Sunday, 5th–The First Division of the Seventeenth Corps crossed the river last evening after dark and drove the rebels back. Our engineers then laid the pontoons and the troops began crossing at once. Our brigade passed through the town and crossed the river at noon and then continued our march for seven miles, when we [...]
Saturday, 4th–We remained in bivouac all day. The Fifteenth Corps just came in on a road to our left and is to cross the Pedee ahead of the Seventeenth. The rebel skirmishers are just across the river and our skirmishers are keeping up a lively fusillade. Our engineers cannot lay the pontoons so long as [...]
Friday, 3rd–It is still raining. We left our dismal camp at 7 a. m. and marched eleven miles, going into bivouac near Cheraw. The First Division of the Seventeenth Corps drove the rebels out of their works on Thompson creek and on through Cheraw and across the Great Pedee river. They captured seventeen cannon, three [...]
Thursday, 2d–Still in camp. It was misty all day. One of our rebel prisoners was shot today at corps headquarters. He had to pay the penalty for the rebels’ treatment of one of our men, from Company H, Thirty-fourth Illinois, whom they held as a prisoner and shot without provocation. When the prisoners at our [...]
Wednesday, 1st–March came in with an all-day drizzling rain. We remained in bivouac all day. Large foraging parties were sent out, but did not succeed in getting anything, not even enough for the teams and the men that went out. The country is very thinly settled and the people here can hardly raise enough to [...]
Tuesday, 28th–We moved forward, in an all-day rain. The First Division took the advance, while the Third was in the center, and the Fourth in the rear. Our regiment was rear guard of the corps, and did not get into bivouac till 10 p. m. The corps upon going into bivouac late this afternoon threw [...]
Monday, 27th–The day was clear and pleasant. About midnight last night our regiment was detailed to tear down an old mill to get material for the engineers with the pontoniers to build a bridge across the Big Lynches creek. We worked till 4 a. m., when we came in for a rest. This morning we [...]
Sunday, 26th–We had another all-night rain, but it cleared off this morning. We started at 8 a. m. and marched ten miles, going into camp near the Big Lynches creek. Our division is still in the advance; the First Division did not yet come up with us. We have level country now, but for about [...]
Saturday, 25th–It rained all night, but today it is clear. We marched fifteen miles today through the mud. Our regiment is on train guard. We found Little Lynches creek flooded and we had to wade it, the water being waist deep. The Twentieth Corps crossed the creek above us, the day before, and we learned [...]
Friday, 24th–We started on our march at 7 this morning, our division again taking the advance. We marched twenty miles, and all the way in a fearful northeast rain, accompanied by a high wind. The country is getting very rough. Some of our foragers have been horribly butchered by the rebels’ cavalry during the last [...]
Thursday, 23d–We broke camp at 7 o’clock this morning and marched ten miles, going into bivouac at Liberty Hill. At noon we crossed the Wateree river, at Perry’s ferry, on a pontoon bridge which the Fifteenth Corps had laid and crossed on just ahead of us. Our division led the advance in the Seventeenth Corps, [...]
Wednesday, 22d–We started at 6 o’clock this morning and marched about fifteen miles. Our brigade tore up two miles of railroad. We passed through Winnsboro at 10 a. m. The Twentieth Corps camped here last night and this morning moved north along the railroad. About half of the town is burned. We left the railroad [...]
Tuesday, 21st–We left camp about noon and moved forward another ten miles. The First Brigade took the railroad, destroying it as they went.
Monday, 20th–We continued our march northward today about ten miles, destroying six miles of railroad. All the railroads within twenty miles of Columbia have been destroyed, every tie is burned and every rail is twisted into a corkscrew. A sad accident happened yesterday afternoon in Columbia when a detail from the Fifteenth Army Corps was [...]
Sunday, 19th–We marched out on the railroad today and destroyed seven miles of track, then returned to camp, where we had left our knapsacks. We heard the sounds today of heavy explosions down in Columbia, and it is reported that our men have blown up the new State House.[1] [1] The sound of the explosions [...]
Saturday, 18th–Columbia was almost completely destroyed by fire last night. Only a few houses in the outskirts are left standing, and many people are without homes this morning. Collumbia was a very nice town situated on the Congaree at the head of navigation. Three railroads run through the town. A new stone State House was [...]
Friday, 17th–The Seventeenth Army Corps remained all day on the south bank of the Congaree river, near the Saluda cotton mills, while the Fifteenth Corps early this morning crossed the north fork, the Broad river, on pontoons, having laid them during the night, and moved down upon Columbia. But when they entered the place they [...]
Thursday, 16th–Early this morning cannonading was begun in front of the Fifteenth Corps, followed by some lively skirmishing, and the rebels were routed from their works and driven across the Congaree river. The Fifteenth Corps then marched up along the south bank of the river above the city of Columbia, to the forks, where the [...]
Wednesday, 15th–It rained all night, and this morning is quite cool. By 8 o’clock we were again on the move and covered ten miles in pushing the rebels back. The Fifteenth Corps on our right drove them back this afternoon behind their fortifications on the south bank of the Congaree river, then we had a [...]
Tuesday, 14th–We started to move forward at 9 a. m. and after an easy march of twelve miles[1] went into camp for the night. The rebels are still retreating before us. [1] It will be recalled that in the campaign through Georgia we went in extra light marching orders. Just before we began our raid [...]
Monday, 13th–Our corps started out at 7 o’clock this morning and after destroying twenty-six miles of railroad, marched fifteen miles, on the State road from Charleston to Columbia, and went into camp. This is the finest road over which we have marched in all the South; it had mile posts and our division commander must [...]
Sunday, 12th–Our division relieved the Third Division on the skirmish line at the bridge this morning, while they went down the river about a mile, laid the pontoons and crossed over. The skirmishing was commenced at an early hour all along the line for a distance of fifteen miles. Our men threw shells across the [...]
Saturday, 11th–Very pleasant weather. We started at 8 o’clock this morning and moved forward twelve miles. There was some skirmishing in front, and our forces routed the enemy from some strong positions.[1] [1] When the Confederates had good positions, they were unable to make a strong stand and retain them. For although they could delay [...]
Friday, 10th–We lay in camp all day, but large foraging parties were sent out. They brought in great quantities of forage—pork and potatoes, also feed for the animals. The farming is all done here by the negro women and old men, the able-bodied men, white and black, being in the army. We received a large [...]
Thursday, 9th–We remained in camp until noon, when we moved forward again about ten miles and went into bivouac on the east bank of the Edisto river. The First Division waded the river to drive the rebels back so that the engineers with our corps could lay the pontoons for the corps to cross. The [...]