History Of The 72d Indiana Volunteer Infantry Of The Mounted Lightning Brigade - Chapter Fifteen

Join us on a gripping journey with the 72nd Indiana Volunteer Infantry as we travel on their march to Scottsville, Kentucky in November 1862. How the soldiers faced relentless weather, engaged in humorous and unexpected encounters, and dealt with the harsh realities of camp life. You'll learn about the clever ways soldiers exploited the Confederate dollar's devaluation, and hear about the hilarious coat swap by Captain Hanah that epitomizes the quirky, resourceful spirit of the Union army. Colonel Miller’s candid observations on the local populace provide a poignant backdrop to the soldiers' struggles.

You'll get a taste of both the light and dark sides of camp life, from the thrill of new overcoats and the comedic theft of livestock, to the sobering tales of illness and death. This immersive episode promises a rich, multifaceted look at the lives of Civil War soldiers, blending historical insight with compelling human stories.

Chapters

• 0:12 Life in Civil War Camps
• 17:37 War Camp Life
• 24:03 Soldiers' Transition and Legacy

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:12

Old John Brown's body lies a-mouldering in the grave While weep the sons of bondage whom he ventured all to save. But though he sleeps, his life was lost while struggling for the slave. His soul is marching on.

Speaker 1: 0:31

Glory, glory, hallelujah.

Speaker 3: 0:37

Welcome to War of the Rebellion, stories of the Civil War. I am your host, leon, and this is a reading of the history of the 72nd Indiana Volunteer Infantry of the Mounted Lightning Brigade, chapter 15, november 11th to November 28th 1862. March to Scottsville. Dumont ordered to go home, a new place Colonel Miller's description of the natives, drill school In abundance to eat, lousy as Lazarus, trading lids from pillboxes and canceled postage stamps for chickens and etc. The Negro gallows, captain Hannah's vest swap. March to Gallatin, spoon to the right or left at the case may be. Draw overcoats at Gallatin. Go into camp.

Speaker 3: 1:46

On the 11th the regiment moved for Scottsville, kentucky, 25 miles from Bowling Green, making 18 miles over roads that were little traveled but well cushioned with the autumn and other large forest leaves. On the 25th we arrived about noon in a driving wind and cold rain and took up the day in trying to find a camping place and in building fires and fixing temporary shelters, only to be ordered to another place Before we settled the camp. A detail of 100 men from the 72nd was made to go back and repair the roads so that rations could be hauled from Bowling Green. While the regiment was being settled, some of our men built a fire and a man dressed in citizen's clothing came up and stood warming himself and finally turned around and gave the fire a kick. This made one of the men who had helped build the fire very mad and he raved out you, dashed old fool, what did you do that for? What are you fooling around here for? Anyhow, I think you'd better go home now. We don't want any more of you. When the angry soldier stopped his clatter, the old fellow said with a peculiar nasal that every man in the regiment would know on the darkest night that ever blew. Well, eagad, I expect you're about right, soldier. I ain't got any business here and I'll go. As General Dumont stalked away with his old shawl over his head, the laugh was on the soldier who had mistaken his general for some old citizen and ordered him home.

Speaker 3: 3:30

This Scottsville was a new place. No soldiers of either army had been there before. Situated twenty-five miles from a railroad in a hilly, heavily wooded country, the people were intensely rural, even in the little town itself. In the woods were chestnuts, hickory, nuts, haws and grapes, pigs, mutton, sheep, milk all that heart could wish. And had these things been temperately used, they would have greatly benefited us, as we had been so long on hard army rations that scurvy had begun to appear. But with the soldier it is always a feast or a famine, and most of them ate so much as to make themselves sick.

Speaker 3: 4:15

On the day after we arrived, Major Carr, who had recently been promoted from captain of Company B, a most accomplished drillmaster, organized a school for the instruction of commissioned and non-commissioned officers and tactics, including skirmish drill. This was of great advantage and improved us rapidly. Squad company and battalion drill was pushed every day the weather would permit and the 72nd was the best drilled regiment in the division and officers from all the other regiments often came to see us drill. With overeating and with the unhealthy location of the camp and the cold rains that fell about every other day, homesickness and physical ailment increased to an alarming extent in the brigade and touched the 72nd. A little Coughs and colds became fearful and the picket post could be located for miles around by the incessant coughing of the pickets here. Some of the companies became thoroughly lousy. We had a sprinkle at Shelbyville, a shower at Bowling Green and a deluge at Scottsville.

Speaker 3: 5:24

We made a desperate effort to get rid of them, for they are too lively to sleep, with Some scorched their hog-hair shirts over the fire, but Greybacks hid down deep between the bristles and could stand it better than the shirts could. Some hung their hog-hair out on a pole to freeze them out, but you might as well try to freeze Eskimo. Some seated themselves on logs in the sun, stripped to the waist, and tried to pick them out from amongst the bristles, but you might as well try to pick the drops from the ocean, for the cattle bred faster on one shirt in the sun than five skillful cotton pickers could pick them off. Some borrowed big kettles from the natives and put their shirts in them and boiled them all day and all night. This process killed most of the graybacks and it drew up the hog-hair shirts until they were not large enough for a doll's baby dress, and many of them fell apart like sand as soon as the stiffening was out.

Speaker 3: 6:28

These wretched vermin got into every stitch of clothing a man wore when a company set about, and in earnest. They could keep them pretty well subdued but always retained enough in a dormant condition to seed the whole regiment in a few days of favorable neglect and dirt. The boys had a saying that if there ever came a time when a Greyback could not be found in a company, someone in that company was going to die. Sure, we call these pestiferous vermin Greybacks because we called the rebels that name and because we got them from the rebels and because there was no other creature on earth as mean as a rebel but a body louse. But we have loused the subject and must return.

Speaker 3: 7:16

A country is a pretty sure index to its people. This country was poor and the people were also and the most ignorant of any we had yet seen. Colonel Miller says in his notes of November 15th, went to town today and saw a lot of the natives. They are of the real butternut stock. The men are long, gangle-kneed and look as though they had lived on raw persimmons all their lives, while the women are just as scrawny but seem to have children by instinct, intuitively or some other process. One day, while out on picket, we saw Limber Jim of Company F buy five roasted chickens and twenty pies for twenty dollars in Confederate money and get two dollars good money back in change. Webb Reed of Company F bought a basket full of cornbread with the lid off of a tin pill box. This was about the time that postal change came into circulation and the natives were not well posted as to its appearance and we have seen the men on picket buy any amount of cornbread, apples, potatoes, chickens and etc. With cancelled postage stamps which had been carefully removed from old letters.

Speaker 3: 8:32

Of course we did not endorse this method of putting down the rebellion but as faithful chroniclers of events gives these facts as examples of Yankee shrewdness over Southern chivalry. Shrewdness over southern chivalry. There was one picket post east of Scottsville, about two miles, on a lonesome country road which lay through a deep forest. The picket post was on a little branch which crossed the road. In a small opening near the road and branch stood a large upright post from which projected a great beam at the height of about ten feet from the ground. Through this beam was bored a large hole. This was the Negro gallows.

Speaker 3: 9:19

We learned from an aged Negro man many facts about this gallows and the victims hung on it. He said the gallows had been standing for several years and that many negroes had been hung on it. Da is der graves, massa, said he as he pointed to some graves near the gallows. The graves had all been covered over with rails but on many the rails had rotted and fallen into the sunken graves. Some of the graves were not more than a year old. What were the Negroes hung for? We asked oh, I don't know. We black uns done never know nothing bout sich fairs, but we feels purity sartain. Most of them were hanged. Case day was old. He proceeded to explain that often when a Negro became old and worthless some sort of charge was trumped up against him in the courts. And if the master could get the court to allow a fair price for the Negro, he was hanged and the master got the cash for him. We do not know that. There was the least truth in the statement he said. A young Negro was condemned to be hung and his master, a big man, got him loose because the price fixed on him was not enough.

Speaker 3: 10:35

Captain Hanna of Company H was detailed as provost-marshal of Scottsville. As there was an abundance of applejack in the country, the captain was soon hail-fellow-well-met with all the leading citizens and one day, while in his balmiest mood, he traded his military vest with one of the largest citizens for a homespun homemade vest of dark material with red stripes running across the breast. It was a wonderful garment, reaching from the captain's chin almost to his knees. The vest trade passed as a good joke until we got to Murphysboro and the captain one day reported to Colonel Wilder for duty. The eye of the dowdy chief scanned the vest and blazed with indignation and he roared Captain, how dare you come into my presence with that vest on? You know that it is not the regulation garment. Leave me at once and do it quick. The captain went away and remarked I don't believe Wilder likes my vest a damned bit from a few remarks he made about it.

Speaker 3: 11:45

Several men deserted at this place. The country around, being sparsely settled and heavily wooded, was a good place in which to hide. While here we did more and better drilling than ever before or afterwards At this place. Adjutant Rice was promoted to be AAG on General Joseph J Reynolds' staff with rank of Captain and, to our regret, left us. Sergeant Major William K Burns became acting adjutant of the regiment and was subsequently commissioned as adjutant and made a very excellent officer. Captain Haram B Collins, company K, was made adjutant of the brigade and Lieutenant John B Crick of Company G was made brigade inspector.

Speaker 3: 12:30

Our thirteen days at this place were quite remarkable. We had more to eat, more drilling, more sickness than at any other camp in our service. More than half the regiment were sick and many died. On Tuesday November 25th, we struck tents and took up the line of march at 7 am for Gallatin, tennessee, 35 miles southwest. Little of interest occurred on this march. The weather was quite cold of nights, freezing the ground two inches deep, and as we had only our summer clothing, neither overcoats nor blankets, we suffered intensely.

Speaker 3: 13:09

On the night of the 25th we camped at the rock house. The night was so bitter cold that the men, to economize blankets, slept six in a squad or pile. They pinned two blankets together to lie on and pinned four others together to cover with thus giving every man the benefit of three blankets or others together to cover, with thus giving every man the benefit of three blankets. This is not the most pleasant way to sleep, but it is better than freezing the men in such a bed, having to all lie with their faces the same way, which makes it very warm for the four between the two outside men, but cold for the two on either flank. All had to turn over at once, but cold for the two on either flank. All had to turn over at once, and when some fellow would lie until the lower side was almost freezing from the cold ground. He would yell out Spoon to the right, and all six would flop over on their right sides. About the time one got sound asleep, someone else would call out Spoon to the left, and over would go the pile onto their left sides and thus, upon the frozen ground, the night would be worn away.

Speaker 3: 14:15

That night many sheltered themselves in the leaves of the forest on the hill and many others in the clefts of the rocks which projected from the hills. That night, some company-eye men who could not sleep determined to forage a little, they lit out and soon found a plantation that promised plenty, but nothing that could crow or squeal was found. After scouting about the premises a while, they heard a chicken crow which sounded as if under the house, and inspection proved that it was there with others. The question was how to get them out. As a large family was in the house, not yet gone to bed, part of the boys agreed to go into the house to warm, and others agreed to go under the house and get the chickens, while those within talked, laughed and clattered their feet upon the carpetless floor to drown the noise of the chickens. The plan worked like a charm and the chickens went into camp.

Speaker 3: 15:15

Next morning, 26th, just as we started from Rock House, two cavalrymen rode up to the house from which the company I-men had taken the chickens. One of them dismounted and took after a turkey which ran under the house and he after it. Just then the old woman came out with a big, heavy split broom and as the fellow undertook to come out with the turkey, she belted him over the head. After making two or three unsuccessful efforts to get out, he drew his cheese knife saber and began to tickle her ankles and cried out If you don't get away from there, I'll cut your old legs off. She fled and the scamp, having overpowered the broom with the sword, galloped away with the turkey. On this morning, as soon as the men got up, they began the old and dolorous cry "'Oh, oh, overcoats, oh, oh, overcoats' and kept it up all day, especially when over-quartermaster Lieutenant Dewey passed. The shouts for overcoats were deafening and in disgust he put his spurs to his horse and ran to Nashville, got our overcoats and brought them to us speedily.

Speaker 3: 16:32

On that same 26th of November we passed the Tennessee line and camped at Gallatin late at night. On the night of the 26th, a soldier named George W Dodd of Company B, who had marched all day, died in his tent. On the morning of the 27th we went into regular camp, pitched tents and had a grand jubilee, drawing our blue, long-forked-tailed, heavy-caped horsehair overcoats. Every fellow got a fit. The coats of the tall men reached to their calves, the coats of the short men reached to their heels or swept the ground. They had no pockets in them, but the boys soon inserted a pocket on each side as big as a bag, and some put a big breast pocket on each side. When a fellow stole from one place all he could carry away in his overcoat pockets, there was but little left but the women and babies.

Speaker 3: 17:37

Okay, let's go ahead and finish the episode up with our show notes for chapter 15. Certainly a very interesting chapter. There's a couple of things I want to talk about. Certainly a very interesting chapter. There's a couple of things I want to talk about. The first thing that popped up to me that's really fascinating is the inflation. And a Union soldier, they note, makes off with a larder for $20. Confederate, he had five roast chicken and 20 pies, and also $2 a bag. I think that these people that they had encountered had not known about the.

Speaker 3: 18:26

Confederate dollar devaluation, because it was like 30 cents to the gold dollar at this time. And I don't know. Yeah, I don't think that's right. I think they got ripped off. I can bet you that because this town was just far out of the way and didn't know. I mean, I guess they just didn't know. That's crazy, because just a year after this event, the Confederate dollar would be worth only six cents to the gold dollar. So I mean, there's just so much going on and there has been 100,000 articles and papers written about the Confederate economy. They are out there. If you want to go down that rabbit hole and talk about their bonds to gold ratio and all sorts of stuff, it's, it's out there.

Speaker 3: 19:05

Then they start trading with old stamps that are worthless for food. My goodness, it's like it's so DV. Oh, it's, they're fleecing them. It's so devious. Um, it's kind of funny. These guys are definitely old soldiers by now. Uh, they, they. They know the chops of what it means to be a soldier. I love it, but the absolute highway robbery that they get away with is like mind numbing almost. It's usually the other way around, where the soldiers are the ones that are getting ripped off. So very interesting, all right.

Speaker 3: 19:37

The next up is captain Hannah, who is the acting provost, marshall, and he trades coats with a leading citizen. And a sign of goodwill, uh, in a nice trade. Adorable, hilarious, even better, of a reminder that this is just so much of a citizen army of you know, it's, it just is, it's a citizen army. It's made up of citizens, not professional soldiers I mean, there's some, but it's just so much different. Colonel Wilder berating him over, that is pretty great. So if you're a Colonel Wilder fan, you can stick that in your notes as a story to tell. That's just fantastic, especially with such a famous individual such as Mr Wilder himself. All right, but the alternate to this I mean there's a lot of humor.

Speaker 3: 20:31

The opposite is that it's also pretty breathtaking with the amount of darkness that they talk about. They're eating in camp, they're drilling, and then they're just getting sick and dying, and it's just so casual and nonchalant that they talk about it. Such care is taken with hygiene now in the military and we have so many resources to help the sick that it's a completely different reality from American troops now with our vaccine coverage and logistical capabilities. Existence of having to be that be like oh, I just might get sick and die tomorrow is so awful on morale and the type of fortitude, the mental toughness that you have to have. It's not a crazy abnormal level, because obviously we've seen Marines in Guadalcanal as an example who were with sickness and fought it out with the Japanese. But to have the whole war be that way, the entire time, is just a way of life. It's awful. And also the fact that they were doing this in winter without overcoats oh my gosh, just it's so frustrating, all right.

Speaker 3: 21:59

Another point of hilarity, though, is when he describes all of the soldiers having to sleep in like a spoon formation where they're all spooning each other. Done it, baby. And I bet there are a lot of veterans listening to this who haven't had the same reaction. The talk about how the soldiers were soldiers had to say spoon to the left or spoon to the right, making everyone turn over, is pretty comedic and very hilarious. We did the same thing, but I don't think we had a spoon to the left or a spoon to the right. We just said like flip, just, oh great. I love it. An American tradition, or maybe a soldier's tradition. I don't know if we can imagine Legionnaires doing the same thing, all right, and I love just the pure uncomfortableness of the entire event, like you're trying to sleep, trying to stay warm, but you're just constantly flip-flopping all night. Oh my gosh, just really sends me. Flip-flopping all night, oh my gosh, just really sends me.

Speaker 3: 22:51

The next bit is the chicken heist, where they steal chickens by distracting the owners by sending soldiers in there to, just you know, talk it up and be loud and hang out and then to make off with the chickens. And then, on top of that, you have the turkey incident, where the scalper man comes up and tries to steal the turkey and the uh, old lady beating him with a broom. I really thought that was a trope, but it's good to see that there it comes from somewhere. Um, him threatening her with his saber is very pirate. So, uh, then, when they got their overcoats and they were able to carry more goodies, I I wrote down uh, oh, my goodness, because I can only imagine that you know, previously you had maybe your, your cap that you could carry things in, or your haversack. But now that they have these overcoats with these big, great pockets that they've built, oh, just I'm the amount of things they were shoving in them.

Speaker 3: 23:56

I, I imagine it was all food, all right, uh, that is the end of my notes. They're pretty close to tennessee, so we'll see what happens next. Be very interesting to see where they kind of transition into this famous lightning brigade at one point. That happens, but we're starting to see them become those seasoned. They already understand what it means to be a soldier while they're out on the road, so we'll see how that carries them forward. With that, my friends, I will see you in the next episode and have a fantastic one. Bye-bye, and have a fantastic one.

Speaker 1: 24:33

Bye-bye. Old John Brown's body lies a-moldering in the grave While weep the sons of bondage whom he ventured all to save. But though he sleeps, his life was lost while struggling for the slave. His soul is marching on.

Speaker 2: 24:52

Glory, glory, hallelujah, glory, glory, hallelujah, Glory, glory, hallelujah For.

Speaker 1: 25:07

His soul is marching on.