The Union times. [volume] (Union, S.C.) 1894-1918, 1913-01-24
"reminiscences Of
the @ar-
Written In 1908 by B. P. Gregory, Sr.
to His Son, W. T. Gregory.
My Dear Son:

history of my life through the War
Between the North and South. 1t
has been little over Al years since
the war began and a little over 43
years since the end of it. l am sorry
that did not do this long ago, when
| began raising my family, while all
the details of my military life were
fresh in my memory. But this is one
OF our weak points, so easy to see our
mistakes after they have been made,
etc.
But as L see you are somewhat in
terested in the matter, l will give it
to you as best can, but you will find
l can't give dates of all fighting nor
can l remember all the fights | was
in, and of all smaller matters which
would be of much interest to you
-Four years of constant warfare is
apparently longer than four years of
peace and quiet home life. So you
can see that it is impossible for me
to remember all the important
events. But what I do remember
will give you absolutely true.
Well, for several months before
any fighting occurred the whole coun-
try was in an uproar. Old and young
showed fighting spirit. l was some
few months past my seventeenth
year. 1 had the war fever very bad;
so did all my associates, worse than
the older people. About the first part
of April, 1861, there was rifle com
pany in the town of Union called
Johnson Rifles, composed of men liv-
ing in and near town. 1t had been
organized and drilled for many years
before the war, preparing to go to
Charleston for state service. AS soon
as l found it out. l slipped off from
To
me about dark and he knew pretty
well where I had gone and he went
Immediately to town to stop me, but
when he got there he found so much
excitement and preparation going on
for fighting he would have gone him
self had his health been good, but he
was passed military age. So | was
highly pleased with things. l had
been dodging him for fear he would
take me back home. So he told some
one to look me up and tell me to
come to the hotel where he was, and
he would give me money and every
thing I should need. That message
made me feel so good. I dearly loved
my parents, and up to that time
had never disobeyed them and | was
feeling badly distressed because of
my slipping away from them and
again. By this time it was late in
the night. Morning came soon and
such noise was never heard in Un-
ion before. The women, children,
old men even the negroes were fol-
lowing us to the train to see us off to
meet the Yankees down at Charles
ton and wipe them off the state of
South Carolina. At that time we did
sanot suppose that it would be such
Ebig thing to do. We thought it was
our own state affair. Well, father
gave me money and the officers of the
Company promised father they would
see that | had every comfort that
could possibly be had
| We got to Charleston in the night.
Ford Sumter had been bombarded and
the garrison allowed to evacuate the
fort that day, the 18th of April, 1861
We were marched to the Fair
grounds and stayed there few days
and then carried over to Sullivan's
Island. There | had my first sight of
the Atlantic Ocean. | could see far
away the blockading vessels, though
at that time the blockade was not so
effectual as it was few months la
ter. l saw some few ships run the
blockade myself while we were on the
! Island. | got very tired of the Is
4 land; nothing but loose sand which
would get into our shoes and weary
us while walking. We did some hard
| work there, dragging cannon from
one place to another on a two-wheei
truck with a large grass rope, forty
or fifty yards long. About fifty men
would take hold Of the rope with
their hands and all pull together, and
the wheels would sink in the sand
about foot deep. That was trying
on US in the hot sun, and blistering
our hands at the same time; but we
bore it well. We had too much pa
triotism to kick or murmur at any
hardship put upon us in any kind of
work preparing to destroy the enc
my. l had never done as much as one
hours work before, but it was good
service l hhad to go through in the
long four years which followed.
Well, we also drilled, quick step
and double quick, through that sand,
| two hours in the morning and two
hours in the evening. / could stand
that kind of exercise great deal bet
Ter than my friends who had been
raised in town, because j had a pack
of hounds and when not at school |
was out hunting; rain sleet nor snow
| did not stop me from hunting. That
of course, toughened me while grow
inging up. Had it not been for my
active romping, frolicking life that /
had lived, | don't believe I could ever
have stood the hardship of the war.
1t was wonderful at the death rate of
our young men the first and second
year of the war from measles and
fever. had both, which l will say
something later on. Well, did not
| stay on the Island more than six
weeks. Only one or two little Incl
dents happened while | was there,
both about myself. 1t shows some