The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1902-03-24
A RAG WITH A HISTORY.
It Surrendered Fort Lee, vicksbuTg, on
Memorable Fourth Of July.

1t Surrendered Fort Lee, vicksburg, On
Memorable Fourth of July.
Piece Of the flag that surrendered Fort
Lee. Vicksburg July 4, 1863 This in
scripton. written upon a piece OF a dam
ask towel. which was hung cut from Fort
Lee. at VIcksburg, as a flag Of truce. is
now destined 10 settle the name Of a fort
which has since been in doubt and which
for the want Of a real name il bore has
been marked upon certain plats Of the
Vicksburg battlefield merely as square
Fort" SOM time ago General Rigby. Of
Iowa. who is chairman Of a committee
that has CEsrge OF erecting monuments on
the scene OF the celebrated siege. showing
the defences, where the various regiments
were stationed, and the like. sent plaJs
OF the field to General McGinnis. OF In
dianapOlis, and asked that points Of inter
est. with which his brigade were familiar,
should be marked on the map.
The general did not remember such a
fort as the Square Fort, marked on the
plats. but he did recall that there was =
fort in that place. He had recourse to
". c. Phipps, who is now a bailin in the
superior Court, and Phipps recognized the
location as that occupied by Fort Lee Ia
proof Of this fact he produced the dam
ask towel. brown with age. upon which
was written the inscription on the day or
surrender. and in connection with il told
the following story Of the incident.
Il was member Of Company A, EIey-
cath Indiana Volunteers, during the siege
OF Nicksburg, and our company was almost
Immediately in front OF Fort Lee, one OF
the strongest forts that guarded the city
/ often did picket duty. and on such Occa-
siOns our picket lines and those OF the
enemy were so close together that We
talked back and forth with each other.
There was an understanding between Us
that there should be no firing at night
ana We got so chUmmy with the John
mics that we discussed the war, the prob
abilities of the city holding out, and other
things as Familiarity as though We had
been messmates instead OF enemies who
might fire upon each other the next day.
One night. l remember. there was a con-
tentiOn between Us and the rebels as to
hcw far out our picket lines extended. fOr
when the rebel pickets came out they de
clered that we were on their line. and
VIC, OF course, cOuJeuded that We were not.
Finally the officers Of the day on each
side were called to settle the dispute, and
as neither would give way. we marched up
and down side by side all night On the
morning Of the surrender the damask towel
vas hung out from Fort Lee, and soon
after IL appeared A. j. Williams. a mem
Der OF our mess ran 10 the fort and took
Il down When he returned with il We cut
the towel. which was about three and one
half feet long. into pieces six by twelve
inches, and they were distributed among
us as far as they would go. l wrote the
inscription on my pies of the flag OF truce
and sent 1t home 70 my mother, and IL has
been kept as a souvenir OF the surrender
ever sinc>r There was no fort known
merely as Square Fort and the name On
the Dlats Of General Rigby results pos
sibly from the figure OF the fort which
WAS square, and has been given TO Il be-
cause OF the want OF better one I am
positive. though that Fort Lee occupied
the site indicated on the plats. and that
IL was from this fort that the damask
towel was burg out as a flag Of truce -
Detroit Free Press