Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1901-08-30
KILPATRIcK's WILD RIDE.
ious Rally Clad ONLY In
His Might shirt.

"a good many stories were told"
said the sergeant in the Chicago Inter
Ocean, "about Kilpatrick's ride in his
night shirt March 10, 1865. We were
then in North Carolina, between Che
raw and Fayetteville. Kilpa trick knew
that Hardee's infantry were retreat
ing toward Fayetteville, in front of
him, and that Wade Hampton's caval-
ry were behind him, and he posted his
three brigades on the evening of
March to intercept the latter.
Hampton, finding Kilpatricl's division
interposed between his own command
and Hardee's command, resolved to at
tack Fitzpatrick before daylight on
the 10th, surprise his camps, and dis
perse his men. He made the attack
and captured Kilpatrick's headquar-
ters. artillery and many of his men.
Kirkpatrick told me himself of his
part in the affair. He slept that night
in house at the intersection of the
Morgantown road and another, with
his artillery parked near. Toward
morning he got up and stepped out on
the front porch. While he was stand
ing there in his night shirt, several
men in union uniforms rode up and
inquired for Kilpatrick's headquar-
ters. The general was suspicious, and
replied: Down the road half mile.'
The cavalrymen turned without a
word and galloped down the road, and
Just then Fitzpatrick saw the enemy
charging in force down on his sleeping
camp. He ran around the corner of
the house and made a bee-line for the
swamp near.
The confederates rode pell-mell
through the camp. drove the artillery
men from their guns and scattered the
cavalry bivouacked near headquarters.
Meantime Fitzpatrick caught a horse.
mounted him bareback, and, riding
back in his night shirt, rallied his men,
charged the confederates, recaptured
his artillery and headquarters and
drove Hampton's men in disorder from
his camp. He told me that it looked
like hopeless case at first. but when
his men once began to fight the firing
brought more, and that when he or
dered the charge he never felt better
in his life or surer of victory"
VI was in that fight myself" said
an old Tenth Wisconsin battery man,
and L remember some things better
than even Fitzpatrick himself One Of
his brigades never reached the point
assigned to it for that night. 1t was.
in fact, ten miles behind. because the
guns of our part of the battery 1.-TWO
Rodmans, of the Tenth Wisconsin,
and four captured guns) could not
move as rapidly as the cavalry. I
had eight horses to each gun. and vet
the roads were in such condition that
we could not get up to our place in
line for the night, and the brigade
camped so far to the rear as to leave
open the road Fitzpatrick had ordered
covered. Hampton discovered this
gap, and so was able to ride almost
unmolested on Kilpatricli's camp.
"Hampton's scouts were pretty well
informed as to Kilpatrick's where
abouts, and the plan was to capture
him. But it was Kilpatrick's habit to
wake his escort and artillerymen
every morning, and il was this that
saved him that morning. He had al
ready spoken to the sentinel on duty
to wake the men, when the squad of
cavalrymen in union uniforms rode
up. The confederate charge came like
whirlwind moment later, and it
seemed that everything had been cap
tured or overwhelmed. Several other
officers were sleeping upstairs in the
house occupied as headquarters by
Fitzpatrick. The house was surround
ed at once and the. officers were or