecting Reilly’s division. Buford’s

dismounted troopers and Brigadier General Winfield Featherston’s

Mississippians advanced between the river and the Lewisburg Pike, their

line bisected by the Central Alabama Railroad. To their left, the Alabamians

of Brigadier General Thomas Scott’s brigade had fallen behind as they

guided on the pike, the enemy artillery in Fort Granger contesting their

advance. Suddenly, at a range of two hundred yards, the Federal artillery

supporting Reilly’s line exploded, followed quickly by riflery from Israel

Stiles„ and James Casement’s brigades, six regiments of battle-tested

Indianans. In a blinding flash, the Confederate battle line shivered as

Federal iron tore trough the rebel front. Of the carnage, one Confederate

survivor remembered, “Our troops were killed by whole platoons; our front

line of battle seemed to have been cut down by the first discharge, for in

many places they were lying in their faces in almost as good order as if

they had lain down on purpose.”cont.


Regarding the action the Mississippi boys saw . . .

“Featherston’s boys recoiled from the impact then pressed for war, but fifty feet from the Yankee line they

ran into the impenetrable hedge of osage. Grown to a stinging thickness by the locals to control cattle, the

hedge line now provided a perfect barrier against the rebel assault, too high to surmount and too dense to

winnow. The Mississippians came to a halt, searching frantically for a way through the natural abatis. As

they did, they became little more than sitting ducks for the Indianans across the way. Only near the opening

at the pike were the Yankees slightly tested. A pitifully small set of survivors planted two Mississippi flags on

the earthworks, but they were almost immediately killed or captured. One survivor described it as “a

tremendous deluge of shot and shell . . . seconded by a murderous sheet of fire and lead from the infantry

behind the works, and also another battery of six guns directly in our front.” It was, he said, a “scene of

carnage and destruction fearful to behold.”

“Featherston’s right-most regiments crawled along the ground trying to find another way through the

obstructions, but when they curled into the railroad cut marking Stiles’ left, the 120th Indiana plastered their

van with musketry. Farther north, Battery M, 4th U.S. Artillery, began to spray the cut with canister, while

Cockerill’s gunners in Fort Granger added their own plunging fire. Even a battery east across the Harpeth

weighed in. Caught in the maelstrom were Buford‟s troopers, belly down on the banks of the Harpeth trying

to escape the murderous sweep.”

- Patrick Brennan, The Battle of Franklin, North & South magazine, January 2005, Vol. 8., No.1: pages 39-40.


William Candace Thompson, 6th MS, writes of the action . . .

The 6th MS was part of Adams‟s brigade.

“During the movement of this division the Federals had a battery planted on the right of Harpeth River that

we could not reach, dealt great destruction to our forces, using grape and canister shot to great effect.

Mowing down the Confederate troop, killing and wounding by the thousands, at the same time suffering from

the galling fire from the Federal troop entrenched in front. I saw on the battlefield men lying in piles three

deep, dead and wounded. -The Civil War Years Revealed Through Letters, Diaries & Memoirs. Warwick, p. 57.

Adam Weaver, 104th Ohio, writes as the battle takes place . . .

“Artillery is being placed near the gap of the pike and just a few steps away, the 6th Ohio, have placed a two-

gun battery. The battery was pulled by mules, which have been trained to lie down in action. The leader

mule is called Mae Me and wears an old felt hat with holes cut in it for her ears to stick through. Lieut,

Baldwin of the 4th Army Corps is the battery commander. It is a privilege and honor to serve along side this

famed unit.

These guns are called Napoleans, as you well know, a smooth bore, muzzle loading 12 pounder cannon.

May God have mercy on the souls of the Rebel boys who must face the fire of these terrible cannons inside

of 400 yard area, where they work best.”

- The Civil War Years Revealed Through Letters, Diaries & Memoirs. Warwick, p. 95-6. Weaver did not survive the battle.


Solid shot was round and its weight in pounds was used to indicate the caliber of the gun. For instance the

Napoleon fired a 12 pound solid shot, and was some times called a 12 pounder. Sometimes it would be used

against masses of troops and horses. Solid shot could be effective from 600 up to about 2,000 yards. Source: http://www.nps.gov/archive/vick/interp/napoleon.htm

The 12-pdr Napoleon Howitzer



Indiana boys capture the 33rd MS Flag

“In front of the 128th Indiana, posted mostly east of

the Lewisburg Pike, portions of three Mississippi

regiments slashed their way through the Osage

orange abatis and raced for the smoking breastworks.

Men carrying the colors of the 3rd MS, 22nd MS, and

the 33rd MS, were somehow able to ascend to the top

of the enemy parapet. The flag bearers of the three

regiments „were wounded and captured with their

colors‟ according to Gen. Featherston. About „fifteen

paces from the works‟ Lt. Henry Clay Shaw saw the

color bearer of the 33rd MS fall with the flag. Shaw

picked it up and scrambled to the parapet. As he tried

to shove the staff into the dirt Shaw was killed, „his

body falling in the trench, the colors falling in the

works.‟” Jacobson, p. 322


Col. Isaac R. Sherwood, 111th Ohio, wrote of Franklin later in life.

“About 9 O‟clock at night, when there was a lull in musketry firing,

the wails of the wounded and the dying were heart-rending; but the

smoke had settled on the field in front so dense that vision was

obscured 100 yards away. I was then in command of the battle line

of the brigade, as all officers of the brigade of higher rank had been

killed or wounded. I gave the order to cease firing. Standing on our

hastily constructed breastworks (about 4 feet high) I saw a gray

figure approaching on his hands and knees moaning piteously. I

jumped over the earthworks and pulled him over to our side, he lived

only a few minutes. His last words. “We are all cut to pieces – Oh,

God, what will become of my poor mother?” He was from Missouri,

General Cockrell‟s brigade.”

-The Civil War Years Revealed Through Letters, Diaries & Memoirs. Warwick, p. 201

This account, excerpted, appeared in The Review-Appeal, February 12, 1925.

In the fight at Franklin, out of 180 men engaged the regiment (111th OH) lost 22

men killed on the field and 40 wounded, many being killed by Confederate

bayonets.

Cockrell‟s brigade, French‟s division, have 82 Missouri boys buried at

McGavock.


Most important things to know about

Stiles‟s Indiana/Illinois brigade:

1. Placed on the far eastern Union flank.

2. Protected by Harpeth River and

Nashville-Decatur RR.

3. Protected by Osage orange abatis in

front.

4. Supported by artillery at Fort Granger

and McNutt Hill.

5. Sent 83 known AL and MS boys to

McGavock Cemetery.

http://indianaregimentsatfranklin.wordpress.com

http://www.mcgavockcemetery.net

http://www.battleofranklin.net


Pictures of Indiana soldiers who fought at Franklin

Cox was living in Darlington,

Indiana, when he enlisted on

January 30, 1864, as a 1st

Sergeant and was mustered into “B”

Co. IN 120th Infantry.

He was promoted to 2nd Lieutenant

on May 1, 1864, and to 1st

Lieutenant on September 30, 1864.


Thomas Jefferson Williams enlisted in Co D 120th

Indiana Volunteer Infantry on the 10th day of November

1863 to serve 3 years or during the war. He was born in

1845 in Gibson County Indiana, and died in 1935 and is

buried in Gibson County, Indiana.

T.J. Williams had two brothers and 38 first-cousins who

fought for Indiana. Only three died in the war.

Richard F. Barter was Colonel of the

120th Indiana. This regiment was

organized in the winter of 1863 at

Columbus, and was mustered in March 1,

1864.

It left the state March 20, proceeding to

Louisville, Ky., where it was assigned to a

brigade with Hovey‟s division.

indiana units at the battle of franklin - a visual presentation

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