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Source: The News-Journal, February 3,
1938
WHO REMEMBERS 47TH REUNION?
Older people of North Manchester are familiar with the
history of the 47th Indiana regiment, Civil war volunteers.
This regiment, recruited mostly from Wabash, Huntington, and
Wells counties, saw considerable service during the Civil
war. Liberty Mills and North Manchester contributed heavily
to the rolls of this regiment. Recently W.H. Ballenger found
in his possession the badge given his father John H.
Ballenger, at the first reunion of the regiment in 1883. The
reunion was held in Harter's grove in the north part of town
on September 25 and 26, and was the start of an annual
gathering that continued until recent years when the
survivors were too enfeebled and too few to continue the
reunions. So far as known William Enyeart of Liberty Mills,
member of Company I, is the only Wabash county survivor, and
one of the few survivors of the entire regiment.
On the evening of the first day an organization meeting was
held at the Hamilton opera house, now the American Legion
hall, and Major Shearer of Huntington was elected president
with the understanding the 1884 reunion was to be held at
Huntington. At least two other reunions were held in North
Manchester during the ensuing years, the last one being
about 1921.
The North Manchester Journal of that date tells how the
North Manchester band met the trains and escorted the
visitors to the Grove where tents had been pitched for the
two day encampment. The late B.F. Clemans, Civil and later
Spanish war veteran, acted as marshal of the day, and Capt.
J.R. Wallace read the roll call. Then followed various
talks, dress parade, and general visiting. The second day
was almost a duplication of the first with more parading,
more speeches and more martial music. About 800 veterans
attended this meeting and hundreds of visitors.
Regimental History
The 47th regiment of Indiana Volunteers was organized at
Camp Sullivan, Indianapolis, Indiana, September, 1861;
ordered to Kentucky in department of General Buell, December
13, 1861; marched from Louisville to Bardstown; thence over
Muldrangs Hill to Camp Wickliffe for military instructions
under General Nelson; brigaded with 6th Kentucky, 4th
Indiana, 41st Ohio, under Col. Hazen. During the storming of
Fort Donalson ordered to march to the support of General
Grant. After the surrender of Fort Donalson, with Col. Slack
commanding 46th, 34th and 47th Indiana regiments; February
20, 1862, transferred to the department of General Pope;
reached Commerce, Mississippi, February 23, and marched by
the way of Benton and Skykestown to New Madrid, March 14.
The 47th, with the 34th Indiana, marched at 3 o'clock a.m.,
with orders to advance the rifle pits 500 yards in the face
of the enemy's fire, and storm New Madrid. The Rebels
apprehending an attack fled. Gun boats appearing in sight,
both up and down the river, Col. Slack marched a part of his
command into the fort. By the cheerful help of his men the
canon, drawn by hand through the mud for one-half mile, were
mounted and the river effectually blockaded in 35 minutes,
March the 18. The regiment had an engagement with seven
gunboats at Riddles Point, Missouri, with a single canon and
their long range rifles. They disabled three of the boats
and the rest withdrew to Tiptonsville, Tennessee, leaving
them in quiet possession of the field. The men behaved most
gallantly during the terrible contest; Island No. 10 having
been, abandoned by the enemy, the 47th was assigned to take
care of Tiptonville and its approaches, where it remained
doing important service, from the middle of April to the
12th of May, 1862. May the 12 they embark for Memphis. They
were the first Union regiment that marched through the city
of Memphis. Here they performed provost duty until ordered,
under General Hooley to Helena, Arkansas, at command of
General Washburn and acted as provost guard until materially
weakened by sickness and death; accompanied the White River
expedition, capturing a few Rebels at Duvalls Bluff and St.
Charles. February 8, 1863, they were ordered through Yazoo
Pass to remove obstructions thrown in the way by the rebels.
February 25, they went a second time to Yazoo Pass,
proceeding to Fort Pemberton, in support of the gunboats,
where they witnessed the burning of the cotton boat
parallel. April 12, returned to Helena, and the same day set
out for Vicksburg, under command of General Hovey; landed at
Millikens Bend April the 15, and 16 marched to Perkins
Plantation and embarked on boat for hard times opposite
Grand gulf to storm the works, waiting for the gun boats to
silence the batterings. They at length marched to a place
opposite and crossed over to Bruinsburg, witnessing a
brilliant gunboat fight at Grand gulf; April 30 marched all
night to Fort Gibson; and May first, without any rations,
fought till sundown losing 47 men in killed and wounded;
entered Fort Gibson May 2, and the next day marched and
skirmished with the enemy, opposite Edwards Station; May 6
went to Rocky Springs and on May 8 were reviewed by Major
General Grant; May 14, through a terrible rain storm, and
mud in places knee deep they marched to Raymond; thence to
Bolton Station, they were double quick skirmishing with
rebel cavalry and bivouacing in line of battle. Next morning
they marched to Champion Hills, where their division met the
enemy, and in that terrible battle the regiment lost, in
killed and wounded, 143 men. The next day they skirmished
with the rebel cavalry, and on the 18 marched back to
Edwards Station, and on the 19th to Black River, skirmishing
daily with the enemy; on the 23rd reached Vicksburg to take
a part in the siege. Few casualties occurred during the
siege; the place surrendered July 4 and 5, 1863. The
regiment, with General Sherman's command, marched in pursuit
to General Johnson; overtook the enemy at Edwards, depot,
and drove them to Jackson, which place was invested on the
12, and stormed the same day. Entrenchments requiring much
labor were thrown up, and on the 17th entered the city. The
regiment returned to Vicksburg July 23, having been under
fire and within hearing of canon, and the shock of battle
for 81 days; April 2, embarked on boat for Natchez, and on
the eleventh arrived at Carrolton; August 22, the troops
were reviewed by Major Gen. Grant; were ordered to Brashear
City, where they remained for several days; September 27
were reviewed by General Odr; next day crossed Bernie Bay;
October 4, reached Franklin driving Dick Taylor's forces
before them; October 10, marched 25 miles to Vermillion
bayou, and reached Oppolusas October 23; returned soon after
to Grand Cateau, and engaged and repulsed the enemy,
November 17; while encamped at Ibera had two teams and
eleven men captured by the enemy. At this place the regiment
re-enlisted as veterans, and arrived at New Orleans,
December 21; were ordered January 21, 1864, to report to
Governor Morton, at Indianapolis, Indiana, receiving a
furlough for 30 days, at the expiration of this time to
report at New Orleans.
The regiment was ordered from New Orleans to Alexandria to
the relief of Banks, and assisted in building the dam to
relieve the steamboats and gunboats. The return march was a
hard one; for ten days the command was marched day and
night, till they reached Morganza Bend. There they took
boats to New Orleans and Carrolton, where the regiment went
into camp, from there to New Orleans. Took cars to
Thibedeaux; thence back to the river at New Orleans,
spending a week or more there, from there to Morganza Bend.
From this point the regiment made an expedition on the
Atchffalaya Bayou, where they were ambushed and fired into
on a night march, with some loss. The following day they had
a heavy skirmish, and returned to camp. From this point the
expedition of three or four days was made down the river to
a point near Baton Rouge, and across the county, retiring
after a skirmish, and the capture of a considerable amount
of rebel property. The next point was the mouth of the White
River, and from there to Duvall's Bluff, and back without
disembarking, and again went into camp. Here the troops were
reviewed by General Nelson. Winter quarters were built here,
but soon got marching orders. The next stop was at St.
Charles, Arkansas, where they again built winter quarters.
Ground their corn at a mule mill in the country; went almost
daily to the relief of the cavalry, who encountered Morgan's
guerillas; from here to Duvall's Bluff by boats, and again
built winter quarters, only to leave them ere they were
completed, for Little Rock, by rail, where they went into
comfortable quarters. From this point a detachment of 160
men, under command of Capt. C.B. Rager, were dispatched to
Fort Smith, with a supply of boats in charge; thence to
Memphis, via Duvall's Bluff, and the mouth of White River.
From this point another raid was made through the country in
which there was some sharp skirmishing. At this point the
company's officers, except two, were mustered out by general
order from the war departments. Again the regiment embarked
for New Orleans, and from there to Kennerville, fourteen
miles up the river. Here they embarked aboard the Peabody, a
gulf steamer, for Demphine Island, where they arrived after
a two days cruise, in which they encountered a terrific
storm, in which most of their trains, stoves and camp
equipment was lost. From here the 13th Army Corps was
reorganized for the Mobile campaign. Everything being in
readiness they here transported to the main land at Fort
Gaines, and took up their line of march across the pine
flats for Mobile. After several days hard marching and
building corduroy bridges, pulling wagons and artillery from
the treacherous quick islands, they arrived in front of the
old Spanish Fort by the same name. Here the regiment took
part in the siege for fifteen days, advancing the rifle-pits
under cover of the night. On the sixteenth day the regiment
was ordered out, and took up their line of march across the
country to meet General A.J. Smith, who had in charge a
supply train for Ft. Sumter. The evening of the terrific
bombardment of Fort Spanish, preparatory to storming the
works, the regiment and division were ordered to that place
as reinforcements, but before their arrival the works, the
regiment and division were ordered to that place as
reinforcements, but before their arrival the works had
surrendered and the order countermanded. They about faced
and marched, each arriving in camp at daybreak, after an all
night march. Blakely was stormed that evening. From here
they marched down the bay to our landing, where they,
together with a large portion of the army, embarked on
steamers and crossed the Bay, effected a landing. The rebels
having evacuated the city, the mayor came down and
surrendered the city. The 47th marched inside the second
tier of works and went into camp, but received marching
orders a few minutes later, marching through the city, and
took up their quarters in the Mobile and Ohio railroad
depot. From here they were transferred to a cotton
warehouse, where kind providence spared them from total
destruction. They were ordered to Spring Hill late in the
evening, by which they escaped the terrible disaster of the
explosion of the rebel magazine, in which there were
thirty-five tons of powder, prostrating all the buildings in
the vicinity, among which was the 47th's late quarters, with
great destruction of life. From this place they embarked
aboard a steamer and went around via Lake Poncharitan to New
Orleans, and from there via the Mississippi and Red River to
Sherieport, from which point they were ordered to Baton
Rouge to muster out.
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