MAP OF FORT HENRY, FEBRUARY 6, 1862.
The flag-steamer, the Cincinnati, fired the first shot as the signal for the others to begin. At once the fort was ablaze with the flame of her eleven heavy guns. The wild whistle of their rifle-shells was heard on every side of us. On the Carondelet not a word was spoken more than at ordinary drill, except when Matthew Arthur, captain of the starboard bow-gun, asked permission to fire at one or two of the enemy’s retreating vessels, as he could not at that time bring his gun to bear on the fort. He fired one shot, which passed through the upper cabin of a hospital-boat, whose flag was not seen, but injured no one. The Carondelet was struck in about thirty places by the enemy’s heavy shot and shell. Eight struck within two feet of the bow-ports, leading to the boilers, around which barricades had been built—a precaution which I always took before going into action, and which on several occasions prevented an explosion. The Carondelet fired 107 shell and solid shot; none of her officers or crew was killed or wounded.
CROSS-SECTION OF A CONFEDERATE TORPEDO FOUND IN THE TENNESSEE RIVER.
A, iron rod armed with prongs to fasten upon the bottom of boats going up-stream and act upon B, a lever connecting with trigger to explode a cap and ignite the powder. C, canvas bag containing 70 lbs. of powder. D, anchors to hold torpedo in place.
This torpedo consisted of a stout sheet-iron cylinder, pointed at both ends, about 5½ feet long and 1 foot in diameter. The iron lever was 3½ feet long, and armed with prongs to catch in the bottom of a boat. This lever was constructed to move the iron rod on the inside of the cylinder, thus acting upon the trigger of the lock to explode the cap and fire the powder. The machine was anchored, presenting the prongs in such a way that boats going down-stream should slide over them, but those coming up should catch.
The firing from the armored vessels was rapid and well sustained from the beginning of the attack, and seemingly accurate, as we could occasionally see the earth thrown in great heaps over the enemy’s guns. Nor was the fire of the Confederates to be despised; their heavy shot broke and scattered our iron-plating as if it had been putty, and often passed completely through the casemates. But our old men-of-war’s men, captains of the guns, proud to show their worth in battle, infused life and courage into their young comrades. When these experienced gunners saw a shot coming toward a port, they had the coolness and discretion to order their men to bow down, to save their heads.
After nearly an hour’s hard fighting, the captain of the Essex, going below, and complimenting the First Division for their splendid execution, asked them if they did not want to rest and give three cheers, which were given with a will. But the feelings of joy on board the Essex were suddenly changed by a calamity which is thus described in a letter to me from James Laning, second master of the Essex:
“A shot from the enemy pierced the casemate just above the port-hole on the port side, then through the middle boiler, killing in its flight Acting Master’s Mate S. B. Brittan, Jr., and opening a chasm for the escape of the scalding steam and water. The scene which followed was almost indescribable. The writer, who had gone aft in obedience to orders only a few moments before (and was thus providentially saved), was met by Fourth Master Walker, followed by a crowd of men rushing aft. Walker called to me to go back; that a shot from the enemy had carried away the steam-pipe. I at once ran to the stern of the vessel, and, looking out of the stern-port, saw a number of our brave fellows struggling in the water. The steam and hot water in the forward gun-deck had driven all who were able to get out of the ports overboard, except a few who were fortunate enough to cling to the casemate outside. When the explosion took place Captain Porter was standing directly in front of the boilers, with his aide, Mr. Brittan, at his side. He at once rushed for the port-hole on the starboard side, and threw himself out, expecting to go into the river. A seaman, John Walker, seeing his danger, caught him around the waist, and supporting him with one hand, clung to the vessel with the other, until, with the assistance of another seaman, who came to the rescue, they succeeded in getting the captain upon a narrow guard or projection which ran around the vessel, and thus enabled him to make his way outside to the after-port, where I met him. Upon speaking to him, he told me he was badly hurt, and that I must hunt for Mr. Riley, the First Master, and if he was disabled I must take command of the vessel, and man the battery again. Mr. Riley was unharmed, and already in the discharge of his duties as Captain Porter’s successor. In a very few minutes after the explosion our gallant ship (which, in the language of Flag-Officer Foote, had fought most effectively through two-thirds of the engagement) was drifting slowly away from the scene of action; her commander badly wounded, a number of her officers and crew dead at their post, while many others were writhing in their last agony. As soon as the scalding steam would admit, the forward gun-deck was explored. The pilots, who were both in the pilot-house, were scalded to death. Marshall Ford, who was steering when the explosion took place, was found at his post at the wheel, standing erect, his left hand holding the spoke and his right hand grasping the signal-bell rope. A seaman named James Coffey, who was shot-man to the No. 2 gun, was on his knees, in the act of taking a shell from the box to be passed to the loader. The escaping steam and hot water had struck him square in the face, and he met death in that position. When I told Captain Porter that we were victorious, he immediately rallied, and, raising himself on his elbow, called for three cheers, and gave two himself, falling exhausted on the mattress in his effort to give the third. A seaman named Jasper P. Breas, who was badly scalded, sprang to his feet, exclaiming: ‘Surrender! I must see that with my own eyes before I die.’ Before any one could interfere, he clambered up two short flights of stairs to the spar-deck. He shouted ‘Glory to God!’ and sank exhausted on the deck. Poor Jasper died that night.”
The Essex before the accident had fired seventy shots from her two 9-inch guns. A powder boy, Job Phillips, fourteen years of age, coolly marked down upon the casemate every shot his gun had fired, and his account was confirmed by the gunner in the magazine. Her loss in killed, wounded, and missing was thirty-two.
BETWEEN DECKS—SERVING THE GUNS. AFTER A SKETCH BY REAR-ADMIRAL WALKE.
The St. Louis was struck seven times. She fired one hundred and seven shots during the action. No one on board the vessel was killed or wounded.
Flag-Officer Foote during the action was in the pilot-house of the Cincinnati, which received thirty-two shots. Her chimneys, after-cabin, and boats were completely riddled. Two of her guns were disabled. The only fatal shot she received passed through the larboard front, killing one man and wounding several others. I happened to be looking at the flag-steamer when one of the enemy’s heavy shot struck her. It had the effect, apparently, of a thunder-bolt, ripping her side-timbers and scattering the splinters over the vessel. She did not slacken her speed, but moved on as though nothing unexpected had happened.
From the number of times the gun-boats were struck, it would appear that the Confederate artillery practice, at first, at least, was as good, if not better, than ours. This, however, was what might have been expected, as the Confederate gunners had the advantage of practicing on the ranges the gun-boats would probably occupy as they approached the fort. The officers of the gun-boats, on the contrary, with guns of different caliber and unknown range, and without practice, could not point their guns with as much accuracy. To counterbalance this advantage of the enemy, the gun-boats were much better protected by their casemates for distant firing than the fort by its fresh earth-works. The Confederate soldiers fought as valiantly and as skillfully as the Union sailors. Only after a most determined resistance, and after all his heavy guns had been silenced, did General Tilghman lower his flag. The Confederate loss, as reported, was 5 killed, 11 wounded, and 5 missing. The prisoners, including the general and his staff, numbered 78 in the fort and 16 in a hospital-boat; the remainder of the garrison, a little less than 2600, having escaped to Fort Donelson.
Our gun-boats continued to approach th
e fort until General Tilghman, with two or three of his staff, came off in a small boat to the Cincinnati and surrendered the fort to Flag-Officer Foote, who sent for me, introduced me to General Tilghman, and gave me orders to take command of the fort and hold it until the arrival of General Grant.
General Tilghman was a soldierly-looking man, a little above medium height, with piercing black eyes and a resolute, intelligent expression of countenance. He was dignified and courteous, and won the respect and sympathy of all who became acquainted with him. In his official report of the battle he said that his officers and men fought with the greatest bravery until 1:50 P.M., when seven of his eleven guns were disabled; and, finding it impossible to defend the fort, and wishing to spare the lives of his gallant men, after consultation with his officers he surrendered the fort.
It was reported at the time that, in surrendering to Flag-Officer Foote, the Confederate general said, “I am glad to surrender to so gallant an officer,” and that Foote replied, “You do perfectly right, sir, in surrendering, but you should have blown my boat out of the water before I would have surrendered to you.” I was with Foote soon after the surrender, and I cannot believe that such a reply was made by him. He was too much of a gentleman to say anything calculated to wound the feelings of an officer who had defended his post with signal courage and fidelity, and whose spirits were clouded by the adverse fortunes of war.
When I took possession of the fort the Confederate surgeon was laboring with his coat off to relieve and save the wounded; and although the officers and crews of the gun-boats gave three hearty cheers when the Confederate flag was hauled down, the first inside view of the fort sufficed to suppress every feeling of exultation and to excite our deepest pity. On every side the blood of the dead and wounded was intermingled with the earth and their implements of war. Their largest gun, a 128-pounder, was dismounted and filled with earth by the bursting of one of our shells near its muzzle; the carriage of another was broken to pieces, and two dead men lay near it, almost covered with heaps of earth; a rifled gun had burst, throwing its mangled gunners into the water. But few of the garrison escaped unhurt.
General Grant, with his staff, rode into the fort about 3 o’clock on the same day, and relieved me of the command. The general and staff then accompanied me on board the Carondelet (anchored near the fort), where he complimented the officers of the flotilla in the highest terms for the gallant manner in which they had captured Fort Henry. He had expected his troops to take part in a land attack, but the heavy rains had made the direct roads to the fort almost impassable.
The wooden gun-boats Conestoga, Commander S. L. Phelps, Tyler, Lieutenant-Commander William Gwin, and Lexington, Lieutenant J. W. Shirk, engaged the enemy at long range in the rear of the iron-clads. After the battle they pursued the enemy’s transports up the river, and the Conestoga captured the steamer Eastport. The news of the capture of Fort Henry was received with great rejoicing all over the North.2
GENERAL LLOYD TILGHMAN. FROM A PHOTOGRAPH.
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1 Composition and losses of the Union fleet at Fort Henry: Flag-Officer A. H. Foote, commanding. First Division: Flagship Cincinnati, Commander R. N. Stembel: 6 32-pounders, 3 8-inch, 4 rifled army 42-pounders, 1 12-pounder boat-howitzer; Essex, Commander W. D. Porter: 1 32-pounder, 3 11-inch, 1 10-inch, 1 12-pounder boat-howitzer; Carondelet, Commander H. Walke (same armament as the Cincinnati); St. Louis, Lieut.-Commanding L. Paulding: 7 32-pounders, 2 8-inch, 4 rifled 42-pounders, 1 rifled boat-howitzer. Second Division: Lieut. S. L. Phelps, commanding: Conestoga, Lieut.-Commanding S. L. Phelps: 4 32-pounders; Tyler, Lieut.-Commanding William Gwin: 1 32-pounder, 6 8-inch; Lexington, Lieut.-Commanding J. W. Shirk: 2 32-pounders, 4 8-inch. The Union loss as officially reported was: Cincinnati, killed, 1; wounded, 9. Essex, killed, 6; wounded, 18; missing, 5. Total killed, 7; wounded, 27; missing, 5. Total, 39.—EDITORS.
2 Following upon the capture of Fort Henry (February 6th, 1862) and of Fort Donelson (February 16th), the fortifications at Columbus on the Mississippi were evacuated February 20th. In January General Halleck reached the conclusion that the object for which General Polk had labored in fortifying Columbus had been accomplished, for on the 20th he wrote General McClellan: “Columbus cannot be taken without an immense siege-train and a terrible loss of life. I have thoroughly studied its defenses—they are very strong; but it can be turned, paralyzed, and forced to surrender.” In accordance with the idea suggested in this dispatch, the Federal movement upon Forts Henry and Donelson was decided upon.
In the latter part of January General Beauregard was ordered to report to General Johnston for assignment to duty at Columbus. He arrived at Jackson, Tennessee, about the middle of February, but, being too ill to proceed to Columbus, he requested General Polk to visit him at Jackson. The fall of Forts Henry and Donelson, and the declared purpose of the Federals to push their forces up the Tennessee River, made the further occupation of Columbus a serious question. General Beauregard had sent his chief of staff, Colonel Jordan, and his engineer officer, Captain Harris, up to Columbus, and they had made such reports to him concerning the nature of the works that he was inclined to doubt their efficiency. This, together with the necessity he was under to gather as large a force as possible with which to meet the enemy’s movement up the Tennessee, convinced him that Columbus should be evacuated, and the defense of the river made at Island Number Ten and Fort Pillow. These points he considered not only more defensible than Columbus, but defensible with a smaller force, which would enable him to take a part of the command then holding the river for operations in conjunction with the troops he was gathering along the line of the Memphis and Charleston railroad. When, in the conference at Jackson, Beauregard unfolded these views to General Polk, the latter was not disposed to yield a ready assent to all of them. He recognized the necessity for gathering a force for field operations. It was, indeed, exactly what he and every other prominent officer in the department had, for six months, been urging upon the authorities. He, however, questioned the advisability of giving up Columbus. The works had been accepted by Colonel Gilmer, the chief engineer of the department, an officer who subsequently became the head of the Corps of Engineers in the Confederacy. In spite of the strategical fault which might be committed in an attempt to hold it, General Polk maintained that, just at that time, the moral effect of a determined stand at Columbus would be of great service to the Confederate arms. —DR. WM. M. POLK.
CHAPTER 2
THE WESTERN FLOTILLA AT FORT DONELSON, ISLAND NUMBER TEN, FORT PILLOW AND MEMPHIS.
Henry Walke, Rear-Admiral, U.S.N.
On the 7th of February, the day after the capture of Fort Henry, I received on board the Carondelet Colonels Webster, Rawlins, and McPherson, with a company of troops, and under instructions from General Grant proceeded up the Tennessee River, and completed the destruction of the bridge of the Memphis and Bowling Green Railroad.
On returning from that expedition General Grant requested me to hasten to Fort Donelson with the Carondelet, Tyler, and Lexington, and announce my arrival by firing signal guns. The object of this movement was to take possession of the river as soon as possible, to engage the enemy’s attention by making formidable demonstrations before the fort, and to prevent it from being reënforced. On February 10th the Carondelet alone (towed by the transport Alps) proceeded up the Cumberland River, and on the 12th arrived a few miles below the fort.
Fort Donelson occupied one of the best defensive positions on the river. It was built on a bold bluff about 120 feet in height, on the west side of the river, where it makes a slight bend to the eastward. It had 3 batteries, mounting in all 15 guns: the lower, about twenty feet above the water; the second, about fifty feet above the water; the third, on the summit.1
THE “CARONDELET” FIGHTING FORT DONELSON, FEBRUARY 13, 1862. FROM A SKETCH BY REAR-ADMIRAL WALKE.
When the Carondelet, her tow being cast off, came in sight of the fort and proceeded up to within long range of the batte
ries, not a living creature could be seen. The hills and woods on the west side of the river hid part of the enemy’s formidable defenses, which were lightly covered with snow; but the black rows of heavy guns, pointing down on us, reminded me of the dismal-looking sepulchers cut in the rocky cliffs near Jerusalem, but far more repulsive. At 12:50 P.M., to unmask the silent enemy, and to announce my arrival to General Grant, I ordered the bow-guns to be fired at the fort. Only one shell fell short. There was no response except the echo from the hills. The fort appeared to have been evacuated. After firing ten shells into it, the Carondelet dropped down the river about three miles and anchored. But the sound of her guns aroused our soldiers on the southern side of the fort into action; one report says that when they heard the guns of the avant-courrier of the fleet, they gave cheer upon cheer, and rather than permit the sailors to get ahead of them again, they engaged in skirmishes with the enemy, and began the battle of the three days following. On the Carondelet we were isolated and beset with dangers from the enemy’s lurking sharp-shooters.
On the 13th a dispatch was received from General Grant, informing me that he had arrived the day before, and had succeeded in getting his army in position, almost entirely investing the enemy’s works. “Most of our batteries,” he said, “are established, and the remainder soon will be. If you will advance with your gun-boat at 10 o’clock in the morning, we will be ready to take advantage of any diversion in our favor.”
Hearts Touched by Fire Page 26