Union County star and Lewisburg chronicle. [volume] (Lewisburg, Pa.) 1859-1864, 1864-04-19
Massacre at Fort Pillow !

CAIRO, Atrii if.-on luesday morn
ing Forrest, with some OJ0 men attack
eli For, Pillow. Soon after the attack
Forres, selta hsg Of truce, dcmaniIng
the -urrcoIcT OF the fort and garrison, IN
ths meanwhile tisposing his forces SO As 20
gain an advantage.
Mi Il Booth, # the 13'h Tonues'ee
+ U. :. heavy artillery, formerly the Ala
bans cavalry Colonel, refused to receive
the f.g of truce ani l5nt.ng wasresa'aei.
I Afterwards second l,g came IL, which
was also fused,
( Both iisss gave the rebels the advantage
( Of gaining uew positions.
The battle Wa kept up until ) o clock.
P NJ, VIXEN Nj r booth was killed and
Mai Bradford took cym nani. The rebels
/ clme N swarms Uver our troop, s,compclIng
/ their surrender.
Immc diatly upon the surrender, there
ensued a scene witch utterly d iies de-
scr!ptiou. Up t. that time comparatively
few of cur men wpre killed, but insa-
tiaie as leuds a1d blOod-,bIr>'y as d.gils,
the inclrnate C,nJe}erutes commenced an
intiscrimlnate ourchery Of the whites and
blacks, including those OF both colors who
bad been previously wounded. The
blac. soldiers, becoming denOralized,
rushed to the rear, their white officers
having thrown down their arms. Both
white and black were bayonetted, shot or
sabred, and even dead bodies were horri-
bly, mutilaied. Children o: seven or eight
years of age, snd several negro women,
we're killed in cJid blood. Soldiers, una
BILE 70 speak from their wounds, were shot
dead, and their bodies rolled down the
bank into the river.
The dead and wounded negroes were
piled on heaps and burned, and several
citizens who lined our forces for protec-
ton were killed or wounded. Out OF a
garrison of six hundred uen, only two
hundred remained alive.
| Among our dead officers are Cspt.
Bradford, Lieuts. Barr, Ackerstrom, VIII
son and MAJOR Booth, all of the 18th
Tennessee cavalry. Capt. Pastor, Lieut..
Lyon, 18Th Tennessee, aud Capt. Young,
9th Missouri, acting Provost Marshal,
were taken prisoners. Msj-r Bradford
was also taken, bat i. said to have escaped.
Ii is feared, however, that be has been
killed.
/ The steamer Platte Valley came up
about 3 o'clock She was hailed by the
rebels uuder a ti,g of truce, and her men
sent ashore to bury the dead and take
aboard such Of the wounded as the rebels
had allowed to live. Flf,y-seven were
taken aboard, including seven or eight
colored men. Eight Of them died on the
way up.
ST. LOUIS, April l5.-A correspondent
of the Lai0n, Of this city, who was aboard
the steamer Platte Valley, q, Fort Pillow,
gives an even more appalling description
Of the feudisbuess Of the rebels than our
Cairo dispatch.
Many of our wounded, be says, were
sho, in the hospitals, and the remainder
we're driven out Of the buildings, which
were burned.
After the battle, the rebels went over
the field and sho; the negroes who had
not died from their previous wounds.
Many Of these who deserved to be ,rea-
ted ss prisoners Of war, as the rebels said,
were ordered 10 fall into line, when they
were inhumau!y shot down.
Oi the $50 cOloEed troops, not more
than 81 escaped the massacre, and not
one officer that commanded them survives.
Uniy four Cfh:eTs Of the 18th Tc0ucs-
see escaped death. The loss Of the 18th
Tennessee was SUU killed, and the remain
der wounded or captured.
General Chalmers told the correspon-
dent Of the Times that although it was
against the policy of his "Governmen,'
TO spare the negro soldiers and their Off
GERS, be had done all in his powe! 10 stop
tue carnage. Attic same time be tclla7-
cd it was right.
Another officer said our white troops
would have been protected had they not
been found on du,y with the negroes.
Col Reed Amy, of the Tennessee regi-
ment, was mortaliy wounded.
Two negro soldiers, who were wounded
at Fort Pillow and buried BY the rebels,
afterwards worked themselves out of their
graves, and are among those brought up
on the flatte Valley. They are now in
the hospital at Mound City.
The officers of the Platte Valley deserve
grea, credi, from the military authorities
Tor landing at Fort Pillow at immineu,
risk and taking our wounded aboard.
The steamer arrived here this evening,
and was Immediately sent to the Mound
City hospital to discharge her suffering
passengers. Among the wounded of the
colOred troops are Captain Porter, Lieut.. /
Llbberss and Adjatant Luuniug.
Six guns we're captured by the rebels
and carried of including two 10 pound (
parrots and two II pound howiizers. A
large amount of stores we're destroyed and
carried away. The intention of the reb- |
els seemed to be to evacuate the place aud
move on toward Memphis.
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