Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1885-09-25
Edmund HudsOn,1

The war department has stored away
in its vaults all of the Confederate battle
flags captured during the rebellion. A
recapituution of the trophies taken by
New England troops will not be uninter-
esting. The flag of Virginia regiment
was captured at Rappahannock station,
Va, Nov Z, 1862, by Corp. Theodore
Shackelford of company A, Fifth Maine
volunteers; also Confederate flag was
captured at the same battle by Lieut.. S.
Lyon, company X, same regiment.
Another Confederate flag was captured
at the battle of Sailors Creek, April 6,
1865, by Capt. f. NJ. Mile, company G.,
First Connecticut volunteer cavalry, First
brigade, Third division, General George
Custer commanding. Flags were cap
tured at the same battle by Private
John Chapman First Massachusetts heavy
artillery, and Private Charles A. Taggart,
company b, Thirty-seventh Massachusetts
volunteers, Third brigade, Third cavalry
division, Sixth army corps. Another flag
was captured by Corp. Charles Deloif,
company X, Eleventh Vermont voun-
teers, Second brigade, Second division,
Sixth army corps; Corp. De,of captured
this flag by making the color-bearer sur
render The colors are mutilated because
their bearer, seeing the rapid advance Of
the Union army, tore them from the staff
but was prevented from tearing them into
pieces by the quick movement of Corp
DelOtf The cOlOrS of Il North Carolina
regiment were captured ut the battle of
Petersburg, April :. 1865, by Corp. Elijah
A. Briggs, of company b, Second Connec-
ticut heavy artillery; also at the same
L. g il, .
secured by Sergt. Lester q. Hack, com
pany +, Fifth Vermont volunteers, Sec
ond brigade Second division, Sixth army
corps. At the battle near Champions
pass, Md, Sept. II, 1862, Confederate
flag was captured by II member of the
Fourth Vermont regiment The battle
flag of the Fifth Virginia cavalry was cap
tured at Adds, Va, June II, 1863, by the
First Massachusetts cavalry. A Confed-
crate standard was captured at the battle
of Little Creek by Sergeant Wesley Gibbs,
company b, Second Connecticut heavy
artillery. The flag of the Sixth Alabama
was captured by b. f. Davis, Twenty
second Massachusetts volunteers. Private
Philip b. DayOutt, company a, Second
Massachusetts, look Il Confederate flag
at Luray, Va, Sept "a, lSG4 The colorS
of the Twenty-seventh South Carolina
regiment were captured by Private +. {.
Anderson, company a, Eighteenth Massa-
cnUSeIlS volunteers, anu ull uIlNlcllllllt'l
battle flag was taken at the battle of Five
Forks, Va, April /, 1868, by Private G.
Gardner, company +, Thirty-secOnd Massa
chusettS volunteers.
/ Mr. Hudson seems to have overlooked
the flag of the Twelfth North Carolina
captured by Sergeant f. ID. Woodbury. o
company f, First Vermont cavalry a
Cedar Creek, October 10, 1864. 1t is, OF
was two years ago, in the possession of thu
war department with the other Trophies
mentioned Other colorS of Confederate
regiments were taken by Vermont troop
as those of the Eighth Alabama anC
Second Florida captured by the sixteenth
Vermont at Gettysburg-which for som
reason were not deposited at Washington
1t will be seen however, that a very fai
proportion-four out of siXteen-of tn
flags preserved, which were taken by New
England troops were taken by Vermont
ers AS The five other New England
States had about ten times as many req
ments in the service as Vermont, hav
ing l73 to Nermont's IS, it would no
have been surprising if something les
than IA quarter of these trophies of NeN
England valUr had stood credited to on
little Green Mountain state.