B. F. Burke letter - April 9, 1862

Corinth, Miss.
April 9th, 1862.

Dear Father:

I write you a few lines in haste merly to let you know that I came out safe and sound at the great battle that commenced early Sunday morning the 6th inst. I cannot give you a full description or accurate account of the battle at this time as we have no report as yet from headquarters. I will have to confine myself to what I have seen with my own eyes.

The engagement took place about 18 miles from this place and near the Tenn. river. The battle raged furiously all day Sunday commencing at about daylight in the morning & not ceasing until after dark closed in upon us. Our regiment arrived at the scene of action about ten o'clock Sunday morning finding our inphantry closely engaged with the enemy. A continual fire of musketry and canon prevailed throughout the day. Our boys drove them from their encampments and pushed them gradually back to the river into their gunboats. We gained the field Sunday and slept on it Sunday night. But during the night and next morning the Yankees received large reinforcements. They shelled us up to about 8 o'clock Monday morning from their gunboats. After they had their reinforcements under cover of their gunboats the engagements of Monday commenced. The engagement raged furiously. We drove them back on our right wing and center at length. They threw most of their force on our left wing. After a very heavy engagement up to three o'clock Monday eavening, Gen. Beauregard withdrew his men from then field and the Yanks had no disposition to follow us but retired into camp. We acknowledge that they got rather the best of the fight Monday. But we whiped them badly on Sunday. The number of killed and wounded I cannot give no estimate of, but the loss on both sides was great in killed & wounded. I think their loss was a great eal the heaviest.

Gen. Johnson was killed early in the engagement Sunday, also Gen. Hindmon [Hindman] was wounded. I believe that is all of our Generals that was killed but I don't know whether that is so or not.

We found any amount of camp equipage of every description and more provisions and clothing than you could shake a stick at. We did not have time to get it off the field so we destroyed pretty near all by fire. The Yankees were fixed up very nicely about their camp. From all appearances they are very extravagant especially the officers. The soldiers had a great eal of clothing on hand and most anything you could mention almost to eat, such as hams, sugar crackers, amons, candy, oysters, sardines, etc. etc. and also find segars and chewing tobacco.

This paper that I am writing upon was taken out of their camps. The boys got a great many fancy tricks like this paper. I send you one of the envelopes. We taken a great amount of prisoners, I think about 10 or 12 thousand in all. I don't think they took many of our men prisoner. Among the prisoners that we took was old Prentice, no big officers as I know of. Our regiment were on the battleground during the whole engagement and I was with them in evry charge they made. We only made two charges on horseback, one was a very desperate charge upon two regiments of infantry in the brush and also in their entrenchments. They cut us up badly and we to give back. Before all of the regiments got up my company was just the rear of the last company that got up near enough to shoot at them. So I did not get to shoot at them there. Was two other companys also that were not in the charge immediately upon them. We had about 30 men killed and charge immediately upon them. We had made two skirmish fight on foot. But they still had the advantage of us in the way of guns, as our shotguns would not reach them at long range like their old muskets and Enfield rifles did us. Though our boys killed several of them and they killed several of us. I think there was about 50 of this reg't that were killed & wounded. Capt. King was wounded also Capt. Rayburn. We had four of our company wounded. Their names were as follows: A. G. Ledbetter, Serg't Culpepper, K. C. Drake, and Joe Andrews. All were slightly wounded except Andrews, he was mortally wounded and left on the battlefield and is in possession of the Yankees.

On Tuesday after all our inphantry had fallen back some distance from the battle ground all of the cavalry was thrown in their rear. Well about twelve o'clock in the day some of our cavalry spied some of the Yankee cavalry who were pursuing us, so they turned on them and put them all to flight. Their number was about 15 hundred cavalry and about one thousand inphantry. Our Texas boys were the principle ones in the fight. They took 42 prisoners and killed several of them. I have not got time to write further particulars at present. All of our reg't has not yet arrived in this place. Pretty near all of our forces have fallen back to this place. I don't know whether they have had any more fight today or not. When we attack them again it will be between Corinth and where we fought them before. I will write you again when I get the full account of the battle.

Tell brother William if he has got home and intends to enlist again I want him to come immediately and join this regiment as it will soon be filled up again.

Please write me on the receipt of this and give me all the news and tell brother William to write whether he or Peter is coming here or what they intend doing. All the boys that you are acquainted with are well. Give my love to all, and address to Corinth, Mississippi.

Your son,

B. F. Burke

Heard, Jessie Burke, ed. Terry Ranger Writes Home: Letters of Pvt. Benjamin F. Burke Written While in Terry's Texas Rangers 1861-1864. No Place, No Publisher, 1965. (Available in the University of Houston Library.)

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