Tenth Kentucky
Infantry
Typed by Dennis
Belcher, a 10th Kentucky Infantry
veteran descendant
arlan was
born near Danville, Ky., in 1833, the son of
Hon. James Harlan, a noted lawyer and attorney-general of Kentucky.
Educated at
Centre
college, and graduating in the law department of Transylvania
university, he began practice in Frankfort. At the age of twenty-five
he was
elected county judge. The year following he failed by only sixty-seven
votes of
election to Congress, as a Whig, from the Ashland district. Had he
remained in
that district he would have been elected to Congress in 1861, but early
in that
year he removed to Louisville. When the military companies were raised
for
defense of the city in the spring of that year, John M. Harlan was
captain of the
Crittenden Union Zouaves. This company, under Capt. John M. Harlan, was
one of
the number which proceeded to Muldraugh’s Hill, September 17th, when
the
volunteers were sent there under Gens. Sherman and Rousseau.September 27, 1861, Capt.
Harlan announced his intention to raise a regiment. The companies were
recruited with great rapidity, and in the succeeding month the regiment
was
full and in camp in Lebanon, Ky. It was mustered into service by Maj.
Sidell,
U. S. mustering officer, November 21, 1861. It was at once placed in
the
command of Gen. Thomas. The brigade to which it was assigned being
under Col.
M. D. Manson. On the 31st of December the regiment left Lebanon and
marched
through Columbia to the field of active operations, which culminated in
the
battle of Mill
Springs, or Logan’s Field as it was also called, January
19,
1862. In connection with this first victory of note in the West, the
10th
played an important part, though it was sent on a movement which
prevented its
participation in the actual battle. The reports of Gen. Thomas and Col.
Manson
mentioned the arrival on the field of the 10th, and that it engaged in
the
pursuit of the enemy. Col. Harlan’s report shows that on the 17th he
proceeded
with his regiment some distance on the road to Jamestown against a
force
supposed to be in that direction; he then says:
Information
came to me Sunday
morning (19th) of the battle at Logan’s. Although the men of my
regiment were
entirely destitute of provisions, and on that morning had not received
half
enough for breakfast, my summons to them to fall into line and march to
the aid
of our brethren was obeyed with commendable alacrity. Starting for the
scene of
danger we marched as rapidly as it was possible for men to march. Upon
reaching
Logan’s I found the enemy had fled and that our troops had followed in
pursuit.
Without halting at Logan’s we came up with this and the other brigade
under
Gen. Thomas a short while before dark on Sunday. After our arrival, in
obedience to orders, I took possession of the woods immediately in
front of the
rebel fortifications, with directions to hold it against any attack of
the
enemy. There my men lay on the ground during the whole of Sunday night,
without
fire, tents, overcoats or blankets, and with nothing to eat except
about
one-fourth of a cracker to each man.
On the next day the 10th Ky.
and 14th Ohio
moved into the rebel fortifications in advance of the
other
troops, and were the first to enter them.
The victory at Mill
Springs
was followed soon after by the fall of Forts Henry and Donelson, and
the
retirement of the Confederates from Kentucky. From Mill Spring the 10th
marched
by way of Stanford, Danville and Bardstown to Louisville. From
Louisville it
went by steamboat down the Ohio, and up the Cumberland to Nashville,
and from
Nashville it marched to Pittsburg Landing. It accompanied an expedition
up the
Tennessee river on transports to Chickasaw, where the troops landed and
penetrated the country to destroy a railroad bridge east of Corinth and
near
Iuka, which was successfully done.
The 10th was with the troops
in the advance
upon Corinth, and took part in all movements of that
campaign.
In the organization of the army April 30, 1862, it was in Gen. S. S.
Fry’s
brigade of Gen. Thomas’ division. After the capture of Corinth the 10th
moved
with Buell’s army, and in June was at Tuscumbia, Ala. In July it
garrisoned the
town of Eastport, Miss. It also crossed the river at Eastport, and
marched with
trains to Florence, Ala. July 25th two companies (A and H) were posted
to guard
Courtland
bridge, and while there a large force of Confederate cavalry
under
Gen. Armstrong fell upon them and captured them. Col. Harlan, in his
report of
this affair, written August 8th at Winchester, Tenn., states that he
had
received a brief note from Capt. Henry G. Davidson, who was in command
of the
two companies, in which Capt. Davidson shows that when the enemy
appeared he
had his men behind the railroad embankment, and fought until he was
surrounded.
He says his men behaved splendidly, fighting till the last moment. He
compliments especially Capt. Pendleton and Lieuts. Reynolds, Barry and
Shively;
several of his men were wounded, and eleven of the enemy were killed
and more
than twenty wounded. Col. Harlan says the enemy was greatly enraged
that the
small body had fought so stubbornly, and denounced Capt. Davidson
because he
did not surrender. They fought until overpowered by numbers.
The 10th garrisoned
Winchester, Tenn., in August 1862. From that place it moved when
Buell’s army
entered upon the celebrated march to Kentucky to oppose Bragg’s
invasion. It
made the long march to Louisville, and in the organization of the army
at the
time of the battle of Perryville the 10th was in the 3d Army Corps,
Gen.
Gilbert, Schoepf’s division, Fry’s brigade, being brigaded with the 4th
Ky.,
10th
and 74th
Ind. and 14th Ohio.
This brigade did not become engaged,
although
a portion of the corps did. It followed in the pursuit of Bragg out of
the
state and then marched to Gallatin, Tenn.
While at Gallatin Col. Harlan
was in command of the brigade to which the 10th belonged. December 7,
1862, the
brigade was camped at Castalian Springs, and from thence marched under
command
of Col. Harlan to Hartsville,
where the celebrated attack was made by
Gen. John
Morgan. Col. Harlan says, in his report, that the cannonading at
Hartsville was
heard at Castilian Springs, and he marched his brigade in that
direction
"as rapidly as men ever marched." He reached the place in time to
observe the last of Morgan’s troops hurry away, but too late to save or
rescue
the garrison, which had been captured. They arrived on the scene,
however, in
time to save much property, including several hundred guns and a large
amount
of cartridges. Col. Harlan says, in his report, that the muskets thus
taken
being better than those which the 10th was armed, the regiment was
rearmed. He
found the dead on each side unburied. He buried fifteen
Confederates,
including three officers. Two weeks after this event Morgan moved from
Tennessee on a raid into Kentucky. In the latter part of December he
passed
through Glasgow, and moved in the direction of Munfordville; then
striking the
railroad he damaged it as far up as Muldraugh’s Hill. From the railroad
he
moved through Bardstown and Springfield, and out of the state through
Campbellsville and Burksville.
In order to protect the
railroad from this raid, Col. Harlan started from Gallatin, moving his
brigade
by cars as far up the road as they could go, then by rapid marching
pushed on
to Elizabethtown in time to engage in a fight with Morgan’s men ten
miles beyond
that place, on the Rolling
Fork, December 29th; discovering a force of
the
enemy there, he says he ordered up the infantry at double quick.
I
went to the front in
person, and from a high hill I saw quite distinctly a very large body
of
cavalry formed in line of battle near the river. Their officers were
riding
along their line apparently preparing to give us battle. Knowing that
Morgan
had a larger force than I had, I proceeded cautiously, and yet as
expeditiously
as the nature of the ground and the circumstances admitted. My men were
formed
in two lines; skirmishers were thrown our from both infantry and
cavalry,
covering our whole front, and were ordered to advance and engage the
enemy, the
whole line following in close supporting distance. The firing
commenced, on the
part of the rebels, on our left; it was promptly and vigorously
responded to by
my skirmishers and the artillery. After a while the rebels were driven
away,
and they then made some demonstrations to occupy an eminence upon my
right. To
meet this movement the 10th Ind.
(Col. Carroll) was ordered to occupy
that
eminence, from which four companies were ordered to clear the woods on
the
right on my line. The 4th Ky. (Col.
Croxton), 14th Ohio
(Col. Este),
74th
Ind.
(Col. Chapman), were ordered to form on the left of the 10th Ind. A
section of
the battery was ordered to occupy the eminence, and the 10th Ky.
(Lieut. Col.
Hays) ordered to support it. This left the 13th
Ky. (Maj. Hobson), on
my left,
supporting the section of the battery stationed there. The firing now
became
general all along the right of our line of skirmishers; but the rebels,
after
an obstinate resistance, broke and fled precipitately in every
direction. Some
struck out into the woods; some went up the river as far as New Haven;
some
swam the river with their horses. Further pursuit that evening was
impracticable, and I may say impossible, in the exhausted state of my
men, they
having left Munfordville Sunday morning, and come up with the enemy the
succeeding day at one o’clock, forty-three miles distant.
In this fight the
Confederates were commanded by Gen. Basil Duke, who was dangerously
wounded.
Col. Harlan, in his report,
says: "I claim for my command that it saved the Rolling Fork Bridge,
and
most probably prevented any attempt to destroy the bridge at
Shepherdsville;" also that it prevented Morgan’s further prosecution of
his raid, and led to his rapid retirement from the state. While the
10th Ky.
was on this service the battle Murfreesboro occurred, in which the 10th
could
not engage.
From the pursuit of Morgan
the 10th returned to Nashville, and on the 26th of January, 1863, it
was sent
by Gen. Rosecrans with the 4th Ky. and 74th
Ind., a cavalry detachment
and a
section of artillery, under command of Col. Harlan from Murfreesboro,
toward
Lavergne and Nolensville, to operate against the rebel cavalry. The
enemy was
encountered and heavy skirmishing took place, but the enemy retired and
the
10th remained on duty at Lavergne. This movement occurred in very
severe
weather, and the regiment suffered greatly from exposure to cold and
rain.
At Lavergne, Tenn., on the
7th of March, 1863, Col. Harlan was compelled to resign. By the sudden
death
of his father he was imperatively summoned to return to civil life.
This was a
severe loss to the army, for he had proven himself a most energetic and
able
officer. Could it have been possible for him to have continued in the
service,
there can be no doubt he would have attained high rank as a commander.
He
displayed admirable promptness and vigor as a regimental and brigade
commander.
His rapid movement from Tennessee against Morgan, who was on the
railroad, and
the effective manner in which he rushed his infantry regiments up to
the attack
at Rolling Fork, shows military qualities of the genuine type.
The following extract from
his letter of resignation shows the patriotic fire which animated him
from the
first, and which has always been characteristic:
I deeply
regret that I am
compelled, at this time, to return to civil life. It was my fixed
purpose to
remain in the Federal army until it had effectually suppressed the
existing
armed rebellion, and restored the authority of the national government
over
every part of the nation. No ordinary considerations would have induced
me to
depart from this purpose. Even the private interests, to which I have
alluded,
would be regarded as nothing, in my estimation, if I felt that my
continuance
in, or retirement from, the service would, to any material extent,
effect the
great struggle through which the country is now passing.
If, therefore,
I am permitted
to retire from the army, I beg the commanding general to feel assured
that it
is from no want of confidence either in the justice or ultimate triumph
of the
Union cause. That cause will always have the warmest sympathies of my
heart,
for there are no conditions upon which I will consent to a dissolution
of the
Union. Nor are there any conditions, consistent with a republican form
of
government, which I am not prepared to make in order to maintain and
perpetuate
that Union.
In 1863 he was nominated by
the Union men of Kentucky and elected, by a large majority,
attorney-general of
Kent
ucky.
After the expiration of his term of office he returned to Louisville.
In subsequent years he was twice the Republican candidate for governor,
and in
1877, was appointed justice of the Supreme Court of the United States.
After the resignation of Col.
Harlan, Lieut.
Col. William H. Hays was promoted colonel of the 10th, and remained
in command until it was mustered out of the service.
The regiment was with
Rosecrans’ army in the campaign from Murfreesboro during the summer of
1863,
participating in the actions at Hoover’s
Gap, Fairfield, Tullahoma,
Compton’s
creek, and, in September, in the great battle of Chickamauga.
During the summer it was in
the 2d Brigade, 3d Division, 14th Army Corps. In the battle of
Chickamauga, the
2d Brigade was commanded by Col. Croxton of the 4th
Ky., who was
wounded, and
Col. Chapman, of the 74th
Ind., made the report of the service of the
brigade.
Col. Hays commanded the 10th and made the report though during the
engagement
he took charge of the brigade, and Lieut. Col. G.
C. Wharton led the 10th and
also made report.
A detailed account of the
terrible scenes of the battle can not be given. The 10th fought under
the
command of Gen. Thomas and the well-known service of the troops under
him shows
that the 10th Ky. was a portion of that body of men which stood with
the “Rock
of Chickamauga.” The loss of the regiment attests its gallantry;
the
official
return of casualties shows that it lost one officer killed, Capt.
Bevill,
twenty men killed, nine officers wounded, and one hundred and
twenty-five men
wounded, one officer and ten men captured, making a total loss of one
hundred
and sixty-six.
Col. Wharton sa
ys, in
his
report of the battle of the 20th:
It seemed two
or three times
it would be impossible to hold our position, so overwhelming was the
force of
the enemy, but our troops, being partially screened by rails, poured
volley
after volley into their masses, so well aimed that after three hours of
most
desperate fighting the enemy withdrew just as our ammunition was
exhausted, and
Gen. Brannan (commanding the division) had ordered the men to fix their
bayonets and receive the enemy on their points if they again advanced.
During
the whole fight the men never wavered nor gave an inch, and the
officers of my
regiment were all at their posts encouraging their men.
The night of the 20th
the
10th withdrew from the position it had held during the battle, and
marched to
Rossville, reaching there at midnight, where it rested.
After the battle of
Chickamauga the 10th remained with the army at Chattanooga,
and bore
its part in
the actions which occurred November 23d, 24th and 25th, culminating in
the
final charge upon and the capture of Mission
Ridge. During this battle
Col.
Hays commanded the 10th, but the brigade commander fell, and Col. Hays
took his
place, then the 10th being led by Lieut. Col. G. C. Wharton. This
officer, in
his report, says that on November 2d the 10th moved forward with the
brigade to
the right of Fort Negley, then advanced to a point fronting the
Rossville road,
where it bivouacked. The next day it moved to a line parallel with
Mission
Ridge, in full view of the enemy’s pickets. That position was
maintained until
eleven o’clock the next day, the 25th. At that hour moved by the left
flank
along the entire line, crossed Citico creek at its mouth, thence up the
bank of
the river two and half miles to the position held by Gen. Sherman. Then
countermarched to an open field between Citico creek and Mission Ridge.
Two
companies under Capts. Hill and McKay were advanced as skirmishers. The
enemy
was in full view. The order was to storm their rifle-pits, but before
the bugle
sounded the skirmishers had taken them; then the brigade rushed forward
for the
final assault. The troops rested about ten minutes in the captured
rifle-pits
under a furious cannon fire. "The officers and men became wild with
enthusiasm and desire to advance."
"When the bugle sounded,
and Col. Hays gave the command forward, one wild yell went up and
forward
they
swept over an open plain through the camp of the enemy, and gained the
foot of
the ridge under a terrible enfilading fire of the artillery from
Tunnell Hill,
knocking down the huts of the enemy’s camp, and tearing up the ground
in every
direction, but the men never wavered or faltered. When the foot of the
hill had
been gained and ascent commenced, the line of battle was lost. The
strongest
men got the right of the regiment and went first and the weaker men
formed the
left. Many fell going up the hill as if exhausted, but would rest a
moment and
then forward again. Having reached the top of the ridge and driven the
enemy
from their first line of works toward Tunnell Hill, Col. Hays formed
the
regiment on the left of the 2d Brigade, 3d Division, and advanced with
this
brigade about one hundred and fifty yards, when the enemy were again
discovered
in force and making another stand."
The fight here lasted about
twenty minutes, and the enemy gave way, broke and fled precipitately.
The 10th
bivouacked on the field. The next day [the regiment] advanced with the
pursuit to West
Chickamauga Creek, a distance of eight miles; the next day, the 27th,
reached
Ringgold; on the 28th aided in destroying the railroad and bridges. On
the 29th
marched back to the camp at Chattanooga.
The 10th remained with the
army in Chattanooga during the winter. In February it advanced with the
troops
under Gen. Thomas and fought at Rocky Face February 25th. I
n the
spring
prepared for the Atlanta campaign. In the organization, May 3, 1864, it
was
brigaded with the 10th
and 74th
Ind. and 18th Ky., 3d Brigade, 3d
Division,
14th Army Corps. It was stationed at Ringgold, which was then the
outpost of
the army, where it was until May 10th, when it started on the Atlanta
campaign,
taking part in all the movements and engagements of that event summer,
moving
all the time with the troops under Gen. Thomas. Space does not permit a
detailed account of this celebrated campaign. From Tunnell Hill to the
capture
of Atlanta, through the months of May, June, July and August, there was
a
continuous series of fights in the rough country of Northern Georgia,
at
Resaca, Adairville,
Calhoun, Kingston, Kennesaw,
the Chattahoochee,
Peach
Tree
Creek, Utoy,
Atlanta, Jonesboro,
and many other points. On the 9th of
July the
regiment had a notable and severe experience on the north bank of the
Chattahoochee, where it successfully resisted the advance of an entire
brigade
until reinforcements arrived. It is especially mentioned in the report
of the
division commanded, Gen. Baird. In the Battle of Jonesboro, September
1st, the
3d Brigade under its commander, Col. Este, made a charge which Gen.
Baird says
"was one of the most magnificent on record," capturing the works and
a number of prisoners. Col. Hays, in his report, specially compliments
Capt.
Davenport who was wounded, and Lieuts. Kelly and Adcock, both severely
wounded.
Col. Hays also mentions the color bearer, Corp. Orville B. Young, who
"ran
forward with the flag calling on his comrades to rally for it. It was
the first
flag planted on the enemy’s works."
After the fall of Atlanta,
the 10th was sent on detached duty to Ringgold, Ga. It was there
September
30th. From thence it proceeded to Chattanooga, where it was stationed
in
October.
Some of the men had
re-enlisted in the veteran organization; with the exception of these
and the
recruits the regiment was mustered out of the service December 6, 1864,
at
Louisville.
Concerning the veterans and
recruits, the following letter from Col. G. C. Wharton, which is copied
from
the adjutant-general’s report, gives some information:
"The veterans and
recruits of the 10th Ky. Infantry were never properly assigned to any
regiment
after the discharge of the 10th. The descriptive rolls of these men
were left
with some officer at Chattanooga, who was careless enough to lose them.
They
were organized under a non-commissioned officer, and sent down on the
road
between Chattanooga and Atlanta to guard some post, and when Gen.
Sherman cut
the road and started on his march to the sea, they were left without
orders or
officers; some of them marched after Sherman and served under the old
division
commander, Gen. Baird, through that campaign; others came up and joined
Gen.
Thomas at Nashville, and fought through the war somewhat ‘on their own
account.’
I have had much difficulty in having these men discharged and paid off
because
of the loss of their descriptive rolls for which they were not
responsible. I
am not sure as yet all these men have been discharged and paid. They
were
generally excellent soldiers, and have suffered grievous wrongs at the
hands of
their commanders."
The statement of Col. Wharton
that they went through to the sea with Sherman, is confirmed by the
report of
operations of the 3d Division, 14th Army Corps, which shows that the
10th KY.
was encamped near Washington city with the division, June 1, 1865,
about which
time they were mustered out of the service.
Subsequent to the war, Col.
Hays was appointed judge of the United States District Court, in
Kentucky, and
soon afterward died.
Col. G. C. Wharton was for a
series of years United States Atttorney for Kentucky.
From Dyer's Compendium:
10th Regiment Infantry
Organized at Lebanon, Ky., November 21, 1861.
Attached
to 2nd Brigade, Army of Ohio, to December, 1861. 2nd Brigade, 1st
Division,
Army of Ohio, to September, 1862. 2nd Brigade, 1st Division, 3rd Corps,
Army of
Ohio, to November, 1862. 2nd Brigade, 3rd Division (Center), 14th Army
Corps,
Army of the Cumberland, to January, 1863. 2nd Brigade, 3rd Division,
14th Army
Corps, to October, 1863. 3rd Brigade, 3rd Division, 14th Army Corps, to
December, 1864.
SERVICE.--Advance on Camp
Hamilton, Ky., January 1-15, 1862, Action at Logan's Cross Roads on
Fishing
Creek January 19. Battle of Mill Springs January 19-20. Duty at Mill
Springs
until February 11. Moved to Louisville, thence to Nashville, Tenn.,
February
11-March 2. March to Savannah, Tenn., March 20-April 7. Expedition to
Bear
Creek, Ala., April 12-13. Advance on and siege of Corinth, Miss., April
29-May
30. Buell's Campaign in Northern Alabama and Middle Tennessee June to
August.
Courtland Bridge July 25 (Cos. "A" and "H"). Decatur August
7. March to Nashville, Tenn., thence to Louisville, Ky., In pursuit of
Bragg
August 20-September 26. Pursuit of Bragg into Kentucky October 1-16.
Battle of
Perryville, Ky., October 8. March to Gallatin, Tenn., and duty there
until
January 13, 1863. Operations against Morgan December 22, 1862, to
January 2,
1863. Moved to Nashville, Tenn., January 13, 1863; thence to
Murfreesboro and
duty there until June. Expedition toward Columbia March 4-14. Middle
Tennessee
(or Tullahoma) Campaign June 23-July 7. Hoover's Gap June 24-26.
Occupation of
Middle Tennessee until August 16. Passage of Cumberland Mountains and
Tennessee
River and Chickamauga (Ga.) Campaign August 16-September 22. Battle of
Chickamauga September 19-21. Before Chattanooga September 22-26. Siege
of
Chattanooga September 26-November 23. Chattanooga-Ringgold Campaign
November
23-27. Orchard Knob November 23-24. Mission Ridge November 25.
Reconnaissance
of Dalton, Ga., February 22-27, 1864. Tunnel Hill, Buzzard's Roost Gap
and Rocky
Faced Ridge February 23-25. Atlanta (Ga.) Campaign May 1-September 8.
Demonstration on Rocky Faced Ridge and Dalton May 8-13. Buzzard's Roost
Gap May
8-9. Battle of Resaca May 14-15. Advance on Dallas May 18-25.
Operations on
line of Pumpkin Vine Creek and battles about Dallas, New Hope Church
and
Allatoona Hills May 25-June 5. Operations about Marietta and against
Kenesaw
Mountain June 10-July 2. Pine Hill June 11-14. Lost Mountain June
15-17. Near
Marietta June 19. Assault on Kenesaw June 27. Ruff's Station July 4.
Chattahoochie River July 5-17. Vining Station July 9-11. Peach Tree
Creek July
19-20. Siege of Atlanta July 22-August 25. Flank movement on Jonesboro
August
25-30. Battle of Jonesboro August 31-September 1. Moved to Ringgold,
Ga.,
thence to Chattanooga, Tenn., and duty there until November. Ordered to
Kentucky November 14. Mustered out December 6, 1864.
Regiment lost during service 2 Officers and 70 Enlisted men killed and mortally wounded and 5 Officers and 144 Enlisted men by disease. Total 221.
Copyright © 2000-2009, Robert M. Baker, Timothy
Downey, and
the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War,
Additional Resources
10th
Kentucky
Infantry (Rosters)