Virginian-pilot. (Norfolk, Va.) 1898-1911, 1899-01-25
THE PORTSMOUTH RIFLE COMPANY
Continued from Page 100


reorganization of the regiment Cap
tam owens was elected major. new
election OF officers WAS held IN the COM
pany. Lieutenant CleaveS was elected
captain, which position ne held until
the close of the war: LieutenQnts Ton
KIN ana Wood were each advanced one
grade. and Orderly Sergeant Nathaniel
I. Gayle was elected Third Lieutenant.
William ii. White was elected Orderly
sergeant. He was subsequently killed
AZ the battle of Malvern Hill July LIST.
1852. Lieutenant Wood resigned in the
Writer Of 1923. and Orderly Sergeant
John II. Lewis, who had succeeded to
that position on the death OF Sergeant
White, was elected Third Lieutenant.
There were no other changes among the
commissioned officers during the war
except That towards the close of the
war Lieutenant Gayle received an APP
ro!ntment as carpenter in the navy, and
was transferred to that branch Of the
service. Lieutcnants Tonkin and Gayle
were wounded at Gettysburg July 3rd.
1853. and Lieutenant Lewis was cap
tured at the Stone Fence.
The company lost two orderly ser
geants during the war-Sergeant Will
liam III. White, who was killed at Mall
vcrn Hill, and Sergeant John X. Bea-
ton. who was killed at Drury's Bluff,
May 10th. 1864. Upon the death of Ser
geant Beaton. John w. Wood was pro-
NOTED TO the position and held it until
the close of the war. which ended with
the surrender at AppomattoX.
In 1862. while the company was in the
vicinity of Elizabeth City, n. c., n
number of the men went bathing about
shutdown in the Pasquotank river. but
soon had n hornets nest about them
in the form of hundreds of moccasin
snakes which, having had undisputcd
possession of the stream for years, en-
Fats.
intruders upon their vested rights. The
boys lost no time in getting to the
shore and left the snakes in possession
of the river.
On one OCCASION while on piclint duty
about five miles from Elizabeth City,
near farm house on the banks of the
Pasquotank river, the company formed
the acquaintance of Il very pretty Eirl
about Is or II years old, daughter OF
the gentleman who owned the place.
The young lady told them that Il short
time before then n United States gun
boat came up the river and stopped in
front of the house: that n party OF
men came ashore from it. and one of
them. Il soldier. pointed his gun at her
with the intention of shooting her. and
would have done so had not an officer
knocked down the gun with his sword
After the company had been on duty
short while at Pig Point Company
II Captain Niblett commanding),
Fifty-ninth Virginia Regiment. was
sent to the battery as n reinforcement.
This company was from Lunenburg
county. Va, and afterwards became n
part of Wises Brigade. Camped near
them as supports We're the First Louis
lana and the Fourth Georgia Rcgi-
ments.
While at Pig Point Private James
w. Morgan died. He died in August
r-fA tn,
This was the first death in the COM
pany. Private Ephriam Bailey was
taken sick from exposure while the
company was in the vicinity of Eliza
beth City. n. c., and died in hospital
in Richmond shortly after the Con-
federates evacuated Portsmouth. Later
on. when the company became exposed
to the dangers of the battlefield and to
exposure amid snow and rain, deaths
became more common and in the re-
naming three years of the war twenty
two of its members gave up their lives.
an unvailng sacrifice upon the alter
of their country, While many more were
Frustrated by wounds, which disabled
them for life and brought them to un-
timely graves. The Portsmouth Rifles
made for themselves n gallant record
and were in front of the battle on many
n hard fought field. In the charge of
RICKETTS, Division at Gettysburg, which
stands prominently forward as one of
the most noted events in the history of
the Army of Northern Virginia. the
Portsmouth Rifle Company had FORTY
eight men, of whom seven were killed
and so many We're wounded and fell
into the hands of the enemy, that ONLY
:7r-vCTT or trUTH vCrC 1D1e 10 report Tor
duty the day after the battle. OF three
commissioned officers who went with
the company in the charge two were
wounded and the others captured. One
OF the men. Corporal Lemuel II. Will
liams, planted the colors of the Mint,
Regiment mt the stone wall and was
Killed almost at that very moment
| Sergeant Joshua Grimes. of Company
l.. o. Norfolk county, was the color
bearer of the regiment. and carried the
colors to within twenty yards Of the
wall and was shot down. severely
wounded. The flag fell with him. but
Corporal Williams Immediately picked
1t up and bore 1t to the farthcst point
OF advance made by the division, when
lie received his death wound.
On the Path of August, 1862. while
I-ongstreets Corns was pushing on
after General Pope towards the battle
ground of Second Manassas, the Ninth
Regiment was in the advance and
Company G was the advance picket.
Ihat day the company captured three
FEDERAL caValrymen, and on the 10th
OF May 1854, when the bold front made
by Armisteads Brigade and Gracie's
Alabama Brigade, near Drurys Bluff.
checked Buffers advance unon Rich
mond and saved the city from capture,
Company G was detailed as skirmlshers
In front of the Thirty eighth Virginia
Regiment. In this action Privates Jas.
w. Find!ey and James Land were
wounded and Private William II. Ed
wards was CAPTURED. On the 18th of
June. 1864. after General Butler had
been bottled up at Bermuda Hundreds.
Company q was n part of the picket
line and made a charge upon and cap
tured the Federal picket line in their
front, but as the left of the Confede-