Updates & News

October 5, 2014

The new section of the website, (3 pages) is up.   The first page of the new section follows the regiment as they march north June 12th - 24th, 1863.  Charles Davis, Jr., Austin Stearns, Sam Webster,  John Boudwin, and Warren Freeman  narrate.  A highlight is Captain Charles F. Morse's paper, "Why We Wouldn't Meet Mosby."  Morse's hatred of Mosby persists well into the post-war years. 

     Page 2 of this section explores the cavalry battles at Aldie, Middleburg and Upperville, June 17 - 21, 1863.  These engagements have nothing to do with the '13th Mass.' except that William Henry Forbush, former member of Company K was there, with the 3rd U.S. Artillery, Battery C,  Captain William D. Fuller, commanding.   The page broadly summarizes each battle with an emphasis on the role of Fuller's battery. Highlights include memoirs of Henry C. Meyer, 2nd NY Cavalry, on the staff of General David M. Gregg, and a letter of Daniel Townsend, 1st U.S. Artillery, Randol's Battery, and,  the memoirs of Heros Von Borcke, (with which I have much fun) who was on the staff of Confederate General J.E.B. Stuart.  There are many excerpts from my Great Great Grandfather's 1863 diary.  Also on the page is a brief biography of the war correspondent Alfred R. Waud who brilliantly covered the cavalry battles in the Loudoun Valley that week.

Page 3 resumes the narrative of the '13th Mass' as they continue their march north into Maryland.  During this period, General Hooker resigns command of the Army of the Potomac, and General George Gordon Meade replaces him.  Highlights of this page include Colonel Leonard's short statement regarding the change of commanders, Charles Leland's last letters home, Charles Davis, Jr.'s humorous article "You Have Insulted Ze Gener-al,"  Comrade David Sloss' recollections of nicknames the soldiers gave each other,  Historian John A. Miller's article "Emmitsburg Before the Battle of Gettysburg," and a character sketch of beloved flag-bearer Roland Morris, cut down at Gettysburg.  A transcript of Morris' court-martial just prior to the battle is included, culled from Colonel Leonard's personal papers at the Gilder-Lehrman Institute of New York.  

 "Hard March North."

The page ends on the eve of the Battle of Gettysburg.  I hope you enjoy this new section.

March 6, 2014

I have divided up the very long page, "Winter Camp" into 3 shorter pages.  I have updated the "Site Map" page also.  (Hopefully the new links from the "Site Map" will work correctly).

March 2, 2014

The Darnestown Page of the website has been updated wtih exciting new material from the collections of the Massachusetts Historical Society - the correspondence of Sergeant-Major Elliot C. Pierce. Included in the collection is a sketch of Pierce by Co. D artist Henry Bacon.  Bacon studied painting in Paris after the war and became an accomplished artist.  New pictures, maps, newsclippings and letters were also added to the page.

http://www.13thmass.org/1861/darnestown.html

Until 2012, I did not have any information on Company C's detachment at Monocacy, or Frederick City Junction in September, 1861.  I now have enough material to add a new page.

http://www.13thmass.org/1861/monocacy.html 

This page includes a discussion on the arrest of several members of the Maryland Legislature.  There is also a report of Captain John Kurtz to Col. Leonard.  Kurtz was soon offered a higher commission in the 23rd Mass. and left the 13th.

January 30, 2014

The updated Hancock, MD page is posted.  As with all the updated pages, the original material is still there, its just been re-organized.  There is a lot of new material on this page.

http://www.13thmass.org/1861/hancock.html

January 29, 2014

The structure of the website is undergoing an overhaul.  Professional Web Designer Walter Barry has re-structured the format of the 'detail' pages to end layout breaks and other oddities that occur due to various web browsers' idiosynchracies. The update also tightens up the layouts of the earliest pages & makes them conform to the better designed later pages.  It will take a while for all the pages to be updated.

Meanwhile these pages have been revised with new material added to all of them.

http://www.13thmass.org/1861/organization.html

http://www.13thmass.org/1861/departure.html

http://www.13thmass.org/1861/sharpsburg.html

http://www.13thmass.org/1861/index.html

There is a new section on how the regiment received the designation '13' on the 'Organization' page.  The 'Sharpsburg' page (1861) has a lot of new material.  The 'Departure' page has new illustrations from Charles Roundy, and some new material.  The 'Stonewall Attacks Dam No. 5' page was re-formatted only.  New material will be coming soon for the 'Hancock,'  'Darnestown,' and 'Williamsport 1861' pages.

October 19, 2013

The new section of the website is posted, "Hooker in Command."  This is actually 3 new pages covering the period from April 1st - June 11th 1863.    The first page covers April, with the many reviews as Hooker prepares to launch his new campaign;  the second page is the Battle of Chancellorsville; the third page covers the period after the battle up to June 11, 1863.  There are new buttons on the left to navigate to pages 2 & 3, etc.  Also at the bottom of each page is a "Continue Reading" link.

Highlights of this section include an unpublished letter written by Sgt. George Henry Hill, on the battlefield May 5th, (page 2) then continued May 9th, (page 3).   And, the original authorized story of "Sallie" the mascot of the 11th PA, commissioned by Brevet Brigadier-General Richard Coulter, commander, (page 1).   Page one also has a brief write up of one of my favorite personalities, Professor Thaddeus S. C. Lowe, and the Balloon Corps.  The section ends on page 3 with one of the most compelling memoirs in the annals of the '13th Mass.' the article "Libby Prison" by Sergeant John S. Fay.   The story I put together combines an earlier version of Fay's story with a later version.  Each version provides details left out of the other. I hope you enjoy this section.

March 7, 2013

  The latest page of the website is posted, 'Winter Camp.'  This is the first page to link from the '1863' history page.  It covers the period January - March, 1863.  Highlights include, commentary on General Burnside's Mud March, January 20th - 23rd; and letters of Charles Leland, Charles Adams, & Elliot C. Pierce.  John B. Noyes predominates with a walk through the muddy camps of the Army of the Potomac & General Hooker's Headquarters.

November 7, 2012

I have made a slight revision to the Battle of Fredericksburg page.  I added another letter of Charles Leland, and a letter of President Lincoln to the Army following the battle.

I have also added a December 31st quote from the diary of George Gates, Co. K, to end the outline history page, '1862'. 

I contemplated building a new page for the end of the year 1862, but I don't have that much material.  Instead, I am now ready to continue the history into the year 1863.  It has taken nearly 3 1/2 years to complete the history for the complicated campaigns of 1862.  I started in June, 2009.

November 4, 2012

At last the new page for the Battle of Fredericksburg is up.  Highlights include letters from Charles Adams, Co. A,  George Hill, Co. B, Battle Reports from Co.'s B and G, George Jepson's tale of N.M. Putnam and the Washbasin, John S. Fay's narrative, and much more.  

The 13th Mass were skirmishers for the 'Left Grand Division' at the Battle.  Consequently there is  not much information about the valient charge of theirBrigade or Division.  I intend to post an article on Gibbon's Division at the battle in the future.

September 27, 2012

I've added pictures of Charles H. Roundy, and James Gibson, of Co. F, to the website.  See Site Map Page.

September 22, 2012

It has been a long time since I updated or worked on the site. I had been working on the Battle of Fredericksburg last Spring.   Everything was suspended to prepare for my presentation at the July, 2012 Chambersburgh Civil War Seminar on the 13th Mass. at the Battle of Antietam.  Consequently I have up-dated that page of the website.   The Introduction has been revised, to be more balanced toward General McClellan, and his actions arise in a more favorable light as a result.  This would be in keeping with a more contemparary view of him at the time directly before and during the battle.   New material in addition to the introduction,  includes a new comment by private John B. Noyes under the banner, a quote of Robert Bruce Henderson regarding George Smalley's newspaper report, and 3 new images of the location where Hartsuff's Brigade fought.  One taken by Alexander Gardner a couple days after the battle, and two contemporary views of the same spot.  The Maryland Campaign.  I may add another page about the veterans researching the battle in the future.

March 25, 2012

The new page "Hard March to Fredericksburg" is completed.  This takes the detailed history to the end of 1862.  Yet to come is the Battle of Fredericksburg.  The narrative on  this page is taken up by John S. Fay, Sam D. Webster, and others.

January 27, 2012

I've added a new page giving Major Jacob Parker Gould's testimony to the Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War.   Gould appeared January 2nd 1862, and answered questions about his command at Harper's Ferry, September - October, 1861.  

January 16, 2012

I have added a page with the text and various  newspaper reaction, to the Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation.

January 11, 2012

The new page Camp at Sharpsburg, 1862,  is up.  

November 24, 2011

I've updated the Harper's Ferry, 1861, page.  Correspondence with Harper's Ferry Historian David Fox in 2010, and Marlboro Historical Society Trustee Paul Brodeur this summer, have made locations, events, and the role of some soldiers clearer.  There is a lot of new information, including a section on engineer Lauriman Russell, photos of California 49er Chandler Robbins, William R. Warner,  and George Marshall.  I have also restored correspondence from Captain R.C. Shriber, which I initially edited out of  Richard Humphrey's original research for the purpose of keeping a strict chronology. There is still some overlap with the Sandy Hook page because events occured simultaneously.   Nine Weeks at Harper's Ferry.

September 10, 2011

The new web page for the Maryland Campaign and the Battle of Antietam is up.  Highlights include John S. Fay's Memoirs, Lt. Charles B. Fox's casualty report, and the article "Short Service."  Antietam.

May 19, 2011

I had enough material to fit a new page between the 2nd Bull Run battle and the next page to come, -the Antietam Campaign.   This page is interesting for its list of '13th Mass.' men interned at various hospitals around Washington, D.C.   The list was compiled for the Surgeon General in response to the disastrous battle of 2nd Bull Run.  Aftermath.

April 1, 2011

The Fort Independence Page has been updated with new material and pictures.  Fort Independence.

March 18, 2011

The Sandy Hook page has been re-built with css.  New material has been added to the page including serveral letters and photos.  A few bits from the Official Records shed new light on events described, including the engagement at Beller's Mill, Sept. 2nd.  There is some overlap now with the Harper's Ferry Page, which will be rectified when that page is updated.  Camp at Sandy Hook.

February 7, 2011

I've re-built the "Williamsport '62" page using css.  There should be no difference in the page other than a tighter layout & hopefully, better design.  The page design now matches the later pages rather than the earlier pages.  I plan to 'retro-fit' all the earlier pages with the css layout as time permits.

January 27, 2011

The latest web page has been added to the history section.  This is "The Battle of 2nd Bull Run."  The page describes the bloody action on Chinn Ridge during the climax of the battle, August 30, 1862, and what the soldiers of the 13th Mass., experienced during and after the battle.   This is a milestone page for me.  Second Bull Run was the first major action the regiment saw, and it has long been my desire to share these collected stories with  a broad audience.  The page concludes with a list of men killed during the battle.   As usual, comments are appreciated.

November 13, 2010

Its been a long while, but the latest page is up, General Pope's Retreat.  This was the most challenging page to build to date & I'm very proud of it. It contains the usual collection of soldiers' letters and memoirs, but I have added more narration to explain this complex campaign, where strategic events happened daily.  The page initially ended with a short account of the 2nd Battle of Bull Run, but since I will devote an entire page to that event, it ends with the engagement at Thoroughfare Gap, August 28th, 1862.  Charles Roundy's reflections on General Pope's campaign end the page.  The next page won't take nearly as long to build, or post.  I hope you enjoy my account of Pope's Retreat.  Comments are appreciated.

May 16, 2010

The new page "General Pope Takes Command" (June 26 - August 9th, 1862) is posted.  This page covers the creation of Major-General John Pope's Army of Virginia, and ends with The Battle of Cedar Mountain.  The battle/battle-field is described by Austin Stearns and John B. Noyes. 

I've added a new feature to the page; a sidebar that lists other brigades and regiments that served with the 13th Mass.  I've also simplified the Table of Contents into broader categories.  Individual letters and articles are indexed on the 'site map' page.

Again, I would ask that any bugs, layout breaks or broken links be reported to me via the 'contact us' page.  Please tell me the browser & version you are using,  The layout looks good in my firefox browser.  But the layout broke up in Explorer.  This happened to me with the last page.  I just think my version of Explorer is buggy.  Comments are always appreciated.

March 1, 2010

The new Page "To Front Royal & Back" (May 29 - June 22, 1862) is posted.  Sitemap and links pages are updated accordingly.  This covers part of Stonewall Jackson's Valley Campaign of 1862.

February 5, 2010

I've added an image of the Steamer "Nelly Baker" to the Fort Independence page with a bit from Austin Stearn's memoirs.

January 31, 2010

I have added the transcription of an article from a Southern newspaper, The Staunton Spectator, to the Williamsport '62 page and the Site Map.  The article gives a southern slant to Jackson's movements at Hancock and Romney.

January 25, 2010

The Harper's Ferry Page was updated with new information about the "Shenandoah City" iron foundry burned by Col. Geary following Bolivar Heights.  Information was provided by Harper's Ferry Park Ranger David Fox.

December 31, 2009

The new page "A Change in Plans" is posted.  This covers the history from May 12th - May 28th when General Irvin McDowell took command of Hartsuff's brigade and advanced to Falmouth near Fredericksburg.  The page has a better css template than the previous page posted in September, and I will be working to correct the "Old Crummy" page with the new layout.  The Site Map and History, 1862 pages have been updated with links to the new page.

September 7, 2009

The new page "With Old Crummy to Camp Misery" is posted.  This page chronicles the short period of time when the regiment's brigade was commanded by General John J. Abercrombie, who marched them from Winchester to Warrenton Junction, Va.  This is a large page, with many large images.  This is also the first page using a CSS stylesheet with html code.  The CSS is not as efficient as it could be but I will make future improvements as I get more familiar with the code.  The page looks best if you have at least 800 pixels in the viewing window.  As always, comments are welcome and please report any errors or problems to me using the "contact us" page.  This will probably be the last update for a while.

I have started a new blog dedicated to research I come across while building the website.  The link is: http://13thmass.blogspot.com/

August 28, 2009

The "Advance to Virginia" page has been uploaded and linked to the history '1862' page.The Site Map has also been up-dated to link to the new material.  Please report any errors, typos etc. to me using the "contact us" page.

June 25, 2009

The 'Williamsport, 1862' page has been uploaded, (a most ambitious page). It is linked off of the 'History' > '1862' page.  The Site Map has been updated with new links to this page.  

My screen resolution is set at 1280 x 1024.  Mozilla Firefox is my browser.  Most of the content fits within a box of 816 pixels wide.  The pages will react differently in different browsers.  Please use the 'Contact Us' link in the left-hand navigation bar to report any problems you may have accessing pages, or any other technical difficulties experienced so I can address them.  Hope you enjoy the site.

June 10, 2009

The new page, 'Williamsport, 1862' is completed but not posted.  I am awaiting permission to use an image from the West Point Military Museum on the page.  The new page will be the first link from the history for the year 1862.

New material has been added to the following  pages at this site:  Fort Independence, Departure, Sharpsburg, Darnestown, & Williamsport 1861. There are lots of new photographs and text.

New text icludes excerpts from the history of the 39th Illinois Volunteers;  letters and photographs of 13th Mass band-member Edwin Rice; letters of Oliver H. Walker, Co. C; and articles by Major Elliot C. Pierce, Charles H. Bingham, Co. D,  and Charles Roundy, Co. F.  The Rice letters come from a small booklet published in 1975, titled "Civil War Letters of Edwin Rice"  Edited by Ted Perry.  Three letters of Oliver Walker, Company C were received from the curator of the Western Maryland Room, Hagerstown Library.  Images from the Boston Public Library & the Library Company of Philadelphia have also been added.

The Fort Independence page has several new photographs of the fort & a letter of Edwin Rice.  One of the new photos is an aerial shot from the Boston Public Library Prints Department.

The Departure page - a beautiful vintage photograph of the Boston Waterfront that includes the area known as 'Long Wharf" has been added, courtesy of the Boston Public Library, Prints Department. There is also a new illustration of the Cooper Shop Refreshment Saloon in Philadelphia, courtesy of the Library Company of Philadelphia.  There are two new newspaper accounts from the Philadelphia Inquirer, August 1st, & August 2nd, 1861, chronicling the 13th's arrival and passage through the city.

The Sharpsburg page now includes an historic photo of the town.  Two letters of Oliver H. Walker, Company C, obtained from the Western Maryland Room of the Hagerstown Library have been added to the page, as well as an article by Elliot C. Pierce; "A Midnight Ride."  The page contains a photograph of Pierce.

The Darnestown page now has a graphic diagram of the camp created after an original drawn by band member Edwin Rice.

The Williamsport 1861 page has a new image of the town, albeit a poor one, taken from a magazine issue of North and South.  Excerpts from the book "The History of the 39th Regiment, Illinois Volunteer Infantry, "Yates Phalanx" in the War of the Rebellion, 1861-1865, by Charles M. Clark, M.D., have been added to this page, detailing the arrival of the 39th Illinois at Williamsport, and their inter-actions with the 13th Mass Regiment.  Four letters of Edwin Rice and a letter of Oliver H. Walker  have been added to this page.  A short biography of Walker is included.  New photographs include a portrait of William Blanchard, Co. B, and Sgt. George Pfaff, boss teamster.  I have  added the only known war-time image of the 13th Mass Band, touched up in Photoshop.  The image comes from the wonderful collection of Edwin Rice's letters edited by Ted Perry.

The Hankcock page now includes a wonderful new vintage photograph of the town, circa 1910 provided by Mr. Wayne Keefer of the Hancock Historical Society.  There is also a contemporary photo of the town.  Two new articles from the history of the 39th Illinois have been added.  One titled "Dr. Clark and the Rebel Flag" features Capt. Joe Cary, Co. B whose photo has been added.  Dr. Clark of the 39th IL  is also pictured.  A vintage photograph of the B& O railroad bridge over the Cacapon River is also added.

May, 2009

The website folder structure was re-organized.  This caused a problem with many broken links for which I apologize.  Hopefully these have all been fixed.  Please report a broken link by contacting me from the feedback page.

There are some style differences in text between pages.  I'm trying to decide between Arial text for the yellow pages, and Times New Roman for all the pages.