Jaci Dawn

Continuing with my notes:

Battery A, 1^st Chicago Light Artillery was stationed at Camp Smith, two miles from Cairo for five months.

Camp Smith, June 11, 1861

The furniture of our tents consist of a soap box apiece to put our clothes in, some wooden stools to sit on when we eat, and a board table. We have a stand in our tent to write on. We made the stool, table, and stand ourselves. We have to put all our things but all the boxes out of our tent when we sleep. The first meal we had in Cairo was a passanle (sic) breakfast. At dinner they gave us some beef that needed better teeth than I have; hard bread. Cold potatoes without washing; river water without filtering.

                                Willard J. Wilcox

Passanle – passable, I would guess.

Sept. 6 Battery A was moved to Paducah where it remained until Feb. 4, 1862. Moved to Ft Heiman and participated in the battle of Ft Donelson, Feb 14 and 15, 1862, and the battle of Shiloh, April 6 and 7, 1862. Then moved to Corinth and from there to Memphis, reaching Memphis June 17, 1862.

BATTLE OF FT. DONELSON.

Battery A was with Thayer’s Brigade.

Feb. 13,1862. Skirmishing; Feb. 24, repulse of Union gunboats; Feb. 16, rebel assault on Union forces; Feb. 16, fort surrenders.

 “At night amid snow and sleet, with no tents, shelter nor fire, and many with no blankets, the hungry exhausted troops on both sides lay down in ditches and behind logs and tried to sleep. Many of the Wounded froze.”

“In the battle of the 15^th, during the rebel assault, McClermand’s (sic) forces were driven back, an officer shouted, “We are all cut to pieces.”

“An order was dispatched to bring Battery A forward at full speed. Col. John A. Thayer, commanding the Brigade, formed it on the double quick into line. The battery came up on the run, and swung across the road, which had been left open for it. Hardly had it unlimbered before the enemy appeared, and firing began.”

“The new front thus formed covered the retiring regiments, helpless from lack of ammunition. The enemy coming up the road and through the shrubs and trees on both sides of it, making the battery and the 1^st Nebraska the point of attach (sic). They met this storm, no man flinching, and their fire was terrible. To say they did well, is not enough – their conduct was splendid. They, alone, repelled the charge. Too much praise cannot be given Lieut. Wood and his company and Lieut. McCord and his regiment.”

                                -Report of General Lew Wallace.

April 1^st, 1862

“The 8^th Missouri and 11^th Indiana regiments did not like it because we had to leave their division, but the 9^th Illinois was pleased to have us in their brigade.”   W.J. Wilcox

*I have left the punctuation as written.

General McClernand had not properly secured his flanks. And his men were driven back almost two miles.

General Lew Wallace commanded the 11th Indiana Infantry Regiment.

Lt. Peter Wood was commanding Battery A. Lt. McCord was commanding the 1^st Nebraska.