Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1899-03-16
RECOLLECTiONS OF THE REBELLION
And the Boys Recruited in the First Com
panY From Wood County,

propose to give you some Of my recOl
leCtiOns Of the scenes aud incidents in
connection with the war of the rebel
lion which began and ended during
my residence at Grand Rapids.
When the first call for troops came
[ had pretty severe attack of the
fever but the situation Of my family
rendered it impOsS bic fer me to enlist.
But [ recOllect that those Of Us who
from necessity Or choice did not Ell.
list contributed freely Of our money
to fill the quota and save our county
from draft. I doubt however if there
was any community Of no larger
population, that sent out more Of the
SlneWS of war than Grand Rapids and
Wood county. The flower of our youth
and many OF our prominent business
men, inspired by patriotism and love
Of country offered themselves to this
service. The first company recruited
in our vicinity was Company G Of the
Twelfth Infantry. Of those who
went out with this company | can now
recall the following names which I
| the best remember. Daniel Howell
one of our merchants was captain,
! Charles NJ. Webb. first lieutenant:
Frank II. Putney, second lieutenant:
George L. Lang and Daniel Wakely.
sergeantS; Clarence Warren and George
! w. Baker, cOrpOralS. OF the rank
and file there were the names of
Luther w. Bangs, Jacob Benson
| William p. Butler, Joseph L. Cotey,
Francis HarEnesS, John Pehl, Marcus
S. Pratt, ROselIe Streeter. Otis D.
| Wakely, and | think John and Thomas
Burr went from Wood county. l am
sure there were a number of others
| but the names have now gone from
me. This company went into camp
for drill at Camp Randall in Madison
where they remained for some time
before they were ordered forward for
active service. But our quota was
not yet full, and later on, Company G
Of the Eighteenth was recruited in
Wood and Portage counties. Judge
Alban of PlOver was colonel of this
regiment and John Fl. Compton, cap
tain Of Company g.. remember John
Snyder and David Moore went out
with this company and | presume
others who [ do not now remember.
The haSty making up Of this company
and their being hurriedly pushed for
ward to Milwaukee and before they
had any opportunity for practice or
drill, the demand for soldiers at the
front was so great that the regiment
was ordered to Pittsburg Landing on
the Tennessee river, where on Sunday
morning April 6, 1862, they were sur
priSed by the rebels and shot down
without any chance for defense. Here
Captain Compton and Col Alban were
killed. | well remember the gloom
and horror that settled Ger our little
village when the news came and the
bitterness of feeling at what seemed
to us to be an unnecessary slaughter
Of undisciplined and unframed soldi-
erS, and it was with a sort of grim
satisfaction that we learned that Gen.
A. S. Johnston the commander of the
rebel forces at Pittsburg Landing was
| killed the next day.
There were many incidents con-
nected with that stirring period in
which our boys had a part and which
[ well remember but which the space
of a newspaper article will not allow
me to relate. | will only mention a
few which are the most prominent in
my memory.
! Soon after his arrival in camp at
Madison my brother George, was taken
| dangerously sick with typhoid fever
and | was notified that if [ wanted to
see him alive | must come at once.
Dropping everything else [ hastened
! to his bedside where [ met my sister
from Ohio. We found him deliriOuS
and apparently in the last stages Of
| the disease. We at once removed him
from his camp quarters to a private
house and gave him all possible care
and with the careful nursing of his
friends coupled with his good cOnsti-
! tuition he began to mend and in a few
weeks was able to be removed to his
home in Ohio. Contrary to the advice
of his friends he again joined his
command and under General Sherman
made many hard marches and about
the first Of August 1864 was at the
Seige Of Atlanta where be was deS-
perately wounded by a minie-ball in
his right lung and was left for dead
on the field. But even now he refused
to die and was picked up aud sent to
his home in the north where he again
so far recovered as to join his COM
mand at Savannah where he was
assigned to light duty until the close
of the war.
While | was at Madison | fell in
with Jacob Benson and one Sunday he
obtained permission to go to the city
to attend church. On his return his
condition indicated that he had been
to meeting which was not altogether
Of a religious character. He informed
US that he had "a gOot meetin, Metto-
! dis meetin.' but the experience of the