The National tribune., 1910-03-10
FORESTS CAPTURE OF MEMPHIS.
a Symposium Contributed by Comrades
Who Knew OF That Spectacular
Event of Ang 81 1864.

a Symposium Contributed by Comrades
Who Knew OF That Spectacular
Event of Ang. 81, 1864.
In The National Tribune of Dec. 80
Comrade Henry Elseyl First Sergeant
| Co. 3, 7th Ill, tells the story of-the at
tack on Memphis by Forrest aug 81,
1850, and in the Issue OF Feb. 10 Com
rade Oscar Rankin, Co., G. eth Ind.
Cav, makes "a correct statement as to
conditions in and around Memphis at
| that time" These articles have called
| forth comments from others, who have
of both stories:
Several Were Killed.
Geo. Fl. Sargent, 13Ith Wis, Els
worth. Wis, says: Comrade Rankin
says Forrest, with 700 or 500 under
Coils. McNeely and McQuirk, went into
Memphis. 1 understood that Forrest
was with his command at that time.
He also says they reached Memphis
about 2 o'clock a. M, April 2. That is
mistake; it was Aug. II, 1864. He
says the rebels struck the 1929 Wis. 1t
was the 18TH Wis, my regiment. and /
was there. We were told that Forrest
himself rode into the Gayosa House
and wrote his name on the register.
Again he says the only troops in the
city were a few provost guards, some
colored troops and a battery of light
artillery. i know that the 39th Wis
was doing picket. Ours, the 137th Wis.
was north, and the 13Sth Wis. was
west of the city. He says no one was
killed on our side. Perhaps not in his
squad, but there were several killed in
our regiment and several captured.
1OO-Days Men Were Heroes.
Henry A. Fields, Co. G, 45th Iowa.
Grinnell, Iowa, says: / was sick at
Webster Hospital in Memphis for many
weeks, and was discharged from there
a couple of days before the raid, and
was too weak to go to my regiment,
encamped on Wolf River. I had ac-
cepted the invitation of Capt. c. P.
Searles, Sth Iowa, then on provost
guard in the city, to go to his boarding
house to recoup. Capt Searles's COM
pany was in barracks on the corner
diagonally across the street Forests
men came right by that house yelling
like-well, like rebels. They came in
three detachments at some distance
apart. When the first detachment
passed the boys in the barracks and
the Captain and myself supposed they
were Union troops coming in from a
scout, and one of the boys remarked:
They'll catch when they get to
headquarters" But we were up and
dressed by the time the second detach-
ment had passed, and then the Captain,
with his revolver in hand, started
across to the barracks. Before he had
time to get across the street the third
detachment came along on the gallop
and gobbled him up, surrounded the
barracks and captured most of his
men. In trying to escape the Captain
was badly injured, and was exchanged
some eight miles out Of Memphis and
so got back that night. Now, all this
happened near the middle of August or
later, and not on April 10, as Comrade
Rankin says. Comrade Rankin is right
in speaking of a regiment camped near
Memphis which rode pell-mell thru the
rebel camp, but II was one of the, 100
days regiments that was thru its term
of service. and had given up its arms
and was awaiting transportation up the
river to their homes in the vicinity of
Quincy. 1 think 1t was ex-Gov Woods
regiment. There was a company of
the sth Iowa on provost guard in an
other part of the city, who helped to
drive out the rebels. Forests men
took away number of prisoners,
among them the two kinsmen of Capt.
Searles, named Turner. and both boy
hood companions of mine. ~
A Five-Hour Fight. a
Phil NJ. Wagner. Co. L. Sd ILL.,,
Gushing. Tex. says: COmrade RAN
>
of Comrade Elsey in regard to
Forests taking Memphis needs to
be corrected himself. / was there. For
rest and his men came in by the Her
nandeZ road just at the break of day
on Sunday. 1 was up and awake. as 1
was acting Sergeant of the guard, and
had just relieved the guard over our
grub pile. We were camped just In
side OF a regiment of 100-days men.
Forrest came in thru this regiment to
ours. The first we heard was some
shooting, but paid little attention to it,
as those new men did a great deal of
shooting after dark. We took notice
very quickly, however, when shower
of lead came our way. I made for Fort
Pickering thru a cotton patch with two
of Forests men after me. The rebels
stopped and gave me parting shot,
but If was hit I did not stop to see.
The brigade of the Sd Ill Cav, to which
we belonged. had been brought to Mem
phis a few days before that occurrence,
and disarmed on the day before for
the purpose of embarking on steam
er for our homes that same morning,
so you will see why 1 wanted to keep
distance between the rebels and my
self. Comrade Rankin says that the
colored troops drove them out. I never
saw any colored troops there. Again
he Gays they were driven out in no
time. That's another mistake. We
were later armed, and fought over our
camp for five hours, and when they
moved out the tents of the Sd Ill. Cav.
were so full of holes they would not
hold water.
The Fight at the Cemetery.
J. w Mareura, Ridgley, Tenn. says:
hardly think Comrade Elsey was at
Memphis during Forests raid. He
made mistakes in nearly everything
that occurred at Memphis. Comrade
Rankin might have been there, but
know that FORESTS raid to Paducah,
KY, and Fort Pillow was several
months before his raid at Memphis. His
story of the colored troops is right, but
the way the Johnnies left is wrong. At
the time of the Memphis raid Gen. A j.
Smith, with some 5000 infantry, and
Gen. Benjamin Grierson, with about
1000 cavalry, were in Mississippi after
Forrest They found him near Okla
Iona. Grierson had parts of the 9th
Ill. Cav, the 7th Ill. Cav. and the I'd
Iowa and others. After his defeat at
Okalona Forrest conceived the idea of
capturing Memphis. In Memphis, at
that time were about 800 convalescents
of the 7th Ill. Cav. On the fernando
road, about a mile from the Elmwood
Cemetery and near the 7th H., were,
think, parts of the I'd or 7th Kan. Cav.
and a little farther to the left part of
another cavalry regiment that had not
I