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Roster and Record of Iowa Troops In the Rebellion, Vol. 1

By Guy E. Logan

HISTORICAL SKETCH

SEVENTH REGIMENT IOWA VOLUNTEER INFANTRY

Under the proclamation of President Lincoln, bearing date May 3, 1861, the companies

composing this regiment were ordered to rendezvous at Burlington, Iowa, and were mustered

into the service of the United States by Lieut. Alexander Chambers, United States Army, on

dates ranging from July 23 to August 2, 1861. Its first field officers were Col. Jacob G. Lauman,

Lieut. Col. Augustus Wentz, and Maj. Elliott W. Rice. Like its predecessors the Seventh had but

a short stay in its camp at rendezvous, for, on the 6th day of August, only four days after its last

company had been mustered, the regiment was ordered to St. Louis, and embarked on the

steamer Jennie Whipple, with its camp equipage and baggage. It arrived in St. Louis on the

morning of August 8th and marched to the government arsenal, where it was armed, the two

flanking companies with Springfield rifles, and the other eight companies with improved

Springfield muskets.

The regiment was in Jefferson Barracks for a short time, then went to Pilot Knob, thence to

Ironton, where it remained in camp about two weeks, during which time it had the first

opportunity to learn the manual of arms, and was instructed in some of the simpler movements of

the company, battalion and regimental drill. About the 1st of September it started on its first

campaign with a division composed of six regiments, under the command of Brig. Gen. B. M.

Prentiss.

Jackson and Cape Girardeau, Mo., were occupied, and from the latter place the regiment

proceeded by steamboat to Cairo, Ill., and immediately after its arrival there was sent to occupy

the position afterwards known as Fort Holt, Ky. It remained there but two weeks, and then

moved to a point about eight miles from Columbus, where the rebels had constructed a strong

fort. From this point—named Camp Crittenden—the main body of the regiment moved to Fort

Jefferson on the Mississippi river, but left a strong picket guard at Camp Crittenden, where one

man was wounded in a skirmish with the enemy. Leaving Fort Jefferson, the regiment proceeded

to Norfolk and Bird's Point and, at the latter point, remained for some weeks doing picket and

guard duty. November 6th, the regiment proceeded on board transports to a point on the Missouri

shore about three miles above Belmont, where eight of its ten companies disembarked, leaving

two companies to guard the transports, and, joining the Twenty-second Illinois regiment,

advanced, on the left of the Union line, against the enemy. The official report of Colonel

Lauman, showing how bravely his regiment fought in this, their first, battle, is given below in

full:

HEADQUARTERS SEVENTH REGIMENT, IOWA VOLUNTEERS,

CAIRO, ILL. November 10, 1861.

GENERAL: I herewith hand you the report of the movements of my regiment, with the

official list of killed and wounded, at the battle of Belmont, as follows: On the 5th inst. I

received your order to hold my regiment in readiness to march at 4 o'clock p. m. on the following

day, with twenty-four hours' rations in haversacks. It was dark before we embarked on the

steamer Montgomery and we soon after got under way. We proceeded but a short distance down

the river when we tied up for the night. Early on the morning of the 7th, preceded by the

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gunboats Tyler and Conestoga, we proceeded on our way, and soon after landed on the west side

of the Mississippi, about three miles above Belmont, which is opposite Columbus, Ky.

We immediately formed in line, in the cornfield on the bank of the river, about half past eight

o'clock, and were soon after ordered by you to form on the left of McClernand's brigade, which

had already crossed the field. At this time I was joined by Colonel Dougherty with the Twentysecond

Illinois regiment. We remained in this position until Taylor's battery had disembarked

and taken their position, when we received orders to march, which we did in the following order:

The First Brigade, consisting of three regiments of infantry and Taylor's battery; then followed

the Second Brigade, consisting of eight companies of my regiment and seven companies of the

Twenty-second Illinois. Colonel Dougherty was in command of the Brigade, two companies of

my regiment and three of Colonel Dougherty's having previously been detached to guard the

boats. The cavalry were sent in advance, scouting. In this order we marched a mile or more,

when we formed in line of battle in front of a cornfield, the battery taking position in the field.

We remained in this position but a short time, when we advanced in line of battle across a dry

slough and immediately in front of heavy timber. Here I received orders to throw forward two

companies as skirmishers, which I complied with by sending Company A, commanded by

Lieutenant DeHeus and Company F. Captain Kittredge, from my right wing. These companies

were not long in engaging the rebels, whom they found in force in front and to the left of our

position, and the heavy and continued firing convinced me that we now had work to do. I

therefore dispatched Lieutenant Colonel Wentz to ascertain the force of the enemy and their

exact position, but, before he had time to return, I received through your Aide, Captain Rawlins,

an order to advance to their support, which I did, bringing my men under fire at double quick

time.

From this time, about 11 o'clock, we fought the rebels slowly but steadily, driving them

before us at every volley. Our advance at this point was slow in consequence of the obstructions

in our way, caused by fallen timber and underbrush, but we crept under and over it, at times

lying down to let the fire of the artillery and musketry pass over us, and then up and onward

again, until we arrived at the field to the left of the rebel camp. Here we were joined by our

skirmishers, who had succeeded, after a severe struggle, in driving back the enemy.

Forming our line immediately, we poured volley after volley on the retiring foe across the

field in front, and on the battery which was stationed at the head of the encampment on our right.

Our fire was so hot the guns were soon abandoned, the enemy, about 800, flying across the field

in the greatest consternation. By a flank movement to the right, I brought my men into the open

space in front of the battery, which was immediately taken possession of, I believe by Lieutenant

DeHeus' Company A, whose flag was soon seen flying from one of the captured pieces. We were

now immediately in rear of the encampment, and were joined by a portion of Colonel

Dougherty's Twenty-second Illinois Regiment.

The rebels kept up a sharp and galling fire upon us, but a few well directed volleys induced

them to abandon their camp suddenly. It was here, while the firing was heaviest, that First

Sergeant Walker, of Company I, seized the regimental colors and bore them aloft and in front of

the regimental line, directing the attention of the boys to a fine, large flag, floating over the

encampment, decorated on one side with twelve stars, and on the other with the "Harp of Erin"

on a green silk ground; they, with loud huzzas, went forward and secured the flag. It was in

making this charge that my horse was shot. I followed the regiment on foot until we reached the

lower end of the encampment, when I was supplied with another horse, which had just been

captured by one of the men, when, immediately ordering another charge, we drove all the

remaining rebels over the bank of the river (at this point some twelve feet high), and dashed up

the river road until we arrived at the log house which constitutes the "City of Belmont." At this

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place there was considerable random firing, the rebels firing from the cover of trees and the bank

of the river, and it was here, while giving Captain Parrott, of Company E, orders to bring off two

field pieces which had been abandoned by the rebels, or to throw them into the river, so as to

render them useless against us, that I received a ball through my left thigh, which for a time

disabled me. I was assisted by Captain Parrott to the rear of the tents, where I remained but a

short time, as, one of the guns of Captain Taylor's battery coming along, they placed me on it and

took me to the rear of the encampment. In the meantime, our men had received orders to burn

and destroy the camp and property which had fallen into our hands, and in a very short time the

destruction was complete. The rebels had, however, not been idle. Having several large steamers

at Columbus, they were loaded down with fresh troops, which were thrown between us and our

place of debarkation, so as, in a measure, to cut off our retreat. Those of them also who had been

driven from their guns in the early part of the fight, seeing us falling back towards our boats,

took fresh courage and commenced closing in on us, and as all the Illinois troops had left, or

were leaving, except Colonel Dougherty's regiment, we were in danger of being surrounded and

cut off. I was apprised of this state of affairs by Colonel Dougherty, to whose bravery I desire to

bear testimony, and who lost a limb in his efforts to bring off safely the rear of his brigade, as

well as to that of his noble regiment, which fought side by side with us on that memorable day. I

immediately gave orders to my regiment to retire, myself leading the way, but, by this time, we

were subjected to an enfilading fire which caused us heavy losses; the men behaved in the most

gallant manner, deliberately loading and firing as they retired, and although every other man was

either killed or wounded, they scarcely accelerated their step, but coolly and deliberately made

their way to the boat. It was after the retreat had commenced that Lieutenant Colonel Wentz was

killed. He died on the field of battle, like a true soldier; he was a truly brave man and did his duty

well and nobly. Lieutenant Dodge, of Company B. was killed, and Lieutenant Gardner, who

commanded Company I, and Lieutenant Ream, of Company C, mortally wounded. Among my

officers, more or less severely wounded, you will find the names of Major Rice, Captains

Harper, Parrott, Kittredge and Gardner, and First Lieutenant DeHeus (who commanded

Company A) of whose bravery I desire to speak in the most emphatic manner. I desire also to

direct your attention to Captain Crabb, who was taken prisoner, and who behaved in the bravest

manner. But I might go on this way and name nearly every man in the regiment, for they all

behaved like heroes, but there are one or two more I feel it my duty to name as deserving special

mention: Lieutenant Bowler, Adjutant of the regiment, and Lieutenant Estle, whose conduct was

worthy of all praise, and Private Lawrence A. Gregg, whose thigh was broken, and who was left

on the field, he was taken prisoner, and his leg amputated, but he died the same day, telling his

captors with his dying breath that, if he ever recovered, so as to be able to move, he would

shoulder his musket again in his country's cause.

My entire loss in killed, wounded, prisoners and missing, out of an aggregate of somewhat

over 400 engaged, is as follows Killed 51, died of wounds 3, missing 10, prisoners 39, wounded

124. Total 227.

With high esteem, your most obedient servant,

J. G. LAUMAN, Colonel Seventh Regiment, Iowa. Infantry Volunteers.

BRIG. GEN. U. S. GRANT, Commanding U. S. Forces, Cairo, Ill.

In his official report of the battle, General Grant says: "The Seventh Iowa behaved with great

gallantry, and suffered more severely than any other of the troops." The day after the battle, the

General issued the following brief but characteristic address:

HEADQUARTERS DISTRICT SOUTHEAST MISSOURI, CAIRO, NOV. 8, 1861.

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The General commanding this military district returns his thanks to the troops under his

command at the battle of Belmont on yesterday. It has been his fortune to have been in all the

battles fought in Mexico by Generals Scott and Taylor, save Buena Vista, and he never saw one

more hotly contested, or where troops behaved with more gallantry. Such courage will insure

victory wherever our bag may be borne and protected by such a class of men. To the brave men

who fell, the sympathy of the country is due, and will be manifested in a manner unmistakable.

U. S. GRANT,

Brigadier General Commanding.

General Grant reported the total loss in his command at four hundred and eighty-five. It will

thus be seen that the Seventh Iowa sustained a loss of nearly one-half that of the two brigades

engaged in the battle of Belmont. It seems almost incredible that these untrained troops, fighting

their first battle, and led by regimental and company officers without military training or

experience, should have acquitted themselves when under fire for the first time as well as in any

of the subsequent battles in which they were engaged, and in all of which they nobly maintained

the honor of the State which sent them into the field. Another notable feature of the battle of

Belmont was the fact that it was the first in which General Grant had command of the Union

troops, and his first opportunity to demonstrate his fitness and capacity to command. While the

Seventh Iowa Infantry had a long and most honorable record of Service, and greatly

distinguished itself upon other battlefields, the limitation of space given to the compiler of this

sketch will not permit him to hereafter go fully into the details, or to make as full quotations

from official reports, as have thus far been given.

Like the commander under which it fought its first—and, measured by the loss in killed and

wounded, its greatest—battle, it went steadily and stubbornly forward to accomplish the work set

before it. Early in November, 1861, the regiment was ordered to proceed to Benton Barracks,

near St. Louis, where it enjoyed a brief season of rest, and partly made up for its losses by

recruiting. During this time, it also diligently improved the time in drilling, and learning more

fully the duties of soldiers in time of war. On the 13th of January, 1862, the regiment was

embarked on the great steamer "Continental," and again started for the South, but the weather

was so intensely cold and the river so full of floating ice that they made but little progress, and

after proceeding about twenty miles the boat became fastened in the ice in the middle of the

river. The weather remaining cold, the ice became solid enough in a couple of days for the

regiment to pass over it to the shore, and it returned to St. Louis by rail, and the next day crossed

the Mississippi and proceeded to Cairo, Ill. A few days later, it was ordered up the Tennessee to

assist in the capture of Fort Henry, but Commodore Foote with his fleet of gunboats had captured

the fort just before the arrival of the regiment. Upon its arrival, the regiment entered Fort Henry

and remained there until the 12th of February, when It took up the line of march for Fort

Donelson.

The following extract from the report of Lieut. Col. James C. Parrott will show how the

regiment again performed the duty assigned to it. in the reduction and capture of that important

stronghold of the enemy:

Arriving in the vicinity of the fort at about 5 P. M., the Seventh Iowa was ordered to the front

to support Battery A, First Missouri Light Artillery, and spent the night without shelter or

blankets. On the morning of the 13th, deployed Company C, Captain McMullin, as skirmishers,

and shortly afterwards received orders from General Smith to join the brigade, as it was going

into action. I put the regiment into line, and double-quicked until it reached the brigade, which

had taken position in front of the rebel works. Remained all day in line of battle.

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The weather became very boisterous. A heavy shower of rain fell about midnight, when it

changed to snow, and by morning the face of the earth was covered with snow and ice, and the

temperature was very cold, the men without shelter, and many without blankets. On the 14th,

deployed several companies as skirmishers. The night was quite inclement, several Inches of

snow having fallen.

On the morning of the 15th deployed skirmishers, and at about 2 o'clock P. M. was ordered

to charge the rebel works. The Second Iowa was given the post of honor, in leading the charge,

supported by the balance of the brigade. The Seventh Iowa moved up to the works in fine style;

entered the sally-port, and gained, with the Second Iowa, a position inside the rebel works. We

were then ordered by the brave, gallant and lamented General Smith to fall back, and take shelter

on the outside of the rebel works.

On the holy Sabbath morning, February 16th, as the day dawned, in the dim distance could

be seen the white flag, which in plain language told us all that the strife for the mastery of Fort

Donelson had ended, and in a short time the whole column of our wing was marching into the

fort, amid loud huzzas, the beating of drums, and the shrill music of fifes, and the time honored

stars and stripes waving over us. So fell Fort Donelson, and the Seventh Iowa claims her share of

praise.

The loss of the regiment in this engagement was two killed and thirty-seven wounded. Its

relatively small loss, as compared with the Second Iowa, is accounted for by the fact that the

Second led in the assault, while the Seventh was with the supporting column, and therefore was

not as greatly exposed to the heaviest fire of the enemy's musketry and artillery, but the regiment

performed its full duty in the position in which it was placed. After the fall of Donelson, the

regiment remained in the fort some three weeks, quartered in the rude cabins which the rebels

had erected. It then marched to Metal Landing on the Tennessee, and, after about a week there,

went on board the steamer White Cloud, and proceeded to Pittsburg Landing, where it went into

camp. On the morning of April 6, 1862, the regiment went into action under command of Lieut.

Col. J. C. Parrott, and in the two days' progress of that great battle again nobly maintained the

honor of its State.

On the second day, the gallant Lieutenant Colonel Parrott was so prostrated by illness and

exposure that he was compelled to relinquish the command to Maj. E. W. Rice, of whom he says,

in his official report, "I knew it was placed in good hands, and from him I was proud to learn that

it did its duty unflinchingly."

The compiler of this sketch was a witness to the gallant conduct of Major Rice, at a critical

period in the battle late on Sunday afternoon, when a new line of battle was being formed, to

resist the last desperate onslaught of the enemy.

On the first day of the battle of Shiloh, Iowa troops were conspicuous in this last line of

resistance, where the fighting continued until after dark, and which resulted in checking the

advance of the enemy, and retrieving the disasters of that day. At the close of this battle, the

Seventh Iowa had been in the service but about eight months, had participated in three important

battles, with an aggregate loss of 300 of the 884 officers and men with which it had left the State;

and yet it had not completed one-third of its long and arduous term of service. After the battle of

Shiloh, the regiment remained in camp until the Union army again assumed the offensive and the

advance upon Corinth began, which resulted in the siege of that stronghold, and its evacuation by

the enemy on the 30th of May, 1862.

In all the operations of the brigade and division to which it was attached during this advance

and siege, the Seventh Iowa had its full share, on the skirmish and picket line during the advance,

in trenches during the siege, and in the pursuit of the enemy after the evacuation. The pursuit

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ended at Boonville, Miss., the enemy having made good his retreat, and the Seventh, with its

brigade and division, returned to Corinth, going into camp about two miles southeast of that

place, where it remained for the balance of the summer, doing picket and camp guard duty, and

perfecting itself in company and battalion drill and manual of arms. In his official report

Lieutenant Colonel Parrott says, "On the 15th of September, we were ordered to Iuka; arrived

there on the 17th, and, as stated in General Grant's order No. 1, our division deserves as much

credit and praise as the troops who were actually engaged."

From Iuka, the regiment returned to Camp Montgomery, where it remained until the 3d of

October, when it was again called into action, to meet the forces of Van Dorn and Price who

were advancing to the attack of the Union forces in and around Corinth. Maj. Elliott W. Rice,

having been promoted to the rank of Colonel, was now in command of the regiment. His official

report of the conduct of the Seventh Iowa in the hard fought battle of Corinth, October 3 and 4,

1862, is published at length in the War of the Rebellion records of the Union and Confederate

Armies, in Series 1, Vol. 17, Part 1. Limitation of space prevents the reproduction of this

admirable report in its entirety, but in justice to this splendid regiment it is given in part, as

follows:

HEADQUARTERS SEVENTH REGIMENT, IOWA INFANTRY VOLUNTEERS,

RIENZI, Miss., Oct. 10, 1862.

SIR: I have the honor to submit the following report of the part taken by the Seventh

Regiment Iowa Infantry, in the battle of Corinth, October 3d and 4th. On the morning of the 3d, I

received the order of Brigadier General Hackleman to march my command from Camp

Montgomery, via Corinth in the direction of Chewalla. I left camp with 327 men and 26 officers,

my largest company (K) being on detached service, guarding the railroad five miles east of

Corinth. Line of battle was formed one mile west of Corinth, with my regiment on the left of the

brigade. * * * The enemy's battery was placed directly in front of my command, and a most

terrific cannonading ensued. My men held this position firmly and unflinchingly for one hour

and a quarter, exposed to a murderous fire of shell and canister. Our battery, having exhausted its

ammunition, retired and the rebel infantry advanced in strong force. My men were kept

concealed until the enemy advanced to within short range, when I opened fire upon them from

my whole line, and, for a time, held them in check. They soon rallied, and I was ordered to take a

position further in the rear. The enemy moved on, our whole brigade made a sudden charge, and

the enemy was again checked, thrown into some confusion, and repulsed. This gave an

opportunity to take a more favorable position, and another line was formed between the white