The
Online Archive of Terry's Texas Rangers
Sharing & preserving the history of the 8th Texas Cavalry Regiment, 1861-1865
The
Online Archive of Timeline: February 1862
Saturday, February 1
Sunday, February 2
Monday, February 3
Tuesday, February 4
Wednesday, February 5
Thursday, February 6
Friday, February 7
Saturday, February 8
Sunday, February 9
Monday, February 10
Tuesday, February 11
Wednesday, February 12
Thursday, February 13
Friday, February 14
Saturday, February 15
Sunday, February 16
Monday, February 17
And to abandon that city and these people to the more than merciless enemy was hard, hard indeed, and is today indelibly stamped on the minds and hearts of every Ranger participating and each registered a solemn vow, that if ever in their power, they could regain and give back to them their beautiful city, and return as far as in them lay, a light recompense for their manifold sadness--if it was possible.
Right here we would be glad to give a description of the abandonment of the city, the cutting of the bridge and the destruction of supplies and the effort to remove the sick and wounded and to, as fully describe the patriotic action of her citizenship as far as our feeble pen would admit, but we will await until further along.
Nashville, Tenn., is the dearest spot on earth to the Ranger who was an inmate of the home of one of these citizens while sick or disabled. After leaving Nashville there was no particular change in the duties assigned to the Regiment--it was only varied in the fact that it made many more scouts as a whole, and did a little less picket duty, as the army was augmented by other cavalry, and danger became less and less each day as the army moved toward Corinth, Miss. During this period, however, the Rangers ripened day after day. They began to find fully the duty of a good and efficient soldier; and a singular fact is here attested that the officers did not have these men to discipline they knew what should be done intuitively and they prided themselves on its full accomplishment. They absolutely had no fear, nor hesitated at the performance of any duty... The retreat from Nashville to Corrinth was not of that dangerous and trying nature as it had been from Bowling Green to Nashville. The people of Tennessee were very greatly dissatisfied at the loss of their capitol city, and the destruction of the property and supplies. Many of the army were Tennesseans and they were hard to handle and not a few quit the ranks when their homes, families and kindred were left behind--dissatisfaction had gotten to the confederate capitol and the representatives in the congress of the confederacy were very severe on Gen. A. Sidney Johnson. He had this to bear and it prevented him from moving as rapidly as the movements of the Federal army demanded. The Confederates were poorly armed and demoralized, and the ordeal that Johnson underwent was remarkably severe, discipline was hard to inculcate into the men and it was a long time being accomplished, and it is but fair and reasonable to suppose that no man was better fitted by nature and education to do it than most glorious A. Sidney Johnson. This was hard on the Rangers. They were intact; they were ready and on duty. Great dependence were placed in them by the commanding general. New cavalry was joining the army; new infantry were coming in, and the Rangers had to do the labor while these men were undergoing discipline, and learning the duties of the soldier, and upon the whole the service by the Rangers at this period was extremely valuable--possibly the most beneficial service rendered by them during the war.
Tuesday, February 18
Wednesday, February 19
Thursday, February 20
Friday, February 21
Saturday, February 22
Sunday, February 23
Monday, February 24
Tuesday, February 25
Wednesday, February 26
Thursday, February 27
Friday, February 28
Unidentified February Events
One night Captain Morgan asked Colonel Wharton for a detail of two men to go with him next day on a raid within the enemy's lines up toward Nashville, telling Colonel Wharton he already had seven men armed and well mounted, and he wished him to furnish him two more good men well mounted with blue overcoats, shotguns and pistols, which would make ten by counting himself. Colonel Wharton sent the order to Company F to make the detail wanted. Jake Flewellen and I were ordered to report to Captain Morgan next morning at sun-up, mounted and ready for the trip. Sunrise came: Captain Morgan and nine private soldiers moved out on the Nashville pike, mounted and equipped for the trip according to instructions, except I had on a black overcoat. I had no blue one and didn't want one and never did wear one. Morgan assigned me to the rear, thinking and judging correctly too that the squad would be judged by those in front and not by one man in the rear. The enemy had moved their army out on Murfreesboro pike, ten or fifteen miles, and gone into winter quarters, and were making preparations for a movement south when spring should come. We kept the turnpike road for several miles and as we approached the neighborhood of their encampments we turned to the right and moved through fields and woodland, sometimes, in full view of their encampments and I thought uncomfortably near them. But the blue coats of the squad kept down any suspicion as to our identity and we kept our course until we were something like five miles from the city when we approached the pike again, where a thicket of undergrowth was near to the pike. We stood parallel to the highway in a line of battle for a short time, when a wagon train from Nashville loaded with provisions and supplies for the army drove up, guarded by a troop of cavalry, about sixteen I think. Armed with sabres, with guns and pistols pointed at them and a fence between us, they surrendered readily and the guard and teams and drivers all fell into our hands without firing a gun. As soon as the wagons could be fired and the teams and guards could be collected for the march, Captain Morgan ordered me and three or four others, including my fellow soldier Flewellen to take charge of them and get out of the enemy's lines as quickly as possible and not to halt for anything until we crossed Stone River, near Murfreesboro, where we should encamp and wait his return. Our trip being without incident we reached our camping place about sundown. On the eastern bank of the stream was a large commodious dwelling with a small family in it and servants in the kitchen or cabins and plenty of provender in the barn. We put our prisoners in one of the large rooms and a guard over them and a vidette on or near the river bank; had the servants to feed all the horses at the barn and by alternating in guard and picket duty passed a quiet night.
Next morning before sunrise the vidette reported ten or twelve men advancing towards us from the other side of the river. We supposed them to be Yankees, as the enemy was generally termed by us, but as they drew nearer there were no guns in sight and we decided with much relief that it was Captain Morgan and his men with ten prisoners of war they had captured and kept in the woods all night awaiting daylight so they could see their way to travel better. Captain Morgan, when he reached us related the events of the previous day after we had left him. He said they captured about sixty prisoners and had ordered four men to take them and follow us to Stone River and camp as he had ordered us, and that the enemy's cavalry which had gotten wind of his presence in their lines were looking for him, coming upon this second lot of prisoners, recaptured them and slew three of his men after they had surrendered, one of them making his escape. He further told as that he and his companion had visited a picket post and he, pretending to be officer of the day whose duty required him to look after the guards and pickets of the army, had called to the commander of the post to come out of a house in which he was quartered and as he approached him Morgan placed a pistol to his breast and told him he was his prisoner and for him to make no sign or outcry to his fellows in the house on penalty of death, but to call them out by name, one by one, until all were captured without realizing what had happened. Then his companion was sent out to the picket post a short distance away and brought in the two videttes who were on vidette post, and being late in the evening, the enemy scouting on all sides looking for them, they hid themselves, sat up all night guarding their prisoners and very early in the morning had traveled on until they reached us and now without further delay everything was made ready for the further march into Murfreesboro, that about one mile distant.
We marched up the street in front of Colonel Ready's house, lined up prisoners, horses and spoils and guards across the street while Captain Morgan went in the house and invited his sweetheart and the balance of the family at home to come out on the veranda and see the fruit of his exploit. Flewellen and I were then relieved with thanks and we returned to our company, leaving the prisoners and spoils in the hands of Morgan and his three men he still had with him. Next day one of Morgan's men hunted me up and told me Captain Morgan wanted to see me at his office, so I went with him to the office. The captain greeted me most cordially and said he wanted to thank me over again for the valuable service I had rendered during the scout the day or two before. I told him I did the best I could with the matter I had in hand and did not deserve any special thanks more than others with me. But he seemed to look at the matter differently and said he wished to give me something to be kept as a souvenir of that hazardous venture. He then told me to select a sabre, the best of the captured lot he had and take it with me as a keepsake of the occasion. I did so and took the newest and brightest in the lot and went back to my company with it, and while we served in the same army I don't think now I ever saw him again.