Goldsboro N.C. Mch 28^th 1865

 

Dear Sister

                        I believe I am most indebted to you for favors in the letter line & will consequently address my first letter to you.

 

                        Yesterday and the day before I received a hatfull of mail including the watch & money and I guess all the letters that have had time to reach this point. I most heartily approve of Father's resolution to direct write anyhow & if in ignorance of my exact whereabouts to direct to "Cape Cod; Nantucket & all along the coast" for if the number of the regiment is on the envelope it would find me if directed to the Sandwich Islands. You may perhaps imagine, but I am altogether unable to express, my satisfaction at finding so full & complete reports of home affairs, though my gladness was mingled with concern at hearing of Father's and Mother's illness. I hope before this that their health may be entirely re-established.

 

                        I suppose of course you would like to hear / something more of our travels than I was able to tell in my brief note written at Fayetteville & I will proceed at some length to speak of it.

 

                        I have already told of our leaving Savannah and the march to Sister's ferry, & will begin with our crossing Savannah river & plunging out of sight and heaving into the swamps and quicksands of South Carolina.

 

                        Breaking camp on the afternoon of Feb 4^th we crossed the river & two miles of swamp & camped on an island of slight elevation above the surrounding bog, next days march took us to dry land & on the 6^th the roads were enough better to admit of our marching 15 miles, though it was late before our teams could get up. Rain fell during the entire night and next day till afternoon, as a consequence we only marched 7 miles (building roads most of the way) & camped at night at Hickory Hill. here we met a supply train for the 17^th A.C. and received a small mail. I got for my share the diary just in the nick of time 8^th & 9^th much the same as the others except that the rain ceased & it turned cold. On the 9^th / we waded a swamp several rods wide & nearly knee deep. The water was "auful" cold, it seemed a wonder how it could get so cold & not freeze more; getting over we built fires & dried ourselves while the trains were crossing. In the afternoon crossed another, much huger swamp & the Salkehatchie river, one of the head waters of the Combahee. the citizens told these swamps had always been considered impassable at this season "but you wis got over some how". Quite a sharp fight occurred here between the advance of the 17^th A.C. and the rebel cavalry under Gen. M^cLaws who were strongly intrenched but while a small force of skirmishers kept them engaged in front our forces crossed higher up and the Johnnies "lit out".

 

                        From this time till we reached Columbia no resistance was offered but near Columbia they had some considerable fortifications and at first seemed quite disposed to defend them but our boys crowded them out of line after line of out works till on the evening of Feb. 15^th they were forced back into their main works and these were abandoned during the night. Next day we moved up onto the bluff opposite / the town and about one mile distant from the state house, "the gem of the ocean" as the boys facetiously called it, showed to good advantage and as the greater part of our corps was in full sight in a large open field I doubt not the citizens and Johnnies did about as much staring as we. In referring to it we always speak of it as the review of the 15^th A.C. by Gen. Beauregard.

 

            While on this bluff a serg^t of Co. 'A' was wounded in the thigh; the only man we lost but not at all dangerously. during the night we moved up three miles and crossed Saluda river and after some sharp skirmishing on the morning of the 17^th the pontoons were laid over Broad river and we moved forward and occupied the town.

 

            The citizens seemed just about frightened out of their wits and came into the streets bringing tobacco, segars, books, whiskey &c.&c. and gave to the men in hopes of gaining their good will, but such acts in such places don't generally have a very good effect, and this was no exception to the general rule. /

 

Our division moved out 1½ miles to the southeast and went into camp. Shortly after dark fires broke out in the city and all night long the whole sky was illuminated. I started up town to see the sight but on arriving near the State-house the coals & sparks flew too thick & I returned, but not before I took a good look at the old state house in which the first ordinance of secession was passed, now boiling with flame from basement to chimney top.

 

            The result was, the best three fourths of the town was burned, and the rest sacked most thoroughly. In fact during our entire course through the state of South Carolina hardly a decent house remains was left standing. We were occupied during the next two days in tearing up & burning railroad, of which we destroyed 15 miles toward Kingsville. An immense amount of supplies, ammunition & cotton was destroyed some 20 pieces artillery & quite an amount of small arms were taken, also considerable clothing for the rebel army.

 

            Monday the 20^th found us on the road to Camden which we reached by a very circuitous route (as / we crossed Wateree river 25 or 30 miles higher up than the town) on the 24^th and on the 26^th arrived at Tillers ferry on Lynch creek, & the last four days had been almost one incessant rain storm and had rendered all the streams many times their usual size; as far as we could see into the swamp there was nothing but water & trees but it must be crossed & in our turn we struck in, I with my pants under my arm & my shoes hung on my sabre which I carried on my shoulder. The water was in places waist deep in the road and the unlucky wight who got out of the road was sure to go in out of sight. worse than the depth was the cold, which was intense (Feb 26^th, mind) and it was three fourths of a mile wide. I don't believe I shall soon forget how cold water feels, it seemed until I got benumbed as if it would freeze the feet & legs entirely off from me but I experienced no ill effects from it. The first regiment over hadn't time to dress before the rebel cavalry made their appearance in force & one or two companies were deployed as skirmishers rather "en dishabille" as their entire / costume was composed of a shirt, a hat & a cartridge box. They captured a few prisoners just from Lee's army who expressed great wonderment at the way the "western Yanks" dressed in the winter. Remained here two days & a half before the train could be got across then (Mch 1^st) took the Cheraw road & marched 8 miles not getting to camp till 11 P.M. During the next three days we moved slowly forward, by reason of bad roads, arriving at Cheraw on the afternoon of Mch 4^th

 

            Here were found large amounts of ammunition supplies, equippage of all kinds, cotton & 35 pieces of artillery, one of them bearing the inscription "Presented to the state of South Carolina by friends abroad". Sunday the 5^th was occupied in destroying the cotton, ammunition, machinery, &c. &c. The contents of the Charleston arsenal had been sent here just in time to fall into our hands and of course shared the fate of the rest i.e. destruction. Crossing Pedee river on the 6^th we moved out six miles & camped till morning then pushed on ten miles farther. here our fine weather gave out / and we built roads (corduroy) about half the way from there to Fayetteville some 50 miles. Crossed the North Carolina line on the 8^th, on the 9^th we moved very slowly till dark when a creek rose high enough to carry away the bridge & owing the delay caused by building another we were till 1 A.M. getting to bed. Next day the 10^th was more pleasant and about the middle of the afternoon we encamped congratulating ourselves on our good fortune but about ten minutes after I had gone to bed orders came to move forward four miles. greatly against my inclinations I arose, packed up & very soon we started; after going about a mile & a half we overtook the train and from that time till 2 A.M. we waited; finally our brigadier Gen. Rice put us in camp on his own hook and lying down beside a huge fire & roasted & froze (one side one and one the other) till daylight, then roused and were soon "en route". this day's march would have been comparatively easy & pleasant if it were not for our loss of sleep on the two previous nights. we marched 13 miles & camped about 8 P.M. & next day (the 12^th) brought us to Fayetteville 

 

Fayetteville was by all odds the best example of a town "gone to seed" that I ever came across the only modern looking buildings were those belonging to the arsenal & built by the U.S. before the war. these which were quite extensive, covering some 50 acres, were completely battered down with "ex tempore" battering rams, such as bars of rail road iron & shafts belonging to the most ponderous machinery & the ruins were fired & the combustible parts entirely destroyed, leaving nothing but a confused mass of broken machinery, stone & brick.

 

            Here we also found a large amount of the former contents of the Atlanta arsenal which after being carted all over the confederacy were finally destroyed to prevent their falling into the hands of the 'Yanks'. There were quite a number of small gunboats in Cape Fear river and the officers & men all turned out to get a look at "the wild army"—People east have almost as strange ideas of the western army as the rebel women & children had three years ago. The naval officers who, one would think, ought to have more sense, express their surprise / at our looking "just like white folks" as the Mississippian said when he first saw Yankees. We ask them what they expected to see & they say they hardly know. their idea was that Sherman's army was composed of barely half civilized backwoodsmen; great burly fellows of the "half horse half alligator" stamp and instead they find an army that will compare favorably (in appearance even) in every respect but clothing, with the famous "Army of the Potomac". Another source of astonishment is the good spirits which are universal, everyone feels good all over, feels just as good as he knows how, in marked contrast (they say) with the eastern armies. I am not surprised that they wondered a little for when we crossed Cape Fear river, as on most of the campaign, about every third or fourth man carried a ham or side of bacon, another of the four a bag of meal, a third a frying pan & bag of beans while the fourth generally had a small pail holding from four to six quarts, and three fourths of our living the boys picked up in the country, consequently when forage was plenty they lived / well & when it was scarce they went hungry. But to return to our march, we crossed the river (Cape Fear) on Mch 14^th camping shortly after. Next day, which was rainy, we marched to Black or South river on the Clinton road, found the Johnnies on the opposite bank of the stream with two pieces of artillery which they worked pretty lively but without doing much damage. After dark ours and two other regiments were sent down to endeavor to effect a crossing it was necessary to wade to the middle & both the other regiments got the full benefit of it but only part of ours had entered the water when the Johnnies were found to have withdrawn and we returned to camp rejoicing. After this moved forward eight or ten miles per day (nothing occurring) (except the capture of three of our regiment while foraging, among them the cook of my mess John Igon) till the 19^th when the Johnnies attacked the left composed of the 14^th & 20^th corps & got soundly thrashed we marched half the night & next day measured off 17 miles between 7 & 1 the advance skirmishing constantly during the last eight miles & driving the Johnnies so fast / that we had enough to do to follow.

 

Finally being reinforced or rather driven back on their main body they made a stand and it was not thought advisable to push them farther. We skirmished heavily during the remainder of that day & the next (the 21^st) but that night they withdrew leaving their dead & some wounded (I heard, I did not see the wounded) & altogether about 4000 or 5000 prisoners in our hands, as we were not in condition to pursue, 10,000 of our army being barefoot and more than that nearly naked we marched to Goldsboro arriving & encamping on the 24^th lacking just four days of two months since we started from Savannah. Next day we got our mail and I am happy to repeat I was not one of "Les Miserables" this time. I don't know but the length of this will terrify you. if so divide it around among the family and call it an answer to all your letters.

 

                        Remember me kindly to all the friends. Am pleased to hear Mr. Partridge's salary has been increased

 

With much love

Your Aff Bro

Laurens                                  

 

[pencil note]

Lauren Wolcott

Co. D.

52^nd Ill.Vol.Inf

 

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Tell Sam I have already expressed my opinion about his enlisting. it has only been confirmed by later experience. Just let those fellows who are liable to draft either go or buy a substitute and don't do so foolish a thing as to enlist.

SOURCES