Person:William Waggoner (5)

Some of the Experiences of Corprel W. E. Waggoner in the Civil War, 1862 to 1865.

The 123 Ill. Infantry was made up at Mattoon in July and August 1862, and I enlisted july 6th, 1862 in Co. H. , 123 Ill. Inft. Abram O Banbuskirk Captain, and James Monroe Colonel of the Regiment. We were Mustered into service the 6th day of September. We moved by rail to Louisville Ky., when we got to Louisville, Beneral Brag with his army was in about 3 miles of the town. The third night my Company was sent out on the Frankfort Turn Pike Road for picket duty. While on duty along in the night I could see the rebels rise up out of the ground and start for us, they kept that up all night, but never got any closer. I don't think there was a rebel in a mile of us, it was all imagination. Two or three nights after this the Rebels ran their cannon down the read a ways and threw a few shells and killed one man, then they seemed to get frightened and started South. We followed them several days to Perrysville or Chappel Hill, where they gave battle, there was 8000 killed and wounded in about 5 hours. We had been away from home only 18 days when in this battle several of the Regiment got killed and wounded and our Brigade General Terril, was Killed. I can not just give the date of this Battle. Our Regiment got badly scattered in the fight. Three other men and myself got out of the fight as soon as we could, one of them was shot through the hand, we were starving for water, my tongue swelled up in my mouth till I could not talk. We went up in a corn field about a mile from the fight and found a good spring of water, we stayed there a while and drank all the water we could and filled up our canteens and went on a little farther and found some shocks of corn, we put them down for a bed, put some over us for a cover, I lost my overcoat in the fight and we did not have out blankets with us. Nest morning we went to a farm house to find something to eat. We killed and dressed a turkey, got a kettle and had a pot pie, we found flour in the house, the family had left home the day before on account of the battle. That afternoon I went to my Regiment and found the Colonel and a few men, I stood my gun up with a few others and was getting ready for supper, I heard a shot behind me and looked around, the Colonel's bou had shot a negro boy, about the age of 11 years squarely between the eyes, killed him dead. That night some one stold my gun so I had to find some dead man's gun to use. We stayed here 3 days to bury the dead, then we went on to Boonsville Ky., on the Kentucky River 20 miles from Lexington stayed there on guard a week or two, then we was sent to Glasscow after Morgan's forces, we ran him around for the next month or two. We were then went to Green River to guard the railroad bridge over the Green River at Mumphordsville on the Louisville & Nashville Railroad. Stayed there until January 1863. Then we were sent to Murfreesborough Tenn; here we stayed until the first of March, while here we went on several scouting trips. One time 4 Regiments were out 15 miles from Murfreesborough and ran on to Morgan's forces of 7,000 men had a fight near Milton Tenn. A good many of our men were killedand wounded. My Captain, Abram O. Vanbuskirk fell in about 15 feet of me shot through the head, and a private was shot through the head in 6 feet of where I was. The fight lasted about 3 hours. The rebels finally pulled off and left after going around us; the 4 Regiments were formed in a hallow square. While we were a Murfreesborough I was taken sick with intermitent fever, and about the first of March our Army was ordered South, and I was sent back to Nashville to the hospital. Rejoined the regiment after two months at Bridgport, Ala. While at Murfreesborough, Wilder's Brigade drew horses and was mounted Infantry. The Brigade was made up of the 17th and 72 Ind. and 98 and 123 Ill., commanded by Colonel Wilder of the 172nd Ind., but was promoted to Brigade General. Our Grigade was sent around over the Cumberland Mountains from Bridgport in front of Chattanooga our battery threw shell across the Tennessee River in Chattanooga while our main army crossed the Tennessee River at Bridgport, Alabama. Then we moved up the river ten miles and forded the river and went on out past Ringgold Ga. and on to Recaca Hut, here the rebels got to many for us, so we had to retreat, fell back to Chickamajua Creek where the big battle was fought on the 19th and 20th of September, 1863. Where 16,000 of our boys in blue fell wounded or dead, our Brigade was in this battle two days. Then we were called away to Chattanooga, the rebel forces under General Wheeler had crossed the Tennessee River where we did a few days before and went back on the railroad to tear it up and to destroy the army supplies and we crossed the river North of Chattanooga on the pontoon bridge and followed them 20 days, had some fighting every day. The 19th day they made a stand at Farmington Tenn. where several were killed on both sides. Colonel James Monroe of the 123 was so badly wounded he died two days later. We took 2 cannons from them all they had. We stayed the rest of the fall about Huntsville Ala., and withered 7 miles West of Huntsville. Early in 1864 we were ordered to join Shermans Army at Chattanooga to go on the Atlanta Campaign. Wilder's Brigade was ordered in front at Rosaca and Big Shanty, we had some fighting at Kinisaw Mountain where the rebels stopped our advance awhile, them orders came for our brigade to go on the lift of our army to draw their attention while the main army went by the right flanks and around them. The rebel army fell back to Atlanta where we had considerable fighting. We burned the railroad and tore it up East and South of Atlanta, took the red hot rails and wrapped them around Jackoak Trees. We were not out of sound of musketry or cannon for over four months. When Sherman started on his march through Georgia to the sea, Wilder's brigade was sent back to Lewisville Ky. To draw a new outfit of horses. In December 64 John Star Walt and I took French Leave and went home for ten days and had Christmas at home. When we got back to Louisville we drew a new set of Horses, just after New Years 65, then we started on the march South, went through Kentucky and Tennessee in freezing cold weather, stopped on the banks of the Tennessee River sometime in February, made camp for the rest of the winter. We lived on corn the next eight days. We got feed for our horses and had to take half of the corn from the horses for us to live on as the Quarter Master failed to order any rations for us, so we had to wait 8 days for the boat to make to round trip. Early in March we got orders to join General Wilson's expidition through Alabama and Georgia. We crossed the Tennessee River at Waterlew and went South to Selma, Ala. General Forrest with his forces met us out the day before we got to Selma dnd the 17th Ind. had a fight with them and took two cannons, and the rebels captured 10 men of the 17th, but seen they could not keep them so shot them. Next day we had a fight with them at Selma, here our Grigade made a charge of 600 yards across an open field to the rebel breast works, here we done our best work during the war, taking 2,000 prisoners and 26 cannons. We stayed here 3 days rolling cannon balls in the Alabama River, there was 8,000 rebels in this fight. Our men laid a pontoon bridge across the Alabama River here in 3 days and 14,000 of our men crossed over on the floating bridge from here we went East through Montgomery, on the Colunbus, Ga. , from there to Andersonville, to Macon. We got the news that Lee's Army had surrendered while at Macon. Jeff Davis was captured. Three other men and myself of the 123 Ill. was sent out to look for Brackenridge, we were gone 3 weeks on the hunt, but did not find him, he went through to Mobile, Ala. When we got to Macon, Wilder's Brigade had left for Nashville, Tenn. so we followed on, had to ride on the freight train on top of box cars. At Nashville on the 27th day of June I got my discharge, from here we went to springfield Ill. to draw our last pay, was there on the 4th of july 1865. Governor Dick Oglesby welcomed us home. We arrived home at Mattoon, where there was a great crowd to welcome us on July 10, 1865.